House Rules

Alignment

• Alignment is essentially an optional rule.

• If you wish to use alignment, see: A Lengthy (and Pointless) Diatribe on Alignment for inspiration! I worked hard on an otherwise pointless article...

Ammunition

• You can recover half of the ammunition you used after a battle, with about 1 minute of searching (PHB, p146).

Character Creation

• Player’s Handbook + 1: To create a character, you can use the Player’s Handbook and up to one additional resource (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything, approved Unearthed Arcana or homebrew, etc.).

• I also have homebrews you can use!

• Speaking of age, your character must be a consenting adult. Please play the sex/gender you identify as, unless you have a really, really good reason.

• If you die or retire your character, you start at 1 level lower than your previous character.

Custom Backgrounds

• Instead of using one of the Player's Handbook backgrounds, you can design a custom one with permission.

• Your background provides you with any 2 skills.

• You also gain 2 proficiencies that aren't skills (i.e. any combination of artisans' tools, languages, herbalism kit, thieves' tools, etc.)

• You get some background-appropriate equipment (no magic items).

Death, Dying, and 0 Hit Points

• Failed death saving throws persist over time. For example, if you drop to 0 Hit Points, fail a death saving throw, and are healed by a spell, you have already failed one death saving throw the next time you drop to 0 Hit Points. They go away after a short or long rest.

• Taking damage while you are unconscious counts as one failed death saving throw.

Equipment & Encumbrance

• You can have two items in your hands at any time (a longsword and a shield, or a torch and a wand, etc.), or one item that requires two-hands (e.g. a greatsword).

• In addition to the items in your hands, you can equip up to 8 items; magic items, armor, etc.

• In addition to the equipment you can equip, you have a number of encumbrance slots equal to your Strength score; these are items you can carry that aren’t equipped.

• One slot equals about 15 pounds; if an item weighs more than that, you will need to use additional slots (round to the nearest 15 pounds). For example, a 25-pound portable battering ram takes up 2 slots.

• Up to 5 identical items can be stacked, assuming the items weigh less than 15 pounds when combined.

• There’s no need to track money, gems, or other valuables.

Firing Into Melee Combat

• If you fire a ranged weapon at a creature engaged in melee with other creatures, and you miss your target, compare your attack roll to the creature in the melee with the lowest Armor Class. If your attack roll was high enough to beat them, you hit that creature instead (despite missing your intended target).

Initiative & Turns

• Highest roll goes first; immediately go either clockwise or counterclockwise from the winning player, depending on whoever sitting next to them had the higher roll.

• This isn’t realistic by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s easier on the Dungeon Master and gives everyone a very clear idea of when their turn is happening, so they can prepare their actions accordingly.

• If you take too long on your turn, you take the Dodge Action, and the table moves on.

Scottish Dwarf Rule

• If you play a dwarf and give them a Scottish accent, you have to punch yourself in the face every two minutes until you stop moving.

Resting

• A Short Rest requires 8 hours without strenuous activity, while a Long Rest requires 5 days and can include mild physical activity (labor, exercise, etc.). Combat prevents you from gaining the benefits of a rest.

• Keep in mind that, using this resting-system, some powerful classes will be nerfed (namely bards, druids, and sorcerers, and to a lesser extent wizard), which would make it more difficult to play them effectively. Other classes, however, will become comparatively stronger (fighters, monks, and warlocks).

Stress & Madness

• Stress is measured between 0 and 20; Stress begins at 0, and traumatic events result in gaining Stress points on an individual basis (being frightened, charmed, or witnessing something horrible, etc.).

• You have Disadvantage on Intelligence-, Wisdom-, and Charisma-based saving throws and ability checks if your Stress exceeds those particular ability scores. For example, Svein Oakenbrow has 9 Intelligence, 13 Wisdom, and 10 Charisma; when he has 10 points of Stress, he has Disadvantage on Intelligence- and Charisma-based saving throws and ability checks.

• At 20 Stress, your character gains a form of Permanent Madness.

Exhaustion Levels (Player's Handbook, p291)

1: Disadvantage on Ability checks

2: Speed halved

3: Disadvantage on Attack rolls and Saving Throws

4: Hit Point Maximum is halved

5: Speed reduced to 0

6: Death