Iron Chef Optimisation Challenge II

[Heliomance]

Basically, a challenge to create an optimised, flavourful character, using a "secret ingredient" of a particular PrC, revealed only once the competition has started. You will need to present your build at at least one of the following points: 5th level, 10th level, 15th, 20th, and a "sweet spot" that you feel is the high point of the build. Feel free to present as many of these as you like, and please give a rundown of the build's abilities and playability at all of the levels you didn't show. The rules are as follows:

1. Menu: For most challenges, the "secret ingredient" will be drawn from Core plus Completes. There will, from time to time, be special challenges that showcase secret ingredients from other books--for example, the XPH.

2. Kitchen: Competitors will be free to use any official 3.5 rulebook in constructing their builds. Dragon magazine is disallowed, and Unearthed Arcana is allowed; but see Elegance below.

3. Cooking Time: Contests will be announced a week in advance, to give people time to sign up. Following a week of sign-ups, the "secret ingredient" will be announced. Contestants will have one week to create their builds and PM them to the Chairman (most likely me, at least for the first few.) Builds will then be posted simultaneously, to avoid copying.

4. Judging will be based on the following criteria, with each build rated from 1 (very poor) to 5 (exemplary) in each area: Originality, Power, Elegance, Use of Secret Ingredient.

Power level is up to you. Cheese is acceptable, but should be kept to a sane level unless you're showcasing a new TO build you've discovered. In the words of one of my predecessors, a little cheddar can be nice, but avoid the mature Gruyere unless you're making a cheese fondue.

Elegance could bear a little elaboration. It basically measures how skillfully you put your build together, and whether you sacrificed flavour for power. We're cooking here - if your dish doesn't taste good, it doesn't matter how well-presented it is. Use of flaws is an automatic point lost in this category. Other things that will cause lost points here are excessive multiclassing, and classes that don't fit the concept - using Cloistered Cleric in a front-line melee fighter, for example, will lose you points.

5. Builds will be posted anonymously, in order to avoid the potential of bias towards a particular competitor.

6. Please don't post or speculate on possible builds until the "reveal," in order to avoid spoiling the surprise if a particular competitor is producing a build along those lines.

7. Leadership is banned; we're producing a meal, not a seven-course banquet for a hundred diners.


So! Who wants to sign up as a contestant, and who wants to sign up as a judge? Looking for 3-4 judges and as many contestants as feel like playing!

Judges:
Grynning
Vulaas
ShneekeyTheLost
arguskos
Brendan

Contestants:
TheMadLinguist
raitalin
Mushroom Ninja
Godskook
the_archduke
Soonerdj
gallagher
Private-Prinny
FishAreWet
playswithfire
Gametime
Wings of Peace
Akal Saris
BenTheJester
AbyssKnight
the humanity
magic9mushroom
Dusk Eclipse
Evil the Cat
The Rabbler
rogueboy
BooNL
Tehnar
Malificus
KitTheOdd
RagnaroksChosen
Togo
Escheton
Hand_of_Vecna
9mm
kenjigoku
Danin
dspeyer

Secret Ingredient:
Complete Scoundrel's Psibond Agent

[TheMadLinguist]

I'm plausibly in.

[raitalin]

Me and my obligitory 10 characters are in.

[Mushroom Ninja]

I'm in! :smallsmile:

[Godskook]

I'm in. I just hope its something a tad more open ended than the entropymancer from the first one.

[the_archduke]

I'd like to try and cook up a dish

[Dusk Eclipse]

I swear THIS time I'll have a build.

[Grynning]

I would like to judge; I love writing constructive criticisms. I'm a little rusty on 3.5 but I can be like the ditsy celebrity judge they always get on Iron Chef :smalltongue:

[Vulaas]

With my second-to-last place in the last one, I think this time I'll just judge it (seeing as we had 2 judges represent out of 4 last time)

[Soonerdj]

Totally in, I've been practicing over the past few weeks and I'm ready to rock.

[gallagher]

count me in

[Private-Prinny]

I'll give it a shot.

[FishAreWet]

I'm in again. And this time I'll try harder to remember. :smallcool:

[playswithfire]

I like theme builds. Count me in as a competitor.

[Gametime]

I'd like to try my hand at this. Count me in.

[Wings of Peace]

Just try to stop me from competing :smallsmile:

[Akal Saris]

Well, if Wings is in, then I guess I'm in again as well :)

[Wings of Peace]

Well, if Wings is in, then I guess I'm in again as well :)

This time I'll get you Akal!

[BenTheJester]

In again!
(rabblerabble)

[AbyssKnight]

I am participating.

[the humanity]

I'll try my hand.

[magic9mushroom]

I'm probably in. Just as long as it's not as useless as Entropomancer.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

I would be available as a judge, since you seem to have a surplus of entrants and a dearth of judges

[arguskos]

I'd be happy to judge, actually. I'd appreciate a PM involving judging details and deadlines, of course. :smallwink:

[Wings of Peace]

I'm probably in. Just as long as it's not as useless as Entropomancer.

Pshaw. Where's the fun in something easy to work with?

[ShneekeyTheLost]

I'm probably in. Just as long as it's not as useless as Entropomancer.

Even supposedly 'useless' classes can usually be tweaked around to something useful. Hell, I did it with CW Samurai, you can do it with what is at least a caster...

[Evil the Cat]

This sounds fun, I'd like to give it a shot.

[The Rabbler]

this looks like a lot of fun, count me in.

[Grynning]

Sweet, we have 4 judges (and I think it's a great panel, if I do say so myself). But there's a ton of potential competitors...maybe they should divide up into flights or something? I guess we'll see how many folks actually submit builds to Heliomance.

[rogueboy]

Put me down as a contestant! I should actually have enough time to be able to put something together for this next quarter, and I definitely need to get back into looking at this kind of thing.

[BooNL]

Entering as a participant. Let's see what we have this time!

[Tehnar]

I think I am in as well.

[Malificus]

I'm not sure how well I'll do, but I'd like to give this a try.

[KitTheOdd]

Count me in.

[Brendan]

I enjoy judging. Unless it would be a problem, I'd love to do it again.

[RagnaroksChosen]

sorry about no build last time RL stuff came up.

I'm in though.

[Heliomance]

Okay 5 judges is plenty, assuming you all submit a judgement :P

The interest in this one is slightly amazing - if people don't mind, I may drop the week's signup time as we have so many people interested already.

I doubt that too many contestants will be a problem, though - experience has shown that only a fraction of the people that sign up actually submit a build.

Incidentally, the judging criteria are slightly different from last time - if you haven't already, I suggest reading the OP.

[Wings of Peace]

Okay 5 judges is plenty, assuming you all submit a judgement :P

The interest in this one is slightly amazing - if people don't mind, I may drop the week's signup time as we have so many people interested already.

I doubt that too many contestants will be a problem, though - experience has shown that only a fraction of the people that sign up actually submit a build.

Incidentally, the judging criteria are slightly different from last time - if you haven't already, I suggest reading the OP.

The elegance category as it is currently written seems like it will encourage uniformity more than creativity. This is just my opinion however, others may disagree.

[RagnaroksChosen]

The elegance category as it is currently written seems like it will encourage uniformity more than creativity. This is just my opinion however, others may disagree.

I think its to decrease just pure power. and to make characters that make more sense. Ala the example he gave with cloistered cleric.

[Wings of Peace]

I think its to decrease just pure power. and to make characters that make more sense. Ala the example he gave with cloistered cleric.

But power is a category. :smallconfused:

[Togo]

I'd like to be a participant, if I may?

[RagnaroksChosen]

But power is a category. :smallconfused:

agreed. But power within the confines of elegance I think its to prevent uber cheese? though im sure helo can speak more on it.

[Escheton]

wings, you get the idea, you are just being stubborn and cheesy, knock it off.
also: im in

[Mushroom Ninja]

wings, you get the idea, you are just being stubborn and cheesy, knock it off.


Actually, it isn't quite as clear as you suggest. I'm a little confused about the elegance criterion myself. As it is currently worded, it seems to be slightly at odds with the power category. Personally, the way I would define an elegance category is: "The efficiency with which the components of the build achieve the build's goal."

[Heliomance]

That's quite close to what I had in mind, Mushroom. My thoughts run thusly:

Flaws are an optimiser's crutch. While I often use them myself, they are a very cheap way to get bonus feats, and feel to me like a cop-out. Thus, wile they are not banned, they will automatically lose a point in the elegance category.

There is a fairly wide gulf between TO and PO. It is the gulf of characters that aren't powerful enough to be a decent TO exercise, but are so cheesy that most DMs wouldn't allow it in any game. Falling into that gulf is likely to result in a low elegance score. Ideally, what you're aiming for is either a brand new TO build showcasing a nice trick you spotted (I'm not expecting to see many of these, simply because by this point, most of the rules abuses in 3.5 have been found and exploited already), or an actual playable character. Taking two levels in each of ten different classes while drawing spells and feats from a further 15 sourcebooks is inelegant. I have nothing against multiclassing, but it is possible to take it too far. That's why I suggested dropping points for excessive multiclassing. Of course, what exactly constitutes excessive is up to the individual judges, but I would suggest they take a fairly permissive view.

As regards the classes that don't make sense clause, I've always hated the fact that there is literally no mechanical reason to ever take normal cleric if cloistered cleric is available. Cloistered cleric represents someone who's spent their life in the cloisters studying - absolutely fine if you're building a wise old sage, but if you're building a character who goes out and spreads the word of his god by force, or who hunts down undead to cleanse their stain from the world, or what have you, then you really should be using the standard cleric. I'm pretty sure there are other examples where a class that makes sense fluffwise is weaker than one that is less explainable, cloistered cleric was just the one that sprang to mind. Elegance rewards you for going with the fluff choice even if it's slightly weaker.

Of course, if the fluff choice is significantly weaker, than you've got a tradeoff to make - do you go for the points in elegance, and risk losing points in power? Or do you make the more powerful character, and sacrifice the points for elegance?

Does that make it clearer?

[Hand_of_Vecna]

I'll participate again though I'd like to offer to pull my build from contention and be a substitute judge if necessary.

[FishAreWet]

So we should assume that no flavor is mutable? And why can't a warrior who spreads the word of god by force be a book worm?

[9mm]

Even supposedly 'useless' classes can usually be tweaked around to something useful. Hell, I did it with CW Samurai, you can do it with what is at least a caster...

meh... I'd rather have something intresting to work with, not something that basicly boiled down to "half casting, special spiritual weapon 2/day, and a ruin delvers fortune" at least samurai had something to work with.

but time permiting; I'll probably do a build.



So we should assume that no flavor is mutable? And why can't a warrior who spreads the word of god by force be a book worm?
because Helio never heard of a Two-Fisted Padre?

[BenTheJester]

This isn't directed specifically at Clockworkmonk as he may have factored this in, however, his post did make me think about it. Judging secret ingredient purely by the amount of Entropomancer levels taken becomes imbalanced when used on both level 20 and non-level 20 builds as it gives a clear mathematical advantage to the level 20s who had those extra 5 levels to work with as opposed to the below level 20 builds who chose to leave the later levels open for the player to decide upon with their own discretion.


I agree, IMHO, that category should be rated on how much the secret ingredient's class features are incorporated in the build strategy/course of action

In example, most of the builds submitted seem to make use only of the level 5 aura and ignore the rest(yes I know, the rest isn't that great).
As a counter-example, the non-submitted build that suggested using Setting Sun maneuvers to throw people into your shard should get 4-5 points


This might be good to add/paraphrase on the "use of secret ingredient", I think it makes sense, and pretty much everyone agreed upon this.
(Though it is still up to you to do it or not, this is just a suggestion)

[BenTheJester]

Actually, it isn't quite as clear as you suggest. I'm a little confused about the elegance criterion myself. As it is currently worded, it seems to be slightly at odds with the power category.

That's the fun of the challenge; being able to gauge between power, originality and elegance

It's easy to make a super powerful build. It's hard to make an original and elegant, yet powerful build.


I really like the Elegance criteria.

[RagnaroksChosen]

I doubt that too many contestants will be a problem, though - experience has shown that only a fraction of the people that sign up actually submit a build.


Ya know i was thinking about this... why even have contestant sign ups why not post the secret ingrediant and then wait for submissions?

[Tehnar]

First let me say congratulations to Akal for his win.

The problem with the shard of entropy was, that it was really, really bad. Its damage is really poor, it takes a standard action to activate (and no way around that I could find, since its a supernatural ability), and it lasts really a short time.

My original idea (when building Lothar) was to bull rush things into the shard. However that really works out poorly for the bullrusher. The time to set up is long (standard to summon, move to place it (hope that spot is within 30 ft), then hope that the enemy stands still so you can bull rush it on the same round. It even gets worse if you want to bullrush them into walls or the like.

The thrower could pull it off better though, I was hoping to see that entry.

[arguskos]

Since I've not been part of one of these before, I'd like to ask a judging clarification. I assume Heliomance will be posting builds anonymously. If he posts them here, will we be judging them publicly?

[RagnaroksChosen]

Since I've not been part of one of these before, I'd like to ask a judging clarification. I assume Heliomance will be posting builds anonymously. If he posts them here, will we be judging them publicly?

well the last one they did.

[arguskos]

well the last one they did.
K. That's what I figured, but wasn't totally sure. Just wanted to check. :smallwink:

[Heliomance]

Builds get PMed to me, at the end of the contest I post them all anonymously and judging happens openly. Once judging is finished, I'll reveal who built what.

[AbyssKnight]

Well, we have plenty of judges and contestants, I say will start this thing. Lets kick this pig!*



*No pigs were harmed in the making of this post.

[LichPrinceAlim]

*sits in the crowd, munching on a bag of chocolate frogs*

Note: no frogs were harmed in the making of this post either

[ShneekeyTheLost]

For the Elegance criteria, you may wish to consider the following questions:

1) Would I, as a GM, permit this character to play in a game I run? If so, how happy about that would I be?

2) Would I, as a fellow gamer, be happy to see a guy sit down at our table with this character?

3) How little 'rules lawyering' is necessary to make this a legitimate build?

4) How easy would it be to explain this build to a person who is a newbie at D&D? Alternately: Could my 12 year old kid brother play this character effectively?

5) Is this based on a CharOp build? This is supposed to be your creativity. I don't want to see a dozen variants on the 'ubercharger' or Cindy or the Mailman. Besides, CharOp is the antithesis of this category anyways. Anything smacking of CharOp... probably won't do well in this category.

Elegance isn't just doing this, it's doing this and making it look effortless. Think of it as style points, if you will. Some kludgy build containing half a dozen classes, with 'early entry' or otherwise shady means of qualifying for them, isn't very stylish, no matter how powerful it may be.

[Grynning]

As a judge in this contest, my criteria for elegance will be similar Shneeky's above. I am looking for characters that would be fun to play and have a "wow" factor; something that sets them apart from typical builds and what your fellow contestants may be submitting. Doing unexpected things with a limited set of abilities is what optimization is all about, so surprise me.

Also, I am fine with variants from UA, but your build shouldn't hinge on what are essentially houserules, such as fractional BAB/Saves.

[Vulaas]

...

5) Is this based on a CharOp build? This is supposed to be your creativity. I don't want to see a dozen variants on the 'ubercharger' or Cindy or the Mailman. Besides, CharOp is the antithesis of this category anyways. Anything smacking of CharOp... probably won't do well in this category.

Elegance isn't just doing this, it's doing this and making it look effortless. Think of it as style points, if you will. Some kludgy build containing half a dozen classes, with 'early entry' or otherwise shady means of qualifying for them, isn't very stylish, no matter how powerful it may be.

I would like to disagree with you on this. While yes, it is inelegant to mirror a char-op build, making your own build to optimize an odd concept can still be powerful as well as elegent. Optimising isn't the antithesis of elegance, it is simply more difficult to manage both at once.

[Akal Saris]

I'd be surprised if we saw many builds that mirrored previous ones submitted - certainly with the Beastmaster challenge nobody submitted a Supermount! build, even though that's the only thing that the Beastmaster is really good at.

[arguskos]

Since I guess we're weighing in, I might as well too. Elegance to me is the "wow, that's clever" factor. I'm pretty familiar with trickery and theory op-style decisions, so those don't wow me anymore (magic9mushroom's builds are always the exception :smallwink:). However, getting the most out of a given feat/prestige class/base class without resorting to questionably intentioned tricks? That's rare, and that's what I'm looking to see.

EDIT: Concerning optimization, I'm not adverse to seeing it. Hell, if you're given something crappy like Justice of Weal and Woe and are asked to make it good, I'd EXPECT to see some optimization, but again, avoid the dirty tricks. It's more impressive to see you do something great without resorting to questionable tactics.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

I would like to disagree with you on this. While yes, it is inelegant to mirror a char-op build, making your own build to optimize an odd concept can still be powerful as well as elegent. Optimising isn't the antithesis of elegance, it is simply more difficult to manage both at once.

Optimization isn't the antithesis of elegance... CharOp board builds, however, generally are. There's a big difference.

[Mushroom Ninja]

Does that make it clearer?

Yup. Thanks. :smallsmile:

[magic9mushroom]

Just clarifying, is ripping off ourselves counted as unoriginal?

[kenjigoku]

I would like to play!

[ShneekeyTheLost]

Just clarifying, is ripping off ourselves counted as unoriginal?

The problem with copying yourself is that all entries are judged anonymously. How are we to know that you are copying yourself and not someone else copying one of your more infamous builds?

[Danin]

I haven' done a lot of optimization, but I enjoy making a truly elegant, playable build. I'll throw my hat into the ring so to speak.

[magic9mushroom]

The problem with copying yourself is that all entries are judged anonymously. How are we to know that you are copying yourself and not someone else copying one of your more infamous builds?

Hmm, good point. Not that I'd be using any of the really infamous stuff unless it synergised uncommonly well, anyway.

[Superglucose]

I'd like to judge if possible, but more importantly:

The other thread doesn't have what the secret ingredient is on the front page. It'd be nice to streamline the winners, etc. (say, a first-place, second place, third place description in the op, or at least links to descriptions in the op). I'm interested in who wins, not in trying to do the optimization.

[dspeyer]

I too am interested in competing (though a little confused what the point of announcing interest in advance is).

[Munchkin-Masher]

Hmm, good point. Not that I'd be using any of the really infamous stuff unless it synergised uncommonly well, anyway.

This Iron Chef Optimisation Challenge's secret ingredient is...

Beholder Mage.

[Wings of Peace]

As long as we're all giving our two cents I think if I were to define elegance as I interpret it in a character build it would be "how clock-like is the build?"

To me in an elegant build each feat and class is a cog/gear/what have you. The number of gears in the clock doesn't matter to me, what makes it elegant is when the build is able to use them in such a way that they are all moving simultaneously without any wasteful motions, each contributing to machine as a whole.

The power level of the machine itself is irrelevant to elegance in this way, all that matters is the efficiency of the machine and how creatively it accomplishes its task while still remaining efficient.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

As long as we're all giving our two cents I think if I were to define elegance as I interpret it in a character build it would be "how clock-like is the build?"

To me in an elegant build each feat and class is a cog/gear/what have you. The number of gears in the clock doesn't matter to me, what makes it elegant is when the build is able to use them in such a way that they are all moving simultaneously without any wasteful motions, each contributing to machine as a whole.

The power level of the machine itself is irrelevant to elegance in this way, all that matters is the efficiency of the machine and how creatively it accomplishes its task while still remaining efficient.

So basically, how much synergy all your feats/abilities/etc... have with each other.

[Wings of Peace]

So basically, how much synergy all your feats/abilities/etc... have with each other.

Stop cliff noting my monologue. And yes.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

Stop cliff noting my monologue. And yes.

Too many gears makes it inherently cludgy, though. While a Rube Goldburg machine is fun to watch, it is inherently, purposefully, inelegant. That's what a lot of the CharOp builds feel like to me. Way too many moving parts.

[Wings of Peace]

Too many gears makes it inherently cludgy, though. While a Rube Goldburg machine is fun to watch, it is inherently, purposefully, inelegant. That's what a lot of the CharOp builds feel like to me. Way too many moving parts.

I think... I need to ask for a different example or perhaps more elaboration. I think I see what you're saying but to me the Rube Goldburg machine example is still a poor synergy because it's wasteful with it's potential energy (even if purposely so. Am I following your logic or am I somewhat off track? I feel like I may be missing the point.

[magic9mushroom]

This Iron Chef Optimisation Challenge's secret ingredient is...

Beholder Mage.

Ha. No, I meant like something that would grant one of the myriad capabilities you have to track down in a TO build.

Like, for example, Otherworldly, which would immediately make me think "Fiend of Possession".

[TheMadLinguist]

Can I request that the secret ingredient be edited into the OP so you don't have to hunt for it when look at the thread later?

[Heliomance]

I too am interested in competing (though a little confused what the point of announcing interest in advance is).

Uh, tradition, mostly. I'm just following the format set down by those who came before. Hehe.

[Heliomance]

Okay, as interest has accrued so fast, I'm starting the contest now. The secret ingredient: a class that I've never seen used before. Ladies and gentlemen, Complete Scoundrel's Psibond Agent!

Allez optimiser!

[the humanity]

Okay, as interest has accrued so fast, I'm starting the contest now. The secret ingredient: a class that I've never seen used before. Ladies and gentlemen, Complete Scoundrel's Psibond Agent!

Allez optimiser!

damn.

I never use psionics, the dm doesn't like them.

oh well, gotta learn sometime!

[arguskos]

The Psibond Agent, hmm? Damn. That's an odd one. I'll be watching this with great interest. Let's see what ya'll can produce! :smallwink:

[ShneekeyTheLost]

Okay, as interest has accrued so fast, I'm starting the contest now. The secret ingredient: a class that I've never seen used before. Ladies and gentlemen, Complete Scoundrel's Psibond Agent!

Allez optimiser!

Oh my... this does seem.... interesting.

On first blush, it seems like the psionic version of the Dragon Disciple... a psionic class that does not promote Manifestation. But as you look deeper, I'm not sure it was intended to be a psionic class at all...

I can see several applications for this, both subtle and blunt.

Entry requirements are fairly simple, an INT of 16+ is enough to handle the most obnoxious one. It doesn't even necessarily take much in the way of multiclassing, although I can see how a multiclass can take advantage of it.

