[Ghostwalk] Ghostwalk Q&A

[Big Mac]

Don't get excited. Sean K Reynolds has not signed up to The Piazza to take all your Ghostwalk questions. But I've found out he has already answered a lot of questions about Ghostwalk in various threads over on Monte Cook's Okay - Your Turn forums and his own SeanKReynolds Boards, so I'm going to try to make a list of them here. (Some of the actual questions have been edited down to a single sentence for clarity. I've also split up a few different questions that were originally asked together in one long topic.)

GHOSTWALK Q&A:

1. Is Ghostwalk being converted to 3.5?
2. Would it be possible to tweak the possession feat, so a ghost can possess a suit of armor?
3. Why is the Incorporeal Form feat so fast?
4. Can an incoporeal ghost be harmed by a corporeal source?
5. Where are the rules for the effect of silver on ghosts?
6. What are the benefits of Full Manifestation & Incorporeal Form?
7. How many runes can a Deathwarden Chanter get from their Great Rune ability?
8. How many ranks in Perform (sing) does a Deathwarden Chanter need?
9. Why aren't Enervating Touch and Nauseating Touch limited to a number of uses per day, when Agony Touch and Shriveling Touch are?
10. Should monks retain their improved unarmed damage when using the Corrupting Touch feat?
11. Why do certain Ghost feats (like Poltergeist Rage) cause Charisma damage to the user?
12. What happens if someone casts a Raise Dead or Resurrection spell on a body in Manifest, while their ghost is far away from the city?
13. Is the way that the Wise to Your Ways feat and a ranger's Favoured Enemy bonus stack unbalanced in 3.5?
14. Did Andy Collins make a mistake, in Epic Ghostwalk, when he had a character with eight or so 'normal' levels and over twenty eidolon (ghost) levels?
15. Why is Orcus listed as a god in Ghostwalk and Forgotten Realms material but a demon in Book of Vile Darkness?
16. Have there been any changes to Ghostwalk since you wrote it?
17. How many of the Ghostwalk monsters were created by Monte Cook?
18. The Ghost template is CR + 1. Why does the example made from a 1st level character have a CR of 1?
19. Why would a Ghostwalk ghost not know that their body has been animated as an undead? And what is to stop someone animating the body of a Ghostwalk-outsider ghost as an undead ghost?
20. Changing into a ghost increases CR by +1 - does it also increase ECL by +1
21. Why do Eidolon and Eidoloncer have 20 levels, when it is impossible for a PC to gain 20 levels without going epic or becoming subject to the Calling?
22. Why didn't you create a Feat to resist the Calling, instead of making it an optional house rule?
23. If characters can be raised from the dead without level-loss, why would anyone in Ghostwalk want to stay as a ghost?
24. Do the ghosts touch attacks allow iterative attacks?
25. Can ghosts take levels in PrCs?
26. If a character dies and takes a level in the Eidoloncer class, what happens to their familiar?
27. Can a ghost ride a horse, without needing feats, magic items or anything else?
28. Can a ghost decide to walk through solid matter?
29. If flesh is solid matter, can a ghost walk through it?
30. Does a ghost character get the Ghost template benefits plus the incorporeal ones?
31. How does a living person who crosses the Veil of Souls return to the land of the living?
32. Why did you name a medusa villain "Saag Paneer"?
33. I'm guessing that psionic characters would take the Eidoloncer class and substitute psionics for magic, but would a Psychic Warrior take the Eidoloncer or Eidoloncer class?
34. Do Eidolons or Eidoloncers gain hit points for having high Constitution scores?
35. Can you play a manifested ghost in the lands outside Manifest or do you have to stay in the city?
36. Why did you write the True Afterlife, the way you did?
37. Does the cost of Raise Dead go up from 500gp if you are using the 3.5 conversion rules?
38. Can the Flesh to Stone spell be used to kill a character without them turning into a ghost?
39. Can you kill a character, wait for them to come back as a Ghostwalk-ghost raise their physical body as an undead, then use both Proper State to turn that undead into a Ghostwalk ghost and then cast True Resurrection turn the original Ghostwalk ghost and the second Ghostwalk ghost into two copies of the same character?
40. How much does Orcus feature in Ghostwalk?
41. What does the [Shaper] tag in the Ectoplasm feat mean?
42. Could I put a gladitorial arena into Manifest without it wrecking the coolness of Ghostwalk?
43. Could you suggest a place in Forgotten Realms to put Manifest?
44. Would Combine Turning from the Ghostwalk Web Enhancement be too powerful if used outside the setting?
45. Is it intentional that the nightmare side effect of the Corrupt Arcane Studies feat does not affect sorcerers?
46. Why was the True Afterlife built up as a mystery, but then explained in a huge section?
47. Why did it take so long for Ghostwalk to get published?
48. Will there be a future Web Enhancement with a map of the countries and environment around Manifest?
49. Is something missing from the Monstrous Vampire template?
50. One of the prerequisite feats for Ghost Slayer is listed as Ghost Fighting. Is that the same as the Incorporeal Target Fighting feat?
51. Where is the information on the Sherem-Lar?
52. How can those Epic Ghostwalk characters exist?
53. Does Full Manifestation really only last one round?
54. Are there any GW adventures or other support planned?
55. Please clarify how things work inside and outside of the Manifest Ward.
56. How exactly does the Grand Malevolence feat work?
57. Sherem-Lar Sorcery and Sherezem-Lar Sorcery stack. Would Spellcasting Prodigy also stack?
58. Are any of these features on your sketch map errors?
59. Was anything in Ghostwalk influenced by the movie Ghostbusters?
60. Should the Khardon Court and Yisa-komas be the other way around in the Ghostwalk timeline?
61. How is Garothos a ranger 2/blackguard 5?
62. When using Ghostwalk in Forgotten Realms, where does The True Afterlife fit into the Realms Cosmology?
63. Are there going to be any Ghostwalk novels?
64. Are there any rules for magic items that ghosts can use?
65. Do Kreel Monk PCs have to have tattoos?
66. Can ghost characters have blue ectoplasm or look like they are 35 years old?
67. Can ghost characters stay the same age forever and be immortal?
68. Can PCs have an NPC class and Eidolon class levels, so that they are more effective as ghosts than living people?
69. Could a ghost use spellfire (when Ghostwalk is used in Forgotten Realms)?
70. The spell persuade to manifest is listed with "Saving Throw: Yes (harmless)" - I assume that this is probably supposed to be "Will negates (harmless)", but some semi-official confirmation would be useful.

