Final Fantasy VII D20 Roleplaying Game Core Rulebook (version 1.10)

[Marc_In_Da_Room]

With respect, I'm going to stick with the normal 20 levels max. I'm drawing inspiration from Star Wars SAGA and they don't go beyond level 20.

[Angelalex242]

Very well. You could still boost their raw stat totals, though.

Treat Seph as if he'd had raw 18s across the board...and on top of that, don't forget to give him his 5 level up increases. To prevent odd numbers, you can raise 2 stats by 4 on top of the natural 18s, and 1 stat by 2.

I'd recommend Cloud also show natural 18s, at least physically, and then do the same raise 2 (physical) stats by 4 and one (physical) stat by 2. Cloud may actually prioritize Con, considering how often he gets stabbed and blows it off.

You don't have to make him playable by the normal rules, either. It might be acceptable to give a prodigy like him 2 more levels of Soldier 2nd in exchange for 2 levels of fighter...even if you can't normally take Soldier 2nd at level 5. Seph is a unique case, after all. Genesis may also be able to do that. Weiss probably did the Deepground equivalent.

I also wonder if Cloud should be built with the actual SOLDIER prestige classes, or if he's fine as he is. Sure, he never made it into SOLDIER, but he's also far more powerful then any actual SOLDIER ever was. Does Melee Duelist cover all the pseudo SOLDIER abilities he shows?

[Marc_In_Da_Room]

Cloud's SOLDIER abilities are drawn from Mako Talents and the Clone subrace. Melee Duellist enhances his swordfighting abilities, at least in theory.

[Angelalex242]

Hmmm. Clone template's in the book, but Half Alien Template is not. What bonuses does it give again?

[JBPuffin]

So, a new guy! I haven't played FF7, but since I've played FF9 and the FFTA games, I figured it would be a cool read, and boy was I right. Anyway, I'm making a character now (Level 3 human fighter/mage who dual-wields a Small sword [shrunken Longsword] and a handgun), and i was slightly confused about one thing. Semi-auto guns only fire normally, right? No auto-fire?

Other than that, it's nice to have a decent-seeming d20 model for a Final Fantasy game, even if I only know this one from friends and Youtube. Keep up the good work, Marc!

[Marc_In_Da_Room]

Clone is a subrace and Half-Alien is a full race that isn't playable for one reason and one reason only: there are only six members of this race and you can only be born from the JENOVA project to be considered a Half-Alien. Angeal, Genesis, Sephiroth, Weiss, Nero, and Rosso are the only Half-Aliens.

As for auto vs semi-auto weapons, weapons are not my strongest point and that is one area I need help with them desperately. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you JBPuffin, look forward to any assistance you can provide. Once again thank you.

[Angelalex242]

You don't count Azul as half alien? Interesting.

I still argue Cloud makes it to half alien when Hojo's done with him. And possibly Zack. But Cloud is far, far beyond your average clone. (Cloud does show the green cateyes when afflicted with Geostigma. Sephiroth's trying, Cloud's just grown strong enough to resist)

But I asked for the stat modifiers, at least in the DMG, so people can reverse engineer the stat growth for the big SOLDIERs and the Tsviets.

Besides, I can imagine somebody using your system to play a 'Crisis Core' game, using Angeal, Genesis, and Sephiroth as PCs. And even Zack.

Likewise, an AVALANCE game of the big 9.

[Larkas]

Clone is a subrace and Half-Alien is a full race that isn't playable for one reason and one reason only: there are only six members of this race and you can only be born from the JENOVA project to be considered a Half-Alien. Angeal, Genesis, Sephiroth, Weiss, Nero, and Rosso are the only Half-Aliens.

Hmmm, it might make sense to stat half-aliens up in the Monster Manual anyways, even if with that disclaimer. A DM might want to make a new NPC/BBEG with that race for whatever reason.

[Marc_In_Da_Room]

I do have the race statted up in a separate document, waiting for the right time to publish it. In fact, here it is for you guys to review:

HALF-ALIEN
Half-Aliens are few and far between. Born from either the JENOVA Project or the DEEPGROUND experiment, Half-Aliens are, to put simply, creatures with unearthly abilities and strength. They are descendants of JENOVA, who was mistaken to being a Cetra upon the discovery of its remains at the Northern Cave.
Half-Aliens look exactly like normal humans, but with several alien-esque features; such as the slim-line face, pale skin, and striking green eyes with cat-like pupils. Because of this, just like the Cetra, they can blend in and appear like regular Humans, if it weren’t for the fact that their “mako eyes” give them away.
Example Half-Aliens: Angeal Hewley, Genesis Rhapsodos, Nero the Sable, Rosso the Crimson, Sephiroth, Weiss the Immaculate.

