shambler abuse

[ericgrau]

Here's another one to add to the tome of tricks so cheesy that they shall never be used. Shambler (9th level druid spell) + some electricity reserve feat = thousands of temporary constitution (and HP) on your shambling mounds after 6 days. Or in core you get as many call lightnings as you can muster. Next you polymorph the shambling mounds into creatures with an ability that has a con-based save DC, assuming it gets to keep the temporary con. Does this work?

[Johel]

It does but your DM is throwing books at you.

Shamblers take no damage from electricity. Instead, any electricity attack used against a shambler temporarily grants it 1d4 points of Constitution. The shambler loses these points at the rate of 1 per hour.

Since there's no link between the amount of Constitution points granted and the amount of damages dealt, you can even use a electricity-based magic weapon to deal the electricity damages.

If you hit the Shambler for 1 hour straight, that's 600d4 Constitution points.

[Deth Muncher]

It does but your DM is throwing books at you.



Since there's no link between the amount of Constitution points granted and the amount of damages dealt, you can even use a electricity-based magic weapon to deal the electricity damages.

If you hit the Shambler for 1 hour straight, that's 600d4 Constitution points.

Mind you, it loses one per hour, but who really cares when you have 2400 Constitution?

[The Glyphstone]

Thinking waaaay too small people. Persistent Ocular Thunderhead. 1d4 Con/round for 24 hours...that's 14,400d4 Con, an average of 36,000. If you have an Incantatrix handy, use Twin Spell instead of Persistent Spell and then have him Persist it for you. Congratulations, your Shambler will now probably outlast the heat death of the universe...or at least until the Shambler spell expires.

So, you instead use Shapechange or Wild Shape to become a Shambling Mound, and do the above to yourself instead.

[marjan]

Polymorphing shambler will get him CON of new form, though he will keep HP.

[ericgrau]

That's what I was asking. Does he keep the temporary con bonus and stack it onto the con of his new form, or does it disappear?

Also, greater metamagic rod of extend spell for 14 day shamblers. Full attack TWF electricity weapons for multiple d4's per round. Keep that up for as long as you can, or hire commoners to surround shamblers and hit them once per round. Though after a few thousand d4's there's not much point.

[Thrawn183]

Why not just persist an electricity substituted wall of fire? Wouldn't that be the simplest way?

[ericgrau]

A persisted electricity substituted flaming sphere would be simpler and you could have 4 per shambler, but I thought you could only persist personal spells, no?

[marjan]

A persisted electricity substituted flaming sphere would be simpler and you could have 4 per shambler, but I thought you could only persist personal spells, no?

Or fixed range spells (though it's debatable what this actually means). Reach Energy Substituted Combustion should do the trick.

[Eldariel]

That's what I was asking. Does he keep the temporary con bonus and stack it onto the con of his new form, or does it disappear?

The important point to note is that by RAW, it's not a bonus; by strict reading, it simply increases the Constitution-score (otherwise it shouldn't stack with itself either), which does mean that the Con-score should be replaced by Polymorph.

This is actually one of the handy tricks with Shapechange, as it gets you, the caster, said ability. This also works with Enhanced Wildshape-spell on Wildshape Ranger or Druid. But yeah, shift out of that form with a spell/ability that replaces your Con-score (basically anything more drastic than Alter Self) and you do lose the results of your hard work.

[ericgrau]

Ohhh, alter self lets you keep your own ability scores. So now we need a valid form with a con-based save DC ability. Preferably an ability that kills or incapacitates.

EDIT: Nevermind, alter self seems to let you keep the ability scores of your normal form if I read it right.

Guess you'd have to settle for minions with thousands of HP.