[4e] - The Wolves of Maldeen

[SamTheCleric]

Another well written Dragon article about an organization that seeks only to fight injustice and is not bound by any ties... a paragon path, 3 magic items, a new heroic tier feat... and pages of history, organizational structure and a code of ethics. Really well done.


Not long ago, a young hero—a mere boy by the standards of most—proved that youth and inexperience mattered less than courage and a willingness to stand when no one else would. The young Maldeen created a legend at the age of fourteen, but didn’t stop there. Only after another 60 years did he retire, leaving behind a legacy built on protecting the innocent and stamping out evil wherever it was found. Now the Wolves of Maldeen live to preserve the code of honor this man left behind. Members of the organization roam the land—often in groups called Packs—sniffing out evil where they can. Members of the Wolves are noble and pure, and they seek justice above all. Find out if your character has what it takes to join the Wolves, and the cunning it takes to survive.

See it now! (1.2 Mbs PDF)
Those who seek to emulate Maldeen must have the discipline to walk his path, which might lead them into conflict with others. However, since conflict is a part of life, a follower of Maldeen readily deals with it—whether through force of arms or force of words.

About the Author
Nicolas Logue is a composite of several different real-life madmen and degenerates. A collection of works are attributed to “Nicolas Logue” such as Voyage of the Golden Dragon, Eyes of the Lich Queen, and Pathfinder #3: Hook Mountain Massacre. Another “Logue” has recently been hired by Paizo Publishing as their Organized Play Coordinator. Yet another is a stage actor and fight choreographer in NYC.


Link to the pdf: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/files/dragon/364_WolvesMaldeen.pdf

[Valairn]

I liked the article a lot, the paragon path was very interesting, more options are always good! :-D

[Wizard_Tom]

I imagine it's inpart because 4th edition was just released, but I've really been enjoying the amount of web-supplements they've been releasing so far.

[SamTheCleric]

I sincerely hope that the level of quality is maintained even after this "free trial" ends.

[LoopyZebra]

I really liked this article. I didn't read Dragon before it came online, but if the quality was like this, I was definitely missing out.

I think the quality should stay the same, because for many, Dragon and Dungeon are the big selling points for DDI. It only makes sense that the online magazines would be as good as the offline magazines.

[FoE]

I thought this was pretty neat. For me, it was more of an interesting NPC organization than a group the PCs can belong to. It strikes me that the individual members would be very solitary (almost like, dare I say it, 'lone Wolves') unless a mission called for several of them to team up. It doesn't seem like a Wolf would work well in an adventuring party ... unless they were all Wolves, which is another ball of wax.

I really liked the fluff behind the organization. They remind me of the Night's Watch from A Song of Ice and Fire - they have no ties to any government and reject the bonds of family and friends in order to oppose evil. Another example would be the Hunters from Supernatural; they seek out and destroy monsters wherever they can, and they don't mind breaking the law in order to do it.

They would seem pretty useful in terms of developing plots. They could just be allies to the PCs in opposing monsters or villains, or the PCs might have to capture a Wolf who just killed the local (evil) baron. They're also a bit fanatical, so you could perhaps conjure up some reason for them to chase the PCs as well.

Although I'm not a big warlord fan myself I liked the legends behind their founder and how it tied into warlord feats. Some of the magic items were quite powerful as well.

I really liked the one plot hook that was in here as well, the one about going to find the missing leader at the wizard's academy. Did anyone else note that the academy is housed in the body of a giant spider the size of an island?

However, I did cringe at the spelling errors and some of the lousy writing. Bad Wizards! Bad!

[TheOOB]

The only problem I had was the arbitrary good requirement on the paragon path. Is there any magical reason an unaligned character can't learn those skills?

[FoE]

The only problem I had was the arbitrary good requirement on the paragon path. Is there any magical reason an unaligned character can't learn those skills?

Sorry, I gotta disagree, OOB. How is a requirement of a good alignment "arbitrary" for a Paragon Path associated with an organization so dedicated to fighting evil and corruption that its members think nothing of sacrificing their own lives?

Remember, the motto of the Wolves is "If evil is the only way to survive, then embrace death as a lover ... Your life for an innocent's always."

[TheOOB]

Sorry, I gotta disagree, OOB. How is a requirement of a good alignment "arbitrary" for a Paragon Path associated with an organization so dedicated to fighting evil and corruption that its members think nothing of sacrificing their own lives?

Remember, the motto of the Wolves is "If evil is the only way to survive, then embrace death as a lover ... Your life for an innocent's always."

