12 posts tagged “gaming”

It seems like the biggest announcement since D&D 3.5 just broke out: Paizo Publishing ceases publication of Dragon and Dungeon and magazine.

Now both Dragon and Dungeon have been staples in D&D's long history. Both magazines weren't there from the beginning but ever since they popped up, they've been part of the gaming culture.

When D&D 3.0 came out and fell into the hands of Wizards of the Coast, both magazines were supported by the company. Some time later, there was a shift and the people behind the magazine splintered into Paizo Publishing. Now I love Paizo. It's not just that they've made two remarkable publications (in addition to their other products), it's that I've seen two remarkable products that have actually improved. Dragon didn't always have a "Class Acts" section but in retrospect seems intuitive to the nature of the magazine. Dungeon's "Adventure Path" series was equally successful and monumental, especially the likes of the epic Savage Tide and Age of Worms adventures.

What's the implication of the news? Honestly, I'm neutral about it. Not exactly bad news but it does smell of one thing for certain: change.

Paizo has done a stellar job. I think there is (much) life for them after Dragon and Dungeon. In fact, this might be a good thing as they get to explore new options. Their Pathfinder series isn't necessarily a sure thing but again, it's more of a different product rather than stemming from the corpses of the two defunct magazines.

Where Wizards of the Coast is taking the two publications, only time will tell. In the message boards, people aren't too keen on the electronic content format. For me it's a wait and see. The company can make an even bigger success with the two publications. Or they might not. I'm not automatically ruling them out of the picture and claiming this decision as the worst mistake ever... at least not yet. At the very least however, the product is going to be different. And that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Neither Dragon, Dungeon, or Paizo Publishing are dead. They're just changing--evolving. Don't count them out of the picture yet. As with most things, it's a wait-and-see before I make a final decision.

I just got my copy of Dungeonscape and Secrets of Sarlona last week, thanks to Comic Quest and I have more praise for it than complaints. So far Wizards of the Coast seems to be starting the year strong. Complete Scoundrel and the Gargantuan Blue Dragon miniature (how can you not love a gargantuan miniature?) were great products for the most part and I can't wait to get my hands on the upcoming Magic Item Compedium.

Down the line though, it's a wait-and-see for me. Confessions of a Part-time Sorceress and Dungeon Survival Guide are targeted at the casual reader/non-gamer and it seems like a nice strategy on WotC's part (although if it's effective remains to be seen). At least that's two books this year I'm not going to buy (perhaps). I'm eagerly anticipating Complete Champion but then again, I'm having my doubts with regards to the Rules Compedium. Still, there's the usual cash-cows of WotC, from miniatures to dungeon tiles. There's also a plethora of new adventures going to be released this year and another gargantuan miniature so 2007 seems like the year for D&D for me.

Now if only I could find a game I could actually play in...

In the game of D&D, combat is an expected event and one can’t help but get injured (or worse, actually die). Healing becomes such an integral aspect of the game that an entire class, the Cleric, is devoted to it. This leads to strange gaming dynamics, from a player fully embracing the part, to others shunning the duty of the party healer. Nonetheless, healing is a necessary aspect of the game, at least if you want your characters to live, and here are some tips to help spread out healing duties among party members and even enable the Cleric save his spells for more offensive or utilitarian uses.

In General:

Heal Skill + Healer’s Kit: The heal skill won’t bring unconscious party members back in action but at least it’ll prevent their death by stabilizing them. It’s also handy when a party member is poisoned and Fortitude isn’t his best save. During downtime, Heal can also increase a character’s natural healing rate making it a must-have even for those who don’t have Heal as a class skill. Character classes with a natural high Wisdom score (such as Monks) equipped with a healer’s kit can, on the average, make the DC 15 check.

Healing Potions: It’s a common advice yet holds true nonetheless: stock up on healing potions. They’re no substitutes for a good Cleric but when the Cleric goes down and you need someone to get him back up, you can’t go wrong with healing potions.

Healing Salve (Tome and Blood pg. 72): They’re just as expensive as potions of cure light wounds and heals less but anyone can make them as long as they make the Craft (Alchemy) check. Make sure your GM allows it as Tome and Blood is a 3.0 supplement.

