The Lost Star Playtest Feedback on Classes by MrCoffeeCup


Classes


The concept of compositions sounds good to me, but the implementation and description left me puzzled. I tried to listen to the Know Direction podcast with Mark Seifter that explained some of this after I ran the game, but the way it was explained on the podcast didn't translate in the rulebook and didn't answer all of the questions I had. I don't think players should have to hunt for podcasts to understand the rules either.

As written, compositions are a special type of spell that require you to use the Performance skill as a part of their casting.

- Does this mean that a Bard can say they are going to play the flute or do they need to actually make a Perform skill check when playing?

- If a skill check is required, what is the DC?

I don't like the idea that a Bard can fail to cast a spell. Compositions seem core to the class and other spellcasters aren't restricted in any manner like this. On top of that, building DCs for each of the compositions a bard would have to cast is an awful lot of prep work for a GM for something that should be simple. If that isn't part of the design, then the composition description should not explicitly state the use of the performance skill. There is no need to add mechanics to something that is just roleplayed.

As an aside, I really liked the critical failure description for Perform.

The questions and feedback above came out as a result of running The Lost Star adventure.
GM Playtest Post: http://paizo.com/threads/rzs428mg?The-Lost-Star-Playtest-Notes-by-MrCoffeeC up

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