Saying "What class are you?" just sounds wrong. So what would you say?
I mean have your character ask their character.
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"So, what do you do?"
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"So, what do you do?"
-"I command undead to do my bidding"
-"nice to meat you, i Smite evil..."- "no, no, you miss heard. i said 'command an-aid to do my bidding'.."
(actually happened in my game)
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Two things to consider is are characters even aware of what class they are. Class is an abstraction so people may not even be aware of it. Write down what character class you think you most resemble (exclude NPC classes). Then have your gaming group write down what class they think everyone else is and compare it to what you wrote down.
Second with all the archetypes floating around out there, just stating what class you are is not as useful as it used to be. Many archetypes trade away class feature for those of other classes. An Archeologist bard for example trades away all of the bard’s performances for luck. They actually have no reason to even put any ranks in the skill perform. So when they tell someone they are a bard the person will be expecting them to be able to use performances, but they can’t.
As others have suggested simply asking what do you do is the best way to get an idea of what the character is capable of is.
I usually go with, "what's your fighting style, and how did you learn it?" The guy with the greatsword that says he just hits people over the head because he feels like it is probably a Barbarian, the person with a vast array of weapons who says he's trained his whole life to fight is probably a Fighter, the person who says, "I dunno, I just throw spells at them" is a Sorcerer, and the guy who scoffs at the thought of combat and prefers to read instead is 100% a Wizard.
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I think Class nomenclature feels easier than some many things (not 'smite evil' mentioned earlier) such as evasion and improved uncanny dodge and sneak attack. That said, as DM I find it easier to easter-egg that into the description of my guys fighting the PCs: "You move to flank my vampire yet it's uncanny how much more improved he is at dodging around, denying you your advantage to attack." -- and the PCs know what's up.
That said, Knowledge: Local is for information on Humanoids and Humanoids are based on Class Level. Thus a Knowledge: Local Skill check would determine whether the Orc has levels in Mesmerist or Magus, Summoner or Slayer.
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I think the way it typically gets worded in our games is.
"What's your specialty?"
If a player wants to answer by annoucning their class they can, but it allows more creative players to give better responses. like
"I'm a defender of my faith"
"I'm a master of the arcane arts"
"I'm a scout"
The last one is typically code for "thief"
I just shrug and tell everyone I'm a wizard.
Who's to argue with the guy standing in the back with no armor throwing the occasional arcane spell. Even if I do happen to hold a sword while casting; it's my bonded object.
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My characters don't identify by what their class is, but rather what they do.
Tink is a ratfolk crafter in a mythic game. He would introduce himself as a collector, merchant, and purveyor of all things arcane. He is a Wizard x Summoner Mythic Archmage
Jimmy would introduce himself as a caravan guard come pathfinder whose main goal is to protect those who he cares about. He is a paladin.
Clarice wouldn't introduce herself as anything special. She does talk to her scythe though, and it responds. She is a reflavouring of a bladebound/kensai magus. (the scythe is only a scythe in look. Does normal damage for a rapier I think. So it is a rapier, that looks like a scythe)
Harrold would say he is an old man who used to hunt in the woods, and learn't his way around treating ailments with herbs. He is actually an alchemist.
Trytton would have introduced himself as someone who fights with the oceon. He is a water kinetecist.
Gran't' would say he was a guard and a craftsman, out for revenge against the orcs that ransacked his clan's mine. He is a geokinetic knight.
Jo, The Cabin Girl, would probably introduce herself as whatever you wanted her to be. Making it obvious her specialty is in manipulating people. She is a Kitsune Sorceress.
Sana would say she is a protector of those who were enslaved, and a fighter for their freedoms. She is a cleric.
Basically, none of my characters could easily be placed into a class by what they "do". In all honesty that is fine too. What the character is capable of, (in terms of mechanics and in terms of what the character would want to/is willing to do) is far more interesting and important than what the character sheet has down in the class line
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My characters don't identify by what their class is, but rather what they do.
Character class is an abstraction in the game-rules of class-and-level RPGs. It doesn't necessaarily mean anything within the game-world.
Within the game-world, "character class" is a nonexistent concept. Instead, characters would refer to their profession, or training, or interests, or roles... like in the real world.
