3.P - Class Features, Feats, Racial Abilities for Past Lives?

[MaxiDuRaritry]

I have a character with levels of illithid savant* (not an illithid; uses Illithid Heritage to qualify -- houserules, yo), and his background is that he's recently awakened one of his past lives, to the point where he remembers both lives with perfect clarity. Imagine that you** go to sleep tonight and wake up years in the future in a new body, while remembering everything you did as though it were literally yesterday. At the same time, you remember going to bed as your new self in the exact same way.

I want to represent this mechanically, but the only ability I know of that represents this well fluff-wise is the jade phoenix mage's Rite of Waking, but my levels are already largely set (being a fairly hodgepodge multiclass gestalt build, but nothing I've got has any past life options, so far as I know), so I'd have to expend one of the illithid savant's abilities on it, and the ability is pretty lackluster, overall. I'd like something with more oomph to it.

Are there any other mechanics for representing this? The samsaran options in Pathfinder I've seen are pretty meh in this case, as I already have tons of spells in various classes. Another thread mentioned something about getting all Knowledge skills as class skills [edit: the shabti, apparently], but factotum + Able Learner already gives me that.

Any other suggestions? I'd even take obscure racial abilities for monsters, since I have access to both shapeshifting and illithid savant. The more unique and interesting, the better.

Any sources are potentially open, including 3rd party.




*Yes, it's a very high-powered build, but that's not the point.
**Yes, you-you. It'd give you reason to break the fourth wall if you suddenly found yourself merged with one of your D&D characters in your next life.

[Grey Guard]

I was in a game that did something like this a few years ago.

An NPC Jade Phoenix Mage and an Ebon Phoenix Mage applied the Rite of Waking to various people, and the result were Illithid Savant class features. But those were added via DM Fiat and not part of our builds.

Unfortunately, the only way I know of taking/getting abilities from others is Illithid Savant. Another option might be Pun Pun's path to power, the Sarrukh, but that's going to get books thrown at you. Spellthief can also borrow spells from people, but that's not quite what you're shooting for.

D&D 3.5 does usually make some assumptions about the afterlife- following the Great Wheel, when someone dies, their soul goes to whichever outer plane resonates most for them; so things regarding past lives is a little sparse.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

I could probably fluff my gestaltitude as his past life awakening, although the other gestalt characters don't have that fluff, so it seems a bit out of sync for the group. If I was in a non-gestalt campaign and could push myself into being gestalt (for, say, +2 LA?) that would work, but it's not a thing that you can do without something like the fusion/astral seed combo, which is a bit more overt than I prefer.

[Angrith]

I suggest this tentatively, but perhaps Wedded to History might actually help in this case? Grab the Hand of Prophecy, Golden Ager, or Apostle of the Forgotten backgrounds and use your past life as the fluff instead of some unknown longevity. The bonuses are a bit small for an entire feat though.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

I suggest this tentatively, but perhaps Wedded to History might actually help in this case? Grab the Hand of Prophecy, Golden Ager, or Apostle of the Forgotten backgrounds and use your past life as the fluff instead of some unknown longevity. The bonuses are a bit small for an entire feat though.That might work, except I already have WtH: Survivor, which is just too useful for me. By level 21, my aggregated fractional Will save will be +50.5, while Fort and Ref are 46.16 and 30.97, respectively, and using my Will save for everything is totally baller when I have a few different ways to sub in Concentration checks for Will saves so that accumulating penalty means very little. Concentration saves for everyone!

Kingdoms of Kalamar has the Loyalty's Reward feat, which literally allows you to craft your own feat for yourself and anyone else in the organization you spearhead. Given that I have a psicrystal, a psicrystal weapon (from the psychic weapon master (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/psm/20040827d), eaten via illithid savant), a familiar, and an animal companion, I could call that my own little sub-organization of the adventuring party and give the benefits to all of my minions. Dunno what benefits would both fit with fully awakening one's past life and would be worthwhile for us all to have, though.

Still interested in any monsters who are known for reincarnating and for alternative class features for this. Anyone know of any monk ACFs for reincarnation? That seems to fit rather well, I think.

For anyone who wants a list of the classes I've got, it's here:

Side #1: Divine Mind 1 / Spell Point, Sadist, Intercessor Vitalist 1 / Chain of Disbelief, Focus Caster, Spell Point, Prescience Diviner, Illusion Master, Combat, Divination\Illusionist\Transmutation Specialist, Spell Versatility Wizard 1 (ban Abjuration\Enchantment\Evocation\Necromancy) / Lurk 1 / Spell Point, Psionic Artificer 1 / Personal Space, Dual Disciple PF Psion (Nomad\Shaper) 1 / Astral Zealot 1 / Warshaper 1 / Planar Shepherd 1 / Fiend of Possession 1 / Initiate of the Sevenfold Veil 1 / Phenotype Impressionist 1 / Illithid Savant 3 / Spell Point Sublime Chord 1 / Legacy Champion 1 / Master Transmogrifist 1 / Ambient Tempest (Psionic Adaptation) 1 / Hulking Hurler 1 / [EPIC] / Spell Point Chameleon 1

Side #2: Nokizaru Spell Point PF Ninja 1 / Factotum 1 / City Brawler Whirling Frenzy Spirit Lion Totem Planar Barbarian 1 / Soulbound Weapon, Protector PF Psychic Warrior 1 / Binder 1 / Wild Shape, Mystic Ranger 1 / Spell Point, Divine, Fey, Planar Bard 1 / Psi, Trickster Psithief (Psionic Spellthief) 1 / Blade Manifester (PF Deadly Fist, Gifted Blade Soulknife) 1 / Spell Point Oracle 1 / Spell Point, Cold Iron Warden, Ravener Hunter, Monster Tactician Pact augmentation, Youxia Inquisitor 1 / Totemist 1 / Martial, Decisive Strike, Wasteland Meditant PF Unchained Monk 1 / Spell Point, City Soul, Nature Fang, Fangshields, Planar, Urban Companion Druid 1 / Spell Point Healer 1 / Spell Point, Cloistered Cleric of Magic (Maxi\Mystra) 1 (Knowledge\Rune\Good Domains) / Substitute Powers Ardent 1 (Freedom\Magic Mantles) / Crusader 1 / Warblade 1 / Swordsage 1 / [EPIC] / Spell Point Dread Necromancer 1

Remember how I said it was a massive mishmash? Yeah...

Eating legacy champions is really useful when you like to dip a lot.