Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Eliza_Stormwhisper 04-09-05, 06:05 AM	I'm running a one-shot game on Sunday, and am making them use the cruellest of all stat-rolling methods: 3d6, in order... no mixing. What are your preferred stat-generating methods? My usual system is 4d6 seven times (I use 7 stats), roll 3 columns and pick one. It's pretty generous, I think.
NehpetsTtocs 04-09-05, 07:22 AM	If I'm the DM I usually allow the standard method if the player wants, but they only get to use it on one occassion. If they don't like their results, I allow them to use a 28 or 32 pt buy (depending on what the other players rolled). I consider myself generous enough, but I don't usually DM. The group I play with now (I'm just a player), rolls until they get the stats they desire. It's not really that big of a deal because nobody really cares about high stats. Most of our characters stats probably fall between the 25 and 32 pt buy with this method anyway. I wouldn't mind playing with 3d6 for stats. I like the early life and death struggles of the game; they make the game exciting for me.
Cog 04-09-05, 09:09 AM	The gaming group I am with used to use 4d6 method, but now go with the 32 point-buy. :)
GUR-I 04-09-05, 09:40 AM	i use the 4d6 system, since it lets even the newest player have a good character.
the_one_true_shea 04-09-05, 10:09 AM	4d6 drop the lowest reroll ones and twos, reroll set if you want to. -playtest group 4d6 drop the lowest, if you want to reroll you loose one of your fourth die on the second set, repeat until you roll 3d6 and set. -video game style hack & slash min maxing 3d6, plus 2d6 assigned. -theme role playing Elite array for real quick games. -and walk-in new players 4d6 drop the lowest, stat point swap up to 6 points, you must take the first stat set you get (hence the point swap). -just comes up some times, I like it, strangly most of my players dont. and yes once or twice, just for fun, 3d6 in order play as they lay. -usually playtest, but sometimes short hack.
Fargren 04-09-05, 11:34 AM	4d6 drop the lowest reroll ones and twos, reroll set if you want to. -playtest group That's waht we're using righ now. Really high stas: my character started woth 17, 17, 16, 15, 14, 13. It seems to work if the challenge is high enough
weasel fierce 04-09-05, 11:49 AM	Classic D&D: 3D6 in order. Sometimes I offer a 7th roll which can replace any of the above. AD&D and (were I to run it) 3.x: 4D6, discard lowest. Arrange in order of choice. NO TRADES though, and no rerolls. Never ever points buy. It works fine in many other games, but for D&D, I prefer rolling dice.
akiir 04-09-05, 11:59 AM	i have a sentace:I HATE POINT BUY SYSTEM!!! okay now that said i usually use 4d6 drop lowest add them then put them where ye want and that is my main method dm akiir
His Majesty 04-09-05, 12:08 PM	I use the organic system from the DMG, but the group rolls together, a number of sets equal to the number of members +1. Then each character picks a set.
Ringmereth 04-09-05, 03:40 PM	I prefer either the 32-point buy, for simplicity and fairness, or 4d6, drop the lowest, no rerolls unless the stats are downright bad, for something a little more interesting. 3d6 or a low point buy ends up awfully un-heroic in my experince, and more than 32 or 4d6 can cause balance issues, so those two are my happy compromise.
allenchan 04-09-05, 03:45 PM	Static ability array, that is, a set of 6 numbers that everyone gets and puts where they please. ie; 17, 16, 14, 12, 10, 8
PurdueDave 04-09-05, 03:52 PM	I'm running a one-shot game on Sunday, and am making them use the cruellest of all stat-rolling methods: 3d6, in order... no mixing. What are your preferred stat-generating methods? My usual system is 4d6 seven times (I use 7 stats), roll 3 columns and pick one. It's pretty generous, I think. Organic is dangerous because it is easy to have no playable spellcasters. The method I like is everyone rolls 4d6 drop the lowest. Take the highest array and deconstruct it to points. Everyone uses these points for point-buy. It's fair and fun and I don't like hearing people whine about having the lowest stats in the group or how they're concept is inferior because of bad luck.
Aricandor 04-09-05, 04:01 PM	My players roll 4d6, discard the lowest six times. Roll three columns, and move around the scores freely. Any array without a total modifier of at least +1 or at least a 13 or higher is rerollable. Quite generous, simply because some of my players are haunted by bad luck with the dice. I once made a character in this fashion, and I didn't roll a single 13+ for about five arrays. That sucked... And, I tend to make rather vicious campaigns, constantly testing the player characters to their limits. It's not unusual with encounters 2-3 EL:s over their average ECL. And at least 2-3 of those per day. On the other hand, it's in a group of 5-6 player characters, two of which have the Leadership feat (and those two are the ones that always show up).
Seeker95 04-09-05, 06:01 PM	As long as everyone has to use the same method in any given group, I like the following: 1. 28-point buy. 2. Array (16 14 12 12 10 8) 3. 4d6 drop lowest 4. 3d6 reroll 1's 5. 3d6 reroll 1's and 2's (in no particular order of preference)
Marchen 04-09-05, 06:12 PM	My preferred method is point-buy, because it let's players create characters as efficiently as they want. It also makes sure that characters don't end up too underpowered or overpowered, and can even help you keep more unscrupulous players from fudging their stat rolls. :mad: But 4d6/drop lowest is fun to do every so often. When I do it I usually let the players have 1 re-roll and 1 trade.
