Rathdar
2012-03-10, 11:56 PM
I've been working on a homebrew edition of D&D for the past 4 months and aside from balancing issues (which is still in the air) I'm stuck at a proverbial wall of sorts: Cavalry and how to use them.
In the homebrew, everyone starts as the same class: the Recruit. There are no proficiencies with any weapon but there aren't any restrictions either. With 1d4 for the HD, they can't take much damage before dying. A nice difficulty curve early on sets the stage for a players to really get the feel of the game :smallamused:. Surviving the first few skirmishes, a character will develop enough to become a Militia at level 3. Again after 2 levels, the character changes classes into the three base classes: Cavalry, Infantry, and Skirmisher. For the basic rundown, after the base class, comes three separate classes that evolve via tree style (You pick between A,B,C then with the appropriate per-requisites, you pick between D,E,F). In each tree there will be a counter-infantry, counter-skirmisher, and counter-cavalry choice. I'd like to go into detail but I need to get to the crux of my question.
Cavalry as a base class is a dangerous idea, since riding a mount (land-non magical -type) is a sure way of getting yourself killed. Mind you, having a flying beast that can shoot beams of destruction is pretty boss :smallbiggrin:. Sure, there's the increased mobility and the awesome damage a charge can do, but aside from always moving in a straight line or entering a Cantabrian Circle, what kinds of perks should this class have ?
Finally, what I believe to be the more important question: What is the best way of having a class that specifies the use of a mount properly added to the game?
In the homebrew, everyone starts as the same class: the Recruit. There are no proficiencies with any weapon but there aren't any restrictions either. With 1d4 for the HD, they can't take much damage before dying. A nice difficulty curve early on sets the stage for a players to really get the feel of the game :smallamused:. Surviving the first few skirmishes, a character will develop enough to become a Militia at level 3. Again after 2 levels, the character changes classes into the three base classes: Cavalry, Infantry, and Skirmisher. For the basic rundown, after the base class, comes three separate classes that evolve via tree style (You pick between A,B,C then with the appropriate per-requisites, you pick between D,E,F). In each tree there will be a counter-infantry, counter-skirmisher, and counter-cavalry choice. I'd like to go into detail but I need to get to the crux of my question.
Cavalry as a base class is a dangerous idea, since riding a mount (land-non magical -type) is a sure way of getting yourself killed. Mind you, having a flying beast that can shoot beams of destruction is pretty boss :smallbiggrin:. Sure, there's the increased mobility and the awesome damage a charge can do, but aside from always moving in a straight line or entering a Cantabrian Circle, what kinds of perks should this class have ?
Finally, what I believe to be the more important question: What is the best way of having a class that specifies the use of a mount properly added to the game?