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Awesome 80s: Transforming Feats for Starfinder
Today we’re wrapping up this week of Awesome 80s blog posts, which are about sharing some of the things I created partially due to the inspirations I got from movies, shows, games, and literature of that decade. It’s been all about transforming vehicle robotstuff this week, so I’m tacking on a couple feats in case you want your species, monster, or ThemeType to focus even more on transforming.
(Art by Jacob Blackmon. Want to pay him to make art of YOUR transforming robot character? Drop him a line!)
Dodging Transformation
You can change forms to duck enemy attacks.
Prerequisites: vehicle form special ability (from the deceptive transforming robot graft, mechamorph species, or mechaserve robot pilot themetype).
Benefit: Once per day, when you fail a Reflex saving throw or your armor class is hit by an attack, you can change modes as a reaction. This allows you to reroll the Reflex save with a +8 bonus, or force the attack to be rerolled against you with a -8 penalty. You can also take a guarded step as part of this action, if you wish.
Triple Transformations
There’s even more to you than one trick up your sleeve.
Prerequisites: vehicle form special ability (from the deceptive transforming robot graft, mechamorph species, or mechaserve robot pilot themetype).
Benefit: Select a second vehicle mode, following all the rules for your first vehicle mode. Any time you switch to your vehicle mode, or gain benefits from your vehicle mode, you can choose between your original vehicle mode or this new mode. Every time you gain a character level, you may select a new second vehicle mode.
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Starfarer’s Codex: More PF1 Metamagic Feats for Starfinder
While I have already converted all the metamagic feats in the PF1 Core Rulebook to Starfinder, there are tons more official PF1 metamagic feats out there we can use to create interesting magic options for spellcasters in Starfinder.
Here are a few converted from the APG.
Focused Spell
When you cast a spell that normally affects more than one creature, you can focus it on one opponent that finds it more difficult to resist.
Prerequisites: Ability to cast spells.
Benefit: When casting a spell that an area with a 5-foot-radius or larger, or targets more than one creature, you can choose to cast it with a casting time of 1 full action. This focuses the spell on only a single target within the spell effect. The saving throw DC to resist the spell is increased by +2 for that creature. You must choose which target to focus the spell on before casting the spell. Spells that do not require a saving throw to resist or lessen the spell’s effect do not benefit from this feat.
Once you have used this ability, you cannot do so again until after you next recuperate*. If your caster level is 5th or higher, you can instead expend 2 Resolve Points to use this ability again without recuperating.
Intensified Spell
You can cast damaging spells at higher spell level, to increase their damage.
Prerequisites: Ability to cast 2nd level or higher spells.
Benefit: When you cast a damaging spell with a casting time of 1 standard action, that is at least 1 spell level lower than the highest-level spell you can cast, you may cast it with a casting time of 1 full action using a higher-level spell slot than it normally takes. Such spells do 2 additional dice of damage for every level the spell slot you expend is than the spell’s normal level. The extra dice deal the same type of damage and follow all the rules of the original spell. You also calculate the spell’s save DC using the level of spell slot expended, rather than its normal spell slot. If you have other feats or abilities that depend on the spell level of the spell you cast, you treat its spell level as being equal to the level of spell slot you use to cast it.
Lingering Spell
Your spell clings to existence, slowly fading from the world.
Prerequisites: Ability to cast one or more instantaneous spells that affect an area.
Benefit: When you cast an instantaneous spell that affects an area and that is at least 1 level lower than the highest-level spell you can cast, you may cause it to persist until the beginning of your next turn. Those already in the area suffer no additional harm, but other creatures or objects entering the area are subject to its effects. A lingering spell with a visual manifestation obscures vision, providing concealment beyond 5 feet and total concealment beyond 20 feet.
Once you have used this ability, you cannot do so again until after you next recuperate*. If your caster level is 5th or higher, you can instead expend 2 Resolve Points to use this ability again without recuperating.
Merciful Spell
You can make your damaging spells less-than-lethal.
Prerequisites: Ability to cast spells that deal damage.
Benefit: When you cast a spell, you can choose for the damage it does to be nonlethal.
*Recuperate is my proposed term for when a character expends a Resolve Point and rests for 10 minutes, allowing them to regain all their Stamina Points.
