Why Fighter/Mage?

[Drowbane]

Easy. 'Cause you get to do cool magic stuff, then when you run out of magic tricks you're not useless. Plus the rolemodels are cool: Dilvish, Fafhrd, Corwin, and so on.

...Sephiroth...

 

[Tewligan]

Easy. 'Cause you get to do cool magic stuff, then when you run out of magic tricks you're not useless. Plus the rolemodels are cool: Dilvish, Fafhrd, Corwin, and so on.

(Bolding mine)
?!

 

[Mishihari Lord]

(Bolding mine)
?!

Oops. I think it was the Grey Mouser that had some cantrips.

 

[Giltonio_Santos]

Because they're cool...

Cheers,

 

[Sparafucile]

Because a guy/girl slashing someone with their blade and then flinging another opponent across the room with telekinesis is cool.

Just look at Star Wars.

You said it all. I've known many players in my 20+ years of gaming who just want to be Jedi. Every character they make, in some form or another, is a Jedi. They even try to talk like Jedi. If midiclorians actually existed, these players would be sharing needles full of "force" microbes and swinging away with their blast shields down.

Not that there's anything wrong with that, of course.

 

[Evilhalfling]

As Mishihari Lord pointed out it is not a rules thing it is an archtype thing. It goes deeper than jedi. It is the "Hero of one thousand faces" archtype that was used by Lucas to create the jedi.

It is an archtype that D&D struggles with. The Hero with both sword and spell.
a staple of fantasy literature, Anime, Video games, and roleplaying games from day one.
Elric of Melniboné is the oldest I can think of as the greek myths, and aurthrian legends seem to lack the archtype.

The other archtype that gets nearly as much attention is the Swashbuckler - although the Unfettered in Arcana Unearthed actually nailed this one.

 

[Clavis]

As Mishihari Lord pointed out it is not a rules thing it is an archtype thing. It goes deeper than jedi. It is the "Hero of one thousand faces" archtype that was used by Lucas to create the jedi.

It is an archtype that D&D struggles with. The Hero with both sword and spell.
a staple of fantasy literature, Anime, Video games, and roleplaying games from day one.
Elric of Melniboné is the oldest I can think of as the greek myths, and aurthrian legends seem to lack the archtype.

Malagigi from the medieval Legends of Charlemagne is a wizard-knight, and probably the archetypal one for the Western world.

 

[InVinoVeritas]

As Mishihari Lord pointed out it is not a rules thing it is an archtype thing. It goes deeper than jedi. It is the "Hero of one thousand faces" archtype that was used by Lucas to create the jedi.

It is an archtype that D&D struggles with. The Hero with both sword and spell.
a staple of fantasy literature, Anime, Video games, and roleplaying games from day one.
Elric of Melniboné is the oldest I can think of as the greek myths, and aurthrian legends seem to lack the archtype.

The other archtype that gets nearly as much attention is the Swashbuckler - although the Unfettered in Arcana Unearthed actually nailed this one.

Malagigi may be earlier, but is not well-known.

The fighter-mage archetype and its coolness appear to be a recent phenomenon, more of a 20th-century development than something from the past. Perhaps the "hero of a thousand faces" archetype is important here?

Basically, would the desire to play a fighter/mage result from a desire to be able to do anything, regardless of the situation? Is it an example of trying to be a party of one, instead of a piece of a full party? Does it tap into a desire to be independent instead of well-connected?

 

[Clavis]

Malagigi may be earlier, but is not well-known.

Which is a total shame. The Paladin class was almost entirely based on the Legends of Charlemagne (by way of Three Hearts and Three Lions), including the idea of the Paladin's intelligent warhorse, and his Holy Sword.

The fighter-mage archetype and its coolness appear to be a recent phenomenon, more of a 20th-century development than something from the past. Perhaps the "hero of a thousand faces" archetype is important here?

Irish mythology was especially fond of the idea of the multi-talented hero. Lugh, for instance, was both a great warrior and a mighty wizard (as well as a poet, blacksmith, etc).

Basically, would the desire to play a fighter/mage result from a desire to be able to do anything, regardless of the situation? Is it an example of trying to be a party of one, instead of a piece of a full party? Does it tap into a desire to be independent instead of well-connected?

Probably. If that's some people's fantasy, and its a recurring theme in fantasy literature (and movies), then the game should support it.

 

[rawgt3]

Gandalf the awesome!! Is there a feat for dual-wielding staff/sword?