Now that Warlocks can get an extra At-Will...

[Falling Icicle]

In Dragon 366, Warlocks can get a paragon tier feat that gives them a second Eldritch Pact. Not only does this grant them the pact boon and benefits certain powers have for those with that pact, it also gives them an extra at-will power! Wow. Talk about getting alot for a single feat!

So if Warlocks can get all that for a paragon tier feat, I think it's only fair that the following heroic tier feat should be available to everyone:

Extra At-Will Power
Heroic Tier
Benefit: You gain an extra at-will attack power from your primary class.

Some would say that this treads upon the Human racial benefit. I disagree. For one thing, if you examine all of the Human racial benefits, the extra feat, extra trained skill, +1 defenses, etc, they all appear to be about equal to a feat. I don't hear anyone complaining that the Human bonus skill is rendered worthless because people can gain skill training by spending a feat. This is, IMO, no different. And nothing's stopping a Human from taking this feat and having 4 at-wills!

And as far as game balance is concerned, I don't think having 3 at-wills would cause any problems. It just gives a little bit more versatility, that's all. The higher level you get, the less and less important at-will powers become, since you gain more and more encounter and daily powers.

Finally, I think the existence of this feat would make Paragon Tier Multiclassing a bit more enticing, since it would allow you to have an at-will from your second class but still have 2 at-wills from your primary class.

 

[dm4hire]

I don't see it that way. Allowing the Warlock access to another pact makes up for the fact that all warlocks kinda get the shaft in they have to take Eldritch Blast. Other classes have a choice between at wills where the Warlock doesn't have that choice. They get Eldritch Blast and their Pact, that's it, no way to mix it up unless the player totally abandons the pact aspect, but they still have to take Eldritch Blast and one other at will.

One can also look at the feat as multiclassing within their own class, gaining the ability to go beyond their basic confinements of specialization with a given pact.

 

[Cadfan]

I'm half and half on this.

First, I'm not convinced that getting an extra at will is that powerful of a bonus in this particular case. The at wills are different, but they're not that different. I'd think differently for certain other classes, but in this particular case it doesn't seem that strong.

And that's the problem- for some classes I think this would be really strong. The Warlord, for example, has at wills that each do very distinct things, and getting a new one would add a very distinct boost to versatility. For other classes I think its kind of pointless.

So... I don't know for sure whether its a good idea or not. I think at the very least presuming that all at wills are equal in strength and therefore equally worth granting for the cost of a feat is a dangerous line of reasoning. Maybe someday WOTC will publish a feat exactly like the one you're suggesting, but I'm not 100% convinced.

 

[Nifft]

I don't see it that way. Allowing the Warlock access to another pact makes up for the fact that all warlocks kinda get the shaft in they have to take Eldritch Blast. Other classes have a choice between at wills where the Warlock doesn't have that choice.

Clerics have exactly two at-will powers for each of their "builds".

Same deal for Paladins.

Rangers only have one at-will power!

Spoiler

(worth using)

Wizards, Rogues, and non-human Fighters, on the other hand, would very much like another at-will, and many Warlords wouldn't mind one too.

Cheers, -- N

 

[dm4hire]

You miss the point. If you don't follow builds you can mix and match any at wills you want with the other classes. The Warlock by default gets Eldritch Blast and chooses a pact as part of their build which gives them their other at will. Warlocks don't have to pick powers related to their pact, but don't gain full benefit when they do. Other classes tend not to suffer as bad a penalty going against build unlike the Warlock.

 

[Nifft]

You miss the point. If you don't follow builds you can mix and match any at wills you want with the other classes.

No, I get it. Really.

What I'm saying is: the benefit of an extra at-will depends entirely on the list of powers you're allowed to choose from. The Warlock, for example, gets relatively little from his extra At-Will (unless he were a non-Human Cha-based Star Pact, but that's a corner case); a Wizard would get far more from the same choice, and a Ranger would get far less.

For a Human Ranger or Fighter, the feat is absolutely pointless. This has nothing to do with "following a build", and everything to do with avoiding worthless powers.

Cheers, -- N

 

[dm4hire]

I agree then, though once the option books become available the desire to have more than two at-wills might be more understandable. Actually the true power of the feat is in gaining the extra pact aspects as mentioned, combining Dark Pact with Infernal is a pretty rude mix, turning the warlock into a hybrid ranged striker/controller alternating between damaging one target and multiples.

 

[Falling Icicle]

It is true that some classes currently will get more use out of an extra at-will than others. However, this will all change once more powers are published. I fully expect to see quite a few new at-will powers for all classes in the Martial/Divine/Arcane power books and in Dragon Magazine.

 

[Khaalis]

It is true that some classes currently will get more use out of an extra at-will than others. However, this will all change once more powers are published. I fully expect to see quite a few new at-will powers for all classes in the Martial/Divine/Arcane power books and in Dragon Magazine.

I'm personally not convinced on this actually. We have seen little in the way of any indication that "At-Will" powers will be a focus of any new material. The only new at-wills we have seen have been those required when adding a whole new power line (such as the new warlock pact). With most characters only able to choose two At-Will powers ever, I don't see them muddying the water by making that 1st level choice much more difficult by making you choose 2 powers from 20.

I personally however, WOULD like to see more variation in At-Will powers as well as the ability to attain more than 2. IMHO 2 at-will powers is too limiting. Most PCs end up acting like an MMO Toon with the "auto-attack" option on. 2 At-Wills doesn't give enough tactical choice, nor really enough flavor difference in a character build IMHO.

 

[Cadfan]

I think that 2 at wills are adequate. But I do think there needs to be a little more variety. There need to be three viable at wills per archetypal build, so that the human bonus will be worth more.

Right now the human bonus is pretty lame for a lot of classes.