Post/Author/DateTime	Post
FoxmanFX 01-24-07, 01:07 PM	I'm starting up a new campaign and I was looking around for good house rules to incorporate. I’m curious what house rules you guys use? I’m not talking about a whole detailed spell replacement system, but little things like “Sorcerers get Eschew Materials as a bonus feat at level 1.” Type rules. Little rules that make a big difference… (even if its just – I use this rule from the Unearthed Arcana). :D
Ace_of_Diamonds 01-24-07, 01:16 PM	http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=777227 That's my new favorite house rule.
Krusk 01-24-07, 02:04 PM	I second the one for rangers. It makes a ton of sense.
psionicbattousai 01-24-07, 02:16 PM	Mine is this... http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=774084 followed by armor as DR.
Ghenesh 01-24-07, 02:49 PM	Two houserules: - Every base class gains extra bonus feats at higher levels: * Sorcerers gain Metamagic or Heritage feats at 8th, 12th, 16th and 20th level. * Fighters gain Fighter Bonus feats at 11th, 15th and 19th level. * Wizards gain a Metamagic or Item Creation feats at 11th and 19th level. * Most other base classes gain a General feat at 11th and 20th level. - The Good Base Save Bonus is now half the class level (rounded up) instead of half the class level (rounded down) + 2. Yep, hardcore multiclassing it's discouraged.
FoxmanFX 01-24-07, 03:35 PM	Heh well I was part of the ranger thing - so I totally agree ;) Anything else? Ghenesh - why all the extra feats? (not anything wrong just curious...) Myself I'm planning on using the following in my game: Sorcerers get Eschew Materials as a Bonus Feat at level 1. Sorcerers get a bonus metamagic feat at levels 5, 10, 15, and 20. Balances off against the wizards bonus feats - not over powering by any stretch - and only for metamagic feats debating on dropping wizards metamagic for bonus feats - but not sure....
Decinious 01-25-07, 12:03 PM	My favorite house rule is scraping LA from your exp total. Fixes so many role play issues that I have with +LA races. I was always offended that a level 1 Half fiend mage was that loved by his parents/society that he had level 5 starting gold when he was just starting out in the world... So said Half Fiend mage only needs level 2 exp to get to level 2 mage but he gains exp from battle as a level 5. We've played it both ways, first with the mage starting with a group of level 5 chars, and with him starting adventuring with fellow level 1 chars. Both ways the rest of the party felt alright with the difference in power. In the first the LA char slowly caught up to the party but still stayed behind by 2 levels, and in the second the non LA char pulled ahead level wise and felt fine with the power ratio. As a side note, this also fixed most of our issues with Polymorph/Magic Jar... after the first battle our mage made it through as a regening troll and only getting a third of the exp as the rest of the party...
Ghenesh 01-25-07, 02:57 PM	Ghenesh - why all the extra feats? (not anything wrong just curious...) I think feats let's you customize your character in a way other features can't. The idea is that a base class is sort of a template for concepts, while prestige classes are a specific concept, so if you stick to a base class you need more tools for customization. On the other hand, prestige classing it's been always about getting more power, so i powered up a bit base classes with this extra feats to temp the players to build their own concepts with a single class instead of taking tons of classes.
Lyinginbedmon 01-25-07, 03:20 PM	Commiting Suicide :D Seriously, we have a house rule in place to discourage character suicide (Mostly because of a player who threatens it whenever something bad happens). Will DC 25 + 1/person not wanting the character dead, where failure results in a failed attempt. Naturally, said player failed his last attempt 9 times in a row :cool:
skywyze 01-25-07, 03:34 PM	My favorite house rule is scraping LA from your exp total. Fixes so many role play issues that I have with +LA races. I was always offended that a level 1 Half fiend mage was that loved by his parents/society that he had level 5 starting gold when he was just starting out in the world... So said Half Fiend mage only needs level 2 exp to get to level 2 mage but he gains exp from battle as a level 5. We've played it both ways, first with the mage starting with a group of level 5 chars, and with him starting adventuring with fellow level 1 chars. Both ways the rest of the party felt alright with the difference in power. In the first the LA char slowly caught up to the party but still stayed behind by 2 levels, and in the second the non LA char pulled ahead level wise and felt fine with the power ratio. As a side note, this also fixed most of our issues with Polymorph/Magic Jar... after the first battle our mage made it through as a regening troll and only getting a third of the exp as the rest of the party... I like this rule a LOT. I was always of the persuasion that you should be able to play any race without being nerfed out the butt. The game is about roleplaying, and if playing a cuddly wuddly bugbear or a misunderstood, pyromaniac, half-fiend sorcerer makes for more fun in the game, why punish the player? I think LA was just put in to punish munchkins, but those shouldn't be playing D&D anyway. They belong in WoW. ;) So while I'm not sure if this rule is balanced, I will seriously consider it for my games, just for the fun of it. :)
mrmagos 01-25-07, 03:57 PM	I stole this from another DM, but love it none-the-less: Use of Knowledge skills untrained, but you can't score higher than a 10 on a skill check, no matter the modifiers, if you are untrained in that particular skill. I believe it reflects the random tidbits of information one would pick up from travel or life in general.
skywyze 01-25-07, 06:11 PM	I stole this from another DM, but love it none-the-less: Use of Knowledge skills untrained, but you can't score higher than a 10 on a skill check, no matter the modifiers, if you are untrained in that particular skill. I believe it reflects the random tidbits of information one would pick up from travel or life in general.I believe that's official. I think it says so under the description of the Knowledge skill. *checks...* Yep! Without actual training, you know only common knowledge (DC 10 or lower).
True Cavalier 01-25-07, 07:14 PM	Maximum Hit Points per level, easily.
Ace_of_Diamonds 01-25-07, 08:08 PM	Maximum Hit Points per level, easily. Reminds me of another one I used to always use. For their base roll, I'd always let players take the average rounded up of their hit die instead of having to roll (7 for d12, 6 for d10, 5 for d8, 4 for d6, 3 for d4). They could elect to roll anyway, but if they did, they were stuck with whatever they rolled.
Lecen_of_Mitran 01-25-07, 08:41 PM	Well, there are many, but there is one quite interesting: - Fighter - Has Good Will Save. - Gets Weapon Focus, Weapon Specialization, etc, etc all the way ´til Weapon Supremacy for free with ONE weapon of his choice at FIRST level. Something like: - Weapon Focus at lvl 1, Weapon Specialization at lvl 4, Greater Weapon Focus at lvl 8, Improved Critical at lvl 9, Greater Weapon Specialization at lvl 12, and the list goes on. This doens not affect the other´s bonuses feats. - Gets for free the feat "Ancestral Relic" (from Book of Exalted Deeds) for free at first level. It works only with same weapon he chosed to get Weapon focus, and the others. But this feat only works with the character´s FIGHTER levels, and not only Character´s levels. Now Players has a good reason to play a Fighter 20. :D
Rathje 01-25-07, 09:42 PM	Half-Elves get +1 Skill Point/level (x4 at first level). I'm considering changing Paladin so it can Smite Evil 3+Cha Mod times per day, as well as giving Fighter +2 Skill Points/level and two more class skills (chosen on creation by the player).
Tequila_Sunrise 01-25-07, 10:45 PM	I'm a big advocate of PC equality so I love this one: Each player rolls a set of stats 'the sucky way' (3d6). Then each player gets to choose from among all sets which one he/she wants to use. More than one player using the same set is acceptable. If you like high-powered campaigns, have them roll the regular way (4d6 drop the lowest). Other than that I also love average hit points per level.
ZombieDragon 01-26-07, 12:11 AM	I'm not sure which of these I like the most : *Removed the divine magic god tie-in. Divine magic is accessed the same as arcane. The gods still have followers (sheep) but now the clerics aren’t running the cults. It makes the gods minions more powerful as powerful wizards tend to run the show. *Changed the paladin into the Vanquisher and released the handcuffs. Gave it a faster smite tree too.
Ghenesh 01-26-07, 11:30 AM	Well, there are many, but there is one quite interesting: - Fighter - Has Good Will Save. - Gets Weapon Focus, Weapon Specialization, etc, etc all the way ´til Weapon Supremacy for free with ONE weapon of his choice at FIRST level. Something like: - Weapon Focus at lvl 1, Weapon Specialization at lvl 4, Greater Weapon Focus at lvl 8, Improved Critical at lvl 9, Greater Weapon Specialization at lvl 12, and the list goes on. This doens not affect the other´s bonuses feats. - Gets for free the feat "Ancestral Relic" (from Book of Exalted Deeds) for free at first level. It works only with same weapon he chosed to get Weapon focus, and the others. But this feat only works with the character´s FIGHTER levels, and not only Character´s levels. Now Players has a good reason to play a Fighter 20. :D I'm also a Fighter fanboy, but there's a thing i dislike about your fix, is that the Fighter is like a Combatant Template, it's not an Oriental Martial Artist (monk), it's not an Arcane Performer (Bard), it's not Brutal Warrior from the Wild Lands (Barbarian), it's a template to create a combatant, so if you're going to upgrade it you should keep that in mind. Why should they have good Will Save and not Reflex... a Fencer should have great reflexes, not willpower, about Ancestral Relic, the fluff of the feat is to link the Fighter to a God-blessed weapon... but what about an atheist Fighter or one that hates gods. On the idea of taking one Weapon at 1st level... the fighter should be flexible enough to fight with diferent weapons or Unarmed. If fixed bonuses is your way to go, i propose you this: Keep the Fighter as it except in the odd levels, adding the features in bold: Level Special 1st Weapon Focus (any weapon), Weapon Familiarity 2nd Fighter Bonus Feat 3rd Weapon Specialization 4th Fighter Bonus Feat 5th Fighter's Resistance 6th Fighter Bonus Feat 7th Greater Weapon Focus 8th Fighter Bonus Feat 9th Fighter's Resistance 10th Fighter Bonus Feat 11th Greater Weapon Specialization 12th Fighter Bonus Feat 13th Fighter's Resistance 14th Fighter Bonus Feat 15th Weapon Supremacy 16th Fighter Bonus Feat 17th Fighter's Resistance 18th Fighter Bonus Feat 19th Fighter's Instinct 20th Fighter Bonus Feat Weapon Familiarity (ex): Weapon knowledge is the soul of the Fighter. Any time the Fighter gets a feat or class feature that has a weapon as a target (such as Weapon Focus or Improved Critical), the benefits of the feat applies to all weapons that deal the same type of damage, has the same critical multiplier, the same critical threat range and the same combat style (melee or ranged). If a weapon makes two types of damage the Fighter must choose one when gaining the feature. The Fighter is considered to have the feat to all weapons benefited by this feature in order to met the prerequisites for other feats. Fighter's Resistance (ex): The Fighter learns how to endure the dangers of combat with expertise. Starting at 5th level and every 4 levels thereafter (at levels 9th, 13th and 17th) the Fighter gain a +1 competence bonus on any saving throw. This bonuses stack. Fighter's Instinct (ex): No one is more focused in combat than an experienced Fighter. Once per combat (starting in the first round of the Fighter until one complete minute of no strenuous action) the Fighter may re-roll any single throw, the Fighter must take the second roll result even if it's worst than the first one. So now you have a Fighter with NO DEAD LEVELS (so there're no optimal dip levels), you can customize your good save (or great save if you take Fortitude) but it's not as good as a real good save (and shouldn't), you gain the Fighter exclusive feats as class features the way you like but earlier (trust me on this one: it's not gonna break your game), and you get rid of the first level Fighter bonus feat that makes this great class a 2 level dip!
