Grading Encounter Attack Powers

[keterys]

However Fox's Cunning as a D seems quite low...

Yes it is conditional but:

a) with a two-weapon ranger those conditions are going to be met in almost any encounter that matters (and it means you get three attacks in a round while maintaining a little extra maneuverability that helps...)

Hmm, I'm not sure I considered it from that angle. As a bow ranger, it's very easy to end up not using it at all, but it's a bit more likely for a two weapon ranger. The free attack + twin strike is more on par with the other encounters, it's true... though what about the ranger who doesn't take Twin Strike?

Yeah, totally kidding.

I upped it to C+ for now and I'll keep it in the back of my mind, or if anyone else weighs in, for potential further improvement.

 

[Fedifensor]

Split the Sky looks really nice, until you realize the enemy is just going to stand and charge.

You use Split the Sky to give the defender time to move up and engage.

Command lets you daze and choose between prone or slid a fair ways, which is a very powerful controlling combo. No damage, though.

Command lets you cover for the absence of a Wizard or Warlord by providing a control effect (daze) and moving the enemy.

Blazing Beacon provides a sizable +4 bonus to all ranged attacks against a target for a turn, which can be used for many attacks in a round by most members of the party, including action points, dailies, etc, so gets to be top of the pile.

It's helpful, but most fighters, paladins, and warlords will have melee weapons in hand, not ranged weapons. Same with two-weapon rangers and battle clerics. I would say that it isn't as useful as you think.

Rain of Blows does get the top spot for the sheer damagocity that RoB can get with its 3 attacks.

I would lower the rating simply because light blades, spears, and flails are generally subpar weapons for a fighter.

Invigorating Smite and Righteous Smite are both very similar. Invigorating actually heals damage and does not go against AC, but requires bloodied. Righteous Smite works on everyone, even the fully healed, but is otherwise pretty standard fare.

The usefulness depends on how often your party members get bloodied. Since this is an encounter, not a daily, I'd have to give the nod to Righteous Smite (even though it attacks a typically higher defense).

Disruptive Strike lets you interrupt an enemy's attack by almost guaranteeing it will miss if you hit, which seems invaluable.

And it increases your damage per round, because it's an interrupt that goes off on someone else's turn. The combination of reducing damage and increasing your damage potential makes it a winner.

Trickster's Blade is okay - sorta like fighting defensively.

A +2 or +3 to AC with no penalties to hit or damage? It's better than you give it credit for. A trickster rogue should have at least a +2 Charisma modifier by 4th level, and the ubiquitous halfling rogue should have a +3. I'd rate it as high as Bait and Switch - you can't always get away from foes, and the next best thing is to raise your AC so they're less likely to hit.

Setup Strike is okay, but the advantage only applies to you an no one else, so it compares less well to effects like daze which help a whole party and actually limit the creature.

A daze effect can be saved against before you get another chance to act. What Setup Strike does is prepare you for the use of a Daily power without having to blow an Action Point to ensure you keep combat advantage.

Fiery Bolt lets you deal very solid area effect damage to creatures next to the primary target without rolling to hit if you hit the primary.

I don't consider damage equal to your secondary stat modifier to be "very solid" for an encounter power, though I will agree that it's an amazing minion killer.

Hold the Line does low damage, but its Effect seems quite handy.

Effects, not effect. The +2 power bonus to AC to adjacent allies, and the ability for them to completely ignore push/pull/slide is huge. I would move this up to a B, or even a B+.

Maze of Mirrors appears reasonable from a pure control standpoint, but doesn't kill minions or avoid allies and is only burst 1, so it feels like a lesser option here.

A typical wizard will have a +4 or +5 Int bonus to begin with, raising another point during the heroic tier. Giving a -5 or -6 penalty to a group of enemies for a turn can waste a bunch of their actions with whiffs, immobilize can neutralize melee foes, AND this power can be extended with Orb mastery for another full turn. I think you have significantly underrated this power, at least for Orb wizards. It is the king of control for this level.

Icy Rays is a versatile ranged option for okay damage with a decent side effect.

