Player Character Classes (CSH)

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The classes of the AD&D game are designed for a groundling environment. When transported to a spacefaring setting, these classes need additional tuning in order to cover issues that arise in such a campaign. This section describes the special concerns for each character class and explains how to resolve these problems in a SPELLJAMMER campaign setting.
==Zero-Level Characters==
Zero-Level Characters. In a groundling campaign, the great mass of humanity and demihumanity is made up of nonadventurers (zero-level characters). These characters do not earn experience points and are not members of any character class.
To a limited degree this is true in space as well. However, the rigors of space, combined with the adventurous lifestyle of those who live there, produce a higher percentage of exceptional characters.
In a typical groundling campaign, perhaps 99 characters in 100 are zero level. The remaining character is the adventurer, the hero (or villain), the one who stands out among the rest. In a spelljamming campaign, nine in 10 characters are zero level. While zero-level characters still represent the vast majority of the population, there are more heroes.
This does not mean that there are armies of high-level warriors, mages, priests, or rogues. The population of space is too limited and too widely scattered for that. What it does mean, however, is that encountered characters are much more likely to be on a par with the PCs themselves. Where a 5th-level groundling PC can throw his weight around safely in the local village, he might be unpleasantly surprised at the reaction to the same behavior in a small spaceport.
==Fighters==
Fighters. Most fighting abilities are unchanged in a spacefaring setting. Fighters are more likely to be proficient in the use of large weapons, such as catapults and ballistae, but their abilities are relatively unchanged at low levels.
When a fighter attains 9th level (becomes a "Lord") in a groundling campaign, he may build a castle and attract followers. In space, however, the way a character attracts followers and the types of followers he gets change substantially.
To attract followers, a spacefaring fighter must first construct a stronghold: an asteroid, abandoned dwarven citadel, or other stationary platform from which the warrior forays on adventures. The stronghold must be at a generally known location in the traveled reaches of space for the followers to find it. For more details on how to construct a stronghold, see Chapter 9.
Once the character has achieved 9th level and built a stronghold, followers will come. Of course, they are mercenaries and must still be paid. The DM should determine the followers in accordance with the structure of the campaign and nearby population centers, or the player may use Table 18 to determine the number and types of followers attracted.
===Table 18: Fighter's Followers===
Roll percentile dice on each of the following tables. The number of ships received is determined by the number of troops (not including the bodyguard or leader). As noted in the Player's Handbook, these followers are loyal as long as they are treated well. They own their own ships; these ships are not available to the fighter for his own use, although they may be used in defense of the stronghold.
Die Roll	Leader and suggested magical items
01-40 	5th-level fighter, plate mail, shield, battle axe +2
41-75 	6th-level fighter, plate mail, shield +1, spear +1, dagger +1
76-95 	6th-level fighter, plate mail +1, shield, spear +1, dagger +1, plus 3rd-level fighter, splint mail, shield, crossbow of distance
96-99 	7th-level fighter, plate mail +1, shield +1, broad sword +2, winged boots
00 	DM's Option
Die Roll	Troops/Followers (all zero-level)
01-50 	1 large-weapon expert with light weapon*, 80 infantry with scale mail, polearm*, club
51-75 	20 infantry with splint mail, morning star, light crossbow; 50 infantry with leather armor, pikes, short sword
76-90 	40 infantry with chain mail, heavy crossbow, short sword; 20 infantry with chain mail, light crossbow, military fork
91-99 	10 infantry with banded mail, shield, bastard sword, and heavy crossbow; 20 infantry with scale mail, shield, heavy crossbow, long sword, mace; 40 skirmishers with studded leather armor, long bow, short sword
00 	DM's Option (hadozee, grommam, etc.)
*Player selects type.
Die Roll	Elite Units
01-10 	10 lst-level elven fighter/mages with chain mail, long sword, long bow, dagger
11-25 	15 wardens: lst-level rangers with scale mail, shield, long sword, spear, long bow
25-40 	20 berserkers: 2nd-level fighters with leather armor, shield, battle axe, broad sword, dagger (berserkers receive + 1 bonus to attack and damage rolls, or use the Berserker kit from The Complete Fighter's Handbook, if available and using the kit optional rules)
41-65 	20 expert archers: 1 st-level fighters with studded leather armor, long bows or crossbows (+ 2 to hit, or bow specialization if using that optional rule)
66-99 	30 infantry: lst-level fighters with plate mail, body shield, spear, short sword
00 	DM's Option (hadozee, grommam, etc.)
Die Roll	Ship Type 	Troops Per Ship
01-05 	Flitter 	5
06-10 	Mosquito 	5
11-20 	Caravel 	10
21-30 	Dragonfly 	10
31-40 	Damselfly 	10
41-55 	Wasp 	15
56-62 	Eelship 	15
63-72 	Tradesman 	20
73-80 	Lampreyship	20
81-88 	Shrikeship 	25
89-92 	Galleon 	40
93-96 	Squid Ship 	40
97-99 	Hammership 	50
100 	Man-o-War 	50
==Paladins==
Paladins. The special abilities of paladins are bestowed by deities of law and good. These abilities are unaffected in any crystal sphere.
