Bladesinger's page

Rosgakori wrote:

"The red capes are coming. Red capes are coming!"

That line boggles me. I think it's reference to superheroes in general, not to the Superman. Or it is the name of those Superman-logo wielding soldiers. Line that would have made more sense is "superheroes are coming!" since it sounds more mocking, fitting of Luthor's.

I think he was just poking fun at the old line 'the redcoats are coming' (referring to British troops in the colonies), and it wasn't meant to be much deeper than that (other than the Lex-ish notion that superheroes are inherently oppressive to 'normal folks' in a Harrison Bergeron-sort of way and that a 'war for independence' from them might be necessary).

Wow, neither of you realize they gave away the plot of the movie, right? Lex gets Zod's body as seen in the trailer. Lex experiments on Zod. Lex clones Superman to make him look like an invading alien and gives him an 'army' to go to work. 'The Red capes are coming' is a reference to this army and his plan. The 'Superman' kneeling to Lex as Lex looks him over is the clone. He even looks angrier. This clone will probably become Bizarro. This is a similar plot to Superman: Birthright, which they already stole parts of for Man of Steel. Can't wait to see if I am right.

So, I have always wondered why the Elves never crafted a single handed weapon like the Aldori Dueling Sword since they are very Dex focused and benefit from Weapon Finesse well. Then a friend of mine said "just use a Small Elven Curve Blade". So, I have to ask, would this work? Would that then be a one-handed sword with all the Elven curve Blade benefits, save that it does 1D8 base Damage?

A Nuke is a plot device best summed up as "If your close enough to notice, you're too close"

I'd vote Second Darkness ... for a few reasons.

1) The background narrative is integral to the history of Golarion on a more sweeping scale than Curse of the Crimson Throne

2) Its potential was not realized, and that's something a revision could correct.

3) As noted, the support products for it could use a re-vamp. While Into the Darklands and The Great Beyond have not been altered much by the passage of time, additional looks would not hurt. I think all of the relevant stat-blocks from those have been updated by now, so new creatures would be welcome. Elves of Golarion, on the other hand, was done for 3.5 and in the transition period in which Paizo was trying not to put new mechanics in sourcebooks. Some details of the Elves need to be corrected (sleeping vs meditating, for one), and the various Ethnicities need to be defined. We have the Snowcasters, but we only have the Half-Elf versions of the Ekujae and the Spire Elves.

What he said....plus One!

I was actually less worried about the crossguard than how "unrefined" the blade looked. It looked like it was using an unstable crystal or something. If this is a one-off, no problem, but I hope they stick with the look all Lightsaber blades had in Revenge of the Sith. That is, IMO, when they looked the best.

I find Slashing Grace a bit interesting too in that you can get Dex to Damage, but NOT to hit. Consider - A Fighter who takes this feat will get his Dex to Damage with it, but not to hit, as Weapon Finesse doesn't apply to it normally, if say the Long Sword is the chosen weapon.

Marc, I just want to say I love your work and the Theurge lives up to the hype. I love this Class and the Battle Scion a lot. Thanks for all the quality and hard work you guys at Kobold put into this. I look forward to more!

Or they could apply the poison to longbows and fire 2-3 shots PER ROUND. =)

The small spaces argument is a decent one, but I was under the impression that most of the Underdark was either vast, high ceilinged caves, and cities. The concealability factor is the more likely explanation for their widespread usage, and it's a good one. Just saying they're not a particularly effective combat weapon.

And that is the flaw in your thinking....they are not meant as a killing weapon. They are meant as a close range distraction. Poisoned bolts, web bolts, screaming and stunning bolts...these are all staples of the Drow arsenal. The Hand Crossbow is merely a delivery device, nothing more.

OK, I know I'm in the minority here, but this show was incredible drivel. While the Pilot and a few first season episodes gave me some hope of a good series, they were quickly dashed by any number of amazingly stupid inconsistencies. I'll not list them all, but one that stands out is...glowing spines. I'm fairly sure humans don't do that. SOMETHING in the Cylons is WAY different than us. But humans still can't tell the difference? Sure....we can Jump across interstellar space, but we can't detect 'glowing spines'? Or computer arm jacks? The tech seemed really inconsistant. Plus, you've been like fighting the Cylons foreve and don't have anything related to an EMP weapon? Bullets? Really? Not even apparently armor piercing bullets? Really? And don't start me on Ron Moore plagarizing himself with the same magic blood trick he used on Star Trek Voyager...

