Flurry of Crunch

The latest class to be resurrected by 4th edition is the monk. A classic staple of AD&D, the monk has has won awards for most genre bending and made runner up for most useless party member (right behind the bard) in previous editions. 4E has recast these guys in with the other psionic types in a melee striker role.

As melee striker they appear to be fun to play. They get loads of mobility, interesting mult-target attack powers, and yes they still have really good defenses wearing nothing but a bath robe and some fuzzy slippers.

Rather than go into detail about the monk in general I want to look at a particularly interesting build floating around the interwebs, the twin strike monk.

Here is a link to the build on iplay4e. But here are the more important aspects of the build.

• Level 12 Stonefist Monk
• Race: Revenant (Half-Elf)
• Abilities: Dex(21) / Str(19)
• Feats: Half-Elf Soul, Crashing Tempest Style, Unarmored Agility, Two-Weapon Fighting, Two-Weapon Defense, Weapon Expertise (Unarmed), Starblade Flurry, Versatile Master
• Gear: Robe of Eyes Githweave Armor (+3) Amulet of Protection (+3) Blurred Strike Ki Focus (+2), Rhythm Blade Dagger (+1), Iron Armbands of Power (Heroic), Belt of The Brawler
• Powers (partial list): Twin Strike, Stone Fist Flurry of Blows

Before we start getting really crunchy over attacks and damage output, let's take a quick look at this character's AC defense. Hover over the numbers to see details.

AC = 10 + 6 + 5 + 2 + 2 + 3 + 2 = 30

The genius of this AC stack is the shield bonus granted from Two-Weapon Defense. Because the shield bonus is not granted from actually carrying a shield but instead from an off-hand weapon the feat bonus from Unarmored Agility still applies. Combined with the additional +1 shield bonus granted from the Rhythm dagger it's even better!

You might ask, where is this monk's second melee weapon? It turns out there are three weapons listed in the compendium in the unarmed group. Unarmed Attack, Monk Unarmed Strike, and Spikes Gauntlet. Personally I think this is a poor way to categorize these three things, but then again I also think letting monks qualify for Two-Weapon feats by doing nothing other than use their cool class ability and spend feats is also a poor move. But oh well.

On to the real meat of this build. TWIN STRIKE!

Ranger Attack 1Twin Strike

If the first attack doesn't kill it, the second one might.

At-Will      Martial, Weapon
Standard Action      Melee or Ranged weapon

Requirement: You must be wielding two melee weapons or a ranged weapon.

Targets: One or two creatures

Attack: Strength vs. AC (melee; main weapon and off-hand weapon) or Dexterity vs. AC (ranged), two attacks

Hit: 1[W] damage per attack.
Increase damage to 2[W] at 21st level.

First published in Player's Handbook.

The whole point of this build is applying your Flurry of Blows damage 6 times. Did I say 6? Yes I did. Your ordinary striker, say rogue for example, is getting 3 dice of extra striker damage, once per round. Normally those dice are d6s, but with an extra feat they can usually bump those to d8s. So, 3d8 (13.5 avg) damage per round for a level 11 rogue.

On the other hand, this Stone Fist Monk at level 12, is adding his extra striker damage 6 times and each time the damage is either 11 or 15, depending on if the monk can get find enemies not targeted in the original attack. That's 90 potential extra points of striker damage! Even at epic level our rogue is just looking at 5d8 on his Sneak Attack. That's 22 average per round but to be fair there is a remote chance it could do as much as 40. There are feats to increase potential damage output of the rogue's Sneak Attack damage but nothing that gets it even close to 90.

Take a look at Starblade Flurry, you'll be seeing this in effect real soon.

Starblade Flurry

Paragon Tier
Prerequisite: 11th level, monk, Flurry of Blows class feature
Benefit: When you use your Flurry of Blows power, you can add a single target within 5 squares of you by throwing a dagger or a shuriken that you have in hand. Doing so doesn’t provoke opportunity attacks.

First published in Player's Handbook 3.

That was a lot of numbers flying around. Let's try to break it down. Again hover over the numbers to see details.

