Reply to thread

Message

<blockquote data-quote="Mercurius" data-source="post: 8585119" data-attributes="member: 59082">I don't think there is a right answer, as different players and groups have different assumptions about what is &quot;good.&quot; Some feel that a character that doesn't have at least one 18 and average of 14 or higher sucks; others feel that a True Roleplayer wears bad ability scores like a badge of honor, and exceptional ones with shame.Problems generally arise in two ways: One, when there is disagreement in-group about the basic assumptions; and two, when a player is significantly above or below the rest of the group and someone is unhappy about it (I emphasize that and).I think it really comes down to what the basic assumptions of the campaign are, as the DM and players want it to be - not as the rules say, or as whatever one's perception of the larger D&amp;D community is. Are PCs meant to be &quot;average people&quot; or overall more talented and capable than average? And if so, to what degree? As with most elements of a campaign, this starts with the DM's vision of the campaign, and then adjusts accordingly with player in-put.As with 99% of such things, there is no right answer, just campaign and group-specific agreements.Speaking for myself and as a DM or player, I tend to prefer when a group has some variability in scores - because random generation is fun - but that the range isn't too wide, maybe something like average scores ranging within 2 points of each other (e.g. all players with an average of 10-12 or 12-14, etc). My personal preference is 12-14 for most campaigns. Or, as a baseline, arrays like this before any adjustments:16, 14, 14, 12, 10, 818, 14, 12, 12, 10, 816, 16, 12, 12, 10, 816, 14, 12, 12, 10, 10All total up to 74, or an average of 12.33. Or I might simply say, &quot;take X points and distribute them as you like.&quot; And yes, that means a PC could have three 18s and three below average scores if they want. Or &quot;roll sets of 4d6 until you come up with your first score that averages 12-14 or simply 12 or higher.&quot;</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Mercurius, post: 8585119, member: 59082"] I don't think there is a right answer, as different players and groups have different assumptions about what is "good." Some feel that a character that doesn't have at least one 18 and average of 14 or higher sucks; others feel that a True Roleplayer wears bad ability scores like a badge of honor, and exceptional ones with shame. Problems generally arise in two ways: One, when there is disagreement in-group about the basic assumptions; and two, when a player is significantly above or below the rest of the group [I][B]and[/B][/I] someone is unhappy about it (I emphasize that [I]and[/I]). I think it really comes down to what the basic assumptions of the campaign are, as the DM and players want it to be - not as the rules say, or as whatever one's perception of the larger D&D community is. Are PCs meant to be "average people" or overall more talented and capable than average? And if so, to what degree? As with most elements of a campaign, this starts with the DM's vision of the campaign, and then adjusts accordingly with player in-put. As with 99% of such things, there is no right answer, just campaign and group-specific agreements. Speaking for myself and as a DM or player, I tend to prefer when a group has some variability in scores - because random generation is fun - but that the range isn't too wide, maybe something like average scores ranging within 2 points of each other (e.g. all players with an average of 10-12 or 12-14, etc). My personal preference is 12-14 for most campaigns. Or, as a baseline, arrays like this before any adjustments: 16, 14, 14, 12, 10, 8 18, 14, 12, 12, 10, 8 16, 16, 12, 12, 10, 8 16, 14, 12, 12, 10, 10 All total up to 74, or an average of 12.33. Or I might simply say, "take X points and distribute them as you like." And yes, that means a PC could have three 18s and three below average scores if they want. Or "roll sets of 4d6 until you come up with your first score that averages 12-14 or simply 12 or higher." [/QUOTE]

Verification