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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Edena_of_Neith" data-source="post: 2761131" data-attributes="member: 2020">I said it on another messageboard, and I'll say it here:  I think a revolt is occurring, against WOTC.  Imagine that I went back to 1990, and proposed a Gestalt character to the groups of the time:  My proposed new class has all of the abilities of the mage, plus all of the abilities of the fighter, the hit points of the mage, the best saving throws of each class, and no disadvantages whatsoever to offset the gain.  (Not to mention the Feats of both classes, plus the standard Feats for level, plus gaining points in your stats, plus skills - in this case, the best of both class worlds for skills.)  Everyone in the room would stop talking.  There would be total silence.  There would.  The DM would ask:  what's the punchline of the joke?    And I would say:  no punchline, this is my character.  Furthermore, it's everyone's character.  You can be a bard/barbarian, mage/barbarian, cleric/ranger, etc. etc.  I would have been laughed out of the room.  Literally.  A lot of people would be asking what I was smoking, too.  Not even the most Monty-Haulish DMs I ever played under would have allowed it.  Not even *I* would have allowed it.  And many of you know how much of a Monty-Hall player I am!  -  So along comes D&D 3.5.    Now, I'm still reading the Player's Handbook, but everyone keeps telling me (and complaining to me) about how the power levels are nerfed in 3.5.  Magic is nerfed, spells are nerfed, magic feats are nerfed, etc., etc., etc.  People tell me how inconceivably powerful those old 2nd Edition spells were, compared to the spells of 3.5, and how utterly broken they were.  Such things, they say, would NEVER be allowed in 3.5!!  So what happens?  Along comes Arcana Unearthed, and a new idea is proposed that not even the most Monty-Hallish DM in 2nd Edition would ever have allowed ... and people are going for it.  People like it.  I've been reading.  People want Gestalt.  Apparently, it increases the fun at levels 1 through 5.  I could see how, considering how many more options it allows the players.  So players are saying interesting things.  Over on Nothingland, they are saying things I can't repeat here, but it amounts to:  To heck with Balance, if it interferes with the fun.  To heck with all the rules, Gestalt is fun.  Hey, we're having fun, so does it matter?  Well, obviously the game is about fun.  (If it's not about fun, Houston we have a problem.)  But in this case, a set of rules are being used that would have GOTTEN ME LAUGHED OUT OF THE ROOM back in 1990, had I proposed them back then, and the game was more high powered back then.  It sounds like a revolt.  If it was just tweaking of the rules, to allow higher powered characters, I wouldn't say that.  If someone was running around with 10 Prismatic Swords on him, I still wouldn't say that.  But when a set of rules like Gestalt becomes popular - a set of rules unthinkable even in the highest powered days of 2nd edition - that sounds more like a revolt.  And I'm reading posts from players, and they like the Gestalt rules.  They're using them, they like them, and to heck with the game and WOTC if it upsets the standard system!  It's a revolt!    Just my two cents.  Everyone can shoot me down now ...  Edena_of_Neith</blockquote>

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