Meet the Lich King *Updated*

[Dragonamedrake]

The Lich King

Ok so I know these type of builds have been done to death. And most are probably better then mine. However I think I have created a bit of a more consistent build that doesnt branch out too much... and has a certain zing to it.

Note: This is not another "Try and kill my build" post. I know he isnt untouchable or unkillable. Far from it. This is just a post to show what I think a good build for the Lich King would look like. He has 3 open feats that could be used for undead control... not sure what to use them for. Any sugestions on how to expand or improve on the build without completely going a different route would be appreciated. I might even try and play this guy in our next evil campain.

So here it is...

Homebrew Material used:

We use the flaw system in our groups with a limit of 2 flaws.
We use the Pathfinder system for feat progression. If you dont I have 3 open feat slots that you can just ignore and relocate the feats Ive used.


Human Paladin of Tyranny 4/ Hexblade 3/ Ur-Priest 2/ Bone Knight 10/ War Priest 1

Take 2 Flaws

(1)   Paladin 1                   Toughness, Troll-Blooded, Iron Will, Spell Focus (Evil)
(2)   Paladin 2
(3)   Hexblade 1                 Extend Spell
(4)   Hexblade 2         
(5)   Hexblade 3                 Persist Spell
(6)   Ur-Priest 1      
(7)   Ur-Priest 2                 Divine Metamagic(Persist Spell)
(8)   Bone Knight 1      
(9)   Bone Knight 2              Divine Defiance
(10) Bone Knight 3      
(11) Bone Knight 4              Combat Casting
(12) Bone Knight 5   
(13) Bone Knight 6              Planar Touchstone - The Catalogues of Enlightenment (Spell Domain)(Divine Countermagic)
(14) Bone Knight 7      
(15) Bone Knight 8              Undead Leadership
(16) Bone Knight 9      
(17) Bone Knight 10            Item Familiar
(18) War Priest 1            
(19) Paladin 3                    Open feat
(20) Paladin 4

Weapon of Legacy: Frostmourne

Frostmourne
LEGACY ITEM ABILITIES
4-7: -1 att, -12 HP, -1 spell slot (1~8), 39,000gp.
Level   Ability                                           Attack   HP   Spell slot                        
(5)      Futile Struggle                                -----   -----   -----
(6)      Beyond Sustenance                         -----   2   1st
(7)      Touch of the Void                           -----   2   -----
(8)      Bane                                            -1   -----   2nd
(9)      Master's Call                                   -----   2   -----
(10)    Master's Will                                   -----   -----   3rd
(11)    Touch of the Corrupt                        -----   -----   -----
(12)    The Fast survive                             -----   -----   4th
(13)    Awakened                                      -----   2   -----
(14)    Master's Voice                                -----   -----   5th
(15)    Supernatural                                  -----   2   -----
(16)    Call of the Grave                             -----   -----   6th
(17)    Evasion                                         -----   -----   -----
(18)    Master's Sight                                -----   -----   7th
(19)    Master's Wrath                               -----   2   -----
(20)    Master's Glory                                 -----   -----   8th

Ritual Cost: least 1,500 gp; lesser 11,500 gp; greater 39,000 gp.

Futile Struggle                                    Successful stiked affected as if by the Cause Fear spell (DC 11+Cha)
Beyond Sustenance                             No food or drink, still need sleep.
Touch of the Void                                Magical Cipher - At will; detect magic, read magic, arcane mark.
Bane                                                 Weapon is the center of a constant bane spell DC (11+Cha)
Master's Call                                       Call to Hand - As the armor ability but for any item. pg 145
Master's Will                                       Mindlink At will. Unspoken Contact.
Touch of the Corrupt                           Desecrate - continous pg 119
The Fast survive                                 Wolf's Cunning +5 untyped Initiative pg 174
Awakened                                          Intelligent Legacy, Major
Master's Voice                                    Suggestion  - At will Penetrating Proposal pg 115
Supernatural                                      Uncanny Dodge(Supernal clarity) 24/7, Ex based.
Call of the grave                                 Speak with Dead 1/day
Master's Sight                                    Blindsense 30ft pg 111   
Master's Wrath                                   Ice Storm 3/day
Master's Glory                                    Frightful Presence pg 45

