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So, since it suits Paizo to not have statistics for the deities of Golarion, and Golarion is the cornerstone of their product line, I think a Deities and Demigods style book is very, very far out on the horizon, if visible at all.
So I think it's only fair the community take a crack or two at it, and since I was always a little uncomfortable with the somewhat straightjacket rules in Deities and Demigods (many of which seemed to act as an advertisement for the Epic Level Handbook), I decided to go in a slightly different direction.
Now, nothing can get more heated than discussions about religion, especially admittedly fake ones for some reason, so I'll just give what my personal opinion of the definition of a Dungeons and Dragons-style true deity (with the caveat that many mythologies you may wish to emulate with deity rules don't follow it):
I originally intended to use a system like the mythic tier system, with 5 ranks, from lesser demigod to demigod, then lesser, intermediate, and greater deity. I still feel that is the way to go, but I decided to do the rough outline in template form.
There are two templates: One for demigods that have acquired a true spark of divinity (that last phrase is to explain why creatures like Ahriman don't have this template), and another for creatures that have progressed to actual godhood, with the reality-warping, future-predicting, thousand-thoughts-per-second-having characteristics that go along with it.
Remember the scene in Bruce Almighty where he feels like he's going crazy from hearing every prayer in the Buffalo area and makes the unwise decision to simply grant them all? A true deity could handle each of those prayers individually without distracting them from their current task, or even impinging on their conscious thought. It's that difference in mental state that primarily separates demigods from gods.
But enough philosophizing. On to the crunch.
A few things about the crunch: Rather than simply granting massive bonuses to all statistics and rendering d20 rolls moot, the goal of these abilities is to make the deities the most powerful beings on the block via action economy. Thus, you'll notice that a lot of the supernatural abilities are actually usable as a free action once per round, rather than as a standard or swift action.
For an example of the action economy advantage principle in action, here's an ability that was removed from the lesser deity template and would be included for more powerful beings:
Temporal Immanence (Su): The deity benefits from a continuous augmented mythic haste effect, as well as a continuous augmented mythic borrowed time effect (borrowed time). The borrowed time effect does not deal damage to the deity, nor is it staggered if this ability is somehow interrupted.
That's an extra move action, and either an extra swift, move, or immediate action. Not to mention the extra standard action from Amazing Initiative, which can now be used for magic abilities.
I would have included something about time stop in there until I realized I could make a whole different and more interesting ability out of that concept (this idea is still in development).Demigod is an acquired template that can be added to any creature with an Intelligence score, at least 20 Hit Dice, and 10 mythic tiers or mythic ranks (referred to hereafter as the base creature).
Type: If the base creature is not an outsider, construct, or undead, its type changes to outsider and it gains the augmented subtype. If it is native to the Material Plane, it gains the native subtype. Recalculate saving throws, base attack bonus, or skill ranks from racial hit dice as appropriate.
Hit Dice: A demigod receives maximum hit points for each hit die.
Ability Scores: Any ability scores below 22 are raised to 22. The base creature gains a +4 bonus to three ability scores and a +6 bonus to a fourth ability score.
Spell Resistance: The base creature’s spell resistance increases to its Hit Dice +22, unless it already possesses higher spell resistance. If it does not have spell resistance, it gains spell resistance equal to its Hit Dice + 20.
Energy Resistance: The base creature gains resistance 10 to acid, cold, and electricity, and fire resistance 5. If it already has resistance to any of those elements, the resistance stacks. It takes half damage from non-mythic sources of acid, cold, or electricity damage (apply this before resistance).
DR: The demigod gains DR 15/epic, or increases the base creature’s existing damage reduction to 15 (if it is less than 15), and adds epic to the list of qualities needed to overcome its damage reduction. If the base creature already has DR/epic of 15 or above or DR/–, this damage reduction increases by 5, to a minimum of 15.
Special Qualities: The base creature gains the hard to kill, mythic saving throws, unstoppable, immortal, divine shield, persistent magic, and divine immunities special qualities.
Special Abilities: The base creature gains the amazing initiative, recuperation, and legendary hero abilities, as well as one or more manifest divine abilities. The caster level for any ability is 25th or the demigod’s Hit Dice, whichever is higher.
Persistent Magic (Ex): The demigod’s spells, spell-like and supernatural abilities, and any magic items they carry or wear, are not subject to being dispelled by mortal magic or suppressed by antimagic. Only disjunction from a mythic or similarly powerful source can interfere, and even then the caster has only a 1% chance per caster level to affect the demigod’s spells, spell-like abilities, supernatural abilities, or magic items. If the percent die is successful, the caster must still make a successful dispel check (DC 11 + caster level) to end an effect.
Divine Shield (Su): The demigod adds their highest mental ability modifier as a racial bonus on all saving throws and as a deflection bonus to Armor Class.
Amazing Initiative (Ex): As the base mythic ability. The demigod can cast a spell, activate a magic item, or use a spell-like or supernatural ability using the bonus standard action.
Recuperation (Ex): As the base mythic ability. Spending 1 mythic power and resting for 1 hour restores all lost hit points rather than half, as well as granting the benefit of greater restoration, heal, and regenerate.
Mythic Saving Throws (Ex): As the base mythic ability. It also applies to effects from mythic sources.
Unstoppable (Ex): As the base mythic ability. When used, it also removes any and all of the listed conditions originating from a non-mythic source.
Immortal (Su): As the base mythic ability. The base creature gains the improved version of the ability available to creatures of 10th tier. Only artifacts whose description specifically mention an ability to perform deicide can permanently kill the demigod.
Legendary Hero (Ex): As the base mythic ability.
Divine Immunities (Ex): The base creature gains the following mythic path abilities: Bloodline Immunity (if a sorcerer), Domain Immunity (to the demigod’s Divine Source granted domains), Fearless, Longevity, Mythic Sustenance, Pure Body, Pure Destiny, Pure Senses, Servant of Balance, Sleepless, and Unchanging. It is immune to extreme heat or cold, as if from endure elements, and is immune to hostile planar traits and mundane environments as per planar adaptation and planetary adaptation.
Divine Source (Su/Sp): As the universal path ability. The demigod gains it as if it had taken it three times. It can use each spell-like ability granted by their divine source ability once per day per point of bonus in their highest mental attribute, or at will if it is 3rd level or lower. It gains the granted powers of its domains and subdomains as if it were a cleric of a level equal to its Hit Dice or its cleric level + 10, whichever is highest, and uses its highest mental ability score modifier in place of Wisdom or Charisma, as appropriate. Any preexisting Divine Source mythic path abilities can be exchanged for any other path abilities from its mythic path or the universal path abilities.
Divine Sight (Su): The demigod gains continuous true seeing out to the limit of its line of sight. It also immediately discovers the alignment of any creature it can see, and notices alignment and magic auras is if by detect chaos/evil/good/law/magic, but acquires all information immediately without concentration. This ability automatically pierces all nonmythic disguises, abjurations, and illusions.
Unbound by Destiny (Su): The demigod does not count a natural 1 on an attack roll or saving throw as an automatic failure. If it possesses the Always a Chance mythic ability, it can reroll any natural 1s on any attack, save, or check and use the other result instead. If the result of the reroll is also a natural 1, it can continue rerolling until it rolls a 2 or above.
Omniglot (Su): The demigod can converse with any intelligent creature, as if using tongues. It can also read, write, and understand any writing, as if by comprehend languages and read magic.
