Editing Tier System (section)

== Tier System ==

=== Tier 1 ===
Capable of doing absolutely everything, often better than classes that specialize in that thing. Often capable of solving encounters with a single mechanical ability and little thought from the player. Has world-changing powers at high levels. If played with skill, these guys can easily break a campaign and be very hard to challenge without extreme DM fiat or plenty of house rules, especially if Tier 3s and below are in the party. Capable of winning in situations severe enough to result in [[TPK]] of Tier-3 and lower party; conversely, situation difficult enough to seriously threaten a party of Tier 1's, would result in [[TPK]] of party full of Tier-3's. Can handle enemies of higher than normal CR (especially since rewards are also higher than normal).

:'''Examples:''' {{tt|Artificer|Eberron Campaign Setting, p. 29}}, {{tt|archivist|Heroes of Horror, p. 82}}, cleric, druid, ''{{tt|erudite|Complete Psionic, p. 153}} ([https://web.archive.org/web/20151102164617/http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/psm/20070629a Spell to Power variant]),'' wizard, {{tt|powergamed Dragonwrought Kobold Sorcerer|Races Of The Dragon, plus "for dragons only" things from Draconomicon/Dragon Compendium/Dragon Magic}}
:'''Pathfinder Examples:''' [[Arcanist]].

=== Tier 2 ===
Has as much raw power as the Tier 1 classes, but can't pull off nearly as many tricks, and while the class itself is capable of anything, no one build can actually do nearly as much as the Tier 1 classes. Still potentially campaign smashers by using the right abilities, but at the same time are more predictable and can't always have the right tool for the job. If the Tier 1 classes are countries with 10,000 nuclear weapons in their arsenal, these guys are countries with 10 nukes. Still dangerous and easily world shattering, but not in quite so many ways. Note that the Tier 2 classes are often less flexible than Tier 3 classes... it's just that their incredible potential power overwhelms their lack in flexibility. 

:'''Examples:''' {{tt|Binder|Tome of Magic, p. 9}} ([https://web.archive.org/web/20211001135258/http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd%2Ffrcc%2F20070718 Zceryll, "The Star Spawn" vestige]), ''{{tt|erudite|Complete Psionic, p. 153}},'' {{tt|favored soul|Complete Divine, p. 6}}, ''{{tt|psion|Expanded Psionics Handbook, p. 19}},'' sorcerer
:'''Pathfinder Examples:''' [[Oracle]], [[Summoner]], [[Shaman]], [[Witch]].

===Tier 3===
Capable of doing one thing quite well, while still being useful when that one thing is inappropriate, or capable of doing all things, but not as well as classes specializing in that area. Occasionally has a mechanical ability to solve an encounter, but this is relatively rare and easy to deal with. They can be game-breaking only with specific intent to do so. Challenging such a character takes some thought from the DM, but isn't too difficult. Will outshine any Tier 5s in the party much of the time.

:'''Examples:''' Bard, {{tt|beguiler|Player's Handbook II, p. 6}}, {{tt|binder|Tome of Magic, p. 9}}, {{tt|crusader|Tome of Battle, p. 8}}, {{tt|dread necromancer|Heroes of Horror, p. 84}}, {{tt|duskblade|Player's Handbook II, p. 19}}<sup>{{tt|&minus;|Could easily be considered tier 4}}</sup>, {{tt|factotum|Dungeonscape, p. 17}}, ''{{tt|psychic warrior|Expanded Psionics Handbook, p. 24}},'' ranger ({{tt|wild shape variant|Unearthed Arcana, p. 58}}), {{tt|swordsage|Tome of Battle, p. 15}}, {{tt|warblade|Tome of Battle, p. 20}} 
:'''Pathfinder Examples:''' [[Alchemist (Pathfinder)|Alchemist]]<sup>{{tt|++|Simulacrum discoveries can make them tier 1}}</sup>,[[Bloodrager]]<sup>{{tt|&minus;|Could easily be considered tier 4}}</sup> [[Investigator]], [[Inquisitor (Pathfinder)|Inquisitor]], [[Magus]], [[Skald]], [[Spiritualist]], Unchained [[Summoner]], [[Warpriest]], [[Vigilante (Pathfinder)|Vigilante]] (Spellcasting archetype), Sacred Servant [[Paladin]] <sup>{{tt|+|Tier 2 with certain domains or Planar Ally picks}}</sup>, Eldritch Scoundrel Rogue, certain [[Monk]] archetype combinations.
:'''Third Party Examples:''' All ''[[Book of Nine Swords|Path of War]]'' classes, Tactician <sup>{{tt|+|Picking the right powers with Expanded Knowledge can make them tier 2}}</sup>, [[Vitalist]]<sup>{{tt|+|Picking the right powers with Expanded Knowledge can make them tier 2}}</sup>, Aeigis, Soulknife (Augmented Blade or War Soul archetype), most ''Spheres of Power'' classes, [[Binder|Occultist]]. (In short, most Third Party class worth using were built to fall into this tier.)

