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Da Beast
2015-10-12, 10:58 PM
I'm planning a gestalt slayer/swordsage for an upcoming game inspired by Sheik from The Legend of Zelda/Super Smash Bros and I'm trying to make some ranged disciplines for her to use. My first school attempts to replicate the fire, ice, and light arrows that have been part of Zelda for nearly 20 years now (over 20 for the light arrows). Right now I'm open to critiques on balance, suggestions for new maneuvers, or even just better names for the ones I already have. The tentative name for the discipline is Sun and Moon but I've also considered Sage's *something I can't decide on*, or Cosmic Rain. Currently the biggest issue is that the school has no counters; I'm considering a line of counters to grant yourself energy resistance but don't have many ideas since I'm also planning to write up a sniper discipline that would be a better fit for most counters I've come up with. My own thoughts on balance will be written in italics.

As mentioned above, this school is intended for a swordsage but I've never been a fan of schools being specific to classes and would encourage DMs to allow it for any character that it seems appropriate for. Saves should be based off of the initiator class's key mental ability score.


http://i1323.photobucket.com/albums/u585/graphixart05/zelda_light_arrow.jpg
Sun and Moon

Key Skill: Acrobatics
Favored Weapons: All bows and crossbows.

Level 1
Brilliant Arrow stance: Stance- your ranged attacks dazzle opponents.
Numbing Shot: Strike- Imbue your arrow with a numbing cold. Foes struck most make a fortitude save or have their speed reduced by half for one round.
Close Quarters Archery: Boost- Avoid drawing attacks of opportunity for one round.

Level 2
Sparking Shot: Strike- Deal bonus 1d6 fire damage with ranged attack, foe must make reflex save or catch fire.
Sage’s Arrow: Strike- Your arrow releases an elemental burst when it lands, dealing 1d6 fire or cold damage to its target and all adjacent enemies.

Level 3
Sun and Moon Stance: Stance- Add 1d6 fire or cold damage to ranged attacks, increase AoE damage of Sun and Moon strikes by 1d6.
Creeping Frost: Boost- Your arrows apply a chilling frost to your opponent that spreads with each successive shot. Opponents struck take extra damage and penalties based on the number of attacks landed.

Level 4
Stardust Shot: Strike- Your arrow releases a cloud of brilliant dust. The target struck is blinded and everyone within 20 feet is covered in reflective dust.
Bone Chilling Shot: Strike- Imbue your arrow with bone chilling cold. Arrow deals +2d6 cold damage and opponent is staggered for one round.

Level 5
Close Quarters Stance: Stance- You’re ranged attacks don’t draw attacks of opportunity, gain +4 dodge bonus against attacks of opportunity provoked by your movement.
Hail Storm: Strike- your shot conjures a sleet storm as the spell except it deals 1d6 cold and 1d6 bludgeoning damage to everyone inside and only lasts until the end of your next turn.

Level 6
Ice Plane: Strike- Creates a wall of ice, targeting either an enemy or an unoccupied square. If an enemy is struck they take -4 on their reflex save to disrupt it.
Sage’s Volley: Boost- arrows deal 2d6 fire or cold damage in to all enemies within 10 feet of their target.

Level 7
Fire Plane: Strike- Creates a wall of fire, targeting either an enemy of an unoccupied square. If an enemy is struck they take damage as if passing through the wall.
Shining Arrows: Boost- arrows deal +1d6 pure magic damage and ignore hardness and DR.

Level 8
Howling Blizzard: Stance- Gain cold resistance 20, enemies who start their turn or move next to you take 3d6 cold damage and non magical weapons may shatter. Additionally lets you walk on water or other freezable liquids.
Entombing Shot: Strike- Imbue your arrow with deathly cold. Arrow deals +5d6 cold damage and opponent is entombed in ice.

Level 9
Arrow of Light: Strike- Hit all foes in a line up to one range increment dealing 20d6 damage and ignoring damage reduction and hardness. Reflex save for half damage.

Maneuver and Stance Descriptions

Arrow of Light
Level: 9 strike (su)
Initiation Action: Standard
Range: one range increment
Target: Line
Saving Throw: Reflex half
Duration: Instantaneous

You focus your power into a single shot, transforming it into a lance of brilliant light. This shot hits all enemies in a 5 ft wide line stretching from the space you fired it from to a point designated by you at the end of your weapon’s range increment. This arrow deals 20d6 magic damage to all enemies in its path, ignoring damage reduction, hardness, and incorporeality. Enemies struck may attempt a reflex save for half damage. Enemies slain by this attack are destroyed completely, leaving only a pile and thin cloud of ash behind.

I've considered adding some sort of debuff on a failed save like blindness but I don't want to overpower this. I feel like it currently doesn't have enough impact though.

