Post/Author/DateTime	Post
TheHelpfulTroll 01-15-08, 09:08 PM	I'm thinking I'd like to run a good old-fashioned dungeon crawl for my D&D buddies. The problem is that I'm one of the less experienced players among us and I haven't DMed before, but I like to maintain some semblance of balance, which can be hard to do among players that know what they're doing. As such, I'm making an effort to make some clear-cut rules that will prevent most of the more complicated rules interactions, as well as an (admittedly hamfisted) penalty to spellcasting that I hope will keep it under control without actually reducing its effectiveness, as well as alterations to a few rules that my friends often complain about. Anyway this is all pasted from a messy notepad file that I've been keeping notes in. My apologies for any lack of organization. ----- D&D 3.5 Allowed books: Core, PHB2, Complete series, Expanded Psionics Handbook 24 point buy (start at 8) Level 3, 2700 GP LA +0 races only Only one PrC per character No Epics (but can go past level 20 by multiclassing with non-epic material) 3.0 weapon size rules Multiple crit range modifiers stack (but not multiply) Only one magic damage type per weapon (can't be sonic and acid, etc) HP: Not random. First hit die is max, rest are half hit die +1. So if you are level 3 with a d10 hit die, your HP is 10+6+6+=22 (plus CON mods, etc). TWF: Penalties only apply to offhand. -10 default. Penalty reduced by 4 with TWF feat, reduced by another 2 if weapon is light. Day Job: All characters start with 4 ranks in any Craft or Profession of choice for free Extra knowledge: All characters get 2 extra skill points per level that can only be spent on knowledge skills Bull rush, disarm, sunder, trip: Don't provoke AOOs by default Spiked Chain: no reach. Upgraded to 19-20 threat range Improved Trip: Only gives the +4 bonus. New feat called Greater Trip gives the extra attack. Divine Metamagic: Banned Persistant Spell: Banned Natural Spell: Banned Frenzied Berserker: Banned Spell components: All spellcasters need high-quality spell components to cast magic. Cost of components is the cube of the spell level. Thus: level 1 spell = 1 GP in components l2 = 8 GP l3 = 27 GP l4 = 64 GP l5 = 125 GP l6 = 216 GP l7 = 343 GP l8 = 512 GP l9 = 729 GP Cantrips are free. Spell components are always either pristine or unusable, so they can be sold for full price. Eschew Materials feat is unavailable. Don't need to keep track of actual component names, can list them as "Magic Missile Components x 5", etc Save or die spells will be nerfed in some fashion I haven't decided yet. Will probably do 1d10 damage per caster level instead of outright death or something. ----- Yeah I know, generic stuff. I tried to get rid of the obvious things everyone knows about, I don't mind if they blast through everything but I'd like them to at least be creative about it and in line with each other. I also tried to include only dedicated crunch books, so no setting-specific stuff or random stuff from fluffy books. Any broken stuff I missed that you can point out? What do you think of the spellcasting costs? Also, would you play in a campaign with these rules?
