PRC Strategy Guide
Here's my submission, let me know if there's any details that are missing or are inaccurate.
[u][b]Arcane Trickster[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The Arcane Trickster is the perfect melding of rogue and wizard. He gains full spell progression as well as full sneak attack progression while receiving a moderate number of skill points.
The Arcane Trickster is also perhaps the closest to being a well rounded character that one can make in DnD. Arcane magic casting, decent number of skill points, use magic device from rogue levels and a sneak attack give this character the ability to do just about anything and fill in any role.
[b]Main Advantages:[/b]
The Arcane Trickster's biggest advantage is his sneak attack. This sneak attack can be used with any touch attack spell which makes the worthless cantrip ?ray of frost? and other similar spells into something that is fairly respectable. With a familiar or summon tanking, the wizard can also take advantage of his sneak attack by backstabbing distracted enemies in melee.
Aside from his Sneak attack, the Arcane Trickster has a plentiful supply of skills that he can always make use of. The typical arcane trickster is capable of replacing the party's rogue for picking locks and disabling traps. He is also able to indulge in the social skills making him a respectable choice as the party's speaker.
[b]Disadvantages:[/b]
You will always be behind a pure caster in gaining spells and behind a pure rogue in sneak attack and skills. While the latter is not as much of a problem, the former can be in low levels. Your weak base attack bonus and hit die will also make combat troublesome, but no more so than any pure wizard.
The Arcane Trickster suffers a major lull in the starting levels, particularly levels 5-7 where your spell selection is poor and your sneak attack is weak. You'll basically be resigned to staying in the back using your skills where appropriate.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
The standard, a perhaps only reasonable build in Neverwinter Nights for the Arcane trickster is:
Rogue 1 / Wizard 3 / Rogue 1 / Wizard 1 / Rogue 1 /
Arcane Trickster 10 / Wizard 1 / Rogue 1 / Arcane Trickster 20
Wizard synergizes better with Rogue as they both make strong use of INT and Rogue offers a large number of skill points, evasion at level 2, and access to Use Magic Device.
The last rogue level is used for a ?Use Magic Device? dump and to bump your BAB up to 11 providing a third attack. With a ?Use Magic Device? 23 you can buff your charisma up with spells or items to be able to use holy avenger weapons (requires a umd score of 25+) or other such high level magic items not normally intended for you to use.
The only "must have" feat is "Practiced spellcaster," this one feat will compensate for those four rogue levels that you take putting you back on par with a pure wizard in epic levels. Meaning that at level 24 and beyond you'll cast as many spells, at the same level, for the same duration as any other pure wizard. This feat also helps in early levels providing a good boost to the durations of your spells
For skills I recommend keeping spellcraft and tumble maxed, aside from those two you can choose skills appropriate to what you'll be doing. ?Discipline? to help avoid knockdown and disarm attempts and the usual rogue assortment of ?disable device,? ?open lock, ? and ?search? are good choices to consider.
With a high spellcraft your reflex save vs spells should be quite high allowing you to point-blank blast yourself with fireballs and scintillating spheres while still evading them (evasion from rogue levels).
I highly recommend that you follow the route that has become popularly known as the "melee mage." This is a startegy where you focus your wizard for melee'ing the standard ?mobs? thus saving your better spells for ?bosses.? This strategy works especially well with the arcane trickster as it gives you better chances of using your sneak attack to it's full effect.
More details on the melee mage here:
[url]http://nwn.bioware.com/forums/viewtopic.html?topic=463703&forum=42[/url]
In epic levels, you can decide to focus on sneak attack by taking the improved sneak attack and lingering damage feats or you can focus more on your magic by getting the magic enhancing feats.
[u][b]Runecaster[/b][/u]
A fun class, mainly built around the "Inscribe Rune" feat. Dwarf-flavoured, but no racial restrictions. Generally uses cleric as a base class, but druid would do instead.
[b]Pros[/b]
Able to create runes with up to 5 uses/day of any spell known
+3 DC and Spell Penetration
Full caster progression
Can create runes with both Maximize and another metamagic
[b]Cons[/b]
Wide stat spread (min 13 int)
No turning progression
[b]Costs lots of GP and XP[/b]
Runes are cast at the user, not targetted elsewhere.
[b]Possible builds[/b]
One option is to go for a crafting-heavy character type. Scribe Scroll, Craft Wand, Brew Potion; all the bioware crafting feats can be used to keep a good stash of spells handy. In particular, giving a Wand of Cure * Wounds to anyone in your "party" that can use it is a good idea.
If you take the PRC Crafting feats; Craft Wonderous Item, Craft Magic Arms and Armor, Craft Rod, Craft Staff, Craft Construct; you can purchase recipies through the PRC Options menu to reproduce almost any item in the OCs. In particular, being able to build your own golems is a lot of fun
To complete the crafting-type character, go for at least a Cleric 7 / Runecaster 10 / Wizard 17 build (with both Practised Spellcaster: Cleric and Practised Spellcaster: Wizard feats). This will give you access to both spellbooks and therefore allow you to craft virtually anything in the game (provided you have enough XP/GP for it), plus it allows you to utilise the 13 int requirement for Inscribe Rune. However, your direct damage capability in either class will be quite poor, particularly when it comes to piercing SR. You will also suffer an XP penalty, unless you are a race with cleric or wizard as a favoured class; this XP penalty will hurt you more than most characters because you use a lot of XP to craft things.
Personally, I prefer to save my GP/XP untill I can craft use/day runes. Then I scribe all of my buffs into runes (bulls strength, flame weapon, etc). Though this can leave you more vulnerable to dispells (because theyll have a lower level), it allows you to cast more buffs than you otherwise would, plus you can recast them if they are dispelled.
Since runes have to be targetted on the caster, you might think they cant be used offensively. However, some spells are very useful; Firestorm for example can deal divine damage and the DC bonus helps catch rogues or others with improved evasion; Storm of Vengance also helps lay down a large AoE effect. A very effective tactic is to get a summon(s) and then use the Mass * runes to buff it and yourself at the same time; using a Druid base class you can have your animal companion, a summon, and a dominated animal via animal empathy.
If you can set some switches, then multiple summons and casterlevel crafting are of particular value to this class.
This class does best in fast leveling modules with lots of GP/XP. Endless Nights IV for example
On the Runecaster, another Rune set I personally like a lot are the Summon Creature spells, the very best being the Druid Elemental Swarm spell. Even the low level ones are useful, because you can pop them out and run if you need cover, or simply (under MultiSummon) bury a target in a horde of creatures. Up until high levels, packs of Dire Wolves are quite impressive.
Another function that the Runecaster fulfills wonderfully is that of party buffer. Remember that you can hand the Runes around to anyone who wants to use them. Rogues with Divine Power and Righteous Might are rather impressive in combat, while all classes benefit from holding onto a rune of Healing. If you have mixed in Wizard levels as well, buffs that are caster only like Premonition and Greater Stoneskin can be handed round to the entire party.
Enjoy
[u][b]Wilder[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The Wilder is one of three "base" classes with the ability to manifest psionic powers (along with Psychic Wariror and Psion), and like the two others, can achieve full manifester level, has access to a wide range of powers, d6 hitdie per level up, 3/4 BAB progression, and a Wild Surge special class ability that truly sets it apart from the others. Its main manifesting stat is Charisma.
In addition to this, the Wilder also has melee combat capabilities in the form of light armor and simple weapon proficiencies.
[b]Pros of the Wilder:[/b]
The Wilder is an amalgam of combat ability and manifesting, making it a class with a diversified set of combat options.
Due to the Wilder's Rogue-level HP, mid-level BAB, and ability to wear light armor, it will find itself relatively viable in combat if it uses powers such as the AC-increasing and Offensive set of buff powers. Another boon for the Wilder in close-quarters combat is the fact that it it is one of the few base classes with Tumble. This increased physical potential has the added effect of making the Wilder much more durable in earlier levels than the Psion.
The Wilder also has access to a great number of devastating damage powers and the complete amount of Psionic Points similar to the Psion, allowing the Wilder to fill the role of 'caster', so to speak, and the Wilder needn't be in the back of the lines to do so. Also, the BAB allows the Wilder to be a viable option for using touch-attack powers, something which the Psion has a much harder time landing.
Finally, the Wilder has the Wild Surge, a risky way for the Wilder to improve its Manifesting level past the limit, sort of a free and alternative form of the feat Overchannel.
[b]Cons of the Wilder:[/b]
The Wilder can be quite versatile, but this versatility requires one to have experience in two things: experience and planning. This fact becomes even more critical with the fact that the Wilder gets a total of 11 powers at level 20, and gets no more after that. This is much less than a Psion of equivalent level, and combined with the fact that there are quite a few powers to select from, the Wilder needs to be extremely careful with what it picks, since if Psychic Reformation is not among the powers the Wilder opts to pick, the player could end up with powers not geared towards her goals. This problem can be partially rectified in Epic levels, but only if the Wilder takes feats.
As a 'middle-ground' between the Psychic Warrior and the Psion, the Wilder loses out on access to special powers available to either class. In particular, the Wilder misses out on all of the Psion's Discipline-specific powers, such as Energy Missile and Astral Construct.
The Wilder has very few choices in terms of Prestige Classes. Thrallherd is locked away from the Wilder due to the Telepath Discipline requirement, Psychic Theurge requires dipping into a class with a different attribute for casting, and any other choices will have a seriously debilitating effect on the Wilder's manifester level, a situation from which arcane classes also tend to suffer.
Additionally, Wild Surge can be a liability, since there is a chance that it can daze you, which increases steadily with higher Wild Surge settings. Thankfully, this doesn't matter much with a low-value Wild Surge, and the player can even opt to not use it at all.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
Races with boosts in Charisma are well-suited towards Wilders, but Human is always a solid choice.
Increasing Charisma should be your main goal in attribute allocation, and dumping many points into Intelligence at the start also helps with skill points.
A Wilder can go through all fourty levels of Wilder progression so that she will not suffer any loss in manifesting level. However, if the player wishes it, there are a few possible choices to make for dipping in other classes, and a loss in manifester level is slightly less damaging with Wild Surge.
