For A Player - Paladin of Avandra

[Lord Slaw]

Alright, I'm going to be DMing my first 4e game soon, and I have not had the chance to test it out yet. One of my players is going for the healing/shielding Eladrin Paladin of Avandra martyr type, and I'm helping her build the character. Naturally, Charisma is her highest stat, clocking in well over her Strength, considering her role as the party healer/party face. She also has a pretty heavy defensive focus, as well, considering her low Constitution - heavy armor and abilities cover it nicely. So, we've got most of it figured out, except for...

The starting feat. Currently, it seems like Healing Hands or Avandra's rescue would be the best choices, but I haven't gotten the chance to try either. How strong are they? Healing Hands doesn't look like it scales well (not considering retraining right now, I'm mostly wondering about the value of the feat overall), but it's got its benefits. As for Avandra's Rescue, on the surface, it looks a bit flimsy. How does it work out, mechanically? We like the flavor, but she really wants to be a solid party member. So, benefits and drawbacks of both, combined with what is, in your experience, the best choice for the role?

 

[Mengu]

If you give us her stats, choice of weapon, and powers, we can probably help better.

My gut reaction is Healing Hands, but that may not be good if she has low Wisdom. Toughness may be good if her Con is low. If she has low Con, high Wisdom, Durable may be the way to go. An Eladrin Paladin is down right challenging to build effectively. You are getting racial bonuses in the 2 stats you don't need, and getting no bonuses in the 4 stats you do need.

 

[Mort_Q]

From what I've seen and read, Paladins get dropped. A lot. Toughness? How low is her CON?

That said, getting an ally that can't take any more hits out of a flanked position is priceless.

It depends on how often these things occur, which as the DM, is up to you. If you play it so they need to be strategic in their movements, then Avandra's Luck is great. If everyone just stands base to bast and rolls... then not so much.

 

[Lord Slaw]

Abilities - Str 14, Con 10, Dex 10, Int 12, Wis 13, Cha 17.
Equipment - Plate Armor, Heavy Shield, Longsword.
Powers - At-Will powers undecided, Shielding Smite, Paladin's Judgement

Bear in mind, we have a Minotaur tank fighter soaking up the majority of the damage - she's looking to be a shielder/healer, rather than a tank/smasher. But she will get in the way of an enemy and an ally, if she needs to - that's mostly her outlook, rather than role, though.

Oh, and as for the Race/Class combo, yeah, suboptimal, I know. She really likes the Eladrin, and I tell my players, play whatever you want - doesn't have to be optimal, so long as it's functional.

All recomendations welcome!

 

[Mengu]

I tell people they should play whatever they want to play as well, but that is more than sub optimal, and I would warn her if other players are going for more optimal builds (such as a Minotaur Fighter). She only gets 1 Lay on Hands. Her Shielding Smite gives only a +1 AC. And her daily power is based on a 14 stat. May as well let her pick whatever she thinks is fun for a feat. Healing Hands will probably make her happy. If she puts a +1 into Wisdom and Charisma at 4th level, at least she'll be able to do Lay on Hands twice with a good bonus. Of course she could wait to get that feat until 4th level, and start with Toughness so she might survive till then. But the build really needs at least a few changes to help out the party.

Edit: Don't mean to sound condescending, just trying to be helpful really.

 

[Lord Slaw]

Oh, the Minotaur is suboptimal, too. Went for a Medium greataxe, just so he could ignore his nice powers and the possibility of a larger weapon to grab them, pick them up by the throat, hack them apart, and toss their corpse. Grab? Suboptimal, but fun. She'll be alright, and we will tweak it a bit to make it a bit more viable.

 

[Bison]

you might also consider Initiate of the faith if the paladin is to be the parties primary healer. Multiclassing to cleric could really help in that respect

 

[Stalker0]

I think most of the channel divinity feats are garbage personally. Bahumat's and Correlon's are decent, the rest I wouldn't touch with a 10 foot pole.

If she has a good wisdom (yes wisdom, for lots of lay on hands) then healing hands can be useful. More healing = more good.

Also, never underestimate the advantage skill training gives you. Skills are useful in 4e, use them!

 

[RefinedBean]

Also, never underestimate the advantage skill training gives you. Skills are useful in 4e, use them!

The truth, it is here.

What with the skill challenge system AND the consolidation of skills, if she's not going to be the primary tank she could definitely benefit from the Skill Training/Skill Focus feats. Martyrs, they tend to be quite talkative...

 

[Dave Turner]

I only offer a bit of stat advice. I understand that being suboptimal is not a crime in your world, but if the paladin's going to be purely defensive, then why the high Strength? Swap the Wisdom and Strength. Paladins have a few iconic things going for them and Lay on Hands is one of them. I understand that your player is putting character first, but why not concede a bit on the stats?

Honestly, putting 14 into Strength for a paladin strikes me as a 3e-move, something I'd expect from someone with 3e experience. 4e doesn't require that a viable paladin build have high Strength.