Zumarai 01-26-07, 12:03 PM	-Monks and paladins may multi-class freely -No XP penalties for multi-classing -No favoured classes -Spell points (UA) -Average hit points -Skill Folding: Listen + Search + Spot = Perception Hide + Move Silently = Stealth Balance + Climb + Jump + Tumble = Acrobatics Bluff + Disguise + Forgery + Sleight of Hand = Deception Disable Device + Open Lock = Mechanically Inclined? Diplomacy + Gather Information + Sense Motive = Mac Daddy
Greg K 01-26-07, 01:13 PM	This is not a full list as I did not include major changes including rewrites of various races, rewrites of the cleric and druid classes, alternate systems of spellcasting from Unearthed Arcana, combat variants from Unearthed Arcana, or the list of both class variants and third party books that I use. Note: I have included a few links including material from designer Sean K Reynold's website Sean Reynold's Fewer Absolutes (http://www.seankreynolds.com/rpgfiles/misc/variantfewerabsolutes2.html) Elves: sorcerer replaces wizard as favored class Gnomes: may substitute sorcerer as a favored class Monks and Paladins multiclass freely Hong's Knight (http://www.zip.com.au/~hong/dnd/knight.htm) Sorcerer -Eschew Materials at first level -Bonus Metamagic feat at 5th, 10th, 15th, 20th - additonal class skills: bluff, intimidate, use magical device note: if using the battle sorcerer variant from UA, the battle sorcerer may substitute a fighter feat in place of a metamagic feat Wizard -additional class skills: speak language Wizard specialist -must use the Specialist Wizard variant abilites (Unearthed Arcana) Skills -Use Magical Device: A character with this skill cannot circumvent racial or alignment restrictions Action Points (UA) Poison -continuing poison (http://www.seankreynolds.com/rpgfiles/misc/variantcontinuingpoison.html) (Sean Reynolds) Magic Item Creation - Forge Ring Variant (http://www.seankreynolds.com/rpgfiles/misc/variantforgering.html) (Sean Reynolds) -Recharging Magic Items (http://www.seankreynolds.com/rpgfiles/misc/recharging items.html) (Sean Reynolds)
Germytech 01-26-07, 02:05 PM	Races: Halfings: Gains low-light vision. Half-orcs: Diehard as bonus feat. +2 Intimidate. Classes: Cleric: Not proficient with heavy armor or martial weapons. Fighter: Leadership at 11th-level. +1 Leadership score at every odd-numbered level after (13th, 15th, etc.). Sorcerer: Eschew Materials as bonus feat at 1st-level. No alignment restrictions. No XP penalties for multiclassing. Skills: No cross-class skills. Skills that require ranks in order to use remain the same.
Netherek 01-26-07, 04:24 PM	Class Defense doesn't apply when flat-footed or lose dex bonus. Keeps the value of armor intact without over emphasizing it's need. Class A starts at +1 instead of +2. Add Base Reflex to Initiative checks, that way more experienced characters are likely to act first. For Feint in combat, may use BAB+Cha instead of bluff, suffers a -5 cumulative penalty each additional attempt after the first on the same opponent during the battle.
cthascott 01-26-07, 09:55 PM	I'm sure that I'm missing some, but these are my house rules: When rolling stats, players roll 4d6 and drop the lowest roll 7 times, dropping the lowest score of the 7 and putting in the scores as they see fit. Rounded up Hit Dice(ex. d6 is 1d3+3, d8 is 1d4+4, etc.) Sorcerors get a d6 for HD and a bonus "Sudden" metamagic feat at 5th, 10th, 15th, and 20th levels, though they must still qualify for the feat and all other metamagic feats do not increase the casting time for their spells. Wizards get 4+Int for skill points per level and their bonus feats can be any feat for which they qualify. Knowledges are class skills for all. Cross class skills do not cost 2 skill pints/1 rank, though max ranks still applies. Players can change out as many class skills at 1st level as they have skill points per level without adding in their Int modifier(ex. Tordek the Fighter may swap out any 2 class skills he wants for any other skill since Fighters get 2+Int mod for skill points/level). No Polymorph or any Polymorph-like spell past Alter Self. The Fighter's bonus feats are not limited to the Fighter feats list, though they must still qualify for the feat. I've replaced the Hexblade, Favored Soul, Swashbuckler, and Healer classes with the rebuilds that are in my sig. Spell Points from the UA. Peace. CthaS
Ogreman 01-26-07, 11:21 PM	The no-XP penalty for multiclassing seems to encourage too much munchkining (base saves, anyone?) So I like to say that if you have the maximum levels in a PrC, it doesn't count towards your penalty. Ex. If you have 3 levels in Exotic Weapon Master, it doesn't count.
Ghenesh 01-27-07, 09:24 AM	The no-XP penalty for multiclassing seems to encourage too much munchkining (base saves, anyone?) So I like to say that if you have the maximum levels in a PrC, it doesn't count towards your penalty. Ex. If you have 3 levels in Exotic Weapon Master, it doesn't count. I nerfed the Good Save by 1 point and that helped a lot on diminishing the save base increase creep. So the Good Base Save Bonus, instead of being: [(Class Level) / 2] + 2, it is now: [(Class Level) / 2] + 1. I also houseruled the core feats: Great Fortitude, Lightning Reflexes and Iron Will to grant a +3 bonus to a single save instead of +2. That makes this feats worthwhile. I love it when the players can't choose one feat from another... as Stormwind said long ago: That's balance, right there.
Otto the Bugbear 01-27-07, 12:42 PM	I'm starting up a new campaign and I was looking around for good house rules to incorporate. I’m curious what house rules you guys use? I’m not talking about a whole detailed spell replacement system, damn but little things like *snip* Type rules. Little rules that make a big difference… (even if its just – I use this rule from the Unearthed Arcana). :D Going with a little one that makes a big difference, I'd have to go with this one. 1. Don't be a dick. Obvious, sure, but I'm always amazed how often it needs to be said.
bholdr_mage 01-27-07, 11:53 PM	There's a lot of good stuff here. -I really like the ranger and knowledge skills. It makes sense. -I do the no cross class skills, but keep the max ranks. -the re-worked fighters and swashbuckler seems too much. But, not in comparison to a cleric/druid, so hey. -I also liked the above average hit points per level (d3+3 for d6, and d4+4 for d8) -being a dick is never a good thing. But it's hardly a class rule. More like a given. :rolleyes: -Germytech's stuff is pretty solid. 'Specially clerics armor, sorcerer's eshew materials, and the fighter's leadership. -General mage feats instead of just metamagic is good. -sorcerer gets metamagic feats (including choice of sudden or reserve) every 5 levels. -sorcerer gets a d6 hit die -action points (eberron) Stuff in my game: -Toughness is a free first level feat. For all classes. No more crit with a dart = death. Still have to watch for battleaxes though. :eek: -There was something for halflings and half-orcs. No love for half-elves? I allow either +1 skill points per level or a bonus feat as a human. Since they are effectively half, they get one of the two human bonuses. -Druids gain ONE shapechange ability per level. They must be familiar with the animal/elemental/whatever but they gain 3 shapes at 5th level. Druids are the baddest class in the game. It is a nerf, and I do think it's necessary. -Feats, skill tricks, powers, spells, and the like MUST be printed for easy access during the game. I own all the books except races of the dragon, and I absolutely hate having to dig through stuff. Write it, type it, photocopy it, whatever...but make sure it's correct (with errata) and word for word in a folder I provide. Game flow is king.
draco1119 01-28-07, 12:02 AM	Cleric: Not proficient with heavy armor or martial weapons. I don't (personally) agree with this one. I would change it so that they are proficient with any Type B martial or simple weapon, can ONLY use Type B and Favored Weapons, not proficient with Shields. (Basically, give your Cleric incentive to walk around in Full Plate wielding a Greatclub!)
Fencerboy 01-30-07, 08:38 PM	My favorite would be: Any character with a racial strength ADJUSTMENT may add their strength MODIFIER to Intimidate checks INSTEAD of their Charisma modifier. Kinda makes you feel a little more scared when the guy saying he is going to kill you is flexing his massive biceps, eh? :monk: :hides: :monk:
Melpomene 01-30-07, 09:15 PM	I hang around here so much, I have a house rule for just about everything. Still, the biggest one I do is throwing out the current 'reach' system for larger creatures.
Crimson_Concerto 01-30-07, 09:27 PM	I like a lot of house rules, but there's only one I refuse to play without: No Massive Damage! If a character of mine dies of massave damage when he would normally still have HP left, I don't build another character or ressurect. I simply quit that game. It's the most pointless and useless rule in RAW, and it's stupid I should die of HP damage when I still have most of my HP.
MonkeyPaladin 01-30-07, 10:13 PM	I like a lot of house rules, but there's only one I refuse to play without: No Massive Damage! If a character of mine dies of massave damage when he would normally still have HP left, I don't build another character or ressurect. I simply quit that game. It's the most pointless and useless rule in RAW, and it's stupid I should die of HP damage when I still have most of my HP. I like that you can die from a single, nasty hit. It's believeable, and the fort save is a pretty low one anyway. I think rangers should have better animal companions. Instead of half the level of a druid, it should just be the same as druids, minus three. So a level four ranger is still at lvl 1 for companion, but a ranger 12 is at 9, not 6.
LiefKarakse 01-30-07, 10:57 PM	I like that you can die from a single, nasty hit. It's believeable, and the fort save is a pretty low one anyway. I think rangers should have better animal companions. Instead of half the level of a druid, it should just be the same as druids, minus three. So a level four ranger is still at lvl 1 for companion, but a ranger 12 is at 9, not 6. i agree completely with the massive damage thing. as for animal companions i think they are fine. familiars have it way worse
Crimson_Concerto 01-30-07, 10:58 PM	I like that you can die from a single, nasty hit. It's believeable, and the fort save is a pretty low one anyway. I don't play D&D for the "realism." The HP rules in general already break in half any realism in the amount of damage one takes. All I know is that my character still has 2/3 of his HP, and I'm not dying just because I rolled an unlucky 2 on this silly Fortitude save that should never need to be made in the first place.
skywyze 01-31-07, 08:26 AM	I don't play D&D for the "realism." The HP rules in general already break in half any realism in the amount of damage one takes. All I know is that my character still has 2/3 of his HP, and I'm not dying just because I rolled an unlucky 2 on this silly Fortitude save that should never need to be made in the first place.Ahhh... The old balance vs. realism debate. *sigh*
Szatany 02-02-07, 07:22 PM	my favorite house rule right now is this: charisma bonus/penalty applies on all saves against spells and spell-like abilities.
BennyK 02-03-07, 06:44 PM	Well, I use bunch of them and have more to try; here's some of the quick ones that have 'stood the test of time': Initiative: d10 - makes those init. mods feel like they actually mean something (this one has proved quite popular and been adopted by most other GM's I know). STR bonus - Wielding a weapon two-handed always gives a STR bonus to damage at least +1 better than your base bonus (relevant to those with 13 or less STR). Bartering - Done using a CHA based Appraise check that gets a synergy bonus from Diplomacy (remember, shops don't have price tags on things; Knowing what things are worth is at least half the battle). Armor Bonus - Mage Armor stacks with a shield, a shield stacks with a shield. Composite Longbow - Can not be used from horseback (as longbow). AoO - Provoke AoO for moving into a threatened area (not 5' step). This was originally a misunderstanding when we started 3rd ED, but everyone said they prefered it that way and it was kept; it has subsequently been adopted into others games. Rushing headlong in can get you hurt... Cleric spontaneous casting - Rather than cure/inflict spells, cleric can trade-in for domain spells. Helps differentiate cleric/gods, and makes clerics feel far more like they are representing their gods portfolio/domain. This is a newer one that seems to have worked well The tip of the iceburg perhaps, but the quick and easy ones... EDIT: Almost forget: Reactive 5' step - (to steal Angrymans term) In combat, anyone who hasn't used their 5' step may do so on an enemy's turn to follow up if that enemy moves away from them. (mainly done to prevent avoidance of AoO thru short-commings of the turn-based system, and to seize ground). Paladins - See http://boards1.wizards.com/showpost.php?p=11376252&postcount=14
Krusk 02-04-07, 12:14 AM	AoO - Provoke AoO for moving into a threatened area (not 5' step). This was originally a misunderstanding when we started 3rd ED, but everyone said they prefered it that way and it was kept; it has subsequently been adopted into others games. Rushing headlong in can get you hurt... That seems like it would really slow down combat. A ton. It seems like everyone would just circle each other for a long time, and it really ruins the charge mechanic. Which already gives a penalty -2 AC.
