Unseelie Fey template's Summer Caress

[Black_Zawisza]

The Unseelie Fey template from the Dragon Compendium is often offered up as an example of a brokenly good template, but not specifically (to my knowledge) because of Summer Caress, one of four possible Season's Powers. It grants you the effect of a Magic Circle Against Evil, except it protects you against attacks from all non-animals, beasts, magical beasts, and fey. Am I missing something, or is this giving a character basically a better version of a 3rd level spell, Permanencied?

[Alleran]

The Unseelie Fey template from the Dragon Compendium is often offered up as an example of a brokenly good template, but not specifically (to my knowledge) because of Summer Caress, one of four possible Season's Powers. It grants you the effect of a Magic Circle Against Evil, except it protects you against attacks from all non-animals, beasts, magical beasts, and fey. Am I missing something, or is this giving a character basically a better version of a 3rd level spell, Permanencied?
You don't seem to be missing anything, no. Except that it isn't permanencied, it's supernatural. Permanencied spells can still be dispelled. Supernatural abilities can't.

[Urpriest]

Note that most Archons also have this (though with the normal Magic Circle). It's...honestly a lot less broken than the save penalty from Winter.

[Silva Stormrage]

Note that most Archons also have this (though with the normal Magic Circle). It's...honestly a lot less broken than the save penalty from Winter.

^Agreed. One of my players currently has it with a character that focuses on save spells. It's quite annoying as I have to focus a bit on allowing characters to either have immediate action teleports or be immune to sleep/fear (His two favorite save or loses). On the plus side for the winter one it harms his allies and they still forget about that from time to time :smalltongue:.

Still the unseelie fey template is LUDICROUSLY strong especially for +0 lvl adjustment.

[Black_Zawisza]

Note that most Archons also have this (though with the normal Magic Circle). It's...honestly a lot less broken than the save penalty from Winter.
Why would that be so? Given that enemies are a dime-a-dozen and there are only a few PCs at a time, isn't a save-buff to PCs more valuable than a save-debuff to NPCs? Especially since DMs (in my experience) tend to be more tolerant of overpowered tactics that are defensive in nature, rather than offensive?

[Urpriest]

Why would that be so? Given that enemies are a dime-a-dozen and there are only a few PCs at a time, isn't a save-buff to PCs more valuable than a save-debuff to NPCs? Especially since DMs (in my experience) tend to be more tolerant of overpowered tactics that are defensive in nature, rather than offensive?

The save buff is +2, and it's Resistance, so the PCs will eventually have items that supersede it. The save penalty scales with Cha, so it's much bigger, and the big thing about a penalty of that size is that it lets you accomplish things you otherwise couldn't, giving you a qualitative advantage for your quantitative benefit. You have a much better chance of Dominating a caster, for instance.

[kardar233]

^Agreed. One of my players currently has it with a character that focuses on save spells. It's quite annoying as I have to focus a bit on allowing characters to either have immediate action teleports or be immune to sleep/fear (His two favorite save or loses). On the plus side for the winter one it harms his allies and they still forget about that from time to time :smalltongue:.

Still the unseelie fey template is LUDICROUSLY strong especially for +0 lvl adjustment.

It's usually not too bad as you have to be in melee range, but I love Winter's Chill on fear-stackers and Duskblades.