Manifest Divine Powers (Su):
The demigod gains two abilities from the following list. Any spell effect referenced by name can be cast as the mythic version and at any level of augmentation, at the demigod’s option. It can also modify the spell effect as if by any number of applicable metamagic feats from the following list (including multiple applications of a single feat, if allowed by the feat description): Empower Spell, Enlarge Spell, Extend Spell, Intensified Spell, Reach Spell, and Widen Spell. Mythic spell effects and augmented mythic spell effects from manifest divine powers do not cost mythic power. The demigod cannot create an effect that would cost more than 30 uses of mythic power in a single action. Unless otherwise indicated, all aspects of manifest divine powers (even those altered by metamagic) are supernatural abilities usable at will with an effective caster level of 25th or the demigod’s Hit Dice, whichever is greater.
Spell Paragon: The demigod is considered to have the Spell Perfection feat for all spells it casts, and never needs to make concentration checks to cast or maintain concentration on spells. Spellcasting does not provoke attacks of opportunity from non-mythic creatures. It can maintain concentration on a spell as a move or swift action at its option, and can maintain concentration on up to three spells (but not spell-like or supernatural abilities) at once. The demigod can prepare or cast a spell with any metamagic feat for which it qualifies, even if it does not know the feat. If it does know the feat, the level adjustment is decreased by 1 (minimum +0). The demigod can use channel the gift once per round as a free action.
Master of Armament: Any feat or ability the demigod possesses that affects a specific weapon or group of weapons (such as the Weapon Focus feat or the Weapon Mastery fighter class feature) now applies to any weapon the demigod wields. (If it wields the weapon the feat or ability was originally intended for, any attack or damage bonus is doubled). The demigod is proficient with all weapons, armor, and shields, and takes no armor check penalty, suffers no speed reduction or arcane spell failure chance, and ignores the maximum Dexterity bonus of any armor or shield it wields. It takes no penalty for attacking while wearing a buckler, and can retain the defensive benefits of a buckler even when attacking. It can use a tower shield to grant cover and still attack as normal.
Annihilating Strike: When using Mythic Deadly Stroke, the demigod can affect mythic creatures (though not divine beings). They add the higher of their Strength or Dexterity bonuses to the saving throw DC. If the demigod has the death attack class feature, it now requires no study, can affect creatures aware of the demigod and not flanked or flat-footed, bypasses any non-mythic immunities, and uses the highest of their Strength, Dexterity, or Intelligence modifiers to determine the DC.
Deific Spells: Any spell cast by the demigod can be cast as the mythic version, as if they knew it via Mythic Spell Lore. Spells it already knows through path abilities or mythic feats now cost one less mythic power to cast (meaning the unaugmented mythic versions are free). If it has the Enhance Magic Items path ability, this power also affects spells it casts from magic items. Spells and magic item effects cast in this way gain the Potent and Resilient augmentations without expending mythic power. The demigod gains 0 slots per day of every spell level for which it would be entitled to at least one bonus spell per day based on its applicable ability score. This means that it can gain these bonus spells per day of levels above 9th, and can use them to prepare and cast spells of lower level modified by metamagic, or even unique spells only available to deities. Wizards gain their bonus school spell slot for these levels, and characters with domains gain extra slots that can only be filled with domain spells, altered by metamagic or not.
Infinite Step: The demigod can use dimension door, greater teleport, plane shift (no off-target arrival), and walk through space at will. If targeting only itself (and any permanent companion creature from a class feature), the dimension door and greater teleport abilities are move actions. The demigod’s turn does not prematurely end when it uses a dimension door effect.
Gift of Life: The demigod can use deathless, greater restoration, mass heal, regenerate, reincarnate, and true resurrection at will. Their mass heal effect also removes any negative conditions that miracle could remove. They can resurrect creatures that have died of old age, and can temporarily reverse or even permanently halt the physical effects of the aging process with a touch, reverting the target to a previous age category and/or granting it the timeless body druid class feature or the eternal youth alchemist grand discovery.
Great Destroyer: The demigod gains Improved Sunder and Greater Sunder as bonus feats. If it already has one or both of those feats, it can replace them with any feat for which it meets the prerequisites. It gains a +20 bonus on sunder combat maneuvers, and treats the sundered object as if it had 1 hit point and hardness 0. They gain a +50 bonus on Strength checks to burst bonds, break through barriers (including magical barriers such as a wall of force), or destroy objects. Every attack it makes ignores hardness and damage reduction. The demigod can use augmented mythic disintegrate (single-ray version), with a successful touch attack also causing the target to be affected as if by the single target version of mage’s disjunction (use the rules for items surviving after a saving throw to determine what item is affected, if needed). The demigod can use this ability in its original ray form or as a melee touch attack. The demigod can channel either or both touch attacks through its normal attacks as if it were wielding a conductive weapon.
Earth Mastery: The demigod can use earthquake, meld into stone, move earth, passwall, rampart, soften earth and stone, spike stones, statue, stone shape, stone tell, transmute mud to rock, transmute rock to mud, wall of stone, and world wave at will. If the spell in question has a casting time of 1 round or less, they can activate it as a free action. They can only activate an earth mastery ability as a free action once per round, and must spend a standard action to use a second ability that round. They gain continual earth glide at a speed equal to their base land speed.
Fire Mastery: The demigod gains immunity to fire and can ignore fire resistance and immunity (other than that of divine beings) with all its attacks and abilities. They gain a continuous supernatural fiery body effect. They can suppress or resume the effect as a free action. They can use fire storm with an area of up to ten 5-ft. cubes per level, which need not be contiguous. The demigod can choose to damage natural plant life or melt or ignite creatures or objects that fail their saves against the firestorm, or not, as they wish. The demigod can create a firefall effect, targeting any number of potential fire sources within range with a single action and forcing separate saves against each. It can choose to extinguish all, some, or none of the fire sources when it uses this ability, as it desires. The demigod can use incendiary cloud. The cloud persists for up to 1 week, and can move beyond the spell’s range without consequence. Once per round, they can activate a fire mastery ability as a free action. They can activate fire mastery abilities multiple times in a round, but must spend the appropriate action to use additional fire mastery abilities that round. Activating or deactivating the fiery body effect does not count against this limit.
Water Mastery: The demigod gains continuous fluid form and seamantle effects (fluid form grants DR 10/epic and slashing or adds slashing to the requirements to bypass their epic DR if it is higher). They can suppress or reactivate either or both effects at will as a free action. The demigod can use control water(permanent duration), create water(up to 5,000 gallons per round), geyser, horrid wilting, hydraulic torrent (200-ft.-line, 120-ft.-cone, or 60-ft.-radius burst), tsunami, and vortex. If the spell in question has a casting time of 1 round or less, they can activate it as a free action rather than a standard action. They can only activate a water mastery ability as a free action once per round, and must spend the appropriate action to use additional water mastery abilities that round. Activating or deactivating seamantle or fluid form does not count against this limit.
Air Mastery: The demigod gains a supernatural flight speed of 200 feet (perfect) and continuous air walk and feather fall effects. They can use call lightning storm, chain lightning, control weather(as druid), control winds, fickle winds, gust of wind, ride the lightning, sirocco, storm of vengeance (no concentration required), stormbolts, whirlwind, wind wall, wind walk, and winds of vengeance. They can activate these spells as a free action rather than a standard action. They can only activate an air mastery ability as a free action once per round, and must spend the appropriate action to use additional air mastery abilities that round.
Overwhelming Force: The demigod always deals maximum damage on all ranged and melee damage rolls. It ignores the damage reduction and regeneration of non-divine beings and the hardness of objects other than major artifacts. It ignores fortification and critical hit and sneak attack immunity from non-divine and non-artifact effects and creatures. It ignores force effects and incorporeality, and can strike ethereal beings as if they were material. On a successful critical hit, it can apply any number of applicable critical feats it knows. Its attacks against non-mythic creatures and objects are treated as natural 20s on the roll.
