I think that Wizards of the coast came out with a
Players guide that is a companion to the Handbook and in
the back of this book they gives a list of example
names for each race. But just read a couple books I
make my own names up like Thanien, Liriala, Shar'dan,
and my favorite Elven wizard Lucienda Crescentmoon

If you read your third Ed. Players Handbook you
will see that a character with those weakness is able
to re-roll stats. Page 8 states if your modifiers
are lower less than or equal to Zero or your highest
ability score is 13 or lower you may reroll to get better
stats. Of course this is unless your DM is a prick and
makes almost all his own rules

continued from "A question as a
player".<br><br>My DM sucks. Morale is low among the players, and,
with one person leaving, he has brought in a friend
with an "uber-PC" bedecked with items. The rest of us
are 5th to 7th level now, and still counting coppers
to pay for the room at the inn. There is a massive
plot in the game world that none of the players give a
rat's ass about. Last Thursday, I did everything I
could to befriend an NPC (do some roleplaying), and
never even got a name. The adventures are kind of
boring, the NPCs have less character than the NPCs in
Diablo I, the rewards are pittance, and the DM plays
favorites. Oh, and the attacking orcs circle around the
fighter with the longspear and combat reflexes because
(somehow) they already know that he has combat
reflexes.<br><br>Two-thirds of the group got together a few weeks ago and
decided to play a "revolving GM" game. The idea was that
this campaign would be played on days when the main
game would be cancelled. (The main game broke for
Christmas.) Of course, this "alternate game" is much more
popular.<br><br>So, how to avoid "stealing his group". We all agree
that the GM has worked really hard, and feel bad for
the guy. He probably has worked too hard -- the
adventure is more about this convoluted plot than about the
PCs. I guess what we are really asking ourselves is
"how do we avoid the appearance of stealing his
group".<br><br>BTW, when we tried talking to him, he got defensive.
And he complains that he has a bunch of complainers
in his group.<br><br>Well, what we are going to try
to do is do a phased withdrawal. One has already
left, another will leave very soon (probably this
week), I will hang in for a few weeks, and the last guy
will leave a couple weeks after that. We have already
decided to move the "alternate" game to a different night
-- and I can't be in that many games for too
long.<br><br>Just ranting, but the only reason I stay is because I
like my character -- and I have wasted too much time
in bad games because I liked the
character.<br><br>OfficeRonin

Ah!<br><br><br><br><br>Choo!

We are essentiallt agreeing as far as I can tell...I was just adding to the
previous post I made, more than anything.

I don't understand what you are trying to say.  If they are at equal levels,
then what is the point?

Until they reach equilibrium, yes. Which is just
fine. you can learn a lot from a pro, but if you are
surrounded with people of your same skill, its hardwer to
learn anything, yes? Consider what happenes at
work...No one gets ahead unless they have someone to learn
from, except very very slowly. People get promoted to
their highest level of incompetence and stop.

It is impossible for the new character to get further behind.  The character
would gain levels faster than the other higher level characters.

Ah, I must have missed that part.  My bad.

The forgotten Realms method already takes that into account when you calculate
it out.  Using the FR method almost guarantees the lower level character will
catch up.  look at it again.

Perhaps you could allow the lower level character a 10-15% experience bonus to
represent learning by observing an old hand at work.

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href=http://groups.yahoo.com/group/unofficial_Core3eDragonlance_Information/
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I gotta DISAGREE. Doing that really makes it
tougher and tougher for that character to keep up. I used
to have that sort of rule, but this one guy just got
farther and farther behind and he was having a heck of a
time not dying as the monsters got toughter and he
wasn't ready for it. So I just go with the lowest level
player, period.

That is a problem that can be solved by bringing in the new characters at the
average level minus one (or two).<br><br>That would make it work out.

You're welcome.<br>I am after all, "The Dungeon Master!", close cousin to the
all powerful Oz.

The problem with "average party level" rules is
that people can actually LEVEL just by killing off
their character! <br>I choose the middle ground ion my
game: you start at the lowest level party member at the
time you enter the game (so if there are 3 5th, 2 7th
and an 8th level player, you start at 5th. That way
there is NO advanage to dying nor do you set a new
player that hasn't played at all above one who has been
with the group and had to EARN that level. Using the
average level thing, you'd start the guy off at 6th which
is unfair to the two 5th level players.

