Is there a way for a Player Character to gain the Scent ability? Feats, class abilities, anything?
Barbarian rage power "Scent".
Oracle curse "Deaf" (at level 10).
Barbarian rage power "Scent".
Oracle curse "Deaf" (at level 10).
Thanks. I was thinking something a little more accessible, since you dont want to rage for a round just to make sure you arent being snuck up on. And using a rage power in conjunction with Survival to track someone would be rather difficult. The idea is for a character with exceptional senses, and deafness would kinda defeat that. Thank you for the quick reply, though.
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In 3.x, Dragonlance had the "minotaur" as a base class (not same as the bestiary minotaur), and it could take Scent as a Feat (as per the Monster Manual description).
However, I would think humanoid physiology generally is not suited for Scent, but maybe someone raised by wolves could justify it as a Feat...
Questions like this one are why I keep asking for "Monsters as Races" rules.
May I suggest the PF version of the Race Creation Cookbook, by Louis Porter Jr. Design? I have yet to USE it, but it DOES have point values for Scent.
Oh, and great title, by the way!
Oh, and then there's the Anumus race, in the Remarkable Races series by Alluria publishing. The Canine and Porcine Anumi have Scent, if you don't mind having a dog's or pig's head.
(The Road to Oz by L. Frank Baum comes to mind...)
In the RHOD campaign, my druid reincarnated a friend's character as a bugbear, I rolled a 100 in the table. She was appalled and since then she's saving gold to pay for a wish to become human again. Her physical stats are the better in the party now. And has scent to boot.
Is there a way for a Player Character to gain the Scent ability? Feats, class abilities, anything?
Scent is really just another type of perception check that can be done by smell. If you want to role-play it go half-elf, take skill focus(perception) for your racial and max perception. Or be a druid.
Except Scent can pinpoint invisible characters within 5', among other things.
Except Scent can pinpoint invisible characters within 5', among other things.
As can a perception check.
In the RHOD campaign, my druid reincarnated a friend's character as a bugbear, I rolled a 100 in the table. She was appalled and since then she's saving gold to pay for a wish to become human again. Her physical stats are the better in the party now. And has scent to boot.
Out of sheer curiosity, What Ability Score Mods and stuff do you use for a bugbear? the Monster Manual entry from from 3.5, or something else?
As can a perception check.Except Scent can pinpoint invisible characters within 5', among other things.
Huh. In the Beta, there was the following wording: "Unlike the ability to hear or see an approaching enemy, smell cannot be used to notice hidden foes unless the scent is present for more than a 10 minutes." I guess they removed it.
Huh. In the Beta, there was the following wording: "Unlike the ability to hear or see an approaching enemy, smell cannot be used to notice hidden foes unless the scent is present for more than a 10 minutes." I guess they removed it.
Rightfully so. There are some scents that would take a matter of seconds to smell that would give up someone if they were hiding. Ever smelled some of your gaming buddies after a batch of chilidogs? :P
Grasshopper:
'When a creature detects a scent, the exact location of the source is not revealed—only its presence somewhere within range. The creature can take a move action to note the direction of the scent. When the creature is within 5 feet of the source, it pinpoints the source's location.'
That's different than a perception check; if you are within 5' of a scent, you know absolutely it's THERE.
Perception, you still have to roll, and it's still +20 DC for being invisible.
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You could always contract lycanthropy. Of course, that comes with its own set of problems. Maybe you could invest in spell or magic item research and get a wizard to create a Scent spell or magical sniffer for you, like a big toucan beak you can strap to your face.
IIRC, the Beastmaster PrCl grants scent at lv7 or lv8. There are probably a few more PrCls that give scent as well.
Grasshopper:
'When a creature detects a scent, the exact location of the source is not revealed—only its presence somewhere within range. The creature can take a move action to note the direction of the scent. When the creature is within 5 feet of the source, it pinpoints the source's location.'That's different than a perception check; if you are within 5' of a scent, you know absolutely it's THERE.
Perception, you still have to roll, and it's still +20 DC for being invisible.
So, if your target is invisible, and if your target is downwind, and if you have a chance to take a move action to notice the direction of the scent, and if the target comes within 5 feet of you, you know where it is.
Now let's take a look at a level 1 half elf ranger
perception 1 rank +2 wis +3 class skill +3 skill focus(perception) + 2 racial = +11 perception at level 1 to hear the person sneaking up on you or smell their stink, or see leaves moving, etc. add in some items like eyes of the eagle +5 competence, or some elixirs of vision +10 competence to boost perception for when you really need them, and you are good to go and can now see the imprint in the ground where the invisible person is standing unless it's solid stone.
If an invisible guy is within 5' of you, you know exactly where he is. Period.
No downdwind, move, nothing... also means you can fight without miss chance. (Though that last invites a long argument about what 'pinpoint' means)
And you're comparing this to someone with a particular class and race, a decent stat, AND a feat spent on skill focus, plus magic items or consumables?
At the end of which, you could still roll really low and fail to notice them.
If an invisible guy is within 5' of you, you know exactly where he is. Period.
No downdwind, move, nothing... also means you can fight without miss chance. (Though that last invites a long argument about what 'pinpoint' means)
And you're comparing this to someone with a particular class and race, a decent stat, AND a feat spent on skill focus, plus magic items or consumables?
At the end of which, you could still roll really low and fail to notice them.
Read the scent description again. The pinpoint within 5 feet is dependent on you already having their scent which you can gain with a move action. You can always roll low and fail :) isn't that why we call it a roll playing game *ba dum ching* I used the half-elf ranger because he's the iconic perceptive guy. 14 wis isn't too much to ask for a character with level 4 spell access eventually, skill focus is a freebee for elves. the eyes of the eagle and elixir's are options, not necessary. He's sitting at +11 naked by being who he is at level 1. by level 10 he should have a perception check of 10 ranks +2 stat, +3 class skill, +6 skill focus +2 racial = +23 perception naked, and it's not dependent upon being upwind/downwind/etc.
That's not clear, but I'll grant my reading of it isn't clearly correct.
All I was saying is that scent is different from just having perception, that it does things you don't get just by having perception.
In the RHOD campaign, my druid reincarnated a friend's character as a bugbear, I rolled a 100 in the table. She was appalled and since then she's saving gold to pay for a wish to become human again. Her physical stats are the better in the party now. And has scent to boot.Out of sheer curiosity, What Ability Score Mods and stuff do you use for a bugbear? the Monster Manual entry from from 3.5, or something else?
Yep, the 3.5 MM entry, +4 STR +2 DEX, darkvision, scent, etc.
Minus the mental stats(-2 CHA) as per reincarnate, and no racial hit dice to avoid level adjustment(yes, very generous on the DM's part).Incidentally the party had also found a Hat of Disguise so luckily she could avoid most of the RP problems of her new body.