Deviations and House Rules

[Carthrat]

1. Classes
2. Equipment
3. Feats
4. Skills
5. Spells
6. Systems
7. Other



1. Classes and Character Building In General


Race: Human. HUMAN!

The following classes may be played. Prestige classes are shot in the face. Your caster level follows the same rules as initator levels, i.e. levels you have in non-spellcasting classes count as 1/2 a caster level (round up, not down!) when figuring the strength of spells.

Barbarian
Fighter (4 skill points per level instead of 2. Use Magic Device is a class skill for fighters. Fighters also get the same Weapon Aptitude ability as Warblades at level 1.)
Monk (Gets full BaB when fighting unarmed!)
Paladin (Smite Evil becomes Smite Infidel. The bonus to saves is capped by your levels in paladin.)
Rogue (Gets a d8 HD! Rogues all get a competence bonus to hide, move silently, spot, listen, and search equal to half their rogue level.)
Sorcerer (Gets a d6 HD! Can learn spells from *any* spell-list. Use Charisma to figure spell DCs. Use Intelligence to figure bonus spells; you also *know* as many extra spells as you would have bonus spells, of the same level.)

Crusader
Warblade
Swordsage

Warmage
Warlock

Factotum (As sorcerers, Factotums can select *any* spell, although the DC remains dependant on Int.)

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All characters gain the following.

1d6 Sneak Attack

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All PCs gain the 'Channeler' template, with the following benefits:

+2 Sacred bonus to reflex and will saves.
+4 Inherent bonus to constitution.
1/day Dimension Door, which can be cast as an immediate action. Self only.
1/day, a Channeler can reroll one failed attack roll, saving throw, ability check, or skill check.
All Channelers count as Infidels to rival islands.
Channelers get a +4 sacred bonus to attack and damage rolls if they are within 30ft of the High Priest. The save DC of any spell they cast is increased by 2.

Most Channelers gain a variety of unique powers.

Channelers lose this template if their High Priest perishes.

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PCs cannot be High Priests, but High Priests gain the following:

Spell Resistance equal to HD+12
+4 sacred bonus to all saves.
Regeneration 1; High Priests can only be permenantly killed via sacrifice.
Standing on the Sky (Su): High Priests can't plunge to their deaths; if at any time they would fall, they instead levitate in mid-air until somehow placed back on land. Doesn't apply if they'd fall and actually hit an island or airship.

Most High Priests have a variety of unique powers that only function when they are within 1,000 feet of their home island.


2. Feats

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Banned Feats

Augment Summoning
Craft/Forge/Scribe/Brew (Anything)
Dodge
Eschew Materials
Mounted Combat (and subsequent feat tree.)
Track

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Modified Feats

Skill Focus grants +5 to one skill and allows you to take 10 on any checks made. You can't take Skill Focus: Concentration.

Skill feats that grants +2 to two skills allow you to, 1/day for each skill, take a reroll if your check is failed.

Dodge is no longer a prerequisite for Mobility.
Improved Critical stacks with Keen.

The +2 to saves feats grant +3 instead.

Manyshot: The penalty for firing two arrows is reduced to -2.

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New Feats! If these appear in other books, I forgot or lowered the prerequisites.

Dual Strike
Prereqs: +5 BaB, Two-Weapon Fighting or Flurry of Blows.
Benefit: You can make an attack with each weapon in your hand as a standard action, or use flurry of blows as a standard action (thus getting two attacks instead of one). You still suffer the usual penalties.

Reactive Counterspell
Prereqs: Improved Counterspell
Benefit: You can counter enemy spells as an immediate action; however, you are nauseated (can only take a move action) for one round if you pull this.

Awesome Blow
Prereqs: Str 17, Power Attack, Improved Bull Rush
Benefit: As a standard action, the creature may choose to subtract 4 from its melee attack roll and deliver an awesome blow. If the creature hits a corporeal opponent not larger than itself with an awesome blow, its opponent must succeed on a Reflex save (DC = damage dealt) or be knocked flying 10 feet in a direction of the attacking creature's choice and fall prone. The attacking creature can only push the opponent in a straight line, and the opponent can't move closer to the attacking creature than the square it started in. If an obstacle prevents the completion of the opponent's move, the opponent and the obstacle each take 1d6 points of damage, and the opponent stops in the space adjacent to the obstacle.

Remember that any Awesome Blow that hits and is not saved againsts drops an opponent, ala Cleave.



4. Skills

Appraise, Decipher Script, Knowledge, Handle Animal, Open Lock, Ride, Speak Langauge and Survival aren't used in this game.

Climb, Balance, and Jump will likely be used frequently in action encounters.

