Magicus
2009-06-08, 10:11 AM
I'm about to begin running a campaign for my group, and one of my players has decided to play a Favored Soul of Nerull. When I was talking with him about Nerull's dogma and various churches in my world (specifically, a continent known as the 13 Kingdoms), he expressed an interest in eventually joining a group I created known as the Reapers. Being the kindhearted and benevolent DM I am (and, of course, loving it when players stroke my ego by being interested in random aspects of my world :smallbiggrin:), I decided to craft a prestige class he could take if he ever joins them.
Think of the Reapers as essentially Nerull's special forces. I do run the god a bit differently in this world, though: he's not so much evil and life-hating as simply the overlord of death. He's a lot like Hades from Greek Mythology, really - he's the Lord of the Underworld, alongside his consort Wee Jas. He also doesn't really want to kill the whole world at once, he's quite secure in the knowledge that one day everything will pass into his domain. He absolutely despises those who try to escape the Underworld or avoid it entirely, however (unless they work for him), and that's where the Reapers come in.
So, without further ado:
Reaper of Nerull
Everything must pass away, given enough time. I’ll make certain of it.
-Kelris the Hunter, Elven Reaper of Nerull
Any priest of Nerull, Lord of the Underworld, is an object of fear and awe, but none inspire more of these emotions than the black-robed, scythe-carrying group of highly-trained operatives known as the Reapers. Peasants shiver in fear as they walk past, and even the mightiest king sees his own mortality reflected in the eyes of these pitiless bringers of death. Nonetheless, while the Reapers do act as the hands of their god in any required capacity, their primary concerns do not lie in the world of mortals. They have been charged with Nerull’s most sensitive task: hunting down and eliminating all those who attempt to elude his grasp. Alchemists seeking elixirs of immortality, creators of sentient constructs, all who try to defy the inevitability of death are fated to become the victims of the Reapers. Even the intelligent undead, traditionally allies of Nerull, are not immune to this punishment – unless they choose to work directly for the god of death, their attempts to keep their soul eternally on the material plane are as reprehensible to that god as any other means of prolonging one's "life" indefinitely. The Reapers are a small subsection of Nerull’s church, but their reputation strikes fear into the hearts of all but the most powerful and foolhardy of those who seek immortality.
Requirements
Feats: Weapon Focus (Scythe)
Skills: Knowledge (Arcana) 10 ranks, Knowledge (Religion) 10 ranks
Spells: Must be able to cast 3rd level divine spells
Special: Must have Nerull as patron deity
Class Skills
The Reaper of Nerull's class skills are: Concentration, Craft, Heal, Hide, Intimidate, Knowledge (Arcana), Knowledge (History), Knowledge (Religion), Knowledge (Planes), Move Silently, Profession, Sense Motive, and Spellcraft.
Skill Points per level: 2 + Int modifier
Hit Dice: d8
Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: A Reaper of Nerull gains no proficiencies with weapons or armor.
Reaper of Nerull
{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|Spells
1st|
+0|
+2|
+0|
+2|Rebuke Undead, Deathwatch, Student of Life and Death|
2nd|
+1|
+3|
+0|
+3|Scythe Specialization|+1 level of existing spellcasting class
3rd|
+2|
+3|
+1|
+3|Spellscythe|+1 level of existing spellcasting class
4th|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4||+1 level of existing spellcasting class
5th|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4|Citizen of the Underworld|+1 level of existing spellcasting class
6th|
+4|
+5|
+2|
+5|Death Ward, Master of Life and Death|
7th|
+5|
+5|
+2|
+5|Deadly Strike|+1 level of existing spellcasting class
8th|
+6|
+6|
+2|
+6|Greater Spellscythe|+1 level of existing spellcasting class
9th|
+6|
+6|
+3|
+6||+1 level of existing spellcasting class
10th|
+7|
+7|
+3|
+7|Reaper of Souls|+1 level of existing spellcasting class [/table]
Rebuke Undead: A Reaper of Nerull rebukes undead as a Cleric of his class level. Any actual levels of Cleric he has stack with his class level for this purpose.
Deathwatch (Su): At 1st level, a Reaper of Nerull gains the ability to monitor the vitality of those around him. This supernatural ability functions exactly like the spell Deathwatch, save that the Reaper can invoke it at will. Also, he can use this ability to estimate a target’s remaining lifespan, assuming the target survives to die a natural death.
