Carrying capacity? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Carrying capacity? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
RainerNader
03-28-07, 07:44 PM Hey guys,

How stringent does your DM enforce carrying capacity?

I'm rolling up a rogue with STR 10, DEX 15, CON 13, INT 14, WIS 8, CHA 12. Pretty standard as far as a rogue with 25 point buy goes. Except apparently a STR 10 only allows you to carry 33 lbs as a light load. Studded leather alone is 20 lbs! Add in a couple weapons and some standard adventuring gear and I'm already in the medium load range.

So this is basically the first time I'm going to be in a game where carrying capacity is enforced. A rogue carrying a medium load is basically pointless (reduced movement rate and lower max DEX bonus... ew) so I'm considering the following:

1) Appeal to the DM to not be so stringent with carrying capacity. However I'd rather not start the game off by making special requests to the DM.

2) Asking another party member to keep my character's adventuring gear. However I don't even know if there's going to be a party 'tank' with a high STR, and again, I'd rather not make special requests of the party either. Plus what if the party tank isn't Mr. Friendly?

3) Swap STR and CHA, or otherwise rearrange the stats for a higher STR. The optimizers out there would probably suggest I do this anyway, but I was kind of looking forward for my character to be a friendly, social type (basically imagine a bard with rogue class abilities).

Anyway, thoughts on this? Like I said, in my 2+ years playing D&D 3.5 this is the first time I've had a DM that enforced carrying capacity, so I'm kind of at a loss.
Perseus_Stoned
03-28-07, 08:00 PM I'd go with #2 first, then #3, look around for some feats that could boost your carrying capacity. Alternatively get a magic bag or some sort as soon as you can. While your weapons and armor might weigh a lot, they'll be all you need to carry around. Its certainly fair of him to impose such measures, but if it really bothers you, you might ask him to be a bit more lenient in your case. If it severely upsets your fun definitely sit down and talk to him about it or leave the game.
Heahengel
03-28-07, 08:33 PM If you are starting with any magical equipment, Heward's Handy Haversack would do wonders for this, and it is very cheap. Thats what I resort to whenever I have carrying capacity problems. Also, you could switch to leather armor until you can get such magical equipment. Is the DM also being strict about food and such? If not then you can skimp on the adventuring equipment.
Perseus_Stoned
03-28-07, 08:36 PM If you are starting with any magical equipment, Heward's Handy Haversack would do wonders for this, and it is very cheap. Thats what I resort to whenever I have carrying capacity problems. Also, you could switch to leather armor until you can get such magical equipment. Is the DM also being strict about food and such? If not then you can skimp on the adventuring equipment.

Thats your item right there.
KillerGM
03-28-07, 08:44 PM Well, as a DM, I don't really give 2 shakes about the carrying capacity rules, but that's just me. I think that most of the weights are the result of heavy crack-smoking. Honestly, who carries around 1lb of sealing wax?!? And if my sleeping bag weighs 5lbs, I'll eat it. With ketchup. :P

But anyway... Here are my choices, in order of preference:

I would probably go with option 3. The difference between a 10 and a 12 isn't really that great, IMO. While you may be "average Joe" in terms of raw ability, you'd have the social skills to really be the social guy you're looking for. The guy with the 10 Cha and 4 ranks in Diplomacy beats the guy with a 12 Cha and no ranks in it. ;) And having a good Str mod is helpful with Sneak Attack/flanking. :)

You can also go bare-bones, because you can't carry the extra gear - it makes sense that you learned to survive with just what you have, since you can't walk around with too much stuff.

Just a quick summary of equipment:
Studded Leather - 20
Light Crossbow - 4
Short Sword - 2
Dagger (?) - 1
Bolts (30) - 3
MW Thieve's Tools - 2

Total - 32

You can go lower, depending on your choices of weapons (no short sword, or no dagger, or a hand crossbow instead of a light).

Can you walk around with every little mundane item you want? No. Can you travel with the things you need, because of your lack of strength? Yes. It is actually one of the things about a party - you don't have to carry the torches/rope/stuff because you have someone else who can do it. Sharing the load, literally. :)

Alternatively, you could suck it up and have a medium load. Your max Dex bonus is a +3 (which you won't have until 4th, and you probably won't go over the +3 for a bit after that), and I don't think a 20ft move is all that terrible - I've seen enough small-sized Rogues to prove otherwise. And a -3 "armor check penalty" for the medium load isn't that much rougher than the -1 for Studded Leather (they don't stack), and is easily compensated by your skill points/other ability scores.

