Monte's newest Arcana Unearthed Design Diary

[Merlion]

If you go to the main product thing on it on his site it says 11 new classes.
I suppose not. but none of the classes really scream anything to me...accept maybe magister-magic and warmain-melee damage. remember he is trying to fill the roles but stay away from the DnD sterotypes to a point

 

[Dr. Strangemonkey]

I have to say that all of the classes so far really do seem to scream out their role to me in the way the original Unearthed Arcana classes did, you know.

In the original case something like:

"Hey I'm the barbarian. I'm just like the fighter only with a deep smoky aroma that let's you know that I can burn a village and survive in the wilderness all within the same week."

In this case:

"Hey, I'm the unfettered. I'm just like the barbarian cept with a wild new tangy salsa flavor that let's you know that I'm crazy and ready to throw down any time or anywhere. When I say Crom I'm screaming it!"

I really wanted to see something with a title like Mendicant Brother or Vigilant to get the sneaky types down.

Something like:

"Heya, I'm the Mendicant Brother. I'm just like a bard cept with a sweet consistent taste and just a dash of faithful dedication that let's you know I'm working for society rather than myself. Using my stealthy abilities to solve problems so quietly that noone will be able to remember that they or I ever existed, I'm a firm practitioner of neither hand knowing what the other is doing."

"Hi there, I'm the Vigilant. They call me that 'cause I'm always on the lookout for opportunities to do good... ...for myself and possibly others. I'm just like the rogue except for a dash of hard alcohol that let's you know I'm ready for action and using deeply rooted cynicism to cover over a heart that bleeds for redemption and vast profits."

 

[Merlion]

hmm yes I suppose something like that might have worked. I think he was trying to avoid the rogue/thief/criminal or potential criminal feel with all the classes but yea something like that could have worked. I'm admitedly not a big fan of roguey characters generaly...however I do think some of the classes most likely the Akashic and the Unfettered and maybe also the Oathsworn and/or the Totem Warrior should be able to do the job nicely.

 

[Dr. Strangemonkey]

As long as someone can detect traps I suppose I'll be ok.

Obviously I could also write something up for it too. Just upset over how happy I am about the nice iterations and twists he provided for the other roles but that I won't see what he could do for the sneaky type.

sniff.

I agree that he does seem to have been looking to create a more ordered sort of adventuring experience and that the rogue/thief bit certainly doesn't fit in that. Still I would be interested in seeing how it would be possible to get around that part of the character type without avoiding the archetype and adventure dynamic altogether.

 

[Storminator]

Arg! Bah!

PS

 

[John Crichton]

Considering he hasn't touched upon "sneaky" really yet I think there is more to come on that front. He wouldn't ignore a staple like that.

 

[Dr. Strangemonkey]

Arg! Bah!

PS

I don't know what it means when a man from Tewksbury posts something like this.

 

[Dr. Strangemonkey]

Or woman for that matter.

 

[WayneLigon]

"Hey I'm the barbarian. ... with a deep smoky aroma
"Hey, I'm the unfettered... with a wild new tangy salsa flavor
"Heya, I'm the Mendicant Brother.... with a sweet consistent taste and just a dash of faithful dedication
"Hi there, I'm the Vigilant. ...a dash of hard alcohol that..

So THAT'S what they mean by 'flavor text'!

Seriously, the Oathsworn and Akashic sound like something I'd really love to play. And the Champion sounds nice as well. Heck, it all does, but those appeal to me especially.. at least right now.

 

[Monte At Home]

I'm glad you guys are liking the design diaries.

To answer your question about "sneaky types," I'd say that the unfettered is a really good choice. He's got sneak attack and access to a lot of sneaky, infiltration skills. If you wanted a D&D analog, he's sort of a combat-focused rogue. A rogue/duelist kind of guy, sort of. (Really, though, it's difficult to say "AU class X is just like D&D class Y because I strove for the book to NOT be like that.)

The akashic is so open-ended that he would make a great sneaky guy to. On sheer skill use and information gathering, he could "out-thief the D&D rogue" but he is not as good in combat--no sneak attack, for example.

A number of the totem warrior types, like the wolf totem warrior and even the hawk totem warrior, make great sneaky types. There's a sneaky unfettered/hawk totem warrior (multiclass) in my playtest group right now.

One thing that I did was make it easier for more classes (although not every class) to be at least a little sneaky. Because there's often a call for multiple characters to be sneaky. In fact, you could easily design a well-rounded sneaky party if you wanted, which I think is a good thing.

(I did that with other concepts as well. While it's not true of every class, there are more classes with at least some knowledge skills, and more classes with at least a little ability to interact with others, and so on.)