How Prevalent Are Prestige Classes in Your Game?

[Ruined]

The ongoing Planescape game has just seen quite a few of the characters taking PrCs.

Priest / Wizard / True Necromancer (TB)
Wild Mage / Planeshifter (MoP)
Rogue / Assasin (DMG)

and of course, the non-PrC that gets the most looks:

Minotaur Fighter 8/ Bard 1

*shrug*

 

[Psion]

Psion; have you looked into the original draft of the Archmage? I think Sean Reynolds has it somewhere on his website. Basically, it has fewer prereqs and the Arcana's don't use up spell-slots but they also don't gain any Spellcasting progression. Similiar to the Hierophant.

That sounds like the one in the FR living city document. That one fails the other direction; IMO it is too weak.

Really, the thing that would make archmage work for me is:
1) weaken the spell power abilities. +6 by 18th level is too generous.
2) make the class a little less desirable for sorcerer. Sorcerer giving up spell slots is NOT a big hit.

 

[BigFreekinGoblinoid]

Generally most Pr-classes are achieveable between 5th and 7th.

Hmm.. That may be, but you would have to start planning on taking the prestige class from Level one character generation ( especially in Scarred Lands! - unless you want to play a Forgemaster - ha! ), so realistically, that level number is higher...

 

[BigFreekinGoblinoid]

Re: Utter Frustratoin

The one opportunity, level-wise, that I've had for a character to get a PrC and the DM declares 'only core books, keep it simple'.

[/B]

None of the PrC's in the DMG appeal to you? ( loremaster anyone? ) ... Shadowdancer is not too bad

 

[Cedric]

Every game I've played in or run, characters have been limited to one prestige class with 10 levels and one prestige class with 5 levels.

This still allows for some pretty ugly combinations, but nothing quite as broken as people are to create with multiple prestige classes.

Cedric

 

[Nightfall]

Hmm.. That may be, but you would have to start planning on taking the prestige class from Level one character generation ( especially in Scarred Lands! - unless you want to play a Forgemaster - ha! ), so realistically, that level number is higher...

This is true! Some you don't get until 6th, though I think Incarnate you could achieve at 5th level.

Btw, Psion, perhaps it's not the archmage CLASS so much as the Bloodless template? But I do agree, the Archmage IS a fairly sup upped Pr-class.

 

[Elder-Basilisk]

In my home campaign (average party level: 7, two 8th level characters), I currently have 5 players. Only one is working towards a prestige class. At least 4 NPCs have taken prestige classes though. . . .
PCs
Rgr/Ftr/Rog (dual shortsword wielder)
Bbn
Rog/Sor (working towards Arcane Trickster)
Clr
Rgr

NPCs
Ftr/Necromancer/Acolyte of the Twisting Serpent (thanks Tuerny)
Ftr/Ravager
Rgr/Pal/Hunter of the Dead
Clr/Wiz/True Necromancer

In the Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil campaign I play (current party level: 6, with two 7th level characters), we have one PC aiming for a prestige class, IIRC:
Ftr/Master of Chains
half dragon Bbn
Ftr
Sor
Rgr/Drd
Clr (7th level archery specialist--no prestige class plans)

In Living Greyhawk, among the people I regularly play with:
Ftr 2/Wiz 5 (aiming for spellsword and Sacred Exorcist)
Clr 2 (plans on staying a single-classed cleric)
Pal 5 (no current plans to gain a prestige class that I'm aware of)
Bbn 1/Clr 1 (no current plans for a prestige class)
Rog 1/Ftr 1/Brd 4 (constantly changing plans for a half dozen prestige classes--mindbender, spymaster, virtuouso)
Clr 7 (no plans or skill points for prestige classes)
Ftr 1 (plans to go Cavalier, IIRC)

I suspect that a bit more than half of the characters are currently aiming at prestige classes (this is not really a representative sample). This is certainly true of my characters:
Ftr 2/Wiz 5 (plans for Sacred Exorcist and Spellsword)-Living Greyhawk
Clr 2 (none)-Living Greyhawk
Bbn 2/Ftr 1 (possibly Devoted Defender--definitely no other plans)-Living Arcanis
Rgr 1 (no prestige class plans)-Living Kalamar
Wiz 5/Wizard of High Sorcery 1-Homebrew Dragonlance game
Sor 6/Candlecaster 4/Elemental Savant 4-Homebrew game
Clr 7 (none)-RttToEE
Pal 6 (none)-Homebrew Sea of Fallen Stars game
Rgr 1/Clr 3 (planning for Templar)-Homebrew Greyhawk game
Ftr 3/Rog 3 (planning for custom prestige class: Sons of Gryphos)-Homebrew game
About 2/3 of my characters are running after prestige classes. I think that may be typical.

As a DM, I enjoy the flexibility to create NPCs with new and special abilities that prestige classes afford me. As a player, they offer quite a few nifty abilities and make some character concepts possbile that the core rules do not support well.

 

[Psion]

Btw, Psion, perhaps it's not the archmage CLASS so much as the Bloodless template? But I do agree, the Archmage IS a fairly sup upped Pr-class.

No, it's the prestige class. Though I do have certain issues with the bloodless template as well, and think that their charisma gain should be limited.

But we've been over this in a past life.

 

[Voadam]

In my campaign two of the five PCs have levels of assassin and one had a level of dread pirate until we realized that after his conversion into 3e he didn't actually have the prereqs to meet the class yet.

I'm planning on using NPC practical ones from Librum equitis 1 and Chosen of Shiva from Mystic Warriors in my Sri Raji Ravenloft game but have not worked in on-stage npcs yet, (just in game information/warnings about them).

 

[Radiating Gnome]

In the campaign I run, the PCs are all about 9th level, and I have only one that has taken levels in a Prestige class -- an acrobat (who already has levels in fighter and rogue). I have two players that are actively pursuing prestige classes -- a druiod on his way to one of the animal lord variations, and the elf fighter ranger is working towards a homemade PRC we agonized over a few months back.

So, not a lot of interest, but some. In the other game I'm in -- as a player -- I'm playing a halfling illusionist/rogue, and working towards Arcane Trickster, but I'm a few levels away from earning that, so we'll see if I can live that long.

-rg