At 06:27 PM 2/2/98 -0400, you wrote:
>Here's a question for you. Say a Rjurik (+1 Con, -1 Cha) married a
>Brecht (+1 Dex, -1 Wis), what would the kids' ability score modifiers
>be? I ask because from reading various accessories, I know there are
>cross-breeds out there (such as the Vos/Khinasi mentioned in Tribes).
>

Good question, and one I've heard a lot. I don't think we've come up with
an "official" ruling on this, but my opinion is:

The DM can go one of three ways. He can determine that the character "takes
after" one of the parents (and is, as far as stats go, either Rjurik or
Brecht). This could be a random determination, or based on some story
points. The character may still resemble both parents--or even the opposite
parent--but the stats would be along one particular line.

The second method would be to arbitrarily or randomly combine the two stat
lines. It is important, however, to keep the +/- ratio--none of this +1
Con, +1 Dex, no minuses crud. That's cheating. ;-) So, the character could
have +1 Con, -1 Wis or +1 Dex, -1 Cha, for example. I'd also stay away from
the -1 Cha, -1 Wis--that wouldn't be very fair either. Of course, NPCs
might have these "unfair" bonuses/minuses--that's what NPCs are for, right?
:-0

The last method would be to say that the mingling of the two different
races produces more of a "standard" human--as found on other worlds. No
pluses, no minuses--just a regular human. I would, as a DM, probably come
up with a few interesting roleplaying or game mechanic "bonuses" for a
player who was willing to "endure" being "only human"--perhaps he/she would
be less bound by cultural class restrictions (though humans can technically
be of any class, the races DO restrict things--this might explain the Vos
Paladin or the Rjurik Wizard). Could be interesting.

Just my thoughts.

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Ed Stark
Game Designer, Wizards of the Coast/TSR Division
Asst. Brand Manager, BIRTHRIGHT/GREYHAWK/MARVEL Group
TSR Website: http://www.tsrinc.com
(soon to be http://www.tsr.com)