Seeking Legendary Monsters (3.5 DnD, lots custom rules)

Started by Zaer Darkwail, April 08, 2015, 05:54:06 AM

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TheGlyphstone

So spellcasting/noncasting is the mythic switch...okay. Presumably psionics also counts as mythic, if soulmelds do. But (Su) things on their own don't count.

It's looking like I will need to abandon Soul Eater. Massive negative levels are vicious, but useless if I can't actually land any hits on anything, and Death Ward or being undead shuts me down entirely.

Reiterating the question as to whether Boost maneuvers add +13 to hit/damage, or only Strike Maneuvers.

Zaer Darkwail

Quote from: TheGlyphstone on April 09, 2015, 03:10:56 PM
So spellcasting/noncasting is the mythic switch...okay. Presumably psionics also counts as mythic, if soulmelds do. But (Su) things on their own don't count.

Correct, binders though count as mystic as they gain 'mystic powers' with their pacts. But some individual Su stuff (like paladins detect evil) does not count. Psionics count mystic naturally and soulmelds (or any class which gets lots offensive Su abilities or spell-alike abilities like warlock or dragonfire adept).

The +13 insight bonus applies to strikes unless boost acquired gives bonus to dmg/hit (like some desert wind maneuvers add additional fire dmg or turns entire dmg to fire dmg and extra reach). Stances themselves do not give +13 to hit or dmg, but example punishing stance extra dmg could be 1d6+13 or DR provided by Roots of the Mountain to be 15/- (while only get +10 to resist grapples, bull rush etc). The +13 insight bonus can be applied quite creatively but ask first about them. One example my char has class granted special attack which does full attack but also has +13 additional attacks (it's not normal full attacking but rather maneuver conversion done by Bloodstorm of Blade to hit additional targets than just one guy with a throw).

TheGlyphstone

#52
I'll just have to get creative then. :D

Say, Soul Eater - any time it touches a target (such as with a natural weapon attack) it bestows a negative level thanks to its Energy Drain ability. Since this is a special attack that requires an attack roll to take effect, it gets +13 insight bonus to the attack roll? I'm thinking this is more reasonable than draining +13 negative levels per hit. ;D

As Soul Eater levels up, it gets +enhancement bonuses to different stats for 24 hours after it successfully energy drains a target. Do these enhancement bonuses increase by +13?

Do the bonuses granted by Soulmelds increase by +13?

Zaer Darkwail

With souleater it's okay to add +13 insight bonus to hit with attack which uses energy drain (or adds +13 insight bonus to save DC remove it or amount). The enchantment bonuses can be +17 indeed. Soulmelds however do not increase; or otherwise we get arguments like 'can I add +13 insight bonus to my magic missiles?'

You can add +13 to magic missiles if your warmage and got warmage edge (and want 'improve' warmage edge to be +13 insight bonus). But soulmelds are 'spells' in that way that they do not count as special attacks/offensive qualities in themselves.

TheGlyphstone

Eh, good enough. I wasn't looking for, say, +13 extra tentacles from Displacer Mantle anyways, but something more like how Girallon Arms give scaling bonuses to climb and Grapple based on Essentia investment, or Dread Carapace boosting melee damage at the cost of accuracy based on essentia - would those bonuses increase by +13. It's an actual resource investment and a class feature, so it's closer to the Warmage Edge than an ordinary spell IMO. But you is the boss.

PaleEnchantress

#55
Quote from: Zaer Darkwail on April 09, 2015, 01:34:33 PM
Check DMG II, pg157, Unique Abilities and check Dragontouched. Same goes to newcomers (some useful template/unique abilities there but they none give stat bonuses and they all are more and less inherited templates but some are gained).

However advance note; if someone takes Unearthly Beauty I will heavily house rule it (either reduce LA or make it template worth to be +12 LA and take entire monster side in tri-gestalt).

Nice to see PaleEnchantress :).


What a coincidence I come along just as you mention unearthly beauty.

PS: Where are out character creation rules at? There is an awesome vampire PRC in the BOVD but could only work in gestault settings since its for spellcasting vampires but gives no spellcasting on its own. Was really thinking of using it.
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Zaer Darkwail

Quote from: TheGlyphstone on April 09, 2015, 04:28:30 PM
Eh, good enough. I wasn't looking for, say, +13 extra tentacles from Displacer Mantle anyways, but something more like how Girallon Arms give scaling bonuses to climb and Grapple based on Essentia investment, or Dread Carapace boosting melee damage at the cost of accuracy based on essentia - would those bonuses increase by +13. It's an actual resource investment and a class feature, so it's closer to the Warmage Edge than an ordinary spell IMO. But you is the boss.

