Lead Designer
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This thread is for general discussion of the Medium base class, found in the Occult Adventures Playtest document. This thread should be used for general impressions and overall concerns and ideas. Feedback on a specific concept or rule should have its own thread created by you.
As a reminder, please be polite and courteous to your fellow posters. We are all here to endeavor to create a better play experience with these rules and excessive arguing and insults are inappropriate.
Thank you again for participating in the Occult Adventures Playtest
Jason Bulmahn
Lead Designer
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Hi everyone, and thanks for playtesting the medium. I'm Mark, and I'm the medium design lead and your liaison for this playtest thread.
I will be updating this post occasionally as necessary with clarifications and other goodies, so do what you need to do to keep your eye on this post or just check it occasionally.
For starters, you're probably looking to grab some extra spirits you can contact or specialize in a type of spirit, so why not try these feats on for size? (don't focus on the exact wording of these, just use 'em and report! And they aren't PFS legal)
Extra Spirits
Prerequisites: medium level 1st
Benefit: You know how to contact 2 more spirits.
Spirit Specialization
Prerequisites: medium level 1st
Benefit: Choose an ability score. Your spirit bonus from spirits of that ability is increased by 1.
Special: You can take this feat multiple times. Each time, you must choose a different ability score.
4th—control winds (increase strength only)
Compulsion: Destructive
Séance Boon: +2 to CMB for bull rush and trip
Spirit Powers:
Lesser: Whirling Cleave—Whenever you hit with a melee attack, all foes within your reach with AC equal to or lower than your attack roll take an amount of damage equal to the Cyclone’s spirit bonus of the same type as the weapon you used for the attack. In the case of whirlwind attack or any other abilities that allow extra attacks due to outside factors like how many creatures are in your reach, whirling cleave only triggers once for the entire whirlwind attack or similar ability.
Intermediate: Disaster—When using whirling cleave, you can deal twice your whirling cleave damage to any number of unattended objects in reach. In place of damaging a creature with whirling cleave, you can instead deal twice your whirling cleave damage to that creature’s weapon, armor, or shield.
Greater: Whirlwind—You gain whirlwind attack as a bonus feat, and your whirlwind attack counts as an area effect for the purpose of damaging swarms. Whenever you perform a whirlwind attack, the Cyclone counts as a Dexterity spirit in addition to a Strength spirit. This may cause other spirits to grant you their spirit powers instead of their spirit bonus.
Supreme: Cyclone Attack—When performing a whirlwind attack, you can also move up to your speed, even through enemies’ squares without rolling an Acrobatics check (this movement still provokes attacks of opportunity as normal). You can make an attack against every creature you threaten at any point of your movement.
Spirit Bonus (Strength): Spirit bonus to attack and damage
Spells: 1st—death knell; 2nd—lock jaw (bite only); 3rd—deadly juggernaut; 4th—strong jaw (bite only)
Séance Boon: +2 to CMB checks to initiate and maintain a grapple
Compulsion: Ravenous
Spirit Powers:
1st: Fiend’s Maw—You grow a huge oversized maw, allowing you to make a bite attack for 1d8 damage (for Medium mediums) as a primary natural attack.
7th: Taste for Innocents—Your bite attack deals 2d6 additional damage to good targets and counts as evil.
13th: Hunger for Innocents—You gain the grab ability with your bite and the swallow whole special ability. Since your maw is oversized, you can devour creatures of your size. If you choose to do so, you become visibly gorged and count as if being under heavy encumbrance as long as the swallowed creature is alive.
19th: Calamitous Massacre—Whenever you kill a creature with a number of HD equal to at least half your character level with your swallow whole ability, you gain the effects of death knell and the Fiend’s spirit bonus increases by 1 for a number of rounds equal to the creature’s HD. The bonus increases stack up to a maximum of double the Fiend’s normal spirit bonus, but the durations do not stack.
Spirit Bonus (Intelligence): Spirit bonus to all skill checks.
Spells: 1st—borrow skill, crafter’s fortune, identify; 2nd— locate object, ?, ?; 3rd—?, pilfering hand, ?; 4th— analyze dweomer, ?, ?
Séance Boon: +2 bonus to Appraise
Compulsion: Hoarder
Spirit Powers:
1st: Seen It All—You can use all skills untrained.
