Class Balancing!!


Homebrew and House Rules


Hey guys! Ok our GM is allowing us to gestalt and she might be open to homebrew classes. So one of our players found a dragoon class for pathfinder and we know it is NOT balanced at all even for a regular game. So my GM has tasked me to get your help with balancing this class because she is a huge final fantasy fan and wants to see her players happy.

http://www.finalfantasyd20.com/classes/core-classes/dragoon/

The thing we know that isnt balanced is the limit break. And maybe a few other things! Could you guys help us out???


Those limit breaks look fine as is.


Yeah, when you consider the requirements for limit breaks they should be fine.

Mind you I find it hard to suspend disbelief in the class, but then I'm not a Final Fantasy fan.


So Falling Meteor is incredibly strong. The reflex save should also be for half the damage, not just to negate the prone condition. Secondly I wouldn't give this limit break until level 4. As it stands it's a fireball with no save that you get at level 1. The guidelines for spells preclude AoE effects like this before 3rd level spells become available, so this is significantly above the power curve for a level 1 character. Having said that I don't think the scaling is bad, just the early entry. Giving it to them at 4d6 damage at level 4 doesn't seem like it'll break the game. Once again though, save for half damage and negate prone.

Deadly Lancer seems like it could be abusable since you can potentially get infinite damage by getting your acrobatics high enough, but since it scales so slowly (+1d6 per 10 over the DC) I'm probably overreacting. I wouldn't change this, but I'd keep an eye one it.

Finally a lot of the wording about jumping ignoring AoO's. I'd have the jumps provoke. The class is already encouraging a high acrobatics score, so they have a pretty good chance of avoiding them anyway, but being Ble to mpve completely unhindered really just lets this character ignore the GM's tactics. Springing Charge is basically a variant of Spring Attack, so I wouldn't change that, but in general someone with a reach weapon should be able to swipe at a Dragoon passing by.

To recap: I'd delay Falling meteor till level 4, and make the reflex save give half damage. Remove some language about ignoring AoO's on jump checks. Keep an eye out for abuse with Deadly Lancer - maybe tell the player you're thinking about this so they don't build towards it and get disappointed if you nerf it (maybe just a scaling maximum d6 bonus? Again I wouldn't nerf it unless it becomes a problem).


I think falling meteor should be changed to basically just be an alchemist bomb, except you’re the bomb. It’s current range and radius is too great for an ability you can apparently just spam all day.

It feels like there should have been a limit to how often limit breaks can be used.


Melkiador wrote:

I think falling meteor should be changed to basically just be an alchemist bomb, except you’re the bomb. It’s current range and radius is too great for an ability you can apparently just spam all day.

It feels like there should have been a limit to how often limit breaks can be used.

limit breaks are 1/day until level 5, and only if your hp is below half. The damage scaling is extremely uneven; 2d6 damage is good at level 1 for an aoe, but it’s still 2d6 at level 4 (not good), and then still 4d6 through level 9. 4d6 at level 9 is less damage than fireball would do against targets that made their saves. And non-metamagicked fireball really isn’t very good.

The knock prone effect is much stronger than 1st party options; Paizo options pretty much go after CMD, which is ridiculous for bad guys they care about. But if you can’t make a reflex save, casters will do much worse than knock you prone.

If you were going to change the meteor one, I’d scale damage 1d6 plus an additional 1d6 every two levels (so 2d6 at 3). I only see the power level as notably off at level 1 tho. And maybe give the dragoon a d20 roll for a mass trip attempt against everyone’s CMD, maybe +10 on the roll. But while it doesn’t adhere to PF norms, I don’t think these effects are stronger than existing options.


Lelomenia wrote:
Melkiador wrote:

I think falling meteor should be changed ...

It’s current range and radius is too great for an ability you can apparently just spam all day.

2d6 damage is good at level 1 for an aoe, but it’s still 2d6 at level 4 (not good), and then still 4d6 through level 9. 4d6 at level 9 is less damage than fireball would do against targets that made their saves.

...

If you were going to change the meteor one, I’d scale damage 1d6 plus an additional 1d6 every two levels (so 2d6 at 3).

So you're both slightly misreading it. As it stands it's 2d6 at level 1 (very powerful), 4d6 at level 5 (average to weak as you level up), 6d6 at level 9 (ok at 9, but weak as you level up), and then basically weaker from there on up.

I think Lelomenia's idea is a good one (scales as sneak attack). I feel like an AoE with no save to reduce the damage is pretty powerful, so I'd be willing to buff the damage slightly and give a save.

How about this: 1d6 every odd level, but at levels 5, 9, 13 and 17 (the levels where you get another use) you increase the damage dice by one step:
1. 1d6 (1/day)
3. 2d6
5. 3d8 (2/day)
7. 4d8
9. 5d10 (3/day)
11. 6d10
13. 7d12 (4/day)
15. 8d12
17. 9d20 (5/day)
19. 10d20

This lets it start a pretty decent amout, but ends up being a devastating attack at higher levels. 10d20 = 105hp, or 52hp if halved on a successful save. Totally fine at that level, but the lower levels feel less overpowered.

What do people think?

Community / Forums / Pathfinder / Pathfinder First Edition / Homebrew and House Rules / Class Balancing!! All Messageboards

Want to post a reply? Sign in.
Recent threads in Homebrew and House Rules