Bone Chilling Shot
Level: 4 strike (ice) (su)
Initiation Action: Standard
Range: Weapon Range
Target: One Creature
Saving Throw: Fortitude negates (stager only)
Duration: 1 round

Your arrow afflicts the target with a bone chilling cold. This functions like Numbing Shot but deals an additional 2d6 cold damage and causes your target to become staggered for one round if they fail a fortitude save. Enemies with immunity to cold damage are also immune to the stagger effect.

Brilliant Arrow Stance
Level: 1 stance (su)
Initiation Action: Swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance

Your arrows release a burst of light when the strike their targets. Enemies struck by your ranged attacks are dazzled for one round.

Close Quarters Archery
Level: 1 boost
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: Self
Duration: End of turn

Your training has taught you how to stay nimble while shooting, avoiding threats where a lesser archer would be exposed. Until the end of your turn you can make ranged attacks without drawing attacks of opportunity.

A lot of homebrew archery disciplines I've looked at give this as a level 1 stance, but I feel like its better to start with the limitations of a boost and give the stance version later. See the next one for that.

Close Quarters Stance
Level: 5 stance
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance

Your training has taught you how to stay nimble while shooting, keeping you safe while shooting and moving about the battle field. While in this stance you don’t draw attacks of opportunity for making ranged attacks while threatened and gain a +4 dodge bonus to ac against attacks of opportunity provoked by moving. This bonus stacks with the bonus granted by the mobility feat and similar bonuses.

Creeping Frost
Level: 3 boost (ice) (su)
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: Personal
Saving Throw: Fortitude negates (stagger only)
Duration: End of turn

A patch of frost spreads out from your arrow’s point of impact, growing with each successive strike. While this boost is active each attack made against the same opponent deals increasing cold damage and inflicts greater penalties.
First shot: +1 cold damage, opponent takes -2 penalty to attack rolls until the beginning of your next turn
Second shot: +1d4 cold damage, opponent takes -2 penalty to ac as well as attacks
Third shot: +1d6 cold damage and the attack and ac penalties increase to -4
Forth shot: +1d8 cold damage and the opponent must make a fortitude save or be staggered for one round
Shots beyond forth: +1d8 damage, attack and ac penalties increase by -1 for each additional shot.

The effects of this one add up to be pretty strong for a third level maneuver, but I think it's okay since if scales with number of attacks

Entombing Shot
Level: 8 strike (ice) (su)
Initiation Action: standard
Range: Weapon Range
Target: One Creature
Saving Throw: Fortitude negates
Duration: 1 round per level

Your arrow inflicts a curse of devastating cold, freezing your target inside a block of solid ice. The target of this attack takes an additional 5d6 points of cold damage and must make a fortitude save or be encased in ice completely. A frozen enemy may attempt another fortitude save to break out on their turn as a full round action. Enemies whose bodies are unnaturally hot such as a balor or remorhaz receive a +4 bonus on this save. Alternatively a frozen enemy can be set free if someone deals sufficient damage to the ice encasing them. The ice has 5 hit points per initiator level and any damage dealt to beyond its current hp is inflicted on the now freed creature inside. While frozen an enemy must hold its breath or begin to suffocate.

This one has the potential to be pretty strong against a low fortitude opponent, but I think it's balanced since you can't really hurt a trapped enemy until they're free. Heck, comparing it to white raven hammer alone makes it seem okay to me.

Fire Plane
Level: 7 strike (fire) (su)
Initiation Action: Standard
Range: Weapon Range
Target: One creature or unoccupied square within range
Saving Throw: none
Duration: one round per level

You shoot a single smoldering arrow, targeting a foe or unoccupied space within range. A wall of fire spreads from your arrow, as the spell.

Hail Storm
Level: 5 strike (ice) (su)
Initiation Action: Standard
Range: Weapon Range
Target: One creature or unoccupied square within range
Saving Throw: Reflex half
Duration: Until the end of your next turn.

As you initiate this maneuver you fire an arrow, dealing damage to your target as normal. Your shot also conjures a vicious hail storm, functioning as the spell sleet storm except as noted here. The hail storm deals 1d6 cold damage and 1d6 bludgeoning damage to any enemy inside it when it first appears and again at the beginning of your next turn. The storm dissipates at the end of your next turn.

Howling Blizzard
Level: 8 stance (ice) (su)
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: You
Saving Throw: Fortitude negates (see text)
Duration: Stance

By invoking the power of winter you cloak yourself in a freezing wind, gaining numerous benefits. You gain cold resistance 20 so long as this stance remains active and enemies who approach you are chilled by the winds, taking 3d6 cold damage if they move into or begin their turn in a square adjacent to yours. Any non magical weapons that strike you must make a fortitude save or immediately shatter. Finally, while in this stance you walk over water or similar liquids as your feet freeze the liquids surface at a touch. You leave a small trail of floating ice behind you but this ice cannot be used as stepping stones by others or have any other in game effect.

