Help me make an Ogre Mage Options

[HugeC]

I'm trying to convert the monster from D&D 3.5 into an SR PC. Here's a link to the look I'm going for (though not necessarily with the sword and chain mail): http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/MM35_gal.../MM35_PG200.jpg

Here's what I have so far:

• Metatype: Troll, because an oni just isn't big enough.
• SURGE to get Striking Skin Pigmentation (blue) and perhaps Extravagant Eyes (coal black). I also want to pick up Lowlight Vision and Ogre Stomach (the latter mostly for the name of it). Maybe a metagenic improvement to a drain stat.
• Duplicating spell-like abilities with SR spells: Levitate (flight), Improved Invisibility (invisibility), Stun Bolt (Sleep), Physical Mask (Change Shape)
• Counterspelling skill will be the stand-in for Spell Resistance, since Arcane Arrester isn't allowed for awakened characters

Stuff I am still not sure on:

• What magical tradition to use? The D&D creature is a sorcerer, which is like a wizard that casts spells 'by the seat of his pants' and using Charisma as a casting stat. Charisma is about the worst thing mechanically for an SR troll, so I'm not sure which way to go. I'd say an Intuition tradition due to the ogre mage's skill points in Spot and Listen, but I don't think any of those fit well (maybe Psionics?). Maybe invent a custom tradition?
• Note sure if I should go full mage or mystic adept, maybe even aspected to sorcery.
• Remaining abilities from the D&D creature I don't have an analog for: Darkness, Charm Person (Influence maybe?), Gaseous Form, Regeneration

So, Dumpshock, how would you go about making this character?

[Medicineman]

Counterspelling skill will be the stand-in for Spell Resistance, since Arcane Arrester isn't allowed for awakened characters

thats not quite right
You could make a Fomori Mage
Arcane Arrester and Magic can be combined

with a Combinationdance
Medicineman

[Makki]

This Ogre Mage can cast multiple Spells at once, so make sure you're dice pool is high enough (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nyahnyah.gif)
However it's gonna be difficult to get a 2nd head (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Charm Person (Influence maybe?), Gaseous Form, Regeneration
These all sound like SR4 Vampire powers, too bad you're a troll

For Darkness, there is Mist or the shadow spell

There's no need to not take a Cha tradition. Get Cha 3 and a R3 Sustaining Focus with an Increase Cha Spell, maybe?
Troll Face is something one doesn't see very often. Or rely on Fetishes and the Focused Concentration quality and later Centering?

[HugeC]

Fomori. Wow. How didn't I see that? Plus Fomori are more likely to be mages according to the fluff. So, I get Arcane Arrester, +1 Body instead of dermal armor, and it takes only 5 more BP? I like it! Thanks Medicineman!

Keep 'em comin' gang!

[Fortinbras]

Or you could be, you know, an Ogre.

Fair warning, trying to turn a D&D character into a Shadowrun character is a bit like trying to spread peanut butter with a spoon. You can do it, but you'll spend most of your time complaining that you don't have a knife.

[Medicineman]

What magical tradition to use?

what about Wuxing ?
its asian and uses WIL & LOG
which You could raise with a cerebral Booster
I know Ogre Magi are more Japanese but Shinto Tradition doesn't "sound" right (respect Nature etc)
and since ogre Magi are Lawful Evil You need a Tradition that has more potential for Evil

with an evil Dance
Medicineman

[HunterHerne]

Or you could be, you know, an Ogre.

Fair warning, trying to turn a D&D character into a Shadowrun character is a bit like trying to spread peanut butter with a spoon. You can do it, but you'll spend most of your time complaining that you don't have a knife.

Oh yeah. I tried to replicate the generalities for a group I played with (it helped that the D&D campaign involved universe hopping). It was a major headache, and not really worth it, especially since most of the players ended up uninterested anyway.

[Glyph]

The infected versions of trolls don't look anything like an ogre mage, and a shapeshifter combo would be too pricey, so you can't really get regeneration per se. But simply having a heal spell is almost the same, letting you heal your own wounds at will. SR4 does have a shadow spell that would be the equivalent of darkness, but it isn't really worth getting in my opinion. Charm person can be emulated by control thoughts, influence, or maybe both spells. Gaseous form, you're out of luck, although shapechange will let you do the equivalent of polymorph (self), except that your clothing and gear are not transformed.

For tradition, he could be a Celtic druid, an Intuition tradition which also makes sense considering where Fomorians come from originally. And if you are going to use SURGE to turn into a freak, might as well get metagenetic improvement to Intuition.

[LurkerOutThere]

Well except for the fact that regeneration heals mid combat, while heal doesn't. I think a lot of folks forget that sometimes.

[Fortinbras]

As the Spanish speaking man said when asked the first name of the senior senator from Texas: Que?

You can cast Heal mid combat, you just have to sustain it until it becomes permanent.

[Sephiroth]

As a GM, the RW fluff (and I think the RAW, but not sure about that) definitely lets you mess with the high mutation capability of HMHVV to make a vampire troll. As a player, though, you'd have to get an OK from the GM in order to actually make a vampire ogre. It seems to me like it'd be balanced though, since you're combining the high cost of a vampire with the racial cost of a troll AND a SURGE variant.

[Ryu]

I would try to duplicate the look first, signature powers second.

I too would want a Troll for size reasons, forget about the Ogre part (as in not buying SR Ogre stomach). I would not want a Fomori due to Arcane Arrester and self-targeting spells, and the horns suggest a Minotaur. (40 BP)

SURGE I: Striking Skin Pigmentation (blue), Celerity, Nasty Vibe (5BP). Perceptive 2 (10BP). Magician (15BP), Mentor (5BP).

