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Close this windowPAL: Branching Paths: Paladin Multiclassing, pg 1
Posted June 7th, 2006 by Shayalyn
Branching Paths:
The Multiclass Paladin
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General Concerns
First and foremost, unlike in the traditional Dungeons and Dragons game, paladins can freely multiclass between other classes, provided they are able to take them. This is a huge benefit to any paladin, as you will not need to plan when you will multiclass in regards to returning to the path of the paladin.
Secondly, due to the Lawful Good requirement, you will be unable to multiclass into the Barbarian or Bard class, as they must have a non-lawful alignment. This frees you from two tough choices if you do decide to multiclass.
When to Multiclass
Paladins gain increasing power and abilities with nearly every single level. Nearly all paladin abilities factor in your paladin level. Given that your actual paladin level is important, you must decide if multiclassing is a good choice for your play style and group dynamics.
As a general rule of thumb, the larger the regular group of companions is, the less need you have to multiclass. Multiclassing often adds versatility rather than power to any given build, so most players will multiclass in order to gain versatility. If you regularly find yourself in a full group without any large gaps in party roles, you probably don't have a need to multiclass (though there are exceptions to this rule, see below for more information).
If, on the other hand, you constantly find yourself saying “if I could only do X, I would contribute much more to my party”, then perhaps a one or two level deviation into another class might be in order. Be careful to avoid the temptations of a passing idea or ability. Rarely should you multiclass for reasons such as “being able to cast magic missile would be so cool!”
You must carefully weigh what you are giving up as a paladin and what you will be gaining with your new class. The most compelling reasons to multiclass are: access to otherwise inaccessible items, such as arcane wands; the ability to gain certain skills as class skills, therefore raising your max ranks; or a dramatic increase in either fighting power or spellcasting ability.
Be warned that once you multiclass, there is no going back. If you multiclass and then realize that you really wanted one of the 10th level paladin enhancements, you'll have no choice but to either forgo getting the enhancement or make a new character. Be sure to check all the information you can before committing to a multiclass build.
Give and Take
Multiclassing as a paladin is a large game of give and take (as it is with any class). However, paladins have a more difficult time multiclassing, as most of the good enhancements can be found at levels nine and ten. Furthermore, if you multiclass your smite evil, lay on hands, spellcasting, and most other abilities will not be as potent as a pure paladins.
You should never give up more than four levels of paladin, and unless you have a specific build in mind, forgoing more than one or two levels of paladin is generally unwise. Paladins simply gain too many potent abilities and enhancements at higher levels to make multiclassing worth the trade-off.
What You Lose
For every level of paladin that you give up for another class, you will loose all of the following:
- 3 damage on Smite Evil.
- Healing equal to your Charisma bonus with Lay on Hands.
- 15 spell points
In addition, every level of paladin that you forgo will deprive you of access to the following enhancements and special abilities (all losses are cumulative):
One Level
- +1 to Fortitude saves.
- One additional use of Smite Evil per rest.
- One additional second level spell prepared per rest.
- Access to the following paladin enhancements: Extra Lay on Hands
II, Extra Smite Evil IV, Paladin's Action Boost IV, Greater Devotion I,
and Energy of the Templar VII
- +1 to Reflex and Will saves.
- One additional use of Remove Disease per rest.
- Access to the following paladin enhancements: Bulwark of Good III, Energy of the Templar VI, Focus of Good III, Resistance of Good III, Skill Interaction V, and Skill Recovery V.
Three Levels
- +1 to Fortitude saves.
- Access to second level spells.
- Access to the following paladin enhancements: Energy of the Templar V, Extra Turning II, Paladin's Charisma III, and Paladin's Grace II
Four Levels
- Access to the following paladin enhancements: Courage of Good II, Energy of the Templar IV, Extra Smite Evil III, Skill Interaction IV, and Skill Recovery IV
As you can see, every level of paladin that you forgo for another class is a loss of power. However, there are some multiclass options that provide more benefits than a few levels of paladin can provide.
The Big Four
While every class has something to add to the paladin, there are really only four that provide big enough benefits to make up for the loss of power. In general, these four classes are taken for only one or two levels, with the rest of the levels consisting of pure paladin. For the most part, these multiclass options expand on a niche the paladin already fills. They are covered in more detail on the next page.
Genre: Fantasy
Status: Published
Release Date: February 28, 2006
Fee: P2P
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