Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XXXIV

[Amphetryon]

Welcome, contestants, judges, and guests to Iron Chef XXXIV. Here in Optimization Colosseum, contestants will endeavor to create an optimized and flavorful character using a specified D&D3.5 prestige class as a "Secret Ingredient".

Contestants: You will need to present a write-up of 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, as well as presenting a fully-fleshed out 20-level build in the table below. 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.

32 point-buy is the presumed creation method, but we have generally allowed other levels of point-buy.
If you do use a different point-buy, please make your case for its necessity in your entry. Keep in mind that for using exceptionally large or small point-buys may warrant deductions in elegance and/or power.

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. Web-exclusive 3.0 or 3.5 materials by WotC are expressly allowed, but take care to verify that an updated version did not appear in print elsewhere, as this may cause an Elegance deduction at the judges' discretion. 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. This comes up often enough to bear mention in the rules: Dragon Compendium is allowed.

Cooking Time: Contestants will have until 11:59PM GMT on Saturday, June 30th, 2012 to create their builds and PM them to the Chairman, Amphetryon. Builds will then be posted simultaneously, to avoid copying. Judges will have until 11:59PM GMT on Saturday, July 14th, 2012 to judge the builds and submit their scores. If no judges have scored by that point, only the scores of the first judge to submit will be counted.

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. Please note the following change: a legal source's relative obscurity should not be considered as penalizing Elegance, excepting the aforementioned issues with Unearthed Arcana. Using too many sources may be an Elegance deduction at the judges' discretion, but a book's relative obscurity may not.
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 reviewing 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 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 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. If your entry includes a prestige class or ACF that grants Leadership or a Leadership-like ability as a bonus feat, the feat should be ignored and is not eligible to be traded away for another feat or ACF through any means.

So! Who wants to sign up as a contestant, and who wants to sign up as a judge? Looking for as many contestants and judges as feel like playing!

This week's special ingredient is:
Dungeon Master's Guide's Dragon Disciple (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/prestigeClasses/dragonDisciple.htm)
We will award 1st through 3rd places, as well as a shout-out for honorable mention. The honorable mention prize is given to the most daring or unexpected build. Judges, contestants and guests alike are invited to vote for honorable mention via PM.

Allez optimiser!

Contestants

Judges

The Builds

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)
Iron Chef XI: Blade Bravo (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=166539)
Iron Chef XII: War Mind (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=9426386)
Iron Chef XIII: Vigilante (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=172233)
Iron Chef XIV: Seeker of the Song (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=174434)
Iron Chef XV: Drunken Master (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=176049)
Iron Chef XVI: Assassin (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=178202)
Iron Chef XVII: Ardent Dilettante (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=182492)
Iron Chef XVIII: Unseelie Dark Hunter (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=186097)
Iron Chef XIX: Dread Pirate (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=190607)
Iron Chef XX: Incandescent Champion (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=10976416)
Iron Chef XXI: Ghostwalker (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=198921)
Iron Chef XXII: Dervish (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=206576)
Iron Chef XXIII: Divine Crusader (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=210071)
Iron Chef XXIV: Tactical Soldier (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=214198)
Iron Chef XXV: Scion of Tem-Et-Nu (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=217441)
Iron Chef XXVI: Shadowdancer (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=220956)
Iron Chef XXVII: Mindbender (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=224008)
Iron Chef XXVIII: Cryokineticist (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=227304)
Iron Chef XXIX: Consecrated Harrier (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=229688)
Iron Chef XXX: Initiate of Pistis Sophia (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=233346)
Iron Chef XXXI: Shadow Sentinel (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=236908)
Iron Chef XXXII: Temple Raider of Olidammara (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=239786)
Iron Chef XXXIII: Drow Judicator (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=243052)

[Amphetryon]

FAQ:
Is Dragon Compendium Allowed? Yes, but individual issues of Dragon Magazine are not.

What about 3.0 materials? 3.0 materials, whether online or in printed form, are allowed unless they've been officially updated to a 3.5 edition.

Are Dragonlance, Ravenloft, Planescape, Dark Sun, or Kingdoms of Kalamar allowable sources? The Dragonlance Campaign Setting is allowed, but the subsequent books for Dragonlance are considered 3rd party, and are therefore not eligible, despite the "WotC approved" status of those books. The same holds for Oriental Adventures (1st party) and the subsequent Rokugan books (3rd party). Similarly, materials from Ravenloft, Planescape, Dark Sun, and Kingdoms of Kalamar are considered 3rd party for purposes of this contest, and are therefore not allowed.

What about online sources in general? If the online source is a) published by WotC, and b) not replaced by an updated version at a later time, it is eligible. Use it, link it.

Where's the line drawn with "acceptable/unacceptable" for Unearthed Arcana? This will likely vary a bit from Chairman to Chairman. Item Familiars have always been verboten, since before IC migrated to GitP; don't expect that to change. Flaws have similarly always been noted as warranting a deduction; while I am Chairman, I'm extending that to Traits, though they warrant 1/2 the penalty in Elegance that a Flaw would because they're roughly 1/2 as useful. Alternate spell systems, alternate skill systems and alternate crafting rules all create an uneven playing field, and as such, will be disallowed for as long as I am Chairman. Bloodlines are ripe for abuse, and will be strongly discouraged as long as I am Chairman. Note that judges are allowed to look askance at any use of Unearthed Arcana not specifically mentioned above, at their discretion, and otherwise penalize Elegance according to their preference.

What, exactly, does the ban on Leadership mean? As folks have started to try to work around the edges of this one, I'm forced to spell it out more plainly. No Leadership, Draconic Cohort, or Feats that grant a similar ability are allowed EXCEPT Wild Cohort while Amphetryon is chairman. Any PrC you choose with Leadership or a Leadership-analog has that ability entirely ignored for this contest, as it may neither be used nor traded away via any means whatsoever.

What's the minimum score in a category? Assuming an entry is legal, the minimum score in any category is 1. If a judge is convinced that an entry is illegal by the RAW, the judge may give a 0 or decline to score a given entry. Because this contest focuses on Player Characters, an entry that is not technically allowed for a PC, but is viable as an NPC, counts as a legal entry, but may receive a minimum score at the judges' discretion.

So, um, about that 10th level? According to (some would say silly) RAW verbiage in Complete Warrior, Dragon Disciple hits an unending disqualification/qualification loop when entering 10th level, as they become Half-Dragons, momentarily disqualifying them from the PrC that turned them into Half-Dragons. While amusing as heck, this loop - which some call Schrödinger's Apotheosis - should be wholly ignored for purposes of this contest. It's better for everyone's sanity.

[dantiesilva]

I am so in one this comp

[Soranar]

I actually might compete in this one, I've always like dragon disciple. Do we rule that we don't get an LA +3 from taking all 10 levels though?

[Amphetryon]

I actually might compete in this one, I've always like dragon disciple. Do we rule that we don't get an LA +3 from taking all 10 levels though?
Of course we do. :smallsmile:

[Amoren]

Hmmm, I'm highly tempted to throw my hat into this... But on the other hand, I know I'm not going to win.

[dantiesilva]

O come on i got last place in my first challenge and I believe it only made me a better so that this time around I might place higher up. I'm putting finishing touches and fluff into one of my builds now then I'll be starting on another. I'm kind of scared of the first one, but know its not fully optimized so will be probably making two more builds that way I have a better chance, and saying I am not waiting for the last three days may even have more then three builds in.

[Zaq]

Of course we do. :smallsmile:

Of course we do rule that way? Or of course we do get LA +3?

[Thurbane]

Since I have been asking for DD for a while, I'm definitely going to try and get an entry in. I've had the bare bones of a DD build plotted out for a while now - time to flesh it out, write up the backstory, and format it into tables! :smallbiggrin:

[Amphetryon]

Of course we do rule that way? Or of course we do get LA +3?

The question was whether we rule that we DON'T get the +3 LA. I said yes, we rule that we DON'T get the +3 LA. I'm not sure how my answer is read otherwise.

[Xodion]

Last night I said to myself "I need a break after all that judging, I'll probably sit out of the next contest or two". But now I have a great idea. Why do I do this to myself :smallamused:

[Venger]

welp, I'm in. what's the status on trophies for rounds past?

[Devmaar]

I think I'm actually going to attempt a build here. Got a (hopefully) strong concept to work with.

[Amphetryon]

welp, I'm in. what's the status on trophies for rounds past?

So far as I know, HunterKiller is still on the job.

[Kazyan]

A lot of people around here talk about Dragon Disciple, so I know I won't do well on my first try, but hey, it's worth a shot. I'll try submitting a build...after coming up with something. Eventually. Dragon is not my favorite flavor.

[Zeb]

Not the DD I was hoping for, maybe I will judge

Edit: @Kazyan I got second place with my first entry and I didn't think it would place given the quality of the entries, so it just goes to show give it a shot adn you might be surprised.

[gbprime]

I'm in. I have like 5 builds stored up that use this class. I promise I'll submit just one. :smallwink:

[Kazyan]

Edit: @Kazyan I got second place with my first entry and I didn't think it would place given the quality of the entries, so it just goes to show give it a shot adn you might be surprised.

Thanks for the encoura--


I'm in. I have like 5 builds stored up that use this class. I promise I'll submit just one. :smallwink:

This is what I mean by the class being popular. :smallwink:

Putting together an ingredient list before I figure out how to cook this, if that makes any sense. This is pretty intellectually stimulating, actually.

[dantiesilva]

I am just about to put one post in and about to start work on my second which I already have the ingredients out and ready for.

[Amechra]

I have a wonderfully strong build I will share with all of you, that uses all 10 levels of the PrC, and all of its class features! (Well, Blindsense works kinda conditionally, but you know what? Shut up.)

So yeah, I'll be submitting something. And probably another couple builds too.

[Venger]

I have a question about the class. The prestige class says the bite is the primary and the claws are the secondary at -5. the half-dragon template, however, says the opposite, with the claws being primary and the bite secondary, as is normally the case. which are we going with for the purposes of this contest?

[Amphetryon]

I have a question about the class. The prestige class says the bite is the primary and the claws are the secondary at -5. the half-dragon template, however, says the opposite, with the claws being primary and the bite secondary, as is normally the case. which are we going with for the purposes of this contest?

What the PrC says takes precedence when dealing with the PrC.

[Thurbane]

Sounds like there may be a lot of entries this round. :smalltongue:

[dantiesilva]

One done, lets see how many more I can get in.

[Thurbane]

Not the DD I was hoping for, maybe I will judge
Death Delver? Deep Diviner? Devoted Defender? Diamond Dragon? Disciple (of) Dispater? Divine Disciple? Doomdreamer? Dragon Descendant? Dragon Devotee? Dungeon Delver? Dwarven Defender? :smallbiggrin:

[Dumbledore lives]

Dragon Disciple eh, compared to the normal classes this one is practically wizard level. I'll try to put together an entry.

[zlefin]

i've got one nice idea that i'll write up; i might think of more too. This should be a fun contest.

[Menteith]

I have a wonderful idea for this. Oh lordy, this is going to be good.

[KoboldCleric]

Questions:


Dragon Apotheosis: At 10th level, a dragon disciple takes on the half-dragon template. His breath weapon reaches full strength (as noted above), and he gains +4 to Strength and +2 to Charisma. His natural armor bonus increases to +4, and he acquires low-light vision, 60-foot darkvision, immunity to sleep and paralysis effects, and immunity to the energy type used by his breath weapon (see above).


So, um, about that 10th level? According to (some would say silly) RAW verbiage in Complete Warrior, Dragon Disciple hits an unending disqualification/qualification loop when entering 10th level, as they become Half-Dragons, momentarily disqualifying them from the PrC that turned them into Half-Dragons. While amusing as heck, this loop - which some call Schrödinger's Apotheosis - should be wholly ignored for purposes of this contest. It's better for everyone's sanity.

There are many differences between the benefits gained over the 10 levels of the class and the actual template. Are you saying above that the character takes on the template in addition to the abilities gained? that the template supersedes the other gains at 10th level? or something else? I've always assumed that the character doesn't actually inherit the template, but your "unending disqualification/qualification loop" seems to imply that you believe they do inherit the template and their type does change, etc. -- but then how does inheriting the template interact with all of the abilities they've already gained? You've got me very confused :P

[DeadAggressor]

This looks interesting, I'll have to toss up something good for this.

[Amphetryon]

Questions:





There are many differences between the benefits gained over the 10 levels of the class and the actual template. Are you saying above that the character takes on the template in addition to the abilities gained? that the template supersedes the other gains at 10th level? or something else? I've always assumed that the character doesn't actually inherit the template, but your "unending disqualification/qualification loop" seems to imply that you believe they do inherit the template and their type does change, etc. -- but then how does inheriting the template interact with all of the abilities they've already gained? You've got me very confused :P
I'm at a loss to explain this any more clearly, assuming the tongue at the end isn't intended to indicate your query is facetious.

They gain EXACTLY what the text says. They gain all the benefits they've acquired over the course of 10 levels. They gain a full-strength breath weapon. They gain an additional +4 to STR at 10th level (as noted in the text; PLEASE don't try to parse this as my saying they get any bonuses from Dragon Disciple above and beyond those granted by the text). They gain an addional +2 to CHA (again, exactly as noted in the text). They gain a grand total of +4 in Natural Armor bonus. They gain Low-Light vision (assuming they didn't have it). They gain 60' Darkvision (assuming they didn't have it). They gain immunity to sleep and paralysis effects. They gain immunity to their breath weapon's energy type. They gain, per the verbiage of the PrC, all of these benefits AS THEY COMPLETE THE TRANSFORMATION into a Half-Dragon, and any differences you may perceive between a Half-Dragon who obtained the template by any other means are either incidental or accidental. The differences may well exist, making Dragon Disciples unusual examples of the Half-Dragon template, but examples nonetheless.

What DOES NOT happen is that acquiring the Half-Dragon template at 10th level spontaneously disqualifies the Dragon Disciple from entry into the PrC. Said disqualification would, in theory, immediately remove all benefits gained from the PrC, which would then make the Character eligible for the PrC, which would disqualify him, etc. That's literally ALL the clarification I put in the FAQ is intended to indicate. It's what I hope is a rational reading of the 10th level ability that prevents a ridiculous loop of qualifying and disqualifying the Character from the PrC BY VIRTUE OF TAKING THE PrC.

[KoboldCleric]

My point is just that if they don't actually inherit the template then their race is still non-dragon and they are, as far as "race:" is concerned, not a half-dragon; therefore, there is no "unending disqualification/qualification loop".

But you've answered the question then: they don't gain the template, just the benefits as listed :)

[Kallisti]

I think what he's asking is whether the benefits of the template supersede or stack with the template.

For example, the Dragon Disciple gains +4 Strength, two each at 2nd and 4th level. Then at 10th, they 'take on the half-dragon template' and '[gain] +4 to Strength and +2 to Charisma'. The half-dragon template gives +8 Strength.


They gain an additional +4 to STR at 10th level (as noted in the text; PLEASE don't try to parse this as my saying they get any bonuses from Dragon Disciple above and beyond those granted by the text).

Given a Dragon Disciple who had Strength 10 when he entered the class and put ability increases from leveling up into something else, does he finish with 18 Strength (because both the second-and-fourth-level bonuses and the 4-strength bonus described in the text for Dragon Apotheosis are part of the template bonus), 22 Strength (because the 4-strength bonus described in the text is part of the assumption of the template, but the bonuses from second and fourth level are not), or 26 Strength (because each piece of text describing a strength increase is entirely separate)?

Similar questions apply to Constitution, Intelligence, Charisma, and Natural Armor.

The text isn't entirely clear on this point, because it seems clear that at least some of the bonuses acquired from the class are meant to be superseded by the template, but others presumably are not given a ten-level class to acquire a three-LA template.

EDIT: ...or I could entirely have misinterpreted the question and it could be regarding race and prerequisites. Sorry about that.

[Amechra]

Just to mention something:

By the wording of the capstone, you gain the Half-Dragon Template, AND you gain all the benefits of the capstone, namely the stat boosts and other fun stuff.

Also, what is your opinion on using alternate Dragon types from the 10 listed? I mean, you can have Half-Dragons for around 50 different dragons, so having only 10 is kinda eh, plus the ability itself says that you can have alternate types.

I would suggest that you can pick other dragon types that have a Breath weapon, and the damage remains the same (stuff like the Lungs and Shadow Dragons are kinda dicier; I would suggest not allowing them for the purposes of this contest.)

[Kelb_Panthera]

I think I'll take another swing. It's gonna be fun trying to format the tables properly when my only regular internet access is through my wii. :smallamused:

edit: and by another swing, I mean as a contestant. :smalltongue:

[OMG PONIES]

Dragon Disciple, hmm? I was afraid this day would come.

[kestrel404]

I've got a build (actually three...so far, but I'll only submit my best).

Also, we may want to limit this particular competition to one entry per competitor or else we will end up with three dozen entries for this one. Dragon Disciple is a very popular PrC, partly due to its location and partly due to the sheer interestingness of it.

[Amphetryon]

But you've answered the question then: they don't gain the template, just the benefits as listed
When both the verbiage I quoted and I, myself, both specify they gain the Half-Dragon template that grants the specific, listed, benefits, how is that interpreted as NOT gaining the template, exactly? :smallconfused: What they don't gain is ADDITIONAL BENEFITS BESIDES THOSE SPECIFIED AS BONUSES BY THE PrC.


Just to mention something:

By the wording of the capstone, you gain the Half-Dragon Template, AND you gain all the benefits of the capstone, namely the stat boosts and other fun stuff.

That would be true if the wording said "In addition to the template, you gain the following. . ." which it does not. This has been asked and answered in thread.


Also, what is your opinion on using alternate Dragon types from the 10 listed? I mean, you can have Half-Dragons for around 50 different dragons, so having only 10 is kinda eh, plus the ability itself says that you can have alternate types.

The footnote in the PrC's breath weapon chart specifies that other Dragon types are allowed, so I won't restrict them. There's no mention whatsoever of additional benefits to those few Dragon types that have no Breath Weapon, though, so those would appear sub-optimal.




For example, the Dragon Disciple gains +4 Strength, two each at 2nd and 4th level. Then at 10th, they 'take on the half-dragon template' and '[gain] +4 to Strength and +2 to Charisma'. The half-dragon template gives +8 Strength.That's not how it's written; the word "and" is not included in the same sentence specifying it gains the Half-Dragon template. There's a full stop (a period), followed by a delineation of the benefits gained at 10th level. When you change the way English is written, you change the meaning.

[Kuulvheysoon]

The footnote in the PrC's breath weapon chart specifies that other Dragon types are allowed, so I won't restrict them. There's no mention whatsoever of additional benefits to those few Dragon types that have no Breath Weapon, though, so those would appear sub-optimal.

Although not quite the same thing, Races of the Dragon (and, earlier, Draconomicon) has entries for different applications of the Half-Dragon template, including parents such as the Fang Dragon and the Lung Dragons.

Would contestants be allowed to use these alternate 'breath weapons' for their entries?

(Also, I'm not intending to compete this time. When my schedule gets a little clearer, I might find some time to judge, however).

[Amphetryon]

Although not quite the same thing, Races of the Dragon (and, earlier, Draconomicon) has entries for different applications of the Half-Dragon template, including parents such as the Fang Dragon and the Lung Dragons.

Would contestants be allowed to use these alternate 'breath weapons' for their entries?

(Also, I'm not intending to compete this time. When my schedule gets a little clearer, I might find some time to judge, however).

I'll say yes, but will also allow judges leeway in determining how Elegant such choices may be.

[gbprime]

Also, we may want to limit this particular competition to one entry per competitor or else we will end up with three dozen entries for this one. Dragon Disciple is a very popular PrC, partly due to its location and partly due to the sheer interestingness of it.

I was thinking the same thing. Hence the reason I pledged to only enter once!

[Amechra]

For Shadow Dragons (i.e., the only Dragon that has a breath weapon granted by half-Dragon that is not expressed in damage), would you just get the 1 Negative level when other dragon-types get their 6d10 damage? There really isn't a way to split it up...

Plus, does the capstone count as having the Template for purposes of prerequisites?

[Piggy Knowles]

If I enter, I'll only enter once.

I have a few ideas, some of which seem quite good, but the problem is, they are all things I've seen done before, often more than half a decade ago. This ingredient is pretty well-worn territory, even more so than the Shadowdancer. I'll have to give this one some serious thought.....

[Amphetryon]

For Shadow Dragons (i.e., the only Dragon that has a breath weapon granted by half-Dragon that is not expressed in damage), would you just get the 1 Negative level when other dragon-types get their 6d10 damage? There really isn't a way to split it up...

Plus, does the capstone count as having the Template for purposes of prerequisites?

Yes. Also, yes.

[Z3ro]

Oh, god, there are going to be a lot of entries this time around. I don't think anything I can throw together will stand out, so I'll judge instead (something tells me we're not going to get lots of judges this time around). Criteria:


Originality: This category has two main components; was your build similar to any of the other builds submitted, and was it similar to any well-known builds. In addition, I will penalize your build if it uses obvious tricks in obvious ways or well-known exploits in expected ways. Bonus points for things that haven't been thought of before (or at least with respect to the secret ingredient) and for using known tricks in unusual ways.

Power: How does your build stack up, power wise, to other builds focusing on similar objectives. Power in this category includes flexibility and versatility as well as straight combat power. This category will also measure power from level 1-20; a build will be penalized if it is excessively weak or unplayable at lower levels but ramps up later. Bonus points will be given if most or all of a build's power come from tricks involving the secret ingredient. I normally give a baseline to compare to in power, but I can’t really come up with one here. I’d consider the baseline in power to be something of a weak gish in this case, but can’t come up with a specific example (maybe something like hexblade?).

Elegance: The toughest category to judge and assess. Dipping will not be automatically penalized, but dipping that makes no thematic sense (taking 2 levels of fighter for the feats on a spellcasting class) will be. More importantly, the build should make sense at all levels, 1-20. Abilities that are useless at the level they are taken, but come on line later, will be penalized. Maintaining flavor and flow through the build will be rewarded, while taking out of place levels/abilities will be penalized. This is also the category that will see deductions for questionable use of rules/illegal builds. Expect points lost if you utilize something that most DMs would rule against. Special note: If you assume that you gain the half-dragon template in addition to the bonuses already offered, you will automatically be given a 1 in this category. I don’t care how you justify it, or how otherwise awesome your build is, you get a 1. Just don’t do it.

Use of the Secret Ingredient:Did you take all 10 levels? How many of the abilities granted did you use, and how essential are they to your build? Would your build be better off achieving its goal with another class, rather than the secret ingredient? Why would you use the SI, rather than just taking the half-dragon template (you don’t need to actually answer this question, just something to consider)?

[Kazyan]

For an ingredient that's so well studied, I didn't expect hours and hours of work to be necessary for it to behave. :smallannoyed: Now for assembly.

[BerronBrightaxe]

First time around.. :smalleek:

I'll think I'll give it a shot... :smallcool:

[The Gilded Duke]

Might end up judging, the trick I had is proving harder to control then I anticipated.

[KoboldCleric]

I'll throw my hat in as a tentative judge as well. I say tentative because if there really are some 50+ entries I'd need longer than 2 weeks, but as long as it stays around or under 30 I should be all right.

Originality: fairly straightforward. Did you use the obvious entries? Does your build focus on using the "staple" class features in standard ways or do you use underappreciated features in wildly unexpected ways?

Power: does your use of DD fit into the power level of its entry? Does it compare to builds with a similar focus? Can it perform a vital party role adequately? Do the abilities you pick up make sense at the levels you get them?

Elegance: I'm not going to penalize dipping. I don't care how many classes you have on your character sheet; I care whether the dips you use are efficient and whether the abilities granted fit in with the character's archetype. (e.g. If your melee monstrosity dips cloistered cleric, that's fine. Explain why "turn undead" makes sense as an ability your character should have; explain how you intend to use "lore" to support your role and archetype.) Does the build have a theme through all levels? If it changes, why?

Use of Secret Ingredient: did you? why did you rather than using something else? Did you use all of it and all of its abilities? Is it the focus of your build the SI? Do the levels you take in DD make sense when you take them?

[Fable Wright]

...Huh, I initially thought that there was no way to make a unique Dragon Disciple build that actually used all of the class abilities. I found one. For the first time, I think I'll be pitching my hat into the Iron Chef ring.

[Zeb]

@Thurbane

exhaustive list, and while I was referencing the first one I think all but two of those would be more interesting as a contestant.

That said I think I will try as a tentative judge.

Criteria

Originality: this will be based on the originality of your chassis to enter the SI. If it was a common or easy way to get there less points, uncommon or surprising, more points. If I find in via Google a lot less points. Competition point If other entry's use your entry chassis expect to lose some points. As far as race anything goes, but if I have to read more than 3 of the same races who want to be dragons expect a small deduction. Also more points if your concept is cool/I like it.

Power: Base power is compared to your build if it didn't take the SI and instead I just clapped the Half-dragon template on. Does your build cover all the bases, offense, defense, utility? Competition point If another build does it better don't expect points, if your the best then points for you.

Elegance: So much here, is your entry readable, does it make sense, questionable rules use, excessive dipping, lack of focus, use of stinky cheese, and anything that leaves a poor taste in my mouth. Of course the normal deductions for UA set forth by the chairman.

Use of Secret Ingredient: Did you qualify? take all ten levels? make use of the abilities? Did you make it the star of the build? Does your Non-SI synergize with the SI?

Note illegal builds will automatically score below the lowest legal build, sorry even if its really cool.

[dantiesilva]

For some reason I'm pretty confident in myself on this. Hopefully my feats don't fall through on me though, that is what always kills me in the end.

[Menteith]

I finished with my build early, which probably means I made a mistake. Now to see if I can find a way to do this more interestingly before the deadline!

[Xodion]

Well done to the judges for volunteering, as this does look like it will be heavily contested. Can we extend the judging deadline this time around if we do get a large number of entries, as I don't think two weeks will be enough...

[only1doug]

I have a concept, I'll see if I can flesh it out.

[The Gilded Duke]

Hah! Everything finally fit together. Done and submitted. It will be interesting to see if anyone else went the same path.

[ThiagoMartell]

I'll be all over this. Oooh, yeah.
Count me in as a contestant.

[_flint_]

I never really saw that much in the dragon disciple. I mean, why not just be a half dragon 3/Duskblade17?

Anyways, I'm confident that my build that it won't take dead last. Good luck everyone!

[Narsis]

I never really saw that much in the dragon disciple. I mean, why not just be a half dragon 3/Duskblade17?

this. hence why it's an ingredient. :P

[dantiesilva]

Lol no saying things that a person can be now flint I'm sure alot of people wouldn't like that.

Any ways in other news just got one more to go, saddly I forgot to send in one of the things for my character so Chairman may I send it to you now, its for the last one I just sent in dealing with the blank from the blank of the blank.

[MilesTiden]

Hmm... I think I will throw my hat into this! Dragon Disciple has always been a personal favorite of mine. I already have some rather unique (or at least, in my opinion) entries that I have planned for this. :smallsmile:

[Invader]

I think I might also try out a build in this challenge. Are you looking for any kind of character history or back story and if so how much? I was quite sure about that.

[Kuulvheysoon]

I think I might also try out a build in this challenge. Are you looking for any kind of character history or back story and if so how much? I was quite sure about that.

It varies. If you look back through the last few ICOs, you can get a pretty good idea of what the judges are looking for in general.

[Narsis]

arrgh! i had what i thought was an awesome idea but it keeps going up in smoke no matter what i try. :(

[Menteith]

My build is finished, and I'm enjoying how it turned out. Still, I feel like I could use one of DD's class features more effectively, so I'll keep thinking about it.

[killianh]

I think I'll take a crack at judging this one

[Madara]

I'm going to finally submit an entry! :smallbiggrin: I am determined

Edit: Question, when it says

Bonus Spells

Dragon disciples gain bonus spells as they gain levels in this prestige class, as if from having a high ability score, as given on Table: The Dragon Disciple. A bonus spell can be added to any level of spells the disciple already has the ability to cast.

Is it bonus spells known, or spells/day? :smallconfused:

[Kazyan]

Is it bonus spells known, or spells/day? :smallconfused:

Spells/day, as if from having a high ability score. High ability scores do not increase spells known, or WotC would probably have docked the sorcerer two spells known every level.

[Amechra]

My entry is in! Good luck to all!

[Kazyan]

After much fiddling, my entry is in.

This feeling appears to be a mixture of shame, nervousness and pride.

[OMG PONIES]

So I've found a pretty decent chassis to use, but it begs the same question as always: why use the Secret Ingredient?

[Fable Wright]

So I've found a pretty decent chassis to use, but it begs the same question as always: why use the Secret Ingredient?

Unique spellcasting boosts? Stat boosts as class features? Additional attacks at crappy unbuffable bonuses? Two good saves and a Good attack progression? The list of reasons go on. :smalltongue:

[Kuulvheysoon]

Whoa, look at all the build submitted already - and there's still nearly 2 weeks to go.

[Sgt. Cookie]

I have an idea. I'll give this one a go, certainly.

[KoboldsAreLittl]

I have always wanted to play along with these competitions. I will submit my attempt.

[Piggy Knowles]

Hmm, I may have something interesting to submit after all. Still needs a few tweaks for sure, but let's see how it goes.

[Amphetryon]

Ten days to go, eight builds submitted so far. The judges could have their work cut out for them.

[ThiagoMartell]

I'll be away from my books until the deadline, so count me as a judge.

[dantiesilva]

Almost done with my build this has been the longest I spent on a build in I don't know how long. Though it has its flaws ( no not literal) It makes up in being able to shine in what it does. Good luck to everyone and let the best build win.

[Kelb_Panthera]

I find I can't come up with a build I'm comfortable using for competition. I therefore withdraw from the contest.

[Dragrun]

I might try this I'm gonna think about this one this is a tough one

[smasher0404]

I just finished my build, so i can for once say that i can enter :smallbiggrin:

[Marootsoobutsu]

Question: Is the Arms and Equipment Guide regarded as 3.0 or 3.5? And, if 3.0, are 3.0 books considered verboten for this contests purposes?

[Kuulvheysoon]

Question: Is the Arms and Equipment Guide regarded as 3.0 or 3.5? And, if 3.0, are 3.0 books considered verboten for this contests purposes?

3.0 books are all grandfathered into 3.5, unless the content has been directly replaced in a newer(3.5e) book.

[Amphetryon]

Question: Is the Arms and Equipment Guide regarded as 3.0 or 3.5? And, if 3.0, are 3.0 books considered verboten for this contests purposes?
Please see the FAQ in the second post of this thread.

[Marootsoobutsu]

Please see the FAQ in the second post of this thread.

Oh, herka-derka. It's like I'm not a unique snow-flake. I have no idea how I missed that; thanks.

[Jarveiyan]

I have decided to try my hand at this, submission done and sent.

[BobVosh]

Bah I hate this class. Good luck cooks.

[OMG PONIES]

Yeesh, this ingredient is both beautiful and ugly. Great pick, Chairman. I'm struggling to complete my entry by the deadline, but I'll try to get one in.

[spelacnar]

I've got a build made... Still thinking about backstory though. Not sure if i'll get around to submitting it. What's the total count so far Chairman?

[Blind Orc]

What about 3.0 materials? 3.0 materials, whether online or in printed form, are allowed unless they've been officially updated to a 3.5 edition.What about 3.0 materials? 3.0 materials, whether online or in printed form, are allowed unless they've been officially updated to a 3.5 edition.

So something that is updated isn't allowed but something that is not updated is fine? I thought it was a typo or something.

[ThiagoMartell]

So something that is updated isn't allowed but something that is not updated is fine? I thought it was a typo or something.

If something was updated, you are supposed to use the 3.5 equivalent.
If something was not updated, there is no 3.5 equivalent, so you can use it.

[BerronBrightaxe]

Sorry guys, but I'm withdrawing from the competition.

the idea which I had didn't really work and I don't have time for a new build in the coming days..

GL & HF y'all

[only1doug]

i'm almost done but i'll not be able to finish it until Thursday.

[Menteith]

And submitted!

Good luck to everyone else!

[Garwain]

I also submitted a build. I did something peculiar to stand out. I hope it works.

[Venger]

I also submitted a build. I did something peculiar to stand out. I hope it works.

best of luck! I hope it does too, I don't want anybody to lose points in originality due to bad luck

[dantiesilva]

Oh i know that originality will be a problem with all of one build of mine, but it will be made up for by the rest of the build, i will gladly take a .5 loss for a + 1 or more gain. Would be great if didn't have to but I for see many people using a total of only two races for this build so..yea. Can't say more though. Besides this.


Got you and you thought I was telling

[OMG PONIES]

I also submitted a build. I did something peculiar to stand out. I hope it works.

As did I...though I hope our peculiarities are divergent enough to still reap points in originality.

[Menteith]

Now I really want to see the reveal! I think mine is reasonably interesting as well; hopefully, this will be a great Iron Chef!

[Dragrun]

Clarification , are generic classes allowed?

[Amphetryon]

Clarification , are generic classes allowed?

Yes. Any materials from Unearthed Arcana may well warrant an Elegance penalty, at the judges' discretion.

[Dragrun]

Aight thanks Though oh great amph

[Dragrun]

Thank Gygax for the d20srd im trying this challenge with open source content only and man it's a bitch

[Dragrun]

2 questions

1: in "fully fleshed out build" does that mean that we need to use WBL tobuy items/whatever

2: where is the WBL in the SRD?

[Thurbane]

1. Builds don't usually focus on gear - some people put a "suggested items" section after their levelling info. You don't really need to list every purchase or use of WBL.
2. WBL isn't open content, so it's not in the SRD. You can find it in the DMG p.135.

[Devmaar]

I've got a build done but I don't know if I'll get it formatted and written up before the deadline...

[Dragrun]

Ok then I won't worry because I was afraid I needed to give a item list as well

[dantiesilva]

I have put an item list once and it worked against me. So you give the idea of what kind of items you want let judges fill in what item it is, unless it is specific. After all their are way to many D&D books with way to many items and abilities that it would become a mess for everyone. For example in one of my builds for a hulking hurler I had a storm giant with an enlarge person wand. But I would make my own items for everything else really. Gloves that grant boosts to Dex and STR, same with boots. Cloak that grants WIS and Cha. So on so forth. When i started playing i used to read every book just to see the new items. Then I learned their are to many to remember. And until they make a new MIC it is pointless to even try, a monks belt for someone with high wisdom. Very few things need to be mentioned for equipment unless it is essential to your build. Hope I didn't spoil anything or step the boundary.

[only1doug]

PM'd my entry now.

[Dragrun]

****in IPad got to redo entry and it took me the better part of yesterday to do it FML

[zlefin]

for bab and saves, do we use fractional or regular? I can't find an answer in the faq.

[Amphetryon]

for bab and saves, do we use fractional or regular? I can't find an answer in the faq.

Fractional BAB/saves is an optional system. Use standard. You may note how fractional BAB/saves influences your build.

[Dumbledore lives]

Well, word crashed but recovered all my progress, so build complete.

[Garwain]

As did I...though I hope our peculiarities are divergent enough to still reap points in originality.We're still trying to optimize, so sometimes a logical, effective and elegant solution leads to a spiral of reversed psychology:
1. everyone knows this
2. thus everyone will avoid it
3. thus I can take it!
4. but if everyone thinks like me, they all will take it
5. So I should avoid it
6. go back to point 2.

[Dragrun]

I think I got a build

Submitted

[OMG PONIES]

Huge problems accessing the site--trying to finalize and submit a build before the deadline, but sometimes my browsers tell me they can't find GitP. Problems with the new servers?

EDIT: Finally got it working decently--build submitted. I'm eager to se what everyone came up with! I've got a joke build in the works, but I don't think I'll have the time to format it before the deadline.

[Venger]

Huge problems accessing the site--trying to finalize and submit a build before the deadline, but sometimes my browsers tell me they can't find GitP. Problems with the new servers?

EDIT: Finally got it working decently--build submitted. I'm eager to se what everyone came up with! I've got a joke build in the works, but I don't think I'll have the time to format it before the deadline.

joke builds are often the most fun to do, and can even win stuff. pumpkinhead almost snagged HM back in shadowdancer. good luck with your dragon guy or gal.

[gbprime]

Rough couple of weeks, but thanks to the long deadline...

Build submitted. Good luck all.

[Piggy Knowles]

Power outage means I won't be able to finish things up and submit on time. Good luck, everyone!

[Soranar]

Too busy in RL to participate (it's moving season over here) but I'm curious to see what people will come up with. Gl all.

[kestrel404]

Build submitted. It just wouldn't get out of my head until I wrote it all down...

[zlefin]

I'm not getting around to writing up my build, so i'll pass on the competition, it's not that optimized anyways. I'll just talk about what I was thinking once we're at the talking phase.

[Venger]

there's a storm outside, so I hope I can submit without incident. good luck, everybody

[Blind Orc]

I start typing now, maybe I will be on time :smallbiggrin:

[Kazyan]

Good luck to everyone! I can't wait for the reveal. Perhaps someone has brewed up a grand new trick.

[Amphetryon]

Now it's time for the reveal! Please refrain from posting in the thread until I give the all-clear. Thanks.

[Amphetryon]

A real gem of a build.

Soul of the Earth, Orvalo

Transcript
Put that rock back. It's complicated to explain; I kinda need it right there for spells. Good. No, go ahead, mess with the others; I don't care about those.

I've always been in tune with the earth. Every Azurin contains a little of the soul energy of the ages, but what comes to each of us is a little different. Me? dwarves, giants, bulettes, earth elementals...the rock itself. Even in late youth, I could feel when there was pressure in the dirt around me. From there, when you develop a sense for the elements, it's an easy road to channeling them directly.

That's not what you came to know, though. You asked about becoming a dragon. How do you do it? Meh. You just get a dragon and tell it you're them now, I guess. It takes a while.

I only make it work through three stages. After I learned to hold the incarnum of a deceased ancient wyrm--don't ask me what kind it was; it doesn't matter now--I just had to go through the process of absorbing it. This is personal experience, mind you, but try doing the 'phases' thing I stumbled on.

Hmm? Oh. While I started out as fleshy as anyone, my link to the earth strengthened so much that I wanted to be able to use it for actual power. So worked on forging an itty bitty earth elemental to my incarnum. Stone on the outside. I let it sink into me. Then by flowing magic, it crystallizes. By essentia, the gems glow with life, and I absorb the waves of arcane incarnum of dragons. And then I am ready to fly.

But I think I'd rather sit underground, with me, myself, and I. I'll introduce them you after a moment to cast a spell.

Setting up the Build
Orvalo is a CN Mineral Warrior Azurin, beginning at ECL 2. Use the following ability array:

{table=head]Score|Array|Adjustment|Total|Level Up Increases
STR|14|+2|16|3rd & 4th
DEX|9||9|
CON|12|+4|16|
INT|17|-2|15|1st & 2nd
WIS|15|-2|13|
CHA|8|-2|6|[/table]

Functionally, Orvalo gishes, starting as a trench longspear user and developing into, well, a dragon.

Build by Level

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

LA|Mineral Warrior|||||||

1st|Wu Jen 1|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|Knowledge (Arcana) 4, Knowledge (The Planes) 4, Knowledge (Religion) 4, Knowledge (Nature) 4|Heighten Spell (Bonus Metamagic Feat), Alacritous Cogitation, Earth Sense|Watchful Spirit

2nd|Wu Jen 2|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3|Knowledge (Arcana) 5, Knowledge (The Planes) 5, Knowledge (Religion) 5, Knowledge (Nature) 5||

3rd|Wu Jen 3|
+1|
+1|
+1|
+3|Knowledge (Arcana) 6, Knowledge (The Planes) 6, Knowledge (Religion) 6, Knowledge (Nature) 6|Earth Spell|Spell Secret (Enlarged Fog Cloud)

4th|(Chaos) Incarnate 1|
+1|
+3|
+1|
+5|Knowledge (Arcana) 7, Knowledge (The Planes) 7, Knowledge (Religion) 7, Knowledge (Nature) 7||Aura, Detect opposition (law)

5th|Incarnate 2|
+2|
+4|
+1|
+6|Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Knowledge (The Planes) 8, Knowledge (Religion) 8, Knowledge (Nature) 8, Tumble 0.5||Chakra Bind (crown)

6th|(Sapphire) Dragon Disciple 1|
+2|
+6|
+1|
+8|Knowledge (Arcana) 9, Knowledge (The Planes) 9, Knowledge (Religion) 9, Knowledge (Nature) 9, Spellcraft 1, Tumble 0.5|Knowledge Devotion|Natural Armor (+1)

7th|Dragon Disciple 2|
+3|
+7|
+1|
+9|Knowledge (Arcana) 10, Knowledge (The Planes) 10, Knowledge (Religion) 10, Knowledge (Nature) 10, Spellcraft 2, Tumble 0.5||Ability boost (Str +2), claws and bite

8th|Dragon Disciple 3|
+4|
+7|
+2|
+9|Knowledge (Arcana) 11, Knowledge (The Planes) 11, Knowledge (Religion) 11, Knowledge (Nature) 11, Spellcraft 3, Tumble 0.5||Breath weapon (2d8)

9th|Dragon Disciple 4|
+5|
+8|
+2|
+10|Knowledge (Arcana) 12, Knowledge (The Planes) 12, Knowledge (Religion) 12, Knowledge (Nature) 12, Spellcraft 4, Concentration 1, Tumble 0.5|Practiced Spellcaster|Ability Boost (Str +2), natural armor increase (+2)

10th|Dragon Disciple 5|
+5|
+8|
+2|
+10|Knowledge (Arcana) 13, Knowledge (The Planes) 13, Knowledge (Religion) 13, Knowledge (Nature) 13, Spellcraft 4, Concentration 2, Tumble 0.5||Blindsense 30 ft.

11th|Dragon Disciple 6|
+6/+1|
+9|
+3|
+11|Knowledge (Arcana) 14, Knowledge (The Planes) 14, Knowledge (Religion) 14, Knowledge (Nature) 14, Spellcraft 5, Concentration 3, Tumble 0.5||Ability boost (Con +2)

12th|Dragon Disciple 7|
+7/+2|
+9|
+3|
+11|Knowledge (Arcana) 15, Knowledge (The Planes) 15, Knowledge (Religion) 15, Knowledge (Nature) 15, Spellcraft 6, Concentration 4, Tumble 0.5|Multiattack|Breath weapon (4d8), natural armor increase (+3)

13th|Dragon Disciple 8|
+8/+3|
+10|
+3|
+12|Knowledge (Arcana) 16, Knowledge (The Planes) 16, Knowledge (Religion) 16, Knowledge (Nature) 16, Spellcraft 7, Concentration 5, Tumble 0.5||Ability boost (Int +2)

14th|Dragon Disciple 9|
+8/+3|
+10|
+4|
+13|Knowledge (Arcana) 17, Knowledge (The Planes) 17, Knowledge (Religion) 17, Knowledge (Nature) 17, Spellcraft 8, Concentration 6, Tumble 0.5||Wings

15th|Dragon Disciple 10|
+9/+4|
+11|
+4|
+14|Knowledge (Arcana) 18, Knowledge (The Planes) 18, Knowledge (Religion) 18, Knowledge (Nature) 18, Spellcraft 9, Concentration 7, Tumble 0.5|Dragon Breath|Blindsense 60 ft., dragon apotheosis

16th|Wu Jen 4|
+10/+5|
+12|
+4|
+15|Knowledge (Arcana) 19, Knowledge (The Planes) 19, Knowledge (Religion) 19, Knowledge (Nature) 19, Spellcraft 10, Concentration 8, Tumble 0.5||

17th|Wu Jen 5|
+10/+5|
+12|
+4|
+15|Knowledge (Arcana) 20, Knowledge (The Planes) 20, Knowledge (Religion) 20, Knowledge (Nature) 20, Spellcraft 11, Concentration 9, Tumble 0.5||

18th|Wu Jen 6|
+11/+6/+1|
+13|
+5|
+16|Knowledge (Arcana) 21, Knowledge (The Planes) 21, Knowledge (Religion) 21, Knowledge (Nature) 21, Spellcraft 12, Concentration 10, Tumble 0.5|Arcane Thesis (Body Outside Body)|Elemental Mastery

19th|Earth Dreamer 1|
+11/+6/+1|
+15|
+5|
+18|Knowledge (Arcana) 21, Knowledge (The Planes) 21, Knowledge (Religion) 21, Knowledge (Nature) 22, Spellcraft 13, Concentration 13, Tumble 0.5||Earth Friend[/table]

Ability scores(excludes enhancement and inherent bonuses)
{table=head]Level|Strength|Dexterity|Constitution|Intelligence |Wisdom|Charismal

LA|-|-|-|-|-|-

1st|16|9|16|15|13|6

2nd|16|9|16|15|13|6

3rd|16|9|16|15|13|6

4th|16|9|16|16|13|6

5th|16|9|16|16|13|6

6th|16|9|16|16|13|6

7th|18|9|16|16|13|6

8th|18|9|16|17|13|6

9th|20|9|16|17|13|6

10th|20|9|16|17|13|6

11th|20|9|18|17|13|6

12th|21|9|18|17|13|6

13th|21|9|18|19|13|6

14th|21|9|18|19|13|6

15th|25|9|18|19|13|8

16th|26|9|18|19|13|8

17th|26|9|18|19|13|8

18th|26|9|18|19|13|8

19th|26|9|18|19|13|8[/table]

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

LA|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

1st|3|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

2nd|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

3rd|4|3|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

4th|4|3|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

5th|4|3|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

6th|4|3|2|2|-|-|-|-|-|-

7th|4|3|2|2|1|-|-|-|-|-

8th|4|3|2|2|1|-|-|-|-|-

9th|4|3|2|2|1|1|-|-|-|-

10th|4|3|2|2|1|1|1|-|-|-

11th|4|3|2|2|1|1|1|1|-|-

12th|4|3|2|2|1|1|1|1|-|-

13th|4|3|2|2|2|1|1|1|1|-

14th|4|3|2|2|2|1|1|1|1|1

15th|4|3|2|2|2|1|1|1|1|1

16th|4|3|2|2|2|1|1|1|1|1

17th|4|3|2|2|2|1|1|1|1|1

18th|4|3|2|2|2|1|1|1|1|1

19th|4|3|2|2|2|1|1|1|1|1[/table]

Incarnum Resources
{table=head]Level|Soulmelds|Essentia|Chakra Binds

LA|-|-|-

1st|0|1|0

2nd|0|1|0

3rd|2|2|0

4th-11th|3|3|1

12th-19th|3|4|1
[/table]

ECLs 2-6: Flesh to Stone
Exploiting your Mineral Warrior abilities is the way to succeed at low levels. DR 8/unavailable is extremely relevant at low ECL, so you can handle kobolds. Sleep and other Save-or-Xs will have a low DC, but you should be passable with a Longspear. But that's not what you're a Mineral Warrior for. What you want is the burrow speed. In a pinch, you can use a precursor to your future attack routine: Standard action to longspear stab, free action to drop it, and move action to burrow 15 ft down into safety. Burrow out and grab it again later. However, your best strategy is to burrow enough to make a hole that provides cover, and longspear from inside it. Aside from that, burrow is just plain useful.

Keep a slot open for Alacritous Cogitation. You'll need it if things go south and a Sleep or Fog Cloud would help. You can get a feel of what's going on in a cloud with Earth Sense, too.

When you get your incarnum, use the Crystal Helm and Mantle of Flame to protect yourself and improve damage, then at ECL 5, bind the Crystal Helm to say "no" to damage reduction and support your to-hit with Lucky Dice. I know, +1 means nothing, but what are you going to do about it?

ECLs 7-10: Stone to Sapphire
Bypass the casting requirement with Alacritous Cogitation: prepare nothing; cast spell. Ticks all the boxes.

Knowledge Devotion is because you need to-hit. A note: Orvalo does not have enough skill points to be perfect at this, but the most common knowledges for this are selected. If your DM is really diverse in his monsters, consider spreading out the skill points to Dungeoneering and Local.

I would be flabbergasted if I were the only one to come up with this trick, so this redundant explanation will be short. If N is the level of your highest spell slot, you can Earth Heighten something to level N+1, so the Dragon Disciple's Bonus Spell can be an N+1'th level slot. Now add N+1'th level spells to your spellbook (take 10 and use a masterwork tool). Your next bonus spell, with the same method, will be an N+2'th level slot, and so on. Because you're not getting spell secrets, you don't get any new taboos, either. It's a good thing that thrown books can't get through your DR.

Your new attack routine discards the longspear, and instead combines the natural attack rules with Incarnate Weapon: Battleaxe/Bite/Claw/Claw. After the battleaxe swing, drop the Incarnate Weapon as a free action to free up your claws, and your bite is a secondary attack as well, now. On your next turn the weapon returns to your hands. Repeat.

Your soulmelds are now Incarnate Weapon, Mantle of Flame and Crystal Helm, by default.

Finally, you get really, really annoying in combat. After the attacks with your Incarnate Weapon, shift essentia to your Crystal Helm as a swift action for AC. On your next turn, shift back to Incarnate Weapon, do the attack routine, then use your 5-foot step into the ground for partial cover. On your next turn, 5-foot step up and out, full attack, shift essentia to Crystal Helm.

In case it needs to be said, the dragon variety you choose is a Sapphire Dragon, but fluff-wise, Orvalo takes from a dragon whose color he doesn't care about. The breath weapon is either "huh, that's new" or "how else am I supposed to talk to you from 20 feet underground?"

ECLs 11-15: Sapphire to Drake
You can now keep track of your opponents with blindsense. Try coming up directly under them to flatfoot them--ice for a low-BAB build.

You gain a 7th-level spell slot, the Wu Jen version of ninths. Body Outside Body. You only get one clone for now, so use its 1 minute wisely. Its breath weapon is just as good as yours, and if you have a Ring of Essentia, the clone can invest in it and hand it back to you for free essentia. Use it as a flanking buddy--whatever; the point is that you can summon a clone.

Also, +16 strength from Giant Size is great.

Your wings are acquired after the application of Mineral Warrior, so you can fly with them, by the way.

Your Intelligence bonus comes just in time, letting you use the 8th and 9th level slots incoming. By ECL 15, you will have 9th level spells and wings. Rejoice.

ECLs 16-20: Drake to Wyrmling
+4 strength and +2d8 breath weapon, Dragon Breath in order to sonic all day, and you might* be able to use the Dragon's Tail soulmeld instead of Mantle of Flame from now on. ECL 16 is good. Ask if you get sonic immunity per the wording or electricity immunity per the Sapphire Dragon's entry.

(*Well, Dragon Magic says you only get to use the soulmelds if you have the dragonblood subtype. The sidebar in the book's introduction says that dragon types automatically qualify for a bunch of dragonblood subtype goodies, but soulmelds are not listed as one of the goodies. Ask your DM. It's unlikely, but possible, that it wasn't an oversight.)

Consider getting a +X Greater Soulbound Mouthpick Gnome Quickrazor, made from crystal. I prefer to fluff this as an enormous toothpick-shaped sapphire that hangs off Orvalo's lips even when they're open. Mouthpick gives you proficiency and is cheaper than Skillful, and because you can freely draw and sheathe it, you get your bite attack and can cast. Greater Soulbound lets you invest essentia the same way as with the Incarnate Weapon. Oh, and you can fully submerse yourself in the ground now. Do note that your clones will get a nonmagical version, so you should still shape Incarnate Weapon for their sakes.

Other prestige classes are ornery, so really, there's not much better for you than more Wu Jen. At ECL 17, you can Earth Heighten Body Outside Body to get two clones. Go nuts with their breath weapons now; you might be immune to them anyway, so you don't have to aim around the other yous. ECL 18 gives you more 3rds. ECL 19 grants Earth Mastery, bumping Body Outside Body up another 2 CL; by now your'e sitting on CL 12 on that spell for free. Arcane Thesis (Body Outside Body) gives you another +2 CL and, with your 8th slot, lets you Earth Heighten the spell to CL 10(Base)+2(Earth Mastery)+2(Arcane Thesis)+1(Earth Spell) = 15, producing a third clone. Another toy from ECL 19 is your third iterative attack--this level is good.

The Earth Dreamer level at the end is because it's fitting, you qualify effortlessly, and it's better than more Wu Jen in every way. Anyway, now you no longer have to Earth Heighten Body Outside Body for the third clone. And if you've snagged an Orange Ioun Stone by now, you can become Gargantuan from Giant Size (16 = 11 Base + 2 Earth Mastery + 2 Earth Heighten + 1 Ioun Stone).

Finally, consider your capstone: If your clones count as NPCs--they might, since the spell explicitly creates new entities--their initial attitude is clearly helpful towards you (and friendly towards everyone else). They also have the Earth subtype. The Earth Friend feature bumps up the initial attitude of Earth-subtyped creatures that meet you. Thus, your clones could actually count as Fanatic, complete with a +2 morale bonus to Strength and Constitution.

Go nuts.[/SIZE]

Writeup: Level 15 (ECL 16)
Ah, ECL 16.

Incarnate Weapon, Dragon's Tail, and Crystal Helm. Awesome toothcrystal. +21/+18/+15/+15/+15/+15 as a full attack routine at the bare unbuffed and rather thrifty minimum, while ignoring DR. Body Outside Body for a buddy with +20/+15/+15/+15/+15, and borrow an Ioun Stone and use your highest spell slot for another (7 base + 2 earth highten + 1 ioun stone = 10, one close per 5 levels). Each of the yous able to sonic for 3d8 minimum, just about whenever you feel like it. Able to hide utterly from damage using the floor, and you(s) are doing that half the time anyway. Can surprise attack from deep in the floor with no help. Damage reduction. (Ex) Flight. A natural armor bonus of "try again". And ninth level spells.

Life is good.

Build Adaptations
If you start out at higher ECL than 5 or so, consider alternatives to Mineral Warrior. The Burrowing Claws graft grants you a burrow speed, which you can fluff easily--how can you be bad at digging with corundum claws? You could also ask your DM to make the Burrow spell part of the Wu Jen list, as Spell Compendium suggests. That's a temporary effect, though. Finally, you could ask about LA buyoff, but for a template like Mineral Warrior, don't count on it.

Equipment
The +X Greater Soulbound Mouthpick Gnome Quickrazor is the only unusual item I consider necessary.

