Archived from groups: rec.games.frp.dnd,rec.games.frp.misc,rec.games.frp.advocacy (More info?)
One thing I always contemplate about the D&D system as it stands today is
classes. Why? Because one of my players is such a metagamer, that as
soon as he sees a person do something he instantly tries to pidgeon hole
that person into a D&D class, e.g., he goes to the temple of the Heironious
and outside are two platemail clad knights. As he tries to get in, one of
them talks to him and asks some questions whilst the other "peers intently
at him in a discerning manner". Net result, my player instantly decides
these are paladins (doing detect evil) and starts asking if they can heal
him please? How annoying! (especially as he was right of course!). The
paladin sort of looked at him as if to say "how do you know we can do that"
and he started going on about "I've heard of these mystical knights who can
sense evil - they can also heal and ...." (and might as well have listed a
shopping list of things paladins can do!).
Okay, rant over.
The point is that 3rd edition D&D has gone a long way to improve this with
arcane spell failure and still spell feats and armour check penalties and
armour proficiency feats. Its now perfectly possible to have a platemail
wearing wizard/rogue who wields a two handed sword. Brilliant stuff! But
its still not quite there because all paladins can turn undead and lay on
hands and detect evil. I'd like to be able to play in a game system where
having one of these abilities doesn't instantly get you recognised (at least
by the players) as a paladin (or whatever) and shoved into that little
pidgeon hole.
To that end, I'm wondering about designing a classless D&D system for a new
campaign.
It would basically be based on D&D as it is now. Everyone still has levels,
still has all the same stats and BAB and saves and skills and feats and class
abilities, but class abilities would be in a big pool and available to all
characters/people. So when you level up you gain a certain amount of points
to spend buying BAB increases and 1d10 HD or 1d4 HD, and N number of skill
points and N feats, and +1 reflex save and so on. You could buy +1 level
of wizard spell casting (so you'd still have caster levels as now). Obviously
buying +1 level of wizard spell casting would be expensive compared to +1
level of lay on hands for example. I know working out comparitive costs
of these abilities would be tough to balance, but it could be done.
And you'd end up with a system whereby a character could wield a long sword,
wear platemail, cast wizard spells and lay on hands, plus wildshape into an
animal form - and no one would have any idea what someone could do, just
because they used a special ability.
Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions?
One thing I always contemplate about the D&D system as it stands today is
classes. Why? Because one of my players is such a metagamer, that as
soon as he sees a person do something he instantly tries to pidgeon hole
that person into a D&D class, e.g., he goes to the temple of the Heironious
and outside are two platemail clad knights. As he tries to get in, one of
them talks to him and asks some questions whilst the other "peers intently
at him in a discerning manner". Net result, my player instantly decides
these are paladins (doing detect evil) and starts asking if they can heal
him please? How annoying! (especially as he was right of course!). The
paladin sort of looked at him as if to say "how do you know we can do that"
and he started going on about "I've heard of these mystical knights who can
sense evil - they can also heal and ...." (and might as well have listed a
shopping list of things paladins can do!).
Okay, rant over.
The point is that 3rd edition D&D has gone a long way to improve this with
arcane spell failure and still spell feats and armour check penalties and
armour proficiency feats. Its now perfectly possible to have a platemail
wearing wizard/rogue who wields a two handed sword. Brilliant stuff! But
its still not quite there because all paladins can turn undead and lay on
hands and detect evil. I'd like to be able to play in a game system where
having one of these abilities doesn't instantly get you recognised (at least
by the players) as a paladin (or whatever) and shoved into that little
pidgeon hole.
To that end, I'm wondering about designing a classless D&D system for a new
campaign.
It would basically be based on D&D as it is now. Everyone still has levels,
still has all the same stats and BAB and saves and skills and feats and class
abilities, but class abilities would be in a big pool and available to all
characters/people. So when you level up you gain a certain amount of points
to spend buying BAB increases and 1d10 HD or 1d4 HD, and N number of skill
points and N feats, and +1 reflex save and so on. You could buy +1 level
of wizard spell casting (so you'd still have caster levels as now). Obviously
buying +1 level of wizard spell casting would be expensive compared to +1
level of lay on hands for example. I know working out comparitive costs
of these abilities would be tough to balance, but it could be done.
And you'd end up with a system whereby a character could wield a long sword,
wear platemail, cast wizard spells and lay on hands, plus wildshape into an
animal form - and no one would have any idea what someone could do, just
because they used a special ability.
Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions?
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