Overwhelming Magic: All variable spell effects are Maximized and Empowered, as if by Maximize and Empower Spell, with no change to the spell’s level or casting time. Non-mythic creatures are considered to have rolled a 1 on any saving throw against the demigod’s spells. The demigod’s spells also receive the benefit of Intensified Spell with no increase in spell level or casting time. These metamagic effects stack in the way most favorable for the demigod rather than least favorable (Intensify, then Empower, then Maximize). All spells of 9th level or lower cast by the deity are treated as 10th-level spells for determining saving throw DCs, ability to puncture globes of invulnerability, and similar effects, but not for abilities such as Spell Perfection or items like lesser metamagic rods. This does not stack with Heighten Spell.
Infinite Hand: The demigod can use enemy hammer, imbue with flight, levitate, mass lighten object (permanent until dismissed), repulsion(up to 1 mile radius), reverse gravity, and telekinesis (able to affect any object of Colossal or smaller). If the spell in question has a casting time of 1 round or less, they can activate it as a free action rather than a standard action. They can only activate an infinite hand ability as a free action once per round, and must spend the appropriate action to use additional infinite hand abilities that round.
The enemy hammer and telekinesis effects can pick up any creature without the Massive ability.
Targets of imbue with flight can be maneuvered from any distance, so long as the demigod can perceive them, and the demigod adds its caster level to Fly checks when maneuvering the object. The effect of imbue with flight is permanent until dismissed.
The demigod can choose to cast reverse gravity with a duration of concentration + 1 round/level. Each round the demigod concentrates, the height and radius of the effect doubles, to a maximum of 1 mile. The demigod is immune to the effect of their own reverse gravity ability and can exclude any number of 5-foot cubes, or creatures or objects it can perceive or unambiguously identify, from the effect.
The demigod can choose to enhance their repulsion ability, such that creatures that fail their saves must spend a move action each round resisting the repulsive effect or be pushed 1d6x5 feet directly away. This movement does not provoke attacks of opportunity.
The demigod can also choose to invert their repulsion ability, preventing creatures that fail their saving throw from moving away from the demigod. The demigod can also choose to enhance the inverted effect, requiring creatures that failed their save make a move action each round to avoid being pulled 1d6x5 feet closer to the demigod. This movement does not provoke attacks of opportunity.
Weaver of Veils: The demigod can use mirage arcana, persistent image, programmed image, screen, and veil. If the spell in question has a casting time of 1 round or less, they can activate it as a free action rather than a standard action. They can only activate a weaver of veils ability as a free action once per round, and must spend the appropriate action to use additional weaver of veils abilities that round. These effects are permanent until dismissed. The illusions created by this ability can react to events as if they were real. Illusory creatures respond to external events, trying to duck out of the way of attacks and able to hold conversations with themselves and real creatures. Fireball spells set illusory curtains alight, a thrown rock knocks over an illusory candelabra, and so on. The illusions cannot support any weight, however. Non-mythic creatures do not receive a save to disbelieve the illusion, though passing their hand through a seemingly solid object or receiving other similarly incontrovertible proof of unreality allows them to understand that it is an illusion and act accordingly. Non-mythic creatures must rely on direct experiment and deductive reasoning to determine what is real and what is not. Only true seeing from a mythic source can pierce the illusion, and even then only with a DC 50 caster level check taken as a standard action.
Lord of Darkness: The demigod can see perfectly in darkness of any kind, even magical darkness. It can emanate darkness, as the deeper darkness spell, out to a radius of 1 mile. As a free action it can open or close any number of 5-cubic-foot holes in this darkness where normal lighting conditions prevail. By concentrating, it can turn any number of 5-cubic-foot portion of this darkness into hungry darkness for as long as it concentrates. The demigod can use shadow walk at will, and can become incorporeal or resume corporeal form as a free action unless it is in bright light, where it must remain corporeal. While incorporeal in dim light, it can affect and attack corporeal creatures and objects as if the demigod’s entire body had the ghost touch property. It can also use deeper darkness at will, but can target a creature, object, or point in space within long range, like the silence spell. This darkness effect is permanent until dismissed. Non-mythic light effects cannot suppress or dispel any of the demigod’s darkness abilities.
Lord of Light: The demigod can use sunburst at will. At will, it can also radiate a sunbeam, as the spell, as a free action once per round on its turn. All creatures and objects that fail to resist the sunburst or sunbeam radiate light and lose the benefits of concealment as if by a faerie fire spell (though rather than colored flames, the targets radiate golden light as if by a torch, and the Stealth penalty becomes -40).
The demigod can radiate light out to a radius of 1 mile, as if by a mythic daylight effect. As a free action it can open or close any number of 5-cubic-foot holes in this light where normal lighting conditions prevail. By concentrating, it can increase the light level of any number of 5 foot cubes within this radius to the point that creatures within must make a Will save each round or be unable to open their eyes in that round, and are effectively blinded. If they succeed, they still treat all creatures and objects as if they had concealment.
It can also use daylight at will, but can target a creature, object, or point in space within long range, like the silence spell. This light effect is permanent until dismissed. Non-mythic darkness effects cannot suppress or dispel any of the demigod’s light abilities.
Lord of the Dead: The demigod can use finger of death once per round as a free action. When it does so, it can target any number of creatures, so long as no target is more than 60 feet from at least one other target. Creatures killed by this ability cannot be raised, reincarnated, or resurrected unless the demigod is willing or the entity reviving the creature is a divine being of greater power. It can also instantaneously animate any creatures killed by this ability as any undead available through augmented mythic animate dead, create undead, or create greater undead. It can use control undead once per round as a free action, targeting all undead in a 120-foot-radius burst, with a duration of permanent. Intelligent undead are not immune to the demigod’s mind-affecting effects by virtue of their creature type, though other abilities might grant resistance or immunity. The demigod can use decompose corpse, gentle repose, restore corpse, and sculpt corpse at will with a duration of instantaneous, and can use speak with dead at will.
Lord of Grinding Ice: The demigod’s attacks and abilities ignore resistance or immunity to cold other than that of divine beings or granted by artifacts. It can lower the temperature within a 1-mile radius of itself by any amount, from cold, to severe cold, to extreme cold, to temperatures as low as 140 degrees Fahrenheit below zero (treat as polar midnight without the light level decrease). As a free action, they can select any number of 5-foot-cubes and tune them to a lower or higher temperature, with a maximum of normal ambient temperature. As a free action once per round, the demigod can impose the effects of sleet storm and/or ice storm upon any area up to a 500-foot-radius 500 feet high within 1 mile, regardless of line of effect. As a free action once per round it can cast mass icy prison, affecting any number of creatures within range so long as each is within 30 feet of at least one other target. The icy prison is an instantaneous effect and prevents creatures from breathing, requiring them to hold their breath to avoid suffocating. The demigod can use polar ray as the spell or as a melee touch attack. It can deliver the polar ray through any weapon as if it possessed the conductive property. As a move action, the demigod can turn up to 500,000 cubic feet of water to ice, or an equal amount of ice to water, or divide the amount in any fraction between the two.
