Show Posts

This section allows you to view all posts made by this member. Note that you can only see posts made in areas you currently have access to.


Messages - AfterCrescent

Pages: [1] 2 3
1
I think that looks really cool and should work well. My only concern is 3-4 gestalt characters will easily overpower most of those 1-off monster by pure action economy, even if they're stretched a little thin. But like you said, the early and later waves are supposed to taper off, so that probably works. I like the crescendo feel of the battle.  I definitely want to know how things play out. This battle sounds awesome.  :D

2
Gaming Advice / Re: Schism and delay actions
« on: August 17, 2012, 03:56:13 AM »
Well you can always trade in a standard action for a move action, per the PHB. I seem to recall a rule that you can always trade greater actions for lesser ones, but I can't seem to find it. I'll edit this if I come across it.

For what it's worth, Temporal Acceleration specifically references the second mind of schism being able to manifest this power. So either you get a swift action with your second mind, can trade a standard for swift, or Temporal Acceleration is a loopy power that breaks the rule.

Edit:  Rules Compendium states you may ready a standard, move, swift, or free action. Readying is a standard action.

While you can technically argue that you are not allowed to trade standard actions for swift actions, you can totally ready a swift action to go off the next time you blink and then blink as a free action. :P  It's effectively the same thing, just saving a stupid step of by-law-technicality.  :)

3
Looking at the encounters you already have, your party will be fairly harrowed by that point. Even if they make it to level 12. 3 waves sounds good to me, but I could see 4-5 if you want to stretch it. You could always have a conservative number and the carnage demons making a wave that you can cut or keep depending on how they're faring as things go.

The Skulvyn sound awesome as a plot point. I like that idea. I think have the Bar-Lgura happen 'off-stage' works better. That way post battle, when they're counting the dead, the survivors can recount the story of the ape-demons that grapped heros and vanished, creating something new that can be hunted down later. :)

Something like this, maybe?

Wave 1 - Skirmisher style demons (babaus, bar-lgura)
Wave 2 - Carnage Demons (potential to be dropped if party's stretched too thin)
Wave 3 - Hezrou & Co.
Wave 4 - Vrock party
Wave 5 - Demon boss

Something like that would work, with a scaling EL of 8/10/11/12/13?  Is my EL calculation right in that 3 CR 9s is a 12? It's been a while. :P

4
Gaming Advice / Re: Schism and delay actions
« on: August 16, 2012, 08:52:21 PM »
so can you "ready" your mental action then?

I think you guys are applying too much to the mental action.  It's a defined standard action and as such should not be treated in any way other than it is indicated in the power.
Yes you can ready any action, even a purely mental one as long as it's a standard action cost or less.

As defined, you have a second mind via the power. Just because it can't control physical aspects of the PC doesn't make it anything less. Otherwise you'd have to argue that it can't manifest a swift action power, since that's not a 'standard action.'  But of course it can. Granted, it can't manifest a swift power and manifest a standard action power, but it could do either or, at its leisure. :P

Think of it like summoning a zombie.  Except your second mind can, of course, think. If you summon a zombie, it can only move or attack each round. No full-round things for it. But if there are no enemies to attack, it's just going to stand there, i.e. delay. So your second mind can do the same.  Surely you're not trying to make this power weaker than Summon Undead I? ;)

