[RPG] Two players compete for same role – how to balance this

balancednd-3.5e

I have a D&D 3.5 group of four players, the classes are; Wizard, Rogue, Barbarian, and Swashbuckler, the level of the players is 4. (Having no healer is part of the game, not part of my question)

My question is about the Barbarian and the Swashbuckler. They are both melee combat characters, and both fill the same role in the group. The problem is that the Barbarian is just so much better at combat than the Swashbuckler, causing the player playing the Swashbuckler to feel inadequate and under-powered in comparison, mainly the player has complained about being totally outmatched when dealing damage.

For comparison:

The Barbarian wields a great axe with 18 strength, meaning his damage with two hands is 1D12+6, and 3D12+18 on a critical, not to mention on a power attack he trade in up to 5 attack bonus for twice as much damage normally, and three times as much on a critical – the Barbarian can then deal an average of roughly 20 damage per attack without a critical hit (1D12+6+8). Not to mention that with rage he can deal even more damage, and has more hit-points than the Swashbuckler regardless. The maximum damage that the Barbarian can deal on an attack with a critical and full power attack is 66 (3D12+18+12), while the minimum without a critical and no power attack is 7 (1D12+6).

The Swashbuckler wields a rapier with 12 strength, and 20 Intelligence (racial bonus) meaning his damage is 1D6+6, and 2D6+6 on a critical, his threat range for critical is 18-20 so it happens more often, but not often enough to match the Barbarians damage – the Swashbuckler can deal an average of roughly 9 damage per attack without a critical (1D6+6). The maximum damage that the Swashbuckler can deal on an attack with a critical is 24 (2D6+12), while the minimum without a critical is also 7 (1D6+6).

As you can clearly see, the Swashbuckler is outclassed in damage, where his maximum damage is less than the Barbarians average. Yes – the Swashbuckler has many skills and more flexibility in combat – including more AC… But the player feels totally useless when dealing damage.

Should I introduce some elements to help balance this? Or let the players simply live with the consequence of their choice? If I introduce balancing elements, should they be overt or covert? Or should I do something else entirely, or a balance of the three? In other words – I seek advice on the situation.

Best Answer

The Barbarian is known to be a more powerful class than the Swashbuckler. The Barbarian is a so-called "Tier 4" class, the Swashbuckler a "Tier 5" class (see the Tier System for Classes). Parts of the definitions of the involved tiers are "Capable of doing one thing quite well" (Tier 4) and "Capable of doing only one thing, and not necessarily all that well". In fact, the two classes are a particularly good example of the difference between the involved Tiers, since both are primarily melee classes that have a similar "thing" to do in combat - dealing damage. So you really have a textbook example of a power disparity within the 3.5 class system. And this isn't all that easy to fix. Some things you can do:

Tailor some of your encounters to the weak player

Difficult to pull off gracefully, but it can be done. The Swashbuckler has a few things the Barbarian doesn't, including social skills (Diplomacy, Bluff and Sense Motive) and the Tumble skill. The Barbarian having more trouble at a king's ball shouldn't be too difficult to envision. Creating combat encounters where Tumbling plays a huge role is usually an exercise in cleverly positioning enemies (long reach helps) and making said enemies good at taking advantage of Attacks of Opportunity.

Problem is, of course, that it doesn't do much for the problem of the Swashbuckler not being competitive in the damage department. The players would effectively be taking turns at being relevant - not something that ages well in a campaign. But once in a while to keep spirits up should be fine.

A more lasting solution would be to...

Steer the Swashbuckler towards more powerful options

There are a few options that make Swashbuckler more palatable.

  • Daring Outlaw: Multiclassing and taking the Daring Outlaw feat (from Complete Scoundrel) is a good way to bring a Swashbuckler's damage output up - up and a bit beyond that of a Rogue, at least. This would be my recommended approach if only there weren't a Rogue in the party already. As-is, it might just move the competition from the Barbarian to the Rogue, but perhaps that allows more branching out.

  • Arcane Stunt: This alternate class feature from Complete Mage grants Swashbucklers a few uses per day of a spell-like ability, at the cost of their Grace. It's a tiny improvement, but usually an improvement.

  • Factotum: Multiclassing into Factotum (from Dungeonscape) provides immediate extra combat use out of the character's Intelligence. Perhaps more importantly, it can provide considerable utility in the form of skills (and other class features), making the comparison with the Barbarian less direct.

  • Tome of Battle: Multiclassing or prestige classing into a Tome of Battle class (probably the Warblade for Int synergy) would make the Swashbuckler an enormous lot better, no question. And level 4 is an excellent time to do it (if not before). Problem is, Tome of Battle works for more or less all melee characters - including the Barbarian.

Some Retraining (Player's Handbook 2) may be necessary or beneficial to make the new options fit.

If it won't...

Abandon ship!

The whole situation might not be salvageable. See K.L.'s answer.

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