Taking even a single level in Fighter will be a tremendous help in improving a Wilder's melee capabilities. The Fighter package includes access to Heavy Armor and Martial Weapons, for those who wish to use swords instead of morningstars. Of course, taking too many levels in Fighter will cut into a Wilder's effective manifester level.
Similar minor dips in other classes would be to take a level in Paladin or two levels in Blackguard for the Charisma-based Saving Throw boost. Keep in mind that the former has an alignment restriction and the latter not only has an alignment restriction, but also requires valuable skill points and a feat slot.
If the player can manage a balancing act, can try to create a Psychic Theurge, in which a Wilder can be mixed with a divine caster class (Druid or Cleric) to create a character with a large pool of combined spells and powers to deal with all sorts of situations. However, creating such a character requires even more experience than what is already needed to make a Wilder, and BAB is also sure to suffer.
The most important skills for the Wilder to gain ranks in are Spellcraft (for increased saves) and Tumble (for dodge AC and being able to switch positions and avoid attacks more easily). Discipline is also important as a defense against things like Knockdown, though keep in mind that it is a cross-class skill. Crafting skills are important for customizing one's appearance. Other than that, skills that benefit from the Wilder's heightened Charisma might also be a good idea.
Following is a list of valuable powers for a Wilder.
[b]Force Screen and Inertial Armor:[/b] Both powers provide an initial bonus of +4 to AC, with Inertial Armor being easier to augment as time goes on. These boosts can be critical to survival against enemies who will have an easy time getting past your light armor in mid-early levels.
[b]Precognition, Defensive:[/b] Not only does this boost AC, it also boosts Saving Throws, which will assist against one-hit-kill attacks such as the Water Elemental's Drown pulse attack.
[b]Precognition, Offensive and Prescience, Offensive:[/b] Looking to be an effective melee combatant? These two augmentable powers will give you an edge.
[b]Energy Attack Powers:[/b] All of the spells with 'Energy' in it are malleable in their ability to change elements. Good ones include Burst, Stun, Wave, and Ray (for early levels).
[b]Crystal Powers:[/b] Crystal Shard and Swarm of Crystals are great for two things, having no save and having no need to pierce power resistance. Despite the lower damage they have, these incisive traits make the Crystal Spells critical inclusions to the Wilder's repertoire.
[b]Oak/Shadow/Iron Body:[/b] These three powers share two qualities-- immunity to Critical Hits and DR. Individually they give you even more. Remember that Oak and Iron also cause debilitating effects.
[b]Vigor:[/b] An extra (if artificial) boost in HP is always helpful and can be recast as 'healing'.
[b]Body Adjustment:[/b] A more solid form of healing where the HP can't be dispelled.
[b]Power Resistance:[/b] Similar in function to Spell Resistance, useful against casters due to transparency.
[b]Eradicate Invisibility:[/b] Many of the attack powers that the Wilder will be using require that the enemy not be invisible. This power serves as a relatively early solution.
[b]Psychic Reformation:[/b] If the player doesn't like the previous power choices they've made with their character, they can retroactively change them with Psychic Reformation.
Many of the other powers are either not as good or have a very specialized use. Select them keeping in mind what kind of modules will be planned for the Wilder. For example, if the player expects to encounter many low-Will monsters, Telepathy spells such as Mind Thrust and Mindwipe can be extremely powerful.
The Wilder should consider having Wisdom up to at least 13 or 14 to have access to Speed of Thought, which will help her move around early on. Power Penetration and Greater Power Penetration may also be a good idea to take if the player expects to fight high-SR monsters later. Either one of the damage-increasing powers (Empower and Maximize) may also be a good choice, just remember that they cannot be used in tandem with each other or with any other Focus-expending feats until the Wilder reaches Epic.
A Wilder may opt to select multiple Metapsionic feats from levels 1-20 and then spend multiple feats in the Epic Psionic Focus line to use all of them at the same time. A particularly devastating combo for the Epic Wilder would be to use Greater Power Penetration, Empower (x1.5 damage), Maximize (max damage), and Twin (power happens twice).
In order to reduce the increased cost of all of these Metapsionic feats, the player, in addition to utilizing Wild Surge, should also definitely take into account the Improved Metapsionics feat (which requires four Metapsionics feats). The feat reduces the Power Point cost of each Metapsionic feat by 2 points except for Metapsionic feats that already cost 2 points (Empower). However, if one prefers to use the PrC switches, it will simply reduce the total cost.
It is important to know that the Wilder stops gaining more Power Points at Level 20. The Improved Manifestation feats can dramatically increase the Wilder's base amount of Points, and for purposes of extended the stamina it is probably a good idea to spend the majority of Epic Feats towards these feats.
Other than that, Epic Expanded Knowledge will be useful if the Wilder wants to broaden their effectiveness by gaining more powers. Great Charisma can improve power DC and the amount of available Power Points.
[u][b]Warmind[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The Warmind is a 10-level prestige class with the ability to manifest psionic powers from the Psychic Warrior list up to the fifth level, a d10 hitdie per level, full BAB progression, special and passive buffs, and combat abilities that assist it in fighting multiple opponents.
Due to the fact that it takes psionics from the Psychic Warrior, the Warmind's main manifesting attribute is Wisdom.
[b]Pros of the Warmind:[/b]
The Warmind has full BAB progression in addition to psionic talents. This is a rarity for classes with psionic talent, making it well suited as a psionically flavoured companion for combat classes such as Fighter, especially considering its relatively easy entry requirement. In fact, combining the Warmind with other full BAB classes will cause no loss in BAB.
In the ten levels of Warmind progression, 70 Power Points without an attribute modifier are gained, giving it more than the Psychic Warrior in a similar level frame. Those Power Points can be used for powers with significant effects such as Hustle.
Along with psionic powers, the Warmind has buffs to improve itself: the Chain spells to improve damage (Personal Superiority and Overwhelming Force) and defenses (Defensive Posture), and Enduring Body to provide endurance against hits in the form of DR. In this manner, the Warmind gains a raw edge to its fighting capability.
The Warmind is also better able to deal with large, packed groups of enemies due to Sweeping Strike, which allows the War Mind to attack two enemies at once provided that they are within melee range of each other.
[b]Cons of the Warmind:[/b]
In the long run, the Warmind's manifester level can never reach the Psychic Warrior's since the Warmind does not advance past level 10. This means that the War Mind's psionic powers reach a limit more quickly than any other psionics classes except for those similar in make-up such as the Fist of Zuoken. Therefore, the player should keep in mind that the War Mind is not a 'full-on' psionic class and should plan accordingly.
The Warmind also gets very few powers, even fewer than the Psychic Warrior at level 10, and so needs to take some very careful choices in powers.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
Wisdom should be at least 15 (or 16 to make it even) in order to access all powers.
Planning is important for the Warmind in terms of choosing powers, a fact that is reinforced by the Warmind's lack of Psychic Reformation. It would be best if the Warmind selected powers that either do not need augmentation or have a high initial boost. Some suggestions follow.
[b]Force Screen and Inertial Armor:[/b] Both powers provide an un-augmented bonus of +4 AC, which are quite a boost in low-magic worlds where the bonuses will not conflict with items.
[b]Precognition, Defense:[/b] This defensive spell provides insight boosts that will not likely conflict with items and has the added benefit of saving throw increases.
[b]Vigor:[/b] Even at a maximum manifester level of 10, a temporary HP boost of 50 is still a nice buffer.
[b]Concealing Amorpha:[/b] Either version of the power does not require augmenting and makes the Warmind harder to hit.
[b]Body Purification:[/b] To get rid of all that pesky non-HP damage.
[b]Hustle:[/b] The utility of Haste is well-documented and needs no explanation.
[b]Energy Resistance:[/b] This power provides damage resistance against energy based on manifester level rather than augmentation, improving to a maximum of 20 at level 9.
[b]Keen Edge, Psionic:[/b] Important in a low-magic world, weapons with good critical ranges benefit especially from this power.
[b]Oak Body:[/b] This Body spell provides DR, AC, and immunities wihout need for augment. Oak Body also has the unfortunate side effect of causing increased vulnerability to fire.
The Warmind's abilities should be treated as a supplement to whatever it wants to accomplish in melee. Taking that into account, the Warmind coalesces well with basic class combos such as Bard/Dragon Disciple, or in combinations with other combat classes like the Fist of Hextor and the Knight of the Middle Circle.
Again, choose feats that are geared towards how you'll be fighting in melee. Remember that you need a PP base to enter the class in the first place, fulfilled by taking Wild Talent.
---
Speaking of the Middle Circle, I was shocked to find that its Combat Sense ability doesn't function! Perhaps I'm using it wrong?
[u][b]True Necromancer[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The True Necromancer is a 30 level prestige class designed to enhance the necromantic powers of those who take it. Its primarly arcane, because despite needing 5 cleric levels to get in, it only advances arcane casting. The main benefit of the class is the Aura of Major Lagginess, and the ability to summon up to 4 undead minions at a time. There are also a few handy SLAs, along with the Necromancer ability, which makes all Necromancy spells cast at the total level of all three classes.
In general, I start with 16 Wisdom and 16 Int, but you can drop Wisdom to 14 if desired.
[b]Pros of the True Necromancer:[/b]
The army. Its the beef of the class, and lets a TNecro be a party all by itself. With the undead PnP/Multi-Summon switches on, you can have your four henchmen, which are tough on their own, and a small swarm of skelly chieftains, plus a normal summon or two. Toss in a few of the Mass Buff spells, and a Mass Haste to cap it off, and you can clear entire areas in a minute.
(Almost) Full arcane casting. You're 5 levels behind, which is painful at first, but as it goes on it lessens in impact, and once you're up to level 8 and 9 spells, not only are you a general of the undead, you're a full wizard on top of it. This combination makes you one of the few classes that gets physical and magical power, without putting yourself in harms way.
