Joe Black (3.5e NPC)

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Author: Luigifan18 (talk)
Date Created: October 6, 2015
Status: In progress
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Editing: Clarity edits only please
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Henshin a go-go, baby!


Joe Black

CR 20

Male Human Viewtiful Warrior 20
CG Medium Humanoid
Init/Senses +5/Listen +2, Spot +2
Languages Common
AC 27, touch 25, flat-footed 12; VFX Slow (+20 dodge AC and +1 AC vs. spinning-based attacks while active, narrow dodge), Viewtiful Dodge (+10 dodge AC), Skirmisher Scarf (+2 dodge AC while moving at least 10 feet), Viewtiful Forever (+10 deflection AC for 1 round after use)
(+5 Dex, +10 dodge, +2 armor)
hp 129 (20d8+40 HD); Ukemi
Resist improved evasion
Fort/Ref/Will +8/+17/+14
Speed 30 ft.+10 ft.; VFX Mach Speed, Double Jump
Melee Unarmed strike (VFX-empowered magic, chaotic, good, and adamantine) +24 melee (2d10+4)
Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.
Base Atk/Grp +20/+26
Atk Options Red Hot One Hundred, Hurricane Kick, Stunning Fist, Red Hot Kick, Swift Attack, Combo Mastery, Stand Still
Special Actions Combat Reflexes, VFX Slow, VFX Mach Speed, VFX Zoom, VFX Scratch, You're Too Slow!, Voomerang, Shocking Pink, Air Pummel, Red Hot Kick, Yamaarashi, Stunning Fist, Viewtiful Forever, Swift Attack, Combo Mastery, Stand Still, skirmish attack +2d6
Combat Gear Voomerang ×60, Shocking Pink ×60
Abilities Str 18, Dex 20, Con 14, Int 11, Wis 14, Cha 22
SQ VFX (max VFX = 16 + 5 enhancement bonus, recharge rate = 2/round), VFX Split, Viewtiful Dodge, Double Jump, improved evasion, Ukemi, Take 2
Feats Combat Reflexes, Ability Training (Charisma), Improved Unarmed Strike, Blitz, Improved Trip, VFX Scratch, VFX Split, Stunning Fist, Ukemi, Deft Opportunist, Improved Grapple, Danger Sense, Combo Mastery, Stand Still
Skills Balance 23 ranks, Jump 23 ranks, Knowledge (theatrics) 23 ranks, Search 23 ranks, Tumble 23 ranks
Possessions combat gear plus VFX Helm (+5 enhancement bonus to max VFX), Skirmisher Scarf (+2 dodge bonus to AC and +2d6 damage if at least 10 feet moved, +10-ft. bonus to movement speed)
VFX Being a Viewtiful Warrior, Joe Black can tap into the mystical force known as "VFX" to empower himself. He has five major VFX powers — VFX Slow, VFX Mach Speed, VFX Zoom, VFX Scratch, and VFX Split. Joe Black can have a maximum of 21 VFX points at any one time, and regains 2 VFX points at the start of his turn on each round as long as he is not currently using a long-term VFX power. If he runs out of VFX, then he loses most of his Viewtiful Warrior abilities and their benefits until his VFX pool has recharged to at least 4 VFX points.

VFX Slow (VFX): Joe Black's most basic, but most potent VFX power is VFX Slow. Using this power, Joe can tap into his VFX to slow down the world around him, out to a radius of 2000 feet. VFX Slow costs 1 VFX point per round that it remains in effect. This has the following effects:

