Utility vs. combat effectiveness

One of the tradeoffs people tend to face in kitting out characters is the eternal tradeoff between utility powers and combat effectiveness. In D&D (the pen-and-paper game, never tried DDO), for instance, many groups have been pretty hostile to players whose spell-casters picked non-combat spells, even though those spells were sometimes incredibly useful... And other times completely worthless.

4th edition D&D has somewhat altered the landscape by moving nearly all of the non-combat powers into a separate category, with the effect that you don't have to choose between combat effectiveness and utility; utility powers don't chew up slots you could have used for combat powers, and combat powers don't chew up slots you could have used for utility powers.

The specific example that comes to mind is travel powers; it seems pretty clear that people really like having travel powers, but at the same time, they often come at the price of one or two slots worth of combat-effectiveness powers. (Only one once you have the relevant vet reward that lets you pick a travel power at 6.)

Suggestion: Somewhere around level 30, allow people to do a mission arc or something that gives a Travel Power Slot. You can pick a travel power, and ONLY a travel power, for this slot -- it doesn't use one of your regular picks. This way, virtually everyone will have a travel power, because they aren't losing any of their combat functionality to get it, so more people will have the convenience of travel powers.

I dunno, probably some major downsides to this I haven't thought of.

Downsides?

Well, it isn't terribly neccesary(sp?) with you (usually) being able to shoehorn two powers in by L30, and judicious use of temp powers.

But heck, an extra power? I wouldn't turn it down, either. I seldom turn away free stuff.

Note: While travel powers usually take up two power choices, I seldom slot them very heavily, so like the fitness pool, it frees up slots to six-slot my attacks.

And D&D, the pen and paper? Played it for years, loved it, had good stories to tell. Ain't got time or opportunity anymore.

The leveling system is already designed to give you a few "free" power slots.

no one says you have to take a travel power. i know plenty of people who use the temp's. hell, if you are SR you dont need one. just whatever you want from the fitness pool. i know this because i have an SR scrap with one build having no travel power and the other has SJ. with quickness and swift and sprint, you can almost run as fast as SS.

I've taken all 3 flavors of characters (melee, ranged, support) to 50 and I can honestly say that I don't feel like any of the power choices that I have made have called for any real sacrifice to my combat effectiveness.

Would a travel power specific slot be nice? Sure but then you would have to remove the travel powers from the Power Pool sets and find new powers to replace them. Again while this sounds like a potential boon for the players it's alot of work for an unnecessary change.

I'd much rather that they work on alternate animations for the existing travel powers or even new Power Pool sets that possibly include new travel powers.

Also, utility and combat effectiveness are not mutually exclusive. It depends on how one uses one's utility powers and capitalizing on the synergy between certain powers.


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