Viktyr Gehrig
First Post
... my brainbox.
4th Edition D&D?
- Thread starter heirodule
- Start date
KDLadage
Explorer
Part 2
(please keep in mind that I am not going to repost the graphics from the site and that the boards and html can only approximate each other... also note that this is only the second group of entries in his so-called improvements...)
Forgotten Realmaniers *** (must have)
Races from player handbooks or campaign books that have a level adjustment use the following table before they advance to 2nd level. After that they progress
as if they were of a level equal to current Level + Level Adjustment penalty.
Note: the Leve Adjustment is a penalty. Do not confuse it with being an award to your level.
Level Adjustment .. Exp Req. for 1st Level
.......... +1 .......... 4,000
.......... +2 .......... 9,000
.......... +3 .......... 15,000
.......... +4 .......... 28,000
.......... +5 .......... 56,000
.......... +6 .......... 106,000
.......... +7 .......... 156,000
Anything higher than Level Adjustment +7 required an additional 50,000 experience points.
Why this change? In a normal game forgotten realm races are far more powerful than their level adjustment prescribes. With the added advantages found in the 3rd Edition Add On ™ it narrows the gap somewhat, between the standard races and the special races, however those races are still far stronger than normal. So, with the added level penalty, the power shift is finally balanced.[/i]
This rule is a must have specially if you do not use the Race Changes given in this book.
Other Races (optional)
If you want to play a race other than the main ones, such as a monster race to which you do not know the Level Adjustment orr a race that you have created yourself, you can use this rule to determine the experience penalty. Monster Races with bonuses to their stats receive a penalty to the amount of experience required to rise in level. The number listed below is added to the base amount each time they calculate the experience needed to rise in level. Any penalties that monsters may have to stats are ignored for purposes of calculating Exp. penalty.
Total stat bonus (+) Exp. penalty per level[/b]
.......... +2 .......... +2,000
.......... +4 .......... +4,000
.......... +6 .......... +6,000
.......... +8 .......... +8,000
..... Above 8 .......... +1,000 per +1 above 8
Example: say that a Dragon gives you an +20 Str bonus. That means that you have to earn 20,000 extra experience points each time you rise in level. Making adventuring and rising in level both hard and dangerous. On top of the stat penalty, your monster race may have special powers. As such there will be a further penalty. We will assume that the CR represents these powers. However, CR which stats for challenge rating sounds kind of dorky, as such we will refer to it from now on as Danger Level or DL. Since it serves to more accurately describe the threat posses by the creatures you will encounter. So now then, on top of the +2 Stat Penalty, you must earn the danger level experience penalty before you can reach 2nd level... However, remember that the danger level of some monsters increases as they age, causing their special abilities to grow in power. As such, whenever your monster's danger level increases, you must re-earn the danger level experience penalty before you gain your next level. Making creatures like Dragons both hard and tedious to play
Danger Level ... Exp. req. for 2nd level
.......... 1 .......... +2,000
.......... 2 .......... +5,000
.......... 3 .......... +7,000
.......... 4 .......... +10,000
.......... 5 .......... +15,000
.......... 6 .......... +30,000
.......... 7 .......... +70,000
.......... 8 .......... +100,000
.... Above 8 .......... +50,000 step above dl 8
Remember the number of Exp. req. for 2nd level is added to the basic experience requirements of your character. Lastly, if your Race has an age group as do Dragons, it must start at the weakest/youngest age group. When it meets the appropriate level equal to the monster's hit dice of next age group, it may advance to the next age group. This methodology balances out the power difference between monsters and players in a 1st level group. The only reason someone should play a monster race role playing experience and not the power advantage. As the advantage has now been almost nullified.
Now you wil be able to play even a Dragon in a 1st level campaign and no one will be the wiser. The Dragons power will be slightly more elevated than the other players, but the players will soon level and before long they will surpass the Dragon in power.
Then it will the Dragon who will be hard pressed to catch up to the players.
Note on Hit Points for Monsters (must have)
What I want to note, is that all Monsters start at 1st level, so with 1 hit dice from class + 1d10 from the Initial Hit Points rule. Their attack skill or hit points won't be any higher than that of a Human player character for example.
Why this change? Monsters are too powerful compared to normal player characters. They simply can not mix with standard player characters due to that monsters are far superior to standard races. Thus making it unfair for players wanting to play a normal race. But with the introduction of the new rules, players & monsters can be mixed together starting at 1st level. While the monster may still be stronger starting out, it will only last for a short while, before long the player will be far superior to their monster counter parts. Thus ensuring fairness and still allowing those players who truly wish to play a monster race because of the experience and not merely the power advantage of the monster.
Morph (optional)
During the course of your adventure your player character may evolve into a different race if he so wishes. To do so, you must take the challenge rating of the monster and times it by 2. If your character is of the a level at least equal twice the monster's challenge rating or higher, he may Morph into that
particular creature. He may copy down all the stats and abilities of the monster directlyly from the monsters manual. These new stats including hit dice will replace his old stats. His Str, Dex, Con, Int, Wis, Cha will be those of the monster completely replacing his original stats including any bonuses he might have earned. He will be considered of a level equal to the creatures hit dice or half the characters former level. However, he will continue leveling from his former levevl. As in an 11th level character Morphs into a creature requiring 5 levels to Morph into. The charactet drops down to 6th level for hit dice, attack, class abilities and all other purposes, but for experience purposes he continues leveling from the 11th level. Meaning to reach level 7 in his new form he must attain the exp. amount for 12th level and so forth.
Contracting Lycanthropy (must have)
Or another race changing sickness or disease such as vampirism. Or in the case where the character changes class unwantingly or by chance rather than by morphing, he gains an experience penalty equal to twice the new race's challenge rating in levels, counting from 1st. So, simply count the Monster's challenge rating, then times it by 2. Once you have the final number check it against the experience table and add that number to the experience requirements of your next level. This is a representation of your character acclimating to his new found abilities and physiology.
Why Morph? This allows you to start as a normal race then ops you the chance to switch over if you so desire it, while retaining the power balance between monsters and players.
The power of a Morphed 1st level Monster is equivalent to the level the player had before he Morphed.
Half Morph (must have)
By acquiring a number of levels equal to the a creature's hit dice and then burning experience in a number of levels equal to the creature's hit dice, you may acquire the creature's innate super natural or magical abilities. And only its innate supernatural or magical abilities. You will not gain hit dice or any stat changes or physical features of the creature (unless the physical feature is magical or supernatural). You may use this ability any number of times you like to gain any number of abilities you like. But as a side rule you must have atleast fought and defeated 10 creatures of that particular type. You must add the creatures former name to your race, in adjective form if possible.
Such as: 1st Level Shadow Human Figher. Or 1st Level Ogrefied Human Rogue (although i do not know why anyhone would want to Half Moph into an ogre). 1st Level Demon Vampire Fire Element Human. And so on on. The combinations are endless and are all achieved throughout the game at the cost of experience and levels. Which means while you may gain the abilities of a creature your comrades will be progressing to an even higher level as you are forced to restart from a certain number of levels.
Hindrances - however, each time your character Half Morphs, he gains a Level Adjustment of +1. Use the Forgotten Realmaniers *** table to figure out your new exp requirements. The Level Adjustment is only +1 irregardless of the strength of abilities acquired, because you have already paid the experience point penalty as such, there is no need to penalize your character heavily.
So, doing it once might be all well and good. But as you do it over and over you will find yourself having a hard and harder time morphing.
(please keep in mind that I am not going to repost the graphics from the site and that the boards and html can only approximate each other... also note that this is only the second group of entries in his so-called improvements...)
Forgotten Realmaniers *** (must have)
Races from player handbooks or campaign books that have a level adjustment use the following table before they advance to 2nd level. After that they progress
as if they were of a level equal to current Level + Level Adjustment penalty.
Note: the Leve Adjustment is a penalty. Do not confuse it with being an award to your level.
Level Adjustment .. Exp Req. for 1st Level
.......... +1 .......... 4,000
.......... +2 .......... 9,000
.......... +3 .......... 15,000
.......... +4 .......... 28,000
.......... +5 .......... 56,000
.......... +6 .......... 106,000
.......... +7 .......... 156,000
Anything higher than Level Adjustment +7 required an additional 50,000 experience points.
