The First 4th Edition Clone!
- Thread starter C4
- Start date
I'll try to get to it sometime soon, but I don't have a ton of free time right now. Alternatively, you can email me and I'll send you a link to my Foreward doc, which summarizes all my tweaks.
No. I don't have the cash to lay down for a print run, the business savvy to make it work -- and as many delusions of Moses-of-the-4e-people-grandeur as I harbor, I don't have the fan base to support it.
Nellisir
Hero
IANAL, but I think it ought to be said...your intent to make or not make a profit doesn't have any bearing. You are taking a product WotC sells, and giving it away for free. You are competing with WotC, and you are stealing their IP.
That said, you may do as you like, just don't fool yourself that you're immune just because you're being charitable with WotC's product line. Take care.
Alright here we go...
Character Advancement
The Infamous Math Hole: Feat taxes are replaced with free ‘expert’ bonuses at 3rd levels. Characters also boost every score at 4th and 8th levels, which keeps skills and defenses in line.
Masterwork Armor: These are replaced by direct character bonuses.
Inherent Bonuses: I turned inherent bonuses into enhancement bonuses so that they don’t stack with things they shouldn’t. (The official inherent bonuses are clearly a design afterthought.)
Retraining: Anything and everything can be retrained at every level, but feats can’t be upgraded to a higher tier.
Races
Ability Boosts: Instead of getting racial bonuses to ability scores, C4 characters get training bonuses. Why? Because a lot of creative character concepts (and even a few traditional ones) get discarded because a race’s stat boosts don’t compliment the right class’ important stats.
No Defense Bonuses: C4 races don’t have defense bonuses, which were originally intended to balance out redundent stat boosts.
Racial Attacks: I enhancified racial attack powers, and I switched them all to ‘Highest Ability’ so atypical PCs aren’t penalized.
Skills
Intimidation: I removed the rules for surrendering from this skill, because they just didn’t work.
Feats
Feat Taxes and ‘I Hit Harder’ Racial Feats: I left these feats out.
Improved Bull Rush and Grab: I enhancified these feats.
Multiclassing: I replaced the anemic RAW multiclass feats and the problematic hybriding rules with multiclass feats that provide the best of both worlds.
Classes
Weapliments: All C4 implement-users can use weapons as implements, because those characters are already punished enough for being able to stab and zap things.
Class Skills: With the exception of Stealth and Perception, any C4 player can pick any class skills. Because you should play your character, not your class.
A Build’s Bill of Rights: All builds have the right to 1) heavy armor proficiency, or 2) a primary or secondary ability to AC.
Martial Artists: C4 weapon-users can use their build’s prime stat for appropriate basic attacks. Because a master rogue, for example, becoming a putz as soon as an enemy drops their guard is absurd. Even by D&D standards.
Avenger: I added retreat and surrender conditions to oath of enmity to clarify its intent. I also tweaked Armor of Faith.
Barbarian: I removed barbarian agility and gave the Str/Con builds the option to add Con to AC.
Bard: I replaced multiclass versatility with combat virtuoso.
Druid: I gave the Wis/Con builds the option to add Con to AC.
Fighter: I enhancified shield attack powers.
Monk: I tweaked unarmored defense.
Ranger: I gave the marauder build the option to add Wis to AC.
Shaman: I gave the Wis/Con builds the option to add Con to AC.
Swordmage: I expanded its weapon options, because a class name shouldn’t be a literal description of every single character of that class.
Wizard: I changed the wizard’s prep book into a spontaneous repertoire.
Equipment
Mundane Weapons: I tweaked many weapons to fine-tune their balance.
35th Level Items: C4 items go up to 35th level, because what else are 30th level heroes going to pry from the cold dead hands of their supra-epic foes?
Item Taxes: I left out items that add static bonuses to attacks or defenses. (Other than the Big Three items, of course.)
Healing Potions: I tweaked the healing power of these potions to make them more useful.
Combat
Bonus Saving Throws: Bonus saves can end most conditions, even those that normally last until the end of somebody’s turn. (Sustained effects and those that last for an encounter or longer can’t be ended with a save.) This gives wardens, leaders, and certain monsters the opportunity to end any condition early.
Saving Against Multiple Conditions: Ongoing damage and conditions don’t stack, but they don’t replace each other either. In order to overcome multiple conditions, the target must save against them all. For example, if Barbie the Barbarian is hit with two separate ongoing 5 fire damage conditions at once, she must save against both to be free of the 5 ongoing damage.
Earning Action Points: Characters start with no APs, but gain 1 per encounter. This ensures that PCs gain something by pressing onward that they wouldn’t get by taking a long rest.
Bull Rush and Grab: These actions now grant inherent enhancement bonuses, so they remain real options beyond the game’s first few levels.
Lunge: Combatants have the option to lunge, which eliminates the weird 1-square ‘no-charge zone.’
Second Wind: Can also be used as a move action, sans the usual defense bonus. This makes leaders less mandatory, and gives savvy players a reason to use their SWs.
That about covers it.
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