HALF-ALIEN RACE TRAITS
Half-Aliens have the following race traits.
Ability Modifiers: +4 Str, +2 Dex, +2 Int, -4 Con, -2 Wis, -2 Cha.
Medium-size: As Medium-sized creatures, Half-Aliens have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size, however their carrying capacity is 5x that of normal Medium-sized creatures.
Speed: Half-Alien base speed is 6 squares.
Jenova’s Cells: A Half-Alien character gains a +5 natural armour bonus to their Reflex Defence.
Parasitic Surge: Once per encounter, a Half-Alien character can reroll an attack roll of their choice, keeping the better of the two rolls.
Immunity: A Half-Alien character is immune to all status-effects, except zombie. A spell or effect that inflicts the Half-Alien with a status-effect, with which he is immune too, automatically fail.
Automatic Languages: Basic.

Also, Azul wasn't born from the JENOVA project, he willingly joined Shinra.

[Angelalex242]

Hmmm.

Are we sure Hojo didn't manage to make Cloud one of those? 5 years in a test tube with a lot of S-Class cells can do some funny things to your genetics.

Cloud seems to be a bit more then your average 'clone.' Especially considering Geostigma.

[Marc_In_Da_Room]

IF we take the idea that the story of ff7 was a d20 adventure, we could assume that the GM granted Cloud with additional bonuses and abilities after doing certain things in the campaign :)

[Larkas]

A few minor description oddities:

Half-Aliens look exactly like normal humans, but with several alien-esque features; such as the slim-line face, pale skin, and striking green eyes with cat-like pupils. Because of this, just like the Cetra, they can blend in and appear like regular Humans, if it weren’t for the fact that their “mako eyes” give them away.

1 - If half-aliens look like humans with several alien-esque features, they can't look "exactly" like humans. Maybe a better wording could be "half-aliens look mostly like normal humans".

2 - I might be wrong (as in: I probably am), but wasn't Sephiroth's cat-like pupils a result of overexposure to Mako?

Apart from that, I'm not too sold on the idea of half-aliens having a penalty to Con, and to a lesser extent Cha (on a lesser scale, clones don't seem particularly frail to me). On the other hand, my objection to the idea could be explained as borne from a skewed sample: all the half-aliens we know just happened to be extremely persuasive and have a lot of force of personality, and they just happened to be very tough. I'm not too sure that the source material allows for that, though. A little food for thought: half-alien definitely doesn't have to be balanced against base humans, and clones can be balanced in other ways (i.e.: maybe their human bonus feat is locked into Mark of a SOLDIER, an important drawback in my opinion). Anyways, I hope this can be of help.

EDIT: To be fair, I think I'd drop the Int bonus too. Only Sephiroth seems to be extremely intelligent, and that might just be wholly his merit.

[Angelalex242]

I don't buy it either.

If I were you, I'd use the 'Half x' templates out of D&D's monster manual.

Perhaps a combination of Half Celestial, Half Dragon, and Half Fiend.

Increase from the base creature as follows: Str +4, Dex +4, Con +2, Int +4, Cha +2. (Half Fiend)
Increase from the base creature as follows: Str +4, Dex +2, Con +4, Int +2, Wis +4, Cha +4. (Half Celestial)
Increase from the base creature as follows: Str +8, Con +2, Int +2, Cha +2. (Half Dragon)

Taking the best of each....

Str +8, Dex +4, Con +4, Int +4, Wis +4, Cha +4

Now that looks like a stat block I'd put on Sephiroth.

It is, of course, an 'ECL Race'...but cosmic beings like Sephiroth deserve one.

[Marc_In_Da_Room]

Improving the Half-Alien's ability modifiers may be a good idea actually, but the total modifiers have to add up to +0 to keep it balanced with the other races in the Player's Handbook (or considering their ancestry, a +1), which means at least two abilities will have a penalty.

So far, i think we can all agree that Strength should have a high modifier, and i agree that Intelligence should be dropped completely.

How about one of these: (1) Str +8, Cha +4, Con -4, Dex -4, Wis -4

(2) Str +5, Wis +2, Cha +2, Con -4, Dex -4

EDIT: I have changed the grammar problem. Also, what do you guys think of the other Half-Alien abilities? Do any need changing or improving?

EDIT 2: Geostigma can affect anyone who came into close approximation of the lifestream when it burst out of the ground, it doesn't just affect clones/copies or those with S-cells/G-cells. The reason it affected Cloud in such a bad way was because of his mental instability.

[Angelalex242]

Free your mind, Neo.

The race does not HAVE to be balanced. It can be an ECL Race.

Because you can't justify Sephiroth or Wiess with Dex and Con penalties.

