Optimize this Feat 7: Mark of Phlegethos from Fiendish Codex 2: Tot9H

[daremetoidareyo]

I Love Feats. They are little alterations to the rules and they interface with class features in some really fun and strange ways. Sometimes their utility is circumspect and sometimes they just stink. I'm looking at you Battle Dance. However, there is just something really satisfying about the interplay of feats and rules to produce illogical and unintended effects. Also, as a team, we can collectively push the limits of our apparent intelligence. (https://www.singularityweblog.com/human-swarming-and-the-future-of-collective-intelligence/)

What is this?
So this is the "Optimize this feat" discussion, wherein we work together to plumb the clever and amazing uses for feats in ways the designers could have only dreamt of. Arbitrary credit seems to be important to sway people's incentives, so I have devised the following system to award credit to people who help explore the possibilities of how to use a feat. I'm developing this pseudo-contest on the fly, so rules are subject to change :smallannoyed:


All participants in the optimization endeavor post directly into the thread. They may post as many times as they want, just like any thread where you volunteer your ideas. After a week or so, the thread will be evaluated and participants will be assigned a score. That score represents how helpful or novel the poster was in their analysis of a feat's uses, abuses, interactions, and limitations. The rubric by which points are assigned to posters is developed below. The poster's who are most helpful will be announced after a week, and have their name highlighted in bold and in a font color other than black! I will try to remain interactive in the process, because the contest element to me is secondary to extracting the maximum amount of versatility and power out of the feat resource.


Point Allocation Rubric
The following list is not exhaustive of how points will be allocated, as I imagine that there will be weird end cases.

Suggestion of a non-overtly obvious class feature, spell, feat, skill trick, psi-power, magic/psionic item, or monster that interplays with the feat to produce an exaggerated result.

Overt Obviousness will be judged by me, but I will generally allocate points generously, What I am trying to avoid is people suggesting feat interplays that are non-exceptional and thus cluttering the thread with lame and uninteresting things. 1 point.

If the suggestion is particularly powerful or clever, an additional point may be allocated to reward the optimizerly thinking. This decision is mine, although I will be swayed by what seems like genuine "co-signing," where other posters in the thread really glom onto the idea and develop it further.

A small build stub, between 5-12 levels, that includes a small write up of how the feat interplays with a few class features, racial features, spells, powers and feats to produce an effect that is far beyond the scope of what the feat of the week is capable of providing on its own. 5 points. +/- 1 point.

A rather undeveloped stub may only receive 4 points if it is a slightly modified rehash of a previous stub. A rather ingenious stub can earn an extra point. In some cases, you may actually do both! All of these are judgement calls as adjudicated by myself.

A fully functional optimization of the feat that ramps it up to its maximum power level where there is no way to possibly make it more amazing, including a 20 level build that follows the same format as iron chef dishes, but with minimal write up, is worthy of 10-12 points.

As the Chair, I will remain interactive throughout the thread, even suggesting a few builds. Commenting on these is fine and all of the rubric points apply to those as well. This means that the thread is not a totally objective competition.

A display of relevant rules expertise that shapes the discussion is worthy of 0 or 1 point. This is the "squishiest" criteria, and will only be allocated when it corrects part of the conversation that is going too far off the rails. Particularly nasty interchanges about RAW may lead to abdication of this point. Being incorrect isn't an immoral offense, so I want an atmosphere where suggestions are flying but staying generally within the real bounds of dnd play. RAW discussions tend to get a little too personal, and hopefully this arbitrary point system can circumvent that. Plus, seeing as how extensive the rules system is, it is easy for me to get excited about how to make an idea work and get lost about the details.

Bounties. Starting with Optimize this feat #5, I am instating an additional means of accumulating bonus points: Bounties. You will find the bounties and their point values in a spoiler on the bottom of the second post, underneath the relevant rules excerpts and clarifications. A Bounty is a "winner-take-all" style miniquest for users to provide information relevant to optimizing the feat. The hope is to allow these "Optimize this Feat" contests can serve as a longform mini-handbook to the use of their namesake feats.