Concentration checks for casting spells are more difficult. Casting defensively has a difficulty of 15+2*spell level. For every time you get hit or distracted whilst casting a spell, the DC of the successive check rises by 2.

Craft (Shipwright) is needed to repair airships.

Disable Device now Opens Locks.

Intimidate leaves your opponents Shaken for 1d4 rounds instead of just one.

Listen, Spot, Move Silently, Hide, and Search have NOT been rolled into two seperate skills. Sorry.

Profession: Sail is required to fly airships.

All characters are assumed to speak one langauge. There is a secondary langauge that only High Priests speak (and indeed, efforts to teach it universally result in failure.)

Swim: It's always raining, so it could be more useful than you think!

Use Magic Device: Items now have individual scores required for their activation and part of the point is that you're unaware how difficult they are to use. However, only specific magic items will ever backfire.

5. Spells/Maneuvers/Etc


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All spells with the [Electricity] subtype have their save DC increased by 1 and their caster level increased by 2.

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The following spells are banned, either by virtue of balance, worldset, or being useless. This doesn't mean they won't appear in one form or another, but it does mean they can't be acquired by normal means (i.e. levels in respective class.) Since you can only take spells of 1st to 4th level anyway, they're all that's listed.

Just because it doesn't appear on this list doesn't mean it's around. Generally speaking, spells that allow you to fly or teleport are banned, as are the stronger divinations and any spell related to creating or interacting with undead.

Unlike other D&D games, you will not have access to every spell by virtue of shopping; there will be a few extra options (based on friendly NPCs) but for the most part you'll be stuck with what you have.


1st

-Mount
-Summon Monster
-Comprehend Langauges
-Detect Undead
-Identify
-Hide from Undead
-Augury

2nd

-Obscure Object
-Summon Monster II
-Mirror Image
-Misdirection
-Command Undead
-Alter Self
-Levitate
-Rope Trick
-Tasha's Hideous Laughter
-Wraithstrike (SC)

3rd

-Nondetection
-Phantom Steed
-Summon Monster III
-Clairaudience/Clairvoyance
-Tounges
-Halt Undead
-Fly
-Gaseous Form
-Water Breathing
-Create Food and Water
-Obscure Object

4th

-Dimension Door
-Summon Monster IV
-Arcane Eye
-Scrying
-Shadow Conjuration
-Animate Dead
-Polymorph
-Air Walk
-Dismissal
-Divination
-Divine Power
-Planar Ally, Lesser
-Reincarnate

Clarify if you're taking spells out of core.


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Modifications

Energy Aegis (PHB2): This spell affects 1 person/caster level.
Dark Way (SC): As written, except for the following.
Thunderhead (SC): This spell CAN stack with itself!

The bridge this spell forms can stretch if the objects it is anchored too move, but if the length of the bridge exceeds the maximum, the bridge instantly breaks. You can add railings to the bridge (thus making it impossible to shove people off), or even narrow the width of the bridge, but these factors must be decided during the initial casting.


New Spells

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Balus Wall
School: Abjuration
Level: Sor4
Components: V, S
Duration: Concentration
Range: Short (30ft+5ft/level)
Area: One 10ft high/5ft wide segment of wall per caster level
Casting Time: One Round

You summon a dim wall of power that you control that takes the form of a wavering sheet of light; it does not impede vision, but it's presence is obvious. This wall blocks line of effect for  spells of 1st to 4th; this affects casters on either side of the wall and cannot be 'switched off' for friendlies. The wall forms a single flat plane. A targeted dispel magic can bring down the wall.

You can move the wall up to ten feet on your action each round either forwards or backwards, but not from side to side. If you lose concentration, the wall vanishes.

Disintegrate Object
Level: Sor 3

As Disintegrate, but Disintegrate Object can't be used to disintegrate creatures or magical equipment.



6. Systems

Only total concealment negates sneak attacks.

If you are adjacent to someone who takes a 5ft step, and you didn't use up all your movement for the turn, you can immediately take a 5ft step after them. No, you can't take a bonus 5ft step in response to anything else. Yes, this rule solely exists to shaft spellcasters *even more*. You can only do this once per round, however.

If you're in a grapple and near a convenient edge, you can try to fling your opponent off by attempting to move the grapple. Normally this would send you flying off as well. However, you can take a -4 penalty to your grapple check to try and throw only your opponent off.

Fog reduces visibility but doesn't negate it to this 'you can only see 5ft ahead' crap (that's reserved of actual spells, like obscuring mist).

If you fall off the edge of a cliff, a DC 15 reflex save is perhaps your only chance to catch yourself.