Post/Author/DateTime	Post
JackSmithIV 01-23-07, 01:08 AM	Hello everyone! This will be my first post on the Wizards Forums. I'm not new to GMing, and I've run many other different kinds of games, including D&D, in the past. My D&D campaigns hadn't progressed how I'd liked them to, so I moved on to other things. But now, as I'm sure many of you have experienced, Eberron has completely turned my head around, and looking at Eberron I can safely say that my passion for D&D is sharply re-ignited. I'll no doubt be lurking in the forums and asking questions, but for now, one perticular thing is bothering me quite a bit, and that's Warforged. First, I'd like to say that I love them to death. I think the concept and excecution are both great. The only problem is how to see them evolve with the rest of the party. First, I look at a warforged and I see a low AC. Even with their natural +2, they can't grab anything else! Once you're settled on what basic armor you want for your warforged, there's little option (this is assuming I read right that they can't wear armor). They can be enchanted, yes, but this not only takes the in-game invested time of being enchanted, but you're still being locked in to one option. And what if your Warforged ends up being your caster? He's basically just screwed for ever nice robe that turns up? I suppose the correct answer is to just roll with it, and accomidate, right? Or is there something I'm missing? Also, I've like some more information on the race altogether. Playing the race, the race in the plot... it all seems so scarcely scattered all over the sourcebooks. I don't feel enriched about the Warforged nearly enough to feel safe running them in my campaign. Is there somewhere I'm not looking? So yeah, if someone can point me in the right direction, that would be great. Maybe also at some already constructed Warforged characters of different sorts so I can see how they're generally built. Thanks so much in advance! -IV PS: I have alot of resources. Feel free to list whatever sites or supplements you choose to.
Nived 01-23-07, 01:29 AM	Warforged are not limited to just the composite plating. Adamantine Body (Feat) Eberron Campaign Setting. Mithril Body (Feat) Eberron Campaign Setting. Unarmored Body (Feat) Races of Eberron. Ironwood Body (Feat) Races of Eberron. Psiforged Body (Feat) Magic of Eberron. With Adamantine Body you're basically given adamantine full plate at level one for the cost of a feat. Which you can enchant later. Unarmored body takes away any worry about arcane spell chance failure. Ironwood is perfect for druids. Psiforged... well I don't know psionics that well and from what I understand is its not that impressive but anyway.
JackSmithIV 01-23-07, 01:35 AM	Ah yes, I meant to agknowledge those. I had only seen Mythril and Adamantite, though. I hadn't seen the others, so it looks like Races of Eberron is the supplement to have a look at. I'll go do that, then. Any other suggestions? -IV
ArcTan 01-23-07, 07:44 AM	Hello everyone! This will be my first post on the Wizards Forums. I'm not new to GMing, and I've run many other different kinds of games, including D&D, in the past. My D&D campaigns hadn't progressed how I'd liked them to, so I moved on to other things. But now, as I'm sure many of you have experienced, Eberron has completely turned my head around, and looking at Eberron I can safely say that my passion for D&D is sharply re-ignited. I'll no doubt be lurking in the forums and asking questions, but for now, one perticular thing is bothering me quite a bit, and that's Warforged. First, I'd like to say that I love them to death. I think the concept and excecution are both great. The only problem is how to see them evolve with the rest of the party. First, I look at a warforged and I see a low AC. Even with their natural +2, they can't grab anything else! Once you're settled on what basic armor you want for your warforged, there's little option (this is assuming I read right that they can't wear armor). They can be enchanted, yes, but this not only takes the in-game invested time of being enchanted, but you're still being locked in to one option. And what if your Warforged ends up being your caster? He's basically just screwed for ever nice robe that turns up? I suppose the correct answer is to just roll with it, and accomidate, right? Or is there something I'm missing? You've hit the nail on the head -- warforged benefit from free armor starting at level 1, only to suffer from the fact that this armor costs a