Preview: The Sorcerer

[Justin D. Jacobson]

There are a few things here and there that depend on the source of a power/whatever. The sorcerer's Draconic Power and Chaos Power class features, for example, boost any Arcane power, not just the sorcerer's own unique powers. And a wand's Daily power can be used by anyone that has at least one Arcane power.

These things aren't very common, sure, but I'd imagine we'll see more and more of this as more 4e books are published...

That is one of the clever bits of 4e's commitment to exception-based design. Right now, power source is a component without a mechanical role, but it can always be recruited later.

There does seem to be a strong correlation between power source and role. Martial classes generally have striker influences. Arcane/controller and divine/leader are also correlative. (This leads me to believe that primal will tend toward defender, which seems to be borne out in the previews I've seen so far.) Thus, you have Warlock, which is a striker but, being arcane-based, has a definitive secondary theme of controller. Compare fighter, which is a defender but, being martial-based, has a secondary striker theme with this big damage powers, e.g., brutal strike. Now, rogue and ranger are martial-based strikers, which means -- you guessed it -- they're extra-strikery. Clerics are super-leaders, wizards super-controllers, etc.

Power sources aren't just window dressing.

 

[SpydersWebbing]

Yeah, power sources (at least for the moment) are the "guides" of designing classes, like Justin stated. That's why it seems to be a silly idea to houserule anything of the ki power source (for example) because we really don't know what their "shtick" is yet.

Sometimes things that aren't mechanical make all the difference in the world..

 

[Luinnar]

How are the utility powers? Are they more combat oriented than the Wizard ones?

 

[Blizzardb]

There are two defensive utility powers, surprisingly one of them even allows the sorcerer to grant resistance to a fellow party member. There is also a power that extends the range of his spells and a power that gives bonus to a single skill check (any skill).

 

[OchreJelly]

Also the power sources seem to have a mechanical implication beyond the flavor with even the role stripped away. Some peeps here noted that Primal source characters tend to have more hps, regardless of role. Likewise, divine power source classes seem to favor heavier armor. One could argue that arcane classes will favor lighter armor.

Now there are no hard and fast rules that say "all primal classes get +x" hps, but I would suspect that on the designers' whiteboard, there are a listing of things that make a class "feel arcane" or "feel primal" etc.

 

[Felon]

True. I left Star out of the equation because it helps both styles. Still, that leaves Con warlocks with a pact and a half, and charisma warlocks with two and a half pacts, a Dragon article, and easy Sorcerer multiclassing.

I thought the star pact was supposed to offer a balance as well, but then I saw Bruce Cordell's Dragon article that had somewhere in the neighborhood of twenty star pact powers, and only one used CON. I wasn't sure what the heck to make of that other than an abandonment of Con for the star pact. Right now, being a Con-based warlock is pretty darn limiting in terms of options. I've got my fingers crossed for Arcane Power to possibly correct that.

In the meantime, Cha looks like it's got a lot of good options.

 

[garyh]

I thought the star pact was supposed to offer a balance as well, but then I saw Bruce Cordell's Dragon article that had somewhere in the neighborhood of twenty star pact powers, and only one used CON. I wasn't sure what the heck to make of that other than an abandonment of Con for the star pact. Right now, being a Con-based warlock is pretty darn limiting in terms of options. I've got my fingers crossed for Arcane Power to possibly correct that.

In the meantime, Cha looks like it's got a lot of good options.

Absolutely. I found the total Charisma-dominant nature of that article very confusing, and frustrating considering that I'm playing a Constitution warlock. Especially since the FRPG Dark Pact was totally Charisma-based as well.

 

[TarionzCousin]

There are two defensive utility powers, surprisingly one of them even allows the sorcerer to grant resistance to a fellow party member. There is also a power that extends the range of his spells and a power that gives bonus to a single skill check (any skill).

I foresee one player in my group changing his wizard to a sorcerer, just so he can "accidentally" damage us more with his burst/blast attacks.

 

[Sir Brennen]

I foresee one player in my group changing his wizard to a sorcerer, just so he can "accidentally" damage us more with his burst/blast attacks.

Why doesn't he change to a Dark Pact (FRPG) Warlock? Then he can do it on purpose

 

[TarionzCousin]

Why doesn't he change to a Dark Pact (FRPG) Warlock? Then he can do it on purpose

His whole schtick is that it's accidental.

He is playing a cleric now, and he doesn't understand when the wizard's player won't unleash area effect spells on top of a mix of allies and enemies.