Student of Life and Death (Su): A Reaper of Nerull must devote himself to all aspects of necromantic energies in order to understand fully the nature of death. At 1st level, he gains the ability to channel his spells spontaneously into both Cure and Inflict spells of the same level, as he chooses at the time.
Scythe Specialization: At 2nd level, a Reaper of Nerull gains the feat Weapon Specialization (Scythe).
Spellscythe (Su): A Reaper of Nerull is trained to slay his enemies with both spell and blade. At 3rd level he gains the ability to channel Cure and Inflict spells through his scythe as a standard action, usually to harm either mortals or the undead. Casting a spell like this does not provoke attacks of opportunity. If the attack is successful, the spell damage is added to weapon damage, though they remain distinct damage types. A spell cast in this manner is subject to the scythe’s critical hit range and multiplier.
Citizen of the Underworld (Ex): A Reaper of Nerull is unnaturally comfortable with the process of his own death, and gains the ability to shrug off the ill effects of returning from his trip to the Underworld. At 5th level, he is entitled upon resurrection to a Fortitude save against a DC equal to the number of hours he spent dead. Success on this save protects him from any Constitution or level loss that he would otherwise incur.
Death Ward (Sp): At 6th level, a Reaper of Nerull is so used to working with necromantic energies that he has developed the ability to make himself – or others – immune to them for a short time. A number of times per day equal to his Charisma modifier (minimum 1), he may employ the spell Death Ward as a spell-like ability.
Master of Life and Death (Su): At 6th level, the Reaper of Nerull is so practiced at manipulating the forces of life and death that he no longer has to concern himself with consciously choosing the appropriate type of energy. He merely decides whether he wants to harm or heal his target, and automatically casts the appropriate spell, whether Cure or Inflict. He is always aware of which energy type, Positive or Negative, he is using. Unlike his ability to spontaneously cast Cure and Inflict spells, this ability also applies to the spells Heal and Harm; the Reaper must still prepare them, but as a single spell, which becomes Heal or Harm upon casting depending on the Reaper’s intent. This ability can also be used in conjunction with the Reaper’s Spellscythe or Greater Spellscythe abilities. The Reaper can always simply elect to cast a spell without modification instead of using this ability.
Example: Kelris the Hunter, a Cleric 7/Reaper of Nerull 6, encounters a disguised vampire using Nondetection to bypass his Deathwatch. Unaware of the vampire’s undead nature, Kelris declares that he is going to cast Harm; however, while casting the spell and manipulating the life energy of the vampire, he recognizes that his enemy is powered by Negative energy and is immediately able to shift his spell to channel Positive energy and automatically casts Heal instead. If Kelris had instead decided to heal the vampire, intending to cast Cure Moderate Wounds, he would have automatically channeled Negative energy and cast Inflict Moderate Wounds – though he could, of course, choose to ignore this ability and cast Cure Moderate Wounds as planned.
Deadly Strike: At 7th level, a Reaper of Nerull gains the feat Improved Critical when using his scythe. If he already possesses this feat, he gains the feat Power Critical when using his scythe instead.
Greater Spellscythe (Su): This ability, gained at 8th level, functions as Spellscythe, except that the Reaper of Nerull may also channel the spells Heal and Harm through his scythe.
Reaper of Souls (Su): At 10th level, the Reaper of Nerull knows that his true target is not the body of his enemy but his soul. A number of times per day equal to his Charisma modifier, he can transform his scythe into a spiritual weapon that bypasses all material forms of protection. In place of a regular attack, he may use a standard action to make a melee touch attack with his scythe, which affects any ensouled enemy (any enemy with an Int score), and does normal damage that bypasses hardness and damage reduction. This attack also affects incorporeal foes as if augmented by the Ghost Touch enhancement. He may use this ability in conjunction with his Spellscythe or Greater Spellscythe abilities. In addition, the attack made with this ability is capable of critically hitting even those enemies (undead, etc.) normally not subject to critical hits, as long as they are intelligent. Finally, he may also use this ability against a soul-storage device such as a Lich’s phylactery; if such an attack hits, the damage it deals is incurred by both the phylactery itself and the being to whom it is attached. Creatures slain by this ability cannot be raised from the dead by any means other than a Wish or Miracle spell.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-
So, thoughts? I know it could probably be broken in a number of ways, but one of my houserules bans DMM, so I shouldn't have to worry about any persistent-spell 'zillas and the like, at least. And I trust my players enough not to over-optimize anyway.
