Variant Rules (Xenoblade Chronicles Supplement)

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Supplement Rules

These rules are the baselines of the supplement. All gameplay within the supplement are designed around using these rules, and so playing without them will undoubtedly cause problems.

Chain Attack

This is a rule that allows for party members and aligned enemy forces to perform something known as a Chain Attack using a Party Gauge, a concept that comes directly from the Xenoblade Chronicles series. Below is a description of everything you need to know relating to Chain Attacks and the Party Gauge.

Chain Attack Preparation and Party Gauge

Characters and monsters are able to perform a "Chain Attack," after meeting specific requirements. To perform a chain attack, you and your allies must fill in points for a "Party Gauge." One attack coming from an ally that successfully hits an enemy, or an enemy failing an ally's saving throw, provides one point for the Party Gauge. If a critical hit is landed by an ally, or an enemy fails an ally's saving throw by under half of the DC (rounded up), then two points for the Party Gauge are provided. A maximum of 30 points may be collected for the Party Gauge. 30 points are also the required amount for the Party Gauge to properly activate a Chain Attack. Alongside that, if a Chain Attack has been used within a minute beforehand, then it may not be activated.

If one or more allies share the Chain Attack feature, then any one of you may activate it and spend the Party Gauge, however, the activation must be agreed upon unanimously.

Finally, if there are still points on the Party Gauge at the end of combat, then the Party Gauge is reduced by 1 point per hour.

Chain Attack Activation and Usage

In order to activate a chain attack, no matter what the conditions are, you have to be a sentient or otherwise intelligent creature with an Intelligence score of 8 or higher. If a creature wouldn’t be considered intelligent enough, in terms of sentience and its Intelligence score, then it is not able to activate a Chain Attack, however it is still able to participate with its allies.

After the required amount of points in the Party Gauge are acquired for the Chain Attack, it may then be activated at the end of a round. This begins a new, special round of combat, in which only the user of Chain Attack and their allies take turns. Everybody within the Chain Attack may only walk, take the Dash Action, or make some sort of attack against an opponent within this time. Alongside that, only a singular attack may be made, however, it is rolled with advantage if the attack must be rolled to hit, or if the attack requires a saving throw, the saving throw is rolled with disadvantage for the enemy. If a saving throw is required for an ally or the user of the Chain Attack due to an attack made within the Chain Attack, then the ally rolls with advantage.

In order to make things more fair for those who aren’t using magic, anyone who is making a weapon attack has additional damage dice for all damage rolls they make with a weapon. The additional damage dice is equal to half their proficiency bonus rounded down (minimum of 1). For example, a level 5 Fighter wielding a Flametongue Greatsword would deal 3d6 slashing damage and 3d6 fire damage on a hit, as opposed to the normal 2d6 slashing and 2d6 fire damage. If a class feature is being used that affects the damage of the attack, then this effect does not apply. The DM can change this rule as they see fit in minor ways in order to make sure there is a balance in the party during a Chain Attack.

Once the round of Chain Attack is complete, the DM must roll a d8. If it lands on a number that is less than or equal to the proficiency bonus of the individual who activated the Chain Attack, another round of Chain Attack ensues. (For example, if their proficiency bonus is +4, the DM must roll 4 or below.) In a secondary round of Chain Attack, the user of Chain Attack and all ally's damage are doubled. The maximum amount of rounds a Chain Attack may go is up to the user's proficiency bonus - 2, with a minimum of 2 rounds.

The special rounds that are a part of a Chain Attack only add on to the in-game time as if 1 normal round of combat has passed.

If, for whatever reason, somebody with the Chain Attack is fighting without allies, Chain Attack may not be used until an ally is present.

Finally, creatures not participating in the Chain Attack are not allowed to use any sort of actions during the Chain Attack round(s).

Improved Durability

This rule is intended to provide a boost to the character's durability and endurance considering the nature of the Xenoblade Chronicles Supplement reflects huge damage numbers and significant bonuses that can occur every turn within a combat encounter. This rule may mitigate that issue by improving characters' hit points and their maximums.

Starting at 1st level whenever a player selects a class, whether it be from the supplement or not, they gain an additional hit die to their hit die total. This additional hit die will provide extra hit points equal to the die's maximum rolled result + your Constitution modifier. For every level you gain afterwards, you gain an additional hit die towards your hit die total. The additional hit die then provides as if you gain a level in your class.