===Tier 4===
Capable of doing one thing quite well, but often useless when encounters require other areas of expertise, or capable of doing many things to a reasonable degree of competence without truly shining. Rarely has any abilities that can outright handle an encounter unless that encounter plays directly to the class's main strength. DMs may sometimes need to work to make sure Tier 4s can contribute to an encounter, as their abilities may sometimes leave them useless. Won't outshine anyone except Tier 6s except in specific circumstances that play to their strengths. Cannot compete effectively with Tier 1s that are played well. 

:'''Examples:''' Adept, barbarian, fighter ([https://web.archive.org/web/20150401184859/http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20060327a Zhentarim soldier substitution levels] (pgs. 6-7), {{tt|hexblade|Complete Warrior, p. 5}}<sup>{{tt|&minus;|Could easily be considered tier 5}}</sup>, {{tt|marshal|Miniatures Handbook, p. 11}}, ranger, rogue, {{tt|scout|Complete Adventurer, p. 10}}, {{tt|spellthief|Complete Adventurer, p. 13}}, {{tt|warlock|Complete Arcane, p. 5}}, {{tt|warmage|Complete Arcane, p. 10}}
:'''Pathfinder Examples:''' , small sized [[Knight|Cavalier]], [[Paladin]], [[Kineticist]] <sup>{{tt|+/-|Aether can be tier 3, Wood/Void can be tier 5 as can any element hosed by the campaign's monster choice}}</sup>, [[Medium]] <sup>{{tt|+/-|Depending on the archetype & spirit}}</sup>, Unchained [[Monk]], certain Monk archetypes, [[Shifter (Pathfinder)|Shifter]] <sup>{{tt|-|Could easily be considered tier 5}}</sup>, [[Slayer#Pathfinder|Slayer]], [[Vigilante (Pathfinder)|Vigilante]] <sup>{{tt|+|Could easily be considered tier 3}}</sup>.
:'''Third Party Examples:''' Soulknife (''Psionics Unleashed'').

===Tier 5===
Capable of doing only one thing, and not necessarily all that well, or so unfocused that they have trouble mastering anything, and in many types of encounters the character cannot contribute. In some cases, can do one thing very well, but that one thing is very often not needed. Has trouble shining in any encounter unless the encounter matches their strengths. DMs may have to work to avoid the player feeling that their character is worthless unless the entire party is Tier 4 and below. Characters in this tier will often feel like one trick ponies if they do well, or just feel like they have no tricks at all if they build the class poorly.

:'''Examples:''' Expert, fighter<sup>{{tt|+|Could easily be considered tier 4}}</sup>, {{tt|healer|Miniatures Handbook, p. 8}}, ''{{tt|knight|Player's Handbook II, p. 24}},'' monk, {{tt|ninja|Complete Adventurer, p. 5}}, paladin<sup>{{tt|+|Could easily be considered tier 4}}</sup>, {{tt|samurai<sup>CW</sup>|Complete Warrior, p. 8}} (with {{tt|Imperious Command|Drow of the Underdark, p. 50}} feat), {{tt|samurai<sup>OA</sup>|Oriental Adventures, p. 20}}, {{tt|soulknife|Expanded Psionics Handbook, p. 26}}, {{tt|swashbuckler|Complete Warrior, p. 11}}
:'''Pathfinder Examples:''' Medium sized Cavalier, Gunslinger <sup>{{tt|+|Could easily be considered tier 4 at higher levels}}</sup>, Swashbuckler <sup>{{tt|&minus;|Could easily be considered tier 6}}</sup>.

