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What class is this character/concept?
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<blockquote data-quote="Arkhandus" data-source="post: 5582830" data-attributes="member: 13966"><p>Well, you know, there are rules in the Dungeon Master's Guide concerning houserules and modifying or customizing material to fit your campaign. You could just take the Cleric class and modify it with a few houserules, swapping out bits and pieces that don't quite fit and replacing them with the NPC's special abilities as needed. Then just name the new, modified class something different like True Believer or Devotee or Mage-Priest or what-have-you, to differentiate it from the standard Cleric class that other characters use.</p><p></p><p>Perhaps this guy doesn't have the Undead Turning of a Cleric, but instead has an extra Domain? Perhaps he lacks one or two of a Cleric's armor or shield proficiencies as well, depending on whether or not he wears armor and what kind. Perhaps he has one or two fewer spells per day of each spell level relative to a Cleric, but instead gains a special ability or improvement to it at each of the class levels where he would've otherwise gained those extra spell slots? Perhaps he casts spells spontaneously like a Sorcerer, rather than preparing them like Clerics do, but has fewer spells per day or a much smaller spell list than a Cleric's in exchange? Maybe he has some wizard-like ability to research spells when necessary, but at the cost of giving up some other spells or spell slots.</p><p></p><p>Maybe one of his spell-replacing special abilities lets him gain a temporary Domain (like Death or Protection or Healing)? Maybe in place of a 9th-level spell slot or two, he has a permanent Foresight ability that only operates while he's not distracted or something (functioning otherwise as per the spell). Perhaps in place of a 6th-level spell slot or two, he has a permanent True Seeing ability that has similar limitations or maybe slightly greater limitations (since True Seeing is normally shorter-lasting than Foresight, IIRC)?</p><p></p><p>Clerics have Sense Motive as a class skill so it's entirely possible that this guy has 15 or 20 ranks in that skill, easily getting a hunch about the motives of anyone he meets by automatically passing any Sense Motive check of DC 20 or 25 as appropriate, or less (assuming he has high Wisdom as you say). Sense Motive wouldn't let him anticipate attacks and evade them or determine what other people are like, it just allows him to get a hunch when someone's being mind-controlled or when someone's lying or being evasive in their answers or whatnot. True Seeing or the Detect Chaos/Evil/Good/Law spells would determine other things, as would the Discern Lies spell to some extent or the Detect Thoughts spell (though you said he doesn't read minds, so I doubt that one would fit).</p><p></p><p>To represent the NPC being kind of tough, you might give him the Improved Toughness feat (+1 HP per level, requires something like a +4 Base Attack Bonus, but it's retroactive so it'd give him 18 HP if he's 18th-level; as a cleric or similar he could've taken the feat at 6th-level or some time later). Improved Toughness is from the Complete Warrior book. If not that, he might just have the Combat Expertise feat (or Expertise if you use the original "3.0" 3rd Edition rules) making him harder to hit in close combat when he decides to fight in a more defensive manner.</p><p></p><p>As for alignment, the NPC sounds like he might be Good-aligned at this point (could've been evil or neutral before; the philosophy you implied indicates he was probably some shade of Evil in the past), and probably Neutral Good overall, but it depends. He would only be Chaotic if he rebelled against laws/rules/order/authority or if he didn't care about "the greater good" or the trappings of society or whatever, generally speaking. If he just doesn't care for laws and rules, but isn't an anarchist/rebel/lone-wolf, he's Neutral on the Law-Chaos axis.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Arkhandus, post: 5582830, member: 13966"] Well, you know, there are rules in the Dungeon Master's Guide concerning houserules and modifying or customizing material to fit your campaign. You could just take the Cleric class and modify it with a few houserules, swapping out bits and pieces that don't quite fit and replacing them with the NPC's special abilities as needed. Then just name the new, modified class something different like True Believer or Devotee or Mage-Priest or what-have-you, to differentiate it from the standard Cleric class that other characters use. Perhaps this guy doesn't have the Undead Turning of a Cleric, but instead has an extra Domain? Perhaps he lacks one or two of a Cleric's armor or shield proficiencies as well, depending on whether or not he wears armor and what kind. Perhaps he has one or two fewer spells per day of each spell level relative to a Cleric, but instead gains a special ability or improvement to it at each of the class levels where he would've otherwise gained those extra spell slots? Perhaps he casts spells spontaneously like a Sorcerer, rather than preparing them like Clerics do, but has fewer spells per day or a much smaller spell list than a Cleric's in exchange? Maybe he has some wizard-like ability to research spells when necessary, but at the cost of giving up some other spells or spell slots. Maybe one of his spell-replacing special abilities lets him gain a temporary Domain (like Death or Protection or Healing)? Maybe in place of a 9th-level spell slot or two, he has a permanent Foresight ability that only operates while he's not distracted or something (functioning otherwise as per the spell). Perhaps in place of a 6th-level spell slot or two, he has a permanent True Seeing ability that has similar limitations or maybe slightly greater limitations (since True Seeing is normally shorter-lasting than Foresight, IIRC)? Clerics have Sense Motive as a class skill so it's entirely possible that this guy has 15 or 20 ranks in that skill, easily getting a hunch about the motives of anyone he meets by automatically passing any Sense Motive check of DC 20 or 25 as appropriate, or less (assuming he has high Wisdom as you say). Sense Motive wouldn't let him anticipate attacks and evade them or determine what other people are like, it just allows him to get a hunch when someone's being mind-controlled or when someone's lying or being evasive in their answers or whatnot. True Seeing or the Detect Chaos/Evil/Good/Law spells would determine other things, as would the Discern Lies spell to some extent or the Detect Thoughts spell (though you said he doesn't read minds, so I doubt that one would fit). To represent the NPC being kind of tough, you might give him the Improved Toughness feat (+1 HP per level, requires something like a +4 Base Attack Bonus, but it's retroactive so it'd give him 18 HP if he's 18th-level; as a cleric or similar he could've taken the feat at 6th-level or some time later). Improved Toughness is from the Complete Warrior book. If not that, he might just have the Combat Expertise feat (or Expertise if you use the original "3.0" 3rd Edition rules) making him harder to hit in close combat when he decides to fight in a more defensive manner. As for alignment, the NPC sounds like he might be Good-aligned at this point (could've been evil or neutral before; the philosophy you implied indicates he was probably some shade of Evil in the past), and probably Neutral Good overall, but it depends. He would only be Chaotic if he rebelled against laws/rules/order/authority or if he didn't care about "the greater good" or the trappings of society or whatever, generally speaking. If he just doesn't care for laws and rules, but isn't an anarchist/rebel/lone-wolf, he's Neutral on the Law-Chaos axis. [/QUOTE]
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