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Hello everyone! I have a Pathfinder Eberron game coming up and wanted to try and come up with some fun options for the warforged. They are based on the warforged found in the 3.5 Eberron Campaign Setting book. I would welcome any feedback on this stuff so I can get them as polished as possible before presenting to my DM. He's pretty lenient as long as you can explain things logically and you don't break the game.
Do they sound fun to play, balanced, too complicated, interesting? Are there any that you would take every time or never take at all? Please try and give constructive feedback if you don't like something. How would you fix it, in keeping with the spirit without rewriting the entire thing?
I look forward to your responses. Here we go...
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Warforged Favored Class Options:
Alchemist- Add +1/4 to the natural Armor Bonus granted by Mutagen.
Barbarian- Add 1 to the barbarian's total number of rage rounds per day.
Cleric- Select one domain power granted at 1st level that is normally usable for a number of times per day equal to 3 + the cleric’s Wisdom modifier. The cleric adds 1/2 to the number of uses per day of that domain power.
Fighter- Add +1 to the fighter’s CMD when resisting a bull-rush or dirty-trick.
Inquisitor- Add +1/2 to the CMB when attempting a Reposition or Dirty Trick Combat Maneuver.
Paladin- Add +1/2 to the bonus against fear granted by Aura of Courage
Wizard- Add +1/2 to the number of uses per day of arcane school powers. This increase only applies to arcane school powers available at 1st level and normally usable a number of times per day equal to 3 + the wizard’s Intelligence modifier.
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Warforged Alternate Racial Traits:
It was hard to come up with stuff that you could swap out so I came up with a list of things that are a result of how the warforged was constructed in the first place. Most of them present something new and positive in trade for something new and negative. They are meant to be experimental designs or possibly prototypes for future models.
Cyborg- Some warforged have a brain-pan inside of them that has living brain cells attached. These brain continue to grow new cells and learn, but are a bit more susceptible to mental fatigue. They lose all immunities to sleep effects and require 4 hours of sleep per night. They gain +1 skill point per level.
Steam Engine- Some warforged were built a little bit dirtier and a lot noisier, using a combustion device as the primary power source. They can burn almost anything as fuel and usually have one or more exhaust pipes that constantly vent black smoke. Often these warforged emit a loud steam whistle when charging opponents. Due to the incredible burst of steam, their natural slam attack damage becomes a d8. However, because they are so noisy and emit smoke constantly, they receive a -4 penalty to Stealth and handle Animal checks and never receive a class skill bonus for them.
Glowing Eyes- Many warforged were created specifically to fight underground, indoors, or at night. The eyes of these warforged are magically enhanced with special lenses or gems that glow brightly, allowing them to see in the dark. This focused vision does make them somewhat less aware of their surroundings. While the eyes are illuminated, these warforged gain Darkvision 60ft and their eyes emit light as a torch. They can turn off the light and the Darkvision as a free action. This ability replaces Light Fortification.
Extend-able Arms- (Go, Go Gadget arms!) Some experimental warforged filled a specific roll as crowd control. These warforged have telescopic arms that can extend out far beyond a normal creature's reach. However, the nature of the telescoping arms limits the structural strength of the arms. These warforged have a -2 Strength score, but all one-handed weapons wielded are considered to have reach. This means that they threaten a 10 foot area around them. Two-handed weapons and weapons with reach are too massive and heavy for the arms to support, and function as normal without the benefit of the extend-able reach.
Wheeled- Some warforged were built with one or more wheels rather than legs. This gives them incredible bursts of speed, but limits their terrain mobility. The base speed of a wheeled warforged is 30 ft. These warforged gain X 3 movement during a hustle or charge movement. However, because they have no legs, they receive a -4 penalty to Swim and Climb checks and never receive a class skill bonus for them.
Tracked- Some warforged were built to handle any terrain without slowing down. Often they carried heavy loads or even transported other warriors across difficult terrain. These warforged have one or more revolving treads, rather than legs. They gain Slow and Steady as a Dwarf would; They have a base speed of 20 feet, but their speed is never modified by armor or encumbrance. In addition they may cross encumbered or difficult terrain with no movement penalty.
Quadruped- Some warforged either have four legs or were crafted to move using their arms and legs like living animals. These warforged are more stable and faster, but have limbs that are not as muscular. The base speed is 40 ft. They have a -2 Strength score, but gain a +4 CMD against trip attempts.
Do they sound fun to play, balanced, too complicated, interesting? Are there any that you would take every time or never take at all? Please try and give constructive feedback if you don't like something. How would you fix it, in keeping with the spirit without rewriting the entire thing?
I look forward to your responses. Here we go...
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Warforged Favored Class Options:
Alchemist- Add +1/4 to the natural Armor Bonus granted by Mutagen. I like it, kinda gives it an armor power up kinda feel. And the 1/4 progression makes it strong but not overpowered.
Barbarian- Add 1 to the barbarian's total number of rage rounds per day. a good standard bonus
Cleric- Select one domain power granted at 1st level that is normally usable for a number of times per day equal to 3 + the cleric’s Wisdom modifier. The cleric adds 1/2 to the number of uses per day of that domain power. it would be a little stronger, but instead of granting extra uses of a domain power perhaps making a change to Channel Energy so that it can completely affect construct/living constructs instead of healing only for half?
