DR/Magic - would you change it to this?

[Psychic Warrior]

Currently Damage Reduction/Magic requires only +1 or better weapon to overcome regardless of the amount of DR (ie 5-20). I am thinking of making the following changes to it

DR 5/magic = DR 5/+1 or better weapon to hit
DR 10/magic = DR 10/+2 or better weapon to hit
DR 15/magic = DR15/+3 or better weapon to hit
DR 20/mafic = DR20/+4 or better weapon to hit

Opinions?

edit - as Raven Crowking and Fierai suggested each +1 of a weapon overcomes 5 points of DR/magic.

Who has used such a HR in their games though?

 

[Fieari]

Why no love for +2? Be easier to make it so that each +1 bypasses 5/magic each...

 

[Raven Crowking]

Why no love for +2? Be easier to make it so that each +1 bypasses 5/magic each...

Exactly. If each +1 bypasses DR 5/magic, you could imagine a scenario with three characters -- one has a +1 weapon, one a +2, and one a +3 -- vs. a monster with DR 15/magic.

The first character bypasses 5 points of DR...so the creature only has DR 10 against his attacks.

The second character bypasses 10 points of DR...so the creature only has DR 5 against his attacks.

The third character bypasses all the DR, and does full damage.

I think that this would work well enough, and cause sufficient "scaling" of DR/Magic.

RC

 

[Primitive Screwhead]

This is a fairly popular HR... and it seems to work pretty good IME

 

[XCorvis]

The main reason I like the "x/magic" version of DR is that it means I'm not forced to take a +5 weapon as soon as possible. Those extra plusses are nice, but special abilities are nice too. If you have DR the old 3.0 way (similar to your suggestion), you're essentially forcing characters to spend money to upgrade the enhancement bonuses of their weapons, whether or not they want to.

 

[Fieari]

Well, if you wanted, you could always base it off the total modifiers of the weapon, so that a +2 longsword and a +1 Flaming longsword would both bypass 10/magic completely...

The problem with the x/magic system, is that by the time you encounter creatures that have it, if you don't have magic weapons, you're WAY WAY WAY below standard wealth guidelines. So DR x/magic basically amounts to nothing at all.

 

[Kerrick]

The main reason I like the "x/magic" version of DR is that it means I'm not forced to take a +5 weapon as soon as possible. Those extra plusses are nice, but special abilities are nice too. If you have DR the old 3.0 way (similar to your suggestion), you're essentially forcing characters to spend money to upgrade the enhancement bonuses of their weapons, whether or not they want to.

The downside to this, however, is that higher plus weapons aren't that special, at least until you hit epic. The fighter can run around with a +1 sword until he hits 20th level, and be able to effectively damage any DR /magic creature the party runs into, and when he hits epic, he can trade it straight in for a +6 sword and do the same thing all over.

The "each +1 bypasses 5 points of DR" rule is a nice compromise - it makes higher-plus weapons handy to have, but not completely "must have".

 

[Raven Crowking]

XCorvis, How is that any different than more powerful monsters "forcing" PCs to spend money on bettering their AC?

Fieari, I certainly agree with you.

RC

 

[Psychic Warrior]

Why no love for +2? Be easier to make it so that each +1 bypasses 5/magic each...

Ummm because I like complicated systems?

Yeah that's what I meant (now)! Each +1 negates 5 points of DR. Thanks!

The main reason I like the "x/magic" version of DR is that it means I'm not forced to take a +5 weapon as soon as possible. Those extra plusses are nice, but special abilities are nice too. If you have DR the old 3.0 way (similar to your suggestion), you're essentially forcing characters to spend money to upgrade the enhancement bonuses of their weapons, whether or not they want to.

Well only if they want to have the ability to easily overcome high DR/magic creatures. I equally don't like the fact that now a +1 longsword is just as good against the DR of a Great Wyrm dragon as a +5 Holy Vorpal longsword. Also ime players are more than eager to up the plusses of their weapons as fast as they can.

 

[Psychic Warrior]

Well, if you wanted, you could always base it off the total modifiers of the weapon, so that a +2 longsword and a +1 Flaming longsword would both bypass 10/magic completely...

The problem with the x/magic system, is that by the time you encounter creatures that have it, if you don't have magic weapons, you're WAY WAY WAY below standard wealth guidelines. So DR x/magic basically amounts to nothing at all.

EXACTLY! All those dragons and whatnot with the DRs of 20/magic have nothing in reality. No character would be facing off against them without at least a +1 weapon so why bother with it at all?