Why this change? In a normal game forgotten realm races are far more powerful than their level adjustment prescribes. With the added advantages found in the 3rd Edition Add On ™ it narrows the gap somewhat, between the standard races and the special races, however those races are still far stronger than normal. So, with the added level penalty, the power shift is finally balanced.[/i]
This rule is a must have specially if you do not use the Race Changes given in this book.
Other Races (optional)
If you want to play a race other than the main ones, such as a monster race to which you do not know the Level Adjustment orr a race that you have created yourself, you can use this rule to determine the experience penalty. Monster Races with bonuses to their stats receive a penalty to the amount of experience required to rise in level. The number listed below is added to the base amount each time they calculate the experience needed to rise in level. Any penalties that monsters may have to stats are ignored for purposes of calculating Exp. penalty.
Total stat bonus (+) Exp. penalty per level[/b]
.......... +2 .......... +2,000
.......... +4 .......... +4,000
.......... +6 .......... +6,000
.......... +8 .......... +8,000
..... Above 8 .......... +1,000 per +1 above 8
Example: say that a Dragon gives you an +20 Str bonus. That means that you have to earn 20,000 extra experience points each time you rise in level. Making adventuring and rising in level both hard and dangerous. On top of the stat penalty, your monster race may have special powers. As such there will be a further penalty. We will assume that the CR represents these powers. However, CR which stats for challenge rating sounds kind of dorky, as such we will refer to it from now on as Danger Level or DL. Since it serves to more accurately describe the threat posses by the creatures you will encounter. So now then, on top of the +2 Stat Penalty, you must earn the danger level experience penalty before you can reach 2nd level... However, remember that the danger level of some monsters increases as they age, causing their special abilities to grow in power. As such, whenever your monster's danger level increases, you must re-earn the danger level experience penalty before you gain your next level. Making creatures like Dragons both hard and tedious to play
Danger Level ... Exp. req. for 2nd level
.......... 1 .......... +2,000
.......... 2 .......... +5,000
.......... 3 .......... +7,000
.......... 4 .......... +10,000
.......... 5 .......... +15,000
.......... 6 .......... +30,000
.......... 7 .......... +70,000
.......... 8 .......... +100,000
.... Above 8 .......... +50,000 step above dl 8
Remember the number of Exp. req. for 2nd level is added to the basic experience requirements of your character. Lastly, if your Race has an age group as do Dragons, it must start at the weakest/youngest age group. When it meets the appropriate level equal to the monster's hit dice of next age group, it may advance to the next age group. This methodology balances out the power difference between monsters and players in a 1st level group. The only reason someone should play a monster race role playing experience and not the power advantage. As the advantage has now been almost nullified.
Now you wil be able to play even a Dragon in a 1st level campaign and no one will be the wiser. The Dragons power will be slightly more elevated than the other players, but the players will soon level and before long they will surpass the Dragon in power.
Then it will the Dragon who will be hard pressed to catch up to the players.
Note on Hit Points for Monsters (must have)
What I want to note, is that all Monsters start at 1st level, so with 1 hit dice from class + 1d10 from the Initial Hit Points rule. Their attack skill or hit points won't be any higher than that of a Human player character for example.
Why this change? Monsters are too powerful compared to normal player characters. They simply can not mix with standard player characters due to that monsters are far superior to standard races. Thus making it unfair for players wanting to play a normal race. But with the introduction of the new rules, players & monsters can be mixed together starting at 1st level. While the monster may still be stronger starting out, it will only last for a short while, before long the player will be far superior to their monster counter parts. Thus ensuring fairness and still allowing those players who truly wish to play a monster race because of the experience and not merely the power advantage of the monster.
Morph (optional)
During the course of your adventure your player character may evolve into a different race if he so wishes. To do so, you must take the challenge rating of the monster and times it by 2. If your character is of the a level at least equal twice the monster's challenge rating or higher, he may Morph into that
particular creature. He may copy down all the stats and abilities of the monster directlyly from the monsters manual. These new stats including hit dice will replace his old stats. His Str, Dex, Con, Int, Wis, Cha will be those of the monster completely replacing his original stats including any bonuses he might have earned. He will be considered of a level equal to the creatures hit dice or half the characters former level. However, he will continue leveling from his former levevl. As in an 11th level character Morphs into a creature requiring 5 levels to Morph into. The charactet drops down to 6th level for hit dice, attack, class abilities and all other purposes, but for experience purposes he continues leveling from the 11th level. Meaning to reach level 7 in his new form he must attain the exp. amount for 12th level and so forth.
Contracting Lycanthropy (must have)
Or another race changing sickness or disease such as vampirism. Or in the case where the character changes class unwantingly or by chance rather than by morphing, he gains an experience penalty equal to twice the new race's challenge rating in levels, counting from 1st. So, simply count the Monster's challenge rating, then times it by 2. Once you have the final number check it against the experience table and add that number to the experience requirements of your next level. This is a representation of your character acclimating to his new found abilities and physiology.
Why Morph? This allows you to start as a normal race then ops you the chance to switch over if you so desire it, while retaining the power balance between monsters and players.
The power of a Morphed 1st level Monster is equivalent to the level the player had before he Morphed.
Half Morph (must have)
By acquiring a number of levels equal to the a creature's hit dice and then burning experience in a number of levels equal to the creature's hit dice, you may acquire the creature's innate super natural or magical abilities. And only its innate supernatural or magical abilities. You will not gain hit dice or any stat changes or physical features of the creature (unless the physical feature is magical or supernatural). You may use this ability any number of times you like to gain any number of abilities you like. But as a side rule you must have atleast fought and defeated 10 creatures of that particular type. You must add the creatures former name to your race, in adjective form if possible.
Such as: 1st Level Shadow Human Figher. Or 1st Level Ogrefied Human Rogue (although i do not know why anyhone would want to Half Moph into an ogre). 1st Level Demon Vampire Fire Element Human. And so on on. The combinations are endless and are all achieved throughout the game at the cost of experience and levels. Which means while you may gain the abilities of a creature your comrades will be progressing to an even higher level as you are forced to restart from a certain number of levels.
Hindrances - however, each time your character Half Morphs, he gains a Level Adjustment of +1. Use the Forgotten Realmaniers *** table to figure out your new exp requirements. The Level Adjustment is only +1 irregardless of the strength of abilities acquired, because you have already paid the experience point penalty as such, there is no need to penalize your character heavily.
So, doing it once might be all well and good. But as you do it over and over you will find yourself having a hard and harder time morphing.
KDLadage
Explorer
Part 3
(some more of the so-called improvements... more on the way...)
Stat Changes (must have)
Note: these changes apply over the stats already stated in the core rules. So, don't forget to take into account the effects states in the core rules.
Str - no longer warrants a bonus to base attack for Melee weapons. Unless the target is wearing Armor or has Natural Armor. In which case Str does grant you a bonus to your base attack, but the bonus granted may not be higher than the armor's AC worth. Str does not affect Shields in this way. Secondly, Str is restricted by the wearing of armor. See Armor for more details.
Dex - grants you a bonus to your base attack using both Melee & Missile weapons. And it is not restricted by Armors, except for a few exceptions stated under Armor.
Int grants you opportunities during the game. High intelligence allows you to device ways where a lesser person could not manage. It allows you to use your environment to your advantage. This is represented by a new save known as Opportunity save or Opp. To do so simply roll 1d20 and add your Int bonus to the roll. The DM will set the difficulty of the Opportunity save and if it passes the DM will point out unique environmental advantages of which your character may take advantage. Or in the case of really creative players, it allows them to make up or create their own opportunities, to be approved by the DM so long as the Opportunity save passes.
