Playing Moby ****-themed campaign

[zabbarot]

A friend and I are setting up to run a Moby **** based campaign with a few other people. Basically this came out of one of those rambling conversations where you forget how you ever got to the topic you end up on... Anyways, I get to play Ahab.

So how should I build him? I was thinking NE Human Ranger/Legendary Captain/Leviathan Hunter. (Stormwrack)

Also, a sperm whale in raw is only CR 6. What are some good templates to throw on Moby to make him more terrifying? We're aiming for something to challenge 3 or 4 level 14 characters and a ships crew worth of red shirts.

Edit: really should have known that would get censored :smallsigh:

[kreenlover]

Umm, fiendish, maybe monster of legend from Savage species I think, asides from that, no idea. Increase the Hit Dice something fearsome, make it size gargantuan or colossal, MAKE IT INTELLIGENT. sorry, that idea made me excited.

so, yes, fiendish, intelligent, monster of legend, colossal, more HD. About all I can think of that is thematic. Maybe any templates from the Stormwrack that fit

[Barsoom]

"About that whale we're hunting? Well, funny story ... turns out it's actually an Aboleth ..."

[Waker]

"White Whale is actually a misnomer. You see, it would be more accurate to describe it as translucent. It makes sense though, if any creature had as much hate as that whale, of course it would leave a rather nasty ghost behind when it died."

[Keneth]

Edit: really should have known that would get censored :smallsigh:

Ironically, the censure actually makes it seem more dirty than it would otherwise. :smallbiggrin:

[Uncle Pine]

"About that whale we're hunting? Well, funny story ... turns out it's actually an Aboleth ..."
... named Bob?

Seriously, Moby **** hits me as a titanic (Monster Manual II) fiendish whale. Unfortunately, that is a CR 21 monster.
On the other hand, the Advanced Bestiary has the Dread Lacedon template. The sample creature is a white dread lacedon cachalot whale. You might want to have a look at that.

[Jeff the Green]

Edit: really should have known that would get censored :smallsigh:

Hint: it's okay to trick the censor for things like Moby ****.

More on topic: You could make it symbiotic (SS), with some kind of plant as the guest. Winged (SS) could be fun. Half-Dragon?

If you want to make it a ghost like Waker suggested, you'll need the ghost brute template from Savage Species.

[Randomguy]

You could try using a Leviathan from MM2, but that's CR 25. Not sure how accurate that is, though, since MM2 has notoriously borked CR.

[Malroth]

Fendish Half white Dragon monster of Legend Paragon Psuedonatural Whale

[Samalpetey]

Fendish Half white Dragon monster of Legend Paragon Psuedonatural Whale

Oh my... That almost matches the Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot in terms of weird combinations

[Waker]

Moby ****, Captain of the White Whale, a rare boat which can sail under the waves themselves. Ahab has hunted the White Whale since Moby slew his family while they were chartering across the [Name] Sea.

[kreenlover]

As for your Ahab build what you have there looks good. make sure to take the slow flaw, or whatever it is to represent your pegleg, and a magical eyepatch

[zabbarot]

Tricking the censor doesn't seem to work in the title box so I'll just leave it alone.

On topic though, lots of good suggestions for the whale. I'd like to avoid anything that gives it wings, partially because I don't want to fight a flying whale, and partially because a whale with huge wings just looks like a jumbo jet/ornithopter. Actually after typing that I realized that basically just looks like a huge legless bird. So, no.

Most other ideas could work. Cracked open a few books. Leviathan could work. It might be more straight forward than we want for a final boss though.

Ghost Brute could be good. Need to track down more of the templates still.


More on topic: You could make it symbiotic (SS), with some kind of plant as the guest.

Any particular reason for a plant symbiote?

[hydraa]

I have a character in my game that I built a little bit on this premise ini his back story. He was Ishmael but started out with amnesia.

He found out that he had been on a airship (ebberron) with his captain that was hunting a white dragon.

[zabbarot]

I like the twists on the theme some of you have tossed out. Very cool stuff.

A few notes on Ahab: the DM is fine with him going with the ranged fighting style and using all the feats with harpoons. I'm pretty sure we'll try to fight him from boats, you know traditionally. A small fleet of row boats each with a a couple rowers and a harpooner, deployed from the main whaling boat. Not sure how that'll work out.

