Retooling 3.5 for Kim D&D

Base Progressions

Abbr	Means	Used for
BAB	Base Attack Bonus	Physical Attacking
BMB	Base Magic Bonus	Magical Attacking
BSB	Base Save Bonus	Avoiding Badness

and the progressions are

ECL  (Best)  (Good)  (Poor)  (Worst) 1 +1 +1 +0 +0 2 +2 +2 +1 +1 3 +3 +2 +1 +1 4 +4 +3 +2 +1 5 +5 +4 +2 +2 6 +6 +5 +3 +2 7 +7 +5 +3 +2 8 +8 +6 +4 +3 9 +9 +7 +4 +3 10 +10 +8 +5 +3 11 +11 +8 +5 +4 12 +12 +9 +6 +4 13 +13 +10 +6 +4 14 +14 +11 +7 +5 15 +15 +11 +7 +5 16 +16 +12 +8 +5 17 +17 +13 +8 +6 18 +18 +14 +9 +6 19 +19 +14 +9 +6 20 +20 +15 +10 +7 21 +21 +16 +10 +7 22 +22 +17 +11 +7 23 +23 +17 +11 +8 24 +24 +18 +12 +8 25 +25 +19 +12 +8 26 +26 +20 +13 +9 27 +27 +20 +13 +9 28 +28 +21 +14 +9 29 +29 +22 +14 +10 30 +30 +23 +15 +10 31 +31 +23 +15 +10 32 +32 +24 +16 +11 33 +33 +25 +16 +11 34 +34 +26 +17 +11 35 +35 +26 +17 +12 36 +36 +27 +18 +12

(subtract 5) +1 +2 +3 +4 +5 +6/+1 +7/+2 +8/+3 +9/+4 +10/+5 +11/+6/+1 +12/+7/+2 +13/+8/+3 +14/+9/+4 +15/+10/+5 +16/+11/+6/+1 +17/+12/+7/+2 +18/+13/+8/+3 +19/+14/+9/+4 +20/+15/+10/+5 +21/+16/+11/+6/+1 +22/+17/+12/+7/+2 +23/+18/+13/+8/+3 +24/+19/+14/+9/+4 +25/+20/+15/+10/+5 +26/+21/+16/+11/+6/+1 +27/+22/+17/+12/+7/+2 +28/+23/+18/+13/+8/+3 +29/+24/+19/+14/+9/+4 +30/+25/+20/+15/+10/+5 +31/+26/+21/+16/+11/+6/+1 +32/+27/+22/+17/+12/+7/+2 +33/+28/+23/+18/+13/+8/+3 +34/+29/+24/+19/+14/+9/+4 +35/+30/+25/+20/+15/+10/+5 +36/+31/+26/+21/+16/+11/+6/+1

Multiple attacks use the "subtract 5" rule for subsequent attacks. Bold is your primary attack; italic attacks (past 4) are only used statistically for mass combat.

Behind the Curtain: I'm a great fan of symmetry... especially mathematical symmetry that you can use to measurably predict the consequences of rule changes. With the introduction of the awesome d20 system, it now becomes possible to measure all effects on the same modifier scale (+1 = 5%) and to construct a system from scratch with whatever qualities you desire.

The basic quality I am aiming for in Kim D&D is the "Rule of 50:50". If you are fighting someone equivalent to you, you should have a 50:50 chance of hitting them, affecting them with a spell, etc. A one level difference incurs ~ 5% change, so a 10 level delta pushes the average numbers to the extreme.

In addition, all progressions in Kim D&D will use the "Rule of 4". Progressions now come in at least 4 flavors (Best, Good, Poor, Worst) and the difference between the Best and Worst will be four steps in some way. Skills already follow this paradigm (2,4,6,8 pts per level), and the BAB almost follows it (The Good and Poor progressions are separated by a factor of 2). Note that the old "Good" has been renamed "Best" and the old "Average" is now "Good".

Morever, we're going to put as much as we can on the d20 scale by cleaning up the last few oddities (i.e. random percentage rolls and other strange special case rules).

Ability Balance

We introduce three new mechanics to directly affect d20 rolls for Wisdom and Charisma.

