The Worst Prestige Class Awards

[FANGO]

I'd have to put in a vote for wayfarer guide...of course, I suppose it could be an okay NPC, but really quite a strange/useless prc. And on another note, I really was disappointed with the prcs in song and silence...not very good, and also there aren't very many of them. Pretty icky. Blighter also goes up there as one of the odd prcs...having to destroy tons of forests every day in order to spellcast isn't too fun.

And as for the defender...those things are buff! Note that the damage reduction (in the DMG, I dunno about any errata or anything) isn't real damage reduction, and actually does reduce ALL damage by 6 (or 3...) points, regardless of what source it comes from or how magical it is. Damn.

 

[Moon_Goddess]

LEAST USEFUL: The Candle Caster (T&B). Yes, he can make magic candles, but is anyone ever going to take this prestige class? You can engineer a scenario especially to put this in, but it's never going to be the first choice for...well...anything.

Candle Caster is the only PrC I've seen taken in game. The player had already desided long before T&B came out that her Gnomish Wizard ran a candle making shop in off time and candle caster was just perfect. And that freinds is what PrCs are supposed to be, flavor, not "Kewl power of the week"

 

[Derulbaskul]

I admit that I am profoundly disappointed with the execution of the prestige class concept in the overwhelming majority of products.

IMO, in most cases, a prestige class seems to be a waste of space (at best): the designers would have better off specifying a feat chain for an existing class or multiclass combination. The cavalier is a good example, as is the foe hunter: the former is simply a mounted combat-focussed fighter, maybe with a few Aristocrat levels thrown in, the latter is a ranger/rogue multiclass with a few specific feats.

I like the majority of the FR prestige classes because they actually seem to fit into the campaign setting for which they were written.

STRICTLY IMO!!!

Anyway, my votes for the worst WotC prestige classes from the class books are:

- DotF: all PrCs are seemingly beyond redemption.
- MotW: except for the silly names (Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle), most of these actually have some utility. Then again, let's toss out Watch Detective as a bit of a shocker and I'm sure that I could find a few more.
- S&F: all except duelist (then again, this book should never have been printed).
- S&S: all except Fang of Lolth which, while of limited utility, is at least an example of something that can't be achieved using the a combination of multiclassing and feat chains.
- T&B: wow, this book actually has some value! Then again, Dragon Disciple (if only it were workable...), Elemental Savant (vain attempt at an elementalist), Fatespinner, Pale Master, True Necromancer and the, "Why wasn't this simply a feat?", Wayfarer Guide.

Cheers
NPP

 

[hong]

- MotW: except for the silly names (Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle),

Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.

 

[Geoff Watson]

I'm sure there was one specialising in hunting mind flayers as well, in one of the Dragon issues.

That's the Slayer, from the Psionics Handbook.

In Dragon, there has also been the
Fiend Slayer(fiends),
Arcanopath Monk(spellcasters),
Psi-Hunter(psionic creatures),
Giant Killer(giants).

There are plenty of 'I hate X' prestige classes.

Geoff.

 

[hong]

(mind flayer hunter PrC)
That's the Slayer, from the Psionics Handbook.

A great opportunity was lost in not calling it the mind slayer, IMO.

 

[Archer]

Is this limited to just WoTC classes because if you think those were bad, wait till you hear these from Librum Equis:

Tainted Warlock
Lose 7 caster level progression and gain one permanent negative level to add +2d8 to single target spells on failed save (unless it is disintegrate or slay living as specifically mentioned in the text as having damage added on either a successful or failed save, lets see that's DEATH+2d8 on a failed save.) I'm serious, that's what the whole 10 levels does. D4 hp and wizard's BAB if you were wondering. Lets compare 10 levels of this class to 10 levels of commoner. The commoner has better HP, BAB, fort, ref, more skills and an additional choice of feat. The warlock has better caster progression, better will save, 17 bonus spells (3 6th, 8 5th, 6 4th) and +2d8 damage (enhanced lace from BoEM) to single target spells and the unholy lace ability from BoEM. Who comes out on top? Its practically a tie.

