Dreamscarred Press Introduces: Akashic Mysteries

[stack]

LEAKED ARTWORK - DESIRE DAEVIC ICONIC

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Psybomb - if the entire passion is going to lean heavily on mind affecting, I would rather see the ability to circumvent it as a passion ability rather than a sub-set ability. I would also be careful about adding too many more boosts too DC's since daevic aspect and the succubus one (twin veil as needed) potentially means that you can pump your dc's already. Also, wow does desire really eat up the blood slots.

[Ssalarn]

LEAKED ARTWORK - DESIRE DAEVA ICONIC

Spoiler

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Psybomb - if the entire passion is going to lean heavily on mind affecting, I would rather see the ability to circumvent it as a passion ability rather than a sub-set ability. I would also be careful about adding too many more boosts too DC's since daevic aspect and the succubus one (twin veil as needed) potentially means that you can pump your dc's already. Also, wow does desire really eat up the blood slots.

Damn it!!! Jeremy assured me that our art team could be relied on for their discretion. All the leaks these days are specifically why I turned down that job at the NSA.....


Anyways guys, I ran a little "promotion" over on the Paizo boards to drum up interest and I figured you guys, who've been helpful and interested all along, probably deserved access to the culmination of that deal as well, so:

As thanks to everyone who has helped contribute to this project, I'm providing live pre-alpha access to our upcoming akashic/initiator hybrid class, the Pharaoh. The pharaoh combines elements of the Path of War project and Akashic Mysteries to create something new and unique. Please note that this is an in development class, and as such may be missing substantial portions of information or mechanics and is subject to change. We just wanted to give you a look "under the hood" of some of what we've got coming up in the pipeline. Enjoy!

[PsyBomb]

Ooooo... the Pharaoh is nice and shiny. Absurdly tough, too, and highly suited to the Sobek. I like it.

Once it comes out, I'll probably be picking up Path of War, too, if only to be able to use the rest of the disciplines. Only one comment on it for now, you need to make the Empty Pyramid techniques WORTH burning Essence for, or else have class abilities key off of them. If not, then nobody will use them, since you have so many things giving you bonuses from your current pool. Coming from a Sobek, by level 20 you can have a pool of 43 easily (30+1(R)+2(EE)+3(CSaves)+1(CPow)+1(EoR)+5(Amp)), totalling 86 Temp HP (probably 86 more real from Essence of the Immortal), +14 natural Armor, +10 Will, and 21 elemental resistance. Of this pool of 43, we have accounted for 29 in various recepticles, which means you also have +4 to all saves, +4 damage on any attack using Chakra Power, buffed Bite, and some minor out-of-combat healing (~50 HP/day). You need to make the Essence Burn worth losing this kind of benefit for.

[stack]

Yeah, that's my first reaction too. Huge essence pool and plenty of reasons to not burn it, especially when it does its job just fine while invested. How you make it worthwhile AND keep the discipline balanced...tightrope walk on that one.May will end up with truly absurd AC, between armor/high dex, NA, armor+enhancements, and the veils they will likely grab with dips/feats.

Not keen on the 'empty pyramid' name. Solar Ascendent would work except that there is already a 'solar' discipline, so I am short on alternatives (Ascendent Scion?). I believe the names of disciplines are supposed to keep a western sound, which necessitated some naming changes with the initial PoW disciplines.

[Ssalarn]

Yeah, that's my first reaction too. Huge essence pool and plenty of reasons to not burn it, especially when it does its job just fine while invested. How you make it worthwhile AND keep the discipline balanced...tightrope walk on that one.May will end up with truly absurd AC, between armor/high dex, NA, armor+enhancements, and the veils they will likely grab with dips/feats.

Not keen on the 'empty pyramid' name. Solar Ascendent would work except that there is already a 'solar' discipline, so I am short on alternatives (Ascendent Scion?). I believe the names of disciplines are supposed to keep a western sound, which necessitated some naming changes with the initial PoW disciplines.