These, though, are very, very nice to have:

Enhancement bonus items
Orange Prism Ioun Stone or Ring of Arcane Might
Ring of Essentia
Custom item of Mage Armor
+X Amulet of Mighty Fists
Reflex save increasers
Necessary Magic Items (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=187851)

Sources

SRD
Player's Handbook II
Complete Arcane
Complete Mage
Complete Champion
Magic of Incarnum
Underdark or web excerpt (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ex/20031003e)
Races of Stone
Races of the Dragon
Lords of Madness
Magic Item Compendium

[Amphetryon]

Jenny, Jenny, who can I turn to?


http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100224012628/left4dead/images/6/6b/Witch_2.PNG (http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100224012628/left4dead/images/6/6b/Witch_2.PNG)
Jeanette Crawford
{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features

1st|Battle Sorcerer|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|Concentration 4, Knowledge (Arcana) 4, Spellcraft 4|Alertness, Symbiont Mastery|Metamagic Specialist

2nd|Battle Sorcerer|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3|Concentration 5, Knowledge (Arcana) 5, Spellcraft 5||

3rd|Battle Sorcerer|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+3|Concentration 6, Knowledge (Arcana) 6, Spellcraft 6|Fell Drain|

4th|Battle Sorcerer|
+3|
+1|
+1|
+4| Concentration 7, Knowledge (Arcana) 7, Spellcraft 7||

5th|Battle Sorcerer|
+3|
+1|
+1|
+4| Concentration 8, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Spellcraft 8||

6th|Dragon Disciple|
+4|
+3|
+1|
+6| Concentration 9, Knowledge (Arcana) 9, Spellcraft 9|Arcane Thesis (Magic Missile)|+1 Natural Armor

7th|Dragon Disciple|
+5|
+4|
+1|
+7| Concentration 10, Knowledge (Arcana) 10, Spellcraft 10 ||Claws and Bite

8th|Dragon Disciple|
+6/+1|
+4|
+2|
+7| Concentration 11, Knowledge (Arcana) 11, Spellcraft 11||

9th|Dragon Disciple|
+7/+2|
+5|
+2|
+8| Concentration 12, Knowledge (Arcana) 12, Spellcraft 12|Weapon Focus (Claws)|Ability Boost (+2 Str), Natural Armor Increase +2

10th|Soul Eater|
+8/+3|
+7|
+4|
+10| Concentration 13, Knowledge (Arcana) 13, Spellcraft 13||Energy Drain 1

11th|Soul Eater|
+9/+4|
+8|
+5|
+11| Concentration 14, Knowledge (Arcana) 14, Spellcraft 14||Soul Strength

12th|Dragon Disciple|
+10/+5|
+8|
+5|
+11| Concentration 15, Knowledge (Arcana) 15, Spellcraft 15|Life Drain|Blindsense 30'

13th|Dragon Disciple|
+11/+6/+1|
+9|
+6|
+12| Concentration 16, Knowledge (Arcana) 16, Spellcraft 16||

14th|Dragon Disciple|
+12/+7/+2|
+9|
+6|
+12| Concentration 17, Knowledge (Arcana) 17, Spellcraft 17||Natural Armor Increase +3

15th|Dragon Disciple|
+13/+8/+3|
+10|
+6|
+13| Concentration 17, Knowledge (Arcana) 18, Spellcraft 18, Collector of Stories|Improved Energy Drain|

16th|Dragon Disciple|
+14/+9/+4|
+10|
+7|
+13| Concentration 19, Knowledge (Arcana) 19, Spellcraft 19, Collector of Stories|||Wings

17th|Dragon Disciple|
+15/+10/+5|
+11|
+7|
+14| Concentration 19, Knowledge (Arcana) 20, Spellcraft 20, Collector of Stories, Swift Concentration||Blindsense 60', Dragon Apotheosis (+4 NA, Breath Weapon (1 Negative level), Low-light Vision, 60' Darkvision, and Immunity to Sleep and Paralysis.)

18th|Soul Eater|
+16/+11/+6/+1|
+11|
+7|
+14| Concentration 21, Knowledge (Arcana) 21, Spellcraft 21, Collector of Stories, Swift Concentration |Dragon Breath|Soul Blast

19th|Soul Eater|
+17/+12/+7/+2|
+12|
+8|
+15| Concentration 22, Knowledge (Arcana) 22, Spellcraft 22, Collector of Stories, Swift Concentration, Intimidate 1||Soul Enhancement

20th|Soul Eater|
+18/+13/+8/+3|
+12|
+8|
+15| Concentration 23, Knowledge (Arcana) 23, Spellcraft 23, Collector of Stories, Swift Concentration, Intimidate 2||Soul Endurance [/table]

32 PB:
Str: 20 (+4 Ability Boost +4 Dragon Apotheosis)
Dex: 10
Con: 14 (+2 Ability Boost)
Wis: 10
Cha: 25 (+5 Levels +2 Dragon Apotheosis)
Int: 14 (+2 Ability Boost)

Build:
NE Daelkyr Half-Blood Battle Sorcerer 5/Dragon Disciple 4/Soul Eater 2/Dragon Disciple +6/Soul Eater +3
Spells per day/Spells Known
{table=head]Level|0lvl|1st|2nd|3rd|4th|5th|6th|7th|8th|9th

1st|4|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

2nd|5|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

3rd|5|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

4th|5|5|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

5th|5|5|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

6th|5|5|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

7th|5|5|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

8th|5|5|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

9th|5|5|6|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

10th|5|5|6|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

11th|5|5|6|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

12th|5|5|7|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

13th|5|5|8|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

14th|5|5|8|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

15th|5|5|9|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

16th|5|5|10|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

17th|5|5|10|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

18th|5|5|10|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

19th|5|5|10|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

20th|5|5|10|-|-|-|-|-|-|-[/table]

Spells known:
0th: Sonic Snap, Detect Magic, Disrupt Undead, Prestidigitation, Ghost Sound
1st: Mage Armor, Magic Missile, Shield
2nd: Eagle’s Splendor

Symbionts by level:
1st: Throwing Scarab
5th: Throwing Scarab
10th: Throwing Scarab
15th: Tongueworm

Backstory:
"Mommy, how did you meet daddy?"
"Well, sweetie, that's a long story. I'll start from the beginning, so take a seat, young lady."
The dust gets shuffled around a bit. Silence.
"Well, it starts off when I was a little girl. I was always a bit of the weird one, but your daddy didn't care, he played with me when the rest of the children would only throw stones at me..."
The stones stones bouncing off her head blood filling her eyes her clothes her mouth.
Her fingers reached down to my head flicking flicking watch them bleed watch them scream watch the fear the delicious fear.
Why do they hate her?

Level 1
Say hi to Jenny! She's a Daelkyr Half-Blood Sorcerer with a Throwing Scarab at her beck and call.
This of course means that, when she's not, you know, casting the nice sorcerer spells she's got (like Magic Missile), she has a better back-up plan than the sillyness that is a crossbow.
She's also a Battle Sorcerer, which means that she has better BAB and HP, and so can stay alive for a little longer in close quarters.
All in all, she's just a 1st level Caster with 1d8+3 HP; not too tough, not too weak. Let's just hope she survives.

"After I got to be a big girl, I ran away; even the parents got mad that I hurt their children, and that I protected myself.
I ran far, far away, until I found another village. And that's where I met your father. We got married, and I had you."
"But mommy, you said you knew Daddy when you were little like me."
"Oh, that's right. Silly of me to forget that. Anyway, he must have followed me there."
I was there and so he was why did they hate for defense why why why why why why why why?
I love her forever.

Level 5
Jenny is now a level 5 Sorcerer. Which basically means that she can cast the spells that make the people fall down. More specifically, she has Fell Drain and Sonic Snap, so she can inflict a negative level at short ranges with no save or attack roll, which makes it a nice debuff, and a lovely way to get rid of nosy parkers that she finds sneaking around.
Her only real means of dealing with undead is Disrupt Undead; due to Wight creation, this one is kinda a must. Of course, Throwing Scarabs affect them just like everyone else: With painful acidic pain.

"But then I started getting really weird; I started growing scales and fangs, and things I touched started dying. It made me sad, so very sad.
Your daddy still loved me, but then I killed him by accident. It was all the villagers' fault. I killed them all too. All their fault."
Then we ran fast and quick from our feasting lives taste good so good like candy or a fresh carcass delicious delicious delicious like fear.

Level 10
Jenny just got a LOT stronger. Namely, she has 3 natural attacks from our good friend Dragon Disciple, her Strength just jumped by 4, and she has a little extra natural armor to make up for her lack of armor proficiencies.
Also, for ****s and giggles, she now has several more ways to inflict negative levels on people, for the nice, sexy debuffs. Namely, she (as of Soul Eater 1) inflicts a negative level every time she hits with a natural attack, which is rather scary, as negative levels make it harder for the enemy to hit her. Also, 4/day, she can throw Fell Drain onto any damaging spell she wants with no increase in casting time, which is nice for Magic Missile, since she can cast a Fell Drain Magic Missile as a 2nd level spell at CL 7, for 4 level draining Missiles!

"I had to run away. It wasn't right for me to stay in cities, since everyone I touched died. Even you died, sweetie, but that nice Cleric I ate brought you back! It was so nice of him. He tasted so nice, so that has to be it."
I am your tongue your right hand tongue souls are food life is food all is food feast feast feast feast feast feast.

Level 15

Sweet mother of baby Jesus, Jenny now does some major pain with her negative levels! Each one she inflicts through any means deals 11 damage (13 damage while under the effects of an Eagle's Splendor spell; any items or buffs that increase charisma are crazy awesome for this ability), gives her an equal number of Temporary Hit Points (which, due to each negative level counting as a different source, stack), and gives her a +1 to everything that a negative level penalizes (which also stack, and which occurs each time an effect deals at least 1 negative level)! And, thanks to her Tongueworm, she has 4 natural attacks with which to kill her enemies; that paralyzing poison on her tongue is quite fun as well, though it has a low DC. She also gets a +4 Enhancement bonus to Strength for 24 hours whenever she inflicts a negative level, and the natural armor increases really do make her a bit harder to hit, combining with her extra HP and boosted Constitution to allow her to tank really well.
Her Magic Missiles are also really painful, especially since Metamagic Specialist is now 5/day; she can inflict up to 4 negative levels with a single 2nd level slot, which can grab her a whole lot of HP and a bit of a buff. Basically, she's crazy dangerous close up, and crazy dangerous when far away.

"Then you know what happened? I started flying! And then death breathed out through my mouth, and everyone died. So I live in this cave, where no-one can find me, and-"
"There's the monster! After her! Don't let her get away!"
Silence
"Why is she talking to that doll?"

Level 20

Teehee, negative level breath. Thank you Dragon Disciple, you are far too kind. Also, thanks to the Dragon Breath feat, she can breath out a cone of negative levels every 1d4 rounds, which means that she gets a ton of Temporary HP every 1d4 rounds.
On top of all that, she can fly, which gives her the distance advantage and lets her reach the monsters that are really high up, and, thanks to Dragon Apothesis, she now deals 12 damage with each negative level. OUCH. On top of that Enhancement bonus to Strength, she also gets a +4 to Constitution and a +2 Enhancement bonus to all rolls that would be penalized by a negative level.

So there you have her, Jenny, one of the few warriors that gets stronger as the fight progresses!

Sources:
Core
Book of Vile Darkness
Magic of Eberron
Eberron Campaign Setting
Libris Mortis
Races of the Dragon
Draconomicon
Complete Scoundrel

[Amphetryon]

Given the name, I half expected it to be WIS-based.


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

1st|Sorcerer|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|Bluff 4, Concentration 4, Knowledge arcane 4, Spellcraft 4, Craft wands 4, Profession wizard 4|Dradconix heritage, Draconic power|Summon familiar ( Rat to increase fort)

2nd|Sorcerer|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3|Bluff 5, Concentration 5, Knowledge arcane 5, Spellcraft 5, Craft wands 5, Profession wizard 5|New Feats|New Class Abilities

3rd|Sorcerer|
+1|
+1|
+1|
+3|Bluff 6, Concentration 6, Knowledge arcane 6, Spellcraft 6, Craft wand 6, Profession wizard 6|Draconic Presence|+2 NA, INT 7, Deliver touch spells ( familiar)

4th|Sorcerer|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4|Bluff 7, Concentration 7, Knowledge arcane 7, Spellcraft 7, Craft wand 7, Profession 7|New Feats|+1 to Con

5th|Sorcerer|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4|Bluff 8, Concentration 8, Knowledge arcane 8, Spellcraft 8, Craft wand 8, Profession 8|New Feats|+3 NA, INT 8, Speak with master

6th|Dragon disciple|
+0|
+2|
+0|
+2|Bluff 8.5, Concentration 9, Knowledge arcane 9, Spellcraft 9, Craft wand 9, Profession wizard 9|Draconic skin|Natural armor increase +1, +1 bonus spell

7th|Dragon disciple|
+1|
+3|
+0|
+3|Bluff 9, Concentration 10, Knowledge arcane 10, Spellcraft 10, Craft wand 10, Profession wizard 10|New Feats|Ability boost str (+2), Claws and bite ( 1d4,1d6), +1 bonus spell

8th|Dragon disciple|
+2|
+3|
+1|
+3|Bluff 9.5, Concentration 11, Knowledge arcane 11, Spellcraft 11, Craft wand 11, Profession wizard 11|New Feats|Breath weapon ( fire) 2d8, +1 con

9th|Dragon disciple|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4|Bluff 10, Concentration 12, Knowledge arcane 12, Spellcraft 12, Craft wand 12, Profession wizard 12|Combat casting|Ability boost str (+2), NA (+2), +1 bonus spell

10th|ABJURANT CHAMPION|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+2|Bluff 10.5, Concentration 13,Knowledge arcane 13, Spellcraft 13, Craft wand 13, Profession wizard 12.5|New Feats|Abjurant armor, extended abjuration, + 1 caster level

11th|ABJURANT CHAMPION|
+2|
+0|
+0|
+3|Bluff 11, Concentration 14, knowledge arcane 14, Spellcraft 14, Craft wand 14, Profession wizard 13|New Feats|Swift abjuration, +1 caster level

12th|Abjurant champion|
+3|
+1|
+1|
+3|Bluff 11.5, Concentration 15, Knowledge arcane 15, Spellcraft 15, craft wand 15, Profession wizard 13.5|Draconic legacy|+1 spell level,+1 cha

13th|Abjurant champion|
+4|
+1|
+1|
+4|Bluff 12, Concentration 16, Knowledge arcane 16, Spellcraft 16, craft wand 16, Profession wizard 14|New Feats|Arcane boost, + 1 spell level

14th|Abjurant champion|
+5|
+1|
+1|
+4|Bluff 12.5, Concentration 17, Knowledge arcane 17, Spellcraft 17, Craft wand 17, Profession wizard 14.5|New Feats|Martial arcanist, +1 spell level

15th|Dragon disciple |
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4|Bluff 13, Concentration 18, knowledge arcane 18, Spellcraft 18, Craft wand 18, Profession wizard 15.5|Craft wand|Blindsense 30ft. +1 bonus spell

16th|Dragon disciple|
+4|
+5|
+2|
+5|Bluff 13.5, Concentration 19, Knowledge arcane 19, Spellcraft 19, Craft wand 19, Profession wizard 16.5|New Feats|Ability boost +2 con, +1 con, +1 bonus spell

17th|Dragon disciple|
+5|
+5|
+2|
+5|Bluff 14, Concentration 20, Knowledge arcane 20, Spellcraft 20, Craft wand 20, Profession wizard 17.5|New Feats|Breath weapon 4d8, Natural armor increase +3

18th|Dragon disciple |
+6|
+6|
+2|
+6|Bluff 14.5, Concentration 21, Knowledge arcane 21, Spellcraft 21, Craft wand 21, Profession wizard 18.5|Practiced spellcaster|Ability boost int +2, +1 bonus spell

19th|Dragon disciple|
+6|
+6|
+3|
+6|Bluff 15, Concentration 22, Knowledge arcane 22, Spellcraft 22, Craft wand 22, Profession wizard 20.5|New Feats|Wings, +1 bonus spell

20th|Dragon disciple|
+7|
+7|
+3|
+7|Bluff 16, Concentration 23, Knowledge arcane 23, Spellcraft 23, Craft wand 23, Profession 21.5|New Feats|Blind sense 60ft., Dragon apotheosis, +1 con[/table]



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

1st|7|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

2nd|7|6|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

3rd|7|7|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

4th|7|7|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

5th|7|7|6|3|-|-|-|-|-|-

6th|7|7|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-Bonus spell

7th|7|7|6|5|-|-|-|-|-|-

8th|7|7|6|5|-|-|-|-|-|-

9th|7|7|6|6|-|-|-|-|-|-

10th|7|7|7|7|-|-|-|-|-|-

11th|7|7|7|8|3|-|-|-|-|-

12th|7|7|7|9|4|-|-|-|-|-

13th|7|7|7|9|5|3|-|-|-|-

14th|7|7|7|9|6|4|-|-|-|-

15th|7|7|7|9|6|5|-|-|-|-

16th|7|7|7|9|6|6|-|-|-|-

17th|7|7|7|9|6|6|-|-|-|-

18th|7|7|7|9|6|8|6|5|-|-

19th|7|7|7|9|6|8|6|6|-|-

20th|7|7|7|10|6|8|6|6|-|-[/table]

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

1st|4|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

2nd|5|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

3rd|5|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

4th|6|3|1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

5th|6|4|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

6th|6|4|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

7th|6|4|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

8th|6|4|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

9th|6|4|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

10th|7|4|2|1|-|-|-|-|-|-

11th|7|5|3|2|-|-|-|-|-|-

12th|8|5|3|2|1|-|-|-|-|-

13th|8|5|4|3|2|-|-|-|-|-

14th|9|5|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-

15th|9|5|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-

16th|9|5|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-

17th|9|5|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-

18th|9|5|5|4|4|3|2|1|-|-

19th|9|5|5|4|4|3|2|1|-|-

20th|9|5|5|4|4|3|2|1|-|-[/table]

STR16
DEX15
CON16
INT19
WIS9
CHA18

Race: Human
Spells per day include bonus spells that way it is easier for the judges.

Feat selection
I choose to start this build off with the draconic feat tree because it allows me to keep ahead of the game with the levels I will lose when I turn into a dragon disciple. For draconic heritage I choose gold dragon because I had already made a worshiper of Tiamat so I thought the opposite end of the stick would be good as well. Draconic heritage also granted me bonuses on saving throws against sleep and paralysis so that way I could hold in longer in a fight, as well as a bonus on saves against spells with the fire descriptor.
Next I choose Draconic presence because if people become to close In combat for my liking I can attempt to make them shaken, thus weakening them whenever I cast a spell. It may only effect creatures with fewer HD then me, but in a normal campaign it does help out alot. It last for a number of rounds equal to the spells level that you cast. And takes a will saving throw of (13+ spell level [at levels below 20] or 14+ spell level[ at and after 20] Which though low, at the level it comes into play, (3) it is still very useful.
Next I choose draconic skin that way if my AC is low, I can boost it, even if by one, as well as set it up for later for me to be able to stack it with the bonuses I gain from DD, as well as the spells I cast using the AC.
My next feat was more for the pre req then for anything else, though its ability is helpful, with my skills always being maxed out it doesn't greatly increase much.

Next I took Draconic legacy to add extra spells to my list of spells I can cast. And knowing that I will be getting these spells I can leave room open so that I can learn more spells that help protect me as well as blast my opponents away.

I'm sure a lot of you are wondering why I took Craft wand so late, well at earlier levels, though it would have made me money, it would not have been greatly helpful early game, but at level 15 now I have more than enough skill points to make sure I always pass, and spells worth while to put into a wand, like summon monster level 5 allowing me to summon creatures that they themselves have spells they can cast.

And I took practiced spellcaster for my last feat to make sure I got to keep almost all of my spell casting, I believe I lose a total of 5 level of spellcasting total in this whole build, and saying its a dragon disciple I think that is pretty good saying most builds would lose alot more if they focused on the class as it is built, and they don't take into consideration what dragons themselves are, which are creatures of magic who have a lot of it at there disposal.

Most of the feats I use come from CA, while I believe combat casting comes from players handbook.

Prc's Come from CM and DMG

For spells this is what I decided to go with
0 level spells
1Resistance that way early game I have a better chance to survive.
2Arcane mark that way everywhere I go and do something at I can leave marked with the symbol of Bahamat.
3Disrupt undead for that one simple fact you never know when undead are going to show up and It does not hurt to be prepared.
4Ray of frost to have some offense, as well as the fact few things have resistance to it, and those who do would more then likely not be resistant to my breath weapon when I gained one.
5Acid splash, same as above.
6Detect magic because magical traps are a lot more deadly then none magical ones, and because its always good to know what magic is in effect around you. Also good for determining what weapons your opponent has on them.
7Detect poison, do I even need to say why? Early levels poison could very well be the death of you, be prepared that way you do not get killed from it.
8Read magic, So that on them rare times I may need a spell that I myself do not have it does not become a weakness.
9 Mage hand, For the fun of it alone. Think about it cast the spell make it ring the bell in the jail, police think they are being summoned and you can now go into police station which is left unguarded or lightly guarded and take, release whatever you want.

1st level spells
1Greater mage hand, Same reason as regular mage hand, more possibilities
2Babau Slime The greatest defense is to make sure no one wants to touch you and well this does it, especially at low levels when whatever they do to you gets returned back at them if not more so in damage.
3Spirit worm, Why waste time getting rid of HP go straight for the sorce and kill it in 18 or less turns, if it has more...well hope that every turn it loses alot of hp from that one drop of Con loss because if not you may die.
4Mage armor Saying you can't wear normal armor without ACf why not, you get a hefty bonus at higer levels.
5Shield same as above.

Level 2 spells
1Resist energy, Now energy damage should be quite common so being able to block some to most of it is never a bad thing
2Scorching ray Well its one of the best offensive spells in the game and when you are getting it by like level 3, its a great spell.
3Invisibilty because it is always good to be able to spy on your enemies, or set up a sneak attack using a bunch of crossbows and the spell mage hand without being seen and then killing whatever walks by because you are not attacking a single target so you stay invisible.
4Rainbow beam because late game it is more powerful then scorching ray
5Death armor stack this with my other one and now they are taking twice as much damage from attacking me

Level 3 spells
1Surpress breath weapon for the fact you have now become a half dragon or are at least tryng to, with this spell you equal the playing field against pure dragons that can use their breath weapon quite often
2Displacement So that not only do they have to worry about AC but also miss chance making their attacks that land less and less.
3Band so steel well when it takes 18 turns for a spirit worm to kill you and you can't move for 15 of them I think you are pretty safe unless they have a ridiculous str score to break through it.
4Greater mage armor, in the rare occurance they get through, now they still get denied.

4th level spells
1Mass resist energy as long as I'm prepared I shall not take damage from energy anymore
2Dragon breath That way I now have two breath weapons
3Backlass that way enemy spellcasters are at a disadvantage when casting spells
4Sharp tooth to improve my damage with bite attacks

5th level spells
1Permenacy that way now displacement and all my other spells are now always cast
2Summon monster V for extra spells
3Greater enlarge person that way my damage gets increased more from my claw and bite attacks.

6th level spells
1Flesh to stone...enough said
2Stone body that way i get tones of immunities for very little cost

7th level spell
1Limited wish that way when things go rough, you can do whatever.

Equipment
Anything that increase your con for your breath weapon, and cha for spell DC will be good. I built the build using no equipment that way it can be seen by itself not all dolled up and made to look good when its really all items doing all the heavy lifting. For armor I would probably use Braces of armor, rings of protection, and amulets of natural armor because my spells alone boost it up considerably. Weapon I have always been found of sorcerers with spears, but when you have built in weapons that are just a little bit worse you might as well use them, definitely after you use your spells and make yourself large and your bite attack damage up to huge damage through spells.

Class Abilities
Abjurant Armor (Su): Any time you cast an abjuration spell that grants you an armor bonus or shield bonus to AC, You can increase the value of the bonus by your abjurant champion level. [This with greater mage armor grants me a + 11 to AC. And because of the permanency spell this as well as my shield spell are constantly in effect that also gets a +9 to its bonus. For a total of 37AC before magic items, tomes and wishes/tomes. As well as 50% miss chance

Extended Abjuration (Su): You depend on your abjuration spells to protect you in combat. Double the duration of abjuration spells you cast, as if you had applied the extend spell feat to them ( but without any change in level or casting. This becomes slightly pointless after you gain the permanency spell, but in areas of antimagic and such this can be a life saver.

Swift Abjuration (Su): Beginning at 2nd level, you can
cast abjuration spells as a swift action, as if you had applied the quicken spell feat to them. The maximum level of spell you can quicken in this way is equal to 1/2 your class level ( rounded down).

Arcane Boost (Su): Beginning at 4th level, you gain the
ability to burn arcane energy to empower your martial abilities.
As a swift action, you can spend one of your uncast spells
or spell slots to grant yourself one of the following insight
bonuses for 1 round.
• Bonus on attack rolls equal to the spell's level.
• Bonus on weapon damage rolls equal to twice the spell's
level.
• Bonus to AC equal to the spell's level.
• Bonus on saving throws equal to the spell's level.
• Resistance to acid, cold, electricity, fire, and sonic equal to
5 × the spell's level.

Martial Arcanist (Ex): At 5th level, you master the art
of combining your militant and mystical training. From
this point on, your caster level in a chosen arcane spellcasting class is equal to your base attack bonus.

NA Bonus +4

Ability boost +8 to str

Bite 1d10 damage, claw 1d6 damage after spells

Breath weapon 6d8 Cone of fire DC 23 Ref

Blindsense 60ft.

Wings that way I can have more maneuverability.

Dragon apotheosis grants me many immunities as well as immunity to fire.

Saves
BAB 14
Fort9
Ref 5
Will15

[Amphetryon]

He's just chillin'.

Tael Yerenor, Prince of the North Wind

THE FLUFF

“I am a direct descendant of the great silver dragons of yore. I have dedicated my life to shaping myself in their image, and now, for disturbing the sanctity of this land, i will strike you down!”

with that, Tael Yerenor, vanished and a few seconds later, the High Cultist collapsed to the ground, dead. The other orcs backed away in fear, not knowing quite what happened...

And then he was like
“BOOM, I’M A DRAGON!”
And they were like
“No freaking way.”
And he was all
“Hell yeah, now check this out”
and he touched an orc and THE ORC DIED, and the other orcs were like, “not cool brah” but it totally was because the orc was an evil cultist.
So Tael was all
“I’m gonna kill all of you cuz ur evil”
and they were like
“Nice knowing you”

THE END


THE BUILD
NAME:Tael Yerenor, Prince of the North Wind
ALIGNMENT:LG
STR:16->28
DEX:10
CON:12->14
INT:18->20
WIS:8
CHA:8->10
CLASS:Wizard/Frost Mage/Dragon Disciple
RACE:Silverbrow Human
LANGUAGES:Common, Draconic, Celestial, Giant, Sylvan
FAMILIAR: Drakken Snow Owl
SPECIALTY SCHOOL:Generalist
FORBIDDEN SCHOOLS:None
ALTERNATE CLASS FEATURES:Drakken Familiar
BOOKS USED:Player’s Handbook 1(Wizard, Spell Mastery, Spells, General Rules) , Dungeon Master’s Guide(Dragon Disciple)Dragon Magic(Silverbrow Human, Drakken Familiar, Draconic Aura, Spells) , Frostburn(Snowcasting, Frozen Magic, Frost Mage, Spells) Book of Exalted Deeds(Exalted Feats), Complete Arcane(Energy Substitution), Magic of Faerun(Signature Spell), Savage Species(Spell Flower)

LEVELS
Tael Yerenor, Prince of the North Wind
{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features

1st|Wizard 1 |
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|Concentration 4, Knowledge(Arcana) 4, Knowledge(Geography) 4 , Knowledge(The Planes) 4, Spellcraft 4|Snowcasting, Frozen Magic, Scribe Scroll|Familiar, Scribe Scroll Bonus Feat

2nd|Wizard 2 |
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3|Concentration 5, Knowledge(Arcana) 5, Knowledge(Geography) 5, Knowledge(The Planes) 5, Spellcraft 5|None|None

3rd|Wizard 3 |
+1|
+1|
+1|
+3|Concentration 6, Knowledge(Arcana) 6, Knowledge(Geography) 6, Knowledge(The Planes) 6, Spellcraft 6|Sacred Vow|None

4th|Wizard 4 |
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4|Concentration 7, Knowledge(Arcana) 7, Knowledge(Geography) 7, Knowledge(The Planes) 7, Spellcraft 7|None|None

5th|Wizard 5 |
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4|Concentration 8, Knowledge(Arcana) 8, Knowledge(Geography) 8, Knowledge(The Planes) 8, Spellcraft 8|Energy Substitution(Cold)|Bonus Wizard Feat

6th|Frost Mage 1 |
+2|
+1|
+1|
+6|Concentration 9, Knowledge(Arcana) 9, Knowledge(Geography) 9, Knowledge(The Planes) 9, Spellcraft 9|Spell Mastery(Shivering Touch, Haste, Arctic Haze)|(+1) Natural Armor

7th|Frost Mage 2 |
+3|
+1|
+1|
+7|Concentration 10, Knowledge(Arcana) 10, Knowledge(Geography) 10, Knowledge(The Planes) 10, Spellcraft 10|None|Resistance to Cold 10

8th|Frost Mage 3 |
+3|
+2|
+2|
+7|Concentration 11, Knowledge(Arcana) 11, Knowledge(Geography) 11, Knowledge(The Planes) 11, Spellcraft 11|None|Gain knowledge

9th|Frost Mage 4 |
+4|
+2|
+2|
+8|Concentration 12, Knowledge(Arcana) 12, Knowledge(Geography) 12, Knowledge(The Planes) 12, Spellcraft 12|Signature Spell(Chill Touch), Piercing Spell|(+2) Natural Armor, Piercing Cold Bonus Feat

10th|Frost Mage 5 |
+4|
+2|
+2|
+8|Concentration 13, Knowledge(Arcana) 13, Knowledge(Geography) 13, Knowledge(The Planes) 13, Spellcraft 13|None|Gain Knowledge

11th|Dragon Disciple 1 |
+4|
+4|
+2|
+10|Concentration 14, Knowledge(Arcana) 14, Knowledge(Geography) 14, Knowledge(The Planes) 14, Spellcraft 14|None|(Silver Dragon) (+3) Natural Armor

12th|Dragon Disciple 2 |
+5|
+5|
+2|
+11|Concentration 15, Knowledge(Arcana) 15, Knowledge(Geography) 15, Knowledge(The Planes) 15, Spellcraft 15|Vow of Poverty, Touch of Golden Ice|+2 Strength, Claws and Bite

13th|Dragon Disciple 3 |
+6|
+5|
+3|
+11|Concentration 16, Knowledge(Arcana) 16, Knowledge(Geography) 16, Knowledge(The Planes) 16, Spellcraft 16|None|Breath Weapon(2d8)

14th|Dragon Disciple 4 |
+7|
+6|
+3|
+12|Concentration 17, Knowledge(Arcana) 17, Knowledge(Geography) 17, Knowledge(The Planes) 17, Spellcraft 17|Sanctify Natural Attack|+2 Strength, (+4) Natural Armor

15th|Dragon Disciple 5 |
+7|
+6|
+3|
+12|Concentration 18, Knowledge(Arcana) 18, Knowledge(Geography) 18, Knowledge(The Planes) 18, Spellcraft 18|Improved Natural Attack|Blindsense 30 ft.

16th|Dragon Disciple 6 |
+8|
+7|
+4|
+13|Concentration 19, Knowledge(Arcana) 19, Knowledge(Geography) 19, Knowledge(The Planes) 19, Spellcraft 19|Vow of Obediance(Silver Dragons)|+2 Constitution

17th|Dragon Disciple 7 |
+9|
+7|
+4|
+13|Concentration 20, Knowledge(Arcana) 20, Knowledge(Geography) 20, Knowledge(The Planes) 20, Spellcraft 20|None|Breath Weapon(4d8), (+5) Natural Armor

18th|Dragon DIsciple 8 |
+10|
+8|
+4|
+14|Concentration 21, Knowledge(Arcana) 21, Knowledge(Geography) 21, Knowledge(The Planes) 21, Spellcraft 21, Spot 1|Vow of Purity, Draconic Aura(Toughness)|+2 Intelligence

19th|Dragon Disciple 9 |
+10|
+8|
+5|
+14|Concentration 22, Knowledge(Arcana) 22, Knowledge(Geography) 22, Knowledge(The Planes) 22, Spellcraft 22, Spot 2|None|Wings

20th|Dragon DIsciple 10 |
+11|
+9|
+5|
+15|Concentration 23, Knowledge(Arcana) 23, Knowledge(Geography) 23, Knowledge(The Planes) 23, Spellcraft 23, Spot 3|Vow of Abstinence|Blindsense 60 ft., Dragon Apotheosis[/table]

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

1st|3|1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|Mage Armor, Shield, Fist of Stone, Spell Flower, Feather Fall, Lesser Chill Touch, any 1 1st level spell

2nd|4|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|any 2 1st level spells

3rd|4|2|1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|Alter Self, Obscuring Snow

4th|4|3|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|Fog Cloud, Wraithstrike

5th|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-|-|-|Shivering Touch, Haste

6th|4|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|Greater Mage Armor, any 1 3rd level spell

7th|4|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-|-|Polymorph, Greater Invisibility

8th|4|4|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|-|Celerity, any 1 4th level spell

9th|4|4|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-|Draconic Might, Draconic Polymorph

10th|4|4|4|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|Any 2 5th level spells

11th|4|4|4|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|Any 1 5th level spell

12th|4|4|4|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|Any 1 5th level spell

13th|4|4|4|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|

14th|4|4|4|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|Any 1 5th level spell

15th|4|4|4|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|Any 1 5th level spell

16th|4|4|4|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|Any 1 5th level spell

17th|4|4|4|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|

18th|4|4|4|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|Any 1 5th level spell

19th|4|4|4|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|Any 1 5th level spell

20th|4|4|4|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|[/table]

LEVEL RUNDOWN

The general idea of the build is to enhance your natural weapons by holding shivering touch in them with spell flower and claw/claw/biting them do do huge DEX damage. Apart from that, the goal is to pump AC as high as possible so attempting this isn’t a suicide mission

Level 1-5
Honestly, at this point he’s just a wizard with a sub-par feat selection. The thing setting him apart from other wizards is his high strength score. The strategy is to cast chill touch and mage armor while not in combat, then cast fist of stone or alter self(or both) on the first round of combat and start clobbering the opponents

Level 6-10
Natural armor and cold resistance from the levels of frost mage, along with greater invisibility to prevent the opponent from defending themselves from attack

Level 11-15
By this point he finally has the first five levels of dragon disciple, sneaking into the class with signature spell (because sorcerer is filled with lamesauce) and that means non spell dependant natural weapons, more natural armor, a breath weapon, stat increases, and blindsense-meaning that obscuring snow becomes much more useful

Level 16-20
With the final five levels of dragon disciple comes more stat increases, wings, and, of course, dragon apotheosis, ending up with a simply amazing strength score and a pretty good intelligence score

[Amphetryon]

Hearken ye to the chronicle. . . .



Wodan Silverblood
Sovereign of Battle
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/407620/Wodan.jpg
"War. War ever changes"

Let us mourn Karnanth.
Once its armies were without equal
Its commanders were without peer
But at last, undone by the machines
Undone from within.

The people turned to necromancy for answers
They forgot the heroes of old
They bleed for Vol

And what of Karn the Conquereror?
Greatest warrior Khorovoire has ever seen.
He was forgotten by the vampire king.

What of the Rekkenmark?
Commanders without peer.
Replaced with the necromancer.

But not all have forgotten.
The Wyrms say that the mighty will replace the gods themselves.
Thus was the fate of Karn.
Now Dol Dorn.

I have not forgotten.
I will show the world.
Dead flesh and Machine will be rended
By Spell and Claw.

I will kill the gods.
And teach the world anew.
I am Wodan Silverblood.
And I will die fighting.

The Record of Wodan Silverblood

Wodan Silverblood
Silverblooded Human Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 10 / Silver Dragon Disciple
10d8+20 + 10d12 HP before Constitution
{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features

1st|Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 1|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|K. Arcana 4, Spellcraft 4, K. Religion 2|Dragon Tail, Draconic Bloodline|Raven Familiar, Sorcerer Spellcasting, WP Scimitar, WF Scimitar, WP Armor Spikes, Light Armor Proficiency, Light Armor Casting

2nd|Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 2|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3|K. Arcana 5, Spellcraft 5, K. Religion 2.5||

3rd|Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 3|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+3|K. Arcana 6, K. Religion 3, Jump 1|Martial Study: Tiger Claw: Wolf Fang Strike|

4th|Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 4|
+3|
+1|
+1|
+4|K. Arcana 6, K. Speak Language 1, Jump 2||

5th|Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 5|
+3|
+1|
+1|
+4|K. Arcana 8, Spellcraft 6, Jump 3||

6th|Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 6|
+4|
+2|
+2|
+5|K. Arcana 9, Jump 5|Arcane Strike|

7th|Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 7|
+5|
+2|
+2|
+5|K. Arcana 10, Jump 7||

8th|Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 8|
+6|
+2|
+2|
+6|K. Arcana 11, Jump 9||

9th|Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 9|
+6|
+3|
+3|
+6|K. Arcana 12, Jump 11|Martial Study: White Raven: Leading the Attack|

10th|Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 10|
+7|
+3|
+3|
+7|K. Arcana 13, Jump 13||

11th|Dragon Disciple 1|
+7|
+5|
+3|
+9|K. Arcana 14, Jump 14, ||Natural Armor Increase +1

12th|Dragon Disciple 2|
+8|
+6|
+3|
+10|K. Arcana 14, Jump 14, Spellcraft 7|Enspell Familiar|+2 Str, Claws and Bite

13th|Dragon Disciple 3|
+9|
+6|
+4|
+10|K. Arcana 16, Jump 16, Spellcraft 8||Breath Weapon 2d8

14th|Dragon Disciple 4|
+10|
+7|
+4|
+11|K. Arcana 17, Jump 17, Spellcraft 9||+2 Str, Natural Armor increase +2

15th|Dragon Disciple 5|
+10|
+7|
+4|
+11|K. Arcana 18, Jump 18, Spellcraft 10|Obtain Familiar(Raven)|Blindsense 30

16th|Dragon Disciple 6|
+11|
+8|
+5|
+12|K. Arcana 19, Jump 19, Spellcraft 11||Con +2

17th|Dragon Disciple 7|
+12|
+8|
+5|
+12|K. Arcana 20, Jump 20, Spellcraft 12||Breath Weapon 4d8, Natural Armor Increase +3

18th|Dragon Disciple 8|
+13|
+9|
+5|
+13|K. Arcana 21, Jump 21, Spellcraft 14| Improved Initiative (Draconic Breath)|Ability Boost +2 Int

19th|Dragon Disciple 9|
+13|
+9|
+6|
+13|K. Arcana 22, Jump 22, Spellcraft 16||Wings

20th|Dragon Disciple 10|
+14|
+10|
+6|
+14|K. Arcana 23, Jump 23, Spellcraft 18||Blindsense 60, Silver Dragon Apotheosis (Wyrm of War)[/table]

Attributes

Silverbrow Human
Strength 16 +4 Level, +6 Enhancement, +4 Inherent, +8 Class = 38
Dexterity 14 +4 Enhancement = 20
Constitution 14 +6 Enhancement, +2 Class = 22
Intelligence 12 +2 Class = 14
Wisdom 10
Charisma 14 +1 Level, +6 Enhancement, +5 Inherent, +2 Class = 28


Spells per day

{table=head]Level|0lvl|1st|2nd|3rd|4th|5th|6th|7th|8th|9th

1st|4|2+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

2nd|5|3+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

3rd|5|4+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

4th|5|4+1|2+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

5th|5|4+1|3+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

6th|5|5+1|4+1|2|-|-|-|-|-|-

7th|5|5+1|5+1|3|-|-|-|-|-|-

8th|5|5+1|5+1|4|2|-|-|-|-|-

9th|5|5+1|5+1|5|3|-|-|-|-|-

10th|5|5+2|5+1|4+1|4+1|2+1|-|-|-|-

11th|5|5+2|5+1|4+1|4+1|3+1|-|-|-|-

12th|5|5+2|5+1|4+1|4+1|4+1|-|-|-|-

13th|5|5+2|5+1|4+1|4+1|4+1|-|-|-|-

14th|5|5+2|5+1|4+1|4+1|5+1|-|-|-|-

15th|5|5+2|5+2|4+2|4+1|6+1|-|-|-|-

16th|5|5+2|5+2|4+2|4+1|7+1|-|-|-|-

17th|5|5+2|5+2|4+2|4+1|7+1|-|-|-|-

18th|5|5+2|5+2|4+2|4+1|8+1|-|-|-|-

19th|5|5+2|5+2|4+2|4+1|9+1|-|-|-|-

20th|5|5+3|5+2|4+2|4+2|9+1|-|-|-|-

After Maneuvers|5|4+3|5+2|3+2|4+2|7+1|-|-|-[/table]

Spells and Maneuvers Known

{table=head]Level|0lvl|1st|2nd|3rd|4th|5th|6th|7th|8th|9th

1st|3|1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

2nd|4|1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

3rd|4|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

4th|5|3|1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

5th|5|4|1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

6th|6|4|2|1|-|-|-|-|-|-

7th|6|5|3|1|-|-|-|-|-|-

8th|7|5|3|2|1|-|-|-|-|-

9th|7|5|4|3|1|-|-|-|-|-

10th|8|5|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-

11th|8|5|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-

12th|8|5|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-

13th|8|5|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-

14th|8|5|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-

15th|8|5|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-

16th|8|5|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-

17th|8|5|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-

18th|8|5|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-

19th|8|5|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-

20th|8|5|4|3|2|1|-|-|-|-[/table]

Spells Known

0th level spells: (8)
Detect Magic
Read Magic
Prestigitation
Arcane Mark
Caltrops: Spell Compendium 43
Open/Close
Message
Ghost Sound

1st level spells: (5)
Blood Wind : Swift Action, Melee Full Attack (Unarmed Strike and Natural Weapons) as ranged weapon. Spell Compendium p. 33
Fist of Stone: Standard Action, gain 1 slam attack. Spell Compendium p. 94
Enlarge Person
Benign Transposition - Swap Locations with a willing target. Spell Compendium p. 27
Protection from Evil

2nd level spells: (4)
Whirling Blade: Standard Action, throw melee weapon in 60 foot line, one attack on each enemy in line. Str or Cha for attack and damage. Spell Compendium p. 238
Wraithstrike: Swift Action, all melee attacks resolved as melee touch attacks this round. Spell Compendium p. 243
Heroics - Gain a Fighter Bonus Feat. Spell Compendium p. 113
Alter Self at level 10 replace with:
Wings of Cover Immediate Action, Total cover vs one attack, Races of the Dragon p. 119


3rd level spells: (3)
Girallon's Blessing: Gain four claw attacks. If two claw attacks hit get a free rend attack. Spell Compendium p. 106
Heart of Water - Swim Speed, Escape Artist Bonus, Freedom of Movement. Complete Mage p. 107
Fly

4th level spells: (2)
Mirror Image, Greater - Immediate Action Mirror Image, Player's Handbook II P. 120
Celerity - Immediate Action Standard Action, Player's Handbook II P. 105

5th level spell: (1)
Draconic Polymorph Polymorph with stat bonuses, Draconomicon P. 79


Maneuvers Used


Initiator Level 15 or 20*
Feat Maneuvers:
Wolf Fang Strike (1st lvl Tiger Claw)
Leading the Attack (1st lvl White Raven) Standard action attack with bonuses

Wyrm of War:
Sudden Leap (1st lvl Tiger Claw) Swift Action Jump
Leaping Dragon Stance (3rd lvl Tiger Claw Stance) +10 on jump, all running
Dancing Mongoose (5th lvl Tiger Claw) Swift Action, Make two extra attacks
Pouncing Charge (5th lvl Tiger Claw) Swift Action Pounce

Heroics or Item Picks:
Feral Death Blow (9th lvl Tiger Claw) Full Round Action, Die or take lots of damage
Girallon Windmill Rip (9th lvl Tiger Claw) Swift Action, Bonus damage based on number of attacks
Raging Mongoose (8th lvl Tiger Claw) Swift Action, make four extra attacks
White Raven Tactics (3rd lvl White Raven) Swift Action Initiative Order Change
Shadow Blink (7th lvl Shadow Hand) Swift Action Ex Teleport
Shadow Stride (5th lvl Shadow Hand) Move Action Ex Teleport

* Tome of Battle states that most prestige classes give full initiator progression. Wyrm of War makes sorcerer an initiator class, but only giving Tiger Claw maneuvers and stances if spells are sacrificed. If Dragon Disciple is a full initiator class, then the initiator level is 20, if not it is only 15. If only level 15 then the character is unable to use 9th level maneuvers, and sticks to 8th level and lower. Before Wyrm of War kicks in, he uses Heroics and items to use the maneuvers covered in that section and White Raven Tactics. Before Wyrm of War Wodan's initiator level is either half sorcerer + Dragon Disciple or just half level.





Man of War ECL 10

Wodan is a battle sorcerer, using his spells to enhance his own physical abilities and give him more attack options. In addition to some usual spellblade tricks, he brings his draconic heritage and a smattering of Tome of Battle Maneuvers to battle. He sacrifices the bonus spells from his Draconic Bloodline to pay the costs of a Battle Sorcerer. In exchange he is unable to cast any fire spells.

His main plan is to get as many natural attacks as possible, power them with arcane strikes and then full attack things until they die. His main attack setup is the following:
Four Claw Attacks (Girallon Blessing)
One Slam Attack (Fist of Stone)
One Tail Attack (Dragon Tail)
Two Scimitar or Two Unarmed Strikes or Two Armor Spikes

By sacrificing a 5th level spell he can get +5 to all attacks, and do +5d4 damage on each one. It is important to note that Arcane Strike lasts not just for a full attack, but for an entire round.

Before combat Wodan casts Heroics on himself and his pet raven Memory through shared spell. The fighter bonus feat he gains is Martial Study: White Raven Tactics. Both he and his familiar meet the prerequisites for White Raven Tactics.

In a single round Wodan can full attack with his eight attacks, use white raven tactics to full attack again, have his familiar use white raven tactics to go a third time, and spend his last swift action activating his belt of battle to full attack one last time. The four full attacks are all in the same round, and all covered by the same Arcane Strike usage. While he can generally only pull the trick once per combat, that is still 32 attacks a round.

Wodan also has a series of tricks should combat prove to be a bit more difficult. Blood Wind lets him and his familiar make all their attacks as ranged attacks for a round. Wraith strike makes all those attack rolls touch attacks. Whirling Blade lets him throw his Scimitar as a line attack. Using Heroics to get Martial Study Sudden Leap gives him swift action movement.

If his opponents attack him he can use Greater Mirror Image, Wings of Cover, or Celerity as an immediate action to protect himself and his familiar.
Heart of Water makes him effective even underwater, and helps protect him from grapples.

Draconic Polymorph gives additional utility, but he mainly uses it on his familiar, turning it into a 10 Headed Cyro Hydra before launching the blood winds.



Drake of War ECL 15

Wodan has started the path of the Silver Dragon Disciple further connecting with his ancestors. Silver Dragon Disciple increases his strength, gives him additional natural attacks, more Arcane Strike Fuel and a weak breath weapon. Blindsense helps him avoid being snuck up on.

Along the way he also picked up a second Raven familiar named Thought, and gained the ability to share spells with his familiars from up to a mile away.

With the additional claw attacks Wodan is less reliant on Girallon's Blessing.
His new attack routine looks like this:
Bite, Claw, Claw, Claw, Claw, Slam, Tail, Unarmed Strike, Unarmed Strike, Unarmed Strike.
If the Horned Helm is used, that adds an additional Gore attack. If Girallon's blessing stacks with already existing claws, that's an additional two claws.

The general attack method is the same as before however this time Wodan's second familiar gives him an additional turn. Wodan can make at least fifty attacks in a round, all boosted by the same Arcane Strike.

In the meantime each of his Raven's are taking a full attack as 10 headed CyroHydras with an additional four claw attacks a slam and three huge sized unarmed strikes.



War Reborn ECL 20

Wodan now actively seeks to usurp Dol Dorn as the god of war. Now Half-Silver Dragon he is a Wyrm of War, letting him swap out sorcerer spells per day for Tiger Claw maneuvers and stances. Even after swapping out four spells Wodan has more than enough spells thanks to Dragon Disciple.

With Draconic Breath he is able to use his breath weapon on a more regular basis, and it is quite effective against swarms, where his usual tricks don't quite work. His blindsense stretches out farther, better helping him avoid ambushes and sneaks. Invulnerability to Cold helps defend himself from Uttercold Necromancers. His Wings let him travel and move about more reliably instead of just relying on the fly spell or magic items.

As a Wyrm of War he now has an initiator level of 20 (Or 15*). The higher initiator level helps him pick up new and more powerful maneuvers through Heroism, Crowns of White Raven Tactics, and Tiger Claw Bracers. Girallon Windmill Flesh Rip increases damage done per round by up to 20d6. Raging Mongoose gives additional attacks per turn. Lastly, Feral Death Blow makes an effective Die or take 20d6 extra damage.

Now why doesn't Wodan just Draconic Polymorph into Cyro Hydras like his familiars do? Because that would actually make him weaker. His strength of 38 is higher then most creatures that he could shapechange into. More strength means more damage, and a better chance to hit.


Changing Memories

Wodan has two raven familiars, one comes from his sorcerer levels and doesn't get as many bonuses. The other one comes from obtain familiar and is based on his character level. Both familiars benefit from the Enspell Familiar feat, letting Wodan share spells within a mile range as opposed to the usual five feet.

Now normally Ravens come with the base feat of Alertness which is quite useless. Wodan hires a Kalashtar to cast Psychic Reformation (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/powers/psychicReformation.htm) on the two familiars, swapping out Alertness for the feat Martial Study: White Raven, Leading the Attack. The Ravens have the initiator level to take the feat because initiator level is 1/2 HD when not taking full initiator classes. When the owners HD is higher that is used for calculation instead of the familiars HD. In addition to being able to use Leading the Attack, they are viable targets for gaining White Raven Tactics through the Heroics spell.

After becoming a half dragon Wodan also hires a Kalashtar to cast Psychic Reformation (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/powers/psychicReformation.htm) on himself to change his feat improved initiative to Draconic Breath, letting him use his breath weapon every 1d4 rounds as opposed to once a day.


Useful Items and Sources

Horned Helm - Gore Attack 8,000 MIC 112
Amulet of Mighty Fists - Up to 150k
Maneuver Items - 3,000 to 45,000 MIC 150
Scimitar with a Wand Chamber (Dungeonscape 34)
Wand of Blood Wind
Stat Enhancement Items
Stat Boosting Tomes
Belt of Battle 12,000 MIC 73
Tailbands of Impact 6,000 gp Dragon Magic p. 96
Three Fanged Rings 10,000 gp each Dragon Magic p. 101
Some sort of Magical Light Armor


Battle Sorcerer (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#sorcererVariantBattleS orcerer)
Stalwart Sorcerer - Complete Mage 36
Silverbrow Human - Dragon Magic 6
Dragon Tail - Races of the Dragon 98
Draconic Bloodline (Ban Fire Spells) - Dragon Magazine Compendium 96
Martial Study - Tome of Battle 31
Arcane Strike - Complete Warrior 96
Enspell Familiar - Dragon Magazine Compendium 97
Obtain Familiar - Complete Arcane 81
Draconic Breath - Races of the Dragon 98
Wyrm of War - Dragons of Eberron 31

[Amphetryon]

He's talon-ted.


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

1st|Warmage|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|Intimidate 4, Knowledge(arcane)4, Bluff2,Concentration4, Spellcraft4,knowledge(history)4|Empower spell|Armored mage light, Warmage edge

2nd|warmage|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3|Knowledge 5,Intimidate5,Bluff 2 1/2, Concentration5,Spellcraft5|New Feats|New Class Abilities


3rd|Warmage|
+1|
+1|
+1|
+3|Knowledge(arcane) 6, Intimidate 6, Bluff 3, Concentration 6, Spellcraft 6|Enhanced power sigils|Advance learning

4th|warmage|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4|Knowledge (arcane)7, Intimidate7, Bluff 3 1/2, Concentration 7, Spellcraft 7|New Feats|+1 cha

5th|Warmage|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4|Knowledge (arcane) 8, Intimidate 8, Bluff 4, Concentration 8, Spellcraft 8|New Feats|New Class Abilities

6th|Dragon disciple|
+0|
+2|
+0|
+2|Knowledge (arcane) 9, Intimidate 8 1/2, Bluff 4 1/2, Concentration 9, Spellcraft 9|Extra edge|Natural armor increase +1, Bonus spells +1

7th|Dragon disciple|
+1|
+3|
+0|
+3|Knowledge (arcane) 10, Intimidate 9, Bluff 5, Concentration 10, spellcraft 10|New Feats|Ability boost +2 Str, Claws and bite(1d4,1d6), +1 bonus spell

8th|Dragon disiciple|
+2|
+3|
+1|
+3|Knowledge 11, Intimidate 9 1/2, Bluff 5 1/2, Concentration 11, Spellcraft 11|New Feats|Breath weapon (2d8 fire), + 1 dex

9th|Dragon disciple|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4|Knowledge (arcane) 12, Intimidate 10, Bluff 6, Concentration 12, Spellcraft 12|Dragon thrall|Ability boost +(2) str, Natural armor increase (+2), 1 bonus spell

10th|Talon of tiamat|
+0|
+2|
+0|
+2|Knowledge(arcane)13, Intimidate 11, Bluff 7, Concentration 13, Spellcraft 13|New Feats|Breath weapon ( cone of cold)

11th|Talon of Tiamat|
+1|
+3|
+0|
+0|Knowledge (arcane) 14, Intimidate 12, Bluff 8, Concentration 14, Spellcraft 14|New Feats|Voice of the dragon +2, +1 level of existence

12th|Talon of Tiamat|
+2|
+3|
+1|
+1|Knowledge (arcane) 15, Intimidate 13, Bluff 9, Concentration 15, Spellcraft 15|Energy substitution (acid)|Breath weapon ( line of acid), +1 int

13th|Talon of tiamat|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+1|Knowledge ( arcane) 16, Intimidate 14, Bluff 10, Concentration 16, Spellcraft 16|New Feats|Keen senses, +1 existing casting level

14th|Talon of tiamat|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+1|Knowledge(arcane) 17, Intimidate 15, Bluff 11, Concentration 17, Spellcraft 17|New Feats|Breath weapon ( cone of corrosive gas)

15th|Dragon disciple|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4|Knowledge (arcane) 18, Intimidate 15 1/2, Bluff 11 1/2, Concentration 18, Spellcraft 18|Energy substitution ( electricity)|Blindsense 30ft., +1 bonus spell

16th|Dragon disciple|
+4|
+5|
+2|
+5|Knowledge ( arcane) 19, Intimidate 16, Bluff 12, Concentration 19, Spellcraft 19|New Feats|Ability boost +2 con, +1 con ( level), 1 bonus spell

17th|Dragon disciple|
+5|
+5|
+2|
+5|Knowledge (arcane) 20, Intimidate 16 1/2, Bluff 12 1/2, Concentration 20, Spellcraft 20|New Feats|Breath weapon (fire) 4d8, Natural armor increase +3

18th|Dragon disciple|
+6|
+6|
+2|
+6|Knowldge (arcane) 21, Intimidate 17, Bluff 13, Concentration 21, Spellcraft 21, Knowledge ( history ) 5|Practiced spellcaster|Ability boost +2 int, +1 bonus spell

19th|Dragon disciple|
+6|
+6|
+3|
+6|Knowledge ( arcane) 22, Intimidate 17 1/2, Bluff 13 1/2, Concentration 22, Spellcraft 22, Knowledge (history) 6|New Feats|Wings, + 1 bonus spell

20th|Dragon disciple|
+7|
+7|
+3|
+7|Knowledge ( arcane) 23, Intimidate 18, Bluff 14, Concentration 23, Spellcraft 23, Knowledge (history) 7|New Feats|Blind sense 60ft., Dragon apotheosis, +1 con[/table]



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

1st|6|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

2nd|6|7|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

3rd|6|7|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-

4th|6|7|7|5|-|-|-|-|-|-

5th|6|7|7|5|3|-|-|-|-|-8th level

6th|6|7|7|7|4|-|-|-|-|-+ 1 bonus spell

7th|6|7|7|7|5|-|-|-|-|-+1 bonus spell

8th|6|7|7|7|5|-|-|-|-|-

9th|6|7|7|7|6|-|-|-|-|-+1 bonus spell

10th|6|7|7|7|6|-|-|-|-|-

11th|6|7|7|7|7|-|-|-|-|-+1 caster level

12th|6|7|7|7|7|-|-|-|-|-

13th|6|7|7|7|8|3|-|-|-|-+1 caster level

14th|6|7|7|7|8|4|-|-|-|-+1 bonus spell

15th|6|7|7|7|8|5|-|-|-|-+1 bonus spell

16th|6|7|7|7|8|5|-|-|-|-

17th|6|7|7|7|8|6|-|-|-|-+1 bonus spell

18th|6|7|7|7|8|7|4|-|-|-+1 bonus spell, +4 CL

19th|6|7|7|7|8|7|5|-|-|-+1 bonus spell

20th|6|7|7|7|9|7|5|-|-|-[/table]


STR17
DEX14
CON16
INT18
WIS9
CHA 19

Illumian
Power sigils Krau at first level, Vaul at 2nd
Illumian word Vaulkrau
4th level + 1 con
8th level +1 dex
+2 str 1st, and 4th level (dragon disciple)
+4 con,12th 16th 6th level(dragon disciple)
+2 Int 8th level (dragon disciple)

Dragon apotheosis +4 str, +2 cha, +4 NA, Low light vision, Darkvision 60ft., Immunity to sleep and paralysis, and immunity to fire

Armored mage light allows AVI to use light armor and shields without the penalty of ASF. P. 12 CA

Warmage edge allows you to add your int modifier to your damage for spells. P. 13 CA

Avance learning p. 14 CA Veil of shadow that way I gain concealment

Extra edge add +1 to damage for every four levels of war mage (2) P. 79

Energy substitution ( Acid) You can have your spells deal acid damage instead of the normal energy type

Energy substitution ( electricity) You can have your spells deal electric damage instead of the normal energy type.

