Aug 29, 2019 2:19 pm
You will find here the house rules that will apply to our game. I'm open to discuss them, but usually have good reasons to add them to the game.
TL;DR: 4 elements Monk and Ranger are now decent. Non damaging cantrips scale. Inspiration works. KO matters.
General rules
KO
Whenever you reach 0 HP, you take one level of exhaustion.
Experience
Whenever you deal with an obstacle that should give you any amount of experience points, you get the adjusted XP (DMG p.82) instead of the normal amount. That’s more XP for you if you’re wondering.
Dealing with an obstacle means that you take care of it in a durable way. Negotiating or bribing can sometimes work as well, if not better, than fighting. Clever solutions will be rewarded!
Getting around an obstacle will grant you less XP if it means that this obstacle will remain in place and that you could face it again. Sneaking past the guards will only grant you some minor XP, but bribing them would grant you the whole XP (and killing them afterward would give you none, as they were not an obstacle anymore).
Leveling up
Whenever you have gained enough XP to reach a new level, that level will be available at the end of the next long rest.
Passive proficiencies as knowledge
All Proficiencies (skills, tools, weapons, and armor) are assumed to represent both active uses of those things and relevant background knowledge, lore, information, and awareness. When a character with a Proficiency encounters something in the game, the GM should simply give them any relevant information based on their expertise.
A character’s Passive Skill is equal to 8 + Ability Modifier + Proficiency Bonus. If the character has Advantage on such skill checks, the Passive Skill gains an additional +5. If the character has Disadvantage, the character suffers an additional -5.
Inspiration
Inspiration as described in the PHB sucks. That’s why we never remember that it even exists. So we will use that variant from the Angry GM.
Every character begins [each narrative arc] with Inspiration, which is a thing you either have or you don’t.
If you have Inspiration, you can spend it at any time to take an Inspired Action provided that action somehow ties into one of your character’s personal characteristics. If your Ideal is "I will do anything to save a person in danger," and you want to swing across a ravine on a vine to rescue someone who is about fall into the ravine and hanging by one hand, that fits. You can claim an Inspired Action.
When you take an Inspired Action, you can either gain advantage on an ability check, attack roll, or saving throw OR you can give advantage to someone else’s ability check, attack roll, or saving throw provided you are in a position to assist them directly in some way OR impose disadvantage on someone else’s ability check, attack roll, or saving throw provided you are in a position to hinder their action directly in some way. Whatever it is, the Inspired Action MUST somehow connect to one of your Personal Characteristics.
So, let’s take that "I will take any risk to save a person in danger." You could do the aforementioned "swinging across the ravine to catch them from falling" thing. Or if they have to attempt a saving throw to avoid a collapsing ceiling, you could throw yourself at them to save them, giving them advantage on the saving throw. Or if a monster is about to attack someone standing near you, you can interpose yourself and give the monster disadvantage on the attack roll. See? Easy.
When you don’t have Inspiration, you can Claim a Setback to gain Inspiration. To Claim a Setback you must either impose disadvantage on one of your own ability checks, saving throws, or attack rolls based on one of your Personal Characteristics OR make a decision that creates a significant story setback, obstacle, or hindrance. When you want to Claim a Setback, simply ask the GM. For example: "I’m easily distracted by shiny objects, so I’m distracted by the giant pile of treasure. Can I Claim a Setback and take disadvantage on my saving throw against the dragon’s fire breath?" Or: "This guy wants to help us, but I distrust all strangers. I’m going to be rude and accusatory of him. Can I Claim a Setback for that?" And then the GM might have the stranger refuse to help or get offended or start a fight. Whatever.
After you Claim a Setback, you get Inspiration. You can use the Inspiration to take an Inspired Action. And on and on it goes.
Working Together
When two or more characters work together to accomplish the same task, the character with the higher modifier leads the effort. The leader makes the appropriate ability check and enjoys a +2 bonus for one or two helpers or a +5 bonus for three or more helpers. Characters can only work together if it is task where such help is feasible and possible. In addition, a character can only help with a task if they would not be incapable of attempting the task on their own (due to a lack of Proficiency for instance).
Group Checks
When several PCs are trying to accomplish something as a group, the GM can call for a group check. First, the GM determines whether the group will succeed if any member succeeds (such as with searching) or if the group will fail if any member fails (such as with stealth). In the first scenario, the character with the highest base Ability Check modifier (Proficiency Bonus + Ability Bonus) rolls the check. In the second scenario, the character with the lowest base Ability Check modifier (Proficiency Bonus + Ability Bonus) rolls the check. Bonuses, penalties, Advantage, and Disadvantage are applied normally to the character rolling the check, but these should only be applied after the GM has determined which player rolls the check.
Traveling
At the beginning of the day, the party decides what kind of pace to set: Slow, Medium, or Fast.
At a Slow Pace, the party is moving carefully and quietly. They gain Advantage to all checks to perceive danger and all hostile creatures suffer Disadvantage to detect the party, thus allowing the party to surprise enemies. In addition, the party can forage for food normally if they maintain a slow pace for the entire day. Finally, navigation checks enjoy Advantage when moving at a Slow pace. The party’s speed, however, is reduced by a third. So every three days of travel count as only two days of travel.
