Dodge, why is it still crappy?

[ShinHakkaider]

Easy solution:

Dodge II [General]
You have learned to dodge your opponents' attacks -- wrenches, cars, and balls.
Prerequisite: Dex 13
Benefit: You gain a +1 dodge bonus to AC.

For the purpose of feats that have Dodge as a prerequisite, you can use this feat in its place. If a feat would have an effect based on which opponent you would normally choose to be dodging, you must choose a single opponent each round on your turn as the focus of such effects.

If you have already taken Dodge, you can replace it with this feat without requiring you to spend another feat slot.

"If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a Ball!!"

"What?!?"

*Throws wrench*

CLANG!!!

"OWWWWWWWWWWWW"

 

[WarlockLord]

There is the 'Desert Wind Dodge' from Tome of Battle. If you move 10 feet, +1 to AC (vs. everyone) and 1 point of fire damage on attacks...plus it counts as Dodge for the purpose of feats.

The catch? You need to know a Desert Wind maneuver.

 

[JustinA]

Ah, the dodge feat. It is likely one of the most common houserules in the game to simply make the dodge feat a +1 dodge bonus to AC. It is clean, simple, effective. It speeds up gameplay, its easier to remember for dm and player alike. In my many years on this board, I have never heard anyone say this houserule is broken or overpowered. Afterall, we have a feat (weapon focus) that for 95% of all combats provides a +1 to attack rolls (the companion to dodge if you will).

I don't know. I've literally been arguing for the flat +1 to AC rule since before 3rd Edition came out. It was included in my playtest comments. And in September 2000, with the playtest done and a new campaign starting up, I houseruled it myself and have played it that way ever since.

I don't know why it wasn't changed for 3.5. I have absolutely no comprehension for why it wasn't changed for Star Wars Saga. It is one of the most fundamentally simple fixes to streamline and simplify play, and yet WotC perseveres with its kludgy mechanics.

Justin Alexander
http://www.thealexandrian.net

 

[blargney the second]

I have a character that already has Dodge, and next level he's going to take Midnight Dodge (which'll do exactly the same thing as Dodge). They're powerful feats if you know how to use 'em right.

 

[Arkhandus]

Well, for one thing, not all feats are created equal. Dodge is among the most basic feats that 1st level characters would take, and as such, it shouldn't be very powerful.

Also, part of the power of Dodge has nothing to do with the dodge bonus itself - it also grants you access to Mobility and Spring Attack.

By the same rationale, though, Power Attack should also be a poor feat, as it's very easy to qualify for and is the gateway to numerous (moreso than Dodge, far as I know) feats that are also useful. And yet Power Attack was a useful feat in 3.0, and far stronger in 3.5.

Just saying, that doesn't really hold up well with Dodge. It really ought to be more useful.


In one of my homebrews, I just added another feat that relies on dodge, called Clever Dodging; it allows the PC to take a full round action surveying the battlefield, and then after that they gain +2 dodge to AC against all attacks for several rounds, doubled against their Dodge feat's target. In another homebrew I just make Dodge selectable more than once, up to once per two character levels rounded up, and have a few more feats around that rely on Dodge as a prerequisite but are not so strong as the Clever Dodging feat from my other homebrew.

 

[Darklone]

One thing most people tend to forget: Low point buy games. Dodge isn't that bad if you build 25 or 28 point buy chars. Still, it's not too strong either and +1 dodge bonus vs everyone has proven to be pretty balanced in my games that have a tendency to catch PCs (and NPCs flatfooted...)

It's one of the nice things you have if your 10 players do not seem to manage to build one PC, cohort or follower without rogue levels.

Rangerwicket: I do like the idea of these Ducky feats, yet I would be a bit careful to hand out core class abilities by feats. With the possible exception of evasion. (Fochlucan Lyrist, here I come!)

I'd rather see the upgrade feats to grant bonuses to other things... or perhaps Int/Cha to AC for unarmored ones (prerequisites perhaps Perform (dance)) or a +2 dodge AC bonus vs ranged touch attacks (perhaps with a +1 to Refl saves)....

 

[Aus_Snow]

It isn't.

 

[Li Shenron]

Personally I think that a feat that gives a flat +1AC that stack with everything (and with only restriction that you don't get when flat-footed) is an excellent feat for all characters, particularly at low levels. I think the designers felt the same, and wanted to slightly tone it down.

Overall it's very balanced IMHO, but I admit that having to select the target every time is boring, and makes it easy to forget about having the bonus.

 

[Stalker0]

Personally I think that a feat that gives a flat +1AC that stack with everything (and with only restriction that you don't get when flat-footed) is an excellent feat for all characters, particularly at low levels. I think the designers felt the same, and wanted to slightly tone it down.

And yet they allow weapon focus, which gives you a +1 to attack rolls in every combat. Of course, there will be those rare times when you can't use your favorite weapon. But then again, since PCs tend to get surprised a lot, there's a decent number of times you won't get that dodge bonus on the first round either.

 

[Li Shenron]

And yet they allow weapon focus, which gives you a +1 to attack rolls in every combat. Of course, there will be those rare times when you can't use your favorite weapon. But then again, since PCs tend to get surprised a lot, there's a decent number of times you won't get that dodge bonus on the first round either.

Well I see your point, once you get a Weapon Focus you just everything you can to always use that weapon, so it's a +1 all the time.

But it still "feels" to me that a defense bonus is always slightly better than an offensive bonus. You use it when you want to fight, and also when you don't want to... But I see how someone can feel the other way around.