Aging
| Class | Dwarf | Elf | Gnome | Half-elf | Halfling | Half-orc | Human |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assassin | 27+1d4 | 14+2d4 | 20+1d4 | 16+2d4 | NA | 37+1d6 | 20+1d4 |
| Bard | NA | NA | NA | 33+1d4 | NA | NA | 25+1d4 |
| Cleric | 57+2d4 | 38+1d8 | 48+1d10 | 28+1d6 | NA | 30+1d6 | 20+1d4 |
| Druid | NA | NA | NA | 30+1d6 | 36+1d8 | NA | 22+1d4 |
| Fighter | 16+1d4 | 15+1d4 | 15+1d4 | 18+1d4 | 17+1d4 | 25+1d6 | 14+1d4 |
| Illusionist | NA | NA | 21+2d6 | NA | NA | NA | 29+2d8 |
| Mage | NA | 22+2d4 | NA | 23+2d6 | NA | NA | 24+2d8 |
| Monk | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | 23+1d4 |
| Paladin | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | 19+1d4 |
| Ranger | NA | 18+1d4 | NA | 21+1d4 | NA | NA | 17+1d4 |
| Thief | 25+1d4 | 12+2d4 | 18+1d4 | 14+2d4 | 29+1d6 | 35+1d6 | 18+1d4 |
When player characters are generated, it is necessary to establish the character's age. I usually do this with my character background generator, but in case I have to do it manually, and so that players understand the formulas for calculating age, I include the table shown on the right.
My game does not recognize the extended lifespans that are given to non-human characters in AD&D, so all character races are adjusted to fit the traditional human lifespan. The translation from AD&D has resulted in some characters being unusually old (dwarf and gnome clerics) or somewhat young (elven assassins and thieves). I consider that this disparity depicts a cultural prejudice against training individuals until they have reached a certain age, or the speed with which training can be mastered by one race as opposed to another.
Characters that are multi-classed should begin with the highest base number of the two or more classes chosen, then add the total modifiers of both classes to that characters age. For example, a half-elven fighter/mage would have a base age of 23 and then would add 2d6 + 1d4 to that base age. This would make the multi-class half-elven's age an average of 32-33.
