d20 FAQ

This is the d20 FAQ as it appeared on the Call of the Horn Forum. I put it here while another solution is found.

Table of Contents

his is the Call of the Horn Forums FAQ, regouping useful information about the RPG and the online & offline ressources available for it. If you don't find the answers you're looking for, post a new thread, and we'll be please to answer you.

Please do report broken links and/or errors if you find any. Suggestions are also welcome.

General FAQ

What is the official material released by Wizards of the Coast?

Wizards of the Coast released two books: the core rulebook, and an adventure book called "Prophecies of the Dragon", which also has a few additional material. Wizards of the Coast has stopped supporting the WoT RPG, but you can still buy those two rulebooks on amazon. Here is all the official material:

Note that the RPG artwork was freely available on the Wizard of the Coast website, but as the RPG is no more supported, it has been taken away. However, some of it is available at wotmania.

The old wizards site can be (partially) viewed on the Internet Archive. It features:

The wallpapers can also be found on the Krondor Fantasy website. They feature Matrim Cauthon, Perrin Aybara and Rand al'Thor.

Why do I feel that Prophecies of the Dragon isn't as good as it could be?

Here's the answer of Charles Ryan (question asked by Quillion on the old wizard boards):

Quillion's question: Why was the WoT Rpg such a wonderfully well done book and Prophecies of the Dragon found by the mass of fans I have contacted to require a massive rewrite by GMs? (too many cooks in the kitchen?)

Charles Ryan answers: As the editor of Prophecies (and, ultimately, one of the cooks), this is an issue that was close to my heart. We had something like six freelance authors for PotD. Some of them produced excellent work on schedule. Others, unfortunately, did not. Some of the contracted writing had to be extensively reworked (or, in the case of some sections that the authors never turned in, written from scratch), all in the time alloted for editing. The result was not, sadly, the product of which I am most proud—but it did succeed in creating a playable epic adventure set concurrently to major events within the IP world, and that's an accomplishment in itself!

Is there an official FAQ and/or Errata available?

Although wizards of the Coast never released one, Charles Ryan, the Game Designer, answered a number of question in was is now know as the (un)official FAQ.

How far involved was RJ in the RPG?

In an interview posted on the Wizard of the Coast website when they still supported the game, Charles Ryan was quite affirmative that everything in the RPG was 100% correct.

Wizards: The game is approved by Robert Jordan, and includes a foreword by him. To what extent was he involved in the development process? What was it like to work with him?

Charles: Robert Jordan is a very hands-on person—he keeps a very close eye on his fictional world, and everything anyone else does with it. That's great; it's wonderful to work with someone who has such a consistent view of how his universe should work. Robert read every word of the book, and provided a lot of great information, lots of little details to help flesh it out and keep it 100% accurate. There are still several more novels to come in this series, so we had to be careful that nothing we presented would contradict future information from Robert Jordan in his novels.

However, RJ's version of his involvement is quite different. When specifically asked on his blog, here is what he answered:

I had little to do with the RPG. Mainly my role was limited to telling them that they could not have paladins, ninjas, clerics, shuriken etc. I had to put so much time into that fighting that I washed my hands of the rest, I'm afraid. I could see that trying to make them actually adapt the books was going to be Valmy Ridge all over again. At least I managed to stop them from putting in a ter'angreal that could bring on the Last Battle in some unspecified manner and also some other really terrible ideas. I wish I had been able to do more, but I had a book to write.

There are quite a few proofs of the lack of involvement or lack of communication between the two parties. One is the fly weave, which is present in the RPG, but RJ specifically said at a signing that such a weave cannot exist. Here's the transcript:

Can a channeler fly without any ter'angreal or equipment (like sho'wings) if he or she knows the right weave? No. Flat out, no hesitation, no thinking. Simply put, NO.

