Min/Max Boards

Q: What should I do with all this?
A: Read it in order. Work your way up to the Caster Nerfs. If you are an experienced D&D optimizer, the optimization background will be a breeze. If you have complete system mastery of third edition, the RAW reminders & variants will be a breeze for you too.

Q: What is all this crap?
A: This is a collection of the minimal, required changes (read, house rules) to make D&D 3.5 function as intended.

Q: Whoa! What makes you think that's even doable? Intended by whom?
A: Because various authors had varing ideas about how the game would be played, I'm taking a "recurring, starting average" of authors outlook on whatever would make the game more balanced while maintaining the feel, fun and options expected. So later developments like (Ex) spellcasting won't be featured, because that doesn't lead to a very friendly game of D&D for those without polymorph.

Q: How big an overhaul is this?
A: Because everything is presented in a mostly plug-and-play format, not that big of one. If you take it all in (as I believe you should), you only add about 2% complexity. Considering how complicated an all-sources game is, that's a hefty chunk if considered randomly. But let's look at it in four parts way: Broken items are removed (like thought bottle), broken casting tricks are removed (like 9th level spells), mundanes/lower tiers are buffed (skills/truenamers are more useful), and some general campaign extensions are simplified (the cosmology/environmental rules definitely need it).

Q: Okay, I suppose that's how it would have to be done. What are your limitations for this?
A: I hope to not only do some of the work that DMs must do for a campaign (like how to handle UA variants that not all players share or what to do with psionics transparency) but things like what an arcane swordsage actually means in play or what the fair way to apply NPC effects to players might be. I won't be adding monsters or feats or spell or items or anything that would make D&D 3.5 "sprawl" more. Think of it as sewing the pieces tighter. Have you ever wondered why epic casters or monsters don't go rock pelor's world? No? Good, now you don't have to. They don't exist in the same way they did before in the RAW.

Q: So how much balance are you bringing to the force?
A: As much or little as you want, but if you take all of it the upper and lower PC tier classes will get squished towards their 3.5 tier average. Samurai's would be Tier 4 and Erudites would be tier 3. Between tier 4 and 3 is almost universally considered to be the 'goal,' so I'm not going to explain this part. If you think about it though, that's means some rather rough nerfs are going to happen on the casters' part. Players who whine that their wizard doesn't mop the floor with auto-win spells, probably shouldn't be in your PBMC-balanced campaign. But the soulknife will love you for making the class something other than an excersize in futility.

Q: I don't like x change! What are you going to do about it?
A: That's fine. Well, I'm not going to explain why change was consistent with the above. Before slashing all over the reply or PM button, take a solid ten minutes and think about things from my perspective. Do player's have more easy, balanced, out-of-the-box options while the campaign has simultaneously become more resilient to things that normally make DM's nervous? Are players playing the game in a more normal way: talking with NPCs, following quests, etc? Or are they simply mindraping NPCs to sacrifice them for infinite dark craft XP before selling their flesh-to-salt bodies from a time-warped genesis plane to simultaneously craft every custom item imaginable and "win" D&D without needing a party? Because without some rational kind of balancing/homebrewing, the latter is what you can have and the former is a rarity. Players expect to adventure and they expect balancing from a DM. Think of my attempts as the easiest to impliment that in every way necessary.

Q: I found something that is truly troublesome to any normal campaign, but I don't see it listed! Do you want to hear about it?
A: If you finished reading all the files twice and think I've missed something, I certainly do want to make sure I've update this into a reasonably complete list. Also keep in mind my canon limits, dirty trick handbook fixes, and my C8 variant (think of it as mixing normal ECL20 games with E6), which are assumed but not referenced.

Same quote to show you that the PF community doesn't play 3rd edition anymore. They have their own game, instead:

[PF]

No 3.5

Sure you technically can mix and match. But you could do that by backporting with 4e. And no one did that because there is every reason to suspect your build would be thrown out and told to only use one editions' material.

