From: rramser@dale.ksc.nasa.gov (Rusty Ramser)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.dnd
Subject: Criticisms/Comments on KJHR
Date: 20 Dec 92 22:26:03 GMT
Organization: NASA / Kennedy Space Center


"I'd like to have an argument, please."
          - Michael Palin, from "Monty Python's Flying Circus,
            the argument sketch


Well, now that I've had a chance to mull over Ken Jenk's House
Rules (KJHR), here are my thoughts:


----------------------------------------------------------------------
KJHR> ASSASSINS
KJHR> Player characters may not be Assassins.

Agreed.  An assassin (if role-played properly) is just not a
team player --  not even in an evil party.

But what about thieves?  I've just never been convinced of the
need for a regular thief in a typical adventure.  It has been
my experience that the players get too antsy during most of
the adventuring, and thieves end up engaging in hand-to-hand
combat -- something way out of character for a thief.

And what about the typical thieving skills needed for an ad-
venture?  Picking locks, discovering traps, disengaging/
dismantling traps, etc.  These abilities are needed on a
regular basis?  This approach may be unique to my campaigns,
but I don't regularly put traps on the chests and/or locks
themselves.  A stinking poison needle trap in a lock serves
as a deterrent to someone stealing your treasure?  Not likely.
Not after the party's just slain horrific monsters, survived
diabolical traps, overcome tremendous magical barriers, and
figured out ingenious puzzles.  <- THIS is the way to protect
one's treasure trove!  A poison needle or gas cloud trap on a
chest's lock is a joke at that point.  (All a trapped lock
ends up being is a nuisance to the owner.)  Besides, ...

I've never understood what was to stop a PC with high STR
from just smashing a lock off the chest, or even just smashing
the chest itself!  Is this kind of a professional courtesy
that fighters show to thieves?  You know, kind of a "You don't
do anything that infringes upon the need for someone of my
profession, and I'll do the same for you."  Maybe there's a
need to quietly and delicately open the chest?  Well,
possibly; if you're actually stealing someone's treasure right
out from under their nose.  But this strikes me as more of a
true thieving job.  I think more often than not, by the time
your party makes it to the primary treasure room, everything
in the cave/stronghold/etc. has been left for dead by your
party.  No need to be quiet.  Are you worried about damaging
the lock or the chest itself by bashing it in?  Who cares
about a wooden chest?!  Open that thing any way you can!  The
only thing you're worried about is whether there's enough
gold and magic items to make for a good split between all of
the party members -- and you can't wait to start going through
it all.

When I DMed parties with thieves, I found myself manufacturing
situations where the PC could be of some use to the party so
the player could be involved.  After a while, I got tired of
manufacturing.  The traps I use on PCs aren't little trip-wire
or trapped padlock mechanisms that you need a thief to dismantle.
I prefer to use "situational traps"; things that should be
apparent (and avoidable) to an alert, smart party.  In normal
game play, there was just no need for a thief on a regular basis.
--  Final thought:  If you've got a situation where you know
your party is going to need a thief to assist in some particular
manner, hire an NPC.


----------------------------------------------------------------------
Whew, sorry about that rant-n-rave.  Back to Ken:

KJHR> CHARACTERS WITH TWO CLASSES
KJHR> ...
KJHR> The character only gains more hit points when the level
KJHR> in the new class exceeds the level in the old class.
KJHR> ...

Holy cow!  I realize that this is the way the PHB sets forth
the rules on class changing, but this is a truly sorry way to
do it.  If you read the PHB's example of a fighter changing to
a magic-user, you might be fooled into thinking that this
method is fairly reasonable; think again.  Ken, for saving
throws or to-hit scores, you let the PC use the most advanta-
geous numbers; why not for hit points as well?

Follow me on this one:  Suppose, for example, that a player's
PC is doing the opposite of what the PHB's example was.  Bob
has taken his magic-user Swodniw up to the 5th level, and
then decides he wants Swodniw to pursue the fighter class.
Now let's say Swodniw has a CON score that allows no bonuses
on hit points, but Bob has rolled perfect 4's for all five
levels; therefore, Swodniw has 20 hit points at 5th level.
Are you going to disallow Bob to increase Swodniw the fighter's
hit points until he hits 6th level fighter?!  Good grief,
there's no way a fighter with a measly 20hp could survive in
a normal 5th level adventure.  Is this one of those "game
balance" rules?  Doesn't sound very balanced to me.  Try ex-
plaining "game balance" to Bob.  Better yet, try convincing
YOURSELF of the "game balance" theory when this PC is yours.

(Did everybody notice how subconsciously, each time you
came across the words "game balance" in that last paragraph,
you were saying them with a little more sarcasm in you voice
each successive time?)