Healing Hands (Complete Scoundrel pg. 87): While conceivably anyone can obtain this skill trick, it’s best used by those who have Heal as a class skill to make certain that the character you’re stabilizing actually gets healed. It’s best if the non-main healer member in the group gets it so that when the Cleric goes down, the damage healed might just be enough to make him active in the game again.

Faster Healing (Complete Warrior pg. 98): If you have the feat to burn and a high Fortitude save, Faster Healing lets you recover more during periods of rest. Doesn’t do much during combat but that’s one less cure light wounds spell the party healer needs to cast before you go to sleep.

Barbarians:

Not exactly the most savvy of classes when it comes to healing, the general tips applies to Barbarians. However, he’s not necessarily the best character to stabilize other characters during a fight, especially when he’s raging. Leave the fighting to him and the healing to others.

Bard:

Wand of Cure Light Wounds: You don’t need to have the cure spells on your spells known list to utilize this magic item. Better yet, maximize your ranks in Use Magic Device mid to late game and you can use magic items that befits a true party healer such as a Staff of Life.

Cleric:

Sacred Healing (Complete Divine pg. 84) and/or Sacred Purification (Player’s Handbook II pg. 89): Both feats transform what would otherwise be a sub-optimal resource on the Cleric’s part into a source of healing. High Charisma Clerics get the most out of it but even those with a decent Charisma score can get mileage with it thanks to Charisma-boosting items. And unlike the other alternatives, these feats can be used during combat.

Augment Healing (Complete Divine pg. 79), Sacred Boost (Complete Divine pg. 84), Magic of the Land (Races of the Wild pg. 152) and/or Sacred Healing (Player’s Handbook II pg. 89): These feats augment your healing prowess, enabling you to heal more for less expenditure of spells.

Druid:

Wand of Cure Light Wounds: You can never go wrong with additional wands of cure light wounds, especially when the party has no Cleric. And unlike the Bard, you don’t really need to invest ranks in Use Magic Device to utilize staves that contain healing spells.

Spontaneous Healer (Complete Divine pg. 84): With this feat, you don’t necessarily have to prepare cure spells in order to cast them. You can save your spell slots for something more useful and then swap them out when needed.

Augment Healing (Complete Divine pg. 79) and/or Magic of the Land (Races of the Wild pg. 152): Much like what’s been mentioned in the Cleric section, these feats gives you more bang for you buck, especially when the party is lacking the services of a true Cleric.

Fighter:

Combat Vigor (Player’s Handbook II pg. 88): Not a replacement for true healing but recovering 2 or 4 hit points per round in the thick of combat ain’t bad. Aside from that, the advice for Barbarians holds true for Fighters.

Monk:

Wholeness of Body: It’s too easy to forget that amidst the myriad of abilities as Monk has, he can heal himself. Wholeness of Body isn’t a lot and it won’t aid your party members but it’s some healing the party healer doesn’t need to expend on you.

Paladin:

Lay on Hands: Much like the Monk’s Wholeness of Body ability, Lay on Hands can lighten the healing load on the rest of the party and unlike Wholeness of Body, can be used on other characters.

Wand of Cure Light Wounds: Nothing new can be said that’s not said before. They’re like potions except cheaper.

Sacred Healing (Complete Divine pg. 84) and/or Sacred Purification (Player’s Handbook II pg. 89): If anyone should get these feats, it should be the Paladin more so than the Cleric especially considering a Paladin will most likely have a high Charisma score and thus gain more benefits from these feats (not to mention you won’t be doing lots of actual turning against undead).

Divine Spirit (Dungeonscape): By ditching your mount, this alternate class features significantly increases the healing capabilities of a Paladin. Suddenly Lay on Hands doesn’t seem as limited thanks to Spirit of Healing.

Ranger:

Wand of Cure Light Wounds: ‘nuff said. The general advice, especially Healing Hands, was meant for the Ranger more than any other class. You’re no Aragorn but you’re better off than say the Barbarian or the Fighter. Light armor also means that you can get to unconscious party members quicker than others.

Rogue:

Wand of Cure Light Wounds: All it takes is enough skill ranks in Use Magic Device. You’re not limited to wands but other items as well such as staves. Just be sure to invest ranks and money to such items.

