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Sooth

2016-09-04, 11:46 PM

Hey folks,

Here's a prestige class I'm working on. It's part of an ongoing series of related Heavy-Metal-themed D&D content.

Goals of this class include to:
-- Allow for single-class Fighters and other non-caster warrior archetypes to kick serious ass and overcome some of their limitations.
-- Create a class that encourages and rewards daring gameplay, while maintaining the risk of said gameplay.
To fulfill these ends, the Knight has class features which grant Badass Points for accepting certain risks or challenges and subsequently powerful abilities that use these points. The class also gains Badass Points when brought to death's door, some added survivability, and combat bonuses in lopsided situations to help ensure that they will go down gloriously.

This class is theoretically done but may still need some fine tuning in terms of balance and cohesion.

*************

Google Doc version. (https://docs.google.com/document/d/10dAXdUVMyLRIjzFpKfo-IQJBjCqnDCd7oBqbssvXLSo/edit?usp=sharing)
Knight of Badassdom

The Knights of Badassdom are warriors from across the realms who perished before their time, but not before their spirit and prowess earned recognition from the Gods of Metal. Thus they have been resurrected to do battle again; this time, with the Metal Gods’ power flowing through their veins. The ultimate aspiration for a Knight of Badassdom is to earn not merely a death worthy of song, but a death worthy… of Metal.

Role: In order to reach his full potential, a Knight of Badassdom must regularly engage in acts of intrepid recklessness with no ****s given. Such a daring warrior can only be at home in the frontlines, shaking off blows and plunging balls-deep into the womb of danger. The more who engage him in battle, the better: a true Knight of Badassdom accepts all challengers.

Alignment: The Knight of Badassdom may be of any alignment, for there is death and glory to be had whether one fights orcs, fell demons, or warriors of a righteous cause.

Hit Die: d12.

Requirements
To become a Knight of Badassdom, a character must meet the following criteria:

Base Attack Bonus: +5

Feats: Endurance, Diehard.

Special: The character must have died in battle and had their soul raised from the dead. Alternatively, a character who is brought "to the brink of death" (within 5 hit points of death) will also qualify as having visited the realms of death only to be returned fortuitously, overseen by the Gods of Metal on the condition that this next chance at life will be their last.

Class Skills

The Knight of Badassdom’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Acrobatics (Dex), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Survival (Wis), and Swim (Str).

Skill Ranks at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier.

Table: Knight of Badassdom

Level
BaB
Fort
Ref
Will
Badass Points gained per Day
Maximum Badass Points
Special

1
+1
+2
+0
+2
2
4
At the Gates, Badassdom Manifest, Feats of Prowess

2
+2
+3
+0
+3
3
5
Dauntless

3
+3
+3
+1
+3
3
6
Against all Odds

4
+4
+4
+1
+4
4
7
None Left to Give

5
+5
+4
+1
+4
4
8
Ultimate Invocation of Badassdom

At the Gates (Ex): As soon as the Knight of Badassdom reaches Death's Door, the Gods of Metal begin a cosmic fanfare to welcome a worthy soul among their ranks. The Knight of Badassdom soars with resolve and Metal power such that he may attain the most spectacular end to his adventuring career. When Death finally knocks, the Knight's essence is drawn into the Planes of Mayhem, Beyond the realms of Death, where it is forever outside of mortalkind’s reach.

This results in the following benefits for the Knight of Badassdom:
The Knight of Badassdom does not become staggered as a result of being reduced to 0 HP or less, and may act normally even at the brink of annihilation.
The Knight of Badassdom adds his Hit Dice to his Constitution score for the purpose of determining how much of a negative HP total he can obtain before dying. (For example, a 10 Hit Die Knight dies when his hit points are reduced to a negative amount equal to his Constitution score +10).
Once per day, when the Knight of Badassdom would be reduced from 0 HP or greater to -1 HP or less, his HP total becomes 0 instead and he gains 2 Badass Points (see below).
Whenever a spell or effect would cause instant death or destruction to the Knight of Badassdom (including Disintegrate and other such effects that trigger upon reducing a target to 0 HP), the Knight of Badassdom ignores that effect and merely suffers the damage and other spell effects normally.
As long as the Knight of Badassdom has a Constitution score, it may not be reduced below 1.

When the Knight of Badassdom is killed, no mortal magic - not even a Wish or Miracle spell - may restore his soul to its body.

Badassdom Manifest: The Knight of Badassdom is defined by his capacity to perform deeds of particular valor and madness… and either live to speak of them, or perish in a blaze of glory.

At the start of each day, the Knight of Badassdom gains a number of Badass Points based on his class level, as indicated in the table above; these points replace the Knight’s previous total and he effectively loses any points he may have accumulated on the previous day. Badass Points represent a combination of the Metal Gods’ favor, the Knight’s own blazing spirit, and the tears of his enemies. They allow the Knight to perform superhuman deeds, kicking ass and taking names all while impressing the Gods of Metal.

In addition to the points allotted to him each day, the Knight of Badassdom can earn additional points from certain actions or circumstances in the battlefield that demonstrate the Knight’s guts and hellbent determination. The Knight is limited on how many Badass Points he can accumulate at any one time, as shown above. Below are the listed ways in which the Knight may gain additional Badass Points.

Killing Blow: Whenever the Knight of Badassdom reduces a worthy foe to 0 or fewer hit points with a melee attack, he gains 1 Badass Point. A foe is considered worthy if they are not helpless or unaware, and if they have Hit Dice equal to or greater than half the Knight’s character level.

Grievous Wounds: Whenever the Knight of Badassdom suffers damage equal to half his maximum hit points or greater in a single round, he gains 1 Badass Point.

Sheer Tenacity: Whenever the Knight of Badassdom succeeds on a Fortitude or Willpower save with a DC of 20 or greater, he gains 1 Badass Point. The Knight of Badassdom may only gain a Badass Point this way once per round.

