So...Superman. Man of Steel, World's Strongest Man, yadda yadda yadda. Could you make a Kryptonian race, make it powerful...and make it balanced for party play? Could you keep from making it overpowered? I've bounced ideas back and forth in my head, and I'm never quite sure how to specifically do it justice. They get so many advantages, it's rather absurd.
One of my ideas, is, to use the comics as inspiration. You know, Supes when he first appeared, he didn't fly, and he wasn't really -that- strong. He kind of slowly got all those different abilities as the years went on, and wavered back and forth between them between then and now. Maybe Superman is the atypical example, or maybe earth's sun is different from the Pathfinder's world's sun. Maybe on this new planet, abilities are spread out amongst different Kryptonians. You know, some can leap, some can fly, some do the laser vision, some decide to be That Guy and get Super Ventriloquism, etc etc etc.
Weaknesses would be pretty easy. Besides the cliche'd Kryptonite shpeal, they actually don't get any defenses against magic, and are weak against psionics. Mind you, with so many DMs banning Psionics, that could be tricky.
The most difficult part to me would be stats. But I have an idea. Maybe they either get a +2 to STR, a +2 to whatever nonphysical stat they want, and a negative to whatever stat they want, or they get a +4 to strength, but have to get negatives to a bunch of other stats of their choice?
What do you guys think?
At a minimum +4 str, maybe +6. DR 20/-. +2 to Con probably as well. Hold Breath ability (for flying in space). Fly speed of 100 at least, probably the same for land, and the sprint monster ability. +10 to perception. Burning Gaze as an at-will Sp.
I'd go with DR/Noqual equal to character level. Greenish gleaming skymetal?
Balanced? +4 str/ con in daylight. Basically you are looking to build an anti vampire. Gaze attack, flight, all the works, but only in daylight...
|
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
It's DR/ magic, because he has no defense against it, so year dr=half character level+2 or dr=BaB/magic or kryptonite DR drops by 1 for every hour spent out of direct sunlight
Energy substituted (to fire) ray of frost coming from the eyes (that you can spend a ratial feat to turn to scorching ray?) at will
Maybe fatigue after an hour out of sunlight
45ft land speed
The jump type flight of the monk of the four winds double land speed perfect maniuverability but must land at the end of every turn
Improved unarmed strike as a bonus feet
-4 to saves vs charm/compulsion -1 to saves vs all spells, spell like abilitys and supernatural abilities
Natural weapons count as magic for DR
Can never gain spell resistance from any source other than a spell or magic item.
+4str (possibly +6), +2 con (possibly a +4, with a +2 dex), +2 to any one mental stat
Don't know what you would do about kryptonight
Call it a +2 or +3 level adjustment race
|
Superman is a Kryptonian adventurer. Likely a level 2 character by himself.
He is part of the Justice League, which means a 13+ level character according to Evil Lincoln's rating. I would say Supe is in the higher levels of the League, like level 16.
Which means that the Kryptonian race by itself is +14 level adjustment race !!!
A weaker version, like the one above, should have high CHA, so that most of its members get interesting abilities through the Eldritch Heritage feat chain. Also it explains why Superman is a Paladin.
Very interesting ideas from everybody. I love how there are multiple paths to the same goal.
Are you calling Superman a cheater, Lord Foul?
Kryptonian Racial Stats
Str + 4
Dex + 2
Int - 2
Wis - 2Fly speed of 30 feet (average)
Base speed of 30 feetKryptonians are very resistant to physical damage, but weak against magic.
Kryptonians gain DR/Magic equal to their character level.
Kryptonians take a -2 penalty on all saving throws against spells, spell like abilities, and magical effects.Sun Powered - Kryptonians lose their racial Strength and Dexterity bonuses, flight, and damage reduction if they spend more than 24 hours without direct natural sunlight. Magic sunlight does not apply to this condition. A Kryptonians racial Wisdom and Intelligence penalties and saving throw penalties are not affected by sunlight, and remain even when a Kryptonian is in direct natural sunlight.
Superman would probably be a Monk. Just add a new feat to keep his flight speed up with his land speed.
New feat:
Flight Enhancement
Any enhancement effect that increases your normal land speed also applies to your flight speed.
What is the CR points for creating this? I'd like to know please..
To me, Superman seems best represented by an Outsider, either Angel or Archon.
Perhaps you could represent it with a Synethesist Summoner, Clark Kent turning into Superman?
