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-
2023-12-23, 07:05 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2020
- Location
- Jerusalem
- Gender
Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Ho, Ho, Ho! Happy Holidays!
Merry crooks revel in snowy streets. Naughty masterminds plot stealing Christmas. Terrible abominations rise to devour all of Santa's cookies, and grim mothers send the kids to bed early. Welcome… to the Villainous Competition - Christmas Edition!
Each round of the villainous competition, our conniving contestants need to build a villain showcasing a different theme, and following a different set of associated limitations. This round's villain is St. Nick's gruesome right-hand pal...
Elvish Evildoer!
Limitations:
- Quendë: Must incorporate elf-only options – the more (or more significant) the merrier.
- Revenge is a dish best served frozen: The elves live for centuries, and plan long-term accordingly. Should be capable of initiating plans with long-term effects, and utilizing time-consuming preperations.
- More than Mortal: This villain is not your everyday NPC threat. Must either be unplayable, or have an ECL higher than its CR.
- Fickle Vileness: Must be CE.
Let the merriments begin!
Rules of the Competition:
Contestants:
It is highly recommended for a new contestants to look over a few entries from past rounds to understand what's the expected presentation. We're a little bit different than most optimization competitions. We use CR, not ECL. Each entry presents a villain going up to CR 20, with ability scores based on the elite array (15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8).
The contestant is to give a stub of the build (EG "Drow weretiger ranger 4/ Cleric 10"), flesh out the full build progression using the table(s) found in the submission and deadlines section, give notes on what the villain does and how it is to be used throughout its CR range, and fully source every aspect of the build that can't be found in the SRD. But what are the allowed sources?
Secret Laboratory:
Competitors will be free to use any official 1st party (WotC) 3.5 rulebook in constructing their builds. Dragon Compendium is allowed, but individual copies of Dragon magazine are disallowed. Unupdated 3.0 materials, as well as web exclusives by WotC are expressly allowed, but take care to verify that an updated version did not appear in print elsewhere. Unearthed Arcana is allowed but limited: The variant character options (such as Wildshape Ranger and Thug Fighter) should not be penalized. Flaws carry a 1 point elegance penalty, and traits carry half of that. Item familiars, gestalt, alternate skill systems, alternate magic systems, alternate crafting rules, generic base classes, LA buyoff, fractional saves/BAB, and bloodlines are banned. Anything not mentioned here is up to individual judges.
Builds that are fully monstrous are allowed at no penalty. All class levels are to be added on as associated class levels – meaning, each class level adds 1 CR, with the exception of NPC classes. See clarifications for more details.
Leadership and similar abilities are completely banned. Undead Leadership and Dragon Cohort are likewise banned. Wild Cohort and Obtain Familiar are allowed. If you are not sure if a specific feat violates the 'no leadership' rule, err on the side of caution, or ask me.
Epic Rules:
We do not use epic progression for BaB and saves in this competition. Remember that four iteratives are still the maximum amount granted by BaB, even if it gets to 21 or more.
A villain is eligible to Epic feats from HD 21 and above, as normal, but Epic Spellcasting and all other Epic feats that affect spells, psionic powers, or item creation are not permitted.
As for other magical subsystems: for Incarnum characters, Epic Open Chakra feats are allowed; other Epic Incarnum feats are not. The Essentia Capacity increases for Epic capacity as described on p. 212. For warlocks, epic Eldritch Blast, Epic Extra Invocation, and Epic Fiendish Resilience are allowed. Other epic warlock feats are not. Epic binding feats are disallowed.
Submission and deadlines:
Contestants will have until Wednesday, January 17th, 12:00 GMT to create their builds and PM them to the Chair (H_H_F_F).
Put the name of your build and "Villainous Competition round n" as your PM subject. You may ask for an extension if required. The villains will then be posted anonymously – make sure that your PM does not include any identifying details. While waiting for the builds to be posted, please avoid speculation (see speculation rules below). A contestant may submit up to 2 entries.
