Effects of aging vs youth-restoring magic

[jcbdragon]

it kinda made more sense to me than the current setup where you have certain races living for so much longer than others, but they all get the exact same bonuses, just at different times. yet another example of illogical effects in the rules. if a race lives so much longer than another, then it should get wiser from the extended experience, at least in theory. ^^ anyway.

Actually, I can understand it, from a certain point of view. It make sense for races with significantly different lifespans to reach the different stages of life at different times, especially given that the relevant age categories here are middle age, old age, and venerable. An elf isn't considered mature enough to go out adventuring until he's roughly 100 years old, by which time a human is already dust in his grave.

It wouldn't make any sense to give bonuses intended to reflect maturity and wisdom to an individual who is only now barely considered to be an adult.

 

[exmci1996]

The DMG lists several effects of aging, such as decreases in CON, STR and DEX, as well as increases in INT and WIS.

If a character ages to the point that these effects kick in, then gets some sort of youth-restoring effect, what happens to the changes in stats? Do the physical ones revert to their more youthful levels? Do the mental ones remain?

For example, a character with all 10's for stats ages until his physical stats have all dropped by one and his mental stats have all increased by one. So now we have:

Str 9
Dex 9
Con 9
Int 11
Wis 11
Cha 10

His youth is magically restored. Which of the following reflects his new stats?

Option 1: unchanged

Option 2: all stats revert to their original (unaged) values, all 10's

Option 3: Mental stats remain altered, physical stats reset to original values
Str 10
Dex 10
Con 10
Int 11
Wis 11
Cha 10

Option 4: something else entirely?

We always used option 3. Our rationale was that the changes in INT and WIS were a result of life experience. That experience wouldn't go away if the body was rejuvenated.

 

[nijineko]

Actually, I can understand it, from a certain point of view. It make sense for races with significantly different lifespans to reach the different stages of life at different times, especially given that the relevant age categories here are middle age, old age, and venerable. An elf isn't considered mature enough to go out adventuring until he's roughly 100 years old, by which time a human is already dust in his grave.

It wouldn't make any sense to give bonuses intended to reflect maturity and wisdom to an individual who is only now barely considered to be an adult.

quite so. i meant more that it would be appropriate for longer lived races to gain more age bonuses/penalties than shorter lived races.

 

[lordxaviar]

We always used option 3. Our rationale was that the changes in INT and WIS were a result of life experience. That experience wouldn't go away if the body was rejuvenated.

think that was the way we always did it as well but since they did away with the elixir of life I didnt worry about it other then wish spells... its just not going to happen... lol

 

[Ravilah]

The search for lost youth has been one of the great epic Quests of all time. The oldest epic hero on earth, Gilgamesh, went to the edge of the world for it. The Greek heroes battled monsters to earn it from the gods. The Norse gods claimed it from the golden apples of Idun. Arabian genies granted it when freed from their bondage. The Grimm Tales speak of a man being thrown into a furnace and being brought out new. The medieval alchemists sought the Philosopher's Stone (and Harry Potter found it). Ponce deLeon sought the Fountain of Youth (and Jack Sparrow found it). And what has always been the allure of vampirism if not the ability to be young forever?

In every case, rejuvenation comes as a result of either extreme fortune, extreme heroism, or extreme cost.

If the characters in your game have paid the cost...for heaven's sake give them the pay off: the glories of youth coupled with the wisdom of age.




On the other hand...if the characters have gained their youth cheaply (or based on the stolen efforts of others), the great tales always included dire consequences for such things.

 

[jcbdragon]

Why to remove the bonus? Because what gives the wisdom and the intelligence is the new weakness....someone who does not age, no matter how long he lives, gets no bonus. This means that the physical age is tied to this bonus, and when the body is restored, the bonuses should also be lost.

I can see your point with the "you don't get the bonuses until/unless you've gotten to that life stage, not just that calendar age." I think that part of it would be having to learn to use your skull instead of just your muscles.

On the other hand, I'm also hesitant to say that once a lesson has been learned, it MUST be forgotten once the conditions of the lesson are removed.

 

[anest1s]

I can see your point with the "you don't get the bonuses until/unless you've gotten to that life stage, not just that calendar age." I think that part of it would be having to learn to use your skull instead of just your muscles.

On the other hand, I'm also hesitant to say that once a lesson has been learned, it MUST be forgotten once the conditions of the lesson are removed.

I don't really see it as a lesson in this case, but like a brain functioning differently in different ages...like muscles function differently too. The knowledge/wisdom a character gets is represented by his exp and his levels.

 

[jasper]

Yall are trying to make it too diffcult. CHART IT!
d100
01-30 Option 1
31-60 Option 2
61-90 Option 3
91-94 subtract 1 from 3 random stats
95-98 add 1 to 3 random stats
99 System shock and resurrection rolls. Save or die!.
00 Save vs System shock. If save add 1 to each stat.

 

[domino]

I'd use the same or similar rules for the Monk's Timeless Body.

Upon attaining 17th level, a monk no longer takes penalties to her ability scores for aging and cannot be magically aged. Any such penalties that she has already taken, however, remain in place. Bonuses still accrue, and the monk still dies of old age when her time is up.

Since bonuses still accrue, I would think that being made younger would only affect the character physically, so I'd let them keep the bonuses, reduce the physical penalties to whatever point they've been de-aged to.