I disagree.  We should mark it in our day-planners.<br><br>Is that better?

Hey -- I guess I was too busy swearing to remember to thank you for the info. 
Thanks!<br><br>OfficeRonin

Wannabesuperman --<br><br>I think this date
should be marked on our calendars. It is the first time
we have ever agreed.<br><br>Starting way behind in
2nd Ed (or 1st Ed, for us elderly) was not a problem
due to the xp tables. Now it is.<br><br>OfficeRonin

You should do your DM a favor and recommend that
from this time forward he should let new characters
come in based on the average party level. That makes
more sense for this type of gaming system.<br><br>At
the very lowest I would say two levels below party
level.<br><br>Anyway, keep playing your character until it gets better,
which it eventually will, but until then use your bad
situation to convince the DM to change his
policy.<br><br>If two new players joined your group, would one of
them not even be first level yet?

Dammit, Dammit, Dammit. I knew those alternate
rules for XP were somewhere.<br><br>I spent a few hours
pouring through books searching for it, and, although I
knew I read it somewhere, couldn't find it. (I gave
up, and figured I had read it in a Dragon I had
borrowed and returned.)<br><br>At least I remembered it,
and posted it as a first choice to solve the
problem.<br><br>OfficeRonin

Rogues and Rangers get ABUSED for their first
level advantages, but the rogue in particular should be
left as is. He NEEDS those points so they may look
like a lot but when you actually disperse them they
are a little thin, kinda like the old 2E system. I
think that a better solution to the Rogue "problem" is
to force a LENGTHY character background for any
player who PLANS to multiclass fully detailing interest
in the other classes. I recommend this be TWICE the
length of a normal background you require. Then REQUIRE
adherence to the gist of this character.<br><br>As for
Rangers, they also suffer the first level syndrome. My
recommendation there is to switch the Feats a Ranger gets to Bow
Feats. First of all, this makes more sense and better
equips a Ranger in comparison to Fighter types (Fighters
BLOW RANGERS AWAY above 10th level). Secondly, Bows
are not nearly as attractive Feats to the "power
gamer type" who only take it so they can eventually
wield two Great axes simultaneously!!! LOL. If folks
still want to Multiclass Ranger, then requitre the SAME
lengthy background. In fact, anyone WHO IS GOING TO
MULTICLASS NEEDS THIS IN THEIR BACKGROUND! that way yer not
picking on anyone.

Haste bonuses and effects don't stack, since they
are a named bonus type. So since the sword is giving
you a haste bonus, this should be a non issue,
shouldn't it? Just like the Psionic power Schism doesn't
stack with Haste, a Haste bonus would not stack with
the swords Haste bonus. <br>If it isn't a haste
bonus, you still face the fact that a sneak attack only
works once a round I beleive after which the enemy is
wary of you.

1. This is a problem<br>2. Here is what I would
do: The DM has the policy for a reason, but given the
situation, it appears that an exception WOULD be helping the
game. Since this is clearly beyond YOUR personal
control, and you are already in the game, I recommend that
the DM consider the way in which FR gives XP and ask
the DM to create a reprieve in the battle (for
whatever reason) long enough for you to benefit from the
XP that's been gained. Maybe the bad guys need to
remarshall and rethink their attack giving you all a little
time. This way, instead of "breaking the house rules",
he can allow an exception for XP to be awarded a
little early. FURTHERMORE:<br>This is clearly a greater
danger to you than your party members, SO, if you'll
flip to page 299 in your Forgotten Realms Campaign
Setting book (ask for one if you don't have it) you'll
find the way in which the DM might like to award XP to
you for this titanic battle. Using this method, the
lower level YOU are in relation to the CR, the better
the XP, which effectively brings you slowly and
inexorably up to speed with the other players.