7th: Dabbler—Add double the Wanderer’s spirit bonus to all skills in which you have no ranks
13th: One Man’s Trash—When using non-masterwork nonmagical weapons, armor, or shields that are not made of a special material, they gain an enhancement bonus equal to the Wanderer’s spirit bonus –1 (maximum +5). They lose that bonus whenever they are enhanced by any spell, spell-like ability, or supernatural ability other than this one, or if they otherwise gain other special abilities in any way.
19th: True Worth—As a standard action, you may roll an Appraise check on any simple object you can see. You unlock that object’s true potential and learn the perfect way to use that object. By describing how you use the object to assist you, you may gain an insight bonus as if you had cast moment of prescience with a caster level equal to your Appraise result – 10. This ability lasts until you use the bonus, until you no longer have the Wanderer active, or until you unlock the true worth of another object, whichever comes first.
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Fascinating. A Medium BAB character with 4 levels of spellcasting. That doesn't have a spell list!
Triune Vessel seems complicated to me.
There are some strong similarities to Pact Magic Unbound in the Medium class, which is sort of ironic because Occult Adventure's Occultist is nothing like our Occultist. xD
Making the spirits based off of the Harrow cards is INGENIOUS. Bravo on that bit of flavor, Mark!
"For a Medium medium." Ha. Grammar is fun. For the bear spirit's Awesome Blow, you'll need to note that you ignore the feat's prerequisites, as the Awesome Blow feat requires that you be Large or larger. On the other hand, you could rewrite the ability to instead grant the brawler's awesome blow class feature, which is probably the better option. Especially considering that The Beating gives a medium a monk's unarmed damage class feature.
For The Beating's dogpile class feature, you might want to note whether or not that ability stacks with the menacing special weapon property, which effectively does the same thing. (Though dogpile is stronger.)
The Beating's dissolution class feature is looking a little strong. Other, similar abilities either require a saving throw or a special condition to occur, such as a ninja's pressure points trick requiring a successful sneak attack.
Why do Dexterity spirits have two spells per spell level each, but Strength spirits only have one?
Is there any limit to the number of times per day that I can cast fool's lantern?
If wisp walker is a spell-like ability that is an illusion [glamer] effect, do my enemies get a Will save to disbelieve it?
Is there a limit to the number of times per day that I can use The Desert's salvation supreme ability? Removing negative levels at will seems really powerful, especially compared to the abilities of the Strength spirits.
Fascinating. A Medium BAB character with 4 levels of spellcasting. That doesn't have a spell list!
Triune Vessel seems complicated to me.
There are some strong similarities to Pact Magic Unbound in the Medium class, which is sort of ironic because Occult Adventure's Occultist is nothing like our Occultist. xD
Making the spirits based off of the Harrow cards is INGENIOUS. Bravo on that bit of flavor, Mark!
** spoiler omitted **
Why do Dexterity spirits have two spells per spell level each, but Strange spirits only have one?
** spoiler omitted **
Is there a limit to the number of times per day that I can use The Desert's salvation supreme ability? Removing negative levels at will seems really powerful, especially compared to the abilities of the Strength spirits.
Credit where credit is due. The idea of using things that sounded an awful like Harrow "archetypes" was Logan's. I then said "Why not the Harrow?"
Heal does not remove negative levels or restore permanently drained ability score points.
Strength have 1, Int have 3.
Invisibility and silence are glamers and they don't offer saves to disbelieve either.
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This class looks interesting and similar to the binder/occultist but different enough to have a completely separate dynamic. I really like the mapping of the spirits to the harrow deck too, I feel it really helps it belong in the Inner Sea.
I also had some trouble understanding the point of compulsion as currently written, because 0-2 Influence mentions that it has no mechanical restrictions on how the medium interacts with the compulsions. At 3 Influence, the spirit must be taken again the next day, and at 4 Influence the medium loses control to the spirit. However, is there any penalty given to a medium at any level of Influence who completely ignores the compulsion? Do they gain a bonus for following the compulsion? It currently seems like the compulsion is half finished.
Will there be any way for the medium to trade out spirits known for other spirits at higher levels?
If the answers to these questions are in the document, then I'm sorry that I'm wasting your time with these questions, I only scanned it quickly.
1-2 is entirely roleplay. The mechanics of the class are balanced around the idea that some people are going to just ignore it because let's face it, if we put in small penalties at 1 and 2 influence based on roleplay, it'd create threads like paladin threads of GMs and players arguing, so better not to balance mechanics assuming a roleplaying restriction. Just roleplay the increase in a way that feels both cool and comfortable to you!
