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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Elder-Basilisk" data-source="post: 114636" data-attributes="member: 3146">You're missing one huge factor: proficiencies.A first level fighter, barbarian, warrior, or paladin can pick up a longsword, warhammer, battle axe, great axe, or greatsword (the most damaging one and two handed martial weapons in the game) and (assuming no strength bonus--a very faulty assumption) can hit an ordinary warrior in scale mail on a roll of 13. (Realistically, it's likely that the fighter will have at least a 14 strength and weapon focus as well so that's more likely to be a 10).The first level commoner, cleric, or wizard who tries to do the same thing will suck up a -4 non-proficiency penalty and will consequently need an 18, 19, or 20 to hit. (And the only one of these likely to have a strength bonus is the cleric).Consequently, in the extreme (no strength bonus) scenario, the fighter hits 8 times out of 20 and the non-combatant class hits 3 times out of 20. So the fighter is not 5% more likely to hit with a good weapon, he is 166% more likely to hit than the non-combatant class.Now a more realistic set of scenarios would acknowledge several things:1. Cleric is generally not a non-combatant classes. Neither is rogue, bard, or druid. Wizard and sorceror are sometimes but not always.2. Most members of non-combatant classes use significantly weaker weapons than fighters. Quarterstaffs and crossbows are typical for wizards. Clubs are usual for commoners. These weapons dish out less damage than their martial counterparts. (Although it does somewhat equalize the chance of hitting.3. Most fighters will be significantly stronger than members of noncombatant classes. If you build a fighter and choose a strength of less than 14 (and 14 is a very marginal strength for a fighter), you're setting yourself up to lose (unless you take weapon finesse). Fighters are also likely to have the weapon focus feat. This brings the difference in chance to hit at first level back up to significant levels.It also helps to remember that a 1st level fighter or warrior is a beginner. In my campaign, I use the following scale (it's lower powered than the previous campaign).Level 1-3 Apprentice/Acolyte/TraineeLevel 2-7 JourneymanLevel 5+ MasterLevel 10+ Very well respected MasterLevel 15+ You're among the world's best.(You'll notice that the levels overlap somewhat. This is to acknowledge that a 2nd level character with good stats and well chosen skills and feats (obviously a focussed and dedicated character) could actually be significantly better at his field of work than a third level character with worse stats and/or poorly chosen feats (obviously a dilletante who can't focus on one thing long enough to be good at it).</blockquote>

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