Recently, I've been taking some time to try to form prestige classes (and possibly a base class) to play as one of my favorite characters of all time: Trevor Belmont from Castlevania fame.
I've been working on how to make a whip that isn't weak, so I've tossing around the idea for thicker, alchemical masterwork whips that don't just hit for subdual damage.
Also, the class I've been working on is a Divine magic user/melee specialist with some interesting supernatural abilities trained in. All the abilities are based off of subweapons found in the games and they are as follows:
Dagger Trick Throw - pinpoint dagger throwing precision and increase in range limit
Holy Item Focus - can cause damage to evil and undead by displaying holy item
Clock Stop - stops undead for a specific amount of rounds/uses per day
Holy Water Trick - get special uses out of throwing holy water (can create an almost holy like alchemical fire that only damages undead)
improvised thrown weapon - can throw any light weapon without penalty with same range as thrown dagger
Whip Specialties - whip tricks that allow multiple toolbox uses for the whip (climbing bonus/swinging across chasms)
What does everyone think? Any advice?
Have you checked out the dagger whip( or is whip dagger)?
Have you checked out the dagger whip( or is whip dagger)?
I could probably just convert those stats from the dagger whip right over and write my own fluff...
I believe that Complete Scoundrel also had some skill tricks for use with a whip... but I could be remembering that incorrectly, as I associate scoundrels with Indianna Jones (the factotum class is one of my favorites of all the new base classes)
I've really got to check out the complete scoundrel, it looks really cool.
I guess my real question is what are the negatives to making the whip a more damage ready weapon. I always felt that the whips damage rating (and the fact that it only causes subdual) didn't seem very satisfying...
The 3.0 paperback fighter's handbook Sword and Fist might've had the whip dagger. It also has a prestige class you may find inspiring called the Lasher.
What is the Lasher's deal? Whip focus fighter type?
The 3.0 paperback fighter's handbook Sword and Fist might've had the whip dagger. It also has a prestige class you may find inspiring called the Lasher.What is the Lasher's deal? Whip focus fighter type?
The problem with the whip is in historical references it isn't a very "realistic" weapon to use effectively because of the space and time involved to hit something accurately. You can google this and find several sources that back up this claim.
I would make the guy fight with flails and maybe make a longer flail that is a bit more flexible if you want it to be "realistic". If you're playing a more high fantasy campaign the dagger-whip is fine and hey I have Castlevania I and II as my ring tones so that might be a clue to how much of a Belmont fan I am :)
My cousin played a lasher in a campaign once, and she was VERY effective. We got to the BBEG (a wizard) and fought him along with his minions at their campsite. The lasher trips the BBEG INTO the campfire, and then proceeds to repeatedly successfully use a special lasher ability (stunning snap, fortitude save negates I believe) to keep him laying in the fire for the rest of the fight. So we have this powerful wizard, unable to move, taking fire damage every round in addition to the whip's damage. The rest of the party took care of the wizard's minions, and the BBEG didn't get a single shot off.
I have never seen a more disappointed DM. >:)
I was once playing a bard/barabian (a bardbarian?) who, along with another player, got into a fight with a ranger/assassin.
We lucked up and caught him just after he had completed applying poison one shortsword and was starting to do the second one. I won initiative and immediately disarmed him of the poioned blade with a whip. The next round, I tripped him. The entire fight I played spoiler while the fighter/rogue with me cleaned his clock.
The 3.0 paperback fighter's handbook Sword and Fist might've had the whip dagger. It also has a prestige class you may find inspiring called the Lasher.What is the Lasher's deal? Whip focus fighter type?The problem with the whip is in historical references it isn't a very "realistic" weapon to use effectively because of the space and time involved to hit something accurately. You can google this and find several sources that back up this claim.
I would make the guy fight with flails and maybe make a longer flail that is a bit more flexible if you want it to be "realistic". If you're playing a more high fantasy campaign the dagger-whip is fine and hey I have Castlevania I and II as my ring tones so that might be a clue to how much of a Belmont fan I am :)
If you want an interesting whip like weapon check out chain whip.