feat and can't be replaced. Even so, it's not so bad -- you just have to plan ahead. Basically, the warforged race and arcane caster classes don't mix well. It's certainly possible, but you're better off doing something else. Even with the Wis penalty, warforged make good clerics -- what *isn't* powerful when mixed with divine spellcasting -- and they are awesome artificers. Psionic warforged, of course, are just incredible -- though I would stay away from Psiforged Body as a pure manifesting class (it's only really useful for gish builds). You can obviate all these difficulties, of course, by simply taking the Unarmored Body feat or the Reforged PrC, but I regard both of these as mechanically poor choices. Spending a feat to get a suit of armor may be bad, but spending a feat to then *buy* a suit of armor is worse. It's okay if you want to be a warforged spellcaster who wears a robe, but even then it's really only okay -- wizards need feats too, after all. You're better off seeing if the DM will let you use the twilight armor enhancement. Also, I've like some more information on the race altogether. Playing the race, the race in the plot... it all seems so scarcely scattered all over the sourcebooks. I don't feel enriched about the Warforged nearly enough to feel safe running them in my campaign. Is there somewhere I'm not looking? Yes. Keith Baker's Dragonshard articles are great primers for the flavor and setting context of various game elements. His Dragonshards on the warforged are a particular favorite of mine: http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ebds/20050627a http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ebds/20050711a And as much as it gets badmouthed by some posters here, I think Races of Eberron is definitely one of my favorite Eberron sourcebooks (or generic sourcebook with "Eberron" in the title, I don't care) for flavor information. The treatise it has on the personality and culture of warforged should be enough to spark all kinds of ideas. So yeah, if someone can point me in the right direction, that would be great. Maybe also at some already constructed Warforged characters of different sorts so I can see how they're generally built. Thanks so much in advance! -IV PS: I have alot of resources. Feel free to list whatever sites or supplements you choose to. There are various warforged NPCs in various places. The iconic warforged villain NPC is the Lord of Blades, who is statted up in Dungeon #111 as a "Critical Threat". (It's been stated by various people that this was not intended to be a defining, canonical stat block for the Lord of Blades, but just a suggestion -- as it is it's a pretty effective standard build for a Warforged Juggernaut, using a warforged artificer's self-buffing abilities to full advantage.) You'll find more warforged NPCs in the adventure "Steel Shadows" by Keith Baker, the creator of Eberron, in Dungeon #115.
Eiries 01-23-07, 11:51 AM	Man, I remember my warforged PC Striker. At level 1, he had 13 HP and an AC of 21. Not to mention a greataxe! Now THAT was a kickass first-level character. Honestly, warforged aren't lacking at all, ESPECIALLY when they are allied with an artificer. A warforged that spends a good half hour having an artificer augment him becomes almost unstoppable, especially at higher levels. No, I don't think for a second that warforged are missing out on too much. :D
Cifer 01-23-07, 12:07 PM	The only problem about the armor is the lack of versatility - but when do you need to be versatile with armor? There are only few characters who change their armor past the first levels (usually rogues who ascend into DEX-heaven and wear lighter and lighter armors). As soon as you've got masterwork armor of a special material (usually adamantine or mithral), you just enchant it up - which is exactly what the WF can do from first level onwards.
Eiries 01-23-07, 02:03 PM	Mm... defiantely. Honestly, they can be a bit unbalanced at earlier levels. I mean, what kind of character gets a full set of adamantine armor and a DR 2/ adamantine? My friends, a warforged is that kind of character. Of course, they eventually blend in with thier allies in terms of power at later levels and yes, the fact that they have armor plating does take a way quite a bit of the versatility of normal armor, but that's a small price to pay in the long run when one takes feats and such into account. All four Eberron races were very well made and creative, and I find it to be one of the best parts of the Eberron CS.
