Is the Assassin class non-functional?

Question

I play a 4e Drow Assassin ( Night Stalker ). I find that the class while a striker does not do much damage.

Would it be better if I play a hybrid or keep to pure Assassin.

Answer 1

I don't think that the class is outright broken (as in "unplayable") but rather is seriously lacking feat/item support and requires a much higher level of expertise to properly build and play than other strikes (especially the ranger, where spamming Twin Strike is almost always the perfect answer to any problem -_-').

Anyway, there are some ways to increase the damage output of an assassin. The primary thing to remember, however, is that you will primarily deal large spikes of damage and not a high baseline damage every round (like e.g. a rogue).

Also note that an assassin can basically use the same tricks as other characters as well to pile up damage (using BFG-style weapons like the executioner's axe or the fullblade, knocking prone for Headsman's Chop^[DDI], using a Frost Weapon^[DDI] for frost cheese, using items like Gauntlets of Blood^[DDI] for more damage against bloodied targets, and so on and so forth).

Feats

• Cruel Shroud^[DDI]: gain CA against targets under your shroud; works well in combination with Power Attack^[DDI] and two-handed weapons to effectively gain a substantial free damage boost
• Lethal Shroud^[DDI]: increase damage of shrouds (at epic tier 1d8+10 instead of 1d6+6)
• Brutal Shroud^[DDI]: shroud damage rolls gain Brutal 1 propery
• Killer's Insight^[DDI]: once per encounter add 2 shrouds with single use of the Assassin's Shroud power

Powers

• Shadow Storm^[DDI]: level 1 at-will; attack deals 1 (2 at epic tier) additional damage for each creature adjacent to the target (this does include the assassin himself!); depending on your party composition this can produce a good damage bonus
• Targeted for Death^[DDI]: level 1 daily; as an effect until the end of the encounter you add 2 shrouds when you use the Assassin's Shroud power against the target
• Twilight Assassin^[DDI]: level 5 daily; conjure shadow assassin that can make minor action implement melee attacks (Dex vs Ref, 3 damage or 6 damage if target has shroud on it); useful for crit-fishing since you can make 3 attacks per round now (standard + 2x minor)
• Guild of Shadows^[DDI]: level 19 daily; basically the same as with Twilight Assassin but this is the multi-target version; you summon 3 shadow assassins that make an implement melee attack against one adjacent enemy (Dex vs Ref, 5+Dex mod damage) when you sustain the power as a minor action - the only drawback is that your duplicates cannot attack the same target
• Soul of Death^[DDI]: level 22 daily utility; regain hit points as if you had spent a surge and additionally use Assassin's Shroud up to 4 times against a visible enemy; drawback: it's an interrupt that triggers when you drop to 0
• Doom Foretold^[DDI]: level 29 daily; not only the probably biggest gun in the assassin's arsenal at 7[W] but also let's you use Assassin's Shroud up to 4 times against the target after the attack; useful for building chains: add 4 shrouds in any way > attack with this power > immediately have 4 shrouds again > spend action point and attack with other daily/encounter

Items

• Death Shroud Ki Focus^[DDI]: level 4+; encounter free-action power that lets you use Assassin's Shroud on the hit target and doesn't count against the 1/round limitation; also deals additional critical damage for each shroud on the target (invoked or not)
• Iron Armbands of Power^[DDI]: level 6+; well... yeah, the obligatory arms slot item for any melee striker that doesn't gain an item bonus to damage from somewhere else ;-)
• Bracers of Assassination^[DDI]: level 16+; score critical hits on 19-20 when using an assassin/assassin paragon path attack power against targets with 3+ shrouds; the level 26 version increases the range to 18-20

Answer 2

I've had no problems producing Striker Damage with my original assassin.

As a Drow you should comfortably have 18 Dex 18 Cha.

The 3 feats I think are most important to my character's success are; Sneak of Shadows (you can reliably get CA as an Assassin giving you a 1/Enc +2d6), Killer Instinct (gets that 2nd Shroud down round 1), and Light Blade Expertise (again easy to get CA).

With Shadow Storm you should be getting 1d8+4+4+1 every round as a base, get a flank with a buddy and you have 1d8+4+4+2+1. Never build more than 2 Shrouds except if you used Killer Instinct.

For Theme the Unseelie Agent is an excellent choice for Assassins; it gives you a summonable +1 weapon at level 1. (OK its great for everyone but the whole "I'm unarmed but can summon a weapon when I want it" thing thematically fits the Assassin.) This will propel you to 1d8+4+4+1+1 as a base damage.

Finally the Death Shroud Ki Focus is the "go to" Ki Focus for the the Assassin. It lets you put an extra shroud on a creature after you have hit it - with your Shrouds already declared as being used.

This build lets you do a turn 1 spike damage (if you can get CA) of 2[w]+4+4+1+1+2d6+3d6. That's pretty safe striker damage. Sure you drop down to 1[w]+10 as your base after that but you should be able to routinely get an extra 2d6+1 damage on that.

If you take Two_weapon fighting (and get a Rhythm Blade for your off-hand) you get another +1 damage.

You can also access Nimble Blade for an extra +1 to hit making it more likely you will add your Shrouds more likely to be triggered.

Answer 3

The original assassin is severely underpowered in typical scenarios.

To raise an exception to your wording, the assassin is not "broken" in the normal sense of the word (game-breakingly over-powered) but is broken in the "lying on pieces on the floor" sense. It does not compete in damage, though its mobility options are exceptional. It is, however, worth noting that a strong stealth empahsis on your party can make assassins quite effective. Unfortunately, in typical tactics an Assassin doing its thing is the equivalent of a hacker in SR3 shadowrun: while they do their thing, the rest of the group goes and gets pizza.

My recommendation is to call a different class an assassin. A shade (race) or rogue cunning stalker will give necessary "assassiny" stealth while allowing non-zero damage. An essentials drow thief can be quite exceptional in combat, considering the damage output of drow feats on crossbows. If you provide your build, I will attempt to recreate its playstyle in a class that doesn't suck. (In fact, I've already statted a base drow "assassin" here)

If you're interested in a hybrid, I recommend this guide: "The Eladrin Eldritch Executioner and its Variants" It links to a few interesting builds.