Turning BBEG into treasure

[Gwyllgi]

Okay so I'm playing dread necro, and due to a deal with a group of mages down on their luck I get Scrolls and the occasional wizard intern in return for supplying them with labor. One of the underlings of the BBEG is Dead Master, who solely exists to challenge me, I want to turn him into a symbiont so I can gain his sweet sweet powers, how do?

[flappeercraft]

Okay so I'm playing dread necro, and due to a deal with a group of mages down on their luck I get Scrolls and the occasional wizard intern in return for supplying them with labor. One of the underlings of the BBEG is Dead Master, who solely exists to challenge me, I want to turn him into a symbiont so I can gain his sweet sweet powers, how do?

I have an idea but it requires the BBEG to have a couple of spells or you to be able to supply them via scrolls/dorjes or equivalent. Additionally you must have the Mother Cyst feat.

Cast Create Undead to turn him into an intelligent undead that keeps class levels, for instance a Juju Zombie. Now get him to cast Shapechange into a Glimmerskin (MM2) and cast Necrotic Cyst and Necrotic Tumor on him which he will willingly fail as he is under your control. This is your insurance policy since once he reforms he will be alive again just that in the form of a glimmerskin and free from your created undead control, which this cancels. Now get him to use Astral Seed, likely via a Dorje. He suicides.

Now have him reform and use its Heroic Bond ability on you, in addition to giving you access to his feats if you have 13 strength or more, you also get access to all his class features and even some small bonuses to attack rolls and AC.

[WhamBamSam]

You could pick up Animate Dread Warrior as an Advanced Learning or something to bring him back as your servant assuming he's not a higher level than you.

[Gwyllgi]

You could pick up Animate Dread Warrior as an Advanced Learning or something to bring him back as your servant assuming he's not a higher level than you.

I think Dread warrior caps int at 11 and every other mental stat is lower. The only problem with juju zombie is that it can't talk. However the mother cyst + glimmerskin thing is genius, but with its limitations it's probably better to cyst him then force fusion.

[WhamBamSam]

I think Dread warrior caps int at 11 and every other mental stat is lower. The only problem with juju zombie is that it can't talk. However the mother cyst + glimmerskin thing is genius, but with its limitations it's probably better to cyst him then force fusion.It doesn't cap them, but does indeed reduce Int and Cha, which is a problem with a Death Master. You could still use items or Fox's Cunning or the like to render them capable of casting higher level spells, but the cyst thing is probably more effective.

[flappeercraft]

The only problem with juju zombie is that it can't talk. However the mother cyst + glimmerskin thing is genius, but with its limitations it's probably better to cyst him then force fusion.

Well in that case get it a pearl of speech. I believe it’s only 500 gp.

Also thanks.

[Gwyllgi]

Well in that case get it a pearl of speech. I believe it’s only 500 gp.

Also thanks.

Awaken undead isn't even a good option because it caps at 10 without epic feats and can't be more than the average intelligence of a the donor race.

[flappeercraft]

Awaken undead isn't even a good option because it caps at 10 without epic feats and can't be more than the average intelligence of a the donor race.

Awaken undead is pointless because it only works on mindless undesd which don’t have access to the abilities they had in life. Also I found something better than Juju zombie, bone creature from BoVD. They keep their int at +0 over their old one rather than at -4 and also there is even fluff text indicating sorcerers made of these casting spells and therefore they are able to speak normally and cast spells.

[Malphegor]

Might be worth looking into the spell Haunt Shift. Transform an undead into a haunting presence, typically sealed in a amulet or ring. In some instances, the undead's abilities are still useable even when it's ghostified (the one I've seen around here is trapping a slaymate and wearing it as a glorified metamagic reducer instead of a trapped sad child) If nothing else it'll let you seal it away until you decide how you want to have it under your command.