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 :)