3rd Edition in Thardferr Thardferr is an independent gaming setting, not connected to any other D&D, AD&D, or D20 universes or worlds. While Thardferr was created with the AD&D 2nd Edition rules in mind it is not gaming mechanics that control its limitations.
The limitations of this setting are based upon the history and events in Thardferr’s past from the creation of the universe to the recent Mage War. For example, Thardferr dwarves cannot become spell casters of any sort not because it is against the rules of the 2nd Edition PHB, but because the Gods created them in a way that makes arcane magic impossible for them.
The only inflexible rule concerning the running of 3rd Edition is that in all cases the ‘In Character’ world and its consistency must always be put first.
2nd Edition and 3rd Edition will always have some different game statistics and rules, because they are fundamentally different systems. A 3rd Edition Fighter may be much stronger than his 2nd Edition counterpart, however this balances out because he must face more powerful 3rd Edition monsters. If someone kills a dragon and it affects the world storyline, it does not really matter if they were a 3e or 2e character.
In the end, the differences in the systems only really come into play when characters from both systems meet within the setting. In these cases the characters will convert into one system, which will make Experience Progression important.
Both of these issues are addressed below, along with additional guidelines for the use of 3rd Edition in the Thardferr setting. Character Creation 1. Acceptable Races for 3rd Edition are as follows:
- Drawves
- Elves
- Gnomes
- Goblins – (following the 3e Goblin Write-up)
- Halflings
- Humans
- Orcs – (following the outline for a Half-Orc in the PHB)
2. Acceptable Classes for 3rd Edition are as follows:
- Bards
- Clerics
- Druids
- Fighters
- Paladins
- Rangers
- Rogues
- Wizards
3. Acceptable Classes Combinations for 3rd Edition are as followsThe limits of dual and multiclassing combinations that exist in the Thardferr setting (That are allowed to 2nd edition) as decided by the DM body and TC are used in 3rd Edition as well. Further combination are not generally available. On an individual basis a character combination may be allowed if a conversion to 2nd Edition is approved by the DMC. This has been done in the past, and most likely would involve the use of a Unknown Perk.
4. Ability Scores in 3rd EditionScores will be determined as outline in the DMG under Other Methods. All ability start at 8 and each player is given 28 points to spend on abilities as outlined in Table 2-1.
5. Perks and Flaws in 3rd EditionPerks and Flaws are not available to Player Characters playing under 3rd Edition rules. They are important however in making Character Conversion easier between systems, so some familiarity with them might be appropriate. See Perks, Flaws, Feats and Conversion.
6. Prestige Classes in Thardferr 3rd EditionPrestige Classes are not automatically available in Thardferr, and must be approved on an individual basis by the DMC. Specialty Priests are an example of an approved Prestige Class. The ability to convert to 2nd Edition is a primary consideration in the approval of Prestige Classes—all Prestige Classes must have conversion guidelines even if those guidelines only note that the abilities are lost upon conversion.
7. Priests and Specialty Priests in 3rd EditionSpecialty Priests operate as Prestige Classes in 3rd Edition. Until Prestige Classes are created, players wishing to play (or DMs wishing to run) Specilty Priests must detail the Prestige Class they wish to run based on the 2nd Edition specialty priest, then they must be approved by the DMC.
Guidelines for the Gods, their priests and specialty priests, and their priests religious practices can be found in AD&D 2nd Edition format at:
http://home.att.net/~imkluu/Gods/index.htm8. Thardferr Orcs in 3rd EditionOrcs follow the Mechanics Guidelines for Half-Orc outlined in the 3rd Edition PHB.
They also follow the following guidelines:
- +4 to hide rolls due to coloration (natural settings only) The orc must not be wearing any unnatural colors or shiny metal to be able to do this.
