newguydude1
2021-02-25, 04:33 PM
gauntlet info
global rules
raw or die.
no loops
no recursion
no free wishes
no anti stuff. for example, i cant grab anti fiend stuff (bane magic), and he cant grab anti changeling stuff (if there is any). we're trying to simulate a no-knowledge-beforehand thingy. anti-magic is fine but anti-wizard is not.
no homebrew
a scroll mishap with a scroll of simulacrum results in a hostile simulacrum that try to kill me immediately 100% of the time.
i must do 4 encounters in a row and get 24 hours rest afterwards.
fights have a maximum of 6 hours. if both parties are alive at the end of the 6 hours, the one thats avoiding the fight dies.
i have 24 hours to prepare before the gauntlet starts
dm rules:
he can only throw a single fiend at a time
its cr must equal my ecl.
if he runs out of equal cr fiends, he can then either throw cr+1 monsters, or multiple lower cr monsters
no single fiend maybe used more than once, unless it is summoned by another fiend.
all fiend summonings have 100% success chance and summons the maximum number of fiends possible.
he must use stat blocks as is. no feat changing. no spell reselection.
he can ignore the strategy section of the monster block and play the monsters optimally.
dm chooses all encounters. he chooses the monster, when the encounter occurs, how far apart everyone is when the encounter starts, etc. so he can wait out buffs to run out and then throw the next fiend.
dm wins initiative. always. i dump dex and dont invest in initiative so were just skipping a roll i will always lose.
if i dont know which fiend is the summoned fiend, the last fiend that dies will be the nonsummoned fiend. in other words, if i dont know which fiend is nonsummoned, i gotta kill all of them.
player rules
0 wealth. no spellbook. no shops. no equipment except those i make myself somehow. no spell component pouch.
i cant intentionally keep a fiend alive to buy more prep time.
arena rules
infinite flat land in all directions.
there are trees, grass, and rocks only. no villages. no ruins. no castles or forts.
CR1
Demon, Mane
Devil, Lemure
CR2
Demon, Dretch
Demon, Nashrou
Demon, Quasit
Devil, Imp
Devil, Nupperibo
CR3
Demon, Gadacro
Demon, Rutterkin
Devil, Merregon (Legion Devil)
CR4
Demon, Carnage
Demon, Guecubu
Demon, Ekolid
Devil, Spinagon
Devil, White Abishai
CR5
Demon, Bar-Lgura
Demon, Juvenile Nabassu
Devil, Barbazu
Devil, Black Abishai
Devil, Narzugon
CR6
Demon, Babau
Demon, Broodswarm
Devil, Bueroza (Steel Devil)
Devil, Kyton
Devil, Green Abishai
Devil, Gulthir
CR7
Demon, Armanite
Demon, Arrow
Demon, Succubus
Devil, Amnizu
Devil, Bezekira
Devil, Blue Abishai
Devil, Falxugon (Harvester Devil)
Devil, Excruciarch (Pain Devil)
CR8
Demon, Dybbuk
Demon, Solamith
Demon, Yochlol
Devil, Erinyes
Devil, Orthon
Devil, Red Abishai
CR9
Demon, Bulezau
Demon, Vrock
Demon, Whisper
Devil, Osyluth
Devil, Stitched Devil
CR10
Demon, Adaru
Demon, Bebilith
Demon, Chasme
Demon, Draudnu
CR11
Demon, Hezrou
Demon, Kastighur
Demon, Retriever
Devil, Dogai (Assassin Devil)
Devil, Hamatula
Devil, Brachina (Pleasure Devil)
CR12
Demon, Lilitu
Devil, Ayperobos Swarm
CR13
Demon, Glabrezu
Devil, Gelugon
CR14
Demon, Nalfeshnee
Devil, Malebranche
CR15
Demon, Mature Nabassu
Demon, Sibriex
Devil, Xerfilstyx
Devil, Remmanon
CR16
Demon, Goristro
Devil, Cornugon
CR17
Demon, Marilith
Demon, Sorrowsworn
CR18
Demon, Deathdrinker
Devil, Paeliryon
CR19
Demon, Molydeus
Devil, Hellfire Engine
Juiblex, The Faceless Lord
CR20
Demon, Balor
Devil, Pit Fiend
Baphomet, Prince of Beasts
Yeenoghu, Prince of Gnolls
CR21
Fraz-Urb'luu, Prince of Deception
Kostchtchie, Prince of Wrath
Malacanthet, Queen of the Succubi
Pale Night, the Mother of Demons
Zuggtmoy, Lady of Fungi
CR22
Dagon, Prince of Depths
Graz'zt, The Dark Prince
Obox-ob, Prince of Vermin
Orcus, Prince of the Undead
Pazuzu, Prince of the Lower Aerial Kingdoms
CR23
Demogorgon, Prince of Demons
ok so the purpose of this gauntlet is simply to playtest new builds i am gonna use in a real game very quickly to see how strong it is. other players at my table go through it too but not all of them because of time constraints and lack of system mastery. so anyways we do the gauntlet and if the build fails then we make the gauntlet easier and easier (more time between encounters, player gets to choose monsters he fights, etc.) until the build succeeds at which point we have our data.
the above rules are gonna be our starting point and were gonna see if my build can beat that or if the gauntlet needs to be made easier.
alright so this is my character thats gonna go through the gauntlet. if you can, make it better, or point out an illegal thing im doing so i can fix it. some options are intentionally suboptimal for roleplay because roleplay is more important than power gaming so suggesting i ditch them in the name of optimization isnt gonna work out.
for example i go elemental savant to achieve immortality, eternal youth, and no need to breathe without looking like dog****. elemental savant is a horrible prc especially since i do 0 blasting but i dont care. im getting it solely for the capstone. elemental savant lets me change my skin to something rocky, so i choose white smooth stone. and my eyes will become smooth sapphires so i can make her look like drossel from fireball charming.
at level 19 when i get wish i will use savage species rules to transform into a ridiculously high ecl and la creature. im still looking. but basically because im immortal and eternally youthful thanks to my prc, i can choose any monster i want and not just the ones that are explicitly immortal and eternally youthful. so im browsing through this
https://forums.giantitp.com/showthread.php?401132
to find an awesome form. once i get access to wish i never need to level up again because wish is that powerful so thats what im doing. never leveling up again.
race: changeling
alignment: neutral good - i dont play evil characters
class: wizard5/mindbender1/elemental savant10/fatespinner 3 - fatespinner is filler. still looking for possible better prcs.
ability scores - 25 point buy
8-2 str - pathetic strength
8 dex
12 con
18 int
13 wis - assume supernatural ability prerequisite
8 cha
i retrain my feats quite a bit so i dont think i can put it all in one place so ill be dividing my build up for different level ranges.
