In my prior blog, I introduced the concept of “Tricks”, which would allow a class of any Power Source to create minor supernatural effects like a wizard’s Prestidigitation if the character were trained in an Associated Skill assigned to the class’ power source. (Arcana for Arcane, Religion for Divine, Acrobatics for Martial, Nature for Primal, Insight for Psionic, and Stealth for Shadow.) In comments to the blog, Peter Schaefer, one of WotC’s developers, asked for some sample power blocks for these tricks. This follow-up blog is intended to oblige him.

I’m not going to produce one for the Arcane Power Source. It already exists – Prestidigitation, Light and Mage Hand, which should be given to all members of Arcane classes who are trained in Arcana.

While I am overall satisfied with the ability of 4e to handle improvisational actions in the form of Stunts, I think there is room for improvement. I have been toying with several ideas, until someone in the forums posed the question as to why cantrips were limited to Arcane classes. That’s when it struck me: Stunts are a Martial form of cantrips. From there, the following proposal took shape.

Associated Skills

Each power source has one or more associated Skills that represents an intimate knowledge of that source’s capabilities. Arcane classes, of course, utilize Arcane. Divine classes utilize Religion. Primal classes utilize Nature. Psionic classes utilize Insight. Shadow classes utilize Stealth. Martial classes have the study of their abilities divided into three Skills:

This blog has been edited based on discussions in the comments below a thread I started in the 4e Races & Monsters Forum, and Lord of Weasel's comments here.

One problem with solos is how they handle conditions.  Even with a +5 bonus to saves, Piecework Creatures can be locked down, and one condition – even if it only lasts a turn or two – can turn a pitched battle against a solo into a rout.  With very few actions and lots of hit points, a battle with a Solo Creature is more of a slog than a dynamic encounter.  Pluisjen developed an intriguing solution for Solos that I’ve expanded into what I call “Piecework Creatures”.

A Piecework Creature is a single creature that is comprised of multiple parts (or "Pieces") that act independently of each

A complaint about 4e that I sometimes hear is that players are eschewing roleplay in favor of combat.  While one might expect this from younger gamers who might think of Final Fantasy or Warcraft when they hear "RPG" before thinking of D&D, I am hearing this complaint among older (er, I mean, experienced) gamers like me, who have been playing and DMing since the late 70's and early 80's.

I've heard this complaint often enough to think it is not an isolated phenomenon.  In fact, I noticed the tendency to rush through roleplay to get to the fights in my own 4e campaign.  What is causing players -- many of whom had a history of being dedicated roleplayers through prior editions of D&D (and in other role-playing games) -- to become so combat-focused?

What is Combat Investment?