Halfing paladin with a bastard sword?

[tylermo]

Finally! It looks like I've managed to cobble together a group of 3-4 people to play C&C. Three of them have played games before, but are new to C&C. One of these guys has made an unusual character...a halfling paladin with a bastard sword. I don't want to discourage the guy, but...yes or no? Suggestions?

[Rigon]

Yes, but only as a two handed weapon.

R-

[Omote]

Yes or no? YES!
Suggestion? Awesome.

~O

[tylermo]

The guy also has a buckler while using that two handed weapon. Will this be a problem. Another problem...he has 58 pounds of gear(sword, buckler, armor, etc.). The character only weighs 30 pounds. Is there a weight adjustment for small characters' equipment? I think his EV as figured by the book came out to -5 off of the 20 speed, and +1 to all dex-based challenges.

[kreider204]

Congrats on getting the game together - it's about time.

I would agree that a halfling should only be able to use a bastard sword two-handed. However, I would also say that it only does 1d10 damage (i.e., the damage for a full-sized person wielding it one-handed).

Re: the buckler. I'm not sure any shield can be used with a two-handed weapon, unless there's an exception for the buckler I'm not aware of.

Re: encumbrance. I would definitely scale it for character size (about half for a ... wait for it ... halfling. ) Although, to be honest, I tend to handwave encumbrance anyway.

[alcyone]

I'm with Omote. It's legal, it's awesome, play it as is.

I ran a 3.5 game and one player wanted to be a gnome monk. It ended up being a crippling choice due to size penalties. These aren't in RAW C&C and good riddance to them AFAIC.

Weapons: Any
Armor: Any

Before you limit this, and only you know your players and world, is this going to solve a problem, or make the game better for everyone, or is it just going to crush the dreams of a stout hearted halfling who never heard the word "can't".

I wouldn't sweat the encumbrance either, unless it's getting ridiculous.

[alcyone]

As far as the buckler, if you have Castellan's Guide to Arms and Armor, selectively reading only the positive parts; this is the purpose of the buckler, to use both hands to wield. It does go on to say that it offers no protection against thrusting attacks.

[Tadhg]

Yes, but only as a two handed weapon.

R-

Agree if the char is a halfling.

But halfings can wield them one handed!

[tylermo]

Two of my players finished making characters tonight. Elf assassin and the halfling paladin. I'll be putting these suggestions to good use. My third player was unable to make her character tonight, but I'll probably catch up with her before Monday. Our possible fourth player says he'll be available next Monday, as well. I hope so since we'll be kicking things off with A0 the Rising Knight. I'll run the first five modules out of the Umbrage Saga book. A6 and 7 will be from the individual adventures. I still have to get A8 at some point, as well as the maps of Aihrde. Does anybody remember how many more adventures are left? Seem to remember hearing about 16 total. A0-A8 should last awhile.

[alcyone]

Does anybody remember how many more adventures are left? Seem to remember hearing about 16 total. A0-A8 should last awhile.

13 in total, according to the current product list, with A13 being a special 180 page book.

[tylermo]

13. That's right. Good news. Even if the Trolls don't wrap it up by the end of this year, I have more than enough to last into 2012.

[Relaxo]

Late to the thread but I say, Halfling paladin is a go!
I too, tend to fake it with encumbrance, but really, 58 pounds on a 30 pound character? hmmm....
if it works by the book, then ok, but have you seen the Troll Lord video aobut encumbrance? Can YOU carry twice your bodyweight and still run and leap and ride a horse and fight? I usually don't count armor at all.

He could buy a mule, you know. Just sayin'.

But whatever, the most important thing is the fun.

[tylermo]

Yeah. I'm still pondering the weight and how much he's carrying. As for the rest, I think it could work. I'm just happy to have the players. This guy is in his last year of highschool. He, and some of his slightly older friends play Pathfinder, Magic, and HeroClix(I think). One of our other players is 23. His grandparents raised him on all things geek, and he has just gotten into roleplaying games in the last year. Pathfinder, I believe. Now, he's trying out some C&C. Says he likes roleplaying opportunities, and not just combat. That's what you want to hear. Gotta get my other two players going, and we're off.

[Relaxo]

sounds sweet!
Way to mentor the young'uns, brother!

