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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mercule" data-source="post: 4741169" data-attributes="member: 5100">#1) Yeah, this bugged me quite a bit, too.  My main gripe was that everyone had the same progression, number, and general mechanics (in a rather generic sense) for their powers.  I complained rather recently about this, even.  But, I've come to realize that it really doesn't play out that way, in practice.  That isn't to say I wouldn't prefer 5e to have variable advancement, but 4e doesn't actually bother me.As to everyone having "special powers", you're quite right.  Then again, I really think everyone should have special powers.  Not magic, but the fighter should have something in his fighting ability that differentiates him from a wizard besides his attack roll.#2) Not seeing this.  During our first 4e module (12-16 hrs), we had one real death and three characters drop below 0 hps and stay there untill the end of the encounter.  4e is darn harsh.#3) We switched relatively recently (had a 3.5 to finish), so I had forewarning about the grind.  I've only seen it once, though, at least, in a negative way.  I've found the 4e combats really can take longer than 3e combats.  But, they do so in a way that addresses an issue I had with 3e -- fight to the death.  In 3e, I found myself often running combats past the point I knew the outcome.  Sometimes, this was because the NPCs had a choice of dying running or dying fighting; other times, it was to give the PCs a chance to actually use some of their powers or just to threaten them with actual harm.  4e lasts just enough longer that I feel fine having NPCs flee at a certain point.  I couldn't tell you the exact point at which I flip the switch, but I often do change NPC tactics when they're bloodied.  If the battle is going poorly for them, they actually break morale and run.  Of course, true fanatics or cornered enemies continue to fight, but everyone else prefers survival.  It shortens fights to just the interesting parts, feels more "realistic", extends the adventuring day, and gives me an excuse to have more encounters in a dungeon than even the otherwise glossed over ecology would support.4e only grinds if you make every NPC some sort of extremist or rabid beast.  Let the PCs rout their foes on occasion.</blockquote>

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