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So, I'm gearing up to run a Pathfinder game. It's my first time doing that, actually. I've run a lot of games through the years (I'm the normal GM for my group), sometimes even two or three at once, but never Pathfinder. I have played it several times, in three separate campaigns (two still ongoing) and a number of one-shots.
I also House Rule things. Like a lot. So, I have a House Rule list for that game, a few for appropraiateness and many for balance, and I would like to hear peoples' opinions on hem, so here they are:
16, 14, 14, 13, 12, 10
16, 16, 14, 12, 10, 8
Racial modifications are then applied as normal. All characters receive two traits and are otherwise created as normal. Points may be reallocated (using he asme 25 point buy that resulted in these) at GM discretion, but may never result in any score over 16 or more than one score below 10 before racial modifications.
Hit Points: Characters receive maximum HP at 1st level, thereafter they receive the following number of hit points per level, based on Hit Dice:
D6: 4
D8: 5
D10: 6
D12: 7
Constitution modifiers, Toughness, and other enhancements to this are applied normally.
Race Changes:
Dwarf: Dwarves may take their -2 ability penalty in Dexterity instead of Charisma if they desire.
Gnome: Gnomes may take their -2 ability penalty in Wisdom instead of Strength if they desire. This is really only recommended for melee focused characters such as Fighters, Barbarians, or Paladins.
Halfling: Like Gnomes, Halflings may take their -2 ability penalty in Wisdom instead of Strength if they desire. Halflings also have a base speed of 30 ft, not 20.
Tiefling: May use any of the alternate stat-mods in Bastards of Erebus and may pick one trait from the table therein to replace their Darkness ability if they wish, or roll twice instead and keep both random results if they prefer. The Fiendish Heritage Feat is both unnecessary and non-existent.
Save Changes:
Will Save: Any character may, at their own discretion, choose whether the Ability Bonus they gain to Will Saves is from Wisdom or Charisma. This may be changed, but only when the character gains a level, and may not be changed at other times.
Clerics: A cleric’s class skills vary somewhat by their deity, receiving one additional Class Skill and often changing several others. Clerics of a Philosophy (if allowed) or of a non-listed deity may select any one skill appropriate to the deity in question as a class skill. This selection may never include Perception or Use Magic Device.
Erastil: Trade Knowledge (Nobility and Arcana), for Survival and Knowledge (Local and Nature). Those with the Animal Domain gain Handle Animal as a class skill instead of Knowledge (Nature).
Iomedae: Trade Knowledge (Planes) and Appraise, for Knowledge (Engineering), Ride, and Intimidate.
Torag: Trade Knowledge (Arcana) for Knowledge (Dungeoneering and Engineering).
Sarenrae: Trade Appraise for Perform and Intimidate.
Shelyn: Gain Perform.
Desna: Trade Knowledge (Nobility) for Knowledge (Geography and Nature).
Cayden Cailean: Trade Knowledge (Nobility) for Knowledge (Local) and Bluff.
Abadar: Gain Knowledge (Local).
Irori: Gain Acrobatics.
Gozreh: Trade Knowledge (Nobility and Arcana) for Knowledge (Nature), Swim and Survival. Those with the Animal domain gain Handle Animal as a class skill instead of Knowledge (Nature).
Pharasma: Gain Intimidate.
Nethys: Gain Intimidate.
Gorum: Trade Knowledge (Arcana) for Ride and Intimidate.
Calistria: Replace Knowledge (Planes) with Knowledge (Local) and gain Bluff. Those with the Trickery domain gain Intimidate as a class skill instead of Bluff.
Asmodeus: Replace Heal with Bluff and Intimidate. Those with the Trickery Domain gain Knowledge (Local) as a class skill instead of Bluff.
Zon-Kuthon: Trade Appraise for Bluff and Intimidate.
Urgathoa: Trade Appraise for Bluff and Intimidate.
Norgorber: Trade Knowledge (Planes) for Knowledge (Local) and Intimidate.
Lamashtu: Trade Knowledge (Arcana) for Knowledge (Nature) and Survival.
Rovagug: Trade Knowledge (Arcana, Nobility) and Crafts for Climb, Swim, Ride, and Intimidate.
Monk: The Monk’s unarmed damage progression, AC bonus, and movement are changed as follows:
1: 1d4/+0/+0 ft
2-6: 1d6/+1/+10 ft
7-11: 1d8/+2/+20 ft
12-16: 1d10/+3/+30 ft
17-20: 1d12/+4/+40 ft
These numbers are for a Medium creature. Adjust damage normally if their size is either greater or lesser.
However a Monk does receive a damage bonus equal to his Wisdom modifier on unarmed attacks and with all Monk weapons. A Zen Archer monk may do this with bows only when using his ki arrows ability.
The Monk is a full Base Attack Bonus Class (though they keep their d8 hit dice). This makes the Flurry of Blows ability a bit less necessary. Maneuver Training is also thus completely redundant and does not exist.
If the Monk does not otherwise move in a round, the +20 ft movement use of Ki points allows the Monk to move 20 ft + Monk bonus Speed as a Swift Action that provokes Attacks of Opportunity normally. If the Monk does otherwise move, it remains only a +20 ft bonus.
Ranger: There is now a Sling Use combat style. This gives the following options: Ammo Drop, Point Blank Shot, Rapid Shot, Precise Shot. It adds Improved Precise Shot, Sling Mastery, and Juggle Load at 6th and Pinpoint Targeting and Shot on the Run at 10th.
Rogue: The Rogue is primarily unchanged with the exception of Trapfinding, which explicitly allows the Rogue to find and disable spells that are left in place, such as Magic Mouth or Sepia’s Snake Sigil. The DC to find a spell not listed as a trap is 20+Caster Level, and the DC to disable is 25+Caster Level. No XP is inherently received for disarming such spells. Additionally, the Save DC on Master Strike is based on Dexterity, not Intelligence.
All characters may trade in up to two class skills for other, different, class skills. This is in addition to the skills provided by Traits. Craft, Perform, and Profession may not be traded in this manner, and Knowledge Skills may only be traded for other Knowledge Skills.
Combat Maneuvers:
General: Size penalties on both CMB and CMD are waived if the individual in question possesses Weapon Finesse.
Steal: This maneuver is how one steals from an opponent in combat who is aware of them. CMB may be replaced with Sleight of Hand if the maneuverer wishes, though it still provokes an Attack of Opportunity, and still receives all usual bonuses from Feats such as Improved Steal.
Mundane Equipment:
Heavy Crossbow: This weapon requires a Standard Action to load if used as a Simple Weapon, but may be used as a Martial Weapon requiring only a Move Action to reload.
Falcata: This weapon is not designed to be used two handed and may not be used in that fashion.