The class SLAs. Not only can you lag out every player in a five mile radius with your aura, it boosts your undead (and everyone else's), giving them a handy bit of extra damage. Then you've got a couple SLAs you can use to either boost the undead further, or drain the energy out of the people silly enough to attack you.
[b]Cons of the True Necromancer:[/b]
Getting into the class, up until level 14. The first 6 levels are usually ok, if you follow a Wizard 1/Cleric 5 build, but from there on up, you're loosing ground on everything, sliding back to be Wizard 5/Cleric 5 at level 10, just casting level 3 spells with lowish DCs while your buddies are casting level 5 with higher DCs, as well as those level 4s you don't have either. Even at level 13, you're only at level 4 arcane spells (5 wizard + 3 TNecro) when those around you have level 7. However, there is a huge boost coming level 14, you get level 5 spells + your first henchmen here. From here on out, you're ok.
XP loss: Most mods count Henchmen and Summons towards XP, and thus actually using your army siphons off a lot of Xp. You can somewhat counteract this by fighting higher levels than other PCs (A Tnecro can certainly do this), but its still aggravating.
Reliance on Negative Energy. You'll end up with a lot of NEB/NER spells memorized, just make sure you have something to deal with those who are immune to this type of energy damage, like other undead and constructs.
Fighting anything specialized against undead is very difficult, as you tend to rely on it heavily, but this is rather obvious.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
I tend to go with 16 Wis, 16 Int, all stat boosts into Int. Wizard 1/Cleric 5/Wizard 4/TNecro 30, in order to make sure the spell school specialization is correct. First two feats are usually Practised Spellcaster, although the Cleric one can wait until level 6.
Feats, I end up picking everything that boosts necromancy, as well as great int. See the build here for a complete layout of feats.
If you wish, you can use the Cleric levels + Auto-Still spell to run around as a wizard in heavy plate and a tower shield, makes you rather hard to kill, and with all the buffs, you can even melee decently, especially if you keep scrolls of divine power handy.
Because you're a wizard, you can pick any spell you want:
[b]Negative Energy Burst:[/b] Bread and butter. This is your single most important spell. Not only does it heal all undead in the radius, it damages your living enemies AND it gives the undead a Strength boost. Amazing spell for a TNecro.
[b]Mass Bear/Bull/Haste:[/b] Boosting your army's Strength and Con, as well as giving them extra attacks and more AC, is rather important.
[b]Flame Weapon:[/b] Your level two slots are rather useless by late in the game, so I fill them with this spell, casting it on the henchmen and letting them wreck havoc.
[b]Shadow Shield:[/b] Not only is it a great defensive spell, you protect yourself from all the Neg Energy Bursts that are getting tossed around.
[b]Necromantic Kill spells:[/b] The usual crowd here. Horrid Wilting, Finger of Death, Wail of the Banshee, anything else you want. Undead are almost always immune to them, and so are you with Shadow Shield. Spam away.
[b]Improved Invis:[/b] I use this to buff myself and everything else around me. Can make yourself invis and just watch your minions win the fight for you, it works rather well against easy enemies.
[u][b]Shadow Adept[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The Shadow Adept is a prestige class that specializes in spell schools dealing [obviously] with the 'shadows' (Enchantment, Illusion, Necromancy, and Darkness-related spells) gaining bonuses in defense (through saving throw bonuses against spells in those schools) and offense (through DC bonuses utilizing spells in those schools).
The class also acquires a buff that emulates the effects of already existing spells, and at 10th level gains the ability to create an exact self-duplicate, down to the spells that the Shadow Adept has memorized. In addition, the Shadow Adept has full caster progression.
[b]Pros of the Shadow Adept:[/b]
The most immediate strength of the Shadow Adept is its bonuses to and against the 'shadow' spell schools. It is well suited for those who wish to specialize in death magic through Necromancy and Illusion, especially since the Shadow Adept's DC bonus can reac as high as +10 at level 30.
The Shadow Adept can also effectively double its amount of spells for any one encounter during the day through use of the Shadow Double. This can greatly assist in 'boss' encounters where every spell counts, and the Shadow Double itself can serve as a meat shield, albeit a rather weak one.
Greater Shield of Shadows is a free, use-based combination of SR, AC, and concealment boosts that can assist the Shadow Adept in survival.
[b]Cons of the Shadow Adept:[/b]
Many of the spells that the Shadow Adept will make use of will likely be either weak or useless against special foes, primarily the undead.
If the Wizard is used in combination with the Shadow Adept, taking Adept levels means losing out on the Wizard's bonus feats.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
The Shadow Adept could aim to take the full 30-level progression of the class to be a powerful caster of all things 'shadow' with a +10 DC. Alternatively, the Shadow Adept could become one of the infamous Red Wizards of Thay to boost the power of the Adept's spells by an even greater amount, but only in a single school. The Archmage is also a solid choice for its unique abilities that complement any Wizard well.
Templating into a Lich should be put under consideration, as although there is a loss in caster level (if using the class-based version), GP, and XP, the Lich (and the higher-level Demilich) have tremendous defensive boosts that often far outweigh and trade-offs required in becoming one.
Following are a few spells that the Shadow Adept might take since they benefit specifically from the Adept's bonuses.
[b]Finger of Death:[/b] Although the use of this spell is rather risky, the Shadow Adept's boosts will make this attack much harder to save against.
[b]Weird and Wail of the Banshee:[/b] Both are death magic spells that can kill opponents in an area of effect, but even though Weird requires two saves, the Shadow Adept's DC bonuses are enough to make it difficult to save against either one of them. In addition, Weird synergizes better with the Shadow Conjuration spells (and variations) due to Spell Focus.
[b]Horrid Wilting:[/b] The Shadow Adept's bonuses will make it easier to land full damage with a direct damage spell that is already quite dangerous.
[b]Undeath to Death:[/b] Useful against those pesky undead creatures.
[b]Shadow Conjuration and Variations:[/b] These multiradial spell imitations are affected by the Adept's bonuses since they are of the Illusion spell school. Therefore, in situations where Necromancy and death magic have no utility, these spells can be used without losing the Adept's bonuses.
As per the Wizard, important feats include Spell Penetration and Greater Spell Penetration, metamagic, and all the Spell Focus related feats.
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Ooh, yeah, that whole bit about delayed spell casting does suck, though the idea sounded good in my head...
[u][b]Bonded Summoner[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The Bonded Summoner is one of the many elementally flavored classes added through the PRC. This particular 10-level prestige class is focused completely on defensive aspects, and after selecting a specific element (Air/Electricity, Earth/Acid, Fire, Water/Cold), the Bonded Summoner gains steadily increasing resistances to that element and also gains a powerful elemental familiar (replacing the original familiar) of that element in combat. The Bonded Summoner also acquires the following immunities as it progresses.
[b]To Sleep[/b] (Level 3)
[b]To Poison[/b] (Level 5)
[b]To Paralysis[/b] (Level 7)
[b]To Energy of Chosen Element[/b] (Level 9)
[b]To Sneak Attack[/b] (Level 9)
[b]To Critical Hits[/b] (Level 10)
The elemental companion grows in size and raw strength until the 9th level, but its other abilities scale with arcane caster level. Then, at level 10, the Bonded Summoner can transform into an Elemental himself using the standard Polymorph script.
[b]Pros of the Bonded Summoner:[/b]
The most prevalent feature of the Bonded Summoner is the new elemental familiar. More often than not, this special familiar is far more useful in battle than any of the regular choices available to Wizards and Sorcerers, being tougher, beefier, and stronger, even in higher levels. A scaling summon that doesn't waste spell slots and packs a punch is sure to be a welcome addition to any Wizard's abilities.
The player will note all of the Bonded Summoner's immunities, which are rivalled by only a handful of other classes. Immunity to Critical Hits in particular stand out, making the Bonded Summoner invincible to the dangerous Devastating Critical.
Selecting the Air subtype has the advantage of increasing movement speed. This can be an important ability in both moving around and making one's escape, and it is gained without the damage vulnerabilities of taking Fire or Water.
Finally, the Elemental Form, while impossible to cast spells in, is useful if the Bonded Summoner suddenly has a need for higher HP in order to make an escape from a losing battle.
[b]Cons of the Bonded Summoner:[/b]
The Bonded Summoner has one caveat to its abilities-- it only gains a caster level for every two levels in the class, meaning that the Bonded Summoner will only gain a total of five caster levels at level 10. Although not too bad in the long run, this means that the Bonded Summoner will gain new spells much later than a straight base arcane class or even a full caster progression prestige class such as the Oozemaster. Thankfully, the effect of having a lower caster level is almost completely mollified by the Practised Spellcaster feats.
Another caveat is the fact that Fire and Water have damage vulnerabilities-- to elements that are quite common.
One more problem that the Bonded Summoner has is that, if the Summoner selects Earth, the Earth Elemental familiar will have problems moving around. This is due to doors being made for medium-sized creatures, and so the Earth Elemental is sure to suffer in places with numerous doors such as modules with a predominantly urban environment or dungeons with multiple hallways. The Bonded Summoner's Earth Elemental form will also suffer from this same problem.
Lastly, the Elemental Form that the Bonded Summoner gains isn't too strong, as it uses the standard Polymorph script. This means, among other things, that the Bonded Summoner cannot cast spells whilst transformed into an Elemental.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
In order to lessen the effects of the Bonded Summoner's lost class levels, it is recommended that, at the latest, the Summoner should take the Practised Spellcaster feat at Level 2 Bonded Summoner (perhaps earlier in preparation), increasing the maximum caster level gained from taking the full 10 levels in Bonded Summoner from 5 to 9. Subsequently, a full Bonded Summoner can attain a maximum caster level of 39.
As with all spellcasters, taking the Lich template is also a consideration, but note that the class-based version would mean that the Bonded Summoner is forced into a maximum caster level of 35 (if the player only takes four levels) or 29 (if the character becomes a full demilich). Not to mention the GP and XP costs involved.
Other solid choices include Red Wizard and Shadow Adept for the specialized DC increases. For an increase in raw damage, one might even consider the Diabolist.
