Heh. This is exactly what I
want to see in D&D Next.
They could give us 100 classes, sure. Or, they could give us 5 classes and 20 themes and achieve the same result, with about one-tenth of the page count. I want MOAR versatility, not less!
There is a problem with this idea; it was tried once before!
2nd edition turned a bunch of classes into kits during the early years of of the Complete Handbooks. The idea was akin to this; why make a dozen new classes when you could just flavor the current ones via kits. Thus, classes like cavalier, barbarian, thief-acrobat, assassin, and monk all became kits. Some of them didn't translate too well...
[sblock=Barbarian 2e]Special Benefits: Barbarians are impressive because of sheer strength, intensity, and animal magnetism; this gives them a +3 reaction adjustment bonus in certain situations.
Whenever the barbarian character achieves a reaction roll of 8 or less (including Charisma and racial bonuses), you subtract the modifier. That is, if the reaction is positive at all, it will be even more positive than it otherwise would have been.[/sblock]
That's the essence of a barbarian right; a bonus to reaction rolls. No d12 hp, no rage, no bonuses to speed or hatred of magic.
[sblock=Assassin 2e]Special Benefits: Because of their training and experience with the use of poisons, Assassins also can identify poisons used by others. The base chance of doing so is the Assassin's level multiplied by 5%.
Assassins with intelligence of 13-15 get a +5% bonus on the attempt; 16-17, a +10% bonus; and 18, +15%. Further adjustments depend on how the Assassin attempts the identification: sight, smell, taste, or symptoms.
Sight means examination of the poison or poisoned article. Many poisons have a distinctive appearance, or they may have a corrosive or discoloring effect on metals, foods, etc. Identification by sight has a -20% modifier. Its advantage is that the Assassin needn't worry about poisoning himself in the process.
A poison may also be identified by its odor. This carries a -15% penalty. Furthermore, if it is an ingested or contact poison, there is a 10% chance that the Assassin will be affected by the poison, though at half strength (i.e., no effect if the saving throw is successful, and if it's not, normal save damage is applied—see the Dungeon Master's Guide, p. 73).
Taste is a fairly reliable, if dangerous, method of identifying a poison. It carries a -5% penalty. After dabbing a tiny bit on his tongue, the Assassin spits it out. There is still a chance that the poison will affect the Assassin: 25% for injected poison, 75% for ingested, and 100% for contact. The poison's effects, if any, are half strength (see above).
The most certain way of identifying a poison is by its symptom (no penalty on the attempt). The drawback of this method is of course that you need a poisoned character to examine.
An Assassin with herbalism proficiency gets a +5% identification bonus because of his knowledge of toxins extracted from plants. An Assassin with healing proficiency gets a +10% bonus in any case. These bonuses are not cumulative.
An attempt to identify a poison takes one round; be sure to keep track of time elapsed and the onset time of the poison. If one method of identification fails, the next may be tried. If none of the four produce an answer then the poison will remain a mystery to that Assassin. (The Assassin could attempt identification again after he's gained an experience level, but this is not normally of any help.)
Identification of a poison also means knowledge of its antidote (if one exists); it does not mean that the antidote is available, however. An Assassin with herbalism proficiency may attempt to make an antidote from scratch (see special rules, p. 113).[/sblock]
When I think AD&D assassin, I think poison-use. But I also think death attacks, shadow magic, hiding in plain sight, spying, and a bunch of other cool shadowy powers...
[sblock=Monk 2e]he principal benefit of being a Fighting-Monk is that the character receives two free weapon proficiency slots which he must use to take Specialization in one of the three styles of Unarmed Combat (Punching, Wrestling, or Martial Arts). These were described in greater detail in The Complete Fighter's Handbook, but that information also appears here, in the "Equipment and Combat" chapter. The Fighting-Monk is the only priest who can specialize in an Unarmed Combat style. He can specialize in any or all of the three styles, but he may only specialize in one of them at first experience level.
As a second benefit, regardless of what it says for the priest's class, the Fighting-Monk has a Nonweapon Proficiency Group Crossover with all five Proficiency Groups (General, Priest, Rogue, Warrior, Wizard). No proficiency he takes will cost double the usual number of slots.
The last of the Fighting-Monk's benefits is this: He doesn't have to spend all his starting Weapon Proficiency slots at first level. He can save his unspent proficiencies, and they do not "go away." Later, he can spend them at a rate of one proficiency per experience level to improve his martial arts or buy new martial arts.[/sblock]
Well, that just screams "Monk" to me; no bonus to AC, no movement, no ki-powers, not even a decent unarmed attack system.
I realize that the feat system might allow for better bonuses than this; but my point is that you begin to strip these things out of a class and allow anyone to take them, you get watered down versions of these classes.
(Until the splat books restore each class to proper glory...)
