Who's created a PrC? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Who's created a PrC? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Passivearmada
06-17-07, 09:56 AM I know that most DMs have created their own prestige classes. In my current campaign, I created one called a Collector of Whispers. They get very high bonuses to their Listen checks as they progress through the levels, and a special ability to listen in on any conversation within a certain radius. There are only three levels, and I keep asking myself, "What else can I give them beside a Listen bonus?" I kind of envision this PrC as a master of body language, able to know what he needs to without asking questions or even being noticed. I can't type up a good table for this PrC (quite frankly, I don't know how on Microsoft Works or Notepad), but some advice or suggestions would be nice, and if you wish to share information about some of your own PrCs, that would be reatly appreciated and enjoyed ;)
thank you
Dielzen
06-17-07, 10:09 AM Well, if they can read body language and are master listeners, then I can see the following possibliities:

Tremorsense (hear vibrations of the ground)
AC Bonus against creatures they can see (body lang)
To hit bonus against creatures they can see (body lang)
Sense Motive bonus (body lang)
Diplomacy bonus (body lang)
Chance to go insane from all the sounds they hear

I'm sure there's other things, but those are the first couple that jumped out at me.
Passivearmada
06-17-07, 12:45 PM Great ideas, Dielzen- i think ill follow them. for the insanity thing, i think that if the PC's wisdom isnt like 14 or higher, than they have to make a DC 15-20 Will Save whenever they enter a crowded area with many conversations, or go insane. I dont know for how long though :thinks:
i believe that i didnt think of the AC and Attack Bonus stuff, because the only person in my world (besides the Pcs if they wish to take this class) is more of a spy than a combatant. i dont know why i didnt think of the diplomacy, though i did think of sense motive bonuses. tremorsense is new to me (heck, DMing is new to me), but now i know. i was also hinking of a Spot and Search bonuses, to find concealed weapons or something. I was thinking that they could get a +10 to listen checks once they reach the max level, but is that too much?
MerrikCale
06-17-07, 01:57 PM There's a link to the thread in my sig of my only foray into PrC creation, the Moonhunter
Dielzen
06-17-07, 03:45 PM +10 to Listen isn't that excessive, no.
Passivearmada
06-18-07, 09:21 AM alright, thanks. i've decided that sense motive and listen bonuse will go under a special ability called "sharpsense" and then "improved Sharpsense" and then "Superior sharpsense".

the AC bonuses and Atk bounuses will go under "Body Fighting," which sounds kinda lame, or "Combat Senses," which sounds cooler.
they get tremorsense at the first level, evasion at the second, improved evasion at the 4th, and what i call "Controlled Mind" at the 5th, where there is no chance of insanity even if they have a low wisdom.

i was thinking that if there wisdom is high enough, then they have no chance of insanity. also, they don't haveto hear every conversation- they can tap into that mode with a DC5 Concentration check, it's a full round action, they can stay in that mode as long as they please, but are counted as Flat-Footed when in that mode. i think i'll call it Keen Ears or something.

once a day, i think itll be, they can hear one conversation within a 5, 10, 15 mile radius (im not sure how far away it should be). the targets do not know they are being listened upon, unless they have an enchantment or something that will tell them that. this can be blocked by magical abilities.

keep sending guys (especially you Dielzen- you've been very helpful and it is greatly appreciated). thanks :P
Dielzen
06-19-07, 11:23 AM :embarrass

I'd not make any "immunity" to this insanity, but instead make it a will based DC. Base the DC on the number of creatures around and any distractions that might be present (combat, taking damage from any source, etc.). Then, at 5th-level of the PrC I'd change it from a blanket immunity to instead being "1 is not an auto-fail." This would allow someone with a great chance (95%) of being OK to avoid the dreaded "bad roll," yet still allow for them to get overwhelmed.

I'd also encourage you to think carefully about placing such enticing items at 1st level (tremorsense). There's only a small handful of ways to gain tremorsense, and with only a 1-level investment, if someone meets the PreReqs, you're almost guaranteed to see 1-level dips.

