I'm reading it right now!
EDIT: First impressions: Good. They get feats to up their saving throws, the artwork is superb (and they're Eberron warforged, not that MM abomination), there is a Paragon Path "Warforged Juggernaut", and we get warforged components, including docents!
And the page layout is actually good, as it is made for screen reading!
Cheers, LT.
Looks great-- The Juggernaut is nice and tough, just like I hoped. Can't wait to see an article like this for the changelings.
Look over there on the Dungeon articles - there's a conversion for Keep on the Shadowfell. From the tone of it (and the MM), I think changelings are passé and we're using doppelgangers now. Or rather: Changelings were renamed into doppelgangers and the old doppelgangers are away.
I really like the "immutability" feats. Looking at these, I can easily forgive not being immune to poison!
Cheers, LT.
I think changelings are passé and we're using doppelgangers now.
Passé? Never! Old school.
It took me a moment to notice, but the warforged resolve power has been changed quite a bit. The little save effect seems to be an improvement.
EDIT: Wow-- the docents being translated as neck slot items makes them very, very appealing items. Dr. Theopolis is truly looking out for your warforged.
If they are handing out this awesome stuff, what are they hiding? What book is this from?
Did you notice the page numbers?
If they are handing out this awesome stuff, what are they hiding? What book is this from?
The next Dragon issue.
Since they're already done the Table of Contents, everything has a place already, or at least it seems so.
Cheers, LT.
[i]"Warforged are never affected by the conditions of starvation, thirst, or suffocation, as described on page 159 of the DMG. All combat effects affect them normally, even if the flavor suggests that breathing or drinking is involved."
I guess I understand the need to simplify the warforged to fit in with the other races, and I'm glad at the concessions they made. Giving a bonus to "attaching" your armor (even though it's a pretty useless bonus) will make a reasonable excuse to have old-school warforged that live their lives encased in Adamantine or Mithril.
I like them, though I do miss some of the fluff that the old mechanics supported. For example, now that they are healed normally, there's not much of a point for all those Repair Damage spells, or for a warforged to hammer out his plating to repair himself. I also miss Adamantine Body, Mithril Body, etc. I felt like these feats lent to the idea of different warforged being created for different roles. The adamntine body was a part of you, and added to the feeling that you were entirely designed to be a fighting machine. Now that they can just unscrew their armor and walk around naked, it's a little weird. I wonder what they look like naked... weird skinny wood men? Can they unscrew their face plates?
I guess I understand the need to simplify the warforged to fit in with the other races, and I'm glad at the concessions they made. Giving a bonus to "attaching" your armor (even though it's a pretty useless bonus) will make a reasonable excuse to have old-school warforged that live their lives encased in Adamantine or Mithril.
Couple good things I see from the armor change.
Firstly, you're no longer a first level character with a large amount of adamantium or mithril.
Secondly, a few less "Only at First-Level" feats is a good thing.
At a glance, I'm happy with the current 'forged. I might try to through a forged NPC around my party soonish or laterish.
I like them, though I do miss some of the fluff that the old mechanics supported. For example, now that they are healed normally, there's not much of a point for all those Repair Damage spells, or for a warforged to hammer out his plating to repair himself.
I'd still play the "fixing himself up" part as just another way to spend your healing surges outside combat. Besides, the special healing rules for warforged existed mostly as a poor counterpoint for the truckload of immunities they sport.
I also miss Adamantine Body, Mithril Body, etc. I felt like these feats lent to the idea of different warforged being created for different roles. The adamntine body was a part of you, and added to the feeling that you were entirely designed to be a fighting machine. Now that they can just unscrew their armor and walk around naked, it's a little weird. I wonder what they look like naked... weird skinny wood men? Can they unscrew their face plates?
I'd still say they're made of wood, metal, and stone. This much is made evident by their strength, resilience, and resistance to ongoing damage.
In any case, I'm in the camp that thinks Adamantine Body is incredibly powerful, when compared to similar feats, such as the DR feat from Complete Warrior with ridiculous requirements and small benefits (as opposed to Adamantine Body which has no requirements and a truckload of benefits).
I like them, though I do miss some of the fluff that the old mechanics supported. For example, now that they are healed normally, there's not much of a point for all those Repair Damage spells, or for a warforged to hammer out his plating to repair himself.
