Author Topic: Savage [ToB Base]  (Read 1766 times)

Offline Stratovarius

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Savage [ToB Base]
« on: October 22, 2016, 09:27:05 AM »
Savage

"Waaagh!"
– Relak Traven, Human Savage


Savages are little more than furious warriors from the steppes and the nether reaches of Arhosa, the remanents of once great civilizations come down to barbarism and savagery. For some civilizations, though, this is merely a return to the way of life they once used to build their empires, and so they take to the life of a savage with all the glee of men throwing away outdated customs and social restraints.


Making a Savage
A savage is usually found amongst the wildlings, those tribes, clans, and otherwise that live upon the steppes, the mountains, and other barren lands. But unlike Totem Masters, the Savage has no overwhelming and magical connection with nature. No, they are merely brutal warriors of the most basic sort, always caught in a struggle for power and survival.

Abilities: A Savage is a maneuver user, just like a warblade

Races: Savages can be found among any race.

Alignment: Savages can have any alignment.

Starting Gold: As Barbarian.

Starting Age: As Barbarian.


Table 1: The Savage
Hit Die: d12


Level  BAB   Ref   Fort  Will  Abilities                                 Maneuvers Known   Readied   Stances Known
-------------------------------–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
1      +1    +2    +2    +0    Blood Frenzy                              3                 3         1
2      +2    +3    +3    +0    Savage Fury                               4                 3         1
3      +3    +3    +3    +1    Mettle                                    5                 3         1
4      +4    +4    +4    +1    Greater Blood Frenzy                      5                 4         2
5      +5    +4    +4    +1    Primeval Flurry                           6                 4         2
6      +6    +5    +5    +2    Headlong Rush                             6                 4         2
7      +7    +5    +5    +2    Woad                                      7                 4         2
8      +8    +6    +6    +2    Inspire Blood Frenzy                      7                 4         2
9      +9    +6    +6    +3    Wildling Health                           8                 4         2
10     +10   +7    +7    +3    Savage Redemption                         8                 5         3
11     +11   +7    +7    +3    Thunderous Charge                         9                 5         3
12     +12   +8    +8    +4    Supreme Blood Frenzy                      9                 5         3
13     +13   +8    +8    +4    Savage Cleave                             10                5         3
14     +14   +9    +9    +4    Great Swing                               10                5         3
15     +15   +9    +9    +5    Wild Assault                              11                6         3
16     +16   +10   +10   +5    Inspire Greater Blood Frenzy              11                6         4
17     +17   +10   +10   +5    Mighty Swing                              12                6         4
18     +18   +11   +11   +6    Greater Savage Redemption                 12                6         4
19     +19   +11   +11   +6    Massive Swing                             13                6         4
20     +20   +12   +12   +6    Savage Blood Frenzy, Savage's Onslaught   13                7         4

Class skills (4 + Int modifier per level, x4 at first level): Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Profession, Ride (Dex), Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis), and Swim (Str)
             