So what stat is the caster stat for this class?
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so i played a binder in 3.5, this class is obviously a rewrite of that class. reading through it, it seems a pale comparison.
so the old binder could bind more powerful spirits as you leveled, and you have tried to make it so you can bind all spirits right away and only get part of their powers as you level. the problem with this is that at low levels, you have almost nothing you can do.
at level one, you have no bab, only simple weapon proficiency, and lets say i bind the cricket for a move speed, so the only power i have is once a day i get a bonus to damage for charging (higher level cricket) or one of the other powers, which may or may not actually give me an active ability. in combat, my options are limited to what feats i have taken, essentially the same options as a level one expert.
at second level my new power lets my teammates get the same ability as me, so im still an expert.
at level three, i can get my once a day powers twice, so if i spend two rounds of combat not doing anything, i might have options for the remaining rounds. for cricket it seems like i can spend two rounds to get +20 move speed, +5 on attacks, +10 on damage as long as i start 100 feet away and charge, which seems hard to do after spending two rounds doing nothing. other spirits might have better options, but i doubt that anything here is as good as being a rogue at level 3, which is not a good place to be.
at level four i get to cast one spell a day, or mebbe 3 if i have maxed stats. so at level four i now have two actions i can take in combat. i am now about on par with a level one wizard.
at level 5, i get a second option, and more spells, so about four or five options in combat, which puts me on par with a level three sorcerer. none of the options available to me at this level are on the same power level as 3rd or even 2nd level spells. so actually about the power level as a 5th level adept.
at level 6, my full round action is now a standard action, which makes no functional difference since i am still doing nothing for the round.
at level 7, i am finally able to start using trance reliably to get higher level powers. the class seems to open up a lot here, and might actually be playable and fun.
the problem here in my opinion is that the low levels, which is what most people will see, are pretty miserable. you have 3/4 bab, and only simple weapon proficiencies, and almost nothing you can do if combat starts in close quarters other than spend a round or two "buffing". im sure it is hard to balance a jack of all trades class like this, but i think this is not working currently.
it is going to be hard to have options for all 54 spirits, and giving access to higher level powers earlier isn't a great option isnt great if they only have 4 powers each (which i think is fine actually).
letting people have more spirits bound would be a simple fix, but not a great one, as the current progression seems pretty strong.
i think trance being usable more frequently (equivalent to rage rounds for example) would be a good fix, but with a change to the wording so you can only use it to boost the power level of yer current by 1. this would make it so they have options for most of the combats per day, and is balanced by spirit influence.
i have to assume there will be a feat allowing you to use trance more quickly, and even with that assumption influence limits how frequently you could trance.
tldr; i want this class to have options during low levels, and one/day powers do not really count as options
Thanks for your feedback Hangman Henry! I hope you will put together a medium and try it out. Having played with a Strength-loving medium in Skull and Shackles from level 1-5 who easily kept up with our other frontliners, I would suggest when you do to look for a spirit that fits your playstyle. It seems like Cricket may not be the one. Beating and Bear can both be very fruitful at 1st level, particularly with Spirit Specialization in Strength.
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also obviously i missed the line saying you cant trance while using trance, so the class is worse that i thought.
taking that in light, the class is about as good as an adept from 1-9. npc class level power isn't a good place to be.
i have to assume you were afraid of making this class as good as the old binder, and nerfed it into the ground. a real shame.
as it is, it is great for a level one splash, and i don't know why you would take more levels of it unless you purposefully wanted to play a class that doesn't get to do things.
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a level two barbarian can have claw attacks while raging, and the same attack and damage bonus, but a full bab. the barbarian also gets more hp, and is faster.
beating makes you into a way worse monk, again with less combat options.
i have to assume these abilities are balanced for combat, because they only last a minute from trance and because of the lack of noncombat ones.
as far as cricket, i am definitely into taking a level of this to get that move bonus and ignoring difficult terrain on my character that just wants to go fast. i dunno why i would take more levels tho.
it takes you an hour to seance a new spirit, so you can't be a switch hitter. you can only trance in a new ability as a full round action once a day for they first 5 levels, so during the second or third fight you are just a guy with bad bab?
the feat doesn't make up for bad bab, that feat should be a feature of the class. arguing something is ok after a feat tax is really just agreeing that it is bad as written
could you post the stats of your skull &shackles character? im curious what sort of tactics you used each fight.