LAST EDIT (by Big Mac 3 Nov 2018): Khedrac's Persuade to Manifest question added to Q&A.

[Big Mac]

Is Ghostwalk being converted to 3.5?

Question:

I don't know if this has been asked already, but I was just wondering if anyone knows if Ghostwalk is being moded to 3.5. Alot of the other recent WotC releases have been re-written or included 3.5 slide-bars or other extensive information to bring it line with the forth-coming new rules. Considering that Ghostwalk is going to be released only a short time before 3.5, its going to be an interesting scenario. I'm guessing alot of the decisions regarding these products were made around the time of the accouncement that Tooth & Claw was 'delayed and expanded' [about 1/2 - 3/4 of the way through last year].

Answer:

Off the top of my head there isn't much in GW that would need to be changed to make it synched with 3.5. There are a couple of monsters with DR that would go to the new style, but the spells, prestige classes, and magic items should be OK.--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

Would it be possible to tweak the possession feat, so a ghost can possess a suit of armor?

Question:

Hi Monte(or anyone else that could answer my question) I was wondering if you could help me out. I have an idea for a character in your ghostwalk setting, very cool setting by the way! , however. I need to be able to possess a suit of armour. I know that there are feats for possession of people but are there any feats that allow the ghost to "animate/possess" an object? Would it be possible to just tweak the possession feat(s) and just say that he can instead inhabit and animate an object(chosen of course when the feat is taken). Any input would be greatly appreciated!!

Answers:

Possessing armor rather than a creature would probably work.Monte
http://www.montecook.com

...and...

Yeah, I don't see why you couldn't make a feat that let you possess an object. It would have Ghost Ride as a prereq, but other than that would act just like Ghost Ride.--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

Why is the Incorporeal Form feat so fast?

Question:

I'm hoping Monte, Sean, or some other person can address my concern. I love the Ghostwalk setting. I'm planning a campaign based on it soon. However, I'm a little curious about the duration of the feat "Incorporeal Form."

Is it really only one round? This strikes me as an incredibly short period of time. My concern is not so much for the PCs, but for the poor incorporeal undead. Since it takes a standard action to use and lasts for only one round, it seems that Shadows, Wraiths, and other undead in Manifest are still very much incapactitated.

Are there any suggestions of what I should do if I'm using incorporeal undead in Manifest? Or suggestions about the consequences of a longer duration (say 1/round per level/HD)?

Thanks for your time.

--G

Answer:

{Is it really only one round? This strikes me as an incredibly short period of time. My concern is not so much for the PCs, but for the poor incorporeal undead. Since it takes a standard action to use and lasts for only one round, it seems that Shadows, Wraiths, and other undead in Manifest are still very much incapactitated.}

Yes, it's pretty much a "I need to get out of here, let me duck through this wall while incorporeal" feat. It's deliberately that short because you can use it as often as you want, and being incorporeal is a HUGE advantage, so a ghost with that feat and a longer duration could fly through a good part of a dungeon, scout it out, and report back to friends, all without serious risk to herself.

There's no reason you couldn't make a dependent feat that lets you stay incorporeal longer, though.

{Are there any suggestions of what I should do if I'm using incorporeal undead in Manifest?}

Not sure what you mean by this question. You'll have to rethink their combat strategies, but their attacks and such still work as normal.

{Or suggestions about the consequences of a longer duration (say 1/round per level/HD)?}

You might try implementing a DC-based mechanic, increasing by 10 each time for an extra round's duration....--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

Response:

I guess I didn't make my point clear. On page 42, under the section on monster abilities, it indicates that incorporeal undead should be given Incorporeal Form as a bonus feat, because otherwise they would be too weak for their CR.

I guess my concern is that as written, Incorporeal Form doesn't seem to do enough to bring these undead upto an appropriate level of power.

--G

P.S.: Who named Saag Panneer? That's my wife's favorite food!