In DotA the attack iteration cap is +400% which is when combined with the maximum base attack time of 1 second gives 5 times per second, or 25 attacks in a full round of 6 seconds. Only one spell gives this, so we can throw it out as an outlier.

Most heroes have base attacks of 1.7 (15 attacks max), 1.8 (14 attacks), 1.9 (13 attacks). One each are 1.5 or 1.45 (17 attacks), as well as 1.3 BAT (19 attacks). Straight out of the gate a 15 agility 1.7 BAT hero will hit 3 times in 5 seconds.

Why does D&D have so few attacks within a round? Probably as a matter of dice rolling convenience and smaller numbers. In this case it seems to me that DotA has it right and D&D is too scaled down. After all, "a guy at the gym" can swing a sword or punch at someone about 3 times in six seconds (with a 1 second breather).

Even the slowest attack possible in DotA (with negative 3 attacks worth of debuffs) would land after a standard attack (3 seconds) plus a swift action (1 second), giving time to walk up to the target first. Thus if the slowest attack (just one) is off by about 3 hits, then D&D's normal move+1 attack combo is also off by 3 hits.

D&D doesn't normally suppress attack iterations because they just aren't that powerful of a source of damage, but if it did, it would be a straight forward effect. Instead it choses to give penalties to hit which attempt to lower the % of damage given, on average (analogous to +armor in DotA).

In dota most spells are immediate action by default. Very few are standard actions (3 seconds) and any that are full round actions are extremely powerful almost unbeatable, complete disables. Mundanes have direct access to any spell on a list they chose. Leveling is 1-25 rather than 1-20, so to put it in D&D terms we compress by a factor of 1.25

Spells level at 1,3,5 and 6,11,16 which translates in D&D terms with varying rounding to 1,2,4,5 (rather than 6), 8, (10th level is missing here) & 12. This looks suspiciously similar to the Balanced Spellcasting progression except that 3rd level spells come in a tad early and 5th level spells are missing. Both groupings of spells are just upgrades of the same line like the summon monster line or various psionic powers. Mundane abilities are gained through ECL just as spells are.

Certainly levels give stat gains when no abilities are available at +20 to all stats over 25 levels. The translation is straight forward after adjusting for the weight of how high base stats should be for a maxed character in both systems. Dota has about an 85 average. With good rolls or a high point buy (for lower tier characters; see metacompendium) an average stat in D&D naked would be 14 + 3 (oa human aging) w/ age immunity + 1 (stats & magical locations) + 1 evil effects (warp touch, elder evil signs, etc) + 5 inherent (see wish conglomeration) = 24.

That's about 3.5x lower than in dota. Since MAD characters tend to be mundane anyway, dota again wins the balance contest. It suggests that in D&D the stat points every 1 stat per 4 levels from HD can stay if it boosts all stats rather than just one. Characters can also front-load their stats at a x2HD ratio if they want rather than x4, just like with new spell levels.

Every single attack (atleast 6, usually 12 or 18) gives a penalty to each the second and third highest stats of the target as well as a -2 penalty to the highest stat. It then gives you a stacking +2 bonus to dex.

This dex boost does not boost your reflex saves, which don't exist in DotA, only position and SR. The bonus lasts 10 rounds but it does not reset so on the 11th round the bonus from the 1st round disappears leaving any boni from the 2nd to 11th rounds in place.

Old buff: The duration used to be 10 rounds. Let's not talk about that time it gave permanent dexterity if you were the killer.
Current nerf: It instead only gives a +1 bonus and -1 to the highest 2 scores.
Suggested nerf: If the target's second highest ability scores is already 1, no bonus is gained. Currently its dexterity also provides damage if the main stat for attack damage isn't dexterity, but was more fun when it was agi-only.

   More mechanics that need to be discussed:

Every single attack deals a separate instance of damage equal to 10-251-4 damage multiplied by the number of times it has hit the target in a row if it last hit at most 2 rounds ago.

Thus at maxed skill level an 8 hit attacker will deal an additional 4+8+12+16+20+24+28+32=144 upon first engaging. A target with DR4 would recieve 32 less damage from fury swipes and 32 less damage from the regular weapon damage, assuming each dealt four or more.