At a Medium pace, the party travels normally. They may forage for food with Disadvantage.
At a Fast pace, the party travels more quickly. Their speed is increased by a third. So every three days of travel count as four days. While traveling at a Fast Pace, the party cannot forage for food at all. They suffer Disadvantage on all checks to perceive dangers and on navigation checks. Hostile creatures enjoy Advantage on checks to detect or track the party.
Once the party has set the pace for the day, they CAN change the pace based on what happens to them during the day. The result is resolved at the end of the day.
Bosses, Swarms of lesser enemies and other special foes
Special enemies such as bosses or swarmes of lesser enemies will sometimes be ruled in non standard ways to ease their management or create tension. Either way, I’ll do my best to give in-game hints on any unusual thing going on.
Altered features
Magic
Evolving cantrips
We will b using the amazing Evolving cantrips, which means that non damage-dealing cantrips will scale with your character level too!
Reworked classes
Ranger: Consensus ranger
Monk, 4 elements sub-class: Monk of 4 elements
New classes
Scholar: The Scholar
Class features
Sorcerer’s Font of Magic
The class features "Font of Magic" and "Metamagic" now both come at level 2.
Paladin’s Divine sense
As an action, until the end of your next turn, you know the location of any celestial, fiend, or undead within 60 feet of you that is not behind total cover. This sense can penetrate most barriers, but it is blocked by 1 foot of stone, 1 inch of common metal, a thin sheet of lead, or 3 feet of wood or dirt. You know the type of any being whose presence you sense, but not its identity. Within the same radius, you also detect the presence of any place or object that has been consecrated or desecrated. You can use this feature a number of times equal to 1 + your Charisma modifier. When you finish a long rest, you regain all expended uses.
The radius goes up to 90 when you reach level 6, and the barrier restriction drops at level 14.
Barbarian’s Rage
Your rage lasts for 1 minute. It ends early if you are knocked unconscious or if your turn ends and you haven't attacked a hostile creature since your last turn or taken damage since then used one of the benefits its grants you, taken damage from or acted against a hostile creature. You can also end your rage on your turn as a bonus action.
GM comment: dashing toward your enemies counts as acting against them, and so does readying an action that targets them.
Scholar's Medical genius
Prerequisite: Physician Pursuit
When you spend one use of a healer's kit to tend to a creature, it regains 1d4 HP plus your Intelligence modifier and your proficiency bonus. That creature can't regain hit points in this way again until they finish a short or long rest.
GM comment: doesn't stack with the Healer feat
TL;DR: 4 elements Monk and Ranger are now decent. Non damaging cantrips scale. Inspiration works. KO matters.
General rules
KO
Whenever you reach 0 HP, you take one level of exhaustion.
Experience
Whenever you deal with an obstacle that should give you any amount of experience points, you get the adjusted XP (DMG p.82) instead of the normal amount. That’s more XP for you if you’re wondering.
Dealing with an obstacle means that you take care of it in a durable way. Negotiating or bribing can sometimes work as well, if not better, than fighting. Clever solutions will be rewarded!
Getting around an obstacle will grant you less XP if it means that this obstacle will remain in place and that you could face it again. Sneaking past the guards will only grant you some minor XP, but bribing them would grant you the whole XP (and killing them afterward would give you none, as they were not an obstacle anymore).
Leveling up
Whenever you have gained enough XP to reach a new level, that level will be available at the end of the next long rest.
Passive proficiencies as knowledge
All Proficiencies (skills, tools, weapons, and armor) are assumed to represent both active uses of those things and relevant background knowledge, lore, information, and awareness. When a character with a Proficiency encounters something in the game, the GM should simply give them any relevant information based on their expertise.
A character’s Passive Skill is equal to 8 + Ability Modifier + Proficiency Bonus. If the character has Advantage on such skill checks, the Passive Skill gains an additional +5. If the character has Disadvantage, the character suffers an additional -5.
Inspiration
Inspiration as described in the PHB sucks. That’s why we never remember that it even exists. So we will use that variant from the Angry GM.
Every character begins [each narrative arc] with Inspiration, which is a thing you either have or you don’t.
If you have Inspiration, you can spend it at any time to take an Inspired Action provided that action somehow ties into one of your character’s personal characteristics. If your Ideal is "I will do anything to save a person in danger," and you want to swing across a ravine on a vine to rescue someone who is about fall into the ravine and hanging by one hand, that fits. You can claim an Inspired Action.
When you take an Inspired Action, you can either gain advantage on an ability check, attack roll, or saving throw OR you can give advantage to someone else’s ability check, attack roll, or saving throw provided you are in a position to assist them directly in some way OR impose disadvantage on someone else’s ability check, attack roll, or saving throw provided you are in a position to hinder their action directly in some way. Whatever it is, the Inspired Action MUST somehow connect to one of your Personal Characteristics.
