begooler
2011-04-01, 01:40 PM
Voice of Transcendence
This is my first real homebrew effort and I'm still working on it but I think it's close. I want the Voice of Transcendence to be similar to the Sublime Chord, but with the cleric spell list. There's a focus on sonic spells, to which the Voice of Transcendence can apply healing carrier affects. The Voice of Transcendence has less spells known on her spells known table and a slightly slower spells per day progression than the Sublime Chord. She gets access to additional spells from class features. I was hoping this would provide an incentive for actually taking levels in the Voice of Transcendence class instead of dipping into it and taking Virtuoso or Fochulan levels. I am still thinking through how someone might build one of these characters to see if the class features are overpowered or underwhelming.
Actual flavor text is yet to come, as is possible renaming of class features.
The spells known table is still a little bit funky looking to me, but I know that the spells known for first and tenth levels are what I want them to be. <---(Thanks playswithfire)
At the end of the day, I'm intending for the strength of this prestige class to be better than most bard PrCs, but not quite as powerful or flexible as many straight cleric PrCs.
The Voice of Transcendence uses her vocal talents to sway divine entities that grant her powers unparalleled by other bards. Her music and mystery bolster her allies and inspire fear in her enemies.
A Voice of Transcendence may be a bard who is as devoted to a cause as a cleric. She seeks out music as a way to express her devotions.
More often, the Voice of Transcendence's greatest devotion is to music itself; to her the divine is a gateway to music experienced by few.
Voices of Transcendence frequently subscribe to a set of ideals rather than a deity. Their travels introduce them to a wide variety of such ideals, and many fickle Voices' of Transcendence devotions sway as their moods change or as they encounter new lands and spiritual traditions. A Voice of Transcendence is much more concerned with singing the praises of her devotions with skill and grace than she is with practicing what she preaches.
Becoming a Voice of Transcendence
Voices of Transcendence come from a wide variety of backgrounds, but most are Bard/Clerics. The spellcasting requirement to enter this prestige class may be fulfilled by arcane or divine spells.
Usually, a bard becomes a Voice of Transcendence following a mystical experience, such as meeting an outsider who epitomizes her ideals, or accomplishing a feat of strength guided by her poetics.
A Voice of Transcendence may be of any alignment. The same Voice of Transcendence might sing accolades to all that is good and holy as well as dirges of sorrow and loss.
CLASS REQUIREMENTS
Skills: Knowledge Arcana 8 ranks, Listen 13 ranks, Perform (Sing or Oratory) 13 ranks, Knowledge Religion 8 ranks, Spellcraft 6 ranks
Spells: Able to cast 3rd-level spells
Special: Bardic music ability, Turn or Rebuke Undead
CLASS FEATURES
Class Skills:
Concentration, Craft, Decipher Script, Diplomacy, Heal, Knowledge (all skills, taken individually,) Listen, Perform, Profession, Sense Motive, Speak Language, Spellcraft, Spot
Skill Points at Each Level: 4+ Int modifier
Hit Die: d8
Weapons and Armor: A Voice of Transcendence gains no new weapon or armor proficiencies. A Voice of Transcendence can cast her spells gained from this class while wearing light armor, without chance of arcane spell failure. She still incurs the normal chance of spell failure when using a shield or wearing armor heavier than light, or when casting arcane spells gained from another class.
Spells per Day: A Voice of Transcendence has the ability to cast a small number of arcane spells, all of 4th level or higher. To cast a Voice of Transcendence spell, a character must have a Charisma score of at least 10 + the spell’s level. Bonus spells are based on Charisma, and saving throws against these spells have a DC of 10 + spell level + the Voice of Transcendence’s Cha modifier. When the Voice of Transcendence's table of spells per day says she gets 0 spells of that level, she gets only the bonus spells she would get from a high ability score. A Voice of Transcendence can choose spells from the cleric spell list or the bard spell list; if a spell appears on both lists at different levels, she uses the bard version of the spell. A Voice of Transcendence’s caster level for both her Voice of Transcendence spells and the spells she gains from other spellcasting classes is determined by adding her Voice of Transcendence level to her level in another spellcasting class. If she had more than one spellcasting class before becoming a Voice of Transcendence, (as nearly all Voices of Transcendence do,) she must choose which class to add her Voice of Transcendence levels for the purpose of determining her Voice of Transcendence spellcaster level. A Voice of Transcendence prepares and casts spells just as a sorcerer does, including the ability to replace a known Voice of Transcendence spell with a new spell at every even-numbered class level beginning at 4th.
