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Message: <blockquote data-quote="amethal" data-source="post: 4118832" data-attributes="member: 22784">I have plenty of 3rd edition adventure modules where minor NPCs are not stated up. Maybe not so much the WotC ones.I don't see anything wrong in describing a village healer as "Jurgen, human male, NG, heal +12, loves to gossip".What 3rd edition does do is tie ability to experience. So if you want the village healer to be first level (although why the heck you'd care what level the healer is I have no idea) then he probably isn't going to have heal +12. Probably more like 4+2+3 = +9. Seems perfectly reasonable to me.If you want heal +12 (again, I don't see why you'd care) then make him 5th level. Or make him older, to increase his wisdom.The fact he's 5th level theoretically tells you things about his base attack bonus, hp etc., but since he never gets into a fight this is irrelevant.What 4th edition allows you to do is give him the kobold glue pot ability, the bugbear meat shield ability and anything else you want without having to justify it. And the PCs will never get those abilities, and again you never justify it.I prefer the 3.5 method. If I didn't, its still not a compelling reason to switch to 4th since "I can do what the heck I want when designing NPCs" is the easiest thing in the world to houserule into any role-playing system.</blockquote>