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 Advancement beyond levels
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Thraskir Skimper
Learned Scribe

204 Posts

Posted - 11 Jul 2018 :  02:54:38  Show Profile Send Thraskir Skimper a Private Message  Reply with Quote  Delete Topic
Poll Question:
Should characters be able to advance in Spells or Abilities outside of gaining levels.

I was wondering about Larloch surely 'he' would be able to advance outside of having 100's of levels gaining abilities or spell focuses just with reading about and practicing spells.

Vote before you peek

Choices:

Yes advance skills without levels
No only advance when leveling up

(Anonymous Vote)

Thay Red

Kentinal
Great Reader

4684 Posts

Posted - 11 Jul 2018 :  03:13:06  Show Profile Send Kentinal a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Is this poll about not liking the rule set?

I could say using skills is only way to improve them, that the current rule set does not consider that.

"Small beings can have small wisdom," the dragon said. "And small wise beings are better than small fools. Listen: Wisdom is caring for afterwards."
"Caring for afterwards ...? Ker repeated this without understanding.
"After action, afterwards," the dragon said. "Choose the afterwards first, then the action. Fools choose action first."
"Judgement" copyright 2003 by Elizabeth Moon
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TBeholder
Great Reader

2378 Posts

Posted - 11 Jul 2018 :  03:26:48  Show Profile Send TBeholder a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Meh. There are many ways. Including how it's done in d100.

People never wonder How the world goes round -Helloween
And even I make no pretense Of having more than common sense -R.W.Wood
It's not good, Eric. It's a gazebo. -Ed Whitchurch
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
Moderator

USA
36779 Posts

Posted - 11 Jul 2018 :  03:31:36  Show Profile Send Wooly Rupert a Private Message  Reply with Quote
If you're advancing in ability, then surely you are exercising the relevant skills. This means you are gaining experience at these things. And thus, gaining XP, which leads to levels.

So it's not as much that you gain further abilities in particular skills when you gain a level, as it is that you've gained enough experience to be competent at those skills.

Think of it like a diploma: the piece of paper doesn't give you the knowledge; the piece of paper shows that you have the knowledge and proves you can properly use it.

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The Masked Mage
Great Reader

USA
2420 Posts

Posted - 11 Jul 2018 :  03:37:29  Show Profile Send The Masked Mage a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Yeah, there are numerous methods of gaining abilities that have existed over the various editions. I'm not familiar with how 5th Ed does it though.

As for Larloch. His Intelligence allows him to have as many spells as he can master. So he needs to work to learn / create / discover more magic. That is endless.

Other systems use skill points acquired through age / experience.
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Diffan
Great Reader

USA
4425 Posts

Posted - 14 Jul 2018 :  13:20:38  Show Profile Send Diffan a Private Message  Reply with Quote
I'd say yes, but it would take considerable downtime and study. Something that would need multiple checks, gold value, time, location with the correct personnel, etc. to represent time spent.
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Diffan
Great Reader

USA
4425 Posts

Posted - 14 Jul 2018 :  13:23:57  Show Profile Send Diffan a Private Message  Reply with Quote
quote:
Originally posted by The Masked Mage

Yeah, there are numerous methods of gaining abilities that have existed over the various editions. I'm not familiar with how 5th Ed does it though.



Downtime rules and ideas are in Xanathar's Guide to Everything pages 123 to 134 and detail all sorts of things you can train, acquire, make, work, gamble, etc. for. My player's use them the other day while they were making headway into the Murder in Baldur's Gate adventure.
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BARDOBARBAROS
Senior Scribe

Greece
581 Posts

Posted - 16 Jul 2018 :  08:26:24  Show Profile  Visit BARDOBARBAROS's Homepage Send BARDOBARBAROS a Private Message  Reply with Quote
No only advance when leveling up...

it takes effort and time to learn these spells and skills ..and all these are the amount of xp needed to gain a level and learn spells and skills!!!

BARDOBARBAROS DOES NOT KILL.
HE DECAPITATES!!!


"The city changes, but the fools within it remain always the same" (Edwin Odesseiron- Baldur's gate 2)
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Icelander
Master of Realmslore

1864 Posts

Posted - 18 Jul 2018 :  04:03:39  Show Profile  Visit Icelander's Homepage Send Icelander a Private Message  Reply with Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert

If you're advancing in ability, then surely you are exercising the relevant skills. This means you are gaining experience at these things. And thus, gaining XP, which leads to levels.

So it's not as much that you gain further abilities in particular skills when you gain a level, as it is that you've gained enough experience to be competent at those skills.

Think of it like a diploma: the piece of paper doesn't give you the knowledge; the piece of paper shows that you have the knowledge and proves you can properly use it.


The issue I have with level-based systems is that it seems unnecessary to link Hit Dice and Base Attack bonus with skills. Whether emulating fictional characters or mythological ones, it seems odd that anyone exhibiting a degree of skill well beyond the ordinary person should also be required to be much tougher and adept at combat.

Forgotten Realms lore has always supported sages with world-class knowledge about a certain subject, but no combat ability beyond an ordinary, sedentary person. But most versions of D&D make this impossible, as to have Knowledge (Whatever) at very high skill levels, a character would need high levels and even in a low Base Attack progression and 1d4 Hit Dice progression, that sage becomes able to batter professional warriors to death and survive falls from terminal velocity, immersion in lava and multiple lightning strikes.

Old school AD&D had 0st level characters that could have any level in a non-combat proficiency, allowing the greatest expert in the world on a subject to exist without having him necessarily be a superhero as well.

Za uspiekh nashevo beznadiozhnovo diela!

Forgotten Realms fans, please sign a petition to re-release the FR Interactive Atlas
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The Masked Mage
Great Reader

USA
2420 Posts

Posted - 18 Jul 2018 :  04:41:56  Show Profile Send The Masked Mage a Private Message  Reply with Quote
One of my favorite such systems was from the old D&D game set in Mystra. In Glantri, they had the "Seven Secret Crafts" and study of the "Radiance". These were alternate paths to power.
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