DM Nagging: It's pretty much my job

[Anastasia]

Ravaging Touch
Necromancy
Level: Sor/Wiz 10
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Touch
Targets: Creature touched
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Fortitude partial
Spell Resistance: Yes

With a touch you ravage your foe of their talents, leaving them weaker, slower, feebler, stupider, even uglier. The target suffers 2d4 points of ability drain to all six ability scores.

Eb, this is your spell, I believe. It says fort partial but I don't see any mention of how it works - be it halving or something else. Intentional or did I forget to paste something in transcribing it over?

[Iron Dragoon]

Post of inquiry about swapping around my Item Familiar from the scimitar it is to the Lifedrinker weapon I have; all the item familiar stuff would stay the same, it'd just migrate to the axe.

Edit: I went ahead and rewrote what it would end up as. The two properties for Shifting Steel (Anarchic, Transmuting) are +2 each. The total enchantment cost of adding them is +4 @ 32k, so the new price for it would be 72,320 and the total enchantment value (before the stuff given by Item Familiar) is +5, which lists 50k. 'Selling' shifting steel gives me the 50,015gp I put into its base cost back. This is enough to cover the additions, and then some. I didn't do any math for the Item Familiar stuff because the cost for those doesn't change. So if I pay the +4 cost, I get 18,015gp back. If I pay the +5 total cost, I get 15gp back. Either way, it ends up as below:

Life-drinker +1, 72,320gp: 1d12, x3 Crit, A +1 Greataxe that bestows two negative levels on damage, 1 day later DC 16 fort to lose a character level. Bestows one negative level on wielder on damage. In addition, it is also Anarchic and Transmuting. Anarchic: Chaos aligned, +2d6 damage vs. lawful alignment. Transmuting: 1 round after a successful hit, overcomes damage reduction.

Abilities:
Stats:
Int: 16
Wis: 12
Cha: 12
Level 1: Invest Life Energy, Invest Skill Ranks, Invest Spell Slots
Level 7: Sapience, Senses, Communication
Level 10: Special Ability (Ghost Touch, +1 bonus.)
Level 14: Special Ability (Improved Senses)
Level 18: Special Ability (Greater Senses)
Level 21: Special Ability (Increased Sapience)
Level 24: Special Ability (Bane: Aberrations, +1 Bonus)
Level 27: Special Ability (Bane: Outsiders, Evil, +1 Bonus)
Level 30: Special Ability (Bane: Undead, +1 Bonus)

After I add in the enchantment values for the Item Familar stuff, it's at a +9 value.

Now's also a good time to ask about Bane: all. I know you mentioned it exists somewhere, but I can't find it. If we swap stuff around and I can afford it, I'd want to add it and replace the +1 bonuses I have set as banes, and I already know what I'd want to replace them with: Lesser Power, (Bluff), Lesser Power (Intimidate), Lesser Power (Spellcraft). That is assuming it works with this:

"Whenever a character with an item familiar gains skill points, he may choose to put some or all of those skill points into his item familiar. He assigns the skill points normally, but notes that they now reside in the item familiar. For every 3 ranks he assigns to the item familiar, he gains a +1 bonus that he can apply to any single skill. This bonus can be applied to a skill in which he already has maximum ranks. He can apply multiple bonuses to the same skill, but he may not have more points of bonus in a skill than he has ranks."

If not, then I'll probably take Shattermantle, Binding, and Deadly Precision.

Edit 2: Found All-bane. It's +5, which is 50,000gp. Alyssa has 27,007gp right now. If she gets the 18k back, that puts her at 45,002gp. Assuming she gets 5k from the current adventure (as I'm assuming this won't happen until after it's done), she'll be able to do it. It'll bump the total enchantment value for the weapon to +11, since the Lesser Powers don't count as +1s. If they don't work out the way I want, then the other way will make it +14.

[Ebiris]

My first draft of it said Fort half on the saving throw line.

[Anastasia]

Ranbar's up. A few notes.

- Her empowerment and discussion about that as well as other things will happen when Seira returns from her latest adventure. So hold any horses until that happens. Relatedly, I don't mind recruiting someone barely known (Tryll's node is the big one here), but she'll need some time and character work before anything else as well. We'll see how that goes.

