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Message: <blockquote data-quote="airwalkrr" data-source="post: 3377614" data-attributes="member: 12460">IME, multiclassing is usually nothing more than a method of powergaming. I know more players who take their next level based on what kind of cool powers they can get than based on what makes the most sense for their character. And talking about spellcasters is a straw man. In the first place, I never said I thought multiclassed spellcasters were necessarily the problem. It is usually characters without spellcasting who are the biggest offenders because they cannot multiclass until they are able to take levels in prestige classes unless they wish to sacrifice a large portion of their power.The bottom line is that I think a class represents a more significant portion of a character's identity than the RAW imply. I do not believe a character should be able to alter his basic identity as easily as 3e rules allow. If a fighter has a religious epiphany and vows to serve Heironeous as a paladin for the rest of his days, that is acceptable. But when the paladin with his newfound powers then takes a level of marshal to get a boost to his initiative score, I begin to wonder if his vows were ever as sacrosanct as he made them out to be. Such behavior is grounds for loss of paladinhood AFAIAC. In the paladin's case, it is simple to deny the player the paladin's abilities until he atones and starts actually acting like a paladin again and not using the class for its power. But with a rogue/spellthief/scout/ninja, my task becomes more complicated because there is no mechanism for enforcing roleplaying in such a character. Therefore I opt for an approach that actually limits multiclassing systematically so that changing your identity actually becomes a very difficult thing to do, especially in the case of demihumans.Prestige classes are not necessary for a concept. I can be a loremaster by putting all my skill points into Knowledge skills and buying Skill Focus (Knowledge) feats. I could be a geomancer by playing a druid. I could be a radiant servant of Pelor by being a cleric of Pelor who spends his resources on tools and skills to overcome undead and heal the sick. The prestige class only comes into play when the player desires a special ability, and such abilities are not necessary to make a concept work. In fact, I think they often complicate the game more than it is worth.</blockquote>

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