I look forward to reading the entries

[Akal Saris]

damn.

I never use psionics, the dm doesn't like them.

oh well, gotta learn sometime!

I learned psionics for an optimization challenge myself: it's a good motivator :)

Regarding the prestige class: very interesting choice. I've never seen it used either, but there's a few ways you could take this build. Hmm.

Edit: Oh, is online material allowed? From a strict reading of the rules it seems to be disallowed.

[FishAreWet]

Good god this is a horrible prestige class. I have no idea what to do with this.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

Good god this is a horrible prestige class. I have no idea what to do with this.

I would disagree that this is a horrible prestige class. Anything that you can do which doesn't allow a save is pretty nice...

[arguskos]

I would disagree that this is a horrible prestige class. Anything that you can do which doesn't allow a save is pretty nice...
Considering that psibond allows a save... yeah. I mean, Nudge doesn't specifically, but since establishing that link does give one, it makes it kinda a moot point. Further, using the psibond requires concentration (standard actions), making it a bit of a pain.

That said, I'm interested to see what people do with it. I've a few ideas on how to use it myself. It'll be interesting to see what folk figure out.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

Considering that psibond allows a save... yeah. I mean, Nudge doesn't specifically, but since establishing that link does give one, it makes it kinda a moot point. Further, using the psibond requires concentration (standard actions), making it a bit of a pain.

That said, I'm interested to see what people do with it. I've a few ideas on how to use it myself. It'll be interesting to see what folk figure out.

False Sensory Input is also not allowed a save, through the Psibond. And, once the psibond has been established, you can use multiple effects, all without saves.

The thing is, this should be seen as a challenge, not an impossibility. So, your challenge is to use this class effectively. If you don't want to? Just don't submit anything. Sit back and see what others come up with.

This is as much a spectator sport as anything else. Half the fun will be in seeing what kind of builds people come up with.

[Private-Prinny]

Psionics... This should be interesting. Looking at the class, I see a lot of uses for classes that don't even have manifestation. BTW, what are we using for stats? 32-Point Buy?
Entry requirements are fairly simple, an INT of 16+ is enough to handle the most obnoxious one. It doesn't even necessarily take much in the way of multiclassing, although I can see how a multiclass can take advantage of it.It doesn't even take that much. Common counts as a language, does it not? And don't forget about racial languages.:smallbiggrin:

[arguskos]

The thing is, this should be seen as a challenge, not an impossibility. So, your challenge is to use this class effectively. If you don't want to? Just don't submit anything. Sit back and see what others come up with.

This is as much a spectator sport as anything else. Half the fun will be in seeing what kind of builds people come up with.
Oh yes, I agree completely. However, there's a REASON no one uses Psibond Agent. :smallwink:

[FishAreWet]

Oh yes, I agree completely. However, there's a REASON no one uses Psibond Agent. :smallwink:

That's what I was saying too. :smallsmile:

[ShneekeyTheLost]

That's what I was saying too. :smallsmile:

I could see it being used to devastating effectiveness in a politicial maneuvering/whodunnit type game, rather than a more traditional hack n slash/dungeon run.

[the humanity]

That's what I was saying too. :smallsmile:

I find it far more interesting than most psionic classes. I just wish it was an arcane thing, I think it would have been a far more flavorful thing than mindbender tends to be.

[arguskos]

I find it far more interesting than most psionic classes. I just wish it was an arcane thing, I think it would have been a far more flavorful thing than mindbender tends to be.
Considering that all you need to have is 1 power point (play a Xeph or Dromite, or take Wild Talent) and know the Psionic Focus rules (totally easy to figure out), it's pretty easy to figure. As far as the psionic rules go, it's very very light.

[the humanity]

Considering that all you need to have is 1 power point (play a Xeph or Dromite, or take Wild Talent) and know the Psionic Focus rules (totally easy to figure out), it's pretty easy to figure. As far as the psionic rules go, it's very very light.

oh here I was planning on taking a level of Psion... thanks for your help! :smallbiggrin:

[Grynning]

We should probably keep judge and spectator discussion of the class to a minimum from here on out to prevent any (further) influence on potential competing builds.

[arguskos]

oh here I was planning on taking a level of Psion... thanks for your help! :smallbiggrin:
Well, that's good too, of course. :smallwink:

[the humanity]

Well, that's good too, of course. :smallwink:

now I'm starting to really get it...

this is rather odd.

[gallagher]

False Sensory Input is also not allowed a save, through the Psibond. And, once the psibond has been established, you can use multiple effects, all without saves.

The thing is, this should be seen as a challenge, not an impossibility. So, your challenge is to use this class effectively. If you don't want to? Just don't submit anything. Sit back and see what others come up with.

This is as much a spectator sport as anything else. Half the fun will be in seeing what kind of builds people come up with.
but sir shneekey, you seem to be lending the idea that judging is just as much fun as competing :smalltongue:

[FishAreWet]

Shneeky, check out the Adaptation section. They spell out an arcane adaptation. And basically nothing changes but 1pp to 1st level Arcane spells.

Assuming that's kosher for the challenge.

[Tehnar]

Shneeky, check out the Adaptation section. They spell out an arcane adaptation. And basically nothing changes but 1pp to 1st level Arcane spells.

Assuming that's kosher for the challenge.

It would be good to know how judges feel about that ahead of time.

[arguskos]

It would be good to know how judges feel about that ahead of time.
Personally? I'd prefer to avoid adaptations. There's a massive amount of ways to get power points, it's not really a limiting factor in my eyes. Course, Heliomance has the final say, being his competition and all.

[FishAreWet]

Personally? I'd prefer to avoid adaptations. There's a massive amount of ways to get power points, it's not really a limiting factor in my eyes. Course, Heliomance has the final say, being his competition and all.
I normally avoid them too with the exception of the times where they are explicit. Like Unarmed Swordsage is fine but Arcane Swordsage isn't.

[arguskos]

I normally avoid them too with the exception of the times where they are explicit. Like Unarmed Swordsage is fine but Arcane Swordsage isn't.
In a competition setting, I feel that using adaptations at all is kinda against the point. In an actual game, well, all bets are off. I permit enough stuff that I get mixed up on what is and isn't allowed! :smallbiggrin:

[FishAreWet]

Against the point? I feel that it changes very little in the scope of the competition. With a 10 level prestige class that doesn't advance spellcasting nor psionics, we probably won't see builds built around manifesting or spellcasting anyways. Therefore, how you qualify for it... doesn't matter to much.

We'll just have to wait and see what the big man says.

[arguskos]

Against the point? I feel that it changes very little in the scope of the competition. With a 10 level prestige class that doesn't advance spellcasting nor psionics, we probably won't see builds built around manifesting or spellcasting anyways. Therefore, how you qualify for it... doesn't matter to much.

We'll just have to wait and see what the big man says.
Eh, if given a PrC, I am not wont to shift the rules. That's just me though. Helio has the final say, and I'll happily judge anything presented to me assuming it's legally done. :smallwink:

[Akal Saris]

Allowing arcane spellcasting to qualify or not would make a difference to me since my entry is through an arcane class to begin with and I've had to look for power points as an additional challenge while building the character.

Personally, I'd prefer that adaptations be discouraged, especially since I like that the challenge is encouraging contestants to learn more about psionics, which I think is a good thing overall.

[magic9mushroom]

Rules queries:

Leadership is banned, what about Draconic Cohort and similar feats that grant a cohort without followers?

I'm also curious as to whether the adaptation is allowed, whether online WotC material is allowed, and to what pointbuy we have to work with (seconding earlier queries).

Also, since there's this whole thing about controlling others in the PrC, what NPCs are we allowed to assume exist?

Also, you said Unearthed Arcana material is allowed, but does that mean Gestalt's allowed? What about Item Familiars?

And just to clarify, you want full character sheets, am I right?

[Heliomance]

Official Wizards web material: yes, but provide a link.

Leadership includes all similar effects, including the Thrallherd class.

I think I'll say no to the adaptation - though even if I said yes I can't imagine many people would take it, as it's a lot easier to get 1pp than to get first level spells with a low investment.

32 point buy, as standard for CO work.

Item familiars are broken and disgusting and I hate them. No.

Gestalt is a different system and optimising for it is a slightly different skill. No.

Paragon classes and variant races are allowed, prestige and variant classes are also allowed but may, at the judges' discretion, be grounds for an elegance drop.

At least one full character sheet is required, preferably for the level 20 version, and a reasonably detailed rundown of the character's abilities is required for the other levels listed.

As for NPCs, write them into the fluff.

[magic9mushroom]

Official Wizards web material: yes, but provide a link.

Leadership includes all similar effects, including the Thrallherd class.

I think I'll say no to the adaptation - though even if I said yes I can't imagine many people would take it, as it's a lot easier to get 1pp than to get first level spells with a low investment.

32 point buy, as standard for CO work.

Item familiars are broken and disgusting and I hate them. No.

Gestalt is a different system and optimising for it is a slightly different skill. No.

Paragon classes and variant races are allowed, prestige and variant classes are also allowed but may, at the judges' discretion, be grounds for an elegance drop.

At least one full character sheet is required, preferably for the level 20 version, and a reasonably detailed rundown of the character's abilities is required for the other levels listed.

As for NPCs, write them into the fluff.

What about Reducing Level Adjustments? Allowed?

Also, if we're spending XP on crafting/spells/LA Buyoff/whatever else, how does that factor in?

[Grynning]

What about Reducing Level Adjustments? Allowed?

Also, if we're spending XP on crafting/spells/LA Buyoff/whatever else, how does that factor in?

Dunno how Heliomance feels, but "pre-spending" xp as part of a build (for LA buyoff or crafting) would lose some elegance points with me. Such mechanics are intended as part of organic character growth (i.e. occurring while the character is being played and earning xp) and, in my opinion, should not be assumed as part of a build. If you think such things would make your build better, you could mention it, but it should be functional without it.

[Private-Prinny]

How much, if any, fluff is necessary? Do I have to write a character bio? Finally, should I assume I have WBL to use for equipment?

[Akal Saris]

The way I see LA buyoff is like this: if it gets you 3 LA worth of templates and you still have 20 class levels shown in a build, do you really feel like your build should be competing with 20 level builds that don't have3 LA of templates?

How about doing a build without LA buyoff, and then at the end add a note that says "If you've got LA buyoff in your game, here's the templates you should add on"?

Last challenge I think BooNL used LA buyoff to get the Entropic template. But that seemed to be less an optimization thing and more of a flavor thing (entropic + entropomancer = entropy galore), so it worked out well for the build.

[magic9mushroom]

The way I see LA buyoff is like this: if it gets you 3 LA worth of templates and you still have 20 class levels shown in a build, do you really feel like your build should be competing with 20 level builds that don't have3 LA of templates?

How about doing a build without LA buyoff, and then at the end add a note that says "If you've got LA buyoff in your game, here's the templates you should add on"?

Last challenge I think BooNL used LA buyoff to get the Entropic template. But that seemed to be less an optimization thing and more of a flavor thing (entropic + entropomancer = entropy galore), so it worked out well for the build.

I was posing the question in regards to a race, not a template. I'd agree that White Dragonspawn or Half-Minotaur + LA Buyoff = :smallannoyed:, but this is an LAed race.

@Grynning: But we are kind-of assuming that you'd be playing this through. LA buyoff particularly is something that's kind-of meant to be automatically done precisely so that you get caught up by the river of XP.

[Grynning]

@Grynning: But we are kind-of assuming that you'd be playing this through. LA buyoff particularly is something that's kind-of meant to be automatically done precisely so that you get caught up by the river of XP.


In a game I was running, I would be a-ok with LA buyoff for +1/+2 LA races/templates in most cases. But the reason it would lose points is that bought-off LA is only fair in games where EVERY party member uses it or if the DM specifically adjudicates it. For the purposes of this tournament, allowing it bar-none means more uniformity in builds, because there's little reason NOT to do it for an ECL 20 build.

In short, I stand by my original statement - if you think you need to use it, go ahead, but be warned it may effect your score.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

In a game I was running, I would be a-ok with LA buyoff for +1/+2 LA races/templates in most cases. But the reason it would lose points is that bought-off LA is only fair in games where EVERY party member uses it or if the DM specifically adjudicates it. For the purposes of this tournament, allowing it bar-none means more uniformity in builds, because there's little reason NOT to do it for an ECL 20 build.

In short, I stand by my original statement - if you think you need to use it, go ahead, but be warned it may effect your score.

This also echos my viewpoint on the topic of LA buyoff, and would further like to point out that you'll never attain Level 20, even if you DO buy off your levels, because you expended XP to do so. So the most you would ever be would be Level 19. Which means it would be pointless for a +1 LA race to buyoff.

[Godskook]

This also echos my viewpoint on the topic of LA buyoff, and would further like to point out that you'll never attain Level 20, even if you DO buy off your levels, because you expended XP to do so. So the most you would ever be would be Level 19. Which means it would be pointless for a +1 LA race to buyoff.

Huh? You lost me somewhere in there.

[Private-Prinny]

Huh? You lost me somewhere in there.

I'm guessing that we're given the minimum amount of XP to get to level 20. If you spend some on a LA buyoff, you won't have enough left to level up.

[Grynning]

Huh? You lost me somewhere in there.

I think what Shneeky is trying to say is that in his eyes, "level 20" means "has earned enough xp to reach level 20 on the experience table." If you're saying your character has spent xp on other things, they are not going to be level 20 in their final incarnation.

Edit: Ninja'd.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

I'm guessing that we're given the minimum amount of XP to get to level 20. If you spend some on a LA buyoff, you won't have enough left to level up.

Bingo! Give the man a cigar!

[magic9mushroom]

Having read the description of Psibond Agent several times now, looking for something I missed, I must concur with Arguskos:


Oh yes, I agree completely. However, there's a REASON no one uses Psibond Agent. :smallwink:

Nevertheless, I'm nothing if not stubborn.

[Zovc]

Boy am I glad I didn't get in this contest, I just read Psibound Agent and was like, "that's it?"

[ShneekeyTheLost]

Having read the description of Psibond Agent several times now, looking for something I missed, I must concur with Arguskos:



Nevertheless, I'm nothing if not stubborn.

I look forward to seeing your submission!

[magic9mushroom]

Oh, another UA query.

I'm assuming Test-Based Prereqs are REALLY bad juju, am I right?

[BooNL]

RE: UA. Remember this is mostly CO we're doing here, not TO. Ask yourself: would I allow tricks like this as a DM? In a sane game ofcourse.

UA is mostly variant rules which affect the game as a whole, such as Gestalt and Test based Prereqs. Stuff like that shouldn't be allowed. Things like alternate class features and new races can be integrated in the core game without problems. They are pretty much fine.

LA buy-off is another one of those shady things. I used it in the last Iron Chef to give my character the Entropic Template. At first I intented it to just be a bit of fluff, but the Negative Energy Aura from the template ended up being a pretty good synergy with Entropic Field.

Anyway, Psibond Agent. Seriously? Wow, this class um... Let's just say a psion can do anything this guy does with a single power.
In any case, I've got a pretty cool idea spinning in my mind, just have to fit the last pieces together. I might even be done before the end of the weekend.

Edit: hit submit too soon...

[Heliomance]

Well, the original point of the ICOC was to showcase lesser-used PrCs. Don't expect any of the well-known classes to show up in these contests. For the most part, that means the powerful ones.

[magic9mushroom]

Well, the original point of the ICOC was to showcase lesser-used PrCs. Don't expect any of the well-known classes to show up in these contests. For the most part, that means the powerful ones.

Yeah, I get that, but did it have to be something which is 99% eclipsed by one spell? I can understand "lesser used", there are lots of little gems around. It gets a little annoying when it's "not used because it does nothing". Power will inevitably be despite it rather than because of it.

That said, I do have an idea to make use of it.

[Tehnar]

I think its a very cool class, and I thank you for bringing it to my attention. I see lots of possibilities for the class (most of which you can't do with a straight psion).

[gallagher]

trust me, my submission will be an odd character, to say the least.

i mean, when you go to a restaurant, you like ordering something a little more... exotic, right?

[magic9mushroom]

trust me, my submission will be an odd character, to say the least.

i mean, when you go to a restaurant, you like ordering something a little more... exotic, right?

So will mine, so you're in good company. :smalltongue:

[BooNL]

Trust me, you've guys got nothing on me :smallwink:.

That said, according to Zeal's PrC list Psibond Agent is a Tier +1 class, really? I think my character will end up firmly in the land of Tier 4, which should be good enough.

[arguskos]

Hoo boy. If m9m says "oh, it'll be interesting" with a tongue smiley, I AM TERRIFIED TO MY VERY BONES. :smalleek: Imma shaking in my boots here.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

Really, I'm not expecting anything beyond the Tier 4/Tier 3 power range in any of these Iron Man Contests. The 'flavor' PrC's are going to be the less powerful ones, simply because it takes more to get them to 'play nice'. Sometimes, you need to think 'outside the box'. It is more challenging to do a decent build with something like Psibond Agent than it would for something like Incantatrix.

The winner here will be someone who can step up to the challenge, and make it look easy. Pull that off, and you deserve the title.

[FishAreWet]

I figured out how to make it awesome.

Yes I'm just bragging.

[Private-Prinny]

I haven't quite gotten "awesome" down yet, but I've given it an interesting flavor, to say the least. Having a few classes that work well together gets points for elegance, correct?

[arguskos]

I haven't quite gotten "awesome" down yet, but I've given it an interesting flavor, to say the least. Having a few classes that work well together gets points for elegance, correct?
Depends on the execution, but yes, it could count as such for me.

Fish: That sounds like a challenge. I am anticipatory.

[FishAreWet]

Nearly done. Very happy with my build. How do I send in it? Just PM Helio?

[AbyssKnight]

Yeah, PM Helio, then he will post them all anonymously for the judges. Then, he will anounce the winner.

[Private-Prinny]

How much fluff is necessary for a submission? What about gear?

That's about all I have left to finish.

[Hand_of_Vecna]

I think full equipment or at least highlights at level twenty is the minimum for equipment.

I think +1 tier is based on a rogue 5 entry and if so I agree PsiBond's abilities are well outside the scope of a mundane class and in the right game will be much more powerful than 5d6 sneak attack.

[dspeyer]

Quick rules question, hope this is the right place: does Assassin's Stance fulfill the sneak attack prerequisite (assuming you never switch out of it)?

[arguskos]

Quick rules question, hope this is the right place: does Assassin's Stance fulfill the sneak attack prerequisite (assuming you never switch out of it)?
I believe it would, yes. Not completely sure though.

[FishAreWet]

Quick rules question, hope this is the right place: does Assassin's Stance fulfill the sneak attack prerequisite (assuming you never switch out of it)?Yes. See Complete Warrior Page 16 for more.

And yes, eventually the class will meet it's own prerequisites, allowing you to switch stances again.

[BooNL]

How much fluff is necessary for a submission? What about gear?

That's about all I have left to finish.

I kind of skimped out on the fluff last time due to time constrains, I think that hurt my score a bit. So any fluff you can write is good!

For gear, just highlight the basics and any necessary equipment. I think spending entire WBL is pretty silly as the characters are just designed for showcase. And not all DMs use full WBL, so it's best to just show the class using nothing but the bare necessities.



Edit: You know what'd be cool? If we could get some of those Iron Avarists-like trophies for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners.
Not only a nice reward, but it would be a nice incentive for people to finish their characters as well.

The most awesome part would be if the trophies were modelled after the character submissions :smallsmile:.

[Heliomance]

Fluff: As much or as little as you like. More fluff can hardly hurt. There's no dedicated flavour category this time, but judges have a lot of discretion in how they mark.

Gear: Anything important. You don't need to detail every last copper's worth of your WBL.

Trophies: Anyone willing to make some?

[Escheton]

right, I have a build, Im thinking at least 5 others have the same one, but I like it.
How much longer do I have to flesh him/her out?

[Heliomance]

A week from when the ingredient was announced. Several days yet, I think.

[the_archduke]

Quick question on legal sources:

Are D&D articles published on WOTC website available to use? They aren't published in any of the allowed books afaik, but they are commonly used and official since they are a WOTC product.

[FishAreWet]

Quick question on legal sources:

Are D&D articles published on WOTC website available to use? They aren't published in any of the allowed books afaik, but they are commonly used and official since they are a WOTC product.

Already answered. Yes. Link to them on the character sheet though.

[Escheton]

can you pm a excel char sheet?
or better said, what sort of format is standard in sending the char and its progression?

[FishAreWet]

can you pm a excel char sheet?
or better said, what sort of format is standard in sending the char and its progression?

www.myth-weavers.com

[ShneekeyTheLost]

I would also like to further point out that if you have some nifty combo of abilities, make sure to mention it on your sheet in the 'comments' section. Not all combos are immediately recognizable. In fact, some of the best ones are more subtle, requiring things to be pointed out.

Failing to do so could mean the Judges would not realize the true power of the build, and so score you low on the 'power' section, and perhaps even the 'efficiency' section if it just seems like a cludgy mass of things that don't work together.

For example, my build Takahashi, which was rather infamous in certain areas, had a very interesting combination of skills, feats, class abilities, and equipment which together was an exceedingly cheesy combo. Basically, he rapidly increased his Intimidate skill, took a feat from Drow of the Underdark to make you Cowering when he Intimidates, used a piece of equipment from the same source to make it a Move action to do so, then used the CW Samurai's Mass Staredown ability to do so to every opponent within 30'.

However, looking at the character sheet, you'd see he had optimized his Intimidate check, but may be unaware of how that synergizes with his armor enchantment and the feat... and since we all know how useless Intimidate normally is... score him as pathetically weak, since all he had were levels in CW Samurai.

[Heliomance]

Preferred submission format is typed out in a PM. Myth weavers is acceptable, as is google docs (!) and anything else that you want to link to Personally, though, I prefer not having to click to another site to view builds.

[Private-Prinny]

Character names... my old nemesis. The build is done, but I just need the final and most crucial piece of fluff. Can someone point me to an abusable random generator?

[arguskos]

Character names... my old nemesis. The build is done, but I just need the final and most crucial piece of fluff. Can someone point me to an abusable random generator?
Behind the Name (http://www.behindthename.com/random/). I use this for all my needs!

