Most ridiculous mechanical ttrpg combo you've found by accident?

[BBK]

So, while tabletop rpg gaming, what is a mechanical combo you've come across that made you go, "Wait...wtf? It can't really do what I think it does, can it?!"

---

Here is mine:

Be a level 1 Aegis in Pathfinder 1e.

Use 2 Customization Points for your Astral Suit to pick up the 'Robot Upgrade(Source: Arcforge: Psibertech)

For each time that the Aegis selects this customization, he gains 1 Upgrade point. These upgrade points can be spent on robot upgrades. This customization may be taken multiple times.' customization.

Use that Robot Upgrade to pick up 'Mech Enhancement(Source: Arcforge: Psibertech)

The robot gains a single mech enhancement that it meets the prerequisites for, using its hit dice as the effective mech pilot level.'.

Now pick up 'Transformation(Source: Spheres of Power)

The mech or vehicle can take on a different form. When you can this customization, choose one mech or vehicle body type and a new set of mech enhancements (although this new form must possess transformation). The mech may exchange its body type and enhancements (besides transformation) for this other body type or revert to its original form as a full-round action, altering its stats as dictated by its new form. A mech may use this enhancement to take on a vehicle body type and vice versa. If a mech’s transformed form has fewer weapon slots than its original form or vise versa, those excess slots are unusable while in the form with fewer slots. This enhancement can be selected multiple times, each time allowing the mech an additional body type it can transform into.' as your Mech Enhancement.

---

Congrats! Now you can form your astral suit in order to shapeshift into a mech or vehicle, with the ability to cycle through them at-will as a full round action. Be a mech and be vaguely odd, but still a bepedal medium human-shaped character, or go full hog and be a sentient Gargantuan Ship. Pick up another customization point, give yourself flying and be your own airship. Dismiss your Astral Suit to revert to normal.

More customization points down the line allow you to get actual weapon slots via picking up the 'Additional Weapon AffinityThe mech gains Weapon Affinity with an additional weapon type of your choice (melee, ranged, heavy). This enhancement can be taken up to two times, selecting a different weapon type each time.' Mech Enhancement to pick up a general weapon proficiency like 'Ranged' or 'Heavy' and then generate them via the 'Weapon Emulation(Source: Arcforge: Psibertech)

The aegis gains the ability to forge out of ectoplasm a weapon based upon an installed emulation program. The weapon can be generated, reloaded, or retracted as a swift action, and can be reformed if sundered. The weapon is a part of the astral suit, and so cannot be thrown or otherwise detached from the suit. Any ability or effect that suppresses or destroys the astral suit also does the same to this weapon.' astral suit customization. Now you can be your own airship with an automatically reloading Rocket Launcher. All for 8 Customization Points, which can be done at level 1 with the right archetypes, feats, and traits.

Autobots, roll out!

Edited December 28, 2023 by BBK (see edit history)

[Tetsubo_2017]

Oh.

My.

Gawd.

[Onigato]

Exalted in any edition does this a lot, but the Lunars have a Charm from the Dreams splat that allows them to challenge ANYONE to a non-lethal fight. If they win they get to "steal" a different Charm from the loser.

Any. Charm.

Cue up the challenges.

Spirits have Charms that give extra Willpower and motes (read as mana). Sidereals have all the fate Charms. Solars have Solar Circle Sorcery (It's a Charm, THEN the spells). Infernals have... well, Infernals are broken, OP, and stupidly unbalanced, but the Charm that really kicks them is the "I have more Essence than any other character is legally allowed to have. Period."

[Rudra]

I see your pathfinder mecha and raise a star wars mecha.

In star wars d20 saga edition a sufficiently heavy armor(around 30lbs, not that hard to reach) can have a storage with enough capacity to store a jawa and her personal equipment(female jawa is better, weight less)

Now, thats funny, but you can make it overpowered funny by specializing the jawa in technology(easy and fitting) and picking a combat droid(of medium or higher size).

Now you have a voice controlled mecha and to harm your jawa character the bad guys have to kill the robot. Give a datapad and a communicator to the jawa, link them with the droid sensors, she can direct it just fine.

Given the huge variety of robots,equipment, upgrades and the enhancement a tech specialist can grant to their equipment...the character will be silly strong(not as strong as an armored jedi wizard but they are kind of broken)

[Onigato]

1 hour ago, Rudra said:

I see your pathfinder mecha and raise a star wars mecha.

In star wars d20 saga edition a sufficiently heavy armor(around 30lbs, not that hard to reach) can have a storage with enough capacity to store a jawa and her personal equipment(female jawa is better, weight less)

Now, thats funny, but you can make it overpowered funny by specializing the jawa in technology(easy and fitting) and picking a combat droid(of medium or higher size).

