I need advice for a new Sentinel Druid.

[Destil]

They grant CA only vs adjacent enemies or something like that. Most ranged attacks are actually at -2!

Oh, hey. I've been doing it wrong all this time. Good to know.

 

[Colmarr]

Neither of which is their strong suit, and they can take a feat to negate the weakness if they're really stubborn about it.

This is exactly the tone I'm talking about. Why do you automatically jump to the conclusion that the other players should tailor their PCs to the OP's choice of powers?

4e works best when the PCs are a team, and it doesn't seem that anyone (either the OP or the wizard's player) is making much of an effort to do so.

It may well be that the wizard player is being a dick, the PC has 5000 close and area attacks and the -2 from prone won't affect him that much, but it's also entirely possible that the character is heavily built around single-target heavy-control ranged attacks. I don't really care, but it's the sort of information the community should be asking for before jumping to conclusions.

 

[Lord Ernie]

Tell your wizard that if prone enemies are such a problem, he should pick up the Grounding Shot feat: No penalty and +2 damage on ranged attacks vs. prone targets.

Problem solved .

(Yeah, I know he's not likely to take a feat for teamwork purposes, but hey, you can try)

 

[Minifig]

4e works best when the PCs are a team, and it doesn't seem that anyone (either the OP or the wizard's player) is making much of an effort to do so.

It's more that I'm working around the three other players in the game and the Wizard being obdurate. The way I figure it, 4 players who can get a use out of it vs 1 who can't because of his own stubbornness can just suffer. It's his fault for not wanting to work with something everyone else in the group wants me to take.

 

[Herschel]

To be honest, there seems to be an odd tone to this thread a la "Both powers are good, but take X and screw the 2 other party members who it will inconvenience..."

Many 4e powers are only as good as the manner in which they interract with the rest of the party. Knocking targets prone when at least 2 of the PCs seem to be ranged-based strikes me as more than a little selfish/silly.

The point being that a rogue LOVES prone targets because it's the world's easiest gaining of combat advantage and it should in no way onconvenience the rogue who is not a full range build. It generally shouldn't be an inconvenience to a wizard either. If the wizard is only interested in single target spell damage, he's playing the wrong class and not playing his role. A wizard does need to learn to aim, at least until he can take teh battle caster feats.

 

[Mika]

Another idea -- has your wizard considered using readied actions for single target attacks? So he wants to attack the single target you just knocked prone -- why not just ready an action to cast that spell after he stands up? All the better if his attack knocks the target prone again.

 

[Obryn]

Another idea -- has your wizard considered using readied actions for single target attacks? So he wants to attack the single target you just knocked prone -- why not just ready an action to cast that spell after he stands up? All the better if his attack knocks the target prone again.

This post needs an asterisk. The text would read:

* WARNING: Readied action games are far more profitable and powerful for the DM than they are for players. Use with caution, because combat will quickly become a muddled mess that will leave your Defenders powerless, your Controllers toothless, and will make combat longer, more confusing, and infinitely more sucky.

-O

 

[UngeheuerLich]

My readied charge from the NPC thief in the back of the PC rogue (in flanking position) was worth giving up an action and a higher initiative. Hmmh, thinking about it, i could have used the combat advantage from beeing stealthed too... but this was a very very funny moment.

So using readied actions sparsely, increases the fun.