On trying to find a good way to remove XP penalties while keeping favored classes

[Jack Daniel]

Wait, Nik the Pig had a great idea... I'm suddenly intrigued by the bonus SP idea. Let's see: it's an incentive to advance in one's favored class, one that humans always benefit from but half-elves may just as easily without cheapening the human, and demihumans aren't shafted at all. I like it a lot. Of course, it would have to be run by my PCs...

 

[Jerrid Al-Kundo]

Actually, there is a rather basic training rule variant in the 3E DMG (as well as Class Restrictions, but that's another topic ).

I've been wanting to ditch Favored Class myself, but haven't for sake of the Human/Half-Elf situation (although I don't have Half-Elves, but that's as irrelevent as my not having Elves or Orcs either, but that, again, is another topic).

The Skill Point option does sound rather nice. Mechanically sound and suitably workable, particularly if you use training and/or require fair in-game/RP reasons for class level selections (like I do).

 

[telepox]

I would opt for leaving the rules as they are, considering they make the most sense.

First off, training costs are silly because your XP shows how much you've trained, and training like that, on the job, always produces far better results than training in a school. So costs are out because costs are silly and senseless.

Second, the XP Penalties make perfect sense because, well, have you ever tried learning more than one MAJOR thing before? Not easy. Try learning martial arts and how to be a rocket scientist at the same time, you may do okay, but also try learning to be a priest or acrobat at the same time, and you got problems with taking everything in. At least, that's how most real people are.

Just makes sense.

I agree. The rules, especially the training variant in the DMG, work well. XP penalties help to dissuade making a character with every class imaginable, which, aside from the Bard, is not realistic. Part of progressing a character is doing your best to avoid the penalties. I agree that it is odd to have a character who could either me a wiz9/ftr1 or ftr9/wiz1, but this is where role playing comes in. Even a master wizard dwarf has more knowlede of fighting than an average non-dwarf wizard of the same CL, who would really have to watch himself from loosing 20%xp just to add fighter as a class (certain races exept of course). The other dwarf may be a warrior of renown, but to overcome his nemesis, he must learn the rudiments of magic to gain a secret edge.