BennyK 02-04-07, 02:23 AM	That seems like it would really slow down combat. A ton. It seems like everyone would just circle each other for a long time, and it really ruins the charge mechanic. Which already gives a penalty -2 AC. Generally it either slows down combat: Not at all - the attacker moves in or charges and attacks, risking taking a hit (makes mobility/spring-attack a little more useful), Or by half a round - they go defensive and move close (10') (also handy for throwing a short-ranged weapon to soften them a little), the opponent then moves in and attacks or falls back to do something else (forcing you to 'charge'). I didn't go into another house-rule we have that has some effect on this; a character can use a standard action to do another move-equivalent action (or 5' step). Meaning that characters that decide not to risk the AoO tend to move safely to within 10', then make a 5' move to get into reach (but ending their round). Related to this (and important against excessive tripping), is allowing standing from prone to be split into two move-equivalent actions that don't provoke AoOs: one to get to 'kneeling' (or sitting), one to stand from kneeling (Kneeling was 'simplified' out of 3.5Ed, has half the mods of prone).
Krusk 02-04-07, 01:56 PM	I guess i can see that being cool.
turalisj 02-04-07, 07:36 PM	My favorite houserule has got to be this: Jump, Swim and Climb are combined into athletics Balance and tumble are combined into acrobatics and Move Silently an Hide are combined into stealth
cthascott 02-06-07, 01:59 AM	my favorite house rule right now is this: charisma bonus/penalty applies on all saves against spells and spell-like abilities. I like this but I wonder as to whether or not there is a viable reason for it. If so, what is it?
skywyze 02-06-07, 10:08 AM	I like this but I wonder as to whether or not there is a viable reason for it. If so, what is it?Charisma becomes less useful in heavy-combat, restrictive campaigns. So they tend to think of charisma as a dump stat. This house rule changes that.
Drolath 02-07-07, 01:50 AM	One house rule I came up with was this; Clerics: any spell with cure in the title, heals max HP when not in combat. I never liked it when the cleric had to blow his wad once the danger was past, but I thought it was important to have the chance for a bad roll in the heat of combat. This was my solution. My players have universally hailed it as a good thing, so take it if you like. Helps with less down time.
FoxmanFX 02-07-07, 11:48 AM	One house rule I came up with was this; Clerics: any spell with cure in the title, heals max HP when not in combat. I never liked it when the cleric had to blow his wad once the danger was past, but I thought it was important to have the chance for a bad roll in the heat of combat. This was my solution. My players have universally hailed it as a good thing, so take it if you like. Helps with less down time. That seems very cool - kinda like taking 20 to cure outside of combat. What about wands and potions? Always roll?
Drolath 02-07-07, 12:19 PM	That seems very cool - kinda like taking 20 to cure outside of combat. What about wands and potions? Always roll? I have Wands and potions work the same way, max healing out of combat. It's worked very well and hasn't caused any game balance issues to date. I've been using this house rule for about a year and a half.
Krusk 02-07-07, 04:30 PM	My question for the max healing spells, was What about inflict spells on undead cohorts/party members or people with the feat to heal from negative energy? Or is that assumed to be included?
Drolath 02-07-07, 05:48 PM	My question for the max healing spells, was What about inflict spells on undead cohorts/party members or people with the feat to heal from negative energy? Or is that assumed to be included? Actually I've never had that come up. I would rule that it would be included, just add the inflict to the title, I.E. Any spell that has cure, or inflict in the title, for the purposes of healing, heals the maximum when the players are outside of combat, and not being threatened with imminent combat. (The last bit is to avoid players arguing that they are not engaged in combat even though they can hear the goblin horde trying to break through the door. The intent is to have this be the equivalent to taking 20 on a skill check for casting healing spells.)
Krusk 02-07-07, 08:32 PM	That makes sense.
Ghenesh 02-08-07, 11:26 AM	What about this: The minimum skill points at first level is: ( 4 + Int Modifier ) x 4
Szatany 02-08-07, 11:37 AM	I like this but I wonder as to whether or not there is a viable reason for it. If so, what is it? TO make charisma useful for any character. To make warrior types think twice before putting 8 in there.
Romtos 02-08-07, 12:10 PM	My favorite would be: Any character with a racial strength ADJUSTMENT may add their strength MODIFIER to Intimidate checks INSTEAD of their Charisma modifier. Kinda makes you feel a little more scared when the guy saying he is going to kill you is flexing his massive biceps, eh? :monk: :hides: :monk: Macho-behaviour is nót intimidating. :) Charisma is just fine, IMHO. For my houserules: -Minimum HP per level is avarage per HD, rounded up. That's the most important one. :D
cthascott 02-08-07, 07:17 PM	TO make charisma useful for any character. To make warrior types think twice before putting 8 in there. I realize that Charisma is considered a dump stat and that is a good reason. No stat should get left behind but MAD can become a problem for some characters. But is that the only reason or do you have a sound explanation for this houserule? I'd like to implement it in my games, but I need a reason for the application before doing so. Peace. CthaS
Ghenesh 02-09-07, 02:32 PM	my favorite house rule right now is this: charisma bonus/penalty applies on all saves against spells and spell-like abilities. How much test play have you done with this houserule? How do you compensate paladins for not having this as a class feature? How do you manage the fact tha all spells that allow a saving throw suck at high levels?
Krusk 02-09-07, 03:04 PM	Id say to compensate the palidins for the loss, the one for all classes is untyped. The palidins is a divine bonus. they now stack, and the paladin gets 2x cha mod on saves. I dont really like this rule either. In my games we use a lot of charisma based skills when bartering. So players don't dump it immediatly because then they cant get any of that good equipment.
Szatany 02-09-07, 05:35 PM	I don't use this rule, I just like it.
Mnky 02-10-07, 10:41 AM	Commiting Suicide :D Seriously, we have a house rule in place to discourage character suicide (Mostly because of a player who threatens it whenever something bad happens). Will DC 25 + 1/person not wanting the character dead, where failure results in a failed attempt. That is an awesome rule, I'll use that. My personal favourite is no ressurections for people with under 7 hit dice. It makes situations with hostages and the like more fun.
Chimaera2000 02-10-07, 05:18 PM	My favorite house rule is Charisma to Will saves and Wisdom to Initiative. I hate the principle of automatic "dump stats" for any character. My group doesn't use this rule, but I love it in principle. I also love the Ranger bonus to Knowledges as well. It occurred to me that an encounter could go something like this under the core rules.... Fighter: Dude, nice shooting! How'd you take down that monster so quickly? Ranger: Well, this monster has a weak point in its cranial structure that allowed me to penetrate the medulla oblongata. I was able to hit it more precisely as a result. Fighter: Wow! Which monster was it? Ranger: Pfft, the hell if I know.
Qwicksilver 02-10-07, 06:53 PM	My friends have used this, apparently stemming from earlier versions. No confirmation rolls for criticals. I don't know who it favors, my friend thinks the ray shooting wizard. I feel it favors power-attacking fighters, perhaps it's just making the party in general too powerful (we don't use a 25 point buy system anyway), but that's how it's always been with us. I find it allows for more exciting moments in game, a 20 is always a good lightningstrike moment. I imagine if you had to roll to confirm, it'd take some of the excitement away.
skywyze 02-10-07, 07:20 PM	I also love the Ranger bonus to Knowledges as well. It occurred to me that an encounter could go something like this under the core rules.... Fighter: Dude, nice shooting! How'd you take down that monster so quickly? Ranger: Well, this monster has a weak point in its cranial structure that allowed me to penetrate the medulla oblongata. I was able to hit it more precisely as a result. Fighter: Wow! Which monster was it? Ranger: Pfft, the hell if I know.:heehee
Salla 02-10-07, 09:23 PM	No Paladin/Monk/Samurai/whateverlese Multiclass Restrictions, no favored classes, no XP penalties for multiclassing. The class system is there to let a player play the character he wants. If this entails multiclassing, so be it. :)
Zumarai 02-12-07, 05:00 AM	No Paladin/Monk/Samurai/whateverlese Multiclass Restrictions, no favored classes, no XP penalties for multiclassing. The class system is there to let a player play the character he wants. If this entails multiclassing, so be it. :) Totally agree! I also don't believe in the clunky, cross-class Skills nightmare – all Skills are class Skills. If a person wants to study Knowledge (basket weaving) so be it, what difference does it make if he/she's a fighter or a bard etc.
Archtyrant Terevoth 02-12-07, 08:28 AM	I like that you can die from a single, nasty hit. It's believeable, and the fort save is a pretty low one anyway. Death from massive damage is stupid. Because a "single, nasty" hit changes depending on your level. Heck, getting hit with a scythe critical for 20 damage at 2nd level is single nasty hit. Getting hit by a ballista bolt is a single nasty hit. Getting chopped by an ogre's greataxe can be a single nasty hit. The 50 point margin is entirely arbitrary and I'm not even certain why it's there at all.
Mnky 02-12-07, 02:29 PM	I like that you can die from a single nasty hit, so I use the wound point/vitality point system. It's rather more elegant than death from massive damage, and seems more logical to me at least.
Salla 02-12-07, 11:07 PM	Totally agree! I also don't believe in the clunky, cross-class Skills nightmare – all Skills are class Skills. If a person wants to study Knowledge (basket weaving) so be it, what difference does it make if he/she's a fighter or a bard etc. I modified it slightly ... I keep the cross-class skills limit, but putting ranks in those skills no longer costs double. So, for example, if a 1st level fighter wants to put ranks in Knowledge (Arcana), he still has a limit of 2 ranks, but he only pays 2, not 4, skill points to do so.
Zumarai 02-13-07, 08:06 AM	I modified it slightly ... I keep the cross-class skills limit, but putting ranks in those skills no longer costs double. So, for example, if a 1st level fighter wants to put ranks in Knowledge (Arcana), he still has a limit of 2 ranks, but he only pays 2, not 4, skill points to do so. ...I like that.
skywyze 02-13-07, 08:49 AM	Personally, I think I'd do it the other way around. If your goal is to nudge fighters in the direction of fighter-skills without restricting them too much, then being unable to put more than half the normal ranks in a skill seems counter-intuitive to me. I mean, that's restrictive too! I'd make cross-class skills cost twice as many points, but waive that half max skill ranks limit. So for instance, if a player wants to play a fighter who enjoys studying and hearing about dragons, magical beasts, ancient mysteries etc, let him take full ranks in Knowledge(Arcana). But because he'd have to do it on his spare time, make each rank still cost 2 skill points. That way he COULD be really knowledgeable about the stuff if he really wants to.
Salla 02-13-07, 10:25 PM	Personally, I think I'd do it the other way around. If your goal is to nudge fighters in the direction of fighter-skills without restricting them too much, then being unable to put more than half the normal ranks in a skill seems counter-intuitive to me. I mean, that's restrictive too! I'd make cross-class skills cost twice as many points, but waive that half max skill ranks limit. So for instance, if a player wants to play a fighter who enjoys studying and hearing about dragons, magical beasts, ancient mysteries etc, let him take full ranks in Knowledge(Arcana). But because he'd have to do it on his spare time, make each rank still cost 2 skill points. That way he COULD be really knowledgeable about the stuff if he really wants to. Nowhere near as restrictive as the present setup, though, you must admit. :) It's actually less a matter of 'nudging fighters to fighter skills' as making it possible to have a 'secondary focus' that doesn't require multiclassing if the player doesn't want it. I considered your variant, but I've discovered that my players simply absolutely, positively, will *not* spend double skill ranks for cross-class skills. EVER. Well, except for one guy who always spends points on Spot, Search, and Listen, even to the point where his spellcasters don't have ranks in Concentration.
