Which 1x/encounter abilities do you want for strikers & defenders?

[loseth]

What once (or limited#)-per-encounter powers would you like to have available for defenders (fighters & paladins) and strikers (rangers & rogues)? I'd like:

Berserk Fury (go nuts--lower AC, higher damage, opponents must make fear check)
Blow-for-blow (choose to automatically get hit in order to automatically hit your opponent)
Double Attack (attack two nearby opponents at the same time)
Exact Shot (shoot him in the weapon arm, shoot a potion he's holding, etc.)
Mighty Blow (extra damage; upgradeable)
Shove (push an opponent back in a direction chosen by you)


What would you like to see?

P.S. I am weak with the search-fu: apologies if this has been asked before recently.

 

[Aloïsius]

Berserk Fury (go nuts--lower AC, higher damage, opponents must make fear check)

Berserk fury or barbarian rage usualy last a few rounds. If it's once per encounter, then it will be an "at will" ability. I don't want that.

 

[Someone]

Good candidate would be various bluffs - feigning (sp?) death, feints, and low blows.

 

[loseth]

Berserk fury or barbarian rage usualy last a few rounds. If it's once per encounter, then it will be an "at will" ability. I don't want that.

You mean Wizards has said that multi-round abilities will always be at will? That seems to defeat the purpose of having something last more than one round (since you can just call it up 'at will' every round).

 

[Gloombunny]

Berserk fury or barbarian rage usualy last a few rounds. If it's once per encounter, then it will be an "at will" ability. I don't want that.

I don't quite understand. Are you saying that rage lasts a few rounds, and fights are over in a few rounds, so rage being per-encounter is effectively no different from it being at-will?

 

[WhatGravitas]

Berserk fury or barbarian rage usualy last a few rounds. If it's once per encounter, then it will be an "at will" ability. I don't want that.

Hmm... same here - I'd like to see a barbaric power split like that:

1/day - Berserking! I'm talking about Hulk! Smash!-rage like now.
1/encounter - Fit of rage. After you've been hit, get a 1 round rage against attacker
at will - Ruthless strike - get more damage, but get AC penalty.

This would play together quite nicely: You generally do more damage, but also take more. To compensate that, you can sometimes use that effect to fuel yourself (the 1 round rage). If things go awry, then you use the "big gun", the rage. Boosting strength, you hit better, and the extra Con allows you to use your 'lesser' per encounter/at will abilities better.

EDIT: Generally, I'd like to see powers that build on each other - the at will ability should be something useful, you like to use often, the per encounter one should be something that plays off the at will-ability, and the per day one should be generally useful, but especially for your 'lesser' abilities.

For a rogue, that would be something like:

1/day - get +10 ft. speed and +5 acrobatics for X rounds
1/encounter - get combat advantage against one enemy for the rest of the encounter by making acrobatics checks
at will - Sneak attack against enemy, you have combat advantage against

-> this would mean you can sneak attack by flanking, but sometimes you can pull it off yourself, and your per day ability would boost that, but would also be useful for other purposes.

NOTE: From a flavour-POV, that's all screwy! Daily speedbursts are hurting my flavour instinct, that's a purely mechanical example.

Cheers, LT.

 

[Aloïsius]

I don't quite understand. Are you saying that rage lasts a few rounds, and fights are over in a few rounds, so rage being per-encounter is effectively no different from it being at-will?

Yup. Lord Tirian has a good alternative.

 

[Kunimatyu]

I expect Rage to look a lot more like the alternate Barbarian ability in PHB2, where it triggers when you go below 1/2 hp(or, "bloodied" in the new rules set).

 

[Nifft]

Striker: 1/day kick ass.

Defender: 1/day cover ass.

Cheers, -- N

 

[Stalker0]

Intimidating Strike: You may use this ability after you land a critical hit. Roll an intimidate check vs your target's will defense. On a success, the target is shaken for the encounter.