Best party character arrangements

[fallensavior]

I have been thinking about the best combinations of characters for parties of various sizes. I was wondering what everyone else thinks.

For example:

1 PC: Cleric
2 PCs: Cleric + Tank
3 PCs: Cleric + Tank + Wizard
4 PCs: Cleric + Tank + Wizard + Rogue

And so on...

IMO a party of all clerics (each specialized in a different skillset) of any size would be nigh unstoppable.

[Quietus]

Until they came to a locked door, of course. Be prepared for a deluge of people who don't like your Tank choice.

[Isomenes]

Until they came to a locked door, of course. Be prepared for a deluge of people who don't like your Tank choice.

Psssh. Locked doors are for kicking in. arcane lock only increases the DC to break by 10

[Dhavaer]

I'd say:

Cleric
Paladin + Mage
Cleric + Beguiler + Mage
Cleric + Beguiler + Mage + Druid

[dorshe1]

WHAT?!?!?!?!

Lvl 20 wizard
LVL 20 wizard + LVL 20 Wizard
LVL 20 Wizard+ LVL 20 Wizard + LVL 20 Wizard
LVL 20 Wizard + LVL 20 Wizard + LVL 20 Wizard + LVL 20 Wizard

They are invincible and only cost 100,000 GP a week. Not to mention that they also shred cheese and do your laundry (its included in the cost, look it up!).

[dorshe1]

Depends on if it is high level or low level:

1-10

Bard
Fighter + Cleric
Fighter + Cleric + Rogue
Fighter + Cleric + Rogue + Wizard

10-20
Cleric
Cleric + Wizard
Cleric + Wizard + Rogue
Cleric + Wizard + Rogue + Fighter

[Jacob Orlove]

Yeah, but do you really want to start out with four level 1 wizards? It helps to have some divine casters in there, and Dhavaer's suggestion of Beguiler is a good one too.

I'd run Druid as the lone PC, though, just because the animal companion is so helpful to a small party. Probably:
Druid
Cleric + Wizard
then Dhavaer's groups

[marjan]

1: Cleric
2: Cleric + Wizard (Beguiler)
3: Cleric + Wizard + Rogue (Beguiler)
4: Cleric + Wizard + Rogue (Beguiler) + Whatever

If you accept noncore classes I would suggest Beguiler in 1 and 2 PCs party. If it is core then forget about beguiler.
Whatever = Cleric, Wizard, Druid or maybe Triping Fighter

[fallensavior]

Psssh. Locked doors are for kicking in. arcane lock only increases the DC to break by 10

Agreed. Solid iron door only has DR 10.

Also, I disagree with all 2 PC parties of cleric + wizard, unless it is level 17 and up. Unless you're a fan of dead wizards that is.

[fireinthedust]

I like the Cleric, and also Bard, but I'd go this way:

Scout: Rogue (or Bard, or Ranger)
Scout +Cleric
Rogue + Cleric + wizard
Rogue + Cleric + wizard + Tank.

Rogues, the way I play them, can avoid most combats if they have the option. Move Silently, Hide in Shadow.
Bards are better, as they have lots of skills for that PLUS diplomacy AND healing spells, and given the choice I'd say I'm a bard fan.
Rangers can be a scout also, and would balance out with a Cleric and Wizard for

Tanks are necessary, but I've seen Clerics work as the tank of a party (buff spells, oy?). We're talking about bare minimum here, right?


HOWEVER: The best combo is the classic from earlier editions (now 3.5) of Fighter, cleric, mage and thief! (or wizard, rogue) It covers all the bases.

