Classes
Posted: Fri Aug 11, 2017 10:13 pmPlayer characters (PCs) are skilled in one or more classes. The four
classical Advanced Dungeons and Dragons (AD&D) classes are warrior,
cleric, mage, and thief. More specialized classes that were added
include sorcerer, druid, ranger, paladin, monk, psionist, and barbarian.
Descriptions of each of these classes are provided below.
Some classes may be combined to form a multiclass character, such as an
Elven Mage/Thief or a Dwarven Cleric/Warrior. Multiclass combinations
are limited by race. See the Racial Class Limitations post in this
forum for more info on that topic.
Multiclass PCs are limited in how well they can master their skills
due to having to master the skills of multiple classes. Thus dual-class
PCs are limited to 87% skill level (on a scale of 1-100%), while
tri-classed PCs are limited to 80%. Multiclass sorcerers get fewer
spells (about half for dual-classed PCs, 1/3 for tri-classed PCs).
And, of course, multi-classed PCs are slower to advance in levels
since they have to split experience (XP) among their classes.
Warrior: The backbone of any fighting force.
Warriors are the basic cannon fodder of the game. They fight well and
can use some magic items (though they can't cast magic.) They get
a lot of hit points and are able to use a wider array of weapons and
armor than other classes. To be good fighters they must be strong, healthy,
and dexterous.
Newbie Warrior tip: Warriors' primary skill is "bash". Study it early and use it often.
Newbie Warrior tip 2: Half-giant (HG) is the only PC race that can bash huge mobs (in-game
monsters) such as dragons. Hence HG warriors are quite popular.
Cleric: Healers and casters of spells.
Clerics channel the powers of their deity to bestow healing and protection
spells on themselves and others. They are expecially useful in groups for
their ability heal and protect warriors and other group members. Their most
useful spells are "heal" which bestows 100 hitpoints on the target, and
"sanctuary" which bestows protection to the target such that they will only
incur 1/2 of normal damage from attacks. They can also employ several useful
utility spells such as "fly", "true sight", "summon" and "locate object".
At higher levels they can even ressurect the dead!
Clerics are also pretty fair fighters if they are properly equipped to fight.
They gain a fair amount of hps and can use a pretty good array of weapons and armor.
To achieve their maximum powers, clerics need to be wise and intelligent, but to
be decent fighters they also need decent strength, health, and dexterity.
Mage (Magic User): Casters of powerful spells.
Mages channel unseen forces to perform powerful and violent magic, but a mage
cannot control nature and therefore cannot cast healing spells like clerics do.
By themselves, mages are poor fighters. They gain lower hitpoints than any other
class and are usually quite physically weak. But what they lack in physical
prowess they make up for in their ability to do great damage with spells like
fireball, chain lightning, meteor swarm, and disintegrate.
Mages also have their own useful utility spells such as "identify", "know monster",
"haste", and "portal".
To fully master their arts, mages need to be highly intelligent and have good
wisdom.
Newbie Mage tip: Learn "magic missile" early and use it often.
Thief: These sneaky characters have a mighty backstab!
Thieves are known to have very special skills that no other class
offers. These skills can come in handy in many situations. They can pick
pockets (steal), avoid monsters (sneak, hide, and disguise), defeat locks (pick),
find and remove traps (find traps and disarm), and scout ahead (spy)
But a thief's most prized skill is backstab. Backstab is the single most powerful
physical attack in the game. Using backstab, the amount of damage a thief can
inflict on his victim is as high as 19x normal damage a warrior can inflict.
At low levels however, thieves are not very combat oriented. So do not
expect to be able to kill many things by yourself until your backstab reaches
lethal levels.
First and foremost, thieves need to be highly dexterous to pull off the stunts they
attempt to perform. Beyond that, good strength helps them deliver more damage
with their backstabs, and high charisma gets them better deals with merchants.
Sorcerer: Use their minds to perform mage-like skills
Sorcerers are a specialized class of magic user. Sorcerers get all the same spells
and skills that Mages get but use their mind to store and recall spells rather
than using mana to channel magical powers as mages do. By making the effort to
memorize spells, they can later cast those spells with 100% success, even in battle.
