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2012-12-15, 07:05 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
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- Dec 2006
Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Putting the sting to the opposition.
Originally Posted by Erin Blackhand
Erin Blackhand, Leader of the Iron Tridents
CG Strongheart Halfling worshipper of Shaundakul
Cityscape Ranger 4/Fighter 1/Master Thrower [Complete Warrior] 2/Nightsong Infiltrator 10/Scorpion Wraith [Secrets of Xendrik] 3
Spoiler
Background
SpoilerWhen she was less than five years old, Erin Songfeather's parents packed up their farm tools, sold most of their possessions, and loaded the rest, including little Erin, onto the back of a cart, hitching up their donkey, and setting off to make a fortune in the big city of Smokeheart, ever the glorious opportunity on the horizon for that small halfling family.
When they got there, they found it to be far gloomier and depressing, as big cities are wont to be. Erin's father took a job a local factory, packing crates, while Erin's mother attempted to make a little bit more money by baking bread. Erin was only seven when the factory shut down, pushing Leopold Songfeather and his family out onto the street. The first night, they huddled up in an alleyway together, wrapped in blankets, and Erin cried herself to sleep. Little did she know then that that was the beginning of her tears. After a week or so of being hounded by city guards and street thugs alike, the small pile of coins they had for food running out rapidly, Mama Songfeather heard a rumour that the local cathedral, dedicated to the cruel god Bane, took in beggars and put them to work, in exchange for spartan amenities. So that's how they found themself on the stone steps leading up to the towering edifice, staring at the great iron gauntlet raised above the intimidating building. The Songfeathers had always revered Shaundakul, the wandering god of the winds, but in their situation, what other options did they have? That's what Erin's father kept telling himself, anyway.
It turns out the 'work' they put Erin's parents to in the great Baneite cathedral was looking after the monster pens they kept, deep below the earth. Every day, her parents would be taken from her, leaving her alone in the tiny stone cell they were afforded, for hours and hours, and when they were returned, they'd be near-unconscious, bruised, sometimes with odd wounds and haunted expressions. One day, when Mama Songfeather was too ill to go to work, they just took Leopold instead. And when he didn't come back that night, Erin and her mother clung to one another desperately, expecting the worst. When the brutes came again in the morning to take Erin's mother to work, and her father hadn't been returned yet, she demanded to know where he was, what they'd done to him, but they just ignored her, forcing her out into the corridor. Crying and screaming, she beat them with her hands, scratching the face of the rough half-orc who was manhandling her. Erin watched as he shouted in pain, shoving her mother against the stone wall. The other man, a swarthy gnome, dropped the long, metal trident he was holding, and pinned her to the floor with his knee, as the half-orc kicked her in the face.
Erin's vision turned red. She could see her mother losing consciousness, and blood was gushing out of old wounds that had opened up, barely healed in the first place. Erin moved slowly out of the cell, the men far more interested in their cruel punishment to notice, and picked up the trident. Bunching her muscles together, like she used to do when handling her father's farming tools, she swung out with it, catching the half-orc on the leg, by the knee. Squealing in pain, he collapsed to the floor. Turning around, the gnone snarled at her; "Why, you little..", and started towards her. Holding the trident out in fear, Erin closed her eyes. When she opened them again, she realised the sound she'd heard was the gnome running straight onto the prongs of his own trident. His eyes now deadened, he slipped sideways to the floor. The half-orc was trying to get back up, half-limping towards her, so she pulled the trident out of the body of the gnome, turned, and ran. And so, fleeing the temple at the tender age of eight, Erin Songfeather cast aside her painful name, and began the life of a street urchin.
At some point over the next couple of years, Erin grows first to level 1, then to around level 4, as she remembers the prayers to Shaundakul her father taught her. She chooses the trident as her weapon of choice, and learns to throw it, to take advantage of her race's natural talents in that area, as well as to overcome her natural disadvantage with height. She also learns to climb, mostly to get out of trouble, and the roofs and walls of the city become her home. She names herself Blackhand; her hands are always stained black from climbing the soot-dusted walls of the city.
Around the time Erin is fourteen, she reaches level 5, and it's around then that she starts gathering other street scum around her. Mostly rogues of varying colours, they start learning to work together to ambush wealthy merchants or nobles, Erin using her skills with the thrown trident to offbalance guards or pin the mark to the ground so they can't escape while her gang picks off bodyguards. At the same time, she works on her lock-picking skills, stealing food and money to get by. By the time she's advanced level 8, she's approaching twenty years of age, and is beginning to forget her past. She forms together the core members of her little group, meets with other similar gangs, and together, they form a guild, which they call: the Nightsong Guild. With their pooled riches, they rent out a basement at first, and then later, a proper hall. Together, Erin and the higher level guildmasters work together to develop tactics and infiltration methods. At some point, the guild begins attracting people from outside the city, and a mysterious Drow stranger quickly moves up the ranks and begins teaching Erin poison use, better ambush skills, and his mystical Shadow Hand martial technique.
Build Details
SpoilerRanger Alternative Class Features used:
- Rival Organisation (get social skill and AC bonuses against members of an organisation: replaces Favoured Enemy) [CS web enhancement]
- Trap Expert (replaces Track with Trapfinding and Disable Device class skill) [Dungeonscape]
- Shadow Sword substitution level (replaces Endurance with Walk in Silence: temporary bonus to Move Silently) [Champions of Valor]
- Champion of the Wild (replaces spells with a bonus feat) [Complete Champion]
- Distracting Attack (replaces animal companion with the ability to make people who've been struck by your attacks count as flanked) [PHB2]
Skill Tricks in Italics [Complete Scoundrel]{table=head]Level|Class|BAB|Fort|Ref|Will|Skills|Feats|Class Features
1st|Ranger 1|+1|+2|+2|+0|Sleight of Hand 2, Open Lock 2 (both crossclass), Climb 4, Disable Device 4, Knowledge(Nature) 4, Search 4|Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot|Rival Organisation (Church of Bane), Wild Empathy, Trapfinding
2nd|Ranger 2|+2|+3|+3|+0|Sleight of Hand 2.5, Open Lock 2.5, Climb 5, Disable Device 5, Move Silently 1, Search 5|Rapid Shot|Combat Style (Archery)
3rd|(Shadow Sword) Ranger 3|+3|+3|+3|+1|Sleight of Hand 3, Open Lock 3, Climb 6, Disable Device 6, Move Silently 2, Search 6|Alertness|Walk in Silence [Champions of Valor]
4th|Fighter 1|+4|+5|+3|+1|Sleight of Hand 3.5, Climb 7|Weapon Focus (Trident)|
5th|Ranger 4|+5|+6|+4|+1|Sleight of Hand 4, Open Lock 4, Climb 8, Disable Device 7, Move Silently 3|Ranged Pin [Complete Warrior]|Distracting Attack [PHB2]
6th|Master Thrower 1|+6/+1|+6|+6|+1|Tumble 2, Climb 9, Open Lock 4.5|Quick Draw, Improved Initiative|Sneaky Shot
7th|Master Thrower 2|+7/+2|+6|+7|+1|Tumble 4, Climb 10, Open Lock 5||Evasion
8th|Nightsong Infiltrator 1|+7/+2|+6|+9|+1|Tumble 5, Climb 11, Move Silently 4, Hide 3, Corner Perch||Teamwork Trap Sense +1
9th|Nightsong Infiltrator 2|+8/+3|+6|+10|+1|Sleight of Hand 5, Climb 12, Move Silently 5, Hide 6, Walk the Walls|Blind-fight|Steady Stance, Teamwork Infiltration +2
10th|Nightsong Infiltrator 3|+9/+4|+7|+10|+2|Sleight of Hand 6, Tumble 6, Move Silently 7, Hide 8, Speedy Ascent||Break Away, Trackless Step (self)
11th|Nightsong Infiltrator 4|+10/+5|+7|+11|+2|Sleight of Hand 7, Tumble 8, Move Silently 8, Disable Device 8, Open Lock 6, Clever Improvisor||Detect Magic, Teamwork Sneak Attack +1d6, Teamwork Trap Sense +2
12th|Scorpion Wraith 1|+11/+6+/+1|+7|+13|+2|Tumble 9, Move Silently 10, Hide 10|Martial Study (Shadow Garrote) [Tome of Battle]|Poison Use, Sudden Strike +1d6, Wild Empathy (vermin)
13th|Nightsong Infiltrator 5|+11/+6/+1|+7|+13|+2|Sleight of Hand 8, Tumble 10, Open Lock 8, Jump 2, Sudden Draw||Defensive Roll, Grant Move Action 1/day
14th|Nightsong Infiltrator 6|+12/+7/+2|+8|+14|+3|Jump 4, Tumble 12, Disable Device 9, Open Lock 9, Back on your Feet||Improved Evasion, Skill Mastery, Specialised Tools
15th|Scorpion Wraith 2|+13/+8/+3|+8|+15|+3|Move Silently 13, Hide 13|Martial Stance (Assassin's Stance) [Tome of Battle]|Darkness, Unexpected Assault
16th|Nightsong Infiltrator 7|+14/+9/+4|+8|+15|+3|Jump 5, Disable Device 11, Open Lock 11, Search 7, Wall Jumper||Teamwork Trap Sense +3, Trackless Step (allies)
17th|Nightsong Infiltrator 8|+15/+10/+5|+8|+16|+3|Disable Device 14, Open Lock 14, Opening Tap||Teamwork Infiltration +4, Teamwork Sneak Attack +2d6
18th|Scorpion Wraith 3|+16/+11/+6/+1|+9|+16|+4|Move Silently 16, Hide 16|Travel Devotion [Complete Champion]|Sudden Strike +2d6, Veil of Shadow
19th|Nightsong Infiltrator 9|+16/+11/+6/+1|+10|+16|+5|Disable Device 16, Open Lock 16, Search 9, Hidden Blade||Grant Move Action 2/day
20th|Nightsong Infiltrator 10|+17/+12/+7/+2|+10|+17|+5|Search 10, Use Rope 5, Acrobatic Backstab||Hide in Plain Sight, Teamwork Trap Sense +4[/table]
Final Skill Ranks
SpoilerClimb 12
Disable Device 16
Hide 16
Jump 5
Knowledge (Nature) 4
Move Silently 16
Open Lock 16
Search 10
Sleight of Hand 8
Tumble 12
Use Rope 5
Starting Abilities (32pt buy)
SpoilerStrength 10 (12, -2 racial)
Dexterity 18 (16, +2 racial)
Constitution 8
Intelligence 10
Wisdom 18
Charisma 8
Level-ups and cash should be put into Constitution, then maybe Dexterity some more. Depending on the kind of campaign, switching out some points of Wisdom would allow a higher Charisma. The reason for the high Wisdom is the generally poor Will Save of the build, as well as providing important bonuses to Spot and Listen.
EquipmentSpoilerMost of the character's wealth by level should be saved towards better weapons. A good trident with Returning should be obtained as soon as possible, followed by Deadly Precision. Shoring up the weak saves is also a must. A Monk's Belt would be very useful, too, given her high wisdom. Other than that, items to help breaking into places or escaping if situations go bad can't hurt. Magic armour is less important, if you've managed to put some point into Constitution or obtain an Amulet of Health. Early on in the build, items that boost Sleight of Hand checks would be useful.
Build Notes and StrategySpoilerThe build really gets started at lvl5 or 6, where it more or less functions as a Rogue with full BAB instead of Sneak Attack. Designed to work better as part of a team even from this early, Sneaky Shot from Master Thrower lets you use your Sleight of Hand check to good effect to get a good first 'shot' in, maximising your chance of heitting even armoured opponents, preferably using your thrown trident with Ranged Pin to lock the target down, but even if not, Distracting Attack lets allies Sneak Attack in for bonus damage, if they have it. Quick Draw is obtained the same level as BAB+6, and by then you already have Rapid Shot, so you can actually make three iterative attacks (at +8/+8/+3) at level 6, although by that point you're probably stil using mundane weapons for some of those, depending on cash flow. The Trident was chosen to take advantage of the Ranger's Martial Weapon proficiency; while the damage is the same as a Spear (the other high-damage thrown weapon in core), you only need one hand to throw a trident, leaving the other free for hanging onto walls etc. until you get Corner Perch. Climbing, and attacking from height, is really the core battle strategy of this build.
The next major point comes at lvl11, when you first get Teamwork Sneak Attack. Now, everyone can benefit from your Distracting attack, even if they aren't rogues or similar. Around these levels you're also getting a lot of useful 'survival' abilities, like skill tricks which aid your movement, Blind-Fight to help out in situations where it's needed, while also raising your rogue skills to help with breaking into places unseen. At lvl12 you obtain Shadow Garrote, another useful way of making people flat-footed if you want to hold onto your weapon (or are disarmed). The Scorpion Wraith levels 1 and 3 are also placed just so in order to get the extra iterative attack one level earlier, before the 'dead' BAB levels in Nightsong Infiltrator.
