Riain's page

I'm not sure where this thread would go, but since it didn't fit the other threads in a nice, neat spot, I thought I'd put it here until directed otherwise.

I originally used Shields for AC wrong on the first play-through (but thankfully nobody actually used "Raise a Shield" so it didn't change squat). The issue was that "Raise a Shield" said it adds a circumstantial bonus that doesn't stack with coverage, and none of us caught the earlier part on 176 where the proficiencies don't stack. Realizing that now, I understand people's concerns with even having a Shield to begin with. I love Math (though I teach Music) and decided to run some numbers. I ran Paladin, Fighter, and Wizard through some calculations based upon the current setup. I did NOT include magical bonus to armor of +5. I also sent Wizard to 26 Dex (the cap possible atm) for +8 AC (comparable to the standard soft-cap to AC from Armor of +7). Here is what I found (proposals afterwards).

https://www.dropbox.com/s/8zdn21kbcc1vfye/Shield%20AC%20Theory.docx?dl=0

(The table won't paste here.) The long and short of it is that Shields currently only change the Miss:Hit by 5%. For the cost of an action, that's pretty insignificant. I have seen one proposal to let profs stack from Shield and Armor. When you do that, a Paladin who is level 10+ with a light shield (+1) will ONLY be physically hit on a natural 20 from the first attack of a round (a Fighter gets the same stats after level 12ish). So that'd break the system in reverse. If you look at the farthest right column, you get this proposal:

Have Shields grant a bonus of their AC/TAC + HALF the bonus from proficiency. This balances out to a pretty solid tank for the first hit, but imbalances the second and third attack. So to fix that, have the "Raise a Shield" only affect the AC of the first attack, and Shield Block for damage go to the second/third attack (with the possible damage). This would account physically that the first attack was deflected by the shield, but haste to block a follow attack cause the attack to put more force on the shield and possibly damaging it.

For WIZARDS, however, they're up a creak period. I suggest the Cantrip Shield go from being an Action spell to a REAction spell that only affects one attack per round. The Shield would grant +1 like it currently does, but also give 1/2 caster level as a bonus on top of that. This retains the utility, without making it AS strong as the Fighter/Paladin.

As another possible, for I'm sure that not all classes are meant to have the same AC as the tanks, this could be a Feat for Pally/Fighter to take to gain the proficiency bonuses. That would leave the shield boosts as is for the other classes to discourage them from just picking up shield proficiency.

Thoughts? (I can run the numbers for a +5 Legendary quality armor as well if need be, but that's just +25% to miss and -25% to hit... which is, yes, significant as well. As such, it may even be good to use 1/4 proficiency bonus.)

1. How long did it take to play this part of Doomsday Dawn (not counting preparation or character creation)? 1 hr 30 min
2. How long did it take to prepare this part of the adventure (time spent reading, gathering materials, etc.)? 25 min
3. How many sessions did it take for you to play through this part of the adventure? 1
4. How many Hero Points (in total) did you give out during this part of the adventure? Default 1 that the players start with. I also challenged them NOT to use it as they are experienced players.
5. How many times was a player character reduced to 0 Hit Points during this part of the adventure? 2 (Paladin once and Barbarian once)
6. How many player characters were killed during this part of the adventure? 0 (Cleric did his job and Paladin supported with Lay on Hands)

Extra Feedback - This went WAY to smooth for them. The Bard used his Inspire Courage cantrip each round to give them all the boost, they moved strategically the first round so he could keep it up, and had the crossbow loaded. Every round after was IC Cantrip, Reload, Shoot. The players will continue with this party until one dies later (my goal). Cleric loved the shield and having more AC than the Pally (until Pally can get the shield next adventure from this adventure's earnings).

They took 1 hr 30 minutes to clear the dungeon, came up 1 time to rest, and used 3 days of the 7 in-game time available for success. They cleared every room and had stupid good luck with their rolls.