- Due to their large sized and build, orcs cannot wear normal armor. Orcish armorers are very rare. So is orcish armor. There are only three types of orcish armor that are made to any great degree, and the greater the protection the rarer the suits are: Leather (+2), Scale mail (+4) and some Orcs have an extremely tough scale armor called Bahn Moun (+6). This armor is very rare and given to very few orcs.
- Orcs can only have 4 magical items with them. At least the first 2 of these must be weapons, helms, armor (including shields), gauntlets or boots (bracers count as armor/gauntlets.)
9. Thardferr Goblins in 3rd EditionGoblins follow the Mechanics below:
- +2 Dexterity, -2 Charisma, –1 Intelligence
- Small: As a Small creature, a Goblin gains a +1 size bonus to Armor Class, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, and a +4 size bonus on Hide checks, but she uses smaller weapons than humans use, and her lifting and carrying limits are three-quarters of those of a Medium character.
- Goblins base land speed is 20 feet.
- Goblins gains 1 Skill Point per level that they may spend on any rogue skill at class skill cost.
- +2 racial bonus on Listen, Hide, and Move Silently checks.
- +2 bonus on saving throws against Poison.
- Darkvision: Goblins can see in the dark up to 90 feet. Darkvision is black and white only, but it is otherwise like normal sight, and goblins can function just fine with no light at all.
- Low-Light Vision: A Goblin can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. She retains the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.
- Stonecunning: This ability grants a dwarf a +2 racial bonus on Search checks to notice unusual stonework, such as sliding walls, stonework traps, new construction (even when built to match the old), unsafe stone surfaces, shaky stone ceilings, and the like. Something that isn’t stone but that is disguised as stone also counts as unusual stonework. A dwarf who merely comes within 10 feet of unusual stonework can make a Search check as if he were actively searching, and a dwarf can use the Search skill to find stonework traps as a rogue can. A dwarf can also intuit depth, sensing his approximate depth underground as naturally as a human can sense which way is up.
- Goblins are very sensitive to bright light and receive a -1 penalty to hit and to all skill checks needing sight while in bright light and direct sunlight.
- Goblin Hit Die are reduced by one level except for wizard classes. Thus a warrior class gains 1-8 HP per level, priest class gains 1-6 HP per level, and both rogue and wizard classes gain 1-4 HP per level.
9. Thardferr Blademasters in 3rd EditionBlademasters operate as Prestige Classes in 3rd Edition. Until Prestige Classes are created, players wishing to play (or DMs wishing to run) Blademasters must detail the Prestige Class they wish to run based on the 2nd Edition specialty priest, then they must be approved by the DMC.
Character Conversion1. How are Characters Converted between 2nd Edition and 3rd Edition?Wizards of the Coast provides a detailed system for the approximate conversion of characters between these two systems. It is the basic guideline for all of our conversion. They can be found and downloaded at:
http://www.wizards.com/dnd/DnD_CYC_intro.asp2. What about Stat increases in 3rd Edition? Every four levels, in 3e, a PC can raise one stat by one point. This is not a perk in 3e. It's a requirement. One of the unifying themes in 3e is character progression and it serves a good job in making sure that higher level characters have skills and abilities beyond lower level characters.
The system is setup to accommodate this stat boost. Since clerics in 3e get up to 9th level spells, and the requirements for spell levels are different. In Thardferr, those with an 18 INT are allowed to get up to 9th level spells. IN 3e, you have to have a 19 INT to get 9th level spells. So without that 1 point stat boost, your spells would be impossible to gain at the highest level, even if you have a system that lets you choose your starting scores. However, unlike 2e, in 3e, it takes 2 points in any given stat to improve the abilities of that stat. So realistically, it takes 8 levels to gain a real benefit to a given stat (i.e. +1 bonus, etc.)
When characters convert to 2nd Edition these Statistic increases are not transferred over. In fact stats are not transferred at all, but rather built up from the beginning using the Thardferr guidelines for character creation. The only requirement is that these stats must equal the characters statistics as closely as possible. This is overseen by a DM.