2nd Answer:

{I guess I didn't make my point clear. On page 42, under the section on monster abilities, it indicates that incorporeal undead should be given Incorporeal Form as a bonus feat, because otherwise they would be too weak for their CR.I guess my concern is that as written, Incorporeal Form doesn't seem to do enough to bring these undead upto an appropriate level of power.}

CR categories are still very broad. A 3 HD shadow is a CR 3 creature while a 4 HD ogre is CR 2, and probably the only significant boost to the shadow's CR is the incorporeal defense (its Str damage is approx as effective as the strong ogre's hp damage). Take that away, the shadow is certainly CR 2 (it's much like a bugbear with a special attack). Give it a temporary incorporeal form ability (a la the feat) and it pushes the CR upward again ... perhaps not to 3, but close. It just means that to stay at CR 3, incorporeal undead are going to have to use smarter tactics - hit-and-run, forcing enemies to waste time and magic recovering from many small attacks.

But the disadvantages of manifesting means that incorp undead are less common than other kinds.

{P.S.: Who named Saag Panneer? That's my wife's favorite food!}

Me. I love Indian food. But sometimes it tries to kill you.--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

Can an incorporeal ghost be harmed by a corporeal source?

Question:

Ghosts are composed of ectoplasm, which is either corporeal or incorporeal, whichever benefits the "wielder."

Now, ghosts are incorporeal unless some force acts on them to make them corporeal, such as the Full Manifestation feat or the Manifest Ward.

Can an incoporeal ghost be harmed by a corporeal source? Is someone attacking a ghost a "wielder" concerning the ectoplasm? Or is a ghost simply always invulnerable (short of magic or silver)?

Sarlax

Answer:

I think this is a case where ectoplasm is an object/substance, but a ghost is a creature. Creatures play by different rules than objects, and so a ghost doesn't follow the normal rules for ectoplasm (for example, ghosts don't simply evaporate after 10 minutes). So an incorporeal ghost is "invulnerable" short of magic or silver.--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

Where are the rules for the effect of silver on ghosts?

Question:

On page 26, and again on page 64, there are hints that silver has special properties against ghosts. I can't seem to find the exact description of what silver does.

Could someone give me a page number?

Answer:

The effects of silver weapons on ghosts are in the Ghost template on page 164 in the monster section.

[Big Mac]

What are the benefits of Full Manifestation & Incorporeal Form?

Question:

First, what benefit does this feat give a ghost? It requires a standard action to become corporeal for a round; that leaves the ghost only a move-equivalent action. Is this feat intended to let the ghost be corporeal for the entire round after the feat is used? Or should the action be reduced from standard to free?

Second, is Incorporeal Form really worth a feat? The only way time in which it would be useful would be if a ghost was limited to the Manifest Ward or spent the majority of its time there. Even in that case, it seems that the feat would function better as a built-in mechanic for the city itself; perhaps all ghosts can attempt the DC 15 Will save to become incorporeal?

Sarlax

Answer:

{First, what benefit does this feat give a ghost? It requires a standard action to become corporeal for a round; that leaves the ghost only a move-equivalent action. Is this feat intended to let the ghost be corporeal for the entire round after the feat is used? Or should the action be reduced from standard to free?}

The feat is correct as written. It (and its opposite, Incorporeal Form) is designed to give you a short increment of time to act as a material creature ... something incorporeal creatures normally can't do at all. Yes, it's a short amount of time, but we're talking about a HUGE change in the nature of the creature.

{Second, is Incorporeal Form really worth a feat? The only way time in which it would be useful would be if a ghost was limited to the Manifest Ward or spent the majority of its time there. Even in that case, it seems that the feat would function better as a built-in mechanic for the city itself; perhaps all ghosts can attempt the DC 15 Will save to become incorporeal?}

GW assumes you'll be running a campaign set around the city, and so having a feat that's primarily useful only around the city makes sense (I agree, you wouldn't take it if you were incorp most of the time). As far as anyone being able to attempt it, it's one of those cases that allow you to do something you normally couldn't do. Remember, you have this mystical "pressure" from the weight of the Land of the Dead pressing on everyone ... your average Joe Ghost shouldn't be able to ignore that without special training. IMO.--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

Response:

<<The feat is correct as written. It (and its opposite, Incorporeal Form) is designed to give you a short increment of time to act as a material creature ... something incorporeal creatures normally can't do at all. Yes, it's a short amount of time, but we're talking about a HUGE change in the nature of the creature.>>

But what can the ghost do while corporeal that makes this feat worthwhile? It seems that all it can do is open a door, pick up an object, etc, since the only remaining part of its turn is a move-action.

Sam Mustain

2nd Answer:

Your example of opening a door is perfect:
Adventuring party is confronted by a locked and barred door. The party rogue has unlocked it and they've tried to break it open, but failed. So the ghost cleric goes through the door, becomes manifested, moves the bar, and suddenly everyone can get through.

The main issue with this feat is that it has to be balanced against the Incorporeal Form feat. With IF, if you made it a move action, you'd still have a standard action, which would mean that every round the ghost could manifest, attack, and then on his turn automatically return to incorporeality and gain all of the defensive benefits that entails. If you make IF work that way, you have to make Full Manifestation work that way, too.

