D&D 4E 4e Special Ability PER Encounter stinks...

[Beastman]

ok, the title is perhaps somewhat provoking (or not) but what does anyone think of special abilities useable X-times per encounter?

i personally do not like this approach, because encounter is something which can be from a short battle to a long battle, or even not be a combat encounter at all...so lets say you have a short encounter of 2 minutes of playtime: you can use special ability x here once. then there is a nother encounter taking 2 hours and still you can use special ability x only once here? remind you, encounter not necessarily means combat encounter... i think the whole useable per encounter thing stinks...

 

[Sun Knight]

The problem I have with this is what exactly is a time scale is an encounter? Is it 10 seconds, 1 minute, 1 hour or what? I like to deal with specifics as much as possible. Give me rounds, turns, hours, days, weeks, and months.

 

[Wormwood]

ok, the title is perhaps somewhat provoking (or not) but what does anyone think of special abilities useable X-times per encounter?

I dig them so much that I've introduced them into my 3.5 game for spells and class abilities.

Now the heroes spend all their time actually adventuring and less time sitting around camping.

 

[Szatany]

The problem I have with this is what exactly is a time scale is an encounter? Is it 10 seconds, 1 minute, 1 hour or what? I like to deal with specifics as much as possible. Give me rounds, turns, hours, days, weeks, and months.

Encounter ends when combat ends. Then you can spend your 5 or so minutes to recharge your abilities. That makes it effectively "per encounter", not some nonexisting measure of time.

 

[Sun Knight]

That makes no sense. If the time frame of one encounter is 10 seconds and the bugger gets his powers back then the next encounter takes 2 hours he doesn't get his powers back before then?

That is a big temporal discrepency here.

 

[Wormwood]

That makes no sense. If the time frame of one encounter is 10 seconds and the bugger gets his powers back then the next encounter takes 2 hours he doesn't get his powers back before then?

Encounter = Scene (IMO).

 

[Beastman]

That makes no sense. If the time frame of one encounter is 10 seconds and the bugger gets his powers back then the next encounter takes 2 hours he doesn't get his powers back before then?

That is a big temporal discrepency here.

My saying...so perhaps a definition of encounter should be made...currently an encounter can be anything from examining a fountain in a ruined hallway, the solving of a riddle to open a puzzle-door or agood old headbashing meeting with ogres...

 

[Sun Knight]

I dig them so much that I've introduced them into my 3.5 game for spells and class abilities.

Now the heroes spend all their time actually adventuring and less time sitting around camping.

It seems you have prblems with resource management. My wizard goes through about 4 to 6 encounters on an adventure before he needs to rest to replenish his spells. Then again I use a crossbow.

 

[Sun Knight]

Encounter = Scene (IMO).

Again, how long is that exactly. 10 minutes, 1 hour, or what? I like specifc time tables, especially when it comes to character abilities and spells.

 

[Stalker0]

The problem I have with this is what exactly is a time scale is an encounter? Is it 10 seconds, 1 minute, 1 hour or what? I like to deal with specifics as much as possible. Give me rounds, turns, hours, days, weeks, and months.

Let's remember that in 3x only the barb has the per encounter mechanic for anything. Since 4e will likely use this mechanic more often, I'm sure they will take a little time to clarify what an encounter should mean.