| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| KnightErrantJR |
Posted - 28 Jul 2007 : 21:11:08
After looking at these prestige classes in the SRD, I was thinking about how these classes might be fit into the game. My thoughts are that I don't fully agree with the thought process on them given in the SRD, but I wanted to see if there were any thoughts on this that I might be missing.
The SRD says that you should not allow these PrCs in a campaign that also has the base versions of the classes as well. My thoughts would not be to ban the standard versions. If someone wants bardic knowledge from the start, or to track and fight or to be the weapon of your god right from the start, you could still do that. But the PrCs do represent better characters that wander onto the path later on in their career.
For example, at least in my mind, classes that get divine spells aren't the same as fully initiated priests. There are duties, responsibilities, rituals, and rites that even a 1st level cleric or druid could do in their faith that divine champions like rangers or paladins can't do. On the other hand, there may by clerics or druids that later on found that they want to walk the path of the ranger, or that they were indeed called to be a paladin. These classes do seem to emulate that path better than just multiclassing between them.
One thing I would do is to ignore the part in the SRD that mentions that the prestige version of the classes should get spells unique to their class. One of the reasons I wouldn't do this is that many of these spells, especially the higher end ones, are balanced for what level the standard paladin or ranger is when they can cast it, not for the level spell that the spell is. So they wouldn't get the "special" spells of their class, but they also have a wider range of other spells.
I can picture the ranger PrC working as a sort of specialty priest for Mielikki, and the paladin PrC working as the same thing for a cleric of Torm or Ilmater.
Any thoughts? Would letting both versions in completely screw up a campaign? Something I haven't thought of yet?
http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/prestigiousCharacterClasses.htm |
| 1 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Xysma |
Posted - 29 Jul 2007 : 04:35:41
These appear to be the same as those in UA, and I allow them as well as the regular versions of the classes in my campaigns for the same reasons you mention. I don't see any reason to eliminate the regular versions because you allow the prestige versions, they seem to me to represent different paths the characers take. In UA, allowing them access to their "special" class spells is limited to those found in the PHB, with all others limited to the DM's discretion. IMO, this maintains the balance fairly well, but I do think that allowing access to special spells for the prestigous classes is a direct result of disallowing both versions of the class. My thought is that if you allow both versions, then you should probably not allow the prestige versions access to the special spells. |
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