My tentative house rules... [Archive] - Wizards Community

My tentative house rules... [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Arcane Guyver
12-16-04, 03:24 AM I'm thinking of using some.....light....house rules for my campaign. I'm trying not to totally change the game, which I've pretty much done in the past, to player dismay. So, here goes:

Ability Scores

Constitution
- Directly reflects the amount of negative HP a character has (so 17 Con = the character will die at -17)
- Directly reflects the number of combat rounds a character can act in a row before losing steam (aka, taking negatives on attack rolls)
- Directly reflects the chance for surviving resurrection (so a character with 17 Con would need to roll a 1-17 on a d20 to be raised).

Most people I talk to really like the first one - the less healthy you are, the easier it is for you to give up the ghost, and vice versa. The second one I just thought up not too long ago, and it's still kinda sketchy, but I like the idea of drawn-out battles taking their toll on people. The third part is a send-up to the older editions...also another way to make death a little harsher in Eberron.

Charisma
- Bonus Action Points - When you gain a level, you gain an additional number of action points equal to your Cha modifier.
- Counts towards Inspiration checks (hijacked from Stargate and altered; when you need a clue from the DM, spend an action point & roll 1d20 + CL + Cha modifier vs the DM's DC)
- Cohort - As of level 6, the character may acquire a cohort (the DM will inform the player of availability). Charisma affects the cohort's starting abilities.
- Contacts - Once per level the character may set up a 'contact'. The contact is an NPC that is located in a fixed location and helps the character with local knowledge and acquiring uncommon goods. The character may have a number of contacts equal to his Charisma modifier.

Some of these I'm unsure of - I like the idea of contacts, but the implementation might be off... I ripped the Leadership feat apart, since I like PCs having a peon to help out, but do not want to bother with followers. Inspiration checks aren't a big boost, but it's something that could come in handy. The biggee is bonus action points, but hey, if you're gonna put a high score in what most people consider a dump stat, you deserve a reward IMO.

Races

All races, save for the 'alien' races (Kalashtar, Elan, Warforged) have their Charisma negatives lifted (up to -2).
Dwarves get a -2 to Dexterity.
Half-Orcs have a Favored Class: Any
All races will (some day) have a paragon 'class' available to explore their own culture and traditions. These paragon classes will replace humanoid HDs for monstrous races like Bugbears and Gnolls.

Charisma is an odd thing for me. I don't like how most every monstrous humanoid, plus quite a few standard player races, have a -2 in it. For some, it's understandable...some of the more exotic, unorthodox races probably have difficulty interacting with the regular denizens.
As far as dwarves go, it's been said they're gruff with outsiders, but with friends they're quite lively. They needed a bit of a nerf anyways, so I got rid of the stupid Cha negative and put it where it makes more sense - in their short legs.
Half-Orcs should be less orcish and more human, so...yeah.
After reading Monte's Arcana Unearthed, the idea of racial levels kind of just clicked with me, especially since Eberron is all about racial diversity (and many of those monsters require lots of crappy humanoid levels).

Tomorrow (or, rather, later today :zzz: ) : The Base Classes, and how I've hacked them up!
Arcane Guyver
12-16-04, 12:42 PM :blush: To tell the truth, most of the class variations I've been thinking of using aren't my own creation.

Classes
About Vancian magic: All classes that still prepare spells now prepare 'spell lists' to cast off of. For purposes of metamagic, they still must prepare spell slots as normal.

Bard, Monk, Rogue = as seen on this webpage: http://www.wakinglands.com
I wanted to do change these classes in certain ways...and this author beat me to the punch.

Cleric = All clerics gain proficiency and Weapon Focus with their deity's favored weapon.
War domain gives proficiency with all martial weapons.
Clerics now have spellcasting similar to the Bard - spontaneous, up to level 6 spells, based off of Charisma, et all.
In addition to the Bard's spells known table, the Cleric gains Cure/Inflict spells and his domain spells.
Turn/Rebuke - As seen in Complete Divine.
Bonus Feats - At 4th level and every four levels thereafter (8th, 12th, 16th, and 20th) the cleric may gain Extra Turning or a Divine feat.
Clerics of the Path of Light may sacrifice one of their domains to have their Unarmed Strike damage improve as a monks.
I wanted clerics to really be the warriors of the church, and leave the high-level divine spellcasting for others (see below). As a bonus, it makes curative spells and raise spells less available to this class (but, again, see below).

Druid = Replace Wild Shape with Aspect of Nature (from Unearthed Arcana).
Another semi-large change described in one sentence. This simplifies the druid a bit and reduces it's power a little.

Fighter = Unsure of what to do with him right now.

