CUSTOM CLASSES:
Below are custom “Homebrew” rules for D&D 5e that may be used in games:
- Stealth: Roll Stealth only at moment of possible detection. No need to roll to enter stealth “mode”. Stealth Rolls are made against enemy or bystander’s passive perception.
- Inspiration: Inspiration can be shared. You can give it at any time to other players to use. You can use Inspiration in a number of ways that differ from RAW. You can reroll any one roll. You can cause the DM to reroll any one roll. You can “Have a thing/guy for that” you can spend it to gain a mundane item or roleplay out and discribe a NPC who “knows” something about that. Lastly you can use a Inspiration to remember something forgotten. I.E. you know the DM mentioned some persons name 3 sessions ago that you didn’t write down and now its important you know it…..Inspiration! I will give out one “Team” Inspiration that anyone can use. This “Team” Inspiration only lasts for 1 game.
- Failed Rolls/ Fumbles: Fumbles in combat can leave you open to your enemy. You won’t drop your blade or hit yourself. You are trained and proficient in that weapon…You will leave yourself open to attack. When rolling a natural 1 in combat engaged enemies can use reaction to swing at you. Rolling a 1 on a skill check will lead to a negative effect. Failed rolls that fail by only 3 or less can be turned into success with a negative consequence or penalty.
- Skill Checks: Only those characters with proficiency in skill may make skill checks to start. (Except on perception)
- Advantage/ Disadvantage: Advantage and Disadvantage can stack. If you have Advantage for an attack roll and “could” gain advantage a second time you will instead gain a +2. If you can get another Advantage it will increase to +4 and so on. The reverse is true for Disadvantage.
- Initiative: Players may choose at any time to lower their Initiative. They keep that lower Initiative for the rest of combat/encounter. You can critically pass/fail Initiative roll. If you roll a Natural 20 for Initiative you gain advantage on any rolls first round of combat. Reverse of this is true also. If you roll a Natural 1 the first round of combat all rolls have Disadvantage.
- Death Saves: Death Saves may be raised up to DC 15 at DMs option. Death Saves are rolled by DM hidden from all players. Any failed Death Saves will result in character gaining 1 level of exhaustion for each failed save upon waking up.
- Intelligence: Players gain 1 Language, Tool Proficiency, or Skill Proficiency. You may spend 3 points to gain expertise in any one skill. The reverse of this is true. If you have negative Int score you will loose proficiencies.
- Attacks: Giving a awesome description while making an attack can lead to +1 to hit.
- Criticals: Critical Hits you get max damage for your strike and may roll weapon damage again. I.E. Crit with longsword from fighter with 14 STR. 8+2=10 + 1d8. Criticals from non combat rolls can lead to small bonuses and or advantage. Exploding Dice*- These are mini crits. Whenever you roll a dice other than a d20 for damage or healing if you roll max on dice, roll that dice again and add the numbers.
- Background: Characters who write up a good, detailed, and plausable background may take a feat for free at 1st level. That feat must fit into the story of the character.
- Movement: Standing up from prone takes 15ft of movement.
- Hit Points: When rolling for new HP from Hit Dice. Reroll first rolled 1.
- Encumbrance: Items “Worn” count as half weight. Carrying 5 x Strength = “Encumbered,” -10 speed
Carrying 10 x Strength = “Heavily Encumbered,” -20 speed
Carrying 15 x Strength = Immobile - Spell Casting: In order to cast a spell that doesn’t require an Attack Roll, You must do a Spell Casting Roll. DC for roll is 8+spells level. You roll a d20 and add your bonus from casting attribute and proficiency bonus. You can critically succsseed or fail this roll.
