Force Adept Tradition PrC: "Herbalist"

[ post #1 ]

Well here it goes. Here is the Herbalist PrC Force Tradition. Let me know how you folks think about it! I apologize I wasn¡¯t able to get this out sooner but I was trying to get it into PDF format for a convenient and nice-looking download but it went awry. Does anyone care to volunteer a hand? Anyhow, here it is as it currently stands:

Herbalist

Herbalist specialize in the contact of the force through all living things with an unusual affinity for plant species. With a hypersensitivity for the living force in natural flora and the energies that flow through them an Herbalist is able to cause unusual plant growth, control plant species, and possess a natural healing ability. Herbalists participate in their native cultures as Ithorian Ecologists, Natural Healers, Druids, or Wise Elders. Like many other Force Traditions their teachings must be passed down from one generation to the next as an apprenticeship, formal instruction, religious teachings, or decades of seclusion and study of writen texts.

Requirements
To qualify to become an Herbalist a character must fulfill the following citeria.
Feats: Force-Sensitive, Alter, Control.
Skill Ranks: Plant Surge 6, Treat Injury 6, Survival 4, Heal Another 4, Knowledge (Force Tradition: Herbalism) 2.
Special: No Jedi-Levels.

Game Rule Information
Vitality: Herbalists gain 1d6 vitality points per level. Character constitution modifier applies.

Class Skills
The Herbalist¡¯s class skills, and the key ability for each skill, are as follows:
Climb (Str), Craft* (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Hide (Dex), Jump (Str), Knowledge* (Int),Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Spot (Wis), Sense Motive (Int), Survival (Wis), Swim (Str), Treat Injury (Wis).

Skill Points at Each Level: 6 + Int Modifier.

Class Features
The Folowing are the features of the Herbalist prestige class.

Herbalism
When making a Treat Injury or Heal Self/Another check the Herbalist¡¯s use of beneficial herbs and plants assists any check normally made with the use of a Medpac or Medical Kit adding a +1 bonus at 1st level and an additional +1 at 4th and 7th.

Without access to a Medpac or a Medical Kit the Herbalist may use herbal remedies to attempt a Treat Injury check as if they had a Medpac or Medical Kit at -4 penalty. At times an Herbalist may find themselves without their normal supply of herbs & plants there is always a chance their skills and force sensitivity will allow them to find beneficial plants for use in present local flora. Survival Check DC 20, +5 to the DC for conditions adverse to pant-life such as a dry climate or a toxic environment. Barren & airless environments automatically fail.

Nurture
When making a Treat Injury check for Long-Term Care a successful skill check instead allows for the recipients of the treatment to recover lost wounds and ability points at 3 times the normal rate. This ability does not apply without access to herbal supply.

Sense
If the Herbalist does not already posses the Feat then at 2nd level they gain the Sense Feat.

Cure Poison
As presented in the Power of the Jedi Sourcebook.

Improved Healing
When making a Heal Self or Heal Another check improved healing allows the Herbalist to spend triple the Vitality cost and select one result level higher and heal for that amount.

For example; a check result of 23 is made while the Herbalist is trying to Heal Another. This check would normally bestow 1d4+1 wounds upon the recipient at a cost of 2 VP. Instead the Herbalist may elect to spend 6 VP and restore wounds at the next level, or 1d6+2 wounds restored. The 30+ result level cannot be exceeded and no benefit is received for excess VP spent in this manner. Improved Healing applies to all forms of healing: Wound, Vitality, and Ability Damage.

Cure Disease
As presented in the Power of the Jedi Sourcebook.

Control Plants
With greater control of the force and the living essence of plant-life an Herbalist is capable of communing with plants and allows the Herbalist a degree of control over their movements and actions. Spending 3 VP an Herbalist gains the ability to make simple attack actions with a plant (1 attack/round for every 5 Force-user levels, at a base attack bonus+wisdom modifier to-hit). This ability requires a full-round action and requires 1 VP to maintain per round.

Force Weapon Bonus
This bonus acts as the Force Adept ability to imbue a Force Weapon. For an Herbalist this bonus may only be applied to weapons made of natural substances such as stone, wood, or naturally occuring metals.

