PDA

View Full Version : Chozo Warrior



Avigor
2017-06-20, 09:04 AM
Chozo Warrior PrC
Been sitting on this idea for a while, tinkering with it, and with the announcement of Samus Returns I decided to post it in celebration.
I built this to function like Samus Aran, post-Fusion, without her suit, operating under the assumption that the biologically absorbed powers still work without the suit, if less efficiently; due to the lack of the suit, she lacks all of her various explosives, and for simplicity I merged the Wide Beam into the now epic-only Hyper Beam, used the Phase Arrow for the Wave Beam, and turned the Space Jump into a clumsy flight based on Jump ranks (do you really want to make a bajillion Jump checks for it?). I also held back on the Screw Attack; it won’t make you invulnerable here like some incarnations of the power-up have in the past, albeit it will be somewhat harder to hit you while you are using it. Also, I decided to give it an assigned favored enemy bonus that seems logical to me.
I might do a Fusion Suit, or even just a Power Suit, as an artifact later, with the shield reserves as a Temporary HP pool with some sort of vampiric regeneration, missiles as a kind of explosive armbow, and bombs, and possibly throw in a few enhancements to the other abilities or add other abilities missing from Fusion (Super Metroid X-Ray Scope or the Samus Returns Aeion Scan Pulse, perhaps?).
Note: It might be a bad habit, but I don’t like to list redundant requirements, such as repeating the requirements of a feat or PrC I’m listing as a pre-req already for something I’m creating; I just put the source in parenthesis. Granted, I can’t think of how someone could exploit this quirk of mine for this entry, but still the RAI here is that you shouldn’t be skipping pre-req’s.

Requirements: Psychic Strike (Soulknife (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/classes/soulknife.htm) 3), Mind Arrow (Soulbow (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ex/20060403a&page=2) 1), Chozo Training (new feat, see below), Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 5 ranks, must be an Elan or undergo a transformation into one.
Special: You must have Mind Arrow enhancement (+2 bonus equivalent ability; Soulbow 6) before you can acquire the fourth level of Chozo Warrior, and you must have Phase Arrow (Soulbow 8) before you can acquire the fifth level of Chozo Warrior.

d10 Hit Die, no new proficiencies.


Level
BAB
Fort
Ref
Will
Features


1
+1
+0
+2
+2
Immunity to Infestation, Hunter Favored Enemies, Maru Mari, High-Jump


2
+2
+0
+3
+3
Charge Shot, Varia Suit


3
+3
+1
+3
+3
Speed Boost/Shinespark, Space Jump


4
+4
+1
+4
+4
Plasma Beam, Gravity Suit


5
+5
+1
+4
+4
Screw Attack, Ice Beam



Class Skills (4 + Int modifier per level): Autohypnosis, Balance, Climb, Concentration, Craft, Jump, Knowledge (Dungeoneering), Knowledge (Psionics), Listen, Profession, Search, Spot, Survival, Tumble

