Nude Bard/Sublime Chord/Heartwarder/Vow of Poverty Build

[Talya]

*insert tongue in cheek*

Going to have some fun with this build, thought of it during a monk thread.

For those unfamiliar with the Heartwarder class, it's in Forgotten Realms: Faiths and Pantheons. It's a 1d4 hit dice, full caster progression PrC with a divine element: they must worship Sune, the goddess of beauty, love and passion. Among miscellaneous flavorful abilities, they also gain a +1 inherent bonus to charisma at every odd level. I have only homebrewed a single exalted feat for this, which I thought fit the style and was very amusing. I'll detail it as i go, I just figured a "Vow of Nudity" could be funny for a character with a vow of poverty, as they can't wear armor anyway.

40 point buy, human.
Str8, Dex14, Con14, Int14, Wis14, Cha18

Level 1 (Bard): Sacred Vow, Vow of Poverty
Level 2 (Bard): Nymph's Kiss [Exalted]
Level 3 (Bard): Dodge (for PrC)
Level 4 (Bard): Nimbus of Light [Exalted], +1 charisma
Level 6 (Bard): Spell Focus (Enchantment -for PrC), Vow of Nudity [Exalted]*
Level 7 (Bard): +2 charisma (VoP)
Level 8 (Bard): Holy Radiance [Exalted], +1 charisma
Level 9 (Bard): Mobility (for PrC)
Level 10 (Heartwarder): Stigmata [Exalted], +1 inherent to charisma
Level 11 (Sublime chord): +2 charisma, +2 constitution
Level 12 (Heartwarder): Nonlethal Substitution [metamagic], Vow of Nonviolence [Exalted], +1 charisma
Level 13 (Heartwarder): +1 inherent to Charisma
Level 14 (Heartwarder): Blessed of the Seven Sisters[Exalted]
Level 15 (Heartwarder): Chaos Music, +1 inherent to Charisma, +2 charisma, +2 constitution, +2 dexterity
Level 16 (Heartwarder): Vow of Peace [Exalted], +1 charisma
Level 17 (Heartwarder): +1 inherent to charisma
Level 18 (Heartwarder): Enchanting Song, Gift of Faith [Exalted]
Level 19 (Heartwarder): +1 inherent to charisma, +2 charisma, +2 constitution, +2 dexterity, +2 wisdom
Level 20 (Sublime Chord): Gift of Faith [Exalted], +1 charisma

This character ends up with full 10 bard/10 sublime chord spellcasting. They also have 14 daily uses of bardic music, and can use the songs of a 13th level bard. They have final ability scores of:
Str8, Dex18, Con20, Int14, Wis16, Cha36.
In addition, they have the following:
Armor Class: 36 (Flatfooted: 32, touch: 19)
Saves: Fort +18, Ref +16, Will: +26
BAB: +14, Ranged Touch: +24
Freedom of Movement, Energy Resistance (all) 15, Regeneration, Sustenance/Greater Sustenance, Permanent Trueseeing, Endure Elements, most manufactured weapons used against her shatter on contact (Vow of Peace), calming aura, damage reduction 10/evil, greater spell focus (enchantment) + spell penetration on spells with verbal components, creature type: Fey (fey transformation is a 10th level heartwarder bonus)

Spell DCs are +17 (+20 for enchantments,) has access to some very neat spells (blessed of the Seven sisters), Charisma based skills and checks receive a total of +17 as well.

Bonus spells: +4/+3/+3/+3/+3/+2/+2/+2/+2

*Vow of Nudity
You have taken a sacred vow never to withhold your beauty from the rest of the world.
Prerequisites: Sacred Vow, Charisma 15
Benefit: You are constantly surrounded by an awe-inspiring aura to a radius of 50 feet. Creatures within the aura must make a successful Will save (DC 10 + one-half your character level + your Cha modifier) or be affected by a Fascination effect. A creature that makes a successful saving throw and remains in the aura is unaffected until it leaves the aura and reenters. The aura is a mind-affecting, extraordinary compulsion. Allies gain +2 to this saving throw per day that they travel/work alongside you. After 5 days, they only become shaken rather than fascinated if they fail their save.
Special: To fullfill your vow, you must never willingly wear any item of clothing or armor that conceals your body. If you intentionally break your vow, you immediately and irrevocably lose the benefit of this feat. If you break your vow as a result of magical compulsion, or otherwise unintentionally (being forced into a straightjacket, for instance, a possible outcome of wandering city streets in the nude), you lose the benefit of this feat until you receive an atonement spell. Merely having a blanket thrown over you which you immediately attempt to remove will not cause this result.