Fighter- Add +1 to the fighter’s CMD when resisting a bull-rush or dirty-trick. both abilities make a warforged harder to move and harder to trick, so it definitely adds to that mental image of a line of karrnathi undead crashing upon warforged defensive lines Sparta style. Good choices.
Inquisitor- Add +1/2 to the CMB when attempting a Reposition or Dirty Trick Combat Maneuver.
Paladin- Add +1/2 to the bonus against fear granted by Aura of Courage
Aura of Courage is a nice ability, but it's rare for others to get the bonus and fear effects just don't come up all that much. This isn't a bad ability, it's just a little weaker than others. How about +1/2 HP healed to living constructs with Lay on Hands?Wizard- Add +1/2 to the number of uses per day of arcane school powers. This increase only applies to arcane school powers available at 1st level and normally usable a number of times per day equal to 3 + the wizard’s Intelligence modifier.
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Warforged Alternate Racial Traits:
It was hard to come up with stuff that you could swap out so I came up with a list of things that are a result of how the warforged was constructed in the first place. Most of them present something new and positive in trade for something new and negative. They are meant to be...
Cyborg- Some warforged have a brain-pan inside of them that has living brain cells attached. These brain continue to grow new cells and learn, but are a bit more susceptible to mental fatigue. They lose all immunities to sleep effects and require 4 hours of sleep per night. They gain +1 skill point per level. this is a little macabre, especially for a race that is less than a 100 years old. especially considering the implications of where the brain would have to come from. I could see this as one of Merrix's creations but...it feels a little off still. +1 skill point is pretty powerful too. I would recommend making it 8 hours of sleep instead of 4.
Steam Engine- Some warforged were built a little bit dirtier and a lot noisier, using a combustion device as the primary power source. They can burn almost anything as fuel and usually have one or more exhaust pipes that constantly vent black smoke. Often these warforged emit a loud steam whistle when charging opponents. Due to the incredible burst of steam, their natural slam attack damage becomes a d8. However, because they are so noisy and emit smoke constantly, they receive a -4 penalty to Stealth and handle Animal checks and never receive a class skill bonus for them. "Bulkier" is the image I get from this description. Most of what this alternate racial trait does, is what the Warforged Juggernaut is designed to do. I would recommend changing the flavor text as well since Steam Engines don't really exist but some magical equivalent is easily doable. Perhaps increasing their natural slam attack damage on a Charge Attack? Or is this ability supposed to be kind of a BIG-O kind of punch?
Glowing Eyes- Many warforged were created specifically to fight underground, indoors, or at night. The eyes of these warforged are magically enhanced with special lenses or gems that glow brightly, allowing them to see in the dark. This focused vision does make them somewhat less aware of their surroundings. While the eyes are illuminated, these warforged gain Darkvision 60ft and their eyes emit light as a torch. They can turn off the light and the Darkvision as a free action. This ability replaces Light Fortification.
I like it. Very imaginitive, useful, and replaces a decently powerful ability to make up for it. I assume the "less aware of their surroundings" is why they lose their Light Fortification?Extend-able Arms- (Go, Go Gadget arms!) Some experimental warforged filled a specific roll as crowd control. These warforged have telescopic arms that can extend out far beyond a normal creature's reach. However, the nature of the telescoping arms limits the structural strength of the arms. These warforged have a -2 Strength score, but all one-handed weapons wielded are considered to have reach. This means that they threaten a 10 foot area around them. Two-handed weapons and weapons with reach are too massive and heavy for the arms to support, and function as normal without the benefit of the extend-able reach. granting a creature reach, albeit with only specific weapons, is still a powerful ability. I would recommend restricting the armor decision they can have (such as Adamantine Body being too heavy/restricting to be able to use this trait effectively) and also removing Light Fortification since they need more flexibility. I am interested to see how this would play out though.
Wheeled- Some warforged were built with one or more wheels rather than legs. This gives them incredible bursts of speed, but limits their terrain mobility. The base speed of a wheeled warforged is 30 ft. These warforged gain X 3 movement during a hustle or charge movement. However, because they have no legs, they receive a -4 penalty to Swim and Climb checks and never receive a class skill bonus for them.
isn't the base speed of a warforged already 30? otherwise not a bad ability.Tracked- Some warforged were built to handle any terrain without slowing down. Often they carried heavy loads or even transported other warriors across difficult terrain. These warforged have one or more revolving treads, rather than legs. They gain Slow and Steady as a Dwarf would; They have a base speed of 20 feet, but their speed is never modified by armor or encumbrance. In addition they may cross encumbered or difficult terrain with no movement penalty.
again an interesting ability. permanently reducing the base speed to 20 makes this a good choice for an Adamantine Body warforged. Now they are pretty much a walking tankQuadruped- Some warforged either have four legs or were crafted to move using their arms and legs like living animals. These warforged are more stable and faster, but have limbs that are not as muscular. The base speed is 40 ft. They have a -2 Strength score, but gain a +4 CMD against trip attempts. gorilla-esque is the image that comes to mind, so I'm not sure about the penalty to their strength score. The bonus vs. trip is nice due to the extra "limbs" maybe something else to make up for it instead of a strength penalty?
