A prestige class in the third edition of D&D, and maybe beyond, is a "superclass" one switches to at some point in one's career. For fighting types the requirement is an attack bonus at some level, I don't remember what it was for magic users. There have been all kinds of prestige classes invented, but usually they all provide some kind of definite benefits at the expense of a portion of the power of the original class. For prestiged wizards, for example, spellcasting only improves every other level in the cases I remember. So the "superclass" is more cool and specialized or thematic than straight-out more powerful. It's a variation.
Sound familiar? Yes, kits. Kits are also not more powerful than a straight class, not if they are well-designed. But the difference for the Infinity games is that prestige classes are by definition something to look forward to, they are a development, while kits must be taken at generation. If we can postpone the choice, then kits will be basically prestige classes to switch to.
And we can. From what kjeron has written on the Beamdog forum, there are a few ways of setting a kit during play. And I know that using opcode 72 on a character already with a kit to switch to a multiclass keeps the kit. For example, a priest of Talos switching to cleric/thief becomes a priest of Talos/thief. This may be useful for unusual multis at the start or for altering existing multis. How would that work? Imagine, somewhere in Baldur's Gate the party is approached by a servant of Talos who seeks to supplant the church of Umberlee in the city. He wants them to kill the high priestess and the acolytes. Once that's done, the cleric, in addition to the reward, offers the cleric PC (single class or multiclass, CLERIC_ALL minus the Talos kit) to convert to the worship of the Storm Lord. If the player agrees, he will switch from a basic cleric to the Talos kit with his powers - a conscious career change and a prestige class! Perhaps an alignment change, too.
Or a paladin. Happily walking the Sword Coast, being so Lawful and Good, he doesn't see fit to save the slaves in the Cloakwood mine from drowning. Oh well! When reproached, he can say that he simply couldn't manage it, in which case he becomes a Fallen Paladin and must atone (the subject for another quest and mod), or he can admit that he didn't care or even drowned them on purpose. And if he does this, guess to which paladin kit he switches then.
For wizards, the choice at some point may be made to specialize in a school of magic, or perhaps give up on this narrow research and embrace all of the schools as a mage. Thieves may get a chance to become bounty hunters or assassins, making some companions, like Montaron, more useful. Bards - to become blades or maybe jesters. Because these switches don't have to be limited to the main character either. We could just as well switch the kit stat of a companion. Aren't they entitled to life choices? Let Kagain be a wizard slayer or let Edwin take up a different field than conjuration. Naturally, there could be other kits reserved for use as a prestige class, kit ideas that now seem too powerful to start with and that modders have to whittle down for balance - which makes them less interesting. Anything with, for example, a dimension door or a knock in the abilities is probably too powerful for beginners, it would make obsolete the frantic running early characters rely on and their lock-picking skills. But later? At some advanced level? As an alternative to the stronger spells and weapon mastery in store for a straight class? Not too unbalanced then.
Hell, a player could even make this kind of choice anticipating challenges ahead. He might switch the main paladin character to cavalier if there are battles with BG2 dragons on the agenda, or a fighter could become an undead hunter at the Bodhi chapter, if only the game let him. Of course, this kind of change shouldn't be so simple as clicking a button to select a kit of preference, clearly not. But as options inside the gameplay it would make sense in-character and out-of-character. And chances to take on a kit are a whole new category of quest rewards.
Edited by temnix, 09 October 2017 - 11:43 AM.