A Voice of Transcendence cannot cast spells enhanced by the Silent Spell Metamagic Feat.
Voice of Transcendence Spells Known
{table=head]Level|4th|5th|6th|7th|8th|9th
1st| 2 | 1 | - | - | - | -
2nd| 3 | 1 | - | - | - | -
3rd| 3 | 1 | 1 | - | - | -
4th| 4 | 2 | 1 | - | - | -
5th| 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | - | -
6th| 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | - | -
7th| 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | -
8th | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | -
9th | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1
10th | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1
[/table]
Bardic Knowledge / Lore: A Voice of Transcendence continues to collect epic tales and esoteric bits of lore. She adds her Voice of Transcendence levels to her bard levels to determine the bonus granted by her Bardic Knowledge checks. If she does not have Bardic Knowledge, she gains the ability as a bard of her Voice of Transcendence level. If a Voice of Transcendence also has a lore ability from another class, such as Cloistered Cleric, she adds those class levels to her Voice of Transcendence levels to determine the bonus of her Lore ability.
Bardic Music: A Voice of Transcendence's repertoire of bardic music includes divinely inspired chants as well as many well loved songs of traditional bards. These effects function just as the bardic music effects described in the Player’s Handbook. A Voice of Transcendence adds half her levels in this prestige class to her bard levels to determine the bonus granted by her Inspire Courage bardic music ability, and the number of uses of bardic music she gets per day.
Healing Hymn: At 2nd level, a Voice of Transcendence gains the Healing Hymn bardic music as found in Complete Champion. If she already has that ability, she gains the Fascinate bardic music ability.
Inspire Greatness: At 6th level a Voice of Transcendence gains Inspire Greatness, as described in the Player's Handbook. Her Voice of Transcendence levels and bard levels stack to determine the number of allies this song can affect.
Inspire Heroics: At 9th level, a Voice of Transcendence gains Inspire Heroics as described in the Player's Handbook. Her Voice of Transcendence levels and bard levels stack to determine the number of allies this song can affect.
{table=head]Level|BAB|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|4th|5th|6th|7th|8th|9th
1st|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|Bardic Lore, Bardic Music, Turning Music| 2 | 0 | - | - | - | -
2nd|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3| Healing Hymn | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | -
3rd|
+1|
+1|
+1|
+3| Domain Spell Access | 3 | 2 | 0 | - | - | -
4th|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4| Sacred Courage, Advanced Learning | 3 | 3 | 2 | - | - | -
5th|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4| Healing Inspiration | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | - | -
6th|
+3|
+2|
+2|
+5| Inspire Greatness | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | - | -
7th|
+3|
+2|
+2|
+5| Mystic's Aria | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | -
8th|
+4|
+2|
+2|
+6| Advanced Learning | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | -
9th|
+4|
+3|
+3|
+6| Inspire Heroics| 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0
10th|
+5|
+3|
+3|
+7| Chant of Devotion | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 [/table]
Turning Music
A Voice of Transcendence may spend two uses of bardic music to gain an additional turn attempt, or spend a turn attempt to gain a single use of bardic music.
Domain Spell Access
A Voice of Transcendence of 3rd level or higher who has access to one or more domains may choose spells from those domains when gaining additional Voice of Transcendence spells known, even if the spell does not appear on the cleric or bard list. The spell still counts against one of the Voice of Transcendence's total spells known.
Sacred Courage
When a Voice of Transcendence of 4th level or higher begins her Inspire Courage bardic music, she may choose for the song to provide a sacred bonus on attack and damage rolls and saves vs fear instead of a morale bonus. This allows her Inspire Courage ability to continue to boost the spirits of those affected by a spell which grants a morale bonus.
Multiple uses of Inspire Courage still do not stack, even if they are different bonus types.
A Voice of Transcendence who rebukes undead applies a profane bonus to her Inspire Courage. The profane bonus from her Inspire Courage cannot stack with a sacred bonus from one of her spells.
Advanced Learning
At 4th and 8th level a Voice of Transcendence chooses one spell with the sonic descriptor to add to her spells known. The spell may be from any spell list, and must be of a level she can cast. If the spell is available at different levels to different classes, she uses the highest level at which it is available. This spell does not count against the limit of the Voice of Transcendence's spells known.
