D&D 5E Anybody Tried "You can multi-class OR take feats"?

[5ekyu]

So, in my game(s) i often have a diversity in playstyles to the point that some players will spend time and effort on BUILD ane efficiency and others just won't really care. Both are fine with me. All of them do good play and fun for all.

But i tend to want to find a balance point between meaningful build flexibility and having too high a gap in power between "efficient builds" and "just builds". i don't want to flood too many choices on those who do not want them or to have them be so obviously outclassed in areas that matter to them by efficient builds.

So, what i am considering is to limit the scope of the "potential" problem by telling players that they can choose on a character level to have access to feats (replace ASI as usual) or to multiclass (normal rules or possibly a one-extra class limit) but no character can do both. Decision needs to be made only when you decide to take either option.

Anybody have experience with this choice in play?
Anybody seen a difference powerwise if builds do use both multiclassing and feats vs those who just multicalls or just use feats? (casual reading seems to point to both-on-one figuring prominently.)

Any general thoughts or wisdoms?

Yes, variant races which grant feats would trigger the no-multi-class thing.

disclaimer to start -

balance that matters to me is balance between the PCs. Encounters challenges and adversaries can be adjusted and will be to suit the group. "value/power" is to me the intersection of "capability" and "need" so there is a lot of leeway for me in setting/encounter to mitigate a lot. but i want to avoid too big a difference between PCs within the same general area of focus from BUILD - give there may be a big difference from in-play decisions as well that i will not be able to address or want to.

- thanks in advance.

 

[Yunru]

I see no reason for this to effect power. It stops casters from taking things like metamagic (if they wanted feats in the first place), but most of the feat-heavy builds are fine solo-classing.

So the only ones actually hit here are the ones that just want the flavour.

 

[Ath-kethin]

We don't use the optional multiclassing rules at my table, but we do use feats, so I guess my answer to your title question is "yes."

 

[TwoSix]

Most builds that rely on feats tend to rush them, so if they do multi-class, it's pretty late...I can't think of any major builds offhand that would be heavily impacted. Maybe a hexblade/sorc or hexblade/paladin relying on Elven Accuracy. Stopping VHumans from multiclassing is a much more impactful decision. That would stop a lot of 1st level Fighter 1 or Cleric 1 dips, as they tend to synergize well with VHuman.

 

[Sunseeker]

Feats or multiclassing depends a lot on what I'm building. My ideal Swashbuckler (rogue/fighter) can use feats but doesn't necessarily need them to function how I want. On the other hand, I've no desire to MC at all with 5E's Paladin (probably my 2nd favorite Paladin ever), so I'd totally want feats.

So I wouldn't have a problem with a game that allows me to choose.

But I'd probably exempt Human's level 1 feat from it. First it would make humans more special (something I'm always okay with doing) and second I would want my players to experience their class to the first normal feat at level 4 before committing to MCing or feats.

So, no, I haven't tried it, but yes, I like the idea.

 

[Charlaquin]

I feel like the game kind of already does this for you with ASIs being tied to class level instead of character level. You have to take 4 levels in one Class to get one, so cheeky hodgepodge builds with a level of this, a couple levels of that, etc. won’t end up getting any. Now, the 1 or 2 level dip on an otherwise single class character is an option, but it delays your ASI level, and most Feat-using builds want those Feats ASAP. Really, the only way to make very efficient use of Feats on a multiclass character is to alternate - 4 levels in one class, 4 levels in the other, etc. But that dramatically reduces your ability to game the multiclassing system.

I guess to answer the question, I have not tried ruling that multiclass characters can’t take Feats, but I’ve never had any problems with multiclassing and Feats together at my table. Maybe I’ve just been lucky to have ended up with players who aren’t into that sort of optimization? I don’t know. If this is a problem for you though, I’d say it sounds worth a try.

 

[Blue]

So, in my game(s) i often have a diversity in playstyles to the point that some players will spend time and effort on BUILD ane efficiency and others just won't really care. Both are fine with me. All of them do good play and fun for all.

But i tend to want to find a balance point between meaningful build flexibility and having too high a gap in power between "efficient builds" and "just builds". i don't want to flood too many choices on those who do not want them or to have them be so obviously outclassed in areas that matter to them by efficient builds.

It's interesting, because this to me feels like a solution to 3.x D&D. I've played with a number of tables of multiclassed and straight classed characters. My experience, which admittedly only goes through the early teens, is that it's the top of end of the power curve is about the same regardless of single or multiclassing, where the problem is that with multiclassing it's easier to accidentally shoot yourself in the foot and build sub-optimal characters when you didn't want to.

Feats are a different story. There are a few feats that I have seen, when working with an optimized character OR an optimized party, are quite powerful. The GWM/SS who has party members casting Bless, Haste, Greater Invisibility on them will do a heck of a lot of damage. Sure, there can be a level of self-optimization, but a barbarian with GWM can hit often with Reckless Attack with no need for any multiclassing.

So really my experience is that multiclassing isn't a route to power, and if you ware worried about optimization you need to look at feats - but since many of the feats are only really problematic when the rest of the party is buffing, then at that point you've got teamwork going on and maybe it's okay they they are expressing the damge form one buffed characcter instead of three unbuffed characters.

So I see where you are coming from, but if this was playing out at the tables I've played with, this wouldn't really address the goal you put forth.

As a DM, I've just had conversations when one player is out of line (above or below) the others.