Soilborn
2011-03-16, 01:05 AM
I'm sure this has been done before: the sword summoner. The guy who creates weapons out of thin air and makes them zip around the battle, tearing things up. I've tried my hand at creating a PRC based around the concept, and dear sweet lord has it led to a lot of text. This class is not yet finished as balance issues are still abound, and I’m certain there are also a number of loopholes that may have escaped my attention.
So I look to you to give me your thoughts.
Also I’ve been completely unable to find any appropriate images except for a number of iconic characters who I feel would be unjust to use. So here’s a lemur.
The Lacunamancer
http://www.cryptomundo.com/wp-content/uploads/ring-tailed-lemur.jpg
Image by mother nature. (http://www.peta.org/)
"I don’t know how this Jarison character does it, but he’s definitely at the heart of the hoax! What I was sold was a gemmed rod brimming with magic. I place it under the tightest of lock and key, but the next day it's gone! The chest wasn’t picked, the store not broken into and nothing else was missing. What’s more I heard he sold the exact same rod to Willa the very next day, and it went missing too!"
– Rondel Grisson, shop owner.
Many people dream of the power to command their items to do their bidding. How convenient would it be to organize a room without raising a finger, teleport something immediately to hand, or even blink things in and out of existence. Wizards can achieve such effects to an extent with their spells, but Lacunamancers are the true masters of item summoning and levitation. With a simple thought the Lacunamancer can manipulate their aligned items as they see fit, all without an ounce of magical study. Perhaps it is due to the warping of one’s essence, or perhaps the shenanigans that their new powers permit, but a Lacunamancer is rarely ever seen as a positive influence. They tend to be wild individuals that range from battle-thirsty warmongers to malicious tricksters.
Using powers attained through the warping of their own essences these extremely rare individuals have developed personal pocket dimensions connected to their beings that grow larger as they exercise their powers. They can spread the effects of their own distortion upon items of their choosing, gaining an unseen manipulative power over them. At first their abilities are limited to merely snapping these items in and out of existence, but as they grow in power they develop the ability to command their items to defy gravity and assist in battle. Truly mighty Lacunamancers enter combat surrounded by a menagerie of floating weapons and shields that move about in a fluid display of organized carnage.
Outside of combat this class offers plenty of flavor, from the abusive trader who sells aligned items to merchants only to warp them back into his possession, to the fortress master who leaves powerful weapons lying around for the party to nonchalantly arm themselves with only to blink the gear out of existence when it comes time for the invaders to face him.
Becoming a Lacunamancer
The deciding factor in becoming one of the very few Lacunamancers is to have one’s essence warped by planar distortion. This is not as easy as simply creating a planar portal and walking through in hopes of attaining these powers; the rip between the planes must be chaotic and uncontrolled, unbound by the order of artificial creation. Only in these circumstances does the havoc that occurs where planes intersect have the potential to cause permanent distortion to those who may pass within. One of the easiest ways to achieve this effect is to place a Portable Hole into a Bag of Holding and jumping through the resulting rift. Even when subjected to these energies however, the chances of them actually affecting the aspiring character are rare and, to warp them in the correct manner, even rarer.
Hope still exists for those willing to seek out a more formal method of empowerment. A tiny guild by the name of the Thysila Vagabonds roam the world, their ranks filled with individuals possessing the effects of the warp. This guild alone has developed and refined a method of granting the powers of the Lacunamancer to willing subjects, and for a hefty price they are more than willing to do so for any permitted into their ranks. Unfortunately even so much as finding this guild is a painfully difficult task. The Vagabonds are a tightly-knit, nomadic guild with no central hub. They are scarcely even heard of, and the very few who even recognize the name can provide little information.
Hit Dice: d8
Requirements
Alignment: Any non-Lawful
Base Attack Bonus: +5
Skills: Concentration 4 ranks
Special: Undergone Thysila Vagabond initiation or been affected by chaotic planar distortion.
Class Features Table
{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|Storage Units|Float
1st|
+1|
+2|
+0|
+0| Spatial Storage, Swift Recall 1 |
1|
0
2nd|
+2|
+3|
+0|
+0| Animation, Bonus Float, Steel Guard |
2|
10
3rd|
+3|
+3|
+1|
+1| Summoned Feat |
2|
16
4th|
+4|
+4|
+1|
+1| Summoned Feat, Barrier of Blades |
3|
21
5th|
+5|
+4|
+1|
+1| Swift Recall 2 |
4|
26
6th|
+6|
+5|
+2|
+2| Summoned Feat, Steel Barricade |
4|
32
7th|
+7|
+5|
+2|
+2| Summoned Feat |
5|
38
8th|
+8|
+6|
+2|
+2| Whirling Maelstrom |
6|
45
9th|
+9|
+6|
+3|
+3| Summoned Feat, Swift Recall 3 |
6|
55
10th|
+10|
+7|
+3|
+3| Summoned Feat, Swift Transition |
7|
70[/table]
Class Skills:
The Disciple of the Lacunamancer‘s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Knowledge (the planes) (int), and Swim (Str).
Skill-points per level: 2 + Int modifier
Class Features
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Lacunamancers gain no proficiency with any weapons or armor, though they often carry these proficiencies over from previous classes.
Spatial Storage (Su): The Lacunamancer has developed his own personal extradimensional space in which he can store items of his choosing. These items are limited to non-living, though not necessarily unintelligent, objects. The most common items are weapons, shields, and various pieces of traveling equipment. Many Lacunamancers choose a large storage object such as a backpack into which he can store other items. Lacunamancers may store only a limited number of objects as indicated in the “Storage Units” column in the Class Features table.