Act of Badassdom (Optional): Whenever the Knight of Badassdom performs an Act of Badassdom, he gains 1-3 Badass Points as determined by the GM. Acts of Badassdom must be dramatic and inspiring and involve a particular amount of risk. Consider the below to be GM guidelines based on how many Badass Points to award:
1 Point: The Knight of Badassdom undertakes a particularly daring and risky course of action which naturally inspires the response “That’s badass!”
2 Point: The Knight of Badassdom does something which is especially risky and against sound, tactical judgment. The chance of success should either be low, or the action should involve placing the Knight in significant and unnecessary danger whether it succeeds or not.
3 Points: All of the above, except the action must be practically guaranteed to result in death, either because of a miniscule chance of success or a certainty that the Knight will die achieving it.

Feats of Prowess (Ex): At 1st level, the Knight of Badassdom learns two abilities from the list below, and one additional ability every class level thereafter. These abilities require Badass Points to activate.

Badass Boast (Ex): Whenever the Knight of Badassdom spends at least one round espousing the successes of himself or his group, detailing the manner in which enemies will be vanquished, or undergoing a similar boast, he may spend one or more Badass Points to invoke a variety of effects. The Knight may spend up to three Badass Points, and he chooses one effect from the list below for each such Point he spends. Using this ability when combat has already started requires a standard action.
1 Point: The Knight makes an Intimidate check to demoralize each enemy within 30 feet who can hear and understand his boast.
2 Points: As above. Furthermore, the Knight and allies within 30 feet who can hear and understand him gain a +2 morale bonus to attack rolls and saving throws for 1 minute.
3 Points: As above, except that both effects have no range limit and instead affect all enemies or allies who can hear and understand the Boast.

Culling Strike (Ex): After damaging a creature with a melee attack, the Knight of Badassdom may spend one or more Badass Points to perform a Culling Strike; if he does, he has a chance of instantly disabling or incapacitating the attack’s target, as noted below. The Knight may choose to use this ability after seeing the effects of his attack (and thus avoid wasting his points).
1 Point: The Knight rolls 1d4 per point of Base Attack Bonus that he has. If the total roll is equal to or greater than the creature’s remaining Hit Points, the creature is immediately reduced to 0 hit points; otherwise, there is no additional effect.
2 Points: As above, except that the Knight rolls 1d6 per point of Base Attack Bonus that he has.
3 Points: As above, except that the Knight rolls 1d8 per point of Base Attack Bonus that he has.

Deluge of Nightmares (Su): As a standard action, the Knight of Badassdom can briefly assume the visage of forces far more terrifying than whatever fools he happens to be fighting. He must spend two or more Badass Points to use this ability.
2 Points: All enemies within 30 feet must succeed on a Willpower save (DC 10 + ½ the Knight’s Hit Dice + the Knight’s Charisma modifier) or become panicked for 1 round, then shaken for 1 minute. Enemies who succeed on their saving throw instead become shaken for 1 round. This is a Fear effect.
3 Points: As above, except enemies who fail their saving throw are panicked for 1d4+1 rounds (instead of 1 round).

Inexorable (Ex): Whenever the Knight of Badassdom would make a saving throw, he may spend a Badass Point to gain benefits as indicated below. He must choose to use this ability prior to rolling.
1 Point: The Knight gains a +4 luck bonus to the saving throw.
2 Points: As above, except that if the Knight rolls below a 10 on his saving throw, he may treat the result as though he had rolled a 10.
3 Points: As above, and furthermore the Knight gains the Evasion and Stalwart class abilities until the start of his next turn.

Martial Virtuosity (Ex): As a free action during combat, the Knight of Badassdom may spend a Badass Point to gain a single Combat feat of his choice. He must choose a feat for which he meets the prerequisites, and he learns the feat only for the duration of the combat. The Knight of Badassdom may use this ability up to three times during a single combat to gain a different feat he qualifies for each time; if the Knight uses this ability more than that in the same combat, he changes one of his three feat selections from Martial Virtuosity to a different feat instead of gaining another one.

No Limits (Su): As an immediate action, the Knight of Badassdom may spend one or more Badass Points to overcome boundaries and limitations as per the options below. These benefits last until the start of his next turn.
1 Point: The Knight gains a Climb speed equal to his base land speed, and a +20 enhancement bonus to Acrobatics checks made to attempt high or long jumps.
2 Points: As above, and the Knight becomes affected by Freedom of Movement (as the spell).
Alternatively, if the Knight of Badassdom is already under this ability’s effects, he may spend a Badass Point to extend their duration by 1 round; this does not require an action, and he may do so as often as he has Badass Points and desires to extend or renew the duration.

Radiant Burst (Su): As a standard action, the Knight of Badassdom can cause his weapon to emit a burst of blinding light and glory that is awesome to behold. He must spend two or more Badass Points to use this ability.
2 Points: All enemies within 30 feet must succeed on a Fortitude save (DC 10 + ½ the Knight’s Hit Dice + the Knight’s Charisma modifier) or become blinded for 1 round, then dazzled for 1 minute. Enemies who succeed on their saving throw instead become dazzled for 1 round.
3 Points: As above, except enemies who fail their saving throw are blinded for 1d4+1 rounds (instead of 1 round).

Reach for Blood (Su): Whenever the Knight of Badassdom takes the attack action, he may spend Badass Points to embark upon a brutal rampage that rends even the air, causing his attack to affect multiple foes in an area.
1 Point: Instead of attacking one creature, the Knight makes a single melee attack against all foes in a 15-foot cone. Situational benefits and abilities - such as Charging or the Vital Strike feat - apply to all of the attack’s targets.
2 Points: As above, except the Knight makes a single melee attack against all foes in a 30-foot cone.
3 Points: The Knight of Badassdom may use this ability when taking the full attack action (instead of an attack action). If he does, he makes all of his regular attacks against a single creature as normal, and then furthermore makes a single melee attack against every foe within a 30-foot cone.

