PDA

View Full Version : Requesting greek mythology templates



Marvel-dude
2010-04-13, 06:25 AM
Greetings everyone. Yet again I have comehere torequest a template.
My GM has recently read the Percy Jackson books and apparently loved them so much that he wanted to create a campain based of the greek mythology (with bits and pieces from the old Hercules,Young Hercules and Zena series)
And I decided that I wanted to play a half god.

I already know that there is a book wih the greek gods and the template for being a half god but I this tme I wanted to play a fighter. So I, thought sine Achilleus is considered one of the greatest warriors of all time, that a Styx template would be gret since it should boost my characters damage reduction or somehing.

So is there anyone that could help me with such a template or possibly come with other templates that would work ina greek setting?

(I am terribly sorry for grammar and spelling errors)

Geiger Counter
2010-04-13, 06:32 AM
Um gods are epic beings you know, so basically I suggest you just play a level 20 fighter if you want to start off at the same power level as a demigod.

Marvel-dude
2010-04-13, 06:41 AM
But I am just using the half god template from "Lore of the Gods". We will be starting out as a lvl 1 and gettingquests from our god parrents or an oracle.

The template just gives me a 19 and 18 to place in my stats, DR 5/- and possibly a speed bonus.

In the beinning we will go up against small things like... Baby minotars and such. Just like a normal group of adventures and then later we will discover the main quest

Ashtagon
2010-04-13, 07:16 AM
Mythic Vistas: Trojan Wars has a demi-god race, playabel from level one.

The Achilles style effect from the Styx could best be represented as DR X/magic, with a LA of +Y. Plug in numbers for X and Y as your group sees fit. I'd ignore the "heel" vulnerability though, as that was specific to a particular story, and D&D doesn't handle hit locations in any case.

Telonius
2010-04-13, 07:17 AM
Something like Aasimar or Lesser Aasimar might be what you're looking for. Basically a half-celestial.

The thing you have to realize is that within D&D, a "Demigod" is a very specific thing mechanically. It's actually a deity with a Divine Rank of 1-5, has worshippers, and can grant spells. You can read about it in the SRD here (http://www.d20srd.org/indexes/divineRanksPowers.htm); it's more thoroughly discussed in the "Deities and Demigods" book.

Unfortunately I don't have the "Lore of the gods" book - that's from Paizo, right? How much of a level adjustment does that template give you? That would really be the thing that determines whether or not it's worth it.

Marvel-dude
2010-04-13, 07:43 AM
That is the beauty of the half god template. It has no LA though it has a CR rating. I know that s normally means that a PC can't play it but in this campain we aren't supposed to be super powerful like Hercules or Percy Jackson (In the movie) from the start.
We won't be having magical powers like teleport or the like, rather we will be having magical equipment like... Poseidons Trident or something similar (Though toned down of course, or the magical item will unlock more abilities as we grow in power)
There won't be a divine rank since none of us players want to have that kind of power (yet)

PairO'Dice Lost
2010-04-13, 07:51 AM
One solution is a template granting DR X/-- equal to 5 + 1/2 level and a deflection bonus to AC equal to 1 + 1/2 level, with whatever miscellaneous ability/speed/etc. boosts you feel are warranted. That gives you respectable protection without being good enough at level 1 to warrant LA.

Telonius
2010-04-13, 08:02 AM
Okay, all that for no LA is a bit much. (The general rule for templates is, if there's no reason outside fluff for characters not to take it, it's too powerful). Personally I'd peg that as LA+1 minimum, but if your DM is allowing it without, better for you.

So, if you're about to build an Achilles, you're probably going to need a couple levels of Barbarian. Ideally for power purposes you'd probably want mostly Warblade (i.e. most powerful melee class), but the fluff of that might not work out for ancient Greece. If ToB isn't available, a few levels of Fighter with some Ranger thrown in (favored enemy: Troy). Shield and spear tactics - strictly speaking this isn't a very powerful combination, but if you're willing to sacrifice power for flavor you'd want it.

