A score of feats.

[Avianmosquito]

Here below are a score of feats added in Aelsif.

Improved Weapon Finesse:
Requires weapon finesse. Weapon finesse now applies to all melee weapons.

Edge Alignment:
When using a slashing weapon, you can use dexterity instead of your strength score for damage, if it is higher.

Improved Edge Alignment:
Requires edge alignment. Edge alignment now applies to all melee weapons.

So what these are useful for is it allows you to convert entirely to using dex in melee with 2-4 feats depending on your weapon. Granted, that's 2-4 feats you wouldn't have to spend with strength, but allowing your melee and ranged attacks to all run off of one high ability and it being the ability that also affects your initiative, AC and reflex saves is very effective.

Armor Focus:
Requires proficiency with the selected armor. Choose a weight of armor (clothing, light, medium or heavy) you are proficient in. You gain +2 AC while wearing that armor.

Armor Specialization:
Requires proficiency with selected armor, focus with selected armor, fighter level 4th. Choose a weight of armor (clothing, light, medium or heavy) you have already selected focus on. You gain +2 DR while wearing that armor.

Shield Focus:
Requires proficiency with the selected shield. Choose a weight of shield (light, heavy, tower) you are proficient with. While wielding the selected shield, you gain +2 AC.

Shield Specialization:
Requires proficiency with the selected shield, focus with the selected shield, fighter level 4th. Choose a weight of shield (light, heavy, tower) you have focus in. While wielding the selected shield, you gain +2 to reflex saves.

I should note there ARE greater versions of all of these, but the purpose of them is pretty clear: Improving the effectiveness of armour and shields later on in the game. This is a requirement because in Aelsif you generally start at 5th level, and at higher D&D levels armour and shields are pretty much worthless. Aelsif does other things to make armour and shields more effective, like armour also providing DR and shields boosting reflex saves, but these help. Also, it's worth noting weapon focus is also now a +2.

Aimed Attack:
Requires intelligence 15. When making a single attack, an attack of opportunity or a single spell with a single attack roll, you can add your intelligence modifier to your attack roll in addition to other ability bonuses that may already apply.

Improved Aimed Attack:
Requires aimed attack and intelligence 17. When making an aimed attack, you can add your intelligence modifier to your damage roll in addition to other ability bonuses that may already apply.


Know it All:
Requires young adult age or older. You are very confident in your knowledge, even when it doesn't exist. +2 to all knowledge checks.

Comfort:
Requires young adult age or younger. When a character becomes too old for this feat, they must replace it with another. When resting for 8 hours or more, you and one other party member are healed an additional amount equal to your charisma modifier multiplied by your hit dice.

Spry:
Requires elder age or higher. You're still moving well, despite your age. Your base movement speed is now 30ft if it was 20ft, 20ft if it was 15ft, 15ft if it was 10ft, and 10ft if it was 5ft.

Quick feet:
Requires child age or younger. When a character becomes too old for this feat, they must replace it with another. You're very fast for your age. Your base movement speed is now 30ft if it was 20ft, 20ft if it was 15ft, 15ft if it was 10ft, and 10ft if it was 5ft.

Adorable:
Requires adolescent age or younger. When a character becomes too old for this feat, they must replace it with another. You're so cute nobody wants to hurt you. +2 to AC, except against mindless opponents.

Stubborn:
Requires adult age or higher. You've developed a tolerance for hardship. Being fatigued or shaken has no effect, but can still lead to exhaustion, fright or panic.

Go Down Swinging:
Requires middle age or younger. When a character becomes too old for this feat, they must replace it with another. When you are knocked unconscious or gain the dying status, you gain an attack of opportunity against every creature you threaten.

Non-Compliant:
Requires child age or higher. You are immune to compulsion effects.

These do not have improved versions. Aelsif uses some alternative age categories and does not use starting age. And yes, they do slow movement at the very high and very low ends significantly. It's also worth noting that Go Down Swinging pairs really well with Combat Reflexes, so it isn't wasted and you can hit *every* enemy within reach, and Non-Compliant does not prevent charms.


Last Stand:
Requires Con 13. You remain disabled when you would otherwise be unconscious, even while dying.

Power through:
Requires Con 15. When fatigued your strength is not penalized, and when exhausted your strength is only penalized by 2. Your dexterity is penalized as normal.

Against the World:
Requires Int 13. You gain +1 attack for every opponent you face, up to a maximum equal to your intelligence modifier. Unconscious or dead opponents do not count towards this total.

Notably, there are improved versions of these as well. Against the World is also a great feat to pair with Aimed Attack for high intelligence warriors. Last stand also pairs with Aelsif's -100% death rule, so your last stand lasts rather a lot longer than you'd think.