Investia and investia investment is sort of like spell slots granted by class, so sorry if insight bonus cannot apply anyway to soulmelds :P.

Quote from: PaleEnchantress on April 09, 2015, 04:48:13 PM

What a coincidence I come along just as you mention unearthly beauty.

PS: Where are out character creation rules at? There is an awesome vampire PRC in the BOVD but could only work in gestault settings since its for spellcasting vampires but gives no spellcasting on its own. Was really thinking of using it.

Check link in first post, it leads to original recruit thread and there is char gen rules. However in original recruit thread is link to my OOTS based game which house rules (homebrew stuff) I am using this game (including rules how sex works in DnD if want go system heavy with it and already discuss in OOC inventing template for sex broken people, called Lustbound).

PaleEnchantress

After all is said and done we will have to see who's Gming style fits Who's playstyle as well.
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Zaer Darkwail

Yeah, as mentioned one my players works as 'GM' to two other players solo threads (to help ease my burden in making updates). I rule the main plot thread and control Ao (the overgod). But it's not must have for players to GM for others; they can be just players. Although Kunoichi works semi-GM in giving advices and ideas for builds if asked her about it (or ask anything about char gen or EP rules).

PaleEnchantress

Quote from: Zaer Darkwail on April 09, 2015, 05:14:18 PM
Yeah, as mentioned one my players works as 'GM' to two other players solo threads (to help ease my burden in making updates). I rule the main plot thread and control Ao (the overgod). But it's not must have for players to GM for others; they can be just players. Although Kunoichi works semi-GM in giving advices and ideas for builds if asked her about it (or ask anything about char gen or EP rules).

I wouldn't mind Gming for someone IF their preferences line up well with mine. Unlikely but possible. I want to extend that offer since I know you're looking for such things.

Im getting some great ideas aside from the vampire but the ecl limit is hitting hard. A shame most of the cool races have such arbitrarily high +LA's, like mind flayer. I was thinking of recreating my Nymphomaniac Alhoon but realized quickly her LA was too high. Then I thought of the horror series "Hellraiser" oh such potential there.
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TheGlyphstone

So, 'final' build plan.

Mystic Path: Totemist 12
Martial Path: Non-Casting Paladin of Slaughter 3/Swordsage 2/Soul Eater 7
Monstrous Path: Eight-Headed Hydra w/ Multiheaded x1 Lernaean Pyro Creature template (10HD, CR12)


My draft character concept/name is "Soulscorcher, The All-Consuming Inferno', with a heavy fire theme alongside the soul-draining. To that end, what do you think about reworking the Searing Spell metamagic feat as a Metabreath feat, like the ones in Draconomicon?
Quote
SEARING SPELL [METAMAGIC]
Your fi re spells are so hot that they can damage creatures
that normally have resistance or immunity to fi re.
Benefit: A searing spell is so hot that it ignores the
resistance to fire of creatures affected by the spell, and
affected creatures with immunity to fire still take half
damage. This feat can be applied only to spells with the
fi re descriptor.
Creatures with the cold subtype take double damage
from a searing spell. Creatures affected by a searing spell
are still entitled to whatever saving throw the spell normally
allows. A searing spell uses up a spell slot one level
higher than the spell’s actual level.
Quote

METABREATH FEATS
Dragons (and other creatures) have developed ways to control
their breath weapons to produce varying degrees of
effects, from the subtle to the conspicuous. To take a metabreath
feat, a creature must have a breath weapon whose
time between breaths is expressed in rounds. Therefore, a
hell hound (which can breathe once every 2d4 rounds) can
take metabreath feats, whereas a behir (breath weapon
usable 1/minute) cannot.
Effects of Metabreath Feats: In all ways, a metabreath
weapon operates in its usual fashion unless the feat specifically
changes some aspect of the breath weapon.
Using a metabreath feat puts stress on a dragon’s mind and
body, increasing the time it must wait until the dragon can
use its breath weapon again. Normally, a dragon must wait
1d4 rounds between breaths. Using a metabreath weapon
increases that wait by 1 round or more. For example, if a
dragon uses an enlarged breath weapon, it must wait 1d4+1
rounds before breathing again.

