Endarire
2014-03-01, 11:41 PM
Greetings, all!
A possibility for intertier balance is giving people a bonus or penalty to EXP based on the tier of their most recent class level. Thus, a tier 1 gets less EXP than a tier 3.
This system kinda mimics 2E's EXP mechanics where certain classes (like Mages) required more EXP in general to level. In Baldur's Gate II, a Sorcerer or Mage with 8 million EXP is a 'mere' level 31 whereas a Fighter, Barbarian, Thief, Bard, or Cleric with 8 million EXP could reach level 40. The arcanists still rocked, though.
Let's assume this scale:
Tier 1 or better: +0% EXP (the baseline)
Tier 2: +10% EXP
Tier 3: +40% EXP
Tier 4: +75% EXP
Tier 5: +150% EXP
Tier 6: +225% EXP
For PrCs...
+2 tiers or better: +0% EXP (the baseline)
+1 tier: +10% EXP
+0 tiers: +40% EXP
-1 tier: +75% EXP
-2 tiers or worse: +150% EXP
For example, a player goes Rogue for level 1 (a tier 4 class). He gains +75% EXP. For his second level, he goes Wizard, but gets no bonus EXP because Wizard is a tier 1 class. He eventually gets enough Rogue and Wizard to go Uncanny Trickster (+1 tier and +10 EXP) then Arcane Trickster (-1 tier and +75% EXP).
Since EXP is a river (http://community.wizards.com/forum/previous-editions-character-optimization/threads/1077406) (especially in this case), sacking a level for item creation is tempting, but you're still sacking a character level to generate EXP for items and Constructs.
Alternatively, going, say, full caster into a bad PrC can lead to faster leveling, but also raises the question of what is more important - class features or EXP.
I'm also well aware that a strong build can be made with lower tier characters. Even a Commoner can make a good Hood (http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?topic=2462.0).
A possibility for intertier balance is giving people a bonus or penalty to EXP based on the tier of their most recent class level. Thus, a tier 1 gets less EXP than a tier 3.
This system kinda mimics 2E's EXP mechanics where certain classes (like Mages) required more EXP in general to level. In Baldur's Gate II, a Sorcerer or Mage with 8 million EXP is a 'mere' level 31 whereas a Fighter, Barbarian, Thief, Bard, or Cleric with 8 million EXP could reach level 40. The arcanists still rocked, though.
Let's assume this scale:
Tier 1 or better: +0% EXP (the baseline)
Tier 2: +10% EXP
Tier 3: +40% EXP
Tier 4: +75% EXP
Tier 5: +150% EXP
Tier 6: +225% EXP
For PrCs...
+2 tiers or better: +0% EXP (the baseline)
+1 tier: +10% EXP
+0 tiers: +40% EXP
-1 tier: +75% EXP
-2 tiers or worse: +150% EXP
For example, a player goes Rogue for level 1 (a tier 4 class). He gains +75% EXP. For his second level, he goes Wizard, but gets no bonus EXP because Wizard is a tier 1 class. He eventually gets enough Rogue and Wizard to go Uncanny Trickster (+1 tier and +10 EXP) then Arcane Trickster (-1 tier and +75% EXP).
Since EXP is a river (http://community.wizards.com/forum/previous-editions-character-optimization/threads/1077406) (especially in this case), sacking a level for item creation is tempting, but you're still sacking a character level to generate EXP for items and Constructs.
Alternatively, going, say, full caster into a bad PrC can lead to faster leveling, but also raises the question of what is more important - class features or EXP.
I'm also well aware that a strong build can be made with lower tier characters. Even a Commoner can make a good Hood (http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?topic=2462.0).