JackSmithIV 01-23-07, 04:40 PM	Thanks so much, guys. You've been a great help, and I'm starting to see the light a bit more. You've answered my questions thoroughly, and it was good having your suppose. Special thanks to ArcTan; lots of great stuff there! Thanks again! -IV
pegasuspaladin 02-12-07, 02:13 PM	on top of enchantments to the body there is also the addition of docents which provide extra effects. I'd also expect the new magic item compendium will have some WF specific items. furthermore you're the dm, you love WF, feel free to invent new armor and feats for them specific to your campaign, oh and then if you create new ones you like post them on these boards so other WF lovers (myself) can see them.
thebestideaieverhad 02-12-07, 08:21 PM	definitely just gotta make sure your DM (if it's not you im assuming) is well aware of warforged items such as docents and what-have-you... just make sure they know there is a whole world of new warforged based items that can make the game a lot better.
Edymnion 02-13-07, 12:44 PM	The iconic warforged villain NPC is the Lord of Blades, who is statted up in Dungeon #111 as a "Critical Threat". (It's been stated by various people that this was not intended to be a defining, canonical stat block for the Lord of Blades, but just a suggestion -- as it is it's a pretty effective standard build for a Warforged Juggernaut, using a warforged artificer's self-buffing abilities to full advantage.)LoBster's official stat-up is in Five Nations, actually.
ChristopherGroves 02-13-07, 04:28 PM	Warforged are early bloomers who peak early. The use of a body feat for armor (which they can't change later) really hurts them in feat-starved builds later on in the game. The classes that go with no-armor and add an attribute to AC by and large are adding WIS or CHA, both stats that warforged are burdened with a racial penalty (and really, probably a good thing too). The non-traditional healing options (only healed half by your standard cleric hp-battery) don't work as well, etc. Still, I love them. And for the disconnect in their "culture" ... that's a great RP opportunity. Most 'forged have that disconnected-looking-for-their-place feel to them for a while ... and once you "find it", that's awesome RP material. The
Ozymandias V. 02-13-07, 04:30 PM	(message baleeted)
iKitten 02-15-07, 08:25 AM	In the last campaign I played in, a buddy of mine ran a Warforged Wizard with composite plating to excellent effect, arcane spell failure and all. It's only a 1:10 chance.
OmNefarious 02-15-07, 10:51 AM	I just had a friend join my level 5 campaign and he rolled up an awesome Warforged Barbarian. Now to me this just seems to be one the best melee fighters you can get, when they rage and it ends they dont get the penalties of being fatigued and with their plus to constitution they can rage longer and their minuses really dont benefit a barbarian too much. Combine that with Mithral Body (+5 AC +5 dex) and their fast movement you have an awesome fighter right there. I think my friend wants to multiclass into a Frenzied Berzerker once he meets the prereq's. Sure if he rages and frenzies at the same time (they stack) he will take a -6 to his AC but he will end up gaining a +10 to his str. Yeah, major damage. Speaking of major dmg this friend (barb) and another (wiz/psion) decided to duel in an arena with death buffers (meaning they cant be killed) and lets just say the bar rolled a natural 20 with a great axe and confirmed it.....yeah. Good thing for the buffers. Ok now that I have wasted all your guys' time I have a question. Does the composite plating a Warforged stack with an armor body feat such as Mithral Body?
belly120 02-15-07, 11:06 AM	no they loose the original bonus and gain the new bonus granted by the feat
OmNefarious 02-15-07, 11:17 AM	ah ok that is what I thought, just checking
Cifer 02-22-07, 02:28 PM	Well, it's pretty irrelevant whether they lose the old one: Both bonuses are of the Armor type and thus don't stack anyway.
Dragoloth 02-22-07, 06:30 PM	My first warforged was my favorite. He wasn't the most powerful but he was fun. Adamantine body, heavy steel shield, and an armblade. A 1st level char with a AC of 21 and doing 1d10+5 dmg was awesome, but the RP was even better.
