Drow Warrior [Archive] - Wizards Community

Drow Warrior [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Bladedancer
10-29-05, 08:42 AM Heya, guys we will be starting a new campaign set in Menzoberranzan. We will all be members of a minor noble house ranking anywhere from 25th-35th. I will be posting the background of the house later on if anyone wants to take a peak. But right now I need some background ideas for my character. I was thinking of rolling up a drow male cleric or Palidan of Slaughter of Selvetarm. He will be starting out at 5th level.Any and all ideas are welcomed .
Thanks In Advance
nihility
10-29-05, 01:21 PM The Drow Judicator from Underdark is essentially a paladin of Selvetarm, and it gains a spider servant as well as some other Selvetarm-themed abilities. It might be something to consider if you want to be something of a champion of Selvetarm.

Were you looking more for class and feat ideas, or concept ideas?
Radijs
10-29-05, 04:44 PM The things I always hear about Drow characters are rebels against Drow culture. You could turn this around and play a true Drow traditionalist.

Someone who has accepted the status quo and a devout follower of the spider queen Lloth. When a female tells him to jump he will jump and as high as he can even though he'll hit the ceiling with his head. The kind that will not dream of looking one of the females in the eyes. Lloth's holy words dictate that doing so is wrong for a male.

Oh and hope no other party member is playing female.
rampant
10-29-05, 04:53 PM I'm not a big divine fan but I do know that a drow's charisma and dex make for nasty swashbuckler/paladin of slaughter combos

spiked chain anyone
nihility
10-29-05, 08:33 PM The things I always hear about Drow characters are rebels against Drow culture. You could turn this around and play a true Drow traditionalist.

Someone who has accepted the status quo and a devout follower of the spider queen Lloth. When a female tells him to jump he will jump and as high as he can even though he'll hit the ceiling with his head. The kind that will not dream of looking one of the females in the eyes. Lloth's holy words dictate that doing so is wrong for a male.

Oh and hope no other party member is playing female.That's basically what Selvetarm is all about. Selvetarm is the "self-appointed Champion of Lolth."

According to the drow judicator (paladin of Selvetarm) writeup, "drow judicators and assassins usually fill out the ranks of a high priestess's hand-picked murder team." One of the feats that is required for the class is "Lolth's Meat," which asserts that "you know that you only exist to provide your goddess with food and pleasure." I'd look at this feat even if you don't take the PrC.

So, yeah, you're about as hardcore a member of the status quo as you can be and still be male.
Bladedancer
10-30-05, 01:09 AM Thanks for the feedback. I am looking more for background ideas. I have played the male drow against the matriarchy before. So I thought I would change things up and not fight the system but be a part of it instead. Just a note we have banned the use of the spike chain in our campaign by mutual consent from the players and the dm. Actually there is one female character in thr group but she is gonna be playing a rogue/assasin type. I know Selvetarm is basically Lolth's unthinking, obedient to a fault watch beast but I really don't want to play my character like that. I want him to be more of a smart defender of the faith. I don't know if that will work with Selvetarms dogma though. Any other ideas are welcome.
Fithero
10-30-05, 06:46 AM First of all, why on earth would you ban the spiked chain?

Second, why not just play a wizard? Male wizards (hell even a sorcerer) generally gain alot of respect in drow society (there is actually a whole city somewhere run by male wizards instead of female clerics)

But yeah, failing that, try going something like a male druid, its not the best for optimisation but it would be great for role playing.

Drow can do more than cast arcane spells and fight with swords.

Later
nihility
10-30-05, 09:55 AM First of all, why on earth would you ban the spiked chain?It's not an uncommon house rule. Consider the following properties:

Reach weapon that can also strike at adjacent enemies (only such weapon in core)
Two-handed weapon that may be used with Weapon Finesse (only such weapon in core)
Bonus to disarm attempts
Can be used to make trip attacks

Given that the weapon has two different unique properties, as well as some bonus extras, and combined with the power of tripping and AoOs in general in 3.5, many people feel that the weapon just has too much going for it compared to the other exotic weapons. Some people split it into two weapons.

