PDA

View Full Version : [3.5 Base Class][PEACH] Fool



Brickroad
2013-10-22, 10:37 PM
So I think as this is my first post, and quite a hefty one, some backstory is due.

I was first fascinated by the world of D&D when, by random chance, I pulled a copy of Baldur's Gate 2 off of a shelf as a child and, not knowing what was in store, but certainly ready for an adventure, delved headlong into madness. There was a lot of Neverwinter Nights in there somewhere, though I am remiss to remember what, if anything, happened. I began DMing online and developed a consuming consumption of rules and regulations in some vague effort to bring the 'authentic' experience to my co-players and co-DMs. It turned out I wasn't very good at DMing, but I found I admired the complex potential of the game itself.

That said, I do not have a lot of actual table-top experience under my belt besides playing in three campaigns in two semesters at college (hardly that, even), so I come here now to test my mettle with some timidity.

I've been sitting, mulling this class over for a long time as a thought exercise. I knew when I started that jesters, tricksters, and a general fondness for tomfoolery have been covered by other authors and homebrewers, but I thought I'd take a crack at it all the same. It seems to have imprinted on me since the beginning when I stuck a Black Isle CD into my computer's disk drive.

~Enjoy, Brickroad AKA Dungeon Man

Fool

Fools are often perceived to be unintelligent and unhinged performers who make their living by self deprecating humor, but in reality they are very much in control of their wits and are keen students of the true nature of society and culture. The lowest of fools can be found on the bustling streets of any major city as street performers, while the greatest of them are found in the courts of royalty and nobility where they serve as spies, diplomats, traders, or as a means to annoy unwanted guests without causing too much offense.

All fools in some part recognize that there is a standard for their vocation enforced by a loosely organized guild. All fools are considered members by right unless they break any of the core tenants of the trade. A fool with higher standing may allow a wayward fool to rejoin, but not without receiving some compensation and not without taking partial responsibility for any future infractions that may occur. Although fools distance themselves from ideals and do not consider themselves as part of any societal hierarchy, they do feel strongly about their own professionalism. No fool worth his wages would willingly break the fools’ code.

Above all else, the fool must remain in his character at all times. The purpose of a fool is to be a symbol rather than a person and to provide a flawless mirror in which others see the folly evident in their own society. In order to maintain this symbolic presence, the fool must remain completely objective in his moral and societal views. Once a fool becomes opinionated on ‘right’ and ‘wrong’, the actions his performance demands and his own personal beliefs will conflict. This will either hinder the performance or cause internal turmoil in the fool himself, ultimately making him a poorer actor and unfit for the title of a fool.

Fools prefer casual clothing to armor and seldom carry a weapon not balanced for being tossed. While they are not prone to seeking grand adventure, most fools serve their employer as skilled liars and negotiators and find themselves travelling great distances to perform tasks. In some rare cases they also serve as thieves and instigators of trouble, because fools prefer to outwit enemies rather than resort to violence. Common choices for multiclassing are rogue for spying and subterfuge and bard for a more varied performance. Very rarely a fool will choose to be a fighter or ranger so he may also serve as a bodyguard for his employer.

The most common of races to become fools are humans, half-elves, and halflings. Although any race capable of being socially and morally impartial can practice foolery, these races are more likely to due to their adaptability, broad perspective, and fondness for jokes respectively. While gnomes also enjoy humor and wit, they are much more reclusive and unlikely to entertain guests in their courts.

Alignment
(True) Neutral.

Hit Die
d6.

Class Skills
A fool's class skills are Balance, Bluff, Climb, Concentration, Craft, Diplomacy, Disguise, Escape Artist, Gather Information, Jump, Knowledge, Listen, Perform, Sense Motive, Sleight of Hand, Speak Language, Spot, Swim, and Tumble.

Skill Points at 1st Level
(6 + Int modifier) x4.

Skill Points at Each Additional Level
6 + Int modifier.