Just my own 2 bits.<br><br>This is definately a
problem on the part of the GM - I can only assume the GM
has implemented this rule many times (which says
interesting things about player turnover) to account for the
wide spread of levels. The fact that he is willing to
shoot himself, and his players, in the foot, to
maintain this rule, is something of a warning sign. I'm
goign to go even further out on a limb and say that
this GM sounds like one who has never really made the
jump to the idea of making the game fun for all
involved.<br><br>Unfortunately, I imagine the best solution (Get the hell out)
isn't viable, and that leaves you in a bit of an
uncomfortable position. Certainly, sucking up to the GM or
higher level characters is technically an option, but a
bit too much of a blow to the dignity to really be
worth considering.<br><br>Best bet might be to get the
GM to help you - approach him with an emphasis on
how you are concerned you are not pulling your
weight, and you want to know what HE thinks you can do
about it. It's possible that it may not help (and given
the amount of thought the GM has clearly put into
this, I'd put good odds on it not helping), but there
is an outside chance that the GM may have some good
suggestions which are already tuned to their playstyle. If
you're _really_ lucky, he might realize the foolishness
of his model.<br><br>Probably not much help here,
I'm afraid, but at the very least, I felt obliged to
pipe in that that sounds like a seriously unenviable
situation and, I hope, not one which is indicative of the
majority of games.

Like I said, take on another character as a
mentor. Perhaps you could act as a temorary cohort until
the experience difference is less dramatic. And you
should surpass the (other?)cohort quickly if your DM
plays by the rules.

Hi I have a yahoo group for playing D&D online. if you would like to join it is
called playdanddonline <br>thank you.

I have no problem being the weakest link. One
problem is that the 6th level PC who takes leadership has
a sidekick (a cohort) who is significantly higher
level than my character, who is a full-fledged party
member. The really big problem is that I really cannot
hang with the group. Wulfgar was much lower level than
Drizzt, but he was a barbarian with a boatload of hit
point. As a result, he could hang with Drizzt and play a
role. Any area effect weapon that would weaken the
party would kill me.<br><br>From a role-playing point
of view, I have a great deal of trouble
understanding why my PC would be in a such a group. Wouldn't
you feel guilty if you had nothing to contribute to
the group?<br><br>OfficeRonin

I'd suggest accepting being the weakest link.
None of Drizzt's companions were anywhere near his
level of skill, but they still adventured together.
Maybe you could take on one of the higher level
characters on as a mentor. Be wulfgar to his drizzt.

OK, I was bored. So, I went to the big gaming
store that has a board (does it terrify anyone else to
call numbers off a gaming board? I've met some real
winners...), called some of the numbers, and just joined a new
D+D group.<br><br>Here's the deal. The DM starts new
players one level below the lowest level character in the
party. When I started, there were 3 5th level PCs, 1
4th, and 1 3rd. As a result, I was 2nd. (Fact is, I
knew none of this, having been told that everyone else
was 3rd.) In addition, I started at the bottom of 2nd
level -- the 5th level PCs leveled before I
did.<br><br>When I joined the rest of the group, they said to the
DM, "That's great -- we needed a mage -- but we
needed somebody competent!" (Actually, I'm a
monk/mage.)<br><br>As a result, we are having problems. Right now, the
party is fighting endless hordes of lizard men
supported by priests. These creatures are incredibly lethal
to a 2nd level PC. The players running the 6th level
PCs are bored. The DM is frustrated at not being able
to design an encounter that would be challenging for
6th level PCs, yet survivable for 2nd level (now 3rd
level) PCs.<br><br>Fact is, I am holding my own, as I am
a pretty good at tactics. Doing a 5ft step in front
of the party's line, fighting full defense (I have 5
ranks of Tumble), but placing 3 enemies in a flank for
sneak attacks by our rogue-heavy group -- I'm doing
this fairly consistently. Half of the attacks I have
done have been attacks of opportunity. Soon, however,
(when my one hour of mage armor runs dry) I will have
to retreat to behind the lines, plinking with my
crossbow, and generally being an experience point sponge.
Anything else would kill me.<br><br>To sum up, no one is
happy. Me, the DM, and the other players all have
problems with the situation.<br><br>Alright -- the first
question is, "Do you see this as a problem?" The second
question is, "Assuming the answer to the first is 'yes',
what would you do about it?"<br><br>OfficeRonin