Two simple additions to help fix the AC issue

[sephiroth1084]

Straight additions to AC aren't going to solve any problems. The system itself needs some revisions, whether that is in implementing a base miss chance, rolling for AC, implementing scaling iterative attacks for monsters, simply dropping epic monster to-hit values (should probably be done irrespective of whatever else gets considered), moving the system to be an AC/DR amalgamation, some combination of these or something entirely different, it is the base system that needs tuning.

[uhgungawa]

i miss the days of -8 being great AC.

But -10 was the best

And 25 STR was Godly

[grodon9999]

But -10 was the best

And 25 STR was Godly

And Thor had 400 HP . . .

[Hokiewa]

There are much worse balance issues in the game already, than a potentially unhittable AC.

Always getting hit on a 20 makes AC almost as useless in epic as it is currently anyway.

With the damage done by epic mobs, you will still die fast when facing a few at a time.

Getting around the 20 always hits and factoring DR into AC is the only way I can see to make AC relevant.

You can't remove the 20 or the <1>, and carry the DnD license. I don't care what edition is out now, a 20 hits, a 1 misses and if you remove that, you have successfully killed the product.

[Daggaz]

And Thor had 400 HP . . .

And if you reached level seven, you were deemed an elder and were given a pension by the local villagers, who had never even heard of an adventurer living so long, let alone seen one..

[Jahmin]

Haven't seen either mentioned during the many discussions on how to help make AC meaningful, and I'm suprised at that, maybe they just seem too obvious. They are exactly what it says on the tin, two simple additions that could make building for AC a lot simpler, but that are completely optional and unneccessary for those nt building for AC. Inspiration taken from an existing mechanic - Racial Toughness.


Racial Dodge I
Usage: Passive
Cost: 1 action point
Spent: 7 action points
Requires All of: Dodge
Available to level 3 (Race)
Grants you 2 additional armour class if you have the Dodge feat.


Racial Combat Expertise I
Usage: Passive
Cost: 1 action point
Spent: 7 action points
Requires All of: Combat Expertise
Available to level 3 (Race)
Grants you 2 additional Armour Class whilst Combat Expertise is active.


Same progression in AP cost/level as Racial Toughness, though possibly acting as an alternate (Dwarf/WF only get Dodge/CE up to II, whilst Halfling/Elves get IV, opposite of how Racial Toughness works).

Simple, uses and existing mechanic, and whilst not completely solving the issue, makes building for AC a lot easier.

Not knocking the idea as I support it since I believe AC _should_ matter, but FYI these essentially existed and were removed during the Enhancement Nerf

[NaturalHazard]

Just lower ther to-hits in epic another 10 and it's fine.

and maybe add some better ac gear so we can more consolidate our slots for ac?

[Cloista]

That'd explain the lack of suggestions for them then. The enhancement nerf was pre-EU though, and as such, before my time.

[sephiroth1084]

Not knocking the idea as I support it since I believe AC _should_ matter, but FYI these essentially existed and were removed during the Enhancement Nerf

These probably would be worth reinstating, in a general sense, but they wouldn't really solve anything, and contribute to the problem of AC-focused characters having a difficult time balancing AC with DPS, as they would necessarily be drawing quite a bit of AP away from other things. That is problematic.

I still maintain that rolling for AC and introducing descending iterative attacks for monsters would solve most of the problems we have with AC, in that it doing so would expand the range of useful AC values quite a bit, would make it rather difficult to attain an entirely unhittable AC (clearly something the devs are at least a little concerned with for epics) while also potentially making combat more interesting.

[TigrisMorte]

How odd that original AC was none at 10 and max at -10.
That 10 to -10 seems a familiar spread.
Perhaps the issue is not having based the game on AD&D rather than this newfangled, "Hey you kids! Get off my lawn!", 3.5 blasphemy.

[grodon9999]

and maybe add some better ac gear so we can more consolidate our slots for ac?

and make it possible for a guy in armor wot get closer TWFing to a guy in pajamas.