ok, so you can only have 4 ACTIVE skills.  Is that to say the we should only be concentrating on how to improve the existing skills already in the game? 

OK, so put innociv down as a non supporter of the idea.  I couldn't tell earlier

I will move past this idea but hopefully there is something in this idea that could manifest itself somewhere else.

Yes but you call this "Rook Improvements" when it's the opposite.  It's a.. deprovement.

A wall like you describe lacks any function except blocking passage.

The problem is, your pro players will find this useless.
Lets say ANY class has it.  You're sitll talking about wasting 1 of the 4 skills.  Each of the 4 skills needs to be awesome, versatile, dynamic, and synergistic to give it depth.
What the pro players would find useful is if you can make a wall to stop someone from running away, meaning you can cast it far from you, in someone path, not spawn it from yourself or right infront of yourself.
Or a prison like the Furion has in DotA.

Then it can be used multiple ways.. stopping someone from running if they don't have tele.
Could use it to block your own creeps behind you, while you kill the ones up front, letting your creeps pile up behind it then once the wall drops you have tons of refinforcements coming behind you.
Using it at the last second to block a melee character from reaching you.

But it needs to be more than just a wall or a prison, or it's a waste of a spot.  How you describe i utterly loathe and would be detrimental to the gameplay.

OK, then the idea can be further refined to what you describe...if a wall being constructed away from yourself...as part of another ability somehow perhaps, then that is fine.  If the idea, as I initially constructed it has issues, then I have no problem canning it and changing the way it would work.  It may not be the best for the rook...possibly for another demigod as I think you mentioned earlier.  In any case, as the very basic point of my suggestion, and I mentioned this once before, a player generated wall (be it stone, ice, or what ever) would be a good idea.  so...my final attempt at this is below:

a player generated wall (stone, ice, etc) and not necessarily for the rook, that can be contructed or shot from the player that could be used to block other players from running away, or just generally in their path or used to herd opponents or your own creeps.  The wall health would be directly related to the demigods health that built it and would ultmately collapse should the player die and regen. 

This idea does not necessarily fit this description since it is not necessarily for the rook.  Do you find this more acceptible?

In defense of the OP, there are ways around the active skill limit, and we've already seen it from another one of the demigods.... A "Wall form" could separate 3 skills from another. The "create light tower" ability could be shifted over to wall form. And while in wall form you can't get out for a while, making you vulnerable.

That said, the wall ability (such as summoning a wall, not becoming one) might be better used for a General-type that would like to separate his/her weakened state (all your units died) from the Assassin-type.

Personally I kinda like the idea of a demigod, (probably not Rook) who has the function of engineering and shoring up defenses a la the Engineer in TF2.  Unfortunately, competitive gameplay sort of precludes strong turtling gameplay, so I doubt this will make it into multiplayer but it appeals to the Sim City in me 

That said, GCFL, don't get discouraged, just because it doesn't quite work in one form doesn't mean it won't evolve into something viable. 

For example:  Unique Item (obtained by killing neutral boss?) which allows creation of one lane-blocking force-field for 30 seconds within medium radius of caster.  Item has 120 second cooldown. 

You don't have to mess with builds since it's an item, and it would have good tactical utility.  You can adjust factors like cast length, cooldown,  and wall hitpoints to give it strategic value if you want.  

Peace

ah, but no one has really talked about throwing the boulder.  This sits well with me.  I really dislike everything about the boulder skill right now.

1.  5 second stun

2.  10 second cool down

3.  stuns everything in a path

4.  super long range (beyond FOG even).

Somebody really likes the rook (the other 2 current demigods have no where near the tailored skills, IMO).  If he threw the boulder instead of rolling it, shorten the range (harder to throw then roll), and make the stun a small AOE with increased damage, then the skill is already well on its way.  Shorten the stun duration to 2.5 seconds and the cooldown to 15 seconds, and we have a winner.

All stuns have to be looked over as of now, due to chain-stunning issues. As the Devs has suggested I suggest as well that we look on buffing and generating other Demigods before we turn around and change the mechanics of the old ones. We don't have to make them change the boulder animation but lets change that stun duration/range of roll after we see what the other demigods can be truely capeable of.

Also I think one-point circular AOE's are done enough already (well, between the three current ones at least). What you suggest would be regulus's stun mine only he'd throw it. By the way, those mines need some lovin, maybe regulus could throw those with high-teir ability. Anyway Odit I agree that if we'd leave things the way they are the roll's a little much.

What do you mean no one has talked about it?!

And it's be changed in next patch anyways.

Hmm, maybe the Queen of Thorns could use vines to pull an opponent towards her, and hopefully towards her creeps.

isn't this "Rook Improvements" Night?

What I was refering to was the OP's idea of making the boulder thrown rather than rolled.  And no, everyone on this thread was talking about the "stupid wall" and nothing was said about the boulder.  Yes the boulder has been talked about in several threads, increase cooldown, decrease duration, etc.

However, the OP makes a point.  The boulder in its current state stuns everything in a straight line (think Raignor).  One way to address the stun is to make it a ranged AOE stun/damage in stead of a straight line.