Twin Strike Attack 1: Blurred Strike Ki Focused Monk Unarmed Strike, Main-Hand, Melee Touch

+ 6 + 4 + 2 + 3 + 1 = +16 vs AC

Hit: 1d8 + 0 + 2 + 1 + 2 + 2 = 1d8 + 7 (avg 11.5)

Plus, triggers Stonefist Flurry of Blows:
Targets: One or two within Melee Touch, one additional target within 5 (Starblade Flurry)
3 + 4 + 2 + 2 (+ 4) = 11 (15)

All said and done, assuming you can find targets for all of your uses of flurry 11.5 + 3 x 15 = 56.5. Hell if that's all you did in the round it would be epic. But wait there's more...

Before looking at attack number two, check out the item Blurred Strike Ki Focus.

Blurred Strike Ki Focus

You can master the secret of speed by catching this small mechanical fly in your hands.

Level: 10
Price: 5,000 gp
Implement (Ki Focus)
Enhancement: +2 attack rolls and damage rolls
Critical: +2d8 damage
Property: You can use your Flurry of Blows power an additional time during your turn, but the two uses of that power must be triggered by two different attacks that you make with this ki focus.

Power (At-Will): Free Action. Trigger: You move at least half your speed during this turn. Effect: You gain a +2 bonus to all defenses until the end of your next turn.

First published in Player's Handbook 3.

Oops, take another look at the property. Looks like you need to make two attack using this Ki Focus. No problem, just accept you're going to lose a point of AC and Reflex when using this additional Flurry. It's a good trade. Anyway check out the At-Will Free Action. Talk about OP.

Twin Strike Attack 2: Blurred Strike Ki Focused Dagger, Off-Hand, Melee

+ 6 + 4 + 2 + 3 = +15 vs AC

Hit: 1d4 + 0 + 2 + 0 + 2 = 1d4 + 4 (avg 6.5)

Plus, triggers Stonefist Flurry of Blows:
Second use courtesy of Blurred Strike Ki Focus Property.
Targets: One or two within Melee Touch, one additional target within 5 (Starblade Flurry)
3 + 4 + 2 + 2 (+ 4) = 11 (15)

Total for second attack: 5.5 + 3 x 15 = 51.5.

With both attacks hitting that's 108 damage!

There is a decent chance one of your attacks will miss. There is also a decent chance you will not be able to apply Flurry to the maximum targets. Finally there is a pretty good chance one of your Flurry targets will have to be the target of your triggering attack, lowering your overall damage by 4 or 8 points. It's pretty situational and it's a big range depending on all the factors.

What exactly is the worst case damage scenario? Easy, main-hand attack misses, off-hand attack hits and you have only one target, the target you hit with your second attack. Average damage in this case = 17.5. Seems pretty low huh? Not really. It's comparable with a rogue who is unable to get combat advantage. It just appears low after after staring at all the big, fabulous prizes.

Another typical scenario I foresee is one target adjacent and one target at range within 5. If you hit with your main-hand, and miss with your off-hand, damage comes out to 11.5 + 11 + 15 = 37.5. And that's missing with your off-hand. Damn good for a paragon level at-will striker attack. Damn good indeed! If hit with the off-hand it's another 32.5 damage for a total of 70. For what I see as the common scenario, you can expect alternating rounds of 37 and 70 damage, sustainable for the entire encounter!

The only downside is that this attack sequence doesn't focus fire at all. It sprays damage around a bunch of enemies, which means more enemies on the board longer, meaning more attacks incoming to your party. On the other hand multi-target damage output is great in some encounters.

Verdict: The cheese is strong in this build.

Suggested Fixes:

1. Ban Blurred Strike Ki Focus
2. Change Unarmed Attack to a standard action melee attack instead of a weapon type
3. Change Monk Unarmed Strike to a class feature that just increases damage done with the Unarmed Attack option
4. Change the Monk Unarmored Defense bonus to a feat bonus instead of untyped.

Duelist's Flurry of Crunches

This post is brought to by the rogue power Duelist's Flurry. To be fair it is just as much brought to you by the lack of clarity in 4E around the anatomy of a damage roll and the tornado of bonuses tied to this rather vague entity.

Rogue Attack 1Duelist's Flurry

You move your blade quickly, stinging your foe with a series of cuts and slashes. Each slice does little damage, but when combined, they form a deadly threat.

At-Will       Martial, Weapon
Standard Action      Melee weapon

Requirement: You must be wielding a light blade.

