My Murderous Cleric

[ThatGuyOvaThere]

So my dm allows BoVD for character use and has also said I can trade alot of darkcraft gold/experience. I want to know how do crank my knowledge (religion) through the roof, I mean like +50 at 9th level. Also, If any of you have suggestions of how to roleplay a very logical murder, that would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance ThatGuyOvaThere.

[TheDarkSaint]

I can't help much with the optimizaton parts, but I might be able to help with the role playing. A few questions though.


1. What kind of killer is your PC? Serial? Methodical? Hands on? Random? Mass murderer? This will really effect how you set up your kills and how you deal with the possible repercussions, if any.

2. Why does he kill? I don't need a super long backstory, just a general idea. Power? Lust? Fame? Duty? For Kicks?

3. What Domains are you thinking about?

4. City based or wilderness/dungeon based? Makes a big difference.

[Vaz]

Divine Guidance and Guidance of the Avatar are a pair of level 2 spells, providing a +34 bonus to checks at CL9. Max ranks for +12 and +2 from 14 Int gets the requisite score.

[ahenobarbi]

So my dm allows BoVD for character use and has also said I can trade alot of darkcraft gold/experience. I want to know how do crank my knowledge (religion) through the roof, I mean like +50 at 9th level. Also, If any of you have suggestions of how to roleplay a very logical murder, that would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance ThatGuyOvaThere.

Here's an example (you might want to skip feat and item familiar in actual play):

Take 10.
Int 18 + 4 (buff) + 2 (levelling) + 2 (race) = 26 (+8 modifier, total 18).
12 ranks (total 30).
+2 masterwork tool (total 32).
+3 skill focus feat (total 35).
+12 item fmiliar (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/magic/itemFamiliars.htm) (total 47).
+2 someone uses "help another" (49) (you probably can get more helpers forhigher bonus if you want).
+20 competence
Guidance of the avatar (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=dnd/sb/sb20010504a) (total 69).

[Eldariel]

Skill optimization is fairly simple, though Cleric's best tools only work for one skill check at a time rather than constantly. Do you need constant +50 or just hit +50 at intervals?

For +50 at intervals:
Guidance of the Avatar (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=dnd/sb/sb20010504a)
Divine Insight [Spell Compendium]

Are your best bets. Both give you significant bonuses to a skill check and together they amount to like +37 or something making +50 on level 9 childs' play. Both are level 2 spells too so that's no problem.

Lore of the Gods [Complete Champion] with a Knowledge-domain offering deity (+5 otherwise) would offer 10 min/level +10 Insight (it's also persistable) so that's a way to get a smaller, permanent bonus if that's your thing. Doesn't stack with Divine Insight.

Surge of Fortune [Complete Champion] is a level 5 spell that allows you to take 20 on a single d20 roll (e.g. skill check) by burning the spell. Likewise available on this level, and generally convenient (Luck-bonus to everything when not burning it).


More permanent bonuses, Intelligence and Ranks are a given. There are lots of feats that give minor bonuses; as a rule, you can get +2-+3 per feat invested. Item Familiar (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/magic/itemFamiliars.htm) is noteworthy in offering much greater bonuses (but of course, it has much stuff going on about it). Ancestral Knowledge [Races of Stone] feat would get you Wisdom-based Knowledges instead of Intelligence, which is probably good for a Cleric. Dwarf-only though.

PHB has "Masterwork Tool" listed at +2 Circumstance bonus. You also have various spells; Surge of Fortune/Recitation persisted gives you +2 Luck to skills. Heroism-type effect is +2 Morale. Crystal Mask of Knowledge [Magic Item Compendium] for instance grants you +5 Competence-bonus. You might be able to find largers for that slot.

Some Organization [PHBII/DMGII] grants bonus to Knowledges too. Traits (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/buildingCharacters/characterTraits.htm) can easily give a total of +2 to Knowledges too. Summing up all the small bonuses can get you there.

[ThatGuyOvaThere]

I can't help much with the optimizaton parts, but I might be able to help with the role playing. A few questions though.


1. What kind of killer is your PC? Serial? Methodical? Hands on? Random? Mass murderer? This will really effect how you set up your kills and how you deal with the possible repercussions, if any.

2. Why does he kill? I don't need a super long backstory, just a general idea. Power? Lust? Fame? Duty? For Kicks?

3. What Domains are you thinking about?

4. City based or wilderness/dungeon based? Makes a big difference.

1.Well he has them kidnapped tortured and them begins to perform a surgery of sorts until they die infront of a crowd of 100 people
2.It is his duty to experiment on living being, it is also fun
3.Knowledge and darkness, those are the best my deity offers
4.it is kinda all

Here's an example (you might want to skip feat and item familiar in actual play):

Take 10.
Int 18 + 4 (buff) + 2 (levelling) + 2 (race) = 26 (+8 modifier, total 18).
12 ranks (total 30).
+2 masterwork tool (total 32).
+3 skill focus feat (total 35).
+12 item fmiliar (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/magic/itemFamiliars.htm) (total 47).
+2 someone uses "help another" (49) (you probably can get more helpers forhigher bonus if you want).
+20 competence
Guidance of the avatar (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=dnd/sb/sb20010504a) (total 69).

That is so great I never could've gotten this by myself and for me it would be total 70 because of my 21 int.