0-level NPC's: clarifications?

Two things:

  1. Demihuman level 0 NPC’s: if these characters gain enough XP via adventuring, do they become level 1 fighters, or do they instead get one level in one of their racial classes? If the latter, do they get to choose which?
  2. Level 0 NPC → level 1 fighter better than PC level 1 fighter: it seems that level 0 NPC’s start with 5 proficiencies (or more, if they’re older) when they advance to level 1, as opposed to the three that normal fighters start with. Doesn’t this essentially make adventuring peons more versatile than heroes? Add to this the potential reroll of hit points, and anyone interested in playing a fighter would be stupid to not start as a 0-level NPC.

My suggested solutions:

  1. Not a big deal; just clarify this. I’d allow demihuman NPC’s access to either class if they level from 0 to 1.
  2. This, so far, is my biggest problem with the system as-is. You don’t want the PC’s outshone skill-wise by Scrappy the Torch-Bearer. My suggestion is that PC’s be given three background general proficiencies which receive a penalty to the roll equal to their level, and 0-level NPC’s who gain a level choose three of their proficiencies to assign this penalty to (letting them keep one at full bonus and adding Adventuring and their class proficiency, putting them on par with PC’s). This represents the character losing touch with their professional skills as they more and more embrace the life of adventure, though they can offset the penalty by choosing one of the fading proficiencies with their general proficiency choice granted for leveling (just as a PC could).
    I’d roll the aging rules into PC’s, too, where they receive bonus general proficiencies at certain ages. If this is too powerful, simply assign the level-as-penalty to proficiencies gained with age just as above.
    Regarding the hit point issue, first of all, how many hit points do 0-level NPC’s have? I couldn’t find it in the rules. Also, perhaps we can give level 1 PC’s a reroll on starting hit points to give them the same benefit (i.e. roll twice, take the highest). Of course, if the optional “max hp at level 1” rule is in effect, this point becomes moot.
  1. Demihuman level 0 NPC’s: if these characters gain enough XP via adventuring, do they become level 1 fighters, or do they instead get one level in one of their racial classes? If the latter, do they get to choose which?
    If they qualify they could pick either class (or other racial classes to be introduced later). If not, they could simply advance as monsters.
  2. Good comments. The concept behind these rules is that Adventuring costs 3 proficiency slots because it covers so much - it lets you ride, find secret doors, appraise goods, start campfires, tie a rope, and so on. Probably what should happen is that the newly-minted 0-to-1st level character doesn’t have Adventuring proficiency until, say, 4th level - he loses 1 general proficiency per level (from disuse). That way Scrappy the Torch Bearer would be Scrappy the Clueless if he does become a fighter - sure, he may have Craft (blacksmithing), Labor (smelting), and Knowledge (village history) but he can’t ride a horse, find a trap, or probe a secret door to save his life.

0th level humans have 1d4 hit points.