I have been pretty silent the past few weeks, and I have moved to LiveJournal for blogging as mentioned earlier. Still, I presume that it's more likely that someone on EN World is interested in my game stuff then someone on the random internet, so I will post links to new articles.


The main reason I am using livejournal is that I get rich text editing there - stat blocks and power descriptions are a little difficult to write with vb code and, more importantly, I can't just copy & paste them into the text editor.

So, here is you can see why this might be helpful:
http://mustrumr.livejournal.com/1442.html
http://mustrumr.livejournal.com/1742.html
http://mustrumr.livejournal.com/1881.html

The articles describe a new pact for the D&D 4 Warlock - the Demon Pact Warlock. This pact focuses on close and melee attacks. It's major shtick is transforming into a half-demonic creature with its daily powers, with some semblances to the Vestige Pact and the Barbarian Rages.
I also added a second variant "shtick" - the ability to summon demons instead of becoming one.
The article contains a lot of new Warlock powers, not all of them limited to the Demon Pact.

Have fun with reading (and using!) the Demon Pact Warlock.

And if you want to discuss it in more depth, I also posted a thread in the 4E house rules forum:
http://www.enworld.org/forum/4e-fan-...t-warlock.html

Mustrum_Ridcully

And now for some more Truename "action".

Feats

Bonded Item (Ceremony)
Prerequisite: Truename
You can bond with any item, like a weapon, an implement, a armor, or tool, a backpack, a tent, and so on that is not larger than a 10 foot cube.
You learn and master the Drawmmij's Instant Summons, Make Whole and Detect Object Ritual. Either Ritual works only on your bonded item and you need to spend only a fifth of the usual component cost. (You can still learn the regular ritual without this limitation on the object.)
You also learn and master the rituals of Enchant Magical Item. You can only enchant the item with enchantments appropriate for this item. If you would enchant a Wand Implement, you could create a Wand of Shield, but not a Belt of Sacrifice. If you enchant a backpack, you could enchant it as a back pack, but not as a Pact Blade. Whenever you enchant the item, you only need to spend an amount of material components equal to the difference in cost of the current enchantment and th new enchantment, but you can never reduce the enchantments worth. (Unless you have other means of doing so.)
You can use all rituals even if you do not have the Ritual Caster feat, and you treat your effective level as 5 points higher than it actually is.
Special: At Paragon Tier, you can take this feat a second time for a different item. At Epic Tier, you can take this feat a third time, for a different item.
Design Note:
The Eberron Player Guide introduces feats that allow at least an Artificer to increase his effective level for Enchant Magical Item. It should not really be a problem to let all the various benefits stack - the cost of actually creating an item at the highest possible levels is ridiculously high for the respective character, essentially unpayable. Still, if you feel uncomfortable about it or have changed your magic item economy, just don't let it stack. The goal is really just to give characters an early access to this powers and keep the payable for the specific purpose of creating bonded items that are not weaker than the type of stuff they would find from looting. (Assuming you use treasure parcels.)
A Bonded Item is special!

Truename Power (Ceremony, Paragon)
Prerequisite: Truename Magic
Pick one Encounter attack power you know that targets only one creature. This power now gains the Truename descriptor.

Truenames Revalation (Ceremony, Epic)
Prerequiste: Truename Magic
If you score a critical hit with a power with the Truename descriptor, you immediately learn the creatures truename as if you had cast the Learn Truename ritual on it.


Paragon Path
Truenamer
Prerequisite: Truename Magic
You gained a seldomly achieved mastery on the secrets of Truenames. You know that the Truename is the key to the innermost desires and wishes of every creature, and learned how to manipulate them through the Truename.
Truename Action (11th level): When you spend an action point to take an extra action, you can invoke the true name of one of your allies within 5 squares. That ally can either spend a move action or make a basic attack as a free action.
Strength of the True Name (11th level): You gain a +1 bonus to all attacks with powers with the Truename keyword if you know the targets true name.
Truename Power (16th level): Pick one at-will power you know. This power gains the Truename keyword.

Design Note
The Truename aspect especially of the daily powers is very strong. Some might wonder if it is too strong. Ultimately, whether the PC can acquire the Truename of a creature is effectively entirely in the hands of the Dungeon Master. The Learn Truename ritual is not available before 15th level (except as Scrolll, of course, and it already mentions that the target of the spell might become aware of what happened, and that there are counter-rituals at work - and against some creatures, it won't work at all.
That are only two mechanically "guaranteed" way to gain a Truename - via the Learn Truename Ritual is one. It is a very expensive way, and the cost can be compared to that of a magical item - and that is the balance idea behind it.
The other "guaranteed" way requires the character to be already epic and score a critical hit with a Truename power. At this point, the Truename might not do much good, as other Truename powers might have already expended or the enemy is already close to defeat.
All other ways will be based on the nature of the campaign or adventure - NPCs that might know a Truename of a rival, allies the PCs interrogate. You could consider a Truename as worthy as a magical item, and make it part of a treasure parcel. Or you just provision some ways to gather Truenames to allow the PCs to beat foes that would otherwise be out of their League - as an important story point.

If the PC would know the Truenames of all members of a bataillion of enemy soldiers, they could use truename encounter powers to overcome them a little easier. If they know the Truename of a powerful enemy, the Truename Curses and Power of the Name might give them at notable head start in any fight against him - but are far from guaranteeing a success...

Mustrum_Ridcully

Truename Magic
Truename Multiclass Only Class
The following powers are only available via multiclassing into the Truename class.

Design Note
The encounter powers for the Truename multiclass usually use the word “Fate” in them. The idea behind this that every use of these is slightly “manipulating” the targets fate – and showing his fate to him. If you know its truename, that is a lot easier for you. Therefore you don't expend the power if you have the truename.
The Daily powers are generally called Curses. You curse the very soul of the creature to suffering, and knowing its truename grants you a lot more power.
The Utility Powers are generally called something with “The Named” and are mostly benefitial to allies whose truename you know. A common assumption in Arcana Evolved and the Diamond Throne was that adventurers would eventuall share each others truename – especially important since it was a prerequisite for raising someone from the dead.
I reserved Domination related powers to the Truename Paragon path.

While this is a multiclass only class, I don't actually have powers for every level of the class, just for every tier at the moment. Maybe that will change later.

Mustrum_Ridcully

Truename Magic
The Diamond Throne use the concept of truenames. All creatures and even objects have truenames. Knowing the true name of a creature can give you incredible power over it.

Truename magic is interesting not just for the Diamond Throne, but can be an interesting element in every setting. In Arcana Evolved, some spells required you to know the creatures truename to work, like the equivalent of Dominate Person. This was in a way a strong limitation, but it totally fitted the concept of truenames. For my conversion, I didn't want to go “that” far – no power should require you to know a creatures truename. But knowing a truename should be of benefit.

Truenames are used for more than just spells, of course. The people in the Diamond Throne know countless of ceremonies and rituals, some mere supersitition, some actually powerful. A lot of them benefit, and the more powerful might even require, a truename.

But not everyone had a truename. The Arcana Evolved rules allowed you to decide to be Unbound. A unbound creature does not have a truename. It can't be raised from the dead (at least not with the weaker magic) and it cannot attain certain “Ceremony” feats, but it can also never be subjected to the powers of a truename. (And being a Unfettered or Warmain unaffected by Dominate Person is certainly not bad...)

FEATS

Unbound (Bloodline)
Prerequisite: None
You do not have a true name. Your soul is unbound.
You can no longer gain feats with the Truename or Ceremony descriptor, nor use rituals that require you to have a Truename.
You gain a +1 feat bonus to all saving throws.

False Name (Bloodline)
Prerequisite: Unbound, Level 11+
You adopt a false name that works as a true name in certain situation. Whenever a power requires your Truename, an ally can use your false name instead. Whenever anyone tries to learn your Truename, he learns your false name instead (believing he knows your Truename but actually gaining no benefits of it.)
In addition, whenever an Heroic tier feat requires you to have a Truename, you can consider to have a Truename. At Epic level, this also applies to feats from the Paragon tier.
You gain a +1 feat bonus to Will defense.

Truenames Bargain (Ceremony)
Prerequisite: Level 21
You shield your truename from your enemies. Whenever a creature learns your Truename, you also learns its truename as if you used the Learn Truename Ritual. When the creature gains the opportunity to learn your Truename, it becomes aware that you will know it and can choose to not learn it.
You gain a +2 feat bonus to Will Defense.

Truename Magic (Ceremony, Multiclass)
Prerequisite: Cha13+
You can master and perform rituals with the Truename keyord ieven if you normally can't use rituals. You gain Invoke the Name as an Encounter power.
You gain a +1 bonus to all sill checks and attack rolls made for rituals involving truenames and powers with the truename descriptor. This bonus increases to +2 at 15th level and +3 at 25th level. You can also use the Novice, Acolyte and Adept feats to gain powers described in the Truename Multiclass-Only class.
RITUALS
Learn Truename
Some say it is the most powerful thing to know about an individual. Some say it is the name of the soul. It defines an individual. Once you emerge from your meditation in the Akashik Memory, a truename will be revealed to you.
Level 15; Category Scrying
Market Price: 5,000 gp; Component Cost: Special
Time: 1 hour; Duration: Instantenous
Key Skill: Arcana; Requires no Truename

This ritual allows you to learn a creatures truename, regardless of where it is or whether it desires to do so. To perform this ritual succesful, you must make an Arcana check against a DC equal to 15 + the level of the target whose truename you wish to know. The creature makes an Insight check against your result. If succesful, it is aware that someone performed this ritual to learn its truename (and whether the attempt was succesful.)
You gain a bonus to the check of +5 if you use a hair locket, blood or a living blood relative of the creature as focus, and you also reduce the component cost to half.
The component cost depend on the level of the target.
Level 1-10: 2,000 gp; Level 11 to 20: 10,000 gp
Level 21-30: 50,000 gp; Level 31+: 250,000 gp

If you attempt to use this ritual to learn the truename of a God, an Archfey or an Primordial, the the creature immediately becomes aware of this and learns your truename and the ritual fails, and all components are lost.

If you attempt to use this ritual to learn the truename of an unbound, you do learn the fact that he is unbound and the ritual fails, but no components are expended.

Other creatures may use rituals to hide their truename from others.

Mustrum_Ridcully

So, I am taking a 2 week holiday (unfortunately, it's almost over) and had some time to write some RPG related stuff, a lot of it related to Arcana Evolved and/or the Diamond Throne conversion to 4E. A little stupid of me to focus that, since it would be far more important to plan my online D&D campaign I enjoy a lot, or to create at least the baseline for a Mutants & Masterminds campaign I consider as an alternative campaign parallel to the WotC H/P/E series of 4E adventures. Two of our core players in my regular campaign can't come as often as they used to, so we have to improvise. Playing D&D with less than 4 players is always a little awkward and something other games don't suffer as much from, especially if one where to customize a campaign to a smaller group. (Published adventures don't work so great for that.)

---

So, the first topic are the Verrik. The Verrik are a humanoid race with a reddish skin in the Diamond Throne. Non-Verriks always feel a little strange around Verriks, though few knew the dark secret behind this. (For more, check your Arcana Evolved Variant PHB or Diamond Throne sourcebook).

Design Note
Both racial powers are minor actions attack powers. I am not sure if Dazed vs. a (usually long slide) is a “fair” deal, but I didn't want the attacks to deal damage either - at least not in their basic form.

Synaesthetic Senses (Racial)
Prerequisite: Trained in Perception, Verrik
You can use all your senses to aid your perception. You ignore all penalties for blindness when you can still hear and all penalties for deafness when you can still see. You gain a +2 feat bonus to Perception when neither deafened or blinded.

Verrick Mental Discipline (Racial)
Prerequisite: Int 13+, Wis13+, Verrik
You can choose to use either Mind Touch and Limited Telekinesis each encounter (But not both in the same encounter). You also gain a +1 bonus to all atacks with powers that have the Verrik keyword that lack the Implement or Weapon keyword. This bonus increases to +2 at 15th level and +3 at 25th level.

Design Note
Verrik Mental Discipline bonus to attacks is basically the racial equivalent to something like Weapon or Implement Expertise. If you are not a fan of either feat and have developed an alternative “math fix” you don't need that part.

Racial Paragon Path – Verrik Mentalist
Some Verriks learn to master the innate racial talents for psychic abilities. Verrik Mentalist are such Verriks. Verrik Mentalists are sometimes advisors to powerful individuals, especially for the various Verrik crime syndicates and the Verrik government itself. But far more often they are used – but seldomly discovered – as spies or counter-spies, using their mental abilities to gain knowledge and relay it to their allies. As spies, they have always be prepared for being exposed and so they are well-trained in using their telepathic and telekinetic abilities to escape their enemies.

Prerequisite: Verrik Mental Discipline, Verrik
Mental Action (11th level): When you spend an action point to gain a standard action, you can immediately use your Minor Telekinesis or Mind Touch Power as a free action before or after the action, even if you have already expended the power this turn. This use of the power does not expend the power for this encounter.
Verrik Telepathy (11th level):
You can communicate telepathically with every creature within 10 squares you can see. You must share a common language with the creature to communicate meaningful, unless you have already targeted the creature with your Mind Touch power.
Verrik Telekinisis (11h level): You gain the Wizard Cantrip Mage Hand as an at-will power. The power loses the Arcane Keyword and gains the Verrik keyword.
Aggressive Mental Disciplines (11th level):
Mastermind (16th level): You can use each your Mind Touch and your Minor Telekinsies Power once per encounter. When you use either power, you can expend your use of the other power and deal 1d10 + the highest of your Charisma, Intelligence or Wisdom modifier. The damage is psychic if you used Mind Touch, or force if you used Minor Telekinesis for the original power you used.
Design Note
I always found the Verrik had a very “Vulcan”-like touch, and so here they get their Vulcan Mind Meld. I suppose one could also create a Ritual version of the power that provides a little more help (more along the lines of something like Consult Oracle) but is even more restrained in its general usability (longer duration, wiling and helpess targets only).

Mustrum_Ridcully

We are currently (among others) running a "Warhammer" campaign with D&D 4. Our current adventure reminded me again that firearms are not as uncommon in Warhammer as they are in D&D, so I thought up a few ways to implement them.

So, there are basically two variant implementations that might best describe the technological advances in weaponry. It's all "pressed" into the D&D 4 rules framework, so I hope it doesn't break the game balance or anything.
You can mix and match the described items to fit your idea of your technological level of firearms. I describe a few magical enhancements for firearms that are available even in the lowest levels of the heroic tier - to support the rareness of these weapons, you might restrict the availability of the enhancements to a higher level and require that a firearm must always have one of the suggest enhancements.

The basic idea is that a firearm is a mix of magical and alchemical item. So people with the Alchemist or Ritual Caster feat should be able to build them. But feel free to define them as purely alchemy or purely magic. The implementation is overall closer to a magical item, because I avoided the disconnect between "cheap" ammunition that higher level characters basically can forget to count and alchemical ammunition that might have costs like alchemical items.

You can either require the Enchant Magical Item Ritual or the Alchemist feat for any character to build a firearm.

Muzzleloaded Firearms
Muzzleloaded firearms are loaded seperately with gunpowder and bullet. The process is very slow, and it is difficult to fire more then one shot during a typical combat. They are crude compared to modern firearms, but still considered very dangerous.