Lvl15 I feel is the high point of this build. Assassin's Stance has just come online, providing some much-needed additional damage on each of your iterative attacks, and by now you should have multiple returning tridents. Skill Mastery gives you a lot of confidence in your rogue skills, and Defensive Roll and Darkness give you a measure of defensive options.
Beyond that, lvl16-20 is really just filling out the rest of the class, capping with the impressive Hide in Plain Sight. The last feat, Travel Devotion, could be a number of other things depending on playstyle, really. In general, I feel the strength of this build is the high BAB, which is rarer in rogue-like builds, ensuring that the combat maneuvers used do come off when needed to. The selection of skill tricks I've chosen are, combined with the urban focus of the Ranger ACFs, designed to emphasise the character's reliance on a cityscape to generate an advantage. With low hp, breaking into secure locations could lead to being trapped in awkward situations, so being able to quickly climb out of the way, knock open locks, and defend yourself while doing so is a valuable ability.
Going EpicSpoilerBeyond Lvl20, the primary direction for this build I feel is to finish off Scorpion Wraith and start looking towards more supernatural PrCs to increase the shadow theme, increase the advanced movement options, and the hidden-attacker possibilities, hopefully continuing the sneak attack progression in some sense.
Thoughts on Nightsong Infiltrator
SpoilerI think, in retrospect, there are two main problems with Nightsong Infiltrator. One, is the relatively late entry compared to the power level of its abilities. The Climb 10 requirement means that things like Skill Mastery, Defensive Roll, Improved Evasion are all coming several levels 'late' compared to base classes that get them. In exchange, you are getting some nice ally-boosting powers, chiefly among which is Team Sneak Attack. But even that is largely outclassed by a relatively easy-to-obtain Bard Feat (Dragonfire Inspiration). I decided not to go Bard with my build simply because I was worried about making the cool part of the Secret Ingredient redundant.
That brings me on to my other worry with this class; it really wants to be a good rogue PrC, but doesn't really progress Sneak Attack enough! 2d6 over 8 levels is hardly groundbreaking. I've obviously done my best in this build to mitigate that with Tome of Battle and another PrC, but it doesn't help the fact that the core rogue is probably better off staying where he is than changing to this PrC.
Lastly, I do wonder whether there'll be any kind of Scrying-based builds which use magic to scout locations beforehand for Teamwork Infiltration and Specialised Tools, focussing more on that aspect rather than the combat side. Lack of casting progression really hurts that route, I guess. Either way, looking beyond the rules of Iron Chef, Gestalt really helps this class out majorly, giving it more reasonable combat powers, or the casting side of things mentioned above. Additionally, use of Leadership or other minion-granting powers would allow much better optimisation of the Grant Move Action ability, and so on. The main problem with using minions or summons for that kind of thing, I guess, is that the minor skill bonuses this class can give them are pretty much just gonna be overshadowed by the follower's natural abilities!
Anyway, musings over. Good luck Judges, and thank you!
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2012-12-15, 07:07 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
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- Dec 2006
Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
It's a bug, get it!. . . Good luck with that.
Originally Posted by The Cockroach
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2012-12-15, 07:11 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
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- Dec 2006
Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
No jokes or riddles.
Originally Posted by Matthew Mara
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2012-12-15, 07:12 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
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- Dec 2006
Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Source list for Matthew Mara.
SourcesSpoiler
core-ranger, combat reflexes, EWP, monk, alertness, imp trip, spring attack
eberron campaign setting-master inquisitive, investigate
masters of the wild-watch detective
PHB2-vexing flanker, adaptable flanker,
Races of the wild-wolfpack
complete adventurer-nightsong infiltrator, vigilante
races of destiny-urban soul
Cityscape web enhancementLast edited by Amphetryon; 2012-12-15 at 07:31 PM.
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2012-12-15, 07:14 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
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- Dec 2006
Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Also, Semper Ubi Sub Ubi.
Originally Posted by E. Pluribus
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2012-12-15, 07:16 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
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- Dec 2006
Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Staying revenant, er, relevant.
Originally Posted by Aredhel Melwasul
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2012-12-15, 07:17 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
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- Dec 2006
Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Seeing double?
Originally Posted by The Twins
The Twins
Take our loves, take our lands, take us to where we cannot stand. Burn the land, boil the sea. You can't take the sky we see...
The Twins were from a village that got attacked when they were young. They hid, being frail and scared, but made a vow when they emerged and saw the devastation: They would find those responsible and make them bleed... They figured out in their travels that their people were attacked by slavers, most of them being taken and sold. They vowed to eschew the comforts of a normal life until all were freed... Since they are frail, since they are scared, and since they are weak, then Twins have elected to use tactics that keep them in the shadows and allow them to strike without being seen...
The Build...
SpoilerNeutral Good Dvati Females
Racial Features
Level Adjustment +1
Twins: A single Dvati is two creatures with the same level and classes. Hit points are divided among both, but both get get full Constitution Bonus.
Pair Link: Dvati flanking with each other gain a +3 bonus. They may use Aid Another to give +4 to Attack Roll or Armor Class.
Echo Attack: Flanking twins can spend a Move Action to force an opponent make a Will save. Failure gives +1 to Attack Roll or Armor Class against that creature.
Spell Conductor: Dvati can shift the effects of Touch Spells that are Harmless between themselves.
Ability Scores By Level
{table=head]Level|Str|Dex|Con|Int|Wis|Cha|Increase Amounts|From What
1st|11|15|12|13|16|10||32 Point Buy
4th|11|15|12|14|16|10|+1 Int|Level Increase
7th|11|15|12|14|18|10|+2 Wis|Vow of Poverty
8th|12|15|12|14|18|10|+1 Str|Level Increase
11th|12|17|12|14|20|10|+2 Wis, +2 Dex|Vow of Poverty
12th|13|17|12|14|20|10|+1 Str|Level Increase
15th|13|19|12|14|22|12|+2 Wis, +2 Dex, +2 Cha|Vow of Poverty
16th|13|20|12|14|22|12|+1 Dex|Level Increase
19th|13|22|14|14|24|14|+2 Wis, +2 Dex, +2 Cha, +2 Con|Vow of Poverty[/table]
If Level Adjustment Buy Off is in effect, there is another increase at 20th that would got to Str [14].
The Build Proper
Note that bonuses to saves for Resistance granted by the Vow of Poverty Feat are added into saves. This is because they are static 'always on' bonuses.
Also included are the bonuses from the Crusader's ability, Indomitable Soul.
The 20th Level is included for campaigns using Level Adjustment Buy Off. If that rule is not allowed, just ignore it.
Alternate Class Features
Invisible Fist, Exemplars of Evil -- Page 21; Passive Way Monk, Unearthed Arcana -- Page 52
Decisive Strike, Player's Handbook II -- Page 51; Hit and Run Fighter, Drow of the Underdark -- Page 58
Penetrating Strike, Dungeonscape -- Page 13
{table=head]Level|ECL|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features
1st|2|Rogue|+0|+0|+2|+0|Balance 4, Climb 4, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 4, Hide 4, Move Silently 4, Open Lock 4, Perform (Dance) 4, Search 4, Tumble 4|Sacred Vow (Level Feat), Craven (Flaw Feat), Darkstalker (Flaw Feat), Shaky (Flaw), Frail (Flaw)|Sneak Attack +1d6, Trapfinding
2nd|3|Rogue|+1|+0|+3|+0|Balance +1 [5], Climb +1 [5], Disable Device +1 [5], Hide +1 [5], Move Silently +1 [5], Open Lock +1 [5], Perform (Dance) +1 [5], Search +1 [5], Tumble +1 [5]||Evasion
3rd|4|Passive Way Monk|+1|+2|+5|+2|Climb +1 [6], Hide +1 [6], Move Silently +1 [6], Tumble +1 [6], Search +1CC [5.5]|Combat Expertise (Bonus Feat), Improved Unarmed Strike (Bonus Feat), Vow of Poverty (Level Feat)|Bonus Feats, Decisive Strike, Wisdom to Armor Class, Unarmed Damage
4th|5|Monk|+2|+3|+6|+3|Climb +1 [7], Hide +1 [7], Move Silently +1 [7], Search +2CC [6.5], Tumble +1 [7]|Combat Reflexes (Bonus Feat), Intuitive Strike (Exalted Feat)|Bonus Feat, Invisible Fist
5th|6|Crusader|+3|+5|+6|+3|Climb +2CC [8], Hide +2CC [8], Move Silently +2CC [8]||Furious Counterstrike, Steely Resolve 5, Maneuvers/Stances
6th|7|Hit-and-Run Fighter|+4|+7|+6|+3|Climb +1 [9], Hide +2CC [9], Move Silently +2CC [9]|Allied Defense (Level Feat), Deadly Defense (Bonus Feat), Nymph's Kiss (Exalted Feat)|Bonus Feat, Dexterity to Damage, Initiative +2
7th|8|Hit-and-Run Fighter|+5|+9|+7|+4|Climb +1 [10], Hide +2CC [10], Move Silently +2CC [10]|Riposte (Bonus Feat)|Bonus Feat
8th|9|Crusader|+6/+1|+10|+7|+4|Hide +2CC [11], Move Silently +2CC [11], Search +1CC [7], Skill Trick -- Shroud Dance|Sacred Strike (Exalted Feat)|Indomitable Soul
9th|10|Rogue|+7/+2|+11|+7|+5|Hide +1 [12], Move Silently +1 [12], Tumble +4 [12], Skill Trick -- Nimble Charge|Alertness (Level Feat)|Sneak Attack +2d6, Penetrating Strike
10th|11|Nightsong Infiltrator|+7/+2|+11|+9|+5|Hide +1 [13], Move Silently +1 [13], Tumble +1 [13], Search +4 [11], Skill Trick -- Acrobatic Backstab|Sanctify Natural Strike (Exalted Feat)|Teamwork Trapsense +1, Trapfinding
11th|12|Nightsong Infiltrator|+8/+3|+11|+10|+5|Hide +1 [14], Move Silently +1 [14], Tumble +1 [14], Search +3 [14], Disable Device +3 [8]||Steady Stance, Teamwork Infiltration +2
12th|13|Nightsong Infiltrator|+9/+4|+12|+10|+6|Hide +1 [15], Move Silently +1 [15], Tumble +1 [15], Search +1 [15], Disable Device +3 [11], Open Lock +2 [7]|Stand Still (Level Feat), Nimbus of Light (Exalted Feat)|Break Away, Trackless Step (Self)
13th|14|Nightsong Infiltrator|+10/+5|+13|+12|+7|Hide +1 [16], Move Silently +1 [16], Tumble +1 [16], Search +1 [16], Disable Device +2 [13], Open Lock +3 [10]||Detect Magic, Teamwork Sneak Attack +1d6, Teamwork Trapsense +2
14th|15|Nightsong Infiltrator|+10/+5|+13|+12|+7|Hide +1 [17], Move Silently +1 [17], Tumble +1 [17], Search +1 [17], Disable Device +2 [15], Open Lock +3 [13]|Vow of Obedience (Exalted Feat)|Defensive Roll, Grant Move Action 1/Day
15th|16|Nightsong Infiltrator|+11/+6/+1|+14|+13|+9|Craft (Basket Weaving) +2 [2], Hide +1 [18], Move Silently +1 [18], Tumble +1 [18], Search +1 [18], Disable Device +1 [16], Open Lock +2 [15]|Precise Strike (Level Feat)|Improved Evasion, Skill Master, Special Tools
16th|17|Nightsong Infiltrator|+12/+7/+2|+14|+13|+9|Craft (Basket Weaving) +3 [5], Hide +1 [19], Move Silently +1 [19], Tumble +1 [19], Search +1 [19], Disable Device +1 [17], Open Lock +1 [16]|Vow of Abstinence (Exalted Feat)|Teamwork Trapsense +3, Trackless Step (Allies)
17th|18|Nightsong Infiltrator|+13/+8/+3|+15|+15|+10|Craft (Basket Weaving) +1 [6], Hide +1 [20], Move Silently +1 [20], Tumble +1 [20], Search +1 [20], Disable Device +2 [19], Open Lock +2 [18]||Teamwork Infiltration +4, Teamwork Sneak Attack +2d6
18th|19|Nightsong Infiltrator|+13/+8/+3|+16|+15|+11|Craft (Basket Weaving) +1 [7], Hide +1 [21], Move Silently +1 [21], Tumble +1 [21], Search +1 [21], Disable Device +2 [21], Open Lock +2 [20]|Robilar's Gambit (Level Feat), Vow of Chastity (Exalted Feat)|Grant Move Action 2/Day
19th|20|Nightsong Infiltrator|+14/+9/+4|+16|+16|+11|Craft (Basket Weaving) +3 [10], Hide +1 [22], Move Silently +1 [22], Tumble +1 [22], Search +1 [22], Disable Device +1 [22], Open Lock +1 [21]||Hide in Plain Sight, Teamwork Trapsense +4
20th|LABO|Crusader|+15/+10/+5|+16|+17|+12|Craft (Basket Weaving) +1 [11], Hide +2CC [23], Move Silently +2CC [23], Tumble +2CC [23]|Knight of the Stars (Exalted Feat)|Zealous Surge[/table]
Vow of Poverty Math/Extras and Initiator Junk
(This does not include additional bonuses from the Exalted Feats that this character possesses. These are straight Vow of Poverty, Ability Scores, and any 'always on' Armor Class or To-Hit Feats and Abilities that they have.
