Charisma Uber Alles - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Charisma Uber Alles

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
devinmdp
Jun 23, 2005 20:09:50 Most people tend to think of Charisma as a "dump" statistic. And in many cases it is. The people who tend to tank up on Charisma are generally those playing Sorcerers, as they want the bonus spells and DC associated with a high Charisma for their profession.

But I learned something interesting in the course of playing my Living Greyhawk character. When I set out to design my LG character, I had one overriding design concept. [Please note, I say "design" concept and not "character" concept.] I did, as well, have a character concept that was separate and apart from the design concept. My design concept was simple: See how much utility I could eeke out of the most underappreciated stat in the game...Charisma. My goal was to squeeze every ounce of usage from the stat. And in the course doing this, I came to realize that, in the proper circumstances, Charisma is actually the most versatile statistics in the game, if you design a character around it.

How so?

The character I created is currently a Paladin 5/Fighter 2/Ranger 1/Marshal 1. His Charisma is 21 (16 to start, +2 for levels, +1 inherent bonus in campaign, +2 for cloak of charisma). He has taken the Divine Vigour, Divine Might, and Divine Shield feats. He has taken the minor aura from the Marshal class that grants allies a bonus to Will saves.

Here are the various benefits he gets from his Charisma:

1. As a paladin he gets to cure 25 hit points of damage per day from laying on hands.

2. As a paladin he gets a +5 bonus to all of his saving throws due to divine grace.

3. As a paladin, he gets to turn undead 8 times a day.

4. Using Divine Might, he gets +5 to his damage rolls.

5. Using Divine Vigour, he gains +18 hit points and +10 to his speed.

6. Using Divine Shield, he gains +5 to his shield bonus to AC.

7. Using his marshal aura, he and every ally within 60 ft gains a +5 to their Will saves.

8. As a paladin, when smiting evil, he gains +5 to his attack rolls.

To my mind, that is a lot of use from a "dump" stat. Not to mention the traditional uses he gains with regard to Charisma-based skills.

What other stat can be made so versatile?

Strength grants you attack and damage bonuses, but Charisma can get you both of those (items 4 and 8).

Constitution grants you bonuses to Fortitude saves and extra hit points, but Charisma can get you both of those (items 2 and 5).

Dexterity grants you bonus to Reflex saves, bonus to AC and bonus to ranged attacks. Charisma cannot grant you a bonus to ranged attacks, but does grant you AC and Reflex save bonuses (items 2 and 6).

Intelligence grants you skill points, which Charisma does not.

Wisdom grants you a bonus to Will saves, which Charisma does in a big way (items 2 and 7).

In addition, Charisma lets you turn undead, increase your speed, heal damage, and extend Will save bonus to your allies.

Overall, I am now convinced that Charisma is the most versatile stat in the game!

Devin
#2
journeyman777
Jul 10, 2005 4:41:18 Adding the "Force of Personality" feat from Complete Adventurer allows you to use your Charisma in place of Wisdom for your will saves. It's also a fun way to roleplay foolish (low Wis) characters that still have strong personalities.
#3
gilean_dup
Jul 14, 2005 10:20:08 So, with class-dipping and splatbooks you can use charisma a lot. I'm quite sure this could be done with almost any stat. If this convinces you of the overall usefulness of charisma, great, but this is extremely fallacious argumentation, and can not be generalised in the least.

Also, let me notify of the lack of leadership feat. It makes charisma look useful. And, in the retired article fey feature, there was a feat called something like charming the arrow, or something like that, that allowed a fey to use charisma instead of dexterity to boost ranged attack bonus.
#4
friendofthedork
Jul 23, 2005 3:48:04 Alright... you claim that charisma is the most useful stat in the game. Then you present a Paladin. Well of course charisma is bread and butter to paladins! It's almost a prime stat for them for crying out loud! In fact, the PHB also advises you to NOT dump charisma if you're playing a paladin or sorcerer.