As a Swift Action, the Lacunamancer can will a stored object across the planar boundaries to his side. He may choose anywhere within 10 + (class level x5)ft of himself for the item to appear. In battle, the rate at which items are summoned is handled by the Swift Recall ability below. An item may be dismissed from the Lacunamancer’s residing plane and back into his personal space as a free action from any range. Spells and effects placed upon the item do not transfer between planes and are lost when the item is blinked out of its master's plane.
Items cannot be summoned within or around any material feature (such as creating a sword within a dragon’s stomach or a suit of armor around a character’s body,) but items can be summoned in poses of easy access (such as a dagger near a character’s hand) and may be grasped immediately as free actions.
Only items that the Lacunamancer has aligned to his warped personal energies may be stored in his extra-dimensional space. The process of aligning an item is a simple one. The character must find a quiet, safe spot to meditate for 24 hours. At the end of this meditation, the Lacunamancer sacrifices a number of experience points, transferring them into the item so that it may be imbued with his extra-dimensional control. The experience point cost is determined by how many other items the Lacunamancer currently has under his control.
Alignment Exp cost table
{table=head]Other Aligned Items|Experience Cost
0 | 20
1 | 40
2 | 80
4 | 160
5 | 320
6 | 640
7 | 1280 [/table]
If the Lacunamancer has already reached his maximum number of controlled items he must choose one at the time of his alignment with the new item. Upon completion the new item takes the place of the lost one. The old item is reverts back to the Lacunamancer’s present plane and is no longer aligned.
Each storage unit is large enough to hold a medium-sized or smaller object. A large object requires 2 storage units, while a huge object requires 4. The Lacunamancer cannot align any objects larger than huge. When calculating the Exp cost for aligning larger items, treat i2 as though the character is aligning as many medium items as the larger item would be worth. For example: Jarison controls three items and wants to align a large axe as a fourth. He must have at least 5 storage units (level 7 or higher) and pay 480 (360 + 180) exp to align the item.
Attempting to align an item that is already aligned to another Lacunamancer simply fails. Not only can items that utilize extra-dimensional effects such as Bags of Holding not be aligned but the process also has a volatile effect. Upon the ritual's completion the item will implode into the Astral Plane, forever lost. This failed attempt costs the Lacunamancer no Exp and the item he intended to replace remains intact. Although this is a chaotic cross-planar event, it is on too minor of a scale to attempt bestowing a Lacunamancer’s powers upon other individuals.
Swift Recall (Su): The Lacunamancer can normally summon an item as a Swift Action, and thus each must be summoned separately. At 5th level the number of items he may summon as a single Swift Action increases to 2, and at 9th he may summon up to 3.
Animation (Su): Upon attaining 2nd level, the Lacunamancer gains the ability to give a semblance of life to the items aligned to him. At his behest these items may defy gravity and float about. The effects of this ability are handy for regular items, but most Lacunamancers use it in conjunction with weapons to attack foes or shields to defend allies. Animated items are treated as summoned creatures in many respects, but possess a number of unique properties.
An animated item joins the initiative queue immediately before its master and occupies the space it was summoned in. An indefinite number of animated items may occupy a single 5ft square as long as the space is otherwise unoccupied. Animated items cannot normally occupy an otherwise already occupied space unless it is occupied by a willing ally or as part of one of the Lacunamancer’s other class features.
An individual item’s movement speed is determined by the item's weight, as shown below.
Speed Table
{table=head]Weight|Speed
0lbs - 1lb | 40ft
2lbs – 5lbs | 30ft
6lbs – 10lbs | 20ft
11lbs+ | 15ft[/table]
The Lacunamancer’s area of control is limited. He may only maintain control of his animated items as long as they stay within 10 + (class level x5)ft of himself. If an item leaves, is thrown, or in any way moves outside of this radius it immediately falls inert and cannot be animated until it returns to within its master’s sphere of influence.
Animated weapons may attack enemies at the Lacunamancer's direction. They use their master's full base attack bonus and any weapon-based enhancements (masterwork or magical) to determine their attack. They do not gain any bonuses or penalties to attack and damage based upon their master's ability scores or any magical effects placed on their master. They do however suffer the associated penalty (-4 to attack) if the Lacunamancer lacks proficiency with them. Animated weapons cannot be used to perform any combat feats known by their master, but see the Summoned Feat class feature.
Shields capable of bashing enemies normally may do so when animated. When shield bashing, the shields use their master's full base attack bonus and any weapon-based enhancements (masterwork or magical) to determine their attack. They do not gain any bonuses or penalties to attack and damage based upon their master's ability scores or any magical effects placed on their master. Shields with which the Lacunamancer is not proficient suffer a -4 penalty to their shield bash attempts. Animated shields cannot be used to perform any combat feats known by their master, but see the Summoned Feat class feature.
A master’s manipulation of his items is somewhat imprecise. Shields and solid weapons such as swords and maces can be swung without any loss in effectiveness, but ranged weapons are outside of a Lacunamancer’s capabilities to manipulate for their intended purposes. Unless possessing parts made for melee combat, an animated weapon cannot be used to attack or take part in Barrier of Blades or Whirling Maelstrom. Ranged ammunition cannot be hurled quickly enough to cause damage.