The_Levitator 02-14-07, 10:04 PM	My hands-down favorite (and both of my gaming groups') is that we play diceless. I use the autoroll feature in DM Genie and have never looked back. Combat is exponentially faster (1 click and I know exactly what happens, and we use a ton of variants that DM Genie tracks automatically), the game is much more suspenseful (the players don't even know when they are making spot checks, or when other creatures are attempting something sneaky), it greatly reduces metagaming, and by tucking the mechanics away, we seem to focus a lot more on description and roleplaying and not number crunching. Just for completeness, here are most of the others we are using: + Modified HP rolling. I wanted to raise the avg. HP so we use this: D4: roll 1d3+1, D6: roll 1d4+2, D8: roll 1d6+2, D10: roll 1d6+4 and D12: roll 1d8+4. + There is no "Common" language. We play FR and use the political boundries map to dermine human languages. I created a separate table for elves, halflings, etc. + We use a 2/1 real time combat ratio. Players have 12 seconds to begin to declare their action, or they are considered delaying for at least the next creature's turn in the initiative order. + Defensive Opposed Roll + Clobbered Variant + Armor as DR (DM Genie even tracks physical damage to armor and shields automatically). We use the IH AaDR system. + Facing Variant. + Battle Fatigue. A houserule that I created at the request of my players. Battle Fatigue was created to represent the cumulative effects of wounds and movement during combat. 75% of total HP=Light Battle Fatigue (-1STR, -1DEX) 50% of total HP=Moderate Battle Fatigue (-2STR, -2DEX) 25% of total HP=Heavy Battle Fatigue (-4STR, -4DEX) To make this even a little grittier during gameplay, I don't give out exact numbers during combat. We use Maptools as a VT and it has the ability to assign different colored halos to tokens. Our color coding system is: Green=76-100% of total HP, Healthy Yellow=51-75% of total HP, Light Battle Fatigue Orange=26-50% of total HP, Moderate Battle Fatigue Red=1-25% of total HP, Heavy Battle Fatigue Once combat is over and characters have time to assess the damage, I give the players their exact totals and extent of their injuries. This has definitely made combat dicier and the players never cease to get excited when halos change colors on the map. + Defense Bonus. + All shields are +1 from RAW + Bows and crossbows have increased threat ranges and criticals. I have 2 players that love ranged combat and feel that ranged combat is pretty useless in 3.5. Bows are now 19-20x3 and crossbows are 18-20x3. + No instantaneous healing. This is another houserule that came from my players disliking the notion of "potion-chugging meat shields". So, I created a system that still allows healing to be miraculous, but not necessarily effective during combat. I created 5 levels of potency for potions and prayers. Cleric Lvl Recovery Rate Item Cost X 1-3 1 HP/8 rds. Standard 4-6 1HP/4 rds. x2 7-8 1HP/2 rds. x3 9-10 1HP/rd. x4 11-12 2HP/rd. x5 The list only goes to 12th level because we stop levelling at 12th and use a buy system I found on Enworld for feats, skills, ability pts., etc. + No polymorph or animated shields. I know this is a ton of variants, but I know that without DM Genie to track all of this for me, I wouldn't be using most of this. It's partly because I'm a techno geek, but mostly because I'm a bit lazy when it comes to number crunching! :D
damixmastermike 02-16-07, 12:44 PM	You don't roll dice?!?!?!?!?!?!? I guess I shouldn't dis something I haven't tried, but it's still a shocking idea.
skywyze 02-16-07, 12:54 PM	I've played games without dice-rolling. It's a great concept since it encourages, nay, enforces roleplaying. However, I do think that it's a little restrictive since essentially the only times you win a fight is when the DM decides you should. There's very little randomness or player interaction involved and so there are very few surprises for either player or DM, and there's a lot of railroading. But to each their own.
The_Levitator 02-16-07, 01:07 PM	You don't roll dice?!?!?!?!?!?!? I guess I shouldn't dis something I haven't tried, but it's still a shocking idea. :D It never fails to get an initial reaction. My group was tenative about the idea too at first. One of my players began playing in the late 70's with Chainmail, and another started with 1st edition around 1980. I first played in 1982, so you could say we have some old school players. But after trying it, the benefits, for us, far outweighed our habit of using dice. The first thing we noticed is how much more quickly combat is resolved. It's not a little quicker, it's MUCH quicker. Some other feedback that I got were things like "the game is much more suspenseful", "hiding the mechanics more in-game makes the game more immersive", "combat feels less like a board game and more like actual roleplaying", and "I focus more on the story and my character and less on crunching numbers." I know it's not for everyone, but I can say that every single person who's sat in on a session prefers it to rolling. We did try an experiment and go back to rolling for a session about 3 months after we were playing diceless. My group made me promise never to do that again. It was very hard at first for a couple of my players to let go of their dice. But as a group, we agreed that how we get the number is unimportant. What's important is what we do once we know the number. To my group, they don't care if a little piece of plastic determines the number or DM Genie's autoroll feature determines the number. It's just a number. The number is just there to determine the next course of actions. What is important to my group is the decision making process, not the number generating process. What's really exciting for me is that 2 local stores have asked me to demonstrate our style of gameplay; one at their store and one at a local gaming convention that is planned for late spring. The biggest problem I'm having is trying to come up with a name for our style of gaming. Right now I'm leaning towards "The highly bastardized, incredibly tweaked, and just plain very altered version of 3.5 D&D." It wasn't only the diceless style that they want me to demonstrate, but also all of the variants and digital goodies I use in my games. That would be DM Genie (with tons of customized scripts) for game management, Maptoools as a virtual tabletop (I use an HD projector and an 8' screen), and RPGAudiomixer for background music and sound effects. There was a thread a while back that another member started about videotaping sessions and posting them so that gaming groups could see different styles of gaming. I'm close to being able to do that. We actually had to take some time off as my career put me on the road for a couple of months (I'm an entertainer), but we are regrouping and starting a new group campaign next Sunday. Once we get our sea legs back, I plan to videotape a session with a couple of cameras so that people can take a look at it if they want. I still look to the sky every time I mention that we play diceless, getting ready to dodge lightning bolts! :devil:
The_Levitator 02-16-07, 01:38 PM	I've played games without dice-rolling. It's a great concept since it encourages, nay, enforces roleplaying. However, I do think that it's a little restrictive since essentially the only times you win a fight is when the DM decides you should. There's very little randomness or player interaction involved and so there are very few surprises for either player or DM, and there's a lot of railroading. But to each their own. I should have explained it a little better I think. By diceless, I mean we don't use dice to determine results, but we do use a program (DM Genie) and it's random number generator to determine results. I know that diceless generally means something like Free Roleplaying, where numbers really aren't even used. When I say diceless, I'm referring to the fact that we use DM Genie to handle the mechanics. We still use all of the rules and rolls in D&D, we just don't make them ourselves. DM Genie makes the rolls for us.
FoxmanFX 02-22-07, 11:58 AM	Here is a little house rule I was introduced to about 12-13 years ago and always use - don't even really think about it. At character creation roll a d6 and a d12. If the d6 is higher - you are left handed If the d12 is higher - you are right handed If they are equal - you are Ambidextrous
Krusk 02-22-07, 12:14 PM	how often does left or right handed come up?
Ghenesh 02-22-07, 12:27 PM	I guess being right or left handed is just for fluff reasons... i can't see how it does affect the game... unless you're playing 3.0 and giving Ambidexterity for free to those who were lucky enough to get the same roll. Well, after a campaign got infested with uber-chargers (mounted paladins, frenzy barbarians, charging fighters, etc), and Shock-Trooper/Leap-Attack became more cheesy than Divine-Metamagic/Persistant-Spell... the DM choose to take cards into account to make the combats last more than 2 rounds and came up with this house rule: Power Attack can be used with simple weapons, and the damage dealt by Power Attack with every type of weapon is now: Simple Weapon: Half the penalty taken with Power Attack. One-handed Weapon: The exact penalty taken with Power Attack. Two-handed Weapon: One and a half the penalty taken with Power Attack. Suddenly the Frenzied Berserker's damage became very hard to calculate... but combats last a bit longer and using regular shields is kinda viable now, also any monster can use Power Attack (not only elementals).
Mnky 02-22-07, 02:05 PM	Here is a little house rule I was introduced to about 12-13 years ago and always use - don't even really think about it. At character creation roll a d6 and a d12. If the d6 is higher - you are left handed If the d12 is higher - you are right handed If they are equal - you are Ambidextrous That is a great idea. You don't mind anyone else using that?
FoxmanFX 02-23-07, 12:17 PM	Feel free to use it - I picked it up in a 2nd edition campaign run by someone else years ago. Yes it is just fluff - but it does add a bit to character discription. I've never had any complaints about it. Technially it should work for ANY game system (lol). How often does left right come up? I havent run the math to tell you the honest truth. OK 5 min and a spread sheet later: Ambidex: 8.33% Left: 20.83% Right: 70.83% Anecdotally? Most people end up right. Out of a group of 4 people often 1 person ends up left or Ambidex. One campaign (over the course of the last decade+ of games) 3 out of 4 players rolled ambidex, the other was right. I was rolling up characters with my players this week, two of them new playing with me and the guy said "I'm going to be left handed" and said "wait! - you have to roll" (which triggered this post actually). He then proceeded to roll left handed and the other two right. - heh funny how things work out sometimes :)
Szatany 02-24-07, 09:26 AM	Power Attack can be used with simple weapons, and the damage dealt by Power Attack with every type of weapon is now: Simple Weapon: Half the penalty taken with Power Attack. One-handed Weapon: The exact penalty taken with Power Attack. Two-handed Weapon: One and a half the penalty taken with Power Attack. Don't you mean light weapons instead of simple ones?
Rogue Shadows 02-24-07, 09:50 AM	Hmm. I have two. 20-20-20 If, on an attack roll, a critical is threatened, then confirmed with a second natural 20, there is a chance for instant death if a third natural 20 is rolled. The normal critical range for a weapon is used for the first 20, but the second two rolls must be natural 20s. Otherwise it's just a confirmed or missed critical. This has a tendency to increase the threat level for the PCs, not the monsters. The monsters are going to get killed anyway, and the PCs are less likely to roll 20-20-20 since they, altogether, are attacking less often then all the monsters they might face together. No joke: once, a player in my d20 Club, whom no one actually liked, had three 20-20-20s scored on him within half an hour. Imposing Presence A racial trait that lets orcs and half-orcs use STR rather then CHA on Intimidate checks. It just makes more sense.
Krusk 02-24-07, 02:35 PM	You would think the 20-20-20 rule is good. But think about this. the party is up against the first line of low level cake walk encounters at the start of the epic dungeon against the high level lich. First goblin scout, who is supposed to be there to harry the pcs and alert the enemy takes a pot shot at a pc. He instant kills. Now that PC is out of the fight for the entire fight, including the giant evil BBEG.
The_Levitator 02-24-07, 02:45 PM	You would think the 20-20-20 rule is good. But think about this. the party is up against the first line of low level cake walk encounters at the start of the epic dungeon against the high level lich. First goblin scout, who is supposed to be there to harry the pcs and alert the enemy takes a pot shot at a pc. He instant kills. Now that PC is out of the fight for the entire fight, including the giant evil BBEG. We actually had that type of scenario play out in our first 3.5 campaign. The players really liked the idea of the 20-20-20, so we used it. They were hunting down a vampire who had surrounded himself with some low level undead to slow his foes down. The caster got hit with an arrow from a Skeletal Archer who made the 20-20-20 roll and dropped him in his tracks before they even got inside the crypt. :ghosted: The group decided to abandon that variant after that little encounter. We don't use a massive damage variant either. With all of the variants we use, combat is deadly enough! :D :fight!:
Krusk 02-24-07, 07:48 PM	thats the exact scenario we had. I was dming, and my scenario happened. It really took the momentum out of the rest of the session.
darth_borehd 02-24-07, 09:02 PM	Craft points variant. It encourages players to make more magic items.
skywyze 02-24-07, 10:57 PM	Craft points variant. It encourages players to make more magic items.I've been thinking of trying something like that myself. Is there a system anywhere that I can read about?
darth_borehd 02-24-07, 11:09 PM	I've been thinking of trying something like that myself. Is there a system anywhere that I can read about? http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/buildingCharacters/craftPoints.htm
skywyze 02-25-07, 09:08 AM	http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/buildingCharacters/craftPoints.htm DOH! :rolleyes:
s4ndm4n 02-25-07, 12:48 PM	-warlocks pay XP normally for items, otherwise it ruins a campaign's economy(like, the wizard sells ring of prot +1 for 2000gp, while the warlock for 100gp;and he sells 400 of them :P lol) -XP for successful skill checks. 10 per point of DC, 20 per point of DC they exceed,if successful.E.G. open lock dc:20 the rogue rolls a total of 31, he gets 200xp + 220xp 'cause he's exceptional ;) -there is a ban on certain spells, on certain areas.E.G. spell ban on evil spells in a highly religious LG kingdom, spell ban on fire spells inside druid grove, spell ban on Detect thoughts while in open markets . -a player must be able to make and lvl up alone his character in order to lay.Exception:1st timers.They just watch the other guys play a session, then i help them begin.(i was tired making every1's char while they slept:mad: .) -do what-f**kin-ever u want , consequences r ur problem, not mine. well, i made a list of house rules......the last 2 r my faves.
