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Ozymandias9
2010-08-31, 11:36 AM
Basically, a challenge to create an optimized, flavorful character, using a "Secret Ingredient" of a particular PrC, different for each contest. 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:

Menu: For most challenges, the "special 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.

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. Alternate rule systems from UA such as gestalt are not allowed, as they create a different playing field. Also, item familiars are forbidden because I hate 'em.

Cooking Time: Contestants will have until Thursday, September 9th to create their builds and PM them to the Chairman, Ozymandias9. Builds will then be posted simultaneously, to avoid copying.

Judging: 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 flavor 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 loss of one point per flaw 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.

I am going to have to ask the contestants to PM me about any disagreement with the judges. Under no circumstances is a contestant to defend themselves inside the thread, since it breaks anonymity.

Presentation: Builds will be posted anonymously, in order to avoid the potential of bias towards a particular competitor. For this reason, please don't put your name in the build, as I'm likely to miss it when anonymising the entries!

Due to concerns about standardizing entry format, I'd like everyone to try to use the following table for their entry.NAME OF ENTRY
{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack<br>Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features

1st|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

2nd|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

3rd|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

4th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

5th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

6th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

7th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

8th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

9th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

10th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

11th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

12th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

13th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

14th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

15th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

16th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

17th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

18th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

19th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

20th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities[/table]

CodeNAME OF ENTRY
{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack<br>Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features

1st|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

2nd|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

3rd|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

4th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

5th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

6th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

7th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

8th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

9th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

10th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

11th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

12th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

13th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

14th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

15th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

16th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

17th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

18th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

19th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities

20th|New Class Level|
+x|
+x|
+x|
+x|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities[/table]

For entries with spellcasting, use the following table for Spells per day and Spells Known. (Spells Known only if necessary, i.e. Sorcerer or Bard, but not Wizard or Warmage)
Spells per day/Spells Known
{table=head]Level|0lvl|1st|2nd|3rd|4th|5th|6th|7th|8th|9th

1st|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

2nd|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

3rd|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

4th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

5th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

6th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

7th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

8th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

9th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

10th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

11th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

12th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

13th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

14th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

15th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

16th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

17th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

18th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

19th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

20th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-[/table]

CodeSpells per day/Spells Known
{table=head]Level|0lvl|1st|2nd|3rd|4th|5th|6th|7th|8th|9th

1st|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

2nd|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

3rd|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

4th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

5th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

6th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

7th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

8th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

9th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

10th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

11th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

12th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

13th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

14th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

15th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

16th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

17th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

18th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

19th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

20th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-[/table]

For other systems (Psionics, ToB, Incarnum, etc.) keep track of PP/maneuvers/essentia separately, preferably in a nice neat list.

Speculation: 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.

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 about 5 judges and as many contestants as feel like playing!

This will be the contest's third special challenge. This week's special ingredient is:

Races of Stone's Blade Bravo!

Allez optimiser!

Judges
DaragosKitsune (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9262655&postcount=10)
Keld Denar (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9262572&postcount=9)
BobVosh (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9263777&postcount=17)
WinWin (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9264216&postcount=19)
Kesnit (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9264536&postcount=25)

Contestants
OMG PONIES
Vorpal Tribble
Amphetryon
mjames
Yucca
Biffoniacus_Furiou
IthilanorStPete
IdleMuse
Malbordeus
true_shinken

Past Competitions

Iron Chef I (Entropomancer) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=142470)
Iron Chef II (Psibond Agent) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=146583)
Iron Chef III (Cancer Mage) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=148584)
Iron Chef IV (Stonelord) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=150595)
Iron Chef V (War Chanter) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=152543)
Iron Chef VI (Master of Masks) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=156876)
Iron Chef VII (Green Star Adept) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=158633)
Iron Chef VIII (Pyrokineticist) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=160266)
Iron Chef IX (Animal Lord) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=162702)
Iron Chef X (Mythic Exemplar) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=164381)

DaragosKitsune
2010-08-31, 11:37 AM
Yeah, I'll be okay to judge again.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-08-31, 11:44 AM
Race-specific PrC... hm.

Edit: A race that has no racial benefits for the PrC no less.

Draz74
2010-08-31, 11:59 AM
Hmmm ... as I see it, the greatest difficulty here is coming up with something that's not just essentially a copy of The Other Killer Gnome by TheLogicNinja ...


This will be the contest's second special challenge.

Technically, it's the third (after Cancer Mage and Pyrokineticist).

EDIT: the OP doesn't list a deadline. I doubt I'll have time to enter this round, but if the deadline is, like, three weeks away, maybe I'll change my mind. :smallwink:

Ozymandias9
2010-08-31, 12:05 PM
Technically, it's the third (after Cancer Mage and Pyrokineticist).

Oops. Edited appropriately.


EDIT: the OP doesn't list a deadline. I doubt I'll have time to enter this round, but if the deadline is, like, three weeks away, maybe I'll change my mind. :smallwink:

It's listed under "Cooking Time": Thursday, September 9th. I should probably bold it.

OMG PONIES
2010-08-31, 12:09 PM
Hmm, currently in as a contestant. However, that may change to judge if inspiration fails to strike me. I keep wanting to come back to the obvious...I'll need to examine this thoroughly.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-08-31, 12:15 PM
Interestingly I got an almost instant idea... just wish I had the slightest liking for gnomes so as to be enthusiastic about it.

OMG PONIES
2010-08-31, 12:20 PM
I, too, have an idea. However, I fear it may be the first "original" idea that comes to everyone. This will be interesting.

Keld Denar
2010-08-31, 12:26 PM
I like judging! Copy/Pasta

My Criteria
Originality: Does the submission use unexpected sources or material? Does it avoid over-used qualification methods? Does it use the secret ingredient in an unusual or clever way? This section is an amalgam of the build itself and how the build is presented.

Power: What tier is this build? How does it compete against similar roles in terms of versatility, skills, damage, control, resiliance, etc. Does the inclusion of <Secret Ingredient> actually make this build more powerful? Is the build well-optimized? Are there any noticable saggy spots where the build underperforms? Is the build versatile (able to respond to a variety of challenges, both combat and non-combat), on top of any specialized tricks it may contain. Does the build use large amounts of LA and/or RHD that could lead to a slow start? Be as detailed as possible. If there is something your build does that is powerful, yet not completely obvious, you should probably expand upon it. If an important yet subtle feature in your build is missed by the judges, its mostly your own fault.

Elegance: Does your build progress well? Does it avoid flaws and variant rules (not including published Alt Class Features like Racial Subs)? Do you avoid overly dipping classes like cleric 1 that are obviously for bonus feats/class abilities? Does your build subscribe to various power break points if it doesn't complete a PrC? Do you avoid using Taint and Dark Chaos shuffling? Other judges might, but I have no problem with a player drawing from a multitude of sources. As far as I'm concerned, if material in a source book improves your submission, use it. This section is the one most affected by your back story and build presentation, but the submission itself is still very important here. PLEASE CITE ALL SOURCES USED!

Use of Secret Ingredient: How important is the secret ingredient in this build? Would you refer to the build as being A <Secret Ingredient>, or are you just splashing the PrC in there? Does the flavor of the build fit that of the PrC? Do you use the PrC in a clever, synergistic or powerful way? Do the special abilities of the secret ingredient augement or are augemented by other abilities in the build? If you didn't use all levels of the secret ingredient (and you don't always have to), do you have good reasoning why not, and did you exit at an acceptable power break point? This section is an amalgam of the build itself and how the SI interacts with the rest of the build.

DaragosKitsune
2010-08-31, 12:36 PM
Almost forgot.

My Requirements
A character background and tactics description will aid the evaluation and are encouraged.

Originality
My originality score is based on a few things.
1. Is it unique compared to other entrants?
2. Does it include unexpected choices in classes, races, feats, etc. without them being pointless or arbitrary?
3. Is the character fluff impressive and coherent?

Power
Power comes down to, quite simply, how the build would fare in a mid-power campaign. To further clarify, the score will be based on what the build can do. While combat potential and survivability are major facets of this, a build can also gain points in this category via indirect power, such as buffing ability or mobility. However, combat ability will be the main decider of this score, so a character with a lot of indirect ability but no combat ability and no means to correct this may suffer. That being said, having high combat ability but a poor tactical description can also lose points.

Elegance
Elegance is dependent on the clarity of the build, the readability of the build, the cohesiveness of the build, and the ability of the entrant to avoid overusing cheese. Points may be lost for inability to follow the rules given, overuse of multiclassing, overuse of templates without effective explanation, disorganized level progression, lack of sources, and possibly spelling errors if they interfere with the evaluation.

Use of Secret Ingredient
Points will be gained here for the effective incorporation of the secret ingredient. If the secret ingredient is underused, used incorrectly for the build, or entered late in the build, points may be deducted. Points may also be lost if the build does not use the secret ingredient as its focus. Minor loss of focus may be acceptable, but should not be expected.

Akal Saris
2010-08-31, 12:38 PM
I'm a fan of the PrC as well. I'll enter this competition, and hopefully RL won't devour me before the deadline :)

OMG PONIES
2010-08-31, 12:40 PM
Akal Saris is competing? I'm both frightened and excited!

Ozymandias9
2010-08-31, 02:01 PM
Interestingly I got an almost instant idea... just wish I had the slightest liking for gnomes so as to be enthusiastic about it.

I'm assuming that means you're in. I'm putting your name down as a contestant-- tell me if you need me to remove it.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-08-31, 02:02 PM
I'm assuming that means you're in. I'm putting your name down as a contestant-- tell me if you need me to remove it.
Oh, definitely a contestant.

mjames
2010-08-31, 03:05 PM
I'm in. May submit two builds drastically different builds however. Multiples still okay, right? By-the-by,no guarantee on two builds, just making sure it's acceptable.

Amphetryon
2010-08-31, 03:11 PM
Competing this time.

BobVosh
2010-08-31, 03:31 PM
I would like to judge.
Criteria:
Originality
How unique is your build compared to the others, and most commonly stated builds to go into the class. Do you use your SI in a unique, unexpected way? Do you enter the SI in an equally interesting way?

Power
Within the same type of classes, how do you compete? (Casters vs Casters, etc) Are there levels where you simply do not function, or function quite poorly? Do you rely on a caster to give a buff, or does your equipment with WBL allow you to take of any needs? Please feel free to explain any combos that the character relies on.

Elegance
Flaws are a required -1 point here, as per the rules. I don't care how many sources you go with to make your build, I won't count the number of books. However if you simply splash around for small level dips that look fishy, expect a little off. Do you exploit or use known cheese in order to do what it is you do?

Use of secret ingredient
Did you take the SI as far as possible, if not is there a good reason? Does the SI add or subtract from the actual effectiveness of the character? This section will basically combine the other three categories in terms of the SI only.

Ozymandias9
2010-08-31, 03:52 PM
I'm in. May submit two builds drastically different builds however. Multiples still okay, right? By-the-by,no guarantee on two builds, just making sure it's acceptable.

Multiple builds are OK, though to my knowledge we've never actually gotten one (though someone seems to ask every couple contests). This comes with the obligatory reminder that you may want to look over past competitions and look at the level of detail of the high scoring submissions before considering double entry.

WinWin
2010-08-31, 04:41 PM
I am willing to judge if neccesary.

My criteria
Originality This should be self explainatory. If you can make your build stand out from others, then you will score highly in this category. Backstory can be just as effective as an unusual race or class choice.

Power As a rule, versatile or low Tier characters will score well in this category. However, if you can make a focused build that is excellent within that focus, you will also score well.

Elegance How well everything comes together. I will not penalise dipping or multiple PrCs, but I expect to see sources listed. Wasted space or redundant features will lose you points, synergy between build choices and background will be rewarded.

Use of Secret Ingrediant It is not what you have, but how you use it. Simply having 10 levels is not enough to score well. Demonstrate to me why the secret ingrediant is needed and you will score highly. I may not penalise a build for not taking all 10 levels in the PrC if they use the levels they have well.

ForgottenCode
2010-08-31, 04:51 PM
Hi. I've been a longtime reader of the comic and forum, I've just never registered. I really love the idea of this contest. I'm just not sure I'll be able to come up with someone original enough for this prc. Still, I'll think it over and in the coming days post if I'm going to join this one or not.

Yucca
2010-08-31, 04:54 PM
I've been wanting to do one of these for a while. And I've always thought this was a fun looking PrC. In as a contestant.

Biffoniacus_Furiou
2010-08-31, 05:06 PM
I put on my apron and chef's hat....

IdleMuse
2010-08-31, 05:08 PM
I love Races of Stone, and although I've never really looked at this PrC, I'm staying with my folks for a week or two, so lots of time to develop an entry. Hopefully I'll actually get it submitted this time, the last two contests I built builds but just ran out of time (and motivation) to finish and submit them.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-08-31, 05:13 PM
I love Races of Stone, and although I've never really looked at this PrC
Still not sure why gnomes are a 'race of stone' and if they were what this PrC has to do with gnomes or races of stone, so I'm just rolling with it.

Kesnit
2010-08-31, 05:25 PM
I love Gnomes. :smallbiggrin: I much prefer judging to being a contestant, so I'd like to sign up for that.

Originality
I tend to look at each entry based on their own merit, rather than compare each to another. If two entries use the same base class, but go about them differently, they won't lose Originality points from me. If the entries are similar, they will.

Power
I'm going to steal this quote from DK, but it sums up my point of view. "Power comes down to, quite simply, how the build would fare in a mid-power campaign." I am not an min-maxer, and I do not play with min-maxers. I'm used to thinking of PCs as they are seen in many of the D&D books - where characters of different types of classes work together to get the job done.

As a heads-up, an extremely powerful PC will be marked down if, in my view, it would not work well as a member of a mixed party. (Mixed party defined as "not all PCs are pure casters.") That is not to say any Tier 1 PC will lose points, as they can be built in a way to help (rather than replace) the rest of the party.

Elegance
I REALLY dislike dipping, which I define as taking 1-2 levels of a base class. (Exceptions to that are if a PrC requires Class A 1/Class B 5, or something to that extent.) I am a little more open to taking 1-2 levels of a PrC, especially in a competition like this where it is expected 10 levels of another PrC will be taken. However, excessive "dipping" of PrCs will also lose Elegance points.

On the flip side, I like a good story. A lot of "strange" class changes and combos can be "overlooked" if the contestant can provide a logical reason for them. Also, I am aware English is not everyone's first language, and if a contestant feels they were marked down because they could not adequately explain their concept, I am willing to reevaluate my analysis of their Elegance. (Note I did not say I will automatically increase their score, but if informed, I will give it a second look.)

Use of Secret Ingredient
The point of this competition is the Special Ingredient, so obviously it should be the focus. Competitors will lose points if they use less than 9 levels of the SI. (I'd prefer to see all 10, but sometimes, things just cannot be helped.)

true_shinken
2010-08-31, 06:21 PM
I'd like to sign up as a judge!

IthilanorStPete
2010-08-31, 06:32 PM
I'll try my hand at competing in this.

IdleMuse
2010-08-31, 07:25 PM
They have a Con bonus, they must be a Race of Stone, right? :P More, I think, that they divided the core PHB races into a set of piles for each of the Races books, and gnomes ended up with dwarves.

Have a potential build idea, is kind of gimped at the moment due to not having room for thirty-odd class levels :smallamused:

Also frustrated by the lack of spellcasting progression in the classes I want to take :smallconfused:

Private-Prinny
2010-08-31, 08:54 PM
As a fellow gnome lover, I want in on this. I don't know how I'll stack up against Akal and Vorpal, however.

And if anyone is thinking about something like this, (http://community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/75882/19872846/I_May_Be_Tiny_But_Youre_Dead_the_other_melee_Kille r_Gnome_for_your_pleasure) it's been done before.

true_shinken
2010-08-31, 08:55 PM
And if anyone is thinking about something like this, (http://community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/75882/19872846/I_May_Be_Tiny_But_Youre_Dead_the_other_melee_Kille r_Gnome_for_your_pleasure) it's been done before.
That's exactly why I decided to not compete ^^
I doubt I could come up with something as awesome as that.

IdleMuse
2010-08-31, 09:03 PM
I'm tempted to go for a massive, massive cheese-fest, just to see how it does.

OMG PONIES
2010-08-31, 09:22 PM
Hmm, I've got two ideas. One skirts dangerously close to familiar territory, but makes great use of the secret ingredient. Another is (I think) original, but may lose some points in Use of Secret Ingredient. Oy...decisions, decisions.

Malbordeus
2010-09-01, 02:51 AM
count me in as a contestant, i'll pack this into my busy lifestyle somehow.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-01, 02:47 PM
The truly annoying thing about the PrC is the restrictions. You have to be a certain race. You have to use every feat granted you until 6th level. Then you actually use the PrC, and preferably all of its levels.

So first half of the build is dictated by prerequisites, second half by secret ingredient.

Still, I've figured out something to do with it, but...

Bah!

Amphetryon
2010-09-01, 03:07 PM
The truly annoying thing about the PrC is the restrictions. You have to be a certain race. You have to use every feat granted you until 6th level. Then you actually use the PrC, and preferably all of its levels.

So first half of the build is dictated by prerequisites, second half by secret ingredient.

Still, I've figured out something to do with it, but...

Bah!Exactly my feeling. Then, I keep looking at my idea(s) and comparing them against The Other Killer Gnome, wondering how original or powerful one can get against such a clear metric for the class.... [/whine]

Keld Denar
2010-09-01, 03:11 PM
I'm kinda curious, given the applicability of Races of Stone as the source material, if we'll see any other PrCs from Races of Stone present? Not gonna say which one, but I can think of a couple of interesting things that can happen there.

*shifty eyes*

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-01, 03:14 PM
*shifty eyes*
You might...

*meets your shifty eyes and raises you a feral grin*

OMG PONIES
2010-09-01, 03:20 PM
You might...

*meets your shifty eyes and raises you a feral grin*

Quite possibly...

*sees your feral grin and ups the stakes to an unsettling laugh*

Actually, I'm still on the fence about one build idea that incoroporates another Races of Stone prestige class, but I'm afraid that it showcases that class more than Blade Bravo. If I have the time, I may still toss it together and submit TWO builds.

Keld Denar
2010-09-01, 03:28 PM
*sees your feral grin and ups the stakes to an unsettling laugh*

*sees your unsettling laugh and raises you furious fist shake*

And...I got nothin.

EDIT: OMGPonies, if you let this challenge get in the way of your PbP game updates, I WILL dock your score. I WILL know. And it WILL NOT be pleasant! :smallfurious: j/k

OMG PONIES
2010-09-01, 03:49 PM
*sees your unsettling laugh and raises you furious fist shake*

And...I got nothin.

EDIT: OMGPonies, if you let this challenge get in the way of your PbP game updates, I WILL dock your score. I WILL know. And it WILL NOT be pleasant! :smallfurious: j/k

Haha, I know, I know. I'm waiting for the others to post, though I may have to find a creative way to prod them. But there's plenty of time before the contest ends, so I may be able to keep up the pace of the game AND wind up with two builds.

...or three. I've got another one cooking that will probably come in dead last, but I just love the flavor of it.

Akal Saris
2010-09-01, 05:35 PM
I'm kinda curious, given the applicability of Races of Stone as the source material, if we'll see any other PrCs from Races of Stone present? Not gonna say which one, but I can think of a couple of interesting things that can happen there.

*shifty eyes*

I expect to see at least 1 Stoneblessed. I don't expect many Shadowcraft Mages though :P

Draz74
2010-09-01, 09:22 PM
I'm kinda curious, given the applicability of Races of Stone as the source material, if we'll see any other PrCs from Races of Stone present? Not gonna say which one, but I can think of a couple of interesting things that can happen there.

*shifty eyes*

Hush, you. :smalltongue:

I have, unfortunately (:smallwink:), come up with an interesting idea of how to enter this contest. I need more feats than I've figured out how to squeeze in, however ... so we'll see if I figure out a resolution to that problem in time to send something in.

Pechvarry
2010-09-01, 09:23 PM
I think after the builds get posted, I'd like to see some people's ideas of "unoriginal" builds for this class. I mean, there are a few somewhat obvious directions to go with this class, so I think people will try to avoid those paths. But I'd actually like to see some decent skeletons of those more solid, nothing-fancy builds.

Greyfell
2010-09-01, 09:56 PM
I'd like in as a contestant if I might. Haven't ever done something like this before, but I've lurked on various boards for years and DM'd several games :)

ShneekeyTheLost
2010-09-01, 10:00 PM
Alas, I do not own Races of Stone, thus cannot compete or judge this entry...

true_shinken
2010-09-01, 10:35 PM
Hmm, you know what? There are already more than enough judges and it's been a while since I submited a build...

Could you switch from judge to contestant, Ozy?

Ozymandias9
2010-09-01, 11:18 PM
Sure. I'll change it right now.

Also, I think I'm supposed to make a big frown face about speculation (even if I had the exact same expectation). So less speculation, more silly nerd trash talk.

true_shinken
2010-09-01, 11:19 PM
Sure. I'll change it right now.

Thanks a lot. Let's see how it goes...

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-02, 12:20 AM
Oh yeah. Ooh baby.

I love it when the creative zone finally settles over me. I'm liking this right here. Mmm HMM!

BobVosh
2010-09-02, 12:49 AM
Oh yeah. Ooh baby.

I love it when the creative zone finally settles over me. I'm liking this right here. Mmm HMM!

*edges away* I'm scared of what we are going to see now.

Malbordeus
2010-09-02, 04:33 AM
i wonder if I could do a chuck norris with my build :P

ForgottenCode
2010-09-02, 08:30 AM
Alright, sign me up as a contestant. I have an idea that can work.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-02, 08:33 AM
And there's the rub. I just realized a key component of my first build doesn't work without some changes that may knock off points in elegance. Grr...

Greyfell
2010-09-02, 09:15 AM
UHm, I feel really silly asking this and all... but hey, first time.

how are we doing stats? XX point buy?

Amphetryon
2010-09-02, 09:21 AM
UHm, I feel really silly asking this and all... but hey, first time.

how are we doing stats? XX point buy?

32 point buy is the standard here at GitP.

Greyfell
2010-09-02, 09:26 AM
Amphetryon, thank you so much for the fast response. Now I know what to work with while I'm at work :)

we shall see how this plays out...

Keld Denar
2010-09-02, 11:19 AM
And there's the rub.

I tend to use marinades over rubs. They tend to lead to juicier outcomes, with that deep down flavor that you just can't get with a rub.

:smallcool:

OMG PONIES
2010-09-02, 11:31 AM
I tend to use marinades over rubs. They tend to lead to juicier outcomes, with that deep down flavor that you just can't get with a rub.

:smallcool:

Don't worry, the rub actually made me re-evaluate some things, leading to a build that is both more elegant and more powerful. It was on purpose; I know what I'm doing. Trust me, I'm a professional...:smallamused:

true_shinken
2010-09-02, 12:20 PM
Don't worry, the rub actually made me re-evaluate some things, leading to a build that is both more elegant and more powerful. It was on purpose; I know what I'm doing. Trust me, I'm a professional...:smallamused:

Hey what are you bragging about? It's not like you are the standing champion or something!
...oh, wait, you are :smallsmile:

OMG PONIES
2010-09-02, 12:28 PM
Hey what are you bragging about? It's not like you are the standing champion or something!
...oh, wait, you are :smallsmile:

Meh, the cats were away, so this mouse played. Now the big kids are back in town, so I'm not expecting first. I just want to toss up my silly ideas and see what everyone else came up with.

true_shinken
2010-09-02, 12:32 PM
Meh, the cats were away, so this mouse played. Now the big kids are back in town, so I'm not expecting first. I just want to toss up my silly ideas and see what everyone else came up with.

Dude, there's nothing wrong with being humble, but you are the standing champion. Everyone will be looking forward for your build.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-02, 12:42 PM
Dude, there's nothing wrong with being humble, but you are the standing champion. Everyone will be looking forward for your build.

No pressure, right? :smalleek:

Haha, I have some ideas that should be fun to flesh out. Right now, I'm actually considering submitting three builds:
1. Actually aiming for power, elegance, and UoSI...but probably taking a hit in originality.
2. A build focused around a trick that was too fun to pass up, but doesn't even finish the secret ingredient.
3. Like above, but focused more on the concept than any particular tricks.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-02, 12:57 PM
No pressure, right? :smalleek:
None. At. ALL :smallfurious:

Lord Bingo
2010-09-02, 05:21 PM
Is Tome of Battle allowed?

Keld Denar
2010-09-02, 05:23 PM
Encouraged, even! Just remember to adequately notate what manevuers you get and when, and even how they impact your build.

Draz74
2010-09-02, 10:18 PM
The problem with Tome of Battle isn't that the contest or the judges don't like it ... the problem is that its classes are already very competent and versatile on their own, and if you want a good Use of Secret Ingredient score, you have to come up with something that has a reason to take Blade Bravo rather than taking more Tome of Battle levels.

DaragosKitsune
2010-09-02, 10:22 PM
The problem with Tome of Battle isn't that the contest or the judges don't like it ... the problem is that its classes are already very competent and versatile on their own, and if you want a good Use of Secret Ingredient score, you have to come up with something that has a reason to take Blade Bravo rather than taking more Tome of Battle levels.

Couldn't put it better myself.

BobVosh
2010-09-02, 11:25 PM
The problem with Tome of Battle isn't that the contest or the judges don't like it ... the problem is that its classes are already very competent and versatile on their own, and if you want a good Use of Secret Ingredient score, you have to come up with something that has a reason to take Blade Bravo rather than taking more Tome of Battle levels.

Also it can hurt you on power as well.

Lord Bingo
2010-09-03, 04:08 AM
The problem with Tome of Battle isn't that the contest or the judges don't like it ... the problem is that its classes are already very competent and versatile on their own, and if you want a good Use of Secret Ingredient score, you have to come up with something that has a reason to take Blade Bravo rather than taking more Tome of Battle levels.

I'm not going to compete. I actually have a great build that uses the Blade Bravado lying around but I don't have the time or skills to write a piece of fiction to rival some of those I have seen here since I started lurking in this threat.
The reason I asked is because that personally I love ToB but I often encounter people who don't want it in their games.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-03, 05:23 AM
Also it can hurt you on power as well.

Do you care to elaborate? Usually, I think Tome of Battle adds some power and versatility to a build.

Amphetryon
2010-09-03, 05:26 AM
The problem with Tome of Battle isn't that the contest or the judges don't like it ... the problem is that its classes are already very competent and versatile on their own, and if you want a good Use of Secret Ingredient score, you have to come up with something that has a reason to take Blade Bravo rather than taking more Tome of Battle levels.

This is not a significantly different problem than that encountered with most caster classes and the PrCs we've seen before; many of them do quite well in Power and UoSI.

BobVosh
2010-09-03, 05:43 AM
Do you care to elaborate? Usually, I think Tome of Battle adds some power and versatility to a build.

Don't get me wrong, ToB helps most martial characters. Just if you were a swordsage and you went into this class, I have to question how that is helpful. Therefore you lose on SI for going into it just for this competition, and power since you made a fairly suboptimal choice.

Although I guess warblade is probably more likely. Either way.

*edit* I feel like eleborating a little bit more on this. As I stated in my spoiler for judging, I will judge each character as what it is. A non-ToB martial class will be judged as such, taking levels in ToB classes will get you judged as a ToB martial class. So you will compete with all things within that tier.

Amphetryon
2010-09-03, 06:13 AM
Don't get me wrong, ToB helps most martial characters. Just if you were a swordsage and you went into this class, I have to question how that is helpful. Therefore you lose on SI for going into it just for this competition, and power since you made a fairly suboptimal choice.

Although I guess warblade is probably more likely. Either way.

*edit* I feel like eleborating a little bit more on this. As I stated in my spoiler for judging, I will judge each character as what it is. A non-ToB martial class will be judged as such, taking levels in ToB classes will get you judged as a ToB martial class. So you will compete with all things within that tier.

That's a fairly specific warning away from a class, all told...

I guess I don't get why Swordsage is sub-optimal while Warblade is not. I don't think it's the BAB issue, since the Other Killer Gnome takes Rogue levels, but that was my first guess.

BobVosh
2010-09-03, 06:19 AM
That's a fairly specific warning away from a class, all told...

I guess I don't get why Swordsage is sub-optimal while Warblade is not. I don't think it's the BAB issue, since the Other Killer Gnome takes Rogue levels, but that was my first guess.

I apologize that isn't what I intended. I mean switching from swordsage or warblade to blade bravo, unless something I don't immediately see, is suboptimal. None of the ToB classes seem to synergise well. I said what I did about warblade as it seems the most likely of the three main classes for blade bravo. I could of course be entirely wrong as I don't use ToB as a primary source for most characters.

Please feel free to use any and all of the ToB without fear that I will punish you for using those classes/maneuvers/feats/etc. I enjoy the book, but I will expect a decent reason for power of character as well as elegence for switching from a ToB class to blade bravo.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-03, 06:22 AM
I think what he's saying is that, if you started off in Swordsage, he would dock you points for going into Blade Bravo solely because it's the Secret Ingredient, rather than continuing in swordsage. When it comes to power and UoSI, I disagree with this ruling, since there's a nice swordsage niche that Blade Bravo accentuates quite well.

BobVosh
2010-09-03, 07:36 AM
I think what he's saying is that, if you started off in Swordsage, he would dock you points for going into Blade Bravo solely because it's the Secret Ingredient, rather than continuing in swordsage. When it comes to power and UoSI, I disagree with this ruling, since there's a nice swordsage niche that Blade Bravo accentuates quite well.

I also said unless there is something I miss, which is quite possible as it is not a first choice book of mine.

I really am sorry for mistyping as I apparently have managed to do on quite a scale. I guarantee that I will think out every post in this thread in more detail from now on.

true_shinken
2010-09-03, 07:40 AM
I think what he's saying is that, if you started off in Swordsage, he would dock you points for going into Blade Bravo solely because it's the Secret Ingredient, rather than continuing in swordsage. When it comes to power and UoSI, I disagree with this ruling, since there's a nice swordsage niche that Blade Bravo accentuates quite well.

While I quite agree with you, OMG PONIES, every judge has the right to set his own standards for judging.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-03, 08:00 AM
While I quite agree with you, OMG PONIES, every judge has the right to set his own standards for judging.

I agree with you. I was just stating what I interpreted BobVosh's statement to mean, and my own commentary.

The moral of the story? Use Tome of Battle, like anything else, at your own risk. Some people might have an aversion to seafood, while others might extol its virtues for days on end. Does that mean nobody should make lobster bisque? Hardly. Does it mean everyone should? Not at all.

Keld Denar
2010-09-03, 11:08 AM
Mmmmm, Lobster Bisque. Any build that finds a way to send me Lobster Bisque through the intarwebz gets automatic straight 5s across the board.

What? I'm only human...or am I? Bwa ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!!!!

(And actually, Swordsage 2 is actually a VERY elegant dip IMO, if you space it out right. Some maneuvers don't scale well, but others scale VERY well. Just sayin...)

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-03, 11:12 AM
*yawns at this talk of Tome of Battle*

OMG PONIES
2010-09-03, 11:46 AM
Mmmmm, Lobster Bisque. Any build that finds a way to send me Lobster Bisque through the intarwebz gets automatic straight 5s across the board.

Must...develop...technology.

Now this makes me wary of whether I should incorporate ToB into any of my builds. As if I didn't have enough neuroses plaguing me! :smallsmile:

Keld Denar
2010-09-03, 11:49 AM
Shush up and update your game! Less slacking, more DMing!

Draz74
2010-09-03, 12:17 PM
This is not a significantly different problem than that encountered with most caster classes and the PrCs we've seen before; many of them do quite well in Power and UoSI.

True ... many of them do. But some don't. I was trying to issue a quite mild warning. I actually hope we do see some builds in this contest that are spiced up with ToB. But to do well in UoSI, they'll have to do something clever to gain synergy between maneuvers and Blade Bravo.

Lord Bingo
2010-09-03, 01:59 PM
(And actually, Swordsage 2 is actually a VERY elegant dip IMO, if you space it out right. Some maneuvers don't scale well, but others scale VERY well. Just sayin...)

That is how I would do it too but I would not call it elegant -you do it for power:smallwink:

Amphetryon
2010-09-03, 02:03 PM
That is how I would do it too but I would not call it elegant -you do it for power:smallwink:
Some might call it elegant to do it that way, others would call the same structure inelegant. Proceed with caution.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-03, 02:56 PM
And done. Not going to submit it right away though. Wanna look it over with fresh eyes.

I'm happy with this one to a degree I only have been with Starry-Eyes :smallbiggrin:

Keld Denar
2010-09-03, 03:07 PM
That is how I would do it too but I would not call it elegant -you do it for power:smallwink:

ToB is a little tricky. A person who is inexperienced might see something like:
X4/Swordsage1/Y6/Swordsage1
and think, "man, thats kinda messy"

But when you really get down and look at it, its a juggling act with IL. In this example, he'll have an IL of 3 at the first dip, allowing 1st or 2nd level manevuers, and an IL of 7 for the second dip, allowing for a 4th level manevuer (which are REALLY good) and a choice of 3rd level stances (which are mostly better than 1st level ones).

If he had instead done:
X3/Swordsage2/Y10
I'd take a look at the IL, realize that he's still only got an IL of 2 at the first dip, and the second level would still pin him into a 1st level stance. That's very ineligant. Grouping =! Elegant. Elegance, at least as I see it, is synergy between abilities and logical placement of levels and timing of abilities. Getting the right abilities at the right time. ToB splashes are always about placement, rather than grouping. A build with 4 levels of Swordsage in a block is argueably LESS elegant in that way, not to mention less powerful, than a build that has 4 levels splashed throughout it in 2 or 6 non-IL classes in between levels.

