The Devil's in the Details: Slavicsek reveals the Pit Fiend in all its glory

[Lizard]

So, to try and conceptualize this... The wizard is basically factoring in a BAB into an ability check.

Let's say a dex check to avoid falling on his ass while walking on some ice. 10th level Wizard has no higher dex than 1st level wizard, but 10th level Wizard, being more awesome and having dealt with pitching ship decks and walking narrow ledges, just Knows how to walk so he doesn't spill on his ass.

Then, and I ask this with all honesty -- why have skills at all? There are no skill points to juggle; there's no reason to worry about neglected skills or making hard choices since you'll be at least competent at absolutely everything, period. Non-combat skills are already gone. The skill system is a useless relic at this point in the evolution of the game.

Use the C&C method, and just have each character pick a 'Prime' attribute. Anything which uses that attribute is +5; everything else is exactly equal to 1/2 level+attribute bonus. Provide guidelines for what attribute covers what types of tasks -- Dex for balance, Wisdom for senses, etc.

 

[Rechan]

I still don't really understand you, Kraydak. I don't see how the Mace is different from the Vorpal Sword, all things considered. A mace that just "Bam, you're on fire now" ain't bad. How would giving him some other weapon break the math?

 

[Voss]

@Lizard- the attribute bonus doesn't increase with level. Thats why it doesn't make sense.

The stat bonuses are the same as they are now, which is why the damage bonus is +11. Basically, the numbers associated with the stats are just for the skills. Normal stat bonus + 1/2 level. Then +5 for the 'trained' skills.

 

[Zaukrie]

I think this is an example of where "role in the actual D&D world" vs "opponent for PCs" seems to be off to me. How does he ever survive ritual combat in Hell? If there are no devils more powerful, how does he ever survive when he can't summon? While I get the 2/5 of any party vs the PCs, how does this thing dish out enough damage to anyone who doesn't take fire damage? This is what I've been worried about all along with their approach to monsters that we've been reading about. I just can't see this as being one of the 10-50 most powerful beings in Hell.

 

[Rechan]

How does he ever survive ritual combat in Hell?

Pit Fiend: "So you challenge me to a ritual combat."
Challenger: "Yes."
Pit Fiend: "Okay. Irresistible Command."
Challenger: Boom
Pit Fiend: "Anyone else feel like stepping up?"

 

[Fifth Element]

The minis rules have a system for ending persistent effects. It's basically a 50/50 shot each round (i.e. 11+ ends). Presumably the +2 is for that roll. Note that this is only for ending effects that are hurting you- on fire, paralyzed, etc. Attacks and spells that would have you make a saving throw to negate (in 3e) now just target your Defense score, just like you said.

Okay, you're saying there might be a flat chance to end the effect (roll 11 or more on a d20 to end the effect). This would make sense given that there are no saving throw bonuses listed. But that seems rather simplistic, and the +2 bonus seems rather wimpy, given what the pit fiend's defences are.

 

[Kraydak]

He spends the action point for an extra action. he then uses the extra action to use his ability

I'm willing to buy that. On the other hand, its the first ability listed, wouldn't you use an action point action on the last ability you use that round? Further, he is getting 2 minor actions... Maybe thats normal, or maybe as an elite he gets more actions than most people. I do like the idea of action points as per-encounter enablers because it lets you prepare more abilities than you can actually use, letting more situational abilities see the light of day.


GAH. Whats with the horde of fiddly small effects... I thought they were trying to get rid of such things... This sucker has 2 auras (and enough mobility to make presence within them not guaranteed even though they are large), both his attacks have random duration debuffs and he has a short duration debuff ability on top of that. How is this smoother than 3e combat?

 

[ThirdWizard]

I'm still not grokking.

To put it very simply:

Str 32 (+24)

+24 is his skill check for all untrained Strength skills, like Jump.

 

[Badkarmaboy]

I'd bet my bottom dollar that, if you don't want the "garden variety" Pit fiend you can tweak it to your liking.

While the damage output seems low, I'm sure it factors in to hp allocation at that level. It's not really fair to compare it to 3e. It's like comparing 1e Loth to 3e PCs. She had 65 whole hp!

 

[Kraydak]

Pit Fiend: "So you challenge me to a ritual combat."
Challenger: "Yes."
Pit Fiend: "Okay. Irresistible Command."
Challenger: Boom
Pit Fiend: "Anyone else feel like stepping up?"

Allied only. The damage is pretty sad given the cost. If the summons he has available don't trigger cool stuff when they die (possible!), the ability probably won't be used on his summons.