Enlarge Spell is a +1 metamagic feat, and Enlarge Breath is a +1 round metabreath feat. Maximize Spell is a +3 metamagic feat, and Maximize Breath appears to also be a +3 round metabreath feat. So a Searing Breath metabreath feat would add +1 round to the recharge, and have the same effects on a firebreath weapon as Searing Spell. Not at all crucial to the build, but would be thematically appropriate and nifty to have.

Zaer Darkwail

Quote from: PaleEnchantress on April 09, 2015, 05:45:14 PM
I wouldn't mind Gming for someone IF their preferences line up well with mine. Unlikely but possible. I want to extend that offer since I know you're looking for such things.

Im getting some great ideas aside from the vampire but the ecl limit is hitting hard. A shame most of the cool races have such arbitrarily high +LA's, like mind flayer. I was thinking of recreating my Nymphomaniac Alhoon but realized quickly her LA was too high. Then I thought of the horror series "Hellraiser" oh such potential there.

Well, vampire lord is just in there what you can get as vampire badass as monster side.

TheGlyphstone: I approve the idea for searing breath, requirement being you must have fire typed breath attack to use it.


schnookums

I have the best idea for a background using the Forgotten Realms. I presume we can come from most any time, can't we?


TheGlyphstone

#65
The wonderful thing about hydras (is that hydras are wonderful things) is that no one takes Improved Sunder as a feat, ever, because it's utter garbage.

Though speaking of feats, are Flaws permitted? You can never have enough feats, but I want to check ahead of time.


Kunoichi

No flaws, but feats are handled Pathfinder-style, one every odd level.  Also, for the bonus feat granted by the Paragon Creature template, you can use that slot specifically to take an Epic feat if you would otherwise qualify for it, even though you're not technically an Epic level character.  So, for example, Epic Leadership could be an option, since it doesn't have any listed level-based prerequisites, but Epic Skill Focus wouldn't be an option because the max ranks you can have in a skill at this level is 15, not the 20 ranks required for the feat.

TheGlyphstone

Not that my Charisma is high enough to be worth it, Paragon went to regular Leadership. Hooray for a pet craft-monkey artificer.

Of course, now I have to spend my money. Not fun at all.

Kunoichi

You can spend up to 100,000 gp out of your starting 200,000 on a single item, and if you do, that item will become your character's special signature item, like the legendary Wand of Orcus or Asmodeus' Ruby Rod.  I'd recommend combining together a bunch of held and slotless items for that, since the math on those is a lot less complicated than combining together a bunch of slotted items. ^^

TheGlyphstone

Quote from: Kunoichi on April 09, 2015, 10:55:19 PM
You can spend up to 100,000 gp out of your starting 200,000 on a single item, and if you do, that item will become your character's special signature item, like the legendary Wand of Orcus or Asmodeus' Ruby Rod.  I'd recommend combining together a bunch of held and slotless items for that, since the math on those is a lot less complicated than combining together a bunch of slotted items. ^^

I know. But having a pet artificer make my items for me gets me discounts (and really, what the hell else am I going to use a level 10 cohort for at CR30?), so I can stretch my 200,000 further than normal, and that is worth the extra hassle. CRAFT ALL THE THINGS!

Kunoichi

Actually, with the houserules we're using, your cohort gets to be level 12.  Also, you get to choose between either making your cohort gestalted, or giving it the Paragon Creature template.  And if you have any familiars or animal companions, or things of that nature, they get to be Paragon Creatures, too.

TheGlyphstone

#72
Eh. A craft-monkey artificer is still the best use of my cohort, frankly. Now he's just a Gestalt or Paragon artificer, though I guess being Paragon means he can follow me around and throw buffs at me if I really need him to. He just won't have the throw weight, even with those bonuses, to meaningfully impact any combat I'm in.

Kunoichi

Paragon would be much less fragile and much more likely to actually be able to contribute in encounters, while Gestalt would have more day-to-day utility.  Both approaches are definitely worth considering, though I've got a personal preference for Paragon Creature, myself.

TheGlyphstone

#74
Paragon will boost his caster level, which makes him able to craft higher-level items. So that cinches that decision for me.


EDIT: That, and he's not going to be level 12 anymore by the time I'm finished. Crafting items takes XP in 3.5, and he's going to have to pay that - even Legendary Artisan can only reduce the pain. Between forcing him to spend his own life-force to forge me superior equipment, and regularly snacking on his soul to top off my stats each day, I'm really working that -1 Leadership modifier for Cruelty. :D