Weretiger ECL 1 ?!?!?

[Xarlen]

When the Change comes, and she attacks helpless people/fellow partymembers and can't do anything about it, then I think she'll change her mind.

Unless they're True Lycanthropes, they have to be Powerful (not to mention Cursed for a long time) to take control of it.

 

[cthuluftaghn]

Hmmmm.... methinks I'm down to two options....

1. Disallow the character as too powerful for the current group
2. Create some home-brew rules to allow an overall level 4 PC to be a weretiger.

 

[Xarlen]

Okay, how's this:

1: Make her Infected. Thus, she's a 4th level PC, but she can't control her powers (Let her take the control shape skill). When she can't control her change, You control her, to a Weretiger's aligment when shifted, and it's natural instincts (Seek prey, hunt, play with 'food').
2: Make her a true lycanthrope, 0-level character.

Edit: If you use #1, use examples like American Werewolf in London/Paris, and other references to the lycanthrope going nuts/losing control. That will likely mess up her concept, but tell her that's how it's going to be. She may change her mind.

I have an NPC true lycanthrope. The +3 ECL makes her about balanced with the rest of the party, after the combats I've tested.

 

[James McMurray]

You could work out a progression for the character, kind of llike pseudo-levels. For instance, he starts off as a weaker version of a were-tiger / 1st level character. He's ECL 4. Then, when he gains a level, he can either up his were-tiger part, or gain a class level. Also, to ensure he doesn't gain his were-tiger abilities too fast, tell him he can only put every other level (max) into the were-tiger part.

Try to time it so that when he gets full were-tiger abilties he is 5 or 6 real levels behind the rest of the party.

Or just go with option 2.

 

[cthuluftaghn]

I'm toying with the zero level character idea already.

Also was thinking of limiting the abilities available to her at first, and make her select additional abilities as part of level advancement. ie: Start her off as only able to shape-shift during the full moon (with a WILL check, high DC to control herself in hybrid/tiger form). Let her keep the adjusted stats (+4 listen/ spot/ search) and +2 natural AC and make her ECL 1 or 2.

As she advances, she can choose things like controlling her shapeshifting, pouncing and raking as feats??

Kind of a large leap into home-brew territory, but starting to sound more balanced. (Again, I'm at work and thinking on the fly w/ only the SRD and this board as documentation, so it's probably not perfect).

 

[Caliban]

HD !=ECL

This has been a public service announcement.

But, the monsters HD do determine the minimum ECL, at least according to the game designers.

 

[RogueJK]

HD !=ECL

That's true, but they have also stated that ECL must be always be greater than or equal to their racial HD. So a weretiger must be at least ECL +6.

The exception to this is creatures with 1 HD listed. Their 1 HD is from a class level (usually warrior), so they can be ECL +0, since they effectively have 0 racial HD.

[Edit] Bah, Caliban beat me to it. [/Edit]

 

[Xarlen]

How do you get HD for a Template, though? Does this mean I should roll 2d8 for that Werewolf NPC of mine?

Huh. I just gave her the HPs for class levels.

 

[cthuluftaghn]

I think it was in the DMG rules for NPC's that I came up with my incorrect stats for weretigers. For some reason, page 48 sticks in my head... but that was at like 1:am, so it's not entirely reliable.

 

[RogueJK]

How do you get HD for a Template, though? Does this mean I should roll 2d8 for that Werewolf NPC of mine?

Huh. I just gave her the HPs for class levels.

MM, page 217

"Hit Dice: Same as the character's or the animals, whichever produces the higher hit point total."

In the case of the example creatures, 1st-level commoners are used. The wolf's HD (2d8) is greater than the commoner's HD (1d4), so they used the wolf's HD.

So your NPC would have 2d8+whatever HPs until her HPs from class levels exceeds that.