[Heliomance]

Contest closes on Friday!

[BooNL]

Nearly finished, just have to spend at list a bit of my character's WBL as well as write out the fluff (which is all in my head already).

Will probably submit today, or tomorrow if something comes up.

[Tehnar]

Can you give the hour when submissions stop being accepted? I only have time to do a writeup on Friday morning (though Central European time).

[Heliomance]

I'm at home for the holidays and my computer access is somewhat sporadic. It'll be whenever I get to the computer, most likely late evening/night BST.

[rogueboy]

www.myth-weavers.com

This may just be me, but I can't find a char sheet or anything to replace one on that link (I'll admit I didn't look particularly hard)... Is there any chance someone could point me a little more directly at where I should be looking?

I've got the basics figured out, and I'm hoping I'll have the time to crank out the rest of it tomorrow evening.

[arguskos]

This may just be me, but I can't find a char sheet or anything to replace one on that link (I'll admit I didn't look particularly hard)... Is there any chance someone could point me a little more directly at where I should be looking?

I've got the basics figured out, and I'm hoping I'll have the time to crank out the rest of it tomorrow evening.
Myth-Weavers has an entire section devoted to sheets. Just make a free account, click the Sheets link along the top, and go to town. It's pretty easy, and the sheets are pretty nice. :smallcool:

[rogueboy]

Myth-Weavers has an entire section devoted to sheets. Just make a free account, click the Sheets link along the top, and go to town. It's pretty easy, and the sheets are pretty nice. :smallcool:

I knew there was probably something simple I was missing... I had managed to not see the links at the top...:smallfrown: thanks!

[arguskos]

I knew there was probably something simple I was missing... I had managed to not see the links at the top...:smallfrown: thanks!
Hey, 'sallright. You found them, and that's what mattered. :smallamused:

[Heliomance]

Incidentally, we have trophies for first and second place, courtesy of Strategos!

[BooNL]

Cool!

Incidentally, build submitted.

[Akal Saris]

Oooh, trophies!

Also, build submitted. :smallbiggrin: Now, time to pack for NYC!

[arguskos]

Can't wait to start seeing some builds! :smallamused:

[Private-Prinny]

Woohoo! My submission is finally in!

[Heliomance]

Okay, submissions are now CLOSED! Sheets to follow!

[Heliomance]

First, a street rat made good. I give you...

Cy the Half-Elf Agent

Sources

PHB
DMG
XPH
Complete Arcane
Complete Mage
Miniatures Handbook
Tome of Magic
Complete Scoundrel
Races of Destiny
Magic Item Compendium


Cy is the illegitimate daughter of a powerful human gang leader. The gang leader got an elven whore pregnant, though he neither knew nor would care if he found out. When the whore gave birth, it was to a girl she named Cy.

Cy (she has no surname) was raised by her mother and would likely have followed her mother's trade but for a twist of fate. Her mother was a distant descendant of a power Fey, and that blood ran strong in Cy. Cy's stunning beauty would have been used up quickly in her mother's profession, and Cy wanted nothing to do with it. She saw how poorly treated her mother was, and she wanted better for herself. Her fey blood manifested itself in eldritch powers that she kept strictly to herself. These powers helped her to talk and lie her way out of dangerous situations. She carved out a comfortable life for herself as a street urchin until her entire world came crashing down.


Cy is a Warlock 1 with the hidden talent feat from the XPH. Her warlock invocation is beguiling influence and her hidden talent is the attraction power. Combined that gives +10 to bluff and diplomacy... at level 1


Cy's mother was killed by the pimp that owned her. She had gotten ill, and the illness had scarred her face and left her at death's door. Rather than keep another mouth to feed (and one that might never work again), the pimp killed Cy's mother. Cy was crushed. She swore that she would have her vengeance, not just on the pimp, but on the entire system that had driven her mother into prostitution.

She then used her powers of persuasion to ingratiate herself into the street gang that her father ran. She rapidly ascended the ranks of the gang until she became a trusted lieutenant to her father. Her first act in leadership of the gang was to trump up an excuse to have the pimp who had killed her mother killed himself.


Cy is a now a Warlock 4/Marshal 1. She has the minor aura: motivate charisma from the marshal level. It helps to augment her thug's intimidate skill as well as her own bluff, diplomacy, and use magic device skills. Warlock 4 also gives deceive item so she can take 10 with use magic device.


Her father came to rely on her due to a combination of her leadership skills and the subtle magical influence that she exerted on him. Cy wanted to learn as much from her father as she could before she killed him. Eventually, she learned how he had gained and maintained his power and influence on the streets. He practiced forbidden magics and bound the power of beings he called vestiges to grant him great power. Her father began to teach her these secrets, but he had only taught her one such vestige when he was killed by a mob whipped up by a local church who sought to destroy corrupt magic users.


Cy is a now a Warlock 4/Marshal 1/Binder 2. She only knows how to bind Naberius. He augments her already impressive diplomacy and bluff skills by allowing her to take 10 with those skills.


Seeing the fate of her father, (though pleased that he was dead) Cy decided she needed to lay low so as not to be swept up by the mob. Additionally, Cy's beauty was becoming a distraction. Everyone knew her as the beautiful daughter of a dead whore and the associate of a dead heretic. So she learned how to disguise herself as an elven man. Most humans thought male elves looked effeminate anyway, so it was a good disguise for her. On the streets, she became known as Ereven, and smooth talking elven man. She didn't seek any more knowledge of binding vestiges, but she kept what she already knew.

Cy (now posing as Ereven) quickly joined another gang and spent her time honing her talents, especially those of disguise. Eventually, she became so talented that she could switch between her Ereven disguise and her standard looks incredibly swiftly.


Cy is a now a Warlock 4/Marshal 1/Binder 2/Mountebank 3. Mountebank augments her bluff skill further with Tongue of th Devil and Alter Ego allows her to create the persona of Ereven. Binding Naberius also allows her to cast disguise self at will.


Cy eventually left the city of her birth, but not until after she saw to the deaths of all those she felt were responsible for her mother's death. She headed for the largest city in the kingdom, eager to make a life for herself with her skills. In the city (also the capital of the kingdom), Cy lived a double life. By day she was Cy the washerwoman, a peasant that no one thought twice about (other than to admire her charms). By night, she became Ereven, an up and coming star in the underworld.


Cy is a now a Warlock 4/Marshal 1/Binder 2/Mountebank 3/Psibond Agent 5. She uses the psibond to insinuate herself into the underworld and kill of those that remind her of her father. With Fey Legacy she gets Dimension Door 1/day as a SLA. If she is in over her head, she can dimension door away and then use Alter Ego or an augmented disguise check to lose her pursuers.


The authorities in the capital were much better than she was used to, and soon "Ereven" was captured by authorities. Knowing she faced a death sentence for practicing forbidden magic, Cy came totally clean to the authorities and offered to work for them in exchange for her life. A combination of her persuasive talents and a very pragmatic police captain led to Cy becoming an agent of the government to destroy very similar criminal enterprises to the ones that killed her mother.

So Cy is now a known agent of the government, but the criminal elements only know of Ereven the Fair as one of them.


Cy is a now a Warlock 4/Marshal 1/Binder 2/Mountebank 3/Psibond Agent 10. She works for the government as Cy and continues in the underworld as Ereven



Build Notes


Level by Level

(1)Warlock 1
Skills: Use Magic Device 4, Bluff 4, Disguise 4, Spellcraft 4
Feats: Hidden Talent: Attraction
Special Abilities: Least Invocation (Beguiling Influence), Eldritch Blast +1d6

(2)Warlock 2
Skills: Use Magic Device 1, Bluff 1, Disguise 1, Spellcraft 1
Feats:
Special Abilities: Least invocation (See the Unseen)

(3)Warlock 3
Skills: Knowledge (Arcana) 4
Feats: Deceitful
Special Abilities: Eldritch Blast +2d6

(4)Warlock 4
Skills: Use Magic Device 2, Bluff 2
Feats:
Special Abilities: Least Invocation (Hideous Blow), +1 cha

(5)Marshall 1
Skills: Sense Motive 5, Diplomacy 1
Feats: Skill Focus (Diplomacy)
Special Abilities: Minor Aura (Motivate Charisma)

(6)Binder 1
Skills: Gather Information 4
Feats: Feat 6
Special Abilities: Soulbinding (1 vestige)

(7)Binder 2
Skills: Gather Information 4
Feats:
Special Abilities: Pact Augmentation (1 ability), Suppress Sign

(8)Mountebank 1
Skills: Diplomacy 3, Bluff 3
Feats:
Special Abilities: Tongue of the Devil, +1 cha

(9)Mountebank 2
Skills: Diplomacy 5, Bluff 1
Feats: Improved Initiative
Special Abilities: Sneak Attack +1d6

(10)Mountebank 3
Skills: Diplomacy 4, Bluff 1, Disguise 1
Feats:
Special Abilities: Alter Ego

(11)Psibond Agent 1
Skills: Disguise 8
Feats:
Special Abilities:Psibond (forced sense link)

(12)Psibond Agent 2
Skills: Disguise 3, Diplomacy 2, Bluff 2, Use Magic Device .5 crossclass
Feats: Fey Heritage
Special Abilities: Psibond (nudge), +1 cha

(13)Psibond Agent 3
Skills: Disguise 1, Diplomacy 1, Bluff 1, Decipher Script 5
Feats:
Special Abilities: Sneak Attack +2d6

(14)Psibond Agent 4
Skills: Disguise 1, Diplomacy 1, Bluff 1, Knowledge (Nobility & Royalty) 2.5 crossclass
Feats:
Special Abilities: Psibond (empathy)

(15)Psibond Agent 5
Skills: Disguise 1, Diplomacy 1, Bluff 1, Knowledge (Nobility & Royalty) 2.5 crossclass
Feats: Fey Legacy
Special Abilities: Lingering psibond

(16)Psibond Agent 6
Skills: Disguise 1, Diplomacy 1, Bluff 1, Use Magic Device 2.5 crossclass
Feats:
Special Abilities: Psibond (suggestion), Sneak Attack +3d6, +1 cha

(17)Psibond Agent 7
Skills: Disguise 1, Diplomacy 1, Bluff 1, Use Magic Device 2.5 crossclass
Feats:
Special Abilities: Double psibond

(18)Psibond Agent 8
Skills: Disguise 1, Diplomacy 1, Bluff 1, Use Magic Device 2.5 crossclass
Feats: Complementary Insight
Special Abilities: Psibond (false sensory input)

(19)Psibond Agent 9
Skills: Disguise 1, Diplomacy 1, Bluff 1, Use Magic Device 2.5 crossclass
Feats:
Special Abilities: Sneak attack +4d6

(20)Psibond Agent 10
Skills: Disguise 1, Diplomacy 1, Bluff 1, Use Magic Device 2.5 crossclass
Feats:
Special Abilities: Psibond (dominate), +1 cha


Skills


Bluff 23 ranks +12 cha +12 motivate aura +6 beguiling influence +5 tongue of the devil = 58*@!

Diplomacy 23 ranks +12 cha +12 motivate aura +6 beguiling influence +9 synergy +2 racial = 64*@!

UMD 20 ranks +12 cha +12 motivate aura +6 synergy (scrolls only) = 46(50 scrolls)*

Diguise 23 ranks +12 cha +12 motivate aura +3 synergy +2 deceitful +10 disguise self SLA = 62

*Capable of taking 10 with these skills
@ additional +2 vs target of psibond
! additional +4 vs target of attraction power



Stats

Str Base 8 (+6 item) = 14
Dex Base 12 (+6 item) = 18
Con Base 14 (+6 item) = 20
Int Base 14 (+6 item) = 20
Wis Base 8 (+6 item) = 14
Cha Base 18 (+6 item)(+5 tome)(+5 level) = 34


Items

I haven't figured out everything...

Essential:
Tome of Influence and Leadership +5
Belt of Magnificence +6
Cloak of Resistance +5
Hat of Disguise

Would be nice:
Greater Chasuble of Fell Power
Ring of Invisibility



Saves

Fort: +10 base +5 con +5 resist +1 insight=+21
Refl: +11 base +4 dex +5 resist +1 insight=+21
Will: +13 base +2 will +5 resist +1 insight=+21

The insight bonus comes from pact augmentation


Special Abilities

Attraction DC 23 - 8 pp
Dimension Door CL 20 - 1/day
Summon Nature's Ally V CL20 - 1/day
Confusion CL 20 - 1/day
Beguiling Influence - at will
Hideous Blow - at will
See the Unseen - at will
4d6 sneak attack
2d6 eldritch blast
Alter Self - at will (Alter Ego only)


Bind Naberius:
Disguise Self - at will
Command - once per five rounds
Take 10 on Bluff and Diplomacy
Can make rushed diplomacy checks at no penalty
Heal 1 point of ability damage per round
Heal 1 point of ability drain per hour



Strengths:
Amazing Bluff, Diplomacy, Disguise, and UMD
Alter Ego to completely change what she looks like
Dominate virtually at will through the psibond DC 31

Average:
Decent Saves
Decent HP

Weakness:
Poor in physical combat
Poor AC

[Heliomance]

As beautiful as she is deadly, the alluring


Lirea, the Dark Dancer (http://www.coyotecode.net/profiler/view.php?id=8328)

(Note: all stats are including Marshal bonusses and Paimon bound)

Lirea, the Dark Dancer
Female Changeling NE Marshal 2/Binder/ 3/Master of Masks 1/Psibond Agent 10/Cloaked Dancer 4
Medium Humanoid
Hit Dice: 5d8+15d6+100 (194hp)
Initiative: +9
Speed: 30ft
Armor Class: 29 Touch: 19 Flat-footed: 17
Base Attack: +13/+8
Attack: +24 melee (1d6 19-20/x2, +1 deadly precision, ghost touch, mindcrusher short sword)
Full Attack: +24/19 melee (1d6 19-20/x2, +1 deadly precision, ghost touch, mindcrusher short sword)
Space/Reach: 5ft/5ft
Special Qualities: Persona Masks (Su, Assassin, Faceless), Psibond (Su DC 33, forced sense link, nudge, empathy, suggestion, false sensory input, dominate), Lingering Psibond (Ex), Double Psibond (Su), Enchanting Dance (Su, DC 27, beguiling dance, wearying dance), Minor Aura (Ex, motivate charisma +11), Major Aura (Ex, motivate attack +1), Soul Binding (Su, 1 vestige), Minor Shape Change (Su), Weapon Finesse (short sword and rapier only), Uncanny Dodge
Special Attacks: Sneak Attack +4d6, Surprise Strike +2d6, Craven +20, Deadly Precision, Staggering Strike, Dance of Death (Su), Whirlwind Attack
Saves: Fort +20, Ref +28, Will +17
Abilities: Str 10, Dex 28, Con 20, Int 14, Wis 10, Cha 32
Skills: Bluff +47, Concentration +13, Diplomacy +49, Disguise +46, Gather Information +32, Hide +29, Intimidate +30, Move Silently +28, Perform (act) +30, Perform (dance) +49, Sense Motive +18, Sleight of Hand + 16, Tumble +36, Use Psionic Device +23
Feats: City Slicker (1st), Improved Binding (3rd), Wild Talent (6th), Force of Personality (9th), Craven (12th), Deadly Precision (15th), Staggering Strike (18th)
Languages Spoken: Common, Elven, Giant, Infernal
Noteworthy Possessions: Tome of Leadership and Influence +5, Manual of Quickness of Action +4, Cloak of Charisma +6 and Resistance +5, Gloves of Dexterity +6, Amulet of Health +6 and Natural Armour +5, Veil of Allure (Sandstorm, +2 to saves vs enchantment spells, +2 to DC of all Cha based Su abilities)



After the roaring applause for another of his songs, Vennie the bard raised his hand to signal the tavern to stop. "Thank you, thank you," the gnome's voice was raspy, but enchanting. He plucked a soft tune on his lute when he continued talking.

"It's story time again, now let's see what I can shake out of this old, addled head for you." The crowd laughed a nervous kind of laugh, as usually happens when an entertainer fails to deliver a decent joke. "Alright, have you ever heard of Lirea

the Dark Dancer? She is quite a legend down in the lowlands. Some say she is nothing but a story, others claim they have felt her icy touch in the back of their brains. Me? I don't know her, but I like her style.

You see, Lirea can be considered one of the most succesful assassins of our time. She goes about her job with so much grace, so much guile that most cannot even remember her visit, should they live to tell the tale." The crowd was hanging on his every lips now.

"I have pieced this story together from various odds and ends, tales of survivers, she has become something of a fascination of mine. A muse if you will." He continued to pluck a few random notes from his lute, despite the apparant randomness, the music in the background integrated perfectly with his voice. On another plane, it could be considered jazzy.

Goal:

While I love psionics and skillmonkeys, I feel this class does not have enough of either. It does not share any synergy with other psionic classes or even abilities and the skillmonkey part of the class is nothing but 6 skills/level and a good skillset.
The flavor of the class is nice though and is pretty much the only thing good about the class.

Now, I'm going to pretend any of the Tier 1/2 classes don't exist and that there are no means to get the same abilities PsiBond Agent gives.

And so, as a personal challenge I will try to enter the class using no psionics and none of the standard monkey classes. I feel any classes invested into psionics will be nothing but a waste and I'd like to showcase other, more original means of entry.


Class Considerations


Marshal: This little gem from the Miniatures Handbook is famous for one thing: adding CHA to just about anything. Besides this, the class is strictly meh, until you look at its skill list: bluff, intimidate, diplomacy, sense motive, speak language, all knowledge skills and perform. This class is secretly the arcane-less bard!

Binder: While I mentioned I didn't want any psionics or skillmonkeying, I feel this class might be somewhere on the edge. I have contemplated not using it, but it fits well thematically and the bonusses derived from it are great. Basically the only thing Lirea will end up using is Paimon.

Master of Masks: A thematic fit and that's reason enough to take the class. I'm not a fan of one-level dips and if I could, I would've added more levels. I couldn't find anymore room though. Assassin mask is where it's all at. 1d6 Sneak attack fulfills are requirement to enter Psibond Agent. Now, this sneak attack is only granted when wearing the mask, which means Psibond Agent's abilities only work when the mask is on as well. I this this is a very cool idea.
Later on, the requirement will be fulfilled by Psibond Agent's own sneak attack dice (makes your head spin, doesn't it?)

Psibond Agent: Ah, the secret ingredient. As I mentioned, the class has cool fluff, but the crunch isn't powerful enough to support it. As such, I was 'forced' to have two primary ways of attack. The sneaky way of the Psibond Agent and the direct approach, using the last class in the build.

Cloaked Dancer: I was leafing through PrCs for the challenge and I fel in love with this class. It's so cool! The dance can daze an entire room and you're able to dance and sneak attack targets as you like. My first build used the Cloaked Dancer's SA dice to enter Psibond Agent, but that slowed the build down too much.

Early Life

"It was said that Lirea was born a gypsy girl. No one knows her true heritage, whether she's an elf, a sly gnomish lass or a typical human cat, no one can tell." The words swirled through the run-down tavern, enchanting its audience. "She had quite a forceful personality, even as a mere child. If she wanted something, she made sure she got it. This apparantly caused some friction with the rest of the gypsies, but she had the luck of being the daughter of one of the more esteemed dancers in the caravan.
Her mother was famous in the lowlands for her skills, when she started to dance spectators stopped thinking, at least with their head if you know what I mean." Vennie chuckled a little, someone in the crowd whistled in a raunchy way.

"As she grew up, Lirea quickly followed in her mother's footsteps. It was said though, that she was not nearly as good as her mother's, which inspired lots of anger and jealousy in the little girl. I have been told that at no older than fourteen years of age, the girl had been cast out from the group, shunned for a dangerous crime.

The crime you ask? Well, no one can say for sure, but rumour has it she sold her soul to the devil, or some deamon or something sinister. The creature had promised her skill and beauty to best her mother."


Level 1:
Lirea starts her career as a Marshal. She takes City Slicker as her 1st level feat, giving her access to a couple of skills required later on.
For her minor aura she chooses Motivate Charisma, which should provide a nice bonus to social skills throughout her career.

Lirea starts with 24 skill points. She puts 1 point in Speak Language to learn Infernal. Disguise, Gather Information, Bluff, Perform (act) and Sense Motive get 4 points, Intimidate gets 3.

Level 2:
Lirea will take her first level of Binder. She gains 4 skill points and puts them in the following: Bluff, Disguise, Gather Information, Intimidate.

Level 3:
+1 Binder, skills are Bluff, Disguise, Gather Information, Diplomacy. She takes Improved Binding as her second feat. This will grant her access to Paimon next level.

Level 4:
+1 Binder, skills are the same as level 3. Lirea gains a huge leap in power by binding Paimon. This will be her preferred vestige for the rest of her career.

Level 5:
+1 Marshal. Lirea chooses Motivate Attack as her Major Aura, effectively giving her Weapon Focus (yay?). She gains 6 skill points and places them as follows: Bluff, Disguise, Perform (act) (4 points).

She is all set now to move into PrCs.



Transformation

"Now, this was not the end of our little girl, no, 'twas just the beginning. They say she did not quit her dealings with this creature when she was cast out. On the contrary, I have heard tales she was actually in love with this abomination. She felt so much for the creature she would even betray her own kin to grow closer to him.

Reports from the lowlands army suggest that the gypsy camp had been torched to the ground, every man, woman and child had been gutted and stringed up in a grotesque mockery of some kind of symbol, the name Paimon was etched in blood.

Whatever happened next is unknown, but for some reason she saw it fit to hire out her services and her life as an assassin had started. She would enter her targets house as a guest, usually as an entertainer. Tales have been told of the third act of her show, a horrific act where she would wear a vicious mask of leather and metal. When wearing the mask, some of the spectators would start to act differently, suggestive to her dark dance.
I have gathered many reports and most of them state the guest of honour, be it a nobleman, a king or a wealthy merchant was killed by someone close to them.

And thus the legend of Lirea was born, the Dark Dancer who would seduce loved ones to kill those closest to them."


