Min maxing and customization

[Curelomosaurus]

Pretty simple: I'm trying to put together a list of character options that a) don't require feats, class levels, WBL, or other character resources, and b) provide a benefit (like a feat) in exchange for a drawback. For example, taking taint/flaws for bonus feats, getting traits, etc.

[gijoemike]

Maybe narrow down the request a bit. It is pretty broad especially if you have access to all possible splat books, magazines, etc

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Pretty simple: I'm trying to put together a list of min-maxable things that give a bonus and a penalty and are free to add on to a character, like flaws, taint, and traits. Any ideas?

Well, I mean, there are lots of things that are "practically free" when compared to the way you're "supposed to" do things.

Like if you're a spellcaster, you can build yourself a stronghold for pretty much nothing (just some very cheap spells, summons, and so on), whereas a muggle has to pay millions of gp for the same.

Or, if you've got access to buffs, debuffs, and calling spells, you can get free wishes if you set yourself up for it. This gives you +5 to all stats and lots of 25,000 gp items (or 25,000 gp to put toward buying magic items).

In fact, there are lots of other monsters you can summon, call, or create that do really valuable things using their own action economy. Summoning a celestial unicorn for "free" cure spells is another example. Or using planar binding on a nightmare (the My Little Hellpony one in the MMI) to cast astral projection for free. And if you don't want to risk ticking off a (potentially evil) planar being, make sure to use [Shadow] versions of those spells. That way you're creating them from shadowstuff, not pulling in real creatures with actual thoughts and opinions on whether you should benefit from their hard-won magical experience.

Or if you have some dedicated wrights, you can use one to craft magic items, while the others craft masterwork stuff and alchemical items. This mainly frees up your valuable time, although you can also use it to make money from crafting art items at 1/3 the market price.

Or if you stack very cheap weapon augment crystal effects (from the Magic Item Compendium) onto a single weapon crystal, you can get a ton of +1 weapon effects for cheap, and none of them count against your weapon's magic enhancements. (To the point where you can get the equivalent of an epic item very, very cheaply.)

You can use cheap alchemical items in place of expensive magic items for similar effect. Like, there's a 10 gp alchemical item that sheds light like a torch, and you're supposed to lob it at undead to blind and burn them, which destroys the item. You know what else sheds light like a torch? A 110 gp everburning torch. You just got an everburning torch for "practically" free.

Shapesand (Darude Sandstorm) gets you tons of items and tools for no additional charge.

Chaos flasks (Planar Handbook) are cheap and can be used to create almost anything.

A +1 aptitude/sizing/morphing/metalline arrow with a few all-purpose enhancements can get you almost any weapon you want for 1/50 the normal cost of a regular weapon. As well as tools such as adamantine quarterstaves the size and shape of a pillar to hold up a collapsing roof, as an example.

An extra-large spell component pouch nets you tons of fun items, tools, and even food, so long as they're cheap and can be proven to be spell components. Take the tiny tarts used for Tasha's hideous laughter. Tarts are food. You can eat food. And a spell component pouch contains infinite food as a result.

If you take one or more of the following: the Landlord feat, Item Familiar feat, and/or the Ancestral Relic feat, you can get a lot of "free" money for the cost of each feat you use. (Which can be used to get more feats to replace them with, if you use the money they give you on magic item effects that grant feats.) Landlord in particular is fantastic for this, given how much money it gives you. Just make sure the "stronghold" it counts toward is a magic item that could be considered something you could live in and apply the Landlord money toward more magic item effects. I'm a big fan of the psychoactive skin of proteus for this. Summon, call, or create a critter, have it wear it and turn into a building (since it can turn the wearer into an object), and go from there. Feel free to sacrifice others' buildings (such as the evil cult's tower), traps, free-standing spell effects, wards, et al to your Ancestral Relic magic item. That way you're not using your loot for that and are instead destroying someone else's property.

There's lots more, and not all of it is actually free, but jumping through a few minor hoops (like the "money-from-a-feat-to-get-more-feats" example) end up being practically free. Or so cheap that it's definitely worth it.

[reddir]

Well, I mean, there are lots of things that are "practically free" when compared to the way you're "supposed to" do things.
...
There's lots more, and not all of it is actually free, but jumping through a few minor hoops (like the "money-from-a-feat-to-get-more-feats" example) end up being practically free. Or so cheap that it's definitely worth it.

