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View Full Version : Illithid-like Character help (3.5)



Darkaurora00
2010-01-10, 11:08 PM
I am curious as to if there is a way to make a character that is as mind flayerish as possible while still being a competent player that is not underpowered in any ways.

I looked at the mind flayer monster class and found it useless, as with most of them, and none of the monsters from lords of madness seem to be capable for a pc.

Any ideas?

Fawsto
2010-01-10, 11:21 PM
You could always try to homebrew something up, but there is not I can think off that even resembles a mind flayer without being one.

Sorry if this is not of much help, but I hate to see threads goind unanswered.

Best of luck,

JeminiZero
2010-01-10, 11:22 PM
Mindflayer like in what sense?

Reliant on psionic powers? Just use a straight psion.

Has tentacles on face and the ability to eat brains? Look up the Illithid Heritage line of feats.

Capable of enslaving masses? Be a wizard. Take 1 splash in the Mindbender PrC. Or else use Thrallherd to get an army of weak mooks.

Dexam
2010-01-10, 11:25 PM
In addition to the Illithid Heritage feats, there is also the Half-Illithid template (MM2, if I remember correctly).

Darkaurora00
2010-01-10, 11:27 PM
I really haven't been able to understand psionics so I think thats out >.<

Where are those heritage feats? they might be interesting ^^

What I was thinking of is, if I can't find an alternative, Is going Illithid monster class/Cleric//Illithid/Soul Eater

Keld Denar
2010-01-10, 11:32 PM
A decent character would be a Monk2/PsyWar18, nabbing Illithid Heritage and Illithid Grapple x4 with all your bonus PsyWar feats. Flurry with your unarmed strikes, then make 4 natural secondary attacks with your tenticles.

Other than that, you could take Aberrent Blood, Inhuman Reach, and Deepspawn from Lords of Madness. Then just RP that the tenticles from it come out of your face, instead of your abdomen like the book says. Probably mechanically stronger than taking Illithid Grapple 4 times (feats are precious!), but whatever.

What don't you understand from Psionics? If you've ever played just about any computer RPG, you understand psionics. You have a pool of "magic points". You spend them to cast spells (use powers). If you don't have any points left, you can't use any more powers. Some powers have built in power increases that make them do other cool stuff, but cost more points. YOU CAN NEVER SPEND MORE POWER POINTS ON A SINGLE POWER THAN YOU HAVE MANIFESTOR LEVELS.

Congratulations. You now understand psionics.

Optimystik
2010-01-10, 11:33 PM
Lords of Madness suggests that you can use sorcerer casting in place of psionics for any creature with innately psionic abilities (like Illithids and Elder Brains) in case you don't want psionics in your campaign.

Darkaurora00
2010-01-10, 11:36 PM
hmmm....I see ^^ how would that work with the monster class? the half-illithid template?

Zincorium
2010-01-11, 12:07 AM
hmmm....I see ^^ how would that work with the monster class? the half-illithid template?

Those don't factor in psionics. Half illithid is supposed to be used only for hon-human creatures, but for a PC, it's strictly better than mind flayer due to the lower LA and lack of RHD, even though you lose some ability score mods and plane shift.

Thurbane
2010-01-11, 12:53 AM
Human Beguiler/Minbender with the Illithid Bloodline feat (DMC), aberration bloodline feats in LoM, and Illithid grafts...

Kallisti
2010-01-11, 01:52 AM
Or you could, y'know, play an illithid with the psionic illithid variant. They're not underpowered.

Or if that doesn't work for whatever reason, there's a spell in Spell Compendium that gives you illithid tentacles. I think it's called Flaying Tentacles, but don't hold me to that, since I'm not sure. That plus Starspawn=illithid with wings. Of course, illithid with wings=Cthulhu, so YMMV.

taltamir
2010-01-11, 02:01 AM
remember that an illithid happens when a special worm is placed in a human, the worm borrows into their brain, eats it, grows into it and networks with the nervous system, and sprouts tentacles...

if a worm is put in a non human it usually dies, but rarely it becomes a half-illithid instead.

you can ask your DM for a refluff... or even a recrunch if you come up with a reasonable custom race/class thing.

AirGuitarGod32
2010-01-11, 07:17 AM
Or you could, y'know, play an illithid with the psionic illithid variant. They're not underpowered.

