Balance is the group feeling challenged and feeling accomplished when they overcome challenges.
That's why I use the D&D books as a basis but then ignore the lore parts and modify the stats to fit the story I want to share.
I've "taken the next step" before as you put it but it's a lot more work and not every player is comfortable with an untested system that may have massive probability or metagaming blind spots. To put it another way, I do what works for my group.
I only use D&D settings as guidelines with the presumption that the stat blocks are fairly balanced according to their intended levels of use.
I have always used my own campaign settings that are shaped by what the characters do, generation by generation.
Sure, D&D out of the box is basically the MCU of TTRPGs, but no one ever stopped me from playing it differently.
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Balance is the group feeling challenged and feeling accomplished when they overcome challenges.
That's why I use the D&D books as a basis but then ignore the lore parts and modify the stats to fit the story I want to share.
I've "taken the next step" before as you put it but it's a lot more work and not every player is comfortable with an untested system that may have massive probability or metagaming blind spots. To put it another way, I do what works for my group.
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