Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 eldersphinx Jan 13, 2006 15:56:27	One other attempt on converting 0E elves to a 3E setting - essentially, creating a mini-core class with a mix of combat ability and arcane spellcasting, limited to 10 levels that 'elf'-class characters would take early in their adventuring careers. 0E Attack Ranks reflect multiclassing into Fighter or possibly Ranger; the GAZ5 "elven wizard" takes levels of arcane caster PrC. Hopefully this balances well against existing 3E classes and works well for elven characters on Mystara. Thoughts? The Forester is a mix of warrior and wizard - an individual able to fight fairly effectively, wield arcane magic and move effectively through the wilderness. A class often adopted by elves and friends of elves, foresters are capable adventurers but may find themselves outstripped by the most powerful of wizards and other adventurers. Abilities: Intelligence powers the forester's arcane spellcasting. Strength and Dexterity both provide useful combat benefits and allow the forester to function well in melee. Alignment: Any. Hit Die: d8. Class Skills A forester's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are: Concentraction (Con), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Jump (Str), Knowledge (arcana) (Int), Knowledge (history) (Int), Knowledge (nature) (Int), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Search (Int), Spellcraft (Int), and Swim (Str). Skill Points at 1st Level: (4 + Int modifier) x4. Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 4 + Int modifier.
#2 havard Jan 20, 2006 13:45:42	This looks like a good solid class eldersphinx! You might want to take a look at the Arcane Warrior class from Dave Arneson's Blackmoor which also combines fighting skills with arcane magic. IMC The Forester is more an organization than a class, and its mostly made up of Rangers and Druids. I am actually considering having most elves in Mystara be Druids. This makes more sense with what is written on elven magic in Gaz5 (Alfheim)... In any case I'd say there is room for your class though. I am wondering why WotC hasnt come up with something like this yet... Håvard
#3 mrfilthyike Jan 20, 2006 13:56:44	Not bad ES, I'm sure I'd tweak it, but a solid go at the problem of converting 0E elves to 3.5E.
#4 havard Jan 20, 2006 14:08:36	Not bad ES, I'm sure I'd tweak it, but a solid go at the problem of converting 0E elves to 3.5E. That class would certainly help in this issue yeah OTOH, I'm pretty happy with making them Elven Fighter Wizards. The Wizard Favored Class makes sure all elves have a greater talent for magic than other races even if they dont actually possess the Wizard class too. It is more of a conversion of the "spirit" of the system than rule by rule conversion though. Also, by making many elves Druids, I keep a close connection to some of the elements in the Alfheim gaz. There is no one right way to do these things though... Håvard
#5 mrfilthyike Jan 20, 2006 15:43:30	There is no one right way to do these things though... Oh, there is...it'll just that a meeting of the Mighty Mystaran Minds that post here on this board.
#6 Hugin Jan 20, 2006 16:52:52	That class makes for a great alternative option; there are alot of different ways you could go about it, but this is a nice one. IMC's 'ranger' is the forester, so that class is generally reserved for elves and certain humans. However, I gave elves 'druid', 'ranger', and 'sorcerer' as favoured classes (not 'wizard'). Mind you, if I had this class a number of months ago, I may have tested it out for you when a player asked to play a 'Forester' character!
#7 Cthulhudrew Jan 20, 2006 21:23:53	You might want to take a look at the Arcane Warrior class from Dave Arneson's Blackmoor which also combines fighting skills with arcane magic. IMC The Forester is more an organization than a class, and its mostly made up of Rangers and Druids. This has always been my problem when trying to do a conversion of the Forester. A straight up conversion itself isn't too difficult, but I get hung up on the classification. What is the spirit/concept of the Forester? By name alone- "Forester"- it would appear to be some sort of Ranger. By statistics (and given the multiclass nature of the elves in OD&D), it is just a fighter/wizard. So is it really part of the concept that it should have arcane magic as a feature? Or is that just a holdover of the idea that elves (ie, fighter/mages) are nature warriors? In that case, it should just be a ranger of some sort, or some sort of druid. Or for that matter, should it be a prestige class? Or just (as Havard suggests) an organization, devoid of class/abilities? Or maybe just something along the lines of the Organizations in the Champions of Valor product (which features class substitution levels)? I just don't really know where to place myself. (Of course, further complicating things, for me, is the fact that in 1st edition, Rangers used some arcane magic- which would be almost exactly like the Forester in OD&D).
#8 gawain_viii Jan 20, 2006 22:19:48	Very well done, 100 points for you! I am of the oppinion, because of the description of the Forrester in DotE-T, that the Foresters are an organization which may be offered to humans (of almost any class and "compatible" alignments). Membership gives the character certain elf-like options not available to non-human member, such as: human Forresters may select Elven regional/racial feats as if he were actually an Elf. I don't have any Forester players, so haven't completely developed the details of the org. On the matter of comparable conversions, I rely on "Templates" similar to the ones in Star Wars d20 and the "NPC Characters" section of the DMG, where a table lists the "suggested" progression of classes per level... EG: "standard" Elf Char LVL---Class LVLs---- 1---(1/2)Fighter/(1/2)Wizard <-- see 3.0 PHB Multiclassing at 1st Lvl sidebar 2---1 Ftr/1Wiz 3---1Ftr/2Wiz 4---2Ftr/2Wiz ~~~ 10--5Ftr/5Wiz 11--6Ftr/5Wiz 12--7Ftr/5Wiz etc... And Similarly for Halflings... 1---(1/2)Fighter/(1/2)Rogue <-- see 3.0 PHB Multiclassing at 1st Lvl sidebar 2---1 Ftr/1Rog 3---1Ftr/2Rog 4---2Ftr/2Rog ~~~ 8---4Ftr/4Rog 9---5Ftr/4Rog 10--6Ftr/4Rog and for the Master (will post PrC details later) 7---3Ftr/4Rog 8---4Ftr/4Rog 9---4Ftr/4Rog/1Master 10--4Ftr/4Rog/2Msr etc... But, as always, the players find some way to thward my attempts at storyboarding, so the templates are pretty much my tool for converting pre-existing/pre-printed 0e N/PCs, not a requirement for players to follow.