Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Timmy00T 10-02-07, 10:41 AM	'Ello everyone, I'm a newcomer to the game, and I've signed myself up for a low-level solo adventure to get a feel for the game so my character doesn't accidentally kill the rest of the party when he goes and joins a group of adventurers. Now, I've decided to play a sneaky, manipulative magic user who plays practical jokes, so what better than a gnome beguiler? The ability scores I've rolled up are as follow, before apply the gnome differences: 16, 12, 10, 11, 12, 18 I'm wondering firstly how I should allocate these ability scores, and then secondly, ask for tips on how to keep my character safe as a solo level 1 magic user. I have the distinct feeling that many things are dangerous to my character. If my math is right, anyone wielding the vast majority of the martial weapons in the player's guide can kill me in one hit in a good roll.
Cifer 10-02-07, 11:13 AM	If my math is right, anyone wielding the vast majority of the martial weapons in the player's guide can kill me in one hit in a good roll. Your math is quite probably right, which is why there's one simple guideline: Whenever you can avoid it, don't let anyone hit you. Avoid combat. If you can't do that, avoid entering combat without some friends. If you can't do that, avoid entering combat when foes are aware of you. If you can't do that, consider the possibility of surrendering.
Kouk 10-02-07, 11:19 AM	I have the distinct feeling that many things are dangerous to my character. If my math is right, anyone wielding the vast majority of the martial weapons in the player's guide can kill me in one hit in a good roll. Good instincts! Are you sure you're a newbie? Anyway, there are multiple ways to deal with enemies (if your DM does not try to railroad you). You could kill them, or you could just sneak past them, whichever you prefer. For a Gnome Beguiler my suggestion for those abilities would be STR: 12, DEX: 16, CON: 12, INT: 18, WIS: 10, CHA: 11 Maybe switch CHA with WIS. This ability array would make a dextrous and super-smart character, with a little bit of bonus HP and an upgradeable CHA if you decide you want to train more Charisma-based skills. If you already know what you would prefer though, set the stats up that way -- there's no truly correct way. INT is good because your spell DCs depend on it, which is very important for illusionists, and you also get the benefit of extra skill points which you can spend on trap-related things if your party doesn't have a Rogue. If you have to fight, start at range when possible, using a bow of some sort. In the same way that most things can kill you in a single hit, you can kill most things in a single hit, at least humanoids. Spells like Color Spray or Sleep can also end a fight for you nearly instantly, but Sleep takes a bit of casting time. Mage Armor cast beforehand can probably boost your AC if you are level 1. You might be able to avoid fighting by using Ghost Sound or Dancing Lights and luring targets away from where you actually want to go.
tafkamhokie 10-02-07, 12:17 PM	I am running a 2nd level gnome beguiler right now myself. Putting the 18 in Int is a must. There is no other choice. That is your spellcasting stat and it gives you more skill points. Depending on the campaign and the DM's style, I would be really tempted to put the 16 in Charisma. If all you will ever be doing is fighting, then Dex or Con are better choices. But beguilers make great information gatherers. Going back to the point of avoiding melee combat...Charisma is the one stat that helps you do that. If you can talk your way out of not starting a fight, or even keep the other guy occupied by talking while you walk up to Color Spray range, you probably win. With an 18 Int and a good Cha, your skills like bluff, gather info, diplomacy, and intimidate may save your skin far more often than your hit points, AC, or spells do. Another thing I've noticed about low-level beguilers...your spells can be a bit tricky to use. Sleep takes one round to cast. Color spray only has a 15 ft range. Against anything immune to enchantments and illusions (or who just has good Will saves), you are almost powerless. You definitely need a backup option for when your spells don't work.