Just something to think about. I've seen judges in the past mark builds down for "jumping around" by taking 2 levels here, 1 level there, and going back and taking more levels another place, without looking deeper to realize that they were trying to reach certain IL thresholds to get certain manevuers, or certain spell levels to get certain feats or time it to get a certain ability along with a feat that uses that ability. X5/Y10/Z5 is no more elegant than X2/Y1/Z4/X+2/Q6/V3/Y+2. Saying it is is a falsehood (IMO) since a character doesn't know his class levels or that he's not simultaneously learning 2 sets of abilities at the same time (that only manifest seperately due to the stratiated nature of levels).

Thats one of the reasons it takes me so freakin long to judge entries. I look deeper then just the level breakdown, because there is often a lot of good reasoning why things are like they are. Again, this is my judging style, and others have a right to their own. Just wanted to make it clear.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-03, 03:17 PM
Grouping =! Elegant. Elegance, at least as I see it, is synergy between abilities and logical placement of levels and timing of abilities. Getting the right abilities at the right time.

This. So much this. I'm always surprised that I don't see Tome of Battle used as more of a garnish in builds--a dash here, a sprig there. It can be used for so many different niches and bonuses, depending on both the material used and the timing.


I'm happy with this one to a degree I only have been with Starry-Eyes :smallbiggrin:

This both excites and frightens me--I think that level of personal satisfaction usually translates well in the judges' scores. I like my builds, but not as much as I liked Milo--I wanted to run out and play him at my gaming table. Incidentally, the crunch for all three builds is done. Now it's just time to format the entries and create an actual backstory out of the vignettes I've got floating in my brain.

Akal Saris
2010-09-03, 03:46 PM
Actually, my favorite of the builds that I've made was one of the less popular ones with the judges (the Cancer Mage), so I don't know if it transfers over so well.

Amphetryon
2010-09-03, 04:07 PM
Actually, my favorite of the builds that I've made was one of the less popular ones with the judges (the Cancer Mage), so I don't know if it transfers over so well.

Know what you mean. I liked my Birdlord at least as well as I liked my Stonelord, and they placed vastly differently.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-03, 08:01 PM
Actually, my favorite of the builds that I've made was one of the less popular ones with the judges (the Cancer Mage), so I don't know if it transfers over so well.
Oh yeah, Cancer Mage was great for flavor, not so much for optimizing.

mjames
2010-09-03, 08:11 PM
Know what you mean. I liked my Birdlord at least as well as I liked my Stonelord, and they placed vastly differently.

That's the reason why i'm toying with two builds. One I really like, and one that actually has a good reason for taking blade bravo.

DaragosKitsune
2010-09-04, 01:04 AM
Thats one of the reasons it takes me so freakin long to judge entries. I look deeper then just the level breakdown, because there is often a lot of good reasoning why things are like they are.

And that is why I won't dock Elegance points from a build that comes with an explanation of why they made the choices they did. Milo, from the previous contest, wouldn't have scored nearly as high as he did if not for the explanation of his "too lucky to die" bonuses.

Amphetryon
2010-09-04, 07:55 PM
Decisions, decisions.... :smallsigh:

IdleMuse
2010-09-05, 10:45 AM
Decisions, decisions.... :smallsigh:

Indeed. At the moment I'm having to decide between doing something I love from a flavour perspective, or something that's actually going to work. Option 1 might not even work RAW, it's just so much more delicious than option two, which I'm struggling to grok.

Private-Prinny
2010-09-05, 09:26 PM
I'm going to have to drop out. Every idea I have keeps feeling like I'm cribbing it of off TLN.

Amphetryon
2010-09-05, 10:54 PM
I'm going to have to drop out. Every idea I have keeps feeling like I'm cribbing it of off TLN.

With a Racially limited PrC that lends itself to an obvious direction, and a well-known build that takes all 10 levels of that PrC to compete against, I can see where that would be a difficulty.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-06, 07:44 AM
I may wind up kicking myself, but I just changed my entire idea for my primary build. Why? Because I couldn't think of a compelling backstory, and the one that came into my head fit another class better. Oy.

I may not be submitting three builds after all. We'll see.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-06, 12:43 PM
Is it just me or does this seem like the longest challenge ever?

the humanity
2010-09-06, 12:47 PM
I freakin love gnomes. I cant wait to see the builds.

Private-Prinny
2010-09-06, 01:42 PM
Is it just me or does this seem like the longest challenge ever?

I don't think it's just you. The cooking time for this challenge is 9 days, which is a full 2 days longer than the week that I always gave.

Ozymandias9
2010-09-06, 01:53 PM
I don't think it's just you. The cooking time for this challenge is 9 days, which is a full 2 days longer than the week that I always gave.

You gave an 8 day one once, IIRC. I want to try to rationalize the decision for 9 days as wanting to encourage more competitors, but in truth it's mostly because when the contest started I was facing the possibility of being unavailable from today till late Wednesday.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-06, 01:56 PM
but in truth it's mostly because when the contest started I was facing the possibility of being unavailable from today till late Wednesday.
Makes good sense to me.

IdleMuse
2010-09-06, 05:18 PM
Is it just me or does this seem like the longest challenge ever?

Yes, and I'm really appreciating it :P 8 or 9 days just feels more... relaxed? than 7.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-06, 05:22 PM
Yes, and I'm really appreciating it :P 8 or 9 days just feels more... relaxed? than 7.
Probably so. I'm a creative obsessive, when I get an idea for this (or any of my writing for that matter) I can forget even to eat :smallsigh:

Draz74
2010-09-06, 10:14 PM
Yes, and I'm really appreciating it :P 8 or 9 days just feels more... relaxed? than 7.

Seconded. There's still hope that I might make a submission, in spite of the fact that I'm moving this week, thanks to the extended deadline.

Draz74
2010-09-07, 11:59 AM
Aaaaaaand build submitted.

BobVosh
2010-09-08, 05:38 AM
Aaaaaaand build submitted.

Even moving can't stop you eh?

Malbordeus
2010-09-08, 07:15 AM
i'm going to be submitting this evening, i get the feeling my opwer willl be in the negatives though, possibly elegance too. >_<

OMG PONIES
2010-09-08, 08:19 AM
Okay, my (new) primary build is done and typed up--now I just need to add the fluff and bring myself to click submit.

Builds two and three are mechanically done, but up in the air in terms of submission.

IdleMuse
2010-09-08, 08:47 AM
My build is slowly coming together; made some difficult choices, got others yet to make, including which breakpoints to write up and buy equipment for :S

Draz74
2010-09-08, 09:13 AM
Even moving can't stop you eh?
Heh, yeah ... my move has gotten delayed a couple days by various hindrances. :smallannoyed:


i'm going to be submitting this evening, i get the feeling my opwer willl be in the negatives though, possibly elegance too. >_<
I won't say which, but if I judged my own entry, I would probably bomb it in one category ... I like to think I would give it high marks in the other three, though.


Okay, my (new) primary build is done and typed up--now I just need to add the fluff and bring myself to click submit.

Builds two and three are mechanically done, but up in the air in terms of submission.

Do all three! This round needs more entries! And it would be really funny if you competed against yourself! :smallwink:

Just kidding, do whatever you want. Mostly I'm just happy to see people actually posting in this thread again.

true_shinken
2010-09-08, 09:20 AM
Well, what do you guys think about the next secret ingredient?
I'd love to have something with it's own casting, like Vigilante or Suel Arcanamach (well, I'm a little biased about that one).
I also think that using something from the Completes would be nice. IC is supposed to be mainly core + completes, but we get about 50/50 here, I believe.

Amphetryon
2010-09-08, 09:36 AM
3 out of 11 is not a 50/50 ratio....

Suel was done at BG, if memory serves.

Vigilante REALLY suffers from the 'why would you use this instead of something else' problem, as it doesn't offer anything that I can see that is even unusual, except its general badness.

true_shinken
2010-09-08, 09:45 AM
3 out of 11 is not a 50/50 ratio....
You are right. I was just thinking about the time I was active on IC, from master of Masks on.


Suel was done at BG, if memory serves.
Their forum layout really irks me.


Vigilante REALLY suffers from the 'why would you use this instead of something else' problem, as it doesn't offer anything that I can see that is even unusual, except its general badness.
Well, lots of classes used in IC do, that's why it's a challenge.
But there are other prestige classes with their own casting, I just think it's an interesting concept that has yet to be explored.

I also have a thing for Ardent Dilettante. It could well be the most diverse IC we ever saw, though the problem here is more about qualifying for the increasingly difficult higher levels while remaining playable.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-08, 09:51 AM
I think for the next one, it may be time to tap into Complete Psionics. My primary entry is coming along nicely now--I'm really loving my backstory. Build idea number 2 has no backstory right now, and I'll have to fight hard to come up with a good one that works well. Build idea number 3 has the backstory structure together, but I just don't know if I'll get the time to type it all out.

Draz74
2010-09-08, 09:52 AM
Well, what do you guys think about the next secret ingredient?
I'd love to have something with it's own casting, like Vigilante or Suel Arcanamach (well, I'm a little biased about that one).
I also think that using something from the Completes would be nice. IC is supposed to be mainly core + completes, but we get about 50/50 here, I believe.

Nah, only 3 out of 11 have been from outside the Completes. (Is Core supposed to be well-represented? I don't think so ... there haven't been any Core Secret Ingredients. Aren't all the Core PrCs overanalyzed anyway?)

I'd like to point out again that Complete Psionic hasn't gotten used at all. Flayerspawn Psychic and Zerth Cenobite seem like they would be viable options. Then again, those are pretty much the only two that are viable. CPsi won't last long as an Iron Chef source, one way or another.

EDIT: Ninja'd. Or should that be Lurk'd?

OMG PONIES
2010-09-08, 10:05 AM
LOL @ Draz.

I think the non-viability of the classes is what would make it interesting. The most ridiculous entries always seem to come from optimizers mining powerful combinations from forsaken classes. Of course, we could always change up the competition so that the secret ingredient was a core class, a feat, a race, or an item. Granted, it would make things a bit more abstract, but it might be interesting to see who could make the best Stonechild, or who could make the quintessential Combat Expertise user, etc.

When it comes to this competition, however, I need to get my butt in gear. Is it sad if I'm thinking of taking a day off from work so I can have time to submit all three entries? Of course, that desire could be fueled by the overtime I've been pulling...

ForgottenCode
2010-09-08, 12:23 PM
Unfortunately I'm just too busy with work to have the time to put into this. I've written the basics of a history and can post that and the beginnings of my build after the other builds are posted if people want, but that's it.

true_shinken
2010-09-08, 02:07 PM
I'd like to point out again that Complete Psionic hasn't gotten used at all. Flayerspawn Psychic and Zerth Cenobite seem like they would be viable options. Then again, those are pretty much the only two that are viable. CPsi won't last long as an Iron Chef source, one way or another.

I kind of like Ebon Saint as well.
I like the idea of a Zerth Cenobite IC, though. They get their own power progression, after all.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-08, 02:20 PM
I kind of like Ebon Saint as well.
I like the idea of a Zerth Cenobite IC, though. They get their own power progression, after all.
Oh, I could do some sick things with Zerth Cenobite... it's Flayerspawn Psychic that I look at and go 'wth do I do with this?'

FishAreWet
2010-09-08, 02:39 PM
I can't wait for IC XII. I just want this one to end. I didn't even feel like trying because of the ingredient.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-08, 02:52 PM
it's Flayerspawn Psychic that I look at and go 'wth do I do with this?'

Easy, you grow tentacles. :smallsmile:


I can't wait for IC XII. I just want this one to end. I didn't even feel like trying because of the ingredient.

Fight that feeling! I had it at first too, but now I think this may be my favorite ingredient so far, since you have to try so hard to do anything different.

Zaq
2010-09-08, 03:18 PM
Oh, are we discussing the next secret ingredient? I'd love to see a Geomancer contest. Anyone can just grab an early-entry trick and try to minimize the effects of a couple missing caster levels... but to stand out, we'd have to see people actually taking the class for a reason. It's definitely a unique ability (so there's actually something to work with in the end), and seeing how people handle awkward and heavy costs of entry is fun all around.

Failing that, I think that another low-casting (if not half-casting, at least less than 9/10 casting) class would be a good challenge. Part of the challenge is to actually make the secret ingredient necessary, and explaining why repeatedly breaking the good old Thou Shalt Not Lose Caster Levels commandment is actually a necessary part of the build makes for some fun times. Every crappy PrC has opportunity costs associated with it, but half-casting ones have both highly visible opportunity costs and usually a non-negligible cost of entry. If Milo hadn't been in the Mythic Exemplar challenge, I'd suggest Luckstealer, but that probably wouldn't be appropriate now. Maybe something weird from the Planar Handbook or Manual of the Planes.

Malbordeus
2010-09-08, 03:43 PM
Build Submitted, i fail for life on power :P

next prc should be a casting type after this, otherwise it gets a little samey. oooh, the Scared Fist would be fun ;) or one of the prc's from Sandstorm:smallbiggrin:

Cieyrin
2010-09-08, 03:50 PM
Build Submitted, i fail for life on power :P

next prc should be a casting type after this, otherwise it gets a little samey. oooh, the Scared Fist would be fun ;) or one of the prc's from Sandstorm:smallbiggrin:

Scion of Tem-Et-Nu? Huh, huh, maybe, maybe? :smallbiggrin:

cd4
2010-09-08, 03:58 PM
I thought about doing this challenge as well as the last one but my plan was so close to the other killer gnome that I gave up.

On the discussion about future classes, If you do want something from Core how about the Horizon Walker? I don't recall seeing any builds with this in it so it could be an interesting idea.

Cieyrin
2010-09-08, 04:16 PM
On the discussion about future classes, If you do want something from Core how about the Horizon Walker? I don't recall seeing any builds with this in it so it could be an interesting idea.

Well, other than Saph's Horizon Tripper but Horizon Walker has quite a bit of wiggle room for doing things.

Another core option we could do is the source of the last bonus spells PRC, Dragon Disciple.

Draz74
2010-09-08, 04:27 PM
I kind of like Ebon Saint as well.

It's only 5 levels, which arguably makes it too easy to fit into an Iron Chef entry.

Ozymandias9
2010-09-08, 04:40 PM
It's only 5 levels, which arguably makes it too easy to fit into an Iron Chef entry.

*Takes off the chairman hat for a moment*

While I understand the argument, I've never agreed with it personally. Taking all the levels in a class is fairly ancillary to using the class well.

The viable pool of 5 level classes is fairly small though: most of them have very narrow focus and many don't have any particularly unique mechanical abilities. Uncanny Trickster and Maester would both be bad options, but I think that Cloaked Dancer (for example) might not be.

*Puts back on the shiny hat*

None of these comments should be taken to indicate a planned future SI choice on my part.

DanReiv
2010-09-08, 04:42 PM
I thought about doing this challenge as well as the last one but my plan

fall short under the sheer number of feats needed for the 1st idea (moving whirwinding a spiked chain sneak attack and zone feint every round through a mount and WPO) and the overall weakness and impossibility to squeezes in everything for the second (Multiheadead Gnome with the "npc" aberrant limbs template going on rampage).

Anyways, quite curious to see what's our Chef prepared this time. Not an easy PrC to make shine.

Akal Saris
2010-09-08, 05:02 PM
I'll probably have to withdraw from this one as well. RL caught up with me faster than I anticipated. I was hoping to do it last weekend, but then I ended up going to NYC to visit family :smallbiggrin:

Plus, my planned build was a ToB entry, so I think BobVosh and some other judges would have been dissatisfied from the start. I'll map it out after the contestants have all revealed their builds. I still like the secret ingredient much more than the last few ingredients though. I really like both gnomes and fighter/rogue types :smalltongue:

OMG PONIES
2010-09-08, 05:13 PM
Akal Saris is withdrawing? Good for my score, bad for my rabid fandom of Akal Saris.

Akal Saris
2010-09-08, 05:17 PM
Heh, thanks for the ego boost :smallbiggrin:

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-08, 08:37 PM
I'll probably have to withdraw from this one as well. RL caught up with me faster than I anticipated. I was hoping to do it last weekend, but then I ended up going to NYC to visit family :smallbiggrin:
*holds wand gangsta style at Akal's head*

Enter the @#%^'n contest man! Do it!

Greyfell
2010-09-08, 08:58 PM
So uhm, newbie contestatnt and all... under 'skills' column do you want ALL the skill points/skills used? My build has quite a few of them.. might get messy :)

Barring skills and equipment (which is mostly planned out and needs just minor tweaking) I'm pretty much ready to post.

Draz74
2010-09-08, 10:02 PM
*holds wand gangsta style at Akal's head*

Enter the @#%^'n contest man! Do it!

Yeah! I may be a masochist for saying this, but I want to compete with the legendary Akal!

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-08, 10:31 PM
Yeah! I may be a masochist for saying this, but I want to compete with the legendary Akal!
Yeah, I think I've only competed with you... once?

true_shinken
2010-09-08, 10:36 PM
Oh, are we discussing the next secret ingredient? I'd love to see a Geomancer contest. Anyone can just grab an early-entry trick and try to minimize the effects of a couple missing caster levels... but to stand out, we'd have to see people actually taking the class for a reason. It's definitely a unique ability (so there's actually something to work with in the end), and seeing how people handle awkward and heavy costs of entry is fun all around.
Geomancer is cool, but early entry tricks irk me.


Failing that, I think that another low-casting (if not half-casting, at least less than 9/10 casting) class would be a good challenge. Part of the challenge is to actually make the secret ingredient necessary, and explaining why repeatedly breaking the good old Thou Shalt Not Lose Caster Levels commandment is actually a necessary part of the build makes for some fun times. Every crappy PrC has opportunity costs associated with it, but half-casting ones have both highly visible opportunity costs and usually a non-negligible cost of entry.
Well, we had that twice recently, with Green Star Adept and Master of Masks. We never had a class with it's own casting, though.


If Milo hadn't been in the Mythic Exemplar challenge, I'd suggest Luckstealer, but that probably wouldn't be appropriate now. Maybe something weird from the Planar Handbook or Manual of the Planes.
Like Ardent Dilettante? :smallsmile:



It's only 5 levels, which arguably makes it too easy to fit into an Iron Chef entry.
Oh, well, there is that.

DaragosKitsune
2010-09-08, 10:43 PM
My vote for the next SI is the Vigilante from Complete Adventurer.

Private-Prinny
2010-09-08, 10:48 PM
My vote for the next SI is the Vigilante from Complete Adventurer.

I briefly considered Vigilante during my run as chairman before I realized 2 things.

1. Smite the Guilty just has horrible mechanics.
2. Someone would argue for a RAW usage of that Spells per Day table.

true_shinken
2010-09-08, 10:59 PM
My vote for the next SI is the Vigilante from Complete Adventurer.

I'm with you! Some love for the Vigilante!

DaragosKitsune
2010-09-08, 11:04 PM
I briefly considered Vigilante during my run as chairman before I realized 2 things.

1. Smite the Guilty just has horrible mechanics.
2. Someone would argue for a RAW usage of that Spells per Day table.

1. Yes, Smite the Guilty is iffy. That's part of the fun.
2. Anyone who exploits that kind of RAW should automatically lose.

Thurbane
2010-09-09, 12:08 AM
Maybe something weird from the Planar Handbook or Manual of the Planes.
If we're putting in suggestions/requests, I'd love to see Elemental Warrior - just to see if anyone can make something useful of it! :smallbiggrin:

2. Anyone who exploits that kind of RAW should automatically lose.
Unless you combine it with a 1d43 scorpion whip attack! :smalltongue:

Draz74
2010-09-09, 12:14 AM
Yeah, I think I've only competed with you... once?

I've only entered for Master of Masks, Pyrokineticist, and Animal Lord. And now Blade Bravo. I haven't kept track carefully, but I think I've only competed against you once, and against Akal once.

WinWin
2010-09-09, 01:52 AM
There is more of a challenge in optimizing a PrC that is generally regarded as poor. However, coming up with an original concept for a popular PrC is just as difficult.

There are quite a few Core PrC's that have not been touched. Horizon Walker was mentioned. Assassin, Blackguard, Duelist, Dwarven Defender and Arcane Archer could make for a fun challenge. Some of them are often dipped, others rarely touched in many optimization guides and handbooks. (AA, DD and Duelist).

Ozymandias9
2010-09-09, 01:58 AM
“I like villains because there's something so attractive about a committed person -- they have a plan, an ideology, no matter how twisted. They're motivated.”
-Russell Crowe


The giants were hungry, and the smell of roasted meat was intoxicating. Venison, mutton, boar, rabbit... the specifics of the meat were unimportant. Only the iron-sweet salty tang in their flared nostrils, of animal flesh charring on a spit, mattered to them as they approached the imposing black edifice at the outskirts of their usual stomping grounds. They found the door locked, but few ordinary locked doors will stop giants from entering. This door proved no exception, and exploded inward in a storm of splinters under their pounding fists.

Inside, they found a single occupant. He was a gnome, clad in a black breastplate and black pantaloons, a jewel-encrusted black mask covering his eyes, nose and cheeks as he calmly looked up from his steaming plate of meat and vegetables. He smiled at the giants, with no trace of friendship on his upturned lips.

“Welcome to the Black Tower. I am Moudo, of the Ebon Cabal. You are trespassing. You will amend this state of affairs.”

“Puny gnome not tell Gar, Gan and Gal what to do!” The giant closest to Moudo thumped his chest in emphasis as he spoke. “We squash puny gnome, take food!”

In reply, Moudo tipped the table toward the door and ducked behind it, sending the food skidding across the stone floor. The giants fanned out and rushed the table, but found nobody behind it.

“Where puny gnome go? Want to turn you into gnome-kabob now! Make Gal angry!” The red rage on Gal’s face quickly drained away as the words hung in the air, a small rapier having pierced through his larynx.

Seemingly from nowhere, Moudo was standing there, holding the rapier, with his mask pushed up so his face was visible. Suddenly, his appearance shifted, as if afflicted by some sort of palsy. His jaw slacked and jutted, posture stooped, and joints appeared to nearly dislocate. He looked squarely at Gar, the first giant to speak, as he withdrew the rapier from Gal’s throat.

“I told you that you were trespassing. Now, I am angry. Now, two of you will die. Do you wish to be the second? Or do you think I should up the number to three?”

Gar considered himself brave, but felt a chill down his spine at the quiet menace in Moudo’s voice, combined with his oddly horrific appearance. Moudo darted at him suddenly, and Gar, despite himself, flinched. The flinch was all the advantage Moudo needed. He reached out, further than Gar and Gan expected he could, and his bloodied rapier pierced the flesh under Gar’s armpit and sank into the giant’s lung. Gar spat blood and fell heavily to the floor, dead.

Moudo sprang forward immediately, flying past Gan’s ear before he could properly respond. Gan struck out ineffectually, and the rapier sliced into his arm in payment. Dark blood spouted from a long wound along his artery. He attempted another feeble attack at the gnarled-up gnome, who again struck true, stabbing the rapier into Gan’s eye. Gan gurgled and fell dead beside his brethren.

“You can come out now. They’re dead. Bring me some more mutton.”

Menu:
Player’s Handbook, DMG (items), Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting (Zhentarim flavor), Champions of Valor Web Enhancement (Zhentarim Soldier Substitution levels), SRD (Thug variant, Sneak Attack Fighter variant), Lords of Madness (Aberration Blood, Starspawn), Races of Stone (Blade Bravo), Shattered Gates of Slaughtergarde (Twisted Lord Prestige Class)

Appetizer: 1st level
Though CHA is his lowest stat, Moudo invests in the social skills that are granted to a Thug, to gain utility outside of combat. With Combat Expertise and two good saves, Moudo is reasonably hard to hit, and his Fighter HD don’t hurt him. Sneak Attack means any weapon he wields tactically in melee is going to hurt, and the Fighter BAB helps offset the low STR at this level. The party Rogue will love having Moudo as a flanking buddy. Like many 1st level Fighters, he’s well served by a scimitar and some javelins.

Salad & Breadsticks: 6th level
Weapon Finesse and Weapon Focus(Rapier) make it clear that the scimitar isn’t Moudo’s primary weapon anymore. Continued emphasis on the CHA-related skills helps highlight his out-of-combat role, while improving his combat utility by allowing him to demoralize opponents; the Zhentarim Soldier substitution levels make him excel at this. Demoralized opponents are - obviously - easier for everyone in the party to deal with. His other skills are spent improving ways to gain Sneak Attack, which sits at a nice +3d6. SA +3d6 with full BAB is a sweet amount of damage boost, without total reliance on the SA for usefulness in combat, and with better HD than the party Rogue, who still dearly covets his company in the party. Knowledge (the planes) helps justify later feat choices for any DM that prefers the ‘what’s your reason for doing that?’ line of reasoning. By this point, a +1 rapier, +1 mithral breastplate, and +1 mithral buckler are reasonably obtainable possessions. He’s also grabbed a few potions of owl’s wisdom to shore up his weak Will save as needed.

Appetizers: 11th level
Twisted Form is really useful to Moudo’s preferred fighting style. Bonuses to feint in combat (+21 to the check at this level without magic), Intimidate, and Escape Artist blend well with a mobile fighter that specializes in getting under his opponent’s skin and guard at the same time. He’s ditched the buckler by this point for the free +1 dagger (that can cast scorching ray and burning hands 1/day each!) he gains for being able to enter Twisted Lord, with TWF gained a a bonus feat for Blade Bravo. Add the Deadly Precision enhancement to the +1 Rapier and the SA bonus is at +6d6 with the main hand, and easy to set up in a variety of ways. Sure, some things aren’t affected by SA, but Moudo’s still doing respectable damage, with more than adequate defenses - plus the aforementioned dagger’s magic. With Goad and Darkstalker - and a Ring of the Darkhidden - he can be the center of attention, or well-hidden, as best fits the situation. He can even alternate their uses to draw fire away from other party members. His skill set allows him to function well underground or in open spaces, especially against larger opponents. He climbs and jumps well enough that he can get to most enemies, and carries a few potions of flying for those times when he needs them.

Main Course: 16th level
Moudo embraces the inner monster he touched upon as a Twisted Lord with aberration feats. His ring of evasion is paired with a ring of reduce person, Blade Bravo’s Size Advantage, +7d6 of SA, and ITWF to make him even more devastating in combat. Opponents who aren’t actively spotting him can’t see him, due to gaining Twisted Lord’s Peripheral Invisibility, and those that are paying attention to him are almost invariably flat-footed thanks to a Bluff check over 30 for purposes of feinting in combat. Inhuman Reach helps against larger opponents and gives him better battlefield control. Slimy Skin enables Inhuman Reach, and provides a useful countermeasure against large opponents trying to grapple Moudo. Further weapon enhancement with the Collision property increase his DPR, even against those opponents who aren’t affected by SA or demoralizing tactics. Those few opponents remain a relative weakness, but he can still contribute against them with a solid attack routine, mobility, and his items.

Dessert: 20th level
Moudo has added a Ring of Reduce Person, giving all of his Blade Bravo abilities more bite. Because he relies on 7d6 SA and weapon enhancements for the majority of his damage - as most do at this level - a tiny base weapon damage is not a hindrance. Improved TWF and Greater TWF add on to the attack routine very well, Blade Bravo’s abilities combine with Inhuman Reach and Starspawn to give remarkable battlefield control and mobility, and his abilities to demoralize opponents keep him from being a one-trick pony. Moudo relies on a Gravestrike wand he bought and gave the party’s casters to maximize effectiveness against undead, but his size differential keeps him useful against them even when SA isn’t available to make him his deadliest.

Raise DEX with level ups. Uses the following variants: Thug Fighter, Sneak Attack Fighter, Zhentarim Soldier substitution levels 3 & 5 (Champions of Valor Web Enhancement)
Moudo, the Twisted GnomeNE Gnome STR 10 DEX 16 CON 14 INT 16 WIS 12 CHA 8
{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack<br>Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features

1st|Thug 1|
+1|
+4|
+3|
+1|Bluff 4, Gather Information 4, Intimidate 4, Jump 4, Knowledge (the planes) 2, Sleight of Hand 4, Tumble 2|Combat Expertise|Sneak Attack +1d6

2nd|Thug 2|
+2|
+5|
+3|
+1|Bluff 5, Gather Information 5, Intimidate 5, Jump 5, Knowledge (the planes) 2.5, Sleight of Hand 5, Swim 1|-|-

3rd|Thug 3|
+3|
+5|
+4|
+2|Bluff 6, Gather Information 6, Intimidate 6, Jump 6, Knowledge (the planes) 3, Sleight of Hand 6, Tumble 2.5|Skill Focus (Intimidate); Weapon Finesse|Sneak Attack +2d6; Bonus Feat

4th|Thug 4|
+4|
+6|
+4|
+2|Bluff 7, Gather Information 7, Intimidate 7, Jump 7, Ride 1, Sleight of Hand 7, Tumble 3|-|-

5th|Thug 5|
+5|
+6|
+4|
+2|Bluff 8, Gather Information 8, Intimidate 8, Jump 8, Knowledge (the planes) 3.5, Sleight of Hand 8, Tumble 3.5|-|Extended Intimidation: Successful Intimidate check lasts 24 hours; +4 on Intimidate checks against those who previously failed the save.

6th|Thug 6|
+6/+1|
+7|
+5|
+3|Bluff 9, Gather Information 9, Intimidate 9, Jump 9, Knowledge (the planes) 4, Sleight of Hand 9, Tumble 4|Weapon Focus (Rapier)|Sneak Attack +3d6

7th|Blade Bravo 1|
+7/+2|
+7|
+7|
+3|Bluff 10, Climb 1, Escape Artist 1, Intimidate 10, Jump 10, Sense Motive 1, Tumble 5|Goad|Goad; Flourish

8th|Blade Bravo 2|
+8/+3|
+7|
+9|
+3|Bluff 11, Climb 2, Escape Artist 2, Intimidate 11, Jump 11, Sense Motive 2, Tumble 6|-|Mobile Fighting

9th|Blade Bravo 3|
+9/+4|
+8|
+9|
+4|Bluff 12, Climb 3, Escape Artist 3, Intimidate 12, Jump 12, Sense Motive 3, Tumble 7|TWF; Darkstalker|Bonus Feat

10th|Blade Bravo 4|
+10/+5|
+8|
+10|
+4|Bluff 13, Climb 4, Escape Artist 4, Intimidate 13, Jump 13, Sense Motive 4, Tumble 8|-|Melee Sneak Attack +1d6

11th|Twisted Lord 1|
+10/+5|
+8|
+12|
+4|Bluff 14, Climb 5, Escape Artist 5, Gather Information 10, Hide 1, Intimidate 14, Jump 14, Sense Motive 5, Sleight of Hand 10, Tumble 9|-|Twisted Form (Note 1)

12th|Twisted Lord 2|
+11/+6/+1|
+8|
+13|
+4|Bluff 15, Climb 6, Escape Artist 6, Gather Information 11, Hide 2, Intimidate 15, Jump 15, Sense Motive 6, Sleight of Hand 11, Tumble 10|Aberration Blood (Slimy Skin)|Sneak Attack +1d6

13th|Twisted Lord 3|
+12/+7/+2|
+9|
+13|
+5|Bluff 16, Climb 7, Escape Artist 7, Gather Information 12, Hide 3, Intimidate 16, Jump 16, Sense Motive 7, Sleight of Hand 12, Tumble 11|Improved Feint|Bonus Feat

14th|Twisted Lord 4|
+13/+8/+3|
+9|
+14|
+5|Bluff 17, Climb 8, Escape Artist 8, Gather Information 13, Hide 4, Intimidate 17, Jump 17, Sense Motive 8, Sleight of Hand 13, Tumble 12|-|Peripheral Invisibility (Note 2)

15th|Blade Bravo 5|
+14/+9/+4|
+9|
+14|
+5|Bluff 18, Climb 9, Escape Artist 9, Intimidate 18, Jump 18, Sense Motive 9, Tumble 13|Inhuman Reach|Size Advantage

16th|Blade Bravo 6|
+15/+10/+5|
+10|
+16|
+6|Bluff 19, Climb 10, Escape Artist 10, Intimidate 19, Jump 19, Sense Motive 10, Tumble 14|ITWF|Bonus Feat

17th|Blade Bravo 7|
+16/+11/+6/+1|
+10|
+16|
+6|Bluff 20, Climb 11, Escape Artist 11, Intimidate 20, Jump 20, Sense Motive 11, Tumble 15|-|Small But Deadly

18th|Blade Bravo 8|
+17/+12/+7/+2|
+10|
+17|
+6|Bluff 21, Climb 12, Escape Artist 12, Intimidate 21, Jump 21, Sense Motive 12, Tumble 16|Starspawn| Melee Sneak Attack +2d6

19th|Blade Bravo 9|
+18/+13/+8/+3|
+11|
+17|
+7|Bluff 22, Climb 13, Escape Artist 13, Intimidate 22, Jump 22, Sense Motive 13, Tumble 17|GTWF|Bonus Feat

20th|Blade Bravo 10|
+19/+14/+9/+4|
+11|
+18|
+8|Bluff 23, Climb 14, Escape Artist 14, Intimidate 23, Jump 23, Sense Motive 14, Tumble 18|-|Lethal Riposte[/table]

Twisted Lord is from a very obscure official WotC source: The Shattered Gates of Slaughtergarde. Because of its obscurity, I’m transcribing relevant rules text - and only rules text - below, for the benefit of any judge without access.
{Chairman's note: I've cut down the following portion of the submission, since Shattered Gates isn't OGC. I believe I've summarized everything the contestant included of note, but should the contestant have issues or the judges have any rules questions regarding the class, please send me a PM}

Becoming a Twisted Lord:
Entry Summary:

Bluff 9 ranks
Intimidate 5 ranks.
Affiliation score of 9 or higher within the Ebon Cabal (need not be maintained for advancement)
Ritualistically consume twistroot.



