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So here's the question: Why Druid over any of the other options? Is the split between two casting stats not terribly harmful? Couldn't you try to get Reincarnate cast from another caster? Contingency+Reincarnate might be a bit wonky. Crafting is pretty good for you. Saving on your gear gives you more to give you more stuff. Maybe drop some of the weaker crafting feats (Brew Potion, Craft Wand) for some more generally good feats?
Of course, if you allow what Orfamay mentions (no HD cap), you can get exceptionally silly. The more money you invest, the better the resulting Homunculus is. For instance... https://docs.google.com/document/d/1D7Q5AWLnOWCwuNkRBxOkPhKZt6MAkiyhYNovDm0 NRDw/edit?usp=drivesdk Timmy is the busted thing that I've made, utilizing half the wealth of a 20th-level character to make a fighter than is far superior to a fighter. I'm unsure how far you could scale it back and have it still be very effective, but depending on how much money you put in it can be silly. EDIT:
EDIT2:
Given that, when I look at spells at Magic Jar, it refers to your original body as "your" body, I'd say it wouldn't work. The spell ends when you send your soul back to your own body, leaving the receptacle empty. -Magic Jar Possession has similar text: When you transfer your soul upon casting, your body appears to be dead. as does Greater Possession You enter the host’s body and your physical body vanishes.
Here's an updated version of this, running more of a reach build rather than the simpler old one. It also is based at level 4, rather than 6. This should, hopefully, work a bit better than the previous build. Francis (Spiritualist 4)
Defense AC 16; Touch 12; Flat-Footed 14; (+2 Dex, +4 Armor)
Offense Speed 30 ft.
Statistics Str 18, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 10, Wis 14, Cha 8
Karen (Anger Phantom 4, Ectoplasmic)
Defense AC 15; Touch 11; Flat-Footed 14; (+1 Dex, +4 Natural Armor)
Offense Speed 30 ft.
Statistics Str 15, Dex 12, Con 13, Int 7, Wis 10, Cha 14
On a side note, what are people's thoughts on grabbing Phantom Ally and multiclassing into something? Some of the later class features for the Spiritualist are a bit mediocre, and I'd be ok shoring up my lack-luster BaB and perhaps grabbing a few more feats
True. I suppose it depends on how consistently I can flank, which should be not bad? I'll have to see. I think going for Armor Expert+Mithral Breastplate is also good. It'll provide me with a bonus +3 AC over the Studded Leather, and I'd be much more comfortable at that AC total. Thoughts on switching to a reach weapon of some description like a longspear instead of the Elven Curve Blade? It means I can swap into Dual Minded, which would augment my Will save to help protect me from being feared. It would also help with flanking.
Do you think that makes up dropping Courageous? +2 vs. fear is nice to make sure my spellcasting stays online. Furthermore, paying 3,000 more on my armor feels a bit expensive at this point. It's a delayed entry that would work out in higher levels, but might not be as good now. Then again, I can still pay for a masterwork mithral breastplate sooner and then enchant it later. Might be ok? EDIT: The Exotic is from the Half-Elf racial trait. Maybe the reach for longspear or a regular longsword would be better? The only thing that dropping it gives me is Skill Focus, since it's the bonus feat.
Aww... good catch though. That also frees up a feat slot so that's nice. Outflank will take bit of work, namely freeing up a feat slot on the Spiritualist. Would you advise dropping Furious Focus for that? The Spiritualist can also invest a bit into Acrobatics as well, so that's nice. I don't really want to stack too many teamwork feats at the moment, but we'll see how that goes. EDIT: Dropping lower on Wis seems good. It does mean that the DCs on the touch spells will be worse though. Albeit, that means more spell slots for stuff like shield which will probably help on that front. 14 would free up a sizable amount of points for Dex and Con, probably bumping me to 14 Con and maybe 14 Dex? I need to run the numbers.
