Opinion needed on class to play in a party

[Satori]

What a poorly built party.

I might sound a bit "Non-PC" right now, but I'm going to give you my honest opinion.

Since the group came together and decided to build PCs that aren't very conducive to a team environment (unless there is some sort of theme or concept I'm missing, like 3 Fighters built as the "Three Musketters"), I have only one piece of advice for you...

PLAY WHATEVER THE HECK YOU WANT, AND FORGET ABOUT "FILLING GAPS".

Sound harsh?

Well, lets see...they build 2 light fighters (A Monk is NOT a melee fighter, and a ranger is a second line fighter at best) and 2 divine casters.

They have no melee damage dealers (the Cleric can tank if built right).

They have no skill monkeys (Monks don't count).

They have no arcane casters.

WTF?

When they sat down to create characters, they said, "Hey! I wanna play this!" without any thought to group balance.

So, my advice to you is to do the same. It sounds like you'll have an extremely "individual" based game, so attemping to "Take one for the team" will probably end up as an exercise in frustration for you.

Play what you want, even if it is a Monk/Druid/Sacred Fist, a Ranger/Cleric, or even a duplicate of the other player classes. I have a feeling it won't matter much with this group anyway.

 

[LoPaC]

Most of you have spoken my greatest fear :arcane spellcaster. Divine, I can play, but wizards and preperations and spell books and all that . Man, I just suck at it.

But unfortunatly, most of you are right in that it lacks arcane. I might have to go articifer, but that 17 in CHA would drop to a 15 with a warforged, which I think that party could really benifit from having a warforged.

I'm still open to any more suggstions from anyone, though

 

[Nifft]

I'm still open to any more suggstions from anyone, though

The party has a Cleric and a Druid -- it's nice and strong, and can survive quite a lot of beating. But there's nothing wrong with more Divine spellcasters! Play a Cleric or Druid, if that appeals to you.

Cleric would give the most spellcasting versatility, if you pick different Domains from the other Cleric. The Travel and Magic domains are excellent, especially if you take Scribe Scroll. You'll cover most Arcane requirements, too.

Cheers, -- N

 

[Dykstrav]

Looking at your party composition thus far, it looks like they way they'll be operating is roughly as follows:

Monk and ranger: covers the stealthy/scouting angle. Hope one of them has a decent Spot/Listen and Hide/Move Silently.
Ranger and Druid: Covers the nature/wilderness angle. You probably won't have much trouble making overland journeys if you ever want to skip the lightning rail or airships and decide to hike across country.
Cleric: Divine spellcasting covered. Buffs, healing, and divinations should be good.
Druid: The druid's spell list includes some decent offensive spells (such as produce flame and call lightning). If you want to play a wizard or sorcerer, you don't really need it as much just to cover attack spells.

If I were to play in this game, here's what I'd play and why:

Rogue: Chances are, the monk is going to be highly mobile, so you can move in to flank critters with him. Sneak attack plus stunning attack makes for a nice one-two punch on critters that are vulnerable to those attack forms. If the ranger is a two-weapon type, you could help him flank critters too and probably make a pretty effective stealth-kill type of team.
Barbarian: Can also be stealthy, but packs a hell of alot more punch and is alot tougher than anything else in the party. Now I admit I'd cherrypick this: I'd take barbarian at 1st level for the rage and good hit die, then go into fighter to get all the feats from that point forward. In many ways, this is the most appealing choice for me: without a strong front-line melee character, your cleric and your ranger would have to serve this role. That situation could work, but you really want the cleric casting spells rather than swinging the mace, and chances are your ranger is going to be more helpful as an archer. I'd reccomend a barbarian or fighter as your character.
Arcane spellcaster: If you really want to be a blaster, play a sorcerer. If you want highly versatile magic, play a wizard. I honestly think that lacking an arcane spellcaster isn't too bad a hindrance as your bases are largely covered otherwise. You might want some mobility spells later on (such as fly or teleport), but being Eberron, it probably won't be hard to get around in the first place.

