Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Tectorman Aug 12, 2009 9:53:39	Sblocked because it's not the actual houserule, this explains what I'm looking for with this houserule. Show Note: Not interested in a 5E coming out for a long while. It will come out eventually (Raptures and Ragnaroks not withstanding), but I hope 4E lasts a good long while. That said, one change I would like to see (which I do not believe will see the light of day in 4E and thus qualifies as a 5E design goal) would be to make basic usability not require better weapons. Case in point, in SWSE, at high levels, you could be wielding a weapon you picked up just yesterday or you could be using the same Blaster Pistol you had when the campaign started. And in either case, your base accuracy with either weapon is just as good as the other. Also, if you want, you can devote yourself to just one weapon, or be, basically, the K-Wing Starfighter, with six different weapons hanging off straps on each side of your body. In 4E, doing that means that, because of wealth by level, you're running off of maybe three of those weapons having level appropriate accuracy, and the rest might as well not be used.
#2 PrimeSonic Aug 12, 2009 10:13:18	Take a look at this thread. We've been working on comfortably making the PCs less reliant on magic enhancement bonus while removing baseless feat taxes. I think it's pretty solid. http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=1216882
#3 oxybe Aug 12, 2009 10:36:52	this is the houserule i'm working right now Show Inherent Magical Bonuses at level 2, 7, 12, 17, 22 & 27 the characters gain a cumulative +1 inherent bonus. this bonus is added to attack rolls, damage & all defenses. when not wielding a magical weapon, you deal Xd4 bonus damage on a crit, where X is the inherent bonus Magic Item Strength based on Character instead of a "+X flaming longsword", or "+Y armor of awesomesauce", you have just a "Flaming Longsword" and "Armor of Awesomesauce". the exact strength of the weapon/armor will vary depending on the character's inherent bonus. this means that a "Flaming longsword" in the hands of a 1st level character has no real bonuses (other then the standard turns all your damage into [fire] property), acts as a +1 flaming longsword in the hands of a level 5 character, a +4 in the hands of the level 18, ect... the standard crit bonus of the weapon in question works in place of the Xd4 of the mundane version of the weapon this allows for characters to have their father's ancestral weapon throughout the game without having to worry about having to "upgrade" it or lug it around as it becomes less useful compared to the gear you can find/buy.
#4 Tectorman Aug 17, 2009 15:46:49	(Let me preface this by saying that another houserule I'm considering is to ignore Weapon Expertise, Implement Expertise, and Focused Expertise and just allow everyone a +1 tier bonus to everything that can conceivably be an attack, whether weapon-based, implement-based, or even a racial power (i.e., the Dragonborn's Dragon Breath).) Okay, Prime Sonic, I looked over the stuff in your link. Assuming the first post regularly updated by Igfig is the current state of affairs that you're talking about, I don't believe it's quite for me. Basically, I don't want any (not 6 points and not even 3 points) of a person's basic ability to hit his opponents to require properties off of the weapon (see my first post on the merits of SWSE that I'm trying to emulate). In other words, magic equipment can give special or additional abilities, but you shouldn't have to rely on them just for basic competance. Armor and NADs are less of a concern because they're unlikely to change in the middle of a single fight, even though I am considering them too. Your link does inherently have a limiting factor on my main concern (stocking up on extra powers via Wands), but it does so by making the baseline accuracy of a Wand still cost money (and even same level money; a Wand you can get at level 26 still costs as much as a RAW +6 Wand). As such, I appreciate the contribution, but it doesn't quite apply. Thanks anyway. Oxybe, sounds like you're doing about what I'm doing (except I'm undecided on damage and defenses and I'm leaving the extra crit damage based solely on the magic properties of the weapon (i.e., a mundane Longsword in the hands of a level 25 does 0 extra damage on a crit, but a +5 Magic Longsword does +5d6 extra damage)). It seems as though the standard rules of your campaign (magic items come about not through the acquisition of wealth, but only on story based needs) serve to prevent a player from purposefully or accidentally stocking up on a bunch of Wands. I'll think about that, but I'm mostly interested in an all-campaign solution, including one with at least one Magic Item shop per major city where the PCs can buy whatever their Wealth-by-Level can afford them. Anyone else have a suggestion? Based on how I've described my aims above, how do you prevent/curtail excessive Wands besides making basic accuracy a factor?