  • Time itself slows down — objects fall slower, projectiles move slower, creatures move slower, everything moves slower. One second under VFX Slow is equivalent to several seconds of normal time — the exact factor is hard to determine, but it's perfectly possible to react to bullets traveling several hundred feet per second (or miles per hour) under VFX Slow's effects, and supersonic jets are slowed down so much that they might as well be flying through molasses. Joe Black himself loses 10 feet of movement speed while this power is in effect, but everything around him behaves as if slowed, even if otherwise immune to such effects; this is actually stronger than a basic slow effect, causing creatures and characters other than Joe to have their movement speed reduced by 70 feet (to a minimum of 5 feet) or to ¼ of their normal speed, whichever is less, relative to Joe Black, and they take a −4 penalty to attack rolls, AC, and Reflex saves instead of the usual −1. Except where otherwise noted, this doesn't affect the "actual" movement speed of anything significantly enough to alter its inertia; for instance, a flying creature continues flying even if reduced to less than its minimum flight speed.
  • Joe Black's attacks become more dramatic, and therefore more powerful. He adds his Charisma modifier (minimum +1) to all attack and damage rolls that he himself makes or which stem from sources that he is directly or indirectly responsible for (including spell-like effects, launched opponents, redirected projectiles, and environmental hazards (such as cave-ins) that Joe sets off).
  • The dodge bonus from Viewtiful Dodge is doubled (becoming a +20 bonus instead of +10), and Joe Black gains improved uncanny dodge while VFX Slow is in effect. With everything slowed down, even the most rapid attack is outrageously slow and easy to see coming.
  • Narrow Dodge (VFX, Ex): VFX Slow enables Joe Black to dodge just about anything, but at a price. As long as VFX Slow remains in effect, Joe gains a +20 dodge bonus to AC and Reflex saves (in addition to the bonuses from Viewtiful Dodge). However, anything that misses him by 20 or less (i.e. due solely to this +20 dodge bonus) is not subject to the "You're Too Slow!" ability (which means that he can't stun that foe on that round) and immediately costs him a move action from his next round (which he spends performing Matrix-style acrobatics) and 4 VFX points (or all of his VFX points if he has less than that remaining). The move action and VFX cost for a narrow dodge can only be incurred once per round. If Joe runs out of VFX, his powers are suppressed and VFX Slow immediately ends (but if he has an immediate action to spare, he can immediately use Zoom In and perform Viewtiful Forever before he actually loses his powers).
  • Reflect Projectiles (VFX, Ex): Joe Black can, with good timing, strike a projectile (such as a bullet or arrow) to send it in the opposite direction. To pull this off, he must make an attack roll that equals or exceeds the attack roll result or Reflex save DC +10 of the projectile attack. A redirection attempt can be performed as either an immediate action or an attack of opportunity — whatever Joe feels like he can comfortably spare. (If the projectile is slow enough to not hit its target during its owner's turn, Joe can use an attack action on his turn to redirect the projectile if it's within his reach; this is more likely than it sounds considering VFX Slow's primary effect, but still probably not something worth worrying about unless the current combat is in a very large area.) If Joe misses on his attack, that means he messed up the timing; the projectile's trajectory is unaffected, and if Joe is in that projectile's way, he takes a −10 penalty to AC and Reflex saves against it (he can technically still dodge it if he has enough time, and even if he doesn't, he may be able to pull off a narrow dodge anyways, but there's a limit to how fast he can react even with VFX Slow, and the failed attempt to redirect the projectile has subtracted a lot of precious time from his window of opportunity to get out of the way). If Joe hits, he has successfully redirected the projectile. The projectile's trajectory depends on how Joe strikes it. If he punches the projectile, it goes back the way it came at a 0-degree angle (parallel to level ground). If he kicks it, it flies upwards the way it came at a 45-degree angle. If he hits it with an uppercut, it flies upwards at a 90-degree angle (that is, straight up). If he hits it with a Red Hot Kick, it flies downward the way it came at a 45-degree angle. The redirected projectile is even more dangerous than it was originally. It uses Joe's attack roll as its new attack roll or save DC (a save DC is the attack roll −10), Joe's Charisma modifier is added to its damage, and if the redirected projectile strikes any enemy (especially the one who originally launched it), it stuns its victim (as a stunning fist attack) for 1 round with no save allowed. Projectiles whose size is equal to or greater than Joe Black himself (such as a boulder thrown by a giant) and projectiles that are not actually tangible (such as a magical ray) cannot be reflected with VFX Slow.