I'm also throwing the Initiator Level/Maneuvers/Stances on this because I don't want to create yet another table.)
{table=head]Level|Armor Class|To-Hit|Vow Extras|IL|New Maneuvers/Stances
3rd|20 (+2 Dex, +3 Wis, +5 Exalted)|+1 (+1 Base)|Endure Elements|1|-
4th|20 (+2 Dex, +3 Wis, +5 Exalted)|+6 (+2 Base, +3 Wis, +1 Exalted)|Exalted Feat|2|-
5th|20 (+2 Dex, +3 Wis, +5 Exalted)|+7 (+3 Base, +3 Wis, +1 Exalted)|Sustenance|3|Leading the Attack (Strike Maneuver), Vanguard Strike (Strike Maneuver), Shield Block (Counter Maneuver), Tactical Strike (Strike Maneuver), Iron Guard's Glare (Stance)
6th|22 (+2 Dex, +3 Wis, +6 Exalted, +1 Deflection)|+8 (+4 Base, +3 Wis, +1 Exalted)|Exalted Feat|3|-
7th|23 (+2 Dex, +4 Wis, +6 Exalted, +1 Deflection)|+10 (+5 Base, +4 Wis, +1 Exalted)|Resistance +1, Ability Score +2|4|-
8th|24 (+2 Dex, +4 Wis, +6 Exalted, +1 Deflection, +1 Natural Armor)|+11/+6 (+6/+1 Base, +4 Wis, +1 Exalted)|Exalted Feat, Mind Shielding|5|Thicket of Blades (Stance)
9th|25 (+2 Dex, +4 Wis, +7 Exalted, +1 Deflection, +1 Natural Armor)|+12/+7 (+7/+2 Base, +4 Wis, +1 Exalted)|-|5|-
10th|25 (+2 Dex, +4 Wis, +7 Exalted, +1 Deflection, +1 Natural Armor)|+13/+8 (+7/+2 Base, +4 Wis, +2 Exalted)|Exalted Feat, Damage Reduction 5/Magic|6|-
11th|27 (+3 Dex, +5 Wis, +7 Exalted, +1 Deflection, +1 Natural Armor)|+15/+10 (+8/+3 Base, +5 Wis, +2 Exalted)|Ability Scores +4/+2|6|-
12th|29 (+3 Dex, +5 Wis, +8 Exalted, +2 Deflection, +1 Natural Armor)|+16/+11 (+9/+4 Base, +5 Wis, +2 Exalted)|Exalted Feat, Greater Sustenance|7|-
13th|29 (+3 Dex, +5 Wis, +8 Exalted, +2 Deflection, +1 Natural Armor)|+17/+13 (+10/+5 Base, + 5 Wis, +2 Exalted)|Resistance +2, Energy Resistance 5|7|-
14th|29 (+3 Dex, +5 Wis, +8 Exalted, +2 Deflection, +1 Natural Armor)|+17/+13 (+10/+5 Base, +5 Wis, +3 Exalted)|Exalted Feat, Freedom of Movement|8|-
15th|32 (+4 Dex, +6 Wis, +9 Exalted, +2 Deflection, +1 Natural Armor)|+20/+15/+10 (+11/+6/+1 Base, +6 Wis, +3 Exalted)|Ability Scores +6/+4/+2, Damage Reduction 5/Evil|8|-
16th|34 (+5 Dex, +6 Wis, +9 Exalted, +2 Deflection, +2 Natural Armor)|+21/+16/+11 (+12/+7/+2 Base, +6 Wis, +3 Exalted)|Exalted Feat|9|-
17th|34 (+5 Dex, +6 Wis, +9 Exalted, +2 Deflection, +2 Natural Armor)|+23/+18/+13 (+13/+8/+3 Base, +6 Wis, +4 Exalted)|Resistance +3, Regeneration|9|-
18th|36 (+5 Dex, +6 Wis, +10 Exalted, +3 Deflection, +2 Natural Armor)|+23/+18/+13 (+13/+8/+3 Base, +6 Wis, +4 Exalted)|Exalted Feat, True Seeing|10|-
19th|38 (+6 Dex, +7 Wis, +10 Exalted, +3 Deflection, +2 Natural Armor)|+25/+20/+15 (+14/+9/+4 Base, +7 Wis, +4 Exalted)|Ability Scores +8/+6/+4/+2, Damage Reduction 10/Evil|10|-
20th|38 (+6 Dex, +7 Wis, +10 Exalted, +3 Deflection, +2 Natural Armor)|+27/+22/+17 (+15/+10/+5 Base, +7 Wis, +5 Exalted)|Exalted Feat, Energy Resistance 15|11|White Raven Tactics (Boost Maneuver)[/table]
The Tactics/Notes...
SpoilerKeep in mind that this tactical guide assumes that the Dvati are, in fact, two separate creatures that do not share actions except for spell casting, which is specifically called out in the Dvati rules. This guide further assumes that the Dvati are treated as allies of one another and can take the advantages that being an ally gives with some abilities.
ECL 1-5
The first thing you'll notice about the first level of this character is that it does, indeed, have two Flaws. There's just no other way to fit everything this build needed in, and I figured massive deductions already for the dipping, so...
.
One thing to note is that the Flaws are flavorful without being an actual hindrance: Frail does not matter because we're always going to be taking middle on our Hit Dice, applying the flaw, then dividing the amount between two bodies. Since we would have had to round down on halving the Hit Points anyway, we lose nothing. Shaky should also never come into play because we will never be in ranged combat.
Through the first two levels, the tactics are very simple: We try to get into Flanking position with our two bodies as quickly as possible and Sneak Attack. This gives us a better bonus than a normal character, and we get two chances to hit because we're two different bodies. It is a dangerous proposition at first because of low Hit Points and Armor Class, but since we don't have Vow of Poverty yet we should wear some armor and wield a shield to supplement those (Yes, take the penalty for non-proficiency!). We're going to use Hide/Move Silently and Darkstalker to (hopefully) catch some foes Flat-Footed if we can't Flank.
We get higher Armor Class once we hit Monk and get Vow of Poverty at 3rd. We get Decisive Strike which synergies well with Craven, and we are going to use those to increase our damage as much as possible (hopefully we'll be Flanking when we do so). Invisible Fist is going to help us get Flat-Footed attacks every few rounds too, so we can pump our now relatively decent Armor with Combat Expertise if necessary.
As a final note: 4th Level her gives us Intuitive Strike which will give us Wisdom to Hit. That will make us hit a whooooole lot better.
ECL 6-10
Our first level in this range begins to open op tactical options. Vanguard Strike and Leading the Attack allow our Flanking buddy to hit better and use more Combat Expertise. Tactical Strike can help establish Flanking positions. Iron Guard's Glare and Shield Block (which does not actually require us to use a shield) allow us to increase our Flanking buddy's Armor Class. Both Dvati should permanently be in Iron Guard's Glare stance by the way, which is like a free +4 AC. The best part? We can burn through Maneuvers twice as quickly as a standard Crusader, which means they refresh a lot quicker.
When we get to Fighter, we get Dexterity to Damage against Flat-Footed foes, and Initiative Bonus. Those are great, but the best parts of these levels are Allied Defense, which allows the Dvati to double-dip on Combat Expertise, and Riposte, which allows an Attack of Opportunity every time an opponent misses us while we are using our Combat Expertise (I should point out that when Decisive Strike is used on your action, all of your Attacks of Opportunity also deal double damage). Since we're already doing Combat Expertise anyway, Deadly Defense is taken to get more damage.
Rounding out this stage of the character's development are another level of Crusader and Rogue. We get Thicket of Blades to provoke an Attack of Opportunity when an opponent takes a 5ft Step near us, more Sneak Attack damage, and Penetrating Strike. That last one allows us to get at least a little mileage out of Sneak Attack when we're facing immune things.
Sacred Strike is the last great thing I want to mention. The Sneak Attack dice we have become d8's when facing an Evil foe!
ECL 11-15 (Sweet Spot)
I assert that Teamwork Infiltration, when used by Dvati, allows for a double-dip. That means we're going to get +4 to Hide, and get a little more mileage out of that skill. Doesn't change our tactics much, but nice.
Stand Still is the first thing that really changes our tactics. We are now going to lock down threats on the battlefield. This is going to be made really, really hard to get around because of Decisive Strike + Craven + Thicket of Blades. Basically, if they move even in a 5ft Step or Withdraw, we get an Attack of Opportunity and we will then punish them with ultra high DC's. Since, ideally, we will be Flanking with two Dvati, we get two tries to stop them if the first fails.
The Nightsong Infiltrator does a lot of good for our concept here: Good defensive abilities, like Defensive Roll (in case we get hit hard) and Break Away (in case **** really hits the fan). Skill Points galore and Skills we want are also great, and tactical movement ability with Grant Move Action.
Continued Sneak Attack progression is also great. Just as with the Teamwork Infiltration, I assert that we can double-dip here seeing as we are Dvati and treated as two different creatures.
ECL 16-20 (Sweet Spot)
Increase progression of the things we already have is great, and we add some new abilities to boot:
Precise Strike allows us to get rid of extra Sneak Attack dice to get +2 to hit for each dropped die. This allows us to cover some Combat Expertise deductions so that we can get a higher Armor Class.
Robilar's Gambit allows us to get more mileage out of Decisive Strike and allows us to get more Attacks of Opportunity even when we aren't using that.
White Raven Tactics, which we get if there's Level Adjustment Buy Off, will allow us to keep chaining turn after turn of extra actions with the second Dvati to act lowering the first's Initiative. That being dependent on getting this Maneuver back when the Maneuvers refresh.
We also get even more mileage out of Hide, when we get the Hide in Plain Sight ability. Hopefully, we are scoping out the territory we are fighting in so that Teamwork Infiltration gives us more Hide bonus.
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2012-12-15, 07:22 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
- Join Date
- Dec 2006
Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Paging Admiral Akbar. . . .
Originally Posted by Deron Betar
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2012-12-15, 07:23 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
- Join Date
- Dec 2006
Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Part 2:
It's a Trap!Spoiler
Combat trap smith? What is that?
Glad you asked. Since the SI is so focused on infiltration and traps, I figured that would be a good element to accent with this side dish. This class is centered around building combat traps in the middle of combat. unlike normal traps, these only take 1 full round (provoking AoOs) to make (at lvl 10, a standard action w/o AoOs)
Your traps (with the exception of the scorcher/great scorcher) do not deal hp damage, but instead debuff adversaries with some rather ruinous conditions. Obviously, personal taste and the capabilities of the rest of the party will play into your trap selection a little (there are 12 choices, of which you can ultimately have 6) but here is the order I suggest for Deron:
1: scorcher, glitterburst
2: scorcher, glitterburst, equalizer
3: scorcher, (swap glitterburst for web), equalizer, flashbang
4: web, equalizer, flash bang, (swap scorcher for sleeper), stinkburst
5: web, equalizer, flashbang, sleeper, stinkburst, great scorcher
what do these traps do?
scorcher is ref vs 2d6 fireball
glitter burst is glitter dust (no save)
equalizer is ref vs fall prone
web is ref vs the web spell
flash bang is fort vs blind/deaf (dazzle on save)
sleeper is fort vs. sleep (fatigue on save!)
stink burst is fort vs stinking cloud (save every round you're in the square)
great scorcher is ref vs 5d6 fireball
the duration on the ones besides the scorchers (which are obviously instantaneous) is a number of rounds equal to your class level.
with the exception of great scorcher and web, which affect the square they're in and all adjacent squares, each of these traps only affect the square it is planted in.
you can plant a trap in any square adjacent to yourself on solid ground and can put as many traps as you like in the same square (though effects for the same trap do not stack, the target does have to make multiple saves for multiple traps, and you can put as many fire traps as you want in one square time providing)
traps are tripped by a tiny or bigger creature stepping on it (flying/incorporeal ones don't count, as usual) and each trap only works one time. the trap "lasts" for one hour or until triggered, whichever's sooner, after which point it doesn't work anymore.
presumably after this point, the trap is inert, though it still exists where you buried it in the ground. I am not sure whether this would mean that it'd detect through trap finding or similar techniques, or if it would just register as garbage. ask your dm for specifics. This is addressed under the dirty tricks section.
enemies can disable your traps normally with a search/DD check = 20+class lvl+int (so get that int high!) but first they need to see it with a spot check (same DC). your traps are easier to see because of reasons, so enemies don't need trap finding, but that's still a pretty high check, plus your traps are nonmagical, so won't ping on a detect magic.
if you can make a lowish craft (trap making) check. The highest check you have to make to successfully deploy a trap at each level is always lower than your minimum possible roll.
when you enter the class at 6, you take SF(trap making) to gain a +3 bonus to the check. the class gives this as a bonus feat the next level, but is one of the rare instances where if you have it already, you are allowed to take a different feat that you meet the prereqs for instead. The rationale for taking the feat early is to give you a bonus to trap making checks ASAP when you need it most.
