Dromus Prep Thread

[Kelleris]

Okay. Lookin' over your character (just the stats for now):

• You seem to be 2 hp over: (4 (1st level) + 10 (4 wizard levels) + 7.5 (3 bonded summoner levels) + 32 (8 levels of +4 Con)) = 54 hp total.
• Your BAB should technically be +3 (+2 wizard, +1 bonded summoner). I'll let you use fractional BAB for the +4 if you care.
• Your base Will save should be +7 (+4 Wizard, +3 bonded summoner).
• You've spent 26,800 gold on magical items. You forgot to include the base price of a crossbow in your weapon, and I'm positive that you're over with adding spells to your spellbook.
• EDIT: Almost forgot to check skills... You don't get the skill points for a headband of intellect, so you should only have 77 skill points (7 maxed out skills; 2 wizard/bonded summoner, 4 Int, 1 human). You have 88 in actual skills, plus 6 in languages, for a total of 94.

Well, that's it so far.

 

[TrevWar]

Kell, have you looked over either of the Necromany txt to see what you'd allow? Ask questions if you have any, you know I'm up for explaining and all.
That and I have another txt for you to look at...

 

[Kelleris]

*sigh*

Makin' me work hard, man. Hard!

How long will you be on? I'll read it over and post a modified document here later on tonight if you'll be around for a couple of hours. Otherwise I'll just do it tomorrow afternoon.

And go ahead and post the new one. I might as well have it.

 

[Kelleris]

• Bloodied Onyx - No go. Fast healing scares me.
• Just pay normal price for your spellbook, and call it a gem instead. It doesn't really matter a whole lot what specific form it is along as it quacks like a spellbook.
• Amulet of Bone - This is obviously a 3.0 item, considering the lack of 3.5 DR references. Why don't you dig up something that grants DR and I'll give you a minor price break for only working on undead instead?
• Knowledge (necrology) is covered by Knowledge (religion) and the Heal skill, so you don't need it.
• Corpsecrafter is from Libris Mortis? I'd like to add Spell Focus (necromancy) to the prereqs to make it more analogous to Augment Summoning, which does basically the same thing.
• No Shadow Weave Magic. I've already got a complicated enough cosmology and magic system. I don't really have room for a shadow weave, especially since I'm not even using the weave concept.
• Stick with Corpsecrafter instead of Augment Undead.
• Undead Mastery is good in concept, but x2 --> x4 is too much. I would make it x2 --> x3, and maybe not let it stack. It's pretty powerful. You can't take it yet, though, so we'll burn that bridge when we come to it.
• No Dual Spell. There are enough spells that don't really care about caster level (enervation springs to mind) to make it broken.
• Destruction Retribution, Fell Animate, Bonus Spell, and Twin Spell are all good.
• I'm not sure about Transmute Bone to Metal, but I'll think it over and decide sometime before you hit 11th level.
• What's with these spells that permanently buff an undead at no cost? Not gonna happen, unless you give up as much as you gain, or nearly so. Invigoration of Undead is right out, unless you want to make it a durational spell. Still pretty powerful in that case, as the major reason for zombies being iffy as undead is the one action per round thing.
• Havrokr's Minor Blessing is too weak for the stated level. Make it 2nd level instead. Also, why is it granting a sacred bonus, of all things? That should say profane.
• Strengthen Bone is okay, but those should all be enhancement bonuses.
• Animate Animal, Animate Skeleton, Animate Zombie, and Skull Snare are all unnecessary, as you will have access to animate dead at this level. Therefore, I would rather not deal with them.
• Ancient Wisdom looks like a Trap the Soul spell at 7 levels lower with no save, range limit, or time limit. That means no dice.
• No blood golem that I'm aware of means no Blood Golem spell.
• I would prefer you not use the Homonculus spell, for much the same reason I didn't want to bother with the Animate X spells.
• Resist Turning, Bleeding Wound, and Wound are all okay.
• Sensory Link is okay, except that you need to add a line stating specifically that you cannot yourself see or hear while using the undead's senses.
• I would rather you simply used Nondetection instead of Mask Undead.
• Chnage the AC bonus from Bone Armor to an armor bonus, so it doesn't stack with every other spell in existence, and it's okay.
• I don't like Call Undead because the monstrous Area of Effect bothers me. If you really want it, we'll talk, though.
• Undead Conduit, Voice of Deathly Whispers, Feigh Life, Visage of the Dead, Absorb Dead Flesh, Shadow Aura, Shadow Horror, Sudden Grave, and Wall of Bone are all okay.
• No need for Mend Flesh. At the very least you can use Negative Energy Ray (from T&B).
• I don't like Cannibalize. Negative energy cannot be used to heal people, it's pure death (literally). That's just not what it does.
• No Infuse Dead Flesh either, for the same reason. Also, this is another one of those "something for nothing" spells, since your hp total only very rarely matters on the days you animate new corpses.
• You can take Boiling Blood if you like, but it sucks. 3 points/caster is less than a fireball on average and you have to touch them. Plus, it's a Will negates spell.
• Touch of the Wraith is way too powerful. That's an obscene amount of Con damage, and helpless is as good as dead in 95% of battles. At 8th level, even 2d6+2 is going to drop some foes right out and cripple the rest. And that's if the make their saves.
• You can get the duration boosts you want through arcane research, yes.
• Any undead you control from any source count towards the HD limit. It's not tied to the spell, it's more of a meta-limit.
• You can't take Heal Undead and Minor Heal Undead, but I will let you take the Inflict X Wounds spells at the level clerics get them.
• I don't think I'm going to let you have Persistent Spell unless you had something particular and important in mind. Nobody ever lets me take it...
• Black Lightning and Greater Chill Touch are okay, though I'd usually use Vampiric Touch over Greater Chill Touch myself.

