Thinking of running again: D&D, or Maid? [Humanoid Bondage/Consensual]

[TheGlyphstone]

Yeah, but the Book of Gears don't bother to explain if adding a Lesser property to a Minor item increases it to a Moderate item, or other important details.

I'd be okay with an enchanted firebox that kept itself filled with coal, it just feels a little setting-incongrous. Then again, so are adventuring steamjacks...

[SomeGuy]

Wow, Khador really take their armor seriously. I haven't actually looked at the Warmachines stats in a while, figured I'd take a look at them again to see how things stack up, and what kind of stuff was left out of the IK books. The Devastator is nuts... I want one.

[ulthakptah]

Also, huge thanks to Kunoichi! I looked up the Unseen Seer (read, stole a friend's book), and the illusionist variant is totally in keeping with the feel I was thinking, albeit with the level dings for non-specialty schools more in this case showing off that she's just for the most part a bad and half-trained wizard more than super-focus on one school. I figure that's easy enough to think about as flavour, so long as the illusionist Unseen Seer variant is okay with kongming?

What you should also do is take spellthief instead of rogue, ninja, or scout. I know Kunoichi mentioned this, but I didn't see her go into any details. Anyway with a spell thief/wizard build you can take the "Master Spellthief" feat from complete scoundrel. Which stacks spellthief with your other arcane spellcasting levels to determine caster level and what spells you can steal as a spellthief, as well as letting you cast spells from other classes without spell failure while wearing light armor. So say you were going with Spellthief 1/Illusionist 4/Unseen Seer 5 your caster level would be 10, you could steal 5th level spells, even though you only have one level of spellthief, and you would have all the spells per day of a 9th level illusionist, and be able to cast them wearing light armor.

As for me I see that no one has made a divine caster yet, I have a pretty good eldritch disciple build. I don't like playing as a girl, but for a 10th level game I would. I don't know much on background, and I won't until I finish "acquiring" the Iron Kingdom books, but at least with the rules from the tome of awesome he/she won't have to be evil.

So, is there an opening left for a divine caster?

[Ershin]

As for me I see that no one has made a divine caster yet, I have a pretty good eldritch theurge build. I don't like playing as a girl, but for a 10th level game I would. I don't know much on background, and I won't until I finish "acquiring" the Iron Kingdom books, but at least with the rules from the tome of awesome he/she won't have to be evil.

So, is there an opening left for a divine caster?

If you're thinking of the divine warlock PrC, I think you mean Eldritch Disciple. The Theurge is the arcane one. I've always had a soft spot for that PrC, it's a nice way to combine the Walock's "always on" abilities (such as flight or... uh. I think there's one that increases your charisma skills, and Eldritch Glaive) with the range of stuff that a Cleric can do. Plus exchanging turn attempts to turn your eldritch blasts into healing rays, always a plus if you're not using them on anything else like turning or Divine Metamagic.

It's seems like a really fun prestige class.

[ulthakptah]

If you're thinking of the divine warlock PrC, I think you mean Eldritch Disciple. The Theurge is the arcane one. I've always had a soft spot for that PrC, it's a nice way to combine the Walock's "always on" abilities (such as flight or... uh. I think there's one that increases your charisma skills, and Eldritch Glaive) with the range of stuff that a Cleric can do. Plus exchanging turn attempts to turn your eldritch blasts into healing rays, always a plus if you're not using them on anything else like turning or Divine Metamagic.

It's seems like a really fun prestige class.

Yes, that's what I meant.

[TheGlyphstone]

Wow, Khador really take their armor seriously. I haven't actually looked at the Warmachines stats in a while, figured I'd take a look at them again to see how things stack up, and what kind of stuff was left out of the IK books. The Devastator is nuts... I want one.

Khador take everything seriously.

[SomeGuy]

This might be useful for mechanika construction.

[kongming]

Just letting you all know I am still here. Within 24 hours I will start a thread for the Maid Game (as in, the game actually begins). Two, actually. One for character sheets and OOC banter related to the game, and one for the game itself.

I will also work on answering the various questions here. I will look through Warjack enhancements to work out what kind of Items they qualify as, and so on. But don't worry, I am still paying attention.

[TheGlyphstone]

Okeydoke.

Honestly, I'd be happier using standard WBL to calculate our gear if we had to (and play around with making Mechanika), simply because the Tome's rules are so drastically incomplete.

[Ershin]

Small question, will "Exploits" from the tome be in place (ie, an intelligence check and practicing with weaponry to become proficient with it) be in place, or will proficiency feats still have to be taken?

