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View Full Version : D&D 3.x Other You think you can challenge me? Beatrix of Alexandria?



TheBrassDuke
2015-04-18, 05:36 AM
Okay, making General Beatrix from Final Fantasy IX, with Save the Queen included!

How would you do it?

necroon
2015-04-18, 04:21 PM
Okay, making General Beatrix from Final Fantasy IX, with Save the Queen included!

How would you do it?

I played a character based on her once before and I used the Knight of the Rose from Dragonlance with a lot of success although the pre-requisites are harsh at best.

TheBrassDuke
2015-04-18, 04:25 PM
Oh yeah? I haven't seen the KotR, so not familiar. Beatrix is an amazing character. I'd love to make a good version of her. Replicating her Seiken abilities will be a tad difficult. I had thought of Duskblade and Anointed Knight, but eh...

Edit: JUST looked into the Kinghts of the Crown, Sword and Rose. Definitely worth looking over again and considering!

Much better than my Paladin/Anointed Knight Saint Beatrix.

necroon
2015-04-18, 04:34 PM
Oh yeah? I haven't seen the KotR, so not familiar. Beatrix is an amazing character. I'd love to make a good version of her. Replicating her Seiken abilities will be a tad difficult. I had thought of Duskblade and Anointed Knight, but eh...

There are a few existing homebrew options that may suffice. I'd probably use one of these two if I were to make her. They former would use it's Smite option and Holy Sword to replicate her Seiken strikes and the later using Invocations.


Dawnblade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?190289-3-5-Dawnblade-the-duskblade-s-paladin) by jiriku
THAUMURAI (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?253629-Yin-amp-Yang-classes-%28d-amp-d-3-5%29-PEACH) by sirpercival (Table broken here but not on MMX boards)


I know she is personally my favorite RPG character of all time so I understand your desire to do her due justice.

TheBrassDuke
2015-04-18, 04:56 PM
A friend and I fell in love with Beatrix in the early days of Final Fantasy. Well, the mid-teens of Final Fantasy. :/

Beatrix was so awesome, and so put in the corner. It was a shame.

When I first made Beatrix, I was unhappy with her build. Of course she was the only character that got natural 20s on anything, most often than not. No rigged die, either. It was as if she was without flaw...my DM made her a compulsive kleptomaniac, however, for just a quirk. So~~

But she was fun to play. For her Holy Sword tech, I basically just built a relic--a sword (don't remember if it was w bastard or longsword) with each of her signature moves in it usable a few times a day. They had varying damaging dice, but I don't think it was appropriate for Save the Queen to have the abilities. It comes from Beatrix's training, not a holy blade. But maybe I'm just overthinking what is really great fluff.

Anyway, yeah. The Knight PrCs look awesome, and I'll be taking a look at the Homebrew options here promptly.

Beatrix is an amazing boss. She must be done correctly.

necroon
2015-04-18, 05:05 PM
Final Fantasy 9 was the first RPG I ever played and, to date, is my favorite.
It has everything I love - The "Rogue hero", the "Freak-Show Party", the plethora of Renaissance themes... the list goes on and on.

Beatrix, though - Oh boy is she something else. I had a total crush on her as a kid, too. Just something about the way she carries herself and actually has a personality and inner struggles. I remember spending MONTHS on Super Cheats looking for ways to add her to the party permanently.

Also - have you heard this? (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNHtbw4Kyf0)

With that out of the way...

Let me know what you think. Some Martial Initiating wouldn't be bad, either. Crusader's Holy Surge certainly fit's the theme of "That Holy Sword technique that just wiped me out". And Mercy on her weapon would get you the "Left at 1HP" feel.

TheBrassDuke
2015-04-18, 05:20 PM
I know Kate Covington, actually. KatetheGreat/Erutan, singer and composer of her version of "Rose of May. It is beautiful.

Mercy sounds pretty useful, although I'm not a huge fan of Crusader. I know, I feel like that guy, lol, but already, she's monumentally powerful in any build so far. Already making a Knight of the Rose build. May battle that with my Anointed Saint, just to gauge power levels.

Edit: *puts on troll face mask* She wouldn't really be "Beatrix, The Merciless General Who Silences Even the Crying Infant" with Merciful added to her blade, now would she? :B

necroon
2015-04-18, 06:31 PM
I know Kate Covington, actually. KatetheGreat/Erutan, singer and composer of her version of "Rose of May. It is beautiful.

Mercy sounds pretty useful, although I'm not a huge fan of Crusader. I know, I feel like that guy, lol, but already, she's monumentally powerful in any build so far. Already making a Knight of the Rose build. May battle that with my Anointed Saint, just to gauge power levels.