Force Secret
As per the Force Adept Special Ability.

Channel Force
At 10th level an Herbalist gains the ability to channel the living essence of the Force into themselves as well as others. When a force point is spent, by either the Herbalist, or an ally within 10m, the Herbalist may elect to spend 2 force points to effect all allies with the benefits of the force point spent within a radius per a Plant Surge check. Additionally, an Herbalist may also give a force point to another Force-user via the Jedi Instructor ability Transfer Force Point

Level	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Special	Defense Bonus	Reputation
1st	+0	+1	+0	+1	Herbalism +1, Nurture	+1	+0
2nd	+1	+1	+1	+2	Sense, Cure Posion	+2	+1
3rd	+2	+2	+1	+2	Improved Healing	+2	+1
4th	+2	+2	+2	+3	Cure Disease, Herbalism+2	+3	+1
5th	+3	+3	+2	+3	Control Plants	+3	+2
6th	+4	+3	+2	+4	Force Weapon +1d8	+3	+2
7th	+4	+4	+3	+4	Herbalism +3	+4	+3
8th	+5	+4	+3	+5	Force Secret	+4	+3
9th	+6	+5	+4	+5	Force Weapon +2d8	+5	+3
10th	+6	+5	+4	+6	Channel Force	+5	+4

__________________
"Back off man, I'm a scientist." -Bill Murray, Ghostbusters.

"Let me talk to him! I speak crazy!"-Bruce M. Wang, Spycraft: Wheelman.

Last edited by LiquidSaber on 29 October 2002 at 07:38 PM

[ post #2 ]

I gave it a quick look over and looks pretty good.

If you need help making this a pdf pm me.

__________________
i was more like uncle luke: a human weapon, point me at the bad guys and turn me loose. i knock ‘em down and everybody cheers. - Anakin Solo Hallucination

[ post #3 ]

Looks good LiquidSaber! Good progressions on the BAB, saves, and Defense IMO.

If you catch it in time, you need to up the 6th level Defense to +3.

I wish I could remember how these stack up against the Jedi Healer. If memory serves these two are balanced when comparing them, although the JH doesn't get the Cure Disease and Poison for free...Better BAB and still has lightsaber goodies though, so it should be fair.

Ona related note, all told we have several Force Adept PrC on here now or on the way. We should collect them and Submit them as a net.guide when the two or three outstanding ideas are done.

We have---
Magician
Herbalist
Watchman
The priestess (?) just put up by ironwolf.
Any others done that I've forgotten about?

__________________
Jim Williams

[ post #4 ]

Looks really good, Liquid. The only thing I'd debate is the Reputation progression. A Herbalist is likely to pick up a reputation as "an amazingly talented healer," and I'm not sure the Reputation progression supports that.

Other than that, it's definitely a well-thought out and well-constructed PrC.

Jim, not that the Warder is specifically a Force Adept PrC, but it can be, so you did forget it.

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Fallen Stars IC OOC

[ post #5 ]

Originally posted by Jim Williams I wish I could remember how these stack up against the Jedi Healer. If memory serves these two are balanced when comparing them, although the JH doesn't get the Cure Disease and Poison for free...Better BAB and still has lightsaber goodies though, so it should be fair.

Right, Jim, JH doesn't get the 2 cures for free. In addition to what you mentioned, JH gets Improved Healing for Wounds & Abilities, not just VP.
Also LS, the mechanics are a bit different between the 2 PrC's. For JH, it's double the amount of VP healed for double the cost. I'd consider making it the same as the JH SQ, myself.

I like it. I've considered making a Healer PrC for FA's, but I think i'll just use this one. It'll fit into a scenario I'm planning, too, where the pc's are assisting both (npc) JH & FA during a plague, so I might be able to give you some practical comparison, if you'd like.

[ post #6 ]

Looks nice overall... I concur with most of the opinions above... but

got one question though- one of the prerequisites states that an herbalist cannot have any Jedi Levels. Sure, i can see the sense in that, there are a lot of jedi prestige classes already.

but what happens if the herbalist becomes a jedi? according to the FAQs, they'd lose all SQs since they no longer meet all the prerequisites. I'm wondering if you had this in mind. It might restrict the freedom of the player who took this prestige class, since they wouldn't want to lose the SQs. I can understand this for a darksider turning to the light in regard to DSPs, but should a character be possibly penalized for going 'herbal' vs. 'technology'? Maybe. Maybe not.

