D&D (2024) Return to the 3 saves for 1D&D?

[CleverNickName]

When I think "Classic," I think of:

• Poison/Death Ray: a save throw for avoiding poison, sure, but also everything that affects your bodily functions and life force....things like system shock, disease, instant death, and necromancy. Would later be called "Fortitude," then Constitution.
• Magic Wands: a save throw for jumping out of the way of something, like the beam from a magic wand. It would later be called "Reflex," then Dexterity.
• Paralysis/Turn to Stone: a save throw for resisting change (like getting changed into stone), force effects, or physical strength (like breaking magical bindings that "paralyze" you.) Would later be rolled into Fortitude, then become Strength.
• Dragon's Breath: a saving throw made against area effects (like dragon's breath). It models your ability to cover up in time to avoid something. Would later get rolled into Reflex, then Dexterity.
• Spells/Magic Staff: a catch-all save throw for resisting charms, enchantments, curses, and other spells and effects not covered above, a measure of things like influence, personality, and willpower. Would later be called "Will," and then split into Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma.

Do we need to go back to them? Nah. They're fun in their native system (BECM), but I imagine they would be clunky and weird in the modern 5E D20 System. (See also: Fort/Ref/Will.)

 

[Minigiant]

How about we keep 6 saves and actually have spells and effects that call for STR, INT, and Cha saves,?

 

[Tales and Chronicles]

but I imagine they would be clunky and weird in the modern 5E D20 System. (See also: Fort/Ref/Will.)

Old school save are so arbitrary and weird, that's why I love them: it makes magic and supernatural effects something parallel to the physical/mental attributes of the character, something a character has not much power over.

It makes magic spells and magical features more strange and special.

Just have them be 1d20 + Class bonus + Race bonus + proficiency bonus against a DC.

 

[CleverNickName]

I'd kinda like to replace all save throws with a single one, called "Luck." I'm talking ALL saving throws, including death saves.
All character classes would be proficient, but no ability score would adjust it...a "Luck save" would always be (1d20+ProfBonus), every time, no matter how you optimized your stats.

It's probably a bit too monochromatic for most D&D players, but I'd like to take it for a test drive someday.

 

[Fifth Element]

What I do reject is calling those saves "classic" which instead would be "spells", "paralyzation, poison and death magic", "staves, wands and rods", "breath weapons", "petrification and polymorph"...

Super meh. Plenty of people round here cut their teeth on 3E, and it came out over 20 years ago. When someone says "classic three saves" it's clear what they're talking about, because BD&D/AD&D had more than three, so that can't be what they're referring to.

 

[John R Davis]

I like the six stat saves!

 

[edosan]

I'd love to go back to Fort/Ref/Will - it was the model people picked up most intuitively.

 

[Pauln6]

No. Change the existing six saves so that they all get more usage: Strength vs any spells that push or hold, Intelligence saves when interacting with illusions, instead of investigation checks, charisma saves vs spells that dominate rather than influence etc.

 

[Lidgar]

Two saves: Physical and Mental.

Physical: Str/Dex/Con. Use your highest modifier from any one of these stats and add your proficiency bonus if your class is proficient in physical saves.

Mental: Int/Wis/Cha. Use your highest modifier from any one of these stats and add your proficiency bonus if your class is proficient in mental saves.

Warriors and Experts proficient in Physical Saves.

Priests and Mages proficient in Mental Saves.

 

[Lojaan]

Int saves work for reflex, as you can calculate trajectories in your head.

Aaaaah so this is why people who are really good at maths are also really good at sports