Edit: *puts on troll face mask* She wouldn't really be "Beatrix, The Merciless General Who Silences Even the Crying Infant" with Merciful added to her blade, now would she? :B

Hard to argue with any of that, for sure.
Be sure to post your build or drop me a PM with it - I'd love to see what you come up with!

TheBrassDuke
2015-04-23, 07:45 AM
Still working on it, but I did end up testing out the two Beatrix characters. The anointed Knight murdered the Knight of the Rose. They both had the Saint Template, both wielded my custom Save the Queen and everything. Difference was the PrC. The Anointed Knight had abilities that just crushed the KotR...maybe I'll combine the two in the end.

Oh,

Alexander was said to have granted His best Warriors with divine power, but reserved the most potent of His repertoire for the most virtuous. Thus, Alexander bestowed Save the Queen to His Champions, a mighty greatsword said to have been forged by the Divine.

In its time Save the Queen was owned by many warriors, although none so memorable than "The Merciless General". She was the finest of the Gods' champions and took them down, one by one, until the battlefield was hers alone.

This ended the war.

...

http://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/fftumblr/images/8/82/FFIX_-_SavetheQueen.png/revision/latest?cb=20110526012524

Save the Queen*
Type: Shocking Keen Greatsword
Damage: NC 2d8+ (1d6 Shocking) +3 / 17-20 /x2
Damage Type: Slashing
Special: Save the Queen has a number of special powers.

*Note: Only characters of good alignment may unlock Save the Queen's extraordinary abilities. Neutral characters may world the blade, but are unable to use its extra powers. To neutral characters it will act simply as a keen greatsword of masterwork quality. Any evil-aligned creature wielding this blade gains two negative levels, and may not restore them until they no longer possess the sword.

Keen: This ability doubles the sword's that range, dropping it from 19-20 to 17-20.

Shocking: Upon command, the sword is sheathed in crackling electricity. This energy does not harm the wielder. The effect remains until another command is given. Save the Queen deals an extra 1d6 points of electricity damage on a successful hit.

Save the Queen has four special abilities usable a number of times a day.

Thunder Sword: Once per day on a successful charge attack, the wielder deals an extra 3d6 points of damage (half electricity, half divine), that rains down on the enemy in the form of a pillar of light. (Reflex DC 10 + 1/2 the wielder's character level, for half damage.)

Stock Break: On a successful hit once per day, the wielder may channel divine strength into the blow, dealing an extra 4d4 points of damage to the enemy. (Reflex DC 17 half, normal damage is unaffected.)

Climhazzard: On a successful attack, the wielder can deal an extra 6d6 points of damage. On a successful reflex save (DC 15 + 1/2 wielder's character level), the enemy takes half damage. If the enemy fails their save, they must make a DC 15 Will Save or die instantly in a burst of light. This ability is usable once a week.

Shock: Once per day the wielder can discharge a burst of electricity from the palm of her hand, which functions as a 20ft cone from a breath weapon. This ability deals 4d8 points of electricity damage (Reflex DC 20).

Manly Man
2015-04-23, 08:27 PM
To be honest, I absolutely hated Beatrix into burning for the longest time. She came across as a sort of Karma Houdini, what with having slaughtered so many people with nary a thought. She mercilessly pillaged and destroyed two cities in-game, many of them civilians that she and her troops murdered with no more provocation than just following orders, not counting what other havoc she's wreaked earlier in the story, and all she really got for it was a wrecked castle, the amoral, power-hungry warmonger of a queen she served got killed, and she finally managed to realize that she's been a heartless bint for most of her life. I highly doubt that "following orders" justifies what she did, and I would have hardly called her a good person for the majority of the story because of it. It genuinely angers me when people try to use that excuse, as though she apparently didn't know any better; I'd be more inclined to believe it if she was, say, one of Gestahl's generals from FF VI, but that's because most of his men went through extensive brainwashing and magical experiments that drove a few of them to the point of insanity, and so I would understand things better if that was the case. However, this was in fact not the case, as she knew perfectly well what she was doing when she massacred the people of Burmecia and Cleyra, and did it all with a smile on her face. Her not at least questioning things from the start, to me, is actually kind of laughable, as well as ironic, what with her status as a Holy Knight or Paladin-esque character, while in an earlier game (FF IV), we have a Dark Knight (warriors that are rather well-known for their apathy throughout most of the Final Fantasy games' settings) who knew from the get-go that something was very wrong after pillaging a city, and ultimately was disgusted when he was unwittingly used to burn a village to the ground to the point that he refused to follow orders from someone like the man his king had become ever again.