Krusk 02-25-07, 03:03 PM	-XP for successful skill checks. 10 per point of DC, 20 per point of DC they exceed,if successful.E.G. open lock dc:20 the rogue rolls a total of 31, he gets 200xp + 220xp 'cause he's exceptional What about a bluff check? Does a character who rolls a 45 to tell someone their shoe is untied gain more xp than the rogue who disarms a lethal trap, with a dc 23? getting a 25 on his roll?
Syden 02-27-07, 02:20 PM	We give a bonus to skill points based on current level. For example you would get +1 skill point at first level and when you get to second level you get 2 more and so on. This is to help fighters who only get 2 a level and adds some fun to the game like taking some "extra" skills you wouldn't normaly take. Like putting a few points in something like craft tailoring or profession scribe. They give an extra added depth to the Characters and help player interaction. Hope this helps. ---Syden
Boraxe 02-27-07, 03:42 PM	0-level spells can be spontaneously cast, no memorization or preparation required. Normal times-per-day limits still apply.
ollieollie34 02-27-07, 04:34 PM	I must really have something against rolling a lot of dice. NO dice are used when generating characters in campaigns that i DM. each player uses the folling numbers for his attributes: 16, 16, 13, 12, 11, 10. Exceptions are made. For instance that player who has to have an 18 can have it by raising 1 of the 16s up 2 points and lowering 1 of the 16s by 4! This would read as 18, 12, 13, 12, 11, 10. Likewise other adjustments can be negotiated. For hitpoints all characters recieve half their maximum allowed after first lvl. In otherwords a 1st lvl wizard recieves 4 hps + con bonus at first and then 2 hp + con bonus every level after that. Yes im a jerk but the same applies for npcs too. Finally i hate rolling for initiative every combat session. The person with the highest initiative bonus always goes first. We dont roll the dice. A person with a dex bonus of 2 and improved initiative (+6) goes before a person with a dex bonus of +3. This keeps the combat organized and easy to remember. Bob the wizard always attacks for Ralph the Fighter and Ralph always attacks before Ned the cleric. If there is a tie i let the pcs go first. Its the nice kind of guy i am. In my opinion tho the less dice rolls you have the smoother combat runs.
Red12 02-27-07, 10:27 PM	By the gods, there are so many houserules I have that I probably could not write them all down... Current favorite is a different dead/dying mechanic. “M” equals the character’s Constitution modifier (if above 0, otherwise it is 0) and “S” equals his Constitution score. • As long as a character still has at least 1 hit point, he can act normally. • Between 0 and –M hit points, a character is disabled. • Between –M and –S hit points, a character is dying. • At lower than –S, a character is dead. So Bob Fighter has a CON of 16. He is disabled from 0 to -3 HP. He is dying from -4 to -16. It just makes the conditions have a little bit more use, and a disabled character can perform more than on strenuous action before passing out ;)
The_Levitator 02-27-07, 10:47 PM	I forgot 1 that the group really likes. When you go to -HP, you don't automatically fall unconcious. You get to make a FORT check = DC10+ # of negative HP. A fighter with 4 HP left gets hit for 7 HP of damage. He goes to -3 and rolls a FORT save DC13. I can't remember where I saw this, but we've been using it for a long time. The players really like the idea of being able to yell out to their comrades that they are dying. :)
Rothwell 02-28-07, 04:05 AM	Me and my friends house rule is that Wepon Finesse applys to wepon damage as well as attack rolls. My thinking is that if you are strikeing more gracefully then your strikes are hitting where there is a weakness in their defence, so it will in turn do more damage.
Kraleck 02-28-07, 08:12 AM	Seeing as I recently received and allow PHB II for classes I made several changes: True Dragons have maximum HP per die (Lesser dragons still roll HP). True Dragon alignments are now "must be either X or Y" (for example Gold Dragons who were always Lawful Good are now any alignment that has either Lawful or Good - LE, LN, LG, NG, or CG). Dragon Shamans can take alignments that reflect the previous rule - (LG Dragon means DS must be either Lawful or Good). More selectable races (2 or fewer racial HD and LA +1 or less, I allow Human, Elan, Azurin, Elf, Half-Elf, Half-Orc, Dwarf, Gnome, Halfling, Kobold, Goblin, Blue, Lizardfolk, Xeph, Maenad, Dromite, Thri-Kreen (cannot become Psionic), Rilkan, Skarn, Warforged (cannot become Psionic), and some Anthropomorphic Animals (excludes aquatic creatures including, but not limited to, whales, sharks, and squids)). Start at 4 HD if race has LA +0, 3 HD with LA removed if race has LA +1. More selectable classes (must be any Good, I allow Barbarian, Bard, Cleric, Druid, Fighter, Monk, Paladin, Ranger, Rogue, Sorcerer, Wizard, Beguiler, Dragon Shaman, Duskblade, Knight, Swashbuckler, Psion, Psychic Warrior, Soulknife, Wilder, Incarnate, Soulborn, and Totemist). Waiting on Complete Adventurer, Arcane, and Divine to possibly add more classes. Allowing Prestige Classes is a case by case basis (if I can find a way to counter it, I'll allow it, the Overwhelm spell is why I now allow Frenzied Berserker).
Ghenesh 02-28-07, 08:55 AM	Don't you mean light weapons instead of simple ones? :eek: Yes.
StoneStokes 02-28-07, 04:13 PM	My favorite house rules (other than those already mentioned): Take 0 Listen checks while sleeping. A sleeping character is allowed Listen checks against Move Silently, or the sound of combat, but they must "take 0." In other words, only ranks in Listen and the Wisdom modifier apply. This makes it relatively easy to sneak past a sleeping guard, but sounds of combat will almost certainly wake him (DC -10). Mixed Rolling/Point-Buy ability score generation. When creating a character, the player rolls 4d6-drop-one four times, and writes the scores down on scratch paper. Then compute the Point-Buy cost for these four scores (anything less than 8 counts for 0 points). If the total is 30 or more, the last two scores are both 8. If the total is less than 30, the last two scores are purchased so as to bring the total Point-Buy cost up to 30. Unspent points may not be used on the rolled stats, even if it is impossible to bring the Point-Buy total up to 30. Place the scores as desired. (As a DM, you can use whatever Point-Buy total you wish; I prefer 30).
FoxmanFX 02-28-07, 05:22 PM	For hitpoints all characters recieve half their maximum allowed after first lvl. In otherwords a 1st lvl wizard recieves 4 hps + con bonus at first and then 2 hp + con bonus every level after that. Yes im a jerk but the same applies for npcs too. Finally i hate rolling for initiative every combat session. The person with the highest initiative bonus always goes first. We dont roll the dice. A person with a dex bonus of 2 and improved initiative (+6) goes before a person with a dex bonus of +3. This keeps the combat organized and easy to remember. Bob the wizard always attacks for Ralph the Fighter and Ralph always attacks before Ned the cleric. If there is a tie i let the pcs go first. Its the nice kind of guy i am. For HP's keep in mind that all monsters and printed NPC's already use "average" HP's. However the average of a d4 is 2.5 not 2 ((1+4/2)=2.5). For a wizard you may wish to consider giving 2 hp at even levels and 3 hp at odd levels.... a 7th level NPC wizard without a con bonus should have (4+(2.5x6)=19) 19 HP - by your system your PCs would have (4+(2x6)=16) 16hp... slightly underpowering them compaired to printed monsters - though I think printed monsters in the MMI use average HP for ALL HD including the 1st. I kind of like your system for init, but what about ties between PC's - and does that not make the improved init feat VERY powerful - if not too powerful? I've seen house rules where people roll a d10 instead of a d20 for init just to reduce the spread a bit... But I understand the desire for rolling less dice. Another 'time-saver' is the "roll-first, add second" rule - that is roll then add your bonuses to hit - if its a 1 or a 20 (for example) you don't need to spend 5-10 min adding up all the bonuses... (bonus points for also rolling the damage with the attack roll! - saves time if you do hit!)
Tuah 02-28-07, 05:38 PM	I like allowing exchange of 4 skill points for a new feat. That seems somewhat balanced, but useful. Also, I quite enjoy the BAB +1/2 or +3/4 or +1 house rule for multiclassing. Sometimes it just doesn't add up correctly.
Ghenesh 03-01-07, 02:26 PM	I like allowing exchange of 4 skill points for a new feat. That seems somewhat balanced, but useful. OMG!!! most broken houserule ever... i want to be a rogue in your campaign. I didn't understand your second houserule but it seemed like fractional BAB... I have always wanted to try that out, with fractional Saves also.
Krusk 03-01-07, 03:38 PM	I like allowing exchange of 4 skill points for a new feat. That seems somewhat balanced, but useful. Im gonna play wizard. max ranks in concentration spellcraft and dicipher script. Now im gonna dump every other skill point into some metamagic/item creation feats ontop of my bonus feats. Ill probably have more than the party fighter.
FoxmanFX 03-02-07, 01:37 PM	I'd make it 5 or 6 skill points for a feat... Here's an intresting idea - spend skill points to buy a feat you wouldnt normally qualify for? hmmm could be broken... anyways heres a house rule I use... All DM combat roles in front of the screen. I only roll things like secret listen/spot etc. behind the screen. I find that I fudge things a little to much when I'm behind the screen, either in the players favor if they are getting hammered or even *against* them if I figure they have it to easy. - keeps me honest ;) and there is no 'question' by the players 'did they really do that well?' or 'the dm hates me and is picking on me!' My players like it and I like it too... makes combat more 'gritty' and adds a 'sense of danger' (no - the dm will save us if it gets too bad).
Krusk 03-02-07, 03:53 PM	I also roll in the open, my group has a couple of guys who have been known to roll in secret and add a few, or roll all the die at once and arrange as they like. 4 attacks, 4 d20 rolled and the highest roll goes to the highest attack gaurenteeing a hit. while the crit goes on my lowest attack so it hits. By me rolling front they have started to roll in the open as well, and it solved the problem.along with some good old fashion "stop cheating" "oh, ok" conversations.
danzig138 03-05-07, 12:35 PM	You would think the 20-20-20 rule is good. But think about this. And? Hell, I don't use 20 - 20 - 20, I use 20 - 20 - confirm. Yeah, it might take a player out of the game for a while. So can a solid critical hit at low levels. It can also put down a BBEG in the first round instead of it being a drawn-out battle. I get that these are not desireable outcomes for everyone, but they sit quite well with me and mine. These threads have taught me that whenever a player is going to join a new game, he should state up front what rules he simply won't play under. Like the guy who hates massive damage - if he mentions this up front, you can just say "Cool. I hope you find a game suited to your liking then" instead of the inevitable blow-up later when his character gets squished b a giant's club or something. At the same time, the DM should be very clear about his house and variant rules as well before play starts. He should also be clear about his style, and the type of games he runs. Whenever I get a new player (not a very common experience, BTW), I always point out that pretty much any game I run will be lethal. And at some point, will probably have a xenomorph in it. :) (It's a sickness, I need help) That's just my style.
Krusk 03-05-07, 04:21 PM	I am a big fan of high mortality every battle is life or death campaigns. The thing i never like, is up rolled bad im dead. To me thats never fun for anyone.
UAMDB 03-05-07, 05:07 PM	Im gonna play wizard. max ranks in concentration spellcraft and dicipher script. Now im gonna dump every other skill point into some metamagic/item creation feats ontop of my bonus feats. Ill probably have more than the party fighter. As long as you have a 14 Int it does not matter what class you are. Example: Fighter 14 Int Skills 2 +2 for Int = 4 skill points Spend 4 points buy Feat Open Minded Open Minded = Gain 5 skill points maybe taken mutilple times. Rinse and repeat until you have enough to buy as you want. Even take feats you dont need because there free.
