Defiant
2009-11-17, 11:37 AM
I'm starting a classic Greyhawk campaign (in-person) and I've got a fair mix of players ranging from experienced to absolutely new. My game will focus more on roleplaying and fun rather than any mechanical supremacy, so in the end it won't really matter whether a character is overpowered or underpowered, as everyone should be having fun. However, I do take into consideration classes and class-combination to make sure the best player isn't a wizard and the worst player isn't a fighter.
A friend of mine, who is experienced at D&D, came to me with his character concept. For this game, I wouldn't normally accept a non-core race or a severely underpowered character, but my friend has his backstory very well-lined-up. I'm not going to say no, because he's put his backstory ahead of his mechanics, and I'm not about to penalize someone for not optimizing.
He was willing to take only 1 level of wizard and the rest into cleric, as the party cleric (level 6 campaign). However, I suggested that, in the spirit of "in for a penny, in for a pound", he should just go ahead and take another level in wizard for the ability to go into Mystic Theurge.
Simply because of the overall attitude and focus on non-mechanical aspects, I want to allow him this build and even help him out with it. Since he would be the party cleric, I was thinking of giving him some sort of custom item that would increase his healing power; something that would for example increase the level of his healing spells by 1 (so cure minor becomes cure moderate). This way he could fulfill his role and then do his other things.
This is quite an experienced player, but not even the smartest can mechanically optimize a 4 level differential (the Drow LA and the Mystic Theurge "trap"). I'm even thinking of lowering the LA to +1 for Drow.
What are your thoughts on this? Would my healing item be a good or fair idea? Obviously I'd cover it around some fluff, like some requirements from his deity that he must follow. What other comments do you have on the situation?
A friend of mine, who is experienced at D&D, came to me with his character concept. For this game, I wouldn't normally accept a non-core race or a severely underpowered character, but my friend has his backstory very well-lined-up. I'm not going to say no, because he's put his backstory ahead of his mechanics, and I'm not about to penalize someone for not optimizing.
He was willing to take only 1 level of wizard and the rest into cleric, as the party cleric (level 6 campaign). However, I suggested that, in the spirit of "in for a penny, in for a pound", he should just go ahead and take another level in wizard for the ability to go into Mystic Theurge.
Simply because of the overall attitude and focus on non-mechanical aspects, I want to allow him this build and even help him out with it. Since he would be the party cleric, I was thinking of giving him some sort of custom item that would increase his healing power; something that would for example increase the level of his healing spells by 1 (so cure minor becomes cure moderate). This way he could fulfill his role and then do his other things.
This is quite an experienced player, but not even the smartest can mechanically optimize a 4 level differential (the Drow LA and the Mystic Theurge "trap"). I'm even thinking of lowering the LA to +1 for Drow.
What are your thoughts on this? Would my healing item be a good or fair idea? Obviously I'd cover it around some fluff, like some requirements from his deity that he must follow. What other comments do you have on the situation?