Urban Savant, the Know it All, or make the DM hand over his npc character sheets

[Phoenix00]

Urban Savant, the Know it All, or make the DM hand over his npc character sheets
I would like to thank CantripN for bringing this class to my attention.  It is a prc in Cityscape page 100 for arcane casters.  While it isn't an incantatrix, sevenfold veil, or shadowcraft mage it is a very strong prc and

I would recommend it for casual playFull Casting according to the text (the table says it is 9/10 spellcasting with the lost caster level being level 10)
d6 Hitdice
6+ Skill points with a large skill list and UMD on its list
Wizard BaB
Good Reflex and Will Saves
If you possess light armor profiency you can cast spells in light armor with no arcane spell failure  (to see this ability read the armor proficiency text)

Urban Savvy: this is main feature of the class. Urban Savvy is an ability that has 4 parts and you gain an additional part at levels 1, 4, 7, and 10.  You can share this information with your other party members though you must role play this interchange of knowledge (and since speaking is a free action under normal conditions, the knowledge shared is instaneous)
Make a knowledge check of DC 15.  If you succeed you know information about one of these creatures.

• Aberrations
• Animals
• Humanoids
• Monstrous humanoids
• Oozes, and
• Vermin (all of which are commonly found within the urban environment)
• (DM may add to this list, it is supposed to represent creatures that you would have heard relating to a city in general, or are related to your city, thus if your city has a natural enemy in theory the DM should grant you that knowledge of that creature too.)

Type 1 (Strengths)

• Know BAB, AC, Combat Related Feats.  (If the target is non-humanoid you also know all the target Special Attacks)

Type 2 (Weaknesses)

• Know Hit Dice, Saving Throws, and Damage Reduction (If the target is non-humanoid you also know all the target Special Weakness)

Type 3 (Methods or to put another way damage bonuses)

• Weapon Damage Rolls of you and your allies get 1d6 bonus damage if you make a knowledge dc of 15, 2d6 bonus damage if you make a knowledge dc of 25, or 3d6 bonus damage for a knowledge dc of 35

Type 4 (True Knowledge)

• You and your allies gain a protection from evil effect that doesn't care about alingment.  It doesn't stack with similar effects.  Make a knowledge dc of 25 and you get +3 instead of +2 bonus, make a knowledge dc of 35 and you get +4 instead of +3.

Other Abilities of the Urban Savant gained throught the levels

• Urban Empathy
• Insight Bonuses to some Knowledge Checks and Bardic Knowledge Checks (caps at +3)
• Low Light Vision
• Ability to pierce concealment through disguise, spellcasting, shapeshifting, etc.  If the creature or object tries to hide its form or mislead you instantly know something is up.

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Remember you can also combine a knowledge check (which is a free action) with an Urban Savvy Check which is a move action check.  Do a general knowledge check first and if you want to know more about the attack options well then spend that move action to get the specific AC, BAB, and Combat Feats while your general knowledge check told you the general (but not specific weaknesses)
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A Wizard 5/Paragnostic Apostle 1/Urban Savant 10/X 4 (probably more Paragnostic Apostle) is a simple elegant build and is still unbelievably strong without going insane strong (such as incantatrix or shadowcraft mage).
You can do spontaneous divination, lore, knowledge devotion, and urban savant and all the abilities have a synergy both in flavor as well as mechanics.
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Here is what CantripN said about the class

Urban Savant (Cityscape pg. 100), meanwhile, is always a great option for anyone able to enter, and that's no different for you. You're better than most, since if you know someone's Weaknesses, you can get just the right spells to win. You only really need 4 levels to be great, but 7 is amazing for buffing allies (+3d6 per hit? Sure!). 8 offers an interesting ability, too.

Urban Savant meh's me.  I feel like that's what a knowledge check already does (at least to a lesser degree) and I don't know if four levels in a prestige class that requires a bunch of skills and Bardic Music is worth it.

Edit: I'm still working on this, and reading PrC's often to try to find some I like, so I would still love assistance if people would like to help out (Thanks CantripN!).  

You can't seriously compare Knowledge with Urban Savvy!
Knowledge gives you things like: "This creature is an Outsider, he has Darkvision, Flight and he can shoot Fireballs from his arse!".
Savvy goes like: "This is a Balor. His saves are +X/X/X, he has these attack options (insert full list here), these defences (insert full list here) and those are his special abilites (insert full list here).

It's so powerful that none of my DMs allow it anymore after having seen it in play. Knowledge is power, indeed...

Also, you need Bardic Knowledge (not Bardic Music) or Knowledge (History) 2. Both easy to get without losing casting (Paragonistic Apostle 1 is easiest for Bardic Knowledge).

http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?topic=10153.40[/list]

[Amadi]

In gestalt, This + Kowledge Devotion + Archivist.

I am inclined to play that sometime. I mean, Archivist Foe Dark Knowledge is exactly the Type 3 from this class, but nothing stops them from stacking. +6d6 damage? Allright.

How would that build out, I wonder.

