[Hourglass of Zihaja] Chapter 11: Bonus Material

[Zeta Kai]

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Chapter 11: Bonus Material

Warning: Material presented here is not necessarily complete, nor is all of it expected to be completed anytime soon. This is a repository of all of the ideas that we have had for the setting that didn't fit anywhere else, but were too cool to die. Enjoy what is here, & hope for a day when more may be added.

[Zeta Kai]

Races of Najmah

[Zeta Kai]

Demon
Overview
Population: 29,524,000 worldwide
Height: varies by clade
Weight: varies by clade
Language: Abyssal

From the ever-night world of Najmah, a horde of vicious, insane creatures have spread to every corner of the map. They are the very embodiments of chaos & madness, a kind of malevolence like no other evil known to mortal (or immortal) men. Best known by the title Demon, their names are as innumerable as their various forms; they are called Tanar’ri, the Spawn of the Abyss, al-Iblis, Legion, aq-Qarmira, the Asura, & a thousand other epithets. They have no single name for their own kind, as they are not unified by any other concept. They are divided by size, shape, color, language, ideology, & every other conceivable schism, having no organizing force to rein them in. Each one is a living nexus of disorder, sowing destruction, slaughter, & ruin wherever their instincts take them. Their roaming packs threaten to destroy both the realms of day & night, if left unchecked. A fragile pact between the devas, the devils, & the houris of their home plane keep them mostly isolated in the Najmai region of Sergala, but some of them still find ways to terrorize other lands.

Biology
Trying to identify a demon is like putting a face on a nightmare: it is invariably horrific & disturbing, but the details are always in flux. No two demons are remotely alike, & categorizing their traits is an exercise in futility. They can be roughly classified by their clade, but myriad exceptions, corner cases, & unidentifiable aberrants exist, & new clades spring forth from nowhere all the time. They defy any attempt to impose order upon them, & the madness that they engender is something that they relish with cackling delight.

Their forms are often (but not always) somewhat humanoid: most have two arms, two legs, & a roughly-vertical bearing. Some have a pair of wings, a tail, horns, or some other bestial traits, but none of these are universal, or even representative of their ilk. Even with two demons that are ostensibly of the same clade, there may be so many differentiations that proper classification would difficult, if not impossible. A demon might have an extra arm, different coloration, larger eyes, fewer claws, or any other imaginable deviation from the norm, if such a thing exists for them. And if all this variety were not enough for them, they often modify their bodies with tattoos, piercings, & self-inflicted scars, to further set themselves apart from the rest of the horde.

A demon’s body is as divergent from mortal biology on the inside as it is from the outside. Their bodies conduct all electricity harmlessly away, & their simple physiology prevents any known poison from taking effect. Their tough, fibrous tissues resist damage from common sources, as well as most acids & all but the extremes of hot & cold conditions. Like devils, they need not breathe, & their telepathy obviates the need to even speak. Their bodies do not seem to follow any natural laws of biology at all, & it is suspected that they are partially sustained by some form of evil magic. Lastly, they are able to summon others of their kind from any distance, although their fractious nature sometimes nullifies a summoning attempt before it can be completed.

Diet
Demons only need to eat when they are on their native plane; when they are off of Najmah, they can exist indefinitely without sustenance. But even on Siraaj, they will eat whenever they can, whether they are hungry or not. While they only need to have about one meal a week, they will gorge themselves if they can, just for the perverse joy of wasting food & preventing others from utilizing valuable resources. They can eat almost any material, from meat & bone to leaf & stem. They can even consume bare soil or broken rocks, if they must. They would rather eat the flesh of sentient creatures over any other fare, but this is mainly due to the fear & disgust that this engenders in other races. They will readily eat their own kind, if such cannibalism becomes more convenient than obtaining other food sources.

Reproduction
Demons are not generally fertile creatures; they do not create life, but merely deform or destroy it. Though some clades are capable of participating in sexual acts, they only do so to tempt or ruin others; the results of these rare successful unions are half-fiends (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/halfFiend.htm) & cambion (also known as a tiefling (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/planetouched.htm#tiefling)). Their numbers swell because of their ability to turn mortal souls into shells to house their malevolent energies. They capture beings of other races (see The Culling, below) & subject them to a vile, tortuous process (called the Aasrava, or “Defilement”), which slowly transforms them into a Dretch or a Quasit. This ghastly procedure warps the creature’s mind as it twists their body, leaving only a depraved monster with no memory of its former life.

The Aasrava can take hours or even days to completely convert a soul into a demon, & is usually only done within special pits within their homeland, Sergala. These artificial craters were excavated for this exact purpose, so as to house the fiendish magic needed to properly perform the Defilement. For this reason, demons constantly wander throughout the Kamala, hunting down souls to take back with them to Sergala. They will do anything that they can to obtain a soul, whether it is seducing the unwary with some trickery, founding a cult of deluded demon-worshippers, or simply pouncing upon an unfortunate person in the night. There are rumors of demons that are able to perform the Aasrava without the need of a magically-charged pit, & some say that they can even convert a soul in mere minutes, perhaps through some infectious agent. The veracity of these claims is unknown, but any sane man would be terrified by such a possibility.

Like many races native to the Realm of Night, demons are not mortal beings. They do not age or die of natural causes, & so their lifespans are indefinite. Few diseases can afflict them, & they are immune to all known poisons, so sickness is virtually unknown to them. They can be killed by another’s hand, or die by some violent accident, but otherwise, they will live forever in theory. The eldest of demons are thousands of years old, monstrous creatures twisted into gibbering beasts by time, destruction, & madness. What happens when a demon finally dies is beyond anyone’s knowledge, but scholars & sages have debated this question since time immemorial, & countless theories abound.

Culture
Internal Relations
Demons exist in a state of perpetual violent anarchy, wherein the individual does whatever they wish, whenever they wish, & their only opposition is the collective wishes of other demons. Only the strongest demons survive for long in this mayhem, as it is often the wish of a demon to slaughter or destroy anything nearby. Particularly powerful demons are sometimes able to conscript lesser demons to obey their commands, but most of them resist even this most basic level of imposed order, & so these arch-demons can only rule over those that they can directly threaten into submission. While the most elite of them can force a horde to follow their orders for a time, eventually the maverick aspect of demonic nature asserts itself, & the mob once again collapses into a disorganized mob of brutality incarnate.

The only system by which demons could be said to adhere to is a loose process of promotion to more powerful clades. Unlike devils, which are promoted & demoted by a patron from a higher echelon, demons promote themselves once they have accumulated enough power (via Hit Dice). Once they have collected enough spiritual energy (see The Culling, below), a demon will then cloister itself within a chrysalis & undergo a painful & disgusting metamorphosis. During this period of change, they are inert & vulnerable, so most demons are wise enough to find a safe place to hide for their pupal phase. If the demon was impatient & did not wait for the proper amount of energy, then they will die within the chrysalis, consumed by the process. But if the transformation is successful, then the demon will emerge from their cocoon evolved into a higher clade.

External Relations
Demons, by their very nature, cannot peacefully coexist with any other creature, even others of their own foul kind. They are effectively in a state of war with any & all races that they have encountered, & that is unlikely to even change. While they are morally & ethically opposed to the devas & houri most strongly, their greatest conflict is with the devils of the Hima Sovereignty, with whom they share the northern continent of Nidhanandha.

The perpetual war with the devilish forces has ground to a hopeless stalemate where neither side can gain an upper hand for very long. The demons hold numeric superiority, while the devils have long held a strategic & logistical advantage; for every devil that the demons slaughter or possess, the devils execute or corrupt two of the demon-folk. But the hordes are seemingly inexhaustible, & neither side has made any major gains or losses in ages. Their bitter war with the Himai has further ravaged the already-harsh badlands in-between the two forces’ homelands, the trench-carved & wind-scoured desert known as the White Wastes.

Due to their universal predation of other sentient beings, there seems to be no race that tolerates the presence of demon-kind. The devas & the houris have conducted many campaigns to push the demons back or to remove them from their lands, as did the genies before the Great Calamity. The mortal folk of Siraaj have long been afraid of demonic malevolence, & it is believed by some scholars that this fear drove pre-Pactspell cultures to take solace in sorcery & wizardry, to their eventual ruin. The mysterious & depraved rakshasas seem to be less opposed to the demons than other races, & it is suspected in some circles that they are somehow manipulating the hordes, using them to their own evil advantage.

Occupations
For a demon, it is difficult to cooperate with another being; teamwork & collaboration are strange concepts for them to grasp, let alone participate in willingly. Therefore, every demon relies exclusively upon themselves & their own abilities to accomplish their desired goals (which are ultimately just various means of destruction). This makes each demon an independent jack-of-all-trades, whose effectiveness can be measured by their versatility. They are all capable of performing many varied tasks, & can generally find some way of using their talents to get what they want, regardless of the current circumstances. They may sometimes manipulate others into doing their bidding, but this is just one means to an end, & is only done if it is momentarily expedient. They often use magic to make their work easier, so as to minimize the amount of effort needed to achieve a particular objective.

Names
Demons will usually collect a wide variety of names, aliases, & pseudonyms as the years go by, a testament to their tendency to deceive. A demon will rarely, if ever, give the same name twice to different people, even (or especially) if they are already well-known in the area. Their names have no connotation in terms of gender, & demons of any gender will use the same name, if it suits them. In truth, a demon will respond to any name, provided that they are clearly being addressed; designations matter little to them, as only the intent of the speaker is important.

A demon cannot be bound by a single name, as to them, a name is as ephemeral & transitory as their bodily form. If it is convenient, they will adopt a name for a time, & will answer to that designation for as long as they feel the need to do so. But this is more of an affectation of convenience than a permanent label, & will be dropped the moment that it is no longer necessary. For beings in a constant state of flux, a name is just another arbitrary method of control, an aspect of order to be subverted & destroyed.

