Needing a new Leveling System, D&D

[Jamis]

I"ve started something rather larger than intended and now find myself in over my head. I've got a homebrew world, homebrew character sheets, and a good sized chunk of homebrew rules. But my players deserve everything I can give them though, right? I've made them custom characters before, but they still feel a little limited and hate feats. We have all the books and everyone spends hours going through the 500+ feats of 3.5e because they want the perfect feat for their character (not their class). They love the world which plays like Avatar:tlab by way of FFXII and Zelda. They love the simplified Char Sheets, and the open-ended rules, but how can I simplify classes and feats? I've been looking at the Skill Tree System from blizzard and the Sphere System from FFX. I want to steer away from flow breakers, and am looking for systems that incorperate skill and ability bonuses. If you have a system that you're working on, or that you perfected that is sort of what I'm looking for I would love to hear from you. Even if I don't use your system your way, I may like one or more ideas. Please help, and if I use even a small part of your system, or even change it, I will give you credit.

Minor post script: I am looking for a way to get away from classes all-together, and prefer point systems, as do my players. Alot of what I have done is inspired by games I have played, so don't be afraid to point me to somewhere you pulled from. (I've pulled from MTG, Mass Effect, Diablo II, Hellboy, etc.)

 

[Jamis]

Also, if anyone can direct me to where I really need to post this, tell me. I hate not knowing where to go.

 

[aegix drakan_v1legacy]

Snip so you see this

Personally, I'm making a DND variant campaign for my GF. I dunno if it'd fit your criteria, but here's the system I'm using:

I'm keeping it really simple. Base stats are just "+X" for each stat, with the "X" increasing whenever I feel the player has acheived something notable in that stat, or if they perform a really awesome accomplishment, at which point they can put a point into anything they want.

the +X will apply to any rolls they make for that stat (up to +5), and anything above that only counts for extra damage, etc.

in terms of skills, I'll be making them up on the fly based on how they fight, so they get skills that fit them. Plus, I will give the player leeway in combat to try creative combat solutions, which I may adapt into moves for them. Basically, new skills are added due to creative play.

Lastly, I'm thinking of implementing a "charge" system for skills, where they have 5 "MP" (basically), which recover by resting for a turn, or for using an action other than a skill.

Hopefully, this gave you some ideas.

 

[Thomiroth]

Jamis, may I suggest that for this sort of issue you move away from DnD? I know it's a hard move to make, but sometimes people get so caught up in the idea that they can do anything in one system that they never ask 'is this system right for this adventure?'

I would definitely try to steer you towards a nice points based system (like Hero System) here, because you can literally make ANYthing in it, as long as you can define it.

Yes, it is difficult to learn a new system, but to be honest, I can at least say it'll give you a few ideas.

Also, off-topic, thanks for posting this, since I now can say 'I was a friend of Jamis. When I was bored, he needed help with his campaign.'

 

[Toriver]

As the poster above me said, it may be beneficial to look at other published systems for inspiration. My own homebrew system, for example, draws from the d20, Rifts, and White Wolf (World of Darkness) systems for its mechanics, in addition to a good number of my own original ideas. If you want a point-based system for character features, GURPS would probably be the best example of an implementation of that, while the White Wolf and Rifts systems also have those features to a degree.

 

[Jamis]

Sorry for the late reply! Thank you guys! I've noticed a trend here and on Obsidian Portal. I need a new system. So I grabbed a couple. I've grabbed certain features from Vampire the last Masquerade, Rifts, Original 20, and a couple homebrew I've found. Prototype game tonight! If it works I will post it!