Magic: Intuition-based (synergy for Perception and Initiative), high pyhsical attributes + high Int, at least 1 point of magic lost to implants. (Trauma Damper, Muscle Aug/Toner 2)

Spells: Invisibility, Levitate, Shadow, Heal, Improved Initiative. I´d not put a high priority on the 1/day powers, but an overcast "Cold" Ball is something you might not want to do many times per day in SR. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

Skills depend on the generation system and points budget. The first order is making the greatsword work.

[HugeC]

I would not want a Fomori due to Arcane Arrester and self-targeting spells...

Upon another reading of the quality, it does indeed seem undesirable. I was wrong in that Awakened characters can take it, it's just a terrible quality to have if you want to use magic on yourself (and this character definitely would, to turn invisible and fly and such). So, I think fomori is out.

As cool as having Regeneration would be, I think being infected is also out; eating people's souls & flesh is a bit too yucky for my tastes, plus the BP cost is pretty high. I think I'll have to settle for knowing the Heal spell.

Corollary questions:

• Is there a good way to get lots of dice to resist physical damage that is not armor? Having physical damage converted into stun would make it un-Heal-able.
• Would a task spirit with the First Aid skill be a viable alternative healing method?

[Ryu]

Corollary questions:

• Is there a good way to get lots of dice to resist physical damage that is not armor? Having physical damage converted into stun would make it un-Heal-able.
• Would a task spirit with the First Aid skill be a viable alternative healing method?

1) You can (and at that point should) have extremely high Body. Your Physical Condition Monitor will be very large, so you might survive. Wearing good armor and not taking damage is IMO preferable.
Augmentation is a way for mundanes: Trauma Dampener, Platelet Factory, Suprathyroid Gland (Body+1).

2) It can be if you have the time. Bring a strong spirit; you won´t get the medkit bonus.

[HugeC]

OK, so after looking over shapeshifters for the first time, I did this guy up as one. It doesn't work using Build Points; there just aren't enough to go around. But using karmagen it's doable. Here's what I came up with:

[ Spoiler ]

Metatype: Bear Shapeshifter / Troll (110)

Attributes (320):
Physical - Body 7 (0), Agility 3 (25), Strength 7 (0), Reaction 4 (45)
Mental - Charisma 5 (60), Intuition 3 (25), Logic 3 (25), Willpower 5 (70)
Special - Edge 1, Essence 6, Magic 5 [mage 4, adept 1] (70)

Active Skills (196):
Assensing 4 (22)
Spellcasting 6 (44)
Counterspelling 4 (22)
Summoning 4 (22)
Binding 4 (22)
Perception 4 (22)
Intimidation 4 (22)
Influence Group 2 (20)

Knowledge Skills (45):
[Street] (Place) Troll Culture 4 (11)
[Academic] Biology 3 (Parazoology +2) (9)
[Academic] Forestry 3 (7)
[Profession] Lumberjack 3 (7)
[Street] Something 3 (7)
[Street] Something 2 (4)

Qualities (10):
Shapeshifter Silver Allergy / Vulnerability (-)
Mystic Adept (20)
Astral Chameleon (10)
Sensitive System (-30)
Records on File: Some Corp (-20)
Class 3 SURGE (30)

• Metagenic Improvement (Charisma) (40)
• Low-Light Vision (10)
• Nasty Vibe (10)
• Striking Skin Pigmentation - blue (-10)
• Extravagant Eyes - coal black (-10)
• Critter Spook (-10)

Shapeshifter powers: Dual Natured, Regeneration, Immunity (HMHVV), Enhanced Sense (Scent), Troll Shape, +1 reach, +1 natural armor (bear form only), Natural Weapon (bear form only)

Spells (30): Stun Bolt, Improved Invisibility, Levitate, Physical Mask, Increase Reflexes, Increase Charisma

Adept Powers: Kinesics 1 (0.5), Enhanced Perception 2 (0.5)

Contacts (12): Talismonger (Connections 3, Loyalty 3)

Gear (21k = 52,500 nuyen): Rating 3 Health Sustaining Focus (30,000), other stuff

Karma Totals:

• Metatype 110
• Attributes 320
• Qualities 10
• Skills 241
• Money 21
• Spells 30
• Focus Bonding 6
• Contacts 12
• Total 750 / 750

With the bear shapeshifter's high (well, relative to a troll anyway) Charisma, I figure Black Magic is the tradition I'd go with, to emphasize the ogre mage's sinister side. The Critter Spook downside from his SURGE would be an impetus to join metahuman society, since he wouldn't have much luck in the wild, and I do like Nasty Vibe so I decided to go with that instead of Ogre Stomach (thanks Ryu!).

Rather than focusing on the greatsword from the picture, I decided to go with the "Charisma Troll" thing and gave him some social skills. He's not a pornomancer by any stretch, but he can get 11 dice on social skills (or 16 dice on Intimidate) with a focus-sustained Improve Charisma spell. Melee would be an area for growth; he should be pretty good at it due to his +2 reach in troll form. I suppose if the party he was going into already had a face, I would swap out his Influence Group 2 for Blades 2 (swords +2) and Dodge 2 (Melee +2), and drop Kinesics for Combat Sense 1.

I threw in Astral Chameleon on a whim; not sure if it makes him any less obvious to people assensiing his aura that he's a shapeshifter, but should help out in doing shadowy things with magic regardless.

Now all I need is a game to play him in! Thanks for all your suggestions guys! (I welcome more btw.)

[Ryu]

(I welcome more btw.)

You did ask, didn´t you?

Shapeshifters aren´t my cup of tea (except for Navy Seals), ok.

You would IMO be better off without SURGE 3 for Metagenetic Improvement; Influence 3 at 15 karma will do. CHA 4 is now 45 karma, not getting the quality saves 40 karma. Get Athletics 2 and Stealth 2 instead.