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Hi folks,
Playing a summoner and want some help with my Eidolon.
I've got the Eidolon as a tiger-like thing. And I'd like to keep it that way. That said, evolutions generally create fairly large changes in appearance and I want this one to _seem_ mostly natural. Nothing too "spooky" or evil-looking.
So...
Suggestions on how to describe either of the following:
- Reach (either a claw attack or bite)
- Extra limbs-arms
- Gore
Extra limbs seems maybe reasonable--two arms that look and act a bit like legs--think an ape. But I'm struggling with how it would look when it _used_ those hands as hands.
Gore--I can almost just live with a horn. Why not? Going to go with wings at some point, so...
Reach seems either the easiest (he just has reach) or the hardest (paw is actually really long like a grass hopper, body is snake-like for the bite).
So I'd love ideas, and even better, pictures, someone might have for ways to make this work.
Thanks!
There really isn't going to be any way that your eidolon even remotely resembles a normal animal. If nothing else, that glowing sigil on it's head is a givewaay. That and the six legs, the horns, or the giraffe style neck, or the distended mouth.
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There really isn't going to be any way that your eidolon even remotely resembles a normal animal. If nothing else, that glowing sigil on it's head is a givewaay. That and the six legs, the horns, or the giraffe style neck, or the distended mouth.
I guess what I'd like is "not creepy". He's supposed to be more of a celestial type, and they generally don't give off the "creepy" vibe.
For Reach, I would normally just go with having the neck, leg, or attacking appendage magically stretch when reach is used, so that feature has no effect on the eidolon's appearance except when it is in use.
Note that it is quite possible to have reach with a bite attack but not with a gore attack or vice versa, even though both attack forms would logically seem to require extending the neck in some ways. I normally resolve that one by having the stretching effect optimized for one attack or the other, with the stretch basically putting the other attack form into a position where it is unusable.
For arms, maybe the creatures assumes a centaur-like (or wemic-like?) form. Describing your eidolon that way has the additional advantage of making more types of magic items usable by the eidolon since it would match more typically humanoid item slots. A centaur-like creature with horns would match an old D&D creature called a Bariaur, which is definitely celestial in nature.
The gore could be realized as goat horns (turned forwards) instead of a long horn. So tiger eidolon's fur could partially cover it.
Extra arms could look basically the same as extra legs at such a creature. At fantasy pictures six-legged animals don't look that off.
The sigil can be hidden with 'mundane means', like a headband in tiger colors. A careful observer might notice, but not everyone is careful.
Well, finally you can talk with your GM about special rules. Your summoner could invent a spell 'Disguise eidolon' (also hiding the rune) or the eidolon could get a 'social identity' (tiger) and a 'battle identity' (tiger abomination), basically inspired by the vigilante from Ultimate Intrigue. Changing between identities might need a bit of time.
Reach, I'd just flavor as it being really quick at lunging. Surprisingly lanky and all that.
Multiple limbs... maybe another set of legs just behind the first set. Won't look like a normal tiger, but it will still look tiger-ish, if magical beast.
The same goes with Gore. Gore requires horns I believe. Or at least one. A pair of short, stout, yet pointy horns just above its brow.
There really isn't going to be any way that your eidolon even remotely resembles a normal animal. If nothing else, that glowing sigil on it's head is a givewaay. That and the six legs, the horns, or the giraffe style neck, or the distended mouth.I guess what I'd like is "not creepy". He's supposed to be more of a celestial type, and they generally don't give off the "creepy" vibe.
Then choose evolutions that are not automatically grotesque. My griffon-based eidolon is an example.
And celestials DO creep a lot of people out...one named Malthael comes to mind... and don't let me go on about that Imperious jerk.
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The first thing that comes to mind is the Tiger Dragon form from Breath of Fire 3. That's how I'm imagining this. Adding extra limbs can be a little odd. Doing such a thing drives it, in my mind's eye, to have more of a tauric silhouette. Imagine the Dragonkin from World of Warcraft. Alternatively, you could go with a sort of Zergling approach and have the arms protrude from just behind the front leg's shoulder blades.
If you want it to look natural, you could always give it Disguise as a class skill and evolve the Skilled evolution. Perhaps it's arms easily retract into the body and the horns are partially covered by a great mane that he just has to comb over to conceal them?
Reach on one head based attack but not the other is tricky. You could just play the "long neck" game and politely disregard the fact that the horns should technically share the reach. Or give it really, really long teeth.
Only other thing I can really think of for Reach that doesnt make the body parts look extended is see if your GM will let you fluff the Reach as sort of slash marks or shockwaves of energy. Not in the projectile sense, but a lot of series have attacks which produce a spectral image of a claw mark or fangs. Pokemon games tend to do it a lot.
For gore, a saber tooth look would work very well
10' reach is easy for a cat like creature.
Put opposable thumb with retractable claw on its paws
Instead of wings, think about a flap of sin between fore leg and hind leg, like a flying squirt.
Extra limbs could be kept folded an tucked under its belly until needed, and used as a spreader the "wings"