Crab RV [Archive] - Wizards Community - Pages Merged by Solauren

Crab RV [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
EldonG
06-01-06, 12:43 PM Hey, guys...I just had this mad, crazily creative idea and didn't know where to post it. I would love some input...ideas.
I'm setting up an encounter with an eccentric spellcaster with a very special toy/pet...an animated monstrous crabshell which he rides in. I figure it'll have to be an animated undead, because to animate it as an object requires him to be at least 16th level, and I'm shooting for more like 10-13. It needs to be huge - I figure a 20' diameter circular interior, more or less - a peculiar, magical RV of sorts! :D
I have yet to cement anything else, though racially, he should be at least semi-aquatic. I don't want him overly evil, either, so there *can* be non-combat interaction.
I'd love to see your thoughts! Is there a better way to do it? What race/class, etc would you use?
Bruunwald
06-01-06, 01:01 PM One of my campaigns featured a nation of gnomes at war with a nation of spellcasters, both separated by a deep river, beneath which the gnomes regularly crossed in iron crayfish-shaped submarines. I later realized that these were similar in some respects to apparati of Kwalish, though mine were much more stylish and sleek.

I treated my subs as constructs, which could act in a limited way if their pilots were incapacitated or separated from them.

So the first thing I think of is, gnome. If you want something aquatic, you can add a template to him. But it seems the sort of thing a gnome would do. And it takes a gnome to squeeze comfortably into even a giant crab. As for how to animate the thing, it seems to me that a hollowed-out crab animated as undead is really a form of (exo) skeleton. I would just treat it as a skeleton of the appropriate size. Yes, I believe the MM forces restrictions on what can technically become a skeleton, but this is a special case, and it won't hurt anything to do it. I can't see the CR being affected in any real way from the norm for the size.
Seeker95
06-01-06, 01:03 PM Animated sounds better than undead to me, as far as the imagery goes. Go ahead and make him higher level.

And as for race and class. If you have aquatic elves in your world, that is an obvious (too obvious?) approach. You could also go the AquamanTM route. Make him any race that tickles your fancy, being half merfolk / naiad / water sprite / etc.
EldonG
06-01-06, 01:26 PM While I do prefer Animated Object, 16th level is simply too high. Yeah...I could go with any kinda aquatic race...I have UA...but I will have to work out the race, then. I'm thinking maybe a race that's already aquatic/amphibious, though I like the gnome idea...hmmm...
<=== drawing a blank on all the amphibious races...
It's on a shoreline of a jungle, so I'm thinking a savage race...bullywuggish? Lizard folk? Other thoughts?
Edit: I also have Stormwrack...amphibious template there...
ronyon
06-01-06, 01:29 PM I love it!
My personal choice is the baleen whale for max size(Gargantuan) and minimum Hd(12).
Sure he cant walk, but the latest version of the Fins to Feet spell is only second level,and it has a duration of one hour per level...

Your crab should have some armor, to supliment the high NA.
Making the crab a Skeleton keeps it from being slowed down buy the Zombis single action only problem. Zombification also makes it harder to Animate(doubles the HD).
The upside is that Zombis are stronger.
If you want a tank go Zombi.
If you want a Humvee, go Skeleton.
If you want a tank, try giving it Mountain Plate(+10(?) AC).
If you want a Humvee, try giving it Shark Skin Armor, Hook Armor, Mammoth Hide,or a Chain Shirt.
Either way, see if the DM will let it hold a Sheild, and if so use a Hide Sheild or a Tower Sheild.
If you want style try the Bone or the Coral armors.
An item that lets it use Blood Wind would be cool. Blood Wind is a 1st level spell that allows one to "throw" ones unarmed strikes and natural attacks.
It appears in the Spell Compendium.

I have no idea what race you might want to play, but the class should be cleric.
With the right feats( Fell Animate, and Divine Metamagic:Fell Animate), you could try to make this vehical from first level .
More doable is to use a scroll or wait until you turn fith, so you can cast the spell your self.
As for the intierior, you should recieve full cover/concealment, but the DM might grant those outside the same.
Consider periscopes,Clairvoance/Clairaudiance,Chain of eyes or other methods and study the line of effect rules.

