Harry Dresden, Chicago's only professional wizard

[Duskranger]

For the people that don't know who or what I'm talking about:

A cynical wizard with pitch-black humor.

For the people that know him: What would be his stats/lvl/equip.

[Lost Wanderer]

I love that series so much I created an account specifically to reply to this.

That said, what system? d20 Modern? GURPS? Old World of Darkness? New WoD?

Incidentally, I'm convinced Butcher drew more than a little inspiration for Harry's world from the OWoD, given the dominant supernatural types and the nature of the Nevernever.

[Duskranger]

I love that series so much I created an account specifically to reply to this.

That said, what system? d20 Modern? GURPS? Old World of Darkness? New WoD?

Incidentally, I'm convinced Butcher drew more than a little inspiration for Harry's world from the OWoD, given the dominant supernatural types and the nature of the Nevernever.

Was more thinking about about good old simple 3.5. Only system I'm famillair with.

[Lost Wanderer]

Dresdenverse magic so fundamentally non-Vancian that the best analog I can come up with is to make him a psychokinetic psion. A Warlock might work (and the idea of "Harry Dresden, level 13 Warlock" is hilarious), if you made up a number of invocations (a way to make his Eldrich Blast fire and a long range divination ability spring to mind).

[Duskranger]

Dresdenverse magic so fundamentally non-Vancian that the best analog I can come up with is to make him a psychokinetic psion. A Warlock might work (and the idea of "Harry Dresden, level 13 Warlock" is hilarious), if you made up a number of invocations (a way to make his Eldrich Blast fire and a long range divination ability spring to mind).

That's true. But how would you stat him in other versions of the game in that case. And making him a Warlock really wouldn't make him happy :smallbiggrin:.

[Melayl]

They actually have a Dresden Files RPG, but I don't think it comes out until June...

[Duskranger]

Anyone can be a wizard, but no one can be Harry Dresden himselve.

[TheMadLinguist]

An artificer could work with a bit of reflavoring.

Or a spellthief/factotum gestalt.

[Duskranger]

In simple core classes he could be a normal evoker. With a huge-ass CON.

[Lost Wanderer]

OWoD Mage is probably my specialty, and he works pretty well there. With the exception of Willpower and Arete, everything is on a scale of 1 to 5. Willpower is 1 to 10. Arete is a special case; essentially your "magic" score, 1 is a newbie, 3 is highly skilled, 5 is "mastery" level and 6 to 10 just keep going up from there. Now let's see...

Attributes: Primary Mental, Secondary Physical, Tertiary Social (though he seems to have put some experience toward raising his Manipulate recently)

Abilities: Primary Talents, Secondary Skills, Tertiary Knowledges (His knowledges are pretty much 3 in Investigate and 3 in Occult. He started with low Subterfuge but has been training that, too.)

Nature: Gallant. (Well-intentioned, though.)
Essence: Questing. (It pushes him to change the world and himself for the better.)
Demeanor: Loner. (He likes to project it, and even believed it at one point, but his friends know it's not his true personality.)

Backgrounds: Low Resources, several Allies (Murphy is a 2 pointer dropped to 1 after Small Favor, Thomas is at least 3, The Alphas are probably collectively 2, the Summer Lady is only 1 due to outside restrictions, the Knights of the Cross have been slowly dropping in power), very high Avatar, Mentor at least 3 (though said mentor hid much of his power and influence from Harry...), Sanctum 2 (that apartment is small, but he has decent magical resources), Library 4 or more (Bob), Contacts 3 (Wardens, that ectomancer and other low-level talents, PI-type contacts like Butters)

Willpower: At least 7, possibly as high as 9 as of Turn Coat

Arete: 3 in Storm Front, 4 by White Night, probably 5 as of Turn Coat. Dealing with Lash was a Seeking in some form.

Spheres: Forces and Correspondence 3 at least, possibly 4 for both now. Matter 2 (he reinforces and refines things, but doesn't build new ones with magic), Life 3. Prime 3, (see Hellfire and Soulfire) though he probably only started with 1. Spirit 2. He might have Entropy 1, but that might just be Spirit. Time is banned in the Dresdenverse, and Mind is far from his purview.

Foci: His general style, and Forces specialty, is Dog Latin. Life specialty (and near exclusive use) is potions. Correspondence specialty is sympathetic connections, while Spirit's is ritual circles (also a general style focus). Matter is mystic runes. He doesn't seem to have a Prime specialty focus, just more ritual circles and Dog Latin.

Resonance: Dynamic 2 (chaotic), Static 0, Entropic 2 (fell aura). His Entropic got really high with Lash around, but assistance from a powerful spiritual entity lowered it later.

Flaws: Enemy 3 (The Faery Queens), Enemy 1 (Lean; she wants to give him "help" he finds unhelpful), Enemy ? (The Black Council; high), Cursed 4 (Blows out technology with his magic), Code of Conduct (always save the girl), Hatred (Red and Black Court vampires), Graceless (You always look awkward, no matter what you're doing), Notoriety (basically, your peers think you did something of questionable morality/taste, even if you didn't really), Twisted Upbringing (Oh yes), Ward (Molly)

Merits: Kinian (meaning the character or a close relative of theirs has fae blood or pacts. So yes, very), Gall, Daredevil (these two give bonuses for doing brave and reckless things, respectively), Lucky, Charmed Existence (he is damn lucky sometimes)

I think that about covers it.

