Not all archtypes have to be Classes

[ShadowyFigure]

Though my experience with 3.5 is smaller then most of the D&D community (bout 2 ½ years) I noticed one thing, there are way to many classes, way to many splat books, full of things that could have been released for free or some where else. Now hopefully we wont see another completeathon and they wont release to many new base classes of archtypes that could have been placed elsewhere, instead I hope they do what I hope to do now.

Make powers and class feature options instead.

Below I will try and focus on to big major things I can see happening.

Monks, Ninjas and samurai and pirates.

To do this I will creature powers and class features to try and approach each arch role from different perspectives.

I will do this like so:

Monks: Rogue, Paladin

Ninjas: Rogues and Rangers.

Samurai: Warlord, Fighter, Paladin.

Pirates: Rogues, Fighters, Warlords.

Any way onto the main show I geuss.

1.0 MONKS

1.1 Rogues

In 3.5 Monks were a wild mix of skiller, heavy hitter and save master. I never liked this, I have many views on monks, could they be quick fast and stealthy like Ninjas only with out assassinating people, yes. In total the rogue monk I could visualize would most likely be a monk from the many kung fu films that you find. And this is how I will create the powers, and option I could visualise.

NEW CLASS FEATURE OPTION:

Rogue Tactics Option:

Art of the Monkey: You are known for your acrobatic nature, and incorporate this into a deadly unarmed fighting style. Your Unarmed Strikes deal one die more damage then normal. A Rogue who choses Art of the monkey deals lethal damage with unarmed Strikes and treats them as a viable option for Sneak Attacks.

DESIGN NOTE: The most important thing about strikers is damage, this increases the output of a rogues unarmed strike, Art of the Monkey/ Meh all I could think of a trick unarmed attacker.

Of course its not just class features that make up a class. It is also powers.

The monk of 3.5 had great maneuverability and so I believe that the powers I make for the rogue should Incorporate this. Not only this but the Monk could Stun his foe and Could attack more then once. It has been said all classes have a tiny bit of another role and so the Rogue monk will have such a bit. Taking a tad of controller.

Flurry of Blows Rogue Attack 1
He quickly span around striking with elbows and knees as well as fists.
At-Will ✦Martial, Unarmed Strike
Standard Action Melee
Requirement: Must be unarmored.
Target: see below.
Attack: bm vs. AC
Effect: You may make 2 basic melee attacks, these may target one creature or more.

DESIGN NOTE: This was hard to actually figure out as we have seen little multi attack options other then aoe spells. But thats not why I wanted. So for now it will remain as shown. Two basic melee attacks.

Springing Strike Rogue Attack 1
He struck quickly moving out of the way.
At-Will ✦Martial, Unarmed Strike
Requirement: Must be unarmored.
Effect: You may Shift 1 square both before and after the attack.
Target: One Creature
Attack: Dexterity vs. AC
Hit: 1[W]+ dex Damage.

DESIGN NOTE: Based on Deft Strike. Only instead of moving two squares you shift one square before the attack then shift one after the attack.

Stunning Fist Rogue Attack 1
He moved quickly punching hard, stunning me.
Encounter ✦Martial, Unarmed Strike
Standard Action Melee
Target: One Creature
Attack: Dexterity vs. Fortitude.
Hit: 2[w]+dex damage and target may only take a single minor action next turn.

DESIGN NOTE: As I did not want to weaken this with a save I just made it one turn only of no actions other then a minor one.

Monkeys Dance Rogue Attack 1
He danced around us knocking the wind out of us leaving us unable to chase after him...
Daily ✦Martial, Unarmed Strike
Standard Action Melee
Requirement: Art of the Monkey Rogue Class feature, unarmored.
Target: See below.
Attack: Dexterity vs. AC
Hit: 1[W] + dex Damage unable to take move action on their next turn. Save Prevents.
Secondry Target: See Below.
Attack: Dex vs AC
Hit: 1[W]+ Dex Damage. unable to take move action on their next turn. Save prevents.
Third Target: One Creature
Attack: Dex vs AC
Hit: 1[w]+dex damage. unable to take move action on their next turn. Save prevents.
Special: You may shift before and after each attack though you may target only one creature if you wish.

