Learning Feats

[An Enemy Spy]

Is it possible for a character to gain a feat by going through extensive training rather than just leveling up and choosing it?

[Dragoa]

If the DM allows it sure, don't think there is anything RAW that allows it though.

[Lunawarrior0]

Not that I know of. In fact believe that learning feats as you level is supposed to represent the intensive training that comes with every fight of adventuring, and you are expected to be practicing the stuff you will learn when you aren't fighting.

There is of course the ever present house rule, and I have played a game or two where this was possible, DM just made it a big enough pain to do that it wasn't abused.

[drengnikrafe]

Aren't there specific locations that grant feats upon the completion of an associated task? Like that... oturgh (or something) hole.

[Curmudgeon]

Getting feats by class levels is the way you learn them. Fighters have no special class abilities; all they do is train to learn new feats.

[Demons_eye]

I want to make a system where players can earn feats by doing them. Run for X rounds and you gain the run feat, get 2 natural 20's on any save and gain Lighting reflex/Iron will/Great fortitude. Fight unarmed for an entire level and gain the Improved unarmed strike feat. Ect ect......

[Curmudgeon]

I want to make a system where players can earn feats by doing them.

Somebody already beat you to it. Check Chaosium games; Call of Cthulhu and Runequest improve your abilities (including fighting abilities) by using them successfully.

[Demons_eye]

Somebody already beat you to it. Check Chaosium games; Call of Cthulhu and Runequest improve your abilities (including fighting abilities) by using them successfully.

I must have not clarified, I meant a system to be used in DnD 3.5 unless that's what you mean.

[Curmudgeon]

I must have not clarified, I meant a system to be used in DnD 3.5 unless that's what you mean.

Always helpful to put a [3.5] tag on the thread title in such cases to avoid confusion.

[An Enemy Spy]

Yes, I am talking about 3.5

[herrhauptmann]

Is it possible for a character to gain a feat by going through extensive training rather than just leveling up and choosing it?

There is an alternate set of rules in UA, which presents feats as accomplishments. Like if you want take great cleave: Your character has 4 monks (level 6) standing 5 feet outside of his reach, he has to find a way to take them all down without getting hit. On their turn, they all step in and commence flurry of blows.
Sorta like how Roy learned a feat with his grandfather, but now that he's alive, he's gotta go back and learn the feat next time he levels (or rebuilds)

There are places that grant feats, you can put them into your backstory by just paying money. Otyugh hole for instance.

[Fiery Diamond]

What is this otyugh hole?

In any case, you can always do what I do (as a DM), but remember that homebrewing/houseruling is what you're doing:

Players have a certain number of "Bonus Points" allotted to them based on their level. They can obtain feats by performing certain actions/roleplaying certain things AND expending a stated number of "Bonus Points", as well as potentially needing to expend GP (for training costs, for instance) and/or XP (as a balancing measure - but not too much XP). You could also limit the number of "Bonus Points" they can spend at any given level as well.

Here's my specific method (note that I didn't introduce it until they were 7th level):

You have 1 BP (Bonus Point) per character level. You can spend up to 3 BP during a single level. You can purchase "Bonus Ranks" to a skill (treat as an untyped, stackable with self misc. modifier to a skill) for 1BP+100XP+variesGP+roleplaying learning more of that skill. You can purchase an additional spell known/spell per day of a level you can cast for 2BP+300XP+variesGP+roleplaying learning that specific spell. You can purchase a feat for 3BP+500XP+variesGP+roleplaying learning that specific feat. You have to have the opportunity and resources available in order to get a specific skill/spell/feat.

[Starbuck_II]

Is it possible for a character to gain a feat by going through extensive training rather than just leveling up and choosing it?

Yes, magical locations. Octyguh hole, Frog temple, etc. They are scattered throughout the books.
They count for WBL though. But most are fairly cheap.

[elonin]

Some of those bonus feats are in the mic. Doesn't this risk unbalancing the game? This risks making fighters even more useless then they are.

[Kylarra]

Yes, magical locations. Octyguh hole, Frog temple, etc. They are scattered throughout the books.
They count for WBL though. But most are fairly cheap.