And all of the above will only be for as long as it takes you to get a magical item that reduces weight (such as a Heward's Handy Haversack or a Bag of Holding).

Or, you could talk to the DM. I would ask the other players about it, as they might be having the same issue as you are. It gets crazy when the high-Strength Fighter is the guy who can't carry any more (which is an effect of the crack-smoking mentioned earlier in my post). It may just be that the DM hasn't had anyone bring up the issue before (though ignorance or *gasp* cheating).

Hope it helps!! :D
Gdek
03-28-07, 08:45 PM Going with leather over studded leather saves you five pounds, at the cost of 1 AC, but also saves you -1 on your armour check penalty.

5 lbs - clothing
15 lbs - Leather
2 lbs - 2 daggers
2 lbs - short sword or rapier
2 lbs - Short Bow
6 lbs - 40 arrows
1 lb - Thieves Tools
-----
33 lbs

Everything else goes into your backpack, which gets dropped as soon as possible during combat. You can forgo the shortbow and arrows and add more daggers, or drop one of the daggers and 20 of the arrows to add a light mace, in case you run into some skellies.

Personally, I feel a significant part of the challenge at levels 1 - 5 is figuring out what to take with you, and what to leave behind. Until you get an easy way to carry a lot of stuff, you're going to find yourself ditching your backback and any carried sacks any time that combat happens.

Switching your Cha to your Str is only going to buy you 10lbs, which still means you need to drop your backpack during combat anyhow, so really, you're not gaining anything appreciable for what you are giving up.

And as a party, you can (and should) be working together to make sure you have everything you need. Plus, having someone else carry your stuff (and carrying someone else's stuff) should serve to build trust.
KillerGM
03-28-07, 08:50 PM ^^I forgot about the Shortbow. There's more poundage right there. :)

And per the PHB, the outfit the character wears does not count against the amount of weight a character can carry.
Gdek
03-28-07, 09:06 PM ^^I forgot about the Shortbow. There's more poundage right there. :)

And per the PHB, the outfit the character wears does not count against the amount of weight a character can carry.

Fair enough, that saves 5lbs, or just about the weight of a light mace, and a few empty sacks, and a belt pouch.

I do find it odd though that 10 quarrels weigh 1lb, and 20 arrows weigh 3. It's that fuzzy math again I fear. Sort of averages out the weight for bows vs xbows I guess.
Elemental_Elf
03-28-07, 09:30 PM I as a DM enforce carrying capacity but if its reasonable, like maybe you are 10 lbs. over, who cares? Now if you were like 50 lbs. over then yeah, you need to loose some gear.

Also, consider buying a Riding Dog or a Donkey. Granted you wouldn't use it for riding BUT it could carry all your excess gear, as well as any other party member's extra stuff.
Rhuxley
03-28-07, 09:44 PM Also, consider buying a Riding Dog or a Donkey. Granted you wouldn't use it for riding BUT it could carry all your excess gear, as well as any other party member's extra stuff.

Agree
Mystic Theurge
03-29-07, 12:00 AM 5 lbs - clothing
I've got some good news for you. Under "clothing" in the PHB, you will find a little note that says something to the effect that the clothing you wear does not count toward "total weight carried", so you can cross that off.

Now, you ask, "why would they list a weight for clothing if it doesn't count?" The answer to that is if you happen to be carrying any extra clothing (such as a change of clothes or that ball gown for days when you feel "special"). Also, while it doesn't count toward your total weight carried, if someone has to pick you up for whatever reason, it does count agianst them.

Edit: D'oh! Looks like someone else beat me to it.
Nathreet
03-29-07, 04:26 AM Be a halfling. Most items weigh half. But your carrying capacity is only 60% what it was, dang.
Be a dwarf. No speed penalty for medium or heavy load. Oops, but then you take the cha hit.
If you were at level 5 or so you could load up on mithral and darkwood (weigh half as much as steel / wooden items).

