My D&D - Classy

 So, here is the part that gets ridiculous.  Classes.  There are so many neat classes beyond the classic seven in BX, and they come from many different sources.  OSE Advanced adds the AD&D classes, like Paladin, Ranger, etc.  Rules Cyclopedia lets me add the missing Monk with the Mystic class.  The Class Compendium by Barrel Rider Games has some classes well worth looking into - like the Commander, the Undead Slayer, and the Metaphysician.  But how many is too many?

The Baseline

• Cleric
• Fighter
• Magic-User
• Thief
• Dwarf
• Elf
• Halfling

So, we start with the classic seven from B/X.  I love race as class, but I also love race-class combinations.  So what's a DM to do?  Use both.  OSE Advanced suggests allowing both side-by-side if you can't decide.  So, one player can be the archetypical Elf, splitting arcane magic and fighting, or be an Elven Fighter, or Elven Magic-User, having the benefits of the full class and Elf race, but not the dual classes or the crippling XP requirements.  So, with that in mind, we'll look at the OSE Advanced class listing and add it to the list.

• Acrobat
• Assassin
• Barbarian
• Bard
• Drow (but possibly Shadow Elf?)
• Druid
• Duergar
• Gnome
• Half-Elf
• Half-Orc
• Illusionist
• Knight
• Magic-User
• Paladin
• Ranger
• Svirfleblin

OK, so, maybe I won't import ALL of them.  The "dark" versions of various races aren't something I'm interested in having as a PC in my Mystara games.  Shadow Elves are an interesting conundrum.  They aren't coded "evil" as much as "different."  They are the lost clans, not necessarily Anti-Elves, though they do have some very different experiences and are connected to some things that would be spoilers to include here, in case my future players are reading.  So, no Drow, but maybe Shadow Elf PCs, once they have been introduced.

From The Rules Cyclopedia

OSE Advanced already handles the "prestige classes" of D&D, as far as the Druid, Paladin, and arguably Knight.  So all that remains to take from the RC is the Mystic, to fill the gap left by the omission of the Monk from OSE.  The Mystic will have to be adjusted so that the class ends at 14th Level to match the rest of the human classes, as it goes to 16 in RC.

From the Gazetteers

There is some cool stuff in the GAZ series, and since my D&D is rooted in Mystara, I want to accommodate some of the flavor classes.  

• Dervish - A desert Cleric of Ylaruam.  Appears in GAZ2.
• Wizard stuff from Glantri, in GAZ3?  Maybe?
• Elven Wizard from Alfheim froM GAZ5.  Is this already covered by Class/Race split?  We'll have to look.
• Dwarf-Cleric from GAZ6.  Same as above, might be covered by Race/Class, as I recall the Dwarf Cleric has some restrictions.  Of course, given the Cleric bonuses/penalties from Wrath of the Immortals, it might get even more muddy.
• Master from GAZ8.  Kind of a Halfling prestige class.  Will it still work with the removal of the whole concept of "Reach Level X in Class Y, change to Class Z?"
• Merchant Prince from GAZ 9.  I love the idea of a Class that isn't for killing monsters and taking treasure.
• Monster classes from GAZ10, plus the Wokan and Shaman classes.  Again, we'll have to figure out how to merge all the stuff into one clean D&D Voltron, or just accept lots of exception-based rules.  
• Merchant from GAZ11. Compare to GAZ 9, see how they look side-by side.
• Shadow Elf and Shadow Elf Shaman from GAZ13- but only if the campaign "goes there."
• Shamani from GAZ 14.  I like the idea of the Atruaghin Clans, but it's not the strongest of the series, and I'd want to make clear that, like all the pseudo-European pastiches, the Clans are not meant to represent historical First Nations cultures, just inspired by them.
• Rake and Forester from Dawn of the Emperors.  Rake being a non-Theify Rogue, and the Forester being a human trained by Elves, so has the Fighter/Magic-User thing going on.  But- is this just a Ranger?  Is it a dual class?  Do I even want to allow dual classes or split classes?  OSE Advanced optionally allows them.  Will that be too much crunch?

