Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
White Dwarf Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Nest
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
EN Publishing
Twitter
BlueSky
Facebook
Instagram
EN World
BlueSky
YouTube
Facebook
Twitter
Twitch
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
The First 4th Edition Clone!
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="C4" data-source="post: 5883649" data-attributes="member: 93857"><p>Alright here we go...</p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">Character Advancement</span></p><p><strong>The Infamous Math Hole:</strong> Feat taxes are replaced with free ‘expert’ bonuses at 3rd levels. Characters also boost every score at 4th and 8th levels, which keeps skills and defenses in line.</p><p><strong>Masterwork Armor:</strong> These are replaced by direct character bonuses.</p><p><strong>Inherent Bonuses:</strong> I turned inherent bonuses into enhancement bonuses so that they don’t stack with things they shouldn’t. (The official inherent bonuses are clearly a design afterthought.)</p><p><strong>Retraining:</strong> Anything and everything can be retrained at every level, but feats can’t be upgraded to a higher tier.</p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">Races</span></p><p><strong>Ability Boosts: </strong>Instead of getting racial bonuses to ability scores, C4 characters get training bonuses. Why? Because a lot of creative character concepts (and even a few traditional ones) get discarded because a race’s stat boosts don’t compliment the right class’ important stats.</p><p><strong>No Defense Bonuses:</strong> C4 races don’t have defense bonuses, which were originally intended to balance out redundent stat boosts.</p><p><strong>Racial Attacks:</strong> I enhancified racial attack powers, and I switched them all to ‘Highest Ability’ so atypical PCs aren’t penalized.</p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">Skills</span></p><p><strong>Intimidation:</strong> I removed the rules for surrendering from this skill, because they just didn’t work.</p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">Feats</span></p><p><strong>Feat Taxes and ‘I Hit Harder’ Racial Feats:</strong> I left these feats out.</p><p><strong>Improved Bull Rush and Grab:</strong> I enhancified these feats.</p><p><strong>Multiclassing:</strong> I replaced the anemic RAW multiclass feats and the problematic hybriding rules with multiclass feats that provide the best of both worlds.</p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">Classes</span></p><p><strong>Weapliments:</strong> All C4 implement-users can use weapons as implements, because those characters are already punished enough for being able to stab and zap things.</p><p><strong>Class Skills:</strong> With the exception of Stealth and Perception, any C4 player can pick any class skills. Because you should play your character, not your class.</p><p><strong>A Build’s Bill of Rights:</strong> All builds have the right to 1) heavy armor proficiency, or 2) a primary or secondary ability to AC.</p><p><strong>Martial Artists:</strong> C4 weapon-users can use their build’s prime stat for appropriate basic attacks. Because a master rogue, for example, becoming a putz as soon as an enemy drops their guard is absurd. Even by D&D standards.</p><p><strong>Avenger:</strong> I added retreat and surrender conditions to oath of enmity to clarify its intent. I also tweaked Armor of Faith.</p><p><strong>Barbarian:</strong> I removed barbarian agility and gave the Str/Con builds the option to add Con to AC.</p><p><strong>Bard:</strong> I replaced multiclass versatility with combat virtuoso.</p><p><strong>Druid:</strong> I gave the Wis/Con builds the option to add Con to AC.</p><p><strong>Fighter:</strong> I enhancified shield attack powers.</p><p><strong>Monk:</strong> I tweaked unarmored defense.</p><p><strong>Ranger:</strong> I gave the marauder build the option to add Wis to AC.</p><p><strong>Shaman:</strong> I gave the Wis/Con builds the option to add Con to AC.</p><p><strong>Swordmage:</strong> I expanded its weapon options, because a class name shouldn’t be a literal description of every single character of that class.</p><p><strong>Wizard:</strong> I changed the wizard’s prep book into a spontaneous repertoire.</p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">Equipment</span></p><p><strong>Mundane Weapons:</strong> I tweaked many weapons to fine-tune their balance.</p><p><strong>35th Level Items:</strong> C4 items go up to 35th level, because what else are 30th level heroes going to pry from the cold dead hands of their supra-epic foes?</p><p><strong>Item Taxes:</strong> I left out items that add static bonuses to attacks or defenses. (Other than the Big Three items, of course.)</p><p><strong>Healing Potions:</strong> I tweaked the healing power of these potions to make them more useful.</p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">Combat</span></p><p><strong>Bonus Saving Throws:</strong> Bonus saves can end most conditions, even those that normally last until the end of somebody’s turn. (Sustained effects and those that last for an encounter or longer can’t be ended with a save.) This gives wardens, leaders, and certain monsters the opportunity to end any condition early.</p><p><strong>Saving Against Multiple Conditions:</strong> Ongoing damage and conditions don’t stack, but they don’t replace each other either. In order to overcome multiple conditions, the target must save against them all. For example, if Barbie the Barbarian is hit with two separate ongoing 5 fire damage conditions at once, she must save against both to be free of the 5 ongoing damage.</p><p><strong>Earning Action Points:</strong> Characters start with no APs, but gain 1 per encounter. This ensures that PCs gain something by pressing onward that they wouldn’t get by taking a long rest.