deathbane 01-15-08, 10:02 PM	I'm thinking I'd like to run a good old-fashioned dungeon crawl for my D&D buddies. The problem is that I'm one of the less experienced players among us and I haven't DMed before, but I like to maintain some semblance of balance, which can be hard to do among players that know what they're doing. As such, I'm making an effort to make some clear-cut rules that will prevent most of the more complicated rules interactions, as well as an (admittedly hamfisted) penalty to spellcasting that I hope will keep it under control without actually reducing its effectiveness, as well as alterations to a few rules that my friends often complain about. Anyway this is all pasted from a messy notepad file that I've been keeping notes in. My apologies for any lack of organization. ----- D&D 3.5 Allowed books: Core, PHB2, Complete series, Expanded Psionics Handbook 24 point buy (start at 8) Level 3, 2700 GP LA +0 races only Only one PrC per character No Epics (but can go past level 20 by multiclassing with non-epic material) The Epic rule are there to keep things balanced. If you use the regular save, and BAB progression it will eventually get to a point where the saves(and difference between attack bonus and AC) will be to far apart for characters of the same level 3.0 weapon size rules Multiple crit range modifiers stack (but not multiply) Only one magic damage type per weapon (can't be sonic and acid, etc) I don't know what the 3.0 weapon size rules were so I can't comment on that. You need to define etc, and there are things worse that elemental damage that can be put on a weapon. I personally like wounding. What do you mean by crit range mulitpliers stack, but don't multiply? HP: Not random. First hit die is max, rest are half hit die +1. So if you are level 3 with a d10 hit die, your HP is 10+6+6+=22 (plus CON mods, etc). This is actually helpful unless you have a group of players who always roll well with HP TWF: Penalties only apply to offhand. -10 default. Penalty reduced by 4 with TWF feat, reduced by another 2 if weapon is light. ok Day Job: All characters start with 4 ranks in any Craft or Profession of choice for free Extra knowledge: All characters get 2 extra skill points per level that can only be spent on knowledge skills Four ranks will only help people who use crafting in game. Bull rush, disarm, sunder, trip: Don't provoke AOOs by default This is a bad idea. If your players can't take advantage of this, you have nothing to worry about. Spiked Chain: no reach. Upgraded to 19-20 threat range No longer interesting as weapon. I would rather keep the reach, than get the crit range. Improved Trip: Only gives the +4 bonus. New feat called Greater Trip gives the extra attack. Not worth it. When you get to higher levels the monsters will have a high enough strength and dex that trip will be almost impossible to use anyway. Divine Metamagic: Banned Persistant Spell: Banned Natural Spell: Banned Persistant, and natural I understand. With Divine the player has to select the feat again each time he wants to use it with another metamagic. Unless the cleric has extra feats that I don't know about it should not be an issue. Frenzied Berserker: Banned I understand. I don't ban it in my games, but ALL of the players have to agree to it. Spell components: All spellcasters need high-quality spell components to cast magic. Cost of components is the cube of the spell level. Thus: level 1 spell = 1 GP in components l2 = 8 GP l3 = 27 GP l4 = 64 GP l5 = 125 GP l6 = 216 GP l7 = 343 GP l8 = 512 GP l9 = 729 GP Cantrips are free. Spell components are always either pristine or unusable, so they can be sold for full price. Eschew Materials feat is unavailable. Don't need to keep track of actual component names, can list them as "Magic Missile Components x 5", etc Not a good formula. That amount of money matters at low levels, and is pocket change at higher levels. All casters do is cast spells. It does not make sense to nerf them that badly. If someone tried to take away my spells I would just make a cleric to make sure I lived even if I had no money, or I would play a psion instead of an arcane caster. Save or die spells will be nerfed in some fashion I haven't decided yet. Will probably do 1d10 damage per caster level instead of outright death or something. Just ban them. There are spells such as disintegrate that do better than 1d10. Save or die spells are usually all or nothing, so if your NPC's make the save the PC's have just wasted one round when they could have been useful. Yeah I know, generic stuff. I tried to get rid of the obvious things everyone knows about, I don't mind if they blast through everything but I'd like them to at least be creative about it and in line with each other. I also tried to include only dedicated crunch books, so no setting-specific stuff or random stuff from fluffy books. Any broken stuff I missed that you can point out? What do you think of the spellcasting costs? Also, would you play in a campaign with these rules? You would definitely have to get rid of the spellcasting by gold pieces. I can do without save or die spells since there are to many ways to negate most of them.