Yeah, not a fan. Can you tell?

All that having been said, I love the late 70's version, cheese and all. Did it have problems, sure, but I just preferred the Star Wars feel over the Oz feel any day. BUT, if it is your cup of tea, more power to you. As they say, YMMV.

Bladesinger wrote:

I still think a few fixes would help this class....

Animal Focus - This could give the Favored Terrain of the Animal to the Hunter, as well as the buff...getting 'in tune' with the animal, so to speak. This gives an excellent reason to use the ones you already have magic items for.

Two Companion Fighting - This is essentially the Two Weapon Fighter Archetype's ability to fight with two weapons called Twin Blades, only in this case, with two people. When both the Hunter and the AC make a full-round action to attack the same target, they each gain a +1 to Hit and damage against that target, starting at 4th Level, and going up every 4 levels to a maximum of +5 at 20th Level.

Hunter's Magic - Starting at 5th Level, the Hunter can select a number of Ranger Spells equal to his Wisdom Modifier to add to his list of Spells available to memorize.

That's just me. YMMV.

I think your Two Companion Fighting class feature should be improved to a general buff that is applied when both the hunter and companion attack the same target, full attack or not.

Also Hunter's magic is perfect. This is needed.

I don't know, a general buff at that point would be sweet, but why not just give them full BAB then when team fighting with their AC? Something situational like the above seems like a better comprimise, no?

Plot & Poison. As Set pointed out, easily the best Drow suplement ever produced. I'd love to Dezzavold updated too, along with this book, with possibly better maps too. Hey, if we're dreaming....

I still think a few fixes would help this class....

Animal Focus - This could give the Favored Terrain of the Animal to the Hunter, as well as the buff...getting 'in tune' with the animal, so to speak. This gives an excellent reason to use the ones you already have magic items for.

Two Companion Fighting - This is essentially the Two Weapon Fighter Archetype's ability to fight with two weapons called Twin Blades, only in this case, with two people. When both the Hunter and the AC make a full-round action to attack the same target, they each gain a +1 to Hit and damage against that target, starting at 4th Level, and going up every 4 levels to a maximum of +5 at 20th Level.

Hunter's Magic - Starting at 5th Level, the Hunter can select a number of Ranger Spells equal to his Wisdom Modifier to add to his list of Spells available to memorize.

That's just me. YMMV.

Bladesinger wrote:

You know, I agree with both your assessment and desire for more 'per encounter' style design. Truthfully, it worked exceptionally well for Star Wars Saga Edition.

If it wasnt for the gross mishandling of the products released (with options for everyone scattered through every friggan book) saga might have been my favorite iteration of d20. I would love it if somehow paizo got saga edition transfered to them along with the star wars liscense (which now belongs to fantasy flight but thats beside the point this is my hypothetical wonderland) because its probably the only thing that would get paizo's CEO to consider a second system/world.

Agreed on all points. We are very much on the same page here.

Bladesinger wrote:

chaoseffect wrote:

Bladesinger wrote:

I have to admit, this is weird, because me and my group found the Inquisitor stupid broken powerful. By third level he was out damaging 2-3 characters combined.

I really gotta ask how. At level 3 inquisitor has nothing special combat wise besides a few first level spells, a free teamwork feat, and 1/day Judgement. What exactly did the rest of the damage dealers in that party look like?

Actually, this thread has shown me where the problems are. It is a two part issue, really. One, we roll for stats, and don't use point buy. We are a bunch of old school gamers and the Inquisitor in question had some really good stats. As a side note, we really hate point buy, and it really seems a lot of class balance is based around this. This is one area where I'm coming to the conclusion that 3.5 / Pathfinder has yet to find its equlibrium point on, but I digress.

Secondly, if memory serves, we were not doing 4 encounters per day. I think the poster up-thread who said you have to keep Inquisitors busy was spot on in that analysis. When you combine these two aspects together, THAT is where we got a misconception about the class's power level. I'm totally willing to give it another go and see what happens.

There are several classes that are far more powerful if you only have a one or two encounters a day, inquisitor, magus, and paladin when they get to use all their toys at once tend to be really powerful. I honestly wish that the game was just based around per encounter abilities, with the option to 'rest up' between fights and nix the whole per day nonsense that throws off the balance of the game depending on the circumstances of the adventure.

