Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Shojiteru Sep 08, 2015 12:39:29	We all know that you can be anything you want but in a party, if everyone is a stealthy rogue, there will eventually be some problems. A stealthy character, a scout, charismatic face, buff strength dude, smart guy, wise guy, tanky guy, controller, blaster, sniper, mobile guy, jack of all trades, skill monkey... A healthy, functioning party should dabble in a bit of everything. Along with the already mentioned, what else is needed? There isn't really a place with a list of options you could pick from and be like... "yeah, I'll pick face and tank with a bit of controller." It'll be hard ro inculde every option, but just the ones every party should have and should be covered by atleast 1 person. It'll be difficult with no tank, face, healer, scout... what else?
#2 mellored Sep 08, 2015 13:17:02	A full stealth party can work out very well. As can a full ranged party.  Full melee is not the best idea, at least not without a large helping of reach weapons. You can get by without a party face. You can get by without a tank, if you have enough control/damage.  Stunned and dead enemies don't deal damage. Everyone has skills, diversity is helpful, but not neccicaray.   Probably the only thing you need is damage.  Controler's and buffers can multiply the damage, but you need something to multiply.  And your probably going to need to kill someone sometime. Beyond that, it's pretty open.
#3 AaronOfBarbaria Sep 08, 2015 13:38:43	All a party actually needs is a number of characters in it equal to at least 1/player (not counting the DM) - roles like "tank" or "healer" or "face" or even "scout" are not even remotely necessary to concern one's self with.
#4 Chaosmancer Sep 08, 2015 14:58:52	AaronOfBarbaria wrote:
#5 Tempest_Stormwind Sep 08, 2015 15:06:00	Shojiteru wrote:
(Reply to #4) AaronOfBarbaria	Chaosmancer wrote:
#7 Treantmonklvl20 Sep 08, 2015 15:56:46	Obviously the best tactical layout is dependant on the # of players.   In combat the following are pretty handy:   1) Someone to fight in melee (good defense and offense mix) 2) Someone to control the battlefield (spellcaster)   Beyond that, you can pretty much disperse as you like.  It's useful to have someone who can cast Healing Word as well.   Out of combat I find the following pretty useful:   1) Someone who can sneak 2) Someone with persuasion or deception (or both) 3) Someone with thieves tool proficiency 4) Someone with ritual spells (like comp languages/detect magic etc) 5) Someone with mobility options (fly/teleport etc)   Note that those could all be the same character...
#8 Shojiteru Sep 08, 2015 23:12:02	I know most are situational and can be avoided, but assuming over the course of an entire campaign that's 1-20 which too is rare and situational... everything gets done eventually. You mah only have combat orientated barbarians which works well until you come across a time when being sneaky is needed or you need to convince someone of something. I like to fill in the gaps of my party so knowing more of what could potentially be needed, I can see what they have covered then plan on going on what they're weak against. I feel a good DM plays to party strengths, but also to their weaknesses to keep them on their toes. By knowing the party first, could challenge the DM a bit to find weaknesses.
#9 pdegan2814 Sep 09, 2015 0:39:10	You need the ability to do damage in melee and at range, whether it's magical or physical. You'll appreciate having someone who can make that damage count for more, either by buffing you or crippling them. Having someone who can stand on the frontlines and absorb a lot of damage is often helpful too. You need a way to restore health, either with items or magic. You need "eyes", who can see the monsters coming, who can find the secret doors, the traps, etc. Along with those you'll likely want at least one pair of deft hands, to unlock those doors and disarm those traps. You'll want someone with enough brains to tell you what it is you're looking at in those creepy dungeons, what those magic items do, etc. And it wouldn't hurt to have someone who can talk you either into or out of dangerous situations.    Of course, there's going to be plenty of overlap, and there's no rule that says you can't have a successful party that's missing one or more of those functions. But the more bases you can cover, the more situations you can handle without having to figure out some really weird battle plans.
#10 ChelseaNH Sep 09, 2015 9:43:30	A healthy party (as opposed to an "optimal" party, for whatever you define "optimal" as) is not so much about covering different roles as it is about making sure everyone has something distinct they bring to the table.  Seems to me it would be harder to have a good time when everyone is more or less the same, and no one has a particular time to shine.  It's nice to have the range of attributes and skills covered, but a party does has the option of hiring skills for specific situations.   Personally, I'd like it if everyone in the party can be stealthy, but I just spent a lot of time playing a bounty hunter.
#11 imaginari Sep 09, 2015 9:47:57	I've been consider a party of all warlocks, with a few dip levels here or there.  The warlock class is pretty versatile: scouting, melee, ranged, utility spells, offensive spells.  It is missing a bit of healing.  But imagine an entire party with Devil’s Sight and Darkness.  What do you guys think, could it work?
#12 iserith Sep 09, 2015 10:24:39	My view on this question is that you can have whatever you want in an adventuring party - just don't make decisions like you're something you're not. This is often the downfall of adventuring groups, especially those that lack good healing and damage in my experience. They jump into combats head-on as if they have the staying power and damage output to prevail and find out they are sorely lacking in those departments. TPKs and/or 15-minute work days follow. They should have planned for that going in and changed up their strategy and tactics.   When I make pre-gens for a one-shot though, I typically stick to cleric-fighter-rogue-wizard for the sake of tradition if nothing else.
#13 Yunru Sep 09, 2015 10:28:58	Warlocks can also do control well, especially with the Rod of the Pact Keeper making their spells harder to resist.
#14 Chaosmancer Sep 09, 2015 21:29:30	imaginari wrote:
#15 Vulf Sep 09, 2015 23:54:20	A Full dark-vision capable part works wonders too.   And then there's someone that wanted to play a halfling, and so has to carry a torch, ruining any chance the party had to sneak up on enemies in the dark.
#16 pdegan2814 Sep 10, 2015 9:10:57	Vulf wrote:
(Reply to #14) AaronOfBarbaria	Chaosmancer wrote:
#18 Tempest_Stormwind Sep 10, 2015 9:54:13	AaronOfBarbaria wrote:
(Reply to #18) AaronOfBarbaria	Tempest_Stormwind wrote:
#20 Greenstone.Walker Sep 10, 2015 15:32:26	Shojiteru wrote: