D20 Modern Action System...Hmmm

[theoremtank]

I posted my variant of the d20 D&D Action System a while back in the house rules section of these message boards and was surprised to see the similarities of my variant system and the current d20 Modern Action System. Essentially they are the same.

Heres my system as I posted it...

I have attempted to revise and further abstract the current Action System in D&D 3E. For many, the Action System as described in the Player’s Handbook is often redundant and ambiguous as to exactly what you can perform in a given combat round. There is redundancy in that the amount of time in a Standard Action is equivalent to that of a Full-Round Action. There are unnecessary names such as “1-Action Spell”, when the designers should have just labeled them Partial Action Spells. There are often printed inconsistencies in the way people refer to single Partial Actions as Standard Actions, yet a Standard Action is generally deemed to be equivalent to a Partial Action plus a Move-Equivalent Action. In any case, I have created a system that does not change the current mechanics, just the way you think about actions. That is you are still able to perform the same amount and type of actions in a combat round; no more; no less. The primary focus of this system is to clarify what can be done in a combat round and eliminate redundant terminology.


House Rule: “The Major - Minor Action System”

Action Types: Full-Round Action, Major Action, Minor Action, and Free Action.

Key Concepts to the System:
• A round is composed of a Major Action and a Minor Action.
• A Full-Round Action is equivalent to a Major Action and a Minor Action.
• A Minor Action may always be substituted in place of a Major action, but never the other way around.
• You may perform your Major and Minor Actions for the round in any order.
• If the actions you perform do not involve movement, you may move 5 ft. during the round.

Converting the Current Action System to the Major - Minor Action System:
• All Actions labeled as Partial Actions, Standard Actions, and 1-Action spells become Major Actions.
• All Actions labeled as Move-Equivalent Actions become Minor Actions.
• Full-Round and Free Actions remain as they are described in the Player’s Handbook.

Major Actions: Activate magic item, Aid another, Single Attack (melee), Single Attack (ranged), Bull rush, Cast a spell(1-action)*, Change form (shapeshifter), Concentrate to maintain or redirect a spell, Dismiss a spell, Feint, Heal a dying friend, Overrun (charge), Ready, Ready to interrupt spellcaster, Readying to counterspell, Rebuke undead (use special ability), Strike a weapon, Strike an object, Total defense, Turn undead (use special ability), Use an extraordinary ability, Use spell-like ability, Use supernatural ability, Use touch spell on one target.

Minor Actions: Move base speed, Run at x2 base speed, Climb at ¼ base speed, Control a frightened mount, draw a weapon, Load a hand crossbow, Load a light crossbow, Loose a shield, Mount or dismount, Move a heavy object, Open a door, Pick up an item, Ready a shield, Sheathe a weapon.

And here is a portion of theirs as is posted in the d20 Modern SRD...

Action Types
The four types of actions are attack actions, move actions, full-round actions, and free actions. In a normal round, a character can perform an attack action and a move action (or two move actions; a character can always take a move action in place of an attack action), or a character can perform a full-round action. A character can also perform as many free actions as the GM allows.
In some situations (such as in the surprise round) a character may be limited to taking only a single attack or move action.

Attack Action
An attack action allows a character to do something. A character can make an attack, use a skill or a feat (unless the skill or feat requires a full-round action to perform; see below), or perform other similar actions. During a combat round, a character can take an attack action and a move action. A character can take a move action before or after performing an attack action.

Move Action
A move action allows a character to move his or her speed or perform an action that takes a similar amount of time. A character can move his or her speed, climb one-quarter of his or her speed, draw or stow a weapon or other object, stand up, pick up an object, or perform some equivalent action (see Table: Actions in Combat).
A character can take a move action in the place of an attack action.
If a character moves no actual distance in a round, that character can take one 5-foot step before, during, or after the action.

So their "Attack Action" = my "Major Action", and their "Move Action" = my "Minor Action"

Don't worry people I'm not accusing Wizards of the Coast's R&D department of anything bad, I'm just glad to see they realized that the standard d20 action system was redundent. Although I am curious if they puruse the House Rules board and read my post.

Key similar points:
"A round is composed of a Major Action and a Minor Action.
A Full-Round Action is equivalent to a Major Action and a Minor Action. A Minor Action may always be substituted in place of a Major action, but never the other way around. You may perform your Major and Minor Actions for the round in any order." - Mine

"In a normal round, a character can perform an attack action and a move action (or two move actions; a character can always take a move action in place of an attack action), or a character can perform a full-round action." - Theirs

 

[hong]

So their "Attack Action" = my "Major Action", and their "Move Action" = my "Minor Action"

And strangely enough, your "major action" ~= 3E's "standard action" (less the ME portion), and your "minor action" ~= 3E's "move-equivalent action". Since all you've done essentially is to reword 3E's mechanics without changing anything substantive, you shouldn't be surprised if it bears resemblance to d20M.

 

[Crothian]

Re: Re: D20 Modern Action System...Hmmm

And strangely enough, your "major action" ~= 3E's "standard action" (less the ME portion), and your "minor action" ~= 3E's "move-equivalent action". Since all you've done essentially is to reword 3E's mechanics without changing anything substantive, you shouldn't be surprised if it bears resemblance to d20M.

Ya, the similiarity is there becasue it's the same thing (orginal d20) renamed.

 

[Ranger REG]

Hmm...

theoremtank, are you sure you didn't glance at the Star Wars Core Rulebooks (original printing published November 2000), which uses Reaction, Free Action, Move Action, Attack Action, and Full-Round Action?

It's a departure from the D&D 3e convention of standard (attack) action, move action, move-equivalent action, double-move action, partial action, full-round (attack) action, courtesy of Bill Slavicsek (designer of Star Wars and d20 Modern).

 

[theoremtank]

I wasn't trying to imply I had written an entirely new rule system. Of course the system I wrote up heavily borrows from the core rules, it only redefines and condenses existing redundant terminology and generalizes the existing system.

I was just trying to point out that the designers of the d20 modern system chose eliminate the same redundant terminology that I did. And that coincidentally we both gave very similar writeups. Probably due to the nature that the standard d20 action system was obvioulsy gratuitously complex.

When I first posted the writeup of my variant action system, most people agreed it was far easier to understand than the action rules described in the Player's Handbook. And furthermore that points they did not quite understand about the existing action system were now clarified.

 

[Ranger REG]

I'm not implying. I'm just wondering if you may have looked at later core rulebooks with better rules clarification than the Player's Handbook, including attacks of opportunity. Perhaps you subconciously recalled them.

 

[theoremtank]

I haven't yet had the chance to check out the Star Wars core rulebook. Are the action rules similar to d20 modern?

 

[Ranger REG]

The use of the following terms appears to be similar: Reaction, Free Action, Attack Action, Move Action, Full-Round Action.