Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Joseph_Silver 11-26-06, 03:22 PM	Tales of Moonsea is a Neverwinter Nights 2 that is currently being developed. For now, all its website contains are its forums. The players of Tales of Moonsea are serious roleplayers who always stay in-character. Unfortunately, their excellent roleplaying skills does not necessarily give them a good understanding of the rules. Apparently, they believe that a level 20 eldritch knight has the abilities of a level 20 fighter and a level 20 wizard, making this prestige class overpowered. http://www.talesofmoonsea.net/forum/index.php?topic=303.0 I've tried to use facts to convince them that the eldritch knight is not overpowered; I compared the fighter, the wizard, and the eldritch knight side-by-side to show them that the eldritch knight is balanced. The eldritch knight is not both the fighter and the wizard combined. The eldritch knight is a weaker fighter and a weaker wizard combined. Time to compare stats: The build that I plan on using is fighter 2/wizard 8/eldritch knight 10. Let's compare this with a fighter 20 and a wizard 20. 1. HP The eldritch knight gets 10 + 1d10 + 8d4 + 10d6 HP, for an average of 70.5 HP. The fighter gets 20d10 HP, for an average of 110 HP. The wizard gets 20d4 HP, for an average of 50 HP. On average, the eldritch knight has 20.5 more HP than the wizard, and 39.5 less HP than the fighter. 2. Base Attack Bonus The eldritch knight has a base attack bonus of +16 and can attack four times per round. The fighter has a base attack bonus of +20 and can attack four times. In combat, the eldritch knight is four levels behind the fighter. 3. Saving Throws Eldritch Knight Fortitude = 12 Will = 9 Reflex = 5 Fighter Fortitude = 12 Will = 6 Reflex = 6 Wizard Fortitude = 6 Will = 12 Reflex = 6 The eldritch knight's saving throws are better, except for his reflex saving throw. I doubt that this makes him overpowered. 4. Spellcasting The wizard has a caster level of 20 and can cast 4/4/4/4/4/4/4/4/4/4 spells. The eldritch knight has a caster level of 17 and can cast 4/4/4/4/4/4/4/3/2/1 spells. The eldritch knight is three levels behind the wizard in spellcasting ability. 5. Feats The eldritch knight gets 12 feats, including bonus feats (he only gets 11 feats in P&P). The fighter gets 19 feats. The wizard gets 11 feats. The eldritch knight gets 1 feat more than the wizard. Yay. But he gets 7 feats less than the fighter. Boo. 6. Ability Scores The eldritch knight suffers from Multiple Ability Dependency, or MAD. They require lots of good stats instead of focusing on one or two stats. My eldritch knight had these stats: Strength 14 Dexterity 14 Constitution 14 Intelligence 14 + 5 Wisdom 12 Charisma 12 My fighter had these stats: Strength 16 + 5 Dexterity 12 Constitution 16 Intelligence 12 Wisdom 12 Charisma 12 My wizard had these stats: Strength 10 Dexterity 14 Constitution 16 Intelligence 16 + 5 Wisdom 12 Charisma 12 7. Summary Let's compare total attack bonuses and total spellcasting ability. At level 20, the wizard can cast 4/6/5/5/5/5/4/4/4/4 spells. At level 20, the eldritch knight can cast 4/5/5/5/5/4/4/3/2/1 spells. At level 20, the fighter has an attack bonus of +27, taking into account his strength and Greater Weapon Focus. At level 20, the eldritch knight has an attack bonus of +18. However, if he buffs himself with Greater Heroism, Bull's Strength, and Haste, he can get up to +25. Even fully buffed, the eldritch knight cannot match the fighter's prowess in battle. As for HP, the eldritch knight has an average of 110.5 HP. The wizard has an average of 110 HP. The fighter has an average of 170 HP. The eldritch knight actually doesn't have more HP than the wizard because of MAD. So there you go. The term to use for the eldritch knight is "versatile", not overpowered. I have backed up my statements with facts. Now it's your turn. :) However, they do not counter my statements with facts. They counter them with opinions. What can I do?
Sarella Starshine 11-26-06, 05:04 PM	nothing? If they believe that strongly about something that they ignore all facts that say otherwise, there is nothing you can do to convince them otherwise. And to continue to try, is futile. Let them believe thier beliefs, safe in the knowledge that you are right.