What base classes would work as prestige classes?

[The Vagabond]

Just a guy wondering to himself- What base classes would work as prestige classes?

[BowStreetRunner]

How about Bard, Paladin, and Ranger (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/prestigiousCharacterClasses.htm).

[Arael666]

I can see the fighter as a 2 level prestige class.

[Zaq]

I don't think any base class is set up in such a way that it would make sense to (1) force delayed entry into it and (2) require prereqs to have access to it. (Yeah, sure, T1 classes are crazy powerful, but that doesn't mean that the game would be balanced by forcing the Druid to wait five levels before becoming a Druid, you know?)

A better question might be which prestige classes would fit as base classes. There's plenty of PrCs that aren't actually that powerful, and lots of them would make sense if you could take them at level 1, no prereqs needed. You might have to tweak them a little bit, but not as much as you might expect. The one that always leaps to my mind is Dread Pirate, though to be honest, a lot of the PrCs from Complete Adventurer are in the same boat.

[Afgncaap5]

I dunno, I sorta think that there's so much lore-specific material about some base classes that they fit the original "story-focused" purpose of prestige classes. Paladins, Bards, Rangers and Druids all sort of have an assumed back story behind them. To a lesser extent I'd say the same about Monks and Barbarians.

[johnbragg]

Taking the OP seriously.

(NOTE: Defining "prestige class" as "class you cannot take at character creation")

Simple ones, besides the Prestige Bard, Paladin, Ranger:
Hexblade, Duskblade, other gish classes
Require at least 1 level of arcane casting and 1 level of a full BAB class before you can do both.

Making some base classes prestige classes would change campaign worlds dramatically:
Cleric and Druid. You don't just start off blessed by your god, you gotta earn it. Some start as fighters, some as arcane casters, maybe some as Experts or Adepts.

You really want to nerf Tier 1 classes? Require them to dump some Caster Levels by spending their first few levels as lower-tier classes.

I suppose you could make the fixed-list casters prestige classes, entered from divine-casting or arcane-casting classes, or maybe Beguiler from Rogue.

NOTE: Saying you could, not that you should.

[torrasque666]

I don't think any base class is set up in such a way that it would make sense to (1) force delayed entry into it and (2) require prereqs to have access to it. (Yeah, sure, T1 classes are crazy powerful, but that doesn't mean that the game would be balanced by forcing the Druid to wait five levels before becoming a Druid, you know?)

I'm going to respectfully disagree here. If you can only ever take 10 levels of wizard(representing the intensive training required to even begin) then it does gain a bit of balance. Even if wizard required previous casting(bard or sorcerer) to begin and only advanced, it would be interesting. Especially if it was the only way to ever gain access to 9ths.(and no 9ths for cleric/druid, or something similar. Paladin/Ranger expected entry maybe?)


A better question might be which prestige classes would fit as base classes. There's plenty of PrCs that aren't actually that powerful, and lots of them would make sense if you could take them at level 1, no prereqs needed. You might have to tweak them a little bit, but not as much as you might expect. The one that always leaps to my mind is Dread Pirate, though to be honest, a lot of the PrCs from Complete Adventurer are in the same boat.

This I will agree with. I'd love to be able to start as a Warforged Juggernaut(gain Addy body at 1st, power attack at 2 or 3, and later improved bull rush, and then other goodies)

[Troacctid]

Warblade, Crusader, and Swordsage would make great prestige classes.

I think Monk could be a prestige class too.

[Chronos]

Ever since I first read of it, I've thought that the Spellthief really ought to be a prestige class. It feels like it'd work a lot better as a way of combining rogue and wizard-- Arcane trickster as it should have been.

And not quite the same thing, but Knight really ought to have been a fighter feat chain.

[Amphetryon]

I could see a rational argument for the List Casters (Warmage, Beguiler, Dread Necromancer) as Prestige Classes with some groups.

[eggynack]

I think Monk could be a prestige class too.
I agree on that one. I think that what you really want here are classes that could plausibly be rammed together into five or ten levels without serious ramifications, and monk is practically the pinnacle of that. Definitely better to use this as a way to up the power of low power classes than as a gating tool for high power classes. Along those same lines, barbarian seems like a reasonable five level class, maybe with rage and two rage upgrades at odd levels, and some other assorted barbarian stuff like pounce, tripping, intimidation, and so on scattered about. Fighter could definitely work as a five or ten level prestige class, either way with a fighter bonus feat at every level, and either samurai would be very compressible. Most tier four or five classes would make sense, I think, with classes like ranger, rogue, swashbuckler, soulknife, and knight very much open to compression. The castery ones could be more tricky, but then again that never really stopped the already existent prestige versions of normal classes.

[Grim Reader]

Thematically, I always thought that the Knight should have been a prestige class.

Historically, it is probably the closest we get to a prestige class. Any farmboy could dream of committing a great deed and being knighted. And historically, I think it did happen occasionally, that some non-name fellow from the levy distinguished himself in battle, and got along with the nobility and got himself knighted. (BaB, social skills and knowledge prereqs.) Or the alternative path of taking squire levels to qualify.

There was a Barbara Hambly book series (The Silicone Mage?) where Wizard was a PrC that required Monk levels to enter. Basically, it took years of meditation and hard physical discipline to awaken a wizardly talent.

[illyahr]

There was a Barbara Hambly book series (The Silicone Mage?) where Wizard was a PrC that required Monk levels to enter. Basically, it took years of meditation and hard physical discipline to awaken a wizardly talent.

My campaigns usually run this for psions instead of wizards. I'd run generalist wizard as a base class and specialist wizard as a prestige.

[sideswipe]

fighter as a 10 level prestige class with a bonus feat at each level. prerequisits of BAB +4 or 5, fort save +3, proficiency with 1 martial weapon and medium armour.

monk as a 10 level prestige (someone was building) that cuts out all the rubbish no one wants.