What is your favourite stat array for short campaigns?

[EisenKreutzer]

I am starting a short campaign in a couple of weeks, with pregenerated characters.
I was considering just using an array of stats for each character.

The stat array I'm considering is: 16 16 14 14 12 10

Are these stats too low? Too high? We're playing through The Emerald Spire, which goes from 1st to 12th level.

[ThinkMinty]

Make one of the 16's an 18, otherwise 's fine.

[EisenKreutzer]

Make one of the 16's an 18, otherwise 's fine.

I'm planning on making humans the only available race. Since the floating +2 bonus will inevitably go to the highest stat, won't that be overkill? I've never had a 1st lvl character start off with 20 in any stat.

[wkwkwkwk1]

I am starting a short campaign in a couple of weeks, with pregenerated characters.
I was considering just using an array of stats for each character.

The stat array I'm considering is: 16 16 14 14 12 10

Are these stats too low? Too high? We're playing through The Emerald Spire, which goes from 1st to 12th level.

Well, as far as I can tell, players love to have a stat at 18.

I would go with 18 16 14 12 10 8

The overall sum of modifiers is lower, but players get an 18 in one stat. Since it is them same point buy total (38), maybe allow them to choose eiher array (Paladins and Monks will like the flatter distribution, while SAD-er classes will prefer to be able to dump a stat while keeping a higher one).

Just my two cp as a player :smallwink:

wkwkwkwk1

[ThinkMinty]

I'm planning on making humans the only available race. Since the floating +2 bonus will inevitably go to the highest stat, won't that be overkill? I've never had a 1st lvl character start off with 20 in any stat.

Well, as far as I can tell, players love to have a stat at 18.

I would go with 18 16 14 12 10 8

The overall sum of modifiers is lower, but players get an 18 in one stat. Since it is them same point buy total (38), maybe allow them to choose eiher array (Paladins and Monks will like the flatter distribution, while SAD-er classes will prefer to be able to dump a stat while keeping a higher one).

Just my two cp as a player :smallwink:

wkwkwkwk1

Players do love a nice 18 before modifiers. I do, anyways. I tend to play casters, so the SADness makes me pump as much as I can into the one stat I have to worry about. Flatter array is neat if you're a Monk or a Paladin, but a Sorcerer's lookin' at that and decidin' to be a Bard or somethin' else.

[EisenKreutzer]

Players do love a nice 18 before modifiers. I do, anyways. I tend to play casters, so the SADness makes me pump as much as I can into the one stat I have to worry about. Flatter array is neat if you're a Monk or a Paladin, but a Sorcerer's lookin' at that and decidin' to be a Bard or somethin' else.

The thing is, since humans have a floating +2 stat bonus, one of those 16s will become an 18 on most characters. Putting an 18 into the stat array will mean some characters would start with 20 in a stat, and I think thats a little high for a lvl 1 character.

[squiggit]

From my experience starting 20s aren't even that uncommon outside low point buy. It's never been that big of a deal.

[EisenKreutzer]

From my experience starting 20s aren't even that uncommon outside low point buy. It's never been that big of a deal.

Fair enough. It seems like theres more or less a general consensus that 18 16 14 14 12 10 is a better starting stat array. Thats potentially two 18s or a 20 to the core stat or stats, which should produce some very effective characters.

I relent, I have been convinced.

[Zrak]

I mean, either should really be fine. It's a difference of one point and, for casters, one extra spell per day. Spellcasters aren't going to be ineffectual without a twenty, nobody's going to be suddenly overpowered because they have one. I wouldn't see a stat array without an eighteen and think "Well, there's no way I can effectively play a wizard, now."

[bean illus]

Fair enough. It seems like theres more or less a general consensus that 18 16 14 14 12 10 is a better starting stat array. Thats potentially two 18s or a 20 to the core stat or stats, which should produce some very effective characters.

I relent, I have been convinced.

I'm not convinced. It seems unnecessarily high, and will give a rather unrealistic stretch between commoners and your party. Unless your part met while competing at the Olympiad, then why would the be so perfect.

Be prepared for the most outlandish character builds. No combination of feats or prcs etc will be beyond them.

Anyway, i always liked the 32 pointbuy system.

18 16 10 - 10 10 8
18 14 14 - 10 10 8
18 14 12 - 12 10 8

16 16 14 - 12 10 8
16 14 14 - 12 12 10
16 14 14 - 14 12 8

etc

[EisenKreutzer]

I'm not convinced. It seems unnecessarily high, and will give a rather unrealistic stretch between commoners and your party. Unless your part met while competing at the Olympiad, then why would the be so perfect.

Be prepared for the most outlandish character builds. No combination of feats or prcs etc will be beyond them.

Anyway, i always liked the 32 pointbuy system.

18 16 10 - 10 10 8
18 14 14 - 10 10 8
18 14 12 - 12 10 8

16 16 14 - 12 10 8
16 14 14 - 12 12 10
16 14 14 - 14 12 8

etc

I'm not worried about outlandish builds, simply because we are playing our first game with psionics and none of my players have tried the system before in either 3rd ed. or Pathfinder. That and I'm going to be building the characters for them up to lvl 3 and recommending the progression for them for a couple of levels after that until we all fully grok all the moving parts.

18 16 14 14 12 10 is very close to the stats characters in our group commonly have anyway, since we use what we call the "Baldurs Gate" method of stat rolling, i.e. we roll 4d6 drop the lowest, and keep rolling sets of 6 results until we get a set we are satisfied with.

We like high stats. None of us are crazily skilled optimizers, though we have decent system mastery. Definitely up to Playground standards.

[Psyren]

In PF terms, 18/16/14/14/12/10 is equal to 39 point buy. That's much higher than even "epic fantasy" (25 PB) so I'd be leery about it myself.
Furthermore, while it's true that most players start with an 18 or 20 in something, they also tend to start with an 8 or 7 in something too.

However, given your stated goal of making the campaign short, breezing through the first couple of levels with high stats would assist with accomplishing that.

[ThinkMinty]

In PF terms, 18/16/14/14/12/10 is equal to 39 point buy. That's much higher than even "epic fantasy" (25 PB) so I'd be leery about it myself.
Furthermore, while it's true that most players start with an 18 or 20 in something, they also tend to start with an 8 or 7 in something too.

However, given your stated goal of making the campaign short, breezing through the first couple of levels with high stats would assist with accomplishing that.

I tend to dump Wisdom but then get my initiative really high, to mechanically reflect inattention coupled with flexibility and hyperactivity.