RobbyPants 10-02-07, 01:31 PM	The way I'd allocate the stats would be: Ability Base After Score Score Racial Mods Str 10 8 Dex 16 16 Con 12 14 Int 18 18 Wis 11 11 Cha 12 12 Basically, you don't need to worry about Str - you're a caster. You can use a crossbow to negate the Str penalty to damage if you use a weapon. A good Int is important for lots of reasons (mainly Skills and spells). Dex and Con will help keep you from getting hit, and help you survive when you do. Stay out of melee! I cannot stress that enough. You're HP are low, you can only wear light armor, and you won't be doing any reasonable damage anyway. Despite the cloaked casting/feint abilities you get, don't go in close. Those are very odd abilities that won't be useful in most situations. Some of your best spells are the save-or-lose spells (which beguilers get lots of). You basically take guys out of the fight, and let the other PCs deal with the rest of the monsters. Then you can deal with the rest at your liesure. At 1st level, Sleep and Color Spray will get you the most milage. Consider max ranks in Use Magic Device. Once you get the cash, you'll be much more versitile. This will effectively allow you to expand your spell list, which in turn, helps with your survivability.
Kouk 10-02-07, 07:03 PM	The reason I recommend not having an 8 STR, is because you will barely be able to carry anything. Take into consideration you are size Small, and are further reduced in your carrying capacity, and you might get weighed down just by some armor and weaponry let alone a backpack, bedroll and torches. If you can have the rest of the party carry everything you want to bring, fine, but you may not have that option. Magic containers are definitely good to get, but you might not have the resources for awhile.
Rustmonster 10-02-07, 07:55 PM	The reason I recommend not having an 8 STR, is because you will barely be able to carry anything. Take into consideration you are size Small, and are further reduced in your carrying capacity, and you might get weighed down just by some armor and weaponry let alone a backpack, bedroll and torches. Actually, something interesting I found out, because of how things were set up (Small items weigh half as much, Small creatures carry 3/4 as much) Small creatures can sometimes carry MORE than their larger counterparts.
Kouk 10-02-07, 08:10 PM	Actually, something interesting I found out, because of how things were set up (Small items weigh half as much, Small creatures carry 3/4 as much) Small creatures can sometimes carry MORE than their larger counterparts. That only works for weapons and armor, tents and bedrolls, containers, blankets and foodstuffs. Very little else has any weight adjustment. A potion is a potion is a potion, and most random loot you find in a dungeon doesn't care what size you are when you pick it up. Ponies work too though, for carrying stuff.
FrostHammer 10-02-07, 08:30 PM	Since the OP says it's a SOLO game, there probably won't be any party members to help carry stuff. Having 8 str is also bad for when you do need to melee in desparate situations. You only get 4 spells per day. There will be times when you'll need to melee.
Timmy00T 10-02-07, 08:52 PM	Ok, so the DM is letting me figure out my stats by a mock combat. I can decide on my stat allocation after a few of these tests. A level 1 friendly human barbarian using something called Weapon Focus and Power Attack and wielding a greatsword modified to do subdual damage faces against me. I won initiative with my 16 dex, and started the battle trying to cast Sleep because the barbarian was too far away for Color Spray. Before I could finish, the Barbarian raged, charged, and knocked me to -2 hit points. I think if I had a bit more hitpoints, I might've gotten that spell off >.< I'm not so sure putting 10 for my con score is such a good idea now.
Kouk 10-02-07, 09:06 PM	Ok, so the DM is letting me figure out my stats by a mock combat. I can decide on my stat allocation after a few of these tests. A level 1 friendly human barbarian using something called Weapon Focus and Power Attack and wielding a greatsword modified to do subdual damage faces against me. I won initiative with my 16 dex, and started the battle trying to cast Sleep because the barbarian was too far away for Color Spray. Before I could finish, the Barbarian raged, charged, and knocked me to -2 hit points. I think if I had a bit more hitpoints, I might've gotten that spell off >.