Class Distribution

[Lanefan]

In a brilliant essay on demographics in another thread, referring to expected class distribution, Sepulchrave wrote:

50% Fighter-types
25% Rogue-types
15% Cleric-types
10% Wizard-types

From my 1e background, somehow I'd got the numbers 40-30-20-10% in my head for distribution...but no big deal there. However, what I've seen played is somewhat different, going about 40-20-20-20%.

How do your numbers stack up with this, and-or what would you expect to see?

Lanefan

 

[Philotomy Jurament]

I'd say 50/30/10/10, in the campaign world. Also, I consider all adventuring classes to be exceptional. That is, there are plenty of warriors out there that aren't Fighters. There are a lot of priests that aren't Clerics. Plenty of criminals that aren't Thieves. There are even some hedge magicians and shamen that aren't magic users.

In terms of party composition, those ratios don't really apply, though. Party composition is a much more even spread, in my experience.

 

[blargney the second]

Sep's numbers sound right for the games I DM, but I'm seriously ballparking here.

 

[Drowbane]

rough numbers at best

NPCs (world-wide)

"tanks" 40%
"experts" 44%
"clergy" 8%
"magi" 8%

PCs

"tanks" 25%
"experts" 20%
"clergy" 10%
"magi" 45%


My group digs casters...

Edit: Major NPCs

"tanks" 10%
"experts" 10%
"clergy" 40%
"magi" 40%

 

[Glyfair]

In a brilliant essay on demographics in another thread, referring to expected class distribution, Sepulchrave wrote:
From my 1e background, somehow I'd got the numbers 40-30-20-10% in my head for distribution...but no big deal there. However, what I've seen played is somewhat different, going about 40-20-20-20%.

Was that based on "this is how I think it should be" or was it based on the DMG demographics table? Also, is that supposed to be player characters? It completely ignores the most common NPC type (commoners don't really fit in any category)?

As I run Eberron almost exclusively now, I tend to follow Keith's demographics from the Demographics Dragonshard. I'm not a slave to it, after all it doesn't even touch non-core classes. However, as a rule of thumb I try to get within the ballpark of those numbers.

 

[MerricB]

In a brilliant essay on demographics in another thread, referring to expected class distribution, Sepulchrave wrote:
From my 1e background, somehow I'd got the numbers 40-30-20-10% in my head for distribution...

That's right out of White Plume Mountain (pretty much the only adventure to give percentages for this): 40% Fighter, 30% Magic-Users, 20% Clerics and 10% thieves.

Cheers!

 

[Arkhandus]

I'd say 50/30/10/10, in the campaign world. Also, I consider all adventuring classes to be exceptional. That is, there are plenty of warriors out there that aren't Fighters. There are a lot of priests that aren't Clerics. Plenty of criminals that aren't Thieves. There are even some hedge magicians and shamen that aren't magic users.

In terms of party composition, those ratios don't really apply, though. Party composition is a much more even spread, in my experience.

I concur, more or less, though it varies from region to region and just comes out to about that much overall. I.E. in gnomish communities the ratio is probably more like 30/25/15/30, for example.

Plenty of NPC priests are not spellcasters, but instead Experts or similar. Some people claim to be wizards or sorcerers but don't have any actual spells, just Expert levels and skill at alchemy, herbalism, bluffing, and sleight of hand. Most NPC combatants are Warriors. Most NPC thieves are just Commoners or Experts. Many NPC shamans are just Adepts.

 

[Lanefan]

That's right out of White Plume Mountain (pretty much the only adventure to give percentages for this): 40% Fighter, 30% Magic-Users, 20% Clerics and 10% thieves.

Cheers!

Thanks! Only for some reason I thought the order was F-C-T-MU...why?

When talking about such things I'm only referring to characters that make it into played parties, whether as PCs, NPCs, or whatever. I really couldn't care much about whether this reflects the rest of the world's distribution or not; if 75% of all levelled beings in the world are Warriors, that's fine, but if the character log shows me only 35% of the played characters have been Warriors that's what I look at when wondering if Warriors are being overplayed, underplayed, or are about right, based on the 40-30-20-10 breakdown.

My Riveria game went surprisingly close to an even 40-20-20-20 (all were within 1%). I'd have to do some more serious number-crunching to figure out what we've had over all the games (3 huge ones, 4 mid-size ones, and half a dozen one-offs) I've got records of.

Lanefan

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

In a brilliant essay on demographics in another thread, referring to expected class distribution, Sepulchrave wrote:

Link please. Was Sepulchrave discussing PCs or NPCs?

 

[Emirikol]

We've turned the tide on those numbers: healing potions are always available in any village/town so we've pretty much eliminated the cleric.

Yea, otherwise, I can see those numbers being pretty much true in any standard high-magic D&D campaign.

jh