0
1 acid splash
1 prestidigitation
1 lights
1 dancing lights
1 disrupt undead
1st
1 power word pain
1 summon component
1 enlarge person
1 extract drug
1 magic weapon
1 charm person
1 endure elements
2 lesser orb of cold
2 erase
2nd
3 see invisibility
3 unseen crafter
4 suffer the flesh
4 heroics
3rd
5 animate weapon
5 augment object
6 sleet storm
6 adept spirit
8 suggestion
8 greater magic weapon
4th
7 polymorph
7 shadow conjuration
5th
9 major creation
9 wall of stone
10 fabricate
10 overland flight
6th
11 shalantha's delicate disk
11 superior resistance
12 wall of iron
12 hardening
7th
13 simulacrum
13 greater teleport
14 limited wish
14 energy immunity
8th
15 polymorph any object
15 mind blank
16 moment of prescience
16 greater celerity
9th
17 wish
17 ce assassin (V,S,M,XP) Illusion
spell list does not account for the delayed levels to the prc yet. ill get to it.
level 1-4
feats (retrained feats are indicated after the comma)
w1 spell mastery
1 skill focus:knowledge:religion, 2 water devotion, 3 uncanny forethought
f1 assume supernatural ability: create servitor
f1 assume supernatural ability: command genie
3 practiced spellcaster
water devotion is to fulfill elemental savants prc prerequisite
uncanny forethought is to be able to cast any spell i know without a spellbook
practiced spellcaster is to offset the -2cl from uncanny forethought, and later to offset the 2 caster levels lost from elemental savant.
strategy
i fashion a box out of wood or stone, whatever materials i can get my hands on, and stay inside it 24/7. total cover against everything so im safe until something destroys my box. theres a small openable window so i can get line of effect when i do need to cast a spell.
i cast enlarge person on myself, minor change shape into a yak folk, then use asa command genie to get a summoned janni slave for 2 days.
the janni fights all my battles for me.
the janni casts create food and water to create 21 portions of fish with bones. i eat one portion and let the other 20 decay.
i cast extract drug to get +2 int.
i take 10 and hit a knowledge religion check of 10+4(ranks)+4(int)+1(drugs)+3(skill focus) = 22, just enough to know the existence of skull lords.
i minor change shape into a skull lord, then use asa create servitor to create serpentirs from the decayed chicken bones.
it takes the equivalent of 6 medium skeletons to create one serpentir.
a chicken is a tiny creature, and people eat entire chickens in 1 serving, so one serving = one tiny creature, so if i make fish then create food and water creates enough fish bone mass for 3 tiny creatures per caster level.
janni's create food and water is cl 7 so it makes enough bones equal to 21 tiny creatures per casting
1 medium creature is treated as 2 small creatures. 1 small creature is treated as 2 tiny creatures. so i need 24 tiny creatures to create a serpentir.
i can have a maximum of 3 serpentirs since that is an el7 encounter.
i will give the serpentirs slings since i dont have enough time to craft crossbows and bolts.
v.s. ranged attackers (spined devil im looking at you) they will just use their sling.
v.s. incorporeal (guecubu im looking at you) i will cast magic weapon as many times as i can after casting see invisibility on myself.
i will summon a water elemental to fulfill elemental savants prc prerequisite at level 2 and then retrain this useless feat out afterwards.
You learn to use a supernatural ability of an assumed form.
Prerequisite
WIS 13, ability to assume a new form magically,
Benefit
You learn to use a single supernatural ability of another kind of creature while assuming its form through a polymorph self spell or a similar effect. The saving throw DC against this ability is based on your ability scores, not those of a standard creature of the kind whose form you've assumed.
...
Normal
Without this feat, you cannot use the supernatural abilities of a creature whose form you assume.
When you use your minor change shape ability to assume the form of a humanoid creature, you can also emulate any of that humanoid's subtypes.
so the rules clearly state that when you use minor change shape to become a creature, you are assuming its form, thus allowing you to use assume supernatural ability with minor change shape.
ive had this debate across multiple threads and some people hell bent on trying to lawyer this away have clinged onto "similar effect" and "polymorph self" in the rule text, trying to make it sound like polymorph is a mandatory requirement to use assume supernatural ability. but heres the thing
"similar effect" is not defined in d&d. so we have to use english here. and if we use english, i can argue everything is similar to polymorph. so we have to ask ourselves, what similarity to polymorph does an effect need to have to be considered "similar"?
is it being a 4th level wizard spell? no because lots of 4th level spells dont let you assume forms magically.
is it gaining hitpoints as if you rested? no because the feat doesnt ask for such an effect, and it would disqualify alter self from using asa.
is it changing your type? no because the feat doesnt ask for such an effect, and it would disqualify alter self from using asa.
is it getting new physical ability scores? no because the feat doesnt ask for such an effect, and it would disqualify alter self from using asa.
is it its inability to turn into forms greater than 15hd? no because the feat doesnt ask for such an effect, and it would disqualify alter self from using asa.
is it having the polymorph subschool? no because the feat doesnt ask for such a thing, the subschool never existed 3.0 or early 3.5, and it would disqualify wild shape from using asa
i can go on and on, but my point is clear. the feat only asks for the ability to assume a new form, like polymorph. as in polymorph is just an example, not a requirement. nothing else. any effect that lets you assume forms magically is a "similar effect".
and to further pound this in, metamorphic transfer, the psion's equivalent of asa, also treats metamorphosis as just an example and not a requirement and only requires the ability to assume forms.
and to pound this in even further, rules compendium lists a thousand faces, an ability that is a literal copy and past of minor change shape, in the same section as wild shape, polymorph, and the doppelgangers change shape ability under the section "changing forms" so even if polymorph was a requirement (its not) it still works.
so this is open and shut. airtight. iron clad. no wiggle room.
my dm is raw or die and he always takes the restrictive rulings. he doesnt allow you to persist touch spells. he says uncanny forethoughts -2 cl prevents you from casting higher level spells you can normally cast. and even he says these arguments are just desperate ****. so if your gonna continue to say polymorph is a requirement of asa, im not gonna respond. ive spent enough time wrestling with people who would rather die than admit theyre wrong. im only gonna respond to nondesperate arguments.
so whats a nondesperate argument?
originally i conceived of this to gain the su ability of specific creatures. but one poster pointed out asa only grants the su ability of kinds of creatures, not specific. so this failed.
then i pivoted to the su ability call ruin elemental which lets me create a cr10 monster once a week. but another poster pointed out it has more requirements than 1/week like needing an interloper in the ruins you call home, so this failed too. i can totally argue that that part is just fluff text, but the way the paragraph is structured, its a requirement so im just gonna accept it.
then i pivoted to what i have now.
i always admit that im wrong when im wrong since deluding myself is not gonna persuade my dm. so just point out actual things wrong with my build instead of making desperate arguments that makes no sense. i do overlook a lot of things to the point its embarrassing which is why i make these proofreads threads, but im not gonna deal with desperate arguments.
whats a desperate argument?
trying to really, really, really force ambiguity in the rules by any means necessary even when there isn't any and then say because of this forced ambiguity your ruling is possible and therefore correct.
some techniques include making up definitions, or claim an interpretation that works with everything is wrong so you can yell "primary source rule" or "dysfunction" so you can ignore everything that says your wrong.
i mean seriously. if theres rule1 and rule2 and interpretation a and b. if a works with both and b works with only 1, then a is right. you dont yell "primary source rule" to say rule2 is ignored and then say because rule2 is ignored because of primary source rule, interpretation b is not disproven therefore still valid and therefore the one true raw because i say so. im not gonna respond to this.
some examples of desperate arguments
*the feat requires you to use something with the same "power level" as polymorph and i get to define what a "power level" is.
