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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Blue" data-source="post: 6864620" data-attributes="member: 20564">For years (back in AD&D 2nd ed) the game I was in was that you rolled 4d6 drop the lowest  in order, but you rolled three sets and picked which one.  You often would get scores that might not be the class the party needed, but that lead to lots of different feel between different groups.  I had the high-Int, high-Dex (and 17 min Chr) paladin.  I had the 18 Con Bard (when only fighter types could benefit from more than a 16 Con, the bonus was capped) who could drink people under the table.  I like non-standard characters.  But in 5e where you hace a choice of advancing a stat or taking a feat, having wildly variant scores between different party members throws off the balance between them.  So how can we move forward with that?Just riffing off this, what if you used a (lower total) point buy to set a floor so that you can play the character you want?  This addresses the low-side volatility which is half the 4d6 drop lowest, and the predictability of point buy.So you pick some lesser total, like 21.  Do out your stats.  Then roll in order, keeping whatever is higher.  21 point buy you will not be able to get what you want so there is a "threat", but the downside is much lower than the upside and players need to think about if they want to ensure high minimum in the prime abilities for their class or if they want to ensure no penalties elsewhere.So if you were building a paladin you might have the followingPoint buy (cost)/ Actual Roll = Final result (before racial)Str:  14 (7) / 17 = 17Dex:  8 (0) / 9 = 9Con:  13 (5) / 8 = 13Int:  8 (0) / 15 = 15Wis:  10 (2) / 13 = 13Chr: 14 (7) / 8 = 14Heh, I use an online dice roller for that but it's really almost your example of a smart fighter.  They didn't protect dex and will have a penalty (which won't hit AC in heavy armro but will affect saves and init).  They protected Chr and Con which is good because an 8 wouldn't have cut it in either location.  Str they luckyed out with a 17, that could be an 18 or 19 with racial modifiers.Point buy the final would be ... well, the 17 is off the charts to calculate.  But considering how the second highest being Int you definitely have a paladin that would be unlikely to be built with point buy.Would this fit what you are looking for?</blockquote>

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