Complete Priest's Kit Evaluation

 I've never liked the Complete Priest; it felt far more like it was about designing a priesthood than about playing a priest, and the priests produced were laughably weak compared to the cleric, or even druid. It mostly just disappeared from my memory, partially because I always felt it was so bad. But, it also means I haven't examined it in 30+ years, so I'll take a look now.

Amazon Priestess: Like the Complete Fighter Amazon, this is pretty lackluster; a +3 to hit and damage on the first blow against sufficiently bigoted enemies, and a -3 reaction adjustment with the same. A couple bonus NWP. None of this really improves their role as priestess, though, as with the amazon fighter, it at least flows out of the early 90s tradition of "women get to be warriors even if men don't think they can be." Which, given 1e strength limits on women, might make some sense, granted, but it rings very hollow now, and that it doesn't support them as priests is even worse, IMO.

Barbarian/Berserker Priest: This is an interesting one, not because it is, itself, cool, but because it synergistically improves the Berserker from the Complete Fighter. You get a bonus NWP, a modifier to reactions (positive with barbarians and berserker peoples, negative with non)... but you can also make berserkers go berserk more quickly. Normal? 10 rounds. With a priest nearby? 5 rounds. If the priest is capable of inspiring a berserker rage, they can do it in one round, and you don't even need to use the power. It creates some layers to character creation, but if you don't HAVE a berserker in your game, it's not much.

Fighting Monk: Another interesting one, though it also illustrates the weakness of priests created with this book, and why we never used it. Free Tumbling, can take NWP from any of the five groups without penalty, and gets two free NWP for specialization in unarmed combat. They can't wear armor or have a lot of stuff, which is pretty standard for a monk, but the game also assumes that limiting them to 3 Major spheres and 2 minor spheres is reasonable. Keep in mind, the PH cleric has SIXTEEN spheres of influence... this one is supposed to top out at 5, two of them minor.

And, look, I have ranted about the power of the cleric in the past. They are a powerful class, being 2nd best as both warriors and spellcasters. But the Complete Priest has what I consider an absolutely bonkers approach to this problem, where they try to cut priests back amazingly, with little trade-off. A Fighting Monk gets some neat benefits, and I think making one off a basic cleric is some decent trade offs with the "can't wear armor" and "can't keep stuff" requirements. But this one? Sweet blessed monkey.

Nobleman Priest: Mechanically, bonus NWPs, bonus cash, and reaction modifiers, plus the "can demand housing/must house others on demand", and requirement of conspicuous consumption, like the Complete Fighter nobleman. Their advantages are almost a copy/paste of the fighter kit, but their disadvantages aren't... the fighter's ability to fall into hugely negative reactions by failing to maintain appearances is missing from the priest. It somewhat moves the Nobleman Priest from the fighter's "OK, this is kinda cool" to "Yeah, no." It just isn't as interesting or mechanically based as the fighter it emulates.

Outlaw Priest: Upside? Free Religion Proficiency, no superiors. Downside? Superiors will try to stop you. Mechanically, even socially, it's boring.

Pacifist Priest: TBH, kind of interesting, if not something I necessarily want to play. You get a whopping +2 to Charisma, and +2 to reactions on top of that if someone isn't completely opposed to your pacifist philosophy. Downsides? You can only buy proficiency in bow and dart (why not sling? Or anything else? Who knows), and can only use them in competition. You cannot wear armor or use weapons or you lose your spells for a month. It's interesting, certainly, but even the text says "Yeah, this isn't a good idea for PCs."

Peasant Priest: Peasant priests can get shelter from peasants in their own communities, and get +2 to reactions from all peasants, which nice. Bonus of Agriculture or fishing and Weather Sense or Animal Lore (not animal handling? Or husbandry?) In return, they have some VERY strict limits on ownership. Other than weapons, they can only have one item worth 15gp; nothing worth more. Everything else must be 10gp or less, and the total can't exceed 75gp, again excluding weapons. So, they're barred from almost all armor, and, depending on your reading, might be barred from all magic items as well. It is a heavy load to carry, and I think makes the peasant priest unsuited to most D&D.