Magic Items:
Amulet of Mighty Fists: In addition to providing a bonus on attacks, an AoMF also provides a bonus to Natural Armor equal to it’s rating, whether that rating is taken up by actual bonuses or effects such as Flaming. So a +1 Shocking, Flaming, Amulet of Mighty Fists also provides a +3 enhancement bonus to Natural Armor.
Agile Maneuvers: This Feat does not exist, see Weapon Finesse below. Characters who have it receive Weapon Finesse instead. Characters who have both receive any one additional Feat to replace it.
Crossbow Mastery: As being able to reload any Crossbow as a Free Action is now available with Rapid Reload alone, this Feat also allows the wielder of a crossbow to add a +3 bonus on all damage rolls with a crossbow.
Dervish Dance: This Feat may be purchased at 1st level as long as the character has 1 rank in Perform Dance, but they must buy the second rank at 2nd Level. It is available for any one handed melee weapon, as well as the Aldori Dueling Sword and Elven Curve blade (which obviously need not be wielded one handed). However, the Dex bonus to damage from this Feat is not multiplied by 1.5 on two handed weapons, and the Feat still prohibits shield use. This Feat may not be combined with Power Attack, though it may with Piranha Strike.
Juggle Load: This feat allows the reloading of slings without provoking attacks of opportunity. It’s Ammo Drop prerequisite can be replaced by the Halfling Warslinger Racial Trait.
Piranha Strike: This Feat works with any weapon that may be used with Weapon Finesse. This include weapons added to that list by a Feat such as Dervish Dance.
Rapid Reload: As Heavy Crossbows now only require a Move Action to reload if used as a Martial weapon, under those circumstances this Feat now makes them a Free Action, just as it does Light or Hand Crossbows.
Spring Attack: This Feat may explicitly be combined with Standard Action feats such as Vital Strike or Cleave.
Two Weapon Fighting: Unlike other multiple attack effects, this Feat may be used even when attacking as a Standard Action, though Improved and Greater Two Weapon Fighting still require the full attack action. This does also apply to a Monk’s Flurry of Blows and other abilities that imitate Two Weapon Fighting.
Weapon Finesse: This Feat additionally allows Dexterity to replace Strength for purposes of CMB. Use of this Feat also removes any CMB or CMD bonuses or penalties from Size.
Weapon Focus: This Feat may also be taken with a specific weapon combination (such as Rapier and Dagger) in which case the Feat may be used with both weapons, but only when they are wielded as a pair.
Whip Slinger: You may use your Dexterity instead of your Strength bonus when making normal melee attacks with the sling. This does not provide any of the other benefits of Weapon Finesse (such as the CMB effects, or using Dexterity with non-Sling weapons).
New Feats:
Sling Mastery:
Prerequisites: Dex 15, BAB +3, the ability to reload Slings as a Free Action.
Effect: The user of this Feat may use Dexterity instead of Strength to add to their damage when wielding a sling or sling-staff.
So, I'm gearing up to run a Pathfinder game. It's my first time doing that, actually. I've run a lot of games through the years (I'm the normal GM for my group), sometimes even two or three at once, but never Pathfinder. I have played it several times, in three separate campaigns (two still ongoing) and a number of one-shots.
I also House Rule things. Like a lot. So, I have a House Rule list for that game, a few for appropraiateness and many for balance, and I would like to hear peoples' opinions on hem, so here they are:
** spoiler omitted **...
The only changes that strike me as unfair is that certain races can change their negative stat adjustments....while elves have to eat their con loss. Which in my opinion hurts the most of any negative.
But even that is a small issue...and I really don't know any player who would keep the con loss....so I don't even have a useful advice on how to balance this except that no race can change it.
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The only changes that strike me as unfair is that certain races can change their negative stat adjustments....while elves have to eat their con loss. Which in my opinion hurts the most of any negative.But even that is a small issue...and I really don't know any player who would keep the con loss....so I don't even have a useful advice on how to balance this except that no race can change it.
The purpose of that particular rule is to enable concepts like Dwarf Bards or Halfling Paladins. Concepts that are really screwed over by my maxing stats at 16 before racial mods. Constitution loss, while annoying for just about everything, doesn't cripple even a Barbarian in the same way.
Also, Wis loss for Halflings and Gnomes makes sense with the races as described. Ditto Dex for Dwarves. I couldn't think of an equivalent loss that would make sense for Elves.
Still, I'm glad you liked the rest of them. :)
Yeah I missed the cap of 16 on stats...so it definitly makes sense now. And you are right I don't any equivalent loss to a stat that would make sense for elves.
I am alo generaly open minded about house rules if presented to me first...it is when house rules start coming up during the campaign that I usualy have issues with.
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Yeah I missed the cap of 16 on stats...so it definitly makes sense now. And you are right I don't any equivalent loss to a stat that would make sense for elves.
Yeah, I originally just had it for the small races, but then I was thinking how cool a Dwarf bard is...
The system arose from the idea of how, in normal point-buy (especially 25 point buy), you can play a character like a Halfling Paladin if you go to the appropriate trouble to buy your base stat to 18, making it viable if not optimal, and how my system (which is intended to give heroic scores without ridiculous min-maxing) hurt that concept.
I am alo generaly open minded about house rules if presented to me first...it is when house rules start coming up during the campaign that I usualy have issues with.
Yeah, I hate it when that happens. Specifically, I hate it when it's not even mentioned till the situation comes up. That's always really annoying.
And, of course, that's why I create voluminous house rules in advance that almost nobody is going to care enough about to actually read. :)
making a penalty swappable defeats the meaning of the penalty, but I understand your reasoning. I took a different approach...
For my last campaign, I dropped the penalties and just made it that all the non-human races got a +2 to a specific stat. There are 6 races besides human, so it's not too hard to do. If you do something like this, characters will not have a penalty for playing a certain classes.
I had a few homebrew races replacing some of the core races, but If I was using core this is how I would have done it:
Human +2 to any
Elf +2 int
Halfling +2 dex
Half elf +2 cha
Half orc +2 str
Dwarf +2 (con or wisdom)
Gnome +2 (opposite of dwarf)
That way each stat is being represented.
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For my last campaign, I dropped the penalties and just made it that all the non-human races got a +2 to a specific stat. If you do something like this, characters will not have a penalty for playing a certain class.
True enough, but that makes them objectively worse than humans for any class not focused on that specific stat. So, for example, Elves in your system get +2 Int, and are thus objectively slightly worse than humans at any class that's not Int based (including things like Ranger that they should thematically be good at). Which isn't what I want at all.
My system allows non-humans to play as (and be very successful at) any Class they desire, but without that down side. No class requires both Str and Wis (the two are used in some builds for, say, Cleric or Druid, but by no means all) or both Chr and Dex (again, many Bards are Dex based, but that's not a requirement of the class). And as stated above, nobody's crippled by a Con penalty.
