Wrathamon said:
Not some much as custom HR for your campaign, but what things did you change that were obviously overpowered or abused and how did you fix it? Sorta like a home brew Errata.
I really didn't like the trip rules. I thought they were so clunky and ackward for both the GM and the player that after using them once I vowed to never attempt trip again until I rewrote it. One afternoon a friend and I did just that and it's the version of how to perform trip attack that all people who play with me prefer to use as it is mumch more streamlined without sacrificing any game balance. Here is my version of trip: (note: I've not read anyone else's variant trip rules, so if this ends up looking like someone else's I claim ambient brainwaves made me do it!)
Trip
You can make an armed or unarmed melee attack in an attempt to trip an opponent. In order for a trip attempt to succeed, the opponent must be the same size as or within one size catagory of the attacker.
Making an unarmed trip attack: Make an unarmed melee touch attack against your target.
If the attack succeeeds, the defender must make a Reflex Save to resist being tripped, with the DC being equal to the Attackers attack roll. If the Reflex Save fails, the Defender is tripped. See Being Tripped below. If the Reflex Save succeeds, the defender is not tripped and may immediately attempt an attack of opportunity as normal for unarmed attacks.
Modifiers: Either Combatant gets a +4 bonus for every size catagory he is larger than Medium or a -4 penality for every size category he is smaller than Medium. The Defender gets a +4 bonus on his Reflex Save if he has more than two legs or is more stable than a normal Humanoid, for example "Dwarven Stability". Having the feat "Improved Trip Attack" grants the Attacker the bonus of not being subject to an attack of opportunity upon a failed Trip attempt, and grants the Defender the choice of a counter-trip attack instead of the ordinary attack of opportunity in the event of a failed trip attempt. Making a counter-trip attack follows the exact same rules as a regular trip attack.
Making an Armed Trip Attack: Any weapon that confers reach, or can entangle an opponent, or which could feasibly strike more than one of an opponents legs simultaneously, can be used to perform an armed trip attack.
Some examples of such weapons are chained weapons, whips, polearms, flails, staves, nets, clubs, and any sword larger than a shortsword.
Performing an armed trip attack requires that the Attacker make a melee touch attack with the weapon instead of an unarmed melee touch attack. The Defender makes a Reflex Save versus the attack roll as per an unarmed trip attack, however a failed trip does not confer an attack of opportunity to the Defender. As with an unarmed trip attack, the feat "Improved Trip Attack" confers to the Defender the choice of an attack of opportunity or a counter-trip attack in the event of a failed trip attempt. All other above listed modifiers for an unarmed trip attack also apply.
Tripping For Damage: When using a weapon to make a trip attack, the Attacker may choose to deal weapon damage in addition to the standard trip action. In this case, the Attacker makes a standard melee attack at a -4 penalty instead of the melee touch attack. If the tripping for damage attack succeeds, then the Attacker deals the usual melee damage of the weapon used to make the trip attack, as well as tripping the opponent. If the tripping for damage attempt fails, then the Defender is not tripped nor receives any weapon damage. All other rules for an armed trip attack apply as usual.
Modifiers: Either Combatant gets a +4 bonus for every size catagory he is larger than Medium or a -4 penality for every size category he is smaller than Medium. The Defender gets a +4 bonus on his Reflex Save if he has more than two legs or is more stable than a normal Humanoid, for example "Dwarven Stability". Having the feat "Improved Trip Attack" grants the Defender the choice of a counter-trip or an attack of opportunity in the event of a failed trip attempt. Making a counter-trip attack follows the exact same rules as a regular trip attack. In the event of tripping for damage, the feat "Improved Trip Attack" also negates the -4 attack penality to the Attackers melee attack. If the Attack has the "Improved Unarmed strike" feat, they may trip for damage with their unarmed attack as though they were using a weapon. Note: extra abilities such as "Stunning Fist" do not stack with the trip.
Tripping a Mounted Opponent: You may make a trip attack against a mounted opponent. The Defender may choose to make a Ride skill check in place of the usual Reflex Save to avoid being tripped. If the trip succeeds, the rider is pulled from his mount.
Being Tripped: A tripped character is prone (see Table 8-6: Armor Class Modifiers). Standing up is a move action.