Healing Inspiration(Su)
When casting a spell with the sonic descriptor, a Voice of Transcendence of 5th level or greater can make a perform check as a free action to grant Fast Healing to all allies currently affected by her Inspire Courage, Inspire Greatness or Inspire Heroics. The Fast Healing heals one point of damage per spell level, and lasts for one round per two Voice of Transcendence levels. The DC of this check is 15 + the level of the spell being cast. If the perform check fails, the spell is lost. Fast healing from Healing Inspiration does not stack with fast healing from other sources.
The Fast Healing is positive energy. However, a Voice of Transcendence who rebukes undead can instead choose to channel negative energy into this effect if she has the ability to affect undead allies with her bardic music or if her allies are 'Tomb-Tainted Souls.' The Voice of Transcendence must choose whether she is channeling positive or negative energy when she casts the spell.
Mystic's Aria(Su)
A Voice of Transcendence of 7th level can turn the verbal components of her signature spells into a powerful vocal performance. She may choose one domain to which she can apply the Mystic's Aria. Once chosen, the domain cannot be changed. When the Voice of Transcendence casts a spell from the chosen domain's spell list she can expend a number of uses of bardic music to increase the spell's caster level by one for each use of bardic music expended. The maximum number of uses of bardic music a Voice of Transcendence can expend in this matter is limited to half of her levels in this class.
A Voice of Transcendence may choose a domain to which she does not already have access to apply the Mystic's Aria, so long as that domain does not have an alignment requirement contrary to her own. The Voice of Transcendence does not, however, gain any additional benefits from choosing this domain, such as a granted domain power, or ability to add its spells to her list of spells known.
Chant of Devotion(Su)
A Voice of Transcendence's music enthralls divine beings who grant her new powers.
At tenth level, a Voice of Transcendence may take a full round action to spend 3 usages of bardic music to bestow upon herself the domain granted power of any one domain. The granted power lasts until the Voice of Transcendence gains a new day's worth of bardic music usages. A Voice of Transcendence may use this ability once per day. The Voice of Transcendence may choose any domain so long as it does not have an incompatible alignment, and may freely choose a different domain each time she uses this ability. In addition to being temporarily granted the domain's power, she may also treat the spells on the domain's list as spells known for that day. However, she may only cast each of the spells once for that day.
If a Voice of Transcendence chooses a domain that has a devotion feat, she may choose to gain the benefits of that feat instead of the domain granted power.
This is my first real homebrew effort and I'm still working on it but I think it's close. I want the Voice of Transcendence to be similar to the Sublime Chord, but with the cleric spell list. There's a focus on sonic spells, to which the Voice of Transcendence can apply healing carrier affects. The Voice of Transcendence has less spells known on her spells known table and a slightly slower spells per day progression than the Sublime Chord. She gets access to additional spells from class features. I was hoping this would provide an incentive for actually taking levels in the Voice of Transcendence class instead of dipping into it and taking Virtuoso or Fochulan levels. I am still thinking through how someone might build one of these characters to see if the class features are overpowered or underwhelming.
Actual flavor text is yet to come, as is possible renaming of class features.
The spells known table is still a little bit funky looking to me, but I know that the spells known for first and tenth levels are what I want them to be. <---(Thanks playswithfire)
At the end of the day, I'm intending for the strength of this prestige class to be better than most bard PrCs, but not quite as powerful or flexible as many straight cleric PrCs.
The Voice of Transcendence uses her vocal talents to sway divine entities that grant her powers unparalleled by other bards. Her music and mystery bolster her allies and inspire fear in her enemies.
A Voice of Transcendence may be a bard who is as devoted to a cause as a cleric. She seeks out music as a way to express her devotions.
More often, the Voice of Transcendence's greatest devotion is to music itself; to her the divine is a gateway to music experienced by few.
Voices of Transcendence frequently subscribe to a set of ideals rather than a deity. Their travels introduce them to a wide variety of such ideals, and many fickle Voices' of Transcendence devotions sway as their moods change or as they encounter new lands and spiritual traditions. A Voice of Transcendence is much more concerned with singing the praises of her devotions with skill and grace than she is with practicing what she preaches.
Becoming a Voice of Transcendence
Voices of Transcendence come from a wide variety of backgrounds, but most are Bard/Clerics. The spellcasting requirement to enter this prestige class may be fulfilled by arcane or divine spells.
Usually, a bard becomes a Voice of Transcendence following a mystical experience, such as meeting an outsider who epitomizes her ideals, or accomplishing a feat of strength guided by her poetics.
