Bill Collector

[quiet1mi]

Recently I built a character I deemed as the build collector... His job in my friend's homebrew world was just that, to collect money from people powerful enough to take out a loan and not pay it back... IE: Full casters...

The highlights of this character was he was 11th level which are broken down like this...

Hexblade (online Fixed) 4: Paladin of Tyrrany 3 : Monk 2 (Decisive strike) : Blackguard 2.

He has the Following Stats and Saves.
Str: 16 Dex: 12 Con: 14 Int: 10 Wis: 12 Cha: 22
Fort:+33 Ref:+23 Will:+26

Feats:
*Imperious Command (demoralize is not mind affecting)
*Power Attack
*Cleave
*Improved Unarmed Strike
*Stunning Fist
*Combat Reflexes
*Brutal Strike
*Improved Sunder

Skills:
Intimidate +22
Bluff +11
Diplomacy +10
Hide +6
Move Silently +6
Listen +6
Spot +6
*Never Outnumbered
Special Qualities:
Hexblade Curse
Arcane Resistance
Mettle
Dark Companion
Decisive Strike
Unarmed Strike
Evasion
Aura of Evil
Smite Evil 2/day
Detect Good
Divine Grace
Deadly Touch (18)
Aura of Despair
Dark Blessing
Poison Use

So... Does he have what it take to survive in a magocracy or be the guy who knocks on a full caster's door to "collect" on that loan Jimmy "the Knife" loaned him?

(My friend was talking about using him as a NPC for his other magocracy game)

[Boci]

Cha to saves twices is acceptable. Cha to saves 3 times? Meh, each to their own.

Personally I'd trade those 2 levels of blackguard for 1 level in ranger to get FA: arcanists (then find room for favoured power attack) and psychic warrior. That way you can take the feat that allows you retain your armour bonus to your touch AC, which will help against spells requiring touch attacks. That however will cost you another two feats (but PW will get you a bonus one).

Now all you need is that enhancement that allows you to use greater dispel magic as a swift action two times per day. I think its in the Eberron handbook, but it might be forgotten realms.

[deuxhero]

What happens when a caster decides to use one of his many spells that doesn't use a save?

Why does a full caster need to take out a loan?

[Boci]

What happens when a caster decides to use one of his many spells that doesn't use a save?

Well, the mage has the following options:
1. Save or suck/die - beaten by high saves and evasion/mettle
2. Single target affects that do not allow a save. These will however almost always require an attack roll. With normal armour to touch AC, a mage will have a significant chance to miss the target, since at level 11 quickened true strike is not likely going to be one of their chosen spells. Thus the bill collector is more vulnerable to these spells, but still not defensless. Might want to pick up concealment as an added protection, especially if the mage has ranged recall.
3. No save or attack roll affects. Typically too weak to end a fight, but potent when combined with the following two options.
4. Battle field control. Bill collector is currently a sitting duck for such spells. Badly needs ability to teleport. Anklet of translocation will help, but it has a range of 10ft and can only be used 2/day, so it will not be enough. Unfortunatly, there are no other cheap methods for this that I know of.
5. Summoning allies. Should be able to deal with the wizards cronies, but will waste valuable time in doing so. Greater dispel magic 2/day probably won't be enough.
6. Teleport. Good bye.

So against an unprepared mage he may stand a chance, especially if the caster waste actions using spells from the first two options against him. If the mage knows there is a debt collector after him, not chance in hell really.

Shame there is no room in the build for the mage slaying tree.


Why does a full caster need to take out a loan?

Have you seen the prices for a mage academy?

[quiet1mi]

For the Fog line I was thinking about having a bottle of Air in his belt, so if he is in a fog he could just pop the stopper off...

A simple bottle of eversmoking might be the concealment I need, add that to the item that gives you blindsight or sense and I think we have a winner...

Increasing his touch Ac is a bit of a pain... I guess an animated shield with an enhancement of some kind... Ring of Deflections are also nice...

Getting the drop helps a lot merely because of intimidate. Given an even level fight... The Bill collector has a +11 on the opposition to a low of a +5... Failure means you are Cowering as he overwhelmed you with his badassery...

Summoned minions are of little threat unless they can also deal with his demoralize action... because of his skill trick, he can make a room full of minions cower in fear for a single round...

Simple wands (Disguise self, Magic Aura, undetectable alignment, Charm person, detect magic, cure light wounds) could provide him with a lot of utility... remember that bad guys get a -4 to their saves near him and his companion... an additional -2 for being shaken, another -2 if he hit them hard with a quarterstaff (interrogations) DC 11 for a mook with a -8 to his saves might see the collector as an immediate threat and spill his guts...

[Boci]

For the Fog line I was thinking about having a bottle of Air in his belt, so if he is in a fog he could just pop the stopper off...

I'd be more concerned about the grappling ones, such as Evard's Black Tenticles.


A simple bottle of eversmoking might be the concealment I need, add that to the item that gives you blindsight or sense and I think we have a winner...

Worth including in his inventory, but I do not think blind sense helps against concealment. Might be wrong though.


Increasing his touch Ac is a bit of a pain... I guess an animated shield with an enhancement of some kind... Ring of Deflections are also nice...

So those two levels of blackguard are going to stay?


Getting the drop helps a lot merely because of intimidate. Given an even level fight... The Bill collector has a +11 on the opposition to a low of a +5... Failure means you are Cowering as he overwhelmed you with his badassery...

What does getting the drop mean? Winning initiative? Because your dex mod is nothing special and you do not appear to have any other ways of boosting initiative.


Summoned minions are of little threat unless they can also deal with his demoralize action... because of his skill trick, he can make a room full of minions cower in fear for a single round...

Do be aware of the limitations of demoralizing. They must threatan them in melee. So summoned monster grapples you? You cannot demoralize them. Summoned monster stays at range? You cannot demoralize them. And of coutse they could also be immune to fear.


Simple wands (Disguise self, Magic Aura, undetectable alignment, Charm person, detect magic, cure light wounds) could provide him with a lot of utility... remember that bad guys get a -4 to their saves near him and his companion... an additional -2 for being shaken, another -2 if he hit them hard with a quarterstaff (interrogations) DC 11 for a mook with a -8 to his saves might see the collector as an immediate threat and spill his guts...

True, you can automatically make the DC to acxtivate a wand, but depending on when you took that monk level it may mess up your other skill progressions. But anyway, hyou wouldn't be using these wands in combat.

Ultimatly you need a way to reach casters (i.e. fly). Even then watch out for dispel magic which can supress a magical item for 1d4 rounds. And you need to win initiative. When the caster is flatfooted is the only time they cannot use celerity to go "you can't touch me".

[quiet1mi]

whooops forgot that you have to be within melee range...

I was going to take advantage of the surprise round for efforts of going first...

Hmmm... maybe I need to make a second character to aid the "Bill collector"... or I would require Items that do the things that are listed above...

The two levels of monk are quite necessary as it gives me Stunning Fist, Evasion, +3 to all stats... Maybe if I traded it out for Rogue 2... This would give me 8 more skill points (UMD to solve a lot of problems).

For being vertically challenged, I was wondering if there were any cheap Items that allowed you to boost your jump bonus. Flight is not that much of an issue as most encounters will be indoors.

Do you guys think that spell support would be warranted for this kind of character. Turning the idea of a Bill collector into an organization created to deal with full casters that get into trouble... The things that come into mind include.

Artificers/Magewrights to make Items
Diviners to find the target
Stealth Based Beguiler/Rogue/Ninjas to scout out locations that cannot be divined...
Bards to act as middlemen
Builds like the one above to take down the surprised target... (there is a stringent NO KILL policy)