Villainous Competition VIII: The Weather Outside is Frightful

[Telonius]

Welcome to Round 8 of the Villainous Competition!

Previous Competitions
Round One: Leader of Armies
Round Two: Nature's Revenger
Round Three: Double Agent
Round Four: Grave Keeper
Round Five: Crime Lord
Round Six: Ultimate Predator
Round Seven: Wicked Witch


We're a little different than most of the optimization threads. We run on CR instead of ECL.

Contestants: You will need to present a write-up of your build with at least one of the following points: 5 CR, 10 CR 15CR, 20 CR, and a "sweet spot" that you feel is the high point of the build, as well as presenting a fully-fleshed out 20 CR build in the table below. Feel free to present as many of these as you like, and please give a rundown of the build's abilities and playability at all of the levels you didn't show. The rules are as follows:

Secret Laboratory: Competitors will be free to use any official 3.5 rulebook in constructing their builds. Dragon magazine is disallowed, and Unearthed Arcana is allowed; but see Elegance below. Web-exclusive 3.0 or 3.5 materials by WotC are expressly allowed, but take care to verify that an updated version did not appear in print elsewhere, as this may cause an Elegance deduction at the judges' discretion. Alternate rule systems from UA such as gestalt or Generic Classes are not allowed, as they create a different playing field. Item Familiars and Taint are also banned from the competition. We don’t want to make this too easy, do we?

Some monstrous characters can technically qualify for Epic feats as soon as their ECL is over 20. While regular Epic feats will be allowed, Epic Spellcasting and all other Epic feats that affect spells, psionic powers, or item creation are not permitted. Including these would give an unfair advantage over standard characters. For Incarnum characters, Epic Open Chakra feats are allowed; other Epic Incarnum feats are not. The Essentia Capacity increases for Epic capacity as described on p. 212. For all characters, please note that Racial Hitdice do not count towards Epic Progression; use the regular progression even if the BAB ends up higher than 20.

Contestants will have until 23:59 GMT Friday December 18th to create their builds and PM them to the Supreme Chancellor (yours truly, Telonius). Builds will then be posted simultaneously, to avoid copying. Judges will have until Sunday January 3rd to judge the builds and submit their scores.(This is a bit longer than usual, to accommodate the holidays). If no judges have scored by that point, only the scores of the first judge to submit will be counted.

Judging: Judging will be based on the following criteria, with each build rated on a scale from 1 (very poor) to 5 (exemplary) in each area: Originality, Build Elegance, Competence and Power, Memorable Villainy.

Keep these questions in mind when judging each category:
Originality - Is it unexpected?
Build Elegance - Is it mechanically pretty?
Competence and Power - Can it do what the concept asks of it? Is this a powerfully-built character?
Memorable Villainy - Is this a villain with style? Will it be the BBEG the players talk about for years to come?

Build Elegance: Fully monstrous builds are allowed, at no penalty. All class levels are to be added on as associated class levels. Amount of sources can be penalized, but obscurity of sources should not be penalized. Count the three Core books as one source. For this competition, Frostburn is a required component, and should be included with the Core books as a single source. Unearthed Arcana can be penalized for elegance if the specific feature seems unnecessary or makes the playing field unfair (In this case, you can give a 0 if it makes the field unfair.)
Power level is up to you. Cheese is acceptable, but should be kept to a sane level unless you're showcasing a new TO build you've discovered. As the Iron Chef competition states, a little cheddar can be nice, but avoid the mature Gruyere unless you're making a cheese fondue.


Presentation: Builds will be posted anonymously, in order to avoid the potential of bias towards a particular competitor. For this reason, please don't put your name in the build, as I'm likely to miss it when reviewing the entries!

Using the table below, the easiest way to use it is to go to the top left of the private message, and click the little a/A icon. It allows you to see what you're writing.
Due to concerns about standardizing entry format, I'd like everyone to try to use the following table for their entry.