Another thing will be air, so consider a Familier carrier, sized for size Medium familiers. They can be made air tight for some extra gold, and the DM may even let one be built sized for Huge familiers, giving you a place for(4?) medium creatures

Thats all for now....
EldonG
06-01-06, 01:40 PM ronyon, your post made me smile. :)

I'm the DM...making this for an encounter...needs to be able to walk on land, and about 10th-13th level...
As I already have a major Necro (12th level...FAR more powerful than you might think) in the area, I'm looking to make this guy's emphasis different. Cleric may still be the way to go, but Sorcerer and Spirit Shaman look particularly interesting so far, as well.
MerlintheTuna
06-01-06, 01:42 PM Phase 1: Go here (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/wondrousItems.htm)
Phase 2: Look at "Apparatus of the Crab"
Phase 3: Party like it ain' no thang.
EldonG
06-01-06, 02:44 PM Phase 1: Go here (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/wondrousItems.htm)
Phase 2: Look at "Apparatus of the Crab"
Phase 3: Party like it ain' no thang.
Ummm...I'm talking about a guy who has created his own, unique transportation...not a magic item. The Apparatus is too small for my purposes, at any rate...
EldonG
06-01-06, 02:48 PM The race really should be under 5', now that I think about it...anything taller is too claustrophobic. Of course, that doesn't rule out most medium sized races...most of them do produce 'little people', after all, so a 4' 6" lizard man might be a freak of nature...but they *should* exist...and that explains a lot. ;)
MADGator
06-01-06, 03:20 PM Eldon, something about your idea seemed familiar. So familiar in fact, I realized I'd seen it done before! Open the MM3 to page 156. Read about the seige crab. I think that's about what you're looking for. A little tweaking and it should be perfect.
EldonG
06-01-06, 06:05 PM Eldon, something about your idea seemed familiar. So familiar in fact, I realized I'd seen it done before! Open the MM3 to page 156. Read about the seige crab. I think that's about what you're looking for. A little tweaking and it should be perfect.
Nice! I was just going to use a huge monstrous crab advanced to 20 HD, but this is better. :) DR carries over as a skeleton, right? *goes to check* :cool:

Edit: technically, no...but...it's nice being the DM... ;)
Bruunwald
06-01-06, 06:07 PM Cleric may still be the way to go, but Sorcerer and Spirit Shaman look particularly interesting so far, as well.

Spirit shaman is nice and powerful. I like throwing that class in on goblins to really mess up the elves in the party. Chastise spirits is a serious menace to fey. Very fun.

I also like your bullywug idea. A pygmy bullywug spirit shaman in a giant mechanized crab carcass would absolutely rule.
EldonG
06-01-06, 06:17 PM Spirit shaman is nice and powerful. I like throwing that class in on goblins to really mess up the elves in the party. Chastise spirits is a serious menace to fey. Very fun.

I also like your bullywug idea. A pygmy bullywug spirit shaman in a giant mechanized crab carcass would absolutely rule.
LOL!
I love the way your comment reads. It's decided. :D

Now I just gotta remember where bullywugs are...*sheesh*.
Stardrake
06-01-06, 11:04 PM Bullywugs?

MONSTERS OF FAERUN, p.25.

Hope this helps.
EldonG
06-02-06, 03:11 AM Bullywugs?

MONSTERS OF FAERUN, p.25.

Hope this helps.
Thanks...I had found it, but appreciate the help. It'd be nice if they'd update 'em to 3.5... :)

I wonder what spells I'm gonna give him...hmmm...
Maybe he's rigged up some heavy crossbows on the sides...hmmm...aim sucks... :D

As I'd stated before, I'm not making him incredibly evil...though they tend toward CE...he's 4'1"...he has issues...self-image problems...brilliant, for a bullywug (he's getting old...stats are Str 7, Dex 11, Con 13, Int 12, Wis 16, Cha 12...at lvl 11!) I may dig flaws outta UA, but his bonus feats shouldn't be powerful ones...(a skeletal siege crab is plenty o' power for his shakiness!)

hehehe...I figure...rather than being the wicked BBEG I may make him out to be, he's more like the lonely, grouchy, retired senior citizen wandering about in his motor home. ;) He's just a retired evil witch doctor for a race of xenophobic murderers! :D
Seeker95
06-02-06, 10:17 AM It'd be nice if they'd update 'em to 3.5...Monster Manual IV?
ronyon
06-05-06, 12:20 PM ronyon, your post made me smile. :)
Thanks EldonG, your post its nice meet a person thinking along simular lines!

