D&D General Normal Distribution Ability Scores

[DEFCON 1]

Nevermind. Misunderstood.

 

[ezo]

15 dice? little overboard maybe?

Nope.

Didn't you ever play Shadowrun or have a high-level caster with fireball? 15 dice is usually fun for most peoeple.

Method III forever.

Roll 3d6 six times, per stat, take the highest, in order.

LOL that is a very generous method! Average over 14, barely a 5% of rolling a 10 or lower, and nearly 25% for a 16+.

That is a bit too high for me, but if it works for you have at it!

Rolling 3d6 three or even four times per ability would give less generous score of course, but I would be at a power-level I would use in my own games.

 

[FrogReaver]

my personal fav is to have a high mod and a low dice roll. Something like.

1d4+11
1d4+11
1d6+8
1d6+8
1d8+5
1d8+5

 

[Horwath]

Nope.

Didn't you ever play Shadowrun or have a high-level caster with fireball? 15 dice is usually fun for most peoeple.

we use 4 or 5 dice max. rest is averaged out.
fireball is 4d6+14

 

[Lanefan]

Heh heh... yeah, but your tables go through PCs like they are paper cups, so it's not like any of them are going to survive long enough for the score disparities to ever make much of an impression.

I ran the numbers a few years ago and found starting stat average played at most a very minor role (and possibly none, depending where the border of statistical tolerance falls) in a character's expected lifespan in adventures played.

And some of them survive considerably more than long enough to make an impression. At the time I ran the numbers I know the low was 0* adventures and I think the high was 19.

* - 0 means the character died in its first adventure.

 

[DEFCON 1]

I ran the numbers a few years ago and found starting stat average played at most a very minor role (and possibly none, depending where the border of statistical tolerance falls) in a character's expected lifespan in adventures played.

And some of them survive considerably more than long enough to make an impression. At the time I ran the numbers I know the low was 0* adventures and I think the high was 19.

* - 0 means the character died in its first adventure.

True dat. Even in 5E the disparity in modifiers between low and high ability scores is at best like 5 points. When you throw that up with the 20-point swing of a d20... the ability score is 1/4th as important to the result as the die. So being lucky on your die rolls means a heck of a lot more to a PC's survival than what their ability scores are, LOL.

 

[mellored]

Choose 3 strong stats, 3 weak stats.

Roll 22 - 2d4, assign to a strong stat.
Roll 4 + 2d6, assign to a weak stat.
Repeat

 

[mellored]

my personal fav is to have a high mod and a low dice roll. Something like.

1d4+11
1d4+11
1d6+8
1d6+8
1d8+5
1d8+5

I would start with the high variable rolls first. And then assign each one before rolling the next, so there is chance your dump stat could be higher than your main stat.

Sort of like Yatzee.

I.e.

2d20 drop the lowest, assign to a stat
3d10 drop the lowest, assign to a stat
3d8, drop the lowest, assign to a stat
4d6, drop the lowest, assign to a stat
5d4, drop the lowest, assign to a stat
15. As a floor on how low your main stat can be.

 

[TwoSix]

LOL that is a very generous method! Average over 14, barely a 5% of rolling a 10 or lower, and nearly 25% for a 16+.

That is a bit too high for me, but if it works for you have at it!

Rolling 3d6 three or even four times per ability would give less generous score of course, but I would be at a power-level I would use in my own games.

High stats are fun, as are the occasional low stat in a stat you don’t care about much. So why not just give players more fun?

Like @Lanefan said, the actual arrangement of stats doesn’t make much of an impact on the overall survivability of characters, so why not give players something they’ll be excited about?

 

[ezo]

High stats are fun, as are the occasional low stat in a stat you don’t care about much. So why not just give players more fun?

Like @Lanefan said, the actual arrangement of stats doesn’t make much of an impact on the overall survivability of characters, so why not give players something they’ll be excited about?

While they don't have a huge impact overall, higher scores strain believability for me when PCs have them all the time, and can become just as boring as low stats IME.

But, no issues, you do you, just Method III with six rolls each is too high for my personal preferences.

Cheers