Ry
Explorer
Good day; you might remember my post where I detailed my new rules mod. Basically, progression is normal until 6th level, after which feats, stat points, skill points, and [for spontaneous casters] new known spells can be purchased.
We started up the first session today; 5 players, about 11 hours of gaming. They took on Ogres, ghouls, zombies, a pile of skeletons, hobgoblins, and an Orcish Cleric of Death and Evil [I wanted to test it out while keeping to relatively standard D&D, for best comparison].
A few things we found:
First, players interested in LA+1 races must be very, very careful. The Draconic +1 LA template appears to be fine, but most players were in agreement that races like FR's Genasi were too underpowered in comparison, and that being capped at five levels, instead of six, they would not make up the difference in power level.
Second, certain multiclassing options become no-brainers. Unless you really want to fascinate, there's not much reason to be a bard compared to a bard/rogue, for example. Also, I think we're going to see several characters take 4 levels of barbarian, followed by 2 levels of fighter to make up their 6 levels.
Third, high Wisdom, Charisma, and Intelligence stopped being particularly exciting options for spellcasters - 13 is all that's required for the highest level available spells, and 16 gives bonus slots for those spells.
Fourth, and I mentioned this before, forget using pre-published modules (at least without SIGNIFICANT modification). I'm going to be throwing them through an orc-and-elemental infested Temple of Elemental Evil, but the difference in what's fantasy-realistic for standard D&D and what's fantasy-realistic for a world with a 6th level cap is... large.
Fifth, there was definitely a tendency towards martial characters; we had 2 barbarians, 1 paladin, 1 fighter, and a cleric (Luck & War domains).
Sixth, I'm fairly certain I'm going to need to be wide-ranging in my search for spells and magic items for the heroes; now that levels 1-6 aren't just a rite of passage towards an item-rich future, I'll probably have to plant more cool items, rather than relying on the treasure tables.
Any thoughts would be appreciated, but I thought I should just post back now that we're starting up the actual game.
We started up the first session today; 5 players, about 11 hours of gaming. They took on Ogres, ghouls, zombies, a pile of skeletons, hobgoblins, and an Orcish Cleric of Death and Evil [I wanted to test it out while keeping to relatively standard D&D, for best comparison].
A few things we found:
First, players interested in LA+1 races must be very, very careful. The Draconic +1 LA template appears to be fine, but most players were in agreement that races like FR's Genasi were too underpowered in comparison, and that being capped at five levels, instead of six, they would not make up the difference in power level.
Second, certain multiclassing options become no-brainers. Unless you really want to fascinate, there's not much reason to be a bard compared to a bard/rogue, for example. Also, I think we're going to see several characters take 4 levels of barbarian, followed by 2 levels of fighter to make up their 6 levels.
Third, high Wisdom, Charisma, and Intelligence stopped being particularly exciting options for spellcasters - 13 is all that's required for the highest level available spells, and 16 gives bonus slots for those spells.
Fourth, and I mentioned this before, forget using pre-published modules (at least without SIGNIFICANT modification). I'm going to be throwing them through an orc-and-elemental infested Temple of Elemental Evil, but the difference in what's fantasy-realistic for standard D&D and what's fantasy-realistic for a world with a 6th level cap is... large.
Fifth, there was definitely a tendency towards martial characters; we had 2 barbarians, 1 paladin, 1 fighter, and a cleric (Luck & War domains).
Sixth, I'm fairly certain I'm going to need to be wide-ranging in my search for spells and magic items for the heroes; now that levels 1-6 aren't just a rite of passage towards an item-rich future, I'll probably have to plant more cool items, rather than relying on the treasure tables.
Any thoughts would be appreciated, but I thought I should just post back now that we're starting up the actual game.