deathbane 01-15-08, 10:03 PM	double post
TheHelpfulTroll 01-15-08, 10:53 PM	The Epic rule are there to keep things balanced. If you use the regular save, and BAB progression it will eventually get to a point where the saves(and difference between attack bonus and AC) will be to far apart for characters of the same level Forgot about that, thanks. I don't know what the 3.0 weapon size rules were so I can't comment on that. You need to define etc, and there are things worse that elemental damage that can be put on a weapon. I personally like wounding. What do you mean by crit range mulitpliers stack, but don't multiply? 3.0 weapon size= each weapon has a size, and how many hands it takes to hold that weapon is determined by that size, i.e. a longsword is a medium weapon so a small character needs two hands to hold it. It makes more sense than requiring a small-sized longsword for the character. All I really meant was a weapon can only be one element, I thought it was weird that adding a d6 of element damage cost the same as adding a +1 to it when the element damage was obviously a lot better, so I limited it to one. Not sure about this one. By crit range stacking I mean a keen longsword in the hands of a guy with improved critical would have a range of 15~20. (If it multiplied it would be 13~20). Non-stacking threat range is something my friends complain a lot about that changed in 3.5 because it wrecked the option of crit-centered characters. This is actually helpful unless you have a group of players who always roll well with HP That's the idea, yeah. I always thought having permanent HP advancement be random was dumb. Four ranks will only help people who use crafting in game. It's more of a flavor thing than anything, surely these characters know how to do something besides adventure and they have a day-to-day skill they can fall back on. Some players can make it useful though. This is a bad idea. If your players can't take advantage of this, you have nothing to worry about. This is something that I actually hear lots of complaining about, melee characters not having any options besides attacking because anything they do without building their character around it gets them AOO'd to death. I thought I'd try opening up those options to see what happens. It can't be worse than the effect spellcasting has on the game, can it? No longer interesting as weapon. I would rather keep the reach, than get the crit range. Sort of the point, I think it's stupid that spiked chain is the best weapon in the game. Taking away the range knocks the wind out of it. I just added the crit range because it was a tad weak for an exotic afterward. Not worth it. When you get to higher levels the monsters will have a high enough strength and dex that trip will be almost impossible to use anyway. Scaling "Improved" feats maybe? I thought it was dumb that Improved Trip gets a free attack but the other special attacks don't, and it shows because half the melee builds out there are trippers. Persistant, and natural I understand. With Divine the player has to select the feat again each time he wants to use it with another metamagic. Unless the cleric has extra feats that I don't know about it should not be an issue. To be honest I wasn't sure it was really broken by itself, it just seems like I see it on every broken Cleric so I got rid of it. It does seem like a form of power creep that Clerics can suddenly use situational turn attempts as not-situational metamagic. Not a good formula. That amount of money matters at low levels, and is pocket change at higher levels. All casters do is cast spells. It does not make sense to nerf them that badly. If someone tried to take away my spells I would just make a cleric to make sure I lived even if I had no money, or I would play a psion instead of an arcane caster. Forgot to mention, this would apply to clerics too...though I forgot psions. I could change it to make it scale against the cost of scrolls. I do know this much, I DEFINITELY want to have some sort of cost or penalty involved with magic to encourage the players not to use it to solve every problem. Just ban them. There are spells such as disintegrate that do better than 1d10. Save or die spells are usually all or nothing, so if your NPC's make the save the PC's have just wasted one round when they could have been useful. Fair enough. Thanks for your thoughts, by the way.
Talisman 01-16-08, 12:21 AM	Save or die spells will be nerfed in some fashion I haven't decided yet. Will probably do 1d10 damage per caster level instead of outright death or something. IMC, I've nerfed SoD's thusly: Any effect that would insta-kill a creature instead reduces it to -1d10 hp. It's still save-or-be-out-of-combat, but (with a quick-acting healer buddy) no longer the end of a beloved character...probably. I also use a Hero Point mechanic. Among other things, a PC who would otherwise die can spend a HP to be stable at -9 hp.
