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What if the martial/caster divide were optional?
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<blockquote data-quote="GMMichael" data-source="post: 9175494" data-attributes="member: 6685730"><p>Let's assume that the RPG permits being decent at both arms and magic. I'll agree that a game that forces incompetence on PCs doesn't sound like fun.</p><p></p><p></p><p>The point of using magic is to be able to do what one normally could not, right? That encompasses a lot of possibilities. The germane instances are spells that do more damage than weapons, that are more protective than armor, or that are more useful than skills, I guess. A reasonable limit or approach is that these spells are usable less frequently than the skills are. Or that the magical weapons, armor, or skills are inferior to the real ones, but easier to acquire (for the caster). So it's not about being better, but more accessible...</p><p></p><p></p><p>Hardly a trap, if the player desires playing a fighter. If the player instead desires to do the most damage or have the most options for world interaction, then maybe caster would be a better choice.</p><p></p><p>In the OP game, someone wanting to play a fighter, but have the flexibility of a caster, can simply choose to learn a spell. If that solves the martial/caster problem, then I think the "martial/caster problem" is really the "WotC class design problem." (I, for one, will not tell WotC that it doesn't know how to design D&D classes. However, I will homebrew classes in a heartbeat.)</p><p></p><p></p><p>In the OP game, flexibility is a player choice. Does that make martial/caster a player problem, instead of a game problem? </p><p></p><p>If I understand the parenthetical correctly, yes, it's fair to assume that non-damaging abilities, what I'd call skills, are equally accessible to all characters. There's always a trade-off: a player chooses one ability at the expense of not choosing (presently) another. So, learning some smithing means waiting to learn some axe-throwing or teleport-casting.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="GMMichael, post: 9175494, member: 6685730"] Let's assume that the RPG permits being decent at both arms and magic. I'll agree that a game that forces incompetence on PCs doesn't sound like fun. The point of using magic is to be able to do what one normally could not, right? That encompasses a lot of possibilities. The germane instances are spells that do more damage than weapons, that are more protective than armor, or that are more useful than skills, I guess. A reasonable limit or approach is that these spells are usable less frequently than the skills are. Or that the magical weapons, armor, or skills are inferior to the real ones, but easier to acquire (for the caster). So it's not about being better, but more accessible... Hardly a trap, if the player desires playing a fighter. If the player instead desires to do the most damage or have the most options for world interaction, then maybe caster would be a better choice. In the OP game, someone wanting to play a fighter, but have the flexibility of a caster, can simply choose to learn a spell. If that solves the martial/caster problem, then I think the "martial/caster problem" is really the "WotC class design problem." (I, for one, will not tell WotC that it doesn't know how to design D&D classes. However, I will homebrew classes in a heartbeat.) In the OP game, flexibility is a player choice. Does that make martial/caster a player problem, instead of a game problem? If I understand the parenthetical correctly, yes, it's fair to assume that non-damaging abilities, what I'd call skills, are equally accessible to all characters. There's always a trade-off: a player chooses one ability at the expense of not choosing (presently) another. So, learning some smithing means waiting to learn some axe-throwing or teleport-casting. [/QUOTE]
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