DESIGN NOTE: Not to sure on its balance however I could just imagine an unarmored guy dancing among a bunch of thugs hitting each one quick and precise while leaving them unable to move.

1.2 Paladins

The divine martial artist warrior is something 3.5 couldn't do for me but is something I could easily think of. In short a Paladin Monk would use something like Buddhist Palm Striking with divine energies flowing through there palms to injure the foes. Of course here I would see Defenses as a more important thing then damage out put and so unlike the rogue he will receive no increased damage.

NEW CLASS FEATURE OPTION:

Channel Divinity:

Channel Divinity: Enlightened Body Paladin Feature
Your unswerving faith in your deity has made you tougher.
Encounter ✦ Divine
Special: You can use a Channel Divinity power once
per encounter, but not two or more of these in the same
encounter.
Second Wind
Target: Self
Effect: Activate your second wind. You receive your wisdom or charisma modifier as a bonus to how much is healed.

DESIGN NOTE: You would take this instead of one of the other Channel Divinity Powers. The idea is through meditation your body has become a temple and so you can last longer in battle. In this sense you can use a healing surge. The action is second wind as dwarf paladin monks will then be able to use it as a minor action

As I have said I envision a Paladin monk using more of a Buddhist palm or Fut Ga style of fighting and this would be shown through his or her powers.

Prayers Palm Paladin Attack 1
he struck me, his palm full of divine energies.
At-Will ✦ Divine, Unarmed Strike
Requirement: Must be unarmored.
Target: One Creature
Attack: Cha or wis vs. Will
Hit: 1[W]+ cha or wis Damage. If you marked the target you gain +cha modifier to you attack roll.

DESIGN NOTE: The idea is, not even armor is a useful here.


Buddhists Touch Attack 1
He pummeled me his palms crackling as divine energy met armor.
At-Will ✦ Divine, Unarmed Strike
Requirement: Unarmoured
Attack: Cha or wis vs. Will
Hit: 1[W]+ cha or wis Damage. Target takes 2 ongoing radiaint damage. (save ends)

DESIGN NOTE: Ongoing damage can be fun, this gives the idea that the attacks damage lingers still injuring the target.

Attack of Faith Paladin Attack 1
Faith was behind his attack and so the divine energies tore me apart.
Encounter ✦Divine, Unarmed Strike
Requirement: Must be unarmored.
Effect: You may Shift 1 square both before and after the attack.
Target: One Creature
Attack: Cha vs. Reflex
Hit: 2[W]+Wis or Cha modifier damage and all adjacent enemies take 2 ongoing radiant damage. (save ends) if target is marked then they take 5 ongoing radiant damage. (save ends)

DESIGN NOTE: Yeah I know, not much of an improvement from Buddhists touch but I dont know adds some control. again im going with lingering energies.

Dawn and Dusk Paladin Attack 1
And so felt the true power of Fut Ga.
Daily ✦Divine, Unarmed Strike
Requirement: Must be unarmored.
Effect: You may teleport 3 squares before and after the attack.
Target: One Creature
Attack: Cha vs. Will
Hit: 3[W]+Wis or Cha modifier radiant damage target is pushed back cha modifier squares.

DESIGN NOTES: I just wanted the Paladin Monk to have an awesome unarmed strike daily power.


more soon. do feel free to comment however.

 

[malcolm_n]

Over time (read: Years) we'll very likely see many class incarnations of what we had in 3.5. The design goal of 4e is to make them unique enough that they can fulfill roles of similar classes without stepping on toes.

I like these ideas as they are easy to implement on the fly until we get actual rules for the classes mentioned. Keep up the great work, I'd like to see your take on other classes/roles using this format.

 

[ShadowyFigure]

Ninjas!

2.0 NINJA

2.1 Rogues

The first time I read through the 3.5 Ninja class, I read it because I always loved these amazing silent killing machines. Then I read it again, hoping I hadn't read it correctly that I had missed the thing that should have made the class awesome for me. In short, I wanted it to be more like the rogue, less based on “mystic force” (I'm looking at you Ki!). More based on the amazing skill of silent killing. And so here is what I have come up with.

