Sir Shadow
2009-03-28, 08:19 PM
Introduction
Hey ya’ll. I love Magic of Incarnum. It is arguably my favorite DnD book out there. I was looking at the Totemist class in particular when I thought of the Necrolitic. If there can be a class with soulmelds that represent magical animals, why not one that creates soulmelds with Undead?
Blah Blah; whatever. You can say that most if not all undead technically don’t have souls and that stuff, but I will just point out the feat Undead Meldshaper. Leave me to my fantasies. This is what DnD is about isn’t it?
The Necrolitic
“Oh Grave, where is thy venom? Death, where is thy sting? Both are at my mercy, and they will offer up the departed to be the tools of my revenge!” – Magnamos Vreeth, late Commander of the Dread Legion.
. . . Skeleton, zombies, vampires—each are iconic undead to which the masses are most familiar. Yet, there are those that would seek a much more intimate knowledge of the departed and damned. These are the Necrolitics, wielders of incarnum who shape soulmelds representing various avatars of death to either emulate its qualities or gain dominance over it.
Making a Necrolitic
. . . As a Necrolitic, you will (usually) either have a strange and unnatural fascination with death or be a corrupt power-hungry individual seeking to master the undead. There’s not much variation. The soulmelds you will shape will increase your skills and give you new and subversive means of damaging your foes. Depending on what soulmelds you shape, you could be a frontlines combatant or a taskmaster.
Abilities
. . . Like all Meldshapers, constitution will determine how many soulmelds you can shape… at least for a while until it becomes Wisdom. Charisma is also important because is will affect the DC and workings of some of the special abilities gained from soulmelds. Strength is somewhat important for combat purposes. If you want skill points invest in intelligence. Dexterity is not very important to you at all, considering some of the soulmelds you can shape.
Races
. . . Most any race could become a Necrolitic, but those that are more closely aligned with evil have a greater tendency. Races that are shortlived or live amongst a lot of death also have a certain disposition to seek this class.
Alignment
. . . Necrolitics can be of any alignment, although understandably most gravitate toward evil. Very few remain in the good axis, while almost all tend to have some form of neutrality in their alignment. The only alignment extreme seen with any sort of consistency is Lawful Evil.
Table 1-1: The Necrolitic
{table="head"]Level|BAB|Fort|Ref|Will|Special |
Soulmelds|
Essentia|
Chakra Binds
1st|+0|+0|+0|+2|Corpse Empathy|
2|
1|
0
2st|+1|+0|+0|+3|Chakra Bind (Spirit), Spirit Chakra Bind (+1 Meldshaper Level)|
3|
2|
1
3st|+2|+1|+1|+3|Guard Spirit|
3|
2|
1
4st|+3|+1|+1|+4| |
4|
3|
1
5st|+3|+1|+1|+4|Chakra Bind (Crown, Hands, Feet)|
4|
3|
1
6st|+4|+2|+2|+5| |
4|
4|
2
7st|+5|+2|+2|+5|Spirit Chakra Bind (Double Bind)|
5|
5|
2
8st|+6/+1|+3|+3|+6|Rebind Spirit Soulmeld 1/day|
5|
5|
2
9st| +6/+1|+3|+3|+6|Chakra Binds (Arms, Brow, Shoulders)|
5|
6|
2
10st| +7/+2|+3|+3|+7| |
6|
7|
3
11st| +8/+3|+4|+4|+7| Spirit Chakra Bind (+1 Meldshaper Level)|
6|
8|
3
12st| +9/+4|+4|+4|+8|Rebind Spirit Soulmeld 2/day|
6|
9|
3
13st| +9/+4|+4|+4|+8| |
7|
10|
3
14st| +10/+5|+5|+5|+9|Chakra Binds (Throat, Waist)|
7|
11|
4
15st| +11/+6/+1|+5|+5|+9|Undead Meldshaper, Honorary Necropolitan, Lifetime of Experience|
7|
12|
4
16st| +12/+7/+2|+5|+5|+10|Rebind Spirit Soulmeld 3/day|
8|
13|
4
17st| +12/+7/+2|+5|+5|+10|Chakra Bind (Heart)|
8|
14|
4
18st| +13/+8/+3|+6|+6|+11| Spirit Chakra Bind (Double Chakra) |
8|
16|
5
19st| +14/+9/+4|+6|+6|+11| |
9|
18|
5
20st| +15/+10/+5|+6|+6|+12|Rebind Spirit Soulmeld 4/day, Undeath's Embrace|
9|
20|
5
[/table]
Class Features
Like most classes that manipulate incarnum, your primary class ability is meldshaping. You have your own unique soulmeld list as well as the ability to shape all necrocarnum soulmelds. Another unique feature is your spirit chakra, something akin to a Totemist’s totem chakra.