Target: One creature

Attack: Dexterity vs. AC

Hit: Dexterity modifier damage, slide the target 1 square, and you shift 1 square. You may use your sneak attack damage even if you do not have combat advantage with this attack.
Level 21: 5 + Dexterity modifier damage.

Revision (11/30/2009)
Page 18: Duelist’s Flurry should have the second line of the hit changed to allow you to deal your sneak attack damage instead of gain so that it matches the wording of sneak attack. Change to the second line of the hit to, You may use your sneak attack damage even if you do not have combat advantage against the target with this attack.

First published in Dragon Magazine 381.

For a level 11, dagger-wielding, rogue with the Backstabber feat, a 21 Dex and an 18 Cha, who does not have Combat Advantage:

Sly Flourish: 1W + Dex + Cha + Weapon Enchancement + Weapon Focus + Iron Armbands of Power
avg = 2.5 + 5 + 4 + 3 + 2 + 2 = 18.5
crit = 4 + 5 + 4 + 3 + 2 + 2 + 10.5 = 30.5

vs.

Duelist's Flurry: Dex + Sneak Attack + Weapon Enhancement + Weapon Focus + Iron Armbands of Power
avg = 5 + 13.5 + 3 + 2 + 2 = 25.5
crit = 5 + 24 + 3 + 2 + 2 + 10.5 = 46.5

Comparing the relative advantages of these two powers, Flourish gives you weapon damage and an extra ability modifier (Cha) while Flurry gives you your Sneak Attack dice even though you don't have CA. That's 7 points higher on average and 16 on a crit! Flurry is the clear winner here right?

Not really. With powers like Duelist's Flurry you lose a lot more than just the [x]W damage. The powers compared in the above example have several bonuses in common they should not. Duelist's Flurry and powers like it, that give only a static damage number, do not have an actual Damage Roll. What does this mean? Well....

Damage Rolls

Roll the damage indicated in the power description. If you’re using a weapon for the attack, the damage is some multiple of your weapon damage dice.

Add the ability modifier specified in the power description. Usually, this is the same ability modifier you used to determine your base attack bonus for the attack.

In addition, any of the following factors might apply to a damage roll:

- Racial or feat bonuses
- An enhancement bonus (usually from a magic weapon or an implement)
- An item bonus
- A power bonus
- Untyped bonuses

Published in Player's Handbook.

If you look at some of the bullet points in the PHB description of a Damage Roll several of the bonuses the two powers above appeared to have in common might not apply to a power that lacks a damage roll. Let's double check them.

Weapon

The weapon keyword identifies a power that is used with a weapon, including an improvised weapon such as an unarmed strike. The range and the damage of a weapon power is usually determined by the weapon you use with it. A [W] in a power’s damage expression stands for your weapon’s damage dice.

If you use a weapon power with a weapon with which you have proficiency, you add the weapon’s proficiency bonus to the attack rolls of that power. Your class and feats determine your weapon proficiencies.

Magic Weapons: If you use a weapon power with a magic weapon, you can add the magic weapon’s enhancement bonus to the power’s attack rolls and damage rolls.

Using an Implement as a Weapon: Most implements cannot be used as weapons. However, a few implements, like staffs, are expressly usable as both implements and weapons. When you wield such an implement as a weapon, you follow the normal rules for using a weapon.

When you use a magic version of the implement as a weapon, you can use the magic implement’s enhancement bonus and critical hit effects. To use its properties and powers, you must be able to wield it as an implement (see “Implement” above). Also, some magic implements have properties and powers that are worded in such a way that they work only with implement attacks.

Published in Player's Handbook 3.

Ok, so cross out the Weapon Enhancement bonus from Flurry (-3). Flurry is still ahead on average damage.

Weapon Focus

Heroic Tier
Benefit: Choose a specific weapon group, such as spears or heavy blades. You gain a +1 feat bonus to damage rolls with your chosen weapon group. At 11th level, this bonus increases to +2. At 21st level, it increases to +3.
Special: You can take this feat more than once. Each time you select this feat, choose another weapon group.

First published in Player's Handbook.

Damn, lost Weapon Focus too (-2). Flurry is still ahead on average damage by 2.

Iron Armbands of Power

These plate armbands enhance the damage you dole out.

