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Message: <blockquote data-quote="koga305" data-source="post: 6282329" data-attributes="member: 6747640">My roommate and I are part of a gaming club in college (I will be president and he will be secretary next year). We've recently pioneered a series of introductory RPG events (basically several one-shots geared for new players), titled "Dungeoneering 101" and "Dungeoneering 102," which have been pretty successful. Since the end of the year is coming up, we thought we'd do something special for "Dungeoneering 201." We're running the multi-table D&DN adventure Vault of the Dracolich!Due to some scheduling quirks, we've got a lot of time to prepare, and since the event will take place during a time when students have lots of free time, we're expecting a large turnout - up to 30 people, split into 5 tables. We decided that simply cooking up 5 or 6 generic pregens wouldn't do, and instead opted to produce 30 unique characters, 10 of each class. It's been a big undertaking, but we are making progress, using a spreadsheet and "pregen sheet" template to facilitate mass-production.To guide our character building choices, we decided to come up with a "theme" for each character, represented by a name like The Berserker or The War Wizard. Here are our themes:[sblock][TABLE="class: grid, width: 650"][TR][TD]Theme[/TD][TD]Class(es)[/TD][TD]Race[/TD][TD]Background[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Berserker[/TD][TD]Barbarian[/TD][TD]Human[/TD][TD]Commoner (Fisher)[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Bear Warrior[/TD][TD]Barbarian[/TD][TD]Half-Orc[/TD][TD]Artisan (Blacksmith)[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Tribal Hunter[/TD][TD]Barbarian[/TD][TD]Halfling (Stout)[/TD][TD]Guide[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Jester[/TD][TD]Bard[/TD][TD]Rock Gnome[/TD][TD]Jester[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Skald[/TD][TD]Bard[/TD][TD]Hill Dwarf[/TD][TD]Minstrel[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Jack-of-All-Trades[/TD][TD]Bard/Rogue (3/1)[/TD][TD]Tiefling[/TD][TD]Guild Thief[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Healer[/TD][TD]Cleric[/TD][TD]Human[/TD][TD]Priest[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Oracle[/TD][TD]Cleric[/TD][TD]High Elf[/TD][TD]Sage[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Warpriest[/TD][TD]Cleric[/TD][TD]Dragonborn[/TD][TD]Soldier[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Shapeshifter[/TD][TD]Druid[/TD][TD]Half-Orc[/TD][TD]Commoner (Serf)[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Mountain Savant[/TD][TD]Druid[/TD][TD]Mountain Dwarf[/TD][TD]Guide[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Spirit Shaman[/TD][TD]Druid[/TD][TD]Half-Elf[/TD][TD]Priest[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Gladiator[/TD][TD]Fighter[/TD][TD]Mountain Dwarf[/TD][TD]Commoner (Slave)[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Duelist[/TD][TD]Fighter[/TD][TD]High Elf[/TD][TD]Noble[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Career Soldier[/TD][TD]Fighter[/TD][TD]Human[/TD][TD]Soldier[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Enchanter[/TD][TD]Mage[/TD][TD]Drow[/TD][TD]Spy[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Illusionist[/TD][TD]Mage[/TD][TD]Forest Gnome[/TD][TD]Charlatan[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The War Wizard[/TD][TD]Mage/Fighter (3/1)[/TD][TD]Dragonborn[/TD][TD]Soldier[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Brawler[/TD][TD]Monk[/TD][TD]Half-Orc[/TD][TD]Thug[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Wind Acolyte[/TD][TD]Monk/Cleric (3/1)[/TD][TD]Wood Elf[/TD][TD]Priest[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Fist of the Waves[/TD][TD]Monk[/TD][TD]Lightfoot Halfling[/TD][TD]Commoner (Sailor)[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Knight-Errant[/TD][TD]Paladin[/TD][TD]Half-Elf[/TD][TD]Noble[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Justicar[/TD][TD]Paladin[/TD][TD]Human[/TD][TD]Bounty Hunter[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Favored Soul[/TD][TD]Paladin/Rogue (3/1)[/TD][TD]Tiefling[/TD][TD]Guild Thief[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Giant Killer[/TD][TD]Ranger[/TD][TD]Hill Dwarf[/TD][TD]Commoner (Shepherd)[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Sylvan Guardian[/TD][TD]Ranger[/TD][TD]Wood