Sample Names
Aamon, Adramalech, Agrys, Ais, Allat, Antedeus, Apollylon, Arimon, Arun, Astaroth, Asterion, Atalan, Atzan, Azazil, Baal, Bachraeus, Barbatos, Baytor, Belathauzer, Belial, Belphegor, Dajal, Darxitan, El, Eloh, Erel, Ethen, Falilites, Feklar, Garamoth, Gazra, Grogar, Hadus, Hael, Halael, Hamshal, Iblis, Idelya, Ish, Kafir, Kagu, Kalim, Kayin, Kerub, Korgoroth, Kybel, Lazu, Lilitus, Limuri, Lugus, Luki, Malak, Mamon, Melekh, Memnoch, Molikroth, Moloch, Nisroc, Ophan, Pruslas, Qabil, Rajim, Shiq, Siva, Salan, Thul, Urazi, Urdun, Zalambur, Zarus, Zeraf, Zeth, Ziz

Arts & Education
The very existence of demons is predicated upon a premise of destruction, & therefore creation of any sort is anathema to them. The only means by which they display anything approaching creativity is when they are killing, torturing, or otherwise sowing devastation. They are only innovative in matters of inflicting pain & ruin, but in those areas of expertise, their ingenuity is unrivaled. There are no reliable records of a demon actually making something, so it is widely believed that they are incapable of constructing things on their own.

There is no formal system of education in the world of the demons, as there are no formal systems of any kind. They learn through experience, & their experience comes mainly from observing other demons & acting as they do, for lack of a better process. From the moment of their spawning, a demon is driven to participate in the Culling (see below), their only other instinct is to spread chaos & ruin wherever they can. But demons are nothing if not unpredictable, & so some of their ilk will rebel against even these most basic tenets of their nature, acting contrary to other demons & ignoring the Culling. Their strong-willed independence can sometimes even lead a demon to act benevolently, but this behavior is a very rare aberration, & is theorized to be just another manifestation of their supreme chaos.

Relationships
Love is beyond a demon’s understanding, & they are only able to (somewhat poorly) emulate the trappings of affection. They lack even a rudimentary sense of empathy, & will readily kill & break anything without a shred of remorse. The greatest, & perhaps only, pleasure that a demon can experience is the result of destroying something. They take great joy in breaking & killing, making what was once beautiful & alive into that which is ruined & dead.

The end result of this inherent antipathy is that demons do not form bonds with one another, or any other being for that matter. They exist in a state of ruthless independence, relying only upon themselves & their own faculties to survive & achieve their goals. While they may, for a time, ally themselves with another creature, or even serve a more powerful being, but eventually they will betray their partners’ trust, either for some wicked purpose or merely for some perverse amusement. Such arrangements are invariably based on deceit & convenience, never lasting for more than a few weeks.

Crime
There is no such thing as a law amongst demon-kind, & so there are no crimes in their culture, at least in theory. Every act is permissible, & no depravity is forbidden, or even worthy of comment. The only restraint that a demon has upon their actions is the threat of retribution, a fear (either real or imagined) that some more-powerful creature will take umbrage at their actions & seek revenge. If a demon is harmed by some entity, they will swiftly lash out at the offending being, & may even fixate upon doing them harm for a time. But a demon is easily distracted, & will only pursue vengeance for as long as they can remain entertained by the malevolence that they perform. Unless they are compelled by some outside force, they will grow bored with their self-appointed reckoning, & move on to more ripe targets. But in the meantime, many lives may be destroyed by a demon’s predations.

Language
The demons of Sergala speak a number of interconnected tongues, all sharing the same runic alphabet & linguistic root. The Abyssal languages, as they are commonly known, have many names (Asuri, Dhaimonos, & Qartabariqad, just to list a few of the most popular), & each of them have several distinct dialects. It has been proposed by certain scholars of demonology that all of their countless languages are actually just variants of a single tongue, & that the nature of demonic speech makes them seem like they are separate systems.

Like the demons themselves, Abyssal is an amorphous, fluid language, with ever-shifting grammar & syntax. It is constantly evolving (or devolving), with new words being borrowed from other tongues, old words falling in disuse, & phrases acquiring different meanings on a frequent basis. Almost every word can be spelled or pronounced in radically-different ways, & a word’s meaning can be interpreted quite differently, depending on the speaker’s inflection & the context of the moment. These characteristics, combined with its innumerable synonyms, homophones, & metaphors, make Abyssal possibly the most maddeningly-complex language (or languages) known to mortal man.

The Culling
As mentioned before, the only method by which demons can reproduce is by capturing the souls of other races & defiling them in a procedure called the Aasrava, which results in the captive souls being painfully transformed into a minor demon. Because of this oblique route, the demonic hordes spend much of their time attempting to acquire souls via any means necessary. They waylay hafazas bearing newly-deceased souls. They raid the Pit of Fate. They invade houri settlements, slaughtering anyone within reach. They stage incursions across the planar divide, stalking the nights of Siraaj in order to tempt mortals into their clutches. These relentless attacks are collectively known as the Culling, for they harvest the souls of mortals like a farmer would cut down his crops.

They not only use the Culling to collect souls that will boost their numbers, but demons can directly add to their own spiritual energy by devouring souls. If a demon were to consume a number of souls whose total Hit Die equaled or exceeded its own, then that demon’s Hit Die would increase by one. A demon of maximum Hit Dice which has gathered enough spiritual energy to gain one more Hit Die is eligible to promote themselves to the next-highest clade. They can secrete a resinous chrysalis & pupate within it, eventually emerging as a member of a higher clade (with minimum Hit Dice). A demon that did not eat enough souls will die within their cocoon, as the process is very energy-intensive. Those that did enter prepared will become inert, suffering indescribable agony as their body is liquefied & reformed into a new shape over the course of several days (one day for every Hit Die of the new clade).

Clades
A demon’s form can vary widely, & can even change over time, but their basic structure can usually be categorized according to a rough hierarchy of clades, which are broad groupings that share particular physical qualities & behavioral mannerisms. Every demon is initially spawned as either a dretch or a quasit, & evolve into more powerful clades as they accumulate spiritual energy. While a comprehensive listing of traits for each clade would be impossibly long, certain general tendencies are notable in every one.

A minor demon, such as a dretch (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/demon.htm#dretch) or a quasit (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/demon.htm#quasit), can become a babau (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/demon.htm#babau), which can in turn evolve into a succubus (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/demon.htm#succubus). A succubus can eventually become what is called a mesodaemon, the lowest clade of which is a vrock (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/demon.htm#vrock); a vrock can then become a bebilith (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/demon.htm#bebilith), then a hezrou (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/demon.htm#hezrou). A hezrou may yet one day become a major demon, the least of which is a glabrezu (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/demon.htm#glabrezu); a glabrezu can then become a nalfeshnee (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/demon.htm#nalfeshnee), then a marilith (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/demon.htm#marilith), & finally a balor (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/demon.htm#balor), the greatest clade of demon-kind.

To add to the confusion of all of this, there are many other clades besides the ones mentioned above; those are merely the most commonly encountered. There exist several clades that are rarely seen, yet verified by multiple accounts. Demons classified as bar-igura, dybbuk, goristro, mane, molydeus, sibriex, & countless other divisions exist alongside the better-known clades, & their relationship with the established hierarchy is unclear. On top of all that, the mightiest of demons cannot be classified at all, belonging to no clade & apparently transcending the system altogether. It is thought that demons are so infused with chaos that they defy all attempts to understand them, refusing to bear the yolk of order imposed upon them by such categorization.

Notable Demons
Over the centuries, several demons have made a name for themselves, standing out from among their peers to enter the annals of history. Here is a sample of the most well-known demon princes:

Over 1,400 years ago, Johoum gathered a horde of followers (including the equally-estimable Nathar) & left Sergala for a campaign of ruin & slaughter on Siraaj. His army of demons destroyed the kobold nation of Haz-Hurad, & he began to acquire divine power from an apocalyptic cult that he had formed around himself. He was then caught in an arcane trap set by the Admajai & bound in the Shrine of the Imprisonment, where he still lies to this day, sealed away into the barrier between Siraaj & Najmah.
A former lieutenant of Johoum, Nathar led a horrific campaign to the Eastern Continent, corrupting the shaghal tribes & turning them into a loyal servant race. With Johoum bound within his prison, Nathar hid among his mortal minions as a living god, & eventually gained true divine power from their worship. He is still in the shaghal homeland of Nefer-Ta, plotting the invasion of the continent of Admaja.
Long ago, in the Age of Kingdoms, Shikk mated with a human being & spawned an abominable child. Disgusted by the cambion that it had spawned, Shikk slew the offspring, splitting the child in twain in its revulsion. Curious about death & undeath, the demon possessed the body of a necromancer & reanimated the two halves of the youth’s body. These both became separate undead entities, which were the first nasnasi. Fascinated, the demon “created” many more pairs over the next century, slaughtering hundreds of mortals to craft thousands of these half-bodied horrors.
A masterful lair & manipulator of consummate skill, Zalambur presides over dishonest & fraudulent business transactions. The demon prince literally has a forked tongue, & it is said that he can speak with two voices at the same time. For centuries, Zalambur has roamed the edges of mortal civilization, tempting the unwary with promises of wealth & power. No other demon is so adept at luring people into giving up their own souls, & for that reason the Prince of Lies has risen through the clades to a form that transcends the balor. Legend has it that it was Zalambur that negotiated with the rakshasa to allow demon-kind to use the Seven Paths, which gives them easy access to Siraaj.