Prophet Priest: Gotta say, I kind of like this one. Take a standard priest, give him Weather Sense NWP, and the Prophecy Granted power from earlier in the book, and a -2 to reactions because We Don't Talk About Bruno... with the caveat that the reaction penalty won't make people more than Cautious. It's a nice balance of abilities... you get a granted power your priesthood doesn't normally grant but reasonably could, and it makes people nervous. Mind, the granted power is itself wishy-washy as all get-out, but it's a good balance at the level of the kit. It might have been nice to see this with the Barbarian/Berserker priest, really.

Savage Priest: Bonus Weather Sense or Direction Sense, Endurance or Survival, with a level/day detect magic, and a penalty to reactions from non-Savages. Comparing it to the fighter savage, it's a little meh, because the fighter savage had more options. Unlike the Savage Warrior, he can wear armor and definitely use a shield, and doesn't have the Savage Warrior's limitation on future use of armor, unless the DM takes the "Use the Savage Warrior equipment rules" option given in the kit. And I know I liked the prophet priest and they're much the same thing but... this one feels boring. Like they slapped Savage on it and cribbed from reading part of the Savage Warrior but changed just enough that the professor wouldn't accuse them of plagiarism.

Scholar Priest: This one is, IMO, fun. You get a bonus of Reading/Writing, can turn WP into NWP if you like, get a bonus with most scholars... but have a 1 in 6 chance of any random scholar HATING you. Like, instead of a +3 with this scholar, you get a -6, because you argued with them about something. A negative 6 reaction modifier is as if you had a TWO Charisma. It can be as much as an effective 10 point penalty to Charisma with this one person. It is LOVELY. The person who wrote this kit has clearly talked to people in academia, if not been one themselves.

Overall? Really boring. Of them, I only really liked the Prophet and the Scholar; the Pacifist was interesting, but not something I want to play, or particularly want at my table. I think I'd like the Barbarian/Berserker better if they actually gave you the Incite Beserker Rage power, like the Prophet gives the Prophecy power. But most of them felt like copies, or poor copies, of ones in the Complete Fighters, while the Fighting Monk was more "I decided I was going to completely rewrite the priest class and make you pay for it."

Complete Thief's Kit Evaluation

 A bit of a difference from Complete Fighter's: Required proficiencies in Complete Thief's are bonuses, not must-purchases. I'll also say that these kits are relatively understated... a few small changes, rather than rewriting the class. Most of the time, they're just a concept, but they've got a bit of mechanics to back up that concept, usually without going so far as to throw the game off. Usually.

Also, aside from the Acrobat, all of them are net zero change in thief skills; a +5% is matched by a -5%.

Acrobat: So, Unearthed Arcana had the Thief-Acrobat prestige class; where you paused your basic thief advancement in order to get some acrobatic abilities. This is somewhat similar, though it lies on top of a standard thief, rather than replacing it. Amazingly, it doesn't have Required NWPs, because it builds those into the special benefits... Jumping, Tumbling, and Tightrope Walking should be used even if the DM isn't using NWPs, and the Acrobat gets a +1 to use them; +2 if they aren't wearing armor. It's pretty lackluster, but since there are no Hindrances at all, and a net +5% to ability scores, it's a solid choice for any thief. Strangely, though, dwarves who take it don't get any benefits, and gnomes and halflings don't get the jumping or tightrope walking benefits for some reason.

Adventurer: The non-kit. No benefits, no hindrances, no skill modifiers, just some general role-playing advice when your "thief" is more "guy who adventures" than anything else.

Assassin: Two bonus NWP (Trailing and Disguise), and the ability to be proficient in any weapon. Their special benefit is a large section about their ability to identify poison and neutralize poison, tied with a note that, if the DM allows it, they might use poison. Herbalism is a big help in this (bonus to identifying AND giving them the ability to brew both poisons and antidotes), but they don't get it as a required/bonus NWP. As a drawback, they get only 2/3 the thief skill points, and a -4 Reaction Penalty with non-evil NPCs who know he's an assassin (subject to DM Discretion). I'm of two minds on this; and somewhat lean towards the skill point penalties being excessive; a -4 reaction penalty is huge, but it's also just as situation-dependent as the ability to use and identify poisons.

