Fixing Turn Undead

After Grapple, Turn Undead is probably the worst part of the 3.5e combat rules (and slightly ahead of all those combat maneuvers). It has several problems:

- It is an iconic, but little used, ability of one of the key classes in the game. This means that it comes up enough to be annoying, but not enough to warrant actually memorising the complex rules.

- It works slightly differently from anything else in the game.

- The mechanics require a table lookup. In fact, they are just about the only core rule that requires a table. This means that even if you did memorise the rule, you almost certainly still have to look it up every time.

The Way it Works

Turn Undead works like this: the Cleric can use the power a number of times per day equal to 3 plus his Cha mod (minimum 1). It is a standard action to turn undead (and lasts 10 rounds).

When the Cleric Turns Undead, he makes a turning check (d20 + Cha mod). He then looks his result up on a table to see the maximum "hit dice" affected.

He then rolls turning damage, which is 2d6 + Clr lv + Cha mod. This is the number of "hit dice" that are affected.

Then, you start counting creatures, starting with the closest (but ignoring any with total concealment, or if line of effect is blocked). You keep counting until you run out of turning damage, or there are no more undead within 60 ft. (If at any point the 'next nearest' undead has more "hit dice" than the remaining turn damage, those remaining dice are wasted; they aren't enough to affect the creature, and they don't carry over to a new creature.) Oh, one more thing - if two undead creatures are equally close to the Cleric, turn undead affects the weaker of the two first.

Normally, creatures affected flee from the character for 10 rounds. If unable to flee, they cower instead. You can act normally, but if you move within 10 feet of them, the turn effect ends.

However, if you have more than twice as many cleric levels as the creature has "hit dice", you destroy the creature instead.

All of these various elements - the uses per day, the turn check, and the turn damage - can be improved using appropriate feats.

One more thing: the reason I have put "hit dice" in quote marks above is that many undead creatures have Turn Resistance. This increases their effective hit dice vs Turn Undead. So, if a vampire has 9 hit dice but TR +4, it is considered to have 13 hit dice when the Cleric tries to turn it.

A Better Solution

The real solution to Turn Undead is actually to just make it a spell. Clerics already have a bunch of these, so adding one more shouldn't be a problem. Additionally, this eliminates the issue of why a Cleric of the god of hats gets the Turn Undead power the same as anyone else. Finally, it allows the complex rules to be shunted away into a spell description, which is really the most appropriate place anyway.

Unfortunately, that's not going to happen. In the first playtest packet, the designers for 5e actually did make Turn Undead a spell... and there was a rebellion. Apparently, people didn't like this change to this most 'iconic' of Cleric abilities. Odd.

(Besides, I'm actually talking in the context of 3.5e here. And moving it to a spell is somewhat problematic in that edition for a couple of reasons. Basically, it either means the Cleric gets more spells, boosting what is already the second most powerful class in the game, or it doesn't. Either way, Turn Undead is highly unlikely to be the spell selected, and so disappears from the game.)

Here's my alternate solution...

Clerics can Turn Undead once per encounter. It's a standard action, lasts 10 rounds, and affects undead within 60ft (ignoring those with total concealment, etc etc...). The closest undead are affected first. (The Extra Turning feats increases this to twice per encounter.)

The turning check is d20 + Clr level + Cha mod (basically, it works much like a skill, or indeed like the Druid's Wild Empathy ability). This check is made against 10 + hit dice + Turn Resistance. (A single roll is made, and applied to each target in turn...) (The Improve Turning feat gives a +1 bonus here.)

Turning damage starts at 1d6 at first level, and increases by 1d6 at every odd level (as for Rogue sneak attack). The Cleric's Cha mod applies.

When turning, the Cleric can choose whether to drive undead away or to destroy them. (He should decide before making the check.) If he elects to drive them away, the turning damage is the number of hit dice affected. Affected undead must move away from the Cleric so they're outside of the 60ft area, and cannot re-enter until the effect ends. (If they cannot move away, they cower as normal. Also as before, if the Cleric approaches within 10 ft, the effect ends.)

If the Cleric instead attempts to destroy the undead, the turning damage is measured in hit points. This applies to all affected undead. (The Greater Turning power of the Sun Domain would do double damage.)

(This, of course, then opens up some scope for additional Cleric turning abilities. Perhaps there could be a 'weaken undead' option, or an option to make them vulnerable to critical hits (good for Rogues!), or something...)

Anyway, as far as I can see, this has several improvements:

- It reuses the skill rules, which are already well-known.

- It eliminates the need for a table lookup.

- It improves with level more than is currently the case. This means that a Cleric has less incentive to adopt a Prestige Class, because he's then giving up more to do so. (At present, most Clerics will automatically seek a PrC that gives "+1 spellcasting level" at every level, and give up almost nothing for the priviledge.)

- I think it's simpler and easier to remember.

- It opens up another 'design space' for the designers to proceed to fill up, thus over-complicating the game. Actually, come to think of it, I'm not sure that's a benefit!

Any thoughts?