[TheMadLinguist]

Of course, if we're going to use non-d20 systems, we might as well use FATE.

[Fridrik Bj]

For the people that don't know who or what I'm talking about:

A cynical wizard with pitch-black humor.

For the people that know him: What would be his stats/lvl/equip.

His Character sheet can be found here. LINK TO PDF (http://www.dresdenfilesrpg.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Harry-Dresden.pdf)

This is the official writeup for the Dresden files game that comes out this summer. Personally I can't wait.

[Vilyathas]

1. Mechanically, Harry looks more like a spontaneous caster rather than a prepared caster. His spell repertoire is also quite limited. He seems to be relying a lot on the standard "Fuego" (Scorching Ray?), "Forzare" (Battering Ram?), and "Ventas Servitas" (Gust of Wind?).

2. Ritual casting. Most of his rituals involve summoning extraplanar creatures for gathering information, or divination spells. He could have a few levels of wizard and a spellbook full of Conjuration and Divination spells.

3. Skills. Craft Alchemy (and Brew Potion). Gather Information. Knowledge Local, the Planes, Arcana, and Pop Culture.

4. Bob. Probably counts as an assistant for Harry's potion crafting and knowledge checks. I am not sure what type of a creature he could be. Also not sure if Bob qualifies as a familiar.

5. Blasting rod and staff. Both serve more as focus for his spells rather than storing spell charges. Regarding the fact that Harry uses a lot of "Fuego", his staff could be a Runestaff of Fire or Evocation (Magic Item Compendium). The rod could be a Metamagic Rod of Empower Spell.

6. Kinetic rings. The closest match I could find is the Ring of the Ram in the DMG. Maybe one that replenishes its charges?

7. Shield bracelet works almost like a Ring of Force Shield (DMG). His leather duster is a Shirt of Resilience (MIC).

8. Ability scores. I'd say average Strength and Dexterity. Above average Constitution. Good Intelligence. Not sure about Wisdom. And phenomenal Charisma. Even the White Council is more worried about Harry's collection of allies than Harry himself.

9. The Sight. I can't find any one spell that fits the mechanics of this. It looks like a little of True Seeing and Know Alignment. At-will, with some Will saves to avoid insanity for looking at creatures like the skinwalker.

Now to stat out Harry himself. I went through the arcane spell lists to find analogues of Harry's spells. I would say, Harry is capable of casting at least level 5 spells (Lesser Planar Binding and Contact Other Plane). Assuming Harry casts his fire spells from his runestaff, then we can use a wizard instead of a sorcerer. Based off his highest level equipment, I'd go with runestaff of fire (L12 item), lesser metamagic rod of empower spell (L12), leather duster of resilience (L13 item).

Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden
Male human Wizard 10 / Sorcerer 3
CG Medium humanoid
Languages: English, Latin ("Damned correspondence course"), Fey
Abilities: Str 10; Dex 11; Con 12; Int 16; Wis 12; Cha 18
S.Abilities: The Sight; Walking Techbane

Spells known:
5: Lesser Planar Binding; Contact Other Plane
4: Orb of Force; Otiluke's Resilient Sphere; Wall of Fire
3: Fireball; Invisibility Sphere; Magic Circle against Evil; Wind Wall
2: Battering Ram; Fireburst; Gust of Wind; Scorching Ray; Unseen Crafter
1: Forcewave; Magecraft; Orb of Fire; Shield; Unseen Servant

Equipment: bracelet of force shield; leather duster of resilience; lesser metamagic rod of empower spell; runestaff of fire; ring of battering ram

EDIT: At least, this is how he appears in the campaign I'm DMing in :smallbiggrin:

[Duskranger]

1. Mechanically, Harry looks more like a spontaneous caster rather than a prepared caster. His spell repertoire is also quite limited. He seems to be relying a lot on the standard "Fuego" (Scorching Ray?), "Forzare" (Battering Ram?), and "Ventas Servitas" (Gust of Wind?).

2. Ritual casting. Most of his rituals involve summoning extraplanar creatures for gathering information, or divination spells. He could have a few levels of wizard and a spellbook full of Conjuration and Divination spells.

3. Skills. Craft Alchemy (and Brew Potion). Gather Information. Knowledge Local, the Planes, Arcana, and Pop Culture.

4. Bob. Probably counts as an assistant for Harry's potion crafting and knowledge checks. I am not sure what type of a creature he could be. Also not sure if Bob qualifies as a familiar.

5. Blasting rod and staff. Both serve more as focus for his spells rather than storing spell charges. Regarding the fact that Harry uses a lot of "Fuego", his staff could be a Runestaff of Fire or Evocation (Magic Item Compendium). The rod could be a Metamagic Rod of Empower Spell.

6. Kinetic rings. The closest match I could find is the Ring of the Ram in the DMG. Maybe one that replenishes its charges?