< I'm not so sure putting 10 for my con score is such a good idea now. If you are solo and the opponent knows you are there, you can't afford to cast a spell with longer than 1 Standard action. What you could have done, is Ready an action to cast Color Spray once he came in range; this way even if he Charged you, you would have hit him with the spell. No matter what you do with your stats, a Beguiler is not a melee combatant. You do not want to engage a Barbarian in any kind of martial combat, let alone solo melee. By the way, that Barb is set up to one-shot you, so just keep that in mind. Your only hope of straight-out victory is to go first, or pray he rolls a 1. It's really not a good fight to "teach" you anything. EDIT: Assuming an "average" Barbarian with a 15 base Strength, then Raging for a +4 Str bonus means with his bare hands he can automatically deal 5-7 damage to you. Then, a Greatsword deals 2d6 damage, so with his STR of 19 he can deal 6-16 damage in one hit. Power Attack trades a -1 to his BAB (chance to hit) for a +2 to damage when using a two-handed weapon like a Greatsword, so if he uses Power Attack (1 is probably all he can do) that is now a 8-18 damage in a single hit, twice that on a critical hit. His chance to hit you (assuming he is a level 1 Barbarian) is +6 while Raging (+5 if he uses Power Attack), which means if he rolls a 10 (average) he hits AC 16. Even if you put your 18 into CON, you can't get more than 11hp as a Beguiler. (6hp for first level Beguiler plus 5 for your 20 CON). You have no chance except to somehow crit him and take him down in one blow, or use your spells successfully. He probably has about 17hp while Raging, so Color Spray is your only real hope, as even if you make him Sleep, attacking him wakes him up and you might not kill him with a Coup de Grace. Either way the fight is over in one round. EDIT 2: D&D ain't really a "solo" game, it isn't teaching you much to have you solo a Barbarian in melee combat, because that isn't what your character is supposed to do in the first place. EDIT 3: If you somehow find yourself within reach of the Barbarian and you want to cast a spell, take a 5ft step back out of his range before casting, or else take your chances at Casting Defensively (a Concentration check to allow you to cast a spell without provoking an attack of opportunity from him).
Timmy00T 10-02-07, 09:19 PM	Eh, can I actually ready an action to cast a spell that takes longer than a standard action to cast? I don't think I'd get the spell off on time. Now, the barb does a lot of damage with one hit, but so would most other melee classes yes? I'm not sure how this barbarian is specifically anti-me, but then, maybe I'm just not too good at rating melee characters yet.
TheCobra 10-02-07, 09:20 PM	Sneak around. Cast color spray. Murder your helpless victims with a pick. It'll be great fun. You should beat the barbarian with relative ease. With 18 intelligence and the gnome racial bonus, your color spray should have a save DC of at least 16. Even if the barbarian's got 12 wisdom and is raging, he has to roll a 13 or better to survive. Undead and such will be a problem, but they should be easy enough to sneak past.
Khazan 10-02-07, 09:33 PM	Ok, so the DM is letting me figure out my stats by a mock combat. I can decide on my stat allocation after a few of these tests. A level 1 friendly human barbarian using something called Weapon Focus and Power Attack and wielding a greatsword modified to do subdual damage faces against me. I won initiative with my 16 dex, and started the battle trying to cast Sleep because the barbarian was too far away for Color Spray. Before I could finish, the Barbarian raged, charged, and knocked me to -2 hit points. I think if I had a bit more hitpoints, I might've gotten that spell off >.< I'm not so sure putting 10 for my con score is such a good idea now. I don't get this at all....why is your DM doing this? It's like having a player test his Fighter character by trying to Turn Undead.....your guy's a mage, he's toast in melee, at least at low levels. Kouk said it right: "EDIT 2: D&D ain't really a "solo" game, it isn't teaching you much to have you solo a Barbarian in melee combat, because that isn't what your character is supposed to do in the first place..." Don't bother with the mock-combat stuff. Since you said in your first post that the only reason you were doing a solo adventure was to gear up for an adventure with a group of players...well, to put it bluntly, don't bother with the solo adventure at all. Jump right in with the group, since taking a mage on a solo adventure isn't going to teach you much, especially if the DM is throwing melee combat encounters at you O.o Take RobbyPants advice and arrange your scores like he laid out. Then dive in with the group and flat-out tell them, "I am not fighting melee combat; I'll throw a spell when I can, and I'll snipe from the flanks with my crossbow. Anything else and you'll be scooping up my remains." And ask your DM if your guy can have a wand of....something, anything. You're a mage at 1st level and at a disadvantage (for the most part), so appeal to him and ask to at least have a wand of Sleep or Color Spray or Burning Hands or something, or maybe a few scrolls. It's not a gamebreaker if the wand's only got like 5 charges or something, so he should allow it. Good luck.
Timmy00T 10-02-07, 09:35 PM	Can the barbarian ready an action to take a 5-ft step with me to hit me as I try to cast a spell?