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Superman is overpowered. That's his whole thing
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Kryptonite bullets...just saying!
Pathfinder tends to become wonky at the power levels that a superhero like Superman is built at. It can be done, yet it is likely better to try that build with a system that is already set up for Superheroes in mind.
As to the original question of can it be done? Yes, of course it can be done and made balanced - so long as the other PCs can make characters of equivalent power (Other powerful superheroes or cosmic entities), and the threats facing the group are made to challenge them in some way.
Would be funny to let PCs make Kryptonian level characters, bind them with a moral code to match superheroes of the Silver age, and find out that all the plots are purely social in nature.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
-2 Int? These people built an incredibly advanced civilization. As in—pew pew laser beams advanced (also, spaceships).
+110 Strength +50 Dexterity +90 Constitution +20 Intelligence
Damage Reduction 50/-
Immune Acid, Cold, Electricity, Fire
Movement 1,000,000
Super Breath: Ranged Trip Attack
Heat Vision: Range tough Attack 15d6
Vulnerability Kryptonite, Red Sun
So much more needed
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
ok quick and dirty, not playtested, use at your own risk.
Kryptonian
Use Monk
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Kryptonians are proficient with the simple weapons. However, they deal unarmed damage to the object they are using due to their tremendous strength.
Kryptonians are not proficient with any armor or shields.
When wearing armor or using a shield, a Kryptonians loses his AC bonus, as well as his fast movement and flurry of blows abilities.
Weakness Viridium: Kryptonians become deathly sick in the presence (10’) of Viridium. They become nauseated and loose access to their Kr pool which cuts them off from their abilities. Every round of exposure drains 1 Kr point from the Kr pool. Once depleted the drain begins affecting Constitution until the Kryptonians death.
Weakness Sunlight dependency: Kryptonians must make endurance checks for every 24 hours without exposure to a yellow sun. Failure prevents them from regaining Kr pool points until they spend at least 5 minutes basking in the sun to replenish their power. Magical light never replaces the need for sunlight.
Change AC Bonus to work off of Con
Change Still Mind (Ex) to DR 5/Magic
Ki Pool(Su) to Kryptonian Pool (Ex) - The number of points in the pool is equal to 1/2 his Kryptonian level + his Con modifier. As long as he has at least 1 point in his Kr pool, he can make a Kr strike. At 4th level, Kr strike allows his unarmed attacks to ignore 1 point of hardness per level, ½ this bonus on strength checks to break object and Resist Fire, Electricity, Cold, and Acid 1/level. A Kryptonian gains a bonus on perception checks ½ his level. At 7th level, is PC is treated as large where it will benefit him. The Kryptonian gains a +8 bonus to Strength, a +4 bonus to Constitution, and a +2 bonus to its natural armor. It gains a +1 bonus to its CMB and CMD. He does not gain reach. At 12th level, he gains Penetrating Strike. At 16th level, he gains Greater Penetrating Strike.
By spending 1 point from his Kr pool, a Kryptonian can make one additional attack at his highest attack bonus when making a flurry of blows attack. In addition, he can spend 1 point to increase his speed by 20 feet for 1 round. Finally, a Kryptonian can spend 1 point from his Kr pool to give himself a +4 dodge bonus to AC for 1 round. Each of these powers is activated as a swift action. A Kryptonian gains additional powers that consume points from his Kr pool as he gains levels.
The Kr pool is replenished each morning after 8 hours of rest or meditation; these hours do not need to be consecutive.
Replace Purity of Body (Ex) with Immune (Ex): At 5th level, a Kryptonian gains immunity to all diseases and poisons, except supernatural and magical diseases and poisons.
Replace Wholeness of Body (Su) with Drink the Sun (Ex): At 7th level or higher, a Kryptonian can heal his own wounds as a standard action. He can heal a number of hit points of damage equal to his Kryptonian level by using 2 points from his Kr pool.
Replace Diamond Body (Su) with DR 10/magic
Replace Abundant Step (Su) with Kryptonian Powers
Flight (Ex): At 12th level or higher, a Kryptonian can fly as if using the spell Fly. Using this ability is a move action that consumes 2 points from his Kr pool. His caster level for this effect is equal to his Kryptonian level.
Heat Vision (Ex): At 12th level or higher, a Kryptonian can use Searing Light as if casting the spell. Using this ability is a standard action that consumes 2 points from his Kr pool. His caster level for this effect is equal to his Kryptonian level.
Throw Bolder (Ex): At 12th level or higher, a Kryptonian can throw a heavy object at an opponent inflicting 3d6+Str with a range increment 10’xStrength Modifier as a ranged attack. Using this ability is a standard action that consumes 2 points from his Kr pool.
Replace Diamond Soul (Ex) with Power House (Ex): At 13th level, as long as a Kryptonian has at least 1 Kr point he is treated as a huge creature where it would benefit him. The Kryptonian gains a +16 bonus to Strength, a +8 bonus to Constitution, and a +5 bonus to its natural armor. It gains a +2 bonus to its CMB and CMD. He does not gain reach. These bonuses and penalties replace, and do not stack with, those gained at 7th level and being treated as large.
Replace Quivering Palm (Su) with Greater Kryptonian Power (Ex):
At 15th level or higher, a Kryptonian can use Overland Flight as if casting the spell. Using this ability is a move action that consumes 3 points from his Kr pool. His caster level for this effect is equal to his Kryptonian level.
At 15th level or higher, a Kryptonian can use Cone of Cold as if casting the spell. The reflex save DC is 10 + ½ Kryptonian level + the Kryptonian’s Con modifier). Using this ability is a standard action that consumes 3 points from his Kr pool. His caster level for this effect is equal to his Kryptonian level.
Replace Timeless Body (Ex) with Almost Immortal (Ex): At 17th level, a Kryptonian no longer takes penalties to his ability scores for aging, but can be magically aged. Any such penalties that he has already taken, however, remain in place. Age bonuses still accrue but the Kryptonian cannot die of old age. He effectually stops ageing. If magically aged beyond maximum age, he will die.
Replace Tongue of the Sun and Moon (Ex) with Telepathy (Ex): A Kryptonian of 17th level or higher can speak with any living creature with a language within 100’.
Replace Empty Body (Su) with Turn Back Time: At 19th level, a Kryptonian gains the ability to Time Stop as though using the spell Time Stop. Using this ability is a move action that consumes 4 points from his Kr pool. His caster level for this effect is equal to his Kryptonian level.
Unstopable: At 20th level, as long as a Kryptonian has at least 1 Kr point he is treated as a Gargantuan creature where it would benefit him. The Kryptonian gains a +24 bonus to Strength, a +12 bonus to Constitution, and a +9 bonus to its natural armor. It gains a +4 bonus to its CMB and CMD. He does not gain reach. These bonuses and penalties replace, and do not stack with, those gained at 13th level and being treated as huge.
Hmmm, How about a shapeable Wall of Ice????
So, a complete list:
Over the course of the character's existence of 75 years, Superman has—at some point or another—had various combinations of the following powers and abilities. The levels of those individual powers and abilities have also changed in intensity, from "merely" enhanced above that of normal humans to truly god-like. Some added as the character evolved, others toned down and restricted in later eras.
- Solar Energy Absorption – Superman's powers rely on his cells' ability to absorb and metabolize solar energy from local stars like Earth's sun. His Kryptonian body is a living "solar battery" that absorbs solar energies and converts them to fuel for his powers. His cells also store yellow sun energy so he can use his powers under objects, at night, in dark places, and in space. (Pre-Crisis, yellow stars were said to emit "ultra solar rays" which enabled Kryptonians' superpowers; penetrating the Earth itself, said rays also enabled Kryptonians to stay super-powered at night.[1][2]) The more yellow sun rays Superman absorbs the stronger he gets; in some instances he has been shown to enter the sun in order to increase his powers to their highest potentials, as seen in 1998's DC One Million storyline. Superman can also absorb solar energies of other class stars such as when he absorbed the solar energies of a blue star that increased his abilities to a higher degree and gave him additional abilities. The light of dwarf stars, pulsars, and quasars also grants superman different abilities.[3]
- Superhuman Strength – Enhanced strength far above that of a human and even most superhumans, making him "more powerful than a locomotive," is one of Superman's signature powers and has often been described as chief among his other abilities. While not infinite, depictions of the upper limit of how much weight he can lift have ranged from being able to do the work of several laborers in half the time, crush diamonds in his grasp, lift objects hundreds of times his own weight including any sized vehicle over his head, bend steel with his bare hands, lifting mountains, and all the way up to in the Silver Age and Modern Age where he is seen moving entire planets. This makes him the strongest being in the DC Universe. After being saturated with yellow solar energy in All-Star Superman, his strength was tested as exceeding the force of 200 quintillion tons (or 2x1020 tons in scientific notation, i.e., two hundred billion billion tons) he held this much with one hand and he even said he feels like he can pick up more, enough to pull the Earth away from the sun.[4] As of The New 52 reboot, his strength now exceeds 5.972 sextillion metric tons.[5] Explanations include being adapted to the heavier gravity of Krypton, and his muscles using the power of the solar energy which fuels all his abilities. Whilst in direct yellow sunlight, his strength can be augmented to limitless and incalculable levels. He has strength necessary to shatter entire worlds. Superman's stamina has also been shown as limitless (whilst he remains in yellow sunlight).
- Invulnerability – Immunity to almost all forms of harm and ailments, including extreme force and extremely high temperatures. Effectiveness has ranged from his skin being piercable by nothing less than a "bursting shell" to being completely unharmed by a star going supernova. Explanations for this ability have ranged from [Kryptonians] having a molecular structure with a density superior to that of titanium and emitting an unbreakable aura of solar energy. His invulnerability has enabled him to withstand Darkseid's omega beams, a feat originally thought to be impossible. In the rare instances, however, Superman has required medical attention, this resistance to injuries has complicated necessary procedures such as surgery. For instance, when a criminal shot him with a kryptonite bullet, a surgeon was forced to give Superman a controlled exposure to the mineral in order to temporarily weaken his skin enough to make the incisions necessary to remove internal fragments of the bullet.[6] Superman can also withstand kryptonite in certain circumstances, such as lifting an island made of kryptonite and tossing it into space in Superman Returns. Superman has something that increases his invulnerability called a bio-electric aura which protects him from some attacks and can be extended to protect others like in All Star Superman. In some versions, this power greatly retards his aging and increases as he gets older, sometimes rendering him effectively immortal. The epilogue to the Justice Society of America storyline "Thy Kingdom Come" (a sequel of sorts to the Kingdom Come limited series) showing Superman surviving 1,000 years into the future, albeit as a very elderly, hunched-over man. Another version in DC One Million lives through the 853rd Century, some 83,200 years from now, though he was living inside the sun for thousands of years before coming out, making him godlike in his abilities.
- Healing Factor – Superman is shown to possess remarkable recuperative powers that allow him to quickly heal from wounds and makes him immune to all forms of human or Earthly diseases, illnesses, viruses and toxins. Superman heals faster when he is closer to the sun and he is absorbing more sun rays.
- Flight – Because Earth exhibits less gravitational pull than that of Krypton, and also due to Superman's solar-powered body, the Man of Steel can also alter his personal mono-directional gravity field to propel himself through the air at will. Originally, he only had the power to jump great distances, as stated by the 1940s Superman cartoons ("Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound"). Has ranged from simply being able to jump great distances using his vast strength, to beginning in late 1941 being able to accelerate, float in midair, and change direction while traveling. Later he became able to traverse interstellar distances without stopping. Lex Luthor once theorized that Superman had to stem from a gigantic planet with enormous gravity, where his species had developed natural anti-gravity organs to be able to function; on Earth, this would allow him to control his own gravimetric field in order to fly.[7]
- Superhuman Speed – Another one of Superman's signature abilities is his superhuman speed, allowing him to move, react, run and fly faster than the human eye can perceive. Originally classified as being "faster than a speeding bullet", allowing him to catch bullets in mid air before they hit him, or anyone else. Top speeds have ranged from nearly a hundred miles per hour when he was first created in the 1930s to speeds surpassing the speed of light. His thoughts, perceptions and reflexes are also accelerated to be able to control his actions while moving at high speeds and being able to peceive the world in slow-motion. Superman's running speed has often been shown to be on par with that of The Flash's. Wally West said he was initially slower than Superman until overcoming his anxiety over succeeding Barry Allen and fully mastering the speed force. He describes Superman as running over two thousand miles per second.[8] In Superman: Red Son he claimed to be able to move faster than ten times the speed of thought.
- X-Ray Vision – The ability to see through solid objects, usually with the exception of lead. Early stories assumed that hiding objects in lead would prevent him from finding them, however, more modern stories have Superman being able to take advantage of lead's opaqueness to do a wide scan of an area with his X-Ray vision in which the lead objects become immediately visible and then narrow his search to those specific locations.[9] Explanations for how this power works vary, but rarely include the emission and perception of actual X-Rays, as such high-energy radiation would actually be dangerous to living things he uses it on. A more common theory involves being able to see and concentrate on the patterns of natural cosmic radiation as it reverberates off objects. X-Ray vision was first used by Superman in Action Comics #11 (April 1939), where it was called "Superman's X-ray eyesight".
- Superhuman Intelligence – Superman possesses intellect that surpasses genius-level. People from Krypton already had genius-level intellect, being a society thousands of years ahead of Earth in technology. In the presence of a yellow sun, Superman's intelligence is further enhanced, giving him super intelligence and allowing his brain to operate faster than a supercomputer.[10] His intelligence has enabled him to create effective strategies and tactics when engaging enemies during situations that his powers alone can't get him out of.
- Eidetic Memory – Superman is shown to have flawless, total recall of everything he has ever seen, read, or heard.
- Multilingualism – Superman is able to learn, speak and understand any language he comes in contact with.
- Heat Vision – Ability to emit solar energy from his eyes. Usually resembles bright red or orange laser-like beams, which may be invisible at low temperatures but extremely bright at high ones. The effective range of his beams are hundreds of feet. It can also reach hundreds of miles wide, instantly disintegrating a person. In addition to varying the beam width, height, and intensity, Superman has demonstrated a high degree of skill and accuracy in manipulating his beam, being able to use this power with surgical precision and at microscopic levels. Superman can lobotomize or excise someone's psionic powers as shown in The Elite when he cut off Manchester Black's powers. Since the power can be used invisibly, Superman often takes advantage of that to perform tasks subtly without needing to get into costume. In some versions, these beams can also be used to produce great concussive force rather than heat. The beams are tremendously powerful, and can be used to rupture steel plates and pulverize rock. Also in some stories, it can be reflected like a true laser, able to use great skill and accuracy in manipulating the blasts off multiple targets in rapid succession, or more commonly to remove his very durable facial hair. Sometimes shown to be one of his more physically draining powers to use, as it uses such concentrated solar energy. In the pre-Crisis stories, Clark wears glasses with lenses made of Kryptonian glass (initially cannibalized from his rocket ship's transparency dome) so he can fire his heat vision through them without damaging them. In the stories from the 1986 relaunch onward, Clark wears glasses with regular lenses, which force Clark to momentarily lift them out of his eyes' firing arc to use his heat vision effectively. In revision in Superman: Secret Origin, Clark wears glasses with Kryptonian glass that are intended to contain unwanted firings. Heat vision was initially introduced as "the heat of his x-ray vision" (a byproduct of his existing x-ray vision powers) in Superman (vol. 1) #59 (July 1949); heat vision as a separate power first appeared in Action Comics #275 (April 1961).
- Superhuman Breath – Ability to inhale and exhale huge volumes of air with great force, capable of extinguishing large fires and moving heavy objects such as cars. Super-breath also allows Superman to hold his breath for extended periods in airless environments. In one 70s-era Superman comic[volume & issue needed], he saved a town from a tornado by inhaling the twister into his lungs. He then flew just above Earth's atmosphere, with his chest looking somewhat distended, and exhaled the tornado into space. In another 70s comic[volume & issue needed], Superman was inflicted with a condition whereby if he stepped in the ground or otherwise came in physical contact with the surface of the Earth, explosive energy orbs would begin to rise from the area immediately near him, endangering anyone nearby. When Superman realized he was causing the orbs to appear, he resolved to always fly until he could find a solution to the problem. However, as Clark Kent, he couldn't be seen flying; instead, Clark walked around constantly expelling a jet of air straight down from his nostrils to keep his body just millimeters from his walking surface. The release (exhalation) of highly compressed air through a valve (such as pursed lips) causes it to drop radically in temperature. This is known as the Joule–Thomson effect, and when Superman does this, it is usually referred to as Freeze Breath, and can cool objects to sub-zero temperatures and freeze air moisture solid.[11]
- Superhuman Hearing – Can hear far more sounds with far more detail and at far greater distances than normally humanly possible, including sounds on frequencies undetectable by humans such as dog whistles. Superman is able to mentally screen out most of these sounds to be able to function normally, even in a noisy environment, and can focus in on specific things, like a person's voice or heartbeat, even if they are in another part of the city. He can even hear sounds on other planets, which makes it likely that his hearing is fundamentally different from that of a human, as sound cannot travel through the vacuum of space. Like humans and most animals, he is skilled at automatically noticing his own name out of the jumble of several overheard conversations, making him adept at quickly responding to calls of distress all over the city.
- Superhuman Vision – His senses grant him the ability to see farther and with greater accuracy and detail than humanly possible. Sometimes includes the ability to see EM frequencies invisible to humans, such as radio transmissions, infrared light, the bioelectric aura which surrounds all living things, even in pitch-black darkness. Offshoots of this power include Telescopic Vision, which allows him to "zoom in" on far away objects, sometimes hundreds of miles away, and Microscopic Vision, which allows him to zoom in on objects that would normally be too small to see, like those on a cellular or molecular level.
- Superhuman Olfaction – A heightened and highly accurate sense of smell comparable to some animals such as dogs. Can be used to detect things like the chemicals in a bomb hidden somewhere in a crowded room.
- Master Combatant – While most authors prefer to portray him as having mediocre combat prowess in favor of showing the magnitude of his powers in battle, there have been some exceptions. Many stories depict Superman as a very capable fighter with or without his abilities, as he has been trained by both Wildcat in boxing and Mongul in the fighting arts. He has fought and learned from Wonder Woman and has also learned more advanced martial arts techniques from Batman. To a lesser degree, Superman is also adept at armed combat, as he is shown to be decent with a sword and hammer. He has also learned two different types of Kryptonian fighting styles, Torquasm-Rao and Torquasm-Vo to enhance his body and mind. As of the New 52, Superman returns to being a currently untrained combatant, however, Captain Comet remarked that the Man of Steel's brawling skills are formidable.
Feel free to build off of these.
Here's my really quick version.
- Solar Energy Absorption: 24 hours or greater without sunlight = power loss; also strength of the sun (yes, I know it's not the original name), and eyes of the sun (because, why not), constant whatever effect visitors use to visit the sun without dying
- Superhuman Strength: +8 enhancement bonus, +6 inherent, might of the gods (based on his own HD), Strength Surge (instead of rage, use 2+2/lvl), additional +2 racial (beyond his base), bonus to acrobatics and swim, +8 morale bonus; arbitrarily high racial bonus (though, perhaps, this is not true considering his other bonuses), constant ant haul
- Invulnerability; strength of body (see above), DR 20/magic or noqual (see below), invulnerable mythic template; material weakness: noqual (aka "kryptonite"), and school aversion (all)
- Healing Factor: fast healing 1/-, regeneration 1/kryptonite
- Flight: as landspeed (perfect), including any increases to that speed
- Superhuman Speed: constant haste, (x/day) mythic maximized empowered time stop , feet feat (x arbitrary amount; plus mythic)
- X-Ray Vision: we have that
- Superhuman Intelligence: bonus to skills,
- Eidetic Memory: we have that, too
- Multilingualism: we have this too, too
- Heat Vision: already covered as "lots of options" but scorching ray (x2) is most likely <with optional maximized/empowered effect>
- Superhuman Breath: limited no breath ability (I don't know how limited, but it allows his space-flight jaunts and trips to the sun)
- Superhuman Hearing: blindsense, keen hearing (from 3.5)
- Superhuman Vision: see in darkness, lowlight vision (x arbitrarily high); arcane sight, detect (animals or plants, disease, expertise, pregnancy, scrying, secret doors, snares and pits, teleportation), metals and minerals, and other similar), scrying, clairaudience/clairvoyance, see invisibility, deathwatch, discern lies, discern location, touchsight, arbitrarily high bonus to perception (also applies to other senses; probably other bonuses, too, like skill focus, and that one spell or extract that provides, like, +30 to perception, and the thing that reduces penalties for distance)
- Superhuman Olfaction: scent, keen scent
- Master Combatant: can break stuff, ferocity, and (as others have suggested) level 18-20 monk (or similar) who has every improvised weapon and unarmed strike-based feat, and/or one or more archetypes
Aside from that, he's probably something akin to a level 2-6 expert (as a reporter, expert in disguise, decent spokesman/diplomat, and similar skills).
That's... really just a quick "off the cuff" set of ideas. Adjust (take, remove, add, etc) to taste.
Aside from that, he's probably something akin to a level 2-6 expert (as a reporter, expert in disguise, decent spokesman/diplomat, and similar skills).
I'd probably give him some caster levels or such because he is quite the crafter when it comes to powerful objects.
That's a good point, though, actually, I'd suggest just the feats; combined with his excessive ranks in Craft skills (and, I guess, Spellcraft? Probably some other kind of 'craft found in Technology Guide) and Master Craftsman feats, he needs no spellcasting levels to qualify.