In relation to Color Spray, it's much worse. Only 2 points more damage on average, only targets two foes instead of an area, the secondary effect is not nearly as good, and the damage type is worse (cold is more resisted, and less prone to getting bonus damage than radiant). It's only advantage is range, which is of minimal use (if you're fighting targets that use ranged attacks, immobilize is worthless). Okay if you have all the cold feats (and you won't Lasting Frost until Paragon tier), otherwise suboptimal.

Fire Shroud is a sizable close burst that targets enemies only, so that's quite good.

The overall area covered by Fire Shroud is HUGE, it only affects enemies, and the damage (including the minimum one round of ongoing damage) is better than any of the other powers at this level. It does take a slight hit for targeting Fortitude, but the damage potential makes up for this.

Shock Sphere is a nice big area to toss out early on to catch enemies before your allies are too close in their midst.

The damage is the same as a level 1 encounter power with the same area (Burning Hands), and only slightly more than your at-will AoE power (Scorching Burst). The area is nice, but the lack of any secondary effect really lowers this power in my eyes.

Color Spray gets my nod for best option.

Maze of Mirrors is competitive with Color Spray. The damage on Color Spray is nice, but keep in mind that while it's decent damage at level 3, you'll have this power all the way to level 17. At level 16, Maze of Mirrors can dish out up to a -7 to hit. It can also be used at a longer range than Color Spray.

 

[Cadfan]

My general objection remains. You can't meaningfully compare powers between classes because a power's worth is directly dependent on its context. Cleave ranks well for Fighters, for example, but would suck if we gave it to Wizards. This in ability to rate powers without context also creates an inability to mix and match at wills in home brew materials based upon ratings assigned in a void.

That being said,

1. Daunting Light. I'd rate it at least a B. Its the first Cleric Encounter power that lets a Wisdom Cleric boost her own damage versus a single target. Also, granting combat advantage is pretty decent, especially with a Rogue in the party. You can potentially get a LOT of extra damage from this power, if used properly and in conjunction with your allies.

2. Armor Piercing Thrust. I'd give it at least a B. You get dex to your attack roll, AND you target reflex defense. And adding [dex] to damage has the potential to be very, very close to adding an additional [W] when wielding a spear, meaning that the total damage is on par for its level. This power is actually best the higher your level, as your dex is likely to grow. This has the potential to be a mainstay until at least epic tier, when your at will powers upgrade and this does not. If this was reprinted as a level 23 encounter power that was in all ways identical except that it did 2 or 3[W] base damage, I'd rate that power highly as well.

3. Crushing Blow. I'd take off the minus. It only works with weapons that have big dice, and its a 2[W] power, with a small boost in damage beyond that. A lot of the early fighter powers are like this. There's nothing special about their bonus abilities, but they involve multiplying big numbers by two. The Fighter in my group uses this with a +1 maul. He does 4d6+7 when he hits with Crushing Blow, for an average of 22 damage. Its a workmanlike power. At the least, I wouldn't rate it below Precise Strike.

4. Fearsome Smite and Shielding Smite are really, really similar. They do the same thing to different targets. Fearsome Smite is best against elites and solos, and Shielding Smite is best when you have an ally being attacked by multiple foes. When Shielding Smite is appropriate, it has a better effect, but perhaps its less often useful. I'd rank them equal.

5. There's no way that Dire Wolverine Strike and Sweeping Blow should have the same rating. This is the problem with considering these things in a vacuum. First, Dire Wolverine Strike has the obvious disadvantage of not giving you an attack bonus, making Sweeping Blow strictly superior if used with the appropriate weapons and a strength of at least 14. But beyond that, Dire Wolverine Strike is a ranger power that requires two one handed weapons, but only actually uses one of them, while Sweeping Blow is compatible with the two handed weapons available to the Fighter, or, if the Fighter is using a one handed weapon, he's getting the benefits of a Shield in addition to the same benefit from the power. In either case, he's better off.

6. Fox's Cunning is a great power. It gets your ranged Ranger out of melee reach when he's in trouble, and lets him have a basic attack at an attack roll bonus outside of his regular turn order. An attack outside of turn order is just as good as a 2[W] attack, if not better, because it adds an additional [W] AND all the bonuses that happen per attack, like dex and magic enhancement. Think about it- you use Two Fanged Strike, hit with everything, and get 2[W]+2[dex]+2[magic enhancement]+[wis]. I attack with Fox's Cunning, and on my turn also with Twin Strike, getting me a total of 3[W]+1[dex]+3[magic enhancement]. Net, I've got 1[W]+1[magic] that you haven't, and you've got 1[dex]+1[wis] that I haven't. Its pretty similar damage, and possibly is in my favor. Plus I got to shift.

The only restriction is that someone has to attack you in melee. If you're careful, you can avoid letting this happen, but if you're accustomed to circling around and in close a lot of the time in order to benefit from Prime Shot and your choice of Hunter's Quarry targets, this will happen more often than you think.

7. I agree with the low rating of Vampiric Embrace, but I think it only makes sense in context of an Infernal Pact Warlock. Taken in a vacuum, its a really good power. Its also not a bad choice for a NON infernal pact warlock, for example, if you are a Star Pact Warlock who doesn't like Dreadful Word. I think its actually a B or so, then. It will probably get replaced as you advance in level, but its nice to have around for a while.

8. I'd give Burning Hands a B. Every Wizard should have at least one Close spell. Also, "Fire Wizard" is a very viable build, and this fits smoothly into it. It also has the biggest area of effect of any level 1 encounter Wizard power.

9. Ray of Enfeeblement is nice against Elites and Solos, which aren't a Wizard's traditional foes. This gives it some extra value in my opinion. I'd at least change the C- to a C+.

 

[Mengu]

I really hate having to upgrade the +attack/-defense ones so much because of their effect on other powers, but it's a "potential" awesome

I agree it's potentially awesome. But even without the +4, getting a round of free attacks from everyone on a solo is no less awesome.

I personally like Sweeping Blow better, but Rain of Blows is the highest damage output option available and what's wrong with flails?

Nothing wrong with flails I guess. Dex 15 is the part I don't particularly like. You might be able to setup a fighter to get Dex 15 at level 11, but this lowers the potential of Rain of Blows for about 8 levels.

Honestly, I don't like either... but most of Topple's upgrade is from the +4 or so to hit from Brutal Scoundrel. Especially for a rogue, actually hitting nets you another 2 to 3d8 damage. That said, I think I overvalued Topple and I'll adjust it lower. Would you argue I undervalued Setup as well?

Not by much, maybe a C+. I'm not very thrilled about any of the 4 rogue encounter powers at this level really. Bait and Switch is probably the best.

but the main reason stride is rated so highly, it's just a big teleport.

I can see the value there, especially if you are a Warlock in a small party. But teleporting doesn't kill stuff, and that's what the Warlock is supposed to be doing as striker.

I like saves as much as the next guy, but I was having trouble comparing to other powers - like Shake it Off, but even like Sacred Flame, an at-will.

I guess this is one of those that will depend on party composition. If the Warlord is the only healer type in a party, Shake It Off and Inspiring War Cry will be very valuable. If there is also a Paladin and a Cleric in the party, then not so much. In a vaccum, I can see where it may not be construed as the best level 3 warlord attack power.

How powerful is the custom targetting? Would it make sense to upgrade both Icy Rays and Eldritch Rain?

I think it would, because I actually had Eldritch Rain pegged higher as well. If you happen to kill your first target, you might even get to Misty Step to a more advantageous position before taking that second shot to maybe benefit from Prime Shot.

 

[keterys]

You use Split the Sky to give the defender time to move up and engage.

Yeah, I'll up it in a second.

It's helpful, but most fighters, paladins, and warlords will have melee weapons in hand, not ranged weapons. Same with two-weapon rangers and battle clerics. I would say that it isn't as useful as you think.

I went into this in an earlier response, but just on the basis of one ranger using Confounding Arrows it compares nicely, and that's not the full extent of possibilities for it. I don't want to set it as high as I did, but I also would never want to design something that had a greater bonus to attack, etc.

I would lower the rating simply because light blades, spears, and flails are generally subpar weapons for a fighter.

Light blades and spears are -1 damage per W, so I get that... but what's wrong with flails?

The usefulness depends on how often your party members get bloodied. Since this is an encounter, not a daily, I'd have to give the nod to Righteous Smite (even though it attacks a typically higher defense).

I was totally going to have Righteous higher, but hitting Will is good stuff too. At the level you get it (even though it will definitely decrease in usefulness after that), it also heals a little less than a surge's worth any combat you're bloodied... and defenders get bloodied a lot.

And it increases your damage per round, because it's an interrupt that goes off on someone else's turn. The combination of reducing damage and increasing your damage potential makes it a winner.

Absolutely, it's awesome.

A +2 or +3 to AC with no penalties to hit or damage? It's better than you give it credit for. A trickster rogue should have at least a +2 Charisma modifier by 4th level, and the ubiquitous halfling rogue should have a +3. I'd rate it as high as Bait and Switch - you can't always get away from foes, and the next best thing is to raise your AC so they're less likely to hit.

Yeah, I'll up it shortly.

A daze effect can be saved against before you get another chance to act.

Not if it lasts 'until the end of your next turn' Like Dazing Strike, for instance.

What Setup Strike does is prepare you for the use of a Daily power without having to blow an Action Point to ensure you keep combat advantage.

It's just not that hard to get combat advantage. I'd rather have Dazing Strike (Level 1) than Setup Strike (Level 3).

I don't consider damage equal to your secondary stat modifier to be "very solid" for an encounter power, though I will agree that it's an amazing minion killer.

It's 1d6 + Con + Int damage. In half the uses of it I've seen so far, the secondary damage has been more than the primary.

Though I blame luck a bit on that one, but still

Effects, not effect. The +2 power bonus to AC to adjacent allies, and the ability for them to completely ignore push/pull/slide is huge. I would move this up to a B, or even a B+.

One 'Effect' line is what I meant - and I think it's awesome. It's not reactive, however (you can't predict forced movement a lot of the time), and requires that allies be adjacent (so give up, say, flank or otherwise position themselves less fortunately for attack, and line up for area attacks)... and it does low damage vs. AC. I do like it a lot which is why it's a B-, but I already had one response that it was the worst of the Warlord abilities of that level, so I'll let things sit for a bit on it.

A typical wizard will have a +4 or +5 Int bonus to begin with, raising another point during the heroic tier. Giving a -5 or -6 penalty to a group of enemies for a turn can waste a bunch of their actions with whiffs, immobilize can neutralize melee foes, AND this power can be extended with Orb mastery for another full turn. I think you have significantly underrated this power, at least for Orb wizards. It is the king of control for this level.

Orb only works on at-wills... or did they errata that? It's very much an area burst 1 that screws opponents for a round if it hits. It just doesn't do anything else. So I have to weigh it not only against 'Well, what if a damaging power means that you'd actually kill the target a round faster' but also that it's not useful against minions, one of the top AoE targets.

The overall area covered by Fire Shroud is HUGE, it only affects enemies, and the damage (including the minimum one round of ongoing damage) is better than any of the other powers at this level. It does take a slight hit for targeting Fortitude, but the damage potential makes up for this.

Yeah, I like fire shroud a lot... but I suspect I rounded down for targetting Fortitude. I hate doing that, but for an AoE that implies you're in melee range, I think I have to.

The damage is the same as a level 1 encounter power with the same area (Burning Hands), and only slightly more than your at-will AoE power (Scorching Burst). The area is nice, but the lack of any secondary effect really lowers this power in my eyes.

While I agree, it is the largest and most usable (Area > Close, Burst > Blast) area attack at that level range. I could see lowering it, but being able to potentially hit an entire room's worth of guys early on with it is pretty good stuff.

Maze of Mirrors is competitive with Color Spray. The damage on Color Spray is nice, but keep in mind that while it's decent damage at level 3, you'll have this power all the way to level 17. At level 16, Maze of Mirrors can dish out up to a -7 to hit. It can also be used at a longer range than Color Spray.

