Character creation rules

[dalamb]

These are house rules that affect what you write on your character sheet, which can then be ignored once you start play. The house rules that do affect game play are in a separate topic. Discussion of these rules goes here.

Topics covered here, in alphabetical order:

• Character creation point system.
• Classes.
• Feats.
• Gestalt.
• Leveling up.
• Pets (animal companions, paladin mounts, familiars, etc.)
• Skills.

[dalamb]

Character Creation Points

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I like to give non-caster classes a boost to help reduce (but with no real hope of completely mitigating) the gap in power between them and caster classes. So each character gets points with which to buy character features. There are enough to build a fully functional normal-rules full caster, but they won’t get some of the other benefits for the non-casters.

Viewpoint

Some people have alluded to “spellcasters having to pay for their spells.” I see it differently: since you always get enough character points to pay for the maximum level of spells you can cast (though if building incrementally might have to save a level 9 point to afford level 10 sorcerer spellcasting) spellcasters can be built just as they always have been, but won’t get as many new benefits as characters who can’t cast spells.

There is no guarantee that all of these are “balanced” in terms of how useful they are. The rules will likely evolve over time, especially in response to player suggestions I like.

You initially get 2*(game starting character level)+1 points. This is enough, for example, to build a standard full caster with a single class on each side of the build, with a few points left over for something else.

If/when you level up, any new points you spend have retroactive effects, as though you had had those points at the beginning. For example, a level 1 mage gets 3 points, enough for their first-level spellcasting, and has 7 at level 3, which is one more than they need for just their spells. So they could spend the extra point on +5 to point buy.

One (1) point for each of the following

• Each template

• Three feats at any level in the build.

  • Feats with restrictions to specific classes can be bought for two character points – so a ranger could buy a feat restricted to “fighter level 4” with two points.

  • You can save these if you judge there is a chance of leveling, which to me is unclear.

• Each +5 to the character-creation point buy limit, up to +20 (four uses)

• An additional 1/6 of Wealth By Level at the start of the game.

• Each level of initiator if using the Tome of Battle rules (which is undecided at the moment)

• Each "extraordinary skill" slot pool (see the corresponding rules).

• A feat with a restriction to a different class, e.g. “monk level 4” (but recall that fighter level N feats are now available based on BAB).

Two (2) points for each of the following

• Each level of power if using the Expanded Psionics Handbook rules (which is undecided at the moment).

• Each “category” of warlock invocation: least, lesser, greater, dark.

• Each level of Level Adjustment buyout, up to 4 levels

• A craft reserve of XP suitable for crafting however much one can afford to craft at the game starting level (according to wealth by level, not the increased funds available through spending character points). Use it or lose it; nothing carries over into the game. Non-crafters can use this XP to have crafters make stuff for them.

Three (3) points for each of the following:

• Each level of spells accessible at the current game level.

  • If we level up, you’ll get more points at least as often as you need to gain access to higher-level spells, though you might need to save a point from the previous level (e.g a Sorcerer 9 should save a point to be able to have three at level 10).

  • Cost of invocations is currently undecided.

  • Spellthief (CAdv) pays for the highest level Spellthief spell they can cast directly, not the highest level spell they can steal.

[dalamb]

Feats

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One feat per level, rather than just at 1 and levels divisible by three; you can purchase more with character points.

Free feats:

• One Stormwrack feat.
• Weapon Finesse and Power Attack are free at BAB +1.

Certain wimpy (IMO) feats advance as you qualify for the follow-on feats. Just write the new feat on your character sheet if you qualify; there is no change in gameplay. Other feats have improved effects; those in this section only affect character sheets, while those elsewhere change gameplay.

• Combat Expertise: Improved Disarm, Improved Feint, Improved Trip, Whirlwind Attack

• Dodge: Mobility, Spring Attack. Note that this means if you take Dodge, you get Mobility for free since they have the same Dex 13 prerequisite. In addition Dodge itself has changed (see below).

• Improved Unarmed Strike: Deflect Arrows, Improved Grapple, Snatch Arrows, Superior Unarmed Strike (ToB 33).

• Mounted Combat: Mounted Archery, Ride-By Attack, Spirited Charge, Trample. The whole package in one feat – but in all the games I have ever played-by-post, mounted combat has never shown up. I suppose a Paladin might take a shark as a mount?

• Point Blank Shot: Precise Shot: Improved Precise Shot

• Power Attack: Cleave, Great Cleave, Improved Bull Rush, Improved Overrun, Improved Sunder.

• Rapid Shot: Manyshot

• Rock Hurling (RoS 143), Improved Rock Hurling (RoS 141), Fling Ally (RoS 139), Fling Enemy (RoS 140). This means you atomatically qualify for the two forms of Fling if you take Rock Hurling.

