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Why can only multi-class NPCs have kits?


PetrusOctavianus

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Multi-class characters generally can't have kits except gnome illusionists and maybe a few others. Kits aren't dealt with in core rules, but rather handled on a kit-by-kit basis in the various "Complete" supplements in 2nd edition. For example, you could have a dwarven wizard slayer/cleric, the wizard slayer being a barbarian kit under the rules.

 

There was a component of L1NPCs that allowed modding PCs but Nythrun commented it out. You can uncomment it "at your risk" (as I believe it says in the readme). I'm not sure all what the issues were, except the obvious one that PCs aren't core game resources, but created by the player. You need an exported character (doesn't work on save games).

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Multi-class characters generally can't have kits except gnome illusionists and maybe a few others. Kits aren't dealt with in core rules, but rather handled on a kit-by-kit basis in the various "Complete" supplements in 2nd edition. For example, you could have a dwarven wizard slayer/cleric, the wizard slayer being a barbarian kit under the rules.

 

There was a component of L1NPCs that allowed modding PCs but Nythrun commented it out. You can uncomment it "at your risk" (as I believe it says in the readme). I'm not sure all what the issues were, except the obvious one that PCs aren't core game resources, but created by the player. You need an exported character (doesn't work on save games).

 

OK, I decided that only Cleric kits (from Divine Remix) makes sense (after all it's their diety that gives them their power) for a multi-class character, so no Montaron Fighter/Assassin or Coran Figher/Swashbuckler, but Tiax will be a Strifeleader of Cyric/Thief.

Too bad there's no Clangeddin kit for Yeslick...

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OK, I decided that only Cleric kits (from Divine Remix) makes sense (after all it's their diety that gives them their power) for a multi-class character, so no Montaron Fighter/Assassin or Coran Figher/Swashbuckler, but Tiax will be a Strifeleader of Cyric/Thief.
Actually, the specialty priests are probably the most restricted from multiclassing, though Faiths & Avatars doesn't say anything about Strifeleader multiclass restrictions (Cyric probably couldn't care less).

 

Even in 1st edition, assassin was usually a valid multiclass (you had half-orc cleric/assassins for example).

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OK, I decided that only Cleric kits (from Divine Remix) makes sense (after all it's their diety that gives them their power) for a multi-class character, so no Montaron Fighter/Assassin or Coran Figher/Swashbuckler, but Tiax will be a Strifeleader of Cyric/Thief.

Actually, the specialty priests are probably the most restricted from multiclassing,

 

That doesn't make much sense to me. What excactly are generic clerics supposed to worship?

Even the old Dragonlance Gold Box games had Cleric kits that could be part of a multi-class.

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Even the old Dragonlance Gold Box games had Cleric kits that could be part of a multi-class.
They did? It's been a while, but I guess I don't recall that.

 

There's a difference between the general clergy of a deity and specialty priests, which is what the DR kits are. Also, just because someone is a general cleric doesn't mean he doesn't worship a deity - obviously, he does, or he wouldn't have any clerical spells. A lot of the specialty priests already have multiclass-like abilities (the PnP versions anyway). Also, like I said, this is handled on a kit-by-kit basis in the supplements, so AFAIK it isn't a global rule (as I mentioned, Cyric, being a chaotic deity, probably doesn't foist too many "rules" on his clergy).

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Even the old Dragonlance Gold Box games had Cleric kits that could be part of a multi-class.
They did? It's been a while, but I guess I don't recall that.

 

There's a difference between the general clergy of a deity and specialty priests, which is what the DR kits are. Also, just because someone is a general cleric doesn't mean he doesn't worship a deity - obviously, he does, or he wouldn't have any clerical spells. A lot of the specialty priests already have multiclass-like abilities (the PnP versions anyway). Also, like I said, this is handled on a kit-by-kit basis in the supplements, so AFAIK it isn't a global rule (as I mentioned, Cyric, being a chaotic deity, probably doesn't foist too many "rules" on his clergy).

 

I think the whole concept of "specialty priests" vs generic priests is a bit odd. They should all be "special". After all it's the deity the cleric worships, and from whom they gain their powers, which define the cleric. I never liked the concept of generic priests in the FR Gold Box games and in the original BG. BG2, and Divine Remix even more, were improvements in that regard.

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I think the whole concept of "specialty priests" vs generic priests is a bit odd. They should all be "special". After all it's the deity the cleric worships, and from whom they gain their powers, which define the cleric.
Like I said, clerics still worship a particular deity, even if they're not specialty priests.

 

Specialty priests (at least according to Faiths & Avatars) have minimum stat, alignment and other requirements, so obviously all priests of a deity either cannot or choose not to be specialty priests. Or they may need to undergo certain rites to become specialty priests. Think of it as like certain types of priest ordainment within Christian churches or as the various Rites, or progressive degrees, of Freemasonry. Perhaps a better example is of the Jesuits. Obviously, not all Catholic clergy are Jesuits, but all Jesuits are Catholic clergy. They are a type of specialty priest, essentially.

 

Here is more from F&A that might clarify things (or might confuse things more):

Members of the Clergy

 

In the Realms, most deities have both clerics and some sort of specialty priest among their clergy. Quite a few churches also have members of other priest classes and even classes from other character groups than the priest group among their clergy. Other churches have fighting orders that are not technically part of the church hierarchy but serve the church nonetheless. These are often led by or composed of paladins, rangers, cursaders or militant specialty priests such as those of Tempus. (In addition, a religion can have lay members of the clergy who have no character class. They are treated as 1st-level fighters unless otherwise specified.)

 

This state of affairs may seem confusing at first. Basically, what players in the Forgotten Realms setting need to remember is that the character class of a player character does not necessarily preclude him or her from being a member of the clergy--that is, from being a part of a church's hierarchy... To put it plainly, the terms priest, cleric, specialty priest and clergy members are used with specific meanings in this text. Priest is a character class group. Clerics, crusaders, druids, specialty priests, mystics, monks and shamans are types of priests. Clergy members... can be of any character class, including priests. When a condition applies to all priests of a deity, it does not necessarily, therefore, apply to all clergy members...

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OK, that specialty priests are some sort of "elite clerics" makes much more sense. I'm not a lvl 36 AD&D Geek, so thanks for the clarification. ;-)

 

But I still think there should have been a field of the character sheet for which of the multitudes of deities, if any, the character worships. Don't remember if this is done in the PnP game, but I've played other games where Priests can only Raise or Resurrect characters from their own religion.

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