Hello Gentlethings! I hope I've found you on a pleasant evening, as I may be making a rather lofty request of you all.
I need some help putting together a concept I've been dying to try out, a Qlippothi-Spawn that uses a clown's wardrobe to hide his(it's?) hideous mutations (Skin is as pale as clown makeup, Wig covers up head tentacles, Clown nose covers up finger-for-nose, body is a tumor-ridden chaotic tangle covered up by baggy clown jumpsuit).
I've always been a fan of the abomination clown concept (Loves me some IT and Killer Klowns From Outer Space), and I'd like some help thinking up a mechanically viable build for one.
The core concept of the character is that he should use Fear as his main strategy. I'd considered going a dazzling display route, but that's a poor substitute for the psychologically destructive arts of Pennywise, especially with such tempting fair as Phantasmal killer, cause fear, and the whole menagerie of fear based magics. The thing is, I've never built a caster before (Literally, never), so I'd really need a lot of help figuring out how to make one. Especially a +2 str +2 Wis -2 int one.
Further constraining my options, is the fact that I wouldn't consider an ancient abberant spawned clown to be very religious, so I'd rather stay away from Inquisitors/Clerics unless there is a particularly awesome Qlippoth deity I've never heard of.
I'm sorry if I'm not giving you guys a lot to work with here, it's just that I make my characters concept first, and am often completely daunted by the crunch.
Another facet of the character I think would be fun, is having clown descriptors on all kinds of battlefield tomfoolery. Acid splash is coming from a flower lapel, Shocking Grasp is a Joy Buzzer, Dirty trick (Blind) could be a pie in the face (I'll have to buy so many pies, I wonder how expensive they will be...), et cetera.
Any advice you guys could give would be warmly received by myself, and feel free to chime in if you've had similar concepts that you wanted to get a few tips on as well. There are no wrong answers, only a wrong original question (I am so cementing my reputation as the guy who makes "weird characters" at my group...).
For inspiration:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cMvG8UKkr8
(I can't wait to use the Qlippothi trait Vile Kiss and then say "Kiss me, Fatboy!")
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cw4bz1ZIkZ8&feature=endscreen&NR=1
(Monk, anyone?)
You could probably come up with a cleric (or other divine caster) devoted to a cause, such as the destruction of all mortals/daemons, or even just the Qlippothi way of life. Not exactly religious.
I mean, I kind of want to tell you that a Bard is the way to go based on the concept you've described with the lethal clown-pranks, but they're Charisma casters. You could probably still make it work, but this guy's racial bonuses seem a better fit for a Wisdom-based caster that can also enter melee.
Anyway, good for you! I hope this nightmare/psychological issue really works out well for you!
If you wanna go with It-Haha the pun- you could just make your own Quipploth-species. Steven Kings It,at least in the books, would be an extremely powerful deitiy, but the movie version could just be potrait by some tailormade demon or shapechanger.
You could then proceed to add every ability you need. Frightful presence to inspire fear and illusion spells at will, to seemingly warp reality at his will.
I would also consider making him an Assasin. With a class specializing in Sneak Attacks and murder, you can instill fear, while using invisibilty to back out when needed.
Well but the spellcaster would probably be the best alternative.
However how strong is the guy supposed to be? What level is your party? Do you want them to battle him head on or make a horrorscenario, where they need to find another way to get him?
Would that work? I thought Clerics literally had to name an exact deity to worship, because there are some pretty cool domains that could work. Bard is definitely an idea, the character doesn't have to be completely maximized, but I had the same worries about going Charisma based. It would synergize with combat Intimidating though. Thanks for the response!
Oh, and Mikaze? Exactly.
Oh, you caught me between posts 13igAl. I should of been clearer, I want to -play- as the horror clown. I don't want to bend the rules much for the character, as to avoid antagonizing the GM with "I'm a special butterfly"ness.
Would that work? I thought Clerics literally had to name an exact deity to worship, because there are some pretty cool domains that could work.
Yeah, that would absolutely work. That's been a tenet of the Cleric class since... heck at least 2nd Edition. Maybe before. In fact, here's a quote from the PF SRD that talks about Domain selection:
If a cleric is not devoted to a particular deity, she still selects two domains to represent her spiritual inclinations and abilities (subject to GM approval).
The way I've always viewed it is that if you are a cleric of a philosophy instead of a deity, it has to be something that a group of people care about, not just your character. The larger the group of people, the easier having a cleric of the movement is to justify.
If Qlippoths are devoted as a race to the eradication of daemons (and by extension mortals), then I can easily see how a GM would approve a cleric of that movement.
Ah so it's a character Build. I automatically assumed you were the GM and wanted this as the villain in an adventure.
A sorcerer with the Rakshasa Bloodline(reflavored as Quiploth Blodline)is quite great at disguising his unhuman heriatage. I would then presume to reflavor some Spells. Stone Call could be a rain of bloodfilled ballons. Other spells like Mad Monkeys would also fit quite well.
You might also consider a bard specializing on Suggestion Spells to mindcontrol your enemies. Give your performances a creepy flavor, by literally becoming the dancing clown.
An Illusionist wizard specializing the Phantasm subschool, would also work great.
Abyssal or Aberrant Sorcerer is definitely one way to go. Pick your nastiest spell choices. Enlarge, black tentacles, and phantasmal killer seem to be in the right style.
Or you could make a Witch. Who cackles. Think about it. Yeah, that works.
Or an Alchemist. When you aren't blowing crap up, you could be torturing prisoners and other helpless beings by dripping acid on their faces. Mutagens, oh yes, the mutagens.
Is there a Bard or Sorc archetype that lets you replace Wisdom as your primary casting stat?
It's named Empyreal Wildlooded Bloodline and a subtype of the clestial Sorcerer
Wow guys, you are really helping me out with this, thanks so much for everyone's input! I'm happy to find out I could actually make a cleric work with the concept. Sadly, I am unaware of a sorcerer/bard archetype that lets it work with wisdom, or else I'd be on that like blood on clownfangs. Heck, I could just dumpstat wisdom and int (Using the bonus to prevent horrifibad will saves) and put my points in Charisma. Aberrant is looking to be my #1 choice so far, with the spells you listed tickling my fancy quite fine. Also, Pizza, that is a FANTASTIC idea, I am absolutely beelining for that item.
Again, I want to thank you guys so much for all these great ideas to work with!
It's named Empyreal Wildlooded Bloodline and a subtype of the clestial Sorcerer
Ha! Yeah, that wouldn't work for this concept. Not without major re-coloring.
Yeah, I have to admit, it would be a hard sell to make my demon clown an offshoot of celestial blood. Good effort though, didn't even know about that.