5
Are you sending in waves of demons, or just one chaotic free-for-all?

I'm just going to go down the list you provided and give my two cents.  :D

Babau: GCR 5 [Med](MM1) - If you're going in waves, I could see 2-4 Babau being a first wave, since they're assassins, they'd likely blitz, drop the biggest threat, and then retreat once the second wave shows up.  If you're going free-for-all, they don't seem like they'd fit in the army-horde mentality.
Hezrou: GCR 10 [Large](MM1) - The sergeant at arms for demons? This guy is a must include. As an EL 13, you can run him and 4 CR 8 demons or 8 CR 6s.  A good ol' demon strike force sounds awesome. :)
Vrock (x2): GCR 8 each [Large](MM1) - They say Hezrous are the only demon to love battle more than a Vrock. And Vrocks are very iconic D&D demons. I think they'd fit well in the Hezrou platoon.
Jovoc: GCR 4 [Small](MM2) - Wow, I hadn't read these guys before. That's dirty. :P  I'd pair them with a bigger monster who isn't afraid to squish one in order to damage everyone in range. Kamikaze Jovocs are mean.  Now I'm thinking a good wave is a Hezrou, two Vrocks, and 4-6 of these guys.
Arrow Demon: GCR 6 [Med](MM3) - Without a doubt, one of my favorite demons. Unfortunately unless you're letting a whole army through, I don't see them making the break in the first waves. I'd argue to leave them out of combat as their strength is best when they can play ranged support in a war.
Carnage Demon (x5): GCR 3 each [Med](MM5) If you're using a wave approach, a wave of carnage demons could be simple but effective. They don't use tactics or have a lot of abilities to make them more than fodder, but they may be used to soften PCs up.  Depending on how many waves you want, I could see one of these, but they'd also probably be my first cut.
Gadacro: GCR 2 [Small](MM5) - These guys are pretty cool, too. But they're carrion creatures. They'd likely show up if the PCs lost, not rush through claws first.
Skulvyn: GCR 3 [Large](FF) - Unless there's a nearby rive or lake for fighting, I'd pass on the aquatic demons.
Maurezhi (Advanced): GCR 10 (12 or 14 HD...) [Med](FF) - An advanced one could be a challenge, and may even be on the front lines. More likely, I'd predict it crossed over first, took someone in town, and has been powering up, ready for the invasion.
Armanite: GCR 6 [Large](FC1) - Yes! Wow. Who summoned the cavalry? 6 of these rushing through the portal either before or after Squad Hezrou. No one's gonna enjoy that. Except maybe you. :P
Bar-Lgura: GCR 4 [Med](FC1) - Without time for an ambush set=up, I'd pass on these guys. Although teaming them up with Babau could make things interesting.
Bulezau: GCR 8 [Large](FC1) - Definitely. Heavy infantry of the army? Check. Terrifying looking demons? Check. I like 'em. :)
Juvenile Nabassu (maybe an advanced one?): GCR 4+ [Med](FC1) - Nabassu already spend part of their time on the Material Plane. Crossing over through a rift doesn't seem their style.


Well that's my two cents on the demons. If it's any help, let me know, and I'll go over the devils and Yugoloths later. :)

6
Gaming Advice / Re: Past Lives/Alter Egos Taking Over in Scenes
« on: August 16, 2012, 07:58:35 PM »
Have the characters build a character, an alter-ego character, and a gestalt of the two.

When their character first have their "flashbacks," they put aside their character and use the higher level alter-ego.  When their character level catches up to the alter-ego, they "gain control of their past self" and switch to using the gestalt character.
Oh, I like the idea of a second character.  I think the arbitrary level to match is a little wonky.  I was thinking more like a power that they turn on/off when they gain control of it. Probably with some form of drawback, but I'm not sure what kind.

The gestalt when they gain control of it sounds like a powerhouse, which is awesome. It may be a gestalt game already, so that might complicate it, but I like the potential here.

dman11235 has D&D3.5 Avatar rules posted in the homebrew forum, if that helps...
Thanks. I read through those briefly and didn't see any rules for the actual Avatar and/or Avatar state, though. :/

Follow the example of the Frenzied Berserker? The first time a PC unlocks their power, they go berserk and start attacking everyone with it. They can attempt Will saves each round to get back under control.

As for the powers... at-will domains?
Domains would probably work if the spirit/force they choose is easily defined as one of them. :) Hadn't thought of that. Were you thinking both domain power and spells, or just spells?

7
She's got a +2 Int bonus, so taking 10 gives her a 12. That's gotta be good enough for 'likeness' for a spell effect. Especially when you consider a rough sketch of a person would probably qualify as a very simple or typical item (DC 5 or 10). Plus she has an hour to do it, so you could argue she can take 20, since a sketch can't take more than 1 minute. ;)

8
Gaming Advice / Re: Schism and delay actions
« on: August 16, 2012, 04:44:38 PM »
If it were the way you say, it would have to "pass" not delay, and passing is actually not an option, you HAVE to either delay, ready or take your action.
You're right. I retract my previous stance. Since 'passing' is technically delaying until your initiative on the next count, yeah, I agree that the second mind should be able to delay.