I dunno, maybe it only needs to be a move action. But I decided to err on the side of caution lets someone come along and break both feats soon after picking up the book. --
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

How many runes can a Deathwarden Chanter get from their Great Rune ability?

Question:

I am confused by the Deathwarden Chanters Great Rune ability, the description is a little unclear. Does he choose just one rune at level 3, 6 and 9 or does he choose a number of runes equal to his level + Wis? Say Bjorn is a 6th level DC and his Wis is a 12, does he choose 7 runes? Is that all the runes he has to use or is it a re-usable ability? Does he just choose one Rune type at that level?

Jason

Answer:

The ability is set up like the Loremaster's secrets; at level 3, 6, and 9 you can choose one rune from the table, and your level + Wis mod tells you which runes are available to you.

My original wording for this used the exact wording the loremaster ability uses, but that got changed a little bit at some point and now it's less clear.

To reiterate and hopefully make clear, at levels 3, 6, and 9 you get to pick one rune from the table. You can't pick a rune that's listed at a higher number than your level + Wis mod.

So upon reaching class level 3, Bjorn could learna rune from row 1-4 (3 class levels + 1 Wisdom modifier) on the table. At class level 6, he could learn another rune from row 1-7 (6+1) on the table. At 9th level he could learn any of the runes (9+1 = 10, and there are only 10rows). He can use any of the runes he knows as often as the rune descriptions allow.

Is that more clear? I'll be sure to note this for errata.--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

How many ranks in Perform (sing) does a Deathwarden Chanter need?

Quesion:

One other question regarding the DwC, How many ranks of Perform (sing) do you need to qualify? There is no number beside the skill.

Answer:

In 3.0, each rank you take in Perform means you've learned one type of performance. So as long as one of your ranks in Perform is about singing, you're fine. But we can't place a number there, since you could have 1 rank and already have sing (or not), or you could have 10 ranks and still not have sing.--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

Why aren't Enervating Touch and Nauseating Touch limited to a number of uses per day, when Agony Touch and Shriveling Touch are?

Question:

Agony Touch and Shriveling touch are both limited to one use per day per level. This is reasonable, since these are powerful abilities.


Why aren't Enervating Touch (no saving throw) and Nauseating Touch limited?

Energy drains are just about as dangerous and powerful as ability drain. They have same same overall effect: a gradual decay in one's ability to defend oneself.

Nauseating Touch functions for at least 1d4+1 rounds. It does allow a saving throw, but if the target fails, they are in major trouble, according to the SRD: "Nauseated creatures are unable to attack, cast spells, concentrate on spells, or do anything else requiring attention. The only action such a character can take is a single move (or move-equivalent action) per turn."

Shouldn't these two abilities be limited in their uses per day, as well?

Sarlax

Answer:

I think you're right. I remember Enervating Touch being one of the first ghost feats I wrote, and when I put in limitations in later touch feats I guess I didn't go back and check this one. I'll send it to WotC as possible errata.--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

Should monks retain their improved unarmed damage when using the Corrupting Touch feat?

Question:

On a second issue, should monks retain their improved unarmed damage when using the Corrupting Touch feat?

Sarlax

Note: This question didn't get an answer yet.

EDIT: I spoke to Sean K Reynolds later (via the Borg of Faces) and he gave me this answer.

[Big Mac]

Why do certain Ghost feats (like Poltergeist Rage) cause Charisma damage to the user?

Question:

Various ghost feats deal Charisma damage to the user whenever they are employed. Why?

Take Poltergeist Rage. It requires Charisma 13+, which will narrows the likely takers to Bards, Paladins, and Sorcerers (with Clerics and Rogues a possibility).

Let's assume we've got a sorcerer with 18 for his Charisma and that he has 10 levels in that class. After two uses of this ability, the save DC for both his spells and this power have dropped by 2, *and* he loses access to his best spells. If he uses it again, he can only cast up to 2nd level spells. A fourth time and he may as well have taken the Commoner class... Oh, that's not a problem; he can't take any more Charisma damage, since on his third use he is at Charisma 12 and no longer meets the prerequisites for the feat.

The various Charisma-killing feats would probably only be taken by those characters that require or benefit from high Charisma as part of their regular class abilities, but then having the feat kills a large part of their power.

How about controlling the usage of these feats by level rather than by ability damage; others work this way (such as Agony Touch). I'm inclined to replace "Each time you use this ability, you deal two points of ability damage to yourself," with "You may use this once per day per X character levels." Is that reasonable?

Sarlax

Answer:

{Various ghost feats deal Charisma damage to the user whenever they are employed. Why?}

As a balancing factor. Rating it by level means your power in life equates to your ability to do strange ghost things. Rating it with a certain flat number of uses per day is arbitrary and artificial.

{Take Poltergeist Rage. It requires Charisma 13+, which will narrows the likely takers to Bards, Paladins, and Sorcerers (with Clerics and Rogues a possibility).}

Sure. And remember that the most interesting ghosts are those who have a strong sense of self and their place in the world. Dull people make poor ghosts.

Really, complaining that all of the good ghost power feats require a decent Charisma is like complaining that all of the good tank-fighter feats require a decent Str, the good rogue feats require a decent Dex, etc. ... Cha is the prime ability for ghosts, just like Str is for most fighers and Dex is for rogues.