You know, I agree with both your assessment and desire for more 'per encounter' style design. Truthfully, it worked exceptionally well for Star Wars Saga Edition.

Bladesinger wrote:

I have to admit, this is weird, because me and my group found the Inquisitor stupid broken powerful. By third level he was out damaging 2-3 characters combined.

I really gotta ask how. At level 3 inquisitor has nothing special combat wise besides a few first level spells, a free teamwork feat, and 1/day Judgement. What exactly did the rest of the damage dealers in that party look like?

Actually, this thread has shown me where the problems are. It is a two part issue, really. One, we roll for stats, and don't use point buy. We are a bunch of old school gamers and the Inquisitor in question had some really good stats. As a side note, we really hate point buy, and it really seems a lot of class balance is based around this. This is one area where I'm coming to the conclusion that 3.5 / Pathfinder has yet to find its equlibrium point on, but I digress.

Secondly, if memory serves, we were not doing 4 encounters per day. I think the poster up-thread who said you have to keep Inquisitors busy was spot on in that analysis. When you combine these two aspects together, THAT is where we got a misconception about the class's power level. I'm totally willing to give it another go and see what happens.

I have to admit, this is weird, because me and my group found the Inquisitor stupid broken powerful. By third level he was out damaging 2-3 characters combined. Then as we gained levels adding Bane on top of all his buffing spells just seemed straight up overkill, moreso than even the Cleric or Sorcerer. Well, as they say YMMV.

Thanks everyone!

Can you use the Crossblooded and Wildblooded Sorcerer Archetypes together? It seems like you can, but a little clarification would be good. Thanks!

After a quick playtest and reading this forum, I have a few ideas I'd like to throw out...

Skills - definitely 6+Int Mod.

Weapons - All Simple & Martial weapons

Armor - Light, Medium, Shields [ No Metal ]

Animal Focus - As written, but grants the Favored Terrain ability tied to the animal you are channeling as well. Bonus starts at +2 and goes up as normal.

Combat Style of the Ranger

Starting at 3rd level gain +1 To Hit & Damage as long as both the Hunter and his AC are taking Full Attack Actions against the same target. This is similar to the Two-Weapon Warrior archetype's two-weapon combat bonus. I think it adds a good bump to paired combat, but doesn't make the class strictly better than the Ranger.

Hunter's Magic - At 4th level and every three levels thereafter the Hunter can add a number of spells from the Ranger spell list to his list of spells usable, equal to his Wisdom modifier.

Master Hunter - 20th Level - keep what they have but add the Improved Quarry Ranger ability. C'mon, its freakin 20th Level!

Plus, Rogue Genius' Magister Class does this very well.

I, consider the lack of red underwear a marvelous thing.

Actually, I agree with you. I'm totally fine the red undies are gone. My issues were the texture on the symbol and the boots. For some reason it just didn't seem right to me, YMMV. Also, the blue color looked great in some scenes, but virtually black in others. Lastly, it needed a more obvious belt. What they had on there just looked...meh. All in all, I think they were going in the right direction with the costume, they just needed to clean up a few points. Again, YMMV.

I am a dedicated Superman fan, and surprisingly, I liked this movie. I liked Cavil as Superman, good action and such. However, I hated the suit, not as a whole, but for small little things. This was a good Superman movie, but it did have a lot of plot holes. Despite this, I did enjoy it.

I've never ordered a pre-order from Paizo before. Do I get charged now, or when it ships?

I've never done a pre-order on Paizo, do you get charged now, or when the book ships?

Actually, if you're going to house rule it, Mithral allows a weapon one size category larger to be finessed, so a medium Mithral long sword can be finessed, but not a great sword. Another thought is the use of weapon templates. This comes from Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved, but it can be adjusted to use here...

Elven Weapon Template

The Elves are expert crafters of Light, yet strong weapons. Made with special lighter materials, superior forging techniques, and with a different balance, Elven weapons are lighter than their normal counterparts, weighing half as much as a weapon of similar type. Treat an Elven weapon of a character’s own size as a Light Weapon for that character. This template costs an additional 2,000 GP ( not including the Masterwork cost ), and can only be forged by a Master Elven Bladesmith. Lastly, these are considered Exotic weapons to use, except for Elves, who treat them as weapons of their normal category.