Spoiler

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Level	Class	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Skills	Feats	Class Features
1st	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
2nd	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
3rd	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
4th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
5th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
6th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
7th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
8th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
9th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
10th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
11th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
12th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
13th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
14th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
15th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
16th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
17th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
18th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
19th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities
20th	New Class Level	+x	+x	+x	+x	Skills	Feats	New Class Abilities

Code immediately below (spoiler).

Spoiler

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[table="class: head alt1 alt2"]
[tr]
[th][B]Level[/B][/th]
[th][B]Class[/B][/th]
[th][B]Base Attack Bonus[/B][/th]
[th][B]Fort Save[/B][/th]
[th][B]Ref Save[/B][/th]
[th][B]Will Save[/B][/th]
[th][B]Skills[/B][/th]
[th][B]Feats[/B][/th]
[th][B]Class Features[/B][/th]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]1st[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]2nd[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]3rd[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]4th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]5th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]6th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]7th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]8th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]9th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]10th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]11th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]12th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]13th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]14th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]15th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]16th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]17th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]18th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]19th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]20th[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[/table]

You can use the below table for Spells.

Spoiler

Show

Spells per Day/Spells Known
Spells per Day/Spells Known

Level	0lvl	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th
1st	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
2nd	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
3rd	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
4th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
5th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
6th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
7th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
8th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
9th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
10th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
11th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
12th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
13th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
14th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
15th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
16th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
17th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
18th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
19th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
20th	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Code Immediately Below,

Spoiler

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[B]Spells per Day/Spells Known[/B]
[B]Spells per Day/Spells Known[/B]
[table="class:head alt1 alt2"]
[tr]
[th][B]Level[/B][/th]
[th][B]0lvl[/B][/th]
[th][B]1st[/B][/th]
[th][B]2nd[/B][/th]
[th][B]3rd[/B][/th]
[th][B]4th[/B][/th]
[th][B]5th[/B][/th]
[th][B]6th[/B][/th]
[th][B]7th[/B][/th]
[th][B]8th[/B][/th]
[th][B]9th[/B][/th]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]1st[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]2nd[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]3rd[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]4th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]5th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]6th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]7th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]8th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]9th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]10th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]11th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]12th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]13th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]14th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]15th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]16th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]17th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]18th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]19th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]20th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[/table]

Speculation: Please don’t post or speculate on possible builds until the reveal, in order to avoid spoiling the surprise if a particular competitor is producing a build along those lines.

Bundle up, cause it’s about to get chilly in here.
This edition’s villain is:

Master of the Tundra

In keeping with the season, we’re asking for a villain who’s at home in the icy wastes. Their heart is as cold as the land, and they strike dread in all who eke out their existence in the places warmth never reaches. This villain could be anything from a terrible beast to a person who’s given their being over to the ice. Exactly how you terrorize the Hyperborean reaches is up to you.

Limitations:

• Must have the Cold subtype. (The Ritual of the Elements in Savage Species is explicitly allowed for meeting this, and there doesn’t need to be anything in the backstory to justify meeting a 9th level Cleric; EDITED however, for the purposes of this competition it will come with a +1 CR).
• Must live in a very cold location.
• Must contain at least one item (race, feat, spell, prestige class, etc) from Frostburn in the build
• Must have some means of defending against Fire damage. This should go without saying, but we can’t make things too easy for the heroes.
• Must have an Evil alignment. No misunderstood snow queens, please; we’re looking for villains.

We will award 1st through 3rd places, and a possible Honorable Mention.


Use Elite Array instead of Normal Array, no Penalty on using Elite Array on a creature without any class levels.

Tips for submitting your entry, provided by Weaselguy:

- Use capitalization and punctuation, correctly.
- Make good use of Spoilers, for cleanliness.
- Don't forget your sources. If it's something that can be found in the contents section, then book title seems to be fine. Obscure stuff, may want to include page number too.
- DeviantArt has about 9 billion pictures that you can reference, I can almost guarantee you can find one there to fit your character.
- Make good use of tables. In addition to the Build table and the Spells table, I like doing on e for my Ability Scores, just to keep it neat.
- Do a build stub at the top of your Build Table, something like Wizard 2/Fighter 3/Abjurant Champion 5/Eldritch Knight 10

So, start your evil plotting!