I'll upgrade Maze of Mirrors, but I'm not sure I see it as being equal to Color Spray. Daze is more effective for enabling your allies (bonus to hit, sneak attack, moving without provoking, etc) and removing options, though the expected damage denial is in Maze's favor... and I don't consider close blast 5 worse than area burst 1.

 

[keterys]

This in ability to rate powers without context also creates an inability to mix and match at wills in home brew materials based upon ratings assigned in a void.

Can you clarify context? I mean, I think we are rating them with context for how they're used.

1. Daunting Light. I'd rate it at least a B. Its the first Cleric Encounter power that lets a Wisdom Cleric boost her own damage versus a single target. Also, granting combat advantage is pretty decent, especially with a Rogue in the party. You can potentially get a LOT of extra damage from this power, if used properly and in conjunction with your allies.

It's definitely good damage and I was tempted to rate it higher, but raw 'combat advantage to one guy' does seem worse than many of the status effects... like knocks prone is more powerful, even. Anyone else have a feeling on this one?

2. Armor Piercing Thrust. I'd give it at least a B. You get dex to your attack roll, AND you target reflex defense. And adding [dex] to damage has the potential to be very, very close to adding an additional [W] when wielding a spear, meaning that the total damage is on par for its level. This power is actually best the higher your level, as your dex is likely to grow. This has the potential to be a mainstay until at least epic tier, when your at will powers upgrade and this does not. If this was reprinted as a level 23 encounter power that was in all ways identical except that it did 2 or 3[W] base damage, I'd rate that power highly as well.

I did give it a B, for those reasons, so sounds like we're in agreement.

3. Crushing Blow. I'd take off the minus. It only works with weapons that have big dice, and its a 2[W] power, with a small boost in damage beyond that. A lot of the early fighter powers are like this. There's nothing special about their bonus abilities, but they involve multiplying big numbers by two. The Fighter in my group uses this with a +1 maul. He does 4d6+7 when he hits with Crushing Blow, for an average of 22 damage. Its a workmanlike power. At the least, I wouldn't rate it below Precise Strike.

I think Crushing Blow would be a great level 1 encounter ability, it just got bumped down because it's level 3 effectively... I agree on the Precise Strike comparison. I'll up to a C.

4. Fearsome Smite and Shielding Smite are really, really similar. They do the same thing to different targets. Fearsome Smite is best against elites and solos, and Shielding Smite is best when you have an ally being attacked by multiple foes. When Shielding Smite is appropriate, it has a better effect, but perhaps its less often useful. I'd rank them equal.

I'll get back to this one later, don't have time to crunch some math. I had been thinking that it affects all defenses, not just 1, and helps against area effects, etc, I can at least say that much.

5. There's no way that Dire Wolverine Strike and Sweeping Blow should have the same rating. This is the problem with considering these things in a vacuum. First, Dire Wolverine Strike has the obvious disadvantage of not giving you an attack bonus, making Sweeping Blow strictly superior if used with the appropriate weapons and a strength of at least 14. But beyond that, Dire Wolverine Strike is a ranger power that requires two one handed weapons, but only actually uses one of them, while Sweeping Blow is compatible with the two handed weapons available to the Fighter, or, if the Fighter is using a one handed weapon, he's getting the benefits of a Shield in addition to the same benefit from the power. In either case, he's better off.

Two things: DWS is level 1, Sweeping Blow is level 3. I should probably put a disclaimer up, but higher level powers should be better than lower level ones. Next, a TWF Ranger likely deals 1d10+1 with his bastard sword while getting his +1 AC/Reflex shield bonus... which is either more damage than the fighter, or more shield bonus than the fighter.