The Hand Cannon - Level 1 item
The hand cannon must be loaded with gunpowder and shot before being fired. Loading the weapon takes a lot of time, so it is mostly used in the beginning of a battle.
Level 1: 360 gp; Level 11: 9,000 gp; Level 21: 225.000 gp
Item Slot: Weapon (Two-Handed)
Power (Encounter - Firearm): Standard Action. Range 15/30. Attack: Dexterity +1 vs Reflex. Hit: 2d4 + Dex damage.
Level 11: Dexterity +3 vs Reflex. Damage 2d6 + Dex
Level 21: Dexterity +5 vs Reflex. Damage 2d8 + Dex

The Arbeques - Level 3 item
The Arbuques is a more advanced version of the hand cannon.
Level 3: 680 gp; Level 11: 17,000 gp; Level 21: 425.000 gp
Item Slot: Weapon (Two-Handed)
Power (Encounter - Firearm): Standard Action. Range 20/40. Attack: Dexterity +1 vs Reflex. Hit: 2d6 + Dex damage.
Level 11: Dexterity +3 vs Reflex. Damage 2d8 + Dex
Level 21: Dexterity +5 vs Reflex. Damage 2d10 + Dex

The Musket - Level 5 item
The Musket can be reloaded much faster then hand cannon or Arbuques.
Level 5: 1.000 gp; Level 15: 25,000 gp; Level 21: 625,000 gp
Item Slot: Weapon (Two-Handed)
Property: If you spend a standard action reloading this weapon, you can recharge its encounter power.
Power (Encounter - Firearm): Standard Action. Range 20/40. Attack: Dexterity +1 vs Reflex. Hit: 2d6 + Dex damage.
Level 11: Dexterity +3 vs Reflex. Damage 2d8 + Dex
Level 21: Dexterity +5 vs Reflex. Damage 2d10 + Dex


The Musket is basically the firewall "non-weapon-weapon" variant. It can be fired every other round (and a feat might improve this to shooting every round). The biggest disadvantage - it is not a weapon attack, so all your nice weapon powers are useless.

----

Cartridge Firearms
Cartridge firearms use a combination of bullet and gunpowder, making the reload process faster and yielding more reliable results. This is a requirement for firearms as weapons.
All firearms are considered superior weapons. A two-handed firearm can be equipped with a bayonet, allowing its user to use the firearm in melee as a spear.

Pistol: Prof +3; Dmg 1d8, Range 15/30, Price 200 gp, Weight 2 bl, Group: Firearm; Properties. High Crit, Load Minor
Rifle: Prof +3, Dmg 2d4, Range 20/40, Price 300 gp, Group: Firearm; Properties: High Crit, Load Minor
Bayonet: Prof +2, Dmg 1d8, Price 5 gp; Weight 1 lb; Group: Spear; Properties; Reach

Bullets (10): 20 gp

New Enhancements

Repeating Firearm - Item Level 2+
Note: If you want to give your firearms a feeling of rareness, this might be the minimum required enhancement for them.
The typical firearm of the old world has these properties.
Level 2: +1 - 680 gp; Level 7: +2 - 3,400 gp; Level 12: +3 - 17,000 gp
Level 18: +4 - 85,000 gp; Level 23: +5 - 425,000 gp; Level 28: +6 2,125,000 gp
Weapon: Firearms
Enhancement: Attack and Damage Rolls
Critical: +1d8 per plus
Power (Encounter - Firearm): Standard Action. Make one basic attack against the target, but the target is resolved against the lower of AC and Reflex. Regardless of success, until the end of your next turn, your square and all adjacent squares are considered obscured due to the smoke from the explosion. (Granting concealment against attacks from any square in the burst or any attacks directed at any square in the burst.)


Semi-Automatic Firearm - Item Level 3+
This group covers revolvers and modern auto-loaders. The bullets is fed from a magazine or a cylinder, allowing a fast firing rate with minimal effort by the shooter.
Level 2: +1 - 680 gp; Level 7: +2 - 3,400 gp; Level 12: +3 - 17,000 gp
Level 18: +4 - 85,000 gp; Level 23: +5 - 425,000 gp; Level 28: +6 2,125,000 gp
Weapon: Firearms
Enhancement: Attack and Damage Rolls
Critical: +1d8 per plus
Property: You can reload this firearm as a free action.*
Power (Encounter - Firearm): Standard Action. Make two basic ranged attacks, attacking two adjacent targets. Each attack is resolved against the lower of the targets AC or Reflex Defense.

*Optional: This is pretty simple, but again, counting bullets in your magazine is a little annoying. Fell free to adapt this. Also, I don't bother to distinguish between the intracities between a revolvers "reloading" mechanism and that of a modern auto-loader pistol. I am not a gun nut!

Shotgun - Item Level 4+
Shotguns can be used to use fire shot, allowing you to cover a wider area. They lack in range.
Level 4: +1 - 840 gp; Level 9: +2 - 3,400 gp; Level 14: +3 - 21,000 gp
Level 19: +4 - 85,000 gp; Level 23: +5 - 525,000 gp; Level 28: +6 2,625,000 gp
Weapon: Rifle
Enhancement: Attack and Damage Rolls
Critical: +1d10 per plus
Property: Reduce the long and short range by 5 squares each.
Power (Encounter - Firearm): Standard Action. Make a basic attack against all targets in a Close Blast 3. The attack is made against the lower of AC and Reflex of the target.
Level 14 and 19: Close Blast 4
Level 24 and 29: Close Blast 5


Full-Automatic Firearm - Item Level 5+
Automatic firearms reload bullets automatically and allow even faster firing rates then of semi-automatic weapons. The blowback from the shot, the expanding gases from the explosion, or magic allows continuous fire.
Level 5: +1 - 1,000 gp; Level 10: +2 - 5,00 gp; Level 15: +3 - 25,000 gp
Level 20: +4 - 125,000 gp; Level 25: +5 - 625,000 gp; Level 30: +6 3,125,000 gp
Weapon: Firearms
Enhancement: Attack and Damage Rolls
Critical: +1d8 per plus
Property: You can reload this firearm as a free action.
Power (Encounter - Firearm): Standard Action. Make a basic attack against all targets in a Area Burst 1 within range. The attack is made against the lower of AC and Reflex of the target.
Level 14 and 19: Area Burst 2
Level 24 and 29: Area Burst 3


---

Feats

Combat Engineer (Heroic)
Prerequisite: Int 13 or Skill Training in Arcana and Thievery
You gain proficiency with all firearms, siege weapons and bayonets. When making an attack with a firearm, you can substitute your Dexterity Modifier with your Intelligence Modifier for the attack and damage rolls. When making an attack with a siege weapon, you can use your Dexterity Modifier in place of your Intelligence Modifier for the attack and the damage roll.

Rifleman (Heroic)
Prerequisite: Proficiency with Firearms, Rogue
You can treat a Firearm as a crossbow for the purpose of Rogue weapon powers and sneak attack, and you can treat a Bayonet as a light blade for the purpose of Rogue weapon powers and sneak attack. When using a firearm or a bayonet, your sneak attack damage is reduced by one die.

Quickload (Heroic)
Prerequisite: Proficiency with Firearms, Dex 13+
If a firearm (including a muzzle-loader) has a reload time of a standard action, you can reload it is as a minor action. if it has a reload time of a minor action, you can reload it as a free action. You still need both hands to reload your firearm.

---

For detailed discussion, see also the house rules thread on this topic:
Firearms for D&D 4E

Mustrum_Ridcully

Some people don't like the fact that lasting injuries are basically not modeled in 4E.

Which can have particular implications in "sandbox" games, as some fellow posters noted (most notably Raven Crowking, with whom I had my edition skirmishes ).

It took me a while to understand it the reasons behind it. Suffice to say that there is always something worth investigating in a sandbox, and just handwaving the rules and say "we rest after this adventure despite no mechanical penalties for not resting more then one night" is not satisfying in such games.

So, here a quick suggestion on how to change healing.

Basically, use something like the recharge rules for monster powers.

So, it takes the same time for everyone to recover all of his healing surges. (Hit points recovery in 3E was always a little "inconsistent" in that wizards could heal faster then fighters.) Of course, there might still be issues - for example, who is more likely to end the day with no surges left? The partys Fighter or the Wizard?

You could do the same for daily powers, if you like.)

Of course, we can't just let such a simple mechanic standing around - we need more game material for it!
So, here it is:


A Feat
Extraordinary Recuperation (Paragon)
Prerequisite: Con 13
Your healing surges recharge on a roll of 5 or 6.