Spoiler: Build TableCode immediately below (spoiler).CR Class Base Attack Bonus Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Skills Feats Class Features 1 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 2 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 3 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 4 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 5 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 6 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 7 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 8 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 9 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 10 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 11 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 12 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 13 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 14 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 15 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 16 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 17 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 18 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 19 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities 20 New Class Level +x +x +x +x Skills Feats New Class Abilities Spoiler[table="class: head alt1 alt2"]
[tr]
[th][B]CR[/B][/th]
[th][B]Class[/B][/th]
[th][B]Base Attack Bonus[/B][/th]
[th][B]Fort Save[/B][/th]
[th][B]Ref Save[/B][/th]
[th][B]Will Save[/B][/th]
[th][B]Skills[/B][/th]
[th][B]Feats[/B][/th]
[th][B]Class Features[/B][/th]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]1[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]2[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]3[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]4[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]5[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]6[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]7[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]8[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]9[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]10[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]11[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]12[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]13[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]14[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]15[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]16[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]17[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]18[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]19[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]20[/td]
[td]New Class Level[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]+x[/td]
[td]Skills[/td]
[td]Feats[/td]
[td]New Class Abilities[/td]
[/tr]
[/table]
More useful tables can be found here, made by the immaculate Mattie_p.Spoiler: spell table
Spells per Day/Spells Known
Spells per Day/Spells Known
Code Immediately Below,Level 0lvl 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 1st - - - - - - - - - - 2nd - - - - - - - - - - 3rd - - - - - - - - - - 4th - - - - - - - - - - 5th - - - - - - - - - - 6th - - - - - - - - - - 7th - - - - - - - - - - 8th - - - - - - - - - - 9th - - - - - - - - - - 10th - - - - - - - - - - 11th - - - - - - - - - - 12th - - - - - - - - - - 13th - - - - - - - - - - 14th - - - - - - - - - - 15th - - - - - - - - - - 16th - - - - - - - - - - 17th - - - - - - - - - - 18th - - - - - - - - - - 19th - - - - - - - - - - 20th - - - - - - - - - - Spoiler
[B]Spells per Day/Spells Known[/B]
[B]Spells per Day/Spells Known[/B]
[table="class:head alt1 alt2"]
[tr]
[th][B]Level[/B][/th]
[th][B]0lvl[/B][/th]
[th][B]1st[/B][/th]
[th][B]2nd[/B][/th]
[th][B]3rd[/B][/th]
[th][B]4th[/B][/th]
[th][B]5th[/B][/th]
[th][B]6th[/B][/th]
[th][B]7th[/B][/th]
[th][B]8th[/B][/th]
[th][B]9th[/B][/th]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]1st[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]2nd[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]3rd[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]4th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]5th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]6th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]7th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]8th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]9th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]10th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]11th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]12th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]13th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]14th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]15th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]16th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]17th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]18th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]19th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]20th[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[td]-[/td]
[/tr]
[/table]
Once the villains are posted, judges should strive to finish their judgement until February 2nd.
Judging:
Judging is how the competition keeps going! The judges score the entries, and we give medals to the top 3 scoring villains. Anyone can judge! It's how we score the points, and judges get to pick the theme for next round (from a list of options presented by the chair), and are nominees for being guest-chairs every 5th round.
It is highly recommended that prospective first-time judges read through Inevitability's Judging Handbook, and perhaps some past judgements.
Judges are to give scores between 1-5 in the following four criteria: Originality, Power, Elegance and Memorable Villainy. Judges are not to use alternative criteria or score ranges. A 0 in elegance is permitted for strictly illegal or incomplete builds, but a score lower than 1 in other categories is generally not allowed.
Originality: Is the build creative? Was it surprising in the context of this round? On the other hand, does it use expected or well-known methods?
Power: Is it a powerful and threatening villain? On the other hand, does it have any glaring weaknesses?
Elegance: Is it mechanically pretty? Is it clever? On the other hand, does it have rules or presentation issues? Does it rely on shaky interpretations of text? If you find that you have trouble with this category, remember: "no issues" doesn't have to be a 5! Like all others, this category has positive criteria to follow, not just negative criteria to be avoided.
Memorable Villainy: Is this a villain with style and presence? Is it interesting to face against? Does it live up to the established theme and the spirit of the round? On the other hand, does it feel more like an encounter-of-the-week than a true BBEG?