Table: The Fool
{TABLE=HEAD]
LVL|
Base Attack|Frt|Ref|Will|
Acrobatic Combat|Special
1|+0|+0|+2|+2|+4 (-4)|Acrobatic combat, improved unarmed strike, method act
2|+1|+0|+3|+3|+4 (-4)|Juggle, uncanny dodge
3|+2|+1|+3|+3|+5 (-4)|
4|+3|+1|+4|+4|+5 (-4)|Knack
5|+3|+1|+4|+4|+5 (-3)|Improved uncanny dodge
6|+4|+2|+5|+5|+6 (-3)|Trick throw
7|+5|+2|+5|+5|+6 (-3)|Babble
8|+6/+1|+2|+6|+6|+6 (-3)|Improved juggle, knack
9|+6/+1|+3|+6|+6|+7 (-3)|Steady hands
10|+7/+2|+3|+7|+7|+7 (-2)|
11|+8/+3|+3|+7|+7|+7 (-2)|Evasion
12|+9/+4|+4|+8|+8|+8 (-2)|Knack
13|+9/+4|+4|+8|+8|+8 (-2)|Acceleration
14|+10/+5|+4|+9|+9|+8 (-2)|
15|+11/+6/+1|+5|+9|+9|+9 (-1)|Greater juggle
16|+12/+7/+2|+5|+10|+10|+9 (-1)|Knack
17|+12/+7/+2|+5|+10|+10|+9 (-1)|Master juggler
18|+13/+8/+3|+6|+11|+11|+10 (-1)|
19|+14/+9/+4|+6|+11|+11|+10 (-1)|Grand finale
20|+15/+10/+5|+6|+12|+12|+10|Knack[/TABLE]

Class Features
All of the following are the class features of the fool.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency
Fools are proficient with club, dagger, dart, light hammer, shuriken, sling, and throwing axe. Fools are not proficient with any armor or shields.

Acrobatic Combat (Ex)
A fool has a natural talent for performing under pressure, including in a fight, and they make up for their lack of protection and offensive capabilities with uncanny reflexes and unpredictable combat maneuvers.

When fighting defensively or defending himself the fool gets an additional +2 bonus to dodge AC. This bonus improves by +1 every third level up to 18th level (granting a +10 dodge bonus for fighting defensively or a +12 bonus from total defense).

At 5th level and every five levels thereafter, a fool’s penalty to attack rolls for fighting defensively is reduced by 1 to the eventual removal of the penalty at 20th level.

The fool loses these bonuses when he is immobilized or helpless, when he wears medium or heavy armor, carries a shield, or carries a medium or heavy load. Additionally, all of the fool’s limbs must be able to move independently and freely. As such he loses these benefits if he holds an item in two hands, has his wrists bound together, is wearing locking gauntlets, or under similar circumstances.

Improved Unarmed Strike
A fool gains Improved Unarmed Strike as a bonus feat at 1st level.

Method Act (Ex)
When he gains his first level the fool chooses one of three personas to adopt that he will maintain at all times for as long as he wishes to remain a fool. He may change his persona when gaining a new level in fool, but if he drops his personna willingly he loses its benefits (and penalties) and cannot gain any more levels in fool. In order to gain more levels of fool, he must appeal to a fool with at least four more levels than himself or seek atonement from a cleric of a god or goddess generally worshipped by performers.

The fool selects one of the three following personas:

Pretentious - The fool mocks the intellectual elite by playing the part of an incomprehensible scholar. He becomes an expert in all subjects of knowledge and lore, but in doing so becomes oblivious to the practical and social ramifications of his actions. He never speaks plainly where convoluted technical terms would apply and often invents words on the spot to suit his purpose. He is quick to point out the flaws of others’ arguments regardless of how little his own expertise applies. A pretentious fool replaces his intelligence modifier with half his class level, rounded down, while taking a -4 penalty to wisdom and charisma based skill and ability checks.

Sanctimonious - The fool mocks the blindly faithful by playing the part of a zealous preacher. He becomes an authority on everything that is good and proper, but in doing so becomes intellectually derivative and socially unpleasant. His advice is largely unsolicited and rarely departs from the quoting of religious texts or proverbs. Even when such advice is appropriate, the fool makes an effort to interpret the words in such a way that is banal or contrary to the passage’s intended meaning. Despite admonishing everything short of spiritual perfection, he will profess that he has everyone’s best interests at heart. A sanctimonious fool replaces his wisdom modifier with half his class level, rounded down, while taking a -4 penalty to intelligence and charisma based skill and ability checks.