Sorcerer:

Polymorph: It’s not the most efficient way to heal but the spell does let you recover hit points equal to a day’s rest.

Summon Monster: You may not be able to heal but that doesn’t mean you can’t summon a monster that can. Summon Monster VI lets you summon a Bralani which can use cure serious wounds twice a day while Summon Monster VII lets you summon an Avoral that can use Lay on Hands equal to its hit points.

Limited Wish: When you’re truly desperate, it’s nice to have an option.

Arcane Disciple (Complete Divine pg. 79): You need to invest in a good Wisdom score but now you have limited access to Cleric domains, specifically that of the Healing domain assuming you worship a deity of healing. Even better, you can start using wands of cure light wounds.

Draconic Vigor (Dragon Magic pg. 17): It’s bits of healing for every spell you cast but hey, 1 or 2 hit points might mean the difference between life and death. Spells that have a casting time of an immediate action can also acts as a “buffer” for lethal damage, even if it’s the lowly feather fall.

Undying Vigor of the Dragon Lords (Dragon Magic pg. 74): Perhaps not as efficient as cure critical wounds but it does come close and is a nice alternative than resorting to say, Polymorph or Limited Wish for healing.

Wizard:

Polymorph, Summon Monster, Limited Wish, Arcane Disciple: See my advice for Sorcerers. Better yet, you can scribe scrolls of these spells so you don’t have to prepare them ahead of time.

Arcane Toughness (Player’s Handbook II pg. 75): While not necessarily something you want to rely on, Arcane Toughness might save you from death during a tight spot.

Synostodweomer (Spell Compedium pg. 218): Again, not the most efficient of methods of healing but this spell helps you out a bit as you don’t have some of the healing options of Sorcerers.

Somehow, I failed to catch the biggest phenomenon in D&D in 2006. What I'm talking about is Dungeon Tiles.

Now you guys might be laughing at me right now. Dungeon tiles? Yes, it's a subtle, insidious product which is why it caught me flat-footed so to speak.

No, I haven't bought one. I don't think it's necessary for my weekly D&D game. But some people say that for D&D Miniatures as well. And we know how profitable randomized miniatures are. Perhaps not as much as Magic: The Gathering but it's something that adds to the cash flow of D&D.

What baffled me ever since 3.0 got released was how Wizards of the Coast could turn out a HUGE profit selling books. Mind you, those hardcovers are more expensive to produce than your regular books. Mass-market paperbacks don't come in full color for one thing. And usually the only art you have to pay for is the cover art. And did I mention our D&D supplements are huge?

Sure, releasing a new supplement adds income. But with each supplement released, that's a new expense: new set of writers, new set of artists, new plates for the printer, etc. The only sound business plan there was the fact that supplements helped sell the core books more. I expect the Player's Handbook to be the biggest book seller in D&D's repertoire, followed by the Dungeon Master's Guide, and then the Monster's Manual. While Wizards of the Coast is still paying for the printing of those books, the overhead cost has been covered: no new writers, no new artists, etc.

It's not that the 3.0 era of D&D isn't a lucrative business. It just pales in comparison to other, more lucrative markets such as say, collectible card games. Which is why when D&D Miniatures got released, that made sense for me. By no means is every gamer going to want them, but those that do will be contributing to D&D's revenue. And for me, it seems like the profit margin of miniatures is larger than books (but I'm not an insider so I won't really know).

I didn't think anyone could top D&D Miniatures in terms of profits. And in a way, it still hasn't been toppled. But I think Dungeon Tiles comes close. I mean it's easy to produce on the part of Wizards of the Coast (at least much easier than books). And it is selling quite well. And honestly, I wouldn't mind having a set at home.

Except you know, our local distributor stopped carrying the latest D&D products in favor of other lucrative markets (*cough* World of Warcraft CCG *cough*).

