Gnomish Fighter/Illusionist

[AMFV]

Howdy Playground!

I've recently been replaying Baldur's Gate which has reminded me of one of my favorite character archetypes from AD&D, that of the Gnomish Fighter/Illusionist. I was thinking on it and I realized that there really isn't a direct analogue to this in 3.5 or Pathfinder, at least not out of the box. I mean strictly speaking one could probably just build a gish with an Illusionist wizard side, but that doesn't seem as much fun as it could be (and fun is the best bit about Gnomes!)

So here is my challenge, to make a Gnomish character who is good at illusions and at fighting. Now I realize that in 3.5 we have the beguiler, but I would argue that's more of an analogue to a Rogue/Illusionist than the fightier option. We'd also need some way to overcome our poor gnomes small size, since in earlier editions there weren't as many problems caused by that. The build could be for either Pathfinder or 3.5, I'm mostly interested to see what people come up with, and will get bonus points for being more Gnomey than the others.

[LentilNinja]

I'll give this a try in the morning if I remember. Sounds like a fun challenge!

[Akal Saris]

Just a quick build idea: (Yes, it's using beguiler, but the goal is for a more fight-ery type than a rogue overall)

Whisper Gnome Warblade 1/Beguiler 7/Nightmare Spinner 3/Fatespinner 2/Abjurant Champion 5/Unseen Seer 2
BAB +12, CL 18
Some valuable/cool feats: Dreadful Wrath (if allowed), Power attack, Titan Fighting, Combat Casting, Two-weapon fighting, EWP: Gnome Quickrazor, Spellrazor, Craven

Special tricks:
- Nightmare spinner will allow the character to deal damage whenever an opponent becomes shaken, frightened, or panicked. The dreadful wrath feat allows attacks and spell-casting to trigger a fear aura against foes, while nightmare spinner makes illusions also have fear components (though technically gnomes can't be from the feat's region)
- Fatespinner can force a foe 1/day to reroll a save, and you can add levels to spell DC a bit
- Abjurant champion can help with burning spells for damage, etc.
- The Spellrazor feat chain (Races of Stone) lets you cast a touch spell, attack, and make an off-hand attack with the gnomish quickrazor - could be fun to do!
- Unseen Seer 1 grants sneak attack, while Craven adds character level to SA. Taken late (level 15), it can add a significant boost to damage at low cost
- Beguiler 7 and Unseen Seer 2 both give advanced learning - take these levels late in the character's development for maximum effect

[daremetoidareyo]

Does a changeling with racial emulation count?


Also,

Do we get flaws?

[AMFV]

Does a changeling with racial emulation count?

That doesn't seem terribly Gnomey and so would probably not be the closest fit, but you could make a case for it certainly. It would hardly be the most bizarre thing in 3.5. And to be fair the spirit of gnomeness does encourage bizarre things.

Flaws are good. It's not exactly a formal challenge, more a fun thing. So the more modular you make things the better. For me personally, I wouldn't make the build hinge on flaws, but you could use them to get feats more quickly or discuss alternatives if they weren't permitted.

I'm actually really interested to see how an illusion focused gish works, since that's not exactly normative for them, although we've already got at least one scary gnome.

[daremetoidareyo]

Unfortunately the best gish in a can for gnomes is probably a cleric. Take the Trickery domain and any of the following: war, gnome, illusion.

Probably cleric 3, arcane stunt (blur) swashbuckler 2, divine prankster 10, Shadowcraft mage 5
Your early BAB is offset by your late Spells. Combat panache is a must. Trickery devotion is as well.

[AMFV]

Unfortunately the best gish in a can for gnomes is probably a cleric. Take the Trickery domain and any of the following: war, gnome, illusion.

Probably cleric 3, arcane stunt (blur) swashbuckler 2, divine prankster 10, Shadowcraft mage 5
Your early BAB is offset by your late Spells. Combat panache is a must. Trickery devotion is as well.

Ah but we're not really looking for Gish-in-a-can, so much as we are for Illusionist/Fighter, which is probably easier to model other ways. Although that's certainly an interest route. I'm not sure how much Divine magic counts in terms of staying true to the spirit of it.

[nedz]

How is what you are looking for any different to a Gish who casts Illusions ?

