Classes and Levels or Point buy

[Mark CMG]

I prefer classes and levels for the medieval fantasy genre,

That's the ticket.

 

[RFisher]

I dislike both equally. Both have disadvantages.

I prefer free form.

I also like (believe it or not) the classic Traveller chargen a lot. I seem to recall liking the old WFRP chargen a lot too. I remember trying to develop something that was sort of midway between those two.

 

[kolikeos]

i like the class level system better only because i never played anything different (and probobly will not in the near future).

With a system like that, you can have a master carpenter or blacksmith who doesn't also have to have gobs of hp and good saves.

yes, thats one problem i have with the d20 system, does a blacksmith have to know how to fight? and does he have to go and kill monsters so he could upgrade his carft skill?
luckly, i never played or DMd in any campaign that the PCs are anything but adventurers

 

[wingsandsword]

yes, thats one problem i have with the d20 system, does a blacksmith have to know how to fight? and does he have to go and kill monsters so he could upgrade his carft skill?

Characters in d20 get XP from overcoming challenges, not defeating monsters and collecting treasure.

With typical PC's, the challenges they overcome are stomping monsters and taking their stuff, or evading the traps they left behind. However, any time a character is called on to do something that is challenging to them, where they have any risk anything bad happening if they fail, they get XP.

A blacksmith who has to make some complex fittings in a hurry for the Baron should get some XP for that: It is a challenge to him with some risk of bad things happening if he fails. If he has to make a load of horseshoes for a local farm fairly quickly, a few XP is probably in order, since his business and reputation would be hurt if he failed, and making a lot quickly is a challenge. Compared to going out and putting the hurt on some orcs, this won't be a lot of XP, but that's why most townsfolk are pretty low level. A typical town blacksmith would only be a 2nd or 3rd level Expert, with an experienced Master as maybe 5th level.

As a real-life example, staying up all night cramming for an exam, then going to class in a snowstorm to take an important exam in a difficult class, then driving back through that snowstorm to go to work all night, staying an extra shift and dealing with hostile customers, and possibly spotting a shoplifter and asking your boss for a raise, then getting pulled over by a policeman while coming home and talk your way out of a traffic ticket, would be a day that would definitely get you some XP, as there were lots of challenges and plenty of room for bad things to happen if you messed up. You probably would have got a lot more XP as a soldier fighting in battle, or as a policeman investigating a case, but the everyday problems of people get enough XP to put them through a few levels over the years.

 

[The Shaman]

I didn't vote, as I prefer a system that has both. Levels are basicaly a means of keeping track of overall character power / ability while also directing it towards certain areas so as to keep an overall sense of balance. I would like a system that has levels, but upon gaining a level one basically gains skill points in various categories, based on class level.

This is kinda how Top Secret worked - you had level and classes that affected certain skills in a limited way, and then you used XP to buy additions to your skills and abilities.

I couldn't vote in the poll - the choices were too limiting. I've played games that use classes and levels, and I've played pure point-buy, and I've played stuff that's both, and what I've found is that the game system itself is a determining factor in many cases. I liked Top Secret but I could never embrace GURPS, for example.

Now the big factor for me is how much time does it take me as a GM to set up a game? That point alone is a big selling point for class and level systems, IMHO.