MitD XIX: The Potted Plant Is Starting To Look Reasonable

[Ruck]

Can someone break down for me why a shapechanger in general, and a protean in particular, would go from +21 damage on their attack to 1+6 because of changing size? 'Cause I don't see a reference to strength changing with size, only the attack bonus (which goes up, presumably because every target is now much bigger, from their new perspective). And the protean explicitly says that he retains its own base attack bonus and Strength modifier to damage when using other shapes' attack types. I tried to figure it out myself but I got lost in the interaction between natural weapons, unarmed strikes and off-hand attacks.

Grey Wolf

Bolding for emphasis.

Huh. Yes, that really is a fairly good argument against a shapechanger capable of altering its size and developing attack forms other than its standard fare at a moment's notice.

Maybe it's too busy manifesting a form with two fixed eyes to manifest as anything smaller than it is. 'Although, it did manifest its eyes at the same time as carrying O-Chul. And it held to its eyes while manifesting the Umbral Blot. So maybe it can manifest specialized limbs while maintaining its eyes.

Also, there's the sticking point that if MitD could willingly change its size and so minimize the damage he deals, and did do so, we should have been able to observe the massive change in size.

"A protean can assume the shape of any combination of physical nondeific creatures at the same time as a free action."

(emphasis mine)

I don't know why you assume that the Protean would definitely change size when it shifts. If it consciously changes into a single creature, sure, but a)I see no reason why we should assume MitD would do that here, and b)We have loads of evidence the MITD doesn't even know what he is or how he does the things he does, which makes it even less likely he would purposely shift into a smaller/weaker creature-- because he doesn't know how his powers work or how to control them.

It reads to me like "MitD is not a Protean because he didn't change size/shape in the way I assumed he would, even though he doesn't even know what he is or that he can do that."