Blog Archives

Horrifically Overpowered Archetype Dedication Feats for PF2

Thursday Blogs are Back!

My Patreon has hit the funding level needed for my to go back to posting my full Thursday blogs on this Patreon. Thanks for your support!

HOF Dedication Feats for PF2

On Tuesday I did a few Pathfinder 2e Horrifically Overpowered Feats (HOF), including an Overpowered Rogue Dedication feat, which was extremely popular. The one comment was, “Now ALL the classes need overpowered dedication feats!”

Okay, fair enough. As long as we are making feats no on should ever use for any purpose, we might as well spread out the overpoweredness evenly.

Here’s six new Overpowered Dedication feats, along with slight rewrite of the earlier Overpowered Rogue Dedication feat. 

OVERPOWERED ALCHEMIST DEDICATION          [Feat 2]
[Archetype][Dedication]Multiclass][Horrifically Overpowered]
Prerequisites Intelligence 14; Alchemist Dedication or Alchemist Class
Select an alchemist’s research field you do not already have. You gain all the benefits of this research field, using your class level as your alchemist level to determine those benefits.
Special: This counts as a feat from the alchemist archetype for purposes of the Alchemist Dedication feat.

OVERPOWERED BARBARIAN DEDICATION          [Feat 2]
[Archetype][Dedication]Multiclass][Horrifically Overpowered]
Prerequisites Strength 14; Constitution 14; Barbarian Dedication or Barbarian Class
Select a barbarian’s instinct you do not already have. You gain all the benefits of this instinct, using your class level as your barbarian level to determine those benefits.
Special: This counts as a feat from the barbarian archetype for purposes of the Barbarian Dedication feat.

OVERPOWERED BARD DEDICATION          [Feat 2]
[Archetype][Dedication]Multiclass][Horrifically Overpowered]
Prerequisites Charisma 14; Bard Dedication or Bard Class
Select a bard’s muse you do not already have. You gain all the benefits of this muse, using your class level as your bard level to determine those benefits. Two levels after taking this HOF, you also gain one bard feat with this muse as a prerequisite.
Special: This counts as a feat from the bard archetype for purposes of the Bard Dedication feat.

OVERPOWERED CHAMPION DEDICATION          [Feat 2]
[Archetype][Dedication]Multiclass][Horrifically Overpowered]
Prerequisites Strength 14; Charisma 14; Champion Dedication or Champion Class
Select a champion’s cause you do not already have. You do not have to match its alignment, nor choose another deity or be bound by another anathema. You gain the 1st-level benefits of this cause.
Special: This counts as a feat from the champion archetype for purposes of the Champion Dedication feat.

OVERPOWERED CLERIC DEDICATION          [Feat 2]
[Archetype][Dedication]Multiclass][Horrifically Overpowered]
Prerequisites Wisdom 14; Cleric Dedication or Cleric Class
Select a domain from a deity that allows worshipers of your alignment. It does not have to be your deity, you don’t worship that deity, nor do you suffer the deity’s anathema. You are considered to have this domain for all purposes, and gain the domain’s initial domain spell as a devotion spell.
Special: This counts as a feat from the cleric archetype for purposes of the Cleric Dedication feat.

OVERPOWERED DRUID DEDICATION          [Feat 2]
[Archetype][Dedication]Multiclass][Horrifically Overpowered]
Prerequisites Wisdom 14; Druid Dedication or Druid Class
Select a druid order you do not have. You are considered to have this order for all purposes and gain all the abilities of that order, but not its anathema.
Special: This counts as a feat from the druid archetype for purposes of the Druid Dedication feat.

OVERPOWERED ROGUE DEDICATION          [Feat 2]
[Archetype][Dedication]Multiclass][Horrifically Overpowered]
Prerequisites Dexterity 14; Rogue Dedication or Rogue Class
Select a rogue’s racket you do not already have. You gain all the benefits of this racket, using your class level as your rogue level to determine those benefits.
Special: This counts as a feat from the rogue archetype for purposes of the Rogue Dedication feat.

Support
While I expect to be launching a massive multi-publisher mega-bundle to help over medical costs within a week, the main way to support me right now is to maintain (or even increase) your pledge level at my Patreon, or make a direct contribution at my Ko-Fi.