It also, perhaps more importantly, damages the races' flavor, at least to me. Halflings are quick and charming, Dwarves sturdy and wise, etc. If those are no longer true mechanically, the world needs to change to match that, and doing so is both unpleasant and annoying, at least for me.
Anyone have any comments on anything other than the alternate racial penalties? I mean, I don't mind those, but comments on other stuff'd be nice.
RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32
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I really like the new skills lists for the clerics. I will be using them from now on. Well thought out and appropriate.
A few cleric changes I use: allow them to change the normal channel to alignment channel, elemental channel, cleansing channel (vs aberrations), or unraveling channel (vs constructs/oozes [in my game they made similar to a construct]). I also allowed the command and turn undead feats to work with any creature you could channel against. Just renamed them commanding channel and turning channel.
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I really like the new skills lists for the clerics. I will be using them from now on. Well thought out and appropriate.
Glad you got something useful out of them. And, honestly, just glad someone noticed. The alternate Cleric skill lists by deity were definitely the part of this list I had to do the most research for reading up on all the Gods of Golarion, so it's nice to hear that they're appreciated. :)
A few cleric changes I use: allow them to change the normal channel to alignment channel, elemental channel, cleansing channel (vs aberrations), or unraveling channel (vs constructs/oozes [in my game they made similar to a construct]). I also allowed the command and turn undead feats to work with any creature you could channel against. Just renamed them commanding channel and turning channel.
Hmmm. Interesting. None of the Pathfinder campaigns I've played in have really shown Clerics to their best effect (the two ongoing don't have one, and the third had an extremely unoptimized Fighter/Cleric), so I'm a little leery of vast changes to the class's functionality (as opposed to thematics, which is really all the skill changes are) before I see how it actually works in play as designed. But I'll keep that idea in mind if it seems less than stellar, performance-wise.
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And yes, the above statement does mean I've seen a Monk in play for quite a while. And got to see the player grow really frustrated as his conceptually awesome character remained stubbornly mechanically sub-par. The boards here convinced me this wasn't an isolated incident, and, well, hence the Monk changes.
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And yes, the above statement does mean I've seen a Monk in play for quite a while. And got to see the player grow really frustrated as his conceptually awesome character remained stubbornly mechanically sub-par. The boards here convinced me this wasn't an isolated incident, and, well, hence the Monk changes.
The GM handicapped my monk when I first played Pathfinder. He was making the rest of the party look bad. Monks should not stand toe-to-toe. I moved around alot and attacked the enemy non-melee creatures when possible. I optimized a half-orc for movement, intimidate, and combat maneuvers (feint/trip/disarm). Demoralize enemies, then feint, and disarm or trip. Soon we faced mostly 4 legged creatures that were melee oriented.
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The GM handicapped my monk when I first played Pathfinder. He was making the rest of the party look bad. Monks should not stand toe-to-toe. I moved around alot and attacked the enemy non-melee creatures when possible. I optimized a half-orc for movement, intimidate, and combat maneuvers (feint/trip/disarm). Demoralize enemies, then feint, and disarm or trip. Soon we faced mostly 4 legged creatures that were melee oriented.
And, coincidentally, none of my changes would make that character concept notably better at doing what it did. Indeed, I've reduced Monk enhanced speed slightly (though I did enhance the Ki-point speed boost a little). :)
The monk character in question was a very straightforward character intended to be a damage dealer. He was willing and able to move around, and did so, but his damage didn't work out so well. And it really should, since "being able to do damage effectively" strikes me as something monks should be able to do.
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The monk character in question was a very straightforward character intended to be a damage dealer. He was willing and able to move around, and did so, but his damage didn't work out so well. And it really should, since "being able to do damage effectively" strikes me as something monks should be able to do.
I don't see them that way at all. The only change I allow monks in my games is use monk levels instead of BAB for CMB. In my opinion, monks work the way they should. Hitting someone with your body instead of a weapon is suboptimal. Less leverage and mass = less damage. I remember watching a show that measured force for the different martial arts 'strong' hits vs that of weapons. And weapons came out ahead. That being said this is a fantasy game and The Most Important Rule is essential.
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I don't see them that way at all. The only change I allow monks in my games is use monk levels instead of BAB for CMB. In my opinion, monks work the way they should. Hitting someone with your body instead of a weapon is suboptimal. Less leverage and mass = less damage. I remember watching a show that measured force for the different martial arts 'strong' hits vs that of weapons. And weapons came out ahead.
Oh, absolutely, from a realism perspective. I...really don't play Pathfinder (or D&D in general) for the realism. I have, oh, say Unisystem for that. Now there's a system where you get hit with a sword (or even stabbed with a knife) it ruins your whole day, healing can take weeks, the skill list includes such things as Beutician, and it's still quick and easy enough to be fun.
I play (or run!) D&D for a much more epic fantasy feel, and unarmed combatants who practice mystical martial arts equalling a trained warrior with a sword is very much a part of that, at least for me.
That being said this is a fantasy game and The Most Important Rule is essential.
True enough. :)
Imagining a Halfling Barbarian using a sling staff to throw angry bullets and then clubbing away in melee, and it's even kind of effective. But that's entertaining, so not a bad thing. Everyone using composite bows can get a bit dull. As far as Crossbow I'm not to big on the flat +3 damage, just feels flat and too fighterish. Would personally prefer a fighter exclusive feat that adds Dex mod to Crossbow damage, which is normally unmodified, as opposed to allowing anyone to add dex mod to sling damage which can already benefit from strength.
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Just one thing I saw, and it may not be a problem.
Crossbow mastery plus weapon specialization is a whopping +5 to damage. Not only that but the concept of giving everyone the option of using a fighter only feat with a better bonus even for one weapon steps on the fighter's toes a bit.
Well, the prerequisites for Crossbow Mastery are more onerous than Weapon Specialization and (as you mention) it stacks with Weapon Specialization, so the Fighter remains top dog on the weapon damage front. It's intended to allow a Feat investment to overcome a Composite Longbow's superior damage to, well, everything. I considered making it add Dex, but that just reverses the problem, making the crossbow flat out better for a cost of only two Feats. I then considered making it 1/2 Dex, but that was really inelegant, and kinda wonky.
If you have any alternate solutions that solve all the problems, I'd be pleased to hear them, I'm not actually a big fan of this one either, it just seems to be what I could get to work.
Imagining a Halfling Barbarian using a sling staff to throw angry bullets and then clubbing away in melee, and it's even kind of effective. But that's entertaining, so not a bad thing.
That does sound fun, I won't deny. :)
But I'd rather it not be the only effective Halfling Slinger build.
Everyone using composite bows can get a bit dull. As far as Crossbow I'm not to big on the flat +3 damage, just feels flat and too fighterish. Would personally prefer a fighter exclusive feat that adds Dex mod to Crossbow damage, which is normally unmodified, as opposed to allowing anyone to add dex mod to sling damage which can already benefit from strength.
