Messing with Illithid Savant

[Sandsarecool]

You are eating a psion of some description for psionic powers, right?

...
Read...
Read the shopping list for bwains - it's the first post.

My brain cannot comprehend the capabilities of this much power. And when it goes psionic, well...

[Sandsarecool]

Alright. Enough of the possible things I could cherry-pick. I need to start building some feasible prototypes.
Instinct tells me I want a high BAB, good skills, saves, and decent+ HD, with IS providing the rest, hm? Although I can't be quite so bothered as to play a mind flayer, get it level drained and start building from there, I am going to use two third party feats to push things along.

Spoiler: 3rd Party Feets

Show

Old Blood:
*Screw fluff, I'ma don't want problems for copying data*
Benefit: Choose one race other than your own. For the purposes of PrCs, Spells, Feat Prerequisites, Magic Items and so on, you count as a member of that race.
Special: You may only take this feat at 1st level.

Laborious Training:
*Insert Fluff here*
Benefit: This feat increases your max rank in all skills keyed off INT to 5 + HD, rather than the normal 3 + HD.

That's a freebie into Illithid Savant; any race, and I can enter it earlier that I should (though it's not really like that's totally beneficial). Still, I ask, for the playgrounders, they are wiser than I.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Alright. Enough of the possible things I could cherry-pick. I need to start building some feasible prototypes.
Instinct tells me I want a high BAB, good skills, saves, and decent+ HD, with IS providing the rest, hm? Although I can't be quite so bothered as to play a mind flayer, get it level drained and start building from there, I am going to use two third party feats to push things along.

Spoiler: 3rd Party Feets

Show

Old Blood:
*Screw fluff, I'ma don't want problems for copying data*
Benefit: Choose one race other than your own. For the purposes of PrCs, Spells, Feat Prerequisites, Magic Items and so on, you count as a member of that race.
Special: You may only take this feat at 1st level.

Laborious Training:
*Insert Fluff here*
Benefit: This feat increases your max rank in all skills keyed off INT to 5 + HD, rather than the normal 3 + HD.

That's a freebie into Illithid Savant; any race, and I can enter it earlier that I should (though it's not really like that's totally beneficial). Still, I ask, for the playgrounders, they are wiser than I.

If those feats are explicitly allowed, feel free to use them. Though you could otherwise use polymorph, polymorph any object or metamorphosis to qualify, assuming you can cast it (or buy a casting of PAO to make you permanently count as a mind flayer until you can cast it yourself).

And if the DM says that Illithid Heritage acts like all of the OTHER heritage feats, taking it would allow you to count as an illithid when desirable.

[AvatarVecna]

Alright. Enough of the possible things I could cherry-pick. I need to start building some feasible prototypes.
Instinct tells me I want a high BAB, good skills, saves, and decent+ HD, with IS providing the rest, hm? Although I can't be quite so bothered as to play a mind flayer, get it level drained and start building from there, I am going to use two third party feats to push things along.

Spoiler: 3rd Party Feets

Show

Old Blood:
*Screw fluff, I'ma don't want problems for copying data*
Benefit: Choose one race other than your own. For the purposes of PrCs, Spells, Feat Prerequisites, Magic Items and so on, you count as a member of that race.
Special: You may only take this feat at 1st level.

Laborious Training:
*Insert Fluff here*
Benefit: This feat increases your max rank in all skills keyed off INT to 5 + HD, rather than the normal 3 + HD.

That's a freebie into Illithid Savant; any race, and I can enter it earlier that I should (though it's not really like that's totally beneficial). Still, I ask, for the playgrounders, they are wiser than I.

Old Blood isn't going to let you enter Illithid Savant any earlier; being a Mind Flayer is one requirement, but the other two (K: Arcana 10 ranks, must consume the brain of a CR 9 or higher creature). Laborious Training helps you get around one requirement, and Old Blood helps get around the racial requirement, but you've still gotta eat that CR 9 brain by 5th lvl if you wanna enter Illithid Savant at 6th.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Old Blood isn't going to let you enter Illithid Savant any earlier; being a Mind Flayer is one requirement, but the other two (K: Arcana 10 ranks, must consume the brain of a CR 9 or higher creature). Laborious Training helps you get around one requirement, and Old Blood helps get around the racial requirement, but you've still gotta eat that CR 9 brain by 5th lvl if you wanna enter Illithid Savant at 6th.

It never says how you must eat it. You could always go to a restaurant that serves elephant and order advanced elephant brain soup. A quick ray of stupidity will even bring an elephant down easily, so long as you don't miss on a roll of 1.