Relentless Charge (Ex): Whenever the Knight of Badassdom makes a charge, he may spend two or more Badass Points to increase the ferocity of said charge.
2 Points: The Knight gains the Pounce special ability until end of turn.
3 Point: As above, and the Knight gains a +2 bonus to attack rolls made as part of his charge (in addition to the normal +2 bonus for charging).

Second Wind (Ex): As an immediate action, the Knight of Badassdom may spend one or more Badass Points to regain hit points and surmount afflictions as indicated below.
1 Point: The Knight regains hit points equal to his character level.
2 Points: The Knight regains hit points equal to twice his character level. The Knight loses the fatigued condition (if he has it); if the Knight has the exhausted condition, it becomes replaced by the fatigued condition. The Knight loses one temporary negative level (if he has any).
3 Points: As above, except that the Knight ends all of the following conditions upon him: exhausted, fatigued, nauseated, sickened, staggered, stunned. Furthermore, use of this ability does not count as an action when 3 Badass Points are spent, allowing the Knight to recover hit points and conditions even if he would normally be prevented from doing so. The Knight of Badassdom must still be conscious to use this ability.

Seismic Slam (Su): As a standard action, the Knight of Badassdom can smash the ground to create a shockwave of Metal energy with might and power based on how many Badass Points he spends.
1 Point: The Knight makes a trip attempt against all creatures within 10 feet that are standing on the same ground. This does not provoke any attacks of opportunity, and no creature may attempt to trip the Knight in response to a failed attempt.
2 Points: As above, but each creature also suffers 1d8 sonic damage per 2 Hit Dice the Knight possesses (max 10d8). A successful Fortitude save (DC 10 + ½ the Knight’s Hit Dice + the Knight’s Strength modifier) halves this damage. This damage is dealt regardless of whether the Knight’s foes are tripped.
3 Points: As above, but creatures who fail their saving throw are also stunned for 1 round.

Dauntless (Ex): Upon reaching 2nd level, the Knight of Badassdom becomes even more courageous and incorrigible. Whenever the Knight fails a saving throw against a Fear or Charm effect, he may immediately attempt a new saving throw to avoid or overcome the effect; if he only gets one extra chance per saving throw that he would fail. (Passing the second saving throw also counts as having made his save for the purpose of Sheer Tenacity.)

Against all Odds (Ex): The Knight of Badassdom fights at his best when the odds are stacked against him. Starting at 3rd level, the Knight of Badassdom gains the following:

A +2 morale bonus to AC and weapon damage rolls whenever he is threatened by three or more enemies. If the Knight is threatened by six or more enemies, these bonuses increase to +4.
A +2 competence bonus to attack rolls against creatures with Hit Dice greater than his own. At 5th level, this bonus increases to +4.
Once per combat, if the Knight of Badassdom makes a melee attack and hits a creature whose Hit Dice exceeds his own by 7 or more, he may spend a Badass Point to cause the attack to automatically threaten a critical hit; he may choose to do this in addition to using a Feat of Prowess, if applicable.

None Left to Give (Ex): At 4th level, the Knight of Badassdom automatically succeeds on all Fear and Charm effects, becoming effectively immune to them. This ability allows the Knight to gain Badass Points from Sheer Tenacity when foes foolishly attempt to charm or frighten him.

Ultimate Invocation of Badassdom (Su): When he reaches 5th level, the Knight of Badassdom becomes worthy of petitioning the Metal Gods for direct intervention.

Once per week, the Knight of Badassdom may invoke the power of Metal for one of the following boons:

Ascension: The Knight of Badassdom assumes the likeness of a powerful outsider; this outsider may be Good, Evil or otherwise, as long as it is Metal AF. At the GM’s discretion, this outsider may be one which most reflects the aesthetic inclinations of the Knight’s own moral compass - or some nonsense like that. Using this ability is a free action.

For 10 minutes, the Knight of Badassdom gains the following benefits:

A +4 bonus to Strength, Constitution, and all saving throws. This bonus is profane (if the Knight’s alignment is evil or neutral) or sacred (if the Knight’s alignment is good).
The Knight’s attacks with natural or manufactured weapons are considered to be the most favorable alignment for the purpose of bypassing Damage Reduction.
A Fly speed of 60 feet (good maneuverability) and a +5 insight bonus to Fly checks.
The ability to speak and understand all languages known to mortalkind; this benefit may be restricted to merely granting Abyssal, Celestial or Infernal, or a benefit similar to the Tongues spell, if it would cause your GM to have an aneurism otherwise.
The power to invoke a number of spell-like abilities, each usable once per Ascension. The Knight’s Hit Dice determines what spell-like abilities are available to him. The abilities are cumulative, such that an 18th level Knight of Badassdom will have five abilities he can use.

Table: Ascension Spell-Like Abilities
Hit Dice Spell-Like Ability
10-11 Flame Strike
12-13 Blade Barrier
14-15 Destruction
16-17 Sunburst
18+ Storm of Vengeance

Berserker Rage: The Knight of Badassdom has set forth onto him The Berserker Rage(™); this is not to be confused with ordinary, inferior barbarian rage. This imparts him with nothing short of awesome and superhuman power for a very short amount of time. Using this ability is a free action.

For the next minute, the Knight of Badassdom gains the following benefits:

All the effects of the Rage feature from the Barbarian class, except the Knight does not become fatigued afterwards; furthermore, the duration is fixed at one minute and is not influenced by his Barbarian level or Constitution score. If the Knight of Badassdom has at least six levels in Barbarian, he benefits from Greater Rage instead, and furthermore benefits from Mighty Rage if he has fifteen or more levels in Barbarian. The GM may rule that other classes with Rage progressions may enhance The Berserker Rage(™) in a similar fashion.
Immunity to the fatigued and exhausted conditions, and if applicable, the Knight immediately recovers from those conditions.
DR/magic equal to the Knight’s Hit Dice (so DR 15/magic at 15 HD).
Once per round, the Knight of Badassdom may use any one Feat of Prowess without requiring or expending any Badass Points; he may even use the stronger, 3-point variations of those abilities.

