FreakyCheeseMan
2013-04-12, 11:56 PM
Something unusual just occurred to me - is Binder the best class for a player new to 3.5?
My arguments for it being the case:
1: Impossible to screw up. The binder doesn't rely on any attributes, doesn't require any feats to function (though some are nice), and always gets access to its full Vestige list. Seriously, try to make a bad Binder - I don't think there's a single other class in the game where that's as difficult to do.
2: Flexible. New players may not always know what role they want - they may start out thinking casting is cool, then realize that it's more complexity than they want to deal with at the moment - alternatively, they may start off wanting to Melee, then realize that Melee is boring and want some more options. Binder lets them explore different paths, without having to make a new character.
3: Effective. Binders are a long way from T1, but they've got enough cool stuff to make a difference, so long as the party isn't crazy optimized. So, the new guy will get to get his licks in.
4: Simple to Build. Binders don't have to make a whole lot of choices - apart from the bare minimum of any character (Fests, skills, items), Binders just have to pick a handful of bonus feats, a handful of Soul Augmentations from a short list, and the vestiges they want - they don't even have to keep track of spells by level, it's just a straight "You can bind this many vestiges, up to this level of vestige."
5: Strong defensive options. New players tend to suck at defending themselves - the fact that so many Vestiges give cool defensive buffs or bonuses, plus the defensive class features of the binder itself, make it more likely that new players won't die so often.
6: Tour of Everything. This point could actually be argued either way, but... Binder uses pretty much every mechanic in the game, but they don't have to. So, over the course of play, players can get introduced to spell-like abilities, melee combat, charging, grappling, ranged combat, stealth, skill-monkeying and everything else - letting them get familiar with the different systems piece-by-piece, without getting drowned by having to use ones they're not familiar with.
7: Great Fluff, Great Roleplay. The Binder has arguably the best and most developed fluff in 3.5 - it gives new players something cool to latch onto, and to build character ideas off of. Furthermore, the effects of failed pacts can be seen as little role-play exercises for the character, to help get them into the spirit of things.
My arguments for it being the case:
1: Impossible to screw up. The binder doesn't rely on any attributes, doesn't require any feats to function (though some are nice), and always gets access to its full Vestige list. Seriously, try to make a bad Binder - I don't think there's a single other class in the game where that's as difficult to do.
2: Flexible. New players may not always know what role they want - they may start out thinking casting is cool, then realize that it's more complexity than they want to deal with at the moment - alternatively, they may start off wanting to Melee, then realize that Melee is boring and want some more options. Binder lets them explore different paths, without having to make a new character.
3: Effective. Binders are a long way from T1, but they've got enough cool stuff to make a difference, so long as the party isn't crazy optimized. So, the new guy will get to get his licks in.
4: Simple to Build. Binders don't have to make a whole lot of choices - apart from the bare minimum of any character (Fests, skills, items), Binders just have to pick a handful of bonus feats, a handful of Soul Augmentations from a short list, and the vestiges they want - they don't even have to keep track of spells by level, it's just a straight "You can bind this many vestiges, up to this level of vestige."
5: Strong defensive options. New players tend to suck at defending themselves - the fact that so many Vestiges give cool defensive buffs or bonuses, plus the defensive class features of the binder itself, make it more likely that new players won't die so often.
6: Tour of Everything. This point could actually be argued either way, but... Binder uses pretty much every mechanic in the game, but they don't have to. So, over the course of play, players can get introduced to spell-like abilities, melee combat, charging, grappling, ranged combat, stealth, skill-monkeying and everything else - letting them get familiar with the different systems piece-by-piece, without getting drowned by having to use ones they're not familiar with.
7: Great Fluff, Great Roleplay. The Binder has arguably the best and most developed fluff in 3.5 - it gives new players something cool to latch onto, and to build character ideas off of. Furthermore, the effects of failed pacts can be seen as little role-play exercises for the character, to help get them into the spirit of things.