Also, I'm not sure how evasion fits the theme, I find Uncanny Dodge to be more thematic.
Passivearmada
06-21-07, 05:43 PM ok, dielzen. i havent actually looked through the resource books to plan out this PrC. ive been kinda busy with the actual campaign and other stuff. how long should the person go insane for if they fail the save? i wanted to add evasion, cause chances are that if theyre spying, theyre gonna walk into a trap or two, and evasion would be handy, but i think the player should get that on his own.
Dielzen
06-21-07, 06:26 PM Well, I'm getting the impression that this is a one PC campaign, and we can't make it too oppressive or they'll be killed the first time they failed an insanity check.

I'd say something along the lines of -

As long as the PC is in "friendly" territory and uninjured, no checks are required to remain sane.

While in "enemy territory" and there are more than 100 people in the PC's range, he must make a check every hour to remain sane.

In any area and injured, the PC must make checks based upon how injured he is:

3/4 to (full-1) = hourly
1/2 to 3/4 = every 10 minutes
1/4 to 1/2 = every minute
1hp to 1/4 = every round

Now, to create the DC, I'd base it off the above conditions:
Sanity Check = 10 + (2 times unfriendly voices / 100) + (4 times injury step) - (2 times class level)

So in other words, every 100 enemies is a +2 to the DC, and each step on the injury chart (above) would be +4, and you get to subtract 2 times your level in this PrC (making it easier to reist things with higher PrC levels).

The tricky part, now, is the actual effects of the insanity. I'm going to continue under the 1-PC assumption. If this is a poor guess, make it deadlier to go insane to balance it slightly.

Every time you fail a Sanity Check you act as if under the effects of a confusion spell for a number of rounds equal to the amount by which you failed the DC.

