Rameses
08-30-2007, 04:06 PM
Hello everyone. I am, Rameses!
I’ve rolled and re-rolled a Rogue since I first signed up for a subscription to Dungeons and Dragons Online (DDO.)
At first I thought I’d roll a Rogue like I played back in my pen and paper days. That led to re-roll number one. Trapmonkeys, while in interesting just can’t cut it in DDO, because of the lack of combat survivability.
A few more trails and errors I heard about a Sorcerer character that a guild member was planning with Divine Vitality (DV’s.)
What! A Sorcerer with DV’s so unheard of. So I rolled one of these DV Sorcerer’s. The synergy of a Sorcerer’s Charisma and the Divine Vitality requirement of Charisma Score to determine the base amount of DV’s that you start with far surpassed my expectations.
But I felt that with Mod 4 coming out at the time that the gaming environment was about to shift again from Direct Damage to more insta-death type casting. And that level of Cleric needed to have access to DV’s just didn’t allow for the “hot spell” at the time.
So I sat back at the time and thought what other class could have that same shared Charisma synergy without taking a hit to the over all effectiveness of the class.
Mind you, I already had a capped Rogue at the time that I was less than pleased with and a bard named Nikke; that was one of the first True Battle Bards on the Argonnessen server.
I enjoyed the versatility of Nikke (High Cha and decent UMD) but had a growing hate of the Bard class. Mostly due to the ignorance of the average player towards the Bard class.
I figured I didn’t like my Cookie Cutter 13 Rogue - 1 Fighter. He was very bland with decent trap-smithing skills and not to shabby combat skills, but really lacked the versatility of my Bard. Yes, I didn’t invest into UMD.
Re-Roll! I heard the call, it must be done. At the time the Cookie Cutter had been changed; everyone was rolling 13 Rogues – 1 Rangers for wand usage and two weapon fighting. And I did not want to fall into the Cookie Cutter rut again. So I plotted my next Rogue: The Penitent Rogue.
I would invest Character Generation points into Int, Dex, Cha as my characters primary statistics. The rest would be “dump stats.” Boy did this provide hurdles to jump as I leveled this character.
Rameses: The Penitent Rogue
Level 14 Chaotic Good Halfling Male
(13 Rogue \ 1 Cleric)
Hit Points: 220
Spell Points: 150
BAB: 9\9\14
Saves (Self-Buffed)
Fort: 20
Reflex: 30
Will: 17
AC 38 (Self-Buffed)
Modified Stats
Abilities (Level 14)
Strength: 12 (6 base +1 tome +5 Str item)
Dexterity: 32 (16 base +3 level +2 Racial +3 Class +2 Raid Tome +6 item)
Constitution: 16 (8 base +2 Favor Tome, +6 Item)
Intelligence : 24 (18 base +1 tome, +5 item)
Wisdom: 14 (8 base +1 Tome, +5 item)
Charisma: 22 (15 base +1 tome +6 item)
Level Progression
1-2 level Rogue.
3 level Cleric.
4-14 level Rogue.
Why a level of Cleric you may ask?
Pros-
The Ability to use all Divine Wands without ever making a UMD check which is very helpful while leveling.
Divine Vitality: I was tired of hearing I am out of Spell Points; sorry.
Proficiency in all Armors (heavy, medium, light)
Proficiency in all Shields (exception Tower)
+2 Hit points
+2 Fort and Will Save
Cons-vs. 14 Rogue
-1 BAB on a class that is already short
-1 Trap Sense
-1 Reflex Save
Skills (Level 14)
Balance: 29
Bluff: 15
Concentration: 8
Diplomacy: 28
Disable Device: 44
Haggle: 42
Heal: 11
Hide: 47
Intimidate: 11
Jump: 37
Listen: 15
Move Silently: 45
Open Lock: 52
Perform: n/a
Repair: 10
Search: 48
Spot: 39
Swim: 7
Tumble: 18
Use Magic Device: 37
The Penitent Rogues feats have changed so much since originally rolling him.
Currently The Penitent Rogue has the following feats.
Level One: Two Weapon Fighting. (on character creation: Extra Turning for more DV’s)
Level Three: Weapon Finesse.
Level Six: Skill Focus: UMD. (originally Skill Focus: Search)
Level Nine: Toughness. (Originally: Exotic Weapon Feat: kama. Hey, I had a Vorpal Kama.)
Level Twelve: Improved Critical: Piercing
The Penitent Rogues enhancements are in such a state of flux it’s difficult to list an accurate portrayal.
Currently The Penitent Rogue has the following Enhancements.
