Rebel7284
2023-01-15, 03:45 PM
Lots of attention has been given in the past about using True Mind Switch to just BE a Tarrasque or some such, however, a recent thread about removing HD has reminded me that Mind Switching may be a GREAT way in high optimization games to do early entry by qualifying for a Prestige Class with your race before Mind Switching into something with a very low ECL!
Mind Switch, True
Telepathy [Mind-Affecting]
Level: Telepath 9
Manifesting Time: 1 minute
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Will negates; see text
Power Resistance: Yes
Power Points: 17, XP
As mind switch, except as noted here. You permanently exchange bodies with the subject. Since this power’s duration is instantaneous, you cannot be forced to return to your natural body by means of dispel psionics, an antimagic field, or a similar effect. If the subject’s body dies while you are in it, you are dead. The subject immediately loses one level, but otherwise survives the experience in your natural body. If your natural body dies while the subject is in it, you immediately lose one level, but you likewise survive the experience in your new body.
Your “natural” body is always considered to be the last one you switched out of. If you exchange bodies with a chain of multiple subjects, you need worry only about the welfare of the last body you switched with. In other words, if your mind is expelled from your current body, your mind returns to the last body you switched with, not to your original body. Similarly, if your original body dies but you have since switched minds with a second subject, you take no penalty. You lose a level only if the body you inhabited immediately prior to your current body is killed.
XP Cost
10,000 XP.
Mind Switch
Telepathy [Mind-Affecting]
Level: Telepath 6
Display: Visual
Manifesting Time: 1 round
Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target: You and one other creature
Duration: 10 min./level
Saving Throw: Will negates; see text
Power Resistance: Yes
Power Points: 11, XP
You can attempt to take control of a nearby living creature, forcing your mind (and soul) into its body, and its mind into your body. You can target any creature whose Hit Dice are equal to or less than your manifester level.
You possess the target’s body and force the creature’s mind into your body unless it succeeds on a Will save. You can move your mind back into your own body whenever you desire, which returns the subject’s mind to its own body and ends the power. If the manifestation succeeds, your life force occupies the host body, and the host’s life force takes over yours.
You can call on rudimentary or instinctive knowledge of the subject creature, but not upon its acquired or learned knowledge (such as skills and feats it possesses). The same is true for the subject in your body. The mind switch brings about the following changes.
You gain the type of your assumed body.
You gain the Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution scores of your assumed body.
You gain the natural armor, natural attacks, movement, and other simple physical characteristics of your assumed body.
You gain the extraordinary special attacks and qualities of your assumed body, but you do not gain supernatural or spell-like abilities.
You gain the possessions and equipment of your assumed body.
You retain your own hit points, saving throws (possibly modified by new ability scores), class abilities, supernatural and spell-like abilities, spells and powers, and skills and feats (although skill checks use your new ability scores, and you may be temporarily unable to use feats whose requirements you do not meet in your new body).
Supernatural abilities that require a certain body part may be unavailable in your new form.
If either body is killed while the power is in effect, the other participant also dies when the power ends. If one participant’s body becomes petrified, imprisoned by temporal stasis or imprisonment, or incapacitated in some other way, the other participant will be incapacitated in that way when the power ends.
A targeted dispel psionics (or similar spells or effects) successfully manifested on either participant causes both minds to return to their original bodies.
XP Cost
100 XP.
Augment
For every 2 additional power points you spend, this power’s save DC increases by 1.
Of course the biggest question that I have not seen an answer to is what exactly happens to your ECL?
- Since you retain all class abilities, it looks like Class Levels will travel along with your mind.
- Racial HD probably stay with the body as they're an intrinsic part of the creature's biology
- Level adjustment is a bit complicated. Typically it's part of the monster entry, however, it doesn't necessarily describe anything intrinsic about the creature, it's more of a guideline to DMs to determine how much experience to award based on the power of the creature. There seems to be several ways to handle this:
Since the LA is part of the monster description, keeping it simple and using that LA is perfectly fine
Since you are combining the body of one creature and the mind of another, take the average LA and round up.
Since you're probably trying to power game by adding the best mind to the best body, add the LA of both forms together
Absolutely ignore existing LA and homebrew your own
Another limitation to consider is cost. A powerstone of True Mind Switch costs 53,825 GP due to the impressive XP cost. Unless you're a manifester already, you will likely also need some cross-class in Use Psionic Device and a way to cast Guidance of the Avatar or similar to make the UPD check. But depending on your original race, you may be a fairly high ECL by the time you're ready to mind switch, so this might be okay!
A benefit of True Mind Switch over other HD changing methods is that your HP and Saves are not re-calculated, so you are not extra fragile even if your ECL is suddenly much lower. Skills are also not re-calculated which is perfect
Sample builds
Dragonborn Water Orc with the mind of a Gloura LA 0 - 2
Bard 1 - Need Bardic Music
Spelldancer 1 - Metamagic Abuse is always good
Spelldancer 2 - Pick up evasion to dodge the flying DMG
Sublime Chord 1
....
Mongrelfolk with the mind of a Firre Eldarin - Advanced by 1 HD LA 0 - 10
Wu Jen 1 - Pick up Alternative Source Spell
Sublime Chord 1
What are y'all thoughts?
