Variant rule: favored class [3.x]

[TheThan]

Favored class defines what class a race is inherently good at. It does not count towards experience point penalties when a character multi-classes. but since multi-classing is fairly week and most Dms house rule experience penalties away anyway I've decided its past time to make favored class actually have a mechanical effect (a benefit even) on your character.

So I present a homebrewed variant rule for favored classes. In order to keep this OGL compliant I am only going to list classes that are currently in the 3.x SRD. This is mostly done except for the soul knife and druid. If you have any ideas for them, feel free to pass them along. Also I’m looking for constructive criticism so feel free to give it.


Favored Class: Any
A character with a favored class of any gains the effect of one of the following favored class effects, depending on which class he chooses at 1st level.

Favored class: barbarian
A character with a favored class barbarian gains an additional use of the barbarian rage class feature

Favored class: bard
A character with the favored class bard gains the trapfinding class feature at 1st level.

Favored class: cleric
A character with the favored class cleric gains an additional domain spell.

Favored class: druid
A character with the favored class druid gains ???

Favored class: fighter
A character with the favored class fighter gains spot and listen as class skills and his skill points per level increases from 2+ int modifier to 4+ int modifier

Favored class: monk
A character with the favored class monk gains +1 bonus on all melee attacks

Favored class: paladin
A character with the favored class paladin gains an additional use of his smite evil class feature

Favored class: ranger
A character with the favored class ranger gains an additional combat style; he may choose power attack, for his combat style feat, cleave for his improved combat style feat, and great cleave for his combat style mastery feat. he may still choose archery or TWF if he so chooses.

Favored class: rogue
A character with the favored class rogue’s sneak attack class feature improves from D6s to D8s

Favored class: sorcerer
A character with the favored class sorcerer gains one additional spell known at 1st level.

Favored class: wizard
A character with the favored class wizard gains a +2 dodge bonus to his familiar’s armor class

Favored class: psion
A character with the favored class gains ???

Favored class: psychic warrior
A character with the favored class psychic warrior may choose 1 power from the psion/wilder powers list and add to his powers list. The power must be of 6th level or lower and must be chosen at the 1st level of psychic warrior, regardless of the level of the power.

Favored class: soul knife
A character with the favored class ????

Favored class: wilder
A character with the favored class wilder gains one additional power known at 1st level (wilder 1 only)



Edit:

Changes:
Wilder
Sorcerer
Fighter
Cleric
Bard

Psion (re-working ability)
Ranger (clarifications only)

[Eloel]

Favored class: barbarian
A character with a favored class barbarian gains an additional use of the barbarian rage class feature
Worth half a subpar feat (Extra Rage)

Favored class: bard
A character with the favored class bard gains an additional use of the bardic music class feature
I'd say this is worth less than +1 rage, merely due to % increase.


Favored class: cleric
A character with the favored class cleric gains an additional domain

A free Devotion feat. Devotion feats are -good-.


Favored class: fighter
A character with the favored class fighter gains spot and listen as class skills
They still have basically 1 or 2 skill points per level. They won't be able to max them, so, say, about on par with Alertness (a "fail" feat)


Favored class: monk
A character with the favored class monk gains +1 bonus on all melee attacks
Weapon Focus: Unarmed. Not bad.


Favored class: paladin
A character with the favored class paladin gains an additional use of his smite evil class feature
Better than the +Rage due to % increase.

Favored class: ranger
A character with the favored class ranger gains an additional combat style; he may choose power attack, cleave and great cleave for his combat style feats.
They get, nothing? Ouch.


Favored class: rogue
A character with the favored class rogue’s sneak attack class feature improves from D6s to D8s
Half craven (on average), without the negative on fear effects. Meh, good, I guess.


Favored class: sorcerer
A character with the favored class sorcerer gains one additional spell known per spell level
Way. Too. Powerful. Sorcerers are starved for spells known, and extras are too good to pass. I think there's a feat that gives +1 spell known, and 10 of that is just too good.


Favored class: wizard
A character with the favored class wizard gains a +2 dodge bonus to his familiar’s armor class
There are wizards that keep their familiars? That is news to me. Pointless.

Favored class: psion
A character with the favored class gains access to one additional discipline
+3 class skills (already passed the fighter) while int based? AND extra powers to choose from. I'd say this is too powerful. Not as bad as Sorcerer, but needs to be toned down.


Favored class: psychic warrior
A character with the favored class psychic warrior may choose 1 power from the psion/wilder powers list and add to his powers list. The power must be of 6th level or lower and must be chosen at the 1st level of psychic warrior, regardless of the level of the power.
Worse than 1 free feat. Err, ok, I guess.


Favored class: wilder
A character with the favored class wilder gains one additional power known at 1st level (wilder 1 only)

1/10 of what a sorcerer gains, number-wise, even worse when you realize +1 1st level power is pointless against +1 9th level spell.

Good idea, but balance is all over the place.

[TheThan]

Aside from some things being compared to non OGL stuff (which is beyond the scope of this project) I would like some clarifications on some things. keep in mind I didn’t want this project to give players a huge bonuses, just a little extra benefits for playing favored classes.


1: what do you mean by % increase?
2: whats a devotion feat? also if “-good-“ means what I think it means, I probably ought to avoid it for balance reasons.
3: for the ranger how is gaining free access to the best melee feat chain in core bad?
4: what’s craven?