7. Shield bracelet works almost like a Ring of Force Shield (DMG). His leather duster is a Shirt of Resilience (MIC).

8. Ability scores. I'd say average Strength and Dexterity. Above average Constitution. Good Intelligence. Not sure about Wisdom. And phenomenal Charisma. Even the White Council is more worried about Harry's collection of allies than Harry himself.

9. The Sight. I can't find any one spell that fits the mechanics of this. It looks like a little of True Seeing and Know Alignment. At-will, with some Will saves to avoid insanity for looking at creatures like the skinwalker.

Now to stat out Harry himself. I went through the arcane spell lists to find analogues of Harry's spells. I would say, Harry is capable of casting at least level 5 spells (Lesser Planar Binding and Contact Other Plane). Assuming Harry casts his fire spells from his runestaff, then we can use a wizard instead of a sorcerer. Based off his highest level equipment, I'd go with runestaff of fire (L12 item), lesser metamagic rod of empower spell (L12), leather duster of resilience (L13 item).

Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden
Male human Wizard 10 / Sorcerer 3
CG Medium humanoid
Languages: English, Latin ("Damned correspondence course"), Fey
Abilities: Str 10; Dex 11; Con 12; Int 16; Wis 12; Cha 18
S.Abilities: The Sight; Walking Techbane

Spells known:
5: Lesser Planar Binding; Contact Other Plane
4: Orb of Force; Otiluke's Resilient Sphere; Wall of Fire
3: Fireball; Invisibility Sphere; Magic Circle against Evil; Wind Wall
2: Battering Ram; Fireburst; Gust of Wind; Scorching Ray; Unseen Crafter
1: Forcewave; Magecraft; Orb of Fire; Shield; Unseen Servant

Equipment: bracelet of force shield; leather duster of resilience; lesser metamagic rod of empower spell; runestaff of fire; ring of battering ram

EDIT: At least, this is how he appears in the campaign I'm DMing in :smallbiggrin:

Invisibilty sphere would be a veil and that's the forte of his apprentice, he sucks at it, often enough said. Further I do actually agree more or less with it. Except for the fact that he would need plane shift. He did sometimes went to the NeverNever.

[Eldan]

Well, Bob seems spot on for an awakened Mimir to me. DnD already has talking, information-dispensing skulls, so why make something new?

I am in the Warlock camp, by the way, with a custom invocation for gust of wind and levels in hellfire warlock.

[AbyssKnight]

A few different observations.

In defense of Vancian magic for Harry, casting spells causes him to tire. There are times he passes out due to using too much magic too quickly. This can be seen as an IC analog for running out of spells slots. So I think a Vancian spellcasting class could work ok for Harry on some level. I would go Sorcerer over Wizard.

That being said, I still fall into the Warlock camp as well. His blasting rod or staff could be a Warlock Scepter. The other could be an Empower/Maximize metamagic rod. His duster could be magic Leather armor that also provides a resistance bonus to saves.

The use of circles in magic and Harry's summoning of different creatures from the Nevernever also lends a certain Binder element. This will also dovetail nicely into Hellfire Warlock and provides further non-Vancian magical abilities.

The shield bracelet as Ring of Force Shield is good. I also think some form of item providing Wings of Cover would make sense (remember, I like Sorcerer rather than Wizard).

I would probably make Bob his familiar (maybe a re-fluffed Imp, don't know the Mimir), and Molly his cohort.

I would probably go a mix of Binder, Warlock, Sorcerer, Anima Mage, Eldritch Theurge, Hellfire Warlock. Lite on Binder, Heavy on Warlock, enough Sorcerer to cover stuff invocations doesn't.

Edit Lash's Shadow seems very Vestige-ish to me. Perhaps only Binder 1 and can only bind Laschiel? What kind of abilities would Laschiel grant?

[Lapak]

OWoD Mage is probably my specialty, and he works pretty well there. With the exception of Willpower and Arete, everything is on a scale of 1 to 5. Willpower is 1 to 10. Arete is a special case; essentially your "magic" score, 1 is a newbie, 3 is highly skilled, 5 is "mastery" level and 6 to 10 just keep going up from there. Now let's see...

I love the build - short of using the Dresden RPG itself, that's as close as I think you can get. Except, of course, that

Moderate spoilers for the recently-released Changes ahead:

Pretty much every stat you list changed drastically, and the entire Backgrounds section needs to be rebuilt. Some of the Allies bounced up in power noticeably, and most of the rest of that section, well, the book doesn't carry the title it does for no reason.

[Eldan]

I don't know about Binder, really. I'd say that what he does with magic circles is just a more or less refluffed Planar Ally or Contact other plane. Eldritch Theurge sounds best for him, I'd say.

[KaganMonk]

Two levels in Hellfire Warlock wouldn't be amiss if you have some warlock in there once you get lesser invocations. The hellfire infusion fits with some of the stuff Harry did while using hellfire, and the prereqs certainly fit Harry. Sadly, in order to stat Harry properly, you start getting to the limits of D&D. And while wizards more powerful than Harry might be epic magic users, it gets messy.

[AbyssKnight]

Pulling a satellite from space to smash an enemy stronghold definately looks Epic to me.