kuonji 01-16-08, 03:21 AM	D&D 3.5 Allowed books: Core, PHB2, Complete series, Expanded Psionics Handbook I see later you ban some feats and classes. I suggest using core only with the option to use PHB2, completes, and expanded psionics material that you approve ahead of time. That way you can keep an eye on what your players want to take and don't need a large list of banned/restricted stuff. 24 point buy (start at 8) Level 3, 2700 GP LA +0 races only Only one PrC per character No Epics (but can go past level 20 by multiclassing with non-epic material) 24 point buy is pretty low end. Even the elite array (15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8) is 25 points. I'd up this at least 1 point to match the elite array's total. 3.0 weapon size rules Multiple crit range modifiers stack (but not multiply) Only one magic damage type per weapon (can't be sonic and acid, etc) Size rule - sure, if that's what you like go for it. Stacking crit modifiers - I like it and use it. One damage type - unnecessary HP: Not random. First hit die is max, rest are half hit die +1. So if you are level 3 with a d10 hit die, your HP is 10+6+6+=22 (plus CON mods, etc). If you want to keep HPs higher and allow for some randomness try this: d4HD = d4 d6HD = d4+2 d8HD = d4+4 d10HD = d4+6 d12HD = d4+8 You tend to get high HP characters, and it rewards higher HD classes, but that might be a good thing with the low stat buy. TWF: Penalties only apply to offhand. -10 default. Penalty reduced by 4 with TWF feat, reduced by another 2 if weapon is light. What's wrong with the regular TWF rules? Day Job: All characters start with 4 ranks in any Craft or Profession of choice for free Extra knowledge: All characters get 2 extra skill points per level that can only be spent on knowledge skills Nobody is sad to get free skill points. The knowledge points should guarantee your players can at least make rolls on topics. Bull rush, disarm, sunder, trip: Don't provoke AOOs by default I don't like this. While it benefits the players it can benefit the opponents quite a bit more considering there are more bad guys than PCs and big strong creatures will be able to sunder and/or bull rush with impunity. Spiked Chain: no reach. Upgraded to 19-20 threat range Why not just remove the spiked chain rather than turning it into another mediocre weapon? Improved Trip: Only gives the +4 bonus. New feat called Greater Trip gives the extra attack. This change combined with the spiked chain change seems like you are trying to nerf the chain trip-monkey build. There are other ways of doing this, the guisarme for example, makes a wonderful reach tripping weapon. Yes, you cannot attack adjacent opponents, but that's why there's things like 5' steps and/or Quick Draw. I'm just trying to understand your reasoning behind these changes. Divine Metamagic: Banned Persistant Spell: Banned Natural Spell: Banned Frenzied Berserker: Banned See my comments on books allowed for this block. Spell components: All spellcasters need high-quality spell components to cast magic. Cost of components is the cube of the spell level. Thus: level 1 spell = 1 GP in components l2 = 8 GP l3 = 27 GP l4 = 64 GP l5 = 125 GP l6 = 216 GP l7 = 343 GP l8 = 512 GP l9 = 729 GP Cantrips are free. Spell components are always either pristine or unusable, so they can be sold for full price. Eschew Materials feat is unavailable. Don't need to keep track of actual component names, can list them as "Magic Missile Components x 5", etc I like some of your ideas and question others. But, and I'm sorry for the rudeness, this is a very stupid idea. So for every spell I want to cast I have to spend gold in order to cast it? Um...no thanks. Just so I understand, I'm a wizard and I have 10 6th level spells in my spellbook. In order to cast those spells I have to spend 216gp x 10 (if I want to be able to cast each of the spells at some time) x the number of times I want to be able to cast each spell. So let's say 216 x 10 x 4 (we're going to be out of town for awhile and I want to be able to use my spells for awhile before resupplying) = 8640gp. This is 13% of the standard wealth of an 11th level PC and that only covers one level of spells available and then only a handful of castings. Unless you are planning on pouring out rivers of gold, this will bankrupt your casters pretty fast. For a spontaneous or divine caster, this is annoying and a drain on money; for a wizard this screws them over double when you consider they already have to pay to scribe spells into their spellbooks. Also, have you considered that you will have to add these costs somehow to the costs to buy scrolls, wands, and pretty much anything that uses a spell to create it since you are using the components when you craft the items. There's a reason that the generic "spell component pouch" exists and tiny details like tracking individual components are glossed over. The only components that should matter are high cost ones (anything over 1gp). I realize you want to try and limit magic a bit, but this is going way overboard. If I were a player reading this I'd immediately toss out the idea of playing any class with spellcasting ability. Save or die spells will be nerfed in some fashion I haven't decided yet. Will probably do 1d10 damage per caster level instead of outright death or something. Good luck. I have no suggestions for this one. Also, would you play in a campaign with these rules? Probably not as is. If I had a chance to talk to you before game and figure out why you are using these changes, then possibly. Definitely not a caster.