• Two-Weapon Fighting: Two-Weapon Defence, Improved Two-Weapon Fighting, Greater Two-Weapon Fighting

• Weapon Focus: Weapon Specialization, Greater Weapon Focus, Greater Weapon Specialization.

  • The restriction “fighter level 4*n” is replaced by “BAB 5*n”

  • All feats in the progression apply to three weapons, chosen at the time of taking Weapon Finesse.

The following feats have also changed:

• All feats that give +2 to two skills (like Negotiator) add 2 plus 1 per 4 character levels (rounded down). They can also substitute for Skill Focus in either skill to satisfy requirements for entry into Prestige Classes.

• Dodge is now valid against all opponents, and gives a +1 + (BAB/4 rounded down) dodge bonus to AC.

• Improved Toughness is now 2 HP plus another 1 HP per level, so is never worse than Toughness. All monsters with Toughness now get Improved Toughness instead, and any prerequisite of “Toughness” becomes “Improved Toughness.”

• Martial Weapon Proficiency allows you to pick three weapons.

• Shield Specialization (PHB II) gives +1 AC, and increases by an additional +1 for every 5 BAB (thus 2 at BAB 5, 3 at 10, etc.). It applies to all forms of shield bonus, such as Two Weapon Defence, but does not stack if you have multiple sources of shield bonus.

• Skill Focus adds an untyped +2+(character level/2, rounded up) bonus to the corresponding skill, and has gameplay effects described elsewhere.

• Skill Knowledge now makes any three skills into class skills.

• Subdual Substitution applies to all forms of lethal magical damage.

• Weapon Finesse has changes listed above as well as starting a chain of free feats.

The following feats from unlisted sources are allowed:

• Precise Swing (ECS 58)

• Snap Kick (ToB 32)

• Superior Unarmed Strike (ToB 33)

[dalamb]

Skills

I prefer the classes with fewer skill points per level to have more, since there are so many skills that, for example, a fighter ought to have given popular culture about them, which they can’t afford. Instead of shifting to Pathfinder skills as I once did, I now just hand out more skill points: x+int per level becomes x*1.5+1+int

• Classes formerly getting 2+int skill points per level now get 4+int

• Classes formerly getting 4+int per level now get 7+int

• Classes formerly getting 6+int per level now get 10+int

• Classes formerly getting 8+int per level now get 13+int

Additional rules for skills:

• Once a class skill, always and ever a class skill, even retroactively. This is easy to manage when creating a higher level character from scratch. When levelling up, if you invested skill points in a cross-class skill (2 points per rank), you get back those points if the new class at the new level introduces a class skill, or if you use Skill Knowledge at that level to add a class skill.

• Raising INT boosts skill points retroactively.

• See the skill focus and skill knowledge feats.

• See also changes to how some skills work during play.

[dalamb]

Classes

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I have only made changes to the listed classes, but am willing to discuss what is appropriate for others if players have good arguments for why they need to be strengthened.

Player’s Handbook I

All spellcasters with zero-level spells

• Level 0 spells (cantrips and orisons) are at-will, but possibly with small changes if being able to repeat them all day were a problem. The one example at the moment is Cure Minor Wounds, which now just stabilizes a dying character (as in Pathfinder).

Barbarian:

• You can combine UA totem barbarian features with Complete Champion features even if the totem names are the same.

• In line with the upgrade to fighters, HP are 14/level

Fighter:

• BAB is +1.25 per level

• HP are 12/level, not 10

• Fighters get a few (modified) Pathfinder improvements

  • Bravery: +1 to Will saves at level 2 and every 3 levels thereafter

  • Armour training: reduce armour check penalties by 1 and increase maximum dexterity bonus by 1 at level 3 and every 3 levels thereafter

• Many feat changes help fighters.

Monk:

• Monks get the +1 per level BAB progression.

• Flurry of blows is treated like iterated attacks: you can take a single 5-foot step between each blow (or before the first or after the last) as long as they add up to no more than your move.

• At levels 1, 2, and 6 a Monk can choose any of the following "monk feats," ignoring their prerequisites, and can similarly choose these with the general feats obtained at each level: Combat Expertise, Snap Kick (ToB 32), Stunning Fist, Superior Unarmed Strike (ToB 33)

Paladin:

• Paladins use Cha for spellcasting, unless they use the Serenity feat to make their Cha-based abilities (including divine feats based on Cha) to switch everything to Will instead.

• Smite evil increases by 1/day every 2 levels (1, 3, 5, ...)

• Instead of Remove Disease, at level 6 and every 3 levels thereafter paladins get a "paladin feat"

  • A fighter bonus feat

  • A divine feat (CDiv)

  • A domain feat.

