House Rules?

[Klaus Æ. Mogensen]

Hi, everybody

I would be interested in hearing what sort of house rules people have thought it necessary (or just nice) to use for Blue Rose, whether imported from True20 general or made especially for BR.

In a similar vein, are there things in BR that you have experienced as unbalancing or just plain broken?

I'm asking because I'm considering running a campaign. I have the basic BR book and I don't plan using any of the supplements (or other True20 books) unless everyone agrees they are indispensable.

- Klaus

[Stareyes]

I don't really like tracking equipment (really the one thing about BESM d20 I truly liked was the fact all equipment that the character carried regularly was just assumed to be part of the character -- if you wanted shiny toys, you paid for it by fewer neat class tricks. Also why I like the magic items in the Companion). So, I instituted the 'Common Sense Rule of Carrying'. Basically, it assumes that characters have easy access to all cheap, semi-portable adventuring supplies (ropes, material for making fire, etc.). If I think there's a chance that no one brought something, I have everyone make a Wisdom check against a DC that usually varied from 10 (not obvious, but you might think to grab one just in case) to 20-25 (why would you bring that)? For example, a long enough piece of rope to use it to descend stories in a ruin that lost its stairs, when the characters hadn't really planned on ruin-exploring when they left town.

Things that are completely obvious (food and water, camping supplies if one is heading off the beaten path, etc.) I just assumed everyone picked up.

[skywalker]

I commonly propose the following house rules to update Blue Rose to some of the improvements in True 20:

COMBAT BONUS: Combat bonus replaces Attack bonus. Combat bonus also adds to Defence. Combat bonus is not a dodge bonus. Defence bonus by level is otherwise removed. Dexterity adds to Attack rolls not Strength. Weapon Finesse is removed including from any feat prerequisites.

DAMAGE: Power Attack is removed including from any feat prerequisites. Weapon Specialisation, Greater Weapon Specialisation and the Surprise Attack grant a +1 bonus to Damage. Psychic Weapon and Purifying Light have a damage bonus of one half of your Adept level. Smite Foe adds one half of your total level to damage. Spirited Charge adds +3 to damage.

TOUGHNESS: Toughness save equals Constitution plus Size plus Armour bonus. Toughness bonus by level is otherwise removed. Armour bonus adds to Toughness save, it does not add to Defence. Touch attacks ignore Armour bonus to Toughness. A Shield’s armour bonus adds to Defence not Toughness save.