Celestial Host: The Knight of Badassdom calls forth the Metal Gods’ otherworldly servants. The strength and number of the Metal host varies with the Knight’s Hit Dice, as per the table below.

Depending upon thematic implications and what role outsiders play in the campaign, the creatures summoned could be represented as Valkyries literally descending from the sky in a host of thunder while cacophonous riffs rock the horizon. Alternatively, the Metal Gods may send demons instead.

In either case, consider the table below to be a set of polite suggestions, entirely subject to the GM’s discretion; creatures of similar power will also do. This ability is designed to be roughly the equivalent of casting Summon Monster at 2 spell levels higher than the indicated number of Hit Dice would allow (for example, the benefit at 12 HD - when a cleric or wizard would normally be able to cast Summon Monster VI - is roughly comparable to casting Summon Monster VIII).

Table: Celestial Host
Knight’s Hit Dice Outsider Summoned
12 or less 3 Celestial Griffons / 3 Shadow Demons
13-14 3 Celestial Rocs / 3 Vrocks
15-16 5 Movanic Devas / 2 Nalfeshnee
17-19 3 Cloud Giants / 5 Frost Giants
20+ 1 Solar / 1 Balor

Alternative Limit
If the GM finds a limit of "once per week" to be dubiously balanced or unsuited to the campaign, this method may be used instead:
The Knight of Badassdom may use Ultimate Invocation of Badassdom once per day, but only when he has reached 8 Badass Points (his maximum amount); he spends 4 of those Badass Points to activate the ability.

TheFamilarRaven

2016-09-07, 02:59 PM

Hey folks,

Hi!

Here's a prestige class I'm working on. It's part of an ongoing series of related Heavy-Metal-themed D&D content.

Goals of this class include to:
-- Allow for single-class Fighters and other mundane warrior archetypes to kick serious ass and overcome some of their limitations.
-- Create a class that encourages and rewards daring gameplay, while maintaining the risk of said gameplay.
To fulfill these ends, the Knight has class features which grant them temporary Hero Points for accepting certain risks or challenges and subsequently powerful abilities that use these temporary Hero Points. The class also gains temporary Hero Points when brought to death's door and some added survivability, likely ensuring that they will go down gloriously.

This class is theoretically done but I feel like it's just not quite where it needs to be. Perhaps too few abilities, or some potential just not yet reached/tapped into. All ideas and thoughts welcome.

It might be helpful to list out specifically what limitations you're hoping to overcome. Example, a fighter can't cast Gate, that's a pretty big limitation, but it may not be one you're hoping to overcome
*************

Knight of Badassdom

The Knights of Badassdom are warriors from across the realms who perished before their time, but not before their spirit and prowess earned recognition from the Gods of Metal. Thus they have been resurrected to do battle again; this time, with the Metal Gods’ power flowing through their veins. The ultimate aspiration for a Knight of Badassdom is to earn not merely a death worthy of song, but a death worthy… of Metal.

Role: In order to reach his full potential, a Knight of Badassdom must regularly engage in acts of intrepid recklessness with no ****s given. Such a daring warrior can only be at home in the frontlines, shaking off blows and plunging balls-deep into the womb of danger. The more who engage him in battle, the better: a true Knight of Badassdom accepts all challengers.

Base Attack Bonus: As Fighter
Saving Throws: As Paladin

Class Features
1 At the Gates, Badass Deeds
2 Feats of Prowess (2 abilities)
3 Feats of Prowess (3 abilities), Dauntless +2
4 Feats of Prowess (4 abilities), Dauntless +4
5 Feats of Prowess (5 abilities), Dauntless +6

Firstly, this a prestige class with no prerequisites. How does one obtain levels in this class? Do they need a BaB of +6? The Toughness feat? No one can take a prestige class unless there's prereqs.

Secondly, tables are your friend. I know it's only five levels. But if I don't know off the top of my head what the BaB for a fighter is or the Saves for a paladin are, then I have to look at 2 other class tables to match up. Not good form. There's a table option underneath the bold button when you're in text edit mode. Plus it makes it look more official. And you have no hitdice... does this class not gain hitpoints as it levels up? what are it's class skills? how many skill points per level?

Thirdly, even though it is not on the table, I think every class lists the weapon and armor proficiencies of the class, even if it's just to say "you get no additional proficiency". And t

At the Gates (Ex): As soon as the Knight of Badassdom reaches Death's Door, the Gods of Metal begin a cosmic fanfare to welcome a worthy soul among their ranks. The Knight of Badassdom soars with resolve and Metal power such that he may attain the most spectacular end to his adventuring career. When Death finally knocks, the Knight's essence is drawn into the Planes of Mayhem, Beyond the realms of Death, where it is forever outside of mortalkind’s reach.

This results in the following benefits for the Knight of Badassdom:
-- The Knight of Badassdom does not become staggered as a result of being reduced to 0 HP or less, and may act normally even at the brink of annihilation.
-- The Knight of Badassdom adds his Hit Dice to his Constitution score for the purpose of determining how much of a negative HP total he can obtain before dying. (For example, a 10 Hit Die Knight dies when his hit points are reduced to a negative amount equal to his Constitution score +10).
-- Once per day, when the Knight of Badassdom would be reduced from 0 HP or greater to -1 HP or less, his HP total becomes 0 instead and he gains 2 temporary Hero Points. These Hero Points are spent before any others the Knight may possess, and they are lost after 1 minute.
-- Whenever a spell or effect would cause instant death or destruction to the Knight of Badassdom (including Disintegrate and other such effects that trigger upon reducing a target to 0 HP), the Knight of Badassdom ignores that effect and merely suffers the damage and other spell effects normally.
-- As long as the Knight of Badassdom has a Constitution score, it may not be reduced below 1.

