(4E) Swordmages

[TheEmerged]

Really?! Better than Wardens?! And Paladins?! For a defender that loses 3AC for the rest of the encounter if they go unconscious once and already have pretty low defenses & hp compared to other defenders?

I agree that the Fighter's the best defender so far, as the Fighter's mark and the Fighter's AO are both quite good... The Paladin has the best defenses and the Warden has the most hp. They can both take a lot more hits. The Swordmage has some nice powers, but that huge penalty for simply dipping into unconsciousness really cripples them imo.

I'm not saying they're awful. Just... I have trouble seeing why they'd be regarded as second-best...

Because unlike Wardens (pending Primal Power) and Paladins (before Divine Power), Swordmages actually give the marked victims a reason to attack him instead of "kill the one(s) in the dress!" Also, I have to question that "low defenses" statement, the one in our party is comparable without much in the way of optimazation.

And regarding the unconscious thing... how often does the defender really go unconscious in play? I'll grant our party runs with 2 leaders (bard, and laser priest that's going buffing priest next adventure), but I've only seen someone get to the "surge value" margin a couple of times.

The Swordmage in the party I DM for is pretty reliably either the second or third damage dealer (depending on how much AE the wizard gets to dish). We're running with the 1 defender/striker/controller 2 leader mix.