#d&d 3.5e

[rosstmcd]

It occurs to me that it's pretty impressive that Order of the Stick has been going so long that it started by making jokes about transitioning from D&D 3E to 3.5, and just kept going while in the outside world we went to 4E then 5E and now 5.5.

[troacctid]

Memes I've shared with my D&D group, part 1

[tabletopresources]

Image credit "Fishing" By yonaz

So in last night's 3.5 edition D&D game, my players had a chance to do some ice fishing and one player called out for one of my ad hoc mini-games (I do this a lot haha). I wanted something simple, a combo of character skill and some luck, and so in short order ended up with this very quick mini-game you can easily employ.

:

Quick Disclaimer: These fishing mini-game mechanics may not be entirely original and could resemble systems from other games I just can't recall. For my part, I'm posting this FOR sharing. Feel free to use, adapt, or modify them in your own games as you see fit. No ownership or exclusivity is claimed over this idea—enjoy and share as you wish!

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Fishing Mini-Game (D&D 3.5 Edition)

Step 1: Build the Fishing Pool

The player rolls a number of d6 equal to their relevant skill modifier (Survival or Profession (Fisher)).

Example: A character with a +10 in Survival rolls 10d6 and sets these dice aside as their "Fishing Pool".

Fishing Pool Example Roll: 1, 1, 2, 3, 3, 4, 4, 5, 5, 6.

Step 2: Perform the Fishing Check

The player then rolls 5d6 as their "Fishing Check" for one hour of fishing.

Example Roll: 1, 2, 4, 4, 6.

Step 3: Match for Combos

The player now attempts to match the dice results from their Fishing Pool with their Fishing Check results to form combos. The number of dice used in the combo determines the size of the fish:

Small Fish: Match 2 dice from the Fishing Pool with the Fishing Check.

Medium Fish: Match 3 dice from the Fishing Pool with the Fishing Check.

Large Fish: Match 5 dice from the Fishing Pool with the Fishing Check.

Example Combo:

If the player's Fishing Pool has dice showing 1, 2, 4, 4, and 6, they could match all 5 dice with their Fishing Check, catching a Large Fish.

Step 4: Fish Weight and Rations

Once the fish is caught, the total weight of the edible parts of the fish is determined by summing the values of the dice used in the combo.

Example: For a Large Fish (1, 2, 4, 4, 6), the total weight is 1+2+4+4+6 = 17 kg.

To calculate the number of rations provided by the fish:

1 kg = 2,000 calories (or half a ration).

Rations Formula: Divide the total weight of the fish by 2.

Example: 17 kg / 2 = 8.5 kg or 8 rations (we round down).

Step 5: Continue or Stop

After catching a fish, remove the dice used from the Fishing Pool.

If the player still has at least 2 dice left in their Fishing Pool, they can attempt to catch another fish using the same Fishing Check results. Otherwise, they are done for that hour.

That's all that we did and they loved it!

But since then we've considered how future games or others might expand on it with special roll combos, items, locations, setting conditions, Aid Other, etc. So here are some...

Optional Add-Ons and Considerations

Multiple Attempts Per Hour:

If the player rolls exceptionally well on their Fishing Pool, they may be able to attempt fishing multiple times in an hour. To keep this simple, I'd say if they are able to clear the first Pool entirely, they get a brand new roll, a whole new Pool as if starting fishing over, but they keep their previous catches.

Modifiers and Conditions:

You could introduce conditions that affect the Fishing Pool or Fishing Check rolls:

Good Fishing Spot: +1d6 to the Fishing Pool.

Bad Weather/Overfished Area: -1d6 (or more) to the Fishing Pool or disadvantage (see 5e, we use this idea quite a bit even in our 3.5e games) on Fishing Check rolls.

Magic/Luck Items: Grant rerolls or bonus dice to the Fishing Pool or allow rerolls of the Fishing Check.

Special Fish Combos:

Occasionally, you could allow rare or magical fish (or larger species) that provide bonuses or other effects; perhaps these are possible if the combos use specific die results:

Giant Fish: Requires a match of dice with identical values, but double the weight result (ex: a medium fish that used 5,5,5 would be a Giant of its type, and grant 15x2 or 30 kg of edible parts!).

Magical Fish: Grants temporary bonuses, like extra HP or special buffs, when consumed. (ex. A combo of sequential rising values, like 1,2,3,4,5, would grant a Magical Large fish)

Fishing Tools and Bait:

Fishing equipment or bait could modify the rolls:

Better Rods/Lines: Allow rerolls or add extra dice to the Fishing Pool.

Special Bait/Lures: Increases chances of catching better or more fish (ex. set any one die result to 6; or allow player to select the value of any one die, etc.).

