Fighter Slayer preview

[Aegeri]

It doesn't bother me either. Take the +2 damage stance from the other fighter preview, which is far better than sacrificing -2 to hit for a measly +2 extra damage (seriously Wizards :/) and just use that with good dex. A 18 strength/18 dex slayer is dealing +10 damage in static mods without anything else at level 1. That's not a bad deal at all. Plus that's a good spread of NADs if you put some points into charisma or wisdom. So defensively it holds up. Assuming you spend your first feat on a good d12 weapon like a executioners axe or something else you can deal really solid damage.

It's also very simple to play for that reason. Just find an enemy and hit it until it dies. This is the first essentials class that completely succeeds in what it is trying to do: Be very simple to play. You can stay in that +2 damage stance all day long and just swing until things die ignoring everything else.

 

[OnlineDM]

I think the Slayer's strikerness is tied to the fact that it gets to add its Dexterity modifier to all of its attacks. Strikers generally have some damage bonus like that (Sneak Attack, Hunter's Quarry, Flurry of Blows, etc.). Dex mod... figure +3 at least at first level on every weapon attack (including opportunity attacks or Warlord-granted attacks). Not bad. Not amazing for a striker, but not bad - especially when you consider the high AC and high hit points.

As Aegeri pointed out, defenders have marks. The Slayer doesn't, ergo it's a striker.

 

[mach1.9pants]

Also bow fighters again, win!

And Dex training feat (for hit, whatever it is called).

This is full of fighter excitement for me.

 

[JohnSnow]

Huh. I somehow glossed that.

Well, good. As I said, I like the idea of a steel-wrapped striker.

I'm surprised that they made one class build a different role than the others. I'll need to decide for sure how I feel about that, but my first instinct is that while I wouldn't have suggested it, it doesn't bother me.

Well, there's also the fact that all the classes have had primary and secondary roles pretty much since the beginning. The Fighter was always a defender who was...umm, "striker-curious," if you'll pardon the phrase. Just like the cleric has some controller tendencies, and so forth...

I don't know how well this class really keeps up with other strikers. The stances seem pretty important to class power.

 

[Rex Blunder]

And Dex training feat (for hit, whatever it is called).

Ugh, I hadn't thought of that.

That does feel a little broken. My sugar high just became a sugar crash.

Now you can just dump STR, right? You can be a Single Attribute Dependency DEX build.

The best Slayer fighter is a kobold (+2 DEX, +2 CON) who can shift 2 every turn so they can stay in the Berserker's Charge stance and charge every round.

Not very thematic at all. And makes a much worse cover for the Red Box.

 

[Aegeri]

Also bow fighters again, win!

And Dex training feat (for hit, whatever it is called).

This is full of fighter excitement for me.

Don't need dex training, just go dex primary and no strength. Ranged basic attacks are dex already and you can just use those. Both class features apply to bows, so you've got no concerns. Doubling your dex on every attack though is hard to resist. Actually you could just go dex primary and double up on your dex anyway with a melee weapon as well. Get good AC and Reflex, plus have a +8 or +10 damage bonus on all attacks (depending on if you can get dex 18/20 to start with). Not to mention have fantastic initiative.

If you do feel the need to hit things, you can take melee training dex. I do wonder if melee training might get looked at because of essentials classes.

 

[doctorhook]

Power Strike appears to be "miscoloured" green, i.e.: as an at-will, despite that the text says it's an encounter power. I just double checked the Knight preview, and Power Strike is (correctly, I assume) coloured red in that article.

 

[mach1.9pants]

Yeah there is al sorts of char op stuff here... but I'll not panic until I have seen the class (and 4EE) entire!

But are we going to see more mix and match roles? I hope so.. Wizard strikers, Druid controllers leader, Rogue controllers, Ranger leaders etc etc. I like that idea.

While I am editing: Paladin leaders

 

[doctorhook]

But are we going to see more mix and match roles? I hope so.. Wizard strikers, Druid controllers, Rogue controllers, Ranger leaders etc etc. I like that idea.

(Psst! Druids already are controllers... )

EDIT: Technically, I posted before you edited, but obviously you saw your mistake already. Now this whole post just seems pointless... Look what you've done!

 

[ggroy]

Wonder how a swordmage controller would work.