In explaining Pathfinder classes to people who have no RPG experience, I often find myself trying to use example from popular media: movies, TV, comics, books, etc.

So I have a partial list here:

Alchemist: Full Metal Alchemist
Antipaladin: ?
Barbarian: Conan the Barbarian, Shrek
Bard: Alan-a-Dale, Orpheus, Taliesin
Cavalier: Xena Warrior Princess, El Cid, King Arthur
Cleric: Friar Tuck
Druid: Poison Ivy from Batman
Fighter: Boromir/Faramir from Lord of the Rings
Gunslinger: any western movie
Inquisitor: Van Helsing
Magus: ?
Monk: David Carradine in Kung Fu, Kevin Sorbo as Hercules
Ninja: Any ninja movie
Oracle: ?
Paladin: Sir Galahad
Ranger: Aragorn from Lord of the Rings, Robin Hood
Rogue: Captain Jack Sparrow,
Samurai: Last Samurai with Tom Cruise
Sorcerer: Howl from Howl's Moving Castle
Summoner: Pete's Dragon
Witch: Sabrina the Teenage Witch
Wizard: Harry Potter

Anybody have other examples?

Alchemist: Miracle Max from Princess BRide.
Anti-paladin: Deathknights or the Lich King from WoW. Shadowknights from EQ/EQ2.
Magus: Jedi. Fedaikin warriors from Dune. Mua'Dib.
Oracle: The oracle at Delphi, from any of Homer's works. James Earl Jone's character from the Conan movie.
Ranger: Fremen from Dune
Witch: Bavmorda from Willow

I always figured Xena for more Barbarian personally.

Gunslinger: Roland of Gilead from The Dark Tower. Full stop.

Magus: Magus from Chrono Trigger (though sadly you can't pull off the scythe thing, due to having to use 1-handed weapons), Terra and Celes from Final Fantasy VI, the Wardens (primarily Donald Morgan, Anastasia Luccio, and Carlos Ramirez) from The Dresden Files

Paladin: Michael Carpenter from The Dresden Files

Summoner: Yuna from Final Fantasy X
> Synthesis Summoner: The Knights of the Blackened Denarius from The Dresden Files. Their Fallen is their Eidolon.

Sorcerer: Harry Dresden from The Dresden Files (yes he calls himself a wizard, but his descriptions of himself - all force, heavy focus on blasting, very little ability with "subtle magic", etc - scream Sorc)

For samurai, any number of characters from Shogun or various Akira Kurosawa movies (Yojimbo, Sanjuro, Seven Samurai, etc.)

Alchemist: Mad MAx from Pirincess BRide.

I think it's Miracle Max. Mad max was a completely different movie :)

-TM

Oh jeez some of that list is brutalizing my brain. I like The Last Samurai, but I wouldn't use Tom Cruise to define the genre. Same goes for Harry Potter. Try Gandalf instead. And in what way is Friar Tuck a cleric?

Right you are...fixed.

I think Poison Ivy is more of a Sorceress with the Fey bloodline, considering she isn't particullary fond of animals, can't wildshape and is not a very good melee combatent. And more importantly, remember her focus on enchantment and hot... err... high Charisma score.

Now that I think about it, many Batman villains could make cool PF characters...

Magus: How about the protagonist from BioShock?

And in what way is Friar Tuck a cleric?

He's not really a Monk in D&D/PF terms. He might be closer to Adept, or simply an Expert with lots of religious knowledge and capabilities, since obviously we never see him cast.

the cast of Full Metal Alchemist would really be better represented a bunch of multiclass transmutation focused sorcerers of more martial bloodlines.

the better way to explain the alchemist would be Eirin Yagokoro of the touhou project, Doctor Frankenstein, ETC.

Monk: David Carradine in Kung Fu, Kevin Sorbo as Hercules

I think Sorbo's Hercules would be more akin to an unarmed fighter than a monk. His buddy Iolaus, played by Michael Hurst, would be a monk.

Xena's friend Gabrielle, played by Renee O'Connor, might be a monk/bard.

