Help me with tactics for a weather cleric?

[BigCat]

I'm building the BBEG for my next campaign, who will be a cleric of the weather god (built with all sorts of goodies from Stormwrack). I'm trying to figure out tactics to use his benefits to best effect - can you folk help me brainstorm?

My general sense is this: he gets all kinds of bonuses to electrical damage, so call lightning and its variants are the obvious mainstays (he gets them as domain spells). But to use those to best effect he needs a lot of rounds of unmolested activity. So, what's the best way to keep the PCs at bay while he blasts them? I had an idea that he would wind walk high, conceal himself with obscuring mist (maybe with some minions doing the same for distractions), and call down the lighting. One problem: how does he see out of the mist to find his targets? Scrying will be too slow, would true seeing help? If he summons critters, is there some way for them to report enemy locations back to him?

Any thoughts on this? Thanks.

 

[Nyaricus]

If he has a druid underling, he could get the druid to cast a bunch of summon nature's ally spells to help keep meat sheilds between him and the PCs. Just theme the druid differently - like a savage little bugger, like a gnome of something could be interesting.

Also, maybe using a varient of the Uldra from Frostburn called the Lidra with boons for lightning stuff? Here's mine:

Lidra: The Lightning-blooded Fairies


Racial Traits

• -4 Str, +2 Dex, +2 Cha
• Small size (+1 AC, +1 attack, +4 hide, slower speed and worse carrying capacit)
• -25% speed (20 feet when using the canonical method)
• Low-light Vision
• Lightning Resistance 5 (ex): Lidra are creatures born out of lightning and thus they are adapted to it more than other races.
• Shocking Touch (sp): Lidras have lightning bolts running through their veins and as a free action may infuse thie hands or a manufactured weapon with this energy. A weapon (natural or manufactured) infused this way deals 1 point of electricity damage per successful hit as long as the manufactured weapon is in hand (since natural weapons are alwyas 'in hand, disregard that entry). The extra damage doesn't stack with magical weapons that deal lighting damage (if using one).
• Fey Blood: Lidras are fey and thus are not subject to such spells are hold person or charm person. Likewise, thing that affect fey also affect Lidras too.
• Automatic Languages: Lidran, Common
• Favoured Class: Druid

 

[Piratecat]

There's a psionic power that let's you see normally through mist. That seems like a totally reasonable druid spell as well, and I don't see anything wrong with converting it.

 

[wmasters]

To fit with the theme, fog cloud, obscuring mist and gust of wind all seem possibilities. Potentially you might give him some kind of flying, possibly summoned mount?

 

[Imruphel]

Check out control winds:

Control Winds
Transmutation [Air]
Level: Air 5, Drd 5
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: 40 ft./level
Area: 40 ft./level radius cylinder 40 ft. high
Duration: 10 min./level
Saving Throw: Fortitude negates
Spell Resistance: No
You alter wind force in the area surrounding you. You can make the wind blow in a certain direction or manner, increase its strength, or decrease its strength. The new wind direction and strength persist until the spell ends or until you choose to alter your handiwork, which requires concentration. You may create an “eye” of calm air up to 80 feet in diameter at the center of the area if you so desire, and you may choose to limit the area to any cylindrical area less than your full limit.
Wind Direction: You may choose one of four basic wind patterns to function over the spell’s area.
• A downdraft blows from the center outward in equal strength in all directions.
• An updraft blows from the outer edges in toward the center in equal strength from all directions, veering upward before impinging on the eye in the center.
• A rotation causes the winds to circle the center in clockwise or counterclockwise fashion.
• A blast simply causes the winds to blow in one direction across the entire area from one side to the other.
Wind Strength: For every three caster levels, you can increase or decrease wind strength by one level. Each round on your turn, a creature in the wind must make a Fortitude save or suffer the effect of being in the windy area.
Strong winds (21+ mph) make sailing difficult.
A severe wind (31+ mph) causes minor ship and building damage.
A windstorm (51+ mph) drives most flying creatures from the skies, uproots small trees, knocks down light wooden structures, tears off roofs, and endangers ships.
Hurricane force winds (75+ mph) destroy wooden buildings, sometimes uproot even large trees, and cause most ships to founder.
A tornado (175+ mph) destroys all nonfortified buildings and often uproots large trees.

Basically, a 15th-level druid, or cleric with the appropriate domain, can pretty much devastate an entire battlefield by creating tornado-strength winds (cf DMG for the rules for the effects of wind strengths) in an area of complete stillness. A lower level caster can do the same if the prevailing winds are stronger.

The casting time is only a standard action and the duration is long enough to cause some major damage.

 

[BigCat]

Thanks, guys. So how about this: BBEG casts air walk, obscuring mist, [see through mist], and hovers over the battlefield. Call lightning storm to pull down bolts on the PCs every round. Control winds prevents both missile weapons and flying PCs from getting to him. Summon air elementals to keep anyone at bay who gets through the winds. Sound good? Any other gravy?

 

[der_kluge]

I think making him a druid would make a lot more sense. What you've described is a cleric of an Air god.

But then, I guess there is a little difference between the weather and air, after all.