Level 6:
Lirea takes her first (and only) level in Master of Masks. She gains 6 skill points, putting 1 in Gather Information, the remaining 5 go into Perform (dance). She will craft 2 masks, Faceless and the Assassin.
For her feat, Lirea takes Wild Talent. She now meets all the prereqs for Psibond Agent next level.

Level 7:
Lirea enters the secret ingredient, Psibond Agent. From now on, things will change. She gains the Psibond ability, while weak at the start, this will be Lirea's token ability later on.
For now, Lirea gains 8 skill points, she will place them as follows: Hide 5, Perform (dance) 3.

Level 8:
+1 Psibond Agent. Lirea's Psibond upgrades to Nudge, a powerful ability giving her all kinds of options. Mostly, she'll use them to get close to her victims (having staff open doors, using that strange looking bottle to cook with instead of using regular herbs, etc. Skills are places as follows: Perform (dance) 2, Sleight of Hand 5, Use Psionic Device 1.

Level 9:
Lirea takes a level in the last class of her build, Cloaked Dancer. While the entry requirements are pretty steep in this build (no use for Hide or Sleight of Hand, and why would a character in the center of attention need hide?), the benefits outweigh the price.
She gains Force of Personality at 9th level, a fluffy skill and shores up her somewhat weak Will save.
She gains 8 skill points this level, without any neccesary prereqs Lirea is free to put them in useful skills now.
She'll arrange them as follows:
Perform (dance) 2, Bluff 4, Diplomacy 2

Level 10:
+1 Cloaked Dancer. Lirea gains a new cool ability in Surprise Strike, which allows her to perform an Enchanting Dance while sneak attacking a target. From now on, she is not forced to wear the Assassin mask anymore to gain the Psibond Agent's abilities.
Skills are distributed as follows:
Perform (dance) 1, Bluff 1, Diplomacy 6

Level 11:
+1 Psibond Agent. Lirea gains another die of Sneak Attack. Skill Points: Perform (dance) 1, Bluff 1, Diplomacy 4, Concentration 2.

Level 12:
+1 Psibond Agent. Skills: Perform (dance) 1, Bluff 1, Diplomacy 1, Concentration 2, Sense Motive 4.
For her feat, Lirea will take Craven. This powerful feat gives her a massive bonus to Sneak Attack. Which is especially useful as she can only make one strike at a time using Enchanting Dance. I do however feel that taking one powerful feat from an obscure splatbook from a high-powered setting isn't exactly fair. To reduce cheese, this feat can easily be replaced by something else, but power will drop.

Her Psibond Agent level gives her Empathy, further increasing her social skills vs her psilinked targets. Detecting surface emotions also helps detect the people most likely to betray Lirea's target.

Level 13:
+1 Psibond Agent. Skills: Perform (dance) 1, Bluff 1, Diplomacy 1, Concentration 2, Move Silently 4. She gains Lingering Psibond, which will allow her to easily switch between her covert (Psibond Agent) and overt (Cloaked Dancer) roles.

Level 14:
+1 Psibond Agent. Skills: Perform (dance) 1, Bluff 1, Diplomacy 1, Concentration 2, Tumble 4. Extra sneak attack goodness at this level, as well as Psibond Suggestion! This little gem finally allows Lirea to exert some direct control over her psilinked targets.

Level 15:
+1 Psibond Agent. Skills: Perform (dance) 1, Bluff 1, Diplomacy 1, Tumble 6. Double Psibond is a nice ability allowing her to control up to two psibonded targets. Double the chances of betrayal and control!
At this level Lirea will take Deadly Precision as her feat, allowing better odds on the SA dice.

Level 16:
+1 Psibond Agent. Skills: Perform (dance) 1, Bluff 1, Diplomacy 1, Tumble 6. False Sensory Input is good for blinding the mark as well as getting past guards and relatives.

Level 17:
+1 Psibond Agent. Skills: Perform (dance) 1, Bluff 1, Diplomacy 1, Tumble 4, Disguise 2. More Sneak Attack is always good.

Level 18:
+1 Psibond Agent. Skills: Perform (dance) 1, Bluff 1, Diplomacy 1, Tumble 1, Disguise 2, Gather Information 2. She takes Staggering Strike as her last feat. This powerful feat gives her some good chances to double up on another sneak attack. Her last Psibond Agent level gives her an hour-long Dominate on her targets. This is good as it means she won't be the one to score the killing blow anymore, instead she'll have someone close to the mark deliver it.

Level 19:
+1 Cloaked Dancer. Skills: Skills: Perform (dance) 1, Bluff 1, Diplomacy 1, Tumble 1, Sense Motive 4. Wearying Dance allows Lirea to fatigue her enemies, pretty nifty.

Level 20:
+1 Cloaked Dancer. Skills: Skills: Perform (dance) 1, Bluff 1, Diplomacy 1, Tumble 1, Sense Motive 4. Lirea gets another die of Sneak Attack bringing it up to 5d6 (6d6 with assassin mask), which is pretty acceptable.



Lirea's Strategy


Lirea has two main combat styles, a covert one and an overt one. When someone tries to buy her services she will first use her high social skills to extract as much payment from the client as possible. Then, a party will be arranged in honour of the target by the client, with Lirea as entertainer.
Once at the event, Lirea will pick the brains of the guests using her psibonds. She will then find the ones most likely to betray the target. Most of her covert work will be done offstage. Using her domination power she will attempt to force one of the guests to kill the target. Should this fail, Lirea herself will come into action.

She will take the stage again for her final act, the dance. She activates her enchanting dance and enthralls the entire audience, weakening guards and making sure no one is able to move (enchanting dance dazes spectators), then she will use her surprise strike to deliver a devastating sneak attack on her victim, who should remain dazed. If all goes well, her spectators will stay enthralled and she is able to kill her target without any problems. If she requires help, there are plenty of guests to dominate.

If all else fails, Lirea has freaking high, optimized social skills. She'd probably be able to talk the most optimistic person in the world to kill himself. Her massive disguise modifier ensure no one knows how Lirea really looks.

Note that Lirea has no skill at all in opening locks or bypassing traps. Should she find a need to do this, she will simply make a psibond to get someone else to do it.

[Heliomance]

Lord of the underworld, leader of the Rogue, please put your hands together for

Hugo Clopin, King of the Court of Miracles!

(Yeah, yeah, I just saw Hunchback of Notre Dame, Aladdin, and Peter Pan all in the same week, so I've been dying to make a real trickster build)

Hugo Clopin, NE Strongheart Halfling Beguiler 5/Mindbender 1/Psionic Assassin 1/Psibond Agent 10/Magical Trickster 3

By levels:
Hugo Clopin, NE Strongheart Halfling Beguiler 5/Mindbender 1/Psionic Assassin 1/Psibond Agent 3/Magical Trickster 3/Psibond Agent +7

Books used:
Complete Scoundrel: Psibond Agent, Magical Trickster, Skill Tricks
C. Mage: Fey Heritage, Fey Power, Fey Legacy
C. Arcane: Mindbender, Practiced Spellcaster, Chain Spell
FRCS: Strongheart Halfling
PHB II: Beguiler
Secrets of Sarlona: Psionic Assassin
Lords of Madness: Mindsight, Darkstalker
Lords of Darkness: Craven




What is this build designed to do?

This is a character designed to be the party's "face", scout, and battlefield controller. As secondary roles, he can also buff the party and deal damage, possibly defeating foes through death attacks or poison damage rather than just HP damage. He would also be appropriate for a solo game or as a recurring NPC opponent that harries the PCs periodically.

I love using poisons in D&D, and for some time now I've wanted to make a character who mentally controlled his opponents into drinking poisoned wine. This build uses Beguiler as a base and a dip into Mindbender, along with 3 classes that I've never actually seen used (or combined): Psibond Agent, Magical Trickster, and Psionic Assassin.

Beguiler provides a strong caster model for the Psibond Agent and gives a perfect selection of trickster spells. Mindbender is a quick dip for telepathy and Mindsight, which both mesh with the Psibond Agent's flavor and purpose. Psionic Assassin is used for the power points and sneak attack it provides, but it also provides the Death Attack and poison use that I love so dearly. Psibond Agent is a high skills class that gives at-will "controller" and scout options, supplementing the limited/day Beguiler spells nicely. Magical Trickster boosts the skills role by adding several new skill tricks and by giving the character multiple uses of Swift Concentration and other skill tricks per combat.

What is this build not doing?

This build stops at 4th level spells in return for at-will control options with the Psibond, a usable Death Attack, and a variety of skill tricks. It's not a high damage build (though 12d6+60 or so at 20th is quite respectable!), and it's not a pure battlefield control build either. Rather, it's a character designed to fill several niches well.

Sample flavor:

Hugo Clopin is known as a halfling scout who hires on for the first few levels of Undermountain. Few know his other life: that of Victor Clopin, the King of the Court of Miracles. Born with a hint of fey blood, Clopin is a deadly assassin and mind-reader who subtly controls his minions from underneath the streets of Waterdeep. It's said that Clopin hears everything that takes place under the Temple of Mystra, and the truth is not far off, for he can attach his mind and senses to his minions at will, even controlling their actions and thoughts. Unseen, unknowable, Clopin is a spider weaving a dark web in his Courts. He adventures frequently to find new companions and to challenge himself, for what good is a king without minions?

Sample character history:
Clopin began his career as a traveling entertainer with a band of halflings. Gradually his focus on enchantments and other mind-affecting spells led him to pursue telepathic magics[Mindbender], which in turn led to psionic powers and darker pursuits [Psionic Assassin]. As his psionic and magical powers matured, so did his mastery over more mundane skills, until Clopin was notorious throughout Waterdeep for his skills in each field. [Psibond Agent, Magical Trickster]

Party roles:

[B]Scout and trap-finder: For observation, you have high ranks in Spot, Search, and Disable Device and trap-finding as a class skill, as well as 100ft telepathy and Mindsight from 6th level on, so you automatically sense all thinking creatures within that radius. You can spontaneously cast Locate Creature, Arcane Sight, Clairvoyance/Clairaudience, See Invisibility, and Detect Secret Doors. You can also "hitch a ride" by using your Psibond on a passer-by or animal to scout from a distance.

Stealth: You have very high ranks in Hide and Move Silently, plus you're a small race with racial bonuses, and can spontaneously cast alter self, invisibility, and greater invisibility. You also have Darkstalker from 3rd level, so you're immune to blindsense, blindsight, tremorsense, and darkvision.

Party face: You have high ranks in bluff and diplomacy, a decent Charisma, Glibness for +30 to bluff, skill tricks to replace blown Diplomacy checks with a Bluff check, ranks in Disguise along with Disguise Self and Alter Self, and of course Charm Monster, Suggestion, and Dominate.

Battlefield control: You can spontaneously cast Sleep, Color Spray, Glitterdust, Deep Slumber, Slow, Hold Person, and Solid Fog. You have an at-will Psibond that will allow you to do Suggestion and False Sensory Input (make an opponent's ally look like a foe, make a tree look like a dragon, etc.), and later even Dominate.

Buffs: You have Teleport 1/day, Mage Armor, Haste, all the invisibility spells, and freedom of movement, as well as any buffs from a 1/day Summon Nature's Ally V. You've got UMD for any other buffs you want to give.

Death attack: You have Death Attack from assassin - especially effective on creatures who are unconscious or helpless from Sleep, Color Spray, Deep Slumber, Hold Person, and other spells on your list. You can make and use poisons: Drow Poison is only 30g to make and can knock a target unconscious. You also have Suggestion at will from Psibond (I suggest you take a little nap) and later Dominate. With a little planning, you can kill quite a lot of people quite easily.

Damage: You have sneak attack from psionic assassin and psibond agent, along with Craven. At 20th level, that's 3 attacks for Weapon Dama+3d6+20 each - enough to contribute nicely to party damage. You've got UMD to use sneak attack on undead, plants, and constructs, or simply to UMD some magical damaging spells. And of course you can mentally control opponents to deal damage for you.

STATS (32 PB):
Str: 6
Dex: 18
Con: 14
Int: 16
Wis: 8
Cha: 14
Improve Int at 4, 8, 12, 16, 20

Feats:
1: Fey Heritage
1: Fey Power
3: Darkstalker
5B: Silent Spell
6: Mindsight
9: Fey Legacy
12: Practiced Spellcaster (Beguiler)
12B: Chain Spell
15: Craven
18: Improved Initiative or Ability Focus (Psibond)

Languages: Common, Halfling, Undercommon, Giant, Abyssal

Racials: +2 Dex/-2 Str, Small, +1 Feat, +2 to Jump, Climb, Listen, Move Silently, +2 vs. Fear, +1 on thrown weapon attacks

Skills at 1st: 6+3=9
Bluff 4R, Concentration 4R, Diplomacy 4R, Gather Info 4R, Hide 4R, Move Silently 4R, Sense Motive 4R, Spot 4R, Search 1R, Disable Device 1R, Open Lock 1R, Use Magic Device 1R

Skills: Obviously your skills will depend on whether the campaign is a social one, a dungeon crawl, or some mix of the two. Since Mindbender, Assassin, and Psibond Agent all have skills requirements, some skills are set in stone: 4 ranks in Intimidate, Sense Motive, Diplomacy, and Bluff by 6th; 4 ranks in Disguise and 8 ranks in Hide and Move Silently by 7th; and 8 ranks in Gather Information by 8th level. At the end of the build I've presented a skills progression that I would use for a "Standard" game that's 70% dungeon crawl and 30% social. Skill tricks mentioned will be using that build as a baseline.

Level-by-level breakdown:

1st level: Beguiler 1
You're pretty well established in your niche of "scout, party face, and battlefield control" starting from the very beginning.

You have 5 cantrips and 4 spells per day, cast spontaneously from a nice thematic list. For beginning your mind-slave collection, there's Charm Person. For combat, there's Color Spray, Sleep, Hypnotism, and Silent Image. For scouting there's Detect Secret Doors and Detect Magic. For being the party face there's Charm Person, Hypnotism, Disguise Self and Comprehend Languages. Charm Person + Hypnotism on an indifferent person = fanatical ally for 2d4 rounds.

For feats you have two themed feats that fit well: you'll have +3 to saves against enchantments (there's nothing more embarrassing than the enchanter getting enchanted!), and +1 to enchantment CL and DCs.

Tactics:
Buff round: You should be hiding whenever possible to catch an opponent flat-footed.
R1: If you can catch your opponents flat-footed in a surprise round, I'd open with the light crossbow (+5 to hit, 1d6 19-20 x2). Sleep or Hypnotism is great in your first normal round; Color Spray is also good but I hate to get in close to opponents. Against opponents immune to mind-affecting, Silent Image still works, as does shooting them with a crossbow.

Sample equipment: Chain Shirt (100g), Light Crossbow (35g), 30 Bolts (3g), Dagger (2g), Rapier (20g) or 2 flasks of acid (20g).

2nd level: Beguiler 2
Second level, same as the first! Cloaked casting is a very nice gimme: +1 to spell DCs when your opponent would be denied his dexterity bonus. Just another reason to try and hide all the time. Synergy bonuses kick in here as well.

Equipment: I'd purchase skill boosters for every skill that you can justify, some scrolls of useful 1st level spells to UMD, a heavy crossbow, and a masterwork light crossbow. The heavy crossbow is for initiating fights and long distance shots, otherwise use the light crossbow.

3rd level: Beguiler 3
A good level! You get Darkstalker, an awesome feat that means when you're hiding, you're hidden from blindsense, blindsight, tremorsense, and scent unless they make the appropriate spot or listen check (instead of them automatically spotting you!). For 2,000g, you also get the Ring of the Darkhidden and add darkvision to this list.

Secondly, you get your first and only Advanced Learning, and take Shock and Awe from the Spell Compendium! Shock and Awe is only castable during the surprise round, which is yet another reason why you should be scouting ahead of the group and initiating combat. It has no save, and reduces your opponents' initiative by -10. That is a BIG number, and will likely mean that your entire party will go before the opponents get a chance to act.

Tactics:
R0/Buff: Move ahead of the party and start the fight. You should have +12 to Hide and +10 to Move Silently with just a +2 competence item for each (a very dark cloak and doeskin slippers).
R1/Surprise: Shock and Awe! No save, hit up to 4 opponents with -10 to init
R2/1st normal round: Start casting Sleep (DC 15) or move + Color Spray.

Equipment: Ring of the Darkhidden, 2K, and a wand of Shock and Awe.

4th level: Beguiler 4
Yay for second level spells! Glitterdust becomes your main combat spell, while Invisibility becomes your go-to spell for scouting. Knock means you don't need more points in Open Lock, while Silence is like a spellcasters' death sentence, and Mirror Image becomes your 1-round buff spell. Alter Self is useful for bonus natural armor from races like the troglodyte, and also for races with hide bonuses or to help with infiltrating an area.

Tactics: As above, except that Glitterdust is going to get cast quite frequently and might even be a good opener, while if you have time to buff you should cast Mirror Image.

Equipment: Let's buff defenses this level: Mithril Chain Shirt, Mithril Buckler, and a Vest of Resistance +1 if you can afford them.

5th level: Beguiler 5
Free Silent Spell is nice as it qualifies you for Magical Trickster, and now you can cast while remaining hidden or while silenced. I'd use it very sparingly, however.

Equipment: Stock up on some cheap utility items: Healing Belt (750g), Armband of Elusive Action (800g, avoid 1 AOO a day), and an anklet of translocation (2/day teleport 10ft) for 1,400g.

6th level: Beguiler 5/Mindbender 1

Telepathy, mindsight, and 6th level spells. What's not to love? Telepathy: talk to people within 100ft in their heads. Possibly takes a standard action to use (it's supernatural). Mindsight feat: you automatically sense thinking creatures within 100ft of you as if you had blindsense, as well as their creature type and intelligence. It's about as broken as it sounds.

6th level spells: Arcane Sight, Nondetection, Invisibility Sphere, and Clairvoyance/Clairaudience all dramatically help with scouting and stealth. Deep Slumber will be your go-to spell next level when you want to kill something with Death Attack. Haste will be good from here until 20th as a party buff. Dispel Magic is alright against traps, but your CL is about to dive. Hold Person is nice but needs a better duration. Glibness and Suggestion are a solid help for the party face role.

Equipment: Headband of Intellect +2 (4K)

7th level: Beguiler 5/Mindbender 1/Psionic Assassin 1

Woohoo death attack! While tempting, you probably shouldn't be using this to start a fight, because it requires you hitting somebody in melee. Instead, you should be making foes helpless or unconscious (Hold Person, Deep Slumber), and then doing a DC 15 Death Attack coupled with a Coup de Grace.

Psionic Assassin also gets a single power, which will be Control Light, allowing you to darken areas around you. Who knows, it might be useful? More importantly, you have power points and 1d6 SA, so you qualify for Psibond Agent.

Finally, you get poison use. Poisons are nice things. Very nice things. Use them to knock opponents unconscious (drow poison and others), to lower saves against your spells, and to weaken foes' attacks. Handily, Psionic Minor Creation is only 1st level, so it's pretty easy to use a dorje of it with UPD - and with a success, you've got a cubic foot of your choice of plant-based poisons that lasts for an hour.

Plant and mineral based poisons for Minor & Major Creation:
Craft DC 15?: Stun Gas (Underdark). *DC 12, Stun effect.
Craft DC 15: Bloodroot (DMG). *DC 12, deals 0/1d4 Con +1d3 Wis
Craft DC 15: Sleeping Vine (A&E): DC 13, slowed/1d4 Dex
Craft DC 15: Good-Bye Kiss (C. Scoundrel) (Exhaustion/Exhaustion, Fatigued on a successful save)
Craft DC 15: Drow Poison (DMG) (Unconsciousness/Unconsciousness) *Noted as being distilled from fungi and roots in C. Scoundrel
Craft DC 17: Psychotropic Rot (DoTU): DC 15 ingested, deals 1d4 Wis/3d8 Hp.
Craft DC 20: Vapid Leaf Extract (A&E): DC 16, Dazed/2d6 Int.
Craft DC 20: Malyss Root paste (DMG). *DC 16, deals 1/2d4 Dex damage.
Craft DC 20: Sassone leaf residue (DMG): DC 16, deals 2d12 damage/1d6 Con.
Craft DC 21: Cave Terror (Underdark). *DC 20, Confusion effect.
Craft DC 25: Terinav Root (DMG). *DC 20, deals 1d6/2d6 Dex.
Craft DC 28: Darklight Brew (Injury, DoTU): DC 23, Deals an initial 2d6 Con and 1d6 Strength damage, and blindness as a secondary effect! *Can be crafted with Major Creation.
Craft DC 35: Black Lotus Extract (DMG). *DC 20, deals 3d6/3d6 Con.
Craft DC 45?: Greensickness (Dungeonscape, MMIII). *DC 33, deals 2d6 Str + 1d4 Con/2d6 Str + 1d4 Con. **Confirmed that this is plant-based - it's from the Plague Brush in MMIII, an extraplanar house-sized tumbleweed of death. Craft DC given is an estimate.

Equipment: Eyes of the Eagle (+5 to search) for 2,500g, Heavy Scythe (for Coup de Grace death attacks), Dorje of Psionic Creation, Minor

10th level: Beguiler 5/Mindbender 1/Psionic Assassin 1/Psibond Agent 3

I've got to pack for a big trip tomorrow, so I'll have to cut these write-ups short. At 9th your new feat gives a lot of fey-themed flexibility with Confusion, Teleport, and Summon Nature's Ally V. Summon 1d3 unicorns for a lot of fun.

The Psibond: First off, this is not something you'll want to use in combat yet. Right now it's useful for subtly scouting an area by "hitching a ride" with somebody's senses - UMD a wand of animal messenger, for example, and scout with the sparrow as it flies to your target. You can also use it to subtly influence somebody's reactions as well - possibly convincing a guard to turn around early, or even to start an argument or convince somebody to spill their secrets.

The psibond has a range of 100 feet, which matches perfectly with your 100" telepathy and Mindsight: so as soon as you telepathically sense somebody, you can try to get inside their minds and see through their eyes, even if they are in the inn across the street. The "Swift Concentration" skill trick allows you to maintain concentration on the psibond as a swift action, so you can take other decent actions while using it. Swift Concentration is also useful for your beguiler illusion spells and for rainbow pattern or even Control Light from psionic assassin.