Let’s Create: Horrifically Overpowered PF2 Feats

Despite my marketing it as a product you should not use, and shouldn’t even buy, one of the most popular books I wrote for PF1 was “The Genius Guide to Horrifically Overpowered Feats.” In fact, it was so popular, we went on to produce 4 more “Horrifically Overpowered” PF1 books, and one “Horrifically Overpowered Feats” book for Starfinder.

So, obviously, I have to do at least one HOF (“Horrifically Overpowered Feats”) books for PF2. I was originally going to release one in early 2020 but… stuff… happened. So now I have part of a manuscript, a backlog of other projects that are late and higher-priority, and a tiny fraction of the time I can work each week.

Which, of course, is why my brain has been hammer on this project for days. And, since I also have an obligation to product blog posts for my Patreon backers, this seems like a great subject to get some gaming content back in these posts. Now, since my Tuesday posts are Patreon exclusive (until my Patreon reaches $1,500 a month). I’m not giving the full article here, which includes a design diary looking at how a Horrifically Overpowered feat is conceived and developed, from start to finish.

But I AM presenting 3 HOF that were the result of that development process. So you get the sausage here on my free blog, just not the longer article that shows how it was made.

(Art by Jesse-Lee Lang)

OVER ACTIVE          [Feat 1]
[General][Horrifically Overpowered]
You simply get more done in a few seconds than others. You gain a fourth action each round, which can only be used for Stride, Strike, or a manipulate action that is not an attack or the Cast A Spell activity. If you make a fourth attack in a round, it suffers the same multiple-attack penalty as if it was your third attack.

OVER REACTIVE          [Feat 1]
[General][Horrifically Overpowered]
You simple react more quickly than others. You gain a second reaction each round. You can’t use it to target a creature with an activity you have already targeted the same creature with this round.

OVERPOWERED ROGUE DEDICATION          [Feat 2]
[Archetype]-Dedication]Multiclass][Horrifically Overpowered]
Prerequisites Dexterity 14; Rogue Dedication or Rogue Class
Select a rogue’s racket you do not already have. You gain all the benefits of this racket, using your class level as your rogue level for any level-dependent calculations.
Special: This counts as a feat from the rogue archetype for purposes of the Rogue Dedication feat.

Now, I just need 20 more pages of Horrifically Overpowered Feats for PF2, and I can make a product!

Support A number of folks have asked about helping me cover my medical expenses as I recover from my pulmonary embolism, and prepare to battle my cancer. While I’ll do a GoFundMe if I absolutely have to, and expect there to be more product bundles to raise funds come April, the main way to support me right now is to join (or increase your pledge level) at my Patreon, or make a direct contribution at my Ko-Fi.

Now On Patreon: Companion Feats for PF2

As I run my Gatekeepers campaign for PF2, the player running a ranger with a bear companion (“Brogue,” who is beloved by the team) and I are learning the Companion rules together.

Sometimes, we both think there ought to be an option to expand the existing options, such as with a feat.

Two of those feats are now up at my Patreon.

(Art by grandfailure)

Those feats (and all Tuesday and Thursday posts) is currently exclusive to my Patreon. When we raise my Patreon to $1,500/month, I’ll go back to making all my weekly posts double posts here and on my blog. (And at 1,000/month, I’ll go back to including Thursday posts here on the free blog.)

At the $1,500 goal, I’ll also create and maintain Starfinder and 5e article Index Pages for my Patrons, with links to all my 5e and Starfinder blog and Patreon content.

(However, my #Dungeon23 project, Into the Tomb Lands, is also at my Patreon and free to all! And as of this writing, we’re up to 3 encounters.)

Simple Stance Feats for Pathfinder 2nd Edition

One of the things that evolved in PF1 was “Stances,” special kinds of combat options you could only use one of at a time. They were a neat idea, but were implemented haphazardly over years of expansions (in some cases under my watch, on books I was the developer for).

Similarly, there were weapon traits in PF1, but many of them were inherited from the previous version of the game, and others were added 9again, in some cases under my watch) in ways that may not have been as consistent as they should have been.

For PF2, the Pathfinder Design Team made stances and weapon traits a core part of the game, and gave them a much more uniform (and compiled) core set of rules in the core rulebook.

So, of course, I want to play with them… in this case by combining them. Stances have the limitation you can only use one at a time (unless you’re a 20th level monk who picks just the right feat), and weapon traits have the limitation that they are only on some weapons so it can be impossible to get some combinations of traits. But with this Simple Stance feat, you can get access to traits not on your weapon, at the cost of having to set yourself into a stance (taking an action) and not being able to benefit from another stance at the same time.

