Corsair Class Draft

[MattJCooper36]

Class analysis and ideas:

1d10 as hit dice seems to much, I don't see Corsairs being resilient like Barbarians.

Requirements: I would add STR 9+ as they are sub-fighters.

Improved Movement: As stated above needs better wording and clarification.

The save bonus on moving objects should have a name for consistency. I would expand it to work on any balance roll, or even give it Balance as a % skill.

Adept Duelwielding: Shouldn't it be Dual-Wielding? The damage bonus seems to come from 5ed, check the Combat Option Supplement for dual wielding rules and expand from there if needed (copying the rules in an appendix). (Or explain how dual wielding works for other classes in an appendix).
Does the AC bonus works against any and all attacks?

Mouth of the Sea: Replace for a fixed +1 on Reaction Rolls.

Master of the Crew: May need some limitation, like seeing the Captain in action, a Pledge of Allegiance, or a max amount of individuals affected.

Open Game License: After "Introduction", it reads "Barbarians".

Hi Dimirag. It was probably worth leaving a disclaimer that the attack bonus for DW comes from the homebrew rules I use for DW. Silly oversight on my part. As is some of the other errors, such as the barbarian thing.

In terms of the AC bonus, originally my plan was yes, but it may make more sense to make it only work against melee. I will think about this.

In terms of the % skill comment, I would prefer not to turn it into a % skill because I dislike them, but it's definitely a sound idea, I will think it over.

Thanks a tonne for your feedback, it's very helpful.

[MattJCooper36]

I see things similar to Dimirag

Requirements - in addition to STR, I would recommend a Dex requirement as well.

Movement - really awkward mechanic, I think would constantly be questioned. I would suggest instead a Tumble Mechanic which is much easier to manage in play.
Tangently related to movement, I would add a Climb mechanic (as thief)... which is attributed to experience related to moving about the rigging and such found on ships.

Dual Wield - I agree it should harken to the fairly standard rules in the Combat Supplement, perhaps with a nominal bonus to what is seen there.

I would expect your 1D10 to be a oversight. Standard for Fighter (BFRPG) is 1d8, and I think that is appropriate.

Thats about all I got for you at this time.

Hiya SmootRK. I may not add both a strength and a dex requirement. Though it's definitely wise to add either one of the two. The climbing mechanic is definitely a sound idea. Although I am hesitant to add % skills, the example of climbing as well as balance definitely makes it seem like the most appropriate amendment to the class. It is definitely something I will consider.

Originally my d10 plan was not an oversight. My logic was that to survive on a ship you need to be especially hardy. This however is negated by the requirement for the constitution. So I may reduce the HD to 1d8, and increase the constitution modifier. I am less likely to do the latter because I don't want to gatekeep the class too much.

Thanks so much for your feedback dude, it is very helpful, and thank you for going to the effort of writing it.

[MattJCooper36]

A mechanic for moving between ships (on a board? swinging on a rope? Jumping?) and pushing fighters overboard might also come in handy.

Hi again Seven, this is a very good idea. As mentioned previously by others, I may introduce % skills for things such as balancing on climbing into this class. I may do the same for actions such as swinging and so on and so forth.

Thanks again for the suggestion.

[Blorpy]

Since you’re already considering skills for this class, I would propose minor lockpicking and intimidation skills as potential candidates.

Lockpicking is a given. Pirates want treasure, some of it’s going to be locked.

As for intimidation, you could hand wave this as flavour text for people to roleplay or introduce it as a mechanic (or even as a group mechanic IDK), but I feel it’s worth mentioning as the goal of the pirate was to scare the bejeezus out of merchants and to thereby never need to fight. I would write this more as a variation of the BF reaction mechanic rather than as a skill, per se.

In terms of the % skill comment, I would prefer not to turn it into a % skill because I dislike them, but it's definitely a sound idea, I will think it over.

I understand your feeling about % skills, and indeed it’s one of the first things I house rule out. However, for better or worse it is a core part of how BF and most OSR systems come to understand skill classes, so it might be worth leaving them as %, and maybe introducing an alternative in an appendix if you want. Up to you.

[Dimirag]

I understand your feeling about % skills, and indeed it’s one of the first things I house rule out. However, for better or worse it is a core part of how BF and most OSR systems come to understand skill classes, so it might be worth leaving them as %, and maybe introducing an alternative in an appendix if you want. Up to you.

I agree on this, the closer to the core rules the better, if you use outside rules (be it houserules or supplements) they should either be named (and be of access to the reader) or be incorporated into the file (preferred method as it avoid the need to check and update several files).

[MattJCooper36]

Hi all, here is the second release of the Corsair class. I hope you all appreciate the changes I have made. If you have any additional feedback, feel free to reply.

[daryen]

Two observations:

1) No fighter weapon specialization. Fighter weapon specialization is like literally the only "class feature" that fighters get, and that is optional and not even included in the core rules. The Corsair gets so many other abilities, they should not be taking the one, single thing that Fighters get.

Also, as a side, I recommend stating that they can use any weapon. Yes, that is covered by the "is a Fighter for anything not covered" disclaimer. But, it is still good to include the sentence anyway.

2) The entry requirements are pretty high. The Str 9 makes sense (they are fighters), and requiring a second ability at 9 (either Con or Dex) makes sense, too. But, why the Chr? Obviously, it'll help, but why is it required?

As part of that second point, is this class intended for *just* the Corsair Captain? Or is intended to be used by any Corsair? Having the high requirements will limit this to just be PC or named NPC exceptional leaders, not general corsairs. If that's the intention, then so be it and go for it. But if it is to be in any way more general, those attribute requirements need to be scaled back some.

P.S. When posting updates to the files, you are supposed to edit your first post to update the files, not put them in the latest post. Only spoken due to personal experience.

[Dimirag]

The supplement mentions Brigandine armor, it stats should be added as its nor part of the core rulebook (its on EE but its better to not require extra supplements).

Requirements: Dex makes more sense than Cha.
Weapon Specialization: Either remove it or give it a lesser version like other sub-fighters do by using a slower progression. (I vote for removing it seeing that they get an attack bonus from their Corsair Balance)
Thieving Skills: Climb Walls should work with ropes, open locks seems out of place for a warrior (I'm taking Corsairs are fighters and not pirates or sub-thieves).
Improve Movement: Still hard to understand, how a character "splits a missed attack".
Dual Wield: Does it works with ANY mele weapon? The rule needs more clarification, characters can just attack twice w/out an attack penalty?
Corsair Balance: The save bonus from Improve Balance should be here. The attack bonus should work only against opponents w/out any balance ability. Heck, I would remove the AC bonus from DW and put it here, meaning two Corsair will be equals while fighting on equal terrain.
Master of the Crew: I'm having difficulty understanding when the bonus is used. Also, this ability means will be only useful on those Corsairs that become Captains. The travel based rolls should be a separate ability, applying first to the Corsair and at later levels to other members.

Finally, what program are you using to create the pdf? The text shows as image rather than text when I want to copy for references.