Breath weapons ( Cone of cold) 3d6 cold damage 30ft. cone.

(line of acid) 8d4 acid damage 60ft. line

(cone of corrosive gas) 10d6 acid damage
Reflex save DC 17 half damage for all breath weapons listed above.

Voice of dragons +2 On bluff and intimidate

Keen sense Grants low light vision and darkvision 60ft.

NA +4

Breath weapon Cone of fire 4d8 Cone of fire DC 23 Reflex

Wings Fly speed= to base land speed

Empower spell players handbook P.93 To increase my damage output by 50%.

Enhanced power sigils All the bonus from my power sigils increase by +1, thus +3 for CL and +3 on all cha based skills and checks. P. 152 RoD

Dragon thrall You gain a +4 bonus on any bluff check made against a dragon, and a +2 bonus on Ride made when you are mounted on a dragon. You gain a +4 bonus on saves against frightful presence of evil dragons. But take a - 2 penalty on enchantment spells cast by dragons. P. 105 Draconomicon

Practiced spellcaster add +4 CL to your caster level.P. 82 CA

Spells Of intrest
0 level spells
Ray of frost because it deals cold damage, and can be changed for either acid or electricity accordingly due to what I am going up against, and disrupt undead because light is not useful when you have darkvision and Blindsense. Plus the damage output on it, though not very versatile, can come in handy in a tight fit.

1st level spell mentions
Chill touch like the same reason I chose ray of frost it is essentially 20 touch attacks that deal acid cold and electricity damage and possibly 1 str damage. Versatile to get around immunities, and with that many touches you are bound to do some massive damage.

Lesser orb of fire is My other mention because it finishes of the mix of energy types that Tiamat represents, and 5d8 fire, acid, or electric damage, yet again very versatile to get around immunities.

2nd level spell mentions
Scorching ray, who wouldn't take it as an honorable mention. 4d6 fire, acid, or electricity damage per ray which there are three? Enough said if you ask me.

My other is ice knife because as the theme you can probably see starting I want all bases covered, that way I can hit it every way I can to do maximum amount of damage. And with the choice of 2d8 +2 dex or 1d8 in a 10ft. radius, it allows you to attack multiple foes as well as single hand to hand combat. And saying I only state two per level I can not also explain the great ability of hurling a fire/Acid, Electricity ball around with the flaming sphere spell.

3rd level spell mentions

Fireball/Acidball/Eletricball deals 20d6 damage of one of those three types in a 20ft radius? Massive field control.

Add in Ice storm to make it rain ice, acid or electricity for 5d6 damage in a 40ft. radius, once again making my ability to target enemies farther away from me before they can attack me, while allowing me to be able to adapt to different situations.

4th level spell mentions

This level is much harder and it came to a tie on one of them.

Orb of Force/Sound What has resistance to sonic damage or just pure force damage, not many things that I can think of.

Orb of cold/Electricity/Acid all in one, saving me the options a lot. Ranged touch attack that deals 20d6 damage, not bad at all in my eyes.

And phantasmal killer for the flavor, make it show a vision of Tiamat as the illusion or a dracolich that way it really is a vision of fear and if they do not die, they surely wont sleep, and they will know that their death is coming for them that the queen of dragons herself wants them dead, and there is no place to hide from the cult of the dragon.

5th level spell mention
Cloud kill for the fact that at high levels though it may not be as great, Con damage is always helpful.

And Mass fire shield that way I gain protection from heat and cold, damage people who attack me, and the damage is one of three types.

6th level spell mentions.
I can not choose this level at all because the use of disintegrate and acid fog together at the same time are devastating. As is blade barrier and circle of death in conjunction with each other What ever doesn't die outright takes damage.

Base save totals
BAB12
FORT12
REF5
WILL12


Backstory
Avi was born into a world where those with power ruled, and those without it served, so it was no surprise that when he was tested to see if he had the gift that he was accepted into the cult of the dragon. While he was in training there he excelled at the arts well above normal and after his second year at school he was doing things that some of the seniors were just learning how to do. But his physicals skills were always lacking, and so he like so many other magic users let his spells do the talking for him as he let lose massive and devastating blows. It was no surprise when he became the top of his class and upon graduation was granted a place of great honor among the dragons themselves to learn and serve. Avi accepted his task with no more then a thought, by now he had been twisted to Tiamats ways and the goddess wanted him to become one of her chosen to join the faithful together, and so he began his journey. Because of his devotion he soon became stronger and smarter, and after a short time even began to use three of the breath weapons of her. But he never once stopped his learning and constantly travels uniting evil dragons and granting them his support so that they can destroy good dragons where they make their homes.

Equipment
To take full advantage of the armored mage and +2 dex bonus I would make sure I first of got mithral armor that way my medium armor would be light armor and I could get the max dex. So mithral chainmail. So +7 to my AC from armor alone. A mithral heavy shield making it light so another +2 to AC for a total of +9. Acid resistance greater, Cold resistance greater, Electricity resistance greater, Greater sonic resistance, That way he is almost immune to all kind of energy damaging spells. Also heavy fortification so that you are immune to critical hits, Ghost touch is a good investment if you are in an undead heavy campign, or things that get a lot of touch attacks. Do the same with the shield.

For a weapon I would use a spear when not using my breath weapons and claw attacks, Using the flaming, frost, shock, ghost touch and keen. That way it deals 3 of the damage types out of the 5 total there are.

A ring of protection +5 to make AC now 14.

A staff of defense though not as good, can help increase your defense some more.

I would mostly rely on magic items that increase your con and cha, that way your breath weapon is maximized and so is your spell casting capabilities. A strong third would be Int that way you have more skill points to play around with, though they are not needed they also increase your warmage edge.

[Amphetryon]

He worships treasure, probably.


{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features
1|Duskblade|1|2|0|2|bluff:4, knowledge(arcana):4, knowledge(religion):4, knowledge(the planes):4, spellcraft:4|Apprentice(criminal), Iron Will|Arcane Attunement
2|Duskblade|2|3|0|3|bluff:5, knowledge(arcana):5, knowledge(religion):5, knowledge(the planes):5, spellcraft:5||Combat Casting
3|Duskblade|3|3|1|3|bluff:6, knowledge(arcana):6, knowledge(religion):6, knowledge(the planes):6, spellcraft:6|Spell Focus(evil)|Channeling
4|Duskblade|4|4|1|4|bluff:7, knowledge(arcana):7, knowledge(religion):7, knowledge(the planes):7, spellcraft:7||Armored Mage (medium)
5|Duskblade|5|4|1|4|bluff:8, knowledge(arcana):8, knowledge(religion):8, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:8||Quick Cast 1/day
6|Ur-Priest|5|4|2|5|bluff:8, concentration: 5, knowledge(arcana):8, knowledge(religion):8, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:8|Power Attack|
7|Ur-Priest|6|5|2|5|bluff:8, concentration: 10, knowledge(arcana):8, knowledge(religion):8, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:8||Rebuke Undead
8|Ur-Priest|7|5|2|6|bluff:11, concentration: 11, knowledge(arcana):8, knowledge(religion):8, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:9||
9|Ur-Priest|8|5|3|6|bluff:12, concentration: 12, knowledge(arcana):8, knowledge(religion):8, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:12|Sudden Silent Spell|
10|Ur-Priest|8|6|3|7|bluff:13, concentration: 13, knowledge(arcana):8, knowledge(religion):10, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:13||
11|Ur-Priest|9|6|3|7|bluff:14, concentration: 14, knowledge(arcana):8, knowledge(religion):12, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:14||Syphon Spell Power
12|Ur-Priest|10|6|4|8|bluff:15, concentration: 15, knowledge(arcana):8, knowledge(religion):14, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:15|Martial Study: Action Before Thought|
13|Ur-Priest|11|7|4|8|bluff:16, concentration:16, knowledge(arcana):8, knowledge(religion):16, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:16||Divine Spell Resistance 20
14|Ur-Priest|11|7|4|9|bluff:17, concentration:17, knowledge(arcana):9, knowledge(religion):17, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:17||
15|Ur-Priest|12|7|5|9|bluff:18, concentration:18, knowledge(arcana):10, knowledge(religion):18, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:18|Sudden Still Spell|Steal Spell-like Ability
16|Dragon Disciple|13|8|5|10|bluff:19, concentration:19, knowledge(arcana):11, knowledge(religion):19, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:19||Bonus Spell, Natural armor increase (+1)
17|Dragon Disciple|14|8|5|10|bluff:20, concentration:20, knowledge(arcana):12, knowledge(religion):20, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:20||Bonus Spell, Ability boost (Str +2), claws and bite
18|Dragon Disciple|14|9|6|11|bluff:21, concentration:21, knowledge(arcana):13, knowledge(religion):21, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:21||Breath weapon (2d8)
19|Dragon Disciple|15|9|6|11|bluff:22, concentration:22, knowledge(arcana):14, knowledge(religion):22, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:22|Quicken Spell|Bonus Spell, Ability boost (Str +2), natural armor increase (+2)
20|Dragon Disciple|16|10|6|12|bluff:23, concentration:23, knowledge(arcana):15, knowledge(religion):23, knowledge(the planes):8, spellcraft:23||Bonus Spell, Blindsense 30 ft.[/table]
Race: Human
Starting Stats: Str:16, Dex: 8, Con: 14, Int: 14, Wis: 16, Cha: 8 (put level-ups in wis)
(The feats and skills in the latter half of the build are pretty arbitrary -- shuffle to taste.)

The Character:

Asheel grew up in a refuge camp after his village was destroyed by a bored red dragon. A few low-level clerics made an entirely futile attempt to hold civilization together. It was there that Asheel learned the lessons that shaped his life: rightful ownership is nothing, strength is everything, the gods will not help you.

He struggled to emulate the strongest creature he knew: the dragon that had destroyed his village. He took up the path of the duskblade to be strong in both violence and magic. But the magic wasn't enough. So, as he always did, he hunted for someone to steal magic from. The gods were the obvious choice.

Only when he had gone as far down that road as he could did he return to the dragons. And at last he found that road valuable indeed.


How it works:

It's your standard gish, except using divine spells. Note that duskblade channeling applies to any spell, not just duskblade ones, and the cleric list is full of powerful touch debuffs. It's full of powerful buffs as well. The duskblade quick cast ability is also not limited to duskblade spells.


How it uses Dragon Disciple:

There may only be half the class here, but the build gets a lot out of it: four miracles a day. Those bonus spells go to any spellcasting class. The strength bonuses (stacking with everything) also are very useful for someone who does intend to fight.

[Amphetryon]

Protector of Oz?






Name: Iujaku, Protector of the Emerald Dragon
LN Human Duskblade 3/Fighter 2/Dragon Disciple 10/Kensai 5
Attributes: Str 16 (28), Dex 14, Con 16 (18), Int 12 (15), Wis 10, Cha 8 (10) (First Bonus goes to Int, then the rest are applied to Str)



A Life of Service

(Levels 1-5)
Iujaku was never a modest man. Having been born the son of an adventuring duo, his childhood was filled with the stories of travel and magic experienced by both his father- a mercenary- and his mother- an echantress of no small measure. After training with both sword and spell, he found a way to enhance one with the other, and continued his path along that of the Duskblade. Shortly after his sixteenth birthday, Iujaku befell the fortune associated with almost all who live an easy and joyful life: irreparable tragedy. Illness claimed his mother's life, and his father, distraught from his loss, not only blamed Iujaku, but disowned him and sold him to service of a distant monastic encampment.
Iujaku was taught many of the monastery's basic beliefs, but generally rejected them out of spite. He was a slave to the monks, and lived a poor life. After three years of working in the stables, a new monk had taken over command of the establishment. He freed all the slaves, and offered them to train under the masters there. Iujaku, seeing this as a promise of power, took the offer. He made a very poor student due to his constant focus on power, and lack of attention to the finer points of their teachings. He found that his magic could perform a variety of tasks that the monks relied on sheer willpower to perform. He learned as much from them as he could before they found that his inability to follow their teachings was becoming a hindrance. After only a few months, he decided that the masters were unable to give him the power he desired.
He left the monastery, never to look back. He would find a suitable mentor within the next few months, that would open his eyes to an entirely new world indeed.
During the short time he spent adventuring under contract after his monastic training, he had heard many a rumor of the power of the dragons. A power Iujaku felt compelled to attain for himself. Iujaku set out to find the lair of a dragon with which he could bargain for power. After many weeks of travel and searching he happened upon the lair of one of the legendary beasts. Iujaku stood before the entrance and beseeched the inhabitants. For nearly a month, he set himself up outside the lair and waited for an answer. Just before he thought to leave, an adventuring group had made their way to the lair in order to slay the dragon within. Iujaku, fearing the loss of a path to power he had spent so much time finding, dispatched the adventurers in their sleep. The next morning, Iujaku was awoken by the unusual inhabitant with an equally unusual proposition.

(Levels 6-10)
Iujaku was promised the power he had been seeking. The Emerald Dragon, Tarash'kiin, awoken within him a power he had never experienced before; the power granted by the blood of a dragon. Iujaku began down a road of self-understanding that would lead him out and around the countryside, experiencing how his newfound powers could be put to use. He made costant trips back to Tarash'kiin to seek advice, and continue along his path to power. Tarask'kiin gave him little advice in the form of riddles, and cryptic quotes. Iujaku spent two years trying to understand the dragon's advice. He traveled to referenced locales, and sought relics that seemingly did not exist.
Iujaku was confounded by Tarash'kiin's advice, and thusly began to resent him for it. He started to ignore much of the dragon's advice and go back to mercenary work, in an attempt to amass wealth. If he couldn't find the power he wanted one way, he was sure he would be able to pay for it.
After multiple failed attempts at a variety of big scores, ranging from taking down a wealthy wizard's tower to disrupting the local thieves' guild operations, he felt that he would never amass the power that he deserved.
In a final attempt to beg Tarash'kiin for the answers to his inane riddles, he returned to the dragon's cave with the meager moneys he had acquired from his failed expeditions. Tarash'kiin had hoarded quite a wealth and scoffed at the offerings Iujaku could provide. Iujaku would give anything for the power he so desperately sought. Tarash'kiin, capitalizing on the desperation that wafted from Iujaku, told him he had one thing of value that Tarash'kiin would accept as payment for the answers to his riddles. Tarash'kiin wanted the promise of service from Iujaku; not just the service Iujaku had shown to his previous employers, but an oath of undying service. It was at this point that Tarash'kiin taught him the oaths that would bind him in service to the dragon for the remainder of his life.

(Levels 11-14)

Iujaku spent the remainder of his next year performing every task assigned to him by Tarash'kiin. From the lowliest command to clean and count his hoard, to more taxing assignments- including serving as a bodyguard to the dragon. What Tarash'kiin taught him, though was that his power was not something that Iujaku was deserving of. He taught Iujaku that selfishness and personal perfection were not true paths to power, but instead the swords upon which evil men come to fall. Iujaku began a devotion to his new lord that bordered on zealous until a second tragedy struck in his life.
During one of Iujaku's travels to seek a new cave for his master, he was befallen upon by a group of bandits, who nearly took his life. He escaped, but was mortally wounded. He found the home of a woodsman, and asked for help. The woodsman nursed him back to health over the next week, and sent him on his way. Iujaku then spent many days searching until he came upon what he thought would be a new home for his master. He cleared the tunnels of the kobolds that inhabited the cave, and made his way back to Tarash'kiin's cave. What he found distraught him and nearly brought him to take his own life. Tarash'kiin's cave had been emptied of its riches, and his master's mangled corpse lied near where his hoard had once sat. The body had most of its scales removed and his corpse was split open- likely for the removal of organs an apothecary would find use for.
Iujaku's master, and mentor was dead. His oath lasted for a much shorter period of time than either could have fathomed. He now sought to vow revenge for his fallen lord, and took to the world once more.

(Levels 15-20)
Iujaku spent his life seeking revenge for his fallen master. Hunting down the brigands who raided his home. His knowledge of which items the dragon owned, coupled with the fact that many of his scales were removed, led Iujaku to use these as his leads to finding the thieves. Iujaku has yet to find any of the culprits, but spends his life perfecting that which his master first taught him- the awakening of his draconic powers- while always on the lookout for the men who took Tarash'kiin's life.





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

1st|Duskblade 1|
+1|
+2|
+0|
+2|Knowledge (Arcana) 4, Concentration 4, Ride 4, Diplomacy 2|Power Attack, Improved Unarmed Strike|Arcana Attunement, Armored Mage (Light)

2nd|Duskblade 2|
+2|
+3|
+0|
+3|Knowledge (Arcana) 5, Concentration 5, Ride 5, Jump 1| |Combat Casting

3rd|Duskblade 3|
+3|
+3|
+1|
+3|Knowledge (Arcana) 6, Concentration 6, Diplomacy 3|Powerful Charge|Arcane Channeling

4th|Fighter 1|
+4|
+5|
+1|
+3|Knowledge (Arcana) 7, Jump 2|Combat Expertise|

5th|Fighter 2|
+5|
+6|
+1|
+3|Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Jump 4|Flying Kick|

6th|Dragon Disciple 1|
+5|
+8|
+1|
+5|Concentration 8, Diplomacy 5|Greater Powerful Charge|Natural Armor +1

7th|Dragon Disciple 2|
+6|
+9|
+1|
+6|Concentration 10, Spot 1, Listen 1| |Claws and Bite, Ability Boost (Str +2)

8th|Dragon Disciple 3|
+7|
+9|
+2|
+6|Concentration 11, Spot 2, Listen 3| |Breath Weapon (2d8)

9th|Dragon Disciple 4|
+8|
+10|
+2|
+7|Concentration 12, Spot 4, Listen 4|Weapon Focus (Claws)|Ability Boost (Str +2), Natural Armor +2

10th|Kensai 1|
+8|
+10|
+2|
+9|Concentration 13, Intimidate 4, Jump 5| |Signature Weapon (Claws)

11th|Kensai 2|
+9|
+10|
+2|
+10|Concentration 14, Intimidate 8, Jump 6| |Power Surge

12th|Kensai 3|
+10|
+11|
+3|
+10|Concentration 15, Intimidate 12, Jump 7|Multiattack|

13th|Kensai 4|
+11|
+11|
+3|
+11|Concentration 16, Intimidate 16, Jump 8| |Ki Projection

14th|Kensai 5|
+11|
+11|
+3|
+11|Concentration 17, Tumble 2, Jump 9| |Withstand

15th|Dragon Disciple 5|
+11|
+11|
+3|
+11|Concentration 18, Spot 5, Listen 6|Leap Attack|Blindsense 30ft

16th|Dragon Disciple 6|
+12|
+12|
+4|
+12|Concentration 19, Spot 7, Listen 7| |Ability Boost (Con +2)

17th|Dragon Disciple 7|
+13|
+12|
+4|
+12|Concentration 20, Spot 8, Listen 9| |Breath Weapon (4d8), Natural Armor +3

18th|Dragon Disciple 8|
+14|
+13|
+4|
+13|Concentration 21, Spot 10, Listen 11|Roundabout Kick| Ability Boost (Int +2)

19th|Dragon Disciple 9|
+14|
+13|
+5|
+13|Concentration 22, Spot 13, Listen 12| |Wings

20th|Dragon Discipple 10|
+15|
+14|
+5|
+14|Concentration 23, Spot 15, Listen 14| |Blindsense 60ft. Dragon Apotheosis[/table]





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

1st|3/2|3/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

2nd|4/2|4/3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

3rd|5/2|5/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

4th|5/2|5/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

5th|5/2|5/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

6th|5/2|6/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

7th|5/2|7/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

8th|5/2|7/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

9th|5/2|8/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

10th|5/2|8/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

11th|5/2|8/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

12th|5/2|8/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

13th|5/2|8/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

14th|5/2|8/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

15th|5/2|9/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

16th|5/2|10/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

17th|5/2|10/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

18th|5/2|11/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

19th|5/2|12/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

20th|5/2|12/4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-[/table]

Spells Known: 0lvl Spells: Acid Splash, Touch of Fatigue
1lvl Spells: Swift Expeditious Retreat, Lesser Deflect, Blade of Blood, Shocking Grasp


Playing Iujaku Levels 1-5
By this point, he is a skilled melee combatant. His choice tactic is to charge in and use blade of blood for his charge attack. With powerful charge, flying kick, and blade of blood his damage is something like 1d3+5+1d12+1d8+3d6, then again he can also incorporate an Arcane Channeled Shocking Grasp for 3d6 electric damage on top of that. If you also add in power attack, the numbers continue to grow. He is not as useful in one on one combat, but can hold his own if need be. His main tactics are essentially hit and run. In one-on-one combat, he uses his Combat expertise to boost his AC, while fighting with his touch attack spells.

Levels 6-10
Iujaku now has a little more combat efficiency, and a few more spells per day. When he gets his claws and bite, he becomes a more superior one on one combatant. (In most of my games, the DM limits the ability to charge, so strikers need a back-up plan). His main tactic now is to charge in for the first attack, and then remain engaged one on one. Once he attains the first level of Kensai, his claws start to become more effective weapons. By using a combination of natural attacks and his unarmed strikes, he retains a multitude of attacks (albeit with lower attack bonuses on the natural attacks). Having his claws as his signature weapon is mostly to help offset their position as "Secondary" weapons. I would prefer to have four moderately useful attacks to one or two big ones.

Levels 11-14 (14 is the sweet spot in my opinion)
Iujaku has the ability to raise his strength by +8 with a concentration check (one he basically can't fail the first time around). This will boost his combat efficiency for 2 rounds of combat. Once he reaches 14th level his signature weapons have a +5 total modifier consisting of the following properties: Impaling (+1), Warning (+1), Lucky (+1), and a +2 modifier. He can change these if given 24 hours to meditate. At 14th level he also gets the Withstand ability, which allows him to use a concentration check in place of a reflex check to avoid spell damage (useful considering his very low reflex save). In addition, with multiattack, his claws and bite only receive a -2 to their attack when used in conjunction with an unarmed strike. These all lead to an enhanced version of his charge in first, then stand toe-to-toe tactic.

Levels 15-20
Iujaku is now in an even more adept charger. With his wings and leap attack, he can fall upon an enemy and produce massive damage using the other charge enhancing feats. At this point, he won't stick around for a lengthy toe-to-toe loss. He can escape combat and come back for another flying (or jumping) charge.

[Amphetryon]

Balaur? Does he cast Gate?


The Remnants of the War Journal of Balaur the Draconic

Balaur’s Backstory
The Remnants of the War Journal of Colonel Balaur the Draconic
Day 1: First day on the job, put in charge of a single regiment. Troops are completely green and in over their heads. No way are we going to survive the war.

Day 10: Caught off-guard by an enemy regiment, forced to retreat into some sort of temple. Under heavy fire.

Day 20: Still under siege, traveling deeper into the temple to avoid it, seems to be a semi-destroyed temple of Bahamut. Traps are placed all over the place. Losing men every day to these traps. Still we have to keep moving forward, or else we are doomed to the siege.

Day 30: Trapped, and cornered, the temple seems to be in some pocket dimension. We are almost out of food, and almost certainly going to die in here. There is some sort of magic still going on in this temple. I miss my family

Day 40: We reached the end, and to no avail it was a dead end. Only 5 of us remain including myself. There was a tunnel here, but it was caved in long before we got here. All we can do is wait for our deaths

Day 50: Day by day we have been mutating into some sort of monster, the magic here is slowly changing us. Just today my teeth appeared to form at a point, and my fingernails have morphed into claws.

Day 60: Just today by accident, I fried the tunnel in front of me with some sort of electric blast. It seems that we are becoming more and more like dragons.

Day 61: Decided to brush up on my draconic and read the inscriptions on the wall. It turns out this was the place where priests of Bahamut would slowly transform themselves into some sort of dragon, human hybrid. And now the remnant energies here are doing the same to us

Day 70: We have succumbed to our mutations, we are now half-dragons. Collectively as a group we decided to try and trek our way back out. It has speed up significantly thanks to our diminished numbers, and our mutation seemed to have made us stronger.

Day 11: It seems time pasts differently inside the temple then outside, as only a day has past. We bombarded the enemy regiment that was laying siege to us using our enhanced bodies. We are pushing them back as we speak. Victory is at hand.

Day 12: We have pushed them back and we are heroes. The 5 of us decided to pray to Bahamut in thanks for our mutation. We vowed to serve as his warriors and adopted an emblem.

History shall remember Balaur and his “Raging Dragons” as war heroes. Their efforts allowed for peace to be made in our favor. And so we shall remember him as one of the best warriors.

Build

Lawful Good Human
Balaur the Draconic
{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features

1st|Marshal 1|
+0|
+2|
+0|
+2| Intimidate 4, Knowledge (Arcana) 4, Diplomacy 4, Bluff 4, Sense Motive 4|Magic Touched, Dragon Touched, Skill Focus Diplomcacy|Minor Aura

2nd|Marshal 2|
+1|
+3|
+0|
+3| Intimidate 5, Knowledge (Arcana) 5, Diplomacy 4, Bluff 4, Sense Motive 4, Speak Language (Draconic) 2|_|Major Aura +1

3rd|Marshal 3|
+2|
+3|
+1|
+3| Intimidate 6, Knowledge (Arcana) 6, Diplomacy 6, Bluff 4, Sense Motive 4, Speak Language (Draconic) 2|Daunting presence|_

4th|Marshal 4|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4| Intimidate 7, Knowledge (Arcana) 7, Diplomacy 6, Bluff 6, Sense Motive 5, Speak Language (Draconic) 2|_|Grant Move Action 1/day

5th|Marshal 5|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4| Intimidate 8, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 6, Bluff 6, Sense Motive 8, Speak Language (Draconic) 2|_|_

6th|Marshal 5/Dragon Disciple (Bronze) 1 |
+3|
+6|
+1|
+6| Intimidate 9, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 7, Bluff 6, Sense Motive 8, Speak Language (Draconic) 2|Frightful Presence|Natural Armor Increase +1

7th| Marshal 5/Dragon Disciple (Bronze) 2 |
+4|
+7|
+1|
+7| Intimidate 9, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 10, Bluff 6, Sense Motive 8, Speak Language (Draconic) 2|_|Ability Boost (Str +2), Claws and Bite

8th| Marshal 5/Dragon Disciple (Bronze) 3 |
+5|
+7|
+2|
+7| Intimidate 9, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 11, Bluff 6, Sense Motive 8, Speak Language (Draconic) 2, Gather Information 2|_|Breath Weapon (2d8)

9th| Marshal 5/Dragon Disciple (Bronze) 4 |
+6|
+8|
+2|
+8| Intimidate 9, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 12, Bluff 6, Sense Motive 8, Speak Language (Draconic) 2, Gather Information 4|Extangling Breath|Ability Boost (str+2), Natural Armor Increase +2

10th| Marshal 5/Dragon Disciple (Bronze) 5|
+6|
+8|
+2|
+8| Intimidate 9, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 13, Bluff 6, Sense Motive 8, Speak Language (Draconic) 2, Gather Information 6|_|Blindsense 30ft

11th| Marshal 5/Dragon Disciple (Bronze) 6|
+7|
+9|
+3|
+9| Intimidate 9, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 14, Bluff 6, Sense Motive 8, Speak Language (Draconic) 2, Gather Information 8|_|Ability Boost (Con +2)

12th| Marshal 5/Dragon Disciple (Bronze) 7 |
+8|
+9|
+3|
+9| Intimidate 9, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 15, Bluff 6, Sense Motive 8, Speak Language (Draconic) 2, Gather Information 10|Exhaled Barrier| Breath Weapon (4d8)

13th| Marshal 5/Dragon Disciple (Bronze) 8 |
+9|
+10|
+3|
+10| Intimidate 9, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 16, Bluff 6, Sense Motive 8, Speak Language (Draconic) 2, Gather Information 12|_ |Ability Boost (Int +2)

14th| Marshal 5/Dragon Disciple (Bronze) 9 |
+9|
+10|
+4|
+10| Intimidate 9, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 17, Bluff 6, Sense Motive 8, Speak Language (Draconic) 2, Gather Information 14|_|Wings

15th| Marshal 5/Dragon Disciple (Bronze) 10 |
+10|
+11|
+4|
+11| Intimidate 9, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 17, Bluff 6, Sense Motive 8, Speak Language (Draconic) 2, Gather Information 17| Heighten Breath |Blindsense 60 ft, Dragon Apotheosis

16th| Marshal 6/Dragon Disciple (Bronze) 10 |
+11|
+12|
+4|
+12| Intimidate 9, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 17, Bluff 11, Sense Motive 8, Speak Language (Draconic) 2, Gather Information 17|_|_

17th| Marshal 7/Dragon Disciple (Bronze) 10|
+12|
+12|
+4|
+12| Intimidate 9, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 17, Bluff 16, Sense Motive 8, Speak Language (Draconic) 2, Gather Information 17|_|Major Aura +2

18th| Marshal 7/Dragon Disciple (Bronze) 10/Dragon Samurai (Bronze) 1 |
+12|
+14|
+4|
+14| Intimidate 12, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 17, Bluff 16, Sense Motive 8, Speak Language (Draconic) 2, Gather Information 17|Dragonbreath|Dragon Breath, Resistance to Energy 5

19th| Marshal 7/Dragon Disciple (Bronze) 10/Dragon Samurai (Bronze) 2 |
+13|
+15|
+4|
+15| Intimidate 12, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 17, Bluff 16, Sense Motive 11, Speak Language (Draconic) 2, Gather Information 17|_|Dragon Friend

20th|7/Dragon Disciple (Bronze) 10/Dragon Samurai (Bronze) 3 |
+14|
+15|
+5|
+15| Intimidate 12, Knowledge (Arcana) 8, Diplomacy 17, Bluff 16, Sense Motive 14, Speak Language (Draconic) 2, Gather Information 17|_|Immune to Dragon Fear[/table]

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

1st|3/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

2nd|3/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

3rd|3/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

4th|3/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

5th|3/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

6th|4/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

7th|5/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

8th|5/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

9th|6/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

10th|7/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

11th|8/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

12th|8/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

13th|9/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

14th|10/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

15th|10/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

16th|10/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

17th|10/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

18th|10/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

19th|10/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

20th|10/2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-[/table]

Auras Known
Auras Known
{table=head]Level|Minor|Major

1st|1|0|

2nd|1|1|

3rd|2|1|

4th|2|1|

5th|3|2|

6th|3|2|

7th|3|2|

8th|3|2|

9th|3|2|

10th|3|2|

11th|3|2|

12th|3|2|

13th|3|2|

14th|3|2|

15th|3|2|

16th|3|2|

17th|4|2|

18th|4|2|

19th|4|2|

20th|4|2| [/table]

Suggested Path of Spells and Auras

Auras (Learn in Order):
Minor: Motivate Charisma, Master of Tactics, Over the Top, Art of War
Major: Motivate Care, Motivate Ardor

Spells Known (learn in Order)
0: Prestidigitation, Touch of Fatigue


Stats:
Level 1: STR: 14 DEX: 12 CON: 14 INT: 12 WIS: 10 CHA: 16
Level 18: STR: 22 DEX: 12 CON: 16 INT: 14 WIS: 10 CHA: 21
Level 20: STR: 22 DEX: 12 CON: 16 INT: 14 WIS: 10 CHA: 22


The “Sweet Spot” Level 18
Here Balaur reaches a peak, he can now use his breath weapon once every 4 rounds instead of each day. Allowing him to open with an exhaled barrier , entangling breath attack at the start of every encounter. Then he and his allies line up parallel to the barrier 20 feet away from it launching ranged attacks at all they can hit. If enemies pass through the barrier or bypass it, Balaur activates his over the top aura, and all his allies, charge, gaining the bonus from over the top. Next round Balaur himself charges, attacking with his natural weapons. Afterwards, when the barrier expires, or if the enemies bypassed it, Balaur signals a retreat, and uses his breath weapon again trying to center it on at least one enemy and repeats the strategy. If the enemy looks to be to strong, Balaur would instead activate his Motivate Charisma aura, and use his Diplomacy skill bonus as well as his large charisma bonus to woo over his enemies. When he is able to take ten he is able to woo over hostile enemies over to friendly and unfriendly to helpful. If diplomacy does not seem to be efficient, he may instead try to scare them by combining the intimidate skill, as well as his frightful presence, and daunting presence feats. Open up with one round of intimidation, and a standard action use of daunting presence, if that doesn’t work, every attack Balaur makes results in an additional chance of the enemy becoming shaken.

Level 20:
Balaur gains extra damage for his breath weapon via Dragon Samurai, he gains 1d8 to his breath weapon per level. He continues to apply the same strategy to battle however it is made more efficient by the additional damage.

Source List:

Player's Guide to Faerun: Magical Training
Minature's Handbook: Marshal, Dragon Samurai, Daunting Presence
Dragon Magic: Dragon Touched
Draconomicon: Heighten Breath, Frightful Presence,
Races of the Dragon: Entangling Breath, Exhaled Barrier

[Amphetryon]

Shockingly strong.



Azurin Battle Sorcerer 6 / Dragon Disciple 10 / Totemist 4
starting attributes:
Str 17, Dex 12, Con 15, Int 10, Wis 8, Cha 13
attributes after stat bumps (1 to Constitution, 3 to Strength) and Dragon Disciple:
Str 28, Dex 12, Con 18, Int 10, Wis 8, Cha 15

Background

Zordon fought in the Last War - the side of Us valiantly striving against the faceless tide of Them. Following the contrary nature of nickname assignment, his ebullient nature earned him the epithet "Blue"; his squadmates uniformly insisted that his eerily cerulean sclera were not a factor. ZB reveled in the heady chaotic camaraderie of the tactical assault squad, recklessly channeling the raw arcane fury of an electric breath weapon. The magic came alive, the energy clinging to foes and hampering their movements while ZB and his companions fearlessly ruled the battlefield. He lacked the patience to learn more than a few of even the simplest spells, but that was enough.

Time came when it was not enough. On a classified mission deep in enemy territory, ZB charged heedlessly into battle without taking the time or making the effort to evaluate the situation or to calculate his best course of action. His squad were laid to waste by an encounter that, with a little applied Haste, should have been survivable. Zordon survived only through the intervention of one of his squadmates who hitherto had been assumed to be merely human. The very young blue dragon revealed himself and burrowed to safety, taking Zordon literally and metaphorically under his wing.

Thus did Zordon become an agent of the dragons, studying the signs of the Prophecy in human lands. Simultaneously, he began a systematic study of the magic in his blood, seeking an ever deeper understanding of the ways of power (and shifting from CN to LN alignment for story reasons without mechanical advantage). He traveled alone for a time, seeking esoteric signs, eating only what his claws could snatch and learning to channel the spirits of the wilderness in much the same manner as he channeled the dragon in his blood. Whenever he could, ZB sought out other dragons in disguise, learning their habits of thought until his own became so alien to his former life that he could rightly be described as being as much dragon as human.


Build


progression

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

1st|Battle Sorcerer 1|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|Intimidate 2, Knowledge (Arcana) 3, Profession (shaman) 1, Speak Language (Draconic)|Draconic Heritage; Draconic Breath|familiar (raven); spells; armor proficiency (light); weapon proficiency (scimitar)

2nd|Battle Sorcerer 2|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3|Intimidate 3, Knowledge (Arcana) 4|-|-

3rd|Battle Sorcerer 3|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+3|Intimidate 4, Knowledge (Arcana) 5|Entangling Exhalation|-

4th|Battle Sorcerer 4|
+3|
+1|
+1|
+4|Intimidate 5, Knowledge (Arcana) 6|-|-

5th|Battle Sorcerer 5|
+3|
+1|
+1|
+4|Intimidate 6, Knowledge (Arcana) 7|-|-

6th|Battle Sorcerer 6|
+4|
+2|
+2|
+5|Intimidate 7, Knowledge (Arcana) 8|Arcane Strike|-

7th|Dragon Disciple 1|
+4|
+4|
+2|
+7|Listen 2|-|+1 natural armor; +1 spell/day

8th|Dragon Disciple 2|
+5|
+5|
+2|
+8|Spot 2|-|+2 Strength; claw/bite; +1 spell/day

9th|Totemist 1|
+5|
+7|
+4|
+8|Listen 4, Spot 4|Multiattack|Wild Empathy; Illiteracy

10th|Totemist 2|
+6|
+8|
+5|
+8|Survival 4|-|+1 capacity Totem chakra bind (3 essentia)

11th|Dragon Disciple 3|
+7|
+8|
+6|
+8|Listen 6|-|breath weapon (2d8)

12th|Dragon Disciple 4|
+8|
+9|
+6|
+9|Spot 6|Draconic Aura (Electricity)|+2 Strength; +1 natural armor; +1 spell/day

13th|Dragon Disciple 5|
+8|
+9|
+6|
+9|Listen 8|-|Blindsense (30'); +1 spell/day

14th|Dragon Disciple 6|
+9|
+10|
+7|
+10|Spot 8|-|+2 Constitution; +1 spell/day

15th|Dragon Disciple 7|
+10|
+10|
+7|
+10|Listen 10|Bonus Essentia|breath weapon (4d8); +1 natural armor

16th|Dragon Disciple 8|
+11|
+11|
+7|
+11|Spot 10|-|+2 Intelligence; +1 spell/day

17th|Dragon Disciple 9|
+11|
+11|
+8|
+11|Listen 12|-|wings; +1 spell/day

18th|Dragon Disciple 10|
+12|
+12|
+8|
+12|Spot 12|Dragon Breath|breath weapon (6d8); +4 Strength; +2 Charisma; natural armor (+4 total); low-light vision; darkvision (60'); immunity to sleep and paralysis; immunity to electricity

19th|Totemist 3|
+13|
+12|
+8|
+13|Listen 14|-|Totem's Protection

20th|Totemist 4|
+14|
+13|
+9|
+13|Spot 14|-|-
[/table]


Spells per day/Spells Known

{table=head]Level|0lvl|1st|2nd|3rd

1st|4/3|2/1|-|-

2nd|5/4|3/1|-|-

3rd|5/4|4/2|-|-

4th|5/5|5/2|2/1|-

5th|5/5|5/3|3/1|-

6th|5/6|5/3|4/1|2/1

7th|5/6|5/3|4/1|3/1

8th|5/6|5/3|4/1|4/1

9th|5/6|5/3|4/1|4/1

10th|5/6|5/3|4/1|4/1

11th|5/6|5/3|4/1|4/1

12th|5/6|5/3|4/1|5/1

13th|5/6|5/3|4/1|6/1

14th|5/6|5/3|4/1|7/1

15th|5/6|5/3|4/1|7/1

16th|5/6|5/3|4/1|8/1

17th|5/6|5/3|4/1|9/1

18th|5/6|5/3|4/1|9/1

19th|5/6|5/3|4/1|9/1

20th|5/6|5/3|4/1|9/1
[/table]

{table]spell level|spells known
Level 0|Amanuensis, Caltrops, Daze, Detect Magic, Mage Hand, Prestidigitation
Level 1|Enlarge Person, Grease, Instant Diversion
Level 2|Wraithstrike
Level 3|Haste
[/table]

Zordon's ancestors whisper many secrets to his sorcerous blood, but he hearkens mainly to the call of raw draconic power. Spell selection matters much less than usual with Draconic Breath at level 1 and Arcane Strike at level six. Instant Diversion is Mirror Image light - handy for a gish. Glitterdust would be a good alternative second level spell if you do not like touching things; it is great at low levels when saves are low and great at higher levels when blindsense lets Zordon know where to aim. Someone in the party needs to have Haste, but not really more than one; Great Thunderclap is a good alternative if you like blasting spells with rider effects, or Ferocity of the Sanguine Rage or Wreath of Flames (both in Dragon Magic) give some nice gishy damage that stacks with Arcane Strike.


meldshaping progression

{table]level|soulmelds|essentia|chakra binds
1st|-|-|-
2nd|-|-|-
3rd|-|-|-
4th|-|-|-
5th|-|-|-
6th|-|-|-
7th|-|-|-
8th|-|-|-
9th|2|2|0
10th|3|3|1
11th|3|3|1
12th|3|3|1
13th|3|3|1
14th|3|3|1
15th|3|5|1
16th|3|5|1
17th|3|5|1
18th|3|5|1
19th|3|5|1
20th|4|6|1
[/table]

default soulmelds
Soulmelds may be reshaped each day depending on expected encounters, other abilities, or player whim. This is a default load out for this build. Ordinary soulmelds can be invested with four essentia at 20th level; being bound to the Totem Chakra adds one to this capacity, as does the Incarnum Belt item. At levels 12, 13, and 14, lack of essentia is the limiting factor. By level 15, an Incarnum Belt is readily affordable, so all five essentia may be invested in the Heart of Fire. At level 18 capacity increases again, only to be filled at level 20. Essentia allocation may be changed as a Swift action; this set of soulmelds allows it to be invested on the task at hand without trying to divide focus.
* Basilisk Mask (Brow chakra; low-light vision; darkvision; with a Soulstone: Blind Fight as the feat. The base level abilities are redundant with those granted by Dragon Disciple 10, but are useful until character level 18; by that point, a Soulstone is quite affordable, and Blind Fight synergizes nicely with Blindsense.)
* Blink Shirt (Heart chakra; unlimited short range teleport as a Standard action)
* Heart of Fire (bound to Totem Chakra, occupying the Waist slot; +1d4 fire damage per invested essentia; bonus vs. cold creatures)
* Kruthik Claws (Hands chakra; Competence bonus to Hide and Move Silently)


feats

* Arcane Strike: channel a spell into a bonus to attack and damage to all attacks for one round.
* Bonus Essentia: gain additional essentia beyond the paltry 3 available from class levels and one from race.
* Draconic Aura: scaling bonus to save DC of breath weapon and electricity spells, up to +4; benefits also apply to allies within 30'.
* Draconic Breath: channel a spell into a 60' line of electricity. This is explicitly described as a breath weapon.
* Draconic Heritage (Blue): prerequisite. In keeping with use of the Big Book of Blue, and I just like the image of creatures entangled in a coruscating cage of plasma.
* Dragon Breath: breath weapon from half dragon template may be used every 1d4 rounds. Yes, WotC really did put a feat named Dragon Breath and a feat named Draconic Breath in the same book.
* Entangling Exhalation: add an optional entanglement rider to breath weapon.
* Multiattack: two weapon fighting for natural weapons.


notable items

* the usual essential items, including a Strength booster (attack/damage), a Constitution booster (HP and DD breath weapon save), and a Charisma booster (bonus spells to feed to Arcane Strike or Draconic Breath). Soulbound items in the Magic Item Compendium offer a cost savings over standard attack/AC/save boosters for those willing to invest essentia, but this build only gets six essentia, precisely the capacity of the Heart of Fire at 20th level). Add a Necklace of Natural Attacks, a Fanged Ring, and all that. As this build lacks pounce, an item of fast movement (a suitably augmented Dimension Hop, ideally) or Lion's Charge is counted as essential.
* Extend, Lesser Rod of: for when just one round of Wraithstrike is not enough. A wand or item of Heroics (Spell Compendium) for Power Attack is just gravy.
* Incarnum Belt: Incarnum Focus item for the Waist chakra. Allows one additional essentia to be invested; explicitly does not interfere with binding a soulmeld to the corresponding chakra.
* Soulstone: grants access to the Brow chakra. Used to gain the Blind Fight feat from the Basilisk Mask soulmeld.
* wands of Primal Hunter and Primal Instinct. It would be silly to blow a precious spell known on something that lasts 24 hours right out of the gate, but between the two these spells grant +5 initiative, +5 to any one knowledge, and Uncanny Dodge.


notes

Azurin is the human-like race in Magic of Incarnum; they get a bonus feat and a free point of essentia. Battle sorcerer is a class variant in Unearthed Arcana; they get to wade into battle like a melee Cleric in exchange for fewer spells per day / known.

The character background is set in Eberron because I like the fluff for this character. The build has no Eberron-specific material.

The save for the Draconic Breath feat is Charisma based, meaning DC 15 for a top level spell before items and feats (reasonably DC 19-23 or so). The save for the half-dragon breath weapon is Constitution based, meaning DC 19 before items and feats (at least DC 23, up to maybe 33 - a melee frontliner has every reason to pump Constitution). Conveniently, Entangling Exhalation works just fine against everyone who does not have Evasion. A Dragon Spirit Cincture (Magic Item Compendium) would add a die of damage to the half-dragon breath weapon and probably the Draconic Breath breath weapon as well, but it occupies the same slot as the Heart of Fire chakra bind; a custom item could probably be had (slot affinity with the Throat would make more sense anyway), but it is hardly necessary.

At higher levels where fire resistance becomes the default, it might make more sense to shape the Totem Avatar by default instead of the Heart of Fire; this gives a +6 Morale bonus to damage with natural weapons, +6 Enhancement bonus to natural armor, and turns the Totemist into a d10 hit die. Another option is to use the Claws of the Wyrm draconic soulmeld from Dragon Magic, which gives an Enhancement bonus to attack and damage per essentia invested but precludes using the bite attack. This build has too little essentia to stack that with the Heart of Fire, so the Totem chakra could be given over to the Frost Helm to open every combat by trying to stun everything in 20' (save is Constitution based). What a fun little class is the Totemist - even with just four levels we have all these great options to sort through.

There is an Incarnum Dragon in Magic of Incarnum. Its breath weapon deals untyped damage to creatures but not objects, and drains essentia. It would be both thematically appropriate and more powerful as an ancestor, but the blue dragon used in this build will be allowed in pretty much any game. This might also allow the selection of the generally superior cone shape for the breath weapons.

The Draconic Breath feat explicitly describes its benefit as a breath weapon, but a reasonable DM could rule that this is not sufficient to meet the prerequisite for Entangling Exhalation. If yours is of this mindset, you can swap it with Draconic Aura in the feat order.


sources

* Complete Warrior: Arcane Strike (feat)
* Dragon Magic: Draconic Aura - Energy (feat); Primal Hunter (spell); Primal Instinct (spell)
* Dungeon Master's Guide: Dragon Disciple
* Magic Item Compendium: Dragon Spirit Cincture; Extend, Lesser Rod of; Incarnum Belt; Soulstone
* Magic of Incarnum: Azurin (race); Totemist (class); all listed soulmelds; Bonus Essentia (feat)
* Monster Manual I: Multiattack (feat)
* Player's Handbook: Sorcerer (class); most spells known
* Races of the Dragon: Draconic Breath (feat); Draconic Heritage (feat); Dragon Breath (feat); Entangling Exhalation (feat); Instant Diversion (spell)
* Spell Compendium: Amanuensis (spell); Wraithstrike (spell)
* Unearthed Arcana: Battle Sorcerer (variant class)



Benchmarks


6th level

For the first six levels, Zordon Blue plays much like any other gish - lay out a Grease or a Daze, grab a scimitar or a morningstar and go to town, then clean off the blood with Prestidigitation. Draconic Breath gives a solid area of damage for the first two levels, then Entangling Exhalation comes into play for battlefield control just as the damage starts falling behind. At level 6, ZB squeaks in both prerequisites for Arcane strike just in time to start noticing the slower base attack progression. Out of combat, ZB can intimidate rival hues thanks to Battle Sorcerer (+4 when enlarged) or send Midnight Clear, his raven, to scout the area.


10th level

The next four levels see a dramatic rise in ZB's damage output, with three attacks per round (four with Haste). With three points of essentia invested in the Heart of Fire and a third level spell channeled to Arcane Strike, that is +14 bite (1d6 + 5 + 3d4 + 3d4 fire) and +12/+12 claws (1d4 + 2 + 3d4 + 3d4 fire). The Blink Shirt soulmeld gives a little maneuverability, and the Basilisk Mask brings some dragon abilities into play early. Entangling Exhalation continues to help separate targets into bite-sized chunks.


15th level

The next five levels play much the same, but stronger, with a slightly better breath weapon, Blindsense, and 5d4 fire damage being added to every attack. A Soulstone (Magic Item Compendium) grants Blind Fight, a.k.a Mundane True Seeing. The spirit of the blue dragon ancestor crackles in the air around ZB starting at level 12, giving a 30' aura where allies' electricity-based effects have their save DC increased by 2 (scales to 4 at level 20).


20th level

In these levels, ZB sprouts wings and starts spitting a line of 6d8 electricity every 1d4 rounds, channeling a spell for Entangling Exhalation or making a full attack with another +4 to strength and +6d4 fire. Zordon has an average of 183 HP before Con-boosting item/tome - enough to take a full attack if he has too. If fractional progression is not in use, the build clocks in with +14 BAB; this is below the +16 necessary to get a fourth iterative attack, but natural weapons do not get iteratives anyway; a Horned Helm (Magic Item Compendium) could make up the deficit by adding another secondary natural weapon (at only -2 thanks to Multiattack). Adding a +6 enhancement item and a Tome of Strengthliness +4 for 40 Strength gives a final Hasted Enlarged Arcane Striking attack routine of bite/bite +33 (1d8 + 16 + 3d4 + 6d4 fire) claw/claw +31 (1d6 + 8 + 3d4 + 6d4 fire), or around 150 average damage if all four land; nothing too world-shattering, to be sure, but enough to show up at the table.



[/QUOTE]

[Amphetryon]

Dreadful. But not like that.


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

1st|Dread necromancer|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|Knowledge (arcane) 4 ranks, Intimidate 2 ranks, Concentration 4 ranks, Spellcraft 2 ranks|Twf|Carnel touch, Rebuke undead

2nd|Dread necromancer|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3|Knowledge (arcane) 5 ranks, Intimidate 3 ranks, Spellcraft 3 ranks|New Feats|Lich body DR 2/Bludgeoning and magic

3rd|Dread necromancer|
+1|
+1|
+1|
+3|Knowledge (arcane) 6 ranks, Intimidate 4 ranks, Spellcraft 4 ranks|Ability focus ( negative energy burst)|Negative energy burst 1/day

4th|Dread necromancer|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4|Knowledge (arcane) 7 ranks, Intimidate 5 ranks, Spellcraft 5 ranks|New Feats|Advanced learning(Spectral hand), Mental bastion +2, +1 bonus to Dex


5th|Dread necromancer|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4|Knowledge (Arcane) 8 Ranks, Intimidate 6 ranks, Spellcraft 6 ranks|New Feats|Fear aura

6th|Dragon disciple|
+2|
+3|
+1|
+6|Knowledge (Arcane) 9 ranks, Intimidate 6.5 ranks, Spellcraft 7 ranks|Enhanced power sigils|Natural armor increase +1

7th|Dragon disciple|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+7|Knowledge (arcane) 10 ranks, Intimidate 7 ranks, Spellcraft 8 ranks|New Feats|Ability boost (STR+2), Claws and bite

8th|Dread necromancer|
+4|
+5|
+2|
+8|Knowledge (arcane) 11 ranks, Intimidate 8 ranks, spellcraft 9 ranks|New Feats|+1 ability boost to Dex, Scabrous touch 1/day

9th|Fighter|
+5|
+7|
+2|
+8|Knowledge (arcane) 11.5 ranks, Intimidate 9 ranks, Spellcract 9.5 ranks|Weapon focus (Bite)|Bonus feat( Weapon focus claw)

10th|Fighter|
+6/1|
+8|
+2|
+8|Knowledge (arcane) 12 ranks, Intimidate 10 ranks, Spellcraft 10 ranks|New Feats|Bonus feat(Improved two weapon fighting assuming you have magic items that enhance you Dex, If not multiattack)

11th|Dread necromancer|
+6/1|
+8|
+2|
+8|Knowledge (arcane) 13 ranks, Intimidate 11 ranks, Spellcraft 11 ranks|New Feats|Lich body increase, Summon ghostly visage

12th|Dragon disciple|
+7/2|
+8|
+3|
+8|Knowledge (arcane) 14 ranks, Intimidate 11.5 ranks, spellcraft 12 ranks|Abilty focus (breath weapon)|Silver dragon ( 2d8 cone of cold), +1 ability bonus to con

13th|Dread necromancer|
+8/3|
+8|
+3|
+9|Knowledge (arcane) 15 ranks, Intimidate 12.5 ranks, Spellcraft 13 ranks|New Feats|Advanced learning(Spirit worm), Negative energy burst, Undead mastery

14th|Dragon disciple|
+9/4|
+9|
+3|
+10|Knowledge (arcane) 16 ranks, Intimidate 13 ranks, spellcraft 14 ranks|New Feats|Ability boost (+2 str), Natural armor increase (+2)

15th|Dragon disciple|
+9/4|
+9|
+3|
+10|Knowledge (arcane) 17 ranks, Intimidate 13.5 ranks, Spellcraft 15 ranks|Multiattack|Blindsense 30ft.

