3d6 Idea for a Short Module

[Deadalready]

I've been playing around with the classic system of ability scores where you roll 3d6 dice and are forced to apply those scores in order rolled STR, DEX, CON, INT, WIS, CHA.

Being a player who rolls hilariously low I thought it'd be funny to run a short 1-2 day module where everyone rolls their stats and is forced to build a character around their mismatched stats.

For example: I've rolled 8 STR, 11 DEX, 10 CON, 9 INT, 10 WIS, 11 CHA and would have to somehow build a level 1 char and survive a dungeon with him.

Since this sort of play requires experienced players and most of the players I have in mind have GM experience, I wanted to run a system where every hour a new GM takes the reigns of the module and adds the dungeon.

~

What I wanted is any thoughts and ideas, that could make this system workable, not to mention fun!

[Noireve]

Unless you enjoy dying... I don't see how it could remotely be fun. You stats are litterally lower than a basic CR 1 animal. With the highest possible stat being a 13... you owuld pretty much be unable to play anything other than barbarian (and even that is iffy at best).

In priciple it could be interesting but honestly, unless you liked to die alot and just had a million throw away guys made, it would end badly. You would get killed by the average commoner... (unless you got lucky and rolled god stats.)

[Sissyl]

Nah. Play summoners, all of you. That way your stats simply do not matter all that much, you still get kickass eidolons. Bonus points if you shout "EIDOLON, I CHOOSE YOU!!!" when attacking.

[Noireve]

That is true lol. And as a summoner, you act as your own healer xD

[Steve Geddes]

The main reason this stat generation system doesn't generally "work" very well in pathfinder is not the fact you might end up being crap (the DM can always adjust for that). It's that one PC might be crap whilst the rest of the group is awesome.

Perhaps it would be good to ensure that everyone had the same, randomly assigned stats. Something like: player one rolls 3d6 for their strength and that number becomes player two's intelligence, player three's wisdom, player four's dexterity, etcetera. Then player two rolls 3d6 and everyone assigns it to a different but predetermined stat...

At least that way you'd all be operating from roughly the same baseline (albeit some arrays would be more optimal than others).

[Kazaan]

Deadalready wrote:

I've been playing around with the classic system of ability scores where you roll 3d6 dice and are forced to apply those scores in order rolled STR, DEX, CON, INT, WIS, CHA.

Being a player who rolls hilariously low I thought it'd be funny to run a short 1-2 day module where everyone rolls their stats and is forced to build a character around their mismatched stats.

For example: I've rolled 8 STR, 11 DEX, 10 CON, 9 INT, 10 WIS, 11 CHA and would have to somehow build a level 1 char and survive a dungeon with him.

Since this sort of play requires experienced players and most of the players I have in mind have GM experience, I wanted to run a system where every hour a new GM takes the reigns of the module and adds the dungeon.

~

What I wanted is any thoughts and ideas, that could make this system workable, not to mention fun!

Well, there are work-arounds if you're creative. First, not making encounters about combat but rather about savvy. Incorporate some problem-solving that transcends simple stats; anyone can come up with a clever solution to a riddle. Even Gandolf can be stumped by a simple pun while a mere hobbit can out-wit a bunch of long-gone elves which are presumably a lot more clever than mere hobbits.

Second, there are game elements that can compensate for low stats and these game elements need not be applied homogeneously. Hero Points can be used to buffer up characters with "poor" stats by giving them options to entirely disregard their poor abilities and just "wing it". Oh, but if you use hero points, then the awesome characters who happened to roll 5 18s and a 14 (he rolled at home, but does that look like a dishonest face? and it's not like he came in with 6 18s... he got a 14 in Charisma...) just gets a pile of awesome points to make him that much better. Well, while all characters start with 1 hero point and earn one more per level, you can also apply them judiciously based on "merit". What is heroism? Is Captain Excellent with his 5 18s and a 14 (equivalent to a 90 point buy) landing a crit and slaying the ogre in one fell swoop heroism? Maybe, maybe not. Is it any surprise? Probably not. Should he be awarded a hero point for an act of daring valor for doing something that no one had reason to believe he'd fail at? Doubtful. Now what about your character with an equivalent to a -1 point buy? Oh, you managed to stand in front of your team wizard (who's laughing at you, btw) and successfully landed a hit on a giant rat? Here, have 5 hero points for your act of daring-do. Another thing is traits and feats. Oh, this hero has an equivalent of 90 points? He has to take either 2 drawbacks or give up either both his starting traits or his lvl 1 feat. Yeah, he lifts... but he doesn't do much else. Oh, your character has -1 points... Have a bonus starting feat for free and maybe two extra traits to boot.

