Talk:Monstrous Player Characters (3.5e Variant Rule)

How do I solve the problem of even-CR monsters potentially being stronger choices than odd-CR monsters? (Since you take 50% racial levels for even-CR monsters, and more for odd-CR monsters.)

For the most extreme example, a CR 3 and 4 monster have 2 racial HD each, but that's 66% of the CR 3's HD/CR, while it's only 50% o the CR 4's HD/CR.

One thought is to reduce the racial ability score bonuses (+2 to only one ability score? No bonuses to ability scores?), but I'm not sure if that's too hard of a nerf or not. --Ghostwheel (talk) 03:23, 10 June 2014 (UTC)

Monster CR doesn't really translate well to player power anyways. Even look at your Succubus example: is it really fair for players to have access to unlimited teleporting at 6th level? Or being able to have four permanent monster lackeys? You already know my reservations with the monster CRs in 3.5 anyways though. This variant is just putting that imbalance on the player's side. So, I don't expect some sweeping rule for even or odd CR monsters to make much of a difference to the outcome. Some monsters are going to have grossly overpowered abilities for their CR and some are going to be grossly underpowered. --Aarnott (talk) 13:53, 10 June 2014 (UTC)

You know I have the same reservations. That said, players will want to play monsters regardless, and not just pale imitations that follow the same power as PCs.

Now let's pretend for a moment that monsters were created perfectly, and that CR meant what is says it does--that a monster of CR X has abilities that are in-line with a level X character (that is, basically, what it boils down to, more or less). Players might still be gimped playing that race were in the case due to a lack of scaling of abilities.

As for the specific example, it's level 7 :-P Though yes, that doesn't make a huge difference. Still, isn't that better than having them waste 12 levels on their fantasy of playing a succubus and being *entirely* useless? Or not being able to progress any other shtick? Or having a complete glass jaw HP-wise to compensate for their utility? Or to fall off the RNG as far as ability scores and AC are concerned?

I agree that this isn't perfect, not because of the design principles, but because monsters aren't created very well, or with abilities that meant to be used in player hands. Despite that, I think it's the best compromise I've seen to date on playing actual monsters with all their actual abilities amongst PCs. That, is what I'd like you to consider its merits on. --Ghostwheel (talk) 11:38, 12 June 2014 (UTC)

Another point I want to make; first, if this variant were available, would you necessarily be a monster at H and VH levels of balance? If so, then there's a good chance that it might be overpowered, if it eliminates other options from being viable compared to it, though I don't think that's the case. --Ghostwheel (talk) 19:20, 12 June 2014 (UTC)