reaching paragon and taking a path

[aco175]

My first party in 4E is going to reach paragon, the other group died and one is stalled, but whatever, my point is that I have a few questions.

I seems like in 4e everyone needs/gets a path. I recall some stuff on advancing without a path, but all of that looked lame compared to any path. How important is a path for each character to take?

Second, as the DM, should I tell/foreshadow some of the stuff they should encounter to help them choose paths that may be better in game terms? The opposite is that I base encounters on what they choose as paths and tailor the levels around what the players want. This will be best, but I do not have the time to do this for every level and use modules a lot.

Are there paths that relate across classes that the party may want to look at which would tie them together better. Is there a path for rogues called Dread Pirate Roberts, and a fighter called Brute Pirate, the warlock Ninja Pirate, and so on?

I'm sure some more will pop up as I form what paragon will look like. Thank you

 

[Mentat55]

Paragon paths are very important to the power level of paragon-tier characters. The other option you speak of is paragon multiclassing, which is generally regarded as weaker than choosing a paragon path in the majority of cases, though it works well with specific combinations and has many interesting possibilities, at a high cost (4 feats).

Off the top of my head, there aren't a lot of paragon paths that obviously connect to each other. How you introduce paragon paths is up to you -- if it is tied to an organization, you could weave it into the story, but other paragon paths simply represent a specialization, e.g., the fighter that takes the Kensei PP is just focusing on fighting with his/her chosen weapon.

The characters should be fine whichever PP they take, certainly some are more potent than others, but most provide decent powers and some useful benefits. So I don't imagine you'll have to tweak encounters because they are too weak. OTOH, some PP are quite strong, and you might find, as you go into the paragon tier, that the capabilities of your party are exceeding the difficulty of your encounters, and you have to make the fights harder.

 

[Mesh Hong]

Paragon Paths and Epic Destinies are a very important defining aspect of every PC, and for me are one of the best features of 4e.

However they can cause a few issues if you are not ready for them. Mainly in the big jump in power when entering the new tier, some paths grant powers that radically change the game and have a major impact on encounter design (in my game I just wasn't prepared for Certain Justice).

With this in mind, and also for character reasons it is important and helpful to discuss what paragon path (or epic destiny) each character is going to take at least 1 level before time, (possibly 2 to 3 for epic destiny) so that you can familiarise yourself with the powers it grants and also try to weave a justification into the plot.

Some paragon paths and epic destinies are easier to weave in that others, that is why you may need a level or two's advance warning to make the transition.

In my group (6 PCs) no-one had a problem with chosing a paragon path, and now that they have just hit level 21 they all have their epic destinies sorted except for the Warlord. The choices for warlord are a little poor, as the two main options both imply that a warlord should be leading an army, which isn't really practical with an adventuring group. I have known about this for quite some time and I do have plans to rectify it, but plot reasons have forced me to wait until the end of their current adventure. All my other characters epic destinies are either natural progressions or have been sign posted and set up for many many levels so that they can become an important part of the story.

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Keep in mind - picking a paragon path doesn't "cost" you anything. It is not like having to change your class, it is adding to your character. The challenge can be finding a paragon path that you find suitable to your character. Of course, the more supplements you have (or if you use the Character Builder), the more likely it is you find something interesting.

Not having a paragon path will cost you something, of course - you lose out its powers and special abilities.

 

[AbdulAlhazred]

I think its cool to work the transition into the story somehow, yes. I discussed PP with my players around the time the characters were 7th level to find out what they had in mind for their characters. Certain things can then be worked in, like finding some particularly appropriate equipment.

Some of the character's progression is pretty natural and doesn't need much in the way of plot devices. The Dwarf Fighter becomes a dreadnought, which is just an extension of his existing fighting abilities (but it could involve some blessing of Moradin or something). As usual the warlock's transition begged for some actual story justification, like being exposed to otherworldly forces and "changed".

Of course some groups are less wrapped up in story than others. A hack-n-slash group will just pick up 11th level and all their new goodies like any other level. A really intensive RP group may want a lot of story elements centered around the transition.

 

[aco175]

Thank you, this is alot of what I was thinking. Right now thePC's are about to become 8th level. I will just ask them to start thinking about what path they're looking at/ thinking about. I'm going to try and wrap up a few threads in the next couple levels and try and have some grand event for finishing 10th.

Any ideas on how to reward the party to make them feel spotlighted. One of my threads involve the Duke's son kidnaped by Yuan ti and the following rescue from Stone Island.

Is it cooler from a player perspective to have the final battle end with some sort of cliffhanger and the pc's are to choose a path when they get back to town, or have some sort of energy explosion or divine light transform them into their path?

Any better ideas to mke the event special?

 

[AbdulAlhazred]

I think either option could be fine depending on the type of game, the player, and the nature of the character and how that relates to the path he's chosen.

As an example I have an 8th level party I'm running for right now. There's a dwarf who's player wants to go Dreadnought probably. I think its fine to have that one be a fairly low key thing. His path is pretty much a straightforward extension of what he does now, fight really well and keep the monsters off the rest of the party's backs. I may have him be exposed to some arcane energy and have that explain his initial PP features though.

The warlock on the other hand is planning on taking Master of the Starry Night. I think I'll have him dig up some Book of Horrible Secrets soon and as he exposes himself to Forbidden Knowledge it will culminate in him getting his PP stuff (plus he already has some fragments of a 'black rock that fell from the sky' that may just tie into it as well).

Anyway, now that I know what PP they are aiming for I can jigger events in the next 3 levels a bit so that the transitions are worked into the story and seem natural and possibly dramatic.

 

[Armadillo]

Off the top of my head, there aren't a lot of paragon paths that obviously connect to each other.

Though, this would be nice to see. I like the idea of linked PP.

 

[aco175]

I guess I will ask them tonight to start thinking about paths. Once I know what paths they are looking at I can 'jigger' things a bit. Thank you