Marvel-dude
2010-04-13, 08:17 AM
Well my idea was an achilleus-ish character.
There is PrC that I want to quallify for and for that I have to get some feats like weapon specialisation and such. To get that I have to be a fighter.
I just wanted Achilleus' invulnerability since my character would be quite a tank-type.
And yes I am very lucky that my GM doesn't care about LA :D

But the setting is greek but it still has the normal races like Dwarfes, elves etc. and more fun races like amazones, centaurs and some monstrous races. Like one of the players is planning to play a female gorgon (whos eyes aren't as good as her mothers so they wont turn people into stone) and stuff like that

Ashtagon
2010-04-13, 09:30 AM
Rather than a template, have you considered treating it as a magic item? Specifically a graft, using something based on the graft item rules presented in Fiend Folio and Libris Mortis.

Marvel-dude
2010-04-13, 10:50 AM
Sadly I don't have those books
But I guess that template would be the wrong word for it, since all that Achilleus does is getting dipped in it by his mother.
But yes graft is the right word for it since I have always just thought as the Styx water being like a first layer of skin.

Debihuman
2010-04-13, 10:51 AM
Why not just play a quasi-deity (aka Hero God)? The rules for those are in the Deities and Demigods book (and a lot of that information is in the online SRD as well if you don't have access to that particular book).

Deities have Divine Rank. Quasi-deities have Divine Rank 0 (mortals have no rank at all).


Creatures of this rank are sometimes called quasi-deities or hero deities. Creatures that have a mortal and a deity as parents also fall into this category. These entities cannot grant spells, but are immortal and usually have one or more ability scores that are far above the norm for their species. They may have some worshipers. Ordinary mortals do not have a divine rank of 0. They lack a divine rank altogether.

The major benefit to having divine Rank 0 is the granting of immortality.


Immortality
All deities (even those of rank 0) are naturally immortal and cannot die from natural causes. Deities do not age, and they do not need to eat, sleep, or breathe. The only way for a deity to die is through special circumstances, usually by being slain in magical or physical combat. Deities of rank 1 or higher are not subject to death from massive damage.


Basically this gives you the divine background for being the child of a god or goddess and gives you better abilities than normal but you can't grant spells. Not needing to breathe, eat or sleep can be part of the discovery process if you like.

Debby

Marvel-dude
2010-04-13, 10:57 AM
The reason that we will not be playing with divine ranks (0+) is that our GM believes that it will grant us far too much power.
We are going to be playing in a world where we must prove ourselves for our godly mother or father.

Like a quest from Poseidon would be "Swim down to the bottom of the largest ocean and get me a giant pearl"
With a divine rank of 0 this would be easy since we have no reason to breathe. But as normal humans we would be troubled. How will we breathe down there, how will we not be crushed by the pressure etc.

Not that playing a quasi-deity wouldn't be fun, it just isn't in our GMs plans for the campain

Debihuman
2010-04-13, 11:22 AM
The Children of the Gods Template in Bastion Press's Lore of the Gods is probably the best tempate for the power level that your DM is looking for.

Since all the text in that book is open content, the rules can be posted here.


Children of the Gods is a template that can be added to any humanoid base creature of any alignment. All base creature’s
statistics and special abilities are used except as noted.
Speed: There is a 15% chance that a half-god’s base rate of movement increases by 10 feet.
AC: Natural armor improves by +1.
Special Qualities: Half-gods have all of the qualities of the base creature, plus Damage Reduction 5/-.
Saves: All saves gain a +1 bonus due to the immortal blood in the character’s veins.
Abilities: +2 bonus to any two ability scores or +4 to a single ability with a minimum of two abilities being assigned a score of 18 or higher. The highest ability score should reflect the primary attribute of the parental deity. For example, a daughter of Aphrodite would have Charisma as her highest ability score, while a daughter of Ares would possess incredible Strength.
A –2 reaction penalty is assessed to all Charisma based checks when dealing with allies, minions, or worshippers of an opposed deity. Half-gods do not incur aging penalties as they grow older.
Skills: Same as the base creature.
Feats: Same as the base creature.
Environment: Same as the base creature.
Organization: Same as the base creature.
Challenge Rating: Same as the base creature +2.
Alignment: Any
Treasure: Same as the base creature.
Advancement: Same as the base creature or by character class.
Level Adjustment: —


You should note that the LA is not 0 but — indicating that this is NOT suitable for PCs.

If you want to play this as a PC the LA is probably +2.

Debby

Djinn_in_Tonic
2010-04-13, 11:38 AM
Styx Touched

Dipped in the river Styx as a child, a Styx Touched character is unnaturally strong and durable.