(Edit: Don't hit yourself in the head or shin with one of those, it hurts. Well and can kill you if you get hit in the head.)
The Lasher is a cool class, but it's completely broke as written in v.3.0. That's why you never saw it make into any of the Complete books in v.3.5. With some tinkering you could make it playable, but don't use it as written.
I have also debated using the Lasher PrC, but then the newest Castlevania: Lords of Darkness came out and with it came the Combat Cross!
Originally I was going to roll a Paladin/Ranger multi-class character with a flail, which would be easiest I guess without throwing in a bunch of feats for a whip. I also contemplated using the Ancestral Relic feat along with the Anointed Knight PrC from Book of Exalted Deeds.
There is no such weapon as the Combat Cross in 3.5 or Pathfinder game so I envisioned a double weapon with a spiked chain side and a dagger side so I could whip it out with a 10 ft range and use the dagger side in close quarters. It would be a 2d4 (20/2x)/1d4 and (19-20/x2) damaging weapon.
Any suggestions?
The Lasher is a cool class, but it's completely broke as written in v.3.0. That's why you never saw it make into any of the Complete books in v.3.5. With some tinkering you could make it playable, but don't use it as written.
Question then from someone planning to run a Castlevania Pathfinder game soonish, what exactly is broken about it? I was thinking it would probably be the best prestige class to offer to whoever in the party plays the Belmont, and I'd like to know what I'm getting into.
Here's my version of Simon Belmont.
That's awesome. I wanted to reply to it on Facebook but there was no reply option that I could find. (Guessing only Friends can reply? Sometimes I can reply to things, sometimes I can't.)
The picture of Simon Belmont you used there is also used for Simon in the DLC for Castlevania: Harmony of Despair as his portrait.
I statted up a Belmont-style character for my group's Carrion Crown AP, and I wound up using Inquisitor as a base class instead of Ranger. My character is a little more in the Gabriel Belmont theme(Lords of Shadow), so I felt Inquisitor added that little bit of holy order to the character, as well as the array of Inquisitor bonuses versus certain enemies.
For ease of use, I had him be part of Calistria's order, granting him with proficiency, and had him start with a Scorpion Whip.
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Inqusitor was my choice as well since simply put, they're holy monster hunters. I'm actually kinda suprised that there's no vampire hunter archetype for them. From experience I know the base version can do the job more then effectively, but it just struck me as odd.
A few tips I found that worked well for my character:
*Sarenrae and Pharasma are perfect choices for deities. While yes, you do have to take EWP(Whip) to use the Belmont's weapon of choice, the domain/inquistion and trait options they make available fit great not only for power, but also are perfect for role-play as well. My choice: Sarenrae as deity, Valor inquisition, and any combination of Enemy of the Undead/Slayer's Oath/Hunter's Blood/Subject of Study(undead) for your traits.
*Making the Combat Cross as it functions in the game is impossible without a GM that's really on board with you, or really inexperienced. If the later, give him/her a break and don't take advantage of your GM. It never ends well. At best Vampire Killer from the earlier games is easy on paper, but hard in practice to actually make. My take on it is a +3 Holy, Vorpal, Reliquary Silversheen Scorpian Whip. That gives it a +10 enhancement bonus including special abilities for a total market price of 200,755gp and either you or the initial enchanter also has to have the Craft Reliquary Arms&Armor feat and be able to cast Consecrate. I'm currently 8th lvl and have only been able make it +1 and Holy and that's only because one of the other player's in my group has a 6th lvl Cleric as a cohort and I had him enchant it for me. While Vorpal isn't actually needed, I find the rest is a must to make this a viable undead fighting weapon.
*The Whip Mastery feat tree from Ultimate Combat is a god-send to whip users everywhere. If you don't have access to the book you can look those feats up at PFSRD.
Everything else is a combination of no-brainers/personal preference to flesh out your version of a member of the Belmont clan.
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