The d20 system, developed alongside D&D 3e, forms the mechanical backbone for a variety of RPG's entirely departed from the D&D system.

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looking for skype gm over play per post [closed]

basically I am never able to go to a game stpre and want to learn the d20/modern/future/modern arcana stuff so that i can start writing my own stuff. just about to sign that contract that will allow ...
6
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3answers
314 views

Does a natural 20 initiative roll have any special rules?

I rolled a 20 for initiative in a pickup game today and I realized that I didn't know if that was supposed to be treated specially, like some other rolls treat a natural 20. Does rolling a natural 20 ...
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1answer
217 views

Running a game with intentionally “over-powered” PCs

I've been playing for a few years now (I know I'm green) but I've been planning on running a game with intentionally "Over-Powered" PCs. This is the style of play I would like to try: My idea is to ...
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2answers
240 views

Cthulhu in D&D 3.5

I am planning a campaign arc where the antagonists are followers of the entity known as Cthulhu from H.P Lovecraft's strange tales. In the end of the campaign I'd like to have the adventurers fight ...
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3answers
127 views

Total or partial removal of skill cap in d20

What effect would removing or partially removing the skill cap in the d20 system (with a focus on DnD3.5 and Cthulhu d20)? By partial removal I mean - for example - (handing out all the skill points ...
5
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1answer
147 views

Which games have been based off/derived from the Anime d20 SRD?

The Anime d20 SRD brought some interesting changes to the original 3e d20 SRD. Aside from BESM d20, which obviously isn't a derivative of itself, which games have made use of the Anime d20 SRD - in ...
14
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5answers
260 views

How do I quicken / sum up larger (but not army-scale) d20/DnD3.x combat?

I'll be rather specific: Imagine you have five lv7 characters (in DnD3.5), a bunch of their followers (skeletons raised by their priestess and whatnot), and they're facing about the same number of ...
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1answer
127 views

d20 source books for modern/futuristic settings [closed]

I'm planning a game where different characters come from different time periods and cultures, and I'm using different source books to provide different rules for each character. The general idea is we ...
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1answer
214 views

What are the key mechanical gotchas when moving from d20 SRD to Legend?

As everybody knows, once you've learned to do something one way it is very hard to unlearn. This is easier when it comes to the big things like character creation but harder in the heat of combat. ...
5
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1answer
151 views

What are the rules of natural healing?

I've read a few times the core rules of Microlite20, and the Expert Rules, but didn't find a place where it explained how PCs healed naturally. What rules should I use for that? The ones in the ...
5
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3answers
868 views

How to roll perception checks for characters who aren't actively looking?

This applies to all d20 systems, but with an example from the from the Pathfinder PRD (emphasis mine): Stonecunning: Dwarves receive a +2 bonus on Perception checks to potentially notice unusual ...
22
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5answers
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What are the ramifications of replacing a square based combat grid with a hex based one?

I have a personal preference for hexes over squares - the latter present some problems in terms of diagonal movement, and aliasing for certain area effects, that are just handled better with hexes. ...
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7answers
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What are some quality low-magic d20 (3.5e/PF) systems?

The title pretty much says it all. I'm getting ready to run a very low-magic (but high martial combat/adventure) Pathfinder campaign, and am looking for any systems to draw mechanics and inspiration ...
3
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1answer
345 views

Does anyone know of a D20 system that uses the Harry Potter Universe?

Does anyone know of a D20 system that uses the Harry Potter Universe? I want to try something new with a few of my friends. We really want to try and get away from the usual D&D for a bit and try ...
8
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2answers
441 views

How do I implement Social Combat into a D&D/D20/Pathfinder game?

One of the coolest parts of White-Wolf games, in my opinion, is that they usually offer the ability for Social Combat to be just as exciting as physical or mental combat. How can I run Social Combat ...
11
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1answer
287 views

What differences are there between Prime Directive d20 and Prime Directive d20 Modern?

There are 2 versions of Prime Directive d20, one based on the D&D 3.5 PHB and the other based on D20 Modern. Are there any noteworthy differences between the two versions, or did they just make a ...
21
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6answers
2k views

How do you tell if a D&D book is 3.0 or 3.5?

I'm new to d20. I recently acquired a bunch of D&D books and I'm sure they are all either 3.0 or 3.5, but it doesn't say in the book which version it is. How can I tell which version the book is? ...
13
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1answer
230 views

How can I balance an encounter with reinforcements?

I've been planning encounters that come in two parts or have reinforcements recently, and it occurs to me that reinforcements don't have the same effect on an encounter as if they were there from the ...
12
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5answers
285 views

A campaign based on a novel: Let the plot deviate or make the PCs' thread unrelated?

I want to start a Game of Thrones (d20) campaign. My idea is based on the first book of seven (which comprises the whole story). I don't want to change the course of the novel, but if my PCs are ...
13
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7answers
382 views

How should a GM handle novice players?

In our game, we have 5 players - two are completely new to roleplaying, and one is new to the system we're playing (Pathfinder). At the moment, the GM grants the new players no leeway - if the player ...
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1answer
346 views

Game of Thrones d20 Cooperative?

Devir presents a d20 setting of Game of Thrones, prestigious river novel of George RR Martin, with low magic and a lot of Treason and Plot (but without the gunpowder, lol). Anyway.. One of the game ...
4
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1answer
119 views

In XCrawl, does grandstanding have any short term effects?

In XCrawl, you can grandstand to the crowd or mug for the camera during a dungeon crawl. There are a lot of rules around that - Perform skills, etc - but it seems like the only effect I can find is a ...
14
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9answers
365 views

How to remember all the rules?

Do you have tricks or techniques to remember all the rules to the games you're playing? I would like to run my first game as a gamemaster, but I'm struggling with remembering all the feats and ...
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5answers
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Any good steampunk material for d20?

The DM of my current Friday night game is running a steampunk-setting, using the Pathfinder rules system. We have two artificers in the party, but my feeling is that all of our material is fantasy and ...
8
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1answer
255 views

Which version of d20 is World of Warcraft RPG compatible with?

I picked up the WoW RPG a few years back before I knew anything about D&D/d20 and am just now getting around to checking out D&D and am wondering where this book fits into the d20 versions?