Rules that still feel unneeded (to me)

[SaffroN]

What I think isn't necessary?

Squares instead of 5'.

my guess is that squares are being used so that you can easily convert distances in squares to imperial or metric units. A monster who is 5 squares away could be 25 feet or 10 meters. Before DnD i rarely used Imperial units, so i had difficulty picturing room lengths and heights, and basically distances in general. Not to mention weights. To fix this I was always converting in my head. It just wasn't intuitive for me. I'm better at it now, but i can appreciate the use of such measurement systems in games. This is already done with coins, and now with distances.

 

[Rodrigo Istalindir]

After some thought, I'd have like things a little better if:

* Abilities were affected by action points. Either replace per-day with 'requires an action point' and balance accordingly, or replace 'per-encounter' with 'per encounter, add X if you also spend an action point'. Or even abilities that could only be used by spending an action point. As they expect you to get them every other encounter, you can't use more than one per encounter, and you can't hoard them for long, they seem of rather limited utility so far. To be sure, the extra action came in handy several times, but more choices would be better.

* Added a negative condition to 'bloodied'. The all-or-nothing aspect has always bugged me, and while I don't necessarily want a death spiral, I'd like some thing more than what we've always had.

 

[Gort]

It doesn't, though. You can't heal yourself when unconscious, its only once/encounter and you have to give up your action to heal yourself. Having heal bots around to heal you as a minor action (and potentially for more) is still quite necessary.

You can always play a dwarf if you don't want to give up your action.

 

[delericho]

I still don't see any reason for these additions to the game:

- Action points

- Second wind

- Bloodied condition

It's funny - although there are a lot of things I really don't like about 4e, these three are things actually I do like. In fact, my opinion of Action Points was reversed when I learned they were used to give the character an extra action, once per encounter. I had no use for the d20 Modern/Unearthed Arcana/Eberron implementations.

 

[hong]

The paladin's Lay on Hands uses up the paladin's healing surges, not the target's

True, but that still has nothing to do with the Second Wind.

 

[Khementari]

Second wind, action points and 'Bloodied' aren't in the game for roll-players; it's for role-players. It gives the player the ability to change the cinematic action, whereas otherwise you just have to hope for random rolls.

Is that a reason for them? Maybe not for you.

I surely can't wait to have that kind of option in my game.

 

[Sir Sebastian Hardin]

* Added a negative condition to 'bloodied'. The all-or-nothing aspect has always bugged me, and while I don't necessarily want a death spiral, I'd like some thing more than what we've always had.

Yes! Maybe something not so tough as the SW SAGA Condition track, but at least a -1 to all rolls and checks would be nice to "bloodied" characeters.... that would be more in line with the "tough decisions" aproach: Do I want to be bloodied, taking a -1 penalty but having access to this neat stuff? or Do I want to stay OK and safe with no penalties? (You are bleeding all over the dungeon! there's got to be some sort of effect)

 

[Psion]

Yeah, Bloodied is actually an improvement AFAIAC. Removes one of the my four great hangups with HP in D&D. (And is sort of in line with a house rule I already had for 3.x)

Now you want to talk about rules changes that weren't needed (and intentionally skirting the fluff changes that weren't needed), let me once again restate:

Diagonal movement.

(insert hong Dragonborn breast post here)

 

[RandomCitizenX]

* Added a negative condition to 'bloodied'. The all-or-nothing aspect has always bugged me, and while I don't necessarily want a death spiral, I'd like some thing more than what we've always had.

I think the negative associated with the bloodied condition is the fact that you can now be targeted by certain abilities.

 

[wedgeski]

I'm not sure it is a good thing that players automatically know how badly hurt a foe is.

I think it's unfair to deny them that kind of information, as it would be at least partially apparent on the actual battlefield. Of course, the door swings both ways.

Of course it can be a clue if the dm wants them to know

.
I don't think the DM gets a choice but to tell them. There are going to be lots of options that are only available when your foe is bloodied.