(Art by warmtail)

Simple Stances [Feat 1]
[Class varies, see below]

Select two of the simple stances below which list your class, you gain access to these stances. When you meet one of these stances’ requirements you can enter that stance with the Enter Stance action. While in that stance, you may choose to add the weapon trait the stance is named for to weapons noted in the stance’s requirements. For example, a rogue can select agile stance, and when wielding a single 1-handed melee weapon and having the other hand free, the rogue may choose to add the agile trait to that weapon. If you take this feat as a monk class feat, you may also add the trait to any unarmed attack you make, and may replace any requirement with being able to make an unarmed attack.

Enter Stance [1-action]
You enter a stance you know through the simple stance feat. You may also Step.

Agile Stance [Bard][Magus][Monk][Fighter][Investigator][Rogue][Swashbuckler]
Requirement You are wielding a single 1-handed melee weapon and your other hand is free.

Backstabber Stance [Monk][Fighter][Investigator][Rogue][Swashbuckler]
Requirement You are wielding an agile or finesse weapon.

Backswing Stance [Barbarian][Fighter]
Requirement You are wielding a a 1-handed weapon that has the two hands trait, and are using 2 hands.

Concussive Stance [Fighter][Rogue]
Requirement You are wielding a versatile weapon that deals bludgeoning or piercing damage.

Disarm Stance [Magus][Fighter][Investigator][Rogue][Swashbuckler]
Requirement You are in light armor or unarmored.

Fatal Stance [Barbarian][Champion][Fighter][Ranger][Swashbuckler]
Requirement You are wielding a deadly weapon. Your fatal die size is based on the original weapon’s deadly die size, and the weapons loses its deadly trait while you are in this stance. If the weapon’s damage die is already the same size or greater than the new fatal die size, do not change the weapon’s damage die size (though it still adds a die of damage as normal for the fatal trait).

Original Deadly Die Size/New Fatal Die Size
1d6 or less/1d8
1d8/1d10
1d10/1d12
1d12/2d8

Finesse Stance [Bard][Magus][Monk][Fighter][Investigator][Ranger][Rogue][Swashbuckler]
Requirement You are wielding a melee weapon of 1 or less bulk.

Forceful Stance [Barbarian][Monk][Fighter][Ranger]
Requirement You are wielding a melee weapon that does not have the deadly or fatal traits.

Grapple Stance [Bard][Fighter][Ranger][Rogue][Swashbuckler]
Requirement You are wielding a weapon from the flail group, or that has “whip” in its name.

Hampering Stance [Barbarian][Monk][Fighter]
Requirement You are wielding a two-handed melee weapon, or one with reach.

Parry Stance [Champion][Monk][Fighter][Ranger][Rogue][Swashbuckler]
Requirement You are wielding a shield or two weapons.

Shove Stance [Champion][Fighter]
Requirement You are wielding a shield.

Sweep Stance [Fighter][Ranger][Rogue][Swashbuckler]
Requirement You are wielding two melee weapons.

Trip Stance [Bard][Fighter][Investigator][Rogue][Swashbuckler]
Requirement You are wielding a reach weapon, a weapon from the flail group, or that has “whip” in its name.

Support My Patreon
The more support I get, the more time I can spend on writing things like this. 

If you enjoy any of my articles, please sign up, for as little as the cost of one cup of coffee a month!


Now On Patreon: Fighter Critical Specialization Feats

One of the interesting additions of Pathfinder 2nd Ed is critical specialization effects. While there are lots of PC options built around accessing them, I haven’t noticed any built around modifying how they work. Which, of course, made me want to create some.

Being better with criticals definitely feels weapon master/fighter themed. I could see creating a Weapon master archetype, but for now I’ve just created them as fighter class feats for Pathfinder 2nd ed over on my Patreon. Since I need to raise the funding level of my Patreon, until I get more backers all Thursday posts are Patreon exclusive.

However, once my Patreon funding level hits $1,000/month, I’ll go back to posting my Thursday posts free for all to see here, AND I’ll create and maintain an index page of all my PF2 articles for Patrons, so they can easily access all my online PF2 content!