Later on, I'd begun to actually pity Beatrix, mostly because there are people who've killed themselves over things less unconscionable resting on their minds, and she still felt that she had a duty to fulfill instead of committing hara-kiri out of shame, so she had to live with that kind of guilt. That pity turned more to sympathy eventually, and while I believe that she has yet to redeem herself over doing such horrible things, she's at least trying to walk the straight and narrow again.

That I ship her with Agrias Oaks from Final Fantasy Tactics, who is probably my absolute favorite Final Fantasy character, has absolutely nothing to do with how I feel about her.

But I digress. This is all about trying to build Beatrix, not debate her moral fiber. What I would probably do is something like this:

Human
1. Warblade: Martial Study (Crusader's Strike), Martial Stance (Iron Guard's Glare)
2. Cloistered Cleric: Protection and War Domains, go for Weapon Focus (bastard sword)
3. Cloistered Cleric
4. Warblade
5. Warblade
6. Ruby Knight Vindicator
7. Ruby Knight Vindicator
8. Ruby Knight Vindicator
9. Ruby Knight Vindicator
10. Ruby Knight Vindicator
12. Ruby Knight Vindicator
13. Ruby Knight Vindicator
14. Ruby Knight Vindicator (or Warblade)
15. Ruby Knight Vindicator (or Warblade)
16. Ruby Knight Vindicator (or Warblade)
17. Warblade
18. Warblade
19. Warblade
20. Warblade

Apart from the first two feats and the first Cleric level, the rest of the build is up to you. Just make sure that she has a Wisdom of 15 by the time you finish the RKV levels, so that you can make use of her spellcasting. She'll be an excellently heavy hitter, able to take a large amount of damage as well, and with the RKV advancing her spellcasting, she'll have up to 5th-level Cleric spells, all of which emulate her in-game beautifully. Considering that her selection of White Magic is a little slim compared to Garnet or Eiko, you may want to drop a few levels of RKV for more Warblade. If you're the one DMing, you could also replace the Shadow Hand maneuvers granted by RKV with Iron Heart or Diamond Mind, since either would suit her well. Just make sure that if you do drop RKV levels, make sure that she at least has RKV 7, so that she can trade turn attempts for free swift actions.

As for Save the Queen, you should probably look into the book Weapons of Legacy. Just ignore all the penalty stuff they try to put on it though, and you'll be fine. It even gets stronger as she levels up, just as Save the Queen does in-game!

Debihuman
2015-04-23, 10:15 PM
You cannot make a keen greatsword of masterwork quality by the RAW. It has to be a magical weapon in order to have a special quality added to it. Sounds like it should be a +1 greatsword normally and a +3 shocking shocking keen greatsword in the hand's of a good character. What happens if an evil character tries to use it?

Thundering Sword should deal half electricity and half holy damage. There isn't a "divine" damage per se.

Stock break doesn't really need a save as it can only be used once a day.

Climhazard just seems inelegant. Two saves needed on an attack that can only be used once a week is a bit much.

Not sure if you have to be wielding the weapon to use shock or if you just have to have it in your possession.

Debby

TheBrassDuke
2015-04-24, 05:57 AM
Though she's called "the Merciless General Who Silences Even the Crying Infant", I'm sure Beatrix didn't wantonly butcher the civilians of Burmecia or Cleyra; in fact I'm sure she even mentions they ran the Burmecians out until they reached the palace.

Zorn and Thorn, on the other hand, followed a different set of orders. They had their magical beasts, and Brahne of course loosed her Black Mages on the people. Beatrix mentioned her women were sufficient enough to crush entire enemy armies--I doubt she really understood the full motives from the beginning. Only really after they chased the Burmecians to Cleyra did she really begin to question everything.

Remember, Brahne gave her the story of Cid and Burmecia's King plotting against her, and used Garnet's running away as a sort of excuse. "I will eliminate all enemies of Alexandria".

A poor self-defense/for Queen and Country case, but I feel once Brahne went a little kill-crazy with the Eidolons...this is where Beatrix felt guilty. A war is a war, but once it becomes a slaughter...

She may be merciless, but to enemies. Not the babies.

Digressing~~~~~~~

Masterwork quality is necessary to make a magical weapon in the first place. The rhetoric was written with lack of sleep.

Excellent suggestions. I've never looked over Ruby Knight Vindicator, but let's try it!

Also, Agrias is one of the better Paladins Final Fantasy offered. Comparing her and Beatrix...i'd compare Beatrix to Meliadoul, frankly, and Agrias to Steiner. Heart-wise and such.

Manly Man
2015-04-24, 10:35 AM
Most people compare Agrias and Beatrix because they're both righteous knights who can't spit it out that they're hard lesbian for their charges. As well, I've seen people draw more comparisons between Beatrix and General Leo in VI than any other character.

