strayshift's page

Okay, this might be a dead end BUT...

Imagine a halfling druid that exploits the benefits of being really small and maximises dex. There is weapon finesse, piranha strike and risky striker. If somehow a scimitar (a probable feat or see below) came into play there could be dex to damage from dervish dance...

Level of urban barbarian... Extra rage... Possibly alchemist?

Just musing, all thoughts welcome.

I love playing schools of magic that are the 'road less travelled' i.e. not conjurers and evokers and this thought arises from having played a couple of enchantment practitioners recently (a bard and a sorcerer). Anyway here is my observation:

In combat most Enchantment spells are variations on a pretty similar theme, save or suck to disable the enemy. So, say a Bard gets Hideous Laughter at 1st level and can use metamagics (extend, bouncing, persistant, etc) to essentially have a save or suck at all their spell levels without memorising another spell. It could equally be sleep magic, Hold Person, whatever - save or suck to disable the enemy.

Now the downside of the school is the huge number of enemies that are immune to the entire school. SO the question:

Would enchantment magic be better structured with it having less 'save or suck' spells that completely disable the enemy at lower levels and more spells that allow the school to effect more creatures and broaden the range of possible targets for spells e.g. undead, constructs, etc?

In play this might mean at lower levels you are less likely to end a battle with a failed will save and at higher levels you can actially contibute to many of the fights that you otherwise would be forced to use your secondary tactics for e.g. buffing.

What are your thoughts folks?

The house-rule would roughly go: Use the highest stat bonus of Intelligence, Wisdom or Charisma to gain the diplomacy DC.

The reasoning being that if a person is smart enough to see through your arguments or wise enough to sense there is something not quite right that is just as good to resist your efforts at persusion than if they had a high charisma.

All thoughts welcome.

I’m going to be playing in a home-brew campaign from 1st up to somewhere between level 12 to 14 over a couple of years. No ‘exotic’ races like Aasimar or Drow (standard Core Rulebook races only) and also no early entry to prestige classes (which I don’t mind because I don’t allow these either as a DM).

Now, because of work and other commitments I’ll only get to about half the sessions, there are a party of six (Barbarian, Rogue, Paladin, Wizard and Oracle) and so I am looking to a develop a ‘supplemental’ caster and am looking to play a Human Cleric/Wizard Mystic Theurge.

Now I know a lot of people don’t like the class and that people will want to suggest races with early qualification, it ain’t gonna happen in this game. So save us all a little reading (and yourself some typing) if that is the point you want to make.

The query I have is this:

The Mystic Theurge falls behind single class casters from around level 4, and between levels 4 to about level 8 they are relying upon 1st and 2nd level spells only. They also tend to have lower save DC’s and worse spell penetration bonuses. This is where the hurt is for the class.

However at higher levels the class has a LOT more lower level spells going for it. So it seems to me the class stands or falls by the player’s ability to play lower level spells effectively in a higher level game (especially 1st and 2nd level spells).

Therefore I wish to ask players, what 1st and 2nd level spells (Arcane and Divine) remain viable for you at higher levels (8th plus) and why?

Many Thanks

G

"Iyengar means yoga,yoga means Iyengar. They are synonymous terms."

Tonight I ran a session where we spent 2 & 1/2 hours doing the first 1/3rd of the adventure and 1 hour 10 mins on the rest. It worked but I had to 'push' the narrative a couple of times which can leave the ending feeling less 'climactic' than I'd like.

So open question: How do you manage time as a DM? There are so many things that can delay, distract and even de-rail a session.

I'm currently playing an Imperious Bloodline Sorcerer and I'm considering the Leadership feat. What I am wondering is if I was to recruit another Imperious Bloodline Sorcerer would we both be able to enhance morale (and later competence) bonuses with the Heroic Echo ability? i.e. Would these additional bonuses stack from multiple sorcerers?

The ability affects Morale and Competence bonuses but it does not state that the additional bonus is specifically of that type, it merely states that there is an additional bonus due to the ability.

http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/core-classes/sorcerer/bloodlines/bloodlines -from-paizo/racial-bloodlines/imperious-bloodline-sorcerer-human

I ask this because I'm not convinced it does beyond the page. In actual game-play every character has a weakness and diverse game challenges will expose these. Therefore over-specialisation could even be viewed as a weakness in itself.

If the thought of this intrigues you, I'd welcome your thoughts, even if you disagree (that's because I'm demonstrating behavioural flexibility...)