Please try to follow the following judging guidelines:
Spoiler: Legal Sources: Always Allowed, Never MandatoryThis rule means that every source that has been declared legal for this competition is fair game. Using obscure sources, or a large amount of sources, is not by itself subject to a penalty in elegance; Similarly, using only a small amount of sources, or sources that are very well known, is not by itself subject to a penalty in originality.
Spoiler: One Mistake, One Penalty
Judges are only allowed to penalize once for a given mistake. If someone messes up their skills and doesn't qualify for a PrC, ding them as hard as you like. Once. In one category. You don't then get to declare that because they didn't qualify for that PrC, they don't get those levels, and thus don't qualify for anything else. If Ranger is a common ingredient, ding them for Originality. Once. Don't also take off points for Two-Weapon-Fighting being a common ingredient.
Non-exhaustive list of examples:
Skills
Allowed:
- Giving a penalty for miscalculating the number of skill points gained
- Giving a penalty for not having enough ranks to meet a prerequisite
- Increasing the harshness of a skill miscalculation penalty if it affects critical skills including prereqs
Not allowed:
- Giving separate penalties for miscalculating skill points and for non-qualification where the non-qualification is solely caused by the miscalculation
Prereqs
Allowed:
- Giving a penalty for not meeting prereqs
- Scaling the penalty depending on how important the item that the build failed to qualify for is
- Not giving credit for (note: not the same as penalising for) tactics using feats or classes that were not qualified for (but see below)
Not Allowed:
- "Cascading" failures to qualify - declaring that because a build doesn't qualify for a feat, for example, it also doesn't qualify for anything using that feat as a prereq
- Treating a build as having fewer levels than it does because of FtQ for classes
Note that these are protections, not licenses. Deliberately taking a feat that you know you don't qualify for hoping to just suck up the judging penalty for a feat that you couldn't normally take is not okay, and may lead to your build being disqualified.
Spoiler: More Power To YouAn important note on power, cheese, and CR appropriateness:
Being "too strong for your CR" is not by itself something a judge should penalize here. Using poorly supported cheese or cheese that isn't doing anything interesting in the build can and should get an elegance penalty. Using well-known or otherwise obvious and boring tricks can and should be penalized in originality – but power level by itself is not to be addressed anywhere other than the power category. Same goes for being too weak – that should not affect memorable villainy or anything outside of power by itself. If it helps, you can imagine low-powered villains used against low-op groups, high-powered villains against high-op groups, and TO nonsense villains pitted against TO nonsense PCs.
Speculation:
Please don’t post or speculate on possible builds until the reveal, in order to avoid spoiling the surprise if a particular competitor is producing a build along those lines.
Once builds are revealed, please do not comment on errors or rules issues on entries unless you are a judge. If you have such a comment, wait until the final reveal to post it.
Disputes and Conclusion:
Once judging is done, contestants are welcome to table disputes, through a PM to the chair. Disputes are to be civil, substantive, and objective. Meanwhile, the judges can pick between three theme options presented by the chair for next round. As disputes are resolved, the general public can vote for the people's choice medal, writing a short paragraph nominating the villain that mostly intrigued or excited them, even if it wasn't necessarily the most elegant, powerful, original, or memorable. Participation in the people's choice medal awards is mandatory for contestants, but all are welcome to join in. Once everything is concluded, we reveal the identities of our conniving contestants, award medals, and move on to the next round!
Spoiler: Previous RoundsRound One: Leader of Armies
Round Two: Nature's Avenger
Round Three: Double Agent
Round Four: Grave Keeper
Round Five: Crime Lord
Round Six: Ultimate Predator
Round Seven: Wicked Witch
Round Eight: Master of the Tundra
Round Nine: The Power of Villainous Thinking
Round Ten: Henchman Are Villains Too
Round Eleven: The Higher They Rise The Harder They Fall
Round Twelve: Power Comes at a Price
Round Thirteen: The Gadgeteer - You Are Not Batman
Round Fourteen: The Thing That Should Not Be
Round Fifteen: The Horsemen Are Drawing Nearer
Round Sixteen: Burn Baby Burn
Round Seventeen: It's Alive!
