mhd
Adventurer
First, I think the usual thanks for Trailblazer are in line. I've heard about it quite a while ago, but the shiny lure of Pathfinder proved to much, and my group chose that for our recent try at playing 3E again… Needless to say, once we hit the medium levels, all the good things about new character building options are a bit stained by the usual problems. After buying TB, I really want to renege on my initial promise of trying to go the distance without bigger house rules.
Looking at my players' characters, I see a few problems coming up, if I go all-out Trailblazin'. I don't think my Druid will complain a lot, as he didn't opt for an animal companion anyway. Still, he's getting a lot of use out of his chosen domain (Fire), so I wondered whether it would be a big infringement on the TB cleric if we'd keep that PF option…
And then there's the biggest problem child, the elven archer. Compared to 3.5E, bow users have gotten a few nice benefits, and that area seems mostly unchanged in TB. So the archer would lose both the extra pseudo-attack from Manyshot and Deadly Aim, the Power Attack for ranged combatants. I'd consider the 3E Manyshot to be superior, as it at least gives you a decent option for shooting on the run, but a damage bonus on each arrow alleviates a lot of the problems. What's the forum's opinion on this? Overpowered or a needed addition?
Finally (phew), the new AoO rules make most of the "spiked gauntlet/armor" cheese unneeded, as you'll only get attacks if he's leaving your threatened area, which should be done with the reach weapon anyway. But the whole concept has always seemed immeasurably silly to me, so it would be a good candidate for elimination in the course of introducing new rules. Possible objections?
Looking at my players' characters, I see a few problems coming up, if I go all-out Trailblazin'. I don't think my Druid will complain a lot, as he didn't opt for an animal companion anyway. Still, he's getting a lot of use out of his chosen domain (Fire), so I wondered whether it would be a big infringement on the TB cleric if we'd keep that PF option…
And then there's the biggest problem child, the elven archer. Compared to 3.5E, bow users have gotten a few nice benefits, and that area seems mostly unchanged in TB. So the archer would lose both the extra pseudo-attack from Manyshot and Deadly Aim, the Power Attack for ranged combatants. I'd consider the 3E Manyshot to be superior, as it at least gives you a decent option for shooting on the run, but a damage bonus on each arrow alleviates a lot of the problems. What's the forum's opinion on this? Overpowered or a needed addition?
Finally (phew), the new AoO rules make most of the "spiked gauntlet/armor" cheese unneeded, as you'll only get attacks if he's leaving your threatened area, which should be done with the reach weapon anyway. But the whole concept has always seemed immeasurably silly to me, so it would be a good candidate for elimination in the course of introducing new rules. Possible objections?