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
EldonG 06-01-06, 12:43 PM	Hey, guys...I just had this mad, crazily creative idea and didn't know where to post it. I would love some input...ideas. I'm setting up an encounter with an eccentric spellcaster with a very special toy/pet...an animated monstrous crabshell which he rides in. I figure it'll have to be an animated undead, because to animate it as an object requires him to be at least 16th level, and I'm shooting for more like 10-13. It needs to be huge - I figure a 20' diameter circular interior, more or less - a peculiar, magical RV of sorts! :D I have yet to cement anything else, though racially, he should be at least semi-aquatic. I don't want him overly evil, either, so there can be non-combat interaction. I'd love to see your thoughts! Is there a better way to do it? What race/class, etc would you use?
Bruunwald 06-01-06, 01:01 PM	One of my campaigns featured a nation of gnomes at war with a nation of spellcasters, both separated by a deep river, beneath which the gnomes regularly crossed in iron crayfish-shaped submarines. I later realized that these were similar in some respects to apparati of Kwalish, though mine were much more stylish and sleek. I treated my subs as constructs, which could act in a limited way if their pilots were incapacitated or separated from them. So the first thing I think of is, gnome. If you want something aquatic, you can add a template to him. But it seems the sort of thing a gnome would do. And it takes a gnome to squeeze comfortably into even a giant crab. As for how to animate the thing, it seems to me that a hollowed-out crab animated as undead is really a form of (exo) skeleton. I would just treat it as a skeleton of the appropriate size. Yes, I believe the MM forces restrictions on what can technically become a skeleton, but this is a special case, and it won't hurt anything to do it. I can't see the CR being affected in any real way from the norm for the size.
Seeker95 06-01-06, 01:03 PM	Animated sounds better than undead to me, as far as the imagery goes. Go ahead and make him higher level. And as for race and class. If you have aquatic elves in your world, that is an obvious (too obvious?) approach. You could also go the AquamanTM route. Make him any race that tickles your fancy, being half merfolk / naiad / water sprite / etc.
EldonG 06-01-06, 01:26 PM	While I do prefer Animated Object, 16th level is simply too high. Yeah...I could go with any kinda aquatic race...I have UA...but I will have to work out the race, then. I'm thinking maybe a race that's already aquatic/amphibious, though I like the gnome idea...hmmm... <=== drawing a blank on all the amphibious races... It's on a shoreline of a jungle, so I'm thinking a savage race...bullywuggish? Lizard folk? Other thoughts? Edit: I also have Stormwrack...amphibious template there...
ronyon 06-01-06, 01:29 PM	I love it! My personal choice is the baleen whale for max size(Gargantuan) and minimum Hd(12). Sure he cant walk, but the latest version of the Fins to Feet spell is only second level,and it has a duration of one hour per level... Your crab should have some armor, to supliment the high NA. Making the crab a Skeleton keeps it from being slowed down buy the Zombis single action only problem. Zombification also makes it harder to Animate(doubles the HD). The upside is that Zombis are stronger. If you want a tank go Zombi. If you want a Humvee, go Skeleton. If you want a tank, try giving it Mountain Plate(+10(?) AC). If you want a Humvee, try giving it Shark Skin Armor, Hook Armor, Mammoth Hide,or a Chain Shirt. Either way, see if the DM will let it hold a Sheild, and if so use a Hide Sheild or a Tower Sheild. If you want style try the Bone or the Coral armors. An item that lets it use Blood Wind would be cool. Blood Wind is a 1st level spell that allows one to "throw" ones unarmed strikes and natural attacks. It appears in the Spell Compendium. I have no idea what race you might want to play, but the class should be cleric. With the right feats( Fell Animate, and Divine Metamagic:Fell Animate), you could try to make this vehical from first level . More doable is to use a scroll or wait until you turn fith, so you can cast the spell your self. As for the intierior, you should recieve full cover/concealment, but the DM might grant those outside the same. Consider periscopes,Clairvoance/Clairaudiance,Chain of eyes or other methods and study the line of effect rules. Another thing will be air, so consider a Familier carrier, sized for size Medium familiers. They can be made air tight for some extra gold, and the DM may even let one be built sized for Huge familiers, giving you a place for(4?) medium creatures Thats all for now....