Yes, but the abilities of the path are about working as a group and wolf pack tactics, there is nothing about the abilities that say "hey, only a good person is capable of doing this stuff". I'm fine with a paragon path that is used heavily by one organization, but what if an unaligned or even evil warlord wants thoughs abilities? There is nothing about them that makes them intrinsically linked to the organization, yet regardless they can't learn them.

[FoE]

Yes, but the abilities of the path are about working as a group and wolf pack tactics, there is nothing about the abilities that say "hey, only a good person is capable of doing this stuff". I'm fine with a paragon path that is used heavily by one organization, but what if an unaligned or even evil warlord wants those abilities? There is nothing about them that makes them intrinsically linked to the organization, yet regardless they can't learn them.

Each of those tactics are named and modeled after three of the Seven Strategems of Maldeen, so yes, they are intrinsically linked to that organization.

It's helpful if you think of the signature battlefield moves of the Pack Masters. They've worked towards honing their skills until they can use these tactics. They've adopted a particular mindset, like that of an alpha wolf directing the members of his pack. They consider their fighting style as an extension of the teachings of Maldeen.

Of course, you could decide that your Warlord isn't a member of the Wolves and still take this Paragon Path (which would be fairly lame). But you've adopted a lot of similarities between you and the Packmasters in doing so; even if your methods are dissimilar, your goals and your approach to combat have become the same.

In any case, OOB, remember that this probably isn't going to be the only Paragon Path available to Warlords released online or in splat books. It's very likely unaligned and possibly evil warlords will get some more options as well. And it doesn't take much to imagine evil warlords using different tactics than good warlords. :smallsmile:

[TheOOB]

Each of those tactics are named and modeled after three of the Seven Strategems of Maldeen, so yes, they are intrinsically linked to that organization.

It's helpful if you think of the signature battlefield moves of the Pack Masters. They've worked towards honing their skills until they can use these tactics. They've adopted a particular mindset, like that of an alpha wolf directing the members of his pack. They consider their fighting style as an extension of the teachings of Maldeen.

Of course, you could decide that your Warlord isn't a member of the Wolves and still take this Paragon Path (which would be fairly lame). But you've adopted a lot of similarities between you and the Packmasters in doing so; even if your methods are dissimilar, your goals and your approach to combat have become the same.

In any case, OOB, remember that this probably isn't going to be the only Paragon Path available to Warlords released online or in splat books. It's very likely unaligned and possibly evil warlords will get some more options as well. And it doesn't take much to imagine evil warlords using different tactics than good warlords. :smallsmile:

I'm not seeing where the fluff of the path is intrinsically tied to the crunch. From a purely mechanical standpoint, that is not at all looking at the fluff, it is a paragon path that gives a warlord several rogueish abilities (enemies attacking eachother, granting concealment, battlefield positioning). There are no divine powers granted by a specific deity, there are no super secret techniques that use unknown powers that are beyond the scope of the powers presented in the PHB, there are no abilities that help good people while hindering evil...there are just the abilities.

I understand that the path was created with a specific organization in mind, but there is no reason that you couldn't use the path for another organization that is in your campaign setting, or heck even just have a warlord who uses tactics like that, good or evil. As it stands now every player who isn't good but want those abilities will have to convince their DM to houserule, and god forbid if they allow dragon PPs in RPGA play(doubtful, but possible) and you happen to be unaligned.

[Dan_Hemmens]

I'm not seeing where the fluff of the path is intrinsically tied to the crunch.

Yay! It's the Prestige Class debate all over again!

No, the fluff of the path is not intrinsically tied to the crunch. No fluff is intrinsically tied to any crunch. There is no *intrinsic* reason why a Wizard's powers have to rely on his being able to do magic either.

[Mjoellnir]

The problem is pretty simple, that you won't find a teacher in the campaign setting where the background is who will teach an evil or unaligend warlord. Maldeen taught an elven girl and she founded the wolves and taught them his tricks. They will not teach them to somebody who doesn't care about fighting evil and helping the innocent, which you don't if you're unaligned. If you're in another campaign setting without Maldeen you can use it as you wish, even as the paragon path of the "bloodwolf bandits". Otherwise you have to convince the wolves that you are worthy, or you have to somehow relive Maldeens history and develop his techniques yourself, which is more than difficult.:smallbiggrin:

[Scintillatus]

...If you want to cut the flavor out and make it work for an unaligned group, then why are you complaining about the Alignment: Good? If you're re-flavoring it, you can make it any alignment you want.

[Enlong]

Man, I love this supplement! I am so totally gonna make a Pack Master in my first 4th ed. game. Does anyone have suggestions as to what Warlord Exploits best compliment the Pack Master?

Also, I love the new items. With a Wolven Weapon, the Greaves and the Hood, one could make an awesome monster hunter.