Added Enchantments:

+5 Unholy, Wounding, Frost Greatsword 2d6 19-20(x2)

Frostmourne Wielder Requirements
Knowledge (religion) 4 ranks
Base attack bonus +3
Race Human

LEGACY RITUALS
Three rituals are required to unlock all the
abilities of Frostmourn.
Accidental Inheritance: You have to remove
Frostmourn from the corpse or crypt of its previous
wielder in a high wilderness pass. Cost: 1,500 gp.
Feat Granted: Least Legacy (Frostmourne).

Soul Sacrifice: You must spend a full day in the
proper veneration of an evil deity. Cost: 11,500
gp. Feat Granted: Lesser Legacy (Frostmourne).

Soul Purge: You must kill a loved one with Frostmourn.
This can be anyone deemed by the DM to be a close and personal
relative or friend. Usually a blood relative. Cost 39,000
Feat Granted: Greater Legacy (Frostmourne)

BAB 16
9th lvl cleric spells
Base F/R/W - 14/5/10

Basically you get...
16 BAB and 9th lvl Divine spellcasting.

12 + Cha x 4 Rebuke attempts without a single Nightstick(Unless I read something wrong).

Regeration 1... which turns all damage other than fire or acid into subdual damage... exept you are immune to subdual damage. So you are immune to HP damage other than acid or fire.

2x your Cha bonus to saves

Counterspell any spell as an immediate action once per round

Immunity to all HP damage other than acid/fire, DR 2/ Bludgeoning, Immune to Crit/Sa, Immune to Poison, Sleep effects, Paralysis, disease, death effects, fatigue, exhaustion, ability damage, ability drain, energy drain, and death from massive damage.

Full cleric casting, any cleric spell you want to persist on yourself. Also you rebuke as a 18th lvl cleric unless my math is wrong. Not to shaby.

Mettle and a Ring of Evasion allows you to never take any secondary affect from a spell you save against. A High Charisma and a +6 Cha Item should be there. Nightsticks are nice along with all the other really nice cleric items Im sure most of you are familiar with.


Paladin of Tyranny              Unearthed Arcana
Hexblade                           Complete Warrior
Ur-Priest                           Complete Divine
Bone Knight                       Eberon - Five Nations
War Priest                         Complete Divine

Divine Defiance                  Fiendish Codex II
Toughness                        3.5 Players Handbook
Troll-Blooded                     Dragon 319 p61

* edited with updated build and Weapon of Legacy.
** Plan on adding Sindragosa(Through the Undead Leadership feat) and Immortality(Through the Item Familiar/Kissed By the Ages spell)
*** Plan to create a full build work up with stats and magic items.

Follow up Questions:
I dont have a copy of Dragon mag 354... Does it have to be a ring? Can I make it a helm or crown( ya know for the LK's Crown)
I still have one open feat... what do you think I should use it for?

[Rebel7284]

Have you considered Walker in the Waste instead of Bone Knight for a free (dry) lich template?

[altpersona]

i was expecting a kobald...

[Dragonamedrake]

Well that class has several drawbacks that I can see.

First and most important you become undead... Undead loose all regeneration abilities from what I recall rendering most of his defense null.
Second the Lich King I am refering to is from the World of Warcraft RPG... and he is more Frost and Ice based... Heat and desert really arnt his thing.
Third the requirements for Walker in the Waste would require me to be a cleric or use some wierd cheese. Sand or Thirst Domain and the Feat Heat Endurace? eh.