Example: Jack the 1st level Barbarian fancies himself a really creative lad. However, his wits finally get the best of him and he ends up being chased out of a tavern by a couple of angry thugs. Desperate to get away from the angry mob, but knowing he can't outrun them, he spots a pile of barrels neatly stacked on top of one another. He decides to take advantage of this, so he declares to the DM that he knock the pile of barrels down and stun his opponents for 2 rounds. The DM decides it is a good idea but 2 rounds for this particular scene is too high, he decides to drop the number of rounds the thugs are stunned down to 1 round. Jack the 1st Barbarian with an Int score of 17 has a +3 bonus to his opportunity save. He rolls the 1d20 and scores high, a 15! That makes his Opportunity save out to be 18. The DM decides that the barrel trick isn't too difficult of a task so it only has a DC of 10. Jack passes his roll, so he is able to use his trick and the thugs are stunned for 1 round giving Jack enough time to make his escape. Had Jack insisted on making the barrel trick stun the opponents for 2 rounds. The DM could have raised the DC to 15, making it harder for jack to succeed at his trick. But whatever the case or trick the players are attempting to do, they should always have a chance to do it, no matter how slim. This is after a magical land where anything is possible!
Free Feats - Int also grants you a number of free bonus feats at 1st level equal to your Int bonus. Whenever Int rises, it also grants you a new free feat.
Wis gives you a base bonus in skill ranks equal to your Wis bonus. A penalty also penalizes your usage of Skills. Also it grants you a 10% bonus per +1 of Wis bonus you have to the amount of experience you earn. Thus Wisdom helps you gain levels faster.
Cha is your all around interaction-meter. Whenever you say a line or speak, no matter how idiotic sounding it may seem Cha modifies your chance to achieve the desired effect. It's not what you say, it's how you say it. This is used from every facet of interaction in the game. From striking a bargain with captors, to convincing others (npcs), lowering prices at shops, coaxing your opponents to attack and so on. Anyway, Cha is recommended for those people who are hardcore rpers that are more interested in the role playing side of the game then the actual combat.
Con also affects the amount of hit points that you heal in a day of rest equal to the basic healing rate + Con bonus. Note: that where it says bonus if a penalty is possessed the effects stated under have an opposite effect. Such as healing less, requiring more experience to gain levels and so forth.
Why this Rule? The Int change, is meant to make intelligence more valuable and versatile to all the players regardless of class. Since, it is intelligence that separates us from the animals. As such the Opportunity save allows the players to introduce their own unique rules per chance. Being able to bend the rules a tiny bit.
As for Str and Dex, your attacking skill in battle is based on accuracy and agility and not on brute force or raw power. In the case where the attack must penetrate a barrier such as a armor, raw power would apply as such this is taken into consideration. But in all other cases, it agility and skill that get you to the mark.
Gold - starting booty (must have)
Some rules state that starting players with characters of higher levels gain extra gold based on their level. This is sheerly idiotic. For one thing all players should always start at 1st level. Creating a character of a level higher than level 1 is basically cheating. Even if you are introducing new players to a campaign already in progress, those players should and can successfully adventure with the higher level players thanks to the effectiveness of Damage Reduction provided by Armor and other key rule changes.
Secondly, these players have never ventured into the world to earn any gold beyond the basic starting gold.
Thirdly, giving players vast amounts of gold and the ability to start with magic items ruins the fun of adventuring to earn and find magical items. The reason this was mostly done was because the core classes basically sucked. They were pathetic and you couldn't amount to much in the first few levels. As such the game was boring and dull. But with these new rules such things are completely eliminated. You are now able to play "hero" and be more daring, because you are given extra advantages to meet the dangers of the world. One of the biggest advantages is the damage reduction armor provides. This makes the player characters more durable and prolongs their survival rate compared to normal circumstances.
Gold - all classes regardless of what they are gain 1d10 x10 gold pieces.
Gold per creature killed (must have)
Roll once for silver, once copper and once for gold. The gold reference does not mean that they actually possess that much coinage, just that the items they care add up to a total of the given coin amount. Wealth found in the lair of a creature is always x5 that which it would have possessed.
Note: this rule is meant for beginner DMs who too often give away too much gold too early in the game. Also it is rated must have because the amount of gold you earn is balanced to when you are able to purchase the niftier types of Armor that provide great amounts of protections. Otherwise if you plan to a use a diff. type of Treasure table that is more generous than this one, I would suggest you increase the worth of Armor and Magic items by one to two digits. Item Worth x10 to x100 gold value.
For example a creature with 20 hit dice may have up to 5,000gp. If you rolled and it did have 5,000gp worth of stuff. It does not mean it is going to have 5,000 gold coins. Merely, that it might be wearing Plate Mail which is worth 3,200gp and then might carry a diamond medallion which is worth another 1,000gp. Then you must take into account his weapon, shield and any other items he carries. And finally he might have a few coins on him.
Monster Gold table
.......... 1HD .......... 1d10 gp
.......... 2HD .......... 2d10 gp
.......... 3HD .......... 3d10 gp
.......... 4HD .......... 4d10 gp
.......... 5HD .......... 7d10 gp
.......... 6HD ......... 10d10 gp
.......... 7HD ......... 17d10 gp
.......... 8HD ......... 2d100 gp
.......... 9HD ......... 3d100 gp
.......... 10HD ........ 5d100 gp Lair x5 gp
.......... 20HD ........ 5d1000 gp Lair x5 gp
.......... +500gp per HD above 20 HD.
Any monsters with lairs have x5 their base gold in the lair.
Armor (must have)
Dex is not penalized by wearing armor with some exceptions. Ignore all references made to this stupid rule in the players handbook or other manuals
Str is affected in the place of Dex.
Dex hindering armors All soft armors: Leather, Studded, Padded and Clothing do penalize Dex. mostly because these armors are are inflexible and clutter your movement range.
Str hindering armors All metal armors such as Chainshirt to Plate Armor penalize only Str. Because while these armors are heavy they are flexible and specifically designed to move naturally to your movements.
Dual hindrance armors Ringmail is made up of both Leather and metal rings as such it penalizes both Str and Dex. Banded mail and Scalemail also belong to this group. However, the penalty is evened out between both Str and Dex, causing to be only half to each stat.
Penalties of Armor To find out the penalty of each armor divide the armor class by 2. That number is the penalty applied to your Str bonus.
Example: wearing Heavy Plate wood give you a -7 Str bonus penalty. So all damage dealt would be -7. But you would always deal atleast 1 damage.
Or if you are using the phb as a reference you may use the Dex penalty table instead. However, the penalty applies to Str only rather than Dex.
Helms Helms penalize Dex as they block your line of sight and slow down your reaction time.
Gauntlets & Boots Penalize either Str or Dex depending on weather they are soft or metal.
Armor also reduces the damage you take by the AC bonus it confers. This is called as Damage Reduction or Soaking Damage. However, it cannot make damage go down to 0. You always suffer atleast 1 damage. Enchantments possessed by armors increases both its damage reduction and armor class. Armors also convey a bonus to Reflex & Fortitude saving rolls. But only on saves to prevent damage from spells or magical attacks. The effects of Passing or Failing a save were changed as such see what exactly each Save contributes. With these new changes Wizards will be hard pressed to defeat Warriors. =P
Arcane Spell failure & Skill Checks with Armor Note that the arcane spell failure applies to skill checks also as stated in the core rules. So, no, don't think just because heavy metal armors don't affect Dex that your rogue will be able to move silently or climb any better. The part where heavy metal armors don't affect Dex were meant for combat reasons only. In the case that the chance of Arcane Spell failure applying to Skill Checks isn't stated in the core rules or in the case where the armor is not stated therein. The base chance of spell failure is 5% per AC point provided by the armor including shields and accessories. Also the higher the level of spell cast while wearing armor the bigger the chance of failure. Add +10% to the chance of Arcane Spell failure per level of Spell.
Why this change? Armor takes away from your Strength, thus making you weaker and less able to use your Strength to its fullest. Secondly, limiting your dexterity makes it too easy to be hit reducing the fun of the game and your survival rate.
Armor's AC value
Light Clothing +1 AC, +0 DR
Chainshirt +5 AC
Chain mail +10 AC
Medium Clothing +1 AC, +1 DR
Ring mail +6 AC
Splintmail +11 AC
Heavy Clothing/Padded +2 AC
Breastplate +7 AC
Plate mail +12 AC
Leather +3 AC
Scalemail +8 AC
Plate Armor +13 AC
Studded +4
Banded mail +9 AC
Heavy Plate +14 AC
Cost of Armor
Padded 10gp
Ring mail 180gp
Chain mail 1, 400gp
Leather 25gp
Breastplate 300gp
Splintmail 1, 800gp
Studded 70gp
Scalemail 440gp
Plate mail 3, 200gp
Chainshirt 100gp
Banded mail 900 gp
Plate Armor 5, 000gp
Miscellaneous Armor
Leather Gauntlets +1 AC
Chain/Scale Gauntlets +2 AC
Plate Gauntlets +3 AC
Helm +1 AC
Helmet +2 AC
Helmet w/ Visor +3 AC
Boots, Common +1 AC
Garder Boots +2 AC
Metal Boots +4 AC
(some more of the so-called improvements... more on the way...)
