Greenfield
Adventurer
Active Defense looks interesting, but I don't know that I'd put it in general use. Adding dice rolls adds to complication, and in some cases to frustration.
I might allow it for specific creature/builds. Tank type critters such as Golems wouldn't get it. Agile critters and "mobility fighter" types, as well as Monks, might choose it as an option. Repeat: OPTION.
Gender adjustments may look balanced, but they really aren't, particularly when you use the point-buy system for ability scores. My female Rogue or Wizard buys STR to 13 (numbers up to 14 cost one for one under 3.5 point buy) and lets it drop to a 10. Her 15 DEX gets bumped to 16, which would have cost her more than one additional purchase point. If I paid for 17 and it went to 18, that extra point was worth even more. Same for Con or Wis.
If someone wants to play the "Weaker Sex" that way, let them simply buy their stats accordingly.
We play with a couple of house rules that seem to work well.
Characters don't die at -10. They die at the negative of their CON. It adds to PC survivability at lower levels, and recognizes that some people are just harder to kill than others. (Note that this applies to monsters and bad guys as well, so some of those big-bads are really hard to put down for good.)
Iterative attacks come every 4 BAB points, instead of every 5, and each has a -4 penalty instead of -5. It helps the melee types keep up with the spell casters at higher levels, without massively warping a lot of other associated rules.
I might allow it for specific creature/builds. Tank type critters such as Golems wouldn't get it. Agile critters and "mobility fighter" types, as well as Monks, might choose it as an option. Repeat: OPTION.
Gender adjustments may look balanced, but they really aren't, particularly when you use the point-buy system for ability scores. My female Rogue or Wizard buys STR to 13 (numbers up to 14 cost one for one under 3.5 point buy) and lets it drop to a 10. Her 15 DEX gets bumped to 16, which would have cost her more than one additional purchase point. If I paid for 17 and it went to 18, that extra point was worth even more. Same for Con or Wis.
If someone wants to play the "Weaker Sex" that way, let them simply buy their stats accordingly.
We play with a couple of house rules that seem to work well.
Characters don't die at -10. They die at the negative of their CON. It adds to PC survivability at lower levels, and recognizes that some people are just harder to kill than others. (Note that this applies to monsters and bad guys as well, so some of those big-bads are really hard to put down for good.)
Iterative attacks come every 4 BAB points, instead of every 5, and each has a -4 penalty instead of -5. It helps the melee types keep up with the spell casters at higher levels, without massively warping a lot of other associated rules.