So, I've been working on a particular Spiritualist build for a while, and I'm hoping to get a bit of advice on it. Currently it's level 1, but I wanted to look at the future levels before I go past the point of no return for rebuilding. The goal of the build is to have the Spiritualist and Phantom as flanking buddies, working together to take down opponents. The Phantom has some fun shenanigans with Intimidate, trying to slow down opponents in order to effectively deal with other opponents. In addition, the Phantom can be used to deliver a few different touch spells in incorporeal form, though the DC on them is probably pretty bad. Mostly, I'm looking to focus the build a bit more and try to make it a bit more effective in combat. The current statblocks are as follows:
Defense AC 15; Touch 11; Flat-Footed 14; (+1 Dex, +4 Armor)
Offense Speed 30 ft.
Statistics Str 16, Dex 12, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 18, Cha 8
--- Karen (Anger Phantom 6, Ectoplasmic)
Defense AC 17; Touch 11; Flat-Footed 16; (+6 Natural Armor, +1 Dex)
Offense Speed 30 ft.
Statistics Str 16, Dex 12, Con 14, Int 7, Wis 10, Cha 15
--- Karen (Anger Phantom 6, Incorporeal)
Defense AC 19; Touch 19; Flat-Footed 16; (+1 Dex, +6 Deflection, +2 Dodge)
Offense Speed 30 ft.
Statistics Str -, Dex 12, Con 14, Int 7, Wis 10, Cha 15
So: as someone's who DMed Rappan Athuk before, tactics will be the thing to save you. Escape routes are incredibly important, as one of my parties only managed to survive intact because of a lucky Wayfinder roll (which gave them teleportation early). Even teleportation may not save you at some points though, so always be prepared to run away. Effectively: make sure your character is a kind that can play it safe in combat, and know that you will likely be ambushed more than once. Quick-Runner's Shirts are amazing if you can grab them, especially if you end up playing a reach-based character. With my foreknowledge of what's going on in the dungeon: I highly recommend either a caster with good evasion abilities such as a Diviner, or simply a character that has good numbers on defense. Offense is a little less important, as if you try to go all alpha-strikey you may take out some of the smaller encounters, but you're much less likely to be able to survive when you charge into an encounter that's beyond your abilities. EDIT: Also try to be as diplomatic as possible and DO NOT provoke the NPCs. Many of them are much higher level than they appear, and if you screw with them they will be more than willing to murder you off.
I've tried running Rappan Athuk. It is very lethal, killing off at least 2+(?) characters through traps or just difficult encounters. One party I ran through managed to avoid any deaths, though they managed to get a lucky teleport crystal by rolling randomly on the the Wayfinder table, which saved them a lot. It gets more and more difficult as time goes on, and you need to make sure that your group is ready for a grindy and difficult combat-heavy megadungeon which they may not complete. It can easily take a year to finish (my playgroups never even made it to the first major objective.)
Dotting for later
Ok. Thank you very much for this, it's been enlightening.
Thank you very much! Would this still require taking the Craft Construct feat, or would it simply be a gold expenditure along with the necessary checks?
So... in the Alchemy Manual Player Companion there is the ability to add abilities to your Homunculus familiar. I believe those are legal (from checking the Additional Resources), and I wanted to ask what the necessary qualification was. Did you need to pay a NPC to make these improvements or do you need to have the feat yourself? If that's even legal? I'm not sure, and I'd like to have some clarity on how this should be done.
