New Nezumi Artifact [PEACH]. [Archive] - Wizards Community

New Nezumi Artifact [PEACH]. [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
RavenGraygem
03-14-07, 05:13 PM Reading through OA, one thing that bothered me was the extremely short lifespans of the ratlings. I got to thinking about how ratlings ever reached high levels in a given class (to say nothing of epic levels).

This is what I came up.

Created at the height of the Nezumi Empire's power and knowledge, the Amulets of Ancestral Knowledge are minor artifacts.

Each amulet appears to be nothing more than a worthless charm made from tarnished silver and strung from a tattered leather thong. But when worn by the proper ratling, the tarnish falls away and the thong is revealed to be a finely-linked chain of an unknown metal.

There are only X* amulets known to exist, and each one corresponds to a class. The amulet has the following abilities:

*X is equal to number of base classes in your campaign world.

1) It can only be worn by ratlings who have levels in the appropriate class.
2) Multiclass ratlings can wear an amulet which corresponds to any class they have, but the amulet will only function if the corresponding class is the one with the highest levels; if the wearer gains equal or greater levels in another class, the amulet ceases to function until the imbalance is corrected.

Example: Greyfur has 4 levels of ranger and 3 levels of sorcerer. She manages to acquire the Amulet of Ancestral Ranger Knowledge, and gains all the benefits from it. But when she gains another level of sorcerer (for a total of 4), the amulet no longer works until she gains a 5th level of ranger. If she had instead found an Amulet of Ancestral Sorcerer Knowledge, it wouldn't function until her sorcerer levels reached 5th or higher.

3) Once put on, the amulet cannot be removed until the wearer dies or the amulet ceases to function as described in #2.

4) If the wearer dies while wearing the appropriate amulet, all of the wearer's corresponding class levels are drained into the amulet. If the wearer is later returned to life by any means, she returns to life with half the levels she had prior to death.

Example: Greyfur dies while wearing the Amulet of Ancestral Ranger Knowledge. She has 8 levels in the class, and all of these are drained into the amulet. Her companions successfully quest to resurrect her, and she is now a 4th level ranger.

5) The amulet grants the wearer additional levels in the corresponding class equal to 1/2 the wearer's existing level (rounded up), with all the appropriate benefits (extra hit points, bonus feats, class abilities, etc).

6) The amulet has a number of charges equal to its absorbed class levels. At the cost of 1 charge, the wearer can gain the use of any feat for a period of 24 hours. Once these charges are expended, the wearer still gains the benefit of #5.

This is obviously a work in progress, and what has been presented here is only the preliminary version. I'd appreciate some help cleaning it up and making it into a quality artifact.
RavenGraygem
03-25-07, 04:49 PM So no comments yet? From anyone?
RavenGraygem
10-13-07, 02:39 AM *performs a bit of thread necromancy on the sly*
Hochiu
10-13-07, 10:18 AM Dah! Undead! *Turnturnturnexaltedturningturnturn*

Anyway...

....I'm trying to tell myself that its an artifact and that its supposed to be powerful like that but...gods damn. Draining the class levels from you when you die if you're wearing it...? Its good in theory but, you just effectively knocked out your nezumi from adventuring with your current group. One or two levels, maybe three, is fine at higher levels, but if the party is level 16, and you come back as level 8, there's not much you're going to be able to do. Also the fact that it cannot be removed makes it a serious handicap in my opinion.

I don't think its going to work, and I don't think its balanced well. At level 10, with this amulet, your nezumi can do everything that a 15th level character can do? That's kind of skewed, and presents a major balancing factor for the party as a whole. Your effective character level is then +5 of the party, which ruins whatever balance there was.

Given the nature of artifacts, its very rare that anyone under a higher level (usually in my games around 15, maybe earlier for story purposes) comes into contact with them. So at level 15, this character has an additional 8 levels (1/2 class level rounded up) of abilities to use. That's...getting into epic there. Why should this artifact confer epic level abilities onto a character?

