And now for something completely different.
Hope you like this version of the ever trusty Drizzt! :)
I'm operating under the premise that total feats equals (HD/2)+1.
Drizzt Do’Urden, of House Daermon N’a’shezbaernon
Barbarian 1/Fighter 10/Ranger 6 of Mielikki
Medium Humanoid (Drow, Elf)
Hit Dice: 1d12 + 10d10 + 6d10 + 34 (137 hp)
Initiative: +10 (+6 Dex, +4 Improved Initiative)
Speed: 80 ft. (16 squares)
Armor Class: 27 (+10 armor, +6 Dexterity, +1 dodge), touch 17, flat-footed 21
Base Attack/CMD: +17/+18; Combat Maneuver Bonus: 24
Attack: Icingdeath +24 melee (1d6+6 + 1d6 cold/15–20/x2 + 1d6 cold) and Twinkle +26 melee (1d6+8/15–20/x2)
Full Attack: Icingdeath +24/+19/+14/+9 melee (1d6+6 + 1d6 cold/15–20/x2 + 1d6 cold) and Twinkle +26/+21/+16 melee (1d6+8/15–20/x2)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./ 5 ft.
Special Attacks: Spell-like abilities, spell resistance 28, spells
Special Qualities: Ambidexterity, animal companion (Guenhwyvar), armor training, bravery, drow traits, fast movement, favored enemy (goblinoids +4, magical beasts +2), favored terrain (cold), hunter’s bond (Guenhwyvar), rage, track, weapon training, wild empathy
Saves: Fort +16, Ref +15, Will +8 (+11 against fear)
Abilities: Str 13, Dex 22, Con 15, Int 17, Wis 17, Cha 14
Skills: Acrobatics +20, Climb +10, Escape Artist +8 (+10 with ropes), Handle Animal +9, Intimidate +5, Knowledge (dungeoneering) +8, Knowledge (geography) +3, Knowledge (nature) +12, Perception +21, Ride +10, Sleight of Hand +12, Stealth +21, Survival +18, Use Rope +12
Feats: Agile Maneuvers, Blind Fight, Combat Expertise, Combat Reflexes, Daylight Adaptation, Deft Hands, Dodge, Double Slice B, Endurance B, Greater Two-Weapon Fighting, Improved Initiative B, Improved Two-Weapon Fighting, Mobility, Quick Draw, Spring Attack, Two-Weapon Defense, Two-Weapon Fighting, Two-Weapon Rend, Weapon Focus (scimitar), Weapon Swap B
Environment: Mithral Hall or Icewind Dale, the Sword Coast North
Organization: Unique (solitary) or pair (Drizzt and Guenhwyvar) or party (Companions of the Hall)
Challenge Rating: 19
Treasure: Standard plus Icingdeath, Twinkle, bracers of blinding strike, onyx figurine of wondrous power, +4 mithral chain shirt
Alignment: Chaotic Good
Advancement: ––
Level Adjustment: +2
Combat
Armor Training (Ex): Drizzt gains added protection from the armor he is wearing. While wearing his mithral chain shirt, he benefits from a further +2 armor bonus to armor class and a -2 reduced armor check penalty.
Drow Traits: Drizzt receives a +2 bonus on sight- and sound-based Perception checks. Drizzt is immune to magic sleep effects and gets a +2 racial saving throw against spells and spell-like abilities. He has darkvision out to 120 ft.
Favored Terrain (Ex): Whenever Drizzt is within tundra or otherwise glacial environments, he receives a +2 bonus on Knowledge (geography), Perception, Stealth and Survival skill checks. Likewise, he gains a +1 bonus on initiative checks when in this terrain. These benefits have not been factored into the statistics block above.
Rage (Ex): With shimmering fires in his lavender eyes, Drizzt may draw upon his primal ferocity and call upon his alter persona of the Hunter. During his rage, Drizzt gains a +4 bonus to his Strength and Constitution, a +2 morale bonus on Will saves, and a -2 penalty to Armor Class. While raged, Drizzt cannot use any Charisma-, Dexterity-, or Intelligence-based skills or any ability that requires patience or concentration.
