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Your description does sounds very exciting, although I do wonder where exactly the non-spellcasters' class abilities came into play. It sounds as though they were relegated to managing nets, grenades and making basic attacks. You specifically mention that the wizards got to use their iconic...

I am somewhat concerned we are seeing martial powers not getting the respect they deserve. In particular, that the class abilities of the Warlord, the martial leader, are being questioned in importance as something that any party should manage if it is at all possible. If a coordinated group...

I don't think you're in a minority here. I feel relatively confident that most DMs you asked on this group would say that they like tweaking and modifying monsters. I certainly do, although I am in favor of having several example builds for advanced creatures for major categories of monsters...

I should note that I've liked a fair number of the articles that DDI has had. However, there are too few of them and too infrequent right now to impress. Generally, I think people have too rosy a view of the paper magazines, which had plenty of so-so articles mixed in with the good stuff...

Frankly, I think the 4e Pit Fiend is about as interesting as the 3e Pit Fiend. Looking over the stat blocks, each has abilities the other lacks and many of the spell-like abilities the 3e Pit Fiend has aren't particularly effective in actual high-level combat. More importantly, I believe the...

You know, you still *can* throw single foes not generated using the suggestions for solo monsters at a party in 4e. Just eyeball a higher level standard foe and send one of 'em at the PCs. I think it will pretty much go like the party versus ogre fights in previous editions: some carnage...

I've been disappointed by the schedule for the released content, but not in any way surprised. I like darn near everything I've heard about 4e as an RPG, but I have no confidence in WotC in any matters related to the net or software. There's going to be a lot of confusion and bumbling before...

Actually, from all appearance, in 4e it will be much simpler to go from concept to execution in monster design. If specific examples are supposed to represent the destruction of creativity, then that must mean that 3.5e with its innumerably greater number of current examples must be far less...

For the kobold, hobgoblin and orc races, I believe they've already stated that there will be write-ups for PC style characters. And, even if there weren't, everything we've heard about classes indicates that they are almost entirely additive to characteristics that monsters already have. So I...

If they can make the 500 monster write-ups all useful to me as a DM, I'll be overjoyed. How many are unique in the sense of being completely separate species is only a secondary concern for me. As to the monsters they've excluded, like the Frost Giant and the metallic dragons, it sounds as...

I'm far more concerned with whether DMs will find these stats actually useful in play over some kind of concern that each monster stat block should represent a whole new fantasy species. I mean, I could take the 3e stat blocks for hobgoblins, dwarves and elves and add class levels to them to...

I don't believe there will be any rules in 4e to prevent new monster, magical item or PC abilities from being save-or-die. However, I suspect that no such examples shall be presented in the core rules. I think that the occasional exception to general game design is a good idea: it prevents...

I wouldn't put an absolute numerical value on the hit point limit required to make an attack count for a wound. Like the Massive Damage Rules, it will quickly become troublesome as the game reaches higher levels and greater average damage per attack totals. At 10+ level, you're going to having...

I think we need to be a bit careful when talking about healing surges, which are more of a game mechanic and the character actions that allow you to *use* a healing surge. So far, a character uses Second Wind, five-minute rests and divine magic to use a healing surge. Since divine magic and...

And, of course, *none* of them ever resulted in penalties to actions without on-the-spot DM rulings. The hit point system in 3e was inconsistent in its application and explanations. Hit points were sometimes physical injuries, sometimes the ability to avoid physical injury. However, they...

I'll be playing 3.5e at least for the next year or so. I very much like what I've seen of 4e and the design work, but I've got too much 3.5e adventure material to get through before I'm through with it. At the very least, I want to play through the Age of Worms adventure path and possibly...

And there was no significant injury rules in all previous editions of D&D. If there are no penalties to actions, that is not a significant injury. There has never been a way for a character to lose a limb or an eye outside of artibrary table decisions by the DM. Recovery times for hit point...

I was wondering if the milestone mechanic for Action Points could be used for house rules for those tables that wished to encourage more encounters per day and less resting. Perhaps upon each milestone (2 encounters), PCs would gain healing surges and a chance to recharge per day abilities...

I typically use several approaches: 1) Using aforementioned action movie/fantasy hero logic to how those injuries are possible to "tough out" and play through. Then basically ignoring those injuries. 2) Avoiding using such specific descriptions when they would clearly carry a penalty the...

I think the flaw, or common complaint, was that previous editions of D&D really didn't have a monster generation system. I believe in the DMG there was something about Hit Dice and the number of special abilities and how many XP the monster should be worth. But there wasn't any kind of a...