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Message: <blockquote data-quote="snafuy" data-source="post: 7284805" data-attributes="member: 6909235">2017 D&D 5E CLASS RANK SURVEYThere's been only a single vote in the past three days, so I'm calling it done. Thank you to the nearly 200 participants.<a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vQK9WoCYz5l0IWv6a9kDJmy4X5-zQYd631t1CFxGA_68OKeKxKyM3prgvHqx1k7acRdTKO0ZR6XXLOp/pubhtml" target="_blank">https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vQK9WoCYz5l0IWv6a9kDJmy4X5-zQYd631t1CFxGA_68OKeKxKyM3prgvHqx1k7acRdTKO0ZR6XXLOp/pubhtml</a>I hope data nerds appreciate the graphs, especially the Power vs Enjoy bubble chart.A+: outstanding far beyond the rest, with over 75% S or A votes. They deserve nerfs.Hexblade Warlock, Divination Wizard, Lore Bard, Moon DruidA: still well ahead of the B classes, but only half as much as A+.Totem Barbarian, Vengeance Paladin, Abjuration Wizard, Divine Soul Sorcerer (also UA Revised Ranger and Mystic)B+: the line separating B & B+ is fuzzy.Life Cleric, Ancients Paladin, Tempest Cleric, Swashbuckler Rogue, Arcana Cleric, Zealot Barbarian, Oathbreaker Paladin, Battlemaster Fighter, Shadow Sorcerer, Gloom Stalker Ranger, Forge Cleric, Ancestral Guardian BarbarianB: most classes are in the middle, where they should be.Bladesinger Wizard, Fiend Warlock, Shepherd Druid, Devotion Paladin, Open Hand Monk, Conquest Paladin, Swords Bard, Evocation Wizard, Illusion Wizard, Light Cleric, Cavalier Fighter, Death Cleric, Draconic Sorcerer, Celestial Warlock, Arcane Trickster Rogue, Grave Cleric, Horizon Walker Ranger, War Cleric, Glamour Bard, Knowledge Cleric, Scout Rogue, Conjuration Wizard, Dreams Druid, Necromancy Wizard, Eldritch Knight Fighter, Nature Cleric, Kensei Monk, Shadow Monk, Enchantment Wizard, Valor Bard, Monster Slayer Ranger, Land Druid, Samurai Fighter, Drunken Master Monk, Thief Rogue, Whispers Bard, Assassin Rogue, Hunter Ranger, Arch Fey Warlock, War Magic Wizard, Great Old One Warlock, Long Death Monk, Crown Paladin, Storm SorcererB-: just barely escaped median C.Transmutation Wizard, Inquisitive RogueC+: just barely fell short of B-.Redemption Paladin, Sun Soul Monk, Champion Fighter, Mastermind Rogue, Storm Herald Barbarian, Arcane Archer FighterC: clearly mediocre at best.Trickery Cleric, Battlerager Barbarian, Undying Warlock, Berserker Barbarian (also UA Artificer)C-: over 75% C or D votes.Wild Magic Sorcerer, Purple Dragon Knight FighterD: overwhelming agreement that Mark Singer, Aang, & Korra deserve so much better.Beastmaster Ranger, Four Elements MonkCOMMENTARYThe 1st survey question offered five ranking options (plus blank for no opinion):<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">S (+2): Superior, Overpowered, Deserves a Nerf</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">A (+1): Above Average, Mighty</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">B (+0): Balanced, Good, Just Right</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">C (-1): So-So, Passable, Niche</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">D (-2): Defective, Inferior, Deserves a Buff</li> </ul>I used slightly different wording than in the <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vRUKfrFDawzHcYGZde_rada9MuIes4CVp4yCVjfC3HCSbTOOZlRCCGpbMzzYc5zwRWwIGeNuMGDC5Sj/pubhtml" target="_blank">race survey</a>. With the phrase "Deserves a Nerf" appended to the S description, its vote frequency fell dramatically. No published class reached even 30% S votes. I think a lot of people like "overpowered" things, but they don't like the implication that overpowered is bad. (Yes, it is a bad thing.)Nevertheless, the final tally was balanced almost perfectly. Out of more than 10000 individual votes cast, the total deviated from zero by only a handful of points.The voting was pretty consistent for most classes, even the Xanathar ones. Tempest Cleric and Fiend Warlock share the Best Consensus trophy; their votes were over 95% B & A, with no Ds.At the other end of the spectrum, Artificer and Mystic from Unearthed Arcana were a mess. All of those archetypes (and only those) had statistical variance scores higher than 1. But the votes for UA Revised Ranger didn't suffer from this problem. Why the difference?Compared to the <a href="http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?453283-Community-made-Tier-list" target="_blank">2015 survey</a>, these ratings show a lot of downward movement. Most of the previous A ranks have been demoted: Land Druid, Valor Bard, lots of Cleric & Wizard options. Transmutation Wizard suffered the biggest drop, from solid A down to B-. Many Bs became Cs, and the bottom Cs became Ds.Swimming against that tide, Totem Barbarian moved upward from A- to surpass everyone except the A+ group. Is this due to Elk & Tiger totems from Sword Coast, or a high reassessment of the PHB options?IMO, every archetype from B- rank on down should be given buffs (or at least nice ribbons).SUBJECTIVE RATINGS<a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vQK9WoCYz5l0IWv6a9kDJmy4X5-zQYd631t1CFxGA_68OKeKxKyM3prgvHqx1k7acRdTKO0ZR6XXLOp/pubhtml?gid=1854970113" target="_blank">https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vQK9WoCYz5l0IWv6a9kDJmy4X5-zQYd631t1CFxGA_68OKeKxKyM3prgvHqx1k7acRdTKO0ZR6XXLOp/pubhtml?gid=1854970113</a>and<a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vQK9WoCYz5l0IWv6a9kDJmy4X5-zQYd631t1CFxGA_68OKeKxKyM3prgvHqx1k7acRdTKO0ZR6XXLOp/pubhtml?gid=1830653425" target="_blank">https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vQK9WoCYz5l0IWv6a9kDJmy4X5-zQYd631t1CFxGA_68OKeKxKyM3prgvHqx1k7acRdTKO0ZR6XXLOp/pubhtml?gid=1830653425</a>The 2nd survey question offered four options (plus Not Interested / no opinion, equivalent to blank).<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Played & Liked (+1)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Want to Play (+0.2, because wanting isn't the same as doing)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Never / Hated (-0.5, since at least the desire & action match)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Tried & Disliked (-1, actual experience is worth more)</li> </ul>I then compressed to a relative scale with the highest total set to 100%.Battlemaster Fighter, Totem Barbarian, and Lore Bard were the clear favorites. The Xanathar classes tend to have lower totals, since fewer people have played them yet, but not by as much as I expected.Tempest Cleric wins the Miss Congeniality trophy, as the only class with no negative votes at all.Looking only at official published classes, there's an unmistakably strong relationship between power and happy gameplay. Nearly all of the well-liked classes ranked B+ or higher, while Elements Monk, Beastmaster, and PDK ruled the bottom of both lists.The UA Mystic classes were glaring exceptions, all with high power but low preference. On the other hand, the UA Revised Ranger is beloved, in 5th place overall. Why the difference?I think the world would be a better place if more people preferred fairness, shunning brokenly overpowered choices just as much as brokenly weak ones. Instead we're about to see vast numbers of Hexladins, Hexbards, and other Hex-dip multis.</blockquote>

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