*"similar effect" is defined as having the polymorph subschool because i say so and wild shape is grandfathered in there because reasons. and alternate form is grandfathered in there because wild shape is similar to it. ...and only thing excluded is minor change shape because i say so.
*racial emulation feat is a typo because i say so. it should be "assume the appearance" instead of "assume the form" because i say so. and both rules compendium and d20srd are wrong when it says when you physically assume the appearance of the creature, you are assuming its form as well. and the term "natural form" in mcs in no way indicative that you are changing forms
level 5
feats
w1 spell mastery
1 skill focus:knowledge:religion, 2 water devotion, 3 uncanny forethought
f1 extend spell
f1 assume supernatural ability: command genie
3 practiced spellcaster
w5 energy substitution
this is when dr10 monsters appear with massive hp and some of them even has fast healing or regeneration on top. so there is literally no way any of my janni or serpentirs can deal damage. and wizards dont have enough spell slots to take on 4 encounters by blasting. hell i dont think spending all my slots on blasting would clear even one encounter. blasting sucks.
so instead i cast animate weapon on a colossal improvised weapon. the animated colossal improvised weapon is crudely fallout 4 sentry bot shaped stone statue (worth nothing so i can craft it in a day. is both wheeled and on legs so i can switch between 50ft move speed and 30ft move speed) and grabs a colossal club (probably a whole tree or several trees roped together somehow) and bashes things with it until theyre dead. janni and serpentirs are on box pulling duty or on night watch. no longer participates in combat unless the enemy goes out of their way to attack them.
v.s. flying, im gonna have the colossal creature use a colossal sling (still free). unless they get within 30ft at which point grapple.
i retrain out assume supernatural ability: create servitor because servitors are useless and i need a metamagic feat for energy substitution which is a prerequisite for elemental savant. the genie is chosen over the serpentir for create food, and the fact that without the genie i cant get the bones to make the serpentirs with.
improvised weapons are valid targets for spells that target weapons. like magic weapon.
one poster pointed out all the combat rules, when it says "weapon" (like sunder, drawing, sheathing, etc.) it includes improvised weapons.
rules compendium directly says improvised weapons are a category of weapons.
the spell detect weaponry addresses improvised weapons.
theres a prc that lets your party members take "exotic weapon proficiency: improvised throwing weapons" to let them use improvised throwing weapons you fashion without the -4 penalty
theres a prc that gives you "exotic weapon proficiency: manacles".
when the rules want to talk only about manufactured or natural weapons, it directly says so. and when the rules want to talk about all weapons including improvised weapons, it just says "weapons".
so this is open and shut. iron clad. air tight. no wiggle room.
desperate arguments
*the "weapon" in the combat rules is a different word than "weapon" in spell descriptions because i say so.
*the "weapon" in starmantle's description is a different word than "weapon" in spell descriptions because i say so.
*everything except the rules in the weapon section in d20srd must be disregarded because "primary source rule"
*my ruling is correct even though it creates dysfunction elsewhere because "primary source rule".
*the interpretation that is consistent with literally the rest of d&d with no dysfunction is wrong because i say so
i wont be responding to any of this.
i will also cast augment object to double my colossus hardness to 16.
level 6-20
feats (retrained feats are indicated after the comma)
w1 spell mastery
1 uncanny forethought
f1 extend spell
f1 assume supernatural ability: share spells
3 practiced spellcaster
w5 extend spell
6 planar familiar
so at this level i finally get my mirror mephit. i first create a dose of ambrosia. as a 200gp magical material i can use it for my familiar obtaining ritual. after i get a familiar i cast adept spirit to boost my cl to 7, and then use the morphic familiar (su) ability i got from my changeling substitution level at 5th level to turn it into a mirror mephit before adept spirit ends.
those of you who think this is unwarranted, the babau is cr6. he has at will dispel magic and greater teleport so he will **** my colossal animated improvised weapon up. so yeah, it is warranted. i need a monster that can take out these monsters without dying to dispel magic spam.
the "no homebrew" restriction restricts me to monsters who has advancement entries that are at least double the base creature's hd.
so monster has 10hd and advancement 20hd? i make a simulacrum of that 20hd creature so when it is halved it is 10hd.
monster has 10hd and advancement by class? illegal for simulacrum. because advanced creatures with class levels are unique not generic (except for the rare fully statted out monsters with class levels). and because savage species says half hd creatures do lose their abilities (savage progression monster classes) and my dm doesnt want to homebrew anything.
ill be listing all of my mirror mephit tricks here.
trick 0: suffer the fleshs 250gp ruby component.
1. i cast shadow conjuration->clothiers closet to create noble's outfit
2. noble's outfit is outfitted with jewelry and rare metals, so i make one that has 50gp of rubies
3. cast 5 times and i now have enough material component to cast suffer the flesh.
trick 1: share spells
i use the share spells ability from your familiar class feature to give my mirror mephit these buffs
base cl: 8
adept spirit (+1cl)
shadow conjuration->create magic tattoo (+1cl once i hit cl13)
suffer the flesh (+4cl or +5cl, depending on whether the mm has at least cl10)
total:cl15.
trick 2: scroll crafting
1. i use uncanny forethought to reduce distilled joys casting time to a standard action and cast as many of it as i possibly can.
2. then i rest 8 hours and do it again. so in a little over a day i will have produced 3 times my int mod of doses of ambrosia.
3. mm creates a simulacrum of a djinni 7hd cl20
4. the djinni uses its major creation sla to create permanent duration scroll crafting materials.
5. using cooperative crafting rules we create a cl20 scroll of simulacrum.
6. mm creates a simulacrum of a ghaele
7. i polymorph into a symbiote, attach myself to the ghaele, and then use assume supernatural ability: share spells to receive divine insight and surge of fortune
8. i use use magic device boosted with share spells and surge of fortune to cast the scroll of simulacrum with 0% chance of a mishap to create a 20hd simulacrum of my choice
cl20 is the strongest scroll i can make without scribe epic scroll so this is a hard cap of what i can get via scroll crafting.
so the main problem here is the time constraint. the scroll crafting takes a lot of time. like 2 weeks. gauntlet is over in 2 weeks. so i gotta really make my simulacra count. without scroll crafting or shadow conjuration my cl cap is 9.
after shadow conjuration (level 7) its gonna take a few days to amass the rubies i need to get cl13 simulacra with, and my first simulacrum has to be a ghaele because suffer the flesh murders my mirror mephits constitution. he needs bears endurance cast on him and then healed immedaitely after or he will die.
at level 9 i can use suffer the flesh myself to get the +1 cl from create magic tattoo for a final cl cap of cl15. hopefully all this is enough for me to stay alive until i can craft and cast that cl20 simulacrum scroll for a balor.
i am still figuring out which monsters i should make. if you have a suggestion im all ears.
logistic simulacrum
ghaele - at will healing, 14th cleric
planetar - 17th cleric (true resurrection)
djinni - permanent duration major creation, cl20
balor - extract demonic essence upto cl20, can hit 30int with buffs for extract gift.
combat simulacrum
tbd
anyways thats my strategy for these levels. i will update later for the combat monsters. if you have a few suggestions i am all ears.