(Art by grandfailure)

Spell Slot Expansion Class Feats for Pathfinder 2nd ed

So in Pathfinder 2e gaining some additional spellcasting options is pretty straightforward — pick up the Multiclass Dedication feat for any full spellcasting class other than your base class, and then start grabbing Spellcasting feats as they become available. Of course that gets you spells from another class, rather than your own, and it requires you pick up a Dedication feat first. But when it comes to gaining more spell slots for your own class, your only real option is Cantrip Expansion. But cantrip Expansion is very similar to the Spellcasting dedication feats, in that it gives you access to two extra cantrips.

So, let’s compare the Cantrip Expansion feat to the Wizard Dedication feat:

—–

CANTRIP EXPANSION
Feat 2
Bard Cleric Magus Oracle Psychic Sorcerer Witch Wizard

A greater understanding of your magic broadens your range of simple spells.
Prepared Caster (Cleric, Wizard, etc.): You can prepare two additional cantrips each day.
Spontaneous Caster (Bard, Sorcerer, etc.): Add two additional cantrips from your spell list to your repertoire.

WIZARD DEDICATION
Feat 2

Archetype Dedication Multiclass
Archetype
Wizard
Prerequisites Intelligence 14
You cast spells like a wizard, gaining a spellbook with four common arcane cantrips of your choice. You gain the Cast a Spell activity. You can prepare two cantrips each day from your spellbook. You’re trained in arcane spell attack rolls and spell DCs. Your key spellcasting ability for wizard archetype spells is Int, and they are arcane wizard spells. You become trained in Arcana; if you were already trained in Arcana, you instead become trained in a skill of your choice. Select one arcane school of magic; you don’t gain any abilities from your choice of school.
Special You can’t select another dedication feat until you have gained two other feats from the wizard archetype.

—-

So we can see from this that the Wizard Dedication feat gives you much more than the cantrip Expansion feat — but both add 2 cantrips per day to your total spell output. Now, there are potentially good and valid reasons for the Dedication feat to give you more, the biggest one being that as a dedication feat once you take it, you are temporarily locked out of other dedication feats, while Cantrip Expansion leaves you free to still pick up an archetype if you wish to.

So, using this as the power level baseline, we can create other Expansion feats as class feats by comparing them to Sorcerer/Wizard archetype feats of the same level. That gives us a clear blueprint for Spell Slot Expansion class feats, which like Cantrip Expansion) become class feats for all the spellcasting classes.

(Art by warmtail)

Basic Spell Slot Expansion Feat 4
Bard Cleric Magus Oracle Psychic Sorcerer Witch Wizard

A greater understanding of your magic broadens your range of more complex spells.
You gain an additional 1st-level spell slot. You gain an additional 2nd-level spell slot when your class level reaches 6th, and an additional 3rd-level spell slot when your class level reaches 8th.

Spell Breadth Feat 8
Bard Cleric Magus Oracle Psychic Sorcerer Witch Wizard

Prerequisites Basic Spell Slot Expansion
A greater understanding of your magic broadens your range of more complex spells.
You can cast more spells each day. Increase the spell slots you gain from your class by 1 for each spell level other than your two highest class spell slots.

Expert Spell Slot Expansion Feat 12
Bard Cleric Magus Oracle Psychic Sorcerer Witch Wizard

Prerequisites Basic Spell Slot Expansion
A greater understanding of your magic broadens your range of even more complex spells.
You gain an additional 4th-level spell slot. You gain an additional 5th-level spell slot when your class level reaches 14th, and an additional 6th-level spell slot when your class level reaches 16th.

Master Spell Slot Expansion Feat 18
Bard Cleric Magus Oracle Psychic Sorcerer Witch Wizard

Prerequisites Basic Spell Slot Expansion, Expert Spell Slot Expansion
A greater understanding of your magic broadens your range of extremely complex spells.
You gain an additional 7th-level spell slot. You gain an additional 8th-level spell slot when your class level reaches 20th.

Support My Patreon
The more support I get, the more time I can spend on writing things like this. 

If you enjoy any of my articles, please sign up, for as little as the cost of one cup of coffee a month!

Now On Patreon: Shield Feats for PF2

I’m currently running a PF2 campaign (Gatekeepers, you can find the index here), and preparing to be on a PF2 actual play podcast (more info on that closer to time, likely early next year). This has me thinking about PF2 feats, how they are constructed, and what they are supposed to do.

As a result, I’ve released a set of shield-themed feats for F2 over on my Patreon. Since I need to raise the funding level of my Patreon, until I get more backers all Tuesday posts are Patreon exclusive.

