help me out here...what to play the first time

[HardcoreDandDGirl]

hey guys,
I am new to 4e, but a long time gamer (mostly 2e), and my friends are going to try 4e out...here is the group.
DM: Has been playing 4e alot in another group and DMed my fav 2e game of all time...he owns everything including na Insider sub
We are going to run Keep on the Shadowfell with some hombrew alterations to it (Since he is droping it into his own world).

Player 1: Me I played 4e on game day last year, and felt it was lacking something...it just didn't feel like D&D to me

Player 2: he has been running LFR, and plays with the DM in another 4e game, so he is our Vet...

he wants to play an Evoker...witch i though was a wizard but was told it is a cleric now...​

Player 3: Is the Dm's new girlfriend and has only played Minds Eye Theater Vampire...

She has a character drawn up already a Gnome Rogue​

Plyaer 4: Is an old time gamer (since he played chain mail in the 70's) but has only had 1 or two shots at 3e and has never played 4 e before

He wants to try out this new Warlord class and he is thinking Dwarf or human​

Player 5: He was in our most recent 3.5 game, and has played a handful of LFR under player 2

he wants to play a half elf Warlock he saud he wants to go fey pact​

So here I am wondering what to play, the PHB says to identify roles, and it looks to me like we have no controler or defender: we have the Evoker and Warlord as Leaders, We have the theif and warlock as strikers, but no defender or controler.
So I was thinking of trying to do a Fighter/Mage, but the DM suggested I look at his Forgotten realms book. He said LFR has a new class called swordmage I might like. He also suggested Bard, but I have never liked bards really. He told me that I could use eaithe r to make a bladsinger type character, but I don't know.
I own the PHB and that is it, but we have access to everything. Any ideas?

 

[Obryn]

Swordmage is a really interesting class. They don't do much damage, but they're very effective at protecting their party. They mostly do melee stuff, but have a few ranged effects.

Basically, it's a great class. Just don't go into it expecting to be a damage machine.

If you have the PHB, you could probably do a lot worse than trying out a straight-up Fighter. Again, you might not deal a ton of damage, but you will hit fairly hard and lock down your opponents quite well. If you do go with a Fighter, I'd go with a shield rather than a two-handed weapon.

In either case, the party's Warlord and Rogue will be your best friends. FWIW, I think swordmages are more interesting with a lot of fun effects, but fighters are better at being a wall and sticking to opponents.

-O

 

[Caliber]

Actually, while their powers are Divine in nature, an Invoker is a Controller. Which leaves your group sans-Defender. If you're looking to play a Fighter/Mage type, a Swordmage makes a fairly decent fit. Likewise, you could try making use of 4E's multiclassing rules and the Wizard PP that is something of a gish if you'd rather that path.

(I've seen four Swordmages in play, actually, one of them my own. They're pretty fun as a class. A fair number of teleportation powers to give you loads of mobility. Have a splat book aimed at them due out in April.)

Hope that helps.

 

[KarinsDad]

Fighter / Mage in the 2E concept is not really an option yet.

Swordmage is not really a mage. It's a defender. They do have a few area effect "spells" and teleport powers, but ...

I would suggest either Fighter or Paladin, Paladin if you think your group will need another healer (which I think). These are also two classes in the PHB, so it is good for you to own the book for your PC's class.

4E is power based. Defenders can feel a bit like they have spells because they have powers. But if you want a 2E concept Fighter / Mage that can cast some spells and can fight a bit, I don't think you will find it.

You can also multiclass into Wizard from a defender class, but again, it's not real multiclassing, it's class dabbling (where the PC gets a single other class ability or power per feat). I suspect that you are not looking for that.

One possibility is to multiclass Wizard from Swordmage (since both use Int as their main stat). At higher levels, this would allow you to pick up an occassional cool Wizard spell (at the cost of a feat). This might be your best bet.

 

[Korror]

A swordmage would be a good fit in with the group that you have described. They basically are fighter/mages and are pretty powerful defenders which will really help the rest of the party as the defender is one of the more critical roles. The shielding swordmage is generally thought to be more effective than the assult swordmage if you uncertain about which flavor to go with. They also have a controlish aspect to them as they are good at dealing with minions and have some nifty teleporting powers later on.

 

[Kinneus]

Definitely take a look at the the swordmage, decide if you like it. It's currently my favorite class. I think they took the classic Fighter/Mage, kept the flavor, but made it work mechanically in a way that is really satisfying and fun.

If the Swordmage doesn't trip your trigger, you really can't go wrong with a straight-up Fighter. In older additions, Fighters sometimes got the shaft when compared to the guys who could make lightning with their brains, but the 4e Fighter is probably one of the strongest classes out there. You'll do decent damage, absolutely lock down your opponents, and be able to defend your team quite nicely.

