Where's the Andy C. loves his FTR/BARB dwarf smoking gun?

Lago PARANOIA · Post by **Lago PARANOIA** » Fri Mar 13, 2009 7:20 pm

I need to find this again because certain people won't believe me.

Lago PARANOIA · Post by **Lago PARANOIA** » Tue Mar 17, 2009 6:13 pm

I'm bumping this again on the off-chance someone remembers.

C'mon, there's gotta be a smoking gun somewhere.

Leress · Post by **Leress** » Tue Mar 17, 2009 6:52 pm

This is the closest I could find on the subject.

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/20030715x

Lago PARANOIA · Post by **Lago PARANOIA** » Tue Mar 17, 2009 7:00 pm

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/20031102a

dragon_child: Why the power up for shapechange? It was already one of the most powerful 9th-level spells, and allowing it access to Supernatural abilities gave it many abilities that were far too powerful. For example, the barghest's feed ability, the phoenix's immolation, and powerful dragon breath weapons (which are also stronger then spell guidelines for 9th-level spells). What was the reasoning behind giving out these abilities in shapechange?

Andy: We felt it was important to add supernatural powers to the top-level spells. We are looking at some of the corner-case effects of that now to see if they need addressing.

Hey, look, it's Dragon Child! Hi, Dragon Child!

dragon_traner_2000: Don't you think the fighters should have gotten more of a boost like the new barbarian and ranger?

Andy: I guess the obvious answer is "no," otherwise we would have changed them. But seriously, we're pretty happy with the fighter. The class gained a few more bonus feat options, but in general we didn't think the class needed any help.

Rich Redman: In my opinion, the fighter is one of those classes that's right the way it is. Other classes needed a boost to catch up!

Ed: Fighters have so many feats that they can build themselves into just about anything they want.

Dave: One of the things we've found in testing is that the fighter stacks up well against his +1 base attack bonus counterparts -- and multiclass guys -- when it comes to smacking down appropriate bad guys.

Hnh. So much for my awesome theory.

Roy · Post by **Roy** » Tue Mar 17, 2009 7:22 pm

Epic Fail is Epic.

NineInchNall · Post by **NineInchNall** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 2:31 am

john_sugden: Reports indicate that the new polymorph grants extraordinary attacks, but not other extraordinary qualities. If this is so, do druids gain no plant extraordinary abilities (beyond attacks) when they gain the ability to take plant form?

WotC_Andy: That's correct. There are simply too many game-breaking special qualities held by even simple monsters (plants and animals) to give those out to any druid with wild shape. That tells me that some great feats are waiting to be written, granting one or more special qualities to characters who wild shape or polymorph into the appropriate forms.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

The fail *pant* is too much *gasp* to handle.

They're called types, Andy. You should look into them.

Username17 · Post by **Username17** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 7:47 am

Yes, spellcasting is an untagged special attack. That makes it a "natural ability special attack" which as we know is not broken at all. On the other hand, low light vision is a special quality that is held by many animals, and that shit be broken as hell!

-Username17

Roy · Post by **Roy** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 11:40 am

FrankTrollman wrote:Yes, spellcasting is an untagged special attack. That makes it a "natural ability special attack" which as we know is not broken at all. On the other hand, low light vision is a special quality that is held by many animals, and that shit be broken as hell!

-Username17

Edit: Epic use of post 666.

Absentminded_Wizard · Wed Mar 18, 2009 12:01 pm

Dave Noonan in the link wrote:Dave: One of the things we've found in testing is that the fighter stacks up well against his +1 base attack bonus counterparts -- and multiclass guys -- when it comes to smacking down appropriate bad guys.

Wow. And here's proof that they only playtested classes against similar classes (e.g. fighter types vs. fighter types, divine caster vs. divine casters).

SunTzuWarmaster · Post by **SunTzuWarmaster** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 12:57 pm

LOL.

Yea, Shapechange should give you MORE and BETTER level 9 spells, that was our intent.

No, turning into a plant shouldn't make you immune to lightning, that was our intent.

Koumei · Post by **Koumei** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 2:53 am

More importantly, why are so many plants immune to lightning? I can accept the Shambling Mound being a special creature with that booster effect, but there are several plants with lightning immunity/resistance. Last I checked, lightning made trees explode.

Psychic Robot · Post by **Psychic Robot** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 5:20 am

False. Lightning causes nitrogen fixation, which is a necessary for plant survival. Ergo, being struck by lightning is beneficial for trees.

TavishArtair · Post by **TavishArtair** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 5:31 am

Is that serious? The amount of energy delivered can cause many forms of plant life to simply explode or become reduced to ash in the intense heat. A single lightning bolt can reduce a tree into millions of pieces. Variantly, it can do no serious damage at all... it's almost random.

Psychic Robot · Post by **Psychic Robot** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 5:34 am

To answer your question: no.

koz · Post by **koz** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 5:37 am

Sorry PR, you don't pull internet sarcasm quite like Frank can.

CatharzGodfoot · Post by **CatharzGodfoot** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 5:41 am

It was obviously sarcasm.

TavishArtair · Post by **TavishArtair** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 5:44 am

It was a failure.

Psychic Robot · Post by **Psychic Robot** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 6:29 am

TavishArtair wrote:It was a failure.

Cry more. Christ.

Crissa · Post by **Crissa** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 6:49 am

Be magnanimous when your intent was not discerned, please.

However, plant death upon applying of voltage is not actually random. However, since the actual voltage, amperage, and location of lightning strikes, and form of plants vary wildly, it may seem random.

-Crissa

TOZ · Post by **TOZ** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 12:15 am

So you're saying lightning follows the D&D damage system? Could roll all 6's, could roll all 1's? ^^

NineInchNall · Post by **NineInchNall** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 12:29 am

imagicka: So, Mary-Elizabeth, tell us about your playtesting character.
...
Mary Elizabeth: Well, she's a drow cleric of Eilistraee, epic-level, and she wields a mean silver bastard sword. And I'm finished so that Ed and Andy can have their meaty question!

I think the quotation speaks for itself on the WotC crew's playtesting methodology.

Crissa · Post by **Crissa** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 1:14 am

D&D lightning is nothing like real-world lightning. In D&D, instead of the electricity going through negatively charged objects easily - valence 1 materials - instead the magic makes the electrons forcibly dance out of their material, a cascade failure of basic electronics as things which normally absorb and conduct instead burst into radiant horrible fury of energy.

Hence wearing conductors vs magic lightning is bad, but wearing wood is good, but the opposite is true iRL.

-Crissa

TOZ · Post by **TOZ** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 1:17 am

I was making a joke, and you bludgeoned me with science! XD

NineInchNall · Post by **NineInchNall** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 1:31 am

<sings>She bludgeoned me - with science!</sings>

shau · Post by **shau** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 2:37 am

Crissa wrote: Hence wearing conductors vs magic lightning is bad, but wearing wood is good, but the opposite is true iRL.

-Crissa

Are sure about this? It sounds like you are saying I want to be wearing metal boots in a high voltage area, not rubber ones. It is my understanding the opposite is true.