3rd Edition THACO, AC?

Remove all ads!

ok, me and a couple of guys in the chatroom are stumped.
we'v used the character generator to make characters, and the more dex you have the HIGHER your ac, so does this mean that in the 3rd ed rules the higher the ac the better?
if this is the case then someone explain to us how the thaco works or even if thaco exists.
please give us the equation for figuring out if we have hit someone or not, thanx.

 

In 3rd ed THAC0 has no use. To determine if you hit use the formula:

Result of d20 roll + attack bonuses - attack penalties. If this number is greater than or equal to the targets AC then you hit.

You can find the complete and unabridged version starting on page 115 of the Player's Handbook.

 

whats the highest possible ac?
so the roll is always 1d20+something?
does the modification change as you level up?
if it does how much does it go up per level-up for a fighter?

 

right, so how do clerics go up?

and if we had to roll manually for, say three attakcs would it be 3d20 or three seperate rolls or what?

[This message has been edited by herf (edited July 19, 2001).]

 

You roll only (1) D20 per attack. There is no 'highest' AC. In the MM some Dragons have a AC of 49.

As for cleric attack bonus;

1-0
2-+1
3-+2
4-+3
5-+3
6-+4

See this link for the complete progression. http://www.opengamingfoundation.org/srd/srdbasiccharacterclassesi.html

 

It also increases depending on the (magical)equipment or feats you have.

 

Does this alss apply for wizards?

At the moment my AC is 12 (base 10 + bonus + 2 cos of dexterity)

Can my Ac increase natuarlly or due to a wizards thingy i can wear which will not penilize my ability to cast spells??

 

I'm sure eventually you'll be able to find or purchase or, with the right item creation feat, even make a nice ring or staff or something that will increaes your ac without causing a chance of spell failure. You could, as a mage, always take a light armor feat and wear a chain shirt, which only has about a 10 precent chance of spell failure. Also, you could raise your dex up to sixteen with the ability points you get every four levels, and that would give a dex bonus of +3. Being a fighter/mage myself, eventually I want to improve on some type of masterwork armor so that it doesn't interfere with my spell casting.

 

I suppose that you could use the Item creation feat on a finly made wool robe so that I tgives you a AC bonus and would be worn as armor such as in Baldurs Gate.

 

Actually, I need to by Tome and Blood. I saw a preview of that book, and they seem to have some nice prestige classes, particuarly the description of the Spellsword. Really, though, I was thinking of reducing or eleminating the chance of spell failure, kind of like elven chain, though likely with breasplate. Though with something like that, all I probably could attempt is to reduce the spell failure precentage.

 

Crawl, I highly suggest get T&B. I thought Defenders of the Faith was good but Tome and Blood so even better. The presteige classes are great. My only fear is that they may have over done it. I hope it does not unbalance the game. I mean S&F and Def. added stuff but nothing like T&B.

What do you all think?

 

I just bought the suppliment today, actually, and while I haven't had a chance to really get indepth with it yet, here are my initial thoughts:

-The new spells are nice, and I think they are pretty mundane and not overpowered. I like the new nemocracy spells, especially hide life (WOW!). The spells affecting familiars are nice as well.
-The new feats aren't bad either. Some are a bit, well, much I guess. But overall, not to bad.
-I wasn't really impressed with the new improved familiars. While definately more powerful than what was origionally available, they're really just extra.
-Really like the new permanency-arcane sight spell. That could be very usefull. As could a permanant Private Sanctum.
-Where the really nice extra stuff comes into play, IMO, is the prestige class listings. Some of those are definately powerful, some too powerfull really. But some that you would think are too powerfull do have their balances, and I'm just thinking of the spellsword. Definate plus for fighter/mages, but you don't get spells as fast either, so that's a real drawback to consider. However, Accolyte of the Skin, Dragon Disciple, and Alienist are REALLY powerful, at least at first glance. It's hard to say if they are too powerful or not, but they do have potential to be.

Overall, though, I really do like what they added. But, for my money, twnety dollars is a little steep for the book. These suppliments need to be priced lower, as the core rule books cost that friggin much (though worth it).