He still can't delay to act when the NPCs act, but he can delay to act right after them, if he prefers. It sounds like he wants to interrupt their actions, and that's a readied action. :)

9
Gaming Advice / Re: Schism and delay actions
« on: August 16, 2012, 01:57:31 AM »
Delay states "you take no action" and move your initiative down. Since the second mind is only allowed a standard action and acts on your initiative, not its own, it can't move the initiative down and would require the rest of you to 'take no action'.  You're still just one person, even if you have two minds.

Also, you can't delay to act when the NPCs act. You can delay to just before or just after, but not during. I could see the second mind being allowed to ready an action, but he'd have to specify the conditions as usual.

10
That seems like the most likely modifier. She hasn't met them, but heard of them/seen them are about the same. If she was smart, she would have captured his likeness via a drawing or something to reduce the modifier a bit. :)

11
Gaming Advice / Past Lives/Alter Egos Taking Over in Scenes
« on: August 16, 2012, 01:18:12 AM »
I'm prepping for a new game for some players and am trying to figure out the best way to make this work.  Long story short, all the PCs will be mortal incarnations of some elemental/natural/primal force (air, trees, rage, etc).  Unfortunately, due to Far Realm intervention, they don't know they are (the players, of course, do) until something triggers the release of the spirit/force.

Think Avatar-state in Avatar: TLA, if you've seen it.  The game will be run in 3.5, and I'm looking for ideas for how to handle the mechanics of the alter-ego taking over when it does.

Eventually, I want the players to be able to coincide and/or conquer the spirit and have control over the power granted, but I'm not sure what those powers are/how they would work, from a mechanical standpoint.

Any ideas or suggestions are welcome. Thanks.  :cool

12
Gaming Advice / Re: Shutting Down Psionic Manifestors
« on: July 19, 2012, 04:40:51 PM »
If you use magic-psionic transparency, get a reach monster with Mage Slayer and laugh as they can't manifest defensively.  :lol

13
Homebrew and House Rules (D&D) / Re: [3.5]AC's Knight
« on: July 19, 2012, 04:37:03 PM »
I'm not seeing that. The class says the ability acts as the TWF tree, so they wouldn't stack.

14
Homebrew and House Rules (D&D) / Re: Some homebrew races
« on: July 19, 2012, 04:35:08 PM »
Yeah, if you want them to be nature-y without being a plant, just make them Humanoid (greenblooded) or something. And then add the abilities. You can't really make them plants and then take away their natural immunities. Although I'd argue that immunity to Stunning is ridiculously good.

Everything they have and their type makes them easily a +1 LA. Take a look at Planetouched. The only reason they're +1 LA is their type. Lesser Planetouched are +0 LA and the only difference is they're Humanoid instead of Outsiders.

As for the Gremlins, making them small size and making the DR 1/4 or 5 HD would make it +0, imo.  Keeping the Dex boost and making it small seems fine. The fly speed is pretty good, but their land speed is crap and they don't have perfect mobility...

15
Homebrew and House Rules (D&D) / Re: [3.5] The Dancer (PrC)
« on: July 19, 2012, 04:26:31 PM »
Thanks for the thoughts, David. You're definitely the type of person I'm looking to get tips from.  :D

Some thoughts about dance, to perhaps inspire new "dances"
- Great Dancers are artists ... they have a sense of "zen-ness" in peak performance
----- Possibly can take 10 on anything movement related (including combat) 1/round
----- Some kind of still mind ability relating to mental focus
They do get the ability to always take 10 on climb, jump, and balance. What other movement related checks would we need? Or were you thinking about taking 10 on bull-rush, etc?

Ohhh, what about an erratic charge? Would that fit better as an ability or a Dance? You know, not having to charge in a straight line and being able to charge over difficult terrain, etc.

I tried to capture the mental focus in the Body over Mind ability. How does it look? Too weak, or just not enough?

