Brainstorming Martial/Combat Classes

[JamesonCourage]

I think Fatigue is important to include because it lends to more realism and creates moments of dramatic tension that is missing from more robotic approaches (where PC's keep hitting just as well at the end of a day of slugging thru a zombie-infested swamp as they did when they popped out of bed in the morning). The heroism of a last stand of an exhausted warrior or of a wizard risking his sanity to hold a portal open 1 minute longer is the kind of thing I'm shooting for here. The obvious downside to any Fatigue system is the bookkeeping involved.

Yep, that is the downside. That's why I went with the temporary hit points as fatigue route. It's more bookkeeping, but the players seem happy to do it if it helps keep them alive. It's like a buffer from harm as well as a resource they can spend, and that seemed to strike a chord with them.

I think I'm going to spend more time fleshing out exactly what abilities I want to make available to the martial classes before I make up my mind here. At least I think I've narrowed it down to Marksman + Martial Artist + Melee Warrior or the Powerful + Graceful + Tough options JamesonCourage mentioned.

Awesome. Even if you go the other way, still glad you're getting your ideas fleshed out. It sounds like a cool take on the genre, to me. I prefer gritty fantasy games, and it really seems like it might have that vibe if played a certain way. Good luck (and if you need more ideas to bounce off of people, post again!). As always, play what you like