• Please note: In an effort to ensure that all of our users feel welcome on our forums, we’ve updated our forum rules. You can review the updated rules here: http://forums.wolflair.com/showthread.php?t=5528.

    If a fellow Community member is not following the forum rules, please report the post by clicking the Report button (the red yield sign on the left) located on every post. This will notify the moderators directly. If you have any questions about these new rules, please contact support@wolflair.com.

    - The Lone Wolf Development Team

Creating a new race with Spheres of Power

E

EldritchWeaver

Well-known member
I've been trying to create a SoP conversion of the unicorn inside HeroLab (see attachment), but I've reached a point where I can't figure out what to do - or if it is possible at this moment.

I still need to replicate the following abilities:

  • Easy Focus: The horn provides a wyrgrove unicorn the benefits of the Easy Focus boon, while not requiring any drawbacks in the first place.
  • Spell Points: A wyrgrove unicorn gains a small reservoir of energy that it can call upon to create wondrous effects, called a spell pool. This pool contains a number of spell points equal to ½ its racial HD + its Charisma modifier.
  • Spheres and Talents: Wyrgrove unicorns have innate sphere-casting abilities. They have a caster level equal to their racial hit dice and gain sphere talents and abilities equal to 2 + their caster level. In addition, wyrgrove unicorns may select a casting tradition the first time they gain the spheres and talents racial feature.

So I'd like to reference a boon as a racial ability, give spell points and CL based on racial HD, and add a number of magic talents (like Life). Any ideas on how to approach this?
 

Attachments

I have to admit, I hadn't considered the possibility of race-based spherecasting abilities. The "Class Talent Setup" component usually handles calculation of CL and talents granted based on class level, but it only looks at class levels, not racial HD. Rather stupid of me, in hindsight.

I can certainly create a race-based version of the talent setup component. I'll add that as a to-do for the next SoP update.

In the meantime, I was able to simply bootstrap abCasting to your unicorn race. That gave me a CL of 1 and no talents known. Applying Adjustments then allowed me to set those as appropriate.

I was also able to bootstrap Easy Focus to the unicorn race (with the CustTaken.cfgSoPTal tag so it shows up on the Magic Talents tab). However, the tab then complains that I've overspent on Boons. That's not unexpected, but it does mean I should probably make a "free boon" tag that will prevent a boon from incrementing the "boons spent" counter. Maybe a "boons allowed" adjustment as well.
 
Seems then I'll wait for the next update for now. Let's which bug I stumble upon next. ;) Thanks for adding it so quickly!

Edit:

I forgot: The Race Specials tab has also some entries requiring a minimum of class levels. The mentioned classes are Paizo-only. Is it possible to add SoP/PoW/other classes there as well? Or is that under LW control only?
 
Last edited:
It'll be in 1.10, which if all goes well I will be releasing by next week. There's a new "racial talent setup" component that mimics the class-based version. You'll bootstrap that (and also the core Casting ability) to a race in order to give it racial casting abilities.
 
EldritchWeaver said:
Seems to work so far, but how do I add magic talents, boons and drawbacks?
Click to expand...

If the race has specific magic talents (such as with Omnimentals), those talents should be bootstrapped to the race itself, with the CustTaken.cfgSoPTal and SoPTlClass.InitTalent tags.

To explain those tags: CustTaken.cfgSoPTal causes the talent to appear on the Magic Talents tab. SoPTlClass.InitTalent marks the talent as a "bonus" talent so that it does not count against talents spent.

If the race's casting abilities allow it to choose talents (such as with a Destructive Elemental), you enter values into the Talents Known array on the Race Talent Setup for the race. The creature will gain the number of talents corresponding with their HD, and this will stack with any talents they gain from levels in spherecasting classes.
 
TheIronGolem said:
If the race's casting abilities allow it to choose talents (such as with a Destructive Elemental), you enter values into the Talents Known array on the Race Talent Setup for the race. The creature will gain the number of talents corresponding with their HD, and this will stack with any talents they gain from levels in spherecasting classes.
Click to expand...

What values do I need to enter into Talents Known? And how do I set drawbacks and boon? I didn't find the place where I am supposed to bootstrap them in.
 
For Talents Known, you enter the total number of talents the creature gets at each hit die. The array is 0-indexed, so for Hit Die #X you enter the number at Row X-1.

So for example, if you're making something like an ogre-magi that gets 1 talent at its 1st HD and then another every odd HD, you'd put 1 in Row 0 and Row 1, 2 in Row 2 and Row 3, 3 in Row 4 and Row 5, and so on.

Incidentally, this is also how the Class Talent Setup works for casting classes.

For Boons and Drawbacks that are intended to be inherent to the race, you can bootstrap those to the race/template, or to the Race Talent Setup. Like talents, they will need to be bootstrapped with the CustTaken.cfgSoPTal tag. If a Drawback should not grant a bonus talent, add the tag SphOfPow.NoBnTalent to the Drawback as well.
 
You need to bootstrap the Casting ability itself (abSoPCast) to the race.

Also, I see that in the Race Talent Setup for this critter, you've only filled out the first four rows, presumably because it only has 4 HD. But remember that HD advancement is a thing, and these rows are not additive. That means if you add even one extra HD to the creature, it will lose its magic talent. So even if it never gains any more talents then it should still have a 1 in every row.
 
Adding that bootstrap only helped partially. Despite having a 1 in every row of the Talents Known array and having 4 HD, I am only granted one magic talent.
 
EldritchWeaver said:
Adding that bootstrap only helped partially. Despite having a 1 in every row of the Talents Known array and having 4 HD, I am only granted one magic talent.
Click to expand...

A 1 in every row means you are only granting one magic talent.

If you want to add an additional talent every 3rd level then rows will need to be set to 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 4, 4, 4, 5, 5, 5, etc.
 
Yes, sorry, that's what I meant by the rows not being additive. It's not "you gain this many talents at this level", it's "this is the total number of talents this class/race gives you at this level".
 
I should read really everything. *facedesks*

Ok, while that part works, there is still a bug left. Namely the 2 bonus magic talents aren't granted when choosing the race.
 
Help with magic Item

I am trying to make a Phylactery of Positive Energy for Warpriests I cannot find the Warpriest Channel energy ability on the class/class special tab.

The Phylactry of positive Engery does not work for the warpriest because the Helper in the Eval Script is different from the Wapriest Helper. Where do I find the right Helper?


if (field[gIsEquip].value <> 0) then
foreach pick in hero from Ability where "Helper.ChannelPos"
eachpick.field[abValue2].value += 2
nexteach
endif
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top