You have a +5 from 20 int, +3 from skill focus, +9 from max ranks for a total of +17. Your traps' DCs at 1st lvl are only 15, so you can't fail!
This holds true until your very last level. Your bonus at 10 is +21, and your great scorcher trap requires a craft DC of 23, so you still succeed 95% of the time, which turns into 100% next level.
The reason you keep putting ranks in trap making for a few levels is combat transmith's "improvised materials" ability that will be Deron's best friend throughout his career.
From lvls 1-3, combat trap smith makes you use a kit to build traps. It costs 100gp and gives enough material for 10 traps, so it won't exactly bankrupt you.
However, at level 4, you no longer need to rely on your kit if you don't want to by boosting the DC of the trap making check by 5.
As demonstrated earlier, you really don't care all that much about the check since it's impossible for you to fail. When you gain the ability, you can auto-improvise your traps with minimal effort, and it soon becomes impossible for you to fail auto-improvisation.
I put ranks in trap making up through 14, for a total bonus of 25 (17 ranks + 3 skill focus +5 naked int) I am assuming by now that you have been able to get a +6 headband of intellect, since as a skill monkey, int is important to you. Combat trap smith also uses it to calculate the save DC for its traps, so it becomes of even greater importance that your int is as high as possible. If you're low on money in your game, just go ahead and put ranks in it for a few more levels until you can hit DC 28 without rolling to improvise your great scorcher.
As is plain to see, your traps can interact with one another to great effect:
Web + stink immobilizes an enemy and makes them lose actions
Web + fire deals extra damage when they break out of the web and step on the fire trap
Sleep + web makes the str check or escape artist DC harder
The combinations are numerous.
Clone BetterDirty TricksSpoilerNow that you're familiar with the rules about how your traps work, it's time to make things interesting:
Trickery devotion allows you to use a clone of yourself that gains powers as you level up:
1: unseen servant+silent image
5: unseen servant + major image + bluff to do-si-do
10: unseen servant + major image + remote viewing + skills/ability checks+ phantom equipment
15: unseen servant + major image + remote viewing + skills/ability checks + phantom equipment + str = yours/2, cast spells as though project image
your guy lasts 1 minute/character level and has 6+character lvl hp
Whew! that's a lot to handle! Let's take it one step at a time:
You obtain trickery devotion at level 7, since you already took SF(trap making) so get another feat you qualify for at level 2 of combat trap smith. Like all the domain feats, trickery devotion doesn't actually have any prerequisites except that it fit you thematically, and for a character centered around stealth and traps, deception is what you're all about.
Let's start with the basics: your clone can trigger traps and can't be targeted or harmed by any non AoE damage dealing things (so all the traps except your scorchers don't hurt it)
it can pass through difficult terrain and the like without difficulty, so can reach into a square and trigger a trap without difficulty. This can be used with traps that have a range of squares adjacent to itself, like the web (don't use it to trip scorchers, you'll blow up your clone, since he's never entitled to a save).
When the trap is actually in an opponent's square, your clone can also be used to trigger traps under enemies who levitate or hover, which is situational, but nonetheless very fun when it comes up.
Unlike a normal unseen servant, yours actually is visible, and looks exactly like you. Remember! you're a changeling! Take advantage of this. Between your racial bonus to disguise check, your plentiful ranks, synergy from bluff, and cunning knowledge (trickery devotion, used once/day is a good use of your cunning knowledge for disguise for the day) your disguise will be quite difficult to see through, so too will the disguise of your clone.
Domain feats specify that the save DC (if any) is listed in the text. Trickery devotion has no save DC, so unlike a normal major image, it cannot be will disbelieved!
So essentially, for 1 min/character level, you can have a clone of whoever you want at your beck and call! Sound, smell, and heat are included as well as visual appearance, and none of them can be disbelieved.
This, works very well in tandem with your darkstalker feat, which lets you hide from blind sense, blindsight, tremor sense, and scent. You essentially don't show up to your enemy, but your clone does! You can, in fact, use the clone to bait them and lure them over to some of your traps.
Once you hit 5 (so once you get the feat) you can also roll bluff w/ a +4 bonus vs an opponent's sense motive check to confuse them as to which of you is the real one. If they fail, they have it wrong and mix the two of you up. This will be complicated by them not being able to save vs. the clone's major image.
at 10, you can view the world through your clone's body and ignore terrain, fly, etc. Remember to keep it in range of yourself (close range, treat character lvl as caster lvl) or the effect ends.
This can be very useful when it comes to reconnaissance. Your clone does not weigh anything and has no material body, so can scout ahead for you and walk through doorways without springing tripwires, setting off pressure pads, or anything else you don't want him to do.
you can also use skills through your clone and he has versions of your tools, so he can not only find traps for you, he can also disable them.
at 15, you can cast spells through your clone as though via project image. you don't have any spells, but your arcane dilettante SLAs count, and it's nice to have the option there with wands, which can open up all sorts of crazy things. he can also gain 1/2 your str and can attack enemies with whatever equipment he's got (as long as it doesn't leave his grasp)Spoiler
This is the catch-all section for anything this build could theoretically do that would require some judgement on the DM's part. Some of these are just theoretical exploits, others are things that didn't fit anyplace else.
Needle in a Haystack:SpoilerWhat exactly happens to your inert traps once the hour is up? They're not made of magical force, so don't just dissolve. If a character sees a cavern or something with a whole bunch of traps, is there any way for them to tell which are live? Ask your DM.
Set us up the Bomb:SpoilerYou can put an arbitrary number of traps in a square, resources and time permitting. With proper time and inclination, you can deal essentially as much damage as you like to an enemy who is vulnerable to hit point and fire damage. They will have to make a lot of saves and will fail enough to kill them. This clearly falls under the umbrella of "gentleman's agreement not to do this" but it's nonetheless an interesting thought exercise
Now You See Me, Now You Don'tSpoilerQuick change makes minor shape shift a move action. Cloak dance is a move action to gain concealment. Conceal yourself and change your shape, and then pop back in a different shape the next round. Confuse everyone, especially in combination with any of the tricks under the trickery devotion section
SourcesSpoiler
complete champion: trickery devotion
complete scoundrel: combat trapsmith
core: skill focus, alertness, rogue
dungeonscape: factotum
lords of madness: darkstalker
PHB2: cunning evasion, shadow striker
Races of eberron: changeling rogue, quick change
XPH: cloak dance
complete adventurer: nightsong infiltrator(secret ingredient)
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2012-12-15, 07:25 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
- Join Date
- Dec 2006
Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Imitation has more to it than flattery.
Originally Posted by Lycus Blackbeak
Lindsay hated guard duty.
He had fought hard for the Vicar of Mourning during the Blackwater Wars, had won every battle, proved himself enough to gain audience with the Vicar himself. The Vicar had promised him riches and a position within his own house. He had jumped at the chance, expecting higher wages and easy living. But the Vicar was demanding and intensely paranoid, requiring round the clock guarding, and as he neared the end of another twelve hour day, Lindsay found himself missing the bloody simplicity of the wars.
“Lindsay, I have need of you,” came the Vicar’s dusty voice from the door behind him. “Come in, quickly.”
Lindsay looked around at the other guards. They all shrugged. Lindsay turned and entered the crypt-like room.
The Vicar looked up at him, with surprise showing in his sunken eyes. He quickly covered the maps he was working on. “What are you doing here? How dare you enter without knocking?”
“I - I was called,” Lindsay stammered. “You asked -”
“I did nothing of the sort,” the Vicar said quietly, “and since you have so recklessly abandoned your post, perhaps you ought to stay on for a second shift.”
Lindsay was preparing to reply when he heard the sounds of a struggle from outside the room. He turned to speak, but the Vicar waved him away. “Go,” he commanded. “See what happens when you leave your post?”
Back in the antechamber, all was chaos. The guards were fanning out, preparing to face three men, all wearing mail and bearing swords. He paused a moment to wonder at how they managed to get in without an alarm being raised.
Suddenly he heard someone shout. “Guards, put down your weapons,” said the voice. “The Vicar’s orders! These men are here to see him!” Lindsay watched in awe as the guards all did, looking confused. He belatedly realized that the voice that spoke was his own.
“No!” He shouted, preparing to tell them it was all a trick, that he had not spoken, when he stepped forward. Something clicked under his foot. He felt a strange vapor puff up past his nose and suddenly fell forward, so drowsy he could no longer stand.
“That wasn’t me,” he muttered, but his voice was so low that the other guards could no longer hear him. With heavy, drooping eyes, he watched a strange bird-man step out of the shadows. And then, all he knew was sleep...
"Crow tool manufacture had three features new to tool use in free-living nonhumans... which indicates that crows have achieved a considerable technical capability in their tool manufacture and use."
Hunt, G. Manufacture and use of hook-tools by New Caledonian crows. Nature 379, 249 - 251 (18 January 1996).
Lycus Blackbeak
CG Kenku, Factotum 3/Totemist 2/Combat Trapsmith 5/Nightsong Infiltrator 10
Spoiler
LYCUS BLACKBEAK
{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features
1st|Factotum 1|+0|+0|+2|+0|Climb 4 ranks, disable device 4 ranks, balance 4 ranks, search 4 ranks, use magic device 4 ranks, bluff 4 ranks, craft (trapmaking) 4 ranks, craft (alchemy) 4 ranks, hide 4 ranks, move silently 4 ranks|Darkstalker|Inspiration, cunning insight, cunning knowledge, trapfinding
2nd|Totemist 1|+0|+2|+4|+0|Climb 4.5 ranks, disable device 4.5 ranks, search 4.5 ranks, use magic device 4.5 ranks, hide 4.5 ranks, move silently 4.5 ranks, craft (trapmaking) 5 ranks, craft (alchemy) 5 ranks||Wild empathy
3rd|Totemist 2|+1|+3|+5|+0|Climb 5 ranks, disable device 5 ranks, search 5 ranks, use magic device 5 ranks, hide 5 ranks, move silently 5 ranks, craft (trapmaking) 6 ranks, craft (alchemy) 6 ranks|Sacred Vow|Totem chakra bind (+1 capacity)
4th|Factotum 2|+2|+3|+6|+0|Climb 6 ranks, disable device 6 ranks, balance 5 ranks, search 6 ranks, use magic device 5 ranks, bluff 5 ranks, hide 6 ranks, move silently 6 ranks, craft (trapmaking) 7 ranks, craft (alchemy) 7 ranks||Arcane dilettante (1 spell)
5th|Factotum 3|+3|+4|+6|+1|Climb 7 ranks, disable device 7 ranks, search 7 ranks, use magic device 6 ranks, bluff 6 ranks, hide 7 ranks, move silently 7 ranks, craft (trapmaking) 8 ranks, craft (alchemy) 8 ranks, spot 1 rank||Brains over brawn, cunning defense
6th|Combat Trapsmith 1|+3|+6|+8|+1|Climb 8 ranks, craft (trapmaking) 9 ranks, craft (alchemy) 9 ranks, disable device 8 ranks, hide 8 ranks, move silently 8 ranks, open lock 1 rank, search 8 ranks, spot 2 ranks|Vow of Nonviolence|Combat trapping, trap sense +1, enfeebler trap, befuddler trap
7th|Combat Trapsmith 2|+4|+7|+9|+1|Climb 9 ranks, craft (trapmaking) 10 ranks, craft (alchemy) 10 ranks, disable device 9 ranks, hide 9 ranks, move silently 9 ranks, open lock 2 ranks, search 9 ranks, spot 3 ranks, bluff 6.5 ranks|Skill Focus (craft (trapmaking))|Entangler trap, equalizer trap (lose befuddler)
8th|Combat Trapsmith 3|+5|+7|+9|+2|Climb 10 ranks, craft (trapmaking) 11 ranks, craft (alchemy) 11 ranks, disable device 10 ranks, hide 10 ranks, move silently 10 ranks, open lock 3 ranks, search 10 ranks, spot 4 ranks, bluff 7 ranks||Trap sense +2, flashbang trap, spiderweb trap (lose enfeebler)
9th|Combat Trapsmith 4|+6/+1|+8|+10|+2|Craft (trapmaking) 12 ranks, craft (alchemy) 12 ranks, disable device 11 ranks, hide 12 ranks, move silently 11 ranks, open lock 5 ranks, search 11 ranks, spot 5 ranks|Alertness|Improvised materials, sleeper trap
10th|Nightsong Infiltrator 1|+6/+1|+8|+12|+2|Bluff 9 ranks, craft (alchemy) 13 ranks, disable device 12 ranks, hide 13 ranks, move silently 12 ranks, search 12 ranks, spot 6 ranks, use magic device 10 ranks||Teamwork trap sense +1
11th|Nightsong Infiltrator 2|+7/+2|+8|+13|+2|Bluff 12 ranks, craft (alchemy) 14 ranks, disable device 13 ranks, hide 14 ranks, move silently 14 ranks, search 13 ranks, spot 7 ranks, use magic device 12 ranks||Steady stance, teamwork infiltration +2
