Side Note: Level Titles

Why is a 1st level fighter called a Veteran, when a 1st level thief is only an Apprentice, and a 1st level cleric is just an Acolyte?

Consider it in terms of my most recent post on henchmen (er...retainers). A normal human that earns any XP from an adventure must choose a character class in which to make a career.

So how is XP awarded? By surviving an adventure (defined in Moldvay's Basic set as a single session of play).

A normal man that survives an evening's delve is a blooded veteran, no doubt about it...if all he wants to do is continue swinging a sword and working on his combat prowess, that's a fine and apt description. For those individuals who decide to pursue other career routes, they have only just begun their path of higher learning.

Besides, even a fighter must achieve 2nd level before he is considered a full-on warrior, and 3rd level before he is a proficient swordsman...and of course "hero" isn't awarded until 4th level.

That's why.

Would The Cleric Like To Say Grace?

This is a tough one. I’m not a big fan of the term cleric anyway, as most adventuring parties don’t require a “clerk” to come along and record their actions, and the term "cleric" in Western European tradition refers to very specific members of the clergy…generally, those old school devout-types that shave the top of their head.

I don’t know about you folks, but in my old D&D campaigns, players stayed the hell away from any deities that required their followers to be bald (like all the Egyptian gods in DDG).

Anyway, I suppose an “Adventuring Cleric” gets across the right idea…a priest who takes to the wild in search of adventure instead of running the parish back home (this is in alignment with an "adventuring fighter" versus a stationed soldier and an “adventuring thief” as opposed to the local pickpocket). But an adventuring clergyman (i.e. an adventuring priest) is in conflict with the whole crusader-paladin template of the cleric previous discussed. Remember the cleric’s descriptions:

AD&D: The class of character bears a certain resemblance to religious orders of knighthood of medieval times.

B/X: Clerics are humans who have dedicated themselves to the service of a god or goddess. They are trained in fighting and casting spells.

For me, I wish there was a way to heal the dichotomy between the priest and the warrior by giving the class a name besides “cleric.” Ideally the name would be one word (not “holy warrior” for example) that would capture the epitome of the character class, much as a “fighter” or “magic-user” does.

Zealot? Maybe a little too pejorative. Crusader, perhaps.

Anyway, here are the level titles I’m considering for the cleric class. As with the fighter titles, I tried to stay away from titles that sound to sedentary, like anything that implies a parish or “flock” (vicar, curate, high priest, etc.). Likewise I steered clear of actual, conferred titles like “Saint”:

Level – Rank
1 – Zealot
2 – Devotee
3 – Martyr
4 – Paragon
5 – Crusader
6 – Elder
7 – Initiate
8 – Paladin
9 – Temple Lord/Lady

Once a cleric reaches Name level, he or she has the ability to create a stronghold attracting their own zealots (i.e. “the faithful”). I considered using “Defender of the Faith” as a level title, but as this has been historically reserved for monarchs that are also religious leaders (e.g. the English monarch, certain Middle Eastern leaders) I felt it inappropriate. On the other hand a Lord Templar implies the 9th level cleric has the vested authority to create a “bastion of faith” should he or she choose.

Some may consider terms like Martyr and Zealot to be too strong, but I feel the terms help to remind players (including the DM) what sets this character apart from other adventurers: their zeal, their devotion, their faith. A 3rd level cleric should be prepared to die for their faith, in my opinion. If a cleric doesn’t “represent,” how can he expect his god to grant him those holy/unholy powers?

As a side note, I realize I didn't include female-specific titles for the Fighter class (“Woman of Arms,” “Arms Mistress,” etc.); this is less due to oversight than to my perception of women warriors. In my experience, female fighters consider themselves no different from their male counterparts and don’t wish any distinction from men-folk. In other words, it is preferred to be a female Warlord to a “War Lady.” Please don't take it as a lack of sensitivity.
: )

"Back When We Were Myrmidons Together..."

