Post/Author/DateTime	Post
nighttree 10-12-07, 12:54 PM	Does anyone know of rules for converting stats from advanced to 3.5 ? I could swear I had seen them somewhere on the wizards sight, but can't find anything now.
StevenO 10-12-07, 01:49 PM	My suggestion to convert stats would be to take the old bonus and make sure the new stat has the same bonus. You could also just take the old stat and use it as the new stat. Now if you are asking about converting an entire character/creature from AD&D to 3.5 the answer is more complex. I know there had been a conversion guide to 3.0 but going to 3.5 would need a little more work. Although they may be hard to find many old monsters have been updated at some point and if they haven't you can use those that have been to make an educated guess. If converting characters I suggest rebuilding from the ground up while following the character's personallity. Generally converting a single class character shouldn't be hard although you may want to consider adding a little multiclassing if appropriate. Converting a multiclass character is a little harder depending on what the old character was. Most fighter/X builds convert well with only a level or two of fighter and the balance made up of X with some PrCs being very appropriate as well. A Cleric/Wizard should convert into a Mystic Theurge character and a Wizard/Thief go for Arcane Trickster. The hardest multiclass to convert is probably a Cleric/Thief and for that I can't suggest any good hybred PrCs although you may want to look in the Complete Adventurer.
DrMorganes 10-12-07, 02:40 PM	The 3.0 Player's Handbook came with a CD that included, among other things, a PDF file detailing how to convert characters from previous editions to the 3.0 rules. I used to have a link, but since the main site was reorganized I've not bothered to update it. Send me a PM with an email address and I'll shoot you a copy of that PDF. Alternately, try searching the main site for "Character Conversion Guide". Single class characters are pretty straightforward, but multiclassing becomes a royal pain. You still need to completely redo feat and skill selection, so what the conversion amounts to is moving over ability scores greater than 18 (like exceptional strength) and finding the proper XP total for your new character level. In nearly all cases, once you have that it's easier to simply rebuild the PC starting at Level 1 and adding skill ranks and feats as you go.
Dunsel 10-12-07, 05:27 PM	If converting characters I suggest rebuilding from the ground up while following the character's personallity. Amen! When 3.0 came out I tried to convert a few and just said nuff! It was easier to recreate all my main NPCs and then update the rest on an as needed basis. Doing it this way also gave me the side bonus of learning the 3.0 rules faster.
High Octane 10-12-07, 06:15 PM	Does anyone know of rules for converting stats from advanced to 3.5 ? I could swear I had seen them somewhere on the wizards sight, but can't find anything now. As has been suggested before, start from the ground up with the original character concept in mind. So if you had a rogue with a lot of dexterity and smarts, but no social skills, just remember to have a low charisma stat and put no skill points or feats into charisma based skills, instead focusing on dexterity and intelligence stats and skills. CONCEPTS translate well, but mechanics do not. Oh and welcome to a system that doesn't feel like you are placing your "tender parts" into a vice.
nighttree 10-12-07, 09:08 PM	The only part I'm really having an "issue" with is determining what this races ability modifiers would be (most of the abilities are easy enough to convert). And what the LA would be as a result. An additional confusion regarding his stat's is determining what is "racial modifier" and what is "aging modifier" as the character is thousands of years old :eek: The other thing that will be interesting is that this race is considered extremely powerful, and naturally gifted in Sorcery, yet the old AD&D rules did not account for a Charisma increase. These are the AD&D stats for this character (who is an example of his race) Str 12 Dex 11 Con 12 Int 20 Wis 20 Cha 10 AC 7 THAC0 17 Magic resistance 75% Movement 6 Most of the abilitys are easily translated over (Infravision = Darkvision, telepathy, Change Shape) or impossible to translate over (able to cast any spell at will, up to seven of each level per day).