I have a Rogue/Wizard character who is aiming to become an Arcane Trickster, and whilst planning the character I looked at the Sap Adept/Master feats and thought ‘What if I could get a spell that required an attack roll (to qualify for sneak attack) but did non-lethal bludgeoning damage (to qualify for Sap Adept/Master)?”

Well after looking and rejecting a lot of force spells (and sadly the Merciful Spell meta-magic) it turns out that there is such a spell, Ki Arrow.

The theory goes thus:
Ki Arrow allows you to do your unarmed strike damage with a thrown arrow, which for most is d3+str non lethal bludgeoning.
Sap Adept/Master requires you to sneak attack with a non-lethal/bludgeoning weapon.

So if I was an Arcane Trickster I would have the option of using Sap Adept/Master with a ranged attack from invisible/hidden thus minimising the lessened sneak attack damage dice, the normal Arcane Trickster has a maximum of 7d6, this would become 14d6 non-lethal. The Trickster could of course still do the ‘normal’ sneak/ray attacks as well.

It also has relevance for the standard rogue too, as a couple of wands (Vanish and Ki Arrow) or the Minor Magic Rogue Trick and the Sap Adept/Master feats means that they too could throw arrows for their non-lethal damage plus their sneak attack doubled (massive amounts!).

So my question is this?

Would this work?

There is a 'dynamic' theory in chess that goes very roughly like this: "You can set up a position where you can only improve it (if you play well) but by the act of improving your position, you ultimately end up better than if you had played 'optimally' all along".

This is an argument about the 'classical' theories of chess versus 'hypermodern' or dynamic thought.

Now it occurs to me that some of the maximisation arguments whereby mathematical 'proof' of character maximisation is presented out of the context of actual game play are a bit like this (hence terms like 'Schrodinger's Wizard') - they define the game too narrowly or 'classically'.

And so I'd like to ask people, when have you played the game and 'discovered' a new facet or aspect of it that was new to you, the hidden potential if you like. It could be rules or even something personal, but something 'new' to you.

I am looking at a Human Bard character who has the Eldritch Heritage feat (Imperious Bloodline) in order to further boost some knowledge skills and morale/competence bonuses.

Now the Heroic Echo ability reads:

http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/core-classes/sorcerer/bloodlines/bloodlines -from-paizo/racial-bloodlines/imperious-bloodline-sorcerer-human

"At 3rd level, when you receive a morale bonus from any spell, spell-like ability, or magic item, including those you cast on yourself, that bonus increases by +1. At 9th level, this ability also applies to competence bonuses. If you receive a morale effect (or a competence effect at 9th level) that affects an area or multiple targets, as an immediate action you can share your increased bonus with all other recipients. This increase to other participants lasts a number of rounds equal to your Charisma bonus. You can use this ability once per day, plus one time per three levels after 3rd."

Now my question is (and apologies if this is an obvious one but I can't find the answer to this): Does Bardic Performance qualify as an appropriate Morale Effect for the purpose of this?

I was designing an NPC for an adventure when it occurred to me that the NPC I was designing was pretty much designed around the usual strengths of a party of (low level) PC's.

So I figured here's a challenge, design an NPC capable of taking on a party of PC's (with preparation).

Simples?

I'm looking at experimenting with the extra trait feat (which gives 2 extra traits) for my next character. I don't have any other ideas about the character than that other than we start at first level.

So any ideas for race/class/feat/combo's that are a little unusual and interesting enough to design a character around?

Simple thread - what did you learn about the game from the last character you played?

I'll start:

That Power Attack and Furious Focus is an excellent way to start a fighter whilst you decide the weapon you eventually focus on.

Feel free to add yours.

There's a school of thought that goes the higher level D&D type systems go, the less balanced it gets and that the game is most fun at low levels with a genuine threat being carried by most monsters whilst enabling almost all the classes to contribute.

For me the game starts to be less interesting at about 7th level, when arcane users start to dominate and the other classes become peripheral to the challenges they face. Likewise the ability to set a challenge for the pcs without resorting to uber-traps or monsters becomes more difficult.

What are your views? At what level does this kick in?

A simple technique that writer’s use is to take a real-world figure, (their life, persona, their achievements, etc) and use them as the template for a character in their work.

I’m suggesting we ‘fantasy-fy’ them and develop an npc from them.
The benefit of this (as a DM) is that it can save time and gives you access to a wealth of free potential colour.

To illustrate:
Milesh: the head Mage of the Sun-Stave Mages Guild is a portly man with receding curly hair; he is known for his love of horses (training them to become accustomed to a rider using magic) and is an acknowledged world authority on Dragons. He can be unorthodox and suffer from mood swings but relishes imaginative uses of magic from his students.
This would be a pen-picture of the late English Chess Grandmaster Tony Miles (the npc’s name is Milesh!) and I took aspects of his character (equating a chess-player with a wizard) and made them aspects of a fantasy NPC. From this I could build his stats, etc if required.

