How do I make a charcter

[Alexander]

Okay here it is. Normaly I am a fighter but right now I went for a change.

Name: Kyle Class: Ranger Aligment: Chaotic Neutral Deities:
Race: Elf Vison: Level: 1 Sex: Male Eyes: Browen Hair: Black
Player Name: Age: 190 Height: 5'6 Weight 146
AS AM
STR: 20 5 AC: 20
DEX: 19 4
CON:18 4
INT: 20 5
WIS: 20 5
CHA: 17 3


That what I have for now.

 

[Halivar]

Alex, if you have a copy of the PHB, you may find the glossary in the back to be immense help. It was to me.

About your stats; they're not right. Using the standard 4d6-drop-the-lowest method, the highest stat you should have would be an 18 (pretty special occurance), with the exception of racially adjusted stats (that means the race you chose gets a +2 or -2 to certian "stats", also called "ability scores").

Here's how I do it.

1) Roll 4d6 six times, and write down the results. I get something like this:

Roll #1: 5 1 4 2
Roll #2: 3 6 6 1
Roll #3: 4 6 6 6
Roll #4: 2 4 2 4
Roll #5: 1 6 4 4
Roll #6: 1 6 3 6

I write these top-down, greatest to least:

5 6 6 4 6 6
4 3 6 4 4 6
2 6 6 2 4 3
1 1 4 2 1 1

2) I arranged them downwards from greatest to least, so that I can just cut off the bottom line (this is where "drop-the-lowest" comes in), like so:

5 6 6 4 6 6
4 3 6 4 4 6
2 6 6 2 4 3

3) I total them downwards, giving me:

11 15 18 10 14 15

Thos are pretty good stats, IMHO.

4) Now arrange them into the stats you want them in. As a ranger, you want high Strength (slashing power) and high Dexterity (dodging power). You will also need a Wisdom greater than 10 (so the ranger can cast better magic when you get to that level). A Consitution greater than 10 will give you more hitpoints. My suggested spread is this:

STR = 15
DEX = 18
CON = 15
INT = 10
WIS = 14
CHA = 11

For a ranger, don't worry about Charisma. It affects sorcerors, paladins, druids, and any diplomatic skills.

5) Now, because you are an elf, you get a +2 "racial bonus" to Dexterity (because elves are quicker), and a -2 to Constitution (because they're weaker).

Now your stats look like this:

STR = 15
DEX = 20
CON = 13
INT = 10
WIS = 14
CHA = 11

These are good stats. Just follow this method to come up with your own and you have a start.

 

[Halivar]

Oops. I forgot modifiers. "Modifiers" are how your stats are used in the campaign. Each stat (or ability) has a modifier. It's called a modifier because it "modifies" certain aspects of your character. For instance:

Strength modifies... attacks, damage, climbing, swimming, etc.
Dexterity modifies... armor class (how hard it is to hit you), how well you dodge magical attacks, etc.
Constitution modifies... hit points (your "life", to use a video game term), how well you handle poison, etc.
Intelligence modifies... how good wizards cast magic, how skilled you are, etc.
Wisdom modifies... how good clerics, druids, and rangers cast magic, how well you handle some magic effects, how alert you are to danger, etc.
Charisma modifies... how good bards and sorcerors cast magic, how much sway you have over other people (persuasiveness), etc.

The way to determine a stats "modifier" is simple. Subtract 10, divide by 2, rounding down. Taking the stats above, we have the following modifiers (I put them in parenthesis after the stat itself with a plus "+" sign, because it gets added to stuff):

STR = 15 (+2)
DEX = 20 (+5)
CON = 13 (+1)
INT = 10 (+0)
WIS = 14 (+2)
CHA = 11 (+0)

This character, judging by his stats, is really, really quick on his feet. It's hard to hit him. He's pretty average in the smarts and likeability department, but he's more than decent in combat and magical prowess. Hit-points are not suffering, either.

Many times, when I build a character, I automatically think in terms of modifiers instead of stats, since it's the modifiers that actually get used, while the stats are generally only used to determine the modifiers.

Going to see Shrek 2. More to come afterwards.

 

[BSF]

Okay here it is. Normaly I am a fighter but right now I went for a change.

Name: Kyle Class: Ranger Aligment: Chaotic Neutral Deities:
Race: Elf Vison: Level: 1 Sex: Male Eyes: Browen Hair: Black
Player Name: Age: 190 Height: 5'6 Weight 146
AS AM
STR: 20 5 AC: 20
DEX: 19 4
CON:18 4
INT: 20 5
WIS: 20 5
CHA: 17 3


That what I have for now.

Alexander,
What edition of D&D are you playing? That will have an affect on what your HP are.

OK, your stats are pretty far out there for a 1st level character. But, if the DM is cool with them, and they are in line with any other potential players, then you will be good. But, keep in mind that those stats would be considered far beyond extraordinary in most games. Any DM looking at the character might flat out reject those stats and ask you to roll up new ones.

OK, back to HP. In 3.0 rules, a Ranger gets a d10 for Hit Points at each level. In 3.5 rules, a Ranger gets a d8 for Hit Points. However, at 1st level, you normall get your max HP. Now, HP are also modified by your Con. In this case, you have a positive modifier (+4), so you get an additional +4 HP. that means you have either 10 + 4 = 14, or you have 8 + 4 = 12, depending on the rules version.

Your Armor Class is a reflection of your armor, plus your Dexterity bonus. There are plenty of other bonuses that can be applied as you gain magic items, but for now it is armor bonus + dex bonus. These are added to the base armor class of 10. In your case, you have 10 + armor bonus + 5 (Dex bonus). Right now, you have AC 15 without any armor. You need to look at the armor listings and figure out what kind of armor appeals to you the most. Though, be sure to note the Maximum Dex Bonus column. This column tells you how much Dex bonus you can apply in any given set of armor. If you are wearing armor that has a Maximum Dex bonus less than your Dex bonus, you are unable to use all of your Dexterity. You will have a difficult time bringing your AC to 20 unless you use a shield.

There is still the matter of Feats and Skills to pick, but I will leave that be for now until we know what version of the rules you are using.

 

[Rel]

Another example of somebody using Charisma as a dump stat.

 

[Halivar]

Another example of somebody using Charisma as a dump stat.

Yeah, I long for the campaign where my dump stat is a 17!

 

[MerakSpielman]

I am curious what guidelines you were given for your character creation.

I ask this because you are obviously playing in a high-powered campain (nothing wrong with that) and if you were given alternative rules for determining your ability scores there might be house rules in effect concerning your feats and skills.