Selgard 01-16-08, 10:05 AM	All of it looks good, except the spellcasting. just.. ouch. Might I suggest you sit down with the players and explain to them your worry/problem with spell casting, and ask that they tone it down? It will probably work far better than any amount of "rules" you can come up with, since presumably you want spell casting to be both effective, and Not the solution to every encounter. If your players are good folks they will honor your request. If they don't then you don't really want to DM for them anyway. Alternatively- try other methods to tone magic down. Keep the ban on SoD, but increase the length of "day" to include more encounters. The more encounters you have, the more the spells-per-day folks will have to count their spells more carefully: thus causing other players to step up and solve the problem rather than having spells flug at it all day long. Also, pay attention to what the players are casting. Have NPC's scry them, or escape to come back another day, knowing the player's strategies. They can then (in non-metegame fashion) prepare tactics and plans that utilize options the players (generally) don't keep on hand. Having X spell in the spell book (or cleric spell list) isn't very helpful when said player didn't memorize it. just some random thoughts.
TheHelpfulTroll 01-16-08, 10:33 AM	Alright, you talked me out of the gold for casting thing, I'll figure something else out. One element per weapon and no AOOs on specials dropped as well. I'll just ban the chain and save-or-dies. And yeah I'll bump it up to 25 point buy. I see later you ban some feats and classes. I suggest using core only with the option to use PHB2, completes, and expanded psionics material that you approve ahead of time. That way you can keep an eye on what your players want to take and don't need a large list of banned/restricted stuff. The problem is that I'm a relatively noob DM and I haven't yet learned to look at a class/feat and know if it's balanced or not, I only have secondhand knowledge like common broken builds and class rankings. So what I'm trying to do is get rid of the worst known offenders and limit the player's resources (low point buy, one PrC, etc), then just turning the players loose to play what they want to play. This may or may not work out. What's wrong with the regular TWF rules? I think it's rather uncool that a fighter not trained in TWF can put a weapon in his other hand and suddenly be so crippled that he can't hit anything with either weapon. It's just the offhand attack that's more difficult to work in, so I applied the penalty to that. Thanks for your thoughts.
deathbane 01-16-08, 01:36 PM	The spiked chain is one of the best weapons, but you also have to spend a feat to be proficient with it. I would not spend a feat on an average weapon.
UAMDB 01-16-08, 04:05 PM	The problem is that I'm a relatively noob DM and I haven't yet learned to look at a class/feat and know if it's balanced or not, I only have secondhand knowledge like common broken builds and class rankings. So what I'm trying to do is get rid of the worst known offenders and limit the player's resources (low point buy, one PrC, etc), then just turning the players loose to play what they want to play. This may or may not work out. Thanks for your thoughts. This reminds me of the old saying "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." If you don't know if something is balanced, then when you go to "balance" it you are more than likely going to make it worst. Play for a while with out using all of these nerfs to things. If something comes up in your game, then fix it. You don't have to reinvent the wheel. Just worry about the things that are broken in your game. In my game the only thing I have came across that was broken was the FB. But that was because as a player I was trying to kill another character who was cheating. So I made a character that would out do him. Everything else is fairly balanced in my game. Maybe it will be in yours as well.