I kinda like Harsk, and (since he's not a Fighter) a Fighter only Feat doesn't do what I want (make these viable weapon choices for anyone willing to invest the Feats...so mostly Fighters and Rangers, but an occasional Rogue, Cleric, Inquisitor, or Bard too).
And the reason I feel it's okay to add Dex to the Sling, but not the Crossbow is simple: d10 vs. d4 base damage.
Now add in the sling staff, and the damage goes up to 1d6, but that's still a far cry from a d10. It'll go up to d8 for a Medium Slingstaff, but honestly, that's another Feat needed for a feat intensive little build already, so I'm okay with it. The sling-staff Fighter with a sky high Dex can manage it, but it's awfully Feat intensive even for him (2-3 Feats just to get to where bows are at to start with, plus all the standard ranged combat stuff).
So, in short, for a ranged character: d10+3, d8+Str, and d4/d6+Dex all seem viable. But d10+Dex would make the Crossbow almost as much better as the Longbow is right now, and d4/d6+Str just isn't competetive, especially for Halflings with their Str penalty (and they should honestly be the best at that particular strategy, not another one).
Give Crossbows Dex to damage and Halflings are better off as a crossbowman than a slinger...which is just wrong. As is, you can build a viable Halfling Slinger with a single Feat plus Warslinger, which sounds right to me.
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And thank you both, plus DSRMT, very much for the commentary! :)
I'll be very pleased if these are useful to you DSRMT.
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So, I'm raising this thread from the dead to store a new version of my House Rules, which are as follows, and include what amount to revised versions of the Fighter and Swashbuckler, as well as small changes to many other Classes.
House Rules:
All characters begin with one of the following stat distributions:
16, 14, 14, 13, 12, 10
16, 16, 14, 12, 10, 8
Racial modifications are then applied as normal. All characters receive two traits and are otherwise created as normal. Points may be reallocated (using the same 25 point buy that resulted in these) at GM discretion, but may never result in any score over 16 or more than one score below 10 before racial modifications (and that one no lower than 8).
D6: 4
D8: 5
D10: 6
D12: 7
Constitution modifiers, Toughness, and other enhancements to this are applied normally.
Aasimar: Have a -2 penalty to any one Ability of their choice. They may forego their spell-like ability for either one choice from the random table, or two rolls on it, or to forego the above mentioned penalty.
Dwarf: Dwarves may take their -2 ability penalty in Dexterity instead of Charisma if they desire.
Gnoll: May be played as if they were a 0 HD race. Their racial modifiers and abilities are +4 Str, +2 Con, -2 Int, -2 Chr, +1 Natural Armor, and Darkvision 60 ft.
Gnome: Gnomes may take their -2 ability penalty in Wisdom instead of Strength if they desire. This is really only recommended for melee focused characters such as Fighters, Barbarians, or Paladins.
Goblin: Goblins can take a penalty to Wisdom instead of Charisma, if they desire.
Halfling: Like Gnomes, Halflings may take their -2 ability penalty in Wisdom instead of Strength if they desire. Halflings also have a base speed of 30 ft, not 20.
Kitsune: A Kitsune can take a penalty to Constitution instead of Strength if they so desire.
Kobold: PC kobolds receive only -2 Strength, and get +2 Charisma as well.
Orcs: Orcs do not receive a Wisdom penalty. Or, alternately, do not receive a Charisma penalty, though that’s rarer. They also receive the Half Orc’s Intimidating racial trait (and may trade it out for any of the things Half-Orcs may), and their Darkvision is 90 feet. The default Orc thus has Int 8, Wis 9, and Intimidate +4, but no other meaningful changes.
Ratfolk: Ratfolk who so desire may take a penalty to Charisma instead of Strength.
Tiefling: May pick one trait from the table to replace their Darkness ability if they wish, or roll twice instead and keep both random results if they prefer.
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Class Changes:
Alchemists are explicitly allowed to learn Craft Wondrous Item using their Alchemist level as their caster level, but not any other Crafting Feats.
The Primal Hunter’s Focused Rage also adds to damage with ranged weapons.
Whenever the receive Versatile Performance they may reassign skill ranks to take proper advantage of it.
A cleric’s class skills vary somewhat by their deity, receiving one additional Class Skill and often changing several others. Clerics of a Philosophy (if allowed) or of a non-listed deity may select any one skill appropriate to the deity in question as a class skill. This selection may never include Perception or Use Magic Device.
Erastil: Trade Knowledge (Nobility and Arcana), for Survival and Knowledge (Local and Nature). Those with the Animal Domain gain Handle Animal as a class skill instead of Knowledge (Nature).
Iomedae: Trade Knowledge (Planes) and Appraise, for Knowledge (Engineering), Ride, and Intimidate.
Torag: Trade Knowledge (Arcana) for Knowledge (Dungeoneering and Engineering).
Sarenrae: Trade Appraise for Perform and Intimidate.
Shelyn: Gain Perform.
Desna: Trade Knowledge (Nobility) for Knowledge (Geography and Nature).
Cayden Cailean: Trade Knowledge (Nobility) for Knowledge (Local) and Bluff.
Abadar: Gain Knowledge (Local).
Irori: Gain Acrobatics.
Gozreh: Trade Knowledge (Nobility and Arcana) for Knowledge (Nature), Swim and Survival. Those with the Animal domain gain Handle Animal as a class skill instead of Knowledge (Nature).
Pharasma: Gain Intimidate.
Nethys: Gain Intimidate.
Gorum: Trade Knowledge (Arcana) for Ride and Intimidate.
Calistria: Replace Knowledge (Planes) with Knowledge (Local) and gain Bluff. Those with the Trickery domain gain Intimidate as a class skill instead of Bluff.
Asmodeus: Replace Heal with Bluff and Intimidate. Those with the Trickery Domain gain Knowledge (Local) as a class skill instead of Bluff.
Zon-Kuthon: Trade Appraise for Bluff and Intimidate.
Urgathoa: Trade Appraise for Bluff and Intimidate.
Norgorber: Trade Knowledge (Planes) for Knowledge (Local) and Intimidate.
Lamashtu: Trade Knowledge (Arcana) for Knowledge (Nature) and Survival. Those with the Animal domain gain Handle Animal as a class skill instead of Knowledge (Nature).
Rovagug: Trade Knowledge (Arcana, Nobility) and Crafts for Climb, Swim, Ride, and Intimidate.
Spell Defense (Ex): At 2nd level, a Fighter receives a +2 bonus on all saves vs. spells or spell-like abilities.
Fearless (Ex): At 6th level, a Fighter is now immune to magical fear, and receives a +4 morale bonus to saves against non-magical fear.
Resilience (Ex): At 10th level, a Fighter can shake off the physical effects of certain attacks. If he makes a Fortitude saving throw against an attack that has a reduced effect on a successful save, he instead avoids the effect entirely.
