Making the Cut: Non-core classes

[Meatboy]

[MENTION=6689464]KaiiLurker[/MENTION]
Totally agree with you that was a great post. Under the rules for any edition merely having 4 classes couldn't cut it simply because of how the rules are set up. (It's why I house rule compulsively.) To use your motorcycle/4x4 analogy, I'd like to see the classes act as a chassis which we could then hang our favorite features on. Like

Warrior+weapon specialization + heavy armor = Fighter
warrior + stealth+ nature skills = ranger
Warrior + Rage + nature skills = Barbarian

Or whatever combinations you would want.

 

[Empirate]

What I'd like to see is classes differentiated by a single core mechanic each: Fighting. Casting spells that make the peoples fall down. Smacking evil around. Leet nature/social/mechanical skillz. Fighting really tricky/dirty/acrobatically. Turning into an animal/boss form/Mr. Hyde. Summoning and Binding spirits/demons/whatever. God's (one-man) Army. Rearing and training an animal/pokemon/chocobo. Shady McShade from the Plane of Shadow. Projecting Auras. Know Thy Enemy, for Knowledge Is Power. Build your own magical power armor/shrink ray/jetpack. Magical Meditative Musical Melodies. Etc.

That makes for more than a dozen "core" class concepts. Mix and match to come up with "niche" classes. Previous editions have often combined two or even more of these concepts into a single class (3E Druid, I'm looking at you!), but I'd actually like my "core" classes to be extremely good at exactly one of these things each. Multiclassing and more "niche" classes can pick up the versatility slack then.

 

[Meatboy]

What I'd like to see is classes differentiated by a single core mechanic each: Fighting. Casting spells that make the peoples fall down. Smacking evil around. Leet nature/social/mechanical skillz. Fighting really tricky/dirty/acrobatically. Turning into an animal/boss form/Mr. Hyde. Summoning and Binding spirits/demons/whatever. God's (one-man) Army. Rearing and training an animal/pokemon/chocobo. Shady McShade from the Plane of Shadow. Projecting Auras. Know Thy Enemy, for Knowledge Is Power. Build your own magical power armor/shrink ray/jetpack. Magical Meditative Musical Melodies. Etc.

That makes for more than a dozen "core" class concepts. Mix and match to come up with "niche" classes. Previous editions have often combined two or even more of these concepts into a single class (3E Druid, I'm looking at you!), but I'd actually like my "core" classes to be extremely good at exactly one of these things each. Multiclassing and more "niche" classes can pick up the versatility slack then.

That sounds awesome. I'd get behind that concept for sure.

 

[steeldragons]

Well...if we are going to use mechanical differentiation, which I thought we weren't...then I'd see something like this...

Warriors
-Fighter: Strength reliant, Combat Expertise.
-Barbarian: Strength reliant, Combat expertise + Constitution, Power Point mechanic: Rage Powers.
-Warlord: Strength reliant, Combat Expertise + Charisma, Mundane Aura mechanic: Inspiration & Leadership.
-Paladin: Strength reliant, Combat Expertise + Wisdom, Mundane Aura mechanic: Leadership, Channel mechanic: Divinity.
-Ranger: Strength reliant, Combat Expertise + Intelligence & Dexterity, Skills expertise, Channel mechanic: Nature.

Wizards
-Mage/Wizard/MU: Intelligence reliant, Spell use mechanic [various mechanics for spell use and spell schools provide all types of MUs]
-Witch: Intelligence reliant, Spell use + Charisma, Channel mechanic: Nature.
-Thaumaturgist: see Priests.
-Swordmage: Intelligence reliant, Spell use + Strength, Combat Expertise.
-Warlock: Intelligence reliant, Spell use + Constitution, Power Point mechanic: Eldritch Powers.
-Artificer: Intelligence reliant, Spell use + Dexterity, Skills Expertise

Rogues
-Thief/Rogue: Dexterity reliant, Skills expertise.
-Assassin: Dexterity reliant, Skills Expertise + Strength, Combat Expertise.
-Bard: Dexterity reliant, Skills Expertise + Charisma, Mundane Aura mechanic: Inspiration & Fascination, Spell use.
-Monk: Dexterity reliant, Skills Expertise + Wisdom & Constitution, Power Point mechanic: Psychic powers.

