Steven Ehrbar (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} stevenehrbar) wrote,@ 2008-11-11 05:01:00 |
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But, of course, I couldn't get a license
I've been reading various "old-school" D&D blogs and fora and whatnot, and I've come to a conclusion — I would like to do AD&D 3rd Edition.
The basis for my AD&D 3rd would be the "core text" of the first edition -- DMG, PHB, MM, FF, and MMII. It would, of course, be significantly reorganized into an easier-to-reference whole. There would be minor borrowings from the 2nd Edition core (defined as the PHB, DMG, and Monstrous Manual), with care. (Note the total lack of mention of UA, DSG, and WSG. Some of the spells and magic items in UA will make it via borrowings from 2nd Edition, and that's about it.)
Assassins, monks, and druids would be freed from absolute level limits and challenge-to-advance (and the XP tables would change accordingly); bards would resemble the OD&D/2nd Edition ones instead of the appendix one.
Racial level limits would be modified. Instead of the thief being the universal U class (yes, we see you back there, half-orcs with your assassin), each nonhuman race would have a single U/15 class — indicating a level limit of 15 if multiclassed, and unlimited if single-classed. Other classes would be limited to 8th level, 4th level, or barred to the race. This allows a humanocentric world, while still giving players reasonably broad choice. Only humanity is capable of putting together a full name-level-or-better party on its own. Other races can have exceptional fighters (dwarves), wizards (elves), illusionists (gnomes), thieves (halflings), rangers (half-elves), assassins (half-orcs) or the like, but must make cross-racial alliances to deal with truly great threats.
(And note the lack of raise dead-capable nonhuman clerics.)
Druids would come in three alignments — true neutral, chaotic neutral, and neutral evil. Neutral druids accept intelligent creatures and civilization as part of nature. Chaotic druids consider intelligent creatures organisms like any other, but find civilization, domestication, and agriculture as anathema. Evil druids seek the destruction of intelligent life, seeing it as a cancer upon nature to be excised.
Assassins would not specifically be hired killers; they would still be experts at cold-blooded killing by stealth and surprise. Accordingly, they would not be liked in polite company . . . but even a lawful good assassin, specializing in the elimination of dangerous evil beings, would be possible, if rare. (Granted, such an assassin would still get into arguments with a paladin, as the latter is bound by a code of chivalry and honor. Sneaking into the chaotic evil archmage's tower and stabbing him in the kidney with a poisoned dagger might very well be justified, since the mage deserved death, a warrant was issued by competent authority, and it was an effective way to end the threat of his army of undead at little risk to civilians . . . "but it still lacks honor!")
And so on. Definitely would use 1e attack tables instead of THAC0. Monsters would have 3e-style breakdowns of their AC, and be assigned an armor-type-equivalent for the weapons-against-armor table.
I've been reading various "old-school" D&D blogs and fora and whatnot, and I've come to a conclusion — I would like to do AD&D 3rd Edition.
The basis for my AD&D 3rd would be the "core text" of the first edition -- DMG, PHB, MM, FF, and MMII. It would, of course, be significantly reorganized into an easier-to-reference whole. There would be minor borrowings from the 2nd Edition core (defined as the PHB, DMG, and Monstrous Manual), with care. (Note the total lack of mention of UA, DSG, and WSG. Some of the spells and magic items in UA will make it via borrowings from 2nd Edition, and that's about it.)
Assassins, monks, and druids would be freed from absolute level limits and challenge-to-advance (and the XP tables would change accordingly); bards would resemble the OD&D/2nd Edition ones instead of the appendix one.
Racial level limits would be modified. Instead of the thief being the universal U class (yes, we see you back there, half-orcs with your assassin), each nonhuman race would have a single U/15 class — indicating a level limit of 15 if multiclassed, and unlimited if single-classed. Other classes would be limited to 8th level, 4th level, or barred to the race. This allows a humanocentric world, while still giving players reasonably broad choice. Only humanity is capable of putting together a full name-level-or-better party on its own. Other races can have exceptional fighters (dwarves), wizards (elves), illusionists (gnomes), thieves (halflings), rangers (half-elves), assassins (half-orcs) or the like, but must make cross-racial alliances to deal with truly great threats.
(And note the lack of raise dead-capable nonhuman clerics.)
Druids would come in three alignments — true neutral, chaotic neutral, and neutral evil. Neutral druids accept intelligent creatures and civilization as part of nature. Chaotic druids consider intelligent creatures organisms like any other, but find civilization, domestication, and agriculture as anathema. Evil druids seek the destruction of intelligent life, seeing it as a cancer upon nature to be excised.
Assassins would not specifically be hired killers; they would still be experts at cold-blooded killing by stealth and surprise. Accordingly, they would not be liked in polite company . . . but even a lawful good assassin, specializing in the elimination of dangerous evil beings, would be possible, if rare. (Granted, such an assassin would still get into arguments with a paladin, as the latter is bound by a code of chivalry and honor. Sneaking into the chaotic evil archmage's tower and stabbing him in the kidney with a poisoned dagger might very well be justified, since the mage deserved death, a warrant was issued by competent authority, and it was an effective way to end the threat of his army of undead at little risk to civilians . . . "but it still lacks honor!")
And so on. Definitely would use 1e attack tables instead of THAC0. Monsters would have 3e-style breakdowns of their AC, and be assigned an armor-type-equivalent for the weapons-against-armor table.
