Making Virgil from Dante's Inferno in 3.5

[booliusdoolius]

Hey all, My next character in a campaign is Dante from Dante's Inferno (Level 1 Bard, Level 4 Crusader), and I want to help a friend of mine make Virgil. How would you make him in 3.5? I'm thinkin Evangelist because he says that he predicted the birth of Christ during the time of Rome. Thanks all.

[BlackOnyx]

A great concept; I love the idea of portraying aspects of/characters in Inferno through D&D.


A few other suggestions that may be thematically appropriate (in no particular order/combination):


1.) If your friend decides to go bard x/evangelist x, the bardic sage and divine bard variants from Unearthed Arcana might be of interest. (Thematically fitting.)


2.) If your friend doesn't wish to go bard, the Archivist class from Heroes of Horror might be of interest. (It could be used to paint an image of Virgil as a religious/scholarly type that doesn't *quite* have the same direct connection to their deity as cleric or favored soul.)


3.) The prestige classes Church Inquisitor, Divine Oracle, and Paragnostic Apostle advance spellcasting as normal for divine casters while providing more "sage-like" abilities.


4.) The feat Arcane Disciple would allow a bard to add cleric domain spells to their class list.


5.) For either Dante or Virgil, the feat Master Manipulator from PHB II could help depict your characters' propensity toward wit over violence.


6.) Having Virgil begin play as a Necropolitan (a fairly simple undead "template" with no level adjustment) from Libris Mortis might be an interesting way to depict him as a shade or spirit rather than a living being.

[booliusdoolius]

A great concept; I love the idea of portraying aspects of/characters in Inferno through D&D.


A few other suggestions that may be thematically appropriate (in no particular order/combination):


1.) If your friend decides to go bard x/evangelist x, the bardic sage and divine bard variants from Unearthed Arcana might be of interest. (Thematically fitting.)


2.) If your friend doesn't wish to go bard, the Archivist class from Heroes of Horror could also be fitting. (It could be used to paint an image of Virgil as a religious/scholarly type that doesn't *quite* have the same direct connection to their deity as cleric or favored soul.)


3.) The prestige classes Church Inquisitor, Divine Oracle, and Paragnostic Apostle advance spellcasting as normal for divine casters while providing more "sage-like" abilities.


4.) The feat Arcane Disciple would allow a bard to add cleric domain spells to their class list.


5.) For either Dante or Virgil, the feat Master Manipulator from PHB II could help depict your characters' propensity toward wit over violence.


6.) Having Virgil begin play as a Necropolitan (a fairly simple undead "template" with no level adjustment) from Libris Mortis might be an interesting way to depict him as a shade or spirit rather than a living being.

I like your suggestions. For Dante, I'm just doing a Bard 1/Crusader X who's using an oversized sycthe build that might take levels in evangelist, seeing as how dante goes from inferno to purgatorio and then paradiso. Also, I think that Virgil says himself that he is a shade, though he was once a living man.

[BlackOnyx]

I like your suggestions. For Dante, I'm just doing a Bard 1/Crusader X who's using an oversized sycthe build that might take levels in evangelist, seeing as how dante goes from inferno to purgatorio and then paradiso.

Ah, I see we're going down the Visceral Games route for Dante's inspiration. I wasn't sure if we were basing things off the literary version or not. (I suppose the mention of crusader should have been a tell.)

That makes sense from a party building perspective, though; having two pure poet types would probably lead to a lot of overlap.



Also, I think that Virgil says himself that he is a shade, though he was once a living man.

That would fall in line with his depiction in The Divine Comedy as well. Unfortunately (but reasonably, I'd say) there aren't really any incorporeal (or "ghost-like") undead races in 3.5e that you can play without dealing with a boatload of level adjustment.

Necropolitan, at least, might help to set him apart as "a dead spirit/soul from another time." The fact that undead are still weak to positive energy & holy water (and the like) could also be seen as a neat way of showing that, despite Virgil's dedication to god & christ, the light of heaven/salvation still escapes him.

[booliusdoolius]

Ah, I see we're going down the Visceral Games route for Dante's inspiration. I wasn't sure if we were basing things off the literary version or not. (I suppose the mention of crusader should have been a tell.)

That makes sense from a party building perspective, though; having two pure poet types would probably lead to a lot of overlap.




That would fall in line with his depiction in The Divine Comedy as well. Unfortunately (but reasonably, I'd say) there aren't really any incorporeal (or "ghost-like") undead races in 3.5e that you can play without dealing with a boatload of level adjustment.