Class Features:
Immunity to Infestation (Ex): You are immune to diseases, implantations, grafts, parasites, symbionts, or other infections (including but not limited to the Tsochar wear flesh ability or illithid larvae implantation) that are of a biological nature. This does not give special protection against spiritual possession or mental manipulation that is not biological in nature.
Hunter Favored Enemies (Ex): As the Ranger feature, +2 bonus against Aberrations and Githyanki (or any other 2 enemy types your setting would consider a better flavor match).
Maru Mari (Su): Otherwise known as the Morph Ball, you can now, at will while psionically focused as a full-round action, transform into (or return to your normal form from) a Tiny size ball which colors itself based on the color of whatever you are wearing. While transformed, you can move by rolling around at your normal land speed, and can jump, but can never qualify as having a running start. This can be manifested within a null psionics field or antimagic field with a DC 20 Will save.
High-Jump (Ex): When making a jump, double the resulting distance.
Charge Shot (Su): Starting at level 2, if you take a standard action to charge your Psychic Strike while psionically focused and apply it to your Mind Arrow, you can use a higher number of damage dice as if all of your Soulbow and Chozo Warrior levels were Soulknife levels with one additional d8 of damage added; for example, a Soulknife 5 / Soulbow 8 / Chozo Warrior 2 can effectively do +5d8 damage (4d8 from the combined levels, +1d8 as a bonus) with Psychic Strike on a Mind Arrow if a standard action is used to charge it instead of a move action. Note that you can still choose to use a move action to charge it and/or apply it to the Mind Blade for the smaller bonus damage amount if desired.
Varia Suit (Ex): Starting at level 2, you are immune to environmental heat and cold, and have Resistance equal to twice your class level against Acid, Cold, and Fire damage.
Speed Boost/Shinespark (Su): Starting at level 3, while psionically focused, if you spend one turn doing nothing but running in a straight line, you engage the Speed Boost starting on your next turn. While boosted, your land speed doubles, you cannot change direction, and you cause 5d6 Force damage to anything you impact; anything so destroyed does not stop your movement, but hitting anything that isn’t destroyed will immediately end the Speed Boost effect and stop all movement. If you jump during Speed Boost, triple the resulting distance. At any time, you can stop the Speed Boost to act normally, or if preferred, you can absorb a charge of Shinespark energy by entering a crouch as the first move action of a turn; you now have the remainder of this round (at least the standard action of it) and one more round, or until hit (which immediately dissipates the charge) to initiate Shinespark as a standard action, which causes you to fly in a straight line at the same Speed Boost speed and with the same Force damage effect described above, only stopping when you hit something that isn’t destroyed or reach the edge of the atmosphere. Finally, if you Shinespark into a slanted surface suitable for running on, you can start running on it with the Speed Boost instead of ending the Shinespark effect immediately.
Space Jump (Su): Starting at level 3, while psionically focused and after making a jump which crosses horizontal distance of at least 5 feet, you may begin flying as if you have a fly speed of 10 + your ranks in Jump (rounded if the DM prefers) with clumsy maneuverability, albeit you can hover and may fully change direction once per turn as if you had perfect maneuverability for that one change of direction. If you hit a solid object, or are hit by an attack, this effect immediately ends. Any action other than movement will immediately end this flight; if ended in mid-air, you fall as normal.
Plasma Beam (Su): Starting at level 4, you can take a full attack action (in lieu of your regular attacks) to expend your psionic focus to make a single Mind Arrow attack which is treated as meeting any qualifications other than Epic or Evil to penetrate damage reduction and is treated as having the Exit Wound property (Complete Warrior, +1d6 damage and can target multiple enemies in a line with a cumulative -4 penalty per additional target) in addition to all other properties your Mind Arrow has.
Gravity Suit (Su): Starting at level 4, you now generate a constant antigravity field with the following effects: You are immune to any degree of pressure variance or altered gravity (no impact to subjective gravity environments such as the Astral Plane), and you can treat liquids as if they were air for the purposes of movement and Mind Arrow attacks. This does not, however, grant you the ability to breath underwater or in a vacuum. Finally, you gain a Deflection bonus to AC equal to your Wisdom modifier.
Screw Attack (Su): Starting at level 5, while making a jump which crosses horizontal distance of at least 5 feet (including if falling after such a jump so long as no other non-mental actions or mind arrow attacks have been attempted since the jump), or using Space Jump (i.e. from when the Space Jump starts until it ends), you may choose to be surrounded by an energy field which causes 5d6 Sonic damage to anything that comes within 1 foot of you, and you can ignore anything destroyed by the Screw Attack in order to keep flying. This can effect solid projectiles, such as arrows or bolts, before they have a chance to hit you (magic weapons get a Dexterity saving throw against DC 20 + your Mind Arrow enhancement bonus for half damage), as well as solid obstacles before you would impact them. Finally, add your Mind Arrow enhancement bonus to your Gravity Suit deflection bonus to AC while using Screw Attack.
Ice Beam (Su): Starting at level 5, your Mind Arrow now has Icy Burst as a bonus property which does not count towards the enhancement maximum; this damage is doubled if Charge Beam is used. From now on, whenever an enemy is hit with the Charge Beam or a critical hit from your Mind Arrow and takes cold damage that is not fully absorbed by Cold Resistance, the enemy must make a Fortitude saving throw against a DC equal to 20 + your Mind Arrow enhancement bonus or be immediately frozen in magical ice for a number of rounds equal to twice your Mind Arrow’s enhancement bonus. This ice prevents any attempt to move the victim; if they were flying, they are now hovering in place. Victims can even be walked on, albeit requiring a DC 10 Balance check to keep one’s footing and counting as difficult terrain. While so frozen, creatures are otherwise treated as if Helpless, albeit they can only be subjected to a Coup de Grace with an explosive blast. The ice can be destroyed if it takes Fire damage equal to the Fortitude save DC, is broken by an ally’s Strength check vs. the Fortitude save DC, or is dispelled (use the Fortitude save DC for the Dispel check). If a Charge Beam shot scores a critical hit, then increase the Fortitude save DC by +5. If the target’s save ties the DC, then they are instead Slowed for 1 round as the spell.