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----------------Warforged Favored Class Options:
Cleric- it would be a little stronger, but instead of granting extra uses of a domain power perhaps making a change to Channel Energy so that it can completely affect construct/living constructs instead of healing only for half?
*The Tricky part about this is that class options are things that could be taken every level and slowly get better. How about this? +1 point of damaged healed to constructs by a positive energy burst. This would eventually offset the half-damage healed penalty and might eventually make them better at healing constructs than a normal cleric can heal non-constructs.
Paladin- Aura of Courage is a nice ability, but it's rare for others to get the bonus and fear effects just don't come up all that much. This isn't a bad ability, it's just a little weaker than others. How about +1/2 HP healed to living constructs with Lay on Hands?
*I actually like that option better than my original suggestion. I'll modify it that way for now. Thanks! (I can't seem to edit the original post anymore. DOH!)
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Warforged Alternate Racial Traits:
Cyborg-this is a little macabre, especially for a race that is less than a 100 years old. especially considering the implications of where the brain would have to come from. I could see this as one of Merrix's creations but...it feels a little off still. +1 skill point is pretty powerful too. I would recommend making it 8 hours of sleep instead of 4.
* Do you think that 8 hours would make it balanced?
Steam Engine- "Bulkier" is the image I get from this description. Most of what this alternate racial trait does, is what the Warforged Juggernaut is designed to do. I would recommend changing the flavor text as well since Steam Engines don't really exist but some magical equivalent is easily doable. Perhaps increasing their natural slam attack damage on a Charge Attack? Or is this ability supposed to be kind of a BIG-O kind of punch?
* Yes, definitely bulkier. The thinking was that they had great bursts of strength due to the pressure of the steam/boiler/combustion engine thing. This is why the slam goes up to a d8 (like many animal companions with a primary attack).
Glowing Eyes- I assume the "less aware of their surroundings" is why they lose their Light Fortification?
* Exactly right! The light shines forward, kinda blinding them to the things in their peripheral vision.
Extend-able Arms- granting a creature reach, albeit with only specific weapons, is still a powerful ability. I would recommend restricting the armor decision they can have (such as Adamantine Body being too heavy/restricting to be able to use this trait effectively) and also removing Light Fortification since they need more flexibility. I am interested to see how this would play out though.
* Forcing them to give up light fortification AND Adamantine armor seems a bit harsh for only gaining reach on one-handed weapons. I don't see why you could not have heavy plating on your body (but not your arms). As it is a -2 STR is a pretty major drawback, and since you are limited to one-handed weapons you aren't going to be shelling out huge damage from two-handers or normal pole arms. Anyone else have an opinion on this one?
Wheeled- Isn't the base speed of a warforged already 30? otherwise not a bad ability.
* Yes, it is. I wanted to be crystal clear that wheels do not improve base speed. I could imagine someone thinking that perhaps I forgot to add in the base speed upgrade, but the 30 speed is by design.
Quadruped- gorilla-esque is the image that comes to mind, so I'm not sure about the penalty to their strength score. The bonus vs. trip is nice due to the extra "limbs" maybe something else to make up for it instead of a strength penalty?
* Gorilla-esque is certainly one way to see them. Another way is to see them like a centaur or a drider (minus a few legs). The STR reduction comes from them not having the strong trunk-like legs of a normal combatant, but rather a bunch of thinner legs. Anyone who have ever played sports can tell you how much power you get from your legs. I'd certainly be open to other suggestions instead of a -2 STR, but it should be fairly strong.
Dotted for later.
I mostly agree with what Bofdm said. But I think Extendable Arms is fine as it is. And 4 hours of sleep seems more balanced for Cyborg, since you also lose immunity to sleep effects.
I mostly agree with what Bofdm said. But I think Extendable Arms is fine as it is. And 4 hours of sleep seems more balanced for Cyborg, since you also lose immunity to sleep effects.
Yes, losing the immunity to sleep effects for a single skill point is huge, IMO. I wouldn't make that trade, ever. On top of that, you actually HAVE to sleep at night, so the party loses their permanent nightwatch. One skill point can't make up for that. I can't think of a way to make it better though, so I'll leave it at that.
Most of the racial trait options are kind of cartoon-y in my opinion, like the extending arms (not helped by the Gadget reference), or the wheels replacing legs. If I try to force the cartoon images out, the best I get is a mental image of Transformers, and -while that's awesome - doesn't fit my idea of a fantasy RPG character that happens to be a living construct.
If the reach thing was more like a hookshot (Legend of Zelda style) or like Spawn's chains, I'd be on board. The wheels... Well, I like the tracks better.
All in all, it's mostly balanced, but I think you erred on the side of underpowering PCs rather than making them overpowered. That's good, but it could use some tweaking, like the change suggested to the paladin favored class option. That was good.