</p><p><strong>Bull Rush and Grab:</strong> These actions now grant inherent enhancement bonuses, so they remain real options beyond the game’s first few levels.</p><p><strong>Lunge:</strong> Combatants have the option to lunge, which eliminates the weird 1-square ‘no-charge zone.’</p><p><strong>Second Wind:</strong> Can also be used as a move action, sans the usual defense bonus. This makes leaders less mandatory, and gives savvy players a reason to use their SWs.</p><p></p><p>That about covers it. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="C4, post: 5883649, member: 93857"] Alright here we go... [SIZE="4"]Character Advancement[/SIZE] [B]The Infamous Math Hole:[/B] Feat taxes are replaced with free ‘expert’ bonuses at 3rd levels. Characters also boost every score at 4th and 8th levels, which keeps skills and defenses in line. [B]Masterwork Armor:[/B] These are replaced by direct character bonuses. [B]Inherent Bonuses:[/B] I turned inherent bonuses into enhancement bonuses so that they don’t stack with things they shouldn’t. (The official inherent bonuses are clearly a design afterthought.) [B]Retraining:[/B] Anything and everything can be retrained at every level, but feats can’t be upgraded to a higher tier. [SIZE="4"]Races[/SIZE] [B]Ability Boosts: [/B]Instead of getting racial bonuses to ability scores, C4 characters get training bonuses. Why? Because a lot of creative character concepts (and even a few traditional ones) get discarded because a race’s stat boosts don’t compliment the right class’ important stats. [B]No Defense Bonuses:[/B] C4 races don’t have defense bonuses, which were originally intended to balance out redundent stat boosts. [B]Racial Attacks:[/B] I enhancified racial attack powers, and I switched them all to ‘Highest Ability’ so atypical PCs aren’t penalized. [SIZE="4"]Skills[/SIZE] [B]Intimidation:[/B] I removed the rules for surrendering from this skill, because they just didn’t work. [SIZE="4"]Feats[/SIZE] [B]Feat Taxes and ‘I Hit Harder’ Racial Feats:[/B] I left these feats out. [B]Improved Bull Rush and Grab:[/B] I enhancified these feats. [B]Multiclassing:[/B] I replaced the anemic RAW multiclass feats and the problematic hybriding rules with multiclass feats that provide the best of both worlds. [SIZE="4"]Classes[/SIZE] [B]Weapliments:[/B] All C4 implement-users can use weapons as implements, because those characters are already punished enough for being able to stab and zap things. [B]Class Skills:[/B] With the exception of Stealth and Perception, any C4 player can pick any class skills. Because you should play your character, not your class. [B]A Build’s Bill of Rights:[/B] All builds have the right to 1) heavy armor proficiency, or 2) a primary or secondary ability to AC. [B]Martial Artists:[/B] C4 weapon-users can use their build’s prime stat for appropriate basic attacks. Because a master rogue, for example, becoming a putz as soon as an enemy drops their guard is absurd. Even by D&D standards. [B]Avenger:[/B] I added retreat and surrender conditions to oath of enmity to clarify its intent. I also tweaked Armor of Faith. [B]Barbarian:[/B] I removed barbarian agility and gave the Str/Con builds the option to add Con to AC. [B]Bard:[/B] I replaced multiclass versatility with combat virtuoso. [B]Druid:[/B] I gave the Wis/Con builds the option to add Con to AC. [B]Fighter:[/B] I enhancified shield attack powers. [B]Monk:[/B] I tweaked unarmored defense. [B]Ranger:[/B] I gave the marauder build the option to add Wis to AC. [B]Shaman:[/B] I gave the Wis/Con builds the option to add Con to AC. [B]Swordmage:[/B] I expanded its weapon options, because a class name shouldn’t be a literal description of every single character of that class. [B]Wizard:[/B] I changed the wizard’s prep book into a spontaneous repertoire. [SIZE="4"]Equipment[/SIZE] [B]Mundane Weapons:[/B] I tweaked many weapons to fine-tune their balance. [B]35th Level Items:[/B] C4 items go up to 35th level, because what else are 30th level heroes going to pry from the cold dead hands of their supra-epic foes? [B]Item Taxes:[/B] I left out items that add static bonuses to attacks or defenses. (Other than the Big Three items, of course.) [B]Healing Potions:[/B] I tweaked the healing power of these potions to make them more useful. [SIZE="4"]Combat[/SIZE] [B]Bonus Saving Throws:[/B] Bonus saves can end most conditions, even those that normally last until the end of somebody’s turn. (Sustained effects and those that last for an encounter or longer can’t be ended with a save.) This gives wardens, leaders, and certain monsters the opportunity to end any condition early. [B]Saving Against Multiple Conditions:[/B] Ongoing damage and conditions don’t stack, but they don’t replace each other either. In order to overcome multiple conditions, the target must save against them all. For example, if Barbie the Barbarian is hit with two separate ongoing 5 fire damage conditions at once, she must save against both to be free of the 5 ongoing damage. [B]Earning Action Points:[/B] Characters start with no APs, but gain 1 per encounter. This ensures that PCs gain something by pressing onward that they wouldn’t get by taking a long rest. [B]Bull Rush and Grab:[/B] These actions now grant inherent enhancement bonuses, so they remain real options beyond the game’s first few levels. [B]Lunge:[/B] Combatants have the option to lunge, which eliminates the weird 1-square ‘no-charge zone.’ [B]Second Wind:[/B] Can also be used as a move action, sans the usual defense bonus. This makes leaders less mandatory, and gives savvy players a reason to use their SWs. That about covers it. :) [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
The First 4th Edition Clone!
Top