MAX: 33lbs., 125gp (rogue)
studded leather: 20lbs., 25gp
rapier:2lbs., 20gp
dagger:1lb., 2gp
sling + 10 bullets : 5lbs., 1gp
thieves' tools: 1lb., 30gp
pony: 30gp (carries up to 150lbs. at 30' move speed)
pack saddle: 5gp, 15lbs. (lets the pony carry stuff)

TOTAL: 29lbs., 113gp
That leaves 135lb. and 12gp for other equipment, all of which fits in your pack saddle (trail rations, flint and steel, rope, waterskin, etc.). Don't forget to buy pony feed. And no, you won't have to be stingy there, b/c the other items cost 1gp or less. I also left you an extra 4lbs. of carrying capacity on your person.

If your DM allows a little more cash you can get a light crossbow. You're not losing much anyway. Even if you're stuck with the sling, you'll be able to upgrade it after very little adventuring.
Kradlo
03-29-07, 11:11 AM I'm a GM, and I watch encumbrance. If you want to carry everything but the kitchen sink, that's fine, but don't expect to be nimble at the same time. Also, if you've found 10,000 silver pieces and want to haul them back, they're not weightless.

This is why people invest in pack mules (or Dwarves). Heck, a pack mule is one of the great bargains in the game (it's tougher than your 1st level character!). Get a wheelbarrow.

If you make it to higher levels and wealth, get a Heward's Handy Haversack, a terrific bargain at 2,000 gp.
BW0222
03-29-07, 11:40 AM RainerNader,

I've never played at a game where carrying capacity was not enforced. All character sheets I know of have your carrying capacity right under your equipment lists, which includes a wt. column for totallying what you are carrying.

You honestly need to think about weight limits.

Start by considering that there are three 'modes' you need to be in. Tactical movement (i.e. shealth and combat), normal movement, and overland movement.

If tactical, you need to be under 33lbs. 30 should be a target and since you'll pick up positions later. Carry only armor (nothing heavier than leather), weapons (short sword and a pair of daggers or darts), and little else. If you go for bow, skip the sword sword and only try one dagger. Use candles instead of torches, leather cord instead of rope, tinder boxes, maybe a flask of oil, etc.

Put the rest of your equipment in a backpack and happily go up to 60 lbs when carrying it. I like a smaller shoulder satchel, but the rules are pretty much the same. Have your food, extra clothing, water skins, rope, bed roll, etc. in the back. i.e. things you won't be needing during combat anyway. This slows you to 20 ft., but in town or normal movement in a dungeon you don't typically care. When you need to sneak ahead, ready yourself for combat, etc. either hand the pack to someone else, or leave it on the floor. If you are sneaking ahead, either someone will bring it (you'll be moving forward so slowly they can't care) or you'll be coming back to report anyway.

Overland/outdoors, just buy a mule. Put your pack on the mule (along with another 100lbs or so of other gear) and you are fine walking at full movement. You might also consider a pack dog for dungeons if you cc some ranks in handle animal or have someone in the party able and willing to handle it.

Other recommendations.

Look for magical ways to reduce weight. Haversack is likely the best. Bags of holding may work. But you can also get creative... mithril chainshirt saves weight, bracers of armor and not wearing armor, potions of mage armor, buy a wand of mage armor (UMD or a party wizard) for use on yourself, gantlets of ogre power, etc.
Goreg Skullcrusher
03-29-07, 01:41 PM A mithril chain shirt provides optimal AC for a rogue, no ACP, and clocks in at 12.5 pounds. Very reasonably priced at 1100 gp. (Should be affordable by level 3 or so)
Salla
03-29-07, 03:40 PM As a side note, since your DEX bonus to AC is +2 and a medium load makes your max DEX bonus +3, that isn't actually costing you anything at this point in time.

Keep track of what's in your backpack, and shrug it off at the beginning of a fight to shed the weight, that will help a lot. Bags of Holding and Handy Haversacks, as previously mentioned, will take care of that as well.
Mystic Theurge
03-29-07, 06:09 PM A mithril chain shirt provides optimal AC for a rogue, no ACP, and clocks in at 12.5 pounds. Very reasonably priced at 1100 gp. (Should be affordable by level 3 or so)
Mithril shirts are 10 lbs. Is your character largeish or something? I am curious about the "12.5" lbs deal.
Goreg Skullcrusher
03-29-07, 09:33 PM Mithril shirts are 10 lbs. Is your character largeish or something? I am curious about the "12.5" lbs deal.

