And just as a spear can be used to deflect attacks so can magic missiles, basically allow players to describe how they use "any" of there powers defensively.
Er... either I'm not quite following what your intent is, you're not quite following what my intent is, or both. How do *you* mean to allow people access to defensive powers?
What I'd meant was to have specific powers written for defense, for example:
Balletic Avoidance: Airbender Defense ?
Borrowing the wind's swiftness, you dart out of the way of an attack, using speed to avoid what others would have to take
Encounter • Air
Immediate defense
Trigger: An enemy targets you with an attack normally resisted via Fortitude or Will
Effect: You resist the attack with Reflex instead. Until the end of your next turn, you gain a +1 to Reflex.
Quickstrike Monk style: After the attack is resolved, you may shift one square as a free action.
Hurricane Eye style: In addition to the bonus to Reflex, you gain a +1 to AC until the end of your next turn.
or
Invigorating Block: Earthbender (Granite Bulwark style) defense ?
You stand your ground against the enemy's strike, opening yourself to damage but relishing the rush as the effects slough off you like so much rubble.
Immediate defense
Daily • Earth, Healing
Trigger: You are targeted by an attack vs. Fortitude.
Effect: You take a -2 to your Fortitude defense for this attack. If you successfully defend, you may spend a healing surge, gaining extra HP equal to your Constitution modifier.
Failed defense: You may spend a Healing Surge to reduce the amount of damage taken in the attack by an amount equal to your Constitution modifier. If the attack inflicts a negative status effect that a save may end, you can instead choose to forgo this resistance in order to make an immediate saving throw against the effect at -1.
or
Push and pull: Waterbender (Rushing Tides style) Defense ?
You absorb the energy of the enemy's attack, instantly swinging around and using it against him.
Immediate Defense
Encounter • Water
Trigger: You are targeted by an attack
Target: The enemy which attacks you
Effect: Once the enemy's attack is resolved, you may immediately make a melee basic attack against that enemy as a free action.
Or
Inciting Ember Stance: Firebender Defense ?
You stagger back, leaving yourself open to the enemy's strike - and placing him in just the position you'd planned for your followup.
Immediate defense
Encounter • Fire
Trigger: You are targeted by an attack
Target: The enemy which attacks you
Effect: You take a -2 penalty to the defense targeted by the attack. The enemy grants you combat advantage until the end of your next turn.
Other thoughts and notes:
Magic items should probably be rare, if they exist. I would use the rules in the DMG 2 for a low-to-no magic item game.
Likewise, as most Avatar combatants appear to be unarmored or lightly armored, classes should include a level-based AC bonus (that doesn't stack with armor), and relatively few Bender classes should be proficient in standard armor. I'd limit Bender-classes' weapon proficiency, but grant each class an at-will melee attack, ranged attack, or one of each that can be used as a basic attack, and/or improve the bending classes' unarmed attack so that it's roughly equivalent to a weapon attack from another class.
I'd be open to the thought of having 16 classes (four or so for each element, counting each element as a power source rather than a distinct class), but I'd say there should still be power selections available to all benders from a particular element, indicating the foundations of that element's bending arts. After all, Iroh said the basics *are* the greatest weapons, right? Perhaps one or two of each type at the appropriate levels, to supplement the standard class layout.
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