Two Fisted Sorcerer of T'arg
Lose 4 caster levels for 3 rounds of haste (only for casting 2 spells in a round however) per day. Hmmm, why don't I just learn haste as a 3rd level spell and skip this whole class. Surprisingly enough, that's the only class ability. but wait you also have to take 3 weak feats (amb, imp unarmed strike, still spell) and 12 skill ranks to take this class.

I don't see how any prestige class could top these two. I think there is one more worth mentioning through.

Zombie Master (5 levels)
Command twice as many undead. This is a whole prestige class? Pale Master, Master of Shrouds and True Necromancer are 10x the PrC that this is so before you complain about those you should know how bad it can get. BTW, this is a feat in some other book, Undead, I think.

 

[Derulbaskul]

Is this limited to just WoTC classes because if you think those were bad, wait till you hear these from Librum Equis:

Yep, crunchy bits have gone too far.

The OGL (and the whole d20 movement) is great, but maybe a company should a learner's permit before they're allowed to drive. Then again, that's the function of the market....

quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by Derulbaskul
- MotW: except for the silly names (Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle),

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.

unquote

Maybe I will start up a Hackmaster campaign with that as the working title....

Cheers
NPP

 

[drnuncheon]

Is this limited to just WoTC classes because if you think those were bad, wait till you hear these from Librum Equis:

Aw, man, did the Ambient guys come and pee in your breakfast cereal again?

Tainted Warlock
Lose 7 caster level progression and gain one permanent negative level to add +2d8 to single target spells on failed save (unless it is disintegrate or slay living as specifically mentioned in the text as having damage added on either a successful or failed save, lets see that's DEATH+2d8 on a failed save.) I'm serious, that's what the whole 10 levels does.

First of all, while you gain only 3 caster levels over the course of the class, you *also* gain 17 'bonus spells', which I note you failed to mention. So you're not raising your maximum spell level much but you are still getting fairly large incresaes to the number of spells you can cast per day. (More, in fact, than a wizard at some levels.) And don't forget the +2 DC to saves if your target is Good.

Two Fisted Sorcerer of T'arg
Lose 4 caster levels for 3 rounds of haste (only for casting 2 spells in a round however) per day. Hmmm, why don't I just learn haste as a 3rd level spell and skip this whole class. Surprisingly enough, that's the only class ability.

I can see you read carefully. 1) They get a medium BAB. 2) They basically get the 'twin spell' metamagic feat for free, 3 times per day, without increasing the level that the spell is at. It's not super-powerful, no, but it's not as bad as you make it out to be.

I don't see how any prestige class could top these two. I think there is one more worth mentioning through.

Zombie Master (5 levels)
Command twice as many undead. This is a whole prestige class? Pale Master, Master of Shrouds and True Necromancer are 10x the PrC that this is so before you complain about those you should know how bad it can get. BTW, this is a feat in some other book, Undead, I think.

Command extra undead, the ability to bolster your undead against turning (at 3x your Zombie Master level), the ability to reanimate slain undead, the ability to make zombies with 50% more hit dice and a +4 strength, ability to spontaneously cast animate dead. Oh, plus good Fort saves and full spellcaster progression. Is there any reason not to take this if you're a necromancer?

Archer, you obviously have a grudge against the guys who wrote LE. Let it go. Lying about what's in the book just makes you look petty.

J

 

[Madfox]

Archer, you obviously have a grudge against the guys who wrote LE. Let it go. Lying about what's in the book just makes you look petty.

To me it seems many posters have some sort of a grudge against all publishers for their Prestige classes I know of many players and DMs who like the prestige classes named in this thread. It is all a mater of taste. Of course, approaching PrC from a roleplaying point of view as opposed of a way to get some neat powers helps in this regard. The only prestige classes I have real trouble with are those that are very unclear on what exactly it gets, the Dragon Disciple being a prime example.