Scored a good enough X in the last villaincy test


Quote Originally Posted by Al X. Goodenuff
Al X. Goodenuff




LE Dark Lion Tribe Human Invisible Fist Monk 16 / Antiquarian Rogue 3 / Tattooed Monk 1

Spoiler: Basics
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Name: Al X. Goodenuff
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Race: Human from Lion Tribe (Shining South 164)
Template: Forgotten Realms Dark Creature (Cormyr: The Tearing Of The Weave 152)
Region: The Shaar, Faerūn (Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 197)
Serving: Pandorym (Elder Evils 80)
Organization: Lightbringers (Expedition to Castle Ravenloft 204)

Abilities:
STR 14
DEX 12
CON 13 (+1 @ 20) = 14
INT 12
WIS 13 (+3 @ 8, 12, 16) = 16
CHA 15 (+1 @ 4) = 16


Spoiler: Build
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Level Class Base Attack Bonus Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Skills Feats Class Features
1st Monk 1 +0 +2 +2 +2 Balance +4, Climb +4, Hide +4, Knowledge (religion) +4, Listen +4, Tumble +4 Improved Unarmed StrikeB, Improved GrappleB, Vile Ki StrikeVB (Elder Evils 14), Lion Tribe WarriorHB (Shining South 20), Endurance Bonus feat, flurry of blows, unarmed strike
2nd Monk 2 +1 +3 +3 +3 Balance +1 (5), Climb +1 (5), Hide +1 (5), Knowledge (religion) +1 (5), Listen +1 (5), Tumble +1 (5) Deflect ArrowsB Bonus feat, Invisible Fist (Exemplars of Evil 21)
3rd Rogue 1 +1 +3 +5 +3 Climb +1 (6), Hide +1 (6), Listen +1 (6), Spot +6, Tumble +1 (6) Ascetic Rogue (Complete Adventurer 106) Sneak attack +1d6, Antiquarian (Complete Champion 51)
4th Monk 3 +2 +3 +5 +3 Climb +1 (7), Hide +1 (7), Knowledge (religion) +1 (6), Tumble +1 (7); Twisted Charge (Complete Scoundrel 90) Still mind
5th Monk 4 +3 +4 +6 +4 Climb +1 (8), Hide +1 (8), Knowledge (religion) +2 (8), Listen +1 (7), Tumble +1 (8) Chosen of EvilVB (Elder Evils 12) Ki strike (magic), Water Step 20' (Stormwrack 50)
6th Tattooed Monk 1 (Complete Warrior 82) +3 +6 +8 +6 Climb +1 (9), Hide +1 (9), Knowledge (religion) +1 (9), Move Silently +2, Tumble +1 (9) Daredevil Athlete (Complete Scoundrel 76) Monk abilities, Tattoo (Falcon)
7th Monk 5 +3 +6 +8 +6 Climb +1 (10), Hide +1 (10), Knowledge (religion) +1 (10), Listen +1 (8), Move Silently +1 (3), Tumble +1 (10) Purity of body
8th Monk 6 +4 +7 +9 +7 Climb +1 (11), Hide +1 (11), Knowledge (religion) +1 (11), Listen +1 (9), Move Silently +1 (4), Tumble +1 (11) Improved TripB Bonus feat, Water Step 30'
9th Monk 7 +5 +7 +9 +7 Climb +1 (12), Hide +1 (12), Knowledge (religion) +1 (12), Listen +1 (10), Move Silently +1 (5), Tumble +1 (12) Weapon Focus (unarmed strike) Wholeness of body
10th Monk 8 +6 +8 +10 +8 Climb +1 (13), Hide +1 (13), Knowledge (religion) +1 (13), Listen +1 (11), Move Silently +1 (6), Tumble +1 (13) Slave to EvilVB (Elder Evils 14) Water Step 40'
11th Monk 9 +6 +8 +10 +8 Climb +1 (14), Hide +1 (14), Knowledge (religion) +1 (14), Listen +1 (12), Move Silently +1 (7), Tumble +1 (14) Blink (Exemplars of Evil 21)
12th Monk 10 +7 +9 +11 +9 Climb +1 (15), Hide +1 (15), Knowledge (religion) +1 (15), Listen +1 (13), Move Silently +1 (8), Tumble +1 (15) Giantbane (Complete Warrior 111) Ki strike (lawful), Water Step 50'
13th Monk 11 +8 +9 +11 +9 Climb +1 (16), Hide +1 (16), Knowledge (religion) +1 (16), Listen +1 (14), Move Silently +1 (9), Tumble +1 (16) Diamond body, greater flurry
14th Monk 12 +9 +10 +12 +10 Climb +1 (17), Hide +1 (17), Knowledge (religion) +1 (17), Listen +1 (15), Move Silently +1 (10), Tumble +1 (17) Abundant step, Water Step 60'
15th Monk 13 +9 +10 +12 +10 Climb +1 (18), Hide +1 (18), Knowledge (religion) +1 (18), Listen +1 (16), Move Silently +1 (11), Tumble +1 (18) Vile Natural AttackVB (Elder Evils 14), Sand Dancer (Sandstorm 52) Diamond soul
16th Monk 14 +10 +11 +14 +11 Climb +1 (19), Hide +1 (19), Knowledge (religion) +1 (19), Listen +1 (17), Move Silently +1 (12), Tumble +1 (19) Water Step 70'
17th Monk 15 +11 +11 +14 +11 Climb +1 (20), Hide +1 (20), Move Silently +1 (13), Tumble +1 (20); Acrobatic Backstab (Complete Scoundrel 84) Quivering palm
18th Monk 16 +12 +12 +15 +12 Climb +1 (21), Hide +1 (21), Listen +1 (18), Move Silently +2 (15), Tumble +1 (21) Pebble Underfoot (Dragon Compendium 103) Ki strike (adamantine), Water Step 80'
19th Rogue 2 +13 +12 +16 +12 Climb +1 (22), Hide +1 (22), Move Silently +1 (16), Spot +6 (12), Tumble +1 (22) Evasion
20th Rogue 3 +14 +13 +17 +13 Climb +1 (23), Hide +1 (23), Move Silently +1 (17), Spot +6 (18), Tumble +1 (23) Vile Martial StrikeVB (Elder Evils 14) Sneak attack +2d6, Lightbringer Rogue Penetrating Strike (Expedition to Castle Ravenloft 208)