You can justify them with bonuses, though. Big bonuses.

If anything, the only downside half aliens seem to have is that they tend to be insane to the point of megalomania and world destruction and attempting Apotheosis.

And yet, for all that insanity, it is inappropriate to call Sephiroth stupid (He isn't), nor can you call him unwise (He has the highest willpower of all beings, by word of Nomura.)

In fact, with my stat block on Sephiroth, his stats look like this.

Base:

26, 22, 22, 22, 22, 22

As he levels up to 20...

He gets 30, 24, 22, 22, 26, 22 (why 26 wisdom? It's that 'highest willpower of all' thing Nomura said. It helps it also controls his number of extraordinary powers.)

[Larkas]

I don't agree with Angelalex242 about the extent of the bonuses, but I also don't think that half-aliens have to be balanced against other races at all. If there's a "race" that's supposed to be more than mere humans in FFVII, those would be the so-called half-aliens. Heck, that's what Hojo hoped for when he created Sephiroth. Don't think about half-alien as a "playable race". They should be bundled with monsters, because that's pretty much what they are. Putting in a warning that they shouldn't be used along with regular races should be enough to avoid party imbalance.

Of course, this is all just my opinion on the subject.

[Marc_In_Da_Room]

Thanks everyone. I wont make the Half-Alien a playable race, just a 'GM-Usable Race Only'. Larkas, what is your suggestion on their ability modifiers? If we ignore Intelligence completely and give Strength +8, what would your ideas be for the other ability modifiers?

[Angelalex242]

It's not even a GM race so much as a feature character race. It's highly unlikely a GM would make an Original Character with this race. It'd sort of diffuse the verisimilitude of the world.

[Marc_In_Da_Room]

If it will be too powerful and unbalanced for players to use, and GMs not allowed to use it because it will create an alternate timeline, then there is no point in actually putting it in any book whatsoever. Sorry for sounding rude, alot on my mind. Need to get some sleep.

[Marc_In_Da_Room]

I have altered Sephiroth's ability scores and changed everything related to those changes. actually, he now looks near impossible to beat lol.

SEPHIROTH (ADVENT CHILDREN) CL 20
Male Half-Alien* fighter 7/SOLDIER 2nd Class 8/SOLDIER 1st Class 5
Init +13; Senses Perception +13; fearless
Languages basic
Defences Ref 30 (flat-footed 24), Fort 39, Will 41, Mag 39; Immunity;
mako-infusion
HP 320; MP 99; Threshold 39; Mako 18
Speed 6 squares (ground), 6 squares (flight; perfect)
Melee masamune +28 (2d10+20) or
Melee masamune +23/+23 (2d10+20) with Double Attack or
Melee masamune +18/+18/+18 (2d10+20) with Triple Attack
Ranged by weapon +26
Base Atk +20; Grp +28
Atk Options Double Attack, Souleater, Triple Attack
Special Actions Expose, Mimic
Extraordinary Powers Known (Spellcasting +24): bizzaro energy (5),
dissipate magic (5), heartless angel (5), lightning speed (5),
supernova (5)
Limit Breaks Braver, Octaslash, Transform (bizzaro, safer)**
SOLDIER Secrets devastating power, enlarged power, multi-target power,
quicken power
SOLDIER Techniques improved cast magic, mako point recovery (3)
Abilities Str 27, Dex 22, Con 22, Int 22, Wis 27, Cha 22
Talents Block, Cover, Deflect, Expose, Magic Sword, Mako Break, Mimic I,
Mimic II, Souleater (2), Weapon Specialisation (masamune)
Feats Acrobatic Strike, Armour Proficiency (light), Combat Reflexes, Double
Attack, Exotic Weapon Proficiency (masamune), Limit Block, Limit
Deflect, Mark of a SOLDIER, Materia Fusion, Skill Focus (Spellcasting),
SOLDIER Training (3), Triple Attack, Weapon Proficiency (pistols, rifles,
swords, simple weapons)
Skills Acrobatics +21, Jump +23, Spellcasting +24
Possessions masamune, SOLDIER uniform (armour +6,
equipment +3)
*Half-Alien is a special race available to characters born from the JENOVA project.
**Sephiroth can only transform into these beings once he has successfully absorbed enough
litres of Lifestream equal to his character level x one-half his wisdom score (rounded down;
bizzaro) and his character level x his wisdom score (safer).

[Angelalex242]

Tips:Remember his Int Bonus is MUCH higher now. He needs to have all 8 skills for being a fighter with a +6 int mod.

I recommend he have the following:

Acrobatics, Jump, Spellcasting, Endurance, Initiative, Perception, Knowledge Tactics, Knowledge World Lore

(why tactics? GENERAL Sephiroth, ya know.)

