I've been planning on starting a Dark Sun campaign for quite some time. I never really paid much attention to it but a couple of months ago, while thumbing through the DSCS book, I suddenly got hooked and wanted to immerse myself in the world of Athas. I needed to know everything about it. I even found an old 2nd Ed. AD&D Dark Sun Core book.
Looking at the 2E book, I found a couple of major elements that didn't make it to the conversion: the different qualities of weapon materials and the distinction between Preservers and Defilers. I also wanted to expand some of the options in the 4E Campaign Setting.
Since I have only a small amount of previous experience in "designing" homebrew content, I'm hoping I can get your opinions on my little house rules . Everything from how fun/interesting they sound to you, game balance issues and how well would they fit the setting. I was going to include all the bits of "flavour" text I wrote explaining the reasoning behind each feature but ultimately decided against it. No need to bore you with my mediocre writing.
Besides, the post was long enough already.
I appreciate in advance any time you might spend commenting or even just reading it. Thanks.
Melee Weapon Types
I organised the different weapon groups into different types(weapon groups still apply), mostly 'cause I wanted the old-school feel but more importantly because they'll come into play in the Reckless Attack techniques and Alternative Weapon Materials sections. Also, I might use them in the future as damage types(again, nice old-school feel).
- Blunt: Hammers, Maces, Staves
- Piercing: Picks, Spears, some Heavy Blades and Light Blades
- Slashing: Axes, Heavy Blades, Light Blades
- Flails: Blunt or Slashing(Flail, Triple-headed Flail), Blunt (Kusari-gama, Heavy Flail, Double Flail, Spiked Chain), Piercing (Alhulak, Cahulaks), Slashing (Scourge, Kusari-gama secondary end)
- Polearms: Same as their secondary Group
- Miscellaneous: Improvised, Bola, Garrote, Net, etc.
Weapon Breakage
While I liked both of the optional rules representing the fragility of non-metal weapons, I found them to be too black and white. Fumbling breakage breaks your weapon with the first nat-1 rolled and reckless breakage offered too small of a benefit(considering the price paid was your weapon) to ever consider using. I modified them so crit-fails damage your weapon without destroying it instantly and there's more variety and incentive to press your luck with a few sort of "desperation" moves.
Fumbling Attack: When you make an attack with a non-metal weapon and roll a Natural 1, make a Weapon Breakage Saving Throw(DC 10; this save cannot be modified by any type of bonus). If you succeed, your weapon is not damaged. If you don't, your weapon begins to crack and it takes a mark. For each mark it has, add 2 to the DC of any subsequent Weapon Breakage saves with that weapon. If your weapon takes 5 marks, it breaks.
Reckless Attack: You perform a special technique based on your weapon type. After the attack is resolved, your weapon takes 1d4 marks.
- Relentless Offensive (All Melee and Thrown): If you roll a Natural 1 on a weapon attack roll, instead of accepting the Fumbling Attack, you can choose to re-roll it but you must use the second result.
- Blocking Move (Blunt): When a weapon attack hits you and it is not a Critical Hit, you take half damage from it.
- Impaling Stab (Piercing): After hitting with a weapon attack and rolling damage, you can choose to re-roll as many damage dice as you wish.
- Parrying Swipe (Slashing): If you're hit by a weapon attack and it is not a Critical Hit, you can make the enemy re-roll the attack. If it misses, the attack has no effect. If it hits, you take maximum damage from the attack.
- Swift Strike (Any Thrown): When you make a Ranged Weapon attack that targets AC, you can target Reflex instead. If the attack already targets a Defence other than AC, you add +2 to the attack.
Alternative Weapon Materials
Here's where it all started and, ironically, what took me the longest to finish. I must have gone through at least a dozen drafts and variations. I was seriously disappointed with the way they dismissed the possibility of making non-metal weapons feel unique, depending on the material used to craft them. Simply saying "meh, a bone longsword is identical to a metal one in other worlds, don't worry about it, it's just fluff" is not good enough for me. Then again, the way it was handled in 2E was awful so I did my best to give the different materials a fitting property.
Before evaluating them, keep in mind that, like the Reckless Attacks, these are not supposed to be benefits or special abilities or give the players a choice in how and when to be used. The point is to let the players feel that they're in far from perfect circumstances and they're dealing with inferior but serviceable weapons. They have to do what they can with what they have.