There are plenty of Gish builds.

There are a few feats which help small characters fight, would these help ?

What is it exactly that makes the Gnomish Fighter/Illusionist unique for you ?

[AMFV]

How is what you are looking for any different to a Gish who casts Illusions ?


It is true that a gish who casts illusions is quite simple, but a Gish for whom illusions are a chief part of their build, is not as common. Focusing on illusions or utilizing illusions as an extension of combat (outside of mirror image) is substantively rare, enough to make it an interesting thought exercise.



There are plenty of Gish builds.

I know. I'm intimately familiar with many of them, but I've still not seen a Gish build where illusions were the chief focus, or even tricksyness. Nothing that just screams out "gnome"



There are a few feats which help small characters fight, would these help ?


The key I suspect is not just the two or three feats but rather a focus on combat that allows the gnome to excel.



What is it exactly that makes the Gnomish Fighter/Illusionist unique for you ?

In AD&D game terms? Not much, it's a Gish that casts illusions. This is a challenge of interpretation, if I already had a specific idea, I'd do the build, I'm fairly competent at that. I'm mostly interested to see what people come up with. When I introduce hypothetical builds challenges like this, my aim is more to see what other people come up with than to build something for a specific purpose. I think that we can make something that is more fundamentally gnomish, and more focused on the illusions, after all 3.5 contains one of the best minigames there is for character buildin'

[nedz]

Not all AD&D concepts translate into 3.5 well, even though 3.5 has many more options. Take a look at the old AD&D to 3.0 conversion handbook sometime, though really that's more of a guide to hilariously badly built characters.

I've never seen the old Elven F/Mu/T done too well, though that's mainly because the 3.5 Fighter lacks definition — it's just a collection of numbers and feats — and also the fact that 3.5 doesn't support Dex based Fighters too well.

Gnome Rogue/Mages and Bards are easy enough, and a combat Bard build may be a starting place. Something like a Bardsader perhaps ?
Bard 6 / Crusader 2 / Jade Phoenix Mage 2 / Sublime Chord 2 / Jade Phoenix Mage 8
Bard is certainly Gnomish, and it can fight and cast illusions.

A shadow based Gish might also work, but I'll leave execution of that concept to others.

There's also the concept of a Gnome Artificer riding around in a construct war machine - more of a Tinker Gnome here.

It really depends upon what you mean by Gnomish I suppose ?

[AMFV]

Just a quick build idea: (Yes, it's using beguiler, but the goal is for a more fight-ery type than a rogue overall)

Whisper Gnome Warblade 1/Beguiler 7/Nightmare Spinner 3/Fatespinner 2/Abjurant Champion 5/Unseen Seer 2
BAB +12, CL 18
Some valuable/cool feats: Dreadful Wrath (if allowed), Power attack, Titan Fighting, Combat Casting, Two-weapon fighting, EWP: Gnome Quickrazor, Spellrazor, Craven

Special tricks:
- Nightmare spinner will allow the character to deal damage whenever an opponent becomes shaken, frightened, or panicked. The dreadful wrath feat allows attacks and spell-casting to trigger a fear aura against foes, while nightmare spinner makes illusions also have fear components (though technically gnomes can't be from the feat's region)
- Fatespinner can force a foe 1/day to reroll a save, and you can add levels to spell DC a bit
- Abjurant champion can help with burning spells for damage, etc.
- The Spellrazor feat chain (Races of Stone) lets you cast a touch spell, attack, and make an off-hand attack with the gnomish quickrazor - could be fun to do!
- Unseen Seer 1 grants sneak attack, while Craven adds character level to SA. Taken late (level 15), it can add a significant boost to damage at low cost
- Beguiler 7 and Unseen Seer 2 both give advanced learning - take these levels late in the character's development for maximum effect

That's an awesome build, my only concern would be the fairly low BAB which seems less than would be ideal, although it's a good starter build.


Not all AD&D concepts translate into 3.5 well, even though 3.5 has many more options. Take a look at the old AD&D to 3.0 conversion handbook sometime, though really that's more of a guide to hilariously badly built characters.

Well definitely if we're going for as strict a mechanical match as possible. But flavorwise there are certainly ways to do everything fairly closely. Definitely with sufficient planning and sourcing. I mean there are people who have figured out how to build various superheros in D&D 3.5, and those are generally much wilder.



