Originally Posted by robertthebard
Originally Posted by kanisatha
Ps:T is also not quite comparable because even though it is D&D it actually is a highly bastardized version of 2e D&D, with only three "classes" being represented in the game and even those classes having been considerably simplied and changed from actual 2e classes to where they really didn't mean much of anything. So it was a D&D game in which neither classes nor alignments were truly present or were extremely watered down.

To repeat what I've said before, which seems to be escaping many of you commenting on my take here: I am tying # of available companions to # of available class and alignment options. So a game having a small # of companions (ex. DA, D:OS, Ps:T) is OKAY when the game system has only a very small # of classes or no classes (and/or no alignments). But when a game has at least 12 classes, and the good-neutral-evil alignments dimension on top of those classes, then I expect a sufficient # of companions to allow me, the player, to play my game with a party of my choice based on alignments as well as adequate coverage of the different party roles represented by all of those different classes.

What is the criteria for "adequate"? 36? That's just one each for each class and Good, Neutral and Evil. I mean, if we're going with Lawful, Chaotic and Neutral as well, we could end up with as many as 120. Do we need True Neutral options too? Where are you trying to draw that line for a "sufficient number"? Will they have time to develop the game by the time they're done developing these companions? Are you going to be ok with just Warrior, Rogue and Mage archetypes, or are you going to need the specific classes?

What happens if you don't like the personality associated with one, or more, of the companions for that specific alignment? Are they going to have to make multiples to accommodate that as well? Where does it end?
No need to create a strawman.

There are four basic roles in a traditional D&D-game party: tank, damage-dealer, controller/secondary damage dealer, and buffer/healer. So, one of each of these for each of good, neutral, and evil. That's twelve. Twelve is a VERY reasonable number. But the key here is exactly what twelve characters? If you've already made six of your companions evil (not saying they have; it's an example) and another four neutral, out of a total of twelve, then you're not going to be giving me my minimum four well-distributed good companions. This is my fear. If they only have eight companion options (and even this # I am skeptical about), and already I know that five of the eight are companions I will not accept in my all-good party, then the remaining three have to ALL be solidly and undeniably good. Is this likely? Again, I am highly skeptical.