(All damage bonuses scale but I'm not including them for now)
Stone (Blunt, Picks, Spears, Off-hand Thrown)
*Sturdy: Your weapon breaks if it takes 6 marks, instead of 5.
*Unbalanced: You take a Check penalty as follows:
-3 (Military or Superior two-handed weapons except Spears)
-2 (Simple Two-handed weapons, Versatile weapon in two hands, Double weapon, Dual-wielding)
-1 (One-handed weapon, Versatile weapon in one hand, any Spear except Double weapons)
This is the one I find less than satisfactory and with good reason, since it's a last-minute modification. The previous version had a speed penalty for big weapons while in light or no armour and a check penalty if in heavy armour, except for spears and off-hands or simple weapons. It just got too convoluted. I still don't like it too much since I'm sure there's probably a nonsensical loop-hole where rather small yet technically two-handed weapon is unfairly taking a -3 penalty or something. That high of a penalty is meant exclusively for high-damage "barbarian" weapons. I hope I can get some suggestions for a solid disadvantageous property to balance the Sturdy feature.
Bone (All Melee)
*Savage: Your weapon takes a -1 penalty to its proficiency bonus. In addition, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls when attacking with it.
I was really trying to stay away from the attack penalties but it this case, I think it fit nicely. The idea is that bone weapons are wilder, more crude and primal but jagged and leaving dangerous splints that bury themselves deep beneath the skin after a hit. As for balance, I modelled it after the Power Attack feat but not as bad 'cause -2 is ludicrous and players don't have the choice to turn it off like the feat. It's not like feat is that good anyway.
Obsidian, Flint, Crystal (Slashing, Piercing)
*Double-edged (Slashing): When you make a weapon attack with a double-edged weapon, you do an additional 1 damage if you hit. If you miss, you instead take 1 point of damage.
*Razor-sharp (Piercing): If you have Combat Advantage against an enemy, your weapon attacks deal 3 extra damage and you grant Combat Advantage to that enemy until the end of your next turn.
After doing a little research on the properties of obsidian(*coff*Wikipedia*coff*) and reading about how awful it is to mine it in Athas, I kept going back to the idea of obsidian weapons being extremely sharp, much too sharp for your own good. As for the Razor-sharp property, I know it's not very descriptive and seems to have almost nothing to do with the effect . Since it doesn't make sense that you'd cut yourself with, say, a spear if only the tip is made of it, I thought I'd made a separate property. I imagine it to be the character focusing on hitting exposed areas, thus delivering armour-penetrating stabs but losing some of their concentration and awareness of their surroundings. I used a similar reasoning with the Parrying Swipe. You might divert an attack, but if you fail to do so, you leave a part of you exposed.
Wood (All Melee)
*Effortless (All): When you make a Weapon Breakage Saving Throw with this weapon, the initial DC is 8 instead of 10.
*Feeble/Dull (Blunt/Slashing): Your weapon's damage die is reduced by one size
*Flimsy (Piercing): You make a Fumbling Attack by rolling a Natural 2 or 1.
I figure wooden weapons are commonly used as training weapons so they're cheap and easier to handle but not as effective. Piercing weapons don't take the damage penalty but they aren't as hefty and they tend to bend or wear down. I still don't get how wood is supposed to be really common if there are only two forests and one is not even widely known to exist. Same goes for obsidian if it is notoriously difficult to quarry but no matter, I'll look past it for now. xD
Ceramic, Glass (Off-hand Melee, Off-hand Thrown)
*Fragile: When you make a Weapon Breakage Saving Throw with this weapon, the initial DC is 12 instead of 10.
These, I just meant as inexpensive, close to disposable weapons, like a the extra daggers or handaxes a Fighter might carry for the occasional ranged attack. They're basically tools and utensils used as throw-away weapons, which is why they're so limited.
Armour Breakage, Scavenging and Repairing Gear
Non-metal heavy armour will have special properties too but it's vulnerable to cracking. The rule is pretty easy. When you receive a Critical Hit, just roll a save (DC 10, never modified) and if you fail, the armour loses 1 point of AC bonus. To compensate a bit, they have the following features(from Mordenkainen's Magnificent Emporium Armour Training feats):
- Plate: Barbed and Durable 3
- Scale: Tough*
- Chainmail: Durable 2
*This does not prevent you from having to roll an Armour Breakage save. It still counts as a Critical Hit but you negate the maximum damage and force a normal damage roll.
