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|
Expanded Rules for Attribute Bonus Dice |
By: Dustin M. Ramsey (DustinM@rifts-rpg.com)
Based on Concepts and Game Design by: Kevin Siembieda and
Palladium Books (http://www.palladiumbooks.com)
While Palladium's rules for attribute bonus dice work fairly well for humans (who use 3D6 in each attribute), they do not work very well for non-human races. These rules were written so that attribute bonus dice could be fairly applied to any R.C.C. or race, regardless of the number or type of attribute dice rolled.
1. In order to qualify for a bonus die, the attribute rolled must be higher than 84% of the maximum roll possible.
Example 1: on 3D6 the maximum possible roll is 18, with 84% of 18 being 15.12, so you would have to roll 16 or higher to qualify for a bonus.Example 2: the maximum roll on 4D6 is 24, where 84% of 24 is 20.16, so you need to roll 21 or higher to qualify for a bonus.
2. Once you qualify for a bonus die, the 'size' of your bonus depends on the number of dice rolled for the attribute. As such, characters getting a bonus on a 1D6 attribute (where 16.6% of all rolls are exceptional attributes) are going to get a bonus that is proportional to their attribute, and folks receiving a bonus on a 4D6 roll (which happens less than 1% of the time) will receive a proportionally larger bonus. The size of this bonus is formulated by making a ratio between the attribute being rolled and the base (which is 3D6, as supplied in the books).
Example 1: since it is easier to get an exceptional attribute on a 2D6 roll, the bonus received is 2/3 the size of the bonus for an exceptional attribute bonus on 3D6.Example 2: the exceptional bonus on 5D6 is 5/3 the size of the bonus on 3D6.
3. Expanding upon the first Conversion Book's rule about additional attribute bonus dice being gained when a 6 is rolled on an exceptional attribute, the maximum number of bonus dice a character can get is equal to the number of dice rolled for their attribute. (Note that additional bonus dice are only gained when a 6 is rolled on the prior exceptional attribute roll.)
Example 1: a player has an attribute roll of 16 on 3D6 (thus qualifying for a bonus die). If the player rolls a 6 on that bonus roll, they gain an additional bonus die. If a 6 is rolled on that die, they gain another attribute bonus die. However, because the attribute in question is 3D6, the maximum number of attribute bonus dice that can be had is three.Example 2: a player rolls a 7 for a 2D4 attribute (qualifying it for an attribute bonus die). If the player rolls a 4 (the maximum number possible) on their bonus die, then they get another bonus die. As the attribute in question on has two dice, the maximum number of bonus dice possible is two.
The end result the Expanded Bonus Dice Rules is that the harder it is to qualify for the exceptional roll, the more potential gain you have. (As the difficulty goes up, so do the rewards)! This means that if you manage that one-in-a-million exceptional roll on a 6D6 attribute, you are going to get more than a lousy 1 for your bonus!
Calculation of Exceptional Attributes
|
Number of Dice Rolled |
Exceptional Range |
Exceptional Bonus |
Maximum Exceptional Dice |
|
D6 |
|||
|
1D6 |
6 |
1D6*(1/3) |
1 |
|
2D6 |
11, 12 |
1D6*(2/3) |
2 |
|
3D6 |
16 - 18 |
1D6*(3/3) |
3 |
|
4D6 |
21 - 24 |
1D6*(4/3) |
4 |
|
5D6 |
26 - 30 |
1D6*(5/3) |
5 |
|
6D6 |
31 - 36 |
1D6*(6/3) |
6 |
|
D4 |
|||
|
1D4 |
4 |
1D4*(1/3) |
1 |
|
2D4 |
7, 8 |
1D4*(2/3) |
2 |
|
3D4 |
11, 12 |
1D4*(3/3) |
3 |
|
4D4 |
14 - 16 |
1D4*(4/3) |
4 |
|
D8 |
|||
|
1D8 |
7, 8 |
1D8*(1/3) |
1 |
|
2D8 |
14 - 16 |
1D8*(2/3) |
2 |
|
3D8 |
21 - 24 |
1D8*(3/3) |
3 |
|
4D8 |
27 - 32 |
1D8*(4/3) |
4 |
|
D10 |
|||
|
1D10 |
9, 10 |
1D10*(1/3) |
1 |
|
2D10 |
17 - 20 |
1D10*(2/3) |
2 |
|
3D10 |
26 - 30 |
1D10*(3/3) |
3 |
Example 1:
Shargi, the Dwarven Operator rolls 22 on 4D6 for his P.S. Since 22 is
within the exceptional attribute range for 4D6, he receives an
attribute bonus die. On this bonus he rolls a 5. Shargi's final P.S.
is 29! [22 rolled + (4 rolled on the bonus x 4/3 for the 4D6
ratio) + 2 for the R.C.C. bonus.]
Example 2:
Aarg, the Orc Headhunter, rolls 11 on 2D6 for his P.B. attribute. As
his roll is more than 84% of the maximum on 2D6, he qualifies for a
bonus die. For this attribute bonus die, he rolls a 6! Since that
roll qualifies Aarg for another bonus, he rolls an additional 1D6,
and gets a four this time. Aarg's final P.B. attribute is an
incredible 17! [11 rolled for the attribute + (6 rolled on the
bonus die x 2/3 for the 2D6 ratio) + (4 rolled on the second bonus
die x 2/3 for the ratio).)
Example 3:
Plutar, the Gargoyle Lord, rolls 26 on 5D6 for her SPD attribute. On
her bonus die, she rolls a 2. Her final SPD attribute is now 29.
[26 rolled for the attribute + (2 rolled on the attribute bonus
die x 5/3 for the 5D6 ratio).]
Example 4:
Luckey, the Kittani Warrior, rolls 18 on 3D6 for his P.P. attribute.
On his attribute bonus die, he rolls a 6! This qualifies him for an
additional bonus die, where he rolls another 6! This gets him another
attribute bonus die, and he rolls another 6!! Since Luckey's P.P.
attribute is based on 3D6, he is limited to a maximum of three bonus
dice. His final P.P. attribute is 39!! [18 rolled + (6 for the
first bonus x 3/3 for the ratio) + (6 rolled on the second bonus die
x 3/3 for the ratio on 3D6) + (6 rolled on the third attribute bonus
die x 3/3 for the ratio) + 3 for his R.C.C. bonus.] Note:
the odds of rolling six 6's in a row are 1 in 46,656.