CapnZapp
Legend
It's great that 5e multiclassing has enough restrictions that it isn't obviously overpowered and all.
However, there's one case that suffers from a RP perspective - the dualclass.
Since the mechanics make it advantageous to level up in "chunks", it can be quite a while before you actually realize your dualclass concept.
Alternating levels (Bard 1 --> Bard 1/Paladin 1 --> Bard 2/Paladin 1 --> Bard 2/Paladin 2 and so on) is the most fun and satisfying from a roleplaying and character concept perspective. But it's hell on your mechanical effectiveness - among other things, you won't gain any ASI/feat until level 7.
If you pick Paladin for its awesome Aura of Protection, for instance, you must either stay single-classed for a whole six levels (which means that by the time you actually pick your second class, your character is already well established, and claiming to be a dualclass rings hollow), or, if you do doubleclass, you might not get the Aura until the campaign is over(!) at tenth level or so.
Are you aware of any third party rule addition that tries to accommodate "dualclassing"?
I guess I'm looking for a system that puts a value on each class feature, so that when you alternate class levels, you still get a chance to pick the ones you most "need" as if you stayed a single-classed character.
For instance, as a Paladin 3/Ranger 3 you have six character levels. This list of class features looks like this:
1 Divine Sense, Lay On Hands, Favored Enemy, Natural Explorer
2 Fighting Style, Spellcasting, Divine Smite, Fighting Style, Spellcasting
3 Divine Health, Sacred Oath, Ranger Archetype, Primeval Awareness
4 Ability Score Improvement, Ability Score Improvement
5 Extra Attack, Extra Attack
6 Aura of Protection, Favored Enemy, Natural Explorer
I've picked out a selection (in bold) that at a quick glance looks "balanced" yet can be considered to provide the bare minimum of both a) mechanical effectiveness, and b) character concept completion
The big picks are the two subclasses at character level 3, since that feels like the absolute basics. Let's say the player picks Devotion which gives him Channel Divinity, and Hunter where he chooses Giant Killer. At this point, the dualclass is heavily in debt = this level is loaded down with much more power than normal.
Levels 4 and 6 are "normal" - sure the Aura is desirable, but we're not taking more than what a singleclassed character could gain here.
To compensate for the powerful third level, we say you don't get any of the cool level 2 stuff and we postpone the Extra Attack (til level 7). And for first level we take our pick of ribbon abilities.
---
Now, in order to not have to wing this each time, I'm looking for a document putting costs on these features. If you pick powerful choices at one level, you're in the deficit and can't pick powerful choices (or any choice at all) at another.
If you count up the points score of each single class, you get a total, and as the dualclassed character your custom "dualized" class can't exceed either of the single classed totals.
(It goes without saying the dualclass character must still meet the ability score requirements of the core MC rules)
Have you seen anything of this sort? Thanks
However, there's one case that suffers from a RP perspective - the dualclass.
Since the mechanics make it advantageous to level up in "chunks", it can be quite a while before you actually realize your dualclass concept.
Alternating levels (Bard 1 --> Bard 1/Paladin 1 --> Bard 2/Paladin 1 --> Bard 2/Paladin 2 and so on) is the most fun and satisfying from a roleplaying and character concept perspective. But it's hell on your mechanical effectiveness - among other things, you won't gain any ASI/feat until level 7.
If you pick Paladin for its awesome Aura of Protection, for instance, you must either stay single-classed for a whole six levels (which means that by the time you actually pick your second class, your character is already well established, and claiming to be a dualclass rings hollow), or, if you do doubleclass, you might not get the Aura until the campaign is over(!) at tenth level or so.
Are you aware of any third party rule addition that tries to accommodate "dualclassing"?
I guess I'm looking for a system that puts a value on each class feature, so that when you alternate class levels, you still get a chance to pick the ones you most "need" as if you stayed a single-classed character.
For instance, as a Paladin 3/Ranger 3 you have six character levels. This list of class features looks like this:
1 Divine Sense, Lay On Hands, Favored Enemy, Natural Explorer
2 Fighting Style, Spellcasting, Divine Smite, Fighting Style, Spellcasting
3 Divine Health, Sacred Oath, Ranger Archetype, Primeval Awareness
4 Ability Score Improvement, Ability Score Improvement
5 Extra Attack, Extra Attack
6 Aura of Protection, Favored Enemy, Natural Explorer
I've picked out a selection (in bold) that at a quick glance looks "balanced" yet can be considered to provide the bare minimum of both a) mechanical effectiveness, and b) character concept completion
The big picks are the two subclasses at character level 3, since that feels like the absolute basics. Let's say the player picks Devotion which gives him Channel Divinity, and Hunter where he chooses Giant Killer. At this point, the dualclass is heavily in debt = this level is loaded down with much more power than normal.
Levels 4 and 6 are "normal" - sure the Aura is desirable, but we're not taking more than what a singleclassed character could gain here.
To compensate for the powerful third level, we say you don't get any of the cool level 2 stuff and we postpone the Extra Attack (til level 7). And for first level we take our pick of ribbon abilities.
---
Now, in order to not have to wing this each time, I'm looking for a document putting costs on these features. If you pick powerful choices at one level, you're in the deficit and can't pick powerful choices (or any choice at all) at another.
If you count up the points score of each single class, you get a total, and as the dualclassed character your custom "dualized" class can't exceed either of the single classed totals.
(It goes without saying the dualclass character must still meet the ability score requirements of the core MC rules)
Have you seen anything of this sort? Thanks
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