12th|Nightsong Infiltrator 3|+8/+3|+9|+13|+3|Bluff 15 ranks, craft (alchemy) 15 ranks, disable device 14 ranks, hide 15 ranks, move silently 15 ranks, search 14 ranks, spot 8 ranks, use magic device 15 ranks|Shadow Striker|Break away, trackless step (self)
13th|Nightsong Infiltrator 4|+9/+4|+9|+14|+3|Bluff 16 ranks, craft (alchemy) 16 ranks, disable device 15 ranks, hide 16 ranks, move silently 16 ranks, search 15 ranks, spot 13 ranks, use magic device 16 ranks||Detect magic, teamwork sneak attack +1d6, teamwork trap sense +2
14th|Nightsong Infiltrator 5|+9/+4|+9|+14|+3|Bluff 17 ranks, craft (alchemy) 17 ranks, disable device 16 ranks, hide 17 ranks, move silently 17 ranks, search 16 ranks, spot 16 ranks, use magic device 17 ranks, Skill Trick: Clarity of Vision||Defensive roll, grant move action 1/day
15th|Combat Trapsmith 5|+9/+4|+9|+14|+3|Bluff 18 ranks, craft (alchemy) 18 ranks, disable device 17 ranks, hide 18 ranks, move silently 18 ranks, search 18 ranks, spot 18 ranks, use magic device 18 ranks, Skill Trick: Corner Perch|Improved Diversion|Expert trapsetter, trap sense +3, stinkburst trap, glitterburst trap (lose entangler)
16th|Nightsong Infiltrator 6|+10/+5|+10|+15|+4|Bluff 19 ranks, climb 11 ranks, craft (alchemy) 19 ranks, disable device 19 ranks, hide 19 ranks, move silently 19 ranks, search 19 ranks, spot 19 ranks, use magic device 19 ranks, diplomacy 1 rank, forgery 1 rank||Improved evasion, skill mastery, specialized tools
17th|Nightsong Infiltrator 7|+11/+6/+1|+10|+15|+4|Bluff 20 ranks, climb 12 ranks, craft (alchemy) 20 ranks, disable device 20 ranks, hide 20 ranks, move silently 20 ranks, search 20 ranks, spot 20 ranks, use magic device 20 ranks, diplomacy 4 ranks||Teamwork trap sense +3, trackless step (allies)
18th|Nightsong Infiltrator 8|+12/+7/+2|+10|+16|+4|Bluff 21 ranks, craft (alchemy) 21 ranks, disable device 21 ranks, hide 21 ranks, move silently 21 ranks, search 21 ranks, spot 21 ranks, use magic device 21 ranks, diplomacy 8 ranks|Ability Focus (combat trapping)|Teamwork infiltration +4, teamwork sneak attack +2d6
19th|Nightsong Infiltrator 9|+12/+7/+2|+11|+16|+5|Bluff 22 ranks, craft (alchemy) 22 ranks, disable device 22 ranks, hide 22 ranks, move silently 22 ranks, search 22 ranks, spot 22 ranks, use magic device 22 ranks, diplomacy 12 ranks||Grant move action 2/day
20th|Nightsong Infiltrator 10|+13/+8/+3|+11|+17|+5|Bluff 23 ranks, craft (alchemy) 23 ranks, disable device 23 ranks, hide 23 ranks, move silently 23 ranks, search 23 ranks, spot 23 ranks, use magic device 23 ranks, diplomacy 16 ranks||Hide in plain sight, teamwork trap sense +4[/table]
FINAL SKILL RANKS:
Balance 5 ranks
Bluff 23 ranks
Climb 12 ranks
Craft (alchemy) 23 ranks
Craft (trapmaking) 12 ranks
Diplomacy 16 ranks
Disable device 23 ranks
Forgery 1 rank
Hide 23 ranks
Move silently 23 ranks
Open lock 5 ranks
Search 23 ranks
Use magic device 23 ranks
Clarity of Vision skill trick
Corner Perch skill trick
Ability Scores
Spoiler
Str 6/Dex 15/Con 13/Int 18/Wis 10/Cha 12 (includes racial mods)
Boost Intelligence at every level.
Suggested Items
Spoiler
Equip yourself like you would any thief. Intelligence is far and away your most important stat, so pick up items and tomes that boost that. Following that, boost Dexterity.
Weapons are unnecessary; your claws mean you can always flank without needing to carry a weapon in your hand, and you have vowed not to deal damage regardless. It wouldn’t hurt to keep a feycraft sap on you for when you need to deal nonlethal damage, or a few nets or bolas, but that’s about it.
You’ll want armor that restricts you as little as possible, and when you can afford the greater version of Shadow and Silent Moves enhancements, I would pick those up, which will free up a soulmeld for you. (Anything other than the greater versions is not worth it, however, as your Kruthik Claws grant you a +8 competence bonus on their own.) A Collar of Umbral Metamorphosis is also always nice on a stealth build.
A hat of disguise or a wand of alter self would not go amiss, combining well with your Mimicry ability to impersonate just about anyone. Wands are also great. A wand of glibness in particular would be nice, as would a wand of heroics. An eternal wand of open least chakra is also a very nice thing to have.
The Blackbeak's Code
Spoiler
Where the shadows fall, evil may grow. To attack evil in the light of day is a futile task; evil must be destroyed where its roots grow deepest.
Redemption exists in the souls of all men. I must always remember this.
The greatest form of evil is tyranny. One man with evil in his heart may cause mischief but little more, while an empire threatens the entire world.
Societies built on tyranny are like a stone wall with no mortar. An army may fling itself against the wall to no avail, while a clever bird picks at the cracks.
If I am to truly succeed, I must do this without the shedding of blood. Certainly evil blood must sometimes be spillt, but it must not be at my claws. This is not an abdication of guilt. This is my sacrifice.
Build Snapshots
Spoiler
LEVELS 1-5:
SpoilerYou begin play as a stealthy scout. Darkstalker comes online right from the get-go, because what kind of scout would you be if you couldn’t even sneak past a CR ⅓ guard dog?
Anyhow, like all factota, you are a jack of all trades. Combined with your racial bonuses, totemist soulmelds and your inspiration points, you should be putting out truly phenomenal skill bonuses in all the stealthy skills. This especially becomes true at level 5, when you are adding your Intelligence bonus to many of these skills.
With your two levels of totemist, you get three soulmelds and the ability to bind to your totem chakra. Feel free to switch these up as circumstances require, but you’ll pretty much always want the Kruthik Claws for the potential +8 bonus to your stealth skills. Other good ones include the Lammasu Mantle, for a nice bonus to saves and AC, the Blink Shirt for tactical movement, and the Great Raptor Mask, for Evasion and nice boosts to your spot checks.
LEVELS 6-10:
SpoilerWell, that escalated quickly. Right at level 6, you pick up both Vow of Nonviolence and your first level in Combat Trapsmith, giving you a wide variety of new abilities.
Let’s look at those traps for a minute. Note that none of your chosen traps break your Vow of Nonviolence. Note also that the Vow of Nonviolence provides a hefty +4 bonus to their save DC, meaning that by level 9, you’re looking at a DC of 18+Int. To make matters worse, many of your chosen traps still inflict a debuff even on a successful save. Slink around the battlefield setting traps under the feet of your foes, allowing you to entangle them, knock them prone, put them to sleep, sicken them and more. Heck, by level 9 you don’t even need materials to do this anymore - you can create these traps at-will using whatever happens to be at hand.
It’s also worth taking a gander at that excellent craft (alchemy) skill. While your trapmaking tops out at DC 26 (enough to make a Sleeper or Stinkburst trap with improvised materials), the better you are at alchemical crafting, the faster you can churn out these items. So in addition to laying nasty traps all over the place, you’re also debuffing with tanglefoot bags, eggshell grenades, alchemical sleep gas and torch bug paste. You’re using noxious smokesticks and stinkpots to create battlefield control, or boosting allies with nerv, bloodspikes and antitoxins.
You should pretty much exclusively switch to the Great Raptor Mask as your totem bind from here on out, by the way. As a scout, the bonus to Spot checks is becoming very important (and soon you’ll have Clarity of Vision as well). The evasion is also essential, allowing you to pick up your first level of Nightsong Infiltrator. Right now that means a big boost to your skills and a passive boost to you and your allies, but over the next few levels, it’s about to become VERY important.
LEVELS 11-15:
SpoilerHey, let’s take a nice long look at what those Nightsong Infiltrator levels offer you. In addition to a ton of excellent defensive abilities (hello, break away and defensive roll!) and some nice scouting boosts (hi, trackless step and detect magic at will!), you also pick up a lot of nice teamwork benefits.
First of all, teamwork trap sense. It’s nice on its own, since it gives your party a reasonable boost against traps. It’s especially handy for you, just in case one of them stumbles into one of your traps. (No matter how many times you tell that fighter not to step there, he just never seems to learn...)
Oh, hey, your skills. Nightsong Infiltrator gets a hefty 8 skill points per level and every skill you need here as a class skill. Now you can catch up on both bluff and use magic device, right at the levels when those two skills become super important. You can also pick up the Clarity of Vision skill trick, letting you spot invisible enemies to target with your Glitterburst traps.
Now, see that maxed out bluff skill? You’ve got three very good reasons to take advantage of it. The first is the “Delivering a Secret Message” ability. You’re laying traps all over the place, and you want your party to know where they are without your enemies doing so. Using bluff, you can convey to them where not to walk without cluing in the baddies.
Also, as a kenku, you’ve got the Mimicry ability. You can mimic voices, sounds, etc., that you’ve heard. You’re going to be spending a lot of time hidden. Use this time to spread confusion as you mimic the voices of your foes, issuing contradictory orders or calling for help where none is needed. This is especially nice if vision is obscured by things like smokesticks and Stinkburst bombs.
But we were talking about Nightsong Infiltrator’s teamwork benefits. You’re lending some of your stealth ability to your party, which is always nice. Also, while you have sworn not to attack, by flanking enemies you can still lend your aid to your allies, granting them not only a flanking bonus, but sneak attack damage as well. Now let’s look at Shadow Striker. If you and an ally have an enemy flanked so that you both threaten, you can make a Hide check versus his Spot, and if you succeed, he can’t attack you as long as the other enemy still threatens. This means he can’t make attack of opportunities on you while you trap the square he’s standing in. In fact, you can lay trap after trap right under his feet and there’s not a darn thing he can do about it. Your ally, meanwhile, is free to attack, and dealing extra damage to boot.
Oh, hey, I said there were three reasons why bluff was so important to you. Take a look at that level 15 feat, Improved Diversion, which allows you to make a bluff check to create a diversion to hide as a move action instead of a standard action. Well, notice that at the same level, you get the ability to start setting traps as a standard action, including things like the Stinkburst trap. Ever seen a ninja disappear in a puff of smoke? That’s you, baby! Standard action to create a stinking cloud bomb, move action to call attention to create a diversion, and then take a five foot step and use that movement to hide. The net effect is that you toss down a bomb or smokestick, causing a big bang and smoke, and then... disappear.
LEVELS 16-20:
SpoilerThe good just keeps on getting better.
Right at level 16, you get three great boons - improved tools (essentially a +2 bonus to just about every useful skill you’ve got), skill mastery, and improved evasion. Failure just isn’t an option for you!
Nightsong Infiltrator’s huge number of skill points means you’ve long since hit the ceiling on most skills you care about, so with the extra points, you begin to branch out a bit. You can actually make a pretty passable diplomancer in these levels, assuming you can dodge the flying books. You also pick up forgery, a nice little skill that is only opposed by... forgery! With forger’s paper (which you can easily craft yourself) and an inspiration point, not to mention your massive Int bonus, you should be able to forge almost anything.
All of your other abilities improve as well. Once your party was a bunch of bumbling fools who couldn’t clunk down a hallway without alerting half the castle. Now they’re a crack team that can put Charlie and his roller-skating astral devas to shame. Your whole team moves everywhere without leaving a trace, quiet and deadly. You can even grant them extra movement to help reposition them into flanking positions and push them past the tougher parts.
That team sneak attack bonus gets better as well, so your little flanking Shadow Striker trick becomes even deadlier. You get a very nice Hide in Plain Sight ability for when you’re in natural terrain, and it combos well with your smoke bombs. Oh, and the DC of your traps is now 21+Int. With level appropriate gear, that means a whopping DC of 33, with the ability to target multiple saves.
Tips and Tricks
Spoiler
In addition to Lycus Blackbeak's hefty stealth bonuses, soulmeld use, factotum abilities and high-DC traps, Lycus has several particular tricks he uses to get the drop on his enemies.
Evasive Flanking
SpoilerFind an ally and move into a flanking position. In addition to flanking bonuses, you’re also granting your ally sneak attack damage. Meanwhile, using Shadow Striker’s “Evade Notice” option, you can make a hide check to avoid being attacked, as long as you don’t directly attack your enemy. That’s OK, because your Vow of Nonviolence means you don’t really like directly attacking anyhow. One thing you CAN do? Set traps! So while you’re boosting your ally’s attacks, you’re also setting trap after trap on your enemy... and as long as you both threaten him, he can't attack you or take AoOs on you while you do it!