During his rage, Drizzt has the following statistics instead of those given above; hp 171; AC 25, touch 15, flat-footed 19; Full Attack Icingdeath +26/+21/+16/+11 melee (1d6+8 + 1d6 cold/15–20/x2) and Twinkle +28/+23/+18 melee (1d6+10/15–20/x2); SV Fort +18, Will +10; Str 17, Con 19; Skills: Climb +12.
Ranger Spells per Day: 1st – calm animal. Drizzt casts spells as a 3rd level caster. Save DC = 13 + spell level.
Spell-Like Abilities: 1/day – dancing lights, darkness, faerie fire. Caster level 16th. Save DC = 12 + spell level.
Weapon Training (Ex): Drizzt’s tutelage and training under Zaknafein and his tenure within Melee-Magthere means his proficiency with weapons greatly exceeds the norm. He receives a +2 bonus on attack and damage rolls while wielding heavy blades and benefits from a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls while wielding light blades.
Bracers of Blinding Strike: Taken from the deceased House Baenre Weaponmaster, Dantrag, this powerful magic item confers different abilities depending on the body slot it occupies.
When worn as bracers, these bracers of armor +5 give the wearer free access to the Improved Initiative feat. In addition, the wearer may, as part of a full attack option, make additional attacks at the wielder’s full base attack bonus. This benefit does not stack with cumulative effects, for example, wearers with the bracers will not additionally benefit from weapons of speed or a haste spell.
When occupying the boot slot, these anklets effectively double the speed of the wearer. It likewise grants Improved Initiative as a virtual feat but disallows additional attacks. In addition, wearers gain a +1 dodge bonus to Armor Class and Reflex saves.
Icingdeath: Cold forged to a diamond edge from hard-packed ice taken from a glacier, this beautiful weapon has a silvery blade and gem-encrusted pommel. Its hilt is crafted from adamantine and is sculpted into the likeness of the toothed maw of a great hunting cat. Icingdeath is a +3 evil outsider bane keen frost band scimitar that constantly protects Drizzt from fire, extinguishing fires in its radius and hungering for more flames to absorb.
Twinkle: Presented to Drizzt from Malchor of the Harpells as a replacement for a lost scimitar, this priceless gift was forged by elves in the magic of the powers of starlight, moonlight, the mysteries of elven souls, rainbows and imbued with everything they hold dear. This +5 defending keen scimitar has a single star-cut stapphire set in its pommel and glows a softly blue when it detects danger nearby. Calling Twinkle by its name elicits a radiant sapphire shine from within, this glow trails light when Drizzt wields it in combat.
Your CR is off. Drow get only +1 on their CR. The +2 is LA.
And that might change, too, in the final game.
And I don't think NPCs should get organisation, advancement and environment entries.
Your CR is off. Drow get only +1 on their CR. The +2 is LA.
And that might change, too, in the final game.
And I don't think NPCs should get organisation, advancement and environment entries.
Actually no, this is built according to Pathfinder where the designers have qualified and quantified that since the revised classes are slightly stronger, they benefit from an additional bonus to CR; I'll bring up the relevant paragraph.
The new Pathfinder LA for drow is hard to quantify as Paizo has yet to release any solid numbers; I've basically extrapolated from what the new elves get and strapped on the abilities of the drow (Drizzt has lost the penalties of light blindness).
And why not? It actually more sense for NPCs to have them since they are unique individuals; the more information the better.
Actually no, this is built according to Pathfinder where the designers have qualified and quantified that since the revised classes are slightly stronger, they benefit from an additional bonus to CR; I'll bring up the relevant paragraph.
There's another part (which is ambiguous) that says that the CR for NPCs with class levels is lower (and lower still for those with NPC class levels).
Plus, while the classes got a power boost (but which is more to get things more in line - clerics and druids, for example, have been weakened a bit), the players will have levels in those classes, too, so it all evens out.
The new Pathfinder LA for drow is hard to quantify as Paizo has yet to release any solid numbers; I've basically extrapolated from what the new elves get and strapped on the abilities of the drow (Drizzt has lost the penalties of light blindness).
I know. But he blew a feat on that.
