Goblin Hexer - Errata? Or just OP?

[Ninja-to]

So I started playing 4th Ed again and ran the FR intro module (from the CG) and realized the Goblin Hexer power Blinding Hex to be rather... strong.

Not only is it vs Fort (horrible for casters) it also does a fair bit of damage at 2d6+1, AND it blinds! (even worse for casters who are now effectively shut down). Not only does the blindness require a save, this power is AT WILL.

Has this power been errated, or is it just OP?

 

[Aegeri]

It has not been errata'ed and to be honest it's on the low side of what monsters are doing these days. You should check out Jackalwere deceiver, which has a recharge 5+ knock you unconscious power. Knights hate and fear Jackalweres - turns off both the defender aura and their stance instantly btw. A double blow. Their typical allies are Bravos, who can then proceed to one shot any 3rd level character in the game (as their crit damage is higher than many level 3/4 characters bloodied value on a coup de grace).

So being blinded, which is easily negated by using bursts and blasts (as these are not penalized by blind whatsoever) isn't really that bad anymore. Not to mention it only actually affects one character and the hexer himself ends up with an immediate bullseye on him from everyone else in the party.

 

[Aulirophile]

Blind is a pretty meh condition for people who are likely to have low Fort, as they are also likely to have Blasts/Bursts. He has average defenses and low hp, just nuke him. Any decent striker should be able to one round him (with a little help on positioning from the party if needed).

 

[Ninja-to]

Alright then I guess that answers my question. I thought it was a bit strong but I guess if there's a full party then it should be no problem. I think on a smaller group of 3 or 4 it's a bit more painful. They did alright with the last combat, but I thought if they were a little unlucky with a few rolls it would've been a lot worse. I considerd houseruling it as an encounter power, but I'll leave it as is for now.

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

Are you familiar with the new monster damage guidelines, found in the MM3 and errata? The average damage is now 8 + monster level, slightly lower for AoE powers.

I made a pretty identical post a few months ago trying to figure out why Dark Sun monsters did so much damage.

 

[Nemesis Destiny]

When my group first started with 4e, we ran through a modified version of this adventure, and the fight with the pit trap and the hexer nearly wiped us, and would have if not for our ignorance of the rules.

My feylock got hit a couple times with that power; nearly wiped her out and did effectively shut her down (no bursts or blasts). Then again, I believe we were still level 1, and our DM is kind of mean.

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

So being blinded, which is easily negated by using bursts and blasts (as these are not penalized by blind whatsoever) isn't really that bad anymore.

I thought you took an attack penalty for being blind. But perhaps more importantly, you don't just need to guess where the enemy is, you need to guess where your allies are too.

 

[deadsmurf]

I thought you took an attack penalty for being blind. But perhaps more importantly, you don't just need to guess where the enemy is, you need to guess where your allies are too.

Technically according to the rules you do know (more or less) where enemies and allies are unless they are hiding from you (using stealth) but any attack you make has the penalty, other than bursts/blasts (-5? I don't have it memorized... that's what DM screens are for to tell me penalties of conditions!)

For most people that stretches believability, but I think running it otherwise unfairly penalizes players and monsters.

 

[malraux]

Technically according to the rules you do know (more or less) where enemies and allies are unless they are hiding from you (using stealth) but any attack you make has the penalty, other than bursts/blasts (-5? I don't have it memorized... that's what DM screens are for to tell me penalties of conditions!)

For most people that stretches believability, but I think running it otherwise unfairly penalizes players and monsters.

So I'm "Blind" when I take my contacts out. I couldn't see a target well enough to hit holes in the armor, for example. And if someone were to make even a minimal effort, I'd probably lose track of them (ie make a stealth role). But I could still tell enemies from allies, and roughly where everyone was. If I were using a flamethrower, I'd still be able to hit things.

The 4e Blinded condition is not "no light perception" its just much harder to see.

 

[OnlineDM]

I thought you took an attack penalty for being blind. But perhaps more importantly, you don't just need to guess where the enemy is, you need to guess where your allies are too.

This explains why the power seemed so strong to you - you are under the impression that "blind" in game terms is just like "blind" in real-world terms. Ah, not so.

If you are blind, everyone on the battlefield has total concealment from you. That means that if you attack them with a ranged or melee attack, you do so with a -5 penalty. However, if you use a close or area attack against them, there's no penalty for being blind.

Furthermore, even if they have total concealment from you, you still know EXACTLY where everyone on the battlefield is UNLESS they make a stealth check at the end of one of their move actions to hide from you. If that Stealth check beats your passive Perception (which is going to be at a -10 penalty due to your blindness), then and ONLY then are they hidden from you, in which case you don't know what square they're in. But if a bad guy is making no attempt to be stealthy as it moves around the battlefield, your senses of hearing and smell are good enough to pinpoint exactly what square he's in.

I put up a blog post about this a little while ago: The Hidden Condition in 4th Edition