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Author Topic: D&D 3.5- Western Marches: dead and gone (RIP)  (Read 303966 times)

Heron TSG

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Re: D&D 3.5 - Western Marches and then some
« Reply #30 on: September 16, 2010, 10:10:08 pm »

I think I'm going to go for a (future) daggerspell. Maybe Dervish after that for some serious rapid stab wounds.

EDIT: Can I use the Air Goblin variant for goblins from UA?

« Last Edit: September 16, 2010, 11:10:06 pm by Barbarossa the Seal God »
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RAM

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Re: D&D 3.5 - Western Marches and then some
« Reply #31 on: September 16, 2010, 11:55:39 pm »

Build a duellist, build it well!

Naaa, I'm just kidding, only an idiot would try to build a duellist.
 They get crazy initiative, but nothing to do with it except stand in front of people and look pretty...
 They get crazy AC, but only after they've survived to high levels where it doesn't matter anymore...
 They get crazy movement abilities, but no speed or sneak attack to capitalise on it.
 Basically they make a dex-based AC tank dexier and more AC tank. By denying you the use of armour or shields you lose all hope of defensive magical enhancements, so your AC is the only thing keeping you alive. And with nothing but dex, intelligence, and defensive fighting to give you AC, you can all but guarantee that you won't be doing any damage. Its only real value is to people whose monks always die...

Naaaaa, I'm kidding, duellists are great, I made one and the DM was constantly trying, and failing, to kill them. They finally died after literal rock, literally fell, and literally everyone(important) died...

P.S.
 How do skill points and multiple classes work? If I have a level 1 rogue, and disable device is a class skill, so I take 4 ranks in it, and then I take a level of commoner, and it isn't a class skill anymore, but I take a rank in disable device anyway!
 Then I am a level 2 character. What are my maximum ranks in disable device?
A:5
B:2+1/2
C:Something else that you made up to feel smug.
 How expensive(in skill points) will that 5th rank be?
A:1
B:2
C:Your 5th rank is currently lost in space and will not be available until it has exhausted the supply of zucchinis.

P.P.S.
 What if, as a trait, I want to reduce my skill points per level by 1(4 at 1st) to add one(or more?) skills to my list of class skills? Say that it can reduce you to 0 skill points per level to scare off the 6 int orcs...
It is bad because:
 The party fighter was just going to blow those points on jumping, but now they have full use of use magic device and can reliably use scrolls of righteous might and shapechange while faking their alignment to wield the Lawful Evil intelligent scythe that was meant to be the villain of the campaign...
 By trading 1 skill point to gain a class skill you haven't lost anything, because the skill points spent on that skill are worth twice as much as they would have been otherwise.

It is good because:
 The party fighter decides that they want spot instead of ride and handle animal. They lose the points that they would have spent on handle animal, and move the points that they would have spent on ride into spot. Now they don't fall into a barely-concealed pit trap or rent for 15d6 sneak attack damage by a troll rogue every time that they lead the party. The player is happier but when the party has to travel 200 kilometres(and 5 levels) by horse the fighter is constantly reminded that they don't have the skill points to learn to fight without dismounting at the start of every encounter...
 They most certainly HAVE lost something! 1 skill point per level! I mean, who buys more than a single rank of a cross-class skill? Wizards? Bah, even with 20 odd intelligence they still have less points than a rogue, and those certainly never have enough skill points!
 The character will trade the maximum number of skills that they can apply full points to to increase the number of skills they can fully utilise. It is versatility with a relevant cost, which is what traits are all about. Also it is easy enough to double the costs, or add a fixed loss of skill-points at 1st level...

