New Feat Idea: Improved or Greater Selective Channeling

[MattyWhiskers]

Improved or Greater Selective Channeling

You can harm and heal when you channel energy.

Prerequisite: Cha 17, channel energy class feature, Selective Channeling, Caster Level 9.

Benefit: As a full round action, when you channel energy, you can harm and heal at the same time.

For Positive Energy channelers, all living targets in a 30-foot radius burst centered on you are affected when you channel energy; also, choose a number of undead targets in the area up to your Charisma modifier - these are harmed by the same amount on your die roll.

For Negative Energy channelers, all undead targets in a 30-foot radius burst centered on you are affected when you channel energy; also, choose a number of living targets in the area up to your Charisma modifier - these are harmed by the same amount on your die roll.

Creatures that take damage receive a Will save to half the damage.

[AerynTahlro]

D20PFSRD wrote:

any cleric can release a wave of energy by channeling the power of her faith through her holy (or unholy) symbol

As far as I'm concerned, you're releasing a 30' burst of positive or negative energy. You're not releasing a life-targetting or undead-targetting burst, you're releasing a burst that shouldn't care. Baseline Channel Energy should effect all targets within its burst, end of story.

If a wizard fireballs a group of creatures, and some of the creatures are healed by fire damage, does the wizard have to choose between whether or not the fireball damages those susceptible or heals those who aren't? No.

Channel healing and "damage" is so low to start with (and it seems that 75% of undead make the save for half damage) that it should just hit everything within the 30' burst.

[MattyWhiskers]

AerynTahlro wrote:

D20PFSRD wrote:

any cleric can release a wave of energy by channeling the power of her faith through her holy (or unholy) symbol

As far as I'm concerned, you're releasing a 30' burst of positive or negative energy. You're not releasing a life-targetting or undead-targetting burst, you're releasing a burst that shouldn't care. Baseline Channel Energy should effect all targets within its burst, end of story.

If a wizard fireballs a group of creatures, and some of the creatures are healed by fire damage, does the wizard have to choose between whether or not the fireball damages those susceptible or heals those who aren't? No.

Channel healing and "damage" is so low to start with (and it seems that 75% of undead make the save for half damage) that it should just hit everything within the 30' burst.

I totally agree with you AerynTahlro...I playtested Pathfinder Beta when it first came out and liked the ability of harming & healing at the same time. Same belief: energy (positive or negative) is consuming the 30 foot area, so how can it not affect both living and undead? Didn't seem logical to me, but as gameplay went on it was determined to be too powerful of an ability. So, I was just thinking of a new feat (be that adopted into Pathfinder officially or going the houserule route) to allow it as a feat. The DM that runs our campaigns suggested I post this under this section since Channeling is a Supernatural ability rather than a Spell or Spell-like ability.