Note 1: Twisted Form
Twisted Form (Ex): While in your twisted form:
+4 bonus on Bluff checks to feint in combat
+4 bonus on Intimidate checks to demoralize an opponent
+4 bonus on Escape Artist checks.
-4 penalty on Diplomacy checks and other attempts to influence an NPC's attitude.
Unlimited Duration
Ex effect

Note 2: Peripheral Invisibility
As as swift action, if no one successfully made a spot check against you or attacked you in the prior round, you may become invisible. Lasts for 1 round. Minimum 1 minute between uses.
This effect is Su

Ozymandias9
2010-09-09, 02:07 AM
And Gnomish girls make me sing and shout
That Blingdenstone's always on my my my my my my my my my mind


Analysis of Secret Ingredient
As I see it, the ideal Blade Bravo should be:

A light-armored, non-Strength-focused melee combatant. The flavor, the prerequisites, and a number of class features all make this abundantly clear.
Charismatic. The Blade Bravo's "social combat" class features are difficult to make really powerful, but at least as a start to doing so, they should be hard to resist, which means a high Charisma. In addition, to really fit the flavor of the class, I've chosen not only to make Charisma decently high, but to make it the build's primary ability and base as many things as possible off of Charisma.
Small! A couple of class features only work against larger foes, and Size Advantage works better the bigger the size difference. So the smaller, the better.
Mobile. Mobile Fighting encourages moving each round, and some of the bonus feats support this as well. The Blade Bravo should therefore be able to move about without provoking attacks of opportunity, and preferably have some means to move and still make a full attack.
Critical hit-focused. Small but Deadly is a class feature that specifically rewards threatening a critical hit. Crit fishing is also a good way to make melee damage output significant even without making a full attack.
Sneak Attack-focused. The class grants Sneak Attack; might as well improve sneak attacking capabilities, if possible. Again, this is a good way to make damage output matter even without making a full attack.
Social combat focused. Feinting is a really weak tactic most of the time (and Blade Bravo isn't even very compatible with Invisible Blade, due to disparate feat requirements), but if there are ways to make feinting at least less useless, they are good additions to a Blade Bravo build at least flavor-wise. Any other social combat options also seem appropriate.
As a minor side note, I find it interesting that Concentration is a Blade Bravo class skill. I'd like to make good use of that.


With that, I present ...
Sizok, Sworn of Clan Dinglegrinn
NG Dromite (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/psionicRaces.htm#dromites) Wilder 5 / Stoneblessed 3 / Swashbuckler 1 / Blade Bravo 10
Variants (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/psm/20070214a): Educated Wilder; Mantled Wilder (freedom)

Backstory
"So tell me, old friend," Zirthen said, setting down his mug of the finest gnomish rum -- made by his own aunt Nirah -- "what brings you all this way to visit? How are things in your far-off tunnels?"

Vuru stared at Zirthen with his huge, unblinking, multifaceted eyes, while his antennae did a little dance that indicated a nervous gesture, like the blink of another race. "Things aren't good, friend. I'm really not sure what to do." It stirred its rockberry cocktail. "We're under constant pressure from the mindflayers, the umberhulks they send to assault our borders. Year after year. I really thought we could handle anything, all those years ago, after you and the others helped me drive out the drow. And I even think my hive could handle the mindflayers themselves, nasty as they are. We are a strong-minded race. But physical power, brave warriors who can hold a front line and guard our psionicists ... that's what we need against these umberhulks. And physical resilience, you understand, is not our best area."

Zirthen gave one of his old mischevious smirks, the way only an illusionist could. His elderly eyebrows made the effect stronger than ever. "Garl's gem glitters in the blackest tunnel, Vuru."

"Riddles, Zirthen? At a time like this, really?"

"Sit back and relax from your worries for a few moments, Vuru. It will do you good. Besides, it would be a crime not to enjoy the evening show, when you drink in as fine an establishment as the Thespian Rumspring."

The evening show began. Melodramatic chivalry and acrobatic stunts were placed on display. And when it ended, Vuru's jaw hung open -- which was a very interesting effect, given its oral anatomical differences from the gnomes.

"That was ... incredible," Vuru said, its antennae standing fully on end. "I thought you gnomes were all about magic and such arcane trickery ... wait. That swordsman was not, himself, an illusion?"

"No," chuckled Zirthen, "I'm afraid our talents are a little more diverse than you suspected, old friend."

"But such an interesting martial style ... from such a small being! Why ..." it paused. "I don't believe that warrior was any larger than a member of my hive. Yet its fighting style would excel against the umberhulks! Such skill with that narrow little sword! Would I be able to persuade him to come join our militia?"

Zirthen shook his head. "He is retired ... only good for show at this point. But ... you have given me an idea. I believe a cultural exchange program is in order! Have you any young dromite recruits, perhaps too frail to be the warrior you need against the umberhulks, yet brave and willing? It would need to be quick of wit and tongue and body, perhaps even a bit foolhardy."

Vuru's eyes seemed, somehow, to grow even wider, glistening with many colors. "You know, Zirthen, I think I have just the right hive-niece in mind ... A freshly-hatched crossbow archer whom I've already been teaching Gnomish ..."
Starting Ability Scores:
STR 10, DEX 14, CON 14, INT 14, WIS 6, CHA 18
Final Ability Scores:
STR 10, DEX 18, CON 22, INT 14, WIS 6, CHA 34

{table=head]ECL|Class|Base Attack<br>Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features

1st|Dromite Level Adjustment|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+0|n/a|Blind-Fight|Resist electricity 5; Energy Ray 1/day; scent

2nd|Wilder 1 (XPH)|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|Bluff 4, Concentration 4, Craft (stonework) 4, Appraise 2, Spot 4, Tumble 4|Linked Power (CPsi)|Wild Surge +1, Psychic Enervation

3rd|Wilder 2|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3|Intimidate 1, Concentration 1, Craft (stonework) 1, Tumble 1, Listen 2| |Freedom mantle power (+10 speed)

4th|Stoneblessed 1 (RoS)|
+1|
+2|
+0|
+3|Bluff 2, Listen 4|Combat Expertise|Stonebond (gnome)

5th|Stoneblessed 2|
+2|
+3|
+0|
+3|Bluff 1, Listen 1, Perform (dance) 4| |Racial battle technique

6th|Stoneblessed 3|
+3|
+3|
+1|
+4|Bluff 1, Listen 1, Use Magic Device 1; timely misdirection trick| |Stoneborn (CON +2)

7th|Swashbuckler 1 (CWar)|
+4|
+5|
+1|
+4|Diplomacy 5, Tumble 1|Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (rapier)|

8th|Wilder 3|
+5|
+6|
+2|
+4|Spot 2, Concentration 1, Bluff 1, Tumble 1, Intimidate 1| |Wild Surge +2

9th|Blade Bravo 1|
+6/+1|
+6|
+4|
+4|Bluff 2, Perform (dance) 1, Tumble 3|Goad (RoS)|Flourish

10th|Blade Bravo 2|
+7/+2|
+6|
+5|
+4|Bluff 1, Concentration 2, Intimidate 3|Underfoot Combat (RotW)|Mobile Fighting

11th|Blade Bravo 3|
+8/+3|
+7|
+5|
+5|Bluff 1, Concentration 2, Intimidate 3|Improved Feint|

12th|Blade Bravo 4|
+9/+4|
+7|
+6|
+5|Bluff 1, Concentration 2, Intimidate 3| |Melee sneak attack +1d6

13th|Wilder 4|
+10/+5|
+7|
+6|
+6|Bluff 1, Concentration 2, Intimidate 3|Craven (CoR)|Surging Euphoria +1

14th|Blade Bravo 5|
+11/+6/+1|
+7|
+6|
+6|Bluff 1, Concentration 2, Intimidate 1; social recovery trick| |Size Advantage

15th|Wilder 5|
+11/+6/+1|
+7|
+6|
+6|Bluff 1, Concentration 1, Intimidate 2; group fake-out trick|Expanded Knowledge (XPH)|

16th|Blade Bravo 6|
+12/+7/+2|
+8|
+7|
+7|Bluff 1, Concentration 1, Intimidate 1, Balance 3|Improved Critical (rapier), Imperious Command|

17th|Blade Bravo 7|
+13/+8/+3|
+8|
+7|
+7|Bluff 1, Concentration 1, Intimidate 1, Balance 2, Perform (dance) 1| |Small but Deadly

18th|Blade Bravo 8|
+14/+9/+4|
+8|
+8|
+7|Bluff 1, Concentration 1, Intimidate 1, Perform (dance) 1; never outnumbered trick| |Melee sneak attack +2d6

19th|Blade Bravo 9|
+15/+10/+5|
+9|
+8|
+8|Bluff 1, Concentration 1, Intimidate 1, Perform (dance) 1; twisted charge trick|Combat Reflexes, Confound the Big Folk (RotW)|

20th|Blade Bravo 10|
+16/+11/+6/+1|
+9|
+9|
+8|Bluff 1, Concentration 1, Tumble 2; acrobatic backstab trick| |Lethal Riposte[/table]


Powers Known
ECL 2: Dimension Hop (CPsi)
ECL 3: Vigor
ECL 13: Hustle
ECL 15: Compression

Final PP/day: 56 (1 racial + 25 class-based +30 Charisma-based).

If this isn't enough PP for Sizok to manifest her powers constantly in her particular campaign, +1 Manifester Arrows can always be used to solve the problem.
Equipment
Slippers of Battledancing! (DMG2) These are crucial to the build, as they allow melee attack and damage to be based off of Charisma whenever Sizok moves in combat. Their other perks (intiative bonus, speed bonus, Tumble bonus) are nice too. These should be acquired by Level 14 or so, at the very latest.

+1 Rapier: Sudden Stunning (DMG2), Bloodletting (MIC), Enervating (MIC), Slowing Burst (MIC), Collision (XPH). With this kind of weapon, critical hits should be relatively common and extremely painful. (Note that Bloodletting damage points get multiplied on a crit.) Before ECL 16 (when Sizok gains the Improved Critical feat), this should instead be a +1 Keen Bloodletting Sudden Stunning Rapier. If Sudden Stunning is considered broken in your campaign (very possible), use Stunning Surge (MIC) instead. If you have the money, add Suppression (XPH) to this weapon; Dispel Psionics isn't an awesome effect when tied to a Manifester Level of 5, but hey, it's still a free dispel attempt every time you hit a foe.

+5 Mithral Heavy Shield: Ironically, considering Sizok's general "lightweight" style, nothing she does is hindered by use of a shield. Might as well use one ... and make it a good one, since AC is quite important to this character. Many shield enhancements are nice (e.g. Fearsome (MIC), Ghost Ward (MIC)), but none are crucial.

+5 Mithralmist Shirt (MIC): See notes on shield. Mithralmist is a good cheap method of getting concealment, in case AC and Hit Points aren't ever enough defenses for Sizok. Fearsome (DotU) is certainly a good investment at high levels, after Sizok picks up Imperious Command.

Belt of Battle (MIC): good for almost every character, but Sizok gains more mileage than most out of getting 3/day extra move actions.

Novice Iron Heart Vest (ToB): Mostly because Disarming Strike is always a flavorful sort of maneuver to have access to on a swashbuckling character. Can also be used to gain Wall of Blades instead.

Novice Ring of the Diamond Mind (ToB): Moment of Perfect Mind 1/encounter. 'Nuff said. At high levels, this may become somewhat obsolete as Sizok is recommended to pick up a Third Eye Conceal (XPH/MIC) or Ring of Mental Fortitude (DMG2) for mental protection (given her low Wisdom score).

(another) Novice Ring of the Diamond Mind (ToB): Insightful Strike. Once per encounter, when Sizok can't make a full attack, she has one more option to give a big boost to her melee damage.

Circlet of Persuasion: Why not? Boosts Bluff, Diplomacy, Intimidate, Perform, and Use Magic Device at the same time.

Ring of Anticipation (DotU): Keep Sizok's Spot and Listen a little bit competitive, as well as rolling twice on initiative. This isn't strictly necessary, but really it's something many characters should probably carry.

Standard stuff: save boosts, extradimensional storage space, ability boosters (Dex +4, Con +6, Cha +6, and Tome of Leadership and Influence +5) ... you get the idea. Plus stuff that pretty much any character finds useful, e.g. Scout's Headband (MIC), Rod of Viscid Globs (MIC) ...

Psicrown of the Evader (XPH): a good indulgence at very high levels, when Wealth by Level becomes extensive.

+1 Arrows, Manifester (XPH): the cheesy but totally legal way to purchase extra Power Points cheap! 72 gp per Power Point! Use only if necessary.

Wands of Gravestrike, Golemstrike (CAdv): to make Craven damage apply against crit-immune things. Obviously, put them in Wand Chambers (Dungeonscape) in her rapier and shield.
Combos/Notes
A dromite wilder gish. That's definitely something I've never seen before!

First, I'd like to point out that Sizok uses every aspect of the Dromite race:

Charisma bonus is extremely valuable, as this build manages to use Charisma for attack rolls, damage rolls, bonus Power Points, Bluff checks (including feinting, or replacing failed Diplomacy checks using a skill trick), other social skills, Goad save DCs, and save DCs for abilities that may be picked up via Psychic Reformation'd powers (see Variations section) or items (e.g. Fearsome armor/shield, Sudden Stunning weapon), and uses/day of Sudden Stunning.
Monstrous Humanoid type is important (as opposed to e.g. Aberration) because of Stoneblessed prerequisites.
Small Size is important for Underfoot Combat and Confound the Big Folk, as well as several Blade Bravo class features.
20 foot land speed ... ok, I guess I don't get anything good out of that. But at least the build has a couple "accidental" speed boosts to make up for this weakness (the Freedom Mantle power at ECL 3, and the Slippers of Battledancing side effect).
+3 Natural Armor is nice, because this build actually focuses enough on AC to make it relevant all the way into high levels.
Resist Electricity 5 and Energy Ray 1/day aren't crucial to the build, but they're certainly useful. It's always good for a melee character to have a backup ranged option!
Naturally psionic ... obviously put to good use.
Scent and the Spot bonus make the character a valuable scout, especially at low levels. In spite of having a Wisdom penalty. (Stoneblessed picks up a racial Listen bonus, which is nicely symmetric and again helps overcome low Wisdom.) Blind-Fight is also a nice, if minor, perk for any melee character.
Even the Dromite bonus language list is important, thanks to Stoneblessed prerequisites. Note that Sizok starts off with a high enough Intelligence to know Gnomish and Terran.
Favored Class: Wilder is also put to good use, so that a Swashbuckler/Wilder doesn't get any XP penalties. (Incidentally, the Swashbuckler dip is necessary not just to pick up a free feat, but to be proficient in rapiers in order to take weapon focus. Diplomacy as a class skill is also a nice perk.)

The confession: this is not a powerful combat build at low levels. I wish I could claim otherwise, but I can't. It's a mediocre archer in combat, nothing more, until ECL 7 (or until the DM takes pity and hands out overpowered equipment early). (See the Variations section for a minor improvement on this issue.)

Even at these low levels, however, I think Sizok can manage to be a useful party member. Teleportation (i.e. Dimension Hop) is incredibly valuable at very low levels, and she has the skills and abilities necessary to be a good scout and a good party face.

The build's real intent, however, is to be a "tank" who draws the attention of big, tough melee monsters in order to protect the rest of the party. This role really kicks in at ECL 9, when Goad shows up. With Blade Bravo and high Charisma, Goad should be relatively likely to work; and with a great AC and plenty of Hit Points (via high Constitution and the Vigor power), Sizok should be a pretty resilient tank.

Of course a good tank also needs a decent offense, especially since many monsters are immune to Goad (or have ranged options).

Action Economy and Melee Damage-Dealing
Sizok has a lot of ways to move and still make a full attack (triggering Mobile Fighting, and sometimes Slippers of Battledancing, in the process). Dimension Hop, Hustle, and at later levels Belt of Battle and Psicrown of the Evader.

However, Sizok also has a lot of ways to use up move actions besides moving: Goad, Feinting (with Improved Feint), and Demoralization (with Fearsome (DotU) armor). Weak options, sometimes, but terribly flavorful and fun to use. And she will want to move every turn, even when her position is already good, in order to activate Slippers of Battledancing. So she won't always get to make a full attack. So she needs to do as much damage as possible with a single attack per turn.

Crit-fishing is the main tactic here. With Improved Critical as a bonus feat, Sizok should threaten a critical on nearly every third hit. With good attack bonuses and Small but Deadly, those critical threats should generally be confirmed. With the right weapon (see Equipment section), a critical hit should do a few nasty things, such as a negative level and possibly a slow effect, in addition to damage. And static damage bonuses, such as Craven (!), will multiply on critical hits.

(Hooray for putting the minor Sneak Attack abilities of Blade Bravo to good use! And Sizok should never lack for ways to make sneak attacking possible. Winning initiative, flanking with an ally, using Sapphire Nightmare Blade (learned via item), feinting, using Confound the Big Folk, or using the Acrobatic Backstab trick.)

If Sizok's damage isn't going to be enough, use your magic weapon to Stun a target instead.

Note that Linked Power is another way to save on the action economy. Use it to manifest Vigor or Compression at the start of a battle if you didn't know the battle was coming in time to pre-buff.
Size Tricks and Armor Class Estimate
Note that, with Wild Surge, Sizok has a high enough manifester level to augment Compression and shrink herself to Diminutive size. (This will let her use Confound the Big Folk with even Small monsters!)

Against a typical Large opponent, Sizok at high levels can have an AC of at least 63:
10 (base) +3 (size) +3 (natural) +6 (dexterity) +1 (mobile fighting) +9 (armor) +7 (shield) +5 (deflection item) +5 (natural enhancement item) +1 (insight item) +8 (size advantage) +5 (Combat Expertise).

This can be improved slightly by e.g. swapping out Mithralmist Shirt for Celestial Armor at high levels. Also, there is an additional +4 AC vs. creatures of the Giant type, thanks to the Racial Battle Technique of Stoneblessed.

That's respectable!
Variations
If LA Buyoff is allowed, replace two levels of Blade Bravo with three levels of Uncanny Trickster (CScn). This gives the character a whole lot of skill points, accelerates skill tricks a bit, and lets you use three skill tricks twice as often. The latter can be chosen either for flavor (feint-related tricks) or power (Never Outnumbered, Social Recovery).

If flaws are allowed, there are plenty more feats this build would like to have (although some, admittedly, are still tricky to squeeze in, due to the need to take bonus feats from flaws at Level 1). For example, you could strengthen the build's focus on "social combat" and versatile use of Bluff with Combat Panache (PHB2). Or you could strengthen her psionic abilities with e.g. Practiced Manifester, Metapower (linked Hustle), or Hidden Talent (which would allow you to get Compression without taking a fifth Wilder level). Or you could further emphasize the size-based fighting angle, with Dodge and Titan Fighting (RoS).

One of Sizok's Power choices is pretty flexible: the one she picks up at ECL 3. Feel free to swap this power around, throughout the course of the campaign, using Psychic Reformation (XPH), either via NPC or via Power Stones. In particular, I think it might be a good idea at low levels for Sizok to know (and use) the Attraction power, putting her high Charisma to more good use (for the save DC) and strengthening her claim to being a solid party face.

If the campaign is going to be played mostly at low levels, swapping around the order of various levels can make Sizok more viable. In particular, starting her off with a level in Swashbuckler makes her viable in melee from the start. Stoneblessed and Blade Bravo can also be put off until Wilder abilities have matured. I put levels in the order they appear on the table for the sake of compatibility with the Backstory, as well as an earlier entry into the Secret Ingredient.

Choosing Electricity as Sizok's dromite energy type is not necessary. If you wish, you can switch her Resistance and her Energy Ray to Fire, Cold, or Sonic without harm. I chose Electricity because (a) I like it, and (b) her personality fits reasonably well with the XPH's description of a typical Glimmer Caste Dromite personality: "always move at high speed, rarely resting in their pursuit of life's tasks." Note that Sonic energy rays do slightly less damage than other energy rays against creatures.
Later Story Notes
Level 5 (ECL 6):

Two years of an intense cultural immersion program: an eternity to a very young and eager dromite, though it seemed the blink of an eye to her gnomish teachers. Sizok passed every test the Dinglegrinn priests and elders could devise for her. Her religious fervor to Garl Glittergold and the other Gnomish gods was unquestionable; she could sing all forty-nine verses of the clan anthem; she could drink Zirthen's aunt's rum like an adult (though she hadn't beaten him in any drinking contests yet); and, most importantly, she managed to lace together all the priests' bootlaces while they were interviewing her. They're still not sure how she managed this prank, but they were pleased. It was likely her racial psionic talents had something to do with her success in this act of covert mischief.

(Side note: Sizok chose to adopt a feminine persona while she was among the gnomes, in order to better fit their expectations of gender roles. It is unknown how much this decision was detemined mostly by the simple fact that Vuru knew the word "niece" rather than "nephew" in Gnomish.)

With these tests passed, she was finally apprenticed to Dinglegrinn's master Duelist, Yonadollo. Garl knows, anyone who had spent time with her during her two-year immersion was surely relieved that she would finally stop asking, "when do I get to learn to use one of those sword-thingies? Er, epees?"

ECL 13-15:

If there is a question about why the last two Wilder levels show up in the build at just this point, here is the explanation: the Blade Bravo class description itself describes Blade Bravo 5 as a turning point, when the class begins to focus on size differences.

I put a Wilder level in at this natural "break point"; and then, as soon as Sizok learns the Size Advantage class feature, it makes sense for her to train next in using her inborn psychic abilities to make herself as small as possible (i.e. taking another Wilder level that gives her the Compression power).

Ozymandias9
2010-09-09, 02:17 AM
"'It’s your turn to move Ross.' I overheard my father’s long forgotten words amidst the bustling traffic of Manila. Same usual reminder when we were playing chess before his death. Can he still sense my indecisiveness, my predicament on my life now?"
-Life in a Chessboard



http://i56.tinypic.com/28smrgy.jpg
CN Gnome Psychic Warrior 4, Urban Ranger 1, Blade Bravo 10, Dragonstalker 3, Xorvintaal Exarch 2


Story & Stats
I've heard other's wish to be rich. How exciting it must be, how glamorous to meet the rich, the famous. That's total tortoise droppings. Wealth doesn't bring adventure and excitement. The nobs just find more expensive and extensive ways to be dull. Dull, dull dull. Even my name. Nine others before me with the same handle. NINE. All rich, gnome-lords with gold pouring out their gnavels. The Vive's only claim to something more exciting than pinching pennies and watching the dust settle upon them is the High Sword training. A Vive is trained in blade and form. For adventure and glory?! HA! No, it's as my Dad said, 'You cannot appreciate the gold if you've got a blade in your back!'. That's right, I need to know it so I can make MORE money. I admit, there is nothing inherently WRONG with money, but where's the interest?!

Yeah, I had the money. Sometimes. I'd been trained in the Vive way of concentration as well. Could calculate the interest of a dozen different shares by the memorized rise and fall of historic merchant data in my head. I had other ways. The cards and dice. That was money-making with a little adventure. It wasn't about the winning, I could count the cards and come out ahead without breaking a sweat. It was seeing how far I could go before they accused me of cheating. What to do if they got angry at losing out to a little nob's son like myself. THAT was fun! Even that would begin to pale though. Yeah, I was rich, in looks and brains and wealth... but I'm miserable. I live for surprises and the unexpected... where is the excitement in watching the money grow taller than I? Life wasn't meant to be that easy.

It was a long road to depression having all I could want. I began to slip away, fight in underground fencing matches, blades naked and unpadded. A place where nobs as bored as I but cowards at heart came to get their jollies. Man to man.... well, gnome. You can't be a Vive gnome without knowing a few tricks, but I kept them out of the arena. No changing size or knocking the steel away with a thought. I didn't care whether I lived or died. Never killed a man, just infuriated him, got him hopping and stupid, pricked him bloody if he was being one himself, that kind of thing. Then I'd give him a good gnutting once he was worn out, and they'd drag him off the mats. Shoulda seen their faces, those who had bet on one of us to die. I put in a few bets myself now and again, always raked it in. More fornicating farthings. Little drip drops in a bucket already overflowing with gain and angsty gnomish gnothings.

Then one day I came to meet another gnomish opponent. Not fought one of them before. Plently of halflings, bouncing off the walls until poked a hole in their feet, but no gnomes. He was clad head to toe, mask covering him. Well, I'd fought the ugly ones as well as the pretty boys. Hide the mug for all I care. We sized each other up and fought. Now, I'd met some pretty tough nuts on the mat, nearly went to see Garl myself more than a few times, but in the end it worked out for me. This fella... he pressed me and fought and gave ground... but it was play. You can tell it when they wish to kill you. This guy wasn't just messing with me, he was teaching me. It was a tough tutoring, though, for if I let myself down a moment I got it where it hurt. The seats usually had a good number of sponsors or busybodies, but as the battle raged on messengers were sent, and the stadiums above filling with the wagering louts. Finally I grew bored with it. If he was having fun, let's turn up the giggles! I concentrated, and sweat exploded off of me as I internally roared with metabolism, burning off my own flesh and growing to the size of a bantam ****. There was shouts of outrage from above. I'd done what I hadn't before, crossed the line, broke the rules of engagement. My opponent stood still, whether from shock or what I don't know. I ran and feinted, diving between his legs, but he did something I to this day cannot recall. Something was done with his feet and I found myself kicked and flipped back over his head where he caught me, neat as you please. He began to squeeze, and struggle as I could, I couldn't draw breath. I welcomed the coming darkness. This was a death with style and all the trimmings. If my lungs hadn't been crushed I'd have laughed...

I awoke with a bit of soreness in my sides and groaned, knowing he'd let me live. If I was with Garl I'd not be hurting, and if I'd gone to the lower places I'd likely be hurting more.

I was on a sofa in a familiar house. I'd been here more than I had my own. Uncle Grindle's place. Don't recall as he was related, not a Vive anyways, but he was richer and quicker than us lot.

"Young duff, if I'd have known you wanted to commit suicide I'd have helped you out. Something a bit more pleasant. Poisoned women springs to mind, all the venom laced kisses you could want. Perhaps some of the hundred proof stuff from the horn of a black unicorn? But stabbing... mmm, well, whatever your generation goes for I suppose." a voice said, and I turned.

Uncle Grindle... in the bodysuit of my opponent. It was him alright, that golden-tan skin, the feel of a man ten times his size.

"Ok, bring on the women..." I groaned, and fell back into the cushions.

"Well, you'll have to give me a little time. The arsenic lipstick alone takes forever to apply. Eighty years some time." he said wryly. "Wruk, what in the Hells?"

"Oh, it's just so pointless and dull. Might have been fine for you, seeing the fruits after planting. But I have nothing to go for."

"Your father should be whipped for his neglect. Shall we take away your allowance?" he ribbed. He held up a knowing hand as I opened my mouth to complain.

"I know it Duff. Believe me, even after the plantings and sewings and reapings, you get tired of the fruit. Something else to sink your teeth in to... well, I have a proposition for you. You get home and rest and be back here in the morning. I'll find you some meat, my duff."

I awoke the next morning and went in search of my father, but he'd left a message for me saying he'd be at Grindle's. I'd rather hoped to keep the old gnome out of this, but Uncle had piqued my interest. When I arrived there were guards all about. Dashing into the estate I found the once beautiful manor trashed, tapestries pulled down, and carpets up. Gashes were deep in the teal floors, and scorch marks on the walls. A great battle had obviously taken place here.

Upon questioning the guards searching the manor they showed me a couple things that'd been found. My father's old sword, stained with ichor. Stuck to the blade was a gem-like scale.

A number of wealthy men had disappeared like this I was informed, always with a crystal scale left. None had ever been found. This seemed to be true as months passed and no word came.

I used all my father's connections, plus a few less reputable, but all I got in response was fearful ignorance or disjointed whispers. They all seemed to fear me, as if I was somehow known to the darkest shadows of society Whatever was going on was big, and I would learn nothing as a nob's son.

It seemed I would have to find out on my own. As I contacted businessman to take over my father's finances I sold my profits and took to the streets. Left was my identity, my money, my old chums.

"This wasn't the excitement I had wanted... " I thought to myself as I turned a bend in an alley. "But at least for awhile my life will be far from dull..."

Level 5

Psychic Warrior 4/Urban Ranger 1

Small Humanoid (gnome, psionic)
Hit Dice: 4d8 + 1d8 (22 hp)
Initiative: +2
Speed: 20 ft. (4 squares)
Armor Class: 20 (+3 armor, +2 dex, +4 shield, +1 size), touch 17, flat-footed 18
Base Attack/Grapple: +4/-1
Attack: Shard +9 melee (1d4, 18/20x2)
Full Attack: Shard +9 melee (1d4, 18/20x2)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Favored enemy (xorvintaal), psionics
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, wild empathy
Saves: Fort +6, Ref +5, Will +2 (+5 Combat Focus)
Abilities Str 8, Dex 14, Con 10, Int 18, Wis 13, Cha 14
Skills: Autohypnosis +8, Bluff +6, Craft (alchemy) +6, Concentration +6, Diplomacy +4, Gather Information +6, Hide +9, Intimidate +4, Move Silently +6, Knowledge (arcana) +7, Knowledge (psionics) +8, Profession (gambler) +3, Search +10, Sense Motive +4, Sleight of Hand +4, Spot +3
Feats: Combat Expertise, Combat Focus (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Combat_Focus), Urban Tracking (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Urban_Tracking), Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (rapier)
Organization: Xorvintaal Exarchs
Challenge Rating: 5
Possessions: Shard (+1 Deepcrystal Rapier), Masterwork Studded Leather Armor

Favored Enemy (Ex): Wruk gains a +2 bonus on Bluff, Listen, Sense Motive, Spot, and Survival checks when using these skills against Xorvintaals. Likewise, he gets a +2 bonus on weapon damage rolls against those of the organization.

Psionics: Manifester level 4th. (Power Points per day = 11; Save DC 11 + power level):
1st - Compression, Elfsight, Force Screen (+4 shield)
2nd - Danger Sense

Spell-like Abilities: Caster level 1st; save DC 12
1/day - Dancing Lights, Ghost Sound, Prestidigitation, Speak with Animals (burrowing only)

Wild Empathy: As Ranger ability, +4 bonus.


It was going on the year anniversary of my father's disappearance. With only the clues of blood and scale, I had begun to piece together the story. The blood was dragon's, of a rare kind, as was the scale.

As I gathered news I heard one name that at least set me a course... Xorvintaal. It was spoken as another might speak of a god. Of powers not to be understood that flowed through the city.

I was forced to fight for my life as I sought answers for questions that others obviously didn't want me to know enough to even ask after. There seemed no connection between the attacks. It might be a sick grandmother slipping me poisoned tea, and the next a winged centaur diving upon me with battleaxe in hand. Accidents were often and plentiful. They kept me sharp, and eventually, through my skill, or their wariness, I never did know, they gradually lessened. I became wanted in the city, and even several of the outskirting towns.

And yet... there was a pattern here. I could sense it vaguely, if none of the details.

Xorvintaal... Xorvintaal...

Level 10

Psychic Warrior 4/Urban Ranger 1/Blade Bravo 3/Dragonstalker 2

Small Humanoid (gnome, psionic)
Hit Dice: 4d8 + 1d8 + 3d8 + 2d8 (44 hp)
Initiative: +2
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 25 (+7 armor, +2 dex, +1 dodge, +4 shield, +1 size), touch 18, flat-footed 23
Base Attack/Grapple: +9/+4
Attack: Shard +17 (1d4+3, 18/20x2)
Full Attack: Shard +17/+12 melee (1d4+3, 18/20x2)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Favored enemy (xorvintaal), flourish +3, psionics, sneak attack (dragon) +2d6
Special Qualities: Hunting bonus +3, low-light vision, mobile fighting (+1 dodge), wild empathy
Saves: Fort +7, Ref +11, Will +6 (+8 Combat Focus)
Abilities Str 8, Dex 14, Con 10, Int 18, Wis 13, Cha 15
Skills: Autohypnosis +11, Bluff +8, Craft (alchemy) +6, Concentration +8, Diplomacy +4, Gather Information +13, Hide +14, Intimidate +4, Move Silently +10, Knowledge (arcana) +9, Knowledge (local) +11, Knowledge (psionics) +9, Profession (gambler) +4, Search +11, Sense Motive +9, Sleight of Hand +4, Spot +3
Feats: Blind-Fight, Combat Expertise, Combat Focus (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Combat_Focus), Goad feat (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Goad), Psionic Charge, Urban Tracking (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Urban_Tracking), Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (rapier)
Organization: Xorvintaal Exarchs
Challenge Rating: 10
Possessions: Shard (+4 Deepcrystal Rapier), +4 Masterwork Studded Leather Armor

Favored Enemy (Ex): Wruk gains a +2 bonus on Bluff, Listen, Sense Motive, Spot, and Survival checks when using these skills against Xorvintaals. This bonus increases to +5 against Xorvintaal dragons. Likewise, he gets a +2 bonus on weapon damage rolls against those of the organization.

Hunting Bonus: As Draconimicon, +3.

Psionics: Manifester level 4th. (Power Points per day = 11; Save DC 11 + power level):
1st - Compression, Elfsight, Force Screen (+4 shield)
2nd - Danger Sense

Sneak Attack (Dragon): +2d6

Spell-like Abilities: Caster level 1st; save DC 12
1/day - Dancing Lights, Ghost Sound, Prestidigitation, Speak with Animals (burrowing only)

Wild Empathy: As Ranger ability, +4 bonus.


Despite all my precautions I was caught one day. Just as I was beginning to see the picture. It was sudden, unseen, yet not wholly unsurprising. If what I learned was true, 'big' did not begin to describe what I had delved into.