[JaronK]

1: Artificer (Because he can fill all the other roles. Yes, all of them. Try to think of one he can't!)
2: Druid, Artificer (The Druid is about as flexible, and tanks a lot better)
3: Archivist, Druid, Artificer (The Artificer can work with the Archivist to give the latter every spell in the game, so that handles all your casting needs).
4: Beguiler 14/Mindbender 1/Shadowcraft Mage, Archivist, Druid, Artificer (Adds in a lot more raw power, plus handles any skill monkey needs that the Artificer doesn't feel like bothering with.
5: Cleric 10/Radient Servant of Pelor 10, Beguiler 14/Mindbender 1/Shadowcraft Mage, Archivist, Druid, Artificer (We needed some more healing and tanking in there. Now we've got it.)
6: From here on out add whatever you like. That group of 5 can handle anything anyway.

JaronK

[Grendita]

One Question.... are we assuming that the players know what they are doing, it doesn't matter how optimal the party is if they don't have a clue.

Anyway, back on topic,

1 PC - Rogue or I hate to say it Bard (I'm not a fan)
2 PC's - Cleric and a Rogue (Cleric can fight/Heal/Buff, Rogue can Talk/stab/disable traps)
3 PC's - 2 PC's + a dedicated fighter or magic user
4 PC's - 3 PC's + which ever you didn't pick up last time

My Favourate 3 PC campaign party was actually..
2 Clerics and a Paladin, the first adventure was swift and brutal, we kicked thier ass

[cupkeyk]

I have played a solo as a rogue and it was hard. I can SA/ Run away guerrilla tactics most areas and did the avoid the enemy tactic for undead heavy areas and I still had the BBEGS to contend with but it's very possible. I did recall that I NEVER rested and finished the dungeon in one game day.

It depends on the mission but the Bard/Rogue for a one man party is best. Least number of encounters and widest array of skills.

1: Bard or Rogue
2: Beguiler + Cleric
3: Wizard + Cleric + Rogue
4: Wizard + Cleric + Rogue + Druid


Edit: I sense a Poll for the best one man party coming...

[LotharBot]

Caveat #1: this all depends on the DM, and what campaign they decide to run. If it's undead-heavy, you'll want more clerics and fewer rogues... etc.

Caveat #2: I'm assuming this party must be viable at levels 1-20. If it was, say, 15-20, I'd do things differently.

Caveat #3: I'm assuming only PHB classes.

1 - Druid. Can tank, heal, and blast, and has that useful animal companion.
2 - Druid + Rogue. Can also open locks, disable traps, sneak attack (flanking etc.)
3 - Druid + Rogue + Wizard. With the animal companion, at low levels, this is a lot like fighter-cleric-rogue-wizard.
4 - Druid + Rogue + Wizard + Cleric.
5 - Druid + Rogue + Wizard + Cleric + Fighter/Barbarian. Cuz being able to bash stuff is very useful.
6 - ... + Bard or Sorcerer. Depends an awful lot on exactly how the above characters played out -- what sort of skills the Rogue focused on, for example.

[PnP Fan]

1. My character.
2. My character + my friend's character
3. My character + my friend's character + my friend's character
4. My character + my friend's character + my friend's character + another friend's character

That, combined with a DM that designs the campaign around the characters, and not the other way around, is the optimal choice to have a good time.
;-)

[JellyPooga]

Clearly for a 1 person party you want a Rogue.

Reasons:
1)Rogues work best when alone - if you don't have the rest of the party clunking around in their plate mail, you can quite happily sneak past any fights you'd otherwise get into.

2)Rogues are the only people who know how to consistantly do anything without making loads of noise - See above for advantage of this

3)If a lone Rogue finds himself in monetary trouble, he can simply steal someting from some hapless victim without his preachy cleric friend whining at him about it.

4)When the Rogue finally makes his way to the BBEG throne room (having sneaked (snuk?) past all his guard), he creeps up behind him and silently dispatches him with little to no fuss - there's a reason why assassins are used instead of armies you know

5)Finally, a lone Rogue doesn't have to lose out on loot, like he does with a group of people. As everyone knows, all loot belongs to the Rogue and s/he just lends it to others out of the goodness of his/her heart. No group, no moral dilemmas of reclaiming it...