The drawbacks to sorcerers are that they must spend considerable time and effort
in mem'ing spells and they can then only cast the spells they memorized beforehand.
So they have a lot of downtime as they memorize and they must try to foresee what spells
they may need for whatever their next adventure may be.
Druid: Spell casters in tune with the balance of nature.
Druids combine some cleric skills with some mage skills and add some of their
own specialized skills in fulfilling their mission to maintain the balance
between good and evil in the world. Druids must maintain a neutral alignment
at all times or they lose levels. Even worse, a druid who has strayed too far
from the path of neutrality loses his special abilities and forever becomes
a generic cleric.
Druids gain resistance to charm at level 14 and immunity to poison at
level 32. Druids also have the unique ability to reincarnate other PCs to
a different race. There are various reasons why a PCs might want to change
his race but one common reason is that his current races limits how far he can
advance in his class(es).
Druids can also utilize the most powerful form of death magic known in the realms.
By casting "creeping death" he summons a horde of insects that move off in a
specified direction, killing anything in it's path.
When a druid has reached a high enough level, the supreme druid guildmaster,
Silverleaf, has deemed that it is necessary for him or her to fight another druid
of similar level in order to advance. The challenge must be done without
the aid of material possessions or allies to prove the worthiness of the
druid. To the north of Silverleaf, in a place only druids may enter,
lies the druid challenge room. Once there, Silverleaf suggests listening
very carefully to what the druid assistant has to say.
Druids generally aren't as good at fighting as clerics are but are better than
mages. Like clerics, druids need to be both wise and intelligent to master their
skills
Newbie Druid tip: Learn flame blade and tree travel as soon as you can.
Newbie Druid tip 2: Learn "know alignment" and use it on yourself frequently
to keep an eye on your alignment. You'll get a finer gradation of alignment than
you get from the "score"" command.
Newbie tip 3: The spells "detect evil" and "detect good" will help you select the
properly aligned mobs to adjust your alignment as needed
Paladin: Warriors of light, blessed by the gods.
Paladins are holy warriors, protectors of the church, and the gen"Kind" or higher
alignment (+350 or higher on a -1000 to +1000 alignment scale). A Paladin who
falls from the path may never become a Paladin again, but is instead a simple
warrior from then on.
Paladins have the innate abilities of detecting evil and protection from
evil. They also have some cleric skills as well as special skills that they
and only they can use.
Paladins are fearsome fighters. They gain as many hitpoints as warriors and
like warriors, they can bash their opponents. They also have access to powerful
weapons and other equipment that only paladins can use.
Because their training and profession is so demanding, paladins need to be
strong, healthy, and dextrous like warriors and also wise like clerics.
Newbie Paladin tip: Learn "know alignment" and use it on yourself frequently
to keep an eye on your alignment. You'll get a finer gradation of alignment than
you get from the "score"" command
Ranger: Wilderness fighters for the cause of good.
Rangers are warriors of the woods. They are expert trackers and
learn the ways to best protect and live in a woodland environment. Rangers
alignment must never become evil (below -350, so "Somewhat Rude" is the lowest
alignment a Ranger wants to see when checking "Score"). A Ranger who falls from
the path is permanently a simple warrior.
Rangers have semi-cleric/druid abilities. As the Ranger progresses
he can learn specific spells that have to do with forest/animal
training. Most skills that a Ranger uses must be used OUTSIDE. OUTSIDE is
considered to be in a forest, desert, arctic tundra or anywhere not inside.
Rangers are also very capable fighters. They gain as many hitpoints as
warriors and can bash like warriors. They are somewhat more limited in
what equipment they can use but they can use some specialized equipment
that only rangers can use. Rangers also have the special skill of DUAL WIELD
which allows them to attack with two weapons at time.
Rangers need to be strong, healthy, dexterous, and wise to reach their
maximum potential.
Newbie Ranger tip: A good way to see if you are outside is to use the
WEATHER command.
