![]() Inquisitor: Much like a Bard, the Inquisitor can fill a wide variety of roles, but typically can’t compete with classes devoted to that role.Hunter: With 2/3 casting, an Animal Companion, and some very fantastic and versatile buffs, the Hunter is a great compromise between the combat prowess of the Ranger and the spellcasting of the Druid.Skald: Essentially the same as a bard, though somewhat less versatile.Bard: Bards are fantastically versatile, and can fill nearly any role in the party, but won’t excel at those roles as well as classes devoted to that role.Alchemist: Effectively limited to 6th level spells, the Alchemist can do a great deal, but can’t compete with a Sorcerer or Wizard.Classes occasionally have a mechanical ability that can immediately resolve an encounter, but this is a rare exception. Specialists are capable of doing one important thing very well while still being useful when that one thing is inappropriate, and generalists capable of doing many things, but not as well as classes that specialize in that area. Summoner: Despite being limited to 6th level spells, a short spell list, and a limited number of spells known, the Summoner’s Eidolon allows it to a great deal as a single character.Sorcerer: Basically a Wizard limited by their spells known, and they get spells one level behind the Wizard.Functionally very similar, but less powerful because they get new spell levels on level behind. Oracle: The Oracle is to the Cleric what the Sorcerer is to the Wizard.Has as much raw power as the Tier 1 classes, but can’t pull off nearly as many tricks, and while the class itself is capable of anything, no single character can do everything at the same time. ![]() Wizard: The Wizard spell list is the best in the game, and allows the Wizard to do essentially anything just by changing their prepared spells every morning.Witch: The Witch gets access to many spells from the Cleric, Druid, and Wizard spell lists, and can supplement the Witch spell list with a Patron.However, the Shaman still doesn’t quite compete with the Druid. With access to the Witch’s full Hex list, plus a list of their own, the Shaman is certainly a powerful class. Shaman: The Shaman gets an interesting combination of spells and abilities from the Druid and the Witch.The addition of an Animal Companion and Wild Shape allows the Druid to form a one-man party and fill a variety of roles whenever they are necessary. Druid: With a very unique and well-rounded spell list, the Druid is already a very capable class.Cleric: With medium armor, a huge complement of spells, and no restriction on spells known, the Cleric can do basically everything.Unfortunately, the Arcanist gets spell levels at the same rate as the Sorcerer so they fall behind the Wizard every other level. With the Wizard’s spell list, and the ability to prepare spells daily, then treat them like the Sorcerer’s list of spells known, the Arcanist is a very fun and easy class to play. Arcanist: The Arcanist flirts with the border between Tier 1 and Tier 2.These characters tend to eclipse entire parties. These guys, if played with skill, can easily break a campaign and can be very hard to challenge without extreme DM fiat or plenty of house rules. Has world changing powers at high levels. Often capable of solving encounters with a single mechanical ability and little thought from the player. Tier 1Ĭapable of doing absolutely everything, often better than classes that specialize in that thing. Many archetypes are considerable improvements on their base classes, and many make the base class considerably better or worse, but that information is simply too broad to squeeze into this article. Note that these assessments do not account for archetypes. Classes which are more powerful can fill more roles, and tend to eclipse other characters during play. Instead, I propose that class balance should be determined based on the class’s ability to fill one or more roles in a party. This is an easy mistake because combat takes up the lion’s share of time in most campaigns, and social encounters typically won’t get you killed without first changing into a combat encounter. While classes might be mechanically sound and fun to play, the capabilities of those classes might be much less than those of other classes.Ī common mistake when people discuss class balance, particularly in games like Pathfinder and DnD, is to focus solely on the character’s ability to kill things. After playing DnD 3.x and Pathfinder for over half of my life, it has become increasingly apparent that not all classes are created equal.
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