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Garian
2009-05-17, 06:55 PM
So for some unfortunate reasons my D&D game was set up for 5 PC's, we now have only two players. The DM said he would just go through it with the two of us. I think he put a lot of work into the campaign.
How can we take all necessary roles with two people? It is level 6 and the DM said he would make an NPC if we wanted.
My idea was that he let us each play two characters. The DM thinks this would disrupt good role playing.
The other player has already made a wizard with crazy leadership, and a rogue cohort only one level lower. I guess with some sort of feat. And improved familiar. With this in mind I thought I could make a druid with wild cohort. Thus somewhat taking the roles of Arcane and divine spellcasters, skillfull and forgive the term Meatshield.

Suggestions to our current plan? Suggestions for a new one?
Thanks

Jack_Simth
2009-05-17, 07:11 PM
So for some unfortunate reasons my D&D game was set up for 5 PC's, we now have only two players. The DM said he would just go through it with the two of us. I think he put a lot of work into the campaign.
How can we take all necessary roles with two people? It is level 6 and the DM said he would make an NPC if we wanted.
My idea was that he let us each play two characters. The DM thinks this would disrupt good role playing.
The other player has already made a wizard with crazy leadership, and a rogue cohort only one level lower. I guess with some sort of feat. And improved familiar. With this in mind I thought I could make a druid with wild cohort. Thus somewhat taking the roles of Arcane and divine spellcasters, skillfull and forgive the term Meatshield.

Suggestions to our current plan? Suggestions for a new one?
Thanks
Play Gestalt (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/gestaltCharacters.htm); one of you is a Druid//Wizard, the other a Druid//Ninja (or Druid//Rogue). You both take combat-capable animal companions.

The Druid//Wizard is a tough Arcanist with some Divine backing. The Druid//Ninja is the skillmonkey with some divine backing. The two animal companions are 3/4th's meatshields. More, if you can convince your DM that the Natural Bond feat (Complete Adventurer) improves the level-adjusted animal companions.

Eldariel
2009-05-17, 07:14 PM
Gestalt works. Failing that however, standard classes work too, especially if both play casting, or a generic dual threat (that is, a character capable of two things, such as Gish or Druid). In fact, Druid and Wizard makes for a great party with Druid and Animal Companion tanking and Wizard and Familiar support casting. The Wizard can be a Rogue 1/Wizard 4/Unseen Seer if you feel the need for Roguish skills.

Or if the campaign isn't that cutthroat (or if you're two or so levels above the established guideline), a tier 2-3 party such as Warlock+Crusader or Beguiler+Warblade could also work. Just make sure you've got someone capable of using Wands/healing, someone capable of tanking and preferably someone to hit the saves on really tough brutes, and use weakening abilities on BBEGs. And depending on DM, someone with Trapfinding might be a good idea (otherwise you could work around them).

Other ways are possible too though. Mostly just scale difficulty down a bit, and add a DMPC (I personally like DMPCs) or have someone pick Leadership or some such. The works.

Iku Rex
2009-05-17, 07:39 PM
Add 2 or 3 levels to your characters. You should be roughly equal to a party of 5 lower level characters.

Biffoniacus_Furiou
2009-05-17, 07:40 PM
I'll agree that Gestalt or at least two Tier 1 characters should be fairly capable of handling a game. Someone should definitely play a Druid, get Natural Bond with a Fleshraker and Natural Spell. The other could be a Wizard, Archivist, a Cloistered Cleric with the Kobold domain, or even an Illumian Beguiler 1/ Wizard 1/ Master Specialist 3/ Ultimate Magus, putting 10/10 UM spellcasting toward Wizard. If you're going to get an NPC, maybe get a tanky Crusader or Cleric, or maybe a Dragonfire Inspiration Bard if he can build one properly. If Gestalt, I'd go for a Druid/Swordsage and probably a Beguiler/Archivist.

Sstoopidtallkid
2009-05-17, 08:05 PM
Either dual-threat characters(Druid, Beguiler, Swordsage, Dread Necro, Malconvoker, Artificer, etc), Gestalt(for automatic dual-threatness), or lots of followers. You may be a divine caster, and he an arcanist, and your cohort a meatshield, but the 6 level 4 Rogue followers using Aid Another can compensate for lack of a normal trapfinder.

Basically, the party needs 5 in-combat roles: Big, stupid fighter:Draws fire, dishes out same. Can be accomplished by summons or an Animal Companion.
Glass Cannon:Dishes out fire, avoids same. Can be forgotten with a decent BSF, but fights will take longer.
Buffer:Turns the Big Stupid Fighter into a tank and the Glass Cannon into a Big Stupid Fighter with bonus damage. Generally necessary if the BSF and GC are weaker, can be a cohort.
Debuffer:Turns the Big Bad Evil Guy into a Little Blind Evil Housecat. Funny, if not always needed, can't be done by any non-PC.
God:Turns the empty field into a slippery, demon-infested horror of flaming tentacles, then allows one enemy at a time to escape into the welcoming blades of the BSF and GC. Again, very nice, but not necessary, can be a cohort.

The above was shamelessly paraphrased from Treantmonklvl20's god wizard guide.

Crow
2009-05-17, 08:10 PM
Play it thorugh as-is with normal characters. You'll have to think creatively to make up for the missing roles in the "party", and if you make it, it will be heroic as hell.

Zain
2009-05-17, 09:07 PM
If you can, try and multiclass to a cleric for a few levels, in a game i'm running one player is a Druid1/Cleric1 and gets about 10-15 spells per day, many of them are healing (helpfull in small partys like this)

Eldariel
2009-05-17, 09:08 PM
If you can, try and multiclass to a cleric for a few levels, in a game i'm running one player is a Druid1/Cleric1 and gets about 10-15 spells per day, many of them are healing (helpfull in small partys like this)

I find it easier to just use Wands of Lesser Vigor. Later, if packing a true Cleric, DMM Persist: Mass Lesser Vigor.