Stat Changes (must have)
Note: these changes apply over the stats already stated in the core rules. So, don't forget to take into account the effects states in the core rules.
Str - no longer warrants a bonus to base attack for Melee weapons. Unless the target is wearing Armor or has Natural Armor. In which case Str does grant you a bonus to your base attack, but the bonus granted may not be higher than the armor's AC worth. Str does not affect Shields in this way. Secondly, Str is restricted by the wearing of armor. See Armor for more details.
Dex - grants you a bonus to your base attack using both Melee & Missile weapons. And it is not restricted by Armors, except for a few exceptions stated under Armor.
Int grants you opportunities during the game. High intelligence allows you to device ways where a lesser person could not manage. It allows you to use your environment to your advantage. This is represented by a new save known as Opportunity save or Opp. To do so simply roll 1d20 and add your Int bonus to the roll. The DM will set the difficulty of the Opportunity save and if it passes the DM will point out unique environmental advantages of which your character may take advantage. Or in the case of really creative players, it allows them to make up or create their own opportunities, to be approved by the DM so long as the Opportunity save passes.
Example: Jack the 1st level Barbarian fancies himself a really creative lad. However, his wits finally get the best of him and he ends up being chased out of a tavern by a couple of angry thugs. Desperate to get away from the angry mob, but knowing he can't outrun them, he spots a pile of barrels neatly stacked on top of one another. He decides to take advantage of this, so he declares to the DM that he knock the pile of barrels down and stun his opponents for 2 rounds. The DM decides it is a good idea but 2 rounds for this particular scene is too high, he decides to drop the number of rounds the thugs are stunned down to 1 round. Jack the 1st Barbarian with an Int score of 17 has a +3 bonus to his opportunity save. He rolls the 1d20 and scores high, a 15! That makes his Opportunity save out to be 18. The DM decides that the barrel trick isn't too difficult of a task so it only has a DC of 10. Jack passes his roll, so he is able to use his trick and the thugs are stunned for 1 round giving Jack enough time to make his escape. Had Jack insisted on making the barrel trick stun the opponents for 2 rounds. The DM could have raised the DC to 15, making it harder for jack to succeed at his trick. But whatever the case or trick the players are attempting to do, they should always have a chance to do it, no matter how slim. This is after a magical land where anything is possible!
Free Feats - Int also grants you a number of free bonus feats at 1st level equal to your Int bonus. Whenever Int rises, it also grants you a new free feat.
Wis gives you a base bonus in skill ranks equal to your Wis bonus. A penalty also penalizes your usage of Skills. Also it grants you a 10% bonus per +1 of Wis bonus you have to the amount of experience you earn. Thus Wisdom helps you gain levels faster.
Cha is your all around interaction-meter. Whenever you say a line or speak, no matter how idiotic sounding it may seem Cha modifies your chance to achieve the desired effect. It's not what you say, it's how you say it. This is used from every facet of interaction in the game. From striking a bargain with captors, to convincing others (npcs), lowering prices at shops, coaxing your opponents to attack and so on. Anyway, Cha is recommended for those people who are hardcore rpers that are more interested in the role playing side of the game then the actual combat.
Con also affects the amount of hit points that you heal in a day of rest equal to the basic healing rate + Con bonus. Note: that where it says bonus if a penalty is possessed the effects stated under have an opposite effect. Such as healing less, requiring more experience to gain levels and so forth.
Why this Rule? The Int change, is meant to make intelligence more valuable and versatile to all the players regardless of class. Since, it is intelligence that separates us from the animals. As such the Opportunity save allows the players to introduce their own unique rules per chance. Being able to bend the rules a tiny bit.
As for Str and Dex, your attacking skill in battle is based on accuracy and agility and not on brute force or raw power. In the case where the attack must penetrate a barrier such as a armor, raw power would apply as such this is taken into consideration. But in all other cases, it agility and skill that get you to the mark.
Gold - starting booty (must have)
Some rules state that starting players with characters of higher levels gain extra gold based on their level. This is sheerly idiotic. For one thing all players should always start at 1st level. Creating a character of a level higher than level 1 is basically cheating. Even if you are introducing new players to a campaign already in progress, those players should and can successfully adventure with the higher level players thanks to the effectiveness of Damage Reduction provided by Armor and other key rule changes.
Secondly, these players have never ventured into the world to earn any gold beyond the basic starting gold.
Thirdly, giving players vast amounts of gold and the ability to start with magic items ruins the fun of adventuring to earn and find magical items. The reason this was mostly done was because the core classes basically sucked. They were pathetic and you couldn't amount to much in the first few levels. As such the game was boring and dull. But with these new rules such things are completely eliminated. You are now able to play "hero" and be more daring, because you are given extra advantages to meet the dangers of the world. One of the biggest advantages is the damage reduction armor provides. This makes the player characters more durable and prolongs their survival rate compared to normal circumstances.
Gold - all classes regardless of what they are gain 1d10 x10 gold pieces.
Gold per creature killed (must have)
Roll once for silver, once copper and once for gold. The gold reference does not mean that they actually possess that much coinage, just that the items they care add up to a total of the given coin amount. Wealth found in the lair of a creature is always x5 that which it would have possessed.
Note: this rule is meant for beginner DMs who too often give away too much gold too early in the game. Also it is rated must have because the amount of gold you earn is balanced to when you are able to purchase the niftier types of Armor that provide great amounts of protections. Otherwise if you plan to a use a diff. type of Treasure table that is more generous than this one, I would suggest you increase the worth of Armor and Magic items by one to two digits. Item Worth x10 to x100 gold value.
For example a creature with 20 hit dice may have up to 5,000gp. If you rolled and it did have 5,000gp worth of stuff. It does not mean it is going to have 5,000 gold coins. Merely, that it might be wearing Plate Mail which is worth 3,200gp and then might carry a diamond medallion which is worth another 1,000gp. Then you must take into account his weapon, shield and any other items he carries. And finally he might have a few coins on him.
Monster Gold table
.......... 1HD .......... 1d10 gp
.......... 2HD .......... 2d10 gp
.......... 3HD .......... 3d10 gp
.......... 4HD .......... 4d10 gp
.......... 5HD .......... 7d10 gp
.......... 6HD ......... 10d10 gp
.......... 7HD ......... 17d10 gp
.......... 8HD ......... 2d100 gp
.......... 9HD ......... 3d100 gp
.......... 10HD ........ 5d100 gp Lair x5 gp
.......... 20HD ........ 5d1000 gp Lair x5 gp
.......... +500gp per HD above 20 HD.
Any monsters with lairs have x5 their base gold in the lair.
Armor (must have)
Dex is not penalized by wearing armor with some exceptions. Ignore all references made to this stupid rule in the players handbook or other manuals
Str is affected in the place of Dex.
Dex hindering armors All soft armors: Leather, Studded, Padded and Clothing do penalize Dex. mostly because these armors are are inflexible and clutter your movement range.
Str hindering armors All metal armors such as Chainshirt to Plate Armor penalize only Str. Because while these armors are heavy they are flexible and specifically designed to move naturally to your movements.
Dual hindrance armors Ringmail is made up of both Leather and metal rings as such it penalizes both Str and Dex. Banded mail and Scalemail also belong to this group. However, the penalty is evened out between both Str and Dex, causing to be only half to each stat.
Penalties of Armor To find out the penalty of each armor divide the armor class by 2. That number is the penalty applied to your Str bonus.
Example: wearing Heavy Plate wood give you a -7 Str bonus penalty. So all damage dealt would be -7. But you would always deal atleast 1 damage.
Or if you are using the phb as a reference you may use the Dex penalty table instead. However, the penalty applies to Str only rather than Dex.
