Building Block Design: The Feat Chain

The most basic building block of design is the check. This is where the dice come out and uncertain events are determined. Above the check is the modifier - where checks are altered by specific elements such as gear, feats, class abilites, etcetera. The specific topic of this post is at the next level up, the feat, which is built up from one or more modifiers and given context by its requirments and then the feat chain, which is of course a collection of feats.

      Most feat chains include 3 feats at the upper end. This is based on a general philosophy that an investment of 3-4 feats should strongly possition a character to perform all aspects of a particular shtick in play. Two specific vaireties of this are the general basics/mastey/supremcy feat chain, and the more specific basics/moves/supremacy chain common in both the Melee Combat and Unarmed Combat feat trees. In both cases the naming was chosen so that when the feats are presented in alphabetical order they also appear in the order learned. Further, by putting the chain name first ("Wolfpack Basics/Mastery/Supremacy"), all three feats are generally directly adjacent in the body text. This also usually keeps feats neatly organized when listed by name on a character sheet.

     While feats are not as tightly templated as some other aspects of the game (being deliberately an outlet for creative insertion of modifiers/benefits), there are some things to look for. Selecting the right tree for a new feat is very important. For this exercise we're looking specifically at the Melee and Unarmed basic/moves/supremacy chains which are strongly templated. Templating is helpful because it reduces the amoun of overall eyeballing required to match benefit to cost on a character option. Individual feat components must still be considered, but analyzing those smaller components is simpler and more reliable than holistic assessment of a complete feat.

     In the case of the Basics/Moves/Supremacy chains, every feat is made up of exactly three benefits/modifiers, but the presentation varies over the course of the chain.

      BLAH Basics
      Flavor text
      Prerequisite: Basics feats do not have prerequisites, so skip this entry.
      Benefit: One small, always present benefit.
      BLAH (Stance): Stances are a 'transportable' benefit, a modifier of general utility that might be used in conjunction with tricks from this chain or from other chains. By default, a character may only benefit from one stance at a time. Stances often include movement restrictions. Stances cost a half action to enter, with is a large component on their in play cost.
      BLAH (Trick): A single, simple modifier tied to the feat theme.

      Basics give the most diverse array of benefits - 1 always active, one stance, one trick. This is where the theme of the chain is firmly established. The benefit is resticted to that 1/3 of a first tier feat range of goodness.

      BLAH Moves
      Flavor text
      Prerequisite: Base attack bonus +3 or higher.
      Benefit: You gain 3 tricks.
      BLAH (Trick): A single, simple modifier tied to the feat theme.
      BLAH (Trick): A single, simple modifier tied to the feat theme.
      BLAH (Trick): A single, simple modifier tied to the feat theme.

     Moves feats establish the diversity of the theme, with 3 unrelated tricks. Note they do not use the chain basics feat as a prerequisite, allowing them to be used in a mix-and-match fashion within the tree. The tricks are portentially slightly better tha the tricks seen in basics, which is balanced agains them not generally producing stacking benefits in the way that a benefit/stance/trick could all be combined to modifiy a single action.

      BLAH Supremacy
      Flavor text
      Prerequisite: Base attack bonus +12 or higher, BLAH Basics, BLAH Moves.
      Benefit: One large, always present benefit.
      BLAH (Trick): A single, simple modifier tied to the feat theme.
      BLAH (Trick): A single, simple modifier tied to the feat theme.

     Supremacy ties it all together with another, much stronger benefit and 2 more tricks that are quite potent. Unlike basics and moves, where you cannot be certain the character has the other, the prerequisites ensure all 6 other benefits are in place, meaning the benefit or trick of this feat can build on that expectation, such as by replacing the basics benefit with a more powerful version. Asa  mid-game feat (due to BAB requirment) the potency of all the components is higher tan in the first 2 feats of the chain, inkeeping with some of the most famous or impressive accomplishements associated with the theme.

     Flavor Text: Address the reader directly (speak to 'you'). Be interesting, funny, ironic, or some combination of all of them. Make it entertaining and possibly informative to read. If the feat tittle is a partial quote, build on it in the flavor text.

     Ranged Attacks: Though typically handled via the Basics/Mastery/Supremacy set up, there's nothing inherently broken in using this approach. The tricks would need to be extremely tightly written however, as the melee/unarmed tricks limit you to effectively one weapon (your unarmed attack) or a set of 4-5 very similar ones (2h swords for example). Showing there is something uniquely cool about revolver bullets compared to SMG bullets is a tough proposition if you were using weapon types as a theme. Bullseye/Draw a Bead/Target in the Well comes fairly close to this format, but is still a linear chain rather than a summation chain.

     Though there are not "ranged stances" per se, it wouldn't be hard to add them. This approach would work best with hurled weapons such as bows or knives as the Brace action essentially creates/acts as many common shooting stances. Off hand I could imagine a 'hip shot' stance for assault rifles (from zero to shootin' without taking the time to shoulder your weapon).