Also, I do want to mention, I edited my earlier post in support of at least one level of Binder.

[Lost Wanderer]

I love the build - short of using the Dresden RPG itself, that's as close as I think you can get. Except, of course, that

Moderate spoilers for the recently-released Changes ahead:


Haven't read Changes yet, though hopefully I'll be able to change that in a couple days. Probably should have said "this is him as of Turn Coat". And it makes me think, starting out, his Enemies were simply two at 1: Morgan and Lean. Oh, how things have changed.

[Frosty]

Haven't read Changes yet, though hopefully I'll be able to change that in a couple days. Probably should have said "this is him as of Turn Coat". And it makes me think, starting out, his Enemies were simply two at 1: Morgan and Lean. Oh, how things have changed.
Let's just say that once you read Changes, you can justfiably give him Invisibility Sphere. Hey, he can't look bad in front of the Grasshopper now can he?

[Curmudgeon]

For the people that know him: What would be his stats/lvl/equip.
It's kind of irrelevant, because the details are ignored. I read through all the Dresden novels in one stretch, and after the first few (where Dresden got 6 shots out of a 5-shot revolver) I started taking notes of the inconsistencies. Since Jim Butcher doesn't care about these things, why should we?


A .38 Chief's Special carries six rounds
(No, that's a five-shot revolver: Model 36 Chiefs Special (http://www.snubnose.info/docs/Model_36.htm).)

I've got to get a concealed-carry permit.
(Chicago had banned all handguns, so there weren't any permits.)

So I got out of the Beetle and opened the storage trunk at the front of the VW. I took out a few wizardly implements ...
I carried all of these back to the front of the car with me
(What did he do, make a complete circle around the bug?)

The icebox was an old-fashioned one that stocked actual ice ...
and there was ice cream in the freezer.
(You can't freeze anything with melting ice; iceboxes don't have freezers.)

staggered toward my shower. There were times when it was just as well that I had disconnected the water heater to head off magically inspired mishaps.
... turned the water to its coldest setting
(What setting?)

he drew out the heavy revolver.
Great, Harry, I thought. That's what you get for trying to be a hero. You get to eat a six-pack of nine-millimeter bon-bons.
(9mm ammunition is designed for auto-loading pistols, is rare in revolvers, and is nonexistent in heavy revolvers.)

Then I let Kong have it right between its black beady eyes.
The fire hit it like a wrecking ball, right on the chin.
(Pretty weird anatomy there.)

I heard two distinct clicks behind me, the hammers being drawn back on a pair of guns, and Lara ...
Lara thumbed back the hammer on both guns
(Once you draw back the hammer, you need to uncock the gun to be able to repeat this operation.)

the dog (by Dresden's side) sat down at the end of the spit of land, watching me with alert eyes, his ears flicking around at all the little sounds.
Then I walked out onto the spit to its end
(Must have missed the teleport spell there.)

I walked hurriedly back to my car, a battered old Volkswagen Beetle, its windows rolled down to keep the sun from turning the interior into an oven.
... it was still hotter than hell, so I rolled down the windows at the first stoplight and tried to think clearly.
(Auto-closing windows?)

an old issue of Playboy from the 70s, with Bo Derek on the cover
(Bo Derek was on Playboy's cover several times, but not before the 1980s.)

Fifty-caliber semiautomatic rifle. ...
Beneath the hole, several ounces of metal were flattened against the second layer of spell-toughened leather
(The heaviest .50 bullet is 1.6 ounces.)

[Tinydwarfman]

It's kind of irrelevant, because the details are ignored. I read through all the Dresden novels in one stretch, and after the first few (where Dresden got 6 shots out of a 5-shot revolver) I started taking notes of the inconsistencies. Since Jim Butcher doesn't care about these things, why should we?


That's all you got in series of 12+ books? I'm surprised, even if the first two were pretty big. And you must have a photographic memory right there.

[randomhero00]

I'm excited to read Changes. Should be getting it within a few days hopefully.

Curmudgeon- most of those aren't that bad. For one, its in first person and purely from Harry's perspective which means it can be wrong and still be right. Others are just phrases, like "right between the eyes" which Harry likes to use frequently and isn't describing reality literally. More are facts Dresden might have got wrong, or it was the way he thought. Like heavy revolver may just be referring to how the gun feels in his hand. Some of the rest have to do with harryverse. Obviously a Chicago with supernatural monsters is different from the real life Chicago. Which means technology will also be different. So would history.

There are a few real mistakes of course. But all in all I'd say he has less mistakes than the average writer.

[Curmudgeon]

That's all you got in series of 12+ books? I'm surprised, even if the first two were pretty big. And you must have a photographic memory right there.
No, those were just the ones that bugged me enough to look for either external data or back through the book for the inconsistencies. And there's no photographic memory involved; I started a Dresden bugs file and typed this stuff in if the PC happened to be on when something annoyed me.

There were also a whole bunch of differences in the way Dresden did some of his magic, but since there's no explanation of how much consistency is required for spells, I didn't note any of that down.

[Tinydwarfman]

There were also a whole bunch of differences in the way Dresden did some of his magic, but since there's no explanation of how much consistency is required for spells, I didn't note any of that down.