Bandit: Starts off with the requirement that they have a bludgeoning weapon (and they have a few more that they can use, not available to regular thieves), but also the knife. And they get a free WP, to fill as they like from among thief weapons. For benefits and penalties, they have a +1 to surprise in wildness settings, but they get a reaction penalty of -2 when dealing with non-bandits, if known as a bandit. Combined with a bonus WP, it's not bad; they're a tiny bit constrained in WP, but they get three of them. They have a somewhat situational bonus, and a meaningful but reasonable reaction penalty... and it is reasonable in both number and purpose.

Beggar: Four required/bonus NWPs' Begging, Disguise, Information Gathering, and Observation; they're considered the actual benefits of the kit, while the hindrances are a reaction roll penalty and a tiny amount of starting money. They have strongly worded guidance with regards to beginning weapons, but it stops just short of being a requirement... it's more enforced by starting with almost no money. It's not written, but I'd allow an adventuring beggar to avoid the reaction penalty if they avoid begging, but that also makes their hindrances practically nothing (the low beginning gold should be less of a problem once you'd adventured a bit... or dipped a few extra pockets). This is a solid choice, since it's mostly bonus NWPs.

Bounty Hunter: Bonus WP and the ability to take a non-thief WP (at the cost of two slots), and bonus NWP of Tracking, but no other benefits or penalties. Concept, with some small mechanical benefit.

Buccaneer: Sea-related NWPs (Swimming, Seamanship, Navigation), plus some bonuses when fighting from ropes like you're Errol Flynn, with a bit of a penalty climbing without a rope. Definitely a concept, but simple and balanced. They have a sizable chunk (bigger than a few kits themselves) about fighting in the ropes on a ship. Kind of surprised that they don't have Rope Use as a bonus, but it is recommended.

Burglar: Bonus NWPs, some guidance about skills, and not much else.

Cutpurse: A kit that does something! And is balanced by NOTHING. Cutpurses can use one of their bonus NWP to guess at class and level... two Observation checks to guess the two different sorts of information. But their hindrance is "other thieves look down on them", without much else to say.

Fence: Fences get NWPs, a bit of a reaction bonus with thieves (+3) and a note that they have to stay at home to be effective, and are harassed by the cops.

Investigator: NWPs and nothing else.

Scout: Scouts get the usual NWPs, a bonus (+10%) to hiding and moving silently in the wilderness, and an across-the-board penalty (-5%) on thief skills in urban settings.

Smuggler: No bonus NWPs! All they have a is a +1 to avoid being surprised.

Spy: Bonus NWP, nothing else.

Swashbuckler: This is the kit that got 97.8% of the creativity. I'm not joking. It is by far the best kit in the book (though that is damning with faint praise), and perhaps too good. Bonus WP, and gets to pick one weapon that they fight with a Fighter's ThAC0 which, holy cow, that is benefit enough for a thief... they have some limitations on weapon selection, needing to devote at least half of them to a small set... but they're not overly onerous.

But that's not all! They get the almost-required 2 bonus NWPs, they get a special disarm skill, and they get a bonus on reactions with appropriate-gendered NPCs! This is balanced by the swashbuckler being a permanent main character... "Trouble seeks out the swashbuckler." If some story hook comes along, it is going to spike the swashbuckler in the head every time. It's not a mechanical penalty, it just means that playing a swashbuckler is fun, which is great, since they were given some big advantages.

Swindler: A single bonus NWP.

Thug: Another kit that does something! +1 WP (can be non-thief but, like the bounty hunter, that requires an extra slot), +1 to Hit, a single bonus NWP, and -20 Thief skill points at 1st level. A flat +1 to hit is a nice benefit, not gonna lie, but 20 points of Thief skills might be a bit much to make me want it... but I can see some people who will.

Troubleshooter: A bonus NWP and the Swashbuckler's main character disease. The book makes it pretty clear that this is supposed to benefit the troubleshooter as much as it helps him, but I imagine this can be hard to tell.