2 Rituals

Blessing of Health (Heal)
You conjure a blessing that helps the regeneration of wounds and fight off disease and poison
Level: 5
Category: Restoration
Time: 10 Minutes
Duration: 24 hours
Component Cost: 25 gp (see text)
Market Price: 250 gp
Key Skill: Heal
Bless up to 8 creatures with a blessing of health. A creature that takes an extended rest in the duration of the spell can reroll is next Endurance check to resist a disease and reroll all failed Healing Surge recharge rolls, taking the better result.

At paragon tier, increase the ritual cost to 250 gp, and at epic tier to 2,500 gp.


Regeneration
After you have finished the ritual, you touch a target to heal even the most severe injuries and debilitations.
Level: 15
Category: Restoration
Time: 60 Minutes
Duration: 24 hours
Component Cost: 1,000 gp (see text)
Market Price: 5,000 gp
Key Skill: Heal
The target can make a Healing Surge recharge roll as if it had spend an extend rest. If the target has lost any appendages or organs (an arm or an eye for example), the caster may choose one to regenerate and it regrows fully. The regrowth is painful to the victim. When choosing to regenerate an injury, roll a heal check.

Check Result 10 or lower: The target dies.*
Check Result 19 or lower: The target takes damage equal to its hit points.
Check Result 20-29: The target takes damage equal to its bloodied value.
Check Result: 30-39: The target takes damage equal to its healing surge value.
Check Result 40 or higher: The target takes no damage.
*) The regeneration still succeeds, so if the target is later raised, its organ or limb is regrown.

Mustrum_Ridcully

Not a long while ago I noticed that some had a problem with the DMG tables on skill DCs (see 4E DMG p.42). The DC link level and a suggested DC for Easy, Moderate and Hard checks on each.
This seemed to suggest to some that all skill DCs automatically increase by character level and thus they felt that the game world would feel inconsistent.

If moving about a sheet of ice is a DC 10 check at level 2, it shouldn't become a DC 20 check at level 20!

Maybe the crucial passage is
But I say that's not how you have to use it. You can go the slow way and ask yourself, on a scale of 1-30, what type of character would find this an easy (or moderate, or hard) challenge - but still one he could make?
Then set that as your DC.

Running over ice might always be a DC 20 check in your campaign. Because (using the old table, not the errata) you think that a level 5st level character should find running and charging over icy terrain easy.

You can also use the DC based on other aspects. The page 42 also discusses stunts - you could base the level of your challenge on the monsters level that is to be affected by the challenge (if any) or by the amount of damage the player wants to inflict. While swinging a chandelier doesn' get harder with PCs level or the Ogres level, it might get harder to charge him with the swing or the PC want to inflict more harm with your swing.

The beauty of this rules is that you can create an internally consistent gameworld and still figure out how hard a task is compared to your PC.

You can also apply this idea to skill challenges, and in a way you are always doing this - The DCs for skills only change every 3 levels. This can be helpful if you want to run skill challenge involving NPCs - especially if it's a challenge that bypasses a combat encounter. For example, if the PCs want to trick the troll guarding the bridge into believing they already paid their toll, you could use a short skill challenge with a level based on the trolls level and a complexity that would achieve similar XP value - meaning that your PCs get the same XP if they like to role play through the encounter or like to fight through the encounter, which is usually a good thing.

In a way, this is a reverse engineering of what the 3E skill system did - DCs were usually fixed. But the fixed DC implied at which levels certain tasks become possible (when can parties hope to open Amazing locks? Of course when the Rogue's skill modifier is high enough to beat the DC with some d20 rolls.) or easy.

Of course, sometimes it would be nice to have some "fixed" DCs - a look into the PHB can help, there are a few of example DCs described in the skill selection.

It should be noted that it's suboptimal that the designers don't exactly come out to tell you that you can use the "stunt" table in this manner. I don't know whether this is because they thing it would be a rare case to work this way or it didn't occur to them. Also, the PHB example DCs seem inconsistent. As a defense it might be said that - since players don't set the DC - the players just need to see some "landmarks" what they might need. But still, a DM might want these information in the DMG, too.

Anyway, this clearly a thing that should be made more obvious. Maybe the DMG 2 will contain some hints and suggestions? Or has that ship sailed?

Mustrum_Ridcully

Non-Adventuring Skills - Part 2

Craft (Int)
Possible Subskills: Alchemy, Armorsmithing, Blacksmithing, Weaving, Binding, Fletcher, Calligraphy, Carpentry, Cobbling, Gemcutting, Leatherworking, Mechanical, Painting, Pottery, Sculpting, Shipmaking, Stonemasonry, Weaponsmithing
The Craft skill allows you to craft items or work as a laborer. The goal of a Craft skill is to create something.
Creating Items
If you want to craft an item, you need raw materials worth 1/5th its market price. Roll for your craft skill as if wanting to earn money, but you can spend any amount of money as a progress to create the item. (Chose the ratio of money earned vs money spent to proceed on crafting the item before you roll the check) You need to spend enough money to cover another 4/5th of the market price in total, at which point the item is finished. To succeed at building particular complex items, you need to beat a minimum DC. Use the above table as a guideline for the DC. If you fail to beat the DC, you make no progress at all (and all money spent on building the item in that time is lost.)
Instead of checking every day, the character may check every ten days (multiplying the monetary result by 10). If building a magical item, you should always use this method. When building magical items and you accrue 3 failures, you need a special component or otherwise outside help to proceed with building the item.
Others may use aid another to aid your check. If they succeed, add either a +2 bonus to your check result or the money value of their check. You can do the latter only if they also beat the DC required to create the item. Aiding another does not earn any money for the aiding character.
You can use the Craft skill (instead of the Enchant Magical Item Ritual) to create magical items. Unlike with the enchant magical item ritual, you can create magical items beyond your level. You can't craft magical items if you are untrained.

Quality (DC) - Magic Item Level - Item Type
Crude (5) - n/a - simple equipment
Simple (10) - n/a - Simple Weapons, Ammunition, Wooden Building, Simple Clothing
Basic (15) - n/a - Light Armor, Military Weapons, Fine Clothing, Stone Building, windmill, Rowing Boat
Good (20) - 5 - Heavy Armor, Superior Weapons, Siege Weapons, Nobles Outfit, many story building, Merchant Freighter
Superior (25) - 10 - Skyscraper, Warship
Extraordinary (30) - 15 - Pyramid, Airship
Amazing (35) - 20 - Swimming Castle, Astral Galeon
Brilliant (40) - 25 - Floating Castle
Perfect (45) - 30 - Astral Castle

Artistic Uses
A character may also use his Craft skill to create an item that is primarily used as an art object. In that case, the character may substitute his Charisma modifier for his Intelligence modifier.

Knowledge (Int)
Example Subskills: Arcana, Dungeoneering, History, Heal, Nature, Religion, Streetwise
Knowledge skills are linked to certain adventuring skills. They do not replace these skills fully. Any use of the skill is limited to gaining knowledge or researching a topic, but it doesn't achieve anything in its own right. You can't use Knowledge (Arcana) to activate a ritual or sense magic, but you could use it to identify a monster. Likewise, you could use Knowledge (Heal) to identify a disease or the source of an injury, but you wouldn't be able to treat it.
Generally, you can't use these skills in a skill challenges to gain success or failures. If the challenge provides the option to use such a skill, instead grant a +2 bonus to the next skill check after a succesful use. A failure has no effect.
A character trained in the adventuring skill may also use his adventuring skill value instead of his non-adventuring skill value for all purposes, and is considered at least an Apprentice in the non-adventuring skill.
Special: Due to explicit overlap with the “real” skills, you might want to restrict or forbid this use of the skill for player characters more then usual.

Perform (Cha)
Example Subskills: Acting, Comedy, Dance, Keyboard Instruments, Oratory, Percussion Instruments, String Instruments, Wind Instruments, Sing
You can use the Perform skill to entertain other people. Consult the table below to determine the quality of your performance.

