PHB2 multiclassing uneven-ness?

[Obryn]

I have to say that given the hit point inflation that you see in 4e, little bits of bonus damage (less than at least 1d6) seem particularly lame to me. They don't help you against minions since any damage kills them and the impact they have on elites and solos pales in comparison to the amount of hit points they have.

Mutliclass feat perks are generally fairly small. They kind of have to be - they're already basically Skill Training +2.

In addition to giving a trained skill, they serve to qualify a character for paragon paths (which is sometimes very cool), feats (again, sometimes great), and the various power-swaps. Anything else you add on top of that almost has to be minor.

Basically, multiclass feats don't need huge perks.

(also, probably 2/3 or more of the foes you face in a game are regular opponents. +1d6 isn't huge, but sometimes those 2-3 extra points make the difference.)

-O

 

[jbear]

The druid and shaman multiclass feats had to be like this for rules reasons. If they did not give wild shape and summon spirit companion, you would not be able to take encounter and daily powers with the Beast Form and Spirit keywords.
Wild shape is arguably just a flavor tool without said powers.
The spirit companion is arguably a powerful tool when you can summon it as a minor, so it had to be weakened somehow to avoid constant summoning and dismissing it to place an obstacle, but you gain iy as a standard. You essentially spend two standard actions to use an at-will power and create an obstacle that if destroyed will damage you. The Speak with Spirits power was needed (it is nice but not particularly powerful) to balance the feat out.

I have to say, for out of combat situations, Wild Shape seems like an awesome power to have ot one's disposition...

Can't get past the guards to see the king: Turn into a cat. Noone looks twice at a cat and they don't stomp on them like they do rats...

I don't think any of the other classes mechanical bonuses outweigh the potential of this power to think outside the square.

 

[Plane Sailing]

I have to say, for out of combat situations, Wild Shape seems like an awesome power to have ot one's disposition...

Can't get past the guards to see the king: Turn into a cat. Noone looks twice at a cat and they don't stomp on them like they do rats...

To be fair, the standard wildshape doesn't let you become something as small as a cat - you've got to be about your own size. Still being able to become a big dog or a pony or something (chimp?) at will has plenty of out-of-combat possibilities on its own.

The Shaman spirit summoning and at-will as an encounter seem good enough as is (it seems to be a bit like the standard 'at-will' as a 'per encounter', but then they get the speak with spirits as a daily on top of that - which seems at first blush to be a big extra bonus.

Cheers

 

[Piratecat]

You made me realize something fantastic. I can now made a doppelganger NPC who can also turn into an animal, perfect for protective coloring. Heck, I'm planning an entire guild or gang of NPCs, all of whom have the druid multiclass feat and who roam the streets as a pack of savage animals. That's just wonderful for campaign flavor.

 

[Asmor]

I can now made a doppelganger NPC who can also turn into an animal, perfect for protective coloring.

You could always do that... Gone are the days of having to justify every ability your NPCs had with specific feats and classes. You're still stuck in a 3rd edition mindset, PC.

 

[Piratecat]

You could always do that... Gone are the days of having to justify every ability your NPCs had with specific feats and classes. You're still stuck in a 3rd edition mindset, PC.

Nah. I actually meant PC, but then realized I'm more likely to use him as a NPC first, so I changed it. How cool is a doppelganger infiltrator and assassin, assuming that the other players give you a chance to do the fast-talking thing?

You're quite right, though. I love the monster design in 4e.

 

[Nymrohd]

I'd still reskin the multiclass feat to something else if it was to be used with players. Maybe some Heritage feat that allows shapeshifting.