Seriously though, I do ship them. I even draw stuff myself. (http://manly-man.deviantart.com/art/The-Rosy-Oak-Waltz-472385172)

Ruby Knight Vindicator is one of the better PrCs out there, if you ask me, and probably the best divine gish one there is. Cloistered Cleric is there mostly for the skill points, since whether you picked a regular Cleric or a Cloistered one, you'd come out still missing one BAB with the two levels, so I figured it's best to squeeze what you can out of it and get your Hide and Knowledge (religion) skills as high as you can as early as you can, since Intimidate is already a class skill as a Warblade. Using Warblade to qualify for RKV is a bit harder because of the skill issues, but it's still doable, even if you have to spend more feats on it than just taking a Crusader dip; I'm mostly going with Warblade for two reasons, one being that you said already that you don't like them, but also because it fits her flavor better, or at least it does to me.

TheBrassDuke
2015-04-24, 04:16 PM
http://www.deviantart.com/art/AgriasxXxBeatrix-Other-Hearts-165190155

http://elliasmaidenhowl.deviantart.com/art/AgriasXxXBeatrix2Other-Hearts-166341812

http://elliasmaidenhowl.deviantart.com/art/Melodies-of-Life-168631654

http://elliasmaidenhowl.deviantart.com/art/AgriasxXxBeatrix-169748373

Done by my friend Shaira for our story on Proboards--Kingdom Hearts: Other Hearts. Beatrix was played by Yours Truly, while she played Agrias.

(Spoiler and Linking kept shutting my Safari app)

I think I'm going to go ahead and check out this build--better print off a character sheet! Thank you, and I'll let you know how it turned out.

Also, do you think the Saint Template is a tad much by this point?

P.s.s. I love the artwork! Very nice, favorited and all!

Oh, and this is something I was working on for Other Hearts:

http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu87/CainePorter/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpshrdswgzq.jpg

Manly Man
2015-04-25, 01:36 AM
With the Cleric casting, as well as a Warblade initiator level of 19, the Saint template is hardly necessary. If you ask me, it's a waste of space that can be spent getting two more 9th-level maneuvers, which really befits her being such a powerful swordswoman.

If you decide to trade out Shadow Hand access from RKV, I'd probably go for Iron Heart, although Diamond Mind is something you can hardly go wrong with either. For maneuvers, if you build her all the way to level 20, I'd suggest grabbing Strike of Perfect Clarity (takes four other Iron Heart maneuvers, but that's not that hard to get), Diamond Nightmare Blade (takes three Diamond Mind maneuvers, also not that hard to meet), Mountain Tombstone Strike (no prerequisites, save that your IL has to be 17!), and try to squeeze Castigating Strike in there somewhere (probably with another Martial Study at 18). Also, make sure that you take Practiced Spellcaster, preferably as soon as possible (you can get it by level 3 if you spend four points on Spellcraft from Cloistered Cleric). You'll be able to access 5th-level Cleric spells with a CL of 14 on top of all this, if you stick through all ten levels of RKV.

A few things to remember include that you can't trade out what maneuvers you get from Martial Study, and stances can't be traded at all.

I can whip up this build pretty quick for you, and we can compare when we're done, maybe with a PM? As well, I might be able to design Save the Queen as a Legacy weapon later.

TheBrassDuke
2015-04-25, 05:37 AM
Sounds like an idea! Going to read through ToB again, as it's gotten pretty dusty, and I need to freshen up my knowledge on how to use everything.

Book's been banned for so long, having the opportunity to play Bea is a good thing. :) Like morning coffee.

I've got work today, but I'll go ahead and start building afterwards.

This is exciting!

Debihuman
2015-04-25, 11:23 AM
Nifty sword here's a little reworking of its special abilities. Let me know what you think.


Thunder Sword: Once per day on a successful charge attack, the wielder deals an extra 3d6 points of damage (half electricity, half holy), that rains down on the enemy in the form of a pillar of light. A successful Reflex save (DC 10 + 1/2 the wielder's HD and Charisma modifier) halves the damage.
Stock Break: On a successful hit once per day, the wielder may channel divine strength into the blow, dealing an extra 4d4 points of damage to the enemy. A successful Reflex save (DC 10 + ½ the wielder’s HD and charisma modifier) halves the damage.
Climhazzard: Once a week on a successful critical hit, the wielder can deal an extra 6d6 points of damage. A successful Reflex save (DC 10 + ½ wielder's HD and Strength modifier) halves the damage. If the enemy fails its save, it must make a Will save at the same DC or die instantly in a burst of light.
Shock: Once per day the owner of the weapon can discharge a burst of electricity from the palm of her hand, dealing 4d8 points of electricity damage in a 20-foot cone. The owner does not need to be holding the weapon to do this damage, but must have it on her person.


Debby