I think with Loadout's one new Archetype for existing Classes would be highly prized; especially if they enhanced/improved a few existing Feat paths currently less popular making more builds viable, but hey I'd even be happy with a new Class finally being released or even a new Race.
http://dnd.wizards.com/articles/unearthed-arcana/revised-class-optionsI mean these two would certainly MIX up what we've come to know about specific classes:
Paladin’s Oath of Conquest
▪ That may require when choosing that Paragon revising many Celestial based Daily's, Encounters, or At-Wils as well.
╘ As this Paragon is a lot more Dark or Conquest Driven similar to Warlocks with Hellbringer & Soulbinder in Darker abilities.
Warlock’s Celestial (formerly known as the Undying Light)
▪ That may require when choosing that Paragon revising many Dark based Daily's, Encounters, or At-Wils as well.
╘ As Warlocks with Hellbringer & Soulbinder are heavily invested in Darker abilities.
Thoughts?
Comments
For myself, I'd like it if they included some more of the already existing class options. Paladin is the only class that has any flavor from 5th edition, it would be nice to give the other classes a spin at that wheel.
CW: (one of these, not all 3
- Abjuration (defensive path): tanky, abilities that make team safer (valuable for squishier and lower IL groups)
- Conjuration (pet path): summons monsters to attack enemies
- Necromancy (dark/undead, kinda treads on SW themes): debuffs enemies, summon skeletons
DC:
- War Priest (personal DPS path): damaging attacks, personal +damage passives. Guiding Bolt At-Will causes enemies to grant CA, Spiritual Hammer Encounter summons auto-attacking hammer for a time, Spirit Guardians Daily creates a moving zone centered on DC that damages and slows nearby enemies. Passives mostly increase personal effectiveness.
GF / GWF:
- Eldritch Knight: Adds some magic tricks like Fire Bolt ranged At-Will, Burning Hands cone-area Encounter, Fire Shield Daily (does damage to attackers), mostly defensive passives like Stoneskin or Mage Armor.
HR:
- Beastmaster (pet path): Adds a decent beast companion (similar to SW Damnation Shadow Puppet), and powers that direct it/attack with it. Not sure how to choose animal, but Hawk, Wolf, and Bear all seem good. Maybe decided by feat path capstone? Like default = Wolf (knockdown), Archer = Hawk (quick damager, low aggro), Combat = Bear (tough, shares your aggro), Trapper = Dire Wolf (better Wolf).
OP:
- Oath of Vengeance (personal DPS path): Oath abilities do more damage instead of heal or draw aggro, tab debuffs enemies, abilities increase personal DPS against one enemy, Destructive Wave Daily (big area damage a la Oppressive Force)
TR:
- Arcane Trickster: Adds magic tricks like Mage Hand At-Will that grants CA (and maybe other things), Mirror Image Encounter similar to Mirage weapon ability but draws your aggro, etc.
SW:
- Hexblade (melee focus): close-range/melee powers, debuffs enemies
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Anyway, some of my own ideas.
UNLESS upon choosing those Paragon's / Archetypes they replaced a few more of the non Paragon specific Daily's, Encounters, or At-Wils that didn't align - so I won't say it's impossible but your right that be a lot to expect. They work a lot just keeping the 2 existing Paragon's and 3 Feat Path's functioning, even though they are always trying to improve or revise less popular ones from time to time.
Still I'd just love a new Class based off a Monk who used more Psionic abilities; perhaps a Ranged or Melee Paragon based upon the Kalashtar Race / Monk type.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalashtar">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalashtar
▪ The Path of Light - More Ranged Psionic abilities to directly attack / buff / debuff
▪ The Path of Shadows - More Melee / Martial Artist aided by Psionic's
But the last time a new class was introduced was Mod 6 with Paladin, and while the two favorites for awhile are Bard or Monk. I do hope some form of Monk eventually win's, regardless if it's based on the Kalashtar. Just think it be great to see a Psionic Class finally introduced, and the Kalashtar are also a Racial lineage, though they did train others in their ways.
Be a great way to get a new Race &/or Class added to the game as well.
1) Improving feat paths - This should be ongoing. Any time a class needs a buff or, yes, a nerf, then there should be some eyes looking at that class, and whether it's the feat path or core abilities that need tuning, that shouldn't be something that people should have to ask for.
2) New Races - This is not really a question of priority to me, as I think that it is also something that would be handled by a different group of devs than the ones working on the other stuff; This is more about art than crunching numbers.
This is money into the game, though, that means that they can pay the devs that work on the rest of the stuff.
Bring on the Warforged, the Genasi, and whatever else.
3) New Classes - This is a longer-term project, as they would be trying to balance what each new class offers to what other classes that fill the same role can do, as well as adding new, appropriate loot to the tables when necessary. A lot more work, but I think that giving people new classes is more important than the last thing on the list.