So, I've got a rare opportunity to play a dragon character. Naturally, I do want to ensure this character functions (though it would be a bit difficult to screw up). While I don't have the exact numbers, the 'race' that my compatriots and I have been given grants a significant hp and save bonus, an at will SLA (in my case Soften Earth and Stone), and a massive racial stat bonus. (+4 STR, -2 DEX, +2 all others, extra 3 to distribute as wished), and rolled stats: 4d6 drop the lowest. (which I seem to have lost) I therefore decided that I wanted to play an illusionist who would not utilize all of these abilities, because it would feel a bit easy unless the DM pumped opponenets to meet us. Specifically, I've decided on building a Wizard/Veiled Illusionist build in order to help mitigate the impact of dragons, and allow myself to function within cities decently without getting them to think that we've come to burn the place down, as the campaign takes place a while after a massive dragon-y destroying war which ruined a bunch of the planet and ended up killing the three current dragon gods (though others ascended to take their place). So... any recommendations for build ideas? Useful tactics that I could use to take over the world that are suitably manipulative and dragon-y? EDIT: Found the base stats. 16, 15, 14, 11, 10, 10
I'd say removing the dual advancement classes are fine (Mystic Theurge, Cerebremancer) so long as they're both for spellcasting. Removing stuff like Eldritch Knight is pretty mediocre. As well, removing options for taking two Prestige Classes at once is also poor. Nothing jumps out at me as being terrible, especially once you've removed the Mystic Theurge and co.
Yeah, he has it set up so that the number is listed before the stat. He's also using the Scryer Wizard's special ability to jump in early (as it's first-level ability counts as a 3rd-level spell). I'd suggest checking with your DM if you haven't already done so to ensure that the two of you are clear on the rules. Otherwise, I do have a bit of questioning for your Wis being 9 (aside from the obvious point-buy). What is the trait you're using for the UMD boost you have listed at first level? Mostly, it depends on what you expect your damage output and to-hit is once you reach higher levels. If you're not getting enough to-hit, then switching out your Magambyan levels for Hellknight will help with that. Since you get up to level 4 at the end, you'll basically just have a bit more versatility than the standard character. I'd have recommended it more for a pure caster, but it just depends on if you're hitting your probable targets. Build out your character and calculate compared to the standard bestiary statistics, and you'll be able to see how well it'll work in combat.
Your lightning bolt would retain the [electric] descriptor. Albeit, it only affects a few specific things like some sorcerers, but it's still useful.
Again, it depends on whether you believe that evil is inherent. I believe there are these "monster orphanages" in Golarion's canon, and even if there aren't the idea is supported by Saranrae at the very least. It also depends on what you believe influences this behaviour. Taking the canon entries you've cited into account: Entry #1: I find it significant that they use the words "ingrained" and "cultivate". It implies that this is something produced by society rather than being inherent. As well, it also states "almost instinctive" rather than simply "instinctive". If it was simply "instinctive", then I'd be more on your side, but I feel the addition of the word "simply" makes it more questionable whether it's inherent or not. Entry #2: The use of the word "usually" implies that the description of their society is a typical example. While this could be birthed from an inherent evil, it's much more likely a taught example. Entry #3: This one is the most questionable. I believe that this is also just an example of typical behaviour, but this is the most ambiguous one. Entry #4: Again, the word "Most" gives this an implication that this may be developed. Though, you could make an argument that an atypical example is some sort of mutation or some such, but the "most" implies that it has a fair amount of exceptions. Entry #5: This one is the closest one to imply a sort of evil inherent in them, referring to an "inherent drive to dominate". That's the closest it gets to implying that they are inherently evil, and even this drive can potentially be harnessed for good or neutral purposes. EDIT: TL;DR: These references refer mostly to a typical example of the race, raised in their standard society. It does not cover all possibilities of their race, and thus should be referenced as a standard example rather than a rule.
In short, it depends on your interpretation of Orcs and evil cratures. If they're evil because they're taught to be evil, then you're not justified in murdering them. If they're evil because it's something ingrained in their existence that they cannot avoid, then you're justified in murdering them. Plain and simple. As well, which version you choose depends heavily on the group, as some groups and GMs will enjoy the first option, while the second option would be fun for another group. Overall, if you're uncomfortable with this sort of debate, try talking with your players or GM and figure out how the group wants to handle it. If you're the GM and you want to continue running the campaign, and your players don't want to deal witih this sort of idea, simply avoid putting them in situations where there are these moral dilemmas. (Also, it's not as if we have this topic every few weeks anyways...)