Classes with immunities similar to the Bonded Summoner, such as Oozemaster and the Elemental Savant line of prestige classes are generally not good choices to mix with the Bonded Summoner. As well, other classes (Thrall of Graz'zt, etc.) with half caster progression are dangerous selections as the combined loss in caster level with Bonded would probably be a bad tradeoff in the long run, even with Practised Spellcaster.
---
I was almost tempted to write an Arcane Archer entry but remembered that it was PRC classes only.
[u][b]Shining Blade of Heironeous[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The Shining Blade of Heironeous is [obviously] a divinely attuned melee combat class focused on the use of the longsword. In addition to its full BAB progression, upper-tier d10 hitdie, and half-divine caster level progression, the Shining Blade also gains an improving use-per-day ability that gets better in strength, utility, and number of uses.
Additionally, if the character did not already have them, the Shining Blade receives proficiencies in simple and martial-level weapons, as well as proficiencies in shields and ALL armor-types.
[b]Pros of the Shining Blade of Heironeous:[/b]
The Shining Blade's [b][i]Shock/Holy/Brilliant Blade[/b][/i] ability is, despite being the only asset of the Shining Blade, very powerful.
Damage boosts of 1d6 Electrical damage and 2d6 Divine damage against evil increases the damage to a creature susceptible to such damage types to 3d6 + the longsword's base damage of 1d8. Although electricity-immunity is relatively common, divine-immunity isn't, and the Shining Blade is sure to come across many evil opponents.
At level 9, the Holy Blade upgrades to Brilliant Blade, which gives a whopping +20 AB to all attacks in addition to the damage increases. Only the epic spell of Deadeye Sense [which is available to caster classes, the majority of which won't find themselves wading into melee combat] can so easily reach the maximum magic cap for AB increases.
With a high Charisma or level investment into the class, the Shining Blade gets to use this ability for a relatively good amount of time for a good number of times, and considering that you can reach as much as 6 uses per day before level 10, as long as you restrict its use to particularly difficult enemies, you are unlikely to find that you don't have enough uses of it.
[b]Cons of the Shining Blade of Heironeous:[/b]
The Shining Blade of Heironeous is restricted to a single weapon. Now, the Longsword is undoubtedly a solid weapon, but this means that the Shining Blade cannot make use of weapons that could be considered a better choice-- as a one-hander, the player might've wanted to make use of a Rapier (for the crit range) or a Dwarven Battleaxe (for the damage potential) or even a Greatsword (if playing a larger-sized race) instead, but the Shining Blade's longsword-only class restriction prevents this.
The half-caster progression should be noted, especially if playing a Cleric or Druid. The player should understand that, as is the case with some other classes, to take levels in Shining Blade means that casting ability must suffer.
Taking the class for the AB bonus may be redundant if making use of any divine caster class that can use epic spells. The spell Deadeye Sense can fulfill the same function of granting +20 AB-- not only that, but the spell lasts longer and works outside of the longsword, including ranged weapons.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
To create a character with an ultra-high AB, the Shining Blade of Heironeous could be mixed with the full BAB classes of Ranger and Paladin.
Although the class might suit the Paladin more in the sense that they share the same alignment requirement, multiclassing the Shining Blade with a Ranger opens up other possibilities. For instance, a Ranger/Shining Blade/Foe Hunter could be quite potent against a special type of enemy, and the combination of Brilliant Blade and the Foe Hunter's Rancor and Death Attack creates a fearsome, if singular, slayer that will never miss its deadly swings.
Another powerful combination is a Ranger/Shining Blade/Shifter. Although dependent on the 'available' creatures in a module, this multiclass could potentially not only have valuable defensive options (commonly through construct/undead/dragon forms), but also have a tremendous AB to back up its attacks. In this instance, a level of at least 10 Shifter is recommended to allow 'availability' of all potential forms within the limit of HD, though a 11 Shifter might also be a good idea for epic shapes. One caveat-- the Shifter is not available until Ranger 15.
Of course, Ranger and Paladin are not the only full BAB classes to qualify for the Shining Blade of Heironeous. If the player plans to fight dragons, the Vassal of Bahamut has abilities that give them an advantage against them, and have the divine casting to qualify for the Shining Blade to boot. The Knight of the Middle Circle is also a choice-- however, Combat Sense and True Strike might be a bit redundant with Brilliant Blade.
Clerics and Druids also qualify for the class, and although it is mentioned that Deadeye Sense imitates the Brilliant Blade's AB bonus, the Shining Blade still improves damage potential, not to mention that Brilliant Blade does not use valuable epic spell slots, is available before epic levels, and the half-caster level progression problem is almost completely solved by the Practised Spellcaster feats so long as the character does not take too many levels in Shining Blade. Then there is the fact that, if the melee approach fails, the Shining Blade has spells to fall back on. Of course, Deadeye Sense is not the only spell that no longer becomes useful. Keeping in mind that Brilliant Blade affects the maximum magic cap for all spells, other spells used primarily for boosting AB, such as Mantle of Egregious Might and Divine Power, become useless, especially since the latter's main point is to increase the Cleric's number of attacks-- a function no longer needed with the Shining Blade's full BAB progression.
If the players don't mind making use of working around the character alignment, or if the option to do so is possible in their games, Blackguard may be a good consideration for accessing the Shining Blade-- the Blackguard has full BAB as well as Sneak Attack, making for some kind of sneaky evil-slaying warrior.
---
I wonder what I should write about next-- the Baelnorn template or the Contemplative, but perhaps that former one is reserved for Tenjac.
... I also wonder how the section on the Purple Dragon Knight would look.
Hm, maybe tack this on to the section talking about the Cleric/Druid:
Of course, Deadeye Sense is not the only spell that no longer becomes useful. Keeping in mind that Brilliant Blade affects the maximum magic cap for [b][i]all[/b][/i] spells, other spells used primarily for boosting AB, such as Mantle of Egregious Might and Divine Power, become useless, especially since the latter's main point is to increase the Cleric's number of attacks-- a function no longer needed with the Shining Blade's full BAB progression.
And now for the Contemplative.
---
[u][b]Contemplative[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The Contemplative is a divine caster class whose chief abilities are gaining extra domains-- two of them, in fact-- one at the first level, and one at the sixth level. In addition to this, the Contemplative gains the valuable Slippery Mind feat, immunities to disease and poison, a free single-use-per-day cure, minor SR and DR, and a type change to Outsider.
The Contemplative notably also has full caster progression and 1/2 BAB progression.
[b]Pros of the Contemplative:[/b]
As stated before, the item of key importance for the Contemplative are the extra domains. Access to these domains equates to new spells and abilities, widening the divine caster's repertoire of available magic options as well as receiving more extra boosts to the Contemplative such as the Gnome and Illusion domain's increased caster levels to Illusion, or the Uncanny Dodge feat gained from the Fate domain. It could also mean access to more prestige classes: see the Build Recommendations section.
The immunities to disease and poison are helpful, and keep the Contemplative from being affected by many effects that it would suffer from due to the Contemplative's low Fortitude.
The SR and DR are relatively low in comparison to the kind gained from spells and other classes, but at least they are there and virtually irremovable.
Finally, the Contemplative has a very easy requirement to fulfill, though relatively late to enter (earliest at level 10).
[b]Cons of the Contemplative:[/b]
One disadvantage the Contemplative has to something like a straight Cleric is its lower BAB progression. In comparison to a straight cleric, if the full Contemplative class levels are taken before a character's epic levels, the maximum BAB for a Cleric/Contemplative would be +12. Even other divine casting prestige classes such as the Hierophant have a BAB progression of 3/4. Of course, this isn't so bad of a problem factoring in Divine Power.
Then there is the fact that the Contemplative has lower Fortitude saves than the Cleric, and there is a 'gap' in the Contemplative's benefits at levels 8 and 9.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
In order to avoid the problem of the Contemplative's low BAB progression, it could be taken during epic levels, though some might consider that 'late'. Also, since the class's main feature is to 'widen the spellbook', it might be a good idea to merely take it up to level 6. This means that the Contemplative would miss out on SR and DR, but this might be a good idea since those particular bonuses are rather minor anyway at that level and it would help in investing experience in Cleric for better Undead Turning, or other classes with level-dependent bonuses such as the Divine Elemental Savant prestige classes.
Since the Contemplative does not provide or improve upon any particular aspect of offense or defense, many other prestige classes do well with it by virtue of the fact that they neither really improve upon or conflict with the class abilities. Usual choices such as Hierophant (for the Spell Penetration and +DC) and the Lich/Baelnorn (immunities and DR) templates apply here.
The Contemplative is also useful for eventually opening up certain classes whose domains you don't have-- because you preferred to start with domains that are more "useful" earlier on. For instance, the Good Domain would not be considered a very good domain due to the relatively weaker levels of strength that some of the Planar Binding summons have especially in comparison to the Summon Monster summons, but not taking it in favor of some other domain like Storm for 'Call Lightning' and such just means that, with Contemplative, you can "take it later" so you can access a class like the Shining Blade of Heironeous when you "need it".
Following are some generally useful domains, though pretty much all of them are useful depending on what kind of character the Contemplative is going for.
[b]Animal:[/b] For qualifying for the PNP Shifter.
[b]Death, Hatred:[/b] For Wail of the Banshee and its wider area of effect than Implosion.
[b]Elf:[/b] For Point Blank Shot (which goes well with Zen Archery) and True Strike.
[b]Fate:[/b] For Uncanny Dodge and the DR from Premonition.
[b]Good, Evil, Gnome, Illusion:[/b] For the increased caster level to certain spells.
[b]Metal, War:[/b] For the martial weapon proficiency.
[b]Orc:[/b] For the free smiting provided by the domain.
[b]Portal:[/b] For Dimension Door.
[b]Time:[/b] For Improved Initiative.
[b]Tyranny:[/b] For the +2 DC to all mind spells.
[b]Trickery:[/b] For the boosts to Rogue-based skills from the domain ability.
[u][b]Arcane Trickster[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The Arcane Trickster is the perfect melding of rogue and wizard. He gains full spell progression as well as full sneak attack progression while receiving a moderate number of skill points.