Necropolitan, at least, might help to set him apart as "a dead spirit/soul from another time." The fact that undead are still weak to positive energy & holy water (and the like) could also be seen as a neat way of showing that, despite Virgil's dedication to god & christ, the light of heaven/salvation still escapes him.

Ok, I like that. What kind of feats and class would you give Virgil (Necropolitan)?

[BlackOnyx]

Ok, I like that. What kind of feats and class would you give Virgil (Necropolitan)?

Mmm...as rough idea? Assuming you're starting at 5th level, I might suggest something along the lines of:


Base Race

Human

or

Illumian (Races of Destiny) if you'd like to make Virgil seem more ancient/otherworldly


Template:

Necropolitan (Libris Mortis)

I'd make sure to clear this with your DM first; it's essentially a LA +0 template, but you *do* lose some experience for applying it. At our table we play with experience "milestones" so we usually just hadwave the experience loss.


Ability Scores:

In order of relevance:

Intelligence (Highest)
Charisma/Wisdom (Whatever is most important to your friend, though WIS does determine bonus spells)
Dexterity
Strength
Constitution (A "dump stat" if you're able to apply Necropolitan; undead lose their CON score anyways)


Class:

A few options:

Archivist 5 / Archivist X (Assuming they want to go full Archivist)

This prioritizes the Archivist's Dark Tactics class abilities which provide bonuses to allies (similar to a bard).

or

Archivist 4 / Church Inquisitor 1 / Archivist X

This would give your Archivist access to the inquisition domain (+4 to dispel checks) and the ability to detect evil at will.


Spells:

Assuming the Archivist spell list (all divine spells), some relevant/useful ones would include:

0th Level:

Archivists get all 0th level cleric spells in their prayerbook (very nice)

Some particularly thematic 0 level spells include:

Detect Magic
Amaneuensis
Guidance
Light
Cure Minor Wounds


1st Level:

Bless
Bane
Conviction
Divine Favor
Protection from Evil
Sanctuary
Shield of Faith


2nd Level:

Divine Insight
Lore of the Gods
Augury
Zone of Truth (if you're looking to qualify for Church Inquisitor)


3rd Level:

Dispel Magic
Magic Circle vs. Evil
Mass Lesser Vigor
Mass Conviction
Magic Vestment
Prayer
Whispering Sands (long distance guidance/communication)


Important/Thematic Skills:

Luckily Archivists have a fair number of skill points from class and INT bonuses. Human as a base race would add one more per level.

This said, your friend may still need to be a little selective in their choices.

Concentration
Decipher Script
Diplomacy
Perform (Oratory)
Knowledge (Religion)
Knowledge (Geography)
Knowledge (Nobility and Royalty)
Knowledge (Planes)
Spellcraft
Sense Motive

Knowledge (Arcana) (If going Church Inquisitor)
Gather Information (Maybe)


Languages Known:

Common (default)
Celestial
Infernal
Abyssal


Feats:

Some suggestions (a lot of possibilities exist):

Scribe Scroll (Archivist gets for free)

Spellcasting Prodigy (Increases spell save DC)

Jack of All Trades (Allows you to treat all knowledge skills as trained, even if you don't have ranks in them)

Master Manipulator (As discussed before)

Touch of Healing (Reserve feat: allows you to heal other characters indefinitely so long as you have a healing spell of 2nd level or higher available to cast. Could represent Virgil's "healing presence" for Dante.)

Trickery Devotion (Despite the name, this could allow your Virgil to "project" a spiritual version of himself forward at higher levels. A bit limited since Archivists don't get turning, but still a neat ability.)


Overall

Though Virgil is often referred to as a "bard" or "poet," I think Archivist still does a good job approximating his depiction in the game and focusing a bit more on his wisdom/intellectualism. The class still offers some bonuses *similar* to a bard while playing up the idea of divine study & dark lore/knowledge.



Edit:

Additional Spells of Interest:

Comprehend Languages (Clr 1)
Command (Clr 1)
Hand of the Faithful (Clr 1) (Creates a warded area that only those that share your faith can enter)

Speak With Dead (Clr 3)
Remove Curse (Clr 3)
Delay Death (Clr 3)
Zone of Revelation (Clr 3)

Additional Feats of Interest:

Spirit Sense (Heroes of Horror) allows the player to speak with the souls of the fallen for a few minutes after death.

Magic Sensitive (Complete Mage) and/or Magic Disruption (Complete Mage) if you're looking for some small, thematic bonuses that Virgil could use at will.

Skill Trick, Collector of Stories (Complete Scoundrel)