Some of these roles might use game-language, but divorced of the rules elements. For example, a ranger might describe herself as a "fighter." Because she's good at fighting. Or maybe she'd call herself a "master tracker," or an "animal trainer," depending on context.
A sorcerer might call himself a "magician," or an "enchanter," or maybe even a "witch."
In my games, the term "paladin" refers to a designated order of sacred warriors. They may be members of the paladin class, but not necessarily. And a given member of the paladin character class may or may not have the title of "Paladin" in-game.
So... to find out what an NPC does, you ask in-character, "So... what do you do when you're not getting drunk in this bar?"
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I think the way it typically gets worded in our games is.
"What's your specialty?"
If a player wants to answer by annoucning their class they can, but it allows more creative players to give better responses. like
"I'm a defender of my faith"
"I'm a master of the arcane arts"
"I'm a scout"The last one is typically code for "thief"
No... that would be, "I'm an adventurer!"
My characters don't identify by what their class is, but rather what they do.
Basically, none of my characters could easily be placed into a class by what they "do". In all honesty that is fine too. What the character is capable of, (in terms of mechanics and in terms of what the character would want to/is willing to do) is far more interesting and important than what the character sheet has down in the class line
You answered with the various PC's PURPOSE, not their character classes. There's a difference. Purpose in life is self imposed. Character class is more like a job.
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You answered with the various PC's PURPOSE, not their character classes. There's a difference. Purpose in life is self imposed. Character class is more like a job.
Some of the things listed (Caravan Guard, Merchant, Hunter) were quite literally jobs. Just that the jobs didn't "fit" the class (Paladin, Wizard, Alchemist, in these cases). None of them was a "purpose". It's simply what they do.
The thing is, in the end, a class doesn't tell you what a character does, it tells you how a character does things. A wizard and a rogue can both be thieves, but their approaches are going to be very different.
(Which is why our group usually just asks "how would you be able to help us".)
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Honestly I think the whole question is a waste of time. In character, a party is going to spend hours and hours talking about all sorts of things, generally including their training, abilities, moral outlooks and everything else. Most parties spend a lot of time together over months and even years, often with only each other to talk to. They get to know each other pretty well.
We aren't going to roleplay out those hours of conversation. Asking a player relevant details about their character in a way that the other players can understand is one good way to get to a degree of understanding that your character is going to have about the other character.
So just ask the player what class their character is (including archetypes and other relevant mechanical details) and assume that that knowledge is something your character develops in a more organic way.
People ask each other what class they are all the time - "so, what do you do for a living?" Why would it be different in the game?
What you do and what class you are are not necessarily the same thing.
"I am a healer"
Does that mean cleric, oracle, hedge witch, paladin, bard, or maybe a commoner with max ranks in Heal and skill focus: Heal?
"I am a scout"
Is that a rogue, slayer, ranger, or is a DEX focused magus that invested in the relevant skills?
It is best to think of class as what people would call your education background (I graduated as a fighter, with a minor in wizardry). The title of what you present yourself varies with culture, occupation roles, and self image (Sounds like you're what we call a Magus in these parts).
You could challenge them to a duel. Ask them where they trained. Explain your strategy for the quest so far and ask what suggestions they'd have or what they could do to augment that strategy. Asking about camp duties and provisions can also help a bit.
Sounds like dancing around the truth of the game, imho. I'd rather just find out class info etc through players talking with each other, then get on with the story.
So why be squirrely about your class? Consider: in The Hobbit, the main character Bilbo is introduced right off the bat as a Burglar. That wasn't even his profession! The dwarf he was traveling with was royalty, and here's this full-on thief walking around with them, for the sole purpose of stealing treasure from a dragon.Exactly. That wasn't his profession. It wasn't what he trained for. It wasn't what he normally did. It wasn't his class.
It was his party role.
When Bilbo was introduced, he'd probably be some NPC class in Pathfinder terms. He might have taken later levels in a sneaky-stealy class, but he didn't have that training (those levels) when hired.
