D&D 3E/3.5 BRIARPATCH House Rules D&D 3.5/Pathfinder, etc.

[Sojourn]

I've been running an evolving world since 1981. Here are some of the most/least useful house rules I've adapted, and several I've never used but thought they were interesting, and have as standby for one shot games or alternate campaigns.

The current house rules clocks in around 50 pages or so, this is a vast cutback from the 100 pages it ballooned into. I divided the document between the nuts & bolts house rules "crunch" and the World-guide flavor text "fluff", essentially the differences between what the PLAYER needs to know to build/run a PC, and what the CHARACTER would know living in the world. One would only have to be read once/during character creation, the other would (ideally) be referenced every game. I also cut down on a lot of "house rules" meant to deal with one or two players. Pages of DM warnings against playing evil characters or monsters, etc. I finally realized that the good players didn't need the warnings, and the problem players never read them in the first place. So I cut that down to a separate document called "Bad Ideas" for how to successfully run an evil character.

Cover page: Every document should have an attractive cover page.

Inside cover page is the contacts page. The phone number and email and website for me and all the past and present players. This is a huge help in getting players to coordinate rides, food, and plans and treasure division away from the table, so it doesn't have to take up a lot of time at the table. My contact list also includes numbers of the local game stores so players can pick up dice, and the numbers for local food delivery.

Inside cover includes directions to The Briarpatch, a description of facilities & Services. We don't post bail, but we do provide 24 hr roadside rescue & Sober rides home.
Finally, there's the credits where I list everyone I can think of that I stole an idea or house rule from.

Then the table of contents.
Originally I also had a list of all the document sources I was using for the game, but as TSR/WOTC/HASBRO kept grinding them out, it was too long and I moved them to the Index, with a list of all the abbreviations I used.

Then, secton 1: Style. This is what players really want to know: what KIND of game are you running? One page covers pretty much everything they can expect.

I start with the PRIME DIRECTIVES, both for The Briarpatch, and for the game:
Briarpatch PD:
1) Do NOT involve the police.
2) Do NOT cost me my security deposit.
3) Do NOT let my cat out.

Game PD:
1) DM is the boss. If you don't trust your DM, DON'T PLAY WITH HIM.
2) Have fun. As Prince once said to me: "If You Didn't Come To Party, Don't Bother Knockin' On my Door." Nothing can kill the game faster than one player who is clearly not in the mood to be there.
3) ROLEPLAY. Speak in-character, bonus points for coming in costume or bringing weapons or props. I try to put as much LARP into my tabletop game as I can manage.

My game is rated R for strong language, graphic violence, and adult situations. It's important to let your players know what your game is rated, how much violence, sex, drugs, and rock n roll is standard.

I am a Killer DM. Your PC will die horribly, probably right after you've gotten really attached to him. Only playing intelligently and bringing your A-Game will keep him alive.

 

[Sojourn]

Killer DM

Trade Secret #1: I'm not nearly as blood thirsty as I claim. I like it when players get attached to their characters and get involved in the game, and nothing makes them keep their distance like thinking they will die no matter what they do. But by announcing I'm a killer DM up front, it puts the pressure on them to take the game seriously and pay attention, and it cuts down on the whining when they actually do die. I have several mechanics in the game that allow them to take some risks without being overly worried about death, and that makes coming back from the dead fairly easy if they are willing to pay the price. Always make sure everything has a price. "That which is gained cheaply is held in contempt".

To show off my Killer DM bloodthirst, I collect dead character sheets. A player is allowed to keep a copy if he wants, but he has to turn in his sheet when he dies. As a reward, he not only goes on the Roll of Heroes (when & how he died) but he can also put part of the dead PC's XP toward his next character, usually 1000xp per level.

NEVER SPLIT THE PARTY. When a PC or sub group splits off from the main party, I have to, in effect, run 2 games, as players from group 1 don't know what's happening to group 2 and vice-versa. Its a headache, so standard practice Is a wandering monster eats the first person to wander away from the party, except in 2 cases:
1) the split is of the minimal possible duration
2) the split is more or less permanent or long-term and not the player's fault (a teleport trap, or romantic anniversary splits him from the group)

In cases where a player is going to be long-delayed in their reunion, STEPPING DISCS can serve to remove/return an absent player's PC. I used to provide a "Death Shield" with 3 charges- A dragon breathes fire on the group, the absent player's PC gets a pass. But after 3 saves, he's obviously not coming back and he's toast.

Time- a great dramatic mechanic is to announce the Players are suddenly in "Real Time"- a minute spent deciding which spell to cast or for out-of-character conversation is a minute in the game.