When the Knight of Badassdom is killed, no mortal magic - not even a Wish or Miracle spell - may restore his soul to its body.

The Gods of Metal generally frown upon use of the "Cheat Death" Hero Point option; at the GM's discretion, they may even outright forbid such usage among Knights of Badassdom except to avoid a death which would be particularly anti-climactic or non-Metal.

Every game of Pathfinder at various tables I've played never used Hero Points. It is a variant rule, not a integral part of pathfinder. If you want to make this class viable at all tables, you need to have a separate resource pool, like how Gunslingers have Grit. Maybe "Baddass points". Use Baddass points to fuel the Knight's abilities instead of hero points. Plus you'll avoid the "no more than 3" Hero points at anyone time.

Couple of things about the ability.
1) You need to specify whether or not you automatically stabilize, unless you're going to have diehard be a prereq for this class.
2) Basically adding more hitpoints, but being close to negatives is really risky which I guess is in the theme of the class
3) The only time you specify how long hero points last is in this section about being reduced below 0 HP, and even then, you specify that only THESE temp hero points last a minute. Every other entry of gaining hero points mention that they're temporary, but makes no mention of how long they last.
4) So, is immune to death effects, and has the special caveat of not being instantly disintegrated at 0 hp. What happens when disintegrate reduces the knight's hp below -(CON score + HD)? Is the body disintegrated as normal?

You mention cheating death not being baddass... how is it not? Do the metal gods just say "oh man, that dragon was waaaaaay more baddass than our baddass knight, not gonna let him get out of this one!"? Also, if you don't want them cheating death... just don't use hero points...

Also, highly inconvenient. Chances are, with this classes emphasis on risky play, that you'll end up dying and not being resurrected means writing up a new character. And why is it not baddass to be resurrected? If you get resurrected, you can do more baddass things!

Badass Deeds: The Knight of Badassdom is defined by his capacity to perform deeds of particular valor and madness… and either live to speak of them, or perish in a blaze of glory. These deeds are so dubbed as Badass because they require accepting a challenge or setback that more practical (read: unworthy) foes would shy away from. By performing these Deeds, the Knight of Badassdom gains the Metal Gods’ favor and furthers his ability to kick ass and take names immediately thereafter.

At 1st level, the Knight of Badassdom gains access to the Badass Deeds below. Each Badass Deed has a cost or requirement that must be fulfilled for the Deed to function, and a benefit for performing it.

Deed of Inexorability (Ex): The Knight of Badassdom stands strong after withstanding the mightiest of assaults. Whenever the Knight receives a critical hit, the critical damage multiplier is treated as one step lower (x4 is reduced to x3, x3 to x2, and x2 is reduced to regular, non-multiplied damage). Once per combat, the Knight gains a temporary Hero Point whenever he sustains damage equal to half his maximum HP or greater in a single round.

Nifty, but it's not an ability I couldn't reliably duplicate with a fortification enchantment, or even better, concealment. If you used Baddass points instead of hero points, then you wouldn't have to worry about the once per combat clause. The stuff you can do with your hero points (with the abilities from this class, that is), aren't that strong to begin with (more on that later), so it's actually pretty lame to only be able only be able to get this once per combat. Actually, practically speaking, with the emphasis this class makes on doing things solo, this ability is more than likely to only occur once per combat anyway, since you'll be dead pretty soon if you're taking more than half your HP in damage in a single round.

Deed of Titan Wrestling (Ex): The Knight of Badassdom gains power and resolve from willingly placing himself within the terrible vice of titans, krakens and other massive monsters. Once per combat, when a creature of Huge or greater size rolls a Combat Maneuver check to grapple the Knight of Badassdom, he may choose to allow the creature’s check to automatically succeed; if he does, he gains a temporary Hero Point.

Furthermore, for selecting this Deed the Knight of Badassdom gains a +4 morale bonus to CMB checks made to grapple Huge creatures; the bonus increases to +6 against Gargantuan creatures and +10 against Colossal creatures.

This ability is not written well. It assumes the Knight is a medium creature. You should increase the bonus based on size category difference, not specific size types. For example, what if you were playing a large Knight of Baddassdom? Then got enlarged to huge? The way it's written now means you still get the bonus to CMB when grappling another huge foe. Also, the bonus should read "+X CMB on combat maneuvers made as part of a grapple." Otherwise it is not clear if the bonus only applies when initiating a grapple, or whether or not you can use it in conjunction with moving or pinning an opponent.

Deed of Worthy Challenge (Su): The Knight of Badassdom draws strength from facing worthy opponents in single combat. Once per combat as a swift action, the Knight of Badassdom can challenge one target within sight to single combat. If the target has less Hit Dice than half of the Knight’s character levels, this ability fails because a worthy foe has not been found - and the Knight regains use of this ability for the combat. Otherwise, this ability functions similarly to the Cavalier’s Challenge ability; the Knight’s melee attacks deal extra damage equal to his character level to the target, and the Knight suffers a -2 penalty to Armor Class except against attacks made by the target of his challenge.

Unless the target is mindless, they instinctively become aware of the Knight’s challenge and may be under compulsion to answer it; they must succeed on a Will save (DC 10 + ½ the Knight’s Hit Dice + the Knight’s Charisma modifier) or be compelled to face the Knight in combat until a clear victor emerges, ignoring other characters and focusing its attacks solely on the Knight. Allies of the target are not similarly affected and may still interfere in the duel to the displeasure of both parties.