From what I know of the Bagginses, and their alliances with obviously aristocratic (by Shire standards) families like the Tooks (hereditary Thains) and Brandybucks (masters of Buckland), I always thought that Bilbo was a low level aristocrat, perhaps even Frodo too, whatever levels they may have acquired during their later adventures
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The halfling Jack looks up at you in shock, "I'm a bloody Baron! Far above being questioned by peasant swine like you! What class? THE RULING CLASS!" In contrast to his haunty words, his armor chinks as he buffs out his chest while hair and flesh of his last foe dry on the spikes. Matching the armor his face is grimmy and still has blood behind the ears from a fight last week.
The answer also depends on what kind of campaign you're playing.
In a Pathfinder Society game, you don't want to waste too much of your precious few hours of time dancing around the question of what your fellow PCs can do before you start the mission. In my experience, some players just rattle off their race, class and archetype, while others give a bit more flavorful in-character introduction...and then we all try to keep each other from strangling the guy who glories in reciting his overly long, and deliberately wild and misleading, cover stories every single session.
In the home game I run, some of the PCs can describe their class and role in pretty simple terms that leave no ambiguity IC or OOC. The sneaky, greedy scout is a rogue, the scary half-orc who rides a camel into battle is a cavalier, the elf with a few spells, a lot of obscure knowledge, and funny stories is obviously a bard. OTOH, the inquisitor has never described herself as such; she follows an obscure god that she didn't even tell the other PCs about until they were 3rd level and the wizard finally got nosy enough to ask. They just knew she could fight a bit, cast a handful of spells, and was really keen on hunting the death cultists that have been causing them trouble lately.
When the giant in the party walks up to the kid that just joined the group and proclaims "You're a WIZARD, Harry!" you know what Class the character is.
Mechanically Harry knows certain spells that he can cast without having to prepare.
One thing to note is that in the 3.X days, WotC actually wrote out knowledge checks for classes. Anyone with sufficent Knowledge: Local could work out that someone was a Hexblade on sight and know what a Hexblade was and did.
For Pathfinder, Spymaster Handbook added an option to use Knowledge to identify class features when they are used. That may be enough.
Most classes are fine to use in character. Hello eveyone I'm a Thunderlord a [insert class] and if applicable, of [insert diety]. I think its the martials that have the biggest problem with this as being a Fighter or Barbarian isn't as telling as being a Paladin of Iomedae. Most casters can identify pretty well as casters but most martials can just be roped into the "I'm a warrior" kind of thing.
Multiclassed characters may have trouble and might have to leave out some of their classes if they just dipped for mechanics while others say that a dip in Paladin and 19 levels in Fighter is a Paladin who doesn't cast spells.
Multiclassed characters may have trouble and might have to leave out some of their classes if they just dipped for mechanics while others say that a dip in Paladin and 19 levels in Fighter is a Paladin who doesn't cast spells.
My rogue 10/cleric of Cayden 1 usually identifies himself as some flavor of doublespeak for "rogue." He only calls himself a cleric when dealing with other clerics as a cleric, or explaining why he can use your cure light wounds wand for you. ;)
Saying "What class are you?" just sounds wrong. So what would you say?
You might have to ask a subtle series of questions. Ask if they can do X, Y, and Z that only one class can do all of (unless they have some weird archetype). I had a bard once that always claimed to be a warrior/sorcerer, and had the spells and archery feats to prove it.
How do you ask someone in game what class they are? That's simple.
You tell the GM that your character walks up to the other character, and have you character say, "Hey, [other character's name], what do?"
Simple as that.
It's a bit funny, but I have no actual idea what most of the classes my fellow party members are. I know one is a Rogue, one is a Druid, and I'm pretty sure the newest character is a Cleric. One player has multiple characters that get switched out a lot. One of those is a Swashbuckler, I believe. I'm fairly sure one of the guys is a Fighter, but I can't really tell. I know he's not a Barbarian and that's about it. He could be a Brawler. I also have no idea if anyone multiclassed at all. Absolutely NO idea what class the android character is. He uses guns so he might be a Gunslinger. Not sure. He's one of the characters that gets switched out. The Druid is the other one.
I'm a Hunter myself. When someone asks my character, I just say Hunter. It's my class and it's what I do during time off. I go out into the woods, hunt a few deer and maybe some rabbits, and then sell the meat. What I don't say is that I also have 4 levels of Rogue, but I'm pretty sure the others know since I've disabled some magic traps and have Evasion.