Indomitable Will (Ex): At 14th level, a Fighter gains a +4 bonus on Will saves to resist enchantment spells. This bonus stacks with all other modifiers, and this feature is identical to the Barbarian Class Feature of the same name.
Combat Mastery (Ex): At 18th level, a Fighter is never considered an unaware combatant, can always act in the surprise round, and is never considered flat-footed (though he may still lose his Dex bonus to Armor Class). Additionally, he is considered to always roll a 20 on initiative checks.
Archetypes that replace Bravery, replace the Spell Defense Class Feature instead. If they replace it with a scaling bonus, instead of scaling they simply gain it at the full +5 bonus (or whatever other maximum the ability hits) at 2nd level. The Viking’s ‘Fearsome’ ability is an exception, only receiving its normal progression.
The Unbreakable Fighter simply doesn’t replace Spell Defenses, and gains Improved Resilience on Fortitude Saves at 13th, as Resilience stacks with Stalwart.
Lore Wardens replace all instances of Armor Training with their listed Maneuver Mastery progression. They replace Spell Defense with Expertise, Fearless with Know Thy Enemy (which they receive at 6th level), Resilience with Hair’s Breadth (which they receive at 10th), and Indomitable Will with Swift Lore.
The Two-Weapon Warrior does not receive Doublestrike, however his Twin Blades ability applies even when making a standard action attack with two weapons (and replaces both Weapon Training 1 and 2). Defensive Flurry still only applies on Full Attacks, though.
All Gods have Conversion, Blackpowder, Heresy, Excommunication, Reformation, and Spellkiller (all six are universal concepts, irrespective of deity, though they may be more common for certain deities than others).
Erastil: Chivalry, Persistence, Recovery, Truth, Zeal,
Iomedae: Banishment, Chivalry, Justice, Tactics, Valor,
Torag: Persistence, Restoration, Revelation, Order, Tactics,
Sarenrae: Fervor, Redemption, Truth, Justice, Valor,
Shelyn: Persistence, Redemption, Revelation, Illumination, Valor,
Cayden Cailean: Anger, Fervor, Truth, Valor, Zeal,
Desna: Banishment, Illumination, Oblivion, Restoration, Vengeance,
Abadar: Banishment, Imprisonment, Order, Recovery, Truth,
Irori: Illumination, Persistence, Revelation, Truth, Tactics,
Gozreh: Anger, Chivalry, Persistence, Restoration, Zeal,
Nethys: Banishment, Fate, Illumination, Revelation, Vengeance,
Pharasma: Fate, Final Rest, True Death, Justice, Oblivion,
Calistria: Anger, Recovery, Sin, Torture, Vengeance,
Gorum: Anger, Chivalry, Persistence, Tactics, Valor,
Asmodeus: Damnation, Imprisonment, Order, Possession, Sin,
Zon Kuthon: Imprisonment, Oblivion, Possession, Torture, Truth,
Norgorber: Banishment, Fate, Illumination, Recovery, Tactics,
Urgathoa: Fervor, Persistence, Possession, Sin, Vengeance,
Lamashtu: Anger, Damnation, Sin, Torture, Zeal,
Rovagug: Anger, Fervor, Oblivion, Valor, Vengeance,
All ‘Strike’ Talents also have their level requirement reduced by 6. If this reduces them to level three or less, they have no level requirement.
All Archetypes are allowed, with those that replace Still Mind receiving whatever ability replaces it at 4th level, and those that replace nonexistent Class Abilities or others that have been moved costing Ki Powers within one level of the ability they replace (you get the ability when you lose the Ki Power).
Monks can recover Ki via meditation, at a rate of one point per hour.
Trapfinding explicitly allows the Rogue to find and disable spells that are left in place, such as Magic Mouth or Sepia’s Snake Sigil. The DC to find a spell not listed as a trap is 20+Caster Level, and the DC to disable is 25+Caster Level. No XP is inherently received for disarming such spells.
The Ki Pool Rogue Trick grants a full, Ninja-sized, Charisma-based, Ki Pool with all the appropriate uses (and remains available). On the other hand, Ninjas may buy Evasion as a normal Ninja Trick, not an advanced one, and Rogue and Ninja tricks are more or less interchangeable (as are the advanced versions). Rogue Ki is often called Guile instead, but is mechanically identical.
The Swashbuckler Archetype receives any one Combat Feat instead of only being limited to Martial Weapon Proficiency.
For all Sorcerers, Bloodline spells are received one level earlier than listed.
An Eidolon’s maximum attack number does include attacks with weapons, though all attacks with a particular weapon count as only one.
The Pounce evolution is available to all Eidolons, regardless of base form, but costs 4 points rather than 3 for a bipedal Eidolon. Many other subtype or base form limitations are also ignored at GM discretion.
Like the Druid’s Animal Companion, an Eidolon that gets no use out of Multiattack gets a bonus Feat in place of it.
At 2nd level the Swashbuckler may add her Charisma modifier as a permanent bonus to one of the following options:
The Swashbuckler's Fortitude Save.
The Swashbuckler's Reflex Save.
The Swashbuckler's Will Save.
The Swashbuckler's Initiative.
All Acrobatics, Climb, Escape Artist, Fly, Ride, and Swim checks that the Swashbuckler makes.
The Swashbuckler's combat maneuver bonus for one type of maneuver and her CMD to defend against that maneuver.
The number of attacks of opportunity the Swashbuckler can make per turn. This bonus stacks with Combat Reflexes.
At 6th level, and every 4 levels thereafter, the Swashbuckler may add their Charisma modifier to another one of the options presented.
The Mysterious Avenger archetype receives another instance of this ability at 4th level instead of 3 uses of the official version of Charmed Life. Racial Favored Class options that currently add +1/4 of a use of the official version of Charmed Life will instead add +1/6 of a new instance of this version of Charmed Life.
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General Changes:
Erastil: Weather
Iomedae: Nobility
Torag: Community
Sarenrae: Protection
Shelyn: Artifice
Cayden Cailean: Liberation
Desna: Darkness
Abadar: Community
Irori: Water
Gozreh: Travel
Pharasma: Rune
Nethys: Artifice
Calistria: Air
Gorum: Artifice
Asmodeus: Nobility
Zon-Kuthon: Madness
Norgorber: Rune
Urgathoa: Earth
Lamashtu: Animal
Rovagug: Strength
All characters may trade in up to two class skills for other, different, class skills. This is in addition to the skills provided by Traits. Craft, Perform, and Profession may only be traded in this manner with each other, and Knowledge Skills may only be traded for other Knowledge Skills. This is intended to reflect backgrounds and character quirks, not get everyone Perception and Use Magic Device. The Intimidate skill may use either the user’s Charisma or Strength modifier at their option.
General: Size penalties on both CMB and CMD are waived if the individual in question possesses Weapon Finesse.