1. Initiative. Charisma is now the base statistic for determining initiative bonus. The rationale is that initiative is less dependent on speed as it is on keeping your cool during combat.
2. Luck Points. All characters gain Luck Points each level equal to their BAB + Chr modifier, with a minimum of zero. A Luck Point can be spent to add 1d6 to any d20 roll; no more than your Chr modifier of points can be spent on any single roll (with a minimum of one). Luck Points are most often used to influence crucial saves or attacks, though they may also be spent to influence skill checks.
3. Block Points. All characters gain Block Points each level equal to their BMB + Wis modifier, with a minimum of zero. A Block Point can be spent to add 1d6 to any opposing check value against a d20 roll; no more than your Wis modifier of points can be spend on any single check (with a minimum of one). Block Points are most often used to bolster Armor Class or spellcaster DCs, though they may also be used to improve skill based DCs.

Taken together, Luck Points and Block Points are called Action Points. In addition to the above, Action Points can also be used to influence:

• Opposing Checks - In the special case of opposing checks (a d20 roll against an opponent where the values are compared) then both Luck Points and Block Points can be spent.
• Stabilize - Stabilizing a character has been changed from a 10% chance per round to a CON Check with DC 20. Action Points can be spent to influence this roll.

Note that unlike the Action Points from Eberron, all these points can be spent after the roll is seen, but before action is resolved (like damage assignment). This is to encourage "spending wars" of points, tactical use on near misses, casual spending by high level characters, and more outrageous heroic deeds. [If you roll damage dice with your d20 roll, you reroll the damage if you use Action Points.]

We assume that Intelligence directly translating into skill points (which affect d20 skill rolls in a persistent fashion) is a sufficient balancing for that mental stat.

Add in chart of permanent/persistent effects of each score

From now on, all Saves will draw their modifier from the greater of _two_ ability scores:

Fortitude		Con or Str
Reflex		Dex or Chr
Will		Wis or Int

i.e. if your Dex modifier was +1 and your Chr modifier was +3, then you receive a +3 to Reflex Saves.

This makes all the ability scores equally relevant to saving throws. On the face of it, the increased BSB and this dual stat linkage might seem like a much more favorable save situation than in 3.5. In reality, saves have a stricter dependence on relative levels.

DC =	10 + BMB + Ability Mod + Level of Spell
Save =	d20 + BSB + Ability Mod + Magic Plusses

In 3.5, spells are more uniform across levels: a low level character could cast a spell on a high level character and have a reasonable chance of success. Now, level difference has a much larger impact, as does the actual BSB progression. The magic of high level wizards and clerics is pretty much unresistable by anyone 10 levels below them, and they can shrug off the spells of those lower casters as well, which is what I want cinematically.

Races

Race	Armor	Attack	Saves
Dwarf	+4 Dodge Giants	+1 AB vs Orc, Goblin, Hobgob, Bugbear	+2 Poison, +2 Spells
Elf			+2 Ench, No Sleep
Gnome	+4 Dodge Giants	+1 AB vs Kobold, Gob, Hobgob, Bugbear	+2 Illusion
Halfling		+1 AB with Sling or Thrown weapons	Fortunate, +2 Fear
Half-Elf			+2 Ench, No Sleep
Half-Orc	+4 Dodge Mounted	+1 AB when Mounted	+2 Disease
Human

Race	Skills	Pts	Other
Dwarf	+1 Search (Auto), +2 Listen, +1 Decipher	4	Prf Dwarven, +4 Stable-foot
Elf	+2 Search (Auto), +2 Listen, +2 Spot	4	Prf Long/Short Bow/Sword
Gnome	+2 Listen	6	Prf Gnome, +1 Ill DC
Halfling	+2 Listen, +2 Climb, +2 Jump, +2 MoveS	6	Fortunate Feat (+1 All Saves)
Half-Elf	+1 Search, +1 Listen, +1 Spot	8	Extra Skill (+½/Lvl)
Half-Orc	+2 Ride, +2 Handle Animal, +2 Intimidate	8	Prf Orc, Extra Skill (+½/Lvl)
Human		10	Extra Feat, Extra Skill (+1/Lvl)

Races have been tweaked for ease and increased balance. The most notable changes are:

• Abilities balanced - Now there is a race for every ability. Half-Orcs no longer get doubly reamed.
• Dwarven tweaking - The dwarf has been slightly modified to bring it into conformity with new guidelines. First, conditional skill modifiers should be rare; consequently, their +2 for stone only has been changed into a blanket +1. Second, the new item encumbrance system specifies a 30ft base movement for medium creatures.
• Gnome Seers - Gnomes are reknown for keen sight. They have all kinds of vision, see thru illusions, and are highly wise. They are puissant clerics and number many seers, prophets, and holy men. They no longer have token cantrips.
• Half-Orc Riders - Half-Orcs inherit riding skills from their orc side, and extra skill points from their human side. Orcs, of course, are fearsome mounted fighters, employing all manner of fell and dire steeds.
• Half-Elven Spontaneity - Half elves get diluted elven senses and human skill points. They are well liked, hence CHR as their primary stat. Because of this, they tend toward Spontaneous spell casting.