I think it was less "must sound Western" and more "peeps be bitchin when it sounds Eastern". Frankly, if people don't like non-European materials I'm already fighting an uphill battle. That being said, I'm open to change on Empty Pyramid. I'll be getting the actual mechanics to go along with the maneuvers posted in the near future, and I'm contemplating making some changes so that there's more investment and less auto-gain in the abilities, if for no other reason than to encourage people to actually use Empty Pyramid without it being completely insane. I may shift things so that the individual class features are all valid Essence receptacles (with appropriate Essence capacity bumps) and Empty Pyramid allows you to invest Essence into your maneuvers when you prepare them locking it until the maneuver is expended, at which point it's burned and you recover it back into your main pool by the means already presented.

[stack]

I think making the class features essence receptacles is a good idea. As for burn verses locking essence on maneuvers I guess I can't say yet. Having maneuvers scale based on invested essence sounds like a good idea, but would make it functionally different from other PoW disciplines. Maybe prepping and executing the maneuvers normally, but give them an augment for either burning or investing essence?

As for the name, something keeping with the general theme of the product would be fine by me; empty pyramid just kinda clanged off my ear though.

[PsyBomb]

I think making the class features essence receptacles is a good idea. As for burn verses locking essence on maneuvers I guess I can't say yet. Having maneuvers scale based on invested essence sounds like a good idea, but would make it functionally different from other PoW disciplines. Maybe prepping and executing the maneuvers normally, but give them an augment for either burning or investing essence?

As for the name, something keeping with the general theme of the product would be fine by me; empty pyramid just kinda clanged off my ear though.

Having the class abilities be Essence receptacles (scaled appropriately, of course) works out well. Deific Stamina, Unbroken Flesh, Indomitable Spirit, Elemental Intrangience, and Bonded Manifestation makes for 5 native recepticles, for 24 Essence used. If you up the capacity of the class features by 2 each, this leads to slightly more receptacle space overall than there is Essence to put there (which is ideal, IMHO), not counting Burn. If this change is made, you don't need to worry about adjusting the Burn/Benefit as much, since players can (and should) choose which receptacles can be emptied to fuel combat.

I personally like the name "Empty Pyramid", since this is an Egyptian-themed class. It either implies that he was buried and rose again, or else his nobility means that one is waiting for him when he dies.

[stack]

The ability to heal to prevent death should still be burn based, of course.

[PsyBomb]

The ability to heal to prevent death should still be burn based, of course.

Oh, yeah. I actually like that it is all-or-nothing, makes it less "tactical use to barely survive" and more "HOLY <BLEEP> THAT WAS CLOSE!" ...which is exactly how that kind of thing should be.

[stack]

From the descriptions, it appears stances can be invested with essence (sounds like a good mechanic). I presume that somewhere there will be a call out that essence can be invested in the same swift action that is used to change the stance, or will the receptacle just be 'stance' and keep essence in it regardless of which stance it is until you reinvest as normal?

Need to get my brain back to the guru, its just that the pharaoh is so new and shiny....

[Ssalarn]

From the descriptions, it appears stances can be invested with essence (sounds like a good mechanic). I presume that somewhere there will be a call out that essence can be invested in the same swift action that is used to change the stance, or will the receptacle just be 'stance' and keep essence in it regardless of which stance it is until you reinvest as normal?

Currently I'm trying to run the numbers and see if it should be two separate swift actions to change stances and reinvest that Essence, or if it isn't just better overall to tie them together.

I really want the Pharaoh to be well received when we get around to releasing him, and Path of War has had a.... dubious reception with reviewers. Considering I'm combining unlimited magical capabilities with unlimited martial capabilities in a single class, I'm going to tip-toe a little cautiously and probably err towards being a little more conservative with the Pharaoh's general mechanics, so that I leave enough room for kick-ass abilities like Sun God's Might without blowing up the OP alarms.

[Anlashok]

Path of War has had a.... dubious reception with reviewers.

Did it? I heard a few complaints from people who think Barbarians are overpowered crying foul at PoW, but not much else.

Plus the Pharaoh deserves to be a little OP.

[Ssalarn]

Did it? I heard a few complaints from people who think Barbarians are overpowered crying foul at PoW, but not much else.

Plus the Pharaoh deserves to be a little OP.

