D&D 4E 4e Bloody D&D

[PeelSeel2]

We are developing and playing a version of 4e which we call 'bloody' D&D. Here is how it works. Old-Timers like myself will recognize a lot of it.

All Characters roll 3d6 for stats 7 times, take the best 6. They apply racial bonuses to the stat. The following chart gives the character their ability mod.

Stat Ability Mod
3 -3.5
4 -3
5 -2.5
6 -2
7 -1
8 -1
9 +0
10 +0
11 +0
12 +1
13 +1.5
14 +2
15 +2.5
16 +3
17 +3.5
18 +4

The Character writes the ability Mod on the character sheet and we throw away the stat. It has no relevance in 4e. Any .5 stat is of course rounded down when figuring bonuses, but we need to keep it for stat mod advancement.

Next for starting HP, the character only gets his class base. No CON added. So Controller 10hp, Striker 12hp, Defender 15hp. Advancement through levels is the same as book.

Player completes character generation normally.

Monsters are changed in this way. For average monsters, we divide the standard monster's HP by 4. They are worth 1/4 XP, but in every other way are exactly like their base. For above average monsters, we divide the HP by 2 and XP by 2, and for advanced monsters, we keep them per book.

We are making up and playing with different conditions. One I called Prisoner Malady. One of the characters had been captured by an enemy organization through his own doing. Prisoner malady can only be broken by hope, otherwise they have 10hp, no surges, and no powers, due to being beat down, starved, and tortured. When the character's came to rescue him, he had hope, and went back to normal.

So far it has been fun and very deadly. The players realize that they are going to roll a lot of characters up. They are fine with it. So far 1-2 deaths per session, with last session being an exception. Combat is fast and furious, and the consequences are also that way. The first module I want to run them through for a campaign like this is Temple of Elemental Evil. I ran it in college, and the characters got down to the third level of the dungeon in many, many sessions. Never finished it.

 

[Irda Ranger]

What do you mean by average, above average and advanced monsters?

 

[tankschmidt]

Sweet. I would play in that campaign in a second. One of my friends and I were talking just yesterday about how we miss rolling for ability scores. I also like the reduced hit points and the free-wheeling nature of the game. It's also nice to see some character deaths that don't result in the entire party getting killed. Keep us updated.

 

[Roger]

Figuring out your encumbrance levels without an actual Str stat might be a bit more labourious than it needs to be.



Cheers,
Roger

 

[TheNinjaD]

Nice. This certainly is not my way but it seems that you have good basic ideas here. You need to take encumberance into account and flesh this out just a bit more but you seem to have a good start.

 

[PeelSeel2]

I have never played with encumbrance in any edition, that being relegated to something we have always put to 'eyeballing it'.

However, it would be easy to calculate. a +1.5 is a 13, so whatever a 13 would normally give you. A +3.5 is a 17.

Last night went pretty good. A slaver that put a bounty on the parties head gained some intel on where the characters would be going at a certain time. The party inadvertently found out that the slaver knew where they where going and where the ambush was at. So they scouted out the ambush site before hand, hired some mercs, and marched in to set the ambush off. They had a good plan that did not quite go according to plan, and the opposition was a little more than they expected. In the end they won out with two near deaths and they killed the slaver that was after them.