Themes of the Fey

[Arkhosia]

Eladrin themes in a similar vein as my drow themes.

1: Student Of The Wild
Arcane class
Ever since you remember, you have been fascinated with the feywild's magic, and when you became a spellcaster, you studied the mysteries of your homeland. Your studies did not last, however. Your hometown/city was attacked by the formorians, and you were captured. Many years of fear followed, only ending when a group of vengeful gnomes freed you and a small group of other slaves. You left for the world, and joined an adventure party in the hopes to become strong enough to storm the gates of your captors, spells blazing, to free your kin, your neighbors, your town, and to take the town back from the monstrosities that surely took it over when deserted.
Level 1: Echanted Education
You put to good use the knowledge you learned in they feywild
1/encounter, add +1/2 level damage to a spell.

Level 5: Giantsbane Arcana
You gain +5 to arcana, and you gain +4 on rolls to hit a huge or larger creature.

Level 10: thaumathauge hemorrhage
The spell grazes the opponent, who looks relieved, until he sees the very spot oozing blood.
1/encounter, when you hit one target with a spell, the opponent takes damage equal to your level each turn until a successful saving throw is achieved.


2: Blade Of The Elemental Court
Martial class
You are a member of one of the most skilled group of eladrin warriors in existence, trained by the elite to carry out the will of your lords. For years you were tasked with various high-priority missions, such as The Siege Of The Black Grove, Infiltration of the Pale Court, and the eradication of Drow presence in Bedlam. You remained loyal throughout, but others did not follow your lead. You awoke to find various Blades and your commander dead,members of the court slaughtered, and a portal to the natural world open. The survivors tasked you to pursue the perpetrator through the portal and bring him to justice.
Level 1: Abberation Elimination
As you bring the monstrosity to his death, you feel envigorated. when your attack drops an abberation, undead, or giant/dire creature (ie:spider, Wolf) that is not a minion to zero hit points, you gain temporary hp equal you the monster's level • 2

Level 5: Agent's Advantage
When in a battle, you can use a skill check as a minor action, and out of battle you gain a +3 to two skills of your choice.

Level 10: Unyielding Pursuit
This time, you refuse to let your opponent escape.
1/encounter, after an opponent moves away from you, your next hit slows him, and you take no penalties from difficult terrain when pursuing him.

3: Keeper Of Corellion
Divine class
When you were a young child, you were orphaned, and left on the steps of a monastery. The monks, avengers, paladins, and clerics adopted you, and passed down to you Corellion's teachings. You swore to uphold these, and to defend and to act as the instrument of the god. You were tasked with the defense of a manuscript containing one of Corellion's greatest secrets from his enemies.
You failed.
The manuscript containing the secrets of your god were stolen by clerics of Gruumsh, and you were exiled from the monastery. You left for the world, seeking redemption for your failure. For you are still your god's instrument, and you will serve as commanded.
Level 1: Will of Corellion
it is the will of Corellion for this opponent to fall
1/encounter, you gain a +1 attack bonus to hit a selected target.

Level 5: Disgraced Defender
You refuse for your allies to be destroyed from your enemies.
1/encounter, when an abberation, Orc, or Drow attacks a ally 6 squares or less away, as a free action, you may take the damage instead, and use a melee basic attack on the opponent, but you can't add your proficiency bonus.

Level 10: Atoned For My Sins
you have acheived redeeming yourself ing the eyes of your god.
1/day, you may add radiant damage equal to your level to an attack.

[Wymmerdann]

Level 1: Echanted Education
You put to good use the knowledge you learned in they feywild
1/encounter, add +2•level damage to a spell.

This is pretty huge. Ideally I’d lower that to 1*level, or even 1/2level. Keep in mind this is inevitably going to be applied to burst 1 or 2 powers and hitting 3 or so enemies. It also doesn’t really gel with enchantment, which isn’t about damage, but controlling enemy actions.


1/encounter, when you hit an opponent with a spell, the opponent takes damage equal to your level each turn until a successful saving throw is achieved.
This actually scales really well, to the extent that save-penalty builds are really going to capitalise on it. It starts off pretty slow though. Maybe make it 5/10/15 damage per tier? 1/encounter is also quite often for this kind of power. Maybe you have to allocate the use before you know if the power hits, and if it misses it's wasted? Should also only affect 1 target of the spell, balance wise.


1/encounter, select a creature larger than you. For 5 turns, when struck it takes +10 damage
The damage bonus and duration are both phenomenal. Keep in mind there are builds (like the twin strike ranger) that could be hitting twice or more a turn, meaning they’re doing up to 100 bonus damage through this feature. Then there’s the rest of the party. Also, it doesn’t really feel much like “bewitchment” in a strictly controller sense. If you like it as is, maybe tone it down to wis/int/cha modifier for 1 turn duration. That’s still going to be an armload of bonus damage. Alternatively you could emphasise the controller aspect and make it d3 *tier psychic damage for each square of forced movement until the end of your next turn. Final point, “struck” doesn’t have a fixed meaning. Does this mean “hit” or “takes damage”? Important distinction, as ongoing damage would get this damage if the reading is "takes damage", which lends itself to tremendous abuse.



