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View Full Version : Possessor: New 3.5 base class WIP PEACH



Fyermind
2013-05-01, 02:05 AM
Major Mechanics:
Weak Divinations
Moderate Charms
Moderate Curses
Possessing
Enhancing items and people


The Chassis
Poor BAB
d6 HD
Strong will save, weak fort and ref

Class Skills: Bluff, Concentration, Craft, Diplomacy, Disguise, Gather Information, Intimidate, Knowledge (Arcana), Knowledge (Local), Knowledge (the planes), Listen, Perform, Profession, Sense Motive
Skill points: 4+int mod

The reason you came:

Learn weakness:
The power of a Possessor comes form understanding the minds of it's targets. As a move action, a Possessor can make a sense motive check (DC 15 + targets HD + targets wisdom modifier). Success grants the possessor a leverage point over the target per 5 points by which the check succeeds to a maximum of the the possessors charisma modifier + 1/4 the possessor's class level (minimum 1).
A successful gather information check in an area where the target is known can also grant leverage points. In this case the base DC is the targets HD + the targets wisdom modifier. This is modifier by how well the population knows the target. This number ranges from +5 to the DC if the population are the target's friends, to +25 if the population has only seen and heard the target, but has not interacted with the target. If the population has never seen or heard the target, the check simply fails.

Hold Leverage:
A possessor can hold leverage of up to it's charisma modifier plus 1/4 it's class level over each individual. This represents it's knowledge of the personality and weaknesses of the individual referred to as the target from here on. Possessors can grant both beneficial and detrimental effects with this leverage.
Just holding leverage offers a semblance of protection. Targets attacking a possessor take a penalty to hit equal to the points of leverage the possessor holds against them.
Points can be applied or spent. Applied points are unusable for five rounds after the duration of their effects ends. Spent points are gone. After points are spent, the maximum number of leverage points relative to the target decreases by the number of points spent for one minute.

Leverage Weakness:
By applying leverage points a Possessor can manipulate it's targets. Saves have a DC of (DC 10 + 1/2 possessor level + charisma modifier)

Taunt: At level 1 they can apply a single point as an immediate action to grant a +2 bonus or a -2 penalty to an attack roll, damage roll, skill check, or saving throw by a target within 30'. The bonus is language dependent, but the penalty is not.

Forceful Leverage: At level 2 they can apply a single point as a standard action to issue a command as the spell.

Shocking insight: At level 3 they can spend a single point as a move action to render the target flat footed for the round and force a will save or have the foe be dazed. This is a language dependent, mind effecting effect.

Seduction of power: At level 5 they can apply 2 leverage points to issue a suggestion as the spell as a standard action. As long as the target follows the suggestion they gain a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls.

Subtlety of Leverage: At level 8 a possessor can apply 4 leverage points to charm a target as per charm monster. Will negates, but this effects creatures normally immune to charm effects as long as they have an intelligence score.

Fiendish benevolence: At level 11 a possessor can apply a point to provide a stacking +2 profane bonus on damage rolls

Break the mind: At level 13 a possessor can spend a leverage point as a standard action to apply a 1d6 point penalty to any mental ability score. A successful will save halves this damage. This is a mind effecting, language dependent, supernatural effect, and cannot reduce an ability score below 0. The penalty lasts for ten rounds.

Lure of the Dominatrix: At level 15 a possessor can spend a full round action to apply 6 leverage points to effect a target as per Geas/Quest. As long as the target follows the Geas, it gains the possessors charisma bonus as a profane bonus to saves.

Curse Item:
At level 4 a Possessor can place it's curse on a magic item (will negates). Success allows the possessor to turn the magic's effect off at any time as an immediate action at any distance. Attempts to activate it while it is so disabled allow a will save where success breaks the curse. Regardless of the result of the save, the activator takes a -2 penalty to saves and attack rolls for a minute, and the possessor is aware of them and may immediately make a sense motive check for learn weakness regardless of distance.

Tongues:
At level 5 a possessor gains continuous tongues as the spell. It can be raised or lowered as a free action.

