Wizardry 6: Character Classes Contemplation

Earlier, I complained about the Ranger class. I’ve read a few posts where people felt the class was lacking. Now, that I’ve experienced it as a starting class, I really started to do a deep dive on why this class is flawed, how it could be fixed and where it potentially could work. Along those lines, I began another theorycrafting session where I attempted to continue retrofitting my “ideal” starting party, which further led me down the path in thinking about Wizardry 6 class design and what is sorely lacking in the game as a result of the deficiencies of the Ranger.

First, I wanted to talk about the key issue with the Ranger: Scouting. I feel like Scouting was meant as a n00b trap skill because the internet wasn’t available when the game was released. So the only way to solve hidden area issues was to pick up Scouting or buy the cluebook. Scouting by itself in the way it was designed feels like a half baked pie where someone forgot the filling (and possibly the crust too). Beyond alerting the player that a button is available next to a wall  or that an area has something unusual (meaning using the Search action), there’s almost no purpose behind this skill. If there was a different mechanism that Scouting could have been used for like receiving bonus initiative and be trained for free, I would have no issues in the skill itself. Then the Ranger would be worth taking since most other classes would be too busy shoveling skill points into more useful skills (i.e. spell casting)

Removing Scouting as a core skill for a Ranger would solve a huge chunk of the Ranger’s issues. In my view, the Ranger should be as effective/useful as a Valkyrie. Valkyries quickly gain Priest spells and aren’t forced to choose a specific weapon that the game allocates points for compared to the Ranger. Then the Ranger could spend more points into Alchemy or Skulduggery (which is harder to train).

Yet Rangers take more experience than a Valkyrie to level up and their thief skills are mostly an after thought since the bulk of their skill points are pre-allocated. Also, Rangers do very little damage and require ammo. Their Ninjutsu skill does nothing for their Bow attacks in terms of damage and I’m waiting to see multiple attacks from my Ranger using her Long Bow compared to my Valkyrie, who has been attacking multiple times in a single attack since level 5 or so. On top of that Rangers don’t have many option for armor which makes them terrible front line people. Their only real benefit as a hybrid fighter class is having higher than average hit points.

Where Rangers might hit a niche area is when deadly opponents have at least two rows (or more?) of opponents to block a boss off from melee attacks. But because the Ranger’s damage is so low on its own, you need supplements to really boost the power of a Ranger. That means a Ranger really is better off as an end game type of class because the best bow (Elven Bow) comes at a later stage along with powerful arrows. Also, you’d want the Ranger to have Kirijutsu to improve your chances of a critical blow.

Rangers feel like a poorly thought out fantasy in the implementation here. It feels like someone was trying to juggle a balancing act but failed to make the Ranger truly compelling on its own compared to other prestige classes. Even adding Kirijitsu would have improved this class a little since there aren’t enough decent bows in the game. Most people say if you want someone with Alchemy just go straight to a Ninja. At least with a Ninja, you gain Kirijutsu as well as increasing ones AC through raising Ninjutsu.

Beyond these criticisms, I began thinking about how Wizardry felt incomplete in terms of having more interesting characters. In creating a starting party, you feel trapped into certain combinations or classes. For instance, Bards become a must have at the start and Valkyries are too good to pass up. But you have end up having numerous gaps whether it’s due to race limitations or class abilities. The basic premise of these classes in having core classes, hybrids and prestige classes feel as though there’s still others that could have been added to the pool to make the game more interesting. Here are some ideas I came up with based on the skills in the game.

  • Barbarian – Seems like a huge missing piece is the idea of a Fighter/Thief hybrid. The closest we get is a Ranger but the Ranger is too focused on ranged attacks as well as Scouting. If we remove the Alchemy portion, make this class focused on the fantasy of Axe weapons, limit armor to Leather or Studded Leather, provide higher HP and resistances vs magic than a typical fighter (to compensate for low armor), then this would be a nice addition to the core. This class wouldn’t have Magic like a Thief nor Fighter but Skulduggery, Ninjutsu and Legerdemain. Strength, Vitality and Dexterity would be the main attributes and the experience table would probably utilize the Valkyrie’s.
  • Druid – Another popular fantasy class that is missing from this game. Here, I would use a combination of the Priest and Alchemist classes. Armor would be stronger than most spell casters as the Druid would have access up to Leather armor. Weapons would be a Staff. I suppose the real programmatic challenge here would be whether or not Oratory becomes a requirement. I imagine that any spells falling under the Alchemist would not require Oratory. If there’s a spell under both schools, I would default it to Alchemist (probably how characters that change professions and have Alchemist and another spell school are handled). So the benefit obviously is that the Druid wouldn’t worry about fizzled spells for something like most healing and curative but a limited amount for anything falling strictly under Priest. XP chart would most likely use a Ninja’s as Bishops would be comparable but the benefits here make this class slightly more powerful than a Bishop. High Piety, Dexterity and moderate Intelligence and some Personality would be the main prerequisites for this class.
  • Wujen – To add to the Asian fantasy, I considered using the AD&D Oriental Adventures Wujen as a class. Here, I would combine Mage and Psionic to provide another hybrid spell caster. Only Wands & Daggers would be allowed for weapons and just Robes for armor. These spell casters would require high intelligence, dexterity and moderate vitality and use the Ninja experience table for leveling.
  • Archer – This class is similar to the Might and Magic classic class and attempts to fix the problems of a Ranger but making it distinct enough to still allow for a Ranger to be a class worth taking. Bow would be the focus of this class and I would add Kirijutsu. However, like the Might and Magic version of the Archer, I would have this class gain Thaumaturgy/Mage skills to the mix. In a way, this class would be similar to a Samurai but at range. I would also have the Archer’s damage fixed by increasing their attacks per round. Armor would be limited to Leather with lower hit points than a Ranger. They would share the same experience chart as a Samurai. I would prioritize high intelligence, dexterity, speed and moderate strength and vitality.

I might consider adding more Oriental Adventures type of classes like a Sohei since I would like to see more Asian weapons and armor being employed. Also, I’d like to see more variants of classes. I thought about a Yakuza but they don’t make a lot of sense here since their trade would be information. Maybe a toned down Ninja? Others like a Shukenja might be nice in theory but don’t quite match the fantasy.

Other missing things are pure summoners. There are summoning skills in the game but no dedicated summoning type of classes like a Necromancer. Similarly, there are no shapeshifting classes nor races. The Druid here would benefit greatly in having some sort of shapeshifting capability.

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