  • Rock On! (VFX, Ex): Whenever Joe Black strikes a dazed, stunned, or paralyzed creature, that creature is launched away from the sheer force of the drama (Joe sees it slowly fly away, but to everyone else, the victim flies away at mach speed). The hapless creature is launched along the same trajectory as a reflected projectile, and continues traveling out to the edge of the VFX Slow radius unless it hits a solid obstacle first. All other creatures in the way must succeed on a Reflex save (DC = 26 + the launched creature's size modifier to grapple checks) to get out of the way; failure means that the creature is struck, and both the launched creature and the creature it struck take 8d8 damage. The launched creature travels right through other creatures in its path, regardless of whether or not they dodge it. If the launched creature strikes a solid obstacle that can stop its movement, it takes 1d6 damage for every 20 feet it had left to travel. Once one stunned creature has been launched in this way, all creatures that the Viewtiful Warrior strikes are launched in a similar fashion until the VFX Slow effect ends. The Reflex save DC can be based on either Strength or Charisma (it's Charisma-based for Joe unless his Strength somehow exceeds his Charisma) and gets a +5 bonus by virtue of VFX Slow reducing the reaction times of everyone other than Joe himself.
  • Joe Black's falling speed is reduced fivefold while VFX Slow is in effect. This can (and usually does) reduce falling damage sustained (every 50 feet fallen is treated as 10 feet).
  • Explosions in the area of VFX Slow become bigger and more dramatic, and do more damage as a result. The area and damage of all explosions subjected to a VFX Slow effect are doubled (if Joe Black himself caused the explosion or tampered with the explosive before it went off, the damage is doubled before Joe Black's Charisma modifier is applied). Needless to say, fireball and related spells subjected to this effect become ludicrously deadly. However, timed explosives are delayed by VFX Slow, just like everything else; the time until detonation is effectively doubled (2 rounds are counted as 1).
  • Propellers are slowed down and stop generating lift. Anything dependent on a propeller to fly is brought down to the ground (or at least loses a lot of altitude). This effect ends when VFX Slow does, allowing the object or creature to return to its original altitude.
  • Liquids flow more slowly, potentially causing input to exceed output and causing the liquid's volume to expand. A pool of liquid can expand to cover up to 1000 additional cubic feet, but only if its level is determined by some sort of input-output balance (such as a lake being fed and drained by rivers, or the water in a sewer system). The liquid shrinks down to its original volume when the VFX Slow effect ends. Very large liquid bodies, such as an ocean, aren't strongly affected by this.
  • Balloons swell up (yet somehow never burst as a result of this), and anything being carried by said balloons is hoisted higher up into the air. When VFX Slow ends, the balloons return to their original proportions and altitude.
  • Spinning creatures or objects are drastically slowed down, to the point that Joe can perceive the object's "facing" at any given moment. For instance, he could predict which face a dreidel will land on. He also gains a +1 dodge bonus to AC against spinning-based attacks (such as Whirlwind Attack), and ignores bonuses to AC derived from spinning (as well as the effects of Barrel Roll and its more powerful variants). Tumble checks made to avoid provoking attacks of opportunity from Joe Black while he uses VFX Slow have a +5 increase to the DC for Joe's threat only (attacks of opportunity from other characters can be avoided with the same DCs as normal).
    • Another benefit of this aspect of VFX Slow is that slot machine reels slow down, with each reel advancing 1 space per round (each space being a possible reel result, though reel results with a higher probability than 1/X occupy a number of spaces equal to the number before the X). This lets Joe pick out any result he wants, as long as he can maintain the VFX Slow long enough (otherwise, he might have to use it multiple times, letting his VFX recharge between each Slow session). The reel result currently shown when Joe initiates VFX Slow is randomly determined as if the reel was being stopped.
  • Anything that gets sent flying by an attack or thrown by a creature travels twice as far as it otherwise would. This doesn't apply to anything that's fired rather than thrown, such as an arrow from a bow. However, all projectiles, whether thrown or fired, will be slowed down just like creatures and other objects.
Time stop, haste, and other effects that temporally accelerate a creature can cancel out VFX Slow (and are likewise canceled out by VFX Slow), but only for the creatures or objects under said effects. VFX Slow is a [Time] effect.