Attacking an animated item counts as a sunder attempt. Size modifiers apply as determined by the item as opposed to the user. Items under attack gain a bonus equal to half their master’s Lacunamancer class level on opposing sunder attempts against them.
Float: When a Lacunamancer begins to animate his items at 2nd level he also gains access to a Float pool. The Float pool is a sort of fuel for the animation of a Lacunamancer's items. As a character gains levels in Lacunamancer, his or her Float pool increases as shown in the Class Features table.
The Lacunamancer begins each encounter with a full Float pool. At the beginning of an animated item's turn its master must choose to spend a Float point or let the item fall lifeless. Once its Float point has been spent the item may perform any action that is master desires that turn. If the Float pool is empty at the beginning of an item's turn than it will automatically fall inanimate. Even with an empty Float pool the Lacunamancer may summon or dismiss his items as he pleases.
Bonus Float: Characters of particularly strong minds will find that their Float pools far outstrip those of duller mentality, especially as they grow more powerful. Upon reaching 2nd level, the Lacunamancer may choose a mental attribute (Intelligence, Wisdom or Charisma.) He gains a constant bonus to his Float pool as determined by the ability modifier for the selected attribute. Consult the table below:
(formula: Floor (0.25 x Mod) x class level)
{table=head]Mod|2nd Level|3rd Level|4th Level|5th Level|6th Level|7th Level|8th Level|9th Level|10th Level
+0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
+1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2
+2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5
+3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 7
+4 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10
+5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 11 | 12
+6 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 15
+7 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 15 | 17
+8 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 20
+9 | 4 | 6 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 18 | 20 | 22
+10 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 12 | 15 | 17 | 20 | 22 | 25[/table]
Animated Guard (Su): A Lacunamancer who possesses an animated shield may use it to help defend an ally. While this ability is active the participating shield is treated as though it has the animated magical enchantment in the possession of the protected character.
Animated Guard is handled differently in regard to penalties than a normal shield with the animation enchantment. Spell-failure chances apply as dependent upon the character benefiting from the shield, as do any abilities that reduce spell-failure. Armor check penalties inherent to the armor do not apply to the guarded character. Any potential proficiency-based penalties applied to guarded characters are based upon the proficiencies possessed by the Lacunamancer. Any special bonuses or penalties inherent of the shield itself (such as a tower shield's -2 to attack or the rider shield's (Races of Stone) AC bonus to mount) are still applied.
The animated shield must be in the same space as the target to initiate this action. Activating Animated Guard counts as a Swift Action performed by the shield’s master. Once activated, the participating item is locked in and cannot be removed until the ability is canceled (a Free Action) or it is deprived of Float points. Only one Animated Guard may be active on a character at a time. While participating in Animated Guard the shield continues to cost Float points to provide its protection but performs no other actions during its turn until the ability is broken.
A guarding shield can move with the protected character during their move action, but only as far as the shield's weight allows (see Speed Table.) If the character wishes to move further than the shield allows they may enjoy the benefits of this ability up until the shield has moved its maximum distance, at which point they must leave the gear and its bonus behind for the remainder of their move action, automatically canceling Animated Guard.
Summoned Feat (Su): Beginning at 3rd level, the Lacunamancer develops a Feat Pool which he can use to bestow various methods of inherent combat prowess upon the items aligned to him.
He may select any Fighter bonus feat to add to his Feat Pool. The Lacunamancer may ignore any physical score (Strength, Dexterity and Constitution) prerequisites for the selection of these feats. For the purposes of fulfilling requirements of other feats or applying for another prestige class, these feats are considered to be in his possession provided that he fulfills all (including physical score) of their prerequisites. The application of these feats are handled much differently however.
A Lacunamancer does not use the feats in the Feat Pool personally but bestows them like enchantments upon his aligned items. At the time of an item's summoning, the Lacunamancer may select any number of feats from his feat pool and apply it to that item. The item may then perform those feats as though wielded by a character possessing them. Once a feat is applied to an item in this way it temporarily leaves the Feat Pool until the possessing item is dismissed, at which point the feat is returned to the pool and can be applied to a different item.
If the master of an item with a feat bestowed upon it wields that item, he is treated as possessing that feat provided that he fulfills all of its prerequisites (including any based upon physical attributes) by either providing them himself or wielding another item that does. Nobody except for the character that the item is aligned to may benefit from this feature.
For example: Jarison (who has 13 Int) summons two short swords, bestowing one with Combat Expertise and the other with Improved Trip and Improved Disarm. He grasps the sword with Improved Trip and Disarm but cannot make use of either feat until he also takes hold of the sword with Combat Expertise.
The Lacunamancer may select an additional feat to add to his Feat Pool at levels 4, 6, 7, 9, and 10. At level 7 and 10 he may switch out a feat he already knows for a new one. Known feats that act as prerequisites for other feats may not be switched out.
Barrier of Blades (Su): At 4th level the Lacunamancer gains the ability to create a shield of sorts out of his weapons that slowly orbit their stead, striking out at imposing threats with inhuman agility. As he adds more weapons to the barrier its effectiveness increases substantially.
Ranged attacks against the protected character must succeed on a 1d% roll with a DC of 15 x the number of weapons constituting the Barrier of Blades. This counts as a concealment effect for the purposes of overcoming concealment bonuses.
Melee attacks against the protected character or any of the weapons making up the barrier suffer no penalties to hit, but the attackers are instead subjected to a retributive attack from one of the weapons making up the barrier chosen at random. Only one weapon may strike back each round.