UAMDB 03-05-07, 05:16 PM	My house rules. Hit Points Roll twice take best every level. Max at first. Skill - Once a skill always a skill. Healing spells - Always roll one more dice than required for spell. Drop the lowest. (Cure Light roll 2d8 take highest) Creation - 4d6 re-roll 1 and 2, drop the lowest. You are suppose to be the best, thats why you go adventuring and save the world. Wands of cure X - you can take 20 on UMD if outside of combat and no one is about to die. Only works on Wands of Cure. Attack roll of 1 is a miss, and nothing else. (According to the rules this is RAW, but it almost seems like people treat as a house rule) I allow any WotC book. If I dont own it you better have it every night or you can not use the powers. If I can read it then you can use it. Just because I read it last night does not mean I remember.
CaoSlayer 03-06-07, 09:09 AM	One simple one to avoid powergamers levels dips: A character with levels in two diferent pr classes have a 20% experience penalty unless any (or both) prc are mastered (have all the levels posible).
PuppyKhan 03-06-07, 12:21 PM	Composite Longbow - Can not be used from horseback (as longbow). As someone who practices mounted archery with a large composite bow, I see no point for such a restriction. Actually, most types of longbows were used from horseback at some point, and not just the asymmetrical longbows like the Hun composite or the Japanese Yumi, but English longbows too. If it was done historically, I see no reason to restrict my fantasy characters, who can cast spells and shapshift or have whatever other supernatural abilities, from using their bow on a horse too. Now as for my house rules: - Elves' favored class is Sorcerer. (surprised this one was not added with 3e) - Monks are not resticted from multiclassing or with alignment. (Will extend this to other classes after reading this thread) - Thrown weapons add STR modifier to range increment. Thus a charcter with STR 18 can throw a weapon with a 10' increment 14' per increment while a character with STR 8 can only throw it 9'. (Became real important when a character wanted to pick up a rock and throw it at someone running away) - No massive damage. & - Any bow can be used mounted, & any feat that applies to one bow, applies for any bow the character is proficient with.
PuppyKhan 03-06-07, 12:26 PM	I'd make it 5 or 6 skill points for a feat... Here's a way to scale it for all characters equally. Spend ALL skill points for that level to get a feat, regardless of bonuses. Restrict this so it cannot be done every level. Maybe once you do this, it cannot be done again for the next 3 levels.
FoxmanFX 03-07-07, 12:31 PM	Originally Posted by FoxmanFX I'd make it 5 or 6 skill points for a feat... Here's a way to scale it for all characters equally. Spend ALL skill points for that level to get a feat, regardless of bonuses. Restrict this so it cannot be done every level. Maybe once you do this, it cannot be done again for the next 3 levels. As a dwarf fighter with only 8 int I fully support that motion - LOL naw feat to skill points works - skill points to feat doesnt... IMHO of course
PuppyKhan 03-07-07, 01:15 PM	It may seem like it favors low skill point characters, but actually no. Rather, it does not favor high skill point characters. Instead, it scales to take an equal percentage of your available resources. If your character gets only 1 skill point a level, it is very hard to build up a decent skill in anything and every missing point will hurt. Likewise, this doesn't let a skill monkey character become a feat monkey instead, nor does it let any character with skill points to spare get free feats without hurting their skill progression. Think of it as an alternate character ability rather than a point buy. Since you can exchange a feat for skill points, this way allows you echange the ability to learn skills at one level for another feat. Maybe even don't increase the rank max for that level too. Also restrict this to any feat that does not add skill points in any way as you are giving up learning skills that level. Alternately, any feat that adds a set # of skill points will seem equally attractive (or unattractive) to different characters with varying numbers of skill points per level as going the other way. Dwarf fighter with INT 8 can get 3 or more skill points for just one feat will take that quicker than a human rogue with INT18. Its about as balanced going either way and lets a player choose what they think will help more. Depends more on how much skills are used in a game. In a game where you are constantly getting ambushed or losing track of the bad guy running through a crowd with your bag of potions because you don't have enough ranks in spot, or you want a PrC that has a minimum skill requirement, every missing skill point will start hurting real bad.
Good_Apollo4 03-07-07, 08:34 PM	I've always included the fact of critical misses and critical threats. When a character rolls a 1 on a attack roll, opposing baddies near him all get an attack of oppurtunity, that goes with baddies as well. (If they have already taken there AO they can't paticipate) You can't multiclass into Sorceror or specific classes that use magic. For example: A martial class can only tap into other classes who use magic by learning it, you can;t just be like..."ok my next level, i'm going sorceror" people just don't pop out magical powers without a story or special event. May sound kinda strict but it makes more sense.
Krusk 03-07-07, 11:33 PM	You can't multiclass into Sorceror or specific classes that use magic. For example: A martial class can only tap into other classes who use magic by learning it, you can;t just be like..."ok my next level, i'm going sorceror" people just don't pop out magical powers without a story or special event. May sound kinda strict but it makes more sense. actually, isnt that exactly how sorcerers supposedly work in dnd? walking down the street and suddenly you realize you can magic missile?
FoxmanFX 03-13-07, 11:49 AM	I allow all feats that apply to long or short bows to also apply to the composite versions of the weapons.
boothkid 03-13-07, 01:48 PM	As a house rule, I always split Charisma into two stats. Comeliness and Charisma. The reasoning behind said split is that particularly charismatic people aren't necessarily attractive. Winston Churchill for instance. Overflowing with charm and wit, but not exactly a handsome fellow. Hitler is another good example. He led an entire nation to war based on talk, but, wow ... That tiny stash and bad comb over? Ugh. It, of course, works vice versa as well. Pamela Anderson, Fabio, Paris Hilton and David Hasselhoff are much more comely than charismatic.
Mnky 03-13-07, 04:30 PM	What is comeliness used for?
Krusk 03-14-07, 02:10 AM	I would assume comlieness is used for physcial attractiveness. Which apparently in his game is not in the eye of the beholder. Charisma is force of personality, which i would say paris hilton, pamela anderson, fabio, and the hoff have a lot of. How else do they manage to fascinate hundreds of people worldwide? If you want a comly character, you are allowed to simply say my character is hot, " or " my character is butt ugly. " Charisma is irrelavent when it comes to physical appearance.
Zumarai 03-14-07, 08:20 AM	I would assume comlieness is used for physcial attractiveness. Yes, it was first introduced in the 1st edition Unearthed Arcana. You could even have a negative comeliness score.
Mnky 03-14-07, 01:24 PM	But what rolls does it affect, or is it more of a flavour thing?
BennyK 03-15-07, 03:53 AM	I allow all feats that apply to long or short bows to also apply to the composite versions of the weapons. Same here. @PuppyKhan - Don't care too much one way or the other, the important part was actually the " (as longbow) " part. I chose to go with the longbow's rule, to make shortbows retain a little more usefulness, and to better propagate the shortbow using horse archer archetype/stereotype/cliche that -seems- more historically common, and make mounted longbow use a feat. I also don't restrict monk alignment, but alignments, and monk, are two very long stories of their own...
Zumarai 03-15-07, 07:12 AM	But what rolls does it affect, or is it more of a flavour thing? If I remember correctly, there were Reaction rolls in 1st edition, and that's where your Comeliness came in. ...People wouldn't react very kindly to you if your face looked like a gaping orifice.
kenicolo 03-15-07, 12:48 PM	I my campagn i use this for critical hit because its less drastic than 20-20-20 but easyer to attain for those who focus critical hit using 18-20 weapon wich have low damage and low multiplier Crits - not confirmed = normal damage Crits - confirmed = normal crits damage Crits- crits - not confirmed = normal crits damage Crits - crits - confirmed = increased multiplier by 1 Crits - crits - crits - not confiremed = incresed multiplier by 1 Crits - crits - crits - confirmed = double multiplier +1 Crits - crits - crits - crits - not confirmed = double multiplier +1 Crits - crits - crits - crits - confirmed or crits again = INSTANT DEATH If you use the masive damage variant, this could allow a crits focus guy to instantly kill a big dude because he DID put his rapier in its heart.:eek: I also think that improve critical should be made into a chain Improve critical req: - You increase the treat range of a selected weapon by 1 (20 becom 19-20 and 19-20 becom 18-20) Greater critical req: Prificient with weapon adn BAB +8 When using a selected weapon you double its treat range AND you ad the benefit from Improved crictical after you extended the treat range. EX. treat range of 18-20 become 15-20 +1 from improved critical so 14-20 (0.24% chance of instant death confirmation) Note that KEEN doesn't stack with this caus its EMULATING it for thos who don't have the expertise
PuppyKhan 03-16-07, 03:27 PM	I chose to go with the longbow's rule, to make shortbows retain a little more usefulness, and to better propagate the shortbow using horse archer archetype/stereotype/cliche that -seems- more historically common, and make mounted longbow use a feat. I have been debating with soeone else about bows in D&D on another thread: http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=806851 A useful read for anyone wanting to know more about bows for houserules.
Praedoran 03-20-07, 09:02 PM	I'm running a custom campaign, but here are some of the highlights I like: Hero: A special status that can occur for any mortal character that accomplishes a deed thought impossible. IE: Killing a Tarrasque. Benefits: Level 20 Cap Lifted Legend: A special status that occurs to those who have captured the hearts and faiths of the people. Benefits: Gestalt Status
the_fenris_wolf 03-20-07, 09:50 PM	Intimimidate can be a STR or CHA skill, made with half-orcs in mind.
Dheran 03-23-07, 10:22 PM	Here are some house rules that I like to use: Traits and Flaws are encouraged. But I'm a crafty DM, and enemies will assuredly seek out information on your flaws. Also, PCs may take the Scent natural ability instead of a bonus feat at 1st level. [I]Skill Focus (whatever) and all those feats that give +2 to two skills also make the skill class skills. And class skills always cost 1 point no matter which class you're advancing. You don't need to prepare 0-level spells; just keep track of the number used per day. The range increments for missile weapons are inclusive. There is no penalty at one range increment; the -2 range penalty starts 1' farther. Jump and Tumble checks to reduce effective falling distance stack. But falling damage maxes out at 50d6, not 20d6. Half-Elves get either a bonus feat, or +1 skill point/level. Use Magic Device lets you emulate class levels, same as in 3.0. (Watch out for Rogues with Holy Avenger swords!) Death occurs at -CON or -10, whichever is lower. Massive damage only occurs when the blow reduces their current hit points by more than 50%. You can pick your own favored class; just make up a reasonable background story. All traps are 1/10 of official price. [And still almost nobody takes Craft (trapmaking).] Improved Two-Weapon Fighting reduces the penalties by 1 more for each hand. Greater Two-Weapon Fighting reduces the penalties by a further 1 for each hand, and allows as many attacks with the off hand as with the primary. Perfect Two-Weapon Fighting makes the off hand function the same as the primary hand (no additional penalties, same STR bonus) and is a regular (not Epic) fighter bonus feat. 10 ranks in Sleight of Hand gives you Improved Unarmed Strike. 20 ranks gives you Improved Natural Attack (Unarmed Strike). Those costs in SoH ranks are 5 and 15, respectively, if you have sneak attack/skirmish/sudden strike as class feature(s). Double weapons that are the same on both ends don't cost any extra to have both ends magically enhanced the same, although this forever precludes getting different enhancements. (Base and masterwork costs aren't reduced.)
EzraTwitch 03-25-07, 03:35 AM	For lower level casters. -Arcane casters may regain one level worth of spells per ten minutes of study/rest. This allows them to recover spells more quickly in a hazardous environment. -Divine caster may perform a Devotion up to nine times a week, a Devotion is a small ritual that takes twenty minutes to perform and must include at least one item of religious significance in addition to the priests holy symbol. A devotion may (At the chosen Deities digression) instantly restores up to nine levels worth of spells, only nine levels worth of spells can be regained in this way per week. This adds flavor to the cleric class (Since it requires more interaction between the cleric and their chosen deity), and allows Divine casters to recover spells in hostile environments.
