The goal of this page is to address and explain the various rule changes I've made to the core Dnd system. I'd like to begin with a couple of basic, over-arching premises and go from there. This page will naturally grow as I add and refine ideas and changes.
For me, Dnd is all about creating a unique-but-consistent character concept and playing it. Any rule which gets in the way of this creative process needs to be justified. I don't say this as a post-modernist chafing at restrictions imposed by a "privileged" viewpoint, but rather because many of the Dnd rules are simply not sufficiently open-ended. I still recoil at the thought of an elven samurai or a dwarven druid, but I don't believe an absolute ban on a concept is acceptable. By allowing all possibilities while simultaneously making some more difficult than others, I believe I can run a campaign were creativity flourishes without going wild. A crazy. post-modern, no-restrictions-enforced-world loses the feel and texture of a medieval fantasy universe and devolves into ridiculous caricatures and power-gaming. Meanwhile, a campaign that follows the letter of the rule books quickly becomes bereft of that unique and creative spark.
If a player wishes to play a particular race/class combination that is not normally allowed, I will permit it. But, for all things, there is a price to pay. In this case, the character must earn double the normal number of experience points to level, a reflection of the steep learning curve the character must overcome in order to excel at such a non-traditional endeavor. Moreover, the character will probably also have to begin play at 1/2 level instead of 1st level. This restriction alone is enough to discourage hobbit necromancers and 1/2 orcish rangers but still allow the option for those intent on following through on a concept.
Likewise, level limits for high level non-humans only reflect the point where the character in question must earn double the normal number of experience points to level. This discourages non-humans from high-level play, but still allows for tremendously powerful elven wizards or indomitable dwarven fighters. Indeed, this solution actually makes more sense from a racial standpoint; since elves, dwarves, gnomes, and the like live so much longer and mature so much slower, it is reasonable that at some point this trait becomes a disadvantage. Humans, cursed with our short lifespans, have internalized a drive to learn and develop quickly that is unique. Elves in particular have centuries to "get their act together"... The alternatives, given the longevity of most non-humans, is that either these races have some learning disability (reflecting an absolute limit of advancement) or should be the pinnacles of achievement in every class (assuming no level limits and a very long life in which to gather many times as many experience points as a human). Neither of these alternatives is satisfying for me, while my solution of slowed-progress even fits the biology of the races (elves take almost 100 years to reach the maturity a human achieves in 20).
I'll add more later...
Questions? Comments? Funny stories? Lemme know...
© 2004 buddhabear@geocities.com