- This was a hard build. Not difficult in raw design, but in getting all the pieces together and hashing it all out. She adds a huge bonus with her inspirations between feats and perfectus, up to +19 when everything aligns just so. She'll be using inspiration constantly in battle, so expect her to spend her pile of it freely each battle. More than even Sylvie, she's hungry for inspiration points in battle.

- Spells will be polished up and adjusted later, as well as after her first combat mission. I could've spent another night or two on those, but fuck it, time to get her out and adjust with a clear head. This includes some suggestions Cor made to me, those will be dealt with another time. I just want her off my plate now, I was about at the point where working on her was becoming unproductive.

- Items are a little thin on purpose. Gear her up and/or get her gear adventuring. She mostly has numerical boosters for now.

[Anastasia]

Beyalhut Titans will be posted sometime this week, probably before the great computer building adventure. They're done except for wanting some flavor block writing, I'll do that tomorrow sometime.

[Anastasia]

156. Decide on army rules as needed.

Been looking at these behind the scenes, does anyone have any suggestions?

[Iron Dragoon]

156. Decide on army rules as needed.

Been looking at these behind the scenes, does anyone have any suggestions?

Depends on how simple or complex you want to make it. Maybe something like... Pick an average bonus for the unit roll, then a bonus for commanders, then a % roll for randomness?

Like: Average full strength platoon gives a +5 bonus. A commander gives a set or unique bonus. Say, +5. So a full company would be 4 platoons and 5 commanders (1 for each platoon and then 1 for the company commander). So +45 for the basic combat vs. rolls, then a d100 for some random combat event chance.

Company 1:

[blockquote]Rolled 1d20+45 : 14 + 45, total 59[/blockquote]

Comany 1 chance roll:

[blockquote]Rolled 1d100 : 62, total 62[/blockquote]

Company 2:

[blockquote]Rolled 1d20+45 : 15 + 45, total 60[/blockquote]

Company 2 chance roll:

[blockquote]Rolled 1d100 : 79, total 79[/blockquote]

The chance roll gives a tabled benefit, negative, or whatever you decide to set up.

[Corwin]

How does that give the PC any sort of chance to affect the outcome? To stand in for a npc commander for a +5?

[Iron Dragoon]

That's just generic. The PC would have whatever other bonus Dune wants.

[Corwin]

The whole thing of army rules, iirc, was to find a fun way for a PC (or named NPC with the PC contributing) to participate meaningfully in 'army battles' so that we could actually have them instead of cut scenes. Otherwise, it's either a drag more often than not, or the focus is only on you and your small party, which makes the whole 'army' scenery.

[Anastasia]

Going to come back to this army rules discussion later. I'm not in the right frame of mind for it right now after that mess of computer assembly.

---

Just posting to announce Beyalhut Titans are posted.

[Anastasia]

Post of inquiry about swapping around my Item Familiar from the scimitar it is to the Lifedrinker weapon I have; all the item familiar stuff would stay the same, it'd just migrate to the axe.

Edit: I went ahead and rewrote what it would end up as. The two properties for Shifting Steel (Anarchic, Transmuting) are +2 each. The total enchantment cost of adding them is +4 @ 32k, so the new price for it would be 72,320 and the total enchantment value (before the stuff given by Item Familiar) is +5, which lists 50k. 'Selling' shifting steel gives me the 50,015gp I put into its base cost back. This is enough to cover the additions, and then some. I didn't do any math for the Item Familiar stuff because the cost for those doesn't change. So if I pay the +4 cost, I get 18,015gp back. If I pay the +5 total cost, I get 15gp back. Either way, it ends up as below:

Life-drinker +1, 72,320gp: 1d12, x3 Crit, A +1 Greataxe that bestows two negative levels on damage, 1 day later DC 16 fort to lose a character level. Bestows one negative level on wielder on damage. In addition, it is also Anarchic and Transmuting. Anarchic: Chaos aligned, +2d6 damage vs. lawful alignment. Transmuting: 1 round after a successful hit, overcomes damage reduction.

