Mad Master's page

In issue #2, I posted my list of modified bonus types. In that list, two of the most used (and abused) types are gone: inherent and size types.
The first is gone because in my homerule bonuses and penalties only modify rolls or DCs, so a bonus type that only applies to ability scores is useless.
The second one is gone because size as it is in the standard Pathfinder RPG is no more in my games.

Usually, sizes above or below Medium generate tons of modifiers, require tables of conversion, and a lot of other stuff. This, for example, hampers creating new monsters, changing form to a differently-sized one (look at the rules for the Polymorph subschool), having weapons for different sizes and spells with the same effect no matter what the size of the caster, and so on.
Thinking about it, I noticed that all this stuff isn't really necessary. No modifiers to ability scores, no extra HD, no modified natural armor, nothing. You only need to modify maximum load, damage, attack rolls, combat maneuver checks, and STR and DEX based skill checks.

So, I came up with this variant rule:

- You get a -2 to attack roll for each size of difference between you and your target, both larger or smaller.
- The damage you deal to a larger creature is halved once for each size of difference (half for one size larger, one third for two, etc.), while it is doubled if dealt to a smaller creature.
- If you are larger, you get a +5 to combat maneuver checks for each size of difference against a smaller foe. You also get that bonus to CMD. No need to modify anything if you are smaller.
- You get a +5 bonus to STR-based skill and ability checks and a -5 penalty to DEX based skill and ability checks for each size above Medium.
- Carrying capacity already takes into account larger or smaller than Medium creatures, so no need to change anything here.

This set of rules requires work, because it's required to remove all the size modifers that are present in the game, the extra natural armor, the extra HD, the weapon conversion tables, and so on.
Simply said, larger or smaller creatures are built just like standard Medium ones, with the same base scores, the same number of HD, the same Cos or number of HPs, the same base damage, etc.
What governs how many Hit Dice they have is their CR.

Normally, a NPC has a Challenge Rating of Level -2, but most creatures are weaker than that, much like a commoner NPC, so they should have a CR of Level -3.
This means that creatures have the following HD/levels:

Commoner or "average array" monster - CR+3 Hit Dice.
NPC or "NPC array" monster - CR+2 Hit Dice.
PC or "Heroic array" monster - CR +1 Hit Dice.

To this, you just add 1 HD per size below Medium or subtract 1 HD per size above Medium. Recalculate the creature's stats from that.

As always, if someone already posted rules similar to these, please feel free to add a link below. Comments and feedback would be appreciated.

Continuing on my giant list of things in PF1 I had changed for my games (and my satisfaction, obviously), here's are my take on how the various bonus types should be arranged and working in the game.
I noticed that most of the various types only work on one score or roll in the game (tons of AC-modifying types, Inherent only for ability scores, etc.), and there's even one, Enhancement, that can even give a bonus to... other bonuses, which frankly I see as an aberration.

So I decided to make some housecleaning and put some order into that mess, which should be one of the basic assets in the game. First, I stated a couple general rules:

- Bonuses and penalties should always have a type, no exceptions allowed.
- Bonuses and penalties can be applied only to checks (attack rolls, skill checks, ability checks, etc.), rolls (damage rolls, etc.), and DCs (AC, CMD, save DCs, checks DCs, etc.), again no exceptions allowed.

The main reason for those two rules is to avoid excessive stacking of untyped bonuses and, even more so, of penalties. I also wanted to remove the "penalties are almost always untyped" habit, which makes room for really excessive debuffing in the game, especially against poor, lonely megabosses confronting with cohordinated parties.

Then I devised a new, narrower list of types, which can be applied at (almost) any kind of roll or DC in the game:

Alchemical: This one is pretty unchanged. It comes from interaction with active substances, either magical or mundane in nature. All bonuses and penalties coming from poisons and drugs are os this type.

Arcane: This new type includes all bonuses and penalties coming from magical and supernatural effects that are not of another specific type. This means that magic buffs/debuffs would almost always have a type.

*Circumstance: This one stays as it was, being based on some situational conditions. It now includes some aspects of the size bonus type, which has been removed.

*Competence: Another mostly unchanged type, it comes from a change in the knowledge, training or general skill at performing a particular task. It plays a major role in other homerules of mine, such as shields and defensive weapons now providing competence bonuses to AC.

Corruption: A new type that in some ways takes the place of the old profane type, it implies some physical or qualitative change for unnatural reasons (such as being touched by chaos or subject to some pseudonatural creature's powers).

Divine: A new type that replaces holy type, it comes from receiving some effect from the direct intervention of divine or spiritual entities.

Enhancement: Relatively unchanged, it comes from changing the inherent qualities of creatures and objects.

Insight: Another unchanged type, it comes from changes in awareness or comprehension.