I get the feeling magic isn't so much a hard and fast thing, but something that changes for different people and situations. One reason it can't be expressed in vancian, spells aren't malleable and scalable enough.

[AbyssKnight]

It's kind of irrelevant, because the details are ignored.

I don't see how any of this makes discussion of his stats/level/equip.(/classes) irrelevant for someone interested in making a Dresden based or inspired character.

These are all proof reading errors that really have nothing to do with Dresden and his abilities.

[Lost Wanderer]

It's kind of irrelevant, because the details are ignored. I read through all the Dresden novels in one stretch, and after the first few (where Dresden got 6 shots out of a 5-shot revolver) I started taking notes of the inconsistencies. Since Jim Butcher doesn't care about these things, why should we?


A .38 Chief's Special carries six rounds
(No, that's a five-shot revolver: Model 36 Chiefs Special (http://www.snubnose.info/docs/Model_36.htm).)

I've got to get a concealed-carry permit.
(Chicago had banned all handguns, so there weren't any permits.)
These, I think, you might just have to attribute to the Dresdenverse having some minor differences from the real world. Especially with something like laws; if a supernatural group wants hand guns in Chicago, by gods, they're going to strive to make it happen and they have the resources to do so.



So I got out of the Beetle and opened the storage trunk at the front of the VW. I took out a few wizardly implements ...
I carried all of these back to the front of the car with me
(What did he do, make a complete circle around the bug?)
Isn't this one of those inconsistencies (like the layout of Chicago) that Butcher fixed after the first few books?



The icebox was an old-fashioned one that stocked actual ice ...
and there was ice cream in the freezer.
(You can't freeze anything with melting ice; iceboxes don't have freezers.)
With a modern understanding of heat exchange and better materials, we probably could engineer an icebox that keeps ice cream. Also, "freezer" sounds like a colloquialism in this instance, and with the ice being changed every day by house elves, even an actual old icebox could probably keep icecream solid enough, assuming you put the carton right next to the ice.



staggered toward my shower. There were times when it was just as well that I had disconnected the water heater to head off magically inspired mishaps.
... turned the water to its coldest setting
(What setting?)
Probably Harry overemphasizing for dramatic purposes. He does do that.



he drew out the heavy revolver.
Great, Harry, I thought. That's what you get for trying to be a hero. You get to eat a six-pack of nine-millimeter bon-bons.
(9mm ammunition is designed for auto-loading pistols, is rare in revolvers, and is nonexistent in heavy revolvers.)
Turn of phrase. See flair for the dramatic.



Then I let Kong have it right between its black beady eyes.
The fire hit it like a wrecking ball, right on the chin.
(Pretty weird anatomy there.)
Again, turn of phrase.



I heard two distinct clicks behind me, the hammers being drawn back on a pair of guns, and Lara ...
Lara thumbed back the hammer on both guns
(Once you draw back the hammer, you need to uncock the gun to be able to repeat this operation.)
I'd again attribute it to Harry's narrative style/memory, but this is probably a legitimate oversight.



the dog (by Dresden's side) sat down at the end of the spit of land, watching me with alert eyes, his ears flicking around at all the little sounds.
Then I walked out onto the spit to its end
(Must have missed the teleport spell there.)
Are you sure he wasn't pacing around in there?



I walked hurriedly back to my car, a battered old Volkswagen Beetle, its windows rolled down to keep the sun from turning the interior into an oven.
... it was still hotter than hell, so I rolled down the windows at the first stoplight and tried to think clearly.
(Auto-closing windows?)
Harry's style/memory or actual oversight again.



an old issue of Playboy from the 70s, with Bo Derek on the cover
(Bo Derek was on Playboy's cover several times, but not before the 1980s.)
Sounds like Harry mis-remembering, to me.



Fifty-caliber semiautomatic rifle. ...
Beneath the hole, several ounces of metal were flattened against the second layer of spell-toughened leather
(The heaviest .50 bullet is 1.6 ounces.)
Turn of phrase. Also, Harry is not a gun expert, it's quite likely he's just wrong because he honestly doesn't know.

Overall, while some of your nitpicking is legitimate, I think you've failed to keep in mind that Harry is the narrator, he is not infallible or omniscient, and he likes to noir things up. It's a very noir inspired series, and if you go in expecting technothriller-esque detail fetishism, you're going to be disappointed.

As for magic consistency, it's been explicitly stated that 1) magic is more about finding a channel for will and emotion than strictly following rules and 2) the rules of magic that do exist change constantly. That's one of the reasons Bob is so invaluable; he doesn't just know the current rules, he can intuit and reason out new ones.

[Jera]

I support a level or two of binder.

Even after he gets rid of Lash, he still channels higher powers.

He channels the Archangel Uriel to be able cast soul fire(at least at first, I'm not sure about the rest of the time.)

He binds the island Deamon Way, so that he can draw apon its power and is near omniscient whislt on the island.

Then During Changes he becomes the winter knight and channels the power of the fey.

I'm not sure if it counts or not, but his mothers neclace seems to me like a Binder flavored legacy item, as it gives him access to her knowledge.

