Which method do you use to determine ability scores?

[Zarrock God of Evil]

I use the standard method - even though I allowed the high-powered in my campaign once (just for the fun of it - it was absolutely no problem).

As a DM I'm a firm believer that characters shouldn't necessary be equally gifted from the beginning because it supports my view that people in real life are not born equally gifted either. So giving that I'm stubborn about this attitude, I wouldn't even play in a point-by system (but then again - I never get the chance to be a player anymore anyway )

-Zarrock

 

[haiiro]

"Other" for me: base 3 in each stat, 1:1 point buy with 56 points to spend (apply racial modifiers normally).

This handy little system was developed by either Plane Sailing or seasong on these boards (I'm ashamed that I can't remember which -- and both are full of good ideas, so that doesn't narrow it down ), and works out to almost exactly the number of points you get with an average spread using the "4d6 drop the lowest" method. (More than you'd get with WotC's scaled 32 point buy, for those who are curious.)

Point buy methods rock.

(Edit: a tired haiiro makes typos.)

 

[Henry]

I use playing cards. Seriously.

KD, that is a great method, and why I never thought of using playing cards before absolutely stuns me. Thanks! (snip)

 

[boxstop7]

I've always been a fan of rolling 4d6 seven times. on each roll drop the lowest die, then drop the lowest of the seven scores. Arrange as desired. No electronic die rollers, no other means of mechanical or electronic intervention. All stat rolls during creation are made at the table with your own two hands in front of all other players and the DM. When players "roll" stats on their own, they come back with far too many 18s for mere chance rolling.

~Box

 

[Clint]

We used to roll 4d6, but then one player got something like two 18s and the rest over 14, and his character was a truck. So now we have fixed stats to start:

17, 16, 14, 13, 12, 10.

 

[Plane Sailing]

74 points divided up amongst attributes on a 1 for 1 basis. Up to 2 discretionary points awarded by GM for backstory which ties character into one or two of the ongoing campaign threads.

Racial adjustments applied after everything else done.

 

[Psion]

Standard, with low and high end mulligans at DMs option.

 

[DonAdam]

25 point buy, but with 1 point on the point buy scale per level thereafter rather than the 1 point without scale from the core rules.

So buy level 20 you have a 44 point character, +/- racial mods

 

[Rary the Traitor]

82 points distributed on a 1 for 1 basis, except for 17 and 18, which require 2 points each. So a player would have to spend 20 points to have an 18.

 

[Guillaume]

In both campaigns I currently run, players had to use the 28 point buy method. Next campaign, I might consider a standard array. We'll see...