Skill tricks from 7th to 10th:
Conceal Spellcasting: You hide your spellcasting with a Sleight of Hand check so opponents can't tell you're casting a spell!
Social Recovery: if you blow a Diplomacy check, you can try a bluff check at -10 to make up for it!
Swift Concentration: you can maintain concentration on spells and other effects as a swift action. Terrific for this build!

Equipment: Be sure to grab a Veil of Allure from the Spell Compendium for a very cheap +2 DC to supernatural abilities (like your Psibond!) and enchantments.

15th: Beguiler 5/Mindbender 1/Psionic Assassin 1/Psibond Agent 5/Magical Trickster 3

Magical Trickster and Practiced Spellcaster brings the beguiler caster level up to 8 (12 effective caster level, 13 for enchantments), opening up several other good spells (see below). It also provides more skill tricks and allows the character to spend a spell slot to regain the use of a skill trick - useful for using psibond along with swift concentration more than once in an encounter!

Since with Magical Trickster your spell DCs go up by 1 whenever you use a skill trick, you should use skill tricks right before casting whenever possible. For example, Conceal Spellcasting and False Theurgy will both provide this free spell DC boost, or you can drop prone and then use Back on Your Feet to gain the bonus DC. If you time them in the right order, you could get +3 or +4 to the DC of a spell by going absolutely nuts with your skill tricks. Also, you can use Chain Spell 1/day without increasing the spell level, which opens a lot of options with spells like Hold Person or Greater Invisibility.

The Craven feat, meanwhile, gives a big boost to damage - every sneak attack now deals weapon +2d6+15 damage, as much damage as a standard 13th level rogue without Craven would normally deal.

Finally, Psibond Agent gives a free minor party face bonus while using your psibond on the person, and the psibond lingers another round after you stop concentrating. It's still not worth using in combat for another level though.

Spells: Black Tentacles, Greater Mirror Image, and Greater Invisibility are my favorites here. Charm Monster, Confusion, Solid Fog, and Freedom of Movement are all excellent as well, while Rainbow Pattern and Locate Creature have their uses. This is probably the best level for beguiler casting, pound for pound.

Skill tricks:
False Theurgy: Make somebody think your spell is another one! Hilarious with illusions, of course.
Back on your feet: Stand from prone as an immediate action with no AOO's.
Extreme Leap: Go another +10 feet with a successful jump check.
Spot the Weak Point: Make a Spot check to make your next attack a touch attack. Combine this with hiding, sneak attack, a nasty poison, and Death Attack for a nasty surprise.

20th level: Beguiler 5/Mindbender 1/Psionic Assassin 1/Psibond Agent 10/Magical Trickster 3

At the later levels, the Psibond actually becomes worthwhile in combat. Suggestion has near-endless uses, especially combined with the Psibond's nudge. False Sensory Input can be priceless - use it to convince an opponent that his ally is actually an enemy, or that the tree is a green dragon, or that the copper coin you're offering him is in fact a ruby.

In fact, I'd almost say that False Sensory Input is the real capstone to the class - completely reorganizing somebody's senses with your mindsight and psilink from 100 feet away as a swift action? Who wouldn't want that as an at will ability? And then as a capstone: Dominate! It was a long road, but Dominate Monster is a fun effect, especially at will.

I listed two possible feats for 18th - at this level the "best" feat is really game-dependent. I love Improved Initiative, but every game is different.

Skill tricks: Clarity of Vision - you see so well that you can spot invisible people with enough effort!

Tactics: Really, at 20th there are probably too many options to list. You should have a small army of dominated, charmed, and diplomanced allies serving you. With a few magic items and your own skills, you should be hidden nearly all the time, and disguised when you're not hidden. While hiding you telepathically sense opponents, see through their eyes, and dominate them without them ever noticing you. Or you could summon evard's black tentacles and solid fog on them. Or Use Magic Device/Use Psionic Device and do any of the tricks that a high level spellcaster or psion would do, like Time Stop and Shapechange. And if you really want to get your hands dirty - well, that's what stealth, death attack, poisons, and 4d6+20 sneak attack is for.


Sample skills progression:
1st: Bluff 4R, Concentration 4R, Diplomacy 4R, Gather Info 4R, Hide 4R, Move Silently 4R, Sense Motive 4R, Spot 4R, Search 1R, Disable Device 1R, Open Lock 1R, Use Magic Device 1R
2nd: +1R: Bluff, Concentration, Disable Device, Gather Info, Hide, Move Silently, +2R Intimidate, +2R Disguise
3rd: +1R: Bluff, Concentration, Gather Info, Hide, Move Silently, +2R Intimidate, +2R Disguise
4th: +1R: Bluff, Concentration, Gather Info, Hide, Move Silently, Spot, +3R Sleight of Hand
5th: +1R: Bluff, Concentration, Gather Info, Hide, Move Silently, Spot, +2R Sleight of Hand
6th: (5 skill points): +5R: Spellcraft.
7th: (7 skill points): +2R: Craft (Poison), Use Magic Device. +1R: Bluff. Skill Trick: Conceal Spellcasting
8th: (10 skill points): +2R: Spot, Search, Use Psionic Device, Concentration. Skill Trick: Social Recovery
9th: (10 skill points): +2R: Spot, Search, Disable Device, Concentration. Skill Trick: Swift Concentration
10th: (10 skill points): +2R: Spot, Search, Hide, Use Psionic Device, Craft (Poison).
11th: (8 skill points): Spellcraft +3R, Tumble +5R, Bonus Skill Trick: False Theurgy
12th: (8 skill points): Tumble +8R, Bonus Skill Trick: Back on Your Feet
13th: (8 skill points): Jump +8R, Bonus Skill Trick: Extreme Leap
14th: (10 skill points): Spot +6R, Hide +2R, Skill Trick: Spot the Weak Point
15th: (10 skill points): Spot +1R, Hide +4R, Search +4R
16th: (11 skill points): Spot +1R, Hide +1R, Search +5R, Move Silently +4R
17th: (11 skill points): +1R: Spot, Hide, Search. Move Silently +6R, Skill Trick: Clarity of Vision
18th: (11 skill points): +1R: Spot, Hide, Move Silently, Search. Use Psionic Device +7R
19th: (11 skill points): +1R: Spot, Hide, Move Silently, Search, Diplomacy. Bluff +6R
20th: (11 skill points): +1R: Spot, Hide, Move Silently, Diplomacy, Bluff. Diplomacy +6R

Also of note:
With LA Buyback: An Empty Vessel Human would give lots of power points for +1 LA, while the Dark template would give Hide in Plain Sight. Both would be absolutely killer options for a game with LA buyback.
With flaws: adding on Fey Skin and Improved Initiative at 1st would be good choices.
With traits: +2 Init/-1 AC would be very helpful.

[Heliomance]

You'd best be careful when this character's about. Can you be sure your thoughts are there is no mind control, Citizen. Go back to your fun.

It took me a while to twist it, but I am proud to present


Lárus, The Puppetmaster.
Bard 10/Psibond Agent 8/Spellthief 1/Mindbender 1
Male Human: Chaotic Neutral

Sources:
Complete Arcane
Complete Adventurer
Complete Scoundrel
Player's Handbook
Spell Compendium
Magic Item Compendium
Lords of Madness

Character Concept: I will not lie, Shneeky’s Joker Bard was a large part of the inspiration for this build. I couldn’t quite take in all of the rules for psionics quickly enough, so I went with an arcane casting entry. This is what I got.

What does this build do? Simply put, you are there to make everyone else look more effective than they actually are. With telepathy, you are incredibly hard to catch off guard, and can act as the party tactician, keeping everyone updated with information. You serve as the face of the party, using your incredible social aptitude to get what you want, when you want it, from the person you want to give it to you. Entire conflicts can be avoided if you can talk your way out of it, or you can just control the enemies. You are the puppetmaster, so start pulling the strings.

What does this build not do? In a word: Fight. This build is meant for social interaction. If a monster needs to be killed, you need to convince someone else to kill it for you. But when you can make a guy think his claymore is a flyswatter and that there’s a poisonous mosquito on his buddy's neck, who needs other powers?

Stats (32 Point Buy)
Str: 8
Dex: 12 (4 Points)
Con: 14 (6 Points)
Int: 14 (6 Points)
Wis: 8
Cha: 18 (16 Points)

Level Progression

1. Bard 1 (Improved Initiative, Wild Talent)
2. Bard 2
3. Bard 3 (Force of Personality)
4. Bard 4
5. Bard 5
6. Mindbender 1 (Mindsight)
7. Bard 6
8. Bard 7
9. Spellthief 1 (Master Spellthief)
10. Psibond Agent 1
11. Psibond Agent 2
12. Psibond Agent 3 (Melodic Casting)
13. Psibond Agent 4
14. Bard 8
15. Bard 9 (Practiced Spellcaster)
16. Psibond Agent 5
17. Psibond Agent 6
18. Psibond Agent 7 (Practiced Spellcaster)
19. Psibond Agent 8
20. Bard 10

Skills: Keep Bluff, Diplomacy, Concentration, Sense Motive, Perform [Oratory], and Use Magic Device maxed, invest lightly in Spellcraft, Sleight of Hand, and Knowledge skills, and keep a couple of points aside for skill tricks.

Skill Tricks: Swift Concentration, Listen to This, Conceal Spellcasting, Assume Quirk, and Social Recovery are all worthwhile investments.



Bard Spells, First to Last learned by level:
0th: Detect Magic, Message, Prestidigitation, Read Magic, Mage Hand, Light
1st: Charm Person, Silent Image, Combined Talent (Improvisation later), Feather Fall
2nd: Invisibility, Sonorous Hum, Detect Thoughts, Enthrall
3rd: Glibness, Dispel Magic, Charm Monster, Sculpt Sound
4th: Dominate Person, Ruin Delver’s Fortune, Modify Memory

Level Rundown

5th Level: Pretty much the same as a straight Bard, but with the ability to steal 1st level spells instead of more bardic music. Buff your pawns… er, I mean party, with music while Charming enemies into a more suitable role. Make use of Combined Talent.
Spells known: 6 0th(3/day), 3 1st(2/day), 2 2nd(0/day)
Important Gear: A Hat of Disguise never hurt anyone, and a Heward’s Handy Haversack is good for keeping track of your spoils.

10th Level: Now things start getting interesting. Glibness is a godsend. Telepathic abilities built up over the past few levels allow the Agent to locate, communicate with, and use the senses of any intelligent creature within 100 feet. Very good for roleplaying. If any of your pawns have spellcasting abilities, you can take spells of up to 4th level. Can use suggestion and bluff in a single check. Use the Mindbender level for learning skill tricks. I suggest Swift Concentration and Conceal Spellcasting.
Spells Known: 6 0th(3/day), 4 1st(3/day), 4 2nd(3/day), 3 3rd(1/day)
Important Gear: You should have a Cloak of Charisma by now, preferably +4. Pick up a Charisma boosting Ioun Stone if you can. Every +1 helps. A Robe of Arcane Might makes your Enchantments that much harder to resist.

15th Level: Sweet, sweet Domination at last! It has been far too long in coming, but that is behind us now. You are a smooth operator, able to catch anyone in any lie, and fire your own right back. Your Psibond abilities are starting to flourish, allowing you to influence your puppets undetected. Make sure you switch out Combined Talent for Improvisation. It becomes the superior choice.
Spells Known: 6 0th(3/day), 4 1st(3/day), 4 2nd(3/day), 4 3rd(2/day), 2 4th(0/day)
Important Gear: If your Cloak isn’t a +6 by now, that needs to be fixed immediately. A Ring of Spell Storing can keep those important spells for when you need them the most, and can be charged by any other caster you may have with you. You should have all of the basics to never be caught off guard, like a Belt of Battle, Boots of Teleportation, the whole nine yards. If there’s anything you don’t want to do, it’s end up on the front lines. You have people for that.

20th Level: Everything is finally in place. You have full caster level, you can take up to 6th level spells from your pawns, and you can have 2 of them! Anyone within 100 feet has a pretty good chance of furthering your plans. You don’t act yourself, you command others. Effects like Mind Blank can put a damper on your day, but that just means you need to get more creative. Take control of one of their allies, use a bystander, take a Greater Dispel from a pawn, any chink in the mental armor will do.
Spells Known: All listed. 3/day 0th, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, 1/day 4th.
Important Gear: You should have a Tome of Leadership and Influence boost your Charisma some more, for an adjusted score of 36. That makes your DC mod for spells a 23, and the save against your Psibond is a 31 and Domination’s save is a 27. You should definitely keep some sort of immunity to mind detection, like a Concealing Third Eye, or a boost to your save DCs, like a Veil of Allure. The rest of your obscene amount of wealth can be spent on other things, like wands and other magic devices.

FLUFF

Lárus was born to human and kalashtar parents. He had dormant psionic abilities, but they weren’t as powerful as those of a full kalashtar, so they were of no use to him. From a young age, he found that he had an uncanny ability to manipulate people. They gravitated towards him, you see, and they were usually fairly amenable to doing what he wanted them to do. Tired of seeing people hang on his every word, Lárus left his home to pursue the path of a bard, travelling the world, meeting new people, and performing for others instead of the other way around.

At this point he is a straight Bard 5. His manipulative abilities are almost about to fully reveal themselves, and soon he won’t be bound by the chains of spoken language.

Lárus had always known about his kalashtar heritage, but he didn’t think it would ever have any impact on his life because of his human mother. Then, one day, it happened. After a performance, one of the audience members, a drunken half-orc, started heckling. Dismissing the idiot in the comfort of his own thoughts, Lárus was shocked to find out that the half-orc had heard him. His telepathy had started to bud at precisely the wrong moment. He barely escaped the ensuing fight with his life, but he reveled in his newfound skill, one that would hold a large place in his future. After the brawl, he was barred from his regular venue, so Lárus joined a small adventuring party, using his newfound telepathy to guide them through treacherous caves as the party front man. On a particularly dangerous mission, Lárus heard screams of horror from his fighter companion in the next room. After searching frantically for his friend’s mind, Amos found that he was now looking at the threat that was staring down the face of his axe-wielding buddy. Some quick direction was all it took for the foe to be felled, but Amos had just discovered a new power, and one that he could put to good use.

The build is now at Bard 7/Psibond Agent 1/Spellthief 1/Mindbender 1. He’s finally started to settle into the class that will define the rest of his advancement, and his telepathic might will only get stronger.

As shocked as he was with his power, he enjoyed the thought of being able to use the minds and talents of others. He wasn’t stopping there, however. He wanted to be able to use his power to its full potential. As his power developed, he became more and more adept in his manipulation. Entire battles were won by simply intercepting the enemies’ thoughts and steering them away from violence. No one could say no to him. He was a smooth talker, able to convince anyone of anything, whether it was a discount at a shop or surrendering their weapons. After a certain point, he obtained the ability he coveted most: complete and total control of a person.

The build has reached the first real sweet spot at Bard 9/Psibond Agent 4/Spellthief 1/Mindbender 1. The Domination came late, but it’s not like most Wizards even have Dominate in the first place. Still, getting Dominate at the same level that wizards get Mind Blank is a bit disappointing. Oh well. Everything falls into place at level 19, but this is close enough to feel satisfying.

Lárus soon hit the height of his power. He could control the minds of two people at once, going so far as to manipulate their very senses if it suited his lies. He had become so adept with his telepathy that he could implant thoughts directly into someone’s head, like he was always able to with his music. His friends were safe from his control, but they were a happy few. He had become the perfect vigilante, controlling coup d’états from behind the scenes, replacing corrupt government officials with honest men, and finding both groups with perfect accuracy. One of these days, he would take control of things himself, but until that day he was perfectly content with strolling the countryside, playing his music at the local tavern.

Everything finally comes together at Bard 10/Psibond Agent 8/Spellthief 1/Mindbender 1. Out to 100 feet, he can communicate with anything that has a language, use their senses, falsify said senses, implant suggestions both mundane and magical, and sense their emotions. Full caster level, up to 4th level spells, can take up to 6th level spells with a sneak attack. If carried into epic levels, the last two levels of Psibond Agent allow him to dominate anyone, and eight more bard levels would give him improved spell-casting.

Final Build

Lárus
Male Human Bard 10/Spellthief 1/Mindbender 1/Psibond Agent 8
CG Medium Humanoid (Human)
Init. +5
Languages: Common, Quori, Draconic
AC 15; Touch 11; Flat-Footed 14
HP 18d6+1d4+46 (112)
Saves: Fort +9 Ref+14 Will+26
Speed 30 ft (6 squares)
Atk Options Sneak Attack +3d6, Steal Spell (6th, max 12 levels)
Special Actions: Psibond (DC 31) (sense link, nudge, empathy, suggestion [DC 26], false sensory input), Bardic Music, Bardic Knowledge
Bard Spells Known (3/7/6/6/5 per day, DC mod 23):
0th: Detect Magic, Message, Prestidigitation, Read Magic, Mage Hand, Light
1st: Charm Person, Silent Image, Improvisation, Feather Fall
2nd: Invisibility, Sonorous Hum, Detect Thoughts, Enthrall
3rd: Glibness, Dispel Magic, Charm Monster, Sculpt Sound
4th: Dominate Person, Ruin Delver’s Fortune, Modify Memory

Abilities: 8 Str, 12 Dex, 14 Con, 14 Int, 8 Wis, 36 Cha
Gear: Cloak of Charisma +6, Tome of Leadership and Influence +5 (used), Ioun Stone (+2 Cha), Robe of Arcane might, other suggested gear listed in level progression.
SQ: Telepathy, Trapfinding, Lingering Psibond, Double Psibond

Final Notes:
With a strong case of SAD in terms of Charisma, Diplomancy is a viable tactic, unbalanced as it may be.

At low levels, make full use of Combined Talent. Remember, Speak Language is a skill. Your party will basically share one giant pool of known languages to a small extent. It’s great for passing off messages.

For the Ring of Spell Storing, I would suggest keeping Ruin Delver’s Fortune and Feather Fall stored at all times. You never know when you’ll need those. Alternatively, if you steal a spell that you want to keep for later, then just put it in the ring. If you have the cash, a Ring of Greater Spell Storing is a good investment at later levels.

False Sensory input is good in general. No save, no detection, can foil tremorsense, foil true seeing, and it can even screw with scent. True seeing takes a bit more effort, but it could be worked around by making your buddy look like a cloud of smoke. Depending on your DM, you might even be able to make your enemy feel searing, unbearable pain from a touch.

By RAW, you can have more than one Psibond at a time. With Swift Concentration, Lingering Psibond, and Double Psibond, you can maintain up to 4 Psibonds at a time and still use the abilities. 2 Double Psibonds only demand your concentration every other turn each. With Swift Concentration, maintaining said concentration takes a swift action, allowing you to do other things. If you want to use an ability, you just use a standard action to concentrate that turn instead.

[Heliomance]

She's just the average woman on the street. She's that one, as well.And that one. Last but not least, may I present:


This entry assumes the Eberron Campaign Setting. The only element of Eberron used in the game mechanics is the race (Changeling). The rest, such as city and country names, is flavor.

Alyx Karmen (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=196751) was born on the streets of Sharn to a lower middle-class family. Graced with exceptional interpersonal skills, Alyx quickly learned that she could use her natural talents along with some more mundane trickery to fool many people into allowing her wherever she wanted to go. Naturally, this lead her into the life of a spy, working at first for various criminal organizations in Sharn until she was caught by the Sharn Watch. Recognizing the usefulness of her talents, they offered her immunity for her past indiscretions, as well as an impressive income, if she would work with the Watch. Since Alyx had been working as, essentially, a mercenary for the criminal world, she had no problems with this arrangment. Ever since, Alyx has been enhancing her skills and tricks, and is now one of the best spies in Khorvaire, although few outside of the leadership of Sharn know of her exploits.

Alyx has 3 cover identities currently in use:
- Devrim, the butcher's apprentice: Devrim is a young man who work part-time in a butcher's shop called Sal's Meats just south of Cliffside. Devrim often runs errands for his master Trystan throughout the city.
- Sandrine Poornima, a member of the minor noble house of Poornima in Aundair: Sandrine serves as the family ambassador to Sharn. While only a minor noble house in Aundair, Sandrine has quite the reputation as a gracious guest (and host, from time to time) and is often given invitations to many of the events of the elite in Sharn.
- Latifah Kaede, a special investigator for the Sharn Watch: Latifah is known to be an expert in tracking down those who don't wish to be found. This is the only cover identity known to the city officials of Sharn, and is only called upon by the city when no other investigators will do, due to the high rate Latifah charges (beyond what she receives for being on retainer for the city).

Alyx uses these identities, and others that are used as one-time disguises for short-term missions, to provide herself with an enormous amount of leeway within and near the city of Sharn. She uses her mental influence from her training as a Psybond Agent to limit the amount others remember of her (it's much harder for people to identify you when the 3 prime witnesses all saw different people in front of them).

Over time using her skills, Alyx has developed the ability to recover elegantly from a blunder in her words or actions [represented by skill tricks].

Playing Alyx: Alyx is designed to be an ideal character for an investigative campaign, with the ability to get into and out of anywhere she wants without a hassle. While she may be seen, no one minds her being there if she's just one of the guards at the compound, for example. She avoids combat if at all possible, since she does not have much combat prowess to speak of.

Other gear: Alyx relies primarily on her Minor Change Shape racial ability for her disguises, but has acquired a large number of items, both magical and mundane, that enhance her cover identities and persuasive abilities [Charisma and skills]. As such, there are very few items that are legitimately "required" and so much of her wealth is available to be assigned as necessary for the campaign and what is available. Alyx focuses on her deceptive abilities when picking her gear, and so any armor or weapons she has are likely to be easily disguised - Glamered armor, and some way to shrink or otherwise hide her weapons (such as a Glove of Storing).

Psybond Agent abilities: Alyx uses these abilities primarily to enhance her spying ability - altering her appearance to 1-2 of the guards (using the False Sensory Input ability) makes it hard to identify her later; Nudge and, if necessary, Suggestion allow Alyx to give her victims that extra nudge (pun very intended) needed to buy her story; Empathy has obvious uses when your primary weapons are Bluff and Diplomacy; and Forced Sense Link means that Alyx can limit where she needs to go by doing her spying through her Psibonded victim (using Nudge and False Sensory Input if necessary to examine something more closely).
Spymaster abilities: These are fairly straightforward for a character who uses disguises heavily, so I won't belabor the point here beyond reminding any potential users of the power of Nystul's Magic Aura for this type of character.

