Do you keep getting asked to do something when playing a class that annoys you?

[Senko]

I was pondering this recently and I'd like to see what people with more playing experience than me say. Is there a particular thing that you keep getting asked to do when playing a class e.g. healing as a cleric when you want to do something else which annoys you? In the sense of stop asking me to do that I can do other things sense. Being asked not to do things also counts.

[TxSam88]

well, yes. This kind of stuff happens, but you need to understand that certain classes have a certain role the fulfill in the party mix. Fighters fight, rogues find traps and unlock doors, wizards buff and teleport, and well, Clerics heal.

If you want to do one of those particular roles, then IMO, don't play a character built to do those things.
(there are cleric builds that aren't healers)

[Senko]

It was an example I'm asking if there's something you always get asked to do when playing a class that annoys you.

[Bjørn Røyrvik]

Not that I get to play much these days (the eternal GM, I am), but on the rare occasion I do play this isn't an issue. If I tell my team I'm not good at/incapable of something, they generally remember. If someone in the group makes a character that is incapable of doing something that is pretty solidly in the identity of a class, there may be some teasing about said character being incompetent - especially if the character is lacking abilities that would be really useful. Clerics that can't heal, wizards that don't have useful spells, that sort of thing.

[Mark Hoover 330]

Clerics heal. So do life oracles, many bard or witch PCs, or anyone with lots of cash and Use Magic Device. The idea that Cleric = combat medic is outdated. While I agree that you shouldn't build a character "built to do those things" and then NOT do those things, I think the OP is suggesting that other players hear the name of your class and EXPECT you to be built to do those things which is rubbish.

No class is a monolith. Characters are unique individuals that need to be defined as their own build, not the expected "norms" of the class chosen. The attitude that there are "roles" that specific classes for is rooted in a time before PF1.

Look, bottom line: design your PC for what YOU want to do in order to guide the success of your group in your adventures. If you want to fight with weapons but ALSO wield arcane magic, play a magus... or a wizard or Sorcerer with certain archetypes/specialties, or a bloodrager, or a rogue building towards arcane trickster, or one of a number of different bards. There is no one set way to play, or blueprint to build a PC from.

To answer the question of the title, I've had a wizard that was accused of not being "blasty" enough and a warpriest who, when folks found out that Warpriest had some elements of Cleric, was expected to heal and buff the party. Those were annoying, especially with the wizard.

She was a half-elf with an owl familiar and I introduced her to the party as a "scout and sneak thief." She had skill focus (perception) as a free feat, Alertness and a bonus to Perception in dim light from the owl, and both Perception and Stealth as Class skills through Traits. In 3 levels of game play the only "blaster" type spell she used was Acid Splash.

She routinely scouted out areas, put Enlarge Person on either her owl or the Bloodrager of the party and she made a TON of scrolls any chance she got. The scrolls were full of offensive or defensive buff spells and utility spells to get us through any niche obstacle. Two of the other three players however spent the majority of the game frustrated that I wasn't casting Magic Missile, Color Spray or Scorching Ray among others.

[Kasoh]

As a wizard, I don't really like the presumption of my fellow players that I have the spell to solve all their little mortal problems.

I mean, I do.

But its the presumption that bothers me.

Party: "Hey, come solve our problem."

Wizard: "Okay." *casts spell, solves problem*

Party: *nods like they did something.*

[Mark Hoover 330]

Kaosh, you left out this part:

Wizard: "Ahem!" *holds out hand, expecting GP per level of spell cast*

[Kasoh]

Mark Hoover 330 wrote:

Kaosh, you left out this part:

Wizard: "Ahem!" *holds out hand, expecting GP per level of spell cast*

Oof. I mean, I'm not one to charge the party for spells cast(Leave that to Orthodox Abadarians), that's what the wizard is there to do, but a little bit of gratitude isn't uncalled for.

[VoodistMonk]

I'm picking up what you are laying down, but I don't think I have anything constructive to add following what Mark Hoover has already said... particularly this bit; "No class is a monolith. Characters are unique individuals that need to be defined as their own build, not the expected "norms" of the class chosen."

My Tengu cRogue Scout, Izzek, was a character I built specifically avoiding expected norms... he was strength-based, used a Greatsword, wore mithral breastplate that he could sleep in, always knew which way was north (even underground), could glide instead of fall, had Create Water 3/day as well as Purify Food & Water 1/day as SLA's... literally nobody assumed Izzek was a Rogue, because I built him and played him more like a Ranger than anything else. Izzek was, however, absolutely a cRogue that started out as a freaking grave robber, but it actually took people by surprise when Izzek suddenly could do Rogue stuff like disable traps. Lol.

