Character roles.

[Teapot Salty]

Hey guys. I've been wondering, the character roles (controller, striker, tank and I think the last ones healer) what do you do. I mean the names are pretty self explanitory, but what classes tend to what role, (in 3.5) and what some of their more important roles are. (besides the stupidly obvious) The one that really confuses me is striker. Are they ranged? Are they Melee? Are they spellcasters? Help is really appreciated. Thanks.

[Crake]

Hey guys. I've been wondering, the character roles (controller, striker, tank and I think the last ones healer) what do you do. I mean the names are pretty self explanitory, but what classes tend to what role, (in 3.5) and what some of their more important roles are. (besides the stupidly obvious) The one that really confuses me is striker. Are they ranged? Are they Melee? Are they spellcasters? Help is really appreciated. Thanks.

I'm assuming you're coming from 4e? 3.5 has less set roles, tank especially doesn't really fit in 3.5, since there's no real aggro mechanic. In 3.5 it's all about the builds really, for example you could have a striker fighter (ubercharger) or you could have a controller fighter (spiked chain tripper)

[rmnimoc]

I do not endorse the role system in any way and strongly dislike it.
Is their main purpose on the team damage? If yes, then they are a striker.
I'll give some examples, see if I can help clear things up.
TWF ranger? Striker.
Rogue who just loves shanking people? Stiker/controller.
Barbarian who beats peoples faces in? Striker/tank.
Favored Soul? Striker/healer.
Hyper-Specialist Evoker Wizard? Striker.
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Beguiler? Controller/not striker.
Druid? Striker/healer/tank/controller.
Generalist Wizard? Striker/tank/controller.
Fighter? Striker/tank.
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Pretty much everything you build in 3.5 will have elements of striker in it, with exceptions to certain builds that just totally ignore damage.

I'd argue that of those roles, the controller is King. Sorcerers, Wizards, Druid, Rogues, Bards, any tripping-focused build, all those make good controllers.

Fighters, Barbarians, Clerics, Druids, and most non-magic non-rogue classes make decent tanks.

Clerics, Druids, and Favored Souls all do healing rather well, as can anyone with UMD and the cash to drop on a wand.

All that said, those roles are all rather pointless in 3.5, because you can easily make nearly any class nearly any "role", and there are plenty of classes that don't fit into any of those little niches, having far more unique and useful purposes.

Don't feel obligated to play something a certain way just because you feel your party needs a tank or a striker, is what I guess I'm getting at. So go forth and be awesome.

[OldTrees1]

Some of the relevant roles:

Battlefield Control (make it easier to defeat foes, can be done as a warrior)
Battlefield Cleanup (defeat foes)
Recuperation (recover from fighting foes)

Trap Guy (does not need Search but it does make the job hurt less)

Face Guy (NPCs like to talk and get angry if no PC talks back)

[nedz]

The 4 standard "Theats" are Melee, Arcane, Divine and Skills.

Character roles are much more varied and a well built character can encompass several.

[Firechanter]

You can sort the characters / builds into roles, such as Striker, Defender, Controller, Leader. As has been said these roles are not strictly tied to a class but to individual builds. And the line between "Controller" and "Defender" is a bit blurry, but let's call the Martial types Defender and the Magical types Controller.

Also, in 3.5 it is entirely possible - with certain classes - to switch between two or more roles, or even fill them simultaneously.

For example, a Crusader is a Defender (one of just two classes with any kind of Aggro mechanic) and also a Leader (thanks to White Raven maneuvers).

A Warblade is primarily a Striker but also a fine Leader.

Gtg, more later.