Actually, I'd strongly recommend looking at the mythic stuff. I failed note before, but the agile mythic template (same link as the invincible mythic template). He might have more than a couple of special mythic powers which allow other similar elements or effects (including crafting proficiency).
Why 60-70? It's probably correct, I'm just curious where you got that number.
Does my suggested constant ant haul-effect lower that?
Add together, the above bonuses are (+8+6+8+2 =) +24, or about a STR of 42 (hah! Nerd-squee moment) with a presumed start of 18 (plus, of course, any arbitrarily high race bonuses).
Correction: I meant to say "fleet feat" instead of "feet feat". Oops.
Also, on the topic of crafting things, mythic craft, and crafting mastery (ex) mythic abilities cover all of his crafting needs (we'll say he can pick up the latter without the arch mage path - we're building a racial template from scratch, here).
Oh, I didn't mention: all of his spell-like abilities are likely:
- quickened (a swift action)
- enlarged, extended, and/or widened (where applicable)
- maximized and empowered (all variables, even those not normally affected by this... see below)
-- -- controlled (i.e. he chooses a value from minimum to maximum that he can apply; this ignores the maximized property above, though he loses this ability when his powers rage out of control...)
Also, I forgot to mention: super-human breath also includes cone of cold and modify memory (although only to erase memories).
Taking a queues from the Godling class, he probably has Strength as his "casting stat" for his spell-like abilities, and they work even in areas of antimagic or similar.
Additionally, he probably has something that increases the damage of his unarmed strike even beyond the normal monk increases - something that treats him, say, as if he were two or three size categories larger than he actually was. This would partially explain his ability to affect extremely large things in ways that he otherwise could not be.
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Why 60-70? It's probably correct, I'm just curious where you got that number.
I went by common figures for post-Crisis Superman -- 100 tons -- because pre-Crisis Superman is strong enough to push around planets. Going by the carrying capacity tables, multiplying carrying capacity by 4 adds 10 Strength. 26 Str has 920 pounds lift, and from there, *4*4*4*4= 256 times 920 pounds which is in the ballpark of 100 tons.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Using mythic abilities like Display of Strength and Mules Strength can be better used to increase carrying capacity instead of bloating the characters statblock.
Cool. Very nice. Thanks! :D
So a constant Ant Haul would help with that, at least somewhat.
Let's see, 2k lbs in 1 ton.
100 tons = 200,000 pounds.
200,000 pounds/3 = 66,667 pounds (more or less, rounded up).
Divided by 920 = 72.464 (let's round to 73).
73* 920 gets us about where we need to be.
So, 73/4 = 18, or about +18 beyond 26. Does that work out? (I may be really off - I'm being really distracted by a wonderful 2-year-old, and a hungry family). Again, let's round to 19.
26+19 = 45.
So, starting from 25...
*4 at 35, *4 at 45...
It looks like my math is going to be quite off, but let's try it anyway.
800*4*4 = 12,800
Nope. Not even close. I went off somewhere significant.
Let's try (arbitrarily) 55 instead.
That nets us 51,200 which (when *3 for ant haul) ~~ 153,600.
Close, but still not there.
So, let's try 60. Starting at 20, that's a set of 4 +10s.
Thus, 400*4*4*4*4 = 102,400 or about ~ 307,200 for ant haul.
Okay, so 60 is definitely too high.
59? STR 29 nets 1,400 lbs. max, so 39 (*4), 49 (*4) and 59 (*4) means 1,400*4*4*4 = 89,600; at *3 that's, 268,800 lbs. Still a bit too high, but we're really close now. Considering that STR 60 was 100k too high, and 59 dropped us about 32k lbs, let's drop to 57.
STR 27 nets 1,040 lbs., so so 37 (*4), 47 (*4) and 57 (*4) means 1,040*4*4*4 = 66,560; at *3 that's, 199,680 lbs.
Ding-ding-ding! We have a winner!
Either 57 or 58 STR.
So, given my +24 above, we've got about 33 or 34 points to come from somewhere. Let's say that 17 or 18 points come from his natural STR score. That leaves us needing a +16. If we grant him the advanced template, that drops the requirements down to +12 - something very easily doable by way of monster stats! Nice! That means that he gets a +12 "racial" bonus when powered by daylight. Considering he can barely stand when not powered by daylight, I'd suggest that he drops this +12, the advanced template, and the +24 various bonuses above. When he is affected by kryptonite, he not only has that issue, but also takes a -6 penalty to all physical ability scores.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Cool. Very nice. Thanks! :D
So a constant Ant Haul would help with that, at least somewhat.
