Some Questions - Just Discovered S&W:WB

[The Bane]

Hello and salutations!

I started way back in the day with the Red Basic Books and played some Expert along the way too. I pretty much dropped the hobby when 'Advanced' came out for various reasons, that are not the point of this post.

I have some questions:

1) In the book under 'Hit Points' it says, "Hit points are re-rolled each time a Player Character advances in level, however, if the re-roll results in a character having fewer hit points for their new level than their previous level, ignore the re-roll and retain the prior amount." ~ Am I to take this that at 1st level I roll 1d6+1 for a Fighter (+ Con if I use it to modify HP) and then when I gain 2nd level I roll (2) 1d6+1s? In short I could roll a 4, add 1 at first level for 5hp and then at 2nd level roll 2d6's with their +1 modifiers, and say I roll 1 and a 2 I would get 5hp again ((1+1)+(2+1))=5? If I roll 2 dice for second level and they both were 1's, for a total of 4 in this example, I would keep my previous 5hp? Is this correct? I always used to just add 1 Hit Die each level to the previous amount...

2) House Rule. I read some place, even possibly here but I have been doing ALOT of S&W:WB surfing in the past few days and can't find my inspiration for the house rule question, that follows.. there was mention of taking the BAB (though I don't see one in either the White Box or Core Rules and hope I haven't made a faux pas by asking here) and using it for a 'Fighting Defensively' bonus. I have thought to take it further, but again a BAB is not mentioned in the RAW, and allow a "Combat Advantage" where the CA would be equal to the Character's BAB - the Opponent's BAB. So if a Third Level Fighter with a BAB of +3 was engaged by an opponent with a BAB of +1, the Player would have a CA of +2 (3-1=2). If the Opponent had a higher BAB, he would have the "Combat Advantage" bonus. What I am thinking about doing with this bonus is allow the Player or Opponent to divvy it up as they see fit between a To-Hit Bonus, Damage Bonus, or Armor Class Bonus. The questions that result in my mind are; does this sound reasonable, and does it have that 'Old School' feel... hence, would you use it as an Old School Gamer?

Thanks in advance, and sorry if this as been discussed already to death here on these forums,
The Bane

[Verhaden]

Edit:
Just ignore me.

[Random]

Welcome!

1. At first level the fighter would roll 1d6+1 for HP. Let's say he got 5 hit points, then he levels up! Roll 2d6 and his new hit points are the greater of this number and the previous total. This is one interpretation of how hit points are gained in the original game, as the HD progression for S&W:WB is pretty much straight copied. But...

I, however, interpret the original rules differently. I would say roll 1d6+1 at first level and then, upon leveling up to 2nd, simply subtract one hit point and then add the result of another d6 roll. Seems more sensible to me.

2. The CA house rule seems okay at first, but it would change the style of the game. Heroic characters would really pound the living crap out of lesser creatures, seriously mowing through them with their heavy damage and/or AC bonuses. This is perfectly acceptable (and appears a lot in literature), but it's a bit different from the usual style of gaming. I wouldn't call it old school or new school, it's just a house rule that may or may not add much fun for you and the other players in your game.

[Llenlleawg]

First of all, welcome! Now, to your questions ...

1) In the book under 'Hit Points' it says, "Hit points are re-rolled each time a Player Character advances in level, however, if the re-roll results in a character having fewer hit points for their new level than their previous level, ignore the re-roll and retain the prior amount." ~ Am I to take this that at 1st level I roll 1d6+1 for a Fighter (+ Con if I use it to modify HP) and then when I gain 2nd level I roll (2) 1d6+1s? In short I could roll a 4, add 1 at first level for 5hp and then at 2nd level roll 2d6's with their +1 modifiers, and say I roll 1 and a 2 I would get 5hp again ((1+1)+(2+1))=5? If I roll 2 dice for second level and they both were 1's, for a total of 4 in this example, I would keep my previous 5hp? Is this correct? I always used to just add 1 Hit Die each level to the previous amount...

Almost, but not quite. Upon advancing to a new level, roll the hit dice for the new level. There are only modifiers if listed. For example, a 1st level fighter has 1+1, but a 2nd level fighter has 2 (not 2+2). Otherwise, you've got it right. Using your example, the fighter rolls 4 at first level, plus one, yielding 5. At second level, he rolls two dice. Supposing he rolled a 1 and 2 (rotten luck!), he would keep the 5 hit points (i.e. he would not be reduced to 3!).

Adding a die each level was standard enough practice since the first supplement to the original D&D, so your habits were not so odd. The system presented in Whitebox gestures back to at least one way of interpreting the original ruleset (and that's the whole point of WB!).