Aid Other

Another player can choose to assist Player A if they are proficient in the same associated skill (Survival or Profession (Fisher), etc based on your setting):

Player B (helper) rolls for the associated skill.

If the result of their skill check (rolled like any other skill check) is 10-19, Player A gains 1 extra die in their fishing Pool.

If the result of their skill check is 20 or higher, Player A gains 2 extra dice in their fishing Pool.

Player A can then use these extra dice to help form better combos when matching against their Fishing Check.

Let me know if you use this mini-game in your D&D sessions, or revamp it for the tabletop rpg/edition you play!

I'd love to hear your stories of the biggest catch, or lamenting that one LEGENDARY CATCH that got away!

And check out Tabletop Gaming Resources for more art, tips, and tools for your game!

[seventyeight-moose]

[pachycephalosauria]

An AD&D Wizard in 3.5's court

An oddball piece of D&D trivia is that it's possible to have a D&D 3.5e character that uses kits taken directly from AD&D 2e. To do so, make a kitted 2e character then use the official Conversion Manual to update your character from 2e to 3e. Make sure you pick your kit carefully: you're trying to qualify under a very specific piece of rules text in the Conversion Manual (page 11):

If a special benefit is not included in the Player’s Handbook as a feat, treat it as a feat using the description provided with the kit.

This gets you a 100% rules-legal 3e character with a unique feat based on a 2e kit of your choice. With this souped-up character, you then do a one-step update from 3e to 3.5e using this wonderful piece of rules text from the 3.5 update booklet:

Do you need to make these changes? No.

Frankly revolutionary game design. I'm so glad this exists as a rule. I love 3.5e. It's so extraordinarily, beautifully jank.

Anyways, there's a specific kit that I think is the funniest possible choice of all AD&D kits to convert to 3.5e. Scholarly Mage, from the A Mighty Fortress green book (page 46), has what is already really bizarre rules text:

Special Benefits: The scholarly mage's biggest benefit is the ability to cast spells. He learns spells just like a standard AD&D® game wizard. However, DMs must review pages 41-44 of the DMG concerning learning, acquiring, and researching new spells and maintaining spell books. All these rules must be followed absolutely!

Yes, the rules actually say this. This is verbatim. Including the registered trademark sign. That's actually, literally in the book, and it all carries through unmodified when converting editions. You learn spells "just like a standard AD&D® game wizard" and your DM has to read books for the wrong edition of the game.

All these rules must be followed absolutely!

This is a valid D&D 3.5 feat.

Footnote: Green books are AD&D's historical fantasy line, blending real-world history with fantasy. I leave the exact implications of 'updating' a historical fantasy character to the decidedly non-historical world of 3.5e as a thought-exercise for the reader. But I will note I rolled on the d% country of origin table next to the scholarly mage kit and got a 36, which corresponds to the Holy Roman Empire.

[my-t4t-romance]

what with all the anti-trust overpriced nonsense going on with Hasbro and D&D, I just now remembered that I started collecting pdfs of D&D sourcebooks somewhere around the beginning of the pandemic! it’s mostly 3.5e and 4e (EDIT: now with lots of 5e materials added by @honeynutqueerioz!), but here’s a link to the google drive folders. let me know if yall can access the pdfs alright, and dm me if you have anything you’d like added to the collection!

D&D Resources - Google Drive

1 reblog = 1 yo ho

[nostalgiachan]

Wasn't sure what sort of trappings to give ol' Sydan here, so I thought a 3.5e sheet might be cute. Present it more like I'd colored it directly in my sketchbook.

[nex-best-thing]

Meet the new and improved Marluxia von Alteria!  

When I first designed him, I didn’t know that he was based off of the Kingdom Heart’s character. I drew him based off of the description my BF gave me, and found out later just how similar the two were. A few of my friends pointed it out as well. I finally sat down and decided to design him in a way that makes him feel like his own character.  

Marluxia is an NPC in the DnD campaign I’m in. For some backstory, he’s connected to my character, Aster, and is the reason why she can use any form of magic. He is the Chosen One, and due to a decision to try to quickly fix all the damage done by King Tyrannus, the evil king he was destined to defeat, he became immortal, and his team thought he had turned evil as well, and turned on him. This caused them to fight him and “kill” him, chopping him into pieces to keep him from reforming. 100,000 years later, Aster found his eye in an abandon facility, and implanted it. The two became fast friends and some romantic feelings have even started to develop, despite neither of them wanting a relationship for various reasons. (Aster isn’t emotionally ready for another relationship after a horrible breakup as well as an overall fear of romance, and Marly doesn’t want to go through the pain of losing someone he loves).