Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Halo99 02-21-07, 12:52 PM	I haven't a clue what Level Adjustment does/is. Even though i have all 3 core rulebooks, i just find the wording a bit UNunderstandable. So i'm wondering if the wonderful people on the DnD boards can enlighten me then. Thanks in advance, Halo99
trapspringer 02-21-07, 12:59 PM	It's a weird topic that gives a lot of people some trouble at first. Basic level adjustment is a mechanical balancing factor that keeps a player whose character has neat magical abilities and/or ability scores at about the same power level as the party. A +1 level adjustment counts as a level in ever way accept in the game. You basically spent your first "level" on that +1 LA, but you derrive no benefit from that "level." It doesn't give you HP, skills, feats, or abilities, and does not count towards any level-dependant class features or spells. In the game, you are in every way one level lower than everyone else at your ECL (your effective character level is your HD + LA). On a metagame level, you gain experience as a character of your ECL, and need the amount of experience to level up as a character with a level the same as your ECL. For example a level four winged halfling (LA+2) gains experience and levels up as if he were level six, but for all other effects and purposes he is level four. This balances out his ability to fly and his (disgustingly high) dexterity score. Got it? or no?
Karish 02-21-07, 01:07 PM	Basically, it takes away the amount of class levels you can have when you make the character equal to the level adjustment. EXAMPLE: You are entering a level 5 campaign. You want a monster with LA +4. You can only have 1 class level, ONLY ONE, when you play this character.
Halo99 02-21-07, 01:11 PM	The other thing i have seen/heard about is the form of having +xHD and taking levels in monster classes. Whats this about? Thanks for replies
Sunic_Flames 02-21-07, 01:44 PM	The other thing i have seen/heard about is the form of having +xHD and taking levels in monster classes. Whats this about? Thanks for replies Some, powerful creatures have 2 or more racial HD (some have 1, but this is replaced by class HD as soon as you gain a level in any class such as wizard so not revelent to this discussion). These do count as levels in the sense they grant HP, BAB, saves and so on, but they do not count as levels in the same way say... fighter levels would unless using a variant that involves a level progression, typically used to allow players to play monster characters with high ECLs at lower levels without being overpowered, as the abilities come in gradually over the levels instead of all at once.
Halo99 02-21-07, 01:50 PM	So, making something up a Mino-flayer has HD of 1d12, and it has LA of +5 with 3 HD given. What happens? Thanks Halo99
fatal error 02-21-07, 02:43 PM	If you're playing something with 3 Racial Hit Dice (that is, the basic monster is 3HD) and +5 Level Adjustment. Then, if you took one level in a normal player class, such as Fighter, you would have an Effective Character Level of 9 (3 Racial Hit Dice + 5 Level Adjustment + 1 Class Level), and would be theoretically balanced with a party of level 9 characters.
trapspringer 02-21-07, 03:06 PM	HD are basically levels, only they suck. They give you HP, Skills, feats, and count as levels for the purpose of special abilities effects (although some abilties rely on your class level), but they don't have all the goodies that a class level has. A mind flayer with a level of bard would count as a level four character for almost all effects and purposes accept experience, where he would count as a level 9. He should thus only adventure with parties in and 'round level nine.
Halo99 02-22-07, 02:51 PM	What would happen if i wanted to play a LA adjusted character from level 1 along with my non-La adjusted friends who are playing measly Humans? Thanks all Halo99
Sunic_Flames 02-22-07, 03:06 PM	What would happen if i wanted to play a LA adjusted character from level 1 along with my non-La adjusted friends who are playing measly Humans? Thanks all Halo99 Either you'd be overpowered and dominate the game or you'd have to work out some way of counteracting the LA, such as starting at something effectively LA 0 and getting the abilities that raise this above 0 later, needing a greater amount of experience to reach level 2 to compensate for the LA (example: would need 3k to reach level 2 on an LA 1 instead of 1k) at which point the LA functions normally, or something along those lines.
Archangel_Tyrael 02-22-07, 03:10 PM	Unless you have access to Savage Species, there's no way to do it. In Savage Species the authors of DnD explain racial hit dice and level adjustment completely, and allow you to play certain monster races from level one. Also, there are things known as 0-level characters, but I'm not positive on the specifics...anyone else know about those?
trapspringer 02-22-07, 03:22 PM	You would be just like everyone else who wants to play an ub3r l33t character who is better than everyone else in the party. It's not fair to them. Now, there are some solutions if you want to be an exotic, level-adjusted race. The old-school way is to play a standard character until the party reaches a level that is condusive to such a PC. The second option is to take "levels" in your desired race. Run a search on savage progression on the main D&D site and you'll come up with some stuff for lycanthropes, vampires and the like. Using that as a guide, you and your DM can come up with something that will work for you. (you really need the DM to work with you on that, it would be cheating to do it by your lonesome).
Halo99 02-22-07, 03:41 PM	OK, thanks all! Halo99