Homunculus feats

[schreier]

If you take Improved Homunculus, you get a feat every 3 levels. With a dedicated wright, you start with skill focus (craft). From what I can tell, you only have crafts as class skills.

Trying to figure out useful feats to take. One of the options from Improved Homunculus is sneak attack 1d6. This opens up Craven. Not sure what else is useful.

I am probably going to use him as a steward that oversees the stronghold while away.

One item that I think is essential is an Amulet of Freedom of Speech (which is in An Icy Heart):
Item: Amulet of Freedom of Speech
This amulet allows the wearer to verbally communicate despite lacking the physical ability to do so. For example, an awakened animal or plant that could not normally form words can do so while wearing this item. Note that the amulet does not impart any language ability—the wearer must have something to say.
Caster Level: 7th; Prerequisites: Craft Wondrous Item; Market Price: 5,000.
http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/oa/20020125a

Others have used a pearl of speech, which says:
These items were originally created by the drow and used to command their slaves without stooping to learn their foul languages. The secret of creating pearls of speech long ago became known to bards and others who rely on languages. When you place a pearl of speech upon your tongue (a standard action), it is absorbed into your mouth until you speak the proper command word to release it. While absorbed, the pearl grants you the ability to speak and understand a specific language, such as Dwarven or Draconic. Each pearl is created for a specific language, and you can have only one pearl of speech active at a time.

In addition, while the pearl is active, it can be activated to produce a command effect once per day (will DC 11 negates).



I have read interpretations of the pearl which say that it grants understanding and knowledge - but not a physical capability to speak if it didn't already exist. Also, I do not think homunculus have tongues necessarily.

Since the homunculus will have the ability to speak, social feats are options. Can also go the "use magic device" route.

Considering Education as another feat to get knowledge skills (not sure which education feat is the current one)

I considered tripping as a combat ability - but small size without the ability to take classes is hard.

Without the ability to take classes, there is no way that I know of to take crafting feats.

Any suggestions?

[Falontani]

1. Skill Focus: Alchemy, 4 ranks in Craft Alchemy, 2 ranks in Use Magic Device
2. +1 craft alchemy, +.5 umd
3. Magic Devotion, Skill Bonus UMD, +1 craft alchemy, +.5 umd
4. +1 int; +1 craft alchemy, +.5 umd
5. +1 craft alchemy, +.5 umd
6. Craft Wand, Weapon Ability: Dispelling, +1 craft alchemy, +.5 umd (we are now at +12 craft alchemy, +7.5 umd, 11 intelligence)
7. Craft Alchemy +1, umd +.5
8. +1 int, craft alchemy +1, umd +.5, profession siege engineer +.5
9. Wand Mastery, Weapon Ability: Greater Dispelling, craft alchemy +1, umd +.5, profession siege engineer +.5 (we are now at +16 craft alchemy, +9 umd, +1 profession siege engineer)
10. Craft Alchemy +1, umd +.5, profession siege engineer +.5
11. Craft Alchemy +1, umd +.5, profession siege engineer +.5
12. +1 cha, Reckless Wand Wielder, Weapon Ability: Illusionbane, Craft Alchemy +1, umd +.5, profession siege engineer +.5 (now we're at +19 craft alchemy, +11.5 umd, +2.5 profession siege engineer)

So at this point you have given your dude the circlet of persuasion for +3 umd, a cloak of eagle's splendor +4, and a masterwork umd item. This puts him at umd +19.5. He can't fail to activate a wand.

Using Item Creation (Su): A dedicated wright can perform the daily tasks related to item creation on behalf of its master. The master must meet (or emulate) all the prerequisites to create the desired item normally, and pays the gold and XP cost himself. The only cost a dedicated wright can help with is time. The master spends 1 hour initiating the process, channeling spell prerequisites into the dedicated wright, and paying the XP cost to make the item. He may then leave, allowing the wright to carry the process through to completion.

Allows him to craft any magic item the master desires, however, if someone else helps him by supplying the spell he may create wands. His caster level is equal to his HD due to the feat Magic Devotion which grants him a spell like ability with a caster level of his hd.