2) House Rule. I read some place, even possibly here but I have been doing ALOT of S&W:WB surfing in the past few days and can't find my inspiration for the house rule question, that follows.. there was mention of taking the BAB (though I don't see one in either the White Box or Core Rules and hope I haven't made a faux pas by asking here) and using it for a 'Fighting Defensively' bonus. I have thought to take it further, but again a BAB is not mentioned in the RAW, and allow a "Combat Advantage" where the CA would be equal to the Character's BAB - the Opponent's BAB. So if a Third Level Fighter with a BAB of +3 was engaged by an opponent with a BAB of +1, the Player would have a CA of +2 (3-1=2). If the Opponent had a higher BAB, he would have the "Combat Advantage" bonus. What I am thinking about doing with this bonus is allow the Player or Opponent to divvy it up as they see fit between a To-Hit Bonus, Damage Bonus, or Armor Class Bonus. The questions that result in my mind are; does this sound reasonable, and does it have that 'Old School' feel... hence, would you use it as an Old School Gamer?

I can't say I know that house rule offhand. While tinkering is definitely "Old School" (especially because the subsystems in the game are both simple and independent enough that a little change here does not unravel everything else), I would strongly urge you to play a while as written. We rarely, if ever, see the logic, even beauty, of a system apart from actual play. Since one of the key elements of WB is the quite low value of modifiers, I would urge against playing around with them too much, until you get the hang and feel of the game. If it can get what you want without fiddling, then leave it be. Otherwise, let your actual experience of play be your guide.

As far as BAB in WB, at least in my edition from Brave Halfling Publication, it's on p. 24, where it talks about using the Ascending AC system. Basically, it deconstructs the level vs. AC chart into a series of modifiers.

Again, welcome and happy gaming!

[Lucifer_Draconus]

Here's how I interpret it:

Fighter (Level 1)

Rolls 1d6 for a result of 5. Adds 1 for a total of 6.

Fighter (Level 2)

Rolls 1d6+1 for a result of 3. Adds 1 for a total of 4. Rolls 1d6 for a result of 1.
4 plus 1 is 5.

He keeps his HP from level 1 (6) instead of taking his rolls for level 2 (5), as his new rolls resulted in a lower score.

Fighter (Level 3)

Rolls 1d6+1 for a result of 5. Adds 1 for a total of 6. Rolls 1d6 for a result of 4. Rolls 1d6 for a result of 3.
6+4+3 is 13.

Uses his new roll from level 3 (13) because it is greater than his previous HP score (6).

--

BAB = Base "to-hit" Bonus. Look under Ascending AC combat in both WhiteBox and the Core Rules.

Gah!!! I really need to read the rules..this is very confusing..might end up house ruling it if it's as it seems to be to me.

[Llenlleawg]

It's a whole lot less confusing than it looks. Said simply, the rule is, roll a new set of hit points when you gain a level. If the result is higher than your old total, take the new total. If the new roll is equal to or lower than your previous total, keep the same hit points.

(Some people do a whole lot of minus one here and roll a new die, but this is really more trouble than it's worth. The system as I outlined [which I believe is the interpretation presented in the Whitebox edition] is simpler. Plus, it gives some chance of recovering from a poor roll for hit points at a lower level!)

[iamtim]

Said simply, the rule is, roll a new set of hit points when you gain a level. If the result is higher than your old total, take the new total. If the new roll is equal to or lower than your previous total, keep the same hit points.

That's the way it reads to me. So if you're a 3rd level fighting-man with 12 HP and you level up, you reroll all your hit dice starting back at 1st level. If you wind up with 11 HP or less, you keep the 12 HP you had at 3rd level. If you wind up with 13 HP or more, then you've got what you rolled.

[Llenlleawg]

That's the way it reads to me. So if you're a 3rd level fighting-man with 12 HP and you level up, you reroll all your hit dice starting back at 1st level. If you wind up with 11 HP or less, you keep the 12 HP you had at 3rd level. If you wind up with 13 HP or more, then you've got what you rolled.

The only difference in my reading is that you don't reroll all the hit dice "starting back at first level," but rather just the number shown for the new level. That is, I don't read it to mean that 3rd level fighters roll (1d6+1)+1d6+1d6, but simply roll 3d6. Not a big difference, I suppose.

[MachFront]

That's the way it reads to me. So if you're a 3rd level fighting-man with 12 HP and you level up, you reroll all your hit dice starting back at 1st level. If you wind up with 11 HP or less, you keep the 12 HP you had at 3rd level. If you wind up with 13 HP or more, then you've got what you rolled.

The only difference in my reading is that you don't reroll all the hit dice "starting back at first level," but rather just the number shown for the new level. That is, I don't read it to mean that 3rd level fighters roll (1d6+1)+1d6+1d6, but simply roll 3d6. Not a big difference, I suppose.

Precisely, I've always taken that reading of the original rules to mean that one would roll hit points as though they were creating a fresh character at whatever level.

In short: When you level up, just look at the chart to see how many dice (and mods, if applicable) you roll. Lower total than before? Keep previous.

[Lord Kilgore]

That is, I don't read it to mean that 3rd level fighters roll (1d6+1)+1d6+1d6, but simply roll 3d6.

That's how I read it, too.