Blue Jay

Okay, I'd like to express my personal feelings on this, because I'm becoming a bit of a cranky moderator of late. First of all, you are a power gamer. I want you to stop building things that are overpowered. I want you to stop building things that won't play well with other players. I don't really care what content you use, except that you keep swinging for the fences with every decision you make. And that stresses me out. Your requests always seem like you're testing boundaries, and that makes me feel like I can't really trust you, so my impulse is to be harsh in my rulings with you. I do not believe that making specific, nitpicky rules about which content we allow is going to have any effect on the way you build characters, but it is eventually going to interfere with the ability of other players to make more sensible builds. So, I resent being asked to make this kind of rule, especially when most of the requests end up not being incorporated into a final build anyway. Now I'm starting to develop a grudge over it and dragging my feet on all moderator requests because it feels like every one of them is a fight, and I'm naturally very conflict-averse. But, I should probably talk about it instead of letting it fester anymore. Consider the character you are currently building: a War Troll with Deceivingly Innocent Form and beefed-up summons. You could have built a perfectly playable character using Forest Troll instead of War Troll, and it would probably fit your chosen plant-shaman fluff better. But the big physical ability scores, the Regeneration, the Dazing Strike and the Large-sized weapons were more important to you than your own flavor. You wanted Greenbound Summoning, also ostensibly for flavor reasons. But you also took Ashbound, and you swapped out the nerfed Greenbound for Augment Summoning. This tells me that it really wasn't a flavor-based decision at all: it was just a power grab from the beginning. It's a cool character idea, but the entire build just looks like one big, unnecessary power grab to me. So, the mods started a discussion about imposing a limit on summoning enhancements as a way to rein this in (we have a secret moderator thread, by the way, where we discuss important decisions as a committee). Of course, in 8 years at RFT, we've never had to talk about this before, and it's unlikely that we'll have to talk about it again. Most house rules we make end up affecting exactly one player, so that's another reason why I'm dragging my feet about adding new house rules. If you want to summon plants, how about this: why don't we make a plant-? I'd be happy to consider that. I had an RFT moderator at OGMW once work out an ooze-themed summoning list with me for a summoning-ooze character I built, so it would be fun to pay it forward. In fact, here's a quick kernel to start it off: SNA I: twig blight SNA II: needlefolk SNA III: assassin vine SNA IV: wood woad SNA V: verdant reaver SNA VI: shambling mound SNA VII: myconid sovereign SNA VIII: treant SNA IX: saguaro sentinel That sort of approach to character building is fun and rewarding for everyone. But, the way you build makes it feel like a chore to me. You request some content, then I say "I'm uncomfortable with the power level" or "that feels like it will annoy other players". Then you say, "Ah-ha! So that's the boundary!" and you swap it out for something else that's slightly less powerful, but still basically the same thing. And then you nag us about updating our house rules threads with things that I wanted you, specifically, to change about your approach to building characters. The problem is never the specific content: it's your insistence on swinging for the fences. Please stop swinging for the fences. And now I've once again spent 2 hours on one post, and so I have no more time to do anything else on RFT for a while. So, the threads won't get updated, and nobody's character submissions will get any comments from me for a while.

Oswald One more round of preparation for Oswald. Outside, his constructs move to guard Cufwell's limp body and help in the fight against the dragon. Demiplane The demiplane seems to be cracking again, and you can practically feel the Barkeeper's desperation as he focuses his magic directly around you. "Cufwell's soul is mine now! I can use him! I will succeed! Everything can back to normal after this. Everything except... YOU!" Healing energy rains down on the dragon, and it regains 150 hp. Around you, the land starts trembling and rumbling. Ukumalei's voice apparates in Naomi's mind: "Don't listen to him, Naomi: he hasn't succeeded yet. Bring Cufwell back! Oswald is almost ready: we just have to hold on for a few more seconds." ( ) Initiative and Status 27 - Jarren 26 - Cufwell & Tanu 18 - Terry 17 - Demiplane 10 - Naomi 6 - Warrior (-3/96 hp, 18 nonlethal, unconscious) 6 - Dragon (200/532 hp, shaken 1 rd) 3 - Oswald & Constructs 27 - Jarren 26 - Cufwell & Tanu 18 - Terry 17 - Demiplane 10 - Naomi 6 - Dragon 350/532 hp 3 - Oswald & Constructs To Post: Naomi Special Actions: --

Well, Oslecamo is not known for readability, or for consistency; and Crossbreed is one of the most confusing ones. But it does make a difference. The important point is that Crossbreed doesn't give you permission to take levels in another monster class: it just gives you the "racial traits and abilities of a base race". If "base race" included 1-level Oslecamo classes, then the level of Crossbreed would just replace the level of Half-Giant. You would give you all the Half-Giant's features with your level of Crossbreed, but you'd get Crossbreed's BAB, saves and skills instead of Half-Giant's. And you'd be allowed to keep any previous racial traits on top of it. But then, that basically just makes Crossbreed into a power-up for 1-level Oslecamo classes that they simply don't need, and I wouldn't be willing to allow that even if that is how it's supposed to work.

I don't think there's a way to trade out your spells completely, but there are druidic prestige classes that make that sort of tradeoff: Beastmaster, Master of Many Forms and Warshaper all cater to druids without advancing druid spellcasting. Druidic Avenger (from Unearthed Arcana) is a pretty solid melee choice: trade your animal companion for rage like a barbarian. Just be a little cognizant about going overboard with it. Also, with Arcane Hierophant, make sure you're aware or .

