multiclassing help [Archive] - Wizards Community

multiclassing help [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
chronocrosselite
09-07-05, 11:05 PM ok say the campaign starts off and we are lvl 1, i take rogue ,then i want to take my second lvl as fighter and my third as barbarian, how would i explain the class changes? i mean fighter i could get maybe by training in free time to better handle mysword or something similar, but what about barbarian? aside from the obvious leaving group for months to live in the wild... lol
thunderspirit
09-08-05, 12:18 AM Depends on what your vision for the character is. What kind of rogue are you playing? Why is your PC taking a fighter level? What then became appealing about barbarian?

For example, a character I have currently started out with two barbarian levels, took two fighter levels, then three rogue levels as he progressed. He earned a land grant from a noble house (promping me to spend skill points on Know: nobility) and gradually grew more "civilized" and started to turn away from the fury which drove him early on.

If you have a concept in mind, it's much easier to justify a class change decision.
Rusher
09-08-05, 03:38 AM It would seem easier to explain (from a role-palying point?) to your DM if you took Barbarian first and then started to become "civilized" learning city-fighting etc...

Having a rogue who begins to focus entirely on combat(fighter level) can then snap due to the stress of constant combat might be fun too. If you started to RP the raging during combat it would probably be an easy sell to pick up a lvl of Babrarian.
Might save you some of the time you are gonna spend in the woods. :)

GL
Sluagh
09-08-05, 09:22 AM It can easily work to go from one of the other classes into Barbarian too... just find a reason in game play. Perhaps something along the lines of being involved in an event that your character has a high degree of passion towards; some sort of failing or strong threat to whatever it is your passions have been ignited towards could lead you into some sort of blind rage... hence the beginnings of your abilities to rage and take on Barbarian levels.

That's something to work out with the DM though.

Barbarians don't have to wanderers of the wild; they could be civilized folk who are somewhat in touch with their inner fury for some reason or another... this concept works better when going into Barbarian from another class, or if you spend skill points in the beginning to get rid of your illiteracy and such factors. For example, in the Piers Anthony book series Incarnations of Immortality, the dude that takes up the role of Mars, the incarnation of war, is a prince who is capable of raging... though entirely civilized (a noble, aristocrat) he would have levels of barbarian/frenzied berserker if he were to be converted to D&D stats; and he certainly wouldn't have started there.
McWyrm
09-14-05, 07:07 PM It can easily work to go from one of the other classes into Barbarian too... just find a reason in game play. Perhaps something along the lines of being involved in an event that your character has a high degree of passion towards; some sort of failing or strong threat to whatever it is your passions have been ignited towards could lead you into some sort of blind rage... hence the beginnings of your abilities to rage and take on Barbarian levels.
Wow - that's a really neat idea.

If you want a barbarian's background, you'd naturally have to take the barbarian levels first . . . unless you character is from a group that is the process of civilizing - the barbarian levels could represent some kind of 'back to the old ways' impulse on the part of your character. Or prehaps the rage-warriors are a separate caste among your character's people, and required some prerequisite experiance to join.
chronocrosselite
09-18-05, 05:45 PM Ok, how do i justify builds like: Diviner8/Geometer4/Fatespinner4/Archmage4

or other builds like someone taking lvls like: Wizard 4/Fighter 2/Spellsword 1/Bladesinger 5/Eldritch Knight 8

how do you explaing jumping around like that in PrC's?
allenchan
09-18-05, 06:20 PM Ok, how do i justify builds like: Diviner8/Geometer4/Fatespinner4/Archmage4

or other builds like someone taking lvls like: Wizard 4/Fighter 2/Spellsword 1/Bladesinger 5/Eldritch Knight 8

how do you explaing jumping around like that in PrC's?

The PC doesnt know he's jumping into various Prcs. He is just trying to become the very best fighter-wizard possible. If someone asks your PC what he is, dont reply with class names. He'd say "I am user of the arcane mystiers, though do not douby my skill with a blade, fool."

Otherwises, it only matters if there's an organization attatched to the PrC, some do, some dont, sometimes its up to the DM. My character travelled the world studying the most secret art forms of fighting with two weapons while becoming an avatar of his god and all that is good. He doesnt know he's a fighter/swashbuckler/dervish/tempest/champion of corellon.
allenchan
09-18-05, 06:22 PM And just another way to show that your PC is not his Class...

http://www.giantitp.com/cgi-bin/GiantITP/ootscript?SK=209
chronocrosselite
09-18-05, 07:12 PM but DMs usually, or at least the ones i know, need reasons why you are taking a certain prestige class *outside* of character, even if you write in your background you are searching for a way to perfect the art of arcane magic while still being able to use the sword.

but what you are saying is basically(i probably am getting this wrong so let me know), i could just tell the Gm that im trying to turn my wizard into a divine magic specialist and i think it requires this specific build. so *if* none of the classes or PrCs require special situational reasons why i can join i.e. stealing so much gold from a dragon, that i can just say thru my studies ive learned a new way to use my magics more proficiently?

lol sorry im trying to be able to explain to my GM why i can take all those classes.
The Smartest Lemming
09-20-05, 07:14 PM Another way to reason in a level, or more, of Barbarian into your character could be something like Sluagh suggested, but instead of a passion, it could be some sort of a mental break. Maybe it was the death of someone, or your character was put into an "impossible" situation that pitted one of his codes against another, and he just flipped out. It could be anything really, but the problem that this creates that a passion would not is the fact that if you ever get over said mental break, you wouldn't really have a reason any more to "flip out" (Go into a rage).