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Revised Magister for PF1 (Part 10)
In part 10 of our series looking at a Revised Magister class (for PF1), we’re still working on new magister feats. These are all based off class features of combat classes, conceived and modified to make sense for a well-educated spellcaster.
Mystic Tactician
You’ve learned the ancient battlefield tactics of the Mage Knights.
Prerequisites: Magister 5, 5 ranks Knowledge (History)
Benefit: You gain one of the following teamwork feats for which you meet the prerequisites: Allied Spellcaster, Bonded Mind, Casting Conduit, Choral Support, Collective Recollection, Combat Medic, Conduit Casting, Cooperative Counterspelling, Coordinated Blast, Electric Discharge, Elemental Admixture, Familiar Link, Group Deliver Touch Spells, Group Shared Spells, Improved Spell Sharing, Metamagical Synergy, Mystical Reverberation, Piecing Gambit, Secret Language, Share Spells, Shielded Caster, Special Delivery, Spell Bluff, Spell Chain, Spell Synergy, Take the Hit.
As a standard action, you can grant this feat to all allies within 30 feet who can see and hear you. Allies retain the use of this bonus feat for 3 rounds plus 1 round for every two magister levels you possess. Allies do not need to meet the prerequisites of these bonus feats. You can use this ability once per day at 1st level, plus one additional time per day at 5th level and for every 5 levels thereafter. If you gain one of the teamwork feats listed (which you may do with magister bonus feats, if you wish), you can also grant them to allies by expending one use of this ability.
[As a design note I adore this idea… but I’m not 100% convinced it makes the most sense as a feat. A feat that grants another feat and does something else is weird, at minimum. In a final version, this might become a magister talent or even a mystic bond. But that’s how the writing process goes–get stuff WRITTEN first, develop those concepts later.]
Spellslinger
You have trained extensively in ranged spell combat.
Prerequisites: Magister 3, 5 spells known that require tanged attacks or ranged touch attacks.
Benefit: You gain a pool of grit, which is determined as using your magister level -2 as your gunslinger level, and using your primary spellcasting ability modifier. Rather than regain grit when you make critical blows or kill foes with firearms, you do so when you perform such deeds with spells using ranged attack rolls. You also gain the gunslinger’s dodge deed.
As you gain levels, you gain additional deeds (which can only be used with spells with ranged attacks, rather than firearms). If your magister level is 5 or greater, you also gain the utility shot deed. At 9th you gain startling shot, at 11th targeting, at 13th bleeding wound, at 15th menacing shot, at 17th evasive, and at 19th gunslinger’s luck.
Touch of Corruption
No matter the magic power source you draw from, you have taken a particular focus on the necromantic aspects of it.
Prerequisites: Magister 3, 5 spells known from the necromancy school.
Benefit: You gain the touch of corruption class feature of the antipaladin, using your magister level -1 as your antipaladin level. For every 6 magister levels you have, you also gain one of the antipaladin cruelties available to antipaladins at 3rd level, though you can never add more than one cruelty to a single attack.
Touch of Greater Corruption
Your necromantic powers grow.
Prerequisites: Magister 9, 9 spells known from the necromancy school.
Benefit: For every 6 magister levels you have, you gain one of the antipaladin cruelties available to antipaladins at 6th level, though you can never add more than one cruelty to a single attack.
Want More Professional Pathfinder 1st Edition?!
Hey folks! We’re not done with the Magister just yet — there are new and revised mystic talents and magister feats yet to come… but what do you want to see AFTER that?
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HEY, WHILE I HAVE YOUR ATTENTION!
I’m working with novelist and veteran game design Darrin Drader to bring a new edition of his Reign of Discordia sci-fi setting to 5e and the White Star rpg. As is the standard these days we have a Kickstarter campaign running at the moment, and would really appreciate you taking look, telling your friends, and maybe backing it!
Revised Magister for PF1 (Part 9)
Okay, moving on for now from mystic bonds for our Revised Magister class (for PF1), let’s take a look at some new magister feats. I strongly suspect I’d rework the entire magister feat dynamic in a final revised commercial version of this class, so all of these end up being mystic talents and instead of alternating between mystic talents and magister feat, the magister gets a mystic talent at every odd level (and one of them is “Bonus Feat,” like with so many class talent systems in Pf1), but that’s more of an overhaul than I want to get into for a simple update.
