First of all, apologies if this should actually be in Character Development. A cursory perusal of that forum seemed to indicate that is was more about RP and backstory. I need mechanics help.
My friend is willing to come try out D&D (first tabletop RPG for her ever), and she'd like to be one of the two following character types from East Asian cinema. I could do this reasonably handily in 3.x, and with no trouble at all in my beloved 2e, but I'm kind of new to 4 so I'd like some help. Help me help my friend and grow the D&D playerbase!:
1) "Wushu Swordswoman"
see also: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OxQ-2gR1DU
and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzBHzGF13IE
(last 30 seconds)
This is where the massive trouble lies for me. The requirements of:
-Cloth
-1h+NOTHING
-High mobility
-High defense
-Multiple attacks
are killing me. An Avenger is the closest I can come to the concept, but the Divine power source and 2h weapons break the character image a little too much. I have played enough 4 to know that a Cloth Fighter isn't even worth discussing and that all Ranger melee is dual wield. Any suggestions?
2) "Kunoichi"
This actually seems somewhat straightforward to me. Rogue wielding 劍 (aka "renamed Shortsword"), and for ranged Shurikens are already there. Is there a better way to do this?
Thanks in advance!
Thanks for the replies guys. I think I'll probably go with the Avenger. The offensive focus would be more fun for a beginner I think, and Channel Divinity + Human gives Fullblades and RRoT cheese right at level 1 for extra entertainment.
Avenger is a good choice for that. They have a lot of the "look" down correctly, and the mobility from all of their powers is solid. You can do what I've done in the past and just reflavor using a "two-handed weapon" as a fighting style that requires the use of both hands for balance and speed, even if both hands aren't necessarily on the sword hilt at all times.
As for the Divine power source, just tone down the visual flair of the powers. Swordfighters in Wuxia movies do things we think of as supernatural all the time; give it some more ki overtones and ignore any parts of the power fluff that talk about "glowing" or "motes of light" or anything silly like that. Even their teleportation powers can just be extraordinarily fast movement in most scenarios.
1) "Wushu Swordswoman"
I would recommend an Avenger with a custom feat to let it work with a one handed weapon.
Something like this:
Avenging Swordmaster
Requirements: Class Avenger
Select one category of one handed melee weapon. When wielding that type of weapon alone (with our other hand open), you gain a bonus to damage. If it is an exotic weapon, it's damage dice is increased by one size. If the weapon is a martial weapon, it's damage dice is increased one size and it gains brutal 1.
I have not checked to see if that is balanced with every exotic weapon, but it should be fine with the martial ones.
2) "Kunoichi"
That is easy, the 4e Rogue is built to fill that job. If your aiming for something really magical, a Fey Warlock multiclassed in Rogue can give you one that can jump from shadow to shadow with each kill. If you want more of a direct melee type, then Fighter multi into Rogue. But from what you describe, straight Rogue is probably the best bet.
Jay
I would recommend an Avenger with a custom feat to let it work with a one handed weapon.
Something like this:
Avenging Swordmaster
Requirements: Class Avenger
Select one category of one handed melee weapon. When wielding that type of weapon alone (with our other hand open), you gain a bonus to damage. If it is an exotic weapon, it's damage dice is increased by one size. If the weapon is a martial weapon, it's damage dice is increased one size and it gains brutal 1.
I have not checked to see if that is balanced with every exotic weapon, but it should be fine with the martial ones.
I don't even think you need to go so far as making a custom feat. Simply make the powers work with "weapon" instead of 2h weapon.
Hey guys,
My friend is willing to come try out D&D (first tabletop RPG for her ever), and she'd like to be one of the two following character types from East Asian cinema. I could do this reasonably handily in 3.x, and with no trouble at all in my beloved 2e, but I'm kind of new to 4 so I'd like some help. Help me help my friend and grow the D&D playerbase!:
1) "Wushu Swordswoman"
This is where the massive trouble lies for me. The requirements of:
-Cloth
-1h+NOTHING
-High mobility
-High defense
-Multiple attacks
are killing me. An Avenger is the closest I can come to the concept, but the Divine power source and 2h weapons break the character image a little too much. I have played enough 4 to know that a Cloth Fighter isn't even worth discussing and that all Ranger melee is dual wield. Any suggestions?
The general consensus is that the Avenger is the closest fit as it stands. and I agree. The class is designed to use two-handed weapons, but I see no problem with using a versatile weapon like a longsword or a bastard sword.
I'm currently playing a Barbarian reflavored as a Samurai, who uses light armor and a bastard sword...it works just fine.
Also, the Monk playtest will be available in June...this might be a good fit as well.
2) "Kunoichi"
This actually seems somewhat straightforward to me. Rogue wielding 劍 (aka "renamed Shortsword"), and for ranged Shurikens are already there. Is there a better way to do this?
Thanks in advance!
Straight up aerialist rogue fits this rather nicely.
I don't even think you need to go so far as making a custom feat. Simply make the powers work with "weapon" instead of 2h weapon.
I think doing that would leave you with a very weak character. To counter balance their very high hit reliability, Avenger powers are noticeably short of [W] damage. They are often half that of a Barbarian of the same level, when the Barbarian is getting 4[W], the Avenger is doing 2[W]. This really makes the Avenger dependent on getting a bigger weapon to do decent damage. Even with the high hit reliability, doing 2[1d8]+4 isn't going to cut it when the Barbarian is doing 4[2d6]+4.
Even worse, this character is probably committed to using a sword. Which is usually the worst weapon for an Avenger. They don't need the little bit of accuracy and can't afford to give up a little damage. The only time swords make sense for an Avenger is if your aiming for Heavy Blade Opportunity.
The general consensus is that the Avenger is the closest fit as it stands. and I agree. The class is designed to use two-handed weapons, but I see no problem with using a versatile weapon like a longsword or a bastard sword.
I don't have a problem either, but I do want to point out, that is not RAW. 1 Handed vs 2 Handed is based on the weapon category, not how you are using it. So a versatile weapon used 2 Handed in combat doesn't qualify for powers that require a 2 Handed Weapon.
Jay
I don't have a problem either, but I do want to point out, that is not RAW. 1 Handed vs 2 Handed is based on the weapon category, not how you are using it. So a versatile weapon used 2 Handed in combat doesn't qualify for powers that require a 2 Handed Weapon.
Jay
I'm crying on the inside.