AffableDoomwalker 03-25-07, 04:21 AM	I'm a fan of organic progression in heavy RP campaigns. Example: Clerics, Paladins, and Monks who go on adventures and return spend some time at their home church/monastery meditating on their experiences and actions, relaying their stories to senior members, and being taught new tricks of the trade; due to their increased trustworthiness they are given more flexibility/power, but inherit a greater deal of responsibility. Or maybe a character goes to a Military Academy for a month to brush up on his sword skills (and thus, gains a level of Fighter). Another quirk is everyone is almost required to take up a craft/profession (and can take time to make specific jobs class skills), so if they don't level up, they can spend the IG month plying their trade (making a roll to see how much, if any money they generate, minus living expenses).
Otto the Bugbear 03-25-07, 07:06 PM	I'm going to make an addendum to my entry to the thread. My favorite house rules. (http://dsenchuk.googlepages.com/home)
Prophet Pax 03-26-07, 03:32 PM	My favorite house rule is the use of Permanent or Severe Wounds: If a character is ever reduced to -7hp or less in a single blow they must make a single roll on the Disfigurement Chart and apply the result to their character. For example, Borf is in a heated battle with a Dire Wolf and has taken several wounds that reduce him to 1hp. The Dire Wolf scores another hit for 8 pts of damage reducing Borf to -7. Blue Bonnet Borf must immediately roll on the Monster Section of the Disfigurement Chart. Borf then rolls percentile dice and checks the result. OH NO! Bad news for Borf and the future Mrs. Borf! The result was a 98 which means the Dire Wolf made a snack out of Borf’s *********… If Borf and Kynon get into a drunken brawl and Borf is reduced to -4 and then bleeds to -7 before Kynon sobers up enough to stuff a few leaves into Borf’s wounds then no disfigurement occurs. However if Borf is reduced to -1 and due to Kynon’s drunken perspective (the room is spinning badly) doesn’t realize that Borf has stopped moving and chops at him one more time taking him from -1 to -7 then a disfigurement HAS occurred. Once again Borf must roll his percentile dice only this time he must look at the Slashing Chart to reflect the damage done by Kynon’s battleaxe. YIKES! A result of 17 means that Kynon’s axe came down and sheered Borf’s face off! The spells and or time required to heal such wounds is listed below each of the different charts. Bludgeoning* 1-4 Broken Fingers (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) Roll 1d10/2 to determine # of fingers 5-8 Broken Hand (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Useless 9-12 Bruised Hand (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); -4 to all actions with hand for 1d10 weeks 13-16 Broken Arm (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Useless 17-20 Bruised Arm (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); -4 to all actions with arm for 1d10 weeks 21-24 Elbow Shattered (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Useless 25-28 Shoulder Shattered (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Useless 29-30 Broken Neck; Paralysis from neck down 31-34 Neck; Unable to turn head; -4 to spot, search, and escape artist 35-38 Concussion; -2 to all actions for 1d4 weeks 39-42 Brain Damage; -1d4 to Intelligence 43-44 Spine; Paralysis from waste down 45-48 Hip Crushed (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Can not walk for 1d6+6 weeks 49-52 Pelvic Bone Broken; Can not walk for 1d6+6 weeks 53-56 Broken Leg (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Reduce move by half 57-60 Knee Shattered (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Lose three quarters of movement 61-64 Broken Foot (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Reduce move by half 65-68 Broken Toes (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Reduce move by a quarter 69-72 Orbital of Eye Broken (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Blindness in eye; -2 Spot & Search 73-74 Orbital of Both Eyes Crushed; Total blindness 75-78 Front Teeth Bashed Out 79-82 Broken Ribs; -5 to movement, -1d4 to Strength 83-86 Groin; Sterility 87-90 Face Smashed; -1d4 Charisma 91-92 Throat Crushed; Player must use their best Red Fox voice whenever their character speaks 93-96 Ankle Broken; Lose three quarters of movement 97-100 Lower Back Muscle Bruised; -1d4 Strength for 1d10 weeks *Broken Bones Require 1d6+6 weeks or a cure critical wounds spell to heal unless otherwise specified. Slashing* 1-4 Ear Cut Off (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 5-8 Nose Removed 9-12 Hand Chopped Off (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 13-16 Fingers Chopped Off (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) Roll 1d10/2 to determine # of fingers 17-20 Face Filleted; Character hideously ugly -2d4 to Charisma 21-24 Arm Hacked Off Below Elbow (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 25-28 Deep Slash to Arm (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); -2 to actions with arm for 1d10 weeks 29-30 Arm Hacked Off at Shoulder (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 31-34 Deep Slash to Leg (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Reduced to half move for 1d10 weeks 35-38 Foot Hacked Off (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Reduced to one quarter move 39-42 Deep Slash to Lower Back; -1d4 to Strength for 1d10 weeks 43-44 Leg Hacked Off at Hip (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 45-48 Large Leg Scar (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 49-52 Hamstring Slashed (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Reduced to half move 53-56 Large Scar on Back 57-60 Eye Slashed Out (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Blindness in eye; -2 Spot & Search 61-64 Scalp Filleted; Hair will not grow back 65-68 Achilles Tendon Cut (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Reduced to three quarters move 69-72 Large Arm Scar (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 73-74 Eyes Slashed Out; Total Blindness 75-78 Groin; Sterility 79-82 Leg Hacked Off Below Knee (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 83-86 Throat; Player must use their best Red Fox voice whenever their character speaks 87-90 Large Facial Scar 91-92 Brain Damage; -2d4 Intelligence 93-96 Deep Chest Wound; Character fatigued for 1d10 weeks 97-100 Spine Severed; Paralysis from waste down *Severed limbs require a regeneration spell to regrow. All other wounds require a cure critical wounds spell or 1d6+6 weeks to heal unless otherwise specified. Piercing* 1-4 Collapsed Lung; Character Fatigued until healed. 5-8 Hand Impaled (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Hand Useless for 1d10 weeks 9-12 Arm Impaled (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Arm Useless for 1d10 weeks 13-16 Leg Impaled (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Reduce move to half for 1d10 weeks 17-20 Large Facial Scar 21-24 Deep Wound to Abdomen; Character has uncontrollable urination 25-28 Large Arm Scar (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 29-30 Throat Impaled; Player must use their best Red Fox voice whenever their character speaks 31-34 Brain Damage; -2d4 Intelligence 35-38 Nose Mangled 39-42 Deep Chest Wound; Character fatigued for 1d10 weeks 43-44 Spine Impaled; Paralysis from waste down 45-48 Broken Arm (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Useless 49-52 Large Leg Scar (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 53-56 Cheeks Skewered; -1d4 Charisma 57-60 Broken Leg (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Reduce move by half 61-64 Neck Impaled; Unable to turn head; -4 to spot, search, and escape artist 65-68 Elbow Impaled; Arm useless for 1d10 weeks 69-72 Knee Shattered (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Lose three quarters of movement 73-74 Neck Impaled; Paralysis from neck down 75-78 Pelvic Bone Broken; Can not walk for 1d6+6 weeks 79-82 Front Teeth Shattered 83-86 Groin; Sterility 87-90 Hamstring Impaled (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Reduced to half move 91-92 Tongue Gouged Out; Character can not speak 93-96 Eye Stabbed Out; (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 97-100 Eardrum Ruptured (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Deafness in ear *All wounds require a cure critical wounds spell or 1d6+6 weeks to heal unless otherwise specified. Monster* 1-4 Hand Bitten/Ripped Off; (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 5-8 Foot Bitten/Ripped Off; (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 9-12 Broken Ribs; -5 to movement, -1d4 to Strength 13-16 Eye Raked Out; (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 17-20 Front Teeth Bashed Out 21-24 Hip Crushed (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Can not walk for 1d6+6 weeks 25-28 Broken Arm (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Useless 29-30 Eyes Clawed/Bitten Out; Total blindness 31-34 Concussion; -2 to all actions for 1d4 weeks 35-38 Scalp Filleted; Hair will not grow back 39-42 Nose Chewed Off 43-44 Arm Ripped From Socket (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 45-48 Broken Leg (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Reduce move by half 49-52 Skull Crushed; -1d4 Intelligence 53-56 Deep Chest Wound; Character fatigued for 1d10 weeks 57-60 Large Facial Scar 61-64 Face Raked Off; Character hideously ugly -2d4 to Charisma 65-68 Knee Shattered (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left); Lose three quarters of movement 69-72 Neck Impaled; Unable to turn head; -4 to spot, search, and escape artist 73-74 Leg Ripped From Hip (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 75-78 Spine Crushed; Paralysis from waste down 79-82 Ear Bitten Off (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) 83-86 Fingers Bitten Off (1d4: Even #=Right; Odd #=Left) Roll 1d10/2 to determine # of fingers 87-90 Pelvic Bone Broken; Can not walk for 1d6+6 weeks 91-92 Phobia of Monster; Character must make a DC20 Will to face this type of monster 93-96 Throat; Player must use their best Red Fox voice whenever their character speaks 97-100 Groin; Castration * Lost limbs require a regeneration spell to regrow. All other wounds require a cure critical wounds spell or 1d6+6 weeks to heal unless otherwise specified.
Krusk 03-26-07, 06:42 PM	/\ You must have a ton of disfigured PC's running around. Id put that in the catagory of crit fumbles, in that it sucks for pcs and is great for your enemies. Oh no the goblin in this fight lost its ear, but now its dead. Shame grog here lost his leg and cant heal it back for a week.
Prophet Pax 03-26-07, 09:07 PM	/\ You must have a ton of disfigured PC's running around. Id put that in the catagory of crit fumbles, in that it sucks for pcs and is great for your enemies. Oh no the goblin in this fight lost its ear, but now its dead. Shame grog here lost his leg and cant heal it back for a week. Actually my players have really embraced it. Besides, if I chose a life of combat I would be covered in disfigurements and scars. It also gives the players a real expense other than food and arrows...There are a number of other roleplaying aspects to this that makes it fun as well! Take the phobia of the offending monster for example. We had great fun when the fighter of the group rolled this one for demons!
Krusk 03-26-07, 11:14 PM	As long as your players love it. I just know id be a little angry if my character suddenly was struck blind in minor combat by kobold 7.
Prophet Pax 03-27-07, 09:05 PM	As long as your players love it. I just know id be a little angry if my character suddenly was struck blind in minor combat by kobold 7. Typically monsters like Kobalds dont have the damage potential to reduce PCs to -7 in a single blow without scoring a crit (even then they have a hard time) so you typically find that its the monsters with large damage potential that take a PCs limb off...
Krusk 03-27-07, 10:20 PM	Im at +2hp. kobold lobs cheapshot with crossbow. nat 20. good chance im going to -7.
Prophet Pax 03-27-07, 11:39 PM	Im at +2hp. kobold lobs cheapshot with crossbow. nat 20. good chance im going to -7. Doubtful, a small light crossbow does only 1d4 and IF it confirms the crit would only deal 2d4 damage. Even at max damage your would be at -6. If you find a kobald with a heavy crossbow (doubtful it would use one) it would be 2d6 damage (if it can confirm the crit -- odds are it wont with its massive +3 ranged attack) which would still require an above average roll to take you down that far. Anyway the stock kobald uses a sling (1d3 damage and a x2 crit) as a ranged weapon. The point is it would take an extreme set of circumstances for a lesser foe to cause the disfigurement. In the four years we have used this rule (and it has gone through no revisions) we have never had a kobald, goblin, or any other creature with a CR less than 1 score a disfigurement. There are a few, like orcs, who would have a chance at scoring one but to date they have not. We average about one disfigurement per month and the party is now at the level that they can take care of the healing/regeneration themselves so its really more of a flavor thing. In the past they would have to seek out a church of their faith and either pay or perform a service to be healed/regenerated.
