Which 3rd ed classes should have been core?

[Viktyr Gehrig]

I'd replace the Fighter and Monk with the Warblade and Unarmed Swordsage and add the Marshal and the Warlock.

 

[kitcik]

I don't think Warblade can totally sub for Fighter. They're similar, but Warblades go off Int, and it shouldn't really be the cast that the 'standard' beatstick class should need high Int to use all of its class features. All the Int-based stuff on Warblade would need to be moved into an Alternate Class Feature and something more generic put in its place.

That's a good point. Would need to refluff the class a bit so it is more strength/con based. Could leave all the maneuvers and stances, but replace the (other) class features with fighter bonus feats.

Sure, assuming those classes never existed in the first place, then you could get away with making the mechanics of the "fighter" actually be the mechanics of the warblade.

The problem is, the fighter already exists. And the OP's question was about a reprint of the PHB 1. Given the OP's hypothetical situation, I don't think you could make those sort of changes to the PHB without angering a significant portion of the fan base. (See @Jimlock 's poll from last May as an example.)

I am not sure I buy that. Fighter is not iconic because it is in the 3.5 PH; Fighter is iconic because Gygax put it into D&D to fill a specific role. 1E Fighter had no bonus feats, no skill points, etc. Whether the "fighter" class in the PH has maneuvers or not does not seem to bear, IMHO, on its "iconicness" - although I do agree that making it Int-based would have an impact (see above).

4E Fighter essentially has maneuvers and yet, with all the complaints about 4E, I haven't seen any called "4E sucks because they dropped the fighter class."

 

[Greg K]

For myself (and I am not limiting myself to WOTC)

Barbarian
Bard
Cleric (spontaneous divine casting as per Unearthed Arcana)
Druid (spontanteous divine casting as per Unearthed Arcana): or just remove it and allow it to be covered by the Cleric, Shaman, and or Witch as appropriate.
Fighter
Holy Warrior (Green Ronin)
Knight (Hong's free web variant of the OA Shaman)
Monk (OA Shaman)
Psychic (Green Ronin)
Rogue
Ranger
Rogue
Shaman (Green Ronin)
Sorcerer
Witch (Green Ronin)
Wizard
Wizard, specialists

Then, I would add class variants to show how to customize the classes
Barbarian: Hunter (unearthed arcana), Urban Barbarian
Bard: Bardic Sage, Divine Bard, Savage Bard (all 3 variants from Unearthed Arcana), Warrior Bard (give up spells for feats)
Cleric: Cloistered Cleric (Unearthed Arcana)
Druid: Urban Druid (Unearthed Arcana)
Holy Warrior: have a variant that is similar to the Complete Champion non-spellcasting Paladin
Monk (OA Shaman): Arcane Monk, Divine Monk, Nature Monk, Warrior Monk (give up spells in exchange for bonus feats similar to Complete Champion variants of the Paladin and Ranger)
Ranger: Urban Ranger (Unearthed Arcana), Spellless Ranger (Complete Champion)
Rogue: Unearthed Arcana variants: Martial Rogue and Wilderness Rogue
Shaman: Urban Shaman
Sorcerer: Battle Sorcerer (Unearthed Arcana)

 

[kitcik]

That would be a thick PH...

 

[Ahnehnois]

Of the 11 base classes, I didn't have many problems with the selections. If you gave me another crack at usign all published WotC material, I'd cut the paladin and monk and end up with something like the following:

Fighter
Rogue
Wizard
Cleric
Sorcerer
Druid
Ranger
Barbarian
Bard
Warlock

***

I'd also quite happily add in the Green Ronin Psychic, or some other nonmagical classes, but I'd rather save the Asian stuff and put it all together in the Asian book and make it a really good book. I'd like a nonspecific class like knight over paladin, but the execution wasn't there.

 

[Greg K]

I'd also quite happily add in the Green Ronin Psychic, or some other nonmagical classes, but I'd rather save the Asian stuff and put it all together in the Asian book and make it a really good book. I'd like a nonspecific class like knight over paladin, but the execution wasn't there.

Have you seen Hong's Knight?

As for asian, the monk can work. Witch Blood by Will Shetterly shows that the concept of the monk can work by changing the trappings to fit a non-asian setting.

The reason that I like the OA Shaman as the basis for a monk is that it is more priestly. I can make a few minor tweaks, I can use it for the priests of one of the deity's in my campaign or I can use it as a friar. If I take a cue from the bard variants in 3e Unearthed Arcana, I can tweak the spell list to be arcane or more nature oriented.

I can even make it, completely, martial by following the Complete Champion spellless Paladin and Ranger variants that give up spells for bonus feats and, then, making a few other adjustment like upping BAB and HD in exchange for rebuking spirits and the spirit companion.

 

[Visigani]

Mostly what folks are going for here is power. Thats silly.

I would replace the sorcerer with some form of witch/warlock variant. Add the knight.

 

[Viktyr Gehrig]

Mostly what folks are going for here is power. Thats silly.

In the sense that I want all of the core classes in the PHB to be of comparable power level? Yes, I am going for power. Game's called Dungeons & Dragons, not Spellcasters & Sidekicks.

 

[Li Shenron]

I'd remove the Monk and move it to OA.

I'd add a paragraph to the Paladin to introduce UA variants for other alignments.

That's all.

 

[Duke Arioch]

Wouldn't kick any of the ones from PHB, but I would certainly add some (warlock, swashbuckler, duskblade,...) and rework some (paladin spells up to lvl 5 or 6, smite maybe not tied to alignment, make all UA versions core, spells maybe spontaneous; ranger 5 or 6 lvl spells, more specialisations like two handed, sneak attack; cleric 1st domain @ 1st lvl, turn undead @ 4th, second domain @ 6, 3rd @ 10; etc.).