Result - Description
5 - Disappointing. People might even try to stop you performance.
10 - Enough to sing along with others, and not to annoy anyone due to mere lack of quality.
15 - Enjoyable. People cheer for your performance.
20 - Great Performance. You might gain regional fame or be invited as a member to a professional group.
25 - Memorable Performance. You gain nation-wide reputation, and a noble patron might become interested in you. You touch the hearts of your fan, and they will remember this day even after years.
30 - Extraordinary Performance. You touch the hearts of anyone listening your performance, and they will remember this day even after years. You will eventually gain a continent-wide reputation. You might attract a royal patron.
35 - Amazing Performance. You touch the hearts of anyone listening your performance, and might attract a Patron from the Feywild or Shadowfell, gaining world-wide reputation over time.
40 - Brilliant Performance. Any gods devoted to arts or music will feel your performance. You touch even the hearts of your enemies, and might attract an astral or elemental Patron. Memories of you will last even beyond your death.
45 - Perfect Performance. The gods will become aware of your performance, and enjoy listening it, remembering you even after your death. You might gain a god or a primordial power as a patron.

Profession (Wis)
Example Subskills: Apothecary, Boater, Bookkeeper, Brewer, Cook, Driver, Farmer, Fisher, Guide, Herbalist, Herder, Hunter, Innkeeper, Lumberjack, Miller, Miner, Porter, Rancher, Sailor, Scribe, Siege Engineer, Stablehand, Tanner, Teamster, Woodcutter
The Profession skill represents occupations that require you to perform services instead of manual labor.

Professional Skill and Adventuring Skill
Professions are sometimes related to adventuring skills. A Sailor might be good at keeping his balance on a storm-shaken ship (A use of the Acrobatics skill.), and a Guide might be able of finding a way through the wilderness (A use of the Nature skill). In such cases, the Gamemaster may allow the character to add a +2 bonus to the skill check in question and treat the character as trained. If the character is already trained in the skill, the Gamemaster may even allow to roll on Profession instead of the actual skill. But be careful with this option – Since non-adventuring skills can be trained without spending character resources, allowing to many free benefits from them can be unbalanced, especially since not all professions will help in a adventuring situation.

Mustrum_Ridcully

Motivation:
Non-Adventuring Skills cover the part of skills that some people miss from 4E - skills that are important in an "every-day" life situation or role-playing, but don't enter much into considerations on the life of an adventurer.

Goal:
The goal is to avoid to ever have characters to decide between adventuring-relevant stuff and pure "role-playing" stuff. At the same time, the system should be easy to integrate in the existing game system.
A small caveat is: Since we're not talking about adventuring skills, level and XP values should be irrelevant. Other measures must be taken to balance skills.

Non-Adventuring Skills - Part 1
Overview
Non-Adventuring Skills are skills that normal adventuring experience does not train. Non-Adventuring skills often describes background abilities of characters, representing hobbies, past education, up-bringing or professional knowledge outside the life of adventurers.
Non-Adventuring skills are independent of class.

Non-Adventuring Skills come in five ratings: Untrained, Apprentice, Expert, Master and Grand Master. A character with a rating of Apprentice or higher can take 10 on a non-adventuring skill.

A character gains ranks equal to the highest ability modifier from the following three abilities: Intelligence, Wisdom or Charisma, but he always gets at least 1.

For each rank a character has, he may improve the rating of one background skill by one step. A character can only achieve a rating of Expert if he is 25 years or older, and other ratings are unavailable for player characters at character creation and must be earned in play.
To advance a non-adventuring skill to a higher rating, a character needs to spend time training and using a skill to advance his rating. See the table below for advancement.

Rating - Skill Modifier - Training Time to Advance to next rating
Untrained - Ability Modifier - 1 Month (Teacher required)
Apprentice - Ability Modifier +5 - 1 Year ( Teacher required)
Expert - Ability Modifier +10 - 10 Years
Master - Ability Modifier +15 - 25 Years
Grand Master - Ability Modifier +20 - n/a

The table assumes that a character spends 6 hours each day to train in a skill. A character not adventuring may advance two skills over that time frame (assuming he can spend 12 hours each day to train skills), but may not focus this training on just one skill
Untrained characters and apprentices need a teacher, or have all training times doubled, and can only train one skill at a time. A teacher must have a skill rating above the trainees. Experts, Masters and Grand Masters no longer require teachers. Without a teacher, they can train only one skill in that time.

Earning Money
You can earn money with non-adventuring skills.
If you spent 6 hours of work a day, roll a skill check to see how much money you earn. Any timeframe you spent earning money, you can only train one skill (the skill your earning money with). If you're training with a teacher, reduce the money earned by half (representing the training fees.)

DC - Money earned - Quality
5 - 1 sp - Crude
10 - 5 sp - Simple
15 - 1 gp - Basic
20 - 2 gp - Good
25 - 10 gp - Superior
30 - 50 gp - Extraordinary
35 - 250 gp - Amazing
40 - 1.250 gp - Brilliant
45 - 6.250 gp - Perfect

Limitations
The DM may limit the maximum money of money to be made depending on the surrounding. The values assume that the characters is working in a region where someone is actually interested in his type and quality of service. A Grand Master Weapon Smith retired to a small village cannot hope to sell anyone his services at the price he deserves. Most communities can support values of up to good quality, and large cities might support even extraordinary quality services, while only the largest metropolis of a large nation can hope to afford a grand master that achieves brilliant or perfect results.
Any character can only hope to achieve this money if he actually creates goods or provides services according to it. A Weaponsmith not creating magical weapons or siege weapons will have a hard time earning money in accordance with brilliant results.

DM Advice
Non-Adventuring skills should generally not replace actual training in adventuring skills. Doing this would risk setting off the balance. On the other hand, non-adventuring skills should never cause the PCs any penalties. Using themshould often be advantageous to propel the story, but never stop it. The players should feel comfortable using their non-adventuring skills.
As an example – you might build an adventure around gathering several magical components to reforge the Sword of Kahres, to use it against the Beast of Kornos. After gathering all components, the PCs need someone to reforge the sword – a PC with training in Weaponsmithing might want to try it himself. Do not allow the use of skill to destroy the sword and invalidate all the work gone before. The players might never be willing to use their non-adventuring skills again in such a situation. At worst, the PC should learn he is not qualified to reforge such an epic artifact, and they must find a Grand Master in Weaponsmithing.
You can allow to be used in skill challenges, either to aid a challenge, or to try getting a success. Generally, using a non-adventuring skill should never be allowed to count as a failure, and rarely be allowed a new attempt.
For example, in a skill challenge for dealing with a Dryad, after a successful diplomacy check, the Dryad might require a show of artwork or artistry – a player character might offer her to sing an ancient dwarven ballad – if he achieves a great performance, the Dryads might be persuaded further to aid the characters, but if his result is less then that, she becomes tired of the idea – she will continue negotations, but is no longer interested in hearing another tune...

Mustrum_Ridcully

There have been several discussions on the 15 so-called 15 minute adventure day, including how D&D 4 tries to change that and fails or succeeds in doing so.

From my view - the 15 minute adventure day will never go away entirely as long as their are daily powers - but I believe that the new edition has found a few nice way to make the idea of "going longer" less dangerous and more satisfying for players and DMs alike. The biggest limitation in practice seems to be the number of Healing Surges - you might be able to last without daily powers, but once you're out of healing surges, you just have to stop. I think that was absolutely intentional, but that doesn't have to mean that we can't tinker around with it. More Healing Surges primarily lead to one thing: Daily powers become less important, and you have to limit the power level of encounters, since you can't hope on daily powers being available any more.

---

So, now for some actual rules suggestion revolving around this:

First, a Ritual, inspired by an Arcana Evolved spell.

Bring down the MoonNote: The level limitations exist to encourage picking up higher level powers. The healing Surge penalty ensures that you can't reuse this power to often.

This ritual is perfect if the party is under some strong time constraints but just feels over-extended, and provide a compensation for a DM under-estimating his monsters (or over-estimating the party), and the party just having a string of bad luck or be a little too incompetent.

Now, for some potions:
Potions of Clarity
The Potions of Clarity are based of the Healing Potions, since I didn't know how else to price them. The Potions are unusual in that they require a daily resource to use - magical item uses. I do not think the cost alone would have been sufficient to limit the usefulness of these potions. The advantage of using it based on daily item powers is that it will be restored by milestones, so there is actually some benefit in having multiple of them.

