Slaymate/keeping close/alive

[solooize]

Trying to figure out how to keep a slaymate alive and within range....at high lvls 19hp won't cut it....

[Venger]

any buff spells you'd use on yourself are just as good on your pal. what is your build?

[Falontani]

Undead Leadership, choose it as your cohort, give it levels in Dread Necromancer (unless your a dread necro) and have it be able to heal your party + metamagic it's own abilities for free. If your a DN then another necromancy based class could work, like cleric, wizard, or Death Master. I'm sure there are others that could appeal to you

[flappeercraft]

I would go with Flesh to Stone, Stone Shape (to a round stone), Shrink Object, Permanency and temporal stasis. Now leave it in your pocket and make sure to cover it with sovereign glue to not lose it.

[Necroticplague]

Use the Ritual of Transfiguration to make it incorporeal. Then, use Haunt Shift to have it haunt one of your things. There, it will exist as long as it isn’t exorcised and the thing is still around.

[flappeercraft]

Use the Ritual of Transfiguration to make it incorporeal. Then, use Haunt Shift to have it haunt one of your things. There, it will exist as long as it isn’t exorcised and the thing is still around.
To solve the exorcism, just cast Imprison Possessor

[Thurbane]

I'm not sure if this is any use, but here's a Slaymate build I did for my first Villainous Competition entry (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=20502199&postcount=112):



Filia

http://i67.tinypic.com/1ijxps.jpg

"One day you see a strange little girl look at you
One day you see a strange little girl feeling blue
She'd run to the town one day
Leaving home and the country fair
Just beware
When you're there
Strange little girl"


She can’t remember her Mommy, it was so long ago, but she does remember her leaving her alone day alone in the woods. The nights were so cold, and there was no food to eat. She waited for Mommy, but she never came back.

One night, she fell asleep, and then woke up…different. She wasn’t cold anymore, and she wasn’t hungry. Well, not exactly. She always felt a kind of emptiness in the pit of her stomach, but she knew it wasn’t food that she needed.

She dwelled in that dark forest for such a long time. Winters came and went.

She didn’t like the animals and creatures of the forest – they seemed so warm and yucky. Sometimes she would encounter a woodsman, or a traveller. They reminded her of the bad Mommy who abandoned her, so sometimes she would bite them to make them sick. Sometimes she would trick them with a fake image of herself, leading them into spider lairs. Other times she would make them go all funny in the head, and that always made her giggle.

Then one day, while she was lurking in her woods, she met Daddy! He was a tall, pale man. He was warm, but not like the others. Something about him felt comforting. And he wasn’t afraid of her. He smiled at her, and called her "Filia". She had another name, before, but she couldn’t remember what it was. Filia felt…right.

Daddy was so good to her. Her taught her about magic, and awakened the dormant power in her. Daddy said she must have some dragon blood back in her family, and that’s why the magic came to her so easily.

She didn’t like the company of most of daddy’s other friends, except for one. An old hobgoblin called Maelgynym. He used to shout orders at daddy’s servants, but he was always nice to her. He even taught her how to give orders to the servants like he did.

When she wasn’t with Daddy (which wasn’t very often) she would sit in her room. Something from her past long ago tickled at the corner of her mind. An almost forgotten memory of making baskets with Mommy, before Mommy went and left her alone. She amused herself by weaving little baskets and other odds and ends to fill in the time.

One day, Daddy told her he was going to change, and become more like Filia. He told her not to be scared, and that even though she mightn’t be able to feel his life force like she used to, his ugly little familiar Jebel the Imp would still be there, and she could feel his life force instead.

Daddy became cold and powerful, but to Filia he was just the same Daddy he has always been…and oh, what wonderful and wicked adventures they would have!


Advanced Evolved Phantom Slaymate Undead 8/Sorcerer 6/Marshal 3/War Weaver 5

HD 8d12+11d4+3d8+23 (116 hp)

Starting abilities: Str 12 (+2 Evolved) Dex 12 Con - Int 11 Wis 13 Cha 15 (+2 Evolved); all increases go to Cha.