I was knocked out, and when I came to all was black. I was blindfolded and paralyzed, couldn't move a muscle. There was no sound, until the Voice. I've always revered Garl, as a good Vive gnome, but I would never have said I was particularly god fearing. Until that moment. The voice filled my ears and my head.

It told me that I would now know what happens to those who interfered with Xorvintaal. The floor beneath my feet vanished, and I felt myself plummeting. I know not how long I fell, but sometimes I would be sliding, others in empty space. Finally I touched bottom, and I felt my ankle give way. The paralysis had faded, and the blindfold long since torn away, but that mattered not, for all was lightless. The smell was... overpowering, unlike any I'd ever experienced. The flooring wet and pliant. If you stood still for longer than a few moments you found yourself sinking down.

Days and nights meant nothing here, but I sought to find the boundaries of my prison. There were slimy pits, and tunnels going farther down, but I never found a wall, though great piles of debris and stone and and stinking masses were everywhere. There were the sounds too, and echoes. If not for special senses heightened by my childhood training I'd have died I'm sure, but I knew when the attacks would come.

I began to forget what light was, and fresh breezes and peace of mind. Even my sleep was of horror, and I learned to sleep for only minutes before awaking to defend myself or hide from the nameless creatures below. I would then sleep in a moment only to repeat.

Then there was again the Voice. It seemed like a memory out of a dream of a life before this hell. It asked me if I had tired of the dark, of constantly being on edge. I might have given my soul to be out, but all it said was 'Then come into the light and join me.'

And I was. A great room full of comfortable chairs, and a single candle that though dim and flickering was like the sun itself to my eyes.

Sitting by it was my father... and curled around the room a dragon of amythest scales. My father smiled and stood. He embraced.

"You've done the family proud." he whispered.

Then the dragon was gone, and there was but gold Uncle Grindle, looking as proud as my sire.

That was how I began my first play in the Great Game. I was the 9th generations of gnomes who'd devoted their time to it. All of my father's financial empire was either a cover or part of the game, and he'd played it so well even his child hadn't known. We'd even been bred to it, each child raised for intelligence and cunning and a spirit for adventure and strategy. I was the culmination of it. A child so resourceful and intelligent that he could play nearly at the level of the great serpents themselves. The false abduction, my searchings, the pit... all had been a test of my abilities, a sharpening of my wits and mind.

That night the ceremony was performed, and I became a Player. I was given a book that Grindle himself had written, in it was the key to mental exercises and strategies to propel one forward. There was a side effect to it I hadn't read of however. I began to sense the entire city itself. I knew where all the pieces were, how things fit, how this effected that. As much as I respected Grindle, I felt there should be a few things I was capable of if I was to truly exceed in the game.

It was what I had always sought. It became everything.

Level 15

Psychic Warrior 4/Urban Ranger 1/Blade Bravo 5/Dragonstalker 3/Xorvintaal Exarch 2

Small Humanoid (gnome, psionic)
Hit Dice: 4d8 + 1d8 + 5d8 + 3d8 (58 hp)
Initiative: +2
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 25 (+7 armor, +2 dex, +1 dodge, +4 shield, +1 size), touch 18, flat-footed 23
Base Attack/Grapple: +14/+9
Attack: Shard +21 melee (1d4+3, 16/20x2)
Full Attack: Shard +21/+16/+11 melee (1d4+4, 18/20x2)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Dragon's favor, favored enemy (xorvintaal), flourish +3, ignore natural armor, psionics, size advantage, sneak attack (dragon) +2d6, sneak attack (melee) +1d6
Special Qualities: Hunting bonus +3, low-light vision, mobile fighting (+1 dodge), wild empathy
Saves: Fort +8, Ref +12, Will +8 (+10 Combat Focus)
Abilities Str 8, Dex 14, Con 10, Int 24, Wis 13, Cha 15
Skills: Autohypnosis +19, Bluff +8, Craft (alchemy) +6, Concentration +15, Diplomacy +4, Gather Information +13, Hide +15, Intimidate +4, Move Silently +10, Knowledge (arcana) +10, Knowledge (local) +12, Knowledge (psionics) +10, Profession (gambler) +4, Search +12, Sense Motive +16, Sleight of Hand +4, Spot +3
Feats: Blind-Fight, Combat Expertise, Combat Focus (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Combat_Focus), Goad feat (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Goad), Iron Will (B), Mindsight (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Mindsight), Psionic Charge, Urban Tracking (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Urban_Tracking), Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (rapier), Wise To Your Ways (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Wise_to_Your_Ways)
Organization: Xorvintaal Exarchs
Challenge Rating: 14
Possessions: Shard (+5 Keen Deepcrystal Rapier), +4 Masterwork Studded Leather Armor, Otyugh Hole, Tome of Clear Thought +4

Dragon's Favor (Ex):
- Draconic Reverie (+4 to attack or save)
- Energy Immunity (Dessication)
- Frightful Presence (DC 19)
- Lair's Rebirth (Word of Recall but also brought back to life)
- Lair's Return (Word of Recall)

Favored Enemy (Ex): Wruk gains a +2 bonus on Bluff, Listen, Sense Motive, Spot, and Survival checks when using these skills against Xorvintaals. This bonus increases to +5 against Xorvintaal dragons. Likewise, he gets a +2 bonus on weapon damage rolls against those of the organization.

Hunting Bonus: As Draconimicon, +3.

Ignore Natural Armor: 1/day - Can ignore target's natural armor.

Psionics: Manifester level 4th. (Power Points per day = 11; Save DC 12 + power level):
1st - Compression, Elfsight, Force Screen (+4 shield)
2nd - Danger Sense

Sneak Attack (Dragon): +2d6

Sneak Attack (Melee): +1d6

Spell-like Abilities: Caster level 1st; save DC 12
1/day - Dancing Lights, Ghost Sound, Prestidigitation, Speak with Animals (burrowing only)

Wild Empathy: As Ranger ability, +4 bonus.


In the first years, I was but a pawn. I was allowed a certain freedom so as not to chafe, but I went where Uncle needed me, and played my part like a good little gnome. He preferred to play by proxie, and the rules supported him. I liked a more personal touch. Oh, I could and did plan from a distance, and set up a rival agency of my own, which I would then fight. I began to keep in my head the entire sum of the city, who was beholden to who, who visited, and began to see the picture as even Grindle could not.

I fought dragons themselves, mainly younger ones of no real challenge, and gained their respect and later obedience as I awed even they. If they wanted to advance they would follow me. Their Exarcs were mine to command, but I let them seek their own agendas. As such, Grindle never suspected how these seemingly unrelated pieces all were under a single Master until nearly 50 years later. With a thought I signaled all to converge at just the right moment.

At first Grindle was confused, then enraged at my treachery. After a few moments however the began to laugh in appreciation, and thumped his tail in thunderous applause.

"Wruk Vive to King. Check mate!" he roared.

The game was on.


Level 20

Psychic Warrior 4/Urban Ranger 1/Blade Bravo 10/Dragonstalker 3/Xorvintaal Exarch 2

Small Humanoid (gnome, psionic)
Hit Dice: 4d8 + 1d8 + 10d8 + 3d8 (80 hp)
Initiative: +2
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 28 (+8 armor, +4 dex, +1 dodge, +4 shield, +1 size), touch 20, flat-footed 24
Base Attack/Grapple: +19/+14
Attack: Shard +28 melee (1d4+4, 16/20x2)
Full Attack: Shard +28/+23/+18+/13 melee (1d4+4, 16/20x2)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Dragon's favor, favored enemy (xorvintaal), flourish +3, ignore natural armor, lethal riposte, psionics, size advantage, small but deadly, sneak attack (dragon) +2d6, sneak attack (melee) +2d6
Special Qualities: Hunting bonus +3, low-light vision, mobile fighting (+1 dodge), wild empathy
Saves: Fort +10, Ref +13, Will +11 (+13 Combat Focus) or against Xorvintaal dragons Fort +15, Ref +18, Will +16 (+18 Combat Focus)
Abilities Str 8, Dex 18, Con 10, Int 31, Wis 13, Cha 16
Skills: Autohypnosis +19, Bluff +8, Craft (alchemy) +6, Concentration +15, Diplomacy +4, Gather Information +13, Hide +17, Intimidate +4, Move Silently +12, Knowledge (arcana) +10, Knowledge (local) +12, Knowledge (psionics) +10, Profession (gambler) +4, Search +12, Sense Motive +14, Sleight of Hand +6, Spot +3
Feats: Blind-Fight, Combat Expertise, Combat Focus (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Combat_Focus), Dodge, Combat Awareness (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Combat_Awareness), Goad feat (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Goad), Iron Will (B), Mindsight (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Mindsight), Mobility, Psionic Charge, Urban Tracking (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Urban_Tracking), Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (rapier), Wise To Your Ways (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Wise_to_Your_Ways)
Organization: Xorvintaal Exarchs
Challenge Rating: 19
Possessions: Shard (+5 Keen Deepcrystal Rapier), +5 Masterwork Studded Leather Armor, Cognizance Crystal 17, Headband of Intellect +6, Manual of Quickness in Action +4, Otyugh Hole, Tome of Clear Thought +5
Dragon's Favor (Ex):
- Draconic Reverie (+4 to attack or save)
- Energy Immunity (Dessication)
- Frightful Presence (DC 19)
- Lair's Rebirth (Word of Recall but also brought back to life)
- Lair's Return (Word of Recall)

Favored Enemy (Ex): Wruk gains a +2 bonus on Bluff, Listen, Sense Motive, Spot, and Survival checks when using these skills against Xorvintaals. This bonus increases to +5 against Xorvintaal dragons. Likewise, he gets a +2 bonus on weapon damage rolls against those of the organization.

Hunting Bonus: As Draconimicon, +3.

Ignore Natural Armor: 1/day - Can ignore target's natural armor.

Psionics: Manifester level 4th. (Power Points per day = 11; Save DC 12 + power level):
1st - Compression, Elfsight, Force Screen (+4 shield)
2nd - Danger Sense

Sneak Attack (Dragon): +2d6

Sneak Attack (Melee): +2d6

Spell-like Abilities: Caster level 1st; save DC 12
1/day - Dancing Lights, Ghost Sound, Prestidigitation, Speak with Animals (burrowing only)

Wild Empathy: As Ranger ability, +4 bonus.

Character By Level

These are the base scores without adjustments. For full stats please see blocks in Stats & Story.

{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features
1st|Psychic Warrior 1|
+0|
+2|
+0|
+0|Autohypnosis +4, Bluff +2, Concentration +3, Knowledge (arcane) +2, Knowledge (psionics) +4, Profession (gambler) +1, Sense Motive +2|Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (rapier)|Psionic Powers
2nd|Psychic Warrior 2|
+1|
+3|
+0|
+0|Autohypnosis +5, Bluff +2, Concentration +4, Knowledge (arcane) +2, Knowledge (psionics) +4, Profession (gambler) +1, Search +1|Combat Expertise|-
3rd|Psychic Warrior 3|
+2|
+3|
+1|
+1|Autohypnosis +6, Bluff +3, Concentration +5, Knowledge (arcane) +3, Knowledge (psionics) +4, Profession (gambler) +1, Search +2, Sense Motive +3|Combat Focus|-
4th|Psychic Warrior 4|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+1|Autohypnosis +7, Bluff +3, Concentration +5, Knowledge (arcana) +3, Knowledge (psionics) +4, Profession (gambler) +2, Search +5|-|-
5th|Urban Ranger 1|
+4|
+6|
+3|
+1|Autohypnosis +7, Bluff +4, Concentration +6, Gather Information +4, Hide +3, Move Silently +4, Knowledge (arcana) +3, Knowledge (psionics) +4, Profession (gambler) +2, Search +6, Sense Motive +3|Urban Tracking|Favorite Organization (Xorvintaals)
6th|Blade Bravo 1|
+5|
+6|
+5|
+1|Autohypnosis +7, Bluff +4, Concentration +6, Gather Information +4, Hide +6, Move Silently +6, Knowledge (arcana) +3, Knowledge (psionics) +4, Profession (gambler) +2, Search +6, Sense Motive +4|Goad, Speed of Thought|Flourish
7th|Blade Bravo 2|
+6|
+6|
+6|
+1|Autohypnosis +7, Bluff +5, Concentration +6, Gather Information +8, Hide +6, Move Silently +6, Knowledge (arcana) +4, Knowledge (psionics) +4, Profession (gambler) +2, Search +6, Sense Motive +5|-|Mobile Fighting
8th|Blade Bravo 3|
+7|
+7|
+6|
+2|Autohypnosis +8, Bluff +6, Concentration +6, Gather Information +10, Hide +6, Move Silently +6, Knowledge (arcana) +4, Knowledge (local) +5, Knowledge (psionics) +4, Profession (gambler) +2, Search +6, Sense Motive +6|Blind-Fight|-
9th|Dragonstalker 1|
+8|
+7|
+8|
+4|Autohypnosis +10, Bluff +6, Concentration +6, Gather Information +10, Hide +6, Move Silently +6, Knowledge (arcana) +5, Knowledge (local) +6, Knowledge (psionics) +5, Profession (gambler) +3, Search +7, Sense Motive +7|Psionic Charge|Hunting Bonus +1
10th|Dragonstalker 2|
+9|
+7|
+9|
+5|Autohypnosis +10, Bluff +6, Concentration +8, Gather Information +11, Hide +8, Move Silently +8, Knowledge (arcana) +5, Knowledge (local) +7, Knowledge (psionics) +5, Profession (gambler) +3, Search +7, Sense Motive +8|-|Hunting Bonus +2, Sneak Attack (dragon) +2d6
11th|Dragonstalker 3|
+10|
+8|
+9|
+5|Autohypnosis +10, Bluff +6, Concentration +8, Gather Information +11, Hide +8, Move Silently +8, Knowledge (arcana) +5, Knowledge (local) +7, Knowledge (psionics) +5, Profession (gambler) +3, Search +7, Sense Motive +9|-|Hunting Bonus +3, Ignore Natural Armor 1/day
12th|Xorvintaal Exarch 1|
+10|
+8|
+9|
+5|Autohypnosis +10, Bluff +6, Concentration +8, Gather Information +11, Hide +8, Move Silently +8, Knowledge (arcana) +5, Knowledge (local) +7, Knowledge (psionics) +5, Profession (gambler) +3, Search +7, Sense Motive +10|Wise To Your Ways (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Wise_to_Your_Ways)|Dragon's Favor, Telepathy
13th|Xorvintaal Exarch 2|
+10|
+8|
+9|
+5|Autohypnosis +10, Bluff +6, Concentration +8, Gather Information +11, Hide +8, Move Silently +8, Knowledge (arcana) +5, Knowledge (local) +7, Knowledge (psionics) +5, Profession (gambler) +3, Search +7, Sense Motive +11|Iron Will (B)|-
14th|Blade Bravo 4|
+11|
+8|
+10|
+5|Autohypnosis +15, Bluff +6, Concentration +11, Gather Information +11, Hide +8, Move Silently +8, Knowledge (arcana) +5, Knowledge (local) +7, Knowledge (psionics) +5, Profession (gambler) +3, Search +7, Sense Motive +12|-|Melee Sneak Attack +1d6
15th|Blade Bravo 5|
+12|
+8|
+10|
+5|Autohypnosis +18, Bluff +6, Concentration +15, Gather Information +11, Hide +9, Move Silently +8, Knowledge (arcana) +5, Knowledge (local) +7, Knowledge (psionics) +5, Profession (gambler) +3, Search +7, Sense Motive +15|Mindsight (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Mindsight)|Size Advantage
16th|Blade Bravo 6|
+13|
+9|
+11|
+6|Autohypnosis +19, Bluff +7, Concentration +17, Gather Information +11, Hide +10, Move Silently +10, Knowledge (arcana) +7, Knowledge (local) +7, Knowledge (psionics) +5, Profession (gambler) +3, Search +7, Sense Motive +16|Combat Reflexes|-
17th|Blade Bravo 7|
+14|
+9|
+11|
+6|Autohypnosis +20, Bluff +8, Concentration +19, Gather Information +11, Hide +12, Move Silently +12, Knowledge (arcana) +7, Knowledge (local) +8, Knowledge (psionics) +5, Profession (gambler) +3, Search +7, Sense Motive +17|-|Small but Deadly
18th|Blade Bravo 8|
+15|
+9|
+12|
+6|Autohypnosis +21, Bluff +9, Concentration +20, Gather Information +11, Hide +14, Move Silently +14, Knowledge (arcana) +7, Knowledge (local) +10, Knowledge (psionics) +5, Profession (gambler) +3, Search +7, Sense Motive +18|Combat Awareness|Melee Sneak Attack 2d6
19th|Blade Bravo 9|
+16|
+10|
+12|
+7|Autohypnosis +22, Bluff +10, Concentration +20, Gather Information +11, Hide +16, Move Silently +16, Knowledge (arcana) +7, Knowledge (local) +10, Knowledge (psionics) +5, Profession (gambler) +3, Search +10, Sense Motive +19|Improved Critical|-
20th|Blade Bravo 10|
+17|
+10|
+13|
+7|Autohypnosis +23, Bluff +11, Concentration +20, Gather Information +11, Hide +18, Move Silently +18, Knowledge (arcana) +7, Knowledge (local) +10, Knowledge (psionics) +5, Profession (gambler) +3, Search +12, Sense Motive +20|-|Lethal Riposte
[/table]

{table=head]Ability|Base|Race|Levels|Inherent|Enhancement|Tota l|Modifier
STR|10|-2||||8|+0
DEX|14|||+4||18|+4
CON|8|+2||||10|+0
INT|18||+2|+6|+5|31|+10
WIS|13|||||13|+1
CHA|13||+3|||16|+3
[/table]

Traits
(not flaws)
- Reckless (http://dndsrd.net/unearthedTraits.html#reckless)
- Slippery (http://dndsrd.net/unearthedTraits.html#slippery)

Feats
1st - Combat Expertise, Weapon Finesse
2nd - Weapon Focus (rapier)
3rd - Combat Focus (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Combat_Focus)
5th - Urban Tracking (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Urban_Tracking)
6th - Speed of Thought, Goad feat (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Goad)
8th - Blind-Fight
9th - Psionic Charge
12th - Wise To Your Ways (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Wise_to_Your_Ways)
13th - Iron Will
15th - Mindsight (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Mindsight)
16th - Dodge
18th - Combat Awareness (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Combat_Awareness)
19th - Mobility

Languages Known: Common, Draconic, Dwarf, Giant, Gnome, Goblin


Build Notes & Tricks

Ok, what you have here is a character made to play in the great draconic Game of Xorvintaal. Wruk has an almost supernatural knowledge of the board that is life, knowing where to move and who to manage.

Classes
Psychic Warrior was chosen for a number of reasons.
First, the extra feats are nice, allowing me to complete a 3rd set of feat trees. As he is psionic now he can take some very interesting psionic feats to help him in being a living game piece.
Second, he now has access to the Autohypnosis skill which is very useful with dragons, especially Xorvintaal dragons. Instead of taking feats to ignore fear or give bonuses against it, Wruk can now merely make an autohypnosis check to ignore their Frightful Presence. As well, Xorvintaals can choose to exude venom. Autohypnosis can also help with that. Thricely he also can memorize... everything. This works astoundingly well with Mindsight that I will discuss later.
Third, the Compression power. It's not a new trick, but I'd be stupid not to make use of it.

Urban Ranger allows me to gain bonuses against an entire organization, namely the players of Xorvintaal. He not only gains these bonuses against the dragons playing it, but also the other chess pieces. It also grants as a bonus feat one of the prerequisites for Dragonstalker.

Dragonstalker & Blade Bravo
Dragonstalker grants an extra +3 bonus for a total of +5 to Xorvintaal dragons. I also gain draconic sneak attacks, which stack with that granted by Blade Bravo for a 6d6 sneak attack whenever it misses me or is flat-footed. It also allows me to ignore natural armor once per day (dragon's or elsewise). Add this to the Blade Bravo's Lethal Riposte and once per day you can hit the dragon, no matter what. No dex, no armor, nothing. You hit it. The rest of the day you are still likely to hit it as the attacks against large creature granted by Blade Bravo and the attacks with Dragonstalker stack.

Also, with my abilities against large creatures my

Feats
The feats here were chosen very carefully to make a character who knows exactly what he's facing and how to take them out.

First off I want to introduce you to my favorite part of this build. It is without a doubt overpowered. You might even say cheese. The Xorvintaal Exarch template grants you telepathy 100 miles to speak with your patron dragon. The Mindsight feat (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Mindsight) allows you to determine the square of any and every creature with an Int of 1 or more, their Intelligence score, and their creature type within range of your telepathy ability. As such... Wruk now knows every single creature within 100 miles. I just gotta say it again. 100 miles up, down, and around. 'Nothing' can hide from him. He knows how they move, where they are going, who is meeting who... and with his Autohypnosis check he can memorize it. He can keep track of them all, though he'd probably ignore most of the population unless looking for gatherings of specific folks of certain mentalities and types, but those of unusual creature type or those with high intelligences he'd keep in his head. Also, anyone he'd meet he'd note their int, type, and follow them mentally. In fact, it'd be unlikely he could become lost because he'd have the entire layout of a city by seeing everyone passing through and around. It'd be like thousands of points of light flowing in and around a 3-D lay-out. I know if a gang is following me by their collective scores I met before, and can avoid them. I can't be caught flat-footed because I know where they are behind me.

With Blind-Fight I am also able to re-roll due to miss-chance because of concealment. As I know what square they are in I know where to aim. Many other uses besides.

Ok, let's get off that. You have Combat Focus and Combat Awareness. Through these I know the Hit Point total of my opponents, allies, etc. Then with my high Sense Motive score I can detect their HD total via the Sense Motive Expanded Description (http://www.realmshelps.org/datafind/skills/sense_motive.shtml#Expanded) via Complete Adventurer. If it weren't for the auto-penalty I'd give him a flaw so as to take Combat Intuition as a bonus feat so I could size up my opponent as a free action and get a bonus.

So with these four feats I am able to detect square, type, int score, HP total and HD of every creature I meet. Throw in Detect Hostile Intent power and I also know if they wish me ill.

Also, Wise to Your Ways feat works well with the favored enemy and dragon stalker abilities. Grants me a +3 bonus to saves against Xorvintaal abilities in general, and +5 bonus against Xorvintaal dragons in particular.

Finally, Psionic Charge. I took it purely for flavor. It allows Wruk to move as a knight, able to charge around things.

Attack
Well, as is by 20th level Wruk has an attack of +21. Against Xorvintaals, +23. If they are larger, and most will be, you get a bonus of at least +25. I manifest Compression, and it's +29 minimum without magical enhancements. Against very large opponents my fellow here can have attacks against them in the 40's with his magical weapon. Note again how he can ignore natural armor once per day as well.

Now, with that in mind, he has a 2d6, or 4d6 if dragon, sneak attack he can do whenever an opponent misses. He can channel power points into his weapon for an additional 2d6. Then there is the weapon damage itself. Throw in added bonuses from favored enemy if that is what he's attacking and you have a fellow who is second to none in the ranks of the Great Game, and no slob outside of it either.

Xorvintaal Exarch
Almost forgot about him despite it all. Along with the telepathy cheese, Wruk is effectively immortal. You make sure you 'always' have a single token held in reserve so that if you die you are teleported to safety and health.

If the going gets tough, or he's surrounded despite all his planning and ability to detect the patterns of folks, he can also teleport out of their back to his lair.

Rarely is it possible to actually and completely defeat him.


Equipment
The equipment is listed in the Story & Stats section. What he has is specifically useful to him/the build. The rest could be anything you wish to add. They aren't specific to the build.

I'd like him to also have read the Draco Mystere from the Draconimicon for flavor purposes. It grants Low-light vision, Immunity to magic sleep effects and paralysis and a +5 inherent bonus to Knowledge (arcana) about dragons


Sources

Complete Scoundrel
Otyugh's Hole (p. 151)

Draconimicon
Dragonstalker PrC

Expanded Psionics Handbook
Autohypnosis skill
Deepcrystal material
Psionic Charge & Speed of Thought feats
Psychic Warrior class

Ghostwalk
Wise To Your Ways feat (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Wise_to_Your_Ways)

Lords of Madness
Mindsight feat (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Mindsight)

Monster Manual V
Xorvintaal Exarch template

Player's Handbook II
Combat Focus & Combat Awareness feat

Races of Stone
Blade Bravo PrC
Goad feat (http://www.realmshelps.org/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Goad)

Player's Handbook 3.5
Everything Else

Unearthed Arcana
Reckless & Slippery traits
Urban Ranger class
Urban Tracking feat

Ozymandias9
2010-09-09, 02:23 AM
"I want to be a cat inside your arms
I want to stay here until lonely nights ended
I want to be a cat, words are momentary
But I'll make it remain with a scar"
-Refrain, "Neko Ni Naritai" (with apologies to Spitz for poor translation)



Nekoya

猫矢

I don't bother chasing mice around
I slink down the alley, looking for a fight
Howlin' to the moonlight on a hot summer night
- Stray Cats, Stray Cat Strut


http://img689.imageshack.us/img689/5371/nekoya.jpg
Useless Kanji Note: Nekoya is written with the kanji for ‘cat’ and ‘dart’.

Brief Build Stub:
Race:Tibbit
Alignment: Chaotic Good
Class and Level: Warlock 4/Stoneblessed 3/Ruathar 3/Blade Bravo 10
Character Background
Tibbits as a race descend from familiars. After generations of being used by wizards as familiars, cats eventually gained the ability to transform. In her alternate humanoid form, tibbits interact with their former masters and the world around them.
Gnome society has a lot of spellcasters; with those, come a lot of familiars. So it is just natural that a few tibbits make their homes in gnome settlements.
Nekoya was born in one such settlement, from tibbit parents that she never knew. Raised by gnomes, the arcane resonance in her blood soon became apparent when she manifested the powers of a warlock. A trickster and flirt by heart, Nekoya got in trouble really frequently but she was such a good kid and had such a kind heart that the gnomes never minded her.
Even though she was proud to be a tibbit, Nekoya felt a little lonely being the only one around, so she tried her to fit in gnome society. Her devotion to gnome ways eventually made her a diplomat, which many people found extremely weird, since Nekoya was a liar and a witch, but she was not actually that good at convincing people (that is, other than lying outright to their face). Maybe the fact that she had already slept with half the settlement’s leaders helped. Maybe it had nothing to do with it.
As a diplomat, Nekoya spent a lot of time in a nearby elven kingdom. The elves were less forgiving of Nekoya’s trickery and once threatened to outright ban here, after she thought it was a fun idea to swap a few wizard’s spellbooks for gnome literature. Saddened, Nekoya was packing to leave when she accidentaly discovered one of the wizard’s she tricked was actually an albino drow spy. With all odds against her and not even her charm getting her anything remotely close to assistance, Nekoya had to single-handedly defeat and expose the traitor, which nearly cost her life. She was then considered an elf-friend, which made her very happy.
She decided to return to the gnome settlement she was born in, but had a lot of adventures with increasingly weird company. Nekoya traveled with a dwarf that resembled a bear (She could swear he had a fist behind all that beard!), a really power hungry wu jen addicted to starmetal (They might have had a fling, or they might not. Depends on who tells the story...), a masked spellscale ex-criminal wielding a variety of different weapons and masks (While he was a fun travelling companion, Nekoya realized they got over their heads everytime, so they parted their ways.), a human psion girl that had a knack for being vile and for the cutting practice (Nekoya thought she was bad luck, since people always got sick while around her. She was also too creepy for the tibbit, once she got to know her.), a goblin that hated gnomes with a passion and used the power of eath itself to empower him (Somehow, Nekoya and him got along fine. The goblin left after he had a disagreement with the dwarf mentioned earlier – no one wanted to see that guy angry!), a sun elf devoted to Corellon that sang fiercely (Nekoya took to calling him ‘war song companion’ and he would always smile upon hearing the nickname.), a killoren master of nature, fire and blade (She eventually got to share Nekoya’s bed a few times, after the wu jen left. Nekoya couldn’t resist repeating how ‘hot’ her partner was all the time.), a changeling dancer (As beautiful as she was deadly – Nekoya kept a safe distance from her.), an aasimar devoted to entropy (Too chaotic for even Nekoya to understand!) and even a bard ghost (Even dead, she sang beautifully.)! Nekoya had a lot of fun with her adventures, learning to use her side to her advantage against the various challenges she faced.
One morning, years after returning to her home settlement and various adventures later, Nekoya simply vanished. No one knows where she went, but that might he just part of another prank she is trying to pull.

Stats:
Str 8 - 2 racial = 6
Dex 14 + 2 racial = 16 + 4 inherent = 20 + 6 enhancement = 26
Con 14 +2 at level 7 (stoneborn) = 16
Int 13
Wis 13
Cha 16 +1 at every 4 levels= 21 + 5 inherent + 6 enhancement = 32

Racial Abilities

Darkvision 60 ft; Small size; Speed 20ft; +2 Spot, Jump, Escape Artist.
Feline Transformation: Become a Tiny-sized housecat with Str -8 and Dex +2 and scent. Equipment transforms to become part of her cat body; she only loses the benefits of weapons, shields, armor or robes she wears or carries. Other items that require a physical apparatus adopt a form suitable to a cat. Tibbits normally can't use invocations in cat form, since they have somatic components, but the Surrogate Spellcasting feat fixes that. The whole somatic component thing is debatable, of course, and adressed below.

Level Breakdown
Nekoya
{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack<br>Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features

1st|Warlock 1|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|Appraise (cc) 2, Bluff 4, Craft (stoneworking) 4|Surrogate Spellcasting|Eldritch blast 1d6, least invocation (summon swarm)

2nd|Warlock 2|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3|Bluff +1, Craft (stoneworking) +1, Use Magic Device +1|none|Detect Magic at will, least invocation (eldritch glaive)

3rd|Warlock 3|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+3|Bluff +1, Use Magic Device +2|Weapon Finesse|Damage reduction 1/cold iron, eldritch blast 2d6

4th|Warlock 4|
+3|
+1|
+1|
+4|Bluff +1, Speak Language (cc) (Terran)|None|Deceive item, least invocation (entropic warding)

5th|Stoneblessed 1|
+3|
+3|
+1|
+4|Bluff +1, Listen +2|None|Stonebond

6th|Stoneblessed 2|
+4|
+4|
+1|
+4|Bluff +1, Listen +2|Combat Expertise|Racial battle technique

7th|Stoneblessed 3|
+5|
+4|
+2|
+5|Bluff +1, Listen +2|None|Stoneborn

8th|Ruathar 1|
+5|
+4|
+4|
+7|Concentration +2, Spot +2, Listen +1|Martial Weapon Proficiency (rapier) (bonus)|Word of friendship, gift of the elves, eldritch blast 3d6

9th|Ruathar 2|
+6|
+4|
+5|
+8|Concentration +2, Spot +3|Weapon Focus (rapier)|Low-light vision, elfwise, lesser invocation (beshadowed blast), swap summon sworm for see the invisible

10th|Ruathar 3|
+7|
+5|
+5|
+8|Concentration +1, Spot +3, Listen +1|Weapon Focus (rapier)|Low-light vision, elfwise, eldritch blast 4d6

11th|Blade Bravo 1|
+8|
+5|
+7|
+8|Bluff +3, Concentration +2|Goad (bonus)|Flourish

12th|Blade Bravo 2|
+9|
+5|
+8|
+8|Bluff +3, Tumble +2|Don’t Mind Me|Mobile fighting

13th|Blade Bravo 3|
+10|
+6|
+8|
+9|Bluff +1, Concentration +1, Tumble +3|Combat Reflexes (bonus)|None

14th|Blade Bravo 4|
+11|
+6|
+9|
+9|Bluff +1, Concentration +1, Tumble +3|none|Melee sneak attack 1d6

15th|Blade Bravo 5|
+12|
+6|
+9|
+9|Bluff +1, Concentration +1, Tumble +3|Craven|Size advantage

16th|Blade Bravo 6|
+13|
+7|
+10|
+10|Bluff +1, Concentration +2, Tumble +2|Blind-fight (bonus)|none

17th|Blade Bravo 7|
+14|
+7|
+10|
+10|Bluff +1, Concentration +2, Tumble +2|None|Small but Deadly

18th|Blade Bravo 8|
+15|
+7|
+11|
+10|Bluff +1, Concentration +2, Tumble +2|Twining Trip|Melee sneak attack 2d6

19th|Blade Bravo 9|
+16|
+8|
+11|
+11|Bluff +1, Concentration +2, Tumble +2|Improved Trip|None

20th|Blade Bravo 10|
+17|
+8|
+12|
+10|Bluff +1, Concentration +2, Tumble +2|None|Lethal riposte[/table]

Class Abilities from Ruathar and Stoneblessed

Stonebond: +2 on Listen and Craft (alchemy) checks. Bluff, Hide, Listen, Perform and Spellcrafted added to Stoneblessed list of class skills.
Racial Battle Technique: +4 dodge bonus versus giants, +1 on attack rolls versus goblinoids and kobolds
Stoneborn: +2 Con, considered a gnome for all effects related to race, speak with animals once a day
Elfwise: +2 on Search, Spot and Listen checks
Star Blessing: +1 on attack rolls and saving throws while under the night sky
Arvandor’s Grace: +50% increase on maximum lifespan and the lower limit of each age category. Applied to tibbits, this means middle age at 187 years, old age at 300, venerable at 450 and a maximum age of 450+(3d100x1.5).