Race/Class: Half-Elf Paladin [Iomedae]
Reason: By going Half-Elf instead, I get the Elven Feats accessed, but also get 2 more hp from Human. I need every HP I can get as a tank.
Stats: Str 18, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 10, Cha 14, HP 19, AC 18 (No Shield, Couldn’t Afford)
1. How long did it take for you to create (or update) your character? 30 min
2. How many times was your character reduced to 0 Hit Points during this part of the adventure? 1 (Goblin Pryo, burning hands critical failure)
3. How many times did your character reach 0 Resonance Points during play of this part of the adventure*? 0
4. How many times did your character critically fail the check while overspending Resonance Points during play of this part of the adventure*? 0
5. How many times did your character run out of spell slots during play of this part of the adventure*? 0
6. How many times did your character run out of Spell Points during play of this part of the adventure*? 1
7. How many Hero Points did you use during this part of the adventure? 0

Race/Class: Half-Elf Barbarian [Fury Totem]
Reason: Wanted Elf 2-handed curved sword without taking a penalty to Con and no boost to Strength. I got all the stats I wanted with no drawback this way, and more speed!
Stats: STR 18, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 10, Cha 10, HP 22, AC 17
1. How long did it take for you to create (or update) your character? 22 min
2. How many times was your character reduced to 0 Hit Points during this part of the adventure? 1 (Goblin Commando)
3. How many times did your character reach 0 Resonance Points during play of this part of the adventure*? 0
4. How many times did your character critically fail the check while overspending Resonance Points during play of this part of the adventure*? 0
5. How many times did your character run out of spell slots during play of this part of the adventure*? 0
6. How many times did your character run out of Spell Points during play of this part of the adventure*? 0
7. How many Hero Points did you use during this part of the adventure? 0

Race/Class: Goblin Bard
Reason: To play off-key and get away with it!
Stats: STR 12, Dex 16, Con 10, Int 10, Wis 8, Cha 18, HP 14, AC 15
1. How long did it take for you to create (or update) your character? 30 min
2. How many times was your character reduced to 0 Hit Points during this part of the adventure? 0 (Took no damage)
3. How many times did your character reach 0 Resonance Points during play of this part of the adventure*? 0
4. How many times did your character critically fail the check while overspending Resonance Points during play of this part of the adventure*? 0
5. How many times did your character run out of spell slots during play of this part of the adventure*? 0
6. How many times did your character run out of Spell Points during play of this part of the adventure*? 0
7. How many Hero Points did you use during this part of the adventure? 0

Race/Class: Human Cleric [Cayden]
Reason: Adapted Spell Cantrip for Offense (Electric Arc)
Stats: STR 12, Dex 12, Con 10, Int 10, Wis 18, Cha 16, HP 16, AC 16, AC with Shield 19
1. How long did it take for you to create (or update) your character? 20 min
2. How many times was your character reduced to 0 Hit Points during this part of the adventure? 0
3. How many times did your character reach 0 Resonance Points during play of this part of the adventure*? 0
4. How many times did your character critically fail the check while overspending Resonance Points during play of this part of the adventure*? 0
5. How many times did your character run out of spell slots during play of this part of the adventure*? 1
6. How many times did your character run out of Spell Points during play of this part of the adventure*? 1
7. How many Hero Points did you use during this part of the adventure? 0
Note from Cleric: If you’re using the Shield to block damage, make sure you don’t break it. Otherwise, it’s there to raise your AC enough to NOT be hit. Its primary purpose is not to take damage and be broken. It is a strategic use to keep from being hit, and should only be used to block and risk breaking if the damage is enough to kill you.

A splash weapon is a ranged weapon that breaks on impact, splashing or scattering its contents over its target and nearby creatures or objects. To attack with a splash weapon, make a ranged touch attack against the target. Thrown splash weapons require no weapon proficiency, so you don't take the –4 nonproficiency penalty. A hit deals direct hit damage to the target, and splash damage to all creatures within 5 feet of the target. If the target is Large or larger, you choose one of its squares and the splash damage affects creatures within 5 feet of that square. Splash weapons cannot deal precision-based damage (such as sneak attack).

The above is from the Advanced Player's Handbook in the PRD.

Key point from this:

If the target is Large or larger, you choose one of its squares and the splash damage affects creatures within 5 feet of that square.

Since it is not a new creature, it would not be affected by splash damage IMO. I just started looking at Alchemist due to a player (I'm a new GM, and I do mean NEW [only 2 scenarios in so far]) wanting to join as an alchemist. I look forward to the challenges and ideas he comes up with.