Master of Masters: The demigod benefits from a continuous clarion call effect. As a standard action, the demigod can command the obedience and fealty of intelligent living creatures within 1,000 feet. This is a mind-affecting compulsion effect. Creatures totaling 1000 Hit Dice can be ruled, but those with more than half the demigod’s Hit Dice are entitled to a Will save to negate the effect, and on a success are immune to this ability for a year and a day. Mythic creatures of any level are automatically immune. Ruled creatures obey the demigod as if it were their absolute sovereign until their death or the demigod releases them from the effect. Any clearly audible verbal request by the demigod is received by the subjects as if it were a suggestion effect that did not permit a save and had no duration limit. If the demigod gives a command that is contrary to the nature of the creature or creatures commanded, they receive a Will save to resist that command. On a success, they resist the command and automatically succeed on future saving throws to resist that specific command (including paraphrases of that command); However, the magic is not broken. If the demigod attempts to command more Hit Dice of creatures than it is permitted, it must release previously controlled creatures one at a time until it is back at or under the limit. The demigod can release any creatures it chooses from the effect as a free action from any distance.
Artifex Without Peer: The demigod can use all Craft skills as if they were trained in them, using their highest Craft skill modifier for any check. They receive a +40 bonus on Craft skill checks and skill checks involved in making and using magic items. The demigod can use fabricate, as the spell, including the casting time but not the material components. If the material components are on hand, using fabricate is a free action irrespective of object size. The demigod can use make whole, targeting any number of objects or constructs within range as a single action. If the demigod has access to the proper tools, they can craft items as if they had access to the Trueforge artifact. However, they never gain negative levels or expend mythic power as a result of using this ability, and can craft items as if their effective mythic tier was 25th. The items created need not contain any metal.
Lesser deity is an acquired template that can be applied to any creature with the demigod template.
Ability Scores: The lesser deity increases all ability scores by 8.
Special Abilities: The lesser deity can choose an additional ability from the menu of manifest divine powers for the demigod template, and its manifest divine powers increase their minimum effective caster level from 25th to 30th. They also gain the worldshaping, skyshaping, divine intervention, bilocation, material raiment, discorporate, supernal knowledge, visitation, divine punishment, spark of creation, and aspect of reality special abilities. The caster level for these abilities is 30th or the lesser deity’s Hit Dice, whichever is greater.
Aspect of Reality: The lesser deity’s Divine Source spell-like abilities become usable at will. They do not provoke attacks of opportunity from non-mythic characters and automatically bypass spell resistance, spell immunity, and magic immunity from non-mythic sources. The minimum caster level for these abilities increases to 30th. The lesser deity can choose to cast a divine source spell-like ability as a free action once per round, even when it is not its turn.
Worldshaping (Su): The lesser deity alters an area of land as the mythic move earth spell, but can also affect and shape stone and minerals in the area and form broken or difficult terrain. It can interconvert any portion of the area between sand, stone (or similar nonprecious minerals such as volcanic glass), dirt, and mud, alter any water in the area of the effect as if by control water, and can use the raise water version even if there is no existing water. The lesser deity can also alter the climate and foliage in the area as if by the terraform spell. All these alterations are concurrent, but must occur in 25x25x10 foot increments requiring one full round to impose. Any saving throw DCs are based on the lesser deity’s highest mental ability score modifier at the time the effect manifests and includes a +4 racial bonus. All effects of the lesser deity’s worldshaping ability are instantaneous. The area changed per round increases to 100x100x50 feet per round on a divinely morphic plane.
Skyshaping (Su): The lesser deity can continuously change the environment around it, as control weather with a 5-mile radius. The lesser deity can change the weather to that of any season, and the effects manifest 1 round thereafter. If the lesser deity creates stormy weather, it can call down a thunderbolt as a swift action. This thunderbolt can appear at any location within the radius, even if there is no line of sight or effect to that point. The thunderbolt is a cylinder with a 15-foot radius, 500 feet high. Creatures within the area take 30d12 points of electricity and sonic damage and are blinded and deafened for 1 minute. On a successful Fortitude save, a creature is instead dazzled and deafened for 1 round. The save DC is based on the lesser deity’s highest mental ability score modifier at the time the bolt manifests, and includes a +4 racial bonus.
Divine Intervention (Su): Whenever a mortal creature knowingly and intentionally prays to the lesser deity, the lesser deity gains a perception of the creature as if the lesser deity were located in the creature’s space, as well as infallible knowledge of its true alignment and surface thoughts. The lesser deity is also automatically aware of the presence of knowing falsehoods in the creature’s prayer, although self-delusion, evasion, lies of omission, or misapprehensions can cloud or foil this sense. By praying, the creature has waived its saving throw and any nonmythic protections against the remote viewing, mind reading, and lie detection. The lesser deity can cast a spell or use a spell-like or supernatural ability on the target or using the target as the origin point. For example, it could cast divine favor or sanctuary on the target, produce a fear or prayer emanating out from the creature, or cast halt undead with a range measured from the creature’s space. If the target’s prayer is frivolous or false, the lesser deity might cast crafter’s curse or doom on the creature, or shatter a nearby possession. This link to the praying creature ends after one hour has elapsed since it has last prayed. The lesser deity may also perceive and cast spells or use spell-like or supernatural abilities at altars consecrated to the lesser deity as if it were located in the altar’s space or touching the altar. A lesser deity must spend the appropriate action when using an ability through this link, whether to a creature or an object. A lesser deity can maintain multiple remote perceptions and still perceive its immediate environment normally.
Bilocation (Su): As a standard action, a lesser deity can exist in two places at once. This separation can only occur if the lesser deity is at least one mile from itself; any closer and the duplicate will merge automatically. The lesser deity can merge itself together at either location as a free action, even when it is not its turn.
The duplicate has the lesser deity's hit points, attack bonuses, weapons, statistics, and other attributes. It has a duplicate of any items (including magical items, but not major artifacts) the deity is wearing or carrying. All personal or harmless spells are shared between the deities. Damage, energy drain, ability damage and drain, poison, and other harmful effects taken by one also damages the other an equal amount. Suppressing or dispelling an effect or item of one lesser deity has the same effect on the items or effects of the other.
The lesser deities have a common pool of limited use abilities. Spells cast by one drain slots from both. Mythic power spent by one is spent for both. This also applies to rage rounds, bardic performance, bloodline powers, racial abilities, and any other limited-use abilities. If an ability can only be used a certain number of times within a certain time period, uses by one affect both. For example, a dragon lesser deity who uses its breath weapon cannot use it again at either location for 1d4+1 rounds.
The lesser deity can use all of its senses at both locations, and it can take a full round's worth of actions at each location.
Material Raiment (Su): The lesser deity can alter their shape into that of any creature or object of Fine to Colossal size as a free action, even when it isn’t their turn. When they assume the form of a creature, use the most highly augmented mythic version of the appropriate spell. The effect lasts until they change shape again. They can assume the form of specific individuals or unique objects using this ability. If the lesser deity takes the form of an object, they retain all of their abilities, except those rendered unusable due to the change in form (such as a breath weapon if the form assumed is a carpet). They can, at their option, move in object form as if they were the appropriate type of animated object. Its true form is not visible to creatures of lesser power even via true seeing unless the lesser deity desires it. Their base attack bonus with natural attacks and for calculating CMD while in other forms is equal to their caster level for this effect or their Hit Dice, whichever is greater.
Supernal Knowledge (Su): The lesser deity gains a +30 sacred (or profane) bonus on all Knowledge checks related to its areas of concern, dominion, or expertise. When making such checks, it can potentially recall information that has never been generally known, or even about events that have not yet occurred, up to a limit of one week into the future for each point of bonus in the lesser deity’s highest mental ability score. A successful Knowledge check provides information equivalent to a successful divination spell. The answer comes from the lesser deity’s own divine knowledge and is never cryptic.