For example, a Fighter that benefits from this rule will begin with 2 hit die as opposed to 1 at 1st level. Their starting hit points are increased by the maximum rolled result of their hit die (d10 = 10) + their Constitution modifier. When this Fighter reaches 2nd level, they gain an additional hit die to their total and their hit point maximum increases by their Hit Points at Higher Levels found in the Hit Point section within the class description.

Special Status Conditions

The following are status conditions present within the Xenoblade Chronicles series that are present within the supplement. Only special features can give these conditions.

Break

This status condition does not grant any special effects when used normally, however, it does allow you to inflict Topple on most enemies.

At the DM’s discretion, if a creature is inflicted with Break on their turn due to a prepared action, is inflicted with Break while performing a full-round action, or something along those lines, that creature’s action could be forced to make a DC 20 Constitution saving throw. On a failure, that action is canceled. No resources, such as number of uses of a feature or spell slots, are drained if this occurs. On a success, the action continues as normal.

Topple

This can only be inflicted on a creature after they have been inflicted with Break unless stated otherwise. Topple is similar to the Prone condition in the 2014 rules, however, it requires much more prep to do, and requires special attacks or features to inflict on top of that. Because of that, it is much more powerful than anything found within the basic rules of D&D 5e.

• A Toppled creature has 0 movement speed.
• Toppled creatures cannot take any actions or harm any creatures while Toppled.
• Any attacks made against the Toppled creature automatically succeed, and saving throws made by the Toppled creature are made with disadvantage unless it is an Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma saving throw. Toppled creatures automatically fail Dexterity saving throws.
• Damage dealt to the Toppled creature by magic is always treated as if the creature failed a saving throw or was dealt a critical hit (this does not stack if it is a normal critical hit or failure)

Whenever landing a critical hit on a Toppled creature, instead of damage dice being doubled, they’re tripled instead.

A creature is only toppled until the next turn of whoever inflicted the condition. The time a creature spends being Toppled could be extended by using another feature that would cause Topple, in which it ends at the end of their next turn. This can theoretically extend to an infinite amount of time of the creature being Toppled, however, that is unlikely without extensive planning and/or extraordinary conditions.

Daze

This can only be inflicted on a creature after they have been inflicted with Topple unless stated otherwise. Daze functions the same as being Toppled, even in terms of how long it could be extended, however after Daze ends, the amount of time the creature is Toppled resumes.

Launch

This can only be inflicted on a creature after they have been inflicted with Topple unless stated otherwise. When an enemy is inflicted with Launch, they are sent into the air without moving to a different space, spinning rapidly for the duration. Attacks made against Launched creatures are rolled with advantage and the damage dice is increased by 1. The length of the Launch and how it works in relation to Topple is the same as Daze.

Smash. When a creature has been inflicted by Launch, a feature that inflicts Smash can be used to its fullest. When a creature is affected by Smash, damage rolls as normal, however the damage dice is quadrupled. If used with another feature that enhances damage, the damage cannot go beyond what it would be without using the feature (ex: attacking with a Greatsword and a Generalist Swordfighter’s Backslash will max out at 8d6 slashing damage, and wouldn’t go any further than that).

Suggested Variant Rules

These are variant rules that you are suggested to use whenever you are playing with this supplement (or parts of this supplement).

Miscellaneous Variant Rules

These are miscellaneous variant rules found throughout the D&D Wiki that you may or may not apply to your game. Make sure to check each of them out, even though you don't have to!

• Limb System. This system allows you to target limbs in specific at a cost to your attack roll. While it gives players more freedom, it can be abused when used in combination with some features.
• Fair Critical Hits. This system works as the Limb System, but works with Players and NPCs. Unlike the Limb System, you do not get to choose which limb you attack. This prevents players from being able to directly abuse the rule.
• Player Equivalent CR. PECR simplifies encounter building by giving you a formula to follow, and is supported by the Xenoblade Bestiary.

Revival Using the Party Gauge

In the Xenoblade Chronicles series, during battle, you can expend a large amount of your Party Gauge in order to revive a party member that has been downed (with a decent portion of their HP present after doing so). Because of that, we've given you an optional variant rule based around that mechanic!

Whenever you are in deadly combat and are within 5 feet of an unconscious ally, as an action, you can expend 1/3rd (or 10 points) of your Party Gauge, in which the following effects will occur:

• The creature is immediately stabilized, if not already, and is no longer unconscious
• The creature will regain a number of hit points equal to your character level + an amount of your character's hit die equal to your proficiency bonus

If the ally is dead or had fallen unconscious not due to reaching 0 hit points (such as those who are under the effect of the Sleep spell), then you cannot use this rule to revive them.

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