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Message: <blockquote data-quote="ivocaliban" data-source="post: 2032229" data-attributes="member: 17596">Hexblade, Spellthief, Bard, WarmageI would envision these four classes for a world where arcane magic was very common, yet deities (and thus divine magic) did not exist. A world where the gods once waged an apocalyptic war, perhaps. Many deities died or were so badly wounded that they're no longer answering prayers. The gods are basically on hiatus until further notice. Much of nature was destroyed in the ensuing battles and Druids and Rangers are rare. Even they might find their divine gifts somehow weakened or altered by the desolation that surrounds them.While it would be a high-magic setting, it would also be rather gritty and fatalistic. A bleak world where all the classes have both knowledge of arcane magic and basic combat training. Powerful mage-kings hold sway over most of the known world, keeping the citizens of the massive, isolated cities under their control through fear and manipulation...Hexblades would, of course, fill the role of Fighters. Furthermore, their abilities at shrugging off magical attacks would leave them well equipped for dealing with the large numbers of arcane spellcasters among the populace. Light armor would be the Hexblades biggest weakness. They'd need good all around physical stats to make it work as well as Charisma.Spellthieves would serve as Rogues. Their special talent for turning magic against its casters would be invaluable within the group. Obviously, speed and stealth are of the utmost importance to the Spellthief. Dexterity, Constitution, and Charisma would probably be key for these fellows.Bards, poor sods, would have to fill in the traditional role of Cleric: boosting and healing allies when needed and perhaps providing a few utilitarian spells. A wide range of skills would allow the Bard to balance out with the Spellthief, the two specializing in different areas. Charisma, Dexterity, and Wisdom might not be a bad way to go. Someone needs to be able to make a Will save, after all.Warmages are obviously Wizards. Powerful spells, extra damage, decent hit points, and the ability to wear armor should make Warmages somewhat durable, but against other powerful spellcasters they might need to depend on the Hexblade and the Spellthief. High Charisma and Intelligence along with Constitution would be a must.All of these classes require decent Charisma scores and they're all going to start out with light armor, so they'd need to be careful. The funny thing is that by the 8th level the only class wearing medium armor would be the Warmages (the traditional Wizard class). But consider the following two options:A) Magic is legal and practiced by nearly everyone. In this case, it could be assumed that the culture encourages a mixture of sword and sorcery and so heavy armor would be a pretty rare thing. Everyone learns a little magic and a little combat. Furthermore, finding magical equipment might be somewhat easier. This would certainly make things a little easier on the PCs.B) Magic is illegal to the lower castes from which the PCs originate. In this instance, magic is common only among the rich and powerful, the movers and shakers of this particular setting. Here, the PCs would have to keep their magic secret, at least early on and when encountering the mage-king's minions. Magic items would be harder to come by...probably only taken from those the party managed to defeat in combat. This is obviously the path to go if you want to make your PCs suffer.</blockquote>

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