Stay Young and extend your lifespan

[Firechanter]

All that talk about Reincarnation in the other thread reminds me of another question:

While it's true that most campaigns don't exceed the lifespan of a human, our time in the (Young) Adult age bracket is very limited.
(FWIW, I've not played in but heard about a campaign that stretched over so many years, because there was no teleportation and travelling places took months on end. The human characters got noticeably older and had to be retired and replaced at some point, where Elves and Dwarves were unaffected.)

What other ways are there, for a mundane human, to prolong his time in the Young Adult age group (i.e. without the pesky physical stat penalties) and his total lifespan? The latter doesn't need to be indefinite, but some 50-100 years extra would be nice.

Reincarnate has random race of course, which can incur its own score of problems, plus you lose a level every time you're reincarnated so you can't spam it.

Monk, timeless body, but that doesn't extend your lifespan and forces you to waste all your career with the crappiest class so remaining young of body isn't really worth it.

I had hopes in the Clone spell, but it reads that the clone is "physically identical to the original", which seems to imply the Clone pops out of the vat the same age as the original.

Basically I'm looking into it just for the fluff, not to pile up cheese.

[Marnath]

I had hopes in the Clone spell, but it reads that the clone is "physically identical to the original", which seems to imply the Clone pops out of the vat the same age as the original.

Basically I'm looking into it just for the fluff, not to pile up cheese.

Same age as the original, when it was first grown has been my understanding. Make a couple when you're still young, stick them into some sort of permanent gentle repose container(stronghold builder's guide has one of these as a wondrous item) and then just make more right away when you wake up in one.

Technically I don't think they age, because they're just a soulless husk without you. And if they do age, well just put them into temporal stasis.

If you're powerful enough for this sort of thing, you may as well just lich out though if immortality is all you want out of it.

[NNescio]

...If you're powerful enough for this sort of thing, you may as well just lich out though if immortality is all you want out of it.

Maybe the wizard still wants to enjoy the taste of coffee? Or he's fearful over the permanent loss of his trouser titan? :smallbiggrin:

[LordBlades]

You can use Last Breath (SpC Druid spell, works like Reincarnation except you lose no level, and you have to cast it within 1 round of the victim's death). It's abusable as **** (you can get the body of any race you want with enough gold) but as long as you agree to limit it to only extending your lifespan, I'd have no problem allowing it as a DM.

[Fable Wright]

Polymorph Any Object yourself into your younger form every few years? That's what I'm doing for one of my characters, and it's worked out fine so far. It's indefinite, and your character can choose to age again if they feel like it. As an added benefit, if the spell is dispelled/disjunctioned, rather than immediately turning to dust, you go to the age that you originally cast the spell at, or had the spell cast on you at. For a spellcaster with access to it, this keeps you young and fresh forever, but if you can only afford one or two castings of it, you can use it for another 50-100 years, getting it dispelled after you become old the first time to get back to your original age. Would that work for you?

[Rei_Jin]

A 10th level Cloud Anchorite (PrC in Frostburn) gains the ability "Immortality of the Mountain", which means that they can never die of old age. By RAW though, it doesn't say that they cease to age, which could be problematic. My own thoughts lead me to say that it's supposed to be an improved version of the Monk ability, but hey, this is D&D.

The 9th level Telepath Psion power, True Mind Switch would allow you to switch bodies with someone who was younger, and whilst it costs 10,000xp to cast, there are ways to get around that cost, if you look hard enough.

A 3rd level Ruathar (PrC in Races of the Wild) adds 50% to each of their age categories, meaning that a human who would normally hit middle age at 35 instead hits it at 52... that's an extra 17 years for a 3 level prestige class that has some very nice bonuses.

I'm sure there will be a few other ways to do it, but those are the ones that come to mind.

[Marnath]

Maybe the wizard still wants to enjoy the taste of coffee? Or he's fearful over the permanent loss of his trouser titan? :smallbiggrin:

There's an App (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/polymorph.htm) for that. :biggrin:

Any wizard capable of becoming a lich was able to cast that a while ago. And sorcerors, well, they can use scrolls if they only wanna do it once in a while.

[Firechanter]

Polymorph Any Object yourself into your younger form every few years? <snip> Would that work for you?

Wow, so easy. Yes that does sound pretty nice. Must admit it never occured to me you could polymorph into yourself. ;) But that's great, I guess I can use that. Thanks!

[Alleran]

The Kissed by the Ages spell (Dragon Magazine #354) will permanently freeze you at the age you were at when it was cast. You can stay a young adult forever, and never gain either aging bonuses or aging penalties.

[Andion Isurand]

Same age as the original, when it was first grown has been my understanding. Make a couple when you're still young, stick them into some sort of permanent gentle repose container(stronghold builder's guide has one of these as a wondrous item) and then just make more right away when you wake up in one.