A Voice of Transcendence may be of any alignment. The same Voice of Transcendence might sing accolades to all that is good and holy as well as dirges of sorrow and loss.
CLASS REQUIREMENTS
Skills: Knowledge Arcana 8 ranks, Listen 13 ranks, Perform (Sing or Oratory) 13 ranks, Knowledge Religion 8 ranks, Spellcraft 6 ranks
Spells: Able to cast 3rd-level spells
Special: Bardic music ability, Turn or Rebuke Undead
CLASS FEATURES
Class Skills:
Concentration, Craft, Decipher Script, Diplomacy, Heal, Knowledge (all skills, taken individually,) Listen, Perform, Profession, Sense Motive, Speak Language, Spellcraft, Spot
Skill Points at Each Level: 4+ Int modifier
Hit Die: d8
Weapons and Armor: A Voice of Transcendence gains no new weapon or armor proficiencies. A Voice of Transcendence can cast her spells gained from this class while wearing light armor, without chance of arcane spell failure. She still incurs the normal chance of spell failure when using a shield or wearing armor heavier than light, or when casting arcane spells gained from another class.
Spells per Day: A Voice of Transcendence has the ability to cast a small number of arcane spells, all of 4th level or higher. To cast a Voice of Transcendence spell, a character must have a Charisma score of at least 10 + the spell’s level. Bonus spells are based on Charisma, and saving throws against these spells have a DC of 10 + spell level + the Voice of Transcendence’s Cha modifier. When the Voice of Transcendence's table of spells per day says she gets 0 spells of that level, she gets only the bonus spells she would get from a high ability score. A Voice of Transcendence can choose spells from the cleric spell list or the bard spell list; if a spell appears on both lists at different levels, she uses the bard version of the spell. A Voice of Transcendence’s caster level for both her Voice of Transcendence spells and the spells she gains from other spellcasting classes is determined by adding her Voice of Transcendence level to her level in another spellcasting class. If she had more than one spellcasting class before becoming a Voice of Transcendence, (as nearly all Voices of Transcendence do,) she must choose which class to add her Voice of Transcendence levels for the purpose of determining her Voice of Transcendence spellcaster level. A Voice of Transcendence prepares and casts spells just as a sorcerer does, including the ability to replace a known Voice of Transcendence spell with a new spell at every even-numbered class level beginning at 4th.
A Voice of Transcendence cannot cast spells enhanced by the Silent Spell Metamagic Feat.
Voice of Transcendence Spells Known
{table=head]Level|4th|5th|6th|7th|8th|9th
1st| 2 | 1 | - | - | - | -
2nd| 3 | 1 | - | - | - | -
3rd| 3 | 1 | 1 | - | - | -
4th| 4 | 2 | 1 | - | - | -
5th| 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | - | -
6th| 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | - | -
7th| 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | -
8th | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | -
9th | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1
10th | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1
[/table]
Bardic Knowledge / Lore: A Voice of Transcendence continues to collect epic tales and esoteric bits of lore. She adds her Voice of Transcendence levels to her bard levels to determine the bonus granted by her Bardic Knowledge checks. If she does not have Bardic Knowledge, she gains the ability as a bard of her Voice of Transcendence level. If a Voice of Transcendence also has a lore ability from another class, such as Cloistered Cleric, she adds those class levels to her Voice of Transcendence levels to determine the bonus of her Lore ability.
Bardic Music: A Voice of Transcendence's repertoire of bardic music includes divinely inspired chants as well as many well loved songs of traditional bards. These effects function just as the bardic music effects described in the Player’s Handbook. A Voice of Transcendence adds half her levels in this prestige class to her bard levels to determine the bonus granted by her Inspire Courage bardic music ability, and the number of uses of bardic music she gets per day.
Healing Hymn: At 2nd level, a Voice of Transcendence gains the Healing Hymn bardic music as found in Complete Champion. If she already has that ability, she gains the Fascinate bardic music ability.
Inspire Greatness: At 6th level a Voice of Transcendence gains Inspire Greatness, as described in the Player's Handbook. Her Voice of Transcendence levels and bard levels stack to determine the number of allies this song can affect.
Inspire Heroics: At 9th level, a Voice of Transcendence gains Inspire Heroics as described in the Player's Handbook. Her Voice of Transcendence levels and bard levels stack to determine the number of allies this song can affect.
