What kind of a character builder are you?

[JoeGKushner]

Depends on the character.

Most of my characters tend to be single class from 1st-20th.

Some I find a good PrC for and stay in the core class than the PrC.

Others, like my last character in a long running campaign, Kane, was a paladin-rogue-shadowbane inquisitor. His paladin rogue status was needed to get into the shadowbane inquisitor class so it worked out well for me.

Some of the PrCs in Magic of Incarnum look like they'd be awesome for multi-class characters as they have once that advances incarnum user and magic user for evyer level!

 

[devilbat]

I like to Multi-class with two core classes. Fighter/rogue. Always fighter/rogue.

My players on the other hand, usually go with two core class and then a prestige.

 

[Estlor]

I'll admit it, I'm a vicious min/maxer. Usually I come up with a concept I want to play, then I pour over all the sources I have in front of me to come up with something that exploits my strengths and downplays my weaknesses. The last concept I wanted to play was a paladin and I ended up breaking it down like, "Will I ever use spells? No, so dump in my Wisdom, boost my Strength and Charisma, and take the non spellcasting option from Complete Warrior."

I pull a lot of things like, "If I'm going to be a ranger, I'll use two of the same weapon so my feats work on both of them," or, "Why take Power Attack early when I don't have the attack bonus to pump into it?"

 

[Insight]

I would answer "Single Class + 1 Prestige Class" or "Multi Base Class + 1 Prestige Class" or both. Those are the two routes I tend towards. It really depends on the character concept. My last character was a crazy mix of base classes with two prestige classes. Again, I was trying to fulfill a character concept, albeit not a very strong one.

Since I am (or have been) most often a game master, I don't get to play very often. My player characters tend to be off-the-wall, and I seriously doubt I would enjoy playing a single class all the way through to 20th level. I need variety when I step out from behind the screen.

I guess with a strong enough background and personality, and playing in a heavy roleplay group, a single class might work (because then it becomes less about your numbers and more about your character).

 

[Katcracker]

Too many choices

I normally start off thinking here's the one core and one PrC that I really want, and then inevitably I hit about level 10 and think "oh that PrC would be so much cooler and make more RP sense too."
There are many reasons this can happen (and have happened): sometimes due to DM doing nothing with my PrC though I always give my DM plenty of heads up on what I am doing, sometimes the direction I was going makes no sense in game now, and sometimes I just don't like the class after a few levels

And thus I end up with one core class and a multitude of PrC's.

 

[Umbran]

I tend to build organically. I base the character's class choices based upon their hopes, goals, desires, and history as the game goes on. I don't min-max much, and I don't plan in advance. So, I don't think I can say I follow any of the particular plans ou mention above. It's all case-by-case basis for me.

 

[just__al]

I let the character drive my choices. In fact, one of my characters I had no intention of presteiging and then I saw the warpriest and it made total sense for my character. He was a cleric of Heronious with a few fighter levels. He <i>wanted</i> to be a Paladin just like his father was but he wasn't quite that pios (only LN). We was eventually going to turn his back on Heronious and become a cleric of Hextor but he died before the decent into madness/evil could begin. He so would have been a warpriest though.

 

[JimAde]

I do like Umbran (on those rare occasions I get to play rather than GM) but the concepts I come up with have a tendancy to be broad rather than deep. So I almost always multi-class. And at some point in a character's career, it's great to give them a tie to an organization in the campaign, which often involves an appropriate prestige class.

So I voted "Multi-Class (two or more) + Prestige Class" but it's always character-driven rather than number-driven.

 

[Imperialus]

I usually play single classed characters. Occasionally branching out into either a single other core class or rarely (once) a PrC. My group tends to see PrC's as a sort of DM's toybox... don't ask me why, we've never actually discussed it they just rarely seem to get played. Right now for example I'm playing a character who grew up a street kid with dreams of glory before being taken in by a wizard as an apprentice. Thus he has a single level of rogue before switching over to streight wizard... I might go the archmage route eventually but that's a way's off.

 

[el-remmen]

I tend to build organically. I base the character's class choices based upon their hopes, goals, desires, and history as the game goes on. I don't min-max much, and I don't plan in advance. So, I don't think I can say I follow any of the particular plans ou mention above. It's all case-by-case basis for me.

This is what I would have said. . .