House Rules

Encounter Challenge Level (ECL) trope

Physical and Karmic law

Racial Affinity for Specific Class Archtype

Class Category Predispositions by Race

The Angry Villager Rule

On page 24 of The Original Dungeons and Dragons White Box, Booklet 3, written by Gary Gygax, reads The Angry Villager Rule:

“Anyone who has viewed a horror movie is aware of how dangerous angry villagers are. Whenever the referee finds that some player has committed an unforgivable outrage this rule can be invoked to harass the offender into line. Within the realm of angry villagers are thieves from the “thieves quarters,” city watches and militia, etc. Also possible is the insertion of some character like Conan to bring matters into line.”

I will not hesitate to invoke this rule citing that my world is alive and not artificial to its inhabitants be they monster, Non-Player Character or any Player's Character.

Encounter Reactions

Unlike in v3.5 where NPCs always greet PCs with indifference, encounter reactions will be rolled for every encounter giving the possibility for the PCs to meet NPCs while they are preoccuppied with their lives and living in their own emotional moment.

Also, Wandering Monster Checks will also require encounter reaction checks, where appropriate. Thus, a band of brigands may be predisposed to let the PCs go unhindered and even offer information (for a price) giving the PCs a bonus in diplomacy or the brigands may be more predisposed to fight than to collect any tribute. The Dungeon Master will reflect the attitude of the opponents encountered through dialogue or action.

Monsters that are specifically described as always hostile and aggressive, such as Owlbears, will never require a roll to determine their encounter reaction.

Combat

Declaration

Action

Morale Checks

Skill Checks & DCs Appraise is it a geologist's check, a jewler's check, a strategist's check....

Skill Checks in AD&D 1e

Occassionally, when a skill check is required but a Skill is not easily defined on the v3.5 skill list, the base Ability Score will be used with or without modification as a DC roll

Magic and Rogues

Rogues and Magic Unlike in the v3.5 rules, Rogues do not have the skill to detect magic in traps or disarm magic traps. They may not use a magical device.

The exeption to this rule is when the trap has a mechanical component that is not magical or when a magical device is deemed more mechanical than magical.

Arthur C. Clarke's 3rd Law by the British writer and scientist Arthur C. Clarke 3.Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.

a statement in a 1942 story by Leigh Brackett: "Witchcraft to the ignorant, .... Simple science to the learned".[2]

2.^ "The Sorcerer of Rhiannon", Astounding February 1942, p. 39.

, was proposed by Arthur C. Clarke in the essay "Hazards of Prophecy: The Failure of Imagination", in Profiles of the Future (1962).<ref>"'Hazards of Prophecy: The Failure of Imagination'" in the collection Profiles of the Future: An Enquiry into the Limits of the Possible (1962, rev. 1973), pp. 14, 21, 36.</ref>

The second law is offered as a simple observation in the same essay; its status as Clarke's Second Law was conferred on it by others.

Clarke's Three Laws are three "laws" of prediction formulated by the British writer and scientist Arthur C. Clarke. They are:

1.When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right; when he states that something is impossible, he is probably wrong. 2.The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible. 3.Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.

Magic and Magic Users

There are two classes of magic users in Dungeons and Dragons v3.5: Ceremonial Magickian (Wizard) and Savant Sorcerer(Sorcerer). While these names are not the official names given to the two classes, they are described as one needing a more formal, scholarly approach and the other requireing an intuitive approach to spell casting

Starting Magic Spells

The Wizard's Spell Book

The Sorcerer needs to have some introduction to spells. It is unreasonable that a sorcerer knows every spell in existence, when spells are being researched and created by other magic users on a daily basis.

So the Sorcerer must have a defined knowledge base, if not a spell book. However a spell book would prove invaluable to a sorcerer interested in becoming acquainted with new spells.

Leveling Up

Leveling Up has four prerequisites and one understanding: 1 - The required amount of experience points (XP) must be accumulated to gain the next level; 2 - A mentor non-player character (NPC) of sufficiently high level must be found and convinced to train the player character; 3 - The mentor will require payment or service for the training at the discretion of the Dungeon Master; 4 - Training must be done for a number of weeks equal to the number of encounters a player has

It is understood that once a player has sufficient XP to attain the next level, further calculation of XP is halted.

Experience Points (XP) Calculation is weighted on role playing not on simple defeating obstacles. The weights are Poor Role Play = Half XP Good Role Play = Full XP Great Role Play = 1.5 XP