Hello and questions!

[Sandler Morlock]

I wanted to take the opportunity to introduce myself and ask a few questions.  I am new to Neverwinter Nights and Layonara, but not to D&D or RP.  I'm a 20 year veteran of PnP and spent a few years in Ultima Online and have been playing Star Wars Galaxies since launch.  A few friends and I have been looking for a new game when one of them suggested we check out this Persistant World.  I have to say we've been quite impressed with everything we've read and myself and several others will be putting characters up for approval in the very near future.  We have always been a group that thrives on quality RP and when we begin to play a game, our commitment to it is usually long term.

One of the things that I enjoy myself in a game such as this is exploration.  I understand fully that this world is very difficult to solo and have a great appreciation for that.  I personaly always happen to be the one that scouts an area that our party intends to visit before the event and i'm always wanting to see whats just beyond the next bend in the road.

I have a couple priorities in the game and I wanted to ask for suggestions for what class might best match what I enjoy playing in this setting.  I've considered a Ranger for their ability to hide in the wilderness, a Rogue for the same reason, a wizard or such for invisibility, or a Druid for their abilities to take on other forms.  

Which of these or others do you think would lend the most to a player that loves exploration?

Thanks in advance for your assistance!

[Tedulas]

Rangers - as they can scout well ahead, and I think you should take an elf race - due to they run faster.

But I have a wizard that used to go invisable, and see what is ahead or cast fear into groups of ogres...stupid fools.

[ZeroVega]

Wizards are possibly the most powerful class on Layonara. Though early on, they kinda stink, it 'sorta' balances out in the end. However if you want to scout, a 50hp wizard with 5 Fort and 5 Reflex probably isn't the best.
  Rogues are nice, could definatly use some more of those. Very few rogues actually stay pure rogue. Most take ranger, fighter, or shadow dancer levels to accompany it (the SD is fine but the Fighter Mix has been overdone... in my opinion).
  Rangers are definatly one of the weaker classes however I think that gives them quite a bit of flava.    They can be excellent sneakers and are, in my opinion, the better scouts.
  Ah, Druids. A rare and dying breed. Honestly, I've never heard of a druid that scouts however I find that they're one of the most RP oriented classes out there. They have a purpose to explore, their spells are quite limited, and there is always something for them to RP about (nature's just so big ya know?).
  My advice would be, if you want a good scout, go rogue. And if you'd like a more nature oriented character go full out Tree-Hugger and go Druid.
  ZV-

[SquareKnot]

I can't really answer your question as to what class is best for scouting. But I can tell you this -- it's possible. My low level character has gone solo almost everywhere on Mistone, and most places on Rilara. Gone there solo, but of course not fought what he found. He's a bard, and uses stealth and invisibility and sanctuary spells. And running, lots of running, after the sanctuary spells. Then again, I also am 6th level with 4 death tokens

The other thing to keep in mind is that the spawn points gauge the strength of the party and size themselves appropriately. So if I'm scouting solo, I might only see one ogre. But when I come back with a party of 6 higher level people, it might be 4 ogres, and one of them a mage. (This is an example, I don't know exactly how much freedom the spawn algorithm has.) This is somewhat realistic, as the number of creatures at a given point wouldn't stay the same from day to day really anyway. But just be careful when you tell your friends, "This one will be really easy..."

[Sandler Morlock]

I just read a post somewhere else on the forums about someone walking around as a Kitten?  Seems very few things bothered him in this form?  Is this a Druidic transformation or something else?

Sandler Morlock

[Vyris]

It's either that, or a shapeshifter PrC one, either way, Druids are usually the path taken.

As far as exploring goes, don't forget about monks as a stealth class, the hide and move silently skills are inherant to the class, and the monk speed bonus assures that there will always be someone else in the party slower than you are And we all know that being faster than someone in the party is the key to living a long, healthy life.

hehe

Vyris

[Doc-Holiday]

HEY!

[LoganGrimnar]

And we all know that being faster than someone in the party is the key to living a long, healthy life.

Vyris

lol, to true

[miltonyorkcastle]

yes, I would suggest monk as the scout of choice, as they are as adept at hiding as a ranger or rogue, and ten times faster at relaying the information.  plus, a monk is a self-contained class, meaning they need very little support to survive.  i.e.  a wizard could always use a buff smasher type to sit behind and chuck spells, a basher type could always use a scout to warn them of danger and flank the enemy, etc.  a few levels in monk and you notice, you don't need weapons, armor, you can heal yourself, you become immune to poison, you eventually gain spell resistance...  you get the picture.... of course, like many classes, a monk has to have been trained somewhere, you can't just up and be one.

[miltonyorkcastle]

oh, and, forgot to mention monks have to be Lawful...  hence why i seldom play them... i'm too chaotic =P

[Vellyn]

Other than scouting, what is it you wish for your character to accomplish? Any class stated above would do great at scouting things out. I personally like the ranger option the best outdoors also because they make great archers ... then again so do theives if they get close enough to add the backstabbing feature to their bow to aid front line fighters ... pretty wicked. I think a true thief, also as stated above, is very rare to find and has great RP potential ... great skill base but stay away from the pick pocketing. I hear the DMs will get pretty mad at you Monks are good because they do have that wicked fast speed to go with their ability to sneak around themselves. I'd base it on your overall desires to determne which class to play.

My group has two sneaky ranger scouts, then has a wizard to drop in a fireball followed by a druid to call forth some lightening. Afterwards our half giant warrior runs in to bash whatever is left, and I heal him a lot to round out the party ... we have fun