4 Ed Elf preview

[MammonAzrael]

Bill Slavicsek has given us a preview of the Elf class in his latest Ampersand article:

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dramp/20071221

And for those of you who aren't subscribed:

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I've been trying to decide what glimpse into the D&D 4th Edition process I could share with you this month. I wanted something cool, something big, something that said "Happy holidays" to everyone in the D&D community.

So I looked around at what the team and I are working on during these last few days of the work year. James Wyatt, Mike Mearls, and I are reviewing every playtest comment, every monster entry, and every rules element, but nothing in that process seems exactly right for what I'm imagining.

I'm busy putting the finishing touches on the skills chapter, paragon paths, epic destinies, and magic items, but that stuff still needs to go through the editors before it's ready for prime time viewing.

Michele Carter, Jeremy Crawford, and Kim Mohan -- excellent editors all -- are neck-deep in the Player's Handbook, scrubbing classes and powers so that they really shine and making sure that everything synchs up from one chapter to the next. One place where they feel pretty much done (at least until James, Mike, and I come back with an adjustment based on the feedback we're reviewing) is the races chapter. Maybe something in there will satisfy my holiday spirit …

I just stepped over to talk to Andy Collins, my mechanical design and development manager (he oversees all of the mechanical game designers and developers that work on my team) to see what he thinks would make a good present. After a brief conversation, and a courtesy call to Scott Rouse to get his buy off, we're all in agreement. I'm going to share with you the first look at a D&D 4th Edition race entry. And, since it is the holiday season, what better place to start than with the elf.

In the current 4th Edition preview book, Races and Classes, we talked a bit about our approach to races. Let me add to that before you skim down to look at the elf. One of the changes that we decided on early for player character races was that we would only provide ability score bonuses. Penalties based on your choice of race are a thing of the past. We wanted to make sure each race had powers and abilities that set it apart and helped make it feel more like the race in question. We also worked on some size issues to make better sense of the various characters and their place in the world. Finally, we looked at the flavor and back story to make sure that each race had a unique role that didn't impinge on any of the other races in the game.

OK, enough with the chit-chat. Let's unwrap your present!
Elf

Quick, wary archers who freely roam the forests and wilds.

Racial Traits

Average Height: 5' 7"-6' 0"
Average Weight: 100-130 lb.

Ability Scores: +2 Dexterity, +2 Wisdom
Size: Medium
Speed: 7 squares
Vision: Low-light

Languages: Common, Elven
Skill Bonuses: +2 Nature, +2 Perception

Elven Accuracy
Elf Racial Power

With an instant of focus, you take careful aim at your foe and strike with the legendary accuracy of the elves.

Encounter
Free Action
Personal
Effect: Reroll an attack roll. Use the second roll, even if it's lower.

Elven Weapon Training: You gain proficiency with the longbow and the shortbow.
Wild Step: You ignore difficult terrain when you shift (even if you have a power that allows you to shift multiple squares).
Group Awareness: You grant non-elf allies within 5 squares a +1 racial bonus to Perception checks.
Elven Accuracy: You can use elven accuracy as an encounter power.

Wild and free, elves guard their forested lands using stealth and deadly arrows from the trees. They build their homes in close harmony with the forest, so perfectly joined that travelers often fail to notice that they have entered an elven community until it is too late.

Play an elf if you want …

* to be quick, quiet, and wild;
* to lead your companions through the deep woods and pepper your enemies with arrows;
* to play a ranger, a rogue, or a cleric.

Physical Qualities

Elves are slender, athletic folk about as tall as humans. They have the same range of complexions as humans, tending more toward tan or brown hues. A typical elf's hair color is dark brown, autumn orange, mossy green, or deep gold. Elves' ears are long and pointed, and their eyes are vibrant blue, violet, or green. Elves have little body hair, but males often grow long sideburns. They favor a wild look to their hair, which is often a shaggy mass of braids.

Elves mature at about the same rate as humans but show few effects of age past adulthood. The first sign of an elf's advancing age is typically a change in hair color -- sometimes graying but usually darkening or taking on more autumnal hues. Most elves live to be well over 200 years old and remain vigorous almost to the end.

Playing an Elf

Elves are a people of deeply felt but short-lived passions. They are easily moved to delighted laughter, blinding wrath, or mournful tears. They are inclined to impulsive behavior, and members of other races sometimes see elves as flighty or impetuous, but elves do not shirk responsibility or forget commitments. Thanks in part to their long life span, elves sometimes have difficulty taking certain matters as seriously as other races do, but when genuine threats arise, elves are fierce and reliable allies.

