Aug 16, 2022·edited Aug 16, 2022Liked by DragnaCarta
Really good article!
However, I'm surprised there are little mentions to the warlock, as it is seen by the optimization community as the DPR baseline or "warlock baseline", as presented by Treantmonk here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zg0bAl1WPGQ .
Essentially, you calculate the dpr of a warlock casting hex + eldritch blast (with agonizing blast), applying the chance to hit and assuming the warlock will increase their charisma every ASI (so that they have a constant 60-65% chance to hit a generic enemy of the appropriate CR) and you obtain the baseline damage any character should do. The warlock does this with a no-brain effort, so any build that falls below this baseline without doing anything else of value is suboptimal
Probably should have dropped my comments here instead of spamming your twitter.
In my playtest the easiest way to balance Martial vs Caster discrepancy is
* Shorten short rest to 5mins. (You mentioned this before and my playtest agree with you)
* Give all Fighters and Barbarians access to battle master style maneuvers(been using LaserLlama's alternative class series to test this)
* Make Ranger a prepared caster class and buff their spell list.
* Dump GWM and Sharpshooter. Replace it with a general game feature that you can subtract your proficiency bonus from the attack roll to add double that to the damage roll.
* Bonus feat a level 1 and every four character levels.
Does that fix everything? No. Monk and Rouge are still the odd mans out as they don't use spells and if there is a way to shove maneuvers into their base class I haven't seen it yet. But I think its the right track. Martials need a shared power system like casters have so roles are separated from classes and power can be added organically to martials over time. A shared system also allows players to choose how much complexity they want to deal with, instead of having that choice made for them the instant they pick a class.
I've added a number of hacks at my table to address this problem. I won't be going too deeply into each thing, so if you see nitpicks which don't make sense, it's because I'm not explaining everything, though if anyone would like to know more, I'll be happy to explain.
First, I accentuate the difference in hp between the martials and the casters, while making Constitution less of a god stat. To make it short, d6 classes get 3 hp/level, d8 6 hp/level, d10 9 hp/level, and d12 12 hp/level. This makes the squishiness of the caster classes, which tend to have lower hit dice, much more meaningful.
I also allow martials to spend a bonus action to mark (like Cavalier's Mark) a creature they've hit, with a save to resist, and I've added a bunch of feats that help martials draw more aggro.
In addition, spellcasters have extended casting times, as per the Slow spell, meaning that they have a round in which they are vulnerable and their spellcasting can be interrupted. This means that the ability of the frontline to protect them is enhanced, and gives them a stronger identity and role. Spellcasters also can only benefit from armor granted by their class or subclass, meaning they can't dip a level in fighter, and have just as high an AC as the fighter does.
Characters have vitality reserves, each one letting them heal a quarter of their hit points, and they can spend two as part of a healing surge, allowing them to manage their own healing and for the martials to be a lot more tanky when they need to be.
All of these together accentuate the party's need for tanks, and makes the role feel a lot more meaningful overall.
Really good article!
However, I'm surprised there are little mentions to the warlock, as it is seen by the optimization community as the DPR baseline or "warlock baseline", as presented by Treantmonk here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zg0bAl1WPGQ .
Essentially, you calculate the dpr of a warlock casting hex + eldritch blast (with agonizing blast), applying the chance to hit and assuming the warlock will increase their charisma every ASI (so that they have a constant 60-65% chance to hit a generic enemy of the appropriate CR) and you obtain the baseline damage any character should do. The warlock does this with a no-brain effort, so any build that falls below this baseline without doing anything else of value is suboptimal
Probably should have dropped my comments here instead of spamming your twitter.
In my playtest the easiest way to balance Martial vs Caster discrepancy is
* Shorten short rest to 5mins. (You mentioned this before and my playtest agree with you)
* Give all Fighters and Barbarians access to battle master style maneuvers(been using LaserLlama's alternative class series to test this)
* Make Ranger a prepared caster class and buff their spell list.
* Dump GWM and Sharpshooter. Replace it with a general game feature that you can subtract your proficiency bonus from the attack roll to add double that to the damage roll.
* Bonus feat a level 1 and every four character levels.
Does that fix everything? No. Monk and Rouge are still the odd mans out as they don't use spells and if there is a way to shove maneuvers into their base class I haven't seen it yet. But I think its the right track. Martials need a shared power system like casters have so roles are separated from classes and power can be added organically to martials over time. A shared system also allows players to choose how much complexity they want to deal with, instead of having that choice made for them the instant they pick a class.
I've added a number of hacks at my table to address this problem. I won't be going too deeply into each thing, so if you see nitpicks which don't make sense, it's because I'm not explaining everything, though if anyone would like to know more, I'll be happy to explain.
First, I accentuate the difference in hp between the martials and the casters, while making Constitution less of a god stat. To make it short, d6 classes get 3 hp/level, d8 6 hp/level, d10 9 hp/level, and d12 12 hp/level. This makes the squishiness of the caster classes, which tend to have lower hit dice, much more meaningful.
I also allow martials to spend a bonus action to mark (like Cavalier's Mark) a creature they've hit, with a save to resist, and I've added a bunch of feats that help martials draw more aggro.
In addition, spellcasters have extended casting times, as per the Slow spell, meaning that they have a round in which they are vulnerable and their spellcasting can be interrupted. This means that the ability of the frontline to protect them is enhanced, and gives them a stronger identity and role. Spellcasters also can only benefit from armor granted by their class or subclass, meaning they can't dip a level in fighter, and have just as high an AC as the fighter does.
Characters have vitality reserves, each one letting them heal a quarter of their hit points, and they can spend two as part of a healing surge, allowing them to manage their own healing and for the martials to be a lot more tanky when they need to be.
All of these together accentuate the party's need for tanks, and makes the role feel a lot more meaningful overall.
you lack the avoidance for tanks , how do you calcuylate HP ?
i don't get why monk is more than 1500 hp.
how do you calacultate DPR ?
on how many stats ?
from wich sources ?
why you don't include bonus check to group utility like paladin's aura in your calculation ?