AFAIK they're only in Cscoundrel, but if you know of other books they're in, I'd be glad to add them to my repertoire.

[Tavar]

There are some in Complete Mage as well. Not sure if they're in other books.

[Kylarra]

There are some in Complete Mage as well. Not sure if they're in other books.

I'll have to look that up later, thanks.

[taltamir]

Is it possible for a character to gain a feat by going through extensive training rather than just leveling up and choosing it?

this kind of stuff is really not what DnD is all about. Plenty of systems, like world of darkness or gurps, work in such a way. In DnD your "training" (mostly slaying monster) gives you XP, which gives you levels, you cannot gain power without levels. What you could do is "train really hard for 6 months" and get XP as a result. (has to be handwaved by DM)
Of course, your DM can make a houserule to allow training for a feat

[Darrin]

I'll have to look that up later, thanks.

Complete Mage and most of the Eberron books have Magical Locations. However, the Legendary Sites in Complete Scoundrel are the only ones that offer bonus feats with a permanent duration. None of the Complete Mage or Eberron locations offer feats or a duration longer than a year.

[Kylarra]

Complete Mage and most of the Eberron books have Magical Locations. However, the Legendary Sites in Complete Scoundrel are the only ones that offer bonus feats with a permanent duration. None of the Complete Mage or Eberron locations offer feats or a duration longer than a year.

Ah, thanks for the clarification. It's nice to know I'm not completely batty.

[Starbuck_II]

Ah, thanks for the clarification. It's nice to know I'm not completely batty.

Actually, Planar Handbook has permanant ones as well. You need a Planar Touchstone, but same idea.

[Overshee]

So can you choose any feat or are they from a list... Examples?

[drengnikrafe]

I only kind of remember it, so forgive me for the minor mistakes I will make.

Otyugh Hole. If you spend some time (3 days, I think?) in it, you gain Iron Mind (I think), which is justified by saying your time in a place almost as awful as a hell on Earth made you more resiliant to horrors of the world.
Don't ask why I remembered that, but nothing else. I really don't know.

[Kylarra]

Actually, Planar Handbook has permanant ones as well. You need a Planar Touchstone, but same idea.

Ah yeah, I'm familiar with planar touchstone shenanigans.

[Darrin]

So can you choose any feat or are they from a list... Examples?

Only a handful of specific (and generally useless) feats. The most important one is Otyugh Hole, which offers Iron Will, Menacing Demeanor, or Skill Focus: Intimidate. Iron Will isn't exactly a spectacular feat (although getting a better Will save is usually a good idea), but it's an important Prereq feat for a lot of the more popular PrCs, most notably Incantatrix.

The other feats you can get via a Legendary Site:
One of the Luck feats (Court of Thieves)
Skill Focus: Knowledge/History, Nature, or Religion (Frog God's Fane, useful for Divine Oracle, Loremaster, or Exemplar)
Skill Focus: Perform or a bardic music feat (Heward's Hall)
Skill Focus: Climb or Agile Athlete (The Highest Spire)
Nimble Fingers, Skill Focus: Disable Device/Hide/Move Silently/Open Lock/Search, or Tacticle Trapsmith (Iron Wyrm Vault)


As for Planar Touchstone sites... none of these offer feats directly, but by linking your touchstone to the Catalogues of Enlightenment, you can pick up a cleric domain power, and there are several cleric domains that grant bonus feats. In most cases, this just means you're spending one feat (Planar Touchstone) to pick up some other feat (such as Extend Spell, Extra Turning, Point Blank Shot, Scribe Scroll, etc.), but there are a couple domains that offer a little more.

For example, the War domain gives you proficiency with a deity's particular favored weapon along with Weapon Focus, so in some cases you can get two feats for the price of one. This is particularly useful if you have a melee cleric that worships a deity that doesn't have the War domain in his/her portfolio. You can also use this trick to pick up proficiency with an exotic weapon, such as spiked chain (Tsolorandril and ... there are one or two others I can't recall).

You might also be able to skip an annoying prereq feat. For example, you can pick up Augment Summoning this way (Domain Power for Cult of the Dragon Below) without taking the almost-useless Spell Focus: Conjuration.