Pathfinder 1e Campaign Mode: Minor Gestalt PCs (Patreon)

I often think about ways to alter the experience of playing a ttRPG ruleset without asking the players to learn much more in the way of rules. Sometimes this is about changing to goals of a game from the norm for its ruleset, sometimes it's about tweaking the rules to cover a different genre, and sometimes it's just about altering character creation to create characters that can grant a different game feel (often by making character more or less powerful than the typical PC generation/advancement rules).

"Minor Gestalt" is such a campaign mode.

(Art by Iobard)

Minor GestaltThis uses a variant of the Pathfinder 1e version of the popular 3.5 Gestalt class rules. (Don't multiply your 1st-level skill points by x4, but otherwise it's basically the 3.5 rules.) 

However, one of your two classes bust be an NPC class, i.e. an adept, expert, or warrior. (Yes, you could select aristocrat or commoner, but without some extra benefit, like actually getting the social status to go with being an aristocrat, those are poor choices.)

Such characters aren't *nearly* as powerful as full gestalt characters, but they are a significant step up from normal classes. Essentially a character gets up to 5th level spells from a eclectic-if-limited spell list (adept), 6 skill points per level and nearly any class skills they want (expert), or d10 hit points and a +1/1 base attack bonus. Obviously making a fighter/warrior is a literally useless choice, but a fighter/adept or fighter/expert both have a notable edge over a typical fighter.  A rogue with a full base attack bonus can be horrifying. A wizard with 6 skill points per level and Use Magic Device as a class skill has a ton more knowledge options.

If a game has major social elements where being a baron or princess or scion of a major political house has real impact, I personally would absolutely allow people to take the aristocrat NPC class to represent having a position of social power. In addition to the changes in NPC reactions that come with such status, I'd likely give the class the Leadership feat for free, with a minimum of 1 follower, and requiring the cohort to also be an NPC class.

I'd also likely allow gestalt adepts swap out Intelligence or Charisma as their spellcasting ability score, as long as it's done at 1st level.

When running a Minor Gestalt game, I'd look to put PCs up against larger numbers of foe fairly often, but not really higher-level foes. It could also help make up for a gap if a group is used to 5 or 6 players, and now only has 3-4.

What would you build as a player in a Minor Gestalt campaign? As a GM, what challenges would you throw at such a group?

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