Jarren Jarren rushes at the last standing human warrior and stabs him like a madman. The human warrior goes down. Human Warrior (-1/96 hp, 18 nonlethal, unconscious) Dragon (200/532 hp) Initiative and Status 27 - Jarren 26 - Cufwell & Tanu 18 - Terry 17 - Demiplane 10 - Naomi 6 - Warrior (-3/96 hp, 18 nonlethal, unconscious) 6 - Dragon (200/532 hp, shaken 1 rd) 3 - Oswald & Constructs To Post: Oswald ( )

(( , you can just pay 2000 gp to have your existing mwk warhammer enchanted.)) Leofric Banin Shopping Starting funds: 8551 gp, 4 sp, 5 cp Spells copied into spellbook (50 gp x spell level for copying fee, 100 gp x spell level for ink): black tentacles (4th level) --- 600 gp engulfing terror (3rd level) --- 450 gp lightning bolt (3rd level) --- 450 gp Spells copied into prayerbook: cure critical wounds (4th level) --- 600 gp daylight (3rd level) --- 450 gp freedom of movement (4th level) --- 600 gp mass showshoes (3rd level) --- 450 gp snowdrift (1st level) --- 150 gp Scrolls to be scribed: 2x scroll (cure critical wounds, CL 7th) --- 700 gp 2x scroll (panacea, CL 7th) --- 700 gp 2x scroll (restoration, CL 7th) --- 700 gp 2x scroll (familiar pocket, CL 7th) --- 175 gp Also, buying a scrollcase (1 gp) Total: -6626 gp Remaining funds: 1925 gp, 4 sp, 5 cp

Terry vs Dragon ((You were way overdue for some good rolls. I guess you've just been storing them up all this time?)) Terry crashes into the dragon, slashing and chomping and stabbing viciously. Dark, draconic blood sprays everywhere. Dragon 200/532 hp Will vs Fear (nope) For a second, the dragon's eyes clear, and you see in them the human who was transformed into this beast. A sort of feral anxiety shows through, and the dragon shrinks back a little bit, snarling.

Leofric Banin Leofric flinches as a grape hits him in the side of the head. "Miss, please!" he says, "I've..." He seems taken aback to see that his attacker was a little fairy. "I... Well, I've only just arrived from a dangerous mission in the frozen lands of Jhq-bo. I haven't the slightest idea what's going on here, nor had I any part in! The sort of magic that operates an planar realm such as this are far beyond my meager abilities, I assure you." He catches sight of the Job Board and adjusts his glasses to look at it as he stands and walks towards it. He examines it carefully, looking at each of the open job advertisements. "From the looks of it... I suppose the Tavern's portals and basic magic seem to be functioning normally. I... does anyone here know if this could be related to any mission that's currently out? Or... has this happened before?"

So... half-giant, elf, crossbreed and silver dragon bloodline? You really don't believe in the concept of distinct species, do you? Like, ? You frickin' maniac! A couple things to clarify: Bloodline levels can add to your CL, but RFT doesn't allow you to count the same level twice for any calculations. So, if you gestalt Warmage with your Bloodline level, you won't benefit from the bloodline level's CL boost. The way I read Crossbreed, a monster class doesn't count as a "base race". So, you would need to start as a Half-Giant, and take Crossbreed to get elf traits. I don't know if that will impact your build or mechanics at all, but I think it's important to make that distinction. the Monster Blooded and Monster Hybrid feats were made for adding more monster classes. Also, I don't mind if you take Crossbreed and Half-Giant at the same level. It looks like you chose Ref for your Good save on the Crossbreed level? Requests: can you give me a level-by-level breakdown of skill points, and itemize your equipment purchases, please; just so I can see everything laid out in an easy-to-audit format. Finally, here's a build recommendation, which you don't have to take: Since you're using a greatbow, might I recommend the exoticist or targetteer fighter variants from Dragon #310? Those variants would give you free exotic weapon proficiencies to cover your greatbow, and targetteer gives you access to Vital Aim as a feat (for Dex to damage). You would forfeit your martial melee proficiencies, but Half-Giant gives them back to you anyway, so it would pretty much be a zero-cost trade.

Plant Companion is fine for OA Shamans, and you can flavor it however you want, as long as you don't try to milk the flavor for unearned mechanical benefits. Greenbound Summoning plus Ashbound... look, it's not that I want to restrict this, but your optimization style gives me a nervous tick. Greenbound Summoning is a notoriously overpowered feat. There's a (allegedly from Ed Bonny, who claims to be the original creator of the Greenbound Summoning feat) saying it was originally intended it to be a Metamagic feat with a +2 slot-level adjustment on it. I kind of feel like we should implement something like that, because it's a really powerful feat.

I'm trying to get through new character submissions today (finally). I've also taken all submission threads that are more than three months old, and moved them to the Archive tab. So, if you don't see one of your submissions in the "Character Submissions" tab, look for it in the "Archived Characters" tab. Also, moderators can still see deleted threads after you delete them, so the Character Submissions tab looks really messy for us (not now, because I've cleaned it up). So, please try not to create too many new threads unless you're relatively sure you're going to follow through with the application. And finally, remember to put a "ready for review" tag on your application thread. You likely won't get a moderator review without that tag.