Elves revere the natural world. Their connection to their surroundings enables them to perceive much. They never cut living trees, and when they create permanent communities, they do so by carefully growing or weaving arbors, tree houses, and catwalks from living branches. They prefer the primal power of the natural world to the arcane magic their eladrin cousins employ. Elves love to explore new forests and new lands, and it's not unusual for individuals or small bands to wander hundreds of miles from their homelands.

Elves are loyal and merry friends. They love simple pleasures -- dancing, singing, footraces, and contests of balance and skill -- and rarely see a reason to tie themselves down to dull or disagreeable tasks. Despite how unpleasant war can be, a threat to their homes, families, or friends can make elves grimly serious and prompt them to take up arms.

At the dawn of creation, elves and eladrin were a single race dwelling both in the Feywild and in the world, and passing freely between the two. When the drow rebelled against their kin, under the leadership of the god Lolth, the resulting battles tore the fey kingdoms asunder. Ties between the peoples of the Feywild and the world grew tenuous, and eventually the elves and eladrin grew into two distinct races. Elves are descended from those who lived primarily in the world, and they no longer dream of the Feywild. They love the forests and wilds of the world that they have made their home.

Elf Characteristics: Agile, friendly, intuitive, joyful, perceptive, quick, tempestuous, wild.

Male Names: Adran, Beiro, Carric, Erdan, Gennal, Heian, Lucan, Peren, Rollen, Soveliss, Therren, Varis.

Female Names: Adrie, Birel, Chaedi, Dara, Ennia, Farall, Harrel, Iriann, Lia, Mialee, Shava, Thia, Valenae.

Elf Adventurers

Three sample elf adventurers are described below.

Varis is an elf ranger and a devout worshiper of Melora, the god of the wilds. When a goblin army forced his people from their woodland village, the elves took refuge in the nearest human town, walled and guarded by soldiers. Varis now leads other elves and some human townsfolk in raids against the goblins. Although he maintains a cheerful disposition, he frequently stares into the distance, listening, expecting at any moment to hear signs of approaching foes.

Lia is an elf rogue whose ancestral forest burned to the ground decades ago. Lia grew up on the wasteland's fringes in a large human city, unable to quite fit in. Her dreams called her to the forests, while her waking hours were spent in the dirtiest parts of civilization. She joined a group of adventurers after trying to cut a warlock's purse, and she fell in love with the wide world beyond the city.

Heian is an elf cleric of Sehanine, the god of the moon. The elven settlement where he was born still thrives in a forest untouched by the darkness spreading through the world, but he left home years ago, in search of new horizons and adventures. His travels lately have brought rumors to his ears that danger might be brewing in the ancient forest, and he is torn between a desire to seek his own way in the world and a sense of duty to his homeland.

Well, there you have it. The first unveiling of a full race entry from the 4th Edition Player's Handbook. Oh, what the heck. I'm feeling generous this morning. It must be the season. Here's a racial feat you can peek at, too.

Elven Precision [Elf]

Prerequisites: Elf, elven accuracy racial power, heroic tier
Benefit: When you use the elven accuracy power, you gain a +2 bonus to the new attack roll.

OK, I better stop here or I'll be tempted to show you the entire class chapter. Hmmm … maybe next time? Anyway, have a great holiday season and remember to …

Keep playing!

--Bill Slavicsek

From the way Elven Accuracy is set up, I'm guessing that it'll be part of the Elf package, every elf gets it, and it's usable once per encounter. 7 square speed I assume means 35' per round, to represent their agility and speed. Wild Step refers to shifting, could that be the free 5' step?

[Reinboom]

Lots of dropped hints.

It's fortunate the squares is definite form of movement. It allows it easier to define the movement to make more sense for a person's game.
Elves are now more human like, which is interesting, and more wild.
Also, it's nice to see it isn't married to a class. If all the racial abilities are that simple, then they can be bent easily. Accuracy could be for a ray caster, for example.

I'm liking this.

[appending_doom]

They seem to have abandoned the idea of creating balance through shafting one ability score for another. Interesting thought.

[MammonAzrael]

Indeed. If all the classes get ability bonuses, and no penalties, it's still balanced. Just in a more fun way.

SweetRein, good point about the Ray attacks, I didn't think of that. Though with the Wisdom boost, they might be more friendly to Cleric battle spells that require an attack roll.

[Belial_the_Leveler]

Reduced the elven lifespan by a factor of three. I guess the vast majority of faerun elves (or any elves really) have just turned to dust since they should have been dead for several centuries...

[kamikasei]

Also, it's nice to see it isn't married to a class. If all the racial abilities are that simple, then they can be bent easily. Accuracy could be for a ray caster, for example.