Current nerf: for ranged attackers the damage is only 10-161-3 attacks and requires having hit in the previous round.

   More mechanics that need to be discussed:

On the next hit after each hit this round, you gain 1-2 bonus attack iterations to a maximum of 3-6 iterations. After the 4th total attack from you this round, you gain 5-20% bonus attack damage against that target for this round.

The bonus attacks from the ability do not trigger the ability itself so a character with the highest level fervor with only 3 attacks would deal one attack then 2 extra attacks then the second base attack then two attacks then finally a third base attack at +20% damage.

For each 7% health missing hp rounded up, you take 3-6% less magic damage and gain a 8-14 dexterity only for the purpose of iteratives from your separate dexterity BAB pool. The first set of boni starts at 100% hp.

For example a character at 1% hp takes 90% less spell damage and gains 210 iterative dexterity, maybe enough to give her an extra 9 attacks.

   More mechanics that need to be discussed:

Provides +8-20 dexterity as long as there has been no enemy of your ECL -5 or higher within 40' you for one round or longer.

Heals gives bonus speed while out of enemy sight, provided you don't attack or target an enemy with a spell. The amount is 18-30% maximum hp per round if starting and maintaining blocked line of sight, or 12-20% hp if moving from a position in sight to one outside. While outside enemy sight your speed is 30-40% or 10-20% if you started within sight.

Additionally shadow dance has an at will ability castable as a free action every 8 rounds. You may attack for one round without being targetable by spells or attacks. You are still susceptable to area effects. During this time you count as unseen, even under true seeing. Enemies are still aware of your position, however. The 100-250mp (2-5pp in D&D terms) is negligable considering stupidest heroes gain 1 pp per level for free (or 1 slot every time its available).

Current nerfs: Only makes you untargetable for one standard (or longer effect), but not for swift or immediate ones if your opponent can wait.

   More mechanics that need to be discussed:

Heals a target ally 15-60 damage. Deals equal pure damage (allow no reductions) to all enemies within touching tiles. 2 round cooldown. 2-4pp cost

65 damage 200' line or circle with a scepter, 4 round cooldown, target loses swift and standard action.

Suggested nerfs: where to start! first of all, its is bugged so 1st level does the damage of the 4th level. It should be 10-65. Secondly, its short cooldown conquers BKB which is its only counter. The scepter upgrade is just too much. Every number in this spell could be made twice as bad and it would still be good. Atleast it doesn't deal pure damage.

100-130' 3-2 round cd, 3pp, 15-60dmg

30-65 pure damage within a circle of 4 touching squares. 4 round cd, 2-4pp. No LoE or LoS required. Range is longer than a "long range" spell at CL40, or about atleast 10x that of the longest spell limited by range in DotA. Suggested range is a half a mile. Gives LoS while casting (equivalent to a move action's worth of time).

Gives a chance to make a cast spell trigger again for free directly after it starts to take effect. Further levels allow more than one additional cast: 18% x2 -> 30% x2, 13% x3 -> 40% x2, 14% x3, 5% x4.

Scepter upgradable: 45 magic damage that removes a swift or move action from the enemy when cast. 60%mp cost, 1 round cooldown.

75-140 damage to 1 target up to 60' away, 8-5 round cd. Scepter makes the damage pure. Once casting starts, effect cannot be dodged if completed.

Psionic artificers are similar to Artificers, but they craft psionic items instead of psionic items. A Psionic Artificer is treated as a standard artificer for purposes of meeting feat or prestige class prerequisites. A character cannot have levels in both artificer and psionic artificer.

Hit die: d6

Alignment: Any

Starting gold: 5d4 x 10gp

Skill points: 4 + Int

Skills: Appraise, Concentration, Craft, Disable Device, Knowledge (architecture and engineering), Knowledge (psionics), Knowledge (the planes), Open Lock, Profession, Psicraft, Search, and Use Psionic Device

Class Features
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Psionic artificers are proficient with all simple weapons, with light and medium armor, and with shields (except tower shields).

