Most broken prestige classes?

[Huw]

In the Rainbow Servant prestige class, it explains that sorcerers are likely to take the class to increase their spells known by adding the domain spells.

On page 20, it explains that when sorcerers gain domain access, they must spend spells known slots normally to learn the spells; they can't just automatically add them to the list.

This really nerfs the 10th level ability.

Also, page 20 does not account for warmage/beguiler style casters at all, so it is an open question how these abilities function for them.

--
gnfnrf

I'd rule that the warmage/beguiler/dread necromancer can now learn the spells via their advanced learning class ability. So a warmage could learn flame strike, for instance.

 

[pawsplay]

Radiant Servant of Pelor is a good example of a class that people yell "OMG broken" over that just isn't. You have to sink several ranks in Heal to qualify, and your domains get chosen for you. You also have a feat chosen for you. You do get martial weapon proficiency, some nice SLAs, and a few enhanced heals each day, but you do get a reduced hit die (d6). If I were writing it, I might make it cost a level of spellcasting, but I think that would unduly penalize multiclass characters entering the class. It's strong, I wouldn't necessarily allow it, but I don't see how you could weaken it without it becoming just a core cleric. It certainly will not, under any circumstances, break a campaign. Even clerics looking for a power boost would have to focus on specific strategy to find Radiant Servant broken. You could make the class freely available and you still wouldn't have a ton of them, maybe not even most clerics.

For broken:
Hulking Hurler (overburdened heave lends itself to incredible abuse with great ease; anyone can get dozens of dice of damage, liberal use of options can yield several million - yes, million - d6s)
War Hulk (cute idea, but in addition to having a nonsensical loss of skill ranks, +2 Str per level, every level, is both unbalanced and conceptually strange)
Chosen of Mystara (miracle 2/day with no XP cost at 17th level)
Ur-Priest (9th level spells with full caster level in your late teens; also, conceptually identical to an Evil cleric without a deity)
Frenzied Berseker (great power, with the drawback you will eventually destroy your allies and the campaign, unless you abuse the BoED to remove all the drawbacks)
True Necromancer (its combined caster level is usually curbed by a careful reading of the rules, but there are corner cases that can lead to caster levels in the high 30s before epic level)
Illithid Slayer (makes you immune to a great many psionics in a psionically oriented campaign)

Not broken:
Radiant Servant of Pelor (strong, but not overly strong)
Fochulan Lyricist (gives you everything but a d12 hit die, but the price of getting there is so high it's barely a consolation)
Mystic Theurge and its relatives (in general, high level spell access trumps low level list access)
Archmage (yes, it gives you nice benefits, but instead of getting extra feats, as a wizard, you spend them qualifying for this class)

 

[Piratecat]

I have no problem with the war hulk, myself. I'd definitely allow it.

 

[pawsplay]

I have no problem with the war hulk, myself. I'd definitely allow it.

Without the Hulking Hurler, it's not truly mind-boggling, merely abusive, I'll admit.

 

[Mistwell]

Radiant Servant of Pelor is a good example of a class that people yell "OMG broken" over that just isn't. You have to sink several ranks in Heal to qualify, and your domains get chosen for you. You also have a feat chosen for you. You do get martial weapon proficiency, some nice SLAs, and a few enhanced heals each day, but you do get a reduced hit die (d6). If I were writing it, I might make it cost a level of spellcasting, but I think that would unduly penalize multiclass characters entering the class. It's strong, I wouldn't necessarily allow it, but I don't see how you could weaken it without it becoming just a core cleric. It certainly will not, under any circumstances, break a campaign. Even clerics looking for a power boost would have to focus on specific strategy to find Radiant Servant broken. You could make the class freely available and you still wouldn't have a ton of them, maybe not even most clerics.

I entirely agree with you. In fact, given that a close look at the class shows that you have to choose healing as one of your domains to get full utility out of that prestige class, which is one of the least useful domains in the book for a cleric, I'd say the Radiant Servant is just your plain old typical prestige class that is not overpowered at all.

 

[NilesB]

If you use the table Rainbow Servant is fair, even with Warmages and Beguilers.

Hulking Hurler is broken in practice, but the problem is in the improvised weapon table, not the class.

Radiant Servant of Pelor gives up little to gain little. It becomes problematic if you don't know what a domain spell is.

 

[pawsplay]

For Warmage Radiant Servants, I would just rule that the ability gives them cleric spells on their class list, but that the clause about knowing them all does not apply and they must use expanded knowledge or Extra Spell to gain them as spells known. It's not demanded by the RAW, but I think it's a fair interpretation.

 

[NilesB]

Or you can realize that by the time a Warmage gets access to the cleric spell list Wizards have had that access with limited wish for three levels, and that if you are going to ask a pure caster to fall two spell levels behind to get something it had better be very good.

 

[Talkkno]

Planar Shepard(Faiths of Eberron)
Like a druid, only better.(Wild shaping into outsiders, gaining supernatural and spell likes, full caster, animal compain progression....Planar bubble time trait abuse.)

 

[Darklone]

You forgot "Never take multiclass penalties again and Druids may wear metal armor" at level 1.

I have a player going for that right now, except that he's only taking one level each of Druid and Bard and he's applying the bonuses to Cleric and Warlock progression (Warlocks can Shatter and Dimension Door at will... !). I'm allowing it. It's good, but not broken.

Fochlucan Lyrist has d6 HD. Ok, the class has a strong BAB, 6+int skill points, full spellcasting for two classes, bardic music abilities increase and two strong saves.

Still, you need evasion and level 10 to get into the class. That means the multiclassing doesn't help you at all (since you only take the FL class from hereon) and the metal armor restriction does apply for your first ten levels. Even with the Green whisperer added, you still miss most of your druid special extra abilities and end up with a char that's not stronger than any singleclass druid.

Even the abusive build on the wizards char optimisation board is pretty... lame. Compared to the other classes listed here.