Feats:
Chozo Training [Special]
Requirements: Wisdom 13+, can only be taken at level 1 by Humans or Elans who are given a blood transfusion by the Chozo species, any of: 3 or more power points, 1st level in a class that grants at least one power point, or one psionic feat.
Description: Jump is always a class skill for you; in addition, you gain the following benefits, all of which require psionic focus to use:
1: Vertical Mastery (Ex): You do not take damage from falls. You can always make a purely vertical leap as if from a running start unless specifically forbidden from doing so; you must still run to get better horizontal distances unless stated otherwise.
2: Danger Sense (Su): You can add your Wisdom modifier to your AC instead of your Dexterity when wearing no more than light armor; this cannot stack with Monk AC bonuses.
3: Wall Jumping (Ex): If you jump with a running start up onto a wall you can use a standard action to make a DC 13 Climb check to “grab” the wall momentarily (this DC can be increased as appropriate based on the surface conditions or circumstances); you will lose this special grip if you take any action other than jumping. Whenever you are on a wall (by climbing normally or using the special “grab” described above), you can take a move action to jump away from the wall as if you had a running start.
Special: You cannot take any other feats based on ancestry, bloodline, heritage, race, or region. You cannot take levels in any classes that are based completely on the above, with the exception of Chozo Warrior.

Grappling Beam [General]
Requirements: Shape Mind Blade (Soulknife 5), Chozo Training
Description: If psionically focused, and your off hand is free, you can use your off hand and a move action to create a whip-like beam of telekinetic energy 25 feet long which acts as a grappling hook, immediately lashing it around any firm, weightbearing object or protrusion to allow swinging across chasms, rooms, etc. While swinging, you can make Mind Arrow attacks as normal, however you cannot use your off hand for anything else until you release yourself from the beam. A Jump check as if from a running start is made upon releasing from the beam to determine one’s potential movement, however instead of each direction getting its own distance calculation this special jump splits the “horizontal” result between both horizontal and vertical as the jumper chooses to divide the result, and ignores the normal “vertical” calculation.
Special: This tool cannot be used to initiate Space Jump. This can be manifested within a null psionics field or antimagic field with a DC 20 Will save.

Hyper Beam [Epic]
Requirements: +4 Mind Arrow or better (combined Soulbow and Soulknife bonus), Ice Beam
Benefit: As a standard action which expends your psionic focus, you can launch a single Mind Arrow with the benefits of both Phase Arrow and Plasma Beam (now expanded to include penetration of DR/Epic) and bonus damage as if prepared with a full Charge Beam against all targets along a 5 ft wide and tall line to your Mind Arrow’s maximum range, stopping only if encountering a magical or psionic barrier per Phase Arrow rules. Reflex save vs DC 20 + Mind Arrow enhancement bonus + your Wisdom modifier for half damage. While you do apply the bonus damage from Plasma Beam’s Exit Wound property, each target is only attacked once by this Mind Arrow variant, ignoring Exit Wound’s bonus attack.

Hyper Burst [Epic]
Requirements: Hyper Beam, +6 Mind Arrow or better (combined Soulbow and Soulknife bonus)
Benefit: You can take a full attack action which expends your psionic focus to gain the effect of Hyper Beam instead of your normal Mind Arrow attacks.

EDIT: A few tweaks and a table. Sorry that I didn't do that earlier; this is literally the first time I've done one, thank the uncaring Boccob that the preview button exists so I could figure out how to do it on the fly!
EDIT 2: Mostly added Ex/Su flags and links, did a slight grammatical correction to Gravity Suit, and added mind blade style options to use maru mari and grapple beam within antimagic, added some clarification to the Screw Attack, and applied a limiter to Chozo Training.
EDIT 3: Switched Gravity Suit from Ex to Su due to "antigravity isn't biology" logic bugging me, changed Hyperbeam into a line with a Reflex save for half and added Charge Beam to what it bundles together while making it expend psionic focus, changed the Chozo Training limiter, added to Ice Beam that the Charge Beam doubles the ice damage, and added a bonus d8 to Charge Beam bonus damage.
EDIT 4: Made a few more tweaks, specifically specified Plasma Beam is in addition to any existing properties, clarified some Space Jump and Screw Attack bits (can hover, change direction 1/turn, and removed the running start verbiage in favor of a distance minimum), and added that the enemies can be swapped out if the DM/setting prefers a different favored enemy.