Steal: This maneuver is how one steals from an opponent in combat who is aware of them. CMB may be replaced with Sleight of Hand if the maneuverer wishes, though it still provokes an Attack of Opportunity, and still receives all usual bonuses from Feats such as Improved Steal.
[spoiler=Mundane Equipment]
Heavy Crossbow: This weapon requires a Standard Action to load if used as a Simple Weapon, but may be used as a Martial Weapon requiring only a Move Action to reload.
Falcata: This weapon is not designed to be used two handed and may not be used in that fashion.
Amulet of Mighty Fists: In addition to providing a bonus on attacks, an AoMF also provides a bonus to Natural Armor equal to its rating, whether that rating is taken up by actual bonuses or effects such as Flaming. So a +1 Shocking, Flaming, Amulet of Mighty Fists also provides a +3 enhancement bonus to Natural Armor. Amulets of beyond +5 may be available at GM discretion. The price is still the full, original price (starting at 5,000 for +1) not the new reduced one however.
Magical Device Traps: Automatic Reset Traps only reset 49 times. That makes them 50 times, total, and thus the same price as spellcasting services done 50 times, not an unlimited amount. They do recover one use per year, up to their maximum of 50, however.
Natural Armor: All creatures have a maximum Natural Armor bonus of +20. Those with higher Natural Armor than this convert any remainder to a Deflection bonus, which stacks with any preexisting Deflection bonuses they may have (though not with items such as Rings of Protection).
Dragons: All creatures of the Dragon Type are a special case in regards to Natural Armor AC bonuses, and instead of using the above rule convert a full ½ of their Natural Armor bonus (rounded down) to a Deflection bonus in the same way mentioned above.
Ammo Drop: This Feat allows reloading a sling, double-sling or sling-staff as a Free Action, but this does provoke attacks of opportunity.
Antagonize: This Feat does not exist.
Agile Maneuvers: This Feat does not exist, see Weapon Finesse below. Characters who have it receive Weapon Finesse instead. Characters who have both receive any one additional Feat to replace it.
Crane Wing: This Feat uses its original, non-errata rules.
Crossbow Mastery: As being able to reload any Crossbow as a Free Action is now available with Rapid Reload alone, this Feat also allows the wielder of a crossbow to double his crossbow’s damage dice (so a Heavy Crossbow does 2d10 damage), this multiplier, unlike most others, is multiplied by other multipliers like Vital Strike (so a character with Vital Strike and a +6 BAB does 4d10 with his crossbow when using both Feats).
Divine Protection: This Feat does not exist.
Juggle Load: This feat allows the reloading of slings without provoking attacks of opportunity. Its Ammo Drop prerequisite can be replaced by the Halfling Warslinger Racial Trait.
Manyshot: Despite its wording this feat works with any ranged weapon except guns or thrown weapons, not just bows.
Piranha Strike: This Feat works with any weapon that may be used with Weapon Finesse. This includes weapons added to that list by a Feat such as Dervish Dance.
Rapid Reload: As Heavy Crossbows now only require a Move Action to reload if used as a Martial weapon, under those circumstances this Feat now makes them a Free Action, just as it does Light or Hand Crossbows.
Sacred Geometry: This Feat does not exist.
Shadow Strike: This Feat allows precision damage to function even against targets with complete concealment.
Spring Attack: This Feat may explicitly be combined with Standard Action feats such as Vital Strike or Cleave.
Two Weapon Fighting: Unlike other multiple attack effects, this Feat may be used even when attacking as a Standard Action, though Improved and Greater Two Weapon Fighting still require the full attack action. This does also apply to a Monk’s Flurry of Blows and other abilities that imitate Two Weapon Fighting.
Vital Strike, Improved Vital Strike, and Greater Vital Strike: Of these, only Vital Strike exists. It automatically improves to x3 at +11 BAB, and x4 at +16 BAB.
Weapon Finesse: This Feat additionally allows Dexterity to replace Strength for purposes of CMB. Use of this Feat also removes any CMB or CMD bonuses or penalties from Size.
Weapon Focus: This Feat may also be taken with a specific weapon combination (such as Rapier and Dagger) in which case the Feat may be used with both weapons, but only when they are wielded as a pair.
Whip Slinger: You may use your Dexterity instead of your Strength bonus when making normal melee attacks with the sling. This does not provide any of the other benefits of Weapon Finesse (such as the CMB effects, or using Dexterity with non-Sling weapons).
Prerequisites: Ki Power Class Feature
Effect: You receive one additional Ki Power that you meet the prerequisites for.
Leaping Charge:
Prerequisites: Dex 13, BAB +10, Dodge, Mobility, Spring Attack.
Effect: This Feat grants the user the Pounce Monster Special Ability, with all that implies.
Sling Mastery:
Prerequisites: Dex 15, BAB +3, the ability to reload Slings as a Free Action.
Effect: The user of this Feat may use Dexterity instead of Strength to add to their damage when wielding a sling, sling-staff, or other ranged weapon with 'sling' in the name.
Unarmored Dodge:
Prerequisites: Dex 13, Light Armor Proficiency,
Effect: You have found through experience that you seem to do a lot better at dodging while not wearing armor. As long as you are neither wearing armor, nor using any item, spell, or other effect that grants an Armor Bonus to AC, you receive a +4 Dodge Bonus to AC. For every five levels you possess, this bonus increases by an additional +1.
Special: This Feat may be used instead of Dodge as a prerequisite for any and all Feats, abilities, and Prestige Classes that require Dodge, but anyone who possesses it may never acquire the Dodge Feat.
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In case anyone cares, and for ease of use (and continuing updates), I've put all my house rules into a Google Document here.
So... About the racial attributes...
I have a similar houserule:
- Elves may choose to get a bonus to Wis instead of Int.
- Gnomes may choose to get a bonus to Int instead of Cha.
- Every race may choose to lose its attribute penalty in exchange for losing one of its attribute bonuses, as long as the penalty and bonus are equivalent.
IME, this makes character creation far more diverse without making it much more complicated.
Dotting
Point buy house rule is nice. I normally like that starting 20, but trying to fit an 18 without gimping your other stats is a pain anyways, so it's not the end of the world.
I probably wouldn't let tieflings and aasimar roll for two benefits. Nine times out of ten it's going to be inconsequential stuff, but just the fear of getting someone with two more +2s or one of the other strong options makes me nervous about allowing it.
I'd personally rather just use the APG gnoll (only +2 to Str, but no penalties and one more natural armor).
I like the other race changes. And the will save change.
Still going through the rest, though at first glance I'd probably just make 4+int skill points the minimum for all classes that don't run off intelligence, rather than just fighters and sorcerers. And I'm not a huge fan of the lore warden nerf. Otherwise most of it looks good. Will update when I read more.
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Point buy house rule is nice. I normally like that starting 20, but trying to fit an 18 without gimping your other stats is a pain anyways, so it's not the end of the world.