Author's notes: When I first read this class, it was the False Sensory Input ability that first caught my eye. As such, I was influenced fairly early to make a spy-type character for this challenge. Based on that, the capstone ability of Psybond Agent was less interesting to the concept than the capstone ability of the Spymaster class from Complete Adventurer (a class which is fairly obviously designed for this type of character). From there, it was a fairly straightforward process to build this into the character presented here. While I would have liked to present Alyx at a variety of levels (5, 10, and 15 being the obvious choices), I was pressured for time this week and was therefore only able to produce a character sheet for her at level 20. Thank you for reading!

[arguskos]

Ok, we've got five builds here. I'll get to rating shortly, and will probably be done this evening or tomorrow sometime. What's my deadline for rating, and how should I announce the scores? Publicly?

As a note, to those five that entered, I am very impressed with the complexity and skill these characters are formed with. They all have something that made me go "oooh, clever!" on first glance, meaning you can all expect good scores from me. :smallwink:

[Heliomance]

Deadline for rating is whenever it's collectively decided that it doesn't look like any more judges are gonna show, or when all judges have given a verdict :P

And yes, post the results publicly.

[Grynning]

Wow, that's a lot to read :smalltongue:
Even so - are these 5 builds all we got out of the 26 people who signed up? Just want to know before I start posting results.

[arguskos]

Bam! Judging hits!

Cy, the Half-Elf Agent
Originality: 4. The backstory is heavily detailed and very well put. Your build works out great as well, and is creative with your use of Warlock and Mountebank, both of which I didn't connect with Psibond Agent at all.
Power: 3.5. Now, this is because poor Cy basically gets rolled in actual combat. Cy's arena is outside of actual battle, but you can't stay out of it forever, meaning Cy will eventually be tied down and slaughtered by a superior opponent. Given, you will hopefully have thralls, but that doesn't always happen. This is a common theme with many of these entries: lack of decent things to do in combat (no, UMD does not count entirely).
Elegance: 5. Cy is absolutely excellently executed. The build is polished and smooth, the fluff is clean, the build is almost the definition of elegance in optimization. The only flaw I see is the use of Psibond Agent (see below).
Use of Secret Ingredient: 3. Now, don't get me wrong, I really liked your build. However, you entered Psibond at level 10. While it IS dominant in the build, it's still a late entry, meaning I'm fairly disappointed.

Final Verdict: 3.875, round up to 4 or so. Cy is a solid build I'd be happy to play in a social-heavy level 11+ game. For the late game, it really comes into its own, and it's a good way to showcase Psibond Agent. :smallcool:

Lirea, the Dark Dancer
Originality: 4.5. Like Cy, Lirea is really a fun and interesting build. The idea of making a Paimon-focused Psibond Agent really appeals to me in a lot of ways, and I feel you should be commended for making something that has some real combat potential. Further, your use of Cloaked Dancer was clever. I rarely see (or even think about) that PrC, and this is a good use of it.
Power: 4. I personally like Lirea's power level. It's in the range I shoot for myself, with some op'd stuff across the board, while not ignoring other areas. You aren't as skilled in the social skills as some of the other entries, but I think that you are still solid enough to do anything you need to, which is a good mark. Breadth with power, that's a good place to be.
Elegance: 3.5. This build is not as elegant as I'd like. The fluff feels a little tacked on and forced (though the last bit, with the assassinations, is clever), and the use of two levels of Marshal seems a bit like a waste.
Use of Secret Ingredient: 5. You hit Psibond on schedule at 7, and I LOVE THAT. I means I can be a PsiAgent ASAP, which says to me you said "hey, PsiAg is the main focus, let's get into it ASAP!" I like that.

Final Verdict: 4.25. Lirea is a great build, using one of my favorite classes as a key piece of the build (Binder), has an excellent use of PsiAg, and is well rounded. I would be happy to play this build.

Hugo Clopin, King of the Court of Miracles!
Originality: 3. This is much more of a typical build like I was expecting (and hoping not to see). I do like the use of Magical Trickster on the end, but I generally feel that the build itself is kinda bleh.
Power: 4. Hugo is powerful. 4th level spells, PsiAg with good DCs, lots of tricks. Nothing to complain about here.
Elegance: 4. The build, while expected, is still very slick and well done. Lots of thought was put into tactics, build order, feat selection, and similar things. It is a textbook case of optimization not inhibiting tactics and elegance. In fact, I might be saving Hugo to show friends what a strong build SHOULD look like.
Use of Secret Ingredient: 4. You hit it at 7, and make great use of it. That's really good, but I was hoping to see an earlier entry (see Lirea for a great entry). However, it's still solid.

Final Verdict: 3.75. Hugo is a good build, strong tactics, but plays it safe. It's a standard "safe" build, one I'd recommend to a less-adventurous player. I'd also suggest it to a DM who was less willing to admit more adventurous material, such as the Binder or something more exotic.

Lárus, The Puppetmaster
Originality: 3.5. I wasn't really expecting a Bard build, but then again, looking back on it, PsiAg really does reward Bards. It's not really the most creative build ever (being simple to make and being fairly obvious in hindsight), but it works well enough I guess. The fluff is better than I was expecting, and feels sorta like you wrote it, then worked out a character, which I like.
Power: 3. Larus is a bard, with psychic powers. Not sure how that COULD go wrong, and it obviously didn't. However, there are other, better, things to do with your build than take ten levels of Bard, and it hurts your power.
Elegance: 2.5. Bard 10 is ugly and feels very brute-forced. I was hoping to see something more smooth and streamlined, especially when Bard 10 doesn't really GIVE you anything. Further, the build doesn't really come together until level FIFTEEN (in your own words), which is really disappointing. I was hoping for something that would be playable sooner. Before then, he's a bard sure, but still, nothing notable.
Use of Secret Ingredient: 3. You get your first level of PsiAg at level 10, which is again, disappointing. I like early entries so I can play as the Secret Ingredient ASAP.

Final Verdict: 3. Larus is a solid entry, but Bard 10 REALLY tanks it in so many ways. The use of PsiAg wasn't really revolutionary, and Larus doesn't pack the punch that some of the others have. Overall, a good entry to the contest, but I was hoping for something more... revolutionary, I guess.

Alyx Karmen
Originality: 3.5. I was expecting a Rogue-entry. However, I wasn't expecting Spymaster. That's a fairly interesting twist. However, Rogue 5 is kinda boring. It works though, I'll give you that.
Power: 3. Given that you didn't bother to complete your gear, which is disappointing, I can't really judge this amazingly well (gear has a HUGE impact on power). I'd ballpark that you're going to be a good social character, and useless elsewhere. Just like Cy, I mark down for that, since it means you'll die if you get cornered without an out.
Elegance: 3.5. Rogue 5 is a good entry, but I feel like more could have been done to capitalize on PsiAg than Rogue offers. However, you get .5 for using Spymaster at all (brave, brave soul that you are).
Use of Secret Ingredient: 2. You didn't even finish the class. That feels very much like a lack of caring, which is sad to me.

Final Verdict: 3. Alyx has some good ideas, and the fluff/tactics section is very detailed, which says to me that you had some great ideas, and didn't finish for lack of time. That, while regrettable, is understandable. However, and this is a HUGE pet peeve, you didn't bother to post your character into the PM, and made me click through to Myth-Weavers. That's... aggravating. I can't mark you down for it, since you were permitted to do so, but it annoys me. :smallyuk:

Final Winner (in my eyes): Lirea, the Dark Dancer. Lirea is a great case of broad-spectrum optimization with a few heavy focused areas, and she can still play nice with the party. The build was smooth, the fluff was decent enough, and the use of PsiAg was creative and fresh. Overall, I really liked Lirea, and feel the maker (you know who you are) should be commended. Course, that's just me.

Final Judging Notes: No matter what I may have said above, I'd like to point out that each of you made something great. You had limited time, were making something for the PUBLIC to judge, and still came through and made something. Even if I didn't like it or said something you disagreed with, I'd hope that you understand that I appreciate the effort and time you gave to this contest. I hope to see more from each of you in the contests Heliomance will undoubtably run in the future. :smallwink:

[Tehnar]

Damn, I'm late. The builds look very interesting thought. I was going to go a more classic Rogue 5/Spymaster 1/Psibond Agent 10/Hellbreaker 4, but I guess time was too tight for me this week. If you wish I can present a more detailed concept for view, as a exhibition outside the contest.

I wish good luck to all participants, and if you need more judges I can step in.

[arguskos]

Damn, I'm late. The builds look very interesting thought. I was going to go a more classic Rogue 5/Spymaster 1/Psibond Agent 10/Hellbreaker 4, but I guess time was too tight for me this week. If you wish I can present a more detailed concept for view, as a exhibition outside the contest.

I wish good luck to all participants, and if you need more judges I can step in.
Dude, you were entering Hellbreaker? Damn! I'd have loved to see that sort of unorthodox use of PsiAg.

[Escheton]

its saturday already?
ow oops too late.
had lurk2/paladin of tyranny3/psibond10/ebon saint 5 myself...

[arguskos]

its saturday already?
ow oops too late.
had lurk2/paladin of tyranny3/psibond10/ebon saint 5 myself...
...wow. That'd have been something to see. :smalleek: What's the source on Ebon Saint though? I don't know that one.

[Tehnar]

Hellbreaker and Psibond Agent have great synergy. Ill do a writeup then.

[Grynning]

Cy, the Half-Elf Agent
Originality: 4
At its core, this is a Cha-based diplomancer/skill monkey, with a few standard tricks (binder/marshal dips, heritage feats, etc.), but the use of Warlock and Mountebank came out of left field for me. I would never have come up with this one on my own, that's for sure.
Power: 3.5
Decent versatility; UMD, high Bluff and Diplomacy means that this character will be able to solve a lot of problems for their party. Also, this character is very playable at all levels, which I like a lot. Not terribly useful when it comes to making the bad things fall down, but will provide a lot of alternatives to physical confrontation, especially in the types of urban and intrigue campaigns you'd expect to see this character run.
Elegance: 4
As far as mechanics go, it's solid and comes together nicely, though I have to deduct a bit for the dip heavy front end of the levels. I liked how the back story was woven together at the beginning (even though I don't personally care too much for the somewhat dark origin story), it kinda petered out at the end and got a bit more generic. There was a lot of emphasis on her entry classes, and not a lot of explanation or story background for the Psibond Agent part of the build.
Use of Secret Ingredient: 3.5
Used all 10 levels of the class, for one, and also built a solid support structure for it for the entry. The only reason this isn't a 4 is that a lot of this character's strength comes purely from skills, abilities gleaned from the early classes and feats.
Overall Score: 15. Average score: 3.75

Lirea, the Dark Dancer
Originality: 4
Wow. What a neat character...an assassin who LIKES a big audience. Cloaked Dancer was the last thing I would expect to see in this competition; doesn't really come to mind when you think of the words "Psi," "bond," or "agent." I was a bit disappointed to see Binder/Marshal again, but the twist was enough to bump this up.
Power: 4
Does exactly what she's meant to do - function as a great social scoundrel and assassin. Good sneak attack, plenty of enemy hosing capability - it's definitely something I'd feel useful playing. I also like that it's a rogue"ish" character who is enough of a specialist to leave room in the party for other rogues.
Elegance: 3.5
My only real beef with the build is the binder levels, they just don't really fit with the character's style IMO. I know that Paimon works nicely flavor-wise, but I just would have liked to have seen something different, can't put my finger on it. The rest of the build is great, and the description of her tactics and the framing device were fun to read. You got a .5 bonus from me for working in a cool hook for the Master of Masks dip, even though the level was really just used as an entry trick.
Use of the Secret Ingredient: 5
This I can't fault you on at all. I LOVE the idea of using Psibond on a crowd the way you described it, you really made that class feature work for this character. You really got the most out of the PrC and made it fun.
Overall Score: 16.5 Average Score: 4.125

Hugo Clopin, King of the Court of Miracles
Originality: 3.5
I wasn't sure if we'd see an arcane caster in here, but I figured Beguiler with a Mindbender dip would be the way to go. The quick dip in Psionic Assassin to qualify for Psibond Agent was a pretty obvious move from there. I did like the use of skill tricks and the splash of Magical Trickster; nice use of some underrated options to spice up the build.
Power: 4.5
With spells, skill tricks, SA and some combat ability, Hugo has plenty of options in any situation. He would definitely be an asset to any tier 3-4 party.
Elegance: 3.5
The backstory and concept was kind of weak, IMO, could have used a bit more of an origin story. Mechanically, there are a lot of disparate abilities being tossed together to make this work. This build is a bit like a cobb salad; lots of ingredients, and tasty, but a bit heavy and kind of moving away from what a "salad" should be. Also, nothing in the build really answers the question of WHY you would not just continue as a caster.
Use of the Secret Ingredient: 4
Utilizes Psibond to its full potential, and gets into the PrC early to make sure it's there for most of the character's career. However, with spells in the mix there's plenty of other ways for this character to pull off the same tricks, so it feels a bit tacked on.
Overall Score: 15.5 Average Score: 3.875

Lárus, The Puppetmaster
Originality: 3
Bard is the archetypal skillmonkey/social class, and a spellthief dip is the same method the example character in the book uses to enter the PrC. Not bad, but not amazing. I would have much rather seen a build that was heavier on spellthief, honestly, it's an underused class.
Power: 3
Bard spells are useful, and like the other builds we've seen so far, Lárus is a great party face. However, he takes longer to come into his own, and is pretty limited in combat. Could have definitely used a bit more optimization to help out the group in more situations - relying on basic bardic music for the first half of your career won't cut it at some tables.
Elegance: 3
The build is fairly vanilla, as are the feat choices. As mentioned above, the character takes a while to become unique, and won't be that interesting to play for a while. The backstory was pretty well done, but I didn't feel that the mechanical abilities of the character synced up to it very well. I liked the idea of using Psibond to help you steal spells, but you didn't follow through with it enough.
Use of the Secret Ingredient: 2.5
Takes 9 levels to get to Psibond Agent, and doesn't finish it. This means that for a lot of this character's life, they're not a Psibond Agent - and c'mon, did we really need that many bard levels?
Overall Score: 11.5 Average Score: 2.875

Alyx Karmen
Originality: 3
I love changelings, and they are a natural fit for this kind of character. Straight Rogue entry to Psibond Agent is a bit boring, but cool use of the other "spy" class in the build.
Power: 2.5
I know this a skillmonkey character, but having no combat ability at all really constrains the types of games and groups where you could use this character. Also, there's a lot more optimization that can be done with a changeling rogue with these PrC's; this is a low tier 4/high tier 5 character at best. The feat choices, especially, were pretty weak, and IIRC the changeling rogue substitution levels are good, why weren't they used?
Elegance: 3.5
Decent backstory, and a simple build that doesn't take any twists and turns. However, the character sheet feels a little incomplete. I understand that you were under a time constraint, but we really could have used some more detail, it would have helped your score here.
Use of the Secret Ingredient: 3
Doesn't finish out the class or really spend a lot of time on creating good support for its abilities. However, the score remains a 3 because in this case, Psibond Agent isn't overshadowed by anything else in the build.
Overall Score: 12 Average Score: 3

Final thoughts: By no means were any of these characters bad, and I applaud the efforts of all the contestants. I feel good that I didn't have to give out any score lower than a 2.5. I won't declare my own pick for a winner; although Lirea got the highest score from me, I can easily see other judges having very different takes on these characters, so it's still anyone's game. Thanks very much for accepting my humble judgments in this contest, and happy gaming to all!

[FishAreWet]

Son of a... I finished my build four days ago but never sent it in. Then had dinner with my sister tonight :smallfurious::smallfrown:. For anyone who wants to see it, here it is. Obviously not expecting entry but would appreciate a judge's response.


GHOST PSIBOND
Danny & Rusty (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=195977)

Changeling Rogue 1/ Psion (Shaper) 7/ Black Dog 2/ Psibond 8 / Ghost 2


Ability Score breakdown: (8,12,8,17,10,17)
+1 to Cha at level 4
+3 to Int at levels 8, 12 and 16
+2 to Cha from Ghost 2
+6 to Cha and Int from items
+4 to Int from tome

Level 20 stats
(8, 12, –, 30, 10, 26)

Feat Breakdown:
1st: Able Learner
3rd: Knowledge Devotion
Psion 1: Psicrystal Affinity
6th: Racial Emulation
Psion 5: Personal Contruct
9th: Least Dragonmark (Hospitality)
12th: Ability Focus (Psibond)
15th: MAIMING STRIKE
18th: Dark Stalker

Skill Points=261

Psicrystal Feats:
1st: Hidden Talent
3rd: Practiced Manifester
6th: Metamorphic Transfer

What it does at level 5:
Poisons poisons poisons. You use your Psionic abilities to create poison (Minor Creation!) and you use them to assassinate. You have plenty of skills too.

Who it is at level 5:
Born a Changeling in Eberron, you are an enigma. But the Halflings accept you. But you don't spend much time in Talenta. You travel the world, see the sights. And take any jobs that come your way, especially assassinations and infiltrations.


What it does at level 10:
Your assassination skills get kicked up a notch. The Black Dog abilities augment your ability to deliver poisons. You now hide in plain sight, and 'Dhurinda’s Trick'ing poisons you Create into place. By now your Knowledge Devotion has picked up and your poisons have an extra kick to them. If combat is about to go down you're ready with a sneak attack. And with those vials containing a couple hundred doses of poison to throw at someone.

Who it is at level 10:
Your skills have been noticed. You are approached by a Black Dog while you're in Talenta. He makes you an offer to join, under the condition that you accept no outside jobs. While here, you gain a sense of superiority. You realize how strong of an assassin you are, you get cocky. But you're not evil. You have a code you live by.


What it does at level 15:
Not only are have your assassination skills gotten better, but your Psibond abilities allow you to scout perfectly. And a combination of your powers and Nudge, you can set up situations with ease. Need the get the corrupt mayor to go somewhere dark and alone? You “Create/Control Sound” the question, then Nudge his answer. Need to make sure he takes a drink from the correct glass of wine? My my, that's easy.
By this point you can afford a Skin of Proteus. Not for yourself, that would be dangerous. But for your Psicrystal. You act as a team to propose questions to the target, and Nudge answers. By detecting surface thoughts you are even better able to create a situation where the target doesn't realize what is happening.
The powers Create Sound, Control Sound, Control Light, Matter Agitation, Far Hand, Astral Construct, Minor Creation, Time Hop and Solicit Psicrystal are all great powers to control the environment around you.
And here is the best part. Almost none of this in Mind-Affecting! Nudge nor Psibond mention it, therefore are not. Forced Sensed Link is the only Mind-Affecting thing in the bunch. That's right, you can read the surface thoughts of a Vampire. Or a wizard with Mind Blank.

Who it is at level 15:
You've managed to integrate your psionic knack into your job. You are top dog at the Black Dogs. No one knows what you truly look like, and few know your name. You are a constatly shifting humanoid who is never alone. Your psicrystal is always by your side, doing what he can to help. If that means he's a horse to ride around, then he's a horse. Or he's a Giant Eagle if you gotta fly. Or a Stone Flyer(Unapproachable East) if you gotta Earth Glide. You get the point.
At level 15 in Eberron, you're the big daddy of assassinations. You are a force to be reckoned with. You take down nations. As the head of the Black Dogs you've taken an oath to protect the weak. But you're still conceited. You're constant assassinations have slowly shifted you from the wide eyed do gooder to a stone cold LE spy bastard. You're protecting the good, but at what cost?


What it does at level 20:
You're a ghost! Ahhhh! Now you're hard as **** to find. You have bought a Skin of Proteus for yourself, but it's rarely used because you spend most jobs hidden in the walls. You're Psicrystal does all the talking for you, and you follow around, Psibonding all day. You basically follow the same pattern as you did at level 15 to kill anyone ever.

“But what about people immune to poison?”
Good question. You have Telekinesis once every 1d4 rounds at CL 20. And at will at CL 10. You kill these targets with Death Attacks delivered through Violent Thrust*. You have a Portable Hole full of Heavy greatswords(they're coated with poison just in case). You're Death Attack DC is Fort 32. Nothing to write home about, but having to make it 15 times at once is pretty hard. If they're immune to death affects? Paralyze then coup de grace. Immune to Paralyze? Blasting with Telekinesis is surprisingly strong. Fifteen Heavy Greatswords + Knowledge Affiliation comes to a +37 with 15*((4d6 greatsword) + 5(Knowledge Affiliation) + 3d6(Sneak Attack))= ~590 damage. You can also choose to do Charisma damage with your Sneak Attacks. Leaving you at 15*((4d6(greatsword) + 1d6(Sneak Attack) + 5 (Knowledge Devotion) + 1 Charisma(sacrificing 2 sneak attack)) = ~337 damage + 15 Charisma damage. But you save that for when you must make the kill.
Oh, and the Skins of Proteus on you and your Psicrystal can turn you into some pretty formidable combat forms. And even better running away forms.

Who you are at level 20:
You're a ghost! Ahhhh! What happened? You were at the top of the game and people didn't want you there. You got in too deep in a job and things got hairy. You where killed in the line of duty. But the oath the made was not fulfilled. And you will live on as a ghost until the weak are protected. You partners in the secret society went to great lengths to retrieve your body. They did their best to not look at your true form, and requested the society's wizards to Modify Memory the sight away, because they knew that'd what you would've wanted. They brought your body and all of your equipment, including your Psicrystal to a final resting place. You're body can be found buried under stone in the building of the secret society.
You spend your days doing the best you can to protect the weak. Don't worry, you're not some silly Level 1 Paladin. You're a key player in the game of interplanar chess. You make targets out of Tarrasques and preform hits on families of Balors.

*Death Attack per Black Dog requires “you study a victim for 3 rounds and then make a sneak attack with a melee weapon that successfully deals damage.” Violent Thrust may not be a Melee Attack but it is definitely an attack with a melee weapon.

