Alternate class features

[BiblioRook]

I love alternate class features and class variants, they can add so much more variety to characters that otherwise get stuck playing out static.

I was wondering what some favorites were.

Well to start off, lets go with an obvious one; the Cloistered Cleric. I both love the idea of playing a bookworm as well as usually play skill monkeys, so this variant was really ideal for me. :smallbiggrin:
Also, while I don't typically play them, I love the idea behind the alternate class features for Fighters and Barbarians in Dungeonscape. Being about to break through walls and 'disabling' traps with your weapon? Hilarious.

[Scarlet-Devil]

Dark Companion for hexblades and whirling frenzy for barbs.

[Amnestic]

Bardic Knack for...well, Bards is pretty sweet. Turns you into a proper good skillmonkey it does, especially if your DM lets it work with Jack of All Trades.

Big fan of Cloistered Cleric too.

[TroubleBrewing]

Spirit Lion Totem Barbarian. So, so sweet for melee. It's the reason Barbs make such great 1-level melee dips.

[Saint GoH]

No love for Abrupt Jaunt Wizards? For shame...

[Zaq]

Combining both druid (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#druidVariantDruidicAve nger) variants (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#druid) from Unearthed Arcana makes for an awesome dip, especially for a scout. In a single level, you get:

-Track
-Favored Enemy
-Rage
-10' typeless speed boost
-WIS to AC when unarmored
-Druid spells

You also get Wild Empathy (but at a huge penalty . . . still good for prereqs), Nature Sense, and the Druidic language. Is this better than an actual druid? Of course not, don't be silly (no Wild Shape, no pet, no spontaneous summons . . . eww). As a dip, though, it's got a hell of a lot packed into one delicious level. The two variants give up different features, so there's no reason that you couldn't take both of them.

[Dusk Eclipse]

...Wait does Unarmed Swodsage counts?

Also if variant chaining is allowed I love Spirit Lion Totem Arcane Hunter Rangers.

Feat rogue is also pretty nice

[Greenish]

Spirit Lion Totem barb is very nifty for a variety of builds. The other totems are decent too, namely wolf (imp. trip), bear (nifty for entering FotF), ape (climb speed is cool) and spirit bear (imp. grab).

Monk variants from UA are grand, if you're dipping monk. If you have to play a straight-classed one for some reason, for the Host's sake, be a warforged and take the ACFs from City of Stormwind that replace monk's redundant immunities with decent abilities.


Though technically neither ACFs nor variant classes, I really like some of the racial substitution levels from RoE, such as changeling rogue 1 and shifter druid 1 (and 5 is decent for powering down your druid).

[Hirax]

I had a fun character that utilized the goliath rogue level 2 racial substitution feature called mettle of the mountains, which is basically evasion for fortitude saves. I then eventually got the Ironmind ability mettle of will, which is evasion for will saves. A myriad of save boosters and luck feats/other reroll abilities made it so pretty much anything that required a save didn't affect me at all.

[SurlySeraph]

Spirit Lion Barb and Cloistered Cleric are awesome for almost any melee build.
Sneak Attack Fighter + Hit-and-Run Fighter (DotU) is a nice and simple base for effective Dex-based melee builds. Also a good dip for Rogues.
Arcane Stunt from CMage is pretty nice; it doesn't work with Daring Outlaw builds because you lose Grace, but in any build where you just take Swashbuckler 3 it's great.
Dungeonscape has Penetrating Strike for Rogues, Trapfinding for Rangers, Trapkiller for Barbarians, and Dungeoncrasher for Fighters. All of them are useful, but Penetrating Strike is a "why would you ever take anything but this" ability.
The Changeling Rogue sub levels are really nice for social rogues.
Resolute Fighter in CChamp lets you halve your BAB and get a Will save bonus equal to the reduction as an immediate action, which lasts until the end of your next action. It can be great for Warblades or Crusaders; use it for the Will save bonus, then next turn use a boost as a swift action to get your attack bonus back and attack as normal.
Force-Charged Energy from the Planar Handbook is pretty nice for blaster sorcs.

[Akal Saris]

I'm a big fan of the Zhentarim Fighter substitution levels from the web enhancement to Champions of Valor. It adds more skills (Bluff, K (Local)), and gives additional abilities for free at 3rd/7th/9th, which are all otherwise dead levels that are not-very-fun-at-all. The 9th level ability to intimidate as a swift action is both very strong and unique, making it the only compelling reason to stay in fighter for that many levels.

Similarly, I like hit-and-run fighter from DoTU, dungeoncrasher, and sneak attack fighter. All give some interesting new abilities for fighters.

[BiblioRook]

I've always like the Feat Rogue alternative too as I've never really cared much about sneak attack.
This is doubly nice if I have a DM who's nice or naive enough to not limit 'Fighter Bonus Feats' to actual fighter feats :smallbiggrin:

[FMArthur]

Mystic Ranger by a longshot. It's the stepping stone to a glorious full BAB warrior wizard. Until 12th level when Sorcerors finally start outperforming you. But I almost never play that high, so it's no big deal. :smallbiggrin:

[ShneekeyTheLost]

Sorcerer variant from PhB II to be able to use metamagic without spending a full round action a number of times per day. Sure, eventually you'll want to pick up Rapid Metamagic for unlimited use, but it lets you qualify for Quicken Spell much easier.

[SurlySeraph]

Mystic Ranger by a longshot. It's the stepping stone to a glorious full BAB warrior wizard. Until 12th level when Sorcerors finally start outperforming you. But I almost never play that high, so it's no big deal. :smallbiggrin:

Mystic Ranger is a lot of fun and silly powerful at lower levels yeah. I'd probably reduce its spellcasting to Duskblade levels before asking to use it in most games. I'm fairly certain Mystic Ranger 6 with Sword of the Arcane Order is the best possible E6 build, discounting anything that uses tricks to get more than 6th-level spellcasting.

[Eldan]

Definitely shapeshift druids.

[Leon]

Combining both druid (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#druidVariantDruidicAve nger) variants (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#druid) from Unearthed Arcana makes for an awesome dip, especially for a scout. In a single level, you get:

-Track
-Favored Enemy
-Rage
-10' typeless speed boost
-WIS to AC when unarmored
-Druid spells
.

It makes for a Awesome druid played through to high levels.
Further on the Hunter Variant is the Favoured Enemy: Arcanists from Complete mage.

Works very nicely with the Fist of the Forest PrC

Shapeshift Variant is also awesome.

Battle Sorcerer is another one i quite like

[Runestar]

Focused specialist wizards

Dragonhusk variant

Goliath barb1