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Overall, these kits are really lackluster. Out of 18 kits, it feels like most are just some bonus NWPs combined with alterations to thief skills without much mechanical effect, leading to the overall effect being more NWPs. There are some with other bonuses, but those aren't very significant... nothing like the Savage Warrior or Samurai. Swashbuckler is very good and, while I say "Maybe too good", I'd note that thieves generally suck, so "slightly more competent" isn't a bad thing.

Complete Fighter's Kit Evaluation

So, I did something similar in the last couple years, where I went through the Complete Dwarves and evaluated all the kits... the good, the specific, and the ugly. I figure for the "make things to keep me occupied" projects for the weekend (maybe getting my brain working on other WIPs), I'd do the same for other Complete Books, just to see how they match up.

As a general rule, I like mechanical changes and dislike more wishy-washy social ones, especially if they impose an expectation but not an obligation. I'll bring these up as I go.

Amazon: Mechanically, you get two bonus NWP, and a +3 to hit and damage against low-level foes for your first hit only, in exchange for a big reaction penalty against those same foes, and some restrictions on your initial equipment. Mechanically, it's pretty unimpressive. Socially? It feels like an atavism, leftover from earlier fantasy... which would have been current at the time, TBH, what with the Sword and Sorceress Anthologies. But its a very specific cultural set-up designed to interact with a very specific cultural set-up that is largely absent from the game... I can't even think of any canonical Amazon-like societies in standard worlds.

Barbarian: Another specific one; you get a bonus NWP (Endurance), and some wild rules on encounter reactions (things either go REALLY WELL or REALLY BAD), accompanied by some fairly light restrictions on initial weapons and armor (can't buy the really expensive armor you probably couldn't afford anyway, have to spend almost all your starting money). It can mostly be emulated just with choices (Endurance NWP, correct weapons and armor choices), so it's a question of whether or not you want the Title of "Barbarian" and want to interact with the Encounter Reactions (which, IME, was kind of variable as to whether or not DMs did).

Beast Rider: The first really substantive change; you are psychically linked with a certain kind of animal, gaining huge bonuses to interact with them. You start with a mount of that type, which might include flying animals. You get some NWP related to that. It's balanced by a pretty severe reaction penalty (they apply to almost everyone), and some possibly severe consequences if your mount dies (damage, possibly feebleminded for a few hours). There's some tighter restrictions on initial armor and weapons than a barbarian has (smaller list for both), and the same money spending requirement.

I like this one. It's a CHANGE. While you could emulate some of it, the monster-as-mount mechanic would otherwise only exist with DM fiat. I will note that, for some people, the Riding (Land-Based) bonus NWP might be irrelevant, and so the DM might want to step in there. Since these are general warrior kits, I assume a paladin of this kit would get their special mount as a their "warhorse", or a special version of that mount.

Berserker: Barbarian plus, really. Same bonus NWP. No required WP, but forbidden from taken certain weapons (ranged) initially.... and those are kind of weird, because you can't have thrown weapons, either, and those aren't usually separated. The reaction penalty is more straightforward (+3 from tribes with berserkers, -3 from everyone else), and there are berserking rules; I'm not a fan of the full turn required before one goes berserk, because it feels like it would be inapplicable a lot of the time, but the rules are pretty solid and well-described.

I don't particularly like this one, personally, but that's my dislike of berserking in general, not that it is a bad class. I kind of wish that, instead of flat bonuses to attack, damage, and HP, it was more scaled (bonus HP based on HD, bonus strength to do strength things, including damage); at 1st level, that +5 HP is great. At 9th level, it's not terribly significant, and your berserker can't do things like shatter chains. It's a Choice to play a certain kind of character, and good to have mechanical support for it, but I don't like that kind of character, so it's not for me.

