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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Zaruthustran" data-source="post: 3945040" data-attributes="member: 1457">Adembroski, if you're only just now finding out about 4E then the variety of snippets of info (and conjecture) must be overwhelming. I encourage you to spend some time reading primary sources (interviews, teasers, and playtest reports from WotC employees), as well as the newly-released preview booklet. I think you'll find that WotC is indeed creating a brand new edition. Meaning, this is *not* 3.75. It's not taking a foundation of 3E, and trying to improve on it. No, 4E is as big a change from 3E as 3E was from 2nd Edition. That's a good thing! I think that once you grok that this truly is a new edition of the D&D game, and see some of the changes in context, your apprehension will be diminished.To address some specific concerns:Yes Tieflings and Dragonborn are core. D&D is moving away from a Tolkien emulator, and taking more ownership of itself. If you want a more Tolkien feel, it is very easy to cut those two races and just set your personal campaign in Middle Earth itself. D&D 4E will not collapse if those two races are removed, and they don't have a fundamental impact on the mechanics. Yes the game formalizes the way players have played since the beginning of the game; they go ahead and codify traditional party roles into four explicit "roles". Did you know that the terms "tank", "nuker", and so on were organically created by players? Those terms have been used for years and years as a useful shorthand for communicating what you're supposed to be doing in a party. Specifically, Living Greyhawk has used those terms when mustering a group of strangers into parties at conventions. It's much more useful than asking for class (a wizard with barred evocation is very different from a wizard who likes to wade into melee with Polymorph, who is different from an enchanter). For literally decades, people have been using terms like "tank" and so on. It's useful shorthand for experienced players, and a valuable guidance tool for newbies. So: formalizing those terms isn't really a change. It's just integrating a player-created phenomenon.Dexterity counting when fully armored: where did you hear this? I don't think the rules for Dex have yet been released. Check your primary sources, and remember that the game is still in flux. Even some of the stuff in the 4E preview book has since been changed.Warlord: as another person mentioned, this is the Boromir class. I'd even call it the Aragorn class. The class for the guy who's in the front lines, leading by example, the brilliant tactician and charismatic captain. The game has been lacking such a class: a class for the player that wants to  do more than swing a sword or shoot a bow, but doesn't want to be a rogue or a caster. I'm glad it's in 4E.Wizardly implements: D&D has always forced wizards to use implements. In earlier editions they were called "components." This isn't really a change at all. If anything, it's a freedom: instead of every single wizard in the entire history of wizarding using the exact same words, exact same bits, and exact same gestures to cast a specific spell, I get the impression that now you can have your wizard cast that spell however you want to imagine. Instead of Spider Climb *always* requiring the ingestion of a spider--no matter if you're a wizard from the arctic, or whatever--now you can cast that spell with a swish of a wand, *or* a stomp of a staff, *or* by rubbing a crystal ball, *or* by... whatever. Wizardly implements are rooted in fantasy, and they're cool.Speeding up combat: have you played through a combat in 4E? No? I urge you to withhold judgment until seeing it in action. I'm sorry, but your complaint about skills doesn't make sense in light of recent revelations such as this: Sure, the 4E skill list is shorter. But each skill does MORE. Here's the full link to the source of that quote--he's replying to a 4E skeptic, and explains a lot of the design choices which seem to concern you: <a href="http://groups.google.com/group/rec.games.frp.dnd/browse_thread/thread/471ee6b55c347b85" target="_blank">http://groups.google.com/group/rec.games.frp.dnd/browse_thread/thread/471ee6b55c347b85</a>Give it a read. I hear your alarm but seriously, read what some of the designers and developers have written. Get some solid primary sources of info. I think once you integrate all the info and put it in context of a true new edition, you'll like what you see.</blockquote>

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