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[Verys Arkon]

I wonder if WotC Customer Service or Sage Advice is taking 4E questions yet?

"If the marked target is able to attack the paladin and chooses not to, he takes damage".

This doesn't fix the exploit that people were using, where the Paladin marked and then ran away. You'd have to say "If the marked target ATTACKS another target instead of the Paladin, he takes damage" (which is how the original is worded).

I don't think the problem was coming from the monster's/DMs side, it was the players that marked and then tried to keep out of reach with the idea that it would inflict damage that was causing the problems. I also think part of the problem is that people are misreading the power, so that no mater what the monster did, if it didn't hit the Paladin it would take damage automatically. As written though, the monster could do anything (except attacking someone else) and not take damage, including fleeing, chasing the paladin around, using defensive powers, etc. I actually don't see how the power needed to be 'fixed' in the first place, really. Okay, a paladin marking a monster then running away isn't exactly heroic behavior for a paladin, but picture a paladin luring the dragon away from his weaker allies, using himself as bait. He isn't causing the creature damage as he runs away, but the monster does have to pay attention to the paladin, or suffer his god's wrath for the impertinence.