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A player of mine was a bit sad to see the old 'elemental turn' rules go out with the domains. We came up with the idea for a new ability for it, and I wanted to see what everyone thought. Is it worth a feat? Should there be other requirements? Is it too good for one feat? Let me know! :)
Elemental Channeling
Requirements: Ability to channel energy, must have one of the elemental domains (air, earth, fire, or water)
Benefit: When taking this feat, the character selects a single type of energy that he has a domain in. Once chosen, his ability to channel energy no longer may be used for positive or negative energy. Instead, it channels the chosen energy type from above. The energy affects creatures as follows (Will saves are equal to 10 + 1/2 cleric level + Charisma modifier):
Originally channeled positive energy: The energy deals damage as normal to most creatures (Will save for half), with an exception to creatures that are vulnerable to it or have some other notable weakness. Against them, it deals the normal damage (double if vulnerable) with a Will save for half. If failed, the creature must flee from you as if frightened for 1d4 rounds + your Charisma modifier.
Originally channeled negative energy: The energy deals damage as normal to most creatures (Will save for half), with an exception to creatures that are immune to it or have a natural resistance of at least 20. Against them, it heals them, and they must make a Will save or fall under your command (following the rules for commanding undead if channeling negative energy).
Normal: The character may only choose to channel positive or negative energy.
Thoughts?
I'd drop the damage down to 1d4, as it doubling would end up as 2d4 damage to vulnerable creatures and not act as a major radius damage cop-out for positive energy channelers. This also doesn't quite capture the old dual flee/command for elementals.
----- Random thinking -----
I'd also like to work in Turn Elemental as a prerequisite since it already calls out an alteration in Channel Energy. Looking at it, it seems Turn Elemental is the one coming up short. Thinking...
Channel Energy vs Fire Elemental
Positive = heals
Negative = harms
Turn Elemental (Fire) feat
Positive = harms, all else heals
Negative = heals, all else harms
Elemental Channeling:
If Positive you need TE and EC of the opposite energy of the one you want to command (focusing on focusing on fleeing)
If Negative you need TE and EC of the same energy you want to command.
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Turn Elemental? The reason we made this is because we didn't think Turn Elemental got ported over from 3.5 to PRPG. It used to be part of taking one of the elemental domains, but it's no longer there. Is there some other way to get it?
This feat really isn't meant to be *that* much more powerful than the original channel, just give a different option. I'm not sure reducing the damage to d4 would make it worth a feat anymore.
Positive Energy
BEFORE: Xd6 heal to all living creatures within 30 feet, Xd6 damage to all undead within 30 feet, Will half and to negate Frightened.
AFTER: Xd6 damage to most everything within 30 feet (Will half), Xd6 damage to any vulnerable (double as normal to a vulnerable creature) or otherwise weak to the element creature, Will half and to negate Frightened.
Negative Energy
BEFORE: Xd6 damage to all living creatures within 30 feet (Will half), Xd6 heal to all undead within 30 feet, Will save or be commanded.
AFTER: Xd6 damage to most everything within 30 feet (Will half), Xd6 heal to any immune or resist 20+ creature within 30 feet, Will save or be commanded.
So with positive, you go from healing a lot and damaging a large group (undead are encountered quite often in most APs, it seems) to damaging most everything and getting a little bit extra damage against a small group (there really aren't *that* many vulnerable creatures). With negative, you go from damaging a lot and healing undead to just damaging everything except a few immune/high resist creatures, which you heal.
The utility of this is probably better for negative energy clerics than it is for positive ones. Negative wise, you may not always *want* to heal undead, you may just want to damage everything. So you take a feat, your heal now affects a smaller group, but you get to just damage everything. Seems a small enough boost for a feat.
Positive wise, you lose the ability to heal at all, in exchange for basically getting the destructive force of negative energy. The only difference is now you can deal extra damage to vulnerable creatures with a chance for them being frightened.
I would probably need to clarify that positive energy clerics would not get to deal double damage to vulnerable creatures...or revise the mechanic. Ideally, the burst should do the energy type of damage, and be just as good as the original burst, just a little different. Like taking the feat that let you convert a spell or two to a different energy type.
Turn Elemental is now a Feat in the PFRPG, page 96. It allows you to effect a specific elemental sub-type as if it were undead. I.E. you use the Undead part of your Channel power instead of the on that effects living creatures. The only difference is that you don't get the Command/Flee part of the old power.
I'd also point out that any creature with an Elemental sub-type is by default immune to that type and vulnerable to the opposite, that is part of the sub-type. There isn't any real reason to call out resistance of 20+.
The reason for d4 is that you will get a split. It will do slightly less damage to everyone but slightly more to the opposite element.
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Turn Elemental is now a Feat in the PFRPG, page 96. It allows you to effect a specific elemental sub-type as if it were undead. I.E. you use the Undead part of your Channel power instead of the on that effects living creatures. The only difference is that you don't get the Command/Flee part of the old power.
I'd also point out that any creature with an Elemental sub-type is by default immune to that type and vulnerable to the opposite, that is part of the sub-type. There isn't any real reason to call out resistance of 20+.
The reason for d4 is that you will get a split. It will do slightly less damage to everyone but slightly more to the opposite element.
Interesting, we didn't see that in the main table list. We may just end up using that.
I'm aware that any creature with an elemental sub-type is immune/vulnerable and the like. This feat wasn't meant to necessarily mimic "Turn Elemental", rather give the ability for a cleric to channel 'fire' energy (or something else) instead of positive/negative energy. Thus, it could feasibly effect things that were also immune/highly resistant/vulnerable besides elementals.
I still disagree on the d4. It's only going to do the extra damage to vulnerable creatures, which don't seem to come up that often at all. In our CotCT game, for example, I think we've only had a couple creatures pop up that were vulnerable to ANY element, let alone a specific one. The lowered overall damage would likely not make up for the increased damage against a small percentage of creatures.