D&D 3E/3.5 Brainstorming: Sir Stinksalot

[Dannyalcatraz]

So i had this idea of making a Troglodyte Paladin.

Paladin builds aren’t new to me, but I’m wondering what things I can do on the TROG side. I can think of some Templates, of course, but I’m saving that for last.

I’m looking for Feats, racial class levels, and that kind of thing.

 

[Richards]

Given a troglodyte's affinity to monitor lizards, I'd advance a monitor lizard to 6 HD or more (however many HD you decide are needed to get it to Large size - the 3.5 stats show advancement to be 4-5 HD, at which point it's still Medium) so it can be used as a special mount. You'd also need to rule that the mount's long association with troglodytes has made it immune (or at least very resistant) to troglodyte stench.

Given that the troglodyte darkvision goes out to 90 feet, I'd want to capitalize on that - maybe take the Point Blank Shot feat to get to the Far Shot feat, so your troglodyte paladin can become adept at taking out threats at range before they're even aware of the danger they're in (as most creatures with darkvision only have it at a 60-foot range). Sure, it's not very "paladin-y," but having a lawful good troglodyte paladin is already a bit out of the box.

Have you decided what deity he worships? I'm assuming it isn't Laogzed.

Johnathan

 

[Bestbake]

A giant lizard mount would be a fun idea. The Underdark Knight alternate class feature from Complete Champion is also a perfect fit for a cave dweller.

Something like the half-orc paladin's Aura of Awe substitution feature would also work very well. Your friends and allies won't want to be close to you, and an overly zealous and stinky trog knight would be scary.
Maybe you could lean into some defuse options. Paladin's do not have intimidate as a class skill, so I cannot recommend the Imperious Command and Bloodsoaked Intimidate feats, unless your table is sweet with letting the frog have it. Daunting Presence, from Miniatures Handbook, could be a fun choice. Dreadful Wrath is a powerful fear inducing feat, but it may be campaign specific at your table.

Because of the penalties sickened creatures take, consider using some special combat options, like bull rush, disarm, sunder, and trip. The "Improved" feats for any of these would be fun.
The Awesome Smite feat could be considered at that point too. As cool as Knock-Down is, Power Attack is probably easier to take over Combat Expertise.

All this time I assumed troglodytes have a charisma penalty! They mustn't smell that bad

(Be cheeky and play a 3.0 troglodyte, their stench is literally crippling)

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Disclaimer*: this isn’t for any existing campaign. This is a practical exercise in character design. I’ve been playing for decades, and have played most of the stereotypes; so I like to come up with unusual PCs to keep the game fresh for me. It also gives me a library to choose from on short notice, just in case.

The monitor lizard mount is a good idea! If not that, then some kind of dinosaur or some such.

I don’t know about a deity yet. As was pointed out, it would have to be atypical, so I need to give it serious thought. Who would a LG Trog be inspired by? What deity would call a Trog to its service? Would it just be an adherent of an abstract LG philosophy?

The Underdark Knight wasn’t on my radar. Good suggestion! It occurs to me that Marshall, Dragon Shaman and Dragonfire Adept might also be good paladin substitutes or MC options for this PC.

I had forgotten Trog PCs get Multiattack with their natural weapons for free. Perhaps this guy leans into that in HTH. Maybe some Kensai levels.

Re: nonexistent Cha penalty: they can control their emissions, just like a skunk. And skunks can be pretty darn cute. Why not a cute Trog ? Which gives me an idea…Sir PEPE Stinksalot. Heraldic shield: Sable a Pallet Argent (two vertical white stripes on a field of black).



* I should just put one in my brainstorming OPs each time

 

[Orius]

Then give him a bad French accent, poor vision, and excessively amorous feelings towards female lizardfolk.

 

[Richards]

As for how he became a paladin of a lawful good deity, perhaps he's the result of a "nature vs. nurture" experiment - he was raised, straight out of the egg, by a lawful good paladin of Pelor (or LG deity of your choice) determined to show that any creature can be redeemed. (I just chose Pelor because if we're starting out with a troglodyte paladin, why not go all the way to a member of an Underdark race worshiping the god of the Sun? I could see a creature who'd never seen the Sun before being amazed by it: a source of heat, light, and power, dying every night but being reborn each morning.)

Of course, taking him out of his element like that might also remove a lot of the typical troglodyte lore, like monitor lizard affinity and so on, but it's a thought, and this is after all a thought experiment.

Johnathan

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Then give him a bad French accent, poor vision, and excessively amorous feelings towards female lizardfolk.

The ONLY question is how outraaaaaaaaaaaageous the accent would be. (As in, stop at Le Pew or go full Fronch K’nigits.)

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

As for how he became a paladin of a lawful good deity, perhaps he's the result of a "nature vs. nurture" experiment - he was raised, straight out of the egg, by a lawful good paladin of Pelor (or LG deity of your choice) determined to show that any creature can be redeemed. (I just chose Pelor because if we're starting out with a troglodyte paladin, why not go all the way to a member of an Underdark race worshiping the god of the Sun? I could see a creature who'd never seen the Sun before being amazed by it: a source of heat, light, and power, dying every night but being reborn each morning.)

Of course, taking him out of his element like that might also remove a lot of the typical troglodyte lore, like monitor lizard affinity and so on, but it's a thought, and this is after all a thought experiment.

Johnathan

The Pelor idea is solid. A good hook to hang some RP on.

 

[Orius]

The ONLY question is how outraaaaaaaaaaaageous the accent would be. (As in, stop at Le Pew or go full Fronch K’nigits.)

Well if you're doing a paladin, you might as well go full FRONCH. Besides, a Le Pew/French Knight mashup is ridiculously over the top too.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Deeper into the meta RP aspect, I may hum The White Stripes’ “Seven Nation Army” when he goes into combat.

As much as I initially liked the idea I floated of him using his natural weapons preferentially, upon further reflection, it didn’t really fit well with the core “knightly” concept. Sure, human knights would bite, kick, punch, etc., but it wasn’t their go-to.

I think if/when this character gets some flesh on its bones, his Pelorian holy symbol will incorporate sunstone. What was merely an interesting rock found in the caves of his youth, when carved or faceted, became a visual homage to the deity he worships as a holy warrior. To him, finding it was an omen presaging Pelor calling him into His service.