I just posted a new class to my blog. I'd like to get some feedback on it. The link is provided below. Let me know what you think. Thanks.
No comments? Is... is that a good thing?
What system is this for? Those skills definitely aren't PF, and seem to be 4e.
What system is this for? Those skills definitely aren't PF, and seem to be 4e.
My blog has a lot of house rule stuff. The skill set is a bit of an amalgamation of 3.5, 4E, Pathfinder, and even some d20 Modern thrown in there for good measure.
I'll probably put up a PDF version of the class with 3.5 skills at some point, but I saved the file to a thumb drive, and left it at work. In the meantime, if you follow the links for each of the skills, and take a look at the conversion table in my entry on House Skills, you should be able to convert the skill set to Pathfinder or 3.5 pretty easily.
The Shadow Bolt is clearly based off of the Warlock's Eldritch Blast, so it seems weird that Spell Penetration works with the EB, but not the SB.
Shadowy Aura and Shadow Stealth seem backwards. I can summon shadows around me before I can use the shadows to help me in stealth?
Shadow Stealth seems like it should be a level 1 ability.
3/4ths BAB classes have d8 in Pathfinder, and since this is in the Pathfinder homebrew section, I figure you're at least going for Pathfinder.
How often can someone use Shadow Aura? As often as they like, so it's just a standard action every class level rounds?
And let me make sure this is correct: A shadow bolt with Acid Flask will do 20d6 worth of damage at level 20, 10d6 unresistable, and 10d6 acid. Is the Acid part subject to SR as well, so that it needs a touch attack, a saving throw, and SR?
Cheapy, your feedback is fantastic. Thank you so much!
Here are your individual comments, and the changes I've made based on them.
The Shadow Bolt is clearly based off of the Warlock's Eldritch Blast, so it seems weird that Spell Penetration works with the EB, but not the SB.
I actually went back and forth on how the shadow bolt ability should work, and made a lot of edits to it before I settled on the current version. I think in one of those edits I just forgot to include the text about Spell Penetration. I'll fix it.
Shadowy Aura and Shadow Stealth seem backwards. I can summon shadows around me before I can use the shadows to help me in stealth?
Shadow Stealth seems like it should be a level 1 ability.
I see your point about shadowy aura and shadow stealth being backwards. However, I like the progression of shadow stealth, and I'm a little reluctant to make it a 1st level ability. That said, it wouldn't take much to make it a 4th level ability. Take a look at the changes I've made and let me know what you think.
3/4ths BAB classes have d8 in Pathfinder, and since this is in the Pathfinder homebrew section, I figure you're at least going for Pathfinder.
Oh. I didn't realize that. The group I play with is still playing 3.5, so I had no idea that the base Hit Dice are tied to the BAB for classes in Pathfinder. However, that's an easy fix.
How often can someone use Shadow Aura? As often as they like, so it's just a standard action every class level rounds?
Whoops. It's 1 round per shadow-tattoo artist level per day. Fixed.
And let me make sure this is correct: A shadow bolt with Acid Flask will do 20d6 worth of damage at level 20, 10d6 unresistable, and 10d6 acid. Is the Acid part subject to SR as well, so that it needs a touch attack, a saving throw, and SR?
I thought about doing it your way, where the first 10d6 are unresistable, but I thought it would get confusing. Instead, a shadow bolt with acid flask will do 20d6 worth of damage at level 20, save for half. Otherwise, you are correct.
By the way, your confusion makes me think that perhaps this ability isn't as clearly written as it could be. Any suggestions for clarification?
I'm on my phone now, but from what I recall, the acid flask / icicle / etc says it does an additional damage of d6 per two levels. That to me means the other damage is the same.
I will comment more later.
I'm on my phone now, but from what I recall, the acid flask / icicle / etc says it does an additional damage of d6 per two levels. That to me means the other damage is the same.
That is what it says, and I see your confusion. However, like I said, it's not what I intended. Let me think about how to reword it. In the meantime, I look forward to your other comments.
By the way, what's your take on how it should work? Do you think it should work the way you described it, or do you think that's too confusing? I find myself a little ambivalent.
Argh. Lost a lot of text due to a browser bug.
Short story: check out the Shadow Assassin by Super Genius Games. It's available here at Paizo for about $3.00, and has a lot of cool ideas in it. It's kind of a Fighter / Rogue / Illusionist with a lot of customization. 3/4ths BAB, doesn't have the spike damage of a rogue, but gets Weapon Training and can get Weapon Specialization. An interesting class, and one of the best "shadow users" I've found. And I've looked all over for that, as it's one of my favorite archetypes.
I think shadow bolt should do 10d6 unresistable, and 10d6 resistable. It seems like you'd be infusing the shadowstuff with coldness / acidity, etc. Not replacing it. Thta's just me.
I'd recommend at the very least switching UMD with Shadow Stealth. It just seems right that someone who deals with shadows all the time is good at sneaking due to their mystical connections with the shadows. And UMD gets useful around level 4, anyways.
Shadow Sight should perhaps increase LLV by 3x instead of 2x if they already have LLV? That seems to be what happens in a few other cases in Pathfinder.
I do think that Greater Shadow Aura comes in a little too late, but I'm not sure what's a better level for it. Maybe you can use it earlier, but you can only use it for 1 round per 2 levels? Maybe even every 3 levels, since 50% miss chance is pretty good. So it'd have a separate pool to draw from, but be much more limited.
Another class by SGG that I like is the Death Mage, and one of their Paths (think bloodline) is Shadow. They get this ability at level one:
Shape Shadow (Su): You can manipulate and
command shadow as if it was a physical, malleable
material. You gain the benefit of persistent
prestidigitation, unseen servant, and spectral hand
spells as a result of your ability to shape and
command shadows.
I like the idea of the presti and Unseen Servant abilities. Gives them a bit of non-combat use.