CHOOSE THE FORM OF YOUR DESTRUCTOR, or the "Jedi Mind Trick". Anything a player says at the table- especially if it will lead to their deaths- can & will be held against them at any time. Likewise, moving any of the monster miniatures can have disastrous consequences. Table veterans know to ask for a 5 minute truce if they want to make an out-of-character joke and not have It backfire on them.

 

[Sojourn]

The Fat Kid in Dodgeball rule

The Fat Kid in Dodge Ball Rule: often, PCs with a high score in a skill can skip making a check, especially if they'd only fail on a 1 or other very low roll. Sometimes the entire party can get a pass this way- except one. Whoever has the lowest score always has to make the roll. There are 2 main reasons for this:
1) The DM assumes that if the Klutz can make it, anyone can.
2) The DM always goes after the weakest link in the party. Don't be the weakest link.

The bulk of the 50 pages of house rules aren't really new rules. I sat down and went thru all the books I own and made a list of all the feats, races, & Prestige classes, and deities. So it's not so much a collection of house rules as it is a menu of player options.

I've found some of the feats to be astoundingly weak compared to others. So I have a list of "Free" feats that you get automatically, most of which require pre-requisites.

I likewise give PCs a number of free feat slots- usually = Chr Modifier, for non-combat feats. It started so that players could make use of some feats from the Book of Erotic Fantasy or silly feats from Snarfquest D20 without sacrificing the survival & playability of their PC. They can trade 2 Erotic feat slots for one social or racial feat slot. A written PC background (which can be done any time, sometimes you don't develop a "feel" for the character until you've played him a little) is also worth a bonus feat. A player can take a flaw to gain a bonus feat, but those are risky and usually more trouble than the feat is worth.

 

[Sojourn]

Stats

I used to let players roll 4d6, drop the lowest.
Then it was 4d6, reroll 1's ONCE, drop the lowest.
[with the horrifying 'yahtzee' experiment- if you rolled 4 of a kind, you kept that score. That was retired the 2nd time a player rolled all 6's]
Then it was 2d6+6, for the longest time.
Finally, I've stuck with:
d10+8 for all normal PCs.
d8+10 for Paladins & Samurai.
3d6 for any evil or monster PC.

Players hate PCs with low stats. I think they should be playing heroes, and their stats should reflect that. Just because I'M man enough to play a PC with abysmal stats, doesn't mean anyone else likes to.

The different stats for Paladin/Samurai/Jedi, and evil/monsters is of course to encourage players to pick one and discourage them from playing another. Changing the stat rolls has been a better discouragement than my previous page-long "here's why you don't want to play evil or a monster/freak in my game" warning label.

I used to ignore the +1 stat every 4 levels rule in favor of my own system, because chances are most pcs would be dead before 8th level, so the +1/4 levels wasn't a great incentive.

System 1: every time you gain a level, you pick a stat and roll d20, if you roll over, +1 to that stat, roll under, get nothing, roll a 1 and you lose a point from that stat, roll a 20 and get +2.
Then the 20 became "you get a bonus roll on any stat".

System 2: instead of every level, it became every game because I was trying to encourage regular attendance. Doesn't work: if you have to start bribing players to show up, the game is lost. And the regular players who were going to show up anyway will soon be playing Titans, while the players who missed a game or 2 because of work or gf, or had a couple of bad rolls, become discouraged and their attendance becomes even dicier.

Along with this, in system 2 I also implemented "Hero" & "Gimp" stats: A dwarf has Con as a hero stat, Chr is his "gimp" stat. When rolling to improve stat, Hero is on d24, Gimp is on d16.
Another hint: if you start using non-standard dice (d24, d30, d16, d7) buy lots of extras.

And we come to System 3, which I have just started using, so I haven't seen all the flaws yet:
1) roll stats as given, above, no racial adjustments
2) when stats are assigned, the player has the option of taking -2 on his gimp stat for +2 to his hero stat, or +1 to any other stat. He can do this several times if desired (-4 for +4 or -6 for +6).
3) When racial adjustments are done the PC gets 5 points + alignment modifier to distribute to his stats any way he likes, this replaces the +1/4 levels. (essentially getting 20 levels worth of adjustments at 1st level).

A player who doesn't like the randomness of rolling can use the Point-buy method out of the DMG (all stats are 8's, 25 pts to distribute) in that case Gimp stats cost double, Hero stats cost 1/2.

One thing I've discovered is that stats don't mean that much when it comes to roleplaying. High stats are pretty, but poor decisions and bad dice rolls kill everyone, regardless of stats. And it helps to have curses and monsters that feed on stats.