[AvatarVecna]

It never says how you must eat it. You could always go to a restaurant that serves elephant and order elephant brain soup. A quick ray of stupidity will even bring an elephant down easily, so long as you don't miss on a roll of 1.

Oh, I'm aware. There's nothing in the class that requires the brain be eaten with the Illithid brain-eating ability, after all.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

If you have the swallow whole ability (whether naturally or via spell), you don't even have to kill your "victims;" just swallow them. Since you're also eating their brains along with the rest of their bodies, it counts. Just chuck 'em up after you're done.

[Sandsarecool]

If those feats are explicitly allowed, feel free to use them. Though you could otherwise use polymorph, polymorph any object or metamorphosis to qualify, assuming you can cast it (or buy a casting of PAO to make you permanently count as a mind flayer until you can cast it yourself).

And if the DM says that Illithid Heritage acts like all of the OTHER heritage feats, taking it would allow you to count as an illithid when desirable.

Eh... Not explicitly allowed, but we've never played without those books as potential sources for... 4? years now. I'd be surprised if he took them off the table. Thanks for the back up ways of sneaking in, though.

Oh, I'm aware. There's nothing in the class that requires the brain be eaten with the Illithid brain-eating ability, after all.

Yup. Exactly my point here. I don't even have to kill it myself. I could use Favoured and Primary contact for yet another level earlier, I think, but I worry if I can get that CR 9 brain in beforehand.
Also, I'm pretty sure Elephants aren't CR 9.

EDIT: Yup. CR 7.
EDIT 2: Hows about a Triceratops? It's CR 9, and has 1 INT to boot.

[Vaz]

Dire Shark, Roc, Giant Squid are also options.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Advanced elephants work, especially if you can levitate, climb, or fly while you fire rays of stupidity from above.

[Sandsarecool]

I say, this is fun. While we're on this rather delightful topic, How does one propose I consume said brain? There's no restriction...

And no, no sarcasm. There is no blue text.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

I say, this is fun. While we're on this rather delightful topic, How does one propose I consume said brain? There's no restriction...

And no, no sarcasm. There is no blue text.

I did suggest elephant brain soup and swallow whole. I even gave a link for that first one.

[Sandsarecool]

I did suggest elephant brain soup and swallow whole. I even gave a link for that first one.

That you did. Though one was hoping for more... exotic methods. Soup is good, but a bit... old fashioned, don't you think?

*Ahem* Alright, back to business. Are my initial predictions for this build correct?

[MaxiDuRaritry]

That you did. Though one was hoping for more... exotic methods. Soup is good, but a bit... old fashioned, don't you think?

I think you mean 'classic.'

Vaporize it via disintegrate, stir it into a martini, and drink it. Shaken, not stirred.

[Sandsarecool]

I think you mean 'classic.'

Vaporize it via disintegrate, stir it into a martini, and drink it. Shaken, not stirred.

Pity I don't drink. Still, It will do.

[Vizzerdrix]

And if the DM says that Illithid Heritage acts like all of the OTHER heritage feats, taking it would allow you to count as an illithid when desirable.

Would you elaborate on this please? How does it differ from other heritage feats, and/or where can I read this for myself?

How about this. Dry and grind part of the brain into a consistancy similar to cornmeal and make muffins out of it. Add blueberries (good for brain health!) to the drain batter.

You could also fry it into a curry dish.

Brains are fatty, might make a good sausage, or fried like bacon.

Or you could have them served chilled for a desert. A goodle search should come up with a bunch of brain related recipies.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Would you elaborate on this please? How does it differ from other heritage feats, and/or where can I read this for myself?

Illithid Heritage doesn't have any clauses that let you count as an illithid for various effects.

[Vizzerdrix]

Illithid Heritage doesn't have any clauses that let you count as an illithid for various effects.

But the other heritage feats do?

[Anthrowhale]

Eat the brain of a Hagunemnon to acquire Alter Shape.

Remember that psionic classes have separate entries for "power points/day" and "powers known". It would be a bummer to have one but not the other.

[Sandsarecool]

How about this. Dry and grind part of the brain into a consistancy similar to cornmeal and make muffins out of it. Add blueberries (good for brain health!) to the drain batter.

You could also fry it into a curry dish.

Brains are fatty, might make a good sausage, or fried like bacon.

Or you could have them served chilled for a desert. A google search should come up with a bunch of brain related recipies.

Blueberry Brain Muffins? ...Interesting.
And yes, while the Google-fu is strong, I want to know what the playgrounders would do. I'd never have thought of the muffins myself, for example, and I doubt I'd have found it on teh interwebs very easily.
I'm looking in the wrong places, Aren't I?

