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View Full Version : D&D 3.x Other Porting some Star Wars Saga into 3.5 to beef Skills (PEACH)



Pleh
2017-07-12, 10:03 AM
Hard to sum up in the title alone, I've used these rules a couple times in my games and I like the effect it has on character creation for my players.

This homebrew rule set ports a couple skill mechanics from Star Wars Saga Edition into D&D 3.5 in the following way:


The Heal Skill's First Aid application [3.5] can optionally also apply the benefits of Treat Injury's First Aid application [Saga].

That is to say, in addition to being able to stabilize a dying character as normal:

With a DC 15 Heal check as a Full Round Action, you can heal an injured creature for a number of hit points equal to its ECL +1 point for each point by which you beat the DC.
A creature healed in this manner cannot benefit from the use of this skill again for 24 hours, but it can be attempted again after a failed attempt any number of times.
You take a -5 penalty to healing yourself in this way.
As normal, you can't heal past the creature's max health in this way.
Depending on who is at your table, it might be appropriate to make sure this additional application of the skill is Trained Only.


The "+2 to X Skill" Feats now grant [Saga] half level bonus to skills.

This is to say that when you take any of the "+2 to X Skill" feats (such as Alertness or Stealthy), the skills gaining the +2 bonus from the feat also gain half your total class levels (rounded down) as an untyped bonus to checks made with those skills.
The purpose of this rule is to make the feats (commonly appearing in the game as painfully wasteful feat taxes) to be much more beneficial to the player forced into taking them.
I recognize that Magical Aptitude might need to be made an exception at some tables, since UMD can easily break game balance, but I would likely allow it anyway if my player said they wanted to play Tony Stark with magic items and if the rest of the table was ok with it.
I specifically did not include "+2 to X Save" feats because adding half level to Saving Throws is a whole different beast than adding half level to skills. While those feats are obnoxious Feat Taxes by themselves, I don't think this is a good remedy to their problem.
I also based the half level bonus off of class levels rather than ECL because I don't think RHD should be enhancing a skill bonus that was meant to be technical in nature rather than instinctive. Also, it helps prevent the need to rewrite large amounts of Monster stats in the printed material.

Honestly, I've never found these mechanics to make much effect in the game balance at my tables, just relieves a few of the more annoying restrictions on the players as they are designing their characters. You know, so they feel like they get a better deal out of investing more heavily in these skill subsystems of the game.

rferries
2017-07-13, 02:09 AM
Simple and clean fixes, I approve.

AOKost
2017-07-13, 04:22 AM
Simple and clean fixes, I approve.

Seconded! I might suggest cutting the bonus down to 1/4 instead of 1/2 but I still greatly approve! I like this and have always felt the same about those kinds of feats...