Hit Die d8
Class Skills (2 + Int Modifer per level, x4 at 1st level): Bluff (Cha), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Disguise (Cha), Knowledge (Arcana) (Int), Knowledge (Religion) (Int), Knowledge (the Planes) (Int), Listen (Wis), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Spellcraft (Int), Spot (Wis)
. . . Weapon and Armor Proficiency: You are proficient with all simple weapons, light armor, and medium armor.
. . . Meldshaping: A Necrolitic's primary ability is shaping incarnum soulmelds, which are drawn from the Necrolitic soulmeld list (see post below) as well as all soulmelds with the necrocarnum descriptor. You know all soulmelds on this list and can shape any of them. Unlike the alignment-focused Incarnate and the magic beast-focused Totemist, you channel the awesome power of the undead.
. . . The Difficulty Class for a saving through against your soulmeld is 10+number of points of essentia invested in the soulmeld + your Charisma modifier. Your meldshaper level is equal to your necrolitic level in addition to any levels you have in other meldshaping classes.
. . . A Necrolitict can shape only a certain number of soulmelds per day. Your base daily allotment is given on table 1-1: The Necrolitic. The maximum number of soulmelds that you can have shaped simultaneously is equal to your Constitution score minus 10 or the number of soulmelds on the table, whichever is lower.
. . . At 1st level, you gain access to your personal pool of essentia, which can be invested into your soulmelds to increase their power. Your essentia pool's size is shown on Table 1-1: The Necrolic. Your character level (as noted on page 19 of Magic of Incarnum, Table 2-1: Essentia Capacity) determines the maximum quantity of essentia that you can invest in any single soulmeld. As a swift action, you can reallocate your essentia investments in your soulmelds every round (see Essentia, Magic of Incarnum page 50).
. . . A Necrolitic does not study or prepare soulmelds in advance, but must have a good night's rest and must meditate for 1 hour to shape his soulmelds for the day (see Shaping Soulmelds, Magic of Incarnum page 49).
. . . Chakra Binds: Beginning at 2nd level, you can bind your soulmelds to your chakras, granting you new powers based on the soulmeld and the chakra chosen.Binding a soulmeld to a chakra closes the body slot associated with that chakra (see Chakras, page 50), so that you cannot also benefi t from a magic item worn on the body slot associated with that chakra.
. . . The number of chakra binds that you can have active at any one time depends on your level (see the Chakra Binds column on Table 1–1: The Necrolitic). At 2nd level, you can bind a soulmeld to your spirit chakra (see below). Beginning at 5th level, you can bind soulmelds to your crown, feet, or hands chakras. At 9th level, you can bind soulmelds to your arms, brow, or shoulders chakras. At 14th level, you can bind soulmelds to your throat or waist chakras. At 17th level, you can bind a soulmeld to your heart chakra. Though you do not gain the ability to bind soulmelds to your Soul chakra as you level up, you may take the epic feat to acquire the ability.
. . . For more information on chakra binds, see page 51 of Magic of Incarnum.
. . . Corpse Empathy: Due to your... unhealthy obsession with the dead, you have taken on some of their characteristics. Mindless undead view you as a fellow undead, which means they are indifferent to you, but not necessarily any living allies you may have around. You also receive a +4 bonus to Cha-based checks against intelligent undead.
. . . Spirit Chakra Bind: At 2nd level, you gain access to a unique chakra: the spirit chakra. This chakra is not associated with any location on the body, but rather represents your connection to the undead energy of those long departed, embodied by the various undead of the darker places in the world. When you bind a soulmeld to your spirit chakra, you take on characteristics of the creature represented by the meld--usually involving a small physical transformation. Since the spirit chakra doesn't match a body location, binding a soulmeld to this chakra doesn't restrict your use of magic items that take up a body location.
. . . At 2nd level, the effective meldshaper level of a soulmeld you have bound to your spirit chakra is equal to your actual meldshaper level +1. The primary effect of this benefit is ot make that soulmeld harder to unshape. This bonus increases to +2 at 11th level.
. . . At 7th level, you gain the ability to bind a single soulmeld to your spirit chakra and to another chakra at the same time. You gain the special benefits of both chakra binds.
. . . At 18th level, your spirit has become strong enough to bear the weight of two soulmends bound to it. You gain the ability to bind two soulmelds to your spirit chakra at the same time and gain the benefits of both.
