Timewaster's Guide Archive
Games => Role-Playing Games => Topic started by: Eagle Prince on November 25, 2004, 07:51:08 AM
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Maybe I'm just into fighters more, but so far I don't like it as much as Complete Warrior. What I've checked out so far is really well done though, none of the prestige classes are boring and they got some pretty balanced versions of the spontaneous metamagic feats. The 3 new base classes are interesting, the Warlock uses incantations instead of spells. Blood Magus prestige class was upped in power to match the stiff prerequisites (namely you have to die and be brought back, which would usually mean you'd need to lose a level to enter it). There is a summon familar feat that lets you get a familar and count all arcane caster levels as sor/wiz levels for its strength. Another prestige class lets bards advance bardic music and eventually gain 9th level sorcerer spells.
One new prestige class that caught my eye was the Green Star Adept. Once each generation, the comet Alhazarde- the legendary green star- visits the night skies, and strange stuff happens. This lasts for about a week, and parts of the comet fall off and their starmetal can be collected and brewed into a potion. It costs 1000 gp to prepare, and the Green Star Adept must consume one once per level, making it a quite costly prestige class. You gain none of the class benefits when you level until you have consumed another elixer. Eventually the class turns you into a green statue of yourself and you become the construct type.
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a construct player sounds cool. I love it when the balance issues have a real application in the game. You have to go on missions to level? You could have tons more experience than your level, cuz you need to do something first.
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Well not so much a mission, you just need the elixer. but I guess if you didn't have any starmetal, then it might be hard to find some (since the comet only passes by once per generation... although once you finish the PrC, you gain timeless body *and* never will die of old age).
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see, a good GM will make you go on an adventure for that.
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Good, or mean. ;D
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i didn't realize there was a difference.
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Careful EP, your giving me ideas.
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So now you have to adventure to earn the XP to level, then adventure again to gain the benefits of leveling. :(
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Sounds like fun right?
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heh heh, depends what character I'm playing.
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What will be even better is when you finally complete your quest to level, you will die and lose a level.
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Yeah I spent a bit more time reading the book. The new Warlock class has incantations instead of spells, these are basically spell-like abilities usable at will. Although he only gets about 12 of them total, but can spend feats to learn more (1 per feat).
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Is he able to change them? Or is it a one time deal type of thing?
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Every time they learn a new incantation, they can change out an old one for something else.
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With the starmetal quest idea-thing, it'd be interesting to see a campaign where *all* the PCs needed to obtain/do something to progress further in their advancement. That might mean making a wide variety of 'starmetal' classes, but it's still an interesting concept.
I took a look at Complete Arcane down at a game shop, and I was pleased by the additional attention that Abjuration specifically and the Dispel Magic subgame got. My roleplaying group already knows that I'm a fan of Abjuration. :D
Specifically, we're now seeing classes that carry bonuses to resist being dispelled (indicating that someone thinks it should be happening) as well as additional magic-dispel-like spells for a mage to play with. There are some new spells that actually penalize an opponent for having active spell effects on them, including a high-level spell that can actually steal buffs off one creature and give them to the one who cast the spell.
The Initiate of the Sevenfold Veil was also a cool Abjurer-ish PrC (finally). Very cool.
I didn't take an extensive look at the rest, but there were some other random things that looked pretty neat to me as well.
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How does this compare to the old Tomes and Blood? Other than the Blood Magus, does it revamp any of the PrCs? etc.
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Yeah, it tweaks the Fatespinner, among othes, turning it into a five level class and kind of nerfing the whole Spin thing altogether, as well as Seal Fate- what used to be save vs. Fort or die is now Save vs Fort or get +10 and/or -10 on saves. For the round that you use it in. That's it. Hope someone else brought a wand...
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The Fatespinner looked like a cleaner implementation, however. If you're looking for Tome and Blood updates, they also redid the Elemental Savant, which lost some DC improvements along with the new lower-DC theme of the 3.5 rules. Geomancer was reprinted as well if memory serves, but I didn't take the time to look into it. If that's not in Complete Arcane, look in Complete Divine, where you can also locate a trippy new True Necromancer class with 14 levels.
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The new True Necromancer is in Libris Mortis (original was in Tome and Blood), new Geomancer is in Complete Divine (original was in Masters of the Wild), and Complete Arcane has "Geometer" which is about using magical symbols and glyphs in your spells. They get glyph of warding and greater glyph of warding as arcane spells (I believe they are normally cleric spells), draw spellglyph ability which replaces the normal material components and adds the Silent Spell to it, but it costs money to make the glyph. They can also scribe any spell into 1 page, which saves space and gold in your spellbook.
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Oops, that's right. That's what comes from trying to comment without being able to look at the books I guess.
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Mage of the Arcane Order is exactly the same, even the flavor text. Alcolyte of the Skin is weaker but easier prequisites, same with Elemental Savant. Wayfarer Guide is also a lot the same, main change is it loses the feat requirements.
Mindbender loses a caster level, but gains a +2 and then a +4 bonus to caster level when using enchantments, and their competence bonus is now 1/2 class level to all skills instead of chosing which gets the bonuses. Their supernatural dominate ability is now spell-like, but gets their primary caster attribute modifier to the DC. Same for Mindread and Friends Forever (renamed Eternal Charm, and the 2 creature limit is now changed to 1 at 4th, 2 at 6th, 3 at 8th, 4 at tenth). Might be a few other changes if I really went through it.
Pale Master from Tome and Blood can be found in Libris Mortis, not Complete Arcane. The revision is much better, for example getting 9 caster levels instead of 5 and improved touch attack DCs based on ability modifiers. Spellsword is also quite a bit better (namely because of the full BAB progression) and can be found in Complete Warrior. Dragon Disciple and Arcane Trickster are in the new DMG obviously, Candle Caster does not make a return, and Alienist is in Complete Arcane and the more important changes are tougher prerequisitse and heavier penalties.
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Just as a footnote, I despise the Arcane Trickster. The concept makes me want to pound nails through my eyes.
I am still in disbelief such a horrible PrC actually made it into the DMG. Grrrr....