To standardize Entries, please use this format when emailing it in:

PM: Telonius
Subject: Villainous Competition 8, Name of your Entry

For Revisions and disputes, do the same thing. It makes it easier for me finding the entries in my mail box.

More questions? PM me with Villainous Competition 8 Questions in the header.

[Amphetryon]

Vizzini and I have an idea we'll wrangle over.

[Telonius]

One special item for this contest: I'll be posting a build of my own (not for official judging) after I post the official contestants. (Assuming it's not too similar to any of the submitted builds, of course).

[AvatarVecna]

Are we allowed to rework racial feats/skill points? It's worth asking...

[sakuuya]

It finally got cold where I live, so this seems appropriate. I'm in to judge.

[Telonius]

Are we allowed to rework racial feats/skill points? It's worth asking...

Explicitly racial feats (marked with a ^B, such as Track^B and Weapon Finesse^B in the Badger entry) are set in stone. You can re-assign any feats and skill points the creature gets from hit dice, such as Agile (taking the Badger example), but be aware that the class skills are limited to the ones listed in the entries.

[Telonius]

From my inbox, a question about the order in which you apply templates. In general, if you're applying multiple templates to a base creature, you can choose to apply them in whichever order you want. However, be careful that each application of a template must be rules-legal, and that certain Types can over-ride others. The "Type pyramid" that describes this is in Savage Species, pages 142-143:
1. Animal, Humanoid, Vermin
2. Magical Beast, Monstrous Humanoid
3. Fey, Giant
4. Dragon, Humanoid (Shapechanger)
5. Aberration
6. Elemental, Ooze, Plant
7. Construct, Outsider, Undead

[ben-zayb]

Please tell me you did not just say Frostburn! I... [REDACTED]


1. What qualifies as defense against fire? Resistance and immunity? Simply high HP or reflex saves?
2. Would using too many FB materials this round merit an elegance hit?

[Troacctid]

The type pyramid is actually defunct--3.5 overhauled the creature type rules IIRC.

[Tarlek Flamehai]

My first time doing one of these, and I am a tad uncertain about the associated class rule. Does that mean any class is considered associated? For instance Barbarian on a Phaerimm? Or does it mean we can only use the class that seems most related to the racial abilities?

[Amphetryon]

My first time doing one of these, and I am a tad uncertain about the associated class rule. Does that mean any class is considered associated? For instance Barbarian on a Phaerimm? Or does it mean we can only use the class that seems most related to the racial abilities?

It means any Class is added as if it were an 'associated Class level,' regardless of whether it seems related to the Racial abilities. The rules for non-associated Class levels are relatively rife with abuse potential in this sort of contest, so they are ignored as a viable option.

[Telonius]

More from the inbox. There are certain official Wizards of the Coast monsters (mostly in the web articles) that were created using 3.0 rules, but never received an official update. If you're planning on using one of these creatures, please be aware that monster creation rules were significantly different back in 3.0, and the entries much less standardized.

For example, the only Types that have the same Skill point distribution as they do now were Dragons, Giants, Humanoids, and Outsiders. The other Types had either a set number of skill points (10-15 for animals, beasts, and vermin) or a number of skill points equal to the Int Score (yes, entire Int score, not just bonus) multiplied by 2 or 3, or no skill points at all. And just in case that was too simple, you would get a flat bonus to skill points for every extra hit die; except you used to get extra hit dice based on size, so you had to ignore those, unless you were also an elemental.

No, seriously:

*-EHD: Extra Hit Die. To calculate EHD for any creature other than an elemental, subtract 1 from the creature’s total Hit Dice if it is Medium-size or smaller; 2 if Large; 4 if Huge; 16 if Gargantuan; and 32 if Colossal. Treat results less than 0 as 0.

... Yeah, that's why we don't do it like that anymore.

Anyway, if you are using one of those creatures, just use the 3.5 rules for getting skill points: Int bonus plus Type bonus, times four for first HD.

