Hacking the drow

[papastebu]

I made drow a template.

How would drow be a template? I can understand some types of undead and other monsters working that way, but how would you apply that sort of thing to elves?

 

[Dog Moon]

Making them into ninjae. I like ninjae.

Gotcha. Okay, looking back more closely through the abilities, the only thing I really dislike is the Hide in Plain Sight. 1/day just seems weird for such an ability and I think they should be able to do it all the time [with the appropriately added CR] or not at all. I think what might be better would be to give them a racial bonus to Hide and Move Silently [if so desired, could also make them always class skills if you wanted ninjaish drow no matter their class].

As for the 1/day abilities, if you wanted to more thoroughly copy the ninja [might be wrong, been a while since I've looked at it], you could instead base it off level. For example: Drow can go invisible for 1 round/level at level 1, usable all in one chunk or per round as desired.

Shadow Jump would of course be like 10 feet per level or something. Just a thought.

 

[Dog Moon]

How would drow be a template? I can understand some types of undead and other monsters working that way, but how would you apply that sort of thing to elves?

I think it depends on the flavor of the Drow. In a story I'm writing, Drow are simply normal Elves who have turned evil and thus they become 'dark'. In this case, it would be a Drow template which could only be added to Elves when they turn evil.

Perhaps drow simply means 'evil variant of a race' or whatever. Although as it stands, the only way I could picture it is if a drow and someone else have a baby, that baby is the something else with the drow template.

 

[Nifft]

How about some Racial Substitution levels instead?

Drow Rogue
HD: d6
Skills: 8 + Int -- (regular Rogue skills)

2: Ninja Dodge -- when in Light or no armor, you gain a +1 Dodge bonus to AC. This bonus increases by +1 every three levels. This replaces Evasion.

4: Ninja Stealth -- when in Light or no armor, you gain a +2 bonus to Hide and Move Silently checks. This bonus increases by +2 every 4 levels (+4 at level 8, +6 at level 12, etc.). This replaces Uncanny Dodge.

8: Hide in Plain Sight -- when in Light or no armor, you can make Hide checks even when observed. This replaces Improved Uncanny Dodge.


Let Drow use the Thug variant of Fighter (lose heavy armor prof. and 1st level feat, gain 4+Int skill points and better skills).

Then you can have skillful commando Ftr/Rogues, martial artist Monk/Rogues, and straight up ninja Rogues.

Cheers, -- N

 

[hong]

Real Ultimate Power includes spell resistance.

Oh, I have other templates for that.

 

[jasin]

How would drow be a template? I can understand some types of undead and other monsters working that way, but how would you apply that sort of thing to elves?

Drow are spell resistant, spell-like ability using warped dark-skinned Underdark elves.

Svirfneblin are spell resistant, spell-like ability using warped dark-skinned Underdark gnomes.

Duergar are spell-like ability using warped dark-skinned Underdark dwarves.

In that light, a "spell resistant, spell-like ability using warped dark-skinned Underdark" template to be applied to humanoids makes sense to me, although I admit I would never have thought of it myself.

 

[papastebu]

Drow are spell resistant, spell-like ability using warped dark-skinned Underdark elves.

Svirfneblin are spell resistant, spell-like ability using warped dark-skinned Underdark gnomes.

Duergar are spell-like ability using warped dark-skinned Underdark dwarves.

In that light, a "spell resistant, spell-like ability using warped dark-skinned Underdark" template to be applied to humanoids makes sense to me, although I admit I would never have thought of it myself.

It all comes clear to me now. "Just because I have no eyes, does not mean that I cannot see." -Master Po

 

[el-remmen]

How would drow be a template? I can understand some types of undead and other monsters working that way, but how would you apply that sort of thing to elves?

I think it depends on the flavor of the Drow. In a story I'm writing, Drow are simply normal Elves who have turned evil and thus they become 'dark'. In this case, it would be a Drow template which could only be added to Elves when they turn evil.

Perhaps drow simply means 'evil variant of a race' or whatever. Although as it stands, the only way I could picture it is if a drow and someone else have a baby, that baby is the something else with the drow template.

Dog Moon has got the right of it.

"Drow" (IMC) just means "evil elf who has dedicated him/herself to the evil spider goddess" and that dedication deal grants them certain powers (which increase with level - such as fiendish creatures, for example) which is represented by the template.

 

[papastebu]

Does that mean that you could just make them into a "Servant of Lolth" PrC? I don't know if anything like that has been invented, yet, but it probably will be. But the reason for my first reply in this thread was that I thought that the deal with the devil had gone down so many millennia ago that the drow now own those abilities genetically. Kind of like race memory. I do see the template idea as a viable option, now.

 

[szilard]

Here is my version of Drow, in case anyone is interested.

-Stuart