Paladin AC bonus for CHA???

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I asked this on DB but did not get a response so perhaps you gentlemen can help me. The manual and the guide at Planet both state that the paladin gets his CHA bonus to AC. However, just to see I started an Aasimar with 20 CHA and a 12 dex and had an AC of 11. Is this broken or are the book and the Planet just wrong. If it is broken and somebody has a user fix please let me know.

 

The CHA bonus adds to the saving throws. I believe there is a feat that allows the CHA bonus to improve the AC, but its name escapes me at the moment.

 

The feat is called Divine Shield, but the AC bonus is not continuous, you use the ability similar to Barbarian Rage, Wild Shape, etc. Also, I don't believe it was ever implemented in IWD2.

 

Thanks for the responses. I kinda figured they just hadn't put it in the game but I still held out hope. Does anybody know why they let it get in the manual but not in the game? Usually their QC guys are better than that.

 

I'm not so sure about that last bit. The rulebooks from IWD1 on down since have all had at least a few mistakes...

 

There's no way to add CHA to AC in IWD2.

Divine Shield feat adds your CHA mod to AC for a number of rounds equal to your CHA bonus, but it is not implemented in IWD2.

If your paladin has a high DEX score, you could have one or more levels in monk so as to add your WIS mod to AC. In fact, I'm soloing an aasimar fighter(4)/ranger(3)/monk(3)/paladin(x) now.

 

Chev, why are you using three levels of ranger? In IWD2 there is no bonuses at all by using that one, IIRC.

 

Isn't the idea of a better AC due to high CHA kind of silly? I mean, I can understand DEX granting AC bonuses because you move faster and are therefore harder to hit, but why CHA? Are enemies so impressed by your wit that they don't try as hard to hit you?

 

@Caleb: roleplaying reasons, class skills, free dual wielding

@david w: CHA isn't normally added to your AC. It only happens through a restricted feat, is done through channelling positive energy (instead of a turn undead attempt) and relies on the strength of your personality for the period of lasting, not only the amount of bonus added. It has more to do with the strength of your personality than with your presence, but since it only really makes a bigger difference with some huge CHA score, the idea isn't without merit. Someone with CHA 24 could offer some paralysing intimidating presence for a short time, couldn't he? Especially if he's inspired by his beliefs, such as the way Divine Shield works (it relies on your faith as well and is a gift from your deity).

 

@chev
I'm sure it does work against a normal humonoid, or even most monsters, but it simply cannot against constructs and undead. Demons and devils would also be harder to impress, more likely to anger. Golems and skeletons however should be completely immune to such a feat, with the description you wrote.
There are quite a number of such things after all. Written by humans and applied on humans, while the D&D world is so populated with all sorts of living/non-living things it cannot apply to everyone. Monk fists for example. I understand the damage he can do to a person by kicking him in the face. However, how much damage does a sand golem take when he receives a kick?
High level monk attacks can be explained by harnessing Ki in his strike, but even a low level monk can strike as hard as a warhammer, while suffering no damage even if striking against something really hard.

*shrugs*
It is a heavy-magic world after all, so we can just explain it with magic/extraordinary abilities or whatever

 

You have a point about constructs. Undead and daemons, well... some holy presence or some such?

I guess a charismatic character could impress himself to some extent the way he impresses his troops or other followers. But given a strong personality, it's not like he should need that, anyway. So I guess there's no way Divine Shield should work against constructs. Unless it's purely magical and somehowmagically related to your CHA.

 

How about this? As per a description of the paladins that I read once, paladins try to be a living example of honour, valour, charity, and faith. They basically exist to inspire others, and to be able to do that, they need to have some charisma. A paladin's charisma could be the representation of his/her faith, something that gives them an "inner shine" that made people like them. Now, faith is what gives the believer strength and comfort in times of need. Thus, it could bestow combat bonuses to the paladin, regardless of against who/what the bonuses are applied.