The Arcane Trickster is also perhaps the closest to being a well rounded character that one can make in DnD. Arcane magic casting, decent number of skill points, use magic device from rogue levels and a sneak attack give this character the ability to do just about anything and fill in any role.
[b]Main Advantages:[/b]
The Arcane Trickster's biggest advantage is his sneak attack. This sneak attack can be used with any touch attack spell which makes the worthless cantrip ?ray of frost? and other similar spells into something that is fairly respectable. With a familiar or summon tanking, the wizard can also take advantage of his sneak attack by backstabbing distracted enemies in melee.
Aside from his Sneak attack, the Arcane Trickster has a plentiful supply of skills that he can always make use of. The typical arcane trickster is capable of replacing the party's rogue for picking locks and disabling traps. He is also able to indulge in the social skills making him a respectable choice as the party's speaker.
[b]Disadvantages:[/b]
You will always be behind a pure caster in gaining spells and behind a pure rogue in sneak attack and skills. While the latter is not as much of a problem, the former can be in low levels. Your weak base attack bonus and hit die will also make combat troublesome, but no more so than any pure wizard.
The Arcane Trickster suffers a major lull in the starting levels, particularly levels 5-7 where your spell selection is poor and your sneak attack is weak. You'll basically be resigned to staying in the back using your skills where appropriate.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
The standard, a perhaps only reasonable build in Neverwinter Nights for the Arcane trickster is:
Rogue 1 / Wizard 3 / Rogue 1 / Wizard 1 / Rogue 1 /
Arcane Trickster 10 / Wizard 1 / Rogue 1 / Arcane Trickster 20
Wizard synergizes better with Rogue as they both make strong use of INT and Rogue offers a large number of skill points, evasion at level 2, and access to Use Magic Device.
The last rogue level is used for a ?Use Magic Device? dump and to bump your BAB up to 11 providing a third attack. With a ?Use Magic Device? 23 you can buff your charisma up with spells or items to be able to use holy avenger weapons (requires a umd score of 25+) or other such high level magic items not normally intended for you to use.
The only "must have" feat is "Practiced spellcaster," this one feat will compensate for those four rogue levels that you take putting you back on par with a pure wizard in epic levels. Meaning that at level 24 and beyond you'll cast as many spells, at the same level, for the same duration as any other pure wizard. This feat also helps in early levels providing a good boost to the durations of your spells
For skills I recommend keeping spellcraft and tumble maxed, aside from those two you can choose skills appropriate to what you'll be doing. ?Discipline? to help avoid knockdown and disarm attempts and the usual rogue assortment of ?disable device,? ?open lock, ? and ?search? are good choices to consider.
With a high spellcraft your reflex save vs spells should be quite high allowing you to point-blank blast yourself with fireballs and scintillating spheres while still evading them (evasion from rogue levels).
I highly recommend that you follow the route that has become popularly known as the "melee mage." This is a startegy where you focus your wizard for melee'ing the standard ?mobs? thus saving your better spells for ?bosses.? This strategy works especially well with the arcane trickster as it gives you better chances of using your sneak attack to it's full effect.
More details on the melee mage here:
[url]http://nwn.bioware.com/forums/viewtopic.html?topic=463703&forum=42[/url]
In epic levels, you can decide to focus on sneak attack by taking the improved sneak attack and lingering damage feats or you can focus more on your magic by getting the magic enhancing feats.
[u][b]Runecaster[/b][/u]
A fun class, mainly built around the "Inscribe Rune" feat. Dwarf-flavoured, but no racial restrictions. Generally uses cleric as a base class, but druid would do instead.
[b]Pros[/b]
Able to create runes with up to 5 uses/day of any spell known
+3 DC and Spell Penetration
Full caster progression
Can create runes with both Maximize and another metamagic
[b]Cons[/b]
Wide stat spread (min 13 int)
No turning progression
[b]Costs lots of GP and XP[/b]
Runes are cast at the user, not targetted elsewhere.
[b]Possible builds[/b]
One option is to go for a crafting-heavy character type. Scribe Scroll, Craft Wand, Brew Potion; all the bioware crafting feats can be used to keep a good stash of spells handy. In particular, giving a Wand of Cure * Wounds to anyone in your "party" that can use it is a good idea.
If you take the PRC Crafting feats; Craft Wonderous Item, Craft Magic Arms and Armor, Craft Rod, Craft Staff, Craft Construct; you can purchase recipies through the PRC Options menu to reproduce almost any item in the OCs. In particular, being able to build your own golems is a lot of fun
To complete the crafting-type character, go for at least a Cleric 7 / Runecaster 10 / Wizard 17 build (with both Practised Spellcaster: Cleric and Practised Spellcaster: Wizard feats). This will give you access to both spellbooks and therefore allow you to craft virtually anything in the game (provided you have enough XP/GP for it), plus it allows you to utilise the 13 int requirement for Inscribe Rune. However, your direct damage capability in either class will be quite poor, particularly when it comes to piercing SR. You will also suffer an XP penalty, unless you are a race with cleric or wizard as a favoured class; this XP penalty will hurt you more than most characters because you use a lot of XP to craft things.
Personally, I prefer to save my GP/XP untill I can craft use/day runes. Then I scribe all of my buffs into runes (bulls strength, flame weapon, etc). Though this can leave you more vulnerable to dispells (because theyll have a lower level), it allows you to cast more buffs than you otherwise would, plus you can recast them if they are dispelled.
Since runes have to be targetted on the caster, you might think they cant be used offensively. However, some spells are very useful; Firestorm for example can deal divine damage and the DC bonus helps catch rogues or others with improved evasion; Storm of Vengance also helps lay down a large AoE effect. A very effective tactic is to get a summon(s) and then use the Mass * runes to buff it and yourself at the same time; using a Druid base class you can have your animal companion, a summon, and a dominated animal via animal empathy.
If you can set some switches, then multiple summons and casterlevel crafting are of particular value to this class.
This class does best in fast leveling modules with lots of GP/XP. Endless Nights IV for example
On the Runecaster, another Rune set I personally like a lot are the Summon Creature spells, the very best being the Druid Elemental Swarm spell. Even the low level ones are useful, because you can pop them out and run if you need cover, or simply (under MultiSummon) bury a target in a horde of creatures. Up until high levels, packs of Dire Wolves are quite impressive.
Another function that the Runecaster fulfills wonderfully is that of party buffer. Remember that you can hand the Runes around to anyone who wants to use them. Rogues with Divine Power and Righteous Might are rather impressive in combat, while all classes benefit from holding onto a rune of Healing. If you have mixed in Wizard levels as well, buffs that are caster only like Premonition and Greater Stoneskin can be handed round to the entire party.
Enjoy
[u][b]Wilder[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The Wilder is one of three "base" classes with the ability to manifest psionic powers (along with Psychic Wariror and Psion), and like the two others, can achieve full manifester level, has access to a wide range of powers, d6 hitdie per level up, 3/4 BAB progression, and a Wild Surge special class ability that truly sets it apart from the others. Its main manifesting stat is Charisma.
In addition to this, the Wilder also has melee combat capabilities in the form of light armor and simple weapon proficiencies.
[b]Pros of the Wilder:[/b]
The Wilder is an amalgam of combat ability and manifesting, making it a class with a diversified set of combat options.
Due to the Wilder's Rogue-level HP, mid-level BAB, and ability to wear light armor, it will find itself relatively viable in combat if it uses powers such as the AC-increasing and Offensive set of buff powers. Another boon for the Wilder in close-quarters combat is the fact that it it is one of the few base classes with Tumble. This increased physical potential has the added effect of making the Wilder much more durable in earlier levels than the Psion.
The Wilder also has access to a great number of devastating damage powers and the complete amount of Psionic Points similar to the Psion, allowing the Wilder to fill the role of 'caster', so to speak, and the Wilder needn't be in the back of the lines to do so. Also, the BAB allows the Wilder to be a viable option for using touch-attack powers, something which the Psion has a much harder time landing.
Finally, the Wilder has the Wild Surge, a risky way for the Wilder to improve its Manifesting level past the limit, sort of a free and alternative form of the feat Overchannel.
[b]Cons of the Wilder:[/b]
The Wilder can be quite versatile, but this versatility requires one to have experience in two things: experience and planning. This fact becomes even more critical with the fact that the Wilder gets a total of 11 powers at level 20, and gets no more after that. This is much less than a Psion of equivalent level, and combined with the fact that there are quite a few powers to select from, the Wilder needs to be extremely careful with what it picks, since if Psychic Reformation is not among the powers the Wilder opts to pick, the player could end up with powers not geared towards her goals. This problem can be partially rectified in Epic levels, but only if the Wilder takes feats.
As a 'middle-ground' between the Psychic Warrior and the Psion, the Wilder loses out on access to special powers available to either class. In particular, the Wilder misses out on all of the Psion's Discipline-specific powers, such as Energy Missile and Astral Construct.
The Wilder has very few choices in terms of Prestige Classes. Thrallherd is locked away from the Wilder due to the Telepath Discipline requirement, Psychic Theurge requires dipping into a class with a different attribute for casting, and any other choices will have a seriously debilitating effect on the Wilder's manifester level, a situation from which arcane classes also tend to suffer.
Additionally, Wild Surge can be a liability, since there is a chance that it can daze you, which increases steadily with higher Wild Surge settings. Thankfully, this doesn't matter much with a low-value Wild Surge, and the player can even opt to not use it at all.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
Races with boosts in Charisma are well-suited towards Wilders, but Human is always a solid choice.
Increasing Charisma should be your main goal in attribute allocation, and dumping many points into Intelligence at the start also helps with skill points.
A Wilder can go through all fourty levels of Wilder progression so that she will not suffer any loss in manifesting level. However, if the player wishes it, there are a few possible choices to make for dipping in other classes, and a loss in manifester level is slightly less damaging with Wild Surge.
Taking even a single level in Fighter will be a tremendous help in improving a Wilder's melee capabilities. The Fighter package includes access to Heavy Armor and Martial Weapons, for those who wish to use swords instead of morningstars. Of course, taking too many levels in Fighter will cut into a Wilder's effective manifester level.