TheCobra 10-03-07, 12:13 AM	your guy's a mage, he's toast in melee, at least at low levels. No, he isn't. Whoever wins initiative has the advantage, of course, but color spray's just as deadly as any greataxe. In an actual game situation, the beguiler would likely be able sneak up and get a surprise round. The main limitation is that she only gets four spells per day.
ZiggZagg 10-03-07, 12:19 AM	Combat tips for level 1? Kill stuff until you are Level 2. Greatest tactic in the game :D
Tamujin 10-03-07, 03:37 AM	Kill stuff until you are Level 2. Greatest tactic in the game :D That is a great answer for a question like "how do I get past level one?", it's not a combat tip. *back on topic* Combat casting is great to not get AoOs and improved initiative is great for getting to ready a colour spray and take out the badd(y/ies) as soon as they (or he/she) attacks Now on how to survive with only 4 spells/day. With high int, you get lots of skill points. With low amount of spells you're quickly out of spells. Logic dictates you should be sure to get a safe rest. you could use climb to climb in a tree (optional: craft (tree-nest making) to construct a nest for not falling out of the tree (looking at nature gives such good ideas), then rest and you've got new spells with a low chance to be spotted and attacked during sleep. (O.K. I know this sounds weird but that's how I am :D, but (if the dm allows it) it will work, maybe you will even get XP for creative ideas. Atleast, if I were your DM I would give you xp for creative ideas). (
Kouk 10-03-07, 03:51 AM	Eh, can I actually ready an action to cast a spell that takes longer than a standard action to cast? I don't think I'd get the spell off on time. Now, the barb does a lot of damage with one hit, but so would most other melee classes yes? I'm not sure how this barbarian is specifically anti-me, but then, maybe I'm just not too good at rating melee characters yet. You can't Ready to cast a normal Sleep spell, because you can only Ready a Standard Action at most, and as you noted Sleep takes longer than that. He's not specifically anti-you, but he is built for dealing a lot of damage with each hit, and also to give himself a better chance to hit (thus dealing damage). If we use a different example character, let's say a Fighter with the same 15 STR and using a Longsword/Heavy Shield, he might do significantly less damage. Let's build the level 1 Human Fighter with the feats Dodge, Mobility and Combat Expertise. Now, with his STR and the Longsword, his damage range is 3-10 (average damage 6.5), though his chance to hit you is the same. This character is built for defense and battlefield control rather than pure damage. He's still likely to kill you in one hit, but not as likely as the Raging Barbarian (whose damage range was 6-16, average 11 without Power Attack, and 8-18, average 13 with Power Attack). Average of 6.5 is pretty much less likely to kill you. In any event, melee with either of those characters is a bad idea, but you have a significantly higher survivability against the Fighter, because the Fighter is much more defensively-minded and also deals less damage. All his AC boosts won't stop Color Spray from working. He also has a lower Will save than the Barbarian who gets a +2 bonus to his Will saves in a Rage, which would prevent your spells from working on him. Can the barbarian ready an action to take a 5-ft step with me to hit me as I try to cast a spell? Yes, he can, but only if he starts adjacent to you at the beginning of his turn. In order to Ready a Standard Action (the attack) and also a 5ft step, he must not have used a Move Action to travel in the round. So, he can't Ready an Action with a 5ft step if you start the round farther than 5ft from him, though he still can Ready an Action so you should move away on your turn.
Cifer 10-03-07, 06:02 AM	Can the barbarian ready an action to take a 5-ft step with me to hit me as I try to cast a spell? In general, yes he can. Not quite as general, yes he can - but only if he didn't move in the round before. Essentially, as long as you keep him moving before his turn is over, you can five-foot away without problems. For example, if he charges you (and misses), he of course can't ready an action since he already used his standard one. Now it's your turn - you do a 5' and cast. His turn, he needs to go 5' in order to be adjacent to you and by doing this already uses up his own 5' step for the entire round. Next example: He charges and misses again (bad barbarian, isn't he?) and you're confident in your ability to cast defensively, so you don't move. Next turn, he can ready an action to move with you and hit you even if you're casting defensively.
ShadowF 10-03-07, 06:29 AM	If you can check out Warmage in Complete Arcane or Miniture Hand Book. It should raise survivability, but it is a very limited caster class.