100% of scroll crafting materials is mundane. you need high quality paper or vellum (official example used half petrified calf vellum). you need ink (official example used kraken ink). and a writing implement like a dip pen. so i can create super expensive paper, ink, and dip pen with major creation and use them for scroll scribing since scribing scrolls is not a "material component".
if your wondering why im not using liquid pain. not only is liquid pain 50% more efficient, but theres also a monster who has liquid pain as a sla so he could produce a ton of liquid pain everyday. but the reason why i use the super slow ambrosia instead of liquid pain is because im not evil. theres not a chance in hell ill ever torture anything in a real game so im not gonna playtest a torturer.
if i can, all my simulacra will fight with a greatsword. natural weapons cannot beat dr and dr renders you immune to natural attacks so gotta use them greatswords.
level 9
feats
w1 spell mastery
1 uncanny forethought
f1 extend spell
f1 assume supernatural ability: share spells
3 practiced spellcaster
w5 energy substitution
6 planar familiar
9 arcane thesis: major creation
please double check this combo. its not gonna be used in the gauntlet but id still like it proofread.
suffer the flesh->cl13
shadow conjuration->create magic tattoo->+1cl
adept spirit->+1cl
extended major creation->high quality paper (44hrs)
extended major creation->ink (44hrs)
rest 8 hours
major creation->very fancy ironwood dip pen (36hrs)
shadow conjuration->summon mirror mephit
ambrosia
suggestion (summoned mm cannot conjure another creature. summons refuse to use slas that cost xp if they were spells. suggestion removes the refusal and makes the mephit not refuse to use slas that cost xp if they were spells for magic item creation.)
i use all of the above to create a cl 8 scroll of simulacrum to create a mirror mephit simulacrum in the event of my familiars death.
as the simulacrum mirror mephit is a half hd of a 8hd mirror mephit instead of my familiar, i dont have share spells on him so i am restricted to the scroll crafting trick
with the scroll crafting trick i create a simulacrum of a planetar
shadow conjuration->clothiers closet->50gp of diamonds
x 100
i have the planetar cast true resurrection to revive my dead familiar
end result: i get my familiar back without waiting an entire year.
alternatively i can just do scroll crafting with my simulacrum mirror mephit.
anyways the important part here is that at 9th level i am completely independent of the environment. even if all mirror mephits go extinct or i get trapped in a no teleport area, ill still be able to make my simulacrum monsters.
level 10
feats
w1 spell mastery
1 uncanny forethought
f1 extend spell
f1 assume supernatural ability: share spells
3 practiced spellcaster
w5 extend spell
6 assume supernatural ability: launch spawn
9 arcane thesis: major creation
i polymorph into a madcrafter of thoon and then use assume supernatural ability launch spawn to spawn an army of scythers of thoon.
after 2 spawns each spawn is gonna cost me 20hp so im gonna need my ghaele to heal me up.
extended polymorph at cl10+1+1+5=17 lasts 34minutes. thats 340 rounds.
on average its gonna take 2.1 heals to regain that 20hp. so every 2.1 rounds i get a scyther.
340/2.1 = 161 scythers of thoon.
so whats the point of making so many scythers of thoon against creatures whose dr, fast healing/regeneration, spell resistance, and fire resist/immunity completely negates the scythers ability to do anything? several reasons
1. mob template. cant say no to auto-grapple and being a meat shield.
2. if i do encounter a fiend who doesnt have fire resist or spell resistance... die by a thousand rays of fire.
3. just general macro stuff. look out, building a fort, manning said fort, stuff like that. think fallout 4 settlement filled with only robots.
i want to be that guy who sells robots.
i want to be that guy who creates an entire robot faction all by himself and impacts the world that way.
so i am willing to give up an entire feat slot for this even though in combat scythers are worthless at this level. theyre not worthless to commoners.
if your asking why i dont make a simulacrum of a madcrafter of thoon? because it doesnt have an advancement entry. so as per the no homebrew rule, i cannot make a simulacrum of it.
i retrained out planar familiar because, since i have access to true resurrection, i dont need to replace my familiar, ever, and the feat only lets me obtain a familiar. i dont need the feat once i obtained my familiar. so i retrained it out.
the point of the mindbender dip is because the scythers and stormclouds of thoons only take orders from telepathic creatures of thoon so i need to be able to use telepathy while polymorphed as a madcrafter of thoon in order to program them instructions to obey my normal form.
level 16
i finally achieve ascension and get earth glide. so ill make a block of stone using wall of stone, glide into it, and have my simulacra carry that block of stone around. no more boxes and windows.
level 19
feats
w1 spell mastery
1 uncanny forethought
f1 extend spell
f1 demon mastery
3 practiced spellcaster
w5 extend spell
6 assume supernatural ability: launch spawn
9 magical artisan scribe scroll
12 legendary artisan
15 exceptional artisan
18 demon mastery
my caster level is high enough that i dont need to umd the cl20 scrolls anymore so i retrained asa share spells out.
i just filled out the rest of my feats with xp cost reducers so i can craft scrolls with only a quarter of the ambrosia.
so levels 6-18 is pretty much the same. just cl 9-20 simulacra with an army of scythers for macro stuff.
level 19 is when it gets fun. i get wish.
5153xp x 0.75 (legendary artisan) x 0.75 (magical artisan) x 0.5 (extract demonic essence) = 1450xp to scribe a scroll of wish.
polymorph any object into a white ethergaunt for 27int
create a simulacrum of a balor (this balor can be used for extract dmonic essence), buff it with fox's cunning and extract drug so it has 31int, and then cast extract gift via limited wish to get me +5 int for a grand total of 32int. +11mod. so thats 11doses of ambrosia every 8 hours, or 33 doses everyday, or 66 crafting xp everyday.
