Fred Jandt <fajandt@yahoo.com> wrote:
>>When they are done with that section, they will be
laying down their own vengeance. ;)<<
Nice.
>>I have it, but haven't looked through it. Besides, we
can't use those spellcasting rules because they aren't
part of the OGL.<<OGL? What's that?
In any case, I have a better idea.
The Huckster class in the D20 sourcebook does pretty much what it's supposed to do. It gives AD&Ders a way to play something akin to a Huckster without making their brains hurt with new rules. However, it doesn't really add anything new to their experience because they're more or less playing a D&D sorcerer with a gambling fetish. The class gets the job done, I suppose, but it doesn't really capture the spirit of the Huckster, the idea of playing for the very highest of stakes, where simple bad luck can mean ruination. Which leads me to offer these ideas:
1) Change the backlash rules a bit: say that a Huckster will now Backlash if his roll on the D20 is a natural 1 AND/OR if his total roll is reduced below his maximum potential ranks in Hexslingin' for his current level.
2) Add the Manitou Die: Whenever a Huckster casts a spell, a die is rolled depending on his current level: Levels 1-3 roll 1d4, 4-6 roll 1d6, 7-9 roll 1d8, 10-12 roll 1d10, 13-15 roll 1d12 and 16+ roll 1d20. The numbers generated by the Manitou dice represent the additional NEGATIVE modifier that is applied to Hexslingin rolls. Also, these dice are capable of acing (if they roll their maximum number 4 on a 1d4, they roll again and add the total until they stop acing). The idea is that more potent Hucksters will tend to be sought out by more potent manitous. The "little guys" will mostly avoid them. However, as the die types increase, the chance of acing decreases, which reflects the Huckster's growing experience in judging his opposition better.
3) Spells do not cost fatigue/spell-points, etc. to cast. Though they might cost time and lives...
4) Hucksters may choose to cast their spells at other than their current caster level. They have a minimum/maximum level equal to half their current manitou die type. So, a 7th level Huckster could attempt to cast his spell at up to 11th level of ability (or down to 3rd level of ability). This is not without addition risks. The difference between the levels is added to (or subtracted from) both the difficulty of the Hexslingin' roll AND the maximum potential skill ranks in Hexslingin' (for the purposes of backlash only) Examp: A 4th level Hexslinger decides to cast Soul Blast at 7th level ability. Thus, he'll add 3 points to his difficulty even before the Manitou die is applied. Also, instead of backlashing on a natural 1 or a spell total of 8 (his maximum base rank in Hexslingin'), he'll backlash on an 11 or lower on his spell total. On the other hand, if he'd wanted to cast the hex at the 2nd level of ability, he'd only backlash on a 6 or lower, and his difficulty number to cast the hex woiuld be reduced by 2. Wise Hucksters tend to use the minimum required power to accomplish their aims and to stack the odds in their favor (Know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em, know when to walk away, and know when to run).
5) Using the rules under 4, Hucksters can also attempt to cast Hexes that are beyond their normal ability. Along with the penalty for casting a spell at a higher-than-normal level, Hucksters receive and additional penalty equal to (Spell-level *2 - 1) - (Current Huckster level) which is against applied to the difficulty and the maximum base rank for purposes of backlash. Exam: If the 4th level caster above wanted to cast a 4th level spell, his penalty would be an additional 3 points added to the casting difficulty and the maximum base rank.
Obviously, these ideas give the Huckster a great deal more potential power, but I think that they also apply a proportional amount of risk.
Fred J.
=====
Fred Jandt
Freelance writer/editor/designer
fajandt@yahoo.com
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