Prestige classes & saves

[Atherlos]

I agree that 9th level spells are a huge benefit. It's just an example of how PrC feasting can boost saves.

Endurance is a bonus feat from ranger, there's still a few leftover feats, and for more swap pious templar 4 with fighter 4. Deepwarden and Battlesmith are from Races of Stone; battlesmith gives wis bonus to damage with self-crafted warhammers, dwarf cleric 4 racial substitution level (also RoS) gives +2 damage with warhammers, and hammer of moradin gives +1/2 str bonus to damage with warhammers. Deepwarden's stone warden ability at level 2 let you use con bonus to ac instead of dex.

As for a role-playing point of view, I feel that any legal mingle of classes can be justified and worked into a character's story - have a player write down a reason for all the classes, and roleplaying aspects will develop as the character is described in more detail. This is of course a matter of personal taste, and joining all those classes is certainly done for min-maxing purposes.

-- Atherlos

 

[Gez]

An alternative to fractionnal progressions is minimal and maximal progressions.

HD or    BAB       Save
Level  Min Max    Min Max
--------------------------
 01     +0  +1     +0  +2
 02     +1  +2     +0  +3
 03     +1  +3     +1  +3
--------------------------
 04     +2  +4     +1  +4
 05     +2  +5     +1  +4
 06     +3  +6     +2  +5
--------------------------
 07     +3  +7     +2  +5
 08     +4  +8     +2  +6
 09     +4  +9     +3  +6
--------------------------
 10     +5 +10     +3  +7
 11     +5 +11     +3  +7
 12     +6 +12     +4  +8
--------------------------
 13     +6 +13     +4  +8
 14     +7 +14     +4  +9
 15     +7 +15     +5  +9
--------------------------
 16     +8 +16     +5 +10
 17     +8 +17     +5 +10
 18     +9 +18     +6 +11
--------------------------
 19     +9 +19     +6 +11
 20    +10 +20     +6 +12

Simply compare your HD total (your level, if you don't have a LA) with the leve on the table above, and compare your BAB with the Min and Max values of the BAB column.

• If your BAB is below the minimal BAB, raise it to the minimal BAB score.
• If it is between minimal and maximal, don't change it.
• If it is above maximal (I don't see how you could pull that one), lower it to the maximal value.

Now, do the same thing for each of your three saves and the Min Save and Max Save columns.

That way, you should keep balanced characters (and by balanced, here I mean "in line with what single-classed characters can have") without having to make fractionnal calculations.

 

[Atherlos]

Thanks - Interesting table. Do you have a similar one for fractional rules - or where can I find them?

-- Atherlos

 

[Gez]

On the second page of the class chapter (the first after the chapterhead page), you have a table that shows you base bonus for attacks and saves.

Here's the fractional version.

Class  Saves Bonus      Attack Bonus
Level   High Poor    High   Med    Low
----------------------------------------
  01    +2.5 +0.33    +1    +0.75  +0.5
  02    +3   +0.67    +2    +1.5   +1
  03    +3.5 +1       +3    +2.25  +1.5
----------------------------------------
  04    +4   +1.33    +4    +3     +2
  05    +4.5 +1.67    +5    +3.75  +2.5
  06    +5   +2       +6    +4.5   +3
----------------------------------------
  07    +5.5 +2.33    +7    +5.25  +3.5
  08    +6   +2.67    +8    +6     +4
  09    +6.5 +3       +9    +6.75  +4.5
----------------------------------------
  10    +7   +3.33   +10    +7.5   +5
  11    +7.5 +3.67   +11    +8.25  +5.5
  12    +8   +4      +12    +9     +6
----------------------------------------
  13    +8.5 +4.33   +13    +9.75  +6.5
  14    +9   +4.67   +14   +10.5   +7
  15    +9.5 +5      +15   +11.25  +7.5
----------------------------------------
  16   +10   +5.33   +16   +12     +8
  17   +10.5 +5.67   +17   +12.75  +8.5
  18   +11   +6      +18   +13.5   +9
----------------------------------------
  19   +11.5 +6.33   +19   +14.25  +9.5
  20   +12   +6.67   +20   +15    +10

Of course, instead of +1.33, you should read +1.33333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333..., and instead of +3.67, you should read +3.66666666666666666666666666666666666666666666667...

The formulaic progression are:
Good save: 2+ 1/2 level
Poor save: 0 +1/3 level

High BAB: Full level
Med BAB: 3/4 level
Low BAB: 1/2 level

I believe such a table was printed somewhere in Unearthed Arcana, but it's easy to create it from the formulaes.