But, there IS another set of shield feats I’ve already done for PF2, which you can access for free here.

(Sometimes you really want to get your shield up! Art by Nyothep,)

Class Paragon: An Archetype for Pathfinder 2nd edition

One common and popular Pathfinder 2e optional rule is the “free archetype,” which gives characters a free feat they can use for archetypes at 2nd level (and every even level thereafter), which they can only use for archetype feats. This makes it easy and appealing to pick up an archetype that can expand your options and bring depth to your character build.

It also makes it mandatory.

If someone just wanted to be a rogue, in a Free Archetype campaign, their choices are to violate that desire, or to ignore 10 free feats over 20 levels and be notably less powerful than their allies. Now, it’s simplicity itself to allow a character to take additional class feats the qualify for in place of archetype feats… but that isn’t really equivalent. The breadth and access to totally new and unrelated powers granted by archetypes are more than just extra feat slots. It has a broadening effect on an entire character build, and if a player wants to match that while remaining with a single class, it takes slightly more complex rules.

For that purpose, I offer up the Class Paragon. This is an archetype is designed ONLY for use in campaigns with the free archetype optional rules, to allow characters that opt to still remain within the realm of a single class to gain the same kind of benefit, in time picking up abilities from within the class that normally wouldn’t be available to them.

(Art by warmtail)

Class Paragon

Rather than spending time to learn abilities outside your core competency, you have devoted yourself to mastering a single path. In time, you will have a depth of tricks few in your chosen line of action can master.

Class Paragon Dedication Feat 2

Archetype Dedication
Prerequisites: Levels in only one class, no multiclass archetype feats
You gain a 1st-level or 2nd-level class feat, and become trained in one skill of your choice.

Basic Paragon Training Feat 4

Archetype
You gain a 1st-level or 2nd-level class feat.

Advanced Paragon Training Feat 6

Archetype
You gain a class feat with a level no greater than half your class level.
Special: You can select this feat up to five times.

Skill Mastery Feat 8

Archetype
Increase your proficiency rank in one of your skills from expert to master and in another of your skills from trained to expert. You gain a skill feat associated with one of the skills you chose.
Special: You can select this feat up to five times.

Class Paragon Mastery Feat 10

Archetype
You gain an additional class feature of your class, or an advantage with abilities gained through your class and class feats, as detailed below. You gain the benefits of any selected additional feature that would be granted to a character of half your class level, and gains additional benefits as appropriate as your effective class level for these features increases. Any time a benefit you grant you a skill proficiency level you already have, you may become proficient in one additional skill.
Alchemist: Select an additional research field.
Barbarian: Select an additional instinct.
Bard: Select an additional muse. You also add another focus point to your focus pool, which can expand your focus pool to 4 points if you would have 3 without this feat.
Champion: Select an additional cause. Your alignment need not match this cause exactly, but you must have at least 1 element in common.
Cleric: Select an additional doctrine.
Druid: Select an additional druidic order. You also add another focus point to your focus pool, which can expand your focus pool to 4 points if you would have 3 without this feat.
Fighter: Select an additional weapon group for weapon mastery. At 13th level, you also select an additional weapon group for weapon legend. At 20th level, you gain a +1 bonus to all attacks with weapons you have legendary proficiency with.
Gunslinger: Select an additional way.
Inventor: Select an additional innovation.
Investigator: Select an additional methodology.
Magus: Select an additional hybrid study.
Monk: You gain one bonus stance feat for which you meet the prerequisites. Select one stance which may be on you just gained with this feat). You can enter this stance when you roll for initiative by expending 1 focus point. You can also enter into a new stance while already in another stance without ending the previous stance, as long as one of the two stances is your selected stance, by expending 1 focus point. Each subsequent round you must either end one of the stances, or expend another focus point. You also add another focus point to your focus pool, which can expand your focus pool to 4 points if you would have 3 without this feat.
Oracle: Select an additional mystery. You can choose to also gain its associated curse, or not. You can change this decision each time you gain an oracle level.
Psychic: Select an additional conscious mind.
Ranger: Select an additional hunter’s edge.
Rogue: Select an additional racket.
Sorcerer: Select an additional bloodline.
Summoner: The manifest eidolon action takes you only 2 actions. Additionally, you gain a second eidolon (built as if you were a summoner of half your actual summoner level). You can only have one eidolon summoned at a time, but may summon either eidolon whenever you use the manifest eidolon action. If you already had an eidolon manifested when you do this, it immediately disappears as if you had dismissed it.
Swashbuckler: You select an additional style.
Thaumaturge: You select an additional implement, which functions as a first implement for a thaumaturge of half your class level.
Witch: You gain the hex cantrip and granted spell of an additional patron theme of your choice. You also add another focus point to your focus pool, which can expand your focus pool to 4 points if you would have 3 without this feat. At 15th level, you gain an additional witch focus spell of your choice.
Wizard: Select an additional arcane thesis. At 15th level, select another additional arcane thesis.