Archivist 8 / Whatever 2 / Contemplative 3 // Wizard 5 / Paragnostic Apostle 1 / Urban Savant 7

Or should you go for Dread Secret? I am not sure if it's needed, and I'd rather keep the focus on buffing. I suppose you could pull off the early entry to Apostle through heighten trickity, so you could go for Wizard 3 / Paragnostic Apostle 2 / Urban Savant 7, instead. If you're a Human or Elf, might as well throw Paragon in, for Wizard 1 / Paragon 3 / Apostle 1 / Savant 7. Should be worth the lost caster level.

Should be an interesting character for sure.

[awaken DM golem]

Huh , niice.

(I have no access)

Q 1 ... How close this gets to Meta-game level of knowledge ??
You know, what we do around here.

As a for instance:
Feat Leach psi power, can get you the feats off a monster.
And then obviously you know what they are.
But this requires a whole lot more other stuff going on to get there.
And it's slow ... especially compared to Urban Savvy.

[Phoenix00]

A1)  The player as well as his PC get to break the "4th wall," they get to learn complete metagaming information about the monster.  The DM literarry reads off the combat stats of the monster (such as the attacks, ac, bab, grapple, special attacks, feats related to combat etc etc in the case of type 1 strengths).  Now the player character inside the game who has taken the Urban Savant prestige class understands 4th wall concepts such as AC and BAB, yet he doesn't understand how to communicate this to normal pcs and npcs and thus when he converses with his party he must use normal role-playing terminology.

For example
A)  Under a normal knowledge nature check (a free action) you can learn about the special weaknesses of a Troll.  For a DC of 10+HD (thus 10+6=16) you learn 1 piece of information of a troll, for a DC of 21 (10+HD+5) you learn an additional piece of information and so on
DC of 16)  You learn that trolls are very hard to kill.  They are able to regenerate body parts that have been sliced off
DC of 21)  Trolls are weak against fire and acid, if your attacks are embued with the power of fire and acid you can actually kill the troll.
B)  Under an Urban Savvy Check of 15 (based off knowledge nature), a move action, you can learn about the weaknesses of the troll this is the information you gain this knowledge
6 HD
AC of 16 (-1 size, +2 Dex, +5 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 14
Fort +11, Ref +4, Will +3
Regeneration 5 which is bypassable with Acid and Fire

Finally supposed this troll is special, before the encounter he was buffed by the enemy wizard (your enemy) with Energy Immunity Acid as well as Resist Energy Fire.  Thus he has immunity to Acid and Resist Fire of 30.  You also learn this spell information via Urban Savvy Check even though these effects are of a temporary nature and are unique to the individual instead of the general kind of the monster.  You know that the Troll is immune to Acid as well as resists the first 30 fire damage each round (not just Resist Fire in general but the specific amount).

[gorfnad]

If only Urban Savant advanced spellcasting as "+1 level of existing class" instead of specifying arcane because this with a Cloistered Cleric base would be awesome.

[Amadi]

If only Urban Savant advanced spellcasting as "+1 level of existing class" instead of specifying arcane because this with a Cloistered Cleric base would be awesome.

Archivist 8 / Paragnostic Apostle 1 / Urban Savant 10 / Contemplative 1

[Fadier]

I have always liked this class since I first noticed it. The build I have been wanting to play with it is

Dragonborn Whisper Gnome Dragonfire Adept 10/Urban Savant 10

Use the Knowledge (History) part instead of Bardic Music and change the creatures that you can use Urban Savvy with to be more anti-Tiamat with and be devoted to Bahamut. You don't get 15th level breath effects but when your Good aligned there is not really any decent choices that cannot be duplicated with the metabreath spells.

My biggest problem with the Urban Savant is that I cannot find the 'League of Eyes' anywhere apart from in its description, anyone know where it is?

[Sunic_Flames]

Hm... Dude, that is fucking awesome if it works as you say.

[The_Mad_Linguist]

Isn't there a paladin spell (gateway to adventure or something) that instantly transports you to a CR-appropriate encounter?

Seems like it would work well with Mr. Meta.

[Sunic_Flames]

Isn't there a paladin spell (gateway to adventure or something) that instantly transports you to a CR-appropriate encounter?

Seems like it would work well with Mr. Meta.

Really? Where?

[awaken DM golem]

Wow.
Still wow.

This is like having your cake, eating it, and still getting to pick the icing.


Mindlink + Telepathy + similar , provided by someone else.

[Garryl]

Isn't there a paladin spell (gateway to adventure or something) that instantly transports you to a CR-appropriate encounter?

Seems like it would work well with Mr. Meta.

Really? Where?

I think it's Door to Great Evil from Ghostwalk.

[The_Mad_Linguist]

Yeah, I can't remember the name.

All I know is we had a pally player who called it "find the plot" and used it whenever investigation got dull.

[Alkaru]

Thank you!  I knew I'd seen that paladin spell somewhere, and had given up trying to find it.  Good for a paladin - great for an archivist! It's a pity the send other part only works on willing paladins - any way to broaden that?  I suppose Silverymoon thing to let you use the personal part on others would work, but it only advances arcane casting...  (Alternate Source Spell etc could work, but looking for a something a little more likely to fly with my GM)

Just in case anyone else is having trouble finding it, it's in the Web Enhancement(p6)

[awaken DM golem]

Polymorph Other cast on Humanoids,
to get around the Type 1 and Type 2 restriction.