1450/66=22 days. not bad. 3 days to craft so 25 days for a scroll of wish.
epic level strategy: do the above except with more ambrosia to create
a wand of improvisation at super high cl via wish
a scroll of simulacrum at super high cl via wish
use the wand to umd the scroll to create a simulacra of any epic creature i want that doesnt require homebrew.
and this strategy should keep me relevant in epic to the point i can afford to race change into something with high hd and la and never level up again.
ok and i think that sums up my character.
global rules
raw or die.
no loops
no recursion
no free wishes
no anti stuff. for example, i cant grab anti fiend stuff (bane magic), and he cant grab anti changeling stuff (if there is any). we're trying to simulate a no-knowledge-beforehand thingy. anti-magic is fine but anti-wizard is not.
no homebrew
a scroll mishap with a scroll of simulacrum results in a hostile simulacrum that try to kill me immediately 100% of the time.
i must do 4 encounters in a row and get 24 hours rest afterwards.
fights have a maximum of 6 hours. if both parties are alive at the end of the 6 hours, the one thats avoiding the fight dies.
i have 24 hours to prepare before the gauntlet starts
dm rules:
he can only throw a single fiend at a time
its cr must equal my ecl.
if he runs out of equal cr fiends, he can then either throw cr+1 monsters, or multiple lower cr monsters
no single fiend maybe used more than once, unless it is summoned by another fiend.
all fiend summonings have 100% success chance and summons the maximum number of fiends possible.
he must use stat blocks as is. no feat changing. no spell reselection.
he can ignore the strategy section of the monster block and play the monsters optimally.
dm chooses all encounters. he chooses the monster, when the encounter occurs, how far apart everyone is when the encounter starts, etc. so he can wait out buffs to run out and then throw the next fiend.
dm wins initiative. always. i dump dex and dont invest in initiative so were just skipping a roll i will always lose.
if i dont know which fiend is the summoned fiend, the last fiend that dies will be the nonsummoned fiend. in other words, if i dont know which fiend is nonsummoned, i gotta kill all of them.
player rules
0 wealth. no spellbook. no shops. no equipment except those i make myself somehow. no spell component pouch.
i cant intentionally keep a fiend alive to buy more prep time.
arena rules
infinite flat land in all directions.
there are trees, grass, and rocks only. no villages. no ruins. no castles or forts.
CR1
Demon, Mane
Devil, Lemure
CR2
Demon, Dretch
Demon, Nashrou
Demon, Quasit
Devil, Imp
Devil, Nupperibo
CR3
Demon, Gadacro
Demon, Rutterkin
Devil, Merregon (Legion Devil)
CR4
Demon, Carnage
Demon, Guecubu
Demon, Ekolid
Devil, Spinagon
Devil, White Abishai
CR5
Demon, Bar-Lgura
Demon, Juvenile Nabassu
Devil, Barbazu
Devil, Black Abishai
Devil, Narzugon
CR6
Demon, Babau
Demon, Broodswarm
Devil, Bueroza (Steel Devil)
Devil, Kyton
Devil, Green Abishai
Devil, Gulthir
CR7
Demon, Armanite
Demon, Arrow
Demon, Succubus
Devil, Amnizu
Devil, Bezekira
Devil, Blue Abishai
Devil, Falxugon (Harvester Devil)
Devil, Excruciarch (Pain Devil)
CR8
Demon, Dybbuk
Demon, Solamith
Demon, Yochlol
Devil, Erinyes
Devil, Orthon
Devil, Red Abishai
CR9
Demon, Bulezau
Demon, Vrock
Demon, Whisper
Devil, Osyluth
Devil, Stitched Devil
CR10
Demon, Adaru
Demon, Bebilith
Demon, Chasme
Demon, Draudnu
CR11
Demon, Hezrou
Demon, Kastighur
Demon, Retriever
Devil, Dogai (Assassin Devil)
Devil, Hamatula
Devil, Brachina (Pleasure Devil)
CR12
Demon, Lilitu
Devil, Ayperobos Swarm
CR13
Demon, Glabrezu
Devil, Gelugon
CR14
Demon, Nalfeshnee
Devil, Malebranche
CR15
Demon, Mature Nabassu
Demon, Sibriex
Devil, Xerfilstyx
Devil, Remmanon
CR16
Demon, Goristro
Devil, Cornugon
CR17
Demon, Marilith
Demon, Sorrowsworn
CR18
Demon, Deathdrinker
Devil, Paeliryon
CR19
Demon, Molydeus
Devil, Hellfire Engine
Juiblex, The Faceless Lord
CR20
Demon, Balor
Devil, Pit Fiend
Baphomet, Prince of Beasts
Yeenoghu, Prince of Gnolls
CR21
Fraz-Urb'luu, Prince of Deception
Kostchtchie, Prince of Wrath
Malacanthet, Queen of the Succubi
Pale Night, the Mother of Demons
Zuggtmoy, Lady of Fungi
CR22
Dagon, Prince of Depths
Graz'zt, The Dark Prince
Obox-ob, Prince of Vermin
Orcus, Prince of the Undead
Pazuzu, Prince of the Lower Aerial Kingdoms
CR23
Demogorgon, Prince of Demons
ok so the purpose of this gauntlet is simply to playtest new builds i am gonna use in a real game very quickly to see how strong it is. other players at my table go through it too but not all of them because of time constraints and lack of system mastery. so anyways we do the gauntlet and if the build fails then we make the gauntlet easier and easier (more time between encounters, player gets to choose monsters he fights, etc.) until the build succeeds at which point we have our data.
the above rules are gonna be our starting point and were gonna see if my build can beat that or if the gauntlet needs to be made easier.
alright so this is my character thats gonna go through the gauntlet. if you can, make it better, or point out an illegal thing im doing so i can fix it. some options are intentionally suboptimal for roleplay because roleplay is more important than power gaming so suggesting i ditch them in the name of optimization isnt gonna work out.
for example i go elemental savant to achieve immortality, eternal youth, and no need to breathe without looking like dog****. elemental savant is a horrible prc especially since i do 0 blasting but i dont care. im getting it solely for the capstone. elemental savant lets me change my skin to something rocky, so i choose white smooth stone. and my eyes will become smooth sapphires so i can make her look like drossel from fireball charming.
at level 19 when i get wish i will use savage species rules to transform into a ridiculously high ecl and la creature. im still looking. but basically because im immortal and eternally youthful thanks to my prc, i can choose any monster i want and not just the ones that are explicitly immortal and eternally youthful. so im browsing through this
https://forums.giantitp.com/showthread.php?401132
to find an awesome form. once i get access to wish i never need to level up again because wish is that powerful so thats what im doing. never leveling up again.
race: changeling
alignment: neutral good - i dont play evil characters
class: wizard5/mindbender1/elemental savant10/fatespinner 3 - fatespinner is filler. still looking for possible better prcs.
ability scores - 25 point buy
8-2 str - pathetic strength
8 dex
12 con
18 int
13 wis - assume supernatural ability prerequisite
8 cha
i retrain my feats quite a bit so i dont think i can put it all in one place so ill be dividing my build up for different level ranges.