6. Fox's Cunning is a great power. It gets your ranged Ranger out of melee reach when he's in trouble, and lets him have a basic attack at an attack roll bonus outside of his regular turn order. An attack outside of turn order is just as good as a 2[W] attack, if not better, because it adds an additional [W] AND all the bonuses that happen per attack, like dex and magic enhancement. Think about it- you use Two Fanged Strike, hit with everything, and get 2[W]+2[dex]+2[magic enhancement]+[wis]. I attack with Fox's Cunning, and on my turn also with Twin Strike, getting me a total of 3[W]+1[dex]+3[magic enhancement]. Net, I've got 1[W]+1[magic] that you haven't, and you've got 1[dex]+1[wis] that I haven't. Its pretty similar damage, and possibly is in my favor. Plus I got to shift.

I was totally undervaluing this for melee rangers, I suspect it's going to climb up even more but I don't want to make too many snap decisions without giving people time to give input.

7. I agree with the low rating of Vampiric Embrace, but I think it only makes sense in context of an Infernal Pact Warlock. Taken in a vacuum, its a really good power. Its also not a bad choice for a NON infernal pact warlock, for example, if you are a Star Pact Warlock who doesn't like Dreadful Word. I think its actually a B or so, then. It will probably get replaced as you advance in level, but its nice to have around for a while.

For a non-infernal, it's only 5 temp hp, and it's low range (5) and necrotic damage (pretty much the worst one).

8. I'd give Burning Hands a B. Every Wizard should have at least one Close spell. Also, "Fire Wizard" is a very viable build, and this fits smoothly into it. It also has the biggest area of effect of any level 1 encounter Wizard power.

Glad to see some support of close spells, I was beginning to think I was the only one

9. Ray of Enfeeblement is nice against Elites and Solos, which aren't a Wizard's traditional foes. This gives it some extra value in my opinion. I'd at least change the C- to a C+.

It doesn't deal a ton of damage, targets Fortitude, is necrotic, and only weakens one round, which likely only prevents maybe 10 damage at the levels you have it.

 

[Cadfan]

Two things: DWS is level 1, Sweeping Blow is level 3. I should probably put a disclaimer up, but higher level powers should be better than lower level ones. Next, a TWF Ranger likely deals 1d10+1 with his bastard sword while getting his +1 AC/Reflex shield bonus... which is either more damage than the fighter, or more shield bonus than the fighter.

I think we both know it isn't reasonable to give the TWF Ranger the advantages of three different feats (proficiency with bastard swords, two weapon fighting, two weapon defense), while comparing to a Fighter who is getting none.

Even assuming similarly outfitted characters, a sword/shield Fighter can take a bastard sword as well, at the same cost. Then he can take Weapon Focus, giving him the same damage. He still has a feat free, and his shield is twice as good as the Ranger's Two Weapon Defense feat. Oh, and his attack bonus is better by 1 due to class abilities. On top of that, his power gives him about +2 to his attack roll.

He's going to be more able to get into the center of foes (Tide of Iron can let him walk right in even if a foe used to be in the way), more survivable while he's there (better hp, better ac), more accurate by +3 with the attack, and oh, he gets to mark everyone in the close burst 1. And he has a feat unspent.

This is what I mean by judging powers in context. By the letter, DWS consists of almost the same text as SB. But the Fighter is an absolute machine when using powers like SB, while the Ranger is... not bad, of course... but not particularly great. A Fighter gets better use out of Sweeping Blow even if he doesn't use an associated weapon. The comparison is that much in his favor.

For a non-infernal, it's only 5 temp hp, and it's low range (5) and necrotic damage (pretty much the worst one).

5 temp hp is ok for an Encounter power, at least from where I'm sitting. It buffers you against one attack, which is fine for a ranged combatant. I'm sure this power would get replaced once level 13 rolls around, or perhaps even before, but from levels 1 to 5 I think its worth using for a Star Pact Warlock. As for the damage type, I think you're overly concerned about necrotic damage. Yes, it comes up once in a while, but when it does its very obvious, and the Star Pact Warlock already has Radiant damage on tap.

It doesn't deal a ton of damage, targets Fortitude, is necrotic, and only weakens one round, which likely only prevents maybe 10 damage at the levels you have it.

But Weaken is a quite powerful effect to give to an elite or solo enemy, or to something with area of effect attacks. And again, Necrotic isn't THAT bad. Its not like you're going to accidentally cast this on a zombie, and if you know you're in a campaign where you're fighting undead over and over, you can just not take it. For the rest of us, who fight undead occasionally, it works just fine.