And we made sure there were quite a feats a "dabbler" ghost could take that didn't have ability score prereqs* or very easy ones**. There's plenty of neat ghost stuff you can do as a ghost without requiring major ability score usage.

*Control Visage, Corpse Malevolence, Corrupting Touch, Ectoplasm, Expanded Possession, Fade, Freezing Touch, Full Manifestation, Ghost Flight, Ghost Glide, Ghost Healing, Ghost Hand, Ghost Ride, Greater Witchlight, Haunting Voice, Improved Deflection, Improved Ghost Flight, Incorporeal Form, Poltergeist Hand, Rend Ghost, Solid Visage, Witchlight.

**ability score 11: Agony Touch, Ethereal Sidestep, Haunting Appearance, Improved Control Visage, Sculpt Ghost Body, Shape Ectoplasm; ability score 13: Improved Poltergeist Hand, Minor Malevolence, Nauseating Touch, Poltergeist Rage, Shriveling Touch, Temper Ectoplasm,

{Let's assume we've got a sorcerer with 18 for his Charisma and that he has 10 levels in that class. After two uses of this ability, the save DC for both his spells and this power have dropped by 2, *and* he loses access to his best spells. If he uses it again, he can only cast up to 2nd level spells. A fourth time and he may as well have taken the Commoner class... Oh, that's not a problem; he can't take any more Charisma damage, since on his third use he is at Charisma 12 and no longer meets the prerequisites for the feat.}

Yes, so the 18-Cha sor10 has spent a feat to gain the ability to use a 5th-level spell 3x/day as (effectively) a spell-like ability. And a lesser restoration spell is almost guaranteed to put him back up to full power again.

You're also forgetting that the sor10 probably has several levels of eidolon, since it is dumb to take ghost feats while you're alive (you can't use them) and so he's probably had enough levels in eidolon (ol 'loncer) to get 3 bonus ghost feats (Gh Hand, Polt Hand, Polt Rage). So he's already bought into the concept of playing a ghost character, and in doing so has probably decided that he's either (a) going to not use ghost powers on the days where he needs his most powerful DC spells, or (b) has chosen spells that he can cast beforehand on himself and allies and doesn't need to worry about DCs and can fly around and act spooky and poltergeisty.

But yes, this isn't the optimal combo for a sorcerer. A sorcerer ghost is probably better off taking Ghost Flight (for maneuverability), Fade (to stay out of sight), and Incorporeal Form (to escape) rather than combat-ghost feats (or feats that duplicate spells that he could already learn). But a charismatic rogue (or fighter, or monk) loses nothing for taking the Path of the Poltergeist and can get some cool stuff that otherwise is unavailable to her.

Charisma doesn't always have to be a dump stat. It makes the game more interesting when you introduce a new set of rules that makes all characters reconsider the benefit of a particular ability score.
--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

What happens if someone casts a Raise Dead or Resurrection spell on a body in Manifest, while their ghost is far away from the city?

Question:

On page 14 under the "Bring Back the Dead" header, we read that if a "dead person's ghost or soul is nearby, that aspect [losing a level] is absent." Just after that, we read that if either Raise Dead or Resurrection is cast in the Manifest Ward, no level loss occurs.

What if the person's body is in the Manifest Ward but their ghost is somewhere else? A person might have chosen to manifest immediately on the Material plane without letting the Ethereal current take them to Manifest; by the second sentence, only the corpse needs to be present for the dead to avoid level loss.

And what of the first line? It implies that if a person's ghost is near their corpse, they could be raised no matter where they were and not suffer level loss. So long as the dead's soul is "nearby," there shouldn't be a problem.

Sarlax

Answer:

The intent was that if your body and your ghost were both in the Manifest Ward, raising didn't cost you a level or Con point. Outside of that special exception, all normal rules for raising apply. So if your ghost is 1,000 miles away and your body is in Manifest, it still costs you a level.--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

Is the way that the Wise to Your Ways feat and a ranger's Favoured Enemy bonus stack unbalanced in 3.5?

Question:

Good Evening,

The Wise to Your Ways feat gives those with favored enemies a bonus to saving throws against those enemies' extraordinary, spell-like, and supernatural abilities equal to the ranger's favored enemy bonus.

With the 3.5 favored enemy rules changing, and characters effectively doubling the bonuses against their favored enemies, is the feat too good as written (in a 3.5 game)?

Should those playing 3.5 limit the benefit somehow? (maybe 1/2 of your favored enemy bonus..) Any opinions would be appreciated.

Thanks!

-psi"If this ain't by the book, then the book must be wrong" --Michael Penn

Answer:

I think that even with 3.5 it'll still be OK. If you max out your fave enemy it's going to be +10, which is really good for one feat, but since there are _32_ categories of favored enemies, it tends to average out as much less than that. But you might want to limit it to +6, just to be sure, as an undead-heavy campaign where the ranger smartly chose "undead" over and over again and has +10 to all undead saves is probably too good.--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

Did Andy Collins make a mistake, in Epic Ghostwalk, when he had a character with eight or so 'normal' levels and over twenty eidolon (ghost) levels?

Question:

TSR has released some web-enhance stuff for Ghostwalk, particularly Epic Ghostwalk class progressions.

http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp? ... /20030704a

In the example provided there is a character with eight or so 'normal' levels and over twenty eidolon (ghost) levels.