BIAS
I am not a perfect judge. I prefer mundane to magical. I prefer Tier 3 and below to Tier 2 and up. But I do love me some dysfunction. So optimization that requires a lot of high level spells or powers (anything level 4 or up) will be less impressive to me. Go ahead and make your suggestion, I will try to police these biases in myself, but understand that these are factors that are in play.

Other information
All of that said, I have an exhibited tendency to be more forgiving/rules lax, whereas some of you are far more RAW heavy. I really do appreciate ya'll, so don't be afraid to reign in some of the theory and ground it in what is explicitly allowed. Different tables play the game differently. And this forum tends to highlight super polarized ends of this permissiveness spectrum that spans from "RAW to a fault" - "So ridiculously theoretically unbalanced beyond any DM's willingness to allow". Most play tends to be in the middle, if not a little skewed towards RAW: but not all play. With that in mind, if requested, if you are asked to assume that the theoretical DM handwaves your criticism as a special exception, please update your approach and proceed from there if you would like to continue to parse the possibilities that a feat offers. In this way, we can develop the full spectrum of what a feat can do.

This week's Feat is Fiendish Codex 2's Mark of Phlegethos p.85

This endeavor concludes at 11:59PM Eastern Standard Time on March 20th.


Optimize this Feat 1:Wanderer's Diplomacy (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?472308-Optimize-This-Feat-1-Wanderer-s-Diplomacy): VAZ
Optimize this Feat 2: Conductivity (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?473047-Optimize-this-Feat-2-Conductivity-from-Unearthed-Arcana&highlight=Conductivity): ben-zayb
Optimize this Feat 3: Swim-by Attack (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?474225-Optimize-this-feat-3-Swim-by-attack-from-Stormwrack): WhamBamSam
Optimize this Feat 4: Contagious Paralysis (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?476019-Optimize-this-Feat-4-Contagious-Paralysis-from-Libris-Mortis) WhamBamSam
Optimize this Feat 5: Hammer and Piton (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?477681-Optimize-this-Feat-5-Hammer-and-Piton-From-Dungeonscape) Zetapup
Optimize this Feat 6: Residual Rebound (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?479041-Optimize-this-Feat-6-Residual-Rebound-from-Unearthed-Arcana&p=20493024#post20493024) ben-zayb


Upcoming Schedule:

Don't post your ideas for these on the wrong competition. Save em. Unleash your brilliance on us.

Optimize this feat #8: Fey Feature's (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/fey/20030815a) Seelie Court Noble Kelir (web)
Optimize this feat #9: Races of Faerun's Animal friends p.161
Optimize this feat #10:To Be Determined ...(could be your suggestion! make a post and I'll consider it.)

[daremetoidareyo]

The feat in question requires the prerequisite feat of Brand of Nine Hells, which has the following special note: Nondevils can gain this feat, and the feats that require it as a prerequisite, by performing a particularly useful act for an archduke of Hell. This option is unavailable to player characters (unless a DM rules otherwise).

We will be assuming that the optimizer has received permission to take that Feat and feats that require it as a pre-req.


The disturbing infatuation of physical pleasure and pain has indelibly touched your mind, enabling to draw strength from your own suffering, as well as that of others.
Prerequisite: Brand of the Nine Hells (FC2), allegiance to Belial or Fierna
Benefit: You gain your master's or mistress's penchant for perverse sensuality. Whenever you take or deal damage, you gain 1 pleasure point. You can spend a single pleasure point as a swift action to gain a +4 bonus on your next attack roll, save, or ability or skill check. Accumulated pleasure points disappear at the end of the encounter.


Because you need allegiance with Belial or Fierna, you also receive this benefit from Brand of the 9 hells:
"The brand of Fierna and Belial consumes you, infesting your thoughts with sinister urges. Once per round, you can use a melee touch attack to bestow these dark impulses on another creature. The target of this ability must make a Will save (DC 10 + 1/2 your HD + your Cha modifier). If it fails this save, the target is dazed for 1 round, lost in starry dreams of endless treasure, arcane might, and wishes fulfilled. You can use this mind-affecting ability once every 1d4 rounds."

Optimization methods & ideas
1.) Generating many reliable instances of HP loss on self or others
2.) Obtaining extra swift actions
3.) Prolonging what is considered an "encounter"
4.) synergies that would really appreciate a +4 to the check.

