you drew the short end of the stick

[IronWolf]

I would do it. I don't really see the major issue in it. Sure stat wise my character will not be as powerful as the others, but that doesn't mean I can't contribute to the party's success and have fun with it. I think it would sort of be an interesting character to roleplay.

As far as the fairness of it, not a whole lot different than rolling 4d6 poorly when everyone else rolled well. Heck, I've been that guy before and I still had a great time!

 

[Gez]

I didn't realize there were already four (with three by himself). Guess you gotta start a couple more to catch up, though we all know that in a post-war, the non-crothians always wind up taking a dirt nap.

You asked for it!


...

 

[Seeten]

I have played much weaker characters - in terms of stats - than the rest of the group quite successfully in the past, but always using random rolling methods (I am either very unlucky or naively honest about what I rolled, I suspect the latter). I probably wouldn't play such a character in a point buy campaign, mostly because I can't imagine a healthy group dynamic that would result in one player being given fewer points.

I play with friends, and bitchslapping them for their cheating is not gonna happen, although I make it known I know they are cheating. So, to cover their cheatery, I let the honest ones use the rolls of the cheaters.

Then, of course, the mobs all need a power boost, but thats fair too.

 

[HellHound]

I'd do it, but ONLY because I've experienced far worse inequality in games.

We had a Stormbringer campaign with one Melnibonean noble cleric... and four average plebes. Hooray for random character generation, eh?

So we'd fight brigands, and it would take each plebe a good ten rounds to dispatch one... in that time, the Melnibonean would have dispatched the other 20 brigands and their leader, without using any magic.

At least in this game, I'm going to be of aproximately the same level as the rest of the party, as opposed to being the equivalent of level 3-4 characters wandering around with a level 12-20.

 

[Mark]

You asked for it!


...

*drops to knees and shakes fists at sky*


NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

 

[Ogre Mage]

I would not do it. I am not interested in being a sidekick, which is basically what you would be.

 

[Tom Cashel]

Not only would I play 11 points short, I'd make it a point of honor to outperform the higher point PC's.
Smart tactics and intelligent roleplay beats raw power hands down every time.

Right on.

The first character I ever played long-term was named Karadd-Tak of Arabel. He entered an average 5th level group as a 1st level (2nd ed.), true neutral mage. Not too dissimilar from the 25-pointer in the group of 36ers.

I hired a henchman. I kept my head down. When the other PCs made it clear that I was to be their whipping boy, I made a secret pact with the Red Wizard who was traveling with the party (by his own mandate, of course). Tensions continued to rise. When things came to a head, I was on the winning side. The other PCs ended up dead, or on their own for a short time before ending up dead.

My character, on the other hand, forged a mighty empire in the Forgotten Realms before eventually ascending to godhood in another sphere. (Suck on that, other PCs!)

If it fit the character concept, you bet I'd do it. Frankly, I think those that refuse are saying more about their own skills as a role-player than they are about "fairness."

But hey, I had few glasses of wine with dinner, so what the hell do I know?

 

[HellHound]

I would not do it. I am not interested in being a sidekick, which is basically what you would be.

To me, that depends on the level of the game. At higher levels, the stat array gets less important in many cases (also depending on class - avoidign a class with multiple ability dependency is vital for this character) due to magic items, spells and other enhancements. As the average stat goes up in the party, the difference in the starting array becomes proportionally less.

Being shortchanged in stats does not mean you will be a sidekick. A psion or blast-mage can still be effective at mid to high levels with the stat array in question, since the vast majority of their abilities are based on a single stat, and they have the backup of an otherwise functional party who understands the need for meat-shields.

 

[Turjan]

I don't quite see why anyone wanted to limit one of the PCs in a game to 25 points when all others get 36 points, but I don't see such a big problem with it. Some classes don't really need a whole array of good stats, whereas others need them urgently. Thus, the 25 points would rather limit the number of classes I'd consider a good choice for the array.

 

[Orius]

No, for two reasons. First off, the character would be noticeable weaker than the other PCs in the group. I'd rather a gmae where the characters are more or less equal. And if the challenges faced by the party are appropriate for 36 point characters, then the 25 point character probably won't cut it. One might as well roll 3d6 for scores.

Of course I think the idea of 36 point characters is ridiculous to begin with, but that's another discussion entirely.