Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Mr. Styx 03-15-05, 09:23 PM	First and foremost, when i have a dragon character (Styx in this case) I have an ECL equal to my HD+Level Adjustment+Class levels correct? Second, Do I choose my skills, feats, etc according to my ECL? A dragons has good BAB and good saves. Good BAB means Attack bonus equal to my HD, so i don't select BAB according to ECL? Does this effect my saves the same way?
SD 03-15-05, 09:47 PM	First and foremost, when i have a dragon character (Styx in this case) I have an ECL equal to my HD+Level Adjustment+Class levels correct?Correct, if by "HD" you mean "HD from being a dragon", which I'm fairly certain is what you mean.Second, Do I choose my skills, feats, etc according to my ECL?No, they're based on Hit Dice. A dragon with 2 HD and LA +2 gets one feat and 30+5*Int skill points.A dragons has good BAB and good saves. Good BAB means Attack bonus equal to my HD, so i don't select BAB according to ECL?Sort of. It means your attack bonus is equal to your dragon Hit Dice (since they have a good BAB) plus the attack bonus from your class levels. A dragon with 2 HD and 2 fighter levels has BAB +4, but a dragon with 2 HD and 2 cleric levels has BAB +3.Does this effect my saves the same way?Yes, saves are dragon saves + class saves + ability modifiers + feats and items and such. BAB, saves, skills, feats, hit points, and so on are based on Hit Dice. Experience points, recommended treasure, and so on are based on ECL.
obrysii 03-15-05, 09:48 PM	First and foremost, when i have a dragon character (Styx in this case) I have an ECL equal to my HD+Level Adjustment+Class levels correct? Second, Do I choose my skills, feats, etc according to my ECL? You choose skills, feats, and ability point ups according to HD, not ECL. [quote=Mr. Styx]A dragons has good BAB and good saves. Good BAB means Attack bonus equal to my HD, so i don't select BAB according to ECL? Does this effect my saves the same way? BaB and saves are according to HD, never ECL.
Mr. Styx 03-15-05, 10:11 PM	I'm gunna type it all out to see if i get it all right... So, my wyrmling Styx, has 5 HD and +5 LA for a grand total of 10 ECL. Skills: (6 + 4 Int modifier) x4... +10 +10+10+10 For total of +80 Points Feats: 2 Ability increase: 1 (at 4th HD) BAB: +5 (5 HD) Total Attack Bonus: +5 (BAB), +7 (racial attack bonus), +5 strength(increased from ability increase at 4 HD), +1 small Size = +18 Melee Attack Grapple: +5, +5 Strength, -4 size Fort: +5 (race), +4 (HD) = 9 Ref: +4, +4=8 Will: +4, +4=8 sorry for typing it all up, i'm just making sure everything is correct
SD 03-15-05, 10:43 PM	Gwuh? As a 5-HD dragon, you have a BAB of +5, yes. However, where are you getting the "racial attack bonus"? Is this some strange magical feature of the styx dragon? Your attack bonus should be 5 (BAB) + 5 (Str) + 1 (size) + feats, items, or specific racial abilities. You also have base saves of +4/+4/+4 for being a 5-HD dragon, yes. However, the only things you add to that are saves from class levels, ability modifiers, feats, items, and again, specific racial abilities. If I'm not mistaken, you're looking at the dragon's monster entry and seeing that it attacks at +7 and its saves are +5/+4/+4. However, you do not add those to your attack bonus or saves. As a PC, you completely ignore a significant portion of what is written in the monster entry. The damage dice for attacks (like in 2d6+3, you use the 2d6 and ignore the +3), number of Hit Dice, size, natural armor class bonus, special attacks, and special qualities are pretty much all you need. You derive the ability score bonuses from the creature, but you apply those bonuses to your own rolls or buys. Everything else is a function of these items and your choices as a player; for example, you can pick any two feats and any 80 (assuming your Int mod is +4) skill points with minimal regard for what the base creature has. Out of curiosity, what are your ability modifiers (for being a dragon) and rolls (for being a person who owns dice)?
Mr. Styx 03-16-05, 01:25 AM	To roll my ability scores, i go to http://www.pathguy.com/cg35.htm . This randomly generates scores automatically. I came to one of (if not the) best set of rolls i have ever used! The rolls (and ability I assigned to them) are 17 (Str), 18 (Dex), 17 (Con), 18 (Int), 13 (Wis), 15 (Cha) [I did not cheat in anyway what-so-ever. I got really lucky]. I did that subtract 10 for even numbers and 11 for odds... The racial bonuses i found were +2 Strength and +2 Constitution. Current Stats: Str:19 [+4] Dex:18 [+4] Con:20 [+5] (Increased at 4th level) Int:18 [+4] Wis:13 [+1] Cha:15 [+2] PS: Thanks for clearing that up, i thought my character was too strong but it turns out i was reading the monster entry too.
Purkake 03-16-05, 08:57 AM	You dont get ability increses for monster HD, only for class levels. And add your BAB to your grapple check.
Mr. Styx 03-18-05, 05:11 PM	also, since my ECL is 10, i need to gain enough EXP to be a 11th level character to gain one as a dragon? or what's up with this?
Ph0eNiX 03-21-05, 12:43 PM	Your ECL is 10. Once you have enough XP to advance to 11th level, you add a character class level. You add the character class BAB and base saves to your own base scores, just as if you were multiclassing, but your dragon hit dice don't count toward a multiclassing penalty. Once your character reaches his 2nd birthday, you take a "dragon" level at your next level increase. You may not take any other character class levels until that dragon level is taken. You do not take another dragon level again until your 4th birthday. As pointed out, you do not get an ability score increase for your dragon HD, you add that +1 once you have 4 character class levels.