Balancing Templates with the "young" template (New chars)

[Taku Ooka Nin]

So in my Pathfinder campaign I have ran into something, I suggested that templates could be applicable to characters. When people told me their character concepts I found that many of them had selected templates.

Here is my idea:
Allow the use of templates so long as these templates are balanced with the young template, when the party reaches level 2 the character loses the young template.

Level 1: Fighter 1 (Werewolf, Young)

Level 2: Fighter 1 (Werewolf)

Level 3: Fighter 2 (Werewolf)

Does this balancing act work well with templates? Each character level is pretty significant in the grand scheme.

One of my characters wants to go the route of Aasimar werewolf that has feats for bite, 2 claws, and 2 wings with multi-attack. I think he wants to be a switch hitting Dragon Disciple, but he could get the claws with 2 levels in Ranger just as well, bite with the rat bite ring, and wings with his feats.

[+5 Toaster]

Beware young plus advanced.

[Taku Ooka Nin]

I wouldn't allow players to take the advanced template since it doesn't add anything roleplay wise to characters. I guess he could try and argue that he is just better than his peers, but I wouldn't allow it.

[Weirdo]

The problem with Young is that it doesn't hurt all builds equally - and a ranged combatant might actually find the +4 Dex and +1 size bonuses to hit and AC worth the Str and Con penalties and the reduced damage dice. A young barbarian is crippled; a young gunslinger is about as effective as an adult.

If you're trying to balance templated PCs with untemplated PCs I would recommend some other method, such as requiring the first level to be an NPC class (and instead of levelling to 2, they exchange it for a PC class) and/or a lower ability score generation method (many templates give generous stat bonuses anyway).

[ShadowcatX]

Also, because templates are not made for pcs, they don't have the inherent balance that class levels have. That might be why so many of your players flocked to them when you offered to allow them.

So then the question is, how far off the normal balance scales are you prepared to go? If you're comfortable running for templated pcs then I don't see the point of using young at all, and if you're not, then I don't think making them start out as children is really going to benefit you.

[blackbloodtroll]

You could just wait for the Pathfinder Player Companion: Blood of the Moon book.

Player Werewolves.

[Taku Ooka Nin]

You know, when the DM starts drooling over a book coming out . . . .
I am probably going to end up re-banning templates in the end since they can get their mileage with the various races/advanced races under 20 race points.

One of them wanted to play a class who started at level 1 with a bite and two claws as primary attacks and that is why he wanted to play a werewolf. I showed him the Lizardfolk and have yet to hear back which is his way of saying that is what he is using.

[blackbloodtroll]

Use the Race Builder in the Advanced Race Guide.

Build a Lesser Werewolf Race.