Final abilities: Str 14 Dex 12 Con - Int 11 Wis 13 Cha 22



Level
Class
Base Attack Bonus
Fort Save
Ref Save
Will Save
Skills
Feats
Class Features


1st
Undead 1 - CR 2
+0
+0
+0
+2
Hide +4, Listen +4, Move Silently +4, Spot +4
Improved Turn Resistance
Darkvision 60 ft, Pale Wasting Disease, Undead Pale Aura, Undead Traits


2nd
Undead 2 - CR 2
+0
+0
+0
+3
Hide +1, Listen +1, Move Silently +1, Spot +1
-
-


3rd
Undead 3 - CR 2
+1
+1
+1
+3
Hide +1, Listen +1, Move Silently +1, Spot +1
Trickery Devotion
-


4th
Undead 4 - CR 2
+2
+1
+1
+4
Hide +1, Listen +1, Move Silently +1, Spot +1
-
-


5th
Undead 5 - CR 3
+2
+1
+1
+4
Hide +1, Listen +1, Move Silently +1, Spot +1
-
-


6th
Undead 6 - CR 3
+3
+2
+2
+5
Hide +1, Listen +1, Move Silently +1, Spot +1
Improved Toughness
-


7th
Undead 7 - CR 3
+3
+2
+2
+5
Hide +1, Listen +1, Move Silently +1, Spot +1
-
-


8th
Undead 8 - CR 3
+4
+2
+2
+6
Hide +1, Listen +1, Move Silently +1, Spot +1
-
-


9th
Evolved Template - CR 4
+4
+2
+2
+6
-
-
Fast Healing 3, SLA: Confusion (1/day)


10th
Phantom Template - CR 6
+4
+2
+2
+6
-
-
Incorporeal Jaunt, Phantom Defense, Phantom Strike, Vulnerability to Ghost Touch


11th
Sorcerer 1 (Spell Shield Variant) CR 7
+4
+2
+2
+8
Craft (basket weaving) +2
Lifebond
Spell Shield, Spells


12th
Marshal 1 - CR 8
+4
+4
+2
+10
Knowledge (arcana) +4
Skill Focus (diplomacy)
Minor Aura (motivate dexterity)


13th
Marshal 2 - CR 9
+5
+2
+2
+11
Bluff +2, Knowledge (arcana) +2
-
Major Aura +1 (resilient troops)


14th
Marshal 3 - CR 10
+6
+5
+3
+11
Bluff +4
Enlarge Spell
Minor Aura (determined caster)


15th
Sorcerer 2 - CR 11
+7
+5
+3
+12
Craft (basket weaving) +2
-
-


16th
Sorcerer 3 - CR 12
+7
+6
+4
+12
Craft (basket weaving) +2
-
-


17th
Sorcerer 4 - CR 13
+8
+6
+4
+13
Concentration +2
Dragontouched
-


18th
Sorcerer 5 - CR 14
+8
+6
+4
+13
Concentration +2
-
-


19th
Sorcerer 6 - CR 15
+9
+7
+5
+14
Concentration +2
-
-


20th
War Weaver 1 - CR 16
+9
+7
+5
+16
Concentration +2
Spell Focus (transmutation)
Eldritch Tapestry

21st
War Weaver 2 - CR 17
+10
+7
+5
+17
Concentration +2
-
Quiescent Weaving 1

22nd
War Weaver 3 - CR 18
+10
+8
+6
+17
Concentration +2
-
Quiescent Weaving 2

23rd
War Weaver 4 - CR 19
+11
+8
+6
+18
Concentration +2
Ability Enhancer
Quiescent Weaving 3

24th
War Weaver 5 - CR 20
+11
+8
+6
+18
Concentration +2
-
Enlarged Tapestry, Quiescent Weaving 4




Spells Known:

Sorcerer 1: 0 - Detect Magic, Prestidigitation, Read Magic, Touch of Fatigue; 1 - Mage Armor, Ray of Enfeeblement
Sorcerer 2: 0 - Resistance
Sorcerer 3: 1 - Blockade
Sorcerer 4: 0 - Dancing Lights; 2 - Wings of Cover
Sorcerer 5: 1 - Feather Fall; 2 - Invisbility
Sorcerer 6: 0 - Ghost Sound; 3- Haste
War Weaver 2: 1 - Grease; 2 - Eagle's Splendor; 3 - Fly
War Weaver 3: 0 - Mage Hand; 4 - Polymorph
War Weaver 4: 2 - Cat's Grace; 3 - Heroism; 4 - Greater Mirror Image
War Weaver 5: 0 - Open/Close; 5 - Wall of Force


Sources (non-core/SRD):

Complete Champion - Trickery Devotion
Complete Scoundrel - Blockade
Dragon Compendium - Ability Enhancer
Dragon Magic - Dragontouched
Dungeonscape - Spell Shield (Sorcerer ACF)
Libris Mortis - Evolved template, Improved Toughness, Improved Turn Resistance, Lifebond, Slaymate
Monster Manual V – Phantom template
Player's Handbook II - Greater Mirror Image
Races of the Dragon - Wings of Cover



Filia is the cohort to a Human Dread Necromancer.