16th|Dragon Disciple|
+10/5|
+10|
+4|
+11|Knowledge (arcane) 18 ranks, Intimidate 14 ranks, Spellcraft 16 ranks|New Feats|Ability boost(+2 Con), + Con modifier

17th|Dragon disciple|
+11/6/1|
+10|
+4|
+11|Knowledge (arcane) 19 ranks, Intimidate 14.5 ranks, Spellcraft 17 ranks|New Feats|Breath weapon (4d8), Natural armor increase (+3)

18th|Dragon Disciple|
+12/7/2|
+11|
+5|
+12|Knowledge (arcane) 20 ranks, Intimidate 16 ranks, Spellcraft 18 ranks|Improved natural attack (bite)|Ability boost (int+2)

19th|Dragon disciple|
+12/7/2|
+11|
+6|
+12|Knowledge (arcane) 21 ranks, Intimidate 17 ranks, Spellcraft 19 ranks|New Feats|Wings

20th|Dragon disciple|
+13/8/3|
+12|
+6|
+13|Knowledge ( arcane) 22 ranks, Intimidate 18 ranks, Spellcraft 20 ranks|New Feats|Dragon Apotheosis, Blind sense 60ft., Ability increase +1 Con[/table]



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

1st|-|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

2nd|-|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

3rd|-|6|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

4th|-|7|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

5th|-|7|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

6th|-|7|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-

7th|-|7|7|5|-|-|-|-|-|-

8th|-|7|7|6|3|-|-|-|-|-

9th|-|7|7|7|4|-|-|-|-|-

10th|-|7|7|7|4|-|-|-|-|-

11th|-|7|7|7|5|3|-|-|-|-

12th|-|7|7|7|5|3|-|-|-|-

13th|-|7|7|7|6|4|-|-|-|-

14th|-|7|7|8|6|5|-|-|-|-

15th|-|7|7|8|6|6|-|-|-|-

16th|-|7|7|8|7|6|-|-|-|-

17th|-|7|7|8|7|6|-|-|-|-

18th|-|7|7|8|7|7|-|-|-|-

19th|-|7|7|8|7|8|-|-|-|-

20th|-|8|7|8|8|9|-|-|-|-[/table]

Stats
Str215
Dex163
Con205
Int142
Wis8-1
Cha163

Race
[SPOILER]Illumian P.53 Races of destiny
Base land speed 30ft.

Luminous sigils: The sigils that orbit an Illumian's head glow softly, providing illumination equal to a candle.Illumian's can make their sigils by concentrating for a moment ( 1 standard action) , but they don't receive the sigils benefits and can't use any special abilities granted by Illumian words ) see below) while they're doused. Restoring sigils to visibility is a free action.

Glyphic resonance: Illumain's are the physical embodiment of a magical language, so they interact strangely with symbols ( such spell's in the player's handbook include explosive runes, glyph of warding, greater glyph of warding, sepia snake sigil, and various symbol spells). When an Illumain encounters such magic, one of two things happen: Either the Illumani resonance overpowers the spell, or the foreign magic corrupts the mystical language that defines the Illumain. Illumain have a -4 racial penalty on saving throws against these effects if their level is less than the caster level of the spell. If an Illumain's level is equal to or greater than the spell's caster level, she is immune to the effect.

Power sigils:
Krau; +1 bonus to caster level for all spells and spell-like abilities ( Up to a maximum value equal to the Illumain's character level).

Aesh;+1 bonus on strength checks and strength based skill checks.

Illumain words: Aeshkrau
The Illumain can use her strength score to determine bonus spells she gains for a high ability score, instead of the normal ability score used by her class to determine this feature.

Final utterance: When an Illumain dies, her body releases the stored Illumain language within. For 1 round per HD of the Illumain, anyone within earshot hears ululating Illumain syllables---usually gibberish, but occasionally a prophetic phrase or a final curse on the Illumain's enemies. The Illumain body need not remain intact for the final utterance to occur. Even if an Illumain succumbs to the disintegrate spell, her disembodied voice still utters strange gibberish for several rounds.

+2 racial bonus on saves against spells with the shadow descriptor. The Illumains' magical heritage is tied to the plane of shadows.

Superior literacy: Illumains are always literate, regardless of their character class. Speak language is always a class skill for Illumains regardless of class.

Automatic languages: Common, Illumain, Draconic

Favored class: Any

Attribute increases

Level 4 +1 Dex
Level 8 +1 Dex
Level 12 +1 Con
Level 16 +1 Con
Level 20 +1 Con
Dread necromancer Special abilities
Heroes of horror P.84-87
Level 1

Charnel touch: Negative energy flows through a dread necromancer's body, concentrating in her hands. At will, but no more than once per round, she can make a melee touch attack against a living foe that deals 1d8 points of damage +1 per four class levels. This touch heals undead creatures, restoring 1 hit point per touch, +1 per four class levels. A dread necromancer can use the spectral hand spell to deliver this attack from a distance.(1d8+1)

Rebuke undead: A dread necromancer can rebuke or command undead creatures by channeling negative energy through her body. See the cleric class feature described on page 33 of the Player's handbook.

Level 2

Lich body:Starting at 2nd level, a dread necromancer begins her journey into undeath. The first symptom is her body's increased resilience to physical harm. She gains DR2/ Bludgeoning and magic.

Level 3

Negative energy burst: Beginning at 3rd level, a dread necromancer gains the ability to emit a burst of negative energy from her body, harming living creatures within 5 feet of her. This burst deals 1d4 points of damage per class level. A successful Will save ( DC 10+1/2 her class level+ cha modifier) reduces damage by half. Undead creatures within this burst are healed the same amount of hit points as the damage She deals to living creatures.[DC 15(+2 from ability focus)]

Level 4

Advanced learning: At 4th level, a dread necromancer
can add a new spell to her list, representing the result
of personal study and experimentation. The spell must be a cleric or wizard spell of the necromancy school, and of no level higher than that of the highest level spell the dread necromancer already knows. Once a new spells is selected, it is added to that dread necromancer's spell list and can be cast just like any other spell she knows. If a spell is both a cleric spell and a wizard spell, use the lower of the two levels ( when different) to determine what level the spell is for a dread necromancer.

Mental bastion +2: Starting at 4th level, a dread necromancer gains a +2 bonus on saving throws made to resist sleep, stunning, paralysis, poison, or disease.

Charnel touch: [1d8+2]

Negative energy burst: [DC16]

Level 5

Fear aura: Beginning at 5th level, a dread necromancer radiates a 5-foot-radius fear aura as a free action. Enemies in the area must succeed on a Will save (DC 10+ 1/2 her class level+ her cha modifier) or be shaken. A creature who successfully saves cannot be affected by that dread necromancer's fear aura for 24 hours.[DC14]

Negative energy burst: [DC16]

Level 6

Scabrous touch:Starting at 6th level, once per day a dread necromancer can use her charnel touch to inflict disease on a creature she touches. This ability
works like the contagion spell (see page 213 of the Player’s Handbook), inflicting the disease of her choice immediately, with no incubation period, unless the target makes a successful Fortitude save (DC 10 + 1/2 her class level + her Cha modifier). The DC for subsequent saving throws to resist the effects of the disease depends on the disease inflicted; see page 292 of the Dungeon Master’s Guide for details. Activating this class feature is a swift action. The effect lasts until the dread necromancer makes a successful charnel touch attack. The spectral hand
spell enables a dread necromancer to deliver a scabrous touch attack from a distance.

Level 7

Lich body: DR is now 4/bludgeoning and magic

Summon Ghostly vissage

Scabrous touch:[DC15]

Fear aura: [DC15]

Negative energy burst[DC17]


Level 8

Advanced learning():

Negative energy burst: now twice a day[DC18]

Fear aura:[DC16]

Scaberous touch[DC16]

Charnel touch:[1d8+2]

Undead mastery:All undead creatures created by a dread necromancer who has reached 8th level or higher gain a +4 enhancement bonus to Strength and Dexterity and 2 additional hit points per Hit Die. In addition, when a dread necromancer uses the animate
dead spell to create undead, she can control 4 + her Charisma bonus HD worth of undead creatures per class level (rather than the 4 HD per level normally granted by the spell). Similarly, when a dread necromancer casts the control undead spell, the spell targets up to (2 + her Cha bonus) HD/level of undead creatures, rather than the 2 HD/level normally granted by the spell.

Dragon disciple Special abilities
DMG. P184-185

Level 1

Natural armor increase +1

Level 2

Ability increase: +2 str

Claws and bite:1d6, 1d4

Level 3

Cone of cold breath weapon: At 3rd level, a dragon disciple gains a minor breath weapon, derived from his draconic ancestor. The type and shape depend on the dragons variety whose heritage he enjoys. Regardless of the ancestor, the breath weapon deals 2d8 damage of the appropriate energy type.

DC[10+Class level+Con modifier]
DC[18]

Level 4

Ability increase: +2 Str

Natural armor increase: Now at +2

Level 5

Blindsense: At 5th level, the dragon disciple gains blindsense with a range of 30ft. Using nonvisual senses, such as acute smell or hearing, the dragon disciple notices things it can not see. He usually does not need to make Spot or listen checks to notice and pinpoint the location of creatures within range of his blindsense ability, provided that he has line of effect to that creature.

Level 6

Ability boost: +2 Con

Breath weapon:[DC22]

Level 7

Breath weapon: 4d8 damage [DC23]

Natural armor increase: Now at +3

Level 8

Breath weapon: [DC24]

Ability boost: Int +2

Bite attack: 1d6 damage

Level 9

Wings: At 9th level, a Dragon disciple grows a set of draconic wings. He may now fly at a speed equal to his normal land speed., with average maneuverability.

Level 10

Blindsense: Increases to 60ft.

Dragon Apotheosis: At 10th level, a dragon disciple fully realizes his draconic heritage and takes on the half-dragon template. His breath weapon reaches full strength, and he gains +4 to Strength and +2 to charisma. His natural armor bonus increases to +4, and he aquires low light vision, 60-ft. darkvision, Immunity to sleep and paralysis effects, and immunity to the energy type[cold] used by his breath weapon.

Breath Weapon:(6d8 cold damage)[DC27]

Feats

Level 1 Two weapon fighting: Your penalties on attack rolls for fighting with two weapons are reduced. The penalty for your primary hand lessens by 2 and the one for your off hand lessens by 6.

I took this feat so that I could use a scimitar as well as my charnel touch attack at early levels. Using the scimitar as my primary weapon that way my chances of a critical are higher than that of my charnel touch that does more damage, but only if it hits. For a total of anywhere between 4 damage to 16. At level one that is quite impressive for a spellcaster.

Level 3

Ability focus(negative energy burst): Add +2 to the DC for all saving throws against the special attack on which the creature focuses, which is negative energy burst.(MM P.303)

when you only do 1-12 damage you want to make sure when you hit it counts so I took this feat to make sure most things we go against at level three and later on would have a hard time resisting its effects, though after level 10 it starts to become a little weaker do to the fact it does not scale with dragon disciple, but it is still a good field control ability at that level when it is doing close to 8d4 damage.

Level 6

Enhanced power sigils:[Races of destiny P.152] The bonuses granted by each of your power sigils improve by 1.

I chose this feat so that now I made up for the loss of three caster levels, thus making me be able to cast spells like a 11th level Dread necromancer. As well as granting me the power to be able to use any strength skills more efficiently. With this it also allows me to count my strength score as 3 higher for bonus spells because of my word choices.

Level 9

Weapon focus claw:You gain a +1 bonus on all attack rolls you make using the selected weapon.[Claw]

Because of this feat and two weapon fighting I can now use my claw attacks and take an additional point of of the penalty I have for fighting with two weapons.

Weapon focus bite:You gain a +1 bonus on all attack rolls you make using the selected weapon.[Bite]

Like above except it is setting me up so that for multiattack. So with the effects of two weapon fighting( my two weapons being my claws) and the multiattack(claw, claw, bite) it is more then likely to hit my opponent. And at 9 attacks on a full attack, that is a lot of damage.

Level 10

Assuming you invested into dexterity

Improved Two weapon fighting: In addition to the standard single extra attack you get with an off-hand weapon, you get a second attack with it, albeit at a – 5 penalty (see Table 8–10, page 160).

So with this feat I now have Claw[-1,-1,-4(because of weapon focus claw) Claw[-1,-1,-4(because of weapon focus claw) Bite[-1,-1,-4( because of weapon focus bite)], but because it is not also paired with multiattack you can only choose to use two of them, but either way at level 10 6 attacks, though not great, can be very useful, and devastating if you make those attacks more powerful.

If you choose not to power up your dex, thus not meeting the requirement for ITWF

Multiattack:The creatures secondary attacks with natural weapons take only -2 penalty.(MMI P.304)

With this now it becomes Primary[Bite(-1,-1,-4)],Secondaryx2[Claw-1,-1,-4] for a full attack. This is all before my BAB is factored in so basically I'm almost always hitting for 9 attacks at level 10 for massive amounts of damage.

Level 12

Ability focus Breath weapon:Add +2 to the DC for all saving throws against the special attack on which the creature focuses, which is Breath weapon.

I chose this feat to keep on focusing on the strengths I gain from becoming a dragon disciple. With this feat, my breath weapon is now harder to save against, though not impossible. With this feat it shows me that I am not taking dead levels because now I can make sure that if anything that gets within 30ft. of me will be taking cold damage, on the next turn it will be suffering from a negative energy burst as well as maybe getting in a spell. And if it still somehow keeps walking your 6 to 9 attacks should finish it off.

Level 15

If not taken at level 10

Multiattack

If taken at level 10

Improved natural attack Claw: Choose one of the creatures natural attack forms[claw]. The damage for this natural weapon increases by one step, as if the creature's size had increased by one category.(MMI P.304)

This now make my claw attacks at 1d6 damage for medium size, though I myself would have bought a wand of enlarge self, or made it permanent making it instead 1d8 damage. But RAW without increases from magic it will be 1d6. And well a total of 6d6 of damage from 6 attacks sounds good to me, and thats not even taking into consideration your bite attack.

Level 18

Improved natural attack bite:Choose one of the creatures natural attack forms[Bite]. The damage for this natural weapon increases by one step, as if the creature's size had increased by one category.

Like above, this also makes the abilities I gain from being a dragon disciple more powerful. Now dealing a d8 of damage on every bite attack for a total of 3d8 with a full attack and multiattack. This thus makes every level more melee focused then spellcasting but also uses the spells I have from Dread necromancer to keep me alive and dish out what I can while they are out of range of my Dragon breath. If I make myself large now it is d10s.


Equipment
Level 1-5

At low levels he is a basic caster with a twist though he relies not only on summoning undead, but also dealing massive amounts of damage with his two attacks and spells. Using spectral hand to deliver touch spells. At this level making sure your defense is high with dex boosting magic items, is really all you need.

Level 6-10

I would now suggest working on buying stuff that makes all your abilities stronger. Paying for a wand of enlarge self so that your claw and bite attacks deal more damage is always a good thing. As is a wand of haste. Basically now you want to focus on your strength score and boosting that up because it determines your bonus spells. Nothing is need in Cha now because everything is working off of two attributes. Str and Con. Anything that increase them only sweetens the pot use your touch spell with your claws so that not only are you doing damage from your normal attacks but now also the damage from your touch spells. And you remember the charnel touch from the beginning, well that is now attached to one claw while the other delivers another touch spell. And to top it all off, your charnel touch can also be used to deliver a disease. So along with your fear aura that they have to get buy they are now taking 9 attacks from a Full attack round. 4 of them being super charged with damage.

Level 11-20

At these levels you want to focus less on your AC now and more on pumping up your con and making your DC's harder to resist. Along with that you mostly want to keep getting spells made permanent that make you immune to mind control while also focusing on things that make your undead stronger. After all there is nothing more fearsome then a Ice breathing, undead controlling maniac that makes you run in fear if you get within 5 ft. From this point on you just want to focus on building up your strengths and not worrying about anything else. Get Greater mage armor cast on you permanent, as well as shield and Divine might. Now you are able to kill many things very simply and then just raise them as more meat shields.

Well this is my build and the only thing I would think about changing would be my feat choice. Cross out the ITWF for the multiattack so you can add that boost straight to Con the whole time making your DC's harder to hit. As well as taken the two levels of fighter away and two of DN for the draco lich template. Which would then make everything Str and Cha based. Either way comes to a SAD build. Hope you all enjoy the build.

I know it has no back story, in the end I could not come up with one and saying time is coming close I wanted to make sure it was in before the deadline.

[Amphetryon]

Tentacle Dragon? What?


http://www.4freeimagehost.com/resized/4fdb952f2310.jpg

Yul'uth-ca the Protector

The Build

Amphibious Antropomorphic Giant Octopus Sorcerer 1, Barbarian 2, Dragon Disciple 10, Half-Dragon Paragon 3, Sorcerer 2.
NG Medium Monstrous Humanoid

Str 17 (15+2 Racial)
Dex 16 (12 + 4 Racial)
Con 13 (15 - 2 Racial)
Int 12 (12 + 0 Racial)
Wis 12 (8 + 4 Racial)
Cha 11 (15 - 4 Racial)


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

1st| Anthropomorphic Giant Octopus 1|
+1|
+2|
+2|
+0| Hide +4, Spot +4, Listen +4, Swim +1| Sacred Vow, Vow of Poverty, Nymph’s Kiss (VoP Bonus)| +2 Natural Armor, Constrict, Improved Grab, Ink Cloud, Jet, Darkvision 60ft, Aquatic Subtype

2nd| Anthropomorphic Giant Octopus 2|
+2|
+3|
+3|
+0| Hide +1, Spot +1, Listen +1, Swim +1| Touch of Golden Ice (VoP Bonus)|

3rd| Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 1|
+2|
+3|
+3|
+2| Knowledge (Arcana) + 4| Multigrab | Spell Shield ACF, Stalwart Sorcerer ACF, Martial Weapon Proficiency [Sap] Weapon Focus [Sap]

4th| Lion Totem Barbarian 1|
+3|
+5|
+3|
+2| Knowledge (Arcana) + 3| Gift of Faith (VoP Bonus)| Rage 1/day, Pounce

5th| Barbarian 2|
+4|
+6|
+3|
+2| Knowledge (Arcana) +1, Listen +2, Swim +2| | Uncanny Dodge

6th| Dragon Disciple (Black) 1|
+4|
+8|
+3|
+4| Concentration +4| Greater Multigrab, Sanctify Natural Attack (VoP Bonus)|Natural Armor +1

7th| Dragon Disciple (Black) 2|
+5|
+9|
+3|
+5| Concentration +4| | Str +2, Claws and Bite

8th| Dragon Disciple (Black) 3|
+6/+1|
+9|
+4|
+5| Concentration +3, Listen +1| Defender of the Homeland (VoP Bonus)| Breath Weapon 2d8

9th| Dragon Disciple (Black) 4|
+7/+2|
+10|
+4|
+6| Listen +4| Rending Constriction | Str +2, Natural Armor +1

10th| Dragon Disciple (Black) 5|
+7/+2|
+10|
+4|
+6| Listen +1, Spot +3| Nimbus of Light (VoP Bonus)| Blindsense 30ft

11th| Dragon Disciple (Black) 6|
+8/+3|
+11|
+5|
+7| Listen +1, Spot +3| | Con +2

12th| Dragon Disciple (Black) 7|
+9/+4|
+11|
+5|
+7| Listen +1, Spot +3| Multiattack, Stigmata (VoP Bonus)| Breath Weapon 4d8, Natural Armor +3

13th| Dragon Disciple (Black) 8|
+10/+5|
+12|
+5|
+8| Diplomacy +2, Listen +1, Spot +2| | Int +2

14th| Dragon Disciple (Black) 9|
+10/+5|
+12|
+6|
+8| Diplomacy +3, Listen +1, Spot +1| Vow of Purity (VoP Bonus)|Wings

15th| Dragon Disciple (Black) 10|
+11/+6/+1|
+13|
+6|
+10| Diplomacy +3, Listen +1, Spot +1| Improved Speed | Blindsense 60ft, Dragon Apotheosis

16th| Half Dragon Paragon (Black) 1|
+12/+7/+2|
+15|
+6|
+10| Diplomacy +5, Listen +1, Spot +1| Righteous Wrath (VoP Bonus)|Sorcerous Blood

17th| Half Dragon Paragon (Black) 2|
+13/+8/+3|
+16|
+6|
+11| Diplomacy +5, Listen +1, Spot +1| |Natural Armor Boost

18th| Half Dragon Paragon (Black) 3|
+14/+9/+4|
+16|
+7|
+11| Concentration +2, Diplomacy +3, Listen +1, Spot +1| Improved Flight, Vow of Obedience (VoP Bonus)|Breath Weapon 3/day

19th| Battle Sorcerer 2|
+15/+10/+5|
+16|
+7|
+1| Concentration +4| |

20th| Battle Sorcerer 3|
+16/+11/+5/+1|
+17|
+8|
+12| Concentration +4| Vow of Abstinence (VoP Bonus)| [/table]

Background
That year, the sky rained death. Terrible creatures fell from the heavens and set upon our realm. Entire cities were destroyed in a night; flooded by foul acids, torn apart brick by brick, the inhabitants devoured whole. We hadn’t fought in centuries of peace, but in that dark time our order’s original purpose was remembered. The entire land rallied against these beings, but still, we were on the verge of defeat when the monsters simply departed, flying away into the night as suddenly as they had come. The terror and ruins they left behind was not their only legacy, however. A single egg was found at the heart of Yul'uth-ca, the first city that had fallen. The egg was entrusted to our care, where it remained under heavy guard - until it hatched.

I was the senior most member there, and I took charge, immediately sending the pre-arranged Messages, and gathering everything on hand to confront whatever emerged. Imagine our surprise - and relief - when we saw the mewling thing, as helpless as a human infant. We continued to guard our charge, feeding it (although its preference for rotten meat made this task less than pleasant), providing a habitat, and teaching it. Yes, teaching; as the creature grew, we realized how similar its mind was to ours. Those who cared for it on a day to day basis reported that it was similar to a bright human child, and it expressed a boundless curiosity about the world outside of its confinement. It loved to read, and we were more than willing to make it happy. One of the watchers named the creature Yul'uth-ca, after the city it had been found in. Officially, it was still unnamed, but within the monastery we all used the name. We were isolated, and aside from a few pilgrims toward the sacred grove we tended or our weekly Messages, we had no contact with the world - is it any surprise that this creature became a regular part of our lives? While we were still forbidden to allow it out our custody, we began to allow it to roam the mountains around our monastery. We always accompanied it, not only to supervise it, but for its protection; despite its heritage, it was still a child in many ways.

After years of this lifestyle, Yul'uth-ca requested entry into our order. We have never refused an aspirant based on their heritage, and it had already been living among us its entire life and knew what this commitment meant. After a brief discussion, Yul'uth-ca was allowed to officially perform the vowing ceremonies, and to attempt to commune with the spirits of our grove. While there, the dryads we guard revealed themselves, and they conversed for hours, far longer than any of us had managed. Afterwards, the fey often chose to relay messages through Yul'uth-ca, and it would often spend hours in their company. Yul'uth-ca was perfect in its duties. It performed the tasks appointed to it flawlessly, and was an ideal member in all ways. It seemed content in this lifestyle, and I believe that it would have been happy to live out its days here, if only fate allowed it to.

The creatures returned, again assailing our cities. We had barely survived their initial onslaught, and even now, decades later, we were in no state to resist them. We would have been annihilated, had Yul'uth-ca not been there. We had no idea what to expect from it - we had lived with it for its entire life, but we still knew so little about what it truly was. But it arose as our champion - tirelessly patrolling the skies, sleeplessly watching over us. Yul'uth-ca was always at the front of each battle, and literally gave its lifeblood to heal the wounded it couldn’t protect. We still don’t know what happened to it after that final battle, in the skies above the city where we found its egg - no witnesses of that terrible conflict survived. All is known is that after that fight, we were never troubled by those being again. Yul'uth-ca saved us all.


Build Highlights
Levels 3-8:
With a high strength, a huge number of natural attacks, and Improved Grab + Constrict, Yul'uth-ca is dangerous in melee, and is reasonably durable. A decent armor class, hit points, and Spell Shield give improved survivability that that lets it stay on the front line, while Vow of Poverty, Nymph’s Kiss, and Defender of the Homeland help shore up saves. Additionally, Touch of Golden Ice is still relevant at these levels, and with how many attacks Yul'uth-ca has on a Pounce, there’s a very real possibility that the Ravage will incapacitate an enemy on its own, especially if Raging. Greater Multigrab is another unique tactical option that few other characters have. While still mundane, it can attack via damage, Dex damage, or (multi)grapples, without the horrible defensive problems of an ubercharger. Unfortunately, Yul'uth-ca never manifests enough arcane talent to reach 2nd level spells, and ends up using most of it’s power to instinctually protect itself, rather than a more overt usage.

Levels 9-13
After obtaining Rending Constriction, damage jumps. The new attack sequence looks like Attack Improved Grab, Constriction, Rending Constriction. This translates into 2d3+4d10+4.5xStr for every two tentacles that hit and grapple. Wonderfully, the Improved Grab special attack derived from a Giant Octopus is capable of using Improved Grab on a target regardless of size. Vow of Poverty and Dragon Disciple combine to give a stacking +8 Strength, Defense continues to be acceptable, with a good hit die, good AC, and decent saves for everything but Reflex ([Ex] Freedom of Movement isn’t until next level, unfortunately). The list of unique toys available improves a bit, with additional spell slots from Dragon Disciple feeding Spell Shield, Blindsense and maxed Spot/Listen never being unwelcome, and even Stigmata sort of being useful (and greatly amusing to me, as nothing bad ever comes from being anointed by a Lovecraftian entity). Still strongest in the thick of melee, but it can now do some serious damage without sacrificing defense.

Levels 14-20
Flight comes online a bit later than one might hope (but the fastest that it possibly could for a Dragon Disciple). Yul'uth-ca continues to rack up significant strength bonuses from Dragon Disciple and Vow of Poverty, and has enough spell slots to burn on Spell Shield that it can use it whenever it feels like (thanks, Dragon Disciple!). The lack of scaling on the Breath Attack makes it a poor option, but having access to it 3/day is handy just as a utility (sometimes you just gotta burn a door down with Acid, you know?). Vow of Poverty’s big problems (terrible defense, no alternate movement speeds, terrible offense) is offset by the huge strength bonuses + Rending Constriction, substantial natural armor boosting + high hit die (On average, Yul'uth-ca should end up breaking 200 HP easily), and a 60ft flight speed with good maneuverability (it’s not perfect, but it’s acceptable). Finally, it can Diplomancer to a small degree, with a +23 bonus to Diplomacy from skills and attributes alone, and picks up a number of stacking boosts from various Exalted Feats.

Level 20 Statblock

HP: 229 (averaged HP, max HP on first HD)
Speed: 30ft Land, 15ft Swim, 60ft Flight (Good)
AC: 36 (Touch 18, Flatfooted 28)
Full Attack: 6 Tentacles +30 (1d3+19), 2 Claws +28 (1d4+12), Bite +28 (1d6+12)
Special Attacks: Breath Weapon (60ft Line of Acid 6d8, 3/day), Constrict (1d10+14 on a successful grapple check), Improved Grab (may attempt a grapple check as a free action on a successful tentacle attack), Rending Constriction (Requires 2 or more tentacles grappling a target, deals Constrict damage + 2d10+28 and releases target from grapple).
Special Qualities: Acid Immunity, Sleep and Paralysis Immunity, Exalted Strike [+5, Good] (Su), Endure Elements (Ex), Resistance [+3] (Ex), Mind Shielding (Ex), Damage Reduction 10/Evil (Su), Greater Sustenance (Ex), Energy Resistance 15 (Ex), Freedom of Movement (Ex), True Seeing (Ex), Regeneration (Ex), Blindsense 60ft, Uncanny Dodge, Spell Shield (Su)

Str 38 (+14) (All Stat Boosts into Strength)
Dex 20 (+5)
Con 21 (+5)
Int 14 (+0)
Wis 12 (+1)
Cha 15 (+2)


And flavorfully, it’s delicious. It’s a scaled, clawed, acid spitting mass of tentacles badass who heals people by bleeding on them, who has devoted itself toward spiritual enlightenment. And it has a halo.


Use of Secret Ingredient
I’ll admit that this is a nontraditional use of Dragon Disciple. I wanted to use the class to reflect the evolution of a monster, similar to the Monster Progressions from Savage Species, rather than a traditional class. The biggest draws for this build are the significant stat boosts - since Base Attack Bonus doesn’t matter very much for a natural attack based build, there’s no real downside to them. The flight gained from DD isn’t anything to write home about, but it gets a Vow of Poverty character in the air, and can be boosted via feats, so it’s good enough for me. The bonus spells go directly into feeding Spell Shield, instead of actually being used to cast spells. There’s no good way that the class is going to compete with casters of equal level, and instead of trying to force that in, I rationalized it as using inherent magical ability to protect itself, almost instinctually. It fits flavorfully, and uses something that would otherwise go to waste. The Natural Armor boost is sexy with how many other AC boosters it gets; having a +4 bonus to natural armor is way more valuable when one’s Armor Class is already in the 30s. Blindsense isn’t really used in a unique or effective way, but 60ft Blindsense isn’t something I’d turn down (the same could be said of Acid Immunity, Sleep/Paralysis Immunity, Lowlight Vision). I honestly am not sure how “Claws” work on this creature; I believe that it means the creature grows new clawed limbs (as it has no limbs that claws could be applied to), which is great for a number of reasons, but that’s certainly not the only interpretation. Still, it’s more damage on a full attack, and it arguably could give brand new limbs. The only real stinker is the breath weapon - 6d8 is very, very low damage, especially with a save for half. If the damage was better, or it was usable every 1d4 rounds, I’d be able to use it, but it’s (at best) a novelty.

Sources Used
Amphibious Template StormW135
Antropomorphic Octopus, Giant SS214
Spell Shield ACF DS13
Battle Sorcerer ACF UA56
Stalwart Sorcerer CM36
Gift of Faith BoED43
Nymph's Kiss BoED44
Righteous Wrath BoED45
Sanctify Natural Attack BoED46
Stigmata BoED46
Touch of Golden Ice BoED47
Vow of Abstinence BoED47
Vow of Obedience BoED48
Vow of Poverty BoED48
Vow of Purity BoED48
Nimbus of Light CD44
Multigrab Serpent Kingdoms146
Greater Multigrab Serpent Kingdoms146
Rending Constriction Serpent Kingdoms147
Defender of the Homeland CoV28
Multiattack SRD
Improved Speed Draconomicon71
Lion Totem Barbarian ACF CC46
Improved Flight RotW151 EDIT: The author indicates the Flaw: Shaky was used for the 3rd feat at 1st level.

[Amphetryon]

Dancing around the issue.


Katria "Dragon Dancer"
Build
NAME OF ENTRY Katria "Dragon Dancer"
{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features|Ability Adds|VoP Features

1st|Battledancer 1|
+1|
+0|
+2|
+0|Balance 2rnks, Listen 2rnks, Perform(dance/sing) 4rnks ea., Tumble 4rnks|Sacred Vow|AC bonus[ex] cha to ac, Unarmed Strike||

2nd|Battledancer 2|
+2|
+0|
+3|
+0|Knowledge(arcana) 1rnk, Listen 1rnk, Tumble 1rnk||Dance of Reckless Bravery[su]||

3rd|Battledancer 3|
+3|
+1|
+3|
+1|Jump 3rnks, Tumble 1rnk|Vow of Poverty|||AC bonus[su] +5, endure elements[ex]

4th|Battledancer 4|
+4|
+1|
+4|
+1|Jump 1rnk, Speak Language(draconic), Tumble 1rnk||bonus Speed[ex] +10 feet|
+1 dex|exalted strike[su] +1(magic), Touch of Golden Ice

5th|Battledancer 5|
+5|
+1|
+4|
+1|Jump 1rnk, Listen 2rnks, Tumble 1rnk||Dance of the Vexing Snake[su]||sustenance[ex]

6th|DragonDevotee 1|
+5|
+3|
+4|
+1|Spot 5rnks|Improved Natural Attack (unarmed strike)|Ability Increase[ex] +2 cha, Natural Armor Increase[ex] +1||Ac bonus[su] +6, deflection[su] +1, Nymph's Kiss

7th|DragonDevotee 2|
+6|
+4|
+4|
+1|Knowledge(arcana) 2rnks, Sense Motive 3rnks||Combat Technique[ex] Improved Grapple, Draconic Resistance[ex] +4 vs. paralysis and sleep||resistance[ex] +1, +2 str

8th|DragonDevotee 3|
+7|
+4|
+5|
+2|Knowledge(arcana) 5rnks||Ability Increase[ex] +2 con, Ignore Spell Failure[ex], +1 level of Sorcerer|
+1 dex|natural armor[ex] +1, mind shielding[ex], Knight of Stars

9th|Sword of Righteousness 1|
+8|
+6|
+5|
+4|Climb 3rnks, Sense Motive 2rnks|Improved Initiative|nimbus of light||AC bonus[su] +7

10th|Sword of Righteousness 2|
+9|
+7|
+5|
+5|Climb 2rnks, Ride 3rnks||holy radiance||exalted strike[su] +2(good), DR[su] 5/magic, Sanctify Natural Attack(unarmed strike)

11th|DragonDisciple 1|
+9|
+9|
+5|
+7|concentration 5rnks||Natural Armor Increase[ex] +1||+4 str +2 dex

12th|DragonDisciple 2|
+10|
+10|
+5|
+8|Concentration 1rnk, Gather Information 1rnk, Listen 1rnk, Sense Motive 1rnk, Spot 1rnk|Deflect Arrows|Ability Boost[ex] +2 str, Claws and Bite[ex]|
+1 dex|AC bonus[su] +8, deflection[su] +2, greater sustenance[ex], Vow of Abstinence

13th|DragonDisciple 3|
+11|
+10|
+6|
+8|Concentration 1rnk, Gather Information 1rnk, Listen 1rnk, Sense Motive 1rnk, Spot 1rnk||Breath Weapon[su] 2d8||resistance[ex] +2, energy resistance[ex] 5

14th|DragonDisciple 4|
+12|
+11|
+6|
+9|Concentration 1rnk, Gather Information 1rnk, Listen 1rnk, Sense Motive 1rnk, Spot 1rnk|New Feats|Ability Boost[ex] +2 str, Natural Armor Increase[ex] +2||exalted strike[su] +3, freedom of movement[ex], Stigmata

15th|DragonDisciple 5|
+12|
+11|
+6|
+9|Concentration 1rnk, Gather Information 1rnk, Listen 1rnk, Sense Motive 1rnk, Spot 1rnk|Improved Toughness|Blindsense[ex] 30ft.||AC bonus[su] +9, +6 str +4 dex +2 con, DR[su] 5/evil

16th|DragonDisciple 6|
+13|
+12|
+7|
+10|Gather Information 1rnk, Listen 2rnks, Spot 2rnks|New Feats|Ability Boost[ex] +2 con|
+1 dex|natural armor[ex] +2, Sanctify Natural Attack(claws)

17th|DragonDisciple 7|
+14|
+12|
+7|
+10|Gather Information 1rnk, Listen 2rnks, Spot 2rnks||Breath Weapon[su] 4d8, Natural Armor Increase[ex] +3||exalted strike[su] +4, resistance[ex] +3, regeneration[ex]

18th|DragonDisciple 8|
+15|
+13|
+7|
+11|Diplomacy 1rnk, Gather Information 1rnk, Listen 2rnks, Spot 2rnks|Iron Will|Ability Boost[ex] +2 int||AC bonus[su] +10, deflection[su] +3, true seeing[su], Sanctify Natural Attack(bite)

19th|DragonDisciple 9|
+15|
+13|
+8|
+11|Diplomacy 1rnk, Gather Information 1rnk, Listen 2rnks, Spot 2rnks||Wings[ex]||+8 str +6 dex +4 con +2 cha, DR[su] 10/evil

20th|DragonDisciple 10|
+16|
+14|
+8|
+12|Diplomacy 1rnk, Gather Information 1rnk, Listen 2rnks, Spot 2rnks|New Feats|blindsense[ex] 60ft., Dragon Apotheosis: +4 str +2 cha, breath weapon[su] 6d8, natural armor increase[ex] +4, low-light vision, 60ft. darkvision, immunity to sleep paralysis and fire|
+1 str|exalted strike[su] +5, energy resistance[ex] 15, Vow of Purity[/table]
Spells
Spells per day
{table=head]Level|0lvl|1st|2nd|3rd|4th|5th|6th|7th|8th|9th

1st|5|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-[/table]

Sorcerer Spells Known
{table=head]Level|0lvl|1st|2nd|3rd|4th|5th|6th|7th|8th|9th|spe lls

1st|4|1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|0-detect magic, mage hand, message, read magic; 1-magic fang, shield[/table]



Born to a elven slave mother no father to speak of Katria never new real freedom growing up. Even under these circumstances she was kind, self-sacrificing, and a shining example of virtue. From the moment she was born the slave leaders had her start training to help free them one day when they were truly ready. Learning the "art" of battledancing increased her grace while giving her the "outlet" to make others smile. Since a very young age Katria has had a reacurring dream where she enters a dark cave(being led by another in dark brown robes), when she comes to a big cavern with a "obscured" man on a thrown the dream ends with her waking up in a distressed mood. Other dreams she has had stears her to "glean" any information about dragons that she can.
Katria "Dragon Dancer"
Female elf battledancer 5
CG Medium humanoid
Init +3; Senses Low-light vision Listen +7, Spot +2
Languages Common, Draconic, Elven

AC 22, touch 16, flat-footed 19 (+3 Dex, +3 Cha, +5 exalted, +1 battledancer)
hp 42 (5 HD)
Immune sleep effects
Fort +3, Ref +7, Will +1 (+2 against other enchantments)

Speed 40 ft. (8 squares)
Melee +2 unarmed strike +6 (1d8+1/x2)
Base Atk +5; Grp +5

Abilities Str 10 Dex 17 Con 14 Int 10 Wis 10 Cha 16
SQ AC bonus[ex] cha to ac, Bonus Speed[ex] +10ft., Dance of Reckless Bravery[su], Dance of the Vexing Snake[su], Unarmed Strike, Endure Elements[ex], Exalted Strike[su] +1, Sustenance[ex]
Feats Improved Unarmed Strike<bdcr 1>, Sacred Vow, Touch of Golden Ice{VoP 4}, Vow of Poverty
Skills Balance +7(2rnks), Diplomacy +5, Jump +11(5rnks), Knowledge(arcana) +1(1rnk), Listen +7(5rnks), Perform(dance/sing) +7(4rnks ea.), Speak Language(draconic), Tumble +13(8rnks)
Possessions quarterstaff, simple clothes, spell component pouch


At the age of 16 when the others are getting ready to make their move Katria gains the "attention" of the overseer. She decides to comply with the leaders and distract the overseer when the slaves make their bid for freedom. Katria hasn't had the dreams of the cave since she was 6. After helping the survivors relocate and stabilize themselves in a village, 4 years later Katria goes out to adventure and explore where her "visions" are leading and what they mean. Joining up with a adventuring party she helps those in need be they orphans, slaves, oppressed, or down on their luck. Katria explores her abilities that are emerging and her drive for justice.
Katria "Dragon Dancer"
Female elf battledancer 5 / dragon devotee 3 / sword of righteousness 2
CG Medium humanoid
Init +8; Senses Low-light vision Listen +7, Spot +7
Languages Common, Draconic, Elven

AC 29, touch 20, flat-footed 25 (+4 Dex, +4 Cha, +7 exalted, +1 deflection, +2 natural, +1 battledancer)
hp 81 (10 HD); DR 5/magic
Immune sleep effects
Fort +11 (+15 against paralysis), Ref +10, Will +6 (+2 against other enchantments)

Speed 40 ft. (8 squares)
Melee +1 unarmed strike +12/+7 (2d6+3/x2)
Base Atk +9; Grp +14
Sorcerer Spells Known (CL 1st):
0(5/day)--detect magic, mage hand, message, read magic
1(4/day)--magic fang, shield

Abilities Str 12 Dex 18 Con 16 Int 10 Wis 10 Cha 18
SQ AC bonus[ex] cha to ac, Bonus Speed[ex] +10ft., Dance of Reckless Bravery[su], Dance of the Vexing Snake[su], Unarmed Strike, Draconic Resistance[ex] +4 aginst paralysis, Endure Elements[ex], Exalted Strike[su] +2, Ignore Spell Failure[ex] when casting 0 and 1st level spells, Mind Shielding[ex], Sustenance[ex]
Feats Holy Radiance<sor 2>, Improved Grapple<drdev 2>, Improved Initiative, Improved Unarmed Strike<bdcr 1>, Knight of Stars{VoP 8}, Nimbus of Light<sor 1>, Nymph's Kiss{VoP 6}, Sacred Vow, Sanctify Natural Attack(unarmed strike){VoP 10}, Touch of Golden Ice{VoP 4}, Vow of Poverty
Skills Balance +8(2rnks), Climb +6(5rnks), Diplomacy +8, Jump +12(5rnks), Knowledge(arcana) +8(8rnks), Listen +7(5rnks), Perform(dance/sing) +8(4rnks ea.), Ride +7(3rnks), Sense Motive +5(5rnks), Speak Language(draconic), Spot +7(5rnks), Tumble +14(8rnks)
Possessions quarterstaff, simple clothes, spell component pouch


After 3 years the adventuring party tries tackling a specially difficult dictator that has a "iron fist" around his populace. The group had no problem infiltrating the city, however the populace was largely resistant to any change in their situation out of fear it gets worse. even after getting together a smal resistance group, the dictator found out and moved in with overwhelming force. While escaping the battle half the group was killed or captured. None of the other resistance members made it out. Katria and what was left of their party fled the insuing military forces to a forest nearby.
Katria "Dragon Dancer"
Female elf battledancer 5 / dragon devotee 3 / sword of righteousness 2 / dragon disciple 5
CG Medium humanoid
Init +8; Senses Low-light vision Blindsense 30' Listen +11, Spot +11
Languages Common, Draconic, Elven

AC 36, touch 23, flat-footed 30 (+6 Dex, +4 Cha, +9 exalted, +2 deflection, +4 natural, +1 battledancer)
hp 159 (15 HD); DR 5/evil
Immune sleep effects
Resist acid 5, cold 5, electricity 5, fire 5, sonic 5
Fort +17 (+21 against paralysis), Ref +14, Will +11 (+2 against other enchantments)

Speed 40 ft. (8 squares)
Melee +3 unarmed strike +18/+13/+8 (2d6+8/x2)
Base Atk +12; Grp +21
Sorcerer Spells Known (CL 1st):
0(5/day)--detect magic, mage hand, message, read magic
1(8/day)--magic fang, shield

Abilities Str 20 Dex 23 Con 18 Int 10 Wis 10 Cha 18
SQ AC bonus[ex] cha to ac, Bonus Speed[ex] +10ft., Breath Weapon[su] 1/day 60ft line of fire 2d8 DC19, Claws and Bite[ex] 1d4 claws 1d6 bite, Dance of Reckless Bravery[su], Dance of the Vexing Snake[su], Unarmed Strike, Draconic Resistance[ex] +4 aginst paralysis, Endure Elements[ex], Exalted Strike[su] +3, Freedom of Movement[ex], Greater Sustenance[ex], Ignore Spell Failure[ex] when casting 0 and 1st level spells, Mind Shielding[ex], Sustenance[ex]
Feats Deflect Arrows, Holy Radiance<sor 2>, Improved Grapple<drdev 2>, Improved Initiative, Improved Toughness, Improved Unarmed Strike<bdcr 1>, Knight of Stars{VoP 8}, Nimbus of Light<sor 1>, Nymph's Kiss{VoP 6}, Sacred Vow, Sanctify Natural Attack(unarmed strike){VoP 10}, Stigmata{VoP 12}, Touch of Golden Ice{VoP 4}, Vow of Abstinence{VoP 14}, Vow of Poverty
Skills Balance +10(2rnks), Climb +10(5rnks), Concentration +13(9rnks), Diplomacy +8, Gather Information +8(4rnks), Jump +16(5rnks), Knowledge(arcana) +8(8rnks), Listen +11(9rnks), Perform(dance/sing) +8(4rnks ea.), Ride +9(3rnks), Sense Motive +9(9rnks), Speak Language(draconic), Spot +11(9rnks), Tumble +16(8rnks)
Possessions quarterstaff, simple clothes, spell component pouch



1 year of constant hit and run tactics later finds Katria the sole survival. Fleeing a small group of specialized bounty hunters Katria finds a jungle not on her maps. she starts having the dreams about the "cave", except their more numorous and intense. Using the jungle to her advantage when she can Katria sets up a battle royale that rages to the edges of the jungle. When she finally emerges from the jungle theres a cave standing before her, when she approaches a human male in a dark brown robe convinces her to accompany him to his masters presence whom has expected her for some time now. Upon entering the cavern she is face to face with another 1/2 brass dragon elf. Katrias greatgreatgrandfather praises her for being able to unlock her birthright("Not everyone has the potential to.")
Katria "Dragon Dancer"
Female half-brassdragon battledancer 5 / dragon devotee 3 / sword of righteousness 2 / dragon disciple 10
CG Medium dragon(augmented humanoid)
Init +12; Senses Low-light vision Blindsense 60' Darkvision 60' Listen +21, Spot +21
Languages Common, Draconic, Dwarven, Elven

AC 45, touch 28, flat-footed 37 (+8 Dex, +6 Cha, +10 exalted, +3 deflection, +7 natural, +1 battledancer)
hp 256 (20 HD); DR 10/evil
Immune sleep effects, paralysis, fire
Resist acid 15, cold 15, electricity 15, fire 15, sonic 15
Fort +23 (+27 against disease and death effects), Ref +19, Will +17 (+19 against other enchantments)

Speed 40 ft. (8 squares)
Melee +5 unarmed strike +29/+24/+19/+14 (2d6+13/x2)
Base Atk +16; Grp +28
Sorcerer Spells Known (CL 1st):
0(5/day)--detect magic, mage hand, message, read magic
1(12/day)--magic fang, shield

Abilities Str 27 Dex 26 Con 22 Int 12 Wis 10 Cha 22
SQ AC bonus[ex] cha to ac, Bonus Speed[ex] +10ft., Breath Weapon[su] 1/day 60ft line of fire 6d8 DC19, Claws and Bite[ex] 1d4 claws 1d6 bite, Dance of Reckless Bravery[su], Dance of the Vexing Snake[su], Unarmed Strike, Draconic Resistance[ex], Endure Elements[ex], Exalted Strike[su] +5, Freedom of Movement[ex], Greater Sustenance[ex], Ignore Spell Failure[ex] when casting 0 and 1st level spells, Mind Shielding[ex], Regeneration[ex], Sustenance[ex], True Seeing[su]
Feats Deflect Arrows, Holy Radiance<sor 2>, Improved Grapple<drdev 2>, Improved Initiative, Improved Toughness, Improved Unarmed Strike<bdcr 1>, Knight of Stars{VoP 8}, Nimbus of Light<sor 1>, Nymph's Kiss{VoP 6}, Sacred Vow, Sanctify Natural Attack(unarmed strike, claws, bite){VoP 10, 16, 18}, Stigmata{VoP 12}, Touch of Golden Ice{VoP 4}, Vow of Abstinence{VoP 14}, Vow of Poverty, Vow of Purity{VoP 20}
Skills Balance +12(2rnks), Climb +13(5rnks), Concentration +15(9rnks), Diplomacy +13(3rnks), Gather Information +15(9rnks), Jump +19(5rnks), Knowledge(arcana) +9(8rnks), Listen +21(19rnks), Move Silently +10(2rnks), Perform(dance/sing) +10(4rnks ea.), Ride +11(3rnks), Sense Motive +9(9rnks), Speak Language(draconic), Spot +21(19rnks), Tumble +18(8rnks)
Possessions quarterstaff, simple clothes, spell component pouch

Sources
PHB
DMG
Complete Warrior
Races of the Wild
Book of Exalted Deeds

[Amphetryon]

Is "Enlightened Neanderthal" an oxymoron?



Son of Edi
The radiant neaderthal who brought light to the Dark Ages.
http://www.cpgb.org.uk/images/1004684.jpg
Draconic Sorceror 6/Dragon Disciple 10/Wonderworker 3

The Stats:
{table=head]stat|point buy|race|Draconic|Half-Dragon|level|items|total|mod
STR|14|+2|+2|+8|-|-|26|+8
DEX|12|-2|-|-|-|-|10|+0
CON|18|+2|+2|+2|+4|+6|34|+12
INT|8|-2|-|+2|-|-|8|-1
WIS|8|-|-|-|-|-|-8|-1
CHA|14|-|+2|+2|+1|+6|25|+7
[/table]
Class Progression:
{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features
1st|Draconic LA|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+0|-|-|Draconic Template
2nd|Sorceror|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|K:Arcane: +4(4)|Draconic Breath|ACF: Draconic Heritage, ACF: Stalward Sorcerer
3th|Sorceror|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3|K:Arcane: +1(5)|-|-
4th|Sorceror|
+1|
+1|
+1|
+3|K:Arcane: +1(6), Spellcraft: +1(1)|Nymph's Kiss|-
5th|Sorceror|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4|K:Arcane: +1(7), Spellcraft: +1(2)|-|-
6th|Sorceror|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4|K:Arcane: +1(8), Spellcraft: +1(3)|-|-
7th|Sorceror|
+3|
+2|
+2|
+5|K:Arcane: +1(9), Spellcraft: +1(4)|Quicken Breath|-
8th|Dragon Disciple|
+3|
+4|
+2|
+7|K:Arcane: +1(10), Spellcraft: +1(5)|-|Natural armor increase (+1)
9th|Dragon Disciple|
+4|
+5|
+2|
+8|K:Arcane: +1(11), Spellcraft: +1(6)|-|Ability boost (Str +2), claws and bite
10th|Dragon Disciple|
+5|
+5|
+3|
+8|K:Arcane: +1(12), Spellcraft: +1(7)|Heighten Breath|Breath weapon (2d8)
11th|Dragon Disciple|
+6/+1|
+6|
+3|
+9|K:Arcane: +1(13), Spellcraft: +1(8)|-|Ability boost (Str +2), natural armor increase (+2)
12th|Dragon Disciple|
+6/+1|
+6|
+3|
+9|K:Arcane: +1(14), Spellcraft: +1(9)|-|Blindsense 30 ft.
13th|Dragon Disciple|
+7/+2|
+7|
+4|
+10|K:Arcane: +1(15), Spellcraft: +1(10)|Clinging Breath|Ability boost (Con +2)
14th|Dragon Disciple|
+8/+3|
+7|
+4|
+10|K:Arcane: +1(16), Spellcraft: +1(11)|-|Breath weapon (4d8), natural armor increase (+3)
15th|Dragon Disciple|
+9/+4|
+8|
+4|
+11|K:Arcane: +1(17), Spellcraft: +1(12)|-|Ability boost (Int +2)
16th|Dragon Disciple|
+9/+4|
+8|
+5|
+11|K:Arcane: +1(18), Spellcraft: +1(13)|Servant of the Heavens|Wings
17th|Dragon Disciple|
+10/+5|
+9|
+5|
+12|K:Arcane: +1(19), Spellcraft: +1(14)|-|Blindsense 60 ft., dragon apotheosis
18th|Wonderworker|
+10/+5|
+9|
+5|
+14|K:Arcane: +1(20), Spellcraft: +2(16)|Sanctify Martial Strike (bonus)|1 bonus spell slot
19th|Wonderworker|
+11/+6/+1|
+9|
+5|
+15|K:Arcane: +1(21), Spellcraft: +3(19)|Shape Breath, Nimbus of Light (bonus)|2 bonus spell slots
20th|Wonderworker|
+11/+6/+1|
+10|
+6|
+15|K:Arcane: +1(22), Spellcraft: +3(22)|Holy Radiance (bonus)|1 bonus spell slot
[/table]
lvl 1: Stalwart Sorcerer: loose 1 spell known, gain +12ph, martial weapon proficiency and weapon focus feat
lvl 1: dragonblood sorcerer:loose familiar, gain draconic heritage and arcane insight

base land speed is 30 feet.
+1 racial bonus on attack rolls tigerskull Club (used as martial weapon, see Frost 76)
+5 Natural Armor
Claws and Bite attacks (1d6 + 2x1d4 damage)

darkvision out to 60 feet and low-light vision.
+4 racial bonus on Spot checks.
+2 racial bonus on Intimidate, Listen Survival checks.
immunity to sleep and paralysis effects
immunity to electricity

The story:
This Neanderthal clan lives as they always do. A relative simple life, thanks to the gods of nature they worship. They have prayed many times for rain to come, for lightning to stop. And they did the same when dark magic had corrupted their land and gave birth to horrible undead creatures. But last time their prayers were answered in a very uncommon and surprising way.

Edi, the female leader of the clan was out on adventure to find the source of the undead infestation when at night the sky lit up. Without clouds or rolling tunder, but with a bright flash that filled the clan hearts with hope. When Edi returned and the undead were gone, the clan was anxious to hear her story. Much to everyone's worry, Edi was shaken beyond reasoning and kept saying that a radiant dragon helped her on her quest. And that he promised to provide them a tool to prevent further invasions.

As far as the community was concerned, the god of lighting had solved the problem and Edi made up her story because obviously, she had nothing to do with it. Not much later, her leadership was questioned and she ws made redundant. Generally regarded as an outcast who lost her mind, Edi was barely tolerated until she gave birth to a son. Clearly there was something wrong with him. He had some distinct features from a dragon, although these beast came only alive during campfire tales. Edi's son also began to show the unusual talent for magic, apparently inborn. The villige shaman could not explain his magic and feared for his position. Under his influence, the boy was expelled once he became old enough to take care of himself. And old enough to challenge the elders.

Roaming through the land, he perfects his inborn magic skills. He is the only one to take comfort in his mothers words: "People fear you because you have the heart of a dragon". And sure enough, with a little practice, he manages to expel a breath of lighting. This unusual talent has caught the eye of a group of adventurer's called "The Order of the Oval", and with them he travelled far and wide while transforming slowly into the radiant dragon that his mother encountered. His innate traits stear him towards doing all that is good and helpfull, and sure enough, news from his old tribe reaches him. A horde of undead has risen again. The time felt right to return...