I wouldn't call this a majority view, but most people do acknowledge that it's quite strong. It's basically the weapon of choice for every fighter archetype but two (the sword-and-board fighter and the big damage "thump" fighter/barbarian), and even one of these is sometimes seen using it to help power feats like Karmic Strike.

But yeah, failing that, try going something like a male druid, its not the best for optimisation but it would be great for role playing. I think that may be the first time that I've seen "druid" and "not the best for optimization" in the same sentence in 3.5.
nihility
10-30-05, 12:12 PM I'm actually liking the druid idea more and more, particularly when paired with the vermon keeper PrC from Underdark.

So, you want to be a part of the status quo, but in a somewhat unusual way; at least, something other than slavish devotion. You want a bit of independence in your devotion, yes? What about a keeper of spiders? Big spiders, little spiders, spiders bred for ritual, spiders bred for battle, a spider for every occasion. There's got to be a demand for them, and having plenty of spiders around has got to make Lolth happy. Eventually, through druid and vermon keeper levels, you can even train these otherwise mindless spiders and have one as an animal companion.

So, rather than a priestess of Lolth, you're something closer to a catechist (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catholic_church_hierarchy#Catechists) or an alter boy, or some other layperson who assists the priestesses in the performance of their duties. Alternately, maybe your not very interested in orthodoxy, and this role was a good way to make a place for yourself in the hierarchy while still having some freedom and independence.
Fithero
10-30-05, 07:19 PM I think that may be the first time that I've seen "druid" and "not the best for optimization" in the same sentence in 3.5.

I meant that as a race, the drow dont have anything that would really make you take the druid class. Eg, no bonus to wis and all that jazz.

I also found that Vermon keeper class would be good but what about the master of flies from SS? You get swarms of every type, but you could choose to make them spiders just for flavor.

Hell if you wanted to you could take the Fang of Lolth class from song and silence, its 3.0 but it still seems usable, or at least easily modded to 3.5

Later
Fithero
10-30-05, 07:24 PM This sounds a little crazie, and might get your character killed within 5 seconds of playing a game. But what if you played a male drow Archivist? No male has ever been a cleric of lolth because she only chooses females, but this way, a male doesnt even have to follow lolth.

I think it would be a good role playing opportunity, the character could even say that he *is* a priest of lolth, though it would be hard to keep up the act.

Later
Bladedancer
10-30-05, 10:34 PM Well I have found out one my fellow party members decided to take up my idea of playing a cleric of Selvetarm. So I guess that ends that. Plus 2 others have rolled up frontline fighter types. So currently we 2 warriors,a rogue, a cleric, plus 2 wizards (necromancer and a diviner). So I think I will play a hexblade devoted to Lolth. I'll have a background for him and our House up in a couple days if anyone wants to take a peek. I took a look at the druid and verminkeep PRC but I haven't had much luck with druids in the past. I have made about 6 over the years. But they always end up dead by the end of the 2nd session or so for some reason or another.
Thanks for all the suggestions
Harrow Blade
10-30-05, 11:01 PM Nobody has mentioned psion yet, there is (or more correctly was) a whole house of drow psions. It seems to me the rest of the group has the other core classes covered, psion can offer a different flavour that fits nicely in a Menzo campaign.

If I was playing in this I would be tempted to go for telepath thrallherd and possibly if you want to mess with the status quo have a female priestess thrall. All of a sudden your thrall is 'in charge' of the group, all sorts of fun and death can be had there.

Failing telepath, there is the other discliplines and psychic warrior to consider.
Bladedancer
10-31-05, 12:40 AM Grrr thanks to Harrowblade :D I think I will change my mind again and either go with Psychic Warrior or Wilder( being as Lolth is chaos incarnate). Any thoughts?
Fithero
10-31-05, 02:51 AM Psionics are feared in the drow society since they arnt directly from lolth herself (ie, their not divine powers) so alot of other drow houses would love to destroy you.

