So, here's the gist of things - one of my players wants to portray the child of her previous character from our last campaign, seeing as this is a spiritual successor with a time skip of over a decade. Usually wouldn't be a problem, but there are a few extraordinary circumstances.
For anyone that might remember, this child happens to be the son of a red dragon, who either planned for it to be conceived, or made a foolish mistake. That of course would make it a half-dragon, half-human child.
I could just tell her to make a draconic sorcerer or something, but the idea of it kinda cheapens out the direct ancestry. I'm thinking of a two level adjustment, but more needs to be done to balance things out a bit. What could I do to the template to work it out a bit?
Draconic Sorceror.
Dragon Disciple.
Eldritch Heritage.
There's three ways of doing it that keep the power curve on track.
maybe a +1 LA (cause LA blows to deal with) and give her a light version of the template and scale it as the Draconic bloodline until it matches the template.
You could make it scale as DD and Draconic
Either you start with DD at 1 or 6th and advance as both until you get to the powers of the template.
Change Blindsight to Darkvision.
Cut the Fly speeds to equal to move speed first, then twice move speed.
Make the bite and claws permanent, but take away the magic and energy advancements
Stop the Nat armor at +4 or start it at 1, then scale it as the Bloodline
Don't give Bloodline Feats, or Dragon Form
Breath Weapon scales with HD: The breath weapon deals 1d6 hit points of damage per racial HD possessed by the half-dragon (Reflex half; DC 10 + 1/2 creature's racial HD + creature's Con modifier).
You get the template minus the great stats and immunity until 20, and are a level behind the rest of the party.
The best bet is turning it into an "ancestry class". The class gets weak BAB, only weak saves, d6 as a HD, 2+ skill points, and doesn't have class skills, or any proficiencies. (Though you might go with simple weapons)
Basically a more friendly version of LA, since you do get some HP and the like (since LA is brutal).
I'd probably distribute the racial abilities over 2-4 levels (depending on what the character is going to be like - a fighter would need to buy more levels than a sorcerer.
Okay...here's one issue with the Half-Dragon now - it's really not designed for PCs.
Honestly, your best bet is to use the 3.5 Half-Dragon Template and just give it flight. If you want to use the one out of the Bestiary, I'd go with +4 Str, +4 Con, +2 Int, +2 Cha. James already suggested (and made on these boards) a feat that lets a PC's breath weapon grow with him. I'd still set this CR at a +4, however. Even with only +4 to Str and Con, you're still getting a +4 natural armor bonus, a breath weapon, and flight.
Or....you may want to use the Dragon Disciple; it may be cheap, but it's the most allowable of the ideas.
You also don't get any Hit Dice, which really is a considerable price to pay, especially at low levels.
What level are the characters supposed to start at anyway?
you could also give her one HD, to help mitigate the LA at low levels, and in the long run, 1d6 worth of hp isn't too huge, and the only thing she gets for the template at level 1 is claws, maybe 1 Nat armor if you decide to doll out powers as the character gains levels.
so the effective level 2 character has:
1d??+1d6+2(con mod)
Claws, 1d4 (1d3 small)
? +1 Nat Armor ?
Level 1 class features.
1 class level worth of Skill points
Doesn't seem bad if the rest of the party is Level 2.
And if they start at Lv 1, then just give:
2+int skill points that do not stack with those from class level
and simple weapons, or proficiency in a single simple weapon?
So, here's the gist of things - one of my players wants to portray the child of her previous character from our last campaign, seeing as this is a spiritual successor with a time skip of over a decade. Usually wouldn't be a problem, but there are a few extraordinary circumstances.
For anyone that might remember, this child happens to be the son of a red dragon, who either planned for it to be conceived, or made a foolish mistake. That of course would make it a half-dragon, half-human child.
I could just tell her to make a draconic sorcerer or something, but the idea of it kinda cheapens out the direct ancestry. I'm thinking of a two level adjustment, but more needs to be done to balance things out a bit. What could I do to the template to work it out a bit?
Races of the Dragon had a Half-dragon racial class.
I've actually run a half-dragon in a game before, and it's not too bad. Here's what I did (it's pretty much out of the book).
Level 2 PC is CR 1. So a Level 2 Half-Dragon PC is CR 4. I wouldn't let them start a half-dragon at less than party level 4. This gives them 2 hit die (and a chance of staying alive). Between level 6 and 7, they gain one extra class level, so will be one class level behind everyone else the rest of the game.
Apply the stat mods as shown for a half-dragon. The breath weapon never scales up, unless you let them take a feat to base it off total hit die (I think I did 1d6 per 2 class levels), rather than racial hit die. It also never works more than once per day, unless you let them take a feat chain to increase it. I would suggest one feat to get it Con Mod times per day (1d4 rounds between uses), and a second to make it every 1d4 rounds all day. This is 3 feats needed to boost it up to a full dragon breath, which I found was a fair feat tax.
The stat bonuses are good, but not worth a level hit over the course of a game. It also doesn't help them in game, where they are going to be shunned by most people, especially a chromatic, who's going to be avoided like the plague.
Thanks for the feedback everybody. I forgot to mention, the party will be starting at level 10 with slow experience progression, so there's a little room to fiddle around with some things.
I've decided against the idea of using the template as is, especially since it would make living in society next to impossible. Given my campaign setting's history with chromatic dragons, the character would more than likely be killed on sight.
I'll ask her about the eldritch heritage feats. A fighter would have the feats to afford the investment. It doesn't quite capture the concept since this is a case of a direct mix rather than ancestry, but it could work.
Thanks for the feedback everybody. I forgot to mention, the party will be starting at level 10 with slow experience progression, so there's a little room to fiddle around with some things.
I've decided against the idea of using the template as is, especially since it would make living in society next to impossible. Given my campaign setting's history with chromatic dragons, the character would more than likely be killed on sight.
I'll ask her about the eldritch heritage feats. A fighter would have the feats to afford the investment. It doesn't quite capture the concept since this is a case of a direct mix rather than ancestry, but it could work.
If you are using 3.5 material, you can use the Draconic template instead. It's like a half-dragon lite. It's in Races of the Dragon.
I've decided against the idea of using the template as is, especially since it would make living in society next to impossible. Given my campaign setting's history with chromatic dragons, the character would more than likely be killed on sight.
Given this, my suggestion would be either draconic bloodline sorcerer, or some other class with the appropriate eldritch heritage feats.
And for why she doesn't show more of that heritage? Well, in order to give her a chance to survive past childhood, her mother used a powerful ritual to conceal the child's true nature. This spell is anchored to a minor artifact (traditionally a necklace of some kind), and will function even in an antimagic field... until the PC deliberately chooses to takes off the artifact, at which point the spell will be permanently broken - causing the character to be retired (either killed or having to constantly flee hostile adventurers), but granting a few scenes worth of the full power of the half-dragon template.