D&D 5E Multiclass question

[doctorbadwolf]

As a matter of fact, yes I do. All characters are expected to spend time learning the relevant skills before they can level up.

So what’s different about multiclassing?

 

[Paul Farquhar]

So what’s different about multiclassing?

If it's something very specific, such as the Bladesinger, I would expect it to be part of the character's backstory. If it isn't part of the character's backstory, I wouldn't allow the subclass to be selected unless they had found a bladesinger to teach them.

 

[Cap'n Kobold]

Yup cuz everybody knows all thosecrlves devoted to the path of the ancients and protecting beauty give up on those elven bows and shortswords and agility cuz beefy muscle bro is needed for that "flavor"!!!

Lol Nope. I mean exactly what I said.

The built in flavor fits a Musketeer just as much as a Hospitalier or a Templar.

Frogreaver isn't saying they need to max strength. Just don't dump it like they caught it in bed with their dog.

Although the image of a Path of the Ancients Elven Paladin with a couch-potato-level strength 8 stat who prefers to walk everywhere along the ground because they can't climb trees, and who uses an elven child's bow because they can't draw a normal elven longbow is a character concept that actually sounds quite fun. They'd utilise stealth to surprise villains rather than try to outrun them, and concentrate on defending the beauty of the elven cities because carrying any supplies in addition to weapons and armour puts them in encumbrance.

Likewise musketeers aren't required to have Bruce Lee-levels of physical power and athleticism. However leaping tables and running from corrupt guardsmen while yomping armour, ale, ammunition, wine, weapons, brandy, and several spare frilly shirts does sound like something a musketeer would be doing.

 

[Harzel]

The goal is to simply make multiclassing uncommon in 5e. In 3rd edition pretty much ever character was multiclassed, and the objective is to make a majority of characters single classed in 5e, without removing multiclassing all together.

If that were the goal, requiring some stat values of 13 or better seems like a laughably poor way to do it. Even the standard array has 3 stats >= 13, and that's before racial bonuses. Are you sure that goal makes sense as an explanation?

Personally, I require a role playing justification for a character to multiclass in my game, rather than a game mechanics restriction. e.g. You can't multiclass to wizard unless you have been spending your free time studying magic.

That seems like a much more reliable (and explicable) restriction.

 

[Blue]

If you want to be able to do more than one thing well, you need to be able to do more than one thing well. Picking up a new class requires you to be good at what you are adding - but also good enough at what you were doing to mix them together. You're not a Monk OR Wizard, you are both at the same time. You are holding yourself in a defensive stance even while casting that spell. You're casting shield to block that opportunity attack even while calling on your physical monk training to move faster. To mix two disparate things into a harmonious whole is harder than either of them individually.

That's my take on it @dnd4vr .

 

[DND_Reborn]

If you want to be able to do more than one thing well, you need to be able to do more than one thing well. Picking up a new class requires you to be good at what you are adding - but also good enough at what you were doing to mix them together. You're not a Monk OR Wizard, you are both at the same time. You are holding yourself in a defensive stance even while casting that spell. You're casting shield to block that opportunity attack even while calling on your physical monk training to move faster. To mix two disparate things into a harmonious whole is harder than either of them individually.

That's my take on it @dnd4vr .

That is a reasonable argument. As others have pointed out, a 13 isn't a HUGE requirement really for the initial class and I would imagine the vast majority of the time would be met without issue.

 

[DND_Reborn]

Thanks to all for your feedback. At least I've been given some food for thought about it.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

If that were the goal, requiring some stat values of 13 or better seems like a laughably poor way to do it. Even the standard array has 3 stats >= 13, and that's before racial bonuses. Are you sure that goal makes sense as an explanation?

It think the "3" is important here. In 3rd edition it wasn't uncommon for a character to have levels in 4 or 5 different classes. When NWN capped the number of classes at three there was much wailing and gnashing of teeth.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Frogreaver isn't saying they need to max strength. Just don't dump it like they caught it in bed with their dog.

Although the image of a Path of the Ancients Elven Paladin with a couch-potato-level strength 8 stat who prefers to walk everywhere along the ground because they can't climb trees, and who uses an elven child's bow because they can't draw a normal elven longbow is a character concept that actually sounds quite fun. They'd utilise stealth to surprise villains rather than try to outrun them, and concentrate on defending the beauty of the elven cities because carrying any supplies in addition to weapons and armour puts them in encumbrance.

Likewise musketeers aren't required to have Bruce Lee-levels of physical power and athleticism. However leaping tables and running from corrupt guardsmen while yomping armour, ale, ammunition, wine, weapons, brandy, and several spare frilly shirts does sound like something a musketeer would be doing.

Except that ain’t how stats work in 5e dnd.

10 Strength and 18 Dex means you are fit to do those things. You can draw an adult’s longbow, you just aren’t built for feats of strength. It’s not like archers look like power lifters. (Unless they happen to do both)

The stats aren’t there to be taken super literally and create weird cases where you need 13 Strength just to say you can climb at a normal speed and run at a normal speed.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

If you want to be able to do more than one thing well, you need to be able to do more than one thing well. Picking up a new class requires you to be good at what you are adding - but also good enough at what you were doing to mix them together. You're not a Monk OR Wizard, you are both at the same time. You are holding yourself in a defensive stance even while casting that spell. You're casting shield to block that opportunity attack even while calling on your physical monk training to move faster. To mix two disparate things into a harmonious whole is harder than either of them individually.

That's my take on it @dnd4vr .

But that is thoroughly represented by the levels in those classes.

You don’t need to be buff to mix all that monk stuff you describe with the divine magic of the Paladin.

And even if you are mixing wizard with a 12 or lower Int, your ability to do both is represented by level in both...and the difficulty of represented by lacking spell dc, spell attack, and spells prepared per day.