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Deva
Mitrana Deva (Astral Deva (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/angel.htm#angelAstralDeva))

Abilities & Racial Features

Strength +8, Dexterity +4, Constitution +6, Intelligence +8, Wisdom +10, Charisma +8.
Outsider (Extraplanar): Mitrana devas are not subject to spells or effects that affect humanoids only, such as charm person or dominate person. Spells that restore souls to their bodies, such as raise dead, reincarnate, & resurrection, don’t work on them. It takes a different magical effect, such as limited wish, wish, miracle, or true resurrection, to restore it to life. They breathe, but do not need to eat or sleep (although they can do so if they wish).
Medium Size: As Medium creatures, mitrana devas have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
Racial Hit Dice: A mitrana deva begins with 12 levels of outsider, which provide 12d8 Hit Dice, a base attack bonus of +12, & base saving throw bonuses of Fortitude +8, Reflex +8, & Will +8.
Racial Skills: A mitrana deva’s outsider levels give it skill points equal to 15 × (8 + Int modifier, minimum 1). Its class skills are Concentration, Diplomacy, Hide, Intimidate, Listen, Move Silently, Sense Motive, & Spot.
Racial Feats: A mitrana deva’s outsider levels give it 5 feats.
A mitrana deva’s base land speed is 50 feet.
A mitrana deva’s base flight speed is 100 feet (good maneuverability).
Darkvision out to 60 feet & low-light vision.
Spell-Like Abilities
At Will: aid, continual flame, detect evil, discern lies (DC 19), dispel evil (DC 20), dispel magic, holy aura (DC 23), holy smite (DC 19), holy word (DC 22), invisibility (self only), plane shift (DC 22), remove curse (DC 18), remove disease (DC 18), remove fear (DC 16)
7/Day: cure light wounds (DC 16), see invisibility
1/Day: blade barrier (DC 21), heal (DC 21)
Caster level 12th. The save DCs are Charisma-based.
Celestial traits: All creatures with the Celestial subtype possess the following traits:
Immunity to acid, cold, & petrification.
Resistance to electricity 10 & fire 10.
+4 racial bonus on saves against poison.
Protective Aura (Su): Against attacks made or effects created by evil creatures, this ability provides a +4 deflection bonus to AC & a +4 resistance bonus on saving throws to anyone within 20’ of the celestial. Otherwise, it functions as a magic circle against evil effect & a lesser globe of invulnerability, both with a radius of 20’ (caster level equals celestial’s HD). (The defensive benefits from the circle are not included in a celestial’s statistics block.)
Tongues (Su): All celestials can speak with any creature that has a language, as though using a tongues spell (caster level equal to celestial’s Hit Dice). This ability is always active.
Change Shape (Su): A mitrana deva can assume the form of any Small or Medium humanoid.
Good traits: All creatures with the good subtype possess the following traits:
If the good creature’s alignment changes, then it will still retain this subtype.
Any effect that depends on alignment affects a creature with this subtype as if the creature has a good alignment, no matter what its alignment actually is. The creature also suffers effects according to its actual alignment.
A creature with the good subtype overcomes damage reduction as if its natural weapons & any weapons it wields were good-aligned.
Mace: A full-grown mitrana deva is almost always equipped with a +3 heavy mace of disruption. It takes a fierce joy in bashing evil foes with its powerful mace. A mitrana deva’s natural weapons, as well as any weapons it wields, are treated as good-aligned for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.
Stun (Su): If a mitrana deva strikes an opponent twice in one round with its mace, that creature must succeed on a DC22 Fortitude save or be stunned for 1d6 rounds. The save DC is Strength-based.
Uncanny Dodge (Ex): Mitrana devas can react to danger before their senses would normally allow them to do so. They retain their Dexterity bonus to AC when flat-footed, & they cannot be flanked except by a rogue of at least 16th level. They can flank characters with the uncanny dodge ability as if they were a 12th-level rogue.
+15 natural armor bonus.
Automatic Languages: Celestial. Bonus Languages: Archaic & Houri.
Favored Class: Monk.
Level Adjustment: +0.

Population: 1,340,000 worldwide
Height: 7’6” tall (average)
Weight: 250 lbs. (average)
Languages: Celestial, Houri

The Order of Mitrana is the First Host of the greater devas, the most powerful of all deva-kind. Long ago, they were known as the astral devas, for they were associated with the stars in the sky, but that name has fallen out of favor since the Great Calamity. Like all greater devas, they are tall, lithe, & beautiful, with large feathered wings & an aura of mystical power about them. This aura sets them apart from even the other hosts, & makes them difficult to look at directly. The rarest & least populous of the devas, they have a strong connection to the divine, & this close bond makes them aloof & difficult to communicate with easily. They tend to keep to themselves, moving about on errands that they will not discuss with others & staying airborne almost as often as they are on the ground. On the occasions in which they do speak with others, they are cryptic & mysterious, often leaving those they talk to with more questions than answers.

Biology
Mitrana devas are between 7’ & 8’ tall, weigh around 220 to 280 pounds, & usually have smooth reddish flesh, although some of them have bright blue skin instead, a sign of even greater spiritual power. The males & the females are of roughly equal height, & they are both are lean & well-muscled. They are stunningly attractive creatures, by human standards. Over half of them are naturally bald, including some females, but those mitrana devas with hair have pure white locks & matching wing feathers. Their eyes lack visible pupils, looking like featureless orbs, & can be either a glowing white or an inky black.

Diet
Greater devas do not need to eat to survive; although they can eat if they choose to do so, most of them refrain from it, finding the consequences of ingestion unpleasant. A few opt to eat regularly, on the premise that living as mortal beings do & dealing with their everyday concerns is a lesser-traveled path to wisdom, but these are rare individuals, & are often seen as strange by their brethren. On the occasions when they do eat food, they consume the same fair as other devas.

For more information, see Lesser Deva: Diet.

Reproduction
Devas do not reproduce sexually, like mortal beings do; instead, they increase their ranks in a somewhat circuitous fashion. When a sentient being dies on Siraaj, the mortal soul travels through the Pit of Fate on a journey that will test its worth. If the devas of the Terrace of Peace find the soul to be virtuous, then they will bid upon it, offering to let the rare soul join their ranks. If the soul accepts, then it will travel to Najmah, where it will form into a tiny sphere of luminous energy.

This little light, called a Murmur or a haasya, will be drawn to powerful devas (or groups of less-powerful devas), where they will flit about, whispering & waiting for the time when they will be born anew. The devas are unaware of the connection between haasyas & their reincarnated souls, but they do know that the lights are associated with a greater feeling of contentment & serenity. It is viewed as natural and not often discussed.

Once each month, when the moons are full, there is a ceremony performed by an elder priest in each deva community. The ceremony is carried out under an open sky, & must be done when the moons are at their zenith in the ever-night sky. The priest take a wing feather from a bird, set it alight, & then douse it in a small pool of fresh consecrated water. If it is done correctly (& if there are souls to incarnate), then the burnt feather will transmute into a deva, which will arise from the pool fully-grown. The newborn deva will need to be cared for & educated by the community, but it will already be instilled with a basic understanding of how to function. Typically, a mentor (called an aacaarya) or two will be assigned to guide the new deva for its first few years.

Devas are effectively immortal; they do not age or die of natural causes, & so their lifespans are indefinite. There are few diseases or poisons that can harm them, so sickness is almost unknown to them. They can die by accident, or be killed on purpose by another’s hand, but otherwise, they will live forever in theory. There are devas alive today who remember the God-War in the Age Before Time, although these ancient beings are few in number & worn in spirit. What happens when a deva finally dies is beyond anyone’s knowledge, but scholars & sages have debated this question since time immemorial, & countless theories abound.

Internal Relations
All devas live in harmony with one another, but they are socially divided into their different castes, known as jaatii. The common devas segregate themselves from the lesser devas, & both of them isolate themselves from the greater devas. The greater devas are further split into the three hosts (the Asurana, the Rudrana, & the Mitrana), which act in much the same way towards one another. This makes five separate factions of devas, all of which are somewhat alienated from each other. While mingling is allowed, & peaceful cooperation is assumed, close relations between members of different castes is kept to a minimum at all times. This is not a codified law anywhere, but it is an unspoken rule that all devas grow to understand & accept as the natural way of their people. They gain strength from their differences when needed, but they keep their castes divided to maintain those differences in perpetuity.

External Relations
Devas strive to live in harmony with all things, & that not only includes each other, but it applies to other beings as well. They do not seek to expand their territory or to convert others to their system of beliefs, so they rarely come into conflict with other races. While they are willing & able to defend themselves when necessary, their altruistic nature & serene demeanor preclude any act of violence or aggression that could foment such conflict.

Devas are closest to the houris, who are also a peaceful people with a strong emphasis on learning & cooperation; the devas are fascinated by the houris & their search for enlightenment. The devas feel sympathy & pity for the genies, for they had so much power & influence before the Great Calamity, & now they are a lost, vanishing people. They are fascinated by encounters with beings from “beyond the mists,” as they call the mortals that they meet, & they extend them every courtesy in exchange for any information that they may have about their homelands. The only peoples that the devas don’t get along with are the demons & the rakshasas, who have both proven themselves to be destructive, duplicitous, & working against everything for which the devas believe & hold dear.

Devas have cool relations with the devils; they often engage in minor disputes or skirmishes, but they have had a fragile truce for centuries, based on their shared fear & suspicion of the demons. There is great distrust between the two sides, & the armistice could collapse at a moment’s notice, but in the wake of the Great Calamity, both the devils & the devas understand that it is in their mutual best interests to work together.

Occupations
Devas perform all of the tasks that one would expect would be needed in an advanced civilization. Despite their great personal power & magical talents, a majority of labor is accomplished the mundane way: through muscle & sweat. Devas farm their fields, build their shelters, their water, & make their clothes, all in a manner much like how mortal beings do such things. Ships are rowed & messages are delivered by devas, all without magical aid; this is as much to build character & hone the body as it is a convenient allocation of energy. The young devas, those who have been newly made, do much of the work, & tend to work the hardest, but all devas lend a hand at least some of the time, regardless of seniority or station.