Disappearing in a Puff of Smoke
SpoilerYou can create small stinking clouds at will as a standard action via the stinkburst trap. You can also make a diversion to hide as a move action via Improved Diversion. The actual act of hiding itself isn’t an action at all, but rather is combined with movement, as long as you have some form of cover or concealment, and if you spend your move action on something other than movement (ie, making a diversion), you can follow it up with a 5-foot step.
So what happens when you combine that? Well, set off a stinkburst bomb as your standard, make a bluff check to distract everyone as a move action, then 5-foot step into hiding. The stinking cloud gives you the concealment you need to successfully hide. Yes, that’s right, you’ve just recreated the ninja disappearing smoke bomb trick.
Trapped!
SpoilerSometimes, no matter how cleverly you lay a trap, you just can’t convince an enemy to set it off. Good use of the bluff skill should help keep this problem to a minimum, but in a pinch, you can set traps off yourself to excellent effect.
Many of your traps create lasting battlefield control, or affect all adjacent squares in addition to their own square. Go ahead and set these off yourself, especially those requiring a reflex save. Despite the massive DC, you’ve got excellent Reflex saves, improved evasion, and a whopping +7 trap sense bonus to saves.
Your allies also share a good portion of these trap sense bonuses, meaning that if they've got decent saves, you can also include them in the radius of your traps without fear of harm. Just be prepared to buy them a mug of ale afterwards if things don’t go quite as planned...
Break Away and Make Them Pay
SpoilerMobility is important to you, and the Break Away ability is pretty sweet, offering a huge AC bonus if you do nothing but move. But... not ANYTHING else? That seems sad! Still, it comes in handy, especially since you’ll want to be constantly moving into flanking positions. You’re an EXCELLENT flanking partner, after all.
But hey, wait a minute, isn’t speaking a free action? And when it comes to speaking, your words are deadly. Thanks to your Mimicry ability, you can perfectly mimic other voices and sounds you've heard. Your goal is to completely confuse and confound your enemies, so while you dance around the battlefield granting flanking boosts and sneak attack damage, you can also shout commands in their leader’s voice, imitate the sounds of swordplay or arrows firing, convince enemies that there are traps where none exist, and more. You can simultaneously deliver a secret message to your own allies, completely under your enemy’s radar.
Sources
Spoiler
Combat Trapsmith, skill tricks: Comp Scoundrel
Darkstalker: Lords of Madness
Sacred Vow, Vow of Nonviolence: Book of Exalted Deeds
Shadow Striker: PHB2
Improved Diversion: Comp Adventurer
Factotum: Dungeonscape
Totemist: Magic of Incarnum
Ability Focus: MM/SRD
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2012-12-15, 07:28 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
- Join Date
- Dec 2006
Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
It's a Christmas miraculum! - C. M. Burns
Originally Posted by Santa
Spoiler
Twas the night before Christmas, when all thro' the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;
This is a showcase for new TO build.
He sprung to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,The Build
SpoilerSt. Nicholas
Gray Elf Artificer 4/Wizard 1/Artificer 1/Divine Oracle 1/Artificer 1/Divine Oracle 1/Abjurant Champion 1/Nightsong Infiltrator 10
ACFs:
Elf Wizard Racial Substitution Level
UA Wizard Variant: Trade Scribe Scroll for a Fighter Bonus feat
Stats:
SpoilerStarting Stats (32-point buy):
Str 10/Dex 12/Con 14/Int 16/Wis 8/Cha 16
With Racial Modifiers:
Str 8/Dex 14/Con 12/Int 18/Wis 8/Cha 16
All boosts go to Cha.
Build:
Spoiler{table=head]Level|Class|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Skills|Feats|Class Features
1st|Artificer 1|+0|+0|+0|+2|Disable Device 4 ranks, Hide 2 ranks, Know (religion) 2 ranks, Move Silently 2 ranks, Open Lock 4 ranks, Search 4 ranks, Spellcraft 4 ranks, Use Magic Device 4 ranks|Practiced Spellcaster, Scribe ScrollB|Artificer knowledge, Artisan Bonus, Disable trap, Item creation
2nd|Artificer 2|+1|+0|+0|+3|Disable Device 5 ranks, Hide 2.5 ranks, Know (arcana), Move Silently 2.5 ranks, Open Lock 5 ranks, Search 5 ranks, Spellcraft 5 ranks, Use Magic Device 5 ranks|Brew PotionB|
3rd|Artificer 3|+2|+1|+1|+3|Climb 1 rank, Disable Device 6 ranks, Hide 3 ranks, Know (the planes) 1 rank, Move Silently 3 ranks, Search 6 ranks, Use Magic Device 6 ranks|Skill Focus(Knowledge:Religion), Craft Wondrous ItemB|
4th|Artificer 4|+3|+1|+1|+4|Climb 2.5 ranks, Disable Device 7 ranks, Hide 3.5 ranks, Move Silently 3.5 ranks, Search 7 ranks, Use Magic Device 7 ranks|Exceptional ArtisanB, Craft Wondrous HomunculusB|
5th|Wizard 1|+3|+1|+1|+6|Know (religion) 8 ranks|Martial Study (Cloak of Deception)B|Summon familiar
6th|Artificer 5|+3|+1|+1|+6|Climb 3 ranks, Disable Device 8 ranks, Hide 4 ranks, Move Silently 4 ranks, Search 9 ranks, Use Magic Device 9 ranks|Skill Focus (Use Magic Device), Craft Magic Arms and ArmorB|Retain Essence
7th|Divine Oracle 1|+3|+1|+1|+8|Climb 4 ranks, Search 10 ranks, Use Magic Device 10 ranks| |Oracle domain, scry bonus
8th|Artificer 6|+4|+2|+2|+9|Disable Device 10 ranks, Hide 5 ranks, Move Silently 5 ranks, Search 11 ranks, Use Magic Device 11 ranks| |Metamagic Spell Trigger
9th|Divine Oracle 2|+5|+2|+2|+10|Climb 5 ranks, Disable Device 11 ranks, Search 11 ranks, Use Magic Device 12 ranks|Combat Casting|Prescient sense, trap sense +1
10th|Abjurant Champion 1|+6|+2|+2|+12|Climb 10 ranks, Corner Perch| |Abjurant Armor, Extended Abjuration
11th|Nightsong Infiltrator 1|+6|+2|+4|+12|Disable Device 14 ranks, Hide 7 ranks, Move Silently 7 ranks, Search 14 ranks, Use Magic Device 14 ranks| |Teamwork trap sense +1, trapfinding
12th|Nightsong Infiltrator 2|+7|+2|+5|+12|Disable Device 15 ranks, Hide 12 ranks, Move Silently 11 ranks, Search 15 ranks, Use Magic Device 15 ranks|Craft Staff|Steady stance, teamwork infiltration +2
13th|Nightsong Infiltrator 3|+8|+3|+5|+13|Disable Device 16 ranks, Hide 16 ranks, Move Silently 16 ranks, Search 16 ranks, Use Magic Device 16 ranks| |Break away, trackless step (self)
14th|Nightsong Infiltrator 4|+9|+3|+6|+13|Disable Device 17 ranks, Hide 17 ranks, Move Silently 17 ranks, Search 17 ranks, Tumble 7 ranks, Use Magic Device 17 ranks| |Detect magic, teamwork sneak attack +1d6, teamwork trap sense +2
15th|Nightsong Infiltrator 5|+9|+3|+6|+13|Disable Device 18 ranks, Hide 18 ranks, Move Silently 18 ranks, Search 18 ranks, Tumble 12 ranks, Use Magic Device 18 ranks, Acrobatic Backstab|Extend Spell|Defensive roll, grant move action 1/day
16th|Nightsong Infiltrator 6|+10|+4|+7|+14|Climb 12 ranks, Craft (woodworking) 1 rank, Disable Device 19 ranks, Hide 19 ranks, Move Silently 19 ranks, Search 19 ranks, Tumble 14 ranks, Use Magic Device 19 ranks, Walk the Walls| |Improved evasion, skill mastery, specialized tools
17th|Nightsong Infiltrator 7|+10|+4|+7|+14|Balance 5 ranks, Disable Device 20 ranks, Hide 20 ranks, Move Silently 20 ranks, Search 20 ranks, Use Magic Device 20 ranks, Back On Your Feet| |Teamwork trap sense +3, trackless step (allies)
18th|Nightsong Infiltrator 8|+11|+4|+8|+14|Balance 7 ranks, Disable Device 21 ranks, Hide 21 ranks, Move Silently 21 ranks, Search 21 ranks, Tumble 19 ranks, Use Magic Device 21 ranks|Persistent Spell|Teamwork infiltration +4, teamwork sneak attack +2d6
19th|Nightsong Infiltrator 9|+11|+5|+8|+15|Balance 12 ranks, Disable Device 22 ranks, Hide 22 ranks, Move Silently 22 ranks, Search 22 ranks, Tumble 21 ranks, Use Magic Device 22 ranks| |Grant move action 2/day
20th|Nightsong Infiltrator 10|+12|+5|+9|+15|Balance 14 ranks, Decipher Script 5 ranks, Disable Device 23 ranks, Hide 23 ranks, Move Silently 23 ranks, Search 23 ranks, Use Magic Device 23 ranks| |Hide in plain sight, teamwork trap sense +4[/table]
BBonus feat granted by class.
Spells
SpoilerArtificer Infusions per day
{table=head]Level|1st|2nd|3rd|4th|5th|6th
1st|2|-|-|-|-|-
2nd|3|-|-|-|-|-
3rd|3|1|-|-|-|-
4th|3|2|-|-|-|-
5th|3|2|-|-|-|-
6th|3|3|1|-|-|-
7th|3|3|2|-|-|-
8th|3|3|2|-|-|-
9th|3|3|3|1|-|-
10th|3|3|3|2|-|-
11th|3|3|3|2|-|-
12th|3|3|3|2|-|-
13th|3|3|3|2|-|-
14th|3|3|3|2|-|-
15th|3|3|3|2|-|-
16th|3|3|3|2|-|-
17th|3|3|3|2|-|-
18th|3|3|3|2|-|-
19th|3|3|3|2|-|-
20th|3|3|3|2|-|-[/table]
Wizard Spells per day
{table=head]Level|0lvl|1st|2nd|3rd|4th|5th|6th|7th|8th|9th
1st|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
2nd|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
3rd|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
4th|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
5th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
6th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
7th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
8th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
9th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
10th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
11th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
12th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
13th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
14th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
15th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
16th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
17th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
18th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
19th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
20th|3|1+1|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-[/table]
Suggested Items
SpoilerThanks to starting as an Artificer, Nicholas can craft almost all the magical equipment he needs and supply the rest of his party too. That said, a pair of Magic Tattoos or Orange Ioun Stones at level 13, whether bought or cast/crafted, will help by boosting his Artificer CL high enough to make 9th level scrolls and staffs (note that thanks to Divine Oracle, he can craft 9th level Divination equipment without this). And of course, anything that boosts UMD, like Spellsight Spectacles, a Cloak of Charisma, or a Circlet of Persuasion, will help him craft the equipment he needs.
The Story of St. Nicholas
SpoilerWith a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.
You know the story... Every Christmas Eve he flies from house to house, delivering presents to the nice boys and girls, and leaving coal for the bad. But there is another story. The one that came before.
You see, he was always a good soul, St. Nicholas. He loved helping others, tinkering, and adventuring. Yes, he was an adventurer. Perhaps Lord Starrin would not have feared him otherwise.
He started like any other artificer. He made useful things, and strengthened his friends in battle. He even opened a magic shop. He was interested in learning everything, and got pretty good at it, too. Give the man a few days in the back room and he would give you an answer to anything divination could find. Sometimes he would sneak around to find things out himself; could do it pretty well for an artificer. That was how he joined the Nightsong Guild. They magnified his abilities tenfold, combining his love of stealth with his natural teamwork. It made him very popular whenever a job turned up. He was just so easy to work with, and friendly.
Well, Lord Starrin heard of his growing influence, and feared the direction House Cannith might take if the Nightsong Guild got control of it. He didn't realize that Nicholas was a member out of convenience, not loyalty, that his real love was people. Our lord took it upon himself to send an assassination group after Nicholas. Make it look like a rival spy group wanted him taken out, you see? Well, no one saw the group or Nicholas after that. At least, not until a few years later, when Lord Starrin got a room full of coal, and someone thought they spotted Nicholas on the rooftop. It turned out Nicholas wasn't angry, just sad. I guess he realized that Eberron wasn't his home anymore, and left. I don't know where to. Maybe Starrin does; he certainly changed his mind about Nicholas after that. I heard he even got Nicholas sainted.
At any rate, that's when children started getting toys every year. Some say St. Nicholas does it because he genuinely loves people, others say that he's driven by the remorse of killing his beloved, who was in the group Lord Starrin sent after him. I only know this: if you stay up late Christmas Eve and keep an eye open, then maybe, just maybe, you'll see a plump figure slide down the chimney, leave some presents beneath the tree, and scurry away. And gods bless him.