Kinetic: A new type coming from the interaction with some form of external forces that guide the actions of a character or contribute to hamper those of others. It incorporates the old deflection type.

Luck: Pretty much unchanged, it indicates a change in the probabilities of an event to take place.

Morale: Again an unchanged one, it comes from changes in the attitude or self-confidence of a character. All fear effects bring forth morale penalties.

Possession: A new type for when a character is under the direct influence of an entity that operates on its body and mind.

Racial: Basically unchanged, it comes from the very being of the character. It now includes some aspects of the old size type, and replaces the natural armor type.

*Reaction: A new type that replaces the dodge bonus to AC, it comes from modifications in the speed, agility, or coordination of the character.

Tenacity: A new type representing variations in the resolution, ferocity, and resistance of a character. It incorporates the old armor bonus to AC and resistance bonus to saving throws.

*Untyped: This one is only changed in its nature, which is to give a type to bonuses and penalties that can't be limited to another single type. Basically, if something can be related to two or more types or none at all, it belongs to this type.

There's also the Mythic type, for those who use those rules (I do not).

To determine the final modifier of a specific type to a roll or DC, take the best bonus and the worst penalty and add them together.
Bonuses and penalties marked with an asterisk (*) can stack so you add together all bonuses and penalties of that type to get the final modifier.
As usual, bonuses and penalties coming from the same source never stack, not even if of stacking types.

If someone has already published rules similar or related to this one, please feel free to post a link to their work below. Comments and feedback would be appreciated.

Since when Pathfinder Unchained was published, I intended to publish my own series of homerules, variant rules, and optional rules, but events in my life had me delayed a couple years. Now I have the means to start this long work, so here I am.

All my homerules are intended to work with each other as a whole, but many can also work with normal rules, if a GM doesn't want to allow some changes. Basically I revised the Pathfinder ruleset to achieve some very specific objectives:

- Remove inconsistencies (things that contrast with the basic assumptions in the game, that contradict other rules, or that simply make no sense).

- Make useless things useful (for example, combat maneuvers, many feats, some forms of combat, some kinds of equipment, etc.)

- Balance disequilibrium whenever I found it (starting with spellcasting, but not just that).

I paid a special attention to feats and how to balance them. My premise is that feats should be about as powerful as class features that require the same number of levels in a class to be taken, since they are limited in number during a character career and often require to satisfy harsh prerequisites.
Based on prerequisites, I devised a tier sequence to assess the power of a feat. Tier 1 are feats that require no requisites at all or whose requirements can be met easily at 1st level by a generic character (not just a specific class).
Each successive tier either has one more feat as a prerequisite or has a prerequisite that a character can satisfy only 1-2 levels after the lower tier. So tier 2 feats can be taken at 3rd level, tier 4 at 5th level, and so on up to tier 10 for normal play. Obviously, it's assumed that a higher tier feat must give a greater benefit than a lower level one, not just some upgrade or diminishing returns (such as the Weapon Specialization or Two-Weapon Fighting chains).

The first variant rule I want to present concerns some balancing among ability scores, since is evident that some of them are really a lot more useful in general than others. Removing something from the list of things an ability influences to add to some other "poorer" ability was the obvious solution. Here is the result.

STRENGTH - Standard melee combat, (Strength-based maneuvers), (Protection), load limit.

DEXTERITY - Precision melee combat, ranged combat, (Dexterity-based maneuvers), Reflexes ST.

CONSTITUTION - Hit Points, Fortitude ST, (heal checks, affliction resist checks).

INTELLIGENCE - Skill Points, spellcasting.

WISDOM - Initiative, spellcasting, (weapon max range increments).

CHARISMA - Will ST, spellcasting, (magical resonance checks, resurrection checks).

I moved Initiative to Wis just as they did in the playtest for PF2 much for the same reasons: Wis governs senses and intuition, so it's simply perfect for that.
I moved Will ST to Cha basically for the same reasons: Cha better represents the willpower of the character, since it's already a measure of its self-confidence, force of personality, and self-esteem.
The things in parenthesis are things that will be modified or added in future threads.

There's not much to comment yet, but if someone already had similar ideas, please feel free to add a link to his or her post(s). My time for today is over, but next time in this thread I will post some modified feats for Initiative.

I was wondering if the description of this magic object could be wrong...

It is an 8 feet long mallet (about 2,5 meters, much as the longest polearms), but it has no reach and functions as a greatclub...

Then there is the 10 feet long mattock of the titans (about 3 meters), which is considered a GARGANTUAN +3 adamantine warhammer...

Is the word "Gargantuan" missing from the description of the maul?

That would explain why it is in the Wondrous Items section instead of the normal Specific Weapons section...