The Book on Kissing
By now some of you will no doubt be aware that this week is Romance Week here at Necromancers of the Northwest, a week devoted to all things romantic. When it comes to romance, I, like most of you, think of its greatest and most cherished symbol: the kiss. The kiss has been around for a very long time, and always has a powerful emotional impact on those who give and receive them, but some kisses are better than others. Some kisses, when delivered under the right circumstances or with great passion have a power all their own, capable of anything from stopping a warrior’s heart (if only for a second) to convincing a man of conviction to deviate from his set course for the needs of another. You’ve seen kisses like these on movie screens, and read about them in books (and maybe if you’re really lucky, you’ve even experienced one first-hand), and now you can bring these most special of kisses to life in your game!
Before we can get to that, though, there are some boring rules things to get out of the way. The following feats all belong to a new feat group, kiss feats. Similar to combat feats or metamagic feats, this is a grouping of similar feats, which have special rules attached to them.
Using a kiss feat requires that you kiss the target. If the target is willing, this is rarely difficult, but if the target is unwilling, then you must succeed on a melee touch attack in order to deliver the kiss, and doing so provokes attacks of opportunity. Creatures with sufficiently inhuman anatomy (such as those without mouths, or at least without lips) may be incapable of kissing or being kissed in this way, at the GM’s discretion. Also at the GM’s discretion, certain non-humanoid creatures may not be as susceptible to the power of the kiss as humanoids are, and may gain a +2 racial bonus on saving throws made to resist the effects of kiss feats.
Each kiss feat grants a specific action that can be performed with a kiss, and, unless the individual feat specifically indicates to the contrary, you cannot combine the effects of more than one kiss feat as part of a single kiss.
Finally, even among humanoid creatures that are generally receptive to the power of kiss feats, some are more receptive to certain kissers than others. The following kiss feats reference a kiss saving throw modifier, which is an adjustment to the saving throw DC of the kiss feat’s ability, and which is dependent on the circumstances of the kiss, as outlined below.
Okay, great! Now that that’s out of the way, we can go ahead and start looking at exciting kissing feats.
Dazzling Kiss (Kiss)
You are a terrific kisser, and a passionate brush from your lips leaves the object of your affections befuddled and unable to focus.
Prerequisites: Charisma 13; or Bluff 3 ranks and Diplomacy 3 ranks.
Benefit: As a standard action, you can deliver a magnificent kiss which causes the target to be unable to focus on anything other than the kiss. When you kiss your target, she must succeed on a Will save (DC 10 + kiss saving throw modifier + your Charisma modifier) or suffer your choice of one of the following penalties: a -1 penalty on all attack rolls, a -1 penalty to AC, or a -1 penalty on all Charisma-, Intelligence-, and Wisdom-based skill checks. Regardless of the penalty chosen, the effect lasts for 1 minute. This is a mind-affecting emotion effect.
Ensorcelling Kiss (Kiss)
Your kisses are literally filled with magic, allowing you cast certain spells with a simple kiss.
Prerequisites: Charisma 13, ability to cast 1st-level spells.
Benefit: You may choose to deliver any spell with a single target with a kiss. If you do, the spell’s range is reduced to touch, and must be delivered via a kiss. Additionally, your spell is delivered without verbal or somatic components, allowing you to cast the spell even while wearing armor or under the effects of a silence spell. Anything that would prevent you from kissing the target prevents you from casting the spell. Spells delivered in this way are much more difficult to identify, and require a DC 20 Perception check for a character to notice that a spell is being cast at all. Even a character who does discover that a spell is being cast suffers a -5 penalty on Spellcraft checks made to identify the spell. You are never considered armed when delivering a spell in this way, and using this ability to deliver a spell always provokes an attack of opportunity.
Infatuating Kiss (Kiss)
When you lock lips with a creature, in an embrace filled with longing, you leave a lasting impression, and the object of your affections can think of little other than you.
Prerequisites: Charisma 13; or Bluff 3 ranks and Diplomacy 3 ranks.
Benefit: You can deliver a kiss that causes the target to think only of you. When you kiss your target, she must succeed on a Will save (DC 10 + kiss saving throw modifier + your Charisma modifier) or become fascinated for 1 round. Using this ability again does not count as a hostile effect and does not break the fascinate effect.
Just for Luck (Kiss)
In the heat of battle or on the precipice of doom, a simple kiss is often all that’s needed to turn the tide.
Prerequisites: Charisma 13; or Bluff 3 ranks and Diplomacy 3 ranks.
Benefit: As a standard action, you can deliver a magnificent kiss which causes the target to be unable to focus on anything but the kiss. When you deliver the kiss, your target gains your choice of one of the following benefits: the target gains a +1 bonus to all attack rolls; the target gains a +1 bonus to AC; or the target gains a +1 bonus on all Charisma-, Intelligence-, and Wisdom-based skill checks. Regardless of the bonus chosen, the effect lasts for 1 minute. This is a mind-affecting emotion effect. You can use this ability as often as you like, but must wait at least 1 minute between uses.
Persuasive Kiss (Kiss)
In heated moments, a kiss of a few seconds can prove more persuasive than a lengthy argument from even a skilled orator.
Prerequisites: Charisma 13; or Diplomacy 3 ranks.
Benefit: As a full-round action, you may kiss a single creature. If you do, you may make a Diplomacy check against that creature without the usual penalty for making a Diplomacy check in a shorter amount of time than normal. Further, you gain a bonus or penalty on this check equal to the kiss saving throw modifier for the situation. This is a mind-affecting emotion effect.
Staggering Kiss (Kiss)
Your kiss is filled with such passion that those lucky enough to know your romantic embrace literally have their breath taken away.
Prerequisites: Infatuating Kiss, Charisma 15, Bluff 10 ranks or Diplomacy 10 ranks.
Benefit: As a standard action, you can deliver a magnificent kiss which causes the target to have her breath taken away. When you kiss your target, she must succeed on a Will saving throw (DC 10 + kiss saving throw modifier + your Charisma modifier) or become staggered for 1 round. This is a mind-affecting emotion effect.