Your favorite way to roll stats?

[Oramac]

So reading this thread (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?489091-This-is-Not-Gonna-End-Well-XD) got me thinking. What way does everyone prefer to get their ability scores?

Here's a few ways I can think of off the top of my head:

4d6 drop lowest
3d6
4d8 drop lowest
6d20, reroll <5
6d20, no rerolls
1d8 + 10 per stat
1d6 + 10 per stat
Standard Array
27/29/31/33 point buy

========================

Personally, I like the 4d8 drop lowest. It gives you a small chance of rolling a really kick ass stat (over 20), while still allowing for true dump stats as well.

[Aurthur]

I tried a new method this time around with my team. I had everyone roll stats 3d6 and then put them all in a grid:

11 10 8 13 4 14
5 15 7 11 11 11
15 10 10 12 8 14
10 15 10 8 15 11
11 14 12 9 10 10
11 13 13 8 9 10

Then I let them pick any single row or column they wanted. I also offered standard point buy with 29 pts as an option, and a 4d6d1x6 (drop the lowers of the 4) if they wanted to roll their own.

Most folks went with the 15, 15, 14, 13, 10, 10 array.

Cheers!

[Spacehamster]

We did roll 4d6 re roll 1's and drop lowest, makes it decent chance to get strong stats and that evening everyone's dice were on fire so everyone got really high stats.

[MaxWilson]

So reading this thread (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?489091-This-is-Not-Gonna-End-Well-XD) got me thinking. What way does everyone prefer to get their ability scores?

PHB regular: 4d6 drop lowest, arrange to taste.

As an exercise or challenge I also sometimes enjoy 3d6, or 3d6 in order. It helps reset expectations about the results you get from 4d6 drop lowest, because then you realize that a 14 Dex is actually really good, like gymnast-level good. In my current campaign I've told my players that if they roll up a PC they don't like, they can donate that PC to me as an NPC along with five more NPCs rolled up using 3d6, and then roll up a new PC using 4d6 drop lowest. So far no one has taken me up on it, but I don't know if that just means they're happy with their stats or attached to the PCs they make or what.

But anyway, I like 3d6 because it reminds you what "average" really means.

[Shining Wrath]

What we did was

Everyone roll one set of 6x(4d6 drop 1)
Everyone gets to pick from the set of sets


We wound up with most of us taking 17,16,14,13,10,10.

[JellyPooga]

(5d4)-2 is an interesting one. Compared to 3d6, the bell curve is practically vertical (odds of getting a 3 or an 18 are 1/4096 compared to 1/216; that's about 18 times less likely!), making even moderately high or low stats somewhat of a rarity, but offers the exact same average of 10.5 and the same range of 3-18. It's a good method for games where you want the exceptional to really feel exceptional or for a more "mundanes making good in the world" sort of game.

[Tarvil]

I like playing with standard array, as it tone down Variant Human power on lower levels.

[N810]

I'd like to try out,
1 d10 +8

for possible -1 stats,
but also possible +4's

[Asus]

I think my favourites are 3d6, 4d6 drop the lowest, or regular point buy--stats taken in order.
I can understand the appeal to rolling massive stats, but I also like the possibility of getting low level numbers.
I've often found it dishearting in the past when someone has presenteded an array of massive numbers, as I feel it can often overshadow other party members.
As a result I'm some what on the fence, I can see that point buy can allow you to have a more balanced game, but I also enjoy the randomness of the die rolls.
Just the other day I rolled three 17's & three 12's, I can't imagine that would have been fun for the rest of the party if I played it out.

[Spacehamster]

I think my favourites are 3d6, 4d6 drop the lowest, or regular point buy--stats taken in order.
I can understand the appeal to rolling massive stats, but I also like the possibility of getting low level numbers.
I've often found it dishearting in the past when someone has presenteded an array of massive numbers, as I feel it can often overshadow other party members.
As a result I'm some what on the fence, I can see that point buy can allow you to have a more balanced game, but I also enjoy the randomness of the die rolls.
Just the other day I rolled three 17's & three 12's, I can't imagine that would have been fun for the rest of the party if I played it out.

Would not say high stats makes you that much more powerful, all it does is make your saves bit better and skills but better, you usually only need 2-3 stats to be high anyways. :)

Rather in the end it's no big difference xcpt easier MC options but in the start the difference between average and good/great stats can be quite big. :)

[Oramac]

Would not say high stats makes you that much more powerful, all it does is make your saves bit better and skills but better, you usually only need 2-3 stats to be high anyways. :)

I would tend to agree. I do see the draw of having 1-2 low stats too, though. Especially from an RP perspective.

[Spacehamster]

I would tend to agree. I do see the draw of having 1-2 low stats too, though. Especially from an RP perspective.

That is true but all relative, my insane 18/18/17/16/16/14 roll from our 4d6 drop lowest and retool 1's while rolling two arrays and choosing one I will RP him as good looking for a half Orc but with the personality of a dumpster(CHA 14), so in a way 14 became his dump stat. :)

[PaxZRake]

I like a 72 pt point buy where everyone starts at 0.