Paladin is the other widely available Defender class. Some are of the opinion that Paladins are the weakest class in 4e, but I don't share that opinion. I feel they're perfectly viable. Just pick either Strength or Charisma to specialize in; don't try to specialize in both. Do that, and you'll be golden.

Another possibility is a Strength-based Cleric. They aren't quite the plate-armored heavy hitters they were in previous additions, but a frontline Cleric is still totally viable, though you might have to take an Armor or Weapon Proficiency feat or two to make it work.

Just a quick note: it sounds like you're going to be taking on the Defender role for your party, which is modeled off the 'tank' of the MMORPG culture. Personally, I've always hated playing 'tanks', but in 4e, it's actually a really fun and rewarding role (like I said, Swordmage is currently my favorite class). Know this, however: you will get hit, you will fall unconcious, you will get bloodied almost every battle. This does not mean your character is weak; it just means you're doing your job as a Defender!

 

[balard]

The swordmage is a good class, but as one who always liked the fighter/mage on 2nd, I can say that the fighter multiclass into wizard is a good one.

Just make sure you have a high intelligence. It takes some time for you start to get the feeling of being a fighter/mage, but is good. Ideally you get both the arcane initiate and the encounter power swap feat at the 4th level, so you get an at-will as encounter and a real encounter power at the same time(just retrain a feat). The real fun is when you get a nice utility power by 8th level. In paragon you can go both spiral tower or full multiclass.

Even if you don't go full paragon multi, or with a wizard paragon, you make a very nice fighter/mage with just heroic multiclass, AND ritual caster. Very cool.

For your party, since one of the PCs are a Warlord, and you want to play a defender, just make sure you have a nice basic attack. Fighter, Intelligent Blademasters Swordmages, Str Paladins. Ideally the gnome rogue should be a Brutal Scoundrel if the warlord is a TacLord.

And make sure you don't mind getting hit a lot of times. As the sole Defender of a 5 person group with just the warlord to heal, you gone get a lot of punishment. Make sure you get power that heal/give temp hp/raises ac.

And have fun! If it doesn't feel like D&D from the start, it's just because you are playing a fighter that have more option than "I attack him"

 

[AbdulAlhazred]

I agree that the fighter is fine in 4e. Not at all like the old 1e/2e sort of "all I can do is swing my sword" type fighters. It is true, you don't have the fancier types of powers, but the ones you have are good and let you do interesting stuff.

There are definitely a few options within the realm of fighters as well. Since your party seems to have a good bit of damage potential already you probably don't want to go the 2 hand dish it out path, but it does work well and such a character can get close to rivaling the strikers on overall damage output. With the more defensive 'sword and board' type, and given there is a warlord and a controller in the party you might want to mostly be 'the stickiest defender you can be'. Comeback strike is a great daily for that type of build. All of the encounter powers at level 1 are good for keeping foes close to you.

Given that you're going to be the only defender in the party I wouldn't multi-class. There are a lot of cool options if you do, but they won't generally enhance the defending aspect of the character. Besides you can always opt for this later on if it appeals to you, or start adding in some of the Martial Power stuff.

One thing that is nice about fighters, they are a reasonably easy first 4e class to run. Later on you can always try out some of the fancier classes like swordmage.

 

[Engilbrand]

I love the Swordmage. The powers are a lot of fun, and you should be able to create a lot of awesome scenes when it comes to those powers. They rock at defending, but they have a few nice abilities to destroy groups of enemies, just like a Controller.

 

[Herschel]

I am similar in I played and ran essentially 2E forever, almost completely skipping 3E. I used to love Rangers and fighter variations in 2E. Let me cast my vote for Swordmage also, especially in the group your in and if the Warlord is Tactical, even better.

Assault Swordmage

Air Genasi, er, Windsoul in 4E.

First level Feat: Intelligent Blademaster (get your INT up to at least 16 (18 adjusted)).

First Utility Power: Dimension Swap.

Use a Long Sword, keep the AC and attack bonus up.

This is a load of fun and useful. Here's why:

Windsoul can fly 8 squares once per encounter. This gets you in to tight spots. (Eladrin can also do similar with his Fey Step but doesn't give you the strength bonus)

Assault lets you teleport when a marked target attacks and hits someone else. If it's the rogue, free flanking!

Dimension Swap says "You (especially minions) surrounded the Warlord? Now you've surrounded me and I have a burst attack!"

The Warlord also will be giving you many free swings when he can.

Otherwise, a straight-up fighter would be good too, but probably lacking the flavor you appear to want. The Swordmage will get you closest.

The Paladin is good, but not my first choice with the group you laid out.