Prestige Class woes

[PJ-Mason]

OH NOES PJMASON IS NOT TAKING ME SERIOUSLY. I AM WOUNDED TO THE DEATH.

Well, you must have passed on to Undeath or something, because your still posting.

Do we have any clerics around? We need a "Turn Pesky Undead Troll" casting. Or is that so unique we have to make a cleric prestige class to do it?

 

[hong]

Well, you must have passed on to Undeath or something, because your still posting.

Truly, to Post Without Thought is a sign that one has achieved enlightenment.

 

[PJ-Mason]

Truly, to Post Without Thought is a sign that one has achieved enlightenment.

Are you referring to me or you?

 

[hong]

Are you referring to me or you?

When you can answer that question, grasshopper, is when you will know the answer.

 

[PJ-Mason]

When you can answer that question, grasshopper, is when you will know the answer.

I thought i had to snatch a pebble from your hand or something?

It occurs to me that this thread needs a "Turn the Pesky Thread High-Jackers" casting performed.

 

[hong]

I thought i had to snatch a pebble from your hand or something?

Pah! Bloody novices always taking things literally. The answer, of course, is that you have to snatch a pebble from my hand, if you know what I mean, and I think you do.

 

[PJ-Mason]

Pah! Bloody novices always taking things literally. The answer, of course, is that you have to snatch a pebble from my hand, if you know what I mean, and I think you do.

Snatch It? ....maybe. But Menoth help me, if you ask me to rake the leaves of your garden of enlightenment again, i'm out of here!

 

[Psion]

Master of Arms??!! I have that book and its probably the very same book that pushed me over the edge as far as prestige classes are concerned. Each of it's prestige classes looked the same. Feat, feat, feat, feat. Then a list of feat/class abilities that you can choose from each level to use with a specific weapon. That book proves my point! Those Prestige classes are utterly useless. The very writer of the book suggest using all the class specific abilites as optional feats for for other classes. Like Fighter.

Right. You can do that. Which is part of the beauty of the book. If you are a prestige class hatah, you can still use most of the text of the book.

But the author also pains to point out that the feats are not the same potency as the "sequence" feats that a fighter collects. They aren't there to add potency. They are there to add neat moves that might be advantageous in certain situations.

That is what makes the classes therein a superlative crafting tool. You take the MoA prestige classes just to get the moves you picture your character having and then move on. If you did the same thing buying that many feats just using your fighter feats, you would end up with a substandard character.

LOL. Because, Lord knows we've never been able to manage campaign concepts before prestige classes.

Just because you can do it doesn't mean you can't have done it better. Let's not engage in hyperbole. It only weakens your point.

Besides, i am not boycotting game studios. If people want them, buy them. But if people are asking about other people's opinions about prestige classes, i am going to chime in my opinions.

As am I.

Suboptimal sez you, freedom without restriction sez I.

But multiclassing alone has restrictions. Unless classes in a multiclass combination have a particularly good synergy, the capabilities of some multi-class characters (like the fighter/wizard being alluded to here) falls behind that of a single class character too quickly. So to realize the freedom you want, you face the restriction of playing a character who is a limp noodle compared to the rest of the party. Freedom to make the character you want with such a cost attached is not freedom. With spellsword, eldritch knight, bladesinger, and the like, I can make a fighter/wizard type character who can hold their own. THAT is freedom.

As a GM, I further enjoy the freedom of deciding whether I want fighter/mages to be a central archetype in my game by deciding whether to allow these prestige classes in or not.

Prestige classes restrict character concepts and for my money, come come anywhere near close to doing what is credited them to be for.

And this brings up the other point:
Classes have to do more that provide players with whatever they want. They have to provide archetypes that play roles in the game. There's more going on here with just freedom. If freedom to make whatever I want was the only issue, I'd play hero, not D&D.

OR i could just take those class feats in Master of Arms with my fighter feats and NOT take a super-bland, nearly non-existent prestige class and be the master of the weapon anyway. Jusr like the writer of that book suggests.

Yes he does. He realizes that there are people out there who don't like PrCs and caters to them, too. As well as people who just want a maneuver or two, for whom it's not worth taking a prestige class. This gets back to what I was discussing in my last post... different tools for different jobs. Masters of Arms is just sort of a leatherman, which is good for a few different jobs.

 

[jmucchiello]

Hong, PJ? Could you guys continue your flirting* in email? It's not really helping the tread at all.

Thanks.

* I chose the word flirt because if this were some lame romantic comedy, they'd be stepping toward each other with each exchance until one of them kissed the other. Whether this happens in real life or not, I'd prefer it happen in email.

 

[Piratecat]

Knock it off, you two. You both know better, so please don't hijack a thread with your disagreements. I'm pleased you kept it generally friendly, but it really is difficult for others to talk around you.

Thanks!