Wow! Much of this is new to me, and pretty cool.

[Curelomosaurus]

Apologies for the confusion, I phrased my question poorly.

I'm looking for character options (not items) that do not require character resources and provide a bonus in exchange for a penalty. For example, flaws and traits. I'll clarify in the OP. Apologies!

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Apologies for the confusion, I phrased my question poorly.

I'm looking for character options (not items) that do not require character resources and provide a bonus in exchange for a penalty. For example, flaws and traits. I'll clarify in the OP. Apologies!

Everything costs "character resources" in one way or another.

If the DM allows flaws, your resources are the number of flaws you gain, the opportunity costs of choosing one over another, and the penalties the flaws themselves force upon you.

There are tons of spells that give you fantastic boosts, oftentimes for little to no overt cost, but they cost daily resources, even if the effects are permanent.

Even taking a feat that gives you monetary resources that you can spend to buy multiple other feats to replace it costs that one feat.

[PoeticallyPsyco]

The Book of Vile Darkness has character traits like addictions, masochism, and sadism. Masochism I remember gives some benefits for resisting pain, at the cost of starting combats with less HP due to self-inflicted wounds (these are intended for NPCs, but can probably be generalized pretty well to PCs).

[Particle_Man]

Your race would be one such. Any +0 LA template would be another.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Your race would be one such. Any +0 LA template would be another.

Dragonborn is a great template.

...for warforged. Rarely is it very good for anything else.

[ShurikVch]

Book of Vile Darkness, Chapter 2, Lingering Effects of Evil:

DARKNESS LIKE THE WORLD HAS NEVER SEEN BEFORE
Creatures: Severe psychological trauma and physical changes are likely in the wake of such powerful evil. Possible changes include the following.
• Creature has a faint greenish glow.
• Creature is sickened.
• Creature takes a –2 inherent penalty to one ability score.
• Creature's touch causes minor pain, dealing 1 point of damage.
• Animals avoid the presence of the creature if possible.
• Creature gains Evil Brand as a bonus feat, whether desired or not.
• Creature is horribly mutated physically, gaining Willing Deformity as a bonus feat.
• Creature's blood becomes acidic; it is immune to damage from its own blood.
• Creature's body breaks out in boils that ooze poison.
• Creature gains the corrupted template

Just write such event into the backstory of your character...


Drow, Duergar, and Planetouched characters are could be LA +0 via "Lesser" variant from Player's Guide to Faerûn (especially Planetouched - because they don't lose anything except Type)


About the +0 templates: Dragon Compendium have some without listed LA (thus, technically, +0); while usually it's regarded as "clear oversight, should fix...", official Dragon Compendium errata don't touches LA, thus - by the RAW all the templates are still legally +0

The Shackled City Adventure Path have Tarterian Creature template - which is, while strong, is +0 - on the same logic as above

Demon Lord template in Dragon #359 is +0 too - on the same logic - but required CR 22...


Overall, possible tricks also depend on available sources
For example, Call of Cthulhu d20 have "Profession Templates" - extra 12 class skills for no extra cost
Midnight campaign setting have such thing as "Heroic Paths" - it's kinda like Bloodline, except you get something at every level from 1 to 20, and completely free (say "Dragonblooded" gives you, among other things, extra "Spells Known" - even those your PC can't cast yet; or "Giantblooded" - at 10th level makes your PC Large)

[StevenC21]

No LA listed is LA -, NOT LA +0.

Incredibly important distinction.

[ShurikVch]

No LA listed is LA -, NOT LA +0.

Incredibly important distinction.

Only for creatures - not for templates

[Zaq]

Maxi speaks truth. There's no free lunch, and everything that's allowed has an opportunity cost. Even so, let's continue.

Are affiliations similar to what you're looking for? Many are in Complete Champion, there's at least one in Dragon Magic, and I wouldn't be surprised if there's another couple lurking somewhere obscure.

Basically you get points based on certain criteria, but since the criteria are flexible and, depending on the specific affiliation in question, there's a good chance that you might have spent those particular levels/skills/feats anyway, they can be considered to be semi-free (or at least usually quite low-cost, though many of them do require a periodic expenditure of gold).

