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Message: <blockquote data-quote="ShinHakkaider" data-source="post: 5412876" data-attributes="member: 9213">Also, and I mean it's been a while, I don't remember in Basic, AD&D or AD&D 2nd edition the classes EVER being perfectly balanced against one another. I remember friends of mine playing Thieves / Rogues and being the one's to pick locks and check for traps. I remember in combat them skulking around the edges of combat waiting for an opportunity to backstab the crap out of some unsuspecting monster or NPC. I distinctly remember them NOT being in the forefront of combat otherwise they'd get fricking MURDERED. I more often than not would either play a Ranger or a Cleric. On average (IIRC) the party fighter was better than I was at dealing damage. But when it came time to fight Giants or Ogres or Orcs? D00d by 8th level it was automatic +8 to damage to those creatures whether I was using a dagger or a bastard sword. I was a Goblin/Giant/Orc killing machine. I was so upset that they took that away for 2nd Edition D&D...I also notice that part of the problem has to do with lazy GMing. This isnt a direct indictment of anyone in this thread. Even if you're running an adventure from a pre-written source it's your responsibility to make the adventure relevent to your players and their PC's. It may take a few sessions for things to gel, but ultimately you have to help your players and their PC's shine. If there's a rogue in the party you have to give him/her something to DO and it does not have to directly be combat related. Case in point, one of the players is playing an Gnome Oracle in my COTCT game. Combat wise? She's the weakest member of the party. But she's also the one with the highest Diplomacy and Knowledge ranks so when in combat when that Otyugh crashes up through sidewalk from the sewers and starts eating people and the rest of the PC's are like "WTF?!?" she can offer insight as to what it is and what they can possibly do to either get away from it or beat it or why it's in the city at all to begin with. If they beat the Otyugh, she was still part of the encounter and contributed to it's defeat and gets the experience from it. If the part tries to fight and then has to flee I still give them half XP for the attempt. After all they did "encounter" the threat but didnt defeat it. She was the point person in the aforementioned negotiation with the Spider King and made such an impression on him that he's kind of taken a liking to her. She doesn't know this yet though. As a DM you have to work to make it so that NO member of the party is useless. You have to give each character their "The Zeppo" moment (Buffy reference). You may not be able to do it EVERY session but then again none of the players or their PC's can be AWESOME every second of every session.</blockquote>

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