Presumptuous - The fool mocks the wealthy and privileged by playing the part of a social climber. He becomes an expert on the greatest new fashions available to the upper crust, but in doing so becomes stylistically unoriginal and woefully ignorant of possible cultural differences. He is polite to a fault and confident that everything will work out regardless of the real circumstances. Often, he will pretend to take the side of whoever is likely to win a contest or who offers the greater reward, but will steal from, sabotage, and abandon his newest friend in favor of his own agenda. A presumptuous fool replaces his charisma modifier with half his class level, rounded down, while taking a -4 penalty to intelligence and wisdom based skill and ability checks.
An ability modifier altered by a fool’s method acting does not benefit or suffer from any change in the fool's ability score, including ability damage, ability drain, or an enhancement bonus to the related ability score. However, bonuses and penalties that do not directly affect the fool's ability score or modifier do still apply, such as a bonus on Charisma based ability checks.

Method Act does not prevent a fool from having his ability score reduced to 0 and it does not grant the fool an ability modifier he does not already possess. Additionally, any situation that would deny the fool his ability modifier or reduce it to 0 still applies.

A fool drops his method act when he is affected by a mind-affecting spell or effect that forces him to follow commands or otherwise cease functioning under his own agency. For example, dominate person would cause a fool to drop his act, but confusion would not. As soon as the fool regains control of himself, he resumes his method act immediately, otherwise it is considered willingly dropping his act.

Juggle (Ex)
Starting at 2nd level a fool may perform a special juggling attack as a full-round action. The fool makes a number of attacks as if he were performing a full attack action with the quick draw and two-weapon fighting feats, except all of the attacks must be made with thrown light weapons.

At the start of a juggle, a fool selects a number of weapons to toss into the air as if each were drawn with the quick draw feat (up to a maximum equal to the number of attacks the fool could make plus an additional two). Weapons being juggled are considered to be in the fool’s hand when targeted and the fool may decide, when it becomes necessary, if the weapon will be used by the main or off hand; once a decision is made, the fool must use the weapon in that hand or not at all. He may choose to finish the action with any selected weapons he did not throw in his free hands, wait to catch any returning weapons, or return all of these weapons into his possession and remain empty handed.

During the juggle action, the fool may move up to half his movement speed. The total distance he can move may be divided before and after the attacks are made and between any of the attacks being made.

When a throwing weapon with the returning property is thrown as part of a juggle it returns to the square where the fool ended his juggle rather than from where it was thrown. He may return these weapons into his possession immediately instead of catching them.

Uncanny Dodge (Ex)
At 2nd level, a fool retains his Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) even if he is caught flat-footed or struck by an invisible attacker. However, he still loses his Dexterity bonus to AC if immobilized. If a fool already has uncanny dodge from a different class, he automatically gains improved uncanny dodge instead.

Knack (Ex)
At 4th level and every fourth level thereafter, a fool gains skill focus as a bonus feat or gains a cumulative +2 bonus on skill checks made with a skill for which he already has the skill focus feat.

Improved Uncanny Dodge (Ex)
At 5th level and higher, a fool can no longer be flanked. This defense denies a rogue the ability to sneak attack the fool by flanking him, unless the attacker has at least four more rogue levels than the target has fool levels. The levels from the classes that grant uncanny dodge stack to determine the minimum level a rogue must be to flank the character.

Trick Throw (Ex)
Starting at 6th level a fool may forfeit one or more of his attacks at the start of a juggle action in order to perform a special juggling feint. He may feint as a free action before each attack, using one bluff check result for all the feints. The fool gains a bonus on his attack rolls and the bluff check equal to the number of forfeited attacks. He also gains a sneak attack ability exactly like the rogue ability of the same name, which adds an equal number of d6 damage dice.

The fool must have a weapon available for each attack he forfeits. Any attack he can not make due to the lack of a weapon to throw does not count toward the number of forfeited attacks.

