True Naming: How does it work?

[Calanon]

I've always wondered to myself how true naming can be effective. I mean I've never seen a player even play the True namer class so how could I? (I must admit that I've never even imagined it as good...) what I'm wondering is.

"How does it work?" i mean is it like "actual" true naming where if you have someones true name you control them? if thats the case I'd rather settle with Dominate Monster.

don't link me to a handbook or a thread or something just explain it to me and save me from the eternal headache of the lack-o'-knowledge monster... yes that was indeed lame but it was my special lameness :smalltongue:

[candycorn]

The short answer: It doesn't. At least, not well.

Basically, you get very short duration, fairly close range effects. Some are nifty. Most are meh. The DC to activate them is rather high, and takes a considerable level of optimization to make the class effective enough to tangle with multiple encounters a day.

That said, when you do optimize it, it does have some abilities that are pretty much unique to it.

[HunterOfJello]

I've never played a truenamer, but I know some basic information about it that should satisfy some basic curiousity. I will likely be corrected by a more informed poster later on.

The class was actually written improperly and never properly tested after it's creation. The class works on skill check DCs that get impossibly higher over time and slowly become too high to reach, which makes the character unable to fight a monster of a CR equal to his own level. There is, however, a handbook for Truenamers floating around here that can make the class work without having to use houseruling to make it more workable.
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Truenamers "utter" magical words together and create rudimentary sentences in the True Language of the Universe called Utterances. They can do different things with their truenaming magic to different targets be it creatures or objects. To use their truename magic against a creature they have to make a skill check based on the Truenaming Skill in order to use their magic properly. If they fail the check, it doesn't work properly.

There are three different and distinct categories of "Utterances" (spells) called Lexicons. The Lexicon of the Evolving Mind alters creatures. The Lexicon of the Crated Tool alters items. The Lexicon of of the Perfect Map impacts places or something. Each Lexicon works a bit differently and each one has a different scale for the DCs of how they use their utterances.

Some of the utterances are pretty cool and they often possess both positive and negative results that you can choose between each time you use one. For instance, Minor Words of Nurturing can either give Fast healing 1, or deal 1d6 damage each round for 2 rounds. That utterance can be used either offensively or defensively depending on the situation. Other like Vision Sharpened, which can either give someone See Invisibility or make them Invisible, have results that are both beneficial to an ally. (It could also be used offensively if your friend just cast an Invisible Obscuring Mist spell.)

The Lexicon of the Crafted Tool doesn't have much in it, but can make weapons and armor a bit better or a bit worse. The Rebuild Item utterance is in this lexicon though and it's a fun one to get creative with. It restores an item destroyed within the last round, "to perfect form and functionality, including any magical properties it had." The utterance works well with any magical items that have to be broken to work, of which there are surprisingly quite a few.

Finally, the Lexicon of the Perfected Map changes the areas around you and is pretty straightforward. The utterances from this lexicon have no power when reversed so to work a beneficial or negative effect is based on the player's strategic use of the utterance.

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The Truenamer class can be decent at most levels, but will never compare with most of any of the other spellcasting based classes. That is, until the character reaches Truenamer 20. At that level, the truenamer gains the ability to use Gate practically at-will and to instantly teleport to anyone who says his name. You don't have to get even mildly creative to wreck a campaign setting with those 2 abilities alone.

[kardar233]

Badly.

:smalltongue:


To elaborate: Truenames are generally fairly weak equivalents of spells which are powered by a skill check whose DC is equal to 15+(2xCR) of whatever you're casting it on. Seeing as CRs go up 1/level and so do skill ranks, you will quickly find yourself unable to make your Truename checks without a fair amount of skill optimization.

Furthermore, while they have some fairly good buffs, you can only have one instance of the buff at a time, and additionally the debuff that corresponds to it (Str buff/Str debuff) counts towards instances; thus, you can't buff and debuff simultaneously, and you can only affect one person total.

To make matters worse, the more you use one of your abilities the higher the DC gets (by +2 DC per cast) throughout the day, which means that you rapidly become (more) useless as the day progresses.

The only redeeming factor of Truenamers (apart from their ability to cast Gate for free at lvl20) is that at ~11th level, they can (and will) take the ability to cast two Utterances (spells) per round by Quickening one of them. Unfortunately, Quickening adds a whopping +20 to the DC, which means that you'll need some insane skill optimization if you want to take advantage of this.

Save yourself the pain. Try something better. Like CW Samurai.