NEW CLASS FEATURE OPTION:

Rogue Tactics Option:

Silent But Deadly:[/B] You are a silent but dark killing machine. You are invisible to any target you sneak attack because of your first strike class feature until the end of their first turn.

DESIGN NOTE: Ninjas are meant to be masters of stealth, this builds on the first strike class feature making it a great choice for those who plan on moving in quickly to stab there enemies in the face.

Snake Bite Rogue Attack 1
The man seemed to coil up like a snake before unleashing a deadly stab with his weapon easily passing through my defense..
AT Will * Martial, Melee
Standard Action
Target: One Creature
Attack: Dex vs AC. You receive a +2 Power Bonus to your attack roll.
Hit: 1[W] + Dex damage.

DESIGN NOTE: You telling me that Ninjas arn't just that bit better at stabbing you in the face the others?

Sudden Strike Rogue Attack 1
I turned to greet my replacement on the night shift to find that he just suddenly fell to the floor, dead.
At-Will * Martial, Melee
Standard Action
Target: One Creature
Effect: You may shift your dex modifier squares before and after the attack, as long as you begin and end your turn in cover.
Attack: Dex VS Ac
Hit: 1[W]+Dex Damage

DESIGN NOTE: All ninja want to jump out stab then jump away. Of course you may only do this if you begin the turn in cover and end it in cover.

Ghost Strike Rogue Attack 1
He disappeared into the shadow almost teleporting beside me to strike.
Encounter * Martial, Melee
Requirement: You must be within 2 squares of shadow or darkness to use this power.
Your target must also be within 2 squares of shadow
Effect: You may teleport up to half your movement, as long as you teleport within 2 squares of shadow or darkness and are adjacent to an opponent before or after the attack.
Full round Action
Target: One Creature
Attack: Dex Vs Ac
Hit: 2[W]+Dex Damage, target grants combat advantage.

DESIGN NOTE: Ninjas are masters of stealth, in 3.5 they had the ghost strike. Here I give my Rogue Ninja Ghost Strike. This has two applications, suddenly appear and strike your foe (surprise round anyone?) or strike your foe then disappear. Thought it does come across as supernatural it is more the idea you move quickly and stealthily almost as if you had teleported.

Silencing The Nightingale Rogue Attack 1
I quickly move across the floor, letting know sounds escape its boards as I quickly struck out silencing my target before he could even scream...
Daily * Martial, Melee
Requirement: You must be within 2 squares of shadow or darkness to use this power.
Your target must also be within 2 squares of shadow
Effect: You may teleport up to double your movement, as long as you teleport within 2 squares of shadow or darkness and are adjacent to an opponent before or after the attack.
Full round Action
Target: One Creature
Attack: Dex Vs Ac
Hit: 3[W]+Dex Damage, target grants combat advantage and is unable to take any actions for a turn.

DESIGN NOTE: Again playing on my view of the silent killer. Also inspired by a favorite book series of mine (if you guess you get a free natural 20)


As rangers excel at ranged combat, I have descided that there Ninja esque abbilities are based on the Japanese art of the bow Kyudo. Which was often used by Ninjas and so it is this that I will focus on.

2.2 Ranger

NEW CLASS FEATURE:

Fighting Style Option:

Snake of the Shadow: You favor a stealthier approach in the wild using ranged attacks to weaken your foes so that you can uncoil, striking with a poisonous bite. +2 Damage bonus to ranged attacks made within 6 squares of an opponent.

DESIGN NOTE: Ninjas are skulky stealthy figure, I wanted to show this through the ranger still, while giving them Kyudo. So I gave them the idea of softening a foe from a far though closer then normal to go in for the last strike (the shadow fang strike).

Kyudo: Yugaen Ranger Attack 1
He quickly knocked a bow from his quiver his movements flowing like wind flows through a valley, undistrubed, in harmony with each other.
Encounter * Martial, Weapon
Standard Action Ranged Weapon
Target: One Creature
Attack: dex vs AC
Hit: 2[W]+ dex damage.
Special: You may re-roll the attack roll of this power, but must always take the second roll.