Monk: Master of their own bodies.
Monks are a very special class, with a variety of advantages and
disadvantages.
Disadvantages:
*These masters of unarmed combat carry very little equipment. Their vows
do not allow them to have more than 25 items, so choose carefully. They may
also carry up to 25 food or drink items above this. If the game reboots or
crashes while a monk has too many items they lose EVERYTHING!
*Monks cannot use banks until they are level 40.
*Monks lose experience if they flee unsuccessfully from a mob that is
lower level than they are.
*Monks have very limited access to armor and weapons, and do not get as
many hit points as a warrior.
*Monks cannot bash.
Advantages:
*A monk's kick does his level in damage, while other PCs' kicks only do
half level.
*Monks are immune to hold (paralysis) at level 10, resistant to charm at
level 18, immune to poison at level 22, and immune to charm at level 36.
*Monks regenerate move at twice the rate of most other classes.
*Monk armor class drops 5 points per level to, at best, -50 (not counting
dexterity, etc.)
*Monks get double dex bonuses to Armor Class.
*Monks have access to some thief skills.
*Unarmed monks get more attacks per round than other classes.
The formula used for the number of attacks that an unarmed monk will get per
round is:
level 1 to 8 level 9 to 50
-------------- ----------------
level/8 + 1 level/16 + 1.5
The fractional portion will provide the probability of getting an extra
attack each round. (i.e. if you were VERY lucky, a 2nd level monk could get 2
attacks every round, but probably won't)
*Monks get improved bare handed damage as follows:
Level Damage Level Damage Level Damage Level Damage
1- 3 1d3 15-19 2d4 30-34 4d4 42-44 6d4
4- 5 1d4 20-21 3d3 35-36 4d5 45-49 6d5
6-11 1d6 22-26 3d4 37-41 5d4 50 8d4
12-14 2d3 27-29 4d3
When a young monk has reached a high enough level, Gifft, the Monk Grandmaster,
has declared that he or she must fight and defeat a monk of equal skill
in order to advance. The challenge must be performed alone and without any
material possessions in order to prove the monk's worthiness.
Monks also have the ability to focus their inner ki (focus ki) to simulate
a warrior's ability to bash.
Like other fighters, monks should be strong, healthy, and dexterous.
Newbie Monk tip: Don't use weapons to fight. Your hands are as lethal
as any weapon you might use.
Psionist: Those who have developed the powers of their mind.
Psionist are characters that use the power of the mind. They can
summon people from great distances and they have been known to blast
the mind of powerful beings to jelly! They also have natural telepathy,
requiring no study.
Psionists can fight at about the level of thieves, if they are equipped
for fighting. At the same time, their mind skills can rival the most powerful
mage spells in inflicting damage to victims. Psionists can also use telekenesis
to simulate a warrior's ability to bash.
Obviously psionists need to be very intelligence while good wisdom certainly
helps as well.
Psionist use the command MIND to activate most of their skills, be
sure to see the help section on MIND.
Barbarian: Big fighters who cannot use any magic items.
Barbarians are impressive fighters with a tendency to go berserk. They can
take more damage then any other class. They are, however, completely
unable to use, or even hold, any item with the taint of magic. This means
they will never be as well armored, or have the magical advantages, of a
warrior.
Barbarians get innate bonuses to hit and damage as they rise in
level. The formula for hit bonus is (lvl+3)/9, and for damage bonus
is (lvl-3)/9. For true barbarians, who can't do math, that is:
Hit bonuses at levels 6, 15, 24, 33, 42.
Damage bonuses at levels 12, 21, 30, 39, 48
Newbie Barbarian tip: A Barbarian's primary skill is "bash". Study it early and use it often.
Newbie Warrior tip 2: Half-giant (HG) is the only PC race that can bash huge mobs (in-game
monsters) such as dragons. Hence HG barbarians are popular in groups.