Or if that doesn't work for whatever reason, there's a spell in Spell Compendium that gives you illithid tentacles. I think it's called Flaying Tentacles, but don't hold me to that, since I'm not sure. That plus Starspawn=illithid with wings. Of course, illithid with wings=Cthulhu, so YMMV.

Thats what we need...A million Cthulhus running around....

Jeeze. Thanks for giving away my One and Only Secret....

hamishspence
2010-01-11, 07:20 AM
Half-Illithid is in two sources- Fiend Folio and Underdark.

While a Faerun source, much of Underdark content can work well in any setting.

The Underdark half-illithid template is much less restrictive than the Fiend Folio one- can be applied to a much wider range of creatures.

Runestar
2010-01-11, 07:38 AM
The mind flayer PC does seem exorbitantly priced. I suppose planeshift and charm monster at-will could be abused given enough time, but that still does not appear to justify its ECL of 15. :smallconfused:

Anyone ever tried playing one before? Seems like a prototype warlock, guess that is why they thought the warlock balanced initially.

hamishspence
2010-01-11, 07:42 AM
I think its that LA boosters stack- several traits (unbalanced ability scores, spell-like abilities, etc) all applied one after the other- when the "real in-game power" is much less.

Darrin
2010-01-11, 08:37 AM
Has tentacles on face and the ability to eat brains? Look up the Illithid Heritage line of feats.


Flayerspawn Psychic is in the same book (Complete Psionic). 6/10 manifesting, which stinks a bit, but gains three illithid heritage bonus feats at 2nd, 4th, and 8th. If you want something that can suck brains out like a mindflayer without LA, monster levels, or templates, then that'd be the way to go.

Anonymouswizard
2010-01-11, 12:02 PM
Half-illithid's psionic abilities are not at will, they are /day (from the FF).

Thurbane
2010-01-11, 03:41 PM
Do what FR does - create a new race, call is Lesser Illithid, leave it with 90% of it's benefit, and remove all the LA. Works for Aasimar and Tieflings. :smallyuk:

arguskos
2010-01-11, 03:45 PM
Do what FR does - create a new race, call is Lesser Illithid, leave it with 90% of it's benefit, and remove all the LA. Works for Aasimar and Tieflings. :smallyuk:
Eh, Aasimar/Tieflings/Genasi didn't really deserve their +1 LA. Alternatively, buff the crappy PHB races, such as Half-Orcs and Half-Elves to not be terribad.

As for playing an Illithid, uh, here's an idea: ask your DM if you can just play one sans part of the LA. Perhaps using the formula "ECL=HD or LA (whichever is higher)+1" would work. That'd give you an ECL 9 Illithid (IIRC), which would be pretty reasonable.

Anonymouswizard
2010-01-11, 05:42 PM
Call me strange, but for a long time I thought that HD were factored into LA, so that a Illithid fighter1 was the equivilent of a 8th level character.

Not sure why.

Skaven
2010-01-11, 06:06 PM
I played an Illithid once.

My DM just completely threw the LA out of the water, he said '8 monster hit dice are already a huge disadvantage.'

And he was right. I got some small bonus to my psion powers, but he didn't give me more than base bonus for my first level, the price of no LA, the rest were essentially dead levels. We went to epic levels. My character was constantly behind the rest of the party, I could contribute (took a combination of psion and houseruled monk levels) but I could never hold a candle to the guy playing an elf wizard (Diviner).

Long story short: monster HD are a price enough to pay, especially such a large number. Just roll up an illithid with no LA and full HD if you can. If not, use savage species progression for those monster HD levels.

Kobold-Bard
2010-01-11, 06:41 PM
Call me strange, but for a long time I thought that HD were factored into LA, so that a Illithid fighter1 was the equivilent of a 8th level character.

Not sure why.

First time I tried to play a powerful race (Yuan-ti) I thought the RHD where like a bonus class feature. I was embarrassed.

Samb
2010-01-11, 07:57 PM
Flayerspawn psychic with ardent entry is pretty decent if you pick up practised manifester.

Or you could just go psywar or psion and take the illithid heritage feats. In fact the feats do give you extra powers and increase the DC of telepathy powers.

Honestly, an illithid NOT psionic is not an illithid. Better look at psionic rules in SRD and get used to it because psionics are taking over the world.

Darkaurora00
2010-01-11, 10:22 PM
What would be peoples advice for a psy warrior/Flayspawn psychic that focuses on its psy blasts and damage output?