So, let’s take that "I will take any risk to save a person in danger." You could do the aforementioned "swinging across the ravine to catch them from falling" thing. Or if they have to attempt a saving throw to avoid a collapsing ceiling, you could throw yourself at them to save them, giving them advantage on the saving throw. Or if a monster is about to attack someone standing near you, you can interpose yourself and give the monster disadvantage on the attack roll. See? Easy.
When you don’t have Inspiration, you can Claim a Setback to gain Inspiration. To Claim a Setback you must either impose disadvantage on one of your own ability checks, saving throws, or attack rolls based on one of your Personal Characteristics OR make a decision that creates a significant story setback, obstacle, or hindrance. When you want to Claim a Setback, simply ask the GM. For example: "I’m easily distracted by shiny objects, so I’m distracted by the giant pile of treasure. Can I Claim a Setback and take disadvantage on my saving throw against the dragon’s fire breath?" Or: "This guy wants to help us, but I distrust all strangers. I’m going to be rude and accusatory of him. Can I Claim a Setback for that?" And then the GM might have the stranger refuse to help or get offended or start a fight. Whatever.
After you Claim a Setback, you get Inspiration. You can use the Inspiration to take an Inspired Action. And on and on it goes.
Working Together
When two or more characters work together to accomplish the same task, the character with the higher modifier leads the effort. The leader makes the appropriate ability check and enjoys a +2 bonus for one or two helpers or a +5 bonus for three or more helpers. Characters can only work together if it is task where such help is feasible and possible. In addition, a character can only help with a task if they would not be incapable of attempting the task on their own (due to a lack of Proficiency for instance).
Group Checks
When several PCs are trying to accomplish something as a group, the GM can call for a group check. First, the GM determines whether the group will succeed if any member succeeds (such as with searching) or if the group will fail if any member fails (such as with stealth). In the first scenario, the character with the highest base Ability Check modifier (Proficiency Bonus + Ability Bonus) rolls the check. In the second scenario, the character with the lowest base Ability Check modifier (Proficiency Bonus + Ability Bonus) rolls the check. Bonuses, penalties, Advantage, and Disadvantage are applied normally to the character rolling the check, but these should only be applied after the GM has determined which player rolls the check.
Traveling
At the beginning of the day, the party decides what kind of pace to set: Slow, Medium, or Fast.
At a Slow Pace, the party is moving carefully and quietly. They gain Advantage to all checks to perceive danger and all hostile creatures suffer Disadvantage to detect the party, thus allowing the party to surprise enemies. In addition, the party can forage for food normally if they maintain a slow pace for the entire day. Finally, navigation checks enjoy Advantage when moving at a Slow pace. The party’s speed, however, is reduced by a third. So every three days of travel count as only two days of travel.
At a Medium pace, the party travels normally. They may forage for food with Disadvantage.
At a Fast pace, the party travels more quickly. Their speed is increased by a third. So every three days of travel count as four days. While traveling at a Fast Pace, the party cannot forage for food at all. They suffer Disadvantage on all checks to perceive dangers and on navigation checks. Hostile creatures enjoy Advantage on checks to detect or track the party.
Once the party has set the pace for the day, they CAN change the pace based on what happens to them during the day. The result is resolved at the end of the day.
Bosses, Swarms of lesser enemies and other special foes
Special enemies such as bosses or swarmes of lesser enemies will sometimes be ruled in non standard ways to ease their management or create tension. Either way, I’ll do my best to give in-game hints on any unusual thing going on.
Altered features
Magic
Evolving cantrips
We will b using the amazing Evolving cantrips, which means that non damage-dealing cantrips will scale with your character level too!
Reworked classes
Ranger: Consensus ranger
Monk, 4 elements sub-class: Monk of 4 elements
New classes
Scholar: The Scholar
Class features
Sorcerer’s Font of Magic
The class features "Font of Magic" and "Metamagic" now both come at level 2.
Paladin’s Divine sense
As an action, until the end of your next turn, you know the location of any celestial, fiend, or undead within 60 feet of you that is not behind total cover. This sense can penetrate most barriers, but it is blocked by 1 foot of stone, 1 inch of common metal, a thin sheet of lead, or 3 feet of wood or dirt. You know the type of any being whose presence you sense, but not its identity. Within the same radius, you also detect the presence of any place or object that has been consecrated or desecrated. You can use this feature a number of times equal to 1 + your Charisma modifier. When you finish a long rest, you regain all expended uses.
The radius goes up to 90 when you reach level 6, and the barrier restriction drops at level 14.
Barbarian’s Rage
Your rage lasts for 1 minute. It ends early if you are knocked unconscious or if your turn ends and you haven't attacked a hostile creature since your last turn or taken damage since then used one of the benefits its grants you, taken damage from or acted against a hostile creature. You can also end your rage on your turn as a bonus action.
GM comment: dashing toward your enemies counts as acting against them, and so does readying an action that targets them.
Scholar's Medical genius
Prerequisite: Physician Pursuit
When you spend one use of a healer's kit to tend to a creature, it regains 1d4 HP plus your Intelligence modifier and your proficiency bonus. That creature can't regain hit points in this way again until they finish a short or long rest.
GM comment: doesn't stack with the Healer feat