Classes and Classical Elements

[vito]

Hi there. Long time lurker, occasional poster.

I was just thinking about the classic archetypes of D&D (Fighting-Man, Magic-User, Cleric, and Thief) and musing on possible associations with the minor arcana suits of Tarot decks and the classical elements.

Magic-Users are obviously associated with the Wands suit, which is associated with the element of Fire and the cardinal direction South.

Fighting-Men are most associated with the Swords suit, which is associated with the element Air and the direction East.

The Cups suit is associated with clergy, so I guess that matches Cups and Clerics together then. Cups are associated with Water and the West.

I guess that leaves us the Thief class and the Coins suit. That's rather fitting, I think. Coins are associated with Earth and the North.

I feel like I could do something cool with this, like there's a great idea in there somewhere, but I'm not sure what.

[snorri]

Nice associations. Geoffrey once suggested the lack of names in the Keep in the borderlands was not an absence, but a mysterious feature which made theiir 'names' look as Tarot figures.

[James Maliszewski]

This is rather neat. It's a pity that the elemental associations of the Platonic solids couldn't have been fit in here as well. MUs have D4 hit dice and the tetrahedron is associated with fire, so that works. Beyond that, though, there's no correspondence between the hit dice types of the various classes and the elements.

[Morandir]

Isn't the octahedron associated with Air? Fighters have d8 HD in Supp I, so that fits.

Mor

[James Maliszewski]

Jul 19, 2010 19:35:29 GMT -6 Morandir said:

Isn't the octahedron associated with Air? Fighters have d8 HD in Supp I, so that fits.

Yes, it does. Must have slipped my mind!

[vito]

I sure wouldn't mind giving thieves 1d6 hit points. I always thought they should be a little tougher than MUs.
Water being associated with Icosahedrons though? That would make Clerics pretty ridiculous.

[cooper]

clerics have d6? hit points? Divisible by 3...the Trinity, monotheism. Hexahedron.

[littlewars]

This is a really cool idea and corresponds nicely with the tarot suits. I'd love to hear more D&D ideas based on this, even if it's a re-imagining to fit the concept

I know the Golden Dawn devised an Enochian chess game, based on the four elements, that could also be used as a divination tool. Gygax did say to play D&D like chess so maybe there's the potential of an "Enochian D&D"!

[apeloverage]

This free game also associates classes with classical elements.

[vito]

Jul 30, 2010 7:35:22 GMT -6 apeloverage said:

This free game also associates classes with classical elements.

That's pretty cool.
It kinda reminds of of Avatar: The Last Airbender.

[coffee]

Jul 20, 2010 12:16:30 GMT -6 @vito said:

I sure wouldn't mind giving thieves 1d6 hit points. I always thought they should be a little tougher than MUs.

I think the point was that both classes were "normal men."

But hey, in your game, go ahead and give thieves d6s. It's your game, after all.

[vito]

Jul 30, 2010 15:00:33 GMT -6 coffee said:

Jul 20, 2010 12:16:30 GMT -6 @vito said:

I sure wouldn't mind giving thieves 1d6 hit points. I always thought they should be a little tougher than MUs.

I think the point was that both classes were "normal men."

But hey, in your game, go ahead and give thieves d6s. It's your game, after all.

Honestly I never really saw magic users being on-par with normal men in terms of endurance. I've always pictured magic-users as soft-bodied ivory-tower bookworms; as their minds hypertrophy, their bodies atrophy.

[coffee]

I did, too; that's what comes of starting with AD&D and then going back to the original game.

Also, I picture thieves as lazy sorts who would rather steal than get a real job, so I don't have a problem with them having only d4s. But that's me.

[jcstephens]

The D&D Tarot Deck? WANT!

[vito]

Heck, I'm an illustrator.
(www.kevinvito.carbonmade.com)

If I made a D&D tarot deck and sold it on lulu or whatever, would anybody here buy it?

[vito]

Jul 30, 2010 19:46:28 GMT -6 apeloverage said:

You couldn't call it that though.

Of course.
I'll figure something out.
Maybe 'Dungeon Crawl' Tarot or something like that.

[apeloverage]

I'd call it that or 'The Dungeon Tarot'.

Also, would be it be serious or humourous? About the world of D&D, or the experience of playing it as well (eg Judgement could be a DM)?

I'd consider the latter, just because a lot of tarot decks are fantasy-ish anyway.

[jasmith]

Jul 30, 2010 19:36:15 GMT -6 @vito said:

Heck, I'm an illustrator.
(www.kevinvito.carbonmade.com)

If I made a D&D tarot deck and sold it on lulu or whatever, would anybody here buy it?

Maybe. There's a zillion Tarot decks out there, though. I'd much rather see a Deck of Many Things. ;D

[badger2305]

Jul 30, 2010 20:28:13 GMT -6 jasmith said:

Jul 30, 2010 19:36:15 GMT -6 @vito said:

Heck, I'm an illustrator.
(www.kevinvito.carbonmade.com)

If I made a D&D tarot deck and sold it on lulu or whatever, would anybody here buy it?

Maybe. There's a zillion Tarot decks out there, though. I'd much rather see a Deck of Many Things. ;D

Much agreement.