I'll try to take a look at the spell lists and point out the major differences. I do agree that it's not necessary to do a full breakdown of spell lists (looking at each level and such), but the major differences should be looked at. Mostly just pointing out the major synergies and how they can be advantageous. You already do this to some extent, pointing out some synergies (like the Summon Nature's Ally and Starlight Summons), but I feel like it might need a couple more details. Maybe pointing out stuff that gives you a lot of synergy (like the ability to take Starlight Summons and such for a Conjuration Wizard+Druid), but otherwise I feel getting all of the spells figured out becomes really difficult.
So here's another post on formatting. (The main reason I'm posting this so much is just to try and aid the readability of this guide, since it's so massive). I'd suggest using a section-based guide, to help deal with loading issues and such, similar to Tark's Guide to the Cleric (linked below).
By splitting it into separate sections, you save a fair bit on organization, as well as helping to solve the loading issue that you were having. I'd suggest(numbers refer to your table of contents):
It should help with loading, and the link setup should help with reading as well, giving it a more compartmentalized appearance. One other thing I'd suggest is establishing more of the differences between spell lists. Basically just a detailing of which spell lists possess different spells that the other spell lists don't have access to. (e.g. Clerics get X spells that Druids and co. don't get, etc.)
Teleportation. Easy, fairly simple, and gives me a lot of versatility.
In terms of one of your earlier posts, John Lynch, you referred to a Sorcerer taking Combat Casting and retraining it out at level 10. To me, that is absolutely fine. If the player does not see a need for Combat Casting anymore, then I would be fine with him trading it out for whatever other feat he wants. About the only line I'd draw would be with crafting feats and such that give you additional wealth above and beyond normal. But there's no reason in my mind to prevent him from forgetting Combat Casting, even from a RP standpoint. Most feats (if not all) are a practiced skill that has developed. Forgetting Combat Casting in favour for whatever else can be interpreted as him forgetting or neglecting these protections that he's trained himself to help focus, in favour of developing his abilities elsewhere.
Monstrous Physique II would not grant you a Doppelganger's ability, due to how the spell specifies which benefits you gain from assuming a monstrous form.
Aye, I'd suppose so. Use a lot of Blood Money shenanigans to send out rampant uncontrolled hordes of Undead, since you'd lose control of them as soon as your coven was ended(?). I do really like that idea, I might use it for a villainous set of Witches.
There is the Samsaran Mystic Past Life, though you'd only gain access to the spell when you would normally gain 6th-level spells.
Also, I have a rules thing with the Ring of Tactical Precision. It does not actually work to boost your Caster Level unless your allies also have the spell prepared (or available to cast) [...] If your ally has the same spell prepared (or known with a slot available if they are spontaneous spellcasters), this bonus increases to +4 and you receive a +1 bonus to the caster level for all level-dependent variables, such as duration, range, and effect. Emphasis mine. As amusing as it would be, that would be a bit ridiculous. It would work well if you have some allies to perform it with, but it doesn't seem like it would be that good. It also would only work if you were surrounded by your allied spellcasters, which makes it a bit worse, and the fluctuating Caster Level could be very detrimental.
I feel like keeping it consistent through the whole document would work best, so the smaller font would work nicely. That does make a bit of a problem for those who have trouble reading small font, but I feel the document is far too long to try and have it all in large font. Also, I'm really wanting to make some Mystic Theurges now, especially with some of the more esoteric options like Shaman.
There are a few situations where I'd say the retraining rules are power creep. Those would be the Focused Overseer chain, and potentially the Dimension Door chain. Reason for the first: Stupid amounts of savings on your gear
Overall, those two reasons are about the only reasons I'd see it being power creep at all.
