TheSagaContinues

So, for an adventure I'm running soon, the PCs (imperial stormtroopers) are assaulting a droid factory where a rogue droid brain has begun "uplifting" various droids to full sentience. The biggest challenge is a "guard droid" that is based on the construction droid chassis from Threats (pg. 143) with some levels of soldier that it has gained from additional programming.

The primary purpose of this build is to make a sort of "assault droid" that could dish out the kind of damage to rival large vehicles like AT-ATs. In fact, the very intention is to have this droid fight an AT-AT in what should be quite the climactic fight. The other thing I need the droid to do is present a valid threat to landing transports! The droid should be able to throw large rocks or pieces of machinery that can get past the SR and DR of landing Sentinel-class shuttles.

This stretches the rules about as far as they can go, but it takes us to fun and unique places.

Spoiler: 'What have I done?!' (hover to show)

EVS Construction Droid CL14
Colossal droid (5th-degree) nonheroic 12, soldier 6
Init +9; Senses Perception +9
languages Binary
Defenses Ref 13 (flat-footed 13). Fort 18, Will 15
hp 262; Threshold 121
Immune droid traits
Speed 8 squares (walking)

Melee 2 claws +30/+30 each (2d8+43) w/ double attack OR +15/+15 each (2d8+58) w/ double attack, power attack OR +20 (2d10+78) w/ power attack, slammer

Ranged Thrown object +30/+30 (10d6+43) w/ double attack

Fighting Space 12x12; Reach 4 squares

Base Atk + 15; Grp +55

Atk Options Crush, Pin, Throw, Double Attack, Power Attack, Slammer

Abilities Str 50, Dex 7, Con -, Int 8, Wis 8, Cha 4

Feats Armor Proficiency (light, medium), Crush, Improved Damage
Threshold, Pin, Skill Training (Endurance), Throw,
Weapon Focus (simple weapons). Weapon Proficiency (simple
weapons), Mighty Throw, Double Attack, Power Attack, Slammer

Talents: Load-launcher, Heavy-duty actuators, penetrating attack (ignores 5 points of damage reduction)

Skills Climb +34, Endurance +34, Mechanics +13

Systems walking locomotion, 2 claw appendages, 2 tool mounts, heuristic
processor, x2 hardened systems
​

The droid picks up feats Armor Proficiency (light, medium), Mighty Throw, Double Attack, Power Attack, and Slammer.

Mighty throw is a must for this build as it allows the STR modifier to be added to ranged attack rolls with thrown weapons. It also increases the range increments by the STR modifier, turning the lousy thrown weapon range into something approaching laser weapons.

Power attack is also important because it allows the droid to take its hefty +17 BAB and add it to melee attacks. Sadly, does not apply to thrown weapon attacks. Since it applies to all attacks made in a round, it pairs nicely with:

Double attack, which for a comparatively small -5 penalty on attacks the droid can double its damage output on melee attacks.

The droid feat Slammer allows this build to turn into a nightmare on melee attacks. It doubles the STR bonus to dmg on a single melee attack. As a bonus, it combines with Crush to gain another dmg dice when using slammer.

Penetrating attack was taken to ignore the first 5 points of DR, which is important if you are trying to damage vehicles with DR.

The droid talent Heavy-Duty Actuators doubles the STR bonus to melee and unarmed attack rolls. While it would be fun to double the double for a x4 modifier, I've elected to instead "merely" add the STR bonus again (effectively a x3 modifier).

The droid talent Load Launcher is where the ranged attacks really start to come together. It allows the droid to be proficient in Improvised thrown weapons. It also adds the STR modifier to damage. Now, I've always played such that STR is already added to damage with thrown weapons, so this doubles that modifier. Let me know if you personally don't add STR to thrown weapon rolls. Load launcher also allows objects up to 1 size category LARGER be thrown up to x2 the STR modifier worth of squares. There isn't a good way to reconcile this with the range bonus given by mighty throw, so I'd probably treat it as having "enough" range, depending on the encounter. Open to ideas on how to resolve this.

The damage for a thrown object at the moment reflects a colossal (frigate) sized collision (10d6), but I'm not sure if there is a better way to reflect this. Additionally, I would think the droid is more likely throwing huge to gargantuan sized objects (4d6-6d6) typically. I feel confident with this damage because it mirrors the damage of objects of the same size when used as a weapon by the Move Object force power.

Thoughts or suggestions? As the GM of course I can use whatever stats I want and invent a droid that can do what I need it to. But I'd certainly like this droid to be RAW for the fun of being "entirely feasible" within the rules.

I would probably just reduce the number of NH levels to 14 or lower.

I'd certainly like to - although the original idea behind this build was to use the original construction droid template as written in Threats 143 and tack on some levels of soldier. I'd be loathe to drop even a single level of soldier as it would sacrifice one of the feats that makes the build work.

In your opinion, are the levels of nonheroic "part" of the chassis, or something that could be dropped? My mind goes to how players using a stock chassis keep whatever nonheroic levels are attached to the stat block when they transform it into a PC.

Where is CL14 coming from? Guess somewhere it figures there is another +3 CL of benefits to that base droid.

That would be my guess, yes. Frankly looking at the base construction droid in Threats seeing it as a CL5 is pretty laughable. I'm not too worried about the CL though, as frankly even CL14 seems a bit arbitrary. You certainly wouldn't want to fight it on foot.

In fact I might just say it gets reprogrammed to NH12 (CL4) and then add your heroic levels do that with some of those feats making up for the change in NH levels.

I like the idea of cutting off an even 3 NH levels. I'll re-make the stat block and take away a single feat. It also loses a bit of dex since it no longer makes level 20.