I am a tad concerned about general balance issues, though. This is my first major attempt at homebrew, so I'd be very grateful for any advice, criticism, or recommendations you are willing to offer.
Thanks so much in advance!
Think of the Reapers as essentially Nerull's special forces. I do run the god a bit differently in this world, though: he's not so much evil and life-hating as simply the overlord of death. He's a lot like Hades from Greek Mythology, really - he's the Lord of the Underworld, alongside his consort Wee Jas. He also doesn't really want to kill the whole world at once, he's quite secure in the knowledge that one day everything will pass into his domain. He absolutely despises those who try to escape the Underworld or avoid it entirely, however (unless they work for him), and that's where the Reapers come in.
So, without further ado:
Reaper of Nerull
Everything must pass away, given enough time. I’ll make certain of it.
-Kelris the Hunter, Elven Reaper of Nerull
Any priest of Nerull, Lord of the Underworld, is an object of fear and awe, but none inspire more of these emotions than the black-robed, scythe-carrying group of highly-trained operatives known as the Reapers. Peasants shiver in fear as they walk past, and even the mightiest king sees his own mortality reflected in the eyes of these pitiless bringers of death. Nonetheless, while the Reapers do act as the hands of their god in any required capacity, their primary concerns do not lie in the world of mortals. They have been charged with Nerull’s most sensitive task: hunting down and eliminating all those who attempt to elude his grasp. Alchemists seeking elixirs of immortality, creators of sentient constructs, all who try to defy the inevitability of death are fated to become the victims of the Reapers. Even the intelligent undead, traditionally allies of Nerull, are not immune to this punishment – unless they choose to work directly for the god of death, their attempts to keep their soul eternally on the material plane are as reprehensible to that god as any other means of prolonging one's "life" indefinitely. The Reapers are a small subsection of Nerull’s church, but their reputation strikes fear into the hearts of all but the most powerful and foolhardy of those who seek immortality.
Requirements
Feats: Weapon Focus (Scythe)
Skills: Knowledge (Arcana) 10 ranks, Knowledge (Religion) 10 ranks
Spells: Must be able to cast 3rd level divine spells
Special: Must have Nerull as patron deity
Class Skills
The Reaper of Nerull's class skills are: Concentration, Craft, Heal, Hide, Intimidate, Knowledge (Arcana), Knowledge (History), Knowledge (Religion), Knowledge (Planes), Move Silently, Profession, Sense Motive, and Spellcraft.
Skill Points per level: 2 + Int modifier
Hit Dice: d8
Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: A Reaper of Nerull gains no proficiencies with weapons or armor.
Reaper of Nerull
{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|Spells
1st|
+0|
+2|
+0|
+2|Rebuke Undead, Deathwatch, Student of Life and Death|
2nd|
+1|
+3|
+0|
+3|Scythe Specialization|+1 level of existing spellcasting class
3rd|
+2|
+3|
+1|
+3|Spellscythe|+1 level of existing spellcasting class
4th|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4||+1 level of existing spellcasting class
5th|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4|Citizen of the Underworld|+1 level of existing spellcasting class
6th|
+4|
+5|
+2|
+5|Death Ward, Master of Life and Death|
7th|
+5|
+5|
+2|
+5|Deadly Strike|+1 level of existing spellcasting class
8th|
+6|
+6|
+2|
+6|Greater Spellscythe|+1 level of existing spellcasting class
9th|
+6|
+6|
+3|
+6||+1 level of existing spellcasting class
10th|
+7|
+7|
+3|
+7|Reaper of Souls|+1 level of existing spellcasting class [/table]
Rebuke Undead: A Reaper of Nerull rebukes undead as a Cleric of his class level. Any actual levels of Cleric he has stack with his class level for this purpose.
Deathwatch (Su): At 1st level, a Reaper of Nerull gains the ability to monitor the vitality of those around him. This supernatural ability functions exactly like the spell Deathwatch, save that the Reaper can invoke it at will. Also, he can use this ability to estimate a target’s remaining lifespan, assuming the target survives to die a natural death.
Student of Life and Death (Su): A Reaper of Nerull must devote himself to all aspects of necromantic energies in order to understand fully the nature of death. At 1st level, he gains the ability to channel his spells spontaneously into both Cure and Inflict spells of the same level, as he chooses at the time.