I've been having trouble posting to the boards, but I touch on this in my livejournal. As Marcus suggests, I see this as a matter of flavor. A warforged emerges fulling healed from an extended rest. For a human, that's because they sleep and wake refreshed. For my warforged, I'm certainly going to say that he spends that time hammering out dents and patching gaps. The mechanics say that you emerge from an extended rest fully healed (and now, that you don't sleep while doing it); it's up to you to provide the flavor. You no longer have to make a skill check to see how much you repair. But I'll certainly continue to play it that my warforged is repairing between battles.
Now, he can be healed IN battle without the use of repair, but the important thing here is that healing means something entirely different than it used to. When a warlord uses inspiring word, he isn't physically healing you; he's giving you the courage and strength to continue with the fight. The cleric's healing word invigorates the warforged; it doesn't mend metal. You can do that between fights; the cleric's power gives you the strength to keep fighting despite the dents, it doesn't mend them.
At least, that's how I'll be playing it.
I wonder what they look like naked... weird skinny wood men?
The article states "Warforged are bulky humanoids fashioned of plates of metal and stone, supported by a skeleton of similar materials and a muscular system of leathery, woody fiber bundles..." Attached armor simply fortifies them against damage. Without it, they are still made of metal and stone plating; it's just not positioned or dense enough to be effective as armor.
I like the idea that most Warforged come out of the forge with their armor already attached and are somewhat appalled at the idea of detaching it and replacing it with a new one. This also solves the "naked warforged" issue for me as well, since I can imagine they view their own natural state as being encased in the armor they were granted at creation. So a warforged that was created with attached fullplate might look a little patchy and unbalanced if he detached it, but a he'd only be in that state temporarily while he's waiting to affix his new armor. I think I might even say that most Warforged in Eberron feel awkward wearing armor that isn't attached, and tend to attach it to themselves as soon as they have the time. It might help explain why there are now so many attachments... perhaps there's some obsessive-compulsive Warforged psychology that compels them to permanently bolt the things they care about onto their body.Taken from the article, I like what this is hinting at :D .
And yay for Warforged geting some love. Kudos btw Hellcow for the clarification on the way Warforged work in regards to environmental effects vs. combat effects. Means the Warforged in my party will breathe (pun intended) a sigh of relief.
This also solves the "naked warforged" issue for me as well, since I can imagine they view their own natural state as being encased in the armor they were granted at creation. So a warforged that was created with attached fullplate might look a little patchy and unbalanced if he detached it, but a he'd only be in that state temporarily while he's waiting to affix his new armor.
This is how I'll be playing it. Personally, I'll also be saying that attached "hide" or "leather" armor that has speficially been designed to be attached to warforged is simply light plating - not necessarily mithral, but Pierce and Indigo aren't suddenly covered in leather, either.
It might help explain why there are now so many attachments... perhaps there's some obsessive-compulsive Warforged psychology that compels them to permanently bolt the things they care about onto their body.
so how would you calculate AC for kitten armor?
Effect: You gain a number of temporary hit points equal to 3 + one-half your level. You may make an immediate
saving throw against one effect that inflicts ongoing
damage and can be ended with a save. In addition,
if you are bloodied you regain hit points equal to 3 + one half your level.
Emphisis mine of course, then we have the Immutability feat
Benefit: Whenever you use your warforged resolve racial power, you can also make a free saving throw against one condition or ongoing damage effect affecting you.
Uh, the feat seems a little redundant because Warforged Resolve already lets you do that... I suppose it meant that you could use it against another separate ongoing damaging condition, but that's not made particularly clear.
Uh, the feat seems a little redundant because Warforged Resolve already lets you do that... I suppose it meant that you could use it against another separate ongoing damaging condition, but that's not made particularly clear.
The racial power lets you save against ongoing damage, while the feat grants a save against any condition afflicting you.
EDIT: Wow-- the docents being translated as neck slot items makes them very, very appealing items. Dr. Theopolis is truly looking out for your warforged.
lol.. Biddy biddy biddy..
Good job Buck! err... Alas..
*Shudders* at the thought of a warforged scout (if they show up) named Tweaky..
So if I'm reading this correctly, Warforged can now wear armor normally like any other race?
Not exactly normally, but more or less, yes.
And making them biological constructs was a nice touch. A shame they dropped the made-of-darkwood but that's minor detail (and I think it was probably to appease the we-want-composite-plating crowd).
And it looks like resolve has been fixed.
As I mentioned on the other thread personally I'd like to see something about "light movement including marching through the night" but that's just because I like that part of Eberron fluff.
If anything they look a bit... powerful.
so how would you calculate AC for kitten armor?
No, no, no. Kittens are attached on the shoulder plates and grant Charm Person as a Minor action once per encounter. Or you can embed a Repeating Kitten Crossbow.