Helms Helms penalize Dex as they block your line of sight and slow down your reaction time.
Gauntlets & Boots Penalize either Str or Dex depending on weather they are soft or metal.
Armor also reduces the damage you take by the AC bonus it confers. This is called as Damage Reduction or Soaking Damage. However, it cannot make damage go down to 0. You always suffer atleast 1 damage. Enchantments possessed by armors increases both its damage reduction and armor class. Armors also convey a bonus to Reflex & Fortitude saving rolls. But only on saves to prevent damage from spells or magical attacks. The effects of Passing or Failing a save were changed as such see what exactly each Save contributes. With these new changes Wizards will be hard pressed to defeat Warriors. =P
Arcane Spell failure & Skill Checks with Armor Note that the arcane spell failure applies to skill checks also as stated in the core rules. So, no, don't think just because heavy metal armors don't affect Dex that your rogue will be able to move silently or climb any better. The part where heavy metal armors don't affect Dex were meant for combat reasons only. In the case that the chance of Arcane Spell failure applying to Skill Checks isn't stated in the core rules or in the case where the armor is not stated therein. The base chance of spell failure is 5% per AC point provided by the armor including shields and accessories. Also the higher the level of spell cast while wearing armor the bigger the chance of failure. Add +10% to the chance of Arcane Spell failure per level of Spell.
Why this change? Armor takes away from your Strength, thus making you weaker and less able to use your Strength to its fullest. Secondly, limiting your dexterity makes it too easy to be hit reducing the fun of the game and your survival rate.
Armor's AC value
Light Clothing +1 AC, +0 DR
Chainshirt +5 AC
Chain mail +10 AC
Medium Clothing +1 AC, +1 DR
Ring mail +6 AC
Splintmail +11 AC
Heavy Clothing/Padded +2 AC
Breastplate +7 AC
Plate mail +12 AC
Leather +3 AC
Scalemail +8 AC
Plate Armor +13 AC
Studded +4
Banded mail +9 AC
Heavy Plate +14 AC
Cost of Armor
Padded 10gp
Ring mail 180gp
Chain mail 1, 400gp
Leather 25gp
Breastplate 300gp
Splintmail 1, 800gp
Studded 70gp
Scalemail 440gp
Plate mail 3, 200gp
Chainshirt 100gp
Banded mail 900 gp
Plate Armor 5, 000gp
Miscellaneous Armor
Leather Gauntlets +1 AC
Chain/Scale Gauntlets +2 AC
Plate Gauntlets +3 AC
Helm +1 AC
Helmet +2 AC
Helmet w/ Visor +3 AC
Boots, Common +1 AC
Garder Boots +2 AC
Metal Boots +4 AC
apocalypstick
First Post
i really like the "morph into another race" rule. that's just... amazing. why didn't WotC think of it?
*cackle*
You should really go to the site, though, if you can - just to see the horible formatting and the overendowed line sketches of the races.
yay! where's my coffee?
*cackle*
You should really go to the site, though, if you can - just to see the horible formatting and the overendowed line sketches of the races.
yay! where's my coffee?
Ankh-Morpork Guard
First Post
Buttercup said:
...disturbingly enough...I think he actually rolled a -10 on his d20...
KDLadage
Explorer
Part 4
Materials (must have)
The bonuses apply to both weapons and armor. In the case of weapons, the numbers represent both damage and attack skill.
Silver +1
Fine Steel +2
Moonstone +3
Adamantine +4
Mithril +5
Wood -5
Bone -4
Coral -3
Stone -2
Bronze -1
Hardness (optional)
This represents when a blow aimed to damage the metal actually damages it. You must roll a Fort check higher than the number stated.
Steel DC 20
Silver DC 22
Fine DC 24
Moonstone DC 26
Adamantine DC 45
Mithril DC 36
Wood DC 10
Bronze DC 18
Stone DC 16
Coral DC 15
Bone DC 14
Shields (must have)
There are 3 shield types. The smallest kind grants you +2 AC and the same to damage reduction. The Larger type grants you +4 AC and the same to damage reduction. The largest type grants you +6 and the same to damage reduction. Lastly, shields grant you their AC bonus to Reflex saving rolls.'
Race Size (must have)
There are no weapon restrictions based on the size of your creature. The creature may use weapons of any size so long as he abides by the Weapon Size rule listed below.
Weapon Size (must have)
In order to wield a particular weapon, your character must atleast have strength equal to or higher than the weapon'ss maximum damage if wielding it with both hands. Must have double the maximum damage of the weapon in Str if the he wields it with one hand.
Example: in order to wield a Longsword which deals 1d8 damage, the character must have atleast Str 8 or higher. However, to wield that very same longsword with onw hand, he would have to possess Str 16 or higher, or suffer a penalty.
Penalty for insufficient Str: For every point below the required Str that the character does not meet, he suffers a -1 penalty to his attack rolls and to the damage he deals with said weapon.
Example: a halfling with Str 7 attempts to wield a Longsword with an str requirement of 8 for double handed use. The halfling may swing that weapon but with a -1 penalty to all his attack & damage rolls.
The character may swing a weapon with one hand up to a penalty of -5. After that he is not strong enough to wield such a weapon with one hand. After the penalty of -5, he may swing the weapon with both hands up to a penalty of -10, losing the two hand damage bonus. After -10 he is required to make a Strength check of difficulty 20 + the penalty every time he attempts to wield the weapons, a failed check means that he is unable to lift the weapon that round.
Weapon Balance (must have)
All weapons gain a +1 bonus to attack rolls for every point below 1d8 of damage that they do. Also they suffer a -1 penalty for each number of dice that they use. Thus a weapon dealing 2d4 would suffer a -1 penalty for using more than 1 dice. This includes all weapon types, including fists and other unarmed styles. Monks must also abide by these rules.
Damage
Bonus/
Penalty
1d2 ... +6
1d3 ... +5
1d4 ... +4
1d6 ... +2
1d8 ... +0
1d10 ... -2
2d6 ... -5
2d8 ... -9
3d6 ... -12
1d20 ... -12
2d10 ... -13
3d8 ... -18
4d6 ... -19
Damage Improvement (must have)
Damage is increased by 1 dice roll every 5th level for Warriors only. Thus an 10th level Fighter using a Longsword deals 3d8. Paladins, Rangers and Fighters are all Warriors. Rogues gain this ability only with their originally allowed weapons at the rate of 1 dice roll every 7th level. Barbarians & Bards gain this at the same rate as Rogues. Monks do not gain this benefit, since they already possess a given benefit for unarmed combat.
Wizards, Sorceresses, Druids, Clerics and Priests do not gain this benefit due to that their magic already increased based on their level. Note: this boost only increasea the weapons original damage. It does not enhance magical or elemental powers of a weapon.
Why this change? This change was made to balance out the Monk's increased power per level. It was also made to out balance a High Wizard's insanely strong
Magic. Lastly, it represents the weapons of each class better.
Killing (must have)
"In the picture above the 5th level girl is killing the Wolfman by using a combination of charge, sneak attack and improved damage. And quite possibly a critical strike."
If from a single attack your opponent suffers 40 dmg or more, the target is forced to make a Fort. save with a DC of 20 +1 for every point of damage above 40 that he suffers or die.
How to Kill: a combination of Charge + Two Handed weapon use combined with a Critical Hit or Improved Damage should allow you to incapacitate your opponents in one blow.
Note: bare in mind that armor provides damage reduction. As such it lessens the chance of you being killed in a single strike.
Why this change? It makes combat more realistic by allowing you to slay your opponents in a single blow.
Weapon Usage (must have)
Any Charge attack drops your armor class down by 5 points and your attack suffers a -5 penalty. However, if it hits, you deal double damage. Take weapon damage + Str and times it by 2. If you are hit while charging, you will suffer double damage on the amount of damage you take.
Charge: -5 ba, -5 ac, x2 damage.
"Jumping into the abyss blindly isn't recommended, it is however sometimes necessary. Charge!" - leap of fate, by Turok the Brave
Two hands or one, all weapons even if it is stated that they are used 2 handed are considered to be used with 1 hand. However, since originally weapons stated in the players handbook were either one handed or two handed, the Weapon Balance rule was created.