We’ll start with things inspired by the alchemist class. (No, no mutagens. Ever.)
Alchemical Talent
You have learned to create extracts.
Prerequisites: Brew Potions, magister 3, 5 or more arcane spells known, 3 ranks Craft (alchemy).
Benefit: You can create extracts and identify potions as described in the alchemy class feature of the alchemist (this does not allow you to make bonds — see Explosive Talent, or to make mutagens). Rather than gain a new formula list or separate extracts per day, you can expand a spell slot to create an extract from a spell known of that level or lower that targets one or more creatures or objects and does not have a target of “personal.” You also gain a competence bonus equal to half your magister level on Craft (alchemy) checks to create alchemical items.
Special: Once you have taken this feat, you can take the Extra Discovery feat without meeting its prerequisites, and may do so using magister bonus feats. You cannot take a discovery that grants or modifies an alchemist ability you do not possess (such as bombs or mutagens). Additionally, you can forgo a magister bonus feat to gain the swift alchemy alchemist class features (using your magister level as your alchemist level).
Explosive Talent
You have learned to make things go “booooom.”
Prerequisites: Magister 3, 5 or more arcane spells known, 3 ranks Craft (alchemy)
Benefit: You can make bombs. This functions as the alchemist class feature, except as follows. Your bomb damage and save DC is calculated as if your alchemist level was your magister level -2. You do not have a limited number of bombs per day, but to create a bomb you must expend a magister spell slot. This must be a spell slot with a spell level no less than 1 per 3 dice of damage your bomb does (minimum 1st-level spell slot).
Special: Once you have taken this feat, you can take the Extra Discovery and Throw Anything feats without meeting their prerequisites, and may do so using magister bonus feats. You cannot take a discovery that grants or modifies an alchemist ability you do not possess (such as extracts or mutagens). Additionally, you can forgo a magister bonus feat to gain any one of the following alchemist class features (using your magister level as your alchemist level): poison resistance, poison use, swift alchemy, swift poisoning).
Greater Alchemical Talent
You can make more powerful extracts
Prerequisites: Alchemical Talent, Brew Potions, magister 10, 9 or more arcane spells known, 10 ranks Craft (alchemy).
Benefit: You can now use the extract ability from your Alchemical Talent feat to turn spells known with a target of “personal” into extracts.
Want More Professional Pathfinder 1st Edition?!
Hey folks! We’re not done with the Magister just yet — there are new and revised mystic talents and magister feats yet to come… but what do you want to see AFTER that?
I know there’s less-and-less material being produced for Pathfinder 1st edition by people who worked on the game as Paizo developers. If you want to encourage me to keep creating new options for this rule system, please consider joining my Patreon (or buying a cup work of support at my Ko-Fi) and letting me know!
HEY, WHILE I HAVE YOUR ATTENTION!
I’m working with novelist and veteran game design Darrin Drader to bring a new edition of his Reign of Discordia sci-fi setting to 5e and the White Star rpg. As is the standard these days we have a Kickstarter campaign running at the moment, and would really appreciate you taking look, telling your friends, and maybe backing it!
Guard Dog Feat for d20 Games
Look, guard dogs are a common element of fantasy and feudal adventures, but they can add a lot of hassle for bookkeeping and worrying about their well-being in a ttRPG. So, maybe we just let people take a feat so they can have a dog that barks when assassins creep up in the night, and otherwise don’t worry about it?
This can also be used as a group benefit a GM passes out as a reward for PCs buying a stronghold, or saving an animal, or having an official group name and working together.
This is written to work in a number of d20-baed ttRPGs, so the formatting and language may need to be tweaked to perfectly match the exact game you are playing.
Guard Dog
You have a guard dog. It doesn’t put itself at risk during combat, does not make attacks, and just serves as an early waring system when you are stationary. You cannot use it to send messages, threaten prisoners, carry equipment, or any other task.