Honestly, I'd be happier using standard WBL to calculate our gear if we had to (and play around with making Mechanika), simply because the Tome's rules are so drastically incomplete.

What does replace WBL in the tome anyway? I've yet to find anything in it apart from mentions of getting rid of it.

[kongming]

Yes, Exploits are in play. Nobody should be forced to spend a feat just to be proficient with something.

Wealth by level is stupid, because:

• There are like a dozen ways to get infinite wealth (some of which IK takes care of, by dint of banning the spells), so money should never equal power
  
• Any king would be an idiot to spend a million GP training and outfitting ten thousand soldiers when he could spend that on having someone outfit his best knight in Epic gear or having a Wizard build a device that constantly spits out Wishes or whatever.
  
• Players are incentivised to strip the gold plating off statues, and to loot the worthless junk off corpses to help turn them into a further +1
  
• If you have it at all, it should always scale with your level
  
  The Tome rules for wealth are basically:
  
• Mundane: either "what the MC says" if you're in a wilderness survival game, or "Whatever" if not (particularly if higher level).
  
• Minor/Lesser magic items all just have a scaling bonus according to your level to some stat or other, and maybe a weak trick (a Cantrip at will, a small weapon property). You start getting them when you're still clubbing seals/goblins. By level fifteen you practically have as many as you want. These CAN be bought for money, and cost just a few thousand gold apiece.
  
• Moderate magic items have the bonus and a much better effect, or they are things like Rods of Metamagic or Flying Carpets. You will always find them useful, in other words. You start getting them before level 10, but you can't buy them for love nor money. Either you find them, or you do something for someone (complete a quest for a Wizard (or Artificer in this case), or trade Raw Hope to a Genie).
  
• Major magic items do things so crazy there should be a law against it, so come into play after level 10, when "it's crazy land anyway". Major Magic Weapons usually have some form of "Save or die" effect, other items grant blanket immunities or high level spells or class features. These are really legendary things so don't even think about putting a price tag on them, but you can expect to end up with one or two eventually.
  
• You can't stack multiple abilities up, usually - it's okay to have one item that does the job of two Minor Items and have it worth two Minor Items, but you can't say "I don't care about the abilities, I just want two stat bonuses on this Minor Item" or "Instead of a Moderate, let's just give it 3 Minor traits!"
  
  For the record, although you have "enough money for whatever", please do list the mundane gear being carried, as Iron Kingdoms is the kind of game where you might end up stranded out somewhere or under siege or similar. It's also the kind of game where you can go "Hahaha, let us travel to all of these places and buy all the soap! Now we can wait a few weeks and corner the market!"
  
  And though it doesn't make too much of a difference, most gear you find in-game will actually be mechanical, not magical. As this is IK, where magic items are rare and a little bit scary, but technology can just about do most of the same things.
  
  Glyphstone: go ahead and take Jack Enhancements to the tune of 10,000 GP, and call that "two Minor Items" - for the third Minor you can boost that to 15K if you like. You can certainly have a Bag of Infinite Coal to give to a cohort or follower, and a Moderate Magic Weapon. For the enhanced mental faculties, go for Wisdom and Charisma 10, with one of them having +1 per 3 HD (round up), and the ability to add Hit Dice based increases to them. From there, you could use a Minor Magic/Mechanical Item to add the usual booster. That can be the other Moderate Item, given it starts with a big bump to them.
  
  I like those feats, consider them approved.
  
  ulthakptah: you can go ahead and pitch an idea to me. No guarantees, of course. That said, keep in mind the range of IK deities and the pain of healing.

[Kunoichi]

And since my one remaining question was rather easy to miss...

Alright, and now I only need to have one more question answered to finish my build:

The combat feat Weapon of Righteous Destruction.  The +0 bonus is 'Whatever weapon you are wielding is considered Magical (+1/3 bonus/level) in addition to any other properties it has.  Your unarmed attacks, even if you are not proficient, count for this effect.'  I'm guessing that the weapon being considered Magical means that it gets an increasing enhancement bonus to attack and damage as I level up, but if it works on unarmed attacks, does it also work on natural attacks?

[TheGlyphstone]

Excellente.

Question: If I only want to buy 5,000GP worth of steamjack upgrades, can that only count as 1 minor magic item? The maximum level of every upgrade printed in Liber Mechanika only totals to 9,000, and I can probably get something more interesting/fun/useful with that extra item slot.

