Question about report that ability score bumps will be eliminated

[Emirikol]

The latest podcast said that spell and magic item ability score bumps will be eliminated correct? Does that mean that they're dropping ability damage too? No more ray of enfeeblement, etc?

And, I was kind of spacing when they were talking about it. Did he say that spells or just items were going to be dropping the "ability score bump?" I.e. no more bull's strength.

Thanks,

jh

 

[Darrin Drader]

Ability damage is gone, so I'd assume ability bumps are gone too. More likely, when you're under the effect of a spell that would have given you an ability bump, you'll just get a bonus to certain specific items, thus eliminating a lot of bookkeeping and number crunching.

 

[Emirikol]

Good, that's what I thought. Bumps are really slowing my Red Hand of Doom game right now. Got a cleric doing tons of it and another guy doing ray of enfeeblement. Bah!

I wonder what they'll do with ray of enfeeblement then?
jh

 

[Doug McCrae]

And, I was kind of spacing when they were talking about it.

You didn't listen to the lecture and you want to copy our notes!!? Well, this is the last time.

Yeah, stat debuffs are out. One of the designers specifically mentioned ray of enfeeblement as an example of something that can slow down combat, especially if combined with buffs like bull's strength.

 

[Sitara]

Hopefully rename it to something more flavorfula nd evocative for one thing (ex: Souldrain)

As for effect: -1 attack/-2 damage for the rest of the encounter.

 

[frankthedm]

I wonder what they'll do with ray of enfeeblement then?

Ranged attack that targets the fortitude defense, dealing a penalty to attacks and damage instead of the STR score.

 

[TwinBahamut]

Because the six ability scores are used to calculate so many things, any kind of ability damage or ability buff requires a lot of recalculation. Not to mention the fact that it leads to a lot of confusion regarding the relation between permanent things like HP and especially skill points to temporary buffs.

I approve of just keeping ability scores as static and reliable as possible.

 

[HeinorNY]

Ability score modifications, positive or negative, that happen in combat or when the game is really being played, such as poisons, curses, buffs, etc, will be gone, since they slow down gaming, and nobody wants that.

Magic items that bump ability scores will also be gone, but for another reason. They are no-brainers and it's hard to make other items that compete with them when players are selecting their magical equipment.

Some ability score raises will be in the game, but in moments they don't mess with the pace of the game, like when characters are leveling up.

 

[Lanefan]

I don't mind that on-the-fly ability mods are leaving.

Magic items that change ability scores should stay, under the following guidelines: they are a one-shot permanent change (e.g. some of those books from 1e - you read the book and gained a point in the appropriate stat; or via wish), or set the stat to a fixed number (e.g. a Girdle of Giant Strength sets your strength to 26, regardless of what it was before...that way, all the modifiers can be included in the item write-up...much faster).

Still, it'll be a shame to lose iconics like the Pearl of Wisdom.

Ray of Enfeeblement should be beefed up (and raised to a higher level) such that regardless what your strength is, a failed save means you lack the strength to stand. If you can do anything useful while sitting down e.g. quaff potion, cast spell, use a small device, etc., you may; but you can't move.

Lanefan

 

[ZombieRoboNinja]

I wonder if there's a future to Bull Strength, etc. if this is the case. I actually wouldn't really mind their elimination from 4e; iconic as they may be, they didn't really add a ton.

New game: let's figure out what's "in" and "out" for 4e buffs and debuffs!

Out: ability modifiers, level drain, shapeshifting (except for druids?)

On the fence: size change (very cool/iconic, but tons of bookkeeping), flat skill modification (trivializes skills; I'm thinking particularly of spells like Jump here)

In: attack roll modifiers, damage modifiers, defense modifiers

What do you guys think?