RPG Pondering: Method 1 Character

[HeathbrookBadhwar]

14 str

14 dex

10 con

12 int

13 wis

8 cha

I'm one lucky ugly goblin philosopher

[mortisangelica]

After every rolled a gen 1 character stats and started some discussion on the good old times of 1st and 2cnd edition, we decided to run with it. I think a good name for are group might be the the Average Awfuls. we got a dumb human Barbarian with STR 15 DEX 12 CON 10 INT 7 WIS 10 CHA 11. My halfling Rogue STR 9 DEX 14 CON 14 INT 13 WIS 12 CHA 12 Still have 3 more players that need to roll up. all level one pathfinder.

[darklink5678]

Str13 Dex 8 Con 13 Int 15 wis 15, Char 11.

Probably Make him a elf wizard, or maybe a dwarf cleric.

[Slail]

Let's see. STR: 12 DEX: 9 CON: 12 INT: 13 WIS: 10 CHA: 5. John Tumblewood is a decidedly average gentlemen with tourettes syndrome.

[tetsubo57]

@Slail What career path would Mr. Tumblewood follow?

[Slail]

@tetsubo57 I'd probably make him a wizard. Not a prodigy or anything of the like, but perhaps he was more gifted than the others in the small village he hails from. Learned a bit about magic and the use there of, though not a very handsome fellow, or the most friendly. In pure mechanics... Would probably go human so I could give him another +2 to intelligence.

[tetsubo57]

@Slail That would be a good choice I think. He'd be able to actually get 9th level spells some day. Maybe the low Cha could be explained as the result of a botched alchemy attempt. Some nice disfiguring scars. Jonah Hex style.

[azirk83]

@tetsubo57 In OD&D Mr Tumbleweed would excel at any career path. He just isn't good at getting special followers. I would argue he has _less_ options in Pathfinder (in fact, he'd be a burn immediately character as "average" PF score is 12, not 10).  Which means 3E doesn't support the random roll, and _not_ that there's inherently anything wrong with the random roll. Though I know you will not accept this, or even talk to me about it.

But one game allows a 6 Str Fighter as a viable concept.

[tetsubo57]

@azirk83 Rolling reflects reality. I don't want to play reality. I don't want to play a diabetic with anxiety & depression. I want to play a character that I have designed from the ground up to be *exactly* what I want. Rolling will never, ever give me that. Especially if you pick the class first. It was a stupid concept in 1978 and it's a stupid concept now.

Roll to your heart's content.

I would not play a fighter with a 6 Str.

[azirk83]

@tetsubo57 (facepalm) Invalidating character concepts though ability scores attributing to class ability does the opposite of what you're talking about...

Point buy is more valid OD&D and less valid in PF because of this...

Ability Scores denoting Class ability was a stupid idea in 1978 and it's a stupid idea now.

Aw, screw it. It's not like this is going to go anywhere.

[Antiks72]

@azirk83 You're a pain in the ass, you know that?

[Samwise7RPG]

When I get my laptop fixed, or get a new one I'll try to post a response. I'm using my wife's computer which is ancient... hehe.

[WarbossTae]

You generated Rick Perry!

[azirk83]

I've said it before and I'll say it again: 3E/Pathfinder/4E can't do Method 1.  They place far, far too much emphasis on stats.

[finalgiorgio]

str 12

dex 14

con 12

int 14

wis 9

cha 13

im guessing if i was using D&d 4th edition i'll be a battlemind, in pathfinder im guessing barbarian

[Tatezm]

str 11, dex 10, con 13, int 7, wis 15, cha 15, guess that makes me a clerric, albeit a very dumb one. fun post, thanks.

[Vigilluminatus]

Alright, STR 4 (Ohmygod!), DEX 10, CON 12, INT 10, WIS 16, CHA 10. I don't know what I'd do with a character who can barely carry the clothes on his body, even with +2 in strength from race. It would be hilarious to play a cleric with the Strength Domain though - this guy NEEDS to compensate.

Seriously, that's why I hate rolling stats.

