Defenses - take the lowest instead of the highest

[Sadrik]

Has anyone considered the implications of having characters take the lowest stat in the stat pairs instead of the highest?
Basically, take the lowest of: STR and CON, DEX and INT, and WIS and CHA.

I assume defenses would go down some but how much and would it make characters more interesting?

Stat polarity is a big issue in my mind with the game and this seems the most simple solution.

 

[op1983]

The players defenses would be lower.

Because the players defenses would be lower I would suggest adjusting the badguys accordingly.

Defenses go up as you add ability scores. If you force to players to put points in ability scores that are not their primary stat their attack and damage will go down as well. So you would have to adjust accordingly.

I think in the end it would be more of a hassle than anything.

 

[Tequila Sunrise]

What problem exactly are you trying to fix, Sadrik?

Defenses go up as you add ability scores. If you force to players to put points in ability scores that are not their primary stat their attack and damage will go down as well. So you would have to adjust accordingly.

I think most players would still end up dumping all their boosts into their primary stats, with "the best defense is a good offense" in mind. Paragon and epic PCs would become more like they were in 3e, meaning combat would go back to being a game of Russian roulette. I agree that this is a bad idea.

TS