These look awesome, but a few things....Shouldn't the Mithril Knight gain Leadership as a Bonus Feat? It was a requirement to get into the Prestige Class, and they did get Bonuses to it. I'd say replace another Mercy for the Bonus Feat.

I have also noted the Black Dragoon Channels Positive Energy, even though it is listed as Channel Negative Energy, is this correct or a typo? Also, perhaps a Bonus Feat to Command Undead maybe?

I don't suppose you have the Vigilant Ranger Archetype floating around out there anywhere, do you? Although, this one might work better as a Prestige Class.

All in all, excellent work!

Any clue what the Elven Battle Training ( or some such ) Feat works?

Thanks to all of you who helped out!!

Hello all, and thanks for taking the time to read this. I am currently working on a College project and could use some help from the community. Just take a few moments to take my minor survey here and answer a few questions. And thanks in advance!

1. Are you familiar with the American Electoral Process for President of the United States?

2. Do you know what the Electoral College is?

3. Do you know what the term Popular Vote is?

4. Have you ever voted in a Presidential election?

5. Do you feel your vote mattered?

6. Do you think the Electoral process is a fair one?

One of my players wants to play something like a 'White Mage' role (from Final Fantasy)- that is, a divine caster with no armour but strong spellcasting abilities, weilding wands and staves more than melee weapons.

I was interested in the Oracle after seeing the iconic character, but it turns out that class is really just a melee beatstick just like all other divine classes in 3rd and 4th edition.

Which is especially galling because she looks as if she's a pure caster with those exotic robes - shouldn't the 'Iconics' have the armour and weapons the class actually uses?

I looked through the archetypes for something that would fit, and so far nothing did. I'm thinking of letting the player play a sorcerer and just swap out the arcane spells for cleric ones.

Or if I used a cleric or oracle, but cut the armour feats, maybe offering two more appropriate feat choices in exchange for losing Light & Medium armour?

Try looking at the Mosaic Mage from Super-Genius Games. I think it could fit the bill.

Owen, this is an awesome supplement! Since you guys regularly do exemplary work that is saying a lot. I do have one question, though. Magus-at-Arms requires you to have at least one Magus Multiclass Feat - but I didn't see any others. Am I missing something?

Please cancel my Adventure Path subscription. I have had a lay-off in the family and need to back off for a bit. Thank you!

Ridge wrote:

2) Does it teach magic? The dueling blades and the like seem to indicate more martial than magical training.

It's where the Jedi train. :) *Extra credit to those who recognise the reference*

I assume that's where a lot of Maguses might trace their roots.

Ah, The Living Force Campaign. Good ol' Cularin System....

I would like to have one of the following:

1- Options for the Time Thief and Time Warden One Book
2- Genius Guide to Time Magic
3- Anachronistic Adventurers: The Enforcer , I’d love to see the Academic, Bruiser, and Agent base classes.
I thought I would go with a time theme for what I would like to see.

I'd love to have either the Codex Draconis: Red Tyrants of the Mountains or the White Terrors of the North.

+1 to the Genius Guide to Time Magic. A Chronomancer Wizard is something I've been looking for for a long time, as I've been looking to PF update my old 2nd Ed Chronomancer.

Actually, Super-Genius Games Templar Base Class does this nicely....

Actually, in my Dark Sun game, I'm using Oracles as the Elemental Clerics ( Earth, Wind, Waves & Flame ) and regular Clerics for Templars. This makes them unique and you can use the Domains for the Sorcerer-Kings from the aforementioned Dragon Magazine.

@Bladesinger

Quote:

Kudos on using items from Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved's Mageblade.

That really should not be a surprise since we have been publishing for MCAE for over 3 years and our ENnie nominations are all for our AE work. And right now we are the only company actively publishing product for AE (and that includes malhavoc press).

Surprise or not, still great, great work. As I said, totally happy with my purchase and I KNOW I'll get alot of use out of it. I look forward to more. Keep up the good work and I'll keep buyin'!

Oh, and I forgot to mention, Kudos on using items from Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved's Mageblade. I noticed the Song of Arcane Triumph and such from his Bladesong Archetype for a Giant Mageblade in Transcendence. This, I always thought, was a great Fighter / Mage Class and I'm glad to see that you not only agree, but got some of it out for Pathfinder - Thanks !!!

First off, let me start by saying both your companies’ rock! You have collectively managed to create two great supplements without a great deal of crossover. The fact that you both used Storn for your artwork is also interesting…( he does a lot of good work for Mutants and Masterminds as well ).

