Ability Gain houserule

[LazarusDarkeyes]

Summary:
-looking for a house rule to encourage players to not always put their every-4th-level

Assumption:
-The Point-Buy cost pattern is continued forever (incremental cost every other point)
Base Score ==> Cost
...
8 ==> +0 cost to increase (total 0 to get this score)
9 ==> +1 cost to increase (total 1 to get this score)
10 ==> +1 cost to increase (total 2 to get this score)
11 ==> +1 cost to increase (total 3 to get this score)
12 ==> +1 cost to increase (total 4 to get this score)
13 ==> +1 cost to increase (total 5 to get this score)
14 ==> +1 cost to increase (total 6 to get this score)
15 ==> +2 cost to increase (total 8 to get this score)
16 ==> +2 cost to increase (total 10 to get this score)
17 ==> +3 cost to increase (total 13 to get this score)
18 ==> +3 cost to increase (total 16 to get this score)
19 ==> +4 cost to increase (total 20 to get this score)
20 ==> +4 cost to increase (total 24 to get this score)
21 ==> +5 cost to increase (total 29 to get this score)
22 ==> +5 cost to increase (total 34 to get this score)
23 ==> +6 cost to increase (total 40 to get this score)
24 ==> +6 cost to increase (total 46 to get this score)
etc.
...


*Houserule*
-instead of getting +1 ability point every 4th level, you get the equivalent amount of ability point-buy-points that would allow you to purchase the maxed out version if you had already maxed it out
-These ability points can be saved up and spend at a different level if the player would like.
-OPTION: While not necessary for this to work, could also restrict characters that they cannot increase any 1 given ability by more than +1 per level
-OPTION: The players cannot bank up points across levels -- they must spend them. They CAN partially allocate and pay off the balance at a later level though.

Level ==> Point Buy Points Gained
4 ==> 4
8 ==> 4
12 ==> 5
16 ==> 5
20 ==> 6
24 ==> 6
28 ==> 7
32 ==> 7
36 ==> 8
40 ==> 8

Effect:
-If all you ever wanted to do was dump all bonus points in your highest stat, this effectively identical.
-This allows players a little more flexibility for what could argued to be mathematically identically fair.

EXTENSION:
-Do the same thing, but split the points across levels...

Level ==> Point-Buy Points
1 ==> 0
2 ==> 1
3 ==> 1
4 ==> 2
5 ==> 1
6 ==> 1
7 ==> 1
8 ==> 1
9 ==> 1
10 ==> 1
11 ==> 1
12 ==> 2
13 ==> 1
14 ==> 1
15 ==> 1
16 ==> 2
17 ==> 1
18 ==> 1
19 ==> 2
20 ==> 2
21 ==> 1
22 ==> 1
23 ==> 2
24 ==> 2
25 ==> 1
26 ==> 2
27 ==> 2
28 ==> 2
29 ==> 1
30 ==> 2
31 ==> 2
32 ==> 2
33 ==> 2
34 ==> 2
35 ==> 2
36 ==> 2
37 ==> 2
38 ==> 2
39 ==> 2
40 ==> 2

Thoughts?

[GilesTheCleric]

This seems really complicated. There are indeed already some brews created that address increasing stats inherently; check the Wands of Lesser Vigour link in my signature to see four or five of them.

Also, you state that they cannot bank points, but can partially allocate. Why wouldn't they just spend one point, and save all the rest? That doesn't really stop them from banking.

Further, there's a homebrew forum (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?15-Homebrew-Design) that might be a better place for a thread like this.

[LazarusDarkeyes]

Further, there's a homebrew forum (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?15-Homebrew-Design) that might be a better place for a thread like this.

Thanks! I'm new here and didn't know that. Will go there w/ this.

[Crake]

Would these point buy rules come in before or after racial adjustments? What about inherent adjustments? If it comes in after, then it actually makes it harder to max a single stat, assuming you had some kind of bonus to it, and if it comes in before, it could become a hassle to keep track of how much points cost.

[Eloel]

Once you create your character, many other things come into play. You already took race/template combinations, and possibly any of the other plethora of ways to change your score - what do these new points apply on?

[Haruki-kun]

The Winged Mod: Thread moved to Homebrew and extra thread merged.

Carry on.

[danzibr]

I really like this idea.

Presumably your initial point-buy goes on your base stats, then you do modifiers from your race and/or templates. From then on, use the usual point-buy rules.

Hmm, ya know, in Planescape:Torment, the Nameless One gains a stat point every level, right? I'd be tempted to do something like this where you gain 1 point for going from 1 to 2, 2 from 2 to 3, etc. If someone wants to dump all their points into a single stat, they can do so but with greatly diminishing returns.

I also favor powerful characters.

[LazarusDarkeyes]

Intent was all above stuff was pre-racial modifier, pre-inherent bonuses.

So, spend as desired then add racial and inherent on top of that.


I guess it would mean, yes, you need to track a second running total number for each of your stats (total point-buy points spent/ability).

I dunno if I think 6 more numbers is THAT much more complicated...but I will agree many people have different valid opinions on what would be too much for them.