Crafting a fairer Inferno with Forbidden Spreadsheet Lore
summary
Shows a reproducible spreadsheet method that converts unit stats and special abilities into a single power metric by simulating every matchup: about 70 combatants, ~4,900 pairings and 29,400 combat rounds computed in seconds. Uses Excel power-curve simulation with associative tables, XLOOKUP, structured references, SUMIFS and TEXTJOIN to pull ability values, detect tipping points, and flag off-curve or gamebreaking items. Result is faster sanity checks, fewer wasted QA hours, and clear numbers to guide tuning.
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chapters (15)
- 0:00Balancing strategy games intro
- 3:54Tuning matters beyond fairness
- 7:09Rational tuning in design
- 11:27Excel for game designers
- 15:01Solium Infernum combat system
- 18:33Power heuristic in Excel
- 23:30Data hygiene for design
- 27:27Central spreadsheet tracking
- 29:35Value anchors and models
- 33:07Tipping points and resilience
- 37:46Balancing high-stakes games
- 41:45Simulating fights in Excel
- 44:17Results from Solium Infernum
- 46:44Risks of mathematical tuning
- 47:07Q&A: PvP balancing
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