D&D 3E/3.5 3.5 problematic rules list needed

[Wrathamon]

I am curious if their are any problematic rules that people have uncovered that arent covered by the 3.5 FAQ or Rules of the Game that they have come up with solutions for.

My buddy is running a 3.5 game (coming from 3.0) and is using all the core + complete books. He is worried about any inbalances in the game that may or may not come up.

He just wants a heads up, and I have been trying to gather information for him.

thank you very very much for any help

-W

 

[Atherlos]

A couple of spells that I think are overpowered:
-shapechange
-fire seeds

-- Atherlos

 

[RigaMortus]

Acid Fog doesn't do damage to items worn or carried, unless you fail your saving throw by rolling a natural 1. Even then, it only has a chance to destroying 1 piece of equipment or item.

 

[Targos]

Standing up from prone provokes an AOO in 3.5. That's really bad when somebody has improved trip & combat reflexes.

 

[Piratecat]

Standing up from prone provokes an AOO in 3.5. That's really bad when somebody has improved trip & combat reflexes.

Not to hijack the thread, but this is less of a problem than it appears; you can't trip someone who is already tripped, and the AoO on someone standing up happens before they rise to their feet. As a result, you - err - can't keep the man down.

 

[francisca]

Not to hijack the thread, but this is less of a problem than it appears; you can't trip someone who is already tripped, and the AoO on someone standing up happens before they rise to their feet. As a result, you - err - can't keep the man down.

Yeah. Wish people would understand that, most of all RPGA players.

 

[DevoutlyApathetic]

Yeah. Wish people would understand that, most of all RPGA players.

Agreed. I wish they'd realized that with the +4 Improved Trip no longer needed the 'extra attack'. It's just kinda silly now.

 

[Thanee]

Not to hijack the thread, but this is less of a problem than it appears; you can't trip someone who is already tripped, and the AoO on someone standing up happens before they rise to their feet. As a result, you - err - can't keep the man down.

Yeah. It's nonetheless pretty damn powerful, tho, but not problematic.

As for problem areas, I'd say a few spells count, like:

- Gate (1x caster level in HD would be more than enough)
- Shapechange (this one is really, really powerful)
- Miracle (free wizard spells, c'mon)

Bye
Thanee

 

[Kerrick]

FWIW, someone on the WotC boards started a thread for "problematic spells". A lot of the stuff he's posted has since been corrected, but you can find it here.

 

[jodyjohnson]

Things a DM might want to look at and decide on ahead of time: (How our group does it)

Maximum damage from Thrown or falling objects (Hulking Hurler build).
(20d6 max plus bonuses)

Whether Bluff: Feint trumps Uncanny Dodge.
(Bluff trumps UD)

Handling the transformation spells in general (Alter Self, the Polymorphs, Shapechange, Wildshape).
(Rewrite them all in line with Enlarge/Reduce and Divine Might i.e. a severe nerfing)

Defining alignment where the rubber meets the road.
(2 pages spell out the DMs idea of alignment based on PHB)

Spells that might be on the house rule list (Fire Seeds, Mages Disjunction, Quills, Brambles/Spikes, Gate)
(We change all these)

Spells which are unclear (Protection from X, Break Enchantment, True Seeing).
(Each has a clarification)

Does Vorpal trump Fortification on armor.
(No - yes, we're Vorpal haters)

Define the interaction of extradimensional and nondimensional spaces.
(only Bag of Holding and Portable Hole have interaction consequences)

Metamagic Rods and the Sudden metamagic feats.
(We cap these at maximum level castable)

General rules that get complicated:

Mounted combat
(Rules of the Game articles)

Grappling (especially with natural weapons/unarmed strikes)
(FAQ mostly)

Transformations including Wildshape.
(Rules of the Game and then House ruled based on the RoG)