Maintaining this ability requires that the Knight actually faces a worthy foe without assistance. The Knight’s Deed of Worthy Challenge ends when the combat ends, or if any of the following takes place:
An ally attacks or deals damage to the Knight’s target.
An ally heals damage to the Knight while he is fighting his target.
An ally takes the Aid Another action to assist the Knight against his target.
Other similar situations to the above which result in a direct aid to the Knight, at the GM’s discretion. Under no circumstance should a spell cast prior to the Knight declaring his challenge count as breaking the challenge.
Either the Knight or the target are knocked unconscious. or otherwise rendered unable to fight.

If the Deed of Worthy Challenge remains in effect for at least two full rounds, or if the Deed ends early because of the target retreating or being knocked unconscious by the Knight, the Knight of Badassdom gains one temporary Hero Point - even if the Deed ends shortly after.

So, in a game designed to be played as a team, this ability just says "nah, imma do my own thing in combat for a bit". It's really hard for for teams to work together if party members have specific abilities that get shut down when team members try to help you. I suppose the taunting mechanic can be useful but then again, you don't specify what happens when the knight's allies help out. Does the challenge end, thus freeing the creature to attack other party member? The save DC is going to be laughably low anyways, Charisma is usually a dump stat for most martial characters, as they need a high strength, good con and decent dex.

So far, only one of these three abilities have been unique. The first one can essentially be duplicated by items, the seconds one (the unique one as IDK of any class that grants bonus to CMB vs larger foes), isn't written well, and the third is just a worse version of the cavalier's challenge ability. As of now, I don't really have any incentive to take this class. I feel like I can get more out of my original fighter, barbarian, cavalier or paladin than I could by taking this class.

Feats of Prowess (Ex): Starting at 2nd level, the Knight of Badassdom learns two combat abilities from the list below, and one additional ability every level thereafter. These abilities require Hero Points to use or otherwise interact with Hero Points; thus, it is said that they are fueled by a healthy amalgam of Metal Gods’ favor, the Knight’s own blazing spirit, and the tears of his enemies.

Each of these abilities may only be used once per combat; a Knight of Badassdom may, however, use multiple different abilities in the same combat.

Finishing Blow: Whenever the Knight of Badassdom damages a creature with a melee attack, he may spend a Hero Point to perform a Finishing Blow; if he does, the Knight’s attack deals additional damage equal to his character level. Furthermore, the Knight rolls 1d6 per point of Base Attack Bonus that he has. If the total roll is equal to or greater than the target’s remaining Hit Points (after subtracting damage from the attack), the target is immediately reduced to 0 hit points.

This ability is not bad. But it could be written better. Try somethign like:

When a Knight hits a creature with a melee attack, he may spend a point to add his character level to the total damage dealt.

After dealing damage, the Knight may roll a number of d6s equal to his base attack bonus. If the result of the roll is equal to or greater than the creature's remaining hit points, the creature is immediately reduced to 0 hitpoints. If the result came out to be less than the creature remaining hitpoints, the creature is unaffected.

Improbable Maneuver: Whenever the Knight of Badassdom spends a Hero Point to grant himself a luck bonus to a combat maneuver check or reroll a combat maneuver check, he furthermore gains the Greater feat associated with that maneuver (Greater Trip, Greater Sunder, etc) until the start of his next turn, even if he does not meet the prerequisites for the feat in question. This benefit does not grant the Knight of Badassdom other related feats (such as Improved Trip or Sundering Strike).
[\quote]

It's not enough to simply say the greater feat associated with. You need to explicitly say which feats he can use. Also, if I'm planning to be a combat maneuver king, I probably already have these feats. I'd rather have an additional bonus, otherwise I'm going to skip over this as the ability i take.

[QUOTE=Sooth;21170831]

Martial Virtuosity: As a free action during combat, the Knight of Badassdom may spend a Hero Point to gain a single Combat feat of his choice. He must choose a feat for which he meets the prerequisites, and he learns the feat only for the duration of the combat.

if I'm a fighter, this is worthless. If I'm anything else, this might be worth it, but most of the time there really isn't a scenario in which I'd say "damn, if ONLY I had that one feat!", particularly if I need to qualify for the feat in order to use this ability!

No Limits: The Knight of Badassdom may spend a Hero Point to gain his choice of two of the following. These effects last until the start of his next turn.
Climb speed equal to his base land speed.
Affected by Freedom of Movement (as the spell)
A +30 enhancement bonus to Acrobatics checks made to attempt high jumps or long jumps.
The ability to make a single high jump or long jump as a swift action (separate and in addition to any movement he makes during the round).

Honestly, the only thing I see that's useful here is Freedom of Movement. So far, your only way to reliably get your hero points (other then through the regular DM handouts), is through combat. So gaining a climb speed in combat is situational at best and so is that +30 acrobatics. By the time you can normally qualify for Prcs (level 5 or 6), the wizard has access to fly, and you probably have a few potions of fly on hand making the two abilities become moot. Plus the short duration is just... why?

Reach for Blood: As a standard action, the Knight of Badassdom may spend a Hero Point and make a single melee attack against each opponent within reach; if the Knight possesses the Whirlwind Attack feat, he increases his reach by ten feet for the purpose of this attack.

So if I'm a medium creature using a reach weapon and have whirlwind attack I can strike foes out to 20ft? Also, note the clause at the end of whirlwind attack.

When you use the Whirlwind Attack feat, you also forfeit any bonus or extra attacks granted by other feats, spells, or abilities

This ability doesn't have that restriction. So it is strictly better than whirlwind attack for that purpose, thus I don't think you need to make this ability better if you have whirlwind attack. In fact, most builds don't pick up that feat because for one, it's ludicrously expensive for what it does, and two, unless you're surrounded by mooks you can reliably kill in one shot, it's pretty worthless. And if you can kill the mooks in one shot then they're probably not much of a threat to you anyway and most likely won't even hit you.

And other classes, (bloodrager) can get a free 5ft increase in reach by level 4, and can do it all the time, and can cast a myriad of buffs on themselves, and can rage and can...