Maybe Soul Fire could be a vestige related Metamagic ability.

EDIT: Sorry, I used the wrong macro and added a spoiler tag instead of a spoiler box and changed the word omnipotent to omniscient.

[Yukitsu]

Battle sorcerer varient level 8, abjurant champion 4.

Stats: Strength 12, dex 14, con 16, int 14, wis 12, cha 14

Feats: Brew potion, improved familiar, improved unarmed strike, heighten spell, endurance, die hard, iron will.

Uses spells like shield as a swift action in this build, and has pretty good ones. Can fight pretty well with a high BAB, only really uses a handful of spells, but doesn't really need to prepare them before hand. Makes potions. Has a Bob familiar.

Can't really immitate the spell cost where casting simply taps his reserves, but I suppose the mana points system immitates it well enough. However, like a sorc he seems to have enough juice in any given adventure to churn out plenty of spells.

[Duskranger]

Battle sorcerer varient level 8, abjurant champion 4.

Stats: Strength 12, dex 14, con 16, int 14, wis 12, cha 14

Feats: Brew potion, improved familiar, improved unarmed strike, heighten spell, endurance, die hard, iron will.

Uses spells like shield as a swift action in this build, and has pretty good ones. Can fight pretty well with a high BAB, only really uses a handful of spells, but doesn't really need to prepare them before hand. Makes potions. Has a Bob familiar.

Can't really immitate the spell cost where casting simply taps his reserves, but I suppose the mana points system immitates it well enough. However, like a sorc he seems to have enough juice in any given adventure to churn out plenty of spells.

He has a Bobfamiliair Or he has a familiair called Bob. I second the latter actually.

[Tinydwarfman]

I support a level or two of binder.

Spoilers:

He binds the island Deamon Way, so that he can draw apon its power and is near omniscient whislt on the island.

Omnipotent would mean that he can do anything. He knows everything going on in island.

[Gnaeus]

I support a level or two of binder.

Spoilers:


You couldn't have used a spoilers box? That was mean :smalleek:.

[sombrastewart]

For whatever it's worth, I'm going to go with Mutants and Masterminds 2e for creating a good Dresdenverse array of characters.

I can't believe this whole thing has gone on and no one has mentioned Mouse...

[Frosty]

Harry has GOT to have more than 14 charisma...look at how he impacts people. Sure, people may not LIKE him but he makes his presence known when he needs to. Also, 14 Charisma means he can't cast higher than 4th level spells.

[Yukitsu]

He usually influences people like that by blowing up something of theirs though, so I don't know if that really counts. I suppose I could also tack on the feat that grants extra charisma for purpose of spells cast.

[Frosty]

As the size of the explosion increases, the number of social situations it is incapable to solving approaches zero.

And anyone ol' warlock can do random violence, but Harry knows how to *direct* it properly to MAXIMIZE his "pissing people off" and "sending a message" gains.

[Duskranger]

it's all an act. Harry did never mean to blow up things :smallbiggrin: it just happens.

Anyhow, Mouse is certainly a Dire Foo Dog :smallbiggrin: a hound archon in dire dog form or something like that.

[CheshireCatAW]

Could Bob be more accurately represented as a type of Item Familiar or Intelligent Artifact perhaps? It doesn't quite fit fluff-wise, but...

[Talkkno]

You guys know their is a Dresden Files coming out right?

[Tinydwarfman]

You guys know their is a Dresden Files coming out right?

:smallconfused: What are you talking about? The new book, changes? Or the RPG? Because both were already mentioned.

[Talkkno]

:smallconfused: What are you talking about? The new book, changes? Or the RPG? Because both were already mentioned.

The RPG...

[Bosh]

If you pre-order the PDF now from the publishers (www.evilhat.com) you can immediately download the PDF for free. I did so last week and would be happy to answer any questions about the Dresden Files RPG system, which is exceedingly awesome...

[Duskranger]

For everyone that read changes:

I'm doubting that there will ever be a book 13 from the Dresden series.

For the rest. The things I saw of the RPG looked kinda fuzzy. But anyhow I will look into it as soon as it is available. We in the Netherlands will get that stuff mostly never though. Sadly enough

[Curmudgeon]

For everyone that read changes
I'm not sure how Amazon does a 62% discount :smallcool:, but that was my Saturday reading.

I'm happy to say that the attention to detail in Changes was a noticeable improvement over previous books in the series; I didn't go to my Dresden bug file once. (And the title is very apt.)

[Duskranger]

I'm not sure how Amazon does a 62% discount :smallcool:, but that was my Saturday reading.

I'm happy to say that the attention to detail in Changes was a noticeable improvement over previous books in the series; I didn't go to my Dresden bug file once. (And the title is very apt.)

Please spoil it not for people who haven't read it yet. It's a dresdenbook, it's enjoyable. What else does a person need to know. Still what would be the stats of Mab:smallbiggrin:

[Thurbane]

Not familiar with the books (I have been meaning to pick them up for a while), but would Sorc/Binder/Anima Mage be a close fit? From what I've read in this thread, sounds like it might hit a few bases...ritualistic on the Binding side, and spamming spells from the Sorcerer side?

