Our campaing house rules, balanced?

[Noldor Elf]

Purpose of these modifications to the core rules is increase the options of players when they develope they character and encourage on-the-fly leveling instead of creating a full 20 level plan beforehand.

Feats:
1.) All characters receive one extra feat, which can be taken at any level up during characters developement.

2.) At levels 5, 7 and 10 characters receive a feat that can be selected from the following list (feats marked with * are homebrew and listed at the end of the post):
Skill focus (any), Iron Will, Lightning Reflexis, Great Fortitude, all +2 to two skills feats, all +1 to save & +2 to skill feats, New Favoured Weapon*, Favoured Spell, other feats at DM's approval (feats with limited mechanical effect and strong connection to characters personality and events)

New Feats:
New Favoured Weapon
Requirements: Weapon Focus (any), For the last level, character must have used different type of weapon than what the character has the weapon focus for
Benefit: You can change feats Weapon Focus and Weapon Specialization from their original target to the weapon you have used for last level.

Favoured Spell
Requirements: Ability to cast spells
Benefit: Choose one spell that can be up to one level lower than the highest spell level you can cast. You cast that spell with +1 csater level

Races
1.) All races have favoured class: Any except humans who have favoured class: All, meaning that humans can never receive multiclassing penalties.
2.) To compensate loss in favoured class, half-elfs gain Cosmopolitan feat for free at the first level.

Prestice Classes
1.) All mechanical PrC requirements are replaced with DM's story based consideration.

Campaing will most likely start at level 5.

Do you think that these house rules are balanced?

 

[DreamChaser]

if everyone, including the NPCs and enemies gains these benefits, then they can't not be balanced. you're just upping the curve on feats, multiclassing, and PrCs.

Balance only comes up if you add somthing to one class or race but not to others. You're additing to the base mechanics.

DC

 

[Anabstercorian]

One point of advice

Don't let anyone take a prestige class sooner than they could have possibly qualified for it had it been solely mechanical qualifications, or you WILL give people too much power too soon.

 

[Beholder Bob]

I think the efforts you are making will just increase the PC's power LV, not stop people from planning ahead, and are not needed. It is within DM parameters to restrict prestige classes to in story, as in, "no, you may not become an assassin unless you are trained by the Elvis on Black Velvet Brotherhood (EBVB - fear them). You want to be an assassin, go find them." I would even restrict basic multi-classing (i.e. fighter 1 LV, ranger 2 LV, monk 2 LV, etc.) to inner story logic (who teaches you, why are you learning this,...). The most you should give should be a few skill points - a nice underpowered reward for good developed PC history & developed, and in game bonuses (that nice stuff you did for the orphin pays off when it is discovered he has relatives - the duke being one of them).

 

[ichabod]

While I disagree with Dreamchaser that nothing is unbalanced if everybody has it, in this case I think that if the NPCs and monsters also get them, these changes are not unbalanced.

I must also agree with Beholder Bob (BVB is great, I may have to steal that) that this isn't going to have the effect you want. Giving player X some extra feats is not going to change player X's intention to become a drunken master at 6th level.

I would have to ask why you want to do this. I hear a lot of people complaining about planning your character out ahead of time, but I don't see that it's unrealistic. My father planned his life out from the time he was 13, at least as far as anyone can plan a character. And to some extent, that's what the character development part of the game is about for players point of view: setting goals and achieving them.

I think if you really want to achieve what you want, you will have to take control of the character's development to some extent, perhaps by dictating or randomizing feats they gain. Generally, the players are not going to appreciate this. The character is the player's domain after all. Certain games systems managed this well, but those systems make it clear why the characters are developing in certain ways, so that the player can at least indirectly affect their development.

Which brings me to your plans about prestige classes. If a player wants to get a prestige class, it should be clear to them what is required, or there should be some way for him to find out what is required. A few prestige classes/organizations where requirements are unclear can be cool and add flavor, but if they're all that it can become frustrating for the players.

 

[der_kluge]

Personally, I dropped the favored class restrictions entirely.

And I think you should, too.

Just my opinion, obviously. They make no sense to me.

I mean, if most halflings are rogues, then everyone would be constantly stealing from each other in a halfling village! How silly is that.

 

[Derrick Reeves]

Your new feats suck.

New Favoured Weapon
Requirements: Weapon Focus (any), For the last level, character must have used different type of weapon than what the character has the weapon focus for
Benefit: You can change feats Weapon Focus and Weapon Specialization from their original target to the weapon you have used for last level.

Why would you take this? You can always take Weapon Focus/Specialisation in the new weapon and keep your old feat.

Favoured Spell
Requirements: Ability to cast spells
Benefit: Choose one spell that can be up to one level lower than the highest spell level you can cast. You cast that spell with +1 csater level

This is more useful. Don't get me wrong, it's far too weak, but at least it's not totally superfluous. Maybe if you made it +1 caster level to a whole school of magic? Some have suggested that this ability should be subsumed into Spell Focus, with the revised feat giving +1 DC & +1 CL.

 

[Winternight]

Personally, I dropped the favored class restrictions entirely.

Just my opinion, obviously. They make no sense to me.

I mean, if most halflings are rogues, then everyone would be constantly stealing from each other in a halfling village! How silly is that.

Right you are.

--
Another point to balanceing.
I let all my players rolle for attributes and then they may ad a +2 on one attribute.
It is more or less the same as Noldor Elf did. Just making the party tougher.
They shouldn't play on Conventions with their charcters, but me hating it anyway wehen characters from my campaign suddenly disapear and then return with some fancy story.

I think it's fine Noldor, If you don't beef up the monsters you may want to treat the party as one or two levels higher (regarding exp) (e.g. 4 level 6 would count as level 8 party)

 

[Kodam]

just a thought

On principle, its the fighters stick to have lots of bonus feats. If you grant bonus feats to everyone the fighter as a class gets nerfed compared to the other classes. But giving them ONE additional feat of this restricted list should do no harm. Just don't give them more bonus feats...

 

[CRGreathouse]

if everyone, including the NPCs and enemies gains these benefits, then they can't not be balanced. you're just upping the curve on feats, multiclassing, and PrCs.

Sure they can. What if I gave Cleave, Dodge, Expertise, Great Cleave, Power Attack, Spring Attack, Weapon Focus (greataxe), Weapon Specialization (greataxe), and Whirlwind Attack to all characters? I would tip the game balance toward melee characters and away from casters and archers.