What are gestalts?

[reanjr]

Just because it's a powerful campaign option doesn't mean it forces the players to be powergamers.

So you are playing a campaign. A powerful one. The game is set up to be powerful. Powerful game. Power gaming. And it's not power gaming?

 

[RisnDevil]

It really helps out with a small party. Even not neccessarily a small party. Your average four person party can benefit from it as well because sometimes no one wants to play the cleric (or some other healer) or the wizard (or some other arcanist) or the rogue or the fighter.

Also, everyone likes to say power gaming like it is a dirty word, but to the same people who say that I have to ask do you play to levels above 12th? Because around that point, and especially into epic, the WHOLE GAME becomes nothing but powergaming...so who cares if some people want to play at that level a little lower?

 

[Storyteller01]

Wow....thanks folks (I think ...).

Didn't expect this much of a response!

 

[dagger]

Just started a new campaign with only 3 players, and it is going to work out well. Especially with gestalt, because we have all the bases covered.

Wizard (evoker)/Cleric (cloistered variant)
Fighter/Rogue (bonus feat variant)
Druid (non wild shape monk variant)/Barbarian

 

[Palskane]

I think I'd like to hop on the question bandwagon too!

Does gestalt have to be initiated at 1st level? I just had my group attain 2nd level, and was thinking of instituting gestalt. Is that possible?

And I saw somebody mention monks and paladins. How do the rules affect them? I know they have restrictions in a regular game.

Thanks!

 

[Crothian]

I think I'd like to hop on the question bandwagon too!

Does gestalt have to be initiated at 1st level? I just had my group attain 2nd level, and was thinking of instituting gestalt. Is that possible?

And I saw somebody mention monks and paladins. How do the rules affect them? I know they have restrictions in a regular game.

Thanks!

There is no reason you couldn't add gestalt at higher levels. You'd need to choose to start it late, or allow the characters to be built as if it was there since fisrt level. I think the second way is the easiest.

Paladins and Monks have multi classing restricitions, but this is not multi classing. It is getting two classes at once, so you are both classes. Alingment problems still exist so a Barbarian Monk is still not possible.

 

[Palskane]

Ah! I see.

Thanks Crothian! I think I'll follow the suggestion of letting them build them as if I instituted it at 1st level. They just reached second, so it shouldn't be a huge switch.

 

[Crothian]

Ah! I see.

Thanks Crothian! I think I'll follow the suggestion of letting them build them as if I instituted it at 1st level. They just reached second, so it shouldn't be a huge switch.

Good, its an odd option and one I hope to also get to try out.

 

[MoogleEmpMog]

I've used gestalt as a guideline for major villains. It makes for some interesting options because they get MORE "kewl powerz" without getting better at the ones they have (and thus becoming too strong for the PCs).

The triumph of gestalt villainy is when you have a baddie who can duel a single PC and have a decent fight, but who can also threaten the whole party if that's the venue.

 

[Crothian]

Another cool option would be like the old first edtion Ninja was. Everyone is a Ninja plus another class, they just don't reveal they are a ninja. I think that would work really werll and maybe give the Ninja the power it needs.