#5 wancow Aug 17, 2009 15:53:55	i'm also currently working on reforging rules for weapons & armor, allowing to make regular/superior/expert/master crafted versions of the weapons/implements to bypass the expertise feats, as well as reforging the armor with special materials to get the masterwork versions. Please post that when you work them out. I really like your rules on "Inherent Magical Bonuses", but one gripe: shouldn't it be called "Inherent Skill Bonuses"?
#6 tequila_sunrise Aug 17, 2009 20:38:13	I replaced enhancement bonuses with level-based bonuses in one paragon level game, and nobody used a single wand. So personally, I don't think your concern is warranted: even with all those at-will wand options, other items are just cooler IMO and IME. Also, I'm having trouble imagining a circumstance that would make twelve wands overpowered. But if you think it will be a problem for your group, here're a couple ideas: 1. Ban at-will granting wands. 2. Expand the daily item power uses per day rule to include at-will wands. (You could have a separate pool of uses for wands and for daily powers, or you could simply incorporate wands into the current pool.)
#7 oxybe Aug 18, 2009 7:47:23	Please post that when you work them out. I really like your rules on "Inherent Magical Bonuses", but one gripe: shouldn't it be called "Inherent Skill Bonuses"? i call it IMB because higher level characters are "that much more awesome" and i suck at giving things names. plus IMB implies exactly what it's meant to replace: it removes the magical "+" bonuses from the items and make them inherent to the PC. the bonus to damage and bonus crit dice are a "side effect" of the houserule. since magical items are hard to come by, and the bonus damage is expected at higher levels, i felt it best to leave that on, but make it weaker then what you expect from a magic sword. the main difference between a Longsword and Magic longsword isn't much mechanic-wise. they're both +3 prof weapons and the character's inherent bonus adds to their damage. the normal longsword will only deal +xd4 however on a crit, while the Magic Longsword will deal +xd6. the other thing, is that it's easier to attune a magical weapon to gain extra properties then to make a mundane item magical. addendum to the IMB the IMB are just the basics. if you've read the artifact rules in the DMG, what follows makes more sense. i've borrowed from the DMG concepts from the artifact rules to add to the magic item creation. by making the item "happier" you can unlock extra abilities or new ones. to use A flaming sword for an example: -dipping it in a long-active volcano -having it blessed by a fire efreet in the City of Brass -slaying powerful water elementals -using it to burn down a temple that opposes the Sun god -ect... now the power itself could be anything, really: -dipping in volcano = causing a pillar of fire to rise at a given point -blessing by the efreet = sheaths the owner in fire, harming the enemies around him -kill water elementals = bonus damage against cold or water-based enemies -burn down temple = causing a wall of fire to ignite an area -ect... these are "extra" daily/encounter type effects that don't count towards the daily amount of item charges. these are rough rules and it generally has to be something symbolic with DM approval. dumping your frost sword into a volcano without rhyme or reason will cause it to melt.
#8 Tectorman Aug 28, 2009 14:23:22	Over the hiatus due to the forum boards change, I finally came up with a solution (inspired even by the AV2). Let's say you buy a powerful magical arrow (or a dozen of them).  All you need to do is buy a level-appropriate ammo-delivery weapon (bow, crossbow, sling) and pay the cheapest amount you can for the magical ammo.  Kind of unbalancing. How'd they solve that problem, then?  Magical ammo comes with its own enhancement bonus and you have to use that bonus when you fire it off.  So there's no way you'll be able to buy a butt-load of +1 Arrows of Blank and still be able to use the level-appropriate enhancement of your bow to maintain your accuracy. Well, my solution is similar.  At level 5 (so as to be available at a level-appropriate time while also not overshadowing players who only want one or two magical thingies and want them sooner), everyone gets a +1 inherent bonus to AC, NADs, and attack rolls with anything that has the "Weapon" or "Implement" keyword (this means that racial attack powers like the Dragonborn Breath Weapon aren't involved).  This goes up to +2 at 10th, +3 at 15th, etc. However, if you have an Enhancement bonus to one of these things instead, you use the Enhancement bonus.  Even if it's lower. Ergo, if you want to imagine your character as a master of many weapons (he's a Ranger who changes the two weapons he fights with after every fight just for laughs), you can, but if you try to buy a bunch of +1 weapons and you're high level, then the loss of accuracy that that entails will still affect you accordingly.  Same thing with trying to get away with a bunch of +1 Wands. Of course, now I need to go back and type this up neater (is anyone else finding the layout of this new setup disconcerting?).
#9 ekio Aug 28, 2009 18:28:43	I'd say wait for the DMG2 boon system. I like that idea a lot more than weapons giving you bonuses.