It's actually not mine. I would be happy to post Tethys eventually, but I'd rather allow you guys to come up with the combos you see rather than prescriptively tell you some of them right at the beginning and then quash creativity (also I think Tethys has an Int spirit that isn't in the playtest). How about this? Give it a try for a bit, and maybe in a week or two (depending on how things are going) I may drop in Tethys the medium (and maybe Eram the kineticist too). I will say in brief that I agree that at 1st level, the Cricket's 1st-level power is awesome (as is Bear, since as you said, other people probably won't have those claws until level 2 at best). Starting at level 2, I wouldn't underestimate the benefit of the Beating's seance boon being active on the whole party (also, the Beating is super-flavorful to be the one she chose to gain at level 2; if you've played the AP, you know what I mean!). That has been clutch for the party numerous times so far, especially when we've been in situations where we wanted to use back-up tactics or have the melee characters take some shots before an enemy closed to melee (for instance, crossbows' d8 really find that +2 damage attractive). Having spirit bonus +2 with two spirits at level 5 has so far been very effective.
Again, thanks for giving your feedback and being part of the playtest process. Even if your feedback is negative, we're listening, and we really appreciate it!
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...For that matter, will there be anything regarding how this fits into Golarion? Will we find out about some lost psychic island? (I can't remember if Distant Worlds had some references to alien races with psychic abilities, but it sounds familiar....)...There will not be a lot of discussion of Golarion in this book, as it's in the core rulebook line where we tend to keep campaign setting in the background. That said, there will be books in the Player Companion and Campaign Setting lines that address these rules head on, so folks interested in how to incorporate them into Golarion will not have to wait too long!
When I read the medium, the first thing that jumped out at me was the how I really really want to see a medium that, instead of being ridden by "vodoun" Loa, is ridden by aspects of The Eldest, the innumerable Vudran pantheon, or the Shoanti totems. I know the setting agnostic Occult Adventures wouldn't be the place for it, but I'd love to see it in a future AP/module/"Occult Origins".
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When I read the medium, the first thing that jumped out at me was the how I really really want to see a medium that, instead of being ridden by "vodoun" Loa, is ridden by aspects of The Eldest, the innumerable Vudran pantheon, or the Shoanti totems. I know the setting agnostic Occult Adventures wouldn't be the place for it, but I'd love to see it in a future AP/module/"Occult Origins"....For that matter, will there be anything regarding how this fits into Golarion? Will we find out about some lost psychic island? (I can't remember if Distant Worlds had some references to alien races with psychic abilities, but it sounds familiar....)...There will not be a lot of discussion of Golarion in this book, as it's in the core rulebook line where we tend to keep campaign setting in the background. That said, there will be books in the Player Companion and Campaign Setting lines that address these rules head on, so folks interested in how to incorporate them into Golarion will not have to wait too long!
The class says it can be whoever you want it to be. So don't wait! Channel these Eldest today! (some of them not today because the right spirit isn't in the playtest doc)
Green Mother—Liar
Imbrex—Peacock (or for one that's in the playtest doc, maybe the Twin, if you don't want Shyka)
Lantern King—Demon's Lantern
Magdh—Hidden Truth (or Inquisitor later
Ng—The Wanderer
Ragadahn—The Cyclone
Shyka—The Twin (I know Imbrex is actually a twin, but the powers seem too perfect for Shyka)
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my problem is that you don't have different options for what you do in combat. playtesting this isn't going to change that.
if it seems like im complaining too preemptively, its just because i want this class to be fun. the kineticist is the other class im looking at, and it is pretty clear on paper that it is going to be super fun, because i will have different things i can do each round of combat. as written the medium only gets different things to do each day.
Fool's Lantern lesser ability of Demon's Lantern spirit inflicts 1d6 points of damage per two medium levels without minimum of 1d6 points at 1st level - is that intentional that the killed wisp does not inflict damage at 1st level.
The Persevere power of the Teamster spirit could make it count as a Dexterity spirit in addition/instead of counting as Strength spirit - that way it would add spirit bonus to all saving throws and AC that would fit the theme.
Frozen In Place intermediate power of The Waxworks spirit seem to be very hard to pull off - Medium lacks enough attacks to reduce speed of most creatures to half in single round and then be able to make an attack once the creature is entangled.