As written, it could be used by a swordfighter. It doesn't mention ranged attacks, only attack rolls, unless I missed something.

Looks interesting. I'm curious as to what aspects of current elviness they've given to the Eladrin instead, and which are simply gone. The Elf/Eladrin split could actually be very close to an idea from my own setting, but done as two races rather than one race at different ages.

[kamikasei]

Reduced the elven lifespan by a factor of three. I guess the vast majority of faerun elves (or any elves really) have just turned to dust since they should have been dead for several centuries...

Or perhaps the 4e Forgotten Realms book will describe slightly different elves, just as it does now (remember, FR elves are human-height, while PHB elves are shorter).

[Dausuul]

Reduced the elven lifespan by a factor of three. I guess the vast majority of faerun elves (or any elves really) have just turned to dust since they should have been dead for several centuries...

I'm pretty neutral about that bit, since I always re-fluff elves to live forever anyway.

The Group Awareness worries me a little, since it's one of those "everybody gets +1!" abilities that can be such a pain to track... but at least it's an always-on thing, so players in a party with an elf will get used to it. Here's hoping there aren't too many of those.

Wild Step is excellent, the sort of thing that will make elves really "feel" like wild hunters in play. I strongly approve. Looks like "shift" is the 4E term for "5-foot step."

Elven Accuracy--also very good. A once-per-encounter re-roll is much better than a constant fixed bonus.

I do hope they include distance measures in feet as well as squares, perhaps in parentheses after the square measurements. Not all groups think in battlemat terms.

[Badgerish]

that's interesting stuff and finally some hard-info \o/ interesting turn of fluff with the "play an Elf if you want to..." and sample char ideas.

that racial feat is however really, really weak! +2 tohit for 1 roll per encounter! :(

'shifting' as a new name for 5' step does sound reasonable. If so I like the 'Wild Step' feature, both useful and part of the sure-footed style

[Mr. Friendly]

Indeed. If all the classes get ability bonuses, and no penalties, it's still balanced. Just in a more fun way.

SweetRein, good point about the Ray attacks, I didn't think of that. Though with the Wisdom boost, they might be more friendly to Cleric battle spells that require an attack roll.

Well don't forget the much maligned Golden Wyvern Adept, that needs Wisdom as an attribute for maximum usefulness. It seems like they are shifting towards a higher level of MAD for all classes. Which is good given that they are pushing towards point-buy. The net result is more balanced characters.

Reduced the elven lifespan by a factor of three. I guess the vast majority of faerun elves (or any elves really) have just turned to dust since they should have been dead for several centuries...

Not at all. This is just the default elf. We have yet to see what Faerunian Elves will look like. I imagine the races of each world will be different; just like they always have been.

that's interesting stuff and finally some hard-info \o/ interesting turn of fluff with the "play an Elf if you want to..." and sample char ideas.

that racial feat is however really, really weak! +2 tohit for 1 roll per encounter! :(

'shifting' as a new name for 5' step does sound reasonable. If so I like the 'Wild Step' feature, both useful and part of the sure-footed style

I don't think the racial feat is weak. I mean, it is, but... since it is for a per encounter ability; a per encounter ability you are almost certainly going to use every encounter... you will get your money out of it.

Plus, the racial feats may all be on the weak side, which is fine if they give them to you for free as you advance...

[Caewil]

Hrm. Very SAGA like abilities. Good to see they've streamlined the skill system too. Perception encompases spot, listen and sense motive in SAGA, so it shouldn't be too different in 4e.

[Marius]

Hrm. Very SAGA like abilities. Good to see they've streamlined the skill system too. Perception encompases spot, listen and sense motive in SAGA, so it shouldn't be too different in 4e.

Actually I think that Sense Motive is not part of Perception, you only use perception por deceptive appearances and Will Defense for deceptive information.

[Mr. Friendly]

Actually I think that Sense Motive is not part of Perception, you only use perception por deceptive appearances and Will Defense for deceptive information.

My personal bet is that Bluff and Sense Motive are being folded together as "Manipulation"; at least that's what I am doing for my D&D 3.95 notion.

I also think that Tumble and Balance will be folded together, and that Jump, Climb and Swimm will become Athletics.

That's my wild guess though.

[Dausuul]

I don't think the racial feat is weak. I mean, it is, but... since it is for a per encounter ability; a per encounter ability you are almost certainly going to use every encounter... you will get your money out of it.

Plus, the racial feats may all be on the weak side, which is fine if they give them to you for free as you advance...

Feats overall may be on the weak side. They did say they were moving in the direction of feats being small, static bonuses. And if they're balancing these against, say, drow SLAs, I think this one is pretty reasonable.