Class Features
The rage against the ending of the world drives you ever onwards.
  • Weapon and Armour Proficiency: Savages are proficient with all simple and martial weapons, light and medium armours, and all shields except tower.
  • Savage Maneuvers: Savages are furious barbarians, driven by passion and aggression and little more. They choose maneuvers from the Stone Dragon, Tiger Claw, Iron Heart, and White Raven disciplines. They gain and ready these maneuvers as a warblade does. A savage may only use a maneuver while he is in a Blood Frenzy. He does not recover maneuvers normally - instead, the savage recovers one readied but expended maneuver at random each time he strikes an enemy for 10 or more damage.
  • Blood Frenzy (Ex): A savage who deals damage in combat against a living enemy scents blood, which causes him to fly into a frenzy the following round. While in a blood frenzy, a savage gains +4 to Strength, +4 to Dexterity, and –4 to Armor Class. If his attacks bring an opponent to negative hit points, he immediately gains an additional attack against its fallen foe. A savage cannot end his frenzy voluntarily. It ends only when all creatures he has wounded in combat are dead or have fled the battle. Any feat that would normally effect a barbarian's rage also affects this class feature. This class feature counts as a barbarian's rage for purposes of access to feats. He cannot fight defensively or take the Total Defense action, and each round must attack the nearest enemy creature if able.
  • Savage Fury (Ex): The Savage takes a furious joy in combat, revelling in each thunderous blow, a giddy frenzy that allows you to dance through combat, accepting blows unthinkingly. Each time he strikes a creature and deal 10 or more damage to it, he gains 5 temporary hit points from battle lust. The temporary hit points stack with each other, and last until the end of the encounter.
  • Mettle (Ex): At 3rd level and higher, a savage can resist magical and unusual attacks with great willpower or fortitude. If he makes a successful Will or Fortitude save against an attack that normally would have a lesser effect on a successful save (such as any spell with a saving throw entry of Will half or Fortitude partial), he instead completely negates the effect. An unconscious or sleeping savage does not gain the benefit of mettle.
  • Greater Blood Frenzy (Ex): The benefits and penalties from Blood Frenzy increase by 2, to +6 and -6.
  • Primeval Flurry (Ex): A furious assault crushes the savage's enemies to their knees. Each round, he may make up to one additional attack per four class levels with a two-handed weapon, at his highest base attack bonus. He takes a cumulative -1 penalty to AC and all your attack rolls until the beginning of his next turn for each additional attack he makes this way.
  • Headlong Rush (Ex): Strategy and tactics have never been the strong point of the savage, while the shock of his impact in battle are. He can make turns during a charge and charge across difficult terrain. If he hits with the attack at the end of a charge, all enemies within 5' per class level who have the same or less hit dice than the foe struck are shaken for one minute. Creatures immune to critical hits are immune to this ability. This is a Fear effect.
  • Woad (Ex): Savages laugh at the puny men of civilization who have to armour themselves to feel safe in a battle. Any time the savage engages an opponent who is wearing a heavier category of armour than he is, he gains a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls for each step heavier the armour is. For creatures with natural armour, 0 is unarmoured, 1-3 is light, 4-6 is medium, and 7+ is heavy for the purposes of this ability. If a creature has both natural armour and armour, use whichever is heavier.
  • Inspire Blood Frenzy (Ex): At 11th level, as a move action, the savage can, through the example of his fighting, give to his allies some of savagery that is his. All willing allies within 30 feet gain the effects of the base Blood Frenzy ability (+4, -4) until the end of the encounter.
  • Wildling Health (Ex): The temporary hitpoints granted by Savage Fury increase to 10 hp, instead of 5.
  • Savage Redemption (Ex): The savage recovers two readied but expended maneuvers at random each time he strikes an enemy for 30 or more damage. The recovery does not stack with other methods (he must choose one based on damage dealt).
  • Thunderous Charge (Ex): To be the first into battle is the greatest of honours amongst savages, proving their courage and dedication. His charges do not provoke attacks of opportunity, and the savage deals an extra 1 damage per class level if the charge hits.
  • Supreme Blood Frenzy (Ex): The benefits and penalties from Blood Frenzy increase by a further 2, to +8 and -8.
  • Savage Cleave (Ex): Whenever an attack would trigger Savage Fury, the savage can make an additional attack as a free action against another foe that is within melee range of him. This attack cannot trigger a Savage Cleave.
  • Great Swing (Ex): Starting at 13th level, a savage is able to make a great, sweeping swing with a melee weapon. As a full-round action, the savage can choose three squares adjacent to one another (he must threaten all of them). His attack or maneuver applies to all creatures in those squares. Make one attack roll and apply that roll as an attack against each defender.
  • Wild Assault (Ex): At the end of a successful charge, the savage can throw himself at his foes, swinging wildly. If he chooses, he can take a -5 penalty to his attacks this round. If he does so, he can attack a second creature at the end of his charge. Both creatures must be in melee range at the end of the charge.
  • Inspire Greater Blood Frenzy (Ex): At 17th level, the benefits from Inspire Blood Frenzy increase to those from Greater Blood Frenzy (+6, -6).
  • Mighty Swing (Ex): Starting at 16th level, a savage can make a mighty swing. A mighty swing is like a great swing, except that it is a standard action rather than a full-round action.
  • Greater Savage Redemption (Ex): The savage recovers three readied but expended maneuvers at random each time he strikes an enemy for 50 or more damage. The recovery does not stack with other methods (he must choose one based on damage dealt).
  • Massive Swing (Ex): A 19th-level savage can lash out all around himself with a single attack or maneuver. Massive swing works like mighty swing, except that its effect is not limited to three squares. The savage’s swing affects all squares he threatens.
  • Savage Blood Frenzy (Ex): The benefits and penalties from Blood Frenzy increase by a further 2, to +10 and -10.
  • Savage's Onslaught (Ex): The savage can transfer some of his overwhelming ferocity to his allies. Whenever the savage makes a charge, all allies within 30 feet of him at the beginning of his turn can also charge his target as an immediate action. He and his allies do not block each other when determining if they can charge. His charge attack deals an extra 2 points of damage per class level, and those of his allies each deal an extra 1 point of damage per ally's character level. For each ally who charges, counting himself, his charge attack and those of his allies are made with a cumulative +2 bonus (in addition to the normal bonus provided by charging). An opponent struck by him and at least one other ally is stunned for 1 round. He and his allies do not provoke attacks of opportunity for moving as part of this charge. This bonus damage replaces any damage from Thunderous Charge.
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« Last Edit: February 16, 2017, 07:19:18 PM by Stratovarius »