The devas, as a people, have been given a great deal of responsibility by the higher powers of the Kamala. They have been charged with protecting of the Three Gates, as well as to receive newly-born houris arriving on Najmah. Occasionally, a representative from one of the divinities will appear before the devas, tasking them with a mission that requires the utmost dedication & skill; these quests are often fatal to those who undertake them, but such duties are considered a great honor, & even those who fail in their charge are revered for their efforts.

Devas have also become intrepid explorers in recent times, out of necessity more than inclination. The Great Calamity caused the genie kingdoms to vanish overnight, & they left behind many great cities & valuable relics. The disasters wrought by the Pactspell also destroyed many of the historical records & killed many of the great scholars of their kind; as a result, they have lost much of the lore of the past, as well as all knowledge of Siraaj. In their current ignorance, myth & superstition have replaced facts, & some have taken it upon themselves to reverse this unfortunate trend. To counteract this loss, many devas have become explorers, wanderers, surveyors, & relic hunters, searching the abandoned genie cities & lost ruins for secrets, lore, & magic from the half-forgotten past.

Names
When a deva is first “born,” it is given a name by the elder priest that perform the Rite of the Ascended Moons. This name is usually just a convenient means of telling the newborns apart & granting them an identity to latch onto; little thought or care is put into the assignment of this first name. Later, as a deva matures & becomes an integrated part of its community, it is given a new name by the young deva’s friends & neighbors, usually on their seventh “birthday.” This second replaces the first name, & is much more representative of that individual’s personality & demeanor. Finally, during a celebratory ritual commemorating their fourteenth “birthday” (a rite that signifies that the young deva is considered fully mature), a deva chooses a name for themselves, a moniker that reflects their own idea of who they are & what they represent. This third name does not replace the second name, but it does precede it, so when addressing a deva by their full name, the third name always goes first.

Male Sample Names
Amrit, Bhima, Damodar, Govinda, Hari, Jyoti, Kiran, Lai, Mahesh, Narendra, Prasad, Rarna, Sankara, Shankar, Tarun, Varuna, Vyasa

Female Sample Names
Ananda, Bala, Chandi, Durga, Indira, Jaya, Kanti, Leela, Madhuri, Nalini, Purnima, Radha, Sarisha, Shakti, Usha, Veda, Vimala

Arts & Education
The devas have an advanced society, one that is devoted to artistic expression & creative endeavors. They value beauty & elegance in equal measure, placing a high value on the aesthetics of even the most common of items. In their minds, if an object, place, or person is unsightly, then it is incomplete or broken, & therefore should be fixed or made whole. This aspect of their psychology, combined with their natural drive to give back the world for blessing them, leads them to try to improve the world & everything in it, even at their own expense.

One area of expertise that the devas excel at is the use of architecture, which to them is an art as much as it is a practical concern. Using wide arches, large windows, & open terraces, their buildings are designed to accommodate the use of flight without mandating it. The greater & lesser devas can fly, but the common devas cannot (except through the use of magic, which not all of them possess), so their structures have ground-level entrances as well as upper balconies. As part of this airy design, they prefer to use cylindrical columns for support, instead of solid walls, even in places with inclement weather. They also like to integrate graceful sculptures & statuary into their buildings, & they favor the use of marble over almost any other building material.

The devas emphasize the importance of science & education, especially those with a more lawful bent. They revere nature & the natural world, & they seek to understand the laws & rules behind such natural beauty. This has led them to make great advances in mathematics, astronomy, physics, & alchemy. Nearly all devas are literate, as one of an aacaarya’s first duties is to teach the newborns in their charge how to read & write in the languages of the deva, including Archaic, Celestial, & Houri.

Unfortunately for the devas, many of their historical records have been lost, & so their understanding of the past is but a shadow of its former self. The Great Calamity (as they call the Pactspell) destroyed many buildings, including most of the libraries, with their delicate clay manuscripts & fragile scrolls. Countless lives were lost in the ensuing conflicts afterward, & so few remain who remember the past well enough to paint an accurate picture of it. Nowadays, many scholars devote their entire lives to the recovery & reconstruction of historical knowledge, but most of them fear that the monumental task is a futile one, & that they will never be able to fully restore what has been lost.

Relationships
Within one’s caste, a deva is free to associate with whomever they choose. As each deva is born from the Rite of the Ascended Moons, they do not have family members as mortal beings would understand them. All devas consider each other siblings, & they live together in mutual harmony. There is a loose hierarchy of sorts, based on an individual’s age, experience, & insight, but as they are prone to say, “Even the blind can see the stars.” Even among caste-mates, the devas do not engage in sexual behaviors or relationships. While devas do form close friendships (most commonly with their mentors) & even intimate bonds, they are asexual beings, & therefore sexuality is rather foreign to them.

Crime
As stated before, devas are inherently kind, selfless beings, who naturally strive for the greater good of all living beings. As such, most crimes are completely anathema to them, & it is difficult for a deva to grasp the concept of violating the law for one’s own personal gain. A deva will not commit an act of violence against a living being, unless it is in defense of themselves or others. This is as much a cultural norm as it is a part of their psychological makeup; they seem to be utterly incorruptible, incapable of even being tempted to act in a selfish or greedy manner. Contrary to popular belief, they are capable of lying, & some will do so if it will benefit others, but devas are generally honorable & forthright beings.

Devas are not always completely lawful, though, especially in situations in which the law conflicts with their own perceptions of Right & Wrong. More lawfully-minded devas will obey a law that seems unjust, working to enact change within the system & make the laws more fair. Other devas might simply ignore the unreasonable law, defying it in favor of what they see as the greatest good. This schism of thought can lead devas to oppose on another, & many a spirited debate has been caused by such differing viewpoints, although these arguments have never led to violence among the devas.

Because of their benevolent nature, there is little need for a police force to patrol deva settlements, enforcing laws & keeping the peace. Each settlement has at least one constable, but few of them have more than one, regardless of the town’s size, & most of their duties revolve around coordinating defense efforts against outside threats, settling disputes, & dealing with emergencies like fires, storms, accidents, & mist events. In these capacities, a constable serves as a roving vice-mayor, rescue worker, & civil judge. Devas often volunteer to serve a similar role in settlements of other races; they did this in many towns & cities in the genie realms before the Great Calamity, & they continue to do so in houri-dominant lands to this day.

Faith & Religion
Devas are mostly a devout people; they live in a world that is close to the divine, a place where wonders are commonplace & miracles happen almost every day. Unlike mortal societies, which are usually monotheistic, the devas believe in several deities simultaneously, & some even worship more than one. The Peacemaker (Sidaru) has by far the largest presence in deva culture, although there is some minor support for other deities, such as Qalima (Zaia), Dakhiel (Daq), & the Darshan trinity. Most devas choose a single parton god or goddess to venerate above all others, & it is their shrine which they will visit to pray, seek guidance, & make offerings.

There are few large temples dedicated to a single god or goddess in deva lands, but there are numerous small shrines liberally sprinkled across the landscape. One cannot travel for a whole day in the realms of the devas without encountering a shrine of some deity. These shrines are typically small structures, often just a 10’-20’ square stone altar with four column supporting a tiled roof & a large symbol or statue of the deity in question. These little shrines are attended by no one in particular, but every cleric that comes across a shrine of their patron is obligated to pray for a few minutes & help maintain the site, even if it is only to sweep away some leaves, mend some broken tiles, or replenish an incense bowl.

Genies
The devas may seem to be a race that is far beyond the concerns of mortal beings, & such an assessment is not an unfair one to make. But the devas are not infallible beings, & they are prone to some of the same flaws & quirks of any thinking people. Many of their faults can be traced back to the Great Calamity, & their reactions to such a cataclysmic event.

During the Great Calamity, the devas lost a great deal of their historical records, as fires & floods destroyed many libraries & killed their eldest brethren. As a result, what was once known as fact has become mired in legend, myth, & superstition. Efforts to regain the missing lore have been mixed, & so many stories have arisen to fill the gap, for good or ill. Many of these tales revolve around the fate of the genies, who disappeared en masse during the Pactspell.

Some say that the genies unlocked a way to ascend to a higher plane of existence, much as the houris aspire to do. Others believe that they were all slain by Sunya/Sidaru/another god for some terrible transgression. Still others think that they were taken to a strange alien realm, a place where they would serve to atone for their greed, vice, & ambition. There are even some who claim that the genies wanted to leave Najmah behind, & that their gambit paid off in ways that no one could have expected. The truth of the matter continues to elude the devas, although there are many explorers & scholars searching the abandoned ruins & forgotten settlements, scouring the land for some clue to this great mystery.