Invocations Known
beshadowed blast, summon swarm (replaced later by see the unseen), eldritch glaive, entropic warding

Gear Suggested
Aside from stat-boosters and the always common amulet of natural armor and ring of protection, a few items synergize rather well with Nekoya’s abilities:
Veil of allure (+2 to DC of Charisma-based spell-like abilities)
Gauntlets of heartfelt blows (adds Charisma modifier to melee damage rolls, explicitly includes touch attacks as well)
Greater chausuble of fell power
Rogue’s Vest (+2 Hide, +1d6 sneak attack)

Sources Used:
Tibbit race, Riposte feat, gauntlets of heartfelt blows – Dragon Compendium
Surrogate Spellcasting feat – Savage Species
Warlock class, all invocations except for eldritch glaive – Complete Arcane
Eldritch glaive invocation – Dragon Magic
Blade Bravo and Stoneblessed classes; Goad feat – Races of Stone
Ruathar class – Races of the Wild
Craven feat – Champions of Ruin
Veil of allure, (greater) chausuble of fell power – Magic Item Compendium
Don’t Mind Me and Twining Trip feats – Fabulous Cats article (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/fools/20030401c)
Weapon Finesse, Combat Expertise, Blind-Fight, Improved Trip and Weapon Focus feats – Player’s Handbook
Cloak of displacement – Dungeon Master’s Guide

Sweet Spot – Level 15
At level 15, Nekoya can afford gauntlets of heartfelt blows and dexterity +4 (28000), a veil of allure (14000), a greater chausuble of fell power (18000), rogue’s vest (14000), a major cloak of displacement and charisma +4 (66000), a ring of protection +2 (8000) and bracers of armor +8 (64000), keeping 2000gp in change. She also has a minor magic item (DM-dependant, but +1 rapier fits her background) from her Ruathar levels.
With this equipment, she has the following stats:
Abilities: Str 6 (1 in cat form), Dex 20 (22 in cat form), Con 16, Int 13, Wis 13 and Cha 23
Senses: low-light vision, darkvision, scent, see invisibility
Saving Throws: Fortitude +9, Reflex +12, Will +10 (+8 vs fear)
Feats: Don’t Mind Me, Combat Expertise, Craven, Goad, Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (rapier)
Base Attack Bonus +12, Hit Points: 7d6+8d8+45
Armor Class 26 (+8 bracers of armor, +1 size, +2 deflection, +5 Dex) or 28 (+8 bracers of armor, +2 size, +2 deflection, +6 Dex) in cat form; 50% miss chance
Attack: eldritch blast +17 ranged touch (+19 in cat form), damage 6d6 plus blidness (Fortitude DC 22 negates)
Full-Attack: eldritch glaive +17/12/7 (+19/14/9 in cat form) melee touch, damage 6d6 plus 6 fire plus blindness (Fortitude DC 22 negates)
Special Attacks: melee sneak attack +3d6+15
Skills: Appraise +3, Bluff +24, Concentration +14, Craft (stoneworking) +6, Listen +13, Use Magic Device +9, Speak Language (Terran), Search +3, Spot +13, Tumble +16
Combat: If at all possible, Nekoya tries to enter fights in cat form, since it increases both her attack bonuses and her AC (and her bonus from the Size Advantage feature). It’s easier when she is on the offensive, since cats are rarely seen as agressive (though with all her jewelry, she sure seems like a target). Wither her high Bluff and Goad feat, she might keep a melee opponent focused on her while she dodges – while her natural AC is not very high, she gets an added bonus of +2 for each size category between her and the opponent from her Blade Bravo levels. She still has 50% miss chance to sport, even against other Tiny sized opponents.
Nekoya has a full-attack routine that deals 6d6+6 damage each hit plus a save for blindness. It’s not much, but it increases significantly if she has the opportunity to sneak attack (which happens by itself if the oppoent fails his save) – with 9d6+21 damage on each hit, she suddenly seems a lot more dangerous.
During combat, Nekoya can really mess around entering opponent’s squares, since she does not provoke for doing so and she has Tumble high enough to move with relative impunity throughout the battlefield.
Outside Combat: With high Bluff and good senses (low-light vision, darkvision, scent and see invisibility!), Nekoya is a good asset to most adventuring groups. She is also a flirt and her Bluff skills help to represent that side of her. Her connection to gnomes and ruathar status also have the potential of cutting some slack for her group from time to time.

Yes, I can trip you
This trick only becomes possible at high levels, thanks to the feats from the Fabulous Cats article and the bonus feat from Blade Bravo at 9. Nekoya can enter a foe’s square without provoking, because of the Don’t Mind Me feat. She can also trip using her Dexterity modifier instead of her Strenght, because of the Twining Trip feat. And she does not provoke for tripping, because of Improved Trip. Oh, and she gets an attack for it.
So congrats, a Str 1 cat just tripped you.
This works best with Lethal Riposte. First, Nekoya full-attacks with her eldritch glaive. Then, when attacked (and missed) she gains an extra attack from Lethal Ripost, and trips the opponent. If she succeeds, not only does she get an extra attack, she screws up the opponent’s full attack.
Maybe you are wondering ‘don’t size modifiers make this pointless’? Well, Twining Trip flat-out states a Dexterity check versus opponent’s Strenght or Dexterity. Size is not even mentioned.

On Invocations and Somatic Components
RAW, invocations don't have somatic components. The invocation section (Complete Arcana, page 7) mentions nothing of the sort and spell-like ability don't have somatic components per default. The only mention of somatic components for warlock's is in the weapons/armor section... and it is a simple cut-and-paste from Bard anyway.
Also, tibbit discription says they 'cannot cast spells with a verbal or somatic component' (Dragon Compendium, page 25). It could be argued that invocations are not spells and as such would be useable, but that's just plain silly and I'd smack someone with a book if they tried to pull that on me.
Savage Species, though, has the Surrogate Spellcasting feat, that allows you to substitute 'vocalizations and gestures
appropriate to your shape' to provide somatic/verbal components. It requires Wis 13, which is a bit of a hit on Nekoya's stats, but I think it's well worth it. Surrogate Spellcasting specifically applies to spells (probably because by the time SS was out nothing else hat somaic components), but if you don't consider invocations to be spells for this purpose, Nekoya does not even need to feat to use'em in feline form, granting her a free feat – take Riposte, from Dragon Compendium, then. It requires base attack +5, so it can only be taken at 5th-level, but it works a lot like Lethal Riposte – except it requires you to use Combat Expertise to trigger it and it does not make the target flat-footed. With the Riposte feat, at level 20 she can swing twice with her eldritch glaive when an opponent misses her, each time causing a save against blindness along with damage.

On Yoruichi similarities
As I finished this build, it surprised me how much it was similar to ShihouinYoruichi from Bleach. Tibbits have dark skin in their humanoid form, just like Yoruichi. They turn into cats, just like Yoruichi. Nekoya has a sword that she does not get to use, just like Yoruichi. Nekoya’s main weapon is an eldritch glaive – Yoruichi’s ace in a sleeve up until now is energy-based as well. I was really surprised, because it was not intentional, but it makes me kinda happy since I like Yoruichi a lot.

Ozymandias9
2010-09-09, 02:30 AM
Swa cwæð eardstapa,_________So spoke the wanderer,
earfeþa gemyndig,____________mindful of hardships,
wraþra wælsleahta,___________of fierce slaughters
winemæga hryre:_____________and the downfall of kinsmen:

-From "The Wanderer," as preserved in the Codex Exeter


Raakhama’karma The Wanderer
{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack<br>Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features

1st|Swashbuckler|
+1|
+2|
+0|
+0|20|Weapon Finesse(b), Weapon Focus - Rapier|

2nd|Monk|
+1|
+4|
+2|
+2|5|Stunning Fist(b)|Flurry of Blows, UNarmed Strike, AC Bonus

3rd|Monk|
+2|
+5|
+3|
+3|5|Feiry Fist(b, phb2), Combat Expertise|Evasion, Fast Movement +10ft

4th|Monk|
+3|
+5|
+3|
+3|5||Still Mind

5th|Monk|
+4|
+6|
+4|
+4|5||Ki Strike, Slow Fall (20ft),Unarmed Strike (D8)

6th|Stone Blessed|
+4|
+8|
+4|
+4|3|Improved Disarm|Stonebond(gnome)

7th|Stone Blessed|
+5|
+9|
+4|
+4|3||Racial Battle Technique (Gnome)

8th|Stone Blessed|
+6|
+9|
+5|
+5|3||Stoneborn (Gnome)

9th|Ranger|
+7|
+11|
+7|
+5|7|Track(b), Dodge|Favoured Enemy – Aberrations, Wild Empathy

10th|Blade Bravo|
+8|
+11|
+9|
+5|5|Goad(RoS)|Flourish

11th|Blade Bravo|
+9|
+11|
+10|
+5|5||Mobile Fighting

12th|Blade Bravo|
+10|
+12|
+10|
+6|5|Mobility(b), Spring Attack|

13th|Ranger|
+11|
+13|
+11|
+6|7||Combat Style (ranged)

14th|Blade Bravo|
+12|
+13|
+12|
+6|5||Melee Sneak attack(D6)

15th|Blade Bravo|
+13|
+13|
+12|
+6|5|Combat Tactician(Phb2)|Size Advantage

16th|Blade Bravo|
+14|
+14|
+13|
+7|5|Improved Trip|

17th|Blade Bravo|
+15|
+14|
+13|
+7|5||Small but Deadly

18th|Blade Bravo|
+16|
+14|
+14|
+7|5|Ki Blast(phb2)|Melee Sneak Attack(2D6)

19th|Blade Bravo|
+17|
+15|
+14|
+8|5|Improved Critical(b)|

20th|Blade Bravo|
+18|
+15|
+15|
+8|5||Lethal Riposte[/table]

Race: Githzerai

32pt buy
Str 12 (4)
Dex 16 (10)
Con 12 (4)
Int 15 (8)
Wis 12 (4)
Cha 10 (2)

Racial Modified Stats at level 1
Str 12 (+1)
Dex 22 (+6)
Con 12 (+1)
Int 13 (+1)
Wis 14 (+2)
Cha 10 (-)

PSI-like and SP Abilities
3/Day
Feather Fall
Shatter (DC 12)
Daze (DC 10)
1/Day Plane shift (at level 11)
1/day speak with animals (from Stone Blessed)

Levels 1-5
Beginning his life aboard a AEther vessel amongst a raiding group, Raakh quickly adapted to a violent and unsafe life living by taking from others. However when stranded on the material plane after a failed raid he quickly sought refuge with a small, local, monk temple where he settled into the time honoured traditions of both his people and the monks therein.
During this time he became friendly with a number of gnomes who shared his outlook on life, and his lust for action against the aberrant threats in the world.

Mechanics: At these levels, he functions as a back up fighter, held back a bit by his level adjustments, but hopefully the massive racial dexterity and inertial armour still allowing him to contribute. Feiry fist at these levels is awesome, as is flurry, allowing him multiple attacks in a round. When using the rapier (I’m sure someone will prove me wrong on this) he can use his unarmed strike as a secondary natural attack, giving him that little extra oomph in tough corners.
Skills wise, the character will probably focus on Tumble with some ranks in bluff and craft to help with the prestiges later on.


Levels 6-10
Traveling to his friends lands deep inside a mountain, they discover a mindflayer nest, and after defeating the creatures he is honoured and invited formally to join the Gnomish Community, with precious few opportunities in the material world he gladly accepts, If only so as not to feel like an outcast any more.
Life amongst the gnomes is peaceful and tranquil, but with everpresent threats from the dark underground environment, Raakh takes up hunting in the darkness to dispatch the creatures who might otherwise prey on his new home. Whilst doing this, he encounters a duelling club, hidden from the eyes of outsiders within the city. This brings back strong memories of the beginning of his life, and he begins duelling with his peers (although at a slight disadvantage because of his size) and tales of his skill starts to spread throughout the community.

Mechanics: Using the rules in the Unearthed Arcana (Page 18) to buy off the level adjustments from the Githzerai Race affords a fast development at these levels. Levelling up in Stoneblessed allows for some really strange RP as you get into gnomish styles other bizarity. The boosts on listen checks are always handy, and the gnome stoneblessed get the very skills they need in order to qualify for the secret ingredient.
Combat bonuses are also handy, ac boosts vs giants, and bonuses to hit goblinoids (and if your dm doesn’t mind being mocked for running them, kobolds) topped off with a decent con boost makes for a lot of bonus power (and much needed hp).
Moving on into Ranger… I’ve never been sorry to have track on my list of feats, and the skills are a nice bonus too, but it also gives you the change to take a very characterful favoured enemy, either to customise yourself for what your DM is happiest throwing at you, or to shore up your weaknesses against enemies you hate fighting, its all good.
And of course Blade Bravo!

Levels 11-15
Years pass and his skills improve, eventually he leaves the gnomes to search for a way back to the monasteries of his own people in limbo to retire in, picking up several new skills and undertaking great achievements on the way.

Mechanics: Theres not too much to say here, Melee Sneak attack, bonuses against anything bigger than you… The feats I’ve chosen so far get doped up with more tricks, and I noticed Combat Tactician earlier today, it looks fairly solid for a mobile fighter, and Blade Bravo itself seems to poke you toward spring attack, so I took it. The increased movement from the monk class comes in real handy here.
The second level of ranger looks a little out of place, but I noticed that the class lacks any ranged abilities, so a longbow and rapid shot I figured might be useful and help round out the character.

Levels 16-20
Raakh eventually finds his place and retires, although he keeps his sword in practice, training a new batch of pirates and duellists as a master of the blade. Occasionally setting out to test the mettle of other sword masters as their reputation reaches him…

Mechanics: Finishing the Blade Bravo class off. Theres nothing I’d really want outside this class with the progression I’ve had so far, I’ve chosen trip in these levels, mostly to give me a few extra options. Plus its really funny to go on a spring attack run tripping people along the way. Disarm and trip work really well with Lethal Riposte, allowing you to put your enemy on the floor, or loose their weapon when they attack you each round. Slight weirdness from me here – Ki Blast(phb2). All I can say is “Habdoken”!

Ozymandias9
2010-09-09, 02:39 AM
"A monstrous fish that is afloat in a fathomless sea. A giant Bull, Kujuta, rides upon it.s back and upon the bull is a Ruby Mountain. On top of the Ruby mountain is an Angel, over which lay the 6 hells, then the earth and then the 7 heavens, at the very top."
The Story of Bahamut


The Story of Ssejkosjth "Seth" Tibur Hedwann Ux Bahamuti

Hello, my friend. Sit, rest, have an ail. They just tapped a keg of the summer brew, and it is a warming draught on this chill night. Oh? You think I'm a bit small to be drinking, do you? Well, I will bet you good money that I can drink you under the table, twice my size or no! Not only am I Dragon Born, but once I was a Gnome!

Why the change, you ask? Well, that is a sad tale, but I am willing to tell it if you would care to hear it.

My first life is a little like a pleasant dream to me now. I can remember my wife, my daughter, our home, our village. Our days were filled with joy and laughter, hard work and good company. It was only at the end that it became a nightmare, but that was enough to change me forever.

It was kobolds. It's always the kobolds, or the lizard folk, or dragons. But that first time, it was Kobolds. They came suddenly, without warning. Burst up out of the basement of the village guard tower, having tunneled up from beneath. A stroke of exquisite luck, or a masterful strategy I shall never know, but they swept through the village guards first, while all were still abed. Our greatest warriors, each a Bravo, taken before the fight began!

The din raised the alarm, and all able bodied men roused themselves to the fight, but with all of our best slaughtered in the first moments and the heart of our defenses taken, we were already doomed. I fought alongside my friends and watched them die at the hands of the Kobolds. I was stabbed through the chest by a Kobold spear, and lay dying as I watched them begin killing the women and children. I tried to get up, tried to help them, but the effort cost me my remaining grip on the world and I slipped into the peaceful black.

I know not why I was spared. Perhaps the kobolds mistook me for dead, or mayhap one thought it would be fitting for a single survivor to remain to tell the tale. Whatever the case, I awoke the next morning to find all in the village dead, save me. I was spared from any uncertainty in the survival of my wife and daughter when I found their bodies, laying on the path outside the village where they had attempted to flee. From the facing of her still form, my dear, sweet Raerchik, who had never raised her fist in anger in her life, turned to hold of her pursuers to give our child more time to flee. It was not enough.

I mourned the dead, buried them, observed the rites and pointed their spirits to the final path. It took me three days, working alone. And in that time I prayed, for some sign or message or some help. On the fourth day, I got my answer.


A travelling monk of unguessable years, dressed simply but carrying the finest sword I have ever seen, came to my village as I was digging the final graves. He looked upon me and my nearly completed work, and said not a word. Instead, he took up his own shovel and set to work beside me.

He had the aspect of an elf, but also one of the lizard folk. I did not comment, for our land is full of those who are different, and his willingness to help me unasked was perhaps the kindest thing any has ever done for me. We worked in silence until it was done, the last of my people returned to the earth, and only then did I speak. "Thank you, stranger, for your help. Please, come inside. I have little food, only what the raiders could not find or despoil, but what I have is yours to share. A fire and a bed are the least I can offer for your aid."

Then the stranger and I talked. Long into the night, we talked about my village, the raid, how everything happened, and my survival. I told him of the traditional style of my village, since he seemed curious, a style geared towards the use of the rapier against a larger foe. But I could not bear to talk of my lost home any longer. So instead I asked him about himself. I found out that this man was a travelling sage, the great Elwin of the Eternal Blade if you have ever heard the name - no? Not surprising, he is a humble man for all his might, and he prefers to be remembered as half-elven rather than half-dragon. Indeed, that is whence he got the appearance of the saurian folk, from his father. We spoke of his vocation, that of a follower of the nine martial paths, and of his other passion, dragons. It turns out that he was not just a master of the blade but also a scholar of dragon lore.

Eventually, we slept. In the morning, we rose. I left my home with him, unable to bear the thought of staying there alone. I had nothing left. Elwin taught me the language of the dragon, and many of their secrets. I discovered the link between the kobolds and the evil dragons. I swore to destroy them, not out of a desire for vengeance, but to prevent this from happening to others. At Elwin's recommendation, I prayed to Bahamut. And to my astonishment, I received an answer - a great silver dragon, flying unseen in a cloud above, roared and spewed silver light before disappearing again into the clouds.

With Elwin's lore and my newfound determination, I built myself a shell. That is the way of it - to be properly reborn one must have a shell and the blessing of Bahamut. I was reborn, now with a new purpose, in a new life, all ties to the old one severed. Yet, I have never felt more like a gnome in my life than I do now - my purpose is to serve my people.

It has been many years since then, and a very long road. In that time I have learned many things, harnessed skill and power I could not have dreamt of in my last life, and even taken up the fighting style of my home village to honor them. And so I use their traditional methods and styles, even while I make use of the unorthodox learning I acquired from that strange old monk and others along the path.

Life is hard and strange, my friend. But a warm beer on a cold night - doesn't that make it worth living?


The Build:

Name: Ssejkosjth "Seth" Tibur Hedwann Ux Bahamuti
(Translated from Draconic: Silentshrink known as Seth, once Hedwann, of the Dragonborn)
Race: Dragonborn (Heart) Whisper Gnome
Starting Abilities: Str 6, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 14, Wis 16, Cha 10


Seth
{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features
1st|Swordsage 1|
+0|
+0|
+2|
+2|Hide 4, MS 4, SoH 2, Bluff 4, Tumble 4, Concentration 4, Sense Motive 4, Listen 4|Dragon Wings|Quick to Act +1, Discipline Focus (Diamond Mind) - Grants Weapon Focus Rapier
2nd|Psychic Warrior 1|
+0|
+2|
+2|
+2|Autohypnosis 2, Hide 5|Weapon Finesse|Power: Compression
3rd|Psychic Warrior 2|
+1|
+3|
+2|
+2|Move Silent 5, SoH 3|Combat Reflexes, Practiced Manifester(Psychic warrior)|Power: Hammer
4th|Psychic Warrior 3|
+2|
+3|
+3|
+3|Concentration 5, Autohypnosis 5||Power: Skate
5th|Psychic Warrior 4|
+3|
+4|
+3|
+3|Know Psionics 4||Power: Concealing Amorpha
6th|Shadowmind 1|
+3|
+4|
+5|
+5|Bluff 5, Sense Motive 5, Tumble 5, SoH 5, Psicraft 1|Improved Dragon Wings|Power: Psionic Lion's Charge, Read Thoughts
7th|Swordsage 2|
+4|
+4|
+6|
+6|Listen 5, Tumble 10, Concentration 7||Wis to AC
8th|Shadowmind 2|
+5|
+4|
+7|
+7|Psicraft 5, Concentration 9||+1d6 sneak attack
9th|Blade Bravo 1|
+6|
+4|
+9|
+7|Escape Artist 5, Concentration 10|Craven|Goad, Flourish
10th|Blade Bravo 2|
+7|
+4|
+10|
+7|Concentration 12, Tumble 12, Escape Artist 7||Mobile Fighting
11th|Blade Bravo 3|
+8|
+5|
+10|
+8|Concentration 14, Tumble 14, Escape Artist 9|Two Weapon Fighting|
12th|Blade Bravo 4|
+9|
+5|
+11|
+8|Concentration 15, Tumble 15, Escape Artist 13|Improved Combat Reflexes|Melee Sneak Attack +1d6
13th|Blade Bravo 5|
+10|
+5|
+11|
+8|Concentration 16, Tumble 16, Escape Artist 15, Sense Motive 7||Size Advantage
14th|Shadowmind 3|
+11|
+6|
+11|
+8|Psicraft 8, Know Psionics 8||Power: Damp Power, Cloud Mind
15th|Blade Bravo 6|
+12|
+7|
+12|
+9|Concentration 18, Tumble 18, Escape Artist 17|Underfoot Combat, Improved Two Weapon Fighting|
16th|Blade Bravo 7|
+13|
+7|
+12|
+9|Concentration 19, Tumble 19, Escape Artist 19, Sense Motive 9||Small but Deadly
17th|Blade Bravo 8|
+14|
+7|
+13|
+9|Concentration 20, Tumble 20, Escape Artist 20, Sense Motive 12||Melee Sneak Attack +2d6
18th|Blade Bravo 9|
+15|
+8|
+13|
+10|Concentration 21, Tumble 21, Escape Artist 21, Sense Motive 15|Confounding the Big Folk, Greater Two Weapon Fighting|
19th|Swordsage 3|
+16|
+9|
+13|
+10|Concentration 22, Tumble 22, Escape Artist 22, Sense Motive 18||
20th|Blade Bravo 10|
+17|
+9|
+14|
+10|Concentration 23, Tumble 23, Escape Artist 23, Sense Motive 21||Lethal Riposte[/table]

Powers:
{table=head]Level|Powers gained|Power points
2|Compression|1 PP
3|Hammer|5 PP
4|Skate|9 PP
5|Concealing Amorpha|12 PP
8|Psi Lion's Charge, Read Thoughts|~27 PP
14|Damp Power, Cloud Mind|~46 PP
20||~66 PP[/table]

Maneuvers:
{table=head]Lvl|Maneuvers gained|Initiator Level
1|Island of Blades, Shadow Blade Technique, Burning Blade, Distracting Ember, Saphire Nightmare Strike, Clinging Shadow Strike, Moment of Perfect Mind|1
7|Assassin's Stance, Shadow Garrote|5
19|Five Shadow Strike|17[/table]



Equipment:
Weapons: While you normally attack using touch attacks, it's a good idea to keep a rapier or a dagger or both on hand for when you run out of PP. It should only need some mild enchantments. After you get two weapon fighting and an animated shield (these should happen roughly at the same time), the dagger can be used as an off-hand weapon, and you may want to pick up a second for the main hand. When it becomes affordable, all of these should be made into Manifester weapons (MIC), for the bonus PP/day.

Armor: A Mithril chain shirt should last until you've got a +4 dex item, at which point you'll need to upgrade to Celestial Armor. That should be good enough to last until very late in the build. Keep a heavy shield on hand. Get it animated just before you hit level 11.

Other Equipment:
Buying/choosing equipment is pretty simple, just follow this formula:
Wisdom > Dex > AC > Extra PP > Useful > Weapons
If you can upgrade one of these with available cash, do so in the order stated. Exceptions to this: buy Deathstrike Bracers, a Greater Truedeath Crystal and a Greater Demolition Crystal (all from the magic item compendium), and a Ring of Blinking (DMG) ASAP.

A Tome of Understanding (Wis) +1 should be used at around level 12, with a +5 (or wishes) being used to over-ride/enhance that bonus at higher level. A +4 dex book might also be a good idea at higher level, but it may not be worth it.

A couple of tatoos of the fully-augmented compression power (manifester level 15 - 1pp + 2pp for minutes/level +6pp for 2 size categories, +6pp for quickened) should be available at all times once you hit level 13, for those really nasty fights. They'll only set you back 375gp a piece for 15 minutes of an awesome buff - a bargain, even if you can cast it yourself.

Tactics:
You're a tank. The smallest tank ever. You won't be doing huge amounts of damage, but your enemies will fear you for being nearly invulnerable to their attacks.
Use Combat Expertise at full value every round. Don't worry, you're still going to hit things.
Compression yourself before the fight starts. Make it last minutes if the fight looks at all tough.
Use the Hammer power every round you're making a melee attack (or once for several rounds if you need your swift actions for something else, like changing stances). Even if you're using a maneuver - this power just lets you make attacks as touch attacks, and lets you ignore your horrible strength while in melee combat, thanks to weapon finesse. Otherwise, treat the hammer power as your primary weapon. Since it's a weaponlike spell/power (there's an attack roll), you can use sneak attack and all of your other damage boosts to improve your damage output.
At lower levels, use Island of Blades to ensure that you're flanking whatever you want to hit. Once you get a Ring of Blink, you can switch to Assassin's stance and never look back.
If you plan on using a strike maneuver (most are standard actions), Goad something. Same with using a breath weapon attack. If you're running low on PP, you can move out to the long range of your breath weapon and start flying around and kiting your enemies. Rounds between breath weapons can be used to recover and execute maneuvers.
Other than that, standard melee tactics should work just fine, although remember that thanks to your small size, you can not only fly over, but also RUN THROUGH any blocking enemies squares to get to whoever you want. And with your AC, you should be able to soak up AoOs without even blinking.

Build Notes:
This was a difficult build for me, because I kept wanting to do a ton of 1-2 level dips. In the end, I decided to go with just Psywar and Swordsage because that was always the heart of the build. Unfortunately, the only way to keep Shadowmind - and therefore 9th level maneuvers, was to ignore multiclassing penalties. So, if you play with multiclassing penalties (or without ToB), replace swordsage with Rogue, the Whisper Gnome's favored class (still a favored class after the Dragonborn ritual). It's not as powerful or as versatile, but it's not a terrible change either. If you have to go this way, you can easily add 'trapmonkey' to your list of abilities by putting skill points into search & disable device instead of concentration. On the up side, this allows you to take Craven much earlier, and more sneak attack damage.

Sources: Races of the Dragon (Dragonborn), Races of Stone (Whisper Gnome & Blade Bravo), Tome of Battle (Swordsage & Maneuvers), Complete Adventurer (Shadowmind), Complete War (Improved Combat Expertise) and the SRD (everything else). Most equipment mentioned comes from the Magic Item Compendium.

Capabilities by level:
These are estimates based on the assumption of standard WBL and equipment being bought as described above, and standard self-buffs (compression, mostly) being cast.

{table=head]Lvl|#Attacks|Damage|AC|Special Abilities
5|1|1d8|26|Compression, Hammer, Glide speed & Breath weapon
10|2|1d8+3d6+10|36|Lion's Charge, Flight, Goad
15|5|1d8+4d6+15|67*|Damp power
20|7|1d8+5d6+20|85*|Counter attack, Confounding the Big Folk[/table]
*Assuming medium enemy

Ozymandias9
2010-09-09, 02:49 AM
Monkeys are superior to men in this: when a monkey looks into a mirror, he sees a monkey.
-Malcolm de Chazal


Jack the Dread Capuchin
Forest Gnome Weremonkey (Natural)
32 point buy
Str: 14, Dex: 17, Con:13, Int: 14, Wis: 10, Cha: 8
Ending Stats
(Gnome Form) Str: 12(18), Dex: 26(32), Con:15(21), Int: 14(20), Wis: 12(18), Cha: 8(14)
(Monkey/Hybrid Form) Str: 4(10), Dex: 30(36), Con:15(21), Int: 14(20), Wis: 12(18), Cha: 8(14)
Progression:

Jack the Dread Capuchin
{table=head]ECL|Class|Base Attack |Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|IL/MK/MR|Skills|Feats|Class Features |Maneuvers

4th|Swordsage 1|
+0|
+0|
+2|
+2|
1/6/4|(32) Balance 4, Climb 4, Hide 4, Jump 4, Listen 4, Move Silently 4, Sense Motive 4, Tumble 4|Shadow Blade, Iron Will(b)|Quick to act +1, discipline focus(Weapon Focus[Diamond Mind])| Maneuvers: Burning Blade, Wind Stride, Wolf Fang Strike, Sudden Leap, Charging Minotuar, Stone Bones, Stance: Child of Shadow

5th|Monkey|
+0|
+2|
+4|
+2 |
1/6/4 |(4) Spot 4|Agile(b), Weapon Finesse(b) |Low-Light vision, Alternate Form, monkey empathy, scent, Curse of Lycanthropy, damage reduction 10/silver, +8 racial bonus to Balance and Climb, Climb speed (always take 10 and retain dex), uses dex instead of strength for Climb checks.|

6th|Swashbuckler 1|
+1|
+4|
+4|
+2 |
2/6/4 |(6) Bluff 4, Climb 2|Combat Expertise||

7th|Swordsage 2|
+2|
+4|
+5|
+3 |
3/7/4 |(8) Balance 2, Climb 1, Jump 2, Tumble 3| |AC Bonus|Manuever: Cloak of Deception, Stance: Flame’s Blessing

8th|Swashbuckler 2|
+3|
+5|
+5|
+3 |
3/7/4 |(6) Balance 1, Climb 1, Jump 1, Tumble 1 Skill Trick: Extreme Leap| |Arcane Stunt(Feather Fall)|

9th|Swashbuckler 3|
+4|
+5|
+6|
+4 |
4/7/4 |(6) Balance 1, Climb 1, Jump 1, Tumble 1 Skill Trick: Twisting Charge|Shape Soulmeld(Shadow Mantle)|Insightful Strike|

10th|Swordsage 3|
+5|
+6|
+6|
+4 |
5/8/5 |(8) Balance 2, Climb 1, Jump 2, Tumble 1 Skill Trick: Speedy Ascent | ||Maneuver: Shadow Jaunt

11th|Blade Bravo 1|
+6|
+6|
+8|
+4|
5/8/5 |(4) Balance 1, Climb 1, Jump 1, Tumble 1||Flourish, Goad|

12th(11th*)|Blade Bravo 2|
+7|
+6|
+9|
+4 |
6/8/5| (4) Balance 1, Climb 1, Jump 1, Tumble 1|Giantbane |Mobile Fighting|

13th(12th*)|Blade Bravo 3|
+8|
+7|
+9|
+5 |
6/8/5| (4) Balance 1, Climb 1, Jump 1, Tumble 1|Two Weapon Fighting(b) |New Class Abilities|

14th(13th*)|Blade Bravo 4 |
+9|
+7|
+10|
+5 |
7/8/5| (4) Balance 1, Climb 1, Jump 1, Tumble 1||Melee Sneak Attack +1d6|

15th(14th*)|Blade Bravo 5 |
+10|
+7|
+10|
+5 |
7/8/5| (4) Balance 1, Climb 1, Jump 1, Tumble 1|Impoved Unarmed Strike |Size Advantage |

16th(15th*)|Blade Bravo 6|
+11|
+8|
+11|
+6 |
8/8/5| (4) Balance 1, Climb 1, Jump 1, Tumble 1|Improved Two Weapon Fighting(b)||

17th(16th*)|Blade Bravo 7|
+12|
+8|
+11|
+6 |
8/8/5| (4) Balance 1, Climb 1, Jump 1, Tumble 1||Small But Deadly|

18th(16th*)|Blade Bravo 8 |
+13|
+8|
+12|
+6 |
9/8/5| (4) Balance 1, Climb 1, Jump 1, Tumble 1|Open Chakra (Shoulders) |Melee Sneak Attack +2d6|

19th(17th*)|Blade Bravo 9 |
+14|
+9|
+12|
+7| |
9/8/5| (4) Balance 1, Climb 1, Jump 1, Tumble 1|Greater Two Weapon Fighting(b)||

20th(18th*)|Blade Bravo 10 |
+15|
+9|
+12|
+7 |
10/8/5| (4) Climb 1, Tumble 1, Skill Trick: Back to Your Feet||Lethal Riposte|

NA(18th*)|Uncanny Trickster 1 |
+15|
+9|
+14|
+7 |
10/8/5| (10) Balance 1, Climb 1, Jump 1, Spot 6, Tumble 1|Shape Soulmeld (Impulse Boots)|Bonus Trick(Point it Out), Favorite Trick(Extreme Leap)|

NA(19th*)|Uncanny Trickster 2 |
+16|
+9|
+15|
+7 |
11/9/5|(10) Balance 2, Climb 1, Hide 1, Jump 2, Move Silently 1, Spot 2, Tumble 1|| Bonus Trick(Clarity of Vision), Favorite Trick(Clarity of Vision), Sword Sage Abilities(Discipline Focus(Insightful Strike[Stone Dragon]))|Maneuver: Dancing Mongoose, Shadow Stride(replaces Shadow Jaunt)

NA(20th*)|Uncanny Trickster 3 |
+17|
+10|
+15|
+7 |
12/10/6| (10) Balance 1, Climb 1, Hide 3, Jump 1, Move Silently 3, Tumble 1|| Bonus Trick(Spot the Weak Point), Favorite Trick(Back to Your Feet), Sword Sage Abilities(Quick to Act +2)|Maneuver: Elder Mountain Hammer, Stance: Assassin’s Stance[/table]
* if using LA Buyoff
Background

Growing up on the secluded forested island in the middle of the “Pirate Sea” was hard on little Abel. His people, the rarely seen forest gnome were-capuchin, lived disciplined lives of simple scholarly training in a long abandoned Temple of the Nine Swords. They are simple folk and being the only intelligent creatures on the small island did not lead to much instances of high adventure. They had lived in the derelict temple for ages with only dusty half understood scrolls and ancient relics to interest them. This was intolerable for young Abel who wanted nothing more than to see the world and plunder the high seas. So when a rather unlucky pirate got stranded on the isle he did all he could to befriend the strange new visitor. Seeing only a strangely dressed little monkey gesturing wildly the pirate known as Jack Snowfinch decided that with no one else to conversate with he would lament about the lack of rum to the little fellow. When Jack was rescued some weeks later little Abel joined him and took on the name “Jack” from his new friend.