Cifer 10-03-07, 06:37 AM	If you can check out Warmage in Complete Arcane or Miniture Hand Book. It should raise survivability, but it is a very limited caster class. I'd stay with beguiler. If you're playing in a group, beguilers can make wonderful face characters and their squishiness doesn't come into play that much.
FrostHammer 10-03-07, 10:11 AM	It doesn't? It depend son how intelligent the monsters are played.
war_thog 10-03-07, 10:34 AM	Combat tips for level 1? 1. Don't Die. 2. Remember to Breathe. This will assist in 1. On a more serious note. Combat is not your friend. It never will be. Stay out of it as much as you possibly can.
RobbyPants 10-03-07, 12:41 PM	The reason I recommend not having an 8 STR, is because you will barely be able to carry anything. Take into consideration you are size Small, and are further reduced in your carrying capacity, and you might get weighed down just by some armor and weaponry let alone a backpack, bedroll and torches. If you can have the rest of the party carry everything you want to bring, fine, but you may not have that option. Magic containers are definitely good to get, but you might not have the resources for awhile. Actually, something interesting I found out, because of how things were set up (Small items weigh half as much, Small creatures carry 3/4 as much) Small creatures can sometimes carry MORE than their larger counterparts. I would have said the same thing. Nice catch. That only works for weapons and armor, tents and bedrolls, containers, blankets and foodstuffs. Very little else has any weight adjustment. A potion is a potion is a potion, and most random loot you find in a dungeon doesn't care what size you are when you pick it up. Ponies work too though, for carrying stuff. For things like tents and bedrolls, it stands to reason that a smaller creature would use a smaller tent or bedroll. I don't see why you couldn't buy a smaller one. As for foodstuffs, I thought that small creatures only consumed either a quarter or a half (I don't remember which) of the amount of a medium creature. Again, smaller creatures come out ahead here. In terms of potions, yes, the weight will be constant with these. The same goes for loot. Still, a lot can be said for consolidating small denomination coins into fewer large denomination ones. If you get lots of gold, then gems will pick up the slack here. All in all, having more than an 8 strength is simply wasting points that could be used in more important stats. 90% or more of the encumbernace can be worked around by being small (with the whole 3/4 capacity vs 1/2 the weight trick), not loading up on things that other party members have, downsizing coins, pack animals, and extra-dimensional storage containers. Since encumberance can be worked around almost entirely by being clever or by spending (relatively) minor amounts of money, I would consider it superior to losing two points in another stat. It costs 4,000 gp to get a stat boosting item to make up for that. Since the OP says it's a SOLO game, there probably won't be any party members to help carry stuff. Having 8 str is also bad for when you do need to melee in desparate situations. You only get 4 spells per day. There will be times when you'll need to melee. I consider being a beguiller to be far worse for melee than an 8 Str. You have to play your strengths and mask your weaknesses as best as possible. A small sized beguiller with a Str of 10 or 12 is only fooling himself if he thinks that he stands a chance in melee. If he gets in melee, he casts Color Spray to get out of melee. If the DM insists on this being a solo game, the OP might want to consider asking him to run a gestalt game, or letting him have an NPC or two to tag along with. It's tough to survive in a solo game with most classes. You're constantly facing the same problem that most BBEGs do when they're outnumberd by the party members. Ok, so the DM is letting me figure out my stats by a mock combat. I can decide on my stat allocation after a few of these tests. A level 1 friendly human barbarian using something called Weapon Focus and Power Attack and wielding a greatsword modified to do subdual damage faces against me. I won initiative with my 16 dex, and started the battle trying to cast Sleep because the barbarian was too far away for Color Spray. Before I could finish, the Barbarian raged, charged, and knocked me to -2 hit points. I think if I had a bit more hitpoints, I might've gotten that spell off >.