I'm going by the rules for Mithril that state that "armor made of this substance weighs half as much", which would translate to 12.5 pds. It just so happens the mithril chain shirt is also a specifically listed item in the DMG. It looks like they simply chose to round down the weight.
parad0cz
03-29-07, 10:49 PM When i dm i ABSOLUTELY enforce encumberance. Its one of those thing that is a disbelief breaker if i dont. And i do agre its a part of the low level adventure charm. And although i dont purposely give out dimentional objects, i will allow someone to craft if they have the skill... or if they are lucky enoughfor me to roll up in treasure...

Personally, i have been caving. And while there are a large variety of caves, I defy Mr. 10 str Rogue to go dungeon delving in a cave with any armor at all, much less studded leather. This goes with all sorts of those D&Dism, like 8 hours on a horse in armor, or fighting with a backpack on.

I try not to have those things, but is a personal thing. Irks me a bit, YMMV.

For that rogue on the go here is my early level ideas, im going with the idea that 10str is Average Human Male:
1. Someone said pack mule. GREAT IDEA, and useful for so much more than carrying crap. I like a wagon eventually too.
2. Someone said drop the pack while you fight. I believe we remember far enough back to highschool with those backpacks full of textbooks, you think you could carry that on your back and fight well?
3. Patsy/Nodwick/HoJon. I always like to have a houseboy in my games. Squire, groom, cook etc. I mean, you are a small army, you all should chip in for some support staff. Someone to deal with the mounts while you are fighting, keep track of fallen items, maybe even dragging back the unconcious. As long as you keep them out of the dungeon and out of the battles you are going towards, there is an even chance your DM will let them live. Ambushs... well... people are cheap:-P Couple lvl 1 guards to protect the mage and the servants and you are well on your way to becoming a true Adventuring Company.

Also remember that when you are seeing 5 lbs sleeping bags... dont think
21st century superdown nylon etc... think medieval oilskins.