Newbie Barbarian tip 3: Because of the severe equipment limitations on barbarians, they
are very difficult to equip and therefore to play. If you are new to the game, consider
playing a warrior first before you try to play a barbarian.
classical Advanced Dungeons and Dragons (AD&D) classes are warrior,
cleric, mage, and thief. More specialized classes that were added
include sorcerer, druid, ranger, paladin, monk, psionist, and barbarian.
Descriptions of each of these classes are provided below.
Some classes may be combined to form a multiclass character, such as an
Elven Mage/Thief or a Dwarven Cleric/Warrior. Multiclass combinations
are limited by race. See the Racial Class Limitations post in this
forum for more info on that topic.
Multiclass PCs are limited in how well they can master their skills
due to having to master the skills of multiple classes. Thus dual-class
PCs are limited to 87% skill level (on a scale of 1-100%), while
tri-classed PCs are limited to 80%. Multiclass sorcerers get fewer
spells (about half for dual-classed PCs, 1/3 for tri-classed PCs).
And, of course, multi-classed PCs are slower to advance in levels
since they have to split experience (XP) among their classes.
Warrior: The backbone of any fighting force.
Warriors are the basic cannon fodder of the game. They fight well and
can use some magic items (though they can't cast magic.) They get
a lot of hit points and are able to use a wider array of weapons and
armor than other classes. To be good fighters they must be strong, healthy,
and dexterous.
Newbie Warrior tip: Warriors' primary skill is "bash". Study it early and use it often.
Newbie Warrior tip 2: Half-giant (HG) is the only PC race that can bash huge mobs (in-game
monsters) such as dragons. Hence HG warriors are quite popular.
Cleric: Healers and casters of spells.
Clerics channel the powers of their deity to bestow healing and protection
spells on themselves and others. They are expecially useful in groups for
their ability heal and protect warriors and other group members. Their most
useful spells are "heal" which bestows 100 hitpoints on the target, and
"sanctuary" which bestows protection to the target such that they will only
incur 1/2 of normal damage from attacks. They can also employ several useful
utility spells such as "fly", "true sight", "summon" and "locate object".
At higher levels they can even ressurect the dead!
Clerics are also pretty fair fighters if they are properly equipped to fight.
They gain a fair amount of hps and can use a pretty good array of weapons and armor.
To achieve their maximum powers, clerics need to be wise and intelligent, but to
be decent fighters they also need decent strength, health, and dexterity.
Mage (Magic User): Casters of powerful spells.
Mages channel unseen forces to perform powerful and violent magic, but a mage
cannot control nature and therefore cannot cast healing spells like clerics do.
By themselves, mages are poor fighters. They gain lower hitpoints than any other
class and are usually quite physically weak. But what they lack in physical
prowess they make up for in their ability to do great damage with spells like
fireball, chain lightning, meteor swarm, and disintegrate.
Mages also have their own useful utility spells such as "identify", "know monster",
"haste", and "portal".
To fully master their arts, mages need to be highly intelligent and have good
wisdom.
Newbie Mage tip: Learn "magic missile" early and use it often.
Thief: These sneaky characters have a mighty backstab!
Thieves are known to have very special skills that no other class
offers. These skills can come in handy in many situations. They can pick
pockets (steal), avoid monsters (sneak, hide, and disguise), defeat locks (pick),
find and remove traps (find traps and disarm), and scout ahead (spy)
But a thief's most prized skill is backstab. Backstab is the single most powerful
physical attack in the game. Using backstab, the amount of damage a thief can
inflict on his victim is as high as 19x normal damage a warrior can inflict.
At low levels however, thieves are not very combat oriented. So do not
expect to be able to kill many things by yourself until your backstab reaches
lethal levels.
First and foremost, thieves need to be highly dexterous to pull off the stunts they
attempt to perform. Beyond that, good strength helps them deliver more damage
with their backstabs, and high charisma gets them better deals with merchants.
Sorcerer: Use their minds to perform mage-like skills
Sorcerers are a specialized class of magic user. Sorcerers get all the same spells
and skills that Mages get but use their mind to store and recall spells rather
than using mana to channel magical powers as mages do. By making the effort to
memorize spells, they can later cast those spells with 100% success, even in battle.
