Quietus
2013-02-22, 09:54 PM
I've been toying with this idea for quickly generating characters, and I'd like to know what everyone's thoughts are on it. The purpose is for quick pick-up games at cons, or as a "Play this for the first session, get a feel for the character, then do a full stat-up" deal.
First - Pick your character's profession (sailor, miner, performer, whatever). Pick one hobby (Parkour, reading, spelunking for example). Pick one skill they have (Unusually good at whistling, walks really lightly, etc). These form the backbone of your skill points, and whenever you're doing something related to these things, you get +5 to your roll, as though you'd maxed the skills out. Someone who's a sailor and is attempting to tie a knot, for example, can point that out and get +5 to the roll.
Second - Pick three adjectives. At least one has to be negative. These serve as minor modifiers on rolls; Someone who describes themselves as "Charismatic, lady's man, chicken****" could have bonuses in social situations and more easily seduce women, but would take a penalty when being faced with something frightening. These are only +2/-2 modifiers, so could easily be represented by traits, feats, minor class features.
Third - pick one of the core four archetypes. Fighter, Rogue, Cleric, Wizard. This one would potentially require a little more work with the DM to sort out, but I'm seeing :
Fighters get +6 AC, +3 to hit/damage, and choose a combat style - the equivalent of having Power Attack, TWF, Rapid Shot or what have you.
Rogues get +3 AC, +1 to hit/damage, 2d6 sneak attack, and one "trick" - this could be Evasion, or one of the rogue special talents, or something similar along these lines. I'd even let Rogues choose an animal as their "trick", for more of that Ranger feel.
Clerics get to choose three divine spells. Level 1 spells can be used 5/day, level 2 spells can be used 3/day, and you can only choose one level 2 spell. You can pick Turn Undead as a spell, and you can trade one of your spells for the AC/attack/damage boost - level 1 spell gets you that of a Rogue, level 2 spell gets that of a Fighter.
Wizards get to choose three arcane spells. Same as the Cleric, they can pick two level 1, and one level 2, each usable 5/day or 3/day respectively. They can trade out one of their level 1 spells for a familiar if they like.
From there, let the players throw down stats - rolled, or simply choose from an array, whatever is preferred. All told, I doubt it'd take more than five minutes to put together characters with this setup, and while it certainly wouldn't be as robust as the full 3.5/Pathfinder system, it could be used as a good starting point to get everyone's minds rolling.
My question is this : Does this sound like a method you could enjoy as a one-shot? How about for the first sitting of a game, to shape up a character in your mind before taking it to mechanics?
First - Pick your character's profession (sailor, miner, performer, whatever). Pick one hobby (Parkour, reading, spelunking for example). Pick one skill they have (Unusually good at whistling, walks really lightly, etc). These form the backbone of your skill points, and whenever you're doing something related to these things, you get +5 to your roll, as though you'd maxed the skills out. Someone who's a sailor and is attempting to tie a knot, for example, can point that out and get +5 to the roll.
Second - Pick three adjectives. At least one has to be negative. These serve as minor modifiers on rolls; Someone who describes themselves as "Charismatic, lady's man, chicken****" could have bonuses in social situations and more easily seduce women, but would take a penalty when being faced with something frightening. These are only +2/-2 modifiers, so could easily be represented by traits, feats, minor class features.
Third - pick one of the core four archetypes. Fighter, Rogue, Cleric, Wizard. This one would potentially require a little more work with the DM to sort out, but I'm seeing :
Fighters get +6 AC, +3 to hit/damage, and choose a combat style - the equivalent of having Power Attack, TWF, Rapid Shot or what have you.
Rogues get +3 AC, +1 to hit/damage, 2d6 sneak attack, and one "trick" - this could be Evasion, or one of the rogue special talents, or something similar along these lines. I'd even let Rogues choose an animal as their "trick", for more of that Ranger feel.
Clerics get to choose three divine spells. Level 1 spells can be used 5/day, level 2 spells can be used 3/day, and you can only choose one level 2 spell. You can pick Turn Undead as a spell, and you can trade one of your spells for the AC/attack/damage boost - level 1 spell gets you that of a Rogue, level 2 spell gets that of a Fighter.
Wizards get to choose three arcane spells. Same as the Cleric, they can pick two level 1, and one level 2, each usable 5/day or 3/day respectively. They can trade out one of their level 1 spells for a familiar if they like.
From there, let the players throw down stats - rolled, or simply choose from an array, whatever is preferred. All told, I doubt it'd take more than five minutes to put together characters with this setup, and while it certainly wouldn't be as robust as the full 3.5/Pathfinder system, it could be used as a good starting point to get everyone's minds rolling.
My question is this : Does this sound like a method you could enjoy as a one-shot? How about for the first sitting of a game, to shape up a character in your mind before taking it to mechanics?