It's a bit delayed here's my retrospective on 2006:

Best Supplements:

I'll be honest--I'm torn between two books: Dragon Magic and Tome of Battle: Book of Nine Swords. Fiendish Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hell might be a contender but our local supplier stopped acquiring D&D books since the last quarter of 2006 so I haven't seen the book (nor are there copies circulating online). Anyway, Dragon Magic is simply awesome because it addresses a variety of characters while at the same time providing something new and innovative beyond simply optimizing your character. There's flavor, there's variety, and yet it satiates my "crunch" appetites. It's also the "supplement's supplement" as it draws upon various other D&D supplements and touches upon them a bit such as vestiges from Tome of Magic. Tome of Battle: Book if Nine Swords, on the other hand, is an excellent add-on rules supplement that features a new mechanic that's easy to drop in any campaign while still being accessible to players. If the strength of Dragon Magic is diversity, I'd go for Tome of Battle because of focus, and it breathes new life into martial classes.

Best Setting-Related Supplement:

It seems Wizards is easing up on their setting-based books unlike in the past where there was a Forgotten Realms release every two months or so. For the most part, I like the direction Eberron is going and it was honestly a hard choice. I'd go for Dragonmarked though as it's rich in both flavor and crunch and there's something every GM can pick up from this book.

Best 3rd Party Product:

Hands down, it's got to be Monte Cook's mammoth setting Ptolus. It's huge, interesting, and perhaps best of all, shows that a campaign setting shouldn't take a round trip around the world but can be contained in one place. I really like the book and the format (my only wish is that he'd take up the new WotC NPC stat block but that's a quibble).

Overall:

I honestly like the direction most of WotC's releases are going last 2006. My only problem lies at the local level--the D&D distributor here in the Philippines seems to have dropped D&D in favor of other, more lucrative markets such as the World of Warcraft CCG.

Ever since D&D 3.5 got released, one of the hottest rumors for the past few years is 4th Edition. Aside from throwing theories when it'll be announced (right now it's anywhere from 2007 to 2010), many a gamer has theorized what the new system will be like, and more often, these theories incorporate the gamer's own biases.

One theory that's up in the air is the point-buy system. To those familiar with the existing D&D game, that doesn't refer to how you "buy" your stats but rather how you create your character as a whole. A good example of a point-buy RPG system is Steve Jackson's Generic Universal Role Playing System (GURPS). Characters don't have "levels" or "classes" but instead "buy" each individual ability from the ground up, from stats to skills to special abilities. Then there are game systems who strike it somewhere in between. Legend of the Five Rings (L5R) for example looks to me like a hybrid system. A lot of elements you purchase is based on a point value, but there's still "levels" and "classes" involved, such as what your insight rank is or how experienced you are as a bushi. Mongoose Publishing's True20 system also seems like a hybrid, albeit leaning more towards class levels rather than the point buy system.

D&D of course is a class-based RPG. The main benefits of leveling up is that you gain a level (duh!), and that entails you getting more abilities. Now each system, whether class-based or point buy, has its own advantages and weaknesses. Classes, for example, fit a certain archetype, and they're not as customizable as a point buy character. However, one thing going for class-based RPGs is its ease of us. Anyone who's tried making a point buy character and a class-based character will discover that the latter is usually faster to do. Most video game RPGs are similarly class-based, with your character getting more abilities based on leveling up. It's not such a big secret really, because the fact of the matter is, class-based RPGs incorporate less of a steep learning curve than point buy systems. Is it more customizable? No. But it is more manageable, especially for gamers who are starting out.

Again, this isn't an article that says one is better than the other. If you want ease of use, go for a class-based system. If you want flexibility and customization, go for point buy. D&D, however, I think will stick to the former, mainly because of its business plan, which is to say it's a mainstream RPG and trying to acquire mainstream gamers.

This is a series of articles focused on how to optimize your D&D character.

There are eleven basic classes in the Player’s Handbook and I’ve divided them into three categories: simple, average, and difficult. This is in relation to the learning curve of using these classes rather than their effectiveness. If you’re a veteran of the D&D game, this might not be so helpful to you, but beginning players might want to take a look at the chart to see why certain classes are more difficult to play more than others.