Also, the Vitalizing Spell Point variant in UA might explain the draining effects of his spells?

[Curmudgeon]

Please spoil it not for people who haven't read it yet.
If saying that it's got fewer inconsistencies than previous books spoils it for somebody, they've got a very weird taste in books. :smallwink:

Anyway, that's all I'm going to say about Changes.

[Duskranger]

If saying that it's got fewer inconsistencies than previous books spoils it for somebody, they've got a very weird taste in books. :smallwink:

Anyway, that's all I'm going to say about Changes.

In that case oke. But Most people aren't bothered by the things you say you are bothered with. And why do you read the books if they bother you so. You can always pick up another book. I mean there are lots and lots of writers around.

[Curmudgeon]

And why do you read the books if they bother you so. You can always pick up another book. I mean there are lots and lots of writers around.
There are lots of writers, but Sturgeon's Law (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sturgeon%27s_Law) applies: 90% of everything is crud. Plus, even though there are lots of writers, there are noticeably fewer topics than there used to be, because writers are doing so for the money, and the money is in series -- as Jim Butcher knows. If you find a writer you like, the chances are very good that they're going to be writing just 1 or 2 series (i.e., just 1 or 2 topics). Finding something both new and good is harder than ever.

[Duskranger]

There are lots of writers, but Sturgeon's Law (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sturgeon%27s_Law) applies: 90% of everything is crud. Plus, even though there are lots of writers, there are noticeably fewer topics than there used to be, because writers are doing so for the money, and the money is in series -- as Jim Butcher knows. If you find a writer you like, the chances are very good that they're going to be writing just 1 or 2 series (i.e., just 1 or 2 topics). Finding something both new and good is harder than ever.

And that's in English, finding something good in my language is almost impossible. But with this little text you admit that you actually do not really mind reading Jim Butcher. In short, you enjoy Harry Dresden.

[Conjurer]

I'm doubting that there will ever be a book 13 from the Dresden series.

I don't think that's going to be the case at all.

During the Battle at Chichen Itzá, Harry hears someone shouting "Fuego!" in the middle of the battle, but can't find the indiviudal. I'm willing to bet there's a future novel dealing with Time Travel and Harry heard himself. Time Traveling is against one of the 7 Laws of Magic, so that makes it even more delicious.

Also, the compilation of short stories to be published in November is supposed to have a new story told from Murphy's perspective set shortly after Changes (as in minutes after the end of the book).

We've not read the last of Harry Dresden.

[Duskranger]

@conjurer (because of spoilers)
That would indeed be a possibility. On the other hand, he got shot. But the voice he heard could off course be Mab. Anyhow, he is now the Knight of Winter so, who knows. They are hard to kill.

[Onlyhestands]

I don't think that's going to be the case at all.

During the Battle at Chichen Itzá, Harry hears someone shouting "Fuego!" in the middle of the battle, but can't find the indiviudal. I'm willing to bet there's a future novel dealing with Time Travel and Harry heard himself. Time Traveling is against one of the 7 Laws of Magic, so that makes it even more delicious.

Also, the compilation of short stories to be published in November is supposed to have a new story told from Murphy's perspective set shortly after Changes (as in minutes after the end of the book).

We've not read the last of Harry Dresden.


Fuego means fire in Spanish. Right after fuego is yelled out gunmen start shooting at Dresden+Co

[Frosty]

There is no way the series ends like this. There WILL be many more books.

[White_North]

Sorry for going off topic, but I just wanted to know if people would recommend this series. I've only seen the tv series and enjoyed it quite a bit. Now, I'm aware that there are vast differences between the books and the show, but I was just wondering if it retained the same fantasy/noir feel. Also, one thing that I really liked about the series is that magic felt mysterious and, well, magical. Dresden wasn't freely throwing fireballs around and his detective work was not just magic, but good old fashioned sniffing around, too.

So yeah, sorry for the derail, but this seemed as good a place to ask as any.

Also, from what I've seen in the show, a utility-based warlock would fit Dresden pretty well.

[Duskranger]

Sorry for going off topic, but I just wanted to know if people would recommend this series. I've only seen the tv series and enjoyed it quite a bit. Now, I'm aware that there are vast differences between the books and the show, but I was just wondering if it retained the same fantasy/noir feel. Also, one thing that I really liked about the series is that magic felt mysterious and, well, magical. Dresden wasn't freely throwing fireballs around and his detective work was not just magic, but good old fashioned sniffing around, too.

So yeah, sorry for the derail, but this seemed as good a place to ask as any.

Also, from what I've seen in the show, a utility-based warlock would fit Dresden pretty well.

To be honest heck yeah it's worth it. It's most of the time a detectivenovel with mystic influences. It's actually wuite goodwritten and enjoyable (at last it is for me). So yes read it or else :smallbiggrin:

[Lost Wanderer]

Harry uses a lot more magic in the books, and throws fireballs (and gusts of wind) around not at will, but without too much trouble unless he gets into a long fight, or a whole bunch in a row. Magic is less mysterious, because Harry and Bob (who's an air spirit, not a dead necromancer) have time to explain it, but it's still more art than science. A can of energy drink in a pick-me-up potion instead of an obscure herb harvested in a weird way? Uranium to represent weight? Why the heck not? He does do plenty of detectiving (and snarky noir narration), though.

