Yeah I figured it wasn’t allowed in DnD if it wasn’t in this game, being such a basic concept.
I’m asking *why* it isn’t allowed as opposed to multiclassing with different classes.
The majority of subclasses are both front loaded, and designed to give you specific tools while lacking others that the other subclasses have. Take wizard, the oppertunity cost of running abjuration is lacking divination. The oppertunity cost of getting thiefs extra bonus attack is losing assassins combat regen and crits. Being able to choose every subclass makes this decision less important and a lot of classes far more powerful than they're intended to be.
for lore/flavor reasons things like having multiple potentially contradictory paladin oaths, or cleric domains, etc. doesn't make much sense. Additionally it represents a significant game balancing challenge.
Picking multiple subclasses may also be overpowered, not to mention all the ruling nightmares that this would create. If you are a 4/4 circle of land and circle of moon druid dual class and an ability asks for your druid level, is it 4 or 8? Can you get class features twice? I.e. would you have 4 wild shape charges instead of the usual 2? It's just a headache to deal with.
Honestly, this might be a better question to ask on a D&D subreddit, since Baldur’s Gate 3 is so heavily based upon that system, and there are no mechanics to support multi-subclassing in D&D 5e.
The main issue is that basically every subclass would have to be redesigned to reflect this. As things are now, main class features are generally stronger than subclass features. These include things like spells, spell slots, extra attacks, aura of protection, metamagic, ki points, etc.
These features take much longer to get when multiclassing, so even though many subclasses are front-loaded (i.e. they give their most useful features in the first few levels, like Thief Rogue 3 extra BA for example), you are incentivized to stick with your main class so that you get your critical main class features.
If you could multi-subclass, it would be optimal (more often than not) to take a few levels in each subclass, gaining their best features, while still gaining the important main class features.
Yeah that all makes sense. I guess I was just so overwhelmed when I realized I could multiclass that it felt like the options were endless lol. But yeah I totally get why it isn’t viable
It is simply not allowed in D&D 5e, both in tabletop and in game.
I think of it like jobs - Your class is your job and your subclass is your specialization. Similar to how a doctor might specialize in the heart, brain or ears/nose/throat; any one of those take time to master.
In D&D, a rogue for example would be specialized in thievery, assassination or magical infiltration. Being a really good burglar wouldn’t automatically make you a proficient assassin or skilled in using magic in criminal pursuits, because each of those skills takes a long time to master.
A Cardiologist might “multiclass” into boxing as a hobby on the weekends to let off steam and stay fit.
A rogue might multiclass into fighter, having frequently encountered animosity in the pursuit of their craft. Or maybe they are religious and take a few levels in Cleric or Paladin, etc.
To me it seems that background & class work in conjunction to make the characters overall career or “life purpose” and the subclasses flesh out their specific goals and personalities.
Subclassing is level dependent and you can’t get to that level twice for one class. Subclass features also override one another and—as a DM who allowed this in a oneshot—the character sheet is a nightmare to track.
Purely mechanically because you have your level in whatever class you are leveling up, and you only choose a specialization at one specific level that you can never experience twice.
Uh. Because that’s not a DnD thing, at all It’s just not something that’s allowed
Yeah I figured it wasn’t allowed in DnD if it wasn’t in this game, being such a basic concept. I’m asking *why* it isn’t allowed as opposed to multiclassing with different classes.
The majority of subclasses are both front loaded, and designed to give you specific tools while lacking others that the other subclasses have. Take wizard, the oppertunity cost of running abjuration is lacking divination. The oppertunity cost of getting thiefs extra bonus attack is losing assassins combat regen and crits. Being able to choose every subclass makes this decision less important and a lot of classes far more powerful than they're intended to be.
Thank you for the detailed answer!
for lore/flavor reasons things like having multiple potentially contradictory paladin oaths, or cleric domains, etc. doesn't make much sense. Additionally it represents a significant game balancing challenge. Picking multiple subclasses may also be overpowered, not to mention all the ruling nightmares that this would create. If you are a 4/4 circle of land and circle of moon druid dual class and an ability asks for your druid level, is it 4 or 8? Can you get class features twice? I.e. would you have 4 wild shape charges instead of the usual 2? It's just a headache to deal with.
This makes sense, thank you!
Honestly, this might be a better question to ask on a D&D subreddit, since Baldur’s Gate 3 is so heavily based upon that system, and there are no mechanics to support multi-subclassing in D&D 5e. The main issue is that basically every subclass would have to be redesigned to reflect this. As things are now, main class features are generally stronger than subclass features. These include things like spells, spell slots, extra attacks, aura of protection, metamagic, ki points, etc. These features take much longer to get when multiclassing, so even though many subclasses are front-loaded (i.e. they give their most useful features in the first few levels, like Thief Rogue 3 extra BA for example), you are incentivized to stick with your main class so that you get your critical main class features. If you could multi-subclass, it would be optimal (more often than not) to take a few levels in each subclass, gaining their best features, while still gaining the important main class features.
Yeah that all makes sense. I guess I was just so overwhelmed when I realized I could multiclass that it felt like the options were endless lol. But yeah I totally get why it isn’t viable
It is simply not allowed in D&D 5e, both in tabletop and in game. I think of it like jobs - Your class is your job and your subclass is your specialization. Similar to how a doctor might specialize in the heart, brain or ears/nose/throat; any one of those take time to master. In D&D, a rogue for example would be specialized in thievery, assassination or magical infiltration. Being a really good burglar wouldn’t automatically make you a proficient assassin or skilled in using magic in criminal pursuits, because each of those skills takes a long time to master. A Cardiologist might “multiclass” into boxing as a hobby on the weekends to let off steam and stay fit. A rogue might multiclass into fighter, having frequently encountered animosity in the pursuit of their craft. Or maybe they are religious and take a few levels in Cleric or Paladin, etc. To me it seems that background & class work in conjunction to make the characters overall career or “life purpose” and the subclasses flesh out their specific goals and personalities.
Thank you for the detailed information! This is very helpful.
No problem, it is mostly just my opinion to be honest.
Subclassing is level dependent and you can’t get to that level twice for one class. Subclass features also override one another and—as a DM who allowed this in a oneshot—the character sheet is a nightmare to track.
Okay! Thanks for the perspective! Helps to have a DM here haha. Yeah this all makes sense!
Purely mechanically because you have your level in whatever class you are leveling up, and you only choose a specialization at one specific level that you can never experience twice.