House Ruling Help (Planes related spells, Resurrection based spells, other)

JonathonWilder · Feb 9, 2013

Hello, I am putting together a roleplay using D&D 3.5 or Pathfinder rules yet the setting is based on something else. My ‘main’ questions are as follows:
1. For simplicity I wish to remove the existence of other planes, or at least make the existence of planes simply the theories of the learned. Yet this would mean that many spells would either have to be removed (such as Plane Shift and Gate) or altered (such as the Summon Monster spells).
* How should I go about having a campaign without the existence of other planes and what should I do with the spells that need the planes existence?

2. I wish to put together a campaign that has as a dramatic and thematic point that one cannot bring back those that have died, no matter how much one may wish that they could and that to pursue a course to do so will lead only to tragedy or darkness (with would not affect spells involving the undead).
* How should I go about doing this, should I simply remove all Resurrection based/related spells or go about such in a different why? This would also mean one cannot use the Wish spell to bring someone back or call for deity intervention.

Ahnehnois · Feb 9, 2013

1. Manual of the Planes has some info on this. But basically, anything that requires another plane is probably best to just remove from the game. You might want to take the Conjurer away as an option because it will be thoroughly gimped, but the other spellcasters still will have plenty of options. For creatures with the extraplanar subtype you need to either remove them from the game or put them in the world and find a place for them.

2. One houserule I've used for a while is to say that any resurrection requires a sacrifice of a living creature of equal HD to the one being restored. Don't know if that helps or not.

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Also, there is a D&D forum. You should probably either repost this question or ask a moderator to move it there where it will likely get more attention.

JonathonWilder · Feb 9, 2013

Thank you for replying and I will speak to a Moderator to move this.

JonathonWilder · Feb 9, 2013

Ahnehnois said:
1. Manual of the Planes has some info on this. But basically, anything that requires another plane is probably best to just remove from the game. You might want to take the Conjurer away as an option because it will be thoroughly gimped, but the other spellcasters still will have plenty of options. For creatures with the extraplanar subtype you need to either remove them from the game or put them in the world and find a place for them.

2. One houserule I've used for a while is to say that any resurrection requires a sacrifice of a living creature of equal HD to the one being restored. Don't know if that helps or not.

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Also, there is a D&D forum. You should probably either repost this question or ask a moderator to move it there where it will likely get more attention.

Now then onto your reply:
1. Yes that would work but when I put forward such idea to my players they complained that it would cripple the spellcasting... never realized how much some players like the Summon Monster spells.
2. Yet that would still allow someone to bring back another to life... there is also the question is one life equal to another? Can one simply sacrifice a stranger to bring back a loved one and if they try what would happen when they fail?

Ahnehnois · Feb 9, 2013

JonathonWilder said:
Now then onto your reply:
1. Yes that would work but when I put forward such idea to my players they complained that it would cripple the spellcasting... never realized how much some players like the Summon Monster spells.

Just because they like summoning monsters doesn't mean they're entitled to do so. It's up to you to decide whether you can rationalize summoning creatures without the other planes.

2. Yet that would still allow someone to bring back another to life... there is also the question is one life equal to another? Can one simply sacrifice a stranger to bring back a loved one and if they try what would happen when they fail?

Interesting questions, to which there are no by the book answers (I look to Heroes of Horror for my alt resurrection ideas).

JonathonWilder · Feb 9, 2013

I even offered my players the chance that if they want the Summon Monster spells they would need to come up with alternate monster lists but they wouldn't take it. I never got very far the first time I tried putting this together which is why I am here to ask for advice before trying again.

Yes, the Heroes of Horror does have soem interesting ideas, one being soul-locked characters and monsters.

JonathonWilder · Feb 20, 2013

Anyone willing to offer more suggestions?

Razjah · Feb 20, 2013

You could try E6 it nicely deals with resurrection and there are few summonable monsters from other planes to deal with.

Could you just shift Summon Monster to Summon Nature's Ally? That seems an easy change. If it is good enough for a druid, most classes would love to have it.

How are you handling elementals?

JonathonWilder · Feb 20, 2013

Razjah said:
You could try E6 it nicely deals with resurrection and there are few summonable monsters from other planes to deal with.

Could you just shift Summon Monster to Summon Nature's Ally? That seems an easy change. If it is good enough for a druid, most classes would love to have it.

How are you handling elementals?

Hmm, an interesting system E6 is... and one that might actually work for the campaign I am putting together. Normally I would be against such a system since I like having characters go to level 20 and maybe beyond with the world around them and the NPCs growing in power as well.
This would actually fix a couple of concerns since I am basing the campaign on a tv show which by D&D standards is a 'low-level' setting though I also do not see the land's most dangerous antaganists being mere level 6 characters.

On allowing clerics and wizards access to Summon Nature's Ally spells could work, as well as perhaps spells that summon certain monsters not covered by the spells. It would also allow players to play Conjurer without completely crippling the specialist mage.
I forgot about elementals, I would likely have to remove them or allow the lower level elementals and make it so that they are 'created' with the magic not so much summoned from the elemental planes.

Razjah · Feb 21, 2013

You could just make elementals native to the world. Fire elementals near volcanoes, air elementals near prevailing winds, water elementals in great seas, earth elementals in the field and mountains. They would be ever present spirits of the world, and could still be summoned that way.

If you want, just remove elementals. But they don't feel like outsiders because they are used so often.

As for the 6th level cap, they do get feats after 6th level. A frost giant that is also a 6th level cleric. Would be pretty terrifying for a 6th level party. You can use incantations to create plot events to make enemies (and the party) more powerful. Maybe the PCs fight to interrupt a ritual sacrificing 20 virgins to allow the enemy mage to have a caster level of 10. And remember, the world is basically level 1-3 people. Level 4-6 and you have Aragorn, Gimli, Legolas, and Gandalf.