__________________
No longer satisfied blowing droids apart, the cyborg Jawa ordered his very own "Little Tyke Death Star" kit from Imperial Toy Makers

"But all in all, it's been a fabulous year for Laura and me." —George W. Bush, summing up his first year in office, Washington, D.C., Dec. 20, 2001

[ post #7 ]

Originally posted by Jim Williams Looks good LiquidSaber! Good progressions on the BAB, saves, and Defense IMO. If you catch it in time, you need to up the 6th level Defense to +3. I wish I could remember how these stack up against the Jedi Healer. If memory serves these two are balanced when comparing them, although the JH doesn't get the Cure Disease and Poison for free...Better BAB and still has lightsaber goodies though, so it should be fair. Ona related note, all told we have several Force Adept PrC on here now or on the way. We should collect them and Submit them as a net.guide when the two or three outstanding ideas are done. We have--- Magician Herbalist Watchman The priestess (?) just put up by ironwolf. Any others done that I've forgotten about?

On my thread Force Adept PrCs, I have the Magician, Priest (priestess was to show that some are female), and Mind Daggers, and more on the way, I also (in the thread Non-Jedi Melee Forms) have a Force Adept PrC at the bottom.

__________________
"If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you could possibly imagine"

Obi-Wan Kenobi

[ post #8 ]

Liquid, I won't hijack anymore. With the additional ones mentioned, we have a solid group to submit! Anyone who wants in (although I'm not looking at submitting this tomorrow or anything) please PM me with your Force Adepts and I'll see what I can do about assembling and Submitting.

All I'll need is a link or a thread to search for.

(Bows out and waits for more praise for the Herbalist to come through...)

Would Cheech and Chong be "Herbalists"?

__________________
Jim Williams

[ post #9 ]

Nice work LiquidSaber. Brought a smile to my face as my Fiance is a Herbalist by profession (in real life, not SW- she doesn't RP sadly).

Just a couple of thoughts, but by and large I'd say it looks really good.

Looking at the prerequisites, I'd suggest just a couple of things. Perhaps the prereq for Knowledge- Herbalism, should be higher than 2 ranks. I'd be thinking more like 4 or 6 personally, perhaps dropping the prereq ranks in Plant Surge in reflection.

Also, have you considered adding Craft- Herbal Mixtures (or somethinmg similar) as a prereq? This skill could be used by the Herbalist to prepare mixtures in advance, for use in future. The Herbalist could use the Craft skill to create remedies with healing or augmenting powers by way of the Craft rules in the RCRB.

Just a few thoughts. As I said, it looks pretty darned cool.

[ post #10 ]

Greetings folks! Thanks for all the helpful replies! I'll try to respond to each in order as they came, I just sent off a file to Frobi with an updated file making small adjustments. I've only had just enough time this week to make minor adjustments and finally got some free time today to respond to everyone. Thanks!

Jim
Thanks for the quick editing error you caught! The BAB proression is indeed lower I worked real hard to balance the PrC with respect to the Jedi Healer. As a result the two classes are different yet balanced, I hope *crosses fingers* with the Healer getting more goodies as opposed to the JH getting more saber prowess.

I just sent a file to Frobi so we can get a PDF file up for download, so no worries there. Gathering all the great Adept PrCs that have been popping around is a marvelous Idea of course!

Ris
Very solumnly did I review the JH Improved Healing abilities while developing the Herbalist. As a result I decided to alter the mechanics for the Herbalist. What this did was provide the Herbalist with alot sooner access to an improved healing of Wound & Ability dmg (representing their natural talent in this area), while at the same time the mechanic "caps" the Herbalist in how much they are able to Heal. (Again, representative of their lack of Jedi focus of scholarly pursuit and a lack of access to 1000's of years of Jedi teachings on the matter of healing )

And of course, any play-testing results would be splendid music to me ears! :p Thanks, definately let us know how it goes.

