Challenge - The Minotaur Rogue, Level Four

Level four is one of the few levels on the path to thirty during which the character doesn't gain a new power. But that's okay...we're going to get two more attribute points and a third feat. We now have enough feats to play around with combinations, and I think there's a fairly obvious one here that's worth dropping one of our old feats for...

Challenge - The Minotaur Rogue, Level Three

Another day, another level for the minorogue. Today is pretty basic compared to the first couple of levels - there's no feat to worry about, for one thing, and 10 possible choices for his level 3 power (compared to 14 yesterday).


Will defense is still a problem, and it probably will be for some time. However, we did manage to snag some low-level magic armor: leather armor of sudden recovery +1. This is a very nice item from Adventurer's Vault 2; it has a property and a daily power which will both help stave off ongoing damage, one of the most significant threats our low-hp minorogue must face. Still holding out for that neck item!

Note that from now on I'll be listing potential damage of some attacks; these ranges assume the power is being used to its fullest and that the character's current "main" weapon is being used for the attack. The "range" of damage is the minimum and maximum damage the attack can do, and the numbers in parentheses indicate the additional damage the minorogue can add with sneak attack.


Encounter power discussion after the break...

Challenge - The Minotaur Rogue, Level Two

Yesterday, we established the foundation of the "minorogue." I made the decision to focus on getting his + hit and dmg up to a respectable level instead of his defenses. This has resulted in a character with what I consider to be all-around good starting statistics with one exception - Will defense. 10! Ugh.

But that's okay...today the minorogue hits level 2, and that means he's getting an extra tick in all of his defenses, a utility power, another feat and his first magic item. As the character grows up, I'll be keeping my eyes open for items that could potentially offset his most significant weakness. Other than that, though, the number one focus most strikers should make their priority is 1) how can I hit more often? and 2) how can I cause the most amount of damage when I land that hit? Let's start things off by looking over his level 2 power options...

Challenge - The Minotaur Rogue, Level One

Fate has chosen a particularly interesting combination for our first challenge - a minotaur rogue. The traditional image of a minotaur - in or out of D&D - is that of a brutal, hulking warrior. Over time, minotaurs have evolved into a savage but noble and honorable race in fantasy literature and games, with a code of honor and strong loyalty to the minotaur's tribe. Sorta like Chewbacca with horns.

The 4th Edition minotaur is faithful to that duality; the opening passage of the Dragon feature on minotaurs in issue 369 describes them as the embodiment of "the tension between civilization and savagery...discipline and madness." Therefore, while the influence of World of Warcraft's tauren has softened the minotaur's image dramatically, the 4E minotaur is still strongly associated with the monstrous Greek legend from which all other minotaur stories arose. We'll keep the race's origin in mind as we build our minorogue...

Build #1 is...

A Minotaur Rogue! Certainly off to an interesting start.

Level 1 will be up Tuesday.