Treasures, Serpents, and Ruins

So I've been talking a lot about converting my West Marches campaign. And at first, I was thinking to really go Classic D&D - just the classic 7 character classes, nothing else.

But I'm sitting on a homebrew document that's been slowly evolving over the past however many years. You see, I like to run Classic D&D, but I also enjoy the class options presented in AD&D through 5E.

So I started out just by making home brew versions of the 3E and AD&D classes (VERY early on I posted a few, the Barbarian and Druid for sure, maybe the Bard and Half Orc race-as-class classes as well -- my third post ever on this blog, way back in 2009, was about it).

Most recently, I decided that again AD&D style separate race and class was desirable. Along with multiclass options for demi-humans. So I tweaked my own versions of the classic and not so classic races, adding Dragonborn and Changelings (my version of Tieflings but not quite) to the mix (half-elves, half-orcs and gnomes were already there) because my son was formerly playing a Dragonborn and at least three people have decided to play Tieflings in the West Marches. Yes, I've been thinking of this switch for a long time as well.

And I've given the most recent version of these rules the spiffy name Treasures, Serpents, and Ruins.

 I'm not planning to release it as a retro-clone, or at least not yet. I'd probably have to file off some more serial numbers to do that. But, because it's relevant, I thought I'd post an excerpt showing how I've modified the races to fit easily into Classic D&D. Here's the excerpt:

Allowed Classes by Race and Maximum Level

Acrobat

Assassin

Bard

Berserker

Cavalier

Cleric

Druid

Fighter

Illusionist

Magic-User

Ranger

Thief

Human

U

U

U

U

U

U

U

U

U

U

U

U

Dwarf

N

N

N

8

6

8

N

12

N

N

N

6

Elf

N

N

12

N

N

N

N

10

N

10

N

8

Halfling

8

N

N

N

N

N

6

8

N

N

10

12

Gnome

N

N

8

N

N

N

N

6

12

N

N

8

Half-Elf

N

6

N

N

N

6

10

8

N

8

8

10

Half-Orc

6

12

N

10

6

6

N

10

N

N

N

6

Dragonborn

N

N

N

N

N

10

N

10

N

8

N

8

Changeling

N

N

N

N

N

12

N

6

8

6

N

6

Human

Minimum Scores: None.

Allowed Classes: All.

Multiclass Combinations: None.

Survival: When rolling for hit points at levels 2 through 9, human characters may roll twice and take the better result.

Dual Class: A human can switch character classes, stopping advancement in their original class and beginning again as a 1^st level character of the new class. The character must be at least 3^rd level but no higher than 8^th level before switching classes, must have a score of 13 or more in each prime requisite of the new class, plus meet any ability score requirements. The character retains all abilities gained in the original class, including hit points, saves and XP. The character gains a new XP score of 0, but gains no XP in the new class if the old class abilities (other than hit points) are used. Once the character gains 3^rd level in the new class, all abilities of the previous class may be used without penalty.

Languages: Humans can speak Common and any one language of their choice.

Dwarf

Minimum Scores: 9 Constitution.

Allowed Classes: Berserker, Cavalier, Cleric, Fighter, Thief.

Multiclass Combinations: Cleric/Fighter, Cleric/Thief, Fighter/Thief.

Senses: Dwarves have infravision (can see heat signatures: hot is red, cold is blue) up to 60' when in darkness. Room temperature objects can be seen dimly, but reading is impossible. When listening for noises, Dwarves have a 2 in 6 chance of success.

Detection: When in buildings or underground, dwarves can attempt to detect the following features, each with a 2 in 6 chance of success (a search takes 1 Turn)

• Sloping Passages
• Shifting Walls
• Architectural Traps
• New Constructions

Toughness: Dwarves are resistant to magic and poison, gaining a +4 bonus to all saving throws.

Languages: Dwarves can speak Common, Dwarven, Gnome, Goblin, and Kobold.

Restriction: Dwarves may not use two-handed swords, pole arms, or longbows due to their size.

Elf

Minimum Scores: 9 Intelligence.

Allowed Classes: Bard, Fighter, Magic-User, Thief.

Multiclass Combinations: Bard/Fighter, Bard/Thief, Fighter/Magic-User, Fighter/Thief, Magic-User/Thief.

Senses: Elves have infravision up to 60' when in darkness. When listening for noises, Elves have a 2 in 6 chance of success.

Detection: When searching for secret doors, Elves have a 2 in 6 chance of success (a search takes 1 Turn).

Immunity: Elves are immune to the paralyzing touch of ghouls. Other forms of paralysis work normally against Elves.

Languages: Elves can speak Common, Elven, Gnoll, Hobgoblin, and Orc.

Halfling

Minimum Scores: 9 Dexterity, 9 Constitution.

Allowed Classes: Acrobat, Druid, Fighter, Ranger, Thief.

Multiclass Combinations: Acrobat/Fighter, Druid/Ranger, Fighter/Thief, Ranger/Thief.

