The Next New Class

[Uska]

I can't believe I haven't heard any requests of Assassins and Necromancers yet. Shadow powers would create a new feel of the game. Something different. I believe Shamans are way overdue to class options, as well as Druid. What would seperate Warlocks from Sorcerers would be the pacts. I know it's 4E based, and many people don't like 4E, but it would be different for sure to be able to pick what type of warlock you are instead of making it a weak sorcerer. I'd LOVE a warlord. Basically a sword/shield bard that wears heavy armor. I would also like a Warden, but that would make Paladin's slightly useless, lol.
I know this isn't about races, but we need Tieflings! Dragonborn would also be really fun, and high elves would create a diversity. Gnomes would be fun to play as well. I would love a holy striker, also.

WE have assassins already warlords are useless really and big hearty no the chesses that is tiefling and dragonborn. well I could see teiflings before dragonborn

[FoxCourier]

AD said it pretty much in his post warlock is kind of like a weak sauce sorc but with unlimted spells it adds zero to the game.

Eh. I think it could add an interesting niche, but I'm not going to disagree that the spell changes here have made it a somewhat reduced niche. I think the biggest part people would drool over is Decieve Item and the better skill list, as well as the DR added throughout the class. Add on the fact that most of it's damage is (somewhat reduced) nuke-based with effects (Vitrolic Blast was a favorite of mine in tabletop, just for how spammable it was, though Utterdark Blast was also great fun) might still make it great for smaller group or solo play.

I mean, free Fast Healing for a short duration, 10 Energy Resistance.. And that's all before we get into specific invocations.

Wall of Fire with half of the damage being Untyped (and thus unresistable) sounds pretty hot to me. Doubly so considering how Empower/Maximize work in this game (no real need for <X> SLA like in Tabletop, which was a generally inferior version anyway).

I could dig it. I dug it just fine in tabletop - it'd make some people happy, but would it be necessary? Probably not. And it wasn't exactly too themely in Eberron to start with (at least outside of Droam and the Demon Wastes, anyway). It's certainly not a replacement for a proper arcane caster, though.

[wsh1973]

I would really LOVE to see Anti-Paladin as a new class. I've played evil knights (Shadowknight, Darkknight, Anti-Paladin etc... ) in other games and I really enjoy the class. If it's not really viable as a class, at least consider making a build within the Paladin line. PLEASE?

[QuantumFX]

1: Druid - Coming "SOON"

No.

1: Druid - Coming SOON™

Yes.

[berinea]

MINDBLADE (psionic blades in hands)

Wilder (psion is to wizard as wilder is to sorcerer)

[kennethgreene]

I think it is time that we start bringing in some of the other books, and classes. For me i would love to see them bring out the ninja from complete adventurer. A wonderfull blend of rog/ftr.

[berinea]

I would really LOVE to see Anti-Paladin as a new class. I've played evil knights (Shadowknight, Darkknight, Anti-Paladin etc... ) in other games and I really enjoy the class. If it's not really viable as a class, at least consider making a build within the Paladin line. PLEASE?

yes a blackguard would be awsome to see!

[der_kluge]

Blackguard would never be there, because it's an evil class.

My choice: Mystic Theurge, although admittedly it's a prestige enhancement (by DDO's definition). But it would probably be best implemented as a class.

Second and third choice: Scout and Cloistered Cleric

Mystic Theurge might be fairly difficult to implement just because of the spell selection screens. But Scout and Cloistered Cleric (in theory) would be simple to implement. Especially cloistered Clerics.


For reference, here are all the classes from the "Complete" books:

Hexblade
The Hexblade mixes martial prowess with a unique curse ability, the ability to cast arcane spells and good resistance against spells and spell effects. Similar in concept to the sorcerer, the Hexblade is an individual who possesses unnatural jinxes or an evil eye, and uses it towards combat. With a d10 for hit points, a 1/1 base attack bonus advancement, and a very slow spell advancement, the hexblade is more like an arcane ranger or paladin than a bard.

Samurai
The Samurai is a brave and noble warrior, possessing martial prowess and unique abilities to intimidate and terrify his opponents. Like the other classes, the Samurai has a d10 for hit points and a 1/1 base attack bonus advancement. The main drawback to playing a Samurai is the restrictions placed on the class. A Samurai cannot multiclass, then resume being a Samurai, some of his class abilities require him to use specific weaponry, and he is bound by the code of Bushido, which operates in a similar manner to the Paladin's code.