Example:
Methodical

A place for everything and everything in its place. Inconsistencies in an environment just stick out at you. Although you are often too busy sorting things to practice your other skills...
Benefit

Search is a class skill for all classes that you take.
Drawback

You gain 1 less skill point per level (four less at first level). This can cause you to gain no skill points from a level, even though you would normally gain a minimum of one.
Roleplaying Ideas

If a character has this trait then they might insist that things be treated in the correct manner. They tend to be frustrated by chaotic alignments.
« Last Edit: September 17, 2010, 12:50:27 am by RAM »
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Shoruke

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Re: D&D 3.5 - Western Marches and then some
« Reply #32 on: September 17, 2010, 12:08:07 am »

@ RAM:
Deities:
Frankly, as long as your diety doesn't directly interfere with the game any more than the other ones, go ahead and worship him/her/it.

Domains:
I don't have a problem with any of those domains... although, casting height-dependant spells in an area with a low ceiling (I.E., casting Ice Storm in a hallway) will reduce your spell's potency a little bit. (In the example of Ice Storm, I'd just reduce the bludgeoning damage by taking away one of the d6's; not totally crippling, but it'll force you to be careful with your spells if you want to be at your best).
Classes:
Divine Oracle: Ehhh... sure.
Seeker of the Misty Isle: No, sorry, nobody else in the world gives a hoot about the Misty Isle, and therefore there's nobody to induct you into the order.
Church Inquisitor: Sure... but I'm placing the restriction that you have to meet the "special" requirement (uncovering corruption within a Lawful Good organization to which you belong) during the game, not as part of your backstory. So to take this class, you'll have to PM me about a potential character arc, and either convince your teammates to go along with it or do it as a solo mission. I'd be willing to drop the alignment restriction on certain conditions: a) you do not gain spellcasting levels for Church Inquisitor levels 1, 4, or 8, b) you do not gain the Detect Evil ability, and c) the organization you uncover corruption within as part of your entrance requirement still has to be lawful, but not necessarily good.
Contemplative: I'm changing one of the requirements: You must be able to cast FIFTH- (as opposed to first-) level divination spells. This shouldn't be much of a problem for a level 10 cleric build. And yes, you can meet the "special" requirement by summoning the appropriate being, but anything with 6HD or less isn't going to be considered "a direct servant of <deity>".
Thaumaturgist: Approved

Also, thanks for reminding me, the Leadership feat is out. A feat that lets you play as N+3 Player Characters is weird and broken.
Everyone may have up to 2 traits, and up to 1 flaw.

@Barb, God of Seals:
Air goblins are fine, as are all elemental variant classes from Unearthed Arcana. I can't read your skills in that format though, it hurts my brain...

@Everyone: I've started working on the world map. It's going to be... large. Luckily for you guys, RAM seems hell-bent on being able to cast Teleport, so backtracking won't be too hard for you guys.

Also, I forgot to put in the Tips & Tricks of the OP, you guys can feel free to build a home base once you've raked in enough cash. (sorry I keep forgetting to put stuff in the original post, it was long and there was a lot of points to remember...)

EDIT: At RAM again... if you take your first level in rogue and your second level in commoner, and put max ranks in Disable Device, you will have 5 ranks in Disable Device. The fifth rank will have cost 2 skill points.
« Last Edit: September 17, 2010, 12:09:46 am by shoruke »
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RAM

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Re: D&D 3.5 - Western Marches and then some
« Reply #33 on: September 17, 2010, 02:01:11 am »

Yay! glorious answery goodness!

Hmmm, Church inquisitor, well, a lost level of spellcasting would hurt. Detect Evil, pfft, like that ever saved a party from walking headfirst into an inescapable trap and being subjected to a maniacal monologue... *sighs* belonging to an organisation at all is feeling out of place for some reason... I think inquisitor is just a temptation to be honest, aside from the roleplaying requirements you can enter it at level 3 just by being a cleric, and it grants you a free domain and a mess of immunities. I think that it is a trap, I can resist it! I am sure that I can! I don't need that sort of silly little pointless cheese, I can get along just fine without it! Although I might keep a copy of you restrictions, for reference, yes, that's it, those are good ideas that I might want to use for some other character... Oh, wait! I could just take a couple of levels and then change my alignm- NO! BAD CHEESE! Go to your room! Nobody wants to hear it!

I wonder if there are any monologue based prestige classes...