As long as you have access to your normal equipment you are expected to have access to your guard dog, unless the GM specifically says otherwise. While the GM can have your guard dog involved in other matters if they wish, doing so is specifically under the purview of the GM’s discretion. This game mechanics of this feat provide for a guard animal’s senses to help protect you out of combat, and in return for expending the resource of the feat and limiting the animal to early warning, you are not required to track its exact location, hit points, food needs, and so on. If the guard dog needs special accommodations to survive in the area you are adventuring, and everyone else in the party has them, you are considered to have managed to cobble together what the guard dog needs.
When you are camping or otherwise staying in one place for a long period of time (such as hanging out in a tavern, sleeping, having a picnic, crafting objects in a shop, and so on), the guard dog can make a Perception check with a bonus equal to half your maximum possible Perception bonus without any spells or equipment augmenting it. The guard dog can see, smell, or hear threats. If the guard dog perceives a threat, it barks loudly, alerting everyone nearby who then may act as if they had successfully made a Perception check to notice the threat.
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Fallback Feats for 5e, PF1, PF2, and Starfinder
Tuesday’s Fallback feats were a bit hit. Sadly, circumstances prevented me from posting two new rules-elements worth of content Wednesday.
So, today not only am I giving your four new Fallback feats, they all work in four game systems — 5e, PF1, PF2, and Starfinder. Though these these feats are written using Pathfinder 1e/Starfinder terminology and formatting (I didn’t take the time to write 4 slightly different versions of each), the actual feats and rules themselves work in all 4 game systems.
These feats all fallow the normal Fallback Feat rules.
ELDRITCH BACKLASH [Fallback]
Your magic harms those that ignore it.
Benefit: When you cast a 1st level or higher spell that does not affect any creatures or significant objects you target or that are in the area, one target of your choice with an AC no greater than 15 + your caster level takes damage equal to one weapon in your possession with which you are proficient (without adding any bonus damage from ability scores, feats, or special abilities), or 5 HP per level of the spell, whichever is greater.
LEARN FROM FAILURE [Fallback]
You are constantly analyzing your efforts, and even when you do not succeed, you may learn something useful from your failure.
Benefit: When you fail at an attack roll or an ability check or skill check to identify, recall lore about, disarm, disable, or bypass a creature, trap, or hazard, or survive or get along in the wilderness, you may immediately make an appropriate ability or skill check to learn one new relevant fact about the creature, object, or region involved at the normal skill DC to learn information or recall knowledge. Multiple failed checks can reveal multiple new pieces of information without the DC increasing.
(Art by GrandFailure)
SIMMERING RAGE [Fallback]
Even when a foe incapacitates you, your anger at being sidelined grows.
Benefit: When you are unwillingly bound, charmed, enchanted, entangled, grabbed, grappled, held, paralyzed, petrified, or magically slept by a foe (or foe’s trap or hazard) during a combat encounter in such a way that you cannot take any effective actions, you gain a +1 bonus to saving throws, rolls, or checks to end the situation incapacitating you (if any), which is cumulative if you are incapacitated for multiple rounds.
Additionally when you stop being incapacitating, you gain a +4 bonus to any attack roll or skill check you make in your first full around, and tot he save DC of any spell or ability you use that round.
STREAKBREAKER [Fallback]
Your bad luck doesn’t last forever.
Benefit: When you fail an attack roll or skill check roll (not including taking 10 or taking 20) and your d20 result for the check was 11 or worse, you gain a +1 luck bonus to all attack rolls and skill checks where you make a d20 roll until you succeed at one. If you already have a luck bonus active from this feat when you qualify for it again, you luck bonus increased by 1 until you succeed at a skill check or attack roll.
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Developing to Spec: Part 22d (The Last PF Core Feats)
This is the fourth section of Part 22 of a series of articles looking at creating a set of Starfinder feats under specific constraints. You can go back and read previous entries where we converted every feat in the PF core rulebook to Starfinder (and I shared my thoughts on that process, as a developer and writer)— or you can just look at the finished feats here.
This is it. The very last feats from the PF Core Rulebook that did not exist in Starfinder. This has been my longest ongoing blog series ever. I’m almost sad.
Almost.
But, let’s get to them, shall we? We begin with Unseat.
A confession. Having played hundreds (in all honesty, maybe thousands) of sessions of Pf and the games that came before it, I have never seen Unseat be used, or even taken by a character, even once.
It’s a super-specific jousting feat. Yo have to be mounted to use it. And attacking with a lance (and only with a lance). And your target has to be mounted. AND you have to charge to use it. And if you hit, you can TRY a bull rush to unseat the target.
