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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Aegeri" data-source="post: 5534447" data-attributes="member: 78116">Dwarves are in a different league to most races in the game, having one of the strongest core benefits of any race with their resistance to forced movement (almost essential for a Knight). The problem with the shade is that while it has some features that are desirable, such as their darkvision they are mitigated heavily by how mechanically unsound the racial power is as a standard action. It is very easy to see the logic behind it as a minor or even a move action, but a standard action is too much of a sink to be useful. Additionally they get this entirely pointless -1 surge penalty, which really adds significant insult to injury on an incredibly underpowered race. When you throw on not getting any benefit out of what limited things you do get, it's simply maddening. While some of the utility powers do have merit, the point of the matter is these have to compete with the utility powers of numerous classes. Some of these competitions the utility powers aren't going to win, because there are a lot of solid rogue utilities. In other cases of course they might be very good, the )Assassin for example doesn't have a lot of good choices. In the end though, utility powers can't save a race because they aren't benefits you get for free: They're just other options that you can use to replace standard utility powers. The other problem is the logic that the shade was this badly 'gimped' (for lack of a better word) on the basis of non-combat utility. This of course had absolutely nothing to do with Klaus (for emphasis). Yet the stealth rules outside of combat - as I mentioned before - are amazingly reasonable about granting you stealth. In combat they are sadistic and brutal, often being extremely difficult to maintain stealth. Outside of it they are far more relaxed and I've still yet to come up with a coherent situation where it is useful. Especially without doing things I would never do in order to sabotage a normal characters stealth (and thus make the racial useful).Edit: I forgot to italicize the "essential" before Knight in my first sentence. You know, to be edgy and ironic and stuff.</blockquote>

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