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Rudrana Deva

Abilities & Racial Features

Strength +6, Dexterity +8, Constitution +8, Intelligence +2, Wisdom +6, Charisma +6.
Outsider (Extraplanar): Rudrana devas are not subject to spells or effects that affect humanoids only, such as charm person or dominate person. Spells that restore souls to their bodies, such as raise dead, reincarnate, & resurrection, don’t work on them. It takes a different magical effect, such as limited wish, wish, miracle, or true resurrection, to restore it to life. They breathe, but do not need to eat or sleep (although they can do so if they wish).
Medium Size: As Medium creatures, rudrana devas have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
Racial Hit Dice: A rudrana deva begins with 10 levels of outsider, which provide 10d8 Hit Dice, a base attack bonus of +10, & base saving throw bonuses of Fortitude +7, Reflex +7, & Will +7.
Racial Skills: A rudrana deva’s outsider levels give it skill points equal to 13 × (8 + Int modifier, minimum 1). Its class skills are Concentration, Diplomacy, Intimidate, Knowledge (Arcana), Knowledge (Religion), Knowledge (The Planes), Sense Motive, & Spellcraft.
Racial Feats: A rudrana deva’s outsider levels give it 4 feats.
A rudrana deva’s base land speed is 40 feet.
A rudrana deva’s base flight speed is 90 feet (good maneuverability).
Darkvision out to 60 feet & low-light vision.
Spell-Like Abilities
At Will: aid, detect evil, protection from arrows (DC16), water breathing (DC17)
3/Day: cure serious wounds (DC17), hallow (DC19), holy smite (DC18)
1/Day: dispel evil (DC19), raise dead
Caster level 11th. The save DCs are Charisma-based.
Celestial traits: All creatures with the Celestial subtype possess the following traits:
Immunity to acid, cold, & petrification.
Resistance to electricity 10 & fire 10.
+4 racial bonus on saves against poison.
Protective Aura (Su): Against attacks made or effects created by evil creatures, this ability provides a +4 deflection bonus to AC & a +4 resistance bonus on saving throws to anyone within 20’ of the celestial. Otherwise, it functions as a magic circle against evil effect & a lesser globe of invulnerability, both with a radius of 20’ (caster level equals celestial’s HD). (The defensive benefits from the circle are not included in a celestial’s statistics block.)
Tongues (Su): All celestials can speak with any creature that has a language, as though using a tongues spell (caster level equal to celestial’s Hit Dice). This ability is always active.
Deliverance from Death (Ex): Rudrana devas are immune to all death spells & magical death effects. They are likewise immune to ability damage, ability drain, & energy drain.
Good traits: All creatures with the good subtype possess the following traits:
If the good creature’s alignment changes, then it will still retain this subtype.
Any effect that depends on alignment affects a creature with this subtype as if the creature has a good alignment, no matter what its alignment actually is. The creature also suffers effects according to its actual alignment.
A creature with the good subtype overcomes damage reduction as if its natural weapons & any weapons it wields were good-aligned.
Uncanny Dodge (Ex): Rudrana devas can react to danger before their senses would normally allow them to do so. They retain their Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) even if they are caught flat-footed or struck by an invisible attacker. However, they still loses her Dexterity bonus to AC if immobilized.
+12 natural armor bonus.
Automatic Languages: Celestial. Bonus Languages: Archaic & Houri.
Favored Class: Paladin.
Level Adjustment: +2.

Population: 2,691,000 worldwide
Height: 7’6” tall (average)
Weight: 250 lbs. (average)
Languages: Celestial, Houri

The Order of Rudrana is the Second Host of the greater devas, the most stoic & reserved of the three hosts. They are kind, caring, & beatific, but they almost never speak, even amongst each other. They will not discuss religious or existential matters, & they are reluctant to talk about anything that isn’t related to their objectives. When they do converse with others, they are fairly straightforward, but even then, they are beings of few words. They tend to be pensive, appearing to contemplate for long periods before taking decisive action, & they are known to meditate for days at a time. They are exceedingly patient beings, with a great appreciation of balance & harmony, & are utterly vigilant in their appointed tasks.

Biology
Rudrana devas are between 7’ & 8’ tall, weigh around 220 to 280 pounds, & usually have dark brown flesh, although some of them have deep blue skin instead, a sign of even greater spiritual power. The males & the females are of roughly equal height, & they are both are lean & well-muscled. They are stunningly attractive creatures, by human standards. Most rudrana devas have jet black hair with matching wing feathers, although other colors are possible, such as gray or white. Their eyes are invariably a piercing green, with the slit pupils of a cat. They are the most likely of all deva-kind to have multiple sets of limbs, with a full quarter of their ranks possessing 4 or 6 arms, & about one in ten of them have more than one face on their head.

For all other aspects of their culture, see Mitrana Deva.

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Asurana Deva

Abilities & Racial Features

Strength +2, Dexterity +6, Constitution +2, Intelligence +4, Wisdom +8, Charisma +6.
Outsider (Extraplanar): Asurana devas are not subject to spells or effects that affect humanoids only, such as charm person or dominate person. Spells that restore souls to their bodies, such as raise dead, reincarnate, & resurrection, don’t work on them. It takes a different magical effect, such as limited wish, wish, miracle, or true resurrection, to restore it to life. They breathe, but do not need to eat or sleep (although they can do so if they wish).
Medium Size: As Medium creatures, asurana devas have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
Racial Hit Dice: An asurana deva begins with 6 levels of outsider, which provide 6d8 Hit Dice, a base attack bonus of +6, & base saving throw bonuses of Fortitude +5, Reflex +5, & Will +5.
Racial Skills: An asurana deva’s outsider levels give it skill points equal to 9 × (8 + Int modifier, minimum 1). Its class skills are Concentration, Diplomacy, Intimidate, Knowledge (Arcana), Knowledge (Religion), Knowledge (The Planes), Sense Motive, & Spellcraft.
Racial Feats: An asurana deva’s outsider levels give it 3 feats.
An asurana deva’s base land speed is 40 feet.
An asurana deva’s base flight speed is 90 feet (good maneuverability).
Darkvision out to 60 feet & low-light vision.
Spell-Like Abilities
At Will: aid, create food & water, detect evil, protection from arrows (DC16)
3/Day: bless weapon, cure serious wounds (DC17), holy smite (DC18)
1/Day: raise dead
Caster level 9th. The save DCs are Charisma-based.
Celestial traits: All creatures with the Celestial subtype possess the following traits:
Immunity to acid, cold, & petrification.
Resistance to electricity 10 & fire 10.
+4 racial bonus on saves against poison.
Protective Aura (Su): Against attacks made or effects created by evil creatures, this ability provides a +4 deflection bonus to AC & a +4 resistance bonus on saving throws to anyone within 20’ of the celestial. Otherwise, it functions as a magic circle against evil effect & a lesser globe of invulnerability, both with a radius of 20’ (caster level equals celestial’s HD). (The defensive benefits from the circle are not included in a celestial’s statistics block.)
Tongues (Su): All celestials can speak with any creature that has a language, as though using a tongues spell (caster level equal to celestial’s Hit Dice). This ability is always active.
Good traits: All creatures with the good subtype possess the following traits:
If the good creature’s alignment changes, then it will still retain this subtype.
Any effect that depends on alignment affects a creature with this subtype as if the creature has a good alignment, no matter what its alignment actually is. The creature also suffers effects according to its actual alignment.
A creature with the good subtype overcomes damage reduction as if its natural weapons & any weapons it wields were good-aligned.
Heavenly Deflection (Su): An asurana deva can deflect ranged attacks & certain spells by batting them away with its +1 flaming greatsword as an immediate action. When a ranged attack, ray, or single-target spell would ordinarily hit or affect the deva, the deva can make a Reflex saving throw (DC20). If the ranged weapon has an enhancement bonus, then the DC increases by that amount. If the attack is from a spell, then the spell level is added to the DC. If the deva succeeds the saving throw, then the attack is deflected, & therefore has no effect. Deflected spells are negated as if counterspelled. The deva must be aware of an attack in order to be able to deflect it.
Soothing Presence of Nature (Ex): Asurana devas have a calm spirit that is pleasing to the inhabitants of the natural world. Unless magically compelled to do so, an animal or a plant (as per the creature types) will not attack an asurana deva unless attacked by it first.
+8 natural armor bonus.
Automatic Languages: Celestial. Bonus Languages: Archaic & Houri.
Favored Class: Cleric.
Level Adjustment: +3.

Population: 5,369,000 worldwide
Height: 7’6” tall (average)
Weight: 250 lbs. (average)
Languages: Celestial, Houri

The Order of Asurana is the Third Host of the greater devas, the most numerous of their kind. They are worldlier & more personable than the other hosts, & they the most likely to form social bonds with non-devas. While they are as reticent on certain sensitive topics as a rudrana deva, they always approachable & pleasant, deftly changing the subject with aplomb of a diplomat. They tend to be flexible & practical, seeking the simplest solution to any problem, even if it is unpleasant or difficult in the short term. It is they who brokered the truce between the devils & the devas, & it is they who often maintain the armistice with frequent envoys & negotiations. They sometimes chafe under rules & regulations, seeing some laws as getting in the way of the greater good, but they find some way to work within the system, for the harmony of their people.

Biology
Asurana devas are between 7’ & 8’ tall, weigh around 220 to 280 pounds, & usually have milky white flesh, although some of them have pale blue skin instead, a sign of even greater spiritual power. The males & the females are of roughly equal height, & they are both are lean & well-muscled. They are stunningly attractive creatures, by human standards. Most asurana devas have silvery hair with matching wing feathers, although other colors are possible, such as coppery or golden. Their eyes are always a swirling silver, with no visible pupils. They are the most likely of all deva-kind to have animal-like body parts; over a third of them have the head of an animal, such as a lion, an elephant, or a bull, & many of them have some other bestial feature like a tail or hooves.

For all other aspects of their culture, see Mitrana Deva.

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Lesser Deva (Half-Celestial (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/halfCelestial.htm))

Abilities & Racial Features
Lesser Deva is an inherited template that can be added to any living, corporeal creature with an Intelligence score of 4 or higher & non-evil alignment (referred to hereafter as the base creature). A lesser deva uses all the base creature’s statistics and special abilities except as noted here:
Size and Type: The creature’s type changes to outsider. Do not recalculate the creature’s Hit Dice, base attack bonus, or saves. Size is unchanged. Lesser devas are normally native outsiders.
Speed: A lesser deva has feathered wings and can fly at twice the base creature’s base land speed (good maneuverability). If the base creature has a fly speed, use that instead.
Armor Class: Natural armor improves by +1 (this stacks with any natural armor bonus the base creature has).
Special Attacks: A lesser deva retains all the special attacks of the base creature and also gains the following special abilities.
Daylight (Su): Lesser devas can use a daylight effect (as the spell) at will.
Smite Evil (Su): Once per day a lesser deva can make a normal melee attack to deal extra damage equal to its HD (maximum of +20) against an evil foe.
Spell-Like Abilities: A lesser deva with an Intelligence or Wisdom score of 8 or higher has two or more spell-like abilities, depending on its Hit Dice, as indicated on the table below. The abilities are cumulative. Unless otherwise noted, an ability is usable once per day. Caster level equals the creature’s HD, & the save DC is Charisma-based.