St. Nicholas and His Elves, a.k.a. How Does He Do It? (Build Explanation)
SpoilerA bundle of toys was flung on his back,
And he look'd like a peddler just opening his pack:
First, the factory. Feeling he was no longer welcome in Eberron, Nicholas went to the Ethereal Plane. He spent some time crafting two Orange Ioun stones for himself, then created and cast a scroll of Genesis to create a flowing time demiplane with 20 rounds per 1 round on the Material Plane. Then he used his craft homunculus ability as an artificer to create a slew of dedicated wrights. They can't craft more magic items, but they can create mundane items, so they spend each year putting together toys (and sacks of coal).
Second, the reindeer. Nicholas needed 69,120 scrolls of Simulacrum (for an ECL3 clone), which require 78,624,000gp, 27,025,920xp, 20,736,000gp worth of powdered ruby, and 69,120 days to create. He had a few ways of getting all the materials:
The gp:
1. Crafting and selling magic items. Artificers have the ability to generate nigh-infinite wealth simply buy turning raw materials into magic items, and Nicholas was no exception.
2. Selling Walls of Iron/Salt.
3. Crafting a scroll of Wish and cast it to wish for 99,360,000gp. This was dangerous, but possible.
4. Using Planar Binding to compel an Efreeti to give Nicholas its wishes, and wishing for a scroll of Gate and two of Simulacrum. Repeating the process with Gate rather than Planar Binding 34,560 times would give him the scrolls he needs (note these are well within the bounds of a safe wish).
5. As 4, except Wishing for a Ring of Infinite Wishes. Then using 69,120 of those wishes for a scroll of Simulacrum each.
Nicholas settled on #1 as his first option because he believes in actual work (and not crashing the economy), and got the cash. He bought the powdered ruby, and was set.
The xp:
1. Ordinary adventuring. Having a Dedicated Wright means never having to spend time crafting again, so Nicholas could spend all his time earning xp if he wanted to. 212 levels would give Nicholas enough xp to craft his scrolls, and 232 levels * 13.3 encounters/level * 4 encounters/day = 772 days to get his xp.
2. More Simulacrums. A simulacrum of Nicholas costs 1,137.5gp, 1,091xp, and 1,000gp worth of powdered ruby. Ignoring money, which he could use the above tricks to obtain, that's 1091xp. Being level 10 means a simulacrum has 55,000xp. Nicholas could then order it to create scrolls of Transference (costing 1xp each) and give it to him, which he would then cast to get the required xp for crafting. 55000 - 1091 - (55000 - 1091)/(391 + 1) > 53771xp gained per simulacrum, meaning Nicholas needed 503 simulacrums to replace the xp loss.
3. Awaken Cheese. In case you aren't familiar with it, Nicholas could create scrolls of Awaken and Polymorph. He would then get a random druid/friend/simulacrum of himself (with a Limited Wish to make their next save) to start casting Awaken targetting him, and before the spell finished use Polymorph to turn into an animal. He would gain 2 HD worth of xp (43,000), randomize his Int (which he could repeat with more Awakenings until it was >= his original score), and get a +1d3 to Cha per casting. If the DM rules Nicholas has to be polymorphed the whole time, he could simply cast Persisted Polymorph from a staff. The result is that 116 castings of Awaken give Nicholas enough xp to craft his scrolls (and enough Cha to turn the gods into his fanatical followers and simply Alter Reality so that he has them).
Nicholas again chose #1, and 2 years later he was ready.
Then Nicholas used Magic Circle Against Evil, Dimensional Anchor, and Lesser Planar Binding to call a Nightmare. He compelled the creature to give him 69,120 hairs, then let it go. He used his scrolls of Simulacrum to create the 69,120 Nightmare clones, and ordered them to go frolick on the Astral Plane until needed on Christmas Eve. Then he took a day off.
Third, the sleighs and bags. 8 Nightmares can carry 2,400lbs as a light load, so either the sleigh or the present bags or both ought to be magical. A bag of holding type IV holds 250 cu. ft. of material. Assuming for the moment that each clone delivers a single toy to each of 11,576 children, that means 250 ft/bag / 11,576 toys/bag = 0.0216 ft/toy = 0.25 in/toy. So the only gifts Nicholas would be able to deliver are those little toys you get from the quarter-insert vending machines, and that's not good enough. 24 bags/sleigh would weigh 1,440 lbs and allow Nicholas to deliver gifts up to 6 cu. in. (which includes most toys, due to being skinnier). So Nicholas creates 207,360 bags of holding type IV using the same tricks to get money and xp as above. Then his elves/Dedicated Wrights create lightweight sleighs that are under 600lbs (allowing for a hefty Santa).
Finally, the clones. Rather than create a slew of simulacrums for this job, Nicholas recognizes the need for a skilled infiltrator to deliver presents and escape unnoticed. So he decides to create equal-level clones. He decides on Body Outside Body to do the job. A Staff of Persisted Body Outside Body, with each spell placed into the staff at 1/2 cost, CL20, costs 26,250gp, 2,100xp, and 20 days to create (thanks to Exceptional Artisan). 20 days to create means 18 staffs/year. But Nicholas gets 20 years on his demiplane for every 1 in Eberron, so he actually has time to create 360 staffs, using the same tricks for money and experience as above (although perhaps a different method, like getting Simulacrums to work for him). He creates a new batch of clones for each Christmas.
On Christmas Eve, Nicholas starts activating his staffs. Each activation costs 8 charges, meaning 6 activations @ 4 clones/cast = 24 clones/staff. 360 * 24 = 8,640 clones to fly out and deliver presents on Christmas Eve, with 8 Nightmares, 1 nonmagical sleigh, and 24 bags of holding filled to the brim with presents. Nicholas's elves give the clones instructions and maps for their routes. Then the Nightmares, who have already started casting Astral Projection while waiting for their simulacrum passenger to be summoned, complete their castings, begin their routes, and spend the entire night helping their Nicholas clone deliver presents. The next morning, after the BOB duration has expired, they return to the demiplane and are freed from their restraints. Then they return to the Astral Plane until next December.
Based on this source, the population of the world in 1350 was about 300 million people. Since D&D is based roughly around that time period, we'll use that as the population of Eberron.
According to this source, the life expectancy for people around this time was age 30, so we'll use that too and guess that about 10/30 = 1/3 of the population was under the age of 10 (in reality, it was probably more). Note that doesn't contradict the maximum ages listed in the SRD, it only says most people didn't reach them.
This source reports that most homes held a nuclear family of 2 parents and 2 children.
Finally, note that on a globe, it takes 24 hours for Christmas morning to travel around the world. So we'll assume we have 24 hours to visit every house. Now we have everything we need for our calculations.
300 million people/3 (children under 10) = 100 million
100 million children/2 (children per household) = 50 million
50 million/8640 clones = 5,788 houses/clone
14,400 rounds/day * 1 day / 5,788 houses/clone = 2 rounds/house for each clone.
That's just enough.
Round 1: The nightmares fly to the next house on their path and land. The Nicholas-clone uses a full-round action to grab the item at the top of the next bag in order, which happens to be a pair of toys tied together with string and made specifically for the house he's at because the elves stacked the bags exactly that way for exactly that purpose.
Round 2: The nightmares begin to fly away. The clone uses a move action to drop down the chimney, a free action to drop the gifts under the Christmas tree, and a move action to dart back up the chimney (which he can do thanks to Walk the Walls) and into the sleigh.
At the end of the night, as he disappears, he gives a cheer for another year's work completed.
Of course, Nicholas won't live forever (he's not an Elan), which leaves the question of who will run his operation after he's gone. He has several plans for this eventuality:
1. Use Awaken cheese to gain 20 extra HD and create an ECL 20 Simulacrum of himself.
2. Raise a child or apprentice to take up the mantle once he's gone.
3. Work some custom magic into his clothes so that anyone who puts them on will be suitably empowered to perform the job. Include instructions and clauses on a business card with writing so small that several high-powered microscopes are required to read it all.
Presents For Everybody - How St. Nicholas Is A Team Player
Playing Santa Claus (St. Nicholas In Your Campaign)SpoilerHe was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laugh'd when I saw him in spite of myself;
The Nightsong Infiltrator may be one of the most breakable rogue PrCs in the game. Most of its abilities stack with everything, including themselves, and in his adventuring days, St. Nicholas exploited this to its full effect. Nicholas's preferred method of group-work is with Extended Persisted Body Outside Body*. There are 113 5' squares in a sphere with 30' diameter, so that's how many clones fly in a pack. This synergizes perfectly with many of his class features, detailed below.
*None of these tricks actually require Body-Outside-Body clones, anyone with the same class abilities as Nicholas will work just as well. They're just used to show that Nicholas can pull these off by himself.
Trap-proof (Teamwork Trap Sense + clones)
Each group member gives all of the others +4 AC vs. traps, meaning Nicholas and each of his clones has AC 465 vs traps. They can literally walk through a dungeon without worrying about being attacked by traps. Of course, they'll still want to dodge.
Recycle Trap (Retain Essence + Detect Magic)
This one doesn't use clones. Detect Magic allows Nicholas to spot magical traps, which he can then disable with the Artificer's Retain Essence ability (if your DM allows it).
Breaking the Sound Barrier (Grant Move Action + clones + Break Away)
Grant Move Action provides a lot of potentially awesome abilities, including everything from "grab that thing and run for it!" to giving allies psuedo-pounce to pull off the next trick in 1 turn. Perhaps the most singly-powerful, though, is when Nicholas really wants to get somewhere. This time, Nicholas has a pack of 904 clones, a sphere with 30' radius, everyone has Fly active, and they just remembered they need to be 1/2 a mile away. Now. So the first person in iniative order grants everyone else a move action, which they immediately use to fly 60' away. Then he uses his move action to join them. The second person does the same thing, as does the third, and so on. Unfortunately, not everyone makes it there, as each time a clone in the shell between the 15' radius sphere and the 30' radius sphere uses Grant Move Action, a group of other clones in the sphere have to use it as well, just to keep up, resulting in only members of the original 113-person group actually reaching the goal with about 9 extra Move Action boosts on top of the ones they give each other.
The upshot of this is that St. Nicholas and a bunch of his clones are able to fly 7320' in one round. That's equivalent to 1220 ft/s, and since the speed of sound is only 1126 ft/s, the group creates a sonic boom. As far as I know, this makes St. Nicholas the second fastest build currently on record. To top it all off, since no one in the group does anything but move in that round, they all grant each other +4 dodge bonuses on top of their own +4 dodge bonuses, so that everyone in the group gets +8 AC against everything, like that pidgeon that came out of nowhere.
Murderfest (Teamwork Sneak Attack + clones)
This is Nicholas's signature ability, the reason people would have been terrified of him if he had gone evil (and some were anyway). At level 14, Nicholas gives each ally flanking the same enemy +1d6 Sneak Attack damage, and it specifically says it stacks with every other source, including other Nightsong Infiltrators' Teamwork Sneak Attack bonuses. This means if Nicholas and 7 clones surround an enemy, they all get +8d6 Sneak Attack. But Nicholas is also an artificer, and he can create staffs of Fly and Xorn Movement. That means his clones can also flank their enemy in the 9 spaces above and below it, for a total of 26 flankers, all granting each other +25d6 Sneak Attack damage on top of their class's 1d6. And at level 17, that rises to 2d6, meaning each individual flanker attacks for 52d6 Sneak Attack damage per hit. That's 1352d6 from sneak attack damage per group attack. Throw in Divine Power for 4 attacks per round (and remember that all these spells can be persisted once he hits level 18), and you've got 5408d6 damage from Sneak Attack alone. That's the minimum damage by creature size; Nicholas deals more against large or bigger creatures because they have more spaces to be flanked by. That's enough to drop any creature in the ELH you care to name, DR and all.
SpoilerHe spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And fill'd all the stockings; then turn'd with a jerk,
You may be curious, justifiably, why this section is in a TO showcase. First, in case you want to use St. Nicholas as an NPC. Second, as with most TO abilities, a DM can restrict them to prevent him from breaking the campaign.
As a high-level scout, information gatherer, and arcanist, St. Nicholas makes an excellent NPC for high-to-Epic-level campaigns, where he'll be ripe for abducting by the BBEG. And while the role of Santa would seem to be incompatible with being an adventurous PC, his life before taking on that role could include any number of interesting adventures or campaigns. While the TO tricks Nicholas pulls off probably won't be welcome in most campaigns, he is nevertheless a competent party member.
Nicholas's power scales up or down similar to a regular artificer's, but his scouting abilities/classes have to be factored in. If Nicholas gets all the benefits accorded to crafters (all item/spell sources, experience is a river, lots of crafting time, etc), then they make him slightly less powerful than a straight artificer. If, on the other hand, his crafting abilities are restricted, his mundane scouting abilities become more valuable.