For questions regarding the future or information that has never been generally known, it must occur to the lesser deity to ponder the question before they can attempt to recover the answer, and thus the lesser deity can still theoretically be caught off-guard. Further, given the number of potential variables, knowledge of the future can be either frustratingly vague or highly unreliable depending on the nature of the question and the timeframe involved.
Visitation (Su): The lesser deity can communicate telepathically with any creature (even those with Intelligence 1 or 2), as if by the sending spell (and speak with animals, if appropriate), but with no word limit or chance of failure. The lesser deity can also send sensory information, mental imagery, and empathic feelings, either general or specific. The necessary time to impart the message can vary from a split second to hours or even days, depending on the complexity of the message. However, using this ability requires no action on the lesser deity’s part, merely the ability to take actions.
Divine Punishment (Su): The lesser deity can lay a powerful curse upon an intelligent mortal creature. The curse can take effect immediately or upon certain triggers. The lesser deity must name the recipient or identify them by some title that could describe only a single creature and leaves no doubt as to their identity, but there is otherwise no range limit or other requirement. The curse functions as either bestow greater curse or polymorph any object (with a +10 racial bonus to the duration factor). It can take effect immediately, or when the creature performs an action the lesser deity determines when they lay the curse, or intentionally refrains for more than 24 hours from pursuing a course of action determined by the lesser deity when they lay the curse. The lesser deity can revoke the curse at any time as a free action. There is no save against the curse.
Discorporate (Su): With a free action, the lesser deity can shed the body it must wear when interacting with the mundane world. It gains the incorporeal subtype, the benefits of wind walk, and becomes invisible to blindsense, blindsight, scent, sight, and tremorsense. Only mythic creatures and divine beings can attempt Perception checks to notice it, or try to detect it via see invisibility or true seeing, if the lesser deity does not wish to be noticed or detected. It can remain discorporated as long as it wishes. Resuming corporeal form is a free action. While discorporated, it retains the use of the supernatural and spell-like abilities it possesses as a result of its divine nature, including those granted by this template and the demigod template, but not those dependent upon form, such as a breath weapon or gaze attack. While discorporated, non-mythic attacks, even magical or force attacks, cannot harm or affect the lesser deity.
Spark of Creation (Su): The lesser deity has the power to create worlds out of nothing. It can use greater create demiplane at will, even on planes not adjacent to the Astral or Ethereal Planes. The plane created is permanent and cannot be destroyed or dispelled save by deific powers or artifact-level abilities. Using this ability requires 2 hours of concentration. As a standard action when outside the demiplane, a lesser deity can create a gate to any location on any demiplane it has created with this ability. This gate persists without concentration until the lesser deity chooses to close it (a free action).
I'm developing a system for deities to have heralds and outsider servants, but it is too rudimentary to include as of yet.
Personally, what I would have preferred to do was create a list of manifest divine powers for each domain and subdomain from which the deity could choose, and which became more powerful as it went from demigod to greater deity, but some of the domains really stretched my creativity pretty thin, especially given that I didn't want some domains to be more attractive than others purely for mechanical reasons.
(Even if the gods are not player characters, they still have a sense of self-interest, particularly if they are an ascended mortal, and though they don't know about things like Hit Dice, etc., they still have an idea about which abilities are more powerful).
Also, it would be nice to discuss the ramifications of these abilities as far as worldbuilding goes, since (particularly in this case) the mechanics are there for worldbuilding purposes.
But unclear mechanics or infinite feedback loops are more important to watch out for.
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Again... one has to asks what's the point of stats? If you aren't going to allow your players to kill gods by standard rules, then you are running the gods by fiat, which means no need for stats.
If a divine being is not omnipotent, then it will eventually take an action that has a chance of failure, at which point stats become relevant. At this juncture, there should be an impartial system of determining success or failure, rather than the DM simply saying "god A wins the match."
On a similar note, while I understand that the rules usually flow from the world (and that is how things like skill check DCs, environmental hazards, etc were originally designed), I like for the world to flow from the rules once the basics of the d20 system have been put in place.
Actually, I'm interested. I just didn't see this before.
You may (or may not) be interested in some of my ideas, especially a rough one that I noted here similar to your own, at least at first blush.
Let me know, steal anything you like, and add what you find addable. :)
Why is GM fiat in making up a completely arbitrary chance of success better than GM fiat saying "god A wins the match?"
Because one uses the rules and allows you to make coherent self-consistent stories.
The other is just random.
At this juncture, there should be an impartial system of determining success or failure, rather than the DM simply saying "god A wins the match."
If you're trying to model Golarion deities, then that's exactly how it would work. PC vs Sarenrae? PC loses every time. The thing you'll need to tackle that is probably more tricky is that while deities are above non deities in almost every way, among themselves there is a definite structure. For example, Pharasma could roflstomp most every deity in one on one combat save maybe Rovagug. Azathuth, I hear, could similarly roflstomp Rovagug and, by extension, likely Pharasma, too. That's all if you're trying to describe and codify Golarion deities. If you're not going after that and just a generic "here be god stats" system, then ignore this.
Because one uses the rules and allows you to make coherent self-consistent stories.
The other is just random.
Again, for Golarion deities, that's just how it works. Paizo has contradicted themselves many times with the gods yet maintain the line that there's some cosmic agreement of noninterference that's just not lip service. It's explained by James Jacobs as stuff not even we as metagamey players can understand.
Why is GM fiat in making up a completely arbitrary chance of success better than GM fiat saying "god A wins the match?"Because one uses the rules and allows you to make coherent self-consistent stories.
The other is just random.
Rolling dice against a number you just made up is less random than deciding the result that fits the story?
To use the vernacular of the board: One of those is a game, and the other is story time. Some people prefer the game.
There's nothing wrong with making up stats for deities if that's what you want to do, but I really don't see how it helps the game unless you intend to make it possible for the PCs to defeat them.
This isn't for Golarion deities. I respect authorial intent on that point.
For stories in other settings, though, you may well want to make the deities semi-defeatable, even if just in the sense that they have a Sense Motive modifier that can potentially be beaten.
And, at least temporarily, creatures with these templates as written are defeatable; they have hit points that can be reduced to below their negative Constitution score. Though their Immortal ability ensures they will come back unless you have a special artifact or are yourself of equal power to a demigod, elemental lord, archdevil, or demon lord, that still doesn't mean the demigod or deity doesn't have to wait for 24 hours before returning.
And in that period it can't answer prayers, grant divine spells (make sure you kill it before its traditional cleric refresh time), answer miracle requests, etc.
Making a god take a sick day is pretty impressive stuff.
If you're trying to model Golarion deities,
Nope. Sorry, I should have been more clear on that.
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I like your idea, maybe i'll use it to stats my own Deities. How would you rule Avatars?
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Rolling dice against a number you just made up is less random than deciding the result that fits the story?
Very, very much so.
This is the nature of all dice checks.
If you would like to leave aside the dice system, you may certainly do so, but that is actively removing agency from those you're playing the game with.
It's also a false comparison. "A number you just made up" implies that you just made the number up (as in "right now, at this moment or the moment previous").
We, however, are doing this well in advance.
Beyond that, having a number gives us the ability to better gauge the relative power of two creatures.
This allows for variable story telling options with more internal consistency (see below).
While I could always just dictate what happens, pure dictation isn't what we're here for.
That's a false dichotomy. An RPG is both a game and shared storytelling.
You are correct.
But the emphasis is on the shared storytelling.
If you simply say, "the deity wins" you remove the "shared" aspect outright.
Hence having a number instantly makes it a "shared" experience; removing the number makes it a "the GM is talking now, so hush" experience (which is often necessary, but the less required it is, the better).