Similar minor dips in other classes would be to take a level in Paladin or two levels in Blackguard for the Charisma-based Saving Throw boost. Keep in mind that the former has an alignment restriction and the latter not only has an alignment restriction, but also requires valuable skill points and a feat slot.
If the player can manage a balancing act, can try to create a Psychic Theurge, in which a Wilder can be mixed with a divine caster class (Druid or Cleric) to create a character with a large pool of combined spells and powers to deal with all sorts of situations. However, creating such a character requires even more experience than what is already needed to make a Wilder, and BAB is also sure to suffer.
The most important skills for the Wilder to gain ranks in are Spellcraft (for increased saves) and Tumble (for dodge AC and being able to switch positions and avoid attacks more easily). Discipline is also important as a defense against things like Knockdown, though keep in mind that it is a cross-class skill. Crafting skills are important for customizing one's appearance. Other than that, skills that benefit from the Wilder's heightened Charisma might also be a good idea.
Following is a list of valuable powers for a Wilder.
[b]Force Screen and Inertial Armor:[/b] Both powers provide an initial bonus of +4 to AC, with Inertial Armor being easier to augment as time goes on. These boosts can be critical to survival against enemies who will have an easy time getting past your light armor in mid-early levels.
[b]Precognition, Defensive:[/b] Not only does this boost AC, it also boosts Saving Throws, which will assist against one-hit-kill attacks such as the Water Elemental's Drown pulse attack.
[b]Precognition, Offensive and Prescience, Offensive:[/b] Looking to be an effective melee combatant? These two augmentable powers will give you an edge.
[b]Energy Attack Powers:[/b] All of the spells with 'Energy' in it are malleable in their ability to change elements. Good ones include Burst, Stun, Wave, and Ray (for early levels).
[b]Crystal Powers:[/b] Crystal Shard and Swarm of Crystals are great for two things, having no save and having no need to pierce power resistance. Despite the lower damage they have, these incisive traits make the Crystal Spells critical inclusions to the Wilder's repertoire.
[b]Oak/Shadow/Iron Body:[/b] These three powers share two qualities-- immunity to Critical Hits and DR. Individually they give you even more. Remember that Oak and Iron also cause debilitating effects.
[b]Vigor:[/b] An extra (if artificial) boost in HP is always helpful and can be recast as 'healing'.
[b]Body Adjustment:[/b] A more solid form of healing where the HP can't be dispelled.
[b]Power Resistance:[/b] Similar in function to Spell Resistance, useful against casters due to transparency.
[b]Eradicate Invisibility:[/b] Many of the attack powers that the Wilder will be using require that the enemy not be invisible. This power serves as a relatively early solution.
[b]Psychic Reformation:[/b] If the player doesn't like the previous power choices they've made with their character, they can retroactively change them with Psychic Reformation.
Many of the other powers are either not as good or have a very specialized use. Select them keeping in mind what kind of modules will be planned for the Wilder. For example, if the player expects to encounter many low-Will monsters, Telepathy spells such as Mind Thrust and Mindwipe can be extremely powerful.
The Wilder should consider having Wisdom up to at least 13 or 14 to have access to Speed of Thought, which will help her move around early on. Power Penetration and Greater Power Penetration may also be a good idea to take if the player expects to fight high-SR monsters later. Either one of the damage-increasing powers (Empower and Maximize) may also be a good choice, just remember that they cannot be used in tandem with each other or with any other Focus-expending feats until the Wilder reaches Epic.
A Wilder may opt to select multiple Metapsionic feats from levels 1-20 and then spend multiple feats in the Epic Psionic Focus line to use all of them at the same time. A particularly devastating combo for the Epic Wilder would be to use Greater Power Penetration, Empower (x1.5 damage), Maximize (max damage), and Twin (power happens twice).
In order to reduce the increased cost of all of these Metapsionic feats, the player, in addition to utilizing Wild Surge, should also definitely take into account the Improved Metapsionics feat (which requires four Metapsionics feats). The feat reduces the Power Point cost of each Metapsionic feat by 2 points except for Metapsionic feats that already cost 2 points (Empower). However, if one prefers to use the PrC switches, it will simply reduce the total cost.
It is important to know that the Wilder stops gaining more Power Points at Level 20. The Improved Manifestation feats can dramatically increase the Wilder's base amount of Points, and for purposes of extended the stamina it is probably a good idea to spend the majority of Epic Feats towards these feats.
Other than that, Epic Expanded Knowledge will be useful if the Wilder wants to broaden their effectiveness by gaining more powers. Great Charisma can improve power DC and the amount of available Power Points.
[u][b]Warmind[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The Warmind is a 10-level prestige class with the ability to manifest psionic powers from the Psychic Warrior list up to the fifth level, a d10 hitdie per level, full BAB progression, special and passive buffs, and combat abilities that assist it in fighting multiple opponents.
Due to the fact that it takes psionics from the Psychic Warrior, the Warmind's main manifesting attribute is Wisdom.
[b]Pros of the Warmind:[/b]
The Warmind has full BAB progression in addition to psionic talents. This is a rarity for classes with psionic talent, making it well suited as a psionically flavoured companion for combat classes such as Fighter, especially considering its relatively easy entry requirement. In fact, combining the Warmind with other full BAB classes will cause no loss in BAB.
In the ten levels of Warmind progression, 70 Power Points without an attribute modifier are gained, giving it more than the Psychic Warrior in a similar level frame. Those Power Points can be used for powers with significant effects such as Hustle.
Along with psionic powers, the Warmind has buffs to improve itself: the Chain spells to improve damage (Personal Superiority and Overwhelming Force) and defenses (Defensive Posture), and Enduring Body to provide endurance against hits in the form of DR. In this manner, the Warmind gains a raw edge to its fighting capability.
The Warmind is also better able to deal with large, packed groups of enemies due to Sweeping Strike, which allows the War Mind to attack two enemies at once provided that they are within melee range of each other.
[b]Cons of the Warmind:[/b]
In the long run, the Warmind's manifester level can never reach the Psychic Warrior's since the Warmind does not advance past level 10. This means that the War Mind's psionic powers reach a limit more quickly than any other psionics classes except for those similar in make-up such as the Fist of Zuoken. Therefore, the player should keep in mind that the War Mind is not a 'full-on' psionic class and should plan accordingly.
The Warmind also gets very few powers, even fewer than the Psychic Warrior at level 10, and so needs to take some very careful choices in powers.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
Wisdom should be at least 15 (or 16 to make it even) in order to access all powers.
Planning is important for the Warmind in terms of choosing powers, a fact that is reinforced by the Warmind's lack of Psychic Reformation. It would be best if the Warmind selected powers that either do not need augmentation or have a high initial boost. Some suggestions follow.
[b]Force Screen and Inertial Armor:[/b] Both powers provide an un-augmented bonus of +4 AC, which are quite a boost in low-magic worlds where the bonuses will not conflict with items.
[b]Precognition, Defense:[/b] This defensive spell provides insight boosts that will not likely conflict with items and has the added benefit of saving throw increases.
[b]Vigor:[/b] Even at a maximum manifester level of 10, a temporary HP boost of 50 is still a nice buffer.
[b]Concealing Amorpha:[/b] Either version of the power does not require augmenting and makes the Warmind harder to hit.
[b]Body Purification:[/b] To get rid of all that pesky non-HP damage.
[b]Hustle:[/b] The utility of Haste is well-documented and needs no explanation.
[b]Energy Resistance:[/b] This power provides damage resistance against energy based on manifester level rather than augmentation, improving to a maximum of 20 at level 9.
[b]Keen Edge, Psionic:[/b] Important in a low-magic world, weapons with good critical ranges benefit especially from this power.
[b]Oak Body:[/b] This Body spell provides DR, AC, and immunities wihout need for augment. Oak Body also has the unfortunate side effect of causing increased vulnerability to fire.
The Warmind's abilities should be treated as a supplement to whatever it wants to accomplish in melee. Taking that into account, the Warmind coalesces well with basic class combos such as Bard/Dragon Disciple, or in combinations with other combat classes like the Fist of Hextor and the Knight of the Middle Circle.
Again, choose feats that are geared towards how you'll be fighting in melee. Remember that you need a PP base to enter the class in the first place, fulfilled by taking Wild Talent.
---
Speaking of the Middle Circle, I was shocked to find that its Combat Sense ability doesn't function! Perhaps I'm using it wrong?
[u][b]True Necromancer[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The True Necromancer is a 30 level prestige class designed to enhance the necromantic powers of those who take it. Its primarly arcane, because despite needing 5 cleric levels to get in, it only advances arcane casting. The main benefit of the class is the Aura of Major Lagginess, and the ability to summon up to 4 undead minions at a time. There are also a few handy SLAs, along with the Necromancer ability, which makes all Necromancy spells cast at the total level of all three classes.
In general, I start with 16 Wisdom and 16 Int, but you can drop Wisdom to 14 if desired.
[b]Pros of the True Necromancer:[/b]
The army. Its the beef of the class, and lets a TNecro be a party all by itself. With the undead PnP/Multi-Summon switches on, you can have your four henchmen, which are tough on their own, and a small swarm of skelly chieftains, plus a normal summon or two. Toss in a few of the Mass Buff spells, and a Mass Haste to cap it off, and you can clear entire areas in a minute.
(Almost) Full arcane casting. You're 5 levels behind, which is painful at first, but as it goes on it lessens in impact, and once you're up to level 8 and 9 spells, not only are you a general of the undead, you're a full wizard on top of it. This combination makes you one of the few classes that gets physical and magical power, without putting yourself in harms way.
The class SLAs. Not only can you lag out every player in a five mile radius with your aura, it boosts your undead (and everyone else's), giving them a handy bit of extra damage. Then you've got a couple SLAs you can use to either boost the undead further, or drain the energy out of the people silly enough to attack you.