DrMorganes 10-12-07, 10:14 PM	Actually, infravision was split. Races dwelling primarily above ground (like elves, gnomes, and halflings) got low-light vision, while races dwelling primarily underground (dwarves for the most part) got darkvision. Racial modifiers to ability scores didn't change overmuch. Compare your old PHB to a new one and extrapolate. However, remember that an ability score of 20 in AD&D was very near godlike. AD&D scores of 19 and 20 translate to D&D 3.x scores of 24. The age modifiers are still related to age categories, and have always been -1/+1 per category, with no additional modifiers beyond Venerable if I recall correctly. If this PC is of a race that naturally lives thousands of years, somewhere along the line it's going to still fall into "Young", "Adult", "Middle Age", "Old", and "Venerable". You and your DM just need to come to an agreement on what those divisions are. Personally, I'd base them on the OLD elven age modifiers (elves had longer natural lifespans in AD&D). Incidentally, what race are we talking about? Odds are somebody somewhere has already done the conversion... If not, we'd be better able to help if we had the whole picture.
nighttree 10-12-07, 10:27 PM	Incidentally, what race are we talking about? Odds are somebody somewhere has already done the conversion... If not, we'd be better able to help if we had the whole picture. They are the Scion (from Dragonlance). The only real "treatment" they recieved (that I have found) was in AD&D. Recently Cam Banks did a version in "Price of Courage", but due to finances it's going to be some time before I can get my hands on that. So I'm trying to use the "old" information to work it out myself.
nighttree 10-12-07, 10:36 PM	This is actually what I have come up with. NOTE: the Flavor/Fluff text is from the 2nd edition "Dwarves of Krynn" and is included so that you can understand "what" the goal is. I think I have covered everything (that can be covered racially), but am at a bit of a loss as to LA (I'm thinking LA 4). THE NATURE OF THE SCIONS Scions came as close to magic personified as any creature ever to walk the face of Krynn. Their other-worldly silver hair and gold skin appeared for all purposes to be actual metal! And it is with almost casual ease that they mastered even the most complex of wizardly enchantments. Truly the Scions were a source of superstitious awe, terror, envy, and wonder to their former kin. The mastery of elemental magic disappeared with the creation of the Scions, almost as if all the power formerly embodied in the entire race had been concentrated in the persons of these few enchanted individuals. In the course of their alteration, the Scions had become something other than mortal. This is not to suggest that they somehow approached godhood, but rather that they had been so fundamentally changed that certain aspects of their existence no longer resembled life. They showed, for example, no tendency to age. Also, they lost all trace of sexual identity as there were no males and no females among them. Rather, they were simply the Scions. Rumors hold that they needed neither food nor drink, though these tales cannot be confirmed. While the Scions embodied almost unlimited power, it is certain that the Smiths regarded them with a great deal of fear. Though there is no evidence suggesting that the Scions tried to enslave or otherwise master their former cousins, the thought cannot have been far from the minds of the unchanged Smiths. Deprived of their own elemental magic, the Smiths felt very vulnerable against the great might of their altered cousins. All the folklore concerning the Scions indicates that, contrary to the fears of the Smiths, these magical creatures labored hard to save their people from the vengeance of a world gone mad with magic. Perhaps they felt their own culpability. Remember that the Scions were the same Smiths who had labored so diligently to build the Great Machine, and who had dispatched Milgas to acquire the Graystone. The guilt of this action cannot be denied, though it can be understood more clearly when one realizes how cruelly they had been manipulated by Hiddukel and Chislev. Indeed, even Reorx had been misled, for nothing could have been farther from his wishes than to encourage the chaotic spread of wild magic across the world. The following abilities are in addition to the normal Dwarf racial modifiers. Abilities: Con +2, Cha +4 (these modifiers replace the normal ability modifiers of a Dwarf) Spellcraft: +6 racial bonus. Arcane Body (Ex): A Scions body ceases to function as most living creatures do, coursing with unbridled magical energies. While not undead, elements of his existence are fundamentally warped by the arcane energies he relies upon to sustain him. He no longer has any need to eat, drink, or sleep, and does not take aging penalties or negative effect from aging and has no maximum age. Arcane Sight (Su): A Scion's senses function as if under a permanent Arcane Sight spell. Telepathy (Su): A Scion can communicate Telepathically with any creature within 100 ft that it shares a common language with. Change Shape (Su): A Scion has the supernatural ability to assume the appearance of any small, medium, or large humanoid, monstrous humanoid, or giant, but retains most of his own physical qualities. A True Seeing spell or ability reveals the Scions natural form. A Scion using change shape reverts to it's natural form when killed, but seperated body parts retain their shape. Scion cannot use Change Shape to take the form of a creature with a template. Any gear worn or carried by the Scion that can't be worn or carried in its new form falls to the ground. If the Scion changes size, any gear it wears or carries that can be worn or carried in its new form changes size to match. Gear returns to normal size if dropped. Spell Resistance: equal to the Scions HD + 11 (maximum 31) Spell Absorption (Su): Whenever a spell fails to penetrate a Scions spell resistance, the Scion gains one of the following benefit. Heal: 1D4 hit points per spell level, but cannot be healed more than his maximum number of hit points. Renew: The Scion can regain a spell slot of the absorbed spells level that he has already cast that day. Empower: The Scion can increase his caster level, for the next spell he casts by a factor equal to the level of the spell absorbed. The increased caster level effects all level-based variables of the spell, including range, area of effect, spell penetration, and the difficulty of dispelling the spell. You can exceed the normal level-fixed limits of a spell, so a 9th level Scion could cast a Fireball spell as a 12th level caster and deal 12D6 fire damage if routing a 3rd level absorbed spell.
