Battleprayer [Archive] - Wizards Community

Battleprayer [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Tynk77
02-24-04, 07:59 AM I have been working on this one for a while, perfecting it and tweaking it to make it very role-play based. It seems too powerful, and very well could be.

I would love any constructive criticism anyone may have on how I can make it more balanced, or just what you think.

Battleprayer

Strike with faith and vengence...

A true exemplification of her god or goddess in combat, the Battleprayer carries her faith between her weapon and shield. Through martial training and walking the path of her diety, she carries a divine aura which protects and empowers those she fights along side of.

She herself is not lacking in battle prowess, weilding her diety's weapon to leathal ends and delivering swift death to those that threaten her worship. If ever a diety chose a champion, the Battleprayer bares the title humbly.
Hit Dice: d8

Requirements:
To qualify to become a Battleprayer, a character must meet the following criteria.

Alignment: Any Lawful or Good.
Base Attack Bonus: +5.
Consentration: 4 ranks.
Knowlege Religion: 8 ranks.
Speak Language: That associated with her diety.
Feats: Weapon Focus in the favored weapon of her diety.
Spellcasting: Ability to cast 1st-level divine spell. Also must belong to the War domain.

Class skills: The Batlleprayer's class skills (and key ability for each skill) are: Consentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Knowlege (Arcana) (Int), Knowlege (Religion) (Int), Profession (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int).

Skill points at each level: 2+inteligence modifier

LV _ BAB _ _ For Ref Wil _ Spell Prog. _ _Special
_1 _ +1 _ _ _ _+2 +0 +2 _ _ +1 existing _ Aura of Protection
_2 _ +2 _ _ _ _+3 +0 +3 _ _ ---------- _ Defensive Cast
_3 _ +3 _ _ _ _+3 +1 +3 _ _ +1 existing _ Bonus Feat
_4 _ +3 _ _ _ _+4 +1 +4 _ _ ---------- _ Weapon Mastery
_5 _ +4 _ _ _ _+4 +1 +4 _ _ +1 existing _ Wrathful Strike
_6 _ +5 _ _ _ _+5 +2 +5 _ _ ---------- _ Aura of Wrath
_7 _ +6 _ _ _ _+5 +2 +5 _ _ +1 existing _ Bonus Feat
_8 _ +6 _ _ _ _+6 +2 +6 _ _ ---------- _ Rightous Weapon
_9 _ +7 _ _ _ _+6 +3 +6 _ _ +1 existing _ Aura of Courage
10 _ +8 _ _ _ _+7 +3 +7 _ _ ---------- _ Champion of...

Class Features:

The following are the class features of the Battelprayer prestige class.

Weapon Proficiency: A Battleprayer is proficient with all simple weapons, all types of armor (light, medium, and heavy), and shields (except tower-shields).

Special Abilities:

~Aura of Protection: At 1stlevel a Battleprayer projects an aura of protection, granting all allys within 30' of her (but not herself) a +1 enhancement bonus to armor class and saves. This is an extraordinary ability.

~Defensive Cast: A 2nd-level Battleprayer has learned to better defend herself while casting divine magic. When casting defensively, she may add her wisdom-bonus to her armor-class as a deflection bonus if she succeeds at a consentration roll equal to 15+half the spell level of the divine spell she is casting. (This roll is the same roll for casting defensively). Failure to meet the increased DC results in loss of the spell, while failure to meet the DC: 15 casting defensively portion results in her drawing an attack of opportunity by those eligible to do so.

~Bonus Feat: At level 3 and level 7, the Battleprayer gain bonus feats selected from the fighter bonus feats list, with the exception of Weapon Specialization, Greater Weapon Focus, and Greater Weapon Specialization.

~Weapon Mastery: The martial training in her diety's favored weapon pays off, as the 4th level Battleprayer gains the Greater Weapon Focus in that weapon for free.

~Wrathful Strike: When faced with an enemy that clearly threatens the faith and way of the Battleprayer's diety (DM discreation weighed heavily), the vengence of her god or goddess finds a direct channel through the arm of her weapon. At 5th level she adds her wisdom bonus to all damage rolls against that enemy until he is slain, even if the enemy escapes to be met by her another day (so long as the enemy remains a threat). This is an extrodinary ability.

