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Message: <blockquote data-quote="bramadan" data-source="post: 4145107" data-attributes="member: 1064">DnD4 is less like WoW then any previous edition of DnD.In WoW, and pretty much any other real-time RPG, there is no tactical movement. In all fights in WoW combatants are either static or move based entirely on avoiding global effects (Lurker's spurt, Prince's elementals etc...). There is no such thing as advantageous positioning in WoW and consequently no spells or abilities that deal with positioning.While the above describes previous editions of DnD reasonably well, DnD4 deliberately moves away from it and plays to a significant strength of table-top over computer: fact that human GM can generate much more tactically challenging combat then the scripted AI.Combat against multiple opponents is exception rather then a rule in WoW. Even in the "multi-boss fights" such as Majordomo, Four Horsemen and Ilidari Council ratio of PCs to antagonists is 5:1 or more. Great majority of "interesting" fights in WoW are old style party-against-one big baddie.Again, this pattern of numbers fits old style DnD. DnD4 seems to move more towards 1:1 ratio between PCs and antagonists, with solo and smaller groups of monsters being exception rather then a rule. Again, this is playing towards the fact that GM is more flexible then then AI and the fact that more monsters means more tactical complexity.With extremely rare exceptions (General Rajax event and some fights in Zul Aman are the only that come to mind) WoW adventure is structured in the familiar mould of trivial "trash" fights taking much of the time, punctuated with exciting "Boss" fights culminating in the hardest and most rewarding "Boss" at the end. This happens to be exactly the pattern of the old style DnD adventures where characters were able to deal with the dungeon room by room with enough rest time in between. DnD4 appears to massively increase size of what it considers "an encounter" to the point where significant part of the dungeon falls under a single encounter. (See Mearls' article on re-using old dungeon maps). This has the effect of raising risk and fun level of "trash clearing"   to par with "boss encounters". To consider just how different this is from WoW - consider how WoW would play if each instance was designed so that the players get to rest/drink only 3-4 times per run. Magic items are primary means of character advancement in WoW at the cap level (greatest bulk of WoW play takes place at cap level) and are incredibly important even before cap level (as everyone who has ever twinked an alt will know). Magic items were always important in DnD and never more then in DnD3. DnD4 deliberately reduces their importance. In a word, WoW - being, as it is, an ofshoot of the DnD borrowed very many DnD tropes. DnD4 actually deliberately moves away from some of the old DnD tropes and in particular away from the ones that give themselves better to a synthetic/computerized GMing. Out of the two (mutually contradictory) criticisms of DnD4 one which claims that it is becoming more like a board game is ways closer to the mark then the one claiming that it is becoming more like MMO. Reason for this is that DnD4 appears to be playing strongly on the qualities inherent in a human GM (much as human opponents provide much more of a challenge then AI in all but most rigid and over-analyzed board games).</blockquote>

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