[Rigon]

For the armor issue, you could say that he has to have specially made armor and it costs x amount more or less, depending on how you want to play it. It could weigh half the listed weight, but have the same EV.

R-

[Joe]

I like the idea of common sense when using encumbrance.

As a firefighter that has actually carried 50 plus pounds up a mountainside for 16 hour plus shifts in the form of a portable water pump and initial attack gear I say whoa way no way!

As a gamer that is reallly really really tired of fixating on stuff that doesn't matter I say whoopee let him go!

But getting a mule would spare the absurdity factor by ten score.

[Go0gleplex]

Back in the days of 1e or 2e (I don't remember which exactly), equipment for small characters weighed only half what the book value was. Exception to this being weapons of course. Obviously, a suit of leather sized for a halfling is not going to weigh the same as that sized for a human (default being medium size).

[tylermo]

The guys have purchased a mule, so that'll take care of some of the extra gear. I'll get it figured out before next Monday to be certain. A third player, an old ex-girlfriend from 15-16 years ago, is joining the group. She's playing a half-elf druid. I think she's only lightly encumbered. If I don't get another player, I'll probably round out the group with a human fighter or cleric. I'll run that character, taking orders from the rest of the gang since I have knowledge of the adventure content. Good times ahead. I wonder how long it'll take to play A0-A8? Not to mention the yet-to-be released A9-A13. Good times ahead.

[Relaxo]

If you were mean, have something eat/steal their mule with the packs still on it... a Roc would work nicely.

[Arakor]

If you were mean, have something eat/steal their mule with the packs still on it... a Roc would work nicely.

*yoink!*
I am so using that idea on some of my players. That goes in the folder along with "shipwrecked" and "mis-teleported".

[tylermo]

I've warned a couple of them that the donkey can't always be at their side. Even if it fits in a dungeon corridor, it would be hee-hawing all the way. An amusing thought, but the reality of monsters being alerted to the party's presence(by a stubborn ass)would soon become evident. Speaking of the mule, are the stats in M&T or the PHB? And I'll be damned if I can find the stats for the walrus listed in the phb. It's 350gp, but no stats. Also missing, the light walrus and the war walrus. Maybe small demi-humans could ride the beast, or it could serve as a pack animal. I love that Stephen included it. haha

[tylermo]

I've warned a couple of them that the donkey can't always be at their side. Even if it fits in a dungeon corridor, it would be hee-hawing all the way. An amusing thought, but the reality of monsters being alerted to the party's presence(by a stubborn ass)would soon become evident. Speaking of the mule, are the stats in M&T or the PHB? And I'll be damned if I can find the stats for the walrus listed in the phb. It's 350gp, but no stats. Also missing, the light walrus and the war walrus. Maybe small demi-humans could ride the beast, or it could serve as a pack animal. I love that Stephen included it. haha

[Relaxo]

If you were mean, have something eat/steal their mule with the packs still on it... a Roc would work nicely.

*yoink!*
I am so using that idea on some of my players. That goes in the folder along with "shipwrecked" and "mis-teleported".

Just be sure to roll a die first and pretend it was a random encounter. LOL

The CKG makes a point of exploring how a character can rely on their equipment, or the equipment can become part of the campaign... it's fun sometimes to see how people react without their toys. (not often)

[DeadReborn]

If you were mean, have something eat/steal their mule with the packs still on it... a Roc would work nicely.

Or, if your game was in Ravenloft, the party and the mule go into the Mists but only the party comes out on the other side.

[Relaxo]

That's perfect. Your donkey was ... innocent.....

[Lord Dynel]

That's perfect. Your donkey was ... innocent.....

Dude...donkeys are never innocent. Never.

[Relaxo]

DAMN! That's incriminating, my friend.

Nevertheless, I wanna party with you, cowboy.

[tylermo]

There was that donkey in Clerks II, but enough said about that.

[kreider204]

MULE

AC: 13
Move: 30 ft.
HD: 3
Attacks: 1 Bite (1d2), 2 kicks (1d6)
Intelligence: Animal
Alignment: N
Size: L

[Rikitiki]

...or the alternate:

ASS

AC: 4
Move: we all hope so...
HD: 1/4
Attacks: hemmorhoids for 1/2 HP d8-times-per-day
Intelligence: y'mean there really ARE smart-asses?
Alignment: N
Size: Well, I've seen all sizes...