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Message: <blockquote data-quote="howandwhy99" data-source="post: 5845204" data-attributes="member: 3192">I like cheese.Variable power level Classes. Thieves were 1250, Magic-Users 1500. Keeping these close enough and awarding XP individually meant the overlapping variance was rarely felt. Level 2 Thieves (1250-2500 XP) were about as difficult to play as M-Us.Variable power level Races. I think Wizards is going to attempt what Rodney Thompson called Parity here, but I also believe it is only partially necessary. Ability Scores were pluses and negatives to Class abilities. Racial abilities were all the other abilities that were outside of Class abilities. As long as everyone has Parity in Ability scores, then the classes should be okay for any of the races (barring customization of races by campaign, where halflings have less STR, etc.)Also Variable power level Ability Scores (randomly rolled), and Variable power level Equipment (wealth totals, magic items, etc.) Everything outside of Class abilities and races can fluctuate similarly to class. Starting racial abilities are within a given range. So too are starting equipment resources (e.g. 3d6x10). So long as the benefits and penalties do not over stack any particular class (those powers being amongst the easiest to advance and hardest to lose), then we can more easily assess a relative overall balance within a spectrum for each character for each realm of play.I'd suggest class & racial cultural strictures as well to allow for greater benefits early on (the biggest show dog here being the Paladin), but a lot of that style of play is currently unpopular. For instance, limitations with penalties seems clear enough (non-proficient with a weapon, but can use it with penalty for example), but when penalties become too game changing for some players (like losing one's class and having to play their way back into it) then strictures can feel less like mere limitations and more like punishments. When the whole is a 1-and-done deal, as with no ex-Paladins ever coming back, then +10% in benefits over every other class sounds a bit more understandable. Paladin's actions are highly limited or all of their benefits are lost permanently for the life of the character. Every action is still a player option though. Every choice remains ever present. It's simply those self selected (I prefer self-defined) Paladin Code commitments limit the number of easy routes to use the benefits they are given. All of a sudden certain moral choices become dilemmas with something close to permanent character death on the line.  That "never fall from grace" commitment with the choices routinely in their face game design is a feature for those attracted to the class, not a bug.</blockquote>

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