Need help with a build

[Nedz]

A campaign where the playes all start as Aristocrats is an option I've been thinking about for a while
One rule I considered is that the PCs would only be allowed to take classes that are "Amateurs" in some way. E.g. Mages and Clerics would be out since they are professionals and so any aristocrat would consider them to be "Trade"
This is a role-playing suggestion rather than a rules based option.
Just some food for thought.

 

[StreamOfTheSky]

A campaign where the playes all start as Aristocrats is an option I've been thinking about for a while
One rule I considered is that the PCs would only be allowed to take classes that are "Amateurs" in some way. E.g. Mages and Clerics would be out since they are professionals and so any aristocrat would consider them to be "Trade"
This is a role-playing suggestion rather than a rules based option.
Just some food for thought.

I've also considered starting people as Aristocrats. Not as a specific campaign thing, more as a part of a way to mechanically represent coming from royalty/wealth/influence. Basically, I've seen a lot of people in my groups who made back stories of coming from the nobility, which can be great for plot. I've also seen people who think writing a few lines like that down entitles them to things in game, unfortunately.

So...AE has this awesome Talent (1st level only feat) called Wealthy. It gives you more money starting out, and a few levels down the line, an inheritance of several thousand gp, too. I think extra loot would be a cool way to balance the Aristocrat class as a PC class, at least for an initial dip to qualify someone as being nobility. I wouldn't even mind giving them LARGE amounts of exra monetary wealth, as long as it came in the form of assets like property, a wait staff of first level NPCs, or the finer things, like priceless paintings, rather than things that could be used to optimize the character for adventuring/combat.

One issue I still have is how screwed over the skills classes become in such a set up. Losing out on your x4 multiplier for skills on a class that likely has few of the ones you plan to train in, not to mention a far smaller number of points, is down-right crippling. For warriors, not being able to take BAB +1 feats at level 1 is about the only sacrifice. Spellcasters are hurt by a lost CL at any level. Only the skill monkeys lose considerably more than the others. The solutions I see so far involve either: a) allowing a person to hold off on applying the x4 until their first non-aristocrat level (this would also help in the case of monster races with racial HD being mostly anemic for a Rogue to play as) or b) use the Pathfinder skill rules.

 

[FEADIN]

Yeah, in my next campaign.... I'll give each PC one free level of npc class to add background story (it will be Age of Worms I hope) for the skill points I don't know yet how I'll rule the x4.
For the OP with a 20 charisma Bard seems a good direction or Bard/Wizard/Ultimate Magus.