As I primary summoning class on an adventure I should be able to find some reason to consult with deific representatives, and then it is just a matter of summoning someone who can set up a meeting...

Is the fifth level Thaumaturgist's ability of planar cohort out with leadership? How much harm would a simple little outsider be? *looks at the entry for Fharlanghn's heralds* *looks up Ghaele Eladrins* *makes notes*
At will:
Wait, never mind, it doesn't have a Level Adjustment, so I don't think that it is eligible...

Aha, here we go, I could get a hound archon at level 13, hmmm, well, so long as it spends the entire time as a dog it shouldn't be much different from an animal companion...
Or a bralani, also a companion for a level 13 thaumaturgist. It only has unlimited gust of wind, charm person and... oh, yes, it can turn into a whirlwind, nothing complicated about that...
At level 18 I could have a couatl, that seems pretty tame, except, well, the 9th caster-level spells and psionics...
Team Evil Should have something... ewww, not a dretch. Why would I want a succubus cohort? Bearded devils could work, but the whole 'summoning your pals' thing makes team evil a bit dubious...
Meh, I'll just quite while I'm behind...


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Grek

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Re: D&D 3.5 - Western Marches and then some
« Reply #34 on: September 17, 2010, 04:11:12 am »

Here's my sheet: http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=240855

He's a grapplemancer. Only non-core spell so far is Baubu slime, p22 of the Spell Compendium, which lets me do acid damage to people while I grapple them.

Backstory in spoilers:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
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wolfchild

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Re: D&D 3.5 - Western Marches and then some
« Reply #35 on: September 17, 2010, 04:43:56 am »

If my times are ok (you never commented), I would like to play a Shifter (eberon campain setting) Spirit Shaman (Complete Divine)
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Robocorn

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Re: D&D 3.5 - Western Marches and then some
« Reply #36 on: September 17, 2010, 05:09:41 am »

okay, I wrote this little  thing up


Naturally, nobody should know this, but I wasted spent so much time writing it.

Heron TSG

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Re: D&D 3.5 - Western Marches and then some
« Reply #37 on: September 17, 2010, 08:16:20 am »

Don't worry, I'm making a mythweavers sheet in a bit that will look much better.
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mainiac

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Re: D&D 3.5 - Western Marches and then some
« Reply #38 on: September 17, 2010, 08:26:47 am »

Do you guys have a ranger?  I'd be interested in playing a halfling ranger.
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moghopper

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Re: D&D 3.5 - Western Marches and then some
« Reply #39 on: September 17, 2010, 10:22:40 am »

Might you have room for me as well? I have a homebrew class I want to try out.
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Akigagak

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Re: D&D 3.5 - Western Marches and then some
« Reply #40 on: September 17, 2010, 11:05:59 am »

Shoruke, how do you feel about Bloodlines?
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Shoruke

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Re: D&D 3.5 - Western Marches and then some
« Reply #41 on: September 17, 2010, 12:02:47 pm »

Once again, time to put the 'A' into Q&A...

@RAM: Sure, that particular trait is fine. I don't mind the level 5 Thaumaturgist class feature... but bear in mind that, if you try to have a Ghaele as a Planar Cohort, I'm going to have to assign it a level adjustment, and it's going to be hard to pass the "your planar cohort can't have an ECL greater than your character level minus 2" requirement. 10 HD, plus the LA from an entire page of racial features? Not cheap.

@Grek: The Babau Slime spell is fine to use, but your skills... I know Spellcraft is actually an in-class skill for wizards (this fact is messing up the skill point total on your sheet), and... what is Knowledge (3)? And you should have 16 hp. But the kicker is your stats: you can't lower your stats below 8 for more points to buy other stats with, there's just too much min-maxing abuse potential there.

@Wolfchild: Barring superpowered homework spam and midterms/finals, I'm good to run sessions on my Wednesday evenings, which are 1:00 AM at GMT, and 11:00 AM for you at +10 GMT (if I have my timezone math right, I've been known to get it wrong occasionally). Plus, I'm not going to have your character totally drop off the map because you can't make it to half the sessions; I'll take measures to keep you competitive, and character journals should help keep you up on what happens in the sessions you DO miss (if any). So by all means, roll up your character and make a sheet.