The animated weapons that make up a Barrier of Blades must be in the same space as the target at the initiation of this action. Activating Barrier of Blades counts as a Swift Action performed by the weapons’ master. Once activated, the participating items are locked in and cannot be removed until the ability is canceled (a Free Action) or they are deprived of Float points.
Barrier of Blades may move with the protected character during their move action, but only as far as the heaviest item in the barrier allows (see Speed Table.) If the character wishes to move further than the barrier allows they may enjoy the benefits of this ability up until the barrier has moved its maximum distance, at which point they exit the barrier for the remainder of their move action and the effect is canceled.
Steel Barricade (Su): At 6th level the Lacunamancer learns to quickly arrange his aligned shields in a way to provide maximum protection within minimum space. He may summon forth a virtual wall of protective shields that encircle himself or an ally, offering a high degree of protection.
The Lacunamancer may move a maximum of 8 base AC's worth of shields into any character's personal space to provide them with that bonus to their own AC. This configuration of shields may consist of 2 tower shields, 4 heavy shields, 8 light shields or bucklers, or any combination thereof. For each points of bonus AC bestowed to the character they suffer a penalty of -1 to their attack bonus. Any enhancements that increase or decrease the shields' AC values are ignored by this ability's maximum AC limit and attack and spell failure penalties.
Steel Barricade does not apply any spell failure chance or armor-check penalties to the guarded character. Any potential proficiency-based penalties applied to guarded characters are based upon the proficiencies possessed by the Lacunamancer. Any special bonuses, penalties or special abilities inherent of the shield itself (such as a tower shield's -2 to attack or the rider shield's (Races of Stone) AC bonus to mount) do not apply.
As an additional deterrent, melee attacks against the protected character or any of the shields making up the barricade may be the subject of a retributive shield bash. Of the shields that are capable of doing so, one is chosen at random to bash back at the aggressor. If no shield in the barricade is capable of shield bashing than no retributive strike takes place. Only one shield may bash back each round.
The animated shields that make up Steel Barricade must be in the same space as the target at the initiation of this action. Activating Steel Barricade counts as a Swift Action performed by the shields’ master. Once activated, the participating items are locked in and cannot be removed until the ability is canceled (a Free Action) or they are deprived of Float points.
Steel Barricade may move with the protected character during their move action, but only as far as the heaviest item in the barricade allows (see Speed Table.) If the character wishes to move further than the barricade allows they may enjoy the benefits of this ability up until the barricade has moved its maximum distance, at which point they exit the barricade for the remainder of their move action and the effect is canceled.
Whirling Maelstrom (Su): At 8th level the Lacunamancer gains such precise control over the details of item animation that he can create a swarm of weapons that swirl about him in a deadly ballet of steel. At the end of the Lacunamancer's turn, each item in the maelstrom makes an individual attack against each enemy adjacent to the Lacunamancer.
This ability requires at least 3 weapons to initiate. The animated weapons that make up the Whirling Maelstrom must be in the same space as the Lacunamancer at the initiation of this action. Activating Whirling Maelstrom counts as a Swift Action performed by the weapons’ master. Once activated, the participating items are locked in and cannot be removed until the ability is canceled (a Free Action) or they are deprived of Float points.
Whirling Maelstrom may move with the affected character during their move action, but only as far as the heaviest item in the maelstrom allows (see Speed Table.) If the character wishes to move further than the maelstrom allows they may enjoy the benefits of this ability up until the maelstrom has moved its maximum distance, at which point they exit the maelstrom for the remainder of their move action and the effect is canceled.
Swift Transition (Ex): Upon achieving 10th level the Lacunamancer has achieved complete mastery over the manipulation of his aligned items. He may now activate any number of instances of Animated Guard, Barrier of Blades, Steel Barricade, or Whirling Maelstrom as a single Swift Action.
Additionally, whereas normally a Barrier of Blades, Steel Barricade, or Whirling Maelstrom must be canceled in order for the Lacunamancer to modify the items composing these abilities he may now inject or remove an item to or from any of them freely. Items bound to enter an active ability must share the same space as the character upon which the ability is centered. Items commanded to leave an active ability appear in the same space as the character upon which the ability is centered.
Playing a Lacunamancer
Adaptation: Nearly anyone has the capability to become a Lacunamancer, but it plays most heavily to classes that rely on physical combat. Fighters must sacrifice quite a few points in a cross-class skill, but the boons they receive may well be worth it. Provided they already possess the twisted essence, Hexblades and melee-oriented Rangers make great Lacunamancers and can enter the class well before most others as long as they are willing to give up their spells. Samurais and Paladins of law despise the prospect of the warp’s effects much less the powers they can gain, but their chaotic counterparts may dabble in the field. Rogues, Monks, Ninjas and Scouts rely heavily on mobility and/or lack a lot of weapon proficiencies, but the ability to use summoned items to surround and flank enemies without putting themselves at risk can be handy. Spellcasters of either the Divine or Arcane veins are usually loath to give up their versatility for such one-dimensional tricks and rarely take up the Lacunamancer’s mantle, even if they do suffer the supposed ‘gift’ of the warp.
Combat: Lacunamancers are at home near if not on the front lines of combat where they can fit as many relevant allies and enemies within the scope of their animated items’ influence as possible. They can act as potent defenders and deadly attackers, but their capabilities in either field depend heavily on their selection of aligned items, especially considering how many of their abilities improve vastly with each item dedicated to its sustenance. A master of shields can turn his fellow party members into walking tanks, while a weapon summoner can be a ridiculously potent offensive threat. Most opt for a middle of the road approach, outfitting themselves to cover both fields while never excelling in both.