I really like the Bone Knight and the requirements fit well with the whole concept Im going for. I did notice I hadnt taken Extra Turning for the Nightsticks. I will need to add that to my original build.

[Dragonamedrake]

i was expecting a kobald...

I could always give him Undead Leadership and make Sindragosa 

[Mixster]

Was Arthas father a troll?

So he actually saved the kingdom when he killed him?

[fuinjutsu]

Variant Paladid/Ur priest?  Doesn't seem very lichy to me.  This looks more death knight-ish.

Also, are you sure that getting Rebuke from multiple classes gives multiple pools?  IIRC, you just stack the levels for your rebuke check.

[Prime32]

What, no Lord of the Uttercold?

[SorO_Lost]

Your right on it being done to death. Cleric X / Completive 1 / Bone Knight 10 / War Priest Y I think is the 'standard' method. Nice to see some Ur-Priest abuse for a change. They both still lacks the whole I'm a lich thing though. Also pretty sure the Lich King doesn't age. At all. Kinda hard to pull off without being undead but can be done with BovD's age blocking spell (note learning it?)

Also Walker Of The Waste takes .3 seconds to reflavor 'sand' into 'snow' & 'hot' into 'cold'. So what if you lose Troll-Blooded, if your not going for invincible warrior then the loss is subsumed in the ability to not stay dead.

[Bastian]

For undead control and immortallity you can take the Wedded to History (golden ager background) and Master's Voice feats.

[Nunkuruji]

No Artifact or Legacy equipment?

[Truncator]

dry liches can be immune to most kinds of damage through the spell ashstar(wiz2, sandstorm)

[Azrael]

Also, just to note, you need Divine Countermagic if you want to counter any spell as an immediate action. Divine Defiance merely allows you to counter as an immediate action, you still need to have the spell prepared. Even if you did have the spell prepared it restricts you to spells on the cleric list only. Divine Countermagic allows you to counter ANY spell.

[carnivore]

Dispel Magic can be used to Counterspell any other spells also(as long as you make the dispel check)

 

[Dragonamedrake]

Variant Paladid/Ur priest?  Doesn't seem very lichy to me.  This looks more death knight-ish.

Also, are you sure that getting Rebuke from multiple classes gives multiple pools?  IIRC, you just stack the levels for your rebuke check.

The Lich King was a Fallen Paladin who became a Death Knight... So yeah thats what I was going for. As far as the rebuke attemps I will admit Im not sure how they stack... its either 12+Cha X 4, 3+ChaX4, or some other combination or stacking. Maybe someone could clarify that for me.

Also, just to note, you need Divine Countermagic if you want to counter any spell as an immediate action. Divine Defiance merely allows you to counter as an immediate action, you still need to have the spell prepared. Even if you did have the spell prepared it restricts you to spells on the cleric list only. Divine Countermagic allows you to counter ANY spell.

I have Divine Countermagic - Planar Touchstone - The Catalogues of Enlightenment (Spell Domain)(Divine Countermagic) .... It gives you the Domain power without the actuall domain spells.

No Artifact or Legacy equipment?

I actually thought about a Weapon of Legacy with one of my open feats... not sure if his Helm or his Sword. I would have to really look into that book though as Im not very familiar with the system. How many feats would that require? 3? Maybe take Undead Leadership, Corpse Crafter, and Item Familiar?... That would be a cheap(feat wise) way to make a nice sword.

What, no Lord of the Uttercold?

See thats the pretty cool and very Lich King. Not sure if I could fit the 2 feats in though if I went down the undead controll route or Legacy weapon tree.

For undead control and immortallity you can take the Wedded to History (golden ager background) and Master's Voice feats.

I really didnt know If I should go the Troll blood or Undead route, but I dont think Arthus is dead... or at least he didnt start that way. He did rip his own heart out and hide it so maybe... but either I can alway roleplay the undead part... he doesnt actually have to be dead. I will take a look at those feats thought. It sounds like it could work.