0
1 acid splash
1 prestidigitation
1 lights
1 dancing lights
1 disrupt undead
1st
1 power word pain
1 summon component
1 enlarge person
1 extract drug
1 magic weapon
1 charm person
1 endure elements
2 lesser orb of cold
2 erase
2nd
3 see invisibility
3 unseen crafter
4 suffer the flesh
4 heroics
3rd
5 animate weapon
5 augment object
6 sleet storm
6 adept spirit
8 suggestion
8 greater magic weapon
4th
7 polymorph
7 shadow conjuration
5th
9 major creation
9 wall of stone
10 fabricate
10 overland flight
6th
11 shalantha's delicate disk
11 superior resistance
12 wall of iron
12 hardening
7th
13 simulacrum
13 greater teleport
14 limited wish
14 energy immunity
8th
15 polymorph any object
15 mind blank
16 moment of prescience
16 greater celerity
9th
17 wish
17 ce assassin (V,S,M,XP) Illusion
spell list does not account for the delayed levels to the prc yet. ill get to it.
level 1-4
feats (retrained feats are indicated after the comma)
w1 spell mastery
1 skill focus:knowledge:religion, 2 water devotion, 3 uncanny forethought
f1 assume supernatural ability: create servitor
f1 assume supernatural ability: command genie
3 practiced spellcaster
water devotion is to fulfill elemental savants prc prerequisite
uncanny forethought is to be able to cast any spell i know without a spellbook
practiced spellcaster is to offset the -2cl from uncanny forethought, and later to offset the 2 caster levels lost from elemental savant.
strategy
i fashion a box out of wood or stone, whatever materials i can get my hands on, and stay inside it 24/7. total cover against everything so im safe until something destroys my box. theres a small openable window so i can get line of effect when i do need to cast a spell.
i cast enlarge person on myself, minor change shape into a yak folk, then use asa command genie to get a summoned janni slave for 2 days.
the janni fights all my battles for me.
the janni casts create food and water to create 21 portions of fish with bones. i eat one portion and let the other 20 decay.
i cast extract drug to get +2 int.
i take 10 and hit a knowledge religion check of 10+4(ranks)+4(int)+1(drugs)+3(skill focus) = 22, just enough to know the existence of skull lords.
i minor change shape into a skull lord, then use asa create servitor to create serpentirs from the decayed chicken bones.
it takes the equivalent of 6 medium skeletons to create one serpentir.
a chicken is a tiny creature, and people eat entire chickens in 1 serving, so one serving = one tiny creature, so if i make fish then create food and water creates enough fish bone mass for 3 tiny creatures per caster level.
janni's create food and water is cl 7 so it makes enough bones equal to 21 tiny creatures per casting
1 medium creature is treated as 2 small creatures. 1 small creature is treated as 2 tiny creatures. so i need 24 tiny creatures to create a serpentir.
i can have a maximum of 3 serpentirs since that is an el7 encounter.
i will give the serpentirs slings since i dont have enough time to craft crossbows and bolts.
v.s. ranged attackers (spined devil im looking at you) they will just use their sling.
v.s. incorporeal (guecubu im looking at you) i will cast magic weapon as many times as i can after casting see invisibility on myself.
i will summon a water elemental to fulfill elemental savants prc prerequisite at level 2 and then retrain this useless feat out afterwards.
You learn to use a supernatural ability of an assumed form.
Prerequisite
WIS 13, ability to assume a new form magically,
Benefit
You learn to use a single supernatural ability of another kind of creature while assuming its form through a polymorph self spell or a similar effect. The saving throw DC against this ability is based on your ability scores, not those of a standard creature of the kind whose form you've assumed.
...
Normal
Without this feat, you cannot use the supernatural abilities of a creature whose form you assume.
When you use your minor change shape ability to assume the form of a humanoid creature, you can also emulate any of that humanoid's subtypes.
so the rules clearly state that when you use minor change shape to become a creature, you are assuming its form, thus allowing you to use assume supernatural ability with minor change shape.
ive had this debate across multiple threads and some people hell bent on trying to lawyer this away have clinged onto "similar effect" and "polymorph self" in the rule text, trying to make it sound like polymorph is a mandatory requirement to use assume supernatural ability. but heres the thing
"similar effect" is not defined in d&d. so we have to use english here. and if we use english, i can argue everything is similar to polymorph. so we have to ask ourselves, what similarity to polymorph does an effect need to have to be considered "similar"?
is it being a 4th level wizard spell? no because lots of 4th level spells dont let you assume forms magically.
is it gaining hitpoints as if you rested? no because the feat doesnt ask for such an effect, and it would disqualify alter self from using asa.
is it changing your type? no because the feat doesnt ask for such an effect, and it would disqualify alter self from using asa.
is it getting new physical ability scores? no because the feat doesnt ask for such an effect, and it would disqualify alter self from using asa.
is it its inability to turn into forms greater than 15hd? no because the feat doesnt ask for such an effect, and it would disqualify alter self from using asa.
is it having the polymorph subschool? no because the feat doesnt ask for such a thing, the subschool never existed 3.0 or early 3.5, and it would disqualify wild shape from using asa
i can go on and on, but my point is clear. the feat only asks for the ability to assume a new form, like polymorph. as in polymorph is just an example, not a requirement. nothing else. any effect that lets you assume forms magically is a "similar effect".
and to further pound this in, metamorphic transfer, the psion's equivalent of asa, also treats metamorphosis as just an example and not a requirement and only requires the ability to assume forms.
and to pound this in even further, rules compendium lists a thousand faces, an ability that is a literal copy and past of minor change shape, in the same section as wild shape, polymorph, and the doppelgangers change shape ability under the section "changing forms" so even if polymorph was a requirement (its not) it still works.
so this is open and shut. airtight. iron clad. no wiggle room.
my dm is raw or die and he always takes the restrictive rulings. he doesnt allow you to persist touch spells. he says uncanny forethoughts -2 cl prevents you from casting higher level spells you can normally cast. and even he says these arguments are just desperate ****. so if your gonna continue to say polymorph is a requirement of asa, im not gonna respond. ive spent enough time wrestling with people who would rather die than admit theyre wrong. im only gonna respond to nondesperate arguments.
so whats a nondesperate argument?
originally i conceived of this to gain the su ability of specific creatures. but one poster pointed out asa only grants the su ability of kinds of creatures, not specific. so this failed.
then i pivoted to the su ability call ruin elemental which lets me create a cr10 monster once a week. but another poster pointed out it has more requirements than 1/week like needing an interloper in the ruins you call home, so this failed too. i can totally argue that that part is just fluff text, but the way the paragraph is structured, its a requirement so im just gonna accept it.
then i pivoted to what i have now.
i always admit that im wrong when im wrong since deluding myself is not gonna persuade my dm. so just point out actual things wrong with my build instead of making desperate arguments that makes no sense. i do overlook a lot of things to the point its embarrassing which is why i make these proofreads threads, but im not gonna deal with desperate arguments.
whats a desperate argument?
trying to really, really, really force ambiguity in the rules by any means necessary even when there isn't any and then say because of this forced ambiguity your ruling is possible and therefore correct.
some techniques include making up definitions, or claim an interpretation that works with everything is wrong so you can yell "primary source rule" or "dysfunction" so you can ignore everything that says your wrong.
i mean seriously. if theres rule1 and rule2 and interpretation a and b. if a works with both and b works with only 1, then a is right. you dont yell "primary source rule" to say rule2 is ignored and then say because rule2 is ignored because of primary source rule, interpretation b is not disproven therefore still valid and therefore the one true raw because i say so. im not gonna respond to this.
some examples of desperate arguments
*the feat requires you to use something with the same "power level" as polymorph and i get to define what a "power level" is.
