You ever get the feeling this has all happened before? [3.5 Base Class - The Oracle]

[RaggedAngel]

The cost is that you just burned one of your strongest defensive abilities for the round to gain a to-hit bonus on a class that doesn't have a single attack roll spell, short of Miracle-replication. Honestly, at that level, I'd say it's more like eliminating miss chances for your targeted dispels. Would you call a 19th level class feature with limited uses per day that eliminates the first miss chance you would suffer in a round overpowered?

And thus begins a long period of me sighing at how I should have spent another hour looking through the spell list.

Psions are tier 2, actually. Wilders are commonly thought of as tier 3. You really don't get very many spells out of it, all in all, and Oracles need some way of getting an offensive spell or two if they really want them.

Wilders can break the world wide open. They can't do it in many different ways, but they still have a nuclear bomb. I call'um Tier 2. That said, the Oracle's power takes a lot more work, and interaction with the DM, to use properly.

Eh? Over the course of 20 levels, you get the effect of Abjurant Champion 5. I'm curious which three 1st level spells you used to get +35 AC too; all I can think of are Mage Armor (+9 @ 20th), Shield (+9 @ 20th), and Shield of Faith (which isn't on the Oracle spell list unless you took the Protection domain, in which case more power to you) (+10 @ 20th), for a grand total of +28 AC. Given the to-hit numbers monsters of CR 20-23 can pump out, that hardly seems excessive. What am I missing?

I actually liked this ability; I'm sorry if it didn't seem like it. I don't think you should change a thing. Oh, and the +35 came from me doing poor math. I am the best engineer.

You blind yourself until the start of your next turn, unless your foes are right up in your face at first, or actually capable of being detected by blindsense/touchsight at the very latest levels. True Seeing is a 5th level spell, and at the very highest levels you get the ability to use it at half range.

How are you blind? You have Blindsight and True Seeing. And what blocks True Seeing and Touchsight? Not even Superior Invisibility blocks True Seeing, and that's the absolute peak of the Invisibility line.

There are many ways around Blindsense, and Blindsight isn't that much harder to bypass. When you're talking about challenges near or at epic levels, the sneaky types can't be expected to just breeze by your class features without working on their own.

As far as I know, it's just Darkstalker. That said, I agree with your last point.

The physical stats, yes, of creatures that you can find with touchsight. It's like a reverse Mindsight. Again, bordering on Epic levels when it comes into play.
Eh. The range limitation is much harsher than you seem to be giving it credit for.

Again, what blocks touchsight? You make it sound like most things will be utterly imperceptible at high levels.

Would granting an ally a 20% miss chance against one attack per round be an overpowered class feature in your opinion? Unless their AC is ridiculously high, adding +4 AC (maybe; insight bonuses don't stack, after all) is equivalent to a weaker version of concealment. Food for thought.

Hm, I can see that, and I agree with you. I was just getting a bit overwhelmed at the deluge of bonuses and abilities.

Until the first round of combat, yes. Just to clarify, you would rather have the ability grant the party the ability to act in the surprise round, rather than protecting them from direct threats of such? That seems like the stronger option to me.

Not really; at the level you get this it means that your party is nearly immune to attacks until combat gets under way. Shouldn't they be more vulnerable when they have no idea an attack is coming, not less?

Clerics have been able to stop death at next to no cost since level 9. If someone wants to take the class to 18th, eliminating the best PrCs, let them have a 1/day combat rez. It doesn't hurt anyone's fun to come back in the battle instead of sitting it out, and no party enjoys throwing away 25k on a true rez. Is there really any harm here, aside from obviating a costly 9th level spell?

Hm. Rule of Fun. I'm inclined to agree with you, this isn't hurting anything.

"I have seen the future. It isn't pretty."

I'm glad you know me, darling.

Well, unless you decide to entirely redo the encounter from turn 1, nothing will change until you reach the point that you want to alter things - i.e., no time need actually elapse while you reach the point you want to go back to. Just say "okay, we're going back to round 4, on my turn before Joe failed his save against Disintegrate. You'll be alright now buddy!".

It doesn't need to be a complete redo unless the PCs got trounced from turn 1, and at that point you'll probably be glad you had it.

Would you be happier with it if it was a 1/day ability, instead of 1/encounter? I thought of it as the defining feature of the class, but if you really think it needs to be castrated just for PbP play...

I...love Sherlock Holmes too much to want to see this ability killed. Uuuurg. It needs a bit of playtesting, but this comes in at the level of all kinds of crazy, crazy powers and spells. It should be fine, as long as it isn't used in exasperating ways.