Priests
-Cleric: Wisdom reliant, Spell Use, Channel Power: Divinity.
-Druid: Wisdom reliant, Spell Use + Constitution, Channel Power: Nature.
-Shaman: Wisdom reliant, Spell use + Charisma, Mundane Aura mechanic: Fascination, Channel Power: Spirit.
-Thaumaturgist: Wisdom reliant, Spell use + Intelligence, Channel Power: Divinity.
-Paladin: see Warriors.
-Monk: see Rogues.

Additionals
-Psychic: Intelligence, Wisdom & Charisma reliant, Power Point mechanic: Psychic powers.

That's 19 classes, without even trying too hard...ticks me off cuz I feel like there's some obvious #20 combo that I'm forgetting.

And the individual "mechanics" list isn't too overwhelming...
The 3 "Basics", if you like:
1) Combat Expertise: Strength dependent or leaning classes. Self-explanatory.
2) Skills Expertise: Dexterity dependent or leaning classes. Essentially the game presents a Thief's skill set, a Ranger's skill set, an
Assassin's skill set with "Choose-Yer-Own" guidelines for expanding/mix-n-matching skills for additional sub-classes as needed: i.e. if you want "Swashbuckler" as a class, "Acrobat" as a class, "Bounty Hunter" as a class, etc. etc.
3) Spell Use: Arcane, Divine, Natural : mental ability (Int. or Wis.) dependent or leaning classes.

...and the 3 "Add-on's/Secondaries":
4) Channel Power: Divine, Nature, Spirit : mental ability (Int. or Wis.) dependent or leaning classes.
5) Mundane Aura: Inspiration, Leadership, Fascination : Charisma dependent or leaning classes.
6) Power Points: Psychic, Rage, Eldritch : Constitution dependent or leaning classes.

 

[MoonSong]

[MENTION=92511]steeldragons[/MENTION] you forgot these:

Wizards
-Sorcerer: Charisma reliant, Spell use mechanic+Dex or Str, Channel mechanic: Spell source.[various mechanics for diferent spell origins provide a myriad of types of Sorcerers]

[snip...]
3) Spell Use: Arcane, Divine, Natural : mental ability (Int., Cha or Wis.) dependent or leaning classes.

[snip...]

4) Channel Power: Divine, Nature, Source, Spirit... : mental ability (Int., Cha or Wis.) dependent or leaning classes.

 

[steeldragons]

Oh...yeah. *shrug* I don't really think of sorcerers as distinct enough to warrant their own class...they're just MUs, casting spells from the arcane spell list...they'd just fall under that "different spell mechanic"...but they gots magic in they bones! woooOOOoooo! Or, alternately, if you fluffed them differently as magic-working cuz of their special snowflake bloodline, they would get thrown in as a mage but instead of "spell use" you'd channel or use power points instead to "make their magic" happen.

But then, I despise Artificers [they belong in an Eberron setting book and no place else] and don't, personally, believe Warlords or Assassins warrant their own classes...so I suppose fair's fair...and would give us the round 20 classes I was expecting.

So, following the presented list/mechanics, I suppose I would make them...hmmm...

-Sorcerer: Intelligence reliant, Spell Use + Charisma & Constitution, Mundane Aura: Fascination, Channel: Arcane

I see no reason to separate out "Spell Source"...whether you have faerie, dragon, demon, elemental, etc. etc. etc. blood is really purely individual character background/fluff. If you want to be a "pyromantic sorcerer cuz your great grand-pappy on your father's side was a fire elemental and then your mother was a dragon"...just pick fire-based spells. If you want to be a faerie lord's descendant, pick illusions and enchantments...whatever suits your image of your "sorcerer".

The mechanic of using spells has no need to change from sorcerer to sorcerer, just as is doesn't change from mages to druids to bards. Now, if you opt for sorcerers to not have 'spell use" just all channeling or something like that...but even then, the Channeling mechanic would work the same. When the sorcerer channels on Pyrotechnics or Charm Person, it functions the same as a Druid Shapeshifting [which would be a Channel: Nature option] or a Cleric Turning Undead [a Channel: Divine option].

Just like the mechanics that make up a Warlock don't need to change whether you have a pact with this or that. They'd spend their Power Points on a list of Eldritch powers, like the Monk class would spend their power points for various Psychic powers and a Barbarian could use their "Power points" to evoke various Rage-based abilities...but the Power Point mechanic doesn't change. Whether their eldritch powers are a result of a deal with Oberron, Asmodeus or some unnamed thing in/beyond "the Void" is individual character fluff.

But you're right, there's our 20. Add Sorcerer in there.