{table=head]HD|Abilities
1-2|protection from evil 3/day, bless
3-4|aid, detect evil
5-6|cure serious wounds, neutralize poison
7-8|holy smite, remove disease
9-10|dispel evil
11-12|holy word
13-14|holy aura 3/day, hallow
15-16|mass charm monster
17-18|summon monster IX (celestials only)
19-20|resurrection[/table]
Special Qualities: A lesser deva has all the special qualities of the base creature, plus the following special qualities.
Darkvision out to 60 feet.
Immunity to disease.
Resistance to acid 10, cold 10, and electricity 10.
Damage Reduction: 5/magic (if HD 11 or less) or 10/magic (if HD 12 or more).
A lesser deva’s natural weapons are treated as magic weapons for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.
Spell resistance equal to creature’s HD + 10 (maximum 35).
+4 racial bonus on Fortitude saves against poison.
Abilities: Increase from the base creature as follows: Str +4, Dex +2, Con +4, Int +2, Wis +4, Cha +4.
Skills: A lesser deva gains skill points as an outsider and has skill points equal to (8 + Int modifier) × (HD +3). Do not include Hit Dice from class levels in this calculation; the lesser deva gains outsider skill points only for its racial Hit Dice, & gains the normal amount of skill points for its class levels. Treat skills from the base creature’s list as class skills, and other skills as cross-class.
Challenge Rating: HD 5 or less, as base creature +1; HD 6 to 10, as base creature +2; HD 11 or more, as base creature +3.
Alignment: Always good (any).
Level Adjustment: Same as base creature +4.

Population: 13,422,000 worldwide
Height: 7’0” tall (average)
Weight: 225 lbs. (average)
Languages: Celestial, Houri

The lesser devas are an intermediate step between the three hosts & the common devas. It was once thought that they were each merely the perfected form of a mortal soul, much like a houri, but it is now accepted that they are a type of deva. They all look like members of the mortal races, but with great downy wings & an aura of tranquility. They vary in power greatly; some are weaker than a common deva, while others are mightier than a mitrana deva. Many of them serve as the administrators of the deva society, orchestrating & facilitating the daily duties of their people. A few have more important or prestigious roles, but they often prefer to work behind the scenes, doing good deeds away from the spotlight. They are naturally humble & altruistic, wishing to give anonymously & make the world a better place from the veil of the shadows.

Biology
A lesser deva is usually 6”-12” taller than a mortal being, & more muscular as well. They each look like an ideal member of a mortal race, a paragon of beauty, strength, & grace without flaw or blight. The only major difference (aside from an air of serenity that is almost unknown to mortals) is a pair of large feathery wings on a lesser deva’s back. About half of the lesser devas are shaped like humans, but there are many who look like gnolls, kobolds, lizardfolk, & even aazlai or camelotaur. Their coloration is highly variable, with skin, hair, & eyes of nearly any shade or hue.

Diet
Unlike the greater devas, the lesser devas must eat in order to survive. They do not eat meat (unless they must to survive), preferring various fruits, vegetables, berries, nuts, & grains. Najmah is home to many different varieties of exotic fruit, so the devas can live comfortably just living off the land or cultivating small orchards for themselves. Their most popular dish is kartapuura, a flatbread made from a coarsely-ground wheat-like grain, topped with a paste of mashed vegetables & rolled into a tube. They often chew a tasty mint-like leaf to clean their teeth & moisten their pallet. Most of their other dishes tend not to have many spices or other flavorings, as they favor simple dishes without a lot of ingredients. They also enjoy a rose-colored wine made from the fermented juice of the draakzaa fruit. They are unfamiliar with dairy products, like milk & eggs, as they do not have domesticated animals that provide such fare.

For all other aspects of their culture, see Mitrana Deva.

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Common Deva (Aasimar (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/planetouched.htm#aasimar))

Abilities & Racial Features

Wisdom +2, Charisma +2.
Outsider (Native): Common devas are not subject to spells or effects that affect humanoids only, such as charm person or dominate person. They also can be raised, reincarnated, or resurrected just as other living creatures can be, & they need to eat & sleep.
Medium Size: As Medium creatures, common devas have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
A common deva’s base land speed is 30 feet.
Darkvision out to 60 feet.
Racial Skills: Common devas have a +2 racial bonus on Spot & Listen checks.
Racial Feats: A common deva gains feats according to its class levels.
Daylight (Sp): A common deva can use daylight once per day as a 1st-level caster or a caster of his class levels, whichever is higher.
Special Qualities: Resistance to acid 5, cold 5, & electricity 5.
Automatic Languages: Celestial & Common. Bonus Languages: Archaic & Houri.
Favored Class: Paladin.
Level Adjustment: +1.

Population: 21,475,000 worldwide
Height: 6’6” tall (average)
Weight: 200 lbs. (average)
Languages: Celestial, Houri

The lowest caste of deva-kind, the common devas are just was wise & serene as their exalted brethren. In ancient times, members of this most numerous caste were known as aasimar, a word whose meaning has become lost over time, like much of the old lore. The common devas are tall & well-built, appearing much like the houris that often live among them. To those who can perceive the aura of one’s spirit, however, the two beings have a marked difference: whereas the aura of a houri is that of an earthly being that has been enlightened & crystallized into a more perfection version of itself, the aura of a deva is one of inhuman spiritual connection, mingled with an unmistakable spark of the divine. All devas, even the least of them, are innately linked to a power beyond the mortal realms, & this bond unites the devas even as it separates them from the mundane affairs of mortal beings.

Biology
The average common deva is between 6’ & 7’ tall, weighs around 160 to 240 pounds, & usually lack the feathered wings of their higher kin, although feather-filled hair is not uncommon. The males are generally taller & more muscular than the females, but both genders are lean & beautiful, by human standards. A homely aasimar is almost an oxymoron, as they are invariably attractive creatures. Their hair is usually a pale color, with blonde, ginger, & silver being the most common shades. Their eyes can be of almost any color, although golden-amber, icy-blue, & pearlescent are more prevalent than other colors. Their skin can be a deep shade of teal, a scintillating silver, or nearly anything in between.

Diet
For more information, see Lesser Deva: Diet.

For all other aspects of their culture, see Mitrana Deva.

[Zeta Kai]

Devil
Population: 13,421,000 worldwide
Height: varies by echelon
Weight: varies by echelon
Language: Infernal

In the misty, star-lit world of Najmah, there is an empire of merciless, tyrannical creatures, beings of pure law & even purer evil. They are known by many names: Baatezu, the Infernal Ones, al-Iblis, the Fiends, aq-Qarsid, the Paapiiyas, & others. But their most common designation is Devil, a name that they reluctantly accept; they would rather be called the Achyrion, which is the word for their own kind in the Infernal tongue (both singular & plural). They are divided into several echelons, which determine not only their form but also their role in devil society. Diabolical & deceitful by nature, the devils are singularly dedicated to the conquest & subjugation of all other creatures. They wish to rule the Kamala & every being that exists within it, & they will ruthlessly use any means at their disposal to accomplish their ultimate goal.

Biology
Little can be said about the devils as a group, physiologically speaking, for they come in all shape & sizes. Their form is entirely dependent on their echelon, ranging from the tiny, lithe imps to the towering, hulking pit fiends. Most of the echelons are roughly humanoid in shape, if not in nature. Almost all of them have two arms, two legs, & an upright stance, although the bezekira are a notable exception, their form being mostly feline. There are some echelons that have a pair of wings, & nearly all of them possess a tail of some sort.

Devils may appear to be similar to more mundane creatures, but internally, devils are quite different from mortal beings. Their bodies generate no warmth, nor do they have any need for heat; so long as they do not actually freeze solid, their black, oily blood will still pump through their icy veins. Their organs are mostly simplified versions of those possessed by humanoids, lacking complexity or variation. They can see perfectly well in even total darkness, their eyes being able to detect colors far beyond the normal spectrum. They need not breathe, & they only have a single small lung which they use to speak. Most telling of all, however, is the fact that no ordinary flame can burn them; they seem to be completely immune to fire or intense heat, & can even wade through molten lava without ill effects.

There is little if any variation within a particular echelon; one barbazu looks much the same as any other. In fact, it is even difficult for other devils to tell two of the same echelon apart, such is the extent of their physical conformity. For this reason, most devils bear an identifying tattoo somewhere on their body, the placement & shape of which is used to distinguish individuals from one another. This tattoo usually bears some similarity to the mark of a devil’s masters, so that they can tell at a glance to who a devil has sworn fealty.

Diet
On their native Najmah, devils must eat in order to survive, just like any living creature. They need to consume relatively little, however, often having only one large meal per week. This is fortunate for them, considering how barren & inhospitable their homeland is, largely lacking vegetation & other wildlife. Therefore, they eat meat almost exclusively, largely eschewing fruits & vegetables. They prefer the flesh of other sentient creatures, & will readily cannibalize their own kind if other sources of food are not available. The bulk of their fare apparently comes from captured demons, although they consider mortal flesh to be notably superior in taste & texture. In centuries past, they usually feasted upon the bodies of devas & houris, but the post-Calamity truce has largely curbed this habit, much to their chagrin.