How many charges do these things have? Do they come drained or do they come full? If these are relics from the Nezumi Empire, one would think they've trained a great number of class levels. ...Suddenly, I could give a crap about which feat I have currently. Don't have one? PING! I know how to use this feat, which I would have never had before. That kind of thing.

I like the idea of the artifact, and I know it an artifact so its powerful, but this is just...I think its too much. I really do.

</honest criticism>
RavenGraygem
10-13-07, 05:16 PM Draining the class levels from you when you die if you're wearing it...? Its good in theory but, you just effectively knocked out your nezumi from adventuring with your current group. One or two levels, maybe three, is fine at higher levels, but if the party is level 16, and you come back as level 8, there's not much you're going to be able to do. Also the fact that it cannot be removed makes it a serious handicap in my opinion.

Well, I can set it so that it only drain 1/4 (rounded up) of the dead ratling's class levels. And bear in mind, though the ratling comes back at a lower level, the amulet can be worn again, restoring some (if not all) of the lost levels.

I don't think its going to work, and I don't think its balanced well. At level 10, with this amulet, your nezumi can do everything that a 15th level character can do? That's kind of skewed, and presents a major balancing factor for the party as a whole. Your effective character level is then +5 of the party, which ruins whatever balance there was.

Mmmm, yeah this is a stumbling block. Again, I can cut it down so that the amulet provides only, say, class level +(1, 2, or 3) levels.

Alternatively, the amulet can only provide limited benefits from pseudo levels, such as extra feats, skill points, and spells known/learned, but not hit points, ability bonuses, or extra spells to cast per day (though you'll be able to cast a minimum of 1 spell per day for each spell level, plus any bonus spells gained due to high ability scores).

Given the nature of artifacts, its very rare that anyone under a higher level (usually in my games around 15, maybe earlier for story purposes) comes into contact with them. So at level 15, this character has an additional 8 levels (1/2 class level rounded up) of abilities to use. That's...getting into epic there. Why should this artifact confer epic level abilities onto a character?

Gah, that was also something that didn't even register to me. But the solution is simple; the benefit of the amulet is capped at 20 levels in whatever class it functions for. It may have absorbed thousands of levels over the course of its existence, but these excess levels gradually bleed off their energy into the Great Nothing.

And if I use the limiting aspect mentioned above, then a nezumi shaman 1 may well have the spells, skills, and abilities of a 20th-level shaman, but he still has the hit points, saves, and BAB of a 1st level shaman.

How many charges do these things have? Do they come drained or do they come full? If these are relics from the Nezumi Empire, one would think they've trained a great number of class levels. ...Suddenly, I could give a crap about which feat I have currently. Don't have one? PING! I know how to use this feat, which I would have never had before. That kind of thing.

Drained or charged is determined by random dice roll. Since the number of absorbed levels is capped at 20, then the charges should be as well. Figuring that out is a easy as rolling a d20. As for knowing any feat, that benefit only lasts for 24 hours. So at the most, you'll have 20 days of free feats, or 20 different feats in one day... then you need to start dying and juicing the amulet up again.

I like the idea of the artifact, and I know it an artifact so its powerful, but this is just...I think its too much. I really do.

That's why I posted it. I don't want to drop this thing into a game and have it explode on me because I didn't get the numbers right. Really, in a perfect world, I could just spew forth the many ideas churning in my skull, and have someone else grind out the numbers.
NorthernOkie
11-05-07, 11:59 PM Why not "longevity" magic??????

Although, I do admit that the ***IDEA*** of the amulet is WONDERFUL....
RavenGraygem
11-08-07, 07:27 PM I thought about longevity magic... and then pondered the implications when (not if, but when) it got out that the nezumi can extend their lifespans through magical means... No, I'm not opening that bucket of worms.

