More Thoughts (and House Rules) on G.D.F. #5's "New Character Creation and Advancement Techniques"

This is a follow-up to this post.

To my surprise, several potential players in an upcoming LotFP campaign have expressed interest in character advancement via random table, à la the article from Green Devil Face #5. Searching online to see if anyone has actually tried this system out before, I found this cool post over at Wonders & Witchcraft, which further inspired me to take another look at the G.D.F. #5 system and tinker with it some more.

One of my major complaints about this system as written is that rolling one d12 instead of two d10s doesn't seem worth the risk. There's actually a simple way to address this: When a PC levels up, the player first rolls a d12. If they roll 11 or 12, they stop there; that's all they get that level. But if they roll a result from 1 to 10, they then roll a d10 to generate a second result, and they get the benefits of both results.

That house rule alone makes me much happier with this system, but naturally I still have the urge to change things. One possibility is to do something similar to what was presented in that aforementioned Wonders & Witchcraft post. This involves reducing the list of character classes to just two, the Fighter and Magic-User, which is actually something I've wanted to try for a while now anyway. Here's how I might do it:

Starting Stats: All characters begin with 1d6 HP, a +1 Base Attack Bonus, 15 in all Saving Throw categories, and 2 Skill Points. Fighters also begin with an additional 2 HP, the Combat Options listed for their class in Rules & Magic, and a free set of leather armor. Magic-Users also begin with one Spell Slot and a free spellbook containing 3 random spells, as well as the research/transcription/item creation capabilities outlined in Rules & Magic.

Fighter

1. +d8 HP
2. +d8 HP
3. +d8 HP
4. +1 Base Attack Bonus
5. +1 Base Attack Bonus
6. +1 Base Attack Bonus
7. +1 Skill Point
8. +1 Skill Point
9. +3 in one Saving Throw category
10. +1 in all Saving Throw categories
11. +d8 HP, +1 Base Attack Bonus, +1 Skill Point, and +3 in one Saving Throw category
12. +d8 HP, +1 Base Attack Bonus, +1 Skill Point, and +1 in all Saving Throw categories

Magic-User

1. +d6 HP
2. +d6 HP
3. +1 Spell Slot
4. +1 Spell Slot
5. +1 Spell Slot
6. +1 Spell Slot
7. +1 Skill Point
8. +1 Skill Point
9. +3 in one Saving Throw category
10. +1 in all Saving Throw categories
11. +d6 HP, +1 Spell Slot, +1 Skill Point, and +3 in one Saving Throw category
12. +d6 HP, +1 Spell Slot, +1 Skill Point, and +1 in all Saving Throw categories

EDIT: It would be pretty easy to add a Tunnels & Trolls-style Rogue class as well. You know, a Thief-like character that dabbles in both combat training and magic, but doesn't quite master either to the same extent as the pure Fighters and Magic-Users do.

Rogues begin with an additional 2 HP and a free set of Specialist's Tools. They do not start with any spell slots, a spellbook, or any spells. They can memorize spells and cast from scrolls and wands/staves like a Magic-User, and if they obtain a spellbook they can copy spells into it from scrolls and other spellbooks. However, they cannot research new spells or create magic items like a Magic-User.

Rogue

1. +d8 HP
2. +d6 HP
3. +1 Base Attack Bonus or +1 Spell Slot (player's choice)
4. +1 Base Attack Bonus
5. +1 Spell Slot
6. +1 Skill Point
7. +1 Skill Point
8. +1 Skill Point
9. +3 in one Saving Throw category
10. +1 in all Saving Throw categories
11. +d6 HP, +1 Skill Point, +3 in one Saving Throw category, and either +1 Base Attack Bonus or +1 Spell Slot (50% random chance of either)
12. +d8 HP, +1 Skill Point, +1 in all Saving Throw categories, and either +1 Base Attack Bonus or +1 Spell Slot (player's choice)

P.S. If a player has a non-zero Constitution modifier, it applies to their maximum HP once per level, not once per Hit Die. For example, if a Fighter with 18 Constitution rolls the "+d8 HP" result twice at character creation, their maximum HP would be 1d6 plus 2d8 plus 3. Each level afterward, the Fighter would gain an additional 3 HP on top of any other HP rolled, whether it be none, 1d8, or 2d8.

P.P.S. I would probably use the same experience table for both all three classes - I'm leaning toward the Specialist table, but the Fighter table might be good, too. Also, I would probably limit all Saving Throws to a minimum of 2.

Finally, I mentioned in my last post about this system that you could theoretically break some of the original limits of the game and get some truly strange and over-the-top results if you keep rolling the same thing again and again - or if your DM allows you to pick what you get when you level up, and you keep choosing the same thing. This isn't necessarily a problem, but if there are certain limits you want to preserve, or if your players get to the point that they keep rolling stuff that's no longer useful to them, the tables could prove troublesome. I have a couple of suggestions for dealing with this.

Are your Saving Throws all as low as they can go? Really? Wow. Next time you roll a Saving Throw improvement, add 1 point to the ability score of your choice instead. If you manage to max all of those out at 18, first go out and buy a lottery ticket, then just re-roll until you get something else you can use, instead. You can always use more HP, right?

Do you have a +10 Base Attack Bonus, and your DM doesn't want it to get any higher because it would "disrupt the way AC works in LotFP?" Or maybe you just don't see the point in raising it any more? Next time you roll a Base Attack Bonus increase, roll 1d12 on the following table instead:

1. It takes 5 additional items to gain the first encumbrance point, as per the Dwarf class in Rules & Magic. Re-roll if you get this again.
2. The character is only surprised on a 1 in 6, as per the Elf class in Rules & Magic. Re-roll if you get this again.
3. "Gnashmaw's Favor" (Special ability from the article "Furious Gods" in Vacant Ritual Assembly #4, p. 18). Re-roll if you get this again.
4. The character can use any weapon to hit creatures which can normally only be hit by magic weapons or other special weapons, as per the Knight of Science class in Green Devil Face #4, p. 2. Re-roll if you get this again.
5. The damage die of all attacks increases by 1 "step." A minor weapon does 1d6 damage, a small weapon does 1d8, etc. Other than magic or otherwise unusual weapons, no weapon can have a damage die higher than 1d20. Re-roll if you get this again.
6. "She noticed the Red Knight always feinted to his left - she was a very perceptive girl." (Alice class ability from A Red & Pleasant Land p. 32)
7. "Oh, I do so apologize..." (Alice class ability from A Red & Pleasant Land p. 32)
8. "It seemed nearly everything was dangerous if handled improperly." (Alice class ability from A Red & Pleasant Land p. 32)
9. "It was very shiny and stuck out like a soup spoon..." (Alice class ability from A Red & Pleasant Land p. 32)
10. "Alice then did something quite astonishing..." (Alice class ability from A Red & Pleasant Land p. 32)
11. "She did seem to offend people (and animals) wherever she went." (Alice class ability from A Red & Pleasant Land p. 33)
12. "She began to feel somewhat neglected." (Alice class ability from A Red & Pleasant Land p. 33)

Or substitute your own table of feats, perks, or special abilities.