Babble (Ex)
The fool is a master of double speak and manipulating words. Starting at 7th level, the fool may choose to convey a message using his own particular ‘language’ similar to thieves’ cant. Decoding the message requires an Intelligence check with a DC determined by the fool. The DC must be at least 10 and can not be greater than 15 + ½ the fool’s level + his Intelligence modifier. Characters with 5 or more ranks in sense motive receive a +2 bonus to their check.

The fool may instruct his party on the meaning of a babble beforehand to give them a +10 bonus on their check. This instruction takes one round for every five points of the babble’s DC, rounded up.

Improved Juggle (Ex)
At 8th level the fool is treated as having the improved two-weapon fighting feat when performing a juggle attack and juggled weapons receive a +2 bonus to weapon damage rolls.

Steady Hands (Ex)
At 9th level the fool may use one-handed throwing weapons to make juggle attacks. The penalty of using a one-handed weapon in the off hand only applies to the attack made with that particular weapon.

Evasion (Ex)
At 11th level or higher if a fool makes a successful Reflex saving throw against an attack that normally deals half damage on a successful save, he instead takes no damage. Evasion can be used only if a fool is wearing light armor or no armor. A helpless fool does not gain the benefit of evasion.

Acceleration (Su)
Starting at 13th level, the fool may perform one juggle per day as though under the effects of the haste spell.

Greater Juggle (Ex)
At 15th level the fool is treated as having the greater two-weapon fighting feat when performing a juggle attack and juggled weapons receive an additional +2 bonus to weapon damage rolls (bringing the bonus to +4).

Master Juggler (Su)
At 17th level, when performing a juggle action, any weapon with a ranged increment thrown by the fool may be treated as having the returning property. Weapons without a ranged increment are treated as having the throwing property instead.

Grand Finale (Ex)
At 19th level the last attack in a fool’s juggle action deals double damage to its target. This extra damage is precision based and only applies if the attack is made against a target within 30 feet. Creatures that are immune to critical hits or that have no discernible anatomy are unaffected. It must be decided before the attack is rolled whether or not it is the last.

Afool
2013-11-03, 09:11 AM
The class looks good, though I have a few things to ask about.

1, Steady Hands and the second part of Master Juggler don't look like they'd have too much of an effect for the Fool as it has a fairly restricted proficiency list. I don't think it would be too far of a stretch to give the Fool proficiency in All Simple and All Martial Weapons (though I might be a tad biased as I'm rolling a Factotum at the moment...).

2,Evasion says that the Fool can evade while wearing light armor which it isn't proficient in. At this point I'd suggest that the Fool be proficient in Light armor, but *shrugs*.

3, The Fool has some very nice class features but most of them do not relate to the thematic standpoint that you've set up for the Fool. I think that you should create a few more abilities that relate to Method Act and the Fool's role in social examination (at the very least to help fill in a couple of those dead levels).

Just some food for thought.

Rizban
2013-11-03, 10:05 AM
So that you understand my review style, I'm doing a review of this on my first read through, so some of my thoughts might not be the most insightful had I given this a full, thorough reading prior to that.

This review is literally my thoughts on the post as I go through it, reading each section. If my questions or concerns are addressed later in the material, I will make note of that at the point they are addressed. This method of review helps to identify trouble spots and ambiguous areas that need a bit of editing that a comprehensive review might not catch. After I finish the entire post, I'll usually read through it a second time and post a comprehensive review in my final thoughts.

Also of note, I have done a lot of editing in my time, some of it professionally. As such I will point out spelling mistakes and flagrant grammatical errors. Please don't take this personally, as some are very inclined to do. I'm just trying to help you make your work the best it can be.

Finally, it takes time and effort to review your work. You may not agree with all of the comments I post as a reviewer, and that's fine. I ask only that you be polite about any disagreements you have and, if you're so inclined, check out my own homebrew in return (links in signature). Thank you.


Acrobatic Combat: First thought is that with 3/4 BAB, fighting defensively is a bit too much of a penalty to usually be worth it. I think you should reduce the attack penalty at a faster rate. As it is, there's not much point in boosting AC if you can't hit. From the name, I was also expecting something a bit more... acrobatic.