I believe Stasis Clone (Sor/Wiz 9) is in Lords of Darkness.

[Alleran]

I believe Stasis Clone (Sor/Wiz 9) is in Lords of Darkness.
Players Guide to Faerun, I think.

[DwarfFighter]

Monk, timeless body, but that doesn't extend your lifespan and forces you to waste all your career with the crappiest class so remaining young of body isn't really worth it.


Oh, I don't know. On the presumption that the ultimate goal of your character is agelessness, the Monk class ultimately gets you to that goal.

-DF

[Firechanter]

Yeah, but it's not the ultimate goal. It's just some whipped cream on the side. Or ideally, your agelessness and extended life should enable you to be awesome for decades or even centuries as, for example, a Warblade, and not suck for all eternity as a Monk.

Thanks for bringing the Kissed by the Ages spell to attention. I had to look it up. It does grant "endlessness", but ties it to an item that takes up a body slot and can have no other properties. It can't be destroyed, but if you don't wear it for any reason, you start aging again and take a penalty to saves. Oh and it costs a pile of XP.

I guess it does what it's supposed to do, but it doesn't do it as well as the little Polymorph Any exploit that's only level 8, costs no XP and no gold and doesn't leave you with an Achilles Heel.

[faceroll]

Many classes that turn you into an outsider or elemental or something like that stop aging, I think.


Polymorph Any Object yourself into your younger form every few years?

If you're ok with 10 in all your stats (+/- racial mods), that would work. And you also don't mind resetting your mental scores to 10 (+/- racial mods).


A 10th level Cloud Anchorite (PrC in Frostburn) gains the ability "Immortality of the Mountain", which means that they can never die of old age. By RAW though, it doesn't say that they cease to age, which could be problematic. My own thoughts lead me to say that it's supposed to be an improved version of the Monk ability, but hey, this is D&D. will be a few other ways to do it, but those are the ones that come to mind.

Sounds like asking for immortality but forgetting to ask for timeless youth. End up turning into a grasshopper.

[Analytica]

Steal Life from BoVD keeps you young.

Tasmia's Heart doubles your lifespan.

[Fable Wright]

If you're ok with 10 in all your stats (+/- racial mods), that would work. And you also don't mind resetting your mental scores to 10 (+/- racial mods).

Uh, no? Show me where, in the SRD, your stats become an average for your race. It never limits whether or not your can turn into an individual being.

[Firechanter]

I'm with DMofDarkness on this one. If anything, the spell description says "from one creature into another", which _might_ be argued to rule out "into yourself, just younger". Nowhere does it say stuff like "into a typical specimen of its race" or anything.

Besides, as it has been pointed out before, "immortality" is not such a great boon ingame. It's mostly fluff and grants very little mechanical benefit, if any. So what's the problem in letting someone who wants it simply have it?

[Ormur]

I think Last Breath suicides with a druid that you trust (cohort?) standing by are the easiest way to go. If you have racial preferences you just need a bit of money and more fourth level spell slots from your friend as was mentioned above.

[faceroll]

Uh, no? Show me where, in the SRD, your stats become an average for your race. It never limits whether or not your can turn into an individual being.

Huh, you're right. The clause I'm remembering is from a 3.0 polymorph effect. Alter Self lets you turn into yourself; Polymorph is "as Alter Self"; PaO is "as Polymorph; so by transitivity, you can PaO into yourself, and from the Polymorph rules, gain your ability scores.


Besides, as it has been pointed out before, "immortality" is not such a great boon ingame. It's mostly fluff and grants very little mechanical benefit, if any. So what's the problem in letting someone who wants it simply have it?

Such a ruling would allow you turn into things with all 18s in their stats. It just further mucks up an already atrociously broken rule set.

[Corrik]

A wish spell could be used to make your body younger.

[OracleofWuffing]

I think Last Breath suicides with a druid that you trust (cohort?) standing by are the easiest way to go.
The trust part's something to keep in mind. Unlike Reincarnation, Last Breath keeps you at -1 HP, so you still need some minor healing on top of it. Granted, that's still very easy to come by.

[Teln]

There's always the traditional path to immortality: Ascend to godhood (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/divine/divineRanksAndPowers.htm).

[Forged Fury]

Judicious application of the Thief of Life PrC (Faiths of Eberron) and a friendly level-draining undead? (I don't think ToL makes you immune to energy drain). Hit 10th level, use your class capstone, and then get drained to 9th. Rinse & repeat annually.

Bonus, as a ToL, you should have ready access to semi-friendly level-draining udnead.

[Daftendirekt]

Well, if you're human, you could always find some in-story justification for becoming an Elan.