Bounty

Bounty 1: How to get Additional Swift Actions per round on one character
Each monster, PC race, template, class feature, spell, power, vestige, feat, or other mechanism that a user identifies that grants an additional swift action per round is worth a point.

The user or users that suggest the highest number receives all of the points.
e.g. if OMGPonies suggests 6 spells and Zetapup identifies 8 entries from random sources Zetapup would win 14 points on the bounty (6+8). Zeta suggested the most entries, and thus won.

If more than 1 poster ties for first place, the pot of bounties will be split evenly between all winners of the bounty. If fewer than 10 points worth of methods to get extra swifts are identified, the bounty becomes 10 points and is allocated to the person or persons who suggested the greatest number of swifts.

First come first serve, I only count unique entries. (e.g. if john says synad 1 point is added to pool, if Jake says synad 2 posts later, even if from a different source, no more points are added to the pool)

Pathfinder doesn't count.

If you are seeking the Bounty, Clearly label it. The bottom of your post should look like this. Any book outside of the PHB needs (a) guessable citation(s) that includes page numbers.

[daremetoidareyo]

Reserved just in case

[Troacctid]

Well, just as the baseline, this gives you +4 on every active skill check you make. That's not bad. It's like Skill Focus (literally every skill), except with a better bonus.

Accumulating pleasure points is very easy, because you can just prick yourself to draw a little blood and take 1 damage, or do the same to a willing ally. If you're worried about the damage adding up, you could take a glacier snake familiar for fast healing.

This seems decent on a Truenamer. +4 to truespeak checks.

[ATHATH]

I don't see any restriction that keeps you from spending more than one PP on a single check...

[daremetoidareyo]

I don't see any restriction that keeps you from spending more than one PP on a single check...

"Swift Action (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/combat/actionsInCombat.htm)
A swift action consumes a very small amount of time, but represents a larger expenditure of effort and energy than a free action. You can perform only a single swift action per turn."

[Darrin]

I don't see any restriction that keeps you from spending more than one PP on a single check...

The "single pleasure point as a swift action" means 1 PP per swift action. So unless you can get multiple swift actions per turn, you're likely stuck with 1 PP per check.

For multiple swift actions... RKV has Divine Impetus, but it has some RAW issues: (Su) abilities default to a standard action unless specified otherwise.

Synad gets an additional swift action once per day.

And... I think that's it?

[daremetoidareyo]

The "single pleasure point as a swift action" means 1 PP per swift action. So unless you can get multiple swift actions per turn, you're likely stuck with 1 PP per check.

For multiple swift actions... RKV has Divine Impetus, but it has some RAW issues: (Su) abilities default to a standard action unless specified otherwise.

Synad gets an additional swift action once per day.

And... I think that's it?

Actually, synad has the exact same problem. But I think it is a commonly enough houseruled thing to assume that the spending of the power point or the turn attempt is a thing that you can do for free, which then activates the SU ability in both of those cases, and therefor those SU are exceptions to typical SU rules in that the text specifies that they allow swift actions.

There's at least two more that I can think of, but I'll toss them on top of the heap if no-one gets it.

[ATHATH]

Doesn't the Ruby Knight Vindicator get a bunch of Swift actions?

[daremetoidareyo]

Does a hydra get extra swift actions per head?

[ben-zayb]

Tear a piece of paper. Now tear those torn pieces again. Repeat as necessary, substituting literally any object.


What?

[Deadline]

I'm not sure extra Swift Actions will help. Sure the PP bonus is untyped, but if you spent two in one round, they still wouldn't stack because they come from the same source, right?

[daremetoidareyo]

What symbiont would this feat be helpful on? First to come to mind is the cerbral hood, which stinks at grappling, but with the brand of 9hells daze effect and a +4 on grappling...

At low levels, a tentacle whip can make it's own attacks, but it only has 2 HD, so getting two feats onto it will be tricky.

http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?190350-Fleshwarping-A-List-of-Grafts-Symbionts-and-Related-Goodies

BOVD has the sadism and masochism traits under fetishes and addictions on page 10, which grants two separate +1 circumstance bonuses. If a masochist takes damage equal to his character level in a round, he gains a +1 circumstance bonus on attack and damage rolls, skill checks, and saving throws for the next round. If a sadist inflicts damage equal to her character level in a round, she gains a +1 circumstance bonus on attack and damage rolls, skill checks, and saving throws for the next round.