Improved Unarmed Strike: I don't understand why you gave this class Improved Unarmed Strike. It doesn't do much, and the class doesn't seem to benefit from it in any meaningful way.

Method Act is a cool ability, but it's extremely limiting and has pretty strict penalties. I would really suggest changing it so that he can pick any he wants to use at any time, allowing him to switch between them with something like 5 to 10 minutes preparation time to mentally prepare himself for the new role. I would also suggest giving a simple temporary bonus to the ability scores instead of outright replacing them. Perhaps also allowing the fool to not use this ability if he chooses would be beneficial.

So, Juggle is basically flurry of blows + pounce but with thrown weapons? Pretty neat little trick. I rather like it. I might suggest just giving him the Quick Draw feat as a bonus feat at 1st level in place of the apparently useless IUS feat you currently grant. Since this also seems to be increasing your attack penalty from using multiple weapons, it again makes acrobatic combat a bit problematic to actually use.

Improved/Uncanny Dodge: Seems reasonable and appropriate.

Knack: I have to say, I really like this ability. I might change the wording on it a bit though to make it more clear. Perhaps use something like,
"At 4th level and every fourth level thereafter, a fool may choose either to gain Skill Focus as a bonus feat or to increase the bonus granted by a Skill Focus feat he already has by +2."As a stylistic choice, I'd personally change the table to read 1st knack, 2nd knack, etc. to mirror the favored enemy style of naming.

Trick Throw is a bit much. I'd suggest just giving the Fool straight sneak attack dice every 3 levels (3rd, 6th, 9th, etc) as a normal class ability. Then have Trick Throw simply allow you to make feint attempts with thrown weapons instead of only with melee weapons.

I don't understand Babble. So, your party has to make an Int check to understand your gibberish, unless you've told them what you're going to say beforehand? If you're telling them beforehand, why does it have to be gibberish? Why does it even need a class feature? It seems like a code phrase like "Plan A: GO!" or "The sparrow has flown," would work just as well. Maybe I'm just missing something, but this doesn't make sense to me.

Improved/Greater Juggle could probably just be rolled into the base Juggle skill. Simply include a short paragraph that reads something akin to "At level X, you instead have effects of Improved TWF. At level X, GTWF."

Steady Hands is nice, but it's increasing that attack penalty again. I worry about this class being able to hit anything for any amount of significant damage. You certainly can't fight defensively, use juggle, and try to power attack (via Power Throw feat in Complete Adventurer). You'd never hit anything at all. I mean, to use this ability the level you gain it with all one-handed weapons and acrobatic combat at the same time, you're already taking a -7 to all your attack rolls and have only a +6 BAB, you're at your ability modifier -1 to hit without power attack!

Evasion: Seems appropriate, but it's granted a bit later than I'd think is reasonable for this class. I'd have probably granted it around level 7ish.

Acceleration is a bit weak. In exchange for 13 class levels, you're getting 1 round of +1 attack, +1 AC, +1 Reflex saves, and 1 extra attack. Doesn't really seem worth it to me.

Master Juggler Is definitely a neat ability. I think it should likely be granted a good bit earlier than 17th level though. By this level, the fool should have invested in a good set of returning weapons already.

Grand Finale is the capstone but is granted at 19th level. *shrug* Okay... Double damage on a single attack? Precision double damage, making it useless against half or more of the things you'll be facing at this level. I just don't see why you'd take the class far enough to get this feature. It seems like a pretty weak capstone.


Final Thoughts: Overall, I like this class. It seems to have a good bit of fluff that tries to be mirrored in the mechanics. However, it seems more like a gimmick to explain granting the juggle class feature rather than the class itself. I don't have a problem with that though, and I've seen much worse.

As to power level, I'd say this is likely a high Tier 5 (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=266559). It does basically one thing: the juggle ability. Unfortunately, trying to use its other class features makes it not do this one thing particularly well. The knack ability and good skill points makes it a decent skill monkey, but the skill list itself is limited in its use, especially with the massive penalties to skill checks due to Method Act.

I'd rate this as a very good start to a class. It's a great chassis from which to build and obviously has some good thought and creativity worked into it. I'm definitely going to bookmark this thread to see where you take the development of this idea.