Thanks for all the stuff you're looking at guys! @Henry, that should say "3" instead of severe. It used to have qualitative terms instead of numbers, but numbers make it simpler to track.
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all are slaves to the rakshasa: while seanced to rakshasa with influence two, if i trance and use this ability and it fails i lose control of my character. this seems like a pretty steep penalty for failing to have my command spell work. i.e. i've already used my swift action, my once per day ability, and one of my few spells per day.
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exploit dominion: what is the intent of the penalty to attacks and saves for people who are affected by your compulsions? most of the spells from the rakshasa last one round. if i seance this at first level the only part of the power that does anything is the longer duration of intimidate
if i trance with rakshasa at first level i get an ability i can't actually use unless i am multiclass. is this intentional?
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all are slaves to the rakshasa: while seanced to rakshasa with influence two, if i trance and use this ability and it fails i lose control of my character. this seems like a pretty steep penalty for failing to have my command spell work. i.e. i've already used my swift action, my once per day ability, and one of my few spells per day.
"If that target fails its saving throw, the Rakshasa gains 1 influence over you." You actually only lose control over your body if your spell succeeds (the enemy fails their save). So at that point, that dominate person or greater command had better be worth it! Especially with the dominate, you're now both slaves to the Rakshasa. After all, All Are Slaves to the Rakshasa, so it's all going exactly according to plan (for the twisted and manipulative Rakshasa, that is)
exploit dominion: what is the intent of the penalty to attacks and saves for people who are affected by your compulsions? most of the spells from the rakshasa last one round. if i seance this at first level the only part of the power that does anything is the longer duration of intimidate
if i trance with rakshasa at first level i get an ability i can't actually use unless i am multiclass. is this intentional?
It is intended that your main benefit will be the longer Intimidate at first (quite handy if you are good at bullying people around). It's also a good spirit to call in with trance while you've got another mindbender like the Liar up and running.
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It is intended that your main benefit will be the longer Intimidate at first (quite handy if you are good at bullying people around). It's also a good spirit to call in with trance while you've got another mindbender like the Liar up and running.exploit dominion: what is the intent of the penalty to attacks and saves for people who are affected by your compulsions? most of the spells from the rakshasa last one round. if i seance this at first level the only part of the power that does anything is the longer duration of intimidate
if i trance with rakshasa at first level i get an ability i can't actually use unless i am multiclass. is this intentional?
at level 3 if i trance this while running liar i get a +1 to intimidate and can make intimidate last longer. and that is all for me for the day. after this i only have simple weapon proficiency and 3/4 bab. sure, tomorrow i can have claws all day, but today, i did one skill check and now im done.
is there something else i can be doing all day? using liar to be cute to people? so some more charisma checks that i get +1 on?
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all are slaves to the rakshasa: while seanced to rakshasa with influence two, if i trance and use this ability and it fails i lose control of my character. this seems like a pretty steep penalty for failing to have my command spell work. i.e. i've already used my swift action, my once per day ability, and one of my few spells per day."If that target fails its saving throw, the Rakshasa gains 1 influence over you." You actually only lose control over your body if your spell succeeds (the enemy fails their save). So at that point, that dominate person or greater command had better be worth it! Especially with the dominate, you're now both slaves to the Rakshasa. After all, All Are Slaves to the Rakshasa, so it's all going exactly according to plan (for the twisted and manipulative Rakshasa, that is)
so this ability isn't actually good until level 10? and by good i mean not good, because you are effectively killing your character to "maybe" kill an enemy? if i lose control of myself, and i dominate someone, doesn't the gm still control both characters?
It is intended that your main benefit will be the longer Intimidate at first (quite handy if you are good at bullying people around). It's also a good spirit to call in with trance while you've got another mindbender like the Liar up and running.exploit dominion: what is the intent of the penalty to attacks and saves for people who are affected by your compulsions? most of the spells from the rakshasa last one round. if i seance this at first level the only part of the power that does anything is the longer duration of intimidate
if i trance with rakshasa at first level i get an ability i can't actually use unless i am multiclass. is this intentional?
at level 3 if i trance this while running liar i get a +1 to intimidate and can make intimidate last longer. and that is all for me for the day. after this i only have simple weapon proficiency and 3/4 bab. sure, tomorrow i can have claws all day, but today, i did one skill check and now im done.
is there something else i can be doing all day? using liar to be cute to people? so some more charisma checks that i get +1 on?