There's nothing wrong with making up stats for deities if that's what you want to do, but I really don't see how it helps the game unless you intend to make it possible for the PCs to defeat them.
Thank you for the former, but you've misunderstood the latter thoroughly.
It helps the "game" insomuch as it helps the "story". It helps the "story" because it allows internal consistency.
If, for example, one day a deity says "Behold my mighty hand!" and causes armies to be destroyed, then two days later they can't... why?
With a set of rules, we know why. And that way we can more confidently know what would happen in situations X, Y, Z as well.
There's something funny about acting and story-telling: if you know the rules behind the story you're telling, you often can tell a more internally consistent story than if you don't. You don't need to reveal the rules, and others don't need to even know they exist: the mere act of having rules (and thereby having consistent reactions and actions) that are consistent tends to lend a story a strong amount of verisimilitude and "real" feeling to it.
It's true that you can get too caught up in the minutiae to tell a proper story. This is a valid danger, and there are times to fudge.
But having a consistent set of rules means that when we fudge, we know how to fudge more accurately to avoid that feeling of arbitrariness. Sure making a dice roll might make the game less awesome. But in that case, we're making an informed decision based on consistent guidelines, not an arbitrary spur-of-the-moment one based on our whims with a broader potential to go awry.
Hence, a desire for rules.
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You're designing gods, not Gods.
Gods are ultra powerful superbeings that even the most powerful non-God could ever even hope to fully comprehend.
On the other hand, gods are just very powerful beings with powers that exist just slightly above the most powerful non-gods.
If that's a fair summation, I see no issue with doing it just to have done it. I don’t see the point of it, but it's your game.
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You're designing gods, not Gods.
Gods are ultra powerful superbeings that even the most powerful non-God could ever even hope to fully comprehend.
On the other hand, gods are just very powerful beings with powers that exist just slightly above the most powerful non-gods.
If that's a fair summation, I see no issue with doing it just to have done it. I don’t see the point of it, but it's your game.
I'm glad you're able to teach us all the proper cosmological significance of what a true God is.
Except that's only your opinion. You're confusing certain real-world religious teachings with game design. Turns out, when you're playing a game, a God is whatever the rules and/or DM says they are.
A God can be a concept, with no sentience, no awareness, no ability to affect the world in the slightest. A God can be a limitless super being that is so far beyond the comprehension of mere mortals that there's no reason it should even notice them, let alone care. A God can be a shared collective of faith and beliefs that underlie a culture, acting like a Jungian oversoul. A God can be a more than mortal being of great power, but with clearly defined limits, like the Norse or Greek pantheons. A God can be a jealous loner with abilities roughly equivalent to a 20 wiz/ 10 mythic. A God could even be a fox spirit that lives in the nearby forest and watches over a single village.
You're designing gods, not Gods.
Gods are ultra powerful superbeings that even the most powerful non-God could ever even hope to fully comprehend.
On the other hand, gods are just very powerful beings with powers that exist just slightly above the most powerful non-gods.
If that's a fair summation, I see no issue with doing it just to have done it. I don’t see the point of it, but it's your game.
I'm glad you're able to teach us all the proper cosmological significance of what a true God is.
Except that's only your opinion. You're confusing certain real-world religious teachings with game design. Turns out, when you're playing a game, a God is whatever the rules and/or DM says they are.
A God can be a concept, with no sentience, no awareness, no ability to affect the world in the slightest. A God can be a limitless super being that is so far beyond the comprehension of mere mortals that there's no reason it should even notice them, let alone care. A God can be a shared collective of faith and beliefs that underlie a culture, acting like a Jungian oversoul. A God can be a more than mortal being of great power, but with clearly defined limits, like the Norse or Greek pantheons. A God can be a jealous loner with abilities roughly equivalent to a 20 wiz/ 10 mythic. A God could even be a fox spirit that lives in the nearby forest and watches over a single village.
That's right, it is my opinion. I did my best to arrange the facts given in a manner that makes sense to me. Is there a problem with that? Maybe you didn't read the last line of my post which asked directly if my take was a fair summation. The examples that you posted, in my opinion, are a sampling of Gods and gods.
EDIT: Also, knowing some of Tacticslion's posting history and temperament I certainly wasn't expecting anyone to get *upset* over my post.
*grumble*Don't want to get thread locked*grumble*
Except you didn't post it worded as an opinion, you posted it worded in a way that says "Here are the facts, get it straight."
Except you didn't post it worded as an opinion, you posted it worded in a way that says "Here are the facts, get it straight."
As Scythia would say, I'm glad you can read my mind and tell me what I was saying. Thanks.
EDIT: To the OP, I'm honestly not trying to get this thread locked. You might want to tell people to stop sniping if they don't want it locked either.
Except you didn't post it worded as an opinion, you posted it worded in a way that says "Here are the facts, get it straight."As Scythia would say, I'm glad you can read my mind and tell me what I was saying. Thanks.
EDIT: To the OP, I'm honestly not trying to get this thread locked. You might want to tell people to stop sniping if they don't want it locked either.
I wasn't sniping, just using sarcasm. I was a bit annoyed though, I admit that the "real Gods can't have stats!" idea makes no sense to me, in a game based on stats.
I will say that at no point was reading your mind needed, instead reading what you posted sufficed. I'm sorry if you felt attacked by my post, I was attempting to confront your assertions, not you personally.
I decided to actually show the templates in play, with a stat block for a nascent deity/demigod.
First the lore, with the stat block in a spoiler at the end.
Umubu
Domains: Knowledge, Magic, Protection
Subdomains: Arcane, Divine, Memory, Solitude
Umubu is the patron of those seeking knowledge they once knew, and lord of all that which was long in the making and quick to be lost.
The most knowledgeable sage of his age or any other, Umubu was revered as the wisest mortal in all the planes, though he secreted himself away in his hidden library world and entertained few visitors.
There Umubu became engrossed in thought, descrying far places and divining hidden lore. Kept alive forever by the timeless nature of his plane, Umubu delved deeper and deeper into contemplation until, as the centuries passed, its body nearly shriveled away, becoming little more than a useless distraction.
Then one day, thinking deep thoughts, Umubu felt a nagging sensation, as if it had forgotten something. That was a feeling it had not experienced in years beyond counting. Seeking the source, Umubu found nothing, and the feeling only grew stronger. Then, a brief flash of thought brought the whole of it into his mind, only to vanish again in the mists of memory.
Concerned for its own sanity, Umubu began a frenzied search for whatever had sparked the fleeting recollection. First the study, then the library, then—in astral form—through the portal to the material plane. Bodiless, Umubu plumbed the depths of the earth, the far reaches of heaven, and every corner of the infinite planes, speaking with beings prosaic and profound and increasing in knowledge thereby. But never did the sage invent upon the lost secret it so desperately sought.
After a timeless age, Umubu could feel the hazy outlines of the answer taking shape, and was spurred to a great meditation in the void. Mind ablaze, the contemplative thought, and thought, and then came a thought so profound it shook reality itself. For a moment, Umubu's mind stepped beyond time, beyond space, beyond matter and void, beyond mortal and divine, beyond thought and beyond memory.
When the endless instant passed, Umubu found it had stepped over a threshold through which none could turn back. Umubu had brought back a sliver of the divine mind, and had been forever changed. The sage knew now what had impeded its quest. Its mind had been limited by a barrier that no mortal, no matter how learned, could perceive or even conceive of until they had leapt beyond it, and at that moment they were mortal no more, even when they fell back.