*"similar effect" is defined as having the polymorph subschool because i say so and wild shape is grandfathered in there because reasons. and alternate form is grandfathered in there because wild shape is similar to it. ...and only thing excluded is minor change shape because i say so.
*racial emulation feat is a typo because i say so. it should be "assume the appearance" instead of "assume the form" because i say so. and both rules compendium and d20srd are wrong when it says when you physically assume the appearance of the creature, you are assuming its form as well. and the term "natural form" in mcs in no way indicative that you are changing forms
level 5
feats
w1 spell mastery
1 skill focus:knowledge:religion, 2 water devotion, 3 uncanny forethought
f1 extend spell
f1 assume supernatural ability: command genie
3 practiced spellcaster
w5 energy substitution
this is when dr10 monsters appear with massive hp and some of them even has fast healing or regeneration on top. so there is literally no way any of my janni or serpentirs can deal damage. and wizards dont have enough spell slots to take on 4 encounters by blasting. hell i dont think spending all my slots on blasting would clear even one encounter. blasting sucks.
so instead i cast animate weapon on a colossal improvised weapon. the animated colossal improvised weapon is crudely fallout 4 sentry bot shaped stone statue (worth nothing so i can craft it in a day. is both wheeled and on legs so i can switch between 50ft move speed and 30ft move speed) and grabs a colossal club (probably a whole tree or several trees roped together somehow) and bashes things with it until theyre dead. janni and serpentirs are on box pulling duty or on night watch. no longer participates in combat unless the enemy goes out of their way to attack them.
v.s. flying, im gonna have the colossal creature use a colossal sling (still free). unless they get within 30ft at which point grapple.
i retrain out assume supernatural ability: create servitor because servitors are useless and i need a metamagic feat for energy substitution which is a prerequisite for elemental savant. the genie is chosen over the serpentir for create food, and the fact that without the genie i cant get the bones to make the serpentirs with.
improvised weapons are valid targets for spells that target weapons. like magic weapon.
one poster pointed out all the combat rules, when it says "weapon" (like sunder, drawing, sheathing, etc.) it includes improvised weapons.
rules compendium directly says improvised weapons are a category of weapons.
the spell detect weaponry addresses improvised weapons.
theres a prc that lets your party members take "exotic weapon proficiency: improvised throwing weapons" to let them use improvised throwing weapons you fashion without the -4 penalty
theres a prc that gives you "exotic weapon proficiency: manacles".
when the rules want to talk only about manufactured or natural weapons, it directly says so. and when the rules want to talk about all weapons including improvised weapons, it just says "weapons".
so this is open and shut. iron clad. air tight. no wiggle room.
desperate arguments
*the "weapon" in the combat rules is a different word than "weapon" in spell descriptions because i say so.
*the "weapon" in starmantle's description is a different word than "weapon" in spell descriptions because i say so.
*everything except the rules in the weapon section in d20srd must be disregarded because "primary source rule"
*my ruling is correct even though it creates dysfunction elsewhere because "primary source rule".
*the interpretation that is consistent with literally the rest of d&d with no dysfunction is wrong because i say so
i wont be responding to any of this.
i will also cast augment object to double my colossus hardness to 16.
level 6-20
feats (retrained feats are indicated after the comma)
w1 spell mastery
1 uncanny forethought
f1 extend spell
f1 assume supernatural ability: share spells
3 practiced spellcaster
w5 extend spell
6 planar familiar
so at this level i finally get my mirror mephit. i first create a dose of ambrosia. as a 200gp magical material i can use it for my familiar obtaining ritual. after i get a familiar i cast adept spirit to boost my cl to 7, and then use the morphic familiar (su) ability i got from my changeling substitution level at 5th level to turn it into a mirror mephit before adept spirit ends.
those of you who think this is unwarranted, the babau is cr6. he has at will dispel magic and greater teleport so he will **** my colossal animated improvised weapon up. so yeah, it is warranted. i need a monster that can take out these monsters without dying to dispel magic spam.
the "no homebrew" restriction restricts me to monsters who has advancement entries that are at least double the base creature's hd.
so monster has 10hd and advancement 20hd? i make a simulacrum of that 20hd creature so when it is halved it is 10hd.
monster has 10hd and advancement by class? illegal for simulacrum. because advanced creatures with class levels are unique not generic (except for the rare fully statted out monsters with class levels). and because savage species says half hd creatures do lose their abilities (savage progression monster classes) and my dm doesnt want to homebrew anything.
ill be listing all of my mirror mephit tricks here.
trick 0: suffer the fleshs 250gp ruby component.
1. i cast shadow conjuration->clothiers closet to create noble's outfit
2. noble's outfit is outfitted with jewelry and rare metals, so i make one that has 50gp of rubies
3. cast 5 times and i now have enough material component to cast suffer the flesh.
trick 1: share spells
i use the share spells ability from your familiar class feature to give my mirror mephit these buffs
base cl: 8
adept spirit (+1cl)
shadow conjuration->create magic tattoo (+1cl once i hit cl13)
suffer the flesh (+4cl or +5cl, depending on whether the mm has at least cl10)
total:cl15.
trick 2: scroll crafting
1. i use uncanny forethought to reduce distilled joys casting time to a standard action and cast as many of it as i possibly can.
2. then i rest 8 hours and do it again. so in a little over a day i will have produced 3 times my int mod of doses of ambrosia.
3. mm creates a simulacrum of a djinni 7hd cl20
4. the djinni uses its major creation sla to create permanent duration scroll crafting materials.
5. using cooperative crafting rules we create a cl20 scroll of simulacrum.
6. mm creates a simulacrum of a ghaele
7. i polymorph into a symbiote, attach myself to the ghaele, and then use assume supernatural ability: share spells to receive divine insight and surge of fortune
8. i use use magic device boosted with share spells and surge of fortune to cast the scroll of simulacrum with 0% chance of a mishap to create a 20hd simulacrum of my choice
cl20 is the strongest scroll i can make without scribe epic scroll so this is a hard cap of what i can get via scroll crafting.
so the main problem here is the time constraint. the scroll crafting takes a lot of time. like 2 weeks. gauntlet is over in 2 weeks. so i gotta really make my simulacra count. without scroll crafting or shadow conjuration my cl cap is 9.
after shadow conjuration (level 7) its gonna take a few days to amass the rubies i need to get cl13 simulacra with, and my first simulacrum has to be a ghaele because suffer the flesh murders my mirror mephits constitution. he needs bears endurance cast on him and then healed immedaitely after or he will die.
at level 9 i can use suffer the flesh myself to get the +1 cl from create magic tattoo for a final cl cap of cl15. hopefully all this is enough for me to stay alive until i can craft and cast that cl20 simulacrum scroll for a balor.
i am still figuring out which monsters i should make. if you have a suggestion im all ears.
logistic simulacrum
ghaele - at will healing, 14th cleric
planetar - 17th cleric (true resurrection)
djinni - permanent duration major creation, cl20
balor - extract demonic essence upto cl20, can hit 30int with buffs for extract gift.
combat simulacrum
tbd
anyways thats my strategy for these levels. i will update later for the combat monsters. if you have a few suggestions i am all ears.