[b]Cons of the True Necromancer:[/b]
Getting into the class, up until level 14. The first 6 levels are usually ok, if you follow a Wizard 1/Cleric 5 build, but from there on up, you're loosing ground on everything, sliding back to be Wizard 5/Cleric 5 at level 10, just casting level 3 spells with lowish DCs while your buddies are casting level 5 with higher DCs, as well as those level 4s you don't have either. Even at level 13, you're only at level 4 arcane spells (5 wizard + 3 TNecro) when those around you have level 7. However, there is a huge boost coming level 14, you get level 5 spells + your first henchmen here. From here on out, you're ok.
XP loss: Most mods count Henchmen and Summons towards XP, and thus actually using your army siphons off a lot of Xp. You can somewhat counteract this by fighting higher levels than other PCs (A Tnecro can certainly do this), but its still aggravating.
Reliance on Negative Energy. You'll end up with a lot of NEB/NER spells memorized, just make sure you have something to deal with those who are immune to this type of energy damage, like other undead and constructs.
Fighting anything specialized against undead is very difficult, as you tend to rely on it heavily, but this is rather obvious.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
I tend to go with 16 Wis, 16 Int, all stat boosts into Int. Wizard 1/Cleric 5/Wizard 4/TNecro 30, in order to make sure the spell school specialization is correct. First two feats are usually Practised Spellcaster, although the Cleric one can wait until level 6.
Feats, I end up picking everything that boosts necromancy, as well as great int. See the build here for a complete layout of feats.
If you wish, you can use the Cleric levels + Auto-Still spell to run around as a wizard in heavy plate and a tower shield, makes you rather hard to kill, and with all the buffs, you can even melee decently, especially if you keep scrolls of divine power handy.
Because you're a wizard, you can pick any spell you want:
[b]Negative Energy Burst:[/b] Bread and butter. This is your single most important spell. Not only does it heal all undead in the radius, it damages your living enemies AND it gives the undead a Strength boost. Amazing spell for a TNecro.
[b]Mass Bear/Bull/Haste:[/b] Boosting your army's Strength and Con, as well as giving them extra attacks and more AC, is rather important.
[b]Flame Weapon:[/b] Your level two slots are rather useless by late in the game, so I fill them with this spell, casting it on the henchmen and letting them wreck havoc.
[b]Shadow Shield:[/b] Not only is it a great defensive spell, you protect yourself from all the Neg Energy Bursts that are getting tossed around.
[b]Necromantic Kill spells:[/b] The usual crowd here. Horrid Wilting, Finger of Death, Wail of the Banshee, anything else you want. Undead are almost always immune to them, and so are you with Shadow Shield. Spam away.
[b]Improved Invis:[/b] I use this to buff myself and everything else around me. Can make yourself invis and just watch your minions win the fight for you, it works rather well against easy enemies.
[u][b]Shadow Adept[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The Shadow Adept is a prestige class that specializes in spell schools dealing [obviously] with the 'shadows' (Enchantment, Illusion, Necromancy, and Darkness-related spells) gaining bonuses in defense (through saving throw bonuses against spells in those schools) and offense (through DC bonuses utilizing spells in those schools).
The class also acquires a buff that emulates the effects of already existing spells, and at 10th level gains the ability to create an exact self-duplicate, down to the spells that the Shadow Adept has memorized. In addition, the Shadow Adept has full caster progression.
[b]Pros of the Shadow Adept:[/b]
The most immediate strength of the Shadow Adept is its bonuses to and against the 'shadow' spell schools. It is well suited for those who wish to specialize in death magic through Necromancy and Illusion, especially since the Shadow Adept's DC bonus can reac as high as +10 at level 30.
The Shadow Adept can also effectively double its amount of spells for any one encounter during the day through use of the Shadow Double. This can greatly assist in 'boss' encounters where every spell counts, and the Shadow Double itself can serve as a meat shield, albeit a rather weak one.
Greater Shield of Shadows is a free, use-based combination of SR, AC, and concealment boosts that can assist the Shadow Adept in survival.
[b]Cons of the Shadow Adept:[/b]
Many of the spells that the Shadow Adept will make use of will likely be either weak or useless against special foes, primarily the undead.
If the Wizard is used in combination with the Shadow Adept, taking Adept levels means losing out on the Wizard's bonus feats.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
The Shadow Adept could aim to take the full 30-level progression of the class to be a powerful caster of all things 'shadow' with a +10 DC. Alternatively, the Shadow Adept could become one of the infamous Red Wizards of Thay to boost the power of the Adept's spells by an even greater amount, but only in a single school. The Archmage is also a solid choice for its unique abilities that complement any Wizard well.
Templating into a Lich should be put under consideration, as although there is a loss in caster level (if using the class-based version), GP, and XP, the Lich (and the higher-level Demilich) have tremendous defensive boosts that often far outweigh and trade-offs required in becoming one.
Following are a few spells that the Shadow Adept might take since they benefit specifically from the Adept's bonuses.
[b]Finger of Death:[/b] Although the use of this spell is rather risky, the Shadow Adept's boosts will make this attack much harder to save against.
[b]Weird and Wail of the Banshee:[/b] Both are death magic spells that can kill opponents in an area of effect, but even though Weird requires two saves, the Shadow Adept's DC bonuses are enough to make it difficult to save against either one of them. In addition, Weird synergizes better with the Shadow Conjuration spells (and variations) due to Spell Focus.
[b]Horrid Wilting:[/b] The Shadow Adept's bonuses will make it easier to land full damage with a direct damage spell that is already quite dangerous.
[b]Undeath to Death:[/b] Useful against those pesky undead creatures.
[b]Shadow Conjuration and Variations:[/b] These multiradial spell imitations are affected by the Adept's bonuses since they are of the Illusion spell school. Therefore, in situations where Necromancy and death magic have no utility, these spells can be used without losing the Adept's bonuses.
As per the Wizard, important feats include Spell Penetration and Greater Spell Penetration, metamagic, and all the Spell Focus related feats.
---
Ooh, yeah, that whole bit about delayed spell casting does suck, though the idea sounded good in my head...
[u][b]Bonded Summoner[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The Bonded Summoner is one of the many elementally flavored classes added through the PRC. This particular 10-level prestige class is focused completely on defensive aspects, and after selecting a specific element (Air/Electricity, Earth/Acid, Fire, Water/Cold), the Bonded Summoner gains steadily increasing resistances to that element and also gains a powerful elemental familiar (replacing the original familiar) of that element in combat. The Bonded Summoner also acquires the following immunities as it progresses.
[b]To Sleep[/b] (Level 3)
[b]To Poison[/b] (Level 5)
[b]To Paralysis[/b] (Level 7)
[b]To Energy of Chosen Element[/b] (Level 9)
[b]To Sneak Attack[/b] (Level 9)
[b]To Critical Hits[/b] (Level 10)
The elemental companion grows in size and raw strength until the 9th level, but its other abilities scale with arcane caster level. Then, at level 10, the Bonded Summoner can transform into an Elemental himself using the standard Polymorph script.
[b]Pros of the Bonded Summoner:[/b]
The most prevalent feature of the Bonded Summoner is the new elemental familiar. More often than not, this special familiar is far more useful in battle than any of the regular choices available to Wizards and Sorcerers, being tougher, beefier, and stronger, even in higher levels. A scaling summon that doesn't waste spell slots and packs a punch is sure to be a welcome addition to any Wizard's abilities.
The player will note all of the Bonded Summoner's immunities, which are rivalled by only a handful of other classes. Immunity to Critical Hits in particular stand out, making the Bonded Summoner invincible to the dangerous Devastating Critical.
Selecting the Air subtype has the advantage of increasing movement speed. This can be an important ability in both moving around and making one's escape, and it is gained without the damage vulnerabilities of taking Fire or Water.
Finally, the Elemental Form, while impossible to cast spells in, is useful if the Bonded Summoner suddenly has a need for higher HP in order to make an escape from a losing battle.
[b]Cons of the Bonded Summoner:[/b]
The Bonded Summoner has one caveat to its abilities-- it only gains a caster level for every two levels in the class, meaning that the Bonded Summoner will only gain a total of five caster levels at level 10. Although not too bad in the long run, this means that the Bonded Summoner will gain new spells much later than a straight base arcane class or even a full caster progression prestige class such as the Oozemaster. Thankfully, the effect of having a lower caster level is almost completely mollified by the Practised Spellcaster feats.
Another caveat is the fact that Fire and Water have damage vulnerabilities-- to elements that are quite common.
One more problem that the Bonded Summoner has is that, if the Summoner selects Earth, the Earth Elemental familiar will have problems moving around. This is due to doors being made for medium-sized creatures, and so the Earth Elemental is sure to suffer in places with numerous doors such as modules with a predominantly urban environment or dungeons with multiple hallways. The Bonded Summoner's Earth Elemental form will also suffer from this same problem.
Lastly, the Elemental Form that the Bonded Summoner gains isn't too strong, as it uses the standard Polymorph script. This means, among other things, that the Bonded Summoner cannot cast spells whilst transformed into an Elemental.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
In order to lessen the effects of the Bonded Summoner's lost class levels, it is recommended that, at the latest, the Summoner should take the Practised Spellcaster feat at Level 2 Bonded Summoner (perhaps earlier in preparation), increasing the maximum caster level gained from taking the full 10 levels in Bonded Summoner from 5 to 9. Subsequently, a full Bonded Summoner can attain a maximum caster level of 39.
As with all spellcasters, taking the Lich template is also a consideration, but note that the class-based version would mean that the Bonded Summoner is forced into a maximum caster level of 35 (if the player only takes four levels) or 29 (if the character becomes a full demilich). Not to mention the GP and XP costs involved.
Other solid choices include Red Wizard and Shadow Adept for the specialized DC increases. For an increase in raw damage, one might even consider the Diabolist.
Classes with immunities similar to the Bonded Summoner, such as Oozemaster and the Elemental Savant line of prestige classes are generally not good choices to mix with the Bonded Summoner. As well, other classes (Thrall of Graz'zt, etc.) with half caster progression are dangerous selections as the combined loss in caster level with Bonded would probably be a bad tradeoff in the long run, even with Practised Spellcaster.
