D&D (2024) Should a general Adventurer class be created to represent the Everyman?

[ezo]

You're looking at as a player. You see the luck points.

The world sees Doug as a farmer who became a castle guard who has terrible fencing form and knows a few weak tricks from his allies that somehow kept him from dying hundred times over.

But when he squares up to an ogre, people say "This guy slew a vampire? THIS GUY?"

I think you're ignoring how people would actually see Doug--the luckiest SOB that ever lived. He would be considered special, right?

So, how is is class NOT special. You want to give them luck points, then that is what makes the class special.

A class that is NOT special cannot have anything beyond "more" of the basics IMO. They can get better at what they can do from the beginning, but that is it. Having "luck" would go past that as I see it.

And in the end, I'll ask again, what does the class look like, show me the class table, etc.

 

[Remathilis]

• Doug is a Everyman. He is a castle guard. No elite training. No special tutor. Not trained by a master of the world. The lord just knows Doug. Doug survived a siege with the lord. Doug is just some lucky guy who has a crossbow and a halberd and didn't get shot in the face by an opposing army at the top of a wall.

You are assuming that every class must in fiction have super-special training. That's not a requirement, that's an explanation. There is a reason why background is separate from class and why every fighter isn't required to have the Solider background. Adam could be a ex-Royal Guard (solider) or a craftsman who makes weapons and practices with them three hours every day. (artian-blacksmith). Bobara could be heir to a crime syndicate (criminal) or an orphan who steals bread from the market (wayfarer). Cranberry could be apprentice of a powerful wizard (sage) or a young girl who found an old spellbook in an abandoned witch's hut in the woods and found she mysteriously could read the words in it (hermit).

But if you were Adamant that you wanted Doug to be different...

Doug is a Guard using the NPC statblock (pg 162, CR 1/8) using the Warrior Sidekick class from Tasha's Cauldron of Everything. As a Guard, he starts with 11 hp and proficiency in perception. Warrior will give him weapon and armor proficiency and either a bonus to attack rolls or the ability to provide disadvantage on attacks against nearby allies. At level 2, second wind (he is resilient). At level 3, improved critical. And so on. Doug might have been born for greatness, but right now he's a Guard who is improving in some combat skills and learning not to die.

 

[GrimCo]

And i would argue, Fighter wasn't everyman since 2ed days. If any class from 2ed would be everyman, it would be Thief. Low hd, light armor only, 2 weapon proficiency from very limited list of allowed weapons, couple non weapon proficiency and thief skills with laughable percentages.

 

[Remathilis]

Yes.

They take the Everyman class or the Adventurer class.

I think then you have the two basic answers, assuming you are designing a class that can match the other 14 in terms of output.

• A factotum-like class that is a true jack-of-all-types and the ability to "excel" at one for a limited time. A class that can burn resources to act like a pseudo-fighter but then switch it up and trade combat ability for skill use or spellcasting.
• A luck-based plot-armor character who burns meta-currency to bend the fiction in ways that let him succeed despite being far worse in actual abilities than other classes.

The former IS skilled, but not super-skilled at any one thing and just has a bunch of things they learned along the way. The latter is NOT skilled, but the universe bends in ways to let them succeed regardless. That's the only two ways to do a generalist that is remotely balanced in a class-based system.

 

[Minigiant]

I think you're ignoring how people would actually see Doug--the luckiest SOB that ever lived. He would be considered special, right?

People would see Doug as lucky but they wouldn't see Doug as special because nothing Doug does in reality looks special. Nor does Doug have any special training that would classify him as special. It wouldn't be until or if he is revealed to be special by some kind of prophecy or magic that people see him as special.

It's just like when a celebrity is dating or marrying a regular person. They see him or her as lucky but they don't see them as special.

