Feats, Flaws, Traits and Bloodlines

Feat, Flaws, Traits, and Blooodlines

The basic way in which Feats and Flaws will work is as follows. One Flaw can be taken in order to pay for one Feat. Please do not go hog wild with this as it could become out of kilter very quickly. If you want more than one Flaw per 2 Character Levels we should talk. I am also redoing the way Bloodlines are done so they can work within the new system rather than the way in which Unearthed Arcana does them, which is rather unbalanced in regards to the Pathfinder. Traits are also being reworked to fit with this system as well.

Feats

As in the Pathfinder Rules Feats provide bonuses to your character. A feat generally will give one of the following, which, within rounding error are usually less than the above penalty. Miscellaneous Feats are handle by the way of the Pathfinder Rules.

General Feat List

Type of Feats and Bonuses
Attribute Bonus +1 on an attribute
Skill Bonus +4 on one skill or +2 on two skills
Save bonus +2 on a general save of +2 on 2 types
Increase Run Speed +5 feet per round
Initiative +4 on the roll
Other type* of Roll +1 on the roll
Miscellaneous Bonus As per Pathfinder

*Types of Rolls or Checks
Melee Combat or Ranged Combat (each is separate)
Armor Class, Melee or Ranged (-1 to the AC and the Armor Save)
Complex Skill Checks, Craft, Knowledge or Profession Checks

Flaws

Flaws are things that significantly hinder you character be it in a physical, social of roleplaying situation. They tend to be more restrictive than the bonus you get from a feat because people naturally take things that will boost their preferred abilities while hindering those they do no emphasize, and also so the trade off does not unduly unbalance the game. A Flaw consists of the following possibilities, with others allowed by GM permission. Flaws will always have a numeretical effect associated with them.

General Flaw List

Flaws and Penalies
Attribute Reduction -2 to an Attribute
Skill Penalty -4 on a Skill or –2 on two skills(except*)
Save Penalty -3 on a general Save or –2 on 2 specifics
Run Speed -5 feet per round
Lower Hit Points -1 per level
Skill Points -1 per level
Initiative -5 on the roll
Type* of Roll -2 on a certain type of common Roll
Miscellaneous As accepted by GM(it will be numeritical)

Traits

Replace the way Traits are handled in Unearthed Arcana with this system of Flaws and Feats, with one Flaw paying for 1 Feat. For Example, a Hardy Feat (+2 on Fortitude Saves) could be balanced with Clumsy Flaw (–3 on Reflex Saves) or an Inattentive Flaw (-1 skill point per level).
Character can thus take a number of Feats and Flaws to represent character traits. This traits will generally be more pronounced than in the Unearthed Arcana system.


Bloodlines as Feats

Bloodlines Abilities now count as Feats.
First, when you take a Bloodline it counts as a Feat. For this you get the abilities listed under Sorcerer as the 1st level Power for the Bloodline. For Bloodlines not listed there in consult with your GM for guidance. Some are listed below.
After that initial buy in any additional Power or Feat Listed in Pathfinder counts as count as another Feat. So if you want the 3rd, 6th, etc… Bloodline powers/feats you must spend a Feat to take them. You do not need to follow the order in the book, but these are good guidelines. If you wish to take more than this then you may take a Flaw appropriate to your Bloodline to pay for a Feat.
While I am currently setting no hard and fast limit, roughly one Flaw could be taken at most every other level, plus one at the start, and even that will result in a rather extreme character rather quickly and thus you need to get GM permission for that. For example, a Bloodline Character could trade in one Feat from his Class list and take 2 Flaws and Start with 3 bloodline abilities. In this regards the Bloodline Powers are listed as Feats as follows. While decidedly different than the method of Unearth Arcana, I feel it makes up for the loss of levels inherent in that system.

General Bloodline Feats List (Each count as 1 Feat)

Abilities and Bonuses
Attribute Bonus +1 to an Attribute
Skills Bonus +2 to 2 Skills or +4 to one Skill
Resistance 1 Type of Damage Resistance of 5
Power A Power listed for a level
Feat A Feat listed for a Bloodline
Ability Smite, Armor, etc…
Saves +2 Save(Will) or 2 types(poison&fear, etc...)
Affinity +2 on Bluff, Diplomacy, Intimidate and Sense Motive for 1 Species

For Example: A Celestial Major Bloodline Character traditionally would take the following. (In order), say a cleric,

At 20th level they would have lost 3 levels resulting in a loss of No Hit Dice –15 HP(1 Feat), -2 BAB(2 Feats), -5 on Saves in total(~2 feats), 6 high level spells per day (~3 feats), a Domain Power, Skill Points, an Attribute point, and 2 general Feats as well as level effects for casting spells and overcoming spell resistance and it come to about a total of 14 feats.

In return they have gained the following; Alertness (+2 Perception, Sense Motive), Wisdom +1, Ability-Protection From Evil 1t/d, Celestial Affinity, Resist Electricity 5, Magical Aptitude, Charisma +1, Poison Saves +2, Resist Cold 5, Improved Initiative, Constitution +1, Resist Acid 5, Armor +1, Damage Reduction, for a grand total of about 14 feats!

In other words it’s a wash, which is the way it was intended.

Now what happens with the new system is you spend your Feats to get the abilities, which results in the same effect except you are trading in the Feats and abilities as you level, no muss no fuss. If you want more abilities instead of paying for it in levels and losing all these this combined just take the appropriate Flaw. If you want to lose HP take Feeble, if you want to lose Skills take a Flaw. Add in the versatility of taking the powers in the order you wish and it’s a system that allows you to tailor the character more directly to what you want than what the rules lock you into. For Example since Celestial characters are supposed to be proud, holy and dedicated to the cause of the Light, appropriate Flaws might include : Honest (-2 to Bluff and Disguise), Guileless(-2 to Stealthy and Sleight of Hand) or Fanaticism(1 Less Skill point per level). 2 Peaceful Flaws(-2 to Melee and Ranged Attacks).