This time, there was no need for a dragon intervention. Edi's son shed light in the dark, finally bringing credibility to his mother's words. She gets re-instituted as clan leader, but she gladly leaves this position for her son who continues to shelter his tribe from harm.
Behind the scenes:
level 1-6
The son of Edi begins his journey as a simple sorcerer. The familiar is traded for the draconic heritage feat, and a spell known for extra hp, martial weapon proficiency and weapon focus: Tigerskull Club. He learns to cast a breath weapon (line of electricity) from his spell slots. Since he can do that every round, this qualifies him to take metabreath feats. The first metabreath feat learned is Quicken Breath. Quicken Breath has the funny thing that it's a free action, not a swift action.

level 7-17
Quicken Breath has the downside of increasing the wait between 2 breaths, but since he can breath out of a spell slots, this effectively means that there is no cooldown. With Quicken Breath which makes it a free action, this means we can stack the free breaths in the same round. Note that this is Confirmed by the Chairman that this is rules legal, probably not RAI though...

The levels in Dragon Disciple are vital for this tactic. They provide more spell slots to the highest spell level (which is 3), so that even more breath can be fired in succession. Also the Dragon Heritage is Radiant Dragon, which gives a 1/day breath: cone of light (save or blinded for 1d6 rounds) or line of Force (good against incorporeal). The extra defences are a plus, because this build lacks armor proficiency and is thus limited to wearing armor without (or minimal) Armor Check Penalty. The stat increase is everthing we need: STR, CON and CHA as received from the Draconic template, as the extra INT which compensates the racial INT loss. Blindsense is great, because the radiant dragon is all about blinding creatures, and it would be ironic if you were not immune for that.

level 18-20
Wonderworker has the wonderfull addition of bringing even more spell slots to the table, as well as free exalted feets, which alleviates a bit of the feat tax, but unfortunatly there are not so many great exalted feats to take. Nonetheless, the nimbus of light and holy light feats fit thematically and mechanically.

the main trick
The main trick consist of abusing the draconic breath feat that allows a breath weapon out of a spell slot, combined with the Quicken Breath feat, which let's us do it as a free action. Since there is no cooldown, we can do it again and again and it's rules legal. Exploiting this, leasd us to stack metabreath feats on top of eachother.

spell slots level 3: 3 +2(bonus high CHA) +7(dragon disciple) +3(wonderworker) = 15 breaths for 6d6 electric damage each.
save DC = 10 +3(spell level) +7(CHA) +12 (heightened to max CON) = 32
This means that the Son of Edi is spitting 15 electric breath attacks as free actions with Reflex save of 32 to avoid. If needed, shape breath is used to make a cone of electricity. At this high Dc, most monsters will fail their save half of the time. This leads us to... the clinging breath feat. With this feat, the target takes half of the damage taken the next round. This can be stacked at will, and thus creates a damage over time effect.

damage calculation: 15 breaths, half of them saved = 48d6+21d6 damage (=240 damage), with 120-60-30-15-etc. the following rounds. Sure the target can take a full round action, but then it has to make the same DC again to remove the clinging breath. Be my guest!
damage output can be even higher when considering the lower spell slots as well. With only 1 DC less, they are equally difficult to save against.

spell slots level 2: 5 +2 (CHA) +1 (wonderworker) = 8 breaths for 4d6 electric damage each. With half of them saved, it still adds up to 24d6 damage, or an additional 80 damage.
So, what to do with your standard attack then? Ehm, have you considered the breath attack from Dragon Disciple? Launch 6d8 breath with DC32 (10+10classlevels+12CON) Refl save!

A note on Clinging Breath (Dr67): the feat mentions that the clining breath can be applied more than once to the same breath. It is unclear if the secondary effect remains, or halves each time. Taking a concervative reading, I assume that the damage is halved each additional round. As there is no reason NOT to take additional clinging Breaths, this is effectively a damage over time effect unless the creature takes a full round action to remove the clinging breath.

what else can he do?
With 11BAB, there are 3 iterative attacks and enough STR from race, template and class to wield it (in total +8 STR modifier). But, this is not a gish build. His AC is rather low, but he has a lot of hp. Still, be carefull in the front row. Melee attacks count as good aligned.
There are the spell slots that CAN be used for breath attacks, but equally for spells (d'uh). Although the stallward sorcerer knows less spells than normal, there are enough buff spells available to make good use of the slots.
The skills on the other hand are poor. Only Knowledge Arcane and Spellcraft are maxed.
Sources:
Draconic heritage (ACF RotD 107)
Stalward Sorcerer (ACF CM 36)
Draconic Breath (RotD 102)
nymph's kiss (BoED 44)
Quicken breath (Dr 73)
Heighten breath (Dr 70)
clinging breath (Dr 67)
Servant of the Heavens (BoED 46)
Shape Breath (Dr 73)
sanctify Martial Strike (BoED)
Nimbus of Light (BoED)
Holy Radiance (BoED)
Draconic Template (Dr 150)
Neanderthal (Frost 36)

Recommended Items: Amulet of Health (+6 Con)
Cloak of Charisma (+6 cha)

[Amphetryon]

Roaring into the competition.


Leofriadinesal "Gutripper" the Roar-Blade
Chaotic Neutral

History
Overview
Abandoned as a child and brought up by elves, Once grown Leo took to adventuring and then tried to discover his past...
His study of his past taught him the new battle techniques but brought more questions, and a previously unknown genetic anomaly, his father was a half dragon! This discovery lead to Leo Unlocking the draconic potential within himself, and brought a new strength to the Martial Studies he had been persuing before and he continued exploring that strength.

L1-2
Aethilenor was an Elven Duskblade Adventurer who travelled far and wide. One day he found an Infant Orc abandanoned in the wilderness, and decided to save the infant and see if it could be brought up to be good instead of evil.
He named the child Leofriadinesal (Leaf Drifting in the wind) and raised him as a son.
Leo grew quickly and his natural boisturousness was too much for the delicate elven community so Aethilenor taught him the disciplines of the Duskblade, to focus his energies internally.

Pure Duskblade, Standard Tactics. Ray of Enfeeblement on melee types, Swift Expeditous retreat to close with casters and melee. If ranged combat is needed then either Javelins (short range) or Kelgore's fire bolt (Longer ranges) as required.

Leofriadinesal L2

Chaotic Good
Duskblade 2
Str 22
Dex 10
Con 15
Int 12
Wis 6
Cha 6
Hp 16 (12+1d8)
Attack spells & Greatsword: +8, 2d6+9 damage


L3-5
Leofrinal had been adventuring for some time when he fell into the company of a Band of Orcs, who Laughed at the "pansy Elven Ways" and showed him the proper application of a sword, The Warblade Techniques!
Tactics remain basically unchanged, but increase in utility with Manuevers. EWP: greatspoon should read EWP any, spend one hour training and it has changed to a new weapon.

Leofriadinesal L5

Chaotic Neutral
Duskblade 2 / warblade 3
Str 22
Dex 10
Con 16
Int 12
Wis 6
Cha 6
Hp 44 (20 + 1d8 + 3d12)
Attack spells & Manueveurs & Falchion +1: +12, 2d4+10 damage


L6 - 15
Leo sought answers to the questions of his past, how had he come to be abandanoned? The answer it seemed was that he was not truly an orc, or not a pure one anyway, his father had been an orc-half-dragon, and although the tribe respected strength they wished to keep the bloodline pure and so they set the child aside, into the wilderness to live or die as he would.
Leo's determination to find out more lead to him Exploring his draconic side and eventually becoming a half dragon.
Tactics: as before, more of the same. 1 round of greater Invisibility from Cloak of deception? yes please. All bonus spell slots go to 1st level spells (obviously) so more uses of movement enhancement or ray of enfeeblement. True strike should be fairly unnecessary, if Leo needs a +20 to hit then the party should leave, stage left.
The Roar: Sonic Dragon Breath + Entangling exhilation = stationary Enemies (unless they have sonic resistance, probably the least common). Claws and Bite provide an everpresent Backup weapon / maneuver delivery system. Improved Critical: (Pick a weapon with 1 hour training) With a very respectable strength modifier there's a high base damage to multiply so imp crit (todays weapon of choice) is a handy pick.
With Dragon Apothesis we become eligable for Dragon Breath, The Roar can be done multiple times / combat (and should be)

Leofriadinesal L12

Chaotic Neutral
Duskblade 2 / warblade 3 / Dragon Disciple 7
Str 28
Dex 10
Con 18
Int 12
Wis 6
Cha 8
Hp 39 (20 + 1d8 + 10d12)
Attack: Breath weapon (6d8 base Cone of sonic,Entangling Exhilation) 1/day, spells & Manueveurs & Falchion +3: +22/+17, 2d4+16 damage Expanded crit range.


L16-20
With his Draconic Nature fully awakened Leo returned to the path of the WarBlade with new strength and determination.
Tactics: Roar (sonic breath weapon) to entangle enemies, Ray of enfeeblement as desired, swift expeditous retreat to charge from beyond expected range, manuveurs, Roar again as required / able.
A trick to note: at 18th level stone vise may revist the readied maneuvers pile as Preventing movement from an enemy will then cause them to provoke an attack of opportunity from defensive sweep. (and the save DC is based on Strength Modifier)

Leofriadinesal L20

Chaotic Neutral
Duskblade 2 / warblade 3 / Dragon Disciple 10/ warblade 4
Str 34
Dex 10
Con 18
Int 12
Wis 8
Cha 8
Hp 39 (20 + 1d8 + 2d12)
Attack: Breath weapon (4d8 base Cone of sonic,Entangling Exhilation) recharge 1d4 rounds, spells & Manueveurs & Falchion +5: +34/+28/+24/+18, 2d4+23 damage Expanded crit range.



Stats
Base Stats: 32 point buy
Str: 18
Dex: 10
Con: 15
Int: 14
Wis: 8
Cha: 8

Modified Stats:
Str: 22
Dex: 10
Con: 15
Int: 12
Wis: 6
Cha: 6

L4 +1 Con
L8 +1 Str
L12 +1 Str
L16 +1 Str
L20 +1 Str

Final Stats:
Str: 34
Dex: 10
Con: 18
Int: 14
Wis: 6
Cha: 8




Spells


Spells Known: / Day
L0 2 / 6
L1 5 / 4 + DD (+7 at end)

L0
Acid splash,
Disrupt undead

L1
Kelgores fire bolt
True strike
stand
Swift Expeditious retreat
ray of enfeeblement

Manuevers:

L7
L19 Ancient Mountain Hammer (3 stone)
(L20 move 1) Sything Blade (3 Iron) Charging Minataur Strike
L6 (L18 move 1) Crushing Vise (0 st) Moment of Perfect Mind
L5 0
L4 0 (L16 move 1) Ruby Nightmare Blade (2 diam) Sapphire nightmare Blade
L3 0 (L17) (Iron) Iron Heart Surge (pre: 1)
L2 - 2 (L4,L5) (Diamond) Action Before Thought (0), (Stone) Stone Vise
L1 - 3 (L3) Charging Minataur Strike, Sapphire nightmare Blade, Moment of Perfect Mind

Stances:
L1 (Iron) Punishing Stance (0)
L5 (L16)(Iron) Dancing Blade form (2)


Feats:
Brutal Throw (CA) (L1)
Exotic Weapon Proficiency: Greatspoon* (L3)
Martial stance or Manuever(L6) (Cloak of deception)
Entangling Exhilation (RotD) (L9)
Improved Critical: Greatspoon* (L12)
Dragon Breath (RotD) (L15)
Blind-Fight (PHB) (L17)
Defensive Sweep (L18)

*Greatspoon- Treat this Feat as applying to any weapon type desired, due to Weapon Aptitude class feature 1hr practice time is all that is required to retrain to a new weapon




Skills:

Concentration
Knowledge (arcana)
Intimidate


Level Progression:

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

1st|Duskblade 1|
+1|
+2|
+0|
+2|Knowledge (Arcana) (4), Concentration (4), Intimidate (2)|Brutal Throw|Arcane Attunement, Armoured mage (light)||

2nd|Duskblade 2|
+2|
+3|
+0|
+3|Knowledge (Arcana) (5), Concentration (5), Ride (1)||Combat Casting||

3rd|Warblade 1|
+3|
+5|
+1|
+3|Knowledge (Arcana) (6), Concentration (6), Intimidate (4)|Exotic Weapon Proficiency: Greatspoon*|Battle Clarity (reflex), Weapon Aptitude|Charging Minataur Strike, Sapphire nightmare Blade, Moment of Perfect Mind|Punishing Stance

4th|Warblade 2|
+4|
+6|
+1|
+3|Knowledge (Arcana) (7), Concentration (7), Intimidate (6)||Uncanny Dodge|Action Before Thought|

5th|Warblade 3|
+5|
+6|
+2|
+4|Knowledge (Arcana) (8), Concentration (8), Intimidate (8)||Battle Ardour (crit confirmation)|Stone Vise|

6th|Dragon Disciple 1|
+5|
+8|
+2|
+6|Knowledge (Arcana) (9), Concentration (9), Intimidate (8.5)|+1|Natural armour increase (+1), Bonus Spell (L1 Duskblade)||

7th|Dragon Disciple 2|
+6|
+9|
+2|
+7|Knowledge (Arcana) (10), Concentration (10), Intimidate (9)||Ability Boost (Str +2), Claws and Bite, Bonus Spell (L1 Duskblade)||

8th|Dragon Disciple 3|
+7|
+9|
+3|
+7|Knowledge (Arcana) (11), Concentration (11), Intimidate (9.5)||Breath Weapon (2D8): Cone of Sonic||

9th|Dragon Disciple 4|
+8|
+10|
+3|
+8|Knowledge (Arcana) (12), Concentration (12), Intimidate (10)|Entangling Exhilation|Ability Boost (Str +2), Natural armour increase (+2), Bonus Spell (L1 Duskblade)||

10th|Dragon Disciple 5|
+8|
+10|
+3|
+8|Knowledge (Arcana) (13), Concentration (13), Intimidate (10.5)||Blindsense 30', Bonus Spell (L1 Duskblade)||

11th|Dragon Disciple 6|
+9|
+11|
+4|
+9|Knowledge (Arcana) (14), Concentration (14), Intimidate (11)||Ability Boost (Con +2), Bonus Spell (L1 Duskblade)||

12th|Dragon Disciple 7|
+10|
+11|
+4|
+9|Knowledge (Arcana) (15), Concentration (15), Intimidate (11.5)|Improved Critical: Greatspoon*|Breath Weapon (4D8): Cone of Sonic, Natural armour increase (+1)||

13th|Dragon Disciple 8|
+11|
+12|
+4|
+10|Knowledge (Arcana) (16), Knowledge (The Planes) (1), Concentration (16), Intimidate (12), ||Ability Boost (Int +2), Bonus Spell (L1 Duskblade)||

14th|Dragon Disciple 9|
+11|
+12|
+5|
+10|Knowledge (Arcana) (17), Concentration (17), Intimidate (13)||Wings, Bonus Spell (L1 Duskblade)||

15th|Dragon Disciple 10|
+12|
+13|
+5|
+11|Knowledge (Arcana) (18), Concentration (18), Intimidate (14)|Dragon Breath|Blindsense 60', Dragon Apothesis||

16th|Warblade 4|
+13|
+13|
+5|
+11|Knowledge (Arcana) (19), Concentration (19), Intimidate (17)|||Sapphire nightmare Blade Ruby Nightmare Blade|

17th|Warblade 5|
+14|
+14|
+5|
+11|Knowledge (Arcana) (20), Concentration (20), Intimidate (20)|Blind-Fight|Bonus Feat|Iron Heart Surge|

18th|Warblade 6|
+15|
+15|
+6|
+12|Knowledge (Arcana) (21), Concentration (21), Intimidate (21), Balance (2)|Defensive Sweep|Improved Uncanny Dodge||Moment of Perfect Mind Irresistable mountain strike

19th|Warblade 7|
+16|
+15|
+6|
+12|Knowledge (Arcana) (22), Concentration (22), Intimidate (22), Balance (4)||Battle Cunning (Damage)|Ancient Mountain Hammer|

20th|Warblade 8|
+17|
+16|
+6|
+12|Knowledge (Arcana) (23), Concentration (23), Intimidate (23), Balance (6)|||Charging Minataur Strike Scything Blade |[/table]
*Greatspoon- Treat this Feat as applying to any weapon type desired, due to Weapon Aptitude class feature 1hr practice time is all that is required to retrain to a new weapon


Notes
Melee role

32 point buy
Int based casting

Race:
Orc

Dragon Type:
Emerald dragon gains a "Cone of Sonic"


Duskblade 2 / Warblade 3 / Dragon Disciple 10 / Warblade 5

(I/L 14, Highest Level Manuever 7)

HP: 8+ D8 / 3D12 / 10D12 / 5D12 + 140

[Amphetryon]

I think this is an Iron Chef first.




BOWSER
{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features
1st|Lizard Folk|
+1|
+3|
+3|
+-1|Skills Balance 1, Jump 4|New Feats Power Attack|New Class Abilities: HD = 2d8+8, +5 Nat Armor, 2 Claws 1d4 + Bite 1d4, Draconic Language . Str 19, Dex 10 , Con 19, ]Int 8, Wis 9, Cha 9
2nd|Gestalt Fighter/Stalwart Sorcerer (CM Var) 1|
+2|
+5|
+5|
+1|Skills Knowledge Arcane 2 (Retrain from Balance) Jump 4|New Feats: Weapon Focus: Spiked Armor (Stalwart Sorcerer), Weapon Focus:Spiked Shield (Fighter Bonus) |New Class Abilities: HD 1d10+6 (+4 con mod +2 Stalwart Sorcerer),to hell with spells the only one you use is Enlarge Person on yourself cause you’re Bowser, Weasel Familiar +2 Reflex Saves and Alertness
3rd| Gestalt Fighter/Stalwart Sorcerer (CM Var) 2|
+3|[center]+6/center]|
+5|
+4|Skills Knowledge Arcane 6 (Retrain 2 from Jump) Jump 2|New Feats Powerful Charge (MiH), Iron Will|New Class Abilities: HD 1d10+6 (+4 con mod +2 Stalwart Sorcerer).
4th| Gestalt Fighter/Stalwart Sorcerer (CM Var) 3|
+4|
+7|
+6|
+5|Skills Knowledge Arcane 7, Jump 2|New Feats|New Class Abilities: HD 1d10+6 (+4 con mod +2 Stalwart Sorcerer), Only spell you’ll cast is Bull’s Strength on yourself cause you’re Bowser.
5th| Gestalt Fighter/Stalwart Sorcerer (CM Var) 4l|
+5|
+8|
+6|
+5|Skills Knowledge Arcane 8, Jump 2|New Feats Greater Powerful Charge (MiH), Weapon Spec: Spiked Armor (retrain from Iron Will)|New Class Abilities; HD 1d10+6. +1 str. At this point should have 9k gold , the items that I’d have would be +2 (Enhancement goes to spikes) Full-Plate, Ring of Protection +1, and a Amulet of Natural Armor +1 and a MW Large Steel Spiked Shield. You should be walking around with 27 AC at level 5 and should be charging into combat smacking people at +12atk and 3d6+7dmg with 23 AC after charging. Bowserlicious. Str 20, Dex 10, Con 19, Int 8, Wis 9 , Cha 9
6th|The Dragon Disciple 1|
+5|
+10|
+6|
+7|Skills Knowledge Arcane 8, Jump 3|New Feats Improved Bull Rush|New Class Abilities: HP d12+4 Natural Armor +1
7th| The Dragon Disciple 2|
+6|
+11|
+6|
+8|Skills Knowledge Arcane 8, Jump 4|New Feats Blood-Spiked Charger (retrain Improved Bull Rush)|New Class Abilities HP d12+4 Ability Boost Str +2 (already have claws and bite) Str 22, Dex 10 , Con 19, Int 8, Wis 9, Cha 9
8th| The Dragon Disciple 3|
+7|
+12|
+7|
+8|Skills Knowledge Arcane 8, Jump 5|New Feats|New Class Abilities ability increase from level +1 Con HP d12+5 (add +7 for earlier levels), Breath Weapon 2d8 (know we are talking a giant spiked lizard that breathes fire, totally Bowser). Str 22,Dex 10 , Con 20, Int 8, Wis 9 , Cha 9
9th| The Dragon Disciple 4|
+8|
+13|
+7|
+9|Skills Jump 6|New Feats Heavy Armor Optimization (RoS)|New Class Abilities; Ability Boot Sr +2, Natural Armor +1 Str 24, Dex 10 , Con 20, Int 8, Wis 9 , Cha 9
10th| The Dragon Disciple 5|
+8|
+14|
+8|
+11|Skills Jump 13 Balance 5 Tumble 2|New Feats|New Class Abilities: HP 1d12+17 Blindsense 30. At this level you should have 40,000 gp more than at lvl 5, but a Belt of Magnificence +2 for 25,000, Guantlets of Ogre Power 400, Boots of Striding and Springing 5500, Ring of Jumping 2500, and a bag of holding. Str 28, Dex 12, Con 22, Int 10, Wis 11 ,Cha 11 You should have an AC that is still high for this level, lots of HP, and hitting like a mac truck, now we need to get bigger
11th| The Dragon Disciple 6|
+9|
+16|
+9|
+12|Skills Jump 14, Tumble 3|New Feats|New Class Abilities: Ability Boost Con +2, HP1d12+18 Str 28,Dex 12 , Con 24,Int 10,Wis 11 , Cha 11
12th| The Dragon Disciple 7|
+10|
+17|
+10|
+13|Skills Jump 15, Tumble 4|New Feats: Greater Heavy Armor Optimization (RoS)|New Class Abilities: Ability boost from lvl +1 str, Breath Weapon 4d8, Natural Armor +3
13th|| The Dragon Disciple 8l|
+11|
+17|
+10|
+13|Skills Jump 16 Tumble 16, Balance 5|New Feats|New Class Abilities: Ability Boots +2 Int
14th| The Dragon Disciple 9|
+11|
+17|
+11|
+13|Skills Jump 17, Tumble 17 Balance 6|New Feats|New Class Abilities: Wings (who needs em’ if Bowser wants to fly he’ll eat a leaf)
15th| The Dragon Disciple 10|
+11|
+18|
+12|
+14|Skills Jump 18, Tumble 18 Balance 7|New Feats Leap Attack|New Class Abilities: Blindsense 60 ft., Breath Weapon 6d8, +4 to Strength and +2 to Charisma. His natural armor bonus increases to +4, and he acquires low-light vision, 60-foot darkvision, immunity to sleep and paralysis effects, and immunity to the energy type used by his breath weapon. Str 33, Dex 12, Con 24, Int 10, Wis 11, Cha 13 At this level you should have 151,000gp more than at level 10. It is time to max out the armor, sell it for 3,000g and buy beer with it. You’re buying +10 Spiked Adamantine Full Plate 116,200 the enhancement is going to the spikes and the Great Invulnerability 15/magic. With the other 49,000 and upgrade that shield to a +7 +5 enhancement and Arrow Deflection. This is probably the bread and butter level
16th| Gestalt Fighter/Stalwart Sorcerer (CM Var) 5 |
+12|
+18|
+12|
+14 |Skills Jump 19, Tumble 19, Balance 8|New Feats|New Class Abilities: +1 Str from level HD1d10+9 Str 34, Dex 12, Con 24, Int 10, Wis 11, Cha 13
17th| Gestalt Fighter/Stalwart Sorcerer (CM Var) 6 Level|
+13|
+19|
+13/center]|[center]+15|Skills Jump 20, Tumble 20, Balance 9|New Feats Leap of the Heavens (PHBII)|New Class Abilities HD1d10+9, level 3 spell, the only one you will cast is… oh **** it you won’t cast any spells.
18th| Gestalt Fighter/Stalwart Sorcerer (CM Var) 7 |
+14|
+19|
+13|
+15|Skills, doesn’t matter anymore|New Feats: Melee Weapon Mastery (Piercing)|New Class Abilities HD1d10+9
19th| Gestalt Fighter/Stalwart Sorcerer (CM Var) 8 |
+15|
+20|
+13|
+16|Skills|New Feats Greater Weapon Focus (Armor Spikes)|New Class Abilities HD1d10+9
20th| Gestalt Fighter/Stalwart Sorcerer (CM Var) 9 |
+16|
+23|
+16|
+20|Skills|New Feats|New Class Abilities HD1d10+9 +1 Wis Str 38, Dex 16, Con 28, Int 14, Wis 16, Cha 17 At this level you should have 560,000 gp more than at level 15, get a Belt of Magnificence +6 200,000, spend the other 360,000 on fun stuff that makes him do fun stuff in battle, there is lots of it in the MIC [/table]

[Amphetryon]

It's a Warforged Bard Half-dragon. What's that look for?


The Grand tale of an adventuring bard!
On a day, not too long ago, a very special Warforged was created. Initially he was nothing special, nothing extraordinary, but he differed from the hundreds others made that day in that he had a slight defect, two small bumps on his back where wings might be on a different creature. This Warforged was named Sam.

Initially Sam thought nothing of these, but as he was trained for battle like so many others he realized none of the other Warforged looked like him, they were all the same. Not Sam though, Sam was different, and though he did have a talent for battle, more so than most Warforged it was not his true calling.

He heard this calling in a tavern while walking with his regiment. It was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard, though in truth he had only heard shouted orders before. He had to investigate, but what about his fellow soldiers he wondered, they would be fine without him he decided and so he went off to investigate.

He sat by the bard and listened to tales for hours, everything from the Dancing Owlbear to the Dessert Which Ate the Table. He was entranced, and once everyone had gone to bed he asked the bard to teach him all that he knew. He was warned that he would never be treated the same because of his appearance but he didn’t mind so long as his stories could inspire and educate.

So he travelled the lands, no longer a warrior but a storyteller. No matter where he went and who he asked however he could never discover why he was different. That is until he met a dragon who seemed to have the same intensity towards stories as he did. It was then he realized that the only way to truly inspire people was to aspire to be this dragon.

So he made himself more like a dragon. He shaped his hands and mouth like that of a dragon, honed his senses, and eventually believed so heavily that he became able to fly with just the little stubs on his back. He also learned to shout so loud that buildings shook, and evildoers ran in fear. He truly was the most dragony of all his fellows, something he liked to remind them whenever they met.

Once he had become as dragony as the dragon he so admired he decided he should inspire others to be like him. He sought armies and leaders and showed them his prowess. He lead them in battles against evils great and small, eventually helping even the highest forces of good, angels. He is still around to this day, helping good wherever he can.

Picture

http://i290.photobucket.com/albums/ll278/Dumbledore13A/warforged_bard_by_oz_of_the_land-d41lqba.jpg
Note, does not actually own a lute


Sam, Half-BattleDM Dragon Warforged
NG
Bard 5/Dragon Disciple 10/War Chanter 5

Initial Stats: 16 Str, 10 Dex, 16 Con, 12 Int, 6 Wis, 14 Cha
Stats with Vow of Poverty and levels and Dragon Disciple: 32 Str (2 level boosts), 10 Dex, 22 Con, 23 Int (1 level boost), 6 wis, 20 Cha (2 level boosts)

The Build
Note: Vow of Poverty bonuses are included under class features

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

1st|Bard 1|
+0|
+0|
+2|
+2|Perform (Oratory) 4 ranks, Bluff 4 ranks, Diplomacy 4 ranks, Gather Information 4 ranks, Knowledge (Arcana) 4 ranks, Knowledge (History) 1 rank, Knowledge (Local) 1 rank, Knowledge (Religion) 1 rank, Knowledge (The Planes) 1 rank, Spellcraft 4 ranks|Sacred Vow|Bardic Music, Bardic Knowledge, Spellbreaker SongCM, Fascinate, Inspire Courage +1

2nd|Bard 2|
+1|
+0|
+3|
+3|Perform (Oratory) 1 rank (5), Bluff 1 rank (5), Diplomacy 1 rank (5), Gather Information 1 rank (5), Knowledge (Arcana) 1 rank (5), Knowledge (The Planes) 1 rank (2), Spellcraft 1 rank (5)|-|-

3rd|Bard 3|
+2|
+1|
+3|
+3|Perform (Oratory) 1 rank (6), Bluff 1 rank (6), Diplomacy 1 rank (6), Gather Information 1 rank (6), Knowledge (Arcana) 1 rank (6), Knowledge (Religion) 1 rank (2), Spellcraft 1 rank (6)|Vow of Poverty|+5 Armor Bonus, Inspire Competence, Endure Elements

4th|Bard 4|
+3|
+1|
+4|
+4|Perform (Oratory) 1 rank (7), Bluff 1 rank (7), Diplomacy 1 rank (7), Gather Information 1 rank (7), Knowledge (Arcana) 1 rank (7), Knowledge (History) 1 rank (2), Knowledge (Nobility and Royalty) 1 rank (1), Spellcraft 1 rank (7)|Nymph’s Kiss|Exalted Strike +1 (Magic)

5th|Bard 5|
+3|
+1|
+4|
+4|Perform (Oratory) 1 rank (8), Bluff 1 rank (8), Diplomacy 1 rank (8), Gather Information 1 rank (8), Knowledge (Arcana) 1 rank (8), Knowledge (The Planes) 1 rank (3), Knowledge (History) 1 rank (4), Spellcraft 1 rank (8)|-|-

6th|Dragon Disciple 1|
+3|
+3|
+4|
+6|Perform (Oratory) 2 ½ ranks (9), Diplomacy 1 rank (9), Knowledge (Arcana) 1 rank (9)|Song of the Heart, Touch of Golden Ice|Natural Armor Increase +1, AC Bonus +6

7th|Dragon Disciple 2|
+4|
+4|
+4|
+7|Perform (Oratory) 2 ½ ranks (10), Diplomacy 1 rank (10), Knowledge (Arcana) 1 rank (10), Knowledge (The Planes) 1 rank (4)|-|Saves +1, Bite and Claws, +2 Str, +2 Int

8th|Dragon Disciple 3|
+5|
+4|
+5|
+7| Perform (Oratory) 2 ½ ranks (11), Diplomacy 1 rank (11), Knowledge (Arcana) 1 rank (11), Knowledge (The Planes) 1 rank (5)|Words of Creation| Breath Weapon (2d8), Mind Shielding, Natural Armor +1

9th|Dragon Disciple 4|
+6/+1|
+5|
+5|
+8|Perform (Oratory) 2 ½ ranks (12), Diplomacy 1 rank (12), Knowledge (Arcana) 1 rank (12), Knowledge (The Planes) 1 rank (6)|Weapon Focus (Slam)|Strength +2, Natural Armor +2, AC Bonus +7

10th|Dragon Disciple 5|
+6/+1|
+5|
+5|
+8| Perform (Oratory) 2 ½ ranks (13), Diplomacy 1 rank (13), Knowledge (Arcana) 1 rank (13), Knowledge (The Planes) 1 rank (7)|Sanctify Natural Attack|Blindsense 30 ft., Exalted Strike +2 (Good), DR 5/Magic

11th|Dragon Disciple 6|
+7/+2|
+6|
+6|
+9| Perform (Oratory) 2 ½ ranks (14), Diplomacy 1 rank (14), Knowledge (Arcana) 1 rank (14), Knowledge (The Planes) 1 rank (8), Spellcraft 1 rank (9)|-|Con +2, Int +2, Str +2

12th|Dragon Disciple 7|
+8/+3|
+6|
+6|
+9| Perform (Oratory) 2 ½ ranks (15), Diplomacy 1 rank (15), Knowledge (Arcana) 1 rank (15), Knowledge (The Planes) 1 rank (9), Spellcraft 1 rank (10)|Sanctify Martial Strike (Slam), Combat Expertise|Breath Weapon 4d8, Natural Armor +3, AC Bonus +8, Deflection +2

13th|Dragon Disciple 8|
+9/+4|
+7|
+6|
+10| Perform (Oratory) 2 ½ ranks (16), Diplomacy 1 rank (16), Knowledge (Arcana) 1 rank (16), Knowledge (The Planes) 1 rank (9), Spellcraft 1 rank (10), Gather Information 1 rank (9)|-|Int +2, Saves +2, Energy Resistance 5

14th|Dragon Disciple 9|
+9/+4|
+7|
+7|
+10| Perform (Oratory) 2 ½ ranks (17), Diplomacy 1 rank (17), Knowledge (Arcana) 1 rank (17) Knowledge (The Planes) 1 rank (10), Spellcraft 1 rank (11), Gather Information 1 rank (10)|Nimbus of Light|Wings, Exalted Strike +3, Freedom of Movement

15th|Dragon Disciple 10|
+10/+5|
+8|
+7|
+11| Perform (Oratory) 2 ½ ranks (18), Diplomacy 1 rank (18), Knowledge (Arcana) 1 rank (18) Knowledge (The Planes) 1 rank (11), Spellcraft 1 rank (12), Gather Information 1 rank (11), Knowledge (Local) 1 rank (2)|Dragonfire Inspiration|Dragon Apothesis, Blindsense 60 ft., AC Bonus +9, +2 Int, +2 Str, +2 Con, DR 5/Evil

16th|Warchanter 1|
+11/+6/+1|
+10|
+7|
+11|Perform (Oratory) 1 rank (19), Dipomacy 1 rank (19), Gather Information 8 ranks (19)|Holy Radiance|Inspire Tougness, Natural Armor +2

17th|Warchanter 2|
+12/+7/+2|
+11|
+7|
+11|Perform (Oratory) 1 rank (20), Diplomacy 1 rank (20), Gather Information 1 rank (20), Knowledge (Arcana) 4 ½ ranks (20), Spellcraft 2 ½ ranks (13), Intimidate 1 rank (1)|-|Exalted Strike +4, Saves +3, Regeneration

18th|Warchanter 3|
+13/+8/+3|
+11|
+8|
+12|Perform (Oratory) 1 rank (21), Diplomacy 1 rank (21), Gather Information 1 rank (21), Knowledge (Arcana) 2 1/2 ranks (21), Intimidate 5 ranks (6)|Servant of the Heavens, Second Slam|Inspire Recklessness, AC Bonus +10, True Seeing, Deflection +3

19th|Warcanter 4|
+14/+9/+4|
+12|
+8|
+12|Perform (Oratory) 1 rank (22), Diplomacy 1 rank (22), Gather Information 1 rank (22), Knowledge (Arcana) 2 ½ ranks (22), Intimidate 5 ranks (11)|-|Str +2, Int +2, Con +2, Cha +2, DR 10/Evil

20th|Warchanter 5|
+15/+10/+5|
+12|
+8|
+12| Perform (Oratory) 1 rank (23), Diplomacy 1 rank (23), Gather Information 1 rank (23), Knowledge (Arcana) 2 ½ ranks (23), Intimidate 5 ranks (16)|Vow of Purity|Combine Songs, Exalted Strike +5, Energy Resistance 15[/table]


Spells

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

1st|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

2nd|3|0|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

3rd|3|1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

4th|3|2|0|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

5th|3|3|1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

6th|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

7th|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

8th|3|3|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

9th|3|3|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

10th|3|3|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

11th|3|3|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

12th|3|3|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

13th|3|3|6|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

14th|3|3|7|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

15th|3|3|7|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

16th|3|3|7|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

17th|3|3|7|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

18th|3|3|7|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

19th|3|3|7|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

20th|3|3|7|-|-|-|-|-|-|-[/table]

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

1st|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

2nd|5|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

3rd|6|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

4th|6|3|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

5th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

6th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-

7th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

8th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-

9th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-

10th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

11th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

12th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

13th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

14th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

15th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

16th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

17th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

18th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

19th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

20th|6|4|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-[/table]
Spells Known suggestions: 0th Level- Prestidigitation
1st-Inspirational Boost, Grease, Silent Image, Invisibility, Swift
2nd- Invisibility, Glitterdust


Level breakdowns

The sweet spots
At 7th level we have a solid attack routine with a slam, two claws and a bite coupled with a good inspire courage bonus because of spells and song of the heart, coupled with the fact that against evil creatures we’re dropping dex damage all over the place and we’ve got a capable melee combatant. We also had decent intelligence and charisma so will be able to talk his way out a variety of situations, especially with maxed diplomacy.

Level 15 is the point where we start inspiring armies to greatness. We can fly invisible over a battlefield adding 6d6 or so sonic damage to all attacks, as well as entering the frey and tearing up with natural attacks and courage, though the touch of golden ice has lost a lot of its value, effectively only triggering on a 1, but that’s still something.


Level 5
We’re a bard! Nothing too special at this point, we’ve got pretty good diplomacy despite our charisma and have a decent selection of spells and skills. General battle plan is inspire courage with a boost, then next turn run in and smack some dudes with a slam. We’ve got a decent chunk of hit points and AC so entering melee won’t end too bad, but it probably won’t be necessary with a +14 on Dipomacy. Spellbreaker song is also useful for taking out spellcasters, at least somewhat.


Level 10
We’ve got some dragony stuff now as well as Words of Creation. This means +6 to hit and damage, helping allies as well as us, and with a nice 4 attack routine we’ll be doing good damage and our skills are surprising keeping up with Nymph’s Kiss and bonuses to intelligence making up for lack of base points. Also despite not having magic items blindsense will allow us to find any pesky invisible foes, and for fights where we just can’t reach them we have inspire courage to help allies anyway.


Level 15
Rawr I’m a dragon! Our Warforged is now fully capable of flying, breathing sonic, and hoarding treasure just like a real dragon does. Except he gives his treasure away. Still we’re at pretty much our highest point now, flying invisible while inspiring courage, then dropping in himself to smash any remaining opponents. Nothing should be out of our reach now.

Level 20
Hey we can do both inspire courages at once saving us a turn. We can also send in a regiment to kill everyone, thus leaving their bad AC irrelevant. 6d6 sonic with a great chance to hit is nothing to snear at. It might actually be 8d6 sonic depending on how kind the DM is. Also our skills have been increasing all the time so any sort of out of combat can either be dipomacied or intimidated away. We will also fly off into the sunset at the end of the day, possibly because his people need him.



Use of Secret Ingredient
One of the main problems with Vow of Poverty is inability to fly, and true seeing comes far too late. You can solve these with spells but I find that Dragon Disciple deals with them nicely, with blindsense and wings. It also gives bonus spell slots which is nice on a bard not focused on spellcasting, because it means that you never have to worry about running out of inspirational boosts, or invisiblity.

I also realized that it was nice to have on a natural attacks focused build, granting 3 at 2nd level, and saving a Warforged a feat for a bit attack. It also does not have any prerequisite feats which is very nice in a feat starved build. The natural armor is just icing on the cake, especially since it stacks with the Vow of Poverty bonuses.

The breath weapon is useful for an alpha strike of sorts, especially because it's sonic damage which is very rarely resisted, plus it's a decent sized cone, clearing minions extremely easily. The ability scores are also helpful, as they add to the already considerable bonuses from Vow of Poverty, meaning even naked Sam is a formidable threat, and he's always naked.


Some reasonable houserules that would help this build

Draconic Heritage is sorcerer only normally, but allowing Sam to take it would be both flavourful, if a bit weird, and also allow dragonfire inspiration at an earlier level, and perform as a class skill for Dragon Disciple.

I personally houserule it so vow of poverty doesn’t take a feat, you simply decide to give up money in exchange for the vow of poverty bonuses, which are in general weaker. The dragon disciple class largely negates some of the big downsides of VoP, mainly that it gives you flight.

Another thing to consider is using the homebrewed victory dragon (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9527850&postcount=392) which is very cool and has essentially the same abilities as the battle dragon.


Sources
Player's Handbook: Bard, spells, a few feats
Book of Exalted Deeds: Vow of Poverty, all Exalted feats
Draconomicon: Battle Dragon
Eberron Campaign Setting: Song of the Heart, Warforged
Complete Warrior: Warchanter
Dungeon Master's Guide: Dragon Disciple
Races of Eberron: Second Slam
Complete Mage: Spellbreaker Song

[Amphetryon]

Generic build, in a good way.



Tyrus Blackscale

Orphaned by a red dragon, Tyrus knew only anger and fury and became a mage to gain revenge. During his long and arduous training he stumbled upon his family line which stated that he was descended from a black dragon. After gaining all the power from his heritage, he slew the red dragon with such ferocity that a mercenary band offered him leadership of the band, which he gladly took up to sate his thirst for violence.

Point Buy: Elite Array (I'm currently AFB, don't remember how to do point buy and only one I remember is this one.)
Ability Scores:(parentheses are starting stats)
Str:27(15) Dex:10 Con:16(14) Int:15(13) Wis:8 Cha:11
Ability Score Increases: All into Str
Dragon Type: Black Dragon
BUILD:Human Sorcerer1/Generic Warrior4/Dragon Disciple10/Half-Dragon Paragon3/Generic Warrior2
Generic Warrior Good Save : Will


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

1st|Sorcerer1|
+0|
+2|
+0|
+1|Knowledge(arcana) 4, Concentration 4, Spellcraft 4, Bluff 3, Diplomacy (cc)1|EWP(spiked chain), Combat Expertise|Summon Familiar(not used), Spellcasting

2nd|Generic Warrior1|
+1|
+2|
+0|
+3|Knowledge(arcana) 1, UMD 1, Concentration 1, Spellcraft 1|--|Uncanny Dodge & Imp. Uncanny Dodge

3rd|Generic Warrior2|
+2|
+2|
+0|
+4|Knowledge(arcana) 1, UMD 1, Concentration 1, Spellcraft 1|Improved Trip, Power Attack|Bonus Feat(Power Attack)

4th|Generic Warrior3|
+3|
+3|
+1|
+4|Knowledge(arcana) 1, UMD 1, Concentration 1, Spellcraft 1|--|--

5th|Generic Warrior4|
+4|
+3|
+1|
+5|Knowledge(arcana) 1, UMD 1, Concentration 1, Spellcraft 1|Imp. Init.|Bonus Feat(Imp. Init.)

6th|Dragon Disciple1|
+4|
+5|
+1|
+7|Concentration 1, Spellcraft 1, Bluff 1 Diplomacy 1|Cleave|+1 Natural Armor, +1 Bonus Spell

7th|Dragon Disciple2l|
+5|
+6+|
+1|
+8|Concentration 1, Spellcraft 1, Bluff 1 Diplomacy 1|--|+2 Str, Claws & Bite, +1 Bonus Spell

8th|Dragon Disciple3|
+6|
+6|
+2|
+8|Concentration 1, Spellcraft 1, Bluff 1 Diplomacy 1|--|Breath Weapon (2d8, 5' high,5' wide, 30ft. long line of acid DC 10 + CL + Con mod)

9th|Dragon Disciple4|
+7|
+7|
+2|
+9|Concentration 1, Spellcraft 1, Bluff 1 Diplomacy 1|Great Cleave|+2 Str, +2 Natural Armor, +1 Bonus Spell

10th|Dragon Disciple5 |
+7|
+7|
+2|
+9|Concentration 1, Spellcraft 1, Bluff 1 Diplomacy 1|--|Blindsense 30ft., +1 Bonus Spell

11th|Dragon Disciple6|
+8|
+9|
+3|
+10|Concentration 1, Spellcraft 1, Bluff 1 Diplomacy 1|--|+2 Con, +1 Bonus Spell

12th|Dragon Disciple7|
+9|
+9|
+3|
+10|Concentration 1, Spellcraft 1, Bluff 1 Diplomacy 1|Weapon Focus(Spiked Chain)|Breath Weapon(4d8)

13th|Dragon Disciple8|
+10|
+10|
+3|
+11|Concentration 1, Spellcraft 1, Bluff 1 Diplomacy 1 Search 1|--|+2 Int, +1 Bonus Spell

14th|Dragon Disciple9|
+10|
+10|
+4|
+11|Concentration 1, Spellcraft 1, Bluff 1 Diplomacy 1 Search 1|--|Wings(30ft., average)

15th|Dragon Disciple10|
+11|
+11|
+4|
+12|Concentration 1, Spellcraft 1, Bluff 1 Diplomacy 1 Search 1 |Wingover|Apotheosis(+4 Str, +2 Cha, +4 Natural Armor Bonus, Low-light Vision, 60 ft. Darkvision, immunity to Sleep & Paralysis Effects & Acid, Breath Weapon 6d8), Bilnd sense 60ft.

16th|Half-Dragon Paragon1|
+12|
+13|
+4|
+14|Concentration 1 Diplomacy 1 Swim 5|--|Sorcerous Blood

17th|Half-Dragon Paragon2|
+13|
+14|
+4|
+15|Concentration 1 Diplomacy 1 Swim 4|--|+1 Natural Armor Increase

18th|Half-Dragon Paragon3|
+14|
+14|
+5|
+15|Concentration 1 Diplomacy 1 Swim 5 |Ability Focus(Breath Weapon)|Breath Weapon 3/day

19th|Generic Warrior5|
+15|
+14|
+5|
+15|UMD 4|--|--

20th|Generic Warrior6|
+16|
+15|
+6|
+16|UMD 4|Hover|Bonus Feat(Hover)[/table]

[Amphetryon]

Spirited entry.


Samantha
NG Female Mulan Human Spirit Shaman 6/Swanmay 4/Gold Dragon Disciple 10
"The smile of a swan with the spirit of a serpent"


https://encrypted-tbn1.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTQTOpjnlfb8W8j8Fo-KHgevBYsK5mSH3upsUKFvuHHfouk_jHR

BACKSTORY:
Everything hangs in balance on the Golden Scales--love and hate, life and death, good and evil. Some are born with more weight on one side or another, but true harmony can only be found by striving for Equilibrium: the perfect center. Once in a generation, one is born already at the center. Samantha was such an extraordinary child.

Delicate and kind, she would spend her days tending to the children of the village and her nights keeping guard with the men. As she grew in years, she learned more how to balance both sides of the turmoil that raged within her. She astounded the teachers when, at the tender age of 12, she informed them that the balance of law and chaos must sit even, but to find Equilibrium one must tilt more toward good than evil. They banned her from the tribe, and she was left to wander the land.

She took up with a small court of seelie fey who lived along the local riverbed, and soon she began a relationship with one of them. Their love grew, and he longed to keep her. He taught her the ways of the fey, and though she longed to stay with her love, she knew that the allure of the spirit world must be balanced by her human heritage. Even as she learned the fey magic of transformation, she only allowed herself to shape into a swan--in case she ever found her scales tipping and needed to fly away.

The fey began to respect her ability to interact kindly with man and beast alike, and she became a trusted advisor in the court's dealings with other creatures. Even when a golden dragon came floating down the river, the fey turned to Samantha for parley. While they ran or tried to trick the dragon with their primitive magic, Samantha approached it with the same balanced method she brought to everything in life. She came strong and defiant, but her voice was calm and serene. She struck a deal with the dragon that it could stay amongst the riverbed if it agreed to protect the court from their unseelie neighbors, and the serpent agreed.

For months, Samantha would spend the nightly watches speaking with the elderly dragon and learning the ways of magic. While she had dabbled in it amongst her tribe as a child, the dragon taught her how to tap into the arcane power flowing through her blood. The more she learned, the more draconic she became. While some of the fey were petrified that she was losing her identity, Samantha was astounded to learn that there was not simply a dichotomy of human and fey inside of her, but a menagerie of other creatures that she had to learn to balance.

Sadly, her studies were cut short. One night, the unseelie fey who lived upstream decided to make some mischief; they snuck around the perimeter of camp and assaulted the dragon. While the majestic beast fought valiantly, he was well advanced in years and largely outnumbered. He and Samantha fought side by side with parallel tenacity, but eventually the steady stream of evil fey wore them down. They killed the dragon, chopping him into tiny bits and scattering all but his head in the stream. His head, they left by the unconscious Samantha and tittered with laughter as they disappeared into the night. When the seelie court awoke, they were furious with Samantha. They expelled her from the court, but this expulsion was different than her first--where she had been alone before, this time her love joined her. He left the court where he had lived his entire life to help her on her quest for revenge.

In the years since, Samantha has abandoned her pursuit of Equilibrium in favor of a more base pursuit: vengeance. While she is still kind and delicate to any good creatures she meets, the evil fey feel her true wrath. She may alight amongst them as a peaceful swan, but it is only mere seconds before she undergoes a horrific transformation into her new form--covered in scales and belching fire, she assaults them with fangs and claws at the ready. The only balance she pursues now is that of an eye for an eye.


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

1|
Spirit Shaman 1|
+0|
+2|
+0|
+2|
Concentration 3, Diplomacy 3, Handle Animal 1, Know: Local 4, Know: Nature 4, Listen 2, Spellcraft 2, Spot 2, Survival 4|
Sacred Vow, Vow of Poverty, Nymph's Kiss, Alertness|
Spirit Guide (serpent), Wild Empathy

2|
Spirit Shaman 2|
+1|
+3|
+0|
+3|
Concentration 4, Diplomacy 4, Handle Animal 2, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 5, Listen 3, Spellcraft 2, Spot 2, Survival 5|
Vow of Purity|
Chastise Spirits

3|
Spirit Shaman 3|
+2|
+3|
+1|
+3|
Concentration 4, Diplomacy 6, Handle Animal 2, Know: Arcana 1, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 6, Listen 3, Spellcraft 3, Spot 3, Survival 6|
Knowledge Devotion|
Detect Spirits

4|
Spirit Shaman 4|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4|
Concentration 5, Diplomacy 7, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 2, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 7, Listen 4, Spellcraft 3, Spot 3, Survival 7|
Nimbus of Light|
Blessing of the Spirits

5|
Spirit Shaman 5|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4|
Concentration 5, Diplomacy 7, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 3, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 8, Listen 4, Spellcraft 4, Spot 4, Survival 8, Collector of Stories||
Follow the Guide

6|
Spirit Shaman 6|
+4|
+5|
+2|
+5|
Concentration 5, Diplomacy 9, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 4, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 9, Listen 5, Speak Language: Draconic, Spellcraft 4, Spot 4, Survival 8, Collector of Stories|
Southern Magician,Animal Friend|
Ghost Warrior

7|
Swanmay 1|
+5|
+7|
+2|
+5|
Concentration 5, Diplomacy 9, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 6, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 10, Listen 6, Speak Language: Draconic, Spellcraft 5, Spot 6, Survival 8, Collector of Stories||
Shifting 1/day, Spell Resistance, Wild Empathy (stacks)

8|
Swanmay 2|
+6/+1|
+8|
+2|
+5|
Concentration 7, Diplomacy 9, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 8, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 11, Listen 7, Speak Language: Draconic, Spellcraft 5, Spot 7, Survival 8, Collector of Stories|
Nemesis|
Shifting 2/day, Favored Enemy: Fey

9|
Dragon Disciple 1|
+6/+1|
+10|
+2|
+7|
Concentration 8, Diplomacy 9, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 9, Know: Dungeoneering 1, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 12, Listen 7, Speak Language: Draconic, Spellcraft 5, Spot 8, Survival 8, Collector of Stories|
Spontaneous Summoner|
Natural Armor Increase +1

10|
Dragon Disciple 2|
+7/+2|
+11|
+2|
+8|
Concentration 9, Diplomacy 10, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 10, Know: Dungeoneering 2, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 12, Know: Religion 1, Listen 7, Speak Language: Draconic, Spellcraft 5, Spot 8, Survival 8, Collector of Stories|
Sanctify Natural Attack|
Ability Boost (STR +2), claws and bite

11|
Dragon Disciple 3|
+8/+3|
+11|
+3|
+8|
Concentration 10, Diplomacy 11, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 11, Know: Dungeoneering 2, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 12, Know: Religion 2, Know: The Planes 1, Listen 7, Speak Language: Draconic, Spellcraft 5, Spot 8, Survival 8, Collector of Stories||
Breath Weapon (2d8)

12|
Dragon Disciple 4|
+9/+4|
+12|
+3|
+9|
Concentration 10, Diplomacy 12, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 12, Know: Dungeoneering 2, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 13, Know: Religion 3, Know: The Planes 2, Listen 7, Speak Language: Draconic, Spellcraft 5, Spot 8, Survival 8, Collector of Stories|
Multiattack, Exalted Spell Resistance|
Ability Boost (STR +2), natural armor increase +2

13|
Dragon Disciple 5|
+9/+4|
+12|
+3|
+9|
Concentration 10, Diplomacy 13, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 13, Know: Dungeoneering 3, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 14, Know: Religion 3, Know: The Planes 3, Listen 7, Speak Language: Draconic, Spellcraft 5, Spot 8, Survival 8, Collector of Stories||
Blindsense 30 ft

14|
Dragon Disciple 6|
+10/+5|
+13|
+4|
+10|
Concentration 10, Diplomacy 14, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 14, Know: Dungeoneering 3, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 15, Know: Religion 4, Know: The Planes 4, Listen 7, Speak Language: Draconic, Spellcraft 5, Spot 8, Survival 8, Collector of Stories|
Touch of Golden Ice|
Ability Boost (CON +2)

15|
Dragon Disciple 7|
+11/+6/+1|
+13|
+4|
+10|
Concentration 10, Diplomacy 15, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 15, Know: Dungeoneering 4, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 16, Know: Religion 4, Know: The Planes 4, Listen 7, Speak Language: Draconic, Spellcraft 5, Spot 9, Survival 8, Collector of Stories|
Versatile Spellcaster|
Breath Weapon (4d8), natural armor increase +3

16|
Dragon Disciple 8|
+12/+7/+2|
+14|
+4|
+11|
Concentration 10, Diplomacy 16, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 16, Know: Dungeoneering 5, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 17, Know: Religion 5, Know: The Planes 5, Listen 7, Speak Language: Draconic, Spellcraft 5, Spot 9, Survival 8, Collector of Stories|
Holy Radiance|
Ability Boost (INT +2)

17|
Dragon Disciple 9|
+12/+7/+2|
+14|
+5|
+11|
Concentration 10, Diplomacy 18, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 18, Know: Dungeoneering 5, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 18, Know: Religion 5, Know: The Planes 5, Listen 7, Speak Language: Draconic, Spellcraft 5, Spot 10, Survival 8, Collector of Stories||
Wings

18|
Dragon Disciple 10|
+13/+8/+3|
+15|
+5|
+12|
Concentration 10, Diplomacy 21, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 19, Know: Dungeoneering 5, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 19, Know: Religion 5, Know: The Planes 5, Listen 8, Speak Language: Draconic, Spellcraft 5, Spot 10, Survival 8, Collector of Stories|
Dragon Breath, Stigmata|
Blindsense 60 ft, dragon apotheosis

19|
Swanmay 3|
+14/+9/+4|
+15|
+6|
+12|
Concentration 10, Diplomacy 22, Handle Animal 3, Know: Arcana 21, Know: Dungeoneering 5, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 21, Know: Religion 5, Know: The Planes 5, Listen 10, Speak Language: Draconic, Spellcraft 5, Spot 10, Survival 8, Collector of Stories||
Shifting 3/day, Low-light vision

20|
Swanmay 4|
+15/+10/+5|
+16|
+6|
+12|
Concentration 10, Diplomacy 23, Handle Animal 5, Know: Arcana 23, Know: Dungeoneering 5, Know: Local 5, Know: Nature 23, Know: Religion 5, Know: The Planes 5, Listen 10, Speak Language: Draconic, Spellcraft 5, Spot 10, Survival 8, Collector of Stories|
Gift of Faith|
Charm Person 3/day, wild empathy +2[/table]

{table=head]Attribute|Base|Levels|Dragon Disciple|Vow of Poverty|Total|Mod
STR|16|2|8|4|30|+10
DEX|10|0|0|0|10|+0
CON|12|0|2|2|16|+3
INT|12|0|2|0|14|+2
WIS|14|2|0|8|24|+7
CHA|14|1|2|6|23|+6[/table]

Spells Per Day

{table=head]Level|0-level|1st level|2nd level|3rd level|4th level|5th level
1|3|2||||
2|4|3||||
3|5|4|2|||
4|6|5|3|||
5|6|6|4|2||
6|6|6|5|3||
7|6|6|5|3||
8|6|6|6|4|2|
9|6|6|6|3|2|
10|6|6|6|3|2|
11|6|6|6|3|2|
12|6|6|6|3|2|
13|6|6|6|3|2|
14|6|6|6|3|2|
15|6|6|6|3|2|
16|6|6|6|3|2|
17|6|6|6|3|2|
18|6|6|6|3|2|
19|6|6|6|4|3|
20|6|6|6|4|4|2[/table]

Spells Retrieved Per Day

{table=head]Level|0-level|1st level|2nd level|3rd level|4th level|5th level
1|3|1||||
2|3|2||||
3|3|2|1|||
4|3|3|1|||
5|3|3|1|1||
6|3|3|2|1||
7|3|3|2|1||
8|3|3|2|1|1|
9|3|3|2|1|1|
10|3|3|2|1|1|
11|3|3|2|1|1|
12|3|3|2|1|1|
13|3|3|2|1|1|
14|3|3|2|1|1|
15|3|3|2|1|1|
16|3|3|2|1|1|
17|3|3|2|1|1|
18|3|3|2|1|1|
19|3|3|2|2|1|
20|3|3|3|2|1|1[/table]

Which Spells to Retrieve?

