Based on early feedback, I'm going to look into hammering out a unified character sheet for players to use. In the past, generally people would either just post their abilities in shorthand, or else save a copy of the class document, and simply cross out or delete any options they did not select for their character. Going forward, I'm going to try and have a form, at least to keep track of things like skill training/expertise, with some open space for Combat Features (and the like.)
I'm also going to probably rearrange the class sheets a little bit, so that Combat Features (which are generally all automatic) come immediately after Starting Features, and are then followed by 1st Level features, and then "Gaining Additional Levels." Archetype Features will most likely be at the very end, and possibly Roles, too.
Since we very quickly got to 7 applications, it kind of made me wish that I had more classes prepared by now. On the other hand, this will help test out more of the different subclasses and archetypes, so these classes will get a more thorough inspection.
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That being said, I do want to try and have the next "playtest slate" of classes ready before the summer break. I've been trying to balance off some of the class utility (in terms of skills) as well as making a point of including at least one class from each of the three main slates, and a relative balance in terms of "category" distribution.
Here are the classes I've settled on:
- Druid (d4) [Roles]
- Rogue (d6) [Subclasses]
- Cleric (d8) [Subclasses + Specialist Classes]
- Occultist (d10) [Roles]
- Spellbinder (d12) [Specialist Classes]
As the d4 and d6 mechanics have evolved and been sharpened, some ideas for how to better execute on the Druid and Rogue have come along; I look forward to implementing those in the near future. In particular, I think the mechanic of doubling damage on a crit (currently showcased on the Fighter's two-weapon style) is something that'll fit well with the Assassin subclass.
The advent of "Starting Features" gives a design space where I think the distinctive Subclass Features from the "4.1 Cleric" can be slotted in. The Mystic class has been renamed "Occultist" but otherwise remains mostly the same -- aside from a few ideas I have for additional mechanics. I'm also looking at implementing a unique little subsystem for d10 classes.
The Spellbinder is a class that has a lot of fluff to draw from for inspiration; both of its subtypes are interesting of their own accord, but the base class itself has kind of taken on its own personality as I've written it (specifically, being a captivating and confounding sort of character.) It's hard to do much math-wise for the d12 classes, so I think they will have to rely on design spaces other than damage mechanics, to make them interesting in combat. Warlord already has the "enabling" niche mostly cornered; Spellbinder seems like it would logically lean towards debilities and status effects, so expect them to sport more of those in the next draft.
This slate does sort of lean towards the more magical side, with the current playtest slate being more "martial" overall. The classes on this 2nd slate have also seen a fair bit of playtesting already (compared to most other classes) whereas the entire slate for this playtest saw no testing during "Beta 4." Overall, the third playtest slate will be more of a balance between the two, in both of these regards.
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Check back June 16th for the next update!
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