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<blockquote data-quote="FireLance" data-source="post: 3857706" data-attributes="member: 3424">I'd always figured that the multiclass xp penalties were there for flavor rather than balance reasons, and the fact that multiclass characters with even levels were less capable overall than their single-classed counterparts was an unforeseen bug that WotC tried to patch with prestige classes and feats since solving the actual problem would require a complete overhaul of the multiclassing rules.The basic problem with multiclassing spellcasters was that spellcasting ability did not improve with levels in other classes. Multiclassing between primarily combat classes and skill-using classes was not so bad because BAB and skill points stacked. If multiclassing for other characters worked like multiclassing for spellcasters, a fighter 10/barbarian 10 would have a BAB of +10, and a ranger 10/rogue 10 would have a maximum of 13 ranks in Spot.Spellcasting ability advancement can basically be broken down into three main aspects: caster level, number of spell slots, and access to higher level spells. If only one or two of these aspects advanced, possibly more slowly, with levels in other classes, single-classed characters would still have an advantage over their multi-classed counterparts. For example, a fighter 10/wizard 10 might be able to cast cone of cold as a 15th-level spellcaster. However, a wizard 20 would cast it as a 20th-level spellcaster, and would have access to wish, too.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="FireLance, post: 3857706, member: 3424"] I'd always figured that the multiclass xp penalties were there for flavor rather than balance reasons, and the fact that multiclass characters with even levels were less capable overall than their single-classed counterparts was an unforeseen bug that WotC tried to patch with prestige classes and feats since solving the actual problem would require a complete overhaul of the multiclassing rules. The basic problem with multiclassing spellcasters was that spellcasting ability did not improve with levels in other classes. Multiclassing between primarily combat classes and skill-using classes was not so bad because BAB and skill points stacked. If multiclassing for other characters worked like multiclassing for spellcasters, a fighter 10/barbarian 10 would have a BAB of +10, and a ranger 10/rogue 10 would have a maximum of 13 ranks in Spot. Spellcasting ability advancement can basically be broken down into three main aspects: caster level, number of spell slots, and access to higher level spells. If only one or two of these aspects advanced, possibly more slowly, with levels in other classes, single-classed characters would still have an advantage over their multi-classed counterparts. For example, a fighter 10/wizard 10 might be able to cast [I]cone of cold[/I] as a 15th-level spellcaster. However, a wizard 20 would cast it as a 20th-level spellcaster, and would have access to [I]wish[/I], too. [/QUOTE]

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