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<blockquote data-quote="nharwell" data-source="post: 667831" data-attributes="member: 1099">I have played in several &quot;low-magic&quot; (and even &quot;no-magic&quot;) campgains and, IME, they simply don't work well. DND is NOT designed for that sort of campaign. Yes, a DM could force the game to work for that type of game -- just like he could make DND work for a Vampire game. But why would you want to go to that much trouble to rewrite DND when there are plenty of games better suited to low-magic fantasy?If someone is dead-set on running such a game anyway, here are some things to consider addressing:(1) CR (as mentioned by others) is based on the assumption that the party will have a certain level of magic available. Moreover, some abilities (flight, DR, spell-like powers, etc.) are FAR more valuable in a low-magic setting and so CR should be adjusted accordingly.(2) Combat in DND is built around defensive and healing magics being available. I would strongly suggest implementing a variant combat system (perhaps defensive bonuses and vitality/wound points from Star Wars D20). Otherwise, combat will both be less deadly and more poorly simulate the genre. Another option may be Ken Hood's &quot;Grim and Gritty&quot; combat system.(3) Characters in DND rarely have the type of unusual abilities and breadth of skills that heroes in fantasy novels possess. Feats in 3E help but, given the limited number of feats and skill points, magic items really fill this role in DND. You should consider boosting the number of skill points and feats since magic items are rare.(4) If the classes are unaltered, be aware that they will become less-balanced in such a campaign. Classes with spell-casting and innate magic abilities will have a clear advantage over those who don't.If you're willing to take all these factors into account and alter DND so that it will work for such a game, more power to you!&nbsp; Seriously, if you go to this much effort consider publishing your work -- there is obviously a market for &quot;low-magic D20&quot; (really more accurate than &quot;low-magic DND&quot;, I think).</blockquote>

[QUOTE="nharwell, post: 667831, member: 1099"] I have played in several "low-magic" (and even "no-magic") campgains and, IME, they simply don't work well. DND is NOT designed for that sort of campaign. Yes, a DM could force the game to work for that type of game -- just like he could make DND work for a Vampire game. But why would you want to go to that much trouble to rewrite DND when there are plenty of games better suited to low-magic fantasy? If someone is dead-set on running such a game anyway, here are some things to consider addressing: (1) CR (as mentioned by others) is based on the assumption that the party will have a certain level of magic available. Moreover, some abilities (flight, DR, spell-like powers, etc.) are FAR more valuable in a low-magic setting and so CR should be adjusted accordingly. (2) Combat in DND is built around defensive and healing magics being available. I would strongly suggest implementing a variant combat system (perhaps defensive bonuses and vitality/wound points from Star Wars D20). Otherwise, combat will both be less deadly and more poorly simulate the genre. Another option may be Ken Hood's "Grim and Gritty" combat system. (3) Characters in DND rarely have the type of unusual abilities and breadth of skills that heroes in fantasy novels possess. Feats in 3E help but, given the limited number of feats and skill points, magic items really fill this role in DND. You should consider boosting the number of skill points and feats since magic items are rare. (4) If the classes are unaltered, be aware that they will become less-balanced in such a campaign. Classes with spell-casting and innate magic abilities will have a clear advantage over those who don't. If you're willing to take all these factors into account and alter DND so that it will work for such a game, more power to you! Seriously, if you go to this much effort consider publishing your work -- there is obviously a market for "low-magic D20" (really more accurate than "low-magic DND", I think). [/QUOTE]

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