4E: Some Random Bits

Dragon magazine had somewhat of an ongoing storyline featuring a woman who's DM'ing for her first time. She interviewed a gentleman named James Wyatt, one of the authors on the DMG and acclaimed as "one of the best DMs" among Wizard employees. When asked what the best change in 4.0 was, he replied:

"Monster design...Fights aren't over so quickly anymore because monsters are designed to last at least 2 rounds, instead of wham, bam, hit the pavement."

The article continues:

"bloodied" -- the verbal detection that gives you an idea how badly you pummeled a monster, and vice versa. In the past [players would] have to weasel information about the health of the monsters from [the DM]. What the heck? Are they insured by Aetna too? How about some basic healthcare updates? [PCs would] be sweating over their swords and fireballs, and all [the DM] would say was, "That hits. You do damage. Next?"

Now the DM tells us someone is bloodied and we know we're more than halfway to defeating it.

The Warforged continue to be a factor in 4E - I was never really fond of them, but I guess they're pretty popular. They excel in the role of "Defender", particularly as fighters.

Have we discussed the "roles" yet? Here's what the PHB has to say about the roles:

Each character class specializes in one of four basic functions in combat: control and area offense, defense, healing and support, and focused offense. The roles embodied by these functions are controller, defender, leader, and striker. The classic adventuring party includes one character of each role: wizard, fighter, cleric, and rogue.

It’s a good idea to cover each role with at least one character. If you have five or six players in your group, it’s best to double up on defender first, then striker. If you don’t have all the roles covered, that’s okay too—it just means that the characters need to compensate for the missing function. Future volumes of the Player’s Handbook will introduce additional classes for all these roles.

Controller (Wizard): Controllers deal with large numbers of enemies at the same time. They favor offense over defense, using powers that deal damage to multiple foes at once, as well as subtler powers that weaken, confuse, or delay their foes.

Defender (Fighter, Paladin): Defenders have the highest defenses in the game and good close-up offense. They are the party’s front-line combatants; wherever they’re standing, that’s where the action is. Defenders have abilities and powers that make it difficult for enemies to move past them or to ignore them in battle.

Leader (Cleric, Warlord):
Leaders inspire, heal, and aid the other characters in an adventuring group. Leaders have good defenses, but their strength lies in powers that protect their companions and target specific foes for the party to concentrate on...just because they fill the leader role doesn’t mean they’re necessarily a group’s spokesperson or commander. The party leader—if the group has one—might as easily be a charismatic warlock or an authoritative paladin. Leaders (the role) fulfill their function through their mechanics; party leaders are born through roleplaying.

Striker (Ranger, Rogue, Warlock): Strikers specialize in dealing high amounts of damage to a single target at a time. They have the most concentrated offense of any character in the game. Strikers rely on superior mobility, trickery, or magic to move around tough foes and single out the enemy they want to attack.