Swashbuckler
The Swashbuckler is a fighter that emphasizes finesse, style and flair, combining martial prowess with amazing acrobatics to outmaneuver opponents. With a d10 for hit points and a 1/1 base attack bonus advancement, the swashbuckler is an effective frontline fighter, and while the inability to wear medium or heavy armours makes the character vulnerable to counterattacks, some of the class features compensate. The ability to deal strength (weakness critical class feature) and constitution damage (wounding critical class feature), as well as the ability to charge in difficult terrains (acrobatic charge class feature) makes the swashbuckler a formidable opponent in any battle.

Ninja
The ninja class represents the standard image of a stealthy fighter. A ninja can come unseen, attack quickly but furiously, then leave unseen. The ninja excels at quick, powerful attacks but lacks the combat stamina of other classes such as monks and fighters.

Scout
A scout is a bit like a rogue of the wilderness. The scout is an expert at tracking, scouting enemy positions, and finding their way through familiar and unfamiliar landscapes. A scout has a mix of rogue and ranger traits, as well as some unique to them.

Spellthief
The spellthief is probably the most unusual class introduced in the book. They have the ability to make a rogue's sneak attack, but instead of inflicting damage, can steal a spell from their opponent. That is, the victim can no longer cast their memorized spell for that day, while the spellthief can cast it - just as it was memorized. At higher levels the spellthief can even steal spell-like abilities from monsters.

Warlock
Closer to a sorcerer than a wizard, the Warlock has been given supernatural powers. Either he or his ancestors made a deal with a supernatural being. A warlock has an innate magical ability called the eldritch blast, a damaging ray-like ability. The damage for this attack increases as the warlock gains levels. Instead of spells, warlocks gain a limited number of invocations, spell-like abilities with a distinctively sinister flavor. Most of these invocations may be performed at will, or have durations of 24 hours. Some invocations add effects to the warlock's eldritch blast, causing sicknesss, or blindness, or fright, etc.

Warmage
Warmages take the concept of "magical artillery" to its extreme. They specialize in direct-damage spells and can wear light armor (and later medium armor) without penalty to their spellcasting. Though they cast spells like a sorcerer, they have a very limited list of spells they can cast.

Wu Jen
Wu jen are arcane spellcasters with a distinct Oriental flavor. Wu Jen specialize in the casting of elemental spells. The five elements of Wu Jen magic are wood, fire, water, earth, and metal.

Shugenja
Updated from Oriental Adventures, the shugenja utilizes primal energies, and tapping into the earth to cast spells. It is a charisma based sorcerer-style divine casting class, with a spell list biased towards elemental spells.

Favored Soul
Updated from the Miniatures Handbook, the Favored Soul is a spontaneously casting divine class, with a couple of additional divine abilities closely tied to his or her deity.

Spirit Shaman
The class has a fairly narrow divine spell selection. The spirit shaman cast spells as sorcerers do, but they change their spell selection each day by sending their Spirit Guide into the spirit world. The shaman also has a special abilities that affect spirits (incorporeal undead, fey, elementals and creatures defined as spirits in other texts). The Spirit Guide is a purely mental/spiritual creature, incapable of affecting the world, though it does grant the spirit shaman the feat, "Alertness", as well as justifying certain class features. Ultimately, at 20th level, the spirit shaman becomes a spirit (fey) himself, much as a 20th level monk becomes an outsider.

-----

Obviously, some of those have already been implemented.

[RATRACE931]

Finish PrE's...... nuff said.

[berinea]

Why don't they just wipe the (metric ton of) dust off one of the golden oldies, like the Math Mage? =D

... But to do that they'd first have to either build a time machine or find a way to resurrect the dead, and that would result in either a zombie invasion or an invasion of time-travelling zombies. I can't see either of those ending well, so probably best to leave well enough alone. =)

Are you talking about Chronomancers? I can't find anything about the Math Mage.

[Kilnedric]

Soulknife!

(But I do agree that finishing PrEs is probably high priority.)

[ArchStriker]

I want a bard who can be useful in a party...

[Mathieugh]

Arise, my child, and do my bidding!

Hmm, I think this one is still rotting...

[Karell]

Alright, I love the Duskblade in PnP. But to be honest, this class should not come to DDO in my opinion. Here is my main reason for it:

Arcane Channeling. This ability allows you to use a Touch spell through your weapon. This may not seem like much, especially since this class is feat starved. and it will slaughter your sp when you use it, because it is at least 10 sp per swing. But what about Raid bosses?