Spoiler: Story
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Growing up in The Shaar, Al X. Goodenuff was a very disciplined child. He trained as a capoeira dancer, mixing Tumble skill and martial arts moves into a visually pleasing whole. For a time this was a lucrative performance art. Then his brother was seduced by a charismatic thief, and both were killed on their criminal caper by a Knight/Justiciar named Brutes Wills. Al embraced his Dark side and vowed to dance on the grave of Brutes Wills.


Spoiler: Notes
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The +1 level adjustment from Dark template is bought off for 3,000 XP at class level 3, leaving 7,000 XP beyond the level 20 minimum.

Al X. Goodenuff has very simple needs. He doesn't require any armor, weapons, spellbooks, spell components, other creatures (mounts, familiars, companions), or any magic items. All he needs is 200 gp to pay his Lightbringer initiation and dues (Expedition to Castle Ravenloft 204) and a single body alteration at level 17, costing 10,000 gp: Feathered Wings graft (Fiend Folio 210). Al's alignment is compatible with this graft.
A graft is not a magic item. It does not radiate magic once completed (although a graft might require the casting of specific spells as part of the construction process), and it does not take up a body slot like a magic item would. A graft cannot be suppressed with dispel magic, nor is it affected by an antimagic field or similar effects.
There are a couple things in the "would be nice" category for Al:
  • Monk's Belt to offset Rogue levels for a closer match to the Battle Dancer AC Bonus feature
  • Sparring Dummy of the Master (Arms and Equipment Guide 137) for 1 month of training, after which he could take 10' steps as well as 5' steps

Al has the Battle Dancer class features covered pretty well (see below for comparisons). He's also got a ton of abilities beyond the Battle Dancer list. Monk has many class features, most of which don't work together very well, but the large number of these abilities mean there's a respectable chance that some of them may be useful. (Who knows? Quivering Palm might actually function as the powerful insta-death attack it's supposed to be. ) Rogue (with ACFs) adds some more capabilities, such as Evasion and being able to identify magic items with a Knowledge (religion) check (leveraging a Tattooed Monk entry requirement).