As long as we're on the Hercules/Xena show, don't forget Bruce Campbell's character, Autolycus: The King of Theives. What a roguish man!

Kull the Conquerer would be another barbarian. He even used an ax as his weapon. What? No one has ever heard of Kull the Conquerer? Come on! It was fantastically horrible!

The new Snow White and the Huntsman movie has a fantastic two weapon ax fighter in it.

Samurai: Last Samurai with Tom Cruise

You can refer them to the work of Akira Kurosawa and they will probably not only enjoy the movie more, but also have a more accurate representation of what a Samurai is supposed to be like.

Using anime and a few movies here

Barbarian: Guts from Berserk, Orson from Record of Lodoss
Cleric: Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun and Sylphiel Nels Lahda from slayers, Etoh from Record of Lodoss
Fighter: Gourry Gabriev from slayers, Shiris from Record of Lodoss
Gunslinger: Vash the stamped and Nick Wolfwood from Trigun
Magus: Zelgadis Greywords from slayers
Monk: Crown Prince Philionel El Di Seyruun from Slayers
Paladin: Parn from Record of Lodoss
Ranger: San from Princess Mononoke
Rogue: Riddick from Pitchblack, Woodchuck from Record of Lodoss (OVA)
Samurai: Ashitaka and Samurai from Princess Mononoke
Sorcerer: Orphen from Orphan, Lina Inverse from slayers,
Witch: Karla The Grey Witch from Record of Lodoss,
Wizard: Gandalf from Lord of the Rings, Wagnard from Record of Lodoss

The Court Jester makes a great bard, and it's a fantastic movie. Highly recommend it.

Hannibal Lecter might be a vivisectionist alchemist.

Prince Fabious, played by James Franco in Your Highness makes for an amusing paladin. (If you haven't seen it, it has very bawdy humor in it)

The Graeae of Roman mythology is a great example of three oracles working together.

darth_borehd wrote:

Samurai: Last Samurai with Tom Cruise

You can refer them to the work of Akira Kurosawa and they will probably not only enjoy the movie more, but also have a more accurate representation of what a Samurai is supposed to be like.

Absolutely. Those are some fantastic movies. Especially Seven Samurai.

Using anime and a few movies here

Barbarian: Guts from Berserk, Orson from Record of Lodoss
Cleric: Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun and Sylphiel Nels Lahda from slayers, Etoh from Record of Lodoss
Fighter: Gourry Gabriev from slayers, Shiris from Record of Lodoss
Gunslinger: Vash the stamped and Nick Wolfwood from Trigun
Magus: Zelgadis Greywords from slayers
Monk: Crown Prince Philionel El Di Seyruun from Slayers
Paladin: Parn from Record of Lodoss
Ranger: San from Princess Mononoke
Rogue: Riddick from Pitchblack, Woodchuck from Record of Lodoss (OVA)
Samurai: Ashitaka and Samurai from Princess Mononoke
Sorcerer: Orphen from Orphan, Lina Inverse from slayers,
Witch: Karla The Grey Witch from Record of Lodoss,
Wizard: Gandalf from Lord of the Rings, Wagnard from Record of Lodoss

It's been forever since I've seen Record of Lodoss War. I figured some of them would fit pretty well, but there's no way I'd be able to remember all their names and characters. I think I still have the VHS (all 6 cassettes in a box set) of it somewhere in storage.

I'd heard Lodoss was pretty much directly based off one/some of the creators' D&D game, so this is unsurprising.

In explaining Pathfinder classes to people who have no RPG experience, I often find myself trying to use example from popular media: movies, TV, comics, books, etc.

Cleric: Odo, Bishop of Bayeux from the Bayeux tapestry. (I still twitch a little every time I see a cleric armed with a slashing or piercing weapon.)

I'd heard Lodoss was pretty much directly based off one/some of the creators' D&D game, so this is unsurprising.

Actually, I think it was based off Sword World, basically a Japanese knockoff of D&D.

