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deconstruction of od&d ability scores and their effects

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Surprise! You get some proper punctuation because I originally wrote this in a Word document. In OD&D , 3d6-based effects are tied together under a particular ability score. Maximum # of Hirelings and Hireling Loyalty Base as Charisma System Shock Survival and Extra Hit Points per Hit Die as Constitution Missile To-Hit Bonus and Initiative Bonus as Dexterity Mage XP Bonus and Extra Languages Known as Intelligence Fighter XP Bonus as Strength Cleric XP Bonus as Wisdom In each of the tables that follow, the most average scores [9, 12] are highlighted. By wrapping up these 10 different effects into the 6 abilities, the Dungeons & Dragons game establishes character archetypes. Since most effects of ability scores only take place for those with scores outside of the middle ~50%, with the notable exception of system shock survival [1], the expectation is that characters will have 3 average abilities (with effects) and 3 abilities (with effects) significantly below or above average.

new! 3d6 stat gen

proposal to combine the dynamicism of random stats with the illusion of choice, plus some fairness for players. roll 3d6. each result corresponds to a stat: charisma constitution dexterity intelligence strength wisdom assign each of the following modifiers to one of the stats based on the ones you had rolled: -2, +1, +1. these modifiers stack! for example, alice rolled {4, 2, 4}. this means that she must assign two modifiers to intelligence and one modifier to constitution. she might maximize her positive modifiers by assigning +1 and +1 to intelligence and -2 to constitution, or she might minimize her negative modifiers by assigning +1 and -2 to intelligence (-1) and +1 to constitution. in another case, if bob were to roll {1, 5, 6}, none of his modifiers will overlap. he can freely assign his three modifiers to charisma, strength, and wisdom. perhaps he will assign -2 to charisma, +1 to strength, and +1 to wisdom. these modifiers can be used as-is for dice rolls (d20 or 2d6 or w/e),

the helicopter story on sex, gender, and dysphoria

woe to you who strive with your Maker, earthen vessels with the potter! does the clay say to the one who fashions it, "what are you making?" or "your work has no handles!" woe to anyone who says to a father, "what are you begetting?"   or to a woman, "with what are you in labor?"   isaiah 45:9-10 i don't really want to talk about the discourse that led to me seeking out this work. what happened to the author, isabel fall, shows a lack of comprehension and empathy on the part of self-identified 'allies' who chased a trans woman off the internet because she produced something alien to them. with that being said, fall wrote something thoughtful and horrifying. i think it's worth to draw out the implications of this piece to better understand how it contributes to our knowledge (or lack thereof) of gender. barb, helicopter (pilot) So, in the same way that we attached sounds to meanings to make language, we began to attach clusters of