WANT TO KEEP GETTING THIS CONTENT? MY PATREON NEEDS SUPPORT!

So, I need to shill for my Patreon. The time I take to write these posts is paid for my people paying me as little as $3 a month. I very much prefer making the vast majority of these posts publicly available, but right now my Patreon is not bringing in as much as I need to cover the time my blog takes up.

So, beginning this week and until my Patreon hits a higher benchmark, my Tuesday and Thursday posts are going to be Patreon-exclusive. At $1k/month, I’ll go back to having Thursday posts be public, and at $1500/month, I’ll go back to all my posts being public. I hate having to close some of my content, and I know a lot of people are in tight circumstances (and I get it), but the reality is I need to either cut back on the time taken on these blogs, or have my Patreon grow. Rather than cut back immediately, I’m trying to encourage more people to join my Patreon, in the hopes that can benefit everyone.


The Motiff Feat, for Starfinder

Starfinder themes aren’t quite backgrounds, and they aren’t quite professions, and I know why that is but this isn’t the place for that discussion.

Instead, this is the place where I discuss the fact that themes are, by core rules, locked in forever. Your ace pilot swear off starships forever and turn to sun prophets? Too bad, you’ll never change your theme benefits, or gain ones that might be more appropriate.

But, you know, we could make a rule that let you do so.

Motiff
The theme of your life has evolved since you started adventuring.
Prerequisites: 7 ranks in the skill that is made a class skill by the theme you select with this feat.
Benefit: You gain the 6th-level benefit of a specific theme you do not already have the 6th-level ability for. Once selected, what theme benefit you gain from this feat cannot be changed.
Special: You can select this feat mote than once. Each time, it must grand you a different theme benefit.

Greater Motiff
The theme of your life has developed
Prerequisites: Motiff, 13 ranks in the skill that is made a class skill by the theme you select with this feat.
Benefit: You gain the 12th-level benefit of a specific theme you selected with the Motiff feat, and that you do not already have the 12th-level ability for. Once selected, what theme benefit you gain from this feat cannot be changed.
Special: You can select this feat mote than once. Each time, it must grand you a different theme benefit.

Patreon
I have a Patreon. It helps me carve out the time needed to create these blog posts, and is a great way to let me know what kind of content you enjoy. If you’d like to see more Starfinder content (or more rules for other game systems, fiction, game industry essays, game design articles, worldbuilding tips, whatever!), try joining for just a few bucks and month and letting me know!

Owen Explains It All — Command Voice and Sonic Weapons for Starfinder

Before we get to any OGL content, an editorial aside:

First, this blog has spoilers for Dune — the book, both movies, and the miniseries. So if you want to avoid those, don’t read this.

Second, you may be wondering why is this tagged as an “Owen Explains It All” post, when that’s very unlike my normal marketing tone? Well, because this links into a show from the BAMF podcast I’m on, titled “Owen Explains It All!“. We do an episode every two weeks, picking new things from the zeitgeek to use as inspiration for game material, specifically the Starfinder Roleplaying Game.

We have a logo and everything!

If you haven’t already gone and watched the October 25, 2021 episode, we talk about various version of Frank Herbert’s Dune. Specifically, how it’s very much a skill-based setting, with the Voice, Prana-bindu training, and the Weirding Way as taught and learned abilities. We also spoke about David Lynch’s 1984 Dune movie, which replaced much of that with raw technology, in the form of “Weirding Modules,” which still required training as the words used impacted its effectiveness.

And all of that leads me to Command Voice and Sonic Weapons, as OGL content

Command Voice Feats

The brain of any sentient is designed to take in information, process it, decide what it means, and use that to form a mental picture of what reality is and what actions should be taken. Normally, speech is processed as a form of information that must be carefully analyzed and considered before being accepted. However, with extensive training it is possible to change the pitch and intensity of the spoken word such that short commands bypass a brain’s normal analysis portion of taking in information, and accept it as a decision made by the target’s own mind. This is known as the Command Voice.