Reproduction
Devils are sexless beings; while some echelons are equipped to engage in sexual acts, they only do so to corrupt or torment others (half-fiends (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/halfFiend.htm) are the result of these rare successful unions). Instead, their primary method of reproduction is similar to the indirect manner of the devas. When a sentient being dies on Siraaj, the mortal soul travels through the Pit of Fate on a journey that will test its worth. A trio of devils on the Terrace of Rubies makes offers to any soul if it will agree to join them instead of passing on to the next stair in the afterlife. If a soul signs their bargain, then it will travel to Najmah, where it will form into a dark, diffuse, reddish mist.

This gloomy haze, called a Blight or an usnaka, will be drawn to powerful devils (or groups of less-powerful devils), where they will drift about, moaning & waiting for the time when they will be born anew. The devils are aware of the connection between usnakas & their reincarnated souls, but they avoid discussing them & generally try to pretend that they do not exist. They associate the Blights with a demoralizing feeling of misery & unease.

Once each month, when the moons are dark &/or absent, there is a ceremony performed by a dark priest in each devil community, known as a spawning ritual. The ceremony is carried out under an open sky, & must be done with the prior consent of Tamaskama’s court (permits are procured through official channels). The dark priest takes a clump of salt crystal (easily obtained near Hima) & places it within the body of a sacrificial sentient creature (usually a demon, but a mortal or even another devil will suffice). If it is done correctly (& if there are souls to incarnate), then the salt crystal will be infused with a Blight & transmute into a devil, which will erupt from the corpse fully-grown. The newborn devil will often be a human-like timira (known in some circles as a tiefling), but about a third of the time the procedure will go slightly awry & a molten, warped lemure will be produced instead.

Devils are effectively immortal; they do not age or die of natural causes, & so their lifespans are indefinite. There are few diseases or poisons that can harm them, so sickness is almost unknown to them. They can die by accident, or be killed on purpose by another’s hand, but otherwise, they will live forever in theory. The eldest of devils are thousands of years old, wicked creatures worn down to sharpened bone by time, betrayal, & paranoia. What happens when a devil finally dies is beyond anyone’s knowledge, but scholars & sages have debated this question since time immemorial, & countless theories abound.

Internal Relations
The rigid & stratified culture of the devils is dominated by one primary tenet: fealty. Each devil is effectively enslaved by another, more powerful devil, in an unbroken chain from the lowliest timira to the Empress herself (in fact, Tamaskama’s official title is “The Empress of All & the Servant of None”). A devil will usually have one to four lesser devils that directly serve them, & can command its servants (or its servants’ servants) to do anything that it wishes. The only recourse that a devil has, if they do not wish to fulfill one of their master’s demands, is to petition their master’s master, which can be a dangerous proposition.

The only other reason to contact one’s master’s master (or grandmaster, in devil parlance) is to petition for a promotion. This is the second tenet of devil society: ambition. Every devil strives to accumulate power, by any means necessary. Some seek to gather slaves, while others risk their own immortal beings on the fields of battle, so that they may bask in the glories of victory. But these are just means to an end, as power is always a means to amassing more power. A devil that has distinguished itself from its peers can request a promotion from its grandmaster to the next-highest echelon, which is one of the very few times that a devil be said to experience true joy. A devil can only promote a servant to an echelon below its own (that is, they cannot raise another to an equal echelon to itself), so a devil must truly stand out from the crowd to be noticed by its grandmaster.

The transition from one echelon to another is violent & agonizing, as a devil’s body is wracked with painful spasms for several hours, until finally their flesh splits & the devil’s new form bursts forth from the bloody husk of the old form. This excruciating process is emblematic of the final tenet of devil civilization: suffering. Nearly every aspect of a devil’s life involves pain & the infliction thereof. They have seemingly no sympathy for one another (or any other creatures, for that matter), & appear to even relish the misfortunes of others. They have no compunction against harming or humiliating their servants, & will even do so to peers or superiors if they can get away with it. The only restraints that they have against their innate depravity are fealty & ambition; they must follow their masters’ orders, & they will not risk losing their standing in the eyes of said masters. But devils respect those who can inflict pain well, & so often a devil must learn to creatively indulge their dark desires if they wish to rise above their brethren.

External Relations
Devils do not really get along well with any other race, as they do not get along well with each other. They have had several major conflicts with the houris, the genies, the half-genies, the mortal folk, & the rakshasas. They do have a fragile truce with the devas which has lasted centuries, ever since the Great Calamity, but it is solely based on their shared fear & suspicion of the demons, & the armistice could collapse at a moment’s notice.

Currently, the devils are embroiled in an interminable war with the demonic hordes of Sergala, one that has ground to a hopeless stalemate where neither side can gain an upper hand for very long. The demons hold numeric superiority, while the devils have long held a strategic & logistical advantage; for every devil that the demons slaughter or possess, the devils execute or corrupt two of the demon-folk. But the hordes are seemingly inexhaustible, & neither side has made any major gains or losses in ages. Their bitter war with the Sergalai has further ravaged the already-harsh badlands in-between the two forces’ homelands, the trench-carved & wind-scoured desert known as the White Wastes.

Occupations
Devils perform all of the tasks that one would expect would be needed in an advanced civilization. Despite their great personal power & magical talents, a majority of labor is accomplished the mundane way: through muscle & sweat. This toil is performed by servants, who in turn delegate their duties to their servants, down to the lowest echelon that can reasonably be expected to perform adequately at a given task. Some echelons are better suited to certain roles than others, so they are directly assigned to those positions by the highest castes. Some echelons are not ideally suited for any specific role (like the lowly lemures), & so are consigned to do whatever job needs done at a particular moment.

For more information, see Echelons.

Names
A devil will invariably accrue a host of names in their ages of existence. A devil is given a name when it is first condensed from a Blight, & it is given a new name upon entering every echelon (via promotion or demotion). Each is formally addressed by its newest name alone, & to call a devil by one of its former names is viewed as a sign of disrespect, as if one were ignoring the devil’s latest achievements & status. A devil recalls every name that it has ever had, & sometimes uses these designations as aliases when traveling outside of the empire.

Each devil also bears a secret name, one that is unique to them alone. This secret name, which tends to be quite long & multisyllabic, identifies a devil as the property of their master, & is known only to them & their masters. To learn the secret name of a devil gives one a great deal of power over them, as a devil will do almost anything to prevent the public release of this most private designation.

Male Sample Names
Aphalex, Axalathos, Bacharthydes, Charystes, Chyros, Daryxan, Exethion, Hystares, Kalames, Malythex, Mastyphes, Nædios, Phelydius, Phrynus, Stalydon, Thæmolai, Zelykoi, Zyrus

Female Sample Names
Æthelydes, Apaltharus, Beltharon, Chælon, Chorydius, Dachythion, Haphysus, Hyla, Karkythai, Lyxus, Nyphalon, Phylegor, Pyragethos, Syron, Steriex, Thaxiron, Thyxaphion, Zalaches

Arts & Education
It cannot be said that the devils are a particularly creative people. They prefer to corrupt things that already exist, to subvert & warp extant things rather than craft them from nothing. In their view, it is better to enslave an artist & command them to create than to do so directly. But they are not without the spark of imagination that is necessary in an artistic endeavor.

The devils are all very clever creatures, with a wicked wit & a gift for strategy. They are best known for their mastery of the word, both in spoken & in written form. They are natural orators, capable of stunning feats of prose & moving delivery of speech. With but a few well-chosen falsehoods & half-truths, they can convince others to act according to their wishes, acting upon their target’s own motives & perceptions.

This talent, which is present in nearly all devils to some degree, reveals yet another gift of theirs: the knack of insight. They can size up a person & determine what drives them with formidable speed & ease. Combined with their powers of persuasion, it is of no surprise that their malign influence has topped more than one nation, to say nothing of the countless souls that they have damned over the ages.

These abilities are not present in a newly-spawned devil, although the seeds of such dark faculties are ubiquitous in their kind. From the hour of their spawning, when a Blight is first condensed & infused into a nascent timira, its training (& its service to the empire) begins. Every young devil is instructed concerning the laws, the tenets of devil society (see Internal Relations, above), & imperial doctrine. They are trained to serve their masters, & to perform the tasks demanded of them without failure, hesitation, or complaint. They also learn to rely only upon themselves, & to keep a watchful eye for betrayal by their fellow devils.

This tutelage is brutally exacting, & the price for failure is either torture or death, depending of the expectations of the student. This cruel education continues for many years, until the young devil is honed to a razor-sharp edge, & all possibility for empathy & trust is scoured away. Any student that fails to conform to the standards of the empire is summarily killed, as an example to the others of the cost of deviance from the norm.

Relationships
There exists no romance among devils, for love requires empathy, which is apparently beyond there capacity to experience with any veracity (although they can emulate it well enough as part of a deception). To them, the only relationship that matters is the one that exists between a master & their servant, & no affection lies within such bonds. A master’s demands leave no room for fondness, & a servant’s only desire is to attain the power that its master possesses.

Amongst a devil’s peers, there are only rivalries of various degrees of acrimony, as each devil attempts to outdo one another, while undercutting the accomplishments of those within their echelon. Alliances of convenience are often formed, but these are strictly business deals of mutual benefit, & are dissolved the moment that there is the slightest imbalance (often with a malicious betrayal). To stand out from the rest, an ambitious devil (as there is no other kind) must find creative ways to impress one’s masters, & so they often find equally-creative ways to sabotage the efforts of others.

Crime
The laws of the Hima Sovereignty are as numerous as they are strict. Conformity & obedience are of paramount importance to the devils, & any deviation from the regulations set forth by the state are considered a rejection of the supreme authority of the Empress herself, & punished accordingly. There are laws governing just about every conceivable facet of daily life, covering even the most obscure & unlikely scenarios. Indoctrination concerning the laws is mandatory for every devil (see Arts & Education, above), & such training begins the day that a Blight is condensed into a timira (or a lemure).

