Two characters in different online games I play in inspired me to make this thread. One is a druid in a campaign that is beginning on 4th level who for roleplaying reasons does not possess any equipment (apart from clothing of course). The characters may not gain much new equipment for some time, so the DM is worrying that the character may be underpowered compared to the rest of the group as well as compared to challenges of the appropriate CR.
The second character is a monk in an online game that has been going on for some time now. The monk is very dedicated to Tyr and is a strong ascetic again for roleplaying reasons (he is a monk of Tyr and all monks of Tyr in that campaign have to have taken vows of chastity, loyalty, poverty, etc. [think Roman Catholic monks, but they can kill], cannot drink alcohol or use any mind affecting substances [includes many potions]... I am sure you get the idea. Again it is clear that such a character will be less powerful than the rest of the group in fact even more so than the druid, as the monk cannot ever gain new equipment and can only posess food, water, bag, and clothing none of which can be magical. Furthermore, the monk is sometimes tempted (last time by a certain lady in the bar) to break his other vows and he has to roll to see whether he resists the temptation and the risk of failing is not that small. If he succumbs he looses his powers, so even the non-poverty based vows have a significant negative impact on his power.
Anyway, while any suggestions to deal with either of the above would be interesting, I thought to generalise the question. How would you deal with situations where the character foregoes all his material posessions (as in the case of the monk) or all of his starting material posessions (as in the case of the druid), or just a portion of his material posessions? Playing such a character, should IMO be possible - it is an archetype after all - and the character should not be unduly penalized, so he needs some compensatory powers. What system would work? Would it for example be feasible to decide that foregoing X amount of gold lets you choose from some set of compensatory abilities?
On a related note, how would you deal with the effects of chastity, non-alcohol, etc. if the character risks loosing his powers for breaking his vows and has to roll whether he withstands the temptation?
The second character is a monk in an online game that has been going on for some time now. The monk is very dedicated to Tyr and is a strong ascetic again for roleplaying reasons (he is a monk of Tyr and all monks of Tyr in that campaign have to have taken vows of chastity, loyalty, poverty, etc. [think Roman Catholic monks, but they can kill], cannot drink alcohol or use any mind affecting substances [includes many potions]... I am sure you get the idea. Again it is clear that such a character will be less powerful than the rest of the group in fact even more so than the druid, as the monk cannot ever gain new equipment and can only posess food, water, bag, and clothing none of which can be magical. Furthermore, the monk is sometimes tempted (last time by a certain lady in the bar) to break his other vows and he has to roll to see whether he resists the temptation and the risk of failing is not that small. If he succumbs he looses his powers, so even the non-poverty based vows have a significant negative impact on his power.
Anyway, while any suggestions to deal with either of the above would be interesting, I thought to generalise the question. How would you deal with situations where the character foregoes all his material posessions (as in the case of the monk) or all of his starting material posessions (as in the case of the druid), or just a portion of his material posessions? Playing such a character, should IMO be possible - it is an archetype after all - and the character should not be unduly penalized, so he needs some compensatory powers. What system would work? Would it for example be feasible to decide that foregoing X amount of gold lets you choose from some set of compensatory abilities?
On a related note, how would you deal with the effects of chastity, non-alcohol, etc. if the character risks loosing his powers for breaking his vows and has to roll whether he withstands the temptation?