Very nice.

Except don't the rules state that when you have more ghost levels than living class levels you succumb to The Calling and are basicially removed from play?

Please to be explaining with the thankfullness.

Answer:

There is a variant that lets you ignore the Calling. Andy either missed the part about the Calling or assumed that for epic play you'd be using that variant.--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

Response:

Seems to me that Andy didn't assume that others would use the variant. More like he just used it in his examples. Which is fine, since if you want epic ghosts with the Calling, they'll have to be at least 21st level in another class, and that's typically not how the Epic rules are laid out.--Jawsh of the Red Coat

[Big Mac]

Why is Orcus listed as a god in Ghostwalk and Forgotten Realms material but a demon in Book of Vile Darkness?

Question:

I've got a question having seen the table of contents over on ENWorld.

Orcus seems to be listed as a god in the book, despite the BoVD making it quite clear that he isn't (and, conversely, the Forgotten Realms stuff saying he is). Why the discrepancy?

Answer:

Actually, the BoVD makes it clear that you can make the demon lords into whatever you want--low ranking divine powers, just plain old powerful demons, etc.Monte
http://www.montecook.com

Response:

I'd say on the Orcus thing that

In Manifest Orcus is a god, in kinda standard greyhawk he isn't (although you could make him one if you wanted too) and in FR he is... no discrepancy, just different campaign worlds.

2nd Response:

Demonprinces aren't fun if you can't have cultists. In a world where you may practice real magic by learning wizardry or becoming a cleric; a demon has to give you spells -- or at least make you believe he gives you some. (Otherwise, cultists are too weak opponents -- and besides, a cultists without black magic just don't feel right .)

In Greyhawk, divine spells come from Faith. You could be a cleric of the number Pi if you wanted. Even a cleric of yourself. As long as you have faith and ideals, your magic is powered by your own energy, and by the outer plane of your alignment. (Greyhawk's cosmology is alignment-centric -- alignments are more "important" than gods.)

On the Realms, divine spells come from deities. You can't be a cleric of something that isn't a deity. (If you try, you don't succeed at casting spells, having domains, and turning undead.) A mere demon prince, if he isn't a god as well, thus can't make you cast divine spells. The three solutions to have a demon-worshipping cult with demon-priests are:
1. Make the demon a god (hence, in the Realms, Orcus, Baphomet, Pazrael (aka Pazuzu) are gods).
2. Have a deity back up the demon (similarly to the worship of Entropy by the mad house Karanok, they are secretly backed up by Tiamat). This requires that said deity has something to gain from patronizing the demonprince -- something dubious.
3. Have your cultists wield arcane magic -- thus having lots of spellbooks that will be looted by the PCs...

[Big Mac]

Have there been any changes to Ghostwalk since you wrote it?

Question:

Now that Ghostwalk is in the hands of at the very least Morrus and ENWorld, just wondering if Monte/Sean have gotten your copies and if your happy with the result.

Have a guy in my gaming crew who this would be a perfect gift for, but want to make sure it lived up to your standards. Any changes made without your knowledge, for 3.5 or otherwise?

Thanks!

Answer:

As it turns out, I got my author copies in the mail yesterday, so Monte should have his soon. The book looks good; overall the art is good with a few great pieces and a few not-so-great pieces. This is actually my first look at the art or actual layout, and for the most part I am very pleased. I am glad to have this book in my hands.--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

2nd Answer:

Well, I've got a chance to peruse a copy (still not my author copies, but a review copy--WotC sends me products now and again in the hopes that I'll do reviews on my site. Of course, I'm not going to review my own work).

I have mixed feelings, but overall I'm happy with it. Things I'm still very happy with or reminded of how happy I once was:

Sean's ghost PC rules
The overall mood and flavor of Manifest--the Guild of Morticians, the gods, and so on.
Some of the art

Things I'm not so happy about:

The large typeface (WotC bumped up the page count)
Some of the art
The missing area map

In short, it feels a bit like it was put out as a slap-dash effort toward the end, just to get it out (from a production point of view, not a design or gameplay point of view). Everyone who had put work into it was long gone (Sean, Thomas Reid--the editor, and I) by the time it was wrapped up and sent to the printer, which never helps.

The history of this product is that Sean and I wrote it in 2001 for a 2002 release. When it came time to release it, Hasbro didn't want to release a new "world" (of course, this isn't a new "world," but explain that to an exec). So then it was in Limbo. Finally, it's out. I'm very proud of the work I did on it, although the props really go to Sean--he wrote a lot more than I did.

MonteMonte
http://www.montecook.com

[Big Mac]

How many of the Ghostwalk monsters were created by Monte Cook?

Question:

Just curious Monte, but which monsters did you do? Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.

Sage and Evangalist of the Scarred Lands

Answer:

I didn't write any of the monsters.

I wrote Chapter 2, parts of Chapter 3, and about half of Chapter 6. All the rest is Sean's.Monte
http://www.montecook.com

[Big Mac]

The Ghost template is CR + 1. Why does the example made from a 1st level character have a CR of 1?

Question:

Couple of questions.

A ghost template is CR +1, the sample is made from a 1st level character but still has a CR of 1?

