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Message: <blockquote data-quote="el-remmen" data-source="post: 4547495" data-attributes="member: 11">Now, I am not talking about warrior, aristocrat, adept, commoner and expert (even though I have my own house-ruled versions that brings aristocrat up to "normal" character class level, and gives the other classes some additional minor benefits (but also lowers the BAB rate for commoners and experts)), I am talking about other NPC classes of the type they use to print in DRAGON back in the 1E days (mostly, but some in the 2E days as well).These classes, like the duelist, the bounty-hunter, the witch, a plethora of paladins (one for each alignment - like the lawful evil ILLRIGGER! (or something like that)) were never meant to be used as player characters, but were specifically NPC classes, and often they were more powerful than the PC classes at the same levels.  The idea being they were to be foils for the PCs or fill necessary plot roles as needed by the DM - they didn't need to be balanced against any individual PC class.What is the consensus on this method? (HA! As if there was ever a consensus on these boards!)  I got to thinking about it because of <a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/general-rpg-discussion/239789-lets-read-entire-run.html" target="_blank">unreason's review of the entire run of DRAGON</a> (which I have been greatly enjoying) and because since in my 3E games I replaced clerics with 2E-like specialty priests (basically a custom class for each god based on the cleric model and using the turn undead mechanic for a variety of themed powers) I was detailing some priests of evil gods and realized for them to have the range of powers I wanted them to have without being such a high level as to be too difficult for the party I would have to make the class more powerful at the median levels.Anyone use NPC classes of this type?  For a while I was against such a thing, b/c I felt anything that was good for PCs had to be good for NPCs, but I have laxed on that kind of thing in my old age, and I figured since no player is ever going to be allowed to play an evil cleric in a game I run (for example) why not just go ahead and do it?</blockquote>

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