Notice how the sadist doesn't exclude the self as a target of hp damage? A tainted battle sorcerer specializing in SR:no touch attacks can get +6 to attack rolls every turn.

Armor of the dread emporer begs some questions, but might be able to quintuple your pleasure points. (You take damage, your 4 chained children take damage).

This is just spit balling, but if you had an aberrant wildshape druid dip kensai and enchant their own fists to be fleshgrinding weapons, when they wildshape into a tentacle whip...they can be wielded...and released...


I'm not sure extra Swift Actions will help. Sure the PP bonus is untyped, but if you spent two in one round, they still wouldn't stack because they come from the same source, right?

This depends on the exact circumstances and the granularity of your DM. Multiple +4's attached to different attack rolls and skill checks would work just fine. Might actually be helpful for a flurry of misses.


Stacking
In most cases, modifiers to a given check or roll stack (combine for a cumulative effect) if they come from different sources and have different types (or no type at all), but do not stack if they have the same type or come from the same source (such as the same spell cast twice in succession). If the modifiers to a particular roll do not stack, only the best bonus and worst penalty applies. Dodge bonuses and circumstance bonuses however, do stack with one another unless otherwise specified.

So, if you want to stack the +4s onto a single roll, the wordage of the feat makes it weird. Because the "source" isn't a super well defined term. We take it as forgranted that a barbarian can't "double rage" stacking those untyped rage bonuses, and a 1st level caster can't quintuple cast magic weapon on your hammer to make it a +5.

The source of the ability is the feat itself, the ability to trade Pleasure points for +4 untyped bonuses are all coming from the feat as a source. This is the most direct interpretation, and as such, would imply that you cannot stack those untyped boni as they are coming from the same "source". This implies that if you took multiple instances of this same feat, you would have three different pleasure point pools that you could use to make them all stack...but the feats that typically allow taking the feat multiple times typically state that one is allowed to do that.

A more hopeful but literalist interpretation is to claim that the +4 bonus come from the expenditure of pleasure points, and each pleasure point is directly tied to damage dealt. The source of each of those bonus is therefor different. In the same way that an ally using aid another is just an ally, One pleasure point has a different identity than another pleasure point, as they have their own metadata. Just as allies that aid another have stackable bonuses, a pleasure point is a grouping of convenience, like the term ally, and therefor, the bonuses should stack. This person would also contend that two allies of the exact same name would not have stacking bonuses, because they are a game element with the same name, and therefor are the same source.

The literalist debate with that interpretation would be that all pleasure points derive their value from the feat. Each pleasure point is just an abstraction from the same source, therefor all of the pleasure points are caused by the same source. Further, The game element has the same name ("pleasure point") so the untyped bonuses don't stack, regardless of they are supposed to represent.

So it looks like they may not stack...I'm not seeing a compelling reason for how they could...
and...final nail in coffin (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/rg/20040210a)

[Jormengand]

According to Table: Coins, a GP is 1/10 of a PP. Of course, only the side headings have explanations of what PP are, so you can argue that power points and, more worryingly, pleasure points can be spent as 10 GP each.

Also, the following from the psionic rules:


You can manifest the same power multiple times if you have points left to pay for it.

The more points spent, the more powerful the manifestation.

So you may be able to spend power points, reducing the power points you have below zero, so long as the number of points - experience, hit or pleasure - you have is enough to cover it; you don't even have to spend them, just watch as your power point number plummets below zero.

Also, you may be able to spend pleasure points to augment powers.

From the Craft Points variant rule:


To craft an item without spending the normal labor time, a character with the appropriate item creation feat (such as Craft Masterwork Armor, Brew Potion, or Craft Staff; see below) can pay one-tenth the item's market price in craft points (minimum 1 point).

It doesn't specify what type of point the minimum is, so it's possible you could pay a pleasure point instead of a craft point. I assume, of course, that it's one tenth of its platinum cost, not its gold cost, riiiight? :smallamused:

EDIT: Reputation is measured in points, and there's nothing that says you can't use pleasure points. If you beat up a monster, you've "earn[ed] at least a ½-point increase by succeeding on an adventure", right? There must be a way to convert pleasure points to generic points and then convince those generic points that they're, like, experience points, right?