One of the more respected 3pp reviewers gave Path some pretty critical reviews (whether those were justified or not is a different subject...) so it'd be a pretty big win if we can get a version of the Pharaoh that's loved by the community and gets a little more love from the critics.
That being said, the Pharaoh is going to get as much awesome as I can cram in there, with plenty of initiator and akashic goodness spiced with a pinch of "worship me as your puny spears bounce off my chiseled abs".

[squiggit]

That being said, the Pharaoh is going to get as much awesome as I can cram in there, with plenty of initiator and akashic goodness spiced with a pinch of "worship me as your puny spears bounce off my chiseled abs".

Personally I want to do just that with a Sobek (or something) Pharaoh. The class looks damn cool... but I'll try to offer more meaningful feedback when I get home from work and can play around with it.

Right now I'll say I'm not particularly digging the familiar (it's not bad, just seems a bit out of left field, though I do think the pharaoh having some NPC in there makes sense, seeing how it has leadery themes to it) and that the class seems to have its essence pool tugged in a dozen different directions...which I actually kind of like. Having a myriad of options for your Essence and struggling to balance between them might be a good way to make the Pharaoh stronger than he looks (by giving him more theoretical power through good essence management).

[Psyren]

Pharaoh I don't have a whole lot to say about, simply because I'm just not that interested in PoW - it and ToB were never really my cup of tea to begin with...

Ssalarn, was Guru updated too? May I revisit my notes on that one as well?

[Ssalarn]

Pharaoh I don't have a whole lot to say about, simply because I'm just not that interested in PoW - it and ToB were never really my cup of tea to begin with...

Ssalarn, was Guru updated too? May I revisit my notes on that one as well?

Check in on Guru tomorrow, I'll be going over a few more of your notes this evening.

[Psyren]

No problemo.

*returns sighing to handbook backlog*

[PsyBomb]

Check in on Guru tomorrow, I'll be going over a few more of your notes this evening.

Can't wait. DPR sims at benchmark levels are getting interesting. For example, at level 6 (Assuming 15 point-buy)...

Vizier: Human Artifice Crafter is highest theoretical, since it can use ANY charged item constantly. Without breaking WBL, though, a Human Hand-Cannon Seer (PBS, Precise, Rapid, Deadly Aim) sims highest, at a potential 6d6+18 damage (avg 39) hammered out. Note that this is getting ready to skyrocket, as Chakra Targeting pops up at 7 and Wrist bind becomes available at level 8. Taking Twin Veil (Wrist) at 9 lets you add the Storm Gauntlets to the mix, which is all kinds of fun. This build just gets dramatically better as it levels, and keeps most of its Veils open for defenses or utility. Items really didn't help him on the offense at this level, other than accuracy.

Guru: Gamla Sineater4/Deadly Fist 2, if he gets to stand still, will toss out 2d8+6d4+40 Subdual (avg 62), or else ~41 if the enemy is Subdual-immune. Build is on page two of this thread, though I know if I was intending to play the guy long-term it would be Deadly Fist 1 only (since Guru 19 is sweet), but 2 lets it sim better at this particular point. Adding Amulet Mighty Fist +1 and +2 Headband of Wisdom brings those up to 68 Subdual or ~43 lethal, but also note that this is in melee and has to stand still to get it. Flip side, he has Reach and a lot of battlefield mobility from class and Veils

Daevic: This one was hilarious. A Sobek Wrath (Vengeance) Daevic with 18 Str and 12 Cha has 4 Veils shaped and 7 Essence literally JUST hit his main damage point. His Passion veils (2 Essence) are Wrathful Claws and Sea-Drake's Talons, both Bound. He also shaped Armbands of the Irked Elephant and Horns of the Minotaur (1 Essence), plus he has his natural bite (2 Essence). Feats are Power Attack, Chakra Power (2 Essence), and Extra Essence. Off a successful Bull Rush: 2d8+3d4+1d6+53 if it all hits (average 73! damage). Also note that he has a total of +14 to initiate this maneuver and doesn't take an AoO, plus all attacks but the Horns are at +8 or better to hit. Level 6, mind. This damage is also lowballed, it is not clear whether Power Attack and Chakra Power would affect the Armbands of the Irked Elephant attack so I didn't include them. This sim is also NAKED, since I was doing napkin math at the time and couldn't remember costs of items or WBL. Adding a +2 Str belt and a +1 Amulet of Mighty Fists bring the average upwards of 84, though I'd probably go for Ghost Touch instead of the +1 in an actual game.

