Post/Author/DateTime	Post
ryguysolis 04-26-08, 11:35 PM	Why is a balanced class system, by which I mean a class system in which every class is equally viable at all levels, preferable to a non-balanced class system?
Ariakus 04-26-08, 11:41 PM	Safer comes to mind. Unbalanced means there is a weak link, balanced means that the group at least is as strong as it's weakest link, and the weakest link is no one; so everyone sets the bar. Unbalanced could mean there is extreme strength by one character and extreme weakness by another, and a variety in between. These may be quite fun groups to play in, but only as long as the strong know they must defend like the weak are their own mothers :)
Bleeding_Eyes 04-27-08, 01:03 AM	Not to mention that in an unbalanced game, many players could find their characters next to useless, thanks to one supremely god-like PC. It helps give everyone a chance to do something usefull
Etarnon 04-27-08, 03:20 AM	Or you could just play it for the role, live or die, and not care a whit.
ryguysolis 04-27-08, 10:40 AM	Not to mention that in an unbalanced game, many players could find their characters next to useless, thanks to one supremely god-like PC. It helps give everyone a chance to do something usefull Can you elaborate on how a player could find his character next to useless, thanks to one supremely god-like PC? Or you could just play it for the role, live or die, and not care a whit. So, you would have fun playing a role regardless of whether or not you were the strongest character in the party?
Escef 04-27-08, 10:46 AM	Or you could just play it for the role, live or die, and not care a whit. Can you elaborate on how a player could find his character next to useless, thanks to one supremely god-like PC? So, you would have fun playing a role regardless of whether or not you were the strongest character in the party? As for the playing a role, yes, you can play a character and have fun in any game. As for the god-like business... A few months back one of my buddies started an epic game. I don't like epic, so I didn't go for it. The ladyfriend decided to give it a go, and rebuilt her rogue for epic play. And most of the time she was bored, because she had nothing to do. The game was dominated by the casters. (The fact that she tends to be passive and hang back during role playing doesn't help her, either.)
Etarnon 04-28-08, 03:05 PM	ryguysolis wrote: So, you would have fun playing a role regardless of whether or not you were the strongest character in the party? Certainly. I play for the role. Good, bad, weak, heroic, smart, thuggish, whatever. I'm also a voice actor in a small scale internet sci fi series. I write scripts, (and do my own machinima) too. I've played (as a player, not DMing, I've DMed far more): Tremere Prince of a cadre of 150 VtM Players (Dayton). This character was a vampire from old Transylvania, complete with red silk sash, Russian war medals, full legth cape, teeth, powder makeup, etc. Space scientist, in Star Trek, the next generation, who was a lowly ensign, trying to make way up through the ranks. no combat skills, but good with a tricorder, and knowledge of physics, and planetology. A vulcan scientist / geologist that had been badly scarred in an accident, refused treatment for it, and had a penchant for vanilla ice cream. He died in red shirt fashion when a random disease encountered in a scenario killed him, after reporting to his first duty station. A character in 1e Gamma World named "Torch", who was born with only one left arm, blue hair, and an atrophied right arm that just hung there, but also had heightened hearing. Thus, he was only fit to carry a torch into the ruins of the Ancient Gods, and listen at god doors. A number of Traveller chararacters that did 2 years in the army, got wounded, and mustered out with a few thousand credits a gun, and Rifle-1 skill, and perhaps a Driving-1 skill, maybe tactics-1 skill, in a game where the average PC has a college degree, 3 levels of skill in multiple skills, and 100,000 credits. A number of Traveller characters that were scouts for 20 years, retired, that owned their own small scout ship, and cruised the galaxy, either smuggling, or exploring planets by contract or freelance. A few Physicicsts in Traveller. A number of survivors in Aftermath! that were essentially rag-picking refugees, who had radiation burns, and fought with packs of dogs with baseball bats with nails in them. A number of commando types in Twilight:2000, or Morrow Project who were iron jawed heroes wielding an M-16 like they were born with it. Twilight:2000, and Palladium's Recon: A number of special Forces / SEAL types. Twilight:2000, A Polish catholic priest who had survived the war, and thus roved the land trying to restore the faith of the people, with a vow of non violence, but some healing skills, persuasion, knowledge of religion, that sort of stuff. D&D: countless characters ranging from guys with a dex or Strength of 7 or 8, to 18/00 Strength. Rangers, Lords, Once a Duke, Commoners with one eye, and ears burned off, Elves, Dwarven Defenders, A Magic User with low Dex who couldn't cast many spells but had area, and regional knowledge plus historical knowledge as a sage. Birthright: A paladin in the ongoing online Birthright campaign that was a Paladin of Haelyn, who had been raised by priests and started his own school for the blind, and gave all his money away. He hardly ever fought, and mostly made political deals and trade agreements, based on his charisma. Boot Hill: from Tough bad guys to a guy that was a tenderfoot from NYC who drank milk, and wrote for a local paper in a town called Toenail, Arizona, with no fighting skills, who got beat up a lot in fistfights. Any number of MERP characters, from Rangers of the North to Dwarves to fat, ugly hobbits with no real dex to speak of. Piles of Star Wars d6 characters, some force users, some not. Lots of X-wing pilots. A dark Jedi. A light side student of the force. Numerous smugglers. Conspiracy X, and Spycraft: various high tech, high spped low drag technothriller characters. A few really messed up low level thugs who couldn't really fight well, and mostly intimidated their way through. GURPS: A crewman whose only attribute was strength who couldn't talk or read, (and not allowed to talk ooc, only signal) and had his tongue cut out, he was the captain's treasure carrier when they buried treasure. GURPS: An early 30's era guy from NYC who was stalked by his girlfriends ex-lover, after an altercation in his welding shop where the NPC came to the attack, and the PC hit him in the face with a torch. He went on to join the Foreign Legion, and gain some rifle and desert skills, (and French, and Arabic language) but was never really good at any one thing. He ended up being the interpreter for a Treasure hunting team a la Indiana Jones style, in a party of 3 other adventurers, all of whom were smarter, faster, or more charismatic. Mechwarrior: A 'mecha pilot with a light, but fast battlemech, who had escaped slavery in the periphery of space, was burned in a reactor accident, who had had both legs and one arm replaced by prosthetics, that gave him slower reaction, and slower dexterity. After a year RL, he died in a battle on some no name ice world due to a lucky cockpit hit with a gauss rifle. Mechwarrior: A 'mecha Pilot born to the nobility who started off with a social advantage, in his father's house guard, who broke free of that and became a well paid mercenary Lieutenant, Captain, then Major, leading a lance, Company, and finally Battallion, Working for House Liao, Kurita, and Marik on numerous contracts, before being overrun 2:1 by the Invading Clans in Rasalhague after three years of game play, his entire unit wiped out. It all depends on the role. If the GM is good, and it's a good role, I'll try it out. Super PCs, weak PCS it's all a role.