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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Brokenheart" data-source="post: 6109307" data-attributes="member: 6721644"><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":-)" title="Smile    :-)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":-)" /> I liked your reply, Celebrim, it was a good read. Well, actually, I have explored it quite a bit..I'm just dealing with alot of issues right now, one of which is a loss in my family. I do agree with you, though, 6th would likely be the highest possible level a person could attain. I have actually tested some of my theories, one of which is that by reducing starting defense (or AC) down to 5 (instead of 10) you can actually increase difficulty and curb players from rushing. Also, if one uses a massive damage rule, essentially capping it at ten, adds alot of nitty to the gritty. For example, a character discharges a .10 gauge mossberg on another, scoring a clear hit -- that's around ten damage...average. In reality, if a man hit full in the chest by a blast like that going to survive? It's very highly unlikely. What this does is cause players to be more careful, and to plan their actions a little better. It also makes encounters play out with more tension and excitement. Also, adding DR to armor can effectively resemblereality in that sense, and make encounters play out with more fun.My own players love my nitty-gritty campaigns, having burned themselves out on the high-level, high-point, pc class stuff. They think it's a blast to get to play a baseball player knocking aliens upside the head with a bat, or a drama queen screaming and running from zombies. Right now, I'm working on a Night of the Living Dead sort of campaign, basically five to six characters trying to survive in a zombie apocalypse. One player wanted to play a soldier, I said sure..roll up a warrior, try and figure out what you want. He said, "He's going to be thirty five, well-built. He's scarred up. Missing teeth. He's got a busted knee." I said, "Okay, sure. Abilities? Skills?" My player replied, "Umm.. 14 strength, 12 dexterity, 12 endurance, 10 intelligence, and 8 Wisdom and Charisma. He's reckless but tough as nails." Another player wanted a Survivalist, kind of a hybrid between expert and warrior. She assigned abilities as 12 strength/15 dexterity/10 endurance/10 wisdom/8 intelligence/ 8 charisma. Now, she wanted a character that was both warrior and expert--good with a shotgun and a shovel...lol. We rolled up her character and it was no where near either a warrior or expert of her level. (I let them start with at two, three if they gimp it well enough). She wasn't satisfied, and all in all I could see why. The soldier had more hp, more defense, more damage, better attack and plenty of skill points. So, to be fair, and considering that it's a severely mixed build and her choice of skills/feats/equipment gimped it to no end, I let her take an extra level. This made her character equal to a level 3 warrior but with a few more skillpoints/skills. Both had good backstories for their characters, which helped with their additional levels. Essentially, the characters they create are nothing more than well-trained, experienced individuals. The soldier is gimped by a messed up knee which slows him down, lowers his dexterity, etc. The survivalist is gimped by her limited choice of weapons, armor, and the fact that she spent all her feats on waaaaaaay sub-par choices. Weapon Focus:Shovel, etc. --Also, speaking of making it more gritty, since the campaign uses Zombies, I added a "Bite" rule. Fortitude save vs Disease, DC 5-10 plus total damage. Disease incubates for 3-to-10 days, or activates once the character dies or has been killed. The players start out meeting up at the house, a two story house with a basement and an attic. Zombies are already inside the house, but hidden. They start out with equipment one would expect for such characters. The soldier starts out with a handgun and a kevlar vest, while the survivalist starts out with a shovel, a knife, and a crossbow, basically. Other characters will come into play to fill it out. --I also mentioned making and using "packages". I use the term package to describe a pre-made, pre-equipped character complete with a backstory. In this, balance can be assured. Here is an example:Survivalist:2 Expert/2 Warrior, Maria Brown. A deeply-tanned, rough looking woman wearing a black tank-top, a pair of black bdu's and combat-boots. She stands at 5'10 with long dark hair, a sharpened shovel drooped lazily over her shoulder. A crossbow is strapped across her back, she wears a belt covered in pouches and sheaths. A large knife is strapped on her thigh. At thirty-five, she is a cold, distant woman whom keeps people at arm's length. She's been through abusive relationships, been a victim of crimes, and became fed-up with it as a teenager. She learned to do everything for herself, rely only on herself, to be self-sufficient. A long jagged scar runs from her left brow to her right cheek. Abilities:12 Str/15-16 Dex/10-12 Con/8 Int/10 Wis/8-6 Cha. (Allowed to substitute 2 points of cha, for two points of con -- neither makes an overly large difference. trades a skill point for a hit point, essentially).Skills:Stealth, Survival, Nature, Perception, Heal, Profession, Climb, Jump, Swim. 3-5 ranks each. Emphasis on Survival, Nature,and Stealth. Hp:21-23.Attack:3 plus 1 melee/3 plus 3 ranged.Defense:5 plus 3 plus 2. 10. DR 1.Feats:*Simple Weapons, Light armor. Weapon Focus:Shovel. Self-Sufficient. Weapon Focus:Crossbow.Equipment:Armored leather jacket (AC 2). Modified Shovel (1d8, plus traits). Modified Combat knife (1d6, plus traits). Folding knife. Multitool. Belt w'pouches/sheaths (typical goods). Light crossbow (1d8).Hehe..that is what I think is a nitty-gritty character. She has a rough backstory, but also her skills/feats/abilities are cinch up into it--it all comes together. So far, Maria has been an interesting character to GM for. Hehe..it's interesting to watch people improvise and adapt. It can almost be like watching a movie, in a sense. Maria's character has gone as far as to make improvisedmolotovs, cut off a zombie's head on a critical with her shovel, use her shovel's handle to trip (and smash zombie heads), stick one's head into a lamp (dex check). The two players try to work together, and so far it's been very funny. I also allow for the characters to use effects not unlike in real-life to allow them more freedom in gameplay, such as increased accuracy from the crossbow's scope and tripod, a crouched or prone position. The Soldier's player, Joey, had the fortune to find a baseball bat in the house's closet. He's found....interested ways to modify and improve it. One game session he says, "Mark looks around for anything useful"...mind you he was in a sewing room...just imagine. I replied...foolishly..."There is a scattering of crafting materials. Yarns, threads, cords, needles, magazines, just about anything an old crafter would have laying around." He replies.."Oh okay. I'll try to find things to add a lanyard to the bat, and maybe drive some darning needles through it!" ..... -_- I was like...oh..crap-o-la. I give him a craft check dc 5.. He makes it. Then he says, "Mark looks at his newly made Spiked Swing Bat!!" he goes on to add that if it has a lanyard it should deal more damage, and the needles add piercing. Having used d6 for the bat, it more or less became a "modern" morningstar.. It was...funny.</blockquote>

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