Second Question: As listed below, I was planning on taking the Terror lesser magic trait on my weapon, and benefiting from the default rule that says a creature afflicted with a [Fear] condition who is already suffering from a [Fear] condition instead escalates to the next stage of [Fear]. Do you have any problems with this? It makes sense to me that being repeatedly stabbed with a weapon imbued to cause supernatural terror (particularly one wielded by a giant robot) would cause a resonating sort of increase in the potency of the fear, but some DMs might feel that potentially disabling an enemy (one not immune to Fear, at least) by stabbing it twice (Shaken escalates to Frightened, forcing the enemy to flee until it is out of sight) is too powerful.

Third Question: Also, do our cohorts, if we have one, come with any magic items of their own?



EDIT: What I've got so far:
Minor Magic Item x2: Steamjack Enhancement Package (Superheavy Engine, +6 Armor Cowling, +5 Pneumatic Venting, +5 Reflex Array)
Minor Magic Item: Bag of Infinite Coal/Bottle of Endless Water
Moderate Magic Item: Magic Warpike of Terror and Sharpness
Moderate Magic Item: ???

[SomeGuy]

For the record, although you have "enough money for whatever", please do list the mundane gear being carried, as Iron Kingdoms is the kind of game where you might end up stranded out somewhere or under siege or similar. It's also the kind of game where you can go "Hahaha, let us travel to all of these places and buy all the soap! Now we can wait a few weeks and corner the market!"

Oh boy. I've spent over 1,000 GP on mundane gear before. I love to be prepared for... everything.

[TheGlyphstone]

Oh boy. I've spent over 1,000 GP on mundane gear before. I love to be prepared for... everything.

And somehow, I have a nasty feeling I'll be ending up as the 'person' carrying all the supplies...me and my stupid 34 Strength. It's undignified for a eight-and-a-half-ton walking war machine to be a glorified pack mule.

[SomeGuy]

But if you carry my stuff for me I'll give you focus!

[TheGlyphstone]

Okay, for focus I might be willing to lug your stuff. Delicious focus, like warjack crack....


Question 4: The +1 BAB level of Great Fortitude says you die at -20 instead of -10. Does this mean I 'die' at -10 instead of 0 (under Tome Rules, it means I simply go inert until I can be repaired)? Or do we take precedent from the effects of the Brutal warjack bond, which makes a 'Jack "die" at -20 flat instead of 0, and let the feat function as written?

Question 4.5: I assume we're using the Tome Construct creature type and not the core Construct type, but the Mechanikal Construct subtype as-written would grant a bunch of them back, as well as a few that aren't explicitly removed. Again assuming the Type takes precedence over the Subtype, that still leaves Poison, Fatigue, Exhaustion, Death Effects, and Non-Lethal Damage in the gulf of confusion.

[kongming]

Kunoichi: yes, it works on natural weapons of all kinds. And yes, that's a scaling enhancement bonus to attack and damage rolls, the ability to bypass DR X/magic, and it's super effective against Ghost type pokemon it has the chance to hit incorporeal creatures.

Glyph: yeah, you can spend just 1 slot on 5K of stuff. And Fear stacks. As for Cohorts, they can each have 2 Minor Magic Items and 10,000GP in cash (which can be spent on low-level Mechanika). You "die" at -20, because the feat says so! As for the immunities based on Type, it's Construct (modified by Tome) as the General rule, then Mechanikal Construct subtype as a specific rule overrides that, so yes, it does give you back a bunch of those immunities and things.

[TheGlyphstone]

Double excellente!

[kongming]

And the Maid Game is up!

Game Thread: https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=116731.0
OOC/Character Sheets: https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=116730.0

[TheGlyphstone]

Here's my preliminary character sheet. I still need to compile my Cohort (a Goblin Bodger/Field Mechanik) and write up some fluff/story for Whistlin' Steve here, but the general gist is that Steve is a unique, experimental heavy warjack built around the use of a new type of 'Imbued' Cortex, one that incorporate Cyriss-tech into its construction methods. More intelligent than even an Arcanum-grade cortex, and intended for eventual use in independently operating extreme long-range scout 'jacks capable of functioning completely without instructions for long periods of time, even to the point of refueling themselves out of available materials. The enhanced efficiency steam engines are being tested separately, while Steve is the testbed model for the autonomous cortex.

Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide

Whistlin’ Steve (heavy warjack)
Large Construct (steamjack, mechanikal construct)
Height/Weight: 7’9”/8.4 tons
Armament: Pneumatically powered fists, enchanted Warpike
Initial Service Date:
Hit Dice: 14d10+30 (121 HP)
Initiative: +4
Speed: 40ft.
Armor Class:  33 (-1 size, +20 armor, +4 Dex), touch 13, flat-footed 29
BAB/Grapple: +10/+22
Attack: Slam +28 (1d10+12) or Terrifying Serricsteel Warpike of Sharpness +31 (3d6+21/x3, Terror, severs limbs/ignores hardness)
Full Attack: 2 Slams +28/+28 (1d10+12) or Terrifying Serricsteel Warpike of Sharpness +31/+26 (3d6+21/x3, Terro,r severs limbs/ignores hardness)
Space/Reach: 10ft./10ft. (20ft. with Warpike, -2 with Warpike within 10ft.)
Special Attacks:
Special Qualities: Construct Traits, Mechanikal Construct Immunities, Malfunction Threshold 50, Slow, Furnace Vulnerability, Reliance on Fuel, DR 10/Serricsteel, Darkvision 60ft., Low-light vision
Saves: Fortitude +7, Reflex +6, Will +6
Abilities: Str 34, Dex 18, Con -, Int 14, Wis 15, Cha 10
Skills: Balance +21, Intimidate +17, Spot +19, Listen +19
Feats: Battlefield Flexibility[Combat], Command[Combat, Leadership], Horde Breaker [Combat], Great Fortitude [Combat], Polearm Sentinel [Combat]
Arcane Bond: Magnate (Improved Bull Rush, Improved Overrun)

Equipment:
Minor Magic Item: Steamjack Enhancement Package (Pneumatic Venting +4, Reflex Array +5, Armored Cowling +6)
Minor Magic Item: Imbued Cortex (+4 Intelligence)
Minor Magic Item: Enchanted Armor Cowling (+4 Armor)
Moderate Magic Item: Magic Serricsteel Warpike of Terror and Sharpness
Moderate Magic Item:  Water Walking Greaves of Dexterity and Speed (+4 Dex, +35ft. speed, Water Walk)

Battlefield Flexibility
-Dex or Str on Maneuvers
-+4 on all maneuver checks
-Add BAB to Edge
[Damaging Maneuvers unlocked at CR11]

Command:
-Command Rating 10
-Followers (12x 0.5, 6x 1, 3x 1.5, 2x 2, 1x 2.5)
-Cohort (CR 8)
[Rally unlocked at CR11]

Great Fortitude:
-+3 Fortitude saves
-Death threshold of -20
-+14 HP
[DR 5/- unlocked at CR11]

Horde Breaker
-+4 AoO per round
-Cleave
-May take a free 5ft. step before or after every Cleave
[Aura of Fear unlocked at CR11]

Polearm Sentinel:
-Short Haft
- Hold The Line
-Stand Still
[Thicket of Blades unlocked at CR11]

[Kunoichi]

Kunoichi: yes, it works on natural weapons of all kinds. And yes, that's a scaling enhancement bonus to attack and damage rolls, the ability to bypass DR X/magic, and it's super effective against Ghost type pokemon it has the chance to hit incorporeal creatures.

Nice. ;D Now all I need to do is make sure I'm understanding the magic item rules properly, and that my choices aren't illegal...

3 Minor Magic Items:
+1/3 to Charisma per character level
+1/3 to Dexterity per character level
+1/3 to Strength per character level

2 Moderate Magic Items:
+1/3 to Constitution per character level + Sustenance
+1/3 to Saves per character level + Mind Shielding

...And then other than that, I'm wondering how to transport the rest of the coinage in goods that I'm allowed as actual coins (dragons need a treasure hoard, after all).  I'm thinking just an extra-dimensional storage of some sort, but I'm not sure if a bag of holding, or even just a handy haversack, will count as one of my allotted magic items.

[SomeGuy]

'Hire' a mule to pull a wagon, threaten to eat it if it doesn't cooperate.

[Kunoichi]

Not quite fitting for my character concept, I'm afraid. ^^; The basic idea is that my character has only very, very recently made her way to civilization, and is only starting to really figure out how it all works.  The idea of spending some of her small collection of trinkets and shiny things on something to carry the rest of her collection with is something that wouldn't have occurred to her yet, so if extra-dimensional storage isn't an option, she'll probably just leave it in some nearby cave.

Which, now that I think about it, could lead to a plot hook of it being stolen while she's out...

[SomeGuy]

Aw, I liked the picture I had of a dragon sleeping on their pile of gold.... after it was loaded onto a wagon and was being pulled around the countryside. If we meet anyone traveling it would have been great.

Edit- I don't remember a lot of information on giants existing, which fits with the setting, but is there more then the stuff in the Monsternomicon? Specifically, information about the ancestors? Are they still around, or is that completely unaddressed (and thus up to the DM [well, it's always up to the DM, but even more so then usual])? If even just a few of the fifty are still around...