Tequila_Sunrise 01-17-08, 02:28 PM	A few suggestions: 1. TWF doesn't suck because non-specialized characters suck when they pick up a second weapon (it arguably is in real life, but I won't get into that); TWF sucks because it's only useful for characters who can deal precision damage. Despite the fact that a dual wielding heavy duty tank warrior is a popular archetype, making such a character in D&D is strictly inferior to making a THF. And I don't mean strictly inferior, like it's an arguable opinion, I mean strictly inferior and everyone knows it. So here are my house rules that make TWF actually worth using for a non-rogue: Two Weapon Fighting for Warriors (http://lucasbuchanan.com/Miscellaneous%20House%20Rules). 2. If you're starting at 3rd level, spell casting and epic levels need never be a problem. Spells don't become too insane until casters reach 13th level or so, and epic is obviously even further beyond that point, so if you just end a campaign by that point you don't even have to worry about spells and epic. If you're bent on going up into the insane levels though, I'd like to point out that not all spells are insane; in fact most of them are not bad. (especially the most fun kind, the blasty evocations) I suggest simply modifying or banning individual spells if they become problems rather than penalizing all spells and spell casters for a handful of overpowered spells. And if you really want to go epic, my Epic 3.75 (http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=966322) rules might help you.
Mind Rogue 01-18-08, 05:11 PM	24 point buy (start at 8) Level 3, 2700 GP LA +0 races only Only one PrC per character No Epics (but can go past level 20 by multiclassing with non-epic material) 24 Pts is low, presuming you are using the DMG's point-buy. As has been previously stated, the default array uses 25 pts, and my previous analysis on the subject found the average to be more like 28 or 29 pts for an average roll. Also, as you are playing at 3rd level, PrCs and Epics should be something of a non-issue. 3.0 weapon size rules Multiple crit range modifiers stack (but not multiply) Only one magic damage type per weapon (can't be sonic and acid, etc) I would actually say that adding elemental damage is frequently a weaker option than an extra +1 enhancement. On average, elementals add only another 2.5 pts of damage over the enhancement. Once you consider crits (since elementals don't get multiplied) and the extra hits that would have missed, the favor goes to those with the enhancement bonus to anyone with a strength bonus. Also, given the wealth that they have, unless you are expecting this to go for about 8 levels (when they can afford +3 weapons) this should be a non-issue. HP: Not random. First hit die is max, rest are half hit die +1. So if you are level 3 with a d10 hit die, your HP is 10+6+6+=22 (plus CON mods, etc). TWF: Penalties only apply to offhand. -10 default. Penalty reduced by 4 with TWF feat, reduced by another 2 if weapon is light. Two-weapon fighting is a pain in the butt (try it sometime). Wielding two weapons is distinctly harder than just wielding one, even for your primary hand. Also, remember that they can choose not to use the TWF maneuver and simply switch off attacks between their two hands at no penalty (besides any for not being ambidextrous). If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Bull rush, disarm, sunder, trip: Don't provoke AOOs by default This will really change the flow of the game. Remember, this will favor big creatures and hurt little ones. Since most big creatures are monsters (ogres come into mind real quick), this means the PCs will be on the receiving end more often than not. I'd instead encourage them to take the appropriate feats. Spiked Chain: no reach. Upgraded to 19-20 threat range Improved Trip: Only gives the +4 bonus. New feat called Greater Trip gives the extra attack. Divine Metamagic: Banned Persistant Spell: Banned Natural Spell: Banned Frenzied Berserker: Banned As I've said before, at the level you are playing at, most of these should be a non-issue. If you're going to nurf the spiked chain, take away one of its other abilities, like finesse rather than trying to remove its reach, or potentially the ability to strike adjacent enemies. However, it is not really that much more powerful than, say, a guisarme, which has reach and the trip bonus and a better crit multiplier. Since you can make disarm or sunder attacks with a reach weapon, a character with a guisarme can trip you with the AoO as you move close, then disarm you with the extra attack or the AoO. Even if you can't take the 5ft step if they do make it into melee with them, you can still trip with an unarmed strike using the Improved Trip feat without taking an AoO. If you happen to be a fighter-monk, you still