+4 Strength, +4 Constitution.
+3 Natural Armor.
+15 feet addition to base land speed.
DR 5/-
Regeneration 5, overcome by fire, acid, and damage dealt by critical hits.

The Regeneration makes it extremely potent, probably making this an LA +3 or +4 template, but I think it gets the point across nicely.

Niro
2010-04-13, 01:13 PM
isnt Children of the gods what Marvel-dude described? I mean sure the nameof the templates are different but there are similarities :\

But regarding the Styx thingey... what system are we talking? 4th edition or 3,5 edition, pathfinder, MM, d20 etc.
Ya gotta give us some information brah :smallbiggrin:

Kobold-Bard
2010-04-13, 01:32 PM
isnt Children of the gods what Marvel-dude described? I mean sure the nameof the templates are different but there are similarities :\

But regarding the Styx thingey... what system are we talking? 4th edition or 3,5 edition, pathfinder, MM, d20 etc.
Ya gotta give us some information brah :smallbiggrin:

3.5 It discusses mechanics only from that game (looking at Regeneration). And 4ed doesn't have LA.


The Children of the Gods Template in Bastion Press's Lore of the Gods is probably the best tempate for the power level that your DM is looking for.

Since all the text in that book is open content, the rules can be posted here.


Children of the Gods is a template that can be added to any humanoid base creature of any alignment. All base creature’s
statistics and special abilities are used except as noted.
Speed: There is a 15% chance that a half-god’s base rate of movement increases by 10 feet.
AC: Natural armor improves by +1.
Special Qualities: Half-gods have all of the qualities of the base creature, plus Damage Reduction 5/-.
Saves: All saves gain a +1 bonus due to the immortal blood in the character’s veins.
Abilities: +2 bonus to any two ability scores or +4 to a single ability with a minimum of two abilities being assigned a score of 18 or higher. The highest ability score should reflect the primary attribute of the parental deity. For example, a daughter of Aphrodite would have Charisma as her highest ability score, while a daughter of Ares would possess incredible Strength.
A –2 reaction penalty is assessed to all Charisma based checks when dealing with allies, minions, or worshippers of an opposed deity. Half-gods do not incur aging penalties as they grow older.
Skills: Same as the base creature.
Feats: Same as the base creature.
Environment: Same as the base creature.
Organization: Same as the base creature.
Challenge Rating: Same as the base creature +2.
Alignment: Any
Treasure: Same as the base creature.
Advancement: Same as the base creature or by character class.
Level Adjustment: —


You should note that the LA is not 0 but — indicating that this is NOT suitable for PCs.

If you want to play this as a PC the LA is probably +2.

Debby

Two automatic 18's seems a bit more than +"LA level, but I'm wrong a lot.

imp_fireball
2010-04-13, 03:50 PM
Um gods are epic beings you know, so basically I suggest you just play a level 20 fighter if you want to start off at the same power level as a demigod.

Does it say anywhere that you need to be epic to gain demigod divine rank?


The Achilles style effect from the Styx could best be represented as DR X/magic, with a LA of +Y. Plug in numbers for X and Y as your group sees fit. I'd ignore the "heel" vulnerability though, as that was specific to a particular story, and D&D doesn't handle hit locations in any case.

There's nothing preventing you from coming up with funky weaknesses, like particular reagents (when exposed, all their DR disappears and they are vulnerable to everything).


The reason that we will not be playing with divine ranks (0+) is that our GM believes that it will grant us far too much power.
We are going to be playing in a world where we must prove ourselves for our godly mother or father.

Like a quest from Poseidon would be "Swim down to the bottom of the largest ocean and get me a giant pearl"
With a divine rank of 0 this would be easy since we have no reason to breathe. But as normal humans we would be troubled. How will we breathe down there, how will we not be crushed by the pressure etc.

Not that playing a quasi-deity wouldn't be fun, it just isn't in our GMs plans for the campain

Don't deities have to manifest avatars to walk the mortal plane (at least in some fluff)?

The avatar is essentially as mortal as everyone else, except that its an outsider and when it dies the deity shifts back to its native plane (like a regular outsider pretty much).

