Vaalingrade
Legend
"It is your fault I came for you with knives out."
Nice.
Nice.
D&D 5E How does your group determine ability scores?
Slit518
Adventurer
I chose other.
We choose Stats by a series of challenges. Each challenge has a grading system, 6-18.
There are 6 challenges in total which will challenge a person's abilities.
Then, at the end of each challenge they are scored.
The twist is, just because you scored something on a Stat for a particular challenge doesn't mean you have to use it that way, you can use that number any way you wish.
So for example if you score a 12 on the Feat of Might challenge, you don't have to put the 12 in Strength, you could put it in one of the other 5.
So far no player has been all 6's and no player has been all 18's.
We see a lot of 10's more than anything with the occasional 8 or 9, and or a 14 or 15.
Then you add your Racial bonuses after.
We choose Stats by a series of challenges. Each challenge has a grading system, 6-18.
There are 6 challenges in total which will challenge a person's abilities.
Then, at the end of each challenge they are scored.
The twist is, just because you scored something on a Stat for a particular challenge doesn't mean you have to use it that way, you can use that number any way you wish.
So for example if you score a 12 on the Feat of Might challenge, you don't have to put the 12 in Strength, you could put it in one of the other 5.
So far no player has been all 6's and no player has been all 18's.
We see a lot of 10's more than anything with the occasional 8 or 9, and or a 14 or 15.
Then you add your Racial bonuses after.
doctorbadwolf
Heretic of The Seventh Circle
Clearly not true.
Firstly 27 point buy means different things to different classes. 5e isn’t as bad about this as 3.5, but some classes only need 1 high score and some need up to 3. So it’s relatively fair, but certainly not unambiguously fair.
Secondly, there are a plethora of equally fair methods, or even more fair methods.
Point buy by class - either giving the weaker classes a little extra, or giving MAD classes a higher point buy than SAD classes. This brings the playing field between classes closer to level.
6+2d6, reroll 1s. You get some randomization, but within a band that is quite fair. You could normalize it even further by making it 6+3d6, drop lowest, reroll 1s, especially if you just enjoy the added freedom of a higher average score, allowing things like Wizard/Druid combos that don’t suck.
All stats are 14 (or 15, etc) Simple, arguably boring, at least as fair as standard array.
Literally let the players choose thier stats, with a cap of 16 total and a floor of 8. Requires an honest and non-power gaming group, but as long as everyone at the table feels like they are getting a fair deal, it’s fair.
Everyone rolls 2 sets with a reliable rolling method, and then everyone chooses a set.
Everyone rolls 2 or more sets and the group chooses a set that acts as that campaign’s “standard array”.
doctorbadwolf
Heretic of The Seventh Circle
I chose other, because really our system is “roll sets until you like one, make sure everyone is happy and no one is way out of sync”. Technically our system is 4d6 drop lowest, reroll 1s, roll at least 2 sets, choose a set.
Or we do point buy. We have done higher point buy, but oddly it leads to more “all in the middle” builds. So many 14s.
And we recently tried 6+3d6, drop lowest, reroll 1s. It’s fun.
Or we do point buy. We have done higher point buy, but oddly it leads to more “all in the middle” builds. So many 14s.
And we recently tried 6+3d6, drop lowest, reroll 1s. It’s fun.
Horwath
Legend
well, every class needs primary ability and Con of 14.
If you increase pool to 32(like PF1) and still keep the cap score of 15 at start, you can cover MAD classes, and to SAD classes gives a nice option for tertiary abilities, and we can see less insert any stat except Con of 8.
with 32pt buy pool we see lot more Cha 12 fighters, rangers and rogues while still having primary and Con "sorted out".
Your post was at 6:19 PM my time so your San score is 7
beancounter
(I/Me/Mine)
We use the point buy method.
Bill Zebub
“It’s probably Matt Mercer’s fault.”
Meh. We also use Point Buy, and I guess the pros outweigh the cons, but the samey-ness of all the characters gets dull. Something has definitely been lost in the game.
Horwath
Legend
I have opposite experience,
in last campaign, we had at extremes in 15,15,15,8,8,8 and 13,13,13,12,12,12 and 3 other scores in between.
only if you "default" to default array, will you have "samey-ness"
delericho
Legend
I find myself wondering how much of that "samey-ness" is really down to Point Buy (or standard array), and how much is down to the ability to place the six scores as desired. Because when you roll much of the time you're going to get an array that isn't all that far off something you could buy anyway (after all, that's why the array/point buy was constructed the way it was). So you're not necessarily going to get something wildly different anyway.
I wonder, therefore, if the antidote to the "samey-ness" isn't rather to allow the player to assign, say, the top 2 scores to their chosen attributes, but then randomize the placement of the others. That would mean the player could always play their chosen class without issue, but one Fighter might be intelligent but not dextrous with another is wise but not charismatic.
Just a thought.
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