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sandharrow wrote:

I am a brand new 4e would be optimizer, so apologies in advance for any ignorant statements here...

How about going Angelic Avenger? Astral Vibrance seems like a beautiful thing for a Warlock. Pick up Astral Wave. A reasonable GM might even let you select cold as an energy type to avoid getting too far from the Hexhammer prototype. I think I'd prefer a few area effects to the push synergies path.

Astral Avenger isn't a good choice for Warlocks - Warlocks have no real reason to have a decent Wisdom and that's your encounter power. As a Hexhammer, your Charisma won't great either.

When optimizing, you either want to be really good at something or you want unexpected synergies. The Hexhammer is really good at doing consistent damage, surviving combats, and pulling out Con-based Warlock stunts. My Hexhammer of the Gods isn't quite as good at the damage, but I think he survives combats a little easier, he's roughly the same at the Warlock stuff, but most importantly, when he hits, he sets up his teammates for whatever encounter/daily they want to drop on the opponent.

And that's the unexpected synergy.

MwaO wrote:

They mention something about that for penalties, but not for anything else as far as I can tell - it works that way for damage, that you apply negative stat modifiers, so I don't see why it wouldn't do the same here.

P. 25:
A modifier is any number that adds to or subtracts from a die roll. The most commonly used modifiers are based on your ability scores. A bonus refers to positive values. If a feat adds your Dexterity modifier to damage, it won't do anything if your Dexterity modifier isn't positive. A penalty is the opposite: It's always negative.

The italicized part is the part that confuses me. Maybe it's the fact that there is no such feat that grants any sort of bonus in that way. Whenever you're using your Charisma modifier in conjunction with a power, is the modifier considered to be a bonus since you're always adding it to the damage (or possibly to-hit) roll, and therefore treated as "0" if you don't have a positive modifier?

As a DM, I personally would likely rule that if you're using a class power and have a negative modifier to the stat associated with it, you simply add "0" rather than a negative value. Yes, I'm aware that this means that Fighters who play under me can have an 8 Strength and "gain" a +1 to all their power to-hit (and possibly damage) rolls...but if you're a Fighter with 8 Strength in the first place, you need some serious help anyway.

Also, what does this mean for Brutal Scoundrel rogues (Scorpion Strike, for instance, allows you to shift "a number of squares equal to your Strength modifier after this attack, whether or not you hit.") or Warlocks (Spiteful Darts - "Infernal Pact: You push each target a number of squares equal to 3 +your Intelligence modifier."). I know. Technically these situations ought not to come up, because a Brutal Scoundrel rogue OUGHT to have a decent Strength score, and an Infernal Pact warlock OUGHT to have a decent Intelligence score. But both of those, despite not explicitly using the term "bonus" seem to at the very least imply that they are such.

In the end, honestly, it's your call. I doubt any decision you make on the matter would break the game.

Shrazkil wrote:

What weapon would you be using? Simple?

Warhammer - just like the regular Hexhammer for Hammer Rhythm. Mace if for some reason you don't pick Dwarf as a race.