Level: 6
Price: 1,800 gp
Item Slot: Arms

Property: Gain a +2 item bonus to melee damage rolls.

First published in Adventurer's Vault.

Actually, most item bonuses to damage are bonuses given to damage rolls. There are some items that grant extra damage without rolling like the Frozen Whetstone that simply deal extra damage on a successful attack.

This just happens to pull things dead even in terms of average damage. Almost like I planned it that way.

Sly Flourish: 1W + Dex + Cha + Weapon Enchancement + Weapon Focus + Iron Armbands of Power
avg = 2.5 + 5 + 4 + 3 + 2 + 2 = 18.5
crit = 4 + 5 + 4 + 3 + 2 + 2 + 10.5 = 30.5

vs.

Duelist's Flurry: Dex + Sneak Attack
avg = 5 + 13.5 = 18.5
crit = 5 + 24 + 10.5 = 39.5

When taking into account the slide + shift utility aspect and crits (omg) Flurry still looks like the winner to me.

Of course, there are other bonuses out there that only apply to damage rolls and I'm not factoring those in to the equation since they tend to be situational. Just be aware if they state that hey add to damage rolls they won't apply to powers like Duelist's Flurry.

Am I happy about this? Not really. When it comes right down to it I think it makes the Rogue less fun to play. The main thing that makes rogues fun to play in combat encounters is their need to slip around the grid, taking chances, trying to get into position where they can use Sneak Attack. This power just hands it to them. Even in you managed to redesign the power so that its damage did not keep pace so well with the other at-will powers (and it clearly needs this) I would still feel the game was better off without it entirely.

A better power with the duelist flavor (e.g. mono e mono) would be something like this:

Rogue Attack 1Duelist's Flurry

You move your blade quickly, stinging your foe with a series of cuts and slashes. Each slice does little damage, but when combined, they form a deadly threat.

At-Will      Martial, Weapon
Standard Action      Melee weapon

Requirement: You must be wielding a light blade.

Target: One creature

Attack: Dexterity vs. AC

Hit: Dexterity modifier damage, slide the target 1 square, and you shift 1 square. You may apply your Sneak Attack damage to your next successful attack that damages the target until the end of your next turn.
Level 21: 5 + Dexterity modifier damage.

Even more fun would be something like this:

Rogue Attack 1Duelist's Flurry

You move your blade quickly, stinging your foe with a series of cuts and slashes. Each slice does little damage, but when combined, they form a deadly threat.

At-Will      Martial, Weapon
Standard Action      Melee weapon

Requirement: You must be wielding a light blade.

Target: One creature

Attack: Dexterity vs. AC

Hit: Dexterity modifier damage, and guess the target's next action. If your guess is correct you may take an opportunity attack against the target. You may add your Sneak Attack damage to this attack.
Level 21: 5 + Dexterity modifier damage.

Side Note:

There is some debate as to whether Sneak Attack and other striker "extra damage" dice get max'ed out on a critical hit. My take on the RAW is they do.

Critical Hit

Natural 20: If you roll a 20 on the die when making an attack roll, you score a critical hit if your total attack roll is high enough to hit your target’s defense. If your attack roll is too low to score a critical hit, you still hit automatically.

Precision: Some class features and powers allow you to score a critical hit when you roll numbers other than 20 (only a natural 20 is an automatic hit).

Maximum Damage: Rather than roll damage, determine the maximum damage you can roll with your attack. This is your critical damage. (Attacks that don’t deal damage still don’t deal damage on a critical hit.)

Extra Damage: Magic weapons and implements, as well as high crit weapons, can increase the damage you deal when you score a critical hit. If this extra damage is a die roll, it’s not automatically maximum damage; you add the result of the roll.

Published in Player's Handbook.

Most of the discussion centers around the last paragraph. Obviously damage expressions stated in powers are maximized but what about "extra damage"? Some argue that Sneak Attack damage is extra damage (and it is) so it's included with the other extra damage examples in the last paragraph. Others argue the last paragraph ONLY includes the examples given and is only there to make sure people know the extra damage dice given as part of the critical hit must still be rolled.

Of course, anyone who played 3/3.5 might also have the lingering feeling that Sneak Attack damage is not multiplied in a critical hit. I recommend just throwing that feeling out. it's 10d6 vs 5d6 in a system where monsters have a lot more hp on average than the previous edition of the game. I doubt it's a concern anymore.

