Ability score modifiers are rather simplified in Echelon – one-half the ability score, rounded down.
No more “ability score minus ten, divided by two, round down”, huzzah!
| Behind the Scenes: Change in Calculation |
SelectShow |
Most contested ability score checks (which includes attack rolls and saving throws) involve applying ability score modifiers on both sides. Sometimes these are positive (bonuses), sometimes negative (penalties)… but mathematically we see the same results if we add five to both sides of the equation. Int 18 vs. Int 8 is, in D&D 3.x, +4 vs. -1 (difference of five points); in Echelon it is +9 vs. +4 (still a difference of five points).
Although the numbers are slightly higher in Echelon, the math is rather simpler. Determining a modifier now becomes “score/2″ instead of “(score-10)/2″, and we are no longer in a position of adding a negative value to a die roll (or worse, subtracting one if the calculation calls for it… though d20 did a good job of getting rid of those, mostly).
This also simplifies a number of other calculations. In order to avoid zero or negative results in certain calculations I found myself adding five (or sometimes six, though that mostly went away) to make sure the result didn’t become negative. It eventually became simpler to just add five all the time and keep the value handy… at which point it became silly to hold onto the D&D 3.x modifiers.
The main change otherwise is that static check DCs will need to be increased by five points. I can live with that, considering how much easier this change makes so many other things.
|