Craven feat: overpowered?

[Egres]

This is the first time I ask for feedback about a feat, but I'm sincerely astonished by the uberness of this one.

For those of you who don't own Champions of Ruin, the Craven feat grants an additional 1 point of damage per character level with each successfull sneak attack dealt.

It also has a negative effect: a -2 penalty to ST against fear effects.....Wow.

That's a great balancing factor.

BTW, let me know what do you think about it.

Thanks in advance.

 

[VirgilCaine]

It also has a negative effect: a -2 penalty to ST against fear effects.....Wow.

What the heck were the designers thinking? What does strength have to do with a fear effect?

 

[Egres]

What the heck were the designers thinking? What does strength have to do with a fear effect?

Heh.

This is the flavor text:


Like most sly rogues, you are a dangerous coward. However, your sneak attacks deal more damage than normal.

 

[Plane Sailing]

What the heck were the designers thinking? What does strength have to do with a fear effect?

ST = Saving Throw
Str = Strength

Is this what the confusion was?

 

[VirgilCaine]

Heh.

This is the flavor text:

Like most sly rogues, you are a dangerous coward. However, your sneak attacks deal more damage than normal.

No, I mean mechanically...oh wait, yeah, IIRC there are Strength penalties or something for fear effects. Whoopee.

ST = Saving Throw
Str = Strength

Is this what the confusion was?

Yes, and that's an even worse "drawback".

 

[Savage Wombat]

Make it one point of bonus damage per die and it's balanced, I'd say.

It's not too different from a couple of other feats that enhance sneak.

 

[KarinsDad]

This is not overbalanced. It is completely broken.

Compare it to Power Attack (for a single handed weapon).

-2 Saving Throw vs. Fear to gain +1 damage per character level compared to -1 BAB per +1 damage.

So, the 19th level Rogue doing this is +14 to hit and +9D6 more damage than an equivalent 19th level Fighter doing a full blown Power Attack (assuming everything else the same).

If you give them the same to hit (i.e. use 5 of the Fighter's BAB to give them the same relative to hit not including Str and other factors), the Rogue does 9D6+14 more points of damage.

 

[Christian]

If you give them the same to hit (i.e. use 5 of the Fighter's BAB to give them the same relative to hit not including Str and other factors), the Rogue does 9D6+14 more points of damage.

Yeah, but most of that's from the sneak attack dice themselves ... Breaking that down into average damage, the rogue is doing 45 points more damage per sneak attack hit than the power-attacking fighter, compared to only 31 points more damage per sneak attack hit for a rogue without this feat ... The sneak attack dice are what keep the rogue from being useless in combat compared to a fighter-ordinarily the fighter shines, but in surprise situations or if the rogue can set up a flanking attack (against many types of opponents), the rogue can actually out-whack the fighter. This feat lets him out-whack the fighter by about 50% more in those situations.

It's overpowered, certainly, but not massively. Personally, I think the biggest problem is not the size of the bonus (although +1 point per die is probably more reasonable) but how little you're giving up. Fear attacks don't happen that often, and they're not incredibly dangerous when they do. Really, they're more dangerous for the characters who make their saves and are left in combat without their backup. (Wizard: "Woo-hoo! That's why you want a good Will save, boys!" Fighters & Rogue: "We fail our save and run away." DM: "Let's, see, who's left for my BBEG to whomp in melee?" Wizard: "Um, I cast Expeditious Retreat.")

Maybe if the feat added one level to the degree of fear effects on a failed save? Cowering characters are so vulnerable ...

 

[Egres]

What I really don't understand is that "per character level".

This means that you could take a single level of Rogue, and then go for a straight Fighter, dealing, at 20th level, +20 damage with each sneak attack.

That's ridicuolous.

 

[two]

What I really don't understand is that "per character level".

This means that you could take a single level of Rogue, and then go for a straight Fighter, dealing, at 20th level, +20 damage with each sneak attack.

That's ridicuolous.

Ha, good one.