Fake Leverage:
At level 6 a Possessor can pretend to have more leverage than it actually does. Once you have used a leverage point against a target, you may make a bluff check opposed by the target's HD + wisdom modifier. Success grants you a temporary leverage point plus 1/5 points by which you beat their check. These points last for 1 round. This ability can be used once per encounter per target as part of an action in which you spend or apply leverage points against that target. You cannot use this ability to grant beneficial leverage effects.

Swift assessment:
At level 9 a Possessor can make sense motive checks for learn weakness as a swift action and gather information checks in half the time.

Deep assessment:
A level 9 possessor can, as a standard action, use detect thoughts at will (save DC 10 + 1/2 possessor level + charisma modifier) as the spell. Caster level as possessor level. The possessor gains a +10 bonus on sense motive, bluff, diplomacy, and intimidate checks against creatures whose mind it is reading.

Possess Item:
*This entry needs work. I want it to work roughly like how a fiend possesses an item and need to read it very carefully to avoid it being too abusable. It will scale with level, and will still allow most of the possessors class abilities to function*

Telepathy:
At level 12 a possessor gains telepathy range 100'

Possess Target:
Level 14? *This entry needs work. I want it to work roughly like how a fiend possesses a creature and need to read it very carefully to avoid it being too abusable. It will scale with level, and will still allow most of the possessors class abilities to function*

Animate Possession:
Level 19/20? *This works like the control body power when used on possessed creatures and works like animate object when used on an item. This can also be used for utility things like opening locked doors by possessing the lock*

The higher levels are unfinished. I'm not sure when to add a proper possession ability. In general I want the possessor to be primarily a debuffer/buffer/controller with good scouting and divination options. What it isn't is a combatant. I'm not sure how to make it customizable, or if that is even a good idea. The target tier is 3. This could be made a tier 1 by enabling it to possess items from a much lower level and give them the powers of a magic item.

So what do you think? Problems? thoughts? Suggestions? I could use it all.

Steward
2013-05-01, 01:25 PM
Do you have access to the Fiend Folio?

In it, near the end, there's a prestige class called "Fiend of Possession". You could probably adapt that class's "possess target" special ability for your class's 14th level ability.

That class also has the ability to possess objects (though it gets that at a lower level than 19 or 20) so you could mine that for ideas too.

I'm a big fan of the idea of "leverage points"; it reminds me of psionics, a mechanic that I personally find more versatile and interesting than the other common alternative ("you can use this ability X times per day at 1st level, X+1 times per day at 3rd level, so on"). The only issue I have with the application here is that it sounds as if the Possessor has to maintain a separate leverage pool for each target that it wants to use the ability on. If I'm reading that right, that could get pretty unwieldy pretty fast; either the Possessor will have to keep track of a dozen different enemies and how much leverage he has on them (more bookkeeping than Wizard has to do) or will have to limit the use of the ability to just a couple of people and keep careful track.

Another issue (not a criticism though, just a question) -- is there a cap on the number of leverage points a character can have on someone? Could you theoretically spend a few months running "Gather Information" and "Sense Motive" checks in different places on the same guy to amass what would essentially be an inexhaustible supply of points for an epic confrontation? That's an interesting concept -- it wouldn't do you much good in a fast-paced dungeon crawl but in a slower-pace political intrigue game where you have plenty of downtime a Possessor could arm themselves pretty well if there's no cap on the amount of points they can accrue with "Learn Weakness" (assuming they take the time to pump their skill checks).


A successful gather information check in an area where the target is known can also grant leverage points. In this case the base DC is the targets HD + the targets wisdom modifier. This is modifier by how well the population knows the target. This number ranges from +5 to the DC if the population are the target's friends, to +25 if the population has only seen and heard the target, but has not interacted with the target. If the population has never seen or heard the target, the check simply fails.

As far as the modifier goes, does this increase the DC or act a bonus on the Possessor's skill check? It seems kind of weird that there would be a DC increase if the Possessor is working with people who are friends with the target; wouldn't they be the most likely to have sensitive information on him?