 

[GoodKingJayIII]

What a poorly built party.

It's not standard, but I think you're being a little harsh.

Poorly built? Nah, no way. The cleric and druid each cover three crucial roles. Sure there's some overlap, but you're bound to have some of that with 5 people.

The bard is a great fifth-man. He does a little bit of everything and contributes a ton to overall party power. Plus, if you can put fascinate to good use... forget it. You guys are definitely lacking a blaster, but the druid can pick up some of that slack. Wizard/Sorcerer/Artificer could all add a lot to the party.

I do agree with Satori about one thing though: play whatever you like. If your GM does his job right he'll be tweaking things to suit party makeup anyway.

 

[LoPaC]

When they sat down to create characters, they said, "Hey! I wanna play this!" without any thought to group balance.

Most new players don't think about a thing called party dynamic, because, well, they are new. Our gaming group has a standing rule of allowing first time players to make anything from minor changes to complete overhauls after the first level or game (which ever comes first).

 

[Christian]

But unfortunatly, most of you are right in that it lacks arcane. I might have to go articifer, but that 17 in CHA would drop to a 15 with a warforged, which I think that party could really benifit from having a warforged.

High Charisma is overrated for Artificers. I'd go with the warforged Artificer, put the 17 in Int and the 15 in Cha. And Adamantine Body for your feat.

 

[Destil]

High Charisma is overrated for Artificers. I'd go with the warforged Artificer, put the 17 in Int and the 15 in Cha. And Adamantine Body for your feat.

Honestly, anything over a 10 is a fine Cha for an Artificers. Just make yourself a cheep +5 Use Magic Device item as soon as you get Craft Wondrous, that's their only skill that requires it. Int will do a lot more for you.

Though I wouldn't go for Adamantine Body unless you take a level of fighter first (or if you want to be a real min/maxer Cleric of Onatar / Sovereign Host with the Magic and Artifact domains), because taking a -5 to basically everything from non-proficiency sucks.

 

[Deuce Traveler]

Most of you have spoken my greatest fear :arcane spellcaster. Divine, I can play, but wizards and preperations and spell books and all that . Man, I just suck at it.

But unfortunatly, most of you are right in that it lacks arcane. I might have to go articifer, but that 17 in CHA would drop to a 15 with a warforged, which I think that party could really benifit from having a warforged.

I'm still open to any more suggstions from anyone, though

I am very partial to the beguiler, and honestly it has surpassed the rogue as my favorite PC class. I just want to throw a plug in for some of the advantages:

1. He's still very much a rogue, but the big difference is that the beguiler casts enchantment and illusion spells instead of being offensively capable.

2. You say that an arcane spellcaster is your big weakness, so playing a beguiler will get you practice while at the same time you can use your spells to aid your roguish skills when you are unsure of offensive magic.

3. You can use magical items without having to throw in skill points for it, so if you have high enough intelligence to compensate for the slight loss in skills per level your beguiler will actually have more skill points to use versus the rogue.

I'd go with a human beguiler for skills and feats, but a changeling beguiler may be interesting.

 

[Stormborn]

Most of you have spoken my greatest fear :arcane spellcaster. Divine, I can play, but wizards and preperations and spell books and all that . Man, I just suck at it.

That's what spontaneous caster's are for. Limited number of spells, no preperation, but (for the most part) able to use all the wands and scrolls of a Wiz. Again I suggest battle sorcerer. light armor proff w/no casting failure chance, one martial weapon proff, fewer spells but getting the same spell levels at the same character level as a Sorcerer. I'm playing one now focused on conjuration spells, great fun and very effective in a party that has a cleric for a 'tank' and a battle dancer for a melee fighter. Take a bloodline from Dragon Compendium, a reserve feat or two, and remember that the Spell Compendium is your friend.