I’d like to take the time, though, to touch upon the one thing that is near and dear to my heart - Bladesingers ( as if my handle wasn’t a dead giveaway ). The ‘ Singer of Blades ‘ ( nudge, nudge, wink, wink ) is a great Archetype, although I’ve always thought the Bard would have been a good choice too ( I’ll post my Bladesinger Bard Archetype if anyone is interested ). This having been said, I’m not sure what the rule on naming things is, but although Bladesinger and Bladesong appear in Wizard’s products, they also appear in Mongoose Publishing’s ‘ The Quintessential Elf ‘ book, which is a 3rd party open source book, if memory serves. I though this opened up those terms for use, no? I could be wrong, but just thought I’d throw that out there. I say this because ‘ Singer of Blades ‘ doesn’t seem to flow as well to me ( perhaps I’m just biased ). ‘ Swordsinger ‘ might have been a better option, IMO. This is just a matter of taste on my end, definitely NOT a criticism of you guys.

In any event, the Archetype looks good, but I’ll offer a few thoughts. Perform [ Dance ] and Perform [ Sing ] should be Class skills right from the start, just like the Beastmaster Ranger in the APG, who got a modified Skill list at 1st Level.

Song of the Blade Dance ( Arcana ) - This Should be offensive only, perhaps +2 to Initiative and attack rolls only, as you have a defensive ability right in the Class. [ Perhaps renamed Song of the Blade’s Edge ].

Song of the Blade Style - This is good [ except see Skills above ] ( Perhaps renamed Song of the Blade’s Parry ).

Bladedance - I’m of two minds about this. Not that it looks bad, but I’m not sure if this makes the Magus a little better since you don’t need to roll Concentration checks. I need to see this in play before making judgment.

Songstrike - I like this ability, BUT not only does it come way too late, it replaces something way more powerful than itself. A once a day ability vs. scads of new Spells ? Gimme the Spells anyday. Perhaps we can mesh this with the fluff. Replace Heavy Armor Proficiency at 13th Level with this ability, as Bladesingers were never supposed to be Heavy Armor wearers to begin with. I see this as trading Heavy Armor for an extra Arcana, really.

Furious Dance - Now this, I like a lot, however, I’m forced to agree with Cheapy that it might not be great at high Level, but I’m thinking it’s more flavorful and slightly better than True Magus anyway. ( Perhaps renamed Song of the Blade’s Storm ).

I apologize for being what seems overly critical, but this is just my opinion, nothing else. I do commend you on a great product, which I’m happy I bought. Besides, my son has set his sights on the Vampiric Thirst Arcana……

Thanks for taking the time to read this!

The 'classic' D&D elf, IMO, is best represented by the 3.X/PF Bard class. A halfway competent swordsman, a halfway competent spellcaster, a focus on grace, the arts, etc.

The Wizard favored class of 3.0 felt completely out of left field to me, since 3.0 introduced the innately magical Sorcerer (and Bard), but of which felt 100% more appropriate for the traditional elf. The spellbook-toting Wizard seemed more fitting for a race that *wasn't* innately magical, such as a human or dwarf or halfling.

IMO, elves, as a race, suffers the most from a completely failure of fluff and crunch to play together. A race that lives in the woods, exposed to the elements, brews magically potent 'elfwine,' lives practically forever and is associated with rarely if ever breeding, and this race has a Con penalty? This race would, if the Con penalty actually affected their fluff, and not just their mechanics, be all but extinct, since they deliberately choose to live a life that requires a higher Con, and everything is stacked against them (100 years before they can reproduce, said in the text to rarely do so anyway, etc.). And then books like Complete Book of Elves come out and say mind-boggling stuff like that a race incapable of producing Bards produces music so soul-wrenching that human musicians deafen themselves after hearing it, so that they can't hear anything else ever again. Might as well add that they walk on water and poop rainbows.

[There's also the uphill slog to differentiate them from Tolkein elves, which were...

Set, I agreed with just about everything you said. I have always loved Elves and have played my fair share of them. One thing struck me though was how right you were about their Classes. Elves should have been given a +2 to Charisma, not Intelligence, and Bard, Sorcerer ( especially Fey Bloodline ), and Ranger should have been their favored Classes. Gnomes should get the +2 Int. instead, with Wizard their favored Class, which dovetails nicely with their old Illusionist history. Just my two coppers.