ECL5 Forest Gnome Weremonkey Swordsage 1

Jack the Dread Capuchin served as First Monkey on the pirate ship the Ebony Pearl, pirating the high seas while battling the royal navy, undead pirates after woebegone booty, and squid men from the deep reaches of the oceans. This was all well and good for little Jack, although he quickly grew to feel unappreciated by the crew. Fetch this and fetch that…Jack began to want a little more respect from his peers. It all came to a head when his rather cruel compatriots fired him out of a cannon onto an enemy ship. Jack could take the indignation no longer and hopped off the ship at the next port to find his own fortune and glory.

ECL510 Forest Gnome Weremonkey Swordsage 3, Swashbuckler 3

Jack became the local mascot of several local watering holes delighting the patrons with mock sword fighting and little monkey jigs. This was were he saw his first gnomes since leaving home so long ago. He was enthralled by the gnomish street bravos who fought with just grace and bravado. None ever noticed the little monkey on the roof watching them while fencing with shadows.

At ECL 20

Forest Gnome Weremonkey (Natural)
Swordsage 3, Swashbuckler3, Blade Bravo 10,(Weremonkey 1 + 3 LA)


Tiny Humanoid (Gnome) ( Shapechanger)
Hit Dice: 3d8+15 + 3d10+15 + 10d8+50 + 1d8+5 (164 hp)
Initiative: +14
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares), 30 ft climb
Armor Class: 44 ( touch 24, flat-footed, 31)
Base Attack/Grapple:+15/+7
Attack: Tiny short sword* +35 melee (1d3+23 +2d6(Sneak attack) +1d6(Acid) +1d6(Frost))
Full Attack: Tiny short sword* +33/+28/+23 (1d3+23 +2d6(Sneak attack) +1d6(Acid) +1d6(Frost)) and unarmed +31/+26/+21 (1+21 +2d6(Sneak attack))
Space/Reach: 5 ft./0 ft.
Special Attacks: Maneuvers, Curse of Lycanthropy, Melee Sneak Attack +2d6, Insightful Strike(Int to Damage), Small but Deadly, Lethal Riposte, Soul Meld: Shadow Mantle(Bound to shoulders)
Special Qualities: Scent, damage reduction 10/silver, alternate form, monkey empathy, low-light vision, size advantage, mobile fighting, flourish, gnome traits
Saves: Fort +14, Ref +26, Will +13
Abilities Str 10, Dex 36, Con 21, Int 20, Wis 18, Cha 14
Skills: Balance +43, Bluff +6(+16 to feint),Climb +53, Hide +33, Jump +25, Listen +22,Move Silently +21, Sense Motive +8, Spot +16, Tumble +34
Feats: Shadow Blade, Iron Will(b), Agile(b), Weapon Finesse(b), Combat Expertise, Shape Soulmeld (Shadow Mantle), Giantbane, Two Weapon Fighting(b), Improved Two Weapon Fighting(b), Greater Two Weapon Fighting (b), Open Lesser Chakra (Shoulders), Improved Unarmed Strike
Challenge Rating: 20

Possessions: tiny +5 keen, acidic, frost, blindsighted short sword (158,000), belt of magnificence (200,000), Ring of Improved Climbing (10,000), ring of protection +5 (50,000), Amulet of mighty fists +3 (54,000), Boots of Striding and Springing (5,500), Manual of Quickness Action +5 (137500), Bracers of Armor +8 (64,000), Gloves of Storing (10,000), Potion of Fly x4 (3,000), Potion of Reduce Person x4 (1,000), Masterwork Climbing tool (50) {66950 gp left over}

Maneuvers: Burning Blade(r), Wolf Fang Strike(r), Wind Stride, Sudden Leap(r), Charging Minotaur, Stone Bones, Cloak of Deception(r), Shadow Stride(r), Dancing Mongoose(r), Elder Mountain Hammer
Stances: Flame’s Blessing, Child of Shadow(active)

Forest Gnome Traits:
Low-light vision, weapon familiarity(hooked hammers), +2 racial bonus on saves vs illusions, +1 racial bonus on attack rolls against kobolds, golbinoids, orcs and reptilian humanoids, +4 dodge bonus to ac vs giants, +2 racial bonus to listen checks, pass without trace (su), +4(8 in woods)racial bonus to hide


Tactics

The goal here was to avoid taking confounding the big folk and titan fighting as those seemed too obvious.
Jack stays in monkey form almost all of the time. He only switches to a hybrid form if he is fighting with allies that require flanking from his new found reach from being small size. His combat tactics revolve around using Giantbane’s climb aboard tactic on anything and everything. If he happens to find himself fighting small creatures he just chugs a potion of reduce person and goes to town. While using one hand to hold on he attacks with a short sword and offhand unarmed attacks. His damage is fueled by Shadowblade and Insightful Strike with a little bit of sneak attack damage if it is available. Against flying targets he either uses a potion of fly to get close enough to latch on or uses the 50ft teleportation maneuvers. Once he climbs aboard he is along for the ride until the creature dies. With a +53 climb check only the most massive of creatures have a shot at dislodging him. The feather fall arcane stunt(feather fall) is there in case he falls off a dragon. He is fairly difficult to hit with “size advantage”, the -4 to attacks for the target of climb aboard, and the globe of darkness from shadow mantle. If need be he can switch stances to flame’s blessing in order to get immunity to fire.
The maneuvers are mostly used for movement or to boost full attacks. Burning blade adds 1d6+10 fire damage to every attack. Shadow Jaunt/Stride can be used to get out of grapples. He loses some damage against creatures immune to crits, but the majority of the damage is from Shadow Blade which still works. Fitting in adaptive style would help his swordsage powers, which should be grabbed if flaws or other options are available.
He uses the Shadow Mantle soul meld bound to his shoulder chakra to make a globe of darkness in his targets square. He has 30ft blindsight from the blindsighted weapon (from Underdark) to pinpoint where creatures are to get within “climb aboard” range while using the darkness effect. Combat basically ends up being a tiny screeching ball of fur leaping at targets, climbing to their face, popping a globe of darkness, and proceeding to stab and pound the target into submission.
Sweet Spot:

Jack really starts his thing at ECL12 when he gets Giantbane. Everything he does in combat involves “climb aboard”. He does decent damage at all levels with Shadowblade. The power doesn’t really come in until he’s finished Blade Bravo and gotten the two weapon fighting feats and sneak attack. Of course using LA Buyoff, flaws, and other options make him much more powerful for a full power-gaming group.

Options:

Using Level Adjustment Buyoff Jack could get 3 levels back and take Uncanny trickster to improve his sword sage levels. This would net him a high level stance (Assassins for 2d6 sneak attack) and some higher level maneuvers without hitting an xp penalty for his base classes.

If the unarmored swordsage variant is allowed he could save a feat on improved unarmed strike.

Flaws would also allow him to get some more feats allowing him to get 2 bonus feats likely being shape souldmeld(impulse boots) and open chackra(boots) to get uncanny dodge and evasion.

I looked into using warshaper to grow a tail attack and qualify for prehensile tail. Thus getting multiattack feats, but that ended up being inelegant and rather cheesy.

I almost added a level of Dread Pirate but acquiring Appraisal got too wonky.

Ozymandias9
2010-09-09, 02:51 AM
"For what I want of Dulcinea del Toboso, she's every bit as good as the noblest princess on earth."
Don Quixote, V1, Ch25





Dulcinea, the Dancer's Daughter

http://i51.tinypic.com/20kvjiu.jpg

In which our hero forms her first pact


Our hero, Dulcinea, but a girl,
Learned young the ancient art of binding souls.
She, orphaned, walked the beach gathering pearls.
Split wide a shell, mused "Two halves make a whole."
A woman watching whispered, "That's not all.
Where two meet, something beautiful is made.
You'll find your other half with but a call
Into the darkness, child, be not afraid."
Young Dulcinea then learned how to bind
By writing in the sand with a small stick.
"Just trace these lines," her teacher said and signed.
"The bargain that comes next, now that's the trick."
A set of awkward lines, then drawn around,
And Dulcinea's first vestige was bound.

In which our hero binds Paimon to herself, and herself to him


Our hero, Dulcinea, grows in years
And power, binding souls with grace and ease.
But one new soul spins circles and appears;
He spits out, "Tell me, are you one of these
Harlots who seek me out for but a song?
They bind me, find me lacking and are done.
Like those who changed my limbs for blades, I'm wronged
Once more by selfish men who've been outdone."
Our hero weeps and sobs, "Your story's sad.
You are no foul immortal, evil soul,
Bust just a man, and one whom I'd be glad
To share my life with--Let these halves be whole."
And so she binds herself in boundless love
Unto the one ensnared and bound by love.

In which our hero creates the Knights of Paimon's Seal


Our hero, Dulcinea, and her man
Blend seamlessly together as if one.
When she steps forward, rapier in hand,
Then hordes of hundreds all turn tail and run.
She takes the Dancer's cause up as her own,
Enlisting aid of gnomish paladins.
No heretic, but friend of the disowned,
They welcome her as if she was their kin.
Appalled at human actions void of love,
They seek out evil, slay it by the blade.
With strength found not in size, but lack thereof,
Their enemies in shallow graves are laid.
The Knights of Paimon form The Bladed Hand,
An order feared--revered--across the land.

In which our hero fades into violence


Our hero, Dulcinea, at the helm
Led knights bound twice (by both their oath and pact).
They fought with zeal, protecting the whole realm.
Their souls stayed bound, their swords raised, ranks intact.
Until Tenebrous followers arrived,
With plans to resurrect the evil dead.
A skeletal barbarian deprived
The order's chief lieutenant of his head.
But as his body crumpled to the ground,
Our hero Dulcinea, fiercely cried
A call to arms heard miles and miles around,
"Not even death can stop The Dancer's stride.
For Paimon!" shouting, leapt into the fray
And not a soul has seen her to this day.

In which our hero endures forever


Our hero, Dulcinea, now a myth
Shall go on dancing centuries untold.
Though some may question whether she exists,
Just ask the binders--Paimon's now twofold.
They draw the sign to summon forth the Blade,
But two old souls spin circles and appear:
In swirling waltz, the Dancer and his maid,
Locked in a spinning dance for countless years.
An orphaned gnome found family after all,
And safety in Paimon's cold arms of steel.
The two, they dance at the Undying Ball,
At once both fictional and truly real.
Wherever you hear music in slaughter
Is Dulcinea found, Dancer's Daughter.

The Build:
Gnome Binder 3/Paladin 4/Blade Bravo 10/Knight of the Sacred Seal 2/Marshal 1

{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features

1st|
Binder 1|
+0|
+2|
+0|
+2|
Bluff 4, Diplomacy 4, Intimidate 4, Knowledge: religion 4|
Combat Expertise|
Soul binding (1 vestige)

2nd|
Binder 2|
+1|
+3|
+0|
+3|
Bluff 1, Diplomacy 1, Intimidate 1, Knowledge: religion 1||
Pact augmentation (1 ability), suppress sign

3rd|
Binder 3|
+2|
+3|
+1|
+3|
Bluff 1, Diplomacy 1, Intimidate 1, Sense Motive 1|
Improved Binding, Weapon Finesse (from binding Paimon)|


4th|
Paladin 1 (Shadow Cloak Knight)|
+3|
+5|
+1|
+3|
Bluff 1 (cc), Hide 1, Move Silently 1||
Aura of good, detect evil, smite evil 1/day

5th|
Paladin 2 (Shadow Cloak Knight)|
+4|
+6|
+1|
+3|
Bluff 1 (cc), Hide 1, Move Silently 1||
Divine grace, lay on hands

6th|
Paladin 3 (Shadow Cloak Knight)|
+5|
+6|
+2|
+4|
Bluff 1 (cc), Hide 1, Move Silently 1|
Weapon Focus (rapier)|
Aura of courage, divine health

7th|
Paladin 4 (Shadow Cloak Knight)|
+6/+1|
+7|
+2|
+4|
Bluff 1 (cc), Hide 1, Move Silently 1|
Power Attack|
Holy Warrior replaces spellcasting, Turn Undead 3+CHA/day, Favored enemy: human (from Shadow Cloak Knight)

8th|
Blade Bravo 1|
+7/+2|
+7|
+4|
+4|
Bluff 1, Perform: dance 3, Tumble 2|
Goad|
Flourish, Goad

9th|
Blade Bravo 2|
+8/+3|
+7|
+5|
+4|
Bluff 1, Perform: dance 2, Sense Motive 1, Timely Misdirection|
Divine Might|
Mobile Fighting

10th|
Blade Bravo 3|
+9/+4|
+8|
+5|
+5|
Bluff 1, Intimidate 1, Perform: dance 1, Sense Motive 1, Group Fake Out|
Improved Feint|
Bonus feat

11th|
Blade Bravo 4|
+10/+5|
+8|
+6|
+5|
Bluff 1, Intimidate 1, Sense Motive 1, Tumble 3||
Melee sneak attack +1d6

12th|
Blade Bravo 5|
+11/+6/+1|
+8|
+6|
+5|
Bluff 1, Intimidate 1, Sense Motive 1, Tumble 3|
Staggering Strike|
Size advantage

13th|
Blade Bravo 6|
+12/+7/+2|
+9|
+7|
+6|
Bluff 1, Intimidate 1, Sense Motive 1, Tumble 2|
Dodge|
Bonus feat

14th|
Blade Bravo 7|
+13/+8/+3|
+9|
+7|
+6|
Bluff 1, Intimidate 1, Sense Motive 1, Tumble 1, Never Outnumbered||
Small but deadly

15th|
Blade Bravo 8|
+14/+9/+4|
+9|
+8|
+6|
Bluff 1, Intimidate 1, Sense Motive 1, Tumble 1, Acrobatic Backstab|
Mobility|
Melee sneak attack +2d6

16th|
Blade Bravo 9|
+15/+10/+5|
+10|
+8|
+7|
Bluff 1, Intimidate 1, Sense Motive 1, Tumble 1, Back on Your Feet|
Improved Trip|
Bonus feat

17th|
Blade Bravo 10|
+16/+11/+6/+1|
+10|
+9|
+7|
Bluff 1, Intimidate 1, Perform: dance 2, Sense Motive 1, Tumble 1||
Lethal Riposte

18th|
Knight of the Sacred Seal 1|
+17/+12/+7/+2|
+12|
+9|
+7|
Bluff 1, Diplomacy 1, Intimidate 1, Sense Motive 1|
Elusive Target|
Aligned strike, patron vestige (Paimon), soul binding +1

19th|
Knight of the Sacred Seal 2|
+18/+13/+8/+3|
+13|
+9|
+7|
Bluff 1, Diplomacy 1, Intimidate 1, Sense Motive 1|
retrain Improved Binding for Law Devotion|
Vestige's protection, soul binding +2

20th|
Marshal 1|
+18/+13/+8/+3|
+15|
+9|
+9|
Bluff 1, Diplomacy 1, Intimidate 1, Perform: dance 2, Sense Motive 1|
Skill Focus (Diplomacy)|
Skill Focus (Diplomacy), Minor Aura (Art of War)[/table]

ATTRIBUTES

{table=head]Attribute|Points|Base|Racial|Levels|Special|Enhanc ement|Inherent|Total|Modifier
STR|6|14|-2|+1|+0|+2|+0|15|+2
DEX|10|16|+0|+0|+4*|+6|+4|30|+10
CON|0|8|+2|+0|+0|+0|+0|10|+0
INT|6|14|+0|+0|+0|+0|+0|14|+2
WIS|0|8|+0|+0|+0|+0|+0|8|-1
CHA|10|16|+0|+4|+0|+6|+4|30|+10[/table]

*From Paimon's Dexterity.

Tactics:

Levels 1-5: At this point, Dulcinea enjoys the versatility of the low-level vestiges (see Quirp's List of Vestiges (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9316231&postcount=1)) along with the survivability that two levels of paladin affords. She can even use heavier armor, since none of her abilities are dependent on light armor. She is less of a skirmisher at this point, and more of a fifth (wo)man, using her vestiges to fill in whatever role the party needs. Because of her high CHA, she also makes a great party face. At level 3, she learns how to bind Paimon (thanks to Improved Binding) and doesn't look back. This makes her a skirmisher, a role in which she specializes for the rest of her days.

Levels 6-10: Dulcinea's main tactic begins to unveil itself. She now binds Paimon exclusively, allowing her to qualify for Blade Bravo. Power Attack and Divine Might allow her to increase her damage output to respectable levels. Dulcinea takes the Timely Misdirection and Group Fake Out skill tricks, leading up to 10th level, where she acquires Improved Feint. Now, she can feint against multiple foes as a move action, deny them their AoOs, and run past all of them, attacking each once for a decent amount of damage. The great thing is that this isn't even a true nova--she can use the dance of death 1/5 rounds, and the skill tricks can each be used 1/encounter.

As a secondary tactic, she can goad melee types to engage only her, unless they make a Will save (DC 15+CHA at level 10). A good way to combine these tactics is to dart past a group of foes with the Feinting Dance of Death, then Goad the closest melee foe the next round. You can lock in melee combat with them, making full attacks and taking 5-foot steps until the Dance of Death recharges, then unleash it again.

Levels 11-15: Dulcinea's main tactic continues to develop, and hits its sweet spot around level 12. Not only is she darting past a group of flat-footed foes who can't strike her, but now she has the opportunity to leave each of them staggered, robbing the opposing forces of valuable actions. Also, while she can only use her group feint 1/encounter, around this level of play she can afford a pair of Slippers of Battledancing and a Belt of Battle. Along with Divine Might, she can run past a group of enemies and attack each of them using her CHA to attack, adding her CHA to damage twice (Divine Might and Slippers of Battledancing). Also, the need to stop foes from taking AoOs lessens, since Dulcinea picks up Mobility at 15th level for another dodge bonus to AC.

Her secondary tactic becomes even stronger when she reaches her sweet spot. At level 12, the Will save against Goad is 16+CHA, which is hopefully boosted by some items (not to mention level boosts). She will use the Feinting Dance of Death to stagger a group of foes, then Goad the closest staggered melee foe. They'll be forced to make only one attack against you, while you can full attack them until your Dance of Death recharges. Now that you have slippers of battledancing, your second dance of death won't be a feinting dance, but will use CHA to attacks, and the damage will add CHA twice (Divine Might + Slippers).

Levels 16-20: The icing on the cake. Vestige Protection and Law Devotion ensure that Dulcinea can't be hit, while Elusive Target, Improved Trip, and the marshal's Art of War aura provide some nasty options to use against foes that even try. Her main tactic is still to move and attack, but now she has more options.

The secondary tactic now merges seemlessly with the primary tactic. Start with a feinting, staggering dance of death. Aim for flanked squares--because of Elusive Target, you can cause opponents that try to strike you could strike their flanking buddies instead. Goad the closest staggered melee foe for the usual staggered attack vs. Dulcinea's full attack. However, once this opponent misses with their one attack (which they will), you can use Lethal Riposte to attack them, and you have the option to trip them, allowing you to make your full attacks against a prone target. They can get up with a move action, but that provokes more attacks from you, and they may just miss you again with their standard action on their next turn. If they're down before your dance of death recharges, you can still zip about the battlefield, provoking AoOs. Thanks to Elusive Target, you can trip anyone who misses you for free (using your CHA to attack and adding CHA to your trip attempt), then Improved Trip allows you to hit each of them (CHA to attack and CHA to damage twice), possibly shutting down an entire enemy battallion.


The Perks of Being a Blade Bravo:

Flourish: given the large bonus to Bluff checks to feint in combat, it only made sense to make it a cornerstone of the build. One of the bonus feats was used to take Improved Feint, and with the inclusion of skill tricks, Dulcinea can feint against multiple foes as a move action that can also prevent them from making AoOs against her if she wishes. Then, she can use her standard action to move and attack the foes she feinted against, possibly leaving them staggered. For more information, see "Mosh Pit" in the HIGHLIGHTS section.

Goad: The DC of this might not be much for most melee-types, but for a character like Dulcinea with a CHA focus, it can be brutal. 10+1/2 character level+CHA translates to a DC of 32 at 20th level. Though it doesn't really hamper casters too much (given the Will save and the clause that they can still cast spells at whoever they like), it's perfect for the big brutes who likely won't have a +13 Will save, meaning they've only got a 5% chance of succeeding against this. Goading a staggered enemy stacks the deck in your favor--they get one attack vs. your full attack, and if they miss, you get a sneak attack against them to stagger them for the next round.

Mobile Fighting: Even though it's only a small bonus to AC, it's activated whenever Dulcinea moves at least 5 feet (which is always). Keep in mind that you can make a 5-foot step while taking a full attack (as per page 143 of the PHB). It's essentially a free +1 to AC at all times. Since Paimon grants Uncanny Dodge, you always retain your DEX to AC, so you also retain your dodge bonuses.

Bonus feats: Dulcinea has Improved Feint, Dodge, and Mobility to fuel her feinting tactics and to keep stacking dodge bonuses to AC.

Sneak attack: While +2d6 isn't really much to brag about, my first thought was to add Craven for an easy damage boost. However, the paladin's immunity to fear means that Craven is not an option. Instead, I found Staggering Strike--a feat that allows us to impose the staggered condition on foes if they fail a Fort save with a DC equal to the damage dealt. The inclusion of Divine Might means that Staggering Strike is essentially another CHA-based DC, driving it up to respectable levels. Something that seems like a footnote in this class becomes a part of the character's main tactic (see "Mosh Pit," below).

Size advantage: While I was looking for a way to make Dulcinea smaller, I realized that any size reductions would mean a STR penalty. This would disqualify her from the benefits of Power Attack, which would then disqualify her from the benefits of Divine Might. However, a small boost to Strength along with a Ring of Reduction means that Dulcinea is Tiny whenever she wants to be. While a permanent scroll of Reduce Person would have the same effect, Dulcinea can command the ring to return her to small size in scenarios where being Tiny is not to her advantage.

Small but deadly: A bonus to confirm criticals on a character that uses a rapier is a no-brainer. When you use Divine Might, you get 2xCHA to damage on a critical, and if you use Divine Might and the Slippers of Battledancing in the same round, that becomes 4xCHA to damage on a critical hit. Confirming threats is very important, so every little bit helps.

Lethal riposte: Foes will miss you quite often with the AC focus of this build. When they do, you have a few options. Since your opponent is rendered flat-footed, you can sneak attack them to leave them staggered. Alternatively, you can make a trip attempt against them, and Improved Trip allows you a free attack against them once they are down.

Highlights/Combos:

Early to the Dance: At third level, Dulcinea takes Improved Binding, which allows her to bind Paimon two levels early. Paimon's abilities provide great synergy with Blade Bravo, and also help us enter the class in the first place. Here's what I'm talking about:


Dance of Death: move up to your speed and attack every enemy you move past once. Usable 1/5 rounds. See "Mosh Pit," below.
Paimon's Blades: proficiency with shortsword and rapier, and you enjoy the benefit of Weapon Finesse when you wield either. Free feats are always good, especially when they're an entry requirement of the Secret Ingredient.
Paimon's Dexterity: a +4 untyped bonus to Dexterity. Bonuses to attributes are always great, but untyped bonuses are even better.
Paimon's skills: you can tumble untrained, and you get a +4 untyped bonus on Tumble and Perform (dance) checks. Untyped bonuses once again, and the bonus to Tumble can help us move in combat when we don't want to provoke AoOs.
Uncanny Dodge: retain DEX bonus to AC, even when flatfooted or surprised. Since DEX and AC are focuses of this build, this is a very good thing. Since Dulcinea relies on Dodge bonuses (Dodge, Mobility, Mobile Fighting, and Size Advantage), this is a great thing.
Whirlwind Attack: While not incredibly useful given Dulcinea's tactics, it's always good to have multiple options in combat.


Keep in mind that you still can bind other vestiges if you're in a tight spot, but doing so would cause you to lose access to the abilities of the Blade Bravo as well as the vestige's protection abilities of the Knight of the Sacred Seal.

Belle of the Ball: CHA synergy is the name of the game for Dulcinea. She gets to add her CHA bonus to:


Turning attempts: 3+CHA/day
Damage (Divine Might)
Attack 2/day (smite evil--extra attempt granted by Mighty Smiting rapier)
Attack and damage with light/one-handed weapons as long as she moves 10 feet (Slippers of Battledancing)
Saves (divine grace)
Healing 4*CHA HP/day (Lay on Hands)
AC and Reflex saves 1/5 rounds (Vestige's Protection)
Disarm, Trip, Bull Rush, and Sunder attempts (Marshal 1's Art of War minor aura)
CHA*d6 extra damage on ranged damage [uses a turn attempt] (Larethian Protector)

Mosh Pit: As mentioned above, Paimon's abilities provide great synergy with Blade Bravo. You can take a free action to switch Law Devotion (which you activated before the enemies were in range) to AC for a scaling bonus, a swift action to activate Vestige's Protection for a +CHA to AC, a free action to activate Divine Might (mmm, CHA to damage), then use Improved Feint to feint as a move action (with a +10 bonus from Flourish) against multiple opponents (thanks to the Group Fake Out skill trick). You're going to move through each enemy's threatened space, but you have the option to deny opponents you feint their AoOs (via the Timely Misdirection skill trick). Even if you don't, you have all of your regular AC bonuses, plus extra from Law Devotion and Vestige's Protection at higher levels.

Now it's time to bust some heads. You attack each enemy once (with Paimon's Dance of Death). You unfortunately can't take any extra attacks while moving, but you can still use Elusive Target to negate their power attack bonuses or cause them to strike their allies if you move through a flanked square. Each attack you make is a sneak attack thanks to the feint. They have to make a Fortitude save (DC=damage) or be staggered, meaning that they can only move or take a standard action. They can't close in on your party and attack, and none of them can make a full attack on you. The Dance of Death can be used once every 5 rounds, while the skill tricks are only 1/encounter. However, feel free to dart around your foes on your turn--you can still use Acrobatic Backstab to flatfoot somebody, and sneak attack them as well. At higher levels, Lethal Riposte ensures you a sneak attack when a foe misses you 1/round. That's a lot of staggering.

While it's usually suboptimal to dart about making one attack per round, this is where Elusive Target comes in. As your opponents try to take AoOs against you (which is difficult, see "Not that Kind of Party," below), not only can you use the same Elusive Target tricks as before, but now you can also try to trip each person that attacks you for free! Improved Trip offsets your -4 penalty for being small, and Marshal 1's Art of War aura lets you add your CHA mod to your trip check. This is also supplemented by your gear. Finally, because of Improved Trip, you get a free attack versus the downed foe.

Not that Kind of Party: Always ladylike, Dulcinea isn't fond of random men laying their hands on her. As such, she has multiple ways to boost her AC through the roof, as outlined below:


Light armor (Blade Bravo bonuses and mobility are hampered by anything heavier)
Animated shield (it's always good to have a free hand)
Sacred bonus from Law Devotion (scales with levels, rechargeable with Turn attempts)
+CHA Insight bonus from Vestige's Protection
High DEX
Dodge bonuses (Dodge, Mobility, Mobile Fighting, Size Advantage)


Furthermore, Dulcinea retains her DEX bonus (as well as dodge bonuses) while flatfooted, since Paimon grants Uncanny Dodge. Also, the only bonuses that do not apply against touch attacks are the armor and shield bonuses, making Dulcinea a tough target even for casters' touch attacks. Lastly, Elusive Target and Lethal Riposte allow you some nice options when attacks miss you, which should happen frequently.

A Lovely Parting Gift: For most of this build, you need Improved Binding in order to bind Paimon. However, once you reach level 19, your effective binder level is already 5, thanks to the boost from Knight of the Sacred Seal. Feel free to retrain that feat to anything useful--I picked Law Devotion because of its versatility, flavor, and the fact that you can use turn attempts (which Dulcinea has plenty of) in order to recharge the feat.


Possible Gear List:
Helm of Tactics: adding +1 to your minor aura means +1 to trip attempts
Goggles of Foefinding: no need to worry about cover
Hand of Glory: an extra ring for 8,000 gp is always a steal
Cloak of Charisma +6
Armbands of Might: another bonus to trip attempts, not to mention damage with Power Attack
Brute Gloves (w/ +6 DEX enhancement): more trip bonuses
Ring of Freedom of Movement: you always move, so you want to make sure you always can move.
Ring of Protection +5
Ring of Reduction: constant Reduce Person
Vest of Resistance +5
Belt of Battle (w/ +2 STR enhancement): extra move actions mean you can feint, move to activate the Slippers of Battledancing, and still use Paimon's Dance of Death
Slippers of Battledancing: CHA to attack and damage as long as you move 10 feet or more [U]as part of a move action. Paimon's dance of death alone isn't enough, but in conjunction with a Belt of Battle, these are nasty.
The Hand of Paimon: +1 Fierce Keen Bloodfeeding Bloodstone Mighty Smiting Stunning Surge Sudden Stunning Rapier.


Fierce: You can apply some of your DEX mod to damage, if foes are missing you by a long shot. Make sure to leave at least a +1, to keep your Dodge bonuses active.
Keen: A higher chance of critical hits is always a good thing, especially with the rapier's range.
Bloodfeeding: free extra damage is always a good thing
Bloodstone: your party caster (or friendly merchant caster) casts Vampiric Touch once, allowing you to use it later (empowered) for free.
Mighty Smiting: bonuses to your smite attack and damage, along with another smite per day, help when you don't have many paladin levels.
Stunning Surge: CHA-based save DC that stacks with level? Yes please!
Sudden Stunning: CHA-based save DC that stacks with level? Yes please!
Truedeath Crystal, Lesser: extra damage against undead, and functions as a ghost touch weapon, all for 5,000 gp.

The Stinger: +1 Sweeping Stunning Surge Chain and Dagger (A&E): the trip attempts you get from Elusive Target will be made using this weapon--follow up with a melee attack from The Hand of Paimon
Latherian Protector: the only ranged weapon you'll ever need, you can add CHA*d6 damage against evil humanoids (who happen to be your favored enemies) for the low cost of one turn attempt.
Mithralmist shirt w/ Lesser Iron Ward Diamond: Concealment and damage reduction are both nice.
Shield of the Seal: +1 Animated Heavy Steel Shield w/ Moderate Fortification: chance to negate extra damage, and both hands free to use both your rapier and chain-and-dagger
Vestige Phylactery: For those instances where you NEED to bind another vestige, you can still keep Paimon at the ready.
Manual of Quickness in Action +4
Tome of Leadership & Influence +4
~8,521 gp "fun money" left over


Build Notes/Additional Cheese:

Setting-specific material: The Shadow Cloak Knights are found in the Champions of Valor web enhancement. If your DM doesn't allow Forgotten Realms (or online) material, nothing is lost by taking levels of standard paladin except favored enemy (or see below for variants).

Multiclass penalties: if multiclass penalties are in effect, the build should progress as Binder 2/Paladin 2/Binder +1/Paladin +2/Blade Bravo 10/Knight of the Sacred Seal 2/Marshal 1. This way, the only time you incur a multiclass penalty is once you reach level 20, which makes it negligible.

Fractional BAB and saves: If fractional BAB and saves are allowed, Dulcinea would have a +19 BAB and saves of +10/+10/+9.

Traits and flaws: If allowed, Dulcinea would take the Quick trait, as the extra land speed translates into extra attacks for Paimon's Dance of Death. The flaws she would take are Shaky and Vulnerable, providing two feats that would be used to acquire Martial Study (any Shadow Hand) and Martial Stance (Child of Shadow). This would provide her with a 20% miss chance whenever she moves (which is always), and opens up the possibility of taking Shadow Blade instead of another feat later, allowing her to add her DEX modifier to damage with Shadow Hand weapons.

Racial/class variants: if race and class variants from Unearthed Arcana are allowed, Dulcinea would be a Desert Gnome Paladin of Tyranny. The +2 to Bluff would be nice, and the -2 debuff aura would be useful for foes attempting to save against Staggering Strike or Goad.

LA buyoff: if available, Dulcinea would start with the Phrenic template, with level adjustment bought off at levels 6 and 9. While this delays her early development, it provides a boost to her CHA (which translates to a boost in many areas), as well as a wide array of psychic abilities to complement her combat prowess. Phrenic psi-like abilities have two great things going for them:


The save DCs are CHA-based.
Psi-like abilities are always fully augmented, with a manifester level equal to the character's HD, or character level.
The abilities provide Dulcinea with some ranged prowess, healing ability, defensive buffs, and psionic dominate, with its limitless possibilities. The only reason LA buyoff wasn't assumed in this build is that the phrenic template brings so much to the table, it is rightfully considered cheesy for a paltry 2 levels. If your DM doesn't allow psionics, but does allow LA buyoff, consider starting Dulcinea with the half-fey template, for some great spell-like abilities and flight.



