Stats, how you come about it!

[K'Plah Q'Houme]

I'm starting a new campaingn come soon, and I would like to know how you guys assign stats to characters. Do you follow the standard rules (as in PHB og DMG 3.5) or do you have some nice elaborate system i can use? I would like the characters to be some what powerfull, but also have some not so good stats... just to make things more fun...

 

[Ron]

I usually allow then to roll two sets of six stats by the standard method and choose one. However, points are the best method a DM has to force his view regarding stats. I believe that 28 is about right, 25 would fit a low powered campaign, 32 would be a high powered, whereas 36 I believe is what is recommended to Forgotten Realms.

 

[diaglo]

3d6 rolled six times in order
Str, Int, Wis, Con, Dex, Cha

the only nonmunchkin way to generate stats.

 

[maddman75]

As I get older, I start to see the wisdom in not wanting to have to look up a table. So I've got my own simplified point buy. The characters buy their stats not by the score, but by the modifier. For my standard games, which features powerful but not superheroic characters, I give them a +8 modifier. Pick any scores you like, just so long as the modifiers add up to 8. Three even and three odd.

This has some upsides and downsides. ON the upside it quick and simple, no chart to look up or math to figure out. It also makes it easy on the DM in judging ability scores of NPCs. On the downside it basically eliminates ability modifiers for race - and if you don't want to make half-orcs unplayable you might want to forget about one of the -2s, otherwise the halforc essentially starts at +7 rather than +8. And higher ability scores aren't weighted, if that bothers you. It hasn't been a problem for me.

 

[Ron]

3d6 rolled six times in order
Str, Int, Wis, Con, Dex, Cha

the only nonmunchkin way to generate stats.

I've a friend that insist that we should roll like that and, although I believe he's saying it more for the fun. I've used in the early 80s with B/X D&D and it worked well. It wasn't good during the AD&D days as the bonuses were restricted to really high scores, but it would work in d20.

 

[DrSpunj]

For my standard games, which features powerful but not superheroic characters, I give them a +8 modifier. Pick any scores you like, just so long as the modifiers add up to 8. Three even and three odd.

I'm trying something very similar for my new campaign, but going with a total of +9 (must be from 3-18 before Racial Mods) and only allowing 2 Odd scores, 4 Even. I figured with Point-Buy that would be the equivalent of [15, 15, 14, 14, 12, 10] which is a respectable (if boring, IMO) 34 pts, but allows you to grab something like 18, 17, 15, 12, 10, 8 if you want higher scores (and that's 43 pts!).

I'm glad to hear it's not upset your game, maddman75.

Thanks!

DrSpunj

 

[Piratecat]

3d6 rolled six times in order
Str, Int, Wis, Con, Dex, Cha

the only nonmunchkin way to generate stats.

Okay, David, put your (proverbial) money where your (proverbial) mouth is! I know you've played in a whole bunch of 3e games both good and bad. Have you created every single one of your characters this way for every single game?

I'm really curious about the answer for this. If yes, I'd love to hear how that affected party balance -- and if no, I'm curious why not when you feel this strongly about it.

 

[IronWolf]

I use and prefer point buy in the campaigns I run. Generally ranging from 28 to 30 points. (though for a 'gritty' campaign I might use the standard 25 points....)

 

[MerakSpielman]

I just have my players roll 4d6-drop-lowest six times. Then they assign the scores to whatever ability scores they want to. If there is no score that is 15 or higher, they can re-roll the whole set if they so choose.

Point buy is nice and all, but makes for rather cookie-cutter characters. It's much more interesting to have random scores. Plus, if you have random scores, you can get lucky, and the thrill of rolling well should not be underestimated (the 15-or-higher rule helps reduce the crushing defeat of rolling poorly).

 

[Imperialus]

Anywhere between 26 and 32 point buy depending on the campaign, usually 28 though.

Rather boring I know but it makes stageing encounters a great deal easier.