My Version of Level Adjustments

[killem2]

New Level Adjustment Rules

I made these altered rules to give players a bit more flexibility with advances races and templates as well as creating a buyoff system that isn’t setup to keep a player behind, but rather actively allow them to pay off their advance race or template as they play.

Step 1 – Your Dungeon Master will tell you what starting Effective Character Level (ECL) for a new character is.

This starting ECL for this step will only be Class levels + Racial Hit Dice. (Do not include any Level Adjustments right now)

The Dungeon Master will then give you the allowed level adjustment increase on top of the given ECL. See the Example below.

The DM has said that the group can start off as Level 3 characters, and has allowed for an addition +2 for level adjustments. Christy would like to make a Level 3 Monk. No problem, Christy wanted to play a Half-ogre for quite some time, but with the current rules it would take up too much of her ECL. Since the Half-Ogre has a level adjustment of +2, this will be allowed with the DM’s requirements. So Christy will now start off as a Level 3 Monk with a +2 level adjustment.

Step 2 – You must take a 10% experience point loss per point of level adjustment.

Since Christy chose a Half-Ogre, with a level adjustment of +2, she will receive a reduction of 20% of all experienced gained.

Step 3 – Level adjustments will automatically buy themselves off.

To determine what levels you start to buy off your adjustment, the following formula is used.

(Level Adjustment Allowed) x (1.5) Rounded Up. First buyout is at this level and every three levels afterwards. See Example Below.

Christy chose an LA +2 races. This means we take 2 x 1.5 = 3. This means at level three, she goes down to a LA +1, and only has a 10% decrease in experience. Then three levels after that, which would be level 6, she has bought off her level adjustment completely and is free of any experience reductions.

Step 4 – For the Dungeon Master

You will still use the normal calculations for ECL for generating experience for you players and their starting wealth by level. See Example below.

Christy, the who choice is a level 3 Half-Ogre monk, is still considered an ECL 5 character when she is given starting wealth, and when she gets her share of experience points from an encounter.

[Ansem]

The fact LA stuff were always off-limit was for me one of the only downsides of D&D 3.5 (Lacking 8 levels behind just to be a vampire simply ISN'T worth it).

[pwykersotz]

It will certainly allow for a higher power game and a more free use of templates.

I personally don't allow buyoff for templates that give progression based on HD (Like Radiant, Phrenic, etc) because the whole point of buyoff is that the LA keeps hitting you like a truck while the abilities granted become less and less useful...not so much when the template progresses.

It's a little more calculation heavy than I would normally use, but it seems solid and useful. :smallsmile:

[OldTrees1]

So
1)
Characters start at ECL X to X+3 but cannot have more than X HD to start.

2)
Xp as a river has been changed into/augmented with an xp penalty for LA.

3)
LA buyoff has been made cheaper and more frequent to encourage more templates


Honestly this is not that big of a change to the LA system. It basically boils down to starting with characters in a 4 ECL range, using the Xp as a river to equalize the characters as the campaign goes on, and then using LA buyoff to remove the LA penalty as it becomes less beneficial.

[killem2]

Yeah basically. As it stands, it seems like when you start off, it is so hard to dedicate to a level adjustment because you give up those precious class levels as a result.

And I think we can all agree for the most part, Level Adjustments do not warrant what you get.

But, it's easier to just make the penalty hit someone later on, and let them have fun, than making them start off in the hole and work towards getting something out of it.

That has been the #1 complaint among my players. Yeah that Petal is really cool, but now you are a level 1 among level 3's (assuming you started off at level 3) or it would be cool to have the glutton of those LA +1 races since most of these are pretty much over priced, at first level as well.

I left step one open, so other DMs can scale it as they want, or if you want it to be random, roll a d6 or d8 and go crazy :).

I will clean it up better when I get more feedback for easier understanding.

[OldTrees1]

Yeah basically. As it stands, it seems like when you start off, it is so hard to dedicate to a level adjustment because you give up those precious class levels as a result.

And I think we can all agree for the most part, Level Adjustments do not warrant what you get.

But, it's easier to just make the penalty hit someone later on, and let them have fun, than making them start off in the hole and work towards getting something out of it.

That has been the #1 complaint among my players. Yeah that Petal is really cool, but now you are a level 1 among level 3's (assuming you started off at level 3) or it would be cool to have the glutton of those LA +1 races since most of these are pretty much over priced, at first level as well.

Step 1 doesn't change the LA system but does solve your players' complaint. Very elegantly too due to the xp as a river effect.

I would also recommend reevaluating the LA of most things that your players want to play. The DM should also consider the build (Savage Species pg 14, Ettin Wizard). For instance, a Petal would only be LA +1 for a martial character.

[killem2]

Step 1 doesn't change the LA system but does solve your players' complaint. Very elegantly too due to the xp as a river effect.

I would also recommend reevaluating the LA of most things that your players want to play. The DM should also consider the build (Savage Species pg 14, Ettin Wizard). For instance, a Petal would only be LA +1 for a martial character.

I agree, I suppose changing isn't exactly the right word, but I took it more as a literal. I am changing the way it works somewhat. I just want it to be enjoyable. I think people should not be discouraged from taking a race.