PC Creation: Pointbuy or Roll?

[taliesin15]

The poll reflects something I think is common--many players like to roll for stats--I certainly do as a player. So what I usually do as DM is a combo--let em roll for stats, then usually give them some more points to buff up pointbuy fashion. Unless they roll all 18s or something. Which has never happened IMC.

 

[Pbartender]

To make an ad absurdum arguement...

I love point buy with a passion. While rolling the dice is fun, I find something appaling about the concept of rolling once and having that effect the game from then on. You don't roll for feats, why roll for stats?

Why roll for hit points? Or damage? Or skill checks and saving throws? After all, any time you roll the dice, it affects the game from then on.

D&D's all about rolling dice. That's makes it a roleplaying game, rather than just roleplaying.

Anyway...

Our group has used dozens of different point buy systems, dozens of different dice-rolling methods, and even a few hybrid methods. Of course, there are advnatages and disadvantages any way you do it. Which we use generally depends on the game we're playing, the style of the campaign, and the mood of the players and GM.

In general, our group prefers dice rolling... They enjoy the fun of rolling the dice and getting lucky (or not), so long as we have appropriate safe guards against unusable sets of ability scores. Often, the rolled scores themselves suggest ideas for characters that the players might not have thought of, or tried on their own.

The ability scores generation method that is my favorite goes like this:

1. Roll 4d6, drop the lowest, six times and record the results in order.
2. Reroll any one result, taking the better of the two results.
3. Switch any two, and only two, results.

If your scores are too low, you may scrap them and roll all six ability scores again, without creating an NPC from them. Your scores are considered too low if the sum of your ability modifiers (before adjustments because of race) is +1 or lower, or if your highest score is 13 or lower.

In addition, if you simply do not like the ability scores, you may reroll as often as you like. However, all used ability sets must be turned in to the GM, with a short paragraph describing the ability sets as NPCs.

That gives a bit of randomness for the players who like it, but enough safeguards to ensure that a player who knows exactly what they want to play, can play it.

 

[shilsen]

I said it before and I'll say it again: If you're going to roll the dice, you might as well just stop playing (IMHO ). Point Buys are for video games. If my DM suggested it, I'd have to hit him in the head with my PH, PH2, and bag of pewter dice.

Considering the latter half of your post, I presume you mean "not going to roll the dice" and not what you actually typed.

 

[Keith Robinson]

We just had this discussion in our group for our new campaign. As the DM, I let the players call it. They went for points buy, though not everyone was in agreement.

Personally, I prefer rolling the dice. It's just more fun that way

 

[Romaal]

Point buy is the most balanced one. No overpowered stats, applicable for every campaign and no player will be unhappy because his stats are worsers than that of the others.

 

[Fishbone]

See, Firelance's post is exactly why I dislike roll fiddling, it produces monster PCs like that all the time. Thats nearly twice the points of what the game was balanced against.
I don't see why rolling dice for stats is so fun, either, its like betting a month long campaign on the pass line and I always seem to "craps" with lousy rolls.

 

[wayne62682]

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: I prefer point buy (either the normal kind or my group's variant) for the simple reason that it allows me to think of a concept first and design the stats around the concept; in short, character creation begins with fluff and not crunch.

With rolling, my concept may not be viable depending on luck (or might end up too good for my concept), and almost certainly will not be viable with the outdated, oldschool "roll in order" methods.

 

[Mycanid]

Every single section was "roll for stats".

 

[megamania]

Point buy to stop the whining.












most of which is mine since I have PCs with incredible rolled stats that point buy would equal in the 50's and 60's.

 

[megamania]

I'd be curious to see the results of this poll when dealing with folks who play and do not DM, which is not the case on these fora. We're all DMs or very devoted players here.

True. As a DM I insist on 32 point buy. However, I remember the first and only time I ever rolled two 18s and the DM rejected it for 32 point by. Erked me at the time but I understand it now that I have DMed for the past few years.


Players want to be overpowered and DMs want a balance.