[Marius]

My personal bet is that Bluff and Sense Motive are being folded together as "Manipulation"; at least that's what I am doing for my D&D 3.95 notion.

I also think that Tumble and Balance will be folded together, and that Jump, Climb and Swimm will become Athletics.

That's my wild guess though.

In SW:Saga tumble, balance and escape artist are folded in acrobatics but climb, jump and swim are still skills. Diplomacy and Intimidate are now Persuasion; Bluff and disguise are Deception. Sense motive was split in two, if you want to see through a disguise you use Perception if you want to see through a lie you use Will defense.

[Titanium Dragon]

I like the "all upside" racial bonuses; they're going to be much easier to balance. I also like the racial skill and what it implies; namely, that lots of abilities will be usable once per encounter, which is a good way to balance things.

[Mr. Friendly]

In SW:Saga tumble, balance and escape artist are folded in acrobatics but climb, jump and swim are still skills. Diplomacy and Intimidate are now Persuasion; Bluff and disguise are Deception. Sense motive was split in two, if you want to see through a disguise you use Perception if you want to see through a lie you use Will defense.

Hrrm, interesting. I like it. I personally would still fold Climb, Jump and Swim into Athletics, if nothing else for simplicities sake.

[Saph]

Hmm. Mixed bag.

Elven accuracy and the speed increase both look nice. Elven Precision looks weak, though, and I really don't like the implications of Group Awareness - those things are a pain to keep track of, especially if there are multiple ones in the party. (So that's +1 from Elf A, and +2 from Human B, but -1 from C, and a circumstance penalty from . . .)

I like the new elves, but I really, really hope they don't shoehorn all the Forgotten Realms elves into being elves or eladrin. It'll make no sense at all and completely screw up the continuity.

- Saph

[Morty]

Mixed feelings here. Seems okay overall, but I don't like the lack of racial penalties. Also, I'm damned if I know why they decided to use abstract "squares" instead of feet.

[Lord Lorac Silvanos]

The Group Awareness worries me a little, since it's one of those "everybody gets +1!" abilities that can be such a pain to track... but at least it's an always-on thing, so players in a party with an elf will get used to it. Here's hoping there aren't too many of those.

I was thinking the exact same thing.

And...

"Ohh I am 30 feet away from the elf so I'd better take a step closer so I can see things more clearly!"

[Mr. Friendly]

Hmm. Mixed bag.

Elven accuracy and the speed increase both look nice. Elven Precision looks weak, though, and I really don't like the implications of Group Awareness - those things are a pain to keep track of, especially if there are multiple ones in the party. (So that's +1 from Elf A, and +2 from Human B, but -1 from C, and a circumstance penalty from . . .)

I like the new elves, but I really, really hope they don't shoehorn all the Forgotten Realms elves into being elves or eladrin. It'll make no sense at all and completely screw up the continuity.

- Saph

I don't think you will have to worry about either of those. Assuming that 4e carries over the "no stacking the same bonus type" from 3e, then the Elf bonus is a racial bonus and won't stack...

I would guess in most cases it won't come up that often since you will be rolling Perception checks just before a battle. All it means is everyones marching order will be within 5 squares of the Elf....

I don't think they will "shoehorn" that much in Faerun. According to my Races and Classes book, yes they are folding the subraces, but that may not happen on Faerun, but even if it does, they say that even though the subraces are folded, it's just to reduce paperwork and that the differences between the elves is cultural. So the subraces are still there, the min-maxxing like crazy is gone. Which is fine, because honestly the majority of the Elven subraces existed so you could pick one to better dump that -2 on a stat you didn't need. Without the racial penalties, there is much less need for 500 different combos of elf.

[Uncle Festy]

Just a couple of bits and pieces to throw out there that I noticed, and thought were important.
-More varied speeds
-They've turned Knowledge (nature) into Nature
-Elves are no longer the masters of arcane magic, and it is specifically noted that they prefer divine magic (which makes sense with their wis bonus)
-Eldarin are (presumably) the new masters of the Arcane
-Rangers now worship gods, not abstract concepts (see the example ranger)
They have something called Characteristics (probably similar to something in the PHBII)
-Feats are weaker
-Racial abilities are stronger
-The idea that your racial abilities increase by your level is either outside of the entry or gone
-They still have Drow
As for the overall experience - wow. Just - wow. I've never wanted to play any non-human, because an extra skill point and feat was easier to work with and more interesting then any racial abilities. But now? I may actually have to stray out of my native territory, and try a demi-human with 4E.
-Uncle Out

[Starsinger]

-The idea that your racial abilities increase by your level is either outside of the entry or gone

But now? I may actually have to stray out of my native territory, and try a demi-human with 4E.
-Uncle Out

Actually, IIRC racial abilities have been stated to have been designed as feats since they first talked about the concept for 4e.

