3.5e -- What REALLY needed fixing?

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Draconic Wildshape is actually quite balanced. You can't get it until level 12, it limits you to small and medium dragons, and so on. It gives some versatility, but by that point the breath attacks are pretty sad. Even the Reserve feats are outdamaging them. As for Divine Metamagic, it's not broken. Persistent Spell is. It's a common misconception.

As for the things that I find wrong:

-Takes too long to build a classed NPC, it'd be nice to just have books full of different premade builds for each class and each level. I'd pay handsomely for that.

-Grapple rules aren't complicated enough. Yeah, you heard me. It's too simplified. I want specific rules for side-guard pinning, and joint locks, arm bars, rules for chokes that cut off bloodflow versus airflow... Really, I'm just very sad ToB didn't make a grappling focused discipline to cover these things.

An unusual opinion on first glance, but what you really seem to want is more options. That doesn't have to mean it's complicated, if you can describe each option in a neat packages using standard game terms.

 

[kensanata]

Takes too long to build a classed NPC, it'd be nice to just have books full of different premade builds for each class and each level. I'd pay handsomely for that.

I found that NPC Generator 2 was good enough for me. Only bosses would have needed optimization (but I prefer devils and demons for bosses…).

 

[Derro]

I found that NPC Generator 2 was good enough for me. Only bosses would have needed optimization (but I prefer devils and demons for bosses…).

The problem with NPC generators is that they are never optimal and usually incomplete. Feats rarely scale properly and equipment is either undesignated or just plain wrong.

If it works for you, awesome. My experiences have always been a basic stat block that I have to tinker with so much I may as well have started from scratch and gotten exactly what I wanted.

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

-Takes too long to build a classed NPC, it'd be nice to just have books full of different premade builds for each class and each level. I'd pay handsomely for that.

Can't you get these in the DMG?

-There's no built-in hindrance to make casters think twice about spell dumping their heaviest hitters right away. I'd like some kind of rule to force them to wait till later rounds to use higher level spells (same for psionics and intiators) or something, to balance fights more, as well as make them more cinematic, where the big guns are saved for the final blow.

This may or may not actually be part of "Save or Die" but what I have done is to embrace the "bloodied" mechanic. There is a large category of "Save or Suck" spells (pretty much anything that kills you OR denies you actions) and my fix is to give the target TWO saving throws if he is NOT bloodied.

That tends to mitigate the "gunslinger" mentality a bit.

I hate all spells that make a skill obsolete.

Agree here. Pretty sure Monte fixed this very thing in most of his spell lists. Not sure I agree with you on Charm Person-- but only because I was expecting Knock and haven't seen Charm singled out before. It certainly is an interesting take.

Save or Dies. These were a sacred cow that needed to be killed. I'm trying to make a version where it instead leaves the person at -9 and bleeding, so if he has allies, they have a chance to save him, but keep finding technical problems in making it actually work as intended.

Yeah, it pretty much doesn't work. There are a lot of spells that qualify as "Save or Die" though they do not actually affect your hit points. Obvious ones like Flesh to Stone, or Hold Person. In some cases even Dominate, Confusion, or Hideous Laughter. These can be game enders for a PC or a BBEG. Otiluke's Resilient Sphere is a Boss Killer in every way, and I don't see it popping up on many "Save or Die" hit lists.

Reliance on magic items, especially by the people who can't cast magic. Probably the best thing to do is just accept standard D&D is magic item heavy, and make houserules for the occasional low-magic game.

I agree. I actually kind of like the "default" level of magic items in D&D. But the dependency is certainly a problem. The "Big Six" issue is a problem not necessarily (nor even primarily) because the bonuses are "baked in" to the game balance, but because they edge out other, more interesting magic items. I think WotC got this one exactly right, at least in identifying the problem.

I am not sure I agree with the mathematical fix of 4e, however. I'd just as soon see the enhancement bonuses on these items level up with the character.

Random stat rolls and hp.

Definitely.

There's more, that's just all I can think of right now.

What you laid out was, in the whole, pretty darn good, I thought.

You're friggin crazy for wanting grapple to be more complicated, though.

 

[Psion]

Can't you get these in the DMG?

The 3.0 DMG. The 3.5 DMG is a bit less useful in that regard, for reasons I still don't understand.

 

[Achan hiArusa]

So has anybody tried to re-level the D&D spells and place them buy actual power level than by tradition?

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

So has anybody tried to re-level the D&D spells and place them buy actual power level than by tradition?

You'd have to be more specific, but I have deconstructed the spells, and most of them are placed according to actual power.

(Magic Missile is still pretty darn good for its level.)

Unless by "tradition" you also mean, "Divines are better at healing, buffing, and debuffing and get these spells before Arcanes; Arcanes are better at direct damage and get these spells before Divines."

I generally consider that a good distinction but if your mileage varies, I recommend any of Monte Cook's AU/AE spell lists, which are more "universal" lists with an internal balance.

 

[Mercule]

And unless I'm mistaken outsiders summoned by another outsider with the Summon (Su) ability couldn't use their own Summon (Su) ability for the duration of their stay. Or is that an artifact of 3.0?

Nope.

A summoned creature cannot use any innate summoning abilities it may have....

Anyone having a problem with "infinite summons" has it because of house rules. It doesn't exist in 3.5 RAW.

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

This may or may not actually be part of "Save or Die" but what I have done is to embrace the "bloodied" mechanic. There is a large category of "Save or Suck" spells (pretty much anything that kills you OR denies you actions) and my fix is to give the target TWO saving throws if he is NOT bloodied.

That tends to mitigate the "gunslinger" mentality a bit.

That's a cool idea! You could even delay the second save by one round, so PCs have time to react. Particularly useful against Bodaks - if you give the Cleric one round to cast Death Ward, he can at least save one character, even if he's totally surprised by one...

 

[Cadfan]

Strictly speaking, nothing NEEDED fixed, because D&D is a game and ultimately not that important.