D&D 4E Houseruling a Conan Style Game for 4E

[Retreater]

So if I were going to run a Conan-style game with the 4E rules (based on the original Robert E. Howard fiction more than the movies), what houserules should I use?

I'm assuming the players should have access to only character classes that use martial power. Also, I would likely use the inherent bonus option from the DMG2 to curtail dependence on magic items.

Do you think this would work? Do you think I need to do anything else? Do you think this would be too limiting for the players?

Retreater

 

[fba827]

1) if you haven't already, just browse through dark sun and see some of the stuff it's doing - not saying to take the setting, but just look at the mechanics adjustments and options to get an idea of the types of game mechanics you'll need to consider.

2) DMG2 inherent bonuses a definate

3) to avoid some questions from coming up in the future, i'd be careful on how you worded the class limitation. saying "classes that use martial power" will get you caught when someone wants to use a class that has some martial power and some other power (ex: a ranger build has some martial powers and has some primal powers)

4) Is it too limiting? really depends on your players and what they are looking for and how particular they are. some players i know would be up for giving it a try, others would balk at it because they only like to play magic-types, etc.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

You may also get tripped up by someone wanting to play something like a monk or avenger, who while martial in nature, are not Martial in power source.

And while magic is at an extreme minimum in the REH books, its not entirely absent, as I recall. You might want to throw in one arcane casting and one divine casting class.

 

[RangerWickett]

The quick version:

1. DMG 2 inherent bonuses. This means there's no need for magical gear.

2. Dark Sun weapon breakage. This encourages the disposability of weapons. You break a weapon, draw another one, and once you kill your enemy you take his weapon.

3. Martial classes are the only classes freely available. You can use hybrid rules (from PHB3) to split between a martial class and a non-martial class. So a 'mage' could be a rogue who uses bluff and stealth to make up for his meager spell selection, or a warlord who has some divine powers.

These rules should all be easy to implement in the character builder, and are easy to keep track of. If you want to make magic scarier, just add the following rule, which riffs on defiling from Dark Sun:

4. When you use a non-martial power and don't like an attack roll you've made, you can reroll the attack. If the second roll is a 1, some mishap occurs. The DM is encouraged to be cruel. A demon might possess you, turning you against the party for 1d6 rounds. The ground might open up and people could get sucked toward the unnatural abyss for 1d6 rounds (pull 2 at the start of their turn), after which the ground closes. Something like that.

 

[AngryMojo]

And while magic is at an extreme minimum in the REH books, its not entirely absent, as I recall. You might want to throw in one arcane casting and one divine casting class.

I think most of the magic in Conan can be covered by the Warlock class.

 

[RangerWickett]

Thulsa Doom turns into a snake. Is he a warlord who multiclassed into druid?

Mako's character was able to cast Raise Dead, and use telekinesis to fight over a door. The door thing, admittedly, doesn't fit any existing powers I know of.

A slight step away from Conan, Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser are sword & sorcery heroes, and the latter knows a few magic tricks without having to make a pact with demons.

 

[Mengu]

A lot of magic can be explained away in some classes, parts of it can be removed. It would be a mistake I think to rule out what should be an iconic class for the setting, the Barbarian!

I think it's all right to tweak classes and powers a bit. Looking at all the classes, here is a list of tweaks I think could work.

Cleric (Warpriest)* - remove all implement powers
Fighter (Knight, Slayer) - fine
Paladin* - remove all implement powers
Ranger - fine
Rogue (Thief) - fine
Warlock** - fine
Warlord - fine
Wizard (Mage)** - fine
Avenger* - remove all implement and teleportation powers
Barbarian* - all elemental (fire, cold, thunder, etc) powers have their element removed (any extra damage from the element becomes untyped, any elemental resistance remains unchanged)
Bard* - remove all implement powers
Druid - no
Invoker** - fine
Shaman - no
Sorcerer** - fine
Warden* - all elemental (fire, cold, thunder, etc) powers have their element removed (any extra damage from the element becomes untyped, any elemental resistance remains unchanged)
Ardent - no
Battlemind* - fine
Monk - fine
Psion - no
Runepriest* - fine
Seeker* - fine
Artificer - no
Assassin* - remove all implement powers
Swordmage - no

* only one of these classes may be present in the party.
** only one of these classes may be present in the party. Player should be prepared for some prejudice against him, if playing one of these classes. It may be good for those who like a RP challenge, but bad for those not wanting to play with a handicap.

If you tell your players to be mindful of the setting, I think it will all work out fine. I for instance play a barbarian who has absolutely no "magical feeling" powers.

As far as races go, most can be reskinned as human. A short stocky human could be a dwarf, a young light weight boy could be a halfling, a strong and agile barbarian could be a half-orc, a woodsmen could be an elf. Dragonborn, Gnome, Drow and the like probably won't work for all classes, but a ** class player could choose something like Dragonborn if they were playing a sorcerer (or a drow dark pact warlock). They'd still look human, but you would explain away their racial traits with magic.

There are many viable variations I can think of that would work fine in a conan-like setting. I wouldn't try to make it exactly authentic, that limits both your and the players' creativity a bit too much. With sufficient amounts of reskinning, a party consisting of a Human Paladin, Half-orc Slayer, Halfling Thief, Human Warlord, and Drow Warlock would be quite fine, as would Goliath Fighter, Elf Monk, Human Ranger, Dwarf Warpriest, and Human Invoker.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Interesting that you kept the cleric and ditched the shaman- I'd have done that the other way around.

 

[evilref]

4. When you use a non-martial power and don't like an attack roll you've made, you can reroll the attack. If the second roll is a 1, some mishap occurs. The DM is encouraged to be cruel. A demon might possess you, turning you against the party for 1d6 rounds. The ground might open up and people could get sucked toward the unnatural abyss for 1d6 rounds (pull 2 at the start of their turn), after which the ground closes. Something like that.

This part really does not feel at all like Hyboria. There might be some pastiche where this sort of thing happens but it's definitely not classic Howard Hyboria (or anything i've heard of with the setting/characters)

Interesting that you kept the cleric and ditched the shaman- I'd have done that the other way around.

Same here.

 

[Mengu]

Interesting that you kept the cleric and ditched the shaman- I'd have done that the other way around.

I can see that too. I suppose I'd group the Shaman with the ** classes as highly visually magical because of the spirit companion and implement powers, though the spirit could I guess be reskinned as "real".