D&D General 6 Core Classes: You are in charge

[TwoSix]

Just another reminder to myself that I should draft up a proper analysis of that list of 18-24 core class concepts folks tend to expect from D&D-like games. Whether or not I actually do it is, of course, a completely different question.

This is my general starting point for D&D tropes, although it's a bit longer than 24. Grouping them by an assumed stat to fit into the theme of the thread.

Strength
Professional Fighter - Classic sword and board, use what's available, no big tricks
Knight - Plate armor, lances, mounts, heavy weapons
Barbarian - Light armor, heavy thews
Combat Shaper - "I'm a bear!" Moon druid, no spells, more melee.
Pugilist - Monk as tank. Punch 'em in the face.

Dexterity
Archer - Sharpshooter, the class
Scout - Wilderness stealthy commando
Swashbuckler - Classic Errol Flynn fencer, duelist
Tempest - Two blades of fury, Drizzt style.
Pickpocket/Burglar - All thief skills, all the time.
Assassin - Backstab/Sneak attack, the class

Constitution
Channeling Blaster - Inhale forces of nature, exhale raw destructive power. Pyromancers, dragon-blooded sorcerers, Elsas, kineticists.
Weather Mage - "I am the storm!"
Nature Mage - Plant growth, befriending animals
Summoner - Usually gets rolled up into other classes. The guy who makes lots of pets appear to fight for him.
Warden - Channels nature/forces to get even tougher.

Intelligence
Enchanter/Artificer - Makes the magic wands, scrolls, ritual circles, etc. If more of an invention/steampunk theme, then Artificer.
Black Mage - Big booms. The Con blaster is the tough focused elementalist screaming "Kamehameha", this guy is the nerdy evocation wizard with a variety of elemental effects.
Necromancer - We know what he does.
Gray Mage - Black Mage is young and flashy, Gray mage is old and subtle. Crowd control, zones, dimensional and time effects. The 3.5 "God Wizard" class.
Tactical Genius - The lazylord.
Skill Expert - The savant, "I've got a trick for that".

Wisdom
White Mage - Robed, backline healer, shielder, radiant blaster
Beast Master - The packlord, the one with the big animal companion
Psychic - Professor X, the class. Telepathy, telekinesis, psychometry
Trickster Changeling - The flip side to combat shaper. Changing form for social bonuses and infiltration.

Charisma
Spoony Bard - All the bard stereotypes. Plays music, gives lots of buffs to the party, ultimate face.
Skald - The warrior bard. Shouts, combat buffs, and blades. Fus Ro Dah!
Holy Knight - The "empowered by god" warrior. Paladin, Warpriest.
Binder/Shaman - Bargains with spirits, gets powers.

 

[payn]

STR: Skald Bard
Dex: Duelist Bard
Con: Daredevil Bard
Int: Investigator Bard
Wis: Mystic Bard
Cha: Bard Bard

 

[Remathilis]

Low hanging fruit, in addition to not being in the spirit of the thread.

I think it's kinda a fools errand on two fronts. First, you take 13 classes and crush them into six, and then you force them to an ability score. Both of them are going to effectively sacrifice major elements of design.

For example, D&D equates Strength with fighter. But what does that do to dexterity fighters? Do you make it like 4e where fighters are locked out of ranged and finesse weapons to keep the Dexterity class viable?

On the same level, is barbarian strength or constitution? Is Monk dexterity or wisdom? Is paladin Strength, Wisdom, or Charisma? How do you enforce that?

I guess spellcasters are easier because spellcasting tends to focus on one stat. But I can't see how you boil the rest down.

So my cheeky answer is not fully cheeky. I don't know how you boil down all the classes into one score versions without making them generic and pigeonholed.

 

[I'm A Banana]

For example, D&D equates Strength with fighter. But what does that do to dexterity fighters? Do you make it like 4e where fighters are locked out of ranged and finesse weapons to keep the Dexterity class viable?

It's pretty disheartening to see Fighter - a class defined in part by its adaptability to many circumstances - be thrown into the "Strong" bucket and locked out of tactics, of gishes, of archers or duelists.

Six classes each tied to an ability score could really just be one class with six versions when we're talking about any of the Core Four.

 

[TwoSix]

It's pretty disheartening to see Fighter - a class defined in part by its adaptability to many circumstances - be thrown into the "Strong" bucket and locked out of tactics, of gishes, of archers or duelists.

Six classes each tied to an ability score could really just be one class with six versions when we're talking about any of the Core Four.

My personal opinion is that if you want to do a system with a smaller overall number of strong classes (in the 4-7 range), you really want to move away from the idea of "main stat" for classes, and either have subclasses with a "main stat" or just remove the idea entirely. Then you can group tropes into classes by other identifying characteristics that you think they should share under the class umbrella.

 

[FrogReaver]

6 Classes.

Martial
Skilled
Magic User
Martial/Skilled hybrid
Martial/Magic User hybrid
Skilled/Magic User hybrid

*give them cooler names

Primary Subclasses would be fighter/barbarian, rogue, wizard/cleric/druid, currently no martial skilled hybrids exist, ranger/paladin, bard

Add as many more subclasses as your heart desires.

 

[Horwath]

This would be a lot easier if we condensed the current 6 stats to only 4.

STR: current STR+CON mechanics, Fort saves, Athletics
DEX: current DEX, does not need anything else, current DEX skills
WILLPOWER: magical ability, current INT, WIS and CHA saves, concentration
CUNNING: skill ability, extra skills and languages/tools, current int, wis and cha skills.

then you have:

Strong, tank in your face hero
Nimble, fast, ranged/finesse hero
Cunning, skill monkey hero
And Magical hero

 

[aco175]

STR Hulk
DEX Black Widow
CON Captain America
INT Vision
WIS Nick Fury
CHA Iron Man

 

[Horwath]

6 Classes.

Martial
Skilled
Magic User
Martial/Skilled hybrid
Martial/Magic User hybrid
Skilled/Magic User hybrid

*give them cooler names

Primary Subclasses would be fighter/barbarian, rogue, wizard/cleric/druid, currently no martial skilled hybrids exist, ranger/paladin, bard

Add as many more subclasses as your heart desires.

7 classes:
jack-of-all trades:
skill/magic/martial hero

Then you have, Kingdom of Amalur character creation/advancement

 

[FrogReaver]

7 classes:
jack-of-all trades:
skill/magic/martial hero

Then you have, Kingdom of Amalur character creation/advancement

I don’t think 1/3’s work well. I’ll stick to my 6 with at most 1/2s.