threaten all squares around you, both in melee and at reach, all without having to sacrifice a feat to do so. As for Natural Spell, the primary problem with the Druid class is that class abilities are supposed to enhance each other, not interfere. Natural Spell fixes this problem. Spell components: All spellcasters need high-quality spell components to cast magic. Cost of components is the cube of the spell level. Thus: level 1 spell = 1 GP in components l2 = 8 GP l3 = 27 GP l4 = 64 GP l5 = 125 GP l6 = 216 GP l7 = 343 GP l8 = 512 GP l9 = 729 GP Cantrips are free. Spell components are always either pristine or unusable, so they can be sold for full price. Eschew Materials feat is unavailable. Don't need to keep track of actual component names, can list them as "Magic Missile Components x 5", etc Owww. No. Mages have spells for a reason. They are supposed to throw spells at the problem. If you feel that they are throwing too much magic at it, either give them more problems, which means they will need to ration their spells, or throw different types of problems at them so that they need to use a different skill set to solve the problem. Save or die spells will be nerfed in some fashion I haven't decided yet. Will probably do 1d10 damage per caster level instead of outright death or something. ----- Well, psionic disintegrate does 2d6 damage per caster level, but unless you're planning on people gaining six levels fairly quickly, this is likely to be another non-issue. As I've said several times, I think you are fretting too much about things that will never come up (epic, when you are at 3rd level? That will probably take multiple years to get to). If you're new at DMing and worried whether things are overpowered or not, just don't allow things outside of core and require it to be your decision to make exceptions, with the default being 'no'. You can make almost any character concept you want with just the PHB and don't let anyone tell you otherwise.
aikimiller 01-21-08, 10:43 AM	I agree with most of the things said here. As a noob DM, you really don't want to alter the system too much. The way things work is pretty much balanced (at least up to mid levels, anyway). Also, changing things requires more work on your part- because your players can't just look it up in a book, they have to remember what is house ruled and what isn't. I've been DMing a while now, and the only rules I've changed have been making defensive casting and tumble checks opposed by an attack roll. It just seemed to me that tumbling past a dragon with centuries of experience dealing with pesky adventurers should be significantly more difficult than tumbling past a commoner.
Teh_username 01-22-08, 05:03 AM	For a 3rd-level campaign, you sure seem to be focusing on things that won't show up in-game for literally years of real-time. I'd suggest tackling the next 3-or-so levels (e.g. the beginning of PrC usage) in advance, if anything, and letting the rest get dealt with if it comes up (asking players their future ideas slightly ahead of things instead of ruling unnecessarily right now). Alright, you talked me out of the gold for casting thing, I'll figure something else out. Did it not occur to you to simply tell the players, "A warning in advance: if I don't see your characters making some effort to replenish their spell components*, then I reserve the right to alter your spells that require them. Maybe you ran out of that component, it rotted/spoiled/broke, or you 'contaminated the thaumaturgickal properties inherent within'; either way, the spell might fail, change, backfire, or...well, you don't need to know that just yet." *i.e. picking up appropriate knicknacks and junk off the floor of the dungeon, scrounging for herbs and animal parts, re-stocking and selling off surplus at large enough cities/trading posts, and showing some concern for the freshness and fragility of the pouch's contents. None of this should take over a game or bog it down in minutae, just encourage getting in-character; you'll know it's working if the players start ad-libbing in response to your dungeon dressing. "Your sword strikes across the lizardman priest's chest, opening a wide gash and causing him to fall backwards onto the altar. His scaly reign of terror is over. ...so, who's searching what?" 'Hold on a moment lads, someone hand me a chisel - it occurs to me that I might be able to use chips from this shrine to power my water spells.' For a better example of what I'm talking about, re: spell components, check out the drow wizard Pharaun in the War of the Spider Queen series - the writers occasionally made brief asides of him noticing and pocketing an unusual trinket, or carefully harvesting spiderweb, or visiting "specialty markets" at each new city to replenish his components, all in an unobtrusive manner.