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Message: <blockquote data-quote="nameless" data-source="post: 573161" data-attributes="member: 1543">I'm sorry, because I don't want to flame anyone, but without PrC's, I find that all non-spellcasters become infinitely weaker than the 4 pure spellcasting classes. If you want to put it in previous terms, all of the non-spellcasters (I'll lump rangers, bards, and paladins in thie group) are front-loaded. When a DM refuses to allow custom content, I feel it only exacerbated the problem, and I'll explain why on both counts.First, all of the non-spellcaster classes are the same, except for the feat picks they take. A fighter gets more picks, but also quickly gains all the valuable feats and is forced to either dilute their concept or pick sub-par feats. A wizard, on the other hand, gets an entire new spell level to pick from every 2 levels, and is able to research new spells (basically a new class ability) at will, and can create whatever magical items he wants. From a control prespective, the rules help a wizard to make his own magic and define his own content.I recently wrote up a new character of mine, who's a spear fighter. Historically, and in fantasy, there are many famous spear-fighters, I simply like the style, and some of the mechanics are also to my liking. For my fighting, I could probably use Dodge, Mobility, Spring Attack, Weapon Focus, Weapon Specialization, Power Attack, Cleave, Great Cleave, Expertise, Combat Reflexes, Improved Initiative, and Improved Critical. Assuming I don't decide that some of those feats are unnecessary, a human fighter will have all of those feats by level 10. These are the things that define my fighting style. Each level up to 10 gave me a new tool in my box which brought me up to the place where I envisioned my character from the start.If my spear-fighter goes to level 11 now, then he gains no saving throw bonuses, no feat, and just +1 BAB. Level 12, he'll gain +1 to his saves, another BAB, and two feats that probably don't fit his concept. There is no reason that he'd take Quick Draw or Improved Disarm, but he has to take something. There's also no reason why he would multiclass into another core class. After all, he doesn't know that he's a fighter and Lidda's a rogue. He just knows that he can do these 10 special things, and Lidda can sneak around, disarm traps, and is good at getting in nasty shots when the other guy isn't paying attention. Aside from the artificial (from an in-character perspective) delineation of levels and classes, my spear-fighter is simply learning the best techniques for fighting with a spear. Assuming there is no fundamental limit in mastering a style at level 10, he should be able to increase his spear-fighting beyond that. Simply put, he needs either new feats for higher level spear-fighters, or he needs a prestige class that caters to a spear-expert. Otherwise, the artificial rules construct forces a character to develop differently.Like I said incognito, I don't want to insult you, but I think you're way off base in player motives. Sure, there are a lot of powergamers out there. But a powergamer is going to powergame whether or not you limit their prestige class choices. Since you flatly refuse to design custom feats or prestige classes for your game, you are basically saying that a player must shoehorn his characters into the molds of whatever arbitrary sources you use. The only solutions to this are: 1) Get a larger amount of material for players to choose from. 2) Predict what your players will want and pre-emptively make it. or 3) Allow your players to design new abilities and submit them to you for approval. I'm aware that you're wary of a player slipping an unbalanced ability past you and that's fine. But like you said, "It's your world!" You can make it rain knives, and you can tell a player that his ability is under consideration and will be changed retroactively.The final comment that I feel I need to get in is that it's really not "your" world. Sure, you are the DM, but it's as much the players' world as it is yours. If you refuse to let them impact it in any way, what's the point in having players? You might as well just write a short story and read it to your friends. It means you have to give up control and give the players genuine power, but if they can't be trusted with even a little bit of control, then you need to get new players. If a new "class" exists, does any of the millions of people in the world know that "Job-bob the spearchucker" is a Fighter 10/Chucker 1? They just know that he's got a cool technique for chucking spears, and when he rotates his wrist like so, he gets some extra distance on his throw.-nameless</blockquote>

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