EldonG 06-01-06, 01:40 PM	ronyon, your post made me smile. :) I'm the DM...making this for an encounter...needs to be able to walk on land, and about 10th-13th level... As I already have a major Necro (12th level...FAR more powerful than you might think) in the area, I'm looking to make this guy's emphasis different. Cleric may still be the way to go, but Sorcerer and Spirit Shaman look particularly interesting so far, as well.
MerlintheTuna 06-01-06, 01:42 PM	Phase 1: Go here (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/wondrousItems.htm) Phase 2: Look at "Apparatus of the Crab" Phase 3: Party like it ain' no thang.
EldonG 06-01-06, 02:44 PM	Phase 1: Go here (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/wondrousItems.htm) Phase 2: Look at "Apparatus of the Crab" Phase 3: Party like it ain' no thang. Ummm...I'm talking about a guy who has created his own, unique transportation...not a magic item. The Apparatus is too small for my purposes, at any rate...
EldonG 06-01-06, 02:48 PM	The race really should be under 5', now that I think about it...anything taller is too claustrophobic. Of course, that doesn't rule out most medium sized races...most of them do produce 'little people', after all, so a 4' 6" lizard man might be a freak of nature...but they should exist...and that explains a lot. ;)
MADGator 06-01-06, 03:20 PM	Eldon, something about your idea seemed familiar. So familiar in fact, I realized I'd seen it done before! Open the MM3 to page 156. Read about the seige crab. I think that's about what you're looking for. A little tweaking and it should be perfect.
EldonG 06-01-06, 06:05 PM	Eldon, something about your idea seemed familiar. So familiar in fact, I realized I'd seen it done before! Open the MM3 to page 156. Read about the seige crab. I think that's about what you're looking for. A little tweaking and it should be perfect. Nice! I was just going to use a huge monstrous crab advanced to 20 HD, but this is better. :) DR carries over as a skeleton, right? goes to check :cool: Edit: technically, no...but...it's nice being the DM... ;)
Bruunwald 06-01-06, 06:07 PM	Cleric may still be the way to go, but Sorcerer and Spirit Shaman look particularly interesting so far, as well. Spirit shaman is nice and powerful. I like throwing that class in on goblins to really mess up the elves in the party. Chastise spirits is a serious menace to fey. Very fun. I also like your bullywug idea. A pygmy bullywug spirit shaman in a giant mechanized crab carcass would absolutely rule.
EldonG 06-01-06, 06:17 PM	Spirit shaman is nice and powerful. I like throwing that class in on goblins to really mess up the elves in the party. Chastise spirits is a serious menace to fey. Very fun. I also like your bullywug idea. A pygmy bullywug spirit shaman in a giant mechanized crab carcass would absolutely rule. LOL! I love the way your comment reads. It's decided. :D Now I just gotta remember where bullywugs are...sheesh.
Stardrake 06-01-06, 11:04 PM	Bullywugs? MONSTERS OF FAERUN, p.25. Hope this helps.
EldonG 06-02-06, 03:11 AM	Bullywugs? MONSTERS OF FAERUN, p.25. Hope this helps. Thanks...I had found it, but appreciate the help. It'd be nice if they'd update 'em to 3.5... :) I wonder what spells I'm gonna give him...hmmm... Maybe he's rigged up some heavy crossbows on the sides...hmmm...aim sucks... :D As I'd stated before, I'm not making him incredibly evil...though they tend toward CE...he's 4'1"...he has issues...self-image problems...brilliant, for a bullywug (he's getting old...stats are Str 7, Dex 11, Con 13, Int 12, Wis 16, Cha 12...at lvl 11!) I may dig flaws outta UA, but his bonus feats shouldn't be powerful ones...(a skeletal siege crab is plenty o' power for his shakiness!) hehehe...I figure...rather than being the wicked BBEG I may make him out to be, he's more like the lonely, grouchy, retired senior citizen wandering about in his motor home. ;) He's just a retired evil witch doctor for a race of xenophobic murderers! :D
Seeker95 06-02-06, 10:17 AM	It'd be nice if they'd update 'em to 3.5...Monster Manual IV?
ronyon 06-05-06, 12:20 PM	ronyon, your post made me smile. :) Thanks EldonG, your post its nice meet a person thinking along simular lines!