Minotaurs and CL/LA

[Will]

Oh, starting at 10?

The problem is that LA and HD both pay off advantages. If he's not paying LA or humanoid HD, then he shouldn't have the advantages.

Maybe make him a minotaur in name only, and give him, oh, half-orc traits?

 

[Trainz]

Oh, starting at 10?

The problem is that LA and HD both pay off advantages. If he's not paying LA or humanoid HD, then he shouldn't have the advantages.

Maybe make him a minotaur in name only, and give him, oh, half-orc traits?

The other players will roll standard 10 level PC's. HE would create an LA +4 6th level fighter minotaur. Receive XP as a 10th level character.

 

[Trainz]

In that case I think you might want to be bit more draconian and go with LA +5 since he is eking all the benefit he can out of the race. That or make him take the Racial HD. But it all depends on your game and what style of play you have and what the other player or going to make.

I don't like shifting LA around what the player would legitly make of it. It would feel like I'm off to nerf him personally.

I like my formula: racial hit dice /3 plus base LA= unleveled monster race. Feels right.

Or if you think that's too little, then I'll go racial hit dice /2 (for a total LA of +5 in this instance). But I won't make it so that I wing it depending on what the player wants to make of his character.

 

[Spatula]

— Large size. –1 penalty to Armor Class, –1 penalty on attack rolls, –4 penalty on Hide checks, +4 bonus on grapple checks, lifting and carrying limits double those of Medium characters.

Plus it allows the use of larger weapons (more damage, potentially even more reach, bonuses to disarms, harder to sunder).

A half-dargon is +3 and it gets:

Abilities: Increase from the base creature as follows: Str +8, Con +2, Int +2, Cha +2.

Among quite a few other things.

Nothing very incredible when applied to one of the regular PC races, though.

 

[Trainz]

I just re-read the Monster Manual minotaur entry. Let's see the difference between the standard 6 hit dice minotaur with one level of fighter and a 7th level fighter minotaur with no racial hit dice:

-BAB remains the same. That is a very important point.

-Fighter will have 4 more fighter feats, potentially weapon specialisation.

-Fighter will have 6 more hit points (difference between the average of hit dice d8 and d10 for 6 levels).

-Huh... that's about it.

SO...

We are talking about 4 feats, and 6 hit points. Is that worth an increase in LA of +3 ?

Absolutely not. BAB will remain the same. A +2 increase to LA is about the most you can make a player swallow for so little advantages.

 

[Camarath]

I don't like shifting LA around what the player would legitly make of it. It would feel like I'm off to nerf him personally.

I like my formula: racial hit dice /3 plus base LA= unleveled monster race. Feels right.

Or if you think that's too little, then I'll go racial hit dice /2 (for a total LA of +5 in this instance). But I won't make it so that I wing it depending on what the player wants to make of his character.

It is your game but I like for when I change the rules, as we talking about doing here, for the out come to fit the situation. Thus is someone wished to play a Minotaur Wizard with out racial HD I would allow them to do so with a lesser LA because that character would be far less powerful than a tweeked Combat Reflexes/Improved Trip/Spiked Chain Monster. I tend to either go by the rules and call it fair (in this case making the character take the Racial HD) or bend the rules and try for balance (adjust the LA based on the build).

But if you are going for a standard House Rule Racial HD/3 + base LA = total LA will probably work pretty well.

 

[Spatula]

Keep in mind that it's not easy for minotaur (-4 Int) to qualify for Improved Trip.

 

[Trainz]

Please take note of my previous post (last one on page one of thread), you probably missed it, and I would like to know what you think.

 

[Trainz]

Keep in mind that it's not easy for minotaur (-4 Int) to qualify for Improved Trip.

Woah... he's going to have to put a 17 in Int. THAT'S going to hurt.

Looks like the build somewhat balances itself. Nice. I like it when a plan comes together.

 

[Camarath]

We are talking about 4 feats, and 6 hit points. Is that worth an increase in LA of +3 ?

As well as -2 Fortitude -5 Reflex -5 Will saves. You are right I think any LA greater than +4 would be unfair to the player.