D&D (2024) Subclasses should start at 1st level

[MichaelSomething]

I don't want subclasses at level one. Level one is suppose to be commoner+.

 

[Vaalingrade]

Commoner + is NPC or Level 0. They should just make a level 0 and stop half-assing it, I say.

Let the man part of the game about heroic fantasy be about fantastic heroes.

 

[Minigiant]

I don't want subclasses at level one. Level one is suppose to be commoner+.

D&D level 1 isn't commoner+ anymore. It's Rookie level. Fresh of the (Class Name) Academy. Glorified Apprentice. First quest is some dude's basement.

 

[Yaarel]

D&D level 1 isn't commoner+ anymore. It's Rookie level. Fresh of the (Class Name) Academy. Glorified Apprentice. First quest is some dude's basement.

Yeah. Level 1 is something like a 20 year old college student − or its equivalent.

 

[Yaarel]

D&D classes represent something like combat experience. NPCs who dont have combat experience dont really gain in levels.

 

[Bill Zebub]

Yeah. Level 1 is something like a 20 year old college student − or its equivalent.

Nobody would survive to 2nd level.

“Mom, the monster wouldn’t give me his treasure! Apparently it just gets to turn a failed saving throw into a success! It’s so unfair!”

“Don’t worry, I will call the administrator of the dungeon and fix this for you. Oh, aon’t forget to bring your dirty armor home this weekend!”

“Thanks, mum.”

 

[Yaarel]

Nobody would survive to 2nd level.

“Mom, the monster wouldn’t give me his treasure! Apparently it just gets to turn a failed saving throw into a success! It’s so unfair!”

“Don’t worry, I will call the administrator of the dungeon and fix this for you. Oh, aon’t forget to bring your dirty armor home this weekend!”

“Thanks, mum.”

At least in my campaigns, the "mom" / mentor / contact is part of the student tier, levels 1 to 4, when they return home from an adventure.

Levels 5 to 8 is the professional tier.

 

[DEFCON 1]

I can live with it, I've just never cared for it. It was especially bad during 3rd edition with their prestige classes. I honestly thought prestige classes were great at first, but in the end I thought they were more trouble than they were worth.

I agree with this regarding prestige classes.

I'm currently playing in a Pathfinder game and when I created the character originally I had an idea of what they were about and what their intended beliefs and focuses were (and where they believed they were going to go as they got older.) And when flipping through the online Pathfinder online SRD I found a prestige class that had pretty much the flavor of where I thought my character was heading.

Only problem was... it would involve multiclassing and the nitpicky little "need this feature here", "that feat there" etc. etc... all to reach a prestige class for whom the mechanics seemed so generic and disconnected to the fluff anyway. And I realized once more (after having come to a similar conclusion all those years ago when I played 3E)... that I could just play my character with the fluff I had thought of for him as though he had this specific prestige class... without needing to jump through all the goshdarn design hoops to get there.

I found there absolutely was a dopamine rush when I considered what the story of "gaining the prestige class" would give me... but once that rush went away I came to the conclusion that it was just a whole bunch of pain in the ass mechanics to wade through to get there and that actually having that prestige class would not gain me anything more than just playing the character as though I already had it.

 

[Bill Zebub]

At least in my campaigns, the "mom" / mentor / contact is part of the student tier, levels 1 to 4, when they return home from an adventure.

Levels 5 to 8 is the professional tier.

Very Torchbearer.

 

[DEFCON 1]

You know what a lot of people really should do if they want subclasses at Level 1 but the game ends up going in a different direction?

Just create and name their character's Background as part of their subclass.

In that way you get the best of both worlds... you get to denote who your character is and what they feel they are from the very beginning of their adventuring career... and they gain mechanical benefits for having it-- a pair of skills, a tool, language, and a feat. Basically turn your Background into your very first subclass feature.

Make your Background "Acolyte of the Open Hand Temple". Or "Yoriki to the Local Samurai". Or "Student of the Illusion School". Or "Fey Chanter of the Glamour Queen". Or "Adherent of the Moon Circle".

Heck... there's probably a good DM's Guild product right there-- writing up a whole bunch of Backgrounds that are all connected to each of the subclasses in the game, with all the proper mechanical selections made to boost it.