Stat Generation - your wierd and wacky ways

[Drowbane]

Make you stat bonuses come out to a certain, pre-assigned number. By that I mean your stats can be anything you want (up to a maximum of 18 and minimum of 3) but the bonus, when added together, add up to a certain number (about 4 or 5 might be a good number). Half of your stats are designated odd and half even as well. I hope that makes sense.

One of my former groups used something like this that they called "Rule 11". Your stat-mods = 7, 9, or 11 (depending on power variance). It worked fine, players tended to be not so frantic about min/maxing, as they had enough points to do what they need and still have some left over for what they want. Monks were actually playable

This is pretty much what we call the "we're all adults here" method. We use it with pretty much any game we play.

I've used Rule 11, 4d6-drop, and with players I feel comfortable with I use the "We're all adults here" method. I might see one or 2 18s, really not a problem however.

I absolutely hate traditional Point Buy.

 

[RedShirtNo5]

Twenty-four cards, four each ace, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. Deal into six piles of four cards, turn over in stat order, take best three of four. Swap any two stats.

-RedShirtNo5

 

[Agback]

I think the ability generation method varies with the type of campaign. Most of my campaigns are the "little guy swept up in the big events" model and I always toy with the idea of rolling 3d6 and assigning the first to Strength, second to Dex, etc. I've never had the courage to force my players to do it, though, and was wondering if anyone actually has.

That's the way we used to play it back when I started off (with AD&D in 1980).

It had this advantage: it tended to keep players from getting into ruts.

It had this disadvantage: sometimes a party ended up with either no magic-user or no cleric.

 

[Kristivas]

4d6, drop the lowest, reroll 1's - 6 times.
Repeat once.

You get 2 sets of ability scores, one of which you pick (no swapping amongst them). It leads to some tough characters, but you can still get a few lower scores.

 

[Agback]

I'm trying to think of a method that will occasionally shove players out of their ruts, giving them a reason to play a character other than their stock whatever. What I had in mind was this.

You pick two top attributes, two middling attributes, and two bottom attributes. Then you roll 5d6 keep three for the top attributes, 4d6 keep three for the middling attributes, and 3d6 keep three for the bottom attributes. No swaps. No trade-offs.

Mostly this ought to give you a fairly decent member of the class you had in mind to begin with. But occasionally it is going to tempt you to try something else, or to multiclass at some stage.

 

[Conaill]

Another vote for the playing cards method. Well, the simplest version anyway:

Take a deck of playing cards and remove all but the 1-6 cards. Deal 6 stacks of 4 cards, remove the lowest card from each stack, add each stack and assign as desired. Note that for each individual stat, this gives almost exactly the same distribution as 4d6-drop-lowest, but the *joint* distribution will be much more balanced.


A few more methods I'd like to try out one day:

- Roll 3 stats using your favorite method. The remaining three stats are 25 minus the first three (max 18). You'll get one low stat for every high stat, 3 odd and 3 even stats, and a total that sums up to exactly 75. (Unless you're unlucky and wind up rolling below a 7 on your first 3 stats. But at least you'll get an 18 in that case as well.) Change the 25 in the formula to some other odd number to give higher- or lower-powered stats.

- Roll 6 stats using your favorite method, and calculate the resulting point buy. If the pointbuy is above a given target, decrease stats as desired until you hit the target (but you can only *decrease* stats). If the pointbuy is below the target, increase (and only increase) stats until you hit the target.


Overall, my preference is for methods that have some random component, but yield balanced stats. The three methods above give you the best of both worlds in those respects.

The variants I most *detest* are those where you get the worst of both worlds: ones that generate inherently unbalanced stats, and then let you min-max them to death. Pointbuy with a 20+d10 point value comes to mind. Blech!

 

[Conaill]

Back in 2e days I used an odd system that was pretty fun.

Stats were a two stage process, you had a pool of 26 dice to apply to each stat. You assigned the dice in whatever groupings you wanted, then rolled and took the highest 3.


In this manner you could guide the character towards an intended goal by placing more dice against a given stat.
In play it was occasionally funny, like the time my 2D6 CHR rolled higher than my 6D6 STR!
Oh well, made for a fun Half-Orc weakling thief anyway

I'd love to try that one as well - provided you don't have to pick race and class *before* rolling the stats.

 

[Fieari]

I read of a method someone suggested in another thread here that my players have become quite fond of. They roll 4d6, I roll 4d6 (but in secret) and they tell me which roll they'd rather have. Take what they see, or gamble on what I've got. When they get obviously horrible rolls (a 6 or 7, for example) they jump at the chance to use my number instead, and they sometimes gamble a little with the higher rolls. It works quite nicely.

 

[Thanee]

http://home.earthlink.net/~duanevp/dnd/stat_generation.htm

Nice list.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Psychic Warrior]

http://home.earthlink.net/~duanevp/dnd/stat_generation.htm
It's interesting enough. I don't think I have anything quite like it on the above list. I might just add it on.

Wow. Very thourgh. Some of those I have never heard of (the 6X6 method espeically). Others I have used quite a bit (like the 'Organic' method).

Thanks everyone for sharing your thoughts and methods. I didn't realize playing cards had become so popular for sta generation! I think I am going to go back to some 2E flavour and use Method VI. Start with an 8 in each ability score and roll xd6 (I think i'll either use 9d6 or 7d6 with 2 re rolls - DM's choice if you are allowed them). It is different enough to possibly be a lot of fun and I don't think I have much to worry about in the min/max area, my players are pretty fair minded (but I wouldn't let them just pick ther stats - that way lies madness!).