Ok, I've been waiting for this with trepidation, but I figure I should at least put out my $.02
My group hates rage points, and I think it's mostly because they're "points." That feels far too civilized for the barbarian, and my barbarian players don't like erasing and keeping track of a number on their character sheet to track them.
In addition, they find the existing powers all seem "off" from a barbarian reaching down and bring up anger-based powers. Also, they donlt always focus on areas the players want their characters to look to.
While trying to address those issues, for our own games, i developed this system. I dont claim it's perfect, but my players love it and I wanted to put it out there for smarter designers to kick around and consider. The system avoids counting above five by using physical tokens, though you could perfectly well write down the numbers if you prefer, and the small selection of powers I have handle everything *my* players want to do, and seem balanced. Wiser heads may have to rewrite them for other people's games.
Fury Tokens
The core fury token mechanic is simple. Barbarians can become so angry they gain special powers. Of course using those powers is tiring, so there is a limit to how often (and for how long) they can use those powers. These limits are represented with fury tokens. A barbarian uses fury tokens as they access their fury powers, and when all tokens are expended the character can no longer use the powers. A full night's rest (eight hours for most races) restores a barbarian's fury tokens. (No matter how angry Leisha the Barbarian is, if she is too exhausted to make use of her outrage, she gets no special benefits. Once rested, being blood-spitting upset can be useful again.)
The number of fury tokens a barbarian has is determined by class level and Constitution modifier. Unused fury tokens are referred to as your fury reserve. Tokens you have used to activate a power are placed in a second location, referred to as your fury pool. At the end of each round, if you have one or more tokens in your fury pool, after you have taken all other actions you must remove one token from your fury pool and place it in a spent pile. Tokens in your spent pile have no effect on game-play, and you do not add them back to your fury reserve until you get a full night's sleep.
Fury powers fall into two broad categories–rages and deeds. A fury rage is an ongoing benefit the barbarian gains as long as there is at least one fury token in the fury pool. A barbarian may only benefit from one rage at a time, and rages generally cost four or five tokens to initiate. If a barbarian opts to begin a new rage while under the benefits of an existing rage, the old rage benefit ends.
Fury deeds are single, one-time benefits connected to a specific action. Most fury deeds cost just one or two fury tokens. You can only use one fury deed each round, though there is no restriction from using a fury deed while you have a rage going, and you can use multiple fury deeds in the same encounter (as long as you have the fury tokens to pay for them).
At the end of your turn, if you remove the last fury token from your pool, you are taxed. You suffer a -1 penalty to all d20 rolls (attack rolls, skill checks, saving throws and ability checks) and cannot use any fury powers. You remain taxed for five minutes (which normally means for the rest of the current encounter, but not by the nest encounter). While taxed, you cannot use any fury powers.
(Note: There is a built-in double function for fury deeds. First, they give barbarians some options for impressive acts too powerful to allow characters to use every round. Second, they allow a barbarian to extend an existing fury rage, -and- get a one-shot benefit for doing so.)
Fury Rages
Berserk
Cost: 4 tokens
Effect: As long as this rage lasts, you gain a +2 bonus to all Strength checks and Strength-based skill checks, melee attack and damage rolls, and your DR increases by 1. You also suffer a -2 penalty to AC for the duration of this rage.
Frenzy
Cost: 5 tokens
Effect: As long as this rage lasts, you gain +10 feet of movement, +2 to Dexterity checks and Dexterity-based skill checks, AC and Reflex saves.
Fervor
Cost: 4 tokens
Effect: As long as this rage lasts, you gain +2 to Will saves, and may make a new Will save each round against any ongoing condition you suffer for failing a Will save. You also gain a +2 bonus to Constitution checks and Constitution-based skill checks.
Fury Deeds
Extend Rage:
Cost: 1 token
Effect: At the end of this round, you do not remove a fury token from your fury pool.
Extreme Effort
Cost: 1 token
Effect: Gain a bonus to one Strength- or Constitution- check of Str- or Con- based skill check equal to half your level.
Mighty Blow
Cost: 1 token
Effect: Use this deed when you threaten with an attack roll. Confirm the threat.
Shake it Off
Cost: 1 token
Effect: You heal a number of hit points of damage equal to your Constitution bonus.
Silent Rage
Cost: 2 tokens
Effect: At the end of your current turn, remove all tokens from your pool. You do not suffer the normal penalty for being taxed.
Totem Strike
Cost: 2 tokens
Effect: All your attacks this round are treated as magical and aligned with your alignment. They also deal an additional 1d6 points of damage per attack.
Class
Level / Fury tokens / Fury deeds or rages
1 / 4 / 1
2 / 5 / 2
3 / 6
4 / 7 / 3
5 / 8
6 / 9
7 / 10 / 4
8 / 11
9 / 12
10 / 13 / 5
11 / 14
12 / 15
13 / 16 / 6
14 / 17
15 / 18
16 / 20 / 7
17 / 22
18 / 24
19 / 26 / 8
20 / 30
Add your Constitution bonus to your fury tokens/day
RPG Superstar 2010 Top 16
|
DG, let me see if I understand. Let's say I'm playing Ferox the 5th-Level Barbarian with a 14 Constitution. So, Ferox would get a pool of 10 fury tokens, which would replenish each morning.
One day, half-fiend awakened kangaroos attack Ferox and he goes into a shield-biting rage. So, I decide at that point that he's going to go Berserk, which costs 4 fury tokens.
Can I voluntarily put more tokens in the fury pool, to extend the rage, either when I begin the rage, or during it?
Is initiating a fury rage an action of some sort? Can Ferox put up a Fervor as a defense if someone's casting a spell on him? Can Ferox initiate a Fervor if he's paralyzed?
I notice that you cleverly set rages up to add a bonus to Attribute checks and skill checks, but not to the attributes themselves. That avoids questions like whether Fervor adds to Constitution, and thence to fury points. What type of bonuses are those?
"Berserk" gives him "+2 bonus to all Strength checks and Strength-based skill checks, melee attack and damage rolls, and DR increases by 1.." So melee and damage are +2, not +1 (for the +2 Strength) or +3 (stacking with the +2 Strength), yes?
In 3.5, there are restrictions on what kind of activities a Barbarian can undertake while enraged. Do those apply to your system, too?
Ferox decides to use Extreme Effort, a fury deed. Does the fury point come out of his fury pool, or fury reserve?
Two rounds into his Berserk, Ferox realizes he needs to hustle over to another fight, and spends 5 fury tokens to initiate Frenzy. The Berserk stops. What happens to the tokens in the fury pool? Are there now 5, or 7?
Thanks for posting this, and I'm glad to hear it works well for you folks.
Overall, I'm not sure if fury tokens are much different from rage points. The amounts are different, but they seem to work the same way.
Myself, I keep trying to come up with a mechanism by which Barbarians can generate points / tokens / whatnot, perhaps by doing well on a Wisdom or Charisma check. I think about Jirel of Joiry, and how she simmers before her rages, and how to simulate that preparation.