[Shining Wrath]

First of all, Moby is a whale like a Tarrasque is a lizard. Read the book; Moby represents Nature in all her glorious power and mystery. So you are justified in creating Moby as a one-off.

Start with the Sperm Whale, yes. Add greater size (+10 HD), human intelligence, immunity to all mind-affecting spells just because it's freakin' Moby, natural armor of +30 AC or so, damage reduction of at least whatever you think an expert harpooner would get with a critical hit because Moby was festooned with the harpoons of all the failures that came before Ahab.

Second, I don't know about Ahab as NE. I think more LN with a touch of insanity. He doesn't intend to hurt anyone other than Moby; he's just obsessed. He has CDO; that's like OCD, but the letters are properly alphabetized.

I'd also like to suggest a Knight as base class rather than Ranger - with a longboat as his mount.

[Jeff the Green]

Any particular reason for a plant symbiote?

Plant immunities!

[Sylthia]

Maybe you could have Ahab as some LG undead hunter. It's not the white whale, it's the wight whale.

[kreenlover]

First of all, Moby is a whale like a Tarrasque is a lizard. Read the book; Moby represents Nature in all her glorious power and mystery. So you are justified in creating Moby as a one-off.

Start with the Sperm Whale...

I'm with Shining Wrath on this one as to Moby (although this can also be done with templates) but as to the knight, I would steer clear of that kinda bad class. Ranger is better themed for Ahab, and gets more useful seafaring abilities too.
The class seems fairly good. You could enhance it with other seafaring PrCs, but I think for the most part you are good to go. Although, the legendary captain theme maybe doesn't fit so well, as wasn't Ahab, well, Kinda crazy and mean spirited?

[Doorhandle]

Perhaps he's legendary despite that?

Also, I would suggest this thing as a possible white whale (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/bestiary/monster-listings/magical-beasts/faceless-whale).

[Fouredged Sword]

Ranger liviathan hunter. Really, no classes fit better. Grapple the whale.

[zabbarot]

I definitely see where you're coming from about Moby. Ahab sees him as the embodiment of everything wrong in the world, an avatar of hatred. If Moby ends up being higher CR we can probably start off higher. We were planning starting at level 10 already. I might just write him up as a unique creature.

I see Ahab as neutral evil because of his complete disregard for the people around him. He has a goal and everything else is just a pawn. He is consumed by his revenge. Also I like him as a ranger because of his story. He's been a whaler since he was 17 or 18 I think. He could be a legendary captain because he's so good at what he does. He's notorious, and I might not see him as particularly charismatic but he can definitely keep his crew in check. They follow him into the jaws of hell because they believe in him. That's leadership.

[Jeff the Green]

He could be a legendary captain because he's so good at what he does. He's notorious, and I might not see him as particularly charismatic but he can definitely keep his crew in check. They follow him into the jaws of hell because they believe in him. That's leadership.

Oh, he's charismatic. He's just an *******, too.

[EmperorSarda]

Captain Ahab is very charismatic, he persuaded most of his crew to hunt down Moby **** when they were only supposed to be going after normal whales. And yet with his whale bone leg, he also is very intimidating, frightening really.

[The Ravensong]

Ironically, the censure actually makes it seem more dirty than it would otherwise. :smallbiggrin:

Have you read Moby ****? I mean, really, REALLY read it? Let me give you some of the highlights
“Squeeze! Squeeze! Squeeze! all the morning long; I squeezed that sperm till I myself almost melted into it; I squeezed that sperm till a strange sort of insanity came over me, and I found myself unwittingly squeezing my co-labourers' hands in it, mistaking their hands for the gentle globules"
"Thus, then, in our hearts' honeymoon, lay I and Queequeg—a cosy, loving pair."
"...this sunken-eyed young Platonist will tow you ten wakes
round the world, and never make you one pint of sperm the richer."
There's also talk about how the African canibal, Queequeg's, spear is larger than other mens'.
I'd also like to point out that this is written by the same guy that used to brag about how much the cannibal ladies loved going at it with him.

That aside. Harpoons are awesome, honestly not that great for hunting whales, or anything stronger than you (much like picks are terrible for mining, but great for murder).