Balancing powerswap

[shamsael]

In case your curious, there was a race in 3.5 that had this as an always-on ability.

It's statted in the Dragon Compendium from Paizo (updated from an older Dragon Magazine article)

http://www.d20zines.com/v7/node/1768


Maybe you can do this like a longer range mirror images.

You get the second body, you let them share actions, and you can use either as an origin for attacks, and the first time one of them gets hit with an attack, it dissapears and the remaining of the two is the new character.

 

[shamsael]

Temporary Twin
Encounter
Minor Action
Close burst 5
Effect: Place two Duplicates in any unoccupied squares within the burst. Remove your character from play. The Duplicates are identical to the original character. If either duplicate is hit by an attack, both are removed from play and your character is returned to play occupying the square of the other duplicate (the one that wasn't hit). If both duplicates are hit by an area attack, both duplicates are removed and you must choose to place your character into either of the two squares they occupied.

While the duplicates remain in play, you may use any of your available powers and select either duplicate as the point of origin. While the duplicates remain in play, you may also use the following powers to control them:

Coordinated Move
Move Action
Effect: Each duplicate may move 6 squares but must end their movement within 5 squares of one another.

Coordinated Strike
Standard Action
Effect: Each duplicate makes a basic attack (ranged or melee) against the same target.

Special: If the character would fall, you may use this power as an immediate interrupt.

 

[Zaran]

I'm not understanding the Special: interrupt part about falling. What's the point of this? So you can put the duplicate on a ledge while the other falls to it's doom? Seems a bit silly.

 

[shamsael]

I'm not understanding the Special: interrupt part about falling. What's the point of this? So you can put the duplicate on a ledge while the other falls to it's doom? Seems a bit silly.

I think the intention is to to use the power as you fall to place a duplicate standing on the ledge you're falling from and have him holding the other end of your rope.

It's my least favourite part of the power, but since he's trying to capture Zendikar's Kor in 4e terms, it happens to be the primary intended use. In the source material, a single Kor mountainclimber can split himselft into two bodies which will use teamwork to scale a mountain. A Kor who is about to fall can reactively create his double and have it catch his rope before he falls to his doom.

I much prefer the idea of one of the two duplicates falling to its doom to avoid fall damage on the character proper, but I recognize that that is completely contrary to the source material.