Long story short, play your stats. You choose a average strength to raise other stuff for the benifits, so deal with the penalties. Its not that bad, and you have plenty of outs for such things
Cariyaga
03-30-07, 01:40 AM We're playing The Savage Tide, and the encounters are REALLY tough there, so naturally we get more treasure. Which means that I get a Mithral Chain Shirt +1 at level 2. ^_^ Anyway, MCS's rock, for anyone that desires mobility. No ACP, ten pounds, 6 AC, +5 max dex bonus.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
RainerNader 03-28-07, 07:44 PM	Hey guys, How stringent does your DM enforce carrying capacity? I'm rolling up a rogue with STR 10, DEX 15, CON 13, INT 14, WIS 8, CHA 12. Pretty standard as far as a rogue with 25 point buy goes. Except apparently a STR 10 only allows you to carry 33 lbs as a light load. Studded leather alone is 20 lbs! Add in a couple weapons and some standard adventuring gear and I'm already in the medium load range. So this is basically the first time I'm going to be in a game where carrying capacity is enforced. A rogue carrying a medium load is basically pointless (reduced movement rate and lower max DEX bonus... ew) so I'm considering the following: 1) Appeal to the DM to not be so stringent with carrying capacity. However I'd rather not start the game off by making special requests to the DM. 2) Asking another party member to keep my character's adventuring gear. However I don't even know if there's going to be a party 'tank' with a high STR, and again, I'd rather not make special requests of the party either. Plus what if the party tank isn't Mr. Friendly? 3) Swap STR and CHA, or otherwise rearrange the stats for a higher STR. The optimizers out there would probably suggest I do this anyway, but I was kind of looking forward for my character to be a friendly, social type (basically imagine a bard with rogue class abilities). Anyway, thoughts on this? Like I said, in my 2+ years playing D&D 3.5 this is the first time I've had a DM that enforced carrying capacity, so I'm kind of at a loss.
Perseus_Stoned 03-28-07, 08:00 PM	I'd go with #2 first, then #3, look around for some feats that could boost your carrying capacity. Alternatively get a magic bag or some sort as soon as you can. While your weapons and armor might weigh a lot, they'll be all you need to carry around. Its certainly fair of him to impose such measures, but if it really bothers you, you might ask him to be a bit more lenient in your case. If it severely upsets your fun definitely sit down and talk to him about it or leave the game.
Heahengel 03-28-07, 08:33 PM	If you are starting with any magical equipment, Heward's Handy Haversack would do wonders for this, and it is very cheap. Thats what I resort to whenever I have carrying capacity problems. Also, you could switch to leather armor until you can get such magical equipment. Is the DM also being strict about food and such? If not then you can skimp on the adventuring equipment.
Perseus_Stoned 03-28-07, 08:36 PM	If you are starting with any magical equipment, Heward's Handy Haversack would do wonders for this, and it is very cheap. Thats what I resort to whenever I have carrying capacity problems. Also, you could switch to leather armor until you can get such magical equipment. Is the DM also being strict about food and such? If not then you can skimp on the adventuring equipment. Thats your item right there.
KillerGM 03-28-07, 08:44 PM	Well, as a DM, I don't really give 2 shakes about the carrying capacity rules, but that's just me. I think that most of the weights are the result of heavy crack-smoking. Honestly, who carries around 1lb of sealing wax?!? And if my sleeping bag weighs 5lbs, I'll eat it. With ketchup. :P But anyway... Here are my choices, in order of preference: I would probably go with option 3. The difference between a 10 and a 12 isn't really that great, IMO. While you may be "average Joe" in terms of raw ability, you'd have the social skills to really be the social guy you're looking for. The guy with the 10 Cha and 4 ranks in Diplomacy beats the guy with a 12 Cha and no ranks in it. ;) And having a good Str mod is helpful with Sneak Attack/flanking. :) You can also go bare-bones, because you can't carry the extra gear - it makes sense that you learned to survive with just what you have, since you can't walk around with too much stuff. Just a quick summary of equipment: Studded Leather - 20 Light Crossbow - 4 Short Sword - 2 Dagger (?) - 1 Bolts (30) - 3 MW Thieve's Tools - 2 Total - 32 You can go lower, depending on your choices of weapons (no short sword, or no dagger, or a hand crossbow instead of a light). Can you walk around with every little mundane item you want? No. Can you travel with the things you need, because of your lack of strength? Yes. It is actually one of the things about a party - you don't have to carry the torches/rope/stuff because you have someone else who can do it. Sharing the load, literally. :) Alternatively, you could suck it up and have a medium load. Your max Dex bonus is a +3 (which you won't have until 4th, and you probably won't go over the +3 for a bit after that), and I don't think a 20ft move is all that terrible - I've seen enough small-sized Rogues to prove otherwise. And a -3 "armor check penalty" for the medium load isn't that much rougher than the -1 for Studded Leather (they don't stack), and is easily compensated by your skill points/other ability scores. And all of the above will only be for as long as it takes you to get a magical item that reduces weight (such as a Heward's Handy Haversack or a Bag of Holding). Or, you could talk to the DM. I would ask the other players about it, as they might be having the same issue as you are. It gets crazy when the high-Strength Fighter is the guy who can't carry any more (which is an effect of the crack-smoking mentioned earlier in my post). It may just be that the DM hasn't had anyone bring up the issue before (though ignorance or gasp cheating). Hope it helps!! :D