It would also help if Damage Roll vs. extra damage that gets rolled was a little better defined.

In the end I just don't think letting strikers do more damage on a critical hit is a bad thing or overpowered in any way. Plus, I actually like the idea of being a Daggermaster and taking the gamble of waiting for a critical hit to unload my Sneak Attack damage, which you can do since you don't have to decide when to apply your SA damage until after the rest of your damage has been rolled.

Bardic Crunch

Also titled: How Many Heals do Bards Get?

Good question. After looking at one of the Bard's more under appreciated class features, Multiclass Versatility, I think a better question is, how many feats do Bards get?

The answer? After poking around in the Character Builder I was able to create a level 12 Bard with the following:

• Majestic Word (Bard class feature - it's their 2/encounter heal)
• Theft of Life (Bard encounter power)
• Healing Infusion (Artificer multiclass feature - 1/day)
• Healing Spirit (Shaman multiclass power - 1/day)
• Healing Word (Cleric multiclass feature - 1/day)
• Healing Strike (Cleric encounter power)
• Insipring Word (Warlord multiclass feature - 1/day)
• Rune of Mending (Runepriest multiclass feature - 1/day)

Even with 6 multiclass feats and a novice power feat I was still able to give this build the Combat Virtuoso and Healer's Implement feats giving it a decent chance to hit with other class powers and a small boost to all heals. Stack her up with some River of Life Gloves and a proper Holy Symbol and she's starting to look like a real healer. I'm sure if I spent a few more hours tweaking it I could squeeze a few more points of healing in there but I've seen enough.

Here is a link to the build on iPlay4E.

In the end I still think the Cleric makes a more efficient healer, with bigger nuke heals and better access to multi-target healing. The Bard has the potential for a greater number of healing spells per day through multi-class feats but sacrifices specialization and a great deal of optimization due to the number of feats spent on multiclassing. A side benefit to all those multicass feats is a lot of cool extra class features and options. The shaman abilities alone and just really neat. These side benefits give this bard build some suprising utility at the table, which wouldn't you know it, feels quite bardic!

Now if only you could construct a plausible background for such a character....

Taking a Rest from Crunch

Short Rest

Duration: A short rest is about 5 minutes long.

No Limit per Day: You can take as many short rests per day as you want.

No Strenuous Activity: You have to rest during a short rest. You can stand guard, sit in place, ride on a wagon or other vehicle, or do other tasks that don’t require much exertion.

Renew Powers: After a short rest, you renew your encounter powers, so they are available for your next encounter.

Spend Healing Surges: After a short rest, you can spend as many healing surges as you want. If you run out of healing surges, you must take an extended rest to regain them.

Using Powers while You Rest: If you use an encounter power (such as a healing power) during a short rest, you need another short rest to renew it so that you can use it again.

Interruptions: If your short rest is interrupted, you need to rest another 5 minutes to get the benefits of a short rest.

Published in Player's Handbook.

I'm so happy they addressed this, and in a core rulebook no less. I'm not so happy with the way they addressed it. Seems clunky. Also, reduces the competitive value of the Bard's short rest ability. Oh well. Let's see how it plays.

Crunchbane

Something has been niggling at the back of my brain over the past week. It's Devilbane. Actually there are a couple feats just like it but they have the same basic concept. Attacks that normally target undead now target [x] as well. Very cool.

Devilbane

Heroic Tier
Prerequisite: Any divine class
Benefit: When you use a divine power that normally targets undead, you can also target creatures of the immortal origin.

First published in Divine Power.

Seems simple right? Kinda.

The problem is there are quite a few powers that appear to "target" undead, that actually don't. For instance: Solar Wrath or as we like to call it post-nerfing, Sunny Hug.

Radiant Servant Attack 11Solar Wrath

Radiant light explodes from you like a solar flare, evaporating shadows and dealing illuminating damage to everything around you.

Encounter       Divine, Implement, Radiant
Standard Action      Close burst 3

Target: Each enemy in burst

Attack: Wisdom vs. Will

Hit: 2d6 + Wisdom modifier radiant damage. If the target is either an undead creature or a demon, it is also stunned until the end of your next turn.