The Weapon Balance and Weapon Size rules takes into account the extra damage consideration of what used to be "two handed weapons". So, indeed a lesser man (Str 12) could not wield for example a halberd with one hand. Since, he would be required to have Str 20 to wield it with one hand. While a greater creature, such as an ogre, could easily wield that very same weapon in one hand.
Bows & Missile Fire
Bows & missile weapons take 1 round to load and 1 round to fire. Thus, they are slower than melee weapons. The Weapon's damage rule still applies as normal. Allow all bows & crossbows to use the Str bonus or penalty. Unless you insist on requiring special bows to do this. In such case,arbows & Battle Crossbows, which allow you apply your Str bonus, possess a pull that requires an Str check of difficulty 15 + 1 per point of Str bonus the weapon allows you apply. If you fail the check you lose your chance to shoot that round.
Two handed use of weapons grants you double damage including Str. Furthermore, Dex and the weapons innate attack skill bonus is also boosted by double Penalties however are not reduced. Two handed use does not necessarily mean holding the weapon in both hands. Just having both hands free for leverage.
Critical Hit All critical hits automatically hit, irregardless of the armor class. All natural 20s are automatic successes, regardless of the difficulty of the check. Weapon's Critical Damage takes effect as soon as you roll the stated number, you don't need to roll again
to check if its critical.
Multiple Attacks per round Extra attacks per round can be made at the cost of accuracy. The maximum number of attacks that can be made each round is determined by your Dex bonus. For each extra attack made it incurs a -3 penalty on each and every attack. For starters the number of attacks your going to make that round, must be stated at the beginning of the round. Secondly, the penalty stacks and isapplied to every attack. So, if you had enough Dex to make 4 attacks per round and you went ahead and took for attacks in 1 round, you would be suffering a penalty of -12 to attack rolls on each of your 4 attacks.
Multie Attacks & the Extra Attacks feat stack. So, in total you could make a maximum of number attacks equal to twice your Dex bonus if you possess a high enough rank in the Extra Attacks feat, but you'd still suffer a huge penalty to each and every attack.
Why this change? It gives you a chance to maybe deal the 40 dmg required to kill your opponent with a single blow. Furthermore, Armor now possesses damage reduction for such reasons you may find it necessary to force yourself to deal more damage than normal.
Magic Bonus (must have)
There is no limit to the magic bonus weapons, armor or items may have. Indeed, weapons such as a Longsword +24 do exist. The bonus can indeed continue limitlessly. But DM's should use the player's level as a guide-line to rewarding magical items. As a guide line a player should never gain or find a magic item with a bonus higher than 1/3 the level or hit dice of the monster defeat to gain it. The list below will help you illustrate that. The list gives the bonus for a single magic item possessed by the creature of said level. If multiple magic items are acquired from the creature divide or distribute the bonus between the number of items found. However, every creature of that level does not possesses a magic item. It simply has a 20% chance to possess an item with that max magic bonus. The chance to possess a lesser magical item increases by +5% for every +1 below the max magic bonus it may possess.
Example: an HD 12 Monster may possess a magic item with a max of +4 magic bonus. So, it has a 20% chance of possessing such an item. However, it also has a 25% chance of having a +3, 30% chance of +2 and 35% chance of +1. You do not reroll each time to check for every plus. Simply if on the check roll it landed of say 27, which is above the 20% needed for a +4 item, it does however mean that it possesses a magical item with a +2 bonus. Savi?
Materials (must have)
The bonuses apply to both weapons and armor. In the case of weapons, the numbers represent both damage and attack skill.
Silver +1
Fine Steel +2
Moonstone +3
Adamantine +4
Mithril +5
Wood -5
Bone -4
Coral -3
Stone -2
Bronze -1
Hardness (optional)
This represents when a blow aimed to damage the metal actually damages it. You must roll a Fort check higher than the number stated.
Steel DC 20
Silver DC 22
Fine DC 24
Moonstone DC 26
Adamantine DC 45
Mithril DC 36
Wood DC 10
Bronze DC 18
Stone DC 16
Coral DC 15
Bone DC 14
Shields (must have)
There are 3 shield types. The smallest kind grants you +2 AC and the same to damage reduction. The Larger type grants you +4 AC and the same to damage reduction. The largest type grants you +6 and the same to damage reduction. Lastly, shields grant you their AC bonus to Reflex saving rolls.'
Race Size (must have)
There are no weapon restrictions based on the size of your creature. The creature may use weapons of any size so long as he abides by the Weapon Size rule listed below.
Weapon Size (must have)
In order to wield a particular weapon, your character must atleast have strength equal to or higher than the weapon'ss maximum damage if wielding it with both hands. Must have double the maximum damage of the weapon in Str if the he wields it with one hand.
Example: in order to wield a Longsword which deals 1d8 damage, the character must have atleast Str 8 or higher. However, to wield that very same longsword with onw hand, he would have to possess Str 16 or higher, or suffer a penalty.
Penalty for insufficient Str: For every point below the required Str that the character does not meet, he suffers a -1 penalty to his attack rolls and to the damage he deals with said weapon.
Example: a halfling with Str 7 attempts to wield a Longsword with an str requirement of 8 for double handed use. The halfling may swing that weapon but with a -1 penalty to all his attack & damage rolls.
The character may swing a weapon with one hand up to a penalty of -5. After that he is not strong enough to wield such a weapon with one hand. After the penalty of -5, he may swing the weapon with both hands up to a penalty of -10, losing the two hand damage bonus. After -10 he is required to make a Strength check of difficulty 20 + the penalty every time he attempts to wield the weapons, a failed check means that he is unable to lift the weapon that round.
Weapon Balance (must have)
All weapons gain a +1 bonus to attack rolls for every point below 1d8 of damage that they do. Also they suffer a -1 penalty for each number of dice that they use. Thus a weapon dealing 2d4 would suffer a -1 penalty for using more than 1 dice. This includes all weapon types, including fists and other unarmed styles. Monks must also abide by these rules.
Damage
Bonus/
Penalty
1d2 ... +6
1d3 ... +5
1d4 ... +4
1d6 ... +2
1d8 ... +0
1d10 ... -2
2d6 ... -5
2d8 ... -9
3d6 ... -12
1d20 ... -12
2d10 ... -13
3d8 ... -18
4d6 ... -19
Damage Improvement (must have)
Damage is increased by 1 dice roll every 5th level for Warriors only. Thus an 10th level Fighter using a Longsword deals 3d8. Paladins, Rangers and Fighters are all Warriors. Rogues gain this ability only with their originally allowed weapons at the rate of 1 dice roll every 7th level. Barbarians & Bards gain this at the same rate as Rogues. Monks do not gain this benefit, since they already possess a given benefit for unarmed combat.
Wizards, Sorceresses, Druids, Clerics and Priests do not gain this benefit due to that their magic already increased based on their level. Note: this boost only increasea the weapons original damage. It does not enhance magical or elemental powers of a weapon.
Why this change? This change was made to balance out the Monk's increased power per level. It was also made to out balance a High Wizard's insanely strong
Magic. Lastly, it represents the weapons of each class better.
Killing (must have)
"In the picture above the 5th level girl is killing the Wolfman by using a combination of charge, sneak attack and improved damage. And quite possibly a critical strike."
If from a single attack your opponent suffers 40 dmg or more, the target is forced to make a Fort. save with a DC of 20 +1 for every point of damage above 40 that he suffers or die.
How to Kill: a combination of Charge + Two Handed weapon use combined with a Critical Hit or Improved Damage should allow you to incapacitate your opponents in one blow.
Note: bare in mind that armor provides damage reduction. As such it lessens the chance of you being killed in a single strike.
Why this change? It makes combat more realistic by allowing you to slay your opponents in a single blow.
Weapon Usage (must have)
Any Charge attack drops your armor class down by 5 points and your attack suffers a -5 penalty. However, if it hits, you deal double damage. Take weapon damage + Str and times it by 2. If you are hit while charging, you will suffer double damage on the amount of damage you take.
Charge: -5 ba, -5 ac, x2 damage.
"Jumping into the abyss blindly isn't recommended, it is however sometimes necessary. Charge!" - leap of fate, by Turok the Brave
Two hands or one, all weapons even if it is stated that they are used 2 handed are considered to be used with 1 hand. However, since originally weapons stated in the players handbook were either one handed or two handed, the Weapon Balance rule was created.
