Arelith

On the surface, Divine Synergy is a buff. Being able to cast Divine Might and Divine Shield simultaneously reduces wind-up time, and wind-up time is one of the big reasons people saw paladins as an underwhelming class prior to the recent update.

Outside of PvP, however, Divine Synergy detracts significantly from a paladin's longevity and adaptability in dungeons because it forces a 2x Turn Undead expenditure whenever one wishes to activate a Divine feat. Turn Undead uses are a divine character's life blood and being able to ration it strategically is essential. This is especially true when one is soloing and unable to rest freely, or participating in some of the later content in which lengthy no-rest areas are a thing.

Even in parties, it's useful to be able to select one or the other divine feat individually. A paladin acting as a tank can use only Divine Shield and let party members do most of the killing. Alternatively, a paladin being protected can use only Divine Might while wielding a two-handed weapon to add a lot of damage output. Having to do both simultaneously all the time means you drain your resources twice as fast, often unnecessarily.

Suggestion: Implement Divine Synergy as an additional feat button that, when pressed, activate Might and Shield simultaneously. Allow the a paladin to still individually select Divine Might and Divine Shield to activate that divine feat alone for 1 Turn Undead use.

What you're suggesting was recently implemented then removed soon after:

Kalopsia wrote: Mon Dec 20, 2021 9:24 pm [*]Epic Oath of Vengeance:
- Holy Sword no longer triggers Divine Might and Shield. Instead, the spell's damage bonus vs. evil is doubled.

Just a reminder that this forum is for feedback, not for suggestions.

DM Monkey wrote: Tue Dec 28, 2021 8:47 am What you're suggesting was recently implemented then removed soon after:

Kalopsia wrote: Mon Dec 20, 2021 9:24 pm [*]Epic Oath of Vengeance:
- Holy Sword no longer triggers Divine Might and Shield. Instead, the spell's damage bonus vs. evil is doubled.

Just a reminder that this forum is for feedback, not for suggestions.

No, actually. What I'm talking about is Divine Synergy, which is a Paladin feature at 21 that exists outside of that canceled update.

http://wiki.nwnarelith.com/Paladin#Arelith_Changes

The more you know... Somehow I had no idea about this one!

I agree with the feedback and I think it would be nice if it was a toggle-able ability so people wouldnt have to use both feats when they need just one.

Paladins gain Improved Turning at the same level for this particular reason: The halved replenishment cooldown is meant to (partially) compensate the increased use of Divine Might and Shield.

If a toggle or separate ability was added, the Improved Turning change would likely have to be reverted and Turn Undead would replenish on a 10 minute cooldown again.

The Turn Undead change is certainly welcome, but the added uses translate to +3 while the paladin's entire resource pool is effectively halved. The replenishment timer is nice, but doesn't jive with the paladin's pacing - as it's still a caster at the end of the day with limited slots and quite a few turns/rounds per level buffs.

Personally, I'd rather do without Divine Synergy if it came to having to make a choice. Halving the resource pool is crippling for the longevity of a divine build when it comes to solo play or doing late-game endurance content, which is noticeable all the time. By contrast, PvP where half a round of wind-up matters amounts to < 0.1% of gameplay time. Unless your playstyle involves actively searching for PvP.

But again, that's my personal preference and I don't want to take people's toys away because I like soloing and epic content.

Divine synergy makes me want to play a paladin.

Curve wrote: Tue Dec 28, 2021 4:01 pm Divine synergy makes me want to play a paladin.

I had that reaction when I read about it!