So said the one-eyed bard Gellor to his companion Gord when reminiscing about their mytual friend Curley Greenleaf in the Gygax novel Saga of Old City.

I can remember reading this and thinking at the time, “How cool! Gygax actually references level titles in the narrative of the game world!” Now I can’t help but see the silliness.

What…you mean back when you lived in Ancient Greece?

We did not read Homer when I was in school (Dante, yes…it was Catholic school), and though I well-versed in Greek mythology and knew of Achilles, I didn’t read the Iliad (where Myrmidons feature prominently) till well after college. Hmph…probably first discovered them in some gladiator-themed research.

I do love level titles in D&D. Not only is a level title a sign of achievement, but it gives you something to say other than, “Hello, I’m a level 5 fighter.” How soul-less. Go play video games.

2nd edition AD&D (speaking of soulless) is the first edition to do away with level titles wholesale (or so I was recently told on another forum). However, the first place I notice their conspicuous absence is in the 1st edition Oriental Adventures supplement where only the Monk class is given titles. Whether this was a gross over-sight, a conscious decision, or sheer laziness (nobody wanted to research Oriental-style titles for samurai and ninja?)…who knows? But it was a sign of things to come.

Frankly, I was a bit disappointed that Labyrinth Lord didn’t include level titles for their character classes. I read somewhere that this may have been done for copyright reasons. Whatever. From what I can see, some of the classes could use an overhaul in the titling department anyway. Here are my proposed new titles (might have to call them “ranks”) for the fighter class, to be included in my B/X Companion:

Level – Rank
1 – Man-of-Arms
2 – Warrior
3 – Veteran
4 – Hero
5 – Cavalier
6 – Swashbuckler
7 – Master-of-Arms
8 – Champion
9 – Warlord

I chose these titles, and their order of appearance, with good reason. A first level fighter has little to distinguish it from other classes except its ability to use all weapons (or with my optional variable damage by class rules, the ability to use the weapons with greatest proficiency).

By level three (the last level of the Basic set), the fighter should well and truly be a “veteran” adventurer. I never liked Vet as a 1st level title as it implies some sort of backstory to the character which generally wasn't the case…1st level characters are usually described as "young" and "inexperienced," after all. But after gaining enough XP delving dungeons to reach 3rd level, veteran sounds like a good description.

A 4th level fighter is always going to be a Hero in my book. It is the first level of an Expert adventurer, a step beyond the first three levels of the Basic set, a sign that the character has outgrown other inexperienced adventurers. When the townsfolk say, “we need a hero” they mean a fighter of at least 4th level.

I like Cavalier for level 5, though at first I had it down for level 7. 5th level is still early Expert and should be about the time characters are getting acquainted with the whole “horse and lance” concept. Cavalier also implies a type of attitude, that suits the PC at this level. Likewise with level 6…the Swashbuckler implies an even more reckless/cocky attitude. It is also the level where characters should start becoming experienced with sea-going voyages (X1: Isle of Dread is for characters level 5-7).

Originally I had Arms Master as level 5, but now I feel level 7 makes more sense. It is after one of the fighters 3-level “break points” (the To Hit rolls and Saves improve beyond those cocky mid-levels). I also feel that “Master-of-Arms” is a good intermediate step between a king’s guardsman and the king’s “Champion.”

Champion replaces “superhero” and its comic book implications at level 8. These are the big bruisers in service to a powerful noble…the Lancelot character that hasn’t yet been granted his own fief.

Finally, Name level for a fighter is “Warlord,” because the fighter achieved his lofty status by strength of arms, not just an entitlement from lord to vassal.

I wanted to stay strictly away from any title that might describe a sedentary character, like “guardsman,” “soldier,” or “man-AT-arms” because the fighter is an adventurer…they need pro-active level titles. Likewise, I wanted to stay away from actual titles like “knight” or “mercenary” that could be applied to a fighter of any level, depending on how a character is branded within a campaign.

Next up: a much needed Clerical over-haul!