Another is the Taim/Black Ajah plot in Prophecies of the Dragon. Straight from the Dragonmount/Wotmania 2002 Interview:

Question: How accurate is the information in the WoT RPG? For instance, it says that Taim was captured by Black Ajah. In your books, though, you seem to leave this issue open to debate. Does your official approval of the game extend to its plot interpretations?

RJ: I didn't consult with them on interpretations at all, really. I was trying to let them set up situations where the game could be played parallel to to the story arc, or perhaps outside it. I did try to find anything that contradicted the books, or what I intended in future books, and I caught a few errors when going over their galley proofs. I would have asked them to remove this, had I caught it.

Where can I find free netbooks for the WoT RPG?

A few free netbooks for the Wheel of Time RPG were realeased:

Next to these full netbooks, you also have the following ressources that are still under work:

Why aren't the titles of UtDB displaying correctly?

When the PDF was made, the proper fonts were not included, so you need to download the Morpheus font for the titles. You can find it here. It won't be perfect (the trademark symbol won't appear correctly), but still better than nothing.

Where can I find the original version of UtDB, the one with the swordforms?

You can find it here (zipped pdf, 734KB)

Where can I find character sheets?

If you're looking for printable ones, check up RPGSheets.

Where can I find Freya's Excel Character Generator?

Freya's Excel Character Generator is available in three versions:

Where can I find good online ressources for the WoT RPG (feats, classes, ...)?

The following sites are those who have the more material online:

Those sites are not the only interesting ones; they are just the ones with the more material in them. To check other interesting sites go to the links page.

Where can I find good online ressources for WoT (background information, encyclopaedias, etc.)?

If you want more links, you can check up the links page.

Where can I find the latest WoT News?

If you want more links, you can check up the links page.

Where can I find Maps?

Check up the Complete Maps Index page. There should be almost every different type of map available online in it.

You'll also find most of these maps at The Mapmaker's Study and 4th Dimension.

Check also the maps page.

Where can I find the distances between the different cities?

Check up Eosin's Odometer. There's also a pdf version.

Where can I find adventures for my campaign?

I don't like the channeling system. Where can I find others?

A few complete channeling system rewrites have been made, but only one is available today:

I don't like the d20 system. Where can I find WoT RPG which use other systems?

Where can I find information on the old tongue?

Aleshandre has made an extensive old tongue dictionnary, The Definitive Old Tongue Dictionary. Check out the more complete PDF version (48KB), with insights from RJ himself and featuring an AoL font.

The (Un)Official Wheel of Time Roleplaying Game FAQ version 2.0

This FAQ is a compilation of answers given by Charles Ryan, the WoT RPG Game designer. Although they were never officially published by Wizards of the Coasts, they are as official as anything can be.

You can find a PDF version of this FAQ here (PDF, 248KB)

Credits

Characters

Can a Noble take an exclusive skill as their 1st level bonus class skill?

Yes

Does the Woodsman’s Partial Improved Initiative stack with the Improved Initiative feat?

No, the bonuses don’t stack. However, a woodsman with the Improved Initiative feat would gain the bonus all the time, not just when wearing no armor or light armor.

The write up for bashing with shields says you cannot bash with a tower shield yet there are no listings of tower shields in the book.

Ignore the comment about tower shields.

Does the Speak Language skill work like the background languages or not, i.e. would it take 1 rank to learn a new dialect and 2 to learn an entire new language or just 1 for the new language?

1 rank = 1 new language or dialect.

The equipment list does not include Mighty Two Rivers Bows, yet the Craft skill allows you to create them. Are Mighty Two Rivers Bows allowed?

If you’d like to include mighty bows in your campaign, you can use the rules for mighty bows from the D&D Player's Handbook (see page 113). Just change the prices from gp to mk.

Can a 10th+ level character use the reputation bonus from masterwork/masterpiece weapons or armor as a bonus when trying to attract followers?

I’d leave this one up to your GM. Since an attempt to attract followers occurs over an extended period of time, your character would probably need to bear his masterpiece/masterwork items most of the time over that period to gain the Reputation benefit they offer. If he does, he’s probably entitled to the bonus. If not, then he’s probably not. But again, your GM is the final arbiter.