Let's see, 2k lbs in 1 ton.
100 tons = 200,000 pounds.
200,000 pounds/3 = 66,667 pounds (more or less, rounded up).
Divided by 920 = 72.464 (let's round to 73).
73* 920 gets us about where we need to be.
So, 73/4 = 18, or about +18 beyond 26. Does that work out? (I may be really off - I'm being really distracted by a wonderful 2-year-old, and a hungry family). Again, let's round to 19.
26+19 = 45.
So, starting from 25...
*4 at 35, *4 at 45...It looks like my math is going to be quite off, but let's try it anyway.
800*4*4 = 12,800
Nope. Not even close. I went off somewhere significant.
Let's try (arbitrarily) 55 instead.
That nets us 51,200 which (when *3 for ant haul) ~~ 153,600.
Close, but still not there.
So, let's try 60. Starting at 20, that's a set of 4 +10s.
Thus, 400*4*4*4*4 = 102,400 or about ~ 307,200 for ant haul.
Okay, so 60 is definitely too high.
59? STR 29 nets 1,400 lbs. max, so 39 (*4), 49 (*4) and 59 (*4) means 1,400*4*4*4 = 89,600; at *3 that's, 268,800 lbs. Still a bit too high, but we're really close now. Considering that STR 60 was 100k too high, and 59 dropped us about 32k lbs, let's drop to 57.
STR 27 nets 1,040 lbs., so so 37 (*4), 47 (*4) and 57 (*4) means 1,040*4*4*4 = 66,560; at *3 that's, 199,680 lbs.
Ding-ding-ding! We have a winner!
Either 57 or 58 STR.
So, given my +24 above, we've got about 33 or 34 points to come from somewhere. Let's say that 17 or 18 points come from his natural STR score. That leaves us needing a +16. If we grant him the advanced template, that drops the requirements down to +12 - something very easily doable by way of monster stats! Nice! That means that he gets a +12 "racial" bonus when powered by daylight. Considering he can barely stand when not powered by daylight, I'd suggest that he drops this +12, the advanced template, and the +24 various bonuses above....
Display of Strength adds 20 for carrying capacity (for several hours), and Mules Strength adds 5 (stacks with itself if taken multiple times and everything else). So you can deduct that 58 to even as low as 23 with Display of Strength and Mules Strength taken 3 times.
Nice. Can you take Mule's Strength multiple times? Huh - I didn't notice that.
Does Display of Strength interact properly with the other effects? Mule's Strength? I haven't looked into it, really.
What about Muleback Cords? How do they interact with Ant Haul? (Though, I guess we're avoiding magic items, so... never-mind! :D)
I do suggest that we probably shouldn't drop his strength too much below the high 20s or 30s - too many other things kind of depend on it.
That said, that's pretty great stuff, over-all.
Nice. Can you take Mule's Strength multiple times? Huh - I didn't notice that.
Does Display of Strength interact properly with the other effects? Mule's Strength? I haven't looked into it, really.
What about Muleback Cords? How do they interact with Ant Haul? (Though, I guess we're avoiding magic items, so... never-mind! :D)
I do suggest that we probably shouldn't drop his strength too much below the high 20s or 30s - too many other things kind of depend on it.
That said, that's pretty great stuff, over-all.
What things to depend on it?
He has a limited amount of mythic power and he needs his strength for:
* damage (and attack)
* skills
* carrying capacity
* basic STR checks (such as breaking things)
* other stuff that I'm not thinking of right now, because distracted (ADD and life does that), among other things
I strongly agree with using mythic to make him more... well, mythic, but he needs a great strength to actually be Superman and unlike the other options, there's no game mechanic way of allowing him constant or easily consistent versions of those effects.
EDIT: And the corollary, of course, is that we're attempting to avoid a strangely inflated stat-block; too many different abilities that do the same thing as a higher strength just balloons the stat block for... little purpose, really. Yes, there's some gain in giving him alternate abilities rather than just strength, but there's a line to walk. I don't disagree that he should have those abilities... just that it might be good to keep him pretty far up there.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
When I did the math of the DC Universe MEGS 2E game, I came to a strength around 120.