Epic feat to resist ability drain

[Biggus]

How powerful should it be/how should it work?

My initial thought was simply to have it reduce ability drain by 1 or 2 points (could be taken multiple times and stacked) but I wasn't sure what would be balanced, or if there might be a better mechanic.

I know there are other ways of getting immunity to ability drain but none that I know of would be available in this case (it's for an epic version of the Tarrasque).

[Jervis]

It’s a epic feat for a monster, just give it a requirement that PCs can’t meet easily and have it give immunity to ability drain. Abomination as a type does that anyway and it’s custom made for enemies at that level.

[Thurbane]

How powerful should it be/how should it work?

My initial thought was simply to have it reduce ability drain by 1 or 2 points (could be taken multiple times and stacked) but I wasn't sure what would be balanced, or if there might be a better mechanic.

I know there are other ways of getting immunity to ability drain but none that I know of would be available in this case (it's for an epic version of the Tarrasque).

I though one of the Epic Destiny (https://web.archive.org/web/20100916093852/http://www.wizards.com/DnD/Article.aspx?x=dnd/drfe/20080428) feats already kind of did this, but I was misremembering.

Sacred Vitality (LM) gives immunity to ability drain, ability damage and energy drain for one minute by using up a turn undead attempt.

Skullclan Hunter 8 and Dragon Ascendant 6 get immunity as class abilities.

IMHO, considering how underwhelming a lot of epic feats are, and how the spellcasting related ones are SO MUCH more powerful than the others, maybe just give it a crappy req feat in the WotC tradition (Endurance, maybe), and let it give flat out immunity to ability damage and ability drain. If you want to place a limit, maybe have it block/stop up to one point per character level each day, but I wouldn't limit it that way myself.

If its for the Tarrasque, maybe make the req Toughness feat x5: that should discourage players from taking it :smallbiggrin:

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Hyperconscious is well-regarded by the psionics community for being a really good supplement for psionics. It has the Psychic Bastion feat:


Psychic Bastion [Psionic]
Benefit: While you maintain your psionic focus, you gain ability depletion resistance 3 against any attack that depletes an ability score, including poison, ability drain, ability damage, or enhancement penalties to ability scores.

For instance, if some power, spell, effect, or poison deals you 4 points of temporary ability damage, you actually take just 1 point of temporary ability damage. The ability depletion resistance works on a per-attack basis.

It's not [epic], but it's definitely not broken.

A non-psionic [epic] version should probably be depletion resistance 5, and multiples stack.

[Melcar]

How powerful should it be/how should it work?

My initial thought was simply to have it reduce ability drain by 1 or 2 points (could be taken multiple times and stacked) but I wasn't sure what would be balanced, or if there might be a better mechanic.

I know there are other ways of getting immunity to ability drain but none that I know of would be available in this case (it's for an epic version of the Tarrasque).

So you want to make a feat which does what the spell sheltered vitality does?

Just do that then!

[mehs]

There is an ability from the soul warden prc from pathfinder that is essentially this.

At 8th level, a soul warden becomes resistant to ability drain and negative levels. Whenever a soul warden is targeted by an effect that would result in ability drain or impose negative levels, he takes 1 point of ability drain fewer and gains 1 negative level fewer than he normally would (to a minimum of 0). At 10th level, he takes 2 fewer points of ability drain and gains 2 fewer negative levels than he normally would.

It is somewhat of a captstone ability, as it comes fully online at 10th and Soul Warden's other 10th level ability is a mediocre anti undead antilife shell.

[ciopo]

Open greater chakra(waist) + shape soulmeld(strongheart vest), that's 2 feats one of which is lvl 18+ and 17+ CON, or one feat and 9th level spellcasting.
For a tarrasque, 2 feats it is, and if you want higher reduction add bonus essentia to taste