What are the knowledge class skills for Initiates, Woodsmen, and Wilders?

All knowledge skills are class skills for initiates, wilders, nobles, and wanderers. For woodsmen, Knowledge (nature) is a class skill, but other knowledge skills are not.

Is everyone proficient with unarmed strikes, or do you have to be proficient with all simple weapons, or just gauntlets? Or, does unarmed strike count as it’s own simple weapon that you must become proficient in?

Proficiency doesn't apply to unarmed strikes. You don't have to be proficient in anything to make an unarmed strike. Therefore, everyone is capable of doing it, regardless of what weapons they are or are not proficient in.

If a character has a base attack of +6/+1, does he get one ranged attack or two? Assume the character is using a shortbow.

He gets two attacks that round if he takes a full attack action. The total bonus would be +6/+1 + Dex modifier + weapon properties (masterwork/piece), for a total of, say, +10/+5 (+3 Dex, +1 masterwork). If he took an attack and move action in the round, it would be a single attack at his highest attack bonus, or +10.

It also depends on the ranged weapon. Crossbows take time to reload, so you could only shoot one once per round, taking your move action to reload and your attack action to shoot. Bows aren't limited by the slowness of their ammo. However, crossbows do more damage than the comparable bows, and have a longer range. Bows still work better for a small group of highly skilled characters, but for masses of low-level characters, it's better to give them crossbows.

Does the defense bonus from an Aiel Buckler stack with the class defense bonus for an algai’d’siswai?

No.

The rules hint that a Warder’s sword can be used one-handed with training. What special training is this?

A Warder’s sword is an exotic weapon. It is basically a bastard sword from D&D. The character can use it two-handed as a martial weapon, but cannot use it onehanded until he takes the Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Warder Sword) feat.

Using it two-handed without being proficient, however, does not give the character the usual -4 to attack that using an exotic weapon without being proficient usually does (unless the character is not proficient with Martial Weapons). Also, if you can use it one handed you can take the weapon-finesse feat with it.

The prerequisites for the Blademaster prestige class include some feats but not their prerequisites. Is this correct?

Yes. Occasionally, there are ways to get around a feat's prerequisites, making it possible to have that feat without having its prerequisite feats. In this case, if you have Whirlwind Attack, the prestige class doesn't care if you have the prerequisites. However, you must have some legitimate way of gaining Whirlwind Attack--and 9 times out of 10, the way to get it is to gain the prerequisite feats first.

The Heron Spreads His Wings ability states that the Blademaster can use Whirlwind Attack as an ’attack action’ instead of a Full Attack Action. Does this mean that the Whirlwind Attack is a Standard Action that can be combined with a Move Equivalent Action, or can the Blademaster use it as part of a full attack action, i.e. use it as one of his iterative attacks?

It means he can use it with a MEA. You can move and then attack, or anything else that's a Move Equivalent Action.

I have a 3rd level Wilder with a mail shirt. After reading up on the rules, I realized that he receives no benefit from wearing a mail shirt. His defense is the same as it would be wearing just plain clothes. In fact, because of the armor check penalties, he’s actually worse off than he was before!

The only classes that benefits from armor after the lower levels are Armsman, Warrior and Warder.

On pg. 218, it’s stated that an armsman who multiclasses into a Warder may add both class defense bonuses together for the purpose of stacking with armor. Now, what if the character has less than 3 levels of Armsman? (Say an Armsman 2/Woodsman 4.) Do those 2 points of defense from the Armsman class still stack?

Yes. A Warder’s armor compatibility class ability allows him to stack his Defense from all levels in armsman and Warder. He doesn’t have to have the armsman’s armor compatibility class ability for this to be in effect, so he gets the benefit even if he only has one or two levels of armsman.

Does the Armsman’s Armor Compatibility feat allow any armor he wears to stack with any class bonus, or does class matter?

