Grading At-Will Powers

[Zinovia]

I think letter grades would be more useful than numeric ones (A,B,C,D,F), with pluses or minuses added for more subtle gradation. You could also put build notes in (A+ for tactical warlord, B for Inspiring).

 

[Nifft]

Str based clerics are suboptimal, for many of the same reasons i said righteous brand is far from a ten. Almost all attacks are vs. AC, and almost all attacks require the user to be in melle. So a str based cleric has a harder time hitting compared to a wisdom based cleric, and is in the most dangerous position on the battle field, in melle with the mobs. Seems like a poor trade for abilities that are arguably worse than their wisdom based equivalents. However Str v Wis clerics is a debate for a diffrent thread.

Melee clerics play as strong as laser clerics, and multi-class far better. Even mixed-mode clerics -- e.g. using Longtooth Shifter -- are validated by Warpriest.

If you think Weapon vs. AC is harder than Implement vs. Reflex, you don't understand the effect of the weapon proficiency bonus rule.

Cheers, -- N

 

[Roxlimn]

In all fairnesss, there is a bit of a defense lag at the Paragon levels. Most monsters are going to have Ref defenses from 2-3 lower than their ACs, but occasionally the gap can be as high as 6.

 

[Fedifensor]

Because of the fact that none of the At Will Single Target powers really do a good job of controlling (including Illusory Ambush with a ~40% to ~60% chance of hitting to decrease an enemy attack by 10%, that means that it's control function actually works ~5% of the time, it's damage function works ~50% of the time), one has to assume that the intent of At Will Single Target Wizard powers is not true control. It's damage.

Numbers can be used in many ways. The value of Illusory Ambush really depends on two things - your chance to hit the target, and the target's chance to hit you. It's not a static chance.

For example, if you are running a maxed-out wizard (20 Int to begin, stat bumps at every opportunity, best possible implement for your level), you should have a pretty good chance to hit...and it only gets better if you target a foe who has Will as their weak defense. A 1st level wizard maxed on attack bonus can hit the typical brute (Will 11) 75% of the time. With Leather Armor proficiency, the wizard can have a 17 AC, or 18 if a Staff Wizard. That means the typical brute can hit the wizard roughly 45% of the time (+5 if fire beetle, +6 if dire rat), which reduces to 35% if the Illusory Ambush hits

That means the effect of the -2 from Illusory Ambush is roughly equivalent to a 16% reduction to damage taken (22% reduction in average damage times 75% chance that Illusory Attack hits), assuming you're only being attacked by one foe. Hopefully, if the defenders are doing their job, the wizard only has to contend with one foe getting past them.

Moving to the Paragon tier at 11th level, there are two Elite Brutes listed for that level in the MM - the Dire Bear (+15 attack, Will 18) and the Ogre Warhulk (+14 attack, Will 21). The wizard can take the Psychic Lock feat at this point, increasing the penalty from Illusory Ambush to -4. A +3 implement is a 11th level magic item (which can be made with Enchant Magic Item), and the wizard should have a 23 Int at this point, for a total attack bonus of +14. That's a 85% chance to hit the Dire Bear, and a 70% chance to hit the Ogre Warhulk. Averaging it out between the two still works out to roughly 75%.

At this point, the wizard's AC should be increased by +6 from 1st level (+5 level mod, +1 from Int increase), for a total AC of 23 or 24. Because the foes are Elite, they have an easier time of hitting - roughly 60%. However, with Psychic Lock, that -4 to hit reduces the chance from 60% to 40%, or a 33% reduction in average damage taken. With the 75% hit chance, that works out to a 25% overall reduction in the damage taken.

Let's go all the way to the endgame - an Ancient Red Dragon (level 30 Solo Soldier) or the Tarrasque (level 30 Solo Brute). The wizard should have a +30 to hit at this point (+9 from Int, +6 from implement, +15 from level). The Tarrasque only has a 32 Will...that's a 95% chance to hit! The Ancient Red Dragon is tougher with a 42 Will...that's only a 45% chance to hit (Soldiers have high defenses). The reduction to attacks is either -2 or -4...the Ancient Red Dragon can attack multiple times per round, and Psychic Lock only affects the first attack.

