Karsh
2010-07-07, 02:22 PM
I'm making a template for a player in my group. His character was zombified early in the campaign, gaining a number of reasonably useful abilities like damage reduction and a boost to strength.
Recently in the campaign, he used the Sword of Kas to kill an avatar of Tiamat. This deserves something drastic.
Here's a first pass at what I have put together, I'd appreciate feedback. The player requested that the template be an LA +0 template, so I'm trying to have drawbacks which are sufficiently nasty to balance out the benefits.
For reference, the base character already has the undead type, DR 5/bludgeoning, and I think Turn Resistance +2. He's also a goliath monk built around grappling things to death.
Tainted Swordwight Template
Tainted by the power of the Sword of Kas and corrupted with the power of Tiamat, your curse has blossomed into its second stage. You can no longer hide your nature, as a pestilent wound opened itself up in the center of your chest, obliterating your heart. It pulses with a malevolent red glow in time with what would be your heartbeat. The wound itself is shaped as though a greatsword had been plunged into your chest. The light burns through any coverings you might try to place over it, and even illusions cannot conceal your disfiguration.
Hit Dice: Remain as d12s.
Special attacks:
Siphon Strength (Su) - A creature struck by your melee attack takes 1 point of strength drain in addition to normal melee damage. Every three points of strength drained in this manner gives you a cumulative +1 profane bonus to strength for 1 minute as you siphon the strength of your foes. This ability affects undead, but not other creatures immune to ability drain.
Special Qualities:
Tainted Toughness (Ex) – Carrying the Sword of Kas has fortified you with resilience above that of a normal zombie. Your DR improves to 7/adamantine and you gain 1 additional HP per character level.
Unholy Energy (Ex) – Negative energy courses through your veins like blood. Positive energy spells, negative energy spells, and spells which specifically damage undead are empowered when cast on you. You take a -2 on saves against spells that specifically affect undead but do not deal damage. Furthermore, your turn resistance increases by +2, but you lose the benefit of your turn resistance against Turn Undead attempts.
Berserk (Ex) – The Sword of Kas may no longer hold direct sway over your actions, but you are more bloodthirsty than ever, having tasted the glory of annihilating the avatar of a god. Every round you are in combat, there is a chance that you go berserk and begin attacking the nearest living creature or destroy the nearest object before moving on to the next nearest. This chance is equal to your profane strength bonus from siphon strength plus 3% for every round of combat you have been in. A party member can attempt to calm you with a DC 20 Charisma check. You must be inactive and out of combat for 1 full minute to reset your berserk chance to 0.
Sword Wound (Su) – The sword wound over your heart glows with a malevolent light that cannot be concealed. Any attempt to conceal the sword wound automatically fails, including illusions such as Disguise Self, Minor Image, and Invisibility. Similarly, polymorph spells cannot conceal the wound. Unlike most supernatural abilities, this ability continues to function even in an antimagic field.
Abilities: +2 STR, -2 WIS
Some of the power siphoned from the avatar of Tiamat has given your undead muscles even greater power, but at the cost of a shred of your sanity. At the back of your mind, you sometimes suspect that you can still hear the voice of Kas whispering insidious incantations in a dead language.
Recently in the campaign, he used the Sword of Kas to kill an avatar of Tiamat. This deserves something drastic.
Here's a first pass at what I have put together, I'd appreciate feedback. The player requested that the template be an LA +0 template, so I'm trying to have drawbacks which are sufficiently nasty to balance out the benefits.
For reference, the base character already has the undead type, DR 5/bludgeoning, and I think Turn Resistance +2. He's also a goliath monk built around grappling things to death.
Tainted Swordwight Template
Tainted by the power of the Sword of Kas and corrupted with the power of Tiamat, your curse has blossomed into its second stage. You can no longer hide your nature, as a pestilent wound opened itself up in the center of your chest, obliterating your heart. It pulses with a malevolent red glow in time with what would be your heartbeat. The wound itself is shaped as though a greatsword had been plunged into your chest. The light burns through any coverings you might try to place over it, and even illusions cannot conceal your disfiguration.
Hit Dice: Remain as d12s.
Special attacks:
Siphon Strength (Su) - A creature struck by your melee attack takes 1 point of strength drain in addition to normal melee damage. Every three points of strength drained in this manner gives you a cumulative +1 profane bonus to strength for 1 minute as you siphon the strength of your foes. This ability affects undead, but not other creatures immune to ability drain.
Special Qualities:
Tainted Toughness (Ex) – Carrying the Sword of Kas has fortified you with resilience above that of a normal zombie. Your DR improves to 7/adamantine and you gain 1 additional HP per character level.
Unholy Energy (Ex) – Negative energy courses through your veins like blood. Positive energy spells, negative energy spells, and spells which specifically damage undead are empowered when cast on you. You take a -2 on saves against spells that specifically affect undead but do not deal damage. Furthermore, your turn resistance increases by +2, but you lose the benefit of your turn resistance against Turn Undead attempts.
Berserk (Ex) – The Sword of Kas may no longer hold direct sway over your actions, but you are more bloodthirsty than ever, having tasted the glory of annihilating the avatar of a god. Every round you are in combat, there is a chance that you go berserk and begin attacking the nearest living creature or destroy the nearest object before moving on to the next nearest. This chance is equal to your profane strength bonus from siphon strength plus 3% for every round of combat you have been in. A party member can attempt to calm you with a DC 20 Charisma check. You must be inactive and out of combat for 1 full minute to reset your berserk chance to 0.
Sword Wound (Su) – The sword wound over your heart glows with a malevolent light that cannot be concealed. Any attempt to conceal the sword wound automatically fails, including illusions such as Disguise Self, Minor Image, and Invisibility. Similarly, polymorph spells cannot conceal the wound. Unlike most supernatural abilities, this ability continues to function even in an antimagic field.
Abilities: +2 STR, -2 WIS
Some of the power siphoned from the avatar of Tiamat has given your undead muscles even greater power, but at the cost of a shred of your sanity. At the back of your mind, you sometimes suspect that you can still hear the voice of Kas whispering insidious incantations in a dead language.