True20 racial ability modifiers

[ValhallaGH]

But using the dnd point buy tables, racial ability scores DO matter, because the tables are non-linear. The +2 dex (from a 16 to an 18) is worth a lot more in final apparent points than the -2 con (from a 12 to a 10) removes.

So, if I want to make a character with a 16 or an 18 dex, I have a strong incentive to make it a race with a dex bonus. No similar incentive exists in True20 until +6, in which case it is absolute.

I see this as a feature to be enjoyed, not a flaw to be fixed.

It is unclear from your post how you feel about it.

 

[gnfnrf]

I see this as a feature to be enjoyed, not a flaw to be fixed.

It is unclear from your post how you feel about it.

It IS unclear how I feel about it ... to me.

At first, it jumped out at me as "wrong". There are a few reasons for that, I think.

First, it is Different From What I Know. Of course, if I didn't want different, I shouldn't have bought True20.

Second, it states the restrictions in a way which conceals the actual game effects. If it had said "Elves can have dex from -4 to +6 and con from +4 to -6", I might have been more ok with it. I have a serious problem with rules that work differently in practice from how they appear to. (Fading Suns accenting and Storyteller fumbles, I'm looking at YOU)

Third, I don't know how it might interact with races whose ability modifiers do not total zero. If I develop a game and want to make a character with +2 to one ability and -1 to another, how do I balance that? In d20, I can think about which ability gets the bonus and I understand the framework to operate in. In True20, I don't have the framework.

None of these things mean that the rule is bad. I posted to try to figure out if the rule is bad, and I'm still not sure.

--
gnfnrf

 

[ValhallaGH]

Quite the conundrum.

Third, I don't know how it might interact with races whose ability modifiers do not total zero. If I develop a game and want to make a character with +2 to one ability and -1 to another, how do I balance that? In d20, I can think about which ability gets the bonus and I understand the framework to operate in. In True20, I don't have the framework.

In True20 there are a couple different ways to balance that.
First, do nothing. I wouldn't mention this except that it appears to be what was done with Drow in the True20 Bestiary.
Second, add another ability penalty.
Third, add a level lag. This is a concept introduced in the Bestiary for powerful Templates, though it has not been applied to powerful Backgrounds.
Fourth, add a special drawback severe enough to warrant the increased ability scores. For example, while working on True Star Wars I gave the Kel Dor species a net +1 to their ability scores. On the downside, Kel Dor suffocate in the oxygen atmospheres of most Star Wars worlds, and are blind without special filter goggles. I think it balances out (but I would).
Fifth, get really creative and come up with something new.

Good luck.