I need some help. The character concept is this... I would like for a paladin character to possess a tower shield that deals energy damage to the attacker when struck. It could be done through feats, magic, prestige class, I don't care. I also realize that this should be a limited use power but would make a great effect maybe once a day.
any help would be appreciated, thank you
I see the character as a defender. Mostly sword and board, but more board than sword. I think it will have to be a magic shield of some sort. My building kung fu is not very good, but could a shield be made with an enchantment for a "shocking grasp" kind of effect triggered by it being struck?
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It sounds like you want Fire Shield on an item. No way to achieve this effect that's specifically stated in the rules, but you could base one off of a Shirt of Immolation and re-slot it. So, 1d6+10 fire 10 rds/day. Only activates when hit by a 5' melee attack. I would be tempted to call it a +3 armor enhancement, but a flat +12,000 cost would probably be OK too (shirt of immolation*1.5). Does NOT activate on a grapple/grab/othercombat manuever.
Ok, there is a basic problem with the concept: you cant bash with a tower shield. Heavy steel shield, sure, but not a tower shield, and it's specified in the desciption.
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/equipment---final/armor/shield-tower
However, you could use a shield as a weird one handed weapon (and nothing else). The only class that seems to be made for this is the "skyrnir" magus archetype, which is specialised in shields. That would literally allow you to deliver shocking grasps with your shield.
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/base-classes/magus/archetypes/paizo---magus -archetypes/skirnir
THe only other options are weapon enhancements, which generally come in the form of +1d6 energy damage, with other enchantements to do more on a crit (the "burst" enchantments).
I don't see the character bashing or attacking with the shield. Also, this is all based on character concept so I'm not trying to break the game. I would liken it to using a grapple attack on a fire elemental, you'd take damage right?
Example: The Ogre slams the character with his club that is just blocked by the shield , there is a burst of holy light which inflicts 1d8 shock damage on the Ogre.
Maybe 1d4 for every two or three levels the character has.
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Note that the OP never said he wanted to bash with the Shield, simply that he wanted the shield to deal damage *when it was struck*.
I think Tangaroa hit it on the head. Fire Shield is the enchantment you are looking for. There is a *lot* of GM judgment that would have to go into it, but here's my take:
Lvl 4 Spell x Caster Lvl 10 = 40 x 2000gp (Use Activated) = 80,000gp
80,000gp/5 (for '1 charge) = 16,000gp. (At Lvl 10, Damage is 1d6+10)
That could be flavored as 'Fire Shield activates for 10 rounds the first time it is struck each day' or (my preference) 'When the shield is struck, Fire Shield activates for 1 round (maximum of 10 rounds each day).
I figure the advantage of the Fire Shield not being used up when it is not needed is counterbalanced by the fact that it would not provide energy protection on any round that it is not struck...personally, I'd just remove the energy protection entirely, as it really doesn't fit.
Technically, for the effect you want, the power should only activate if the attacker misses by the amount of AC the tower shield provides (or less)...but that seems like a lot of bookkeeping to me. If you decide to go that route, I'd significantly drop the price.
Edit: Ninja'd by the OP
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it sounds like you're looking for an effect like defensive shock (or possibly fire shield)... the simplest solution is to be able to use the spell. unfortunately, they're not on the paladin spell list, nor are they available with unsanctioned knowledge (a sacred servant with the Sun domain could get fire shield, but not until at least 13th level).
the best solution, then, is probably to take the dangerously curious trait- pallys can excel at UMD and you can buy some scrolls or a wand so you can buff yourself with defensive shock when you want it.
beyond that, there are rules for making/pricing unique magic items (as you see rammaren putting to use)- you could talk to your GM about creating a shield for you, but that's the kind of thing you need really solid rules-fu for (and some GMs just aren't into it).
edit:divine defender and sacred shield both have some interesting shield abilities you might want to look at if you're leaning towards a "board and sword" build
I've seen something called energy backlash does anyone know anything about that?
A Suli with the alternate racial trait Shockshield has a trick somewhat like this so could be a good starting point and also has nice paladin stats. Perhaps you and your gm could work out a paragon style prestige class or feat chain to increase the effects of it.