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Message: <blockquote data-quote="ashockney" data-source="post: 2352824" data-attributes="member: 1363">How have all these classes and prestige classes affected your games?Our games are more dynamic because of the variety, and more experienced players always seem to be entertained trying a new twist on an old favorite.  Do you allow material from any (all) books outside the core SRD?We use all core books, and the complete books (with general approval).  Much to my surprise, I also received a great deal of demand for inclusion of classes/feats from the miniature's handbook.What have you found challenging to manage? It is challenging to manage the variety of different abilities, and how they interact with each other.  One character, playing a Paladin/Marshall/Divine xxx, is very powerful, with his maxed out CHA bonus adding mods to all flanking damage, saves, and his divine class grants him mettle.  Very tough, although not really a damage machine.  It's also challenging to have a bard/diplomat in the same party, and keep the encounters challenging, without being overbearing to the non-combatant.Has the sheer volume of available source information affected your buying? Have you capped out, and if so where? Why?I capped out at the "races of" books.  I'm a huge fan of FR, and that's where our campaign is based.  I've also bought all the 3.5 Complete books.  So most of those are included in our material.  I've not ventured into purchasing any of the "races" books.  I have a real tough time balancing all ECL races.  In my experience, they haven't been clear, and haven't been well balanced.Do you find it challenging to balance the class and prestige class combinations your players devise? What combinations (c'mon min/maxers) have proven most abusive?Wizard/Red Wizard/Archmage/Incantatrix - take your pick from these in some comboRogues who min/max their use magic deviceBalancing highly effective combantants with less effective combatants (ie, Barbarian vs. Bard, Fighter vs. Monk, Ranger vs. Rogue)Finally, how has this sheer volume of information changed the meta-game environment? As designers, how do you account for the many varieties and flavors that exist? How has the volume of options available altered your groups game play?The meta game in general seems to promote multi-classing and prestige classing.  The "standard four" classes seem to be non-existant.  It sometimes proves difficult to fill all the "required" roles for a party, among all the different variations made available to players, which in turn requires a little more strategizing.  More game emphasis seems to be put on "character building" between adventures, and having a critical component like magic items out of the player's control to plan/count on, creates some unexpected tension.</blockquote>

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