Round Eighteen: This is Heresy
Round Nineteen: He Slimed Me!
Round Twenty: Elder Evil
Round Twenty-One: Yarr!
Round Twenty-Two: I Am The Night!
Round Twenty-Three: Two Heads Are Better Than One!
Round Twenty-Four: Wrong For The Right Reasons!
Round Twenty-Five: Keeper of the Gate
Round Twenty-Six: Get In MY BELLY (Swallow Whole)
Round Twenty-Seven: Multiple Personality Disorder
Round Twenty-Eight: Tiny Only!
Round Twenty-Nine: Halloween Special
Round Thirty: One Feat to Rule Them ALL
Round Thirty-One: In Cold Blood
Round Thirty-Two: oh HELL NO!
Round Thirty-Three: The Do Over
Round Thirty-Four: Sword and Board
Round Thirty-Five: I Shall Call Him Mini Me!
Round Thirty-Six: The Broken Man
Round Thirty-Seven: Yin and Yang
Round Thirty-Eight: Spooks and Spectres
Round Thirty-Nine: Sorta Psuedo
Round Forty: Negative Nancy
Round Forty-One: Gojira!
Round Forty-Two: Caine?!
Round Forty-Three: The Big Dumb Brute
Round Forty-Four: The Sheriff
Round Forty Five: The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing
Round Forty-Six: Nemesis!
Round Forty-Seven: Fairy Queen!
Round Forty-Eight: Zealot!
Round Forty-Nine: Controller!
Round Fifty: The Lovers!
Round fifty-one: This isn't even my final form!
Round fifty-two: Clockwork Terror!
Last edited by H_H_F_F; 2024-01-10 at 05:18 AM.
Screaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
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2023-12-23, 07:06 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Clarifications
Monster Advancement and Challenge Rating:- Unless granted by a template or other unusual means, advancement through racial HD is only allowed for monsters with an advancement clause allowing it, and must comply with the rulings and limitations thereof. For example, an Aboleth can only advance up to 24 HD through normal advancement, an Aranea cannot be advanced that way at all, and an Assassin Vine has no limit for such advancement.
- Class levels always come after racial HD, unless using non-standard means of gaining HD (Acquired templates granting HD, monsters with special advancement rules or fluff, etc.) If you're not sure, comply with this rule or PM the chair for guidance.
- CR increase from HD advancement happens at the first HD of each CR bracket. For example: fey add 1 CR for each 4 HD, so adding 1 HD to an unadvanced fey creature would increase its CR by one, while the following 3 HD would not. Adding a fifth HD would increase CR by another step, and so on.
- While all PC classes increase CR on a 1 to 1 ratio, NPC classes follow the rules set out in the DMG. NPC class levels increase CR by n-1 (at least 1) when n is the total number of NPC class levels. That is, adding a single adept level to an entry would increase its CR by 1; Adding a warrior level, or another adept level, would not increase its CR; and adding further levels in any NPC class would increase its CR on a 1 to 1 ratio.
3.0 content updates:
Official Errata and 3.5 updates to 3.0 content are considered valid regardless of whether their sources would otherwise be legal. This includes the 3.5 update of Oriental Adventures given in Dragon Magazine.
Deriving Ability score modifiers:
For monsters or races that don't have explicit racial ability scores, remember that the system assumes monsters start with three 11s and three 10s. Simply decrease 10 from even ability scores and 11 from odd ability scores, and you'll have your modifiers! Watch out for monsters that explicitly already use the Elite Array, though – those are handled differently, of course.
On variant builds:
It's fine to note variant build choices for your villain at a dedicated portion at the end of the build, but only one version is canonical, and only that version will be judged. For example, if you picked feat X, but could also go with feat Y for a less cheesy option, you could say so in the variant section – but your build will be judged as having feat X, with all of the implications of that build's cheesiness.
Miscellaneous House Rules and clarifications
We'll be using the following Iron Chef house rules:
- All creatures are proficient with any natural weapons they may have or acquire.
- Bonus feats that are granted even if you do not meet the prerequisites do not require you to meet the prerequisites in order to use.
- Feats that affect class skills or the buying of skill ranks apply to the level you take them.