Power Points / Day: As Psychic Warrior. Specifically 0, 1, 3, 5, 7, 11, 15, 19, 23, 27, 35, 43, 51, 59, 67, 79, 91, 103, 115, 127.

Infusions: a psionic artificer is not a manifester, but he does have the ability to imbue items with psionic infusions. Psionic infusions are drawn from the same artificer infusion list (see Chapter 5: Magic). They function just like powers and follow all the rules for powers. For example, a psionic infusion can be dispelled, it will not function in an antipsionic area, and a psionic artificer must make a Concentration check if injured while imbuing an item with a psionic infusion.

A psionic artificer can imbue an item with any infusion from the list without preparing the psionic infusion ahead of time. Unlike a psion or psychic warrior, he does not select a subset of the available psionic infusions as his known psionic infusions; he has access to every psionic infusion on the list that is of a level he can use.

It is possible for a psionic artificer to learn psionic infusions that are not on the normal artificer infusion list. These might include ancient psionic infusions he finds in the ruins of Xen'drik or secret psionic infusions known only to the members of certain guilds or organizations. When he encounters such a psionic infusion, a psionic artificer can attempt to learn it by making a Psicraft check (DC 20 + power level). If this check succeeds, he adds the psionic infusion to his list. If not, he can try again when he gains another rank in Psicraft, assuming he still has access to the new psionic infusion.

To imbue an item with a psionic infusion, a psionic artificer must have an Intelligence score equal to at least 10 + the psionic infusion level (Int 11 for 1st-level psionic infusions, Int 12 for 2nd-level psionic infusions, and so forth). The save DC is Intelligence-based.

Like manifestors, a psionic artificer's ability to manifest powers is limited by the power points he has available. His base daily allotment of power points is given on the accompanying table. In addition, he receives extra power points per day if he has a sufficiently high Intelligence score (see Table 2—1: Ability Modifiers and Bonus Spells, page 18 of the Expanded Psionic's Handbook).

A psionic artificer's psionic infusions can only be imbued into an item or a construct (including warforged). He cannot, for example, simply imbue an ally with animal affinity. He must instead imbue that ability into an item his ally is wearing. The item then functions as a belt of giant strength for the duration of the infusion. He can, however, imbue animal affinity directly on a construct or a character with the living construct subtype, and psionic infusions such as psionic repair light damage and iron construct function only when imbued on such characters.

Many psionic infusions have long casting times, often 1 minute or more. a psionic artificer can spend 1 action point to imbue any infusion in 1 round (like a power that takes 1 round to manifest).

Like a manifester, a psionic artificer can apply metapsionic feats he knows to his psionic infusions. Like a psion, a psionic artificer can apply a metapsionic feat to a psionic infusion spontaneously, but doing this requires extra time. A psionic artificer can craft alchemical items as though he were a manifester.

A psionic artificer cannot automatically use a power trigger or power completion item if the equivalent power appears on his infusion list. For example, a psionic artificer must still employ the Use Psionic Device skill to use a wand of light, even though light appears on his infusion list.

Each day, a psionic artificer must focus his mind on his psionic infusions. He needs 8 hours of rest, after which he spends 15 minutes concentrating. During this period, the psionic artificer readies his mind to hold his daily allotment of power points. Without such a period of time to refresh himself, the character does not regain the power points he used up the day before. Any power points used within the last 8 hours count against the artificer's daily limit.

Craft Reserve:: A psionic artificer receives a pool of points he can spend instead of experience points when crafting a psionic item. Each time the psionic artificer gains a new level, he receives a new craft reserve; leftover points from the previous level do not carry over. If the points are not spent, they are lost. A psionic artificer can also use his craft reserve to supplement the XP cost of the item he is making, taking a portion of the cost from his craft reserve and a portion from his own XP.

Artificer Knowledge: A psionic artificer can make a special artificer knowledge check with a bonus equal to his psionic artificer level + his Int modifier to detect whether a specific item has a psionic aura.

