mini feats?

[Deremir]

Ok, so i was playing a video game (which is probably where alot of the problems in this idea come from) when i had an idea, what if their were little miniature feats you could take, oh, every other level? these mini feats (which i will hensforth call "Tactics") could be anything the players want so long as it is something that their character A: would have already had the opportunity to learn (you cant learn to take advantage of hilly terrain with a bow if your always in the plains) and B: would have to be something that does not need practice (beyond a couple of attempts that the character could have made mid adventure).

So one example of a possible "tactic" that a player could take is, say the recent adventure whas in the hills, the archer of the group could take a tactic that provides him with a bonus to damage (or something similar) if he is X number of feet above his target. for another example, my players have recently used this combination attack where the sorcerer will cast grease, the archer will light the grease with a flaming arrow, and the cleric would cast create water on the flaming grease, since grease fires don't act like normal fires this creates a small steam explosion. one tactic that the cleric could take might allow him to create the water in such a way as to target specific areas of effects (like instead of one big explosion have three smaller explosions centered on a monster each).

The problem, as my family pointed out, is that this adds another, possibly unnecessary layer of complication to the game. Suddenly i have to always describe the elevation of the various parts of whatever environment their in, and theirs also a level of "why couldn't my character do those things before then?" particularly in the create water example.

but I don't want to abandon this idea entirely, so playground, any suggestions? also as a test those of you who post, could you please include what "tactic" you would want to take in consideration of one of your past characters? i feel this might shed some new light on how this system could work. thank you.

[bloodshed343]

Tactics should work like minor switches. For example, a "Burn Everything" tactic might let you use a bonus fire cantrip once per round or give you a bonus with fire spells at the expense of not being able to cast non-fire spells while it's "on".

Another tactic could be "Charge!" which gives you a bonus to melee attacks but prevents you from disengaging or using ranged attacks.

[nonsi]

There are already things that count as mini-feats.
They're called skill-tricks (Complete Scoundrel, p.82).


Anyway, they're right. This will add unnecessary layer of complication to the game.
The problem lies with "could be anything the players want".
This could cause a tidalwave that could potentially turn any scenario in your game into an argument.
"something that does not need practice" is something everyone can do without investing character resources. Stuff like this requires defined rules. Either add them to your personal compendium of houserules (which all players are familiar with) or don't use them.
You should also rule that all game changes could not occur during gametime.

[Thomar_of_Uointer]

Pathfinder has traits. Usually they're a situational +1 to something, or being able to treat a skill as trained. Their intent is to give your character something unique at 1st level. They also are used as setting hooks, many adventure paths will have setting-specific traits that you can take to better tie your character to the setting.


The problem, as my family pointed out, is that this adds another, possibly unnecessary layer of complication to the game. Suddenly i have to always describe the elevation of the various parts of whatever environment their in, and theirs also a level of "why couldn't my character do those things before then?" particularly in the create water example.

Yup. I'm actually in favor of more rules-lite systems which do away with mechanical feats in favor of interesting core mechanics. Feats work great when they customize your character, but if they become a necessary part of optimized builds then all of a sudden every archer must have such-and-such a feat, which destroys the customization aspect of it.

D&D 5e has Backgrounds, which grant extra skills and a unique downtime ability. 5e also heavily nerfs combat feats and forces players to choose between +2 ability score increases and their feats, making them great for giving you something unique. There are also some feats that grant +1 ability score increases in addition to very minor abilities.