So I look to you to give me your thoughts.
Also I’ve been completely unable to find any appropriate images except for a number of iconic characters who I feel would be unjust to use. So here’s a lemur.
The Lacunamancer
http://www.cryptomundo.com/wp-content/uploads/ring-tailed-lemur.jpg
Image by mother nature. (http://www.peta.org/)
"I don’t know how this Jarison character does it, but he’s definitely at the heart of the hoax! What I was sold was a gemmed rod brimming with magic. I place it under the tightest of lock and key, but the next day it's gone! The chest wasn’t picked, the store not broken into and nothing else was missing. What’s more I heard he sold the exact same rod to Willa the very next day, and it went missing too!"
– Rondel Grisson, shop owner.
Many people dream of the power to command their items to do their bidding. How convenient would it be to organize a room without raising a finger, teleport something immediately to hand, or even blink things in and out of existence. Wizards can achieve such effects to an extent with their spells, but Lacunamancers are the true masters of item summoning and levitation. With a simple thought the Lacunamancer can manipulate their aligned items as they see fit, all without an ounce of magical study. Perhaps it is due to the warping of one’s essence, or perhaps the shenanigans that their new powers permit, but a Lacunamancer is rarely ever seen as a positive influence. They tend to be wild individuals that range from battle-thirsty warmongers to malicious tricksters.
Using powers attained through the warping of their own essences these extremely rare individuals have developed personal pocket dimensions connected to their beings that grow larger as they exercise their powers. They can spread the effects of their own distortion upon items of their choosing, gaining an unseen manipulative power over them. At first their abilities are limited to merely snapping these items in and out of existence, but as they grow in power they develop the ability to command their items to defy gravity and assist in battle. Truly mighty Lacunamancers enter combat surrounded by a menagerie of floating weapons and shields that move about in a fluid display of organized carnage.
Outside of combat this class offers plenty of flavor, from the abusive trader who sells aligned items to merchants only to warp them back into his possession, to the fortress master who leaves powerful weapons lying around for the party to nonchalantly arm themselves with only to blink the gear out of existence when it comes time for the invaders to face him.
Becoming a Lacunamancer
The deciding factor in becoming one of the very few Lacunamancers is to have one’s essence warped by planar distortion. This is not as easy as simply creating a planar portal and walking through in hopes of attaining these powers; the rip between the planes must be chaotic and uncontrolled, unbound by the order of artificial creation. Only in these circumstances does the havoc that occurs where planes intersect have the potential to cause permanent distortion to those who may pass within. One of the easiest ways to achieve this effect is to place a Portable Hole into a Bag of Holding and jumping through the resulting rift. Even when subjected to these energies however, the chances of them actually affecting the aspiring character are rare and, to warp them in the correct manner, even rarer.
Hope still exists for those willing to seek out a more formal method of empowerment. A tiny guild by the name of the Thysila Vagabonds roam the world, their ranks filled with individuals possessing the effects of the warp. This guild alone has developed and refined a method of granting the powers of the Lacunamancer to willing subjects, and for a hefty price they are more than willing to do so for any permitted into their ranks. Unfortunately even so much as finding this guild is a painfully difficult task. The Vagabonds are a tightly-knit, nomadic guild with no central hub. They are scarcely even heard of, and the very few who even recognize the name can provide little information.
Hit Dice: d8
Requirements
Alignment: Any non-Lawful
Base Attack Bonus: +5
Skills: Concentration 4 ranks
Special: Undergone Thysila Vagabond initiation or been affected by chaotic planar distortion.
Class Features Table
{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|Storage Units|Float
1st|
+1|
+2|
+0|
+0| Spatial Storage, Swift Recall 1 |
1|
0
2nd|
+2|
+3|
+0|
+0| Animation, Bonus Float, Steel Guard |
2|
10
3rd|
+3|
+3|
+1|
+1| Summoned Feat |
2|
16
4th|
+4|
+4|
+1|
+1| Summoned Feat, Barrier of Blades |
3|
21
5th|
+5|
+4|
+1|
+1| Swift Recall 2 |
4|
26
6th|
+6|
+5|
+2|
+2| Summoned Feat, Steel Barricade |
4|
32
7th|
+7|
+5|
+2|
+2| Summoned Feat |
5|
38
8th|
+8|
+6|
+2|
+2| Whirling Maelstrom |
6|
45
9th|
+9|
+6|
+3|
+3| Summoned Feat, Swift Recall 3 |
6|
55
10th|
+10|
+7|
+3|
+3| Summoned Feat, Swift Transition |
7|
70[/table]
Class Skills:
The Disciple of the Lacunamancer‘s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Knowledge (the planes) (int), and Swim (Str).
Skill-points per level: 2 + Int modifier
Class Features
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Lacunamancers gain no proficiency with any weapons or armor, though they often carry these proficiencies over from previous classes.
Spatial Storage (Su): The Lacunamancer has developed his own personal extradimensional space in which he can store items of his choosing. These items are limited to non-living, though not necessarily unintelligent, objects. The most common items are weapons, shields, and various pieces of traveling equipment. Many Lacunamancers choose a large storage object such as a backpack into which he can store other items. Lacunamancers may store only a limited number of objects as indicated in the “Storage Units” column in the Class Features table.
