Open feat slot?

[Obscure]

Quick question for the ENWorld sages: is it written anywhere that it is illegal (or legal?) to leave a feat slot open, i.e., to not take a feat at 3rd level and instead take two at 9th level, or one at 7th, etc. I know this could easily be abused and lead to unbalanced characters, but I'm wondering about an official ruling.

 

[AuraSeer]

Officially, you cannot save feats for later.

When you level up, you don't get a "feat slot," or a coupon that is redeemed for one feat at a later time. You get an actual feat, and you must choose which one at that time.

 

[mrtauntaun]

As a DM, at best, I would allow the character not to use the feat slot as long as he remained at that current level. If the feat was still not taken by the next level up, the feat is lost.
By the RAW, you must use the feat when you recieve it, so when the level is first gained.
That being said, feat availability is built into the core mechanics of all classes. By saving them up to higher levels, this would easily unbalance your game.

 

[dcollins]

Quick question for the ENWorld sages: is it written anywhere that it is illegal (or legal?) to leave a feat slot open...

In PHB Ch. 9 there's a list of steps for "Experience and Levels: Level Advancement". Step 7 is "Feats:... you gain one feat of your choice." WOTC designers have said that this needs to be interpreted strictly; you actually gain the feat at that moment, not a "feat slot".

There are details re: the design of feat prerequisites and prestige classes that get broken if you don't follow that strict reading.

 

[Sledge]

IIRC 3.0 flat out stated that feats could not be saved up.

 

[dcollins]

IIRC 3.0 flat out stated that feats could not be saved up.

No, it did not. The status is exactly the same in 3.0 and 3.5.

 

[frankthedm]

As a DM, at best, I would allow the character not to use the feat slot as long as he remained at that current level. If the feat was still not taken by the next level up, the feat is lost.
By the RAW, you must use the feat when you recieve it, so when the level is first gained.
That being said, feat availability is built into the core mechanics of all classes. By saving them up to higher levels, this would easily unbalance your game.

I let players hang onto skill points, feats and spell slots as long as they want. I tell them off the bat "Skill points, feat and spell slots not allocated filled at level up retain all aspects from when they were obtained & can be allocated during situations where XP could possibly be awarded." so if they want to keep a low level feat or a few skill points in reserve, i don't see the problem. I think it is a good idea, if the game takes a HUGE shift in focus, the character can adapt reasonably quickly, choosing a feat he qualified for when he recieved the "feat slot", rewarding him for "doing without" up until that point.

 

[Shariell]

The problem is certain feats are designed to be available only at certain moments (say...BAB +9 and so on). These feats are generally more powerful than others (not always, but in most cases yes), and let a player "save" low level feats to go up further with a plethora of high level feats can seriously unbalance the game.

In a long term campaing, this could be a major problem.
In a campaing started at high level (say a 15+ level campaing), having a character built that manner can often mean brokeness.

 

[irdeggman]

I let players hang onto skill points, feats and spell slots as long as they want. I tell them off the bat "Skill points, feat and spell slots not allocated filled at level up retain all aspects from when they were obtained & can be allocated during situations where XP could possibly be awarded." so if they want to keep a low level feat or a few skill points in reserve, i don't see the problem. I think it is a good idea, if the game takes a HUGE shift in focus, the character can adapt reasonably quickly, choosing a feat he qualified for when he recieved the "feat slot", rewarding him for "doing without" up until that point.

While hanging on to a feat isn't that a big a deal mechanically (unless it is a class specific bonus feat - which potentially opens a whole big can of worms) hanging on to skill points does - unless the character is a single class and never multi-classes or picks up a prestige class. This is because of the cost of a rank in a skill varies depending on the class that the skill points were earned in.

The system you've implemented would appear to cause a potentially huge bookeeping nightmare - since the skill points, feats, etc. must be documented with some sort of annotation of applicable class, level of class (and classes since some feats are character level based), ability scores (also since some feats have ability score prerequisites), BAB and saving throws (likewise some feats have BAB and saving throw prerequisities).

 

[Tatsukun]

As had been said, some feats require later levels (by requiring a high BAB or the like). So if a PC saved all his feats until he could get only the good ones, he's more powerful. If that has been balanced against the fact that he had NO feats for a few levels is up to you.

I would allow it if the PC was actually being played, maybe. I would NOT allow a PC being made at higher levels to have done it in the past (before being played).

What about just saying "You can delay taking a feat as long as you like, but you must fill the feat when gaining a level, and the feat must be one you qualified for when you got the 'feat slot'" ??

-Tatsu