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Message: <blockquote data-quote="MrMyth" data-source="post: 4738792" data-attributes="member: 61155">Well, he did seem to have a very specific focus on dice manipulation abilities that let him do all sorts of dice swapping tricks, to magically aid his allies and hinder his enemies. Even specifically focusing on that over better damage, at points. Utilities are also very focused on aiding the party. So I'd say he didn't ignore the leader aspect at all - focused on the buffing over the healer, certainly, but that doesn't make it an inherently 'wrong' choice. It is somewhat different the classic arcane archer, and I think he would have been well served snagging some sorcerer multiclassing to pick up one or two truly explosive spells to round out his capabilities. But I think it feels like a truly versatile build, and a very nice ranged leader that provides support from afar.  My big frustration was how much the article emphasized the 'must have' feats from PHB2. Implement and Weapon Expertise are among the very first things each character picks up. Paragon Defenses gets grabbed early in Paragon, and retrained to Robust Defenses at Epic, with Epic Fort/Ref/Will also picked up almost as soon as possible. Feats shouldn't be so good as to skip ahead of all other options, and clearly even in WotC's mind, that is what is happening here.  While the Character Concept article isn't really of great use to me personally, I do like seeing someone walking through the steps and exploring some interesting concepts. Both this article and the last one have had some nice themes for the characters and done a good job of exploring them - I actually really like the focus on the dice manipulation part of this character as a 'controller of destiny'. The builds aren't going to be the most optimized ones, but are certainly playable - though there are a few choices that rub me the wrong way. (The bard taking Str 13 to quality for Ranger Multiclassing - which isn't actually needed - and the Warlock's reluctance to train out low-level powers for higher-level ones, for example.)  Still, I like seeing the process in action, and very much appreciated the somewhat hidden 'preview' of the upcoming Arcane Power content as a part of it. It didn't take anything away from the article itself, while making it a little more appealing for the readership, so I'm a fan of that. I can see folks not liking the core concept of the article itself, but I don't see any reason to consider this part of the trend of 'too much preview content' in Dragon.  (Now, being concerned about two Playtests in one month is a much more viable complaint, but not one that this is really a part of...)</blockquote>

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