Post/Author/DateTime	Post
schlemoc 05-10-04, 11:53 AM	i am currently a level 5 barbarian. around level 12 my gm told me that i am going to be bit by a rabid dire bear so then i will become a lycanthrope. what classes/prc should i be taking? what would be the best combo to utilize the bear/fury ideas but also able to hold their own without using that? thanks!
Salla 05-10-04, 12:31 PM	... Uh, if you get bitten by a rabid dire bear, you don't get lycanthropy, you get rabies.
schlemoc 05-10-04, 12:42 PM	sorry on the terminology. he is going to send me on a solo quest where i gain the ability to lycanthrope into a dire bear. does that clear that up?
Iron Chef Vastrox 05-10-04, 06:48 PM	Yes, think this through. A Werebear has six Hit Dice and a LA of +3. By becoming a Werebear, you'll forfeit your Barbarian progression by assuming a 9-level adjustment. Your 12th to 21st levels will effectively be 'werebear levels'. This is rather fortunate for you, because you've already gained the majority of barbarian abilities, with Greater Rage at 11th level and DR 2/-. Werebear on top of this will grant you a +18 Strength bonus (+24 when Raged), making a Two-Handed Weapon very beneficial while in Hybrid form. This is rather unfortunate, though, because all of your equipment is 'you' sized... that is to say, not made to fit a Large Werebear. Your Two-Handed weapon will suddenly become a 1Hander. Your armor won't fit at all. I suggest if you fight a Giant, or some other Large humanoid creature with decent equipment, that you keep it on hand for your size change. Feats I'd go with would be Power Attack, Combat Reflexes to make use of your 10 foot reach, Improved Initiative to take advantage of Combat Reflexes, Extra Rage, and Improved Grapple.
schlemoc 05-11-04, 08:51 AM	can you explain the 9 level of werebear? i do not fully follow this. unfortunately for me, i do not know very much about d&d. so can you explain this please? i believe i understand most of what you said. though, i am still a little bit confused with it. can ye tell i'm new to this? :rolleyes: oh well. thanks for the help!
Lilt 05-11-04, 10:39 AM	This post assumes 3.0 rules rather than 3.5 are being used. IIRC lycanthropes work differently. And DIRE lycanthropes (which there are no rules for) would work even more differently. Lycanthropes use either their own hit dice total *or* the animal they can turn into's hit-dice total. It's very unlikely that the 12D8 of a dire bear will beat the 12D12 of the barbarian though, so you probably won't get the bonus for that. If you want to know more about it I'd suggest reading the section in the MM. The level, level 12, makes perfect sense. Dire bears have 12 hit dice. If he hit you with it before that, you would gain hit-dice which would be even more out of whack. When you shift into a dire bear, you'd get +20 strength, +2 dex, +8 con, and 7 natural armor. You'd also become a large creature with 10ft reach. Class-wise: Stick with barbarian. You will be very, very, powerful in a few levels. Oh yes: Try to avoid wearing/buying proficiency with too much in the way of armor or weapons. Buy basic combat boots. Improved Disarm is great for lycanthropes as, once you're in lycanthrope form, people will have more troubble hurting you if they don't have their nasty silver/magical sword. There's one thing you might want to check with your DM though: Standard Werebears are Lawful Good, you may want to check that Dire Werebears are not Lawful, as otherwise your barbaric abilities may be screwed.