Offline TheGeometer

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Re: Savage [ToB Base]
« Reply #1 on: October 22, 2016, 05:39:01 PM »
Barbarian with maneuvers, eh? Alright, sounds good to me! Just a few questions I had while reading it:

Blood Frenzy: What do you mean by "he must attack the nearest enemy creature if able?" If the enemy's already in range with a melee weapon? If the Savage can reach it with a charge? Should I never give my Savage a bow, because then he'll never be able to do anything but attack?

Woad: What happens if a creature has natural armor and is also wearing armor? Does Light + Medium = Heavy? Or just Medium, or what?

Thunderous Charge: Given how many ways there are to multiply damage dealt during a charge, is it really wise to just add 35 damage, just like that, on all charges? That seems ludicrous to me. 35 damage is how much a Fireball deals at that level (on average), and that at least allows a save! And if you use this on a dive, it's 70 damage. If you have a valorous weapon, it's 105. And that's not even going into all the feats, or mentioning the rest of the damage from Power Attack and the weapon damage and your buffed Strength score from your frenzy. Yes, charging is already an easy way to give fighters ludicrous amounts of damage-dealing potential, but I don't think that justifies giving the Savage a charge-based nuke essentially for free.

Inspire Blood Frenzy: Just a small fix here. Since Greater Blood Frenzy says that it increases the bonuses from the Blood Frenzy ability, this ability would grant the upgraded Blood Frenzy to allies. Which, based on the fact that Inspire Greater Blood Frenzy is a thing, is probably not what you intended.

All I can say is, this class is truly a damage-dealing beast. Give this thing Pounce and I bet it'll take down whole encounters without even trying.

Offline Stratovarius

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Re: Savage [ToB Base]
« Reply #2 on: October 24, 2016, 08:12:51 AM »
Blood Frenzy - think Frenzied Berserker, but without the attacking allies bit. That's the intent, anyway.

Woad - Heaviest counts, I'll make a note of that.

Thunderous Charge - This is just War Leader's Charge from White Raven as a permanent class ability.

Inspire - I shall adjust the wording so that doesn't happen.

The savage (with some slight differences) is my replacement for the Barbarian class for Arhosa - I don't use any of the standard PhB classes there, and I wanted something that would push a barbarian type class up towards the higher end of Tier 3 and make it the no armour damage dealing monster it should be. This also reflects a couple other beliefs of mine - class features have to be a lot more important because magic items are extremely rare and expensive (see this), so a Savage would never have access to a valorous weapon, for instance. And even outside of Arhosa, where normal D&D comes into play, a Savage doesn't cast spells, so therefore can't break the game in anything remotely resembling a char-op campaign.

On another note, I was thinking of shifting the Savage's Blood Frenzy abilities around so they follow a regular progression of 1/4/8/12/16/20 instead of the bit of a mess they are now? It would push most of the abilities to lower levels.

Offline TheGeometer

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Re: Savage [ToB Base]
« Reply #3 on: October 26, 2016, 11:48:19 AM »
Yeah, but I think getting War Leader's Charge every round and being able to use it alongside other maneuvers is a bit excessive. I don't subscribe to the idea that in campaigns with a large amount of optimization, any class that doesn't cast spells is automatically worse. Maybe at really high levels, but at level 10, well-optimized fighters are still the backbone of the party. And this class's damage output  is kind of terrifying. I'm just concerned that any monster the GM will be forced to deploy so that this class doesn't kill it in one hit will utterly wreck the rest of the party.

Offline Stratovarius

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Re: Savage [ToB Base]
« Reply #4 on: February 16, 2017, 06:54:38 PM »
And I totally forgot to ever reply to this... :banghead

Would making the damage scale based on class level be more appropriate? Something like 1 per class level, instead of the flat 35.

I've also cleaned up/moved things around a bit, based on the suggestion I made before.

Edit: Changed damage to 1/class and 2/class for the abilities.
« Last Edit: February 16, 2017, 07:20:29 PM by Stratovarius »