The only exception to this is the paladin's spell abilities. The paladin, like the priest, must contact a representative of his deity in order to receive new spells above the second level. A paladin in a foreign sphere, where his deity is not reachable, cannot regain spells above the second level unless magical means are used. Two such magical methods for regaining spells are the contact home power spell (Concordance of Arcane Space, Chapter 2) or a priestly icon (see Chapter 6 of this book).
In the phlogiston, however, some paladin abilities are reduced or eliminated because they stem from the power of the paladin's god, which cannot reach into the phlogiston. These are:
Detecting evil: Due to the disruptive effects of the phlogiston, this ability works only to a range of 30'.
Aura of protection: The anti-magical properties of the phlogiston reduce this protection to a 5'-radius.
Circle of power: While in the phlogiston, the circle of power projected by a paladin wielding a holy sword is reduced to 15' in diameter.
Healing, curing diseases, calling for a war horse: These abilities require the direct invocation of the power of the paladin's god and so cannot be performed in the phlogiston.
Saving-throw bonus, immunity to disease, turning undead: These abilities are unaffected by the phlogiston.
All of the strictures suffered by paladins apply regardless of the paladin's location.
==Ranger==
Ranger abilities are generally unaffected by wildspace or the phlogiston. Like priests and paladins, rangers cannot recover their clerical spells in the phlogiston, nor can they recover their third-level clerical spells in foreign spheres without magical assistance, but all other ranger abilities act exactly as described in the Player's Handbook.
==Mages==
Mages operate identically in space as on the ground. The effects of some spells are modified in space; mages should see Appendix I of the Concordance of Arcane Space and the Magic section that follows in this chapter to determine these effects.
==Priests==
Priests. The limitations on priests and their ability to regain spells are described in the Concordance of Arcane Space. The restrictions that these limitations place on priest spell abilities in wildspace therefore need not be covered here.
However, clerics (and some specialty priests) also have the ability to found a place of worship and attract followers. In a SPELLJAMMER® campaign, a cleric's stronghold must meet certain specific criteria.
First, the stronghold must be able to support at least 200 persons, although not all of those may end up in service to the temple. This may require access to ready supplies of food, water, and air, or the stronghold may be self-sustaining, with green plants and a stable water supply. The larger the base, the more prominent the church may become.
Second, the stronghold must be stationary; a cleric, unlike a warrior, cannot use his ship as a stronghold. It can be on the surface of a world, on an asteroid, or within an abandoned dwarven citadel, but the stronghold must be stable and easy to find.
Third, most religions encourage clerics to establish their temples within new spheres, rather than creating multiple temples in a sphere where the cleric's god is already worshipped. In this way, the power of the god is extended; the congregation becomes the core of worshippers who establish the god's power permanently in the sphere.
Because building a stronghold costs a great deal, most clerics wait until they reach 9th level so that they may gain the support of the church in this construction (see the Player's Handbook, Chapter 3). Finally, in order to establish a congregation, the cleric must cast a fourth-level focus spell (as defined in the Tome of Magic) to create a site focus in the new stronghold. After the focus is created, the congregation must exist for one year before the priest's god is "recognized" in the sphere. During this initial year, the priest's duties to his new congregation prevent him from leaving the stronghold except on rare occasions.
This does not mean the priest cannot experience adventure. Opponents of the god view this initial one-year period as their opportunity to eliminate the congregation before the god gains a permanent foothold in the sphere. Thus, the stronghold will be subject to much more pressure than it would in a normal groundling nation.
Once the first year is ended and the congregation is established, the god has contact with the sphere.
Other temples may be built, and priests of the god may regain spells normally. The founding priest is now free to leave for short periods of time and will certainly wish to explore the worlds of the sphere, as these may offer numerous opportunities for adventure.
==Thief==
Thief abilities are unrestricted in space, except by local authorities. However, the smaller population of wildspace makes thieving activities somewhat less lucrative, and getting caught (particularly at a notable crime) rapidly spreads your name as a thief throughout the sphere.
==Bard==
Bard abilities are also unchanged in space, as they are not related to any particular culture. Where a thief might have a problem with the speed at which his reputation spreads, this is a benefit to the bard, whose talents are recognized quickly throughout a wide region of space.