- Weapons from soulmelds are considered to be magic weapons for the purpose of overcoming DR.
- Unarmed Swordsage grants Improved Unarmed Strike at level 1.
- One dispute per entry (per judgement). Submit disputes by PM to the Chair.
- Ghostwalk ghost is banned
- Gold, silver, and bronze are awarded regardless of ties (e.g., 2 silvers does not preclude bronze)
- Spelltouched feats are legal and can be taken just like any other feat when you meet the prerequisites and have the feat slot available.
Screaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
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2023-12-24, 01:58 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Feb 2014
- Location
- Arcadia
- Gender
Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Oh, that's some nice restrictions. I was afraid that 'elf round' was going to be too broad, or too tolerant of essentially-PCs, but this... just great! I'll be building for sure, already cycling through some ideas as we speak.
Creator of the LA-assignment thread.
Join the new Junkyard Wars round and build with Cloaked Dancer and a companion creature!
Interested in judging a build competition on the 3.5 forums but not sure where to begin? Check out the judging handbook!
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2023-12-24, 06:07 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Got an idea coming together...
Edit: hrm...generally running into a problem. Longterm villain plans need to be elminster proof cuz otherwise you're just being an idiot. But bbeg plans need to be thwartable by PCs, who are decidedly not epic level chosen of mystra in capabilities. "Elminster proof" and "not PC proof" is a venn diagram with no overlap.Last edited by AvatarVecna; 2023-12-25 at 09:59 AM.
Currently Recruiting WW/Mafia: Logic's Deathloop Mafia and Cazero's Graduates Of Hope's Peak - Danganronpa Mafia
Avatar by AsteriskAmp
My Homebrew
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2023-12-25, 01:47 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
I have one idea maybe.
If you could make anything and everything welcome to the Zinc Saucier XLV: Figaro
My competition's medals.
Spoiler: For purposes of clarity1109 is September, 11 - my birthday.
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2023-12-25, 03:17 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Screaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
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2023-12-25, 03:59 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2014
Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Funnily enough my complaint isn't actually about elminster specifically, it's about people in that class of power and responsibility. Settings where PCs are swinging the biggest ***** magically and strategically exist, but like even in everron that's only true if you're not leaving khorvaire.
I've got a solid plan to destroy everything but it takes centuries to finish and even weeks just to advance noticeably. "Here's what can be done to stop it that only the PCs can do" is rough to work around. I might just Forge ahead assuming any DM that ran something like this would pretend epic npcs just don't exist I suppose.
Edit: I think I have an acceptable workaround.Last edited by AvatarVecna; 2023-12-25 at 04:22 PM.
Currently Recruiting WW/Mafia: Logic's Deathloop Mafia and Cazero's Graduates Of Hope's Peak - Danganronpa Mafia
Avatar by AsteriskAmp
My Homebrew
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2023-12-31, 07:51 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
I like the round theme and will hopefully compete, though I do have a question. Isn't January 10th a Wednesday rather than a Sunday, and if so, when is the actual deadline?
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2023-12-31, 09:56 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Well, that's easy to answer: I forgot to change the day of the week.
The deadline is Wednesday, January 10th.Screaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
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2023-12-31, 10:03 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2023
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Cool. I hope to be able to get an entry in, then.
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2024-01-01, 04:02 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Apr 2020
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Happy new year! How's everybody doing?
Screaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
-
2024-01-01, 04:05 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2020
- Location
- Moscow
- Gender
Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
If you could make anything and everything welcome to the Zinc Saucier XLV: Figaro
My competition's medals.
Spoiler: For purposes of clarity1109 is September, 11 - my birthday.
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2024-01-02, 02:30 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Feb 2014
- Location
- Arcadia
- Gender
Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
One build in, one build nearly finished!
update: Both builds in.Last edited by Inevitability; 2024-01-02 at 04:09 AM.
Creator of the LA-assignment thread.
Join the new Junkyard Wars round and build with Cloaked Dancer and a companion creature!
Interested in judging a build competition on the 3.5 forums but not sure where to begin? Check out the judging handbook!
Extended signature!
