374 replies to this topic

[T.G.Maestro]

OK, here are the (somewhat sketchy) descriptions to the final versions of Diamond Soul, Ethereal and Finger of Destruction for the monk class. Feel free to post comments on the effects of the abilities, or about any typos. Some proper proofreading would be appreciated.

Diamond Soul
The monk has tuned his body with skill and quasi-magical abilities to the point that he becomes a magical creature. He was able to achieve a state of unshakeable stability in body and soul, and won't be affected by spells and other abilities that would endanger this unity or attempt to manipulate the monk's physical form.
The monk becomes immune to effects like Petrification, Disintegration or Polymorph.


Ethereal
As a magical being, the high-level monk can assume an ethereal state for a limitied time. For 5 rounds he becomes completely invisible to the eyes of others and receives a 4 points bonus to AC. In the first 2 rounds of this state he cannot be detected, not even by magical means, and the ethereal form grants him immunity to weapons below +4 enchantment level. If the monk makes an attack, creatures around him will know about his presence and he will become partially visible. During the ethereal state the monk cannot use any of his innates.
Note that powerful creatures - like Demons or Dragons - will still be able to see and attack the monk while ethereal.

Prerequisite: Diamond Soul


Finger of Destruction
Evil monks can focus Ki energies in the most harmful ways. The Finger of Destruction is a secret and forbidden technique to most monks, and only those with no respect towards the lives of others are able to learn it.
By concentrating hi Ki into one point on the target's body, the monk touches the opponent with his pointing finger. If the attack is successful, the victim will lose 5 points of Constitution and suffers a 2 points penalty to saves vs. death for 5 turns (no save). Creatures below 10 Hit Dice die immediately, and even those above this level suffer 10 points of magical damage.
In addition to the instant effects, this ability has another mean side as well. The destructive energies keep weakening the target's body, who will suffer an additional 1 point penalty to Constituiton and saves vs. death every second round for 1 turn. The victim is entitled a saving throw vs. death everytime to avoid further negative effects.
Finger of Destruction can only be used once/day.

Prerequisite: Dragon Fist

[T.G.Maestro]

Feanor, you are talking about Whirlwind Attack, while this one is called Whirlwind. And they'll use different icons too, I'm sure (or at least I hope) there won't be too much confusion.

[Feanor]

Dragons should not see the monk while ethereal because :
1. Their gaze can't pierce invisibility ;
2. They are not outsiders, they belong to prime material plane.
Demons, yes, they could see through ethereality, because they don't belong to this plane.

[T.G.Maestro]

Dragons should not see the monk while ethereal because :
1. Their gaze can't pierce invisibility ;
2. They are not outsiders, they belong to prime material plane.

AFAIK, Dragons are considered magical creatures, and they indeed see invisible creatures in both 2nd and 3rd E.
But they see them in BG2 for sure (they use the "Detect Invisible by Script" opcode, check their .cres!)

[Feanor]

But they see them in BG2 for sure (they use the "Detect Invisible by Script" opcode, check their .cres!)

And I'm also 100% sure that they don't pierce invisibility in BG2, because I have used at least 30 times invisible characters to scout the area where a dragon laid. Yes, even if your character is invisible, the dialog triggers, but the dragon does not attack, as he should do if he sees the character (and that's a flaw in the script, in my opinion).

[Feanor]

BTW, TG, after I have looked in the manual, the dragons can see through invisibility, indeed. But I still have some doubts if they should pierce ethereality. That's because they use their enhanced senses for that (and not because they are magical creatures) - sight, smell and hearing -, but if the creatures is in another planes, their enhanced senses are of no good for them anymore.

[T.G.Maestro]

BTW, TG, after I have looked in the manual, the dragons can see through invisibility, indeed. But I still have some doubts if they should pierce ethereality.

Since these two use the same effects in BG2 (there is no separate Ethereal opcode, only 3 different types of invisibility), it would be nearly impossible to make them undetectable by Dragons while remain detectable by other creatures like Demons.

Ok, tracking really needs improving (its problably the worst HLA in the game) but... IMO it shouldent be a HLA at all! I mean why the hell should only the *best* rangers in the realms be able to do it? Isnt it like one the first lessons for rangers?

Good suggestions, but right now we only concentrate on the HLAs. If we ever get to revise kits, we'll discuss this further.

[hlidskialf]

Dragons should not see the monk while ethereal because :
1. Their gaze can't pierce invisibility ;
2. They are not outsiders, they belong to prime material plane.

AFAIK, Dragons are considered magical creatures, and they indeed see invisible creatures in both 2nd and 3rd E.
But they see them in BG2 for sure (they use the "Detect Invisible by Script" opcode, check their .cres!)

1st ed. as well.

Edit: Oh, and the reason you used to scout while invisible Feanor, is that the dragons in BG2 have to be triggered hostile first before doing other than talking.

[Feanor]

How about Tornado instead of Whirlwind.

Or twister.

[T.G.Maestro]

How about Tornado instead of Whirlwind. 