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
chronocrosselite 09-07-05, 11:05 PM	ok say the campaign starts off and we are lvl 1, i take rogue ,then i want to take my second lvl as fighter and my third as barbarian, how would i explain the class changes? i mean fighter i could get maybe by training in free time to better handle mysword or something similar, but what about barbarian? aside from the obvious leaving group for months to live in the wild... lol
thunderspirit 09-08-05, 12:18 AM	Depends on what your vision for the character is. What kind of rogue are you playing? Why is your PC taking a fighter level? What then became appealing about barbarian? For example, a character I have currently started out with two barbarian levels, took two fighter levels, then three rogue levels as he progressed. He earned a land grant from a noble house (promping me to spend skill points on Know: nobility) and gradually grew more "civilized" and started to turn away from the fury which drove him early on. If you have a concept in mind, it's much easier to justify a class change decision.
Rusher 09-08-05, 03:38 AM	It would seem easier to explain (from a role-palying point?) to your DM if you took Barbarian first and then started to become "civilized" learning city-fighting etc... Having a rogue who begins to focus entirely on combat(fighter level) can then snap due to the stress of constant combat might be fun too. If you started to RP the raging during combat it would probably be an easy sell to pick up a lvl of Babrarian. Might save you some of the time you are gonna spend in the woods. :) GL
Sluagh 09-08-05, 09:22 AM	It can easily work to go from one of the other classes into Barbarian too... just find a reason in game play. Perhaps something along the lines of being involved in an event that your character has a high degree of passion towards; some sort of failing or strong threat to whatever it is your passions have been ignited towards could lead you into some sort of blind rage... hence the beginnings of your abilities to rage and take on Barbarian levels. That's something to work out with the DM though. Barbarians don't have to wanderers of the wild; they could be civilized folk who are somewhat in touch with their inner fury for some reason or another... this concept works better when going into Barbarian from another class, or if you spend skill points in the beginning to get rid of your illiteracy and such factors. For example, in the Piers Anthony book series Incarnations of Immortality, the dude that takes up the role of Mars, the incarnation of war, is a prince who is capable of raging... though entirely civilized (a noble, aristocrat) he would have levels of barbarian/frenzied berserker if he were to be converted to D&D stats; and he certainly wouldn't have started there.
McWyrm 09-14-05, 07:07 PM	It can easily work to go from one of the other classes into Barbarian too... just find a reason in game play. Perhaps something along the lines of being involved in an event that your character has a high degree of passion towards; some sort of failing or strong threat to whatever it is your passions have been ignited towards could lead you into some sort of blind rage... hence the beginnings of your abilities to rage and take on Barbarian levels. Wow - that's a really neat idea. If you want a barbarian's background, you'd naturally have to take the barbarian levels first . . . unless you character is from a group that is the process of civilizing - the barbarian levels could represent some kind of 'back to the old ways' impulse on the part of your character. Or prehaps the rage-warriors are a separate caste among your character's people, and required some prerequisite experiance to join.
chronocrosselite 09-18-05, 05:45 PM	Ok, how do i justify builds like: Diviner8/Geometer4/Fatespinner4/Archmage4 or other builds like someone taking lvls like: Wizard 4/Fighter 2/Spellsword 1/Bladesinger 5/Eldritch Knight 8 how do you explaing jumping around like that in PrC's?
allenchan 09-18-05, 06:20 PM	Ok, how do i justify builds like: Diviner8/Geometer4/Fatespinner4/Archmage4 or other builds like someone taking lvls like: Wizard 4/Fighter 2/Spellsword 1/Bladesinger 5/Eldritch Knight 8 how do you explaing jumping around like that in PrC's? The PC doesnt know he's jumping into various Prcs. He is just trying to become the very best fighter-wizard possible. If someone asks your PC what he is, dont reply with class names. He'd say "I am user of the arcane mystiers, though do not douby my skill with a blade, fool." Otherwises, it only matters if there's an organization attatched to the PrC, some do, some dont, sometimes its up to the DM. My character travelled the world studying the most secret art forms of fighting with two weapons while becoming an avatar of his god and all that is good. He doesnt know he's a fighter/swashbuckler/dervish/tempest/champion of corellon.
allenchan 09-18-05, 06:22 PM	And just another way to show that your PC is not his Class... http://www.giantitp.com/cgi-bin/GiantITP/ootscript?SK=209
chronocrosselite 09-18-05, 07:12 PM	but DMs usually, or at least the ones i know, need reasons why you are taking a certain prestige class outside of character, even if you write in your background you are searching for a way to perfect the art of arcane magic while still being able to use the sword. but what you are saying is basically(i probably am getting this wrong so let me know), i could just tell the Gm that im trying to turn my wizard into a divine magic specialist and i think it requires this specific build. so if none of the classes or PrCs require special situational reasons why i can join i.e. stealing so much gold from a dragon, that i can just say thru my studies ive learned a new way to use my magics more proficiently? lol sorry im trying to be able to explain to my GM why i can take all those classes.
The Smartest Lemming 09-20-05, 07:14 PM	Another way to reason in a level, or more, of Barbarian into your character could be something like Sluagh suggested, but instead of a passion, it could be some sort of a mental break. Maybe it was the death of someone, or your character was put into an "impossible" situation that pitted one of his codes against another, and he just flipped out. It could be anything really, but the problem that this creates that a passion would not is the fact that if you ever get over said mental break, you wouldn't really have a reason any more to "flip out" (Go into a rage).