A critique and review of the Fighter class


log in or register to remove this ad

See, that’s where you are taking your ideas of what the game represents...which are totally valid, just not exclusively so...and assuming that's the default. Your vision of heroic tier, which I think is shared by many, is just one of many.
I mean the rule book pretty much is all about small group tactical encounters at relatively close range. I'm not going to say I never ran a big monster against a town or army... but it is far from common.

In your experience do many fights evolve dozens of NPCs?
Samwise Gamgee stood toe-to-toe with Shelob. Is he a gonzo superhero? I think the D&D mechanics can represent that fiction just fine.
Yeah I would say depending on your reading Sam is a 4th level ranger or rogue or maybe some mix... and Shelob is a giant spider that is well in his CR.
 



Shelob is more powerful than the Mirkwood giant spiders which were encountered in The Hobbit. I think it's more likely that Sam is a bit more badass than level 4. He also had Sting, which is pretty effective against giant spiders, even if it's, at best, a dirk or small sword.

But it's interesting to use the Tolkien example for badass normals, as most of the characters are not. Aragorn is a direct descendant of the Noble line of Numenor, which gives him special powers and a destiny. Legolas is a nigh immortal Elf, thousands of years old.

Merry and Pippin drink Entwine, which causes them to grow taller and stronger than other Hobbits.

Alongside Boromir, who had a ton of hit points (or maybe Rage?) to take a lot of arrows before he finally died, Sam, and Gimli, who isn't stated to have any special powers (though he is nobility, he doesn't have the same kind of legacy as Aragorn).

And while Bard the archer isn't given a lot of spotlight, his ability to understand animals suggests old Numenorean blood, and his black arrow was obviously special as well- I'm pretty sure it was the inspiration for the old "Arrows of Dragonslaying".

So Tolkien, at best, zig zags on whether you need to be special or not to face supernatural terrors. But certainly, by the end of the Trilogy, no one is really "normal" anymore. YMMV.
 


Oh, I honestly didn't mean that as mockery. Sorry if it came across that way. Just as a way of differentiating "everyday" hero from, well, super-hero.
yeh the names on my list of inspiration are still classic D&D material and sometimes get dismissed by saying oh you want to play a different game/genre... rather than me wanting D&D to follow through on the promise of high level play.

Much like someone saying a game cannot do both...
 

I think the point of contention is that D&D is a game of 3-5 tiers of play.

And for the fighter, going past the first 2 tiers either require breaking reality in some way (magic, special origin, inhuman ability) or breaking the party balance dynamic (Gold, Henchmen, Domain, Extra Stats).

D&D has stayed away from answering the question or giving options to.
 
Last edited:

Much like someone saying a game cannot do both...

Whatever, man.

Sorry 5e is such a buzzkill for you.

I guess I will stop trying to have a conversation if, for whatever reason, you feel compelled to keep responding with mockery/derision/sarcasm.
 
Last edited:


Remove ads

Top