The Weapon Balance and Weapon Size rules takes into account the extra damage consideration of what used to be "two handed weapons". So, indeed a lesser man (Str 12) could not wield for example a halberd with one hand. Since, he would be required to have Str 20 to wield it with one hand. While a greater creature, such as an ogre, could easily wield that very same weapon in one hand.
Bows & Missile Fire
Bows & missile weapons take 1 round to load and 1 round to fire. Thus, they are slower than melee weapons. The Weapon's damage rule still applies as normal. Allow all bows & crossbows to use the Str bonus or penalty. Unless you insist on requiring special bows to do this. In such case,arbows & Battle Crossbows, which allow you apply your Str bonus, possess a pull that requires an Str check of difficulty 15 + 1 per point of Str bonus the weapon allows you apply. If you fail the check you lose your chance to shoot that round.
Two handed use of weapons grants you double damage including Str. Furthermore, Dex and the weapons innate attack skill bonus is also boosted by double Penalties however are not reduced. Two handed use does not necessarily mean holding the weapon in both hands. Just having both hands free for leverage.
Critical Hit All critical hits automatically hit, irregardless of the armor class. All natural 20s are automatic successes, regardless of the difficulty of the check. Weapon's Critical Damage takes effect as soon as you roll the stated number, you don't need to roll again
to check if its critical.
Multiple Attacks per round Extra attacks per round can be made at the cost of accuracy. The maximum number of attacks that can be made each round is determined by your Dex bonus. For each extra attack made it incurs a -3 penalty on each and every attack. For starters the number of attacks your going to make that round, must be stated at the beginning of the round. Secondly, the penalty stacks and isapplied to every attack. So, if you had enough Dex to make 4 attacks per round and you went ahead and took for attacks in 1 round, you would be suffering a penalty of -12 to attack rolls on each of your 4 attacks.
Multie Attacks & the Extra Attacks feat stack. So, in total you could make a maximum of number attacks equal to twice your Dex bonus if you possess a high enough rank in the Extra Attacks feat, but you'd still suffer a huge penalty to each and every attack.
Why this change? It gives you a chance to maybe deal the 40 dmg required to kill your opponent with a single blow. Furthermore, Armor now possesses damage reduction for such reasons you may find it necessary to force yourself to deal more damage than normal.
Magic Bonus (must have)
There is no limit to the magic bonus weapons, armor or items may have. Indeed, weapons such as a Longsword +24 do exist. The bonus can indeed continue limitlessly. But DM's should use the player's level as a guide-line to rewarding magical items. As a guide line a player should never gain or find a magic item with a bonus higher than 1/3 the level or hit dice of the monster defeat to gain it. The list below will help you illustrate that. The list gives the bonus for a single magic item possessed by the creature of said level. If multiple magic items are acquired from the creature divide or distribute the bonus between the number of items found. However, every creature of that level does not possesses a magic item. It simply has a 20% chance to possess an item with that max magic bonus. The chance to possess a lesser magical item increases by +5% for every +1 below the max magic bonus it may possess.
Example: an HD 12 Monster may possess a magic item with a max of +4 magic bonus. So, it has a 20% chance of possessing such an item. However, it also has a 25% chance of having a +3, 30% chance of +2 and 35% chance of +1. You do not reroll each time to check for every plus. Simply if on the check roll it landed of say 27, which is above the 20% needed for a +4 item, it does however mean that it possesses a magical item with a +2 bonus. Savi?
KDLadage
Explorer
Part 5
Acquiring Magic Items by defeating Monsters (must have)
Note: again this table provides a perfect balance of when players should acquire magical items. This is a must have, specially for beginner DMs who too often award magic items too early in the game rather than by actual accomplishments of the characters. The list below states the level of the monster required to be defeated to acquire a magical item of said bonus.
Max. Magic Bonus ... Level of Monster
........... +1 .......... HD 3 or higher
........... +2 .......... HD 6 or higher
........... +3 .......... HD 9 or higher
........... +4 .......... HD 12 or higher
........... +5 .......... HD 15 or higher
........... +6 .......... HD 18 or higher
........... +7 .......... HD 21 or higher
........... +8 .......... HD 24 or higher
........... +9 .......... HD 27 or higher
.......... +10 .......... HD 30 or higher
.......... +11 .......... HD 33 or higher
.......... +12 .......... HD 36 or higher
.......... +13 .......... HD 39 or higher
.......... +14 .......... HD 42 or higher
..... Above 14 .......... add +3 HD per +1 magic item bonus above +14
Worth of Magic bonuses in Gold terms: each +1 magic bonus that a weapon possesses is believed to be worth 1,000gp in the open market. Meaning if you were to purchase a magic item with a +1 it would cost you 1,000gp over its main cost. As opposed to creating magic items which is 220gp per +1. See, the creating magic items chapter.
Creating Magic Items Players are of course able to create their own magic items or items of great quality. To create nonmagical items of quality an armor smithing, weapon smithing or item crafting skill check must be made. Meaning you must roll 1d20 and add your skill level for the particular skill and any modifiers that apply. The difference between Magic items and Quality items is that the bonus to Quality items applies to only one thing. Either attack skill, damage, armor class, damage reduction or other. Allowing you to create an item uniquely to your imagination. Such as if you want to create a specific weapon that looks a particular way and does specific things. This will allow you to do so, and indeed such Quality items may be enchanted with magic bonuses increasing their overall bonus even further.
Magic items on the other hand increase two things. Such as weapons increase both Attack Skill and Damage. And armors increases both AC and damage reduction. And can hit creatures that require certain magical weapons to be wounded or hit. They are also far more expensive to create, require special items, require the Spellcraft skill and are somewhat more difficult to create. The list below will help to guide you.
Nonmagical Items
Item + bonus ... Skill Check ... Cost
.......... +1 ..... 22 ..... +20 gp
.......... +2 ..... 34 ..... +40 gp
.......... +3 ..... 46 ..... +60 gp
.......... +4 ..... 56 ..... +80 gp
.......... +5 ..... 68 ..... +100 gp
.......... +6 ..... 80 ..... +120gp
.... Above +6 ..... Add +12 to Skill Check per +1 above +6 bonus; Add +20 gp per +1 above +6 bonus
Using Random Numbers Rather Than Fixed
Note that the cost (gp) is doubled.
Item Random bonus ... Skill Check
.......... +1d2 .......... 28
.......... +1d3 .......... 34
.......... +1d4 .......... 40
.......... +1d6 .......... 46
.......... +1d8 .......... 56
.......... +1d10 .......... 68
.......... +1d12 .......... 80
+1d2 above 1d12 .......... +12
Note that Random bonuses must be converted into normal dice merging the + with the weapons original dice. For example, say you are forging a Longsword which normally deals 1d8 damage. But you want to craft a Longsword with a +1d12 bonus. Thus your finally crafted Longsword would be be a 1d20 damage weapon In the cases where this cannot be done add +4 to the Skill Check penalty for each dice beyond 1 the item rolls. Note that since these bonuses are pseudo-magical, the items created using this method do not confer the penalty stated in Weapon Balance.
Magical items
To create magical items the character must also make possesses the Spellcraft skill. Any player may take as there is no class restriction to it. He must then make a successful Spellcraft check in addition to the Skill check. But before that the item must be sprinkled with diamond dust while being forged and must then only be tempered in blessed water.
Item Magic Bonus ... Skill Check ... Spellcraft Check ... Cost
........ +1 ........ 26 ........ 24 ........ 220 gp
........ +2 ........ 42 ........ 36 ........ 440 gp
........ +3 ........ 68 ........ 48 ........ 660 gp
Higher than +3 ... +24 per +1 bonus higher than +3 ... +12 per +1 bonus higher than +3 ... +220 gp per +1 higher than +3
Special Magical Abilities
Magic items with special qualities such as elements of ice, fire, lightning, energy, plasma, netheral or special magic abilities also require additional items to be added into them. Such as dragons blood, trolls blood, wyvern scales, griffon feathers, branded on a Fire Elemental and so on. The requirements should be equal to the ability of the item. The items cost an additional +1,000 gp per +1d6 dmg it deals. +1,000 gp per number of rounds the ability lasts. +5,000 gp per level of spell the item mimics or casts (it it applies). The item required a +10 Skill Check & +12 Spellcraft Check per +1d6 dmg it deals. +10 Skill Check & +12 Spellcraft Check per number of rounds the ability last. +15 Skill Check & +20 Spellcraft Check per level of spell item mimics or casts (if it applies).
