The cavalier, based on the knights of medieval Europe, has the potential to be a unique and interesting fighter. Unfortunately, the cavalier described in  Unearthed Arcana is complicated to play and overly powerful. Some players say the
class should be eliminated, but the cavalier can be revised to be a unique and viable class. This article redefines the cavalier in AD&D® 1st Edition games.
Cavaliers are warriors with a background of nobility. Their training emphasizes mounted and personal combat as well
as the leadership of military units. They have a strict code of conduct, although nonlawful cavaliers tend to ignore it.
Not all noble warriors are necessarily cavaliers; some are paladins, rangers, or ordinary fighters who come from the
noble classes. Like barbarians, cavaliers cannot be multiclassed characters. In addition, cavaliers cannot be reduced to
fighter status for their actions, as their skills are not linked to alignment.

The new cavalier
The following rules regarding the cavalier are
unchanged from those given in
Unearthed Arcana:

Experience points and HD per level, incl. level titles (UA.15)
Ability to estimate the worth of horses;
Bonuses to lance damage, whether mounted or on foot;
Immunity to fear;
Parrying ability with shield or hand weapons; and
Henchmen restrictions (UA.75)

The following rules from UA for the cavalier are removed from
the class:

Alignment restrictions: Cavaliers may be
of any alignment at 1st level and have the
usu. penalties for switching alignments.
Why would all cavaliers begin their careers
as good-aligned? To USE the WORLD OF GREYHAWK setting
as an example,
the knights of Iuz or the Great Kingdom
would be evil from the START. Also, the idea
of characters switching alignments without penalty,
as given in UA and DRAGON supplements to
that book, should be discouraged.

Zero-level Horseman and Lancer levels:
These are weak and unnecessary; it would
be simpler to require the cavalier to be at
least Upper Middle Class.

+3 hp bonus at 1st level: This is an unfair
advantage that is not logically justified.

Ability to increase STR, CON, and DEX scores:
This is an unfair idea.
The other fighter classes could easily claim
that they also spend every nonadventuring
hour training hard and increasing
their ability scores. Cavaliers are now
subject to all limitations by race && sex
on ability scores.

90% resistance to mind attacks: Of all
the cavalier's powers, this one most unbalances
the class. Once again, a cavalier's training
does not cover this, and the
power should be dropped.

+2 bonus on save vs. illusions: A cavalier
is trained in combat, not magick. If
anything, a cavalier should be more susceptible
to illusions due to a lack of familiarity
with spells. However, if this power is
simply dropped, the cavalier will again be
equal to the other fighter classes in this
regard.

Ability to function at negative HP:
This is another idea that is hard to justify.
Why would this power be linked to alignment?
Cavaliers will be unconscious at 0 to -9 HP
and dead at -10 HP, as with other classes.
Healing is at normal rates.

Charge at all opponents in sight: This is a
foolish and unrealistic notion. Even prideful
historical knights would retreat when
they absolutely couldn't win. Knights are
sometimes reckless, but they are not stupid.
They are trained to lead armies, and
would not immediately charge the enemy.

These rules from UA are modified:

Class type: Cavaliers are now a subclass of
fighter and use the fighter's combat and
saving-throw tables.

Ability score requirements: Cavaliers
must have a min. STR, CON, and CHA of 13.
Cavaliers have no prime requisite and cannot
gain bonus XP.

Social class: Cavaliers must have a min.
social class of 56, as Upper Middle
Class. This roll will determine their starting
money (see UA, page 82,
and "Starting money" section elsewhere
in this article).

Racial limits: Only humans, elves, and
half-elves can be cavaliers. Among elves
and half-elves, only those of gray, high,
and valley elf stock can be cavaliers. Drow
cannot become cavaliers, since horses are
not used underground.

Preferred weapons: Cavaliers prefer to
USE any sort of lance, any sword (except
short and khopesh), scimitar, horseman's
mace, horseman's flail, horseman's pick,
dagger, hand axe, javelin, and bec de corbin.
Elves and half-elves ADD either a short
bow or short composite bow to the list.
These weapons must be taken as weapons
of proficiency before any others can be learned.

Mounted combat combat bonuses with weapons
of choice: Delete all the UA rules
on this subject. Instead, at 1st level,
the cavalier has three weapon-proficiency
slots. These must be used to gain proficiency
with: a lance (any); a sword (any except
short, khopesh, or two-handed) or
scimitar; and a horseman's weapon (mace,
pick, or flail). These three weapons are
known as the cavalier's weapons of choice.
The cavalier has a +1 bonus to hit w/
these weapons, and a +2 to hit when
mounted. The # of atacks per round
w/ these weapons is:
levels 1-6, 3/2;
7-12, 2;
13+, 5/2.
 