The 3.0 entries also typically neglected to show which feats were racial bonus feats, and which were selected based on hit dice. This is a much trickier situation, since 3.0 tended to give out a lot more bonus feats (on the assumption that Monsters are DM-only things). To take an example that was updated, a 3.0 Pixie got the following feats at 1hd: Dodge, Point Blank Shot, Rapid Shot, Weapon Finesse (dagger), Weapon Focus (shortbow). None of them were marked as racial, and they're all just listed alphabetically.

I'd like to leave it up to the competitors which of the listed feats were actually the racial bonus feats, up to a certain limit. Would two racial bonus feats sound about fair in that situation? I think that's about as many as most 3.5 monsters ever get.

[Thurbane]

I have definite build in mind for this, we'll see if time allows me to get an entry in.

[Tarlek Flamehai]

Just to verify, a monster with a type other than humanoid and 1 or less racial hit die; still replaces it's racial HD with the HD of it's new character class?

And this creature's CR remains the same at it's first character level; the CR not advancing until the creature reaches it's second character class level?

[Telonius]

Generally, monsters that have their first level replaced by a class level will have that noted just above the stat block. For example, the Elf entry says that the example statblock is for a 1st-level Warrior. This is also the case for other creatures, like the Elan, that have types other than Humanoid. The "Monsters as Races" section creates a bit of confusion on that count by initially putting the rule under "Humanoids and Class Levels," but it restates the rule again under "Level Adjustment and Effective Character Level," which isn't limited to humanoids.

Elf has CR listed at 1/2 in the statblock. In standard D&D advancement, NPC levels always count as non-associated, and non-associated class levels only count for half a CR. However, in this contest, all levels count as associated; so whatever class you replace it with would give a CR of 1. (A Commoner20/Expert20, for example, would be breaking the contest rules even if it's technically CR 20). If you're starting with a creature that has a CR of more than 1 in the statblock (like a Pixie, for example), you would just replace the hit die and keep the same CR (4 or 5, for a Pixie, depending on whether or not you have irresistible dance). So if you took Pixie with no irresistible dance, and made him a Commoner at level one, it would have a CR of 4. At that point, you could also add on any templates you qualify for, and that might also affect the CR. So if you took that same Pixie and added the Half Dragon template, it would start out as CR 6. The next level it takes is Commoner, which would make it CR 7, and so on.

(I apologize if I just spoiled anybody's Half-Dragon Pixie character concept).

[sakuuya]

How does the Ritual of the Elements affect CR? It's got a listed LA of +1, but no listed CR adjustment I can find. Should we just assume it counts for +1 CR as well? That seems steep, but it makes sense for the purposes of this competition.

[Vaz]

Vizzini and I have an idea we'll wrangle over.

I think you are Vizziniing what I'm Vizziniing.

[Telonius]

How does the Ritual of the Elements affect CR? It's got a listed LA of +1, but no listed CR adjustment I can find. Should we just assume it counts for +1 CR as well? That seems steep, but it makes sense for the purposes of this competition.

Gah! Mixing up my CRs and LAs again. But yes, for the purposes of this competition, it will count as CR +1.

[Amphetryon]

I think you are Vizziniing what I'm Vizziniing.

I think so, Brain, but where are we going to find a sack race at this time of night? *poit*

[Tarlek Flamehai]

How do custom magic items affect scoring?

[Telonius]

I answered a similar question by PM, so I'll address it here.

The contest has typically glossed over equipment, unless there's something specific in the build that requires it (choosing a Weapon Focus, Kensai's signature weapon, etc). These are BBEGs were trying to design, so the DM can give them whatever treasure the DM wants to give them. Picking a magic item out of Frostburn to qualify for the "one thing from Frostburn" requirement would definitely be something you should note. If there's something else that the character really needs in order to function, you should probably list that somewhere. (Personally, in some of my submissions I've included a section on "Suggested items," for useful and thematic things). But otherwise, we're trying to compare builds, not skill at WBL-mancy. As long as it's not something really wacky or out of line (item of at-will True Strike, stuff like that), it should be okay.