(A twisted version of that would be the martial arts styles--mostly found in Oriental Adventures, with a single one in Tome of Magic--that give you an automatic benefit once you meet the prereqs, meaning that if you just happen to meet the prereqs anyway then they're "free." But since the prereqs are usually bizarre and onerous, usually requiring five or more feats that often aren't especially good, that's not really accurate to call them "free" since no one would stumble into qualification by accident.)

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Taking a level in most classes gives you benefits that most people aren't aware of. Taking a level in anything but wizard, sorcerer, and monk grants various Armor and Shield Proficiency feats, which are, RAW, entirely separate from class-granted proficiencies.

So take a level of psion, and you gain the Light Armor Proficiency feat, despite the class not granting the proficiency itself.

This can be used with the Dark Chaos Feat Shuffle (DCFS) to net you bonus feats without ruining your normal class-granted proficiencies. The same goes for taking kobold as your race; note the bonus feats listed there. "Weapon Proficiency: Kobolds receive the Martial Weapon Proficiency feats for the heavy pick and light pick as bonus feats." So if you have a class that grants all martial weapon proficiencies, or you don't care about using picks (and nobody does, because they're terrible), there're a couple more feats for you. It just costs you a level and/or race, as well as the resources spent for a DCFS.

And if you're a cleric with the War domain (or Metal, or a few others), you gain bonus feats. If you'd rather use the granted feats as DCFS fodder rather than the benefits granted by other domains, that's perfectly fine.

[Curelomosaurus]

Are affiliations similar to what you're looking for? Many are in Complete Champion, there's at least one in Dragon Magic, and I wouldn't be surprised if there's another couple lurking somewhere obscure.

Basically you get points based on certain criteria, but since the criteria are flexible and, depending on the specific affiliation in question, there's a good chance that you might have spent those particular levels/skills/feats anyway, they can be considered to be semi-free (or at least usually quite low-cost, though many of them do require a periodic expenditure of gold).

Ooh, good one. Aren't there also guilds, churches, and houses you can join in Cityscape that do similar stuff?

[flappeercraft]

Worshipping Elder Evils (book of the same name) gives you extra feats but if you're a cleric, they don't grant spells, and they also want to destroy the world, yourself included.

Faustian Pacts (Fiendish Codex 2 maybe?) can give a few benefits but take your soul

Some magical locations (such as the Otyugh Hole) can give feats and whatnot. They do have GP equivalencies on value though so less loot.

Killing an Aleax (BoED) of yourself gives you a couple minor bonuses but to get one of these sent against you requires pissing off a deity.

[ShurikVch]

The "Starcasters" article (Dragon #340) have several backgrounds for various mages
It's nothing major (like +1 save vs death and 20% chance to stabilize at the cost of -2 to initiative), but otherwise - literally free

[DeTess]

A rather specific one, but sorcerer's can make dragonpacts (dragon magic, page 87). These do cost some gold, but not massive amounts, and allow them to exchange a spell-slot for a number of SLA's by negotiating with a dragon.

[ZamielVanWeber]

Dragonborn is a great template.

...for warforged. Rarely is it very good for anything else.

Dragon Magazine's declining human is also an excellent candidate for dragonborn. You lose literally nothing (well... 100gp) for everything dragon born gives and a +2 to the stat of your choosing.

[Tvtyrant]

Otyugh Hole and one of a variety of ways to shuffle it into free feats would probably count. Turning into a Barghest and eating people for free stat and HD boosts, making a deal with a Genie or Devil for wishes. If you mean out of game there are Skill Tricks which let you spend skill points on abilities.

Double True Polymorph to get a permanent body, or Magic Jar to steal one.

[Endarire]

Getting long-term minions who can use SLAs like wish for the cost of a spell slot or two and a skill check seems like it counts. (Planar binding series.)

[Bullet06320]

And if you're a cleric with the War domain (or Metal, or a few others), you gain bonus feats. If you'd rather use the granted feats as DCFS fodder rather than the benefits granted by other domains, that's perfectly fine.

some domains also give skills as class skills

the dead levels articles add stuff to base classes
http://archive.wizards.com/default.a.../cwc/20061013a
http://archive.wizards.com/default.a.../cwc/20070227x

look at variant classes from Unearthed arcana, dragon mag and other sources to better tailor a class to your needs

players guide to faerun has character regions which give some automatic and bonus languages and even free equiptment

some paladan and monk orders let your freely multiclass with certain other classes