She reduces the metamagic cost of his Necromancy spells with her Undead Pale Aura. With her Marshal Minor Auras, she adds her considerable Charisma bonus to allies rolls to overcome spell resistance (most offensive Necromancy spells are SR: Yes), and also on Dexterity check (which obviously includes Initiative rolls). These bonuses increase when she uses her Ability Enhancer boosted Eagle's Splendor on herself.

Her spellcasting is somewhat limited, but mostly there to provide support for the Dread Necromancer and his allies, as well as for self defense. War Weaver allows her to gift more of her allies with spell effects, but annoyingly, this only works with living allies. This would include the Dread Necromancer before his ascension to Lichdom, and also his Imp familiar. It seems entirely likely that a caster with intentions of conquest and personal power would also have allies such as evil Humanoids and Outsiders, who could also benefit from an Eldritch Tapestry. If this seems a far stretch, Filia's build could drop War Weaver in favour of a full casting progression PrC, and pick up an extra level of Marshal for Grant Move Action.

When her "Daddy" becomes a Lich, she moves her Lifebond feat over to his Imp familiar.

She has plenty of defensive options: becoming incorporeal, undead immunities, fast healing, creating a diversion with the Trickery Domain, reducing damage with Spell Shield, and spells such as Wings of Cover (which she can share with allies due to the Dragontouched feat), Invisibility and Greater Mirror Image.

The father/daughter relationship between Filia and her Dread Necromancer adds a little creepiness, great for a horror campaign.

[NecroDancer]

Try to fit it in a bag of holding. Whenever you need its abilities have it stick its head out of the bag.

[BlackOnyx]

...use Haunt Shift to have it haunt one of your things. There, it will exist as long as it isn’t exorcised and the thing is still around.



Try to fit it in a bag of holding. Whenever you need its abilities have it stick its head out of the bag.


Speaking from experience, these two methods seem to work well together. The young female slaymate my character has been traveling with currently possesses her own cloth doll and has a "room" of sorts inside a handy haversack. A quick exorcism can return her to her usual form for the purpose of preparing spells.


If you're looking to apply spontaneous metamagic, however, this method might not work for you. The text for haunting presences seems to imply that all spell effects/abilities/auras are negated (as if they were in a separate plane) while the undead is possessing an object.

[Yogibear41]

If you are a prepared caster just leave it at home, you only need to be beside it when you prepare your spells.

Also I suppose there is the feat that lets spontaneous casters prepare their spells ahead of time for a similar benefit.

[solooize]

Any idea what the feat is?

[Venger]

Any idea what the feat is?

it's arcane preparation.

[Necroticplague]

If you're looking to apply spontaneous metamagic, however, this method might not work for you. The text for haunting presences seems to imply that all spell effects/abilities/auras are negated (as if they were in a separate plane) while the undead is possessing an object.

I’m not seeing anything that implies that. Seems like it would be perfectly cosher to just lug a haunted object around for the bonus.

[BlackOnyx]

I’m not seeing anything that implies that. Seems like it would be perfectly cosher to just lug a haunted object around for the bonus.


In the description for Haunting Presences (pg. 6 of the Libris Mortis), it does state that, while haunting an object, the affected undead creature cannot be "affected" or "directly" sensed. It also mentions that their presence is more "fleeting" than both incorporeal undead and those that inhabit the Ethereal Plane. Their immaterial state also prevents them from being rebuked, controlled, or destroyed.


While the text doesn't explicitly void their own inherent auras, it seems odd (at least to me) that they wouldpersist, given that description. In the case of a Slaymate, I have a hard time imagining the Pale Aura to remain when (a) said aura could likely be "directly sensed" and (b) the undead's presence is supposedly more "fleeting" than that of any other undead.


Additionally, allowing undead the ability to use their inherent magical/supernatural abilities while disallowing the magic/supernatural abilities of others to be used on them seems a bit too good to be true. For all practical purposes, I've always interpreted Haunting Presences to play like Animated Objects with higher mental stats.


Of course, this is just my interpretation of the fluff as presented. It's quite possible (and reasonable) that others might come to a different conclusion.