Smart Hero Help

[Danin]

I've always been enamored with the cunning hero who saves the day through his wits and intellect as opposed to his sword arm. I've always had a mind for lateral thinking myself, so I find myself thinking along similar lines as such characters. As such, I have decided to devote such a talent to the most worthwhile place I can think of: Dungeons and Dragons.

I find myself about to start a 9th level 3.5 Planescape themed campaign and am quite sold on the idea of playing a smart, but otherwise average character. I'm strongly considering the factotum for this though am open to suggestions. I am not looking to optimize him at all, as I have a tendency to do that (My last character was denied by virtue of his 26 Con and DR 8 at level 9...) but still ask of all of you this:

What smart, clever and down right impressive ways can you think to create a tactical advantage? What ways are there to use otherwise mundane and minor magic items to great effect? How have you managed to pull of some incredable things in the past? What spells could I take to facilitate such actions? How could I used knowledge skills and a high int to justify creative battle tactics? What situations could I possibly encounter and how would I work around them?

Advice can be situational as I am mostly looking to draw inspiration. Thank you all in advance for your help!

[Rixx]

I played a Smart Hero / Techie in another campaign once. Using my mind to solve problems and become adaptable and deadly in combat was great fun. I had the lowest hit points, and I couldn't tote around the weaponry that everyone else could, but I had my own signature weapon that I made extensive use of: The Grenade Gun.

The Grenade Gun was a flare gun that my character modified to shoot small grenades of his own design. It could also shoot shotgun shells. Since they were small, they only dealth 2d6 damage, and since the gun wasn't very powerful, it had a rather pathetic 15 foot range increment. (I would mostly be shooting squares, though, so this rarely hurt much).

I had my character design grenades that dealt every energy type (even a shock grenade that fired electric cords in all directions), flashbangs, smoke bombs, fire-retardent gel, glue bombs (which functioned like tanglefoot bags), and my favorite, the TF2-style sticky remote bomb.

I had a lot of fun using these to my advantage in myriad ways, from sticking hostile NPCs we had to leave alive to the wall with glue to shooting a flashbang at a car's windshield, blinding the driver and sending it off to a painful crash.

However, my real shining moment came when we were fighting a Psion Killer (a huge crystal golem immune to our psychic abilities, with damage reduciton to boot), and none of us could damage it in any meaningful way. It wasn't resistant to energy damage, though, so I was the only one who could hurt it. It had a ton of HP, though, and 2d6 a round wasn't going to cut it... so I fired my sticky remote - detonator grenade.

At my grenade pouch.

I then tossed it to the golem's square and pressed the detonator, setting off every grenade inside.

The GM cried. While laughing.

[Mahtobedis]

Two words: Siege Engine

If you can figure out a way to drag one around and your dm will let you drag it around it can lead for some very entertaining times. Just make sure you take the leadership feat so that you can also have a crew to man the siege engine.

Alternatively you could try putting limitations on what you can and cannot do. I had a character who would not under any circumstances do harm. He was a former doctor.

[Rixx]

Basically what it boils down to is getting the DM to approve a bunch of individual creations, each on their own not that useful, but lethal when used together in clever ways.

[Lysander]

To paraphrase Vetinari, "Power isn't strength. It's knowing how to put that single finger on the scales that shifts balance in your favor."

Really, it's a matter of identifying your options in any situation. Whenever you face a challenge, ask your DM to describe the surroundings in detail, quickly think through all of your abilities and items, and think of ways they can combine with the environment to your advantage.

It's the difference between shooting at your enemy and shooting the chain that's holding a giant chandelier over their head.

[Siosilvar]

-stuff about d20 modern-

I believe the OP was talking about playing intelligent heroes, not the Smart Hero class in d20 Modern.

[Rixx]

Well, the general principle is the same - take abilities and items that you can use in creative ways, rather than going for the usual brute strength approach.

[Danin]

There is a class called smart hero in d20 modern? Who would have thunk it. To clarify, yes, I did mean intelligent heroes. Ones who manage to use what is at his disposal to great effect. For example, shooting the orb of acid past his target, only to eat out enough of the tree behind him to cause it to fall on him.

Sorry for the misunderstanding, but thank you for the insight.

[Jalor]

The Factotum is pretty much tailor-made for your purposes. Make sure to buy a Belt of Many Pockets and make it your Utility Belt. Fill it with bolt cutters, garlic, oil, chalk, and everything else you could ever possibly need ever. Take several Font of Inspiration feats and Scribe Scroll. Be a Mechanatrix from Fiend Folio; you get bonuses to Int and Con, plus the Outsider subtype. The LA is easily bought off.

[Jack_Banzai]

There is a class called smart hero in d20 modern? Who would have thunk it.

Yup. The beginning classes in d20 Modern are all based on a different attribute.

i.e.:

Strong Hero
Tough Hero
Smart Hero
Fast Hero
Dedicated Hero
Charismatic Hero

[kamikasei]

What ways are there to use otherwise mundane and minor magic items to great effect?

Check the book Dungeonscape (source of the Factotum). It includes information on how some mundane items can be made useful (e.g. flour to defeat invisibility, and may both spark some creative solutions of your own and help you convince your DM that they're legit rather than cheap.

What spells could I take to facilitate such actions?

Illusions are your friend. In general, I would say a good way to represent an intelligent character is to have him pay attention to the enemy, what the enemy knows, and how they'll act on that knowledge, and manipulate it. Why batter their bodies around when you can turn their minds in the direction you want just by feeding them some misleading information?

How could I used knowledge skills and a high int to justify creative battle tactics?

There's an article on this site about using knowledge skills to grant various bonuses. You might try talking your DM into allowing the option.