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clem wrote:

Er, by playing a non-non-Eladrin (aka, an Eladrin)? Otherwise, you could try the following as a human:

Str: 18, Dex: 14, Con: 11, Int: 15, Wis: 10, Cha: 8

+2 bonus to Str, of course. Bump up Str and Int until 18th, where you bump Str and Dex. It shifts emphasis from tactics to melee prowess, but it's still effective. And if you're human you're most likely picking up Viper's Strike as well, which requires a decent attack bonus to be effective.

That's my point - at 14th-20th, you've got a +4 Int mod when your competitors have a +6. For what exactly? The ability to take a rare opportunity attack? The ability to have the same to hit chance as any other taclord with an 18 Str? The benefits of a slightly worse Con?

Yes, Eladrin can pull it off with a 15 starting Dex, but I think they're foolish to do it - 23 hp at 1st is not impressive...

Water Genasi - +2 Str +2 Int is huge,
I have been playing LFR with a Water Genasi Taclord.
Spiked chain is a great weapon choice expecially when enchanted with resounding and lead the attack.

I have given allies a net of +7 to hit a mob (Encounter Breaker) 5 from lead the attack and 2 from CA from resounding daily.

My stats where 18 10 12 18 8 12.

Water genasi gives you a shift = movement speed ignoring terrain.
and a +2 bonus to save vs ongoing damage

DemonLord57 wrote:

What I'm trying to say is that it is foolish to gloss over the possible inequality between those two. In other words:
Action Surge = ~2 orders of magnitude
Some Stuff from Eladrin = ~2 orders of magnitude
At-will = ~1 order of magnitude
It is foolish to assume that Action Surge does not play a role in it simply because the orders of magnitude balance out. Just because it 'brings it to the same level' doesn't mean that it's equal. In fact, because it is on a higher level, it plays a much more important role than the at-will. For example:
Action Surge = 90
Some Stuff from Eladrin = 70
At-will = 15
Action surge plays a bigger role past the initial 'bringing up to the same level' than the at-will does. In other words, you're assuming that the two meats are equal because they're close to equal, while the fact that they're both large means that the actual difference between them is much larger than the relative closeness would otherwise seem to indicate.

If I had said Action Surge + extra At-Will vs Heavy Blade Feat would we be discussing this now?

Action Surge is much more powerful then having an extra at-will this is what I believe you are saying and I agree with. However that said I like the extra at-will it adds versatility and since as a human you will take Action Surge you don't have to focuses on Action Surge because you will have it. It's not that I'm dismissing Action Surge its that thats not where my focuses is at yours apparently is.

I think before you can pick a best race, you have to determine the qualifications for "best". IMHO, the best taclord is the taclord that is best able to land a blow. Why? Because most of the party-buffing effects from the taclord's encounter and daily abilities require a hit. You can be the smartest guy in the world, but it won't matter unless you land that blow.

Since the encounter and daily abilities all start with "Str vs..." , that means Str is the taclord's most important ability score. Intelligence is certainly the second most important ability. That leaves Con for durability, Wis and/or Dex for weapon feats. Don’t worry about Dex for Init; you’ll pick up Combat Commander at paragon.

Based on that criteria, Genasi is the best race for a tactical warlord. Str 18 Con 13 Dex 10 Int 18 Wis 11 Cha 8. I'd go with Earthsoul, because 1/enc as a minor action you can knock all adjacent enemies prone (granting combat advantage and sucking away a move action if the enemies want to stand up).

Second place goes to human (with +2 Str). Str 18 Con 13 Dex 10 Int 16 Wis 11 Cha 8. The extra at-will and feat are more important than the dragonborn's +2 Cha and breath weapon.

Third place goes to Dragonborn. Str 18 Con 13 Dex 10 Int 16 Wis 8 Cha 12. Might as well get a full +1 Will defense out of this. And hey, you can now take Intimidate and have a reasonable change of success.

Fourth goes to a Tiefling. Str 16 Con 13 Dex 10 Int 18 Wis 8 Cha 12. With the Hellfire Blood feat and a flaming weapon (assuming that flaming weapons give the fire keyword to weapon powers), even with a 16 Str they’ll match the attack bonus of a 18 Str character.

Fifth goes to Eladrin. Str 16 Con 10 Dex 15 Int 18 Wis 11 Cha 8. 1/encounter they can teleport into flanking position, giving a +1 bonus over an 18 Str character. But it’s only 1/encounter. On the plus side, the +2 Dex helps with Blade Opportunist and HBO. Sure it won’t come up often, but when it does, you can use Warlord’s Strike and have your bruiser lay the smack down.

The other races don’t make for good warlords.

By the way, for taclord at-will’s I like Commander’s Strike and Wolf Pack Tactics. Commander’s Strike is especially good at Paragon levels, when many paths get “when you spend an action point to get an extra action, add X to Y until the start of your next turn”. With Commander’s Strike you can extend the benefit by granting an extra attack. It also helps when you’re fighting a monster with Vulnerable X, and only one party member has a weapon with X. Wolf Pack Tactics is just terrific. I’ve used it to put guys into position, such as a rogue who’d readied an action to attack when he got a flank, or a wizard who couldn’t get a clear shot for his close blast. I’ve also used it to get wounded party members off the front line, or shift innocents away from monsters. For the human bonus at-will, Viper’s Strike is the winner for taclords.

For weapons, anything with a +3 bonus is attractive. Spiked Chain is great because almost all Warlord powers are “melee weapon” (as opposed to “close burst 1”, or “melee 1”, meaning you can use them at reach. This is doubly true for Commander’s Strike. None of the above stat arrays allow for heavy shield proficiency, so that’s another argument in favor of a two-handed weapon (in other words, a reach weapon).

Speaking of feats: you’re a smarty, so you don’t have to spend any feats on heavy armor. Only the Eladrin can afford twf feats (for the extra damage and +1/+1 to AC and reflex). Seriously consider ritual caster + arcane initiate. Toughness, Durable, and Improved Initiative are also good choices. And of course your racial feats (hooray for action surge, hurl breath, hellfire blood, and eladrin weapon training!).