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ShortQuests -- Pocket Sized Adventures! An all-new collection of digest-sized D&D adventures designed for 1-2 game sessions.

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Psionicist" data-source="post: 2375696" data-attributes="member: 1874">Okay, I haven't played D&D for about 8 months, so there are a few things I don't take for granted now and see in a whole different light.Most feats improve your abilities in various ways. Improved Disarm for example - the purpose of this feat is to make your character better at disarming opponents than other characters and NPCs. Keep in mind that you can actually disarm opponents without this feat. Same thing with Skill Focus. You can use your skills without this feat, but if you have it you are better at the skill than other characters of the same class and level. This feat category improves what you already know. This feat category does not hinder gameplay.There are a few feats that grant you extraordinary abilities normal people just cannot do, in the sense it's worthless even trying. These feats are like superhero powers, but for regular D&D-heros. A good example (balance aside) of this is the Fearless feat from PGTF. This feat makes you immune to fear. You are not just good at resisting fear (say with Iron Will from the above category), you are completely immune to it! Another example is the Diehard feat, you can fight unconceous, sort of! This feat category grants you new special abilities unrelated to what you already know. This feat category does not hinder gameplay.Then we have Spring Attack (and Whirlwind attack, and lots of other feats). Without this feat, you just cannot move before and after an attack, regardless of skill and level. Either you have this feat and can move  before and after an attack, or you don't have this feat and cannot. Moving before and after an attack is not exactly a heroic ability, and it certainly does not improve what you already know. Heck, if this feat didn't exist, it'd be perfectly legal to move before and after an attack. I don't get it. Why are tactical concepts and ideas implemented as feats? Take Hamstring from Complete Warrior. If you have this feat, you can hamstring your foes! Why do I need a feat to do that? Another example is Flying Kick. Do I really need a feat to jump and kick into combat? This is unique to combat for some reason - there's no feat that give you the ability to diplomatically influence people to give you the key to a locked door. There's no feat that grant you the ability to use a library when researching a subject. It seems feats are used instead of a combat skill, and this is highly annoying.I mean, even a Str 8 Halfling Wizard can armwrestle a Str 20 orc or wear armor. Why not move during combat?Thoughts?</blockquote>

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