Animals, Plants, Vermin, and Oozes typically do not have languages.

Constructs, Deathless, Undead, and Elementals are usually created and understand the language of their creator.

Aberrations are just freaky, and may or may nor speak any known language.

Reference Documents

Document	Description
Classes	Summary Class Matrix; introduces Defining, Killer, and Name Abilities
Feats	Defines power levels for feats, simplifies requirements
Skills	Reconsolidates skills for utility, introduces Synergy Blocks, splash prevention
Magic	Base Magic Bonus, Spells, and Spellcasting
Crafting	Rebalancing the Magic Item Crafting rules
Items	The item encumbrance system, equipment lists, and statistics
Design	Power, Stacking Condition Scales, and Spell Design

Linear Simplified Play

Let's see if we can find ways to speed things up. First, we'll explore an idea called the Initiative Line which can be used with the grid. Then we'll take a hard look at converting the Initiative Line into our replacement "grid".

Initiative Line

The new initiative system is wonderful because it takes into account the personal effect of initiative. Unfortunately, at the same time it has made the setup of combat more cumbersome, as well as making per round effects harder to track. Let's introduce a prop called the Initiative Line to help with book-keeping and increase ease of play.

Initiative Line Setup

Whenever an effect is modifying a character, a colored chip is placed on their card to denote it. For one round effects, a single chip is used. For multi-round effects, a chip with a die is placed on it. Players then remove chips / count down dice at the beginning of their turn (or better yet, at the end of the previous person's turn, to speed things up).

Here is a general guideline to chip color choices:

• Red - Debuffs, or penalties of some sort. For example, the AC debuff after charging.
• Green - Buffs, or bonuses of some sort. For example, a Bull Strength spell.
• Blue - Move related. For example, a Haste spell.
• Brown - Conditions. For example, being prone.

• Movement
• Flanking
• Charging
• Attacks of Opportunity
• Areas of Effect
• Ranged, Thrown, and Reach
• Cover
• Feats
• Skills

Here is a new style of play called LS. This can stand for Linear Simplified, Lumbard System, or even Lazy Susan; take your pick. :-)

LS Basics

The initiative line is optimally placed along the outside edge of a large lazy susan, i.e. one of those circular rolling thingies. This way, every player can reach anywhere on the initiative line without getting up. The only trick will be to ensure that things can't come flying off of the lazy susan if someone jerks it too hard. Small tacks / nails put into the surface should keep tokens and cards snug, while still making it easy to put them on and take them off.

Here are some guidelines if you are creating tokens:

• White - Players. Their tokens should use their initials, and be glittery / distinctive in some fashion.
• Black - Monsters. Monsters should use numbers, and be dull matte.
• Yellow - Neutrals. These are NPCs caught in the crossfire of combat, or those who might fight either way.

• Spent - The chip was used for some effect. These chips cannot be used until your next turn. By default, all your chips begin Spent.
• Active - At the beginning of your turn, you take all your Spent movement chips and make them Active. These can be spent on your turn or someone else's turn.

Here's the basics of attacking. To attack someone in melee, you need to get your token onto their card (i.e. "closing to melee"). Usually, you simply spend a 10ft movement chip and put your token on their card. Then you attack as usual. When that creature dies, you need to spend more movement to get your token onto another enemy card. No chips need be spent to attack someone at range.

What if your token was already on an enemy card when you spent 10ft to get onto a different enemy card? In that case, the first card gets an attack of opportunity against you. You can avoid this by spending your 5ft chip to remove your token from the card first (the 5ft chip is always the "remove token without attack of opportunity").

Also, how many attacks per round do we get? Melee attacks against a card our token is on is always "free". However, when a card dies we need to spend 10ft to find a new card. [This profoundly changes the frontloaded dynamic for multiple attack creatures, by the way. Higher level fighters and tough monsters are much scarier. This is the reason why the Flat-footed rule has been changed.]