Sources:


Arms & Equipment Guide (Chain-and-dagger, Fierce, Latherian Protector)
Champions of Valor Web Enhancement (Shadow Cloak Knights)
Complete Adventurer (Staggering Strike)
Complete Champion (Law Devotion, Holy Warrior)
Complete Warrior (Divine Might, Elusive Target)
Dungeon Master's Guide II (Slippers of Battledancing, Sudden Stunning)
Lords of Madness: Ring of Reduction (pg 130)
Magic Item Compendium (most gear)
Miniatures Handbook (Marshall)
PHB (paladin, feats)
Races of Stone (Blade Bravo, Goad)
Tome of Magic (Binder, Knight of the Sacred Seal, Improved Binding, vestige phylactery)

RECOMMENDED READING (sources mentioned only in BUILD NOTES/ADDITIONAL CHEESE):

Unearthed Arcana (desert gnome, paladin of tyranny, variant rules)
Fiend Folio (half-fey template)
Expanded Psionics Handbook (phrenic template)
Tome of Battle (martial study, martial stance, shadow blade0)

BobVosh
2010-09-09, 03:38 AM
That's the last of them. Judges, start your scoring-engines.


Because I posted these very early in the day and have two posts sandwiching the entries that can be edited, I'll still except entries till early afternoon my time (about 10 hours from when I edited this post).

Is that really fair since they can see those builds?

That said I've given a once over on the crunch, I will actually read through everything today. However since it is my father's birthday, tommorrow is probably when I will get to actually judging them for my 2nd thorough read. Not to mention look at late entries.

Thurbane
2010-09-09, 05:18 AM
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. Alternate rule systems from UA such as gestalt are not allowed, as they create a different playing field. Also, item familiars are forbidden because I hate 'em.
Question about this - is Dragon Magazine Compendium counted as "any official 3.5 rulebook"? How about the Dragonlance Campaign setting or other "3rd party" books stamped as official WotC products?

WinWin
2010-09-09, 05:53 AM
I read through a the entries as they were being posted. I have to say that I was very impressed. I'll mull over things for a while, then begin scoring in a couple of days.

I have a few questions about some of the rules interpretations used by a couple of contestants, though It could be a misunderstanding of RAW by me. I will re-read the relevant books and if I am not satisfied I'll think of a delicate way of phrasing these concerns, as I do not wish to affect the rulings of other judges, or unfairly penalise a build over a minor mistake.

Amphetryon
2010-09-09, 06:39 AM
I was a bit surprised to see builds posted before what had become the customary 9pm Eastern on the due date. Hopefully any stragglers won't be discouraged from entering before the actual deadline. I know Prinny often remarked on the last-minute rush of entries. :smallsmile:

Greyfell
2010-09-09, 07:22 AM
I also, am shocked to see builds posted at what is ** 5am ** my local time (western US) on the date the contest is due. From reading of previous builds/contests, I had assumed we had until tonight, and frankly, I work a mon-fri 8-5 job.

ESPECIALLY since at least one build looks vaguely similar to my own... no matter how I spin this, I now look like I'm copy catting someone's build after putting in a lot of thought and effort this last week.

edit: after reading these entries, I'm not even going to bother posting mine. It's obvious my simple build that actually uses a *gasp* basic gnome isn't going to cut it.

in the future, can we please have a definite date and TIME of when the posts are do in? I for one assumed I had another several hours yet and have been completely discouraged from competing by the builds I've seen.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-09, 08:16 AM
Question about this - is Dragon Magazine Compendium counted as "any official 3.5 rulebook"? How about the Dragonlance Campaign setting or other "3rd party" books stamped as official WotC products?
Dragon Magazine isn't allowed, so I doubt the compendium would be. However, settings are fair game as long as they are 3rd ed, or been updated to 3rd ed.

true_shinken
2010-09-09, 11:02 AM
Question about this - is Dragon Magazine Compendium counted as "any official 3.5 rulebook"? How about the Dragonlance Campaign setting or other "3rd party" books stamped as official WotC products?

Dragon Magazine isn't allowed, so I doubt the compendium would be. However, settings are fair game as long as they are 3rd ed, or been updated to 3rd ed.
We've been through this before and Dragon Compendium was officially stated as IC-legal.

IdleMuse
2010-09-09, 11:21 AM
Okay, somewhat cross about the early deadline :smallfurious:

Still, my build was similar to some of those up there already...
Not a formal submission, I think it's really quite unfair to do so after some have been posted.


Winged Murkdweller

Tiny Monstrous Humanoid
20ft land, 20ft swim, 40ft fly (perfect)
Str -6, Dex +10, Cha -2
LA+2
+3 Natural Armour
Bite attack (1d3)
Squirt (Ex,free action, 25ft range, DC10+dexmod reflex save or be blinded for 1 round)
Weapon Finesse

1| Ninja 1 | Weapon Finesse, Flyby Attack
2| Psychic Warrior 1 | Quick Draw (for skill tricks)
3| Drow Fighter 1 | Weapon Focus, Combat Expertise
4| Stoneblessed 1 |
5| Psychic Warrior 2 | Practised Manifester
6| Stoneblessed 2 | Craven
7| Psychic Warrior 3 |
8| Stoneblessed 3 |
9| Blade Bravo 1 | Goad, Underfoot Combat
10| Blade Bravo 2 |
11| Blade Bravo 3 | Improved Feint
12| Blade Bravo 4 | Confound the Big Folk
13| Blade Bravo 5 |
14| Blade Bravo 6 | Improved Trip
15| Blade Bravo 7 | Skill Focus (Iaijutsu Focus)
16| Blade Bravo 8 |
17| Blade Bravo 9 | Improved Critical
18| Blade Bravo 10 | Practised Manifester?

Being a Murkdweller allows one to get down to Fine size with a super-compression. Plus unlimited blinding with a super-huge Dex bonus...

DanReiv
2010-09-09, 11:47 AM
I think people who go caught by the early deadline should send their creation nonetheless.

It's a friendly contest after all. Maybe next time gives a clear GMT/CET deadline.

Don't blame the chairman it's his 1st time and it's kind enough of him to take care of it.

On a related subject, wouldn't it be better if the judges send their rating to the chairman who proceed to post them once he got them all (like the entries) rather than one by one on the thread ?

Ozymandias9
2010-09-09, 01:13 PM
I was a bit surprised to see builds posted before what had become the customary 9pm Eastern on the due date. Hopefully any stragglers won't be discouraged from entering before the actual deadline. I know Prinny often remarked on the last-minute rush of entries. :smallsmile:

I had never noticed that there was a regular time.:smalleek: I'd always assumed it was by the beginning of the day listed. In hindsight, 9 eastern does seem more sensible.

I'll eat crow on this one an apologize to the contestants inconvenienced.

Sorry everyone.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-09, 01:16 PM
I had never noticed that there was a regular time.:smalleek:
...*snrk*

I just thought I hadn't noticed you changing it. But yeah, they've been posted within 1-15 mins of 9 every time :smallwink:

Ozymandias9
2010-09-09, 01:31 PM
Question about this - is Dragon Magazine Compendium counted as "any official 3.5 rulebook"? How about the Dragonlance Campaign setting or other "3rd party" books stamped as official WotC products?

The Dragon Compendium (and only the Compendium) is fair game. The Dragonlance Campaign setting is WOTC, the other Dragonlance books are not (though they are licensed).

Amphetryon
2010-09-09, 01:39 PM
I had never noticed that there was a regular time.:smalleek: I'd always assumed it was by the beginning of the day listed. In hindsight, 9 eastern does seem more sensible.

I'll eat crow on this one an apologize to the contestants inconvenienced.

No worries. I managed to finish and submit one of the three builds I was working on, at any rate. The second seems like it would have received a low score from at least one of the judges based on comments made as we built, while the third seemed dangerously close to the OKG.

true_shinken
2010-09-09, 01:49 PM
On a related subject, wouldn't it be better if the judges send their rating to the chairman who proceed to post them once he got them all (like the entries) rather than one by one on the thread ?

Why would that be better? It's just trouble for nothing, methinks.

Amphetryon
2010-09-09, 01:51 PM
Why would that be better? It's just trouble for nothing, methinks.

At a guess, I'd say the concern is that judges can potentially be influenced by the opinions of the other judges, just as entrants can potentially be influenced by the ideas and entries of other contestants (which may be part of the assumed rationale for having them all posted at once).

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-09, 01:59 PM
The Dragon Compendium (and only the Compendium) is fair game. The Dragonlance Campaign setting is WOTC, the other Dragonlance books are not (though they are licensed).
Guess I was wrong on all accounts.

Not that I have any of them, but if we can use Forgotten Realms and Eberron what's different with Dragonlance?

Ozymandias9
2010-09-09, 02:09 PM
Guess I was wrong on all accounts.

Not that I have any of them, but if we can use Forgotten Realms and Eberron what's different with Dragonlance?

The FR and Eberon books were published by WOTC. Of the Dragonlance books, only the Campaign setting is WOTC published. The rest of the Dragonlance books are licensed, but not published or imprinted, by WOTC (which makes them a little more official than Ravenloft, which was licensed by the people that WOTC licensed to maintain Ravenloft).



Edit: There is also one more entry to follow. Sorry again about the mess

Ozymandias9
2010-09-09, 02:12 PM
Hitler goes to a fortune-teller and asks, "When will I die?" And the fortune-teller replies, "On a Jewish holiday." Hitler then asks, "How do you know that?" And she replies, "Any day you die will be a Jewish holiday."
-Jakob the Liar, 1999



JAKOB THE LIAR
A "Killer Gnome"-killer

"Damned gnomes."

The kobold sitting across the table from you scowls as he curses an entire race, flicks a match, and lights a tiny cigarette. Small tendrils of smoke waft through the air as he sits back, his narrow reptilian eyes scanning you over.

"It goes way back, before any of us. You humans wouldn't understand, but kobolds and gnomes? We go together like mustard and chocolate. Most times, it's simple stuff. We set some traps here or there, they pull some hocus-pocus tricks...child's play. But a few decades back, it got serious, see? A war broke out between the two, except there were no big battles.

This war was secret--the gnomes would send their best, sneaky little quiet bastards who would knife you before you even learned their names. Oh, heheh, by the way," he stammers, "my name's Jakob." He extends a scaly hand to you.

"Anyway, like I was saying, they started sending over these quiet guys to spy on us. We caught one of the bastards, me and my guys, and we tortured him until he told us everything he knew. We learned a lot from the little guy...mostly combat styles, the occasional gnomish secret. Well, my boys in R&D took the info I gave them, and they made some potion--one hell of a stink! They asked me to down it, said I was going in the field. Well, I listened, stupid me. I wish I hadn't; the potion gave me some kind of psionic powers, and my ears still ring to this day from it.

Anyway, they sent me out against the gnomes, to spy on them just like they'd done to us. I was green, I didn't know any better, and I got caught. Man, I thought what we did to that gnome we snagged was bad. They ran all sorts of tests on me, made me "one of their own," and trained me in the art of killing kobolds. The art, can you believe it? They brought in guys that I knew, and made me murder them. Desensitization or somesuch.

Well, apparently, I was good enough at that, because they put me in some elite training program, the Bravos. We only used rapiers, and they taught us all sorts of tricks--how to deceive your enemies in combat, how to use smaller size to your advantage...actually, it was a pretty solid program.

As soon as I finished training with them, I played the part. Good soldier, always followed orders. But I knew that I needed to bust out. I waited, and I studied everything that went on. Eventually, I found a gap in the guard patrols every Tuesday around dusk. I just started running, and I never went back--good riddance, I say. I couldn't go back to my people, though. The damned gnomes had turned me into some kind of serial killer. So I took up with whoever didn't ask questions, even stayed with some drow for a while. Did odd jobs, here and there, you know? Just an honest lizard trying to stay good in a world gone wrong."

With this, he smiles, and his forked tongue spits out from behind his lips for a second. His eyes never stop scanning you. "So, yeah," he continues, "I don't know why you wanted to know, but that's my whole story. God's honest truth. Oh, and by the way," he stammers, extending his hand to you once again...

"My name ain't Jakob. Nothing personal, kid." The last thing you see is the tiny kobold shrinking in size until you can't find him anymore. You clutch your side in agony and close your eyes as you feel a small puncture wound. How could something so small hurt so much? you ask yourself, before collapsing into the waiting arms of death.

{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features

1st|
Lurk 1|
+0|
+0|
+2|
+2|
Bluff 4, Disguise 4, Escape Artist 4, Hide 4, Move Silently 4, Psicraft 4, Speak Gnome|
Combat Expertise|
Lurk Augment

2nd|
Lurk 2|
+1|
+0|
+3|
+3|
Bluff 1, Craft: stoneworking 1, Escape Artist 1, Hide 1, Move Silently 1, Tumble 1, Speak Terran||
Psionic Sneak attack +1d6

3rd|
Lurk 3|
+2|
+1|
+3|
+3|
Appraise 1 (cc), Bluff 1, Craft: stoneworking 1, Escape Artist 1, Hide 1, Move Silently 1, Tumble 1|
Dodge|


4th|
Swashbuckler 1|
+3|
+3|
+3|
+3|
Appraise 1 (cc), Bluff 1, Craft: stoneworking 1, Escape Artist 1, Move Silently 1 (cc), Tumble 1|
Weapon Finesse|
Weapon Finesse

5th|
Swashbuckler 2|
+4|
+4|
+3|
+3|
Bluff 1, Craft: stoneworking 1, Escape Artist 1, Hide 1 (cc), Move Silently 1 (cc), Tumble 1||
Arcane Stunt (blur) replaces Grace +1

6th|
Swashbuckler 3|
+5|
+4|
+4|
+4|
Bluff 1, Craft: stoneworking 1, Escape Artist 1, Hide 1 (cc), Move Silently 1 (cc), Tumble 1|
Practiced Manifester|
Insightful Strike

7th|
Stoneblessed 1|
+5|
+6|
+4|
+4|
Bluff 1 (cc), Hide 1 (cc), Move Silently 1 (cc)||
Stonebond

8th|
Stoneblessed 2|
+6/+1|
+7|
+4|
+4|
Bluff 1 (cc), Hide 1.5 (cc), Move Silently 1 (cc)||
Racial Battle Technique

9th|
Stoneblessed 3|
+7/+2|
+7|
+5|
+5|
Bluff 1 (cc), Hide 1.5 (cc), Move Silently 1 (cc)|
Weapon Focus (Rapier)|
Stoneborn

10th|
Blade Bravo 1|
+8/+3|
+7|
+7|
+5|
Bluff 1, Escape Artist 1, Hide 1 (cc), Move Silently 1 (cc), Tumble 1, Easy Escape|
Goad|
Flourish, Goad

11th|
Blade Bravo 2|
+9/+4|
+7|
+8|
+5|
Bluff 1, Escape Artist 1, Hide 1 (cc), Move Silently 1 (cc), Tumble 1, Escape Attack||
Mobile Fighting

12th|
Blade Bravo 3|
+10/+5|
+8|
+8|
+6|
Bluff 1, Escape Artist 1, Hide 1 (cc), Move Silently 1 (cc), Tumble 1, Quick Escape|
Darkstalker, Improved Feint|
Bonus Feat

13th|
Blade Bravo 4|
+11/+6/+1|
+8|
+9|
+6|
Bluff 1, Escape Artist 1, Hide 1 (cc), Move Silently 1 (cc), Open Lock 1 (cc), Tumble 1||
Melee sneak attack +1d6

14th|
Blade Bravo 5|
+12/+7/+2|
+8|
+9|
+6|
Bluff 1, Disable Device 1 (cc), Escape Artist 1, Hide 1 (cc), Move Silently 1 (cc), Tumble 1||
Size advantage

15th|
Assassin 1|
+12/+7/+2|
+8|
+11|
+6|
Bluff 1, Escape Artist 3, Hide 1, Move Silently 1, Tumble 3|
Underfoot Combat|
Sneak attack +1d6*, poison use, death attack, spells

16th|
Drow Fighter 1|
+13/+8/+3|
+10|
+11|
+6|
Bluff 1 (cc), Hide 1 (cc), Move Silently 1 (cc), Open Lock 1 (cc)|
Surprising Riposte|
Bonus feat, Hit and Run Tactics (+2 initiative, +DEX competence bonus to damage against flatfooted foes) [replaces Heavy Armor Prof]

17th|
Drow Fighter 2|
+14/+9/+4|
+11|
+11|
+6|
Bluff 1 (cc), Disable Device 1 (cc), Hide 1 (cc), Move Silently 1 (cc)|
Titan Fighting|
Bonus feat

18th|
Factotum 1|
+14/+9/+4|
+11|
+13|
+6|
Bluff 1, Disable Device 3, Escape Artist 1, Hide 1, Move Silently 1, Open Lock 2, Search 2, Tumble 1|
Confound the Big Folk|
Inspiration 2/encounter, cunning insight, cunning knowledge, trapfinding

19th|
Factotum 2|
+15/+10/+5|
+11|
+14|
+6|
Bluff 1, Disable Device 3, Escape Artist 1, Hide 1, Move Silently 1, Open Lock 2, Search 2, Tumble 1||
Inspiration 3/encounter, Arcane Dilettante (1 spell--Insightful Feint)

20th|
Factotum 3|
+16/+11/+6|
+12|
+14|
+7|
Bluff 1, Disable Device 3, Escape Artist 1, Hide 1, Move Silently 1, Open Lock 2, Search 2, Tumble 1||
Brains over Brawn, cunning defense[/table]

STR: 8 base-4 racial-1 age+6 enhancement= 9 (-1)
DEX: 18 base+2 racial-1 age+6 enhancement+5 inherent= 30 (+10)
CON: 8 base-2 racial-1 age+6 enhancement=11 (+0)
INT: 18 base+1 age+5 levels+6 enhancement+4 inherent=34 (+12)
WIS: 8 base+1 age+6 enhancement=15 (+2)
CHA: 8 base+1 age+6 enhancement=15 (+2)

KEY ITEMS

Belt of Magnificence +6: +6 bonus to all stats
Collar of Continual Umbral Metamorphosis: grants the Dark template
Manual of DEX +5
Tome of INT +4


Highlights/Tricks:
Extra damage: Jakob can add INT to his attacks (from Swashbuckler 3), as well as DEX against flat-footed foes (from Drow Fighter 1). Though it doesn't stack (and should only be used against non-flatfooted foes), Factotum 1 provides the ability to use an Inspiration point for INT to damage (among other things). Lastly, the lurk augment functions as an improved sneak attack, allowing you to spend power points to do more sneak attack damage, or to STUN your target for one round, with an INT-based DC. Excellent.
Stealth: At 20th level, assuming only the key equipment listed, Jakob has a maximum Hide bonus of +95 (+23 ranks+14 DEX +12 INT [Brains over Brawn]+8 racial [Dark template]+16 size [treated as Fine due to augmented compression and Slight Build]+10 enhancement [Chameleon]+12 INT [cunning skill]). When combined with Darkstalker and Hide in Plain Sight, this should mean that the targets of Jakob's death attack will never even see it coming.
Size: Jakob starts as small, but thanks to the Races of the Dragon Web Enhancement (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20060420a), has Slight Build, which allows him to be treated as tiny when it benefits him. He can use Compression to shrink to Tiny (and count as diminuitive), and then at later levels he can use Practiced Manifester to augment it to shrink to Diminuitive (but be treated as Fine). This carries the benefit of a +16 size modifier to Hide, a +4 attack bonus, and a +4 size bonus to AC. Furthermore, anything Diminuitive or bigger is treated as larger than you, so you get your sweet bonuses from Blade Bravo. Also, anything Tiny or larger (including the Other Killer Gnome) is two sizes larger than you, so you can use Underfoot Combat and Confound the Big Folk against shrunken gnomes. Talk about a taste of their own medicine!
The Feint of Heart: While the level of assassin may seem out of place, it is there to provide Jakob spellcasting access (mostly from bonus spells) of one spell--Insightful Feint. This gem from Spell Compendium gives you a +10 to your next feint, and allows you to feint as a free action if you have Improved Feint. Though it takes a swift action to cast, this means you can feint and full attack to your heart's content without relying on a Belt of Battle or similar tricks to get extra move actions. Hooray! Also, Factotum's Arcane Dilettante extends to 1st-level spells at 3rd level, allowing us to snag one more casting of Insightful Feint per day.
The Dark Template: the more expensive collar of umbral metamorphosis can grant us this template all day, which provides a 10 ft bonus to speed (which isn't changed by our shrinking tricks), darkvision out to 60 ft (a little better than kobolds usually get), cold resistance 10, a +8 bonus to Hide and a +6 bonus to Move Silently, along with [B]Hide in Plain Sight. With our ungodly hide modifier and Darkstalker, this ability basically functions as a get out of jail free card.

Sources:
Complete Psionics: lurk, Practiced Manifester, Adrenaline Boost
Complete Warrior: Swashbuckler
Expanded Psionics Handbook: Compression, Chameleon
Lords of Madness: Darkstalker
Races of Stone: Blade Bravo, Stoneblessed, Goad, Titan Fighting
Races of the Wild: Underfoot Combat, Confound the Big Folk
DMG: Assassin
Drow of the Underdark: Drow Fighter ACF, Surprising Riposte
Dungeonscape: Factotum
PHB: feats
Monster Manual I: kobold stats
Races of the Dragon Web Enhancement (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20060420a): Slight Build and kobold natural weapons
Miniatures Handbook: Belt of Magnificence
Tome of Magic: Collar of Umbral Metamorphosis

Ozymandias9
2010-09-09, 02:24 PM
For ease of use, and to help clean up the mess I've made, I'm including a list of links to the entries:

Dulcinea, the Dancer's Daughter (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9321125&postcount=154)
Jack the Dread Capuchin (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9321119&postcount=153)
JAKOB THE LIAR (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9323504&postcount=172)
Moudo (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9321027&postcount=147)
Nekoya (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9321083&postcount=150)
Raakhama’karma The Wanderer (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9321091&postcount=151)
Ssejkosjth "Seth" Tibur Hedwann Ux Bahamuti (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9321104&postcount=152)
Sizok, Sworn of Clan Dinglegrinn (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9321047&postcount=148)
Wruk Vive the IX (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9321076&postcount=149)

Private-Prinny
2010-09-09, 02:52 PM
I just thought I hadn't noticed you changing it. But yeah, they've been posted within 1-15 mins of 9 every time :smallwink:

To be fair, I was late on my presentation nearly every time. The 9 PM standard was for two reasons.

1. It presented a much clearer deadline.
2. That's when I was home. :smalltongue:

DanReiv
2010-09-09, 03:17 PM
At a guess, I'd say the concern is that judges can potentially be influenced by the opinions of the other judges, just as entrants can potentially be influenced by the ideas and entries of other contestants (which may be part of the assumed rationale for having them all posted at once).

That was my point yeah.

Bear in mind I'm no judge nor contestant, just a lurker who spend hours on builds that doesn't work in the end :smallbiggrin:

Good luck to all playa anyways. Some fun stuff here. Heavy on the stoneblessed but that was expected.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-09, 04:25 PM
Very interesting the abundance of psionics in this one.

IdleMuse
2010-09-09, 04:33 PM
Very interesting the abundance of psionics in this one. Compression ftw? Also, Psionics tend to be more conducive to flexible gishy builds.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-09, 05:09 PM
Phew, managed to get 2 out of 3 builds in. Upon further review, I think they were the two best out of my lot. The third...well, it was a fun trick, but didn't really put Blade Bravo to much use. I may keep it in reserve for a more suited challenge in the future.

Thurbane
2010-09-09, 06:33 PM
I'm kinda glad I didn't submit one...my first thought was Catfolk Swashbuckler 3/Binder 4/Stoneblessed 3/Blade Bravo 10...

Binder was mainly for Dance of Death, Swashbuckler to get INT as damage on rapiers...dual wielding rapiers, taking Catfolk Pounce and Double Hit...but all in all, the build was just messy, didn't have any real synergy with Blade Bravo, and was quite MAD.

Akal Saris
2010-09-09, 11:27 PM
Just my personal opinion, but I really like Jacob the Liar. Great use of a variety of ACFs and small dips in several classes to achieve a really solid 1-20 build with a twist on the killer gnome :smallbiggrin:

Draz74
2010-09-10, 12:11 AM
Very interesting the abundance of psionics in this one.

That was my main reaction to seeing the competiton, too. Ironic considering I was advocating a Complete Psionic Secret Ingredient this round. :smallwink:

It's some tough competition, that's for sure. It will be interesting to see what the judges say. There's one build that, if I were a judge, I would grade very highly in three categories ... but tank in Use of Secret Ingredient.

WinWin
2010-09-10, 01:24 AM
Just skimmed the new entries.

They were posted between AEST 4.30-5.30 pm(GMT +10/11). Great for me, as I just got home. Understandably, those in other time zones would prefer the other submission deadline.

Scoring is going to be challenging. Originality is the hardest to gauge, especially with the poplular use of Stonelord, Psionic Compression and Swordsage. Those who detailed the UoSI will fare better in that category and power can be subjective when dealing with a niche build.

Any 'deductions' I give to a score in a category should be considered to be in a state of flux. If there is an issue, please address it though the chairman and I will modify the score accordingly.

Thurbane
2010-09-10, 08:58 PM
...any updates on the judging?

Kesnit
2010-09-10, 09:04 PM
I plan to get my judging in over the weekend. I had hoped to get to it before now, but school and real life got ahead of me.

Keld Denar
2010-09-10, 10:18 PM
I had insurance inspections all this week. I didn't even have time to do my NORMAL work, much less slack off a bunch on the internet. Blind date tomorrow and hiking on Sunday means early next week for judging for me. I'll do all my reading this weekend though, to make it easier. Any of the new judges want a copy of my word template for ezjuding?

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-10, 11:47 PM
Too bad the stay-at-home, have no life, single 16 year olds generally aren't the kind you want judging :smallwink:

WinWin
2010-09-11, 01:36 AM
I have 3 and 1/2 done. 6-ish to go. Keeping my rulings consistent is harder than I thought it would be.

I have a botany assignment to finish over the weekend, which pushes back my estimate by a couple of days. I should have them done by early next week. That should still give plenty of time to resolve any issues with my scoring.

BobVosh
2010-09-11, 01:37 AM
Any of the new judges want a copy of my word template for ezjuding?

Sure. Curious to see it.


...any updates on the judging?
I unfortunatly got called into work to do a double today, since a CERTAIN someone decided to quit by not telling anyone and not showing up. Upon arriving the internet was down, etc. Still at work for hour 12, out of 16. :(

So this means probably monday day (around 1-3pm central) for me, since I doubt I can get it done by tommorrow alone as I am busy all sunday.

Especially since I didn't even notice this Moudo (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9321027&postcount=147) build that appeared before what I thought was the first entry until today. O.o Sneaky Ozy is sneaky.
This (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9323585&postcount=173) is all of them right? I'm going to feel bad to miss one.

Ozymandias9
2010-09-11, 02:12 AM
Sure. Curious to see it.


I unfortunatly got called into work to do a double today, since a CERTAIN someone decided to quit by not telling anyone and not showing up. Upon arriving the internet was down, etc. Still at work for hour 12, out of 16. :(

So this means probably monday day (around 1-3pm central) for me, since I doubt I can get it done by tommorrow alone as I am busy all sunday.

Especially since I didn't even notice this Moudo (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9321027&postcount=147) build that appeared before what I thought was the first entry until today. O.o Sneaky Ozy is sneaky.
This (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9323585&postcount=173) is all of them right? I'm going to feel bad to miss one.

Yes, that's all of them. And sneaky Ozy was just trying to group them up together for easy reading.

BobVosh
2010-09-11, 05:37 AM
Yes, that's all of them. And sneaky Ozy was just trying to group them up together for easy reading.

He is as clever as he is treacherous. :P

Also sneaky.

Also generous to host, btw. thx ;D

Lilithgow
2010-09-11, 11:40 AM
I had a vague plan and intended to bust in all 'SURPRISE' like with my build. Then I didn't build it at all, because I realized that I'm far more of a concept guy, and half the crunch I wanted doesn't actually exist.

For future reference guys, and suggestions on a flaw that makes a character blind? My non-build sort of faulted at the start line over that one.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-11, 12:30 PM
For the anxious competitors

Judging Estimated Times
BobVosh: Monday 1-3 Central
DaragosKitsune: This week
Keld Denar: After wednesday
Kesnit: Over the weekend
WinWin: Early next week

BobVosh
2010-09-11, 11:22 PM
I had a vague plan and intended to bust in all 'SURPRISE' like with my build. Then I didn't build it at all, because I realized that I'm far more of a concept guy, and half the crunch I wanted doesn't actually exist.

For future reference guys, and suggestions on a flaw that makes a character blind? My non-build sort of faulted at the start line over that one.

Closest I know of is gooky eye from WotC. Oracle from paizo's pathfinder has a blind path...sorta. More like an extreme close vision. 1 level lets you have darkvision 15, nothing beyond that. (Maybe 30)

Lilithgow
2010-09-12, 12:03 PM
See, I wanted to make a blind gnome who fought with with blind/tremor/thought reading sense in a bubble of darkness. Paired with some black pearl of doubt for silly AC.

I thought it was cool, but I didn't really feel like putting the legwork in when I couldn't even make him blind. Why would you work to make something good when you can't even make him suck first?

true_shinken
2010-09-12, 12:04 PM
See, I wanted to make a blind gnome who fought with with blind/tremor/thought reading sense in a bubble of darkness. Paired with some black pearl of doubt for silly AC.

I thought it was cool, but I didn't really feel like putting the legwork in when I couldn't even make him blind. Why would you work to make something good when you can't even make him suck first?

Someone could have cast blindness on him.

Lilithgow
2010-09-12, 12:45 PM
See? I entirely forget to think that it could have been something someone did to him, rather than an option I could have taken. Rrr.

Well, live and learn! Thanks, True_Shinken!

Lord Bingo
2010-09-12, 03:47 PM
What is with all the non-gnome entries in this challenge?

true_shinken
2010-09-12, 03:49 PM
What is with all the non-gnome entries in this challenge?

Stoneblessed class. Makes you count as a gnome at level 3.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-12, 05:06 PM
Though some entries didn't note the language requirement, it seems they all have the INT to cover it.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-12, 09:39 PM
Stoneblessed class. Makes you count as a gnome at level 3.
Which may just hurt some Originality scores...

Amphetryon
2010-09-12, 09:45 PM
Which may just hurt some Originality scores...

If using Stoneblessed hurts Originality, and sticking with the expected Gnome hurts Originality.... :smallannoyed:

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-12, 09:49 PM
If using Stoneblessed hurts Originality, and sticking with the expected Gnome hurts Originality.... :smallannoyed:
Yeeeeeah...

So what's more original, doing something original with a gnome, or using the same trick to get out of using a gnome and then doing something original with that.

Just glad I'm not a judge this round :smallwink:

DaragosKitsune
2010-09-12, 09:55 PM
I, as a judge, understand that there weren't many options. What I don't understand is the lack of Gnome subraces. Chaos Gnome, for one.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-12, 10:39 PM
Chaos Gnomes, Ice Gnomes and Whisper Gnomes... though none may have fit the concepts.

Ozymandias9
2010-09-12, 10:50 PM
When I actually looked at the class myself, the first thing that occurred to me was using the capstone with Scorpion Parry and/or Ghostly Defense and Blurring Armor. Someone attacks you, and instead hits their ally. And they gets a sneak attack.
Not particularly amazing, but it would be hilarious to use against a party as a GM.

Gametime
2010-09-13, 12:33 AM
Chaos Gnomes, Ice Gnomes and Whisper Gnomes... though none may have fit the concepts.

The Dragonborn one was a Whisper Gnome, if memory serves.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-13, 05:44 AM
I thought about (and avoided) a few racial things for fear that the other contestants may use them. Also, Lillithgow, you could have had a gnome warlock/swordsage with Earth Sense. If memory serves me, Earth Sense gives you a limited form of tremorsense, warlock would allow you to keep up a bubble of darkness all day long, and swordsage would give you Pearl of Black Doubt and some shadow-themed maneuvers.

Of course, he would have been MAD as all get out, needing at least a 13 in CON and INT for Earth Sense and Combat Expertise, at least a 13 in WIS (Earth Sense again) but probably higher (swordsage bonus to AC), a high DEX, and a decent CHA.

ForgottenCode
2010-09-13, 09:23 AM
Although I didn't have time to finish it, mine was going to be a dragon-descended lesser svirfneblin Dragon Shaman (overall LA of +1) (with some rogue levels thrown in) to get into Blade Bravo. She was from a small community in the Underdark, that was next to a huge underground lake where a green dragon had made its home. Here's the history I managed to write:



For as long as anyone in the underground lakeside community of Uron could remember, there had been a dragon living in the lake. The Great Dragon of the Lake didn’t often show itself, but the townsfolk of Uron knew he existed, and through his priesthood they knew his moods and his wishes.

The legend said that many centuries ago, the Great Dragon had chosen this lake as its home, and on viewing the Svirfneblin town that now rested on his lair’s borders, had decided to eliminate the potential threat to him and his horde by killing all the gnomes.

The beast had emerged from the lake and attacked without provocation and the community hadn’t been ready for it. Scores of gnomes died before any kind of defence could be mounted. Even then, however, there was nothing much the townsfolk could do. Although the Great Dragon had been significantly younger then, he was still a true green dragon and more than capable of defeating every gnome in the village, armed or not.

Some stayed and fought to no avail and other fled. The town would have surely perished were it not for the actions of a young woman named Rania. She was a seamstress’s daughter and without question the most beautiful girl in all of Uron. Ignoring her mother’s cries to stop her, she threw herself into the Great Dragon’s path and begged him to stop killing them.

Her pleas shouldn’t have mattered. And yet when the dragon stared down at her, a tiny creature begging for her people’s lives, something happened. The creature had been about to breathe a cone of chlorine gas when he closed his mouth and stared at the girl. The noise of battle petered off as the townsfolk recognized something had changed.