It's use for the pure combat classes: Fighter, Barbarian and Ranger, is very limited indeed. The only limitation there is a lowered intimidate check. So of course players only interesting in mechanics dump charisma. The only time charisma matters for these types, is when the DM makes it more important. For example the DM can let charisma affect every interaction with NPCs and monsters. Even the players can let charisma coming into play, if nothing else than for determining who's the most good looking ;)

And it that respect, charisma is über allles. PCs without charisma should expect to be generally disliked or ignored. Low charisma also means low self esteem, and this should be roleplayed. The über cool fighter who then becomes a hero MUST have a good charisma, or he's just another guy with a sword.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 devinmdp Jun 23, 2005 20:09:50	Most people tend to think of Charisma as a "dump" statistic. And in many cases it is. The people who tend to tank up on Charisma are generally those playing Sorcerers, as they want the bonus spells and DC associated with a high Charisma for their profession. But I learned something interesting in the course of playing my Living Greyhawk character. When I set out to design my LG character, I had one overriding design concept. [Please note, I say "design" concept and not "character" concept.] I did, as well, have a character concept that was separate and apart from the design concept. My design concept was simple: See how much utility I could eeke out of the most underappreciated stat in the game...Charisma. My goal was to squeeze every ounce of usage from the stat. And in the course doing this, I came to realize that, in the proper circumstances, Charisma is actually the most versatile statistics in the game, if you design a character around it. How so? The character I created is currently a Paladin 5/Fighter 2/Ranger 1/Marshal 1. His Charisma is 21 (16 to start, +2 for levels, +1 inherent bonus in campaign, +2 for cloak of charisma). He has taken the Divine Vigour, Divine Might, and Divine Shield feats. He has taken the minor aura from the Marshal class that grants allies a bonus to Will saves. Here are the various benefits he gets from his Charisma: 1. As a paladin he gets to cure 25 hit points of damage per day from laying on hands. 2. As a paladin he gets a +5 bonus to all of his saving throws due to divine grace. 3. As a paladin, he gets to turn undead 8 times a day. 4. Using Divine Might, he gets +5 to his damage rolls. 5. Using Divine Vigour, he gains +18 hit points and +10 to his speed. 6. Using Divine Shield, he gains +5 to his shield bonus to AC. 7. Using his marshal aura, he and every ally within 60 ft gains a +5 to their Will saves. 8. As a paladin, when smiting evil, he gains +5 to his attack rolls. To my mind, that is a lot of use from a "dump" stat. Not to mention the traditional uses he gains with regard to Charisma-based skills. What other stat can be made so versatile? Strength grants you attack and damage bonuses, but Charisma can get you both of those (items 4 and 8). Constitution grants you bonuses to Fortitude saves and extra hit points, but Charisma can get you both of those (items 2 and 5). Dexterity grants you bonus to Reflex saves, bonus to AC and bonus to ranged attacks. Charisma cannot grant you a bonus to ranged attacks, but does grant you AC and Reflex save bonuses (items 2 and 6). Intelligence grants you skill points, which Charisma does not. Wisdom grants you a bonus to Will saves, which Charisma does in a big way (items 2 and 7). In addition, Charisma lets you turn undead, increase your speed, heal damage, and extend Will save bonus to your allies. Overall, I am now convinced that Charisma is the most versatile stat in the game! Devin
#2 journeyman777 Jul 10, 2005 4:41:18	Adding the "Force of Personality" feat from Complete Adventurer allows you to use your Charisma in place of Wisdom for your will saves. It's also a fun way to roleplay foolish (low Wis) characters that still have strong personalities.
#3 gilean_dup Jul 14, 2005 10:20:08	So, with class-dipping and splatbooks you can use charisma a lot. I'm quite sure this could be done with almost any stat. If this convinces you of the overall usefulness of charisma, great, but this is extremely fallacious argumentation, and can not be generalised in the least. Also, let me notify of the lack of leadership feat. It makes charisma look useful. And, in the retired article fey feature, there was a feat called something like charming the arrow, or something like that, that allowed a fey to use charisma instead of dexterity to boost ranged attack bonus.
#4 friendofthedork Jul 23, 2005 3:48:04	Alright... you claim that charisma is the most useful stat in the game. Then you present a Paladin. Well of course charisma is bread and butter to paladins! It's almost a prime stat for them for crying out loud! In fact, the PHB also advises you to NOT dump charisma if you're playing a paladin or sorcerer. It's use for the pure combat classes: Fighter, Barbarian and Ranger, is very limited indeed. The only limitation there is a lowered intimidate check. So of course players only interesting in mechanics dump charisma. The only time charisma matters for these types, is when the DM makes it more important. For example the DM can let charisma affect every interaction with NPCs and monsters. Even the players can let charisma coming into play, if nothing else than for determining who's the most good looking ;) And it that respect, charisma is über allles. PCs without charisma should expect to be generally disliked or ignored. Low charisma also means low self esteem, and this should be roleplayed. The über cool fighter who then becomes a hero MUST have a good charisma, or he's just another guy with a sword.