If I didn't need to worry about accuracy (Claws and Bite at +11, Armband at +10, Talons at +9, Gore at +4 for attack rolls), then swap the Sea-Drake's Talons to a non-passion slot, bringing Minotaur Horns into the Passion. Essense is 2 Passion, 2 Chakra Power, 2 Bite, and 1 in the Armbands. The Amulet becomes Shocking, instead of +1 or Ghost Touch. This, then, comes out to 2d8+2d6+3d4+58+6d6(elec), averaging 102.5

[Ssalarn]

I personally like the name "Empty Pyramid", since this is an Egyptian-themed class. It either implies that he was buried and rose again, or else his nobility means that one is waiting for him when he dies.

I love it when you try to condense a complex idea into just a couple of words, and then someone gets exactly what you were going for.

@Psybomb
Any idea how those numbers you're coming up with stack up alongside core classes like the Barbarian, Magus, and Inquisitor at the same level? I'm having some puppy/power cord related issues (again; I told Morgan the puppy needs to play in the yard if she's home and can't keep an eye on her, I have no idea why putting her in my office of all places while she ran to the store made sense) and am stuck with my phone. Speaking of which, expect further delay in that Guru update... Fortunately this isn't some crazy out of stock Toshiba laptop converter so I'll be able to just swing by Radio Shack on the way home. Also, the puppy is fine.

[Shinken]

Can someone please upload the Pharaoh to Google Docs? I can't access dropbox from work :(

[PsyBomb]

I love it when you try to condense a complex idea into just a couple of words, and then someone gets exactly what you were going for.

@Psybomb
Any idea how those numbers you're coming up with stack up alongside core classes like the Barbarian, Magus, and Inquisitor at the same level? I'm having some puppy/power cord related issues (again; I told Morgan the puppy needs to play in the yard if she's home and can't keep an eye on her, I have no idea why putting her in my office of all places while she ran to the store made sense) and am stuck with my phone. Speaking of which, expect further delay in that Guru update... Fortunately this isn't some crazy out of stock Toshiba laptop converter so I'll be able to just swing by Radio Shack on the way home. Also, the puppy is fine.

I'm not the best the Playground has at those classes (and also the Pistolero is infamous for its raw DPR), so I made another thread asking for others to do so. I'll probably update my napkin-math sims to reflect WBL soon (all three are done naked, which was impressive), so expect the numbers to drift upwards a bit.

[stack]

I have a level 6 (plus two 'epic' feats, its an E6 game) Wrath-Justice Daevic that I will link once mythweavers is back up. Items are a bit skewed since I REALLY wanted pauldrons of the bull to roll twice on bull rush checks.

[PsyBomb]

Just posting a mid-op barbarian for comparison.

We'll say this one is Human. Base stats include 18 Str and 14 Con, and he's using a +1 Greatsword. Strength becomes 24 effectively under Rage, plus a Strength item. Feats include Power Attack. This is all just napkin-math again, but should provide a half-decent benchmark.

Each hit is going to deal 2d6+10(Str)+1(Enh)+6(PA), avg 24 damage per hit. 48 damage average if both connect. You are swinging at least at +12/+7. I can probably do better with some time, but this is just something a relatively new player could throw together to toy with.

I'd personally go Sobek and dip AkWar 2 in this build to grab Chakra Power and Shape Soulmeld (Armory of the Conqueror), plus Extra Essence in one of my feat slots (I'm sure there are better ways to do this, but I also happen to love the subsystem and this will lead possibly into Daevic Rage). Given this, the damage goes to 2d8+10(Str)+1(Enh)+6(PA)+2(CP) for 28 per hit average, plus the secondary Bite at 1d8+2(Essence)+3(Str)+2(PA)+2(CP) for ~13 (69 damage average if all three hit). Requires a standing full-attack, but he's tough enough to take some punishment.

[stack]

Here is my judgement daevic. Stats were 32 pb on the 3.5 scale and he had two E6 epic feats. 10,000 out of 16,000 of his wbl is tie up in paldrons of the bull, so you can probably assume AC and to hit would be a touch higher otherwise.