So yes, I highly recommend it.

[lightningcat]

Ther is also the interesting dicodomy of him trying so hard to follow the rules, and getting in trouble over them, and everyone around him breaking those same rules without a problem.
Its enough to make you miss Morgan

[Gorilla2038]

Harry is pretty easy to create if you use d20 modern.

Smart Hero 2/Tough Hero 1/Investigator 1 or 2/Mage X

That really gets the whole gig. His Listen ability, the rituals, etc. Of course, youd need to use the Mana system rather than the standard spell system, but thats do-able. Might add in some Archmage towards the end of the series.

Feats might be...um, spellslinger, iron will, brawl, and a couple item creation feats, and some others....

[Tinydwarfman]

Sorry for going off topic, but I just wanted to know if people would recommend this series. I've only seen the tv series and enjoyed it quite a bit. Now, I'm aware that there are vast differences between the books and the show, but I was just wondering if it retained the same fantasy/noir feel. Also, one thing that I really liked about the series is that magic felt mysterious and, well, magical. Dresden wasn't freely throwing fireballs around and his detective work was not just magic, but good old fashioned sniffing around, too.

So yeah, sorry for the derail, but this seemed as good a place to ask as any.

Also, from what I've seen in the show, a utility-based warlock would fit Dresden pretty well.

Maybe it was just because I read the books first, but I thought the show was terribad compared to the books - just awful. Might just be me though.

[Duskranger]

Maybe it was just because I read the books first, but I thought the show was terribad compared to the books - just awful. Might just be me though.

Nope, the serie was bad if you're focused too much on the book. But Butcher also made the series based on. Not following the books. He made Dresden out of the serie more realistic than he is in the books.

[Lapak]

For those of you asking if you should read the books, it's one of those series where the first book is not necessarily the best advertisement for the rest. Storm Front, the first book, feels like a first book. The quality of the writing changes for the better noticeably in book 2 and really picks up in books three and beyond. Also, very little that is essential to the third book's plot happens in the first two that isn't adequately explained. I'd almost recommend starting with Grave Peril (Book 3) and going back for the other two if you like it before continuing on with the series.

[Renchard]

For everyone that read changes:

I'm doubting that there will ever be a book 13 from the Dresden series.


That seems unlikely, as Jim Butcher has stated that his contract with his publisher extends to around the 20th book, and that the series will end with a rather "apocalyptic" trilogy, all titled with the 3 most common oaths used in the series.

[Duskranger]

That seems unlikely, as Jim Butcher has stated that his contract with his publisher extends to around the 20th book, and that the series will end with a rather "apocalyptic" trilogy, all titled with the 3 most common oaths used in the series.

That's why they designed spoilers please use them.

[AbyssKnight]

That's why they designed spoilers please use them.

See, but it wasn't a spoiler, it had nothing to do with the content of any of the books.

It is a statement of RL fact that has been previously announced on Jim's own website.

[Renchard]

See, but it wasn't a spoiler, it had nothing to do with the content of any of the books.

It is a statement of RL fact that has been previously announced on Jim's own website.

Exactly...it's no more a spoiler than if I told you there are 7 Harry Potter books when you're on Book 4.

There are 7 Harry Potter books.

[Duskranger]

And I was thinking one book of harry potter was already too much. Sigh :smallbiggrin:

[Eldan]

Could Bob be more accurately represented as a type of Item Familiar or Intelligent Artifact perhaps? It doesn't quite fit fluff-wise, but...

For those who don't know: Planescape has the Mimir, an improved familiar. It is, in it's basic form, a metal skull, counting as a construct. It has the ability to record and replay enormous amounts of information, giving it huge (more than +12 at least, I forgot how high) knowledge skills.
Sounds like Bob to me.

[AbyssKnight]

Where can I learn more about Mimir (preferably 3.5 source)?

How does this look for Harry's rings?

Harry's Silver Rings
This is a set of ornate silver rings. There are four rings (one for each finger except the thumb) and each ring is comprised of 3 slender bands entwined around each other.

The wearer can command the rings to give forth a ramlike force. This force strikes a single target, dealing 1d6 points of damage per charge spend (to a maximum of 6d6 for 6 charges). Treat this as a ranged attack with a 50-foot maximum range and no penalties for distance.

The force of the blow is considerable, and those struck by the ring are subject to a bull rush if within 30 feet of the ring-wearer. (The ram has Strength 25 and is Large.) The ram gains an additional +1 bonus on the bull rush attempt for each charge beyond the first (to a maximum of +5 if 6 charges are used).

The rings regenerate 1 charge each day, to a maximum of 6 charges when fully charged.

Moderate transmutation; CL 12th; Forge Ring, bull’s strength, telekinesis; Price 10,600 gp.

[Thurbane]

Where can I learn more about Mimir (preferably 3.5 source)?
There's some user made stats at Planewalker:

http://www.planewalker.com/040101/mimir-0

http://www.planewalker.com/forum/mimir-creation