. . . Guard Spirit (Ex): You learn to guard your spirit from the hungry clutches of the undead masses. This would make dating one a whole lot easier. At 3rd level, you gain a +4 bonus on saving throws against the supernatural abilties of undead.
. . . Rebind Spirit Soulmeld (Su): As you begin to understand spirit chakra further, you learn that by asserting your will over it, you are capable of tearing away a soulmeld already bound to it and replacing it with anothe. Starting at 8th level, once per day you can unbind a soulmeld from your spirit chakra and bind a different meld to that chakra, as long as the new meld is one you already have shaped. This requires a full-round action and provokes attacks of opportunity.
. . . You can use this ability one additional time for every four Necrolitic levels gained above 8th (2/day at 12th, 3/day at 16th, and 4/day at 20th, etc).
. . . Honorary Necropolitan: After so much time channeling the power of the undead, you are pulled into the fold of undeath with much joy and celebration. At level 15, the Necrolitic recieves the Necropolitan template for free (unless you are already undead or you are unable to recieve the template).
. . . Lifetime of Experience (Ex): Due to your untimely undeath (see Honorary Necropolitan), you lose your Constitution score. However, due to years of experience, you gain a new outlook on life and a certain amount of insight into the workings of the universe and the grand scheme of things.
. . . Take one fourth of your Constitution score (from before you recieved the template) rounded down and add it to your Wis score. This is a permanent bonus.
. . . Note: If for some reason you did not loose your Consitution score due to the effects of Honorary Necropolitan, you do not recieve this class feature. If you had become a necropolitan before attaining level 15, you can still use this class feature.
. . . Undead Meldshaper: You recieve the feat Undead Meldshaper from Magic of Incarnum (page 41) for free.
. . . Undeath’s Embrace: At 20th level, you gain the ability to temporarily link your body, soul, and spirit together with the essence of an undead creature. This ability enhances the power of the essentia invested in the soulmelds bound to your spirit chakra. For the duration of this ability, every point of essentia invested in a soulmeld bound to your spirit chakra counts as 2 points of essentia. You also recieve temporary hitpoints equal to four times your Charisma bonus until the duration of the ability ends.
. . . Activating this ability is a free action that does not provoke attacks of opportunity. It can be used once per day and lasts for a number of minutes equal to your Charisma bonus (minimum of 1).
I'm still tweaking things here and there, but this is pretty much the basic gist of the class.
Hey ya’ll. I love Magic of Incarnum. It is arguably my favorite DnD book out there. I was looking at the Totemist class in particular when I thought of the Necrolitic. If there can be a class with soulmelds that represent magical animals, why not one that creates soulmelds with Undead?
Blah Blah; whatever. You can say that most if not all undead technically don’t have souls and that stuff, but I will just point out the feat Undead Meldshaper. Leave me to my fantasies. This is what DnD is about isn’t it?
The Necrolitic
“Oh Grave, where is thy venom? Death, where is thy sting? Both are at my mercy, and they will offer up the departed to be the tools of my revenge!” – Magnamos Vreeth, late Commander of the Dread Legion.
. . . Skeleton, zombies, vampires—each are iconic undead to which the masses are most familiar. Yet, there are those that would seek a much more intimate knowledge of the departed and damned. These are the Necrolitics, wielders of incarnum who shape soulmelds representing various avatars of death to either emulate its qualities or gain dominance over it.
Making a Necrolitic
. . . As a Necrolitic, you will (usually) either have a strange and unnatural fascination with death or be a corrupt power-hungry individual seeking to master the undead. There’s not much variation. The soulmelds you will shape will increase your skills and give you new and subversive means of damaging your foes. Depending on what soulmelds you shape, you could be a frontlines combatant or a taskmaster.
Abilities
. . . Like all Meldshapers, constitution will determine how many soulmelds you can shape… at least for a while until it becomes Wisdom. Charisma is also important because is will affect the DC and workings of some of the special abilities gained from soulmelds. Strength is somewhat important for combat purposes. If you want skill points invest in intelligence. Dexterity is not very important to you at all, considering some of the soulmelds you can shape.
Races
. . . Most any race could become a Necrolitic, but those that are more closely aligned with evil have a greater tendency. Races that are shortlived or live amongst a lot of death also have a certain disposition to seek this class.
Alignment
. . . Necrolitics can be of any alignment, although understandably most gravitate toward evil. Very few remain in the good axis, while almost all tend to have some form of neutrality in their alignment. The only alignment extreme seen with any sort of consistency is Lawful Evil.