Now this is going to look like an odd list. Because of the Spirit Shaman's unique mechanic, you can choose your Spells Known every day. While you've got to spam the everloving crap out of whichever ones you pick, this added layer of versatility allows us to chooses spells and use them until they become redundant (like Freedom of Movement, among others). Furthermore, from 9th level on you won't be retrieving a single Summon Nature's Ally, thanks to Spontaneous Summoner. With that said, here are a few of my favorite spells to use. Some (Flame Strike) are for pure damage. Others (Last Breath) can help to replace class features that would have been gained from staying in Spirit Shaman (1/week Recall Spirit). Basically, you can look at the druid's spell list and pick a handful of your favorites every day. Buddy up with a diviner and you can even get your DM's opinion on what might help in the future...I mean, the opinion of the gods.

{table=head]Level|Possible Spells
0-level|Create Water, Dawn, Detect Magic, Naturewatch
1st level|Aspect of the Wolf, Beastland Ferocity, Endure Elements, Entangle, Faerie Fire, Obscuring Mist, Omen of Peril, Produce Flame, SNA I
2nd level|Align Fang, Barkskin, Blinding Spittle, Creeping Cold, Heartfire, Share Husk, Mass Snake's Swiftness, Summon Nature's Ally II
3rd level|Alter Fortune, Attune Form, Bite of the Werewolf, Blindsight, Call Lightning, Crumble, Girallon's Blessing, Icelance, Lion's Charge, Greater Magic Fang, Remove Disease, Mass Resist Energy, Spiritjaws, Stone Shape, Summon Nature's Ally III, Venomfire (see Adaptation), Mass Lesser Vigor
4th level|Arc of Lightning, Bite of the Wereboar, Greater Blindsight, Enhance Wild Shape, Flame Strike, Freedom of Movement, Languor, Last Breath, Superior Magic Fang, Moon Bolt, Greater Resistance, Scrying, Summon Nature's Ally IV, Vortex of Teeth, Greater Wings of Air
5th level|Anticold Sphere, Baleful Polymorph, Bite of the Weretiger, Death Ward, Freeze, Panacea, Quill Blast, Rejuvenating Cocoon, Summon Nature's Ally V, Tree Stride, Greater Vigor[/table]

TACTICS:
Levels 1-5: Knowledge Devotion and a decent STR help us to be a melee-focused Spirit Shaman who can pop up a few buffs before wading into combat. Diplomacy and CHA-based wild empathy coupled with Nymph's Kiss and Sacred Vow allow us to serve as a decent party face, and our spirit-centered abilities can be useful against unseelie fey and the like. Our spirit guide (a serpent...what else?!) provides a few bits of defense, along with a free Alertness that's boosted by some ranks in Spot and Listen. We're a bit of an outdoorsy skillmonkey who can hold her own in battle. Low-level staple spells like Entangle and Produce Flame will probably see use here. As you level, you'll start using Blinding Spittle at range until you can snag Lion's Charge for pounce as soon as 5th level. Usually, people worry about chewing through spell slots. However, you're oozing slots and it only gets better from here.
Levels 6-10: Between Ghost Warrior, Shifting, and your natural attacks, you gain quite a bit of melee and utility potency in these levels. The natural Armor boost means even more to you because of Ghost Warrior's AC clause, and Spell Resistance adds a nice protection. Favored Enemy and Nemesis add to your detection and melee capabilities, Animal Friend allows you to keep your Wild Empathy up, and Spontaneous Summoner effectively adds four spammable spells to your list without needing to retrieve them every day. Summoning unicorns for healing is classy, and it's even classier with all the spell slots you'll be acquiring. Your spells start to see even more versatility here--I never get tired of Scrying, and Arc of Lightning is great for damage. Freedom of Movement can be a lifesaver until you get it later, but Last Breath can bring your party members back to life, and everyone loves a team player. Again, you have the versatility of choosing what to retrieve every day: scrying to find the bad guy, and more combat-focused spells like Last Breath once you know you'll be encountering him.
Levels 11-15: At this point we're cruising through the Secret Ingredient--see below for more on that. Meanwhile, we snag feats that make us better at what we do: Multiattack for melee accuracy, Versatile Spellcaster for more high-level spells, and even our exalted feats help us out. Exalted Spell Resistance ups our defenses, and Touch of Golden Ice allows us to do something in addition to HP damage in melee.
Levels 16-20: Some immunities come online (fire and cold) coupled with some decent resistances, but the star of the show is Dragon Breath. Now not only can we spam ability damage via Touch of Golden Ice and spells via our umpteen bonus spells, but now we can spam fire breath as well. Granted, fire resistance or immunity is common at this level, but we're using this to torch the mooks before focusing the big guns on the toughies. We're no slouch in terms of skills, either: Diplomacy and two huge Knowledge skills are maxed, while middling ranks are kept up in our scouting skills and others with low DCs (Survival, Handle Animal, Concentration). The other knowledges are given our leftover ranks, but just to give a little bit of edge to Knowledge Devotion. I know Vow of Poverty gets a lot of grief, but it leaves us with a healthy suite of benefits: +5 enhancements to attacks and damage, Energy resistance 15 to everything we're not already immune to, bonuses to four ability scores, DR, constant true seeing, resistance bonuses, further AC and natural armor bonuses (that apply against incorporeal foes thanks to Ghost Warrior), constant freedom of movement, and a slew of others. We'll leave the debate about what WBL can accomplish vs. VoP to another thread, but it provides enough reasons for us to take it (especially since we had to take Sacred Vow and Vow of Purity for Swanmay).


USING THE SECRET INGREDIENT:
Entry Requirements: Knowledge Arcana was acquired as a class skill via Knowledge Devotion, and max ranks were invested by 20th level. This allows us to supercharge our attack and damage rolls vs. constructs, dragons, and magical beasts. The feat was not just used to obtain Knowledge Arcana, however, as max ranks were also invested in Knowledge Nature to allow us to pump up our rolls vs. animals, fey (our favored enemies), giants, monstrous humanoids, plants, and vermin as well. 5 ranks were invested into the four other knowledge types as well to provide a small bonus against those creature types also. We do have to spend some skill points on Speak Language: Draconic because we used the language from our INT bonus to snag Sylvan for Swanmay requirements.
Bonus Spells: Nowhere does it say that our bonus spells have to be arcane--we only need arcane casting to enter the class. The limited "cast a divine spell as arcane or vice versa" feature of Southern Magician allows us to qualify nicely, and then we can start using our Bonus spells for Spirit Shaman spells. It was important to select spirit shaman as our chassis, since they are a spontaneous caster that keeps the same spell level progression as a prepared caster, ensuring that we gain access to higher-level spells as soon as possible. As presented, this class can gain bonus spells of fourth level or lower right off the bat. However, with the addition of two more levels of Swanmay at the end, we are capable of casting up to 5th-level spells off the druid list. Sadly, we can't gain any bonus 5th-level spells from the Secret Ingredient unless we went Spirit Shaman 6/Swanmay 4/DD 10...and that would prevent us from snagging Dragon Breath at 18th level. We do have a solution, luckily. The inclusion of Versatile Spellcaster means we can cash in all those extra 4th level slots we gained for 5th-level slots at a cost of 2:1. So you can use the handful of 4th-level slots that life gave you, or you can make some 5th-level lemonade if you'd prefer. Lastly, the wording of the class feature is odd; I would assume that you select the level of the bonus spell when you gain it, but nowhere in the description does it specify that. It just says that a bonus spell can be added to any level of spells you can cast--ask your DM if this means you can change the level of bonus spells each day (or even on the fly). Worst-case scenario, I believe you can cast spells from higher-level slots, but can't find the ruling anywhere so I abandoned the idea.
Natural Armor: Many of the spells on our list can pump up our natural armor, and this sticks with them all. Additionally, depending on how you read the wild shape rules, we may be able to keep these bonuses when we shift into swan form, since they are Ex abilities derived from class levels--one big perk of the Dragon Disciple class over simply taking the half-dragon template. Lastly, the Ghost Warrior feature specifies that we can use our normal AC (rather than touch AC) against incorporeal creatures. Not only does this include our natural armor bonus, but our AC bonus from Vow of Poverty as well. While that states it doesn't apply against incorporeal creatures, Spirit Shaman's Ghost Warrior provides a specific exception so we can keep our AC up against them.
Ability Boosts: The STR boosts help our melee potency, the CON helps not only hitpoints but our Breath Weapon's DC as well, the INT bump gives us some extra skill points to feed into goodies like Diplomacy, and the CHA boost amps up our Wild Empathy checks, Diplomacy checks, Handle Animal checks, and save DCs for our spells. As above, we may even get to keep these in swan form, since they're (Ex) as well. To get more mileage out of these, talk to your DM about playing as an Illumian--with the humanoid type and human subtype, you may still be able to qualify for human-specific things like Southern Magician. Of course, doing so would lose you a feat and necessitate the use of flaws, so I didn't investigate it too far.
Claws and Bite: Decent weapons for a Vow of Poverty character to use, natural weapons can benefit not only from some of our druid buffs, but the Exalted Strike feature of our Vow of Poverty. Sanctify Natural Attack is snagged at the same level we acquire the natural attacks, and Multiattack comes onboard only two levels later to ensure accuracy. Our STR boosts and Knowledge Devotion help not only our accuracy, but our damage output with these attacks as well. Lastly, Touch of Golden Ice enters the equation at 14th level so that our natural attacks can also deal DEX damage to evil creatures. Since our favored enemies are unseelie fey, and fey usually have higher DEX, this can come in handy.
Breath Weapon: A cone is a better breath weapon for someone who's not afraid to wade into melee like us, so we pick up the gold dragon's cone of fire. While a 1/day breath weapon isn't anything special, I predict we'll be seeing a lot of people snagging Dragon Breath from Races of the Dragon when they hit 10th level in the SI. This little beauty lets us change our breath weapon from a 1/day nova power to an actual breath weapon with a recharge time of 1d4 rounds. Metabreath feats are out of the question for this build since we don't snag the requirements for the feat until 18th level, but we can prepare a stronger tactic if we have a gracious DM. We don't get our dragon wings until 17th level, but we have Swanmay shifting beginning at level 7. If our DM allows us to use our swan form's fly speed to meet prerequisite, we can pick up Flyby Attack at 9th level instead of Spontaneous Summoner. While it costs us some versatility, it allows us to swoop in, use a standard action (attack, spell, or breath), then continue our movement. If we like the strafing technique enough, we can drop Versatile Spellcaster at 15th level for Flyby Breath instead (if our DM is cool with cross-setting material), which allows us to breathe as a free action if we're taking a double move. While that tactic is only good 1/day when we pick up the feat, 3 levels later we can be using it every 1d4 rounds for a real dragon feel.
Blindsense: This works hand-in-hand with your Detect Spirits and Chastise Spirits class features. Detect Spirits has a longer range to start out with, but it is a cone that can miss things if not pointed in the proper direction. On the other hand, your blindsense is a burst that is always on, ensuring you have a chance to pinpoint creatures that foil your Detect Spirits. It also works the opposite way: catch a creature in your Detect Spirits cone, pinpoint them with Blindsense, and then drop a Faerie Fire on them to give your allies a hand. If you're going for them yourself, you can either pop off a Chastise Spirits to cause damage to them if you catch multiple creatures in your Blindsense (since it's the same as our starting burst), or you can go toe-to-toe with them thanks to Ghost Warrior. As an (Ex) ability derived from class features, you can even keep this up in swan form!
Wings: while the fly speed provided by Swanmay shifting has given us a way to get out of jail free since 7th level, changing shape restricts our options. Now, we have an always-on flight option that allows us to use all of our regular goodies--breath weapon and spells, specifically. We only have average maneuverability, but Greater Wings of Air helps us out in that regard--we can burn one of our 4th-level spells for perfect maneuverability instead.
Dragon Apotheosis: This ability brings all of our class features to full potential, and allows us to count as a half-dragon so we can pick up the amazing Dragon Breath feat (mentioned above), which really lets us salvage the Breath Weapon of this class. Our STR is topped out and we finally get the ever-useful bump to CHA. We get some increased vision potential, but I'm here for the immunities. Sleep is something we don't even need thanks to Vow of Poverty, so now we're immune to anyone who tries to force it on us. Paralysis is now a non-issue as well, but I'm especially digging the fire immunity. Sure, you can snag it through a bevy of other means, but here it's the icing on the cake. Couple it with Anticold Sphere, which we pick up two levels later, and we are immune to both fire and cold damage. On top of that, we have resistance 15 to acid, electricity, and sonic. It doesn't really matter what element someone tries to send our way--coupled with our spell resistance, the elements will have a hard time harming us.


ADAPTATION:
Flaws: If your DM is cool with flaws, you can snag Shaky and any other you'd prefer. Picking up Magical Training instead of Southern Magician frees up a feat slot later on, and you can move Versatile Spellcaster up as well. These open slots will allow us to pick up Flyby Attack and Flyby Breath (if our DM is okay with cross-setting and allows our swan form's fly speed to qualify). If your DM allows Shifting to count as Wild Shape for meeting prerequisites (since the class feature states it's identical except you're restricted to a swan), Natural Spell is a must at 6th level. If your DM is lenient and says that feats could lift the "swan only" restriction, Dragon Wild Shape would be a heck of a nice feat for flavor as well.
LA buyoff/templates: I can't recommend it enough--half-fey fits the flavor perfectly, though it does give you wings that become redundant and a STR penalty (that your bonuses more than offset).
Illumians=humans: If your DM goes by this (since they're humanoids with the human subtype), you can play as an Aeshkrau for a +2 to your caster level and STR checks. But the real reason we'd do that is to let your STR be used to determine your bonus spells per day instead of Wisdom. If that were the case, we could even drop Wisdom down a bit in the point buy.
Swanmay only advances druid or ranger casting!: this isn't in the table, but it is listed in the text. Hopefully, most DMs would let this PrC advance Spirit Shaman casting and wild empathy (since both refer back to the druid). However, if that doesn't fly it would be possible to swap out our Spirit Shaman levels for druid levels. We have less that works against spirits/fey/etc, but you still have the ability to cast arcane spells without preparation since you can use Southern Magician to make your spells arcane and you can lose a spell to cast Summon Nature's Ally. This seemed kind of cheesy (and didn't make use of the Blindsense/fey flavor as much) so I didn't go with it. Also, there are reasons to drop Spirit Shaman for both Swanmay and the Secret Ingredient, while there's rarely a reason to drop druid. If you wind up going this route, swap out Spontaneous Summoner (now useless to you) for Magic of the Land (found in Races of the Wild) for some free healing on your buffs.
Favored Enemies: One of the great things about Swanmay favored enemies is that they're wide open--pick someone who attacks your home and they can be your favored enemy. Work with your DM to see what type of favored enemy will help in your campaign, but undead will add a slight bonus to attacks against incorporeal undead, which Ghost Warrior is practically built for.
Poison=Ravage: I know that they're different, but a case could be made that any requiring poison to work can also work with ravages, since they're basically poisons for good characters to use. If your DM is of this mindset, see if you can consider Golden Ice to be "naturally manufactured" via Touch of Golden Ice. You probably can't, but if your DM lets you, you'll definitely want to spam Venomfire as much as possible. This spell can be found in Serpent Kingdoms, and allows you to add +9d6 to every Golden-Ice inducing natural attack, on top of our other bonuses from Knowledge Devotion, Exalted Strike, Favored Enemy, and Sanctify Natural Attack.

SOURCES USED:
Book of Exalted Deeds
Complete Champion
Races of Faerun
Complete Divine
Monster Manual
Races of the Dragon
DMG

[Amphetryon]

Grouchy Tiger, Becoming Dragon.

Phaen bol Andras

Anthropomorphic Tiger – Chaotic Good – Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 4 / Dragon Samurai (Copper) 4 / Dragon Disciple (Copper) 10

Image
http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2011/305/5/3/tharx_concept_by_tiffa-d4eqkvy.jpg

Backstory
Rakshasa, they called us… ridiculous on its face. The difference between my people and those demons is plain to see.

But I suppose some people do not WISH to see. The humans have always had a knack for ignorance. Not that my people fare much better, but we have never harnessed that ignorance up to zealotry like they do. Humans and their damn crusades… people who know better getting people who don’t to do their dirty work for them.

For this reason, my tribe always stayed far away from humans. They encroach, we leave. The high mountain valleys are vast, and it’s easier for everyone that way. But in hindsight, it’s clear to me now; one can only run so far, or so fast.

I paid little attention to such things in those days. Life was fine, game was plentiful, and what few monsters could be found in our homelands were hunted by a clan of dragons that were kindly disposed to my tribe’s similar ethics. They left us and our herds alone, we left them to their hunting. We didn’t bother their allies the gnomes either, busy as they were mining gold to trade to dragons and humans alike.

I think that’s what started it all. Humans got wind of the gold that was trickling out of the mountain valleys from the gnomish miners, they wanted it, and they sent a veritable army to secure it. Village after village cropped up wherever the metal could be mined or panned, and without regard for whether those villagers could be properly fed. As the first winter set in, humans began preying upon our herds.

We thought we were doing them a kindness by merely scaring the trappers and poachers away. But then came the knights… and the clergy… and oh so many professional soldiers… all hunting for the Rakshasa demons that plotted to starve the poor innocent miners from their land. They tracked us, hunted us, burned our camps, and chased us as we fled. The filthy flatfoots even killed our children. We fought to the last so often… so many dead… I even flung myself into a mountain river when I found myself the last marauder standing as we tried to avenge our kin.

Why did I bother to swim to safety afterward? Hatred I guess. I could have easily drowned… almost did anyway. But there were so few of us left by then, it seemed a waste to just give up, and someone needed to bring the murdering holy men to account. So I survived. I skulked along the valleys like some common thief, intending to find the dragons who dwelt here and bring my case to them.

They listened, they heard my tale and that of the other survivors that sought refuge with the dragons’ vassals. But they also heard the emotion in our voices; the pain, the fear… the hatred. They took us in, but the Copper Ones refused to aid us. They said it would be a greater tragedy to help us act out our hatred. Whatever. I think they just realized that there were fewer than a dozen of us left alive, that there was no tribe left to wage war for.

But I couldn’t sit still, so I offered my skills as a warrior to them, and they permitted me to join the ranks of their armsmen. That got me out and about, let me skulk and observe the intruders into our lands, but it also gave me a mentor, a young adult dragon by name of Andras. He was a wiser being than I, a better sorcerer, and a patient teacher, so long as I put up with his riddles. Andras would give me all sorts of tasks, and I always figured half of them were tests. Turns out they ALL were, and he would even follow and observe me on occasion, not that I ever caught him at it.

But each time out, I would stalk the humans. I could get close enough to hear them sometimes, and the urge to wring their necks for something they personally hadn’t done was never far from my mind. I think that’s why Andras gave me that wand. He tasked me with turning myself into a human temporarily and fetching supplies from a town where a merchant caravan would be stopping. I considered him foolish for not just using his fearful stature to TAKE what he wanted when the caravan left the town, but nothing could have prepared me for what I found.

Under magical guise, I waited for the merchant to finish with one sale before attending to mine. And the humans all around were talking, grumbling in fact. They were complaining about their own kind, about the very priests and knights I hated so. Some thought them overzealous, some had been wronged by them, one had even lost two children who went off to be soldiers and fight the evil demons of the land. I was dumbstruck, and barely managed to purchase the baubles Andras desired before I fled the town.

Andras could tell I was troubled. He knew where he had sent me and I’m sure he knew what kind of talk I would hear. But the simple fact that humanity could be of two minds about something so… fundamental… that they were not united in purpose, not all guilty, not all… evil…

I was in tears that night as I thanked Andras for keeping me from carrying out a private vendetta, keeping me from shedding any more blood. He said that I was changed, that the stain of my past had been cleansed, though the weight of it would always be with me. He called me Friend that day. He called it my apotheosis… and he offered me the path to another.

…

Youth has long since left me, my friend, though my strength has not. I have spent most of those days skulking and shadowing the folk who travel these mountains, though I go into the towns only rarely and only in disguise, for I look even more the part of a monster. Those who travel the roads and wilds, well… those of good or harmless intent receive my aid should they require it, for these valleys have seen too much innocent blood spilled. And those of ill intent? I am well known to them by tales, and Phaen bol Andras will see to it that they harm none.

The Build

{table=head]STR|DEX|CON|INT|WIS|CHA|-|Level Bonuses
19|20|16|14|12|14|-|+1 STR at 5th, 8th, 12th, 16th, 20th[/table]
{table=head]Race/Template|Cost|Bonuses
Anthro Tiger|+1 LA|+4 Str, +6 Dex, +2 Con, +4 Wis, Monstrous Humanoid, Darkvision 60’, +4 Balance (racial), +4 Hide (racial), +4 Move Silently (racial), Size Medium, Move 30’, Improved Grab, Pounce, +3 Natural Armor, Claw/Claw/Bite(secondary) 1d6/1d6/1d8, 2 Racial Hit Dice, Simple Weapon Proficiency
LA Buyoff| - |Level 6[/table]

{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack<br>Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features
3rd|Anthro Tiger|
+2|
+0|
+3|
+3| Hide 5, Listen 5, Move Silent 5, Spot 5, Languages (Common, Draconic, Gnomish, His Own People)|Power Attack|(see above)
4th|Sorcerer 1|
+2|
+0|
+3|
+5| Hide 5, Intimidate 2, Knowledge (Arcane) 2, Listen 5, Move Silent 5, Spot 5|Cleave, Weapon Proficiency (Glaive, Longsword), Weapon Focus (Glaive), Light Armor Proficiency|Stalwart Sorcerer and Battle Sorcerer ACF’s
5th|Sorcerer 2|
+3|
+0|
+3|
+6| Hide 5, Intimidate 4, Knowledge (Arcane) 4, Listen 5, Move Silent 5, Spot 5|-|(str 20)
6th|Sorcerer 3|
+4|
+1|
+4|
+6| Hide 5, Intimidate 6, Knowledge (Arcane) 6, Listen 5, Move Silent 5, Spot 5| -|-
LA|Sorcerer 4|
+5|
+1|
+4|
+7| Hide 5, Intimidate 8, Knowledge (Arcane) 8, Listen 5, Move Silent 5, Spot 5|Combat Reflexes| -
7th|Dragon Samurai 1|
+5|
+3|
+4|
+9| Hide 5, Intimidate 8, Jump 4, Knowledge (Arcane) 8, Listen 5, Move Silent 5, Spot 5|-| Dragon Breath (1d8), Resist Acid 5
8th|Dragon Samurai 2|
+6|
+4|
+4|
+10| Hide 5, Intimidate 8, Jump 8, Knowledge (Arcane) 8, Listen 5, Move Silent 5, Spot 5| -| Dragon Breath (2d8), Dragon Friend, (str 21)
9th|Dragon Disciple 1|
+6|
+6|
+4|
+12| Hide 5, Intimidate 8, Jump 8, Knowledge (Arcane) 8, Listen 7, Move Silent 5, Spot 7| Leap Attack| Natural Armor +1, Bonus Spell
10th|Dragon Disciple 2|
+7|
+7|
+4|
+13| Hide 5, Intimidate 8, Jump 8, Knowledge (Arcane) 8, Listen 9, Move Silent 5, Spot 9|-| claws and bite, Bonus Spell, (str 23)
11th|Dragon Disciple 3|
+8|
+7|
+5|
+13| Hide 5, Intimidate 8, Jump 8, Knowledge (Arcane) 10, Listen 10, Move Silent 5, Spot 10|-| Dragon Breath (4d8)
12th|Dragon Disciple 4|
+9|
+8|
+5|
+14| Hide 5, Intimidate 8, Jump 8, Knowledge (Arcane) 10, Listen 12, Move Silent 5, Spot 12|Blind Fight| Natural Armor +2, Bonus Spell, (str 26)
13th|Dragon Disciple 5|
+9|
+8|
+5|
+14| Hide 5, Intimidate 8, Jump 8, Knowledge (Arcane) 10, Listen 14, Move Silent 5, Spot 14|-| Blindsense 30’, Bonus Spell
14th|Dragon Disciple 6|
+10|
+9|
+6|
+15| Hide 5, Intimidate 8, Jump 8, Knowledge (Arcane) 14, Listen 14, Move Silent 5, Spot 14|-| Bonus Spell, (con 18)
15th|Dragon Disciple 7|
+11|
+9|
+6|
+15| Hide 7, Intimidate 8, Jump 8, Knowledge (Arcane) 14, Listen 14, Move Silent 7, Spot 14|Guerilla Warrior| Dragon Breath (6d8), Natural Armor +3
16th|Dragon Disciple 8|
+12|
+10|
+6|
+16| Hide 9, Intimidate 8, Jump 8, Knowledge (Arcane) 15, Listen 14, Move Silent 9, Spot 14|-| Bonus Spell, (str 27), (int 16)
17th|Dragon Disciple 9|
+12|
+10|
+7|
+16| Hide 10, Intimidate 8, Jump 8, Knowledge (Arcane) 16, Listen 15, Move Silent 10, Spot 15|-| Wings, Bonus Spell
18th|Dragon Disciple 10|
+13|
+11|
+7|
+17| Hide 10, Intimidate 8, Jump 8, Knowledge (Arcane) 17, Listen 17, Move Silent 10, Spot 17|Dragon Breath| Blindsense 60’, Dragon Apotheosis, Natural Armor +4, Low Light Vision, Immunities, Dragon Breath 8d8, (str 31), (cha 16)
19th|Dragon Samurai 3|
+14|
+11|
+8|
+17| Hide 11, Intimidate 10, Jump 8, Knowledge (Arcane) 17, Listen 17, Move Silent 11, Spot 17, Swim 1|-| Immune to Dragon Fear, Dragon Breath (9d8)
20th|Dragon Samurai 4|
+15|
+12|
+8|
+18| Hide 11, Intimidate 10, Jump 10, Knowledge (Arcane) 17, Listen 17, Move Silent 11, Spot 17, Swim 4|-| Elemental Weapon +1d6, Dragon Breath (10d8), (str 32)[/table]

Spells per day/Spells Known
{table=head]Level|0|1|2|Sorcerer Spells Known
4th|4|2|-|Cantrips (Mage Hand, Mending, Prestidigitation), 1st (Shield)
5th|5|3|-|Cantrip (Light)
6th|5|4|-|-
LA|5|5|2|Cantrip (Detect Magic), 1st (Expeditious Retreat), 2nd (Whirling Blade)
7th|5|5|2|-
8th|5|5|2|-
9th|5|5|3|-
10th|5|5|4|-
11th|5|5|4|-
12th|5|5|5|-
13th|5|5|6|-
14th|5|5|7|-
15th|5|5|7|-
16th|5|5|8|-
17th|5|5|9|-[/table]

Level Highlights

NOTE – The meat of this build is Power Attack and Pounce, both of which can be done from the very beginning. With a high strength that only goes higher, a high starting dex, a reach weapon, and stuff like Cleave and Combat Reflexes, Phaen will charge in to sort things out. But after a few levels he’ll choose to soften the enemy up from range first, with things like Whirling Blade (and all that lovely power attack damage) and his Breath Weapon (line of acid) which gets stronger as he levels.

Level 6 – This is Phaen at the end of his origin story. He has wandered for a while, picking up a meager selection of magical tricks, but is little more than a brawling barbarian. And despite being a sorcerer, he’s quite good at it! He also has a rather high hit point total, about 10 per character level on average, and will maintain this through the rest of his career.

Level 8 – Levels 7 and 8 are important roleplay and backstory levels. It is here Phaen joins the Dragon Samurai clan and gains new purpose in life. He gains a tiny breath weapon, and while just a novelty now, it will stack with everything that comes later. And at level 8 he picks up the Dragon Friend ability, which is a great roleplay way to explain how a savage such as himself manages to be taken under wing and offered the path to Dragon Apotheosis.

Level 15 – With Leap Attack, Pounce, and BAB of 11, Phaen hits like a ton of bricks now, especially with a natural 26 strength before equipment. Blind Fight and Blindsense are both working now, and any opponent he cannot pinpoint exactly or any crowd he doesn’t want to rush gets one heck of a Whirling Blade attack, and he’s not pressed for daily uses either, having 8 uses per day for his sole 2nd level spell. This is also the level of the only non-essential feat of the build, and by taking Guerilla Warrior, his long neglected Tiger skills of Hide and Move Silently start marching upwards again, assisting in his role of shadowing his quarry before he decides to attack or aid them.

Level 18 – Sweet Spot – Phaen has his Dragon Apotheosis at this level, and his strength before equipment is 31 (should hit 40 by level 20). Just as importantly, his Breath Weapon, thanks to both Dragon Disciple and Dragon Samurai is a comfy 8d8 line of acid, and with this level’s feat it can now be used pretty much at will (every 1d4 rounds), AND will be going up 1d8 for every level after 18 (All the way to 36th level, not that we typically plan such things!).

Whys and Wherefores

Why an Anthropomorphic Tiger? Firstly, it makes the pun. (Grouchy Tiger, Becoming Dragon) Secondly, it adds a bit of originality. And thirdly, it’s a great racial package without approaching the cheesiest ones in the book (like Anthro Baleen Whale, which is just broken). The tiger gets pounce, and it’s two racial hit dice come with a BAB each, allowing it to hit the requirements of both prestige classes with minimum effort. And a +1 LA is easily paid off.

Isn’t Battle Sorcerer Underpowered? Yes, but this guy’s role is not as a caster. Battle Sorcerer gets the requirement in while losing only 1 BAB, and the three spells he does know are all he really needs to clobber people over the head. Shield for the AC, Expeditious Retreat to make jumping and charging easy, and Whirling Blade to power attack large swathes of enemies at once. With a tight concept like that, we can even take the Stalwart ACF as well without losing anything extra, giving him the weapon proficiencies he needs to start his career (since his racial HD come with none). Think of him as a martial character with 3 tricks and a perfect Use Magic Device for sorc/wiz stuff.

And Dragon Samurai? Synergy. It has easy entry requirements, is dragon themed, and the D-Sam breath weapon STACKS with the D-Disciple breath weapon. It produces (by 20th level) a 10d8 line of acid usable every 1d4 rounds (after the Dragon Breath feat). And the more levels you take in it, the more dice of breath weapon you get. After 18th level, this build adds 1d8 to the breath weapon every level. I would assume epic progression would carry Dragon Samurai out to 10th level and even 20th, adding damage dice every level. Yes 36th level is not something you plan for, but 26d8 breath attack every 1d4 rounds is pretty cool.

You Could Have Capped Dragon Disciple 2 Levels Earlier True, but I didn’t need to. I would have had to wait until level 18 for the Dragon Breath feat anyway, and getting the Dragon Friend ability BEFORE going into Dragon Disciple is a good role playing style point.

So What Synergizes with Dragon Disciple? Absolutely everything, that’s the beauty of it.


Natural Armor Increase stacks with the racial natural armor
Bonus spell slots increase use of Whirling Blade (and both other spells)
Claws and Bite damage is already superior to the Dragon Disciple values, but the primaries are reversed. This means Phaen can use EITHER his bite or his two claws as primary, depending on which is more advantageous at the time.
Blindsense is enhanced by his Blind Fighting feat (and is necessary because anthro animals don’t actually get Scent if you read it carefully…)
Wings make his charges and in particular his leap attack that much more capable
Dragon Apotheosis finishes off the bonuses to all of the above and allows the use of the glorious and subtly named Dragon Breath feat, turning his breath weapon from 1/day to once per 1d4 rounds
And of course the Breath Weapon, which as stated earlier STACKS with Dragon Samurai levels.


And What About Equipment? Simplicity is best… he doesn’t really NEED anything specific, just general stuff. A Reach weapon (I chose glaive because it’s slashing and can be used with Whirling Blade), some good light armor, stealth gear (possibly part of the armor), and the usual trinkets that provide miss chances to opponents and boost his stats (particularly STR and CON). Wands, scrolls, staves and things would be nice too since he can use them, but not critical, ditto with 1st and 2nd level Knowstones. And he has pretty monstrous saving throws already. The power is in the build, not the selection of equipment.


Source Books
{table=head]Sourcebook|Class/Race|Feats
Complete Adventurer|-|Leap Attack
Complete Mage|Stalwart Sorcerer|-
Dungeon Master’s Guide|Dragon Disciple|-
Heroes of Battle|-|Guerilla Warrior
Miniatures Handbook|Dragon Samurai|-
Player’s Handbook|Sorcerer|Power Attack, Cleave, Combat Reflexes, Blind Fight
Races of the Dragon|-|Dragon Breath
Savage Species|Anthropomorphic Tiger|-
Unearthed Arcana|Battle Sorcerer, LA Buyoff|-[/table]

[Amphetryon]

Devoted entry.


Dracotaur:
Race: Centaur (Savage species progression)
{table=head]Level|Class|BAB|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features
01|Centaur RHD 1|+1|+0|+2|+2|Know(Arc) 2, Jump 2, Speak Lang 2|Power Attack|Nat Armor +2, 2 hooves 1d4
02|Centaur RHD 2|+2|+0|+3|+3|Spot 3|-|+2 str, +2 wis
03|Centaur LA +1|+2|+0|+3|+3|-|-|+2 str, +2 con
04|Centaur RHD 3|+3|+1|+3|+3|Know(Arc) 3, Spot 4|Draconic Aura (Healing)|+2 str, +2 dex
05|Centaur LA +2|+3|+1|+3|+3|-|-|+2 str, +2 con, speed 50'
06|Centaur RHD 4|+4|+1|+4|+4|Jump 3, Spot 5|-|Large size, 2 hooves 1d6
07|Barbarian 1|+5|+3|+4|+4|Jump 8|-|Pounce, Whirling Frenzy
08|Dragon Devotee 1|+5|+5|+4|+4|Know(Arc) 8|Leap Attack|Nat Armor +1, +2 cha
09|Dragon Devotee 2|+6|+6|+4|+4|Jump 10, Spot 8|Deadly Defense|Combat technique, draconic resistance
10|Dragon Devotee 3|+7|+6|+5|+5|Jump 11, Spot 11, Spellcraft 1|-|Ignore Spell Failure, +2 Con, +1 level sorceror casting
11|Dragon Disciple 1|+7|+8|+5|+7|UMD 1, Spot 12|Multiattack|Nat Armor +1
12|Dragon Disciple 2|+8|+9|+5|+8|Concentration 2, Spot 13|-|Claws and Bite, +2 str
13|Dragon Disciple 3|+9|+9|+6|+8|Concentration 4, Spot 14|-|Breath Weap 2d8
14|Dragon Disciple 4|+10|+10|+6|+9|Concentration 6, Spot 15|Extra Rage|Nat Armor +2, +2 str
15|Dragon Disciple 5|+10|+10|+6|+9|UMD 2, Spot 16|-|Blindsense 30 ft.
16|Dragon Disciple 6|+11|+11|+7|+10|UMD 3, Spot 17|-|+2 con
17|Dragon Disciple 7|+12|+11|+7|+10|UMD 4, Spot 18|Quicken Breath|Breath Weap 4d8, Nat Armor +3
18|Dragon Disciple 8|+13|+12|+7|+11|UMD 5, Concentration 7, Spot 19|-|+2 int
19|Dragon Disciple 9|+13|+12|+8|+11|Concentration 10, Spot 20|-|Wings
20|Dragon Disciple 10|+17|+13|+8|+12|Spot 21, Speak Lang 5|Dragon Breath|Blindsense 60 ft., dragon apotheosis[/table]
Alternate Class Features: Lion Totem Barbarian, Whirling Frenzy Barbarian
Attributes by level:
Base Attributes: str 16 dex 14 con 14 int 14 wis 8 cha 12
Centaur ECL 0 racial mod: -2 int, +2 dex
{table=head]Level|Str|Dex|Con|Int|Wis|Cha|Nat Armor
1|16|16|14|12|8|12|2
2|18|16|14|12|10|12|2
3|20|16|16|12|10|12|2
4|22|18|16|12|10|12|2
5|25|18|18|12|10|12|2
6|25|18|18|12|10|12|2
7|25|18|18|12|10|12|2
8|25|18|18|12|10|14|3
9|25|18|20|12|10|14|3
10|26|18|20|12|10|14|3
11|26|18|20|12|10|14|4
12|28|18|20|12|10|14|4
13|28|18|20|12|10|14|4
14|31|18|20|12|10|14|5
15|31|18|20|12|10|14|5
16|31|18|22|12|10|14|5
17|31|18|22|12|10|14|6
18|32|18|22|14|10|14|6
19|32|18|22|14|10|14|6
20|36|18|22|14|10|16|7[/table]
Magic items not included in table.
Spellcasting:
{table=head]Level|0|1
9|-|-
10|5|4
11|5|5
12|5|6
13|5|6
14|5|7
15|5|8
16|5|9
17|5|9
18|5|10
19|5|11
20|5|11[/table]
Spells: Blades of Fire (Spc 31), Fist of Stone (Spc 94)

Level 20 build:
Name: Dracotaur
Size/Type : Large Dragon (Centaur)
Hit Dice : 15d12 + 3d6 + 162 (275 hp)
Initiative: +6
Speed : Fly 50 ft. (average), 50'
AC : 54(56), 23(25) Touch, 46 Flat-Footed : -1 size, +6 dex, +10 armor, +7 natural, +6 Shield, +5 deflection, +8 enhancement +1 insight, +2 dodge (+2 whirling frenzy)
Atk/Grap : +33 / +33
Attack : Bite 1d8 + 18
Full Atk : 1 gore 1d8 + 12, 2 claw 1d6 + 20, 1 bite 1d8 + 20, 2 hooves 1d6 + 20
Special Qualities: Darkvision 60', Blindsense 60', Low-light vision, Immune to Sleep, Paralysis, acid
Saves : Fort +40, Ref +24, Will +17
Spellcasting: 22 1st level spells/day (Knows Blades of Fire and Fist of Stone)
Attributes: Str 40(46), Dex 22, Con 28, Int 14, Wis 10, Cha 16
Skills: Concentration +19, Spellcraft +5, Know(Arcana) +10, Jump +29, Spot +21, UMD +8
Equipment: Bracers of Armor +8 (64k), +5 Mithral Breastplate (30k), Panther Mask (2.7k), Horseshoes of Speed (20k), Gloves of dex +4 (16k), Horned Helm (8k), Ring of Protection +5 (50k), Ring of Wizardry I (20k), +5 Buckler (26k), Cloak of Resist +5 (25k), Amulet of mighty fists +5 (150k), Shirt of the Leech (8k), Belt of con +6 (36k), Lesser Metamagic Rod Extend, Handy Haversack, Dusty Rose Ioun Stone (+1 insight AC), Orange Prism Ioun Stone (+1 caster level), Manual of Strength +4

The point of the build:
The secret ingredient is all about one thing: Numbers. You get more and better numbers than other classes. You get more strength, intelligence, charisma, armor, spells, attacks, types of movement, etc. The inherent problem with the ingredient is that it lacks focus - you get bonuses to lots of things but there's nothing in particular that you do really well in comparison to other classes. The entry requirements scream spellcaster, while the class abilities are best for a fighter with minimal spellcasting.
This build takes the 'more of everything' aspect of the Dragon Disciple and emphasizes it to the extreme. There is also an homage to the 'old-school' nature of the Dragon disciple in that the core of the build (Centaur, Dragon Disciple, Power Attack, Multiattack) is all core material, and the build can be made pure-SRD by changing Dragon Devotee to Sorceror 2/Barbarian 1 and choosing a few different feats and spells - losing leap attack and deadly defense would hurt a bit but the build would still be quite viable and there are several good minute/level 1st level self buffs available in core.
The basic chassis of the build is the well-worn pouncing charger, but with a twist. You're not just maximizing your attack and damage boni during a charge - pounce allows you a full attack action at the end of the charge, and you can choose to fight defensively whenever you perform a full attack action. Between that and Whirling Frenzy, you can manage a +2 bonus to AC (and a -2 penalty to attack) whenever you charge. Between the various sources of natural armor, having ridiculous attributes and being able to cast freely in light armor while using a shield without worrying about spell failure, the Dracotaur is using the charger platform to maximize his attack, damage, AC, HP, Spells, Movement Speed, Saves and Versatility (yes, versatility, see below).
Your Attack bonus from having a strength of 46 by 20th level (16 + 4 level increase + 8 centaur + 8 half-dragon + 4 inherent + 6 enhancement) more than makes up for the fact that you only have +14 BAB, and since you're using natural attacks you get far more hits in than even a 2-weapon fighter.
Your damage output is only outperformed by those theoretical super-optimized builds that no GM allows - while you're playable and reasonable from level 1, and your damage output simply scales with the level of threat available to pound on - and you're only devoting 2 magic items and 2 feats to it.
Your AC is partly WBL dependent as a fair portion of it is due to magic items, but that's true for everyone but a Vow-of-poverty user. However, the sheer ridiculousness of it is due to having a high dex, lots of natural armor that doesn't conflict with worn armor, and not needing to devote most of your item slots to the many miscilaneous abilities that other builds require (like flight or weapons).
Your HP is d12 for the vast majority of your progression (including the Centaur HD which convert to Dragon HD with the Dragon Disciple capstone), combined with an awesome con score to give you enough HP to make every other Gish build jealous.
Your movement is 80' with your boots (horseshoes for you) of speed - which also gives you an 80' fly speed. This means you can charge up to 160' (32 squares!), flying or running - and I've never even SEEN a battlemat more than 32 squares on a side.
You get 22 1st level spells per day (thanks to your Ring of Wizardry I). Sure, you only know 2 spells, but you can effectively cast them at will. Think you might be getting into combat in a few rounds? Cast your buffs. You can afford to be wrong 8 times a day and still have them active when you get into combat.
Your saves are all excellent thanks to having 4 Dragon HD and mostly classes with 2 good saves, plus excellent ability scores. A cloak of resistence gives you a 75% chance of saving against average 9th level spell effects with your WEAKEST save.
And with Low-light vision, blindsense, darkvision, +21 spot, flight, spells, a 30' cone breath weapon every 1d4 rounds (or as a free action every 4+1d4 rounds), the ability to cast off of most wands and scrolls without issue, 30' Healing aura (see below), Whirling Frenzy, Pounce, and the ability to do most of this WHILE NAKED gives you significant versatility for a pure meleeist.
Notes on the more obscure parts of the Build:
Quicken Breath - allows you to quicken your breath weapon at the cost of +4 rounds before using it again.
Dragon Breath - will probably show up in other builds, but anyone with the 1/2 dragon template and 6 HD may use their 1/2 dragon breath weapon every 1d4 rounds instead of 1/day.
Draconic Aura - this lets you choose a draconic aura, which includes (according to Dragon Magic p86) Dragon Shaman auras. So the Healing aura give fast healing 1 to any ally (including yourself) under 1/2 health. Thanks to the interactions between Dragonblooded subtype and Dragon type, when you attain the full 1/2 dragon template you also get the better version of this feat (fast healing 3 at 18HD).
Deadly Defense - this is definitely an under-used feat because it's ideal for natural-attack pouncers. At the overall cost of -2 to your attacks (+2 hit, -2 AC from charge mostly cancels the +2 AC, -4 to hit from defensive fighting), pouncers can charge in and deal an additional d6 damage with all of their natural weapons (which always count as finesse weapons). This is not precision damage, so it's always applicable.

If LA buyoff is allowed, taking another level of Dragon Devotee and another level of barbarian is probably the best combo, though finishing out Dragon Devotee nets you +2 str and another caster level, instead of that BAB so it may be worth the lower HP and loss of uncanny dodge.

And finally, here's an example of a normal attack action with the two buf spells + whirling frenzy at 20th level:
(Whirling Frenzy, Fist of Stone, Blades of Fire, Power Attack & Leap Attack for 10, Charging & Fighting defensively, then quickened breath weapon)
2x +24 Slam 1d8 +1d6 +45 +1d6 fire / +22 gore 2d6 +34 +1d6 fire / +22 bite 1d8 + 1d6 +45 +1d6 fire / 2x +22 claw 2d6 +45 +1d6 fire / 2x +22 hoof 2d6 +45 +1d6 fire / 6d8 Acid
Avg Damage for buffed full attack VS AC23 or less: 408 +28 fire +27 acid
Sources:
Races of the Dragon: Dragon Devotee (pg 84), Dragon Breath (pg 98)
Complete Adventurer: Leap Attack (pg )
Savage Species: Centaur Progression (pg 161)
Draconomicon: Quicken Breath Weapon (pg 73)
Dragon Magic: Draconic Aura (pg 16 feat, pg 86 explanation, PHBII for aura)
Complete Scoundrel: Deadly Defense (pg 76)
Spell Compendium: Blades of Fire (Spc 31), Fist of Stone (Spc 94)
Everything else is in the SRD.

[Amphetryon]

It's an aberration. No, really.


DRACO DRAGO

CE half daelkyr battle dancer 5/asn1/soul eater 1/DD10/thayan gladiator 3



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

1st|Battledancer 1|
+1|
+0|
+2|
+0|Disguise 2, Hide 4, Jump 3, Know (arcana) 1 (0.5)Move Silently 4, Tumble 4|Alertness|AC bonus, unarmed strike (1d6)

2nd|Battledancer 2|
+2|
+0|
+3|
+0| Disguise 1 (2.5), Hide 1 (5), Jump 1 (5), Know (arcana) 1 (1) Move Silently 1 (5), | |Battledancer's performance

3rd|Battledancer 3|
+3|
+1|
+3|
+1| Disguise 1 (3), Hide 1 (6), Move Silently 1 (6), Know (arcana) 2 (2)|Weapon Focus (Claw)|

4th|Battledancer 4|
+4|
+1|
+4|
+1|Disguise 1 (3.5), Hide 1 (7), Move Silently 1 (7), Know (arcana) 3 (3.5)| |Bonus speed +10 feet, (unarmed damage 1d8)

5th|Battledancer 5|
+5|
+1|
+4|
+1|Disguise 1 (4) Hide 1 (8), Move Silently 1 (8), Know (arcana) 3 (5)| |Dance of the vexing snake (AC bonus +1)

6th|Assassin 1|
+5|
+1|
+6|
+1|Know (arcana) 1 (5.5), Spellcraft 4|Practiced Spellcaster|Sneak attack +1d6, death attack, poison use, spells

7th|Soul Eater 1|
+6/+1|
+3|
+8|
+3|Know (arcana) 5 (8)| |Energy drain 1

8th|Dragon Disciple 1|
+6/+1|
+5|
+8|
+5|Gather Information 3| |Shadow dragon, Natural armor +1, bonus spell

9th|Dragon Disciple 2|
+7/+2|
+6|
+8|
+6|Gather Information 3 (6)|Improved Energy Drain|Str +2, claws and bite, bonus spell

10th|Dragon Disciple 3|
+8/+3|
+6|
+9|
+6|Knowledge local 3 | |Breath weapon 1 negative level

11th|Dragon Disciple 4|
+9/+4|
+7|
+9|
+7|Speak Language (American English), Speak Language (Dog Latin), Speak Language (British English)| |Str +2, natural armor +2, bonus spell

12th|Dragon Disciple 5|
+9/+4|
+7|
+9|
+7|Knowledge local 3 (6)|Spell Drain|Blindsense 30ft, bonus spell

13th|Dragon Disciple 6|
+10/+5|
+8|
+10|
+8|Know (nobility) 3| |Con +2, bonus spell

14th|Dragon Disciple 7|
+11/+6/+1|
+8|
+10|
+8|Diplomacy 1, Know (nobility) 2 (5)| |Breath weapon 1 negative level, natural armor +3

15th|Dragon Disciple 8|
+12/+7/+2|
+9|
+10|
+9|Know (local) 3 (9)|Toughness|int +2, bonus spell

16th|Dragon Disciple 9|
+12/+7/+2|
+9|
+11|
+9|Diplo 3 (4)| |Wings (40ft average), bonus spell

17th|Dragon Disciple 10|
+13/+8/+3|
+10|
+11|
+10|Diplo 3 (7)| |Blindsense 60ft, shadow dragon apotheosis

18th|Thayan Gladiator 1|
+14/+9/+4|
+12|
+11|
+10|Jump 2 (5), Sense Motive 1|Dragon Breath|Improved natural attack (Improved unarmed strike), study opponent

19th|Thayan Gladiator 2|
+15/+10/+5|
+13|
+11|
+10|Sense Motive 3 (4)| |Improved critical (improved unarmed strike), natural armor +1

20th|Thayan Gladiator 3|
+16/+11/+6/+1|
+13|
+11|
+10|Sense Motive 3 (7)| |Stunning critical, silver strike[/table]

Build
CE Daelkyr Half-blood Battledancer 5/assassin 1/soul eater 1/DD10/thayan gladiator 3 [/spoiler-

Abilities
Str 14
Dex 12
Con 14
Int 12
Wis 10
Cha 16

increases go to strength

final after half-dragon apotheosis is achieved:

Str 27
Dex 12
Con 16
Int 14
Wis 10
Cha 18


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

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

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

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

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

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

6th|-|0|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

7th|-|1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

8th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

9th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

10th|-|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

11th|-|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

12th|-|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

13th|-|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

14th|-|6|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

15th|-|7|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

16th|-|7|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

17th|-|7|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

18th|-|7|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

19th|-|7|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

20th|-|7|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-[/table]


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

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

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

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

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

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

6th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

7th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

8th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

9th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

10th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

11th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

12th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

13th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

14th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

15th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

16th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

17th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

18th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

19th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

20th|-|2|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-[/table]

Suggested spells known
You'll only ever know 2 1st level spells, and they're honestly a matter of personal taste.

Blade of Blood allows an extra 3d6 damage in exchange for 5hp. When you land a blow, you'll get that 5hp right back from energy drain, making the tradeoff more than worth it, plus it gives you something to do with your swift actions.

Healer's vision, while flavorful, will not really be the best use of an action since while you do have a d6 of sneak attack, it's not really significant enough to justify using a standard action to line it up, and you have no way to cast it quicker than a standard.

Lightfoot is quite flavorful for a boxer, since provoking AoOs is never fun, but your wings eventually make this a nonissue, so I think it's too situational as your spells known personally.

Shock and Awe is awesome and does a great job of representing Draco's fighting style, and it's always great to go first, especially when you're dealing out negative levels.

True strike: a staple, but honestly, your BA is good enough that you shouldn't need it most of the time, and you don't have a way to cast it as a swift action, leaving you vulnerable for a turn

The assassin list is decently versatile though, and wands are absolutely your friends since there are no rolls involved due to you having the assassin list available.


Backstory

Training Day
Draco flexed his hand, a little hesitantly at first, the creature wrapped around it looking like the crude approximation made by a child's hand in wax crayon.

"Must I train with this on, father? It feels most irregular."

His father responded from the far end of the gym, jogging over with pads strapped to his hands for Draco to practice on, a large stack of them lying in the corner of the ring.

"Your opponents won't hold back, Draco, I see no reason for you to. Besides. if you take it off, you'll die."

"Straight away?"

"Well, not exactly, but you'll feel a most unpleasant wasting sensation without it." His father's shadow peeled away from him and wagged its finger at Draco as he found himself unconsciously reaching to pry the claw off his hand.

"Couldn't I have a shadow like yours instead? It's so much less obtrusive."

"Perhaps when you're older. For now, focus on your jabs. The weight of the claw will help build muscle on that arm. After this set, switch it to the other hand. Think of it as a training weight. If you can get up to speed with it, you'll be faster without it."

Draco didn't have time to respond as the pad on his father's hand lashed up, the target on it causing an immediate reaction in him: the urge to attack. He tore through the foam, causing it to fall to the floor in two jagged pieces. His father clutched at his hand, a deep laceration running the length of his palm.

"Are you all right?" Draco leapt forward, grabbing for it with his horrid claw. He caught himself and reached out with his other hand.

He fell to the floor as his father backhanded him, knocking him off balance.

"Footwork, Draco! Fundamentals! Honestly, you're not going to be falling over yourself asking if they're all right in the ring, are you? They're certainly not going to do the same for you." He tapped at the cut with a wand from his belt, the cut healing before Draco's eyes.

The spark of magic that slipped into his father's bloodstream made Draco's pulse quicken. This was the part of the duel that had always truly spoken to Draco. If he had been left to his own devices, he would likely have pursued the magical half of the traditional duels.

But if there was one thing the Drago family was not in the habit of, it was leaving their progeny to their own devices. Draco's life had been laid out for him as had his father's, and his father before him. Had he ever wished it had turned out differently? He couldn't say. It was all he had ever known, and while his interests may not have been fully fulfilled, his needs were certainly catered to at the family's estate. It wasn't every household that had its own gymnasium complete with regulation dueling arena. Draco leaned on the ropes making up one side of the pentagram as his father caught his breath.

"I suppose we had better practice the magic a bit, but don't think that means you can slack off on your physical training. Muscle doesn't build itself."

Draco nodded, withdrawing a wand from a compartment on his trunks that bore the family crest: a black dragon rampant splayed against a green shield on each leg, its wings seeming to wave as Draco moved, part of the magic woven into the silken threads that had been passed on through the Drago family for generations.

