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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Redbadge" data-source="post: 5583072" data-attributes="member: 61463">Like any class, essentials have a wide range of optimization and tactical effectiveness, depending on the player. And a properly built essentials class can nova. I would not say that there is no way they can compete with a properly built pre-essentials striker. Most essential novas may not be higher than original strikers, but I think they are competitive. On average, an essentials character can deal between 200-250% damage to an average monster of the same level with a nova. Essentials classes can kill an elite with a nova, or bloody a solo. So the only original novas that are way beyond essential capabilities are ones that kill a solo in one round. Any nova less than that is just overkill on a normal or elite, so it doesn't matter that the raw nova number is higher; both essentials and non-essentials kill in one round (I do concede that original strikers that can nova more than once per encounter have another advantage, since this is difficult to duplicate with most essential classes). Meanwhile, properly built and played essentials have higher at-will dpr. I'll use my thief as an example again. My nova consists of the following:Charge an enemy granting combat advantage (either dazed, prone, in flanking, etc.) using Backstab. Action point to gain an extra standard action this turn and extend the turn. Use Low Slash as a minor. Shift backwards two squares with unbalancing trick and charge again. If and when the target attacks the defender on its turn, I can use the MBA from Battle Awareness. If the creature is still alive at any point, our bard can give me an extra attack with my superior MBA. Using the DnD 4e DPR calculator available on the 4e CharOp forums, I can see that my nova does 117 damage on average. A level 4 elite has 110 hp on average, so my nova is very effective. I know that essentials classes can be less than their original brethren, both in options and in effectiveness, as evidenced by the experience of many of posters. All I'm saying is that they do not have to be.</blockquote>

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