Also, when the time of troubles happened (everything divine just *stopped* for a long while) psionics still worked, which scared alot of people.

Also there is the connection some poeple would make with psionics and mind flayers... a nasty thing indeed. Maybe you were trained by one.

Anyway, there are alot of drawbacks, but it would be great to role play.

Have a good one.

Later
nihility
10-31-05, 01:21 PM Also there is the connection some poeple would make with psionics and mind flayers... a nasty thing indeed. Maybe you were trained by one. :eek:

Deja vu...
nihility
10-31-05, 01:24 PM Anyway, on to actual thoughts...

So, as a psionic character, I'd say you have a few things to think about: how you view yourself, how your culture and family view you (as Fithero mentioned), why you chose to develop these abilities as opposed to others (an agile body and a strong mind lend themselves to a Hexblade or Swashbuckler just as easily), and what you want to do with these powers.
nihility
11-01-05, 09:13 PM Some possible angles that have occurred to me for a psychic warrior's or wilder's role in a minor drow house...

1) Infiltrator. A fighter needs armor and a weapon, a cleric needs a holy symbol, a wizard needs spell components, and even a rogue usually needs at least a knife to work with. You don't. You can be strip-searched by guards and nothing amiss will be found to raise concern (of course, you should probably have a token weapon or two that can be confiscated to keep up appearances). In a way, you're sort of the drow answer to a monk, able to fight effectively after being stripped naked, which is handy for a house that might not have the best resources.

2) Fighter-mage. As a wilder, there's really not much difference conceptually between you and a sorcerer. As a psychic warrior, you're essentially a fighter trained to use his mind as well as his body. Either way, you fill the role of a combatant backed up with magical power just fine. Wilders do the gish job quite nicely compared to a sorcerer, given their lack of arcane spell failure and improved hit dice. You fill a fairly typical role in a somewhat unusual way, and your versatility is good for a house with a smaller fighting force.