Senses: Halfling vision is equal to a human's, but they have keen ears. When listening for noises, Halflings have a 2 in 6 chance of success.

Combat Bonuses: Due to their small size, Halflings gain a +2 bonus to AC when fighting creatures of ogre size or larger. All Halflings gain a +1 bonus to attacks with all ranged weapons, including thrown weapons.

Hiding: Halflings are adept at disappearing. When outdoors in natural surroundings, they can hide with a 9 in 10 chance of success. When indoors, they can hide with a 2 in 6 chance of success.

Luck: Halflings have incredible luck, gaining a +4 bonus to all saving throws.

Languages: Halflings can speak Common, Halfling, and any one language of their choice.

Restriction: Halflings may not use large weapons (battle axe, two-handed sword, longbow, any pole arm) except for bastard swords, which they must wield two-handed.

Gnome

Minimum Scores: 9 Constitution.

Allowed Classes: Bard, Fighter, Illusionist, Thief.

Multiclass Combinations: Bard/Thief, Fighter/Illusionist, Fighter/Thief, Illusionist/Thief.

Senses: Gnomes have infravision up to 90' when in darkness. Gnomish hearing is equivalent to that of a human.

Beast Speech: Gnomes can communicate simple messages with small birds and rodents. They have good relations with those that live near their homes, receiving warnings or sending messages to other Gnomes.

Combat Bonuses: Due to their small size, Gnomes gain a +2 bonus to AC when fighting creatures of ogre size or larger. All Gnomes gain a +1 bonus to attacks against goblins and kobolds.

Innate Magic: Gnomes have a magical connection to the earth, and gain a +2 bonus to all saving throws because of their magical nature.

Languages: Gnomes can speak Common, Gnome, Dwarf, Kobold and Goblin.

Restriction: Gnomes may not use large weapons (battle axe, two-handed sword, longbow, any pole arm) except for bastard swords, which they must wield two-handed.

Half-Elf

Minimum Scores: None.

Allowed Classes: Assassin, Cleric, Druid, Fighter, Magic-User, Ranger, Thief.

Multiclass Combinations: Cleric/Fighter, Cleric/Fighter/Magic-User, Cleric/Magic-User, Cleric/Magic-User/Thief, Cleric/Ranger, Fighter/Thief, Magic-User/Thief, Ranger/Thief.

Senses: Half-Elves have infravision up to 60' when in darkness. When listening for noises, Half-Elves have a 2 in 6 chance of success.

Versatility: A Half-elf character can choose to either have the Human Survival ability, or Elven Detection ability.

Languages: Half-Elves can speak Common, Elven, and any two languages of their choice.

Half-Orc

Minimum Scores: 9 Strength or 9 Dexterity.

Allowed Classes: Acrobat, Assassin, Berserker, Cavalier, Cleric, Fighter, Thief.

Multiclass Combinations: Acrobat/Fighter, Assassin/Cleric, Assassin/Fighter, Cleric/Fighter, Fighter/Thief.

Senses: Half-Orcs have infravision up to 60' when in darkness. Half-Orc hearing is equivalent to that of a human.

Disguise: Half-Orcs can try to pass themselves off as fully Human or fully Orc. They have a 4 in 6 chance of success when attempting to do so in the community in which they were raised, and a 2 in 6 chance in the other community.

Languages: Half-Orcs begin knowing Common, Orc, Giant, and any one language of their choice.

Dragonborn

Minimum Scores: 9 Strength, 9 Charisma.

Allowed Classes: Cleric, Fighter, Magic-User, Thief.

Multiclass Combinations: Cleric/Fighter, Cleric/Magic-User, Cleric/Thief, Fighter/Magic-User, Fighter/Thief, Magic-User/Thief.

Resistance: Dragonborn gain resistance (-1 point of damage per die, +2 to saves) against any spells or breath weapons of one type of energy depending on their draconic heritage: cold, acid, poison gas, lightning, fire.

Breath Weapon: Dragonborn have a breath weapon attack of the energy type they resist, usable once per day. The attack deals 2d4 damage. Creatures in the area may Save vs. Dragon Breath for ½ damage.

• Cold/Fire: 15'×10' cone.
• Acid/Lighting: 5'×25' line.
• Poison Gas: 10'×10' cube.

Languages: Dragonborn can speak Common and Dragon.

Changeling

Minimum Scores: 9 Wisdom.

Allowed Classes: Cleric, Fighter, Illusionist, Magic-User, Thief.

Multiclass Combinations: Cleric/Fighter, Cleric/Illusionist, Cleric/Thief, Illusionist/Thief, Magic-User/Thief.

Senses: Changelings have infravision up to 60' when in darkness. Changeling hearing is equivalent to that of a human.

Heritage: A Changeling character can choose to be descended from angels, demons or faeries.

• Angel: cast light 1/day.
• Demon: cast darkness 1/day.
• Faerie: cast cause fear 1/day.

Languages: Changelings can speak Common and any one language of their choice.