===Tier 6===
Not even capable of shining in their own area of expertise. DMs will need to work hard to make encounters that this sort of character can contribute in with their mechanical abilities. Will often feel worthless unless the character is seriously powergamed beyond belief, and even then won't be terribly impressive. Needs to fight enemies of lower than normal CR. Class is often completely unsynergized or with almost no abilities of merit. Avoid allowing PCs to play these characters.

:'''Examples:''' Aristocrat, commoner, {{tt|samurai<sup>CW</sup>|Complete Warrior, p. 8}}<sup>{{tt|+|Could easily be considered tier 5}}</sup>, warrior

===[[Truenamer]]===

[[Fail|A class so terrible it gets its own tier]], the {{tt|Truenamer|Tome of Magic, p. 198}} "is [[Pyrovore|just broken]] (as in, the class was improperly made and doesn't function appropriately). Highly optimized (to the point of being able to spam their abilities) a Truenamer would be around Tier 4, but with lower optimization it rapidly drops to Tier 6." They can however be optimized to do some very specific things that no other class can, with god killing mastery of cosmic power, while still being trumped by a couple of enthusiastic bandits.

===Tier 0===
Not in the original list but often mentioned is a "Tier 0". Tier 0 is unique in that it applies to builds, albeit broad ones, not base classes. The primary idea is that while Tier 1 still needs to select what spells he prepares ahead of time, Tier 0 can pull the needed ability out of his ass when he sees a problem. The classic example is the "Rainbow Warsnake", a [[Warmage]] (traditionally, but [[Dread Necromancer]] and [[Beguiler]] also work) that adds the entire Cleric list, core and splat, to his spell list by taking 10 levels of Rainbow Servant. Since for a Warmage his "spell list is the same as his spells known list" he can just cast any spell on the Cleric list spontaneously to deal with problems as they come up. 

Pathfinder briefly had Tier 0 Sorcerer and Oracle via the spell Paragon Surge. Paragon Surge grants the user a feat, chosen when the spell is cast. This feat could be spent on Expanded Arcana, which gave you an extra spell known of your highest level or two of a lower level. This meant a Sorcerer or Oracle could know ''any'' on list spell the player wanted to at the cost of a standard action and third level spell slot (or swift and 7th/metamagic rod and 3rd). This naturally got nerfed and now any future castings the same day give you the same feat. Still potent, and possibly enough to make the gap to tier 1, but not as stupidly broken.

Potentially still Tier 0 in Pathfinder is the Sorcerer archetype Razmiran Priest. This archetype is capable of casting single use magic items of divine spells without expending them by blowing their own spell slots. This allows them to get as wide a spell list as an [[Archivist]], able to cast any divine spell they have a scroll or 1 charge wand of, but cast each spell whenever they want. This requires a Use Magic Device check, but it's piss easy to get it to the point you pass even on a roll of 1. This archetype is generally kept in check by its fluff, which requires being mutated by a crazy evil wizard pretending to be a god.

=== Tier ∞ ===
Also sometimes called «Tier 0», and is one of it's interpretations, but different enough to be considered it's own thing. For characters what are even more powerful at breaking the game through their ability to permanently improve themselves with few practical limits outside of the normal progression system. If Tier 1 is country with 10,000 nuclear weapons, then Tier ∞ is Space Empire and/or Post-Technological-Singularity civilization — with ''uncountable'' bombs, [[Wunderwaffen|wonderweapons]], and [[Space Marines]]. In other words, such characters enter the Singularity, as is "a point at which expected rules break down". For example: Soul Eater, [[Beholder]] Mage, [[Illithid]] Savant, Thrallherd, «Omniscifier», [[Pun-Pun]].
* «Normal» spellcasters are also capable of ''eventually'' becoming Tier ∞, since [https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/GameBreaker/DungeonsAndDragonsThirdEdition Fortify seed is an endless loop] — you can increase the "stat you use to cast spells" (e.g. Intellect for Mages), what allows to roll a higher Spellcraft craft for Epic spell that increases said Primary Stat even further, and eventually get '''arbitrarily big''' stat — then, increase all other stats to match. However, while Tier 0, 1 and 2 characters and builds reach this by Epic Levels — «True» Tier ∞ are capable of going into «endless loop of improvement» from the get-go, or from early levels.
* To differentiate «Tier what can pull the needed ability out of his ass when he sees a problem» and «Tier what can permanently improve themselves with few practical limits outside of the normal progression system», we could divide them into multiple Tiers. The former is Tier 0; The latter would be «Tier ∞», «Tier U» (Uber), «Tier S» (Super), or something like it.