[GreatWyrmGold]

No misunderstood snow queens, please...

This gives me a bit of an idea...I'm guessing misunderstood snow queens are fine if the misunderstanding comes from them being more villainous than was believed?

Quick question—are there templates or something other than Savage Species's Ritual of the Elements and Frostburn's Ice Beast template which can grant the (Cold) subtype? Also, can the protection against fire simply be a magic item, or does it need to be innate (e.g, a spell or special quality)?

[zergling.exe]

This gives me a bit of an idea...I'm guessing misunderstood snow queens are fine if the misunderstanding comes from them being more villainous than was believed?

Quick question—are there templates or something other than Savage Species's Ritual of the Elements and Frostburn's Ice Beast template which can grant the (Cold) subtype? Also, can the protection against fire simply be a magic item, or does it need to be innate (e.g, a spell or special quality)?

Mantle of the icy soul from Frostburn (not the one in the SpC) is an instantaneous granting of the cold subtype for 2000 xp. The SpC version is hours/level instead. Would the original version from Frostburn be allowed to qualify for both the Cold subtype requirement and the one component from Frostburn?

[AvatarVecna]

This gives me a bit of an idea...I'm guessing misunderstood snow queens are fine if the misunderstanding comes from them being more villainous than was believed?

Quick question—are there templates or something other than Savage Species's Ritual of the Elements and Frostburn's Ice Beast template which can grant the (Cold) subtype? Also, can the protection against fire simply be a magic item, or does it need to be innate (e.g, a spell or special quality)?

IIRC Half-White Dragon does, but I'm only like 40% sure of that. I'll go check...

EDIT: Huh. No, no it doesn't. Nevermind...

[ben-zayb]

^^^ I can think of one more method, but that might be counted as speculation.

[GreatWyrmGold]

^^^ I can think of one more method, but that might be counted as speculation.

Seriously? Helping someone understand how to complete one of the requirements might be against the rules? Right now, the options I see are to use a dull, inefficient ritual or to use one of the small handful of monsters which natively have the (Cold) template.

[Telonius]

This gives me a bit of an idea...I'm guessing misunderstood snow queens are fine if the misunderstanding comes from them being more villainous than was believed?

Absolutely.

Quick question—are there templates or something other than Savage Species's Ritual of the Elements and Frostburn's Ice Beast template which can grant the (Cold) subtype? Also, can the protection against fire simply be a magic item, or does it need to be innate (e.g, a spell or special quality)?

There are a few Prestige Classes that (explicitly or potentially) allow a character to gain the Cold subtype, usually as a capstone. Several spells do so (at least temporarily) as well. Another template in Frostburn grants it, too.

Protection against fire could be either a magic item or innate. The idea is, basically, make it so the party can't just pull out a maximized Energy Substituted Cone of Fire and melt your BBEG in a single round.

[GreatWyrmGold]

There are a few Prestige Classes that (explicitly or potentially) allow a character to gain the Cold subtype, usually as a capstone. Several spells do so (at least temporarily) as well.

Would you happen to know what or where they are? I found the Frost Mage and Winterhaunt of Iborighu, but the former only helps mages and the latter restricts concepts significantly.

Another template in Frostburn grants it, too.

Are you sure about that? The only templates I found were Spirit Animal (not good for villains and doesn't even give the (Cold) subtype) and the aforementioned Ice Beast (which makes a mindless construct). I suppose I could make an incarnate Ice Beast, but that seems clunky and heavily restricts background options.

[Telonius]

Huh, could have sworn it was there - but it appears it's actually in Fiend Folio.

For the rest, it's the competitors' job to find and put together obscure things into surprising combinations.

[GreatWyrmGold]

Huh, could have sworn it was there - but it appears it's actually in Fiend Folio.

The wendigo template? That strikes me as less useful for making villains and more useful for monsters.

I'm starting to question the Cold subtype requirement...I'm finding that figuring out how to get that and justify it is turning into a major part of my character's background.