- Massive Damage: If you take half your max HP in one turn. You must make a DC 15 Con Saving Throw. On a Fail you roll on Massive Damage Chart. ( This rule doesn’t start till after 3rd level)
1. Horrible disfiguration: Your receive a horrible wound, crippling you for life. Your hitpoint maximum is reduced by half. Your speed is reduced to 5 feet per minute, you can only crawl slowly and painfully. You cannot hold any object heavier than 5 pounds. Maybe you are paralyzed down from the neck, or hip at your GM's discretion. If you do not receive medical attention within 1d6 hours, you die in agonizing pain. The 7th level spell Regenerate can heal you from this condition. 2-3. Maimed: You lose one of your appendages of the GM's choice. If it's a leg, you cannot walk without the help of another creature, a crutch or a peg leg, and your speed is halved. If it's an arm, you cannot use two handed weapons anymore, or hold anything in your both hands. Your maximum hitpoints are decreased by 5. The 7th level spell Regenerate can heal you from this condition. 4-5. Lose an eye: You lose one of your eyes. You gain disadvantage on Wisdom (perception) checks that rely on sight and ranged attack rolls. If you have no eyes left, you are blinded. The 7th level spell Regenerate can heal you from this condition. 6-7. Crippled: You take a serious physical injury, you keep all of your appendages, but something broke inside of you. You lose 2 points from one of your physical abilities. Roll a d6. On a 1-2 it's your Strength, on a 3-4 it's your Dexterity, on a 5-6 it's your Constitution. The 5th level spell Greater Restoration can heal you from this condition. 8-9. Impaired: You take a serious mental injury. You might have hit your head. You lose 2 points from one of your mental abilities. Roll a d6. On a 1-2 it's your Intelligence, on a 3-4 it's your Wisdom, on a 5-6 it's your Charisma. The 5th level spell Greater Restoration can heal you from this condition. 10. Crushed: Many of your bones break from the damage you took. You can barely move, and you gain disadvantage on all your rolls. Whenever you attempt an action in combat, roll a DC 15 Constitution saving throw. On a failed save you lose your action, and take 2 points of bleeding damage (the bleeding might be internal). Your speed is reduced to 5 feet. You can heal naturally. Make a DC 12 Constitution saving throw at the end of every week. If you gather 3 successes, you are healed. On a failure you lose one of your successes. If you have rolled 3 failures without having any success, you die from your injuries. Having medical assistance removes the disadvantage from the roll. The 5th level spell Greater Restoration can heal you from this condition. 11-12. Broken: A few of your bones break. If the bones are in your arms, you gain disadvantage on your attack rolls and on any physical actions that need your arms to be used. If the bones are in your legs, your speed is halved, and you gain a disadvantage on any physical actions that need your legs to be used. Furthermore, you automatically fall prone if you use the Dash action. You can heal naturally. Make a DC 10 Constitution saving throw at the end of every week. If you gather 3 successes, you are healed. On a failure you lose one of your successes. If you have rolled 3 failures without having any success, your bones healed in a wrong way, and your drawbacks become permanent. The 5th level spell Greater Restoration can heal you from this condition. 13-14. Cracked: A few of your bones crack from the attack. You can still use them but it causes you constant pain. You have disadvantage on any rolls if you use your cracked bones as well. You can heal naturally. Make a DC 8 Constitution saving throw at the end of every second day. If you gather 3 successes, you are healed. On a failure you lose one of your successes. If you have rolled 3 failures without having any success, your bones healed in a wrong way, and must be broken (see above) to be able to heal. The 2nd level spell Lesser Restoration can heal you from this condition. 15-18. Ugly scar: You managed to shrug off most of the attack, and you do not have any permanent injuries, but you have a nasty scar. This gives you a disadvantage on Charisma (Persuasion) checks, and an advantage on Charisma (Intimidation) checks. The 2nd level spell Lesser Restoration can heal you from this condition. 19-20. Lucky: You survived the attack without having any permanent injuries or scars.
- Help Action: Can help out of combat with skills. In order to give Help Action the person helping must have proficiency with skill to give advantage. Those helping without proficiency can give helped person +1.
- Traps: When someone triggers a trap. DM says “Click”. The players roll Initiative. They can take split second reaction to the trap activating or try to stop trap from going off. Trap also rolls Initiative.
- Momentum: if you move 30ft in a round before making a melee attack you gain momentum to attack and may roll and add a d4 bludgeoning damage to roll.
- Bonus Action: Pulling out an item from your pack, picking up an item, handing off items, or drinking potions are all bonus actions. If you have used bonus action already you can use move or normal action to do these things.
- Potions: Drinking a potion is a bonus action, but if you use full action to drink it you get max HP back.
- Party Perks: Using roleplay to spend time with an NPC can lead to the party gaining a minor perk that all can use. Training more and more with same NPC can improve that minor perk.
- Resting: Short Rest same as RAW. Long Rest characters regain all Hit Dice but gain no HP back from long rest. They may spend Hit Dice during long rest and at the end of long rest.
- Story Armor: For every story arc completed by character they get one point of story armor. This can be used by the character to say one thing that becomes true in the world’s history.
- Exhaustion: Player may take two levels of Exhaustion to get instant critical hit. Casters may cast a second spell of 3rd level or lower for two levels of Exhaustion in a turn.
- Camp Fire Tales: During each long rest roll to see who tells the tale. The selected character then will be asked a question in game and must tell a story to respond to it. The quality of the story told can result in Inspiration or permanent bonuses. I.E. “Sir George. Tell us how you came to take this troublesome vow of non violence” The knight looks back and speaks slowly telling a tale of the time he fought a armored enemy and slayed them in single combat only to find out after the fact that it was a woman.
- Critical Growth/Loss: If you get 3 critical rolls with any one skill or save for a thing you gain a permanent +1 to that specialized thing. I.E. You gain 3 critical rolls for concentration checks to keep spell going. You would gain +1 to that save but only for doing that thing. Along with this if you gain 3 crits with a weapon type you gain +1 when using that weapon type I.E. Longsword, Quarterstaff. The reverse is true for this where if you get 3 critical fail rolls you take -1.