Shocking Grasp is normally 5d6 damage maxed out, not much, especially in ddo. But...it won't end there. I would probably at LEAST take maximize as a feat, and if I could afford it, empower as well. this translates the damage to 10d6 with maximize, and I'm not positive if empower turns it to 12/13d6 going off base, or 15d6 since maximize is in effect. Whatever works, but it is automatically shocking blow at least with maximize on, per blow, and that's just base. Now, factor in the enhancements that will most likely give you 40% extra damage, almost increasing damage by half. Then you get an item that increases the damage. Now it's starting to look stronger. Then, factor into this thing Spell crits.

So, this extra damage, it goes with a 9% enhancement line to crit, so it has almost a 19-20 to crit. But the damage on it is multiplied by at least 2.25 endgame. So, dps wise, they will even outshine barbarians with a maxed death frenzy line. Sure they have less hp, but doing that much extra damage, and close to lightning strike damage on a spell crit (Let alone if they have a gs item. MinII with a lightning strike that goes off more often than a regular lightning strike? or the possibility to double lightning strike?)

I'm not a hundred percent sure what touch spells are in the game, but this is an example with shocking grasp. Honestly, it won't be much of a difference during game, because you would need to decide when to turn on Arcane Channeling. But during bosses and raids? Face it, any duskblade worth anything would have arcane channeling on, and most likely at least maximize, and it will be almost impossible to out dps them while they have sp and their arcane channeling going. Unless you can get crits often enough, and even then, it doesn't factor the duskblade getting them, they would be overpowered. At least for endgame, mainly against raid bosses, I would take a duskblade over a fighter, barb, or anything like that. Because I have seen some d8 people end up with a lot of hp. If built correctly. And since they are a frontline fighter, I expect them to have toughness enhancements.

Unless they could balance their Arcane channeling ability, even a sword and board duskblade, has the possibility to out dps a 2hf or 2wf fighter/barbarian. Sorry, I love the duskblade in PnP, but it should not be implemented in DDO.

[Failedlegend]

2: Warlock (Because nothing says lovin' like an eldritch blast to the face)

Also their invocations are really cool and varied...although their incredibly selfish buffers :P (actually that's awesome im not a battery anymore lol)

Also IIRC Locks could also Imbue their blast into whatever weapons they were hold so it would add the damage and whatever effect was on it from essences (ie.disease) for Locks to work in DDO they would probably end up as Arcane Melee's Str/Cha Based which would actually fit the "Gish" niche that we lack in DDO (Note: Not trying to insult the Tukaw,etc. builds) also the FvS like defenses and awesome skill list would make locks quite a potent class without overpowering it (fighters,barbs etc. would probably be a bit higher on the dps scale but warlock wouldn't be far behind. It's always nice to stab a kobold in the face than burn his buddies with an Eldritch Cone :P

Also if Locks are added it would be nice to see Tieflings or Dragonborn,both Cha races IIRC and if you count it in 4e their Cha/Dex(Tiefling) & Cha/Str(D-Born) so probably in DDO I'd say +2Cha,-2Wis (Tiefling) they don't reallt have an affinity for divine classes, +2Cha,-2 Dex (Dragonborn) Their not the most agile brutes around (these are what I think would fit DDO best not their actual 3.5e stats)

I almost dont see the Other Invocations that are a limited list of spells a Warlock can cast an Unlimited number of times being added or if added will have long cool down times.

I'd say it works like rages or bard songs+ Spell Slots...IOW they can have a limited amount of "Chosen" invocations and can only use a certain amount per rest (maybe 1/2 warlock level+cha mod?)...so no actual mana.

Warlocks are gods of UMD/crafting in their own way. Full ranks along with...

[I]Deceive Item (4th level)

This would probably be translated as a warlock unique feat that adds a bonus to UMD (stacks with SF:UMD) unlikely to be 10 though...maybe 3-5

[JakLee7]

ok - artificers is a must

and I know people are throwing races into this as well, but not mentioning something that brings back 1st edition flavor - have a race that IS the class;
Troll
Changeling
Ogre

where as you get higher levels, you can become more powerful ( ogremagi, troll shaman, ect). And the changeling could let you change your race or class when you shrine...might be kind of unwieldy in practice, but just like any idea, if done correctly could be LOTS of fun.

[Rosze]

kobolds would be a funny race.

[SynalonEtuul]

Wasn't the soulknife class a dog with fleas...?

[DasLurch]

I can remember a post or letter that Kate (our old Dev in charge, now #2 to Fernando her hubby) wrote back around the time Monks showwed up, that they had been having trouble with the druid shape-change abilities. That was one reason why they had never been implemented yet. It was something that they were working on, but was still a long time off. The letter was written sometime before the FTP intro. If what an earlier post said is true, they may have worked out some of these issues. That would be nice. Folks have been asking for this class way too long, and it does have some real D & D flavor.