I always thought of Faramir for a ranger (even if he is not a capital-R ranger in the story) since he is hiding out in the woods. I think Witch is pretty familiar from Wizard of Oz and any number of fairy tales. Oracle could be Whoopi Goldberg in Ghost. Westley from the Princess Bride is a good rogue. Frankenstein (as mentioned above) is the perfect alchemist. Dr. Van Helsing from Dracula (or any other Vampire Slayer type character) would be an Inquisitor. Beorn from The Hobbit (They'll know about him after the movies come out.) is a good wildshaping Druid.

Come to think of it Disney movies are a pretty good source for comparisons.

Tarzan-Ranger
Hercules-Fighter
Aladdin-Rogue all the way
Wicked Queen (Sleeping Beauty)-Witch
Maleficent (Snow White)-Sorceress

For cleric, I always think of the Hospitaler character played by David Thewlis in Kingdom of Heaven. Sure, it is a historical film, so obviously he doesn't cast, but he is clearly seen as the spiritual leader of the group of crusaders. But, you know, with a mace and he hits stuff.

Gandalf is more sorcerer than wizard. In fact nearly every fantasy wizard not based on D&D or written by Jack Vance is a sorcerer. And any Vance wizard outside the Dying Earth setting is also a sorcerer. I think Amberites hang spells, but that's pretty much it.

For my two cents, i've always described the rogue as either Solid Snake (For stealthy DPS rogue) or James Bond (For the more social rogue)

Using anime and a few movies here

Barbarian: Guts from Berserk, Orson from Record of Lodoss
Cleric: Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun and Sylphiel Nels Lahda from slayers, Etoh from Record of Lodoss
Fighter: Gourry Gabriev from slayers, Shiris from Record of Lodoss
Gunslinger: Vash the stamped and Nick Wolfwood from Trigun
Magus: Zelgadis Greywords from slayers
Monk: Crown Prince Philionel El Di Seyruun from Slayers
Paladin: Parn from Record of Lodoss
Ranger: San from Princess Mononoke
Rogue: Riddick from Pitchblack, Woodchuck from Record of Lodoss (OVA)
Samurai: Ashitaka and Samurai from Princess Mononoke
Sorcerer: Orphen from Orphan, Lina Inverse from slayers,
Witch: Karla The Grey Witch from Record of Lodoss,
Wizard: Gandalf from Lord of the Rings, Wagnard from Record of Lodoss

Guts is really a Fighter/Barbarian Gestalt. Yes he rages but his swordsmanship is unmatched even by apostles.

Another candidate for synthesis is the Saints from Saint Seiya. Their holy clothes are alive.

Read at Own Risk!:

Mua'Dib

Whoa, man! Somebody might read that out loud!

I think Poison Ivy is more of a Sorceress with the Fey bloodline, considering she isn't particullary fond of animals, can't wildshape and is not a very good melee combatent. And more importantly, remember her focus on enchantment and hot... err... high Charisma score.

Now that I think about it, many Batman villains could make cool PF characters...

Magus: How about the protagonist from BioShock?

I am currently playing an Urban Ranger as the Batman in my Monday night game. His name is Nolan Bale, aka, the Wyvren.

We fought a cleric this week who hit me with a fear spell (rolled a 1), later my GM said we may have just witnessed the birth of the Scarecrow.

I don't know why this got moved to conversions... its not converting some premade character to the game... its trying to describe to someone who has never played before each of the classes.

for those who have seen the old tv show (or the val kilmer movie)saint, rogue. i actually used this very reference for a friend of mine who loved the movie.

Sorcerer: Harry Dresden from The Dresden Files (yes he calls himself a wizard, but his descriptions of himself - all force, heavy focus on blasting, very little ability with "subtle magic", etc - scream Sorc)

I'd disagree personally, he's just an Evocation Wizard. (Or possibly a Sorc/Wiz multiclass)

He's had to learn all of his spells none of them come naturally to him without knowing how they work, he can and does learn and develop new spells (a wizard can in character learn and develop new spells while a sorcerer just has a series of powers that unlock as he gets powerful enough to cast them).

He requires various foci to be able to actually cast anything properly in the first place (so multiple bonded objects)

I'm surprised nobody has suggested Darth Vader for Anti-Paladin yet, martial prowess and dark force powers make him the most obvious choice for me.