Scythe Specialization: At 2nd level, a Reaper of Nerull gains the feat Weapon Specialization (Scythe).
Spellscythe (Su): A Reaper of Nerull is trained to slay his enemies with both spell and blade. At 3rd level he gains the ability to channel Cure and Inflict spells through his scythe as a standard action, usually to harm either mortals or the undead. Casting a spell like this does not provoke attacks of opportunity. If the attack is successful, the spell damage is added to weapon damage, though they remain distinct damage types. A spell cast in this manner is subject to the scythe’s critical hit range and multiplier.
Citizen of the Underworld (Ex): A Reaper of Nerull is unnaturally comfortable with the process of his own death, and gains the ability to shrug off the ill effects of returning from his trip to the Underworld. At 5th level, he is entitled upon resurrection to a Fortitude save against a DC equal to the number of hours he spent dead. Success on this save protects him from any Constitution or level loss that he would otherwise incur.
Death Ward (Sp): At 6th level, a Reaper of Nerull is so used to working with necromantic energies that he has developed the ability to make himself – or others – immune to them for a short time. A number of times per day equal to his Charisma modifier (minimum 1), he may employ the spell Death Ward as a spell-like ability.
Master of Life and Death (Su): At 6th level, the Reaper of Nerull is so practiced at manipulating the forces of life and death that he no longer has to concern himself with consciously choosing the appropriate type of energy. He merely decides whether he wants to harm or heal his target, and automatically casts the appropriate spell, whether Cure or Inflict. He is always aware of which energy type, Positive or Negative, he is using. Unlike his ability to spontaneously cast Cure and Inflict spells, this ability also applies to the spells Heal and Harm; the Reaper must still prepare them, but as a single spell, which becomes Heal or Harm upon casting depending on the Reaper’s intent. This ability can also be used in conjunction with the Reaper’s Spellscythe or Greater Spellscythe abilities. The Reaper can always simply elect to cast a spell without modification instead of using this ability.
Example: Kelris the Hunter, a Cleric 7/Reaper of Nerull 6, encounters a disguised vampire using Nondetection to bypass his Deathwatch. Unaware of the vampire’s undead nature, Kelris declares that he is going to cast Harm; however, while casting the spell and manipulating the life energy of the vampire, he recognizes that his enemy is powered by Negative energy and is immediately able to shift his spell to channel Positive energy and automatically casts Heal instead. If Kelris had instead decided to heal the vampire, intending to cast Cure Moderate Wounds, he would have automatically channeled Negative energy and cast Inflict Moderate Wounds – though he could, of course, choose to ignore this ability and cast Cure Moderate Wounds as planned.
Deadly Strike: At 7th level, a Reaper of Nerull gains the feat Improved Critical when using his scythe. If he already possesses this feat, he gains the feat Power Critical when using his scythe instead.
Greater Spellscythe (Su): This ability, gained at 8th level, functions as Spellscythe, except that the Reaper of Nerull may also channel the spells Heal and Harm through his scythe.
Reaper of Souls (Su): At 10th level, the Reaper of Nerull knows that his true target is not the body of his enemy but his soul. A number of times per day equal to his Charisma modifier, he can transform his scythe into a spiritual weapon that bypasses all material forms of protection. In place of a regular attack, he may use a standard action to make a melee touch attack with his scythe, which affects any ensouled enemy (any enemy with an Int score), and does normal damage that bypasses hardness and damage reduction. This attack also affects incorporeal foes as if augmented by the Ghost Touch enhancement. He may use this ability in conjunction with his Spellscythe or Greater Spellscythe abilities. In addition, the attack made with this ability is capable of critically hitting even those enemies (undead, etc.) normally not subject to critical hits, as long as they are intelligent. Finally, he may also use this ability against a soul-storage device such as a Lich’s phylactery; if such an attack hits, the damage it deals is incurred by both the phylactery itself and the being to whom it is attached. Creatures slain by this ability cannot be raised from the dead by any means other than a Wish or Miracle spell.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-
So, thoughts? I know it could probably be broken in a number of ways, but one of my houserules bans DMM, so I shouldn't have to worry about any persistent-spell 'zillas and the like, at least. And I trust my players enough not to over-optimize anyway.
I am a tad concerned about general balance issues, though. This is my first major attempt at homebrew, so I'd be very grateful for any advice, criticism, or recommendations you are willing to offer.
Thanks so much in advance!