The second part of the post mentioned artifcers as being closer to hitting the live servers than druids. Once again, I say this was YEARS ago. It was before the FTP model was introduced. So I'd bet that these would be the next 2 classes.

That said, they did slip Favored Soul in on us during that time span. So who really knows...

[Drakos]

Warlocks are fun, but let’s think about each of their abilities in game terms.

Really. I’m going to list each and every ability they have or can get and we can deconstruct each of them.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Eldritch blast (Xd6 of magical damage. Possibly force, possibly untyped…) - Basically Arcane bolt OR the magic missile Spell like ability. Yes, archmage gets two different abilities that approximate the most basic warlock ability and an archmage could have both at the same time, if he wanted.
~~~~~
Eldritch burst (eldritch blast changes from single target to area of effect) –either Arcane blast or the Chain magic missile SLA. Worst than either of those two options, since it can’t be cycled with eldritch blast, but magic missile can be cycled with chain mm. An archmage with chain mm And arcane blast is laughing in the face of all warlocks atm.
~~~~~
Damage reduction (Slow progressing DR/cold iron, up to a max of 5DR/cold iron)- a minor ability that is completely blown out of the water by stoneskin wands AND basically all DR items.
~~~~~
Deceive item (A warlock always rolls 10 or better for UMD checks.)- this could be implemented several ways, but it basically comes out to warlocks rocking at UMD.
~~~~
Fiendish resilience (fast healing 1 for 2 minutes, which can progress up to fast healing 5)- Kind of nice for guarantied healing.
~~~~~
Energy resistance (energy resistance 5 verses 2 elements, which progresses up to energy resistance 10 to those same elements.)- Nothing to write home about.
~~~~
Imbue item (a warlock is able to create magical items without knowing the spells required for that item) Wonderful! Except we don’t have D&D crafting in DDo, so warlocks wouldn’t actually get this ability.
~~~~
At this point, warlock is a good deal behind an archmage wizard except in regard to UMD.

Let’s start on their least invocations. I will omit the obviously impossible ones, such as Spiderwalk and Darkness, since they have absolutely no ingame approximation. Some will have to be ballparked, but those two are obviously not even under consideration.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Frightful blast
(– Any creature struck by the invoker’s Eldritch Blast also becomes Shaken for 1 minute (WillNeg). Subsequent Frightful Blasts donot stack, but do reset the duration. Effective Spell Level: 2nd.)
- A minor debuff. Not very useful.
~~~~~
Sickening blast
(– Any creature struck by the invoker’s Eldritch Blast also becomes Sickened for 1 minute.
(FortNeg). Subsequent Sickening Blasts do not stack, but do reset the duration. Effective Spell Level: 2nd.)
-Another minor debuff. Not very useful.
~~~~~
Eldritch Spear
(– The maximum range of the invoker’s Eldritch Blast increases to 250’ with no range increment.
Effective Spell Level: 2nd.)
-the enlarge metamagic, for eldritch blast only. Somewhat useful.
~~~~~
Hideous Blow
(– As a Standard Action, make one melee attack. If the hit is successful (even if it does not
damage), then treat the opponent as if he/she were also hit with the invoker’s Eldritch Blast (including any special effects due to Eldritch Essence invocations).
Effective Spell Level: 1st.)
-the warlock makes a single attack and, if it hits, eldritch blast is applied as well as normal damage. This is a crude approximation of sneak attack that affects basically everything.
~~~~~
Baleful utterance
( By speaking a syllable of Dark Speech, the invoker chooses one of the following to occur:
a) all non-magic glass, crystal, etc., in a 5’ radius Burst that weigh less than 1 lb/lvl
are shattered. An attended object gets a Will save to negate. Otherwise, no save.
b) a single solid object weighing up to 10 pounds per level can be shattered. An
attended object gets a Will save to negate. If an attended object was destroyed, then the
creature touching it must make a Fortitude save of be Dazed for 1 round and Deafened
for 1 minute.
Effective Spell Level: 2nd.)
-Lowers the larget’s AC and/or attack bonus if they fail a will save, and the target is dazed for 6 seconds. This is actually pretty nice.
~~~~
Beguiling influence
(– The invoker receives a +6 bonus on Bluff, Diplomacy, & Intimidate checks.
Effective Spell Level: 2nd.)
-self buff that gives a bonus to bluff, diplomacy and intimidate. This would be fairly nice for an Intimi-tank warlock, which would be an interesting niche to see them fill.
~~~~~

Breath of the Night
– Creates a 20’ radius Spread by 20’ high area of mist around the invoker, which grants Concealment to everyone within it. Does not block Line-of-Sight.
The mist dissipates in 1 minute, or can be