Brickroad
2013-11-04, 10:24 AM
At this point I'd suggest that the Fool be proficient in Light armor... give the Fool proficiency in All Simple and All Martial Weapons... Steady Hands and the second part of Master Juggler don't look like they'd have too much of an effect for the Fool as it has a fairly restricted proficiency list.Solid advice. However, Evasion is copy/pasted from Monk, so the Light Armor thing is more a design choice of WotC than my own. I'd also rather side with Simple + flavor of Martial like rogue or bard. Martial weapons don't really fit the 'performer' niche all that well, though...


3, The Fool has some very nice class features but most of them do not relate to the thematic standpoint that you've set up for the Fool. I think that you should create a few more abilities that relate to Method Act and the Fool's role in social examination (at the very least to help fill in a couple of those dead levels).I might soften up the penalties, but I don't feel there's any room for expansion upon the idea. More abilities in the vein of Babble, sure.


Just some food for thought.Delicious.


Acrobatic Combat:
First thought is that with 3/4 BAB, fighting defensively is a bit too much of a penalty to usually be worth it. I think you should reduce the attack penalty at a faster rate. As it is, there's not much point in boosting AC if you can't hit. From the name, I was also expecting something a bit more... acrobatic.Good point worth adressing... although have you ever tried to do anything as complicated as swordfighting while doing acrobatics? :smalltongue:


Improved Unarmed Strike: I don't understand why you gave this class Improved Unarmed Strike. It doesn't do much, and the class doesn't seem to benefit from it in any meaningful way.The fool is supposed to favor appearing unarmed (people get edgy around armed folk, and the fool is a performer, a civilian in the eyes of others). I can come up with something that'll fit better than a lazy one-feat thing, though.


Method Act is a cool ability, but it's extremely limiting and has pretty strict penalties.But then how would he suffer for his art! :smalltongue: I'll revisit it.


I don't understand Babble.It replaces one use of the Bluff skill so that opponents no longer get a Sense Motive check, and it changes it from Wisdom based to Intelligence based. It also avoids discern lies or zone of truth. Think bluff check without lying... or this...
I don't know half of you half as well as I should like; and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve.


Acceleration is a bit weak. In exchange for 13 class levels, you're getting 1 round of +1 attack, +1 AC, +1 Reflex saves, and 1 extra attack. Doesn't really seem worth it to me.It was meant to be used with Juggle + Trick Throw. I may drop it to make room for a different line of features.


Grand Finale is the capstone but is granted at 19th level. *shrug* Okay... Double damage on a single attack? Precision double damage, making it useless against half or more of the things you'll be facing at this level. I just don't see why you'd take the class far enough to get this feature. It seems like a pretty weak capstone.I don't believe in capstones as a design. None of the core classes have them besides Barbarian and Monk and look how useful those are!

Excellent input from both of you and what I didn't comment on I agreed with completely. This has sparked some ideas, so I'll definitely return to it.

JoshuaZ
2013-11-04, 10:45 AM
I'd agree that this looks like it is T5. I agree with most of Rizban and Afool's analysis.

If you wanted to put it into T4, it might make sense to give them some social abilities (say fluffed as using humor in social settings). It feels a bit like they are trying to be a skill monkey but they don't do much in that regard other than Knack.

They really look like they could use some of the skill tricks from Complete Scoundrel- giving extras of those that don't count against your normal limit at some of the dead levels maybe- You may not want to do this if you don't want it to be dependent on books.

I'm going to suggest at 3rd level the following:

Joke(ex): A Fool may tell a joke to distract from a poor choice of words. Once a day, a Fool may immediately reroll a Bluff check or a Diplomacy check. They must take the result of this new roll even if it is lower. At 10th level, you may use this ability twice a day, at 14th level, three times a day and at 20th level four times a day.

Also, I think it would be neat if a high level fool could actually temporarily change their persona when disguised and if this gave them a bonus to disguise.

Edit: Also if they are supposed to appear unarmed, some sort of benefit with improvised weapons might make sense.

Brickroad
2013-11-04, 02:58 PM
The joke ability fits in great and I really like the idea of a fool jumping into other people's conversations for good or ill.