4th ed, the Good & the Bad?

[Wulf Ratbane]

No offense, but no. Working things out is far better and worth the effort.

Far be it from me to discourage you from admitting that you hadn't previously given it any rational thought.

 

[Reynard]

Far be it from me to discourage you from admitting that you hadn't previously given it any rational thought.

And now you have discouraged me from disussing anything with you, because even when someone admits that they were wrong, you still have to get a last jab in.

And people wonder why the 4E forum is starting to look like rpg.net

 

[Doug McCrae]

Oddly -- or not, I'm a writer, I should know better -- naming not just the feats but the abilities properly in order change how they're viewed in an overall framework in the players' minds, may be a job almost as important for the game designers as crunching the math. Look how long they've been trying to de-link "hit points" from a literal understanding of physical damage.

You're on to something here. Look at the amount of houseruling that's done to make the rules fit the names.

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

And now you have discouraged me from disussing anything with you, because even when someone admits that they were wrong, you still have to get a last jab in.

My bad. I misinterpreted your willingness to sling snark as an ability to take it.

I'll be happy to go back and edit it out of my post if you like.

It was meant to be more of a punch in the arm than a knee to the groin.

 

[GlassJaw]

Yes. I think that's a valid concern - for 3.x at least. I can only hope that TWF in D&D 4 will work better (in the sense of "fairer"/"balanced"). If iterative attacks are gone, extra attacks from two weapon fighting need a strong balancing mechanismn.

I'm cool with sneak attack damage applying all the time but TWF does change the equation slightly. Rogues can start putting up massive damage at higher-levels with TWF (although you could argue that more things are immune to SA damage at higher levels...)

Anyway, if you allow sneak attack all the time, I think it works nicely along with removing iterative attacks and granting a damage bonus equal to one-half the character's BAB.

Sneak attack and removing iterative attacks are two separate issues but I think they compliment each other in the same combat system if for no other reason than removing the scenario of the TWF rogue spending 10 minutes to roll 8 attacks and 60+ d6's during his turn.

 

[Reynard]

My bad. I misinterpreted your willingness to sling snark as an ability to take it.

I think you misinterpretted my "no offense, but no" as snark when I was totally seriour -- on both sides of that comma -- I didn't mean any offense in saying "no" I won't take your word for it.

It was meant to be more of a punch in the arm than a knee to the groin.

I see that now -- my bad.

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

I see that now -- my bad.

I once threw a hedgeapple at my buddy, a long, looping hail mary shot about 50 yards across the playground. Just before it hit him in the back I felt bad, yelled, "Look out!" and he turned around and caught it in the groin.

He was not amused, and (once he collected himself) an ass-whipping ensued.

Same kind of thing. My fault.

EDIT: For the life of me I don't understand why the school left that hedgeapple tree standing in the first place. The hedgeapple is perfectly sized for throwing, and it's full of a thick, white, sticky, foul-smelling and caustic goo that gives them an unnatural heft. What did they think we were going to do with dozens of hedgeapples lying all over the playground?

 

[GlassJaw]

On the rogue "sneak attack" line, I fall into the "poorly named sacred cow" camp. Call sneak attack something else

I agree. I think it should be renamed "Kick In the Groin" damage.

EDIT: Or for ranged attacks, "Hedgeapple in the Groin".

 

[Reynard]

EDIT: For the life of me I don't understand why the school left that hedgeapple tree standing in the first place. The hedgeapple is perfectly sized for throwing, and it's full of a thick, white, sticky, foul-smelling and caustic goo that gives them an unnatural heft. What did they think we were going to do with dozens of hedgeapples lying all over the playground?

But would it fit in a sling?

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

But would it fit in a sling?

Staff-sling, maybe, but they went out with 2e.