I've seen some fun stuff done with it.

[Asus]

That is true but all relative, my insane 18/18/17/16/16/14 roll from our 4d6 drop lowest and retool 1's while rolling two arrays and choosing one I will RP him as good looking for a half Orc but with the personality of a dumpster(CHA 14), so in a way 14 became his dump stat. :)

Just a case of player preference I guess. I've just had personal experience in the past when someone has had great stats, and it became a show all about them, as they are suddenly fantastic at everything.

[Thrudd]

I like 3d6 x6, in order. You roll stats in order, but roll 3d6 six times for each stat and choose the best. It actually tends to give slightly higher overall results than 4d6b3, but also has the fun randomness of doing the stats in order which give you unexpected characters.

[Safety Sword]

Standard array. Select numbers depending on starting power level of the campaign.

[MaxWilson]

Just a case of player preference I guess. I've just had personal experience in the past when someone has had great stats, and it became a show all about them, as they are suddenly fantastic at everything.

I'm guessing that probably wasn't in 5E, because in 5E they aren't fantastic at everything.

Would have been true in AD&D though. 18/00 Str and high other stats plus multiclassing fighter/mage/cleric plus a nice psionic wild talent would make you pretty much everything good.

[JumboWheat01]

4d6 drop the lowest is the one I see the most, though I personally use the standard array nearly all the time, modding it on occasion, but rarely. CHA is my personal dump stat of choice, with few exceptions.

[Renewal]

I like this "organic method" for rolling stats: roll stats in order (either hardcore 3d6 or the more powerful 4d6b3) in order. Then you can reroll one stat, taking the higher of the two rolled outcomes. Then you can switch any two stats.

I feel like it encourages some of the best features of rolling stats: rolling in order for old school unexpected variance, while still allowing customization to fit a character concept, but not to such a degree that point-buy would be preferable.

[numerek]

This is a way I came up with because my players didn't want to use point buy. (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?415245-stat-rolling-alternative)

[Rhedyn]

27 point buy

[RickAllison]

Pre-pick your race and class, then 6d20 down the line.

[Gastronomie]

I think that in a non-power-gamey group, having the players choose what sorts of stats they feel are right for the pre-built "character" (as a human being) could actually be a fun idea.

It really does require trusting the players, and the players need to be mature enough to not create Mary Sues, but at least I will try to create something sorta-balanced.

[DanyBallon]

Usually, I allow my players to roll 4d6 drop the lowest, arrange in any order, or standard point buy. As for myself, I enjoy rolling 3d6 in order once in a while or 4d6 drop lowest in order, just to force me to come up with interesting character based on the roll, instead of assigning stats to fit my character concept.

[Cybren]

20d6 arrange in any 6 groups of 3 you like

[Pope Scarface]

My current 5E game I had them roll 3d6 5 times, plus an automatic 15. The lowest stat roll has a luck-style reroll once per long rest.

[Oramac]

Pre-pick your race and class, then 6d20 down the line.

Not sarcastically, I actually want to try this once. It could make for a very entertaining (albeit very short) game.

[RickAllison]

Not sarcastically, I actually want to try this once. It could make for a very entertaining (albeit very short) game.

Most of the time when I see it, the primary stat of a class tends to go below 5. Barbarians with Con 3, Rogues with Dex 2, etc.

[Dr. Cliché]

I like 4d6, drop lowest.

As a general rule, I don't like any system that doesn't allow stats to go below 10. I think PC should have at least one weak area.


I tried a new method this time around with my team. I had everyone roll stats 3d6 and then put them all in a grid:

11 10 8 13 4 14
5 15 7 11 11 11
15 10 10 12 8 14
10 15 10 8 15 11
11 14 12 9 10 10
11 13 13 8 9 10

Then I let them pick any single row or column they wanted. I also offered standard point buy with 29 pts as an option, and a 4d6d1x6 (drop the lowers of the 4) if they wanted to roll their own.

Most folks went with the 15, 15, 14, 13, 10, 10 array.

Cheers!

I want to give this a go sometime.

[BladeWing81]

I just Made a similar thread for another possible method just roll 3d6 remove the lowest and add +6 to that, the Max is 18 just like the normal PHB method but the min becomes 8.

[MaxWilson]

I just Made a similar thread for another possible method just roll 3d6 remove the lowest and add +6 to that, the Max is 18 just like the normal PHB method but the min becomes 8.

Tastes vary. Not being able to roll below 8 would remove of a lot of the fun for me. That's one of the things I hate most about point buy, is that the range is so narrow (8-15).

I'm glad you enjoy this method though.

[Spacehamster]

I were thinking about using a heroic array next time we start over with 18/16/15/14/12/10 since my group and myself included when I play have always enjoyed high stats. :)

[EricS53]

I haven't put it into practice yet, but I've been testing 18d20, then drop the highest six and lowest six and use what's left. I don't remember how many trials I did, but it would range everywhere, from having no stats below 15 to non above 10. For the most part it averages out with 15 being the highest and 6 or 7 being the lowest, but the improbable chance of having one (or multiple) 20's or 1's makes it real neat to me.