D&D 5E 4d6 Drop the Lowest Etiquette

[EzekielRaiden]

I use choice of standard array or roll.

If you roll, you use what you get - no switching to standard array if you get a bad result. It's a roleplaying opportunity - use it.

If they get a really high set of scores, I have no problem with it. They're not going to break my game.

For rolling, I use 4d6 - reroll all 1's and the first 2 - take the three highest. Assign to ability you want (not assign in order).

Interesting. Is that the first two for each die, or just the first two for each set of four dice? Because I can model the first thing really easily in AnyDice, while the latter would be a horrible nightmare from which I could not wake. (But seriously, any "check values, reroll JUST ONE DIE" mechanic is super awful for almost every automated die roller I've ever found.) However, given the...essentially zero probability of getting anything less than 8 for the "reroll all 2s a single time" (and even an 8 is only 0.06% of the time) I'm going to assume it's the latter, which is BLUH, and even my momentary flash of brilliance couldn't solve it. That said though, you get a statistically very similar (not identical, but very similar) distribution by doing "middle 1 of 4d12, plus 6" instead of your rule (where the "middle" of an even number is assumed to be the second rolled die's result). It's actually almost identical to "4d6 drop lowest, reroll all 1s," but IMO slightly faster.

I've heard many rumblings about the "let people pick their stats, and it's so much better than rolling" in the past, but never seen it myself. Might try running it past future DMs to see what they think.

 

[Jefe Bergenstein]

I use choice of standard array or roll.

If you roll, you use what you get - no switching to standard array if you get a bad result. It's a roleplaying opportunity - use it.

If they get a really high set of scores, I have no problem with it. They're not going to break my game.

For rolling, I use 4d6 - reroll all 1's and the first 2 - take the three highest. Assign to ability you want (not assign in order).

Out of curiosity, do you assign as you roll? So if your first roll is a 15, you need to decide which stat you want it in before you roll your 2nd score?

 

[lowkey13]

*Deleted by user*

 

[redrick]

I don't really know what use this is to this discussion, but I thought I'd look at where "heroic" stats might put heroes with regards to the general populace of a D&D universe.

Assumption: The standard human D&D population has a distribution of 3d6 in each ability. (This is slightly more generous than the "average of 10" assumption, since 3d6 averages to 11.)
Methodology: output 3d6 on anydice.com. Show "at least". Subtract from 100% to get percentile.
Caveat: I am not a statistician and got a C in my 300-level Counting class about a decade ago.

18: ~99.5th percentile
17: ~98th percentile
16: ~95th percentile
15: ~90th percentile
14: ~84th percentile
13: ~74th percentile
12: ~62nd percentile
11: 50th percentile
10: ~37th percentile
9: ~26th percentile
8: ~16th percentile
7: ~9th percentile
6: ~5th percentile
5: ~2nd percentile
4: ~.5th percentile
3: Barely qualified to be a member of general populace.

So, the standard array posits that a hero will, in one area, be in the 90th percentile of the general populace, before racial modifiers, and, in one area, be in the 16th percentile. Of course, that hero has the chance to get into the 99th percentile and beyond within a few months of his or her adventuring lifetime. (After applying that +1 to his or her prime stat, our Would-Be Human Adventurer jumps up to the 95th percentile. Pretty talented, Would-Be Adventurer.)

 

[MostlyDm]

Our group rolls one set, 4d6 drop the lowest. We can take what we roll or the standard array. When I DM, I usually use point buy or the standard array. Simply because there is always one person in the group who doesn't roll well and then feels weaker than the rest of the party. I don't mind if the players have stats higher than the average but I do like everyone in the group to be on par with each other. I'm currently playing in my group and I used the standard array. Others rolled and had some really great rolls while others were more mixed. The rolling one set and taking that or the standard is new for our group though. We usually used point buy. For some reason, when we switched to 5e everyone was all into rolling again. Maybe there was a little nostalgia there that caused it.

Did you see the option I suggested on the first page? Might work well for you, given your concerns.

 

[The Human Target]

I think the variety of different rolling methods reflects the disparity of concepts around which campaigns, and the players that are in them, are based.

Let's think of this in various ways-
Do your players like to choose their characters, then roll the abilities?
Or do the players like to design a character around the abilities?

There is no right answer there, but some people prefer to design their character concept, and then put in the abilities, and some people prefer to have the ability rolls shape the character (design around what was rolled). Both are fun, in their own ways.

What about the campaign?
Is it heroic? Are the players supposed to be, well, more than the average bear? Each Paladin a Lancelot, each Wizard a Gandalf?
Or a little grubbier? The characters start off a little above average, but, you know, not that above average. Not "destined" (17, 18) for success because of their amazing natural abilities.

Again, no right answers there. But I think that the rolls influence the roles, and vice versa.

Nicely put.

My issue is this- you can easily create a system for people who prefer to let randomness shape their character without actually having totally random ability score rolls.

I dint know why D&D just doesn't do that instead.

Characters can be random/point buy/array all together in one party without huge disparities in power.

 

[El Mahdi]

Out of curiosity, do you assign as you roll? So if your first roll is a 15, you need to decide which stat you want it in before you roll your 2nd score?

Nope. Roll them all, then assign them where you want.

 

[El Mahdi]

Is that the first two for each die, or just the first two for each set of four dice?

The first 2 for each set of four dice (4d6).

So, roll 4d6 - if two of them came up 2, reroll one of them only.

Next set of 4d6 (next ability score), same thing.


Sorry about ruining your dice roller program...

 

[Cristian Andreu]

We use 4d6 drop lowest, 8 times, assign as preferred. Once or twice we've used point buy, but 4d6 is our usual method.

No re-rolls, not on stats, not on HDs. Sort of defeats the purpose of rolling in the first place, I think.

 

[shadowmane]

When I DM, 4d6 once for each attribute. Then arrange the array as you want based on the class you want to build.

In the game I am a player in, the DM used a hybrid of an array with point buy.