Example: 6 Woodsman/4 Armsman, 16 Dex, in chain shirt = 23 AC (+5 Wood, +3 Arm, -2 crossclass, +3 Dex, +4 chain shirt).

It's been suggested that the character would only have an 18 AC if he wore armor, because Armsman Armor Compatibility only stacks with Armsman class defensive bonuses, not any other class' defensive bonus. So, he'd lose any defensive bonus granted by another class if he wore armor.

Is that how Armor Compatibility works?

It would make sense then that Warders gain Armor Compatibility and it stacks with any previous Armsman levels, but that would make it worthless for Wanderer/ Woodsman Warders to wear armor.

Yes, that is how it works: armor compatibility only stacks for the levels in which you took the Armsman defensive bonus. This is why at first level; Warders also gain Armored Combat, so that they can continue to be tanks.

Your wanderer character’s defense is based on his abilities to fight, dodge, and parry unencumbered by armor. Armor encumbers, and if you have fought for a long time (7 or 8 levels, say) without wearing it, you are going to have difficulty doing so for a while as you adapt to how it requires you to move differently.

I can see how Armsman’s Armor Compatibility works with classes before you've taken Armor Compatibility, but what about this scenario:

A 4th level Armsman with Armor Compatibility spends a lot of time in the forest and begins to take some Woodsman classes.

Must he now forgo his armor in order to benefit from the defensive bonus of his new class, even though he's taking that class having already learned to fight in armor?

Armsmen are consummate fighters. Everything they do revolves around combat. They eat, live and breathe in their armor. As such, it is as if their armor was a part of them. Woodsmen, by contrast, do much more than just fight, although they can do so quite well. They can track, get partial abilities, and get nature bonuses. The Armsman does not. By taking Woodsman, you are taking a penalty to gain other bonuses.

Ogier

If a class provides weapon/armor proficiencies, does an Ogier get them upon advancing to 2nd level in the class?

No. An Ogier character simply misses out on the martial and exotic weapons proficiencies provided by his starting class.

If an Ogier multiclasses, does he get the weapon proficiencies of the new class?

Yes. After 1st level (that’s 1st character level, not every 1st class level), Ogier gain weapon and armor proficiencies like every other character.

If an Ogier takes the Wanderer class at 1st level, what weapons does he get? I assume he gets the simple weapons listed under the class, but not the martial weapons. So, that means he would be able to use the following: club, crossbow, dagger, mace (heavy and light), morning star, and quarterstaff. Is this correct?

That’s correct. The restrictions apply only to martial and exotic weapons; an Ogier wanderer does begin play proficient in the wanderer’s simple weapons.

The Power

How do multi classed Initiate/Wilders work?

A channeler who multiclasses between the initiate and wilder classes must use Table 3-5: Initiate Weaves for determining her number of weaves. The character’s level, for determining the number of weaves, is equal to her total channeling level (in other words, the total of her levels in initiate and wilder). However, characters with levels in both wilder and initiate gain bonus weaves from Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma.

A couple of notes: In a few cases, a character who multiclasses will actually lose some channeling ability. For example, a 3rd-level wilder can cast 1 3rd-level weave per day. If she adds a level in initiate (and thus gets the weaves per day of a 4th-level initiate), she loses the ability to cast 3rd-level weaves. Unfortunately, setbacks like these are part of the cost of learning a new class. Also, the rules do not require a character to multi-class. A wilder that goes to Tar Valon can continue to advance as a wilder if she wants. It’s perfectly possible for a powerful Aes Sedai to have levels only in wilder, with no initiate or Aes Sedai prestige class levels. In order for an initiate to multiclass into wilder (meaning they have no previous levels of wilder), they must have [or take] the Eliminate Block feat. When a channeler multi-classes, she gets all of the benefits of the new class, including a second talent and affinity. When benefits conflict (like with overchanneling), the character uses the best option (which, in the case of overchanneling, would be the wilder’s). They also suffer the restrictions of the other classes (a wilder multiclassing into initiate would have to join one of the four initiate traditions - which can mean gaining a mentor).