As a Swift Action, the Lacunamancer can will a stored object across the planar boundaries to his side. He may choose anywhere within 10 + (class level x5)ft of himself for the item to appear. In battle, the rate at which items are summoned is handled by the Swift Recall ability below. An item may be dismissed from the Lacunamancer’s residing plane and back into his personal space as a free action from any range. Spells and effects placed upon the item do not transfer between planes and are lost when the item is blinked out of its master's plane.
Items cannot be summoned within or around any material feature (such as creating a sword within a dragon’s stomach or a suit of armor around a character’s body,) but items can be summoned in poses of easy access (such as a dagger near a character’s hand) and may be grasped immediately as free actions.
Only items that the Lacunamancer has aligned to his warped personal energies may be stored in his extra-dimensional space. The process of aligning an item is a simple one. The character must find a quiet, safe spot to meditate for 24 hours. At the end of this meditation, the Lacunamancer sacrifices a number of experience points, transferring them into the item so that it may be imbued with his extra-dimensional control. The experience point cost is determined by how many other items the Lacunamancer currently has under his control.
Alignment Exp cost table
{table=head]Other Aligned Items|Experience Cost
0 | 20
1 | 40
2 | 80
4 | 160
5 | 320
6 | 640
7 | 1280 [/table]
If the Lacunamancer has already reached his maximum number of controlled items he must choose one at the time of his alignment with the new item. Upon completion the new item takes the place of the lost one. The old item is reverts back to the Lacunamancer’s present plane and is no longer aligned.
Each storage unit is large enough to hold a medium-sized or smaller object. A large object requires 2 storage units, while a huge object requires 4. The Lacunamancer cannot align any objects larger than huge. When calculating the Exp cost for aligning larger items, treat i2 as though the character is aligning as many medium items as the larger item would be worth. For example: Jarison controls three items and wants to align a large axe as a fourth. He must have at least 5 storage units (level 7 or higher) and pay 480 (360 + 180) exp to align the item.
Attempting to align an item that is already aligned to another Lacunamancer simply fails. Not only can items that utilize extra-dimensional effects such as Bags of Holding not be aligned but the process also has a volatile effect. Upon the ritual's completion the item will implode into the Astral Plane, forever lost. This failed attempt costs the Lacunamancer no Exp and the item he intended to replace remains intact. Although this is a chaotic cross-planar event, it is on too minor of a scale to attempt bestowing a Lacunamancer’s powers upon other individuals.
Swift Recall (Su): The Lacunamancer can normally summon an item as a Swift Action, and thus each must be summoned separately. At 5th level the number of items he may summon as a single Swift Action increases to 2, and at 9th he may summon up to 3.
Animation (Su): Upon attaining 2nd level, the Lacunamancer gains the ability to give a semblance of life to the items aligned to him. At his behest these items may defy gravity and float about. The effects of this ability are handy for regular items, but most Lacunamancers use it in conjunction with weapons to attack foes or shields to defend allies. Animated items are treated as summoned creatures in many respects, but possess a number of unique properties.
An animated item joins the initiative queue immediately before its master and occupies the space it was summoned in. An indefinite number of animated items may occupy a single 5ft square as long as the space is otherwise unoccupied. Animated items cannot normally occupy an otherwise already occupied space unless it is occupied by a willing ally or as part of one of the Lacunamancer’s other class features.
An individual item’s movement speed is determined by the item's weight, as shown below.
Speed Table
{table=head]Weight|Speed
0lbs - 1lb | 40ft
2lbs – 5lbs | 30ft
6lbs – 10lbs | 20ft
11lbs+ | 15ft[/table]
The Lacunamancer’s area of control is limited. He may only maintain control of his animated items as long as they stay within 10 + (class level x5)ft of himself. If an item leaves, is thrown, or in any way moves outside of this radius it immediately falls inert and cannot be animated until it returns to within its master’s sphere of influence.
Animated weapons may attack enemies at the Lacunamancer's direction. They use their master's full base attack bonus and any weapon-based enhancements (masterwork or magical) to determine their attack. They do not gain any bonuses or penalties to attack and damage based upon their master's ability scores or any magical effects placed on their master. They do however suffer the associated penalty (-4 to attack) if the Lacunamancer lacks proficiency with them. Animated weapons cannot be used to perform any combat feats known by their master, but see the Summoned Feat class feature.
Shields capable of bashing enemies normally may do so when animated. When shield bashing, the shields use their master's full base attack bonus and any weapon-based enhancements (masterwork or magical) to determine their attack. They do not gain any bonuses or penalties to attack and damage based upon their master's ability scores or any magical effects placed on their master. Shields with which the Lacunamancer is not proficient suffer a -4 penalty to their shield bash attempts. Animated shields cannot be used to perform any combat feats known by their master, but see the Summoned Feat class feature.
A master’s manipulation of his items is somewhat imprecise. Shields and solid weapons such as swords and maces can be swung without any loss in effectiveness, but ranged weapons are outside of a Lacunamancer’s capabilities to manipulate for their intended purposes. Unless possessing parts made for melee combat, an animated weapon cannot be used to attack or take part in Barrier of Blades or Whirling Maelstrom. Ranged ammunition cannot be hurled quickly enough to cause damage.
Attacking an animated item counts as a sunder attempt. Size modifiers apply as determined by the item as opposed to the user. Items under attack gain a bonus equal to half their master’s Lacunamancer class level on opposing sunder attempts against them.