Eh we'll have to agree to disagree on that. Frankly I think the absolute best way to portray him is the Dreamscarred psionics Wilder - the ability to focus emotions to empower the spell works with the Wild Surge, and the ability to just plain pour more power into an individual spell to make it have more oomph works with the psionic Augment system. Also Wilders have 3/4 BAB and D8 HD, giving them a closer equivalent to the "gets beaten down repeatedly but never quite dies" that Dresden embodies where the squishier D6 HD of a Wizard or Sorc wouldn't quite hold up. (Though I imagine he's got a pretty impressive Con...)

But since they were limiting the list to Paizo classes I obviously couldn't go that route ;)

Also Sorcs (and other spont casters, and psionicists) can spend both Favored Class bonuses and Feats to learn new spells, so there's that.

But we're off track ;)

Really? No one has mentioned Solomon Kane as an archetypical inquisitor? He's the first character I thought of when I read the APG, and as for Conan, I'd label him a multiclass barb/fighter/rogue.

Alchemist: The Green Goblin from Spiderman (glider is just Wings discovery refluffed :p)

Barbarian: Orson, though he's more of a 3E Frenzied Berserker. Potentially any hot blooded hero, like Domon from G Gundam.

Monk: "You know in movies, those 'ninjas' that come out in mass, doing all sorts of flashy somersaults, flips, and kata, only to whiff wildly repeatedly and be defeated with pitiful ease?"

Witch: Lelouch from Code Geass, Slumber = bowing before their king.

Alchemist: Atelier's Arland trilogy.
Fighter: Link from Legend of Zelda (You are utterly boned without lots of magic items and situations built for your build/items.)
Gunslinger: Wild Arms series

3.5 classes:
Artificer: Batman

Orthos wrote:

Sorcerer: Harry Dresden from The Dresden Files (yes he calls himself a wizard, but his descriptions of himself - all force, heavy focus on blasting, very little ability with "subtle magic", etc - scream Sorc)

I'd disagree personally, he's just an Evocation Wizard. (Or possibly a Sorc/Wiz multiclass)

He's had to learn all of his spells none of them come naturally to him without knowing how they work, he can and does learn and develop new spells (a wizard can in character learn and develop new spells while a sorcerer just has a series of powers that unlock as he gets powerful enough to cast them).

He requires various foci to be able to actually cast anything properly in the first place (so multiple bonded objects)

Dresden Files

I'm surprised nobody has suggested Darth Vader for Anti-Paladin yet, martial prowess and dark force powers make him the most obvious choice for me.

That might work but I think the Jedi/Sith are more the magus class.

Alchemist: Getafix (Gaulish druid)

Barbarian: Obelix (Gaulish menhir delivery man and warrior)

Bard: Cacofonix (Gaulish bard)

:)

How about some marvel characters? :)

Hulk: Barbarian (obviously)
Captain America: Fighter
Hawkeye: Ranger
Iron Man: This one's tricky, any character wearing a construct as armor?
Thor: Fighter or Barbarian
Black Widow: Gunslinger or Monk/Ranger

Wolverine: Barbarian or Ranger (maybe a multiclass or gestalt of those two)
Spider-Man: Rogue/Monk or maybe Ranger
Storm: Sorcerer (Elemental/Stormborn) or Oracle (Wind)
Dr. Strange: Sorcerer
Human Torch: Sorcerer (Elemental) or Oracle (Fire)
Invisible Woman: Sorcerer i think?
Jean Grey: Sorcerer (Elemental)/Psionic gestalt?

___

Garnet/Dagger from Final Fantasy IX: Summoner/Cleric
Ryu from Breath of Fire: Magus

ok can't think of anything else atm

Iron Man is a Synthesist Summoner that got some blasty spells on his spell list, either by trading out other spells or using a race like Samsaran to just plain add them in.

Thor is a Magus or Fighter/Sorc/Eldritch Knight, and has at least 10 HD on everyone else, except maybe the Hulk.

Spiderman is hard to make out of PF classes... Probably synthesist, but nothing really fits.