Reducing the Cost
If the item can only be used a number of times per day then reduce the cost and skill check penalty by the following Cost Reduction
Times Usable per day ... Cost reduction ... Skill & Spellcraft Checks Reduction
.......... 10/day ......... -1,000 gp .......... -2
.......... 9/day .......... -2,000 gp .......... -4
.......... 8/day .......... -3,000 gp .......... -6
.......... 7/day .......... -4,000 gp .......... -8
.......... 6/day .......... -5,000 gp .......... -10
.......... 5/day .......... -6,000 gp .......... -12
.......... 4/day .......... -7,000 gp .......... -14
.......... 3/day .......... -8,000 gp .......... -16
.......... 2/day ......... - 9,000 gp .......... -18
.......... 1/day ........ - 10,000 gp .......... -20
.......... 1/week ........ -16,000 gp .......... -26
.......... 1/month ....... -34,000 gp .......... -44
However, the cost can never be less than consider the cost of the item once for both cost and Skill & Spellcraft checks. So, in other words an item that deals +1d6 damage, lasts 1 round and uses a 0 level spell can never lower the cost less than +7,000 gp. And can never lower the Skill & Spellcraft checks to less than +35/+44. This is in additional to any magical + bonus enchantments the weapon possesses. The + bonus can never be reduced in this manner. The Cost Reduction is only meant to be used for the Special Magical Abilities the item may possesses.
Acquiring Magic Items by defeating Monsters (must have)
Note: again this table provides a perfect balance of when players should acquire magical items. This is a must have, specially for beginner DMs who too often award magic items too early in the game rather than by actual accomplishments of the characters. The list below states the level of the monster required to be defeated to acquire a magical item of said bonus.
Max. Magic Bonus ... Level of Monster
........... +1 .......... HD 3 or higher
........... +2 .......... HD 6 or higher
........... +3 .......... HD 9 or higher
........... +4 .......... HD 12 or higher
........... +5 .......... HD 15 or higher
........... +6 .......... HD 18 or higher
........... +7 .......... HD 21 or higher
........... +8 .......... HD 24 or higher
........... +9 .......... HD 27 or higher
.......... +10 .......... HD 30 or higher
.......... +11 .......... HD 33 or higher
.......... +12 .......... HD 36 or higher
.......... +13 .......... HD 39 or higher
.......... +14 .......... HD 42 or higher
..... Above 14 .......... add +3 HD per +1 magic item bonus above +14
Worth of Magic bonuses in Gold terms: each +1 magic bonus that a weapon possesses is believed to be worth 1,000gp in the open market. Meaning if you were to purchase a magic item with a +1 it would cost you 1,000gp over its main cost. As opposed to creating magic items which is 220gp per +1. See, the creating magic items chapter.
Creating Magic Items Players are of course able to create their own magic items or items of great quality. To create nonmagical items of quality an armor smithing, weapon smithing or item crafting skill check must be made. Meaning you must roll 1d20 and add your skill level for the particular skill and any modifiers that apply. The difference between Magic items and Quality items is that the bonus to Quality items applies to only one thing. Either attack skill, damage, armor class, damage reduction or other. Allowing you to create an item uniquely to your imagination. Such as if you want to create a specific weapon that looks a particular way and does specific things. This will allow you to do so, and indeed such Quality items may be enchanted with magic bonuses increasing their overall bonus even further.
Magic items on the other hand increase two things. Such as weapons increase both Attack Skill and Damage. And armors increases both AC and damage reduction. And can hit creatures that require certain magical weapons to be wounded or hit. They are also far more expensive to create, require special items, require the Spellcraft skill and are somewhat more difficult to create. The list below will help to guide you.
Nonmagical Items
Item + bonus ... Skill Check ... Cost
.......... +1 ..... 22 ..... +20 gp
.......... +2 ..... 34 ..... +40 gp
.......... +3 ..... 46 ..... +60 gp
.......... +4 ..... 56 ..... +80 gp
.......... +5 ..... 68 ..... +100 gp
.......... +6 ..... 80 ..... +120gp
.... Above +6 ..... Add +12 to Skill Check per +1 above +6 bonus; Add +20 gp per +1 above +6 bonus
Using Random Numbers Rather Than Fixed
Note that the cost (gp) is doubled.
Item Random bonus ... Skill Check
.......... +1d2 .......... 28
.......... +1d3 .......... 34
.......... +1d4 .......... 40
.......... +1d6 .......... 46
.......... +1d8 .......... 56
.......... +1d10 .......... 68
.......... +1d12 .......... 80
+1d2 above 1d12 .......... +12
Note that Random bonuses must be converted into normal dice merging the + with the weapons original dice. For example, say you are forging a Longsword which normally deals 1d8 damage. But you want to craft a Longsword with a +1d12 bonus. Thus your finally crafted Longsword would be be a 1d20 damage weapon In the cases where this cannot be done add +4 to the Skill Check penalty for each dice beyond 1 the item rolls. Note that since these bonuses are pseudo-magical, the items created using this method do not confer the penalty stated in Weapon Balance.
Magical items
To create magical items the character must also make possesses the Spellcraft skill. Any player may take as there is no class restriction to it. He must then make a successful Spellcraft check in addition to the Skill check. But before that the item must be sprinkled with diamond dust while being forged and must then only be tempered in blessed water.
Item Magic Bonus ... Skill Check ... Spellcraft Check ... Cost
........ +1 ........ 26 ........ 24 ........ 220 gp
........ +2 ........ 42 ........ 36 ........ 440 gp
........ +3 ........ 68 ........ 48 ........ 660 gp
Higher than +3 ... +24 per +1 bonus higher than +3 ... +12 per +1 bonus higher than +3 ... +220 gp per +1 higher than +3
Special Magical Abilities
Magic items with special qualities such as elements of ice, fire, lightning, energy, plasma, netheral or special magic abilities also require additional items to be added into them. Such as dragons blood, trolls blood, wyvern scales, griffon feathers, branded on a Fire Elemental and so on. The requirements should be equal to the ability of the item. The items cost an additional +1,000 gp per +1d6 dmg it deals. +1,000 gp per number of rounds the ability lasts. +5,000 gp per level of spell the item mimics or casts (it it applies). The item required a +10 Skill Check & +12 Spellcraft Check per +1d6 dmg it deals. +10 Skill Check & +12 Spellcraft Check per number of rounds the ability last. +15 Skill Check & +20 Spellcraft Check per level of spell item mimics or casts (if it applies).
Reducing the Cost
If the item can only be used a number of times per day then reduce the cost and skill check penalty by the following Cost Reduction
Times Usable per day ... Cost reduction ... Skill & Spellcraft Checks Reduction
.......... 10/day ......... -1,000 gp .......... -2
.......... 9/day .......... -2,000 gp .......... -4
.......... 8/day .......... -3,000 gp .......... -6
.......... 7/day .......... -4,000 gp .......... -8
.......... 6/day .......... -5,000 gp .......... -10
.......... 5/day .......... -6,000 gp .......... -12
.......... 4/day .......... -7,000 gp .......... -14
.......... 3/day .......... -8,000 gp .......... -16
.......... 2/day ......... - 9,000 gp .......... -18
.......... 1/day ........ - 10,000 gp .......... -20
.......... 1/week ........ -16,000 gp .......... -26
.......... 1/month ....... -34,000 gp .......... -44
However, the cost can never be less than consider the cost of the item once for both cost and Skill & Spellcraft checks. So, in other words an item that deals +1d6 damage, lasts 1 round and uses a 0 level spell can never lower the cost less than +7,000 gp. And can never lower the Skill & Spellcraft checks to less than +35/+44. This is in additional to any magical + bonus enchantments the weapon possesses. The + bonus can never be reduced in this manner. The Cost Reduction is only meant to be used for the Special Magical Abilities the item may possesses.
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