Dungeons and Dragons 2^nd Edition

Rule Modifications

1. There are now proficiency groups for skills, which are housed in percentages and stat based.  Those are on Appendix A.  There is no longer any reason to keep track of learned proficiencies.    
2. Method V from players handbook to determine stats.  Every even level gain one point to put on a stat. 
3. Any class can benefit from high constitution beyond 16. 
4. Any class has exceptional strength to go through.  Each stat point is 25 percent.  Most a character can start with is 18/01.  After 19, it starts to cost 2 points to raise a stat one point.  All classes ignore standard 18 strength.  Go from 17 to 18/01 to 18/26 etc.    
5. Any class can expertise in a weapon, which is a +1/+1.  It costs an additional weapon slot. 
6. Any warrior may specialize.  Only a fighter may gain master, high mastery, and grand mastery.  These may be done at levels 5, 10, and 15 respectively. 
7. Any class can use any weapon, so long as they spend the trait to learn it, and the proficiency slot. 
8. Traits are gained as follows: 1 at level one, then another every 4^th level (4, 8, 12, 16, 20).
9. Any character can learn any style specialization (except wizard, see below), each of which has 2 tiers.  Only warriors may specialize in more than one style.  A wizard may not learn two weapon fighting style.  The fighting styles are summarized in Appendix B. 
10. Weapons follow the 3^rd edition rules, except for Bow rates of fire.  So, speed factors are eliminated.  Initiative is now determined by rolling a 20 sided die and adding defense reaction adjustment, if any (mindful of heavy armor penalty).  Monsters get a blanket +2 to their initiative rolls. 
11. Spell casting times are eliminated, but components will play a bigger role.    
12. Monster hit points are figured as 5 hit points for each hit die. 
13. Any class and level can go all the way to level 20.  Class and race restrictions are gone.  However, there is now a 10 percent xp penalty to play another race besides human.  It can be countered by the 10 percent xp bonus. 
14. Identifying items takes place by spellcasters automatically upon resting. 
15. Certain very special magic items will now have state requirements to gain the full force of their powers.  Charisma will gain a lot of use here. 
16. Characters have max health at level 1, and roll each level thereafter.  Every 5 levels the character gains one reroll, which may be used to reroll a bad h.p. roll. 
17. Any character may wear any armor, but Rogues and Wizards may not use shields unless they spend a trait for shield use.  Each type of armor has a spell failure percentage associated with it, as per 3E rules.  A rogue wearing anything higher than chain cannot use thief skills effectively.    
18. Cloaks and rings that give armor and saving throw bonuses do not stack together.  These protections will stack with bracers of defense.    
19. The only stat that affects your saves is a magical defense adjustment.  No other stat affects saves.  Neither does magical armor or shields. 
20. Surprise rolls are made as per second edition, 1, 2, or 3 surprised, as adjusted by reaction adjustment. 
21. Creating magic weapons requires 2 magic residues from the same type of item sought to be constructed for a minor magic item.  For intermediate magic item, it takes 5.  For greater magic items, it takes 10.  For legendary magic items, it takes 10 plus many more special requirements.  Only characters with the artificer trait are able to do this.  If an artificer is a non spell caster, he must have the Scholar trade skills.  What category (minor, intermediate, greater, legendary) is largely up to the DM.