These are purley my opinions, of course, but they seem accurate by RAW.
|
|
|
|
imagine a centaur ranger if it wants to play with a bow and do hit and run tactics, the feat it should have is shot on the run or mounted archery?
Shot on the Run
now imagine it as a cavalier or a paladin does it benefist from the mount abilities?
No
does it benefits from the cavalier charging abilities?
No, but it would be a reasonable house rule to allow it.
and of course does it benefits from using a lance?
No, but it would be a reasonable house rule to allow it.
and lastely can it use spirited charge feat?
No, but it would be a reasonable house rule to allow it.
I think making a centaur cavalier is a bit of a waste, as one of the biggest advantages of the class is getting a mount. A centaur Fighter, Paladin, Ranger, or Barbarian would be stronger.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Make a centaur Huntmaster cavalier, give him a dog or two.
RAW, they don't. Yet I've house-ruled that a centaur counts as mounted in certain respects.
I understand the intent is not to make something overpowered by min-maxing standards.
Conceptually, however, I think the idea is awesome.
I think the bigger problem is in regards to the scale of power to ability, and making it work out.
Some of the techniques that a 'mounted' warrior uses depends on two separate minds working, more or less, in tandem, with certain differences in timing between mount and rider accounted-for in the training and developing of said techniques. Some are tied in part to the differences in positioning between a mounted human and a centaurs torso vis a vis the cavalier mounted combat.
Given how an equine lower body is a part of the centaur, and not a mount, I could see an archetype being written to reflect the differences, effectively applying the mount talents and abilities to feats relevant to a quadrupedal being. Challenges would require no changes, as far as I can tell, along with orders. Instead of a mount, convert the ability to something like Improved Barding that gives a reduced armor check penalty to maneuvers or similar, in addition to something to replace the link and devotion abilities of an animal companion. Quite probably, something akin to a warriors skill training would replace Expert Trainer, allowing a quadrupedal race member to apply mount feats to themselves, rather than requiring a separate mount.
A centaur in a parade yard, practicing his footwork to match that of his equestrian peers would be quite a sight. I could see the individual in question also having an advantage of superior coordination and 'hoof-work' to be more nimble in some circumstances than a comparable man-and-horse pairing.
So I've been thinking on this concept some more, in part due to a bit of a nostalgia blast hitting me full in the face the other day, and I find myself wondering how much of the call for centaur cavaliers springs from the Shining Force series of games, and how much is from Golden Axe: Revenge of Death Adder.
This got me thinking on the niche roles of characters with adventuring classes in centaur society, such as it is.
Centaurs are often portrayed as barbaric, so correspondingly centaur barbarians are probably not the most unlikely of combinations. Bards among centaur would be especially plausible, depending on what culture is being paralleled/referenced. As a race, I don't see centaurs being especially cleric-prone, though of course there are more than enough justifiable exceptions or reasons to make that view incorrect - being a particular deity's pet project, or having some ancestral obligation to fulfill in return for a racial blessing/curse. Druids strike me as being an especially interesting prospect purely for the fact that they can keep a centaur society 'wild' and free, while sustainable on the resources front by coaxing nature into giving more food for their people - additionally, the question of whether or not a centaur could wild-shape to a human form is cause for amusement. Fighters would be the likely default types who aren't furious enough to go the barbarian route. Monks would be rare-to-nonexistent; the same would apply to paladins, by default, from my perspective. Rangers would abound, and rogues would be more scouts than lock-picking trap-poppers, though in an area where they were enslaved, I would see the local centaurs keeping those trap disabling talents. Sorcerers would be far more likely than wizards, barring an approach closer to the Grecian model of philosopher-centaurs being a rare offshoot of the normal sorts.
I could imagine alchemists being semi-uncommon among centaurs, mostly for lack of labs for the vials and such; however, I could see them making poultices and crafting variant containers for their workings, resembling more a hedge-wizard or healer than the typical Mad quasi-Scientist archetype frequently portrayed. Cavaliers, while likely very uncommon, strike me as arising from the sorts of centaur who would not be as reticent about facing the non-pastoral world, and wanting to militarize for the defense of their people - I would think of them filling a very specialized role in their use of barding and armor if played in a sort of neoclassical Grecian manner. Gunslingers I don't see happening in my own default take, but others might. Inquisitors might arise if there's a concerted effort to keep centaurs rural and pastoral, to discourage those who want to innovate or urbanize from such heretical pursuits. Magi would probably not be terribly common or popular, but I could see a place for them in such a society as well. Oracles seem far more probable to me as a divine conduit than clerics for a centaur society. Summoners I'd not heavily considered, but as a whole it would be less likely than a centaur druid for purposes of mystically conjuring allies to assist their people. Witches, however, would be quite probable as well, given the most commonly sourced inspiration for centaurs.
Of course, that would only apply to how I tend to play centaurs - skewing closer to the simple folk of the wilds and distant places, who don't particularly like outsiders and prefer to mind their own, or keep company with the fey and with elves. I keep them one 'technology' behind the nearest society, where I can help it, not making them inherently Bronze-Age savages, but less likely to adopt more effective metallurgy without becoming closer to what other races might consider 'civilized'.
This is probably why I think of paladin and cavalier centaurs as both rare and fascinating - there's a certain mindset required to go far afield of one's peoples' norms for their benefit, and I can't help but be compelled by the idea of one who is doing so with the intent of bringing a renaissance to his kin by virtue of example.