VFX Mach Speed (VFX): By activating this power, Joe Black speeds everything (but especially himself) up. VFX Mach Speed requires 2 VFX points per round to maintain. VFX Mach Speed has the following effects:

  • Joe Black gains a 300-foot enhancement bonus to movement speed.
  • Joe Black is treated as though he has the Run feat (without requiring its prerequisites) while VFX Mach Speed is in effect.
  • Joe Black gets two extra attacks at his full BAB if attacking with a standard action, or six extra attacks at his full BAB if making a full attack action. This doesn't apply to Red Hot Kick. With Red Hot One Hundred, Joe can get four extra attacks at his full BAB if attacking with a standard action, or twelve extra attacks at his full BAB if making a full attack action (this only applies to unarmed attacks).
  • Joe Black falls five times as quickly as usual. Strangely, this doesn't increase the falling damage he takes (but doesn't decrease it, either).
  • Fire Aura (VFX, Su): When Joe Black manages to connect with four or more attacks in a single round while under the effects of Mach Speed, he gains a fiery aura for five rounds. While covered with this fiery aura, his attacks deal an additional 2d6 fire damage, and he gains immunity to fire and fire anti-resistance 100 that can overcome fire immunity and fire absorption. He can refresh the duration of his fiery aura before it vanishes simply by connecting with four or more attacks in a single round while under the effects of Mach Speed, but he does not need to continue using VFX Mach Speed to keep the fire aura active (at least until its duration runs out). If he runs out of VFX, the fire aura is immediately dispelled. Joe must be attacking something to generate or refresh the fire aura, but that something doesn't have to be a creature — it could be anything capable of taking damage or responding to being attacked (like a pillar, a chest, a wall without magical reinforcement, or even a slot machine or Shocking Pink).
  • Afterimage Assault (VFX): When Joe Black connects with four or more attacks in a single round, he rapidly emits clones of himself. These clones rush out up to 450 feet away from Joe to fight for him. Each clone makes a single attack against a single creature or object (using Joe's own modifiers), then vanishes. Joe Black makes six clones per round, assuming that he connects with four or more of his own attacks. The clones preferentially attack whatever is closest, other than what Joe himself is attacking, but he can direct them to attack anything within 30 feet of their chosen target or choose the direction(s) in which the clones move out to attack. The clones actually move along the air itself; they don't need to move along the ground, and can even be used to retrieve things that are out of reach. (A clone can be directed to retrieve a single object, which is done instead of attacking a creature or object, and bring it to Joe). Joe must be attacking something to generate clones, but that something doesn't have to be a creature — it could be anything capable of taking damage or responding to being attacked (like a pillar, a chest, a wall without magical reinforcement, or even a slot machine or Shocking Pink). Likewise, the clones can attack anything that can take damage or respond to being attacked (but they won't attack something that there's no point in attacking, like a random wall).
  • If Joe Black is on fire, he can put himself out simply by activating Mach Speed. He cannot be set on fire while Mach Speed is active. However, this is only as effective as jumping into water, so it may not be helpful against supernatural fires (such as the blackfire[1] spell). Mach Speed also grants no fire resistance in and of itself (that requires the fire aura).
  • The following effects occur within a radius of 2000 feet:
    • Propellers are sped up, causing anything using them to fly to gain altitude. When VFX Mach Speed ends, the propellers return to their original speed and altitude.
    • The flow of liquids is accelerated, potentially causing output to exceed input. In a body of water whose level is dependent on an input-output balance (such as a lake fed and drained by rivers or a sewer system), the water can recede up to 1000 cubic feet of volume. This reverses itself when VFX Mach Speed ends. Very large bodies of water, such as the ocean, aren't strongly affected by this.
    • Balloons leak air and shrink, causing anything using them to fly to lose altitude or even hit the ground. A balloon that wasn't completely deflated will reinflate when VFX Mach Speed ends.
    • Explosions become rather small and pathetic. The area and damage of all explosion effects in range of VFX Mach Speed are halved. Timed explosives are hastened in VFX Mach Speed's area, and go off in half as much time (1 round is counted as 2).
    • Spinning objects and creatures (including slot machine reels) are sped up (as if the one-armed bandit wasn't unfair enough already). As far as game mechanics are concerned, this doesn't do anything important.
    • Anything that gets sent flying by an attack or thrown by a creature only travels half of the distance it otherwise would. (This doesn't apply to anything that's "fired", such as an arrow from a bow.)
VFX Mach Speed's effects and costs are greatly reduced when used in combination with VFX Slow; the only effect of VFX Mach Speed during VFX Slow is that Joe's movement speed is not reduced, and VFX Mach Speed only costs 1 VFX point per round to maintain when used in combination with VFX Slow. (In total, Joe uses 2 VFX per round.) VFX Mach Speed doesn't stack with haste or similar effects. Also, VFX Mach Speed cancels out slow and similar effects; however, these effects also cancel VFX Mach Speed. VFX Mach Speed is a [Time] effect.

VFX Zoom (VFX): This VFX power (also called Zoom In) is a straight-up boost that zooms in the camera to emphasize how awesome sexy viewtiful Joe Black is. It requires 2 VFX per round to maintain. VFX Zoom provides the following effects:

  • Joe Black adds 1 and 1/2 times his Charisma bonus (rounded down, minimum +1) to all of his attack rolls and damage rolls by infusing his attacks with drama. This stacks with the bonuses granted by VFX Slow.
  • Joe Black adds 1 and 1/2 times his Charisma bonus (rounded down, minimum +1) to all attack rolls, damage rolls, and save DCs that stem from sources that he is directly or indirectly responsible for (including spell-like effects, launched opponents, redirected projectiles, and environmental hazards (like cave-ins) that he sets off) within 2000 feet. This does not stack with the above ability, but does stack with the bonuses granted by VFX Slow.
  • All enemies with 15 HD or less that wind up within 2000 feet of Joe Black must succeed on a DC 26 Will save or become frozen in fear. The save DC is Charisma-based. As long as the Zoom In effect remains, enemies that fail this Will save helplessly cower in fear (however, as they are not dazed, stunned, or paralyzed, they are not affected by extra damage from Viewtiful Dodge or at risk of being launched by VFX Slow). A given creature only needs to save once for each time that Joe uses Zoom In, no matter how many times it enters or exits the area of effect. This is a [Fear, Mind-Affecting] effect.
  • Red Hot One Hundred (Ex): Joe Black is capable of performing high-powered rapid-fire punches. While Zoomed In, Joe is able to make two attacks for each one attack he would otherwise be entitled to (and each of these two attacks is made with the same attack bonus), but these attacks must be unarmed attacks and each pair of attacks must be made against the same target. In addition, Joe's unarmed attacks made via RHOH are treated as he was 1 size category larger (meaning that they do 4d8+4 damage instead of 2d10+4, before VFX bonuses are applied). This ability can only be used while VFX Zoom is active. If Joe Black is unable to make unarmed attacks with his hands (hands are full, disabled, missing, bound, etc.), he cannot use Red Hot One Hundred.
  • Hurricane Kick (Ex): Joe Black changes his lower-body unarmed attacks to a whirlwind kick. He may make a Whirlwind Attack as a regular attack action (which means that he may do so multiple times per round and interchangeably with RHOH attacks), but each Whirlwind Attack must be an unarmed attack, and he cannot combine this attack with the Red-Hot One Hundred. Joe can do this even though he lacks the Whirlwind Attack feat. This ability can only be used while VFX Zoom is active. If Joe is unable to make unarmed attacks with his feet (feet are disabled, missing, bound, etc.), he cannot use Hurricane Kick.
  • Rocket Jump (Ex): When Joe Black jumps while zoomed in, he becomes a twirling drill of destruction. He makes an attack roll as he jumps, and anything he collides with while ascending whose AC is defeated by his attack roll takes damage equivalent to that of his unarmed strike (2d10+4 before VFX bonuses are applied).
  • Rocket Impact (Ex): When Joe Black Zooms In while falling, he becomes a piledriver of doom. He makes an attack roll when he begins his dive, and anything he collides with on the way down whose AC is defeated by his attack roll takes unarmed strike damage (2d10+4 before VFX bonuses are applied). When he hits the ground, he generates a shockwave with a radius of 40 feet centered on himself that affects all creatures in range other than himself. This shockwave does unarmed strike damage as if Joe Black was one size category larger (4d8+4 instead of 2d10+4, before VFX bonuses are applied) and knocks victims prone. A DC 26 Reflex save halves the damage and negates being knocked prone. The save DC is either Strength or Charisma-based; since Joe's Charisma is higher than his Strength, the save DC uses his Charisma.
  • Spiral Dragon Kick (Su): The Red Hot Kick becomes a Spiral Dragon Kick if Zoom In is activated during the attack. This attack blows through everything in its path with a single attack roll, though it can't be (voluntarily) canceled once initiated. Anything it hits takes unarmed strike damage as though Joe was three sizes larger (8d8+4 instead of 2d10+4, before VFX bonuses are applied), plus 3d8 fire damage. This fire damage is in addition to the damage from a fire aura from VFX Mach Speed.
    • A Spiral Dragon Kick isn't completely unstoppable. A creature in the Spiral Dragon Kick's path whose flat-footed AC is greater than the Spiral Dragon Kick's attack roll result can allow Joe Black to (mostly) harmlessly collide with its armor, causing him to bounce off and provoke an attack of opportunity. The creature which deflected Joe Black takes 5 fire damage, but gains a +2 circumstance bonus to the attack roll for its attack of opportunity against Joe, should it choose to take it. A creature whose AC is greater than the Spiral Dragon Kick's attack roll but whose flat-footed AC would be defeated by said attack roll must let Joe past (and if it's flat-footed or otherwise unable to use its Dexterity and dodge bonuses to AC, it gets hit instead). A creature must have a "standard" AC greater than its flat-footed AC to be able to choose whether to let Joe past or to deflect him; if its flat-footed AC equals its "standard" AC, it must deflect Joe.