[thespiritcoyote]

@tetsubo57 I use the four drop-lowest, most of the time, but I will roll Method 1, and do not need a reroll if I have time to make the stats work.... though admittedly that might take a week...

however, I prefer point buy also... the whole system... like gurps or cyberpunk... at least as an optional variation to the levels... like alternity or shadowrun.

[FloggingMoIIy]

I'm banned from rolling characters, because I always get unbelievably good rolls, but let's give it a shot.

Str 14

Dex 15

Con 13

Int 16

Wis 15

Cha 16

Id say I'd probably have to go with a rogue, or maybe a swashbucking fighter type.

[tetsubo57]

@FloggingMoIIy I might go Human Warlock with my +2 in Dex with an emphasis in Diplomacy. be the party 'face'.

[Webhead123]

Sounds like a fun. I'll try to capture a quick vid on this.

I once watched my brother roll an 18 followed immediately by a 3 using Method 1 back in AD&D2E. I believe the 18 was Str and the 3 was Dex. Don't recall what his percentile Str roll was.

[IamJLOVEGREN]

Str 14 Dex 12 Con 15 Int 6 Wis 14 Cha 14 : Well, I have decent scores all around except int. Human Barbarian with +2 to dex for added AC would work nicely.

[tetsubo57]

@IamJLOVEGREN I'd go human Barb. but with a +2 Str.

[LordSathar]

STR:6 DEX:15 CON:12 INT:14 WIS:9 CHA:11, So lets see an elven rogue i think, in my old group we used to call this "ironman" D&D as you were expectted to also roll a die for your HP as well, some of those mages ended up with 0 to -2 HP, haha

[skuzzyknuckles]

btw my score was...STR 10 - DEX 8 - CON 16 - INT 3 - WIS 5 - CHA 8 wow..what the hell would anyone do with this character..I am interested if you could do something with it? lol

[tetsubo57]

@skuzzyknuckles That is what we call a 'reroll'.

[thespiritcoyote]

@skuzzyknuckles average str, dex, and cha, superb con, but not too bright or wise (rather "special needs" here)... rouge(thug), bard(beggar), monk or ranger(ordre des veilleurs), barbarian(mun'bute), fighter(running footman), sorcerer(eremitic)...

...so I wouldn't use this for a paladin, priest, or wizard - without playing up the "special needs" mental aspect hmm? but there are still lots to do with these numbers... not a compleat reroll.

[LordSathar]

@skuzzyknuckles Half orc Barbarian, with that int penalty reduced to 1 you have the intelligence of a rather dumb Cockroach, but just rage and attack the nearest thing

[skuzzyknuckles]

3d6 straight isn't the only method. my method is 4d6, reroll 1's and place them how you like. I have yet to have a complaint, except my own cause sometimes that has ended up producing super characters

[noblebearaw]

a Barbarian maybe?

[Reozul]

Str 16; Dex 6; Con 8; Int 11; Wis 12; Cha 12

Not really bad for Method 1. Dwarven Barbarian could work.

[Hushashabega]

A friend of mine and I had fun rolling up characters this way once, no intention of using them in a real game of course. The most memorable was when we rolled 11 for all six abilities. I'd never use this in 3rd or pathfinder or any game in the AD&D line because modifiers are too important, but for an OD&D or Swords and Wizardry White Box game it's perfectly acceptable and great if you come into the game without a clear idea of how you want to roleplay your character.

[tetsubo57]

@Hushashabega I once watched a guy roll six 17s in a row like that. Back in the 1E era. He played a Paladin I believe.

[Hushashabega]

@tetsubo57 One of the few ways one could play a paladin I believe. I did the math once and with all the ability score requirements for that class there was about a one in ten thousand or so chance you could actually qualify for one using method 1.

[tetsubo57]

@Hushashabega I know I only ever saw tow Paladins in my 1E career. And I never saw a 1E Bard. Always wanted to play one of those.

[tarboy69]

OMG I hate methed 1

[markushanrath]

Srt 9, Dex 9, Con 6, Int 6, Wis11, Cha 9

Thats is will will never play D&D or Pathfinder, using this Method of chargen.