*yawn*

 

[DemonWolfZero]

I was surprised by the sheer amount of positive replies in that post personally.

 

[Tux the Penguin]

New and updated... for some reason I thought we were using better averages (rounding up each .5) but I fixed that.

I didn't mean to use fractional BAB, but it really doesn't matter what my BAB is in most cases... that's what Gale and the "Deliver Touch Spells" is for.

I also fixed the gold item issue... I dropped 6k from the Ring of Pro 2 into a Ring of Pro 1.

As for my spells, those were the spells I went through the books and found I wanted... I didn't mean to assume I was taking them all. I went through and dumped the ones that I really don't want.

I should have 2+4 free spells from first, then 2 for every caster level above that, so 16 free spells (4 third/4 second/8 first). I have 7 first, 8 second, and 5 third. Doing the math real quick, I need about 6000 gold to cover all those scrolls, which is fine considering I downgraded the Ring.

Oh, and Matt, I have a "custom" spell I wanted to use, basically for flavor. I haven't written it out much at all, but here's the gist.

Stephen Sluboreous Slumber
Target: One Willing Creature
Duration: Special
Save: No
SR: No

SSS puts a target creature into a deep slumber in which their bodily functions slow to near nothing and they also stop aging. This slumber ends when a predetermined event occurs (such as after thirteen days or when there is first snow) or when the character is attacked.

Basically its a 1st level spell that makes hibernation for travel. It's not exactly a spell that is powerful or does much, other than allow Stephen to travel great distances without having to worry about aging (let Gale grapple him after he is sleeping and then let Gale start trekin' across planes while he sleeps).

What do you think?

 

[Kelleris]

@ Tux - All of that sounds good so far.

Oh, and Kelleris, I have a "custom" spell I wanted to use...

This spell feels like 2nd level though; don't ask me why. In any case, it shouldn't matter. Oh, and I assumed it's self only? Otherwise it's be somewhat higher level, since it does become useful enough to be more than just a flavor thing.

Also, here's a template to use for characters, so we can all have uniform sheets. Just paste the follwoing into a Word document, and do two case-sensitive find and replace operations, one for the letter Z --> B and another for Q --> I:

[Z]Character Name[/Z]

[Q]Gender Race
Class # [of levels]
Alignment[/Q]

[Z]Size:[/Z] M (#', #"; # lbs.)
[Z]HD:[/Z] #d#+#
[Z]HP:[/Z] #
[Z]Initiative:[/Z] +# (# Dex, +# Other)
[Z]Speed:[/Z] # ft. / # ft. (Conditional)
[Z]AC:[/Z] # (+# Dex, +# [Class feature], +# [Item], +# [Item])
[Z]BAB:[/Z] +#/+#
[Z]XP:[/Z] 28,000 / 36,000 for level 9


[Z]Attributes:[/Z]

[Z]Str:[/Z] # (+#) [# pts]
[Z]Dex:[/Z] # (+#) [# pts, +# Levels, +# [Item or Other]]
[Z]Con:[/Z] # (+#) [# pts]
[Z]Int:[/Z] # (+#) [# pts]
[Z]Wis:[/Z] # (+#) [# pts]
[Z]Cha:[/Z] # (+#) [# pts]