 

[Korror]

I
*ROGUE*
B+ / Bait and Switch
C+ / Setup Strike
B- / Topple Over
C- / Trickster's Blade

Trickster's Blade is okay - sorta like fighting defensively. Setup Strike is okay, but the advantage only applies to you an no one else, so it compares less well to effects like daze which help a whole party and actually limit the creature. Topple Over primarily looks pretty good because of the very large bonus to attack. Bait and Switch attacks Will and lets you shift several squares - like a combination Leaf on the Wind and Evasive Strike.

I agree with most of your other points but I think there are a few factors you may be overlooking in your grading of the rogue encounter powers. First off, I think you're rating movement effects too highly. Remember that a rogue's purpose is to deal tons of damage and bring down the dangerous mob before it kills the party. Sliding then only helps the purpose of rogues by enabling the rogue to gain combat advantage and sneak attacks. Thus movement powers are only good when the follow two conditions occur: 1) There is another meele party member somewhere nearby 2) You don't have combat advantage and are unable to gain it with normal movement. Gaining your sneak attack damage is very important but I feel that you can rely on your normal movement/other party members abilities to gain combat advantage for the majority of the time.

With that said, I would rate the rogue's 3rd level encounter powers this way.

1) Bait and Switch B
Despite what I said up there, I do recognize that Bait and Switch is a nice power mainly for the attack against Will and the respectable damage dealt. Any movement is icing on the cake.

2) Setup Strike B+
For all those situations where no other ally is nearby, you need some way of gaining combat advantage or you simply will not keep up with the rangers or warlocks. Setup Strike addresses a critical weakness in the rogue's abilies and thus I rate it highly.

3) Topple Over C+
They're prone, so what? Prone is easily reversible and doesn't grant combat advantage without spending an action point. The only thing that saves this power from a C rating is the to hit bonus. Inferior to Setup Strike in most respects.

4) Trickster's Blade C-
If the monsters are solely attacking you, you'd probably be better off using riposte strike and getting free attacks back. The bonus to AC is not that large and the monsters can ignore it by attacking someone else. Never give your opponent choices if you can help it.

 

[Katsue]

Nothing wrong with flails I guess. Dex 15 is the part I don't particularly like. You might be able to setup a fighter to get Dex 15 at level 11, but this lowers the potential of Rain of Blows for about 8 levels.

Humans, Dragonborn and Elves can get Strength 18, Dex 15, and Wis 13 (15 for an Elf) at level 1, so I don't know where you're getting your 8 levels from. Now Dragonborn are probably better off with axes or hammers, but the Dex build is perfectly viable for Humans and Elves.

In any case, Rain of Blows isn't 3 attacks, it's 2 attacks, plus 0-2 secondary attacks. You can see it in the formatting. If it was 2 attacks plus a secondary attack, it would be written thus:

Primary Target: One Creature
Attack: Strength vs AC, two attacks
Hit: [1W] + Strength modifier damage
Effect:
Weapon: If you're wielding a light blade, a spear or a flail and have Dexterity 15 or higher, make a secondary attack.

The fact that there is no Effect line, and that the Weapon entry is indented directly below the Hit entry means that the secondary attack is a consequence of hitting.

 

[Mengu]

Humans, Dragonborn and Elves can get Strength 18, Dex 15, and Wis 13 (15 for an Elf) at level 1, so I don't know where you're getting your 8 levels from. Now Dragonborn are probably better off with axes or hammers, but the Dex build is perfectly viable for Humans and Elves.

That only leaves a 12 for Con, and I can't quite bring myself to start with such a low Con for a Defender, especially if I'm a Dragonborn. I would at best start Dex at a 14. That's enough to get Scale Armor Specialization at level 11.

In any case, Rain of Blows isn't 3 attacks, it's 2 attacks, plus 0-2 secondary attacks.

I was averaging it out to 3 attacks, but you are correct it is 2 plus 0-2.