Now let's talk about defense. At any time you can spend a 10ft or 5ft chip to take the shot for someone. That means you take the damage that they would be dealt, as if the blow fell on you instead of them. This upshot of this is that you can use things like damage reduction; the downside is that you suffer secondary effects like poison, life drain, etc.

Lastly, you might have a token on your card attacking you that you want to get away from. You can spend a 10ft chip to remove their token from your card, but if you do so, you incur an attack of opportunity. You can avoid this by spending your 5ft chip to remove one token from the your card (the 5ft chip is always the "remove token without attack of opportunity").

In review:

Spend	When	To Get
All 10ft	Your turn	Any move action equivalent
All 10ft	Your turn	Any full action (combined with a standard action)
10ft	Your turn	Put your token on enemy card. Incur AoO of current card (if any).
10ft	Your turn	Remove a token from your card. Incur AoO from the token.
5ft	Your turn	Remove a token from your card. Incur no AoO.
10ft	Your turn	Remove your token from an enemy card. Incur AoO from the card.
5ft	Your turn	Remove your token from an enemy card. Incur no AoO.
10ft	Anytime	Take the shot for someone else.
5ft	Anytime	Take the shot for someone else.

Flanking

"Flanking" now represents mob tag-teaming. In our terms, if your token and other ally tokens began your turn on a card, then you get a +1 Flanking Bonus against it. [Note the FB has been reduced to +1 from +2 because of the greater ease of achieving it.] You can never gain the Flanking Bonus on the turn you place your token on a creature, even if it is already under attack by allies.

We further assume that five-on-one flanking of equivalent sized creatures is the practical maximum; otherwise people start to get in each other's way. This maximum number changes by 2 for each size difference (and thus a creature two sizes smaller than you can't be flanked).

Charging

Consider all tokens on all cards to be "next to" pairs. Areas of effect will now be translated into numbers of cards affected. We consider any token on a card to be "close" and thus also affected. As a rule of thumb, an area of effect can always be chosen such that one token from one pair can be excluded from it, but it will hit everyone else. Feats can modify this (i.e. so that two tokens could be excluded, say).

Anyhoo, this is where the rules break down and common sense prevails. Areas of effect, more than anything else, is less precisely defined without the grid.

Ranged, Thrown, and Reach

Thrown weapons can always be used against creatures "in range", without penalty for firing into melee.

Reach weapons allow you to attack a card in melee, but your token is not considered "on the card" for purposes of AoO or spell effects. You still need to spend 10ft to engage in melee (put your token on a card) and your opponent may still spend 10ft to "remove" you from their card, though this incurs an AoO as normal.

Cover

Whirlwind is now a straight multiple attack feat, equal to your number of attacks. These attacks must be spent on different targets. If your token is on a card when you Whirlwind, you get one extra attack against it (bringing your total to # attacks + 1).

Skill Tweaks

Some skill should allow you to take a token off of an ally card and place it on your own (i.e. Goad an enemy). We'll be using Intimidate, as a standard action, against a DC 10 + INT of enemy creature. If successful, your ally does not receive an AoO against the token being moved.

Space

• C = Cramped. This weapon can be used in tight quarters. It can be used while grappled. It could be used in any situation short of being bound.
• N = Normal. This weapon needs a normal amount of space to use (say, 5' for a M sized weapon). It could be used effectively in an average corridor.
• W = Wide. This weapon needs a wide amount of space to use (say, 10' for a M sized weapon). It could only be used in wide corridors. It can usually be used in a typical room.
• V = Very Wide. This weapon needs a very large space to use (say, lances). It can be used outdoors or in very large indoor areas.