Nicholas is primarily a scout, filling the role of the rogue with his ranks in Search and Disable Device, and secondarily a buffer, diviner, and secondary arcanist. He can find and disable traps with a straight 37 Search and 35 Disable Device. He can craft or infuse items and equipment to boost his allies' abilities. And he can create scrolls/staffs of any spell up to 8th level, or 9th with the right equipment (see Suggested Items above). That means at level 18 he can cast Persisted 9th-level spells from any spell list, and at level 20 boasts +32 to UMD, requiring only a Circlet of Persuasion and Cloak of Charisma +2 to auto-succeed on crafting 9th level scrolls/staffs, which he should have long-since crafted. With better equipment, he gets the same result earlier.
A note on prerequisites: Nicholas's Wizard level grants him alertness via a familiar, access to the wizard spell list, and the ability to activate arcane spell items without a UMD check. 0-level divinations and Shield are enough to qualify him for Divine Oracle and Abjurant Champion. Luckily for him, Nicholas is an elf, so he automatically has the required martial proficiency for Abjurant Champion. Then he uses the spellcasting features of both those classes to advance not his Wizard casting, but his Artificer CL and infusions. This gives him CL12 for crafting magic items at level 10, which increases to CL15 at level 13. Lastly, he meets the Evasion prerequisite of Nightsong Infiltrator via Divine Oracle's Prescient Sense (unless your DM doesn't allow that, in which case see Adaptations below).
Sweet-spot Snapshot*
Level 15: Artificer 4/Wizard 1/Artificer 1/Divine Oracle 1/Artificer 1/Divine Oracle 1/Abjurant Champion 1/Nightsong Infiltrator 5
Immediately upon entering the Nightsong Infiltrator class, Nicholas makes rapid improvements in his Hide and Move Silently skills, turning him into a fully-fledged scout. He also has auto-success for most tumble checks, and picks up Acrobatic Backstab for when a bit of extra flair is needed. By now, Nicholas has access to all of the tricks described in the previous section, and can craft items of 9th level spells on top of it. With the right preparation (which he gets thanks to his divinations), he can break into any place in Eberron. And thanks to Trackless Step, he can't be followed on the way out, which is good because some people don't like receiving coal for Christmas. In the cases where they catch Nicholas (which should be few and far between) Defensive Roll helps him as much as any other rogue, since he can more easily craft items that boost his Reflex save to keep it in step with a regular rogue's.
*I had written snapshots for levels 5, 10 and 20 as well, but after seeing how much text they took up I removed them out of pity for the judges.
Adaptations
What do you do if your DM doesn't allow Prescient Sense to be used to fulfill the Evasion for Nightsong Infiltrator? By RAW, Prescient Sense is a "form of evasion," so it should qualify. Nevertheless, if your DM still doesn't allow it, Nicholas has a few other options.
1. If your DM doesn't use multiclass penalties, rearrange the first 10 levels as Artificer 1/Cloistered Cleric 1/Artificer 3/Combat Medic 4/Abjurant Champion 1. This requires reallocating some skill points, but Nicholas has a few extra since he don't need Know(religion). Then rearrange his level 1-9 feats as: Combat Casting, Dodge, Practiced Spellcaster, Shape Soulmeld (Mage's Spectacles).
2. If your DM insists on multiclass penalties, Nicholas has to drop being a Gray Elf in favor of a race that has Favored Class: Cleric or Favored Soul. Then continue as 1.
3. Grab a Ring of Evasion.
4. Apply the Shadow template, which synergizes well with the build as a whole, despite losing 2 caster levels.
Also, using the Fractional BAB/Saves variant gives +2 BAB, +1 Fort, +1 Ref, +1 Will.
Build Sources
SpoilerAnd laying his finger aside of his nose
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose.
Complete Adventurer:
Nightsong Infiltrator
Complete Arcane:
Persistent Spell
Practiced Spellcaster
Complete Divine:
Divine Oracle
Complete Mage:
Abjurant Champion
Complete Scoundrel:
Acrobatic Backstab
Back On Your Feet
Corner Perch
Walk the Walls
Eberron Campaign Setting:
Extraordinary Artisan
Magic of Incarnum:
Shape Soulmeld
Tome of Battle: The Book Of Nine Swords:
Martial Study
All spells can be found in the PHB with the following three exceptions: Body Outside Body (Complete Arcane), Genesis (ELH), and Transference (PHBII).
And away they all flew, like the down of a thistle:
But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight —
Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night.
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2012-12-15, 07:29 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
I believe that's the last of them. Judges, I wish you good luck.
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2012-12-15, 07:34 PM (ISO 8601)Troll in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Missed my mark by about six minutes on my second entry... ah, well. I won't post it here until after judging is done because it's got a little overlap with another entry, and I don't want to inadvertently reveal which build isn't mine. Still, I've only scanned the entries thus far, but this looks like an awesome round!
Optimization Showcase in the Playground
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Shadowcaster Handbook
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GOLD
IC LXXVI: Talos
IC LXXV: Alphonse Louise Constant
IC XLIX: Babalon, Queen of Bones
IC XLV: Dead Mists
IC XL: Lycus Blackbeak
IC XXXIX: AM-1468
IC XXXV: Parsifal the Fool
IC XXX: Jal Filius
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2012-12-15, 08:00 PM (ISO 8601)Ogre in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Is Santa eligible for Honorable Mention? If so, that one gets my vote!
Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.
Proud member of the "I Love
Anyway" Club
Thank you, Ceika, so much for the avatar!
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2012-12-15, 08:12 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
All builds are eligible for HM. I generally make it a practice to give HM to a build that doesn't win another medal, so Santa may or may not qualify on that basis, as the judges see fit. Originally Posted by Kesnit
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2012-12-15, 08:19 PM (ISO 8601)Troll in the Playground
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- Where I live.
Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
I'm kinda sad that I wasn't able to wrangle my Knight 5/Nightsong Infiltrator 10/Dread Commando 5 build; that would have been awesome.
I'm back to playing videogames for the internet! Current games: Lenna's Inception and Alundra. Originally Posted by segtrfyhtfgj
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2012-12-15, 08:30 PM (ISO 8601)Troll in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
I'm actually surprised we didn't see at least one Dread Commando. It just screams synergy with Nightsong Infiltrator. Maybe it's another case of everyone dodging the obvious (although if so it was futile - we have some pretty funny and unexpected overlap this competition!). Although I'm curious; with your build, how do you pick up evasion? Impulse Boots? Originally Posted by Amechra
I began a write-up on a Survivor entry into the SI, and while it was fun, it couldn't actually do much without a lot of heavy cheese, so I scrapped it :POptimization Showcase in the Playground
Former projects:
Shadowcaster Handbook
Archer Build Compendium
Iron Chef Awards!
Spoiler
GOLD
IC LXXVI: Talos
IC LXXV: Alphonse Louise Constant
IC XLIX: Babalon, Queen of Bones
IC XLV: Dead Mists
IC XL: Lycus Blackbeak
IC XXXIX: AM-1468
IC XXXV: Parsifal the Fool
IC XXX: Jal Filius
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2012-12-15, 08:36 PM (ISO 8601)Troll in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
I think I dropped a few levels in something, and grabbed the Shadow Creature template.
It was a mechanical mess that would have gotten a negative amount in power, and I didn't have enough time to build...I'm back to playing videogames for the internet! Current games: Lenna's Inception and Alundra. Originally Posted by segtrfyhtfgj
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2012-12-15, 08:44 PM (ISO 8601)Halfling in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
The awkward moment when you realize game time is about 6 hours a head of your time.
Ah well, I don't need any trophies. Since it's after the reveal, I can blab about my crazy strategy?
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2012-12-15, 08:58 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
General strategy? Yup. As Piggy Knowles noted above, it's probably best to avoid posting a complete build, to avoid undue influence on the judges. Originally Posted by DangerDanger
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2012-12-15, 09:24 PM (ISO 8601)Halfling in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
I didn't end up entering, time zone fail. It looks like someone did something sort've similar.
General idea: Trickery Devotion + Turning. From there on, throwing in auras and/or maneuvers (white raven tactics).
I think you get the idea.
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2012-12-15, 09:48 PM (ISO 8601)Halfling in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
I think the math ended up like, the amount of "yous" you could make would be 2^(2+CHA/3+[extraturning feat and/or nightsticks bonus]/3)
more simply, 2^X, X being how many times you can actually make a clone
If X reaches 4, it's noticed.
Once X reaches 6, it's pretty broke.
Anything beyond 6 and your DM flips the table.Last edited by DangerDanger; 2012-12-15 at 09:49 PM.
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2012-12-15, 09:55 PM (ISO 8601)Dwarf in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
I submitted a build I am not happy with because formatting took waaaay too long. I should have gone with my first idea:
Cleric 3/Walker in the Waste 8/Nightsong Infiltrator 9. Apply the Shadow Creature Template to get the Evasion requirement, and use LA Buy Off to get the class levels I needed.
The idea was to have the Sand Golem to create cover for me, and use the Salt Mummy/Golem as teammates for flanking. Walker would have given me Desiccating Touch in addition to Sneak Attack, which would have been nice."What is Sanity? Madness put to good use. What is our waking life? A dream controlled."
-George Santayana
Spoiler
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2012-12-15, 10:14 PM (ISO 8601)Halfling in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Now imagine [I]f the Mummies were you giving your bonuses to you as you [give] your bonuses to you as you flank anything with [you] while you flank everything with you, getting bonus hits from you as you get bonus hits from you, all while walking around in [a] perpetual circle slapping your opponents around until the cycle ends only to be re-initiated by you standing a few feet away from you eating a [hamburger]. Originally Posted by Hunter Killer
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2012-12-15, 10:21 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Does the class require the entry get evasion from a class feature, or can any soulmelds, items, etc. that refer back to the class feature count?
Also, amusingly I was trying to put together a Santa Claus build of my own. Since it didn't work out, here I am in the judge's seat. I'm going to start reviewing the builds now, but we'll start here...
For ease of reference
- Erin Blackhand: Strongheart Halfling Ranger 4/Fighter 1/Master Thrower 2/Nightsong Infiltrator 10/Scorpion Wraith 3
- The Cockroach: Dark Skulk Factotum 3/Rogue 2/Nightsong Infiltrator 10/Hellbreaker 1
- Matthew Mara: Human Ranger 1/Monk 2/Master Inquisitive 2/Watch Detective 3/Nightsong Infiltrator 10/Vigilante 1/Urban Soul 1
- E Pluribus: Changeling Savant 4/Rogue 2/Chameleon 4/Nightsong Infiltrator 10
- Aredhel Melwasul: Wood Elf Rogue 3/Ranger 2/Barbarian 1/Revenant Blade 5/Nightsong Infiltrator 9
- The Twins: Dvati Rogue 3/Monk 2/Crusader 3/Fighter 2/Nightsong Infiltrator 10
- Deron Batar: Changeling Rogue 2/Factotum 3/Combat Trapsmith 5/Nightsong Infiltrator 10
- Lycus Blackbeak: Kenku Factotum 3/Totemist 2/Combat Trapsmith 5/Nightsong Infiltrator 10
- Santa: Gray Elf Artificer 6/Wizard 1/Divine Oracle 2/Abjurant Champion 1/Nightsong Infiltrator 10
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2012-12-15, 10:29 PM (ISO 8601)Troll in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Sadly, it's from class.
Which is why I dropped my build.I'm back to playing videogames for the internet! Current games: Lenna's Inception and Alundra. Originally Posted by segtrfyhtfgj
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2012-12-15, 10:36 PM (ISO 8601)Troll in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Tough to say. Some of those abilities say that you gain evasion "as the rogue class feature." Not sure if that counts or not. Might end up being a judge/DM call, unless there's been an official ruling somewhere that I don't know about. Originally Posted by OMG PONIES
Optimization Showcase in the Playground
Former projects:
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IC LXXVI: Talos
IC LXXV: Alphonse Louise Constant
IC XLIX: Babalon, Queen of Bones
IC XLV: Dead Mists
IC XL: Lycus Blackbeak
IC XXXIX: AM-1468
IC XXXV: Parsifal the Fool
IC XXX: Jal Filius
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2012-12-15, 10:46 PM (ISO 8601)Barbarian in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Edited for Anonymity
Last edited by IdleMuse; 2012-12-15 at 10:55 PM.
"Hex grids are the way forward! And slighty to the side..." - Studoku
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2012-12-15, 10:50 PM (ISO 8601)Firbolg in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
IdleMuse, please edit your response so as not to give away which build may be yours. Thank you.
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2012-12-15, 10:50 PM (ISO 8601)Troll in the Playground
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Re: Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground XL
Idle, I'd edit your post so that you don't reveal which build is yours.
EDIT: Ninja'd by the chairman.Last edited by Piggy Knowles; 2012-12-15 at 10:50 PM.
Optimization Showcase in the Playground
Former projects:
Shadowcaster Handbook
Archer Build Compendium
Iron Chef Awards!
Spoiler
GOLD
IC LXXVI: Talos
IC LXXV: Alphonse Louise Constant
IC XLIX: Babalon, Queen of Bones
IC XLV: Dead Mists
IC XL: Lycus Blackbeak
IC XXXIX: AM-1468
IC XXXV: Parsifal the Fool
IC XXX: Jal Filius
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