Or twister

Since this is a smaller whirlwind (10 meters high or so), the names "tornado" and such wouldn't be really fitting.

[T.G.Maestro]

Yet, I'd like to turn back your attention to the three descriptions above (Diamond Soul, Ethereal, FoD)!
As I asked before, I'd be more than happy id someone would read them through and would point out any spelling errors.

Thanx again.

[Feanor]

Yet, I'd like to turn back your attention to the three descriptions above (Diamond Soul, Ethereal, FoD)!
As I asked before, I'd be more than happy id someone would read them through and would point out any spelling errors.

Thanx again.

Spelling errors ???! That is what you ask from us, TG ?

[Kish]

As a magical being, the high-level monk can assume an ethereal state for a limited time. For 5 rounds he becomes completely invisible to the eyes of others and receives a 4 points bonus to AC.

(should be 4 point).

If the attack is successful, the victim will lose 5 points of Constitution and suffers a 2 points penalty to saves vs. death for 5 turns (no save).

Will lose and suffers is a tense shift. It would be better to keep in the future tense (will lose and suffer) or in the present tense (loses and suffers).

In addition to the instant effects, this ability has another mean side as well. The destructive energies keep weakening the target's body, who will suffer an additional 1 point penalty to Constituiton and saves vs. death every second round for 1 turn.

Target's body...who. The target is a who, but the target's body is a a what. It would be better to have either "weakening the target's body, which will suffer..." or, "weakening the target, who will suffer..."

The victim is entitled to a saving throw vs. death every time to avoid further negative effects.

[T.G.Maestro]

Many thanks Kish.

[T.G.Maestro]

I have here several new ideas in addition to those already discussed (Toughness for example), some of tthem taken from other games. Note that these are only ideas and sketches, none of them were discussed by Littiz or The Bigg yet. I'm waiting for opinions on their usefulness and if they sound balanced or not.


Adrenaline Rush (for most Fighters, Barbarians, and Rangers)
When things look their worst and the fight seems to be lost, the experienced warrior just gets warmed up. If hit points drop below half of their maximum, the warrior gains -1 to THAC0 and AC, and +1 to melee damage. If hit points drop below 10% of their maximum, the character gains an additional -1 to AC and +1 to damage. This passive ability can only be chosen once.
(NOTES: it is still undecided wether the bonuses should apply for a specified duration, or until HPs are restored above the critical limits)

Displacement (for monks)
After becoming a partially ethereal creature, the monk can develop an ability to use this power instinctively in dangerous situations. When being seriously injured, he connects with the ethereal world, slipping his body out of phase with reality. When hit points fall below 25% of their maximum, the monk partially fades out, granting -2 AC and immunity to weapons with less than +2 enchantment level. While in this state, the monk can still be seen by those around him and can be targeted by spells and magical effects. This passive ability can only be chosen once.
Requires: Ethereal
(NOTES: as seen by Adrenaline Rush)

Combat Casting (for Fighter/Cleric-Mages and Ranger multis)
This would use the ?Creature Uninterruptible? opcode, and would make the caster non-interruptible while casting a spell or using an ability. Passive.

Combat Reflexes (for Fighter-Thieves)
This passive would slightly decrease AC.

Feral Lash (for Fighter-Druids)
This HLA would reduce an opponents physical and elemental resistances for a limited time. Suitable for a warrior-type druid.

Grace Under Fire (for Archers)
The proposed Adrenaline Rush isn?t really suitable for this kit, since it mostly affects melee. Instead of it I?d suggest an ability that increases their skill with ranged attacks for example, the same way as AR improves the melee provess of other warriors.

Craft Wand (for Mages and Clerics)
As the title suggests. We somehow forgot this while working on the scrolls. This wouldn?t be THAT hard to implement, but would require definitive checks on INT or WIS. A chance for failure would be included as well, depending on the power of the constructed wand. Also, some Experience Point cost / wand would be fitting here.

Herbalism (for Druids)
BG2 has numerous plant and herb animations, I already collected 10 of them. As it was suggested before in these forums, we could use these to create an ability similar to the Brew Poison HLA for assassins.

[T.G.Maestro]

Another idea for Thief-Mages:

Slippery Mind
In a nutshell, the T/M becomes immune to Charm effects.

[Feanor]

Combat Casting is not balanced for fighter/mages. They will be too powerful this way.


Could you specify what this uninterruptibility refers to ? The spellcaster would use his spells even if he is hit, poisoned or affected by insect spells ?

Edited by Feanor, 23 September 2004 - 07:01 AM.

[Rathwellin the Bard]

Combat Casting is not balanced for fighter/mages. They will be too powerful this way.


Could you specify what this uninterruptibility refers to ? The spellcaster would use his spells even if he is hit, poisoned or affected by insect spells ?

I disagree.

It's thematically good & doesn't seem unbalanced at all. I mean really. How often is a high level F/M getting interrupted anyway? Maybe one or two battles at most.

Between Spell Immunity, Protection from Magic Weapons, Stoneskin, Mirror Image and the rest a F/M can be functionally immune any time he cares to.