Point Buy system

[steveflam]

How do I calculate the 32 point buy system fro character abilities? Would someone be kind enough to put the info here, please

Thanks.

[Dr Ed]

I'd personally go about a point buy system by setting each stat at 8 by default and having 24 additional points to distribute. That'll give each character the ability to have up to 3 scores of 16, or a nice even spread that lacks super-stats but keeps the character from being a meat puppet.

[steveflam]

I agree but this DM said 32 but I looked on pathguy ravenloft generator and it doesnt give you 3 16's try more like a 15, 2 14's ,a 13 and 2 10s n a 12 i think. The higher you go the more it costs

[NeoTiamat]

If I remember properly, the way it goes is

Starts at 8
Up to 14, points are on a 1:1 basis
15-16 are at a 2:1 basis
17-18 are at 3:1 basis

In other words, it costs an additional six points to go from a 16 to an 18.

What this means is that you can have a 14 in every single stat, but to move things above that means diminishing returns. It costs 16 points to get an 18, or 10 for a 16.

So you can in fact have 16,16,16,8,8,10 at 32 point buy, or 18,18,8,8,8,8

I personally like point buy systems since it removes the luck out of character creation, and is more even, since everyone has the same potential.

[HuManBing]

I wonder about DnD if everything was points buy.

Like at any given time, you could cash in XP to "buy" traits, like another HD, or another feat, or another skill point.

Do you want to play a grim and gritty campaign where people deal lots of damage but die after only a few hits? (Rather like, say, World War I or the Napoleonic campaigns.) Sure, just increase the XP cost of HD and HP way up and make it easier for PCs to buy damaging feats, etc.

Do you want to play a campaign where people can do amazing jumps, twirls, and unarmed attacks, and take a colossal amount of damage? (Hong Kong's wire-fu films, wuxia novels.) Decrease the XP cost to buy new HD and HP, and BAB. Increase the XP cost to learn to use weapons, perhaps.

Sadly DnD won't go that way. A move like that would likely cost the system its entire identity.

[steveflam]

Well I think it will be more Roleplaying than fighting so that means scores are not that important(Though the dice may determine some things of course),,, I was just curious is all.

It'll be in Barovia hee hee!

[Jester of the FoS]

I love point buy. No more having someone roll 18, 17, 16, 16, 15, etc while someone else has a 14 as a high roll.
I also prefer set hps over rolling.
But that's just me.

[steveflam]

I love point buy. No more having someone roll 18, 17, 16, 16, 15, etc while someone else has a 14 as a high roll.
I also prefer set hps over rolling.
But that's just me.

Yanno it depends on each player. Personally, "ability rolls" are ok but can get out of hand at times. Whatever people are comfortable with is their thing. I am tending towards roleplaying pc's so ability scores, who cares, right? It all depends on the type of game or pc "people" wish to play, eh?

Personally I like this way but others don't. Well everyone has their own thing, right?

[NeoTiamat]

I love point buy. No more having someone roll 18, 17, 16, 16, 15, etc while someone else has a 14 as a high roll.
I also prefer set hps over rolling.
But that's just me.

I am *exactly* the same.

[Dr Ed]

It seems to me that the 32 point buy mechanics of increasing cost seems needlessly complicated when 24 does basically the same thing without as much number crunching. But then I like to streamline things.

[Jester of the FoS]

It seems to me that the 32 point buy mechanics of increasing cost seems needlessly complicated when 24 does basically the same thing without as much number crunching. But then I like to streamline things.

24 with no increase in stat costs makes it far easier to have 18s or a couple really high scores. While 32 with increased means if you want that 18 you really have to give something up.
Even with 32 points you tend to stop at 16 unless you're a one-stat class.

I love point buy. No more having someone roll 18, 17, 16, 16, 15, etc while someone else has a 14 as a high roll. I also prefer set hps over rolling.But that's just me.

Yanno it depends on each player. Personally, "ability rolls" are ok but can get out of hand at times. Whatever people are comfortable with is their thing. I am tending towards roleplaying pc's so ability scores, who cares, right? It all depends on the type of game or pc "people" wish to play, eh?

Personally I like this way but others don't. Well everyone has their own thing, right?

Well stats are rather obsolete for shared storytelling and as long as you can resolve combat with bare-bones dice rolling. But you don't really even need dice or the rule books for that game.

Even in my heavy RPing group I like to break out the combat sometimes for a knock down, drag 'em out brawl.

[Joël of the FoS]

That system isn't very generous IMHO. Those PC guys are supposed to be heroes after all, not having the stats of nearly ordinary people.

Joël

[Dr Ed]

I don't see how it's much different, Jester. With only 24 points to distribute, you can have 2 18s or 3 16s, but your other stats are still going to be pathetic by comparison. The tradeoff with having two or three really buff stats while the others suffer is practically the same with 24 or 32.

Besides, most players are going to want to be well-rounded (especially in Ravenloft), so you're most likely going to see a spread of 14s rather than one or two 18s.

[Jester of the FoS]

With 32 you do end up pretty mighty considering the average game assumes a 25 point buy. I'm preferential to 28 myself which makes for tougher characters but not quite the gods of 32.

And the average person has 10-11s for all their stats. So the "average" joe pitchfork is really a 12 point-buy. The "average" hero should have twice that with 24+.
I'm fond of one 8, one 16, and a smattering in the middle. The hero has an obvious strength but a definite weakness as well. Or a standard 15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8 spread however the player wants.

[Jason of the Fraternity]

I'd personally go about a point buy system by setting each stat at 8 by default and having 24 additional points to distribute. That'll give each character the ability to have up to 3 scores of 16, or a nice even spread that lacks super-stats

I'm actually a big fan of streamlining things myself, and most of my campaigns used a point buying system of 1:1. However, I think that I was a bit more liberal than the 24 points (each player had 28 points to increase the base stats of . This allowed for a few higher abilities without completely sacrificing the other abilities, or a character could be somewhat rounded (10-12-12-12-14-16).

I wonder about DnD if everything was points buy. Like at any given time, you could cash in XP to "buy" traits, like another HD, or another feat, or another skill point.

If you haven't already, I would highly recommend that you take a look at the Mutants & Masterminds roleplaying game. The point system used in the game closely mimics what you're suggesting (i.e., your points/experience is used to buy abilities, feats, skills, etc.). A character doesn't gain levels per se, but you are able to increase his/her stats by buying improves with the experience points that you earn.