EDIT EDIT: Because damage with a duration is weird (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=20463540&postcount=431), ice storm will get you infinite PP if you use delay death hax to make people immune to death by hit point damage, or target it on a creature with regeneration like a troll. Wall of Fire and Call Lightning are disputed but may also do the same thing; no-one seems to have disputed ice storm.

EDIT EDIT EDIT: You can spend pleasure points if you fail your will save against an amulet of catapsi.

[daremetoidareyo]

According to Table: Coins, a GP is 1/10 of a PP. Of course, only the side headings have explanations of what PP are, so you can argue that power points and, more worryingly, pleasure points can be spent as 10 GP each.

Also, the following from the psionic rules:



So you may be able to spend power points, reducing the power points you have below zero, so long as the number of points - experience, hit or pleasure - you have is enough to cover it; you don't even have to spend them, just watch as your power point number plummets below zero.

Also, you may be able to spend pleasure points to augment powers.

HA!
Language is stupid. So, do you just have a list of times the word "points" were used with additional contextual suppositions in the surrounding text that the points being talked about were of a specific kind?

What's funny about that is how ability damage and hp damage often break down when you start stacking ability damage with effects meant for hp damage. The writers get a little myopic about what damage is, and the next thing you know, there is a craven killoren order of the bow initiate out there maiming strike from a distance for 20 charisma damage per shot.

The same thing is happening with your suggestion about unmodified "points" in the context of mark of phlegm.

[Jormengand]

HA!
Language is stupid. So, do you just have a list of times the word "points" were used with additional contextual suppositions in the surrounding text that the points being talked about were of a specific kind?

Let's start the list:


You can manifest the same power multiple times if you have points left to pay for it. (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/psionicPowersOverview.htm)

The more points spent, the more powerful the manifestation. (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/psionicPowersOverview.htm)

To craft an item without spending the normal labor time, a character with the appropriate item creation feat (such as Craft Masterwork Armor, Brew Potion, or Craft Staff; see below) can pay one-tenth the item's market price in craft points (minimum 1 point). (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/buildingCharacters/craftPoints.htm)

With the event-based reputation variant, a character who is a newcomer to her location has a reputation score of 0 until she earns at least a ½-point increase by succeeding on an adventure in that location. (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/campaigns/reputation.htm)

Each time other psionic characters within this range attempt to manifest a power, they must succeed on a DC 17 Will save or pay 4 more points than they otherwise would for each power manifestation. (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/items/universalItems.htm#amuletofCatapsi)

Incidentally, is there any way to get half a pleasure point? Because if there is...


A single ½-point increase has no effect on reputation-related skill checks, but two such increases combine to provide a full 1-point increase. (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/campaigns/reputation.htm)

Meaning that two halves of a pleasure point combine to make one half of an experience, hit, essentia, reputation, craft, action, spell or power point, just to name a few.

EDIT: If you damage someone or something when it's not an encounter, there is no end of the encounter and so you never lose your pleasure points.

[Jormengand]

I think the competition shoulda been over like a week ago.

[daremetoidareyo]

Time constraints brotha. Had a pregnancy complication that threw off everything.

[daremetoidareyo]

Well, just as the baseline, this gives you +4 on every active skill check you make. That's not bad. It's like Skill Focus (literally every skill), except with a better bonus.

Accumulating pleasure points is very easy, because you can just prick yourself to draw a little blood and take 1 damage, or do the same to a willing ally. If you're worried about the damage adding up, you could take a glacier snake familiar for fast healing.

This seems decent on a Truenamer. +4 to truespeak checks.

2 points: hurt thineself and glacier snake? neat.



I don't see any restriction that keeps you from spending more than one PP on a single check...
The "single pleasure point as a swift action" means 1 PP per swift action. So unless you can get multiple swift actions per turn, you're likely stuck with 1 PP per check.

For multiple swift actions... RKV has Divine Impetus, but it has some RAW issues: (Su) abilities default to a standard action unless specified otherwise.

Synad gets an additional swift action once per day.

