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View Full Version : Saving Points [3.X, PEACH]



Waargh!
2012-09-15, 07:34 PM
You have your AC to avoid an attack. Even if hit you have your HP to avoid death. With non-damaging effects that can outright kill you, paralyze you or in general take you out of the battle there is no such buffer only a saving throw. Saving Points try to fill this gap taking into account current balances.

Saving Points
Every PC gains a pool of Saving Dice (SD) equal to one quarter their HD rounded up. The dice type is the same as the HD type (i.e. Fighter uses d10, Sorcerer d4). The pool is replenished only after a full rest unless stated otherwise. The SD can be spent as below:
1) Every time you make a saving throw you can roll 1 SD and add the result as a bonus.
2) If you are directly targeted by a spell or spell-like ability that doesn’t allow a saving throw you may role instead 1d20 and add number of SD. If you succeed you are not harmed by this spell. Any damage dealt or any secondary effects that are not directly harmful to you still apply. You gain no base bonus nor do you add an ability modifier on this saving throw. Any effect that grands a bonus on all saving throws, though, applies.
3) When performing an opposed check to avoid an effect you can role 1 SD as above

These rules should apply on specific monsters, but not all of them. DM can choose for each encounter. Depending on the campaign you can adjust the amount of SD gained (if you feel this is to powerful just give 1 or 1 per 10 levels).

Balance
Keep these in mind when judging balance
a) CR of creatures will be affected and that is the biggest problem.
b) Not all creatures can have SD as the mechanics assume that you manage your SD pool for multiple encounters. This makes certain elite creatures that will have SD much stronger as they will expend them all in one encounter. The two can balance themselves out in a given encounter provided DM does his/her job right.
c) Some abilities might become very weak if their effect was not powerful. They still burn SD so it is likely that the target will chose not to use these rules as spending an SD can be worse than gaining 2-3 AC penalty. This should result as making weaker effects stronger and stronger effects weaker as this saving point system will be reserved for the later.
d) The idea of avoiding a spell that doesn’t allow a saving throw is to avoid creating a loophole on saving point system. Consider that you need to burn 2-3 SDs (if you are a fighter type) to gain a decent enough score on medium levels as you don’t get any bonus so most likely you will be giving away all your SD to avoid a very deadly spell that you normally couldn’t save against. I decided to go against having Fort/Ref/Will bonus as not to give the task to DM to decide. Using your lowest could be an idea, using just your lowest base bonus also as well if you want to make it better. As it is now it probably would work only if you haven't spent and SD for the day.
e) I added also against opposed checks having grapple and trip attempts in mind. This should ease the same way a spell caster of being grappled and becoming useless.