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Worst ability ever devised - Night Crawler?


Night Crawler, lvl 8 Vampire class ability as described in the Character Builder: "You may climb (at your speed) across a ceiling or similar surface, but if you end your turn on such a surface, you fall."
   
   
Ok, so I decided to play a Vampire class becuase it has unique flavourful abilities. One being Night Crawler lvl 8 ability. I thought it would be really cool to be able to move up walls and across ceilings. Apparently though, I was told that the ability is strickly only useable on ceilings, and not walls.
 
So, as it was explianed to me, I would have to make an Athletics check to try and spend an action to climb at half speed up a wall or vertical surface, and therefore have the combat advantage and other disadvantages against me of trying to climb normally. Since the vampire class doesn't have a use for Strength, my Athletics skill is very poor, thus making me a horrible climber. But, once I do get up to a point where I can touch a ceiling or horizontal surface I gain the ability to effortlessly make full moves as a move action without any checks or disadvantages when running around on a ceiling... But then, after I make my movement across the ceiling, I either automatically fall, or try to climb down the wall, which I have no more actions for and will most likely fail my climb check anyways and plummet to my death...

As I only have access to the Character Builder, is there any updates that would shed more light on this ability or make it make sense? Or is it just that ridiculously horrible and unusable due to being poorly thought out?

At the end of my turn on such a surface using Night Crawler, I fall. I could use a free action to make a climb check to catch hold and not fall though correct?