THE EFFECTS OF AGING
Chapter Six of the Player’s Handbook gives a tacit nod toward the idea of the effects of aging. But I find two major problems with the data given. First, there are no differences made between male and female, which we all know is flatly wrong-headed. Men and women are not the same, regardless of what you've been taught. For instance, an eighteen-year-old woman has by far more natural charisma (of the charming type) than a young man of the same age, but a middle-aged man possesses more natural charisma (of the leadership type) than a middle-aged woman. Men of any age are generally stronger than women. The chart below accounts for the obvious differences between men and women, and ignores the patent egalitarianism of 3rd-Edition. (At least 1st-Edition recognized that the strongest man was stronger than the strongest woman.) The second problem is that the PH doesn’t incorporate any changes until the character reaches middle age. Again, we all know better. Besides that, normal play assumes the PC are in their late teens or early twenties when they begin adventuring, and I know of NO ONE who has played a character for 20 years of game time! Most PCs would never see a single aging effect using the chart in the PH, which renders it useless, a curiosity at best. The following chart recognizes a much smoother flow in aging effects, plus expands it backward to account for very young ages. The age listed is for humans; all other races have human equivalents, and also use this chart. Ages beyond 100 are not modified further.
|
|
Strength |
Dexterity |
Constitution |
Intelligence |
Wisdom |
Charisma |
Comeliness |
|||||||
|
Age |
Male |
Female |
Male |
Female |
Male |
Female |
Male |
Female |
Male |
Female |
Male |
Female |
Male |
Female |
|
1 |
-6 |
-6 |
-6 |
-6 |
-3 |
-3 |
-5 |
-5 |
-5 |
-5 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
3 |
|
5 |
-5 |
-5 |
-3 |
-3 |
-3 |
-3 |
-4 |
-4 |
-4 |
-4 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
|
10 |
-3 |
-3 |
-1 |
-1 |
-2 |
-2 |
-3 |
-3 |
-3 |
-3 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
12 |
-2 |
-2 |
0 |
0 |
-2 |
-2 |
-2 |
-2 |
-2 |
-2 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
|
14 |
-1 |
-1 |
-1 |
0 |
-1 |
-1 |
-1 |
-1 |
-1 |
-1 |
-1 |
0 |
-1 |
0 |
|
15 |
-1 |
-1 |
0 |
0 |
-1 |
-1 |
-1 |
-1 |
0 |
0 |
-2 |
1 |
-1 |
1 |
|
16 |
0 |
-1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
-1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
-1 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
|
18 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
|
20 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
|
25 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
30 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
35 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
40 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
|
45 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
|
50 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
-1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
|
55 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
-1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
|
60 |
0 |
-1 |
-1 |
-1 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
65 |
-1 |
-1 |
-1 |
-2 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
70 |
-1 |
-1 |
-2 |
-2 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
-1 |
0 |
-1 |
-1 |
|
75 |
-1 |
-2 |
-2 |
-2 |
0 |
-1 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
-1 |
-1 |
-1 |
-1 |
|
80 |
-2 |
-2 |
-3 |
-3 |
-1 |
-1 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
3 |
-2 |
-1 |
-2 |
-2 |
|
85 |
-2 |
-2 |
-3 |
-3 |
-1 |
-2 |
1 |
1 |
4 |
4 |
-2 |
-2 |
-2 |
-2 |
|
90 |
-2 |
-3 |
-4 |
-3 |
-2 |
-2 |
0 |
0 |
4 |
4 |
-2 |
-2 |
-2 |
-3 |
|
95 |
-3 |
-3 |
-4 |
-4 |
-2 |
-3 |
-1 |
-1 |
4 |
4 |
-3 |
-2 |
-3 |
-3 |
|
100 |
-3 |
-4 |
-4 |
-4 |
-3 |
-4 |
-2 |
-2 |
5 |
5 |
-3 |
-3 |
-3 |
-4 |
All these adjustments are built into the computerized Character Sheet I have developed for the Lorenvale campaign, so the player need not worry with remembering them or manually adjusting them. He only has to remember that they exist and that they often change the PC's ability scores. This system, while far more realistic, would be overly cumbersome if not for the spreadsheet, and that is the only reason I see for the unrealistic table given in the PH.