Clearly the 1 man party is a Rogue...

[Orzel]

1. Ranger (rangers are the most self sufficient class)
2. Cleric + Skill Class
3. Cleric + Skill Class + Wizard
4. Cleric + Skill Class + 2Wizard/Sorcerers
5. 2Cleric/Druids + Skill Class + 2Wizard/Sorcerers
5. 2Cleric/Druids + 2Skill Class + 2Wizard/Sorcerers

[Jade_Tarem]

Clearly for a 1 person party you want a Rogue.

Reasons:
1)Rogues work best when alone - if you don't have the rest of the party clunking around in their plate mail, you can quite happily sneak past any fights you'd otherwise get into.

2)Rogues are the only people who know how to consistantly do anything without making loads of noise - See above for advantage of this

3)If a lone Rogue finds himself in monetary trouble, he can simply steal someting from some hapless victim without his preachy cleric friend whining at him about it.

4)When the Rogue finally makes his way to the BBEG throne room (having sneaked (snuk?) past all his guard), he creeps up behind him and silently dispatches him with little to no fuss - there's a reason why assassins are used instead of armies you know

5)Finally, a lone Rogue doesn't have to lose out on loot, like he does with a group of people. As everyone knows, all loot belongs to the Rogue and s/he just lends it to others out of the goodness of his/her heart. No group, no moral dilemmas of reclaiming it...

Clearly the 1 man party is a Rogue...

Until you meet your first powerful undead that's faster than you...

Rogue isn't bad for 1 man party though, I agree.

Bard (Think civilized - "Could I bed here? I have no money but I'll provide free entertainment for the evening.")
Cleric + Rogue
Cleric + Wizard + Any Tank
Tank + Wizard + Rogue + Cleric
Tank + Wizard + Rogue + Cleric + Bard
Tank + Ranger/Tank + Rogue + Cleric + Wizard + Sorcerer
Tank + Ranger/Tank + Rogue + Cleric + Wizard + Sorcerer + Druid/Bard
Tank + Tank + Ranger + Rogue + Wizard + Cleric + Sorcerer + Druid/Bard
Tank + Tank + Ranger + Rogue + Wizard + Cleric + Cleric/Druid + Sorcerer + Bard
Tank + Tank + Ranger + Rogue + Wizard + Sorcerer + Cleric + Cleric + Druid + Bard

I went up to ten because that's the largest party I've ever been in. Although that party was Barbarian + Ranger + Sorcerer + Sorcerer + Sorcerer + Sorcrerer + Wizard + Wizard + Wizard + Wizard.

[kirn]

Back in the 2.0 days, the best character I played was a Gnome Th/Cl. You have to be careful with selecting a god... But there's something very cool about being able to wander around at 3 ft tall, cal forth a flameblade and jam it into something. It it goes bad, sanctuary and walk away. Heal, sneak back in. Tumbling, height advantages, nice all around. The lack of powerful weapons is bothersome, but not terrible.

Paired up with nearly anything was brutal, though Rangers and Mages seemed to work best. Paladins were pretty much impossible... eh.

[talsine]

I've done a couple of small (1-2) man games and, i gotta say, solo i prefer druids (animal companion ftw) or druid + ranger. Course, this is low level, past a certain point Polycheese makes arcane much more viable.

Stealth is nice until, like they say above, the undead is faster than you. Or people, you know, keep their homes well lit. Lord knows my BBEG tend to be fans of Light, Dancing Light, Continual Flame, Sun Rods, etc. If their aren't any shadows, its awefully hard to hide

[barawn]

Clearly the 1 man party is a Rogue...

My last character was actually flat built with the intention of being a one-man party (even though he was in a multiple-PC party - it's the character's mentality) - I think Rogue/Wizard (or Rogue/Sorcerer, but the increased spell versatility is nice) is pretty much ideal for that. You don't need too many levels in Rogue - basically enough to dig you into Unseen Seer to put the majority of spells in class.

