Pseudodragon questions.

[Scarey Nerd]

OK, here are the questions:

1. What makes Pseudodragons have such a high level adjustment? They are good, what with the spell resistance, the flying, the poison etc, but +3 seems very high.

2. If you were playing a Pseudodragon, what class would you go for, assuming all 3.5 books are available except Magic of Incarnum?

3. ...Actually there's only 2 questions, but I prefer odd numbers :smalltongue:

Thanks in advance :smallsmile:

[dsmiles]

Pseudodragons are awesomesauce (as familiars).

I wouldn't play a pseudodragon, I would play a faerie dragon. Euphoria Gas is a great control the battlefield tactic, and they qualify as true dragons in the Draconomicon.

[Keld Denar]

Pseudodragons have a high LA because the devs overrated the strength of SR, like they overrated the strength of DR. Its decent, but its not THAT good. Flight is strong though, and their ability mods are good, so I'd say that they are at least a +2.

[Dusk Eclipse]

I would play a sneaky class, rogue, scout, something like that. Or just for gits and shiggles a barbarian :smallbiggrin:

A pseudodragon assassin with midsight feat sure is an awesome mental image....


:smallannoyed:Scarey Nerd hope you are happy, now I have to ask my DM if he will let me play one.

[Scarey Nerd]

I would play a sneaky class, rogue, scout, something like that. Or just for gits and shiggles a barbarian :smallbiggrin:

A pseudodragon assassin with midsight feat sure is an awesome mental image....


:smallannoyed:Scarey Nerd hope you are happy, now I have to ask my DM if he will let me play one.

I apologise greatly, I was teetering between a few classes, then noticed that they have a level adjustment. Changeling Rogue, Uldra Ranger, Darfellan Barbarian, or house-cat sized dragon.

I think my choice is a good one.

[Keld Denar]

You can focus on the poison? Something like a Hexblade/Pally of Tyranny/Binder to give lots of save debuffs, then stack Con to increase the DC?

Might be rather interesting, albeit rather 1trickish. Still, focusing on debuffing is pretty good if you have spellcasters in your party.

[Thrice Dead Cat]

You can focus on the poison? Something like a Hexblade/Pally of Tyranny/Binder to give lots of save debuffs, then stack Con to increase the DC?

Might be rather interesting, albeit rather 1trickish. Still, focusing on debuffing is pretty good if you have spellcasters in your party.

Dammit! Seeing this makes me want to remake the Trouser Fang Dwarf with a Pseudodragon cohort who lives in his pants instead of the tiny vipers. He opens combat with the little bugger poisoning his enemies before retreating back to his home to heal his master.

[Flickerdart]

Pseudodragon poison is indeed very good due to the racial bonus and the SoL instead of plain old ability damage. A dip in Barbarian would both give you a good HD for 1st level (to ameliorate the awful HP you will have due to +3 LA) and an easy CON boost besides. At 6th level, DC 20 (20 CON, +4 from Rage, +2 racial bonus, +1 from HD) is a pretty serious threat.

[Keld Denar]

Oh....wouldn't Whirling Frenzy give you an extra tail attack too? You'd lose the +2 Con, but you'd force 2 saves a round...

[Scarey Nerd]

Oh....wouldn't Whirling Frenzy give you an extra tail attack too? You'd lose the +2 Con, but you'd force 2 saves a round...

Where is this Whirling Frenzy?

Also, I had a thought for class... What about Dragon Shaman?

Little Dragon reveres big Dragons. And can breathe cones of fire that are 6 times its length.

[Flickerdart]

Now we just need to get you absurd reach and then Whirlwind attack, so you can sleep-poison an entire battlefield.

[Keld Denar]

Aberrant Blood + Inhuman Reach will give you +5' reach. If you can shapechange, Morphic Reach from Warshaper would give +5'. Willing Deformity + Deformity: Tall gives +5' reach if you don't mind being an evil bastard. Few others...Person Man has a nice guide written up somewhere.

Whirling Frenzy is a rage variant in Unearthed Arcana (you can find it at www.d20srd.org under the varant rules section). Basically, it gives you a flurry-of-blowsesque feature, without all of the annoying monk limitations.

[Fouredged Sword]

I would go totemist and become a natural attack master.

Note. Dragon fire adept is better than dragon shaman to play. Auras are boreing. Take feats for an aura if you really want one. An at will breath weapon in nice with a fly speed.

[Prime32]

1. What makes Pseudodragons have such a high level adjustment? They are good, what with the spell resistance, the flying, the poison etc, but +3 seems very high.Almost all level adjustments are too high. WotC don't want people to play non-humanoids.

Oh, and some of their designers don't seem to know the difference between LA and ECL.

Generally, if a character has an ability which a normal PC could get at 7th level, then it has a +6 level adjustment. Even if it already has 15 racial HD and could thus only be played in epic. They get wiser about this in later books though, with stuff like the raptoran's LA +0 scales-by-level flight.

[Fax Celestis]

Also, I had a thought for class... What about Dragon Shaman?

Little Dragon reveres big Dragons. And can breathe cones of fire that are 6 times its length.

Forget Dragon Shaman, use Dragonfire Adept. Much cooler, better mechanics, same fluff.

[Admiral Squish]

I want to do with with my Dragon Shaman Fix (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=147604) now...

I'd think that a pseudodragon would be awesome as a rogue/assassin.

[Marnath]

I've seen this mentioned in other threads, but be a sorceror with a human commoner cohort, dress him up as a wizard and be his "familiar." That would be awesome :smallsmile:

[Flickerdart]

I've seen this mentioned in other threads, but be a sorceror with a human commoner cohort, dress him up as a wizard and be his "familiar." That would be awesome :smallsmile:
Or, y'know, get a proper Wizard cohort, and take levels in a class that isn't absurdly crippled by RHD/LA.

[PlzBreakMyCmpAn]

Pseudodragons have a high LA because the devs overrated the strength of SR, like they overrated the strength of DRAnd overrated +str, while underrating casting, +wis, and most anything anyone would want from a monstrous PC.

And that's just the LA. Half of WotC didn't know RHD counted towards ECL.

[Yorrin]

I rolled a Pseudodragon Druid once in a high level just-for-lolz campaign. He was pretty fun. Of course, since nobody was taking the campaign seriously I went Planar Shepherd and spent most of the day as a Tulani Eladrin.

[Marnath]

Or, y'know, get a proper Wizard cohort, and take levels in a class that isn't absurdly crippled by RHD/LA.

Or you could homerule away most of that because the LA is absurdly high and RHD are kind of a lame approach. But it would mostly be for the fun of it, not for a serious attempt. Plus, tiny dragon. That's just cool in it's own right.

[Thurbane]

LA aside, I think Pseudoragons with class levels can make excellent scouts/recon types - Rogue, Scout etc.

...and Telepathy sets them up for Mindsight nicely. Also, they qualify for draconic monstrous feats, which can be nice. Natural flight is nothing to be sneezed at, either.