DESIGN NOTE: The art of Kyudo is very precise, as the Ranger Ninja is based on it I thought I'd include something to do with there technique, of course adding a little artistic fluff to it. The ability to re-roll the attack is basically just a proof of there skill.

Shadow Fang Strike Ranger Attack 1
The arrow struck me, spreading a corruptive poison through my body.
Daily * martial, Weapon
Standard Action Melee or Ranged Weapon
Target: One Creature
Attack: Dex vs Fortitude
Hit: 3[W]+Dex Poision Damage. Target take 5 ongoing poison damage. (save ends)

DESIGN NOTE: As they were master assassins Ninja were most probably capable of making deadly poisons out of herb in nature, the idea is you quickly through a poison together using the Ninja Art to make it corrupting and painful. In short this can be very mean.

As rangers already have many ranged powers I did not make any at will powers as you could easily use Careful Attack and Nimble Strike.

Thank you for stating your interest in my stuff Malcom... Even if you are the only one I may be moving this to compilation at some point... Dunno.

This is part 1 of Ninjas, part 2 later today or tomoz. Oh and i'm making a pdf of them all. As i know its quite long.

 

[ShadowyFigure]

part two has been added to the above post.

 

[Cadfan]

In general, I agree with you. But!

1. There are places this doesn't work. Certain classes are constructed around specific combat styles, and are balanced with the assumption that the characters built using that class will fight in particular ways with particular weapons. Sometimes, rather than trying to patch this with feats, you need a new class. A good case in point would be the 3e fighter. If you wanted to make a lightly armored fighter who fought with a rapier in a duelist sort of style (ie, one v one, not stabbing people in the back), the game suggested you do it by means of a fighter with the appropriate feats. The problem was, the Fighter was balanced on the assumption that you would wear heavy armor and fight with the largest weapon you could, with either a two handed weapon or a shield in your off hand. A rapier-duelist with light armor and an empty off hand was a sub-par choice for a Fighter classed character. In fact, in order to obtain the abilities that made a duelist appealing, you needed to spend feats- for example, spending a feat to get Weapon Finesse. But since Finesse wasn't balanced to function properly for Fighters, it meant you were spending a feat for the chance to be extra sub-par. This isn't a good thing. In situations like this, a new class built from the ground up with the balancing assumptions that go into a duelist was most certainly the best route to take.

2. 4e is making each class narrower, but deeper. Fighters, for example, seem to cover two handed weapons, and sword and shield. Nothing more. But within those two choices, there seems to be many more choices and possibilities tha there were in 3e. If you want a new class to have a similar depth, it may need to be a full, new class. Now, some of the abilities might be functionally identical to existing abilities from other classes, or nearly so. But that's not necessarily a problem, particularly for basic abilities like "hit a guy and knock him down" that might be appropriate for many different martial classes.

3. Creating entirely separate classes keeps them distinct. Take a hypothetical 4e Shadowcaster, for example. We could create it by inventing a bunch of powers for the Wizard, and telling people who wanted to play Shadowcasters to just make shadow magic themed wizards. But if we did that, we'd end up with a lot of powers bleeding over between the classes. Instead of shadowcasters fighting with shadowmagic, they might fight with a mixture of shadowmagic and the best spells from the wizard list. Separating classes polices this line more effectively.

With all that in mind, though, I'm a major fan of retheming, and encourage my players to borrow mechanics from existing classes and retheme them to create unique characters. I have seen, over the years a Feral Human (secretly a monk), a shuriken based ninja (secretly a scout), an iajutsu master (secretly a rogue), and several others. These were great, but the fact that they were possible doesn't mean that there couldn't have been classes to cover these ideas more effectively.

 

[megasycophant]

Your Unarmed Strikes deal one die more damage then normal.

Did you really *mean* this? Normal unarmed damage is 1d4, so that would be 2d4? 0.5 point less average damage than a great sword? How about using the next die up (1d6 instead of 1d4)?

 

[SSquirrel]

I think d6 was the intention