Gdek 03-28-07, 08:45 PM	Going with leather over studded leather saves you five pounds, at the cost of 1 AC, but also saves you -1 on your armour check penalty. 5 lbs - clothing 15 lbs - Leather 2 lbs - 2 daggers 2 lbs - short sword or rapier 2 lbs - Short Bow 6 lbs - 40 arrows 1 lb - Thieves Tools ----- 33 lbs Everything else goes into your backpack, which gets dropped as soon as possible during combat. You can forgo the shortbow and arrows and add more daggers, or drop one of the daggers and 20 of the arrows to add a light mace, in case you run into some skellies. Personally, I feel a significant part of the challenge at levels 1 - 5 is figuring out what to take with you, and what to leave behind. Until you get an easy way to carry a lot of stuff, you're going to find yourself ditching your backback and any carried sacks any time that combat happens. Switching your Cha to your Str is only going to buy you 10lbs, which still means you need to drop your backpack during combat anyhow, so really, you're not gaining anything appreciable for what you are giving up. And as a party, you can (and should) be working together to make sure you have everything you need. Plus, having someone else carry your stuff (and carrying someone else's stuff) should serve to build trust.
KillerGM 03-28-07, 08:50 PM	^^I forgot about the Shortbow. There's more poundage right there. :) And per the PHB, the outfit the character wears does not count against the amount of weight a character can carry.
Gdek 03-28-07, 09:06 PM	^^I forgot about the Shortbow. There's more poundage right there. :) And per the PHB, the outfit the character wears does not count against the amount of weight a character can carry. Fair enough, that saves 5lbs, or just about the weight of a light mace, and a few empty sacks, and a belt pouch. I do find it odd though that 10 quarrels weigh 1lb, and 20 arrows weigh 3. It's that fuzzy math again I fear. Sort of averages out the weight for bows vs xbows I guess.
Elemental_Elf 03-28-07, 09:30 PM	I as a DM enforce carrying capacity but if its reasonable, like maybe you are 10 lbs. over, who cares? Now if you were like 50 lbs. over then yeah, you need to loose some gear. Also, consider buying a Riding Dog or a Donkey. Granted you wouldn't use it for riding BUT it could carry all your excess gear, as well as any other party member's extra stuff.
Rhuxley 03-28-07, 09:44 PM	Also, consider buying a Riding Dog or a Donkey. Granted you wouldn't use it for riding BUT it could carry all your excess gear, as well as any other party member's extra stuff. Agree
Mystic Theurge 03-29-07, 12:00 AM	5 lbs - clothing I've got some good news for you. Under "clothing" in the PHB, you will find a little note that says something to the effect that the clothing you wear does not count toward "total weight carried", so you can cross that off. Now, you ask, "why would they list a weight for clothing if it doesn't count?" The answer to that is if you happen to be carrying any extra clothing (such as a change of clothes or that ball gown for days when you feel "special"). Also, while it doesn't count toward your total weight carried, if someone has to pick you up for whatever reason, it does count agianst them. Edit: D'oh! Looks like someone else beat me to it.
Nathreet 03-29-07, 04:26 AM	Be a halfling. Most items weigh half. But your carrying capacity is only 60% what it was, dang. Be a dwarf. No speed penalty for medium or heavy load. Oops, but then you take the cha hit. If you were at level 5 or so you could load up on mithral and darkwood (weigh half as much as steel / wooden items). MAX: 33lbs., 125gp (rogue) studded leather: 20lbs., 25gp rapier:2lbs., 20gp dagger:1lb., 2gp sling + 10 bullets : 5lbs., 1gp thieves' tools: 1lb., 30gp pony: 30gp (carries up to 150lbs. at 30' move speed) pack saddle: 5gp, 15lbs. (lets the pony carry stuff) TOTAL: 29lbs., 113gp That leaves 135lb. and 12gp for other equipment, all of which fits in your pack saddle (trail rations, flint and steel, rope, waterskin, etc.). Don't forget to buy pony feed. And no, you won't have to be stingy there, b/c the other items cost 1gp or less. I also left you an extra 4lbs. of carrying capacity on your person. If your DM allows a little more cash you can get a light crossbow. You're not losing much anyway. Even if you're stuck with the sling, you'll be able to upgrade it after very little adventuring.
Kradlo 03-29-07, 11:11 AM	I'm a GM, and I watch encumbrance. If you want to carry everything but the kitchen sink, that's fine, but don't expect to be nimble at the same time. Also, if you've found 10,000 silver pieces and want to haul them back, they're not weightless. This is why people invest in pack mules (or Dwarves). Heck, a pack mule is one of the great bargains in the game (it's tougher than your 1st level character!). Get a wheelbarrow. If you make it to higher levels and wealth, get a Heward's Handy Haversack, a terrific bargain at 2,000 gp.