SO, fancy having a go? As much or as little info as possible and if you want to make a game of it put the real world person’s identity behind a spoiler.

Oh and nothing slanderous!

I think a character's favoured class should be more 'special' in relation to any class they multi-class/dip with.

1. The pcs 1st level class is their favoured class.

2. Class skill bonus (+3) available to favoured class only.

3. For non-favoured class, any special abilities due to class pertaining to spells (e.g. Fey Bloodline Sorcerer's +2 to Compulsion Save DC's) applicable to spells for that class only (e.g. in the previous example that would be Sorcerer spells). The exception would be the prestige classes.

Any thoughts?

Reading the Tain, Cu Chullain has several powers (especially his 'warp-spasm' or Riastradh) and prohibitions (Geasa) which shape his actions and his ultimate fate (don't give the Druid your spear!)

It occurs to me these things are ultimately more than just an issue of honour but the interface between honour and divine power.

Put simply: How do people think these things would be best recreated in Pathfinder?

No I haven't just swore.

I'm looking at a (human) Sap Master type Rogue, specifically a Scout that uses Bolas. Obviously this is a feat/trick intensive build and I don't want to use the Thug archetype as I will also be expected to deal with traps and don't want to compromise this.

The first two feats will obviously be:

Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Bolas);
Sap Adept;

with development being something like:

2: Rogue Feat – Weapon Training: Weapon Focus (Bolas);
3: Enforcer;
4: Rogue Talent Combat Trick: Dazzling Display; Scout Charge Ability;
5: Sap Master;
6: Point Blank Shot;
7: Rapid Shot;
8: Shatter Defenses, Scout Skimisher Ability;
9: Precise Shot, Snap Shot;

and then develop from there possibly developing the trip feats later.

Any thoughts?

The basic thrust of the idea is that if a raging character took lethal damage in a given round from a hostile source, they would ‘recover’ or gain an extra round of rage towards their maximum number of rounds of rage in a given day (i.e. that round’s rage was in effect for ‘free’).
Most times a barbarian rages they will take some damage and so this would be useful in extending rounds of rage in a given day.
There could be a minimum damage limit (say 10% of total Hit Points?) to gain the extra rounds (but this would possibly be unfair on low level ragers if set too high).

Also the possibility of ‘friendly fire’ damage would need to be advocated for – my initial thought is that the raging character would view all characters who have damaged them as enemies and wouldn’t/couldn’t leave rage until all ‘enemies’ that have damaged them in that fight have been killed/defeated/neutralised or the ragers total rounds of rage runs out. This would be intended to prevent abuse but would put a downside on what could be quite a powerful feat.

Any thoughts?
And if there is any existing power like this apologies, but I couldn’t find one in my research.

I'm thinking of writing an adventure set in a FRPG prison, which the characters have to escape from.

So my question is: How do you think the existance of magic would affect crime and punishment?

In theory major crimes could be solved with divination magics and spells such as Geas/Quest could be used to ensure people didn't escape. But these are often high-level spells and there are 'counter-measures' one could take like non-detection so this isn't fool-proof or commonplace.

Your thoughts please.

I recently had the players explore the former 'house' of a wizard, and I populated it with magically powered items/rooms that had an everyday function (e.g. heating, light, water, cooking, freezer, etc).

The players want to use this as their 'base' and also I need to develop another setting previously owned by the same wizard.

Any suggestions regarding how I should develop this theme?

Any suggestions anyone? Rules and/or links to threads.
Cheers

One of the things I loved about the Twilight 2000 game was the npc motivation system, but as with all things we tinkered with it.

Essentially it is simple, take a deck of cards, draw two. The first I assume the more obvious trait, the second less apparent. You can then develop NPC personas quickly and off the cuff.

Let me know your thoughts/suggestions.

NPC Motivation System
Clubs (Use of Threat/Force)
2 = Timid. Motivated by fear. Likely to be passive.
3-4 = Code of Honour: Is bound by a code of conduct but not afraid to use force if called for.
5-6 = Moderately Violent: Aggressive and prefers to use force as a solution.
7 = Professional: Is professionally involved in violence and sees it as a job, e.g. a adventurer or assassin.
8 = Very Violent: Loves a good fight and will probably use force even if unnecessary.
9 = Trickster: Will use deceit and trickery to get their way where possible.
10 = Pacifist: Will seek non-violent solutions if possible.
Jack = Murderous: The NPC has either committed a murder or is planning a murder. Not just killing someone but a deliberate and secret killing of someone for personal gain.
Queen = Plotter: Will seek to completely undermine an enemy before destroying them.
King = Sociopath: A sadist with a complete disregard for the lives and rights of others.
Ace = Tactician: The NPC is a good and imaginative tactician in appropriate situations.