dispersed immediately by a Moderate wind or the fire of a torch.
Effective spell level 1st.)
-this is Obscuring mist, the arcane spell. It is useless.
~~~~~
Dark one’s own luck
(The invoker receives a luck bonus to one saving throw equal to his/her charisma modifier (up to his/her class level). To change which saving throw benefits, the invoker must first dismiss the current effect as a standard action.
Effective spell level: 2nd)
-Makes incredible saves easily achievable.
~~~~~~
Earthen grasp
– A Medium-sized arm of soil rises from the targeted hex of earth or sand. It attempts to Grapple any creature in its hex or one that is
adjacent. If not directed by the invoker, it attacks randomly. The arm has a Strength of 14 + 1 per three invoker levels. The arm can make one
Grapple attempt per round and does generate an Attack of Opportunity. If successful, it attempts to Pin the target, which does (1d6+Strength modifier) hp of lethal damage each round The arm has AC 15, Hardness 4, and 3 hp per Invoker level.
Effective Spell Level: 2nd.)
Earth grab, copied straight from earth elementals.
~~~~~~
Entropic warding
(the invoker is surrounded by chaotic energies. Ranged attacks that target the invoker have a 20% miss chance.
Effective spell level: 2nd)
-Blur, for ranged attacks only.
~~~~~~
Leaps and bounds
(the invoker receives a +6 on balance, jump and tumble checks.
Effective spell level: 2nd)
A weak jump, tumble and balance buff that only applies to the warlock himself.
~~~~~
Miasmic cloud
(the invoker creates a 2-‘ spread of mist, which grants concealment to anyone who enters it’s area. All creatures, excluding the invoker, within the mist become fatigued (fort save negates, spell resistance applies) until 1 round after then leave the area of effect. The mist dissipates in 1 minute, or can be dispersed by a moderate wind or the fire of a torch.
Effective spell level: 2nd)
-a very good spell if it isn’t able to harm allies; this is roughly waves of fatigue, with a fort save added on. At a low level too. If it CAN harm allies, it is a terrible spell.
~~~~
See the unseen
(the invoker gains darkvision 60’ and can see invisible creatures and objects within his/her range of vision.
Effective spell level: 2nd.)
-roughly the same as true seeing. Self only.
~~~~
Summon swarm
(simmons either a swarm of bats, or a swarm of spiders. The swarm attacks any creature within it’s area The invoker has no control over the swarm’s movement or target.
Effective spell level: 2nd)
-Summons an unfriendly swarm of spiders or rats. This would not be appreciated.
~~~~
Voice of madness
(one target is confused.
Effective spell level: 2nd)
-I’m not sure what this would be like, to be honest.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A mixed bag; a few of the least invocations really stand out and a few more have situational usefulness, but the vast majority are useless. A warlock could pick Earthen grasp, Baleful Utterance and either Dark One’s own luck or Beguiling influence if they want to be an Intimi-tank and never miss any of the other options..

I’ll do lesser, greater and dark invocations later.

First they don't hafe Eldritch Burst. This is actually the Eldritch Blast modified with a Shape Invocation. There are actually several Shape Invocations; 1) Chain (allows you to chain the blast from target to target, only first takes full damage others take 1/2), 2) Line (Blast hits everything in a 60' line), 3) Spear (you covered this. it changes the max range of blast from 60; to 250'), 4) Cone (blast becomes a 0 range 60' come effect), 5) Sphere (Blast becomes a 20' Diameter AoE attack ala; fireball), 6) Glaive (blast becomes a hand weapon resembling a glaive), 7) Burst (blast becomes a burst effect centered on you). There might be a few mor but these are the populas shape invocations.

Secondly, you ignored several Essense invocations including the most popular, Vitrolic Blast. This makes your Eldritch blast Acid damage and ignores SR (thats the important one) as well as making it a DoT continuing damage for 2 rounds. Many of the Essense Invocations are just minor debuffs, but still important.

The main issue with implementing Warlock would be the way Ray attacks work in DDO. Other than that an arcane that doesn't run out of SP but in turn has very limited ability. The UMD is a biggie here however. They get the Take 10 ability (no other class gets that as a class feature), and they can use UMD in place of spell requirements when crafting magic items (not yet pertanent to DDO). The DR is nice (any damage mitigation would be), ER to twl types of energy (choosen by player, more damage mitigation), Unlimited access to Detect Magic (not a DDO issue), however Fast Healing would be great (especially if they had AP's options to increase). All in all a nice class I would think is very doable in DDO using exclusive toggles for the Shape invocations and another for essence invocations.