Knights & Knaves Alehouse

.. these were meant to be used for NPCs right? Or to be used for PCs too?

Just curious how you interpret this and whether you use them or not in your AD&D game?

I do, for PCs. Don't think I've ever thought to use it for NPCs, but I rarely stat them up until the last minute if ever.

I would use them if the PCs started as (young) adults and grew old during the campaign.

I use them for NPCs to give me an idea of tendencies amongst age groups. Not as hardcore modifiers.

I typically use the age stat-modifiers when a PC changes categories during the course of play, so a PC who starts play at age 19 or 20 will, on his 21st birthday, gain 1 point of Str and 1 point of Wis, but a PC who starts at age 21 will not (and neither will the 19-year-old start the game with -1 Wis and +1 Con).

BtB, I believe that the age modifiers are meant to be (or at least can be) used for PC's, much like racial modifiers. I, however, usually only use them when a PC ages into another category than the one in which he starts. I have used them at character generation, too, but with less frequency. (Akin to some of the rules in UA, it depends on how I feel at the time whether I use them at the beginning of a PC's career ).

I believe the age modifiers are meant for pcs and meant to be applied at character creation and then at any time one changes age classification. I personally apply the rule quite inconsistently.

DMG, pg. 12 wrote:At the onset of each and every character’s creation it is necessary that you establish his or her age. For player characters and henchmen you must use the appropriate table. You may do the same for other characters, or you may assign age as you see fit in light of the milieu you have developed.

DMG, pg. 13 wrote:In order to establish the overall effects of age, it is necessary to establish a number of standard age brackets for each race of characters. When age category is established, modify ability scores accordingly, making each change progressively from young adulthood, all additions and subtractions being cumulative.

I've always used them for PCs, both at their creation (just as racial mods) and during play.

TheRedPriest wrote:I've always used them for PCs, both at their creation (just as racial mods) and during play.

So if a PC begins in the Mature age category do you give them the cumulative adjustments, i.e. +1 Str and +1 Con (with the -1 and +1 Wis cancelling each other out), or do you only give them the Mature adjustments (+1 Str and +1 Wis)? That's a nice little bonus that I'm sure a lot of players would be happy to receive, especially if you use one of the less-forgiving stat generation methods.

T. Foster wrote:

TheRedPriest wrote:I've always used them for PCs, both at their creation (just as racial mods) and during play.

So if a PC begins in the Mature age category do you give them the cumulative adjustments, i.e. +1 Str and +1 Con (with the -1 and +1 Wis cancelling each other out)...

That.

TheRedPriest wrote:I've always used them for PCs, both at their creation (just as racial mods) and during play.

Same.

TheRedPriest wrote:

T. Foster wrote:

TheRedPriest wrote:I've always used them for PCs, both at their creation (just as racial mods) and during play.

So if a PC begins in the Mature age category do you give them the cumulative adjustments, i.e. +1 Str and +1 Con (with the -1 and +1 Wis cancelling each other out)...

That.

This.

James Maliszewski wrote:

TheRedPriest wrote:I've always used them for PCs, both at their creation (just as racial mods) and during play.

Same.

Ditto.

T. Foster wrote:I typically use the age stat-modifiers when a PC changes categories during the course of play, so a PC who starts play at age 19 or 20 will, on his 21st birthday, gain 1 point of Str and 1 point of Wis, but a PC who starts at age 21 will not (and neither will the 19-year-old start the game with -1 Wis and +1 Con).

Hooyah!

(Not by-the-book, but I like to keep chargen light.)

I do not apply the age adjustments generally, but when I do it is handled as TheRedPriest indicates. There is a whole other table for NPC attribute modifiers (DMG, p. 100), of course. I cannot say I use that regularly either.

We always used them, right from when we started playing AD&D. 2e earned much disgust from me in dropping the mods for young adult & adult/mature categories. I have to say I was quite surprised when I learned lots of 1e players never use them.
They are accumulative, as both the text "When age category is established, modify ability scores accordingly, making each change progressively from young adulthood, all additions and subtractions being cumulative." (DMG pg 13) and common sense make abundantly clear.