Comeliness (3.5e Variant Rule)
The Comeliness statistic first appeared in the game Chivalry and Sorcery, from Fantasy Games Unlimited, in 1977. It was first introduced into D&D in an article by Gary Gygax in The Dragon #67, November 1982. He then put most of the content of that article into Unearthed Arcana in 1985.
Determining Your Comeliness
Look at your STR, DEX, and CON. Add their modifiers, take that sum, and put it to the side for later. Refer to the "Faces of Races" list of races below, follow it's instructions. Refer to the "Physical Traits" table below the "Faces of Races" table, follow it's instructions. Add your sum total from the STR, DEX, and CON modifiers to the bonuses/penalties garnered from the two tables below. This new total is your Comeliness (COM)
"Faces of Races"
First, look at the type your character is, and compare it to the available types on the list. Then, roll a d10 and percentile die. If the result is within the range given, take that result, and subtract it from the greatest value given in your type's range. Treat this difference as though it were an ability score, record that "ability score's" ability modifier, and set it aside. If the difference between your roll result and the highest range for your type is greater than 19, no matter what, the highest modifier you can use +4. If the difference is 0, you instead get a +1 modifier.(example: 00-55 is the humanoid type percentile range. You roll a 40 on a d10+%. 15 is the difference between these values, so you would record +3, and keep it for later. However, if you had rolled a 20, the difference between it and 55 being 35, you would treat the 35 as though it were 19, giving you the modifier of +4.) If you roll outside the range of character's type, you apply the same mathematical functions above, except the modifier is a penalty. If you would roll a score that would have a penalty anyway, record that and set it aside. (00-20 is the range for Monstrous Humanoids. You roll an 28 on d10+%. The difference between 28 and 20 is 8, that of which has a modifier of -1. Record this and set it aside)
Fey:00-80/ Dragon:00-65/ Humanoid (Human):00-70/ Humanoid (Non-Human):00-60/ Construct:00-50/ Giant:00-55/ Monstrous Humanoid:00-35/ Aberration:00-30/ Undead:00-30 Outsider: 00-40/ Elemental: 00-25
In the event you are running a Pathfinder campaign, or similar session, where half-undead and half-constructs exist, treat the range of these races as 00-60. If one is using a vampire as a character, instead of using the CON modifier, use the CHA modifier to help determine comeliness.
"Physical Traits"
These are the only traits that affect your character's comeliness, as they are the most physically profound, and only matter if you have these traits on your character. Roll a d10+%. You may make this roll up too three times. Each time your result falls within the range of your trait, you get it's benifits and penalties so that they stack. The numeric values given for each trait are applied to you comeliness, and are added each time your die roll falls with the trait's range. For those with the skinny trait, if you roll within range, you get the +1 bonus to you comeliness and you get the benefits and penalties of that trait. If you roll outside the range, you get the benefits and penalties, but a -1 instead.
Musclebound: +1 (25-70) Skinny: +?(25-70) Stout: -1(25-70)
Comeliness determines the aesthetic appeal of your character to the general human populace and races with that same taste. Depending on your character's details, he or she may appear more or less attractive to his or her own people and those that share their tastes. In the end, it all depends on an NPC's personal aesthetic palette. That being said, an NPC's attitude will be affected by your comeliness if it has an INT, WIS and CHA score. Generally, those with high comeliness scores provoke a friendly attitude from NPCs, when less comely characters are met with unfriendly attitudes. This is determined by this table:
3 or greater=friendly 2 to -1=Indifferent -2 or less=unfriendly
For descriptive purposes, you may refer to this chart:
| Modifier Score | Description |
|---|---|
| -5 | Other worldly horror; possibly malformed, due to birth defects or circumstance. Think Jason Voorhees or the Alien Queen |
| -4 | Monstrous Noisome; too ugly for even an mother to love. Think of a burn victim. |
| -3 | Repulsive, may have have a noxious odor to aid the ill appearance. |
| -2 | Quite ugly. Only alcohol may improve the appearance. |
| -1 | Unattractive, but not so repugnant that you advert your eyes. |
| 0 | Homely; still approachable, even companion material. |
| 1 | Average appearance, suitable for companionship, but not top shelf. |
| 2 | Good Looking, definitely eye catching. |
| 3 | Above Average, a true gem among mortals. |
| 4 | Tantalizing appeal, may provoke carnal acts of desire. |
| 5 | Statuesque, riveting, leaves people speechless. |
| 6 or greater | A god sent creation of unparalleled, flawless sexy. Nations go to war for one this beautiful. |
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