The psionic artificer must hold and examine the object for 1 minute. A successful check against DC 15 determines that the object has psionic qualities, but does not reveal the specific powers of the item.

A psionic artificer cannot take 10 or take 20 on this check. A particular item can only be examined in this fashion one time; if the check fails, the psionic artificer can learn no more about that object.

Artisan Bonus: A psionic artificer gains a +2 bonus on Use Psionic Device checks to activate an item of a kind for which he has the prerequisite item creation feat.

Disable Trap: A psionic artificer can use the Search skill to locate traps when the task has a Difficulty Class higher than 20. Finding a nonpsionic trap has a DC of at least 20, or higher if it is well hidden. Finding a psionic trap has a DC of 25 + the level of the power used to create the trap.

A psionic artificer can use the "Disable Device"skills/disable-device/ skill to disarm psionic traps. Usually the DC is 25 + the level of the power used to create the trap.

A psionic artificer who beats a trap's DC by 10 or more with a Disable Device check can study a trap, figure out how it works, and bypass it (with his party) without disarming it.

Item Creation (Ex): A psionic artificer can create a psionic item even if he does not have access to the powers that are prerequisites for the item. The artificer must make a successful Use Psionic Device check (DC 20 + manifestor level) to emulate each power normally required to create the item. Thus, to make a 1st-level dorje of crystal shard, an artificer would need a Use Psionic Device check result of 21 or higher. To create a Eyes of the Power Leech (manifester level 7th), he would need a check result of 27 or higher to emulate the power leech prerequisite.
The psionic artificer must make a successful check for each prerequisite for each item he makes. If he fails a check, he can try again each day until the item is complete. If he comes to the end of the crafting time and he has still not successfully emulated one of the powers, he can make one final check—his last-ditch effort, even if he has already made a check that day. If that check also fails, then the creation process fails and the time, money, and XP expended to craft the item are lost.
For purposes of meeting item prerequisites, an artificer's effective manifester level equals his psionic artificer level +2. If the item duplicates a power effect, however, it uses the psionic artificer's actual level as its manifestor level. Costs are always determined using the item's minimum manifestor level or the psionic artificer's actual level (if it is higher). Thus, a 3rd-level psionic artificer can make a dorje of energy ball, since the minimum manifester level for energy ball is 5th. He pays the normal cost for making such a dorje with a manifestor level of 5th: 5 X 3 X 12.5 = 187 gp and 5 sp, plus 15 XP. But the scroll's actual caster level is only 3rd, and it produces a weak energy ball that deals only 3d6 points of damage.
An artificer can also make Use Psionic Device checks to emulate nonpower requirements, including alignment and race, using the normal DCs for the skill. He cannot emulate skill or feat requirements, however, including item creation feat prerequisites. He must meet the manifester level prerequisite, including the minimum level to cast a power he stores in a psionic tattoo, power stone, or dorjes.
An artificer's psionic infusions do not meet power prerequisites for creating psionic items. For example, an artificer must still employ the Use Psionic Device skill to emulate a power to create a dorje, even if that power appears on his infusion list.

Bonus Feat: A psionic artificer gains every psionic item creation feat as a bonus feat at or near the level at which it becomes available to manifesters: He gets Imprint Stone as a bonus feat at 1st level, Scribe Tatoo at 2nd level, Craft Universal Item at 3rd level, Craft Psionic Arms and Armor at 5th level, Craft Dorje at 6th level, Craft Cognizance Crystal at 9th level, Craft Psicrown at 12th level, and Craft Psionic Construct at 14th level.

In addition, a psionic artificer gains a bonus feat at 4th level and every four levels thereafter (8th, 12th, 16th, and 20th). For each of these bonus feats, the psionic artificer must choose a metapsionic feat or a feat from the following list: Attune Magical Weapon, Craft Construct (see the Monster Manual, page 303), Exceptional Artisan, Extra Rings, Extraordinary Artisan, Legendary Artisan, Dorje Mastery.