[Ssalarn]

Thanks guys!

Good news, Jeremy is almost done with layout on the Vizier and we'll be putting both him and the subscription up for sale in the very near future. Hopefully we'll drum up enough business on the subscription that we can expand our art budget a bit and look at getting some more cool custom artwork for the akashic races!

I'll be setting a few hours aside tonight to get the Guru and Daevic polished up, and I'll be touching bases with a few people who submitted prestige classes and other materials and letting you know whether it's something we'll be moving forward with.

[Ssalarn]

Changelog:

Ability tags added to all Guru abilities.

Lucent Revivication updated to still require material component.

Devour Sin updated to note that Essence burn is not recovered if the target is immune to nonlethal damage.

Purify the Unclean clarified to be a free action taken before the modified attack.

Purify the Unclean clarified to only work in conjunction with gentle touch.

Wages of Sin update to note that the Sineater does not regain Essence if the target's save is successful.

Aether ties verbage cleaned up for greater clarity.

Aether infusion updated with an increased cost to the mirror image ability.

Leaf on the Wind updated to sync better with the normal increments used to determine falling damage.

Breath of the East Wind clarified to note that the alter winds effect moves with the vayist.

Chakra Disruption updated to note that a target cannot suffer more than one disruption at a time.

Sever the Flow updated to remove conflicting information in the description; this ability does not affect worn magical items.

[Ilorin Lorati]

Thanks guys!

Good news, Jeremy is almost done with layout on the Vizier and we'll be putting both him and the subscription up for sale in the very near future. Hopefully we'll drum up enough business on the subscription that we can expand our art budget a bit and look at getting some more cool custom artwork for the akashic races!

*Waits patiently*

*checks watch*

*waits some more*

[PsyBomb]

Changelog:

Ability tags added to all Guru abilities.

Lucent Revivication updated to still require material component.

Devour Sin updated to note that Essence burn is not recovered if the target is immune to nonlethal damage.

Purify the Unclean clarified to be a free action taken before the modified attack.

Purify the Unclean clarified to only work in conjunction with gentle touch.

Wages of Sin update to note that the Sineater does not regain Essence if the target's save is successful.

Aether ties verbage cleaned up for greater clarity.

Aether infusion updated with an increased cost to the mirror image ability.

Leaf on the Wind updated to sync better with the normal increments used to determine falling damage.

Breath of the East Wind clarified to note that the alter winds effect moves with the vayist.

Chakra Disruption updated to note that a target cannot suffer more than one disruption at a time.

Sever the Flow updated to remove conflicting information in the description; this ability does not affect worn magical items.

I'll definitely check these out as soon as I can. Any word on when the last two Akashic Races and the alternate favored class features will become available?

Oh, and more sims to come. As bad as the Vengeance Pounce looks, that character's damage isn't significantly going up until level 9 (total gains in those three levels are a tick of PA, one Essence, and at 9 he gets the third Passion Veil for Daevic Aspect of Wrath)

[PsyBomb]

Ok, reviewing the changelog:

Dark Lord's Ring of Essence-Binding: easy clarification, so no biggie.

Lucent Revivification: I like that you can still opt not to use the material component if need be, or use it to ignore the penalty.

Devour Sin: The change makes it impossible to siphon Essence off of intelligent Undead through Sunder Veil, not sure if this is intended.

Purify the Unclean: I assume that if the attack misses, it is wasted?

Wages of Sin: Cool

AEther Ties: Cool

AEther Infusion: Kinda sad to see the Mirror Image change, but I agree that it was needed. 3 was too cheap, and is what let the Vayist from the first playtest take out the Shaitan nearly solo.

Leaf on the Wind: Basically, it's now what Slow Fall should have been. I like it.

Breath of the East Wind: change is a good one, but the problem with knocking yourself over when you teleport within the River of Wind is still an issue.

Chakra Disruption: Not sure if the limit was needed, but I'm not opposed to it. Most instances will only have one status up anyway.

Sever the Flow: Good clarification.