My Favorite system:

St 58, Gs 82, Gw 52, Ko 77, In 83, Zt 83, Au 63, pA 27 Dwarven Cleric

[woodwwad]

3d6 rolling is terrible. I'm a big point buy fan too.  I really dislike any form of rolling.

[tetsubo57]

@woodwwad I shall make you roll dice!

[woodwwad]

@tetsubo57 I got a chuckle out of that, so just for you, here goes. str 6, dex 11, con 10, int 13, wis 10, cha 8

damn right, this'll be a gnome fighter!

[DarthScythe1290]

This should be interesting lol

Str:9 Dex:12 Con:11 Int:8 Wis:8 Cha:7

Well that doesnt open a whole heck of a lot lol. This was just for funj though thats how id play this character. im not familiar with Method one so for sake everyone's sanity ill assume were only going by core rules and id go with and elf rogue i suppose

[RoyaLockz]

str 10, dex 14, con 10, int 5, wis 11, cha 6.

I'm playing a ranger.

[mastermaxmixed]

Well the way Im used to do this, is to roll 4d6 and drop the lowest 6 times, then you can assign your resulting scores to the stats you want. Sometimes I even go as far as to allow the highest rolled score to become an 18, so that you can have a character that is good at at least one thing.

[warmage24]

So here is my character it has str12, dex10, con8, int14, wis10, cha13

It look like a half-elf it is so I can have a con of 10 Samurai

[MercKilsek]

This looks fun :)

Str 17, Dex 13, Con 7, Int 8, Wis 10, Cha 11

Well looks like I would have to be a fighter of some type but that lower Con is going to be a issue. Quick and dirty ideas would be a older dwarf with some health issues looking to make his mark on the world before his illness (or old wound(s)) slows him down to much. Or maybe some type of warrior that focuses in hurling weapons seeing my Dex is really not that bad. Work that higher Str and Dex together into something helpful.

[Nolinquisitor]

The retro gaming trend was strong in 2011. If I can, next year, I would like to run some Labyrinth Lord or The Mutant Epoch. I bought LL and I'm waiting for TME to arrive in my mailbox. It's been so long since I ran a rule light old school game, that might be fun. For the exercice, here's my method 1: Str 14, Dex 10, Con 4, Int 10, Wis 9, Cha 13. Okay, I rolled a barely alive noble of some sort. :)

[DarthWyyrlok]

My main exposure to retro D&D has been Swords and Wizardry, and while they give rules for Method 1 character generation, they also have a specific table for ability modifiers. 3-6 is a -1, 7-14 is +0, and 15+ is a +1. By those rules you'd have a purely average character, with no penalties or bonuses. I prefer those rules if I'm using Method 1; it helps to keep characters a bit more playable.

But at the same time those are some unlucky rolls; if it were my game I might allow a complete reroll.

[o1sin182]

Str 10 Dex 14 Con 7 Int 10 Wis 14 Cha 10, these stats make me think of a guy who was once a master thief and had everything; wealth, prestige, good looks etc. But he developed a crippling alcohol addiction and spent a decade in a downward spiral of self-destruction. Now he has finally gone clean with the help of some family and the few friends he has left and wants to go for one last great heist to set himself up for retirement.

But I do agree with you, point buy is the way to go

[ToasterPig]

I hate it when you cant assign your roles to the stats of your choice.

[tetsubo57]

@ToasterPig So do I. But what the heck, all in fun.

[falloutmnky]

those are rather unlucky foam dice lmao. we always used 4d6 drop the lowest and re roll ones, but i think its because we always liked being bad asses and only ever really did 1-2 shot adventures lol.

[tetsubo57]

@falloutmnky We used 4d6 drop the lowest and arrange to taste. But that is not how Iron Gamers do it!

[falloutmnky]

@tetsubo57 we always did the arrange to taste as well, probably due to my having created who i wanted to be before i touched the dice (i fancy myself a bit of a creative so im always coming up with ideas on who i would like to play if i ever get the chance again)