Ruethgar
2013-08-16, 10:25 PM
So, the Dark Speech Summon Swarm trick is great pun, but the ability damage hurts even if you are mending it and the Summon Swarm spell/SLA can be more devastating than a frenzied barbarian since you can't control it and it can summon more of itself with hive mind sorcery(would be a fantastic plague sort of thing, exponential growth as long as the first summon is still in effect then suddenly no trace of anything).
But then we have lovely Dragon 329 giving us hive minded swarm options for improved familiar. This is less powerful I think since the creatures are valuable resources rather than disposable minions, they have poor health, take longer to accrue and cost more, but who cares, you have an army of little sorcerous beauties.
Level 3 take improved familiar and snag yourself a bat swarm at 5th. Have the swarm of bats take obtain, improved, extra, extra familiar. Thankfully improved familiar does not include you in the hive mind, you just get an empathic link and your familiar get's the mind. This lets your secondary familiars take different things to make them more resilient(which they need for having 25% of your health). Shape Soulmeld, Obtain Improved Familiar and Share Soulmeld is a nice choice, though there are really no limits beyond that you only get 4 feats per familiar.
Bonus points if you become a were-murder of crows.
Edit: Also, get regeneration(Troll Blooded), Shield Other take control of your familiar(level 3 indefinite magic jar-ish spell). Now you take 50% damage from all but fire and acid sources with no significant repercussions, you loose the hive mind cheese with the familiar, but it makes a decent character and your body now functions as a pseudo-phylactery.
But then we have lovely Dragon 329 giving us hive minded swarm options for improved familiar. This is less powerful I think since the creatures are valuable resources rather than disposable minions, they have poor health, take longer to accrue and cost more, but who cares, you have an army of little sorcerous beauties.
Level 3 take improved familiar and snag yourself a bat swarm at 5th. Have the swarm of bats take obtain, improved, extra, extra familiar. Thankfully improved familiar does not include you in the hive mind, you just get an empathic link and your familiar get's the mind. This lets your secondary familiars take different things to make them more resilient(which they need for having 25% of your health). Shape Soulmeld, Obtain Improved Familiar and Share Soulmeld is a nice choice, though there are really no limits beyond that you only get 4 feats per familiar.
Bonus points if you become a were-murder of crows.
Edit: Also, get regeneration(Troll Blooded), Shield Other take control of your familiar(level 3 indefinite magic jar-ish spell). Now you take 50% damage from all but fire and acid sources with no significant repercussions, you loose the hive mind cheese with the familiar, but it makes a decent character and your body now functions as a pseudo-phylactery.