Human Torch should really either be a Pyrokineticist or Elemental Savant, both 3E prestige classes.

Invisible Woman: Ninja?

Jean Grey: Telepath psion, or Witch.

@Aeroraver: There's the Aegis psionic class from Dreamscarred (in one of their updates that'll lead into Ultimate Psionics); the class plays like a psionic synthesis instead of an eidolon, it's psionically attached ectoplasm armor. That class is pretty awesome looking.

Most Liam Neeson characters = ranger (favored enemy-humans or wolves)

Burn Notice
Michael Weston - Monk/Gunslinger (Mysterious Stranger)/Master Spy (of course)
Fiona Glenanne - Alchemist/Gunslinger
Sam Axe - Ranger/Gunslinger
Jesse Porter - Gunslinger (one with extar skills mind you)

Mass Effect 1
Shepard - whatever you want Shep to be
Garrus - Ranger
Tali - Summoner
Liara/Kaiden - Sorceror/Psion
Ashley - Gunslinger
Wrex - Guntank/Urban Barbarian (he kept his head cooler than other Krogan, hence the Urban change)

Iron Man is a Synthesist Summoner that got some blasty spells on his spell list, either by trading out other spells or using a race like Samsaran to just plain add them in.

Thor is a Magus or Fighter/Sorc/Eldritch Knight, and has at least 10 HD on everyone else, except maybe the Hulk.

Spiderman is hard to make out of PF classes... Probably synthesist, but nothing really fits.

Human Torch should really either be a Pyrokineticist or Elemental Savant, both 3E prestige classes.

Invisible Woman: Ninja?

Jean Grey: Telepath psion, or Witch.

I didn't even think of the Synthesist Summoner for Iron Man, but that would make sense.

Spiderman is hard to make yeah, i went with those, because of his agility, and sometimes stealthy skills.

For Thor I went with that, seeing most of his "magical" powers are derived from his hammer, I agree with the 10 HD, both, now that you mention the Magus and Fighter/Sorc/EK, they seem to fit as well.

The ninja class seems valid

I tried to go with the classes mentioned in the first post(the PF classes) though I messed up when I used the Psion class.

Though I agree with those classes.

---

here's some more:

Link: Ranger or Ranger/Sorc/Arcane Archer, depending on what game.

Zelda: Sorcerer, Ninja, or Ranger/Sorc/Arcane Archer, depending on what game.

Deadpool: Fighter or Ranger with firearms and katana's, though there is his Teleportation Device, either mixed with sorcerer or just a magic item that let's him teleport

Netto Hikari(and Rockman.EXE): Synthesist Summoner

Beet the Vandel Buster (and the rest of the cast): Magus (though their Saiga's resemble the Paladin's Bonded Weapon)

Elemental Benders from Avatar: Oracle (as stated in a different topic)

Dastan (Prince of Persia Movie): Noble/Ranger

Dr. Doom: Sorcerer

Black Cat: Ninja

Burn Notice

Michael Weston - Monk/Gunslinger (Mysterious Stranger)/Master Spy (of course)
Fiona Glenanne - Alchemist/Gunslinger
Sam Axe - Ranger/Gunslinger
Jesse Porter - Gunslinger (one with extar skills mind you)

I think you're focusing too much on the fact that they all use guns b/c it's set in modern times...

I also don't think PF classes work at all for them, either.

Michael would be best built as some sort of multiclassed Factotum from 3E, or possibly an Akashic from Arcana Evolved. Both are high skill classes that can do kung fu when necessary, and MacGuyver random skills and knowledge out of nowhere, and heavily benefit from high Int.

There just is no good "bomber" class, alchemist has to do I guess.... but it really doesn't cut it and includes a lot of extra crap that doesn't fit.

No idea what the heck Sam would be. Possibly some full BAB class into Nightsong Enforcer prestige class.

Jesse...even less sure. Apparently he's the tech guy, sort of... so maybe 3E Artificer.

Another Magus example for those anime fans out there would be most of Bleach's Shinigami. They're pretty much all Bladebound Magi, although Kenpachi is probably a good Kensai example.