Eat the brain of a Hagunemnon to acquire Alter Shape.

Remember that psionic classes have separate entries for "power points/day" and "powers known". It would be a bummer to have one but not the other.

Holy [Insert words here]; How am I supposed to eat that?!

Thanks for the heads up for the Psionic classes, though. I missed that.

EDIT: Someone got a good thing to say for moments like these? Holy [Insert words here] feels woefully inadequate.

[AvatarVecna]

EDIT: Someone got a good thing to say for moments like these? Holy [Insert words here] feels woefully inadequate.

I tend to say "By the Nine..." when I have moments like that, in a reference to the religions in Skyrim.

[Sandsarecool]

I tend to say "By the Nine..." when I have moments like that, in a reference to the religions in Skyrim.

Huh. I'll be sure to steal borrow it, with perhaps a few minor modifications... with your permission of course, oh powerful AV.

[AvatarVecna]

Huh. I'll be sure to steal borrow it, with perhaps a few minor modifications... with your permission of course, oh powerful AV.

No worries here. Hell, it's not like it's exactly my original idea anyway.

[Sandsarecool]

Nobody's elaborated, so I'm still kind of in the dark here about how one would go about building this thing.
Thus, I'm still playing with the assumption that I want a high BAB, good skills, saves, and decent+ HD, with IS providing the rest.
I want, as a minimum 1 level in Cleric (Should I go Cloistered for this?) so I can forcefully grab Initiate of Mystra.
I guess this also applies to, say FoP, Swiftblade (The class features are fun, but hard to cherry-pick), and others...?

Assuming my table-standard rules haven't changes, All sources allowed, LA buyoff allowed, flaws and traits in play, yada yada yada...
for four feats, I can get IS by level 5, (assuming I get that brain by 4th...) take three levels, then, uh, kill a 20th level Legacy Champion to steal its Class Features ability (X10/Legacy Champion 10) .

So...
[C.]Cleric 1/XYZ 3/IS 1/XYZ 15

...Some help here?

[ExLibrisMortis]

Holy [Insert words here]; How am I supposed to eat that?!

You don't. You appeal to your DM to treat psionics like spellcasting: eating a spellcaster grants you the ability to cast [one spell [of [each level [the spellcaster could cast]]]]* per day, so, in parallel, eating a psionicist should allow you to manifest the equivalent powers. This despite the tendency to put "spells" and "spellbooks" in separate class features, for example (right in the PHB, that one).



*And we're still going easy on the brackets.

[Sandsarecool]

You don't. You appeal to your DM to treat psionics like spellcasting: eating a spellcaster grants you the ability to cast [one spell [of [each level [the spellcaster could cast]]]]* per day, so, in parallel, eating a psionicist should allow you to manifest the equivalent powers. This despite the tendency to put "spells" and "spellbooks" in separate class features, for example (right in the PHB, that one).



*And we're still going easy on the brackets.

I'm sorry, but I'm totally lost here. What does this have to do with that?

[ExLibrisMortis]

I'm sorry, but I'm totally lost here. What does this have to do with that?

Oh, sorry, wrong line. Consider it a reaction to:

Holy [Insert words here]; How am I supposed to eat that?!

Thanks for the heads up for the Psionic classes, though. I missed that.

I misread, and thought you were asking how to eat two separate class features from one brain.

[Sandsarecool]

Oh, sorry, wrong line. Consider it a reaction to:

I misread, and thought you were asking how to eat two separate class features from one brain.

Oh. But how do? It's a little more complicated than that, isn't it? How would one go about splitting up PP?
...Or are you just going to leave me with enough points, but never enforce how I must use them?

I feel that takes away from the idea of Psionics in the first place.

EDIT: New question. If I were to... change my primary spellcasting/manifesting stat in a single class with a feat (The one I'm thinking of is 3rd Party, but there might be others), how would it interact with the abilities I would gain? Say, If I used in on Sorcerer, so I could cast with my STR (uh.. why?), then ate a bunch of Sorcerer brain soup followed by some brain muffins (and a brain martini, while we're at it), would they also be keyed off my STR? I'd assume, since I'd already have my extra Spells per day for a high STR score, that only the DC would be affected, but it is good to know. MaxiduRaritry's earlier post saying that I pull it out and stick it in my own sheet would imply yes, but I want second opinion(s).

[MaxiDuRaritry]

But the other heritage feats do?

From what I remember, some of them do, yes, though my memory for these things isn't perfect.

[Anthrowhale]

Holy [Insert words here]; How am I supposed to eat that?!

Maybe gate one in, ask it for a head, and eat. This is not lethal because it can just make sure it has another head.