Krusk 03-28-07, 12:48 AM	Thats why I said if you guys like it go for it, not for me though. I still see it happening at a really crappy time. About to siege castle of BBEG but grog breaks his leg, we have to postpone for 7 days guys, sorry.
turalisj 03-28-07, 07:39 AM	Typically monsters like Kobalds dont have the damage potential to reduce PCs to -7 in a single blow without scoring a crit (even then they have a hard time) so you typically find that its the monsters with large damage potential that take a PCs limb off... Should I show you my kobold warblade then? He happens to be able to his for 1d10+10 damage, without using his maneuvers. With them, he can deal anywhere from an extra 6d6 damage, to an extra 14d6 damage (finishing blow)
Prophet Pax 03-28-07, 09:54 AM	Should I show you my kobold warblade then? He happens to be able to his for 1d10+10 damage, without using his maneuvers. With them, he can deal anywhere from an extra 6d6 damage, to an extra 14d6 damage (finishing blow) I wouldnt call that a lesser foe either...I highly doubt that your kobald has less than a 1 CR either... The argument was that he would be upset when a typical kobald scored a disfigurement...
Prophet Pax 03-28-07, 10:01 AM	Thats why I said if you guys like it go for it, not for me though. I still see it happening at a really crappy time. About to siege castle of BBEG but grog breaks his leg, we have to postpone for 7 days guys, sorry. My party invested in scrolls for just such an occasion. A single scroll is expensive (700gp for cure crit and 2275 for regeneration) and there is a chance at failure but there is little else to spend their money on... Also, there were few disfigurements that took a player totally out of the game. Even with a broken leg the player can still fight. They just cant move around really well...
FriendlyBiscuit 06-23-07, 12:27 PM	Disable Device + Open Lock = Mechanically Inclined?Dismantle.
FriendlyBiscuit 06-23-07, 01:38 PM	Also, one of my favorites is: Massive Damage Threshold equals 20 + character level + constitution. It scales with your level while simultaneously rewarding tougher characters. The arbitrary number of 50... who in the world thought that made sense? After adding that rule to my campaign, I also made the Fort DC vs massive damage increase by 1 for every 5 points of damage beyond the threshold, and Toughness increases your threshold by 3.
DrakePandor 06-24-07, 12:46 PM	No auto success or auto fail - this applies for all d20 rolls. I just don't like the fact that no matter how good you are 1 out of 20 times you will not be able to hit a tree with your axe. Or that a rat has a 1 in 20 chance of biting a level 20 paladin decked out in full plate. These are both still possible as you get to keep rolling, but these extreme situations are a lot more... extreme. If you roll a 20, roll again and add 19 to what you roll (so a 20 then a 1 equals 20), if you roll a 20 on your second roll - repeat. Note: 20-20-20 is instant kill, but only 20s, not based on crit range. There is no max on skill checks. If you roll a 1, roll again and subtract 19 from what you roll (so a 1 then a 20 equals 1), if you get another 1 repeat. IE: The rogue with +20 on their tumble rolls a 1, then a 15, the net result is 16. This has killed PCs more than once, but I have also had PCs that killed a dragon with the 1st opening hit. After that happened they haven't complained...
Krusk 06-24-07, 03:00 PM	I just don't like the fact that no matter how good you are 1 out of 20 times you will not be able to hit a tree with your axe. Or that a rat has a 1 in 20 chance of biting a level 20 paladin decked out in full plate. These are both still possible as you get to keep rolling, but these extreme situations are a lot more... extreme. IE: The rogue with +20 on their tumble rolls a 1, then a 15, the net result is 16. You dont like that a rat can hit a palidin one in 20 shots, but you are ok with one in whatever the odds are being an auto kill? seems odd. I dont really like your rogue one either, rogue rolls a 1, then a 15 for a net result of 16. Why not just do it like the phb, and say he rolls a 1, giving him a 21? or he rolls a 20, giving him a 40?
Salla 06-24-07, 03:15 PM	No auto success or auto fail - this applies for all d20 rolls. I do that, too, but I do it more simply ... you roll what you roll. If your natural 1 on the to hit roll, plus your bonuses, still equals or exceeds the AC, you hit. If that natural 20 plus bonuses wasn't good enough, you missed. No more math required. :)
Dracomortis 06-24-07, 04:04 PM	Favorite houserule would have to be combining Open Lock with Disable Device - it seems like such common sense, considering Disable Device specifically mentions a lock as one of the examples :rolleyes:. However, I am decidedly against the Star Wars combination of skills that seems to be going around, such as Bluff + Disguise + Forgery + Sleight of Hand = Deception. How in the Nine Hells does knowing how to write a fake letter help you slide a card from your boot into your hand without anyone noticing, or make you better at convincing the town guard that you're actually the king? Sure, it might make things simpler, but it also makes them...well, idiotic, for lack of a better word.
Salla 06-24-07, 04:12 PM	Favorite houserule would have to be combining Open Lock with Disable Device - it seems like such common sense, considering Disable Device specifically mentions a lock as one of the examples :rolleyes:. However, I am decidedly against the Star Wars combination of skills that seems to be going around, such as Bluff + Disguise + Forgery + Sleight of Hand = Deception. How in the Nine Hells does knowing how to write a fake letter help you slide a card from your boot into your hand without anyone noticing, or make you better at convincing the town guard that you're actually the king? Sure, it might make things simpler, but it also makes them...well, idiotic, for lack of a better word. This is one of the reasons that I think the SAGA rules only really work for Star Wars and not D&D. As mentioned in the Saga rules previews, Star Wars characters are omnicompetent. Obi-Wan Kenobi can fly ships, use the force, fix droids, scare Tusken Raiders, swordfight, all kinds of stuff. But that's because the game needs to represent that aspect of a licensed property. Since D&D is not a licensed property, it doesn't need to do that.
koiulpoi 06-24-07, 04:30 PM	My fav houserules Cure/Inflict spells are now "short" range rather than touch. Retraining! On a skill check, a 1 is a -10 and a 20 is a 30. Not necessarily auto-success or failure, but kinda. Fractional BAB/Saves Gestalt =] Everyone gets Eschew Materials for free at first level. Nobody in my universe needs guano to cast fireball, and nobody eats spiders to cast spider climb. It just doesn't happen. LA Buyoff
Cheza 06-24-07, 05:07 PM	My favorite houserule: Attack via Dexterity This prevents maximization of strength. Armor limits attack bonus and effects like "entangled" do not need to add a special "-X on attacks", just a malus on dexterity. Schools of Magic require different attributes Same reason as attacks with DEX. Wisdom (Cleric/Druid): Abjuration, Divination and Conjuration(Healing & Summoning) Intelligence (Wizard): Conjuration(Calling & Creation), Evocation and Transmutation Charisma (Bard/Sorcerer): Enchantment, Illusion and Necromancy and some more...
koiulpoi 06-24-07, 11:14 PM	My favorite houserule: Attack via Dexterity This prevents maximization of strength. Armor limits attack bonus and effects like "entangled" do not need to add a special "-X on attacks", just a malus on dexterity. Schools of Magic require different attributes Same reason as attacks with DEX. Wisdom (Cleric/Druid): Abjuration, Divination and Conjuration(Healing & Summoning) Intelligence (Wizard): Conjuration(Calling & Creation), Evocation and Transmutation Charisma (Bard/Sorcerer): Enchantment, Illusion and Necromancy and some more... Welcome to MAD city, may I take your order? :P
turalisj 06-24-07, 11:48 PM	My favorite houserule: Attack via Dexterity This prevents maximization of strength. Armor limits attack bonus and effects like "entangled" do not need to add a special "-X on attacks", just a malus on dexterity. Schools of Magic require different attributes Same reason as attacks with DEX. Wisdom (Cleric/Druid): Abjuration, Divination and Conjuration(Healing & Summoning) Intelligence (Wizard): Conjuration(Calling & Creation), Evocation and Transmutation Charisma (Bard/Sorcerer): Enchantment, Illusion and Necromancy and some more... Wow... I'd hate to be a player in one of your games.... So a wizard who wants to cast abjuration and transmutation spells well has to have a high wis and int? And if he wants to do necromancy, abjuration and necromancy, he is screwed. Congrats, you have found another way to kill the caster.
Krusk 06-25-07, 01:57 AM	my first thought to chezas was about how much he destroys the idea of a low dex full plated fighter. But the casting thing is also increadibly complex, a sorcerer will have to have 3 diffrent rows of saves, and use a diffrent one for each spell they cast.
Cheza 06-25-07, 08:57 AM	Wow... I'd hate to be a player in one of your games.... So a wizard who wants to cast abjuration and transmutation spells well has to have a high wis and int? And if he wants to do necromancy, abjuration and necromancy, he is screwed. Congrats, you have found another way to kill the caster. I have a question: How many of your characters do you know that have attributes near/greater than 18??? This is the normal maximum for humans. So if you want to have characters with a single attribute maxed out and with scores greater than 18, carry on... But we said good bye to Mr. "I'm a wizard. I have an Intelligence score of 24." And the same is true for any attribute. Any pure fighting class has to specialize on 3 attributes: strength, dexterity and constitution. (You have to hit with dexterity, deal damage with strength and survive with constitution). And any pure spellcasting class has to specialize - you may guess 3 times - on 3 different attributes: Intelligence, Wisdom, Charisma. If you play a combination of both classes, you might specialize in one spellcasting attribute and forego one high fighting attribute. If you wish to play an combat-mage, you might specialize in two spellcasting attributes and add constitution. If you want to be a anti-spellcaster, you want to specialize in three different attributes: constitution, dexterity, wisdom. All 3 attributes are used for saves. Constitutions gives you enough hitpoints to survive spells, dexterity increases your Initiative and AC to be faster and to dodge spell-attacks. Wisdom gives you bonuses on spot, listen, search, so you won't be surprised and may pinpoint mages who cast blur, displacement or invisibility and you won't be affected easily by illusions. As you can see, you will have 3 main attributes and 3 secondary attributes no matter what character type you choose to play. It's nothing that ruins a spellcaster. However it limits powergaming. You can't have one high attribute like strength. So what do you skip, if you have a lower intelligence score, but higher charisma & wisdom: spells per day due to high attributes maximum level for spells limited by your attribute score Both are changed. AND: spellcasters roll ranged touch attack with casterlevel + relevant attribute, instead of BAB + dexterity. The reason is easy: You don't have to aim with your fingers, even if your spell doesn't have somatic components. You aim by manipulating and directing magic with your magical experience. my first thought to chezas was about how much he destroys the idea of a low dex full plated fighter. But the casting thing is also increadibly complex, a sorcerer will have to have 3 diffrent rows of saves, and use a diffrent one for each spell they cast. I forgot that thing. Spells don't use spell level for save DC... Since I changed a few things and don't want to tell all details: Use 1/2 caster level instead.
koiulpoi 06-25-07, 03:50 PM	Cheza - what kind of point buy do you use? Even with a 32 point buy if you start with an 18 everything else suffers because of it. I'm sure your games are "well balanced" now and are "amazingly fun" and all that to your players, but the concensus on the boards here is that MAD sucks. All you've done is made one of the problems of D&D worse. Take the Monk. He needs high Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, and, oh wait, Wisdom. He could also use a decent Intelligence for skills, and so that leaves him only one stat he doesn't have to worry about. That sucks. And it gets even worse for the "half casters" aka Paladin and Ranger, which need all good stats if they want to actually cast spells and still be actually useful in combat. And I am sick and tired of people nerfing characters to "discourage powergaming." As if powergaming was going to ruin their game or something. There are no broken rules, there's only broken players, I say. And 1/2 casterlevel for saves? I don't even want to touch that.
True Cavalier 06-25-07, 04:29 PM	1/2 CL for saves is not half bad, it ensures Charm Person will still be useful in the higher levels.
bane_of_cuthbert 06-25-07, 05:58 PM	- No exp penalties for multiclassing - No favoured classes - Whenever characters roll hit points upon gaining a evel they must roll a minimum of 50% on whatever die they are using (re-roll if rolle lower). - All healing spells must roll 50% or higher (same as the above rule). This only applies to spells that heal hit point damage. - Not all the time but most of it, I use the Gestalt character variant from Unearthed Arcana (mostly due to the fact that I only have two players). - Sorcerers get Eschew Materials for free at 1st level
Rhialto 06-25-07, 06:47 PM	- Whenever characters roll hit points upon gaining a evel they must roll a minimum of 50% on whatever die they are using (re-roll if rolle lower). Add to this that the maximum Con bonus on any die roll is equal to half the size of the die roll.