Why does no-one optimize Teamwork benefits?

[sirpercival]

OK, my fantasy warfare tactics have changed.  All warbands are now in groups of 8.

[awaken_D_M_golem]

The r.a.i. Hive from BoVD could be the +1 feat and skill
per member sized thingy, and use a whole pile of these.
The CR would be meaningless (ho hum)
but it wouldn't have any of the CO caster craziness.

[Amechra]

Hives count as single creatures, right?

Nanobots as Hives! Perfect.

[caelic]

I've used Heavy Cavalry and Massed Charge to good effect with large numbers of followers and Shock Trooper.

I think the teamwork benefits really shine in an E6 game--in a full 20 level game, the bonuses they grant tend to get eclipsed very quickly, because the window between "High enough level to qualify for teamwork benefits" and "High enough level to break reality" is a very small one.

[awaken_D_M_golem]

Hives count as single creatures, right?

Nanobots as Hives! Perfect.

Swarm = single creature

Swarm + Dark Unity = still a "single" creature
... but the text includes a clause (iirc - i'm going from beep memory)
to treat it as a single creature as often as possible,
but you don't absolutely have to.

Hive can do a Nanobot type approach, but doesn't need to.
Nanobots could certainly acquire the pieces necessary to do a Hive,
but each individual nanobot would have to be something that could
be in a normal swarm subtype with vermin  It's probably much easier
to go Hive into Nanobots , rather than work real hard to go Nanobots into Hive.
Not saying it's impossible.

[PlzBreakMyCampaign]

You can be on an unlimited number of teams. AND THERE IS A SKILL TRICK TO TEACH A TEAMWORK BENEFIT.

Citations?

[Kethrian]

SorO, you did such a great job on the list.  Could you add the benefits from The Forge of War?

[SorO_Lost]

Probably, give me like six days to get it done. I'm so far behind I still think it's Saturday.

[Gavinfoxx]

We need to add Eberron, Forge of War to this...

[SorO_Lost]

Ahh, forgot all about this. It's also in post 4 of Class Boosters (should have reserved an extra post there, all well, next forum upgrade).

Edit - Also, Forge of War isn't on the laptop. It'll have to wait some more

[bhu]

Amechra: Judging from the groups I play in in real life it's because all the PC's want to be the main protagonist, and the rest of the group is their sidekick.  I've found rl gaming frustrating because every single time the group always goes it's separate ways to make a pc, never discuss with one another what they intend to make (and indeed go to a great deal of trouble to keep their characters abilities secret from one another), and always turn in PC's that are completely incompatible with one another and who fight as individuals and not a party.

So really if the group doesn't cooperate on any level, why would they go for benefits that require them to do so?


Granted that could just be the influence of their living in Ohio...

[Craiconn]

I'd love to see a Master List of the 7 or so 3.5 books that provide Teamwork Benefits.  I'd be glad to help with this project as well.

I tend to find that online PbP games (with CharOp-friendly gamers) make for more effective/efficient groups that plan for Teamwork Benefit usage.  Like BHU's prior post, my tabletop groups tend to handwave off these things.

[Maat Mons]

… should have reserved an extra post there …

You can have the mods move the responses to a separate discussion thread.  Then you'll be free to expand the handbook to include additional posts. 

[SorO_Lost]

I didn't even think of that. Hmm... Might go with that. 1st posts Class based, 2nd post role based, 3rd post team based.

Besides Teamwork benefits I can poke around and see what else can join the idea.

[Nunkuruji]

I'd say they're unpopular due to the fact that a lot of them are circumstantial, so you have to remember the circumstance is occurring that benefits from teamwork. It's hard enough remember everything your (non-mundane) character can do, on top of that having to think about the other PCs characters and taking advantage of the circumstance.

[Craiconn]

Not sure .... I have to doublecheck .... there may have been a new Teamwork Benefit located in one of the WotC 3.5 game modules too.  Perhaps it was in one of the hardcover Expedition modules.  Or the softcover Eberron or Generic Campaign module books.