This one packs a lot of abilities into one stance, but attacks by non magical weapons should be so rare by level 15 and water walking so easy to get that I don't think it'll be a problem.

Ice Plane
Level: 6 strike (ice) (su)
Initiation Action: Standard
Range: Weapon Range
Target: One creature or unoccupied square within range
Saving Throw: Reflex negates, see text
Duration: 1 minute per level

You shoot a single frosted arrow, targeting a foe or an unoccupied space within range. A wall of ice grows from your arrow, as the spell. If your target is a creature they get a reflex save to disrupt the formation of the wall as normal, but take a -4 penalty to do so. If they fail this save you decide which side of the wall they end up on. If you are in the Sun and Moon stance the additional damage applies to anyone stepping through a broken section of the wall.

I'm not sure about the reflex penalty for the struck target, but I feel like the enemy struck should be punished beyond the damage of a single arrow.

Numbing Shot
Level: 1 strike (ice) (su)
Initiation Action: Standard
Range: Weapon range
Target: One creature
Saving Throw: Fortitude negates
Duration: Instantaneous

Your arrow numbs your opponent with cold, causing them to move more slowly. The target of this attack takes damage as normal and must make a fortitude save or have its move speed reduced by half until the end of its next turn. Creatures with immunity to cold damage are unaffected by this.

Sage’s Arrow
Level: 2 strike (fire or ice) (su)
Initiation Action: standard
Range: Weapon Range
Target: One Creature
Saving Throw: Reflex half (see text)
Duration: instantaneous

You imbue your arrow with the power of fire or ice which is then released in a burst upon landing. The target of your attack takes an additional 1d6 fire or cold damage as does everyone in a square adjacent to the target. Adjacent targets receive a reflex save for half damage but a foe struck by the arrow receives no save. You chose whether to deal fire or cold damage when you initiate this maneuver.

Sage’s Volley
Level: 6 boost (fire or ice) (su)
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: You
Saving Throw: Reflex half (see text)
Duration: End of turn

You imbue your arrows with the power of fire or ice which is then released in a burst upon landing. The target of your attack takes an additional 2d6 fire or cold damage as does everyone within 10 feet of the target. Enemies caught in the area of effect receive a reflex save for half damage but a foe struck by the arrows receives no save. You choose whether to deal fire or cold damage when you initiate this maneuver.

Shining Arrows
Level: 7 boost (su)
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: End of turn

Your arrows become imbued with a brilliant light, allowing them to pierce through any defence. Your arrows deal an additional 1d6 points of pure magic damage and ignore any damage reduction or hardness your target possesses and striking incorporeal enemies as if they had the ghost touch property.

I really don't know what level this should be at. Archery already makes it easy to overcome damage reduction so I'm not sure how much that's actually worth. If someone with more experience playing archery focused characters could give some input I'd appreciate it

Sparking Shot
Level: 2 strike (fire) (su)
Initiation Action: Standard
Range: Weapon range
Target: One creature
Saving Throw: Reflex negates
Duration: Instantaneous

You imbue your arrow with a spark that clings to your opponent, enveloping them in flames. Enemies struck by this attack must make a reflex save or catch fire, taking 1d6 fire damage on hit and then every round until a successful reflex save extinguishes the fire.

Stardust Shot
Level: 4 strike (su)
Initiation Action: Standard
Range: Weapon Range
Target: One Creature or unoccupied square within range
Saving Throw: Will negate (blindness only)
Duration: 1 round per initiator level

Your arrow releases a shower of glittering dust, coating everything in a 10 ft radius. The target struck must make a will save or be blinded. If they fail they may make a new save at the end of their turn as a free action until they either shake of the blindness of the duration expires. Regardless of whether or not they make their saves the target and everything within the 20 ft radius is coated in bright dust, causing them to take a -20 penalty to stealth checks and all invisible creatures or objects to become visible for the maneuvers duration.

Basically glitterdust but it only blinds one person. Poorly replicating a level 2 spell seems fair for a level 4 maneuver to me.

Sun and Moon Stance
Level: 3 stance (fire or ice) (su)
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance

When you activate this stance you may chose to deal fire or cold damage. Every ranged attack you make while in this stance deals an additional 1d6 of the appropriate type of damage while you remain in this stance. Additionally, any Sun and Moon maneuvers you use with an area of effect deal this damage in addition to whatever area effects the maneuver normally has. You may switch the type of damage you deal with this stance by reactivating it as a swift action.

I've considered specifying that the damage type of the stance and the aoe damage of a maneuver need to match up for them to stack, but I kind of like the idea of mixing damage types. Does that seem to ridiculous to anyone? It is magic after all.