< I'm not so sure putting 10 for my con score is such a good idea now. Your DM is just being mean here. You are right to want to boost your Con (take a look at the stats I suggested earlier), but not for the reason you listed. As a general rule, Sleep is a terrible spell for a one-on-one combat. You need others to do some blocking for you for it to work. Remember that even if you had three more HP and were at 1 point after getting hit, you have to roll a Concentration check to avoid losing the spell. If you fail (likely), then you've lost both the spell and the HP from the attack, so you're back to where you started at round one, with less resources. The reasons Sleep won't work one-on-one: It takes a full round to cast, so you cannot cast it on the surprise round. Because you cannot cast it on the surprise round, your opponents will always get to act before you finish casting it. Assuming your opponents aren't stupid, they'll just disrupt your spell, and you'll have lost a spell and HP and gained nothing. For future reference, the only time to use Sleep in a solo game is if your enemies are completely unaware of you, and you can get the spell of without them noticing you (i.e. no surprise round). Good luck :D
BW0222 10-03-07, 01:16 PM	Timmy00T, Soloing a magic user is not for the feint of heart. Even experienced players wouldn't consider it lightly. Things I can recommend... 1. Multi-class. Elves are ususually a better choice for this (since wizard is a favored class). A level of cleric or druid really increases your chances of staying alive a lower levels -- hit points, healing, armor, added weapons, etc. Ranger or even monk might be another possibility. Just take one level to begin with and then take wizard from then on. The extra hit point, skill points, armor, weapons, etc. will made a big difference. Unfortunately, gnome has bard as a favored class -- which is a lot of knowledge skills, buffing, etc. -- but really doesn't help solo survival much. However, it might be worth it for two reasons -- you gain a ton of skills (including stealth, tumble, and use magical device) and you can use wands of cure light wounds (when you can afford them). The armor and extra weapon proficiencies might be enough to keep you around until second level. 2. Get a dog. Serious look at purchasing a riding dog as soon as you can afford it. Cross-class ranks in handle animal. Give it barding. Buy a few potions of speak with animals. Seriously, this guy will keep you alive for a few levels. It also allows you to carry a reasonable load. If you can swing it (say multi-class druid or ranger) consider using it as a mount. The extra movement is really useful in escape or staying out of melee. 3. Find friends. Hire NPCs, friends, etc. to help you. Share loot, be nice to folks, etc. 4. Don't consider enchanter. Enchanting is pretty weak at lower levels and generally not terribly effective against most kinds of creatures. Charm person doesn't help much in a fight, it doesn't work against animals, undead, etc. There aren't many defensive enchantment spells either. Consider illusion which has a better mix of offensive (color spray) and defensive (mirror image) spells. 5. Make scrolls. Lots of them. Pick ones which don't have saves, but otherwise load yourself with them and use them. 6. Wear armor. Seriously, just wear chain shirt. Take the 20% spell failure and the non-proficiency penalty on attacks. Until you get enough hit points, don't worry about personal defense. 7. Oil, holy water, and alchemists fire. Your normal damage is going to hurt, most spells can't really do much damage at low-levels, and just hitting is typically an issue. Therefore, oil and alchemists fire are your friends. 8. Make use of your familiar. Let him scout, spy, and ask him questions. Remember, he has most of your skill ranks. 9. Bring lots of equipment. Except a lot of mundane solutions may be needed to problems which you don't have the skills to handle -- a crowbar or axe to open a chest for example. 10. As you gain levels, remember that a solo party is often missing key abilities. Use spells, scrolls, and potions to make up for missing abilities. Potions (or wands using UMD) for healing, scrolls of knock for opening doors, scrolls (using UMD) for finding traps, etc.
RobbyPants 10-03-07, 02:10 PM	4. Don't consider enchanter. Enchanting is pretty weak at lower levels and generally not terribly effective against most kinds of creatures. Charm person doesn't help much in a fight, it doesn't work against animals, undead, etc. There aren't many defensive enchantment spells either. Consider illusion which has a better mix of offensive (color spray) and defensive (mirror image) spells. ... 6. Wear armor. Seriously, just wear chain shirt. Take the 20% spell failure and the non-proficiency penalty on attacks. Until you get enough hit points, don't worry about personal defense. Maybe I missed something in another post, but I thought he was playing a beguiler. Granted, this forces him to use primarily illusions and enchantments, but he gets some versitility with UMD. Also, he can wear light armor and cast without penalty. I do agree with the chain shirt suggestion, but at least he doesn't have to eat that 20% ASF. ;) All in all though, I think it was largely good advice.
