Dragon abilities

[Ibixat]

Draconomicon has a Red Dragon Wyrmling, level 5 elite version of the red, if you took that dragon, added back the presence and added HP it would basically be a level 5 solo monsters, just make the presesnce 2 less to hit.

 

[DracoSuave]

The difference between 1 and 3 is an entire encounter power + a utility.

Not much?

 

[CapnZapp]

Your choice of monsters is also hampered by having a level disparity of 2 whole levels in your party. The game mechanics are really geared to the party all being the same level.

Your level 2 guys are going to be 1 or 2 points less to hit, 1 or 2 less on all defenses, have 1 less encounter power, 1 less feat, 2 levels worth of hit points less, and 2 levels worth of magic items less (which can put them further away in the to hit and defenses stakes).

Monsters appropiate for your level 4s will eat the 2s up, and monsters appropiate for your level 2s will be much less of a threat to your 4s.

No.

Whatever you think, a 10% (2 out of 20) difference cannot be the difference between "being much less of a threat" and "eating up your PCs".

4E may be balanced and non-swingy, but if your observation were true, the game would for all practical purposes be completely independent of luck.

Remember there is a significant probability remaining between rolling one lower or one higher than the average (over the course of a single fight; less than a hundred rolls or so).

What you're implying more or less requires you to replace all d20 rolls with a static result of 11. This is clearly not the case.

Best Regards,
Zapp

 

[Milambus]

The difference between 1 and 3 is an entire encounter power + a utility.

Not much?

Also:
- A feat (doubling the number of feats for most races/classes)
- 2 levels worth of hps (8-12, about 40-50% increase from level 1)
- +1 level bonus to attack, skills, and all defenses

I'd say that it seems similar to the difference between levels 1 and 2 in 3.x.

 

[davidnoal]

It doesn't matter if it bothers you or not... if the party members are trivial then you're designing an adventure for 3 level 3 characters.

And how did such a level disparity come about anyways?

It's mostly because within my group real life intrudes and we don't play all that often or with any regularity. I normally level them at an accelerated rate, perhaps every other session or so. PCs with fewer levels either just joined the game, or have missed most of the sessions.

 

[Lord Ernie]

I actually decided that everyone is always at the highest XP value for my games to prevent exactly this problem. I see no reason to 'punish' players who can't always show up, and encounter balancing is a lot easier. 1-2 levels of difference might not seem much, but I'm planning to work the tiers into my storyline (so the minute they hit level 11 the scale will change), and I really don't envy the level 9 players who are in the same party as a level 11 character.

 

[davidnoal]

I actually decided that everyone is always at the highest XP value for my games to prevent exactly this problem. I see no reason to 'punish' players who can't always show up, and encounter balancing is a lot easier. 1-2 levels of difference might not seem much, but I'm planning to work the tiers into my storyline (so the minute they hit level 11 the scale will change), and I really don't envy the level 9 players who are in the same party as a level 11 character.

It's not a punishment. While I use an accelerated leveling rate, they still must earn the levels. So, about every 4-6 hard encounters everyone there gets a level.

 

[davidnoal]

Draconomicon has a Red Dragon Wyrmling, level 5 elite version of the red, if you took that dragon, added back the presence and added HP it would basically be a level 5 solo monsters, just make the presesnce 2 less to hit.

This sounds like a great fit for what I need. Thanks.

 

[abyssaldeath]

To you it's not a punishment, but to the player it is. I can tell you from experience that being 1 to 2 levels behind everyone else SUCKS.

 

[davidnoal]

To you it's not a punishment, but to the player it is. I can tell you from experience that being 1 to 2 levels behind everyone else SUCKS.

Doubtful. We are a bit more old-school than the average D&Der.