Serving an Elder Evil grants [Vile] bonus feats (Elder Evils 10). With his [Vile] feats Al gets to be virtually immune to divine spells, and add +3 points of Vile damage to every unarmed strike (+1 each in the categories of unarmed strike, natural weapon strike, and martial weapon strike; as a Monk, his unarmed strike is all of those). This damage is a good counter to enemies with Fast Healing or Regeneration.
... vile damage does not heal naturally, and even healing magic is effective only within the area of a consecrate or hallow spell.
To be fair, there's nothing that would prevent a Battle Dancer of appropriate alignment also serving an Elder Evil; these [Vile] bonus feats aren't a power boost over the Secret Ingredient any more than bonus [Exalted] feats would be for a very Good-aligned character with Vow of Poverty. Rather, the feats are present as simply part of the overall character build. The same goes for the Dark Creature template: a Battle Dancer from Faerūn could have that, too. The template adds some stealth and speed boosts that are nice, but still most of Al's stealth and speed come from skill ranks and Monk Fast Movement. Service and template choices are integral elements of a fully-realized character.

The skills could use some explanation. Tumble is required for Battle Dancer abilities, but most of the emulations don't require Tumble skill. (Sand Dancer and Giantbane feats and the two skill tricks are exceptions.) Still, Tumble is a very useful skill, and one which Al maximizes for that very reason (which also means satisfying all the Battle Dancer skill rank requirements at every level, for what it's worth). Perception is key to avoiding surprise, and the build has respectable ranks (plus good Wisdom bonus) in both Listen (a Battle Dancer class skill) and Spot (not a BD class skill). The numbers match for these two skills, which puts Spot ranks a bit past the BD cross-class limit. (That could merit a tiny boost to Power and a tiny ding to Elegance if a judge wanted to be persnickety about the emulation.) The stealth skills are also high, as Al needs to qualify for sneak attack to deliver +2d6 damage duplicating BD Dance of Death's Embrace. The build includes many ways to qualify for sneak attack so as to make for a more thorough emulation. All these skills should come as no surprise, as should the 5 ranks in Balance (both to avoid being caught flat-footed, and as a requirement for Twisted Charge trick). The two that are out of the ordinary are Knowledge (religion) and Climb. Al has enough ranks in Knowledge (religion) to always identify (equivalent of Identify spell) divine magic items through CL 20 with his Antiquarian Rogue ACF. The Climb ranks have general utility, but are maximized specifically to use the Climb Aboard maneuver of the Giantbane feat. This lets Al enter an enemy's space (emulating Dance of the Crushing Python) where he uses Climb checks to oppose the enemy's grapple checks.

This build includes a 1-level dip into Tattooed Monk, where Al acquires his Falcon tattoo to emulate BD Dance of Reckless Bravery. If taking just 1 level of this PrC offends your judging sensibilities, consider instead an Adaptation: add 2 more levels of Tattooed Monk (total of 3 levels) in place of 2 Monk levels (total of 14 levels). This would add one more tattoo, Monkey, for a +2 competence bonus to Tumble (and other skills), improving Al's emulation of BD Dance of the Vexing Snake; it would also worsen Al's emulation of BD Dancer's Strike by dropping Ki Strike (adamantine). Due to Tattooed Monk class feature Monk Abilities, unarmed damage, AC Bonus, and Fast Movement remain unchanged. Skill points, class skills, BAB, all saves, and hit die at each level would also be unchanged.


Spoiler: Comparisons
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Spoiler: Full Attack
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Levels Battle Dancer Al X. Goodenuff*
1st +1 -2/-2
2nd +2 -1/-1
3rd +3 -1/-1
4th +4 -0/-0
5th +5 +1/+1
6th +6/+1 +1/+1
7th +7/+2 +2/+2
8th +8/+3 +3/+3
9th +9/+4 +4/+4
10th +10/+5 +5/+5/+0
11th +11/+6/+1 +6/+6/+1
12th +12/+7/+2 +7/+7/+2
13th +13/+8/+3 +8/+8/+8/+3
14th +14/+9/+4 +9/+9/+9/+4
15th +15/+10/+5 +9/+9/+9/+4
16th +16/+11/+6/+1 +10/+10/+10/+5
17th +17/+12/+7/+2 +11/+11/+11/+6/+1
18th +18/+13/+8/+3 +12/+12/+12/+7/+2
19th +19/+14/+9/+4 +13/+13/+13/+8/+3
20th +20/+15/+10/+5 +14/+14/+14/+9/+4
* - Does not include +1 bonus from Weapon Focus (unarmed strike) or +2 from being unseen.