Table 1-1: The Necrolitic
{table="head"]Level|BAB|Fort|Ref|Will|Special |
Soulmelds|
Essentia|
Chakra Binds
1st|+0|+0|+0|+2|Corpse Empathy|
2|
1|
0
2st|+1|+0|+0|+3|Chakra Bind (Spirit), Spirit Chakra Bind (+1 Meldshaper Level)|
3|
2|
1
3st|+2|+1|+1|+3|Guard Spirit|
3|
2|
1
4st|+3|+1|+1|+4| |
4|
3|
1
5st|+3|+1|+1|+4|Chakra Bind (Crown, Hands, Feet)|
4|
3|
1
6st|+4|+2|+2|+5| |
4|
4|
2
7st|+5|+2|+2|+5|Spirit Chakra Bind (Double Bind)|
5|
5|
2
8st|+6/+1|+3|+3|+6|Rebind Spirit Soulmeld 1/day|
5|
5|
2
9st| +6/+1|+3|+3|+6|Chakra Binds (Arms, Brow, Shoulders)|
5|
6|
2
10st| +7/+2|+3|+3|+7| |
6|
7|
3
11st| +8/+3|+4|+4|+7| Spirit Chakra Bind (+1 Meldshaper Level)|
6|
8|
3
12st| +9/+4|+4|+4|+8|Rebind Spirit Soulmeld 2/day|
6|
9|
3
13st| +9/+4|+4|+4|+8| |
7|
10|
3
14st| +10/+5|+5|+5|+9|Chakra Binds (Throat, Waist)|
7|
11|
4
15st| +11/+6/+1|+5|+5|+9|Undead Meldshaper, Honorary Necropolitan, Lifetime of Experience|
7|
12|
4
16st| +12/+7/+2|+5|+5|+10|Rebind Spirit Soulmeld 3/day|
8|
13|
4
17st| +12/+7/+2|+5|+5|+10|Chakra Bind (Heart)|
8|
14|
4
18st| +13/+8/+3|+6|+6|+11| Spirit Chakra Bind (Double Chakra) |
8|
16|
5
19st| +14/+9/+4|+6|+6|+11| |
9|
18|
5
20st| +15/+10/+5|+6|+6|+12|Rebind Spirit Soulmeld 4/day, Undeath's Embrace|
9|
20|
5
[/table]
Class Features
Like most classes that manipulate incarnum, your primary class ability is meldshaping. You have your own unique soulmeld list as well as the ability to shape all necrocarnum soulmelds. Another unique feature is your spirit chakra, something akin to a Totemist’s totem chakra.
Hit Die d8
Class Skills (2 + Int Modifer per level, x4 at 1st level): Bluff (Cha), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Disguise (Cha), Knowledge (Arcana) (Int), Knowledge (Religion) (Int), Knowledge (the Planes) (Int), Listen (Wis), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Spellcraft (Int), Spot (Wis)
. . . Weapon and Armor Proficiency: You are proficient with all simple weapons, light armor, and medium armor.
. . . Meldshaping: A Necrolitic's primary ability is shaping incarnum soulmelds, which are drawn from the Necrolitic soulmeld list (see post below) as well as all soulmelds with the necrocarnum descriptor. You know all soulmelds on this list and can shape any of them. Unlike the alignment-focused Incarnate and the magic beast-focused Totemist, you channel the awesome power of the undead.
. . . The Difficulty Class for a saving through against your soulmeld is 10+number of points of essentia invested in the soulmeld + your Charisma modifier. Your meldshaper level is equal to your necrolitic level in addition to any levels you have in other meldshaping classes.
. . . A Necrolitict can shape only a certain number of soulmelds per day. Your base daily allotment is given on table 1-1: The Necrolitic. The maximum number of soulmelds that you can have shaped simultaneously is equal to your Constitution score minus 10 or the number of soulmelds on the table, whichever is lower.
. . . At 1st level, you gain access to your personal pool of essentia, which can be invested into your soulmelds to increase their power. Your essentia pool's size is shown on Table 1-1: The Necrolic. Your character level (as noted on page 19 of Magic of Incarnum, Table 2-1: Essentia Capacity) determines the maximum quantity of essentia that you can invest in any single soulmeld. As a swift action, you can reallocate your essentia investments in your soulmelds every round (see Essentia, Magic of Incarnum page 50).
. . . A Necrolitic does not study or prepare soulmelds in advance, but must have a good night's rest and must meditate for 1 hour to shape his soulmelds for the day (see Shaping Soulmelds, Magic of Incarnum page 49).
. . . Chakra Binds: Beginning at 2nd level, you can bind your soulmelds to your chakras, granting you new powers based on the soulmeld and the chakra chosen.Binding a soulmeld to a chakra closes the body slot associated with that chakra (see Chakras, page 50), so that you cannot also benefi t from a magic item worn on the body slot associated with that chakra.
