Author Topic: Best psionic "save or die" powers  (Read 4571 times)

Offline phaedrusxy

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Best psionic "save or die" powers
« on: June 11, 2014, 09:45:17 PM »
Crystalize won't work on undead
Neither will Fuse Flesh
Control Body will, but only on things that are humanoid shaped
Most of the ones that require a Will save are Mind Affecting and/or Death effects, meaning immunity is fairly easy to get.

I'm not really that happy with any of these. I'm mostly looking for mid level effects, when some of the better arcane and divine ones come online.
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Offline Garryl

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Re: Best psionic "save or die" powers
« Reply #1 on: June 12, 2014, 12:43:50 AM »
I've always been partial to decerebrate. It's a teleportation effect, not a death effect, so the standard protections don't work. Using anti-teleportation effects as a defensive measure means cutting off an important tactical option, and personal anti-teleportation is much harder to find with longer-durations. There's also a bit of versatility in that you can use it to capture someone alive if you need to. Unfortunately, not needing a brain to function means mindless creatures and those with particularly unusual anatomies often aren't affected, and the Fort save means no undead even if they do use their brains for more than just snack food.

If you find a monster with a special attack that fits the bill, you could metamorphosis into it.

Ectoplasmic coccoon and time hop may do close enough to what you need. They're save or lose, not save or die, so you still need to finish off whatever you disable with these powers, but until they run out, the subject is out of the fight as much as any corpse.

Offline phaedrusxy

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Re: Best psionic "save or die" powers
« Reply #2 on: June 12, 2014, 08:20:41 AM »
Yeah, I'd looked at all those (I didn't really consider Metamorphosis, as that way lies more cheese , and book keeping, than I want to deal with. :D ). I can't quite get Decerebrate yet, and it honestly doesn't offer any advantage over Crystallize (I'm playing a Shaper).

I actually decided to just go with Disintegrate + some metapsionics, as against most things that's as good as a save or die. Although looking at it again, maybe that wasn't the best decision as it requires a ranged touch attack and allows a save... I can use it to get rid of Force effects, though, at least...
« Last Edit: June 12, 2014, 08:35:28 AM by phaedrusxy »
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Offline skydragonknight

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Re: Best psionic "save or die" powers
« Reply #3 on: June 12, 2014, 09:31:57 AM »
Although third party (Dreamscarred Press) and somewhat impractical because of the XP cost, this is by far my favorite 'death' effect for any system:
http://dsp-d20-srd.wikidot.com/dimensional-oubliette
Hmm.

Offline phaedrusxy

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Re: Best psionic "save or die" powers
« Reply #4 on: June 12, 2014, 09:46:56 AM »
Although third party (Dreamscarred Press) and somewhat impractical because of the XP cost, this is by far my favorite 'death' effect for any system:
http://dsp-d20-srd.wikidot.com/dimensional-oubliette
Yeah, that's truly awesome... but a little difficult to access (9th level, Nomad-only... :P ). It is cool enough that I'll keep it in the back of my mind in case I ever play in a game where it might actually be usable, though. :D
I don't pee messages into the snow often , but when I do , it's in Cyrillic with Fake Viagra.  Stay frosty my friends.

Offline Emanresu

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Re: Best psionic "save or die" powers
« Reply #5 on: June 12, 2014, 12:34:18 PM »
to respond to a save or die...along these lines I think the coolest is Death Urge. It is mind affecting/compulsion. Is it outright death, not always, BUT for a power attacking meat head with a two handed wep + considering it also does damage as a crit (eg no crit immunities) auto crit....yah it pretty much is death. The coolest part and perhaps evil n twisted is the victim here does all the work for you.

At 11th level you can have victim do 2 full attack rds of damage to himself and at 15th level its 3 rds and at 19th its 4 rds

Also given situations, if your victim is by a cliff.......aaaaaahhhhhhhh splat!

Offline Nunkuruji

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Re: Best psionic "save or die" powers
« Reply #6 on: June 12, 2014, 12:46:31 PM »
fwiw, spamming Dominate is pretty good. Yeah, immunities, but you can usually end up with enough fodder to deal with the immunes for you.

pita management for an actual table game.

Kalashtar power sharing Psiologist for dat augment.

Offline awaken_D_M_golem

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Re: Best psionic "save or die" powers
« Reply #7 on: June 12, 2014, 05:49:58 PM »
Crawling Tattoo ... of Reflex Save powers, is turned into a Touch Attack, so that's near auto-effect. Then dumpster dive.

Energy Stun 2 ... gets a maybe
Ego Whip 2 ... vs Charisma casters is synergistic

Death Urge 3 ... depends on the monster
Personality Parasite 4 ... isn't nearly as effective as Death Urge (tangentially I'm so well acquainted with this one)

Wall of Ectoplasm 4 ... almost homegame on how to deal with getting to the exact right spot, but it's No Save + No SR, just dispel

Catapsi 5 + Magic Mantle ... can effectively lop the top spells off a monster

Ectoplasmic Cocoon 3 ... flyers fall (!) , helpless condition is a decent set-up for XYZ

Truevenom/weapon pw 4 ... 1 shot, run away, wait, just like a 4e Mummy

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Erudite Discipline + Chameleon Crafting feat Dr#349
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Offline phaedrusxy

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Re: Best psionic "save or die" powers
« Reply #8 on: June 12, 2014, 07:00:51 PM »
Yeah, I like Ectoplasmic Cocoon. It could be pretty nasty if they don't have a way to get out.

I'd love to carry around an Enveloping Pit full of acid/water/jello to throw them in after I cocoon them, too.  Go go drowning rules! :P

I wound up talking to the DM and changing back to Crystallize, instead of keeping Disintegrate. Game had barely started, anyway. Crystallize is much more interesting, at least.
I don't pee messages into the snow often , but when I do , it's in Cyrillic with Fake Viagra.  Stay frosty my friends.

Offline awaken_D_M_golem

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Re: Best psionic "save or die" powers
« Reply #9 on: June 13, 2014, 03:39:23 PM »
Except for when it works like Adam Warlock's Cocoon ability(-ish) or The Fly.
Those can scare even a medium sized Hive.


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Offline Emanresu

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Re: Best psionic "save or die" powers
« Reply #10 on: June 14, 2014, 01:04:10 PM »
we had a grappling machine as a pc, he had all the grapple feat chain, earths embrace etc I think he was even a class called a reaping wrestler??? he had a ring of water breathing, the sorcerer had dig spell "like" item that created an equivalent 10' by 10' by 10' cube shaped hole but also had it full of water...basically it created a pond. The items magic wasnt intended for murder but thats exactly what we did with it.

Grappler grabs Sorcerer centers pond on him...dead victim within 3 rds I think everytime. Spell casters could not get a spell off!