A Question of Character...

[Andor]

This is a false dillemma.

3.x has been out for years and has a MOUNTAIN of supplements. There is no doubt in my mind that five years from now when there is a mountain of 4th edition supplements, you will be able to play any type of character you can think of and then some.

To expect the core three rulebooks to have the same breadth and depth of options as 3.x including all its supplements is unrealistic.

As far as which options do get included. . . I'm sure they've done a lot of research on which were the most commonly played and therefore which ought to be released first. . . possibly modified by which ones they were satisfied they could do properly by the time of publication.

Mmmmm.... I'd buy your arguement if the discussion was about something obtruse or strange. However a nimble fighter is a pretty basic concept, and was good to go straight out of the 3.0 PHB. In 3.5 you even had the duelist PRC in the DMG. In fact in 3.5 I'd be inclined to state that the nimble fighter archetype was almost unaltered by new material right up until the PHB II came out.

And the reason being that the fighter and rogue classes in 3.x are so flexible, especially combined with the feat system, that a whole spectrum of agile fighters made from varying mixes of those two classes and feats are portrayable.

In 4e, this may not be the case. And if so that would be a step backwards IMNSHO.