[Lalliman]

These are pretty cool. Some thoughts:

1. What is the intention of Aimed Attack? I'm guessing it's meant to make standard action attacks not useless and encourage martials to raise Intelligence, but it doesn't really seem worthwhile. Unless you have high Intelligence, it seems worse than Pathfinder's Vital Strike feat, and that one isn't considered particularly good anyways. But if you have a high Intelligence, that means you sacrificed your physical stats to get it. It also doesn't upgrade when you reach three or four attacks, the way Vital Strikes does, so it becomes less useful as you progress. It doesn't seem good enough to justify raising your Intelligence.

2. Adorable is an interesting idea, but I can't see it working on animals and other low-intelligence creatures. Many predators prioritise young animals over adult ones. They don't see them as cute, just as an easy meal. The concept of finding other species cute is largely limited to humans.

3. Go Down Swinging is awesome, but I don't understand why it's age-restricted. Sure, it's hard to imagine an old man making a flurry of attacks like that, but the same goes for many feats. Is combat reflexes, for example, also age-restricted?

[Avianmosquito]

These are pretty cool. Some thoughts:

1. What is the intention of Aimed Attack? I'm guessing it's meant to make standard action attacks not useless and encourage martials to raise Intelligence, but it doesn't really seem worthwhile. Unless you have high Intelligence, it seems worse than Pathfinder's Vital Strike feat, and that one isn't considered particularly good anyways. But if you have a high Intelligence, that means you sacrificed your physical stats to get it. It also doesn't upgrade when you reach three or four attacks, the way Vital Strikes does, so it becomes less useful as you progress. It doesn't seem good enough to justify raising your Intelligence.

It isn't just standard action attacks, it is any event with a single attack. Attacking on a move action, attacks of opportunity, attacks with weapons like firearms and crossbows that demand a reload, that stuff. The goal, of course, is to make single attacks and intelligence of value to weapon-using classes and make specialists suck less ass.

For example, you have a 5th level rogue with a rifle. The weapon demands a two round reload after every shot, but it deals a beastly 2d10 damage with a 120ft range increment. Having aimed attack and improved aimed attack makes it an extremely nasty weapon with EXTREMELY long range, and the "sniper" (sneak attack works within one range increment) and "far shot" feats compliment this for a 180ft sneak attack for 2d10+3d6+FTGiP*, and rogues need Int already.

*"**** this guy in particular".

Now let's put you in melee with a fighter. You have to close distance and attack with your sabre, so normally you'd deal 1d6+4, or ~7.5. Now, your closing attack deals 1d6+6, or ~9.5. Your attacks of opportunity becone increasingly weak with levels as well. Not so with aimed attack.

Combine with Against the World for maximum effect.


2. Adorable is an interesting idea, but I can't see it working on animals and other low-intelligence creatures. Many predators prioritise young animals over adult ones. They don't see them as cute, just as an easy meal. The concept of finding other species cute is largely limited to humans.

I also need it to not be worthless.


3. Go Down Swinging is awesome, but I don't understand why it's age-restricted. Sure, it's hard to imagine an old man making a flurry of attacks like that, but the same goes for many feats. Is combat reflexes, for example, also age-restricted?

Because once death becomes understood as an inevitability, it's hard to fight it with that kind of fervor. The people who are taking that feat don't understand yet that they HAVE to die, it cannot be avoided forever.

[Lalliman]

Snip
1. Good point, I hadn't considered opportunity attacks, and this definitely makes sniping more viable.

2. Of course, but I mean, what's the point of making a feat with a thematic element if the mechanics don't actually fit the description? As is, it seems like a supernatural ability. But no matter, I'm probably the only person who would question this.

3. Fair point. You can also argue the opposite though. Someone old and experienced no longer fears death, and thus can prioritise harming his enemies over saving himself as he goes down. His own death is approaching regardless, so he cares more about making a last effort to save his allies than about his own safety.

[darkbuu_1]

While I think I know what you want Aimed Attack to do, as written currently I could argue that I should also be able to apply it to spells and that's not really a buff Wizards need on blast spells or ability damage.

One other quick thing, sneak attack only has a range of 30ft. I mean, I completely understand if you ignore that rule but I thought I should mention it.

[Avianmosquito]

While I think I know what you want Aimed Attack to do, as written currently I could argue that I should also be able to apply it to spells and that's not really a buff Wizards need on blast spells or ability damage.

Uh, no. No, this is nonsense.


One other quick thing, sneak attack only has a range of 30ft. I mean, I completely understand if you ignore that rule but I thought I should mention it.

Did you not note that I mentioned taking a feat to change that? It's called "Sniper", it requires int 15, and it allows sneak attack up to 30ft or one range increment, whichever is farther. Pairs well with far shot.

[darkbuu_1]

Edit: wait, this isn't the game I thought I was, just ignore me completely.


Opps, my mistake. I didn't realise there was a thing to change sneak attack range, sorry about that.

As for the reason I thought the phase "single attack" felt a bit ambiguous to me is due to the spell Invisiblity's cause that ends the effect if you attack, which does include spells.

Otherwise these seem fine, also I really like Go Down Swinging.