[3.5] Empty vessels? Super power humans?

[animewatcha]

Eberron campaign setting. Page 291. Empty vessels as player characters. Am I getting this right in that these guys get -2 str +2 dex +2 int +4 wis +4 cha. A few knacks of the human race with a few extra goodies?

Is this correct? If true, how does one make this into a lawful good character ( going into non-eberron settings. hurray for crossovers )? Amnesia approach?

[Hiro Protagonest]

Yes. Don't they have an LA? I think it was 2.

[IdleMuse]

They have LA+1, so overall, not that great.

[kardar233]

I believe they get a bonus feat as well.

Decent for LA +1. However, they only get really nasty once they become Inspired.

[sonofzeal]

Eberron campaign setting. Page 291. Empty vessels as player characters. Am I getting this right in that these guys get -2 str +2 dex +2 int +4 wis +4 cha. A few knacks of the human race with a few extra goodies?

Is this correct? If true, how does one make this into a lawful good character ( going into non-eberron settings. hurray for crossovers )? Amnesia approach?
I think you're looking at Inspired. Empty Vessels, if I remember the entry correctly, just get human bonuses and +1 pp per level for LA +1. This can be worth it for a multiclassed PsiWar if buyoff is allowed, but otherwise underwhelming.

[Gavinfoxx]

Empty Vessel is a pretty good base for further Transhuman Augmentation. (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Z9NJIs751Af3i0IEIJwCkIp9H9YFiZYZ7u-wmYVaheI/edit) And they do not have those stat modifications you quoted...

[Katie Boundary]

The Eberron Campaign Setting does not give ability score modifiers for Empty Vessels. Instead, it presents an elite array of "ability scores before racial adjustments". Why it would do this when Vessels have no such racial adjustments is anyone's guess. OP seems to have made the mistake of assuming that these are the scores for NPC vessels after adjustments, and subtracted 10 from the even-numbered scores and 11 from the odd-numbered scores to get what he or she thought were the adjustments.

As for the differences between Vessels and normal humans:

- Humans have "favored class: any"; Vessels lose this flexibility as they are bred to be Psions.
- Humans have all languages as bonus languages; Vessels are restricted to Draconic and Riedran as bonus languages
- Vessels get Quor as an automatic language
- Vessels get 1 power point per character level
- Vessels get "Knowledge: the Planes" as a class skill
- Vessels get a +2 on Disguise checks to pass for human, and on Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate checks.
- Vessels have a +1 level adjustment

Overall, they seem like a compromise between Humans and Elans. Compared to Elans, they're a bit more flexible, but less useful in combat at low levels. Compared to humans, they're less flexible, but better at blowing stuff up with their minds. They're better at solving non-combat problems than either, and seem to be master negotiators and bull****ters, but that's not worth a +1 level adjustment. The really key thing is this: Elans have a flat +2 power points regardless of level, whereas Vessels grow in power exponentially as they level up, assuming that they choose a psionic class. That's where the level adjustment comes from. An ECL 2 Empty Vessel would get its ass kicked by an ECL 2 Elan of the same class, but an ECL 20 Empty Vessel Psion, Psychic Warrior, or Wilder could tear **** up on a scale attainable by very few other ECL 20 characters.

[TiaC]

Empty Vessels are presented with the elite array, because they are supposed to "receive special training and education" which makes them exceptional. They have no stat modifiers.

Edit:

The really key thing is this: Elans have a flat +2 power points regardless of level, whereas Vessels grow in power exponentially as they level up, assuming that they choose a psionic class. That's where the level adjustment comes from. An ECL 2 Empty Vessel would get its ass kicked by an ECL 2 Elan of the same class, but an ECL 20 Empty Vessel Psion, Psychic Warrior, or Wilder could tear **** up on a scale attainable by very few other ECL 20 characters.
Exponentially? They get 1PP per level. That's linear growth. Also, that's the same bonus PP from +4 to your manifesting stat, decent, but hardly awe-inspiring. Given that there are races that will give you +2 to your manifesting stat, which will also boost DCs, they would not be at all out of line at LA +0.

[Necroticplague]

Eberron campaign setting. Page 291. Empty vessels as player characters. Am I getting this right in that these guys get -2 str +2 dex +2 int +4 wis +4 cha. This is incorrect. :

Empty vessels generally have the following ability scores before racial adjustments: Str 8, Dex 12, Con 10, Int 13, Wis 14, Cha 15.
And then their racial abilities don't mention modifying these. So no, they have no stat modifiers. So they're basically Human+naturally psionic+minor skill bonuses.

A few knacks of the human race with a few extra goodies? Yep, but not worth it for the LA.

[OgresAreCute]

I believe the kalashtar have +1 PP per level for no LA?

Edit: Yep, just checked. Kalashtar do not get The Planes, +1 skill point per level or a bonus feat, but get mindlink as a Psi-like, a save boost and immunity to a few niche effects related to dreams. Most importantly though, they don't have any level adjustment. Don't see any good reason to play an empty vessel over a kalashtar or an ordinary human.

[Thurbane]

Yeah, I encountered the same misconception about them when I was compiling my LA +1/+2 race list.