Level 1: Abberation Elimination
As you bring the monstrosity to his death, you feel envigorated. when an abberation, undead, or giant/dire creature (ie:spider, Wolf) drops to zero hit points, you gain temporary hp equal a healing surge.

The fluff is great, but the crunch seems to have serious balance issues. Imagine a common encounter with 4 minion undead, and 4 normal undead (level appropriate). That’s 8 healing surges worth of temporary hit points for you. Way too much. I’d restrict it in terms of the amount of temps (again, primary modifier should be enough) and how often (only when you drop the target, not if an ally does, and minions don't count).


Level 5:Ruthless Will
You cleave into the enemy, vowing to finish the job.
1/encounter, when you bloody an opponent, you gain a damage bonus equal to 1/4 your will bonus the next time you strike him.

This one’s way too weak compared to everything else going on. Keep in mind modifiers don’t really go above 10, so this is never going to be more than 2 bonus damage (and that comes in during epic).


Level 10: Unyielding Pursuit
This time, you refuse to let your opponent escape.
1/encounter, after an opponent moves away from you, the next hit slows him, and you take no penalties from difficult terrain when pursuing him.

I really like this one. In terms of tweaking the wording, just clarify that it’s your next hit (not an ally’s) and that it should be “ignores difficult terrain when moving directly toward” as “pursuing” has no established meaning.



Level 1: Will of Corellion
it is the will of Corellion for this opponent to fall
1/encounter, you gain a +1 attack bonus to hit a selected target.

Looks good; minor bonus, but scales decently



Level 5: Disgraced Defender
You refuse for your allies to be destroyed from your enemies.
1/encounter, when an abberation, Orc, or Drow attacks an ally, you may move in the way of the attack, and use an at-will power on the opponent.

Another good one, but in need of a little clarification, “move” can provoke opportunity attacks, and “in the way” is unclear. A simple square swap with your ally (probably adjacent to you) with shift/slide will clarify it.

You also need to clarify a) whether the attack still lands on you, and b)whether your attack is a immediate reaction, immediate interrupt or no action interrupt/reaction. If your attack happens before the trigger lands then some players are going to go for at-wills with push effects, effectively neutering the attack. This could push this power into the fairly overpowered range by theme standards. (the best swordmage powers are renowned for being able to neuter attacks in this way)

To minimise such effects I would recommend a) it lands on you, b)your attack is a reaction, and c) it’s a melee basic attack (comparatively few MBA’s have push).


Level 10: Atoned For My Sins
you have acheived redeeming yourself ing the eyes of your god.
1/encounter, you may add radiant damage equal to your level to an attack.

Good power, I’d limit it to 1/day or 1 target of a power.



Just my opinion on all this and I'm not as rules savvy as some of the regulars. Hope this was helpful.

[Mando Knight]

None of this is within the bounds of what Themes are allowed to do. (They're minor bonuses that can add up, in general)

Extra damage equal to twice your level as an encounter power? After first level, it quickly becomes more than any combination of feats or any daily power will give you. Vulnerable 10 All for 5 turns (no save, no attack)? Again, far beyond dailies.

In general, this is what you get from a theme:
At first level: a modestly useful Encounter power, slightly weaker than one from your class, but better than an At-Will (at least, one that you haven't poured feats into).
At fifth level: +2 bonus to a skill (some specify a power bonus, some don't... it probably should always be a power bonus to stop excessive stacking), or something worth about the same as a common 5th or 6th level item (such as a week's free room and board for your party whenever you're in a town friendly to your theme).
At tenth level: +4 bonus to one skill (or +2 to two); +2 to multiple skills, a NAD, or saving throws in a specific situation; possibly +1 to attack in a specific situation; in general, a bonus roughly equivalent to a common 10th level magic item.

[Arkhosia]

This is pretty huge. Ideally I’d lower that to 1*level, or even 1/2level. Keep in mind this is inevitably going to be applied to burst 1 or 2 powers and hitting 3 or so enemies. It also doesn’t really gel with enchantment, which isn’t about damage, but controlling enemy actions.


This actually scales really well, to the extent that save-penalty builds are really going to capitalise on it. It starts off pretty slow though. Maybe make it 5/10/15 damage per tier? 1/encounter is also quite often for this kind of power. Maybe you have to allocate the use before you know if the power hits, and if it misses it's wasted? Should also only affect 1 target of the spell, balance wise.