Outside of that, though, my Bards generally do Bard stuff. I do try to learn all the healing spells for my Bards to be able to assist in those regards, but people rarely EXPECT my Bards to heal them. My Cleric/UnMonk gestalt was plenty capable of doing both Cleric and Monk stuff, but mostly used Aid Another [even though Hbob wasn't optimized to abuse it]. In fact, I generally try play helpful characters that actively engage the other characters... I often beat them to the punch, offering what they need before they ask.

I haven't gotten a chance to play her, but I have a human female Titan Fighter that has traits to get Heal and Know:Planes as class skills, she has (or will take) Psychic Sensitivity and Healing Hands and Incredible Healer and Signature Skill [Heal]... she has max ranks in Know:Planes to take full advantage of Flickering Step/Dimensional Savant, but it also helps with her healing capabilities. Harley Quinn may be just a big, dumb Fighter with a big, dumb hammer [Earthbreaker]... but she has teleport pounce and can heal.

[Raudabjorn Kjallaksson]

When I play a character who has an unusual build for their class, I try to point that out during char-gen (in campaigns) or character intros (in PFS) to head off exactly these kinds of assumptions. It avoids some of the inevitable mantra of "I'm not that of X" later on.

For example, my PFS paladin is a stonelord, so lacks spellcasting and smite evil. But he excels at defense, and his stone friend is annoyingly mobile underground.

[Mark Hoover 330]

Other annoying assumptions I've seen at my own tables:

Fighters and barbarians are dumb. Not only are they low Int but due to the expectation of low Int, even the barbarian won't have any decent skills

Rogues are useless in a fight w/out Sneak Attacking. IDK, MAYBE this is statistically true of vanilla c rogues, but I think the loathing heaped on this class' combat ability is unfounded

Paladins are lawful-stupid. This one is as old as the hills but is less game mechanics and more cultural

Familiars are pointless, made of glass, and a liability. OMG, sometimes even the players that CHOOSE familiars have this expectation! One guy took a level 3 Improved Familiar; at level 7 he wanted a "better" familiar but liked the story aspect of his level 3 one, so I just made it an "elder" of its race. The thing has half his HP, sure, but it has a Tiny size, really good AC for its level, tons of skills and UMD as a class skill, grasping hands, speaks a language, its type is Dragon... and nearly EVERY combat it sits in a familiar pocket, unused.

Aid Another is a wasted character focus. This one I suffered myself. I ran a halfling warpriest/hunter with a slingstaff and free Teamwork feats, one which I could hand out to everyone for a few minutes/day. I picked Covering Fire and had a Trait that let me deliver +4 Aid Another instead of +2. The other players thought Aid Another was a waste of my time and theirs, right up until +4 AC from 30' range was getting them out of dragon bite attacks

Rangers, Hunters and Druids are the nature folks. Umm... Survival is a Class skill for the vanilla version of about a third of all classes and with Traits can be for anyone. It can also be used untrained. Handle Animal is just as easily accessible, though it must be trained. These two skills allow you to train any Animal type creature, regardless of its HD, so long as you've got the time; you can spend Move actions to command said trained animals; you can survive in virtually any base environment on a 10 or better, barring GM fiat and you have the chance from level 1 on to track foes. ANYONE can be a nature PC

Build what you want, however you want. Roleplay your build, shut down the expectations of class and role.

[Diego Rossi]

Mark Hoover 330 wrote:

Look, bottom line: design your PC for what YOU want to do in order to guide the success of your group in your adventures. If you want to fight with weapons but ALSO wield arcane magic, play a magus... or a wizard or Sorcerer with certain archetypes/specialties, or a bloodrager, or a rogue building towards arcane trickster, or one of a number of different bards. There is no one set way to play, or blueprint to build a PC from.

I agree with Mark, especially on the part about selecting a class/archetype that suit what you want to do.

With all the material that has been published for Pathfinder 1, you generally can find the right combo.

The corollary is:
Make the other players aware of what you are playing. If you are playing a cleric that can't use positive channeling and can't cast spontaneously cure spells, but instead can cast spontaneously other spells, communicate that.
Your cleric can be meant for front-line combat, have the body of a blacksmith, hammer the opponents like one, and have only enough healing spells to close a bleeding wound in an emergency. Fine.
Simply inform the others, making clear that your group needs a different healer or to stock CLW wands.

If you don't communicate that people will make assumptions and have expectations.

And yes, some people will still make assumptions and have expectations even after you communicate it.

[Warped Savant]

A player in a game became annoyed because he'd always tell the Paladin player that she should smite the thing because it was evil.
Finally, after a few months of this, the paladin player said, in character, "it is a gift from my god and I am not going to waste it on something so undeserving as these creatures."

[Senko]

Fair points but not what I was after. I was looking for what annoys people because it keeps getting asked of them. So I'll step out now thanks for the replies.