[Z]Attacks:[/Z]
[Q]Weapon name[/Q] +#/+# (#d#+#, #-20/x#) (conditional bonuses)

[Q]Attack modifier:[/Q] +# (# BAB, +# [Ability], +# [Other])
[Q]Parry:[/Q] +# (# BAB, +# [Ability], +# [Other])


[Z]Saves:[/Z]

[Z]Fort:[/Z] +[Total bonus] (# base, +# Con, +# [Other Bonuses])
[Z]Ref:[/Z] +[Total bonus] (# base, +# Dex, +# [Other Bonuses])
[Z]Will:[/Z] +[Total bonus] (# base, +# Wis, +# [Other Bonuses])


[Z]Skills:[/Z]

[Q]Skill Name:[/Q] +[total bonus] ([Ranks] C/cc, +# [Ability Mod], +# [Other bonuses])
[Q]Skill Name:[/Q] +[total bonus] ([Ranks] C/cc, +# [Ability Mod], +# [Other bonuses])
[Q]Skill Name:[/Q] +[total bonus] ([Ranks] C/cc, +# [Ability Mod], +# [Other bonuses])


[Z]Feats:[/Z]

Planar Touchstone (campaign bonus)
[Feat] (lvl1)
[Feat] (reason)
[Feat] (reason)
[Feat] (lvl3)
[Feat] (reason)
[Feat] (Lvl6)


[Z]Class Abilities:[/Z]

[Class Ability]
[Class Ability]
[Class Ability]


[Z]Racial Abilities:[/Z]

[Racial Ability]
Planar Touchstone:
- Base Ability
- Higher-order Ability (effect summary) # times/[recharge condition]


[Z]Languages:[/Z]

[Language 1]
[Language 2]
[Language 3]


[Z]Equipment:[/Z]

Weapon #1 (# gp) [# lbs.]
Weapon #2 (# gp) [# lb.]
Armor (# gp) [# lb.]
Shield #2 (# gp) [# lb.]

[Q]Magical Item[/Q] (# gp) [# lb.]
[Q]Magical Item[/Q] (# gp) [# lb.]
[Q]Magical Item[/Q] (# gp) [# lb.]
Mundane Item (# gp) [# lb.]
- Stored Mundane Item (# gp) [# lb.]
- Stored Mundane Item (# gp) [# lb.]
Mundane Item (# gp) [# lb.]

[money remaining]

Carrying # lbs.

[Z]Load:[/Z] light #, medium #, heavy #, lift #, drag #

[Q]Special Item Description:[/Q]



[Z]Description:[/Z]



[Z]Background:[/Z]



[Z]Personality:[/Z]



[Z]Contacts:[/Z] # Information, # Influence, # Skill

 

[Tux the Penguin]

Nevermind

 

[TrevWar]

Stupid Double Posting!!! Fine, just fine...

Ok, what could I do to make this post worth while right now...

Uhh, Prince Albert's in the fridge!

 

[TrevWar]

I'm still thinking of going straight wizard, I can't find any PrCs that I would consider advantagious to the character design I have in mind, not even in the Libris Mortus.
I havn't looked throught the minitures handbook yet, Errol said there was a class of some kind in there that dealt or directed units/armies and gave buffs or what not, so that may be a good one.

The main focus of my character is going to be the summoning of skeletons and enchancing the heaven out of them as much as possible since I suck because I'm so focued on spell casting. :\

I'm not to borken up about what was crossed out, most of them were "kind of wants" and "some what useful" things any way.

Bloodied Onyx - No go. Fast healing scares me

Hmmm, I was planning on useing that for my cohort and maybe one other high HD undead I create later and keeping the price (1,000 gp) on my magic items list, I didn't think it was "that" bad...

Amulet of Bone - This is obviously a 3.0 item, considering the lack of 3.5 DR references. Why don't you dig up something that grants DR and I'll give you a minor price break for only working on undead instead?

Like what, they already have DR 5/Blugeoning? I was planning on getting 1, maaaybe 2, of these for my cohort and one other high HD undead.

Knowledge (necrology) is covered by Knowledge (religion) and the Heal skill

I figured that Knowledge (necrology) was something like that, but with it specifying a Necromancy topic I figured it would be more specific and limited to undead, I don't see this character being a religious man, or even caring much abour religion. I figured he'd pick up a few things here and there just with the "trade" that he's in, but I saw Knowledge (necrology) as a more focused and charactier specific skill. That and I just liked the flavor.