100% of scroll crafting materials is mundane. you need high quality paper or vellum (official example used half petrified calf vellum). you need ink (official example used kraken ink). and a writing implement like a dip pen. so i can create super expensive paper, ink, and dip pen with major creation and use them for scroll scribing since scribing scrolls is not a "material component".
if your wondering why im not using liquid pain. not only is liquid pain 50% more efficient, but theres also a monster who has liquid pain as a sla so he could produce a ton of liquid pain everyday. but the reason why i use the super slow ambrosia instead of liquid pain is because im not evil. theres not a chance in hell ill ever torture anything in a real game so im not gonna playtest a torturer.
if i can, all my simulacra will fight with a greatsword. natural weapons cannot beat dr and dr renders you immune to natural attacks so gotta use them greatswords.
level 9
feats
w1 spell mastery
1 uncanny forethought
f1 extend spell
f1 assume supernatural ability: share spells
3 practiced spellcaster
w5 energy substitution
6 planar familiar
9 arcane thesis: major creation
please double check this combo. its not gonna be used in the gauntlet but id still like it proofread.
suffer the flesh->cl13
shadow conjuration->create magic tattoo->+1cl
adept spirit->+1cl
extended major creation->high quality paper (44hrs)
extended major creation->ink (44hrs)
rest 8 hours
major creation->very fancy ironwood dip pen (36hrs)
shadow conjuration->summon mirror mephit
ambrosia
suggestion (summoned mm cannot conjure another creature. summons refuse to use slas that cost xp if they were spells. suggestion removes the refusal and makes the mephit not refuse to use slas that cost xp if they were spells for magic item creation.)
i use all of the above to create a cl 8 scroll of simulacrum to create a mirror mephit simulacrum in the event of my familiars death.
as the simulacrum mirror mephit is a half hd of a 8hd mirror mephit instead of my familiar, i dont have share spells on him so i am restricted to the scroll crafting trick
with the scroll crafting trick i create a simulacrum of a planetar
shadow conjuration->clothiers closet->50gp of diamonds
x 100
i have the planetar cast true resurrection to revive my dead familiar
end result: i get my familiar back without waiting an entire year.
alternatively i can just do scroll crafting with my simulacrum mirror mephit.
anyways the important part here is that at 9th level i am completely independent of the environment. even if all mirror mephits go extinct or i get trapped in a no teleport area, ill still be able to make my simulacrum monsters.
level 10
feats
w1 spell mastery
1 uncanny forethought
f1 extend spell
f1 assume supernatural ability: share spells
3 practiced spellcaster
w5 extend spell
6 assume supernatural ability: launch spawn
9 arcane thesis: major creation
i polymorph into a madcrafter of thoon and then use assume supernatural ability launch spawn to spawn an army of scythers of thoon.
after 2 spawns each spawn is gonna cost me 20hp so im gonna need my ghaele to heal me up.
extended polymorph at cl10+1+1+5=17 lasts 34minutes. thats 340 rounds.
on average its gonna take 2.1 heals to regain that 20hp. so every 2.1 rounds i get a scyther.
340/2.1 = 161 scythers of thoon.
so whats the point of making so many scythers of thoon against creatures whose dr, fast healing/regeneration, spell resistance, and fire resist/immunity completely negates the scythers ability to do anything? several reasons
1. mob template. cant say no to auto-grapple and being a meat shield.
2. if i do encounter a fiend who doesnt have fire resist or spell resistance... die by a thousand rays of fire.
3. just general macro stuff. look out, building a fort, manning said fort, stuff like that. think fallout 4 settlement filled with only robots.
i want to be that guy who sells robots.
i want to be that guy who creates an entire robot faction all by himself and impacts the world that way.
so i am willing to give up an entire feat slot for this even though in combat scythers are worthless at this level. theyre not worthless to commoners.
if your asking why i dont make a simulacrum of a madcrafter of thoon? because it doesnt have an advancement entry. so as per the no homebrew rule, i cannot make a simulacrum of it.
i retrained out planar familiar because, since i have access to true resurrection, i dont need to replace my familiar, ever, and the feat only lets me obtain a familiar. i dont need the feat once i obtained my familiar. so i retrained it out.
the point of the mindbender dip is because the scythers and stormclouds of thoons only take orders from telepathic creatures of thoon so i need to be able to use telepathy while polymorphed as a madcrafter of thoon in order to program them instructions to obey my normal form.
level 16
i finally achieve ascension and get earth glide. so ill make a block of stone using wall of stone, glide into it, and have my simulacra carry that block of stone around. no more boxes and windows.
level 19
feats
w1 spell mastery
1 uncanny forethought
f1 extend spell
f1 demon mastery
3 practiced spellcaster
w5 extend spell
6 assume supernatural ability: launch spawn
9 magical artisan scribe scroll
12 legendary artisan
15 exceptional artisan
18 demon mastery
my caster level is high enough that i dont need to umd the cl20 scrolls anymore so i retrained asa share spells out.
i just filled out the rest of my feats with xp cost reducers so i can craft scrolls with only a quarter of the ambrosia.
so levels 6-18 is pretty much the same. just cl 9-20 simulacra with an army of scythers for macro stuff.
level 19 is when it gets fun. i get wish.
5153xp x 0.75 (legendary artisan) x 0.75 (magical artisan) x 0.5 (extract demonic essence) = 1450xp to scribe a scroll of wish.
polymorph any object into a white ethergaunt for 27int
create a simulacrum of a balor (this balor can be used for extract dmonic essence), buff it with fox's cunning and extract drug so it has 31int, and then cast extract gift via limited wish to get me +5 int for a grand total of 32int. +11mod. so thats 11doses of ambrosia every 8 hours, or 33 doses everyday, or 66 crafting xp everyday.
1450/66=22 days. not bad. 3 days to craft so 25 days for a scroll of wish.
epic level strategy: do the above except with more ambrosia to create
a wand of improvisation at super high cl via wish
a scroll of simulacrum at super high cl via wish
use the wand to umd the scroll to create a simulacra of any epic creature i want that doesnt require homebrew.
and this strategy should keep me relevant in epic to the point i can afford to race change into something with high hd and la and never level up again.
ok and i think that sums up my character.