=== Multiclassing ===
Tier of multi-classed characters also needs determining.
* If combination has good synergy (e.g. fighter + barbarian), it counts as highest tier of combination. If it has mediocre synergy but still makes sense, it counts as lower tier of combination. Absolutely dumb variants what make no sense are lower than both classes separate. Some particularly great combinations may be higher than all of it's components separately.
* [[Dip Class]] is also consideration - as it can boost character's abilities without need to take many unrelated levels.

===Prestige Classes===
The original tier system did not assume prestige classes, assuming all classes got the same level of optimization and a took a straight 20 levels anyways. This left a gap to be filled, so a second tier system was created for prestige classes. This system rates prestige classes based on how much more or less powerful they are than their "logical entry", a base class or combination of them that is the most logical and quickest way to enter a prestige class. For example: A prestige class that required casting second level arcane spells ''could'' be entered as a Wizard 1 by taking the Precocious Apprentice feat (an infamous way to enter such classes early), or Ranger 5/Assassin 3 (a late and terrible choice) but will typically be entered by three levels in Wizard.
*+2: Really strong. The most broken cheese (Like Ur-Priest's double speed Cleric casting) is here. This also includes prestige classes that are not broken but are most logically entered by a terrible base class ([[Soulknife]] going into Soulbow) and make a big improvement upon it. Often enough to raise a class a tier on the original system.
*+1: A notable increase in power, but not serious.
*+0: A sidegrade or incredibly minor power boost.
*-1: Like +1 but reversed.
*-2: These tend to be absolutely unsalvageable prestige classes. Often just plain old don't work or are extremely hard to enter by poor design.

Tier 4 class with a "+2" PrC is not automatically Tier 2. If you want to maximize your power, use combination of high-Tier Class and high-Tier Prestige Class.

While the idea was well received and the system is known to 3.X optimizers, this system never got all that popular compared to its parent system.

=== For NPC's ===
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Generally, tier system works normally for NPC's built as if they were player character. That is - assuming NPC acts cleverly and uses everything at their disposal.

But the NPC's with broken "for [NPC's of certain type] only" abilities, or monsters, things work strangely. PC's CL is his level - so, we compare monster's CL as if it was his level. The big dumb things would be low tiers, and spellcasting things likely as high tiers.

=== Races/Species ===
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Each Race/Species could have it's own tier. Such as Humans and Half-Elves being quite good. That requires some research. And on top of that, there's Monster Class Adventurers - which require determining, whether or not their abilities do compensate for their large [[Level Adjustment]].

===Pathfinder Archetypes===
Pathfinder's archetype (alternate class features) system is notoriously hit and miss: Some trade great abilities for extremely niche ones, others are almost strictly better than the normal class. While many class guides rate archetypes, these ratings are rarely up to date or comprehensive even when new. To address this at the end of Pathfinder's life the community created a system for rating relative to their original class. Unlike other systems which rate on a single scale, this one rates both power and versatility on a separate pair of -2 to +2 scales. This means an archetype could decrease power but increase versatility. Unlike the ratings for classes and prestige classes, which rate on taking the class in full, it's quite common to see ratings note dipping into that archetype is superior to taking it in full. [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UY1RrLleESzHZv2L6rkJnWihtzyazz1kvUzisZTO9TU/edit Every archetype has been given a rating].

===d20 Modern===
[[d20 Modern]] is almost as imbalanced as its parent game. However, its class system works differently enough to make the normal tier system unusable. Instead, each advanced class is put into three tiers, ranking both its combat prowess and versatility as the gaps between class quality are very significant, and that the design assumption not every game in the system includes the supernatural/superscience means few non-casting classes even have enhanced versatility in the first place. Tier 1 holds the casters, [[Psionics|manifesters]] and pseudo casters, as well as a couple of combat monsters, tier 3 holds the absolute garbage (Like Techie, who builds slightly better items anyone can make, or Road Warrior, a driving focused class that's not even that good at driving and has no other abilities) and tier 2 holds pretty much everything else.

===DnD 4e===
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===DnD 5e===
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===Miscellaneous OGL d20 system games===
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Such as [[Star Wars d20]] and other d20 games.