Most of the complaints you hear about RM are obviously made by people that obviously don't know the system well. One of the complaints I used to hear from anti RM people is that the d100 created too much math. This always makes me roll my eyes and I usually say "So you have a hard time figuring out a three digit number compared to a two digit number?" Also, only someone who has never actually played RM would think that you actually have less items to add up in D&D.
I have to agree with you here. I have been playing D&D with a great group of guys for over a year now and I find that math/dice system a pain in the rear end. Sure, the numbers are lower. The highest numbers I've seen in D&D/Pathfinder are high 30's (unless I crit, confirm, and do double damage), but the spell damage, the crit damage, the variable numbers/types of dice make a basic attack round a 3rd Grade Math test.
1D20 + 3D6 +1D6 cold damage +2 from Inspiring Aura +1 from Bless. That's my first attack... I get a 2nd attack.
One of the spells our mage uses is 8D4 + Level Bonus + Focus + whatever else. Really??? Eight freaking dice???
How is that simpler than D100 + OB - Foe's DB? (And the GM subtracts the Foe's DB for you)
The couple of complaints I've seen about math being too much in RM make me shake my head as well. Didn't we learn how to add and subtract in 1st grade? Didn't we start using 3-digit numbers in 2nd grade? I apologize if I've offended anyone, but the addition/subtraction of RM is simply not an excuse. And you are 100% correct, Cory. The complaints are from people who don't know the system well. Once the PC is created, it's roll and add. The GM subtracts the DB. 100 percentile dice seems so much more natural and workable.
Now, I will concede that PC Creation is challenging with so many options available for a PC. You do have to use averages and there is math involved in creating a PC, but with a veteran helping a newbie, that should be a wash because the math is still considerably simpler once gameplay starts. And there are now so many Character generators that use spreadsheets and do all the math for the player. The player no longer has to do math since some amazing people put a ton of time and effort into creating some really complex spreadsheets that calculate EVERYTHING for the player.
The only dice system I've seen that is simpler is that of White Wolf's series. #D10 = degree of success or failure. 10 = auto success. 1 = Auto failure. 10's and 1's cancel each other out. If you have at least one die that succeeds the difficulty level set by the Storyteller, you succeed. The more dice that are successful, the more spectacular you look while you succeed.
*** - Please read this with a grain of salt. I have been working in a college/university for the past 25 years. I have seen the level of education that comes out of high schools into college level and the math skill set is atrocious. Maybe this is a little bit of a sore spot for me as I really get frustrated when I see college freshmen who still can't divide without using a calculator or those who don't even know multiplication tables. I do have a degree of frustration when I hear players complain that RM has too much math. It's 100 percentile. It's based on D100. Cory, you didn't cause my frustration. Your post simply highlighted a recurring frustrating theme that makes me really sad to see and I couldn't agree with you more. RM math isn't the problem. ***