Yeah, it's an intentional slight power-down for SAD characters like full casters. Among other things.
I probably wouldn't let tieflings and aasimar roll for two benefits. Nine times out of ten it's going to be inconsequential stuff, but just the fear of getting someone with two more +2s or one of the other strong options makes me nervous about allowing it.
Eh. Hasn't come up. And I'd make them roll after making their character otherwise, so the odds of it being the stats they want are super low.
I'd personally rather just use the APG gnoll (only +2 to Str, but no penalties and one more natural armor).
The stats I went with are the actual Gnoll stats, though, and IMO balanced with, say, Orcs. I prefer that slightly.
I like the other race changes. And the will save change.
Me too. :)
Still going through the rest, though at first glance I'd probably just make 4+int skill points the minimum for all classes that don't run off intelligence, rather than just fighters and sorcerers.
Clerics and Warpriests are powerful enough without more skills IMO. And that's pretty much it for low skill point classes.
And I'm not a huge fan of the lore warden nerf. Otherwise most of it looks good. Will update when I read more.
Lore Warden is indisputably superior to base Fighters now. My goal was to power up the base Fighter to the point where that wasn't the case, without overpowering the Lore Warden. A Lore Warden using my Fighter chassis actually winds up better in pretty much every way than one using the base rules...just not as much better than the Base Fighter as he is now.
For example, he gives up Bravery entirely, but he was already one point down and he gains Good Will Save progression, gains most of his own abilities a level early or so, and loses nothing else the official Fighter even has.
For the ability swapping thing, I have a house rule for the Adopted trait. Instead of getting a racial trait of your adopted parent's race, you can choose this:
"Choose one of your +2 or -2 racial ability score adjustments, swap it for an adjustment of the same value that is granted by your parent's race. This does not allow you to get a +4 to a score, but this can allow score adjustments to cancel out.
For example: a Gnome raised by Dwarves could have -2 str, +2 con, +2 wis / -2 str, +2 wis, +2 cha / or just +2 con."
Yeah, it's an intentional slight power-down for SAD characters like full casters. Among other things.
Yeah and as strange as it is, I actually like houserules like that for SAD characters, because it takes the pressure to build something with heavily lopsided stats out of equation.
Eh. Hasn't come up. And I'd make them roll after making their character otherwise, so the odds of it being the stats they want are super low.
That helps, though on the flipside I can imgine
The stats I went with are the actual Gnoll stats, though, and IMO balanced with, say, Orcs. I prefer that slightly.
Yeah, it's admittedly just a preferential change.
Clerics and Warpriests are powerful enough without more skills IMO. And that's pretty much it for low skill point classes.
Clerics and Warpriests are powerful enough, yeah, but so are sorcerers.
I admit it's not a particularly pressing issue and a lot of it is preference because I really like skill points, but 2+int for non int based classes always feels oppressive and difficult to manage to me. A cleric can know about stuff directly related to his or her profession (religion and planes) but can't do ANYTHING else without being human or having above average intelligence. It just feels too confining to me for how broad based skills are as a concept.
Though it's not just Clerics and Warpriests. Paladins, Summoners/U-summoners and antipaladins are sitting at 2+int too.
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Yeah and as strange as it is, I actually like houserules like that for SAD characters, because it takes the pressure to build something with heavily lopsided stats out of equation.
Definitely. I feel exactly the same, since it lets you build a bit more of a balanced person rather than
Clerics and Warpriests are powerful enough, yeah, but so are sorcerers.
Sorcerers have the same spell list as Wizards, and fewer advantages over them than Oracles have over Clerics, it felt wrong for Oracles to get the 4+Int skills and Sorcerers not to.
Clerics, meanwhile, have one of the best spell lists and the single best spell availability in the game (ie: access to the whole list free of charge). Powering up Sorcerers doesn't even bring them to Wizard levels. Powering up Clerics is powering up one of the most powerful Classes in the game, something I do very carefully if at all.
Warpriests might yet go to 4 + Int. I'm still thinking about that one.
I admit it's not a particularly pressing issue and a lot of it is preference because I really like skill points, but 2+int for non int based classes always feels oppressive and difficult to manage to me. A cleric can know about stuff directly related to his or her profession (religion and planes) but can't do ANYTHING else without being human or having above average intelligence. It just feels too confining to me for how broad based skills are as a concept.
Well, that assumes maxed ranks. Something I generally assume is not the case for NPCs. It also ignores Favored Class Bonuses, which have historically almost always gone to skills in my games (and certainly can). It also assumes most Clerics are of only average intellect, which isn't an assumption I'd generally make (especially not of PCs...25 point-buy really helps here). And then there's that human bonus...
A Human Cleric with Int 12 has 5 skill points a level going by that, and a non-human Cleric 4 (if an Elf, they likely have Int 14 and 5 again). And that seems sufficient to me most times.
Though it's not just Clerics and Warpriests. Paladins, Summoners/U-summoners and antipaladins are sitting at 2+int too.
That's true. But Paladins have a bit of the same issue as Clerics with already being really powerful as compared to their equivalents. Less skills seems a reasonable price to pay. And Summoners have a prosthetic extra 4 skill points a level most levels in their Eidolon. That's not an advantage to be ignored.
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Vigilante stuff added. Still need to add some additional Ultimate Intrigue stuff. That'll happen...eventually.
Reading through this...it seems that fighters eventually have a stronger will save than the monk, outside of the thought that the monk gains more benefit out of wisdom and will be more likely to stack it. Or did I miss something? To me, that feels off.
Also, do you have any kind of observations from having used these? What has changed? What do people gravitate towards? Away from?
I'm looking at making my own set of houserules (as inexperienced I may be, and as biased towards fighters I may be as well....), so I'm curious what the affect of your changes have been.
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Reading through this...it seems that fighters eventually have a stronger will save than the monk, outside of the thought that the monk gains more benefit out of wisdom and will be more likely to stack it. Or did I miss something? To me, that feels off.
That is a potential issue. The rules were mostly written before Fighters had quite as many ways to improve Will Save (the most recent one in Ultimate Intrigue, which I like, is what pushed them over). Doing some math, I think I'll probably ditch Indomitable Will for some equivalently useful effect at 14th. That'll put them back on par with a Monk or maybe slightly below even with the Fighter-only Will Save stuff. Of course, it'll take me a bit to come up with something...
Also, do you have any kind of observations from having used these? What has changed? What do people gravitate towards? Away from?
Well, I think the big change has been more Wis dumping and less Cha dumping. Allowing Cha to Will saves makes it more of a real choice based on what skills it adds to and theme.
Other than that? I'm not sure I've noticed anything major. People seem a bit more satisfied with martial characters and use skills a bit more, maybe? Yeah, those sound right, but that's pretty much it.
I'm looking at making my own set of houserules (as inexperienced I may be, and as biased towards fighters I may be as well....), so I'm curious what the affect of your changes have been.