Sources

Ghost: http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/sp/20040117a
Please note: “"Ghost" is an acquired template usually gained upon an intelligent creature's death. Such a creature can advance in the ghost template class and develop her powers slowly if desired.”
Psibond: Complete Scoundrel
Black Dog: Dragonmarked
Personal Construct**: http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/psm/20070411a

Thoughts on the class:
It wasn't as bad as it looked. Once I realized the synergy between Nudge and False Sensory Input, it all started to come together. What you have in this prestige class is the ability to set up situations very well. And people don't realize it's happening. Nudge gives you the ability to control reactions. False Sensory Input gives you the ability to create actions. The synergy between these two abilities is why this prestige class is rather good.
These powers are what lead me to assassinations. Then I had to think, “What is sneaky?” and that's a simple answer. Ghosts! Now, I've setup the situation without being scene, how do I go in for the kill? Enter Black Dog and Psion. Black Dog lets you play with poisons, and Death Attack. Psion gives you insane amounts of poison per day. And Telekinesis from the Ghost seals the deal. Maiming Strike comes in late game and gives the build the extra umph it needs to really get the kill.* But we know that damage isn't how combat is won. And hopefully, this character doesn't see true combat. It's built for the one hit kill.
The addition of the Psicrystal was a last minute choice. It is abusable but it's not used for those purposes for this character. But it does give is an even simpler way to create actions. It allows for “False Sensory Input” type operations, without having a second target Psibonded. And doesn't rely on them not being Immune to Mind Affecting. It also adds some nice flair to the character. Always having the exact creature or item he needs at all times... And once he becomes a Ghost is replaces his body!


*One issue with assassins in DnD is that they look overpowered because they can do insane damage. But they're situational. Looking at my 400 damage + 30 Cha damage + (30d6 +75) Con damage and 15 Fort DC 32 saves or dies, that sounds straight cheesy, right? It's really not. For one, it's only once every d4 rounds. And it takes about 10 minutes to setup the poison creation and apply it to each sword. And I have to catch the target by surprise after watching him for 3 rounds. There is redundancy in the kill. Very few things will survive that much Con damage or Cha damage. But people have immunities. As said above, it's designed around a one hit kill concept. It is for that reason that I feel it should not fall in the valley between CO and TO.

High powered options which I ignored for the sake of Elegance, Flavor, and overshadowing The Psibond Agent.
-Half Fey bought off would go a long way in improving power. All those SLAs are sexy.
-SPELL TO POWER ERUDITE. Getting Silent Image as a first level power. And other things.


Final thoughts:
I worried a lot about the significance that Psibond Agent has in this build. I worried that although I take 8 levels, the power is in spite of the class, instead of using it. Then I began to write out my explanation. And I realized something, although Psibond Agent doesn't directly contribute power, it is the glue that holds the build together. Both mechanically and thematically. Nudge is a unique effect that shouldn't be underestimated.
This is a surprisingly strong PrC for anyone in a 'social' style game. Once combat starts, unless you optimized in spite of Psibond, you aren't much use. But Psibonds power is to stop combat. Or at least set it up on his own terms.
But there is a downside to the PrC. DM fiat. Much like Silent Image and it's kin, it's hard to tell what is exactly allowed with the powers. What exactly counts as “obvious danger” and how far can we really push Nudge?

[Grynning]

That's certainly a cool build, Fish, too bad we didn't get to see it in competition. Just a quick "judgment" from me at a glance:
Originality: 4
Psion entry to PsiBond Agent is actually a lot more difficult than it looks, especially since you know you're giving up your delicious manifesting. Also, you get points for using a class I had literally never heard of (Black Dog). Also I like that the character is dead for the last couple levels, even though there was a ghost in the last contest.
Power: 4.5
Decent use of the class abilities all around. Shapers always have some good stuff to bring to the table, and you made sure you didn't lose too much from the PrC. You certainly have plenty of kill capability.
Elegance: 3
I think relying on your psicrystal too much is a bit cheesy, as are some of the other tricks and options used. Also one of those builds that tacks on only the good stuff from several different books.
Use of the Secret Ingredient: 3.5
Works it nicely into the flavor and combat tactics. Gets into it a little late and only takes 8 levels, but that's to work in the Ghost gimmick.
Overall Score: 15, Average Score: 3.75

[arguskos]

Damn Fish, I was curious to see what of the above stuff was yours. Anyways, quick glance at your "entry".

Originality: 4.5. I really didn't expect a Psion entry, since, well, it's actually discouraged by the class! Further, you used Black Dog (which I've never even heard of), and so you score big points here.
Power: 4.5. You have some VERY powerful tricks, you've got Psionics, which are always nice, and you really have some great social abilities. It's a strong character.
Elegance: 3. I... it feels forced. It's hard to explain, but I look at it and say "well, there's a REASON no one enters as a psion." The build isn't lacking for power, but it doesn't make a huge amount of sense as a build. Further, as Grynning points out, relying on your psicrystal so much isn't very pretty to deal with. It makes it seem like you're not really the star, your psicrystal is (even though that's not the case).
Use of the Secret Ingredient: 3. Even though you say that PsiAg is the glue that holds it together, you could have dipped for Nudge. You don't need to take 8 levels to get it, just 2. It feels like you wanted Nudge, saw that you'd probably be graded down if you took only two levels, and added more. That said, you do make a good use of the rest of PsiAg, but it's NOT the star here, and I think that hurts the build.

Final Verdict: 3.75. It's a hella interesting build, and totally left-field, but I feel like it's too emblematic of the negative stereotypes that plague charop: schizophrenic, cherry-picking powerful stuff, use of online-only material that is hard to get past DMs, etc. I'm not saying I agree with these stereotypes, only that your build really does showcase some of them, and thus has too many issues for me to claim it's a really exemplar build for PsiAg.

However, I was really pleased to see it. It's a damn unique and unexpected contribution, and I'm sad it didn't get submitted on time.

[FishAreWet]

Aha, me too. The reason for 8 levels in Psibond is for Double Bond, Lingering Bond, and False Sensory Input. FSI is really strong with no save.

And thank you both for giving your input even though it's non-official. Much appreciated. :smallredface:

[Akal Saris]

I like your build, Fish. My only comment would be that after going in for two levels, you need 2 more levels of Black Dog for empower poison. You only need 1 level of shaper for minor creation anyhow :P

A big thank-you to the 2 judges who have provided such detailed critiques of the builds presented, by the way. Everyone put a lot of effort into making the characters, so it's a big help to have the careful responses.

If anything, I think this challenge was a bit more successful than the previous one: I think we've seen a real variety of interesting approaches to the psibond agent that I never would have thought of simply by glancing at the PrC.

[FishAreWet]

I like your build, Fish. My only comment would be that after going in for two levels, you need 2 more levels of Black Dog for empower poison. You only need 1 level of shaper for minor creation anyhow :P The extra level in Shaper hits 4th level powers, and that's a large jump in power. And honestly, Empower poison isn't that great because of the action it requires. Shaper combined with Ghost is great because of it's ability to spam poisons. DCs don't really matter at that point. :smallamused:

And yes, if you made the connection, this is what I was asking about in your Handbook.

[Escheton]

...wow. That'd have been something to see. :smalleek: What's the source on Ebon Saint though? I don't know that one.

complete psionics, same as lurk, so I figured it would be a pretty obvious one seeing that class is actually mentioned in the psibond discription
works great together really.
I'll post it over the weekend, as I havent bothered finishing yet with being late and all.

[arguskos]

Aha, me too. The reason for 8 levels in Psibond is for Double Bond, Lingering Bond, and False Sensory Input. FSI is really strong with no save.

And thank you both for giving your input even though it's non-official. Much appreciated. :smallredface:
Eh, I still think that your build loves Nudge more than anything else, and FSI is just icing on the cake.

As for the input, sure! I'm actually hoping I can judge next contest as well, since I had an excellent time on this one.

[FishAreWet]

I'm disappointed that more builds did not focus on Nudge. It's a no-SR no-save non-Mind-Affecting enchantment effect. Yeah, you cannot present ideas with Nudge, but False Sensory Input seems designed to do just that! Or having a buddy help you out. :smalltongue:

[rogueboy]

Unrelated to this contest, at least to the results, are there any plans for a ICOC3 any time soon? I enjoy making builds using odd classes/feats/etc :smallbiggrin:

[arguskos]

Unrelated to this contest, at least to the results, are there any plans for a ICOC3 any time soon? I enjoy making builds using odd classes/feats/etc :smallbiggrin:
I'm betting Heliomance will pull one together once this one is over. On that note, we need to hear from the other three judges.

[Akal Saris]

The extra level in Shaper hits 4th level powers, and that's a large jump in power. And honestly, Empower poison isn't that great because of the action it requires. Shaper combined with Ghost is great because of it's ability to spam poisons. DCs don't really matter at that point. :smallamused:

And yes, if you made the connection, this is what I was asking about in your Handbook.

I actually don't remember the question, but I'll take your word for it. Do you mind if I post your build (or a link to it) in the handbook, and credit you for it though?

[Private-Prinny]

I'm scoring higher than where I thought I would. The builds seem to be ranging from good to great. I didn't expect there to be no bad options for this challenge.

[Grynning]

well, we still have 2 judges to go. Hopefully they jump on and get some rankings in soon, I'm as excited about finding out the winner as anyone!

[arguskos]

well, we still have 2 judges to go. Hopefully they jump on and get some rankings in soon, I'm as excited about finding out the winner as anyone!
Three. There are five judges, and only you and I have thrown down.

[arguskos]

Totally a crappy double-post, but has anyone informed Shneekey, Brendan, and Vulaas that we are awaiting their thoughts?

[ShneekeyTheLost]

First off, I would like to thank all of our contestants. You all did an outstanding job with your efforts, and should be applauded. Considering how many people threw their hats into the ring, only having five entries to judge was rather a letdown. So let's give a big hand to everyone who followed through and submitted an entry!

I apologize for the lateness of my post, RL work played a nefarious part in my inability to post before now.

Cy, the Half-Elf Agent

Originality: 4
You use a blend of almost never used classes to devastating effect. Mountebank is perfect for this build, Warlock to further a Skillmonkey build, and Marshal as well. This is an exceedingly original build, which I give mad props for. The only reason why this build is a 4 rather than a 5 is due to Diplomancy Cheese, which everyone knows about.

Power: 3
Diplomancy cheese would normally make this build a Power 4-5, but she has absolutely no way to survive a combat scene once combat has actually started, so it's a 3. I mean, you explicitly min/max UMD, but then have absolutely NOTHING it is used on. I'd have expected a HUGE list of 'bag of tricks' with UMDables used to get out of combat, or at least end it quickly. More 'get out of combat' cards would have significantly affected this score.

Elegance: 3
Elegance took a big hit due to Diplomancy Cheese. One of the things that was clearly stated was the use of commonly known cheese was not good. Use of Natural Talent for Attraction can only be used ONCE per day, and if he does, ALL effects of the Psibond Class go away, because you need PP to be Psionically focused, and you need Psionic Focus to inflict a Psibond. Having said that, the rest of the build synergizes amazingly well. Without Diplomancy Cheese or the SNAFU with Natural Talent, this would have easily been a 5.

Use of Secret Ingredient 3

The biggest problem with Use of Ingredient is that it almost seemed to be tacked on afterwords. Furthermore, while it might have been possible to see some amazing synergy, it was almost completely ignored. The DC for the Psibond is very nasty, but it was just a footnote on the character sheet. In other words, this build works in spite of, rather than because of, the use of the ingredient. If it did get used by this character, it wasn't really mentioned. However, at least you used all 10 levels

OVERALL: 3.25
A solid first entry, but ultimately scored down due to my allergy to Diplomancy cheese, which seems to be the only real trick this pony uses. Which is a shame, considering how many options are available to it. As a word of advice: If you plan on building a skillmonkey, use more than four skills. Hide/Move Silently could have upped the power by giving her a way out of combat.

Lirea, the Dark Dancer

Originality: 5
I love how you set things up to go into Psibond Agent. In fact, this isn't even a real Skillmonkey build, as you said, yet it makes Psibond Agent work fantastically well. This is definitely a unique blend of abilities, which uses none of the 'traditional cheese build' options. I also love the concept of an assassin who doesn't directly kill.

Power: 3.5
Power was rather difficult to judge, since I'm not familiar with what Vestiges do. Clearly defining what it does for this build would have been helpful. I'm also not very familiar with Enchanting Dance, and how that synergizes. However, I'm seeing a few synergies which are very tasty. DC 33 on the Psibond? Yes, please. The ONLY reason why this build isn't a 4-5 is because, like the previous build, I see no way for her to effectively get OUT of combat, should she get into it. This is a character who cannot go toe-to-toe with most CR20 encounters, and yet has no 'see ya later, sucker' cards that I can see. However, using cat's paws to do her dirty work, she is less likely than the previous build to get into combat in the first place.

Elegance 4.5
This is a very elegant design. All the pieces work together in a complete whole, with no odd bits sticking out here or there. Everything gives amazing synergy to her task of making someone else kill her target for her. The only reason it wasn't a 5, is because of Craven. Really, it's rather pointless, if you think about it. If she's up against something she's trying to stick a sword in, +20 damage, assuming she's able to sneak attack, isn't going to be doing much.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 5
Everything is put into place supporting and enveloping the Secret Ingredient. Furthermore, Psibond Agent truly gives this build a major power boost, as well as a deliciously NASTY method of assassination: making his own companions do the deed for her. You enter early, and the build itself is not viable without it.

OVERALL: 4.5 And my personal favorite of the bunch

Hugo Clopin, King of the Court of Miracles

Originality: 4.5
Now here's a different take on the Psibond Agent. He goes the magic route to start off with, then uses both magic and psionics to make people his pawns. I don't normally see how Fey Heretige feats are much use,but this guy uses them effectively. Mindsight... well... everyone knows how broke that is. However, you also do use it in a different manner, so I suppose I should give credit for that.

Power: 4.5
Now here's a build who can survive a fight, as well as ensure he'll never get into one. This guy can defeat Tucker's Kobolds, by himself, by making the kobolds turn on each other. He can sense, and defeat, most dangers before they ever become a danger. And even then, in actual combat, he's got several ways to get OUT of it as well. Confusion 1/day is a good one. His pisonic power is good for giving him a Hide check to scoot out. He's got 'outs', if he knows he's outclassed, and is pretty darn handy in combat.

But furthermore, this guy's power is that any scene with mooks present somewhere is his playground, and it doesn't matter whose mooks they are. Any mook within 100', he can sense, and look around with, and take over to exploit or cause weaknesses in the defenses. I'll grant that any 'Sargent' or higher level critter is going to have immunity to mind-affecting, but can you really cover every single mook in your entire dungeon/castle with immunity? The only guy he is less than effective against would be the traditional Litch and horde of undead. And even then, he can STILL at least evade. You'd have figured that sacrificing higher level spells would have made him less powerful, but that doesn't seem to be the case here. Being able to summon 1d4 unicorns for a lot of healing is also handy in a pinch.

Elegance 4.5
Now this is also a very elegant build, with Mindsight being the only blatant thing that rubs me the wrong way. However, it synergizes amazingly well with Psibond Agent, so I'll let it slide here. The one-level dip in Psionic Assassin, like you said, looks cludgy, but you use every feature of the dip, and incorporate all of it into your overall build. And to get more than one level of Mindbender would have been a huge blow to the power curve.


Use of Secret Ingredient 4.5
Psibond Agent is certainly incorporated into this build. Meshing with Mindsight, this is actually where most of his long-range defeating encounters before they become a danger comes into play. Detect and defeat before they ever realize you exist. As pointed out, you can also Psibond with a summoned minion, to give you superior scouting in areas with no mooks. Your other abilities mesh with, and incorporate, this ability.

OVERALL: 4.5 and by far the best dungeon-runner of the lot

Lárus, The Puppetmaster

Originality: 3
While I can see why the Joker Bard would have been a good source of inspiration, it also makes the build less than original. Mindbender for Mindsight is also... well... yea. Everyone seems to be doing it, and you are not being clever about it's use, just for the same thing every one else uses it.

Power 3
On power, you have a mixed bag, and kind of hard to judge because you're all over the place. You brag about Domination by 15th, but Modify Memory is going to be far more valuable to this character, and you have an exceedingly limited number of spells per day. I think you misunderstood the feat Master Spellthief. While you can steal higher level spells, it says nothing about being able to use them. While you talk about being able to steal them from minions, it is unclear how you obtain such minions for a longer duration. You would have done better to have focused on Inspiration, rather than giving it up

Elegance 2
This build is probably the least elegant of them all. Your lack of knowledge in this arena shows painfully, unfortunately. You use mindbender/mindsight, then do almost nothing with it other than the traditional 'I can never be surprised' thing. You have too many Bard levels. Remember, Mindbender advances Bard spellcasting. The final level of Bard is a complete waste. You also complete ignore a Bardic Song ability called Fascinate, which could have been put to devastating use. You've got several conflicting build-pieces thrown together slap-dash. The result is... mixed.

Use of Secret Ingredient 3

You don't even take all 10 levels of Psibond Agent, it's not depicted exactly how it is used. You talk more about your Dominate, from bardic spells, than from how your Psibond is being used. If you had skimped on your Bard levels, you could have had a practically unlimited use Dominate, with a higher DC difficulty.

OVERALL: 2.75 A solid attempt, but it feels like it was a bit too rushed

Alyx Karmen

Originality 3.5
Rogue into Psibond Agent was to be expected, but I did like the Spymaster splash. Going the route of 'the man without a face' is pretty cool.

Power 3
Power is... fairly weak, actually. Your defenses stink for a level 20 build. However, the problem will be actually successfully finding your character. You've got several overlapping defenses preventing people from finding you, or recognizing you, even through magical means. Larus claimed to be taking a few pages from my Joker Bard, but you actually used the part that made him so dangerous.

Elegance 3
This is a simple build, and it has some synergy to it. On that basis, it is a fairly elegant build. However, it really just seems... bland. This is almost certainly due to your having to rush the build, as I am sure you would have pointed out more of the elegance and built things a little more elegantly if you had the time to do so. However, I like the idea of making the faceless man. The one person whom no one truly knows. And you pull this off superbly well.

Use of Secret Ingredient 3
You didn't go all 10 levels in Psibond Agent, which is strike one. You do incorporate the build into your character's MO, which is good. I love how you use False Memory as yet another line of defense against being recognized. Unlike the previous entry, however, your character does not unduly suffer from the lack of Dominate through the Psibond, as you are more of an information gatherer than a manipulator.

OVERALL: 3.125 I only wish you had more time to flesh out the character better

Final Thoughts:

I was pleasantly surprised with several things in every one of the contestants. People combined rarely-used classes to great effect. Mostly avoided the tired old tricks. There were no truly 'bad' builds, nor any excessively cheesy builds, which made this competition a pleasure to judge

[FishAreWet]

@Akal Saris, please do. :smallbiggrin:

[Heliomance]

I had one build sent to me unfortunately two hours after I announced the end of the contest. I was going to post it this morning, and allow it to be entered and judged, due to the lack of a pre-announced end time, but alas this is the first opportunity I've had to be on the computer for long enough to post. Still, I'll put it up here for comments and edification. Sorry, Hand_of_Vecna.


Str 12
Dex 10
Con 12
Int 14
Wis 14
Cha 17

Rouge 1 Skill Knowlegde (Gather Information) Open Feat
Ardent 1 Improved Initiative Mantles: Communication and Freedom
Bloodline 1 Strength +1 Dodge Open feat
Ardent 2 fire resistence 5 Death Mantle
Ardent 3 +2 Efretti affinity
Bloodline 2 +1 natural armor Open Feat
PsiBond Agent 1 +2 knowledge (planes) social recovery skill trick
Psibond Agent 2 dodge skill trick listen to this
PsiBond Agent 3 Charisma +1 Practiced Manifestor skill trick Point It Out
PsiBond Agent 4 Produce flames 1/day skill trick swift concentration
Psibond Agent 5 +4 Efreeti Affinity
Bloodline 3 Resistence to Fire 10 Open Feat
Psibond Agent 6 +2 concentration
Psibond Agent 7 Scorching Ray 1/day
Psibond Agent 8 Dexterity +1 Open Feat
Psibond Agent 9 Wall of Fire 1/week
PsiBond Agent 10 +6 Efreeti Affinity
Ardent 4 +1 natural armor Open Feat
Ardent 5 +2 intimidate checks Mental Power Mantle

The career of the man who would one day become know as simply as the worm, that is to the few who even know he exists, began simply enough. He was once just a common merchant who had worked his way up from traveling in caravans to running a small store selling goods from his homeland and acting as a go between for local merchant’s and the caravans.

Rouge 1

Skill Knowledge- Gather Information
Skills Gather Information 4, Knowledge (Local) 4, Sense Motive 4, Diplomacy 4, Concentration 4, Profession (merchant) 4, Profession (Teamster) 4, Bluff 4, Appraise 4

Some time after he’d become established in his new community he was approached by his Sultan’s Telepath/Spymaster about acting as an agent of the crown; nothing too dangerous just collecting the sorts of useful information that would come to him naturally in his position and perhaps occasionally leading a promising conversation in interesting directions. Having always been a loyal and patriotic citizen he jumped at the opportunity and over the next few years found he had a knack for intelligence gathering. In fact he began developing latent psionic abilities and as his powers grew so did his confidence and with it his patriotism became zeal. These three traits power, confidence and zeal continued to grow feeding into one another. A turning point came when a high-ranking agent was captured and he was asked to complete his last mission; an Assassination. He soon found he had a gift for this as well.

Rouge1/Ardent 3/Bloodline 2

Str 13
Dex 10
Con 12
Int 14
Wis 14
Cha 18

Skills Gather Information 8, Knowledge (Local) 8, Sense Motive 5, Diplomacy 8, Concentration 5, Proffesion (merchant) 7, Profession (Teamster) 4, PsiCraft 2, Bluff 4, Appraise 4

Skill Knowledge Gather Information
Improved Initiative
3 Open Feats
Mantles: Communication, Freedom and Death


Over the years he became quite successful both as a spy and in his business. He went on a trip to his homeland his cover story was that he was visiting family and meet face to face with some business contacts though it was actually to be officially inducted into the Sultan’s royal spies and to receive specialized training. His assignments continued to be more and more dangerous and more vital to his countries security. Soon he was dedicating almost all of his time to spy craft and his business began to fail. He cared very little though as he had become one of the Sultan’s most important spies due in large part to his Psychic Powers which continued to develop along side his skills at infiltration.

