Another blatant Pratchett ripoff [3.5 Feat]

[Fortuna]

Opening Your Eyes Again
Prerequisites: Wisdom 15+, Concentration 10 ranks, Listen 10 ranks, Spot 10 ranks
Benefits: By making a Concentration check against DC 35 as a swift action, you may open your eyes again. While in this state, you are aware of every tiny little detail around you, and gain a bonus to all skill checks equal to your Concentration modifier. However, you must make a Will save with a DC of your highest new skill modifier for each round that you are in this state to avoid being struck by Insanity as the spell. Exiting this state requires another swift action to make a Concentration check which must equal or exceed the check that you made to open your eyes again.

So, thoughts? It's just a random idea, but I thought it might be interesting.

[Jane_Smith]

Almost seems like an epic feat. Now, I know of people who can really pump out some huge skill bonuses, but DC 35 concentration? Even at level 10 (13 ranks), with 14 constitution (+2), skill focus (+3), and, say, some circlet that gives a +4ish bonus to concentration checks (+4 - not hard to custom make at 10th level or purchase) thats a +22 bonus overall, you would need to roll a 13-20 to succeed (35% success chance), and not many people take skill focus (concentration) nor would spend a great deal of money on a custom made item to get a +1-6ish bonus, so your actually looking at an average of about a +15 bonus by level 10, and then its a 5% success chance - a perfect 20 roll to proc the feat.

Then you toss the insanity bit in their without a set duration? Just "your struck with insanity as the spell"? So, its permanent? Is it a extraordinary, supernatural, or a spell-like effect? Can it be dispelled or does it require a break curse or miracle/etc? You should also mention if the effect of the feat is indead extraordinary or supernatural in means, as even supernatural effects can be negated with an effect such as a antimagic field, which would make this feat slightly less broken. The only thing i can think of you meant about the insanity bit and required a concentration check to break the effect is that the insanity lasts for 1 round each time you fail the will save, and you have to make the concentration checks in your moments of clarity to try to snap out of this 'omnipotent' like state - but considering the will saves... it will be nearly impossible to break out of the insanity effect once you start the feat (see below;).

But, ya, at epic levels even, this feat is to overpowering and makes itself impossible to use. Your basically saying you need a good +20-25 bonus to concentration check to even have this feat proc -half- the time, and your skill bonuses would gain a +20-25 bonus... so your highest skills would be in the 50 range... meaning it would be impossible, completely, to get a will save higher then your concentration bonus x2 unless you got a natural 20 or something. Youd always be subject to insanity the next round you use the feat, no matter how many magic items, feats, or multiclassing you do to buff your will save THAT high - and even if you did, would it be worth it just for massive skill bonuses? Skills aint everything.

My opinion? Make it a supernatural effect, and make it give a +1 insight bonus to all d20 rolls as a swift action that lasts 1 round, that requires a concentration check to activate - DC 10. However, each round thereafter, you must make a new concentration check as a swift action against the same DC +1 to keep the effect maintained. Allow it to be ended as a free action. I would then give it a daily limit - possibly based on your wisdom bonus, as that seems to be the ability score you wished to key with your feat - or maybe just 3/day. Much, much more balanced this way for a single feat. just my opinion.

[Human Paragon 3]

This feat seems unusable without cheese.

How about you make it so you may opt to automatically pass any perception check, but each time you make a perception check without rolling you have to make a will save or be confused for d4 rounds?

[DracoDei]

I agree it needs some major adjustment, but maybe not as severe as Jane Smith was suggesting. If the doubling causes the problem for the DC, then don't double the skill-check modifier for the purposes of the Will save... maybe add 10 instead? Other such more limited changes may be possible.

Note that outside of battle, such as when you are about to try to UMD an artifact that is opposed to your alignment or something, a %35 percent chance to activate it each round just means that you have to spend 3 rounds (on average) "warming up" before doing your big thing.

Also, consider the prospect of Diamond Mind focused martial adepts using this.

[Mulletmanalive]

Also, consider the prospect of Diamond Mind focused martial adepts using this.

I'm sure they already have: then used this on their Concentration skill and used it to remove some poor person's heart.

I'd be tempted by using a slightly lower DC, using the Concentration skill bonus as the save DC and then adding the Concentration ranks onto the skills.

Slightly less powerful but it avoids certain oddities that can arrise with the previous version.

Also, Insanity doesn't strike me as the sort of thing that hyperperception would cause, at least not as per the spell. Confusion doesn't strike me as the sort of thing that happens when you're too perceptive.

How about being Cowered and unable to cope until you can successfully shed the ability using your base Concentration bonus [a free action because you can't take others]?

Also, which book is this from and who is it aping? I might be able to comment better with that in hand.

[Fortuna]

The Wee Free Men was the original source, influenced by the sequel. The ability was from Wee Free Men, but the hiver's description of its existence gave me the insanity.

And as to hyperperception not driving you insane: think, if you will, of the Total Perspective Vortex for a moment. The principle applies equally on the microscopic scale rather than the cosmological scale. After extensive dscussion with a friend, we concluded that the worst possible torture that an intelligent being could be subjected to would likely involve hooking them up to a supercomputer to permit them to totally comprehend information which filtered in at a rate determined by a doomsday function, from levels both above and below the being's normal perception range (that is, the Total Perspective Vortex plus this). Then again, confusion may not be the right thing to use, so how about Indefinite (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/campaigns/sanity.htm#indefiniteInsanity) Agoraphobia (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/campaigns/sanity.htm#phobiaorMania), with the save DC doubled?

After looking at the mechanics again, I agree that they need serious work. The Insanity I suggested a change for above. The DC to open your eyes again is trickier, but perhaps 30 to make it just barely accesible when you get this feat? The bonus to skills could be replaced with ranks in Concentration (thanks mulletman), and the save DC to avoid insanity... Habeo id! Is initially zero, and increases by your Concentration ranks every round, or every time that you use a skill. As soon as you go insane you immediately close your eyes again, too.

What do you think of those changes?

[DracoDei]

Still would need an explicitly stated duration, but other than that, I have no idea.

[Fortuna]

Stated duration for what?

[DracoDei]

The Insanity.

[Fortuna]

1d6 months.