[RPG] How to convince the GM to add strength/dex modifiers to damage rolls

new-gmpathfinder-1e

A friend of mine is GMing a group that I am in. He has played once before but is a first time GM, and we are all first time players. While reading about combat after our first session, I learned that you are supposed to add your strength modifier to your melee damage rolls (or your dex mod in some instances), but he is only having us add them to the attack rolls. This is how he was taught to play and he said it would be overpowered if we did that. I feel he is ignoring a major game mechanic that goes above what would be considered a house rule. How can I convince him that it makes sense from a game and logical standpoint? Or should I just let it go?

Edit- I don't actually know if he changed how the monster's damage is calculated too, but I don't think he plans super precisely or far ahead in terms of what enemies we face and what their stats are. From my perspective as a player, implementing this change should not be difficult if he chooses to accept it. If we do more damage then so would the enemies, or he could simply add more. As I mentioned, we've only had one session and we're all still learning.

Best Answer

Houserules can be anything, including huge things like changing the basic damage roll math. Still, that is a huge houserule.

For one, you are correct. Strength is added to most weapon damage rolls (Dexterity is only added when a feat or class feature says so, so that is rarer). Specifically, the rule is

Combat

Damage

Strength Bonus

When you hit with a melee or thrown weapon, including a sling, add your Strength modifier to the damage result. A Strength penalty, but not a bonus, applies on damage rolls made with a bow that is not a composite bow.

  • Off-hand Weapon

    When you deal damage with a weapon in your off hand, you add only 1/2 your Strength bonus. If you have a Strength penalty, the entire penalty applies.

  • Wielding a Weapon Two-Handed

    When you deal damage with a weapon that you are wielding two-handed, you add 1-1/2 times your Strength bonus (Strength penalties are not multiplied). You don't get this higher Strength bonus, however, when using a light weapons with two hands.

(d20PFSRD)

For another, this is a major reason why people would choose to use a two-handed weapon. The slightly-larger base weapon damage of two-handed weapons is not valuable (it averages only 1 damage and that never improves). If you aren’t getting that half-again Strength bonus to damage, there’s no good reason to use two-handed weapons—you should just stick with a shield...

Or dual-wield, since now you also don’t have the drawback of dealing only half-Strength damage on the off-hand attack with the Two Weapon Fighting combat option.

Going beyond the choice of which weapon to use, there is also the issue that Strength is now really quite pitifully under-utilized. It just doesn’t get added to enough, or important enough, things to justify increasing it. Optimally, everyone should be picking up Weapon Finesse or using ranged weapons, and focusing on Dexterity instead.

And finally, the monsters are designed with this concept in mind. Their damage rolls include these bonuses in their statblocks, and their design chooses HP values for them such that they can only survive a certain number of blows. Without these ability scores added to your damage, they will last much, much longer—and thus have far more opportunities to damage the party, deplete their resources, or kill someone. Or everyone.

These would be the cases I would bring to the DM, anyway.

Related Topic