D&D 5E The "Perfect" (for me anyway...) Ability Generation System(s)

[Maxperson]

then just increase pointbuy pool/standard array.
no need to hassle with rolling scores and dealing with inherent disbalance between characters.

I.E:
1: remove +2/+1 bonus

2: rework point buy.

8: 0pts
10: 1pt
12: 2pts
14: 3pts
16: 5pts
18: 8pts
20: 12pts

pool 31pts:

that can give you starting array of 20,18,16,14,12,10. that gives powerful heroes and every ability has it's own score.


or highly specialized with 20,20,16,10,8,8.

but I would keep max at 18 for 1st level and have slightly lower pool that is above standard for 5E.

array:
18,16,14,14,12,10

that gives pointbuy pool of: 22

Nobody at my table cares about whether someone else has better stats, except to be happy for the guy who rolled really well. And we like rolling the dice. Point buy/array isn't done it my game.

 

[SlyFlourish]

I'm a fan of bonus-based standard arrays with no bonuses granted from other features:

+3, +2, +2, +1, 0, 0

Tales of the Valiant's standard array is also super fast and easy:

16, 14, 14, 13, 10, and 8

That's close to mine.

 

[ezo]

I'm a fan of bonus-based standard arrays with no bonuses granted from other features:

+3, +2, +2, +1, 0, 0

Tales of the Valiant's standard array is also super fast and easy:

16, 14, 14, 13, 10, and 8

That's close to mine.

By no bonuses from other features do you mean Race/Background ASI or no proficiency bonus also???

I think for many developers there is a move to get away from the Score/Modifier pairing and just use the modifer. Most of the work we've done for a while now has removed the score and just focused on the modifier--less confusion that way.

 

[SlyFlourish]

By no bonuses from other features do you mean Race/Background ASI or no proficiency bonus also???

I think for many developers there is a move to get away from the Score/Modifier pairing and just use the modifer. Most of the work we've done for a while now has removed the score and just focused on the modifier--less confusion that way.

I mean you don't add +2 because of your background or species of whatever. In TOV, for example, once you've calculated your abilities, you're done with abilities.

 

[Clint_L]

I feel like current ability score generation systems result in numbers just way too high. I've felt that since AD&D 1st edition, which had (ugh) options for different generation systems. My current method, I think, is very fair and leads to good characters:

1. Roll 2d6 for each ability score, in order, from top to bottom.
2. Come up with backstory elements. Each negative element you come up with (an old enemy, a physical limitation, something along those lines) gives you an additional d6 you can put to one of those ability scores.
3. When you've generated your ability scores, you roll a d30 and try to get under your CON score. If you don't, the character dies in character generation (you describe the circumstances) and we start over.

The class levels go to level 3 for a reason -- characters aren't supposed to survive past that. If you let them have high characteristics (like 10 or 12) they have a chance to survive past that, and then what are you supposed to do? The rules only go to level 3. I've seen people talk about higher levels, but those weren't written by Moldvay, but by other guys -- it's not the same game, and not a game I want to play or run!

Let me tell you, when characters make it to level 3 in my game, the players feel really accomplished! They know they achieved something special and rare! That's how it should be! How many modern gamers get bored with their characters? That never happens at my table!

I was very confused until I read your second to last paragraph and realized you were strictly playing Basic!

 

[Horwath]

This is something we've done in the past when @DND_Reborn was looking for a less swingy resolution system. It worked well enough IIRC. Our current system in development is a 2d6 system, so even "tighter".

2d6 or 3d6 is tighter, but I wanted to keep it to a single die to keep advantage/disadvantage mechanics as similar as possible.

 

[RealAlHazred]

I was very confused until I read your second to last paragraph and realized you were strictly playing Basic!

Yes. D&D. It's the only true D&D! But that's a discussion for a different forum*!

* Honestly and speaking seriously, Edition Wars belong in the dumpster!

 

[Lalato]

Here's a fun and easy one that doesn't require excessive rerolls.
3d6, replace a single die with a value of 4.

This yields a range of 6 to 16. If you roll 1,1,1... you replace a die with a 4 and get 6. Similarly, if you roll 6,6,6... replace a die with a 4 and you get 16.

 

[RealAlHazred]

Speaking seriously, I don't really care about player characters' stats. A lot can be adjusted in-game by adjusting challenges, a standard DM tool. When I ran 5E at the Hobby Shop, I allowed players to try 4d6-drop-the-lowest place-them-where-you-like once per character, and if they didn't like the stats they could build their character with point-buy. Over several years, I had a handful of characters (I think four) that ended up with rolled stats, and none of them were outrageous, possibly because they had to roll in front of everyone. The "grossest" character had an 18 in one stat, but also ended up with a 6 in another; he was a fun character to run and the player did a great job playing the dumbest half-orc barbarian ever.

 

[Oofta]

I guess I've pretty much always preferred some variation on point buy since I've seen situations where one person had extremely high scores and another had extremely low. Neither one was happy with the results. Before point buy was a thing (the first variation I started using was from Living City in 2E), we'd just roll up a bunch of PCs until we got something we liked, I'm not sure that was any better.

In our first campaign with 5E I wasn't the DM and we used the 3.5 point buy heroic with 32 points and the option to buy up to an 18. For me, it felt too powerful and my character kind of felt like a Marty Stu. So now I use standard point buy or an array and it works well for us. If someone wants to randomize I've offered to create some arrays they could roll on but nobody has ever taken me up on it.