From the Class Compendium

  OK, so we already have a metric shitload of classes- and only one of them is not already a part of Mystara, the Mystic, but then again, thanks to Voyage of the Princess Ark maybe it is Mystara canon.  Class Compendium is written for use with Labyrinth Lord as well, so the classes do go above the 14 level cap in some cases.  So there will be some tinkering and conversion involved.  Also- some of the classes I'm just not feeling, either because I don't really like the concepts, or I don't like the concepts in my version of Mystara.  In the Class Compendium, James M. Spahn provides some really cool stuff.  And not just classes, equipment, spells, a take on weapon mastery, and a take on firearms.  But what we're looking at here is classes.  Spahn organizes his classes by themes, and I'll look at each and note if I think it will work in my Mystara game.

  Arcane Allies

• Alienist.  This is an arcane class that goes slowly insane as it grows in knowledge and power.  Very appropriate to some settings, but not, I think, for Mystara.  At least, not the way in which I would run it.  So, interesting, but no.
• Familiar.  HELL YES.  This is a fun idea, the ability for a player to be the familiar for another player's spellcaster.  Caps at 8th Level like a Halfling, but has some neat ideas, and would be a fun roleplay opportunity.
• Thopian Gnome.  Nah.  Again, I kinda dislike the "dark" versions of PC races, I'm just not feeling it.
• Wild Wizard.  Maybe.  I kinda like the idea of undisciplined magic, and there's plenty of room for it.  Say, a barely trained magically active individual from somewhere like Thyatis where arcane magic is de-emphasized, or maybe some crazy new style of magic being invented by a Glantrian researcher.

Doughty Dwarves

• Raging Slayer.  Maybe- is this different enough from just doing a Dwarf Barbarian?  There's some cool specific abilities here.
• Rune-Smith. Definitely.  In Mystara, Dwarves are unable to use arcane magic as a form of protection granted them by the Immortal Kagyar.  But they do smith magic weapons and the like.  This class allows a PC to do such things.  There are rules in Dwarves of Rockhome, so I have to read both and compare them.
• Warchanter.  Maybe- is this different enough from a Dwarf Bard?  Again, some good Dwarf flavor here.

Enchanting Elves

• Dark Elf.  Negative, for reasons already stated.
• Greensinger.  Maybe.  See Warchanter, above.  This is an Elf Bard.  More reading necessary.
• Half-Elf.  Negative, already handled by OSE Advanced.
• Sylvan Elf. Maybe. And Elf that uses Druid spells and has a couple of different abilities.  This might be a really cool way to show Clan differences.  Need to look at Alfheim and Karameikos and see if this fits.

Heroic Halflings

• Burglar.  Again, possibly redundant by Halfling Thief, but will read it over further.
• Feast Master. THIS is a damn cool idea.  A Halfling that can impart bonuses to their allies by cooking and brewing.  Very flavorful. Pun intended.
• Huckster.  An interesting idea, sort of Professor Harold Hill crossed with a Ferengi and given Halfling form.  A fast-talking charismatic merchant style Halfling.  I think I like this one.  Strong maybe.
• Lucky Fool. Maybe.  Just what it sounds like- a character that is more lucky than skilled.  Could be fun. Maybe.
• Tavern Singer.  Halfling Bard?  I do like the drinking-related abilities.

Holy Rollers

• Angel.  Great class, doesn't fit the setting.
• Friar.  Could be a great class to represent the non-fighting Clerical orders.
• Inquisitor.  I can see this sort of character belonging to some of the Immortal's faiths.
• Undead Slayer.  Yes.  Hell yes.  Why?  Because my Mystara is the origin of Barovia, it was somewhere in the mountains of northwestern Karameikos.  Also- I love Castlevania.