The damage bonus and duration are both phenomenal. Keep in mind there are builds (like the twin strike ranger) that could be hitting twice or more a turn, meaning they’re doing up to 100 bonus damage through this feature. Then there’s the rest of the party. Also, it doesn’t really feel much like “bewitchment” in a strictly controller sense. If you like it as is, maybe tone it down to wis/int/cha modifier for 1 turn duration. That’s still going to be an armload of bonus damage. Alternatively you could emphasise the controller aspect and make it d3 *tier psychic damage for each square of forced movement until the end of your next turn. Final point, “struck” doesn’t have a fixed meaning. Does this mean “hit” or “takes damage”? Important distinction, as ongoing damage would get this damage if the reading is "takes damage", which lends itself to tremendous abuse.



The fluff is great, but the crunch seems to have serious balance issues. Imagine a common encounter with 4 minion undead, and 4 normal undead (level appropriate). That’s 8 healing surges worth of temporary hit points for you. Way too much. I’d restrict it in terms of the amount of temps (again, primary modifier should be enough) and how often (only when you drop the target, not if an ally does, and minions don't count).



This one’s way too weak compared to everything else going on. Keep in mind modifiers don’t really go above 10, so this is never going to be more than 2 bonus damage (and that comes in during epic).



I really like this one. In terms of tweaking the wording, just clarify that it’s your next hit (not an ally’s) and that it should be “ignores difficult terrain when moving directly toward” as “pursuing” has no established meaning.




Looks good; minor bonus, but scales decently




Another good one, but in need of a little clarification, “move” can provoke opportunity attacks, and “in the way” is unclear. A simple square swap with your ally (probably adjacent to you) with shift/slide will clarify it.

You also need to clarify a) whether the attack still lands on you, and b)whether your attack is a immediate reaction, immediate interrupt or no action interrupt/reaction. If your attack happens before the trigger lands then some players are going to go for at-wills with push effects, effectively neutering the attack. This could push this power into the fairly overpowered range by theme standards. (the best swordmage powers are renowned for being able to neuter attacks in this way)

To minimise such effects I would recommend a) it lands on you, b)your attack is a reaction, and c) it’s a melee basic attack (comparatively few MBA’s have push).



Good power, I’d limit it to 1/day or 1 target of a power.



Just my opinion on all this and I'm not as rules savvy as some of the regulars. Hope this was helpful.

Thanks. As I am new to creating things for characters like this, my mind is too foused on the ideas and not enough with actual scaling, so your aid helps tremendously.
I would really appreciate it if you could help me with my other racial themes, which I will post links to this reply every so often.
Drow Themes:
http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=288261

[Arkhosia]

None of this is within the bounds of what Themes are allowed to do. (They're minor bonuses that can add up, in general)

Extra damage equal to twice your level as an encounter power? After first level, it quickly becomes more than any combination of feats or any daily power will give you. Vulnerable 10 All for 5 turns (no save, no attack)? Again, far beyond dailies.

In general, this is what you get from a theme:
At first level: a modestly useful Encounter power, slightly weaker than one from your class, but better than an At-Will (at least, one that you haven't poured feats into).
At fifth level: +2 bonus to a skill (some specify a power bonus, some don't... it probably should always be a power bonus to stop excessive stacking), or something worth about the same as a common 5th or 6th level item (such as a week's free room and board for your party whenever you're in a town friendly to your theme).
At tenth level: +4 bonus to one skill (or +2 to two); +2 to multiple skills, a NAD, or saving throws in a specific situation; possibly +1 to attack in a specific situation; in general, a bonus roughly equivalent to a common 10th level magic item.

Edited as suggested in some case.

[Tegu8788]

I mentioned it before, and I strongly suggest it now. Play the game before you start homebrewing. 4E is a very well balanced game, with a great many of mechanics being interrelated that are hard to grog with just a read through. I've played in several games for the last year, and I'm still not entirely positive about all the rules.

Your spirit, its great. The fluff, from what I can tell, is good. I'm pretty lore dumb. But if you can hold off on making crunch until you've gotten a few more sessions under your belt, then I think you will find much more support FTP be found here.

Personally, I wish you luck. I'd like to see more 4E homebrew stuff, and I know the main thread isn't exactly open to our edition.

[Arkhosia]

I mentioned it before, and I strongly suggest it now. Play the game before you start homebrewing. 4E is a very well balanced game, with a great many of mechanics being interrelated that are hard to grog with just a read through. I've played in several games for the last year, and I'm still not entirely positive about all the rules.

Your spirit, its great. The fluff, from what I can tell, is good. I'm pretty lore dumb. But if you can hold off on making crunch until you've gotten a few more sessions under your belt, then I think you will find much more support FTP be found here.

Personally, I wish you luck. I'd like to see more 4E homebrew stuff, and I know the main thread isn't exactly open to our edition.

I will take your advice before posting anymore homebrews. In the meantime, I will try to complete the themes I have posted.
This is a bit of a challenge for me as I have not had much experience with themes.