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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Aenghus" data-source="post: 5904202" data-attributes="member: 2656">In previous editions of D&D the swashbucker/light-fighter/ninja concept has been expressable mechanically in a number of ways, which boil down into three variants - fighter class versions, rogue class versions and their own class. When more than one of these existed in the same edition, typically one of the implementations was just plain better than the other.So for the next edition, the designers need to figure out how to implement the lightly-armoured competent melee combatant concept in an effective and widely acceptable way.Secondly, a significant problem for rogues/thieves in all previous editions  as they rose in levels is that the increasing sensory, magical and supernatural powers of their opposition at higher levesl tended to marginalise their abilities more and more, both in and out of combat. In combat monsters were increasingly immune to sneak attack in 3rd ed and backstab in earlier editions - constructs, undead, oozes etc. Out of combat, enemy senses such as  an excellent sense of smell, blindsight, blindsense, tremorsense, true seeing, magical detection, and hidden guards such as gargoyles and undead can make live very hard on rogues who try to be sneaky, to the point where in some games it's just a waste of time even trying. Care has to be taken to keep all classes viable at all levels on a continuing basis, as this sort of marginalisation can result from subsequent designers producing monsters and other material that make using class abilities increasingly more difficult, and this can happen accidentally.This is of particular concern, as it looks like the next edition will feature more situational spike damage for rogues, and if the chances of gaining this spike damage lower appreciably with increasing level due to increasing monster abilties, it will marginalise the rogue/thief class for many potential players.</blockquote>

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