Making the dinobots

[lytokk]

So, in an effort to not be bored, I've been playing through my head of how to make all of the dinobots from the original Transformers cartoon show. Some of them are easier than others. What I could use is a little bit of advice on shapechanging mechanics, as I'm trying to find the right ones to fit each character, and the alternate forms they will eventually enter. All of them will end up being some form of warforged.

Snarl Slag/Slug, using the cave triceratops creature as the alternate form. Since it really seems to fit the charging of the cave trike, dungeoncrash fighter levels. I'm figuring Mithral body for the armor feat, and primeval for the shapechange mechanic. Maybe a level of barbarian for some extra fast movement.

Grimlock. He's the one I put the most work into so far. Barbarian fits the personality of the guy, and more than likely, megaraptor for the alternate form, using again, primeval for the shapechanging mechanic. Possibly instead of straight barbarian, wildshape non-spellcasting ranger 6/barb 2. I want to use a t-rex type form for alternate, but I simply cannot find anything that fits into a shapechanging mold. Cave-T-rex is unfortnately 1 HD too high to fit into primeval. Mithral bodied once again. Also, dragonborn template put on with the breath weapon in order to light people on fire once he pounces on them. Of course if anyone can find a version of a t-rex that fits into a simpler shapechange I'll drop the megarptor.

Slag/Slug Snarl. I cannot find a stegosaurus dinosaur in any of the monster manuals, but I heard it was in an issue of dragon magazine, which I don't have. So, the cave ankylosaurus fits him. Tail attack, armored plates, sounds like a stego to me. I've already used primeval twice, and I'm not sure what class to put onto him. A little bit of help here. would be nice.

Swoop. He's been described as the bombadier of the group, and the smart one. So, he needs to be a little different. Just using the standard composite plating, and I'm thinking the Battle Sorceror variant. Utilizing a simple blasting build with some polymorph and shapechanging spells thrown in. Only thing is, my experience with shapechanging is limited so I want to make sure he still has a way to blast while polymorphed, which means speech and a method of completing the somatic components of spells. But I do know there is a warforged component to take care of this.

Sludge. Complete blank here. There isn't a version of the seismosaurous with a low enough hit die to transform into with any method I can think of. This one needs the most work. This one should also need adamantine body, which would eliminate druid. I could maybe work with an elephant creature and change it a little bit, but am really drawing a blank as to the shapechange mechanic.

So, there you go. Thats where I'm at now. Aiming to keep everyone in the T3-4 range. Even though Swoop may be a little higher, he's just going to be a simple blaster, which should keep him down. Any advice thoughts or feedback? I may end up incorporating more from the Fall of Cybertron game into these guys eventually.

[torrasque666]

For Snarl at least, use Juggernaut in addition to Primeval. Gets tons of charging goodies.

[lytokk]

Juggernaught would be good, but unfortunately requires adamantine body, which would end up slowing snarl down too much. Or does it? I'm never really certain how adamantine body interacts with fast movement.

And I got snarl and slag/slug mixed up again. Stupid transformers animated naming the trike snarl. I'm gonna fix that in the original post.

That being said, Juggernaut may fit the actual Snarl, the stego.

[Waker]

If it helps at all, here is actually a post I made a few years back in response to a thread about a guy wanting something interesting for a MoMF build.

Guys guys, you're missing the obvious and far more awesome answer to the question.
Step 1: Warforged with Adamantine Body, Wild Shape Ranger 5
Step 2: Take Master of Many Forms for 6 levels
Step 3: Apply the Beastskin property (+2) to your armor.
Step 4: Shapeshift into a Huge Tyrannosaurus Rex with Adamantine Armor.

You Grimlock King.
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y47/Omnikar/Grimlock.jpg

You're welcome.

[torrasque666]

Juggernaught would be good, but unfortunately requires adamantine body, which would end up slowing snarl down too much. Or does it? I'm never really certain how adamantine body interacts with fast movement.

And I got snarl and slag/slug mixed up again. Stupid transformers animated naming the trike snarl. I'm gonna fix that in the original post.

That being said, Juggernaut may fit the actual Snarl, the stego.

Technically it counts as heavy armor, thus negating his fast movement. Can be slightly solved by trading it out for an ACF. Pounce is always nice, especially as it allows you to apply GPC multiple times.

[lytokk]

cave trikes only get a single attack on a full attack action, and as far as I know animals don't get extra attacks for having a high BAB. But he would have the warforged slam as a secondary, throw in second slam... maybe. I could see Slag using more of a spring attack method. Attacking in the middle of a movement, attempting an overrun/trample.

According to powerful charge, you only get to apply the extra damage to a single attack at the end of a charge, and GPC only allows you to go one size class higher for damage, but still not applying the damage to multiple attacks. At least the version I'm reading on dnd tools.

According to the t-rex and wild shape entries, you'll have to have 18 hd in order to wild shape into a t-rex. Also, you don't need beast skin enchantment, since its pointed out in RoE that warforged keep their composite plating when wild shaped. This benefit goes on to teh rest of the body feats, since no matter what, all feats you take are useable while wild shaped. If warforged didn't have that wisdom penalty, I think they'd be the best LA0 race for druids. I still can't figure out what happens to warforged components while wild-shaped though, which has always been the problem with the fire-breathing aspect of the dinobots. Primeval is the only version of wild-shaping that will allow the breath weapon from dragonborn to work when wild shaped, since it was never updated to use the alternate form rules, instead of the polymorph rules.

[torrasque666]

According to powerful charge, you only get to apply the extra damage to a single attack at the end of a charge, and GPC only allows you to go one size class higher for damage, but still not applying the damage to multiple attacks. At least the version I'm reading on dnd tools.


So it does. My group apparently overlooked that.

[lytokk]

Any other thoughts on this? I'm thinking more on swoop now. Using the glidewing or pterodon as the alternate form, and polymorph as the shapechanging method. Is battle sorceror the best basic chassis for this build or is there something better? I'm not sure about keeping the composite plating when polymorphed however. I think its called out to needing of the body feats in order to keep it. I suppose straight druid could also pull this off, just I don't know about the blastability of druids.

[shaikujin]

If it helps, Cityscape Web enhancement has a Druid ACF that allows you to wildshape into Animated Objects.

Changing into a metal effigy of a dinosaur might be more satisfying than a flesh and blood dinosaur covered in adamantine plate.

[lytokk]

I've always felt that the look of a warforged druid's wild shape form was always completely in the hands of the DM. My ruling has always been its up to the players, but its one of those things that can't be changed once it was decided on. So if you decide you want to look like a construct version of whatever you change into, thats fine, but you can't change it later if you decide you want to do stealthy scouting. Though the "thousand faces" ability could cover it up.