A fellow player in our campaign found a trait called Finding Helene or some such. The trait gives +1 hp AND +1 skill point per level based upon the idea that you are looking for a caretaker who disappeared (named Helene or something similar).
Does anyone have more information about this? It seems pretty abusive to me.
I would say it is probably one of the more powerful traits that I have seen. I might even rank it as the most powerful trait that I have seen.
It was a campaign trait for the Legacy of Fire campaign from the Pathfinder Companion: Legacy of Fire Player's Guide. It was only intended for characters for that Adventure Path, it wasn't intended to be usable for any and all campaigns.
Overall, I can't say that it is going to destroy the game if that trait is used, but I would suggest that the GM work with the player to adjust the bonus to better match the abilities granted by the other campaign traits.
I'd gently suggest he can have the 1HP or 1SP but not both, he's welcome to the flvour of the trait.
just be aware that +1HP/lv is equal to the toughness feat and traits are traditionally meant to be 1/2 feats.
so maybe even +1HP and/or +1SP every 2 levels
plenty of broken 3rd part content out there, feel no obligation to allow it into your game
That is a trait from the Legacy of Fire Adventure Path and is 3.5 content not Pathfinder.
That is a trait from the Legacy of Fire Adventure Path and is 3.5 content not Pathfinder.
Even so, it is abusive even from the standpoint of D&D 3.5.
That is a trait from the Legacy of Fire Adventure Path and is 3.5 content not Pathfinder.Even so, it is abusive even from the standpoint of D&D 3.5.
then again there was alot of abusive 3rd party stuff in 3.5 especially when players are allowed to cherrypick from multiple sources
I still can't begin to guess what they were thinking. This trait gives you the benefit of the (Pathfinder) Toughness feat (3e toughness was pitiful compared to this) AND extra skill points you can't get anywhere (except maybe with the Open-Minded feat, which only gives you 5 points, and of course being human).
I'd make it an extra favoured class, in addition to the one you already have (I did that in my game, which meant you can have a favoured class with this trait - I did away with the FC rule since it makes no sense under Pathfinder as it is in the core rules.)
Maybe even allow you to double-dip with this trait: Chose the same class as your regular FC and your trait FC and gain both benefits.
I'd make it an extra favoured class, in addition to the one you already have (I did that in my game, which meant you can have a favoured class with this trait - I did away with the FC rule since it makes no sense under Pathfinder as it is in the core rules.)
This is vastly more balanced. The idea of letting the character select a second "Favored Class" (or a third if ½Elf) is a much better idea. I might even allow the player to defer the decision until he/she actually multi-classes.
I would argue that for the AP which this trait was written for at least a couple of the other campaign traits are much more powerful than typical traits as well (gnoll killer comes to mind). Also, it is a campaign trait which i really doubt was intended to be used for anything other than this particular campaign. That being said it is certainly pretty powerful over the course of the AP
Finding Haleen was the only over-the-top trait there:
Earning your freedom is actually a bit weak for a campaign trait (those are supposed to be a bit more powerful than others), as there are regular traits that give you +1 to one saving throw.
Seeking Adventure gives you a wayfinder. Not really a big deal (it's not 500gp for free, it's a specific item - and you're expected to pay for it). By level 2, 3 at the most, this will be completely irrelevant. There are regular traits that give you free money - the rich parents trait raises your starting cash to 900 gil. That is, at the very least, 600 gil more than you otherwise get (The best you can get by the core rules is 5d6x10gp, for 300gp.) As you could end up with as little as 20gp, this can be substantial. Anyway, you could buy yourself your own wayfinder with that and still have some cash left.
Reclaiming your roots is really weak. Not only is only 350gp (at the most, so rich parents is, on average, more than twice as good for the gil alone), you may not lose the item or you get a penalty for a whole year (most campaigns are over faster than that).
Gnoll killer is kinda neat, but not that great - as it only works against gnolls. Sure, gnolls are your main foe in the first couple of adventures, but after that, you'll hardly find any. Quite situational, and therefore, In line with campaign traits.
Missionary is also no different from any number of regular traits where you can get a free class skill and a +1.
Our bard took this and toughness, and was pretty much still a skill monkey as well as being a reasonable tank. We had two different characters that just happened to be looking for her, but after a TPK, and the fact that the trait no longer makes any sense in the campaign (already found her), its a non-issue now.
But yeah, it was pretty over the top for a trait. I could have almost understood if it was meant to reinforce a motivation to find a really important NPC and drive the campaign, but that doesn't even seem to be the case.
Thanks for the info guys.
half elf barbarian / fighter gestalt with finding helen :) :) :)