For what seemed like an eternity but was in reality only a few moments, no one breathed as the Great Dragon locked eyes with the young woman. She was no longer crying, and her expression had changed from one of horror to one of wonder. The dragon extended a claw towards her, palm up and without words passing between them she climbed up on his hand. His claws carefully closed around her. Without another sound, the Great Dragon spread its wings and retreated back to his lair, his prize in hand.

Life in the town gradually returned to normal when it became obvious that the Great Dragon was not going to return to finish the job. The dead were burned and over the next year, the town rebuilt. On the first anniversary of the attack, Rania walked out of the lake.

She looked nothing like the young middle class woman she had when she’d been carried away. Well, her beauty still shone true, but she had a much more confident stride and she was dressed in a green dress that was somehow not wet from the lake, and a tiara of emeralds and diamonds rested on her coifed white hair. In fact although the sentries had seen her walk out of the lake, it looked like she’d just stepped out of a king’s court.

Her mother rushed up to her to greet her long lost daughter but Rania completely ignored her. She declared herself priestess of the Great Dragon Adzerak and demanded that her master had decreed that there was to be a temple built in the town in his honor. As long as the people of Uron worshipped him and no other, they would no longer have to fear the Great Dragon. They could go about their lives in peace and know that if they were faithful that in times of great danger, the Great Dragon would arise from the lake like a vengeful god and strike down their enemies.

The clerics of Garl Glittergold protested of course, but the city council eventually ruled in Rania’s favour. Although some weren’t happy with their forced change in religion, most realized that by appeasing the dragon they would survive. And in the harsh environment that existed around them, they had long ago learned that sacrifices had to be made for long term survival.



If people are interested, I can go on about what I was going to write about to finish off the history and then move to the present.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-13, 09:42 AM
Hmm, Dragon Shaman would have netted you some originality points, methinks.

ForgottenCode
2010-09-13, 12:42 PM
I would have liked to finish it. But RL takes precedence.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-13, 01:31 PM
That it does. I'm worried that not a single judge has posted scores yet--I'm afraid that the scores this time around may be too close for comfort.

BobVosh
2010-09-13, 01:31 PM
Just to let anyone who is anxious know, I'm running a whee bit late, but omw as far as judging goes.

*edit* I just got called into work. I got 5 out 9 done. I feel bad as I really wanted to get this done today since I don't like keeping people waiting. =(

Kesnit
2010-09-13, 04:38 PM
I regret to say RL got ahead of me over the weekend and I have not finished judging yet. Tonight is not going to happen since I am in class until 8. I should get to it tomorrow and hopefully will be done by Wednesday.

DaragosKitsune
2010-09-13, 07:33 PM
My judging will be submitted at the first viable opportunity, some time this week is likely, but RL takes precedence.

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-13, 11:10 PM
...play them some filler, Johnny! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uoC7kuFV3oY)

Keld Denar
2010-09-14, 01:46 AM
Blah. So its 11 PM. I got to work at 7 AM. We burst a water main at the plant today. I've walked about 12 miles today, getting all my contractors coordinated and set up. Judging will happen, but it probably won't be tomorrow or Wednesday. After we get the water back on, at least...

Amphetryon
2010-09-15, 05:53 AM
*Contestant paces restlessly. Cue comment about suspense.*

Kesnit
2010-09-15, 03:53 PM
Almost done. I should have my scores up in about an hour.

Keld Denar
2010-09-15, 04:02 PM
BTW, do whoever asked, here is the template. Just copy/paste it into word as many times as there are entries, fill in the blanks (name on top, scores in the bold tags and justification after the comma). Then copy/paste the whole thing back into a post. Formatting done and done.



Originality: ,

Power: ,

Elegance: ,

Use of Secret Ingredient: ,.

Kesnit
2010-09-15, 04:53 PM
Moudo
Originality:4 Use of Twisted Lord came out of nowhere, which is what this category is about. (+1)
Power: 3.5. He has a broad base of abilities that are useful out of combat. (+1). Heavy reliance on Bluff and SA in combat, which is a weakness against mindless creatures and those immune to SA. (-.5)
Elegance:4. 3 classes, none of them dips. (+1).
Use of Secret Ingredient: 2.5. While Moudo uses his class abilities, a lot of his build comes down to Twisted Lord abilities, rather than the SI. (-.5)
Total: 14 / 3.5

Sizok
Originality: 3.5 Dromite. 'Nuff said. (+1). Use of Compression to take advantage of Size Advantage. (-.5)
Power: 5. She has a broad base of abilities that are useful out of combat. (+1). Several ways to draw and hold enemy attention without much danger. (+1)
Elegance: 2. As I stated in my judging criteria, I REALLY dislike 1-2 level dips. (-1)
Use of Secret Ingredient: 3.5. Really plays up the size advantage. (+.5)
Total: 14 / 3.5

Wruk
Originality: 3.5 Use of Compression to take advantage of Size Advantage. (-.5) Use of the organization and building around it. (+1)
Power: 1.5. Against dragons and the organization, this character is good. Against anything else, some of the tricks and strengths go away.
(-.5). As I stated in my judging criteria, I also reserve the right to mark down a build with too much power. Mindsight qualifies, and in a big way. (-1)
Elegance: 2. As above, I don't like dips (-1)
Use of Secret Ingredient: 2. While Wruk uses his class abilities, the build is much more about the organization and dragons, rather than the SI. (-1)
Total: 9 / 2.25
Note: I feel horrible for judging Wruk so low because, as a build, I really enjoyed him. But I had to judge him as an entry in the competition, and for that, he just didn't seem to fit.

Nekoya
Originality: 4. I admit, my first reaction when I saw "Tibbit" was 'how is this going to work?!' But you did a nice job of explaining why a cat-person would be connected to Gnomes. (+1)
Power: 4.5. Melee and ranged capabilities, plus tripping. (+1.5)
Elegance: 3. Nothing really remarkable in this category.
Use of Secret Ingredient 2.5. A competition based on a class called "Blade Bravo" that does not use a blade? (-1) Really plays up Size Advantage. (+.5)
Total: 14 / 3.5
Note: I laughed at the reference to past competitions.

Raakhama'karma
Originality: 3. Githzerai is unexpected, but you don't do anything with it.
Power: 1 As you wrote, your combat techniques with rapier and unarmed don't work. Flurry only works with Monk weapons (which rapier is not), and the PC does not have TWF to reduce the penalties of using rapier and fist (-4/-8). I would be surprised if he could hit anything.
Elegance: 1. I don't like dips, and you have 2 of them. (-1.5). Your reasons why the PC can take Stone Blessed are a stretch. (-.5)
Use of Secret Ingredient: 2.5. As a medium character, you lose a lot of the benefit of Size Advantage. (-.5)
Total: 7.5 / 1.875

Ssejkosjth
Originality: 2.5. Compression (-.5)
Power: 3.5. As I read your build, I could not help but think of Reepacheep and his mice in The Chronicles of Narnia, running around,
poking enemies in the feet. However, it works. (+.5)
Elegance: 2.5. Mish-mash of ToB and psionics. It may play well, but it looks...unrefined. (-.5)
Use of Secret Ingredient: 3. Really plays up the size advantage. (+.5) But this sounds like you started with PsyWar and SS, then tacked the special ingredient on top. (-.5)
Total: 11.5 / 2.875
Note: How did you name this character? Close your eyes and drop your hand on the keyboard?!?!?!

Jack the Were-Monkey
Originality: 5. Snicker. Snicker louder. ROFL. A were-monkey???
Power: 4. Another build that made me think of Reepacheep, but does it better.
Elegance: 3.5 Maneuvers feel like they play well into SI abilities. (+.5)
Use of Secret Ingredient: 3.5 Really plays up the size advantage. (+.5)
Total: 16 / 4

Dulcinea
Originality: 3. Nothing really remarkable.
Power: 4. Nice party contribution with her frequent, widespread debuffs. (+1)
Elegance: 2. Dipping (-1).
Use of Secret Ingredient: 4. Tactics play directly into SI's abilities. (+1)
Total: 13 / 3.25

Jakob
Originality: 2.5. Compression (-.5)
Power: 3. Nothing really remarkable.
Elegance: 1.5. The Assassin dip, plus you don't take more than 5 levels of any class. (-1.5)
Use of Secret Ingredient: 2. Only used 5 levels. (-1.5). Really plays up the size advantage. (+.5)
Total: 9 / 2.25

Thurbane
2010-09-15, 05:13 PM
Just a general question about ICO challenges - are custom magic items allowed (following DMG guidelines), or do they not count as being an official source?

Cieyrin
2010-09-15, 05:17 PM
Just a general question about ICO challenges - are custom magic items allowed (following DMG guidelines), or do they not count as being an official source?

Custom items have been done in the past, though they generally get hit in the Elegance category, such as during the Master of Masks contest with the masks getting extra buffs.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-15, 06:03 PM
Thank you Kesnit, for being our first brave judge to post scores. Perhaps this will inspire the others? As I thought, some pretty close scores in the pack, but anything can happen still.

Kesnit
2010-09-15, 07:44 PM
As I thought, some pretty close scores in the pack

I didn't mean to give a lot of 14's. I just determine the scores, then add them up. It wasn't until the 3rd 14 that I realized there was a pattern. :smallredface: (As a defense, Sizok was originally 14.5, but when I started finding several builds using Compression, I had to go back and dock her.)

Draz74
2010-09-16, 01:32 AM
Well, Kesnit's scores for my entry were ... not what I expected. Better in some categories, worse in some categories, so I guess overall I can't be upset. :smallsmile:

OMG PONIES
2010-09-16, 01:54 PM
Any chance we could get an updated ETA from the other judges?

WinWin
2010-09-16, 11:19 PM
Sorry for the delay. A mild virus put me behind in my studies. Been playing catch-up all week.

I found it difficult to be consise in my scoring, as the quality of entries was surprising. I found many things to like about every submission. Please direct any complaints or corcerns through the chairman, I'll be online over the next few days so I'll try and address them in a timely fashion.

Moudo. Quite the little monster. Upon my first read I have to confess I did not care for the build, or think I would score it so well. Upon further examination, the strengths of Moudo began to make themselves apparent. Could be fun to play in a Realms specific campaign.
Originality 4. One of the few builds that uses fighter, has a mastermind background and leads into an obscure PrC. Some of the tactics suggested are common throughout all the builds presented, but you manage to personalise it somewhat with some interesting build choices.
Elegance 4.5. Very little wasted space. Only 2 'empty' levels, due to a judicious selection of ACF's and PrC's. The fact you managed to pull this off with only 3 classes is impressive. I think the flow of new abilities and tricks make a character fun to play over the course of a campaign. A minumum of specific gear required is another boon.
-0.25 I made a deduction here because I noticed an irregularity. I believe the Zhentarim Soldier ACF would replace the normal Thug progression, granting the bonus feat but not the SA. It would not overly effect the build, but may delay some progression.
Power 3. A good selection of skills and feat choices. Moudo has a lot of RP potential, stealth, mobility and quite a few combat tricks. The abberant feat choices diminish some of the disadvantages of small size. Despite the lack of wasted space, I see little here that is really overwhelming. Good, but not great.
Use of Secret Ingrediant 3.75. Slightly delayed entry, but Moudo uses all of the features of Blade Bravo well. There are also quite a few synergies that add to the strengths of the PrC.

Sizok. A Drenai swashbuckling gish. In my experience the Drenai are an underused, but flavourful race. It is also refreshing to see the use of Psionics (even if Compression sees a lot of use in this IC).
Originality 3.75. I like what you have done with Sizok. It has an interesting approach and is certainly a thematic build. Unfortunately, the character is not the only one that relies on Compression, Swashbucker levels and Stonelord.
Elegance 3.5. Every level has been chosen for a reason. You also have no shortage of new tricks and powers to keep play interesting. Unfortunately the gear required to function at full efficacy hurts you a little here. Leaving room for some modification helps you adjust this character to the needs of a campaign. Very playable.
Power 3.5. The wilder abilities are subtle, but pay off. Any subversion of the action economy is a great boon in all levels of play. A very melee specialised build, but also has some other capabilities to help a party. A little bit of a late bloomer, but nontheless effective.
Use of Secret Ingrediant 3.75. You have clear expectations of the Secret Ingredient and adjusted your build accordingly. The late entry hurt you somewhat, but you make use of all features of Blade Bravo.

Wruk. Took a little research and a few re-reads in order to fully comprehend. Another build that I initially overlooked, but once I read the compelling backstory and pieced together the different elents of the builds I was impressed.
Originality 4.75. Not the only Psywar or Ranger, but the backstory, combined with Dragonstalker and an Aquired Template really got my attention.
Elegance 2.5. A litany of sources. Not to mention that some of the Exarch abilities are very DM dependant. I wanted to score Wruk higher, but the build explaination seems to be cut off somewhere in the middle. Regardless of these complaints, Wruk has been methodically optimized and has little wasted space.
Power 5. Very specialised. Very Niche. Very Deadly. The use of a few unknown (to me) optimisation tricks makes Wruk an effective and nigh-unstoppable assassin.
Use of Secret Ingrediant 4. A clever use of Blade Bravo. Even with the limited build explaination, I can see that the PrC is used well here.

Nekoya. I am not a fan of Tibbits. I'll try to keep my bias in check though.
Originality 4.25. More Stonelord...Warlock, Ruathar and a distinctive race choice help set you apart from the pack in this category.
Elegance 4 Simple. The use of some online material may chafe in some games though. Leaves plenty of room for modification or adpatation which I find to be a strength here.
Power 4. Could be fun to play. You turn a size disadvantage into a strength, which is kind of the point of Blade Bravo. A specialised build, but you have quite a few tricks available.
Use of Secret Ingrediant 4.5 All your bases are covered and all features are touched upon.

Raakhama'karma. Githzerai raider. I can see where you were going with this build, and I like it, but the quality of other entries forces me to come down a bit hard on you.
Originality 3.5. Swashbucker, Ranger and Stonelord are fairly common build elements. The use of Gith and Monk Help you out here.
Elegance 2.5. The inclusion of the secret ingrediant seems a little forced.
Power 2. Some of the elements seem at odds with each other. The mobility chain does not work that effectively with SA or monk strikes IMO.
Use of Secret Ingrediant 2.5. You use all 10 levels.

Ssejkosjth. Dragonborn bulwark.
Originality 4. Not the only Swordsage or Psywar, but I like what you have done here.
Elegance 3. You have a great progression here, which makes play interesting. It does seem that your build is reliant on some specific gear though.
-0.5 Initiator levels only benefit from Martial Adept levels and PrC's that grant new Maneuvers and Stances known. I might let this slide in a game I was DMing, but I can't do so in a competition. You simply do not gain access to some powers that help your build function the way you want it to.
Power 4. Definately hard to kill. Fairly specialised though.
Use of Secret Ingrediant 3.75. The progression seems all over the place. On my first read it seemed as though you wanted the build to do well in spite of Blade Bravo, not because of it. You use all the granted features well though.

Jack. A were-monkey pirate/ninja. It needs some cyborg and zombie.
Originality 4.5. I like this build. Not the one one that uses swordsage or swashbucker though.
Elegance 3.5. Too many elements hurt your score here. By your own admission you wanted more to work with. On the other hand, this would be an entertaining character to play in almost any campaign. The additional options provide a means by which the character can be adapted to a more High-Op game.
Power. 4. A late bloomer, but has some decent melee options. The skills and skill tricks provide many great options in a swashbuckling campaign.
Use of Secret Ingrediant 4.25. The only thing hurting your score in this category is the quality of other builds.

Dulcinea. Variant Paladins are always nice to see.
Originality 5. Unique.
Elegance 4.5. You kept things simple. The only thing hurting your score is the litany of sources, which may cause some DM's to roll their eyes.
Power 5. A variety of low/medium binder abilities. Decent melee options. The phrenic adaptation would be a great in a High-Op game. Normally when I see a Spring Attack build I groan, but Paimon turns this character into a supernatural Dervish.
Use of Secret Ingrediant. 5. All features are explained coherently and taken into account with this build.

Jakob. A jaded mercenary is a cool concept.
Originality 5. Another perfect score here. I like the idea of the anti-Gnome. Incorperating Lurk and Factotum really sets you apart nd offsets the slight Stonelord penalty I was going to apply.
Elegance 4. Simple. A clever use of ACF's. A reliance on a few key items, but not excessively so.
Power 4.5. Versatile. A lot of options available.
Use of Secret Ingrediant 3.75. The levels you do have are used well. You miss out on a few class features, but the benefits of Size advantage, Flourish and Goad are apparent

Ozymandias9
2010-09-16, 11:37 PM
Please direct any complaints or corcerns through the chairman, I'll be online over the next few days so I'll try and address them in a timely fashion.
As a not to all contestants and judges:
I am accepting and reviewing disputes. However, I won't be submitting them to the judges until we have all (or nearly all) the scores in. I'll only be submitting them to the judges if the scoring gap could conceivably (it need not be likely, only possible) change the rankings.

The only exception would be if there is a mathematical or factual error apparent in the judging (if, for example, they score you down for something not actually present in the build). Those I will submit as I receive them.


Moudo.
Elegance 4.25. Very little wasted space. Only 2 'empty' levels, due to a judicious selection of ACF's and PrC's. The fact you managed to pull this off with only 3 classes is impressive. I think the flow of new abilities and tricks make a character fun to play over the course of a campaign. A minumum of specific gear required is another boon.
-0.25 I made a deduction here because I noticed an irregularity. I believe the Zhentarim Soldier ACF would replace the normal Thug progression, granting the bonus feat but not the SA. It would not overly effect the build, but may delay some progression.

For clarification here, are you awarding a final Elegance score to Moudo of 4.25 or 4.

The same question applies (with the values of appropriately altered) for Ssejkosjth's elegance score.

WinWin
2010-09-16, 11:42 PM
For clarification here, are you awarding a final Elegance score to Moudo of 4.25 or 4.

The same question applies (with the values of appropriately altered) for Ssejkosjth's elegance score.

Final score was bolded, 4.25. If I am incorrect about the ACF, then award an additional .25.

Sorry for any confusion. I still have a few cobwebs in my head.

Ozymandias9
2010-09-16, 11:47 PM
Final score was bolded, 4.25. If I am incorrect about the ACF, then award an additional .25.

Sorry for any confusion. I still have a few cobwebs in my head.

Ok. That's what I though. I only asked because you bolded the deductions too.

WinWin
2010-09-17, 12:03 AM
I really should use the spell-checker...

I'm surprised that I am only the second judge to score. Looking forward to the outcome.

true_shinken
2010-09-17, 07:34 AM
Looks like this will be a tough one!

WinWin
2010-09-17, 08:07 AM
For ease, I have compiled scores below.

Moudo 15.25 / 3.8125
Sizok 14.5 / 3.625
Wruk 16.25 / 4.0625
Nekoya 16.75 / 4.1875
Raak'hama'Karma 10.5 / 2.625
Ssejkosjth 14.75 / 3.6875
Jack 15.75 / 3.9375
Dulcinea 19.5 / 4.875
Jakob 17.25 / 4.3125

edit: My scores. Someone else can do a total

true_shinken
2010-09-17, 08:46 AM
Totals after two judges:

Moudo 29
Sizok 28.5
Wruk 25.25
Nekoya 30.75
Raak'hama'Karma 18
Ssejkosjth 26.25
Jack 31.75
Dulcinea 32.5
Jakob 26.25

Dulcinea is on the lead, with Jack less than a point behind.
This looks like it will be a close one! The next judge might change everything!

Ozymandias9
2010-09-17, 01:12 PM
A purely rules based arbitration for Win-Win


Here's the full text for the 3rd level ACF:


Bonus Feat : A Zhentarim Soldier gains Skill
Focus (Intimidation) as a bonus feat at 3rd level.

It does not mention 'replacing' any class feature for Fighter, because the default Fighter has no class feature at 3rd level. Sneak Attack Fighter replaces bonus feats with a Rogue's SA progression. I can find no WotC-official ruling that the two variants, combined, do not grant both bonuses.

While I would probably have ruled the way the judge did, there doesn't appear to be a presented rule to back that up. Since there are no rules governing the priority of ACFs and Variant Classes, I'm asking Win-Win to decide whether or not his noted deduction stands for an ambiguous rules situation rather than a clear violation.

Keld Denar
2010-09-17, 02:25 PM
Since its an ACF, not a substitution level, and it involves seperate items, I'd say its legal. Contrast with taking Lion Totem Barbarian levels at the same time as the Whirling Frenzy variant. They reference different features, and thus should interact together fine.

ION, I'm on lunch break right now, and I'll probably be working tonight till late. Its also VERY likely I'll have to come in this weekend and put in more hours. I'll probably finish up this work week with like, 80-90 hours. My appologies for not getting my judging in. I have like, 2 done, so I'm making progress in the snippits of free time I have, but I don't like to put a lot of effort in if I won't have time to complete an entry so I don't break train of thought while I'm judging. If I was the last judge to submit, I'd drop out at this point, but it looks like I still have some time. Again, apologies, but RL is kicking my ass atm...

OMG PONIES
2010-09-17, 02:41 PM
It's all good, Keld. Your company should throw you some kind of party when all that mess clears up.

Keld Denar
2010-09-17, 02:46 PM
Well, I'm flex time, so if I work 80 hours this week, I get essentially a week of paid vacation at the time of my choosing. And there WILL be much drinking involved.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-17, 02:47 PM
Nice. Still, a bon voyage party, complete with drinking on the company dime.

true_shinken
2010-09-17, 02:48 PM
Since its an ACF, not a substitution level, and it involves seperate items, I'd say its legal. Contrast with taking Lion Totem Barbarian levels at the same time as the Whirling Frenzy variant. They reference different features, and thus should interact together fine.


...but it is a substitution level. It even has a level-by-level table. I'd say it does not work.
You'd also get less skill points than standard Thug.

OMG PONIES
2010-09-17, 02:49 PM
Interesting...I'll have to poke my head at it when I get to my books. Any update on judging progess from DaragosKitsune or BobVosh?

Amphetryon
2010-09-17, 03:13 PM
...but it is a substitution level. It even has a level-by-level table. I'd say it does not work.
You'd also get less skill points than standard Thug.

Going to guess which build isn't yours.... :smallwink:

true_shinken
2010-09-17, 03:15 PM
Going to guess which build isn't yours.... :smallwink:

Actually, I believe I did mention some mistakes in my own build a few ICs ago.

WinWin
2010-09-17, 11:29 PM
I have edited Moudo's scoring.

It did not help that I was referring to a Substitution Level as an Alternate Class Feature. They use similar rules, but the text on substitution levels is a little tricky. It specifically states that SL's advance spellcasting, bardic music and favoured enemy bonuses. It also states that all level based progression is advanced unless it is specifically excluded in the SL text. Moudo would use standard fighter skill point for that level, but would gain the SA IMO.

Not a big deal, as it would not effect progression, hence the small penalty. I managed to allay most of my concerns on other builds by reading the relevant text, I should have taken a little more time with Moudo's scoring. Happy to make the correction.

BobVosh
2010-09-18, 01:54 AM
Interesting...I'll have to poke my head at it when I get to my books. Any update on judging progess from DaragosKitsune or BobVosh?

Tonight, I guarentee by Kord.
Tonight being the 18th, as I'm unaware what time zone most of you are in.

Only have a few left anyway (2 I believe, maybe 3)

The Vorpal Tribble
2010-09-18, 11:31 AM
Tonight, I guarentee by Kord.
Praised be Kord

Greyfell
2010-09-18, 01:32 PM
I was hoping Dulcinea would do good, just adore the overall concept with her. Go go standard gnomes!

BobVosh
2010-09-19, 05:20 AM
I'm not late, I just worshiped the builds presented to me by staring at the monitor until my lids closed in satisfaction.

I hope Kord is a late sleeper or I am getting such a greatsword to the face.

Checking formatting, and so forth with the post. Expect this post to be edited when I am satisfied I won't look like even more of an idiot.

As people have mentioned about Stoneblessed vs Gnome being an issue as far as originality goes, I decided to sidestep the issue and not penalize either decision. I was a bit surprised at how few gnomes we had in a gnome only PrC, but then again stoneblessed is so good.

Moudo:
Originality:
Twisted lord, eh?
4

Power:
Fairly reliant on sneak attack for damage, so you will have an issue against immune enemies. I notice you mention giving a wand of grave strike to your local batman, however that spell has Range: Personal. So he can’t help you there. Without craven or other such bonus damage you don’t have much of a punch beyond the 7D6 SA dice.
3

Elegance:
A lot of variant class features, which all work well. Very smooth work through for 3 classes.
4.5

Use of Secret Ingredient:
You are in blade bravo all 10 levels, you use the AC bonus by getting a ring of reduce person, and 2D6 SA. You don’t seem to have much focus on the other features. Small but deadly won’t help much as you don’t really deal much bonus damage and use a 1D3 weapon. Flourish helps, but most of your build would be better as more SA fighter, or something else. There doesn’t seem like there is much reason for blade bravo.
2


Total: 13.5

Sizok:
Originality: Dromite wilder. Interesting.
3.5

Power:
Only 1 rank with a massive cha bonus means you can use wands that you have used before with only a 20% failure chance, so you can easily pick up some stuff to help you out. You mention gravestrike, and golem strike. Craven +2D6 sneak attack averages 26 extra damage with a sneak attack. However your charisma to hit and damage is what makes this build scary. Goad for things that works on, an AC that is nigh impossible to hit if they are large and gets worse the bigger they are. The first levels are likely to be deadly, as you mentioned though. Official frown comes out for belt of battle, but beyond that nothing hideously offending.(Don’t have the DMG2 to look at stunning weapon property)
4

Elegance:
Ah, stoneblessed will always look like a splash even when it is maxed. Every level you get something worthwhile, nothing to tighten up. Only 1 splash, and swashbuckler fits well with BB anyway. Flaws were optional so I don’t have to take points off.
4

Use of Secret Ingredient:
Very, very good. You focus on the charisma to make use of it as a tank, the damage for it, crits are scary with you bonus damage. All ten levels (unless you go with the LA buy off). Even the 2D6 melee sneak attack helps a lot as it lets you qualify for craven.
5

Total: 16.5


Wruk

Originality: /fanboy-on SQUEEL, Xorvintaal /fanboy-off *ahem* Urban Ranger, Dragon stalker, and Xorvintaal exarch? An actual gnome?
4.5

Power:
Nothing special going on for the first few levels, just standard Psy War. This build never gets to extremely deadly levels, however it seems to be a very, very good scout. The mindsight trick is a little cheesey, but fun and not really game breaking. Saves are kinda weak. AC is really weak, although with compression + small starting size you can get decent with it. Damage is frankly non-existant. Frightful presence is humorous, but weak at the higher levels. Immunity to death for any significant length of time is nice.
3

Elegance:
All over with your levels, splashing around. No real dead levels, the build is very much playable 1-20.
3.5

Use of Secret Ingredient:
You don’t have a section devoted to explaining this. Obviously with your dragon hunter thing going on the AC is pleasant. Your bluff isn’t enough to get the goad working, the crit fishing isn’t going to matter much with your build.
2

Total: 13


Nekoya

Originality:
Tibbits. I hate Tibbits. However that is unimportant, as its unexpected, along with Ruthar.
4.5

Power:
Surprisingly good for tiny critter. Even without sneak attack its ok, since blind is part of it. When blinded the damage shoots up to a very respectable amount. Great scout as most of these builds seem to be, but the low levels from 5-10 seem a little weak.
4

Elegance:
Something for each level, although it feels like a waste for 3 feats for rapier when it is not your main damage dealer. Scratch that(pun intended) 2 feats, but you list focus:rapier 2x at 9th and 10th. I’m not thrilled about the April Fool’s feats.
3

Use of Secret Ingredient:
Works well, the AC bonus is enough to make you have an acceptable level of AC. Crits are pleasant with your build. You got the charisma + bluff ranks to use goad, although I’m not sure that is your best bet for this character as it could be painful.
4

Total: 15.5

Raakhama’karma The Wanderer

Originality:
Let us see. Githzerai Swashbuckler/Monk/Stone Blessed/Ranger/Blade Bravo
Points for Githzerai. A unexpected medium sized entry, and monk is generally unseen.
3.5

Power:
With so much LA in the front row you will not live the first few levels. Level 1 swashbuckler at level 4? Dex is great though, to hit should be decent. Unfortunately unarmed strike doesn’t count as a natural attack, so you have a huge penalty if you try to TWF with rapier + UAS. So your to-hit suffers HARD for this. I don’t see much that amazing outside that. Maybe if you went with a creature with a claw attack instead of monk that would have helped. Spring attack clashes hard with sneak attack, flurry, twf, and most of what you seem to be going for.
2

Elegance:
Assuming the use of LA buyoff isn’t generally done with IC. Level progression goes nicely, but I don’t like the 2 splashes of 1-2 levels.
2

Use of Secret Ingredient:
Full 10 levels. However you don’t show if you try for goad (don’t have the charisma to back up goad), and it doesn’t look like it adds much beyond a little crit fishing. You have a chance for a decent AC and mention lethal Riposte for trip attacks. I don’t know if this is the class for you.
2

Total: 11.5

Ssejkosjth

Originality:
I’m glad someone decided to go with a ToB despite incompetent vagaries muttered by me. I like the classes and how they meld.
4

Power:
83 ac vs medium creatures. What. Also I like the options of fly + breath weapon on the tiny gnome in the sky. You damage didn’t suffer, you don’t require sneak attack which is almost unique in this contest. Good ole compression as seems very common right about now. You do what you do, and you do it well. However you don’t do a lot of other things, which I can’t really hold against you.
4

Elegance:
Strategic jumps into and out of shadow mind + swordsage. No flaws, and it flows together well. I understand some DMs don’t like jumping in and out of classes, but I never mind so long as it’s the same classes. You stick with them beyond the 2 levels or less that does annoy me.
4

Use of Secret Ingredient:
I can’t see anything major you don’t use, and your ac is just silly vs normal sized creatures. A new word for silly needs to be made for larger than medium. The blade bravo class seems a little forced, but with the reasonable explanation of want riposte + ac it works well.
4

Total: 16
Note: Huh. All 4s.

Jack

Originality:
Were monkey. First weremonkey I have ever seen. He is also a pirate and ninja. Were-monkey Pirate-Ninja. I can’t help but noticed he is dreaded as well. I can’t wait to read the other judges reviews for this guy.
4.5

Power:
Let see what this were-primate does! Lots of LA means he is hard to play at low level. However the DR 10/silver makes it doable at 4th. Great damage, and what I’m loving in this competition is all the weapon attacks like 1D3+23. Got the AC to tank, which seems good with this. TWF with a great crit range on one weapon, and not relying on sneak attack. Great to hit, so you can actually do something with that mosquito sticker.
4

Elegance:
I assume that skip with the HD is for the skills. Levels flow together well. Avoid dips of 2 levels. Maybe would have saved sword sage levels til a bit higher to grab higher maneuvers, but I can’t argue with anything you got going. Hate how your chart stretched out, but that isn’t going to be a penalty here.
4

Use of Secret Ingredient:
Definitely fit the flavor well, however you lack goad power. Well you have it, but can’t really pull it off. Everything else works well here. Your guy can fit in blade bravo easily and smoothly.
4.5

Total: 17

Dulcinea

Originality:
If anyone would have told me they were expecting this, I would slap them and say “No, you were not.”
5

Power:
Deadly. Very Deadly. One of the reasons this isn’t a 5 is you don’t have a way to fly, and didn’t leave the money to do so.
4.5

Elegance:
Every level is useful. Nothing wasted. Official frown for belt of battle. I don’t like the 2 and 1 level splashes. All in all very good.
4

Use of Secret Ingredient:
You use everything. More over you don’t cripple yourself for going tiny, and its not limited to until the first dispel. All 10 levels.
5

Total: 18.5
Note: I really like the way you did the background. Different and fits the character well.

Jakob

Originality:
I’m kinda surprised this is the only lurk. Other than that drow fighter and assassin were not classes I was expecting.
4

Power:
It is very hard to see you. Very. Adding dex+int to sneak attacks is great. Damage will be impressive despite you being counted as diminutive. You little midget, you. I really like the insightful feint. Standard issues with sneak attack.
4

Elegance:
I don’t like the collar, it is just too good. The levels work together well, and build off one another decently. I don’t like splashing around still, so points docked there. No dead levels which pleases me.
3

Use of Secret Ingredient:
Only half of the ingredient is used before you dump it into the trash. That said, what is there is great for the character. You may only use half of it, but you use it to a very good potential. You have maxed bluff, but I’m not feeling goad. However I don’t think you made your guy to take a hit at all, with HiPS + hide out the yin-yang.
3.5

Total: 14.5

Adding my scores to this:

Totals after two judges:

Moudo 29
Sizok 28.5
Wruk 25.25
Nekoya 30.75
Raak'hama'Karma 18
Ssejkosjth 26.25
Jack 31.75
Dulcinea 32.5
Jakob 26.25

Dulcinea is on the lead, with Jack less than a point behind.
This looks like it will be a close one! The next judge might change everything!

Moudo 42.5
Sizok 45
Wruk 38.25
Nekoya 46.25
Raak'hama'Karma 29.5
Ssejkosjth 42.25
Jack 48.75
Dulcinea 51
Jakob 40.75

OMG PONIES
2010-09-19, 07:39 AM
You know, BobVosh, I checked earlier this morning and saw no scores. I was coming back to back a joke about taking thy Kord's name in vain, but I am happy to have found your scores. Glad you had a chance to sleep on it. :smalltongue:

BobVosh
2010-09-19, 09:34 AM
You know, BobVosh, I checked earlier this morning and saw no scores. I was coming back to back a joke about taking thy Kord's name in vain, but I am happy to have found your scores. Glad you had a chance to sleep on it. :smalltongue:

Shh, don't tell Kord or it will hurt.

*hides from divine wrath*


Hopefully he is having a good old fashion rampage and won't see me.