Float: When a Lacunamancer begins to animate his items at 2nd level he also gains access to a Float pool. The Float pool is a sort of fuel for the animation of a Lacunamancer's items. As a character gains levels in Lacunamancer, his or her Float pool increases as shown in the Class Features table.
The Lacunamancer begins each encounter with a full Float pool. At the beginning of an animated item's turn its master must choose to spend a Float point or let the item fall lifeless. Once its Float point has been spent the item may perform any action that is master desires that turn. If the Float pool is empty at the beginning of an item's turn than it will automatically fall inanimate. Even with an empty Float pool the Lacunamancer may summon or dismiss his items as he pleases.
Bonus Float: Characters of particularly strong minds will find that their Float pools far outstrip those of duller mentality, especially as they grow more powerful. Upon reaching 2nd level, the Lacunamancer may choose a mental attribute (Intelligence, Wisdom or Charisma.) He gains a constant bonus to his Float pool as determined by the ability modifier for the selected attribute. Consult the table below:
(formula: Floor (0.25 x Mod) x class level)
{table=head]Mod|2nd Level|3rd Level|4th Level|5th Level|6th Level|7th Level|8th Level|9th Level|10th Level
+0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
+1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2
+2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5
+3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 7
+4 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10
+5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 11 | 12
+6 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 15
+7 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 15 | 17
+8 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 20
+9 | 4 | 6 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 18 | 20 | 22
+10 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 12 | 15 | 17 | 20 | 22 | 25[/table]
Animated Guard (Su): A Lacunamancer who possesses an animated shield may use it to help defend an ally. While this ability is active the participating shield is treated as though it has the animated magical enchantment in the possession of the protected character.
Animated Guard is handled differently in regard to penalties than a normal shield with the animation enchantment. Spell-failure chances apply as dependent upon the character benefiting from the shield, as do any abilities that reduce spell-failure. Armor check penalties inherent to the armor do not apply to the guarded character. Any potential proficiency-based penalties applied to guarded characters are based upon the proficiencies possessed by the Lacunamancer. Any special bonuses or penalties inherent of the shield itself (such as a tower shield's -2 to attack or the rider shield's (Races of Stone) AC bonus to mount) are still applied.
The animated shield must be in the same space as the target to initiate this action. Activating Animated Guard counts as a Swift Action performed by the shield’s master. Once activated, the participating item is locked in and cannot be removed until the ability is canceled (a Free Action) or it is deprived of Float points. Only one Animated Guard may be active on a character at a time. While participating in Animated Guard the shield continues to cost Float points to provide its protection but performs no other actions during its turn until the ability is broken.
A guarding shield can move with the protected character during their move action, but only as far as the shield's weight allows (see Speed Table.) If the character wishes to move further than the shield allows they may enjoy the benefits of this ability up until the shield has moved its maximum distance, at which point they must leave the gear and its bonus behind for the remainder of their move action, automatically canceling Animated Guard.
Summoned Feat (Su): Beginning at 3rd level, the Lacunamancer develops a Feat Pool which he can use to bestow various methods of inherent combat prowess upon the items aligned to him.
He may select any Fighter bonus feat to add to his Feat Pool. The Lacunamancer may ignore any physical score (Strength, Dexterity and Constitution) prerequisites for the selection of these feats. For the purposes of fulfilling requirements of other feats or applying for another prestige class, these feats are considered to be in his possession provided that he fulfills all (including physical score) of their prerequisites. The application of these feats are handled much differently however.
A Lacunamancer does not use the feats in the Feat Pool personally but bestows them like enchantments upon his aligned items. At the time of an item's summoning, the Lacunamancer may select any number of feats from his feat pool and apply it to that item. The item may then perform those feats as though wielded by a character possessing them. Once a feat is applied to an item in this way it temporarily leaves the Feat Pool until the possessing item is dismissed, at which point the feat is returned to the pool and can be applied to a different item.
If the master of an item with a feat bestowed upon it wields that item, he is treated as possessing that feat provided that he fulfills all of its prerequisites (including any based upon physical attributes) by either providing them himself or wielding another item that does. Nobody except for the character that the item is aligned to may benefit from this feature.
For example: Jarison (who has 13 Int) summons two short swords, bestowing one with Combat Expertise and the other with Improved Trip and Improved Disarm. He grasps the sword with Improved Trip and Disarm but cannot make use of either feat until he also takes hold of the sword with Combat Expertise.
The Lacunamancer may select an additional feat to add to his Feat Pool at levels 4, 6, 7, 9, and 10. At level 7 and 10 he may switch out a feat he already knows for a new one. Known feats that act as prerequisites for other feats may not be switched out.
Barrier of Blades (Su): At 4th level the Lacunamancer gains the ability to create a shield of sorts out of his weapons that slowly orbit their stead, striking out at imposing threats with inhuman agility. As he adds more weapons to the barrier its effectiveness increases substantially.
Ranged attacks against the protected character must succeed on a 1d% roll with a DC of 15 x the number of weapons constituting the Barrier of Blades. This counts as a concealment effect for the purposes of overcoming concealment bonuses.
Melee attacks against the protected character or any of the weapons making up the barrier suffer no penalties to hit, but the attackers are instead subjected to a retributive attack from one of the weapons making up the barrier chosen at random. Only one weapon may strike back each round.
The animated weapons that make up a Barrier of Blades must be in the same space as the target at the initiation of this action. Activating Barrier of Blades counts as a Swift Action performed by the weapons’ master. Once activated, the participating items are locked in and cannot be removed until the ability is canceled (a Free Action) or they are deprived of Float points.