Now you have a voice controlled mecha and to harm your jawa character the bad guys have to kill the robot. Give a datapad and a communicator to the jawa, link them with the droid sensors, she can direct it just fine.

Given the huge variety of robots,equipment, upgrades and the enhancement a tech specialist can grant to their equipment...the character will be silly strong(not as strong as an armored jedi wizard but they are kind of broken)

I'm hearing Dwarven Rigger from Shadowrun 4E... In Star Wars.

[BBK]

Here is another very broken combo I've only recently uncovered using the PF1 Spheres of Power mechanics. First I posted about how to become a mech yourself. Now learn how to turn everything into mechs. And also make a mountain of fake coins explode with the force of a miniature supernova.

Unlimited permanent marble-sized minions that do 4d6/round(60') with a kamikaze attack that deals 22d6 damage to a 30'-60' area.

Requirements: Level 10, have 9 Alteration Sphere Talents total, and just 2 Spell Points per minion.

---

Be a Level 10 High-Caster Sphere Caster, and take the following Talents:

• Alteration Sphere
  • Object Transformation
  • Orb Transformation
  • Transform Object
  • Greater Changes
  • Extreme Changes
  • Size-Change
  • Mechanical Customization
  • Permanent Transformation

Now, spend 3 Spell Points to Shapeshift an object and apply the Orb Transformation with the native Beam trait, the Size-Change trait as well as 3 Mechanical Customization traits. You now have a permanent diminutive flying minion that can pump out a 60' ray attack that deals 4d6 untyped damage that overcomes damage reduction of any type as a standard action. On top of that, the permanent, obedient minion has 3 Mech Enhancements to play with. I suggest these:

1. Intelligent Vessel - Gives your permanent minion robot intelligence. Now you have a smart minion.
2. Transformation - As a full-round action, reconstruct self into a Mech or Companion Vehicle.
3. Robot Upgrade - Lets you pick a Robot Upgrade in place of a Mech Enhancement.
   • Auto Destruct Core - A Robot Upgrade that makes your minion go boom. For the best effect, read the strategies below.

Every night before regaining spell points, churn out as many shapeshifted transformed objects as you have spell points to do so. At 2 points a pop, you should always be able to add to your collection. After a few weeks, you could flood an entire region with flying death-beam marbles that could fly above a populated area before transforming into a colossal ship at a great height. If they were to ready an action to self-destruct when they touch the ground after beginning to drop like the 125 tons of behemoth it has become, it would do 10d6 Falling Object damage to a 30' area + auto-destruct 6d6 fire & 6d6 Bludgeoning to 60' centered on that original 30'. Oh, and you can also take the Favored Form feat, which would let you pull this trick off and provide a 6th trait to the shapechange.

Bonus Points: if you take a second iteration of the Object Transformation talent and just turn these newly animated minions into gold coins instead of orbs. Pay the bad guy with a sack full of them. Heave them self-destruct on a pre-defined signal (like, say, any of the coins being removed from said pouch) having each one do 12d6 in a 30' radius centered on the pouch. Each. One.

Ta-da!

Edited February 1 by BBK (see edit history)

[leons1701]

And people wonder why Sphere's games always seem to die after one or two combats.

[BBK]

On 2/2/2024 at 5:00 PM, leons1701 said:

And people wonder why Sphere's games always seem to die after one or two combats.

Yeah, everyone loves to theory craft and work out a cool build for a Spheres game, but no one wants to run them. Which is sad, because it would be lovely to play one of those characters.

---

Oh, and as a bonus, I found a way to truly maximize Customization Points as an Aegis. Let's assume level 10 in order to pull off the full combo.

1. The Integrator archetype allows you to use the Aegis customization points to modify your body rather than a suit.
2. The Living Veil Race allows you to pick a single veil to shape. Pick Dahlia's Psionic Halo. Once you are level 9 you can bind it with the Improved Chakra Bind customization for 2 customization points.
3. Acquire at least 4 Essence Points to bind to your veil. The Natural Essence trait gives 1, and the Ectoplessence customization for 3 points gives 1/2 your Aegis level, but you can also just take the 'Extra Essence' feat as well, or use whichever method suits you.
4. So, once you are level 9, you can now bind Dahlia's Psionic Halo and bind at least 4 essence to it. Letting you cast the 3rd level power: Form Astral Armor, which will last for 9 minutes. When it expires, you will have regenerated the pool of power points the veil also gives you, letting you always recast it upon expiry. Now you have two sets of customizations. Integrator + Astral Armor (Skin).
5. But, we're not done yet. Now get a Mech. Lots of ways to do this (customization points, feats, classes, Spheres, etc). As Mech Customizations can be spent to buy Aegis Customization Points, now you have 3 sources of points. Needless to say, acquire extra mech customizations (feats, Pilot Sphere, etc).
6. Then, if you're in a Spheres game, you go even further. The Alteration Sphere has a niffty talent called Mechanical Customization, which lets you give yourself a mech enhancement. Which, as we established, cna be traded for more aegis customization points. At level 9 with the Greater Changes and Extreme Changes talents thrown in, that's 5 mech enhancements for 1 spell point. Add in the Permanent Transformation talent so you pay double that, but only once.
7. Now, you use the Alteration Shapeshift (Blank Transformation) ability to grant both yourself and your mech 5 extra mech enhancements.

