Editing Subclass

{{stub}}

'''Subclasses''' are a form of game mechanic seen in various roleplaying games that make use of distinct character classes. The basic idea is that you start as a relatively generic or archetypical character, such as a [[Fighter]] or a [[Mage]], and then you later take one (or, rarely, more than one) subclass to gain access to more specialized abilities. Examples of subclasses can include the [[Paladin]] (a [[fighter]] with [[cleric]]-like holy magic), the [[Assassin]] (a [[rogue]] specialized in killing people), or the [[Evoker]] (a [[wizard]] specialized in blowing things to bits).

Though the mechanic predates the system's existence, subclasses were popularized on /tg/ when [[Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition]] introduced them as a mandatory aspect of character development; each class, at around 2nd or 3rd level, is required to take a subclass, which contributes roughly half of that class's special class features.

A variant of the subclass system can be seen in the Archetypes system of [[Pathfinder]]. This functions basically the same as a subclass, being a "concept defining class" that is overlaid on a baseline class to grant more specific abilities and traits, but Pathfinder's Archetypes are optional choices, rather than being mandatory selections as is usually the case for subclasses.

[[Category: Game Mechanics]]