~EDIT~ Double-swordsagedCA Ninja'd. I'm more sesquipedalianly loquacious than you lot though.

[BobVosh]

http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=214115
Guide for truenamers fairly recently made.

[Ryu_Bonkosi]

It doesn't...:smallconfused:

[Ayedi_Star]

They work like a really, REALLY poor warlock with access to healing and an ultimate cap on exactly how many times / day they can use their abilities.

They also have to cheese their skill rolls or grab an Item Familiar just to keep up with that 15+CR*2 or their offensive utterances (and technically speaking, even their benefitial ones) will never work once the skill check outgrows their rolling ability.

[candycorn]

They work like a really, REALLY poor warlock with access to healing and an ultimate cap on exactly how many times / day they can use their abilities.

They also have to cheese their skill rolls or grab an Item Familiar just to keep up with that 15+CR*2 or their offensive utterances (and technically speaking, even their benefitial ones) will never work once the skill check outgrows their rolling ability.

Well, assuming int focus (reasonable), max ranks in truespeak, skill focus in truespeak, and, when possible, the ToM magic items that give +5 and +10 to truespeak, you can have a reasonable chance to activate each utterance... At first.

Assume 20 intelligence (level 2), 5 ranks in Truespeak, and skill focus, and you have a +13. At level 2, against a CR 2, your DC is 19. That's a 75% chance to succeed. That's the equivalent of a wizard casting in a chain shirt with a light steel shield.

Your second use of that utterance will be 65%, then 55%. Your 5th use in a day of that utterance will be 45% likely to succeed. That's the same as a wizard in half plate, with a heavy steel shield.

So, yes, you can do it... but without a +2 skill item, and the Paragnostic Assembly, it gets hard.

Truenamers can boost their own truespeak checks with some abilities (85% chance -10% per time you've used the utterance), and that will increase likelihood of other utterances by 25%, but that eats up an utterance known, and effectively forces you to spend a round buffing before actually doing something.

[gkathellar]

Truenaming! How does it work? Miracles, man. As in, you'd better be rolling natural 20s all over the place up in this class, else by higher levels it be taking miraculous effort to scrape your remains off of the floor.

[Ayedi_Star]

Truenaming! How does it work? Miracles, man. As in, you'd better be rolling natural 20s all over the place up in this class, else by higher levels it be taking miraculous effort to scrape your remains off of the floor.

And even then, the natural 20s will stop working after a long-enough while.
After all, there's no critical success on skill checks. :smallsigh:

[DoughGuy]

In short: A bunch of SLAs based on a skill check that gets progressively harder to pass without excessive optomisation. Many more uses of utternaces (the SLAs) but far less versatile than a wizard or sorceror.

In depth: See Zaq's guide which has already been linked.

[Tr011]

I played a truenamer a week ago, he worked well. First, my stats (rolled):

Str 11 Int 18 +2 (levels) +2 (headband)
Dex 11 Wis 11
Con 17 Cha 10

Human, truenamer 11, named Dieter.
Feats:
1: Skill Focus(truenaming)
Human: Knowledge Devotion (from Complete Champion)
3: Extend Utterance
6: Empower Utterance
9: Quicken Utterance
Skill Focus(Knowledge Planes, Nature, Arcana), Truename Research, Recitation of Vital State (all from class)

My DM allowed me a custom item with +10 enhancement (price from Amulet of Tongues) +15 competence (DMG guidelines used) +2 moral (like granted from Heroism or something, but just for truenaming skill not saves etc.). The Amulet was made out of Riverine (Stormwrack).
I also had a MW Tool (Dental Brace) for +2 to Truenaming.
14 skill points in concentration, truenaming, UMD.
7 crossclassed in spellcraft, 22 in other crossclass stuff
Rest went into knowledges (52 or something) and Skill tricks (+5 to knowledge checks and Swift Concentration.

I also was in the Guild of Complete Champion for +5 to truenaming.
Total bonus for truenaming: +57

Then I chose some nice Utterances, none of them allowed a save. Also I used them for some combinations (Fog for AoE movement reduction to 5ft., Speed debuff for total immobilization, another Utterance for Immobilization, one to cancel flyspeeds etc.etc.)

At all, I had some decent BFC, debuffs, buffs and heals. And I casted twice per round.

Obviously, you need to know some things before playing a truenamer, you have to talk with your DM about custom items for +truenaming and you have to take care that no one ever steals your items. If you can manage all that, you can play a truenamer as a funny char in any Tier 3 party.