Also.. the term Deim-human is offensive..

[Green Bean]

I'm liking this. Racial bonuses instead of penalties, abilities generic enough to be useful for a wide variety of builds, and superfluous skills folding together seems to be an overall positive.

*waits for someone to post how this means 4e is turning into Warcraft*

[Azerian Kelimon]

Amazing. Not only does the new elf seem really like a Wood Elf instead of a pretender, the special power is neat, and there're no ability score penalties (Which always made me doubt playing another race, I want my characters to be, at least, average at everything), but it seems mostly everyone is satisfied by what we can see.

[kamikasei]

-They've turned Knowledge (nature) into Nature

They're doing this with a lot of skills that now look like Knowledge(X) -> X. It's probably more than that, though; Nature is probably Knowledge (nature) + Survival, Arcana is Knowledge (arcana) + Spellcraft, etc.

-Rangers now worship gods, not abstract concepts (see the example ranger)

Not necessarily - they may just assume all characters have some god, and an iconic of a class will have a god appropriate to that class. It doesn't mean a Ranger will have to have a deity.

[Starsinger]

Not necessarily - they may just assume all characters have some god, and an iconic of a class will have a god appropriate to that class. It doesn't mean a Ranger will have to have a deity.

Although it might be interesting if the reason PCs (and BBEGs) are stronger than regular NPCs is that PCs (and BBEGs) are all champions of some god or another, and that explains why they can do such amazing world bending stuff.. and while I doubt that's the core case, it's totally going into my homebrew 4e campaign setting.

[Mr. Friendly]

-They've turned Knowledge (nature) into Nature

I would also surmise that Survival may be folded into that as well.

-Elves are no longer the masters of arcane magic, and it is specifically noted that they prefer divine magic (which makes sense with their wis bonus)
-Eldarin are (presumably) the new masters of the Arcane

Yes, according to Races and Classes, the more Arcane style "high" elves are the Eladrin. I would guess they are getting either +2 DX and +2 INT or +2 INT and +2 CHA.

-Rangers now worship gods, not abstract concepts (see the example ranger)
They have something called Characteristics (probably similar to something in the PHBII)

I'm at work and can't actually see the sample ranger. Does it just say "he worships X" or does it make some actual notation of a required deity. In any case,, a Ranger always could worship a deity. See also: Drizzt Do'Urden and his deity Mielikki.

-Feats are weaker

This particular racial feat is weaker. Since we have no context of the racial feats, like if they are freebies you pick or whatever, they may be intentionally weaker feats. Consider the new Alertness feat; one feat to not be flat-footed? (Or rather to deny enemies "combat advantage", the new flat-footed it seems)

-The idea that your racial abilities increase by your level is either outside of the entry or gone

It's outside of the entry. My wild guess is that you get racial feats every so often. This balances against 'monstrous' races who also get racial feats every so often to gain the abilities they should have. (Wings for Dragonborn, SLAs for Drow and similar)

-They still have Drow

They are a popular and iconic D&D race. To get rid of them would drive fanboys insane. It would also kill off one of the most (if not the most) popular FR character of all time.

As for the overall experience - wow. Just - wow. I've never wanted to play any non-human, because an extra skill point and feat was easier to work with and more interesting then any racial abilities. But now? I may actually have to stray out of my native territory, and try a demi-human with 4E.

Well you have missed out on quite a lot then. I really liked 3e's Arcane Archer. In 2e Elves were the bomb-diggity (despite the level restrictions); Bladesingers, Infiltrators... they had some sweet kits.

Edit: Ninja!

[Azerian Kelimon]

I hope that's not the case. Since WoTC has skewed concepts, LG gods are supreme good 'n stuff, CG gods are stupid "My way or the highway" jerks, and NG is always LG or NG in disguise. Even when players play them appropiately and realize HOW you should play a char of such an alignment.

[Nightgaunt]

Making races more modular to fit different design concepts is certainly cool in my book. The lack of weaknesses is also interesting, as others have said balance can still be achieved that way without frustrating players. Two minor gripes, others like the idea of measuring speed in boxes, I don't like it. There is something about the idea of measuring the things I do in terms of squares that takes me a step out of the fantasy. It's a minor thing really, but it is there.

Average Height: 5' 7"-6' 0"
Average Weight: 100-130 lb.

I know elves are lithe but I am picturing someone 6'0 tall and 100 pounds and it's kinda icky. They must have tiny little breakable bones, little popsicle bone elves.