Variant Milestone Benefits
Milestones exist as an incentive to continue adventuring in 4E. The extra action point means you have an alternate resources to the fleeting daily powers. I think it would help to give out more benefits instead.
The extra daily power means that you can go on longer if you have a few items around...

Here are some ideas:
o Characters regain one Healing Surge.
Rationale: Action Points might be able to compensate daily powers, but can they compensate the fact that you don't have any more hit points?
o Characters regain one daily power.
Rationale: Why not? Disadvantage is that it might make people rely on the same power too often (the highest level one?), knowing they can safely restore it after the next encounter.

PS:
If you want some suggestion to adapt this material to 3E - Bring down the Moon is already a spell in Arcana Evolved, so you should just need to buy that book, or create your own write-up.

The Potions could be regular 3E Potions or Elixiers. The generic formula would be that they would be one level above the level of spell that they can restore. You have to pay for the flexibility they provide in 3E, at least that's my idea.

So, you could have a Spell Level 3 Potion (Cost: 750 gp) that would restore one 2nd level spell slot. You might want to go the Elixier Route so you can actually have Clarity Potions for spells beyond level 2...

Link to House Rules Forum Thread: http://www.enworld.org/forum/4e-fan-creations-house-rules/238008-bring-down-moon-other-adventuring-day-extenders.html

Mustrum_Ridcully

Formians
One of the monsters of the 3E I found interesting but barely got to use were the Formian. I guess since the Borg from Star Trek, I like Hive creatures.
My idea of the Formians for 4E is that they are continuosly expanding their territories. Different Hives sometimes fight each other, but they also often ally each other for a common goal. They are as orderly as ever.
For 4E, I introduce more variants of the typical Formian Warrior. I am assuming that a mix of arcane manipulation and selective feeding allows the same base creature to shape into very different creatures, ranging from a simple worker over an independently thinking Myrmach to a Formian Queen itself.

I'll start with the typical "battle army" monsters. (Time and allowed space forces me to limit my post a little bit)

Formian Drone Recruit – Level 16 Minion
Small Immortal Magical Beast (Formian)
Initiative +16, Perception +12
HP: 1 (a miss never deals damage to a minion)
Defenses: AC 32, Fort 29, Ref 31, Will 29
Speed: 6 squares, Burrow 2 squares
Attacks & Powers
Basic Melee: Bite (Standard, At-Will)
+20 vs AC; 9 damage

Retreat (Immediate Reaction, Encounter)
Trigger: An enemy attack misses the Drone.
Effect: The drone shifts 4 squares.

Cure Wounds (Standard, Encounter)
To use this power, at least 3 Formian Drone Recruits or regular Drone Workers have to be adjacent to a bloodied ally. The ally can spend one healing surge.

Hive Mind
Formians never grant combat advantage by being blinded, deafened or flanked, unless all of the Formians in the same encounter are under one of these effects.

Alignment: Unaligned
Skills: Endurance 20; Language: Supernal
Ability Scores: Str 15, Con21, Dex24; Int6, Wis21, Cha9


Formian Warrior – Level 16 Soldier
Medium Immortal Magical Beast (Formian)

Initiative +17, Perception +12
HP 157; Bloodied 78
Defenses: AC 32, Fort 30, Ref 28, Will 28
Speed: 8 Squares, Burrow 2

Attacks & Powers
Basic Melee – Claw (Standard, At-Will)
+23 vs AC; 2d8+7 damage and the target is marked until the Formians next turn.

Sting (Standard, Recharge 5 6)
+21 vs Fortitude; 3d10+7 poison; Ongoing poison 5 (save ends). If the first save fails, the target is also dazed (save ends both).

Zeal (Standard, Recharge 6 or when bloodied)
The Formian Warrior may make a Claw and a Sting attack.

Combat Superiority
Formian Warriors gain a +5 bonus to opportunity attacks.

Hive Defense (Immediate Interrupt, Encounter)
Trigger: An enemy attacks an ally adjacent to this Formian. The attack is resolved against this Formian Warrior.

Hive Coordination
For each Formian adjacent to the target, the Formian gains a +1 bonsu to his melee attack roll.

Hive Mind
Formians never grant combat advantage by being blinded, deafened or flanked, unless all of the Formians in the same encounter are under one of these effects.

Alignment: Unaligned
Skills: Athletics +20, Endurance +18, Stealth +18; Languages: Supernal
Ability Scores: Str24, Con21, Dex21, Int16, Wis21, Cha10



Formian Scout – Level 14 Lurker
Medium Immortal Magical Beast (Formian)
Initiative +16; Perception: +17
HP: 118; Bloodied: 59
Defenses: AC 29, Fort 26, Ref 27, Will 26
Speed: 8 squares, burrow 4 squares
Attacks & Powers:

Basic Melee: Claw (Standard, At-Will)
+19 vs AC; 2d8+6 damage

Melee: Poison Sting (Standard, At-Will)
+19 vs AC; 2d8+6 damage and Followup: +17 vs Fortitude: Ongoing Poison 5 (save ends). If the first save fails, the target is dazed in addition (save ends both).

Melee: Erupt from Earth (Standard, Recharge 5 6)
The Formian scout must b burrowed to use this ability. Before the attack, he may shift at his burrow speed.
+19 vs AC; 3d6+6 damage, and the target is knocked prone.

Burrow Escape (Immediate Reaction, Encounter)
Trigger: An attack bloodies the Formian Scout.
The Formian Scout shifts at this burrow speed into the ground.

Hive Coordination
For each Formian adjacent to the target, the Formian gains a +1 bonsu to his melee attack roll.

Hive Mind
Formians never grant combat advantage by being blinded, deafened or flanked, unless all of the Formians in the same encounter are under one of these effects.

Alignment: Unaligned
Skills: Athleics +15, Acrobatics +17, Perception +17, Stealth +17
Ability Scores: Str17, Con20, Dex21, Int14, Wis20, Cha11




Formian Poison Hurler – Level 14 Artillery
Large Immortal Magical Beast (Formian)
Initiative +16, Perception +17
HP: 118; Bloodied 59
Defenses: Ac 27, Fort 26, Ref 27
Speed: 6 squares, Burrow 2

Basic Melee: Claws (Standard, At-Will)
+21 vs AC; 1d10+6 damage

Basic Ranged – Sting Hurl (Standard, At-Will)
Ranged 20/10: +19 vs Reflex; 1d10+6 acid and ongoing acid 5 (save ends)

Hurl Poison (Standard, Recharge 5 6)
Ranged 10: +19 vs Reflex; 2d6+6 acid and poison; Follow-Up: +19 vs Fortitude: Ongoing Poison 10. If the first save fails, the target is also dazed (save ends both).

Spray Corrosive (Standard, Encounter)
Close Blast 3: +19 vs Reflex: 3d10+6 damage and ongoing acid 5 (save ends). Miss: Half damage and no ongoing damage.

Hive Coordination
For each Formian adjacent to a target, the Formian gains a +1 bonus to his melee attack roll.

Hive Mind
Formians never grant combat advantage by being blinded, deafened or flanked, unless all of the Formians in the same encounter are under one of these effects.

Alignment: Unaligned
Skills: Perception +17, Stealth +17; Languages: Supernal

Ability Scores: Str17, Con20, Dex21, Int14, Wis20, Cha11


Formian Battlewing – Level 14 Skirmisher
Medium Immortal Magical Beast (Formian)

The Formian Battlewing is a rare Formian variant. Not all Hive Queens have the ability to spin off Battlewings, as they are a recent result of the Formian experimentations.
His greatest weakness is his frail body, more importantly his frail wings.

Initiative +17; Perception +17
HP: 140; Bloodied 70 (see Fragile Wings)
Defenses: AC 29, Fort 26, Ref 27, Will 26
Speed: 8 squares, Fly 8 squares (Hover)

Attacks & Powers:
Basic Melee – Claw (Standard, At-Wil)
+19 vs AC; 2d8+6 damage

Dive Attack (Standard, At-Will)
While flying, the Formian may make a charge attack and move half his flight speed after the attack is completed.

