Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="humble minion" data-source="post: 8571506" data-attributes="member: 5948">Looking at the 3e version of the original adventures (which i believe are fairly faithful system ports of the originals), it very much assumes you're playing the Heroes of the Lance, but it leaves space for using your original characters by having 'roles'.  The start of each module lists a number of dramatic/narrative roles that should be filled to make the story work.  One of these roles is 'the prophet', which is the gig Goldmoon had in the books.  While no character can start the game with divine spellcasting abilities (you can play a cleric/paladin, you just don't get spells until the plot hurdles are cleared), the 'prophet' is basically a substitute for that.  This character starts with the Blue Crystal Staff, which basically has enough healing ability to fill in more than adequately for a 5th-ish level cleric so the game isn't unplayably difficult to start.However, this is a 3e interpretation of the original modules, and the game has changed a lot since then and even more since the originals.  The module starts with PCs at 5th level, but in 5e the power difference between a spell-less cleric and a martial character is probably a lot wider than it was when the modules were new.  Hell, back in the 1980s heyday of DL, a 5th level cleric only had a handful of spells per day plus turn undead, then they were wading in with a mace.  5e clerics have infinite cantrips to throw about, just for starters, and usually a channel divinity ability that is more frequently applicable than turn undead was (and in the case of Radiance of the Dawn, is quite possibly the party's single biggest combat button).  And the power curve of other classes has increased in line with that.  Take the spells and divine abilities away from a 5e cleric and they're a pretty sad panda.  And the hit point pools of minor enemies have increased in line.  In general, martial characters aren't taking even goblins, hobgoblins, minion guards etc down in one blow any more (unless they are pouring smites or other special abilities etc in), and bounded accuracy makes it more likely they'll get hit in return.  A 5e combat against large number of weak enemies can be pretty scary for a martial-heavy (or spell-less cleric) party that doesn't have a decent area effect or two handy.  And of course in 5e you can have a load of healing in the party without having a cleric (or paladin, or even ranger) at all.  A bard who knows Cure Wounds, an alchemist artificer, a celestial pact warlock, that monk subclass that wears the plague doctor mask, I've forgotten its name.  The power dynamic of the D&D system has changed a lot.  The narrative of the first module is all about getting divine magic back.  But 5e doesn't even really have a concept of 'divine' magic that's separate from any other type of magic.</blockquote>

Verification