You got me on the sorcerer/wilder, that is actually a mistake I didn’t catch. They are supposed to be about the same thing. I didn’t realize I made the sorcerer one so strong. Also the wizard one is intentional since well they’re so powerful to begin with. For the fighter I can probably up their skills to 4+ int as well and it’ll be fine. the monk is actually better than what your thinking. As it’ll apply to all melee attacks with weapons, not just their fists, not that monks use anything other than their fists as weapons.

I’ll get to work on rebalancing it.

[Eloel]

1: what do you mean by % increase?
+1 is a 5% increase if you already have 20 of it. It's a 25% increase if you have 4 of it. Bardic Music already exists in heaps, Rage? Not so much.

2: whats a devotion feat? also if “-good-“ means what I think it means, I probably ought to avoid it for balance reasons.
You can trade domains for devotion feats in Complete Champion. Even if not, an extra domain is a LOT of power added to the cleric, since domains like War grant a feat anyway.

3: for the ranger how is gaining free access to the best melee feat chain in core bad?
No. Just no. Power Attack is good. Cleave is meh. Great Cleave is useless. Also, THF doesn't make much sense with a Ranger. Also, it doesn't add -anything-. Try granting all 3 for free, and you'll be closer to the power of cleric domain.
Or make the effective druid level for AC = their level, and grant the Mounted Combat/Ride-by Attack/Spirited Charge (the actual most powerful melee feat chain in core) as an option.

4: what’s craven?
+level on sneak attack damage. A feat.


The monk is actually better than what your thinking. As it’ll apply to all melee attacks with weapons, not just their fists, not that monks use anything other than their fists as weapons.

Exactly. Monks already suck, and granting them +1 to hit doesn't solve anything. Make their BAB = their level, and they'll catch up with a Druid's animal companion in terms of melee power.

[TheThan]

Now that you’ve explained it, I guess I’ll have to rework the bardic music. Might give them trapfinding ala rogue, I think there needs to be an alternative to the rogue in core anyway (every other role has an alternate).

The extra domain is more powerful than I initially recalled, so I think I am going to have to come up with something else. Maybe if I just grant extra domain spells but not the abilities? not sure on that.

I haven’t updated the OP yet, I’ll do that next. Thanks for the info thusfar. Let me know what you think.

edit:
why doesn't it make sense for rangers to get THF? I mean its very easy to imagine a hunter in the woods with his great axe slung over his shoulder. also i'm not sure i was clear, he may choose power attack instead of TWF or rapid shot, cleave instead of many shot or improved TWF, and great cleave over improved precise shot or greater TWF. the idea is to give the ranger class more options than the two they're stuck with.

[jvluso]

The problem is not that it does not make sense for rangers to THF. The problem is that while everyone else gets a direct benefit, rangers get an option. They can chose to not use the new combat style, and gain no benefit from the favored class, or to use the balanced option, and have no increase in power over choosing not to.

[Eloel]

The problem is not that it does not make sense for rangers to THF.
It actually is, at least to me. Ranger, to me, implies finesse. The guy with axe over his shoulder is a Barbarian, to me. They CAN be refluffed though, it's ok.

The problem is that while everyone else gets a direct benefit, rangers get an option. They can chose to not use the new combat style, and gain no benefit from the favored class, or to use the balanced option, and have no increase in power over choosing not to.


Better put in words than I ever could. Thanks.

Also, when you add in Dragon material, you get:


Bear-Wrestling (DR326 p97)
Improved Unarmed Strike
Improved Grapple
Stunning Fist

Mounted-Combat (DR326 p97)
Ride-By Attack
Spirited Charge
Trample

Piscator (DR326 p97)
Exotic Weapon Proficiency (net)
Improved Trip
Improved Critical

Ranged (PH p46)
Rapid Shot
Manyshot
Improved Precise Shot

Strong-Arm (DR326 p97)
Power Attack
Improved Sunder
Great Cleave

Throwing (DR326 p97)
Quick Draw
Point Blank Shot
Far Shot

Two-Weapon (PH p46)
Two-Weapon Fighting
Improved Two-Weapon Fighting
Greater Two-Weapon Fighting

So, by RAW (Dragon is RAW, even if rarely used), you're not adding anything.

Edit: And adding in that benefit for Favored Class: Ranger implies all FC:Ranger races will be stronger than they are dexterous. That is way too broad to be true.

[Temotei]

So, favored class is now just a racial feature, right? It doesn't matter what class levels you take--you still get Listen and Spot as class skills, plus 4 + Int modifier skill points per level as a wizard when your favored class is fighter.

I'm sure that's not how you wanted it to happen, so perhaps you could just add a little thing saying that any character that takes levels in their favored class gains those benefits for that class.

[DracoDei]

Since you are focused on core, does that mean that the fact that I made Familiars a class feature worth using is irrelevant?

Temotei: I am pretty sure you only get the benefit if you take at least one level in that class. It improves that specific class for the character, not the character itself.

[Temotei]

Temotei: I am pretty sure you only get the benefit if you take at least one level in that class. It improves that specific class for the character, not the character itself.

That's what's intended, but not what's written. It'd be best to cover that base.

[Lix Lorn]

The obvious Ranger thing for me would be to boost the level of their Animal companion.