And that's usually the case with my ideas; wonderful concept, crummy implementation. The only time it's ever come together for me was my "Warlord's Staff" artifact.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
RavenGraygem 03-14-07, 05:13 PM	Reading through OA, one thing that bothered me was the extremely short lifespans of the ratlings. I got to thinking about how ratlings ever reached high levels in a given class (to say nothing of epic levels). This is what I came up. Created at the height of the Nezumi Empire's power and knowledge, the Amulets of Ancestral Knowledge are minor artifacts. Each amulet appears to be nothing more than a worthless charm made from tarnished silver and strung from a tattered leather thong. But when worn by the proper ratling, the tarnish falls away and the thong is revealed to be a finely-linked chain of an unknown metal. There are only X* amulets known to exist, and each one corresponds to a class. The amulet has the following abilities: *X is equal to number of base classes in your campaign world. 1) It can only be worn by ratlings who have levels in the appropriate class. 2) Multiclass ratlings can wear an amulet which corresponds to any class they have, but the amulet will only function if the corresponding class is the one with the highest levels; if the wearer gains equal or greater levels in another class, the amulet ceases to function until the imbalance is corrected. Example: Greyfur has 4 levels of ranger and 3 levels of sorcerer. She manages to acquire the Amulet of Ancestral Ranger Knowledge, and gains all the benefits from it. But when she gains another level of sorcerer (for a total of 4), the amulet no longer works until she gains a 5th level of ranger. If she had instead found an Amulet of Ancestral Sorcerer Knowledge, it wouldn't function until her sorcerer levels reached 5th or higher. 3) Once put on, the amulet cannot be removed until the wearer dies or the amulet ceases to function as described in #2. 4) If the wearer dies while wearing the appropriate amulet, all of the wearer's corresponding class levels are drained into the amulet. If the wearer is later returned to life by any means, she returns to life with half the levels she had prior to death. Example: Greyfur dies while wearing the Amulet of Ancestral Ranger Knowledge. She has 8 levels in the class, and all of these are drained into the amulet. Her companions successfully quest to resurrect her, and she is now a 4th level ranger. 5) The amulet grants the wearer additional levels in the corresponding class equal to 1/2 the wearer's existing level (rounded up), with all the appropriate benefits (extra hit points, bonus feats, class abilities, etc). 6) The amulet has a number of charges equal to its absorbed class levels. At the cost of 1 charge, the wearer can gain the use of any feat for a period of 24 hours. Once these charges are expended, the wearer still gains the benefit of #5. This is obviously a work in progress, and what has been presented here is only the preliminary version. I'd appreciate some help cleaning it up and making it into a quality artifact.
RavenGraygem 03-25-07, 04:49 PM	So no comments yet? From anyone?
RavenGraygem 10-13-07, 02:39 AM	performs a bit of thread necromancy on the sly
Hochiu 10-13-07, 10:18 AM	Dah! Undead! Turnturnturnexaltedturningturnturn Anyway... ....I'm trying to tell myself that its an artifact and that its supposed to be powerful like that but...gods damn. Draining the class levels from you when you die if you're wearing it...? Its good in theory but, you just effectively knocked out your nezumi from adventuring with your current group. One or two levels, maybe three, is fine at higher levels, but if the party is level 16, and you come back as level 8, there's not much you're going to be able to do. Also the fact that it cannot be removed makes it a serious handicap in my opinion. I don't think its going to work, and I don't think its balanced well. At level 10, with this amulet, your nezumi can do everything that a 15th level character can do? That's kind of skewed, and presents a major balancing factor for the party as a whole. Your effective character level is then +5 of the party, which ruins whatever balance there was. Given the nature of artifacts, its very rare that anyone under a higher level (usually in my games around 15, maybe earlier for story purposes) comes into contact with them. So at level 15, this character has an additional 8 levels (1/2 class level rounded up) of abilities to use. That's...getting into epic there. Why should this artifact confer epic level abilities onto a character? How many charges do these things have? Do they come drained or do they come full? If these are relics from the Nezumi Empire, one would think they've trained a great number of class levels. ...Suddenly, I could give a crap about which feat I have currently. Don't have one? PING! I know how to use this feat, which I would have never had before. That kind of thing. I like the idea of the artifact, and I know it an artifact so its powerful, but this is just...I think its too much. I really do. </honest criticism>