I would focus on at least the Druid and Bard before looking at doubling up other classes.
4) New Archetypes/Paragon Paths - This is last, but not something that I am dismissing. In some cases it could serve to revitalize a player's interest in an old character or encourage players to give a class that they have previously avoided a look, but for the most part I think that a new class would generate more interest.
Also, I would prefer that they add a new class, ala the GF and GWF, rather than adding a path that would substantially change the role of the class. For example, I would rather they make an actual "Battle Cleric" class rather than try to fit a "Battle Cleric" path on to the Divine Cleric.
I think as you eluded to the Unique Battle Cleric Archetype, it likely have to be a whole new Class; similarly as I was eluding at for Celestial Warlock. There's just to many Daily's, Encounters, or At-Wils that have to change. I mean a Celestial Warlock is purely aligned with Celestial or Good Spirit's, Angel's, or Being's like a Unicorn that posses Magical abilities; but they certainly wouldn't want Dark One's Blessing, or countless other Dark Arcane abilities; and aren't making Pact's with Demon's or Evil being's that for sure.
In that sense Hellbringer or Soulbinder Warlocks likely couldn't fit all their Dark abilities into a Celestial Warlock Mantle. Nor could the Oath of Conquest being almost Dark / Evil aligned fit within the current Holy Warrior Mantle of our current Paladin within the same Class.
How about more challenging Tier 3 (legendary?)dungeons/raids?
Or how about fixing/imbalancing the overbuffing meta? (4 buffer +1 dps)
It's similar to the mess they made with GWFs. GWFs are basically Barbarians, at least enough to make Barbarians hopelessly redundant if added. It's too late to do this now I think, and they'd probably make a total mess of it if they tried, but I always wished they would take 1/3rd of the GWF and shove it into the GF (who would then spec into either Tank or DPS like how the OP specs into Tank or Healer), then make a Barbarian out of the other 2/3rds of GWF and fill out the extra with totem animals and stuff.
It's something that a lot of games have problems with in the sense that as they add more and more powerful options for the players, the dungeons that used to be top tier become less and less interesting, and even some of the newest ones can't really match up to what the players are doing.
Heck, Lair of the Mad Dragon just up and disappeared. Whether it would be too easy now days isn't even something that we get to ask. They took the option away from us and never gave it back.
This would sit alongside my top priority if I was adding it to my list, though.
Of course, this is also ongoing work, and moreso if they want to bring the older endgame dungeons up to speed. Mostly agreed.
In hindsight especially, given how slowly new classes have rolled out I would have rather they left out the descriptors in the class names and just went with different classes all the way.
And I am not even a real fan of barbarians.
Just call the Control Wizard a Wizard and if they want to add a different take on the classic "magic user" later on they can add Sorcerer to the game.
The Trickster Rogue should just be the game's Rogue class.
Make the Guardian Fighter the one and only Fighter and let the Barbarian take over for the GWF.
That sort of thing.
Because at this point, I honestly don't think that the concept of a "Battle Cleric" is even worth asking for.
Play the Paladin and take the healer path if that's the sort of thing that you want, because that's as good as I think it's ever going to get for you.
I always figured the only reason Neverwinter used those names was to differentiate GFs and GWFs without resorting to a Barbarian. I never expected them to put out a "War Wizard" or a "Brawny Rogue" as a separate class. I would be perfectly happy if they renamed our classes to their actual class name, but GF/GWF might have to stay.
I'm just glad they never put out a Warlord. I hate hate HATE Warlords!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalashtar">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalashtar
▪ The Path of Light - More Ranged Psionic abilities to directly attack / buff / debuff
▪ The Path of Shadows - More Melee / Martial Artist aided by Psionic's
I want to hit enemies with my barbarian!
There are a great many people out there that do not at all like the idea of psychic powers mixing with magic; That think that psychic powers are more science fiction than fantasy.
I think that early psionics had issues; A psionic against a non-psionic was a fight heavily rigged in the psionic's favor, but if that psionic ran out of points with which to defend him/herself then a meeting with a psionic creature was just about as dangerous an encounter as they could have.
Of course no one would accuse early editions (or even later editions in some cases) of (A)D&D of being a blueprint for game balance, but the point remains.
3.X and later psionics were better (my opinion, of course), as just being like magic only different, but that difference is still a thing that people are divided over and that has, to the best of my memory, always been found in expansions or as an optional add-on, not core rules.
Monks, on the other hand, are one of the "big 3" missing classes along with Bard and Druid.
Not a big fan, but they are deserving of a look and eventual inclusion if the game continues to add classes.
And quit shouting on those darn HP!!
And get off my lawn!!!
Still Neverwinter as we know it is based on 5e so were clearly in your realm of better for Psionic's. Regardless I'd still love to see a Monk of any type. Though I think there's a slightly higher interest in Bard's, if only slightly ahead of the Monks, thought the Druid's have a bit of a distance to catch in third.