I've never seen the old Elven F/Mu/T done too well, though that's mainly because the 3.5 Fighter lacks definition — it's just a collection of numbers and feats — and also the fact that 3.5 doesn't support Dex based Fighters too well.


I think probably the best fit for that would be the Factotum, sure it isn't the best at fighting or magic, but a F/M/T wasn't either being several levels behind on that count. It's definitely got the right feel if you build it correctly. It's also fairly close fluffwise, being a jack-of-all trades and all.

There are probably dozens of other ways to do this (Several involving uncanny trickster or legacy champion no doubt), but that's the one I would use.



Gnome Rogue/Mages and Bards are easy enough, and a combat Bard build may be a starting place. Something like a Bardsader perhaps ?
Bard 6 / Crusader 2 / Jade Phoenix Mage 2 / Sublime Chord 2 / Jade Phoenix Mage 8
Bard is certainly Gnomish, and it can fight and cast illusions.


That's definitely a good fit, although I would feel that it would be slightly less like the AD&D one as it's Cha focused (although that shift in paradigm may be irreconcilable)

My question is this: How is this different from a regular Gish? What would you do to make this standout as a Gnomish Fighter/Illusionist, as opposed to just a standard Gish.



A shadow based Gish might also work, but I'll leave execution of that concept to others.

There's also the concept of a Gnome Artificer riding around in a construct war machine - more of a Tinker Gnome here.

It really depends upon what you mean by Gnomish I suppose ?

True, and I'm interested to see where people take that.

[Florian]

The PF solution can actually be pretty easy:
- Gnome Fighter into Shadowdancer (Now with more Illusions and shadow spells!)
- Occultist wth the Illusion Implement
- Vexing Daredevil Mesmerist with a one level Fighter dip

[AMFV]

The PF solution can actually be pretty easy:
- Gnome Fighter into Shadowdancer (Now with more Illusions and shadow spells!)


I'm not really seeing any spells outside of a couple of SLAs, although to be fair that's probably one way to demonstrate the concept. It would certainly be illusory, we might want to look into a different entry though.



- Occultist wth the Illusion Implement
- Vexing Daredevil Mesmerist with a one level Fighter dip

And those two I think have the opposite problem, they're quite good at illusions, but not exactly good at fighting as well. Although probably almost passable. We'd need some PrC support I think to make this concept really work in Pathfinder.

The bases in PF are better for it though, I think.

[daremetoidareyo]

Let's talk tactics.

Mirror image, invisibility, and blur are all obvious. Disguise self or alter self seem necessary also.

I think the idea is to make the opponent feel like they are trying to fight bugs bunny, right?

Major image is probably the mindbenderiest thing. It probably pairs super well with swift invisibility and combat panache's feign death. Where your mirror image pretends to die as you, while you run away, alter self, and begin sniping from the woods as a random hobgoblin attacker.

You probably want a combination of illusionary walls and the ability to summon real walls. I think arcane fusion might be able to give us what we want. Where we conjure both a real thing and a 1st level illusion of the same thing.

Baleful transposition seems like it would combine super well with any illusion.
You probably want access to transmutation so that you can get wonky bursts of speed.

What else is necessary for the illusionist arsenal when you think of fighter/illusionist?

So beyond making people attack blurry mirror image versions of yourself, what else do we need?

[AMFV]

Let's talk tactics.

Mirror image, invisibility, and blur are all obvious. Disguise self or alter self seem necessary also.

I think the idea is to make the opponent feel like they are trying to fight bugs bunny, right?

Major image is probably the mindbenderiest thing. It probably pairs super well with swift invisibility and combat panache's feign death. Where your mirror image pretends to die as you, while you run away, alter self, and begin sniping from the woods as a random hobgoblin attacker.

You probably want a combination of illusionary walls and the ability to summon real walls. I think arcane fusion might be able to give us what we want. Where we conjure both a real thing and a 1st level illusion of the same thing.

Baleful transposition seems like it would combine super well with any illusion.
You probably want access to transmutation so that you can get wonky bursts of speed.

What else is necessary for the illusionist arsenal when you think of fighter/illusionist?

So beyond making people attack blurry mirror image versions of yourself, what else do we need?