His life took another sudden turn when a his country found itself at war with a vastly more powerful nation. It was clear that it would be impossible to survive a prolonged war and he wasn’t surprised when a message was delivered to several top agents asking for a volunteer for a mission of the utmost importance. There were no details but the request was for a man of unflagging loyalty with no close family, it sounded like a suicide mission, and he volunteered.

But it was something else. He met in secret with the sultan and his telepath/assassin they discussed the war, the security of the nation and that their only chance for survival was an assassin with abilities beyond those of any human being. A clear globe was brought in with a wormlike parasite and explained how it had natural abilities combined the talents of an extraordinary man would create a perfect spy and assassin.

Note: By one of a number of legal means he paid the xp cost for the true mind switch and because of that this is a 19 level build.

Rouge 1/Ardent 3/Bloodline 3/PsiBond Agent 5
True Mind Switched into body of a Puppeteer

Str 2
Dex 15
Con 11
Int 14
Wis 14
Cha 23

Skills Gather Information 14, Knowledge (Local) 8, Sense Motive 9, Diplomacy 14, Concentration 10, Profession (merchant) 7, Profession (Teamster) 4, PsiCraft 5, Hide 10, Move Silently 10, Bluff 4, Appraise 4

Feats and Class Abilities
Skill Knowledge Gather Information
Improved Initiative
Practiced Manifester
Dodge
4 Open Feats
Mantles: Communication, Freedom and Death
Fire Resistance 10

Puppeteer Racial Abilities
Enthrall: Treat charmed character Dominated while attached
Blindsight 60ft
HostProtection: Treated as an attended item of host even when targeted

With his new abilities he returned to his work determined to single-handedly save his homeland from destruction. It took months but he worked his way through the hierarchy, controlling one official after another sending vital battle plans home along with interesting magical items while assassinating key officials and leaving his unwilling accomplices to take the blame. In the end he assassinated the ruler by controlling his heir, remaining latched on to the keep him from revealing that a foreign psychic had put the blade in his hand.

The worm fully expected to die in the pyre; the standard execution method there. However he didn’t know about his efreeti heritage which protected him from the pyre. After his host was dead he crawled down into the embers until the crowd had dispersed. Finding a new host was a simple matter and he made his way back to his homeland.

He expected to be hailed as a conquering hero and he was, privately. Then he was told about another grave threat his talents were needed to neutralize. So how long can a man stay sane in the body of a worm.

Rouge1/Ardent 5/Bloodline 3/PsiBond Agent 10
True Mind Switched into body of a Puppiteer


Str 2
Dex 16
Con 11
Int 14
Wis 14
Cha 24

Skills Gather Information 22, Knowledge (Local) 8, Sense Motive 12, Diplomacy 16, Concentration 22+2, Proffesion (merchant) 7, Profession (Teamster) 4, PsiCraft 10, Hide 15, Move Silently 15, Bluff 14, Appraise 4

Feats and Class Abilities
Skill Knowledge Gather Information
Improved Initiative
Practiced Manifester
Dodge
6 Open Feats
Mantles: Communication, Freedom,Death and Mental Power
Fire Resistence 10

Puppiteer Racial Abilities
Entrall: Treat charmed character Dominated while attached
Blindsight 60ft
HostProtection: Treated as an attended item of host even when targeted

Combat Strategy: Although never intended, over the course of a mission combat may be unavoidable. In these circumstances the worm will use Swift Concentration to maintain his psibonds, using his Communication Mantle powers to command his dominated allies while still taking psionic actions. He can dominate two persons via his Psibonds in addition to whatever Enthralled host he is riding at the time, and relies their abilities combined with his own ingenuity and considerable psionic might to survive. In dire circumstances Teleport and other Freedom Mantle powers can allow for an escape, although he is loathe to allow any who have discovered his schemes to survive and inform others...

[Grynning]

Wow...
if that had been in there, it definitely would have been the salmon-flavored ice-cream topped with red chili sauce and caviar of the competition. 5 for originality at least.
I'll do a full judging of it later, have to go at the moment.

[arguskos]

...WOW. Here, I'll go ahead and judge this, even though I guess it's not technically legal.

The Worm
Originality: 5. True Mind Switch, Ardent, Efreeti Bloodline, none of this screams "PsiAg!" to me, and yet, here it is! You gain a crapload of "WOW" points here.
Power: 4. Honestly, I'm just spitballing here. I really don't know how powerful this thing would work out to be. Ardent is a very easy to jack up class, so yeah.
Elegance: 3. Ok, now, as much as I like what you've done here, you lose major points by busting out Bloodlines, which are broken as crap. Not saying they are here, but they're one of the mechanics I NEVER WANT TO SEE EVER (like Epic Spellcasting or Tainted Scholar, and Taint in general actually).
Use of Secret Ingredient: 5. Great. Really just a great use of PsiAg, especially for something so wild and out of left field.

Final Verdict: 4.25. The Worm is unique, probably pretty strong, unique, utterly unexpected, and did I say unique? I probably would ask you for one of my games to change the Bloodlines, but otherwise, this is really an amazing entry.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

The Worm:

Creativity: 4. I'd have never come up with this, anyways...

Power: 5. If there was a higher number allowed, I'd use it. This guy is up there with Batman Wizard. Definately a Tier 1 build.

Elegance: 1. Come on, what did you expect? True Mindswitch into a Puppitier, Bloodlines... no. I would never allow it in any game I ran, I would be royally pissed if someone sat down at my gaming table with this, it has more cheese than Wisconsin.

Use of Secret Ingredient:4. Earlier entrance than most builds presented, goes all 10 levels, and incorporates Psibond Agent in the tactics and strategy.

Overall: 3.5 and a rolled up newspaper to the nose

[Escheton]

a week might seem like much, but could the next ep of iron build have some more buildtime?

[Heliomance]

Possibly.

I'll take a vote - how should the next contest be run? Should signing up happen before announcing the secret ingredient, so that everyone starts their build at the same time? How much cooking time should be allowed? Any other comments?

[Wings of Peace]

Possibly.

I'll take a vote - how should the next contest be run? Should signing up happen before announcing the secret ingredient, so that everyone starts their build at the same time? How much cooking time should be allowed? Any other comments?

Secret ingredient with a submission deadline. I think that way we have a better idea of how many competitors will actually submit builds since there will be less "I have no idea how to use this, maybe next time" enrollment occurring (Yes I am guilty of this :smallfrown:).

Without the time to wait for the secret ingredient I think that an enrollment deadline would become silly but I do think the competition should be extended to allow for more publicity to occur now that the only deadline is the submission deadline.

Judge enrollment might need a deadline however just for organization sake. That part I am unsure of.

[magic9mushroom]

Well, I never got around to doing the whole thing with items and full fleshing out (maths projects for uni are bad like that), and I'm terribad at thinking up fluff, but for your amusement, my proposal was going to be along the lines of:

Half-Elf Monk 2/Rogue 1/Dread Necromancer 1/Fiend of Possession 1/Psibond Agent 10/FoP +5.

[BooNL]

Was away this weekend, so I just saw the other builds. Wow, some nice ideas in there, clever use of the secret ingredient. I think we were pretty lucky with Psibond Agent though. Even though it's not a strong PrC, there's plenty of methods of entry, as can be seen from the various submissions.

When will the winner be declared?

Not saying which build is mine, though I'm kinda grinning now after reading the judgments.

[arguskos]

Was away this weekend, so I just saw the other builds. Wow, some nice ideas in there, clever use of the secret ingredient. I think we were pretty lucky with Psibond Agent though. Even though it's not a strong PrC, there's plenty of methods of entry, as can be seen from the various submissions.

When will the winner be declared?
You know that yours has your name on it, right? :smalltongue:

[BooNL]

You know that yours has your name on it, right? :smalltongue:

Yeah... I noticed...

Oh well :smallsmile:. Thanks for the positive review man!

[arguskos]

Yeah... I noticed...

Oh well :smallsmile:. Thanks for the positive review man!
It was a good entry. I personally really liked how you did it, so you scored well from me. :smallwink:

[Akal Saris]

Let's give the other 2 judges a grace period of until this Thursday, making this a 3-week challenge from start to end.

[arguskos]

Let's give the other 2 judges a grace period of until this Thursday, making this a 3-week challenge from start to end.
Sounds good. I'm just hoping I get to judge again, cause I really enjoyed it. :smallbiggrin:

[FishAreWet]

Can't wait for next challenge. Had a lot of fun with this one.

[Private-Prinny]

I think this is a really good idea. It's like PEACH for optimization skills.

To avoid a bunch of no-shows like this time around, you could announce the secret ingredient, open sign-ups, and then close them a couple days later. The more attentive people get a chunk of bonus time, and people can look over the PrC before signing up instead of after. A week seems like ample cooking time to me.

[Heliomance]

You know that yours has your name on it, right? :smalltongue:

Oops. My bad.

In future, could contestants not put their names part way through the submissions, as I'm liable to miss them when anonymising them!

[Mushroom Ninja]

:smallsigh: Another ICOC come and gone and I've still not managed to submit anything. Curse you, exams! Maybe next time.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

Oops. My bad.

In future, could contestants not put their names part way through the submissions, as I'm liable to miss them when anonymising them!

It was on the linked character sheet too...

Yea, FYI, if you wish to remain anonymous, don't put your name on your sheet, as no one can edit it but you.

Still, I scored you very highly. Loved the way to got into it and used it. Just next time... I don't own the book with Binders in it, could you spell out what your Binding does, mechanics-wise?

[arguskos]

It was on the linked character sheet too...

Yea, FYI, if you wish to remain anonymous, don't put your name on your sheet, as no one can edit it but you.

Still, I scored you very highly. Loved the way to got into it and used it. Just next time... I don't own the book with Binders in it, could you spell out what your Binding does, mechanics-wise?
You should really pick up Tome of Magic. Pact Magic rocks, Shadow Magic rocks (though is a bit weak mechanically, still totally awesome though), and even Truename Magic is pretty sweet, if mechanically a failure.

[Grynning]

Judging these was fun! I would be happy to wield a scorecard again next time, so Helio, count me in for the next one in advance, unless someone else desperately wants my seat. I would like to enter a build sometime, unfortunately I have scant time to work on builds so this is really the only way I can participate.

I'm sorry I never came back to finish judging Vecna's Worm, but I think my scores would have been pretty similar to what Argus and Shneeky already posted. Good job nonetheless!

[BooNL]

It was on the linked character sheet too...

Yea, FYI, if you wish to remain anonymous, don't put your name on your sheet, as no one can edit it but you.

Still, I scored you very highly. Loved the way to got into it and used it. Just next time... I don't own the book with Binders in it, could you spell out what your Binding does, mechanics-wise?

Yeah, that's a habit I should break for these challenges. Everytime I start a sheet I start with writing down my own name.

Anyway, I listed all the bonusses Paimon gives at the bottom of the sheet, there is really not much else you should know about the binding. I think it's +4 Dex, +4 perform (dance), +4 tumble, weapon finesse, whirlwind attack, uncanny dodge and a pretty nifty ability called Dance of Death where you move past a couple of enemies attacking each of them once.

Thanks for the complements, I never considered myself much of an optimizer, so I'm surprised with the scoring. I still don't consider her very optimized, but I do like the flavor behind her.

[arguskos]

Thanks for the complements, I never considered myself much of an optimizer, so I'm surprised with the scoring. I still don't consider her very optimized, but I do like the flavor behind her.
It's not that Lirea is super high-power, but more that EVERYTHING just blends so perfectly into a single whole, it's gloriously done. The elegance of the character is amazing, and the classes and feats just play together into a surprisingly powerful build. Really, it is the prime example I've seen in recent days of what I love to see from my own players and as an example of great practical optimization.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

It's not that Lirea is super high-power, but more that EVERYTHING just blends so perfectly into a single whole, it's gloriously done. The elegance of the character is amazing, and the classes and feats just play together into a surprisingly powerful build. Really, it is the prime example I've seen in recent days of what I love to see from my own players and as an example of great practical optimization.

Plus surprisingly powerful as well. I mean, as a hired assassin, what is better cover than one of the target's best friends doing the actual stabbing?

And in combat, you can easily dominate one (or more) of the opponents long enough to turn the tide of combat.

I'd give her a solid Tier 3.5, and not higher only because of the Immunity to Mind-Affecting problem.

[Akal Saris]

If you look at the examples that JaronK gives for how any given tier might deal with a situation, they're:

Situation 1: A Black Dragon has been plaguing an area, and he lives in a trap filled cave. Deal with him.

Situation 2: You have been tasked by a nearby country with making contact with the leader of the underground slave resistance of an evil tyranical city state, and get him to trust you.

Situation 3: A huge army of Orcs is approaching the city, and should be here in a week or so. Help the city prepare for war.

Now, maybe it's just me, but I think at least Clopin and Lirea could both handle all 3 of these situations with ease - probably as easily or even better than most tier 1 classes. Clopin was freaking born to solo a trap-filled dungeon without being detected and assassinate the boss, while Lirea could wreak absolute havoc on an invading army, and both are perfect for situation 2.

I agree with Schneekey that the characters are roughly tier 3, but keep in mind that even tier 3 characters are quite powerful in many circumstances.

[BooNL]

Thanks for the kind words guys :smallbiggrin:.

I'm not too convinced any of them are tier 3 though. Their area of expertise is still remarkebly narrow and none of them can really go toe to toe with any equal encounter.

How would one of these characters fare vs a Warblade or a Dread Necromancer for example?

[Heliomance]

Vs a Warblade: Dominate them, then order them not to use IHS.

[Tehnar]

Due to time restraints over Easter and the preceding week, I could not finish the build on time. So here is a shortened version without a lot of attention to details.



Targo Kemp
Chaotic Neutral Human

Starting stats (ending stats):
STR: 10
DEX: 14 (26)
CON: 12 (18)
INT: 16
WIS: 12
CHA: 14 (28)

Focus on Charisma and Dexterity when picking up magic items. The build is not very stat dependent though, just need a high starting intelligence to get as many skill points as possible.

Tactics, level breakdown, and synergies:

level's 1-5

1 Rogue 1: Able learner,Skill Focus:Bluff
2 Rogue 2:
3 Rogue 3: Combat Expertise
4 Rogue 4:
5 Rogue 5:

These levels play as a typical face rogue. Combat expertise and Improved Feint let you mix it up in melee. You get 12 skill points per level, and even cross class skills cost 1 point per rank, so you can afford to spread out and still meet the prerequisites for prestige classes. Focus on infiltration and trap detection skills, followed by social ones (disguise, gather information, bluff, sense motive, diplomacy).

level 6 Spymaster 1: Wild Talent

A level of spymaster brings you many things. Martial weapon proficiency is decent, and you get some knowledge skills added to your class skill list (with Able learner now you can keep these maxed if you wish), and you get the speak language skill as well. Not much but it contributes. With a good disguise you cover identity will go a long way for any sort of infiltration activity or for the gathering of information. The Undetectable Aligment feature by itself is ok, but it is but the first step to being a almost undetectable entity.


Initial Psibond agent (lvl 7-12)

7 Psibond Agent 1:
8 Psibond Agent 2:
9 Psibond Agent 3: Improved Feint
10 Psibond Agent 4:
11 Psibond Agent 5:
12 Psibond Agent 6:Undo Resistance

Getting into Psibond Agent brings you many perks. If your DM uses many psionic items in his games, the addition of Use Psionic Device skill will be a major boon. The psibond feature really allows you to take point in any dungeon crawl. As far as I read it the psibond works even on undead and constructs (though obviously not the suggestion or similar mind affecting parts of it). But Nudge and Empathy should still work. You can Nudge those constructs (or any mindless creatures) to "inspect" a unimportant room, or to investigate that noise coming from the rock you threw, thus allowing you (and your party) to bypass that guard post. For the non mind affecting immune your options get even better. Suggest to the guards that they should talk about the defenses, comment on their master, or to pick a fight between themselves. The psibond can be used in combat as well; empathy gives you a small bonus on feinting (which you can do as a move action), and your Lingering Psibond feature allows you to take advantage of that.


level 13 Hellbreaker 1

Here we get a special version of Hide in Plain sight. You can hide even while being observed as long as there is darkness of any kind, even if the said creatures can see in darkness (even Devils and True Seeing get defeated by lack of illumination or a level 3 spell). !!! Your normal tactic so far was to sneak to a guardpost, and use your Psibond while already hidden. This allows you to Psibond away even if you get suprised, or run away when things get rough. And best of all it is a Ex ability.

This is your second step in becoming undetectable. The third step is the Telepathic Static. While blocking telepathy in a short radius might not seem like a big deal, what it does is block the usage of a mindsight feat. It also suppresses divination spells used in the area, requiring a spellcraft DC to bypass. Wizards or other INT based casters will probably not have a problem with it, but other casters might.

End game (levels 14-20)

14 Psibond Agent 7:
15 Psibond Agent 8: Darkstalker
16 Psibond Agent 9:
17 Psibond Agent 10:
18 Hellbreaker 2: Craven
19 Hellbreaker 3:
20 Hellbreaker 4:

Here we get a couple of nifty features that combine very well for a ultimate infiltrator.

First off we can now choose a Darkstalker feat, the fourth step in becoming undetectable. So from now on you are immune to detection via mindsight, scent, blindsense, blindsight, tremorsense, aligment detection. What can detect you sight/hearing (and you have excellent hide/ms skills, and HiPS), lifesense (rare), touchsight(rare) and arcane sight (rare, but defeatable if you take off all your magic items). You also get a moderate resistance to divination effects and have a better will save then most of your skillmonkey counterparts.

While Hellbreaker has a short list of class skills you don't really care, since your Able Learner feat, and the previous classes pretty much make every skill a class skill for you. And those rare skills that are not class for you, you can pick up at 1 skill point per rank if you need to.

You also get False Sensory Input, which is great for getting past guards. Now at these levels probably any guard worth mentioning will have some sort of true seeing, and false sensory input allows you to bypass that. It compliments your high disguise skill, and your knowledge of enemy forces (you did psibond them so they talk about their defenses right?). So disguise yourself as Y'rrrkril the barbed devil sergeant, and with false sensory output you also sound/smell like him as well. It works well if you must sneak about as a large+ creature, and guards have true seeing.

Next we have Dominate Monster. Aside from the obvious divide and conquer, flanking buddy or whatever (and at a decent DC 27 @20), or having a stable of dominated minions it gets better when you hit level 4 on Hellbreaker, when you get Stowaway. You dominate a creature capable of a at will teleport (pretty much any sort of outsider), and now you have a free action teleport!!!

And last (and least) you have the Steal Spell like ability. Not that great since you can steal up to level 2 spells, but it can be used to steal orb like spells, which you can then use to sneak attack with (such as scorching ray). So at best a little money saver for your UMD stuff.


Now I won't be doing a full analysis of magic items and skill ranks since the build is not for competition. In the stats above I just have included a +5 dex tome, a +4 cha tome, and a +6 dex/cha/con item. The rest of the gold can be used for items that boost skills, backup items to UMD,etc.

As for skills, you really can get a lot of them. You have enough skill points to keep 10 skills maxed, with an additional 108 skill points that you can invest in other stuff. For the maxed out stuff I suggest Bluff, Diplomacy, Disguise, Gather Information, Search, Disable Device, Hide, Move Silently, Spot, Use Magic Device (or Psionic Device if it is a Psionic campaign). The rest can go to Tumble, Intimidate, Balance, Jump, etc...

I think this character is perfect in a campaign dealing with devils. From discovering conspiracies in a kingdom, to infiltrating Hell to get the macguffin to save the world, this character has it all to beat the devils at their own game. He is no slouch at combat either, sitting at +7d6+20 sneak attack at level 20, and can create a lot of opportunities for sneak attack by himself (either through improved feint, dominated flanking budy). His UMd skill sits at +31, which allows him to use pretty much any item he wants. Bluff is also through the roof with UMD scrolls of glibness. HiPS allows him to strike when and where he wants to, and get away when he needs to. Mobility is provided by a dominated outsider and comes in the form of free action teleports.

Thank you for reading this exhibition character. It is one I would very much like to play and I had fun thinking him up.

[Hand_of_Vecna]

To below sorry still have limited internet access so I just saw my buid wasn't in the original posts.

[arguskos]

Dude, Heliomance already posted your build, and we even took a look at it. :smallwink:

[Private-Prinny]

It doesn't look like any more input is coming anytime soon. Should we crown a winner?

[Akal Saris]

Final scores:

1st:
LIREA wins with a composite score of 4.29!!! Congrats BooNL! :smallbiggrin:

2nd:
HUGO comes in second with a composite score of 4.041! Congrats to me! :smallwink:

3rd:
CY comes in third with a composite score of 3.45! Congrats whoever you are!

4th:
ALYX with a composite score of 3.04! Congrats whoever you are!

5th:
LARUS with a composite score of 2.875! Congrats whoever you are!

[BooNL]

Might have been a bit better to wait for Helio to post the final scores :smallwink:.

Anyway, *walks up to the stage, the crowd is roaring*. I would like to thank my family, my friends, my producer, hell even my hairdresser for my dashing looks *laughs*. But most of all I would like to thank you, my fans *roaring applause*.

Alright, enough of that crap.

Looks like we're head to head Akal, both a win and a second place :smallbiggrin:.

[Heliomance]

Okay, Cy was by the_archduke, Alyx was by rogueboy, and Larus was by Private-Prinny!

Look for the third installment of the Iron Chef Optimisation Challenge later today!

[BooNL]

Now, how about them trophies? :smallbiggrin:

[Heliomance]

Oh, of course. I'll contact our artist to get names put on them!

[Heliomance]

Congratulations to BooNL in first place!


http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u163/The_Great_Strategos/BooNLTrophy.png

And Akal Saris in second!


http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u163/The_Great_Strategos/AkalSarisTrophy.png

Many thanks to Strategos for providing the trophies.

[BooNL]

Yay! 10 chars

[Akal Saris]

Heh, awesome - thanks Strategos! :)