 
 
 

Armor restrictions: Cavaliers will not
use leather armor, studded leather armor,
padded armor, or wooden shields. Other
than this, they are free to wear any type
of armor they choose. In large battles,
they will wewar the heaviest armor available.
While adventuring, they will be more flexible
(e.g., they will not insist on wearing plate
mail in the desert).

Training: From levels 1-9, a cavalier must be
trained by another cavalier at least two
levels higher. The cavalier must pay normal
training fees.

Followers: Cavaliers can gain henchmen
as noted in UA.75.
Material on followers on pages 74-75 is
ignored. To gain men-at-arms and followers,
the cavalier must be of 9th level or
higher, must build a castle or keep, then
must clear an area for 20-50 miles around
the castle. When construction is completed,
the cavalier will gain men-at-arms,
all of zero level with 5-8 HP and the same
alignment as the cavalier. The men will consist of:

20-50 light cavalry (ring mail, shield, three javelins, light lance,
scimitar (saber), light war horses).

10-40 heavy cavalry (chain mail, shield,
broad sword, heavy lance, heavy war horse
in chain barding).

20-50 heavy infantry (splint mail, pike, falchion).

10-40 crossbowmen (ring mail, heavy crossbow, falchion).

In addition, the cavalier will gain all
retainers noted in UA.75 (but replace Horseman and Lancer w/
two Armigers) and four zero-level men
with the following craftsman proficiencies:
animal trainer (horse), armorer, blacksmith, weaponsmith.

Pennon and heraldry: The cavalier is not
required to display a pennon or coat of
arms unless he has built a castle, but a
pennon may be displayed at any time
before then.

Hospitality: The cavalier cannot expect
hospitality from other cavaliers until he
becomes a landholder (i.e., builds a castle).

Proficiency slots: Cavaliers gain one
weapon and one nonweapon proficiency
slot for every three levels beyond the 1st
(4th, 7th, etc.) <>

Starting money: Despite the rules at UA.25 regarding
starting funds. Instead of equipment, the
cavalier receives only a # of GP at
1st level. The amount depends on
the cavalier's social class roll (UA.82):
 

Roll	Funds
56-87	50-200 gp (5d4 x 10)
88-96	90-200 gp ([1d12 + 8} x 10)
97-99	101-200 gp (1d100 + 100)
00	155-200 gp (5d10 + 150)

Miscellaneous notes

Paladins: It is not a good idea to combine
cavalier and paladin powers into a single
character. This creates a character who is
much too strong. Under the variant rules
given here, the paladin is treated according
to the rules in the 1st Edition PH.
A special type of royal paladin is
not needed, since random social class
rolls allow for high-born paladins.

Background: A cavalier is not likely to be
an only child or a first-born (10% chance).
If he was, the PC would be kept at home
as the immediate heir to the family lands
and holdings. If a PC cavalier is an only
child or first-born, it is likely that the
cavalier's parents are dead or have lost
their holdings, forcing the PC into the
insecure life of an adventurer. The DM
and players can create the details.

BATTLESYSTEM supplements: Cavaliers
have a +1" bonus to their command
radius in +addition+ to all other bonuses.
Units led by a cavalier have a +1 bonus
on rally attempts. All these reflect the
cavalier's training in military leadership.

Chivalry and knighthood: The rules on
these subjects are now optional. The PC
cavalier is an independent, free-willed
adventurer. His skills are not dependent
on alignment or service to another; they
are the result of military training. The
cavalier can change his alignment but not
his class. Therefore, a PC cavalier does not
have to be nighted, be in the service of
another, or be devoted to any cause. If the
DM and players desire, these aspects of
chivalry can be added.

The code of chivalry is well detailed in
UA, though it is heavily
slanted toward law and good. SInce cavaliers
can be chaotic, neutral, and evil,
obviously many would ignore various
parts of the code. Chaotic cavaliers would
resist this restrictive set of laws, while evil
ones would hardly render "cheerful service" or
"courtesy." Again, it is the player's
choice to follow the code of chivalry (and
incur all the penalties for doing so).

Conclusion
The purpose of this article is to turn the
cavalier into a viable character. With these
variant rules, the cavalier is a subclass of
fighter equal (but not superior to) to the
paladin || ranger. The revised cavalier is
similar to the original paladin: Both sub-classes
are similar to the fighter in regard
to HP and combat abilities, and each
has a special immunity and unique abilities.
Both also lack weapon specialization,
which puts the fighter back on =equal= footing.