Basically, the character can avoid combat as much as he/she wants, and then self-buff to take out anyone he can't avoid.

Until you meet your first powerful undead that's faster than you...

Yup, that's why I prefer a Rogue/Wizard for that. Expeditious Retreat is a first-level spell. If only Hide from Undead was a Wizard spell, too.

[okpokalypse]

I'm going to be a little cheezy...

1 PC: Favored Soul 18 / Sacred Exorcist 2 w/ Dragon Cohort [Half-Dragon Fighter 16 / Soldier of Light 2]

Yup - Charisma Junkie with a big tank follower. I've actually played this, and between the two I've found they can handle most anything thrown at them. Diplomacy & Intimidate are off the charts. The Favored Soul has DMM via Exorcist Turns, and the Cohort is a Con / Cha primary tank. 400+ HP, Divine Grace, DC 30+ Goad = Uber Tank. He doesn't do too shabby in melee either. Neither fails a save, except on a 1.

2 PCs: Add Wizard 7 / Psion 3 / Cerebramancer 10

9th Level Wizard Spells. 7th Level Psion (Nomad) Powers. Both classes run off Int. I don't see any drawback.

3 PCs: Add Scout 11 / Ranger 3 / Psychic Warrior 4 / Deepwood Sniper 2

This has moderate cheese. It pretty much gives you all the utility (Skills / Track) you need out of a PC. With the stacking of the Scout & Ranger Levels for Favored Enemies & Skirmish, it's melee useful as well. +6d6 Skirmish (w/ Feats). The Psychic Warrior aspect allows the PC to take an extra move action (Hustle) to trigger Skirmish bonuses so every arrow does an extra 6d6 in Full Attack. And the DwS PrC gives a +1 Crit Multiplier for Arrows and makes all arrows keen. How do you feel about 4 arrows a round doing 1d8+6d6 and having a Crit of 19-20/x4? Oh, and Telling Blow allows that 6d6 Skirmish to get multiplied in the Crit for 24d6 Skirmish Damage per Crit.

4 PCs: Add Wizard 8 / Sorcerer 2 / Ultimate Magus 10

Effective Level 17 Wizard (9th Level Spells) / Level 10 Sorcerer (5th Level Spells). Allows the caster to burn Sorcerer Spells to power Wizard Spells with "Free" Meta-Magic. Get CL Boost via class, and a few Bonus Feats. Effective CLs of 21/18 in the two respective classes.

And I think that's it.

Another great caster option for that 4th (and I feel Complimentary spot) is:

- Abjurer 5 / Master Specialist 10 / Abjurant Champion 5

It's pretty much the utlimate defensive caster - and the ability to do self-only spells on your allies is extremely nice. Oh, they're also the only class that can Dispel Uber-High CL Persists on enemies (they can stack up to +9 on Dispel Magic that isn't capped by the Max CL), as well as them getting free Extend (double duration) on all their abjurations and free Quicken on all their abjurations of 3rd level or lower.

Oh yeah, and they get "evasion" against any spells that have partial effects - shrugging them off on a save. Plus, with their boosts their AC from Mage Armor (Greater) is +11, and Shield is +9. With a Dex Item, RoP and Natural Armor boost, they're running 40+ AC quite inexpensively.

[Leon]

The best party arrangements are the ones that work for you

[fallensavior]

I wasn't really thinking specific builds or levels. Moreso of how many characters of each archetype would be ideal from levels 1-20 individually and/or contiguously.

[Sir_Banjo]

1. My character.
2. My character + my friend's character
3. My character + my friend's character + my friend's character
4. My character + my friend's character + my friend's character + another friend's character

That, combined with a DM that designs the campaign around the characters, and not the other way around, is the optimal choice to have a good time.
;-)

Here here!!

Best Party I ever had was with a Barbarian and Swashbuckler/Rogue. Worked like yin and yang; we rarely had to rest at all.