Elf[/TD][TD]Soldier[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Wilderness Guide[/TD][TD]Ranger[/TD][TD]Stout Halfling[/TD][TD]Guide[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Treasure Hunter[/TD][TD]Rogue[/TD][TD]Lightfoot Halfling[/TD][TD]Sage[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Assassin[/TD][TD]Rogue[/TD][TD]Drow[/TD][TD]Bounty Hunter[/TD][/TR][TR][TD]The Spellthief[/TD][TD]Rogue/Mage (3/1)[/TD][TD]Half-Elf[/TD][TD]Artisan (Silversmith)[/TD][/TR][/TABLE][/sblock]So what have I learned so far? Well, first of all, this definitely shows that there is a lot of conceptual space within the existing character-building framework. Hopefully we'll see even more of that with the release of the PHB, but as it is the character-building options are pretty diverse.Assigning ability scores with the standard array worked pretty well, but the proof will be in the pudding. Some of the concepts (the Barbarians, Jack-of-all-Trades, the Brawler) have some MAD going on, so it'll be interesting to see how effective they are with only +2 in some of their vital stats.When using backgrounds, in order to get a variety of skills it's often wise to take something outside of your class's archetype. The Guide Ranger and Priest Cleric had substantially less diverse skill selections than, say, the Sage Rogue and the Noble fighter. In fact, the Guide Ranger was unable to legally choose his class skills, having been already trained in most of them.In addition, almost no classes or backgrounds can be trained in Perception - only the Bounty Hunter, Bard, and Ranger receive this vital skill. Personally, I'd throw a bone to the martial classes - reflexes in a fight should translate well to out-of-combat alertness.Assigning feats revealed that although the majority of options are good, there are a few traps. The Stealthy feat sounds like a good pick for a stealth-focused character, but in fact the benefits it offers (training in Stealth, low-light vision, hiding in lightly obscured areas) aren't worth it for most characters - a Wood Elf Rogue already trained in Stealth will gain no benefit from this feat!Likewise, the Athlete feat seems like a good way to give your 17-Strength fighter some appropriate (i.e. "Athletic" skills), but there are only 4 Str/Dex skills available. If you're already trained in Athletics or Acrobatics, you'll likely end up taking Sleight of Hand and Stealth - not the most "athletic" skills.The Loremaster feat, on the other hand, is fantastic for any character that can use the Intelligence buff. Spread that proficiency bonus around!Choosing armor and weapons revealed that sometimes, the thematic choice is not the best choice. Bucklers don't make any sense - swapping/sheathing weapons is a free action, so they're not good for spellcasting or archery, and no characters are proficient in bucklers but not regular shields. For these characters, I decided to grant the Bard and Rogue buckler proficiency.This segues nicely into the next issue. For characters that can't use shields or powerful two-handed weapons, dual wielding is nearly always better than using a single weapon! For example, the wizard is certainly better off with dual daggers +4/+4 (1d4+2/1d4) than a quarterstaff +4 (1d8+2), and a rogue with one shortsword has no reason not to use another. This doesn't always fit character concepts.Although it's probably fine that some weapons are worse than others (a Greatclub - i.e. a stick - will naturally deal less damage than a huge warhammer), I'm saddened that the spear seems pretty useless as a one-handed weapon; I want my spear-and-shield Fighter! The Trident is also pretty bad for a martial weapon, and its thrown property doesn't make up for it since switching to an (identical) javelin is a free action. Finally, Monks are completely ineffective, which makes the quarterstaff-wielding Monk impossible (Aang feels sad!). Personally, I'd integrate it into their Flurry of Blows - maybe allow them to "dual wield" their unarmed strike with a weapon, and spend ki to tack on additional hits with it.Overall, though, I've really enjoyed the process. Aside from the above issues, character creation has gone seamlessly so far, and turning concepts into fleshed-out stat blocks is entertaining and rewarding. I'll keep posting as we get to different parts of the process (spells will be fun!), and I look forward to hearing any comments!</blockquote>

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