He made a circular gesture with his wrist, his index finger resting on the length of the wood and pointing down, the back of his hand facing up. No sooner had he opened his mouth to speak the word of power than his father dragged his foot in a semicircle and stepped inside Draco's guard, coming down hard on Draco's hand with his clenched fist, sending the wand clattering to the floor.

"Underhand, Draco. The wand is a switchblade. Low and fast, keep it out only as long as you must, your guard is compromised as long as it's in your hand."

Draco nodded and picked up the wand.

"Your opponent is going to exploit that. His style relies on speed. You can't let him tire you out. The damage he is able to deal once your guard is down may be significant."

They said little else and Draco went to rest for the weigh-in the next day.


Clash of the Titans
Draco was weak in the knees as he stepped onto the scale, the steam bath seeming to have leached the energy from him. He made weight and looked around the room, waiting for his opponent to emerge.

The doors swung open and Draco knew at once that this was his opponent. It seemed that he had been destined to fight him, that he had in a past life been his adversary.

Draco gave him a chin nod.

"Cedric?"
"Yeah." He elbowed Draco off the scale and weighed in, coming in just over him.

Draco steadied himself on a pillar. Photographers from the Korranberg Chronicle were pouring in, followed closely by the Sharn Inquisitive. They walked past him without a word, centering in on Creed's red trunks, golden lions prancing across them.

"Underhanded…" Draco murmured to himself, reaching for his wand in a fluid motion. He pointed it at Creed and jerked it down abruptly. Creed's trunks followed, much to the amusement of the surrounding press.

Creed clumsily pulled them back up.

"Who did that?" Creed exclaimed.

"The man who is going to beat you," Draco said, careful of his pronunciation in the strange foreign tongue, not wanting to be misquoted or represented as foolish.

Creed smirked at him. "You? Please. I'll knock you out in round one."

Draco holstered his want and pressed his fists together. He found the cameras on him and chose his next words carefully.

"My father will hear of how I must break you."

A few of the assembled reporters did their best to hide derisive laughter, most likely at his grammar. They knew better than to offend a professional fighter, but could not help themselves.

"Sorry to say he'll be disappointed then, Drago."

Draco shrugged his robe back on and pulled the cowl over his widow's peak.

By the time he had returned home, his father had gotten the evening edition.

"Well, it looks like the stakes have been raised, haven't they?"

"I don't follow," Draco said.

"It's not just the title on the line. It's about the family, now. You've brought me into this, and I won't let you tarnish my reputation."

Draco grit his teeth. "He will lose."

"He had better."

Dead Heat

The day of the fight came. Drago and Creed retreated to their respective corners and prepared for their battle. Drago hovered his hand above his wand case, wanting to come out hard and overwhelm Creed before he had a chance to tire him out. Endurance had long been his bête noir. The bell rang and at once, he drew his wand, keeping it close to his chest, pointing the tip away from his eye, in case Creed scored a lucky blow to his elbow.

"Sangre," he growled. Crimson energy hung around his fists, greasy and dark. He jabbed at Creed's chin and turned his head away from him with the impact. He stepped back and rolled behind his left hand, his knuckles making a satisfying contact with Creed's ninth rib. Creed lit up in front of him like a starry night, his skin appearing dull and gauzy as the muscles beneath and the bones and organs hiding behind them came into view.

Creed reeled back and coughed as Drago saw his liver quiver. He absorbed a jab to the ear and crouched, giving a weak uppercut to the same spot, marked with a bull's eye in his mind's eye of increased blood flow due to the first blow.

Creed attacked the back of Drago's neck with a hammer blow from above, grunting with exertion. Draco crouched lower, lowering his right arm, keeping a steady stream of magic coursing through his veins, making each blow count double as he rained blows upon the same spot to the best of his ability. His vision swam, rimmed with red around the edges and despite magical insight, he could hardly see his opponent in front of him.

The round stopped and Drago leaned on the ropes in his corner. His ally tapped at his bruised neck with a wand. The muscles screamed out in agony before he could protest.

"How's he looking?" Draco groaned.

"Not so good. Keep an eye out for his wand. We don't know what he's packing."

Draco shrugged to see how his muscles were holding up. Well enough.

"He won't have time. I just need one more hit."

"Suit yourself. There's only so much I can do with this." He waved the wand around.

"Don't worry. He will lose."

The bell rang again and the fight resumed. Creed kept Drago at a distance and before he could get inside his guard, Creed drew his wand and jabbed it into Drago's side.

"Potestas," he boomed, holding the word out until his wind gave out.

Drago swung towards Creed's hand, but his muscles seized up as electricity coursed through his body. He felt paralyzed, as though encapsulated in a shocking grasp. Creed pulled it back as he ran out of breath. Drago fell limply onto him, his arms around Creed's torso. His weight combined with Creed's fatigue sent the pair toppling over. Drago felt Creed's rib crack underneath him.

The referee pried them apart. Drago could hear dim conversations before everything went black.

Took My Chances
Drago heard low chanting as he opened his eyes. His skin was wrapped in bandages. He saw his father standing by his side, a dark figure hooded and cloaked standing over his sickbed. Clawed hands reached out to Draco and opened his mouth, pouring animal blood down his throat and holding his lips closed when he coughed.

He felt the throb of his heartbeat in his ears grow quieter and quieter until it could hardly be heard. He felt that something had been irretrievably lost.

He tried to speak but his throat felt too dry to form words, despite the blood soaking his throat.

"I've arranged a rematch for you. One that you will win, thanks to a little unfair advantage."

Draco squinted.

"You know that our family comes from a noble bloodline. I'm afraid I haven't been entirely honest about what bloodline that is. You know about our Daelkyr heritage, but we've got dragon blood in our veins. Apparently, that's not enough, so I've arranged for our friend here to give you a little kick start. You may notice a few slight side effects, but it will more than make up for it in the ring.

Draco could do nothing but go back to sleep.

Kill with the Skill to Survive
The next bout came before Draco thought it would. Between magical healing and his newfound recuperative powers, he was back on his feet in a matter of days. He was worried about whether he would cast a reflection in a mirror, since he had noticed that whenever the nurses came to tend to him, he found heat leaching into, filling him up like a vase with holes drilled in the bottom. The relief that it provided was temporary, and left him hungry for more each time, leading them to avoid touching him for any longer than necessary.

He faced Creed again and there was no boasting. Draco had moved up a few pounds, but still found himself capable of going against Creed. The interviewers focused on him, screwing on a different lens to their cameras to compensate for the glare generated from his scales.

"Mr. Drago, due to the injury sustained by you opponent last time, some spectators are concerned for Mr. Creed's well-being due to your new unorthodox training methods. You appear more formidable than ever. What do you say with regards to your opponent's welfare?"

Draco cleared his throat. A new venue, a new language. He had had little time to study and didn't want to put the fight off any longer, so he kept his answers short.

"If he dies, he dies."

He strode past the gasping reporters, his wings causing them to give him a wide berth, his claws treading on shoe and ground alike.

The bell rang and the cut men jumped from Draco's corner to avoid his lashing tail. With a flap of his wings, he was upon Creed, technique be damned. He rained a series of blows wherever he could, not caring anything for points or damage. Thanks to his father, his very touch itself was a death sentence. His fingers fanned out across Creed's chest, leaving a trail of white as he pulled away, as though blood were being drained from the site as when a string was tied around one's finger.

Creed punched Drago in the mouth with all his might, cracking off one of Drago's newfound fangs. Drago opened his jaws and sank the broken stump into Creed's wrist, draining blood and feeling his tooth whole and new.

The scent of Creed's blood hit his nostrils and he let loose a torrent of blows upon Creed's torso. By the time he hit the ground, he appeared to be as withered as an old man. He got to one knee and flipped his wrist as if to cast a lightning bolt, but the spell fizzled, a spark falling impotently to the mat.

Drago gestured with a claw and the lightning bolt leapt forth, incinerating Creed 's body like kindling. The referee didn't want to go near him, so Drago raised his arm in the air with a roar, belching a huge gout of shadow into the air.

The reporters approached him afterwards and timidly asked what he thought this meant for his family's reputation. Drunk on power, he growled into the camera, forgetting what country he was in, punch-drunk in the extreme.

"I fight for me!"

While he was sure his father wouldn't agree, he was just as sure he couldn't argue with the results.



Level 5: Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee
At this point, you are functioning as a no-frills melee fighter. None of your dirty tricks are exactly online yet, but your prerequisite feats must fall here. Your above average speed and ability to tumble your whole movement speed provides an edge over other melee fighters. Your crawling gauntlet symbiont provides the necessary claw for weapon focus (claw) for soul eater, so you must keep it "handy" until you get dragon disciple's claws at level 9. You can change it without worry until level 7, but from 7-9, it is important you don't change it so you can enjoy slinging around negative levels as a soul eater without interruption

Level 10: I'll swallow your soul! (Sweet spot)
Soul eater is online now, and it's tough to beat. At this level, death ward is a possibility for foes you may encounter, but hardly a guarantee. Immunity to negative levels is quite rare at this level of play, so you should be able to chip away at nearly any foe. Energy drain's health replenishing qualities along with your rather sizable piggy bank of health should keep you on your toes for quite some time, and blade of blood can be used for extra punch. Bump it up to an extra 3d6 and willingly sacrifice 5hp. Hit with an energy drain and get that 5hp back! Win/win. Every time you toss out a negative level, improved energy drain gives you a +1 to skills, ability checks, attacks, and saves for an hour. This doesn't stack with itself, but it lasts so long, that it's more or less a static bonus to almost everything you care about.

Assassin provides spells to unlock your shadow dragon heritage and the stupidly versatile assassin spell list. Set aside a little money for a few assassin wands and you won't regret it. Since they're on your list, you don't even need to make the roll to use them successfully.

Poison use means that you can poison your hands to deliver poisonous unarmed strikes or claws (not with contact poison obviously) without fear of hurting yourself. Due to the fact that each weapon can only hold one dose, this isn't going to give you a whole new strategy, but might give you a slight edge during early rounds. Your bite is also a RAW target for poison, but talk to your DM first. Even if it's not ingested/contact poison, some DMs will contest putting injury poison in your mouth.

After level 9, you can now switch up your active symbiont from crawling gauntlet again since you now have a claw from dragon disciple. The best of the available options at this level is the throwing scarab in case your foe is out of range and you want to annoy them after you've used your breath weapon for the day. While it may be only once per day (for now) it can still make quite a difference being able to squeeze off a 30 foot cone of negative level, especially if they make the assumption that you don't have any ranged capability.


Level 15: Rise to the challenge of our rivals
Your strength is increasing and you have quite a lot of additional spell slots, even if your actual spells known are a little behind for your level, you don't really care all that much because of spell drain. It allows you to steal the spells that are lost from a prepared caster when they're pinged with your energy drain and then cast them yourself using their numbers for duration, CL, save, etc. you don't even need the necessary ability score, which saves you from having to put many points into int. you can pack a number of stolen spells equal to your cha mod. between this and your huge number of bonus spells from dragon disciple, you should never be running on empty.

Level 20: I have yet to meet man who is smarter than energy drain
You can fly now, which gives you a bit of help with mobility, the bane of all melee fighters. However, you have a little something up your sleeve for when the fight stays ranged. Dragon breath changes your cone of negative level from 1/day to once every 1d4 rounds, like a real dragon. Between that and all the negative levels that you are delivering via punches, you may be able to fell a foe on straight negative levels. Keep an eye on this, though, since you're less effective against wights since they are immune to energy drain (although by this point, so are you) and have no ability to control them. You can decimate large swaths of enemies by letting wights loose in classic wightocalypse fashion, flying over the battlefield and loosing swaths of negative energy cone on the battlefield. the wights don't care, and anyone who's not immune is likely taking a negative level since the ref save to avoid is 22. wights also cannot fly, so this leaves you in a safe position.

Your apotheosis makes you immune to your weapon of choice: energy drain, which is awfully nice. Your strength is at the preposterous naked value of 27 at lvl 20, ideal for breaking enemies, and Thayan gladiator is making your punches hurt all the more with INA and improved crit. stunning critical also uses your str mod, imposing a DC 23 fort save vs stun every time you crit, which is higher if your str is actually modified by anything, which it will in all likelihood be.

Suggested equipment
Since your fly speed is keyed directly off your land speed, things that improve speed, such as the boots of striding and springing, will be nice here, even at later levels since battle dancer's speed boost is untyped, so stacks with enhancement bonuses.

Items that boost str, since you are a melee fighter are a no brainer. A somewhat less obvious item is one to boost cha since your AC will be improved, and you will be able to have a larger repository of stolen spells from spell drain.

Sources
MoE- Daelkyr half-blood/symbionts
Dragon compendium- battledancer
SRD- alertness, weapon focus, toughness, Dragon disciple
CArc- practiced spellcaster
BoVD- Soul Eater
RotD- half-shadow dragon, dragon breath
LM-Improved energy drain, spell drain
CoR- Thayan Gladiator

[Amphetryon]

Roguish good looks, and so forth.


The Assassins of The Black Dragon Cult

High in the misty mountains, the Cults strongest fanatics are trained to become assassin-warriors with the blessings of the black dragon spirits.

Human Rogue/Monk/Assassin/Dragon Disciple
{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features

1st|Rogue|
+0|
+0|
+2|
+0|(8+int)x4|Combat Expertise, Kung Fu Genius|Sneak attack +1d6, trapfinding

2nd|Rogue|
+1|
+0|
+3|
+0|8+int|New Feats|Evasion

3rd|Rogue|
+2|
+1|
+3|
+1|8+int|Craven|Sneak attack +2d6, Penetrating Strike

4th|Monk|
+2|
+3|
+5|
+3|4+int|Improved Grapple|flurry of blows, unarmed strike

5th|Monk|
+3|
+4|
+6|
+4|4+int|Combat Reflexes|Invisible Fist

6th|Assassin|
+3|
+4|
+8|
+4|4+int|Improved Trip|Sneak attack +3d6, death attack, poison use, spells

7th|Dragon Disciple |
+3|
+6|
+8|
+6|2+int|-|Natural armor increase (+1)

8th|Assassin|
+4|
+6|
+9|
+6|4+int|-|+1 save against poison, uncanny dodge

9th|Dragon Disciple|
+5|
+7|
+9|
+7|2+int|Multiattack|Ability boost (Str +2), claws and bite

10th|Dragon Disciple|
+6|
+7|
+10|
+7|2+int|-|Breath weapon (2d8) (Acid Line)

11th|Dragon Disciple|
+7|
+8|
+10|
+8|2+int|-|Ability boost (Str +2), natural armor increase (+2)

12th|Dragon Disciple|
+7|
+8|
+10|
+8|2+int|Improved Multiattack|Blindsense 30 ft.

13th|Dragon Disciple|
+8|
+9|
+11|
+9|2+int|-|Ability boost (Con +2)

14th|Dragon Disciple|
+9|
+9|
+11|
+9|2+int|-|Breath weapon (4d8), natural armor increase (+3)

15th|Dragon Disciple|
+10|
+10|
+11|
+10|2+int|Staggering Strike|Ability boost (Int +2)

16th|Dragon Disciple|
+10|
+10|
+12|
+10|2+int|-|Wings

17th|Dragon Disciple|
+11|
+11|
+12|
+11|2+int|-|Blindsense 60 ft., dragon apotheosis

18th|Assassin|
+12|
+12|
+12|
+12|4+int| Improved Flight|Sneak attack +4d6

19th|Rogue|
+13|
+12|
+13|
+12|8+int|-|Uncanny dodge

20th|Rogue|
+13|
+12|
+13|
+12|8+int|-|Sneak attack +5d6[/table]

Spells Known
{table=head]Level|1st|2nd|3rd|4th
6th|2|-|-|-

7th|3|-|-|-

8th|3|2|-|-

9th|4|3|-|-

11th|4|3|2|-

12th|4|4|3|-

13th|4|4|3|2

15th|4|4|4|3

16th|4|4|4|3

17th|4|4|4|4

18th|4|4|4|4[/table]
(Assassin Spell List)

Spells per day
{table=head]Level|1st|2nd|3rd|4th
6th|0|-|-|-

7th|1|-|-|-

8th|2|0|-|-

9th|3|1|-|-

11th|3|2|0|-

12th|3|3|1|-

13th|3|3|2|0

15th|3|3|3|1

16th|3|3|3|2

17th|3|3|3|3

18th|3|3|3|3[/table]

Starting Ability Scores:
STR 14
DEX 15
CON 14
INT 16
WIS 10
CHA 8

Str will get higher because of the class (will be raised 2 times), Dex is useful for skills and AC (will be raised once), Int is useful for skill points and AC.

About the build:
You lose sneak attacks and you have BA slightly worse than a rogue, but the extra natural attacks and the DD's strength make up for it.
Improved Trip will helps you with opponents that have high AC.
Invisible Fist makes you invisible 1/4 rounds as immediate action. Assassin spells will help you later, when you can't flank. Penetrating Strike will help against undead etc.
You have good saves, you have a death attack that is good for 2-3 levels only but you are one level behind on spells than a full assassin.
The natural armor and your Int to AC,covers your lack of armor somehow. Your line of acid is more precise and you can use it more strategically.
Later, improved flight lets you hover which is helpful if you want to full attack on air.

Lets see how it works on level 10:
HP:5d6 (the first is 6)+2d8+3d12+20=68,5hp (better than a rogue)
AC 17 (the same as a rogue with chainshirt)
Full Attack: unarmed +9 melee (1d6) and 2 claws +7 melee (1d4) and bite +7 melee (1d6) OR 2 Flurry +7 and 2 claws +5 and bite +5. (you can also trip, and sneak attack)
Saves: F +9 R +13 W +7 (a rogue with the same abilities would have +5/+10/+3)

Spells: You know 4 of first level and 3 of second level.
You can cast 4 of first level and 2 of second level.
(As an assassin)

You can turn invisible as an immediate action 1 every 4 rounds.

[Amphetryon]

I believe that is the last of them, unless I missed something in my inbox. Please shoot me an email if I did, given the large number of entries this round.

[Thurbane]

Orvalo - Mineral Warrior Azurin Wu Jen 6/Incarnate 2/Dragon Disciple 10/Earth Dreamer 1
Jenny - Daelkyr Half-Blood Battle Sorcerer 5/Dragon Disciple 10/Soul Eater 5
Salomon - Human Sorcerer 5/Dragon Disciple10/Abjurant Champion 5
Tael Yerenor - Silverbrow Human Wizard 5/Frost Mage 5/Dragon Disciple 10
Wodan Silverblood - Silverblooded Human Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 10 /Dragon Disciple 10
Avi - Illumian Warmage 5/Dragon Disciple 10/Talon of Tiamat 5
Asheel - Human Duskblade 5/Ur-Priest 10/Dragon Disciple 5
Iujaku - Human Duskblade 3/Fighter 2/Dragon Disciple 10/Kensai 5
Balaur - Human Marshal 7/Dragon Disciple 10/Dragon Samurai 3
Zordon Blue - Azurin Battle Sorcerer 6/Dragon Disciple 10/Totemist 4
Xiroth Stirving - Illumian Dread Necromancer 8/Dragon Disciple 10/Fighter 2
Yul'uth-ca - Amphibious Antropomorphic Giant Octopus Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 3/Lion Totem Barbarian 2/Dragon Disciple 10/Half-Dragon Paragon 3
Katria - Elf Battle Dancer 5/Dragon Devotee 3/Sword of Righteousness 2/Dragon Disciple 10
Son of Edi - Draconic Neanderthal Stalwart Sorcerer 6/Dragon Disciple 10/Wonderworker 3
Leofriadinesal - Orc Duskblade 2/Warblade 8/Dragon Disciple 10
Bowser - Lizard Folk Fighter//Stalwart Sorcerer 9/Dragon Disciple 10
Sam - Warforged Bard 5/Dragon Disciple 10/War Chanter 5
Tyrus Blackscale - Human Sorcerer 1/Generic Warrior 6/Dragon Disciple 10/Half-Dragon Paragon 3
Samantha - Female Human Spirit Shaman 6/Swanmay 4/Gold Dragon Disciple 10
Phaen bol Andras - Anthropomorphic Tiger – Stalwart Battle Sorcerer 4/Dragon Samurai 4/Dragon Disciple 10
Dracotaur - Centaur Barbarian 1/Dragon Devotee 3/Dragon Disciple 10
Draco Drago - Daelkyr Half-Blood Battle dancer 5/Assassin 1/Soul Eater 1/Dragon Disciple 10/Thayan Gladiator 3
Assassin - Human Rogue 5/Monk 2/Assassin 3/Dragon Disciple 10


(If i have missed or misrepresented anything, please let me know).

[Thurbane]

The entry I laboured on, and never got around to submitting through stupid, annoying IRL interruptions, was a Goliath Duskblade 5/Dragon Disciple 10/Soul Eater 4. His main tactics were to smash things with Power Attack, UMD through the Apprentice (spellcaster) feat, steal spells using the Spell Drain feat, and hit and run tactics with Flyby Attack. Not a particularly amazing build, and I just couldn't get it to really synergize properly...

[Venger]

entry 22 is referred to in his writeup as "Draco Drago", not draco dragon, probably the fault of spellcheck.

[OMG PONIES]

23 entries this time around? We may have finally outpaced our judges--I just hope there are a few brave souls up to the challenge.

[Dumbledore lives]

I wish great luck to the judges, the amount of entries is truly terrifying.

[zlefin]

hmm, quite a sizeable selection, though i get the feeling at least one of them is gonna have done something illegal.
hmmm, i should look through these to figure out what I should have done with the rest of the build I didn't write up.
I was gonna do pal 2/monk 2/sorc 1 /DD 10/ warblade 2 (taken at levels 8 and 16-ish for tiger claw). not sure what the last few levels woulda been.
He was gnona be a total bahamtu junkie, seeking to emulate bahamut, including not hoarding gold, so vow of poverty multiattacker; tiger claw maneuvers.
The bloodclaw prc sadly doens't work well with natural claw attacks, and vassal of bahamut doesn't work with vop, so i'm not sure what to fill out with, probably just take some more levels in the base classes.
I never found any divine feats that woulda been worth getting turn undead for. woulda gone straight 14's for stats, a totally MAD hero :P

[Soranar]

I expected more Illumians and abjurant champions.

And not 1 dungeoncrasher? Should I made an effort and submitted my build.

[Narsis]

agh and now i'm kinda mad i didn't do the build i was thinking of. something along the lines of Spellthief 7/DD10/Something else 3. i just couldn't find a good reason for the build to actually take and fully use the DD abilities.

[kestrel404]

@Thurbane - #17, Sam, is no more a 1/2 dragon than any other entry that makes level 10 of DD. It confused me because 1/2 dragons can't enter the PrC.

Also, I stared at Balaur's entry for like 10 minutes until I figured out how he met the pre-reqs for the secret ingredient. This is probably at least partially because of the typo in the most important feat in the build - he's got Magic Touched (not a feat) instead of Magic Training (a Forgotten Realms specific feat). Fortunately, he's got the name right in the Sources section or I wouldn't have figured it out.

[KoboldCleric]

Fewer entries than I expected; still, I certainly wouldn't expect to see scores from me until the second week :)

[Thurbane]

entry 22 is referred to in his writeup as "Draco Drago", not draco dragon, probably the fault of spellcheck.

@Thurbane - #17, Sam, is no more a 1/2 dragon than any other entry that makes level 10 of DD. It confused me because 1/2 dragons can't enter the PrC.
Both updated. Thanks. :smallsmile:

[dantiesilva]

Wow that is why i do not judge...have fun judges and thank you for having the patience i never could. To everyone wow your builds surprised me, to others you only made me happy I listened to my instinct and did not go with certain classes. The most surprising to me though is feat selections. I don't think there are many people who have the same thing going and that in and of itself shocked me. Good job everyone.

[rot42]

I pray to the great Cthulhu dragon in the sky to watch over the judges in their anointed task.

[gbprime]

Wow. Seven Battle Sorcerers. That's another record, and one only Iron Chef could be proud of. :smallamused:

[ThiagoMartell]

I'm a step away from giving up on judging. That's a lot of builds.

[Devmaar]

The entry I didn't quite get written up was a Ninja5/Trapsmith2/DD3/Trapsmith1/DD7/Trapsmith2. I called him Quentin Tucker and wrote a kobold army into his backstory.

[123456789blaaa]

Isn't bowser illegal? He's using gestalt.

[Dusk Eclipse]

I was toying with a Suel Arcanamach, Sand caster build; but RL can be such a B**** sometimes.

[DemonRoach]

Isn't bowser illegal? He's using gestalt.

It's a use of alternate UA rules, I believe its not illegal but liable to end up with a heavy elegance penalty.

[Tim Proctor]

Yeah its illegal (banned by competition rules). In that case you grab Stalwart Sorcerer for 2 and Fighter for the rest and get the same build minus some will.

However that would actually open up room for some prestige classes that would have kicked butt, but the point seems to be having him breathe fire, enlarge himself, Jump up and land on people with spikes.

However, its technically illegal so just exclude it from the judging.

[mattie_p]

Please edit your post so as to not reveal your entry. Thanks

[Menteith]

A preemptive thank you for all of the judges. I know that this is a good deal of work, and I wish you the best!

Looks like an awesome and really varied amount of entries. Good luck to everyone.

[Aeryr]

I am impressed that no one took the route that I considered taking for the competition.

A white dragonspawn human into dragon shaman 4 / dragon fire adept 5 / dragon disciple 10

Having breath weapons of every chromatic dragon and strafing breath, both the cold and fire subtype and several metabreath, breath invocations / spells.

The problem was that going dragon shaman 9 / dragon fire adept 10 was ending being better :smallannoyed:

I might give a shoot to judging sorry for not having judging criteria on, since RL was a bitch last weeks and I was busy as hell.

[dantiesilva]

One problem with your idea. It is illegal you can not be a dragon and go into dragon disciple so it would lose massive amounts of points if not out right disqualified.

[Piggy Knowles]

Some nice ones here!

I'm still without power (39 hours and counting), and that plus a car accident earlier in the week killed any chance of submission.

My idea was a dragonborn warforged DD, making a mecha-themed build. Its fluff was that it was built to scour the five nations for Syberis shards, using a self-constructed Drake Helm that allowed it to use them (ordinarily a warforged wouldn't be able to benefit from dragon shards, since they can't be dragonmarked).

The working build was Warforged Artificer 4/Duskblade 5/Dragon Disciple 10/Spellcarved Soldier 1, although I considered dropping the Spellcarved Soldier and two levels of Duskblade for Uncanny Trickster, since there are some cool skill tricks that work with the build. (Plus, it might keep me from getting dinged in Elegance for dipping Spellcarved Soldier).

Warforged Artificer would give me Tools of War, infusions (hello Bane!), and the ability to create my Drake Helm (Explorers Handbook) and scrolls to cast spells into Syberis dragonshards. That would in turn let me cast spells not on my spell list. DD would give me natural attacks, wings, much needed extra spell slots, and eventually turn me into a dragon for Alter Self shenanigans. Dragonborn was partially for the cool factor, but also improved my stats considerably, saved me a feat on Unarmores Body, and gave me a decent breath weapon to use Entangling Exhalation with. (The 1/day breath weapon DD gives you just doesn't cut it...)

I'm sad I couldn't get it through, as I spent a lot of time on this one and I was pretty happy with it. Oh well... Just goes to show, I shouldn't wait until the last minute!

[Aeryr]

One problem with your idea. It is illegal you can not be a dragon and go into dragon disciple so it would lose massive amounts of points if not out right disqualified.

Dragonspawn are monstrous humanoid, and neither dragon shaman nor dragon fire adept grant the dragon type. :smallsmile:

[mattie_p]

Aeryr, I thought about stacking draconic classes as well, never worked out for similar reasons. I didn't end up entering, and would love to judge despite the potential workload, but with an out-of town trip coming up in a few days until after judging closes, I'd have no time nor materials to work. Best of luck, though, to all who entered, and my sincere thanks to the judges, who have their work cut out for them, and probably deserve medals for doing so!

[dantiesilva]

Sorry my mistake was thinking about a different race.

[WhamBamSam]

I considered entering as a Cleric, using Southern Magician and the spontaneous cure/inflict spells to qualify, using DMM Heighten to be technically able to cast spells up to 9th level, then using the bonus slots from Dragon Disciple to cast 9th level spells for real. I didn't write it up because I wasn't sure about the legality (I've heard conflicting things about how DMM Heighten works) and didn't feel confident in my ability to polish it up properly.

[mattie_p]

It's all in the eyes of the judges, tricks like that are what make this competition.

[dextercorvia]

I considered entering as a Cleric, using Southern Magician and the spontaneous cure/inflict spells to qualify, using DMM Heighten to be technically able to cast spells up to 9th level, then using the bonus slots from Dragon Disciple to cast 9th level spells for real. I didn't write it up because I wasn't sure about the legality (I've heard conflicting things about how DMM Heighten works) and didn't feel confident in my ability to polish it up properly.


It's all in the eyes of the judges, tricks like that are what make this competition.

Two problems. It's known cheese. That is what prevented me from entering a variant on my Domain Generalist. Also, Dragon Disciple gives bonus feats which require a class granted ability to cast those spells, rather than a feat granted ability.

[mattie_p]

Two problems. It's known cheese. That is what prevented me from entering a variant on my Domain Generalist. Also, Dragon Disciple gives bonus feats which require a class granted ability to cast those spells, rather than a feat granted ability.

In the words of the chairman...
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.

Judges can and will make their own judgement as to whether that level of cheese is "sane" or not, acceptable or not, and award/deduct power, elegance, originality at their discretion. Of course, if all these potential builds had made it in there, judges might have fled.

[Soranar]

How is Tael Yerenor casting spells spontaneously? Did I miss a feat or something?

[dextercorvia]

How is Tael Yerenor casting spells spontaneously? Did I miss a feat or something?

Signature Spell, although it appears he made an illegal choice for his signature spell.

[WhamBamSam]

Two problems. It's known cheese. That is what prevented me from entering a variant on my Domain Generalist. Also, Dragon Disciple gives bonus feats which require a class granted ability to cast those spells, rather than a feat granted ability.I absolutely agree that it's known cheese. I'd need to read up a lot before I had any good tricks that weren't simply picked up by lurking around this forum.

As for the bonus spells, I can certainly see where you're coming from. My 9th level Spells/Day would still be written as " - " rather than "0" on the chart thing when I started trying to stick bonus spells into it. Dragon Disciple does only say that I need the ability to cast spells of the given level, but you know more about this than I do, so I'll defer to your judgment.

[dextercorvia]

I absolutely agree that it's known cheese. I'd need to read up a lot before I had any good tricks that weren't simply picked up by lurking around this forum.

As for the bonus spells, I can certainly see where you're coming from. My 9th level Spells/Day would still be written as " - " rather than "0" on the chart thing when I started trying to stick bonus spells into it. Dragon Disciple does only say that I need the ability to cast spells of the given level, but you know more about this than I do, so I'll defer to your judgment.

Bonus spells are defined in the PHB (where they first come into play -- for high ability scores -- but the wording is not limited to that). It refers to needing sufficient class level to cast such spells. There are only class abilities that grant extra spells/day which are not explicitly limited to normal spells/day or called out as bonus spells. They are Elven Generalist, Wonderworker, and Anima Mage. My normal approach is to do a Domain Wizard/Elven Generalist, but Amph has specifically called out the Domain Wizard as illegal in the past. I was going to use Elven Generalist/Anima Mage to spring the ladder and get 9th level spells. It was feat intensive and hard to pull off by the time you qualify for Dragon Disciple, but doable.

[Z3ro]

Mother of god ::removes sunglasses::

No seriously, that's about as many entries as I thought there would be (I figured 25). I don't have a lot going on at work this week, so I'm hoping to get my judging in by Friday. Wish me luck.

[OMG PONIES]

Mother of god ::removes sunglasses::

No seriously, that's about as many entries as I thought there would be (I figured 25). I don't have a lot going on at work this week, so I'm hoping to get my judging in by Friday. Wish me luck.

Good luck and godspeed, you brave man :smalltongue:.

[Z3ro]

And we're well on track. I've got the framework for 18 of the builds judged. I should be able to hit the rest tomorrow, then hitting the books because there's a lot of questionable rules I have to look up. I might even be able to beat my Friday estimate and get judging in on Thursday. Just be glad I'm not doing anything at work this week:smallwink:.

[gbprime]

Isn't bowser illegal? He's using gestalt.

Gestalt is listed as illegal, yes, but up in the original post under "kitchen" rather than down in the FAQ. To be fair, you have to read carefully to see that. And also Generic Classes, they fall under the "judges discretion" for elegance, and I see there's a build using one of those as well. I would assume many judges would apply a deduction to that.

I eagerly await the judges scores on such builds, and on the various interesting uses of the Bonus Spell class feature as well.

[Thurbane]

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. Web-exclusive 3.0 or 3.5 materials by WotC are expressly allowed, but take care to verify that an updated version did not appear in print elsewhere, as this may cause an Elegance deduction at the judges' discretion. 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. This comes up often enough to bear mention in the rules: Dragon Compendium is allowed.
...it's not exactly hidden either. I can see how someone might miss it, but it's fairly obvious that pitting gestalts against non-gestalts in a character design comp makes for uneven footing.

[Amechra]

Huh, I knew my build was kinda generic but...

That is a lot of Battle Sorcerers.

I was actually thinking of doing a Quasilycanthrope (Monitor Lizard) Human Druid 1/Binder 5/Dragon Disciple 10/Warshaper 3 build, using Magical Training to get in, and using the Shapechange variant to actually look like a Dragon.

It got something like 15' reach, a 2d6 bite attack, and a Natural Armor bonus of around +10 if you where Binding Dalhver-Nar...

I just lost track of time (and found the sexy, sexy Dragon Prophesier feat... Damn, there are some neat things you can do with that thing...)

[Menteith]

That is a lot of Battle Sorcerers.

I honestly expected more people to use Duskblade instead of Battle Sorcerer. It's better for a melee build if you're going to lose 10 caster levels anyway, and there's really not a lot of synergy between Sorcerer and Dragon Disciple anyway.

[dantiesilva]

It was an ewxpected thing thus no one wanted to do it thus making it a great choice to choose because it was so obvious. The loop. Battle sorcerer seemed a much safer route to go because after all their is the sorcerer and then the battle sorcerer, making you chances better of not having the same idea as someone else...This time around though it was not so great of a choice I would say. I can see points being taken for that hands down.

What I was surprised to see was Some builds that went way out in left field and that may make them win because it was not something that has been done before. I think out of the 23 builds we have 5 that really stand out to me.

[Garwain]

I played with the idea of going undead, a type that normally doesn't qualify for the half-dragon template, but can qualify for this PrC. Unfortunatly, it was just too complicated to find any benefits.

[OMG PONIES]

Hmm, Garwain, that would have been an interesting piece of optimization. As for the expected builds, I thought we'd see a few battle sorcerers given the expected playstyle of the DD. However, I thought the field of competition would be awash in Aeshkrau Illumian Duskblade 5/Abjurant Champion 5/Dragon Disciple 10. Using all that STR to fuel bonus spells seemed too good to be ignored, coupled with the fact that BAB 17 nets you the fourth iterative attack and your Krau sigil boosts your CL to 19.

[dantiesilva]

Well one of the builds seemed to have gone that way partially. They got the illumani and the sigils.

[ThiagoMartell]

Well, I think I got all of them judged. Now excuse me while I faint from exhaustion.

Orvalo - 10
Originality: 3
I don't think I have ever seen an azurin mineral warrior around. However, we have another azurin in the competition and mineral warrior by itself is common enough in IC to justify a penalty. Wu Jen is awesome and it's good to see more people using it. I see you used Sapphire Dragon instead of Incarnum Dragon, which is good since Incarnum Dragon's status as a true dragon is debatable and there are no rules for half incarnum dragons. I specifically like the Earth Friend + clones trick.

Elegance: 1
Alacritous Cogitation, Earth Spell, Body Outside Body... You're basically swimming in known cheese.

Power: 5
If it all comes online, all that cheese together becomes quite a lot of power.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1
You jump through hoops to do something you could already do as a single-classed Wu Jen. You brought plenty of interesting tricks to the table, but they don't really depend on Dragon Disciple, it's stuff you can do even though you're gimped by it.

Jeanette Crawford - 14.5
Originality: 3.5
Battle Sorcerer was used by plenty of other people, Soul Eater and Daelkyr are rare. Really liked the backstory.

Elegance: 3
The build flows well. I loved how you set the progression up. I just had to deduct for using Soul Eater's RAI reading instead of the RAW one.

Power: 4
She is consistent all around with the negative levels thing, a tad weak defensively, but with good offense - if a bit overfocused. What I specially liked (and what makes this a 4 after all) was that you went full throttle on not being item dependant and took advantage of class features to get your enhancement bonuses.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 4
Dragon Disciple is a stepping stone into Soul Eater, but the character is really defined by what it gets from it. The build is a lot more about Soul Eater than it is about Dragon Disciple, which prevents this from being a full score, but well done nonetheless.

Salomon - 6.5
Originality: 1
Human, Sorcerer, Abjurant Champion... it doesn't get any more generic than that.

Elegance: 1
I'm trying very hard to figure out how you managed to get 7th level spells, but I just can't see it. It seems completely illegal. I'm willing to change this if someone can point out what I missed.

Power: 3.5
Well, if everything does work as intended, you get 7th level spells.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1
All the SI does is slow you down and add flavor.

Tael Yerenor - 11.5
Originality: 4
Can't say that fluff is anything but original. Takes guts to submit something like that. And usinf Wizard? Talk about guts.

Elegance: 2
Yeah, you're using wizard and known cheese to qualify. You've certainly seen this coming. Looks like your choice of Signature Spell is not valid, as well.

Power: 3.5
Well, you're a wizard... with a lot of open 5th level spells. If you had actually chosen them, this could be higher.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 2
Can't say this is not a Dragon Disciple build, but Wizard can do everything there with spells. There is not even the cost in spells known that Sorcerer would get. A few Bite of WereX spells and you would get mostly the same results on a Wizard 20, or an actual Wizard gish build.

Wodan Silverblood - 11
Originality: 1
Vanilla build is vanilla.

Elegance: 3
Simple, direct, straight like an arrow. You could have gotten a 5.
Then you had to go and take Wyrm of War at level 20. Sovereign Archetypes are only for true dragons.

Power: 4
Your spell list is about as gishy as it gets. My problem is with Draconic Polymorph. You are basically giving up all your 10 levels in Dragon Disciple whenever you cast that spell. So you took a spell that makes your build irrelevant.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3
I'm generous here because I like all you did, but Draconic Polymorph makes the secret ingredient irrelevant.

Avi - 11
Originality: 4
Warmage and Talon of Tiamat, nice change of pace.

Elegance: 2
How the hell do you get 6th level spells? I'm willing to change this if someone explains how.

Power: 2
You're a blaster with melee backup. That is not exactly optimal.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3
You pretty much use it as intended.

Asheel - 11.5
Originality: 3.5
Duskblade was expected, buy Ur-Priest surprised me.

Elegance: 1
It doesn't get any more cheesier than this.

Power: 5
An Ur-Priest with extra firepower. Can't go wrong with that.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 2
Only five levels, but you actively used it in your build. Not impressed, this is an Ur-Priest build with bait-and-switch Dragon Disciple for extra slots.

Iujaku - 15.5
Originality: 3.5
Didn't really expect a Kensai, but it makes a lot of sense.

Elegance: 4.5
Just a minor concern with build pacing, otherwise pretty good.

Power: 3.5
You're a melee beast, but your spellcasting puts you behind basically everyone here. You are really good at you chose to do, so I'm being generous.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 4
You could have used the breath weapon and the bonus spell slots better, but I like what you did overall.

Balaur - 13.5
Originality: 5
Ignoring all spellcasting took major guts and I respect that. Dragon Samurai is a class I'd like to see as a secret ingredient one of these days.

Elegance: 2
I think you meant Magical Training as your first level feat.

Power: 3.5
Your build blooms late, but it's always a reliable support character.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3
I just kept thinking all the time - why isn't it a Dragon Shaman?

Zordon Blue - 11.5
Originality: 2
Yet another Battle Sorcerer. At least it's a Totemist.

Elegance: 3
Nitpick: you don't get illiteracy when you multiclass into a class that has it. I'm glad you mentioned the incarnum dragon but did not choose it.

Power: 3.5
A well-built natural attack gish, if a bit lacking in the spellcasting department.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3
You play to the secret ingredient's strenghts, but Totemist is another of those classes that could do most of what DD does on it's own.

Xiroth Stirving - 12.5
Originality: 4
Ah, a Dread Necromancer! I thought about using one of these myself.

Elegance: 3
You jumped around a bit between classes for no reason I could identify, but it looks solid otherwise.

Power: 2
Your feat selection, well... sucks.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3.5
You could have used more of the ingredient's class features. Your weak feat selection hurts you here, since you could have emphasized it more.

Yul'uth-ca - 14.5
Originality: 4
Amphibious Anthropomorphic Squid?! Using a SAP?! With Vow of Poverty?!?!?! It blew my mind!
...but someone else did it, so a small deduction.

Elegance: 2
The flaw hurt you here. Your progression is a bit wierd with that last bit of Battle Sorcerer in the end - why not use Abjurant Champion?

Power: 3.5
You could have done better here. Being melee-only already hurts you a bit, and your feat selection could be improved (why are you not using Rapidstrike, for example?).

Use of Secret Ingredient: 5
You really went full throttle here. You're a dragon disciple for 13 levels instead of 10. I like how you used spell shield to get some use of the spell slots.

Katria - 12.5
Originality: 3.5
Battle Dancer was unexpected. I imagined more people would go for Dragon Devotee.

Elegance: 3
Everything is neat. I wanted to see a full Dragon Devotee here, though. Fits better thematically and I think it's stronger. You should explain your tricks better - just listing statblocks means we might miss what you can do.

Power: 3
You're a bit weaker than other melee focused characters in the contest.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3
You pretty much use it as intended, but you don't do anything special with it.

Son of Edi - 7.5
Originality: 4
Wonderworker surprised me. Like the breath focus as well.

Elegance: 1.5
Draconic was kind of a weird choice, taking that +1 LA hit. I don't think you really understood how metabreath feats are supposed to work, you need a cooldown on your breath weapon to use it... and you don't get that form Draconic Breath.

Power: 1
Your main trick simply does not work. Can't judge this any better when you sank so much resources on something that doesn't work.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1
Even considering what you wanted to do, DD works only as some kind of backup. If you had focused your trick on the DD breath weapon, it could have scored better.

Leofriadinesal - 14
Originality: 3
Nothing surprising but nothing too obvious. Like how you went full melee.

Elegance: 5
That's a build I would see allowed in pretty much all games around. Simples, direct, no ambiguities.

Power: 3.5
You have a bunch of maneuvers and weapon aptitude putting you a hair above the other melee characters. Your feat selection could use some work.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 2.5
You are really focused, but like I said feat selection could help emphasize other aspects of the SI. You basically ignore most of it.

Bowser - 5
Originality: 5
No one has ever done this before in IC.

Elegance: 0
The build is illegal for contest purposes.

Power: 0
The build is illegal for contest purposes.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 0
The build is illegal for contest purposes.


Sam - 16.5
Originality: 4.5
You could have gotten a 5 but so many people are being so extreme that I couldn't justify it.

Elegance: 5
This is simply beautiful. Simple, the classes complement each other well, the progression is well thought out.
I liked your suggestions at the end, even though I see no reason to use the victory dragon, specially since it's so much like the battle dragon.

Power: 4
You're not only a melee beast, you have all the power of optimized Inspire Courage to boost the whole party.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3
You don't really use everything out of it.

Tyrus Blackscale - 11.5
Originality: 3.5
No one ever uses Generic Warrior, but I don't want to give a big bonus from using a generic class, since they're boring.

Elegance: 2
Using alternate UA system deserves an elegance hit due to contest rules.

Power: 3
It's funny how you don't really get much from generic Warrior, you could do most of what you did in other ways, sparring that elegance hit. You end up with a melee DD with less tricks than the other melee DDs in the contest.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3
Generic Warrior for a generic build.

Samantha - 14.5
Originality: 4
Really liked the use of Swanmay. That class deserves more love.

Elegance: 2.5
Swanmay only progresses Druid or Ranger casting. Spirit Shaman casts from the Druid list, but it's still not a Druid. Small penalty because I really liked the build.

Power: 4
Plenty of options, well made selections, staying power and versatility. Like it.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 4
You manage to make Dragon Disciple be the focus of the build even with all the options around. Impressive.

Phaen bol Andras - 18
Originality: 4.5
Very original elements, but someone had a very similar idea.

Elegance: 4.5
The one thing I can complain about is interrupting progressions and jumping around.

Power: 4
Possibly the best among the melee focused characters. Leap Attack and Pounce makes all the difference in damage, you have few spells but they are very well selected.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 5
I really like it. You emphasized everything that needed to bt emphasized. Everything in the build add to what you get from DD. Excellent work.

Dracotaur - 17.5
Originality: 5
Whenever someone goes for a monster race I get surprised.

Elegance: 5
I loved how you pointed out it could be done core-only and that bit about old school feel. It convinced to give you a 5 in elegance automatically.

Power: 4
You're all about that physical power.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3.5
You didn't emphasize all of the SI's abilities.

Draco Dragon - 12.5
Originality: 4
Another Battle Dancer? Uh. I love Thayan Gladiator. Loved the music references.

Elegance: 1
Too many dips and stuff, considers Soul Eater RAI instead of RAW.

Power: 4
All those dips get you a lot to play with.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3.5
You miss out on a few abilities but you do very well on what you use.

Assassin - 11.5
Originality: 4
Honestly thought we'd see more Monks.

Elegance: 1.5
Taking Kung-fu Genius before taking Monk is kinda weird. How do you get 4th level spells? Oh, you don't. You shouldn't have just copied the Assassin table, though. More Rogue at the end of the build looks even more weird.

Power: 3
Melee only, low spellcasting, dependant on sneak attack. Nothing extraordinary.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3
Nothing that jumps out to me.

[Z3ro]

Orvalo: 13.0

Originality: 4.0 Another contestant selected Azurin, and another used Incarnum (though not Incarnate). These are small quibbles in an otherwise highly original build (which is impressive this round). An earth themed warrior in a dragon contest, that fights primarily through burrowing? Very cool.

Power: 4.0 You’re lucky power and elegance are two separate categories. As presented, you’re build is quite strong. You start out very playable, and by the end you’ve got two extra versions of you running around wreaking havoc. A large number of attacks, powerful spell-casting, and a couple of tricks given your burrow speed, all come together in a powerful package.

Elegance: 1.5 Big hit here, which is unfortunate as you had a great theme going throughout the build. I’m not sure whether the heighten trick, plus Alacritous cogitation is RAW legal, but I do know most DMs would not allow it, losing you points. In addition, requiring a mouthpick gnomish quickrazor, with no way to make one yourself, is a little too much. Also, chaos incarnate seems a little off when combines with an earth build; I’ve always seen the earth element as more lawful.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3.5 You do ok with the secret ingredient. You maximize the spell-casting (even if with questionable rules interpretation), utilize the natural attacks, and when combining flight and burrowing make a diverse combination. But while you do that, you could have done all of it without the SI. So an ok score.


Jenny: 15.0

Originality: 1.5 This is not exactly original. Soul eater/anything with natural weapons is a combo that has been around a long time, and one I fully expected this round.

Power: 4.0 That being said, it’s a well know combo because it works. You lose points for starting out on the weaker side of the contest, but boy do you ramp up later. By the end of the contest, you can inflict massive numbers of negative levels in a hurry, bulking yourself up in the process. The only real problem are things that are immune to negative levels (undead, smart spellcasters); you don’t really have an answer for these. If you had gotten around that, your score would have been higher.

Elegance: 4.5 Can’t say it’s not elegant. No real questionable rules interpretations, nice flow, stays around the theme throughout. The only reason I didn’t give you a five is the seemingly random placement of soul eater levels; I couldn’t really puzzle out why you put them were you did.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 5.0 You sure used it to its fullest. Everything is utilized, and they all revolve around your theme. You claws and bite inflict negative levels, your breath weapon inflicts negative levels, your spells inflict negative levels. All of your tricks revolve around the SI. Congratulations, a perfect score in the hardest to score category. Nice job.


Salomon: 8.0

Originality: 2.0 There’s nothing particularly noteworthy about this build in this regard. It’s the only one with Abjurant Champion, I suppose, but it uses human sorcerer, hardly original, and doesn’t really do anything with that. Nothing in the power setup or trick department either, and the lack of a backstory really hurts.

Power: 2.0 Without a level by level breakdown, I’m not exactly sure what your build is doing. Are you a melee fighter, a spell-caster, a gish? I don’t know, so it makes judging hard. The best I can tell, you’re a sorta week gish with a pretty good defenses, winning you my hard to hurt but easy to ignore award this round.

Elegance: 2.0 Your build is decently elegant with a good progression, but loses points on two fronts; first, I don’t see how you’re getting 6th and 7th level spells; you just kind of list them, with no explanation how you got them (dragon disciple doesn’t grant them). And second, craft wand at level 15? It’s so out of place, it’s hard not to mention.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 2.0 You take all ten levels, but you don’t really do anything with them. You don’t utilize your natural weapons in any way, flying could’ve been replaced with a spell, and you don’t really do anything with your breath weapon. Would’ve been much better off with more levels of sorcerer (a problem when using full casting base classes).


Tael Yerenor: 11.5

Originality: 3.5 The only wizard to attempt to enter the contest this round, so points for that (I was sure there’d be more; see elegance as to why there weren’t) and the only frost mage as well. You do focus on natural attacks, something others do as well, but many others went the VoP route.

Power: 2.0 The build is excessively weak at lower levels, and only ramps up later, so you lose points there. Once it gets goings, it’s…just ok. You can certainly lay down some pain with your claws/bite, but that’s really about it. Your spells certainly help your cause, but they don’t help enough. Something like a straight totemist would end up being much better with his natural attacks, if slightly less versatile. Also, since you didn’t list your 5th level spells, I can’t include them in this category, as what you would have picked might be different than what I would have picked.

Elegance: 2.0 You don’t qualify for the SI; you take signature spell (chill touch), which would be questionable enough (I don’t think it would actually qualify you on the basis of spontaneous spell casting, but at least you have a case) but signature spell requires one of the spells you designate with spell mastery, and chill touch was not one of them. Aside from that huge issue no other problems.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 4.0 You do a good job with what is given, focusing on natural attacks and augmenting them. You take all ten levels (if entering a bit late). Points are lost as you don’t really do anything with your breath weapon.



Wodan Silverblood: 10.5

Originality: 2.0 Stalwart Battle Sorcerer, one of the most popular entrants. You tried to focus more on Tome of Battle, so a little bump there, along with focusing on familiars, something no one else did.

Power: 4.0 This category is tough to rate for me. You start out on the weak side, but through a combination of spells, maneuvers, and your familiars, you end up a pretty efficient melee machine (how you get there is elegance). Though not as powerful as you list (you can’t combine weapon and claw attacks from the same hand), arcane strike plus six attacks in a round is quite a potent combination. Draconic polymorph gives you the usual benefits of polymorph plus, which is powerful, and the dragon breath is a great breath plus. So in the end you’re a very strong melee fight, but not much besides, so a good, but not great, score.

Elegance: 1.0 Lots of issues here. First, I can’t find anything to support your reading that Wyrm of War grants you sorcerer levels as initiator levels. I see nothing in draconic bloodline or dragon disciple that suggest you gain the initiator powers of wyrm of war. In addition, you assume the use of psychic reformation on both your familiars and yourself, something that’s highly dubious and unlikely to be approved by any sane DM.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1.5 You get a bump for taking all ten levels, but other than that you don’t do much with the SI. Your spell already give you plenty of natural attacks, your arcane strike would be better off with more sorcerer levels, and your breath weapon bonus assumes you have access to psychic reformation.


Avi: 10.0

Originality: 4.0 Surprisingly, the only warmage and talon of tiamat this round (I totally expected more of both). Also get points for being a primary spell caster, something very few others did.

Power: 2.0 That said, very few others went the spellcasting route because dragon disciple kills your spell level. You only list blasting spells, and don’t have a level breakdown that lets me know how you’re using your build, so I’m going to assume your primary purpose is blowing things up. And that works for a little bit, but by mid-levels your peers (even those who focus exclusively on melee) outstrip you.

Elegance: 2.0 I’m not sure how you’re getting 6th level spells with dragon disciple, as it doesn’t increase caster level, only spells known. If you’re using practiced spellcaster, it doesn’t work that way. Besides that, everything else seems to flow fairly well.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 2.0 You take all ten levels, but that’s about all you have going for you. It appears your focus is on the spellcasting, but this isn’t really a spellcasting PrC; it’s much more a gish, and you don’t take advantage of the various things that make it that, such as natural attacks and a breath weapon.


Asheel: 11.5

Originality: 3. Urpriest is original and completely unexpected, but human duskblade are kinda blah and expected, so average.

Power: 5.0 The bulk of this power score comes from one simple fact: 9th level spells. Pulling down the Urpriest casting gives this build a huge lift in power, putting this build right at the top given the benchmark of the contest (weak gish). Besides the spells, you can contribute decently in melee as well, so bonus there.

Elegance: 2.5 Not bad elegance wise, but you didn’t list your spells, making me guess which spells you were using/taking. You also have to devote your early feats to Urpriest prereqs, breaking up the build flow. Dragon disciple feels taken on at the end, especially given the backstory of the build.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1.0 You had to see this coming. Didn’t take all ten levels, and didn’t use any of the abilities you did get (besides more spellcasting, but even that feels uneccasary). Really, this is an Urpriest build with dragon disciple added on, not the other way around.


Iujako: 11.0

Originality: 3.0 The only Kensai, something I honestly thought we’d see more of. The rest of your build is pretty standard, however. Melee, focusing on natural attacks, is pretty much the definition of unoriginal. This would have been lower, but I really liked the story of the dragon mentor and his murder (it would have been higher, too, had the story had a more satisfying ending).

Power: 2.0 You get a real *meh* in the power department. You’re basically a charger; that’s fine, we can work with a charger. The problem is he’s not a really good charger. You don’t have anything to make it easier to hit or multiply damage on a charge, and you don’t take advantage of your kensai ability to ramp up your damage. And you point out that you can’t always charge, but your answer to that is to…stand there and trade blows? That’s not a great fallback plan.

Elegance: 3.0 Fighter dip is thrown in there, but that’s ok. The real elegance problem for me is that kensai is stuck in there and feels like it should be a bigger part of the build, but it really isn’t. Honestly you’d be better thematically with more duskblade levels (especially give the backstory). Worse yet, dragon disciple also feels tacked-on, offering little besides natural attacks, questioning why those levels were taken at all.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3.0 You take all ten levels, but as mentioned in elegance, they feel tacked-on. You make use of the natural weapons, but even that ability isn’t really showcased (it’s just one of several kind of attacks you make). Overall just and average score.