Level	Class Feature	Destiny Points	Bonus Crit Damage
1	Destiny Points, Defy Death, Lucky Hit	2
2	Adventure Adept, Bonus Crit Damage	2	1d8
3	Subclass	2	1d8
4	Feat	2	1d8
5	Invoke Critical	3	1d10
6	Subclass	3	1d10
7	Adventure Expert, Background Expertise	3	1d10
8	Feat	3	1d10
9	Origin Upgrade	4	1d12
10		4	1d12
11	Exploding Critical	4	1d12

 

[ezo]

People would see Doug as lucky but they wouldn't see Doug as special because nothing Doug does in reality looks special.

So someone being seen as incredibly lucky isn't special? Like someone who wins the lottery? Lucky, but just an "everyman" who got lucky--nothing special about them?

Their "training" consisted of them buying a lottery ticket once... just once... and somehow they won.

Level	Class Feature	Destiny Points	Bonus Crit Damage
1	Destiny Points, Defy Death, Lucky Hit	2
2	Adventure Adept, Bonus Crit Damage	2	1d8
3	Subclass	2	1d8
4	Feat	2	1d8
5	Invoke Critical	3	1d10
6	Subclass	3	1d10
7	Adventure Expert, Background Expertise	3	1d10
8	Feat	3	1d10
9	Origin Upgrade	4	1d12
10		4	1d12
11	Exploding Critical	4	1d12

This class really represents "nothing special" to you??? I mean I can only guess what these class features do, but by the sound of them I would imagine they are something special.

Now, your focus seems to be a lot of the "lack of special training" element. So your idea of "nothing special" is no special training. You've mentioned the instant power aspect of warlocks, while this is the instant power aspect of luck, grit, and/or Fate?

Sorry, but if that is your concept for an "Everyman" class, I just can't get behind that. If it works for you, however, kudos.

 

[Minigiant]

You are assuming that every class must in fiction have super-special training. That's not a requirement, that's an explanation

That's the lore for the book and the class design of 2025 5e.

A fighter isn't just an alternative warrior, it's a better trained on.

 

[Remathilis]

That's the lore for the book and the class design of 2025 5e.

A fighter isn't just an alternative warrior, it's a better trained on.

Then what is the point of backgrounds if your class explains your origin?

 

[Minigiant]

Then what is the point of backgrounds if your class explains your origin?

Other way around.

An Adventurer/Everyman is the progress of their background.

I think then you have the two basic answers, assuming you are designing a class that can match the other 14 in terms of output.

• A factotum-like class that is a true jack-of-all-types and the ability to "excel" at one for a limited time. A class that can burn resources to act like a pseudo-fighter but then switch it up and trade combat ability for skill use or spellcasting.
• A luck-based plot-armor character who burns meta-currency to bend the fiction in ways that let him succeed despite being far worse in actual abilities than other classes.

The former IS skilled, but not super-skilled at any one thing and just has a bunch of things they learned along the way. The latter is NOT skilled, but the universe bends in ways to let them succeed regardless. That's the only two ways to do a generalist that is remotely balanced in a class-based system.

I'd make the Factotum and Lucky Bastard subclasses of the Adventurer class.

 

[Theory of Games]

People would see Doug as lucky but they wouldn't see Doug as special because nothing Doug does in reality looks special. Nor does Doug have any special training that would classify him as special. It wouldn't be until or if he is revealed to be special by some kind of prophecy or magic that people see him as special.

It's just like when a celebrity is dating or marrying a regular person. They see him or her as lucky but they don't see them as special.

Level	Class Feature	Destiny Points	Bonus Crit Damage
1	Destiny Points, Defy Death, Lucky Hit	2
2	Adventure Adept, Bonus Crit Damage	2	1d8
3	Subclass	2	1d8
4	Feat	2	1d8
5	Invoke Critical	3	1d10
6	Subclass	3	1d10
7	Adventure Expert, Background Expertise	3	1d10
8	Feat	3	1d10
9	Origin Upgrade	4	1d12
10	4	1d12
11	Exploding Critical	4	1d12

This looks like a strong starting point. Some questions:

• What do we think about replacing gained Feats with ASI instead? Or, perhaps having a fixed list of Feats to choose from rather than allowing a player to grab anything?
• To those with good experience with bonus dice, how effective is "add 1dX to the roll" really? How often does the bonus die actually turn a failure into a success?