Avigor
2017-06-21, 08:45 AM
So no comments? I have to admit that the favored enemy bonus and Elan race requirement were chosen mostly because I haven't felt like trying to stat out proper Metroids and Space Pirates, not to mention the X Parasites, and felt a partial adaptation into core D&D was easier. I'm considering changing the Chozo fluff into something else, like the Ethergaunt or Silthilar as well.

khadgar567
2017-06-21, 09:12 AM
do us a favor mate and put a table to first post and it already seen by at least ore-sama and maybe more so be patience mate

gooddragon1
2017-06-21, 12:25 PM
A table would certainly be helpful, but it's so much to look at that it's a bit intimidating. Probably good, but a read through would take time and dedication (and it's Summer, so it's hot in a lot of places).

Avigor
2017-06-22, 08:05 AM
Ok, table up. Sorry about the impatience, this is my first major post in homebrew so yeah...

gooddragon1
2017-06-22, 11:38 AM
Can't comment much on balance as I'm not a veteran DM. Different DM's have different balance points anyways.

Firstly, I'd link the soulbow in your post so people know what a phase arrow is: It's publicly available so it's cool. (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ex/20060403a&page=2)

+Which of the abilities are supernatural and which ones are extraordinary (clarify this on the feats as well)? I ask because this will affect what balance level the class is at.
+I justify a lot of the interesting movement shenanigans by saying: It's cool, but it's not much that just flying couldn't do. Which is something of a good thing because it's more interesting than just flying.
+The 20+Mind Arrow enhancement is a high save early on (though I don't think you can enter this class too early so it seems appropriate), but doesn't scale well later. It's probably okay though given what uses it, what those things affect, and the effect even on a success.
+I'm not sure screw attack is going to be deflecting any attacks though. People don't generally attack on your turn with ranged attacks unless they've readied them. Also, 1 foot is subjective in what it hits. Unless you just want it to deflect and hit on contact.
+Sonic damage deals damage normally (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/exploration.htm#energyAttacks) against hardness, but only the Energy [Power] series causes it to ignore (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/powers/energyRay.htm) hardness. Just so you know.
+Going through most DR is powerful, but you've got a high investment in the class anyways (and it takes a full round action as well as your psionic focus for 1 attack, so it's not just spamming your attacks through it).
+It's a little strange to me that charge shot doesn't give any extra damage in addition.
+Ice beam action economy damage even on a failed save is nice and appropriate for an investment that high (also you have to hit first and they have to have little or no cold resistance).
+I'm not sure what you're trying to do with the hyper beam feat.
+Chozo training could give wisdom classes (like the druid and cleric) wisdom to AC for the cost of a feat (and playing as an elan or taking another feat to get power points).

For the most part though, imo, the class is balanced. Not unreasonably high amounts of damage. Damage is a fleeting thing between DM's like balance, but I don't think they'd find it to be excessive. Looks like a reasonable adaptation and approximation of the chozo-en one.

Avigor
2017-06-22, 10:31 PM
A few things to keep in mind: With the Special requirement that's been there since the first post, class level 4 can only be acquired at ECL 16 or higher, class level 5 at ECL 18 or higher. Also, Phase Arrow allows you to not only ignore armor but also snipe through walls, with no limit of substance or thickness so long as no force effect or similar exists between you and the target and you know where they are (as if it were a brilliant energy weapon that can effect constructs and undead), so comparing Plasma Beam I'm not convinced it is OP, especially as they can't stack until you get Hyper Beam, at which point you can just mow down enemies.

Added Soulbow and Soulknife links and Ex/Su flags.

I'm tempted to make the Charge Beam to also double the Ice Beam bonus damage, and possibly increase the enhancement bonus of the resultant attack to the combined total of Soulknife, Soulbow, and Chozo Warrior levels divided by 4 (or as if they were all Soulknife levels).

Any suggestions for creatures other than Chozo that could fit well as a patron race for this?

gooddragon1
2017-06-23, 02:55 AM
A few things to keep in mind: With the Special requirement that's been there since the first post, class level 4 can only be acquired at ECL 16 or higher, class level 5 at ECL 18 or higher. Also, Phase Arrow allows you to not only ignore armor but also snipe through walls, with no limit of substance or thickness so long as no force effect or similar exists between you and the target and you know where they are (as if it were a brilliant energy weapon that can effect constructs and undead), so comparing Plasma Beam I'm not convinced it is OP, especially as they can't stack until you get Hyper Beam, at which point you can just mow down enemies.

Added Soulbow and Soulknife links and Ex/Su flags.