In Shining Armor

• Commander. Absolutely.  I loved the Warlord in 4e, and the 5e Fighters with Mastery Dice, whether through subclass or Feat.  This kind of warrior needs to exist the way my Mystara runs.
• Dragon Slayer.  Strong maybe.  If I've got an Undead Slayer, maybe I should have a Dragon Slayer.
• Knight. Already handled in OSE Advanced.

Martial Masters

• Barbarian.  Already handled in OSE Advanced.
• Berserker.  Already covered in some other classes.
• Gladiator.  Maybe.  Need to look at Thyatis and Dawn of the Emperors.
• Samurai.  Soft Maybe?  I love me some Samurai, but I need to re-read the Princess Ark stuff that includes the Japanese-inspired culture.  I seem to recall it was Rakastas.
• Sword Master.  This would be awesome for Darokin and a couple other places.  I like the idea of a finesse-based Fighter.  The Mastery Points are a cool idea.  What do we say to the God of Death?

Monstrous Marauders

• Dragon. Probably not.  Just not sure it fits.  Maybe if a specific storyline is being used?
• Goblin.  Covered in Orcs of Thar.
• Half-Ogre.  Mmmm... more or less covered in Orcs of Thar.
• Half-Orc. Already covered by OSE Advanced.
• Treant.  Kinda like Dragon, for me.  I'll allow it, but only if the story calls for it.

Second Star to the  Right

• The Fairy and Lost Boy are there to emulate the Peter Pan stories.  Not really in keeping with Mystara.
• The Pirate is a possibility, I'll need to take another look at the seagoing Gazetteers to see if this is covered better by, say, Ierendi or Minrothad.

Traveling Trouble Makers

• Acrobat. Covered by OSE Advanced.
• Explorer.   Sure. I like the concept behind this one.
• Fortune Teller.  Maybe?  I don't want to step in the current row over Vistani, but if I am linking the Traldar people to the ancient Vistani/Barovians, this might work.
• Wanderer.  This could be an interesting class.  Maybe.

Unhallowed Heroes

• Cultist.  No, not in this setting.  They exist, but not as PCs.
• Damphir. Maybe.  If I'm doing a Ravenloft tie-in, or a story about the Vampire of Korizegy Keep, I might allow this one.
• Death Knight.  See Cultist.  They exist, but not as PCs.
• Eidolon.  Again, they exist, but not as PCs.

Urban Adventurers

• Bandit.  This might be an interesting class, especially in places like Darokin, where the roads are fat with trade.  Maybe.
• Bard.  Covered by OSE Advanced.
• Bounty Hunter.  Hmmm.  I like the abilities the author has given this class.  Strong maybe.
• Watchman.  Possibilities here, especially with the Rumor Mill ability.

Virtuous Victorians

• Automation.  Probably not- unless I decide to allow it in adventures involving Blackmoor or cultures touched by it.  Or the Gnomes- but I really never use the Gnomes much.  I find quite a bit of their stuff sort of silly.
• Investigator.  Could exist in highly urbanized areas.  I can see this class being very useful for The Veiled Society.
• Metaphysician.  This is the Van Helsing class.  I love it, and I'll include it in any Ravenloft-heavy Mystaran campaigns.
• Shootist.  This is the one Victorian class I can't see reskinning.  I'm not sure I want to do anything with firearms in my Mystara.

Final Thoughts

That's a LOT more classes than I'd initially wanted.  Even editing out the doubles, the classes that don't fit, and the ones that I just don't care for personally, that's still a ton of classes.  Maybe I'll just go back to OSE Advanced only.  Or OSE Advanced and the GAZ series.  Or just OSE and the GAZ series.  But I do like so many of the Advanced and Class Compendium classes, and I can see them as fun options for PCs that offer some interesting opportunities for the DM.  I'll cogitate, re-read some material, and start cribbing out the versions of the classes that aren't already in OSE or OSE Advanced that I want to use.