Average

Monk -- The Monk is a tricky subject. First, he suffers from what we call Multiple Attribute Dependency (MAD) which in lay man's terms means he needs a lot of high stats, at least if you want to play him effectively. It wouldn't be so bad perhaps if it weren't for player expectation. I mean when you hear the word monk, the first thing that comes to mind are these martial artist who excel in combat. Unfortunately, the D&D Monk doesn't excel so much in combat, thanks to his average base attack bonus. And while there are a couple of orcs and goblins you can hit with your attack bonus, you start feeling a monk's impotence when you start facing off the higher AC monsters like Dragons (so if you want to be able to hit things, invest in Strength). His hit points, on the other hand, are in the medium spectrum. Enough to survive an encounter, but not high enough to linger, so defense becomes an issue (so raise your Dexterity, Constitution, and Wisdom). Aside from his deceptive combat capabilities, the Monk is a class that has various abilities sprinkled over twenty levels. Beginning players might be overwhelmed by the options presented to them, but it's obviously not as overbearing as say, learning spells. On a more positive note, the Monk has uncanny resilience: high saves in everything, evasion, and the ability to add Wisdom to your AC. Experienced players will even take the Monk class to a higher level as a mage-killer, thanks to his virtual immunity to evocation spells (which usually require Reflex saves), increased mobility, and the ability to stun opponents.

Recommended Supplements: Complete Warrior, Player's Handbook II, Sandstorm

Paladin -- D&D's holy warrior poster boy, the Paladin, can be quite a challenging class to utilize. First off is the role-playing aspect, the code of conduct, which might not appeal to every player. Less experienced GMs will even assume that he has the same concept of a Paladin's code of conduct as the player. Another learning curve a player needs to master is the rules for mounted combat because as soon as the Paladin reaches 5th-level, he gains his special mount (while flavor-wise is a great concept, takes some getting used to rules-wise). Much like the Monk, a Paladin also suffers from MAD, since he not only needs to raise his physical attributes, but his mental ones as well (Wisdom for spells, Charisma for the Paladin's other abilities). The Paladin's small spell list and turning abilities is also something a player needs to familiarize himself, although again, it's not as overbearing as the abilities of some other classes. A Paladin, however, is not by any means a "weak" class, and the role-playing challenge can be rewarding.

Recommended Supplements: Book of Exalted Deeds, Complete Divine, Complete Warrior, Draconomicon

Ranger -- While not as complicated as the Monk or the Paladin, the Ranger is nonetheless a step above playing your typical Fighter. For one thing, your less-than-d10 hit points means you're going to have to play your Ranger smart (more so if you take the two-weapon fighting path). Another aspect that complicates a Ranger's life is choosing the right favored enemy (which actually depends on you communicating with your GM), which becomes an issue to someone who's not familiar with D&D's cosmology. Your animal companion can also give players additional burdens, whether it's acting as a mount, or simply another character the player needs to control when combat occurs. Finally there's your meager repertoire of spells, as well as skill set. Thankfully, they comprise a small list, and isn't too overwhelming.

Recommended Supplements: Complete Adventurer, Complete Warrior, Player's Handbook II

Difficult

Bard -- A jack of all trades yet a master of none, the Bard isn't necessarily a hard class to play, it's simply knowing how to play him well optimally. As a bard, it might be tempting to wade into combat, or cast all your spells, but unfortunately, you don't really have a lot of hit points, nor a lot of spell slots either. So where does a Bard excel in? Finding the answer to that is what makes playing a Bard quite difficult, and the answer is support: Inspire Courage for example is a boon most combatants would find helpful, irregardless of level. A Bard also has a more comprehensive spell list compared to a Paladin or a Ranger, but not as extensive as the other spellcasting classes. Finding your niche is the name of the game when it comes to playing a Bard.

Recommended Supplements: Book of Exalted Deeds, Complete Adventurer, Complete Arcane

Cleric -- One thing the Cleric shares with most of the classes in what I deem the "Difficult" section is the fact that he has 9th-level spells. And honestly, that's a huge reading list. If you also slap on the optional turning rules (basically the [Divine] feats in supplements like Complete Divine), that's another set of headaches for starting players. Still, the Cleric is one of the more powerful classes in the game: good hit points, two good saves, ability to wear heavy armor, 9th-level spells and domain powers make it a terrifying package.