Healing requires touch. In the books, channelers cannot heal themselves. Reading the rules, it’s not explicitly stated whether or not the creature touched can be the channeler (you can touch yourself, after all). Can a weave with ’creature touched’ as the target be used on oneself?

Yes. Touch range includes the caster, so technically a channeler can heal himself. Is this perfectly accurate with the books? Perhaps not, but it’s something that could be very important to a party that only has one channeler.

Some GM’s allow channelers to heal themselves. Some follow the books and do not. It’s simply a matter of personal taste.

There’s noticeably no weave to heal poison or disease--cut for space?

Covered in Prophecies of the Dragon. Also in Prophecies of the Dragon is some more information on Herbalism and the Seanchan (including a background).

The Invert skill is listed as lost. Does this mean that you must find someone (Forsaken) to teach it to you, even though it is listed as a class skill?

Yes.

Does a tied off weave count as a held one for the purpose of multiweaving?

A tied off weave does NOT count as a "held" weave. In other words, even without the Multiweave feat, a channeler can cast one weave, tie it off, and then cast another weave.

Can a character overchannel to use a weave over their required ability score (such as an initiate with an Int of 16 casting an 8th-level weave)? What about with angreal and sa’angreal?

Angreal and linking can exceed the ability score limit. Overchanneling cannot.

Example:

"Since a Wilder or Initiate needs an ability score of 10 + weave level to cast a particular weave, would they need a 23 Wis/Int to cast 13th-level Balefire?"

"No. When you use linking or angreal to increase the level of a weave slot, you can exceed the maximum weave level imposed by your ability score. However, this is not true of overchanneling. Thus, to overchannel to cast balefire at level 10, you’d have to have an Int of 20 (assuming you’re an initiate). But if you use an 8thlevel slot and a +2 angreal, you could cast it with an Int of only 18. To cast it at 13th level, by overchanneling and using a +2 angreal, you’d have to have an Int of 21 (not counting the angreal, you’re casting at 11th level)."

Blade of Fire, Fiery Sword, Tool of Air, and Wand of Fire all seem to be useless if a channeler doesn’t have the Tie Off Weave feat, due to the fact that concentrating on a weave is a full round action. Can a channeler, for example, attack with a Fiery Sword if she doesn’t tie it off?

To concentrate on a weave while attacking, the channeler must make a Concentration check (DC 15 + casting level).

I have an initiate with the fire and air affinities. The description of the affinities says that if you have all of the affinities that a weave contains, you can use a slot one level lower to cast it. Now, at 2nd level, I only have first level slots available. Since Fireball is minimally a 2nd level weave, but I have both affinities, would I be able to use a first level weave to cast it?

Yes.

Two initiates in my game use Arms of Air all the time to pull cloaks, etc. over faces so that NPC channelers can’t see their targets, and thus can’t weave. They argue that the NPC’s don't get saving throws because they’re not targeting them; they’re targeting their cloaks. It is the same with Harden Air. They will create a hardened shape around, but not touching, the individuals. Thus, they argue that they don't get saving throws because they aren't trapping them in the air, they are just putting an air barrier around them.

Items on one’s person always get a saving throw according to the rulebook (Page 150 under the heading: Saving Throws).

I have even put a saving throw on False Wall, as the weave says it is exactly like Harden Air. I think your players are having trouble understanding what a saving throw actually represents. It’s not a matter of the NPC resisting the weave but of them avoiding the effects of the weave.

To carry out your examples:

A character has created a weave, and the opponent is due a saving throw. Page 136 says the "DC for a save is determined by the attack itself." Ok, so what’s the DC for a weave?

10 + Weave Level + Ability Modifier

So, a 3rd-level fireball cast by a wilder with an 18 wisdom would have a save DC of 17 (10 + 3 + 4).

