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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mirrorrorrim" data-source="post: 9060656" data-attributes="member: 7040132">But what enemy is going to use their only reaction to counterspell a Divine Smite over whatever other spell the paladin's spellcaster allies are going to destroy them with?  If the paladin casts a 2nd level Divine Smite spell to strike a bigger hit, and the enemy wizard says "Counterspell!" then that caster has left their side wide open for the paladin's caster ally to ruin their life with a Fireball or something worse.Turning all the smites into a series of similar spells is great!<ol> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">It's a boon for cohesive, natural-feeling design that makes sense. This matters more for new players, which is very important to me. When a paladin says they want to smite, there aren't different rules for different kinds of smites (spells and not-spells and timing). (I also believe that abilities that work like spells, and use spell slots should just be spells whenever possible.)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">It does lessen the multi-smite alpha strike which contributes to it being too strong for both single and multi-class paladins in my opinion. (Additionally, it is irrelevant and unhelpful to point the finger at multi-classing being "the problem", because multi-classing isn't going away, and it has to be considered in all design decisions.)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">It makes the paladin's tactical choices matter more because they only get one bonus action per their turn. "Which of my smites is the better option against THIS enemy?"; "Is there a caster who likes to counterspell?"; "Do I wait and hope for a crit?"; "Do I use my bonus action for something else?"</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">It no longer freely stacks with other "free actions"+"bonus actions" buffs/combos that break the expected damage limit. But the paladin's effectiveness as a party member is still great because their contribution has been diversified into other very cool updated class abilities and paladin styles, like Lay on Hands as as bonus action; Weapon Mastery; A very cool and growing Aura of Protection; Abjure Foes affecting all enemies; and you can play an unarmed punchadin, (and that doesn't count the subclass enhancements).</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Remember also that the Paladin is being measured against itself, as well as the developing design of the other classes that are being re-engineered as well. We're seeing a lot more broadening of design options and builds, while utilizing more shared design space (using more bonus actions and reactions, etc.). This gives more classes more options to use those same rules. This will also help different classes both feel familiar due to more shared mechanic usage, (but allows them to utilize them in unique ways).</li> </ol></blockquote>

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