Sup guys.
I'm playing a Paladin in an upcoming D&D 5E game (first session is tomorrow), and I've never played one before. We used Standard Array and I wound up leaving Dexterity at an abyssmal 9 (-1).
Now, I wanted to find a way to wrap that into the character. Do you guys think it would be feasible to explain it to the DM as "he is a veteran of a recent war, which claimed his left leg. As a result (and thanks for valiance) a local workshop owner fashioned him a flexible prosthetic leg. He walks with a mild limp, but he can still maneuver around a bit."
For extra details, he's a Human, sword and board, and I took the Shield Master Feat. At Level 3, I plan to take Oath of the Ancients and really start playing on the whole "rooted in place" fighting style.
Thoughts? Tips? Good roleplay opportunities I should look out for?
>>43874667
Here's the character art I'm using, by the way.
Anyone else ever played a character with a physical disability? I'm trying to keep it a secret from the party, lest they look down on me for it.
>>43874793
Bump.
>>43874667
jesus christ, you're taking a measly penalty far too seriously.
>>43875373
Well I didn't plan on ever improving Dex, so why not make it something deeper than "I just suck at reflexive reactions"?
>>43875373
what this guy said, 9 is literally a hairs width away from as common as possible
my campaign got a character with a 5 in str and roleplays it like he's a veery old and frail man, i think you could do away with just "a slight limp" but i think the prosthetic(unless you want to) is a bit much.
make him use a cane when on long journeys and make him eager to take rests and breaks. give him a nostalgic look on "youth" and "the good ol' days",
>>43875523
One the one hand, I don't want to go the old man route.
On the other, taking frequent breaks outside of combat sounds like it fits well.
I guess I took the -1 this far just because I'm not used to working penalties into a character's more "permanent" make-up. Typically, I try to improve a character's negative modifiers somewhat quickly, as that was often their initial quest hook (low-WIS guy looking to gain world experience, low-INT guy seeking higher learning, etc.). It's rarely been a physical Ability Score.
Abysmal? Suck? You are ever so slightly worse off than average. You're getting a white cane when you barely need glasses.
>>43875611
Yeah, I covered my lack of scale awareness here >>43875600 but I get what you're saying. I'm just not used to "heroic characters having less than 10s in anything. We normally roll stats, but we have a new DM who wanted to use Standard.
>>43875600
That's faggotry. Every time I make a character I try to give them at least one flawed stat.
I just like the whole shtick where every party member has their role, everyone is a part of a whole being, so when one person is gone it's a big deal.
Characters need flaws, that's what makes them interesting. That's why nobody likes Superman and every writer has to come up with some bullshit reason for Superman to actually be in peril.
>>43875600
what i meant was that instead of having prosthetic you could just have a slight limp, i was only trying to use my buddys old man as a way to put it into perspective (because while 5 is a real negative stat, 9 is not as much). just have him be a middle aged yet bitter veteran that has taken a leg injury that just didn't (won't?) heal properly.
>>43875373
>>43875523
Don't listen to these faggots. I it's a cool idea.
Once played a character for whom I rolled a 3. Increased that to 4 with a Feat, though the DM said I could reroll the stats if I wanted to (they weren't very good by any standards). Had decent Int and Charisma, but low Wisdom. So I played a Fighter who was smart and capable of thinking outside the box in some respect, but extremely stoic and unable to function outside of following orders. In short, she was absolutely loyal to her liege and unfaltering in her devotion to duty. She was a blast to play.
>>43875880
See, I just wanted to make him interesting. I've never had a player try something like this so it sounded fun. Should I see if the DM will allow me to drop Dex down to a 4 or 5 and see if she'll let me swing the extra points into Int or Wis maybe? These are the Ability Scores as they stand at level 1:
STR 13 (+1)
DEX 9 (-1)
CON 12 (+1)
INT 14 (+2)
WIS 11 (+0)
CHA 15 (+2)
I was envisioning him to be more of a stoic tactician than a frontliner.
>>43875746
>putting superman in peril
>thinking that's what makes a compelling superman story
>being this autistic
>>43875943
I'd drop the Dex down to a 5 anyway, and when people ask you why you dropped your Dex for no reason, just blink and say "he's missing a fucking leg."
It's not too bad. You're not gonna use Dex for anything anyway if you wear Heavy Armour, and you're not going to make most Dex saves anyway. If you feel bad about tanking your Dex save, though, pick up the Resilient (or is it Durable? You know the one) Feat for Dex. Shield Mastery is also gonna help a lot.
>>43876110
My DM will let me drop Dex down to 5, and bump Int up by a point. I'm not going to mention anything to the other players though, as we haven't introduced each others' characters yet. Game day is tomorrow, though.
What if his dex isn't lower because it's a really well made prosthetic?
>>43874667
You could literally have 1 on Dex and still move perfectly and as fast as any other character. Low Dex means clumbsy, not crippled.
Also 9 is only 1 point below average.
>>43879443
Well, when the DM and I discussed it, it was determined that the prosthesis was made of leather and iron, no magic, but that it was very well-crafted.
This meant (in her terms) that it was effective enough to allow me to walk/jog comfortably, but running/jumping was highly strenuous or otherwise ineffective.
A Natural 1 on any Athletics/Acrobatics check is going to result in the leg becoming unsecured, giving up the illusion.
She said it will be durable, being able to take a good bit of punishment without coming apart, provided I get it maintained regulary.
The drop to 5 is due to it being a somewhat new state to be in, as the character only lost his leg a few months ago. This way, if I improve Dex as the game goes on, it represents him getting "used to it".
Maybe I should go see what the Dwarves can make out of it further down the road?
>>43879443
Literally better than the most advanced ones we have today, because he has no penalty whatsoever to movement or athletism, we are talking about a magic item of epic proportions, so sell that shit and pick +5 armor and weapons instead, and a dragon as a mount.
Go for it sure, but don't put it down to dex since thats not what the stat means.
Also snakes have 0 legs and have better dex on average than humans in 5e.
>>43874667
>9 Dex
>One legged
Shit, then my 8 Int barbarian has the IQ of a rock? is he literally a vegetal? I've been roleplaying him wrong.
>>43879572
Have you actually seen modern leg prosthetics? Specifically the athletic ones?
OP you remind me of a group I was in where the DM argued that housecats had an average int of 8, and that because the orcs also had ints of 8 they were as dumb as beasts.
>>43879616
>>43879665
That's correct, though.
>>43879616
With 8 on Int your character is dead, his brain stopped working and died of suffocation.
>>43879694
Unless you're trying to be funny you're very much mistaken. Animals have an int of 1 or 2. Having an int of 8 wouldn't even be uncommon for humans using the basic NPC's array.
>>43875523
8 is the minimum you can start with in any ability in 5e D&D.
>>43879771
Wrong, rolling stats is still the default option to generate stats, so the minimum is 3.
>>43879805
All published WotC adventures require array ability scores or point-buy.
>>43874667
>I wound up leaving Dexterity at an abyssmal 9 (-1).
You are using the standard array? So you assigned that 8 to dex. You only have yourself to blame.
Lie in the bed you made, stupid. Then get better armor.
If I put a 8 on Str would my character die from his own weight?
>>43880226
Depends on his Con.
>>43874667
You could just say his joints are shit from living the hard soldierin' life.
>>43874667
get the 'dex score is 19 mag item'
