Ironworks Gaming Forum - View Single Post - Bards, Druids, Wizards, and Rangers: Your Experiences

Legolas · 01-25-2005, 11:28 AM

In brief, the wizard starts out with some difficulty but grows to be one of what are easily the most powerful classes around. Resting often, and using summoned creatures strengthened by spells, are your best bets during the initial stages.

The druid, while not as effectively as the cleric, makes for quite a versatile class which specialises in summons. Of the two, the druid uses the more offensive magic and that, combined with some very respectable defensive spells, makes the class stand out in environments where little magical equipment is available. The same strategy applies here as it does with the wizard, with the exception that the druid can keep going just that little bit longer, and can also fall back on combat when spells run out.

The ranger isn't particularly powerful. In fact, the only two reasons to take the class are because you might want to play a lightly armoured, dual-wielding character in which case you can consider taking fighter levels anyway, and because no matter how much the rules mess them up, rangers are still cool. They are reasonably solid fighters with a few nice tricks, but nothing spectacular.

The bard class isn't as much a jack-of-all-trades as the cleric is these days, but like the ranger, they have the background thing going for them. Start out with ranged weapons until you can switch to something more slashy. The spells aren't as plentiful as they are with the other arcane caster classes, but they can certainly give you a nice little boost now and then.

Also, by now, Druid means Shifter and Bard means RDD, and with good reason. The prestige classes are almost too good not to use. If you go the way of the stereotype, you'll end up with effective characters indeed, but it's all down to whether or not you find any fun in that.

01-25-2005, 11:28 AM	#5
Legolas Jack Burton Join Date: March 31, 2001 Location: The zephyr lands beneath the brine. Age: 40 Posts: 5,459	In brief, the wizard starts out with some difficulty but grows to be one of what are easily the most powerful classes around. Resting often, and using summoned creatures strengthened by spells, are your best bets during the initial stages. The druid, while not as effectively as the cleric, makes for quite a versatile class which specialises in summons. Of the two, the druid uses the more offensive magic and that, combined with some very respectable defensive spells, makes the class stand out in environments where little magical equipment is available. The same strategy applies here as it does with the wizard, with the exception that the druid can keep going just that little bit longer, and can also fall back on combat when spells run out. The ranger isn't particularly powerful. In fact, the only two reasons to take the class are because you might want to play a lightly armoured, dual-wielding character in which case you can consider taking fighter levels anyway, and because no matter how much the rules mess them up, rangers are still cool. They are reasonably solid fighters with a few nice tricks, but nothing spectacular. The bard class isn't as much a jack-of-all-trades as the cleric is these days, but like the ranger, they have the background thing going for them. Start out with ranged weapons until you can switch to something more slashy. The spells aren't as plentiful as they are with the other arcane caster classes, but they can certainly give you a nice little boost now and then. Also, by now, Druid means Shifter and Bard means RDD, and with good reason. The prestige classes are almost too good not to use. If you go the way of the stereotype, you'll end up with effective characters indeed, but it's all down to whether or not you find any fun in that.