But though Umubu's newly capacious mind was now up to the task, it still could not remember what it had lost. Umubu was not yet omniscient. But it had grown far closer. If it could become a true god, Umubu believed, the barrier would shatter, and the nagging thought that had bedeviled the sage in its candlelit library all those centuries ago would finally be laid to rest.
Perfused with nascent divinity, Umubu wandered once more, this time in search of the arcana of the gods, and those with which it spoke brought the truths of Umubu to their brethren, and thereby was worship and prayer to Umubu begun.
Contemplative sorcerer (wildblooded, sage) 20/archmage 10
N Medium outsider (divine, mythic, native)
Init +37; Senses blindsight 60 ft., darkvision 60 ft., divine sight, detect magic; Perception +40
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DEFENSE
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AC 63, touch 50, flat-footed 50 (+13 armor, +13 Dex, +27 deflection)
hp 474 (24 HD; 4d10+44 plus 20d6+240 plus 30)
Fort +43, Ref +48, Will +48; +4 resistance; +8 resistance vs. spells & spell-like abilities
Defensive Abilities enduring armor, immortal, unstoppable, mythic saving throws, hard to kill, numinous grace; DR 15/epic; SR 44; Immune mind-affecting effects, blindness, curse, deafness, disease, poison, polymorph, petrification, energy drain, ability damage and drain, fatigue, exhaustion, death effects, environmental effects (planar adaptation, planetary adaptation); Resist acid 10, cold 10, electricity 10, fire 5; half damage from non-mythic acid, cold, and electricity
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OFFENSE
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Speed 5 ft., fly 30 ft. (perfect)
Melee staff of eldritch sovereignty +25/+20 (1d6+11) or 2 claws +18 (1d4+17)
Space 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.
Special Attacks arcane apotheosis, channel power, energy conversion, force of will, enhanced contemplation, mythic power (23/day, surge +1d12), wild arcana, spell paragon, true archmage
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 25th; concentration +52)
Constant—detect magic, mage hand, read magic
At-will—bless water, comprehend languages, daze (DC 37), detect thoughts (DC 39), dispel magic, ghost sound (DC 37), identify, magic aura (DC 38), magic missile, magic mouth, memory lapse (DC 39), protection from energy, sanctuary (DC 38), shield other, silence (DC 39), speak with dead (DC 40), telekinesis (DC 42, CMB +52)
30/day—arcane bolt (+25 ranged touch, 1d4+10 damage)
27/day—analyze dweomer, antimagic field, arcane eye, cleanse, detect scrying, discern location, divination, find the path, foresight, greater create demiplane, imbue with spell ability, legend lore, mage’s disjunction (DC 46), mind blank, miracle (DC 46), mirage arcana (DC 42), modify memory (DC 43), moment of prescience, protection from spells, prismatic sphere (DC 46), repulsion (DC 44), resurrection, spell immunity, spell resistance, spell turning, true seeing
Spells (CL 20st; DC 37 + spell level, +8 for evocation and transmutation, +4 enchantment; concentration +47)
9th (11)—time stop*, shapechange, gate, wish*.
8th (11)—polymorph any object (DC 53), sunburst (DC 53), mass charm monster (DC 49), clenched fist (+57 attack, +59 CMB, DC 53), power word stun.
7th (12)—limited wish, greater scrying (DC 44), plane shift* (DC 44), greater teleport (DC 44).
6th (12)—borrowed time*, chain lightning* (DC 51), chains of light (DC 51), disintegrate* (DC 51), mass suggestion (DC 47), true seeing.
5th (12)—persistent image (DC 42), dominate person* (DC 46), cloudkill* (DC 42), overland flight, wall of force*.
4th (12)—enervation* (+25 ranged touch), animate dead*, confusion* (DC 45), greater invisibility, ball lightning (DC 49), dimension door.
3rd (13)—haste*, slow* (DC 44), blacklight, fireball* (DC 48), dispel magic*.
2nd (13)—share memory, defensive shock, mirror image*, eldritch conduit (DC 43), kinetic reverberation (DC 43), invisibility*.
1st (13)—grease* (DC 38), shield, ray of enfeeblement* (DC 38), magic weapon, true strike, identify.
Cantrips—acid splash (+25 ranged touch), prestidigitation, mending, arcane mark, spark (DC 45), light, dancing lights, detect poison, resistance.
*Mythic spell
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STATISTICS
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Str 33, Dex 37, Con 33, Int 64, Wis 37, Cha 43
Base Atk +14; CMB +25; CMD 26
Feats Dazing Spell, Empower Spell, Extend Spell, Extra Path Ability (Eldritch Breach), Greater Spell Focus (enchantment, evocation, transmutation), Improved Initiative*, Intensified Spell, Mythic Spell Focus (evocation)*, Mythic Spell Lore (2)*, Persistent Spell, Quicken Spell, Silent Spell, Spell Focus (enchantment, evocation, transmutation), Still Spell.
*mythic feat
Skills Appraise +54, Bluff +43, Craft (alchemy, carpentry, masonry, scrivening, sculpture) +54, Diplomacy +43, Disable Device +17, Disguise +40, Escape Artist +17, Fly +48, Handle Animal +23, Heal +40, Intimidate +43, Knowledge (arcana) +56, Knowledge (all others) +54, Linguistics +54, Perception +40, Profession (scribe) +40, Sense Motive +40, Sleight of Hand +17, Spellcraft +56, Stealth +37, Use Magic Device +43
Traits Magical Lineage (time stop), Magic's Might (+1 on spell penetration checks)
Mythic Path Abilities Wild Arcana, Energy Conversion, Arcane Metamastery (4), Channel Power, Enduring Armor, Component Freedom, Enhance Magic Items, Crafting Mastery, Eldritch Breach
Languages telepathy 100 ft.; omniglot
SQ amazing initiative, recuperation, force of will, persistent magic, divine source, divine sight, omniglot, unbound by destiny, arcane school focus (transmutation)
Combat Gear staff of eldritch sovereignty (50 charges)
Items prismatic dodecahedron ioun stone (minor artifact, CL 20th, +6 enhancement bonus to all ability scores, max ranks in 3 skills chosen at dawn each day).
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Persistent Magic (Ex): Umubu’s spells, spell-like and supernatural abilities, and any magic items they carry or wear, are not subject to being dispelled by mortal magic or suppressed by antimagic. Only disjunction from a mythic or similarly powerful source can interfere, and even then the caster has only a 1% chance per caster level to affect Umubu’s spells, spell-like abilities, supernatural abilities, or magic items. If the percent die is successful, the caster must still make a successful dispel check (DC 11 + caster level) to end an effect.
Spell Paragon (Ex): Umubu is considered to have the Spell Perfection feat for all spells it casts (except those cast via wild arcana), and never provokes attacks of opportunity from nonmythic creatures when casting spells. Maintaining concentration on a spell, redirecting a spell such as orb of the void or crushing hand, making a combat maneuver check with telekinesis, or issuing a new command to a conjured spell effect or creature can be done as a free action once per round. Umubu must spend the appropriate action to do more than one of these things in a single round. Umubu can use other abilities, even magical ones, without losing concentration on a spell, but can only concentrate on one spell or magical effect at a time. Umubu can prepare or cast a spell with any metamagic feat for which it qualifies (which includes feats whose only prerequisites are other metamagic feats), even if it does not know the feat. If it does know the feat, the level adjustment is decreased by 1 (minimum +0). It must know the feat to apply it to a spell cast via wild arcana.
Numinous Grace (Su): Umubu adds their highest mental ability modifier as a racial bonus on all saving throws and as a deflection bonus to Armor Class.
