D&D 5E A blank canvas for creativity?

[Silvercat Moonpaw]

I just wondered if in your opinion the more “filled in” classes or the more open ones spur more creativity for you.

"Filled in": I have other systems for open creativity. One of the reasons I don't enjoy DD5e is because of how minimal many things are.

 

[Baldurs_Underdark]

That's an interesting effect, do you know why the players already come with something in mind ? It is something technical like a build (which includes all the elements like class/race/background), or do they come with roleplaying character concepts ?

This tends to either be my min-maxing friends, or people who want to play Legolas.

 

[el-remmen]

I never worry about more than a basic character idea because until I start playing them I don't really know how they will manifest - and in addition, I prefer to shape a character based on in-game events than on backstory ones - in theory the former should have more weight to both the player and to the overall campaign itself than the latter - which could end up totally divorced from where the game actually goes.

 

[Lyxen]

This tends to either be my min-maxing friends, or people who want to play Legolas.

I was almost sure that it would be the case, and there's not that much that can be done about this, because they would steer session 0 anyway so that they achieve their goals...

 

[Umbran]

I just wondered if in your opinion the more “filled in” classes or the more open ones spur more creativity for you.

Creativity in what sense? In how you address tactical challenges? In character background? In character personality?

 

[Warpiglet-7]

Creativity in what sense? In how you address tactical challenges? In character background? In character personality?

Sure. All of it. For me I am thinking more about personality and character but anything is fair game.

 

[jmartkdr2]

To expand on some analogies:

If classes are restaurants, a wide-open class like champion fighter is a diner: you could get dang near anything but it may take some digging to figure out what's actually good. A narrowly defined class like paladin is a specialist ethnic restaurant: if you go to the empanada place, you get empanadas. They're good to great empanadas, but if you don't want empanadas, you won't enjoy it.

Another one: having more mechanical tools to express your character is like having more crayons to draw with: it's won't make the art better, but you have more choices in how to get there. The flip side, of course, is that's it's also easier to express a direct concept with one color, since you don't need to even think about color balance.

For myself: I tend to find classes without a lot of 'buttons' boring compared to ones with lots of buttons, but I know a lot of people who do not feel that way at all.

 

[HammerMan]

I was thinking about playing a champion fighter.

I have mostly played warlocks (and one multi cleric warlock) celestial patron and have an artificer ready to go. I have a Paladin in Avernus.
I am accustomed to more complicated characters.

but when looking at the champion I felt like the blank canvas was refreshing. Playing a human to boot, the lore and background is pretty minimal.

I just wondered if in your opinion the more “filled in” classes or the more open ones spur more creativity for you.

my group refluff so much that every class and race is blank to us...but I dislike classes that have no moving parts (as a PC and as aDM).

super glad you are excited for this chance, sometime I forget people just use the defualt fluff

 

[HammerMan]

To expand on some analogies:

If classes are restaurants, a wide-open class like champion fighter is a diner: you could get dang near anything but it may take some digging to figure out what's actually good. A narrowly defined class like paladin is a specialist ethnic restaurant: if you go to the empanada place, you get empanadas. They're good to great empanadas, but if you don't want empanadas, you won't enjoy it.

I mean I can so see the reverse... the champion fighter is the empanada place, it swings a sword real good but that is it (fill in weapon of choice). However anything other then attacking is very limited, where a wizard or cleric is picking form a LARGE menu (like a dinner)

 

[Warpiglet-7]

my group refluff so much that every class and race is blank to us...but I dislike classes that have no moving parts (as a PC and as aDM).

super glad you are excited for this chance, sometime I forget people just use the defualt fluff

Well I don’t know what fluff for sure—-I guess that’s what I winder

I take criminal I could be a reformed bandit and unlock doors in dungeons or a knight or I don’t know….

then again you can reflux warlock or artificer with some effort…

maybe it doesn’t make much of a difference?