Draco Obscura 04-09-05, 06:20 PM	I agree, point buy is fairest, and easiest. Why do so people hate it so much? I'm actually asking. Those of you who have said you hate point-buy, why? What is wrong with every character having equal oppurtunity (like an array), but being able to flavor their character the way they want to, stat-wise?
epifreak 04-09-05, 06:26 PM	My favorite I've played in was the talk out method. My DM and I talked, and I had to justify my scores, backing them up with my character's back story. I didn't get as high stats as I could have with, say, 4d6 7x or something, but it was much more satisfying because I really felt like I created my character, from the ground up, rather than relying on probability to determine my abilities.
woozygremlin 04-09-05, 09:14 PM	3d6 assigned as desired. Player's may reroll if the sum of all their ability scores is 55 or less.
pentagonal_penguin 04-10-05, 05:13 AM	Our group likes 32 point buy, on the philosophy that stats, and to a lesser extent hp, affect the character too much, and hence should not be rolled.
Vintar 04-10-05, 06:23 PM	When I DM we roll up the standard 4d6 then I roll a 4d6 for each player re-rolling 1's to make sure no one has a 5 or something. As well, if someone wants they can take a race with LA and cancel out 1 LA for the DM re-roll. I figured it out mathamatically and statistically the DM reroll is about = to 1 LA. (Averages at 13.8 and with 4d6 you are almost guarenteed at least one stat as low as 8-10)
The Shaman 04-10-05, 06:30 PM	Presently player characters in the games I GM are made using twenty-eight point buy. I used 4d6, drop lowest, arrange as desired, in the past.
wordserpent 04-10-05, 07:13 PM	My favorite I've played in was the talk out method. My DM and I talked, and I had to justify my scores, backing them up with my character's back story. I didn't get as high stats as I could have with, say, 4d6 7x or something, but it was much more satisfying because I really felt like I created my character, from the ground up, rather than relying on probability to determine my abilities. I like this method a lot. I will allow my players to roll 4d6 and drop the lowest die roll for each stat or alternately they may use the 28 point buy. Oftimes I will allow experienced players to create their character on their own and present it to me later for approval, this way the player gets the character that he or she really wants. if the character has many high scores then I just place greater challenges before them.
Hayabusa 04-10-05, 08:17 PM	I'm running a one-shot game on Sunday, and am making them use the cruellest of all stat-rolling methods: 3d6, in order... no mixing. What are your preferred stat-generating methods? My usual system is 4d6 seven times (I use 7 stats), roll 3 columns and pick one. It's pretty generous, I think. To me, their are only two evil methods of character creation, your method and then point buy. I hate point buy with a passion. I prefer 5d6 drop the lowest two, but I once did 6d6 and even a 4d6. The 6d6 was for an extremely high powered game, where the characters were supposed to be strong.
Draco Obscura 04-10-05, 08:18 PM	To me, their are only two evil methods of character creation, your method and then point buy. I hate point buy with a passion. Why?
Hayabusa 04-10-05, 08:23 PM	Why? I hate point buy because it really eliminates the chance aspect of making a character, plus most of the characters I have seen (and made) using point buy mostly have the same stats, just placed differently.
wordserpent 04-10-05, 08:46 PM	I hate point buy because it really eliminates the chance aspect of making a character, plus most of the characters I have seen (and made) using point buy mostly have the same stats, just placed differently. You have a point there Hayabusa. I myself have had three characters with the same exact stats from the point buy system. However I played them each very differently from each other. The thing I like about point-buy is that if you have an idea of what you want in a character, you are most likely to get it from point buy. For example, if you want to play a monk, you need to have good scores in Dex and Wis primarily and secondarily in Con and Str. With the die roll, you are not as likely to get the scores you need to play the class you want, especially if you are an Old Gamer.
Hayabusa 04-10-05, 09:03 PM	You have a point there Hayabusa. I myself have had three characters with the same exact stats from the point buy system. However I played them each very differently from each other. The thing I like about point-buy is that if you have an idea of what you want in a character, you are most likely to get it from point buy. For example, if you want to play a monk, you need to have good scores in Dex and Wis primarily and secondarily in Con and Str. With the die roll, you are not as likely to get the scores you need to play the class you want, especially if you are an Old Gamer. You have a point as well, but with point buy you can create a character with no real flaws. There is almost no way one can get below a 10 without racial modifiers. And since when is having a convenient character the same as having an interesting character? Please note that I feel that point buy produces convenient characters and dice rolling produces interesting characters.
