Post by Stix on Apr 1, 2008 12:12:59 GMT -5
I figured I'd put this in its own thread, since it merits an explanation and I'd like to be able to look back at what I said in case I use confusing language.
You have two feats to start (plus up to two more if you'd like to take flaws). The only Item Creation feat Hilathic is eligible for at 1st level is Scribe Scroll, but Brew Potion is certainly doable in the relatively near future (see below). You gain an additional feat every 3rd character level.
That begs the question of how to gain levels, of course, since character levels are one of the major changes between 2e and 3.x. Instead of taking a single class and gaining levels in it, characters have an overall number of levels, and devote them to individual classes (or other options) as they gain levels.
There is a cost to many forms of level gain, however (to give people some added incentive for adventuring!).
Hilathic has enough XP to rise to 3rd level. If he can track down a sizable sum of money (a total worth of 150 GP), he can train straight up to Bard-Warlock 3. You can multiclass if you want to, but I don't generally recommend it, and it's a little more complicated, so I won't go into it here unless you ask me for more info. If he's too impatient to wait for the financial windfall, there's always the option of devoting levels to race instead. This can be done in either or both of two ways: a Racial Paragon class, or a Bloodline.
Think of a Racial Paragon as the Monstrous Manual entry for that race (the one-hit-die orc warrior or elf archer, for example). You devote one to three class levels to doing what people of your heritage do best: in a tiefling's case, being sneaky and deceitful, staying alive at all cost, and developing more spell-like abilities.
A bloodline is a long-term investment in power. You devote one to three levels to it over time, and the closeness of your fiendish parentage (probably tanar'ri, though it could also be yugoloth, baatezu, night hag, or gehreleth) gives you extra bonuses to match. These bonuses might be extra spell-like abilities, energy resistance, points toward an ability score, feats, skill bonuses, AC bonuses, or any number of other things. It's a blind investment, though; you get what you get. For a major bloodline, which will give one of these abilities at every level, you'd spend one level now, another one between 4th and 6th, and one more between 7th and 12th. For an intermediate bloodline (an ability at every even-numbered level), spend one between 4th and 6th, and a second between 7th and 12th. A minor bloodline only gives an ability every 4 levels, but it only costs a single level between 7th and 12th.
Finally, to put this all in perspective: at 3rd level, you'll be able to pick up the feat: Brew Potion, which will allow you to make potions duplicating your innate spell-like abilities. Once he's got two levels of Bard-Warlock, he'll be able to include his Bard Spells. If Hilathic should achieve twelve levels of Bard-Warlock, he can use infernal energy to make up for his lack of spellcasting ability, and will even be able to make potions that rely on spells he can't even cast (though it requires a difficult Use Magic Device check).
I would like to become a tradesman, I'd like to at some point start making potions, I see there is feats I can take to better myself at this but how do I gain feats? Also I am willing to take flaws to gain extra feats. I am in no way a fighter at all and will most like never even carry a weapon.
You have two feats to start (plus up to two more if you'd like to take flaws). The only Item Creation feat Hilathic is eligible for at 1st level is Scribe Scroll, but Brew Potion is certainly doable in the relatively near future (see below). You gain an additional feat every 3rd character level.
That begs the question of how to gain levels, of course, since character levels are one of the major changes between 2e and 3.x. Instead of taking a single class and gaining levels in it, characters have an overall number of levels, and devote them to individual classes (or other options) as they gain levels.
There is a cost to many forms of level gain, however (to give people some added incentive for adventuring!).
- Train up a level in a class you already have: 50 GP x current level, two weeks of training time per current level
- Take a level in a new class: 100 GP, four weeks of training
- Take a level in a racial paragon class: 0 GP, two weeks of downtime per current level
- Devote a level to a bloodline: 0 GP, no training time
Hilathic has enough XP to rise to 3rd level. If he can track down a sizable sum of money (a total worth of 150 GP), he can train straight up to Bard-Warlock 3. You can multiclass if you want to, but I don't generally recommend it, and it's a little more complicated, so I won't go into it here unless you ask me for more info. If he's too impatient to wait for the financial windfall, there's always the option of devoting levels to race instead. This can be done in either or both of two ways: a Racial Paragon class, or a Bloodline.
Think of a Racial Paragon as the Monstrous Manual entry for that race (the one-hit-die orc warrior or elf archer, for example). You devote one to three class levels to doing what people of your heritage do best: in a tiefling's case, being sneaky and deceitful, staying alive at all cost, and developing more spell-like abilities.
A bloodline is a long-term investment in power. You devote one to three levels to it over time, and the closeness of your fiendish parentage (probably tanar'ri, though it could also be yugoloth, baatezu, night hag, or gehreleth) gives you extra bonuses to match. These bonuses might be extra spell-like abilities, energy resistance, points toward an ability score, feats, skill bonuses, AC bonuses, or any number of other things. It's a blind investment, though; you get what you get. For a major bloodline, which will give one of these abilities at every level, you'd spend one level now, another one between 4th and 6th, and one more between 7th and 12th. For an intermediate bloodline (an ability at every even-numbered level), spend one between 4th and 6th, and a second between 7th and 12th. A minor bloodline only gives an ability every 4 levels, but it only costs a single level between 7th and 12th.
Finally, to put this all in perspective: at 3rd level, you'll be able to pick up the feat: Brew Potion, which will allow you to make potions duplicating your innate spell-like abilities. Once he's got two levels of Bard-Warlock, he'll be able to include his Bard Spells. If Hilathic should achieve twelve levels of Bard-Warlock, he can use infernal energy to make up for his lack of spellcasting ability, and will even be able to make potions that rely on spells he can't even cast (though it requires a difficult Use Magic Device check).
