House rules for a low magic item campaign

[SteveC]

Hi everyone!
I will be starting a new campaign in a few weeks using the 3.5 rules. My GM is somewhat inexperienced with them, and tends to run a very "by the book" game. The problem is that I know he gives out significantly fewer magic items and lower powered items than are recommended in the book.

Now much of the time our opponents are classed characters, and he designes them in much the same way as our characters are, so there are usually no issues. The problem (isn't there always one) is that this campaign (an outgrowth of the last one) is going to include a lot more monsters and creature encounters. I have suggested that he run encounters with a lower EL against us, but that is something that he is not that happy with doing all the time.

Now my GM trusts me with most rule questions, and so he's come to me to ask about some house rules for the game. I have some ideas, but wanted to get the opinions of ENWorld on this issue.

What house rules would you want to see in a campaign where there would be much less in the way of magical treasure than normal?

My suggestions at this point are:

1. High stats. This GM's previous campaign had characters with very high stats. This really compensated for the fact that there were no stat boost items in the game at all.
2. Defense Bonus. I am going to suggest the GM use some kind of class based defense bonus adjustment, since there will be little if any magic armor/rings of protection and so forth. I am not sure exactly which to use (I am torn between the one in Unearthed Arcana because it is simple, or the one from the Second World Sourcebook because I like it a lot).
3. Increased healing rate or Reserve Points from Unearthed Arcana, as there will be little or no healing magic.

What are your thoughts? What would you recommend in my place?

Oh, I should mention that the game is balanced more towards negotiation and roleplaying than combat, but it has quite a share of combats--usually not many encounters at once, however.

Let me know what you think!

 

[Dogbrain]

Ditch all the crocks that amount to all the bonuses of magic items without the window dressing and tell the players that combat will be particularly deadly and they will be expected to understand when it's time to turn tail and fight again another day. Eliminate or modify those things that can only be hit with magic. In our own legends and myths, very few such creatures can be found, and they were always dealt with via some sort of divine aid.

 

[SteveC]

Ditch all the crocks that amount to all the bonuses of magic items without the window dressing and tell the players that combat will be particularly deadly and they will be expected to understand when it's time to turn tail and fight again another day. Eliminate or modify those things that can only be hit with magic. In our own legends and myths, very few such creatures can be found, and they were always dealt with via some sort of divine aid.

That's not a bad point, but it isn't the type of campaign the GM wants to run. What he's hoping for is an heroic game that is focused on characters rather than their items. If the old game is any indication, this new campaign will be fairly high powered (the old game ended poorly, and the new campaign is something like Midnight as a result), but it is not supposed to be as bleak and ultimately hopeless as that game can be. I also think some of his concern comes from not understanding all of the 3.5 rules perfectly, and wanting to keep the game a little simpler as a result.

Still, your suggestion has merit, I'll talk to him about it...Any other thoughts, anyone?

 

[mafisto]

A few ideas

Just off of the top of my head, a few things would give the PCs an edge on monsters or creature encounters.

1.) Armor as damage resistance. I think it's in UA, but basically your AC adjustment on armor acts as soak. Thus, plate soaks 8 points of damage for every hit. Very, very helpful at lower levels, and monsters are unlikely to be wearing armor - giving the advantage to PCs with a built in mechanic.

2.) Hero points. Last I read about them, it was in AU (Arcana Unearthed). The idea is basically you get a hero point for doing something dangerous or selfless - or they could just be given a few to begin with. That point can be used later to do just about anything - change a die roll, boost a skill check greatly, generally do things that are impossible or improbable. Gives PCs a real edge.

3.) An emphasis on roleplaying and tactics. It's not a house rule, but it can make the difference between utter defeat. Maybe suggest to the DM that you run through a few trial encounters to hone the players' abilities to work together as a team and take advantage of tactical resources. I know it's easier to just rely on a mechanic (like above), but playing characters who set traps, ambushes, and use terrain to their advantage can make a huge difference.

Just a few ideas. If I'm not way off base, let me know and I'll throw a few more out there. I DM a low magic, low money Grim-n-Gritty campaign; as such I have some experience with PCs that have no helpful equipment.