3. Perks, Flaws, Feats and Conversion.Perks and Flaws are not available to Player Characters playing under 3rd Edition rules, however they can be used to aid in the conversion process. A player may choose to use a Perk to recreate an ability that they have in 3rd Edition that does not transfer during conversion (such as Feats). The purpose of their use in conversion should always be to better simulate the character in question.
4. If two groups using different systems meet, what system is used?This is decided on a case by case basis by the DMs and players involved. The DMC may also decide to hold certain events under certain systems. That said, Thardferr’s base rule set is the AD&D 2nd Edition rules, and players will not generally be forced to learn new rules in order to play.
5. Spell Differences and Unique Spells.The Wizards of the Coast Conversion document contains a list of spells that convert from 2nd Edition to 3rd Edition and back again. Spells that are mentioned in this document are simply converted from one system to another. Other spells must be converted between the two systems.
While spells can be quite different between the two systems (3e spells often have severely reduced spell durations compared to 2e spells for example)they are not overwhelmingly so outside of those spells that convert over directly, so when other published spells change systems they only have to be adjusted if they become more powerful. Researched spells must be created in both editions before they can be used in sessions outside that which they are created.
Miscellaneous Issues 1. Can Mages wear armor and cast spells?While 3e/3.5e allows mages to wear armor, it does not mean that this would happen in Thardferr. In Thardferr it is impossible to work magic while wearing normal armor.
2. Experience Progression is different in both systems. How does XP operate? Experience Points are just a way of measuring the experiences the character under goes through his or her jounrey. It is not important if it takes 100 XP to get to level 1 or 1,000,000 XP. What is important is that players progress at the same speed in both systems. In order to monitor progression 3rd Edition DMs must simply post the levels of their characters for the DMC once every month. This ensures that whatever XP method used can be corrected if it does not stay in line with the time taken to progress in AD&D 2nd Edition.
Currently two preliminary guidelines for awarding/monitoring XP exist:
1. XP Awards Suggested: 25 xp / Hour Max Guideline.
So, a standard 4 hour session can award up to 100 xp per session.
For each subsequent level, you add a modifier (not equal to character level). Otherwise, progression remains the same at each level. Since the XP required is level *1000 we use the 25 xp / hour as the base for 1000, and then use a decimal value as increments.
Example:
1st Level: 25 xp / hour / level (1)
** avg 100 per session (10 ses. level)
2nd Level: 25 xp / hour / level (1.5)
** avg 150 per session (13 ses. level)
3rd Level: 25 xp / hour / level (2)
** avg 200 per session (15 ses. level)
so on and so forth...
Then add in the multiplier to base as it currently stands, allowing a raise to the base 25 rate once they hit a certain level and then again at a higher level, etc. 
Suggested 3e Modifiers
Levels 1-5 = 25 xp / hour / 0.5 + (1/2 current level)
Levels 6-8 = 50 xp / hour / 0.5 + (1/2 current level)
Levels 9-11 = 75 xp / hour / 0.5 + (1/2 current level)
Levels 12 and above = 100 xp / hour / 0.5 + (1/2 current level)
2. Use 2nd Edition System.
This option is for DMs who are familiar with both systems, who simply wish to award 2nd edition XP and use the 2nd Edition experience progression tables. It does not mean that you use the XP Guidelines with the 3rd Edition XP system. Other systems for awarding/moderating XP are possible as well, and they will be added (and edited) here as time goes on. The important issue is that progression is maintained between the two systems. This is done through DMC oversite as mentioned above.
3. Automatic Acquired Arcane SpellsThardferr has a house rule for 2nd Edition that prevents specialist mages and other arcane spellcasters from automatically receiving spells. This is due to the low-magic nature of Thardferr and the recent destruction of magic research materials. This rule applies to 3rd Edition as well. Spells are never automatically gained in Thardferr.
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