The wizard's AC is a bit more variable, here - a Wizard of the Spiral Tower with a decent Str and Con can have a light (or even heavy) shield at this point, plus Shield (or Armor) Specialization. But even a default wizard in leather armor will have a 44 AC (+10 from +6 starleather armor, +9 from Int, +15 from level). The ancient red has a +37 attack, while the Tarrasque has a +34 attack. That's anywhere from a 55% to a 70% chance to hit. Given other possible increases to AC, I'll average that out at 60%. Also, given the multiple attacks of the dragon, I'll only count half of the effect of the Psychic Lock feat for it, making it a -3.

So, with a 95% chance to reduce the average hit chance of the Tarrasque from 60% to 40%, that works out to roughly a 28% reduction in average damage taken. Even with the 45% chance to hit the Ancient Red Dragon and reduce its hit chance from 60% to 45%, that's a 11% reduction. The numbers get better if your defenders are marking the solo (either enforcing a penalty to hit or drawing its attacks to their higher AC). Still think the control aspect of Illusory Ambush is useless?

Heck, I won't even go into the ultra-AC build for mages (50 AC at level 30) that would change the numbers above to show a nearly 50% reduction in average damage for using Illusory Ambush against the Tarrasque.

Now, granted, not all monsters are weak versus Will. But that's why wizards have attacks that target a variety of defenses, with a variety of status effects.

 

[keterys]

Ancient Red has a Will of 42, not 29 - you were looking at the level 15 solo dragon's Will

 

[Fedifensor]

Ancient Red has a Will of 42, not 29 - you were looking at the level 15 solo dragon's Will

Whoops! That's what I get for working quickly. I'll fix that now, thanks!

 

[keterys]

Added letter grades.

 

[Mengu]

Added letter grades.

Why did you remove the number grades? I want them back! I can think about numbers in a much more linear fashion. Now it looks like everything got A's and B's so we can feel good about ourselves. Always hated letter grades... Sorry, nothing personal. But in general, if you are going to grade things, you need to give yourself room for the scale. Letters just don't provide enough of a spread for a good comparison.

 

[keterys]

I have the numbers saved, actually, depending on how folks feel

I'll let anyone else weigh in, but I'll happily switch back by end of day if no one objects. I do think I'll keep the scale for #s. The main difference between a letter grade and a number grade is that the number implies you can categorically score things (Well, +5 range is +.5 and then it's radiant for another +.5, and it's 2d8 so that's +1 over 1d8, etc), while the letter implies it's a fuzzier scale.

 

[Fedifensor]

I have the numbers saved, actually, depending on how folks feel

I'll let anyone else weigh in, but I'll happily switch back by end of day if no one objects. I do think I'll keep the scale for #s. The main difference between a letter grade and a number grade is that the number implies you can categorically score things (Well, +5 range is +.5 and then it's radiant for another +.5, and it's 2d8 so that's +1 over 1d8, etc), while the letter implies it's a fuzzier scale.

I actually prefer the letter scale, because in the end, this is a fuzzy rating system. With the numbers, people get too hung up on the exact score (is it a 7? 7.5? 7.3702?). The letter grade is easy, and intuitive. Everyone remembers it from grade school, and I expect less arguments will occur over an 'A' than a '9'.

That said, the letter system needs a bit of adjusting. Twin Strike is a legal power - rate it, and don't dodge things by giving it an **. I think it should be a simple A+...and probably the only A+.

In addition, your letter system has far too many A's and B's. There's only two C's, and not a single D. You also have 3 "A+" powers (4 if you count Twin Strike). You need to scale things so the powers are spread out, instead of having 90% of them shoved into the A and B area.