Debihuman
2010-04-13, 05:04 PM
Playing the offspring of a god and a mortal doesn't automatically start you as epic. The rules for this are in the Deities and Demigods book (or you can check the online SRD). However, the rules weren't meant for these characters to be playable as PCs. Technically, the Children of the God template isn't meant for player characters either.

Green Ronin put out the Mythic Vista series; Trojan War is quite good. However, it also uses Piety Rules so you may want to read the rules carefully. Nonetheless, the Divine Offspring template in Trojan War is Open Content. So it can be posted here.

Djinn, is that Styx-touched a homebrew of yours or is it from a book? It's not clear if it is a template or not.

I vaguely remember that bloodlines were introduced in Unearthed Arcana. Characters with bloodlines are more powerful than characters without them, but they have to take "levels" in their bloodline so it slows their progression.

If you can find it, I also recommend looking at The New Argonauts: Adventure in Mythic Greece by Sean K. Reynolds. It was being sold for a while, then became a free product. I'm not sure of its status now. You might want to check the author's website. There was also a free Web Enhancement for the product.

Debby

Djinn_in_Tonic
2010-04-13, 05:10 PM
Djinn, is that Styx-touched a homebrew of yours or is it from a book? It's not clear if it is a template or not.

A quick, off-the-top-of-my-head homebrew template.

Ashtagon
2010-04-13, 11:35 PM
Green Ronin put out the Mythic Vista series; Trojan War is quite good. However, it also uses Piety Rules so you may want to read the rules carefully. Nonetheless, the Divine Offspring template in Trojan War is Open Content. So it can be posted here.

I just double-checked the ogl note in there, and it is indeed open content (wasn't sure before). That said...

There are three versions - major, medium, and minor. This is everything except the piety rules (which are weird, imho).

I'd be tempted to allow a significant bonus against disease. Divine offspring tend to die heroic deaths if they do at all, and disease just isn't a suitably dramatic way to go.

All

These features are common to all versions of this "race".

* A divine offspring's base speed is 35 feet. Their divine heritage allows them to move slightly faster than humans.
* Divine offspring receive a +2 racial bonus to Climb, Jump, and Swim checks. Divine offspring are all extremely athletic.
* Native Outsider: As native outsiders, divine offspring may be raised, reincarnated, or resurrected, as any other living creature.
* Automatic Languages: Greek and Olympian. Bonus Languages: Any.
* favoured class: Dedicated warrior (you probably will want to change this).

Major

* +2 Strength, +2 Dexterity, +2 Constitution, +2 Charisma, –2 Intelligence.
* +4 on saves vs divine spells.
* +3 natural armour bonus to AC.
* +3 level adjustment.

Medium

* +2 Strength, +2 Dexterity, +2 Charisma, –2 Intelligence
* +2 on saves vs divine spells.
* +2 natural armour bonus to AC.
* +2 level adjustment.

Minor

* +2 to Strength or Dexterity, +2 Charisma, –2 Intelligence
* +1 on saves vs divine spells.
* +1 natural armour bonus to AC.
* +1 level adjustment.

Kobold-Bard
2010-04-14, 05:24 AM
So all God-creatures get a -2 to Int. Do they explain that in the book, or are Gods just dumb?

Ashtagon
2010-04-14, 08:24 AM
So all God-creatures get a -2 to Int. Do they explain that in the book, or are Gods just dumb?

You're read the Greek myths and think those gods are are smart? :smallconfused:

Kobold-Bard
2010-04-14, 08:29 AM
You've read the Greek myths and think those gods are are smart? :smallconfused:

Intelligence and Wisdom are 2 different things in D&D. I think they're very smart, just not too bright/too powerful to bother thinking about the consequences.

Ashtagon
2010-04-14, 08:38 AM
I simply copied out relevant OGL bits from MV:TW. If you disagree that strongly, take it up with them. Note that this race is there to define demigods (ie. children of a god and a mortal, not the specific D&D defined divine rank). I don't think it was intended as a comment on actual Greek gods.

In practical terms, -2 Int basically means "Don't be a skill monkey or an arcane caster". And while there may well be one or two such characters in Greek myth, they are a distinct minority among Greek demigods. The stat modifier works in terms of maintaining the appropriate tropes.

Kobold-Bard
2010-04-14, 08:47 AM
I simply copied out relevant OGL bits from MV:TW. If you disagree that strongly, take it up with them. Note that this race is there to define demigods (ie. children of a god and a mortal, not the specific D&D defined divine rank). I don't think it was intended as a comment on actual Greek gods.