[Knight_Of_Twilight]

Just the name, "Vow of Nudity" makes me giggle like a child...

[Citizen Joe]

OK now make it a nymph and you get to add your charisma bonus as an AC deflection bonus and save bonus... plus the blinding and stunning effects.

Heh... Epic Nymph

[Green Bean]

Nice, but make sure to keep this out of Illithid hands. (though if that were the case, I'd certainly understand the 'shaken' effect)

[psilontech]

An interesting build to say the least, but, I pray to God that the 14-16 year olds at the gaming shop don't find this thread and try to convince either DM's to let them use it, because I really don't want them playing retarded, slutty, naked female elves just because they're... you know, 14-16 :p. I Seriously they would play a male character to this, and I don't have a problem with male characters that play females ones... well, but Jesus, they just can't ;). heheh.

Anyway, cool build, I may have to tweak it to my own purposes and try it out next time one of my characters dies a horrific death to a child that rolls 3 20's and a 19 with a wooden rake against a near epic-level character... -_- Heh!

[Poppatomus]

OK now make it a nymph and you get to add your charisma bonus as an AC deflection bonus and save bonus... plus the blinding and stunning effects.

Heh... Epic Nymph

has to be human for the bonus feat, of course how hard could it be to convince a mage to polymorph you?

The wizened figure looks up from his dusty tome to see what he can only describe as an angel by way of an adolescent fantasty. Though posessing of almost all knowledge in the universe, mundane and arcane, he stutters as though a child, "can i h...he...he... help you?"

"Yes," the creature replies, with the voice of heaven itself, "I need you to... Damnit! Another heart attack. How hard is it to find a ninth level caster with a decent fort save around here?"

[Renegade Paladin]

I dunno, the first line of the feat seems awfully prideful and vain for an exalted character.

[Talya]

I really don't want them playing retarded, slutty, naked female elves just because they're... you know, 14-16

Just a minor point, they need to play retarded, slutty, naked female humans, not elves. Only a human (or...*shudder* Strongheart halfling) can get Vow of Poverty at level 1.

[Citizen Joe]

Of course, at level 21, Sune would turn you into a Medusa for competing against Her beauty.

[Talya]

I dunno, the first line of the feat seems awfully prideful and vain for an exalted character.

Are you familiar with the Goddess Sune? (I mean, she's a chaotic good Goddess with an order of paladins, as exalted as one can get...but she exemplifies vanity.)

[Indon]

This vow seems very different from other exalted vows; generally, exalted vows work better when others take it as well... but, a party with three characters with Vow of Nudity would fall apart pretty quick; after five days, they'll all be inducing fear effects on each other with failed will saves, and fear effects stack!

"Oh, wow, naked people."
Five days later...
"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" *flees*

[Talya]

Of course, at level 21, Sune would turn you into a Medusa for competing against Her beauty.

She's not THAT flighty...besides, her Charisma is 48. At 38, you're competing against Eilistraee and the like, though.

[Tengu]

If I ever play DND, I'll make a Winston Churchill clone (the man had charisma, you can't refuse that) with this character build.

[Talya]

This vow seems very different from other exalted vows; generally, exalted vows work better when others take it as well... but, a party with three characters with Vow of Nudity would fall apart pretty quick; after five days, they'll all be inducing fear effects on each other with failed will saves, and fear effects stack!

"Oh, wow, naked people."
Five days later...
"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" *flees*

Heh...after a few more days they'd never fail the check, but yeah, I can see them all sitting around staring lustily at each other for a while.

Oh, for an extra cruel idea (this might be too evil to be "Exalted,") take vow of chastity.

[Citizen Joe]

She's not THAT flighty...besides, her Charisma is 48. At 38, you're competing against Eilistraee and the like, though.

That's the mythological genesis of the Medusa. Some vain priestess claimed she was more beautiful than Aphrodite herself and turned that priestess into the legendary medusa. I think Sune and Aphrodite share the same pool so its likely that they would have shared stories.

[Green Bean]

Heh...after a few more days they'd never fail the check, but yeah, I can see them all sitting around staring lustily at each other for a while.

Oh, for an extra cruel idea (this might be too evil to be "Exalted,") take vow of chastity.

You should probably add that Allies no longer have to make a save once they have a high enough bonus. Otherwise, they'd still risk being affected if they roll a natural 1.

[endersdouble]

If I ever play DND, I'll make a Winston Churchill clone (the man had charisma, you can't refuse that) with this character build.

...If you ever make me think about Winston Churchill naked again, I'll...

Look, just don't.

[Poppatomus]

...If you ever make me think about Winston Churchill naked again, I'll...

Look, just don't.

don't worry I am sure he'd still have a cigar and top hat.