Well basically we need illusions that pair well with our combat strategy (which could be fairly diverse). The idea of using illusions to trick enemies initially, is pretty important. So we'd probably want some Bluff or something like that to aid in that sort of thing.

As far as the magical side, tactics would be varied but...

This (http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?PHPSESSID=suebevo42fso8rj3jhsh4kdaa2&topic=394.msg8096#msg8096) may be of some help on the subject.

[nedz]

Oh I know my illusions, I've played plenty of those, it's the fighter side I'm having trouble with — without losing too many caster levels, and making it Gnomey — though I do have some ideas.

The Bluff thing does point to Charisma, which implies Sorcerer or Bard.

[AMFV]

Oh I know my illusions, I've played plenty of those, it's the fighter side I'm having trouble with — without losing too many caster levels, and making it Gnomey — though I do have some ideas.

The Bluff thing does point to Charisma, which implies Sorcerer or Bard.

That is tricky. I'm looking at TreantMonk's thing and I'm noticing that a lot of illusions would enable sneak attacking, which fits with the hook hammer (very Gnomey), since dual wielding works for that, and is a style where small characters aren't really hurt. But getting all of that and then having the BAB to actually be an effective fighter would be a serious pain.

Oh, on the Charisma thing, I wasn't criticizing, I was mostly noting. I realize that the conversion to 3.5 may not be perfect, it was more intended as an observation than a critique, after all I did ask for innovative builds, so criticizing the people working on it wouldn't be good, and you folks are churning out some amazing stuff already.

[Troacctid]

I think you want to be an Illusionist Wizard. The ACFs are too good, particularly Immediate Magic and the Gnome Wizard substitution level at 1st.

[Florian]

And those two I think have the opposite problem, they're quite good at illusions, but not exactly good at fighting as well. Although probably almost passable. We'd need some PrC support I think to make this concept really work in Pathfinder.

The bases in PF are better for it though, I think.

Both are surprisingly good weapon-based combatants and consistently perform better than their 3/4 BAB would suggest. The occultists Illusion implement has souped up versions of spells as SLAs that will always perform better than the spell it is based on.

[nedz]

Oh, on the Charisma thing, I wasn't criticizing, I was mostly noting. I realize that the conversion to 3.5 may not be perfect, it was more intended as an observation than a critique, after all I did ask for innovative builds, so criticizing the people working on it wouldn't be good, and you folks are churning out some amazing stuff already.

Sure, one could use Beguiler, they get Bluff, but they are missing the Shadow line.

Now the Penumbra Bloodline ( Dragon Compendium) will get you Shadow evocation and Greater shadow evocation, as well as other useful stuff such as Evard's black tentacles and Plane shift though you do lose access to any light spells.

The standard trick to get Shadow conjuration and Greater shadow conjuration is to dip one level of some full casting Prc before Beguiler 7, and another 2 levels before Beguiler 14 — which interferers with any Gish progression you might have been hoping for.

{F2 / Beguiler 6} / Abjurant Champion 1 / Beguiler +1 / {Abjurant Champion +2 / Beguiler +4} / Abjurant Champion +2 / X 2 {not necessarily in this order} where F is some full BAB class.

Would seem to solve this problem, so
{F1 / Beguiler 6} / Spellsword 1 / Abjurant Champion 1 / Beguiler +1 / {Abjurant Champion +2 / Beguiler +4} / Abjurant Champion +2 / X 2 {not necessarily in this order} where F is some full BAB class.
Would work also.

Still missing several important spells though: Shield, Mirage Arcana, various high level illusions, Shades, to name a few

[Troacctid]

Okay. Picture this. You see a little tiny gnome walking along, whistling a little tune, whatever, no big deal. You decide to pick a fight because you're a tough guy and you're feeling pugnacious today. "Hey, pipsqueak!" you shout. "Is that your hair or did someone drop a dead rodent on your head?" The gnome turns around, looks at you, and waggles his fingers mysteriously. All of a sudden, he vanishes. Then, out of thin air, an unseen force leaps on top of you, clawing, slashing, biting, and burning you all at the same time. You fall to the ground as if a 500-pound weight had just been dropped on top of you. Just as you start to fade out of consciousness, you see the gnome flicker back into visibility, standing on your chest.