In practical terms, -2 Int basically means "Don't be a skill monkey or an arcane caster". And while there may well be one or two such characters in Greek myth, they are a distinct minority among Greek demigods. The stat modifier works in terms of maintaining the appropriate tropes.

Wasn't disagreeing, just curious about the reasoning.

agamemenon
2010-04-15, 10:07 AM
Intelligence and Wisdom are 2 different things in D&D. I think they're very smart, just not too bright/too powerful to bother thinking about the consequences.

I would tend to agree on this point. The Greek Mythos is heavily peppered with divine individuals that are strongly ID driven. They do not consider consequences because they're immortal and most consequences don't apply to them. That being said, the penalty should be on Wisdom and not Intelligence. With Athena being the standard against how Wisdom would be "dumbed" down - Ares at the other extreme as he's stictly impulse driven.

Just my 2 stingers worth.

imp_fireball
2010-04-15, 10:28 AM
I simply copied out relevant OGL bits from MV:TW. If you disagree that strongly, take it up with them. Note that this race is there to define demigods (ie. children of a god and a mortal, not the specific D&D defined divine rank). I don't think it was intended as a comment on actual Greek gods.

In practical terms, -2 Int basically means "Don't be a skill monkey or an arcane caster". And while there may well be one or two such characters in Greek myth, they are a distinct minority among Greek demigods. The stat modifier works in terms of maintaining the appropriate tropes.

It's probably better to disallow that sorta thing in the setting rather then mechanically discourage it.

Besides, the whole reason their are few skill monkeys or arcane casters is because actual greeks had few arcane casters or skill monkeys (the latter may have been not as 'worthy of honor' as a straight up warrior or philosopher). There's greek adepts though, like the oracle in 300.


I would tend to agree on this point. The Greek Mythos is heavily peppered with divine individuals that are strongly ID driven. They do not consider consequences because they're immortal and most consequences don't apply to them. That being said, the penalty should be on Wisdom and not Intelligence. With Athena being the standard against how Wisdom would be "dumbed" down - Ares at the other extreme as he's stictly impulse driven.

Athena is the godess of wisdom after all, hence she probably has higher wisdom then most of them.

Of course, even she could be frivolous at times - I think.


Divine offspring tend to die heroic deaths if they do at all, and disease just isn't a suitably dramatic way to go.


Even though that's how Alexander the Great died.

Of course, he wasn't actually 'divine', but greek myth could easily be tailored to cover that up. People believed in his divinity at the time.


* +2 Strength, +2 Dexterity, +2 Constitution, +2 Charisma, –2 Intelligence.
* +4 on saves vs divine spells.
* +3 natural armour bonus to AC.
* +3 level adjustment.


That's pretty brutal LA. I'd tone it down to LA 1 unless there's other affects like maximum hp per HD.


* +2 to Strength or Dexterity, +2 Charisma, –2 Intelligence
* +1 on saves vs divine spells.
* +1 natural armour bonus to AC.
* +1 level adjustment.

Just barely worth LA 1, and then again it's a template so... maybe, alternatively a PC can spend XP to acquire this template?

Warpwolf16
2010-04-15, 10:34 AM
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scarred_Lands

Scarred Lands might have what your looking for, its more or less based off Greek Mythos. Titans VS. Gods and all :smallbiggrin:

I dont have books on hand, but I'd suggest checking them out.

Ashtagon
2010-04-15, 10:51 AM
My thoughts on the divine offspring race from MV: Trojan Wars...

The Intelligence penalty could justifiably be replaced by a Wisdom penalty. Maybe let the player choose which one.

I'd give a flat +4 bonus on saves against disease to all versions of the race.

In terms of "allowed" classes, MV:TW only allows barbarian, bard, fighter, and ranger (plus a couple of new ones defined in the book). I'd be tempted to let the player declare any one of these as his favoured class at 1st level.

Of the three versions... I think the minor one is reasonably balanced. Yes, it's not the shiniest of LA+1 races, but not all of them can be. Bear in mind that it still gets the traits listed in the earlier paragraph (which broke up the appearance of the benefits a bit), plus the changes I outlined above. I'd be tempted to just delete the +2 version, and change the +3 version's LA from +3 to +2.