~Aura of Wrath: The aura of a 6th level Battleprayer is so strong that it empowers her allys attack to strike swifter and truer...granting them a +1 moral bonus to attack and damage rolls.

~Rightous Weapon: Upon reaching 8th level the Battleprayer can weild the weapon of her diety to great effect. In her hands, and weapon of that type is treated to have an additional +1 bonus of any type she chooses...and she may re-choose as a free action.

For example, Silvara weilds her +1 Flaming longsword as her diety's favored weapon. She decides to wield it as a +2 flaming unless she otherwise says so. In combat she is attacked by a fire-elemental, who is immune to fire. As a free action, she exchanges the bonus to turn the weapon from a +2 flaming into a +1 flaming, frost. Tragedy befalls her though and she looses her weapon. Luckily enough this was the sight of a recent war and looking around she dives out of the way of a viscious swing from the elemantal to grab a stray, non-magical longsword laying about. With her newly granted power she makes the sword temporarily a Longsword of Frost in her hands.

Rightous Weapon is an extraordinary ability.

~Aura of Courage: A 9th level Battleprayer's aura now instills courage to her allys, granting them half her Battleprayer's level as a moral bonus versus fear-like spells and effects. This is an extraodinary ability.

~Champion of... Insert god or goddess name at the end. The 10th level Battleprayer has assended to her diety's champion, and is no longer even considered a humanoid. She is now an extra-planar creature, an outsider for all purposes of magic and spells, although she may still be brought back from death normally. She gains the following benifits as well...

Damage Reduction 10/magic.

Spell Resistance equal to her Battleprayer's level plus 15.

Double radius of her Aura (to 60').

No longer suffers the effects of aging (but passes on normally when her time comes).

And her Rightous Weapon ability is now effective as a +2 modifier...usable in whatever way she chooses.
Ran
02-24-04, 08:59 AM 'lo Tynk.

Most important issue first: Wrathful Strike. I really don't like such abilities. It can be extremely powerful when it applies, but most of the time it'll be an arbitrary DM decision whether it does or not. There are other abilities which suffer from a like problem (you only get FE bonuses if your DM includes FEs in the campaign, and you don't get to turn/rebuke if there aren't any undead, etc.) but this is IMO worse. At least with those other abilities it's a clear-cut case. If you run into someone or something that such ability applies to, it's clear you get your bonuses or the option to use the ability. Whether or not someone 'threatens the faith and ways of the deity' is simply too vague a qualification for me.

I like the general flavour, but maybe you can clean a few things up a little:
- 3/4 BAB goes from +0 to +7 over 10 levels, not from +1 to +8.
- if you: have to follow a deity (with War as part of that deity's portfolio) and have to be able to cast 1st level divine spells and have to have WF in your deity's favoured weapon, you might as well simply say you need to be a cleric of a War deity. That takes care of those three in one go. It also means all the weapon and armour proficiencies you give the PrC ar already taken care of before you can even enter the PrC, so you might as well say the PrC doesn't give any extra proficiencies.
- I wouldn't increase caster levels every odd level, but every even one. As it is, there's very little reason not to take just one level in this PrC if you qualify anyway.

It probably is too powerful, yes (specifically the Righteous Weapon and 'Champion of' abilities). What adds to this are the relatively easy prereqs. The language thing is flavour only, so doesn't count for me. Alignment restrictions really aren't a sacrifice either. The only thing that can somewhat qualify as a real prereq are the K(Religion) ranks, and those aren't going to make a cleric suffer before he can get into the class. I think you could probably get away with keeping the abilities as they are without getting truly overpowered characters, but then you should heavily increase the prereqs, in a way that involves a bit more sacrifice on the character's part.
Tynk77
02-24-04, 01:56 PM Ran, I can always count on you to give an intelectual bit of advise to a somewhat ignorant player like myself. There is much I have to learn and you have helped me much in this endevour.

Thank-you. Look for adjustments to come tonight if you would like to follow it.

The concept may be simple, but the idea is in the exemplification of the god(ess)' weapon and aura. I couldn't think of pre-requisites to glorify this fact, but I will ponder it over a cup of Mocha and homework, then come back with a somewhat more focused idea of what I am going at, or more so how I am going about it.