Paladin = Now a prestige class (from Unearthed Arcana)

Priest = Basically the Cloistered Cleric, renamed to something more appropriate for adventuring. Will probably give him a third and fourth domain eventually in class progression.
So...all those high-level healers in Eberron are now Priests. If the party wants a dedicated healer, this is the best guy to turn to.

Ranger = Unsure of what to do with him right now.

Sorcerer = Basically the Sorcerer variant from Monte's Eldritch Might II. Use BlaineTog's sorcerer variant (http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=202143) for spells known & spells/day, Worldly, and sorcerer material components & scroll usage. He also gains the Wu Jen's spell secrets (3rd level and every 3 levels thereafter).
Bit of a powerup, without becoming super overpowering. All the additional stuff is not meant to put it on par with the Wizard (though I hope it is) - it's just meant to make it less of a boring class.

Wizard = Wizards may gain a Bonus Feat instead of a Familiar.
- Specialists gain Spell Focus and Arcane Defense for their schools at first level, They learn a spell from their school for free every level (along with the regular two free spells/level). Specialists may also lower the increased spell level of metamagic by one.
Obviously I powered up the specialist wizard a little. Sacrificing schools of magic sucks, and one extra spell/day isn't much for that kind of loss. I know the metamagic bonus alone makes me want to play a specialist a bit more.

Feats
Removed: Autonomous, Closed Mind, Eschew Materials, Leadership, Mind Over Body, Natural Spell, Rapid Metabolism, Spontaneous Magic (Eberron).
Added: Artistic (+2 on any two art-based Craft or Perform skills, or +3 on one)
Career Adventurer (Character level 5th, adds +1 to all saves)
Cosmopolitan (from the FR setting, one skill permanently class skill)
Experienced Worker (+2 on any two non-art Craft or Profession skills, or +3 on one)
Expert Tumbler (high prereqs, lets you take 10 on Jump & Tumble checks)
Focused Mind (+2 Autohypnosis checks, +2 Concentration checks)
Rapid Metabolism (Basically combining Mind Over Body & Rapid Metabolism back into one feat, like it was as Faster Healing in CW)
Studious (+2 on any three Knowledge skills)

