Publisher: Troll Lord Games
Castles & Crusades Expanding Classes is a supplement for the Castles & Crusades role-playing game that offers new options and possibilities for character creation and advancement. In this review, I will give an overview of the book’s content, discuss its strengths and weaknesses, and share my personal opinion on its value and quality.
What’s Inside?
The book introduces three new concepts: multiclassing, enhanced classes, and switching classes. These are explained in detail in the following sections:
- Multiclassing: This allows characters to combine the abilities and features of two or more classes, creating unique and versatile heroes. The book provides rules and examples for multiclassing, as well as tables for determining the level progression, saving throws, and combat abilities of multiclass characters.
- Enhanced Classes: These are modified versions of the standard classes that have additional benefits or trade-offs, such as the barbarian fighter, the arcane cleric, or the shadow thief. The book presents 18 enhanced classes, each with its own description, abilities, and requirements.
- Switching Classes: This enables characters to change their class during the course of the game, either by choice or by circumstance, such as a fighter becoming a paladin, a wizard becoming a rune mark, or a rogue becoming an assassin. The book provides guidelines and examples for switching classes, as well as tables for determining the level adjustment, saving throws, and combat abilities of switched characters.
The book also provides guidelines for balancing the game and adjusting the challenge level for characters with multiple or enhanced classes. The book is compatible with any Castles & Crusades campaign setting, as well as other fantasy settings that use similar rules.
What’s Good?
The book is well-written and organized, with clear explanations and examples of how to use the new rules. The book is illustrated with beautiful and evocative artwork by Peter Bradley, who also designed the cover. The book offers more variety and flexibility for character creation and development, allowing players to explore new options and combinations for their characters. The book also challenges gamemasters to create more diverse and dynamic foes for their players. The book is a useful resource for anyone who enjoys fantasy role-playing games and wants to learn more about the Castles & Crusades system.
What’s Not So Good?
The book is not without its flaws. Some of the new rules may be confusing or complicated for some players or gamemasters, especially those who are not familiar with the Castles & Crusades system. Some of the enhanced classes may seem too powerful or unbalanced compared to the standard classes. Some of the switching classes may seem too arbitrary or unrealistic, depending on the campaign setting or the story. The book may also require some tweaking or adaptation to fit different settings or preferences.
My Verdict
Castles & Crusades Expanding Classes is a great addition to any C&C fan’s collection, as it offers more variety and flexibility for character creation and development. The book is ideal for players who want to explore new options and combinations for their characters, as well as for gamemasters who want to challenge their players with more diverse and dynamic foes. The book is also a useful resource for anyone who enjoys fantasy role-playing games and wants to learn more about the Castles & Crusades system. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves C&C or fantasy gaming in general.
Castles & Crusades Expanding Classes on DrivethruRpg