Again Ran, your inpute is not only appreciated, but noted as rich in blunt honesty and keen observation. We need more of that as gamers.

~Tynk

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Tynk77 02-24-04, 07:59 AM	I have been working on this one for a while, perfecting it and tweaking it to make it very role-play based. It seems too powerful, and very well could be. I would love any constructive criticism anyone may have on how I can make it more balanced, or just what you think. Battleprayer Strike with faith and vengence... A true exemplification of her god or goddess in combat, the Battleprayer carries her faith between her weapon and shield. Through martial training and walking the path of her diety, she carries a divine aura which protects and empowers those she fights along side of. She herself is not lacking in battle prowess, weilding her diety's weapon to leathal ends and delivering swift death to those that threaten her worship. If ever a diety chose a champion, the Battleprayer bares the title humbly. Hit Dice: d8 Requirements: To qualify to become a Battleprayer, a character must meet the following criteria. Alignment: Any Lawful or Good. Base Attack Bonus: +5. Consentration: 4 ranks. Knowlege Religion: 8 ranks. Speak Language: That associated with her diety. Feats: Weapon Focus in the favored weapon of her diety. Spellcasting: Ability to cast 1st-level divine spell. Also must belong to the War domain. Class skills: The Batlleprayer's class skills (and key ability for each skill) are: Consentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Knowlege (Arcana) (Int), Knowlege (Religion) (Int), Profession (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int). Skill points at each level: 2+inteligence modifier LV _ BAB _ _ For Ref Wil _ Spell Prog. _ _Special _1 _ +1 _ _ _ _+2 +0 +2 _ _ +1 existing _ Aura of Protection _2 _ +2 _ _ _ _+3 +0 +3 _ _ ---------- _ Defensive Cast _3 _ +3 _ _ _ _+3 +1 +3 _ _ +1 existing _ Bonus Feat _4 _ +3 _ _ _ _+4 +1 +4 _ _ ---------- _ Weapon Mastery _5 _ +4 _ _ _ _+4 +1 +4 _ _ +1 existing _ Wrathful Strike _6 _ +5 _ _ _ _+5 +2 +5 _ _ ---------- _ Aura of Wrath _7 _ +6 _ _ _ _+5 +2 +5 _ _ +1 existing _ Bonus Feat _8 _ +6 _ _ _ _+6 +2 +6 _ _ ---------- _ Rightous Weapon _9 _ +7 _ _ _ _+6 +3 +6 _ _ +1 existing _ Aura of Courage 10 _ +8 _ _ _ _+7 +3 +7 _ _ ---------- _ Champion of... Class Features: The following are the class features of the Battelprayer prestige class. Weapon Proficiency: A Battleprayer is proficient with all simple weapons, all types of armor (light, medium, and heavy), and shields (except tower-shields). Special Abilities: ~Aura of Protection: At 1stlevel a Battleprayer projects an aura of protection, granting all allys within 30' of her (but not herself) a +1 enhancement bonus to armor class and saves. This is an extraordinary ability. ~Defensive Cast: A 2nd-level Battleprayer has learned to better defend herself while casting divine magic. When casting defensively, she may add her wisdom-bonus to her armor-class as a deflection bonus if she succeeds at a consentration roll equal to 15+half the spell level of the divine spell she is casting. (This roll is the same roll for casting defensively). Failure to meet the increased DC results in loss of the spell, while failure to meet the DC: 15 casting defensively portion results in her drawing an attack of opportunity by those eligible to do so. ~Bonus Feat: At level 3 and level 7, the Battleprayer gain bonus feats selected from the fighter bonus feats list, with the exception of Weapon Specialization, Greater Weapon Focus, and Greater Weapon Specialization. ~Weapon Mastery: The martial training in her diety's favored weapon pays off, as the 4th level Battleprayer gains the Greater Weapon Focus in that weapon for free. ~Wrathful Strike: When faced with an enemy that clearly threatens the faith and way of the Battleprayer's diety (DM discreation weighed heavily), the vengence of her god or goddess finds a direct channel through the arm of her weapon. At 5th level she adds her wisdom bonus to all damage rolls against that enemy until he is slain, even if the enemy escapes to be met by her another day (so long as the enemy remains a threat). This is an extrodinary ability. ~Aura of Wrath: The aura of a 6th level Battleprayer is so strong that it empowers her allys attack to strike swifter and truer...granting them a +1 moral bonus to attack and damage rolls. ~Rightous Weapon: Upon reaching 8th level the Battleprayer can weild the weapon of her diety to great effect. In her hands, and weapon of that type is treated to have an additional +1 bonus of