How do you figure out a race's traits, ability mods, and EL
Terraism
Explorer
This should probably be in the Rules forum, but... I'll field it because if it's going to get moved my answer'll go right with it. Alright - I'll go down through easiest to hardest.
Racial Modifiers - Most people, I believe, ignore the rules for Intelligence scores of less than 10 in the DMG - just use the same method of finding the ability mods for any other stat. That said, in case you don't know those rules... for an odd stat, subtract 11 from the listed score in the MM (or other monster location), divide by 2, and that's the bonus/penalty. For an even stat, subtract 10, divide by 2, and THAT'S the bonus/penalty. It's pretty straightforward that way. Considering THEY ignored the 'Intelligence Chart' for the Half-Orc...
You know what, my comps. being stupid and I've almost lost this message three times... I'll finish it later if no one else does first...
Racial Modifiers - Most people, I believe, ignore the rules for Intelligence scores of less than 10 in the DMG - just use the same method of finding the ability mods for any other stat. That said, in case you don't know those rules... for an odd stat, subtract 11 from the listed score in the MM (or other monster location), divide by 2, and that's the bonus/penalty. For an even stat, subtract 10, divide by 2, and THAT'S the bonus/penalty. It's pretty straightforward that way. Considering THEY ignored the 'Intelligence Chart' for the Half-Orc...
You know what, my comps. being stupid and I've almost lost this message three times... I'll finish it later if no one else does first...
graydoom
First Post
You can figure out the ECL using Soladrin's ECL Calculator. It isn't a perfect tool, but it works pretty well.
Grim said:
Not sure if you're joking or not, but this is becoming a pet peeve of mine.
There is ABSOLUTELY NO REASON monsters should be "balanced" with the races from the PHB. The PHB races are (ideally) balanced with each other, so no one player will have a distinct advantage over another simply due to the race he chose.
If a player decides to be a nonconformist
and play as a monster, him and DM should understand that it's NOT going to be balanced with the normal races. More powerful races will have higher ECLs, so if a player wants to play it and the DM allows it by the book, the character will be balanced with higher level characters, while less powerful ones will simply be less powerful. No additions or benefits to make them more balanced, they'll just be weaker.If I misread the comment, I apologize. The complaining I see (not necessarily here, mostly in the D&D newsgroups and the WotC boards) is frustrating. I think having all races and all creatures balanced with PHB races would make for an incredibly boring world. On the other hand though, the lack of ECLs for every creature, and the fact that the actual ECL mechanic is still in its working stages and not perfected is frustrating too.
Talaysen
First Post
Fear not! My point-based race construction system will solve all your problems.
It will help you create balanced races.
It will help you calculate ECL (or something similar...I won't be calling it that).
It will slice.
It will dice.
It will make Julienne fries.
It will make you rich and famous, and cause Jessica Alba to worship the ground you walk on.
Well, ok, I can't guarantee the last...um...FIVE parts, but it will be pretty darn nifty. I just have some kinks to work out and some playtesting to do. And I need to figure out exactly how the thing will be released. But, in all likelihood, it will be out within a few months, bundled with some other nifty stuff.
It will help you create balanced races.
It will help you calculate ECL (or something similar...I won't be calling it that).
It will slice.
It will dice.
It will make Julienne fries.
It will make you rich and famous, and cause Jessica Alba to worship the ground you walk on.
Well, ok, I can't guarantee the last...um...FIVE parts, but it will be pretty darn nifty. I just have some kinks to work out and some playtesting to do. And I need to figure out exactly how the thing will be released. But, in all likelihood, it will be out within a few months, bundled with some other nifty stuff.
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