PhaedrusXY 10-03-07, 02:34 PM	Buy a dog. Or more than one. Hide, and let them kill stuff. :P I'm only half joking. The animals you can buy at first level are signifigantly tougher physically than most 1st level PCs, especially if you can manage to afford a riding dog somehow. Stick some barding on it, sick it on things, and stay far away from the fight.
TheCobra 10-03-07, 03:23 PM	He also has a lower Will save than the Barbarian who gets a +2 bonus to his Will saves in a Rage, which would prevent your spells from working on him. That'd help the barbarian, but it shouldn't be enough. As I said, even with rage, that's a 60% chance he drops to color spray. 70% if the beguiler hits him before he can rage. With higher dexterity, the beguiler should also win initiative more often. With 16 dexterity and studded leather, this PC could have 17 AC. I say he has the odds. I don't know what y'all are so worried about. I really can't think of a better solo character than a beguiler. Undead and such will be a pain, but you don't have to fight them. They ain't going to spot you. If you have to kill them, use acid or alchemist's fire. Everything else should fall before the mighty color spray. Watch out for creatures with 3 or more hit dice, though. You can't murder them as effortlessly.
FrostHammer 10-03-07, 07:48 PM	8. Make use of your familiar. Let him scout, spy, and ask him questions. Remember, he has most of your skill ranks. 10. As you gain levels, remember that a solo party is often missing key abilities. Use spells, scrolls, and potions to make up for missing abilities. Potions (or wands using UMD) for healing, scrolls of knock for opening doors, scrolls (using UMD) for finding traps, etc. 1) What familiar? 2) Beguilers have Knock on their spell list. 3) Riding dogs probably cost more than 150g
Cifer 10-03-07, 08:18 PM	3) Riding dogs probably cost more than 150g Not quite. (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/equipment/goodsAndServices.htm#dogRiding) It doesn't? It depend son how intelligent the monsters are played. It also depends on how intelligent the PCs are played. If at least one or two of the monsters are debating on whether they should fight you (or on higher levels, they're already thrashing their former allies), the brawny guys of your party should be able to keep the rest off your skin.
Spikes01k 10-03-07, 10:02 PM	Combat Tip, I don't know where it is listed but operantly there is a rule where you can assist another player in combat strikes like you can making an attack roll just like assisting in skill roles. Check it out.
Timmy00T 10-03-07, 10:07 PM	I thought a little harder about my strategy, and talked to some other people for advice. The DM took me through a small cavern next, where I was tasked with stopping a small family of kobolds led by one elderly matron kobold from terrorizing a nearby farm. I was allowed to take a few level 1 scrolls with me. Starting out, I overheard two of the kobolds talking outside of the cavern. One of them went back in, and the other, the one whose name I learned, remained outside, standing guard. Using a Disguise Kit and the Disguise Self scroll, I disguised myself as that particular kobold, and then snucked up to within 15 feet of him. I got the surprise round because the kobold was too shocked to react after seeing a very good copy of him show up. One casting of Color Spray later, the kobold was down, and I quickly cut its head off. Inside, I waited until the 3 other kobolds were separated from each other, and then used Hypnotism and Diplomacy to convince them (one by one) that its in their best interest to revolt against the matron. Each time it got a bit easier because I've got another sibling with me affirm what I say. So, we strode into the matron's room, the 3 kobolds and I, intending to put an end to the kobold matron. I thought it'd be easy, it being a 4 on 1, but apparently not. the matron asked us what we were doing, and I guess I didn't do very well on my Bluff check. The matron won initiative, and color-sprayed all of the kobolds into unconsciousness. On my turn, my own color spray failed to affect the matron, and it all went downhill from there. A Burning Hands finished me off. Apparently, the kobold matron was a Venerable something-or-another kobold Sorcerer level 2, one of the others said. My DM says that I didn't do too badly, and that I'll have to survive a few human skeletons next as part of DnD boot camp, and that I should think about how to do it. Any tips?
Kouk 10-03-07, 10:12 PM	Eesh, skeletons? They are mindless, and undead, so they are immune to pretty much all of your spells. Your only options would be to use Bludgeoning weapons like clubs and Slings, or better yet just avoid them altogether with Hide/Move Silently or distracting them and making them follow sounds or something.
