CockroachTeaParty
2010-07-06, 12:44 PM
The shifter race, originating in Eberron, has never really struck my fancy. Something about their flavor and mechanics interests me less than the other original races introduced in Eberron.
One of my major problems with shifters is the whole shifting mechanic. If you are a shifter character, and plan on getting any mileage out of your racial ability to shift, you need to invest pretty much all of your feats into shifter feats. For such an intense investment, it would seem shifting is still a pretty unimpressive ability.
Shifting provides a small boost to an ability score (typically STR, DEX, or CON), and provides some other benefit, such as a new movement mode, a natural attack, or other small boost in power. These benefits are finite in duration, and limited in use per day. The more shifting feats you have, the more you can shift, and the longer your shifting lasts.
Maybe I'm yet to see a well optimized shifter really wow me with a powerful bout of shifting... But as it stands, it just seems too big an investment for too small a benefit. Wizards are pretty much blowing shifting out of the water at level 3 with Alter Self. Why should the shifter race get the shaft?
Would it unbalance things to let shifters shift once per encounter? Does anybody have any experience playing shifters that would like to share? Any other ideas towards making shifters a better race? Or are they fine as-is and I'm missing something?
One of my major problems with shifters is the whole shifting mechanic. If you are a shifter character, and plan on getting any mileage out of your racial ability to shift, you need to invest pretty much all of your feats into shifter feats. For such an intense investment, it would seem shifting is still a pretty unimpressive ability.
Shifting provides a small boost to an ability score (typically STR, DEX, or CON), and provides some other benefit, such as a new movement mode, a natural attack, or other small boost in power. These benefits are finite in duration, and limited in use per day. The more shifting feats you have, the more you can shift, and the longer your shifting lasts.
Maybe I'm yet to see a well optimized shifter really wow me with a powerful bout of shifting... But as it stands, it just seems too big an investment for too small a benefit. Wizards are pretty much blowing shifting out of the water at level 3 with Alter Self. Why should the shifter race get the shaft?
Would it unbalance things to let shifters shift once per encounter? Does anybody have any experience playing shifters that would like to share? Any other ideas towards making shifters a better race? Or are they fine as-is and I'm missing something?