D&D 3.5 Mechanics/Features that Fail (At least to you!)

[Merc]

Sometimes there's just something that you don't think makes sense in a gaming system. Toss your list of gaming features/mechanics you dislike, and explain why you dislike it, and maybe even a possible solution. If you don't have any, you can always comment on what other people have commented on and give your opinion on why it doesn't fail, or your agreement and maybe your own possible solutions to the problem.

Drac has asked to limit them to one system when I mentioned this thread, and since most of the ones I've got in mind are D&D, I guess I'll limit it to D&D 3.5!

I'll start off with a few that I can toss up before I head off to bed.

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1. Sai - the bludgeoning monk weapon: Okay, if the title doesn't tell you everything, you've never seen a sai. Or maybe you're imagining that you pick up the Sai character from Hikaru no Go and using him as a bludgeoning weapon? Heh. That'd be funny...

Anyway, getting back to the point, the sai is a sharp pointy weapon. It should definitely be a piercing weapon.

2. Toughness feat: Basically, what this 'handy-dandy' feat does, is it gives you +3HP.

That's it.

An excellent selection...for a level 1-2 character.

Outside of that though, is it really useful? Hell no. At higher levels, it's all but worthless. And even at lower levels, it gets outclassed by another feat - Improved Toughness.

This other feat gives you +1HP/level and then some additional HP equal to your level. It's requirement is a measly Base Fortitude+2.

How does it compare?
Getting feat at Lv1: Toughness 3HP, Improved 2HP
Getting feat at Lv2: Toughness 3HP, Improved 4HP
Getting feat at Lv3: Toughness 3HP, Improved 6HP

So outside of level 1...Toughness is worthless.

Possible solutions:
At level 3 you're allowed to switch it out for Improved Toughness.
You modify the feat and make it comparable (ex: if your game does not allow rerolls for HP during level-up, this feat lets you roll twice and select the higher result for your HP).
You make Toughness a prerequesite for Improved Toughness.

3. Improved Toughness feat: As was mentioned in the last section, this feat gives you +1HP/level (which is -excellent-), and a bonus amount of hit points equal to your number of hit die (ie, your level).

Basically, if you get this at level 3 and level to level 18, you'll have gotten 21HP out of it. If you get it at level 18 though, you'll have gotten 36HP out of it.

I dunno, everybody seems to tell me it makes sense that this feat gives you more HP at a higher level, but that strikes me as weird. Why doesn't it makes more sense for the bonus to be based on your type of hit die (ie, your class) as opposed to the number of hit die (ie, you level)?

As a random FYI: I had actually been misunderstanding the feat to do this until I was corrected on it today. <_<;

But anyway, if it was based on the type of HD, if you're a fighter, since you get d10, you get 10HP. If you're a wizard, since you get d4, you get 4HP.

To be honest, after some thought I can understand the reasoning behind the first to some degree, though I still stand by my reasoning as well. What determines how tough someone would be should be depends on both what they do for a living (class) as well as experience (level).

I just dislike the idea though that a fighter who is more likely to get into a situation where he is repeatedly hit in the body and thus toughen his body if he survives, will get the same benefit from the feat as a wizard who will stand back and blast stuff and not get hit as regularly (or at least they -shouldn't- given they're not melee characters).

Other alternatives are:
Characters only get +1HP/level, no other bonus (the feat is already decent enough as such).
Characters get the +1HP/level, and then a bonus equal to whichever is higher between number of HD or HD type.
Characters get the +1HP/level and then a bonus equal to the average of the sum between the number of HD and the HD type.

4. Cross Class Skills: This one is more of Drac's pet peeve, but I'll comment on it since it was the brief start of a discussion over it that made me want to start this thread.

<Dracos> Cross class skills are retarded.
<Dracos> If you have a lot of skills
<Dracos> you have almost the entire chart as your 'class skills'
<Dracos> if you don't, you don't really have the skill points to waste on cross class.
<Merc> I dislike the concept of cross class skills costing more, but I do agree with the concept of you being less skilled in them than someone from another class.
<Merc> Which is why I like the concept of the Able Learner feat.
<Merc> even if it is human only.

For a refresher, there are two types of skills: class skills and cross-class skills.
Class skills are the skills that your character can learn from their class and they cost 1 skill point per rank, and you can get a maximum number of ranks equal to your level+3.
Cross-Class skills are the skills your character can't learn from their class, but can still learn. They cost 2 skill points per rank, and you can get a maximum number of ranks equal to 1/2(level+3).

As mentioned, I dislike the idea that learning something should be more difficult than something else. I can fully get behind the concept that you can't become as capable in it because of what you do not allowing you to gain proficiency over it, but certainly not it being more difficult. Picking a certain class over another certainly doesn't change your brain patterns to pick up certain skills over others. And yet, that's what this system does.

I do like the idea behind the Able Learner feat, though. It makes all skills cost an equal amount (1 point), though cross class skills are still limited to a maximum rank half of a class skill. By automatically giving it to everyone (even non-humans, as the feat is supposed to be for humans only), you improve the skill system a bit.

Other alternatives:
I believe Drac prefers to just do away with the cross-class system and make all skills class skills essentially.