On Feats:(Give this guy double feats, he needs them.) Iconic would be Fatal Hit (Remember poor old Aerith?) I likewise recommend triple and quadruple critical to explain his one hit kill there. He should likewise have quadruple attack. Yes, he may need more feats then usual to have all that. Accelerated Strike also makes sense, Attack Combo Melee, Critical Strike (Masamune), Feat of Strength, Overwhelming attack, Quick Draw, Rapid Strike, Running Attack, You can hear the cry of the planet (He started with 13 feats, he now has 13 more!)

Also, in his advent children incarnation only, he may have Advent Feats...Auto Limit, Divinity 1, and Divinity 2, and OBVIOUSLY One Winged Angel (JENOVA herself watches him...)

Note that SOLDIER Training now gives him access to /9/ extraordinary powers per time taken. He'd have 27 extraordinary powers with 3 of them now. 5 powers with 5 uses only adds up to 25.

Masamune should be an 18-20 threat range weapon. (In FF7 proper, it had a 255% crit rate in the Nibelheim flashback...18-20 is the closest equivalent.)

Recommend Str 26, Dex 24, Con 22, Int 22, Wis 26, Cha 22. Odd numbers don't do anything for him.

How do you balance it out like that?

Str +1, Dex +1
Dex +1, Wis +1
Str +1, Wis +1
Str +1, Wis +1
Str +1, Wis +1

[Marc_In_Da_Room]

SOLDIER Training only grants you additional EP equal to your Wisdom modifier after the initial purchase of the feat. Its only when you purchase the feat for the first time do you get EP equal to 1 + Wis mod, which means he gets 8 more not 9.

If I could give him more feats I would but I can't.

[Angelalex242]

Why can't you? Why does this legendary being have to play by the same rules as normal characters? He doesn't have to be buildable by the same rules.

Also, since his soldier uniform is a recreation of negative lifestream in AC, it's not penalizing his dex or his hero bonus to Reflex anymore. It's more a part of him then something he wears.

[JBPuffin]

Angelalex seems to be going a bit overboard here (sure, he's the best, but the PCs should have the chance to be better still), but there is no real reason that NPCs and PCs need to follow all the same rules. Give Seph what stats you think he needs and leave them at that. Simple enough.

[Angelalex242]

Not at all. No PC needs to be 'better' then Sephiroth, even at level 20. They just have to be able to kill him, and the cardinal rule of 'anything with stats can be killed' applies.

Even Cloud is not 'better' then Sephiroth. He simply has a move that can kill him. (Omnislash)

[JBPuffin]

No, it's a GM choice thing; if he's such a Sephiroth groupie that he wants to make him ridiculous, let HIM do that. Base, however, ought to be something a party could defeat, and with as much difficulty as any other final boss of a campaign. It should NOT be like fighting a adamantine wall that shoots plasma cannons at you, which is what'll happen if this insanity continues.

Keep the stat-block as it is, Marc; no reason to make Sephie even more ridiculous to fight than he already is.

Also, something to keep in mind: there aren't nearly as many ludicrous things, magical or otherwise, in this system. Some things may actually be impossible to kill, frankly.

[Angelalex242]

You mean the WEAPONS?

They're supposed to be supertough to kill. There's a reason Ruby and Emerald require very specific materia setups to take them out.

But the key point here is that Sephiroth>WEAPONS. I'm trying to make sure that Nomura's word choice about Sephiroth being top of the food chain remains true. That's why, for example, he has wisdom 26 instead of dex 26. Nomura said his will was strongest. So we gave him the wisdom score to match.

With Weiss, one of his things is a 'nearly indestructible body'. So I'd see to it he had a Con of 26, and perhaps a dex of 26 to go with it. He was more of a leader then Sephiroth, so I'd set his Cha to 24. He'd otherwise have 22s.

Oh, yes, we might consider upgrading his 'SOLDIER uniform' (why does he want something so restrictive?) to a Bangle. Most likely the Mystile, perhaps with +8 Str and +8 Con as the 'Rider Effects'

Oh, yes, something else I noticed that seems kind of silly...

Why is it that people with higher wisdom scores take LONGER to reach limit breaks then fools?

[JBPuffin]

Because they're less in charge of their emotions? It is kind of strange; maybe 30-their Wis would be a better way? Good catch, man.

[Angelalex242]

I'd agree with that.

There should never be a penalty for rolling well on the dice.

[Marc_In_Da_Room]

Sorry for the waited response.

Ive corrected Sephiroth and ill leave him at that.

JBPuffin: What do you mean about certain other things being impossible? Are the WEAPONS too powerful or too weak? Also any help on the limit break system will greatly be appreciated.