Update (4/8/2010)
In the Range entry, replace “burst 8” with “burst 3.” In the Hit entry, replace “3d8” with “2d6.”
Addition (6/10/2008)
Add the “Implement” keyword.

First published in Player's Handbook.

Reading this power over, I might conclude pretty easily that my cool new Devilbane feat allows me to apply the Hit effect to Immortals as well as undead and demons. Sadly, no. The power already targets every enemy regardless of creature type in the burst, so the [x]bane feats do not apply.

In an uncharacteristic act of trust toward the race of nubstains known as customer "service", I took a(nother) moment of my time and posted a question to the support page on WoTC's official site.

Q: Does the Devilbane feat work with powers like Solar Wrath? Solar Wrath and other similar powers do not specifically call out undead in their "Target" line but do have effects specifically for undead. Do feats like Devilbane and Demonbane work with these effects?

A: Nope, the power will specifically have to state that it's targetting undead creatures. Then it can target creatures of the other origins like devilbane.

BTW: I received this answer in less than 12 hours. Yay for WoTC customer support. I may someday soon learn to love again...

If you do a search in the Compendium for the keyword "undead" you will find 21 matches in the powers category. Of those, six actually target undead. Of those, one is a cleric power. Still it's a pretty kick-ass boost to the versatility of turn undead. Well worth the feat IMO.

4e Crunch

Just trolling some forums this evening and wanted to share. Links require a DDI subscription...

Did you know Double Move was a specific type of action(s)? I didn't.

Double Move

Same Move Action: To double move, you have to take the same move action twice in a row on the same turn.

One Speed: When you double move, add the speeds of the two move actions together and then move.

Occupied Squares: When you double move, your first move action can end in an ally’s space, because you’re not stopping. Your second move action can’t end in an ally’s space, as normal.

Difficult Terrain: When you double move, you can sometimes move over more squares of difficult terrain than normal, because you add the speeds of the two move actions together and then move. For example, if your speed is 5, you can enter only 2 squares of difficult terrain when you walk. If you double move by walking twice in a row, you can enter 5 squares of difficult terrain, not 4.

Published in Player's Handbook.

Note that not all combinations of 2 move actions need be "double moves"TM. If you DO choose to use this option, for example, when performing a jump the overall distance moved can be twice your speed, which might be pretty handy if you have the athletics to pull it off. This seems fairly logical and I'm pretty sure we have used jumping in this way already. Another interesting thing, that we haven't considered, is what this option does for Shift.

Shift

Moving through a fierce battle is dangerous; you must be careful to avoid a misstep that gives your foe a chance to strike a telling blow. The way you move safely when enemies are nearby is to shift.

SHIFT: MOVE ACTION

Movement: Move 1 square.

No Opportunity Attacks: Your movement doesn’t provoke opportunity attacks.

Difficult Terrain: Because each square of difficult terrain costs 1 extra square to enter, you can’t normally shift into a square of difficult terrain, unless you’re able to shift multiple squares or you’re able to ignore the effects of difficult terrain.

Special Movement Modes: You can’t shift when using a form of movement that requires a skill check. For example, if you’re climbing or swimming, you can’t shift if you would need to make an Athletics check to use that kind of movement. You might find it useful to first shift away from an adjacent enemy, then walk or run.

Published in Player's Handbook.

We already knew, unlike 3rd edition, that shifting was not exclusive to moving. However, notice that it also says NOTHING about shifting twice in one round. If one square isn't enough to get you out of danger and you don't mind burning your standard action on another move, shift again! Even more interesting is how you can combine Double Move and Shift in order to shift in difficult terrain. Sweet! In my wandering of the interwebs, I also re-read Vision of Avarice. For those who have not read it here it is:

Wizard Attack 5Visions of Avarice

The illusion of a fabulous treasure appears out of thin air. Your enemies throw aside caution to seize it.

Daily      Arcane, Illusion, Implement, Zone
Standard Action      Area 1 squares within 10 squares

Effect: The power’s area becomes a zone of illusory treasure that lasts until the end of your next turn. Once per turn, you can use the Visions of Avarice Attack power, using the zone as the origin square.

Sustain Minor: The zone persists.

Update (11/23/2009)
On the Sustain Minor line, remove the second sentence.