I'm tempted to make the Charge Beam to also double the Ice Beam bonus damage, and possibly increase the enhancement bonus of the resultant attack to the combined total of Soulknife, Soulbow, and Chozo Warrior levels divided by 4 (or as if they were all Soulknife levels).

Any suggestions for creatures other than Chozo that could fit well as a patron race for this?

That's some pretty high requirements. And since the hyper feats are epic it's not something till at least 21st level anyways. Is hyper beam meant to turn the attack into a line requiring a reflex save?

As for the charge beam, maybe in addition an extra 1d6 straight away or something so that it is strictly bonus damage.

For the chozo training feat I'd recommend replacing the 1 power point requirement with an "any of the following" requirement:
+3 power points
+1 level in a class that grants at least 1 power point
+1 psionic feat

This way a druid or cleric would have to take an additional feat to get the bonus in addition to being an elan.

As I understand the chozo were bird-like. You could also have raptorans (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/iw/20050106b&page=1) as an eligible race (though they do get flying later on).


http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/forgottenrealms/images/4/4c/Raptoran.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20161014035438

Avigor
2017-06-25, 07:20 AM
That's some pretty high requirements. And since the hyper feats are epic it's not something till at least 21st level anyways. Is hyper beam meant to turn the attack into a line requiring a reflex save?

As for the charge beam, maybe in addition an extra 1d6 straight away or something so that it is strictly bonus damage.

For the chozo training feat I'd recommend replacing the 1 power point requirement with an "any of the following" requirement:
+3 power points
+1 level in a class that grants at least 1 power point
+1 psionic feat

This way a druid or cleric would have to take an additional feat to get the bonus in addition to being an elan.

As I understand the chozo were bird-like. You could also have raptorans (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/iw/20050106b&page=1) as an eligible race (though they do get flying later on).


http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/forgottenrealms/images/4/4c/Raptoran.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20161014035438


Decided to go with a bonus d8 on the Charge Beam (as what it gives are all d8's anyways) plus the doubled ice damage I'd been contemplating, took the suggestion on the starting feat and hyper beam (with another tweak on the hyper beam), and now thinking the biggest sticking point for proper core campaign integration is the patron race.

While yes the Chozo were bird-like, that wasn't the important part (at least as far as this class is concerned): the important part is that they were highly advanced both technologically and spiritually, are all but extinct, and are considered highly mysterious and enigmatic ancients by almost everyone. Hence my earlier thinking about the Silthilar, who have been reduced to sentient swarms of graft-obsessed experimenters after their civilization collapsed (they even have grafts that I could see a Chozo Warrior wanting), or the Ethergaunt, advanced technologists and arcanists from the ethereal plane who have friggin ray gun weapons (i.e. nonmagical ranged weapons that deal Force damage); a big flaw with the latter idea is that they are xenophobic, atheistic, genocidal, and bound to a caste system, rather preventing them being involved unless one assumes this is from some sort of heretical offshoot (and even then, the benefits of the Training feat would make no sense whatsoever, albeit honestly that was just set up because I wanted wall jumping lol).

gooddragon1
2017-06-25, 03:30 PM
Decided to go with a bonus d8 on the Charge Beam (as what it gives are all d8's anyways) plus the doubled ice damage I'd been contemplating, took the suggestion on the starting feat and hyper beam (with another tweak on the hyper beam), and now thinking the biggest sticking point for proper core campaign integration is the patron race.

While yes the Chozo were bird-like, that wasn't the important part (at least as far as this class is concerned): the important part is that they were highly advanced both technologically and spiritually, are all but extinct, and are considered highly mysterious and enigmatic ancients by almost everyone. Hence my earlier thinking about the Silthilar, who have been reduced to sentient swarms of graft-obsessed experimenters after their civilization collapsed (they even have grafts that I could see a Chozo Warrior wanting), or the Ethergaunt, advanced technologists and arcanists from the ethereal plane who have friggin ray gun weapons (i.e. nonmagical ranged weapons that deal Force damage); a big flaw with the latter idea is that they are xenophobic, atheistic, genocidal, and bound to a caste system, rather preventing them being involved unless one assumes this is from some sort of heretical offshoot (and even then, the benefits of the Training feat would make no sense whatsoever, albeit honestly that was just set up because I wanted wall jumping lol).

There's a core elf variant that gets a bonus to intelligence called the gray elf (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/elf.htm#grayElf). Though I'm not sure how rare they are. I don't know too much about races in 3.5 really. Looks good for the rest of the parts though.