Command Voice
You can cause the weak-willed to briefly obey you.
Prerequisites: Charisma 13, 5 ranks of Diplomacy, 5 ranks of Intimidate.
Benefit: You can expend 1 Resolve Point to use the bully task of the Intimidate skill as a full action, rather than the normal 1 minute. The creature is only bulled for 1 round, plus 1 round for every 5 by which your check exceeds the DC.
Special: An envoy can take Command Voice as an envoy skill expertise, without meeting its prerequisites.

Greater Command Voice
Your command over can cause the weak-willed to briefly obey you.
Prerequisites: Charisma 15+, Command Voice, 8 ranks of Diplomacy, 8 ranks of Intimidate.
Benefit: You can use Command Voice as a standard action (though it still requires you to expend a Resolve Point). Alternatively you can use Command Voice without expending a Resolve Point, but take a -10 penalty to your Intimidate check when you do so. When using Command Voice, if you exceed the normal DC by 5, the target does not realize you bullied it and it’s attitude towards you does not change as a result of it. If you exceed the normal DC by 10, the bullying lasts for 1 minute.
Special: A character with 5 or more envoy levels and Command Voice can take Greater Command Voice as an envoy skill expertise without meeting its prerequisites.

Sonic Weapons

Faiet Module

Faiet Modules are hybrid magic item weapons that use the power of specific words or sounds, and converts them into killing energy. They are the ultimate expression of the Faiet Way, a method of influencing and controlling creatures through the use of specific tones of voice and combinations of phrases that bypass much of the psychological defense of a target. However, Faiet Modules take those sounds and convert them into physical harm far beyond some tool of coercion or deceit.

(Faiet Module art by Jacob Blackmon)

In addition to a small hand-held emitter, a Faiet Module has a throat mic, which must be worn to use the weapon. The price is included in the price of the module, and it can be added to armor without taking up an upgrade slot. If the operator of the Faiet Module is for some reason unable to speak or make a sound as loud as a shouted word, the module cannot be used to attack,

The results from attacking with a Faiet Module are only partly about accuracy and combat acumen. A great deal of the successful use of a such a module depends on the ability to accurately create the needed killing words, and to do so in rhythm with the sounds of a conflict. As a result, despite being small arms Faiet Modules cannot be used to perform trick attacks (the misdirection required for trick attacks is not compatible with the voice control and forthrightness needed to create effective killing words), and rather than the normal Weapon Specialization a character gains bonus damage equal to their ranks in Bluff, Culture, Diplomacy, or Intimidate (whichever is higher). A character that has no ranks in Bluff, Culture, Diplomacy, or Intimidate can’t use a Faiet Module at all.

Faiet Modules target EAC, despite doing both sonic and bludgeoning damage. Additionally Faiet Modules have the sound-dependent weapon special property.

New Weapon Special Properties

Sound-dependent: If a target cannot hear you when you attack with a sound-dependent weapon, it cannot be harmed any sonic damage dealt by that weapon. Thus, for example, they don’t deal sonic damage in a vacuum. However, if the weapon does more than one damage type (such as a Faeit Module dealing both sonic and bludgeoning damage), the weapons can still deal the non-sonic portion of the damage.

Sonic Small Arms
WEAPONLVL$DAMRNGCRITCapacity/
Usage
BULKSpecial
Faiet Module, Mummer14001d6 S & B30 ft.Wound20/1LSound-dependent
Faiet Module, Eulogy42,5001d10 S & B40 ft.Wound20/1LSound-dependent
Faiet Module, Epitaph76,5002d6 S & B40 ft.Wound20/1LSound-dependent
Faiet Module, Lament1128,0004d6 S & B40 ft.Wound40/2LSound-dependent
Faiet Module, Dirge15100,0006d6 S & B40 ft.Wound40/2LSound-dependent
Faiet Module, Requiem19625,0009d6 S & B50 ft.Wound100/4LSound-dependent

Expanded Post

This is an Expanded Post, with the rules for Warpboxing (another item inspired by the same sources) available to my Patrons, who provide me with the support that makes these posts possible. If you aren’t already a member of my Patreon, sign up and all the Expanded Posts to date become available!