What is the ECL if any of the template, if my 1st level bard dies and becomes a ghost (add template), what is my character level?

Answer:

I'm actually VERY excited about the book, it's something I've been waiting for for two years. Yes, the feeling is lessened a bit because of the LONG, delay, but I am very happy to have it in my hands.

As for the CR issue on the sample ghost, he's a 1st-levelwarrior, so he's normally just CR 1/2. He's certainly not in the same league as an ogre (CR 2), so I placed him at CR 1. --
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

Response:

eep, my mistake, of course "warrior", sorry. I am loving the book. I think even if you're not going to use Manifest setting it's a great supplement.

What about the ECL question? As written, the book seems to imply that if your 6th level character becomes a ghost, she's still a 6th level character.

Answer:

I think that as long as the ghost is manifested fully (as would be the case within the Manifest Ward) the minor advantages are offset by some disadvantages, and it's not worth a full +1 ECL, so I'm comfortable with it at +0 ECL.--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

Why would a Ghostwalk ghost not know that their body has been animated as an undead? And what is to stop someone animating the body of a Ghostwalk-outsider ghost as an undead ghost?

Statement:

One thing about the spellcasting I just found a little bizzare. It says for create undead and create greater undead that "the ghost is not aware of the defilement of its body". This would imply that the ghost is not destroyed/sucked into the body/whatever when the spell is cast. The odd thing about this is that theoretically a high level evil cleric could cast create greater undead on a dead person and make them into an MM ghost while that person's ghostwalk ghost was stil around. You could even die, come back as an outsider ghost, and team up with your undead ghost. Weird.

Answer:

{This would imply that the ghost is not destroyed/sucked into the body/whatever when the spell is cast.}

Well, for mindless undead, this never was the case anyway.
For intelligent undead, it just means there's a (subtle, unspoken) special rule for the setting that means creating intelligent undead draws from the Negative Material Plane to create a new psyche, rather than corrupting the body's original psyche.

And considering how people in the setting view ownership of their own bodies, a ghost teaming up with his own undead corpse isn't too likely, unless you're a really sick freak. Image --
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

Response:

[nitpick]But the (undead)ghost doesn't use the person's body, being incorporeal.[/nitpick]

I guess it just would feel weird to have to ghosts of the same person.

2nd Response

And considering how people in the setting view ownership of their own bodies, a ghost teaming up with his own undead corpse isn't too likely, unless you're a really sick freak.

I guess it just would feel weird to have to ghosts of the same person.

I don't know. There's something terribly cool to me about a necromancer dying and raising the undead ghost of his own corpse to do his bidding.
Fontbone

[Big Mac]

Changing into a ghost increases CR by +1 - does it also increase ECL by +1

Question:

yo

it sais in the ghostwalk book that if you change to a ghost that your CR increases by 1 so does that mean that your ECL increases by 1????

just wanna know.

Comment:

Normally, my guess is that the ghost template would impose a +1 level adjustment. But in this case, I believe the limiting factor is the fact that ghost characters can only advance in two classes, which are balanced with the ghostly advantages in mind. So my answer is no, the ghost template does not increase your ECL.

Also, the Manifest Ward makes the ghost's special abilities a bit less powerful. I remember from your previous posts that you extended the limit of the Manifest ward. According to Savage Species, being incorporeal is worth a +2 level adjustment. But in your campaign, there will be way less opportunites when your player's characters can take advantage of incorporeality. That means that for you, Kuro, incorporeality is a non-issue. So again, there is no ECL adjustment for ghosts in GW campaigns. --Jawsh

Answer:

I agree. --
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

Why do Eidolon and Eidoloncer have 20 levels, when it is impossible for a PC to gain 20 levels without going epic or becoming subject to the Calling?

Question:

Maybe I'm missing something, like, totally obvious, but I can't see why the Eidolon and Eidoloncer need twenty levels.

It's impossible for a character to be a 20th-level Eidolon.

First, the character will have at least one level in another class before dying and becoming a ghost. There are no 0-level characters anymore.

Second, if a ghost ever has more Eidolon/Eidoloncer levels than other class levels, he is subject to the Calling and leaves the campaign. Unless there is a way to avoid the Calling that I'm unaware of, you couldn't get more than 10 levels of Eidolon/Eidoloncer.

I guess that the twenty levels of progression might be useful for Epic campaigns, but I don't own (or plan to use) the Epic Level Handbook, so they seem a bit redundant to me.

This is not intended as a criticism of Ghostwalk in general; this issue doesn't hurt the game, it's just weird.

Response:

There is an alternative rule (dont have th book at hand, so I dont know the page):

playing without the calling!

Without going epic you can play a 1st lvl. PHB core class and 19th lvl. eidolon/eidolancer without going epic.

Answer:

Exactly.--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

Why didn't you create a Feat to resist the Calling, instead of making it an optional house rule?

Question:

I'm not comfortable about eliminating the Calling, although it does seem a bit harsh. I just think that the world's plausibility breaks down without it.

If there was a Ghost feat that allowed you to resist the Calling, that would be okay.

And I still don't see a way to get that 20th level of eidolon. -shrug-

--
james o'rance
http://www.geocities.com/dragon-dreamer

Response:

It's probably just there to show how the class progresses, or to be used if you go epic. Besides, it looks better that way than if the chart only went to level 9 or 19 or so.