@Robocorn: Awesome story, although I think you left out an important noun near the end of your first spoiler'd paragraph... anyway, I'll be sure to write the dwarven city of Grelòtis Rinde into the world; it'll be in the civilized lands. The group will be able to visit them (buy stuff, ask for quests, ask people about metals or other dwarfy stuff), but there won't be much action in the city.

@Barb: Good stuff...

@Mainiac: We don't have a ranger yet, and we'd love to have you. Survival the Rangers' Knowledge skills will be useful in this setting.

@Moghopper: We have room for you for sure, but I feel dubious about letting people use homebrew classes. Run it by me anyway, and we'll see.

@Akigagak: Bloodlines are fine.

@Everyone: GAH, I forgot to say we aren't using the Massive Damage Rule (you know, if you do 50 damage in one shot you save or die instantly), because it's basically a continual kick in the nuts once you get to higher levels.
« Last Edit: September 17, 2010, 12:07:07 pm by shoruke »
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moghopper

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Re: D&D 3.5 - Western Marches and then some (recruiting)
« Reply #42 on: September 17, 2010, 12:22:23 pm »

If the custom class is unnacceptable then I suppose I'll take a halfling Bard that uses gongs as his instrument. Eventually I'll take the Diresinger prestige class.

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Akigagak

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Re: D&D 3.5 - Western Marches and then some (recruiting)
« Reply #43 on: September 17, 2010, 12:56:21 pm »

So many hobbitses.
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Shoruke

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Re: D&D 3.5 - Western Marches and then some (recruiting)
« Reply #44 on: September 17, 2010, 01:13:56 pm »

Superblurb about the world:

You live on the floating continent of Arcadia (which uses this trope, not this one). Nobody knows HOW it floats, or WHY it floats, or how the water gets to the top of the mountains to make the rivers, but it floats. There are all sorts of legends about other continents, but over time, these legends have faded into myth, because there's just no way to prove them; not safely, anyway.

Arcadia is a dangerous place. On the west side of the continent, are the Civlized Lands: the humans, dwarves, elves, and other peaceful races enjoy relative peace, but the towns are walled and guarded; outside of the cities, you're on your own against a harsh world. There are only four major cities: The human city of Landsedge, which lies right on the far west side of Arcadia (hence the name); the Dwarven halls of Grelòtis Rinde, where the civilized races purchase their metals, gems, and stone; the elven city of Corwyl; and the multi-racial trade city of Rivershire, where even kobolds, goblins, and the like can make a civilized living... if they don't do anything to anger the downright draconian guards. The four towns are connected via roads, which are relatively safe; bandits are rare, and the wildlife has learned to stay away from them.

Away from civilization, though, is a harsh, harsh world. Kobolds, and occasionally other cave horrors, continually harass Grelòtis Rinde, which is now the only Dwarven city that still belongs to Dwarves (there were others, but they have long since fallen). Following the edge of land south from Corwyl leads to the Marshes of Mire; trying to walk through them would be hard enough even without the monsters, which spring out of the muck and (as far as anyone knows) eat you. The people of Rivershire once tried to look for more space and resources by heading east, through the forested pass between the mountains; they met with heavy resistance from goblins, orcs, and even some wandering ghosts, and now the East Road Project has been abandoned. Even in the plains of the civilized lands, the wildlife are not to be underestimated, because any species that has survived this long has learned to hunt in packs.

The civilized peoples have learned their lesson; expansion leads to death. You, however, are of a different mindset. You start your adventure in the Rivershire Library, the biggest library (of the three that exist) in the Civilized Lands, in response to an ad put out by a rather excitable librarian...

Spoiler: the World Map (click to show/hide)
« Last Edit: September 17, 2010, 01:18:05 pm by shoruke »
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