4th Ed = Card game?

[raynulf]

Skimmed through 4th ed.

First off - the combat system has changed more from 3.5 to 4th ed than it did from 1st edition through to 3.5.

It's somewhat odd, and from the looks of things will be horrid to manage without a deck of cards to flip over to keep track of "Power" use, since all classes have been converted to resemble the Book of Nine Swords.

Comments

[raynulf]

Think:
- 1 feat at 1st level and one every even level thereafter for all classes.
- References to the Book of Nine Swords (yes, the 3.5 ed splat book) all through the damn thing, especially the Warlord.
- 2 At-Will powers (regardless of level)
- 1-4 (min-max level) Encounter powers
- 1-4 (min-max level) Daily powers
- 0-7 (min-max level) Utility powers

Ie. You will have 2 at will powers (always), which typically you get at access to at 1st level, and then up to 4, 4 and 7 other powers.

NB:
1) Each class has a limit on how many healing surges/day they can spend. Ie. How much they can be healed.
2) The entire book has the sickeningly "Heroes are GOOD! Monsters are EVIL!" feel to it. Yes it still has alignment.

Clerics resemble Crusaders from BoNS.
At Will: They get a choice of Attack or... Attack. Either way allies might get a +1 for a round.

Encounter: These all pretty much fall into three categories:
-Attack (one or more targets)
-Attack and apply penalties (one or more targets)
-Attack and cause nearby ally(ies) to be able to spend a Healing Surge.

Daily: Keeping in mind you get VERY few of these
-Attack (one or more targets)
-Attack + Bonuses / Penalties
-Grant allies healing as if via Healing Surge (without them spending it, typically), or Fast Healing. (It's not even a pretense at choice).

Utility are a mixture of daily and encounter powers (mostly) and are designed to encompass what the old spells did. Except you get crap all of them, and most of the Encounter/At-Will ones are appalling.
-Healing (per X times healing surge)
-Grant bonuses (often for 1 round from Encounter, or whole Encounter if daily)

And that's pretty much it.

The entire class design is exclusively for combat. With friends. Vs evil, for there is not even a hint of flexibility in the thing.

Fighter works much the same: At will "You hit it.. in melee because WHY WOULD A FIGHTER USE A BOW!?!". Plus automatic regeneration powers when bloodied and so forth. No really, Fighters don't get ranged weapon powers. At all.

Wizards now consist of Evocation plus the odd protection spell, eg, invisibility or Stoneskin (now requires L16). Ie, you blow shit up. Period.

From what I've read, you also no longer multiclass. You take a feat that gives you access to a few abilities another class has.

Two additional closing remarks:
1) All classes can heal themselves. Without magic items or anything, just by going "RARRRRGH!" and regenerating health.
2) The clerics ability to heal someone is based on their target's level, not theirs.
3) All powers are intended exclusively for combat, require you to LEVEL to adjust and above all else what each class has access to is immensely restrictive.
4) It's a dungeoneering game. And WoW still does it cheaper, better and with prettier pictures. IMO.

[raynulf]

PS:

I actively avoided listening to or reading the online discussion arguements about 4th ed and decided to reserve judgement until I could see the book.

And I reiterate: Wizards of the Coast, WTF?