TheCobra 10-03-07, 10:13 PM	That's some pretty rough stuff for a single first-level character.
obokurieeumi 10-03-07, 10:14 PM	For a 1st level spellcaster... I prefer my highest stat in my spellcasting stat.. and then i prefer to have my next highest score in Constitution, because though you can use spells to help your AC, sometimes in the end it comes down to how much hp you have.. I had a dwarven wizard 1st level with 14 hp... and i ripped stuff up.
Timmy00T 10-03-07, 10:14 PM	Do you think I could've done anything different in the kobold adventure? 0_0 I tried my best...
FrostHammer 10-03-07, 10:17 PM	For a 1st level spellcaster... I prefer my highest stat in my spellcasting stat.. and then i prefer to have my next highest score in Constitution, because though you can use spells to help your AC, sometimes in the end it comes down to how much hp you have.. I had a dwarven wizard 1st level with 14 hp... and i ripped stuff up. Wizards have d4 for hit-dice. Even assuming 20 Con, which is unlikely since you claim to put your second best stat in Con, you will only have 9 hp. Even if you took Toughness as your first feat, that's still only 12 hp. How did you get 14 HP? Timmy: Did your DM mention whether or not the kobold was Dragonwrought or not?
Solo_Phoenix 10-04-07, 08:35 AM	Do you think I could've done anything different in the kobold adventure? 0_0 I tried my best... You performed brilliantly, you came quite near to conquering a near-impossible foe. Wizards have d4 for hit-dice. Even assuming 20 Con, which is unlikely since you claim to put your second best stat in Con, you will only have 9 hp. Even if you took Toughness as your first feat, that's still only 12 hp. How did you get 14 HP? First thing that comes to mind is a toad familiar.
RobbyPants 10-04-07, 10:09 AM	Do you think I could've done anything different in the kobold adventure? 0_0 I tried my best... Well, you with the three helpers, at least you had a chance... Realistically, your only hope for winning something like that would be if you surprised her and/or won initiative. Having a total of four of you is a good help. A level 2 NPC would be a tough, but not unwinnable encounter for 4 PCs. The only real problem here is that you're level 1. At low levels, victory is often determined by initiative. Whoever wins gets to hit first, and often, one hit will drop someone. Do you have the Improved Initiative feat? It's a nice feat, but in a solo game, it becomes much more useful, as it affects 100% of your party (you :P). It's kind of sad to have to blow through a precious feat for that, but it might be a good investment.
Timmy00T 10-04-07, 10:34 AM	You performed brilliantly, you came quite near to conquering a near-impossible foe. Danke. Do you know what this Dragonwrought thing is? If the venerable kobold matron had it or didn't have it, would it have made a difference?
Tamujin 10-04-07, 10:47 AM	dragonwrought (feat) makes it able for kobolds to take wings at lvl 3 and get a flyspeed at 6th (as feats) further more it changes type to dragon, lose dragonblood type, bonus to skills darkvision lowlight vision. that's it i thought
RobbyPants 10-04-07, 11:08 AM	Danke. Do you know what this Dragonwrought thing is? If the venerable kobold matron had it or didn't have it, would it have made a difference? The other reason Tamujin didn't touch on (and the reason people like to cheese with dragonwrought venerable kobolds) is that the dragon type removes the aging penalties. Thus, you can have your cake (get all the mental stat boosts: +3 to each!) while eating it too (no penalties to your physical stats). Basically, if your DM did this, he created a kobold with +3 Int, Wis, and Cha. At least that's my understanding of it. I don't actually have any of the dragon books.
Timmy00T 10-04-07, 07:49 PM	And +3 to Charisma means +3 to saving throw difficulties? -_- No wonder I may have been boned!
Cifer 10-04-07, 09:06 PM	Combat Tip, I don't know where it is listed but operantly there is a rule where you can assist another player in combat strikes like you can making an attack roll just like assisting in skill roles. That's called Aid Another. If you're a spellcaster, you don't want to do this anymore than you have to, because it means you're in a melee - which is decidedly not where you want to be. And +3 to Charisma means +3 to saving throw difficulties? -_- No wonder I may have been boned! Nah, it's just +1,5 (could be either +1 or +2, depending on whether the kobold had an odd ability score before).