Following on from the discussion about clerics in another thread, people were discussing how it is more important to simply cover roles than have a particular class. This got me thinking, what are the actual roles in 5e now? In 4e they were blatant and we seem to assume they are the same in 5e, but I doubt that is the case.
Is Defender a role now? Paladins, Bear Barbarians and Fighters can do it, but even then only really with a feat. How important is it? Are they tough enough to warrant wanting to direct attacks at them?
How necessary is the Healer? Short of an emergency heal, most healing seems to be done out of combat, something that some feats and medial expertise can deal with to an extent. Can it be viewed as a sidenote of a class, or do we need a dedicated Healer roll?
Is Striker a unique enough set of skills to call it a roll? It seems that many classes can do good damage these days. Sorc, Warlock, Evok Wizard, Barbarian, Ranger, Rogue, Fighter, Paladin, Monk all compete for great damage. Is it fair to say that damage dealing is also a bit of a given these days, not worthy of a dedicated roll?
Despite the way I have phrased the above questions, I don't have much of an opinion on the topic.
I would say that when creating a party, I tend to want certain rolls covered. Just for interest I'm trying to put them in priority order.
1. A sneaky guy who can pick locks and disarm traps.
2. Somebody with social skills.
3. A meat shield of some sort, need not be a dedicated defender.
4. Some healing, need not be a dedicated healer.
5. Area effect damage
6. Arcana skills
7. Outdoor skills
8. Hold person or some other way to remove people from a fight non-fatally.
So really, for me it comes down to wanting to see:
1. A dex based guy
2. A guy with good charisma
3. Somebody with decent AC
The rest we can get by with using backgrounds, spells and feats. Sure I want more than that, but at a pinch we can get by.
What do you think the roles that need covering are?
And how would your priorities them in a small group?
I am more interested in roles than which specific characters are best, but feel free to include your small group dream-team if you like.
Is Defender a role now? Paladins, Bear Barbarians and Fighters can do it, but even then only really with a feat. How important is it? Are they tough enough to warrant wanting to direct attacks at them?
How necessary is the Healer? Short of an emergency heal, most healing seems to be done out of combat, something that some feats and medial expertise can deal with to an extent. Can it be viewed as a sidenote of a class, or do we need a dedicated Healer roll?
Is Striker a unique enough set of skills to call it a roll? It seems that many classes can do good damage these days. Sorc, Warlock, Evok Wizard, Barbarian, Ranger, Rogue, Fighter, Paladin, Monk all compete for great damage. Is it fair to say that damage dealing is also a bit of a given these days, not worthy of a dedicated roll?
Despite the way I have phrased the above questions, I don't have much of an opinion on the topic.
I would say that when creating a party, I tend to want certain rolls covered. Just for interest I'm trying to put them in priority order.
1. A sneaky guy who can pick locks and disarm traps.
2. Somebody with social skills.
3. A meat shield of some sort, need not be a dedicated defender.
4. Some healing, need not be a dedicated healer.
5. Area effect damage
6. Arcana skills
7. Outdoor skills
8. Hold person or some other way to remove people from a fight non-fatally.
So really, for me it comes down to wanting to see:
1. A dex based guy
2. A guy with good charisma
3. Somebody with decent AC
The rest we can get by with using backgrounds, spells and feats. Sure I want more than that, but at a pinch we can get by.
What do you think the roles that need covering are?
And how would your priorities them in a small group?
I am more interested in roles than which specific characters are best, but feel free to include your small group dream-team if you like.