Racial Stats

[Kieddicus]

I find the starting stats of the player races to be pretty irreverent, as unless you are dumping all 8 of your stat points into only one stat the difference between the races doesn't really matter.

I fix this by either capping the stats at twice the racial starting amount, or by making it cost 2 stat points for every 1 stat increase after you reach twice your race's starting stat.

So a 32 point Elf with ST: 12 DX: 12 IQ: 8, who wants to get an additional ST would have to spend 200 XP and would be considered a 34 point Elf.

I am curious if anyone else finds this to be an issue and if so what do you do about it?

[larsdangly]

Yeah, I'm not crazy about the end result of the effort to balance the various humanoid races. Everyone ends up much of a sameness.

[Kieddicus]

Yea... I am not overly happy with my fix, but I do like it more than the standard way. Which is one reason why I was checking if anyone else modified how leveling stats works.

[phiwum]

If you want to make different races different, that would do it.

Sucks to be a halfling. Maximum ST 8. On the other hand, even a veteran halfling warrior with ST 10 should probably be a rarity.

I think everyone's noticed that the different races often have the same stats. I haven't thought about a fix and I guess I'm not too sure it's a problem. I try to make my NPCs fit the stereotypes, more or less.

[Axly Suregrip]

Keiddicus,
I like what you have except where it counted as a 34 point character even though he only had 33 points. It was enough that it cost him double to get that extra ST point. Each ST point from now on out will cost double, so no need to also make the one count as two points to his overall stat count.

Just my two cents. Or one cent if it costs double.

[phiwum]

Originally Posted by Axly Suregrip

Keiddicus,
I like what you have except where it counted as a 34 point character even though he only had 33 points. It was enough that it cost him double to get that extra ST point. Each ST point from now on out will cost double, so no need to also make the one count as two points to his overall stat count.

Just my two cents. Or one cent if it costs double.

I think that's a useful fix.

I guess that 20 IQ wizards would be mighty unusual with this house rule as well. I mean, exotic like a sporty hearse or an accountant who is a brilliant raconteur.

Or an RPG nerd who can come up with humorous examples.

[TippetsTX]

In my own game, I have restored some of the racial imbalance found in 'classic' TFT, though I prefer to think of it as asymmetrical balance. I don't limit this to starting attribute totals, however.

For example...

Human
ST 8, DX 8, IQ 8 plus 8 (32 points)

Racial Traits:
Adaptable - Humans pay only 90% of the standard XP cost to learn new Talents.
Mark of Destiny - Whether they choose the path of the hero or villainy, humans have a knack for challenging fate. All human characters receive a single Hero Point at the start of gameplay (normally these are only earned as rewards during play).

Starting Age: 18
Size: 1-hex
XP Adjustment: None


Shoal Elf
ST 8, DX 10, IQ 8 plus 8 (34 points)

Racial Traits:
Born to the Sea - Free SEAMANSHIP talent.
Mana in the Blood - Hero characters only pay double for spells instead of triple.

Starting Age: 50
Size: 1-hex
XP Adjustment: x1.2


Saurr (Reptile Man)
ST 14, DX 8, IQ 8 plus 6 (36 points)

Racial Traits:
Intimidating Visage - Saurr have -1 on any reaction roll (except one made by other reptile-men) to his presence or request.
Vicious - Between their jaws and claws, a Saurr is always considered 'armed' and will do twice the HTH or unarmed melee damage compared to a human of equivalent ST.
Tail Swipe - Use as a 1-die weapon against any one figure in his rear hex. Since this counts as an attack, he is at -4 DX on both attacks if he also uses a weapon that turn.

Starting Age: 12
Size: 1-hex
XP Adjustment: x1.5

P.S. It's also worth noting that I use a completely different progression model for attribute and talent/spell XP costs (much less severe than Legacy's version).

[Kieddicus]

Originally Posted by Axly Suregrip

Keiddicus,
I like what you have except where it counted as a 34 point character even though he only had 33 points. It was enough that it cost him double to get that extra ST point. Each ST point from now on out will cost double, so no need to also make the one count as two points to his overall stat count.

Just my two cents. Or one cent if it costs double.

Your way is actually how I original had it, until I realized the order in which you leveled your stats would dramatically change how much they cost. Pretty much forcing people to level they race's low stat first.

Though I have recently been thinking of changing the system to simply be your race's low stat cost 20% more XP to increase, and the high stat cost 20% less (30% for Halflings).

[TippetsTX]

Originally Posted by phiwum

Sucks to be a halfling. Maximum ST 8. On the other hand, even a veteran halfling warrior with ST 10 should probably be a rarity.

My 'halflings' don't suck (personal bias, of course).

Faen (Halfling)
ST 4, DX 12, IQ 8 plus 6 (30 points)

Racial Traits:
Strength of Spirit - Faen ST may not exceed 12 w/o magical enhancement, but the effective value is 50% higher for the purpose of 'fatigue' (i.e. 6 ST = 9 points available for spellcasting).
Amiable - Faen receive a +1 on any reaction roll with an intelligent creature or “normal” animal.
Keen Aim - Due to their excellent hand-to-eye coordination, Faen have +1 DX with all thrown weapons, slings or targeted spellcasting (missile spells).
Quick & Nimble - MA is 10 in spite of their small stature and they also enjoy +1 DX when performing agility-related feats (i.e. jumping, balancing, juggling, etc.).

Note: Because of their small size, they have a -2 DX when fighting giant-sized opponents in melee combat. On the plus side, giants have a -3 DX when attacking a Faen character.

Starting Age: 15
Size: Half-hex
XP Adjustment: None