Recommend Supplements: Book of Exalted Deeds, Complete Warrior, Complete Divine, Spell Compedium

Druid -- As some of you might assume by now, classes with 9th-level spells make it to this list automatically. An addition consternation to the Druid class is the need to keep track of your animal companion, and worst of all, the powerful-but-leading-to-rules-confusion Wild Shape ability. Perhaps the problem with the Druid is that a player wanting to use him optimally doesn't just need to keep track of all the new spells that gets published, but all the new monsters (specifically animals, but can apply to other creature types as well) as well. Again, much like the Cleric, the Druid is a very powerful class, more so than the Cleric because one can solely focus on the Wisdom ability score and simply use Wild Shape to make up for any lacking in the physical attributes.

Recommended Supplements: Book of Exalted Deeds, Complete Divine, Draconomicon, Monster's Manual, Spell Compedium

Sorcerer -- In a way, a Sorcerer is played more easily compared to a Cleric, Druid, or Wizard simply because he doesn't prepare spells. Once you've made your choice of what spells you know, it's simply a matter of having the spell slots to use them or not. No more problems of "if only I prepared this spell" and similar situations-- that is, once your character has been made, your only concern is how to play him and not the mid-game tweaks (i.e. what spells do I prepare today?) that plagues most spellcasters. Still, that's still a huge task, and once you've chosen a spell to know, you have to live with that choice for most of your Sorcerer career. Low hit points also make the Sorcerer one of the most fragile classes in the game.

Recommended Supplements: Complete Arcane, Complete Mage, Races of the Dragon, Spell Compedium

Wizard -- I'll be blunt: it's a nightmare to play a wizard. You have access to 9th-level spells and that list is amorphous. Unlike divine spellcasters, your spell's known is determined by your spellbook, and while that's not a problem in the early levels, it is later on as you level up as you have to keep track of pages spent in your spellbook and the cost of additional spells (whether copying it from another wizard's spellbook or from a scroll). Then there's the fact that you have to prepare your spells every day, but unlike Clerics and Druids, your spell slots are less so you really have to make those spells count. And then you continually ask yourself the question whether I should expend my spell now or later. A Wizard also has one of the lowest hit points in the game, so surviving becomes an issue as well. The Wizard is a powerful class, make no mistake about it, but the learning curve is one of the steepest.

Recommended Supplements: Complete Arcane, Complete Mage, Spell Compedium

What's fascinating about RPG games (be they D&D, Legend of the Five Rings, World of Darkness, or -insert favorite game system here-) is that they attract a diverse group of people. And while people will have a stereotype of what a gamer is--and some gamers do reinforce this stereotype--for the most part a gaming group is comprised of a wide spectrum of personalities. Sometimes, the diversity comes from within the gaming group, with a player having a different agenda for playing the game. At other times, the diversity comes from the various gaming groups: one group might favor this particular gaming style, while another might favor a vastly different one.

A few years ago, I met this gamer whose agenda was to push the role-playing aspect of RPGs. That's not a bad thing, mind you, but we found a disagreement that escalated into him not talking to me ever again. The disagreement centered around the thesis of which was the "higher" function of RPGs. He believes that the role-playing aspect was the highest form of role-playing games. Thus, he favored the game systems which favored such mechanics (or lack thereof) such as the World of Darkness line. Of course my tastes run opposite of his. I like to kill stuff. And in a certain way, that reflects my personal preference for D&D because it is a RPG system best suited for combat. The gamer's criticism was that people who game for hack-n-slash, for lack of a better term, was somehow the inferior gamer, and that the role-player was the superior one. At this point, I think you'll see why we came into conflict. But my stance wasn't quite as antagonistic (which is strange coming from the hack-n-slash gamer).

I think the debate can be summed up as whether to role-play (flavor, atmosphere, etc.) or to roll-play (mechanics, luck, etc.). As much as I'd like to side with the latter, my stance was that there was no absolute answer. For me, it's the combat part of RPGs. For you, it might be the make-believe and pretending aspect of RPGs. Ultimately, it depends on what kind of gamer you are, or what gaming group you're with. God forbid there'd be only one type of RPG game (even if it'll be D&D). Unfortunately, the gamer in question did not want to give ground. He was as uncompromising at gaming as he was with religion. There was an absolute answer, and that was role-playing was the highest virtue any gamer could aspire to when it came to RPGs, irregardless of your preference or gaming group. "It's a role-playing game after all," he'd reason.