Relentless Assault: Whenever the Knight of Badassdom makes a charge, he may spend a Hero Point to gain the Pounce special ability until end of turn.

By far the best thing for martials to have. Might be worth it to take a two level dip in this class for a fighter to get this. Barbarians get this at level 11 and can do it more reliably.

Second Wind: As an immediate action, the Knight of Badassdom may spend a Hero Point to regain hit points equal to twice his character level.

Essentially a self only lay on hands. Useful for delaying the inevitable death by full attack from a dragon, or a giant, or numerous other things that could easily kill a solo martial character.

Weather the Storm: Whenever the Knight of Badassdom spends a Hero Point to grant himself a luck bonus to a saving throw or to reroll a saving throw, he furthermore gains the Evasion and Stalwart abilities until the start of his next turn.

Spend a point to get a what bonus to saving throw? A luck bonus you say? Well ,how much? Oh there's none listed. The ability to reroll a failed save is nice. Getting evasion is pretty unimpressive as that's your weakest save and isn't likely going to help you out. Stalwart is a feat, not an ability, and is pretty bad as far as feats go. I'd rather take to AC bonus to help me avoid taking ANY damage rather than mitigate a measly 5 points.

Dauntless (Ex): When he reaches 3rd level, the Knight of Badassdom gains a +2 bonus to saving throws against mind-affecting spells and abilities. This bonus increases by an additional 2 at levels 4 and 5.

Will is one of your good saves, so this is nice, but pretty lackluster.

Overall, I don't really think this class is an improvement on martial characters. In fact, a lot of abilities just seem to grant feats, or are modified versions or other class features. In any one combat you can hope to get 5 extra hero points (which if you may even lose some since you cannot have an excess of 3, and is an alternate rule set that I think most tables don't use), and spend them on abilities that you can only use once per combat, or I guess you can spend them on the regular abilities you get with hero points, which are arguably better than any of the abilities you have here. There's no flavor in any of the class feature either, I mean, you say your supposed to be a Knight of Baddassdom, but nothing really supports that. The challenge ability just comes off as you being a egocentric jerk. The "temporary" hero points have no duration.

A lot of abilities need to be re-written for clarity, and need to be more explicit in their benefits.

For future revisions. You should ax the abilities that are essentially carbon copies of other class features. Bonus feats are nice, but they shouldn't be the focus point of a prestige class. It's not a bad thing to take inspiration from other classes, but the flavor and the crunch should be different enough for it to feel like it's own thing.

Ignore the thing about flying solo, no one is going to want to play with a character who insists on taking on all the big monsters by himself because "it's baddass". Instead maybe add abilities that inspire your teammates because you're so baddass. Maybe even enable them to perform their own feats of baddassery.

You apparently have gods of metal, so I don't see why they wouldn't send down some Valkyries to help you out in battle, or grant you other boons. They're gods, they're supposed to help their followers out every once in awhile.

You need another type of resource. Hero points are not used universally. And they way you've written the class, you don't get them in a reliable fashion. Consider looking at the Gunslinger and the Grit class feature for ideas. Also, he should have some abilities that DON'T involve using up points. Because if the Knight has no points, he is essentially worse than the fighter, because he can't use his abilities, since everything he has is once per combat. Perhaps some abilities that grant bonuses depending on number of creature that threaten you.

If at any point I came off as insulting, I apologize. It's just my way of emphasizes that something doesn't quite work well. I do hope you revise this class.

Sooth

2016-09-09, 01:27 AM

Actually, this is tremendously helpful and is more-or-less precisely the sort of criticism I hoped to receive. Thanks for the candid insight.

One thing I seem to have failed to make clear is that seeking out and achieving a glorious death is inherent to this concept. Both for IC thematics and for the OOC meta, this class is meant to exist *so* that you can have that moment with a big bad demon, dragon or whatever, pull off some shenanigans you absolutely should not be able to do under ordinary game-balance circumstances as a warrior, and then die in a memorable and spectacular fashion.

I found using the base mechanic of Hero Points useful because Hero Points already allow you to do quite a bit before class features. Thus, even if you have no particular need for the circumstantial merit of a feature, those 2 Hero Points you get for being brought to Death's door can be used to destroy the enemy or make a saving throw, etc. I see your points about the numerous merits of using an alternative mechanic so I will consider that in earnest. I also wasn't aware that Hero Points were so far from being ubiquitous; my gaming experience in-person and online has been almost precisely the opposite of yours in regards to Hero Points, so that's eye-opening to hear.

It's clear to me that the features need to be reworked from the ground up to be given more pizazz, flavor, and even sheer usefulness. To be frank, I want this class to be powerful, to perform exceptionally well within its element -- and for this to be necessarily balanced by the fact that, yes, when you die in this class, your adventuring career is over, and that is the intent. I realize this may run contrary to a lot of conventional design philosophy wisdom but that's what I'd like to try and pull off here.

Thanks again for taking the time to leave such thorough feedback and you can expect to see a Round 2 of this class.

Hanuman

2016-09-09, 06:53 AM

I like some of these mechanics, I am very very biased against straight beatsticks.

Thing I like:
Honeybadgering a class is something I like, giving zero frells is a cool role.
(See: Honeybadger) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4r7wHMg5Yjg)

"As long as the Knight of Badassdom has a Constitution score, it may not be reduced below 1."
This is well written, if you wanted to soften the balance I'd write "whenever your constitution score would be lowered below 1 you take 10 damage that round and resist the effect.

If I were to condense some potential inspiration I would think of this:

Consider that the role here is to welcome negative effects, as a party role you are an agro sponge, you WANT to be effected by things so the party doesn't have to.
Because you welcome negative effects, how about playing with the concept of intentionally failing mixed with counter attacks as a core class mechanic.

There's a lot of ways to make that role or concept.

