Sunday, October 11, 2015

Fixing Multiclassing in Pathfinder/3.x

Instead of fixing the underlying issues of character multi-classing, Paizo has instead chosen to introduce hybrid classes (Magus, Arcanist, Bloodrager, etc.)--ignoring the issue and adding needless complication to an already complex rules system.  In my Nefret campaign, I am not permitting the use of hybrid classes; instead, I am encouraging characters to pursue multi-classing in order to achieve prestige classes (such as Arcane TricksterEldritch Knight, or Mystic Theurge).


The biggest drawback of 3.x muticlassing (which is similar to dual classing of previous editions) is that the system is based on the premise that characters receive an equal power jump at each level.  However, while each hit die and related increases are relatively uniform, class abilities at each successive level are considerably more powerful. For instance, gaining access to a new 4th level spell is certainly more of a benefit than gaining access to a new 2nd level spell.  Therefore, the idea of "class level" needs to be considered in two parts:  class hit die and class ability level.

When gaining a new level, there are three basic steps that a character should follow:
  1. Add all features gained by adding a character level (feat, ability modifiers) 
  2. Add all features gained by adding a class hit die (hit points, skill points, base attack bonus, saving throw bonuses, and caster level) for your chosen class
  3. Determine the class ability level of each trained class and apply all gained features (all other class abilities, including spells known and spells per day)
Step three requires one of the following methods:

XP Per Level Method

Character Level
Experience Point Total
Relative XP per Character Level
Slow
Medium
Fast
Slow
Medium
Fast
1st
2nd
3,000
2,000
1,300
1,500
1,000
650
3rd
7,500
5,000
3,300
2,500
1,667
1,100
4th
14,000
9,000
6,000
3,500
2,250
1,500
5th
23,000
15,000
10,000
4,600
3,000
2,000
6th
35,000
23,000
15,000
5,833
3,833
2,500
7th
53,000
35,000
23,000
7,571
5,000
3,286
8th
77,000
51,000
34,000
9,625
6,375
4,250
9th
115,000
75,000
50,000
12,778
8,333
5,556
10th
160,000
105,000
71,000
16,000
10,500
7,100
11th
235,000
155,000
105,000
21,363
14,090
9,545
12th
330,000
220,000
145,000
27,500
18,333
12,083
13th
475,000
315,000
210,000
36,538
24,231
16,154
14th
665,000
445,000
295,000
47,500
31,786
21,071
15th
955,000
635,000
425,000
63,667
42,333
28,333
16th
1,350,000
890,000
600,000
84,375
55,625
37,500
17th
1,900,000
1,300,000
850,000
111,764
76,471
50,000
18th
2,700,000
1,800,000
1,200,000
150,000
100,000
66,667
19th
3,850,000
2,550,000
1,700,000
202,631
134,211
89,474
20th
5,350,000
3,600,000
2,400,000
267,500
180,000
120,000

Find your character level in the first column, and read across to one of the last three columns (according to the campaign's level progression rate) to determine the Relative XP per Character Level.  Ex. a 13th-level character using slow progression has 475,000 XP, which is approximately 36,538 XP per level.

Multiply this result by the hit dice you have earned in each of your classes. Ex. A Fighter 10 / Rogue 3 has 365,380 XP in fighter and 109,614 XP in rogue.  The total XP of all classes should be roughly equal to the XP needed to earn the current level.

Compare each class’s individual total to the appropriate column of the Experience Point Table (according to the campaign's level progression rate). This will tell you your class ability level for that class. Ex. A Fighter 10 / Rogue 3 has class ability levels of Fighter 12 and Rogue 8!

Level Averaging Method

A simpler way of determining Class Ability Level is the level averaging method.  It is not as preciese, but the values are about the same.  Simply use the following formula for each of your [non-prestige] classes, rounding results down:

Class Ability Level = (Class Hit Dice + Character Level) / 2

If Character Level is 10 or lower, lower the Class Ability Level of each class by 1 (minimum equal to Class Hit Dice).

This method works well in campaigns that are not using experience points.

Class Ability Level vs. Class Hit Dice

Determining which abilites "Scale" with Class Ability Level and which scale with Class Hit Dice will be a matter of trial and error for a while.  In general, class abilities that improve as "class level" increases generally improve when Class Ability Level increases--unless they are explicitly tied to Class Hit Dice.

Class abilities that are affect or are affected by systems outside of the microcosm of the class itself are tied to Class Hit Dice.  Examples include:

  • Caster Level remains bound to class hit dice (and prestige class bonus), not class ability level. While a multi-class spellcaster casts spells according to his/her class ability level, those spells are bound to the lower caster level when applicable.  Caster level can also be increased by some prestige classes; the manner of these increases is explained in the class ability description.
  • Animal Companions, Eidolons, Familiars, etc. gain power (or may be improved) as Class Hit Dice increases--though these companions may still interact with other abilities of the class (such as higher level spells that can be cast through them).
  • Bonus Feats are gained in relation to Class Hit Dice.

Prestige Classes are the exception to this modified system. One class hit die in a prestige class is always the same as one class ability level in that class.

Edited October 14th, 2015.

4 comments:

  1. You should just use Gestalt characters, they pretty much do the same thing you're trying to accomplish here.

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  2. I've tried them, and they are too over powered, IMO.

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  3. I like the idea, but why treat casting classes differently than non-casters? In the Fighter 10/Rogue 3 example the character gained 2 dice of sneak attack and 3 rogue talents from the upgraded rogue ability levels. If the 3 levels were Wizard then the way I read what you have above the gain would be additional spell slots, but no increase in caster level. Meaning you would have access to 4th level spells, but not be able to cast over 2nd because of the CL of 3.

    It looks like your goal might be better accomplished by using the table, but then letting the character use the highest of any particular capability that the classes offer. In the Fighter/Rogue example that would give a BAB of 1 higher than current, but everything else would come out the same. In the Fighter/Wizard example you end up with a character actually capable of using magic at CL8, but with the same BAB as the Fighter/Rogue. Obviously pool values (HP, Skill Points) would be determined by whichever class was taken when leveling happened. Might need to lay out the full benefit of this method with other combinations to see if it holds water though.

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  4. I think the caster level refers to spell stats that rely on CL, not the ability to cast. So the hypothetical Fighter/Wizard can cast a Fireball, but only gets 3d6 damage. I think that's ok.

    The theory is sound, if you want to encourage multiclassing. I think in the above example it would be hard pressed to find a person who would rather have a Fighter 13 than a Fighter 10/Rogue 3. I'd wonder if it breaks down if someone takes one level of each class, though.

    Another idea I've toyed around with but never really worked on was bringing it back to 2nd ed: each class has its own experience track. So you could have a straight level 10 and then your first level of rogue is 2000xp more instead of 50000xp more. It works for class abilities and caster levels and the like with more by-the-book and less math, but it breaks down when you consider BAB and saves. (e.g. if you go Fighter/Ranger then you get a total BAB of 14 instead of 10 for the same amount of xp) Skills you can fix by keeping the level max based on the individual classes.

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