Now I'm not saying role-playing isn't important. It is. It's just that people play RPGs for various reasons. Some of them is to role-play. Others just to hang out with friends. And of course, there will be those who play because it's a form of catharsis. Or what the heck, because killing stuff (in the game, not in reality) is fun. Again, I'll stress the fact that the reasons why people play RPGs varies from person to person, from gamer to gamer, from gaming group to gaming group. If you want to emphasize role-playing in your group, that's fine with me. But honestly, you can't claim that role-playing is best for my group in the same way that I can't insist that combat is best for your group.

Let's assume that the gamer was right. Role-playing is indeed king when it comes to role-playing games. What does that make the pioneers of the RPG genre? The first RPG, D&D, was born out of war gaming. And perhaps that's why to this day, D&D is more or less a combat-oriented system (and we've returned to the use of miniatures). Does that make the players of 1st Ed. and AD&D inferior gamers? One might even extrapolate that video game RPGs and MMORPGs are simply hack-n-slash RPGs. Again, does that imply that such people are inferior gamers? To me, it's not a matter of inferiority or superiority, but a difference in playing style. It's just that: different. And while I prefer combat-oriented RPGs to say, social ones, that's not to say I'm dropping the role-playing aspect entirely. I role-play my character, whether it's as common or as different as it is to my true persona. And in a certain sense, every gamer role-plays whenever he plays an RPG. He's not just Bob Baker, while-collar worker and the exemplar of the common man, he's an Elvish archer, or a raging barbarian, or this unique, powerful spellcaster. There will always be an element of role-playing or disbelief. Even when you're playing video games that's so. You're "this character" who can do this and that, not simply you-of-the-real-world. Of course people role-play to varying degrees. Some characters are simply stereotypes of existing fiction tropes. Others add layers upon layers of characterization, whether that's lots of emotional conflict (from both internal and external sources), or simply choosing a difficult character to role-play (it might be someone that's opposite of your typical personality or gender).

In a certain way, calling the gamer who criticized me a gamer is wrong. A gamer plays games, not debate on the intellectual superiority of one type of gamer over another. He's lost the point of playing role-playing games. While he emphasizes the role-playing part, he's forgotten why we play role-playing games in the first place: because it's a game, because it's fun. Why is a game fun? Well, that depends on what kind of person you are. Far be it for me, or anyone, to insist on what's fun for you.

This is a series of articles focused on how to optimize your D&D character.

The Player’s Handbook starts out explaining Ability Scores and then followed by Race. It’s only after those pages that we finally see Character Class. To someone who’s unfamiliar with the game, getting to know Ability Scores and Race is important. From an optimization standpoint, however, character creation begins with Character Classes. Why? Because more often than not, a good chunk of your concept for your character will be derived from the classes you take. Yes, there’s a conceptual difference between a dwarf wizard and an elf wizard, for example, but in the end, you cannot deny that there’s more in common between the two compared to say, a dwarven fighter and a dwarven cleric, even if they’re both dwarves. Choosing where to dump your highest, and lowest, Abillity Scores is also dependent on the class you pick (you don’t want to end up with a Sorcerer who has Strength 18 for example but a measly Charisma 12), as well as what races are advisable.

There are eleven basic classes in the Player’s Handbook and I’ve divided them into three categories: simple, average, and difficult. This is in relation to the learning curve of using these classes rather than their effectiveness. If you’re a veteran of the D&D game, this might not be so helpful to you, but beginning players might want to take a look at the chart to see why certain classes are more difficult to play more than others.

Simple

Barbarian – Barbarians are for the most part simple to use because they’re focused on combat, and most likely melee combat at that. For most people, the challenging question they ask themselves is to Rage now or to Rage later. Aside from that, the other choices aren’t as overwhelming. You don’t have room for lots of Feats so you needn’t bother with the more complex feat trees (i.e. taking Whirlwind is out of the question as it has too many prerequisites for example). Early on, players might ask what method of fighting should I use. However, Barbarians being low on defense to begin with (more so when raging), it’s best to focus on their strongest selling point, which is the ability to deal a lot of damage. More often than not, the best choice for a Barbarian is to wield a two-handed weapon and forget about defense. That’s what your d12 hp is for.

