D&D 5E Should D&D have a planeswalker class?

[jgsugden]

There are a variety of ways to handle the concept, but you need to address it in 4E. The simplest is to make it a feat that grants access to a version of Planeshift.

However, what they relly need to have to put M:tG into D&D is a vast spectrum of single action monster summoning spells that give you access to everything from goblins to pit fiends - and mechanics that allow for multiple simultaneous summons *in addition* to a normal concentration spell.

 

[cbwjm]

I would love for someone to write up a bunch of 4E Paragon Paths and Epic Destinies for 5E. "Once per day when you die... "

View attachment 102852

That image from complete arcane has to be one of my favourite pieces of artwork for a wizard. Thinking about it now, maybe I will take this and turn it into a portrait for pathfinder:kingmaker for my next wizard character.

 

[cbwjm]

Man, I just voted (previous reads of this thread have been on my phone which doesn't show polls) and it seems people are very much against a class. I'm a maybe, I don't really think that a class is suitable for it, although a prestige class might be okay but I do think the boons from the DMG fit it better.

Something else I just found on my google drive was an idea where the party is made up of planeswalkers, and they have extra spellcasting (and the planeswalk ability which for a game would be more of a plot driven ability) tacked onto their standard 5e class. This way you have Garruk being a big ol' barbarian but still having the ability to cast some magic.

 

[Li Shenron]

Should D&D have a planeswalker class?

I mean a full class, not subclass. I think it could be interesting.

Sounds like you mean for D&D as a whole, in which case no. Specialist concepts are best left to subclasses (if tied to a single class), spells (if should be open to multiple caster classes) or feats (if should be open to everyone).

OTOH, it would totally make sense to have such concept as a base class in a fantasy settings that features planar travelling extensively, because such figures would be more or less common among adventuring characters.

 

[AnotQuiteSimpleSoul]

The problem with planes walkers as a specific class/sub-class is two fold:

1. Generally speaking the ability to travel between planes is considered a high level ability, probably because the average encounter level out there is significantly higher, and because many planes require special abilities just to operate in without dying immediately. As such it'll be very difficult for the low level members of the class to operate as planes walkers.

2. Planar travel focused characters either need a sweeping ability to cover their allies with their power, or they quickly become restricted by the limitations of the rest of the party, and can't operate at the level they should be able to because they would end up splitting the party under dangerous conditions, constantly. This is probably why my old 3.0 manual of the planes had multiple planar travel focused prestige classes, they way you could have a whole party of planar travel ready characters.


Now neither of these are insurmountable barriers, but if you don't address them somehow it probably won't be a very good class.