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Message: <blockquote data-quote="SteveC" data-source="post: 2749028" data-attributes="member: 9053">Here's a question raised out of some Spycraft discussions I've been having recently. NPCs in spycraft aren't designed like regular D20 characters: they don't have class levels, feats, skill points and so on. Instead, they have a rating in about half a dozen characteristics which is then mapped against their CR (called a threat level in Spycraft) in order to determine values that the GM needs to use with them in play.As an example, if you need to know a will save? Cross index the character's "resistance" rating on a 1-10 scale with it's threat level and voila: you get the bonus. What's the guard's sense motive skill? Cross reference their "competence" bonus with the threat level to get that, and so on. The GM can also give them one or more special traits that make the character unique. This allows you to model things from animals to cyborgs or other "critters."This process makes creating NPCs very easy, and it also lets you scale them to any level group on the fly. The GM in my Spycraft game, who just co-GM'd a D&D campaign with me said "what a concept! Just think what could be done with this kind of a system and D&D. Prepping a complex encounter would take just a few minutes to complete!"As I thought about that, I initially agreed with him, but as I thought about it some more, I thought this might be a huge step backwards. In earlier editions of D&D monsters followed their own rules and had their own special stat systems. One thing that 3E did was change it so that everyone has to live by the same rules, which has been an excellent change. It allows you to make any sort of monster as a real character, for one thing.My question to you, then, is: would a system where monsters and NPCs were all defined in these generic terms be a step forward, backwards or in no particular direction at all?</blockquote>

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