tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5542288088513943439.post8502190150244196964..comments2013-08-21T13:57:01.972-06:00Comments on D&D 4th edition - Addicts' thoughts and opinions: Gith-sera-seraCrwthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00040674620903529496noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5542288088513943439.post-90761317163430177662009-08-10T10:21:52.698-06:002009-08-10T10:21:52.698-06:00The whole "Edition Wars" thing has alway...The whole "Edition Wars" thing has always struck me as stupid, simply because it is all so subjective. The feats issue is a perfect example of that. I can see where you're coming from, I respect it, but in the end your "fine details" are my "trivial add-ons".<br /><br />As for resource management, I didn't mean to imply that there isn't any in 4E. I just don't see it pop up in our gaming sessions on a regular basis. This could certainly be due to the fact that we've only played through the first 4 levels, but up to now the only thing we've needed to manage has been our Daily Powers. Generally we hold on to them until it becomes clear that we're in a tough fight. With a second Daily at our disposal I'm guessing that we'll be a little more willing to fire them off whenever, so the only decision will be which to use and which to save for later.<br /><br />Otherwise I can't think of any situation in which we (as a group) were failing to utilize our resources. Early on we often forgot to use our Encounter powers but we're now at the point where we look to position ourselves to use every Encounter power we have. <br /><br />Action points are spent liberally when we're at a Milestone, but otherwise we tend to save them for when an extra move is needed to get to safety, or when we think one last hit will drop the bad guy.<br /><br />Obviously all of that requires decision making and sound tactics, so 4E is not a completely bereft of risk-v-reward. It just strikes me that the risks and rewards are both minimal. <br /><br />** on another note: I did minimal edit, changing "Mind Flayer" to "Drow" in the second paragraph. I must have had Mind Flayer on the mind (haha!) when I typed it. **Griffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05854226755305203275noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5542288088513943439.post-15446744943071762602009-08-07T17:25:40.626-06:002009-08-07T17:25:40.626-06:00It's fascinating to read this because I agree ...It's fascinating to read this because I agree with some of your objective observations (for instance, the nature of feats in 3E vs. 4E) but I consistently end up in a very different place as a result of them.<br /><br />I found 3E's feat system to be better for min/maxers, as there were more "maxes" to be had. With feat selections less critical in 4E, you can use it to fill in fine details to distinguish your character.<br /><br />For instance, my paragon Bard took Arcane Admixture to attach fire damage to an at-will. <br /><br />It's not a terrible choice mechanically... Bard attacks are heavy on psychic with a little thunder and not much in the way of elements, and there are things in the world that are vulnerable to fire and few that resist both fire and psychic. Since our party does not have a Wizard and the only fire attacks we have otherwise are from the Dragonborn's breath and racial paragon attacks, it's proven to be handy.<br /><br />It's probably not what a optimizer would recommend, but it's not terrible... and whatever the optimizer would pick isn't going to be that much better. <br /><br />And taking Arcane Admixture means I have a Bard who can light people on fire by cussin' hard... that's why I took it, because it fits the character. If Arcane Admixture did something more like adding 1d of [x type] damage per tier to an attack or added ongoing damage of [x type] to the attack, that would be a huge advantage and I'd probably take Arcane Admixture all the time on every arcane character I played. But with no feats that jump out like that, I take what I want.<br /><br />That's just one concrete example, but it's the sort of thing I find every time I build or level a character... there's always something I can take to shore up the concept, and it's never yet resulted in a crippled character.<br /><br /><em>I love that kind of decision and find that it's sorely missing in 4E.</em><br /><br />I'm kind of curious about how that is... the resource management component of the game always looms huge in our sessions. I play a Half-Elf Rogue with Twin Strike in her Dilettante slot... does she try to take out two minions quickly at the start of combat, or go for extra damage against the big guy? Or does she hold on to it until she's in trouble, or save it for when an almost-guaranteed hit will almost certainly take someone out of the fight? <br /><br />Do you use an Action Point at the start of the big battle to grab an immediate tactical advantage, or do you hold onto it?<br /><br />At what point do you throw a healing word to someone who's reaping benefits from being bloodied? (Yeah, there's an obvious answer to that: when they fall below 25%. But how close do you cut it, if the damage is coming in hard and fast?)<br /><br />You're slugging it out with someone and you're both almost dead... do you Second Wind, or do you bring the hammer down?Alexandra Erinhttp://www.grownupgametable.comnoreply@blogger.com