Re: D&D 3.5 Gestalt mid to high level
Here's the question; would a cloistered cleric (comfortably) meet the criteria for the Saerloon game? If so, I'd say both concepts sound great, and I would be happy to play in one, as well as disappointed I wouldn't get to find out where the other concept would have led.
I like villains that turn over a new leaf, it offers redemption but also suspicion of the "How were you fooled?! It was my plan all along to betray you and use you as puppets!". It can be dicey, but if enough cues (i.e. chances to find out more) are given then it can go over really well.
If, on the other hand, cloistered cleric (even feels like it) is a cheap way to meet the criteria of 6+Int skills, then I'd have to say I'm more interested in the clerical journey. I like the premise of the plot, but any 6+ skills class I can think of would only be there to complement another specialty, and would largely be dumbed down in comparison to the main devotion. If I were the GM, which I'm glad I'm not, I wouldn't make the point of classifying the criteria to fit rogues, spellthieves, bards and scouts, only to feel justified when someone played a cloistered cleric. Still, I'm not the one who makes that call, and it would be an easy way to see that story and not have to be a scoundrel class. So I thought I would get that out there. I'm sure I'm not the only one who considered the notion.
Either way you decide on, my draw to the clerical game would be to see the diversity of clerics. We could easily have a (well-meaning) zealot and still have plenty of room for the "I'm approachable, down to earth, and lead by example not preaching" and "I serve an ideal. A god may be at the helm of that ideal, but it is still a fallible entity that I am devoted to, and therefore I serve my god only after the ideal itself.", and that would only be three possibilities out of the likely four or five. Point being, we can all be clerics and still be vastly different to say nothing of the PrCs we could choose to take. I just like the idea of faiths uniting for common cause, even if they do not share the motivation for pursuing them. It makes for some very enjoyable potential conversations.
Starting level being 9th to 12th is perfectly fine. I have zero objections and/or reservations on that. Resurrection likely plays a bigger role than is immediately clear, for your game, but I can certainly admit 7th level spells open opportunity for things like Greater Scrying, Greater Plane Shift, Greater Teleport and Mordenkainen's Mansion. While not at all an infallible tactic, it does sometimes lead to "scry-ambush-strike-retreat-then-repeat". Having little "cheats" like Limited Wish to basically improvise a solution can also break tension. I certainly know there are tons of other thresholds at various levels, but I tend to see high level starting at 13th level, if only because that's how my face to face GM has drawn the line between where mid level stops and high level starts.
In case Tom.Martin is delayed to reply it might be because he's on holiday...or I could be totally wrong and this could be a very unnecessary disclaimer XD.
EDIT: Wow, I guess I bumped the thread by replying while I was at it. That doesn't happen very often (for me).
This message was last edited by the user at 09:45, Wed 06 May 2015.