Edymnion 02-22-07, 07:30 PM	My first warforged was my favorite. He wasn't the most powerful but he was fun. Adamantine body, heavy steel shield, and an armblade. A 1st level char with a AC of 21 and doing 1d10+5 dmg was awesome, but the RP was even better.Wait, how in the world was he doing 1d10+5 damage? The most he could have had in Strength at lvl 1 is an 18, and there are no damage boosting feats available at that level. And since its an armblade, you can't use it two handed, so that can't be it... Oh, duh, its an armblade, its +1. Wait, you had a +1 weapon at lvl 1? Wow, lenient DM.
Cifer 02-22-07, 07:49 PM	Well, a +1 weapon that can't be easily disarmed is not exactly game-breaking and there are DMs that allow heirloom-type items at the beginning of their campaign.
Dragoloth 02-24-07, 01:49 AM	DM allowed everyone 1 magic item of +1 value.
Donald_Cannith 02-24-07, 03:06 AM	Yeah my DM always has us rol lfor socil status and the wealthy start of with a + 1 weapon, the middle class have a +1 armor and the poor have a masterowrk, but onky ifthe have military background. Otherwise, you have nothing or possibly are in debt. Anyhow, warforged Artificer/fighter in a campaign i am running completely cleans house. Heh ad two levels where he was below the power curve but once his artificer kicked in he was unstoppable by anything short of disable construct aqnd that didnt even do it.
Pinky's brain 02-24-07, 01:04 PM	Warforged are early bloomers who peak early.WFJs are great too when the save or dies start flying around, you can laugh at most of them and get special protection for the couple which can get through (imprisonment and implosion).
pegasuspaladin 03-01-07, 10:11 AM	since i have you all here in an eberron WF convo....i had an interesting build. WF ranger who uses his craft skill as Craft(hommunculus) so that when he gets his animal companion he can have an iron spike. thoughts?
Cifer 03-01-07, 10:38 AM	Well... RAW, he still lacks the Craft Homunculus class feature, the Craft Construct feat and the necessary spells to do it. Sorry, Craft(homunculus) doesn't exist as a skill.
Cabral 03-01-07, 07:07 PM	since i have you all here in an eberron WF convo....i had an interesting build. WF ranger who uses his craft skill as Craft(hommunculus) so that when he gets his animal companion he can have an iron spike. thoughts? I can't think of any feats or abilities that would make this a legal option. It might make for a nice substitution level. As far as balance is concerned, it might be a bit strong. The construct type is more powerful than the animal type and combined advancement from the animal companion abilities plus normal homunculus advancement may make this a bit too good.
The White Sorcerer 03-02-07, 05:06 PM	WFJs are great too when the save or dies start flying around, you can laugh at most of them and get special protection for the couple which can get through (imprisonment and implosion). Except that warforged juggernauts don't laugh. Laughter is for the weak fleshies.
Cifer 03-02-07, 07:25 PM	Except that warforged juggernauts don't laugh. Laughter is for the weak fleshies. Does that mean the LoBster doesn't engage in maniacal laughter when his plans work out? So... he can't be admitted into the great BBEG-community? Poor guy...
The White Sorcerer 03-03-07, 11:43 AM	Does that mean the LoBster doesn't engage in maniacal laughter when his plans work out? So... he can't be admitted into the great BBEG-community? Poor guy... Well, the LoB is more complicated. Since he's an evil artificer, he's required to engage in maniacal laughter, which overrides "juggernauts don't laugh."
Zombomaniac 03-05-07, 12:14 AM	Hey I know this isn't really on topic, but I figured it would be better to ask here as compared to start a thread. What is the max age a Warforged can be? I know they are Immortal so the could become 3000+ or whatever possibly, but I mean whats the max they could be right now?
The White Sorcerer 03-05-07, 02:03 AM	What is the max age a Warforged can be? Only counting modern manmade warforged... 33.
Cifer 03-05-07, 07:56 AM	Only counting modern manmade warforged... 33. Not only counting modern manmade warforged... 3000+
Zombomaniac 03-05-07, 09:02 AM	Not only counting modern manmade warforged... 3000+ Aren't the Qouriforged older than that?
Cifer 03-05-07, 09:29 AM	That's what the '+' means.