---

So, while toying around with builds:

I found an interesting loophole that allows multiple Vital Strikes in a round, or one at the end of a Charge, with Wrath (justice). Rush the feat tree to Shield Slam, then start making your full attacks with Shield Bashes. Each successful attack with a Shield Bash is an automatic Bull Rush using your attack roll, and if this is successful they provoke an AoO which you can take as a Vital Strike. Sims have shown this to not be effective enough in most situations to really need closing, but it's there.

EDIT: Above corrected by Stack, Wrath can only trigger once per round. Can still do full attacks plus a Vital off the Bash, and the below is still valid

Of slightly more concern is the feat Quick Bull Rush, which allows you to point-blank one as the first attack of a Full Attack action. This will eventually allow a Wrath Daevic to get his triggered AoO (which is potentially a 9-attack routine for Fury), and then get the rest of his full attack (so... 17 attacks in a round eventually, doable at level 10 if the DM is permissive).

This is the kind of stunt that I, as a DM, would allow someone to get away with ONCE if not in dire need, or if the table was particularly high-op. Reminds me of those crazy MvC2 combo strings you can see videos of. It lands the build securely in top slot for melee damage, possibly for all Physical damage (especially at level 12, when you have enough open Veils to also add Daevic Essence to it). Flip side, ALL that this build is doing if you pull that is physical damage, which relegates it to T4 even if you do enough to make the Tarrasque disintegrate at level 10 (haven't had a chance to run the numbers yet, but I'm estimating ~300-350 damage once WBL is applied).

[Ssalarn]

Ok, reviewing the changelog:

Dark Lord's Ring of Essence-Binding: easy clarification, so no biggie.

Lucent Revivification: I like that you can still opt not to use the material component if need be, or use it to ignore the penalty.

Devour Sin: The change makes it impossible to siphon Essence off of intelligent Undead through Sunder Veil, not sure if this is intended.

Purify the Unclean: I assume that if the attack misses, it is wasted?

Wages of Sin: Cool

AEther Ties: Cool

AEther Infusion: Kinda sad to see the Mirror Image change, but I agree that it was needed. 3 was too cheap, and is what let the Vayist from the first playtest take out the Shaitan nearly solo.

Leaf on the Wind: Basically, it's now what Slow Fall should have been. I like it.

Breath of the East Wind: change is a good one, but the problem with knocking yourself over when you teleport within the River of Wind is still an issue.

Chakra Disruption: Not sure if the limit was needed, but I'm not opposed to it. Most instances will only have one status up anyway.

Sever the Flow: Good clarification.

---

So, while toying around with builds:

I found an interesting loophole that allows multiple Vital Strikes in a round, or one at the end of a Charge, with Wrath (justice). Rush the feat tree to Shield Slam, then start making your full attacks with Shield Bashes. Each successful attack with a Shield Bash is an automatic Bull Rush using your attack roll, and if this is successful they provoke an AoO which you can take as a Vital Strike. Sims have shown this to not be effective enough in most situations to really need closing, but it's there.

Of slightly more concern is the feat Quick Bull Rush, which allows you to point-blank one as the first attack of a Full Attack action. This will eventually allow a Wrath Daevic to get his triggered AoO (which is potentially a 9-attack routine for Fury), and then get the rest of his full attack (so... 17 attacks in a round eventually, doable at level 10 if the DM is permissive).

This is the kind of stunt that I, as a DM, would allow someone to get away with ONCE if not in dire need, or if the table was particularly high-op. Reminds me of those crazy MvC2 combo strings you can see videos of. It lands the build securely in top slot for melee damage, possibly for all Physical damage (especially at level 12, when you have enough open Veils to also add Daevic Essence to it). Flip side, ALL that this build is doing if you pull that is physical damage, which relegates it to T4 even if you do enough to make the Tarrasque disintegrate at level 10 (haven't had a chance to run the numbers yet, but I'm estimating ~300-350 damage once WBL is applied).

Thanks for the notes Psybomb. I'm working to try and make sure you guys have all the playtest materials for everything that's going to be in the first book by end of week, so forgive me if my response time this week is a little slow. I'm not ignoring anyone, I'm just trying to get as much material in your hands as fast as possible now that we're getting ready to start rolling product out for purchase.