OR I could always drop Divine Defiance, Planar Touchstone, and Combat Casting (along with the one lvl of War Priest) and that would Open up 3 more feats... say getting...

Undead Leadership
Corpse Crafter
Least Legacy
Lesser Legacy
Greater Legacy
Item Familiar

Thanks for all the suggestions and keep em coming!

[Dragonamedrake]

Your right on it being done to death. Cleric X / Completive 1 / Bone Knight 10 / War Priest Y I think is the 'standard' method. Nice to see some Ur-Priest abuse for a change. They both still lacks the whole I'm a lich thing though. Also pretty sure the Lich King doesn't age. At all. Kinda hard to pull off without being undead but can be done with BovD's age blocking spell (note learning it?)

Also Walker Of The Waste takes .3 seconds to reflavor 'sand' into 'snow' & 'hot' into 'cold'. So what if you lose Troll-Blooded, if your not going for invincible warrior then the loss is subsumed in the ability to not stay dead.

You might be right about the Troll Blood... it just really made the build HARDER to kill. Im not saying Invincible... Troll-Blooded Bone Knight = Possible to play if I get the DM on a good day. Invicible build is overdone(like you said) and not really something you could play or use as a BBEG for a group.

I could alway create a weapon with a beefed up version of Death Knell... Doesnt give me Str or +1 Caster lvl but instead extends my life... something like that. Thats kinda how Frostmourne works.

[SorO_Lost]

Actually I meant the Lich King was done to death (no offense intended). The invincible build, most people really stay away from that area. The Twice Betrayer Of Sharn set the standard pretty high. Misreading of iot7fv further made things more difficult and the emerald legion almost killed all hope. I managed to find a little niche in there but it's shady. Everything else has always been trolls COPing out which has been smited here.

I take it the Frostmore is his soul sucking sword. Create a legacy based +3 Waithful Healing(E&A) Souldrinking(BoVD) Greatsword or something. Half 1/2 the damage dealt and they gain a negative level. Also you do not need feat slots to take Least Legacy/Lesser/Greater Legacy, after completing the rituals they are granted to you for free as Bonus Feats (page 24).

As for fitting Lord of Utterdark in, drop paladin 4 and take a level in Contemplative to pick up the Planning Domain with it for a free Extend Spell feat.

[woodenbandman]

The lich thing is one of those cases where you just give him whatever classes/feats that you want because he's the end boss.

[Dragonamedrake]

Actually I meant the Lich King was done to death (no offense intended). The invincible build, most people really stay away from that area. The Twice Betrayer Of Sharn set the standard pretty high. Misreading of iot7fv further made things more difficult and the emerald legion almost killed all hope. I managed to find a little niche in there but it's shady. Everything else has always been trolls COPing out which has been smited here.

I take it the Frostmore is his soul sucking sword. Create a legacy based +3 Waithful Healing(E&A) Souldrinking(BoVD) Greatsword or something. Half 1/2 the damage dealt and they gain a negative level. Also you do not need feat slots to take Least Legacy/Lesser/Greater Legacy, after completing the rituals they are granted to you for free as Bonus Feats (page 24).

As for fitting Lord of Utterdark in, drop paladin 4 and take a level in Contemplative to pick up the Planning Domain with it for a free Extend Spell feat.

O nice I didnt know the feats where granted to you. See I knew I didnt know enough about that book. I guess I need to do a search for the Lich King... didnt know it had been done before. Anyways thanks for the help. I will take a look at my feats again and see what I can do.

The lich thing is one of those cases where you just give him whatever classes/feats that you want because he's the end boss.

lol true but I might actually try and play this character in our next evil campain (Obviously I wont call him the Lich King but the same build).

[Dragonamedrake]

Alright Ive updated with a Weapon of Legacy. I still plan on adding a Zombie Dragon of some type for Syndragosa... Skeleton Dragons cant fly correct.. thats balls btw... they should just get magical flight.