• Coup de grace - When attacking a helpless opponent, you may deal your full damage to them on each hit automatically. This incurs no AoO. You are considered to have "taken 20" on the attack roll, and thus normally get a confirm roll for a critical. There is no longer an automatic kill coup de grace.
• Flat footed - A creature is flat footed on the first attack against it during any full round, then is no longer flat footed for the rest of the round. A creature is flat footed on every attack against it during a surprise half round.
• Spell saves - Any spell that deals damage requires a roll. If the spell doesn't have one for activation (touch attacks) then a save is always allowed. There are no longer direct damage no save spells. Sorry, magic missile.
• Caster Level and DC - Always use BMB + Ability Mod + Spell Level as the bonus. In the case of a Caster Level check, you roll a d20. In the case of a Save DC, add 10.
• School Specialization - Wizards no longer have prohibited schools from specializing. They also gain a [+1 DC, +1 SR] when casting from their initial specialized school. When specializing, they must choose a spell from their specialized schools for their school slot.
• Domain Specialization - Clerics initially have only a single domain with domain ability. They gain domains as they increase in level, but not the special abilities of those domains (i.e. they can choose more spells for their domain slot).
• Jewel Pieces - A jewel piece is a new type of "coin" that is worth 10pp = 100gp. It is denoted jp. Jewerly, gems, and other very expensive items are measured in jps.
• Rest and Recovery - Eight hours of rest heals ECL + CON hps; one hour replenishes ECL + CON non-lethal hp, both with a minimum of 1. A full day's rest is x2 hps; a full hour's rest is x2 NL hp.
• Ability Damage - Ability point damage recovers at 1/4th the rate of healing hit points, rounded down with a minimum of 1. If something increases natural HP recovery, it also increases ability damage recovery at one quarter that rate.
• Range Increments - Both thrown and ranged weapons have a maximum range of 10 increments.
• Criticals - Criticals from weapons are x2 base, thus x3 = 19-20/x2, and x4 = 18-20/x2. Criticals are now referred to merely by their value (i.e. 20, 19, 18, etc.). Confirm rolls have a -4 + INT Mod without proficiency.
• Critical Immunity - Creatures previously immune to criticals now give a minus on the critical confirm roll. Creatures "more" immune to criticals give a larger penalty. Immunities typically come in multiples of 4.
• Flare Reduction - Creatures previously immune to sneak attack now reduce the number of extra damage dice done on a flare attack. FR 4 would mean to subtract 4 dice of flare.

XPs come from a few major categories: Monsters, Role-Playing, and Objectives.

Monsters:

Characters receive approximately ¼ for encountering a monster, ¼ for killing it, and ½ for defeating it. Variants are to subtract the base in "no kill" situations, or award full for keeping NPC’s alive.

Role-Playing:

Use 500XP * adventure level per character as a base. A scale follows:

0	Start a different campaign with new players
50	Horrible; No Character Development
100	Mediocre; Little CD; No Player Interaction
150	Wussy; Some CD; Little PI
200	Reasonable; Some CD; Some PI; but No Goal Acquisition
250	Standard; Some CD; Some PI; A little GA
300	Good; Much CD; Some PI; A little GA
350	Great; Much CD; Much PI; Some GA; No Legendary Acts
400	Excellent; Full CD; Much PI; Much GA; Little LA
450	Butt-Awesome; Full CD; Full PI; Much GA; Some LA
500	Write a book, it will be a best seller.

Objectives:

When an objective is attained, a good rule of thumb is to award 100XP * adventure level per character. This could be modified up to 1000XP if the objective is directly related to the character, or modified down to 10XP if it is incidental.

Training Time

Advancement usually takes a base time of 1 day per new character level, i.e. advancing to second level has a base of two training days. This base is modified by payment, instructors, and materials. Every day spent not training (say, adventuring or resting) counts cumulatively as training days lost. Thus, one day equals one day of training lost (in addition to the one which was spent doing something else); two days is three days lost; three days is six days lost, etc. If the number of days ever goes negative, training must be restarted from scratch.

Payment:

200gp/old level	=	Base expenditure
200gp	=	1 Less Day
500gp	=	2 Less Days
900gp	=	3 Less Days

Note: Payment is primarily to pay for disposable materials, and does not reflect the instructors’ fee. In general, instructors charge 100gp / day. The actual price might be stiffer or more lenient, depending upon the instructor’s nature.

Instructors:

No instructors	=	2 days spent = 1 training day
1 instructor	=	1 day spent = 1 training day
1 qualified instructor	=	1 day spent = 2 training day

Note: An instructor is any character of higher level than you. A qualified instructor has all the abilities you need to learn. This usually means they must be higher level in the same class.

Materials:

None	=	2 Extra Days
Scarce	=	1 Extra Day
Available	=	Base
Plentiful	=	1 Less Day
Abundant	=	2 Less Days

Note: All classes need materials with which to train; materials is a catch-all for weapons, sacrifices, rare inks, locations, etc.

FUTURE PROJECTS
New Bard
Linear Complicated
Class Paths
Make hotlinked central Terminology doc