IMO the Sanity is weak compared to the benefits, but if you're doing a solo campaign that's a good thing, as those can be quite deadly at times. If it's a group campaign, make the effect more painful to the PC (deaf for one hour/DC miss, not curable with magic) in order to balance it more.
Samej
06-22-07, 08:35 PM Why stay put in the whispers of the body when one may venture into the whispers of the mind? I think detect thoughts or a similar ability would be a good addition to the Collector of Whispers.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Passivearmada 06-17-07, 09:56 AM	I know that most DMs have created their own prestige classes. In my current campaign, I created one called a Collector of Whispers. They get very high bonuses to their Listen checks as they progress through the levels, and a special ability to listen in on any conversation within a certain radius. There are only three levels, and I keep asking myself, "What else can I give them beside a Listen bonus?" I kind of envision this PrC as a master of body language, able to know what he needs to without asking questions or even being noticed. I can't type up a good table for this PrC (quite frankly, I don't know how on Microsoft Works or Notepad), but some advice or suggestions would be nice, and if you wish to share information about some of your own PrCs, that would be reatly appreciated and enjoyed ;) thank you
Dielzen 06-17-07, 10:09 AM	Well, if they can read body language and are master listeners, then I can see the following possibliities: Tremorsense (hear vibrations of the ground) AC Bonus against creatures they can see (body lang) To hit bonus against creatures they can see (body lang) Sense Motive bonus (body lang) Diplomacy bonus (body lang) Chance to go insane from all the sounds they hear I'm sure there's other things, but those are the first couple that jumped out at me.
Passivearmada 06-17-07, 12:45 PM	Great ideas, Dielzen- i think ill follow them. for the insanity thing, i think that if the PC's wisdom isnt like 14 or higher, than they have to make a DC 15-20 Will Save whenever they enter a crowded area with many conversations, or go insane. I dont know for how long though :thinks: i believe that i didnt think of the AC and Attack Bonus stuff, because the only person in my world (besides the Pcs if they wish to take this class) is more of a spy than a combatant. i dont know why i didnt think of the diplomacy, though i did think of sense motive bonuses. tremorsense is new to me (heck, DMing is new to me), but now i know. i was also hinking of a Spot and Search bonuses, to find concealed weapons or something. I was thinking that they could get a +10 to listen checks once they reach the max level, but is that too much?
MerrikCale 06-17-07, 01:57 PM	There's a link to the thread in my sig of my only foray into PrC creation, the Moonhunter
Dielzen 06-17-07, 03:45 PM	+10 to Listen isn't that excessive, no.
Passivearmada 06-18-07, 09:21 AM	alright, thanks. i've decided that sense motive and listen bonuse will go under a special ability called "sharpsense" and then "improved Sharpsense" and then "Superior sharpsense". the AC bonuses and Atk bounuses will go under "Body Fighting," which sounds kinda lame, or "Combat Senses," which sounds cooler. they get tremorsense at the first level, evasion at the second, improved evasion at the 4th, and what i call "Controlled Mind" at the 5th, where there is no chance of insanity even if they have a low wisdom. i was thinking that if there wisdom is high enough, then they have no chance of insanity. also, they don't haveto hear every conversation- they can tap into that mode with a DC5 Concentration check, it's a full round action, they can stay in that mode as long as they please, but are counted as Flat-Footed when in that mode. i think i'll call it Keen Ears or something. once a day, i think itll be, they can hear one conversation within a 5, 10, 15 mile radius (im not sure how far away it should be). the targets do not know they are being listened upon, unless they have an enchantment or something that will tell them that. this can be blocked by magical abilities. keep sending guys (especially you Dielzen- you've been very helpful and it is greatly appreciated). thanks :P
Dielzen 06-19-07, 11:23 AM	:embarrass I'd not make any "immunity" to this insanity, but instead make it a will based DC. Base the DC on the number of creatures around and any distractions that might be present (combat, taking damage from any source, etc.). Then, at 5th-level of the PrC I'd change it from a blanket immunity to instead being "1 is not an auto-fail." This would allow someone with a great chance (95%) of being OK to avoid the dreaded "bad roll," yet still allow for them to get overwhelmed. I'd also encourage you to think carefully about placing such enticing items at 1st level (tremorsense). There's only a small handful of ways to gain tremorsense, and with only a 1-level investment, if someone meets the PreReqs, you're almost guaranteed to see 1-level dips. Also, I'm not sure how evasion fits the theme, I find Uncanny Dodge to be more thematic.
Passivearmada 06-21-07, 05:43 PM	ok, dielzen. i havent actually looked through the resource books to plan out this PrC. ive been kinda busy with the actual campaign and other stuff. how long should the person go insane for if they fail the save? i wanted to add evasion, cause chances are that if theyre spying, theyre gonna walk into a trap or two, and evasion would be handy, but i think the player should get that on his own.
Dielzen 06-21-07, 06:26 PM	Well, I'm getting the impression that this is a one PC campaign, and we can't make it too oppressive or they'll be killed the first time they failed an insanity check. I'd say something along the lines of - As long as the PC is in "friendly" territory and uninjured, no checks are required to remain sane. While in "enemy territory" and there are more than 100 people in the PC's range, he must make a check every hour to remain sane. In any area and injured, the PC must make checks based upon how injured he is: 3/4 to (full-1) = hourly 1/2 to 3/4 = every 10 minutes 1/4 to 1/2 = every minute 1hp to 1/4 = every round Now, to create the DC, I'd base it off the above conditions: Sanity Check = 10 + (2 times unfriendly voices / 100) + (4 times injury step) - (2 times class level) So in other words, every 100 enemies is a +2 to the DC, and each step on the injury chart (above) would be +4, and you get to subtract 2 times your level in this PrC (making it easier to reist things with higher PrC levels). The tricky part, now, is the actual effects of the insanity. I'm going to continue under the 1-PC assumption. If this is a poor guess, make it deadlier to go insane to balance it slightly. Every time you fail a Sanity Check you act as if under the effects of a confusion spell for a number of rounds equal to the amount by which you failed the DC. IMO the Sanity is weak compared to the benefits, but if you're doing a solo campaign that's a good thing, as those can be quite deadly at times. If it's a group campaign, make the effect more painful to the PC (deaf for one hour/DC miss, not curable with magic) in order to balance it more.
Samej 06-22-07, 08:35 PM	Why stay put in the whispers of the body when one may venture into the whispers of the mind? I think detect thoughts or a similar ability would be a good addition to the Collector of Whispers.