Sudden Retreat (Immediate Reaction, Encounter)
If an enemy misses the Formian, he can immediately shift 4 squares.

Fragile Wings
A Formian Battlewing that is bloodied loses its fly speed and – if still midair – crashes.

Hive Coordination
For each Formian adjacent to a target, the Formian gains a +1 bonus to his melee attack roll.

Hive Mind
Formians never grant combat advantage by being blinded, deafened or flanked, unless all of the Formians in the same encounter are under one of these effects.

Alignment: Unaligned
Skills: Endurance +13, Perception +17, Stealth +18; Languages: Supernal
Ability Scores: Str20, Con12, Int14, Wis20, Cha11


Next to Come: The Formian Myrmach, Taskmaster, Warmaster, the Queen and the regular (non-Minion lower level) Drone.

Mustrum_Ridcully

In this blog entry, I present you a write-up for the Arcana Evolved Faen.
Faen in Arcana Evolved come in three varieties, two of them not dissimilar to the two Elves (Elf and Eladrin) in D&D 4E. The Quickling Faen are more “physical” and mobile, while the Loresong Faen are more magical. The third variety is a Spryte, a tiny, winged fey version of the original Faen (Quickling or Loresong)
Arcana Evolved accomplished this with Racial Levels, I will do it with Paragon Path. This might delay the transformation more then in original AE, but at-will fly doesn't fit too well into 4E before the Paragon tier (and even there it is strong – so take care!)

Faen
Ability Scores: +2 Dex, +2 Intelligence
Size: Small
Speed: 5 squares
Vision: Low-Light
Languages: Common, Faen
Skills: +2 to Stealth. Loresong Faen gain also a +2 bonus to Arcana, while Quickling Faen gain a +2 bonus to Acrobatics.
Fey Origin: Faen are considered Fey Humanoids.

Loresong Special Abilities:
- A Loresong Faen can use one Wizard Cantrip as an encounter power.
- A Loresong Faen can use one Wizard 1st level At-Will Attack as a Encounter power.
- Loresong Faen gain a +2 bonus to Willpower Defense.
Special: A Loresong Faen Wizard replaces his racial Wizard Cantrip and his racial Wizard Encounter power with a single extra Wizard At-Will power.

Quickling Special Abilities:
- Quickling Faen can shift even in difficult terrain.
- When running or charging, a Quickling Faen adds another +2 squares to the movement.
- Quickling Faen gain a +5 bonus on saves versus any effect that slows, immobilizes or restrains them.
- Quickling Faen gain a +2 bonus to Reflex Defense.
- Quickling Faen can use the Quickling Stride as an encounter power.
Quickling Stride – Racial Power
You burst into motion.
Encounter – Fey
Action: Minor; Target: Personal
Effect: The Quickling Faen may move at his speed.


Feat: Spryte Glow (Spryte, Paragon)
Prerequisite: Spryte
The Spryte can glow as a free action. The glow can be as bright as lightening up a 5 square burst. Any radiant power used by the Spryte or one of his allies within the area gains a +2 damage bonus.
The Spryte can change the bust area on his turn as a free action.

Spryte Paragon Path

Prerequisite (11th): Faen, Dex 13

Metamorphosis (11th): The Faen undergoes a metamorphosis to become a Spryte. He gains a+2 bonus to Dex, but suffers a -2 penalty to Strength. His size changes to tiny (but this doesn't affect his reach). In addition, he grows wings that allow him to fly at his speed as a move action. If he ends his turn aloft, he crashes.

Spryte Action (11th): When the Spryte spends an action point, he can also spend a move action to fly at his speed.

Improved Flight (16th): The Spryte masters the art of flying, and gains a flight speed equal to his base speed +2. He can hover.

Spryte Charm – Spryte Paragon Attack 11
Your soft voice enthralls your enemies mind
Encounter – Arcane, Fey, Charm
Action: Standard; Area: Ranged 10
Attack: Charisma +2 vs Willpower; Target: One creature
Hit: The creature is charmed until the end of your next turn. It is considered dazed but can take no attacks, unless it was attacked while being charmed. You can order its movement, but not into danger.
Sustain Standard: Make a new Charisma vs Willpower attack. If successful, the power persists until the end of next turn. You can designate the creature to a new space as part of this action.

Spryte Retreat – Spryte Paragon Utility 12
You hide yourself from the eyes of others to flee to safety
Encounter – Arcane, Fey, Teleport, Illusion
Action: Move; Target: Personal
Effect: You turn invisible until the end of your next turn or until you attack, and shift your fly speed.

Spryte Whispers – Spryte Paragon Attack 20
[i]The creature listens to your mental whispers, giving in into your influence.[⁄i]
Daily – Arcane, Fey, Charm, Psychic
Action: Standard; Area: Ranged 10
Attack: Charisma +4 vs Willpower; Target: One creature
Hit: The target is stunned until the end of your next turn.
Secondary Attack Target: Original Creature
Secondary Attack: Charisma +4 vs Willpower. Implant a suggestion that is triggered by an event specified by you.
Sustain Standard: Make a new Cha vs Will attack. If successful, the effect persists until the end of your next turn. The creature remains stunned, and you can add another suggestion.
Special:
A suggestion requires the order the creature has to perform and the trigger event to have the suggestion work out. The order and trigger can be as complex as you like, but the creature might be unable to correctly perform orders beyond its intellect. The moment the suggestion is triggered, the target begins performing all actions required to fulfill the order, but at the end of each of its turn, it makes a new Save to stop following the order, and the order and its associated trigger no longer work. The target is aware of its actions, but doesn't know that it was following a suggestion, not his own free will.
The order of the suggestion may never be suicidal. If the order is dangerous (likely to cause injuries or disease), or against the general nature of the creature (attacking a friend), add a +2 bonus to its save..
Unlike other powers, the creature is not aware of all its effects – it (obviously) notices the stun effect, but it is unaware of your suggestions.

.....
Notes:
The Paragon Path Attacks all get a bonus to their attack rolls, since you can't use implements with them.

The Spryte Glow didn't fit in the Paragon Paths, and making it a feat demanded making it more effective. The +2 to damage with radiant weapons is compareble to feats like Astral Fire, but a little more limited (but also more useful for the entire party).

The Faen Loresong racial abilities is a little more comlex then I like, but I wanted to give it the "wizardy" feel with the cantrip, but it feels worthless for Loresong Wizards. Maybe it would be okay to make no special rule for this. An extra encounter power (even if it's normally just an at-will) might be enough for the Wizard, and the wasted cantrip might be irrelevant.

Mustrum_Ridcully

Another post on a conversion from the Diamond Throne to 4E. Here is a selection of Giants (Hu-Charad - the Diamond Throne variant of Giants) using NPC/monster creation rules of the DMG.
If you want to use them in a non-AE campaign, you might want to change their type from Natural Humanoid to Elemental Humanoid. Elemental subtypes are probably mostly Earth, and sometimes Water (though none of the write-ups in this post fit that - but I plan on creating the "sailor" Giants, too)


Giant Guard – Natural Humanoid
Level 5 Soldier
This presents a run-of-the-mill Diamond Throne Giant Guard. It could also be used as a Mercenary.


Giant Commissar – Large Natural Humanoid
Level 11 Soldier (Leader)
The Giant Commissar is not something found in the regular Diamond Throne campaign, but in the one I ran for my group. (So here I am, forcing my campaign flavor on you.) One of the players came up with the idea of playing a Giant that was working as a Commissar of the Diamond Throne. The idea was that a Commissar is a representative of the Giants government. He did get a few silver pieces each month, and it was not per se a full-time job. The tasks of a Commissar is to investigate crimes, cult activities, oddities or anything else that a local Guard or Patrol might not be able to cover. The guards are compelled to aid the Giant, but generally, he fends for himself. I went with the concept, using it often as a plot hook to advance the story.

Even non-Giants can be Commissars, but they are rarer. A typical encounter with a Giant Commissar should probably have him being assisted by some kind of adventurers (often Sibeccai, Faen and Humans), and less often by a city patrol or members of a military patrol.