The drawbacks to sorcerers are that they must spend considerable time and effort
in mem'ing spells and they can then only cast the spells they memorized beforehand.
So they have a lot of downtime as they memorize and they must try to foresee what spells
they may need for whatever their next adventure may be.
Druid: Spell casters in tune with the balance of nature.
Druids combine some cleric skills with some mage skills and add some of their
own specialized skills in fulfilling their mission to maintain the balance
between good and evil in the world. Druids must maintain a neutral alignment
at all times or they lose levels. Even worse, a druid who has strayed too far
from the path of neutrality loses his special abilities and forever becomes
a generic cleric.
Druids gain resistance to charm at level 14 and immunity to poison at
level 32. Druids also have the unique ability to reincarnate other PCs to
a different race. There are various reasons why a PCs might want to change
his race but one common reason is that his current races limits how far he can
advance in his class(es).
Druids can also utilize the most powerful form of death magic known in the realms.
By casting "creeping death" he summons a horde of insects that move off in a
specified direction, killing anything in it's path.
When a druid has reached a high enough level, the supreme druid guildmaster,
Silverleaf, has deemed that it is necessary for him or her to fight another druid
of similar level in order to advance. The challenge must be done without
the aid of material possessions or allies to prove the worthiness of the
druid. To the north of Silverleaf, in a place only druids may enter,
lies the druid challenge room. Once there, Silverleaf suggests listening
very carefully to what the druid assistant has to say.
Druids generally aren't as good at fighting as clerics are but are better than
mages. Like clerics, druids need to be both wise and intelligent to master their
skills
Newbie Druid tip: Learn flame blade and tree travel as soon as you can.
Newbie Druid tip 2: Learn "know alignment" and use it on yourself frequently
to keep an eye on your alignment. You'll get a finer gradation of alignment than
you get from the "score"" command.
Newbie tip 3: The spells "detect evil" and "detect good" will help you select the
properly aligned mobs to adjust your alignment as needed
Paladin: Warriors of light, blessed by the gods.
Paladins are holy warriors, protectors of the church, and the gen"Kind" or higher
alignment (+350 or higher on a -1000 to +1000 alignment scale). A Paladin who
falls from the path may never become a Paladin again, but is instead a simple
warrior from then on.
Paladins have the innate abilities of detecting evil and protection from
evil. They also have some cleric skills as well as special skills that they
and only they can use.
Paladins are fearsome fighters. They gain as many hitpoints as warriors and
like warriors, they can bash their opponents. They also have access to powerful
weapons and other equipment that only paladins can use.
Because their training and profession is so demanding, paladins need to be
strong, healthy, and dextrous like warriors and also wise like clerics.
Newbie Paladin tip: Learn "know alignment" and use it on yourself frequently
to keep an eye on your alignment. You'll get a finer gradation of alignment than
you get from the "score"" command
Ranger: Wilderness fighters for the cause of good.
Rangers are warriors of the woods. They are expert trackers and
learn the ways to best protect and live in a woodland environment. Rangers
alignment must never become evil (below -350, so "Somewhat Rude" is the lowest
alignment a Ranger wants to see when checking "Score"). A Ranger who falls from
the path is permanently a simple warrior.
Rangers have semi-cleric/druid abilities. As the Ranger progresses
he can learn specific spells that have to do with forest/animal
training. Most skills that a Ranger uses must be used OUTSIDE. OUTSIDE is
considered to be in a forest, desert, arctic tundra or anywhere not inside.
Rangers are also very capable fighters. They gain as many hitpoints as
warriors and can bash like warriors. They are somewhat more limited in
what equipment they can use but they can use some specialized equipment
that only rangers can use. Rangers also have the special skill of DUAL WIELD
which allows them to attack with two weapons at time.
Rangers need to be strong, healthy, dexterous, and wise to reach their
maximum potential.
Newbie Ranger tip: A good way to see if you are outside is to use the
WEATHER command.
Monk: Master of their own bodies.
