D&D 5E Ultimate Magic Playtesting to Start Next Week

[Skeld]

Here's to no more (first-party) base class bloat! Fifteen base classes (plus five NPC classes) is enough!

Errr ... Won't Magus be the 18th PC base class?

-Skeld

 

[Philosopher]

I seem to recall from Gen Con that the Paizo guys said that the Magus in this book would be the last base class they publish.

Here's to no more (first-party) base class bloat! Fifteen base classes (plus five NPC classes) is enough!

...

Now to go buy some more Super Genius Games base classes.

While I love the new character options that new classes bring, I'm not really upset by this. As long as they provide more of those fabulous archetypes, I'm happy. Probably better that way, in any case.

 

[Alzrius]

Errr ... Won't Magus be the 18th PC base class?

-Skeld

Whoops! I still had it in my head to count only spellcasting base classes (the bard, cleric, druid, paladin, ranger, sorcerer, and wizard core classes, the adept NPC class, and the alchemist, inquisitor, oracle, summoner, and witch in the APG; those thirteen, plus the APG's anti-paladin - which I keep thinking of as a separate class instead of a variant - and now the magus).

So yeah, eighteen (plus five) is enough!

 

[Hunter In Darkness]

Something just occurred to me. I wonder if the magus will use regular magic or the new words of power system. Ah well, we'll find out soon enough.

No it will be vancian, it will also be allowed in PFS. The words of power system will be an alt magic system that will totally replace vanican casting.

While the words of power may be playtested I do not think you will ever see it in PFS or an AP or the like. All casters will use the same system from what we have been told, even "psionics" when it comes out {a few years yet} will be vancian casters.

 

[Cor_Malek]

Damn, now I'll have a lot of choices on how to build a witcher-ish character... Alchemist made me a happy puppy, Magus even more so.

BTW - there's new House on 20th, UM playtest starts sometime after 20th, there's something Starcraft-related on 20th that I can't remember... I mean is 20th a good day to bail on friends and shut in your room or what? Though I have a feeling that around 4 PM, work will be a bit insufferable

 

[fireinthedust]

I seem to recall from Gen Con that the Paizo guys said that the Magus in this book would be the last base class they publish.

Ugh, I hope not! Why limit themselves creatively? Granted, bloat is bad; but if they've got good ideas, and can do something fantastic, they should. This is Paizo. Yes, they might not want the bloat, but... well, hopefully this is an excuse to only make base classes that are fantastic.
I wonder if variations like the Antipaladin count? Or the variant options in the later issues of Dragon?


I hope the Magus has lots to offer E6 players like myself. More than just using the first six levels of Eldritch Knight as if they were base class levels (straightforward, but terribly boring structurally: only BAB and spells, rather than a collection of interesting build options).
That's the issue with the class: what does it do?

I also hope the Universal school Wizard gets a better power than "you throw a knife or other object". They need to fix that ability, or provide another option.

 

[Shisumo]

Ugh, I hope not! Why limit themselves creatively? Granted, bloat is bad; but if they've got good ideas, and can do something fantastic, they should. This is Paizo. Yes, they might not want the bloat, but... well, hopefully this is an excuse to only make base classes that are fantastic.

James Jacobs mentioned not too long ago on the Paizo boards that the reaction to the APG has made them reconsider their no-more-base-classes stance. They weren't changing their minds necessarily, but it was back on the table again.

Honestly, I'm just fine with additional archetypes rather than new classes, but if the classes are genuinely distinct, I've got no complaints with them showing up either.

 

[joela]

James Jacobs mentioned not too long ago on the Paizo boards that the reaction to the APG has made them reconsider their no-more-base-classes stance.

Oh? Link!

 

[IronWolf]

Honestly, I'm just fine with additional archetypes rather than new classes, but if the classes are genuinely distinct, I've got no complaints with them showing up either.

This echoes my thoughts as well. If the classes are distinct then okay, but the archetypes allow so much variation and flexibility with a base set of classes that I think I prefer that approach.

 

[joebobodo]

I don't know that these are the posts IronWolf is talking about, but James commented on new base classes and the like in a thread about upcoming Adventure Paths, specifically the Jade Regent AP and how players will be able to interact with the new Asian-inspired setting. This is from just a few days ago.

Here's the link: http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboard...venturePath/generalDiscussion/futureSandboxAP


Here's the highlights:

We're still actually figuring out how things like samurai and ninjas will work, to be honest. At this point, I'm pretty sure they'll be handled in a way similar to how we handled the antipaladin—as a subclass, which is basically nothing more than an archetype for which we give the full level progression with all the class ability swap-outs plugged in for you. We might not have room, though, in which case we'll just do normal archetypes. I'm relatively sure we WON'T make these guys their own stand-alone base classes. Until we start going into really weirdo territory, we've got enough base classes for now once we have Ultimate Magic's magus in play.

And in response to someone asking what he meant by "weirdo territory."

Psionics, Epic Rules, Steampunk, whatever takes the game drastically into something that would basically require new classes.