Footnote: as with many things in real life, you may want to make sure you have consent when using True Mind Switch this way since you're giving away a very powerful body.
Mind Switch, True
Telepathy [Mind-Affecting]
Level: Telepath 9
Manifesting Time: 1 minute
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Will negates; see text
Power Resistance: Yes
Power Points: 17, XP
As mind switch, except as noted here. You permanently exchange bodies with the subject. Since this power’s duration is instantaneous, you cannot be forced to return to your natural body by means of dispel psionics, an antimagic field, or a similar effect. If the subject’s body dies while you are in it, you are dead. The subject immediately loses one level, but otherwise survives the experience in your natural body. If your natural body dies while the subject is in it, you immediately lose one level, but you likewise survive the experience in your new body.
Your “natural” body is always considered to be the last one you switched out of. If you exchange bodies with a chain of multiple subjects, you need worry only about the welfare of the last body you switched with. In other words, if your mind is expelled from your current body, your mind returns to the last body you switched with, not to your original body. Similarly, if your original body dies but you have since switched minds with a second subject, you take no penalty. You lose a level only if the body you inhabited immediately prior to your current body is killed.
XP Cost
10,000 XP.
Mind Switch
Telepathy [Mind-Affecting]
Level: Telepath 6
Display: Visual
Manifesting Time: 1 round
Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target: You and one other creature
Duration: 10 min./level
Saving Throw: Will negates; see text
Power Resistance: Yes
Power Points: 11, XP
You can attempt to take control of a nearby living creature, forcing your mind (and soul) into its body, and its mind into your body. You can target any creature whose Hit Dice are equal to or less than your manifester level.
You possess the target’s body and force the creature’s mind into your body unless it succeeds on a Will save. You can move your mind back into your own body whenever you desire, which returns the subject’s mind to its own body and ends the power. If the manifestation succeeds, your life force occupies the host body, and the host’s life force takes over yours.
You can call on rudimentary or instinctive knowledge of the subject creature, but not upon its acquired or learned knowledge (such as skills and feats it possesses). The same is true for the subject in your body. The mind switch brings about the following changes.
You gain the type of your assumed body.
You gain the Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution scores of your assumed body.
You gain the natural armor, natural attacks, movement, and other simple physical characteristics of your assumed body.
You gain the extraordinary special attacks and qualities of your assumed body, but you do not gain supernatural or spell-like abilities.
You gain the possessions and equipment of your assumed body.
You retain your own hit points, saving throws (possibly modified by new ability scores), class abilities, supernatural and spell-like abilities, spells and powers, and skills and feats (although skill checks use your new ability scores, and you may be temporarily unable to use feats whose requirements you do not meet in your new body).
Supernatural abilities that require a certain body part may be unavailable in your new form.
If either body is killed while the power is in effect, the other participant also dies when the power ends. If one participant’s body becomes petrified, imprisoned by temporal stasis or imprisonment, or incapacitated in some other way, the other participant will be incapacitated in that way when the power ends.
A targeted dispel psionics (or similar spells or effects) successfully manifested on either participant causes both minds to return to their original bodies.
XP Cost
100 XP.
Augment
For every 2 additional power points you spend, this power’s save DC increases by 1.
Of course the biggest question that I have not seen an answer to is what exactly happens to your ECL?
- Since you retain all class abilities, it looks like Class Levels will travel along with your mind.
- Racial HD probably stay with the body as they're an intrinsic part of the creature's biology
- Level adjustment is a bit complicated. Typically it's part of the monster entry, however, it doesn't necessarily describe anything intrinsic about the creature, it's more of a guideline to DMs to determine how much experience to award based on the power of the creature. There seems to be several ways to handle this:
Since the LA is part of the monster description, keeping it simple and using that LA is perfectly fine
Since you are combining the body of one creature and the mind of another, take the average LA and round up.
Since you're probably trying to power game by adding the best mind to the best body, add the LA of both forms together
Absolutely ignore existing LA and homebrew your own
Another limitation to consider is cost. A powerstone of True Mind Switch costs 53,825 GP due to the impressive XP cost. Unless you're a manifester already, you will likely also need some cross-class in Use Psionic Device and a way to cast Guidance of the Avatar or similar to make the UPD check. But depending on your original race, you may be a fairly high ECL by the time you're ready to mind switch, so this might be okay!
A benefit of True Mind Switch over other HD changing methods is that your HP and Saves are not re-calculated, so you are not extra fragile even if your ECL is suddenly much lower. Skills are also not re-calculated which is perfect
Sample builds
Dragonborn Water Orc with the mind of a Gloura LA 0 - 2
Bard 1 - Need Bardic Music
Spelldancer 1 - Metamagic Abuse is always good
Spelldancer 2 - Pick up evasion to dodge the flying DMG
Sublime Chord 1
....
Mongrelfolk with the mind of a Firre Eldarin - Advanced by 1 HD LA 0 - 10
Wu Jen 1 - Pick up Alternative Source Spell
Sublime Chord 1
What are y'all thoughts?
Footnote: as with many things in real life, you may want to make sure you have consent when using True Mind Switch this way since you're giving away a very powerful body.