Player-Lich

[midnight756]

If a player has the goal to become a lich what is the best way of doing this? Are there rules and how does the CR adjust to the character

[wraithstrike]

It is all GM Fiat. He has to decide how hard it will be. PF does not really have rules for level adjustment. They have guidelines and the general suggestion is that the adjust be equal to the CR.

The lich entry does have suggestions though.

[Shyne]

I have a character I want to be a cute little lich eventually, and bestiary say base creature +2. So I think it's 2, but don't quote me on that I'm still noobish.

[VRMH]

The process of becoming a Lich is rather involved and time-consuming. Have you considered how it might include the rest of the party too?

[wraithstrike]

VRMH is correct. It could take months, years or decades.

[KonLesh]

Agent of the Grave prestige class is a good starting point.

http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/prestige-classes/other-paizo/a-b/agent-of-t he-grave

[Quatar]

VRMH wrote:

Have you considered how it might include the rest of the party too?

Sure. Chances are you need human sacrifices along the way, right? :)

[Meiersification]

I had a few questions.
Is the lich template something that can only be added to base "living races"?
Is it possible for an Intelligent undead such as a Vampire or a cursed creature like a Werewolf to get that template?
If so would you add the template on to the creature or would the lich template overwrite it?

[Master_Crafter]

From what I gather, any spellcaster capable of creating a phylactery can become a lich ( CL 11 & craft wondrous item). That said, they must have been alive at some point in order to have a life essence to trap inside the phylactery, and as a DM I would probably say that already being undead (and having lost possession of your own life essence) would certainly make things a lot more difficult to achieve.

[dunebugg]

Well, in the 3pp evil adventure Way of the Wicked, the rules for becoming a lich basically say.. It costs you your next available feat, and obviously the phylactery costs your character 120,000gp and 120 days to create. So, there is a bunch of cost to the character just in gold and time, and using the WotW rules, a feat. You also are required to be able to cast 5th level spells.

So, it's a pretty huge investment at any rate. The +2CR should balance out with the insane GP cost.

[Daeftan]

my cleric became a lich. its a huge process. while technically you can do it at lvl 11, getting the money (120k gp) to make a phylactery is hard if you are also adventuring. It took me until level 14 with some sacrifice to do so. Then the DM fiat... it became my entire lvl 14 quest to get the ritual components. Now Im a (broke) lvl 15 lich. The other PCs issue is significant. my character is still a well regarded cleric in a popular neutral faith and i am working out how to keep faking it.

[Pneumathrax]

I have a player character in my campaign that is a half-elf, dragon disciple, cleric, lich. He is currently 17th level. He became a lich at 14th level. He seems bent on hiding the fact that he is a lich. He wears full plate armor with helm and he keeps casting repose spells on himself to keep the dessication down to a minimum. Most liches I have run seem to glory in their lichyness and every picture shows them as being skeletal or zombie like in appearance. Is this right? Can a lich hide his nature physically?

[The Beard]

Liches can actually cast polymorph spells on themselves if they want to, Peneumathrax. So yes, a lich is free to hide its altered appearance, smell, and even its malign aura if it has spells that can do so.

[The Crusader]

Don't do it. Unless the player is using it as his penultimate goal, to be retired to legend and eternal lich-itude forever more.

Liches are ridiculously overpowered, even in a game where death is just an annoying condition that has to be removed every once in a while...