Giant Warmain – Natural Humanoid
Level 13 Brute
The Giant Warmain is a brutish warrior, focusing on offense. This seems to fit the concept of the Warmain class in Arcana Evolved best – Warmains might have carried heavy armor, but tricks to deal more damage were also a strong part.


Giant Green Bond – Large Natural Humanoid
Level 14 Controller (Leader)
Partially, this special monster is also a result of my Diamond Throne campaign – the aforementioned Giant Commissar was a Greenbond / Champion of Life, and this makes me associate Giants and Greenbonds.
I envision the Green Bond as a leader with a few controller-like abilities. I am considering using “Green” as a power source, though at the moment, there is only one class that would fit this power source. If it doesn't work out, I'd probably go back to “Divine” as power source.

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As one of many side projects, I have been in the process of converting some Diamond Throne stuff for a potential 4E game. I am not sure I am gonna use it, and I am faaar from finished.

If you don't know Arcana Evolved or the Diamond Throne follow the links and read a short exposition:
Arcana Evolved is a variant player handbook for 3E D&D by Monte Cook. The Diamond Throne was the "implied" setting in the first "edition" (Arcana Unearthed) and was later fleshed out in a setting book. The setting is - unlike the D&D 4 default assumption - not a Points of Light campaign. The Diamond Throne is an Empire lead by (mostly benevolent) Giants and covers a wide area of the game region. It was established after a brutal war against the Dramojh, a mix of Dragons and Demons. The Diamond Throne is safely established, though Arcana Evolved added a new dynamic by advancing the timeline a few years - the Dragons are back (originally responsible for the creation of the Dramojh, but having left the lands of the Diamond Throne before the Dramojh returned), and they are not exactly happy with the Giant presence. What happens next is left open...

If you're interested in the setting, I strongly recommend getting the Arcana Evolved rulebook and a few of the supplements. They are all of high quality and contain very interesting elements. As an example, Legacy of the Dragons is a fantastic monster book, in my opinion. The Arcana Evolved rules material itself is fully compatible with D&D 3E, and introduce a different (and more varied) spellcasting system and many new classes.

Okay, after this exposition, onto the rules stuff. There are many things to do. There are several classes in Arcana Evolved, and it remains to be seen if they can be converted faithfully to AE. There are also a host of new races, and I will start with these. I will start on this blog with the Giants.

The Arcana Evolved Giants are different from the 3.5 Giants. They are benevolent, crafters and spiritual without being religious. A unique feature is that they historically have two “modes” of operation. When they fought the Dramojh, they used a ritual called “Chi Julud” to turn themselves into terrible warriors. Now, that they are at peace, they used a ritual to get into the state of “Si-Karan”, where they are protectors and crafters. Giants also used rituals to increase their size (starting as very large medium size creatures). For the moment, I decided to keep them at medium size in 4E, too.

Giant Racial Traits
Ability Scores: +2 Str, +2 Wis
Size: Medium
Speed: 6 squares
Vision: Normal
Languages: Common, Giant
Skill Bonus: +2 Diplomacy, History and Insight
Care of Si Karan: You can use Care of Si Karan as an encounter power.
Mighty Build: You can wield weapons one size category larger then you.
Spirit of Chi Julud: When you're bloodied, you gain a +1 bonus to attack rolls.


Care of Si Karan – Giant Racial Power
You come to the aid of your ally.
Encounter – Giant
Action: Minor; Melee 1; Target: 1 Ally
Prerequisite: Target is under an effect that requires a save to end.
Effect: The target can immediately make a new save to end the ongoing effect.

Giant Racial Feat
Note: I added Ceremony as a new descriptor for the feats, though I don't know yet how they will figure into things. For the moment, it's just a place holder.

Caretaker (Ceremony, Giant)
Prerequisite: Giant, Cha13, Wis13, Skill Training (Heal)
When using the Care of Si-Karan power, your ally may add your Charisma bonus to the saving throw.

War Dancer (Ceremony, Giant)
Prerequisite: Giant, Cha13, Wis13, Level 8+
You can replace one of your utility powers with the Rage of Chi Julud power.

State of Chi-Julud – Giant Racial Power 8
You turn into the state of Chi Julud, channelling your inner fury, turning into a terrifying but reckless foe.
Daily – Giant, Stance
Action: Immediate (Reaction); Personal
Trigger: You are bloodied.
Effect: In this stance, you may add your Wisdom modifier to all damage on successful attacks, but suffer a -2 penalty to defenses. These benefits and drawbacks only apply while you are bloodied.

Giant Paragon Path
Prerequisite: Giant, War Dancer and Care Taker
Note: The Giant Paragon Path is best suited for Defenders (Chi-Julud) and Leaders (Si-Karan).

Giant Size (11th) : Your size increases to Large. You gain a +2 bonus to Strength, but suffer a -2 penalty to Dexterity. Your speed increases by 1 square, and you gain Reach 2.

Special: You have to decide whether you want to focus on the caring aspect of Si Karan, or on the war-like aspect of Chi Julud. This determines the paragon features you gain and the powers you may learn.

Giant Action (Si-Karan, 11th level) : When you spend an action point, all allies immediately recover a number of hit points equal to your level + wisdom bonus.
Giant Action (Chi-Julud, 11th level) : When you spend an action point to gain an extra action, you may add your wisdom bonus to your attacks and checks made until the start of your next turn.

Giant Wisdom (Si-Karan, 16th level) : You gain a +2 bonus to Wisdom.
Giant Resilience (Chi-Julud, 16th level) : You gain a +2 bonus to Constitution.


Might of Chi Julud – Giant Paragon Attack 11
With a powerful strike you knock your enemy down, and inspire your allies to attempt the same.
Encounter – Martial, Weapon, Giant
Action: Standard; Range: Melee Weapon; Target: One creature
Attack: Str vs AC
Hit: 2 [W] + STR and the target is knocked prone. Each ally within 5 squares can make a basic melee at one target of his or her choice as a free action. This attack deals no damage but knocks the target prone. The attacks of your allies enjoy a special bonus equal to 1 + your Charisma modifier.

Anger of Chi Julud – Giant Paragon Utility 12
Daily – Stance, Healing, Giant
Action: Minor; Range: Personal
Effect: You gain regeneration 2+WIS as long as your bloodied. You also gain gain a +1 bonus to all defenses.

Fury of Chi Julud – Giant Paragon Attack 20
Daily – Martial, Weapon, Giant, Stance
Action: Standard; Range: Close Burst 3; Target: All enemies in Burst.
Attack: Str vs AC;
Hit: 1 [W] + your strength modifier damage.
Effect: The Giant gains threatening reach until he ends this stance.


Protection of Si Karan . Giant Paragon Attack 11
You use your presence on the battlefield to unnerve your enemies and protect your allies.
Encounter – Melee, Giant
Action: Standard; Range: Melee Weapon; Target: One creature
Attack: Str vs AC
Hit: 2 [W] + your strength modifier damage, and the target is marked.
Effect: All adjacent allies gain a +2 bonus to their AC and Reflex Defense until the end of your next turn.

Insights of Si-Karan . Giant Paragon Utility 12
You use the ancient Giants wisdom as an inspirations for others.
Daily – Melee, Giant
Action: Free; Area: Close Burst 10; Target: One ally or you.
Trigger: One ally makes an ability or skill check based on Intelligence, Wisdom or Charisma.
Effect: The target gains a +5 bonus to his check. He can reroll the check and take the better result.

Guidance of Si Karan - Giant Paragon Attack 20
Using Giant wisdom, you guide your allies into battle.
Daily – Melee, Giant
Action: Standard; Range: Melee or Ranged Weapon; Target: One creature
Attack: Wis vs AC
Hit: 3 [W] + your Wis modifier damage.
Miss: Half damage.
Effect: All your allies within 10 squares gain temporary hit points equal to your level + your Wisdom bonus.

So, that was the players side. I also have a few drafts for Giant monster stat blocks, and these might be the next in line to post. Check the blog for further updates, (EDIT: ) or discuss it in the 4E House Rules forum or the blogs comments...

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