Yeah, it's 4th Liar with tranced Rakshasa that can leverage Exploit Dominion to really mess with people you've charmed. At 7th, going the other direction, All Are Slaves to the Rakshasa + Seductive Lies is also pretty nice. I'll leave you guys to find more of the other combos with these 18 spirits. There's even more with all 54!
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Yeah, it's 4th Liar with tranced Rakshasa that can leverage Exploit Dominion to really mess with people you've charmed. At 7th, going the other direction, All Are Slaves to the Rakshasa + Seductive Lies is also pretty nice. I'll leave you guys to find more of the other combos with these 18 spirits. There's even more with all 54!It is intended that your main benefit will be the longer Intimidate at first (quite handy if you are good at bullying people around). It's also a good spirit to call in with trance while you've got another mindbender like the Liar up and running.exploit dominion: what is the intent of the penalty to attacks and saves for people who are affected by your compulsions? most of the spells from the rakshasa last one round. if i seance this at first level the only part of the power that does anything is the longer duration of intimidate
if i trance with rakshasa at first level i get an ability i can't actually use unless i am multiclass. is this intentional?
at level 3 if i trance this while running liar i get a +1 to intimidate and can make intimidate last longer. and that is all for me for the day. after this i only have simple weapon proficiency and 3/4 bab. sure, tomorrow i can have claws all day, but today, i did one skill check and now im done.
is there something else i can be doing all day? using liar to be cute to people? so some more charisma checks that i get +1 on?
did you just say its pretty nice to be a 7th level character who can 2 times a day cast lesser geas at +4 dc and on the second time the lose control of their character? why not be a sorcerer/wizard and use extra feats/ school bonuses to cast it at +3 dc and not lose control of your character, and as an sorcerer/wizard actually do other things?
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hidden truth: this ability is the same as a rogue talent. so if i seance this, my ability all day is i am a level 2 rogue with no sneak attack.
the trend for these abilities is that they are not as good as full class, i assume because the thinking is that you can change them every day. for levels 1-6, this is terrible, as each day i can change what underpowered class i choose to be. i think there has to be a medium between being bad at everything all the time and being good at everything all the time. mebbe being actually good at some things some of the time? and being able to change what things you are good at?
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the waxworks first and second powers don't do anything for the first five levels. i guess if you are fighting with two weapons (claws from bear! (oh wait that doesn't work cause you cant trance two different things at once))) against a base 20 speed creature and someone else casts haste on you you can glue them in place on the third attack. and that is your option for the day. at 8th level with two weapon fighting feats you can start to glue people in place if you hit with all attacks. this would require a specific build that doesn't do much at all for levels 1-7 of course, but whatever.
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wisp: i love this one the most. such a cool ability. of course, after an opponent pops yer wisp, no one else will so you are done for the combat, but whatever. the wisp shield is good as long as you forget that moving the wisp is a move action so you aren't likely to have it in your square. the chance to damage attackers is cute, and would come up against anyone that saw you as a threat. again, levels 1-6 this spirit gives you pretty much no options in combat.
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I love the both the thematic and mechanical concept for this class!
But c'mon a MEDIUM, who surrenders his friggin' BODY to powerful spirits requires a strong Fortitude save (in addition to Will) because waking up from an 'influence 4+' rampage is a physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually tiring experience! no?
I plan on re-stating one of my NPC Bandit Lords, a goblin wererat who leads a band of 3d6 worg-riding 1st-level Rogue goblins in a Shared Seance and then into highway banditry, from Ranger (boring!) into a 5th level Medium, and plan on taking the Dual spirits Evil Strength and Intelligence (Beating and Rakshasa), to throw at my posse of 5+ semi-optimized level-two PCs.
Next game in 2.5 weeks. If he survives, he may become a recurring villain - if they slay him, I will give you a piece of my ear (actually either way) assuming this playtest is still up and running. cheers!
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All right, this is the class that jumped out at me. I enjoy characters who make themselves into pawns of forces they have no business messing with -- that's my kind of crazy.
There are a couple of spirits (Rabbit Prince and Owl) which temporarily become Strength spirits under certain conditions, possibly activating Boons. Until 11th level, that really just means Bear (since they are all Neutral) which means you are activating Claws. That seems...useless for Owl, since the duration is until the beginning of the next turn, and you'll likely have no opportunity to use them before then. For Rabbit Prince, it seems to last for the duration of the attack...which is also useless. Unless you attack with your fists, which are finesseable, thus sprouting claws, and you do claw damage? But that can't be right. Do I have the durations and interactions wrong, or do these synergies just not quite gel?
