Resolute Class Roundup

 Here's what I have so far... I decided to toss the idea of 'balance' out the window in terms of classes; there are three classes for Attack, but only two each for Defense and Focus, for seven total classes; I was trying to get to three each, but the third in each one ended up being pretty lame, and overlapping with another. So, I have accepted that seven it might be

For Attack (Attack as the tagged trait)

¨      Archer. When your Attack result is 13+ with a ranged weapon, you immediately attempt another Attack on the same action. That second attack cannot trigger this effect again.

¨      Mercenary. Any time your Attack result is 13+ with a melee attack, you deal 2 damage instead of 1.

¨      Savage. At will, add +1 to the damage you deal on a successful melee attack. There is a 3 in 6 chance you also suffer 1 damage.

I have play-tested all three, and all three are a lot of fun (IMHO). The Mercenary is your meat-and-potatoes fighter, while the other two are nifty alternate fighter types.

For Defense (Defense as the tagged trait)

¨      Guardian. On a Defend result of 13+ in combat, you receive a free Attack attempt against that foe.

¨      Paladin. On a Defend result of 13+ in combat, you can choose to either recover 1 Resolve point or receive advantage on your next Attack. 

I have play tested the Guardian, but not the Paladin. That is actually the class I am most interested in trying... I know that the Paladin might kill things slowly, but I also see that the Paladin is the hardest to kill. That is the one that would be the game on 'easy mode'... yeah, it might take a while to kill stuff, but you are going to have a way to continually rebuild your Resolve over the course of a battle. You're still not getting the heavy hits of the archer, savage, or mercenary, but you are really, really durable. Plus, I like the tactical options the class has built in. My first draft had a healer class (a la Cleric), but once I changed to a solo game system, that class didn't really fit. Its primary thing is in support - healing and buffing others; when there's nobody else to heal, there's no need for a dedicated team healer. There would be NPC healers, but as a PC? Meh.

For Focus (Focus as the tagged trait)

¨      Mage. As a mage, you are able to cast magical spells. See page 7.

That one is solid. I like the magic system, and I keep adding new spells to the list; I'm up to 15 spells. I'm going for high utility as much as possible. I've also added an option for a wizard's blade; you carry a specially-enchanted blade that attacks using Focus instead of casting an arcane or elemental dart spell; this allows for the elfin champion class I wanted. You don't get to cast the basic 'magic missile' spell every round, but you do get a nifty little sword you swing around instead, so that's something. I almost think that Galdalf would be a wizard's blade sort; he ends up swinging that sword as much as casting spells.

And for the final class... Ugh. Here are some options:

¨      Assassin. You are able to leverage a variety of skills including moving with stealth, picking locks, and climbing walls. When you attempt surprise (next page), attack with Focus in place of Attack; deal 2 damage as a base, 3 damage if your Focus result is 13+.

¨      Hunter. You can interact with the natural world in deep and significant ways. You can forage for food, hunt creatures, follow trails, identify plants and animals, and intuit direction in the wild. You always win initiative.

¨      Rogue. You are able to leverage a variety of skills including moving with stealth, picking locks, and climbing walls. As a rogue, you attempt two actions per round in combat. With your first, attempt Focus against any ability other than Resolve; if successful, you force -1 to that ability for the rest of the turn. The effect is cumulative. You then attempt a second action, a standard attack with your primary weapon. Note: If hasted, you get a second Attack, but do not attempt a second Focus check. An enemy will surrender or flee if any ability other than Resolve reaches 0.   

So, the Hunter is pretty clearly the weakest of the three options; in addition, it doesn't thematically fit as well; you need a rogue or assassin class (some sneaky dude who can pick locks and stuff)... but I don't want to get into the 'just use Focus in place of Attack' for every action, because then it's just attack under a different label. It's not any different; it's just a shell game. The assassin gets a nice hit to start combat (only if surprise works) and then is pretty mediocre for the rest of combat. Against weaker foes, that is going to be a good ability; once a foe has Resolve 6+, it's going to get more difficult to sustain a fight because you have no tactical options left... the Rogue is more interesting (you are actually doing 'damage' to things other than Resolve) but it's basically going to make combat last a long, long time... maybe simplify it a little. How about this?

As a rogue, you always win initiative (so that's nice). Start every round with a Focus check (DT 13); if successful; you may have advantage on either Attack or Defend for that entire round (your choice). This is tactical (you choose where to be more aggressive or safe each round you are successful); I really like the IDEA of wearing down something other than Resolve, but the practicality of wearing down multiple traits over time just seems like a bit of a slog and could become a book keeping chore (okay... first hobgoblin has lost 2 Attack, the second has lost 1 point of Defense and 1 Focus, and the third has lost 2 Resolve)...