Balaur: 11.0

Originality: 4.0 Marshal was different and unexpected, but dragon samurai was not, in addition to being used by another competitor. I really liked the backstory, which, even if far-fetched, was entertaining to read and really brought the character together. Didn’t see many builds focusing on their breath weapons, so bonus for that.

Power: 2.5 The reason many builds didn’t focus on breath weapons is because they’re not great. Really, by level 20, you’re basically a poor-man’s dragonfire adept . In addition, your build doesn’t really ramp up till later, leaving you underpowered at low levels while your tricks come online.

Elegance: 4.0 No real rule issues on this one, but the flow just seems a little off. Starting as marshal then transitioning into dragon disciple is jarring. In addition, you have to rely on feats to get the spellcasting you need, which you then ignore later.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1.5 I don’t really see the SI here. You take all ten levels, but that’s about it. You don’t focus on the spell casting or natural weapons and instead expand on the breath weapon. Which is fine, but as stated, doesn’t really turn out to be worth the time in the end.


Zordon Blue: 11.0

Originality: 3.0 Battle sorcerer and Azurin were used by other contestants, but totemist was original. Focusing on natural attacks was done by many other builds, leaving you with only an average score.

Power: 3.0 I’ll be honest, I had a hard time placing this build, power-wise. It starts off a little slow, but really ramps up around level 9, when you get multi attack and are throwing around arcane strikes. But then towards the end, it kind of tails off, topping around level 15 and not getting appreciably stronger. In addition, you don’t do much besides rip off faces; you do that well for a while, but even then it tapers off. So an average score.

Elegance: 2.5 You got a lot going on and it seems forced together. Battle sorcerer and totemist don’t really gel, and your essentia is all over the place until the very end of the build. You would have really benefitted by focusing more on the totemist or sorcerer levels.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 2.5 Like many others, you get some use out of the levels, but not a ton. You probably would have been better off getting your natural attacks from totemist, and your use of the breath weapon was good, but by using all ten levels, your build ends up going in too many directions. Focusing on a base class would have helped enhance this category as well.


Xiroth Stirving: 7.5

Originality: 3.0 Dread Necromancer was different and unexpected, but fighter was also used, not to mention a build that focuses on natural attacks. Could have potentially been higher if you had a backstory to tie things together.

Power: 2.0 You start off strong with the dread necromancer levels, but then you just kind of die to self-inflicted wounds. You focus on natural attacks, but don’t take something like arcane strike that could have really upped the damage per attack. In addition, I think you assumed TWF gives you extra claw and bite attacks; it doesn’t . There’s potential here, but without massive rebuilding you’re not dishing out much damage.

Elegance: 1.0 This build looks like a mess. Since you have no backstory, I have no idea why you took Dread Necromancer, and without a level breakdown I’m not sure which abilities (besides charnel touch) you’re using. In addition, you make a huge error in how TWF applies to natural attacks.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1.5 I’m not too sure why you took the SI. You get a bump for taking all ten levels, but don’t really do anything with them. Since natural weapons don’t interact with TWF like you think they do there’s not much here to recommend the SI over, say, more Dread Necromancer.


Yul’uth-ca: 14.0

Originality: 4.0 Um…wow. Anthropomorphic giant octopus was totally unexpected. Enough that after I deduct for stalwart battle sorcerer and half-dragon paragon, you still end up with a good score. The story was interesting, though with half-black dragon I was hoping Yul’uth-ca would end up being the villain of the story.

Power: 4.0 You certainly manage to do the natural attacks right. Dragon disciple (virtue of flight) is something that blends well with VoP, which you and others did. Still a good move, especially when coupled with your incredible natural attack routine. You don’t get a higher score for two reasons: first, your build is a bit weaker than average at lower levels, and second, against foes that can’t be grappled (surprisingly common at high levels) your power falls off considerably.

Elegance: 4.0 You don’t take the LA penalty for the octopus (either that or you buy it off, either of which is a heavy penalty) corrected. You also jump around a lot; the barbarian levels especially stick out. Overall the build seems smashed together, hurting an otherwise fun build.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 2.0 Take all ten levels, but besides flight and qualifying for half-dragon paragon, I don’t see what you’re really getting out of it. Very little spell-casting, you’re not even sure how the claws work, and I don’t see any love for the breath weapon. Just about anything else would have worked better for your purposes.


Katria: 7.5

Originality: 2.0 Battle dancer and dragon devotee were both used this round, as was elf. The only original part of the build was sword of righteousness, but that was enough for more than a below average score.

Power: 2.0 Since you didn’t breakdown exactly what your build does, I’m forced to infer from the tables you provided, and what I see is your build doesn’t do much. It went VoP, as did several other builds, which synergizes well with the SI, but other than that I don’t see much. You’re not really a spellcaster, you’re OK at melee combat but not great, and you don’t do anything with your breath weapon. In addition, several of the feats (improved toughness, iron will, deflect arrows) are significantly subpar.

Elegance: 2.0 You’re all over the place in this one. Several PrC are mashed together, and your feats were selected at seeming random. I don’t know where your build is going and your elegance is deducted accordingly.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1.5 You take all ten levels, but that’s the only bump you get. There’s nothing here that suggests the SI, and what you do get you don’t do anything with. The breath weapon is not optimized, you don’t move beyond 1st level spells, and you don’t even note your natural attacks in the stat block.


Son of Edi: 10.0

Originality: 3.0 Plenty of sorcerer to go around this time, though Neanderthal and wonderworker were unique. Builds focusing on the breath weapon were in the minority, so points there. Overall, average.

Power: 4.0 The build as written takes the breath weapon and jakes it up to 11 (how you get there is elegance). You’re cranking out a huge number of breath attacks each round, throwing down an obscene amount of damage. There’s 2 things holding this build back: first, you don’t really ramp up to the midway point of the build when you get quicken breath. And second, anything immune to electricity (common at later levels) laughs at your attempts to hurt it.

Elegance: 1.0 Come on, what did you expect? While you are correct that your quicken breath tactic is RAW, no sane DM would ever allow it at their table. That means your entire build is based on something that would not fly at just about any table. I can’t give you a better score when your one trick is on that shaky of ground.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 2.0 While it fits thematically, and you take all ten levels, dragon disciple feels incredibly tacked on and kind of pointless. You even point out that one of the things it provides is extra 3rd level spell slots. You know what else provides extra spell slots? More sorcerer, which you would have been better off taking instead of the SI.


Leofriadinesal: 13.5

Originality: 4.0 The only orc and the only warblade this round. Small penalty for duskblade, but otherwise a fairly original build. Plus anyone who puts down great-spoon for proficiency deserves a bonus in my book.

Power: 4.0 Given the benchmark for this contest (weak gish) you manage to do quite a bit better. Your breath weapon trick gives you a nice battlefield control option, and your maneuvers give you plenty of extra oomph when you need it. The build could have used a way to better incorporate spells, as by level 8 or so ray of enfeeblement is hardly doing anything.

Elegance: 3.5 The opening levels of duskblade are obviously taken for entrance to the SI, and they feel that way. It starts your build off on a bad note, and it doesn’t quite shake it throughout.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 2.0 You take all ten levels and make good use of the breath weapon. However, for your purposes, you probably would have been better off with fewer DD levels and more warblade levels, showing how unessential the SI was to the build.


Bowser: 5.5

Originality: 1.0 You took several classes (fighter, stalwart sorcerer) that many others used, and you copied an existing, popular character.

Power: 2.0 That said, I’m not exactly sure what you’re going for with this build. You take the weapon focus/specialization line, which is very subpar. You take a couple of charging feats, but aren’t really a charger. You can cast spells but don’t list spells known or more than a handful of common spells you cast. And even worse, there’s no level breakdown provided, so I’m not sure what exactly you’re going for at each level.

Elegance: 1.0 This category would be a 0 if it was allowed. You use gestalt, which is prohibited and loses you huge points. In addition, you seem to assume you’ll have WBL at every level, and the ability to customize your magic items to a level that many campaigns do not allow.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1.5 You get a small bump for taking all ten levels, but that’s it. You don’t really utilize any of the abilities, and you even put-down the ability to fly, one of the SI’s best abilities.


Sam: 17.0

Originality: 4.5 Surprised we didn’t see more bard or warforged this time around; maybe everyone else thought it would be too obvious. Their loss is your gain. The only reason this isn’t a 5.0 is that many other builds used VoP.

Power: 4.0 Great blending of abilities, from being social skills to combat power. The combination of dragon disciple and dragon fire inspiration was something I thought there’d be more of, seeing as how good it is (and you wisely upgraded it to sonic damage). The ability to enhance yourself and others to high degrees results in a nice power score, especially topped off with warchanter (one of my favorite PrC). The only reason you don’t get a better score is you start off weak at low levels, really ramping up around 15, and you took weapon focus (slam) instead of the second slam feat, a remarkably bad trade-off in a natural attack build (I know you take it later, but you could have put it in at level 9).

Elegance: 4.5 Nice job all around; all of the abilities flow well from one to another, and the combination of bard and warchanter, along with dragonfire inspiration come together nicely. The only reason this isn’t a 5.0 is because I can’t imagine how a warforged is growing wings (I know it’s perfectly legal, but this is elegance).

Use of Secret Ingredient: 4.0 Take all ten levels, and put the abilities to use nicely. Dragon Disciple really lets VoP shine, despite its mechanical drawbacks. You crank up a nice melee/skill build thanks to the SI. You could have done better optimizing the breath weapon; otherwise a great build.


Tyrus Blackscale: 6.5

Originality: 2.0 Sorcerer got a lot of love this round, and half-dragon paragon saw action too. Generic warrior was not used by anyone else, and for good reason (see elegance). Nothing else original about the build.

Power: 2.0 I’m not really seeing what it is this build does. Ok, you use a spike chain to trip, but so what? That’s useful at low levels, but you don’t really put anything else into it. Cleave is ok, but great cleave is a waste, as are weapon focus and (imho) hover. So, you can fly around, hover, and whack things with your chain? Not overly impressive. Without a level breakdown I can’t be sure there isn’t something I missed, but I don’t think so.

Elegance: 1.0 Using the generic classes are prohibited, resulting in a huge deduction overall. Besides that, the level of sorcerer is also just kind of hanging out by itself, not really doing anything except qualifying you for the SI, which…

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1.5 You don’t seem to have a reason to take. Sure, it gives you wings and boosts your strength, but you could have done that in any number of ways. There’s really nothing in this build that recommends dragon disciple, and you only get a bump for taking all ten levels.


Samantha: 16.0

Originality: 4.0 Spirit Shaman and swanmay were unique entries into the competition, but like many others you went with VoP and a natural attack build, so a good, but not great, score.

Power: 4.5 You’ve got a lot going on in this build, which helps you out in the versatility department. Being able to change up the spells known is a great mechanic and helps you be prepared for whatever you might face, and gives you incredible diversity compared to the other spontaneous casters this round. Your spells and the build make you a melee monster, and your spells help fill in the utility gaps. And I agree, summoning a unicorn for healing is classy.

Elegance: 4.0 Great flow throughout the build, and great combination of classes to fit together. My only real grip is that dragon disciple seems kind of arbitrary; you have a great nature theme going, then *boom* out of nowhere dragon. Otherwise the flow of levels was broken up a bit, but good effort.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3.5 Nice utilization of the various abilities of the SI. You do make an effort to power up your breath weapon, though your natural attacks are rendered a bit redundant thanks to your spells. The only real issue is that while you use the SI, I don’t really see why it was taken at all. It doesn’t really give you anything you don’t already have. You’d probably just be better off with more spirit shaman, frankly.


Phaen bol Andras: 11.5

Originality: 2.0 I totally wanted to give a better score to the tiger, but I couldn’t. Sorcerer was especially overplayed this round, and dragon samurai was also used.

Power: 3.5 You’ve got melee combat sorted out starting right at level 3, which is something many other builds did not do. That said, you kind of stay there while other build are moving on to bigger and better things. If smashing it in the face doesn’t work, you’re kind of out of options.

Elegance: 2.0 You keep things simple, which is good, and the theme flows pretty well throughout. But you use LA buyoff, and I always penalize big for this, as many tables do not allow it.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 4.0 Like others, you make an effort to utilize everything this build offers. The only real problem is that thanks to your race, the natural weapons are redundant, negating one of the SI’s key bonuses.


Dracotaur: 14.0

Originality: 3.0 Centaur was fun, and one of my favorite races, but both barbarian and dragon devotee saw action elsewhere. Overall just average.

Power: 3.5 What you do (melee) you do really well, but you run into the problem several other builds saw; if you can’t punch it in the face, you can’t do much. Granted, between your obscene strength and multiple natural attacks, you can punch things in the face really well, but this category includes versatility as well as straight combat power.

Elegance: 3.5 You’ve got this level of barbarian that is really vital to your build, just kind of hanging out there. It doesn’t really seem to fit with everything else, and since it starts off you class levels it just jars everything after it.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 4.0 Like many, you took advantage of many of the things the SI had to offer, including optimizing your breath weapon. The only downside is you really kind of left spellcasting at the wayside, going no higher than first level spells.


Draco Drago: 12.0

Originality: 2.0 Battle dancer was different (though used elsewhere), as was thayan gladiator, but every other element of your build, from daelkyr to assassin to soul eater saw action in other builds. Not to mention another build also went to negative energy route, same as you.

Power: 4.0 As previously mentioned, the negative level route is well known because it works. You’ve got lots of negative levels going on, from your claws to your breath weapon, putting a lot of hurt down in a hurry. As the other soul eater, you don’t have an answer when an opponent is energy drain immune, so this score isn’t higher.

Elegance: 2.0 You’re all over the place when it comes to this build. The single level of assassin, taken just to qualify for the SI, stands really out of place (especially in a gladiator build). You also only take only one level of soul eater, a notoriously dipable class, so points lost there.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 4.0 You do a good job utilizing the various SI abilities, notably natural attacks, breath weapon, and wings. The only real minus here is that you don’t really do anything with the spellcasting.


Assassin: 10.0

Originality: 3.5 You were the only rogue and monk this round, a combination I thought we’d see more of, but you lose points on the assassin and natural attack focused build. Slightly better than average.

Power: 2.5 Overall, you’re slightly below average in the power department. You sneak attack is poor (though you do augment it with craven and invisible fist) and your death attack is basically useless. Your spells are too low of a level to be of much use, and you don’t do anything with your breath weapon. The build is slightly better than a straight monk, but given the standard of this contest, you fall a bit short.

Elegance: 2.0 I’ve got a couple problems with this build in the elegance department. The biggest is taking craven on a half-dragon. It just seems to me that a creature that’s supposed to inspire fear (not to mention training with assassin monks!) isn’t supposed to be cowardly. In addition, your class selection seems all over the place and has no flow to the build.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 2.0 You take all ten levels, and put some effort into the natural attacks and improving your flight, but there’s not much here that augments what you’re already doing. You’d be much better off with some sort of class that provides more skills and sneak attack. You’d actually probably be better off with a dragon disciple dip, then more assassin, so a low score here.

[dantiesilva]

I think I can clear up some of the problems the judges are having.

For salomon he has draconic power which boosts his spellcasting level by one. Practiced spell caster adding another 4 for a total of 5 just from feats. Abruant champion adds another 5 for a total of 15 levels of spellcasting. At which level you gain access to 7th level spells. Without out using practiced spell caster that is 5th level spells.

Avi seems to look like he maximed his bonus from Illumani from his sigils to a bonus of +3 to caster level. Practiced spellcaster again for the +4 for a total of +7 caster levels. for a total of 9 because of the two from the talon of tiamat. Add in warmage levels which there are 5 of for level 14 casting. Making 7th level casting. Even I know that cheese of using Illumani.

For The necromancer guy, he also has multiattack if the judges look. Multi attack is specific for just what the build does. I'm assuming the TWF was for early on getting touch attack as well as normal attack.



And the complaints about Avi and his breath weapon being useless, he had like four or five of them I am going to have to differ with the judges on that. Completely agree though that spells should have been more layed out. Even a level breakdown every five levels would have been good.

[ThiagoMartell]

For salomon he has draconic power which boosts his spellcasting level by one. Practiced spell caster adding another 4 for a total of 5 just from feats. Abruant champion adds another 5 for a total of 15 levels of spellcasting. At which level you gain access to 7th level spells. Without out using practiced spell caster that is 5th level spells.
None of those abilities improve your spellcasting level. They add to caster level. It means you cast more powerful spells, not that you gain higher level spells.
EDIT: Abjurant Champion does add 5 levels of spellcasting, but Martial Arcanist does not.


Avi seems to look like he maximed his bonus from Illumani from his sigils to a bonus of +3 to caster level. Practiced spellcaster again for the +4 for a total of +7 caster levels. for a total of 9 because of the two from the talon of tiamat. Add in warmage levels which there are 5 of for level 14 casting. Making 7th level casting. Even I know that cheese of using Illumani.
Again, caster level =/= spellcasting level.

[dantiesilva]

Looks like my DMs all do it wrong then. In that case I withdraw my defense for those builds.

[Amphetryon]

Question for Z3ro re: Yul’uth-ca, from the creator:



"You don’t take the LA penalty for the octopus (either that or you buy it off, either of which is a heavy penalty)."

Antropomorphic Giant Octopus does not have a Level Adjustment. There was no buy off, and I believe that the judge is simply incorrect in this instance.

[Z3ro]

Question for Z3ro re: Yul’uth-ca, from the creator:

My mistake; I thought octupus had LA. Will adjust score accordingly.

[Amphetryon]

My mistake; I thought octupus had LA. Will adjust score accordingly.

Oddly, the non-giant form does. It's an easy enough oversight to make, especially given the huge number of entries.

[Menteith]

Oddly, the non-giant form does. It's an easy enough oversight to make, especially given the huge number of entries.

I honestly think that they put the wrong name on each of the respective Antropomorphics. I'm looking at the chart right now, and it's weird - the Giant Octopus has less RHD, LA, Strength, Constitution, and a higher Dex than the regular Octopus.

Thanks to Z3ro and ThiagoMartell for some crazy fast speed judging. You guys are awesome!

[Amphetryon]

I honestly think that they put the wrong name on each of the respective Antropomorphics. I'm looking at the chart right now, and it's weird - the Giant Octopus has less RHD, LA, Strength, Constitution, and a higher Dex than the regular Octopus.

Thanks to Z3ro and ThiagoMartell for some crazy fast speed judging. You guys are awesome!

You think WotC made a mistake with one of their charts? Heresy! :smallwink:

[dextercorvia]

You think WotC made a mistake with one of their charts? Heresy! :smallwink:

These anthropomorphic animals were sized up or down to medium, as necessary. This results in creatures where the humanoid made from a larger animal has worse stats than one made from a smaller animal. They then approximated LA based on total stat adjustments.

[OMG PONIES]

So we have not one, but two ridiculously awesome judges who are each owed one entire Internet for their speed. I'll get this out of the way before I even start reading their comments:

Final(?) Tallies After Two Freakin' Sweet Judges
{table=head]ENTRY|MEDAL|TOTAL|AVERAGE
Sam|GOLD|33.5|4.1875
Dracotaur|SILVER|31.5|3.9375
Samantha|BRONZE|30|3.75
Phaen bol Andras|Fourth|29.5|3.6875
Jenny|Fourth|29.5|3.6875
Yul'uth-ca|Sixth|28.5|3.5625
Leofriadinesal|Seventh|27.5|3.4375
Iujaku|Eighth|26.5|3.3125
Balaur|Ninth|25.5|3.1875
Draco Drago|Tenth|24.5|3.0625
Orvalo|Eleventh|23|2.875
Asheel|Eleventh|23|2.875
Tael Yerenor|Eleventh|23|2.875
Zordon Blue|Fourteenth|22.5|2.8125
Assassin|Fifteenth|21.5|2.6875
Avi|Sixteenth|21|2.625
Xiroth Striving|Seventeenth|20|2.5
Katria|Seventeenth|20|2.5
Wodan Silverblood|Nineteenth|19.5|2.4375
Tyrus Blackscale|Twentieth|18|2.25
Son of Edi|Twenty-First|17.5|2.1875
Salomon|Twenty-Second|14.5|1.8125
Bowser|Twenty-Third|10.5|1.3125[/table]

This table has not yet been reviewed for arithmetic, but it seems like the categorical scores for each entry matched the total each judge gave.

[Tim Proctor]

So when is the next one?

[OMG PONIES]

So when is the next one?

Aren't we the eager beaver :smalltongue:? These competitions have a set window for judging, and this one is still going for about 11 more days.


Judges will have until 11:59PM GMT on Saturday, July 14th, 2012 to judge the builds and submit their scores. If no judges have scored by that point, only the scores of the first judge to submit will be counted.

We already have two in, but we're still taking scores until the cutoff on the 14th. The competitors and their builds are revealed shortly thereafter, and then the Chairman will post a new thread for the next round. Amphetryon is pretty quick about posting after the deadline, which is a good thing for fanatics like myself :smallbiggrin:.

[Kuulvheysoon]

So we have not one, but two ridiculously awesome judges who are each owed one entire Internet for their speed. I'll get this out of the way before I even start reading their comments:


Final(?) Tallies After Two Freakin' Sweet Judges
{table=head]ENTRY|MEDAL|TOTAL|AVERAGE
Sam|GOLD|33.5|4.1875
Dracotaur|SILVER|31.5|3.9375
Samantha|BRONZE|30|3.75
Phaen bol Andras|Fourth|29.5|3.6875
Jenny|Fourth|29.5|3.6875
Yul'uth-ca|Sixth|28.5|3.5625
Leofriadinesal|Seventh|27.5|3.4375
Iujaku|Eighth|26.5|3.3125
Balaur|Ninth|25.5|3.1875
Draco Drago|Tenth|24.5|3.0625
Orvalo|Eleventh|23|2.875
Asheel|Eleventh|23|2.875
Tael Yerenor|Eleventh|23|2.875
Zordon Blue|Fourteenth|22.5|2.8125
Assassin|Fifteenth|21.5|2.6875
Avi|Sixteenth|21|2.625
Xiroth Striving|Seventeenth|20|2.5
Katria|Seventeenth|20|2.5
Wodan Silverblood|Nineteenth|19.5|2.4375
Tyrus Blackscale|Twentieth|18|2.25
Son of Edi|Twenty-First|17.5|2.1875
Salomon|Twenty-Second|14.5|1.8125
Bowser|Twenty-Third|10.5|1.3125[/table]

This table has not yet been reviewed for arithmetic, but it seems like the categorical scores for each entry matched the total each judge gave.

I double-checked, and I got the same totals as you, if that's any help.

[Amphetryon]

We already have two in, but we're still taking scores until the cutoff on the 14th. The competitors and their builds are revealed shortly thereafter, and then the Chairman will post a new thread for the next round. Amphetryon is pretty quick about posting after the deadline, which is a good thing for fanatics like myself :smallbiggrin:.For the fanatics, I'll let on that the next one's already been chosen. :smalltongue:

[Draz74]

The entry I didn't quite get written up was a Ninja5/Trapsmith2/DD3/Trapsmith1/DD7/Trapsmith2. I called him Quentin Tucker and wrote a kobold army into his backstory.

I actually really like that idea. Combining DD with Trapsmith, that is. Unlike other spellcasting classes, Trapsmith Level 1 Spell Slots are actually pretty useful at higher levels!

[Devmaar]

I actually really like that idea. Combining DD with Trapsmith, that is. Unlike other spellcasting classes, Trapsmith Level 1 Spell Slots are actually pretty useful at higher levels!

That was my thinking to start with. The kobold thing came from: "now, how can I link trapmaking and draconicness fluffwise?"

[Amphetryon]

Thiago, Samantha's creator would appreciate clarification on what you mean by "Bait-and-switch spells".

[Thurbane]

Not to criticise judges, but one thing that always puzzled me is taking an originality hit for trying to parody (or homage) and existing (non-D&D) character. I get that judging is all a matter of personal preference, but I think penalising entries for being based off known real or fictional characters is a little mean spirited, especially when the build makes no effort to his that it is what it is...

[Venger]

Not to criticise judges, but one thing that always puzzled me is taking an originality hit for trying to parody (or homage) and existing (non-D&D) character. I get that judging is all a matter of personal preference, but I think penalising entries for being based off known real or fictional characters is a little mean spirited, especially when the build makes no effort to his that it is what it is...

I certainly agree with you. I think all we can do is judge that way when the torch is passed to us. I certainly mean to encourage rather than discourage it among contestants. I really liked Khariman Sandiga back in shadowdancer, and vigilante was populated with familiar superheroes. I thought that was kind of fun.

[Kuulvheysoon]

Not to criticise judges, but one thing that always puzzled me is taking an originality hit for trying to parody (or homage) and existing (non-D&D) character. I get that judging is all a matter of personal preference, but I think penalising entries for being based off known real or fictional characters is a little mean spirited, especially when the build makes no effort to his that it is what it is...


I certainly agree with you. I think all we can do is judge that way when the torch is passed to us. I certainly mean to encourage rather than discourage it among contestants. I really liked Khariman Sandiga back in shadowdancer, and vigilante was populated with familiar superheroes. I thought that was kind of fun.

I'm with you guys. Also, didn't Anansi win over the judges with his extremely obvious Spiderman references?

*cough cough* Venger.

[Zeb]

*Urge to read other judging strong, but don't want to taint my own.

Halfway done, hope to knock the rest out over tomorrows holiday.

[OMG PONIES]

I actually really like that idea. Combining DD with Trapsmith, that is. Unlike other spellcasting classes, Trapsmith Level 1 Spell Slots are actually pretty useful at higher levels!

Indeed, I too toyed with the idea. Trapsmith's odd spell list and the fact that you could get all it had to offer in 5 levels made it ripe for the picking. I engaged in the Optimizer's Paranoia Loop we discussed earlier and decided against it...


That was my thinking to start with. The kobold thing came from: "now, how can I link trapmaking and draconicness fluffwise?"

Another part of it that I abandoned due to fears of unoriginality. What started with factotum later became Kobold Rogue sub level 5/Trapsmith 5/DD 10, with a focus on craft (trapmaking) as a way to keep "Mother's" lair safe from pesky intruders. At the end, it screamed NPC so much that I'll be using him as one under the name Normyn Baits :smalltongue:. However, I didn't think he'd cut the mustard in terms of PC power.


*Urge to read other judging strong, but don't want to taint my own.

Halfway done, hope to knock the rest out over tomorrows holiday.

Nice! Glad to hear we have at least a third judge in the works.

[Venger]

I'm with you guys. Also, didn't Anansi win over the judges with his extremely obvious Spiderman references?

*cough cough* Venger.

well, I thought it bad form to extol my own virtues or toot my own horn, but since you mention it, I really did have fun with anansi, and I think it would be a shame if I'd been discouraged from referencing pre-existing material by dings in originality. it's not like it has any material effect on the build.

but let's not forget who took gold last round :smalltongue:

I've done that in almost every iron chef I've participated in, and only placed twice (bronze with anansi as you mentioned in drow judicator and bronze with shui cho back in initiate of pistis sophia)

in shadowdancer, claire (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12203885&postcount=319) was based somewhat loosely on Rue from Princess Tutu, being orphaned at a ballet academy by a capricious fey father.

she was a contender for a while for second, but lost ground with the final judge. it was a large field and I had a lot of steep competition, though I did get points from every judge for the backstory, but not because of its source.

pumpkinhead (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12203710&postcount=308) had nothing to do with the movie, really, just the name, and wasn't particularly based on anything. he was constructed purely for lulz, and did better than I expected him to, considering.

for consecrated harrier, shere khan singh (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12661224&postcount=193)was based somewhat heavily on khan noonien singh with shere khan's jungle backdrop instead of singh's space one. I even made sure sure to keep the famous line from Star Wars II in it and had him chase Tiberius to Baator (from hell's heart I stab at thee!)

none of the judges mentioned it positively or negatively. the field was large here too (17), so i see how it could've got lost in the shuffle

in mindbender,monty (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12366047&postcount=243) and part 2 (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12366061&postcount=244) wasn't really based on anything in particular, but he is a halfling named Monty Took, being a pun/reference millefeuille, since Took is pippin's surname from LoTR, it's very similar to Monte Cook, and Monty is a thief and flim-flammer, so there's a play there with Took there too

in initiate of pistis sophia, my other bronze, medal winner, shui cho (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12833307&postcount=211), was based rather loosely on Omi cho from xiaolin showdown with the water theme and fighting with a cocky artificer who stole his holy magic items made by the monastery's ancestors (jack spicer)

the backstory's somewhat generic nature was pointed out to its numerical detriment (but not the source) but to be fair, this SI pigeonholes you pretty damn hard into being a goody goody monk. (I didn't know monk of the enabled hand existed, so thought monk 10 w/VoP was the only in, leading to shui's extreme genericness)

in shadow sentinel, with sue, (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12990236&postcount=157) I'd originally intended his illumian sigil, $ to be his name, (cash) since he is johnny cash, his backstory laden with lyrics and titles of cash's songs, but sue stuck, which is ironically kind of perfect given the context.

for temple raider of olidammara with theodore logan (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=13150994&postcount=101) I wrote a largely faithful matrix parody, naming him for another keanu reeves character, (ted from bill and ted) his numbers overall were much worse than I expected, but no mention good or bad of his backstory or its source, which, as a parody, I tried to underscore by making a variety of references to horribly dated internet memes and slang to remind the reader of how poorly the original matrix has aged

in drow judicator withanansi (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=13294518&postcount=160) the first thing that came to mind was to riff the 60s spider-man theme and I didn't have as much time as I usually do to work on my backstories, so I was a little crunched when it came to time. one of the judges did mention this and I lost some points (not enough for it to make a difference between bronze and silver but still the point stands) but I did get more points than I lost for the spider-man thing.

I wonder how I'm going to end up doing this round. good luck to you too. I was impressed with daresh last round. mebbe we'll be on the podium together again this round.

[Draz74]

My only gold medal, Jereth from the Master of Masks competition, was loosely based on the Phantom of the Opera in some of the aspects of his early backstory. It didn't seem to hurt his chances -- although to be fair, it was more subtle than some homages; I'm not certain any of the judges even made the connection.

[ThiagoMartell]

Thiago, Samantha's creator would appreciate clarification on what you mean by "Bait-and-switch spells".
Classifying with one class and applying the bonus spells to a different class.

[mattie_p]

I'm with you guys. Also, didn't Anansi win over the judges with his extremely obvious Spiderman references?

*cough cough* Venger.

Xodion won Temple Raider with an Indiana Jones look-alike.

[Kuulvheysoon]

well, I thought it bad form to extol my own virtues or toot my own horn, but since you mention it, I really did have fun with anansi, and I think it would be a shame if I'd been discouraged from referencing pre-existing material by dings in originality. it's not like it has any material effect on the build.

but let's not forget who took gold last round :smalltongue:


I've done that in almost every iron chef I've participated in, and only placed twice (bronze with anansi as you mentioned in drow judicator and bronze with shui cho back in initiate of pistis sophia)

in shadowdancer, claire (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12203885&postcount=319) was based somewhat loosely on Rue from Princess Tutu, being orphaned at a ballet academy by a capricious fey father.

she was a contender for a while for second, but lost ground with the final judge. it was a large field and I had a lot of steep competition, though I did get points from every judge for the backstory, but not because of its source.

pumpkinhead (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12203710&postcount=308) had nothing to do with the movie, really, just the name, and wasn't particularly based on anything. he was constructed purely for lulz, and did better than I expected him to, considering.

for consecrated harrier, shere khan singh (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12661224&postcount=193)was based somewhat heavily on khan noonien singh with shere khan's jungle backdrop instead of singh's space one. I even made sure sure to keep the famous line from Star Wars II in it and had him chase Tiberius to Baator (from hell's heart I stab at thee!)

none of the judges mentioned it positively or negatively. the field was large here too (17), so i see how it could've got lost in the shuffle

in mindbender,monty (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12366047&postcount=243) and part 2 (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12366061&postcount=244) wasn't really based on anything in particular, but he is a halfling named Monty Took, being a pun/reference millefeuille, since Took is pippin's surname from LoTR, it's very similar to Monte Cook, and Monty is a thief and flim-flammer, so there's a play there with Took there too

in initiate of pistis sophia, my other bronze, medal winner, shui cho (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12833307&postcount=211), was based rather loosely on Omi cho from xiaolin showdown with the water theme and fighting with a cocky artificer who stole his holy magic items made by the monastery's ancestors (jack spicer)

the backstory's somewhat generic nature was pointed out to its numerical detriment (but not the source) but to be fair, this SI pigeonholes you pretty damn hard into being a goody goody monk. (I didn't know monk of the enabled hand existed, so thought monk 10 w/VoP was the only in, leading to shui's extreme genericness)

in shadow sentinel, with sue, (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12990236&postcount=157) I'd originally intended his illumian sigil, $ to be his name, (cash) since he is johnny cash, his backstory laden with lyrics and titles of cash's songs, but sue stuck, which is ironically kind of perfect given the context.

for temple raider of olidammara with theodore logan (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=13150994&postcount=101) I wrote a largely faithful matrix parody, naming him for another keanu reeves character, (ted from bill and ted) his numbers overall were much worse than I expected, but no mention good or bad of his backstory or its source, which, as a parody, I tried to underscore by making a variety of references to horribly dated internet memes and slang to remind the reader of how poorly the original matrix has aged

in drow judicator withanansi (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=13294518&postcount=160) the first thing that came to mind was to riff the 60s spider-man theme and I didn't have as much time as I usually do to work on my backstories, so I was a little crunched when it came to time. one of the judges did mention this and I lost some points (not enough for it to make a difference between bronze and silver but still the point stands) but I did get more points than I lost for the spider-man thing.


I wonder how I'm going to end up doing this round. good luck to you too. I was impressed with daresh last round. mebbe we'll be on the podium together again this round.

Well, my first ICO entry was loosely based on a combination of Wolverine and Xena, Warrior Princess (Azuki, waaaaaaaay back in ICO XX), and I got a silver there.

And it would certainly be strange if I placed thi round, considering how I didn't even enter (life being too hectic). But best of luck this round, and perhaps next round I'll join you up there on that hallowed space.

[Piggy Knowles]

I almost always scour mythology and history when I'm writing up the backstory for characters.

Going back through my catalog of IC entries...

Vald Lokkur was inspired by the Norse concepts of the Fimbulvetr as described in the Poetic Edda, as a witch-warrior dedicated to making the endless winter that precedes Ragnarok come about.

Maxwell Allard the Raven really came about because I felt like writing a villanelle, but some of the character concepts came from the old-school pulp, The Shadow (Maxwell Grant was the pen-name of the radio-drama author of The Shadow, and Kent Allard was The Shadow's original alter-ego, hence Maxwell Allard, the shadow 'neath the raven's wing).

I don't recall if I had any specific inspiration for Lucian the Wanderer - he was one of the rare builds (for me) where the build itself came first, and the story came second. I'm pretty sure the name came from Lucian of Antioch, but not because he inspired the character (I had just happened to be reading about him at the time).

Anjelica from the Mindbender competition is another that didn't really have any specific inspiration, although some of the names do. Her parents were Kyla and Minno (Kylie Minogue... don't judge me! :P), and Lilitu as the name of her demon "parent" came from the Lilith of Jewish mythology.

Frater Omnia Vincam was heavily inspired by the late nineteenth century occultists, especially Aleister Crowley, S.M. Mathers and Charles Stansfeld Jones. "Omnia Vincam" means "I Will Conquer All" and was the magical name taken by Victor Neuberg on initiation into the OTO. Acchad Joannes was a reference to Frater Achad (Charles Stanfeld Jones' magical name), followed by Jones. Aerodotus the Scholar was a straight play on the historian Herodotus. Tristan Rosencrew was a play on Christian Rosencreux. There were a bunch of other references buried in there too, but I don't recall them all.

Qilin, Defender of the Dusk Unicorn was thrown together pretty quickly (I made it on the day of the competition), but the qilin is a mythical Chinese unicorn-like creature. Most of its story was made up from a conglomeration of unicorn-related mythology that I could recall.

Jal Filius was mostly an attempt to write in a pseudo-biblical style, although I specifically read a little bit of Ovid to get in the mood for writing it. I couldn't say anyone in particular inspired it, though - the image of a man forged out of the wood of a sacred tree was inspiring enough for me.

For Jacques Payens, I looked mostly at crusaders and adventurers from the 1300s to 1500s for inspiration. The name came from Hugue de Payens, founder of the Knights Templar. He was sort of a conglomeration of a bunch of historical figures, though (Casanova definitely played a part, for instance).

The Laidly Worm of the Taer was almost entirely inspired by the poem, the Laidly Worm of Spindleston Heugh. Just about everything about it, from the names to the backstory, came from that.

I think those were all of my entries. They pretty much all had references to real or fictional characters or events, and they all placed fairly well (the only two that didn't get trophies were the Laidly Worm and Qilin, and both still scored decently). But I also didn't really make any complete clones of popular figures - I more used other stories as stepping stones to build my own.

[kestrel404]

Hmm, I can't say that I'm a fan of starting with another character and 'translating' them into D&D. However, I don't see any reason they should be considered less 'original' than another character.

However, what they usually DO lack is a backstory that integrates them into the D&D world, and when I judge I generally penalize an entry with no story in the originality category.

[Venger]

Well, my first ICO entry was loosely based on a combination of Wolverine and Xena, Warrior Princess (Azuki, waaaaaaaay back in ICO XX), and I got a silver there.

And it would certainly be strange if I placed thi round, considering how I didn't even enter (life being too hectic). But best of luck this round, and perhaps next round I'll join you up there on that hallowed space.

whoops! with 22 other contestants, I forgot who all was competing. thanks.

[Z3ro]

My only gold medal, Jereth from the Master of Masks competition, was loosely based on the Phantom of the Opera in some of the aspects of his early backstory. It didn't seem to hurt his chances -- although to be fair, it was more subtle than some homages; I'm not certain any of the judges even made the connection.

To address this and related points; I don't have a problem with a character paying homage to an existing character. I have a problem when you lift that character whole, name, backstory, and all, for the competition.

[Menteith]

I was trying to stat up Jar-Jar Binks for the Temple Raider Iron Chef, using Luck feats, Fortune's Friend, and a Vorpal Weapon, but I could never get the thing to work. Now I sort of want to go back and finish that build....

[mattie_p]

I was trying to stat up Jar-Jar Binks for the Temple Raider Iron Chef, using Luck feats, Fortune's Friend, and a Vorpal Weapon, but I could never get the thing to work. Now I sort of want to go back and finish that build....

You should, but base it on Sally's Jar-Jar, and not Lucas' Jar-Jar.

[Menteith]

You should, but base it on Sally's Jar-Jar, and not Lucas' Jar-Jar.

But then all my hard work of getting a Charisma of 1 with no level adjustment will go to waste! Clearly, Darth's and Droid's Jar-Jar has a decent Diplomacy/Charisma score, as he convinced the peaceful Senate to create an army with a single check.

[mattie_p]

Technically Sally's Jar-Jar convinced the senate (http://www.darthsanddroids.net/episodes/0330.html) to create an already existing army. Also, everyone knows that politicians like nothing better than spending money, so there was a huge circumstance bonus on the diplomacy roll to begin with.

[gbprime]

but let's not forget who took gold last round :smalltongue:

in shadowdancer, claire (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12203885&postcount=319) was based somewhat loosely on Rue from Princess Tutu, being orphaned at a ballet academy by a capricious fey father.


Interesting discussion tactic, touting the gold and then leading off with an entry that didn't win one.:smallwink:

Let's see... Who DID win that round? :smallamused:

[/smack]

[Venger]

Interesting discussion tactic, touting the gold and then leading off with an entry that didn't win one.:smallwink:

Let's see... Who DID win that round? :smallamused:

[/smack]

welp, gold is the best medal for a reason. I don't have any blue ribbons myself, so couldn't really lead with one unlike some:smallwink:

[Zeb]

Judging below

*Please note first time as a judge and there were a lot of entries if there are any mistakes, questions or math errors I will address them as they are brought to my attention.


Refresher of my previously posted criteria

Originality: this will be based on the originality of your chassis to enter the SI. If it was a common or easy way to get there less points, uncommon or surprising, more points. If I find in via Google a lot less points. Competition point If other entry's use your entry chassis expect to lose some points. As far as race anything goes, but if I have to read more than 3 of the same races who want to be dragons expect a small deduction. Also more points if your concept is cool/I like it.

Power: Base power is compared to your build if it didn't take the SI and instead I just clapped the Half-dragon template on. Does your build cover all the bases, offense, defense, utility? Competition point If another build does it better don't expect points, if your the best then points for you.

Elegance: So much here, is your entry readable, does it make sense, questionable rules use, excessive dipping, lack of focus, use of stinky cheese, and anything that leaves a poor taste in my mouth. Of course the normal deductions for UA set forth by the chairman.

Use of Secret Ingredient: Did you qualify? take all ten levels? make use of the abilities? Did you make it the star of the build? Does your Non-SI synergize with the SI?

Note illegal builds will automatically score below the lowest legal build, sorry even if its really cool.


In addition this SI in what might be a surprise to some contestants had 4 entry requirements:

Race: Any nondragon (cannot already be a half-dragon).
Skills: Knowledge (arcana) 8 ranks.
Languages: Draconic.
Spellcasting: Ability to cast arcane spells without preparation

If an entry didn't specify they could speak Draconic but it was available as a bonus language for their race they were not penalized in Use of Secret ingredient. If they did not have it listed and was unavailable either as a bonus language or because they lacked sufficient Int they received a '1' in UoSI for not qualifying for the class. If the chairman feels it warrants it I will change this to 0s for illegal entries as it effects about a third of the contestants.
***************
Orvalo - 12.25

Originality: 3.75
Azurin (-.25), mineral warrior (+.25), Wu Jen is cool (+.25), (+.25) Earth Dreamer, Good story weaving (+.25)

Power: 4
Solid power with some good tricks.

Elegance: 2.5
While it was a well put together and understandable entry(+.5) Alacritous Cogitation, Earth Spell, combined with the possibility of multiclass penlites net you a loss (-1)

Use of Secret Ingredient: 2
Dragon disciple seems to slow our use of wu jen, questionable qualification also hurts.


Jeanette Crawford - 11

Originality: 3.25
Battle Sorcerer, Soul Eater and Daelkyr are used by others (-.75). Awesomely creepy back story(+1).

Power: 4
Negative levels are a powerhouse, but as you admit you are vulnerable at low levels and anything immune.

Elegance: 2.75
The build flows well, table readability was a bit difficult also debatable use of energy drain since its an Su and those normally default to Standard actions.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1
No Draconic


Salomon - 9.6

Originality: 2.75
Human, Sorcerer, Abjurant Champion lots of humans and sorcs, only abjurant champ classic entry.

Power: 3.1
Slightly above the baseline of NPC power.

Elegance: 1.75
Craft wand seems out of place, also as a skill? spells are incorrect and table has some legibility issues.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 2
It seems like you take the SI... because you couldn't start as a half dragon?.


Tael Yerenor - 13.25

Originality: 4
Cool Entry, Wizard and Frost mage(+1)

Power: 3.25
Wiz spells, stat dmg is good on those not immune

Elegance: 2.75
It flows well especially with the back story but your qualification feat seems to be an incorrect choice

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3.25
Growth into the SI isn't bad but there is nothing great about it.


Wodan Silverblood - 12.85

Originality: 3.6
There are other humans and Stalwart battle Sorcs(-.5), but I have a soft spot for the Stalwart battle sorc(+.1) Odin as a dragon? love it (+1)

Power: 4.25
Spells, Maneuvers, enspelled maneuvering familiars all bring out the dmg.

Elegance: 2
Good flow, but draconic polymorph hurts the SI, wyrm of war is questionable, psychic reform and not from yourself also not so much

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3
Use it yes, is it special no.


Avi - 11.5

Originality: 3.5
Warmage and Talon of Tiamat, nice evil draconic theme(+.75) small hit for Illumian(-.25).

Power: 2.5
You're a blaster and melee, loss of focus hurts.

Elegance: 2.5
Table legibility and problems with spells.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3
Standard use of SI


Asheel - 9.9

Originality: 2.75
Human Duskblade expected(-.5), Ur-Priest (+.25).

Power: 4.9
An Ur-Priest with extra 9th lvl spells and some melee backup.

Elegance: 1
The cheese its too much!

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1.25
Only five levels (-1.5), you really only used it for the spells but the extras are gravy (-.25)


Iujaku - 13.75

Originality: 2.75
Human Duskblade(-.5) but Kensai (+.25).

Power: 3
Decent Melee Charger but not an uber charge or king of smack, could have benefited more from spells.

Elegance: 4.5
Everything flows well and has natural progression, legibility and brevity earn points.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3.5
Breath weapon and spells could have got a nod but nice growth into the physical aspects of the SI.


Balaur - 14

Originality: 3.75
Human and Dragon Sam(-.5) but marshal (+.25) the story and build show an awesome "natural" progression to half dragon(+1)

Power: 3.5
Comes online late, but a solid char.

Elegance: 3.25
Natural understandable progression, check your feat name at lvl one.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3.5
makes the transistion to Half dragon seem... Natural.


Zordon Blue - 13.25

Originality: 3.75
Azurin Battle Sorcerer(-.5) a Totemist(+.25) conviction to stick with the color blue priceless (+1).

Power: 3.5
Natural attack plus totemist is good, could have used more spells.

Elegance: 2.75
your dip into totemist gives you multiclass penalty.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3.25
Totemist naturally synergies with the SI, works ok with what you are doing, it just doesn't wow me with DD.


Xiroth Stirving - 11.25

Originality: 3.75
Dread Necromancer with the thought of becoming a dracolich(+1.25) Illumian and fighter(-.5)

Power: 2
Feats were meh, seems like you were trying to pump your attack, could be better.

Elegance: 2.5
Dipped around and table legibility hurt you (put notes anywhere but in the table).

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3
This seems like a good concept for use with the SI, your execution was lackluster. It would be awesome to somehow workout becoming a Dracolich.


Yul'uth-ca - 13.6

Originality: 4.35
Stalwart battle Sorc barbarian Anthropomorphic animal were all used(-.65) All Hail our glorious master (+2)

Power: 4
All power to our masters Might

Elegance: 1.25
The flaw, the dip, adding amphibious to a squid, it just fills me with a sense of otherworldly wrongness

Use of Secret Ingredient: 4
yes you use 13 levels of the ingredient but it seems more about making our glorious master and less about the SI.


Katria - 11.85

Originality: 3
Battle Dancer, Dragon Devotee were taken (-.5) elf and Sword of Righteousness were not(+.5).

Power: 3.1
Good melee power but other characters outshine you.

Elegance: 2.75
stat blocks were handy, but the table needed work, I had to keep jumping back and forth to figure out what was going on and if you qualified for your prestiges I might have missed some tricks or features.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3
nothing special here.


Son of Edi - 7.75

Originality: 4.5
Draconic Neanderthal Wonderworker (+.75) sorcerer (-.25). Liked the concept(+1).

Power: 1
Could have been Amazing, but you don't qualify for metabreath feats (Draconomicon pg 66 first paragraph under metabreath feats) so the cornerstone of your power isn't there. it would have been a 4 otherwise.

Elegance: 1.25
La is a slight ding though the entry was legible and well explained, however there is the whole non qualification for feats and even if it did work the reasonable limit on free actions, actual wait time on quicken breath and the argument weather it was still a standard action to convert a spell to a breath weapon just pull it down.


Use of Secret Ingredient: 1
Sadly no draconic means you don't even qualify for the SI



Leofriadinesal - 11.25

Originality: 3.25
Orc Warblade (+.5) but also duskblade (-.25) D&D has made me jaded towards orphans but not enough to lose any points.

Power: 3.5
Maneuvers and weapon aptitude and Greatspoon make you stand out, just not far ahead.

Elegance: 3
Duskblade seems a tacked to qualify for the SI, but other than that everything looks pretty.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1
No Draconic


Bowser - 4

Originality: 4
Not the coolest big bad presented in this completion.

Power: 0
The build is illegal for contest purposes it would be unfair to try and score it against other builds.

Elegance: 0
The build is illegal for contest purposes it would be unfair to try and score it against other builds.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 0
The build is illegal for contest purposes it would be unfair to try and score it against other builds.


Sam - 13.5

Originality: 4.5
Warforged bard warchanter who wants to become a dragon(+1.5)!

Power: 4
Not bad all around plus your good for the party.

Elegance: 4
Simple progression, the classes complement each other, good suggestions and legibility.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1
No Draconic, and your a bard, it was one skill point?!?!?!?


Tyrus Blackscale - 10.4

Originality: 2.5
Human sorc *yawn (-.5)

Power: 2.9
Melee combatant who isn't very exciting

Elegance: 2
Using alternate UA system deserves an elegance hit due to contest rules in addition you would have been served just as well by taking one of many approved classes the uncanny dodge/improved uncanny doge option not being that key.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 2
Really a better indication or explanation of why could have earned you some points



Samantha - 15

Originality: 4.25
Spirit Shaman Swanmay(+.5). Sure its a human (-.25) but is this how we get Coutals(+1)?

Power: 4
Plenty of options, spells, skills and melee if needed.

Elegance: 2.75
Southern Magician was expected and I dont like it for qualification purposes but at least you kept within setting for it. Everything else flowed well and was legible.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 4
You use everything and still make DD feel special.


Phaen bol Andras - 14.6

Originality: 3.1
Other stalwart battle Sorc anthro animals and dragon samurai (-.65). but I like the joke (+.75)

Power: 4
Great melee foc with pounce and good spell choices.

Elegance: 3.5
La buyoff is a ding, otherwise it flows well.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 4
Good explanation of what synergies with the SI plus with the starting handicap of rhd and la the SI is a good choice to add half dragon.


Dracotaur - 14.5

Originality: 2.75
Hey a centaur (+.25) but barb and Dragon Devotee were done(-.5)

Power: 4.5
Super physical power!

Elegance: 3.75
Slow growth, core only option, no legibility issues.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 3.5
Uses everything but the spells.


Draco Dragon - 9.75

Originality: 3.25
Everything but Thayan Gladiator we have seen (net -.75). rising to the challenge (+1)

Power: 3.5
you have a lot of options but many of those options are done better by other contestants

Elegance: 2
Dip-tastic, lacks focus and Soul Eater discussion applies here as well.

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1
Got too far in character and forgot to learn draconic


Assassin - 8.6

Originality: 3
Monk & Rog are new(+.5), Human Assassin (-.5) is something I thought more would use to qualify.

Power: 3.1
Sneak attack dependency is kinda a one trick dead end.

Elegance: 1.5
Skill choices, spell choices a little more explanation all could have helped you, also why not ninja?

Use of Secret Ingredient: 1
without a skill list I have no way of being sure if you qualified for the SI ditto for language, but otherwise why Dragon disciple?



More than happy to elaborate on any of the judging but I kept them short for my sanity and readability.

[Amphetryon]

From Balaur:

i just wanted to state that the first feat is indeed Magical Training as noted in my sources. I just kind of blanked out when typing it into the tables.

[Zeb]

It wasnt a deduction from me just somthing I noted.

[Gotterdammerung]

I played with the idea of going undead, a type that normally doesn't qualify for the half-dragon template, but can qualify for this PrC. Unfortunatly, it was just too complicated to find any benefits.

I toyed with this exact same idea. But couldn't get much traction. I also was working on a changeling duskblade 4/ warshaper1/ dragon disciple 10/ warshaper 3 / Soul eater 2.

Ultimately, I had to stop both builds. I shattered my arm and it now takes me a long, long time to type with one hand (unless i try to rush, but the it ends up looking like this musoellfd crsp). I just dint have the will to push through typing a hole entry pivking at each key one finger at a time.

Good luck, eberybody. Be back when I am healed up. 5 more weeks to go (i hope).

[Amphetryon]

Sorry to hear about your arm, Gotterdammerung. Heal quickly.

From an observer:

Zeb's arithmetic is off for Samantha: His listed points add up to 15, but he has his score for her listed as 14

[Amphetryon]

ATTENTION, CONCERNED OBSERVERS AND COMPETITORS: Please refrain from sending multiple requests to my inbox regarding the same issue, and, if possible, combine your concerns into a single PM. Given the high number of entries, multiple PMs from a given Playgrounder regarding a specific build or issue will only fill my inbox and prevent other folks from getting a chance to speak up. Thanks.

From Samantha:

Now that Thiago has elaborated his meaning, I have to elevate my question to a dispute. Samantha does not "[qualify] with one class and apply the bonus spells to a different class." She qualifies via Southern Magician on Spirit Shaman casting (advanced via Swanmay), and it is this casting she uses Dragon Disciple to boost. Because of this, I humbly ask Thiago to re-review his Elegance score for Samantha.

[Zeb]

From an observer:
Quote:
Zeb's arithmetic is off for Samantha: His listed points add up to 15, but he has his score for her listed as 14

Fixed

Also caught up on reading the other judging, was my penalty for lack of Draconic too harsh or was I just the only one who noticed/cared?

[Amphetryon]

Fixed

Also caught up on reading the other judging, was my penalty for lack of Draconic too harsh or was I just the only one who noticed/cared?
It was stated up-front, in keeping with the PrC's prerequisites, and consistently applied to contestants, so it falls under "harsh but fair."

[Z3ro]

Fixed

Also caught up on reading the other judging, was my penalty for lack of Draconic too harsh or was I just the only one who noticed/cared?

Just an observation for you Zeb, on the subject of consistency; you deducted all the builds which did not take draconic by giving them a flat 1 for not qualifying for the SI. That's fine, it's your criteria, but Tael also did not qualify for the SI (via not having spontaneous spellcasting) yet did not receive a 1 in UoSI. Just a thought.

[Zeb]

Signature spell counts for spontaneous casting by my reading, and the incorrect spell selection for the feat was a deduction in elegance as I presumed the table was wrong and it was supposed to be shivering touch.

[Z3ro]

Signature spell counts for spontaneous casting by my reading, and the incorrect spell selection for the feat was a deduction in elegance as I presumed the table was wrong and it was supposed to be shivering touch.

Fair enough.

[Amechra]

Signature Spell actually does not qualify you by RAW; it only lets you cast a single spell spontaneously, while Dragon Disciple requires you to be able to cast arcane spells spontaneously.

Therein lies the rub; it's the same reason that Precocious Apprentice doesn't qualify you for being able to cast 2nd level spells.

Unless, of course, you are a Wizard of the Sun and Moon (I think.)

[Kuulvheysoon]

Signature Spell actually does not qualify you by RAW; it only lets you cast a single spell spontaneously, while Dragon Disciple requires you to be able to cast arcane spells spontaneously.

Therein lies the rub; it's the same reason that Precocious Apprentice doesn't qualify you for being able to cast 2nd level spells.

Unless, of course, you are a Wizard of the Sun and Moon (I think.)

Oh, that's clever. I hadn't even thought of that. Nicely done!