{table=head]Level|BAB|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|4th|5th|6th|7th|8th|9th
1st|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|Bardic Lore, Bardic Music, Turning Music| 2 | 0 | - | - | - | -
2nd|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3| Healing Hymn | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | -
3rd|
+1|
+1|
+1|
+3| Domain Spell Access | 3 | 2 | 0 | - | - | -
4th|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4| Sacred Courage, Advanced Learning | 3 | 3 | 2 | - | - | -
5th|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4| Healing Inspiration | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | - | -
6th|
+3|
+2|
+2|
+5| Inspire Greatness | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | - | -
7th|
+3|
+2|
+2|
+5| Mystic's Aria | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | -
8th|
+4|
+2|
+2|
+6| Advanced Learning | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | -
9th|
+4|
+3|
+3|
+6| Inspire Heroics| 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0
10th|
+5|
+3|
+3|
+7| Chant of Devotion | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 [/table]
Turning Music
A Voice of Transcendence may spend two uses of bardic music to gain an additional turn attempt, or spend a turn attempt to gain a single use of bardic music.
Domain Spell Access
A Voice of Transcendence of 3rd level or higher who has access to one or more domains may choose spells from those domains when gaining additional Voice of Transcendence spells known, even if the spell does not appear on the cleric or bard list. The spell still counts against one of the Voice of Transcendence's total spells known.
Sacred Courage
When a Voice of Transcendence of 4th level or higher begins her Inspire Courage bardic music, she may choose for the song to provide a sacred bonus on attack and damage rolls and saves vs fear instead of a morale bonus. This allows her Inspire Courage ability to continue to boost the spirits of those affected by a spell which grants a morale bonus.
Multiple uses of Inspire Courage still do not stack, even if they are different bonus types.
A Voice of Transcendence who rebukes undead applies a profane bonus to her Inspire Courage. The profane bonus from her Inspire Courage cannot stack with a sacred bonus from one of her spells.
Advanced Learning
At 4th and 8th level a Voice of Transcendence chooses one spell with the sonic descriptor to add to her spells known. The spell may be from any spell list, and must be of a level she can cast. If the spell is available at different levels to different classes, she uses the highest level at which it is available. This spell does not count against the limit of the Voice of Transcendence's spells known.
Healing Inspiration(Su)
When casting a spell with the sonic descriptor, a Voice of Transcendence of 5th level or greater can make a perform check as a free action to grant Fast Healing to all allies currently affected by her Inspire Courage, Inspire Greatness or Inspire Heroics. The Fast Healing heals one point of damage per spell level, and lasts for one round per two Voice of Transcendence levels. The DC of this check is 15 + the level of the spell being cast. If the perform check fails, the spell is lost. Fast healing from Healing Inspiration does not stack with fast healing from other sources.
The Fast Healing is positive energy. However, a Voice of Transcendence who rebukes undead can instead choose to channel negative energy into this effect if she has the ability to affect undead allies with her bardic music or if her allies are 'Tomb-Tainted Souls.' The Voice of Transcendence must choose whether she is channeling positive or negative energy when she casts the spell.
Mystic's Aria(Su)
A Voice of Transcendence of 7th level can turn the verbal components of her signature spells into a powerful vocal performance. She may choose one domain to which she can apply the Mystic's Aria. Once chosen, the domain cannot be changed. When the Voice of Transcendence casts a spell from the chosen domain's spell list she can expend a number of uses of bardic music to increase the spell's caster level by one for each use of bardic music expended. The maximum number of uses of bardic music a Voice of Transcendence can expend in this matter is limited to half of her levels in this class.
A Voice of Transcendence may choose a domain to which she does not already have access to apply the Mystic's Aria, so long as that domain does not have an alignment requirement contrary to her own. The Voice of Transcendence does not, however, gain any additional benefits from choosing this domain, such as a granted domain power, or ability to add its spells to her list of spells known.
Chant of Devotion(Su)
A Voice of Transcendence's music enthralls divine beings who grant her new powers.
At tenth level, a Voice of Transcendence may take a full round action to spend 3 usages of bardic music to bestow upon herself the domain granted power of any one domain. The granted power lasts until the Voice of Transcendence gains a new day's worth of bardic music usages. A Voice of Transcendence may use this ability once per day. The Voice of Transcendence may choose any domain so long as it does not have an incompatible alignment, and may freely choose a different domain each time she uses this ability. In addition to being temporarily granted the domain's power, she may also treat the spells on the domain's list as spells known for that day. However, she may only cast each of the spells once for that day.
If a Voice of Transcendence chooses a domain that has a devotion feat, she may choose to gain the benefits of that feat instead of the domain granted power.