Once a day abilities

[Master of Monkeys]

I am going to try to proofread this post so I don't have to edit it.

How do you guys explain, in roleplaying terms, abilities that only work once a day? Especially with races, it seems odd that a gnome can only talk to animals once a day, how do I explain that to my players? He forgot how? How do I explain that his barbarian can't get mad any more, he doesn't feel angry? I don't really like once a day abilities, it seems like, under the right (wrong) Dm, they only work when you don't need them, I mean sure, they might work when you really do need them, but it sort of feels like a DM is allowing them to, like having the main enemy of a campaign the ranger's favored enemy.

 

[Dagger75]

Well with the speak with animals thing ITS MAGIC. For a FANTASY role playing game I think that should be an explaination.

For the barbarian- yeah he gets mad and rages his body sends adreniline through out his sytem his mind focus on the fight and anger. When he is low level his body can only handle and produce these effcts once a day. As he progresses in barbarian levels he gets better trained at it, his body can handle it easier and can produce it more often.

Hope that helps.

 

[Tsyr]

For one a day abilities...

The persons body stores the energy. It generates and stores enough for a use at approximatly 24 hour intervals. Once used, the body doesn't have the energy to do it again for a while.

 

[Shinanofran]

I always thought of these abilities as muscles. but if you think about it concentrating on creating the link to the animal takes energy. After a certain amount of time it gets really tiring and possibly even painful to maintain this strainful link. Trying to re-establish the link without time for the "muscle" to rest will only result in a waste of energy and probably a headache.

And with a rage, a barbarian strains every muscle in his or her body without thinking about side effects. This burst of stamina is tiring to the barbarian, but also his or her body has undergone an incredible rush of adreniline and stress. Leaving his muscles in ruin until they are relaxed for a time.

usually this is fine, but when players use methods to cut the resting time (ring of sustinense, etc.) I wonder whether or not they should be fully rested, but whatever.

hope that helps, but its just the way I see it.

 

[The Dungeon Nazi]

The way I interpret the whole "once a day thing" is once in an adventuring day, separated from the next by a period of rest. While the wizard and priest can only cast a fixed amount of spells spells once per day, and then need to rest to replenish them, the barbarian also requires this period of rest to let his body rest and regenerate, build muscle, etc.

This is only relevant insofar as if the PCs push themselves really hard and don't get that required rest, then the once-a-day abilities aren't going to function.

 

[DWARF]

They're body has exhausted that possibility. They're "spent" as it were. Sorta like if someone gets a really bad jelly-fish bite and they have to pee on their leg to neutralize the acid. But if they've gone 5 minutes before, they can't do it.

As for the gnomes and speak with animals, that I run as a magical ability, since that's what it is. They can pull it off once, but they only have enough magic in them to try it once a day. Kinda like when you're painting a picture. If you go out to paint, but don't get hit with an idea, then there's nothing you can do. You can't just make yourself be creative that way.

 

[Jack Haggerty]

Especially with races, it seems odd that a gnome can only talk to animals once a day, how do I explain that to my players?

Has anyone ever played (or played with) a gnome that has used that "Speak with Burrowing Mammals" ability?

Just curious...

 

[Tsyr]

Yup. Played a Chaotic Neutral gnome psionic warrior who used it to start an in-party rebellion against the druid with her mole animel companion... she was abusing the thing, it almost died a number of times through her stupidity.

 

[Snoweel]

Little magic spirits.

Say there's an ancestral spirit that visits the gnome at sunrise and remains with him.

However, upon speaking to a burrowing animal, the power of the spirit is spent and it's unable to manifest again until a "recharging period" during the darkness hours.

Or you could just take spell limitations as an abstraction - just like hp and initiative (among other things).

 

[Voadam]

In one game I rescued a village of gnomes who only spoke in burrowing mammal languages. Had to communicate through gestures and facial expressions while they were barking and yipping at us until we got telepathic communication established. (yes I know that's not how it works in standard 3e)