Monks are a very special class, with a variety of advantages and
disadvantages.
Disadvantages:
*These masters of unarmed combat carry very little equipment. Their vows
do not allow them to have more than 25 items, so choose carefully. They may
also carry up to 25 food or drink items above this. If the game reboots or
crashes while a monk has too many items they lose EVERYTHING!
*Monks cannot use banks until they are level 40.
*Monks lose experience if they flee unsuccessfully from a mob that is
lower level than they are.
*Monks have very limited access to armor and weapons, and do not get as
many hit points as a warrior.
*Monks cannot bash.
Advantages:
*A monk's kick does his level in damage, while other PCs' kicks only do
half level.
*Monks are immune to hold (paralysis) at level 10, resistant to charm at
level 18, immune to poison at level 22, and immune to charm at level 36.
*Monks regenerate move at twice the rate of most other classes.
*Monk armor class drops 5 points per level to, at best, -50 (not counting
dexterity, etc.)
*Monks get double dex bonuses to Armor Class.
*Monks have access to some thief skills.
*Unarmed monks get more attacks per round than other classes.
The formula used for the number of attacks that an unarmed monk will get per
round is:
level 1 to 8 level 9 to 50
-------------- ----------------
level/8 + 1 level/16 + 1.5
The fractional portion will provide the probability of getting an extra
attack each round. (i.e. if you were VERY lucky, a 2nd level monk could get 2
attacks every round, but probably won't)
*Monks get improved bare handed damage as follows:
Level Damage Level Damage Level Damage Level Damage
1- 3 1d3 15-19 2d4 30-34 4d4 42-44 6d4
4- 5 1d4 20-21 3d3 35-36 4d5 45-49 6d5
6-11 1d6 22-26 3d4 37-41 5d4 50 8d4
12-14 2d3 27-29 4d3
When a young monk has reached a high enough level, Gifft, the Monk Grandmaster,
has declared that he or she must fight and defeat a monk of equal skill
in order to advance. The challenge must be performed alone and without any
material possessions in order to prove the monk's worthiness.
Monks also have the ability to focus their inner ki (focus ki) to simulate
a warrior's ability to bash.
Like other fighters, monks should be strong, healthy, and dexterous.
Newbie Monk tip: Don't use weapons to fight. Your hands are as lethal
as any weapon you might use.
Psionist: Those who have developed the powers of their mind.
Psionist are characters that use the power of the mind. They can
summon people from great distances and they have been known to blast
the mind of powerful beings to jelly! They also have natural telepathy,
requiring no study.
Psionists can fight at about the level of thieves, if they are equipped
for fighting. At the same time, their mind skills can rival the most powerful
mage spells in inflicting damage to victims. Psionists can also use telekenesis
to simulate a warrior's ability to bash.
Obviously psionists need to be very intelligence while good wisdom certainly
helps as well.
Psionist use the command MIND to activate most of their skills, be
sure to see the help section on MIND.
Barbarian: Big fighters who cannot use any magic items.
Barbarians are impressive fighters with a tendency to go berserk. They can
take more damage then any other class. They are, however, completely
unable to use, or even hold, any item with the taint of magic. This means
they will never be as well armored, or have the magical advantages, of a
warrior.
Barbarians get innate bonuses to hit and damage as they rise in
level. The formula for hit bonus is (lvl+3)/9, and for damage bonus
is (lvl-3)/9. For true barbarians, who can't do math, that is:
Hit bonuses at levels 6, 15, 24, 33, 42.
Damage bonuses at levels 12, 21, 30, 39, 48
Newbie Barbarian tip: A Barbarian's primary skill is "bash". Study it early and use it often.
Newbie Warrior tip 2: Half-giant (HG) is the only PC race that can bash huge mobs (in-game
monsters) such as dragons. Hence HG barbarians are popular in groups.
Newbie Barbarian tip 3: Because of the severe equipment limitations on barbarians, they
are very difficult to equip and therefore to play. If you are new to the game, consider
playing a warrior first before you try to play a barbarian.