Normally, an Aegis has access to 14 customization points at level 10. What does the above route have you ending up with? The equivalent of 51 (unless you take a few iterations of the Extra Customization feat...but that's very ineffective - use those extra feat slots for something like Extra Magic Talent, etc) spread out between your own body, a psionic power conjured Astral Skin (I should note these customizations can be changed at every 10 minutes when you recast), and a Mech. And all 51 of these points can be reassigned to different abilities with 8 hours of rest.

Aegis Customization Points can be essentialls traded to get: Mech Enhancements, Robot Upgrades, Spheres Talents, and Astral Construct Menu Options.

[farothel]

I had one in Scion 1st edition. I was the scion of Mannanan McLir of the Irish Pantheon and there was a combo of boons and knacks that was difficult to break in combat. First I used a power to go first in combat (I'm not sure what the name was anymore), followed by the Enech 5 power that could drain someone's willpower (and I had enough bonus successes that I could always drain it fully). Next round the appearance knack 'serpent's gaze', which made a target inactive in combat until they spent a willpower point (which I had of course just drained). Then I would point our Aesir combat character to the now inactive enemy: 'have at it'. They could still use mental powers (that didn't require willpower), but they were essentially defenseless against a character maxed out for combat tricks.

[TheRedGoat]

I mean, it is way more low-key than any of the above, but when I first sat down and played D&D 5e I immediately saw how an Arcane Trickster and Illusionist wizard can use combine minor illusion and an invisible mage hand (across two actions) to mimic (most of) the effects of the 5th level spell Mislead! Janky as ef, but I was like maybe 15, so sue me. It was, and still is ridiculous, but clearly more broken things have been discovered.

 

I also learned later on with a sorcerer of mine that because I had subtle magic I could just look at someone the wrong way and cast Immolate to turn them into a pile of ashes. Never have gone back to recreate either of these though with all the new add-ons and supplemental products.

[BBK]

In Pathfinder 1e, if you have either the Leadership feat (or the Detective Agency feat if you want to do it with three minions instead of just one to be super cheesy about it), you can get a Living Veil race Cohort with a Spherecaster class specializing in the Telekinesis & Veilweaving Spheres with at least one level in the Incarnate Veil prestige class. Have it take the 1/3 Composite Living Veil feat as the Favored Class bonus, and take the Folded Veil (and Bound Living Veil) feat(s).

Presto, your cohort can now be bodiless pseudo-magical equipment in the form of an Akashic Veil that grants you the benefit of all its currently shaped veils, gets its own set of actions (using the shared veils, or using Telekinesis actions), and can swap its living veil (and other normal veils depending on Veilweaving Sphere talents) between 2-3 presets as a full round action. If you had it take the Rajah (Lordly Champion) class, it can also grant you extra actions like attacks as free actions, plus give you several other general benefits and take Combat talents as well as Magical ones.

Want the versatility that having a minion brings, but don't want to have to play two characters all the time? Have the minion be super lazy and pretend to be a piece of magic equipment. The action economy and versatility of 2 characters, with one being an unbodied concept layabout, along for the ride. Problem solved!

Edited February 21 by BBK (see edit history)

[TheRedGoat]

@BBKNot gonna lie, I'd love to pick your brain on a build of mine I vaguely considered once of a Sword Binder wizard that would emphasize sniping with a greatsword. It was basically done for the lols and the mental imagery, but I distinctly remembering noting that I could still make use of Vital Strike with the whole thing even if I couldn't use a lot of the actual combat feats.

[BBK]

8 hours ago, TheRedGoat said:

@BBKNot gonna lie, I'd love to pick your brain on a build of mine I vaguely considered once of a Sword Binder wizard that would emphasize sniping with a greatsword. It was basically done for the lols and the mental imagery, but I distinctly remembering noting that I could still make use of Vital Strike with the whole thing even if I couldn't use a lot of the actual combat feats.

Check your PMs. lol