I was initially going to assign separate combinations of properties, and even new ones, depending on the material but I think the weapon rules are enough of a complication. If you have some ideas, though, I'd love to hear them.
Although I don't have an exact system(I'm mainly interested right now in getting opinions on the weapon and defiler/preserver rules), I'm planning on limiting players' ability to loot weapons "willy-nillyly" from enemies. There's bound to be someone, there's always one in the bunch, who would want to hoard entire wagonfuls of weapons. Encumbrance and plain common sense will keep it from being ridiculous but I was thinking of only letting them collect a couple of them per fight and they'd always be battle-damaged(1d4-1 marks; minimum 1).
As for repairing weapons or fashioning them from scavenged materials, that should only be possible by skilled NPC crafters, characters with an appropriate background or by a skill check(Athletics, Dungeoneering, Nature or Thievery, depending on materials and type). A broken or makeshift weapon is an Improvised weapon but you can try to construct a slightly better one(adding +1 proficiency or two damage die sizes) with a check(Hard DC). By doing so, you run the risk of destroying it completely or wasting materials, and you can only do it once per Extended Rest.
Preservers and Defilers
Ok, this post is already size Gargantuan, so I'll try to wrap it up as soon as I can and keep the chatting to a minimum. Any Arcane character can choose to be:
- Pledged Preserver: Lose Arcane Defiling permanently. Gain a "Metamagic" feat at Lv. 5 and +1 to Arcana to Detect Magic and as part of Rituals.
- Agnostic Arcanist: Functions as in RAW
- Defiant Defiler: You get Lesser Arcane Defiling and Greater Arcane Defiling in addition to the Arcane Defiling power. Gain a "Metamagic" feat at Lv. 1, 5 and 9 and +2 to Arcana to Detect Magic and as part of Rituals. You must always defile* when using a Daily Attack power(if it's applied to the damage roll, you can use the best result).
*Defiling transforms terrain into one of the three types described in the Creature Catalogue. Specific rules omitted for... brevity?... "mercy" is more appropriate.
"Metamagic" feats: Arcane class or magic-related bonus feats selected from DM-approved list.
GAD is basically double the effect and penalty of Arcane Defiling with an extra threat for failure. I based LAD on a fun Warlock feat I like, "Sacrifice to Caiphon." I think it's balanced enough since it's only roughly equivalent to taking a feat(strictly worse, but applies to any Arcane class) and it seems to go very nicely with the Defiler flavour.
I'm about to pass out but hey, we're done. There you have it. What do you guys think? I look forward to your input.
I do have some comments re: the arcane defiling rules. It seems like people widely agree that Arcane Defiling was one of the major missteps WOTC made with 4E Dark Sun, and one of the things that undermined its continuity with 2E Dark Sun, so I am keen to see new rules. However, your new rules retain the very thing that ruined 4E Arcane Defiling: where defiling should damage plants/the earth, 4E defiling goes astray by damaging animal life--and worse, damages only your allies (with a lame explanation of "emotional connection", I think) and not even all animal life nearby.
So, good work! I would really like to see a re-doing of 4E defiling that makes it more like 2E Troy Denning old-school defiling, though!
And in regards to defiling, I also agree that 4e defiling left a whole lot to be desired in the flavor of it. I made some tweaks of my own. Not as extensive as I would have liked, because I did want to keep things simple and streamlined.. and with too many new rules, they just tend to be forgotten, but here was my take presented in a previous post
community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/758...
I did 1/10 HP instead of half a surge because the math is easier and more intuitive. (I almost took out this damage completely, but too many existing feats, PP, ED is based on it, and I really didn't want to have to tweak everything)
Also, since Defiling traditionally didn't do physical harm, I added the rule about not dying for the first drop below 0hp if you were affected by Arcane Defiling
I provided a small bonus to the Arcane Defiling use because otherwise groups tended to stay away from the defiler
I added a distinction to Defilers vs Preservers because there always should have been.. just by declaring yourself a Defiler, there is now a difference from your Preserver friends. You leave an area of ash when you use Arcane powers, that grows larger by tier, but you also get Brutal 1 for it.
I originally thought of a damage bonus, but figured rerolling 1's was a nice tough without being too powerful.
It's one of those things that elevates Dark Sun from being just dumb fantasy and pushing it into a more literate, philosophical realm.