That’s so many rules I’d be inclined to just add them to what a lance can do without needing a feat for it. Plus, does this mean that without this feat, I can’t use trip or bull rush to take a mounted foe out of their saddle? Or only that I can’t do it as part of a charge attack with a lance?
But we HAVE to make a Starfinder version, so:
UNSEAT (Combat)
You can rip foes from the mounts and vehicles.
Benefit: When a foe that is mounted or in a vehicle provokes an attack of opportunity from you, you can make a bull rush or trip combat maneuver instead of a melee attack. If you succeed, you pull the target off their mount or out of their vehicle, and leave them prone in an adjacent space.
I’m still not sure how often that’ll come up, but at least knocking folks off their motorcycle has genre-emulation value.
Next up is Weapon Finesse. Which, like so many PF feats, requires things (like a definition of “light weapons”) that Starfinder doesn’t have to allow something (switching some melee weapons from Strength to Dexterity) Starfinder isn’t designed to allow. In fact Starfinder already essentially decided that light weapons are “operative weapons,” and anyone can use their Dexterity to attack with them, and no other weapons should be allowed to do that under any circumstances.
But there is one thing that Starfinder’s system could allow for — some way for operatives to make trick attacks with different weapons than normal. Not to be more effective (operatives are FINE on the power scale), but to support different character concepts and variable tactical styles.
WEAPON FINESSE (Combat)
You can use bulkier, slower weapons to place attacks with additional effects.
Prerequisites: Trick attack class feature.
Benefit: You can use any weapon to deliver a trick attack. When you do so with a non-operative melee weapon, you may choose to use your Dexterity modifier, rather than Strength modifier to add to your attack bonus. You can only apply the trick attack to a single creature, regardless of how many the attack affects, and must make the appropriate skill check. For that one trick attack, you deal either just your trick attack damage +1 per operative level (with its damage type determined by the weapon), or you do the weapon’s damage without any bonus from your trick attack. In either case, you can apply any other effect your trick attack imposes onto the target you trick attack.
There are things this does, and things it does not do. It won’t increase any character’s single-target damage-per round output, and that’s intentional. It also won’t allow a solarian (for example) to ignore all Strength in favor of Dexterity, and that’s intentional. It is of most use to operatives who want increased flexibility. You may not do any more damage to one target when you deliver a trick attack with a grenade, but you still get the rest of the effect of a grenade. making unarmed attacks as trick attacks won’t bust your damage curve, but it’s a lot better than normal trick attacks if you’ve been disarmed.
Okay, last one.
Whirlwind Attack
Whirlwind Attack is a PF feat that normally comes in at mid- to high-level play that has 7 prerequisites (though a fighter could theoretically meet them all by 4th level), that allows you to make one melee attack against every target within reach. Again, a chunk of that is balanced by the fact that in PF, a good chunk of your Damage Per Round (DPR) is based on making more attacks each round. In Starfinder, your DPR increase is much more strongly tied to each attack doing more damage, so getting to make a single attack against a large number of foes is much more powerful.
We could probably do something with forcing you to take the full attack -4 to your attack rolls, and then maybe another -2 or so… so it’s only useful against lower-level foes, and even then you won’t hit all of them, so if you connect with one or two your DPR is reasonable…
But wow that doesn’t sound like fun or satisfying as a player. Let’s try something else.
WHIRLWIND ATTACK (Combat)
You can surround yourself with lighting-fast, shallow strikes.
Benefit: When you use the full-attack action, you can give up all your other attacks and instead make one melee attack against each opponent within reach. Make a single attack roll, and apply it to the AC of every target in reach. Roll damage once, and apply half the value to every target you hit.
That’s easy to access, it lets you do a little damage to a lot of foes (which is closer to how Whirlwind Attack generally works in Pf anyway), has a much better change of doing SOME damage to multiple targets. If you want to lay about and put a hurt on a lot of people up close this works, even if you won’t be able to pile nearly as much on any one target.
AND THAT’S IT!
What comes next? Who knows! Let me know your thoughts, over at my Patreon, or as a comment here, or at my email, Twitter, or Facebook!
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Owen K.C. Stephens 