Jul 9, 2022 10:48 am
To determine your ability scores, roll 4d6 and add the three highest dice together. Do this six times and then assign one of the six numbers to each of your six abilities.
When assigning scores to abilities, keep in mind that in the World of Aetaltis some lineages have ability score requirements. These are minimum or maximum ability scores your character must meet after adding or subtracting the ability modifiers for that lineage.
About Your Ability Scores
Ability scores are fundamental to almost every game mechanic in Fifth Edition, but they are much more than a source of die modifiers. For one thing, they tell us how you stack up against the rest of the world. Are you stronger than an orc? Weaker than an orc? Or about the same? Do your acrobatic abilities rival those of the most agile simian? Or are you so klutzy compared to other people you meet on the street that they hurry to get out of your way?
And how did you come by those scores? Are you simply lucky, having been born with superior abilities? Or did you spend countless hours studying and training to hone them? If your score is low, is that just the way you were born? Or did you suffer some injury or accident that left you weaker than others?
If you have an especially high score, how did that shape your life? Were people constantly trying to push you into a particular occupation based on your natural strengths? Did you follow their advice, or did you want something different, like the naturally muscular farmhand who dreamed of becoming a bard? Were you proud of your limitations and strengths, or did you try to hide them?
The chart on the next page gives ability score examples that will help you to get a sense of how your character compares to the rest of the world. If the name of a lineage is listed (such as dwarf ), that means the average for individuals of that lineage is higher or lower than 10. Otherwise, the average ability score is 10.
Terrible Rolls
It happens to everyone. Even rolling 4d6 and dropping the lowest die, sometimes fate has it in for you. Six rolls later and you’re staring down the barrel of 6, 6, 8, 10, 11, 14.
When you finish rolling, if you have three or more results of 10 or lower, you may select one of the options below.
Option 1: Eject! Eject!
Toss them out and start again. There’s nothing wrong with throwing in the towel. After all, the goal of gaming is to have fun. If the ability scores you rolled are going to get in the way of that, go ahead and take a do-over.
Option 2:
A reward for your valor Sometimes, the most interesting characters in a game are the ones that have to struggle to succeed. Low ability scores will challenge you as a player to come up with novel solutions to the problems you face. For instance, if all your physical scores are low, how do you overcome that challenge? Perhaps you learn spells that handle all of your physical challenges? Or maybe you recruit a team of hirelings to accompany you on your expeditions? Of course, you might just be that scrappy hero from stories and film who never gives up and wins the day through sheer determination, a clever mind, and more than a little luck.
If you choose this path, you may select a free feat for your character during creation. The only limitation is that you may not select a feat that increases one of the ability scores that made you eligible for this option.
When assigning scores to abilities, keep in mind that in the World of Aetaltis some lineages have ability score requirements. These are minimum or maximum ability scores your character must meet after adding or subtracting the ability modifiers for that lineage.
About Your Ability Scores
Ability scores are fundamental to almost every game mechanic in Fifth Edition, but they are much more than a source of die modifiers. For one thing, they tell us how you stack up against the rest of the world. Are you stronger than an orc? Weaker than an orc? Or about the same? Do your acrobatic abilities rival those of the most agile simian? Or are you so klutzy compared to other people you meet on the street that they hurry to get out of your way?
And how did you come by those scores? Are you simply lucky, having been born with superior abilities? Or did you spend countless hours studying and training to hone them? If your score is low, is that just the way you were born? Or did you suffer some injury or accident that left you weaker than others?
If you have an especially high score, how did that shape your life? Were people constantly trying to push you into a particular occupation based on your natural strengths? Did you follow their advice, or did you want something different, like the naturally muscular farmhand who dreamed of becoming a bard? Were you proud of your limitations and strengths, or did you try to hide them?
The chart on the next page gives ability score examples that will help you to get a sense of how your character compares to the rest of the world. If the name of a lineage is listed (such as dwarf ), that means the average for individuals of that lineage is higher or lower than 10. Otherwise, the average ability score is 10.
Terrible Rolls
It happens to everyone. Even rolling 4d6 and dropping the lowest die, sometimes fate has it in for you. Six rolls later and you’re staring down the barrel of 6, 6, 8, 10, 11, 14.
When you finish rolling, if you have three or more results of 10 or lower, you may select one of the options below.
Option 1: Eject! Eject!
Toss them out and start again. There’s nothing wrong with throwing in the towel. After all, the goal of gaming is to have fun. If the ability scores you rolled are going to get in the way of that, go ahead and take a do-over.
Option 2:
A reward for your valor Sometimes, the most interesting characters in a game are the ones that have to struggle to succeed. Low ability scores will challenge you as a player to come up with novel solutions to the problems you face. For instance, if all your physical scores are low, how do you overcome that challenge? Perhaps you learn spells that handle all of your physical challenges? Or maybe you recruit a team of hirelings to accompany you on your expeditions? Of course, you might just be that scrappy hero from stories and film who never gives up and wins the day through sheer determination, a clever mind, and more than a little luck.
If you choose this path, you may select a free feat for your character during creation. The only limitation is that you may not select a feat that increases one of the ability scores that made you eligible for this option.