Anyway, provided drow don't get a boost, too (since their ability score modifiers aren't that much better than an elf's - in fact, with their punishing penalty on con, I'd grant all elves +2 cha in addition to int and dex; would make sense for the "beatiful, graceful elves"), the gap between normal elves and drow isn't that big any more. And if you compare them to races like dwarves, the gap becomes smaller still.
Even before, the +2 was a bit of a border case, and I don't think the drow as we know them currently would warrant a +2 LA under pathfinder.
And why not? It actually more sense for NPCs to have them since they are unique individuals; the more information the better.
Them being individuals is the main reason for me not to include organisation, advancement and environment:
Organisation might work, but usually, it is said to indicate how the creature type organises in general. Are gorgons solitary critters? Do kobolds form small or large tribes and do they have scouts? Are there rogue trolls?
With an individual, you don't need that. You know exactly who he associates with, and I don't think that should be limited to a single line.
Advancement is there to indicate how that creature type can be advanced to produce bigger versions. Do bulettes come with extra racial HD? What size do they have depending on their HD? Or does a creature in question only advance via character classes.
All that isn't really that useful for an NPC. It's not the general entry for a typical specimen of that species. It's an individual. That individual has those very stats. There are no bigger versions of Drizzt around, since they're not Drizzt.
You could give information for how Drizzt will advance if he goes on adventure and gains XP, but as with organisation, I don't quite think it would be right to abandon that information on a single line in the stats. Instead, have different stat blocks for different points in his career, or state that it's likely that he'll continue advancing as ranger (for other critters, say a unique red dragon blackguard/sorcerer, you might state that he'll advance in two levels of blackguard for every level of sorcerer he takes, and that he's due for a new age category in 3 years)
Environment, again, is for the average specimen of a race: frost wyrms are found in arctic climates, shaitans on the plane of earth, drow in the Darklands layer of Sekamina.
You might state where a unique character lives, but that doesn't belong in environment, if you ask me. Besides, drizzt has lived in Menzoberranzan, in the Underdark wilderness, in a deep gnome city, in a surface cave, in Mithral hall, but he has also travelled the legnth and breadth (and depth) of Faerûn.
Another gripe: Treasure. NPCs don't have a generic treasure entry. They get combat gear, other equipment and maybe treasure - but no "standard or "triple gems, double goods, no coins", or anything like that, but "6pp, 37gp, 105sp, 20cp, 10 gems of various colour worth 10 gp, each, an ancient house inisgnia worth 300gp" or something like that.
He's not a random monster. Nothing about a named individual should be random.
There's another part (which is ambiguous) that says that the CR for NPCs with class levels is lower (and lower still for those with NPC class levels).
Plus, while the classes got a power boost (but which is more to get things more in line - clerics and druids, for example, have been weakened a bit), the players will have levels in those classes, too, so it all evens out.
Could you please bring up that passage? I'm not discounting what you are saying but due to the (admitted) ambiguity of the paragraph, its intended meaning or meanings may differ from person to person.
Another argument for augmenting Drizzt's CR is he is built with classes that have been modified and restructured rather significantly, and have a power structure that differs markedly from what they were originally.
Also, IMHO, power comparisons and by extension power boosts should not made in a vacuum; I don't think boosting the power of 'necessary' classes is also enough to warrant a downgrading of the cleric and druid.
I know. But he blew a feat on that.
Anyway, provided drow don't get a boost, too (since their ability score modifiers aren't that much better than an elf's - in fact, with their punishing penalty on con, I'd grant all elves +2 cha in addition to int and dex; would make sense for the "beatiful, graceful elves"), the gap between normal elves and drow isn't that big any more. And if you compare them to races like dwarves, the gap becomes smaller still.
Even before, the +2 was a bit of a border case, and I don't think the drow as we know them currently would warrant a +2 LA under pathfinder.
Yes, and this has been factored into the build.
Well, since I don't actually have the new Pathfinder drow mechanics in front of me, I'm not qualified to say what the drow may be benefiting from or lacking in; in any event the intention for the LA to remain at +2 for the time being was to serve as a placeholder, and will be changed once the stats for the Pathfinder drow is known.It may not be a stretch to see drow benefiting from bonus ability scores that stack rather than overlap like in 3e; although what you are proposing with the increase of +2 to Cha as a houserule may see the drow benefiting from further increases, for example to Str, or the addition of new unique qualities.