VFX Scratch (VFX): In addition to the standard VFX powers, Joe has learned how to use VFX to make the sky fall down. Seriously. While VFX Scratch is in effect, Joe is immobile, hovering roughly a foot above the ground, but the world around him rumbles and quakes. This induces various blunt objects to fall down from out of nowhere to conk his enemies on the head. These objects have a weight of 350 pounds and are treated as having fallen 175 feet. Each enemy is struck with four objects on Joe's turn. The objects always fall down at the perfect position and trajectory to strike their targets, so no attack roll is necessary; however, enemies can dodge the objects with a Reflex save (DC = 26, Charisma-based), but must make a separate save for each object. Objects positioned in precarious locations (such as a boulder on a tall, narrow spire, or simply partially hanging over the edge of a cliff) can be induced to fall down by using VFX Scratch. VFX Scratch has a radius of 2000 feet. VFX Scratch costs 2 VFX points per round to maintain (and also stops VFX from recharging while in use), and automatically ends if Joe gets knocked prone (even if he negates it with Ukemi), becomes stunned, or gets afflicted with any other status condition. Joe loses his dodge bonus from Viewtiful Dodge while using VFX Scratch, though he still gets other dodge bonuses (including the dodge bonus granted by VFX Slow, if he's also using that power). The usual Viewtiful Dodge bonus to damage against dazed, stunned, or paralyzed opponents still applies. In addition to all this, while using VFX Scratch, Joe continuously generates an earthquake with a radius equal to that of VFX Scratch itself; this earthquake does not affect Joe himself.

VFX Split (VFX): Joe has also learned how to use the power known as VFX Split. This allows him to distort space 3 feet above his head so that everything above that cross-section of horizontal space may be shifted up to 120 feet away from its actual location in any horizontal direction. Everything below the distortion in space remains where it is. This distortion in space is, for the most part, temporary. For example, if Joe used VFX Split to move part of a wall, that part of the wall would remain in midair as if it was still being supported by the wall beneath it, but if the wall was less than 120 feet thick, it could open up a gap for Joe (and his friends) to pass through. Upon the cessation of VFX Split, the wall would snap back into place. Joe could also open up a hollow space using VFX Split, which would return to normal after he was done. Likewise, he could pull a high ledge across a gap to shorten the jumping distance, then end the power so the ledge would return to its original position. VFX Split can also be used to reposition attacks from above (such as flame strike or call lightning) so that they strike an entirely different location. He can also perform such feats as positioning a fire over a geyser to put it out.

VFX Split does have some permanent effects. If one or more object(s) sit(s) on top of another, VFX Split can be used to move the object(s) on top over empty space, which will cause them to fall down. Such objects will remain at their new (lower) elevation after VFX Split ends. VFX Split can also sever ropes, chains, and other such things that objects might dangle from, resulting in said objects dropping to the ground.

VFX Split costs 1 VFX point per round to maintain. As it is a long-term VFX power, VFX does not recharge while VFX Split is in use. VFX Split's center of effect does not move as Joe does, and the effect ends if he moves more than 120 feet from the location where he activated it (snapping the landscape back into place).

