What Templates Are Needed?

[Rechan]

I really hope that WotC or someone else starts putting out some templates, because I don't see any in the fan creation area - while Keterys tried his hand at one or two, I think we are missing some!

I really like templates. Not for the means of the 3e "Hey look, I can make a Half-X/Half-Y Z!" Templates are best, in my opinion, when they give a few abilities that change the "feel" to be more in line with what you're shooting for. In other words, archetype foes.

For instance, last night I took an Ettercap Fang Guard, slapped a "Shadowborn Stalker" template, and Tada, I now have a creature that steals people's shadows, can entangle them with their own shadow, melt into darkness, etc etc.

So what templates are needed/can be thought up? One that's seriously lacking:

Far Realms-based.


(Sidenote: I noticed that there were several roles that go underappreciated. Soldier/Soldier (leader) and Controller/Controller(leader) seem the most common; Artiller, Brute and Skirmishers get 2 "Or", and Lurker only gets one.)

 

[Vayden]

I know it totally breaks the paradigm, but I hope they eventually release some rules for/templates balanced for PCs. I know there's a whole other big company focused on letting you play a werewolf/vampire/mummy-lich, but I like having those options for PCs. One of my only major disappointments from 4e so far.

 

[Shroomy]

Here are the ones I would like to see:

Half-Dragon - Personally, I can't believe this one didn't actually make it into the DMG; I guess half-dragon exhaustion set in during the course of 3.5e. That said, this template writes itself: breath weapon, resistances, flight. Done.

Monster of Legend - Or some kind of Divine Champion.

Living Spell - I'm assuming we'll see when the ECS is released, though the 4e monster creation rules could potentially make this redundant (actually, like a lot of templates).

Half-Farspawn - Far Realms touched creatures, oh yeah! We already have creatures touched by the Feywild and Shadowfell.

Ravenous Undead - From the Dragon Compendium. A nice way to toughen up some undead.

Dungeon Lord - I think this prestige class, like many of the monster prestige classes, translates well to 4e templates (if I had my copy of Savage Species with me, I could probably add more).

Tomb Warden - See above, but with undead flavor.

 

[Jhaelen]

I know it totally breaks the paradigm, but I hope they eventually release some rules for/templates balanced for PCs. I know there's a whole other big company focused on letting you play a werewolf/vampire/mummy-lich, but I like having those options for PCs. One of my only major disappointments from 4e so far.

Paragon Paths = Templates for PCs. I wouldn't mind seeing a few more racial or otherwise exotic paragon paths. I'd also like to see paragon path that are open to a wider range of characters, i.e. with less restrictive prerequisites, but I guess it's difficult to design those to be balanced for every class...

 

[Rechan]

I'm just going to... bump this...

 

[Boarstorm]

Alright, given the events which occurred in my KotS run (related in another thread), I was really hoping for a "Shadowborn" template to offset the "Feyborn" template in order to help populate the Shadowfell. The closest is the Shadowborn Stalker, but that's for "prime material" rogue-types who've drawn off a bit of the shadowfell to supplement their abilities, not for residents of the plane.

I'd also like to see some organizations turned into templates for slapping onto NPCs, granting thematically appropriate powers. For example, let's say all agents of the Emerald Claw undergo certain training, so whether this particular NPC is a necromancer or a fighter, he's still going to have a certain power that ties him thematically to the organization.

The hope is that organizations will be distinguishable by how they fight in much the same way that kobolds are distinct from goblins or bugbears.

Which brings me to my big gripe with templates as they stand: why-oh-why must all of these templates turn something into an elite? It seems unnecessary. Just because I want that minotaur to be a bodyguard doesn't mean I want to bump him up the monster hierarchy.

Sure, for some templates it is appropriate (liches, vampires), but for others it really seems like it should be optional. Sometimes you just want to add a few powers without all the other bonuses, ya know?

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

I think one of the problems of the templates is that they add powers - and that gives a monster more power, and thus it's easier to promote it to elite.

I think we'll eventually see "lesser" templates that instead will change powers. Or just see a lot of advice on how to achieve such effects.

 

[keterys]

I totally missed this thread the first go around, so I'm bumping it. I intend to update the two I already made back before the rules were put out... very soon (can't commit to tonight, but that's my goal that I'll probably fail as I'm also working on a playtest doc and grading encounter 13s tonight after work)... so that'll be a Far Realms-based tentacle and mind-affecting spawn one (that's what Devourer-spawn is) and a "on fire melee" one. I'd cheerfully work on some more after that, cause I could use more myself.

I'll need to verify the DMG templates, but dragonspawn, demon possessed, and archetypical (think like paragon from the epic handbook, or monster of legend to a lesser extent) are the ones that leap to mind initially. And reading back over the thread, Shroomy agrees at least somewhat. Not familiar with some of those references, but I can check Savage Species at least

I've some ideas for a couple highly specialized and wacky ones (like one for a beholder parasite that's like an eye stalk and control of a creature) that I'd not mind doing too. I can't let templates completely distract me from the other 180 creatures I should be working on, but they're fun and there definitely should be more