Draco Obscura 04-10-05, 09:07 PM	When I run use a point buy, I often leave scores below 10, and sometimes ask the DM to allow me to drop a particular score lower than 8, if I feel it fits the character. I rarely ask for compensation to this decrease, and when I do, it's usually because the campaign is extremely high-powered, and I only ask for one point per 2 points dropped.
wordserpent 04-10-05, 10:24 PM	You have a point as well, but with point buy you can create a character with no real flaws. There is almost no way one can get below a 10 without racial modifiers. And since when is having a convenient character the same as having an interesting character? Please note that I feel that point buy produces convenient characters and dice rolling produces interesting characters. I feel that stats are only a small part of what makes a Character. I require all of my players to roleplay heavily and come up with character backgrounds and really flesh out their characters. No stats can ever make a character great but a player can always make any character great if they role play them well. If you were a player in my game, you would have the option to either roll dice or buy your stats with 28 points (not many 18's available here) so you would have a lot of control over what type of character you wanted to play, even if you didn't want any control at all. Disalowing the point buy forces a player to use what they get from the die rolls. It is indeed a challenge and many players that I have gamed with love this challenge. I for one roll really poorly because I have Old Gamer's luck, so I would opt for the point buy every time if I had a choice. I would even take the default scores, i.e.15/14/13/12/10/8 (or whatever they are).
Gristooth 04-10-05, 10:36 PM	The standard 4d6 drop the lowest and arrange as desired used to be my preferred, but I got tired of walking into games where everyone else claims to have not rolled a single attribute lower than a 14 (something which IS possible to do, but happens more frequently that the odds suggest). Now if given a choice, I'll always vote point-buy or array.
HypnoticMonk 04-10-05, 10:42 PM	:D I honestly feel that point buy is hated by those who define their character by the stats. They feel like their character isn't viable without Big Numbers. I put them into the class of guys who have to buy the Biggest Truck they can to make up for certain *ahem* inadequacies. :eek: ( and yes I know some of you like to roll so you can have "interesting characters. Point buy can still do that. I just got sick of people showing up with 3-4 18s on a character sheet. "honest, I rolled it up legit!" "Um how many characters did you have to roll to get that one?" "24, do you want to see them?" )
Zuhan 04-10-05, 10:48 PM	We've never done point buy. We generally use 4d6 reroll 1's (but only once. If its a 1 on the extra roll - tough). But all these rolls are open for all players & DM to see. This negates the problem mentioned above re: rolling 24 characters to get the 1 you want. Currently we have 5 characters all of which have 1 stat of 9 or less, 1 has a 7 in Wis. I think there are 2 characters that have a stat over 18, but we've had 2 points to add on by now (being 10th-ish lvl). I don't think we're stat-mad.
wordserpent 04-10-05, 10:50 PM	:D I honestly feel that point buy is hated by those who define their character by the stats. They feel like their character isn't viable without Big Numbers. I put them into the class of guys who have to buy the Biggest Truck they can to make up for certain *ahem* inadequacies. :eek: ( and yes I know some of you like to roll so you can have "interesting characters. Point buy can still do that. I just got sick of people showing up with 3-4 18s on a character sheet. "honest, I rolled it up legit!" "Um how many characters did you have to roll to get that one?" "24, do you want to see them?" ) I'd say it was more like buying a truck without looking under the hood or knowing anything about the vehicle's performance. Once you have bought it you are stuck with the truck, unless you want to invoke the Lemon Law. Taking random stats is a challenge and I don't think it has to do with how good or bad of a roleplayer someone is. I think it has more to do with someone's style of gaming and whether or not they like to take risks. I for one don't like to leave much to chance. I roll poorly so my rolled up characters usually suck. However when I am the DM this actually works out in the player's favor.
J.Augustus Rose II 04-10-05, 11:43 PM	You can take risks with point buy. No one says you can't. It's just a matter of WILL you do it. Not doing it isn't a point buy flaw, it's a player flaw. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should. Plus, you can play a flawed character without messing with the ability scores. My current character is a dwarf who has poor eyesight. So all I do is keep his Spot skill ranks rather low. His Wisdom score is fine but his Spot ranks are low. The poor guy can't see the broad side of the Tarrasque. Flawed character made with a point buy system. It's all in the chances you're willing to take.
IceFractal 04-11-05, 12:30 AM	I give each player a choice between rolling and point buy, the specifics depending on how high powered the campaign is. Now mathematically:3d6 = 15 pts 4d6, drop lowest = 25 pts ", reroll ones = 32 pts ", reroll ones & twos = 42 ptsHowever, in practice, 15 points are too little and 42 points are too much, so I use something more like 20 - 28 - 32 - 36 point buy.
Joe Khol 04-11-05, 07:21 AM	:D I honestly feel that point buy is hated by those who define their character by the stats. They feel like their character isn't viable without Big Numbers. Really? I find it can be just the opposite. Points-buy is used by people who want to set their stats exactly how they want so they can qualify for the PrCs or feats they have planned in intricate detail. I don't think either option is perfect and have been long considering a combination of the two - something along the lines of a low point-buy with an upper limit of 14 then an extra D4 to each stat. Best of both worlds?
Deacon Liadon 04-11-05, 08:14 AM	4d6 drop the lowest seven times is the preferred method in my gaming group. It can make for some uber-powerful chars sometimes though.