---
I was almost tempted to write an Arcane Archer entry but remembered that it was PRC classes only.
[u][b]Shining Blade of Heironeous[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The Shining Blade of Heironeous is [obviously] a divinely attuned melee combat class focused on the use of the longsword. In addition to its full BAB progression, upper-tier d10 hitdie, and half-divine caster level progression, the Shining Blade also gains an improving use-per-day ability that gets better in strength, utility, and number of uses.
Additionally, if the character did not already have them, the Shining Blade receives proficiencies in simple and martial-level weapons, as well as proficiencies in shields and ALL armor-types.
[b]Pros of the Shining Blade of Heironeous:[/b]
The Shining Blade's [b][i]Shock/Holy/Brilliant Blade[/b][/i] ability is, despite being the only asset of the Shining Blade, very powerful.
Damage boosts of 1d6 Electrical damage and 2d6 Divine damage against evil increases the damage to a creature susceptible to such damage types to 3d6 + the longsword's base damage of 1d8. Although electricity-immunity is relatively common, divine-immunity isn't, and the Shining Blade is sure to come across many evil opponents.
At level 9, the Holy Blade upgrades to Brilliant Blade, which gives a whopping +20 AB to all attacks in addition to the damage increases. Only the epic spell of Deadeye Sense [which is available to caster classes, the majority of which won't find themselves wading into melee combat] can so easily reach the maximum magic cap for AB increases.
With a high Charisma or level investment into the class, the Shining Blade gets to use this ability for a relatively good amount of time for a good number of times, and considering that you can reach as much as 6 uses per day before level 10, as long as you restrict its use to particularly difficult enemies, you are unlikely to find that you don't have enough uses of it.
[b]Cons of the Shining Blade of Heironeous:[/b]
The Shining Blade of Heironeous is restricted to a single weapon. Now, the Longsword is undoubtedly a solid weapon, but this means that the Shining Blade cannot make use of weapons that could be considered a better choice-- as a one-hander, the player might've wanted to make use of a Rapier (for the crit range) or a Dwarven Battleaxe (for the damage potential) or even a Greatsword (if playing a larger-sized race) instead, but the Shining Blade's longsword-only class restriction prevents this.
The half-caster progression should be noted, especially if playing a Cleric or Druid. The player should understand that, as is the case with some other classes, to take levels in Shining Blade means that casting ability must suffer.
Taking the class for the AB bonus may be redundant if making use of any divine caster class that can use epic spells. The spell Deadeye Sense can fulfill the same function of granting +20 AB-- not only that, but the spell lasts longer and works outside of the longsword, including ranged weapons.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
To create a character with an ultra-high AB, the Shining Blade of Heironeous could be mixed with the full BAB classes of Ranger and Paladin.
Although the class might suit the Paladin more in the sense that they share the same alignment requirement, multiclassing the Shining Blade with a Ranger opens up other possibilities. For instance, a Ranger/Shining Blade/Foe Hunter could be quite potent against a special type of enemy, and the combination of Brilliant Blade and the Foe Hunter's Rancor and Death Attack creates a fearsome, if singular, slayer that will never miss its deadly swings.
Another powerful combination is a Ranger/Shining Blade/Shifter. Although dependent on the 'available' creatures in a module, this multiclass could potentially not only have valuable defensive options (commonly through construct/undead/dragon forms), but also have a tremendous AB to back up its attacks. In this instance, a level of at least 10 Shifter is recommended to allow 'availability' of all potential forms within the limit of HD, though a 11 Shifter might also be a good idea for epic shapes. One caveat-- the Shifter is not available until Ranger 15.
Of course, Ranger and Paladin are not the only full BAB classes to qualify for the Shining Blade of Heironeous. If the player plans to fight dragons, the Vassal of Bahamut has abilities that give them an advantage against them, and have the divine casting to qualify for the Shining Blade to boot. The Knight of the Middle Circle is also a choice-- however, Combat Sense and True Strike might be a bit redundant with Brilliant Blade.
Clerics and Druids also qualify for the class, and although it is mentioned that Deadeye Sense imitates the Brilliant Blade's AB bonus, the Shining Blade still improves damage potential, not to mention that Brilliant Blade does not use valuable epic spell slots, is available before epic levels, and the half-caster level progression problem is almost completely solved by the Practised Spellcaster feats so long as the character does not take too many levels in Shining Blade. Then there is the fact that, if the melee approach fails, the Shining Blade has spells to fall back on. Of course, Deadeye Sense is not the only spell that no longer becomes useful. Keeping in mind that Brilliant Blade affects the maximum magic cap for all spells, other spells used primarily for boosting AB, such as Mantle of Egregious Might and Divine Power, become useless, especially since the latter's main point is to increase the Cleric's number of attacks-- a function no longer needed with the Shining Blade's full BAB progression.
If the players don't mind making use of working around the character alignment, or if the option to do so is possible in their games, Blackguard may be a good consideration for accessing the Shining Blade-- the Blackguard has full BAB as well as Sneak Attack, making for some kind of sneaky evil-slaying warrior.
---
I wonder what I should write about next-- the Baelnorn template or the Contemplative, but perhaps that former one is reserved for Tenjac.
... I also wonder how the section on the Purple Dragon Knight would look.
Hm, maybe tack this on to the section talking about the Cleric/Druid:
Of course, Deadeye Sense is not the only spell that no longer becomes useful. Keeping in mind that Brilliant Blade affects the maximum magic cap for [b][i]all[/b][/i] spells, other spells used primarily for boosting AB, such as Mantle of Egregious Might and Divine Power, become useless, especially since the latter's main point is to increase the Cleric's number of attacks-- a function no longer needed with the Shining Blade's full BAB progression.
And now for the Contemplative.
---
[u][b]Contemplative[/b][/u]
[b]Introduction:[/b]
The Contemplative is a divine caster class whose chief abilities are gaining extra domains-- two of them, in fact-- one at the first level, and one at the sixth level. In addition to this, the Contemplative gains the valuable Slippery Mind feat, immunities to disease and poison, a free single-use-per-day cure, minor SR and DR, and a type change to Outsider.
The Contemplative notably also has full caster progression and 1/2 BAB progression.
[b]Pros of the Contemplative:[/b]
As stated before, the item of key importance for the Contemplative are the extra domains. Access to these domains equates to new spells and abilities, widening the divine caster's repertoire of available magic options as well as receiving more extra boosts to the Contemplative such as the Gnome and Illusion domain's increased caster levels to Illusion, or the Uncanny Dodge feat gained from the Fate domain. It could also mean access to more prestige classes: see the Build Recommendations section.
The immunities to disease and poison are helpful, and keep the Contemplative from being affected by many effects that it would suffer from due to the Contemplative's low Fortitude.
The SR and DR are relatively low in comparison to the kind gained from spells and other classes, but at least they are there and virtually irremovable.
Finally, the Contemplative has a very easy requirement to fulfill, though relatively late to enter (earliest at level 10).
[b]Cons of the Contemplative:[/b]
One disadvantage the Contemplative has to something like a straight Cleric is its lower BAB progression. In comparison to a straight cleric, if the full Contemplative class levels are taken before a character's epic levels, the maximum BAB for a Cleric/Contemplative would be +12. Even other divine casting prestige classes such as the Hierophant have a BAB progression of 3/4. Of course, this isn't so bad of a problem factoring in Divine Power.
Then there is the fact that the Contemplative has lower Fortitude saves than the Cleric, and there is a 'gap' in the Contemplative's benefits at levels 8 and 9.
[b]Build Recommendations:[/b]
In order to avoid the problem of the Contemplative's low BAB progression, it could be taken during epic levels, though some might consider that 'late'. Also, since the class's main feature is to 'widen the spellbook', it might be a good idea to merely take it up to level 6. This means that the Contemplative would miss out on SR and DR, but this might be a good idea since those particular bonuses are rather minor anyway at that level and it would help in investing experience in Cleric for better Undead Turning, or other classes with level-dependent bonuses such as the Divine Elemental Savant prestige classes.
Since the Contemplative does not provide or improve upon any particular aspect of offense or defense, many other prestige classes do well with it by virtue of the fact that they neither really improve upon or conflict with the class abilities. Usual choices such as Hierophant (for the Spell Penetration and +DC) and the Lich/Baelnorn (immunities and DR) templates apply here.
The Contemplative is also useful for eventually opening up certain classes whose domains you don't have-- because you preferred to start with domains that are more "useful" earlier on. For instance, the Good Domain would not be considered a very good domain due to the relatively weaker levels of strength that some of the Planar Binding summons have especially in comparison to the Summon Monster summons, but not taking it in favor of some other domain like Storm for 'Call Lightning' and such just means that, with Contemplative, you can "take it later" so you can access a class like the Shining Blade of Heironeous when you "need it".
Following are some generally useful domains, though pretty much all of them are useful depending on what kind of character the Contemplative is going for.
[b]Animal:[/b] For qualifying for the PNP Shifter.
[b]Death, Hatred:[/b] For Wail of the Banshee and its wider area of effect than Implosion.
[b]Elf:[/b] For Point Blank Shot (which goes well with Zen Archery) and True Strike.
[b]Fate:[/b] For Uncanny Dodge and the DR from Premonition.
[b]Good, Evil, Gnome, Illusion:[/b] For the increased caster level to certain spells.
[b]Metal, War:[/b] For the martial weapon proficiency.
[b]Orc:[/b] For the free smiting provided by the domain.
[b]Portal:[/b] For Dimension Door.
[b]Time:[/b] For Improved Initiative.
[b]Tyranny:[/b] For the +2 DC to all mind spells.
[b]Trickery:[/b] For the boosts to Rogue-based skills from the domain ability.
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One quick comment on Warmind. You can have more than 10 psionic levels by taking psychic theurge. One of my favourite builds is cleric/warmind/psychic theurge. I usually aim for 6/10/4 at level 20 to get 4 attacks and then take the build to 6/10/24 to get 34 cleric caster levels and 34 psionic levels; it's a shame there are no practiced caster feats for psionics!