Ravager
Very nice points. I chewed the fat on this one as well. Mostly, I dreaded contemplating the horrid possibilites of a mutant Jedi Healer/Herbalist. Originally when I began design a couple FA PrCs I had in mind that they wouldn't be compatible with Jedi classes, though, in application I don't see anything particularly wrong with this. Say a Jedi Healer goes into isolation on a backwater world, discovers more of their natural abilties that come forth as Herbalist...hmm. I think I'll remove this special requirement.

Rev
Thanks for the compliment Rev, great suggestions. I agree the Knowledge Herbal Lore should be a tad higher than I currently have it, I didn't want to overload too much (though I've made alot of skill requirements to represent a greater investment on the part of the PC before entering the PrC. I think I'll go ahead and drop the Plant Surge down to 4 and raise the Knowledge up to 4 (as strong plant affinity is still a primary aspect of the PrC) . It should provide a synergy bonus w=once it gets to five anyhow for many of the applications, so should be no complainst about that.

Ah, yes. The Craft skill. I also toyed with this idea as well! Craft (Herbal) essentially (gramitcally incorrect I know, but it sounds better than just Herb, would your fiance have a beter name to use perhaps? More technically correct?). Originally what I was concerned about was overloading the PrC with too many "new" things, but yes, I really wanted to do this and I think it would only add to the PrC. In order to create a supply of herbal remedies for use an Herbalist makes a successful Craft (Herbal) check. I'll work on the mechanics as it may differ slightly (no credit values to work with here) from the RCR.

Now adding it to the Prereq's, hmmm, hadn't thought about that. That characterizes the PrC more, I like it. Thanks, I'll incorporate that into the revisions before I send off the file to Frobi.


Once again, my thanks to all for your replies. Making a collection of FA Traditions would be most excellent. Currenlty I've garnered permission from Khairul Hisham (SWAG member) to use one of his pictures as it just smacked of an image of a modern Star Wars Herbalist (they need not all be archaic druids :p ). If we could get more support in this manner from other contributing artists we could really do a bang-up job putting a bunch of these PrC's together! Looking good folks...thanks for the help.

__________________
"Back off man, I'm a scientist." -Bill Murray, Ghostbusters.

"Let me talk to him! I speak crazy!"-Bruce M. Wang, Spycraft: Wheelman.

Last edited by LiquidSaber on 30 October 2002 at 04:01 PM

[ post #11 ]

And the PDF file for those with an interest...

Special Thanks goes out to Frobi for his help with converting my lowly doc file to PDF!

Attachment: herbalist.zip
This has been downloaded 81 time(s).

__________________
"Back off man, I'm a scientist." -Bill Murray, Ghostbusters.

"Let me talk to him! I speak crazy!"-Bruce M. Wang, Spycraft: Wheelman.

[ post #12 ]

It's an old, old thread...but did anyone ever collect the Force Adepts into a net.guide? Preferably in a PDF?

__________________
...equal opportunity heretic.

[ post #13 ]

Lol, I just read through the whole thread thinking it was brand new and wondering how the hell I'd missed it. Yeah, I'd like to echo Cegorach and inquire what ever became of this quest?

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What kind of dust?
Dirt-laced dust. Probably originating from the ground.

[ post #14 ]

Holy Flashbacks Batman! I hadn't realized this threas was THAT old!

LiquidSabre here (switched to another nick due to password problems heh): I'm not sure if this along with several other Force Tradition PrCs ever made it into compilation form, I don't recall seeing a finished product. Anyone?

-Brett

__________________
"Back off man, I'm a scientist." -Bill Murray, Ghostbusters.

"Let me talk to him I speak crazy!" -Bruce M. Wang, Spycraft Wheelman.

My SW Char Sheet
Herbalist PrC - Force Tradition

Last edited by Liquescent-Sabre on 1 October 2004 at 12:50 PM

[ post #15 ]

I'm collecting all these mentioned above, plus mine, pasting into MS Word, doing minor editing (typos, mostly, though once so far for clarity), and PDF'ing for my own use.

If such editing doesn't offend the original authors too much, I can submit this once done. I'm also willing to start a separate thread to discuss any such changes.

__________________
...equal opportunity heretic.