Like I said, the above is probably about it. Most of my House Rules are designed to make the weaker classes and options more equal to the powerful ones without changing too much else, so beyond more people playing things like Fighters, or being able to use tactics like sling usage, the impact is intentionally minimal (despite the length of the document).
That is a potential issue. The rules were mostly written before Fighters had quite as many ways to improve Will Save (the most recent one in Ultimate Intrigue, which I like, is what pushed them over). Doing some math, I think I'll probably ditch Indomitable Will for some equivalently useful effect at 14th. That'll put them back on par with a Monk or maybe slightly below even with the Fighter-only Will Save stuff. Of course, it'll take me a bit to come up with something...
Even discounting the new enhanced bravery feats, it's still a class with a +4 to will vs enchantments & a +bravery to fear vs a class which gets neither bonus. Likely not unbalancing, just feels wrong. Of course I have issues with things on the unchained monk's list of toys (ki metabolism for example), but that's a different issue.
Well, I think the big change has been more Wis dumping and less Cha dumping. Allowing Cha to Will saves makes it more of a real choice based on what skills it adds to and theme.
I like this, especially with the thought of charisma being a "force of personality" concept, it can make sense for it to be applied to will saves. In addition, Charisma feels a bit like a lame stat because it is mostly used for social encounters, but the skills in a given situation are more or less mutually exclusive (either you intimidate or you use diplomacy for example).
Also other thing that came to mind, what are your thoughts on playing with a fixed hp amount per level rather than the die roll? The gambler in me likes the 'thrill' of the roll, but I've been feeling more and more that such chance is better left to active gameplay. When it takes part in character creation, all it has the potential to do is make one player sub-par simply because the dice keep coming up poorly on such important rolls, & there's little player recourse (short of retraining if the dm allows that).
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Even discounting the new enhanced bravery feats, it's still a class with a +4 to will vs enchantments & a +bravery to fear vs a class which gets neither bonus. Likely not unbalancing, just feels wrong. Of course I have issues with things on the unchained monk's list of toys (ki metabolism for example), but that's a different issue.
Well, the Monk gets Still Mind for a +2, remember. That plus inevitably higher Wisdom makes up for most of it IMO. Additionally, you're seeing the class in transition at the moment. It used to ditch Bravery entirely for an Initiative bonus, and I really only brought Bravery back because good Feats and other options were being made for it.
Enhanced Bravery sorta makes it a moot point, though. Like I said, I'm gonna ditch Indomitable Will for something else. Dunno what, maybe something utility or skill based. Or some kind of healing advantage.
I like this, especially with the thought of charisma being a "force of personality" concept, it can make sense for it to be applied to will saves. In addition, Charisma feels a bit like a lame stat because it is mostly used for social encounters, but the skills in a given situation are more or less mutually exclusive (either you intimidate or you use diplomacy for example).
All that is a large part of why I did this particular House Rule. It's one of my earliest and most successful House Rules, and has been lots of fun.
Also other thing that came to mind, what are your thoughts on playing with a fixed hp amount per level rather than the die roll? The gambler in me likes the 'thrill' of the roll, but I've been feeling more and more that such chance is better left to active gameplay. When it takes part in character creation, all it has the potential to do is make one player sub-par simply because the dice keep coming up poorly on such important rolls, & there's little player recourse (short of retraining if the dm allows that).
It's so much better. Having seen how un-fun it is for a Barbarian who rolls a couple of ones on leveling HP (and similar circumstances), I can't overstate how much this improves things. Having how powerful your character is determined randomly only increases frustration and causes other negative consequences, IME.
And retraining HP is weird. If you allow it, you might as well just charge people a randomly rolled 'living expenses' price every level and give them max HP. The effect is the same barring extraordinary time pressure.
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Updated for most of Ultimate Intrigue, plus some additional stuff on the Barbarian (and Bloodrager). Nothing too high impact, but something to improve the Barbarian's non-combat abilities a bit and a few other minor things.
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Been getting back into Pathfinder and looking over my House Rules, so I've updated them if anyone cares.
Notable changes include a minor boost to Paladins and Antipaladins based on having given some boosts to Bloodrager, more skills for the Warpriest, a boost to combat Mesmerists, some stuff for Spiritualists, and a serious versatility upgrade to the Medium. Plus some cleaned up language.
Comments are, of course, always welcome.
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The bit about Natural Armor is really interesting!
Dragons: All creatures of the Dragon Type are a special case in regards to Natural Armor AC bonuses, and instead of using the above rule convert a full ½ of their Natural Armor bonus (rounded down) to a Deflection bonus in the same way mentioned above.
It looks like you've been using it for some time; Have you GM-ed for a gunslinger? If so, how did they fare?
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Thanks! That one's actually one of the random rules that makes me happiest, just because I like the logic of it.
I haven't GMed for a Gunslinger since adding that particular House Rule, sadly, so I can't say for sure how that would turn out.
I'd hope it helps some of the very high level creatures, and particularly Dragons, out in that regard, but I don't have actual experience to draw on in. It actually won't make much of a difference except vs. very high CR enemies and dragons, but then my goal was hardly to render Gunslingers useless...
Nice work Deadmanwalking. I don't agree with everything, but it is very well done.
It looks good in general... but you might not want to give the whole world edit access to it. I've seen a couple of guides messed up by trolls and you've put a public link here.
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Nice work Deadmanwalking. I don't agree with everything, but it is very well done.
Thanks! :)
It looks good in general... but you might not want to give the whole world edit access to it. I've seen a couple of guides messed up by trolls and you've put a public link here.
An excellent point (though I do usually keep an offline backup).
Is it better now? I don't use Google Docs a lot.
EDIT: Actually, examining settings, people other than me already shouldn't be able to edit it. Am I wrong?
A few additional things involving Class Skills for various Classes added.
What did you change? I'm not seeing it.
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A few additional things involving Class Skills for various Classes added.What did you change? I'm not seeing it.
I added some Class Skills to Kineticist, Paladin (and thus Antipaladin), and Cavalier, as well as Barbarian (in the form of 'Cultural Ties') and Brawler (adding it back into 'Woman of the World').
Pretty minor stuff.
A few additional things involving Class Skills for various Classes added.What did you change? I'm not seeing it.I added some Class Skills to Kineticist, Paladin (and thus Antipaladin), and Cavalier, as well as Barbarian (in the form of 'Cultural Ties') and Brawler (adding it back into 'Woman of the World').
Pretty minor stuff.
Oh, I see. Yeah, the Cultural Ties seemed at least partly new. I got the impression you were adding more fundamental rules about Class Skills. I overwrote my copy, so couldn't compare.
Thanks.
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I've fiddled with the Swashbuckler's movement enhancer to make it better and more appropriate for, well, a Swashbuckler.
I'm liking it.