Making a mind controller

[jangartharn1]

Hey guys. So for a dnd campaign I'm in I wanted to at least for now have a back up character who had a "puppet" if you want to call it that represented him. Pretty much a mind controlled character who was his "physical" representative for the party where as the real me would be somewhere else. So I'm curious how could I make such a character? I'm guessing some form of psionic? Anyone who could give a general idea of what I would need to do would be most appreciated. Oh also this campaign is 7th level 3.5 edition.

[A_S]

Have you looked into Fiend of Possession (Fiend Folio)? It's a PrC for [Evil] Outsiders that lets you become ethereal, then possess and (eventually) control objects and creatures.

The earliest you can enter it is ECL 4, so you'd have a maximum of 4 levels in it at ECL 7. A Fiend of Possession 4 can possess creatures, but not fully control them for two more levels, so if you wanted a creature to act as your proxy when you start the game, it would have to be a willing creature (like, say, your cohort, or your familiar).

You can be an [Evil] outsider fairly easily/cheaply by playing as a LA+0 outsider like a Neraph or a savage progression Tiefling (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/sp/20040213a), and using the Ritual of Association from Savage Species to pick up the [Evil] subtype.

[Dayaz]

I can't think of any way to do it at level 7. At really late levels you could make a simalcrum of yourself as a wizard and send it off to do your adventuring.

(I keep wanting to call you Mukuro for some reason XP )

[Zsaber0]

You can look into the Mind Bender and the Thrallherd. Both help you along the lines of mind control. Also a specialist wizard in Enchantment. You can also enter the Master Specialist prestige at level 3 for extra goodies.

[Thurbane]

If you can deal with the RHD and LA, Yak Folk (MM2) can do this out of the box. 5RHD and LA +2 from memory.

Depending on the level of cheese in your game, you could get all but one RHD permanently energy drained, and buy off the LA.

[Inevitability]

There's the 3rd-level Create Lantern Archon spell, which creates a CR 2 creature willing to perform tasks. If you can convince it that fighting evil is its own reward (a Charm Monster or Hypnotism spell may be necessary) you can make it serve you for days at a time.

It can easily reach your allies because of its at-will Greater Teleport, deals decent damage, and is surprisingly hard to kill. It can also buff the whole party with temporary HP.

The downside: you need to be capital-g Good. I'd also look into a way to rapidly heal ability drain: maybe bind Naberius?

[ShurikVch]

You can be an [Evil] outsider fairly easily/cheaply by playing as a LA+0 outsider like a Neraph or a savage progression Tiefling (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/sp/20040213a), and using the Ritual of Association from Savage Species to pick up the [Evil] subtype.Firstly, it's Ritual of Alignment
And secondly, I wouldn't call something with 56000 gp cost "cheaply"
For comparison: single cast of Demonic Blood Infusion (Ghostwalk) will cost only 760 gp as a service (or 1750 - as a scroll, but watch your UMD check!)

[Segev]

Personally, I'd go with a Thrallherd for flavor to match ability, but you could do it with Leadership if you wanted.

Your cohort is your "representative." (Thrall, if you go Thrallherd.) As a Thrallherd, he literally is mind-controlled. As a Leadership character, he isn't unless you spend spells to make him so.

Making use of Share Senses would be essential for the psionic route, so you can keep tabs. Ring Gates plus your psicrystal would work, but they're too expensive for your ECL.


The other route you could go would be to take the Mother Cyst feat (from Libris Mortis). Use necrotic scrying to keep tabs on a number of encysted minions, and use necrotic domination (which I believe you can just barely cast at level 7) to control your representative. Keep one or more skulking cysts following (in secret or in the open). Control them via command undead or even their own necrotic cysts. Though you'll need a means of making sure you keep in touch on a weekly basis to renew these spells. Leadership or Undead Leadership could represent cowing your Cohort into obedience even without necrotic domination, if you wanted, but it limits his power to 2 levels below yours.

That said, in any Leadership-like approach, use your ability to buff him to your best capacity. Your real PC becomes a distant patron, but do your best to be a useful one and you can bolster your minion up to the ECL of the party.

[jywu98]

Thrallherd looks like it's the best choice. FoP can work, but it requires jumping through some hoops to actually be an FoP in the first place.

[Segev]

Thrallherd looks like it's the best choice. FoP can work, but it requires jumping through some hoops to actually be an FoP in the first place.

Yeah, shortest path I've seen (short of Pun-Pun, who can do anything and everything) is a dretch. And that's...well, you're a dretch.

[A_S]

Firstly, it's Ritual of Alignment
And secondly, I wouldn't call something with 56000 gp cost "cheaply"
For comparison: single cast of Demonic Blood Infusion (Ghostwalk) will cost only 760 gp as a service (or 1750 - as a scroll, but watch your UMD check!)

:smallredface: You're right, I forgot the Ritual of Association only gets you racial subtypes.