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The Warlord
Choosing a Warlord power with a non-combat application was difficult, but not difficult in the same way as the Ranger or Rogue. While most classes are about hitting stuff, the Warlord is all about directing allies and creating a tactical advantage. Although I finally decided on showcasing Opening Shove, I’d like to point out that Commander’s Strike, Furious Smash, and Viper’s Strike also have excellent off-the-grid applications.
Opening Shove
Holly heard the cries down the market streets and turned to see a large, white horse careening down the cobblestone—wagon and frantic driver in tow. She began to retreat to the safety of a side alley when her sharp eyes spied a crumple of red and yellow fabric screaming on the road.
A little girl, no more than 8 years old, had been knocked over by the crowd. Her fine clothing was a flailing mass of frills as she tried to scramble to her feet. She might make it in time, she might not, but Holly was not the kind of woman who left anything to chance.
Holly pressed through the crowd, but was no match against the retreating mass of shoppers and keepers. Unable to make progress against the burly man in front of her, Holly raised a small slippered foot and kicked him out of the way. Now with a clear view ahead of her, Holly channeled her inner strength and shouted, “get off the road!”
The voice pierced the air like the note of a flute. It was a voice that had overpowered the clash of blades, the roar of fire, and the screams of the dying. It was a voice that years ago commanded thousands of men over miles of blood stained earth. It was a voice that had no trouble crushing the noise of a scared throng or the rapid impact of horse’s hooves on stone.
The little girl on the street stumbled and without standing completely upright, managed to scramble to the curb and avoid being trampled. Holly breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed her body.
The retired lady of war turned to be on her way, but was stopped by four fat fingers encircling her arm. “What do you mean by kicking me?” Holly turned and found a large face staring back at her. Her body tensed once more and she took a deep breath. The worst of the day may not be over.
The girl falls in the street and gets tangled up in her clothing, making her slowed. The crowd has become a mobile obstacle that Holly cannot move through to get to the girl, so she resorts to Opening Shove to grant the little girl a shift equal to Holly’s intelligence modifier. Holly makes a strength versus reflex attack against an innocent bystander and easily succeeds. The little girl then shifts as far as her slowed state allows, but it’s just enough to move her out of the way of the oncoming cart.
I started Dungeon Mastering with secondhand AD&D materials in 1996 and have run a vast number of D20 campaigns, from cliche' medieval adventures in a kingdom made of Lego bricks to fighting zombies and the mob in the mid 1930s. I try to make the gaming experience as enjoyable, fast-paced, and easy to play as humanly possible. 
Quite nice. I’d think this can have all sorts of interesting applications, although you bring up a good, valid side effect of it, which is that you’ve just attacked an innocent with potentially lethal damage. (Which could be problematic…would a crowd of spectators count as minions? That….would not be good) So that could prove to be indeed problematic.
Andy, Opening Shove doesn’t do any damage- it lets you push the target 1 square and then shift an ally or do a Commander’s Strike. So there’s no damage- lethal or otherwise.
Your example here is a great inspiration for me. Next time I need to move my party around, I’ll shove one and shift another one. A good whack on the side of the head with my spear butt should get the fighter in the position I want him to be in.
Very nice. Opening Shove doesn’t even specify an enemy – the target is “One creature”. And correct, the exploit does no damage.
You could conceivably give the order to the same target you have pushed, as long as they are an ally. So you could give someone a shove to get them going while shouting “run!”. A nice dramatic moment of self sacrifice perhaps.
Opening shove is definitely one of my favorite non-fighty powers so far. I’d like to see someone create a non-lethal luchador character around attacks like this.
Oops, my bad. I really ought to check the Compendium or something first, seeing these powers. That’s really cool, then.