need advice on a new feat

[Yuan-Ti]

I am working on a new campaign I am going to run and I am working on several "flavor feats" and I wanted to ask the board's advice on if this feat sounds too powerful, too weak, too restrictive or too X?

The feat I have in mind gives characters a +1 to hit in combat when wielding a melee weapon. The restrictions on the feat are: characters must take the feat at first level, must worship a specific god (and stay true to his tenets), and must come from a specific campaign location.

Other options I have considered:
- character has to choose a specific melee weapon
- character can opt to choose a missile weapon instead
- +1 to hit, +2 to hit within a VERY limited geographic area (holy to the god in question)


I think it's okay, but I want players to actually consider taking it and I don't want it to be unbalancing. Any advice on this?

 

[Geoff Watson]

Why don't they take Weapon Focus instead?

If it's for a specific geographical area or religion, do the others get equivalent bonuses?

Geoff.

 

[Yuan-Ti]

Why don't they take Weapon Focus instead?

If it's for a specific geographical area or religion, do the others get equivalent bonuses?

Geoff.

They can take weapon focus as well, if they want, and it applies to all melee weapons not just a particular one.

Well, there are other feats for other regions but they relate to the history of the region and so I am not sure they are really equivalent in the sense of being balancing -- except that I am trying to make them all similar to other feats that can be taken at level 1.

 

[Spatzimaus]

All weapons? Too much.

Now, if you made it more specific, then maybe. For example, if they had to pick Slashing, Piercing, or Bludgeoning, then fine. But, as it is, you're giving Weapon Focus in every weapon, with only a "must take at 1st level" and RP stuff as limitations.

 

[Yuan-Ti]

All weapons? Too much.

Now, if you made it more specific, then maybe. For example, if they had to pick Slashing, Piercing, or Bludgeoning, then fine. But, as it is, you're giving Weapon Focus in every weapon, with only a "must take at 1st level" and RP stuff as limitations.

I see your point and that was what I was worried about. What if I limit it to a small set of weapons? say the three weapons most commonly used by the people of the city in question? The thing is that given Weapon Focus, I want this feat to have some advantage given the RP limits. If I limit it to one weapon then it is like being able to take Weapon Focus twice...

Needs more thought on my part!

Thank you for the feedback!

 

[Limper]

How big is the geographic area in question?

If its like 'the Vale of the Forbidden City' it needs more.


If its 'In forested terrain' then as written its fine.


If its 'In Russia' then its to much.

Its a good set of bonuses for low level... at mid level its useful yet not crucial... and at high levels it a drop in the bucket.

 

[Guilt Puppy]

At high level every drop in the bucket is important. Five percent of a character's average damage on a successful hit isn't a lot at first level -- at high levels, the bigger you can get your base attack the better.

Anyway, as written it seems a bit... clunky, mechanically. I'm still not sure on the flavor you're going for... What is it that you want the feat to do, in-game? That's the first step to resolving it, in a balanced way, mechanically.

 

[Yuan-Ti]

First, thanks for the feedback. Let me clarify things a little bit. Here is how I have the feat written at the moment. I decided to add crossbow to the mix as it makes more sense not to exclude it given the background of the feat.

Right Hand of Oberon [General]

fluff explaining the origin of the feat -- essentially in a particular city they worship a god called Oberon and some people in the city undergo a ritual which applies this feat to them. It happens at a young age which is why it must be taken at character creation. It is visible as it takes the form of a mark upon the palm of the hand. The Hand of Oberon is a stone figure that overlooks the plains in around the city itself. The particular weapons are those commonly used by the city's militia.

Choose one of the following weapons: any mace, any spear, short sword, long sword, halberd, any crossbow. Imbued by the spirit of Oberon you strike more accurately with this weapon. If you are a spellcaster, you can choose "ray" in which case you are especially good with rays.

Region: Oberon

Prerequisite: satisfy region requirement

Benefit: You add +1 to all attack rolls you make using the selected weapon. When fighting within sight of the Hand of Oberon, you add an additional +1 to all attack rolls you make using the selected weapon.

Special: You may only take this feat as a first-level character. As the feat is imbued by the priests of Oberon, those who do not worship him cannot take this feat. Likewise, those who violate the basic tenets of his faith and cease to worship him find that the mark fades and with it the benefits of the feat.

I do have to say that there are only two reasons why a player may choose this feat over weapon focus: 1) because there is no +1 base attack prereq then even non fighter-types can take this feat at first level; 2) it stacks with weapon focus, so a human fighter might conceivably take both. The additional +1 is clearly for flavor and is not really unbalancing unless the DM chooses to fight all battles on the plains in front of the city of Oberon.

Okay, now that I have actually presented the thing in more concrete form, I will ask again for feedback. Thanks in advance!

 

[Anubis]

I think that given the nature of feats, having a requirement that only allows it to be taken at Level 1 is overly pedantic. There should be MINIMUM prerequisites, not maximum prerequisites.

Basically, I simply can not find the logic as to why the feat could only be taken at Level 1. Feats are things you learn, not things you are born with or that are innate. For it to be restricted to Level 1 implies that it is in the character's genes. In that case, you should consider giving characters a percentage chance of starting with it, and not having it take up a feat slot. Or something like that.

 

[Yuan-Ti]

I think that given the nature of feats, having a requirement that only allows it to be taken at Level 1 is overly pedantic. There should be MINIMUM prerequisites, not maximum prerequisites.

Basically, I simply can not find the logic as to why the feat could only be taken at Level 1. Feats are things you learn, not things you are born with or that are innate. For it to be restricted to Level 1 implies that it is in the character's genes. In that case, you should consider giving characters a percentage chance of starting with it, and not having it take up a feat slot. Or something like that.

Well, it is in the nature of many regional feats that they must be taken at level 1. In fact the very logic of regional feats is that they are something you learned or developed precisely because you grew up in a particular region. This feat is clearly not a learned thing (unless it is psychological rather than magical -- "this mark on your hand will guide your weapon as long as you hold faithful to Oberon" brainwashing). On the other hand, the intention is that if a character grew up in Oberon there is a good chance they underwent this ritual. The purpose of making it a feat is because it means the player can't say, "Oh, I take these feats at level one plus my character came from Oberon so he gets that ritual thing on his hand." No, instead, the character has to pay for it in essence.

As I have said before, my real issue here is that I want to add flavor to my campaign setting. I still want to maintain balance while making it attractive (but not overly attractive) for players to take some of the regional feats. But in the end, it is for flavor and therefore not overly pedantic after all.