 

[Sojourn]

Alignment Stat

Instead of the page-long "don't play evil" warning, I've implemented an alignment stat.
Good is +2, Evil is -2.
Lawful is +1, Chaotic is -1.
Neutral is 0.
So LG +3, NG +2, CG/LN +1, NN +0 CN/LE -1, NE -2, CE -3

This can be used a variety of ways. I first thought of it as a modifier for saves vs. Demonic Possession, evil is more likely to succumb, the pure & righteous are shielded. But it can be a great motivator for other things, as in the example above, I give LG pcs 8 points to distribute instead of 5, CE would only get 2 extra points.

The values can be flipped in situations where Evil would be at an advantage.
There's also a "Wild" align stat, where Chaos is +2, Law -2, Good+1, Evil -1, Neutral 0. That's for chr checks against faeries, or saves vs. wild surge.

I almost...almost let players add the villain score to their social class roll, to represent that evil is more likely to use every advantage to climb to the top, and good is more likely to remain poor by tithing to the church & supporting charities, aiding their neighbors, etc. But I was afraid player would take the wrong message and some would play evil just for the social boost. So I let it be a bonus on Reputation but not social class.

 

[Sojourn]

Reputation

Besides the 6 standard stats, I use a 7th stat- Comeliness, from the early days of D&D. It's a straight roll, add Chr modifier, add race modifier, add +1 for youth (age less than adult). Comeliness resurfaces in Book of Erotic Fantasy as "appearance".

The 8th stat is Reputation- this isn't rolled, but earned. The way to earn it is by doing heroic deeds, then taking credit for it. This uses the "bragging XP" rules from Snarfquest D20. A paladin or Samurai would be in a tough spot, as bragging goes against their code of honor. This is why you always have a bard, herald, or squire to do your bragging for you. The 0-to-20 Reputation Score is at the back of the 2nd Edition Bard's Handbook.

It is very hard to have a Reputation higher than your level. You have to do some pretty amazing things in front of a lot of witnesses to get that kind of Rep.

Reputation does not mean much at low levels. But a Rep of 12+ has a reputation modifier like any stat, and that adds to your Chr skills and Leadership score.

Reputation is offset by Infamy. Alignment/Ethos violations & dirty deeds done dirt cheap carry their own consequences.

A PC has 2 scores. Infamy is always checked 1st. An NPC meeting for the 1st time rolls d20. If under the score, he has heard of the PC's reputation, and reacts accordingly.

This leads to your Honor:
Honorless- You have an Infamy score, but not a single point of Reputation. Infamy is a penalty on all rolls.

Untrustworthy- your Infamy score is higher than your Reputation score. The difference is a penalty on all Chr skills & Leadership score.

Honorable Action- You have an Infamy score. No benefit/penalty.

Honorable Thought- Your Reputation is 10+ your Infamy score. The difference is a bonus on all Chr skills & Leadership score

Honorable Soul- Your Reputation is greater than your level, without a single point of Infamy. Add your Rep modifier to all rolls.

Alignment modifier Is a bonus on starting Reputation or Infamy.

 

[Sojourn]

Stats Again

I have a couple of other methods for rolling stats, one I've used and one I haven't.

Epic: Roll d4+16 for stats, Comeliness is straight 16+Chr Mod. This is the method I would use for Gamma World games, or when Players roll 1-shot PCs for a specific module like DRAGON MOUNTAIN or LABYRINTH of MADNESS that wasn't part of a standard campaign.

and a game I've always wanted to run in a low-magic setting where the PCs are all kids, 8+d6. PC age would equal their highest stat.

 

[Sojourn]

Guilds

I introduced Guilds and made it a part of PC skills.
If you have 0 ranks in a skill, you are a LAYMAN.
If you have 1-4 ranks in a skill, you are an APPRENTICE.
If you have 5+ ranks in a skill, you are a JOURNEYMAN.
If you have 10+ ranks in a skill, you are a MASTER or GUILDMASTER.

You roll different dice to make a skill check based on title.
You roll different dice depending on whether or not it is a Class or Cross-class skill.
Layman: Class d12 CC: d8
Apprentice: Class d16 CC: d10
Journeyman: Class d20 CC: d12
Master: Class d24 CC: d16
Guildmaster: Class d30 CC: d20

If you do not belong to a guild, Cross Class skills cost 4 skill points per rank instead of 2. You can't buy 1/2 ranks.
As an apprentice, you may not charge for goods or services, may not increase your rank without your master's permission, and have no voice in guild politics.
A Journeyman has completed his apprenticeship to his master's satisfaction, may charge or take new skill ranks at will, and has a vote in guild politics.
A Master has completed a Masterpiece for peer review, and is accepted by a vote of other masters. He may take apprentices.
A Guildmaster settles disputes between masters and assigns or approves apprentices.

Masters get +1 to Reputation, Guildmasters get +2

In Ravinica, Guilds are organized not by trades, but by alignments.