3) Dominator. This is an obvious tie-in with the thrallherd PrC. Drow like to dominate others and they love to have a steady stream of disposable minions. You accomplish both for your house, helping to offset your house's smaller size and lesser wealth.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Bladedancer 10-29-05, 08:42 AM	Heya, guys we will be starting a new campaign set in Menzoberranzan. We will all be members of a minor noble house ranking anywhere from 25th-35th. I will be posting the background of the house later on if anyone wants to take a peak. But right now I need some background ideas for my character. I was thinking of rolling up a drow male cleric or Palidan of Slaughter of Selvetarm. He will be starting out at 5th level.Any and all ideas are welcomed . Thanks In Advance
nihility 10-29-05, 01:21 PM	The Drow Judicator from Underdark is essentially a paladin of Selvetarm, and it gains a spider servant as well as some other Selvetarm-themed abilities. It might be something to consider if you want to be something of a champion of Selvetarm. Were you looking more for class and feat ideas, or concept ideas?
Radijs 10-29-05, 04:44 PM	The things I always hear about Drow characters are rebels against Drow culture. You could turn this around and play a true Drow traditionalist. Someone who has accepted the status quo and a devout follower of the spider queen Lloth. When a female tells him to jump he will jump and as high as he can even though he'll hit the ceiling with his head. The kind that will not dream of looking one of the females in the eyes. Lloth's holy words dictate that doing so is wrong for a male. Oh and hope no other party member is playing female.
rampant 10-29-05, 04:53 PM	I'm not a big divine fan but I do know that a drow's charisma and dex make for nasty swashbuckler/paladin of slaughter combos spiked chain anyone
nihility 10-29-05, 08:33 PM	The things I always hear about Drow characters are rebels against Drow culture. You could turn this around and play a true Drow traditionalist. Someone who has accepted the status quo and a devout follower of the spider queen Lloth. When a female tells him to jump he will jump and as high as he can even though he'll hit the ceiling with his head. The kind that will not dream of looking one of the females in the eyes. Lloth's holy words dictate that doing so is wrong for a male. Oh and hope no other party member is playing female.That's basically what Selvetarm is all about. Selvetarm is the "self-appointed Champion of Lolth." According to the drow judicator (paladin of Selvetarm) writeup, "drow judicators and assassins usually fill out the ranks of a high priestess's hand-picked murder team." One of the feats that is required for the class is "Lolth's Meat," which asserts that "you know that you only exist to provide your goddess with food and pleasure." I'd look at this feat even if you don't take the PrC. So, yeah, you're about as hardcore a member of the status quo as you can be and still be male.
Bladedancer 10-30-05, 01:09 AM	Thanks for the feedback. I am looking more for background ideas. I have played the male drow against the matriarchy before. So I thought I would change things up and not fight the system but be a part of it instead. Just a note we have banned the use of the spike chain in our campaign by mutual consent from the players and the dm. Actually there is one female character in thr group but she is gonna be playing a rogue/assasin type. I know Selvetarm is basically Lolth's unthinking, obedient to a fault watch beast but I really don't want to play my character like that. I want him to be more of a smart defender of the faith. I don't know if that will work with Selvetarms dogma though. Any other ideas are welcome.
Fithero 10-30-05, 06:46 AM	First of all, why on earth would you ban the spiked chain? Second, why not just play a wizard? Male wizards (hell even a sorcerer) generally gain alot of respect in drow society (there is actually a whole city somewhere run by male wizards instead of female clerics) But yeah, failing that, try going something like a male druid, its not the best for optimisation but it would be great for role playing. Drow can do more than cast arcane spells and fight with swords. Later
nihility 10-30-05, 09:55 AM	First of all, why on earth would you ban the spiked chain?It's not an uncommon house rule. Consider the following properties: Reach weapon that can also strike at adjacent enemies (only such weapon in core) Two-handed weapon that may be used with Weapon Finesse (only such weapon in core) Bonus to disarm attempts Can be used to make trip attacks Given that the weapon has two different unique properties, as well as some bonus extras, and combined with the power of tripping and AoOs in general in 3.5, many people feel that the weapon just has too much going for it compared to the other exotic weapons. Some people split it into two weapons. I wouldn't call this a majority view, but most people do acknowledge that it's quite strong. It's basically the weapon of choice for every fighter archetype but two (the sword-and-board fighter and the big damage "thump" fighter/barbarian), and even one of these is sometimes seen using it to help power feats like Karmic Strike. But yeah, failing that, try going something like a male druid, its not the best for optimisation but it would be great for role playing. I think that may be the first time that I've seen "druid" and "not the best for optimization" in the same sentence in 3.5.