Cavalier: A powerful kit, with a lot of benefits, blending aspects of the Beast Rider, Berserker, and Noble Warrior. Moderate restriction on beginning weapon proficiencies and beginning gear purchasing (must buy lance, must buy sword, must buy most expensive armor), and some HEFTY and MEATY role-playing restrictions; heavy limitation on missile weapon use, role-playing consideration on target acquisition (a little squishy, since a cavalier might argue about "powerful looking"... a wizard looks a lot more pwoerful to me than an ogre!), and big restrictions on armor use and behavior... a cavalier is almost as restricted as a paladin, in many ways, but to a campaign-defined "Chivalry", rather than Law and Goodness. They have a bit more leeway (three strikes), but it's still some powerful restrictions.

Like the Berserker, I don't like it for me, but I think it's a good one mechanically. It's got good advantages balanced by some strong disadvantages. I'm of the opinion that the disadvantages are less likely to matter, because you don't choose the cavalier kit if you're not planning on role-playing a cavalier, but they're there, and they're significant enough to offset the bonuses.

Gladiator: This is one of the first with sort of wishy-washy restrictions. You have some required WP, but you get a free specialization, which makes it a backdoor for non-fighter weapon specialization... and you can even do it as a paladin, if you're a former/retired gladiator (IMO, gladiatorial combat isn't usually a paladin thing). One of their bonus NWP is even a rogue one, so extra bonus. But their hindrances are all social, and non-mechanical... the gladiator is easily remembered, there's always NPCs bothering them about being a gladiator. These don't carry mechanics, though, and you run into the possibility that if the DM over-relies on it, it becomes "The Gladiator and his Hangers-on". A good DM can handle this, but I think it's a narrow thing.

Myrmidon: My favorite, but with the same problems as a Gladiator: The benefits are mechanical, the problems are circumstantial. The NWP are not bad, not great, there's no real restrictions on weapons or armor, but there may be bonus money if there are restrictions. You get a free weapon specialization in some of the most common and powerful weapons (again, non-fighter specialization is possible), and there's the advantage/disadvantage of a patron. Like the Gladiator, this is as much of a restriction as the DM wants, and if he makes it too much of a restriction, it colors the entire campaign, as Myrmidon Bob either has to do what he is told, or leave the game to do what he is told.

Noble Warrior: While this is one of those "character choice" things, I think it's well supported mechanically. Required WP, Useful bonus NWP, required expenditures (offset by a huge amount of gold), and some mostly social bonuses (offering Low Justice, requesting lodging, reaction adjustment)... but those social modifiers are offset by some pretty substantial penalties. +10% per level to costs is going to eat into early funds, and failure to pay them eats away at the reaction bonus... and the reaction bonus can turn into a massive penalty (-6????) if the character gets on the social outs. Unlike the Gladiator or Myrmidon social requirements, these are both supported by mechanics, and personal without being campaign defining... a disgraced noble might try to drive the campaign, but it's not as strict as with a myrmidon's patron or a gladiator's low-rent promoters. While you could just say "I'm a nobleman" and otherwise play your fighter, this gives it some teeth.

Peasant Hero: More on the fence about this one, for all that it mirrors the Noble Warrior in some ways. A couple useful NWP, some DM-dependent restrictions on WP, and a "spend all your money" mandate. No explicit mechanical bonuses, but some RP ones, and an explicit mechanical penalty if you don't act like a peasant hero. But most of this is lost, BTB, by going one town over, where you're not necessarily a hero to the local peasantry. While a Noble gets their benefit wherever their society stretches (a noble from Baldur's Gate might be able to impose on someone in Waterdeep), the Peasant Hero needs to be either local or adopted by the locals. In a lot of ways, a kit that could just be a concept.

Pirate/Outlaw: Entirely a character concept with a couple bonus NWPs attached, and some optional weapon restrictions if you call yourself a pirate. Other than that... no intrinsic benefits, sort of vague "the law is after you" penalties.

Samurai/Ronin: Mechanical upsides? Two specializations, in good (if very uncommon) weapons, and proficiency in a weapon of choice (from a list). Two bonus proficiencies, but a Required NWP from a non-warrior class group, which cancels out the value of that. Limited options for weapons and armor at 1st level, but a free katana. Kai-shout lets them get 18/00 strength for one round, once a day per level, which is nice, but not terribly overpowered (especially since it might eventually be overridden by magical equipment). The samurai balances this with Myrmidon-like fealty restrictions... the ronin balances it with half XP, which, holy shit, that is WAY too much for the benefit. I know it is thematic and all, but, sweet monkey, that's a big penalty. Give them a reaction penalty or something instead.