BW0222 03-29-07, 11:40 AM	RainerNader, I've never played at a game where carrying capacity was not enforced. All character sheets I know of have your carrying capacity right under your equipment lists, which includes a wt. column for totallying what you are carrying. You honestly need to think about weight limits. Start by considering that there are three 'modes' you need to be in. Tactical movement (i.e. shealth and combat), normal movement, and overland movement. If tactical, you need to be under 33lbs. 30 should be a target and since you'll pick up positions later. Carry only armor (nothing heavier than leather), weapons (short sword and a pair of daggers or darts), and little else. If you go for bow, skip the sword sword and only try one dagger. Use candles instead of torches, leather cord instead of rope, tinder boxes, maybe a flask of oil, etc. Put the rest of your equipment in a backpack and happily go up to 60 lbs when carrying it. I like a smaller shoulder satchel, but the rules are pretty much the same. Have your food, extra clothing, water skins, rope, bed roll, etc. in the back. i.e. things you won't be needing during combat anyway. This slows you to 20 ft., but in town or normal movement in a dungeon you don't typically care. When you need to sneak ahead, ready yourself for combat, etc. either hand the pack to someone else, or leave it on the floor. If you are sneaking ahead, either someone will bring it (you'll be moving forward so slowly they can't care) or you'll be coming back to report anyway. Overland/outdoors, just buy a mule. Put your pack on the mule (along with another 100lbs or so of other gear) and you are fine walking at full movement. You might also consider a pack dog for dungeons if you cc some ranks in handle animal or have someone in the party able and willing to handle it. Other recommendations. Look for magical ways to reduce weight. Haversack is likely the best. Bags of holding may work. But you can also get creative... mithril chainshirt saves weight, bracers of armor and not wearing armor, potions of mage armor, buy a wand of mage armor (UMD or a party wizard) for use on yourself, gantlets of ogre power, etc.
Goreg Skullcrusher 03-29-07, 01:41 PM	A mithril chain shirt provides optimal AC for a rogue, no ACP, and clocks in at 12.5 pounds. Very reasonably priced at 1100 gp. (Should be affordable by level 3 or so)
Salla 03-29-07, 03:40 PM	As a side note, since your DEX bonus to AC is +2 and a medium load makes your max DEX bonus +3, that isn't actually costing you anything at this point in time. Keep track of what's in your backpack, and shrug it off at the beginning of a fight to shed the weight, that will help a lot. Bags of Holding and Handy Haversacks, as previously mentioned, will take care of that as well.
Mystic Theurge 03-29-07, 06:09 PM	A mithril chain shirt provides optimal AC for a rogue, no ACP, and clocks in at 12.5 pounds. Very reasonably priced at 1100 gp. (Should be affordable by level 3 or so) Mithril shirts are 10 lbs. Is your character largeish or something? I am curious about the "12.5" lbs deal.
Goreg Skullcrusher 03-29-07, 09:33 PM	Mithril shirts are 10 lbs. Is your character largeish or something? I am curious about the "12.5" lbs deal. I'm going by the rules for Mithril that state that "armor made of this substance weighs half as much", which would translate to 12.5 pds. It just so happens the mithril chain shirt is also a specifically listed item in the DMG. It looks like they simply chose to round down the weight.
parad0cz 03-29-07, 10:49 PM	When i dm i ABSOLUTELY enforce encumberance. Its one of those thing that is a disbelief breaker if i dont. And i do agre its a part of the low level adventure charm. And although i dont purposely give out dimentional objects, i will allow someone to craft if they have the skill... or if they are lucky enoughfor me to roll up in treasure... Personally, i have been caving. And while there are a large variety of caves, I defy Mr. 10 str Rogue to go dungeon delving in a cave with any armor at all, much less studded leather. This goes with all sorts of those D&Dism, like 8 hours on a horse in armor, or fighting with a backpack on. I try not to have those things, but is a personal thing. Irks me a bit, YMMV. For that rogue on the go here is my early level ideas, im going with the idea that 10str is Average Human Male: 1. Someone said pack mule. GREAT IDEA, and useful for so much more than carrying crap. I like a wagon eventually too. 2. Someone said drop the pack while you fight. I believe we remember far enough back to highschool with those backpacks full of textbooks, you think you could carry that on your back and fight well? 3. Patsy/Nodwick/HoJon. I always like to have a houseboy in my games. Squire, groom, cook etc. I mean, you are a small army, you all should chip in for some support staff. Someone to deal with the mounts while you are fighting, keep track of fallen items, maybe even dragging back the unconcious. As long as you keep them out of the dungeon and out of the battles you are going towards, there is an even chance your DM will let them live. Ambushs... well... people are cheap:-P Couple lvl 1 guards to protect the mage and the servants and you are well on your way to becoming a true Adventuring Company. Also remember that when you are seeing 5 lbs sleeping bags... dont think 21st century superdown nylon etc... think medieval oilskins. Long story short, play your stats. You choose a average strength to raise other stuff for the benifits, so deal with the penalties. Its not that bad, and you have plenty of outs for such things
Cariyaga 03-30-07, 01:40 AM	We're playing The Savage Tide, and the encounters are REALLY tough there, so naturally we get more treasure. Which means that I get a Mithral Chain Shirt +1 at level 2. ^_^ Anyway, MCS's rock, for anyone that desires mobility. No ACP, ten pounds, 6 AC, +5 max dex bonus.