Compiled 3.5 Revisions

Shard O'Glase · Jun 26, 2003

Plane Sailing said:
The thing is - rangers can get it at character level 17, Assassins are going to be getting it at best at character level 13, Shadowdancers get at best at character level 8 (and they are the *prestige* class). Your suggestion would enable rogues to get it at the amazing 10th character level.

And?

I see no problem with a rogue getting HIPS a little after a shadowdancer but a little before a assassin. Once it left the shadowdancer class its no longer an exclusively cool comodity, and all classes that emphasize stealth should get it. The rogue empahsizes stealth at least a smuch as the assassin and a lot more than the ranget IMO.

Olgar Shiverstone · Jun 27, 2003

j. Sundering: Each +1 of enhancement bonus adds 2 to hardness and 10 to hp. That +5 longsword will have a hardness of 20 and 55 hp (or hardness 30 if it's a +5 adamantine blade).

g. The DMG also includes a variant weapon-equivalency chart that DMs can use if they feel like letting characters use alternative-size weapons with less difficulty (for instance, a Medium short sword is the equivalent of a Small longsword and a Large dagger). This not only lets the halfling keep using the weapons he takes off the orcs he fights, but also lets the half-orc try out that ogre's enormous greatsword.

Find traps now grants an insight bonus to Search equal to one-half caster level, in addition to the rogue's trapfinding ability.

Two-Weapon Defense grants a shield bonus to AC, so it won't stack with a shield.

n. Shuriken now work like any other thrown weapon, though they're priced like ammunition for enhancement, etc. because they're disposable, and they're drawn as a free action to allow faster throwing. Shuriken are considered a special monk weapon, allowing them to flurry with them. They also do more damage (1d2) and add Str bonus to damage.

DR x/magic and DR x/epic allow the creature's natural weapons to strike as magic or as epic weapons, respectively. A gargoyle's natural attacks strike as magic weapons. Creatures with alignment subtypes strike as weapons of those alignment(s), both with natural weapons and wielded weapons. A demon (chaotic and evil subtypes) strikes with natural and wielded weapons as if those weapons were chaotic- and evil-aligned. (AC's comment: this is why the Blood War has gone on so long. Fiends killig fiends is a very slow process

)

drnuncheon · Jun 27, 2003

DonAdam said:
Bah! This should have been charisma from the beginning.

Being a duelist should be all about panache, not intelligence.

Well, that depends - the fencers of many Spanish schools focused on geometry and outthinking their opponents, so Intelligence would seem to be appropriate. The Italian schools, on the other hand...

J

Rodrigo Istalindir · Jun 27, 2003

drnuncheon said:
Well, that depends - the fencers of many Spanish schools focused on geometry and outthinking their opponents, so Intelligence would seem to be appropriate. The Italian schools, on the other hand...

J

I was always a fan of the Parisian school of fencing -- a sword in your primary hand, a goblet of wine in the other. Or maybe the other way around, if it was a really good wine. So maybe CON would be more appropriate?

DonAdam · Jun 27, 2003

Well, that depends - the fencers of many Spanish schools focused on geometry and outthinking their opponents, so Intelligence would seem to be appropriate. The Italian schools, on the other hand...

But it shouldn't be about history, but heroic literature.

Not like it matters though. The Unfettered is going to be better than any silly PrC anyway (and it shouldn't take a PrC to make such a common archetype work).

Apok · Jun 27, 2003

DonAdam said:
Not like it matters though. The Unfettered is going to be better than any silly PrC anyway (and it shouldn't take a PrC to make such a common archetype work).

Aha, yet another intrigued by Monte's labor of coolness. With all the information being thrown around about 3.5e, I'm just not nearly as pumped about it as I am about the release of AU.

Olgar Shiverstone · Jun 27, 2003

Added a section 0, Frequently Asked Questions, just 'cause it seems like it needs it.

0. Frequently Asked Questions

a. When will 3.5 be available?
A: The current official street date is 18 July.

b. What books are being updated?
A: The Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide, and Monster Manual. A revised Psionics Handbook is scheduled for release in 2004, as well as a Forgotten Realms Player's Gudie, which will update the FRCS to 3.5.

c. Are any of the other books being updated (splatbooks, MotP etc)?
A: Not at this time, though updated versions of information in those books may eventually be released in later products.

d. Do we have to pay full price for the revised books if we have the originals?
A. Yes and no. If you want the books you have to purchase them. The System Reference Document will also be updated, however, which will allow you to freely review the revisions if you want a preview before purchasing the books.

e. Will the SRD be updated to 3.5, and when?
A. Yes. The 3.5 SRD will be posted at about the same time the revised rulebooks are released.

f. How easy will it be to convert from 3.0 to 3.5?
A. Not hard according to WOTC R&D. WOTC will release a free document designed to assist in conversion at about the time the rulebooks are released.

g. Will there be any electronics support?
A. Code Monkey Publishing will be producing a 3.5 rules data set for E-Tools that will be available for $5. Current release date for this data set is unknown.

h. Will the new rulebooks contain errors like the first 3.0 books?
A. There will undoubtably be some errors in the rulebooks (see below for already identified errata). Hopefully there will be significantly fewer errors than in the 3.0 books.

i. Has rule xxx changed?
A. See the list of compiled changes below. If it's not on the list, it either (1) hasn't changed, or (2) has changed and WOTC R&D hasn't admitted to it yet, or (3) has changed, and has been confirmed, but hasn't made it into this thread yet.

j. Is this information official? Do you have any affiliation with WOTC?
A. No, and no. This is a fan compiled list developed from information released in WOTC products and by its employees. Nothing is truly official until you see it in print in the new rulebooks.

Duke Frinn · Jun 27, 2003

The Assasin, Shadowdancer and Ranger are all mystical, magic type classes. They all have spells or spell-like abilities.

The Rogue is a non-magical class, and HiPS would ruin that aspect of him. Rogues should hode in shadows, NOT in plain sight.

That is not sneaky, it's magical.

You might as well give the rogue silence or invisibility .

Olgar Shiverstone · Jun 27, 2003

More updates:

For characters with a natural reach of 5 ft. or more, reach weapons allow you to attack at up to twice your normal reach. (For characters with natural reach 0 ft., a reach weapon allows them to attack a creature 5 ft. away--fear the pixie army wielding longspears!) A small longspear will grant reach. A large greatsword or halberd won't grant reach (but note that a Large humanoid-shaped creature already has 10-ft. natural reach).

Derro went through some pretty significant changes. They're now a high-Cha, low-Wis monstrous humanoid race, though their power level remains about the same.

youspoonybard · Jun 27, 2003

"In 3.5, when a character uses polymorph or any similar effect to change form, his equipment either remains worn or held (if possible) or melds and becomes nonfunctional. Thus, wild shaping druids should be able to "hold on to" many more items than normal.

As a DM, I'd adjudicate this as loosely as possible--if I can even conceive of the possibility that the new form could wear the item in a manner similar to the normal form, I'd let it stick around.
Andy Collins
Senior Designer
Wizards of the Coast Roleplaying R&D"

Druids now officially rule.