Stick with Corpsecrafter instead of Augment Undead

Is it at all possible for me to take both???

Undead Mastery is good in concept, but x2 --> x4 is too much. I would make it x2 --> x3, and maybe not let it stack. It's pretty powerful. You can't take it yet, though, so we'll burn that bridge when we come to it.

Wait, what? x2 --> x4 what, undead I can control? I can already control 4 times my HD, its in the spell. I can summon 2 times my HD per casting, I can constrol 4 times my HD at one time. And not stack with what? What do you mean?
I know I can't take it yet, but it was one of the feats I looked over and immediatly thought "Oh, well that's a feat I should take."
I was thinking of taking it at 10th, I'm hoping and don't think there will be a reason to get it as soon as possible.

No Dual Spell, enervation springs to mind...

Could we come up with a list and only use the spells on the list? Honestly, I hadn't even looked at Enervation yet, but I'm some what interested in it now that you mention it...

Animate Animal, Animate Skeleton, Animate Zombie, and Skull Snare are all unnecessary

Can I at least keep Skull Snare for entertainments sake, Animate Animal for tactical and misc. tasks, and Animate Skeleton for reviving a skeleton for a Ancient Wisdom Skull?
These are mostly here so I don't have to use a 4th level slot to animate 2 skeletons on the floor. It can be more efficient with these. Then again if I have a place to hold them I could just carry all the bodies we kill in a day and Animate Dead them at night before I go to sleep, but still, I liked the additional options. And I was plaing on useing Animate Zombie and just have one zombie at a time to stand by me as guard all the time, but I can always get some one/thing else to do that I guess.

Invigoration of Undead is right out, unless you want to make it a durational spell. Still pretty powerful in that case

Could make it a 1 round/level thing, but I'm not sure how many zombies I'm going to be useing any way, if any at all. Could just change it to giving them +10 to there base speed of something.

Ancient Wisdom looks like a Trap the Soul spell

What if we changed it to "the soul must be willing to return"

Sensory Link is okay, except that you need to add a line stating specifically that you cannot yourself see or hear while using the undead's senses.

I'm not sure what to do with that. It would be great if I could see from both, right eye view from undead controlled, left eye my view, or something like that. What about the ability to switch between the two views for the spells duration?

I would rather you simply used Nondetection instead of Mask Undead.

Nondetection is for protection vs. Scrying, which I don't care about. Mask Undead is protection vs. Detect Undead, Detect Dead, and any other thing that spicifically "looks" at undead. If some one were to scry on me they would still see my undead cohort.

I don't like Call Undead because the monstrous Area of Effect bothers me. If you really want it, we'll talk, though.

I really want it. I didn't think there would be that much undead in a 1 mile area. What if we changed the range of it to something like 250 ft./level or so? That way it reaches near 1 mile at caster level 21.

I don't like Cannibalize. Negative energy cannot be used to heal people, it's pure death (literally). That's just not what it does.

Hmmmm, very true... Crap, I wanted/needed that spell... Could we change its effect? Instead of healing me it heals another undead with in 30 ft. of the target undead? The main reason I liked this spell was it gave me the ability to "sacrifice" (as in Magic the Gathering) my undead to use Destruction Retribution more tactfully.

Touch of the Wraith is way too powerful. That's an obscene amount of Con damage

Oh wow, "for every two caster levels"... I missed that part...

I don't think I'm going to let you have Persistent Spell unless you had something particular and important in mind. Nobody ever lets me take it...

I thought I did when you were palying that one Bard character? Well any way, I mostly want Persistent Spell for the Undead Conduit, Sensory Link, Voice of Deathly Whispers, Feigh Life, Visage of the Dead, Mask Undead, and a couple of other spells for me posing as an undead and my cohort posing as a living person that's in charge (So people will think to attack him first and leave me [the caster] the hell alone cause I can't take any kind of damage [19 HP at level 7, leave me alone...]).

I was surprised by the sheer amount of positive replies in that post personally.

So was I... ??? I think he's setting me up for a bigger fall... Like tossing my character in a prison in the beginning and the arm band they throw on my wrist is permanent and I can no longer use magic... Yeah, that's what he's doing, well you won't get a way with it you hear, I'm quick to your tricks Mr., and I won't have any of this mamby pamby no casting arm band from the far reaches of your twisted dirty, dirty, dirty mind... Ok, I'm done...

Z --> B and another for Q --> I

Neat and clever if I do say so...