[Tengu]

Due to the requirements of VoP, he'd have to make the tophat himself. And due to the requirements of VoN, he'd have to wear it really high on his head so it wouldn't cover anything. But yes, he'd have it. The cigar too.

[Arakune]

that's a nice build for a BBEG, BASTARD! style!

he, THAT would be funny. the only problem it's a 18+ campaign.
on very kinds of ways .

As you enter the room, the smell of a sweet scent emerges with a thin, pink smoke. The view are somehow... disturbing: dozen's of woman are naked, begging to be the next 'chosen slave'. The most disturbing though are not about the view itself, insted it's "maybe we should leave then here, or perhaps... join it?". As this twisted tough came, a voice of a man spreads from the room:
So, my beloved guests finally arrived. Please, come in.
The man it's also naked, folowed by three womans naked in his knee. His voice is soo powerfull and yet so calm and sweet. Anyone can acknowledge it.
The man's seed and soul shall give me strenght, the woman flesh shall give me immortal life. But do you dare the give away these beautifull woman a chance to live, do die for me?
The womans started to cry as he mentioned this, as if the death itself came to then.
Again, the same twisted tough came: "it's really right do defeat him? Are the death's of all those people that bad? And... why not join it?"
These toughs are enemies much worse than him...

[Talya]

The only way this functions as a BBEG, is to make it a BBGG (oxymoron?) in an evil campaign.

[Poppatomus]

The only way this functions as a BBEG, is to make it a BBGG (oxymoron?) in an evil campaign.

I don't know. I would wager there's a way to get to a similar spot with the book of Vile Darkness.

and it's not as though good has a monopoly on nudity.

just switch it around so that your allies only gain a +2 on things you explicitly command them to do, and have the effect on those around you be jealousy rather than fascination.

[Talya]

I don't know. I would wager there's a way to get to a similar spot with the book of Vile Darkness.

and it's not as though good as a monopoly on nudity.

There's no vile vows...although I'm sure you could homebrew a similar feat to VoN. You'd just never get the equivalent of a vow of poverty. The VoP discussion is what got me thinking about this, since they can't wear armor. I was thinking, "Damn, my heartwarder would never take this vow, no matter how useful it was to her. She likes her pretty clothes so much, she'd rather go NAKED than wear rags. Oh wait...naked...that works..."

[Arakune]

The only way this functions as a BBEG, is to make it a BBGG (oxymoron?) in an evil campaign.

or swith the "evil" description to "good".

seriously, it's a very mean build...

[Poppatomus]

There's no vile vows...although I'm sure you could homebrew a similar feat to VoN. You'd just never get the equivalent of a vow of poverty. The VoP discussion is what got me thinking about this, since they can't wear armor. I was thinking, "Damn, my heartwarder would never take this vow, no matter how useful it was to her. She likes her pretty clothes so much, she'd rather go NAKED than wear rags. Oh wait...naked...that works..."

that is the rub isn't it. no VoP for evil chars. At the same time though, I wonder if a similar level of Cha godliness could be achieved/facilitated by a character using the sacrafice rules in the BoVD. (wish I still had that book, I would check) Call the vow "tempters obsession" and use it to lure people in for sacrafice in order to keep up the largely temporary buffs/powers one gets from the sacrafice system. A charisma vampire.

[Talya]

*insert tongue in cheek*

You know, it's predictable, and I'm to blame, but with where this thread has gone, I'm not sure I want to be using phrases like "insert tongue in cheek" here after all.

[Poppatomus]

You know, it's predictable, and I'm to blame, but with where this thread has gone, I'm not sure I want to be using phrases like "insert tongue in cheek" here after all.

Was waiting for someone to notice that. Had you put it after the feat description my guess is the thread would have imploded.

[Renegade Paladin]

Are you familiar with the Goddess Sune? (I mean, she's a chaotic good Goddess with an order of paladins, as exalted as one can get...but she exemplifies vanity.)

Yes, I am, but goddess or no I still wouldn't call her exalted material.

[Quietus]

Would it be wrong of me to point out that you have a spare Exalted feat slot? You get an Exalted feat for free at level 1 with Vow of Poverty... when I run human VoP's, I typically end up with Nymph's Kiss as my first level bonus feat for the extra skill point fun.

[Talya]

Would it be wrong of me to point out that you have a spare Exalted feat slot? You get an Exalted feat for free at level 1 with Vow of Poverty... when I run human VoP's, I typically end up with Nymph's Kiss as my first level bonus feat for the extra skill point fun.

Ooooh. Nice. And what exalted feat would you stick into that build (i'd move nymph's kiss to level 1.)