----------------------------------------------------------------------
KJHR> CRITICAL HITS AND FUMBLES
KJHR> There are no critical hits or fumbles; they only hurt
KJHR> the player characters in the long run.  A 20 doesn't
KJHR> always hit, and a 1 doesn't always miss.

A 1 doesn't always miss?  Well, I don't really see anything
wrong with playing that a 1 will always miss.  No matter how
high a level a PC is, and no matter how many plusses he has
to hit, he can't be perfect.  Why allow a guaranteed hit?


----------------------------------------------------------------------
KJHR> EXPERIENCE POINTS
KJHR> Characters gain experience for completing missions,
KJHR> solving clues, evading enemies, making allies, deal-
KJHR> ing with traps, and many other things in addition to
KJHR> killing monsters and taking home treasure.

Definitely the way things should be done.  Just to add in
my $.02, though, I assume "many other things" includes
such things as casting the "right" spells at the "right"
times, alignment play, racial play, class play, and overall
role-playing of the PC in general.  These are all things
I consider very important; (I'm sure I've left out other
important things, too).


----------------------------------------------------------------------
KJHR> MAGIC USERS
KJHR> Magic-users do not have to roll their "chance to
KJHR> know" spells for spells they gain during initial
KJHR> training or when training up to the next level.

I don't have anything to debate here, I'm just not sure
I understand your method/mechanics.  Magic-users get a
certain number of first level spells in their spell book
when they first start out, right?  You're saying that no
"chance to know" %roll has to be made for those spells?
How many spells get added to the magic-user's book when
he goes up a level?  (These spells granted from train-
ing aren't rolled for either, right?)  When does the
%roll occur?  Only in the situation of trading spells
with another PC, or when transcribing a scroll to the
spell book, etc.?


----------------------------------------------------------------------
KJHR> INVISIBILITY
KJHR> If you become invisible, then pick up a bottle of
KJHR> beer, the bottle of beer becomes invisible, too.
KJHR> When you put down that bottle of beer, it becomes
KJHR> visible again.  If you drink the beer, the beer
KJHR> becomes invisible.  You can't read a book or
KJHR> scroll while invisible unless you're not carrying
KJHR> it.

Hmmm.  I assume by your examples given that you are dis-
allowing any living objects to become invisible by touch.
(Thus preventing the magic-user from becoming invisible,
then touching on the six other party members to render
them invisible as well.)  If it's only inanimate objects
that can be affected, what happens when the invisible
PC touches the clothing of the 18 CHR female elf in the
party?  Does it then appear as though she's naked?  How
about volume or weight limitations on what inanimate
objects can be rendered invisible by touch?  Can an
invisible PC touch the castle wall and make it appear
as though the entire castle just vanished into thin air?


----------------------------------------------------------------------
KJHR> PSIONICS
KJHR> Only Humans and monsters can be psionic. ...
KJHR> Energy Control is not allowed (roll again).

Why only human PCs?  (The PHB is even more lenient than
you are on this point, Ken.  Geesh, this "game balance"
stuff in your campaign is pretty rough to swallow some
of the time.)

What about Energy Control?  Is it just too powerful a
discipline, in your opinion?  Or do you exclude it because
of an argument you have with the feasibility of this type
of power functioning, based upon laws of physics, magic, etc.?


----------------------------------------------------------------------
KJHR> REGENERATION
KJHR> If a character is wearing a Ring of Regeneration,
KJHR> he can only regenerate damage he takes while
KJHR> wearing the Ring.  (This precludes passing the
KJHR> Ring around the party until everybody is healed
KJHR> up.)

One word:  BRAVO!
Does everyone realize what they just read?  This is a
rule interpretation that prevents abuse, yet is also
completely defensible from a logical perspective.  In
fact, having the ring operate in this manner makes more
sense than allowing it to function in the "abusive" manner
described by Ken.  How is the ring supposed to know what
your maximum physical health potential is, unless you had
that maximum potential while wearing the ring?


----------------------------------------------------------------------

Well, that's all that struck me upon my first read-though
of Ken's House Rules.  I know I hit some of Ken's rules
pretty hard, but Ken knows it's nothing personal, and I'm
just engaging himself (and others) in some healthy dis-
cussion.  (Dontcha, Ken?  Right, Ken?  Ken?...)  Anyway,
there was a lot more of KJHR that I agreed with than I
took issue with.

Ken should actually be commended for putting his rules
(and himself) on the line by publicly posting.  Maybe
some day when I'm feeling brave enough and don't mind get-
ting abused, I'll put mine up.

+---------------------------------+
| Rusty B. Ramser                 |
| DL-DSD-21                       |
| Kennedy Space Center, FL  32899 |
|                                 |
| rusty-ramser@ksc.nasa.gov       |
+---------------------------------+
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.dnd