nihility 10-30-05, 12:12 PM	I'm actually liking the druid idea more and more, particularly when paired with the vermon keeper PrC from Underdark. So, you want to be a part of the status quo, but in a somewhat unusual way; at least, something other than slavish devotion. You want a bit of independence in your devotion, yes? What about a keeper of spiders? Big spiders, little spiders, spiders bred for ritual, spiders bred for battle, a spider for every occasion. There's got to be a demand for them, and having plenty of spiders around has got to make Lolth happy. Eventually, through druid and vermon keeper levels, you can even train these otherwise mindless spiders and have one as an animal companion. So, rather than a priestess of Lolth, you're something closer to a catechist (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catholic_church_hierarchy#Catechists) or an alter boy, or some other layperson who assists the priestesses in the performance of their duties. Alternately, maybe your not very interested in orthodoxy, and this role was a good way to make a place for yourself in the hierarchy while still having some freedom and independence.
Fithero 10-30-05, 07:19 PM	I think that may be the first time that I've seen "druid" and "not the best for optimization" in the same sentence in 3.5. I meant that as a race, the drow dont have anything that would really make you take the druid class. Eg, no bonus to wis and all that jazz. I also found that Vermon keeper class would be good but what about the master of flies from SS? You get swarms of every type, but you could choose to make them spiders just for flavor. Hell if you wanted to you could take the Fang of Lolth class from song and silence, its 3.0 but it still seems usable, or at least easily modded to 3.5 Later
Fithero 10-30-05, 07:24 PM	This sounds a little crazie, and might get your character killed within 5 seconds of playing a game. But what if you played a male drow Archivist? No male has ever been a cleric of lolth because she only chooses females, but this way, a male doesnt even have to follow lolth. I think it would be a good role playing opportunity, the character could even say that he is a priest of lolth, though it would be hard to keep up the act. Later
Bladedancer 10-30-05, 10:34 PM	Well I have found out one my fellow party members decided to take up my idea of playing a cleric of Selvetarm. So I guess that ends that. Plus 2 others have rolled up frontline fighter types. So currently we 2 warriors,a rogue, a cleric, plus 2 wizards (necromancer and a diviner). So I think I will play a hexblade devoted to Lolth. I'll have a background for him and our House up in a couple days if anyone wants to take a peek. I took a look at the druid and verminkeep PRC but I haven't had much luck with druids in the past. I have made about 6 over the years. But they always end up dead by the end of the 2nd session or so for some reason or another. Thanks for all the suggestions
Harrow Blade 10-30-05, 11:01 PM	Nobody has mentioned psion yet, there is (or more correctly was) a whole house of drow psions. It seems to me the rest of the group has the other core classes covered, psion can offer a different flavour that fits nicely in a Menzo campaign. If I was playing in this I would be tempted to go for telepath thrallherd and possibly if you want to mess with the status quo have a female priestess thrall. All of a sudden your thrall is 'in charge' of the group, all sorts of fun and death can be had there. Failing telepath, there is the other discliplines and psychic warrior to consider.
Bladedancer 10-31-05, 12:40 AM	Grrr thanks to Harrowblade :D I think I will change my mind again and either go with Psychic Warrior or Wilder( being as Lolth is chaos incarnate). Any thoughts?
Fithero 10-31-05, 02:51 AM	Psionics are feared in the drow society since they arnt directly from lolth herself (ie, their not divine powers) so alot of other drow houses would love to destroy you. Also, when the time of troubles happened (everything divine just stopped for a long while) psionics still worked, which scared alot of people. Also there is the connection some poeple would make with psionics and mind flayers... a nasty thing indeed. Maybe you were trained by one. Anyway, there are alot of drawbacks, but it would be great to role play. Have a good one. Later
nihility 10-31-05, 01:21 PM	Also there is the connection some poeple would make with psionics and mind flayers... a nasty thing indeed. Maybe you were trained by one. :eek: Deja vu...
nihility 10-31-05, 01:24 PM	Anyway, on to actual thoughts... So, as a psionic character, I'd say you have a few things to think about: how you view yourself, how your culture and family view you (as Fithero mentioned), why you chose to develop these abilities as opposed to others (an agile body and a strong mind lend themselves to a Hexblade or Swashbuckler just as easily), and what you want to do with these powers.
nihility 11-01-05, 09:13 PM	Some possible angles that have occurred to me for a psychic warrior's or wilder's role in a minor drow house... 1) Infiltrator. A fighter needs armor and a weapon, a cleric needs a holy symbol, a wizard needs spell components, and even a rogue usually needs at least a knife to work with. You don't. You can be strip-searched by guards and nothing amiss will be found to raise concern (of course, you should probably have a token weapon or two that can be confiscated to keep up appearances). In a way, you're sort of the drow answer to a monk, able to fight effectively after being stripped naked, which is handy for a house that might not have the best resources. 2) Fighter-mage. As a wilder, there's really not much difference conceptually between you and a sorcerer. As a psychic warrior, you're essentially a fighter trained to use his mind as well as his body. Either way, you fill the role of a combatant backed up with magical power just fine. Wilders do the gish job quite nicely compared to a sorcerer, given their lack of arcane spell failure and improved hit dice. You fill a fairly typical role in a somewhat unusual way, and your versatility is good for a house with a smaller fighting force. 3) Dominator. This is an obvious tie-in with the thrallherd PrC. Drow like to dominate others and they love to have a steady stream of disposable minions. You accomplish both for your house, helping to offset your house's smaller size and lesser wealth.