Editing Masque of the Red Death (section)

==Classes==
Masque of the Red Death uses proprietary classes. These classes are generally of lower power than the normal classes, and in 5e, each class actually only goes up to 10th level, half the normal amount!

In AD&D, your class options consist of:
* The '''Soldier''', a tweaked [[Fighter]] who gets multiple attacks, but can't specialize in weapons.
* The '''Adept''', a tweaked [[Wizard]] whose biggest drawback is mostly how magic is screwed over in Gothic Earth - see "The Curse of the Red Death" below.
* The '''Mystic''', a tweaked [[Cleric]] who doesn't get the same armor/weapon proficiencies (but still gets a d8 Hit Dice for some reason) and also has to put up with the Curse of the Red Death.
* The '''Tradesman''', a replacement [[Rogue]] who is defined as "The [[Skill Monkey]] Class", even having the usual set of thieving abilities replaced with skill proficiencies to do so!

In the 3e RPGA incarnation, the class list was the following (Yes, they are as crap as described. Few of these classes have any class features after third level and almost none after 5th.):
* Adept: Wizard, but worse.
* Athlete: Expert at physical skills that gets a bonus feat related to their sport at 1st and 3rd level. Also save at the start of each session or you're injured.
* Charlatan: Bad Wizard+skill monkey at the cost of needing to make a fort save or be dazed after every spell.
* Cowboy: Full BAB, d10 HD, 6+int skills and some random bonus feats. Takes random penalty on social skills (none of which are class skills anyways) against "city folk".
* Criminal: Rogue, but worse. You also have double chance of provoking dark powers checks! Can only be taken at first level. Still, even lower progression sneak attack gives them the only universal damage increase in the system if they can get it up (though that's harder without magic and the focus on ranged weapons prohibiting flanking).
* Dandy: Skill monkey, with have the highest wealth and skill points and gets the ability to make a charisma check (yes, on an intelligence based caster) to request a favor once per adventure.
* Detective: Criminal, but only one class feature in exchange for slightly better skill points and only doubling dark powers checks for criminal and violent acts. Their sole class feature gives them a charisma check to request aid from the police once an adventure, aid that needs to be paid back.
* Dilettante: Cleric+skill monkey at the cost of an extremely limited (but highly customizable) spell list based on selecting "domains" (unrelated to the 3E Cleric feature) and a skill list of only the ''weird'' skills and taking an always on-penalty to initiative and perception that grows as you level! At third level they get the "Savior-Fair" feat... which doesn't exist!
* Explorer/Scout: Essentially Cowboy with different feats and weapon proficiency. Same penalty to social skills.
* Laborer: Effectively an NPC class. Low skill points, mid BAB/HD, minor bonus feats and a prohibition on taking knowledge skills without a special feat. Literally no reason to play one.
* Medium: Cleric, but worse. Takes same penalty as Dilettante.
* Metaphysician: Wizard, but worse. Gets extra spells at the cost of no bonus feats and taking a -2 penalty against mind-effecting magic. Since this applies on magic instead of everything, possibly excluding spell likes, this isn't actually as terrible as it is.
* Mystic: See Medium. The differences are extremely minor.
* Parson: Non-magical religious person. Some skill monkey ability, gimped turn undead, ability to make holy water, and minor bonus feats. Prohibited from learning weapon related feats, because apparently ''every'' real world religion prohibits their priest from violence (uh...).
* Performer: Another skill monkey with random bad bonus feats. Takes a penalty on initiative, but it's only minus 1 and never increases.
* Professional: Another skill monkey with random bad bonus feats. Has a lot of skill points, a customizable skill list
* Physician: The only class able to actually practice medicine, but has to obey a harsh code of conduct (No playing a military doctor like Dr. Watson for you!).
* Politician: Might as well just be another type of Professional.
* Scholar/Scientist: Same as above.
* Servant: Commoner, but with a penalty on horror checks. Why would anyone play this?
* Shaman: Primitive cleric, with the same restriction on learning stuff as Laborer (because tribal religious leaders don't even know about their own culture!). Still, has the lightest initiative penalty out of any divine caster.
* Soldier: Fighter, but worse.
* Soldier, Officer: Far and away the best class in the game. Full BAB, d8 HD, good money, 6+ int skills with a good list, all meaningful weapons as proficiency, and no stupid forced "roleplaying" penalty.
* Spiritualist: Another cleric but worse. Forced to double casting time (so not even first level spells can be used in combat) to increase save DC by... one.
* Tradesman: Very minor variant of Professional.

In the White Wolf 3e version, the class list got expanded. Now, you could take a "standard" class, or one of several built-in variants, which used the same core mechanics, but had unique class features - almost like a prototype of 5e's subclass system. The 3e Masque classes consist of:
* Adept
** Charlatan
** Metaphysician
** Occultist
* Athlete
** Explorer/Scout
** Shootist
** Soldier
* Intellectual
** Parson
** Physician
** Scholar/Scientist
* Mystic
** Medium
** Shaman
** Spiritualist
* Sleuth
** Criminal
** Dandy
** Journalist
* Tradesman
** Mechanic
** Performer

In 5e, the class list changed yet again, and why this is, nobody knows. The 5e Masque consists of 5 classes:
* Scion: The bearer of an ancient legacy of occult power
* Shepherd: An influential leader and inspiring comrade
* Sleuth: An astute observer skilled at uncovering what is hidden
* Soldier: A master of combat with specialized weapons training
* Stalwart: A resilient and athletic survivor

It also plays with the subclass mechanic, replacing it with Archetypes. These are functionally subclasses, but operate independently of the base classes, letting you mix and match the two in unique ways to better create more nuanced characters. A Shepherd (Criminal) could be some kind of political agitator or rabble-rouser. A Soldier (Adept) could be a former military agent who stumbled across dark secrets of the occult whilst deployed abroad. A Scion (Gunslinger) could be akin to a [[Deadlands]] hexslinger; somebody whose "day job" revolves around their use of the gun, but who isn't afraid to mix magic into their gunplay. More ordinary combinations, such as Scion(Adept) who is really good at casting (for the setting anyway), are also options. There are 16 Archetypes in Masque 5e:
* Adept: A secretive spellcaster and keeper of ancient arcane lore
* Artifact Hunter: An acquirer of rare antiquities
* Charlatan: A con artist or stage magician who might blunder into true magic
* Criminal: A rogue with a talent for thriving outside of the law
* Expert: A scholar, tradesperson, or other specialist with highly-valued skills
* Gunslinger: A master of firearms, ranged combat, and trick shots
* Laborer: A steadfast worker able to tackle challenges few others could endure
* Medium: A seer who views the hidden world beneath reality, whether they like it or not
* Mystic: A metaphysical visionary who opens their mind to transcendent perceptions
* Outrider: A scout or explorer accustomed to life on the frontier
* Parson: A cleric or layperson representing a religious institution
* Pugilist: A practitioner of advanced unarmed combat techniques
* Slayer: A relentless hunter devoted to destroying monsters at all costs
* Socialite: An influential sophisticate skilled at leveraging social privilege
* Spy: A covert agent of espionage with specialized skills
* Tactician: A master of the battlefield, adept at gaining the upper-hand against enemies.