House Rules 101

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Tanowa
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Joined: Tue Oct 20, 2015 6:22 pm

House Rules 101

Post by Tanowa »

These are my house rules. They include my rules for some extra races, like Gnomes, and Dark Elves. They include my take on Paladins, Necromancers, Rangers Berserkers, and Illusionist. I have also added some slight adjustments to Fighters, Mages, and Clerics for play balance with the extra classes. I modified the way Cantrips and Orisons are played to specifically help the mages. (Lets face it, level 1 mages need all the help they can get.)
I also included new spell lists for Necromancers and Illusionists. AND finally, I added a list of Assassin poisons.

My next post will include better descriptions of the spells and their effects.

Enjoy

-Tanowa

BASIC FANTASY HOUSE RULES01:
All characters start with the max hit points allowed by class or race (elves) with Constitution modifier.
As levels are gained dice are rolled and Con mods apply.
Ability scores are generated mostly by the book. Roll 3d6 straight down with one swap if it's an intended prime req.
If the sum of mods is negative you can re-roll or subtract every score by 21 (got this from Chris Gonnerman).
At levels 4, 7, and 10 the player can add one point to an ability score of their choice.
This represents focused, downtime training or growth made by the character.
It lessens penalties / increases bonuses without too much power creep.

For skill checks, I use the Ability Roll mechanic in the book for anything that has real consequences (being discovered by enemies, suffering damage, etc.).
This gives the 1st-level character a base chance of 20% that is increased gradually as experience is accrued.
Their mods ability apply as any situational mods.
For instance, if a character wanted to cross a 10' gap from one parapet to another using a wooden beam, I might add +3 to the ability roll target number and have them apply their Dex mod to their roll.
If they're trying to do it in the rain, I might add a +5 to the target number.
For any skill check that's low-stakes or doesn't have immediate consequences (say, trying to influence a local politician or find an obscure book in an unfamiliar library), I use the old school house rule of rolling under the relevant ability score on a d20.

Full HP for levels 1-3.
Critical damage: Full dice damage, plus dice damage roll, plus STR modifier.
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SmootRK
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Joined: Sun Mar 08, 2009 10:03 am
Location: Nashville, TN

Re: House Rules 101

Post by SmootRK »

Strange formatting there. I could not read through it comfortably.
Is it really the end, not some crazy dream?
SMAY63
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Joined: Sun Aug 24, 2014 11:21 am

Re: House Rules 101

Post by SMAY63 »

SmootRK: I've only just read the comment you made (2.5 years approximately, I know).
I've 'tidied up' the formatting to make it more readable.
Hope it helps.
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chiisu81
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Joined: Fri Aug 19, 2011 3:05 pm

Re: House Rules 101

Post by chiisu81 »

An attachment was never needed, due to the short length. Added text to first post.
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The Angry Monk
Posts: 126
Joined: Mon Dec 01, 2014 3:20 pm

Re: House Rules 101

Post by The Angry Monk »

Some interesting house rules. The campaign sounds very dark. Thank you for sharing.
“It was written I should be loyal to the nightmare of my choice.”
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