Amazing Initiative (Ex): As the base mythic ability. Umubu can cast a spell, activate a magic item, or use a spell-like or supernatural ability using the bonus standard action.
Mythic Saving Throws (Ex): As the base mythic ability. It also applies to effects from mythic sources.
Unstoppable (Ex): As the base mythic ability. When used, it also removes any and all of the listed conditions that originated from a non-mythic source.
Immortal (Su): As the base mythic ability. The base creature gains the improved version of the ability available to creatures of 10th tier. Only major artifacts whose description mentions deicide can bypass the ability.
Force of Will (Ex): As the base mythic ability. Umubu can use this power on rolls made by mythic creatures (but not demigods or similar divine beings).
Divine Source (Su/Sp): As the universal path ability. Umubu gains it as if it had taken it three times. It can use each spell granted by its domains and subdomains as a spell-like ability once per day per point of bonus in their highest mental attribute, and saving throw DCs, attack roll bonuses for spells such as mage’s sword, etc., are keyed off that attribute. It gains the granted powers of its domains and subdomains as if it were a cleric of a level equal to its Hit Dice or its cleric level + 10, whichever is highest. Any preexisting Divine Source mythic path abilities can be exchanged for any other path abilities from its mythic path or the universal path abilities.
Divine Sight (Su): Umubu gains continuous true seeing out to the limit of its line of sight. It also immediately discovers the alignment of any creature it can see, as if by continuous see alignment effects for all 9 alignments. This ability automatically pierces all nonmythic disguises, abjurations, and illusions.
Unbound by Destiny (Su): Umubu does not count a natural 1 on an attack roll or saving throw as an automatic failure.
Omniglot (Su): Umubu can converse with any intelligent creature, as if using tongues. It can also read, write, and understand any writing, as if by comprehend languages and read magic. At its choice, it can write using a divine language that all literate creatures can read, as if each possessed comprehend languages when viewing the writing. The creature’s ability to understand the message behind the words is limited by their intelligence, as normal.
Recuperation (Ex): As the base mythic ability. Spending 1 mythic power and resting for 1 hour restores all lost hit points rather than half, as well as granting the benefit of greater restoration, heal, and regenerate.
Legendary Hero (Ex): As the base mythic ability.
Enhanced Contemplation (Su): Umubu’s racial spell-like abilities gain all the benefits of its divine source spell-like abilities, including caster level and key ability score. Umubu’s telekinesis ability is usable at will.
Arcane Beacon (Su): As a standard action Umubu can become a beacon of arcane energy until the end of its next turn. The aura emanates 15 feet from Umubu. All arcane spells cast within the aura either gain a +1 bonus to their caster level or increase their saving throw DC by +1. The caster chooses the benefit when they cast the spell. Umubu can use this ability up to 30 times per day.
Recall (Su): With a touch, Umubu can cause a creature to recall some bit of forgotten lore or information. The creature can retry any Knowledge skill check it has made within the past minute, gaining a +27 insight bonus on the check. Umubu can use this ability 30 times per day.
Remote Viewing (Sp): Umubu can use clairvoyance/clairaudience at will as a spell-like ability at caster level 24th. Umubu can use this ability for up to 24 rounds per day. These rounds do not need to be consecutive.
Hand of the Acolyte (Su): Up to 30 times per day, Umubu can cause a melee weapon to fly from its grasp and strike a foe before instantly returning. As a standard action, Umubu can make a single attack using a melee weapon at a range of 30 feet. This attack is treated as a ranged attack with a thrown weapon, except that it adds Umubu’s Intelligence modifier to the attack roll instead of its Dexterity modifier (damage still relies on Strength). This ability cannot be used to perform a combat maneuver.
Divine Vessel (Su): Up to 30 times per day when Umubu is the target of a divine spell, it can, as a swift action, grant each ally within 15 feet of Umubu a divine boon. This boon grants a +2 bonus on the next attack roll, skill check, or ability check made before the end of their next turn.
Resistant Touch (Sp): As a standard action up to 30 times per day, Umubu can touch an ally to grant them Umubu’s +4 resistance bonus for 1 minute. When Umubu uses this ability, it loses its resistance bonus granted by the Protection domain for 1 minute.
Aura of Protection (Su): Umubu can emit a 30-foot aura of protection for up to 24 rounds per day. These rounds do not need to be consecutive. Umubu and its allies within this aura gain a +4 deflection bonus to AC and resistance 10 against acid, cold, electricity, fire, and sonic.
Taboo (Su): When a creature touches Umubu or strikes it with a melee attack, Umubu can activate this power as an immediate action. That creature takes a –5 penalty on saving throws for 1 minute. When Umubu uses this ability, it loses the +4 resistance bonus to saves granted by the Protection domain for 1 minute. Umubu can use this ability up to 30 times per day.
The stat block might seem a bit crazy (unbuffed AC of 61, spell-like miracle 30/day, Persistent polymorph any object with a DC of 53 not counting channel power, the potent augmentation, etc.), but part of that came from cheesing the "raise to 22" clause in the demigod ability score section and the choice of a race with a +14 racial bonus to Intelligence. A martial-oriented demigod would be much more manageable. However, I'm sure that a 4-man party of level 20/tier 10 characters that have been min-maxed out the wazoo and are willing to nova everything they've got could find a way to reduce Umubu to -66 hp, especially since there is not a DM on earth (me included) who could make perfectly optimal use of all of Umubu's abilities.
If you are going for a Planescape like session, more power to you.
For mortals in the prime material plane, you may want to hesitate. There's a lot of outcry when it was revealed the number of ways an ease that a smart 20th level party could kill Cthulhu - easier than killing Baba Yaga, actually.
Even so, it can be fun, particularly if they are avatars only, or if using a surreal/ afterlife / planar setting like planescape did.
There's a lot of outcry when it was revealed the number of ways an ease that a smart 20th level party could kill Cthulhu - easier than killing Baba Yaga, actually.
I must have missed this. Was there a thread?
There's a lot of outcry when it was revealed the number of ways an ease that a smart 20th level party could kill Cthulhu - easier than killing Baba Yaga, actually.I must have missed this. Was there a thread?
Here you go. It starts as a relatively simple question and quickly spirals out of control. Enjoy.
Except you didn't post it worded as an opinion, you posted it worded in a way that says "Here are the facts, get it straight."As Scythia would say, I'm glad you can read my mind and tell me what I was saying. Thanks.
EDIT: To the OP, I'm honestly not trying to get this thread locked. You might want to tell people to stop sniping if they don't want it locked either.
I wasn't sniping, just using sarcasm. I was a bit annoyed though, I admit that the "real Gods can't have stats!" idea makes no sense to me, in a game based on stats.
I will say that at no point was reading your mind needed, instead reading what you posted sufficed. I'm sorry if you felt attacked by my post, I was attempting to confront your assertions, not you personally.
I admit that the "everything has stats, so gods must have stats!" idea makes no sense to me, even in a game based on stats.
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Here you go. It starts as a relatively simple question and quickly spirals out of control. Enjoy.There's a lot of outcry when it was revealed the number of ways an ease that a smart 20th level party could kill Cthulhu - easier than killing Baba Yaga, actually.I must have missed this. Was there a thread?
Anzyr. Of course it would be Anzyr.
Anzyr. Of course it would be Anzyr.Here you go. It starts as a relatively simple question and quickly spirals out of control. Enjoy.There's a lot of outcry when it was revealed the number of ways an ease that a smart 20th level party could kill Cthulhu - easier than killing Baba Yaga, actually.I must have missed this. Was there a thread?
Ninja'd