Here's something off the top of my head, you could have stance, a focus, a rage, some sort of state where you welcome the enemy's attack, since you are honeybadger you could make wisdom your mental shielding abilities and con your physical abilities, key as CON>STR>WIS / Dex = Int = Cha.
By staying in this state you take less damage from attacks but cannot avoid them, all attacks and negative effects automatically succeed, then you have abilities around mitigating but not removing the negatives, you could roll a fort save vs. the attack roll or another save char level + wis mod /day, success means you completely negate the non-damage effects, take less damage, and "dooming" them. Doom is a counterattack that lasts 1 round per wis mod, but if you can act on it you must do so before the end of your turn or it's removed.
You could also flavor the doom to have stronger or mirrored effects to the ability you saved against.

Another way is good old mordekaiser (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bCDdWSdMDM#t=4m28s) method (warning, LOTS of metal puns), sacrifice health to charge your attacks with metal manipulation, granting you lots of temporary hp upon dealing damage with them.

There are so many cool ways to do this if you're not straight beatstick though, just my 2c.
If you have magic i'd suggest cha over wis and have music based abilities, which seems far more interesting.
So like, start with barbarian rage but instead of a rage have a personal themesong of otherworldly music (music from an indiscernible source) usable once per encounter. The music itself could have a pool when started, using that for your honeybadger effects, successful actions like attacks could charge it (and overcharge it) and a full round action for automatically successful performance check could fully recharge the pool. If you run out of charge the battle music stops and it's ongoing effects are dispelled.
That sort of things add a lot of fluff, you could be your own glorious metal god storm.

Sooth

2016-09-16, 10:10 PM

Sooth

2016-09-16, 10:14 PM

So I have all but rewritten the class, as per feedback. A succinct list of changes:

* Badass Points instead of Hero Points.
* Class has built-in ways to generate Badass Points all of which are available from Level 1, and follow some similar rules as Grit Points.
* Feats of Prowess rewritten, and now the Knight can spend more points to make them particularly potent.
* Anti-Fear/Charm abilities a little more interesting.

TheFamilarRaven

2016-09-19, 02:45 PM

Looking much better. I don't have much to say at this time but I have a few more things to add.

-Killing Blow has an unintentional typo methinks ... the condition for a worthy foe are "equal to or less than the Knight's HD". That excludes monsters with MORE HD than the Knight. Also, consider having the lower limit be( Knight's HD -5), that way if a Knight has 20 HD, a creature with 10 HD wouldn't be a worthy opponent.

-You've got two dead levels there, (Other than increasing Baddass points and getting more abilities learned). Pathfinder doesn't like dead levels on martial characters. Consider filling them with some other non baddass point activated abilities... Maybe something like:

Against All Odds Ex): A Knight of Baddassdom feels most at home when he is facing overwhelming odds. Starting at level 2, for each enemy that threatens the Knight of Baddassdom, he receives a +1 dodge bonus to his AC, and a +1 morale bonus to weapon damage rolls. Both bonuses increase to +2 at 4th level.

-Still thinking that either summoning Valkyries, or gaining Valkyrie wings would be both helpful and thematically appropriate for this class. You can just find an outsider that matches the lore of a Valkyrie (I'm sure there is one) and use that.

-Reach for Blood doesn't scream baddass to me, it just causes me to raise an eyebrow. Like, how does someone using a weapon with a reach of 5ft hit something 30ft away, or even all targets in a 30ft cone? You have no fluff that explains that... you just state that "he does". Granted a lot of the abilities are "just cause he's baddass", but I can suspend my disbelief for almost all of them except this one.

- add some battle field control capabilities to the Feats of Prowess.

Seismic Slam: As a standard action, the knight of Baddassdom can slam his fist into the ground and create a mighty shock wave. This produces the following effects based how many baddass points the Knight spends:
- 1 Point: The Knight makes a trip attempt against all creatures within 10ft of the Kngiht that are standing on the same ground. This provokes no attacks of opportunity, and creature may not attempt to trip the Knight in response if the attempt fails. If the Knight has the Improved Trip feat, or other bonus to trip attempts, he may add them to his CMB when performing a Seimic Slam.
- 2 Points: As above, but each creature must make a Fortitude save equal to (10 + 1/2 the Knight's HD + the Knight Strength Modifier) or be stunned for 1 round. They must attempt this save even if they were not tripped.
- 3 Points: As with spending 2 points, but the duration of the stun is now 1d4 rounds.

is just a suggestion, but you get the idea.

Anyway, looks like it's coming along nicely. You just need to spit shine it some more. Also, a good bench mark is to compare what this class can do to what someone who just stayed with straight fighter, or straight barbarian or straight 'X' can so. If they're roughly equal, then you're in a good place. They can even be slightly better, since you have to spend two feats on Endurance and Diehard to qualify for this class, (Which are not generally considered worth while feats).

EDIT: Actually, there is one problem with you're requirement. Having the player die and then be raised as pre-req is a little wonky. Consider that the character in question must have a BaB of 5, that means he is a least 5th. Clerics don't get access to raise dead until 9th so essentially you will usually be reliant upon the DM's discretion clause that allows you to be brought back to life.

Sooth

2016-10-03, 09:26 PM

The Against all Odds ability is definitely in the theme of the class and should be up there. Actually I ended up adding something notably different from what you suggested and I'll be looking for the right space to put in another ability for fighting against multiple foes.

Made some other suggested changes like fixing the language with Killing Blow. I'm gonna make some updates to Feats of Prowess later.

The significant item for this update, is that the Knight now receives an Ultimate ability at 5th level, chosen now from three options, so that Valkyries can potentially be a thing. For that matter, that whole section may as well have Manowar written over it.

I may have gone severely overboard, however.

Sooth

2016-10-05, 09:39 PM

Added Seismic Slam almost-as-written and a couple more Prowess abilities. Some of the Prowess abilities are explicitly supernatural now. Finalized "Against all Odds" to be a short list of benefits.
Thanks again for the input. That should *about* do it, I think.