DrMorganes 10-13-07, 03:25 PM	o.O +4 to a mental attribute, with a total of +6 to all attributes, no negative ability modifiers +6 racial skill bonus Shapechange an unlimited number of times per day Telepathy Permanent Arcane Sight Impressive Spell Resistance Spell absorption, an ability that grants one of THREE benefits, apparently at the choice of the character, an unlimited number of times per day. Generally, the lack of need for sleep renders one immune to Sleep effects as well. I don't think +4 is enough of a LA. Shapechange alone is huge, and that spell absorption thing is a major game-breaker. As presented, I'd slap a +8 LA on these guys if I'd allow them at all. They'd be neat as an adversary, but they're nearly too powerful as a player race. To get down to +4 LA, I suggest removing the shapechange ability and changing Spell Absorption as follows: Limit the number of times per day this power can be used to 1 per 5 levels healing 1d4 HP OR to HP healed = Spell Level (minimum of 1) Remove the "Renew" option Change Empower to +1 Caster Level, rather than +(spell level) Caster Level. Limit the duration to 1 hour or the next cast spell, which ever comes first. Another option is to remove "Scion" as a race entirely and replace it with an arcane-based Prestige Class. In fact, I think this would likely work better. I'd take a look at some of the Spellthief's class features and use them as a relative power level guide. Perhaps the new PrC could spontaneously give up prepared spells to power some of the features noted above... Then it might make sense at higher levels to allow them to "Renew" used spell slots.
nighttree 10-14-07, 12:39 PM	I don't think its THAT high an LA. Spellwarped creature has the same spell absorption ability (although a greater range of what absorbed spells can be used for) and +14 pts of ability modifiers for a +3 LA. The shapechange is exactly like an Irda, (who also get +4 mental stats, and several Sp abilities) and they are at a +2 LA. When you compare them to something with a +4 LA (a Half Fiend for example) They get the same spell resistance 6 vs 16 points of ability modifier No Resistance, natural armor, natural attack, or Damage reduction. And the "change shape" and "spell absorption" ability vs 17 spell like abilities.
Count Arioch the 28th 10-14-07, 01:55 PM	Really, of all those abilities, the big one is Shapechange. Is is "shapechange" as the 9th level spell, or is it more like Disguise Self? That makes a huge difference.
nighttree 10-14-07, 03:59 PM	Really, of all those abilities, the big one is Shapechange. Is is "shapechange" as the 9th level spell, or is it more like Disguise Self? That makes a huge difference. It's like disguise self. Just alters your apperrance (no stat changes other than size).
archerpwr 10-14-07, 04:03 PM	I'd drop the renew and empower abilities and call it a LA of 2-3
Count Arioch the 28th 10-14-07, 05:07 PM	Really, the renew part isn't quite so bad, the empower ability can lead to some crazy, crazy combos. I'd say that it's LA + 2.
archerpwr 10-14-07, 05:18 PM	Really, the renew part isn't quite so bad, the empower ability can lead to some crazy, crazy combos. I'd say that it's LA + 2. I dunno. Refreshing your spells simply by having someone fail the SR check seems pretty strong. I'm pretty sure there are a few spells that augment SR.
Count Arioch the 28th 10-14-07, 05:29 PM	No spells that I know of, but he can take feats to increase SR.
nighttree 10-14-07, 05:44 PM	No spells that I know of, but he can take feats to increase SR. Most of the feats that could be applied are not worth the preciouse feat slot :P The empower as is might be a bit much.......maybe If I changed it to +1 caster level for every 3 spell levels absorbed ? That's put's it in the same range as the "Reserves of strength" feat.