Unarmed Mastery As long as he has VFX, Joe's unarmed attacks are equal to those of a 20th-level Medium monk, both in terms of damage dice and ability to penetrate damage reduction. That is, his unarmed strikes do 2d10 damage on a hit (before considering any bonuses from Joe's Strength, VFX, and other modifiers) and can penetrate damage reduction and hardness as though they were magic, chaotic and good-aligned, adamantine weapons. If he runs out of VFX, only this enhanced damage is lost, and only until his VFX recharges. Whether he has his VFX or not, Joe can freely choose to do lethal or nonlethal damage with his unarmed strikes without taking a penalty to attack rolls for either. He is capable of attacking with either hand interchangeably, or with his elbows, feet, and knees; there is no such thing as an off-hand unarmed strike for him, and he may therefore apply his full Strength bonus to any unarmed strike he makes, and make unarmed strikes even if his hands are full. His unarmed strikes count as both manufactured and natural weapons for the purpose of effects and spells that enhance or improve either manufactured weapons or natural weapons.
Viewtiful Dodge Joe Black has a +10 dodge bonus to his AC unless he runs out of VFX or is carrying a heavy load. If he carries a heavy load, he forfeits his dodge bonus outright, while if he runs out of VFX, his dodge bonus is reduced to +2. Furthermore, he gains a +10 bonus to damage whenever he attacks a creature that is currently dazed, stunned, or paralyzed (this is not reduced by carrying a heavy load or running out of VFX).
You're Too Slow! Any creature that attempts to strike Joe Black with an attack on its turn, even once, will be stunned at the end of its turn, with no save, unless it hit Joe with at least one of its attacks.
Double Jump Joe Black may jump while in the air. This works just like jumping from the ground. Once he does so, he must somehow stabilize his weight (typically by resting it on the ground, but anything that would allow him to use a movement speed he actually has works) before doing so again. When jumping from the ground, he may wait for the peak of his jump before jumping again, which effectively lets him make two Jump checks and combine them. If falling, using this ability resets falling damage to only apply from the point the jump was made from (which can negate it entirely, if Joe jumps close to the ground). This is a VFX ability, but does not actually consume any VFX points. Nonetheless, it can't be used if Joe has run out of VFX.
Costume Swap As a spell-like ability performed as a free action, Joe Black may alter the details of any mundane clothing (including nonmagical armor) he wears any time he wants to do so. For example, he could change a purple outfit into a red one, or a yellow one, or a striped one, or a polka-dotted one, or a tie-dye one... He can also add or remove any small decorations (such as pins, emblems, or buttons) in this fashion. The effect is instantaneous and can't be dispelled. The clothing is actually altered by this ability (which makes this a transmutation, not an illusion). Costume Swap cannot alter the properties of a magic item (or even a mundane suit of armor) in any way that would alter its statistics, abilities, or interactions with other game mechanics (except for altering its color). Using this ability emits a brief flash of light that, while short-lived, may be enough to give away Joe's position — certainly an inconvenience during those rare moments when he doesn't want to be seen.
Air Pummel Joe Black is just as skilled at launching multiple attacks in the air as he is on the ground. Even though he lacks a fly speed, he can make a full attack while in midair. Furthermore, while in midair, he can descend at a mere 5 feet per round simply by repeatedly making attacks — even if those attacks are aimed at empty space. He must use a full attack action in order to utilize this benefit, and he cannot move from the square he occupies while using this technique, even if he's able to make full attacks as a standard action or take more than a single full-round action in a round. Joe can't use Air Pummel if he has run out of VFX.
One-Two Each time Joe Black strikes an opponent with any attack, he gains a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls against that opponent for the rest of the round. This bonus is not retroactively applied to the initial attack. If Joe hits the foe more than once in a round, the bonus he gains to attack and damage rolls is cumulative (+1 on the second attack, +2 on the third attack, +3 on the fourth attack, and so on and so forth). If Joe is fighting multiple opponents, this ability applies independently to each of them; Joe can't get bonuses against one creature by roughing up another one. This ability is not lost if Joe Black runs out of VFX.
Red Hot Kick The signature move of the Viewtiful Warrior (other than his VFX), this fanciful move is a midair kick that drops to the ground at a 45-degree angle until it reaches the ground or something that can be attacked. The attack is initiated as a standard action and uses a melee attack roll to make contact. Once impact against the target is made, Joe Black bounces off the target and may perform the attack again. Red Hot Kick may only be performed 2 times before Joe needs to restabilize himself (in the same way that he restabilizes himself for his Double Jump, which, given that he can't fly, means touching the ground). A Red Hot Kick may be canceled at any point before impact by performing any other attack action, a double jump, or by restabilizing himself. Compared to any other unarmed attack, a Red Hot Kick does damage as though Joe is two sizes larger than he actually is (meaning that it does 6d8+4 damage rather than 2d10+4, before applying VFX and other bonuses). A Red-Hot Kick cannot be performed if Joe has run out of VFX.
Evasion Joe Black has made dodging into a slick, mesmerizing art form; in game terms, he has improved evasion. Improved evasion is like evasion, except that even on a failed saving throw, Joe Black takes only half damage. Joe cannot benefit from improved evasion if he runs out of VFX, wears heavy armor, or carries a heavy load, and it's downgraded to regular evasion if he carries a medium load.
Yamaarashi As a full-round action that provokes attacks of opportunity, Joe Black can cloak himself in an orange glow, then lunge forward and make a melee touch attack on an opponent within twice his melee range. (He moves to a space adjacent to his target if he is not adjacent to them already as he performs the attack, and if anything else is between him and his target, he performs Yamaarashi on whatever got in his way instead.) He has damage reduction 20/adamantine while performing this attack. If Yamaarashi hits, Joe grabs the foe and hurls them over his shoulder, hurling the opponent away and dealing triple his unarmed strike damage (6d10+12 before VFX modifiers are applied). The opponent must be Large or smaller for Yamaarashi to work properly. If the foe is Huge, Joe takes a −4 penalty on the attack roll. If the foe is Gargantuan or larger, Joe takes a −4 penalty on the attack roll and is unable to grab the foe, instead simply dealing his standard unarmed strike damage (his attack is still considered a touch attack, and thus bypasses armor and natural armor bonuses to AC).