Using masterwork tools he has a +21, a mere 4 away from the requisite +25 needed for taking ten to create 10d6 Explosive Packs (really you should just make a wondrous item that boosts it, but you could just hire a few assistants). Explosive Packs are from Secrets of Sarlona.

Finally in combat he can use wands amazingly. A simple fireball wand costs 11,250 to buy, 5,625 to make, and 112.5 gp/charge. Requiring it to be used by a construct with use magic device reduces this to 70.88 gp/charge. Each charge deals 7d6 with a dc of 16. If needed the construct may use two charges (141.75 gp) to deal 9d6 damage.

When on long journeys that you can't supply spells for crafting he may still craft the Explosive Packs. Their market price is 10k, so using 3,333.33 gp he begins crafting it and makes 1,225 gp/week or 175 gp/day.

[schreier]

Does magic devotion count as a spell so he has a caster level?

Does that open up other creation feats?

[Falontani]

Does magic devotion count as a spell so he has a caster level?

Does that open up other creation feats?

Per Complete Champion

Unless otherwise noted, the benefit granted by any
domain feat is a spell-like ability with a caster level equal to your character level. All such effects are subject to spell resistance, and you can dismiss any continuing effect as a free action. If a domain feat allows a saving throw, its entry provides the necessary information. If you have the ability to turn or rebuke undead, you can gain additional daily uses of a domain feat’s benefit by permanently sacrificing daily uses of that ability.

And then the Monster Manual


Spell-Like: Spell-like abilities are magical and work just like spells (though they are not spells and so have no verbal, somatic, material, focus, or XP components). They go away in an antimagic field and are subject to spell resistance if the spell the ability resembles or duplicates would be subject to spell resistance.
A spell-like ability usually has a limit on how often it can be used. A spell-like ability that can be used at will has no use limit.
Using a spell-like ability is a standard action unless noted otherwise, and doing so while threatened provokes attacks of opportunity. It is possible to make a Concentration check to use a spell-like ability defensively and avoid provoking an attack of opportunity, just as when casting a spell. A spell-like ability can be disrupted just as a spell can be. Spell-like abilities cannot be used to counterspell, nor can they be counterspelled.
For creatures with spell-like abilities, a designated caster level defines how difficult it is to dispel their spell-like effects and to define any level-dependent variables (such as range and duration) the abilities might have. The creature’s caster level never affects which spell-like abilities the creature has; sometimes the given caster level is lower than the level a spellcasting character would need to cast the spell of the same name. If no caster level is specified, the caster level is equal to the creature’s Hit Dice. The saving throw (if any) against a spell-like ability is 10 + the level of the spell the ability resembles or duplicates + the creature’s Cha modifier.
Some spell-like abilities duplicate spells that work differently when cast by characters of different classes—for example, true seeing. A monster’s spell-like abilities are presumed to be the sorcerer/wizard versions. If the spell in question is not a sorcerer/wizard spell, then default to cleric, druid, bard, paladin, and ranger, in that order

They don't get an arcane caster level nor a divine caster level. They don't count as having spells of x level or higher. But they count as having whichever spell the spell like mimics (in this case none) and they are treated as having a caster level. This means technically any creature with a spell like ability can create scrolls of their spell like ability if they choose to take scribe scroll. You know, except when their spell like ability isn't actually a spell like in our case.

Usually magical effects that aren't spells are counted as supernatural, but this happens fairly frequently throughout 3.5, so I can't expect it to be a mistake.

Item creation feats usually just have a caster or manifest level as a prerequisite, so spell like abilities work. Funnily enough, psionics are all spell like abilities, thus psions can also take caster level stuff...

[schreier]

Great! Thank you ..

If a wizard creates a homunculus with the craft construct and improved homunculus feat, the homunculus has all of the hp created at once from my understanding (My reading is that you can't increase HD later using craft construct, only artificers with craft homunculus can do that).

In that case - all of the feats and abilities need to be chosen at creation.

With the dedicated wright, is the first feat (lvl 1) required to be skill focus (craft)? The reason I am asking is that it seems like education might be useful as a feat for skills, but it can only be added at level 1.