Third, Templates. If you convert a Template into an equivalent point value for the point-buy system, then a character with low stats can be brought up by giving him a template. Oh, you're a low-stat... half-celestial. Oh, you're a low-stat... Advanced Human. I worked out a system a while back here and it can just as easily be applied to a rolled character to make point-buy equivalency more equitable. Oh, one hero rolled particularly high? Slap him with the Young template and suddenly while a savant, he's one size smaller, takes a Str and Con penalty... but gets a small Dex boost for what it's worth. And that template can wear off within a few years so he is only penalized for a while and then recovers his full stat values.

Lastly, focus your character. There is class inequity. Martials have an easier time early on while casters get their rather large payoff after about lvl 7 or so. Some classes are inherently harder (ie. Rogue and Monk) while others are rather straight-forward and simplistic (ie. Fighter and Barbarian). If you have poor stats, make the best of them. Don't go for a MAD class, don't go for exotic techniques or builds. Don't over-generalize when you can barely do one thing adequately. Focus on what you can do. Focus on non-damage to support your team such as teamwork feats and maneuvers or simple ranged combat. Be a very focused and simplistic caster focused more on support rather than blasting or control. Be a flanking buddy. Be a healing battery. Pick an archetype that consolidates your abilities. You're mediocre, but be the best mediocre hero you can be. Be a Gunslinger or a Synth Summoner or some other class that smells like it would go good on snack crackers or with wine. Don't aim to be some grand Paladin/Monk. Aim to be Norman the Human Fighter.

[Mojorat]

When gygax died one of the guys in my group did a tribute game. Using 3d6 in order. One of the characters was only playable because of a 9 in str. But ad&d used a different stat scale where simply having no bonus was the norm.

Still did not feel very heroic.

[Aranna]

This sounds awesome! A real chance to play commoners turned heroes. And since it is a short game it becomes the perfect chance to ham it up with the types of characters your optimizers would never play in a million years. As long as the GMs softball the encounters then nobody is likely to die and everyone still has a blast.

[thunderspirit]

You might consider running this (or using it as a resource). It's 3.5, but adaptable.

[Lincoln Hills]

There was an AD&D module for 0-level characters back in the day - "Treasure Hunt" - which was heavy on the exploration-and-sneaking-around and presented solo low-level monsters as formidable challenges. At the end of the adventure the players (rather than earning XP) got to pick their first PC class level.

I also ran an adventure inspired by The Goonies, Leave it to Chance and (to a lesser degree) old boarding-school novels (the non-magical forebears of the Hogwarts books) in which the characters, as eleven-year-olds, were solving a mystery at the King's Orphanage.

I can't speak for Treasure Hunt, but the second one I mention was pretty fun for the players - a "prequel" which gave the characters a solid basis when I asked them to re-create them as 1st-level adults. As long as mortal combat isn't indispensable to your idea of an adventure, you can create adventures for low-stat characters. (Strictly as a change of pace. Then it's back to using Godzilla as a bludgeon with which to beat Zeus to death.)

[Avatar-1]

There was a rule that I don't believe made it to Pathfinder where if the total of your modifiers was below a certain number, you could reroll all your stats. This would help your party not get demolished for the whole module, and the players would have no excuse.

[Sissyl]

Treasure Hunt is an awesome adventure.

The problem with playing 3d6 in order is that your characters die easily unless they are extremely careful with what they go up against, i.e. spend inordinate time investigating before combat. This easily gets pretty boring. And no, you don't get good stats from 3d6. You get pretty much 8-13 and that's it. The real problem isn't that characters have horrible stats, but that they have no real strong and no real weak points, giving people little to focus on.

Also, 1st edition is far more adapted to this style of play, so it won't be as much of a problem there.

[Ciaran Barnes]

Looks like you have a promising future as a peasant.

[Irontruth]

Another Dungeon Crawl Classics concept is the character funnel.

Each player makes 3 characters, with the 3d6 - in order, method. Make some more random rolls, a roll for a useful piece of gear, a background skill, etc. They then enter the dungeon, where most likely, 0-1 of their characters will come out the other end.

You get the amusing part of character deaths without players having to sit around and do nothing.

[Deadalready]

The point of the 3d6 is to test the players' abilities to optimise, adapt and come up with out of box tactics. I'm a big optimiser myself but I do feel that too much emphasis is placed on stats in games. I believe that if we can't succeed with our dud stats then we need to think about our actual playing ability more.

Big fan of treasure hunt idea, certainly will adapt it.