 

[Primitive Screwhead]

Low Magic Worlds

I have always run low magic worlds, and I have a very simple balancing factor. My group usually has 6 to 8 players. I use the normal CR encounters for thier average level. The lack of items is made up by the presence of 2 or 3 extra bodies.

The other factor is that I do not use extra-planar creatures. Things like Dragons are distant political forces while the most common enemies are humanoids. Lycanthopes and undead are the second tier of encounters. The biggest peice is the crafting of the encounters. Almost every major encounter has enviromental concerns that increase the CR, whether it be fighting on a cliff-face or out on a ice bound lake. This peice makes each encounter unique and special.

I would also agree with Dogbrain, altho the caveat is that every encounter faced must be designed to be defeatable. Notice, defeatable /= killable. It takes more DM prep time to do a low magic world right, there is less of a safety margin and its easier to kill off characters. As long as your mature gamers know this walking in, the game can be heroic and fun.

Action points can be a good thing. I have played a campaign of SW, whose Force points are what Action points are modeled on, and it worked well.

You might want to look into Ken Hoods Grimm-n-Gritty system, the new one that is.

JMHO

 

[Inconsequenti-AL]

High stats is certainly one answer. I don't know how you normally generate stats, but I'd consider using some kind of point buy or fixed array. If someone rolls low then it may well be 'worse' than in a 'normal' game.


The last game I ran used a hodge podge of rules inspired by Hong's imbued item rules:

http://www.zipworld.com.au/~hong/dnd/imbued_magic.htm

We used the innate powers option rather than items. Found this to be a great way of having magical powers without tying them to items. Suited what we wanted very well.

We also made some magical gear non-magical. Could get up to +5 shields, armour and weapons as mastercrafted and/or special materials. Costs were the same, principles weren't! Certain enhancements were also non magical. Keen came from a special construction technique, for example.


A very simple option is to stick to low levels. Perhaps XP is /5 or /10. Lower levels assume less reliance on gear, so eliminate the need to compensate for it. Although, I'm sure many groups could get really hacked off with the 'lack of advancement'.


Spellcasters can behave a bit funny in that sort of game. Particularly:

Clerics with their collections of buff spells, I've seen them really run rampant in low magic games. Using the cloistered option (from Unearthed Arcana?) might make them somewhat less militant...

Druids might warrant some looking at. Bear formed, animal growthed, barkskinned, magic fanged druids will tear non-magic fighters into tiny little bits. Then stomp on them. Then eat them.


Monk might be a little off as well... high stats and no magic and they could end up as very impressive fighting types.

 

[SteveC]

Just off of the top of my head, a few things would give the PCs an edge on monsters or creature encounters.

1.) Armor as damage resistance. I think it's in UA, but basically your AC adjustment on armor acts as soak. Thus, plate soaks 8 points of damage for every hit. Very, very helpful at lower levels, and monsters are unlikely to be wearing armor - giving the advantage to PCs with a built in mechanic.

2.) Hero points. Last I read about them, it was in AU (Arcana Unearthed). The idea is basically you get a hero point for doing something dangerous or selfless - or they could just be given a few to begin with. That point can be used later to do just about anything - change a die roll, boost a skill check greatly, generally do things that are impossible or improbable. Gives PCs a real edge.

3.) An emphasis on roleplaying and tactics. It's not a house rule, but it can make the difference between utter defeat. Maybe suggest to the DM that you run through a few trial encounters to hone the players' abilities to work together as a team and take advantage of tactical resources. I know it's easier to just rely on a mechanic (like above), but playing characters who set traps, ambushes, and use terrain to their advantage can make a huge difference.

Just a few ideas. If I'm not way off base, let me know and I'll throw a few more out there. I DM a low magic, low money Grim-n-Gritty campaign; as such I have some experience with PCs that have no helpful equipment.

Some very good ideas. I especially like the Hero Point idea. The GM is currently running in my D20 Modern game, and likes the Action Point rules I have been using. I think that would work out very well for a boost in a wide range of abilities that wouldn't overshadow play all the time.

As far as 3 goes, I agree 100%. This was, by and large, how our group survived in the previous campaign. At the end of the game I was 15th level and I think I had three magic items that I didn't make for myself. Of course one of them was a huge item (a ring of nine lives), but our tactics meant I never had to actually use it.