how to harness the power of Pugwampis


Advice


My group is playing a game where we are the BBEG's. I figured one of the most cost effective things I could do is get a tribe of Pugwampis on my side. Thing is I think I might be able to get one, but it's a same tribe. How can I go about making the tribe bigger on a smale time scale? We are level 8.

Sovereign Court

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Well, when one pugampi loves another pugwampi very much, they share a special kind of hug...


Pugwampis are one of the most broken monsters ever written, and their effects work just as well against CR 20 foes as they do against 1st level commoners. Actually, their power scales up with that of the foe, in fact, since the rerolls affect stronger and more important attacks as the foe's power increases.

So you are wise to try to harnass them. At your level, your best option may be Lesser Simulacrum to make duplicates of the pugwampis you do have.


Keeping in mind that their unluck aura would probably make any attempt to raise or train them using Handle Animal rolls very difficult, I suggest you find a goddess of luck whose temple can have a hallow spell set up with prayer in effect, cancelling out their unluck aura...


After playing through the first chapter of Legacy of Fire, I'm surprised my players didn't mutiny. A friend and I had an idea of a BBEG duo of a pugwampi witch that was trundled about in a baby vest by a gnoll barbarian, but that's just mean.


Play Gnolls. My understanding is that pugwampi unluck doesn't effect gnolls.

Silver Crusade

D:<

Scarab Sages

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Through an absolutely amazing amount of luck on the part of the Paladin of Sarenrae in my LoF game, he bested King Mokknokk in single combat. Mokknokk failed to sunder the Paladin's shield, and I watched the Paladin crit threat (and confirm) on both sets of rolls... with the minus for doing non-lethal.

Mokknokk yielded, and the Paladin spared him and his tribe... and then spent time sharing with them the truth of the Goddess of Redemption.

Well, above game I made a call that the gnoll immunity to their powers was because the pugwampi worship the gnolls. This tribe of Pugwampi, following their leader, converted.

They now live in the catacombs beneath the Temple of Sarenrae in Kelmarane, and the temple has an odd reputation of strange, unlucky things happening to non-believers that visit.

Sarenrae help them if anyone ever tries to rob the catacombs... ;) (I pictures something along the lines of 'Home Alone' but with a lot more teeth.)


Brotato wrote:
After playing through the first chapter of Legacy of Fire, I'm surprised my players didn't mutiny. A friend and I had an idea of a BBEG duo of a pugwampi witch that was trundled about in a baby vest by a gnoll barbarian, but that's just mean.

My DM for Legacy of Fire VEHEMENTLY insisted on having really really horrible crit fumble rules, where if you roll a 1 you hit yourself for full normal damage with any weapon, logic be damned (I had a reach weapon that literally can't hit close range and another player was shooting a bow) and you have to roll again, a 2nd 1 meaning you crit yourself. I was playing a high strength barbarian with power attack -- I was told of the fumble rule after the game started, it wasn't in the houserules listed -- so I could literally kill myself on average if I was somewhat wounded, and could super-duper overkill myself on a crit thanks to my x3 weapon, even if at full hp. (I should note, I never once used my power attack feat because it was effectively more of a liability than a benefit).

Now, I passionately hate crit fumble rules of all kinds. I also hate it when DMs drop major houserule bombshells on you after the game's started, like "by the way, it's a mathematical certainty your character will commit accidental seppukku within the first 10 sessions." So things ended pretty fast (ironically, not from me quitting, but from the DM finally agreeing to get rid of the fumble rules only to the next day declare he was cancelling the game altogether...I guess I had ruined his "fun") and I never actually killed myself.

Aaanyway.... it's legacy of fire....

Spoiler:
We're fighting these stupid pugwampis, WITH these horrible fumble rules, and we're trying to do so on narrow scaffolding that required balance/acrobatics checks constantly, lest we take falling damage and have to climb back up (also subject to unluck) and repeat the cycle of pain and misery.

They couldn't really do much to us, but we were basically just injuring ourselves and flopping around pathetically. I really do think the DM was getting actual jollies from lording his power over us and seeing us get frustrated and swearing.

/story time

Even without bad houserules, pugwampis are clearly broken, and their no save area unluck compares... interestingly... to the 3E Unluck spell the creature's aura was clearly based off of. The spell, of course, being mid-level, single target, save negates, SR negates, and short duration. And here we have these super low CR critters with it as an area no save no SR constant effect. YEAH....sounds balanced!

Dark Archive

A luck bonus, such as from a luckstone, provides immunity to the unluck aura. Keeping the pugwampi in the hands of gnoll minions (preferably in small cages, so they don't get out and cause unscheduled mayhem), and only having the PC with the luckstone interact with them directly, and it should be fine.


StreamOfTheSky wrote:

Aaanyway.... it's legacy of fire....

** spoiler omitted **...

I think what made Pugwampis *so* unfun for my players, and slightly for me, is that given their power level, they primarily only serve to lengthen a combat that is pretty much already decided. I mean, they still can't hit the broad side of a barn, and so barring any crazy home rules like your fumble example, they just lengthen combat, but not necessarily make it more lethal. It turns "oh man this is serious" into "this is a pain the ass." And no one likes those combats.


Do Crafter's Fortune help against the aura?


Yes, Crafter's Fortune does cancel out the aura.

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