Craft Homunculus (Ex): At 4th level, a psionic artificer can create a homunculus as if he had the Craft Construct feat. He must emulate the power requirements as normal for making a psionic item, and he must pay all the usual gold and XP costs (though he can spend points from his craft reserve). A psionic artificer can also upgrade an existing homunculus that he owns, adding 1 Hit Die at a cost of 2,000 gp and 160 XP.

If a psionic artificer gives his homunculus more than 6 Hit Dice, it becomes a Small creature and advances as described in the Monster Manual (+4 Str, —2 Dex, damage increases to Id6). The homunculus also gains 10 extra hit points for being a Small construct.

A psionic artificer's homunculus can have as many Hit Dice as its master's Hit Dice minus 2. No matter how many Hit Dice it has, a homunculus never grows larger than Small.

Retain Essence (Su): At 5th level, a psionic artificer gains the ability to salvage the XP from a psionic item and use those points to create another psionic item. The psionic artificer must spend a day with the item, and he must also have the appropriate item creation feat for the item he is salvaging. After one day, the item is destroyed and the psionic artificer adds the XP it took to create the item to his craft reserve. These points are lost if the psionic artificer does not use them before gaining his next level.

Metapsionic Power Trigger (Su): At 6th level, a psionic artificer gains the ability to apply a metapsionic feat he knows to a power trigger device, such as a dorje. Using this ability expends additional charges from the item equal to 1 + 1/2 the number of additional power points normally required to employ the metapsionic power.

A psionic artificer cannot use this ability when using a power trigger device that does not have charges.

Metapsionic Power Completion (Su): At 11th level, a psionic artificer gains the ability to apply a metapsionic feat he knows to a power completion device, such as a power stone. He must succeed on a Use Psionic Device check with a DC equal to 20 + twice the total number of power points required to manifest the metapsionic power normally. For example, applying the Empower Power feat to a power stone of ego whip has a DC of 20 + (2 × 5), or 40. A psionic artificer can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + his Int modifier.

Skill Mastery: At 13th level, a psionic artificer can take 10 when making Psicraft or Use Psionic Device checks, even if stress and distractions would normally prevent him from doing so. This ability circumvents the normal rule that a character cannot take 10 on a Use Psionic Device check.0 on a Use Psionic Device check.

# level Name
1   1   Ablative Armor
2   1   Armor Enhancement, Lesser
3   1   Energy Alteration
4   1   Enhancement Alteration
5   1   Indisputable Possession
6   1   Inflict Light Damage
7   1   Metamagic Scroll -> ? Metapsionic Stone ?
8   1   Natural Weapon Augmentation, Personal
9   1   Pending Potion
10   1   Resistance Item
11   1   Skill Enhancement
12   1   Spell Storing Item -> Power Storing Item (presumably stores powers)
13   1   Weapon Augmentation, Personal
14   2   Armor Enhancement
15   2   Elemental Prod
16   2   Lucky Blade
17   2   Natural Weapon Augmentation, Lesser
18   2   Reinforce Construct
19   2   Toughen Construct
20   2   Weapon Augmentation, Lesser
21   3   Adamantine Weapon
22   3   Armor Enhancement, Greater
23   3   Blast Rod
24   3   Construct Energy Ward
25   3   Lucky Cape
26   3   Metamagic Item - > MetaPsionic Item (affects power trigger items)
27   3   Power Surge
28   3   Stone Construct
29   3   Suppress Requirement
30   4   Censure Elementals
31   4   Concurrent Infusions
32   4   Construct Energy Ward, Greater
33   4   Iron Construct
34   4   Item Alteration
35   4   Natural Weapon Augmentation
36   4   Weapon Augmentation
37   5   Dominate Living Construct
38   5   Inflict Light Damage, Mass
39   5   Repair Light Damage, Mass
40   5   Slaying Arrow
41   6   Disable Construct
42   6   Inflict Moderate Damage, Mass
43   6   Natural Weapon Augmentation, Greater
44   6   Repair Moderate Damage, Mass
45   6   Total Repair
46   6   Weapon Augmentation, Greater