And... I think that's it?

rules clarification: 1 point

Bounty 2:
synad
RKV's divine impetus

My 2 additional bounties:
squire of legend (reikhardt) 2:Lesser Squire's burden + synad's 3fold mind
Reikhardt: You can grant an ally within 30 feet a second use of an extraordinary or supernatural ability normally usable only once per day. If you gain a second daily use of this ability, you cannot use it twice in one day on the same ally.
Vestigial twin from DMG2 p.160:
The NPC was born with a vestigial head and possibly one or two atrophied arms or legs—the remains of a twin that only partially formed. The vestigial head grows from some point on the NPC’s body and has its own personality and voice. Once per round, this second head can take an additional standard action independent of the actions taken by the rest of the body. This action must be chosen from the following list: casting a spell known to the NPC (verbal component only), activating a spell-like ability possessed by the NPC, activating a magic item, or attempting a skill check or ability check based on a mental ability score (Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma). +2 CR



Tear a piece of paper. Now tear those torn pieces again. Repeat as necessary, substituting literally any object.

What?

cheesy. 1 point




I'm not sure extra Swift Actions will help. Sure the PP bonus is untyped, but if you spent two in one round, they still wouldn't stack because they come from the same source, right?

1 point


According to Table: Coins, a GP is 1/10 of a PP. Of course, only the side headings have explanations of what PP are, so you can argue that power points and, more worryingly, pleasure points can be spent as 10 GP each.

Also, the following from the psionic rules:

You can manifest the same power multiple times if you have points left to pay for it.

The more points spent, the more powerful the manifestation.
So you may be able to spend power points, reducing the power points you have below zero, so long as the number of points - experience, hit or pleasure - you have is enough to cover it; you don't even have to spend them, just watch as your power point number plummets below zero.

Also, you may be able to spend pleasure points to augment powers.

From the Craft Points variant rule:

To craft an item without spending the normal labor time, a character with the appropriate item creation feat (such as Craft Masterwork Armor, Brew Potion, or Craft Staff; see below) can pay one-tenth the item's market price in craft points (minimum 1 point).
It doesn't specify what type of point the minimum is, so it's possible you could pay a pleasure point instead of a craft point. I assume, of course, that it's one tenth of its platinum cost, not its gold cost, riiiight?

EDIT: Reputation is measured in points, and there's nothing that says you can't use pleasure points. If you beat up a monster, you've "earn[ed] at least a ½-point increase by succeeding on an adventure", right? There must be a way to convert pleasure points to generic points and then convince those generic points that they're, like, experience points, right?

EDIT EDIT: Because damage with a duration is weird, ice storm will get you infinite PP if you use delay death hax to make people immune to death by hit point damage, or target it on a creature with regeneration like a troll. Wall of Fire and Call Lightning are disputed but may also do the same thing; no-one seems to have disputed ice storm.


5 points. +1 point bonus for a weirdly bionic way of linguistic parsing.


Let's start the list:
Meaning that two halves of a pleasure point combine to make one half of an experience, hit, essentia, reputation, craft, action, spell or power point, just to name a few.

EDIT: If you damage someone or something when it's not an encounter, there is no end of the encounter and so you never lose your pleasure points.

2 more points.

[daremetoidareyo]

Tally:

Darrin: 1 +10 for the bounty = 11
troacctid: 2
ben-zayb: 1
deadline: 1
Jormengand: 8

I think ya'll are correct about bounties being far too distorting.

The winner of optimize this feat 7 is Darrin and thus has his name written in Red colored System font System

[Troacctid]

We still haven't solved the biggest puzzle, though—you have to be a devil to take the feat. Does anyone know a good way to be a devil? AFAIK, there aren't any with a reasonable ECL for a player character, which would seem to make this only viable for NPCs.

[Jormengand]

Incidentally, I still think that the bounty is ridiculous (mainly because I keep coming second because someone who would otherwise have got only a few points got a massive bounty).

[ben-zayb]

Incidentally, I still think that the bounty is ridiculous (mainly because I keep coming second because someone who would otherwise have got only a few points got a massive bounty).

This. An alternative reward is to just edit-in a honorable mentions list on the first post for those who made bounty contributions, from most to least.