Diamonds (Greed/Motivation)
2 = Collector. Has a personal interest that means they value certain objects more highly than others would.
3-4 = Pragmatic: Will seek to maximise profit, but is not totally unethical.
5-6= Moderately Greedy: A very hard bargainer, likely to be cash/gold only, and easy to bribe.
7 = Professional: Is professionally involved in the accumulation/generation of wealth, e.g. a steward.
8 = Very Greedy: Always open to bribes, deals only in gold/cash, may plan treachery if he thinks the PCs have considerable wealth and thinks he could get his hands on it.
9 = Avaricious: Blatantly driven by the accumulation of wealth, WILL try and swindle the PCs in any dealings with them.
10= Curious: Driven by the need to find things out and acquire knowledge.
Jack = Addiction: Driven by the need to feed an addictive behaviour/personality type.
Queen = Lustful: driven by lust, may be one person in particular or many.
King = Corrupt: A person driven (either publically or privately) by extreme vice.
Ace = Generous: The concept of Largesse is important to this npc and they reward service well.

Hearts (Sociability/Ethics)
2 = Awkward. Lacks social graces, motivation likely to be obvious.
3-4 = Sociable: Amiable, talkative, and cooperative with most people.
5-6 = Moderately Sociable: Strong sense of duty and loyalty to whatever group he joins
7= Professional. Is professionally involved in social engagement: e.g. A bard or courtesan.
8 = Very Sociable: Strong commitment to justice and the welfare of everyone he meets and looks for the good qualities in anyone he meets
9 = Ambassador: Defines themselves through their role within an organisation. See’s their interests as intertwined with the groups.
10 Introvert: Dislikes and avoids the company of others.
Jack = Loving: Loves someone so completely that they would sacrifice themselves for that person.
Queen = Hospitable: The reputation of their hearth and home is of key importance to them.
King = Honourable: Scrupulously honest in all dealings and his word of honour is an absolute bond.
Ace = Idealist: Holds an abstract concept as the greatest virtue and the main consideration in determining their course of action.

Spades (Ambition/Power)
2 = Rebel. Makes a virtue of being ‘outside the system’, refuses position.
3-4 = Somewhat Ambitious: Inclined towards boastfulness and a desire to impress peers.
5-6 = Moderately Ambitious: The NPC looks for a position of responsibility in any organization they join
7= Professional: Is professionally involved in the accumulation of power: e.g. a nobleman.
8 = Very Ambitious: The NPC is driven by a desire to manipulate and control the people around them and to be in charge
9 = Social Climber. Will do anything to gain status and influence and probably has.
10 = Altruistic: Is working for a ‘Higher Power’ – possibly bad, possibly good.
Jack = Radical: Desires to re-write the rules of society/existing social order.
Queen = Ruthless: Lets nothing stand in the way of achieving goals and has total disregard for the needs of others.
King = Power-Broker. Has extreme influence in their sphere and is a person to be reckoned with.
Ace = Leader: Expects to be in a leadership position, may cause problems if not.

As above.
Cheers
G

I wonder what people’s thoughts are on expecting players to compromise their character builds to cover party weaknesses (e.g. taking levels in cleric to increase the amount of healing available to a party) rather than allowing them to buy magic items?

In the last couple of years I have returned to d&d after a many years out. I have been playing since the 1980’s however and have certain reservations about how the game has progressed.
I welcome the progress the game has made by and large, however as a DM I have noted that there is now an emphasis on maximisation of build and this is supported by both the point allocation systems (I HATE dump stats) and the players being (in theory) being able to buy or make magic items to cover individual weaknesses. It is also my experience that players often design and plan this at the outset and are extremely unwilling to compromise this.
As a player and a DM I am not comfortable with this. It puts a subtle pressure on the DM to comply and to a certain degree from a role-playing perspective I would rather the adventures had some role is shaping the character and eventual abilities of the characters. I fully accept the purpose of playing an RPG is to have fun, and that the ‘building a character’ aspect was not present to anything like the same degree when I started playing, however when I see a character planned to 20th level and with a shopping list of items I do despair – where is the frame of reference to what we are going to spend half a year or more building between us?
Your thoughts welcomed on this.