  • A paladin-only feat.

The paladin-only feats (which can be taken as general feats as well) are

• remove disease 1/week per 3 paladin levels

• remove curse 1/week per 3 paladin levels.

At most half can be fighter bonus feats -- so the first must be one of the other kinds.

Ranger:

• Rangers get Animal Companion at first level and increase as Druids do.

• Instead of a limited number of combat style class features, rangers get fighter bonus feats at the corresponding levels. They need not meet ability score prerequisites.

Player’s Handbook II

Knight:

• Test of Mettle now gives you an additional use of knight’s challenge if you are rendered unconscious (according to the subdual rules), not just when you are reduced to or below 0 hit points.

Complete Warrior

Mike Mearls, one of the WotC game designers, published a fix for the Hexblade:

Quote

The hexblade suffers a little because he came on the scene relatively early in 3.5's life. As R&D pushes the boundaries of the game, we learn that some things we thought were risky or potentially broken aren't. Other times, we learn things that look fine don't actually work in play.

Armored mages fall into the first category. Them seem really powerful, but in the long run they aren't. Spells and magic items allow an unarmored mage to build great defenses. The spell mage armor is as good as medium armor, and its duration allows most mages to keep it active at all times. If you compare the hexblade to the duskblade from PH 2, you can see how the thinking has changed.

If you want to boost the hexblade, I'd try the following changes:

 Good Fortitude save

Curse ability usable 1 + the hexblade's Cha modifier per day

Curse ability usable as a swift action

Curse ability does not count as used if the target makes his saving throw

Ability to cast in light or medium armor and while carrying a light shield or buckler

At 6th level, the hexblade can cast one hexblade spell per day as a swift action, as long as its original casting time is a standard action or faster. He gains an additional use of this power at levels 8, 11, 14, and 18.

The key to the hexblade is his curse ability, but it's a little un-fun to have it so limited in use. The hexblade also has trouble casting spells and using his melee attacks, so shifting spells to swift actions fits in with the idea of an armored mage.

 

 

[dalamb]

Leveling-up Changes

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1. When you level up you gain 2 character points. When you spend them, their effects are retroactive except for inherited templates, which must be taken at first level (in a build that starts at high enough level for you to be able to afford the level adjustment).

2. At level 4 and every four levels thereafter, all ability scores increase by +1

3. In some cases you may need to save a point from a prior level to use at a higher one. For example, a Sorceror 9 has 19 character points and uses 12 of them for access to 4th level spells. They only gain 2 points at 10th level, so need to save one of the remaining severn to get their 5th level spells.

[dalamb]

Gestalt

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The main Gestalt rules are from Unearthed Arcana, summarized below (with some modifications of my own):

1. At each level of the build, compare class properties in each “column.” At that level you get the better of the two values for increase in HP, BAB, skill points, and saves. Add up the results at all levels, and round down.

   1. BAB:

      1. Fighter: +1.25 (house rule)

      2. Other “fighterly” classes such as Barbarian: +1

      3. Cleric/rogue progression: +3/4

      4. Sorceror/Wizard progression: +1/2

   2. Saves:

      1. Good save: +1/2 per level, with one +2 overall. This is a nerf from the common interpretation that multiclassing a Good save class with another Good save class give +4.

      2. Poor save: +1/3 per level

   3. HP and skill points are straightforward.

2. Class features such as Evasion accrue at the faster rate.

3. Level adjustment applies to both columns – but can be bought off (with character points) much more easily than in the Rules As Written.

4. You can’t pair up two prestige classes at the same level.

5. Prestige classes that advance two spell progressions (such as Mystic Theurge) are forbidden.

[dalamb]

Pets

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These are the rules for familiars, animal companions, paladin mounts, eidolons, and other “second sentient companion” features except cohorts and followers, which aren’t allowed in this campaign until we get to the level where you need low-level NPCs as crew for your own ship, if that ever happens.

1. Take whatever creature you are dealing with and reverse-engineer its attributes as follows: Derive its attribute mods as though it were built on an array of 3 10’s and 3 11’s: subtract 11 from odd-valued attributes and 10 from even-valued. There should be exactly three of each; if there aren’t, contact me to figure out what to do.

2. Refigure its attributes via a 15 point buy, and add the attribute mods from the first step.

3. You can spend your own character points to improve it further, presumably by adding feats and a better point buy and templates.

4. For now, you don’t need to pay for its spellcasting (if any). If some serious problem crops up from this, some significant imbalance with respect to other characters, we will all renegotiate this rule.

5. Pets do not get other benefits of character advancement, such as increases to attributes at every level divisible by four, nor extra feats at each level.

This all means there is zero cost to get a standard creature out of the books.