Halfling Dex: II
Halfling Cunning: II
Rogue Faster Sneaking: IV
Rogue Sneak Attack Training: IV
Rogue Sneak Attack Accuracy: I
Rogue Skill: Search III
Rogue Skill: Spot III
Rogue Stat Dex III
Cleric Divine Vitality: I
Cleric Extra Turning I
Notable Equipment in use by level 14
Not everyone is going to have access to some or even any of the loot. I will list alternatives.
+5 Mithral Chainshirt
+5 Heavy Mithral shield
+1 STR/CHA/DEX/CON/INT/WIS Tome (prior to aquiring Favor and Raid Tomes.)
+5 Int Tiara (never used unless a hard trap to search for.)
+5 Wis Necklace (Subjective use.)
+6 Con Belt
+6 Dex Boots
+6 Cha Ring (always on for UMD)
+5 Str Bracers (RR: Halfling)
+5 Thieves Tools
+5 Protection Necklace
Greater False Life Ring
Sevenfingered Gloves (Worn at all times: Titan Raid Loot.) Golden Cartouche is a good substitute
Head of Good Fortune (Worn at all times: Reaver Raid Loot.) fairly common Reaver Raids are easy to come by.
Ring of Shadows
intricate field optics (can't waste your time searching for Secret doors)
+3 Wounding Short Sword of Puncturing
+1 Wounding Short Sword of Puncturing
Scrolls carried and used on a daily basis at level 14
Heal
Restoration
Raise Dead
Greater Heroism
Stone Skin
Mass Cure Moderate
D-Door (yes I still have a bunch)
Teleport
Greater Teleport
Mass Spell Resistance
Reconstruction
True Seeing
Wands used
Resistance and Protection Wands level 11
Blur Wands level 10
X-Retreat Wands level 10
Remove Curse
Remove Blindness
Cure Serious and Cure Critical (no UMD checks!)
Shield level 10
Items in the Cyan color come from input from Impact. Thank you again sir.
I know you would never do this Rameses but would going 11/2/1 rogue/paladin/cleric drop int to 17 and use a +1 tome so you only lose 4 skill points raise starting cha to 16 drop the extra point wherever pick up paladin charisma so...
net pros:
+1 DV
+1 UMD
+10/+6/+6 to your saves (or there abouts through cha/base)
net cons:
-4 skill points
-1d6 sneak attack
no crippling strike
its so overdone... ??? agree on this - Rameses!
just wondering how that would play out?
I like the idea, Connnor. And it is an intersting twist to the "Batman" type frame. With Mod 6 on the horizen and level Cap being raised to 16. Maybe. Just Maybe.
_________________
I am, Rameses!
I’ve rolled and re-rolled a Rogue since I first signed up for a subscription to Dungeons and Dragons Online (DDO.)
At first I thought I’d roll a Rogue like I played back in my pen and paper days. That led to re-roll number one. Trapmonkeys, while in interesting just can’t cut it in DDO, because of the lack of combat survivability.
A few more trails and errors I heard about a Sorcerer character that a guild member was planning with Divine Vitality (DV’s.)
What! A Sorcerer with DV’s so unheard of. So I rolled one of these DV Sorcerer’s. The synergy of a Sorcerer’s Charisma and the Divine Vitality requirement of Charisma Score to determine the base amount of DV’s that you start with far surpassed my expectations.
But I felt that with Mod 4 coming out at the time that the gaming environment was about to shift again from Direct Damage to more insta-death type casting. And that level of Cleric needed to have access to DV’s just didn’t allow for the “hot spell” at the time.
So I sat back at the time and thought what other class could have that same shared Charisma synergy without taking a hit to the over all effectiveness of the class.
Mind you, I already had a capped Rogue at the time that I was less than pleased with and a bard named Nikke; that was one of the first True Battle Bards on the Argonnessen server.
I enjoyed the versatility of Nikke (High Cha and decent UMD) but had a growing hate of the Bard class. Mostly due to the ignorance of the average player towards the Bard class.
I figured I didn’t like my Cookie Cutter 13 Rogue - 1 Fighter. He was very bland with decent trap-smithing skills and not to shabby combat skills, but really lacked the versatility of my Bard. Yes, I didn’t invest into UMD.
Re-Roll! I heard the call, it must be done. At the time the Cookie Cutter had been changed; everyone was rolling 13 Rogues – 1 Rangers for wand usage and two weapon fighting. And I did not want to fall into the Cookie Cutter rut again. So I plotted my next Rogue: The Penitent Rogue.
I would invest Character Generation points into Int, Dex, Cha as my characters primary statistics. The rest would be “dump stats.” Boy did this provide hurdles to jump as I leveled this character.