Visions of Avarice Attack

The illusion of a fabulous treasure appears out of thin air. Your enemies throw aside caution to seize it.

At-Will     Arcane, Illusion, Implement, Zone
Minor Action      Close burst 5

Requirement: The Visions of Avarice power must be active to use this power.

Target: Each enemy in burst

Attack: Intelligence vs. Will

Hit: The zone pulls the target 3 squares. A target that ends this movement within the zone or adjacent to the zone is immobilized (save ends).

First published in Arcane Power.

If you're curious why I've had a change of heart read on. If not skip to the next item [Conjurations].

1. One of my previous complaint that the zone was too large by comparison to other level 5 dailies was really aimed at the attack power. There are plenty of burst 5 attack powers, some even lower level. The zone itself is only a burst 1 and the center of the zone isn't even usable terrain from the wizard's perspective.
2. This is a daily power. It should kick ass.
3. Having a save ends immobilization leaves this power vulnerable to readied actions. This allows the wizard to try and make repeated attempts to keep the targets distracted while still giving those creatures a chance to escape (a missed attack). Also, this saves the spell from possible abuse by items and feats that allow a wizard to impose penalties to saving throws making it almost impossible for any creature to escape.
4. Using this spell effectively requires 2 minor actions per turn which is pretty expensive for a wizard.
5. WoTC made a similar change to Evard's Black Tentacles in the May 2010 updates preventing a miss AND a save from being required to escape.
6. This change simplifies the tracking required at the table when using this spell.

The next thing I encountered in my wanderings was an excerpt from Player's Handbook 3. I'm pretty sure this is an amalgam from several previous sources including the original three core rulebooks and some forum posts from WoTC customer service. I like the outcome, even if it does leave some holes open. Here is the glossary entry from the Compendium.

Conjuration

A conjuration you create uses these rules, unless a power description says otherwise.

• Occupies No Squares: The conjuration occupies no squares.

• Unaffected by the Environment: Terrain and environmental phenomena have no effect on the conjuration. For example, a conjuration that is an icy hand functions in an inferno without penalty. The conjuration does not need to be supported by a solid surface, so it can float in the air.

• Your Defenses: Normally, a conjuration cannot be attacked or physically affected. If your conjuration can be attacked or physically affected, it uses your defenses. Unless an attack specifically targets conjurations, only the attack’s damage (not including ongoing damage) affects the conjuration.

• Attacking with a Conjuration: Normally, a conjuration cannot attack. If your conjuration can attack, you make the attack. You determine line of sight normally, but you determine line of effect from the conjuration, as if you were in its space.

• Movable Conjurations: If the power you use to create a conjuration allows you to move it, it’s a movable conjuration. At the end of your turn, the movable conjuration ends if you are not within range of at least 1 square it’s in (using the power’s range) or if you don’t have line of effect to at least 1 square it’s in. When you move a conjuration, you can’t move it through blocking terrain.

• Death Ends: If you die, the conjuration ends immediately.

Published in Player's Handbook 3.

Here are some of the more interesting things this means

1. Remember, zones are conjurations.
2. Non-movable conjurations have no line of effect/sight restrictions to sustain or perform attacks.
3. Thus, black dragons cannot effectively dispel a stinking cloud with darkness.
4. Therefore, stinking clouds CAN be cast inside small rooms, then sealed with a door for example, and then sustained until the choking and gasping stops.
5. But, all attacks against said choking and gasping targets on the other side of the door are made blindly (-5).
6. As long as you are revived and are able to perform a minor action to sustain the conjuration on your next turn, you can be knocked unconscious by an attack and still maintain your conjuration.

A side note about conjurations and flanking. Conjurations are not allies and unless specifically called out in the power, such as with Twilight Assassin or Familliar Harrier, cannot flank and enemy.

While we are on the subject of Zones & Conjurations let's talk about Wall of Fire.

Wizard Attack 9Wall of Fire

A blazing wall of flame erupts from the ground at your command.

Daily       Arcane, Conjuration, Fire, Implement
Standard Action      Area wall 8 within 10 squares

Effect: You conjure a wall that consists of contiguous squares filled with arcane fire. It can be up to 8 squares long and up to 4 squares high. The wall lasts until the end of your next turn. Any creature that starts its turn adjacent to the wall takes 1d6 + Intelligence modifier fire damage. If a creature moves into the wall’s space or starts its turn there, the creature takes 3d6 + Intelligence modifier fire damage. Entering a square occupied by the wall costs 3 extra squares of movement. The wall blocks line of sight.

