Post by Trakx on Jan 12, 2007 1:00:35 GMT -5
I would like to create an effect similar to Dungeons & Dragons (3rd Edition and 3.5 Edition) special ability for Barbarians to enter into a "Barbarian Rage".
The Player's Handbook describes the Barbarian Rage as, "When he needs to, a barbarian gains phenomenal strength and durability but becomes reckless and less able to defend himself. He temporarily gain +4 to Strength, +4 to Constitution, and +2 morale bonus on Will saves, but suffers a -2 penalty to AC.
"This increase in Constitution increases the barbarian's hit points by 2 points per level, but these hit points go away at the end of the rage when the Constitution score drops back to normal. (These extra hit points are not lost first the way tempary hit points are; see Tempary Hit Points, page 129.) While raging, a barbarian cannot use skills or abilities that require patience and concentration such as moving silently or casting spells. (The only class skills he can't use while raging are Craft, Handle Animal, and Intuit Direction.) He can use any feat he might have except for Exertise, item creation feats, metamagic feats, and Skill Focus (if it's tied to a skill that requires patience or concentration). A fit of rage lasts for a number of rounds equal to 3+ the character's (newly improved) Constitution modifier. The barbarian may prematurely end the rage voluntarily. At the end of the rage, the barbarian is fatigued (-2 to Strength, -2 to Dexterity, can't charge or run) for the duration of that encounter (unless the barbarian is 20th level, when this limitation no longer applies). The barbarian can only fly into a rage once per encounter, and only a certain number of times per day (determined by level). Entering a rage takes no time itself, but the barbarian can only do it during his action (see Initiative, page 120), not in response to somebody else's action. A barbarian can't, for example, fly into a rage when struck down by an arrow in order to get the extra hit points from the increased Constitution, although the extra hit points would be of benefit if he had gone into a rage earlier in the round, before the arrow struck.
"Staring at 15th level, the barbarian's rage bonuses become +6 to Strength, +6 to Constitution, and a +3 morale bonus to Will saves. (The AC penalty remains at -2.)"
I imagine this special ability to be MSHAG's Ability Boost: Strength, with some limits. D&D has it so you're easier to hit (equal to lower Agility), but you can take more damage (equal to high Strength, Body Armor, or Resistance). You cannot use any skills requiring concentration or patience, so this throws out most - if not all - Intellect skills, many Willpower skills, and some Agility skills while in a rage. Also, certain powers, notably Magic (as it mentioned), cannot be used while raging.
As for the Strength bonus, the +4 is roughly the same as for MSHAG. A score of 10 in D&D is considered average. A score of 18 is considered human maximum (without leveling or magic). With D&D using bracketed ability scores just like MSHAG, the difference between an 18 jumping to 22 is about the same as a 10 in MSHAG jumping to a 14 - pushing it into the superhuman range.
What do you think? How should this be worded?
What got me thinking about this was that I wanted to add a limit to Ability Boost called "Fatigued", based off barbarian rage.
The Player's Handbook describes the Barbarian Rage as, "When he needs to, a barbarian gains phenomenal strength and durability but becomes reckless and less able to defend himself. He temporarily gain +4 to Strength, +4 to Constitution, and +2 morale bonus on Will saves, but suffers a -2 penalty to AC.
"This increase in Constitution increases the barbarian's hit points by 2 points per level, but these hit points go away at the end of the rage when the Constitution score drops back to normal. (These extra hit points are not lost first the way tempary hit points are; see Tempary Hit Points, page 129.) While raging, a barbarian cannot use skills or abilities that require patience and concentration such as moving silently or casting spells. (The only class skills he can't use while raging are Craft, Handle Animal, and Intuit Direction.) He can use any feat he might have except for Exertise, item creation feats, metamagic feats, and Skill Focus (if it's tied to a skill that requires patience or concentration). A fit of rage lasts for a number of rounds equal to 3+ the character's (newly improved) Constitution modifier. The barbarian may prematurely end the rage voluntarily. At the end of the rage, the barbarian is fatigued (-2 to Strength, -2 to Dexterity, can't charge or run) for the duration of that encounter (unless the barbarian is 20th level, when this limitation no longer applies). The barbarian can only fly into a rage once per encounter, and only a certain number of times per day (determined by level). Entering a rage takes no time itself, but the barbarian can only do it during his action (see Initiative, page 120), not in response to somebody else's action. A barbarian can't, for example, fly into a rage when struck down by an arrow in order to get the extra hit points from the increased Constitution, although the extra hit points would be of benefit if he had gone into a rage earlier in the round, before the arrow struck.
"Staring at 15th level, the barbarian's rage bonuses become +6 to Strength, +6 to Constitution, and a +3 morale bonus to Will saves. (The AC penalty remains at -2.)"
I imagine this special ability to be MSHAG's Ability Boost: Strength, with some limits. D&D has it so you're easier to hit (equal to lower Agility), but you can take more damage (equal to high Strength, Body Armor, or Resistance). You cannot use any skills requiring concentration or patience, so this throws out most - if not all - Intellect skills, many Willpower skills, and some Agility skills while in a rage. Also, certain powers, notably Magic (as it mentioned), cannot be used while raging.
As for the Strength bonus, the +4 is roughly the same as for MSHAG. A score of 10 in D&D is considered average. A score of 18 is considered human maximum (without leveling or magic). With D&D using bracketed ability scores just like MSHAG, the difference between an 18 jumping to 22 is about the same as a 10 in MSHAG jumping to a 14 - pushing it into the superhuman range.
What do you think? How should this be worded?
What got me thinking about this was that I wanted to add a limit to Ability Boost called "Fatigued", based off barbarian rage.