Help with a Shadow cohort, take 2

[ILM]

Apologies for the multi-post, but I handled the first thread poorly so I'll just recap here instead.

I'm building an ECL17 cohort for a character. Fluff-wise, it must be a shadow or something that resembles it quite a bit. However, I also need to work in the Unseelie Fey templace for the massive penalty to saves, because I want it to be a support character that debuffs saves to help the main character's spells. I haven't really thought up a secondary role - scout maybe, that would make sense.

So far, I'm thinking Star Elf/ Unseelie Fey/ Shadow Creature/ Ghost with Evolved Undead on top, which should look close enough to a shadow. Star Elf is in UE, Unseelie Fey is in DrC, Shadow Creature has a +2 LA and is in LoM and Evolved Undead has a +1 and is in LM. I'm using the Ghost progression from one of WotC's web enhancements, and only two levels of it. The reason I'm taking a convoluted route is that the Shadow progression in SS is a racial one, and you can't apply Unseelie Fey to undead creatures.

So that puts me at ECL 5 without any class levels. If needed, I can take that down to ECL 3 by ditching the second level of Ghost and the Evolved Undead template but I'm losing some Charisma.

As far as classes go, I haven't got much further than Bard. I'm leaning towards focusing on fear effects, but I haven't really decided on it either as fear tends to be fairly weak at higher levels (I could take some Dread Witch levels to punch through immunities though).

At this stage I'd really appreciate any suggestions or ideas on race or class/ACF progression and feat selection. All official WotC sources are in except Dragon Mag stuff that wasn't reprinted in DrComp.

[WinWin]

Seems convoluted.

If Bard, take Doomspeak, Champions of Ruin.

If you're really set on debuffs:

Hexblade. ACF in PBH2 Shadow Companion, I think afb.

Evil Paladin Variant. Unearthed Arcana. -2 Aura.

Blackguard. -2 Aura.

Soul Eater. Energy Drain.

Or a former Gnome Illusionist/Shadowcraft Mage. Use Shadow Conjuration to reproduce Summon Undead. That way you could have your Shadowy Shadow Shadowcraft Mage summon Shadow Shadows.

[ILM]

Ah but you see, the main character is already a Shadowcraft Mage :smalltongue:.

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

For the base creature, use Half-Giant with the Primordial Giant template in Secrets of Xen'drik. Also add the Magic-Blooded template in Dragon 306, which gives Wis -2, Cha +2, for no LA. Add Unseelie Fey on top of that, for a total level adjustment of +1 and ability score bonuses of Str -4, Dex +0, Con -2, Int +4, Wis -2, Cha +8. It could have bought off (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/races/reducingLevelAdjustments.htm) that +1 LA before gaining any acquired templates.

I wouldn't bother with Shadow Creature, though Half-Fey (http://wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/sp/20040213a) would be better especially if it can get the feat Magic in the Blood from PGtF, which is available to races with an innate spell-like ability such as the Half-Giant's 1/day Stomp. Plus with the savage progression you could buy off the +1 LA for Half-Giant, gain the two levels of Half-Fey, then buy off that +2 LA to leave the cohort at 12th level and +0 LA. There's also a progression for Ghost (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/sp/20040117a), which may as well make it a +4 LA template instead of +5 since you never have to take that last level (http://wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/sp/20030824a) of it. That leaves it with twelve class levels at ECL 16, so there's still room for Evolved Undead. That 1/day spell-like ability it grants will also be increased to 3/day by Magic in the Blood.

I'd probably make it a Warlock, give it the Darkness invocation which it always keeps active, and get Quicken Spell-Like Ability for Glitterdust from Half-Fey. At Warlock 12 it could use Imbue Item to aid you in crafting any scroll you want so you could learn any spell regardless of availability. I'd give it Baleful Utterance, Darkness, Summon Swarm, Eldritch Chain, Beshadowed Blast, Curse of Despair, and Chilling Tentacles. Combined with its Half-Fey spell-like abilities, each usable at least 3/day, and its Winter Chill debuff, it should be able to make a considerable contribution.

[ILM]

Paladin of Tyranny 3 and Blackguard 3 fit the bill, but do they stack? It's pretty much the same ability (Aura of Despair)...

Is Doomspeak eligible for Ability Focus?

Half Fey looks good but Magic in the Blood seems to have a really specific list of races and Half-Giant doesn't seem included. Oh, and I should have specified no LA buyoff. :smallfrown:

[*.*.*.*]

If you're set on elf(which I advise), taking Faeri mysteries initiate(Int to HP) will circumvent the dreadfully low HP that plague undead.

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

Half Fey looks good but Magic in the Blood seems to have a really specific list of races and Half-Giant doesn't seem included. Oh, and I should have specified no LA buyoff. :smallfrown:

Each book is printed assuming you have only that book and the Core 3, so no creatures from outside of core would be included on the list regardless of eligibility. The specific list of creatures which do qualify for that feat includes every single one of the creatures in that book and the Core 3 which get a 1/day racial spell-like ability. Therefore, it would make sense that if a race from outside of core gets a 1/day spell-like ability, they should be able to take that feat.

No LA buyoff sucks, but you can still probably get away with taking only 4/5 of the Ghost progression.