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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Estlor" data-source="post: 4753943" data-attributes="member: 7261">If all you do is look at the end result of a power - deal X+Y damage and effect X - then yes, there are no mechanical differences between power sources.  And rightly so, as every power serves the same purpose - an expression of resolving an attack in combat.  But power sources are mechanically unique when you step back and look at more than the end result.Compare the rogue, avenger, warlock, and barbarian.  All of them fill the role of striker and have powers that deal lots of damage, but once you start using their powers in combat they're very different.The preponderance of Martial powers target AC with some Reflex and the occasional Fortitude thrown in.  How many Arcane powers target AC?  (Swordmage has nearly all of them, I'm sure).  Arcane powers nearly all target Reflex with some Fortitude and Will thrown in.  Divine is a pretty even split between AC and Reflex with some Will thrown in.  Primal focuses on AC and Fortitude.(Aside: Notice how the power sources that largely target a NAD are almost exclusively delivered by implements.  Notice again how AC tends to skew higher than the NADs.  Also notice how weapons have proficiency bonus and implements do not.  Brilliant design!)Now toss in feats.  My martial character can shift as a minor action the first round of combat.  His arcane character can deliver larger than normal burst attacks.  Her divine character can evoke the power of her god to heal after a critical hit.  We all use powers to inflict damage, but how we do it, what damage we do, and what we can do while we're not inflicting damage is very different because of the power source our class uses.When you get down to it, if you express everything in as simple a set of terms as people who argue there are no mechanical differences between power sources do powers, what's the point of having four defenses?  I mean, they're all simply the expression of how hard we are to hit.  Why not have a single defense score and have conditional modifiers?  My 6th level cleric has a defense of 13, +7 versus weapons from magic hide armor and Dexterity, +4 versus implements from amulet of health and Dexterity, etc.  I mean, Reflex and Will work exactly the same just with different names, right? <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f609.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=";)" title="Wink    ;)"  data-smilie="2"data-shortname=";)" /></blockquote>

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