Barrier of Blades may move with the protected character during their move action, but only as far as the heaviest item in the barrier allows (see Speed Table.) If the character wishes to move further than the barrier allows they may enjoy the benefits of this ability up until the barrier has moved its maximum distance, at which point they exit the barrier for the remainder of their move action and the effect is canceled.
Steel Barricade (Su): At 6th level the Lacunamancer learns to quickly arrange his aligned shields in a way to provide maximum protection within minimum space. He may summon forth a virtual wall of protective shields that encircle himself or an ally, offering a high degree of protection.
The Lacunamancer may move a maximum of 8 base AC's worth of shields into any character's personal space to provide them with that bonus to their own AC. This configuration of shields may consist of 2 tower shields, 4 heavy shields, 8 light shields or bucklers, or any combination thereof. For each points of bonus AC bestowed to the character they suffer a penalty of -1 to their attack bonus. Any enhancements that increase or decrease the shields' AC values are ignored by this ability's maximum AC limit and attack and spell failure penalties.
Steel Barricade does not apply any spell failure chance or armor-check penalties to the guarded character. Any potential proficiency-based penalties applied to guarded characters are based upon the proficiencies possessed by the Lacunamancer. Any special bonuses, penalties or special abilities inherent of the shield itself (such as a tower shield's -2 to attack or the rider shield's (Races of Stone) AC bonus to mount) do not apply.
As an additional deterrent, melee attacks against the protected character or any of the shields making up the barricade may be the subject of a retributive shield bash. Of the shields that are capable of doing so, one is chosen at random to bash back at the aggressor. If no shield in the barricade is capable of shield bashing than no retributive strike takes place. Only one shield may bash back each round.
The animated shields that make up Steel Barricade must be in the same space as the target at the initiation of this action. Activating Steel Barricade counts as a Swift Action performed by the shields’ master. Once activated, the participating items are locked in and cannot be removed until the ability is canceled (a Free Action) or they are deprived of Float points.
Steel Barricade may move with the protected character during their move action, but only as far as the heaviest item in the barricade allows (see Speed Table.) If the character wishes to move further than the barricade allows they may enjoy the benefits of this ability up until the barricade has moved its maximum distance, at which point they exit the barricade for the remainder of their move action and the effect is canceled.
Whirling Maelstrom (Su): At 8th level the Lacunamancer gains such precise control over the details of item animation that he can create a swarm of weapons that swirl about him in a deadly ballet of steel. At the end of the Lacunamancer's turn, each item in the maelstrom makes an individual attack against each enemy adjacent to the Lacunamancer.
This ability requires at least 3 weapons to initiate. The animated weapons that make up the Whirling Maelstrom must be in the same space as the Lacunamancer at the initiation of this action. Activating Whirling Maelstrom counts as a Swift Action performed by the weapons’ master. Once activated, the participating items are locked in and cannot be removed until the ability is canceled (a Free Action) or they are deprived of Float points.
Whirling Maelstrom may move with the affected character during their move action, but only as far as the heaviest item in the maelstrom allows (see Speed Table.) If the character wishes to move further than the maelstrom allows they may enjoy the benefits of this ability up until the maelstrom has moved its maximum distance, at which point they exit the maelstrom for the remainder of their move action and the effect is canceled.
Swift Transition (Ex): Upon achieving 10th level the Lacunamancer has achieved complete mastery over the manipulation of his aligned items. He may now activate any number of instances of Animated Guard, Barrier of Blades, Steel Barricade, or Whirling Maelstrom as a single Swift Action.
Additionally, whereas normally a Barrier of Blades, Steel Barricade, or Whirling Maelstrom must be canceled in order for the Lacunamancer to modify the items composing these abilities he may now inject or remove an item to or from any of them freely. Items bound to enter an active ability must share the same space as the character upon which the ability is centered. Items commanded to leave an active ability appear in the same space as the character upon which the ability is centered.
Playing a Lacunamancer
Adaptation: Nearly anyone has the capability to become a Lacunamancer, but it plays most heavily to classes that rely on physical combat. Fighters must sacrifice quite a few points in a cross-class skill, but the boons they receive may well be worth it. Provided they already possess the twisted essence, Hexblades and melee-oriented Rangers make great Lacunamancers and can enter the class well before most others as long as they are willing to give up their spells. Samurais and Paladins of law despise the prospect of the warp’s effects much less the powers they can gain, but their chaotic counterparts may dabble in the field. Rogues, Monks, Ninjas and Scouts rely heavily on mobility and/or lack a lot of weapon proficiencies, but the ability to use summoned items to surround and flank enemies without putting themselves at risk can be handy. Spellcasters of either the Divine or Arcane veins are usually loath to give up their versatility for such one-dimensional tricks and rarely take up the Lacunamancer’s mantle, even if they do suffer the supposed ‘gift’ of the warp.
Combat: Lacunamancers are at home near if not on the front lines of combat where they can fit as many relevant allies and enemies within the scope of their animated items’ influence as possible. They can act as potent defenders and deadly attackers, but their capabilities in either field depend heavily on their selection of aligned items, especially considering how many of their abilities improve vastly with each item dedicated to its sustenance. A master of shields can turn his fellow party members into walking tanks, while a weapon summoner can be a ridiculously potent offensive threat. Most opt for a middle of the road approach, outfitting themselves to cover both fields while never excelling in both.