any type she chooses...and she may re-choose as a free action. For example, Silvara weilds her +1 Flaming longsword as her diety's favored weapon. She decides to wield it as a +2 flaming unless she otherwise says so. In combat she is attacked by a fire-elemental, who is immune to fire. As a free action, she exchanges the bonus to turn the weapon from a +2 flaming into a +1 flaming, frost. Tragedy befalls her though and she looses her weapon. Luckily enough this was the sight of a recent war and looking around she dives out of the way of a viscious swing from the elemantal to grab a stray, non-magical longsword laying about. With her newly granted power she makes the sword temporarily a Longsword of Frost in her hands. Rightous Weapon is an extraordinary ability. ~Aura of Courage: A 9th level Battleprayer's aura now instills courage to her allys, granting them half her Battleprayer's level as a moral bonus versus fear-like spells and effects. This is an extraodinary ability. ~Champion of... Insert god or goddess name at the end. The 10th level Battleprayer has assended to her diety's champion, and is no longer even considered a humanoid. She is now an extra-planar creature, an outsider for all purposes of magic and spells, although she may still be brought back from death normally. She gains the following benifits as well... Damage Reduction 10/magic. Spell Resistance equal to her Battleprayer's level plus 15. Double radius of her Aura (to 60'). No longer suffers the effects of aging (but passes on normally when her time comes). And her Rightous Weapon ability is now effective as a +2 modifier...usable in whatever way she chooses.
Ran 02-24-04, 08:59 AM	'lo Tynk. Most important issue first: Wrathful Strike. I really don't like such abilities. It can be extremely powerful when it applies, but most of the time it'll be an arbitrary DM decision whether it does or not. There are other abilities which suffer from a like problem (you only get FE bonuses if your DM includes FEs in the campaign, and you don't get to turn/rebuke if there aren't any undead, etc.) but this is IMO worse. At least with those other abilities it's a clear-cut case. If you run into someone or something that such ability applies to, it's clear you get your bonuses or the option to use the ability. Whether or not someone 'threatens the faith and ways of the deity' is simply too vague a qualification for me. I like the general flavour, but maybe you can clean a few things up a little: - 3/4 BAB goes from +0 to +7 over 10 levels, not from +1 to +8. - if you: have to follow a deity (with War as part of that deity's portfolio) and have to be able to cast 1st level divine spells and have to have WF in your deity's favoured weapon, you might as well simply say you need to be a cleric of a War deity. That takes care of those three in one go. It also means all the weapon and armour proficiencies you give the PrC ar already taken care of before you can even enter the PrC, so you might as well say the PrC doesn't give any extra proficiencies. - I wouldn't increase caster levels every odd level, but every even one. As it is, there's very little reason not to take just one level in this PrC if you qualify anyway. It probably is too powerful, yes (specifically the Righteous Weapon and 'Champion of' abilities). What adds to this are the relatively easy prereqs. The language thing is flavour only, so doesn't count for me. Alignment restrictions really aren't a sacrifice either. The only thing that can somewhat qualify as a real prereq are the K(Religion) ranks, and those aren't going to make a cleric suffer before he can get into the class. I think you could probably get away with keeping the abilities as they are without getting truly overpowered characters, but then you should heavily increase the prereqs, in a way that involves a bit more sacrifice on the character's part.
Tynk77 02-24-04, 01:56 PM	Ran, I can always count on you to give an intelectual bit of advise to a somewhat ignorant player like myself. There is much I have to learn and you have helped me much in this endevour. Thank-you. Look for adjustments to come tonight if you would like to follow it. The concept may be simple, but the idea is in the exemplification of the god(ess)' weapon and aura. I couldn't think of pre-requisites to glorify this fact, but I will ponder it over a cup of Mocha and homework, then come back with a somewhat more focused idea of what I am going at, or more so how I am going about it. Again Ran, your inpute is not only appreciated, but noted as rich in blunt honesty and keen observation. We need more of that as gamers. ~Tynk