"Nobody dropped anything on my head," he says, "but I just dropped me on yours."

Race: Forest Gnome with the Mulhorandi Divine Minion (Anhur)Web (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/mb/20050209a) template

TotemistMoI (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ex/20050907a&page=3) 2/Illusionist 3/SoulcasterMoI 9/Abjurant ChampionCM 5
1. Incarnum SpellshapingMoI, Multiattack (via flaw), Apprentice (Criminal)DMG2 (via flaw)
3. Combat Casting, Martial Study (Burning Blade)ToB (via Wizard bonus feat)
6. Spell Focus (Illusion)
9. Arcane StrikeCW
12. ProteusEE
15. Frozen Wild ShapeFr
18. Double Chakra (Totem)MoI

Use the Gnome IllusionistRS, Immediate MagicPH2, Fighter bonus featUA (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#wizard), Shadow ShaperUA (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/specialistWizardVariants.htm#illusionistVariants), and Focused SpecialistCM variants. Banned schools are necromancy, enchantment, and evocation.

Typical soulmelds shaped:
Crown: Shedu Crown (bound) for telepathy
Feet: Urskan Greaves (bound) for extra damage on a charge
Hands: Worg Pelt (bound) for a free trip attack on a successful bite
Arms: Girallon Arms (bound to totem) for more claw attacks and better grapples
Shoulders: Phase Cloak (bound) to become ethereal while moving
Heart: Blink Shirt (unbound) for at-will teleports

Divine Minion is hilarious for a character like this because when you can turn invisible at a whim, your opponents will have no idea that you just transformed into a lion. All they see is an unarmed, unarmored gnome, and the next thing they know, they're getting hit with a dozen natural attacks out of nowhere. With Urskan Greaves, Burning Blade, and Arcane Strike, you're adding a giant fistful of dice to every attack you make, and with the four claw attacks from Girallon Arms on top of the lion's normal claw-claw-bite routine, plus two rakes, a free grapple attempt, and another rake if the grapple succeeds.

The Proteus feat allows you to cast any glamer spell as an immediate action by sacrificing another spell slot of the same level, as well as allowing you to spontaneously cast any glamer spell by sacrificing a spell slot of a higher level. The former is more important, because it makes illusions fantastic on defense. (As a Focused Specialist, you have spell slots to spare.) Blinding Color SurgePH2 is excellent for this, as it both turns you invisible an blinds an enemy, and it's only a 2nd level spell; it's one of my favorite illusions in general, and even more amazing than usual for this build. Displacement and Greater Invisibility are good old standbys as well. Of course, it's not just defense: at higher levels, an immediate-action Illusory PitSpC is a fantastically action-efficient way to knock a whole group of enemies out of the fight completely.

Once you get Frozen Wild Shape, you can upgrade to UrskanFr form for improved damage and higher Strength; just bind the Sphinx Claws soulmeld to your hands in order to retain the pounce ability. You also get access to Hoary SteedEL (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/epic/monsters/hoaryHunter.htm) form if you need better AC and a faster flight speed, and Ice ToadFr form if you just feel like eating someone who annoys you. Remember, of course, that you can change forms as a free action, so switch as much as you like.

[AMFV]

Sure, one could use Beguiler, they get Bluff, but they are missing the Shadow line.

Now the Penumbra Bloodline ( Dragon Compendium) will get you Shadow evocation and Greater shadow evocation, as well as other useful stuff such as Evard's black tentacles and Plane shift though you do lose access to any light spells.

The standard trick to get Shadow conjuration and Greater shadow conjuration is to dip one level of some full casting Prc before Beguiler 7, and another 2 levels before Beguiler 14 — which interferers with any Gish progression you might have been hoping for.

{F2 / Beguiler 6} / Abjurant Champion 1 / Beguiler +1 / {Abjurant Champion +2 / Beguiler +4} / Abjurant Champion +2 / X 2 {not necessarily in this order} where F is some full BAB class.

Would seem to solve this problem, so
{F1 / Beguiler 6} / Spellsword 1 / Abjurant Champion 1 / Beguiler +1 / {Abjurant Champion +2 / Beguiler +4} / Abjurant Champion +2 / X 2 {not necessarily in this order} where F is some full BAB class.
Would work also.

