One exception to this is the Weaponmaster Prestige class, which requires that those taking it have an INT post-skin of 13 or higher.
*Edit* This post was not directed to Steve's original thoughts. I'm replying to the need for ruling or not with general information on how it plays out mechanically as opposed to the character/ story qualities inherent of it.
For example, in my many years of gaming, I have never played a "half ogre". So I started designing one, just for fun, and immediately realized it wasn't really a playable race.Let's say you just want a half-ogre fighter. You have to buy your INT up to 16, so that it will be 12 to speak another language
On the other hand, the the "no class sniping" rule (forcing people to take 5 levels of any class they switch to) really harms Humans, because the lack of XP limits is one of the advantages of the race. So if you think about it, it really is no wonder that the most common type of PC is a half-elf.
Again, none of this matters if you're thinking purely about RP. But with the Death Token/Soul Strand system, you can't afford not to think about it, because your PC will die. Front line characters, especially, need to think about this, because they're the meat shield. If you don't have enough "meat" you won't last long as a shield. An inefficiently built fighter is a dead one.
For example, in my many years of gaming, I have never played a "half ogre". So I started designing one, just for fun, and immediately realized it wasn't really a playable race.
No? I'm not sure why a half-ogre fighter would "need" to buy his way up to 16 INT just to have an adjusted 12 to speak another language. Common wouldn't be enough?
Because a Ogre's first language is Ogrish. Their second is common. That needs a 12 INT.
Races receive their specific ear on creation. Dark elves receive both the elf and Dark Elf ear. Sea Elves get the elf and underwater ear. Druids and rangers start with the animal ear, while rogues start with the ability to use thieves' cant. Certain clerics may also begin with the animal ear depending on domain. Half elves will be able to understand the elven language but the biography and intelligence must support the ability to speak it. These default ears do not count against your bonus languages.
Personally, it seems pretty obvious that the "must be 12 INT to speak another language" is an Americanism that crept into the D&D rulebooks. Go to any European country where people are routinely exposed to other languages as children, and you'll find a rate of foreign language understanding much higher than that. Learning a language is hard only when you start trying in high-school.
The Rules Races receive their specific ear on creation. Dark elves receive both the elf and Dark Elf ear. Sea Elves get the elf and underwater ear. Druids and rangers start with the animal ear, while rogues start with the ability to use thieves' cant. Certain clerics may also begin with the animal ear depending on domain. Half elves will be able to understand the elven language but the biography and intelligence must support the ability to speak it. These default ears do not count against your bonus languages.
And Dorganath, I don't personally like using mechanical rules for "game balance", at least not in my own campaign, Aftermath. You want your PC to know 10 languages? Fine, show me a bio that supports that, and I'll let it in. But if you can't convince me it's reasonable, your PC won't be approved.Characters should be controlled in the bio/approval process, not by game mechanics. In fact, most unbalanced campaigns come from some player rules-lawyer who convinces a GM to play a PC because the rules technically allow it, rather than whether it fits into the world.
Let me quote that passage back to you, with different words emphasized:Also scattered all over the rules is the following: "Player characters must have a minimum intelligence of 12 to be fluent in another language."It was these specific passages that led me to the conclusion that the ability to speak a second language requires a 12 INT. The text seems to be saying is that using a "default" ear not backed by enough INT merely lets a PC understand the language, not speak it (fluently).If this isn't what you meant, then I'm more than happy to see the clarification. But that's why I thought that restriction was in place. And I'm trying to be strictly legal.I didn't just come up with this restriction all by myself.
These default ears do not count against your bonus languages.
And Dorganath, I don't personally like using mechanical rules for "game balance", at least not in my own campaign, Aftermath. You want your PC to know 10 languages? Fine, show me a bio that supports that, and I'll let it in. But if you can't convince me it's reasonable, your PC won't be approved.Characters should be controlled in the bio/approval process, not by game mechanics. In fact, most unbalanced campaigns come from some player rules-lawyer who convinces a GM to play a PC because the rules technically allow it, rather than whether it fits into the world.As a GM, I'm not shy about saying "no". That fixes most problems right away.
It also says (and you didn't bold this for some reason):These default ears do not count against your bonus languages. So anything that's a "default" language does not factor into the maximum language math based on the character's INT modifier, and that's regardless of race or subrace.
Human: 2661Elf: 1237Dwarf: 523Halfling: 443Half elf: 294Half orc: 250Gnome: 173
Feel free to make suggestions.
Certain races and classes receive default language ears on creation. Elves and half-elves receive an elf ear. Dark elves receive both the elf and Dark Elf ear. Sea Elves get the elf and underwater ear. Druids and rangers start with the animal ear, while rogues start with the ability to use thieves' cant. Certain clerics may also begin with the animal ear depending on domain.Depending on your approved biography, these ears may not be appropriate for your character. For example, unless a half-elf was exposed to the elven language while young, they should not have a half-elf ear. In this case, you are expected to ask a GM on the GM channel to remove the ear from your inventory. Rarely, with an extensive approved biography that justifies it, your PC will receive a different ear, but these will never be extremely rare languages such as Draconic, Abyssal, or Infernal.Default ears are not considered a bonus language, but still follow the same rules as common. For example, an INT 8 elf understands common and elvish, but speaks both very poorly.