Answer:

{If there was a Ghost feat that allowed you to resist the Calling, that would be okay.}

I think that if you wanted to blow a feat on resisting the Calling, I'd make it count your eidolon level count as 2 lower than it actually is (5 lower, in the case of eidoloncer). Thus, an adventuring ghost who wanted to continue adventuring but didn't care about ghost feats could use his bonus ghost feats to stave off the calling. They would be less powerful than other equivalent-level characters (since they're spending feats that do nothing for them except let them continue to play), but it would work from a roleplaying standpoint. Perhaps to make it fair the feat should also give +1 or so to resist effects that would make you succumb to the Calling or banish you to another plane.--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

If characters can be raised from the dead without level-loss, why would anyone in Ghostwalk want to stay as a ghost?

Question:

I've got a little question about Ghostwalk. I am planning to buy the book as I'm very interested in a D&D-style take on the theme (as opossed to the World of Darkness take on it in Wraith: the Oblivion and the upcoming Orpheus).

However.... I see one big problem: Raise Dead.

Doesn't it kind of defeat the whole point of dying and becoming a ghost if your companions can just pay for a spell that will make you alive again relatively easily? Why would anyone want to stay a ghost if all it takes is a bit of money to get you back?

I've asked a friend of mine about it who has the book... and his reply was simply: but you might not want to be raised... the Ghost classes are pretty powerful.

This made shivers go down my spine... literally. That isn't a good IC reason! It's pure Meta-gaming. Even IF a character would be able to accomplish more to further his goals being dead... I still think it's probably not a nice experience... being dead that is.

Is it possible to keep characters dead in GW without having to resort to forces plots like having their bodies destroyed or whatever?

Perhaps just making Raise Dead and the higher level variants of that spell unavailable or very hard to get? I mean... you already get a 2nd chance after you died... even if your not exactly alive Image

So the question is: is this issue adressed in GW... and if so what is GW's 'official' take on it?

Answer:

{Doesn't it kind of defeat the whole point of dying and becoming a ghost if your companions can just pay for a spell that will make you alive again relatively easily?}

Not if you _want_ to be a ghost....

{Why would anyone want to stay a ghost if all it takes is a bit of money to get you back?}

Because there are a lot of things that ghosts can do that normal creatures can't. Most of the feats section is about ghost powers you can get.

{I've asked a friend of mine about it who has the book... and his reply was simply: but you might not want to be raised... the Ghost classes are pretty powerful.}
{This made shivers go down my spine... literally. That isn't a good IC reason! It's pure Meta-gaming.}

There are plenty of reason for a person to want to remain dead for a while. A scholar might like the infinite time he has to research (plus he doesn't need to take time to eat or sleep). A warrior might be happier to enter combat knowing that the dulled senses of his ghost body mean getting stabbed won't hurt as much. A cleric might want to explore a more spiritual side of her existence to better prepare herself for when she join her deity. A rogue might know that the magical traps surrounding her murderer's lair aren't triggered by ghosts.

{Even IF a character would be able to accomplish more to further his goals being dead... I still think it's probably not a nice experience... being dead that is.}

If anything, being dead is _boring_. You can't feel as much, so most of life's pleasures are less valuable to you. You're not in pain, though, and you're probably not a tormented spirit (unless there was something mentally wrong with you when you were alive). That's why most people that become ghosts either get themselves raised or eventually pass on to the True Afterlife.

And dying doesn't have to be a painful experience. There's even a spell in the book that kills you painlessly so you can run around as a ghost without the messy bleeding and pain part.

Oh, and there are weird quirks to being a ghost, like you tend to focus on certain people, locations, or behaviors ... a gluttonous human might make a gluttonous ghost, even though he can't really taste the eight meals a day he's eating.

{Is it possible to keep characters dead in GW without having to resort to forces plots like having their bodies destroyed or whatever?}

I think so, yes. If anything, have the character's player come up with a good reason why their character would stay a ghost instead of being raised. "It's a novelty" is a totally valid answer, BTW, at least for the first couple of months.

{Perhaps just making Raise Dead and the higher level variants of that spell unavailable or very hard to get? I mean... you already get a 2nd chance after you died... even if your not exactly alive}

Well, we deliberately set up GW so it's easier to come back from the dead (no level loss in Manifest from the spells). Death in GW isn't a penalty, it's just a temporary obstacle. Making it a penalty (or a permanent obstacle) changes the setting (not that changing the setting is a bad thing, but it's something you must be aware of and adjust for accordingly). People in GW know that dying isn't so bad, and that coming back from the dead near Manifest is pretty simple. Death is just another form of existence. It's not a horrible state, it's just physically dulled, but for some who are unconcerned about such things that may not be much of a disincentive. After all, people have done stranger and more horrible things for power, both in the world of D&D and in the real world....
--
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com

[Big Mac]

Do the ghosts touch attacks allow iterative attacks?

Question:

1) Do the ghosts touch attacks allow iterative attacks?

Answer:

{1) Do the ghosts touch attacks allow iterative attacks?}

Yes, if the BAB is high enough to warrant iterative attacks.
Sean K Reynolds
http://www.seankreynolds.com