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2024-01-02, 08:55 AM (ISO 8601)
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- Arcadia
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Also, yet another suggestion for a future round: The One Ring. Every entry may choose a single artifact that the villain has somehow gained possession of. Artifacts don't really show up in any other optimization context (obviously), so this'd give optimizers a chance to showcase their favorite one.
For balance reasons, maybe emphasize that overreliance on the artifact's raw power is deserving of an villainy/elegance penalty, and the contest isn't about choosing the strongest artifact possible as it is about showcasing whichever one you pick well.Creator of the LA-assignment thread.
Join the new Junkyard Wars round and build with Cloaked Dancer and a companion creature!
Interested in judging a build competition on the 3.5 forums but not sure where to begin? Check out the judging handbook!
Extended signature!
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2024-01-05, 08:01 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2020
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- Moscow
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
One entry is sent. Have idea for one more. Maybe will make it.
If you could make anything and everything welcome to the Zinc Saucier XLV: Figaro
My competition's medals.
Spoiler: For purposes of clarity1109 is September, 11 - my birthday.
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2024-01-08, 11:16 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Due to a request from a conniving contestant, the deadline will be postponed by one week. New deadline: Wednesday, January 17th.
Best of luck building!Screaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
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2024-01-11, 04:06 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2020
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- Moscow
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Last edited by loky1109; 2024-01-11 at 04:10 PM.
If you could make anything and everything welcome to the Zinc Saucier XLV: Figaro
My competition's medals.
Spoiler: For purposes of clarity1109 is September, 11 - my birthday.
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2024-01-15, 10:41 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2020
- Location
- Jerusalem
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Just a reminder, in case anyone's still working: the deadline is this Wednesday!
Screaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
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2024-01-17, 08:38 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2020
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- Jerusalem
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
The reveal will be delayed, hopefully not by more than a few hours.
My apologies, folks!Screaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
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2024-01-18, 03:56 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2020
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- Jerusalem
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Further apologies for the delay, friends!
Without further ado - here are your villains!
Please, no posting until I give the all-clear.Screaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
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2024-01-18, 04:00 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2020
- Location
- Jerusalem
- Gender
Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
(Dead) God Rest, Ye Marry Gentlemen
Originally Posted by Aren GodslayerScreaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
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2024-01-18, 04:03 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2020
- Location
- Jerusalem
- Gender
Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Souls of the Damned Roasting on an Open Fire
Originally Posted by DisappointmentScreaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
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2024-01-18, 04:05 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2020
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- Jerusalem
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
GREEN Christmas
Originally Posted by Camus Ci'xotScreaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
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2024-01-18, 04:10 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2020
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- Jerusalem
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
O (WHY), Christmas Tree?!
Originally Posted by Feed the TreeScreaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
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2024-01-18, 04:14 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2020
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- Jerusalem
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
There's no carol about worms? Wonder why.
Originally Posted by Cestoda CironessScreaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
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2024-01-18, 04:17 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2020
- Location
- Jerusalem
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Deck the Halls!
Originally Posted by Shadows of the False ElderScreaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
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2024-01-18, 04:20 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2020
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- Jerusalem
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Hey look, this one made the reference for me!
Originally Posted by Woe TannenbaumScreaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
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2024-01-18, 04:22 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2020
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- Jerusalem
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
And that's that! Seven Elvish Evildoers for your merriment. I've gotta say, I was a bit worried about turnout and diversity for this round, and was very glad to be proven wrong.
As a reminder, next round will be a guest-chair round.
Over to you, judges!Screaming defiance with the last breath
It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
My judgments and medals!
The Iron Chef Optimization spreadsheet!
Song, Sword, and Sorcery: my 5E homebrew half-caster bard (Version 2.0!)
-
2024-01-18, 07:23 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jul 2013
Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Let's send Camus to the Amazon forest. Problem solved.
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2024-01-18, 07:36 AM (ISO 8601)
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- May 2023
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Re: Villainous Competition LIII: Christmas Edition!
Lot of cool and interesting builds. It’ll be hard to choose a people’s choice this round.
Also, I just noticed a mistake in my entry that, while not completely build destroying, is pretty bad. Ah well. I suppose it needed another round of edits.