Still missing several important spells though: Shield, Mirage Arcana, various high level illusions, Shades, to name a few

I was actually aiming for Wizard, even if that's a rough fit. Of course Bard is a workable fit, as I said. I'm just interested to see what we come up with. I think we've got the "mage" half down in both 3.5 and PF, the question is largely integrating that with the "fighter" half.


Okay. Picture this. You see a little tiny gnome walking along, whistling a little tune, whatever, no big deal. You decide to pick a fight because you're a tough guy and you're feeling pugnacious today. "Hey, pipsqueak!" you shout. "Is that your hair or did someone drop a dead rodent on your head?" The gnome turns around, looks at you, and waggles his fingers mysteriously. All of a sudden, he vanishes. Then, out of thin air, an unseen force leaps on top of you, clawing, slashing, biting, and burning you all at the same time. You fall to the ground as if a 500-pound weight had just been dropped on top of you. Just as you start to fade out of consciousness, you see the gnome flicker back into visibility, standing on your chest.

"Nobody dropped anything on my head," he says, "but I just dropped me on yours."

Race: Forest Gnome with the Mulhorandi Divine Minion (Anhur)Web (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/mb/20050209a) template

TotemistMoI (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ex/20050907a&page=3) 2/Illusionist 3/SoulcasterMoI 9/Abjurant ChampionCM 5
1. Incarnum SpellshapingMoI, Multiattack (via flaw), Apprentice (Criminal)DMG2 (via flaw)
3. Combat Casting, Martial Study (Burning Blade)ToB (via Wizard bonus feat)
6. Spell Focus (Illusion)
9. Arcane StrikeCW
12. ProteusEE
15. Frozen Wild ShapeFr
18. Double Chakra (Totem)MoI

Use the Gnome IllusionistRS, Immediate MagicPH2, Fighter bonus featUA (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#wizard), Shadow ShaperUA (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/specialistWizardVariants.htm#illusionistVariants), and Focused SpecialistCM variants. Banned schools are necromancy, enchantment, and evocation.

Typical soulmelds shaped:
Crown: Shedu Crown (bound) for telepathy
Feet: Urskan Greaves (bound) for extra damage on a charge
Hands: Worg Pelt (bound) for a free trip attack on a successful bite
Arms: Girallon Arms (bound to totem) for more claw attacks and better grapples
Shoulders: Phase Cloak (bound) to become ethereal while moving
Heart: Blink Shirt (unbound) for at-will teleports

Divine Minion is hilarious for a character like this because when you can turn invisible at a whim, your opponents will have no idea that you just transformed into a lion. All they see is an unarmed, unarmored gnome, and the next thing they know, they're getting hit with a dozen natural attacks out of nowhere. With Urskan Greaves, Burning Blade, and Arcane Strike, you're adding a giant fistful of dice to every attack you make, and with the four claw attacks from Girallon Arms on top of the lion's normal claw-claw-bite routine, plus two rakes, a free grapple attempt, and another rake if the grapple succeeds.

The Proteus feat allows you to cast any glamer spell as an immediate action by sacrificing another spell slot of the same level, as well as allowing you to spontaneously cast any glamer spell by sacrificing a spell slot of a higher level. The former is more important, because it makes illusions fantastic on defense. (As a Focused Specialist, you have spell slots to spare.) Blinding Color SurgePH2 is excellent for this, as it both turns you invisible an blinds an enemy, and it's only a 2nd level spell; it's one of my favorite illusions in general, and even more amazing than usual for this build. Displacement and Greater Invisibility are good old standbys as well. Of course, it's not just defense: at higher levels, an immediate-action Illusory PitSpC is a fantastically action-efficient way to knock a whole group of enemies out of the fight completely.

Once you get Frozen Wild Shape, you can upgrade to UrskanFr form for improved damage and higher Strength; just bind the Sphinx Claws soulmeld to your hands in order to retain the pounce ability. You also get access to Hoary SteedEL (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/epic/monsters/hoaryHunter.htm) form if you need better AC and a faster flight speed, and Ice ToadFr form if you just feel like eating someone who annoys you. Remember, of course, that you can change forms as a free action, so switch as much as you like.

Awesome. Physical comedy is probably the highest form of gnomeness.