How many disadvantages?

[quozaxx]

I'm thinking about being a GM and will be using 5th edition (hence "disadvantages" instead of "complications")

 

Now,  I want the heroes to be 350 points total, but have always thought 150 points of disads was too much.   

 

I won't go over 100 or under 60.  I want the players to pick disads that I will probably use against them.  

 

So, in your opinion,  what is the "perfect " amount of disads for starting characters?

 

 

[Gnome BODY (important!)]

I think the point-ratings are a load of hot nonsense and any concept of "balance" between Disadvantages is pure gibberish. 

I feel the best method is to just give the players their 350 (or however many) points and tell them to take two or three disadvantages that they want to have come up.  That way you've got plot hooks the players want used, but you're not drowning in a giant pile of detritus picked to sum to some arbitrary number. 

[eepjr24]

Depends on your players, really. Generally I offer a set of guidelines (you should have between X and Y disadvantage points) and let them build to what they want. If someone wants a number not divisible by 5, I still allow the old "quirks", which are up to 4 points of 1 point quirks (When battle approaches, always says "Smoke 'em if you got 'em", Likes to use puns in battle, etc.). I have some players who always max out points, I have others who just take what they see as core to the character and fit their points to that. I have other guidelines as well (you should have at least N spent in skills that represent your job, interests, knowledge) and try to work with players to understand how things will come up in the game and why I have the guidelines.

 

- E

[archer]

As a player, I've always maxed out whatever number of points which the GM would allow because I always have trouble wedging in my character concept into a certain number of points.

 

So if you allow 150 points in disadvantages, my perfect number is 150. If you allow only somewhere between 60 and 100, then my number is 100.

 

Now if you're saying, "I'm going to give you as many points as you need to build your character but I want you to tell me how many disadvantages you'd prefer to roleplay", that's a different question. I prefer 4-5 (non-hunted) disadvantages to roleplay.

[assault]

14 hours ago, quozaxx said:

So, in your opinion,  what is the "perfect " amount of disads for starting characters?

 

Obviously, "it depends". There is no real need for me to say this.

 

In a combat heavy game, the key disads are those that will affect the character in combat. Non-combat stuff doesn't need to be measured by points. (That includes skills, perks and so on, not just disads.) This will restrict the characters' disads. Around the 60 mark would work well enough. You can allow more (up to 100), but point out to the players that their characters will lose fights because of their disads.

 

In a soap opera game, different disads will tend to be important. The combat ones can apply as well, of course, so characters in this kind of game will probably tend towards higher totals. Of course, they should also buy more fluff skills, so they shouldn't actually be more powerful than the first group.

 

Incidentally, the first group are just as capable of being roleplayed as the latter. Filling a character sheet with fanfic ingredients isn't inherently superior to making it up as you go along.

 

Oh, right, a conclusion.

 

60-100 is fine. Obviously most players will take the maximum value available, which is what 4e and 5e assume, and 6e tends to enforce. ("Tends to", because it's not strictly mandatory BtB.)

 

100 is probably what you want.

I'll roughly pick a random set of disads:

15 Secret ID

20 Psych Limitation

15 DNPC

20 Hunted

...

 

There's 70, without thinking too hard. The character already has a life outside adventuring - the Secret ID and the DNPC.

 

No specific weaknesses yet. (Vulnerability, Susceptibility, Accidental Change, Physical Limitation etc.)

 

If the Psych is something generic like Code vs Killing or Heroic Code, another Psych limitation might be appropriate. Another Hunted? Another DNPC? A Rivalry? Etc.

 

100 is easy enough, without turning the character into a basket case.

 

Trying again, without the soap opera...

 

20 Hunted

30 Vulnerability

20 Psych

 

Hmm... probably everyone has Hunteds of their own, so bumping up their frequency is a pain for the GM, as is adding new ones.

 

The Vulnerability is already pretty big.

 

Another Psych? Maybe, if it conflicts with the existing one. Perhaps 15 points?

 

Dunno exactly. Maybe just suck it up and go with the 70 points worth.

[Christopher R Taylor]

100 seems like a decent amount, because it forces some players to think and work a bit but is easy to reach with a great conception

[Greywind]

All of them.

[quozaxx]

On 7/29/2019 at 9:11 PM, assault said:

 

Obviously, "it depends". There is no real need for me to say this.

 

In a combat heavy game, the key disads are those that will affect the character in combat. Non-combat stuff doesn't need to be measured by points. (That includes skills, perks and so on, not just disads.) This will restrict the characters' disads. Around the 60 mark would work well enough. You can allow more (up to 100), but point out to the players that their characters will lose fights because of their disads.

 

In a soap opera game, different disads will tend to be important. The combat ones can apply as well, of course, so characters in this kind of game will probably tend towards higher totals. Of course, they should also buy more fluff skills, so they shouldn't actually be more powerful than the first group.

 

Incidentally, the first group are just as capable of being roleplayed as the latter. Filling a character sheet with fanfic ingredients isn't inherently superior to making it up as you go along.

 

Oh, right, a conclusion.

 

60-100 is fine. Obviously most players will take the maximum value available, which is what 4e and 5e assume, and 6e tends to enforce. ("Tends to", because it's not strictly mandatory BtB.)

 

100 is probably what you want.

I'll roughly pick a random set of disads:

15 Secret ID

20 Psych Limitation

15 DNPC

20 Hunted

...

 

There's 70, without thinking too hard. The character already has a life outside adventuring - the Secret ID and the DNPC.

 

No specific weaknesses yet. (Vulnerability, Susceptibility, Accidental Change, Physical Limitation etc.)

 

If the Psych is something generic like Code vs Killing or Heroic Code, another Psych limitation might be appropriate. Another Hunted? Another DNPC? A Rivalry? Etc.

 

100 is easy enough, without turning the character into a basket case.

 

Trying again, without the soap opera...

 

20 Hunted

30 Vulnerability

20 Psych

 

Hmm... probably everyone has Hunteds of their own, so bumping up their frequency is a pain for the GM, as is adding new ones.

 

The Vulnerability is already pretty big.

 

Another Psych? Maybe, if it conflicts with the existing one. Perhaps 15 points?

 

Dunno exactly. Maybe just suck it up and go with the 70 points worth.

I've settled on 75 points which is what 6th edition uses.  Thanks everyone for the advice 

[Cassandra]

All my builds are 250 Points, so it's 150 base with 100 Points of disadvantages.