For the samurai, I have the same problem as the Gladiator and the Myrmidon. For the ronin... yikes.

Savage Warrior: Limited weapon choices, with an admonishment (but no requirement) to stay with those weapon choices even after level 1. LOTS of free NWP; four, where most are just getting two. HEAVY gold and equipment restriction... no gold at all, just four weapons and ten other items, and possibly a horse or canoe. Their benefit is a single 1st level spell, with the DM approval, that they can cast level/day. The default options are Alarm, Animal Friendship, Detect Evil, and Detect Magic... all good options, with the DM-limited option to choose others.

Their penalty though is pretty strict. They have to wear mostly light clothing; heavy restrictions on armor use, to the point where they arguably cannot wear any at all without a steep penalty to pretty much every action; you might be able to argue with a DM and get access to Hide or similar, and I think one could get a shield, but no armor on a warrior-type can be pretty severe. And since the kit carries an attribute requirement (15 or higher con), you're less likely to have a good Dex to offset that. It is definitely a Choice to play one, and you have to think carefully about what you're going to do, and maybe buy the DM a pizza so you can get some kind of "savage" armor.

Swashbuckler: Lots of benefits, story-based penalties. They get two extra weapon slots for swashbuckler weapons, but beyond that, hey, it's two extra weapon slots, and no restrictions on what they specialize in (if they can/do). Two bonus NWP, can buy Rogue NWP at-cost, AC bonus in light armor, and a bonus to reactions with the opposite sex (which, in this enlightened age, I'd modify to "with those attracted to the swashbuckler's gender"). Their "penalty" works out to "make the swashbuckler the main character"; bad luck falls on them, but in interesting ways. They don't get shot more often in a random melee, but they get mistaken for the king or wind up in the bedroom of someone with a jealous husband... it's a very non-penalty penalty.

Wilderness Warrior: Another take on the "barbarian" archetype... you have the Mighty Thewed Warrior (Barbarian), the Beast Rider, the Berserker, the Mystic With Special Powers (the Savage Warrior), and the Wilderness Warrior, who is "Outsider good at survival without being explicitly bad at anything else." Their penalty is "gotta be an outsider", but not backed up by mechanical things, while their benefit is "good at their main skill".

That said, it's my favorite of the five. It's penalty is soft, but it's bonuses aren't that severe, either. It's got loose restrictions that don't apply much beyond first level, but, while it's benefit is cool and useful in its circumstance, it's not so amazing that you are going to play a Wilderness Warrior every time. The Barbarian has fiddly reaction mechanics; the Berserker is Like That, the Savage Warrior runs around mechanically naked; the Beast Rider is also good, but it is a choice to be cavalry in a game that doesn't always favor cavalry. The Wilderness Warrior is Good at One Thing, and it's not even a game-changing thing outside of certain circumstances.

End evaluation?

My favorite remains the Myrmidon, though that's because you can just say "Screw you guys, I'm going to Undermountain"... there may be consequences, but it's not abandoning your kit or anything. The Gladiator and Samurai are similar, with only some differences in the social place of the character, and the Samurai being a bit cooler (TWO weapon specializations and the kai-shout), but more limited because their favorite weapons are unlikely to be common. Mechanically, I like the Cavalier, the Beast Rider, the Noble Warrior, and the Berserker; strong mechanical basis for the character, though they are a character type you want to play... you are unlikely to just take them because they're good, you're going for a specific role.

Unimpressive are the Amazon, the Barbarian, the Peasant Hero, and the Pirate/Outlaw. There just isn't much there aside from a character concept, sometimes with some loose benefit. You can mostly do them by saying "I am an X" and playing that, and won't notice much difference.

Mechanically screwed up? The Swashbuckler is pretty much zero downside, with some good advantages. The Savage is a warrior who doesn't wear armor, which is a hard sell. And the Ronin gets only half XP, which is WAY too big of a penalty.