Anyway, I was thinking about it, and wondering how much further WotC wants to go with this? Will we reach a point where the number of "core" classes numbers into the ridiculous?
At any rate, I was pondering future uses for "power sources".
Obviously, there lies an available niche (perhaps in a [Power Source] Power X book) for veritable mountains of fluff, paragon paths, epic destinies (perhaps some even fusing two different powersources), but I can't help but wonder where one draws the line? What, exactly, differentiates a Wild Magic Sorcerer from an Elemental-source striker? They both use the elemental chaos to fuel their powers. What makes the necrotic damage of the warlock different from the necrotic damage of a shadow controller?
Something else to consider -- the rumors of Elemental and Shadow sources would seem to suggest that a power source exists for each plane in core cosmology.
All: Martial, Arcane
Prime Material: Primal
Astral Sea: Divine
Elemental Chaos: Elemental
Shadowfell: Shadow
Feywild: ???
The Far Realm: Psionic? something else?
Don't know where "ki" would fall into this though...
/endrant
Feywild: ???
The feywild is inundated with magic. Arcane is likely the key power source in the feywild.
The details of any given class—its features, its powers—are what make it different from similar classes. There probably will be thematic overlap at times (like, as you say, with the Wild Magic Sorcerer and the hypothetical-at-this-point elemental striker class), but I don't think it impossible for the two to feel distinct, to play distinct...assuming, of course, that they are designed well. Likewise, the necrotic damage of a Warlock will be different from the necrotic damage of the yet-to-be-seen shadow controller class in the details of the way that damage is dealt, much in the way that the fire damage a Swordmage can deal is very much the same and very much different from the fire damage a Wizard can deal.
As far as matching power sources to the different 4E planes, maybe they will design a "Faerie" power source for the Feywild? Ki would probably be associated with "All" like Arcane and Martial.
Personally, I want to see a power source that involves utilizing weaponized love...must...resist...urge...to homebrew!
Personally, I want to see a power source that involves utilizing weaponized love...must...resist...urge...to homebrew!
Heroes of love?
So what would the first class be? Sailor scouts?
Heroes of love?
So what would the first class be? Sailor scouts?
Please don't encourage me.
Please don't encourage me.
Why not? I egged on a friend who created the Carnal Pact for his warlock.
It was like a mix of fey and infernal. The pact was made with the court of a feylord of springtime (I think the notion was that spring = rebirth and mating) that had wed a succubus. It was quite creative. And totally ridiculous.
My apologies to the OP for hijacking his thread...my apologies to everyone else for the atrocities I have committed against this great game...
We currently have 4 power sources, Arcane, Martial, Divine, and Primal, and another expected 4 on the way (Shadow, Ki, Psionic, Elemental)
Anyway, I was thinking about it, and wondering how much further WotC wants to go with this? Will we reach a point where the number of "core" classes numbers into the ridiculous?
At any rate, I was pondering future uses for "power sources".
Obviously, there lies an available niche (perhaps in a [Power Source] Power X book) for veritable mountains of fluff, paragon paths, epic destinies (perhaps some even fusing two different powersources), but I can't help but wonder where one draws the line? What, exactly, differentiates a Wild Magic Sorcerer from an Elemental-source striker? They both use the elemental chaos to fuel their powers. What makes the necrotic damage of the warlock different from the necrotic damage of a shadow controller?
Something else to consider -- the rumors of Elemental and Shadow sources would seem to suggest that a power source exists for each plane in core cosmology.
All: Martial, Arcane
Prime Material: Primal
Astral Sea: Divine
Elemental Chaos: Elemental
Shadowfell: Shadow
Feywild: ???
The Far Realm: Psionic? something else?
Don't know where "ki" would fall into this though...
/endrant
Wizards won't come out and say it and have even denied that power sources are plane based. That being said, they do seem to gravitate to certain planes.
Astral Sea = Divine
Natural World = Primal
Elemental Chaos = Elemental
Arcane = Feywild
Shadow = Shadowfell
Which leaves the three internal power sources;
Ki = Soul
Martial = Body
Psionic = Mind
Now once Wizards has tapped these sources, they can either revisit them and cover new concepts that may have occured to them after the relevant PHB has gone by, although some may make it into the various cspg's, like the Swordmage did in the FRPG. Who knows, a couple of years down the road they may solve the eternal riddle of the martial controller. To everyone's satisfastion.
There is also the chance of new sources being discovered, like the Aberrant, Dream or Time power sources.
Bel
What, exactly, differentiates a Wild Magic Sorcerer from an Elemental-source striker?
One's a Lodestone for magic thanks to the influence of Chaos, the other's a heavy-armour wearing melee fighter who binds elementals into his equipment.
What makes the necrotic damage of the warlock different from the necrotic damage of a shadow controller?
Absolutely Nothing. Both arcane and shadow can use necrotic energy, in the same way that both swords and guns make holes in people.
Power sources determine why the powers work.
Arcane characters learn how to force magic into artificial patterns.
Divine characters are given powers via ritual.
Primal characters are granted powers by the spirits
Martial characters use the powers inherent to thier bodies.
Ki characters awaken dormant powers from thier souls.
Psionic characters can percieve/warp the elemental/divine underpinning of reality.
Shadow characters allow themselves to be infected by death/shadow.
Elemental characters bind elementals.
And as to how many classes? 4-6 per power source, with only the existing 8.
Any new power sources would have serious trouble avoiding the toes of the existing power sources, and are quite simply unnecessary. Pretty much any character concept can be created with the above 8, and there's enough development room there to keep developers going for years.
Theme sources (Far-touched, Dragonmarks, Defilers ect) can be safely relegated to multi-class only classes.
What makes the necrotic damage of the warlock different from the necrotic damage of a shadow controller?
Exactly the same thing that makes the radiant damage of a Wizard different from the radiant damage of a Paladin.