Them being individuals is the main reason for me not to include organisation, advancement and environment:
Well, the idea for the inclusion of those assets was the inherent versatility in their makeup.
For example, Drizzt is unique in that he is organised along several different lines; as a solitary individual, with a companion or as a team. All of this is readily apparent in its own unique compartment as compared to descriptive text in a being's flavor. DMs using Drizzt will instantly know to who or what he travels with and can modify encounters accordingly.
I don't see the line as an abandonment of text or throw-away line, but information that the DM can access readily and easily. It is also comparatively vastly simpler than to have different statblocks for different aspects of his career or age.
The same is true for Advancement. Drizzt is primarily and firstly a character from a novel and a mechanical build second. It is not beyond reason that he is constantly evolving, both as a character personality and in power level.
While you are right in saying that Drizzt has traveled the length and breadth of Faerun, he does have a preferred home region; the Environment aspect of his build was intended to cover the region he frequents the most as opposed to where he has traveled. This argument can be made for all NPCs and to a degree PCs as well; for example, Elminster would have an Environment of Shadowdale and Szass Tam would have Thay as his Environment.
There should be no hard and fast rule to what can or can't be included in these descriptors; for example while efreeti may have an initial Environment entry of the Plane of Fire, I see the Sultan of the Efreet having a modified entry of The City of Brass.
I also readily see specific information over-riding what a 'normal representative' of the race may get.
Another gripe: Treasure. NPCs don't have a generic treasure entry. They get combat gear, other equipment and maybe treasure - but no "standard or "triple gems, double goods, no coins", or anything like that, but "6pp, 37gp, 105sp, 20cp, 10 gems of various colour worth 10 gp, each, an ancient house inisgnia worth 300gp" or something like that.
He's not a random monster. Nothing about a named individual should be random.
No, he is not a random monster. The inclusion of his named abilities and named weapons should leave beyond doubt that he is not some random.
What I wrote for 'standard' was intended to represent his combat gear and miscellany; it was deliberately left ambiguous so as to give DMs leeway on what to include in their campaign and the chance to modify the entry according to taste and play preference. No two campaign is ever alike, and so the inclusion, representation et al of Drizzt in any game world will differ considerably from campaign to campaign.
Drizzt is known to carry miscellany on his person; from his money pouch containing variable coins to his symbol of Mielikki carved from scrimshaw. Even in his novels, exactly what he is carrying is left to the imagination and discretion/freedom of the reader to decide.
Could you please bring up that passage? I'm not discounting what you are saying but due to the (admitted) ambiguity of the paragraph, its intended meaning or meanings may differ from person to person.
"Adding NPCs: Creatures without racial Hit Dice are
factored into combats a little differently than normalmonsters or monsters with class levels. A creature that
possesses class levels, but does not have any racial Hit
Dice, is factored in as a creature with a CR equal to its
class levels –2. A creature that only possesses non-player
class levels (such as a warrior or adept) is factored in as a
creature with a CR equal to its class levels –3."
I really hope that will be clarified. I'm not sure if it means you just calculate the encounters overall encounter level like that or whether you adjust XP accordingly.
It's not directly tied to the CR itself, though.
While we're at it: Do you have the passage about the +1 CR handy?
Another argument for augmenting Drizzt's CR is he is built with classes that have been modified and restructured rather significantly, and have a power structure that differs markedly from what they were originally.
Oh yeah. But it depends on your point of view: Are CRs off now that those classes have been boosted?
Or were CRs off before because those classes were so weak?
"Adding NPCs: Creatures without racial Hit Dice are
factored into combats a little differently than normal
monsters or monsters with class levels. A creature that
possesses class levels, but does not have any racial Hit
Dice, is factored in as a creature with a CR equal to its
class levels –2. A creature that only possesses non-player
class levels (such as a warrior or adept) is factored in as a
creature with a CR equal to its class levels –3."I really hope that will be clarified. I'm not sure if it means you just calculate the encounters overall encounter level like that or whether you adjust XP accordingly.
