The latest iteration of my old, giant project to convert AD&D, 2nd edition, to an entirely player-driven character creation project, with no classes or defined races. Below is the intro; the document is 35 pages, even with all the stuff I've removed.
Notably removed from the document is the list of how much each standard class would cost in this system. I've got the information in a separate file, but I haven't checked it for accuracy in some time, so I'm not leaving it publicly available.
Edit 2024/10/16: New link to zoho
AD&D Custom Character Creation
Race, Class, and Background through Character Points.
Whys and Hows
So, in late 1999, there were rumors that there would be a new edition of D&D. Wizards of the Coast denied it, but the signs were there, and I was just at a point where I was starting to flex my RPG skills and expand into game design. Having grown up on AD&D, I maintain a fondness for it, and I wanted to make my own 3rd edition. I developed a system with three classes… Warrior, Expert, and Spellcaster… where your race determined some of your natural abilities (elves could all see in the dark) but not all (not all elves were sneaky or good with long swords). I made a lot of mistakes in that design; I hope this is better.
Two years ago, I posted the next iteration of the idea, allowing one to create their entire class, wholesale, rather than choose from the broad archetypes. This was better, and in line with an aspect of AD&D and Hackmaster that I enjoy; namely, that you create your character at 1st level, then their role remains largely static. Barring unusual circumstances, your fighter will not suddenly start casting spells. Your wizard can’t make a sudden shift to thief for a level, then dip into cleric, then go back to being a pure wizard. This doesn’t require the character to remain static, but it moves the task of character creation solely to the beginning of the game instead of, as I have termed it, “a losable mini-game” of optimization.
What you see below is the next iteration in that project. In this case, classes are all but rejected; rather than build a class, you build a character, complete with racial abilities. The identity and abilities are something you define, and you may reject certain abilities as being irrelevant to you or your game. Want to play an elf wizard? There’s no obligation to take any elven abilities; many elves will have Longevity and/or Aging Resistance, Night-vision or Infravision, and Improved Surprise, but if your elf is not defined by those things, or you feel they’re going to be irrelevant in your campaign, you don’t need to spend points on them. You might have a bit more trouble claiming to be an elf wizard if you have four legs, claws, and not a single spell, but not every elf will be able to see in the dark, any more than every human has 20/20 vision (he said, adjusting the damn bifocals for the umpteenth time today).
As to how to use this system, bear in mind they are guidelines; the DM may allow or disallow certain items or builds. Playtesting may reveal that some options need to be adjusted in cost. For DMs, there are two basic options for using this system for play:
1) Allow everyone to build their character, and set an XP table based on their total cost. To do this, you reference the "create a class" rules in the 2nd edition Dungeon Master's Guide, and give a 0.05 multiplier on the XP table (below) for every point used in class creation (and, thus, a full 1 multiplier for every 20 points spent). Everyone will have a different XP table, but it will be one they've chosen, based on what they want to do.
2) Set an XP table, set a CP cost, and let people design their own characters; Lower point values might require some hard choices. Everyone is on the same XP table, and everyone has the same starting CPs, so everyone should be more or less equal. You can set whatever XP table you like, but using the method of determining XP table in option 1 isn't the worst way you can do it.
Beyond character creation, much of the game should be played as AD&D, 2nd Edition, with Skills and Powers rules for proficiencies. I’ve endeavored to reverse the changes I made for my attempt at a 3rd edition, but I may have missed some. I suggest providing everyone with 10 CPs, independent of those used for character creation (and thus not factoring into their XP table calculation) to choose proficiencies, both Weapon and Non.
One of these days, I’ll figure out a method of doing this level-less.
Thanks for sharing, this thing is a magilla!
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