Substats as Traits

[Nifft]

Unearthed Arcana introduced Traits, little internally-balanced quirks which gave a related bonus and penalty to allow better character customization without sucking up a feat slot.

People have been interested in "sub-stats" which break down the six classic ability scores into smaller chunks. However, many (if not most) characters won't benefit much from such a breakdown -- the number of strong warriors who want to be good at everything that Strength provides outnumber the few who are shooting at a smaller target.

So, to accommodate both the majority and minority, let's implement the effect of sub-stats by using a new set of Traits to implement the cases where one "sub-stat" is significantly different than the other. I'll break these new Traits down by the major ability score they modify:


Strength

Musclebound
You gain +2 to Bull Rush, Trip and Grapple checks.
You suffer -2 to these skill checks: Jump, Climb, Swim.
You suffer a -5 ft. penalty to speed.

Natural Athlete
You gain +2 to these skill checks: Jump, Climb, Swim.
You suffer -2 to melee damage rolls.


Dexterity

Heavy Body, Light Hands
You gain +2 to these checks: Sleight of Hand, Open Locks, Craft (any one)
You suffer -2 to these checks: Tumble, Balance, Perform (dance) and Escape Artist
You gain +1 to ranged attack rolls
You suffer -2 AC

Light Body, Heavy Hands
You gain +2 to these checks: Tumble, Balance, Perform (dance) and Escape Artist
You suffer -2 to these checks: Sleight of Hand, Open Locks, Craft (all)
You gain: +1 dodge bonus to AC
You suffer: -2 to range attack rolls


Constitution

Hearty
You gain +2 to Con checks to resist fatigue.
You gain +1 to Fortitude saves.
You suffer -1 hp/level.

Tough
You gain +1 hp/level.
You suffer -2 to Fortitude saves.


- For mental ability scores, I can't cleanly divide them. Here's what I've got. -

Bookworm
You gain +2 skill points per level (+8 at 1st level), but they can only be spent in Knowledge skills.
You suffer a -2 penalty to Search, Forgery, Sense Motive, Gather Information and all Craft checks.
You suffer a -2 penalty to Initiative.

Streetsmart
You gain a +2 bonus on Knowledge (local), Gather Information, Forgery and Sense Motive.
You suffer a -2 penalty to all Craft checks and all other Knowledge checks.

Natural Craftsman
You gain +2 skill points per level (+8 at 1st level), but they can only be spent in Craft skills.
You suffer a -2 penalty to Search, Forgery, Sense Motive, Gather Information and all Knowledge checks.

Natural Performer
You gain +2 skill points per level (+8 at 1st level), but they can only be spent in Perform skills.
You gain a +2 bonus to Bluff checks.
You suffer a -2 penalty to Intimidate, Diplomacy, and Gather Information checks.
You suffer a -2 penalty to your Leadership score.

Natural Leader
You gain a +2 bonus on Diplomacy checks.
You gain a +1 bonus to your Leadership score.
You suffer a -2 penalty on Intimidate, Bluff and Gather Information checks.


Cheers, -- N

 

[Wik]

Natural Athlete sucks. Drop the damage to -1.

Heavy Body Light hands should have a -1 to AC. -2 is too big.
Light Body, Heavy Hands should have a -1 to Attacks.

Really, most of these should only have +1, instead of +2, and ditto for negatives. +1 skill point per level, is the big one. Skill bonuses, obviously, should stay at +2.

I like the direction you're heading, but it's not really something I'd do. Maybe I could adopt it for my Drasconis campaign, though...

 

[Flame_Excess]

I really like the idea of breaking down the traits down but I don't think that players like to see maluses on their character's sheet.

So what about leaving the bonuses reasonable but without drawbacks?

We are currently three trying to build something out of traits. I invite you to take a look at the ideas I brainstormed in my post "Key Traits [Str,Dex,Con...]" I even posted a new take on the 6 traits at the end of the first page.

 

[Nifft]

So what about leaving the bonuses reasonable but without drawbacks?

That would be called a "feat".

The point of these are: you want some of the benefits of a high ability score, but not other benefits. You're effectively selling one benefit to buy more of another benefit.

Cheers, -- N

 

[DungeonmasterCal]

Didn't a breakdown of these occur in 2e's "Skills and Powers" rulebook?

 

[Nifft]

Didn't a breakdown of these occur in 2e's "Skills and Powers" rulebook?

Could be, but I never saw it, and I'm sure such a breakdown would be very hard to balance... given how hard it apparently was to balance even six stats.

Any insight on turning that breakdown into Traits?

Thanks, -- N