Sustain Minor: The wall persists.

First published in Player's Handbook.

I'd like to call your attention to the troubling little sentence in yellow. This would be so much simpler if they had just said squares occupied by the wall are difficult terrain. But no. What does this mean? Well, let's see...

1. It requires 4 squares of movement to enter a square occupied by the wall.
2. The squares occupied by the wall are not Difficult Terrain.
3. Forced movement such a push, pull, or slide does not ignore the movement requirement.

If a Wall of Fire is not Difficult Terrain what is it? It costs extra movement so it stands to reason it's some kind of terrain. The DMG helps out a bit here by defining several types of terrain. Difficult, Challenging, Hindering, Blocking, and Obscured. There's even another section in the DMG that explains how forced movement is resolved in most of these terrain types.

Forced Movement and Terrain

Difficult Terrain: Forced movement isn’t hindered by difficult terrain.

Blocking Terrain: Forced movement can’t move a creature through blocking terrain (page 61). Every square along the path must be a space the creature could normally occupy.

Challenging Terrain: Forced movement can make some powers more effective or hinder them, depending on the specific challenging terrain. The DM can require the target of forced movement to make a check as if it were moving voluntarily across the terrain, with the same consequence for failure.

Hindering Terrain: Forced movement can force targets into hindering terrain. Targets forced into hindering terrain receive a saving throw immediately before entering the unsafe square they are forced into. Success leaves the target prone at the edge of the square before entering the unsafe square.
If the power that forced the target to move allows the creature that used the power to follow the target into the square that the target would have left, the creature can’t enter the square where the target has fallen prone.
If forced movement pushes a Large or larger creature over an edge, the creature doesn’t fall until its entire space is over the edge. On the creature’s next turn, it must either move to a space it can occupy or use a move action to squeeze into the smaller space at the edge of the precipice.

A DM can allow a power that pushes a target more than 1 square to carry the target completely over hindering terrain.

Published in Dungeon Master's Guide.

Hmmm, hindering terrain sounds like it might be a winner. But what exactly does the DMG define as "Hindering Terrain"?

Hindering Terrain

Hindering terrain prevents movement (or severely punishes it) or damages creatures that enter it, but allows line of sight.

Hindering terrain can be interesting because......[omitted for brevity]

Examples: Pits, deep water, lava, fire.

Published in Dungeon Master's Guide.

When you look at it like that it seems pretty cut and dried. Wall of Fire is hindering terrain. Of course, terrain types aren't necessarily exclusive. For instance, Wall of Fire doesn't limit line of sight. So, Wall of Fire is both Hindering AND Obscuring Terrain.

But what about that movement penalty? Although the power description does not explicitly state that Wall of Fire creates difficult terrain (as some powers more clearly state), but if we conclude that Wall of Fire can implicitly be both hindering and obscuring, why also conclude that it is Difficult Terrain? Without getting into too much (more) detail about the Rules as Intended vs. Written (RAI vs. RAW), here is how I intend to run it.

1. The squares occupied by the wall are Difficult Terrain requiring 3 additional squares of movement to enter.
2. Therefore, forced movement ignores the movement penalty described in the Wall of Fire spell per the existing forced movement rules.
3. The squares occupied by the wall are Hindering Terrain.
4. Therefore, targets receive a save before being forced into a square occupied by the Wall of Fire.
5. The squares occupied by the wall are Heavily Obscured Terrain.
6. Therefore, targets in squares occupied by the Wall of Fire have concealment from adjacent creatures and total concealment from creatures further away.

This should allow a wizard to throw down a Wall of Fire and then use forced movement powers like Thunderwave to push enemies into some nasty fire damage. Fun! It also allows creatures some way to avoid the horrible burning, especially elites and solos since they have inherent save bonuses. Fair.

Still, it's better than requiring 4 squares of movement to push creatures in, which would require a wizard with a 20 wisdom score (or an 18 wisdom and Gauntlets of The Ram)!

That's all for now. Feedback welcome :)