Quote
- Dancers who do partnering have great awareness of their partner's body placement
----- Advantages while grappling related to knowing what your "partner" will do
----- Advantages in any effort to seduce
Maybe allow them to take 10 on escape artist as well? And I tried capturing the seduction with the Diplomacy ability and a few dances that captivate.

Quote
- Dancers need great timing to relate to the music
----- perhaps ability to better interrupt actions, or make better use of readied actions (don't need to declare before taking)
I don't think I want to alter the mechanics for readied actions, but I'm curious what you're thinking about with interrupting actions...

Quote
- Dancers need to move from one movement to the next so fast that they you don't have time to think - only move
----- perhaps their actions can't be interrupted?
----- perhaps they can flurry?
A flurry Dance sounds good to me. I like that. As for interruptions, I need to clarify it, but activating a Dance should not provoke AoO. That should cover that.  Would adding a bonus to AC while dancing be too much? That could help express the fluidity of dancing making them harder to hit.


Quote
- Dancers learn about "stage presence" and performing, which can also translate to some amount of real-world presence as well
- Dancers learn to use their whole body to move in ways we couldn't imagine
----- bellydancer's wave --> dodge attacks
----- ballet dancer's feet --> you can kick with great fluidity ... perhaps something like "snap kick" as a bonus feat.
Would snap kick be that useful? I guess it could be good for a monk/rogue combo.  I think that might work better as a Dance. I'm going to see what I come up with next.

Quote
Just a few thoughts for inspiration.  I imagine that if your friend wants to, you could let him/her choose a theme to focus on (Physical prowess, artistic excellence, sensativity to touch, expertise with timing, etc.).  And/or ask what kinds of abilities your friend would like.  Then make things that fit.  (Either of you could create).

Best,
David (who is a dance nut ... I've never mentioned it on the boards before, but my site is: www.LearnToDanceTango.com :))
Again, thank you for all your tips. If you're up for it. I'd love to pick your brain more about the class and help balance/improve it. :D

Its a little weird if you can eventually dance 6 times in an encounter, but you can only dance two dances at a time. If I'm reading it right, some of the dances are instant effect right? Seems appropriate to allow maintaining only one at a time, but not limit initiating new dances while maintaining.
Taking the Dual Dancing feat allows you to maintain 2 dances at once. Or maintain one and initiate another. So you can maintain Rain Dance and then use an instant effect dance and then, assuming you have actions remaining on your turn, do another instant effect. Maybe I'm just not seeing the issue?

In the Feats and Dance descriptions, you call the class "Dancemaster," but everywhere else, you call it "Dancer."
Good catch. I need to fix that during the next update. I originally had the class named Dancemaster, but that sounds super dumb to me. >.< I forgot I had two files I merged to make the first post and didn't edit the second file to correct the name. I'll get to that. Thanks.

16
Homebrew and House Rules (D&D) / Re: [3.5]AC's Knight
« on: July 19, 2012, 04:08:37 PM »
Fixed it to address the issues you pointed out, Garryl. Let me know if there's some other error I'm missing.

17
Play By Post / Re: PbP Questions & Suggestions
« on: July 19, 2012, 02:49:49 PM »
That works fine. Can you merge the two threads? I just mirrored what we had on BG back in the day. Having the Handbook be Q&A works, too. :)

18
Homebrew and House Rules (D&D) / Re: [3.5]Ninja - A Step-up
« on: July 19, 2012, 02:45:58 PM »
Double Jump is brilliant. :lol I love it.  I was thinking wall walking rather than water walking. That works well. I can work with that.  Ki speed's not bad. But what do you mean by substitution techniques?

19
Gaming Advice / Re: Making spiders challenging?
« on: July 19, 2012, 02:28:14 AM »
Make zombies but have them be headcrabs (except, spiders, ya know).
Yellow Musk Creepers turned spiders make for spider head crab zombies that would utterly terrify most people I know. That sounds like a hell of a lot of fun.  :clap

20
I love this class. The flavor just made me laugh for a good 5 minutes.

I will say that the lost caster level isn't that big of a deal. You effectively lose 1 caster level to have every hand spell possible be your CL +2 and be able to flank, take AoO, and detonate, etc.  I'd at the very least want to see the class be a little harder to take...

Pages: [1] 2 3