. . . The number of chakra binds that you can have active at any one time depends on your level (see the Chakra Binds column on Table 1–1: The Necrolitic). At 2nd level, you can bind a soulmeld to your spirit chakra (see below). Beginning at 5th level, you can bind soulmelds to your crown, feet, or hands chakras. At 9th level, you can bind soulmelds to your arms, brow, or shoulders chakras. At 14th level, you can bind soulmelds to your throat or waist chakras. At 17th level, you can bind a soulmeld to your heart chakra. Though you do not gain the ability to bind soulmelds to your Soul chakra as you level up, you may take the epic feat to acquire the ability.
. . . For more information on chakra binds, see page 51 of Magic of Incarnum.
. . . Corpse Empathy: Due to your... unhealthy obsession with the dead, you have taken on some of their characteristics. Mindless undead view you as a fellow undead, which means they are indifferent to you, but not necessarily any living allies you may have around. You also receive a +4 bonus to Cha-based checks against intelligent undead.
. . . Spirit Chakra Bind: At 2nd level, you gain access to a unique chakra: the spirit chakra. This chakra is not associated with any location on the body, but rather represents your connection to the undead energy of those long departed, embodied by the various undead of the darker places in the world. When you bind a soulmeld to your spirit chakra, you take on characteristics of the creature represented by the meld--usually involving a small physical transformation. Since the spirit chakra doesn't match a body location, binding a soulmeld to this chakra doesn't restrict your use of magic items that take up a body location.
. . . At 2nd level, the effective meldshaper level of a soulmeld you have bound to your spirit chakra is equal to your actual meldshaper level +1. The primary effect of this benefit is ot make that soulmeld harder to unshape. This bonus increases to +2 at 11th level.
. . . At 7th level, you gain the ability to bind a single soulmeld to your spirit chakra and to another chakra at the same time. You gain the special benefits of both chakra binds.
. . . At 18th level, your spirit has become strong enough to bear the weight of two soulmends bound to it. You gain the ability to bind two soulmelds to your spirit chakra at the same time and gain the benefits of both.
. . . Guard Spirit (Ex): You learn to guard your spirit from the hungry clutches of the undead masses. This would make dating one a whole lot easier. At 3rd level, you gain a +4 bonus on saving throws against the supernatural abilties of undead.
. . . Rebind Spirit Soulmeld (Su): As you begin to understand spirit chakra further, you learn that by asserting your will over it, you are capable of tearing away a soulmeld already bound to it and replacing it with anothe. Starting at 8th level, once per day you can unbind a soulmeld from your spirit chakra and bind a different meld to that chakra, as long as the new meld is one you already have shaped. This requires a full-round action and provokes attacks of opportunity.
. . . You can use this ability one additional time for every four Necrolitic levels gained above 8th (2/day at 12th, 3/day at 16th, and 4/day at 20th, etc).
. . . Honorary Necropolitan: After so much time channeling the power of the undead, you are pulled into the fold of undeath with much joy and celebration. At level 15, the Necrolitic recieves the Necropolitan template for free (unless you are already undead or you are unable to recieve the template).
. . . Lifetime of Experience (Ex): Due to your untimely undeath (see Honorary Necropolitan), you lose your Constitution score. However, due to years of experience, you gain a new outlook on life and a certain amount of insight into the workings of the universe and the grand scheme of things.
. . . Take one fourth of your Constitution score (from before you recieved the template) rounded down and add it to your Wis score. This is a permanent bonus.
. . . Note: If for some reason you did not loose your Consitution score due to the effects of Honorary Necropolitan, you do not recieve this class feature. If you had become a necropolitan before attaining level 15, you can still use this class feature.
. . . Undead Meldshaper: You recieve the feat Undead Meldshaper from Magic of Incarnum (page 41) for free.
. . . Undeath’s Embrace: At 20th level, you gain the ability to temporarily link your body, soul, and spirit together with the essence of an undead creature. This ability enhances the power of the essentia invested in the soulmelds bound to your spirit chakra. For the duration of this ability, every point of essentia invested in a soulmeld bound to your spirit chakra counts as 2 points of essentia. You also recieve temporary hitpoints equal to four times your Charisma bonus until the duration of the ability ends.
. . . Activating this ability is a free action that does not provoke attacks of opportunity. It can be used once per day and lasts for a number of minutes equal to your Charisma bonus (minimum of 1).
I'm still tweaking things here and there, but this is pretty much the basic gist of the class.