Modeling a "Class" in Mythras/CF

[Michael Hopcroft]

I just got my copy of the new Mythras core PDF and haven't purchased Classic Fantasy yet, but I do have a question: if you see a class/prestige combination in any of the D&D series that you want to model your character around, is there a systematic way to go about it?

I may not even need CF to answer this question. And I do have a quick example of wanting to have some of the cool essence of a class while stripping out some of the baggage. In D&D 3.5 there was a controversial "new core" class called the Hexblade. It was controversial because it was considered a poor example of class design that was underpowered for what it was asked to do, and difficult to play in a party to boot. The idea was that the Hexblade could simultaneously fight, cast spells, and use class abilities to manipulate the luck of his enemies and make things go wrong for them in combat. The problem was that the class was so closely tied to the alignment system that if the character performed a good deed, even by omission, his powers would vanish until he had wiped the good he'd done away. That part made little sense. But a spell-slinging swordsman who could make his opponents foul up has appealing story potential, especially if he has to have at least a front of callousness,

Mythras, of course, does away with the strictures of the class system (except perhaps social), so there's no reason for a swordsman not to be able to sling spells with the best of them. Giving other people bad luck, though, that's tricky. I wonder how you would do it.

 

[groovyclam]

Mythras does have Passions which can be some substitute for alignment but in a more focused way, so the Hexblade could have some set of Passions that directed him/her towards whatever is required to keep their powers working. His/her bad luck power could be dependant on them not dropping below a certain level.

I don't really see why a Hexblade in Mythras would have to be "evil" anyway - why can't a person who is essentially good-natured still have a luck-manipulation power ?

In terms of how their powers would work in Mythras, I'd guess they would impose % penalties on enemies' rolls ( either a numeric % or make the difficulty grade of a roll harder ). It's a question of what would the Hexblade have to do, crunch-wise, to achieve this and how does it scale, what rate does it replenish and is the power balanced in the general scheme of things ?

[umbraldragon]

Have you looked closely at the spell "diminish characteristic"?  One reduction affects everything including derived attributes and skills,  combat skills can be affected by the spell.

[Mugen]

It's quite simple, actually : make your character a Mystic or a Sorcerer, and pick the right spells.

Sorcery spells such as Damage Enhancement and Damage Resistance are obvious. Wrack is also a good candidate, as is Enchant(sword).

Edit: Cults make an excellent equivalent to Prestige Classes.

Edit 2: and Attract (threat) makes a good "curse" spell

Edited September 10, 2016 by Mugen