Ah, well, the paragraph is differentiating between individuals with 'PC-worthy' classes compared with personalities with NPC classes; even in 3e/3.5e, persons with aristocrat or warrior levels were slightly weaker overall, both for reasons of being NPCs and for possessing only NPC-centric classes.
Drizzt, while technically an NPC, does not in any way possess any NPC-specific class and so his CR is not weakened as a result and should be calculated accordingly.While we're at it: Do you have the passage about the +1 CR handy?
Here you are!
Power Level
Characters built using the Pathfinder RPG rules (and some of the options from the later 3.5 rule supplements) are slightly more powerful than their counterparts[...]you can treat characters that use these rules as one level higher when building challenges or choosing a published adventure.
Oh yeah. But it depends on your point of view: Are CRs off now that those classes have been boosted?
Or were CRs off before because those classes were so weak?
Well, that depends on the comparison, which classes are you comparing the boosted classes to? I'll like to answer your question with another question. Is it the fighter or monk, or the cleric or druid classes. Depending on the answer given, the result will invariably be different.
May I suggest taking a look at the CR values assigned to the RPG Superstar Round 3 submissions?
That is the most up to date information on assigning CR to NPCs that we've seen and appears to tackle both NPCs with NPC classes and only PC classes.
Check it out.
If memory serves me correctly, the CR of a character with all PC levels should be Total Level -2 + any template or other adjustments.
Thus for Drizzt, his CR should be
17 - 2 +1 Drow = CR 16.
On the drow CR, Kae Yoss is right, its only CR+1.
The rule mentioning that Pathfinder characters are more powerful and can handle an encounter 1 level higher only a guideline for GMs to use when trying to determine what encounters are appropriate to use against a party of PF Beta characters using the 3.5 Monster Manuals.
That is not a specific instruction for figuring the CR of NPCs. Remember, PCs (with full wealth by level) are tougher and have a higher CR that NPCs, anyhow.
May I suggest taking a look at the CR values assigned to the RPG Superstar Round 3 submissions?
That is the most up to date information on assigning CR to NPCs that we've seen and appears to tackle both NPCs with NPC classes and only PC classes.
Check it out.
Thanks!
If memory serves me correctly, the CR of a character with all PC levels should be Total Level -2 + any template or other adjustments.
Did you extrapolate this from the submissions or is this a stated rule somewhere? As the submissions all seem to subscribe to the calculation that CR = class levels and any attended adjustments (either from templates or for being a more powerful race). This is the norm for calculating the CRs of PCs; NPCs on the other hand with NPC-centric classes will have lower CRs.
Thus for Drizzt, his CR should be
17 - 2 +1 Drow = CR 16.
On the drow CR, Kae Yoss is right, its only CR+1.
I know that drow get +1 to CR, they gained this amount both in 3e and 3.5e. However, the additional CR isn't due to his race but rather for having more powerful classes than he did in 3.5e when measured against 3.5 entities.
As the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game has yet to be released, the Beta is currently used in 3.5e campaigns as it allows for edition compatibility and as the new rules are officially yet to be known or finalised; this is what I have been basing his modified CR off.The rule mentioning that Pathfinder characters are more powerful and can handle an encounter 1 level higher only a guideline for GMs to use when trying to determine what encounters are appropriate to use against a party of PF Beta characters using the 3.5 Monster Manuals.
That is not a specific instruction for figuring the CR of NPCs. Remember, PCs (with full wealth by level) are tougher and have a higher CR that NPCs, anyhow.
Yes, as there are no official rules of the Pathfinder monsters, Drizzt's Pathfinder CR is meant to represent his measure when compared to the previous D&D version; I have never argued or made mention that Drizzt is more powerful against Pathfinder monsters or that this is the CR he has against Pathfinder creatures. Once everything is known, his CR will be modified accordingly.
His current CR is for DMs to include him in their current 3.5e campaigns.
Adding NPCs: Creatures without racial Hit Dice are
factored into combats a little differently than normal
monsters or monsters with class levels. A creature that
possesses class levels, but does not have any racial Hit
Dice, is factored in as a creature with a CR equal to its
class levels –2. A creature that only possesses non-player
class levels (such as a warrior or adept) is factored in as a
creature with a CR equal to its class levels –3.
Page 291 of Pathfinder Beta.