Rameses: The Penitent Rogue
Level 14 Chaotic Good Halfling Male
(13 Rogue \ 1 Cleric)
Hit Points: 220
Spell Points: 150
BAB: 9\9\14
Saves (Self-Buffed)
Fort: 20
Reflex: 30
Will: 17
AC 38 (Self-Buffed)
Modified Stats
Abilities (Level 14)
Strength: 12 (6 base +1 tome +5 Str item)
Dexterity: 32 (16 base +3 level +2 Racial +3 Class +2 Raid Tome +6 item)
Constitution: 16 (8 base +2 Favor Tome, +6 Item)
Intelligence : 24 (18 base +1 tome, +5 item)
Wisdom: 14 (8 base +1 Tome, +5 item)
Charisma: 22 (15 base +1 tome +6 item)
Level Progression
1-2 level Rogue.
3 level Cleric.
4-14 level Rogue.
Why a level of Cleric you may ask?
Pros-
The Ability to use all Divine Wands without ever making a UMD check which is very helpful while leveling.
Divine Vitality: I was tired of hearing I am out of Spell Points; sorry.
Proficiency in all Armors (heavy, medium, light)
Proficiency in all Shields (exception Tower)
+2 Hit points
+2 Fort and Will Save
Cons-vs. 14 Rogue
-1 BAB on a class that is already short
-1 Trap Sense
-1 Reflex Save
Skills (Level 14)
Balance: 29
Bluff: 15
Concentration: 8
Diplomacy: 28
Disable Device: 44
Haggle: 42
Heal: 11
Hide: 47
Intimidate: 11
Jump: 37
Listen: 15
Move Silently: 45
Open Lock: 52
Perform: n/a
Repair: 10
Search: 48
Spot: 39
Swim: 7
Tumble: 18
Use Magic Device: 37
The Penitent Rogues feats have changed so much since originally rolling him.
Currently The Penitent Rogue has the following feats.
Level One: Two Weapon Fighting. (on character creation: Extra Turning for more DV’s)
Level Three: Weapon Finesse.
Level Six: Skill Focus: UMD. (originally Skill Focus: Search)
Level Nine: Toughness. (Originally: Exotic Weapon Feat: kama. Hey, I had a Vorpal Kama.)
Level Twelve: Improved Critical: Piercing
The Penitent Rogues enhancements are in such a state of flux it’s difficult to list an accurate portrayal.
Currently The Penitent Rogue has the following Enhancements.
Halfling Dex: II
Halfling Cunning: II
Rogue Faster Sneaking: IV
Rogue Sneak Attack Training: IV
Rogue Sneak Attack Accuracy: I
Rogue Skill: Search III
Rogue Skill: Spot III
Rogue Stat Dex III
Cleric Divine Vitality: I
Cleric Extra Turning I
Notable Equipment in use by level 14
Not everyone is going to have access to some or even any of the loot. I will list alternatives.
+5 Mithral Chainshirt
+5 Heavy Mithral shield
+1 STR/CHA/DEX/CON/INT/WIS Tome (prior to aquiring Favor and Raid Tomes.)
+5 Int Tiara (never used unless a hard trap to search for.)
+5 Wis Necklace (Subjective use.)
+6 Con Belt
+6 Dex Boots
+6 Cha Ring (always on for UMD)
+5 Str Bracers (RR: Halfling)
+5 Thieves Tools
+5 Protection Necklace
Greater False Life Ring
Sevenfingered Gloves (Worn at all times: Titan Raid Loot.) Golden Cartouche is a good substitute
Head of Good Fortune (Worn at all times: Reaver Raid Loot.) fairly common Reaver Raids are easy to come by.
Ring of Shadows
intricate field optics (can't waste your time searching for Secret doors)
+3 Wounding Short Sword of Puncturing
+1 Wounding Short Sword of Puncturing
Scrolls carried and used on a daily basis at level 14
Heal
Restoration
Raise Dead
Greater Heroism
Stone Skin
Mass Cure Moderate
D-Door (yes I still have a bunch)
Teleport
Greater Teleport
Mass Spell Resistance
Reconstruction
True Seeing
Wands used
Resistance and Protection Wands level 11
Blur Wands level 10
X-Retreat Wands level 10
Remove Curse
Remove Blindness
Cure Serious and Cure Critical (no UMD checks!)
Shield level 10
Items in the Cyan color come from input from Impact. Thank you again sir.
I know you would never do this Rameses but would going 11/2/1 rogue/paladin/cleric drop int to 17 and use a +1 tome so you only lose 4 skill points raise starting cha to 16 drop the extra point wherever pick up paladin charisma so...
net pros:
+1 DV
+1 UMD
+10/+6/+6 to your saves (or there abouts through cha/base)
net cons:
-4 skill points
-1d6 sneak attack
no crippling strike
its so overdone... ??? agree on this - Rameses!
just wondering how that would play out?
I like the idea, Connnor. And it is an intersting twist to the "Batman" type frame. With Mod 6 on the horizen and level Cap being raised to 16. Maybe. Just Maybe.
_________________
I am, Rameses!