One thing I'm taking issue with is the large blank spaces that are listed before you go into detail about each class. It simply annoys me because I feel like their should be something there that isn't, though that may be due to the incompleteness of the guide. Overall, the guide seems to work really well thus far, I haven't read it in-depth enough to make any arguments for ratings or such, but I really enjoy how much work went into this and how detailed the breakdowns are. EDIT: I also love how you've gone into some detail on equipment, just as a topic that isn't covered very often in such detail. EDIT2: Equipment does have a bit of an issue with font size, with some of it being smaller than the rest. EDIT3: Finally, I appreciate the listing of sources, as it really helps those who are limited in the rulebooks they have accessible. As well, if you'd like, I wouldn't mind helping put together some sample builds for you, just to cut down on some of the work that needs to be done?
Unfortunately, it does not appear you can. The plane cannot be dispelled, but a creature on the plane can destroy it by using limited wish, mage's disjunction, miracle, or wish and making a successful dispel check. Spell Sunder is not a listed method, so it does not seem you can. Of course, your DM could rule otherwise, but RAW you can't.
The only restriction on this would be if you're backed into a corner. Grabbing some item to gain a fly speed or some sort would allow you to Roll With It into the sky or towards the ceiling, thus giving you some advantages by falling from above. I'm unsure exactly how much falling damage you would take, and with your already high Acrobatics you can easily try to negate at least some falling damage. I do believe that even works, as Roll With It only specifies that the movement must be in a straight line. If you're going straight for the gimmick, Dragon Totem ends up being better due to the additional DR. Beast Totem is merely better because of Pounce, which I still find to be one of the worst things about the Totems (since Beast Totem is almost strictly better in the majority of situations). As far as Rage Powers, I'd say Superstition is possibly good, not as effective as it could be. Reckless Abandon is probably an auto-include thanks to your utter disregard for AC, meaning you can probably throw away any idea of wearing armour entirely, if you're not just wearing a Haramaki for Uber-Dex. I don't like Intimidating Glare in this, as it really doesn't synergize with the rest of your build. Acrobatics can stay in, provided it's just earned from the Ioun Stone, simply
Link to Lorthos' statblock?
I would say that you'd end up with the minimum of 1, as it does not change how the bloodline power scales.
You can, assuming it works in your campaign and won't end up derailing your campaign. You can probably adjust the Half-Fiend template and the improved powers so that he won't be too powerful, but if you don't think that it will work in the party, feel free to switch him to a NPC (so long as you tell him such can be a result of the transformation).
Just make a magical trap that casts Awaken on you repeatedly if your DM rules that if your Intelligence goes too low that you'd forget. It only costs 202,500 gp and 405 days (without accelerating crafting time) to create such a wondrous item.
Sadly, I feel like I cannot continue waiting on this campaign. I've got more stuff coming up, and I'm going to have to spend a bit more time preparing for one of my groups. I will be withdrawing from this campaign. I hope you guys get back soon , and I wish you all the best.
I was going to come in here and say that this was inaccurate, but turns out it is? Huh. That actually makes a lot of builds a lot better for Dimensional Dervish, since it otherwise comes online stupidly later. Anyways, I was going to talk about Horizon Walker. As you said, Horizon Walker is better from an EK perspective. However, for those seeking only a martial leaning it tends to be better, especially for stuff like Paladins and Bloodragers who can grab a decent Charisma for more uses. And yes, Outflank would, as you count as your own ally.
Early entry Mystic Theurge is my friend for this. Go with Cleric+Empyreal Sorcerer with Words of Power, and you can raise normal undead without any cost! Later on, grab Agent of the Grave levels (if you can) to get an even higher bonus. Albeit you start animating undead a little later than your compatriots, but it's extremely effective at reanimating undead.
Yeah, I see this being CR +3. The ability score increase is slightly more than the Advanced Template, and the size change definitely makes that more akin to CR +1 for that section (since it will always be an advantage for the creature in question). All the others abilities are probably another CR +1, maybe +2 if you really push it.