Spoiler: Class Skills
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Battle Dancer Al X. Goodenuff
Balance, Climb, Escape Artist, Hide, Jump, Listen, Move Silently, Open Lock, Perform, Sleight of Hand, Swim, Tumble Appraise, Balance, Bluff, Climb, Concentration, Craft, Decipher Script, Diplomacy, Disable Device, Disguise, Escape Artist, Forgery, Gather Information, Hide, Intimidate, Jump, Knowledge (arcana), Knowledge (local), Knowledge (religion), Listen, Move Silently, Open Lock, Perform, Profession, Search, Sense Motive, Sleight of Hand, Spot, Swim, Tumble, Use Magic Device, Use Rope

Spoiler: Level 20
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Build Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Hit Points Skill Points
Battle Dancer +6 +12 +6 d8 x20 (average of 133.5 HP) (5 + INT mod) x23 = 138
Al X. Goodenuff +13 +17 +13 d8 x17 + d6 x3 (average of 130.5 HP) (5 + INT mod) x20 + (9 + INT mod) x3 = 150

Spoiler: Class Features
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Battle Dancer Feature (@ level) Emulation (@ level)
Proficient with all simple weapons @1 Monk weapons @1; all simple weapons + Rogue weapons @3
AC Bonus (CHA-based) @1 AC Bonus (WIS-based) @1; can (optionally) add Monk's Belt to offset Rogue levels for better emulation
Unarmed Strike @1 Unarmed Strike @1 (an exact match in unarmed damage through every level of the build thanks to Ascetic Rogue feat)
Dance of Reckless Bravery @2: move action to activate; lasts 5 + CHA mod rounds; +4 morale boost to saves vs. fear for allies within 30' Tattooed Monk Falcon Tattoo @6: always active; +4 morale boost to saves vs. fear for allies within 10'; also personally immune to fear
Bonus Speed: +10' @4; +20' @10; +30' @16 Fast Movement: +10' @4; +20' @8; +30' @11; +40' @14; +50' @18
Dance of the Vexing Snake @5: Tumble at normal speed (60') without -10 penalty Daredevil Athlete @6: +5 bonus to Tumble (or other skill) as immediate action 3/day; also ½ speed is 45'
Dancer's Strike: magic @6; alignment @12; material/alignment @18 Ki Strike (magic) @5; (lawful) @12; (adamantine) @18
Dance of the Floating Step (normally 40' @8; 50' @10; 60' @16) Water Step ACF (20' @5; 30' @8; 40' @10; 50' @12; 60' @14; 70' @16; 80' @18)
Dance of the Springing Tiger @11: Pounce Lion Tribe Warrior feat @1: Pounce with single light weapon (including unarmed strike); Twisted Charge skill trick @4: make a turn during charge movement
Dance of the Crushing Python @14: fight in opponent's space Giantbane feat Climb Aboard maneuver @12: fight in space of opponent 2+ sizes larger
Dance of the Soaring Eagle @17: fly @ land speed/average Buy Feathered Wings graft (Fiend Folio 210) @17: fly @ 2x land speed/average [Note: a graft is not a magic item.]
Dance of Death's Embrace @20: activate with full-round action and DC 35 Tumble check; deal +2d6 damage to single target, and auto-confirm critical threats Sneak attack +2d6 @20: enable sneak attack with any of (1) Invisible Fist (become invisible for 1 round every 3 rounds); (2) Acrobatic Backstab skill trick; (3) Dark Creature Hide in Plain Sight; (4) flanking with ally (Lightbringer Penetrating Strike makes sneak attack still work vs. sneak-immune foes); (5) Giantbane Death from Below maneuver; (6) Sand Dancer feat