A foe thrown by Yamaarashi hits the ground after flying 20 feet away, then continues rolling until it is made to stop by another creature (for example, using the Stand Still feat), it succeeds on a Tumble check to right itself (DC = damage dealt by Yamaarashi), it falls at least 100 feet, or it hits a wall. Until then, it moves 120 feet per round on the Viewtiful Warrior's turn, moving in a straight line, and can do nothing on its own turn except for attempt a Tumble check to stop rolling. The thrown creature's movement provokes attacks of opportunity. If the thrown creature hits another creature, the consequences are the same as if it had been whacked into that creature via VFX Slow; the Reflex save DC for the other creature to get out of the way before impact is 24 + the thrown creature's modifier to grapple checks (the save DC is Strength-based). Once it hits a wall, the victim takes 20d12 points of damage. In any case, it falls prone when it stops. If the foe has Ukemi or another ability that can negate being knocked prone, that ability is used when the foe hits the ground, but before it starts rolling (20 feet away from Joe); if the foe successfully avoids being knocked prone, it doesn't even start rolling.

Stunning Fist Joe Black can stun enemies simply by punching them really, really hard. He can use Stunning Fist 20 times per day for free. He can still use Stunning Fist (or an ability that would consume uses of Stunning Fist) even after running out of daily uses, but each use beyond his daily limit costs him 4 VFX points.
Ukemi Whenever Joe Black would be knocked prone or launched into a wall, he is entitled to a Reflex save to mitigate the effect. See the Ukemi feat for details. He cannot use Ukemi while wearing heavy armor, carrying a heavy load, or while out of VFX.
Viewtiful Forever When Joe Black performs a narrow dodge (usually, but not always, when his Armor Class beats a foe's attack roll by 20 or less while he's using VFX Slow), if he's also using VFX Zoom, then he may spend a standard action (from his next turn if necessary) and all of his remaining VFX to strike a pose that unleashes a torrent of raw awesomeness that overwhelms everything. Viewtiful Forever does 2d10 typeless damage to all creatures and objects within the range of VFX Slow, other than Joe Black and his allies. This damage is increased by 1d10 for every point of VFX that he spent to activate the effect. A Will save (DC = 26, Charisma-based) is allowed to halve the damage. All creatures damaged by Viewtiful Forever are also knocked prone with no save allowed. Since he spends all of his VFX to perform this attack, Joe is left vulnerable afterwards, but he has a +10 deflection bonus to AC for 1 round after using Viewtiful Forever to help him cope.
Swift Attack Joe Black may make one extra attack when using a standard action to attack, but the second attack is made at a −5 penalty (just as it would be if he were making that second attack in a full attack; thus, feats, variant rules, etc. that reduce secondary attack penalties during a full attack do the same for this attack). This extra attack is made in addition to the extra attacks granted by Mach Speed, and can be repeated as normal when using the Red Hot One Hundred.
Take 2 Should Joe Black fall in battle (or anywhere else, really), he gets one last chance to clean up his act. Whenever Joe is incapacitated for an indefinite duration in any way (including being killed, knocked unconscious, or petrified, but not any sort of immobilization that lasts for an indefinite duration but allows a saving throw at least once every two rounds to break free (such as galaxy stop)), he immediately regains all of his hp, loses all nonlethal damage, and is cured of all negative status afflictions (including negative levels, ability damage, ability burn, and ability drain). However, Take 2 only functions once per week, so Joe needs to make sure that he doesn't screw up again — if he does, the last thing he hears is bound to be "Cut! Cut! Cut!"

Take 2 functions even if Joe Black is out of VFX. It does not allow him to avoid death due to old age.




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Luigifan18's Homebrew (383 Articles)
Luigifan18v
Facts about "Joe Black (3.5e NPC)"
AuthorLuigifan18 +
Challenge Rating20 +
Identifier3.5e NPC +
NameJoe Black +
RaceHuman +
RatingUndiscussed +
SizeMedium +
SummaryThe man, the myth, the legend... it's none other than Viewtiful Joe himself, three-time savior of Movieland! (Maybe four-time... it's kinda tough to tell.) +
TitleJoe Black +
TypeHumanoid +