So, I've got a faction I'm developing for my homebrew, based around a sort of assimilating force that's attempting to devour the world. Therefore, I'm building a template to how assimilated creatures are changed, listed in the spoiler below. Spoiler: Creating an Abyssal Creature:
“Abyssal Creature” is a natural or acquired template that can be applied to any creature (referred to hereafter as the base creature). An Abyssal Creature retains all the base creature’s statistics and special abilities except as noted here. CR: ??? Alignment: Abyssal Creatures are treated as if they possess the Beyond Morality Mythic Ability, though this does not give them Mythic Ranks. Type: The creature’s type changes to outsider. Do not recalculate BaB, saves, or skill ranks. Senses: The creature gains one of the following: Darkvision 60 ft., Tremorsense 30 ft., Blindsense 30 ft., Blindsight 10 ft., Lifesight 10 ft. If the base creature possessing the chosen sense, it’s range is extended by the listed amount. Size: The creature can shift one size category larger or smaller, chosen when the template is applied. Equipment: If the creature is listed with any equipment, it is assimilated into the creature’s being. Armor bonuses become Natural Armor bonuses, magic items continue to provide their bonuses, and manufactured weapons gain the benefit of immunity to Sunder, as they become integrated into the creature’s form. This reduces the “treasure” entry to 0 gp. Defensive Abilities: Abyssal Creatures, thanks to their alien nature, are granted immunities to certain forces, especially those related to the standard nature of the universe. Immune to Fear, Critical Hits, Precision Damage, Positive and Negative Energy, Soul Magic. Abilities: +4 to ability score of choice, and +2 to all others. Feats: The creature gains two Teamwork Feats of it’s choice. Special Qualities: The Abyss grants the following qualities: Hivemind: The creature is linked to the Abyssal Hivemind, operating as per Telepathy. This grants the creature as having any Teamwork Feats its allies possess, however it does not gain the benefits of those feats. The Hivemind is completely aware of all the creature does. If the creature is severed from the Hivemind, the creature is stunned for one round.
So, a Level 9 Cleric who's built a few assistants, spending 18k on constructs thus far. I'm mostly just looking for extra gear to help. I've currently decided on:
I still have 14,435 gp left to spend, and I want to get a couple other good things. I have the Artifice and Protection Domains, if that makes a difference.
I've varied my starts. My first group starting around 3rd or 4th level, while my second group started at 6th level. The first one was basically "hey, let's go to Rappan Athuk!", whereas the second group had a patron to try and rescue Spoiler: with their patron being the king of a homebrew nation known as Hallowfall. The Fire Hawks
A Wizard/Mage of the Third Eye is good at building constructs, much better for replacing fallen constructs. However, for actually keeping constructs in good repair it become fairly ineffective. An Artifice domain cleric with a Construct Channel Brick and Forge Variant Channeling can easily use channels to heal up his constructs. However, I'll also say that the Wizard is better for building constructs, since his casting stat also aids craft checks and such. Golems are most likely better for Clerics though. As far as the necromancer goes, a Juju Cleric that goes into the Agent of the Grave can control more undead. If you're wanting to heavily optimize him/her, you can also make him/her a Words of Power Oracle to gain more versatility, if you're comfortable with that system.
It is quite a powerful item actually, if potentially a bit difficult to use.
This has been FAQed several times. It's very unclear. Parent Classes seems to imply that you should have the same bloodline, though that's a bit of a stretch when considering Dragon Disciple. However, for the moment Dragon Disciple only advances Sorcerer Bloodlines. I'm of the camp that says it should scale Bloodrager bloodlines, and if it doesn't then Bloodragers shouldn't be restricted to the Draconic Bloodline to take the PrC.
You would not qualify for Powerful Charge, as it applies to a race's natural attack. While Monk does make your unarmed strike a natural attack, you wouldn't be able to apply it due to that distinction. Assuming it had worked, however, Pummeling Style and Pummeling Charge would have worked as normal, with the benefit of Powerful Charge.
This is something that varies drastically based on the nature of the setting. It depends on the nature of evil.
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