I might add onto this stuff later. Any suggestions/complaints/whatever are welcome.
Lord_Anthrax
12-16-04, 02:56 PM A recent issue of Dragon had some new feats that could only be taken by specialist spellcasters. You might want to look into those as well for powering up Abjurers & Co.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Arcane Guyver 12-16-04, 03:24 AM	I'm thinking of using some.....light....house rules for my campaign. I'm trying not to totally change the game, which I've pretty much done in the past, to player dismay. So, here goes: Ability Scores Constitution - Directly reflects the amount of negative HP a character has (so 17 Con = the character will die at -17) - Directly reflects the number of combat rounds a character can act in a row before losing steam (aka, taking negatives on attack rolls) - Directly reflects the chance for surviving resurrection (so a character with 17 Con would need to roll a 1-17 on a d20 to be raised). Most people I talk to really like the first one - the less healthy you are, the easier it is for you to give up the ghost, and vice versa. The second one I just thought up not too long ago, and it's still kinda sketchy, but I like the idea of drawn-out battles taking their toll on people. The third part is a send-up to the older editions...also another way to make death a little harsher in Eberron. Charisma - Bonus Action Points - When you gain a level, you gain an additional number of action points equal to your Cha modifier. - Counts towards Inspiration checks (hijacked from Stargate and altered; when you need a clue from the DM, spend an action point & roll 1d20 + CL + Cha modifier vs the DM's DC) - Cohort - As of level 6, the character may acquire a cohort (the DM will inform the player of availability). Charisma affects the cohort's starting abilities. - Contacts - Once per level the character may set up a 'contact'. The contact is an NPC that is located in a fixed location and helps the character with local knowledge and acquiring uncommon goods. The character may have a number of contacts equal to his Charisma modifier. Some of these I'm unsure of - I like the idea of contacts, but the implementation might be off... I ripped the Leadership feat apart, since I like PCs having a peon to help out, but do not want to bother with followers. Inspiration checks aren't a big boost, but it's something that could come in handy. The biggee is bonus action points, but hey, if you're gonna put a high score in what most people consider a dump stat, you deserve a reward IMO. Races All races, save for the 'alien' races (Kalashtar, Elan, Warforged) have their Charisma negatives lifted (up to -2). Dwarves get a -2 to Dexterity. Half-Orcs have a Favored Class: Any All races will (some day) have a paragon 'class' available to explore their own culture and traditions. These paragon classes will replace humanoid HDs for monstrous races like Bugbears and Gnolls. Charisma is an odd thing for me. I don't like how most every monstrous humanoid, plus quite a few standard player races, have a -2 in it. For some, it's understandable...some of the more exotic, unorthodox races probably have difficulty interacting with the regular denizens. As far as dwarves go, it's been said they're gruff with outsiders, but with friends they're quite lively. They needed a bit of a nerf anyways, so I got rid of the stupid Cha negative and put it where it makes more sense - in their short legs. Half-Orcs should be less orcish and more human, so...yeah. After reading Monte's Arcana Unearthed, the idea of racial levels kind of just clicked with me, especially since Eberron is all about racial diversity (and many of those monsters require lots of crappy humanoid levels). Tomorrow (or, rather, later today :zzz: ) : The Base Classes, and how I've hacked them up!
Arcane Guyver 12-16-04, 12:42 PM	:blush: To tell the truth, most of the class variations I've been thinking of using aren't my own creation. Classes About Vancian magic: All classes that still prepare spells now prepare 'spell lists' to cast off of. For purposes of metamagic, they still must prepare spell slots as normal. Bard, Monk, Rogue = as seen on this webpage: http://www.wakinglands.com I wanted to do change these classes in certain ways...and this author beat me to the punch. Cleric = All clerics gain proficiency and Weapon Focus with their deity's favored weapon. War domain gives proficiency with all martial weapons. Clerics now have spellcasting similar to the Bard - spontaneous, up to level 6 spells, based off of Charisma, et all. In addition to the Bard's spells known table, the Cleric gains Cure/Inflict spells and his domain spells. Turn/Rebuke - As seen in Complete Divine. Bonus Feats - At 4th level and every four levels thereafter (8th, 12th, 16th, and 20th) the cleric may gain Extra Turning or a Divine feat. Clerics of the Path of Light may sacrifice one of their domains to have their Unarmed Strike damage improve as a monks. I wanted clerics to really be the warriors of the church, and leave the high-level divine spellcasting for others (see below). As a bonus, it makes curative spells and raise spells less available to this class (but, again, see below). Druid = Replace Wild Shape with Aspect of Nature (from Unearthed Arcana). Another semi-large change described in one sentence. This simplifies the druid a bit and reduces it's power a little. Fighter = Unsure of what to do with him right now. Paladin = Now a prestige class (from Unearthed Arcana) Priest = Basically the Cloistered Cleric, renamed to something more appropriate for adventuring. Will probably give him a third and fourth domain eventually in class progression. So...all those high-level healers in Eberron are now Priests. If the party wants a dedicated healer, this is the best guy to turn to. Ranger = Unsure of what to do with him right now. Sorcerer = Basically the Sorcerer variant from Monte's Eldritch Might II. Use BlaineTog's sorcerer variant (http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=202143) for spells known & spells/day, Worldly, and sorcerer material components & scroll usage. He also gains the Wu Jen's spell secrets (3rd level and every 3 levels thereafter). Bit of a powerup, without becoming super overpowering. All the additional stuff is not meant to put it on par with the Wizard (though I hope it is) - it's just meant to make it less of a boring class. Wizard = Wizards may gain a Bonus Feat instead of a Familiar. - Specialists gain Spell Focus and Arcane Defense for their schools at first level, They learn a spell from their school for free every level (along with the regular two free spells/level). Specialists may also lower the increased spell level of metamagic by one. Obviously I powered up the specialist wizard a little. Sacrificing schools of magic sucks, and one extra spell/day isn't much for that kind of loss. I know the metamagic bonus alone makes me want to play a specialist a bit more. Feats Removed: Autonomous, Closed Mind, Eschew Materials, Leadership, Mind Over Body, Natural Spell, Rapid Metabolism, Spontaneous Magic (Eberron). Added: Artistic (+2 on any two art-based Craft or Perform skills, or +3 on one) Career Adventurer (Character level 5th, adds +1 to all saves) Cosmopolitan (from the FR setting, one skill permanently class skill) Experienced Worker (+2 on any two non-art Craft or Profession skills, or +3 on one) Expert Tumbler (high prereqs, lets you take 10 on Jump & Tumble checks) Focused Mind (+2 Autohypnosis checks, +2 Concentration checks) Rapid Metabolism (Basically combining Mind Over Body & Rapid Metabolism back into one feat, like it was as Faster Healing in CW) Studious (+2 on any three Knowledge skills) I might add onto this stuff later. Any suggestions/complaints/whatever are welcome.
Lord_Anthrax 12-16-04, 02:56 PM	A recent issue of Dragon had some new feats that could only be taken by specialist spellcasters. You might want to look into those as well for powering up Abjurers & Co.