D&D 5E Exceptional Ability Scores as an Ability Score Improvement option

[Minigiant]

I was thinking about an optional homerule rule.

What if instead of increasing an ability score or taking a feat when you get an Ability Score Improvement, you can choose to to roll a 1d100 for exceptional ability in their primary ability score.

Ability Score Improvement

When you reach 4th level, and again at Wth, Xth, Yth, and Zth level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can’t increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.


Using the optional feats rule, you can forgo taking this feature to take a feat of your choice or roll for exceptional ability score instead.

Because rolling is fun.

The idea is a character who has a 18 or higher in their primary ability score for their class, they can opt to have exceptional ability score in it instead of increasing it normally. They roll for exceptional strength or intelligence or whatever and get a bonus to associated rolls or some other feature. If they have exceptional ability already, they can choose to reroll. If they roll higher, their exceptional score is replaced by the number rolled. If they roll lower, their exceptional score increases by some amount (like 20).

Barbarians, fighters, paladins and races with a natural Strength bonus would qualify for Exceptional Strength.

Exceptional Strength Roll	Bonus to Melee damage and checks to bend/break objects
01-50	+2
51-75	+3
76-90	+4
91-99	+5
00	+6

What are your thoughts on this houserule?
What should be the bonuses from exceptional ability in the other scores?

 

[MarkB]

In 5e it feels weird to do it at 18 or higher, and to do it as part of the regular feats / ability score improvements. I'd save it until someone had maxed out their ability score, and make it more of a special boon, or something obtained through extensive downtime training.

 

[LordEntrails]

No. 18/00 was a cluster back in the day. It's no better today.

How is it any different than a 20? or a 22, or 24? If you want to allow folks to go past a 20, then allow that, but don't use a different mechanic to give the same benefit.

 

[Dausuul]

Mainly, my thought is that I like randomized chargen but hate mechanics where the randomness is between "You suck" and "You rock." Unfortunately, that's pretty much the only form of randomized chargen D&D ever offers.

So, I would have no interest in this houserule. I'd be more interested in one which randomly determined if I was good at X versus good at Y.

 

[Bayushi_seikuro]

Mainly, my thought is that I like randomized chargen but hate mechanics where the randomness is between "You suck" and "You rock." Unfortunately, that's pretty much the only form of randomized chargen D&D ever offers.

So, I would have no interest in this houserule. I'd be more interested in one which randomly determined if I was good at X versus good at Y.

I remember a rumor I'd heard back before 3.0 came out that I thought was interesting. The rumor was: if you had substandard stats, you got an XP bonus - on the assumption that being terrible at things made it easier to learn from mistakes, whereas people who were talented/gifted had to work, and therefore learn, less.