Fighter Cleave vs Minions?

[Kraav]

Hello All,

Long time lurker here (since 3e was getting introduced!) I finally registered.

My question to anyone at the preview is this: The Fighter at will power Cleave, how does this exploit interact with minions exactly? Does the additional damage from the effect actually slay an adjacent minion (providing there is one to legally target)?

I fail to see the usefulness of this exploit if it does not. Considering this exploit is not a basic melee attack, the +Str damage only to an adjacent enemy is weak if it does not produce a slay effect vs a minion.

I guess I am asking how the exploit was ruled to work by the DMs at the preview.

Thanks

 

[hong]

Why on earth wouldn't it slay a minion?

 

[jasin]

I fail to see the usefulness of this exploit if it does not.

Does anybody else think it's funny that fighter abilities are called "exploits" in 4E?

 

[Rodrigo Istalindir]

In our game, it was my understanding that the additional cleave damage did not kill minions, because there was no attack roll.

 

[hong]

In our game, it was my understanding that the additional cleave damage did not kill minions, because there was no attack roll.

I am now killing that DM with my brane.

 

[nick012000]

Does anybody else think it's funny that fighter abilities are called "exploits" in 4E?

Oh, yeah. Makes me wonder what they'll call psychic powers, though.

 

[Doug McCrae]

Does anybody else think it's funny that fighter abilities are called "exploits" in 4E?

So videogame-y.

 

[Kraav]

LOL Hong!

Ya seems foolish that the exploit's effect will not slay an adjacent minion.

It was my understanding that minions have no hit points per say, they just require to be hit. Well if its taking +Str damage that is > 0, then I would say it was HIT.

Otherwise chalk Cleave up to an utterly useless exploit.

 

[PHGraves]

If it doesn't work this way (any damage kills a Minion), I will have to house-rule it.

 

[dm4hire]

Minions in my opinion give the feel of warriors in novels wading into battle killing several with one blow. I ran a couple encounters last night with two players and minions are surprisingly effective despite that weakness. Once the party figured out which weren't minions they went for those, but that constant 2 damage from them started wearing them down so they couldn't completely ignore them. Especially when a skirmisher gets a bonus from them being next to him.