Can an Aes Sedai bond someone to someone else against his will?

An Aes Sedai may bond someone to herself against the other’s will. The bond weave doesn't allow the bonding of one person to another. The specific wording only allows the target of the weave to be bonded to the person channeling the weave.

We know that Aes Sedai can have multiple bondings in effect, but can two (or more) channelers share a bond with one target? The bond with Elayne, Min, Aviendha and Rand would seem to support this.

In WH, Elayne told Rand that it is possible to bond a person who is bonded to another and that the only reason that Aes Sedai don't is tradition (not law), and because Aes Sedai aren't willing to share.

Is it possible to bond someone other than yourself to a third person without also bonding yourself.

No. Elayne used a variation of the First Sister bond, which the Wise Ones used to create a bond between two or more people. This weave is made to bond more than one person, but it does not carry the same benefits that the warder bond does. There was no talk of being able to sense shadowspawn, increasing stamina or especially being able to command the warder.

The weave that Elayne cast was really 2 weaves. First, there was an inclusionary weave on herself and the other two, then a warder bond on Rand.

Would a First Sister share the warder bond if her sister already had a warder (say an Aes Sedai with a warder went and got herself made a First Sister to an Aiel Wise One). Would they both be considered bonded to the warder, or is it only through that Inclusion weave that this would be possible. So, if Elayne had bonded Rand by herself, after Aviendha had been made First Sister, would they both have been bonded to him?

No. Remember, Elayne had already bonded Birgitte as her warder before she went through the Aiel ceremony with Aviendha, and there's no indication (actually, indication to the contrary) that Aviendha shares any sort of bond with Birgitte; WH, p. 296-299.

The Wise Ones said that no one outside the room would be affected by what was done inside, in response to Elayne's question regarding Birgitte, that she may sense a part of what they share, but it would not affect the bonding.

What is this Weave Resistance thing in the stat block of the weave descriptions? It says yes or no, but I can't find the term defined anywhere.

Although nothing in the game currently uses weave resistance, it was originally included as a forward-compatible feature. The description of how it works, however, was cut for space (it would be included in any future product that called for weave resistance rules).

Miscellaneous

What is the scale for the map?

Its not an official scale, but a good one to use is 1" = 400 miles.

Is Myrddraal Black Plate considered Medium Armor or Heavy Armor?

Medium.

Why do the Aiel Waste and the Borderlands have such extreme environmental differences when all that separates them is the Spine of the World? While the Waste is like a desert, the Borderlands are like northern Sweden, but worse. According to the world map in the Illustrated Guide to the Wheel of Time, the equator is not even close to the Waste.

The reason that the Waste is so dry is simply a matter of weather activity. In most cases, weather patterns move west to east in the northern hemisphere. As moisture leaves the Westlands and moves into the Spine of the World, it is forced into a higher, cooler climate. At the cooler climate clouds are unable to hold the water, so it snows. That is why mountain peaks almost always have snow. Since the Spine is so extensive, by the time the clouds get to the Waste, they are devoid of all moisture. And since there is almost no water in the Waste, moisture-producing clouds are unable to develop.

Then why it is +40C when it should be -40C, and why is it like the Sahara in the middle of Siberia?

Assume that weather in the Westlands works like it does here. That means they have a jet stream. As close as the Waste is to the Blight, this jet stream would be pushing tons of hot air down into the Waste.

(Un)Official Errata

Supplementary FAQ

How does armor compatibility work?

Freya's Answer: In the character generator, I do the following: (that doesn't mean it's right, only what I've used)

If not using armor, you get all your defense bonuses with -2 for each additional class (3 classes would have -4 total penalty for multiclassing; prestige classes do not count obviously)

If you are using armor, only classes with armor compatibility (armsman, warrior, and warder) can add their defense bonus to the armor bonus. Though, I do give the -2 multiclass penalty if you have levels in both armsman and warrior.