Abilities:
Stats:
Int: 16
Wis: 12
Cha: 12
Level 1: Invest Life Energy, Invest Skill Ranks, Invest Spell Slots
Level 7: Sapience, Senses, Communication
Level 10: Special Ability (Ghost Touch, +1 bonus.)
Level 14: Special Ability (Improved Senses)
Level 18: Special Ability (Greater Senses)
Level 21: Special Ability (Increased Sapience)
Level 24: Special Ability (Bane: Aberrations, +1 Bonus)
Level 27: Special Ability (Bane: Outsiders, Evil, +1 Bonus)
Level 30: Special Ability (Bane: Undead, +1 Bonus)

After I add in the enchantment values for the Item Familar stuff, it's at a +9 value.

Now's also a good time to ask about Bane: all. I know you mentioned it exists somewhere, but I can't find it. If we swap stuff around and I can afford it, I'd want to add it and replace the +1 bonuses I have set as banes, and I already know what I'd want to replace them with: Lesser Power, (Bluff), Lesser Power (Intimidate), Lesser Power (Spellcraft). That is assuming it works with this:

"Whenever a character with an item familiar gains skill points, he may choose to put some or all of those skill points into his item familiar. He assigns the skill points normally, but notes that they now reside in the item familiar. For every 3 ranks he assigns to the item familiar, he gains a +1 bonus that he can apply to any single skill. This bonus can be applied to a skill in which he already has maximum ranks. He can apply multiple bonuses to the same skill, but he may not have more points of bonus in a skill than he has ranks."

If not, then I'll probably take Shattermantle, Binding, and Deadly Precision.

Edit 2: Found All-bane. It's +5, which is 50,000gp. Alyssa has 27,007gp right now. If she gets the 18k back, that puts her at 45,002gp. Assuming she gets 5k from the current adventure (as I'm assuming this won't happen until after it's done), she'll be able to do it. It'll bump the total enchantment value for the weapon to +11, since the Lesser Powers don't count as +1s. If they don't work out the way I want, then the other way will make it +14.

That all looks fine, Iddy, go do any relevant loot posting for it.

[Anastasia]

Giant Bees are posted over in C&M. Blame Eb for bringing back the memory of them from B1, I drudged up my old notes for them and polished them up.

[Iron Dragoon]

Tenacious Curse Dispelling
Abjuration
Level: Brd 8, Clr 8, Pal 8, Sor/Wiz 9
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Touch
Target: Creature or item touched
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Will negates (harmless)
Spell Resistance: Yes (harmless)
Tenacious curse dispelling targets a single curse effect and relentlessly attacks it. If you cast tenacious curse dispelling again before the end of your next turn, subsequent castings recieve a stacking +4 caster level bonus to the checks made to remove the curse. To gain this bonus, the caster must have identified a single curse on the subject, and the dispelling attempts can only target that curse. Casting tenacious curse dispelling on a new curse effect gains no caster level bonuses from previous castings.

[Anastasia]

Okay, lemme review remove curse. Usually curses simply require a certain level to dispel, making it caster level checks is more my style. So lemme rewrite it a bit to suit both of those better as well as lower the caster level some, as I feel you shot too high.

Tenacious Curse Dispelling
Abjuration
Level: Brd 6, Clr 6, Pal 6, Sor/Wiz 7

This spell functions as remove curse, but is more persistent. If you cast tenacious curse dispelling multiple times in a round on the same target, each casting gains a +4 bonus to the caster level for each previous time that round that you've cast this spell. For example, if you cast a quickened tenacious curse dispelling and then a normal tenacious curse dispelling, the second casting would gain a +4 bonus to the caster level. If you somehow cast it a third time in the same round, you would gain a +8 bonus.

---

It's an interesting idea mechanically as one person's unique spell to try and brute force curse removals. I'm sure the concept of 'cast same spell multiple times in a round, get big CL boost' could be abused, but I don't feel it's objectionable here. If I have any other objection, it's that the name of it sounds like something from Exalted rather than D&D. The -ing ending gives it a different feel than how most D&D spells are named.