Define Core Only for your game

[derelictjay]

THough I'll never say core only, I will say say you can only use whats in the PH and DMG, races, classes, feats, skills, equipment, and dieties. Just as written in the PH and DMG. Which I guess means core only. But as the DM, I always reserve the right to use whatever I want.

As to players not liking it, in the past I've never had a major problem, I usually just have one or two players beg me to let them use such and such, I just put my foot down and everythings fine, if not, well thats never come up.

 

[billd91]

If I were to declare a "Core only" game, that would only apply to PCs being based on the PH (and eventually prestige classes from the DMG).

I would never limit the DM to just the DMG or MM. "Core only" designations apply only to the PCs.

 

[ValhallaGH]

Core Only would be the three core rulebooks only. That's the Player's Handbook, v 3.5, Dungeon Master's Guide, v 3.5, and Monster Manual, v 3.5, and nothing else.

Of course, a DM is free to draw upon whatever resources he wishes. Bad guys get to break the rules because they are bad guys. By deffinition, breaking the rules is what they do.

 

[Hussar]

Less of a chance of finding something 'broken' or outta whack with the core stuff. Less power creep?

I wondered if this would come up.

Looking at the base classes among the WOTC supplements, the most common comment I see is that they are underpowered. I think the power creep bugaboo is just that. Somehow I can't really see too many extra classes that come anywhere close to a wizard or a cleric or a druid (my top three for high octane classes).

 

[painandgreed]

Phb, Dmg, Mm, & Phbii

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

True core only: PHB, DMG, and MM for everyone.

Players core only: Players PHB, DM anything goes as appropriate.

The last campaign I played in was essentially a Player-core only, and was just fine.

The last game I DM'd was player core only, plus FRCS, though admittedly it wasn't strictly core only. Players could use non-core elements, but they had to be submitted and approved in advance, individually -- i.e., they could get an individual feat, spell, or PrC approved if it fit the campaign, but I wouldn't approve Complete *book as a blanket.

I really felt the last gave me the best of both worlds. New players could join with a baseline expectation that they could use the core rules as is. You didn't have to "buy in" -- there was no "splatbook escalation" going on where everyone felt they had to buy the newest splatbooks to be competitive. [Aside -- I've seen this sort of splatbook escalation be a real problem in other games, and it intimidates new players. I was quite proud of the fact that our group introduced some players to 3E, and one player to D&D altogether, and their only requirement was a PHB and dice -- and the new-to-D&D player bought Masters of the Wild for his druid character and it was all he needed to be happy.] Players could still use elements from new material they bought, but as the DM I retained control of what fit the flavor of the campaign, what was balanced, and in manageable chunks.

Most of my players were fine with it, and used the approval process for new material judiciously , and only for things that really fir their character, and most of what they got approved they used a lot of.

There was one guy who, after being told "core rules to start" submitted his first character as a savage species, non-core base class with strange prestige class character. He grumbled when I enforced the rules, but he did abide by them -- though he stopped showing up after a couple of sessions, which bothered me not in the least, since we apparently weren't his type of game.

As a player, I find I personally have plenty of options with "core only", plus I like coming to a new game knowing that I can rely on a fixed set of assumptions (ie, the PHB is good to go as is). I've been burned by too many games with wonky and unpublished house rules, unfortunately.

 

[Hypersmurf]

Sword Coast (not certain on that one), Fang and Fur (I could be totally making that one up) Litigant Mage (making that one up).

Spell Compendium, Fiend Folio, Libris Mortis.

-Hyp.

 

[Odhanan]

Major props to anyone who can name every book I mentioned. A hint: they are all Wizards books.

"- Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide, Monster Manual, Spell Compendium, Epic Level Handbook, Heroes of Horror, Heroes of Battle, Monster Manual 2, Monster Manual 3, Fiend Folio, Complete Warrior, Complete Arcane, Complete Divine, Complete Adventurer, Races of Stone, Races of the Wild, Races of Destiny, Races of the Dragon, Arms & Equipment Guide, Player's Handbook 2, Libris Mortis, Draconomicon, Lords of Madness, Expanded Psionics Handbook, Complete Psionics, Sandstorm, Frostburn, Stormwrack, Dungeon Master's Guide 2 (Still on the fence about Tome of Magic, Tome of Battle: The Book of Nine Swords, Monster Manual 4, Dragon Magic, Magic of Incarnum) No Eberron, Dragonlance, or Realms."

 

[ShinHakkaider]

Looking at the base classes among the WOTC supplements, the most common comment I see is that they are underpowered. I think the power creep bugaboo is just that. Somehow I can't really see too many extra classes that come anywhere close to a wizard or a cleric or a druid (my top three for high octane classes).

Agreed.

I think that alot of people just try to guestamate without actually seeing a class in play and then decree that it's broken.

I go core only with a new group at the beginning to see how they handle the basics. Then as play progresses I'll start allowing things in slowly but surely.


Core, for me, means the classes and races in the 3.5 PHB. This applies to players only. The DM gets to use whatever resources available to challenge his players. If he can get by with just the MM, that's great. If his players are really resourceful then he may have to expand his options.

 

[Remathilis]

Players Handbook, Dungeon Masters Guide, Sword Coast (not certain on that one), Epic Level Handbook, Heroes of Horror, Heroes of Battle, Monster Manual 2, Monster Manual 3, Fang and Fur (I could be totally making that one up), Complete Warrior, Complete Arcane, Complete Divine, Complete Adventurer, Races of Stone, Races of the Wild, Races of Destiny, Races of the Dragon, Arms and Equipment Guide, Player's Handbook 2, Litigant Mage (making that one up), Draconomicon, Lords of Madness, Expanded Psionics Handbook, Complete Psionic, Sandstorm, Frostburn, Stormwrack, Dungeon Master's Guide 2, Tome of Magic, Tome of Battle, Monster Manual 4, Dragon Magic, and Magic of Incarnum.

Oooh... so close...

Spell Compendium, Fiend Folio, Libris Mortis.

-Hyp.

Thats all of them!

Major props to Odhanan also for getting them all on the first try!