But honestly, this looks all kinds of cool.
I love the both the thematic and mechanical concept for this class!
But c'mon a MEDIUM, who surrenders his friggin' BODY to powerful spirits requires a strong Fortitude save (in addition to Will) because waking up from an 'influence 4+' rampage is a physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually tiring experience! no?
I plan on re-stating one of my NPC Bandit Lords, a goblin wererat who leads a band of 3d6 worg-riding 1st-level Rogue goblins in a Shared Seance and then into highway banditry, from Ranger (boring!) into a 5th level Medium, and plan on taking the Dual spirits Evil Strength and Intelligence (Beating and Rakshasa), to throw at my posse of 5+ semi-optimized level-two PCs.
Next game in 2.5 weeks. If he survives, he may become a recurring villain - if they slay him, I will give you a piece of my ear (actually either way) assuming this playtest is still up and running. cheers!
Oh man, that sounds awesome! You can double-dip the +2 Intimidate from the seance boon (which also hits all the other goblins too!) with the rakshasa's +2 bonus to all skills for a sizable increase, then they can all gang up on one PC (goblins in particular have low damage, so the +2 damage seance boon from the beating is going to help a lot if the PCs ignore the mooks after the first hit alone). If you can trance into Dogpile, that'll be INCREDIBLE for his rogues (but for goblins' sake, if you mention the ability's name, change it to something respectable for a bandit of his stature like Goblin Dogpile or Wolfpile).
All right, this is the class that jumped out at me. I enjoy characters who make themselves into pawns of forces they have no business messing with -- that's my kind of crazy.
There are a couple of spirits (Rabbit Prince and Owl) which temporarily become Strength spirits under certain conditions, possibly activating Boons. Until 11th level, that really just means Bear (since they are all Neutral) which means you are activating Claws. That seems...useless for Owl, since the duration is until the beginning of the next turn, and you'll likely have no opportunity to use them before then. For Rabbit Prince, it seems to last for the duration of the attack...which is also useless. Unless you attack with your fists, which are finesseable, thus sprouting claws, and you do claw damage? But that can't be right. Do I have the durations and interactions wrong, or do these synergies just not quite gel?
But honestly, this looks all kinds of cool.
You can also use the Twin's Copycat power to really mix things up!
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The first thing that comes to my mind looking at the Medium is: how the heck is PFS going to handle the GM suddenly gaining control of characters. Do the characters wander off? Is the player asked to leave while is character continues to be played? What happens if you have multiple Mediums at the table losing control? You know characters will eventually die while run by the GM; people will complain about GM griefing.
The term "expect table variation" is going to take on a whole new meaning.
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The first thing that comes to my mind looking at the Medium is: how the heck is PFS going to handle the GM suddenly gaining control of characters. Do the characters wander off? Is the player asked to leave while is character continues to be played? What happens if you have multiple Mediums at the table losing control? You know characters will eventually die while run by the GM; people will complain about GM griefing.
The term "expect table variation" is going to take on a whole new meaning.
Well, it does say that most mediums don't choose to take actions that would put them under the spirit's control (and it can never happen accidentally; that's a fundamental paradigm that we won't violate, even for very chaotic spirits). The GM is fully in their rights to have the PC wander off and do other things. There may be a need for a PFS rule of just "you can't take that last hit in PFS" if it turns out bad!
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From everything I've seen and tested, the Medium is in SERIOUS need of a d10 HD and full BAB.
Ranger, Paladin, and Bloodrager are all solid because they are primarily physical with a little magic backing them up.
The Warpriest, Bard, Inquisitor, Magus, Hunter, Summoner, and all other half-casters are solid because while they're not as tough or accurate as the Ranger, Paladin, and Bloodrager, they have a good selection of spells to make them Jacks of All Trades.
The Medium is neither. He's a squishy pseudo-caster; he got the worst of both worlds and I'd never want to play him because of that. It's not really on the level of an NPC class, but I'd rather take full levels of Fighter.
Giving him full BAB and the accompanying d10 HD would just end up making him as powerful as the other 3 pseudo-casters. Not MORE powerful; just "as-powerful" which is where you want it to be.