Quick Blighter Fix

[Shinovar]

So my Druid just lost his animal companion that was his only link to his dead love. He did not take it well.

I want him to have an huge crunch change, one that will be felt. My DM and I decided to rework the Blighter class.

Our basic Idea is to keep the Druid chassis with a few blighter changes. I am only level 5 and can't actually level in blighter as we have not leveled up.

Our basic changes:

Spell progression stays same as Druid. Draw off blighter list instead. Exchange spontaneous SNA for spontaneous Inflict x wounds.

Wild shape stays same as Druid. The only difference is I wildshape as an undead skeleton with some changes. Type changes to undead, increase 1 natural armor for small, 2 for medium, and I take a -2 to Dex. Other than that its normal.

Refluff Woodland Stride to plants being afraid of me.

Change Wild Empathy to an intimidate instead of diplomacy

Lose:

Nature Sense and Trackless Step, Animal Companion

Gain:

Deforestation

Burning Hands at will (as the 3.0 blighter)

Sustenance (I don't need food or water)

Speak with Dead Animal 1/day

Poison SLA 1/day, but I lose 1 3rd level spell per day


Next level, I will regain an AC of some kind by raising an undead Animal companion, similar to a normal AC but gaining natural armor and losing dex



I am aware this is weaker than a druid. I am ok with that. I love the fluff of this changing his life in a real way that directly affects the game now.


What do you guys think of this. Is there any suggestions you have? Anything we have overlooked? Any advice on how to role play this change?

For character info, I am a lawful neutral bounty hunter dwarf who worships st. cuthbert. My dog was going to be a gift to my pacifist fiance before she was killed by orcs. I let those orcs escape, thinking they would flee. They didn't. My dog helped me track them down and kill them one by one. He has now been ripped in half by a troll. My character can't deal with that information.



Edit: Does this go here? I've never posted, or even looked at, homebrew. Should this be there?

[Urpriest]

Quick fixes are on the border between the homebrew forum and this one, and I've seen them in both places.

I don't think you should have to give up a 3rd level slot to get poison as an SLA 1/day, since most prestige classes that give low level SLAs don't have that restriction. I also think spontaneous Inflict in exchange for Summon Nature's Ally is unnecessarily punitive. Is the idea to get it because it lets you heal your new skeletal companion, or because it's thematic? If the latter, Summon Undead (with some other necromancy replacing the higher levels) might be a better choice.

[Alienist]

To be honest, I don't think blighter is a good fit.

(NB check out the fluff on Shadowruns Toxic Shamans for Druids gone bad, really good stuff there)

I think you should emphasize the VENGEFUL aspect of nature, go all Out for destruction and revenge.

[Shinovar]

UrPriest, the reason I am giving up a 3rd level slot for poison is because my DM wouldn't accept a solution that improves me in any way. He is a big fan of core and of applying logic to dnd. If I want to go outside of that, I need to make it negatively effect me, or at least remain the same. I am ok with doing that because I am playing in a very unoptimized group and I tend to optimize too much anyway.

I hadn't looked at summon undead. That's a great idea and I'll talk to him about it.

[Urpriest]

UrPriest, the reason I am giving up a 3rd level slot for poison is because my DM wouldn't accept a solution that improves me in any way. He is a big fan of core and of applying logic to dnd. If I want to go outside of that, I need to make it negatively effect me, or at least remain the same. I am ok with doing that because I am playing in a very unoptimized group and I tend to optimize too much anyway.

I hadn't looked at summon undead. That's a great idea and I'll talk to him about it.

Here's the thing though: Poison is a 3rd level Druid spell. Poison 1/day in exchange for a 3rd level slot is unnecessary because you can simply prepare Poison 1/day in one of your 3rd level slots.

[Shinovar]

We talked about it (it helps that he's my roommate).

We have decided that I can summon undead ally. It's like SNA but I apply the same template to it that I do to my wildshape. It looks skeletal and it gets a small plus to natural armor and a small minus to Dex and loses Con bonus to hp.

Again, weaker, but more thematic. I'm much happier with this compromise than with inflict x wounds.

[Shinovar]

Here's the thing though: Poison is a 3rd level Druid spell. Poison 1/day in exchange for a 3rd level slot is unnecessary because you can simply prepare Poison 1/day in one of your 3rd level slots.

That was the whole selling point. The original blighter gained a 6th level SLA there. That was way too strong. I told my DM that this was really a restriction because it just forced me to prepare that spell every day. It only ever helps if I am attacked at dawn cause I'll have it already. I'm not that worried about it cause Poison is one of the best spells that a blighter has at 3rd level. At least as far as I can tell.