Recommended Supplements: Complete Warrior, Frostburn, Races of Stone

Fighter – Unlike the Barbarian, the Fighter is a flexible class in the sense that you can mold your character to fit one of many warrior archetypes, rather than being a jack of all trades. On one hand, the sheer number of feat options available to you can be overwhelming, but it’s similarly more forgiving to a starting player as well because a wrong feat at a certain level isn’t as crippling compared to most classes (where they’re most likely limited to one feat every three levels). The biggest challenge for a Fighter is where to find his focus (thrown weapons, archery, tripping, grappling, defensive, two-weapon fighting, two-handed weapons, sword and shield, etc.) and to maximize that strength. Still, as complex as that sounds, a Fighter needs only to concentrate on combat when a dangerous encounter begins, and his seemingly lack of options in other arenas (skills, spellcasting) make him one of the easier classes to pick.

Recommended Supplements: Complete Adventurer, Complete Warrior, Draconomicon, Miniatures Handbook, Player’s Handbook II

Rogue – The Rogue actually excels in many arenas such as dungeon exploring (by the sheer fact that he’s the only class, at least in the Player’s Handbook, that has the trapfinding ability) and combat (thanks to Sneak Attack), but these are abilities that are packaged with the class. It’s not like you can discard a dice of Sneak Attack to get another ability. While choosing a Rogue’s method of fighting is a secondary priority, his first, and the focus of a beginning player, should be what Skills he picks. Much like the Fighter who has to focus on a certain method of combat, a Rogue must focus on what Skills he should be good at because despite possessing the largest pool of skill points, it’s still not enough to do everything. In addition to simply picking skills, he must synergize them as well. I mean there’s little reason to take Hide if you’re also not going to take Move Silently. And if you want to detect your opponents, the pair Spot and Listen skills should almost always be taken together, to give you at least two chances of sensing the enemy. And while the page devoted to Skills is quite a lot, it’s a lot less than the Spells spellcasters need to know, and they’re more generally used compared to Feats (honestly, do you really need to read the description to figure out what Jump does?). Once that’s done, the Rogue’s next responsibility is to figure out how to stay safe in combat, yet still manage to deal out his Sneak Attack damage on the enemy.

Recommended Supplements: Complete Adventurer, Races of Destiny, Races of the Wild

One of the deviations of 3.0 from the D&D versions that preceded it was the introduction of Prestige Classes. While not really an entirely new concept, it did make a distinction between classes you can take right from the start, and those that needed you to fulfill certain prerequisites. And for the most part, I'm happy with it as it gave players additional flexibility when building their characters. D&D characters stopped being monochromatic (that is, you just pursued one class from levels 1-20) and had a lot more variety.

The less than stellar Planar Handbook was actually a font of new game mechanics. One was Touchstone sites, a concept that would appear and be refined in succeeding books (such as the Dungeon Master's Guide II for example). I'm not a fan of site-based treasure, however, and the other concept that caught my eye (and apparently the game designers there are Wizards of the Coast) was its introduction of Substitution Levels. Substitution Levels are a cousin of Prestige Classes. Whereas the latter was like an "advanced" character class, the former modified existing classes. The Fighter was still a Fighter, the Bard still a Bard. What changed was how they operated mechanically at key levels, imbuing them with a different flavor yet still retaining their "essence".

Substitution Levels would catch on in the later books, especially in the Races series. In a way, this was where it shined as one could see how a Dwarven Fighter was different from an Elven one, even if they were still the same class. The Forgotten Realms supplement Champions of Valor also took advantage of this to showcase the differences between the various Paladin orders/organizations. There are just four Prestige Classes in the book, but over two dozen Substitution Levels. It's really a minor tweak on the classes, but opens up a lot of flavor and distinction, especially on the side of the GM who wants to differentiate racial/cultural/societal differences via class features.

A lot of 3.5 books these days contain Substitution Levels for the core classes in the Player's Handbook. It's a minor tweak on the game system (after all, most Substitution Levels don't expand to more than 3 levels at most) yet it has had a big impact in terms of game design. And perhaps what's best about it is that as a GM, I don't have to necessarily use any of it, or all of it. It's quite a modular system that can easily be adaptable or not used at all.