RavenGraygem 10-13-07, 05:16 PM	Draining the class levels from you when you die if you're wearing it...? Its good in theory but, you just effectively knocked out your nezumi from adventuring with your current group. One or two levels, maybe three, is fine at higher levels, but if the party is level 16, and you come back as level 8, there's not much you're going to be able to do. Also the fact that it cannot be removed makes it a serious handicap in my opinion. Well, I can set it so that it only drain 1/4 (rounded up) of the dead ratling's class levels. And bear in mind, though the ratling comes back at a lower level, the amulet can be worn again, restoring some (if not all) of the lost levels. I don't think its going to work, and I don't think its balanced well. At level 10, with this amulet, your nezumi can do everything that a 15th level character can do? That's kind of skewed, and presents a major balancing factor for the party as a whole. Your effective character level is then +5 of the party, which ruins whatever balance there was. Mmmm, yeah this is a stumbling block. Again, I can cut it down so that the amulet provides only, say, class level +(1, 2, or 3) levels. Alternatively, the amulet can only provide limited benefits from pseudo levels, such as extra feats, skill points, and spells known/learned, but not hit points, ability bonuses, or extra spells to cast per day (though you'll be able to cast a minimum of 1 spell per day for each spell level, plus any bonus spells gained due to high ability scores). Given the nature of artifacts, its very rare that anyone under a higher level (usually in my games around 15, maybe earlier for story purposes) comes into contact with them. So at level 15, this character has an additional 8 levels (1/2 class level rounded up) of abilities to use. That's...getting into epic there. Why should this artifact confer epic level abilities onto a character? Gah, that was also something that didn't even register to me. But the solution is simple; the benefit of the amulet is capped at 20 levels in whatever class it functions for. It may have absorbed thousands of levels over the course of its existence, but these excess levels gradually bleed off their energy into the Great Nothing. And if I use the limiting aspect mentioned above, then a nezumi shaman 1 may well have the spells, skills, and abilities of a 20th-level shaman, but he still has the hit points, saves, and BAB of a 1st level shaman. How many charges do these things have? Do they come drained or do they come full? If these are relics from the Nezumi Empire, one would think they've trained a great number of class levels. ...Suddenly, I could give a crap about which feat I have currently. Don't have one? PING! I know how to use this feat, which I would have never had before. That kind of thing. Drained or charged is determined by random dice roll. Since the number of absorbed levels is capped at 20, then the charges should be as well. Figuring that out is a easy as rolling a d20. As for knowing any feat, that benefit only lasts for 24 hours. So at the most, you'll have 20 days of free feats, or 20 different feats in one day... then you need to start dying and juicing the amulet up again. I like the idea of the artifact, and I know it an artifact so its powerful, but this is just...I think its too much. I really do. That's why I posted it. I don't want to drop this thing into a game and have it explode on me because I didn't get the numbers right. Really, in a perfect world, I could just spew forth the many ideas churning in my skull, and have someone else grind out the numbers.
NorthernOkie 11-05-07, 11:59 PM	Why not "longevity" magic?????? Although, I do admit that the *IDEA* of the amulet is WONDERFUL....
RavenGraygem 11-08-07, 07:27 PM	I thought about longevity magic... and then pondered the implications when (not if, but when) it got out that the nezumi can extend their lifespans through magical means... No, I'm not opening that bucket of worms. And that's usually the case with my ideas; wonderful concept, crummy implementation. The only time it's ever come together for me was my "Warlord's Staff" artifact.