Post/Author/DateTime	Post
1DHandful 05-24-07, 08:08 PM	Acknowledging that Shifter is a non-psionic race and therefore potentially less useful for this than, say, Kalashtar or Elan, it seems that a Razorclaw Shifter can get a whole heckuva lot of mileage out of the Psychic Warrior class. Am I missing something that screams 'bad idea'? Is there precedent within canon?
Rechan 05-24-07, 11:34 PM	There have been suggestions that Shifters make great wilders (but of course that class sucks ;)). There's nothing that says that any race can't be psionic. In the Eberron Expanded article for Complete Psionic, Keith suggests Karnath might be training Kineticists or Breland might be training Lurks. The Dreaming Dark are working in Sharn to psionically train members of House Deneith (according to Sharn, CoT). The Quori Mindhunter PrC (from Magic of Eberron) also suggest that it's not members of the Kalasthar, but other races who are aware of the DD and fighting them. They are their own organization.
JulesCARV 05-25-07, 04:22 AM	Shifters? Good wilders? How? I mean, it might be viable but they do have, y'know, a penalty to their manifesting ability score. Anyway, shifter psychic warrior sounds good. Shifter psychic warrior lends itself very easily to the Feral Fighter idea mentioned in the Mind's Eye article (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/psm/20070214a) -- although some might say too easily, and find that too much of a stereotype. As for synergies between the Claw powers and Razorclaw shifters, I don't think there really is all that much. There's a little, but razorclaws are only slightly better than unaugmented claws of the beast in combat, and have far shorter duration. Still, it helps, and while a shifter psychic warrior might not be all that much better than, say, a human, dwarf, or whatever psychic warrior, they're certainly not much worse.
1DHandful 05-25-07, 06:26 AM	Rechan: Thanks for the citations of psychically active members of non-standard races. That helps. JulesCARV: Thanks for the crunch analysis. I know claws of the beast is essentially redundant to the concept, but it still seems a viable option to have both, even if the razorclaws are naught but a backup plan. The idea, as pitched, is closer to Ascetic than Feral. A young Shifter cub watches his tribe (pride?) get its rangers and barbarians decimated by a mind-controlled Shifter druid's use of warp wood and wind wall, rendering them helpless. He searches inward for the means to prevent that helplessness from ever overcoming him.
Arz 05-25-07, 10:31 AM	PsyWar have limited points so you are better off taking another power than claws of the beast. This will also give you some flexibility. I personally like the reasoning behind shifter wilders. Make sure to grab yourself the mutable boy feat. Trans ~ psychometabolsim and the +1 manifester lvl is a big boost.
Rechan 05-25-07, 07:34 PM	Shifters? Good wilders? How? I mean, it might be viable but they do have, y'know, a penalty to their manifesting ability score.[/i] The concept, not the stats. Wilder is common in "primitive, feral, emotional" groups, and that describes shifters. It was mentioned in RoE I think. Or somewhere else. The idea, as pitched, is closer to Ascetic than Feral. A young Shifter cub watches his tribe (pride?) get its rangers and barbarians decimated by a mind-controlled Shifter druid's use of warp wood and wind wall, rendering them helpless. He searches inward for the means to prevent that helplessness from ever overcoming him. How would Warp WOuld and Wind Wall do that, outta curiosity? Also, while some GMs might not like it, or consider it munchy, check out Tome of Battle. There's a class in there, Warblade, who has access to the Tiger Claw discipline. The discipline is getting in touch with the feral nature and there are various battle stances and maneuvers associated with it. But the class is an ascetic warrior. So it's more like a martial artist going into a primal state, than the other way around. Although, there was "Way of the Shackled Beast" in last month's Dragon - a martial arts style for Shifters.
Moosh Nailo 05-28-07, 08:50 PM	What's the number on that Dragon issue? And as for the OP's idea, there is a homebrew class you might want to look at. Not sure if people think it's overpowered, or underpowered, or what, but there it is. Edit: Ok, can't find the post to link it. The OP is Tygaran, and the class is called the Heritage Shifter, modeled after the racial paragon classes. The main benefit was unlimited use of the base shifting trait, without getting the ability bonus or any "Elite" feat benefits (which still worked as normal with #/day). Maybe try pm Tygaran and see if he still has it. I think it's really cool.
1DHandful 05-29-07, 06:59 AM	How would Warp WOuld and Wind Wall do that, outta curiosity? The Shifters had been wielding quarterstaves, greataxes, and longbows. Now they were wielding oddly shaped sticks.
serow_#R 05-29-07, 09:29 AM	Shifter PsyWars don't have to ration out their feats between shifting and class. Now you can shift, and have other feats for yourself!
Rechan 05-30-07, 08:46 PM	Dragon #355.
Zylo_Drizzt 05-30-07, 09:17 PM	Acknowledging that Shifter is a non-psionic race and therefore potentially less useful for this than, say, Kalashtar or Elan, it seems that a Razorclaw Shifter can get a whole heckuva lot of mileage out of the Psychic Warrior class. Am I missing something that screams 'bad idea'? Is there precedent within canon? yes but you would get more use out of a warforged or psiforged with a flaw or two in my opinion.
Arcane Guyver 06-01-07, 12:02 AM	I'd say go for it. Something interesting you could do is take the 'Soulbound Weapon' alternate class ability from that Mind's Eye article, and then describe the soulbound weapon as 'psionic claws.' If you go with that, I'd recommend going with Beasthide shifting rather that Razorclaw.