The legal codices of the empire are encyclopedic in size & scope, spanning dozens of volumes & thousands of pages. The laws are updated with new edicts & errata, which are frequently clarified by imperial adjudicators, & it is a point of pride among devils to memorize them all in every detail. Ignorance of the law is, in fact, a crime itself, & so all devils strive to maintain a comprehensive knowledge. Contests are even held in which two or more devils compete to determine who has a greater understanding of the official rulings, both past & current.

Execution of the laws falls under the jurisdiction of the Sovereign Guard, the internal security forces of the empire, although it is expected that every citizen (IE all devils, everywhere) assist the guard in performing their duties by reporting any breach of the laws, no matter how minor. A devil accused of a crime is required to report to the imperial courts & stand before one of the local adjudicators, who will assess the crime, the devil’s prior record, & the relative status of the devil’s masters. The accused is considered guilty unless proven innocent, & it is up to the defendant to represent themselves (or employ an advocate, although this is generally frowned upon as a sign of weakness or stupidity), which is yet another incentive to know the laws thoroughly. If convicted, a devil can appeal the decision to the adjudicator’s master, but the success of this is utterly dependent upon the standing of the adjudicator in its master’s eyes.

The penalties for breaking any law are unsurprisingly severe, & they fall into three main categories. The first punishment is the Price of Pain, wherein the guilty devil is tortured, either by their master or an imperial torturer assigned to carry out the sentence; this is for relatively-minor infractions, & is a common event in the devils’ lives. The second punishment is the Price of Position, wherein a convicted devil is demoted to a lower echelon, the degree of which is determined by the severity of the crime; it can be as simple as a single-echelon downgrading, or as harsh as a return to the near-mindless wretchedness of a lemure (demotions are just as painful as promotions are, & they are seen as a fate worse than death by many). The final punishment is the Price of Provision, wherein the offending devil condemned to death, its immortal life extinguished & its body fed to others; this is a rare sentence, & is usually invoked for reasons unrelated to the crime itself.

Language
The devils’ tongue (known formally as Achryos or Infernal) is a wickedly complex language, capable of both damning precision & deceptive ambiguity. It is a lawyer’s speech, with many rules & even more exceptions, clauses, & loopholes. Many poets have been tempted by its plethora of homophones & synonyms, but are vexed by its rigid grammar & cold, sharp pronunciation. Best spoken with a silvered (or forked) tongue, the language excels when used to draft contracts & treaties, as its nuances & distinctions lend themselves well to the application of legal matters.

Infernal is an ancient tongue, a language that has been worked, revised, & codified several times over the millennia. Its primordial roots can be traced to pacts & edicts dating back to the Age Before Time, although it is said that the devils’ speech was old even then. It hasn’t really changed too much since the primeval days of the God-War, as the oldest available documents are still comprehensible today. It seems to share some similarities with Draconic, & it is suspected by some linguists that the first dragons borrowed elements from Infernal when they originally made their own speech. It also shares some vocabulary with Abyssal, the demon’s tongue, although neither race would admit to cross-contamination, despite thousands of years of interaction.

Echelons
The culture of the devils is rigidly divided into a caste system, stratified by their physical forms, which are called echelons. As mentioned prior, each devil starts its existence as a mere timira (or, in unfortunate cases, as a wretched lemure), & can be promoted to more powerful forms. The available forms, their roles in devil society, & their relationships with one another are enumerated below.

Tiefling (Timira) (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/planetouched.htm#tiefling)
Population: 6,712,000 (50%)
Description: These nascent devils look like fiendish mockeries of the major races of Siraaj: gnolls, humans, kobolds, lizardfolk, etc. They are the lowest echelon of devil-kind, yet they are more highly regarded than half-fiends (as they are true devils) & even lemures (as they are considered to have a greater potential). They almost never have servants of their own, & when they do, their servants are always non-devils.
Societal Roles: Apprentice, Farmer, Laborer, Student
Possible Promotions: Imp (common), Bearded Devil (rare)
Possible Demotions: None
Lemure (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/devil.htm#lemure)
Population: 3,357,000 (25%)
Description: These miserable, half-melted devils are either the result of a spawning ritual gone slightly wrong or a demotion of a devil from a higher echelon. They are considered worthless cannon-fodder by other devils, & are given the most unpleasant tasks imaginable by their masters. They never have servants, & they often attack each other out of frustration over their lot in devil society.
Societal Roles: Farmer, Guard, Laborer, Soldier
Possible Promotions: Imp (common), Bearded Devil (rare)
Possible Demotions: None
Imp (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/devil.htm#imp)
Population: 1,678,000 (12.5%)
Description: These tiny devils are known for their cowardice & their reliance on their words to accomplish their goals. They travel to Siraaj whenever possible to corrupt souls & send them on the path towards evil. More than any other echelon, they use their servants for physical defense, as well as to carry out attacks.
Societal Roles: Apprentice, Bureaucrat, Messenger, Student, Spy
Possible Promotions: Bearded Devil (common), Chain Devil (uncommon), Hellcat (rare)
Possible Demotions: Lemure
Bearded Devil (Barbazu) (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/devil.htm#beardedDevilBarbazu)
Population: 839,200 (6.25%)
Description: These bellicose devils are the primary shock troops in the imperial army. They are noted for the well-tended glaives that each of them carry, which are considered an integral part of their being; a barbazu that has lost its glaive will either kill itself in shame or be torn asunder by its peers. They rarely have imp servants, preferring to train timiras or lemures in the arts of war.
Societal Roles: Laborer, Guard, Merchant, Messenger, Soldier
Possible Promotions: Chain Devil (common), Bone Devil or Erinyes (uncommon), Hellcat (rare)
Possible Demotions: Imp (common), Lemure (rare)
Chain Devil (Kyton) (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/devil.htm#chainDevilKyton)
Population: 419,600 (3.13%)
Description: The clanking, rattling devils are walking personifications of the binding oppression that is the Hima Sovereignty. Their chains are embedded into their very flesh, & thusly cannot be removed while they live (if any devil can truly be considered alive). While some have barbazu servants, most would rather train young timiras or lemures in the ways of devil society, feasting upon their dimmer students.
Societal Roles: Guard, Magus, Soldier, Torturer, Trainer
Possible Promotions: Bone Devil (common), Erinyes (uncommon), Hellcat (rare)
Possible Demotions: Bearded Devil (common), Imp (uncommon), Lemure (rare)
Hellcat (Bezekira) (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/devil.htm#hellcatBezekira)
Population: 209,800 (1.57%)
Description: The leonine devils are unlike any other major echelon, which are all basically humanoid in form. The shimmering beasts have an unsettling nature, & often shock those unfamiliar with their kind, who would be unused to their wit & their exclusively-telepathic communication. They usually keep imps as servants, although kytons & barbazu are not unheard of.
Societal Roles: Guard, Soldier, Spy, Torturer
Possible Promotions: Bone Devil (common), Erinyes (uncommon), Barbed Devil (rare)
Possible Demotions: Imp (common), Lemure (rare)
Erinyes (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/devil.htm#erinyes)
Population: 104,900 (0.78%)
Description: These comely devils are said to have been originally crafted in the image of devas, so as to infiltrate their forces & subvert them from within. Regardless of their initial purpose, they serve many functions in modern times, & they especially delight in seducing mortals to consign their own soles to evil. They most commonly keep imps as servants, although some choose to train particularly-clever timira (never barbazu or lemures) in the ways of persuasion & magic.
Societal Roles: Advocate, Diplomat, Magus, Messenger, Spy
Possible Promotions: Barbed Devil (common)
Possible Demotions: Bearded Devil (common), Chain Devil (uncommon), Hellcat (rare)
Bone Devil (Osyluth) (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/devil.htm#boneDevilOsyluth)
Population: 52,700 (0.39%)
Description: These skeletal devils form the base of the imperial bureaucracy, mostly keeping records of performance on the lower echelons & filing reports for the upper echelons. Quick-witted & versatile, many of them chafe at the monotony of their tedious existence, & wish to prove to their masters that they are capable of more (like most other devils, really). They are bound, however, to work with the proper channels to accomplish this, so ingrained is the imperial system within their minds.
Societal Roles: Advocate, Bureaucrat, Merchant, Messenger, Spy
Possible Promotions: Barbed Devil (common)
Possible Demotions: Chain Devil (common), Bearded Devil (uncommon), Hellcat (rare)
Barbed Devil (Hamatula) (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/devil.htm#barbedDevilHamatula)
Population: 26,400 (0.19%)
Description: These tense, anxious devils are often seen as the petty tyrants of the Hima Sovereignty, self-important minor functionaries & mid-level ministers who take every advantage of their authority (as is a given for the devils). The highest echelon that is present in all three columns of devil-kind, they are quite eager to ascend to where the true power lies, having risen so close to Tamaskama’s supremacy. They keep osyluths & erinyes as servants in nearly equal measure, with kytons being a distant third choice.
Societal Roles: Advocate, Bureaucrat, Magus, Merchant, Soldier
Possible Promotions: Ice Devil (uncommon), Horned Devil (common), Pit Fiend (rare)
Possible Demotions: Bone Devil (common), Erinyes (uncommon), Hellcat (rare)
Ice Devil (Gelugon) (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/devil.htm#iceDevilGelugon)
Population: 13,400 (0.10%)
Description: These frigid devils comprise the Third Column of devil-kind, the masters of the White Wastes & the arch-nemeses of their demonic adversaries. Concentrated in the northern reaches of the empire, where the salt plains fade into true tundra, they rule an almost independent fiefdom, & some have begun to question their loyalty to the empress. Their most common servants are hamatulas, although osyluths & erinyes are frequently seen in their thrall, as well.
Societal Roles: Bureaucrat, Magus, Soldier, Spy
Possible Promotions: None (common), Unique (rare)
Possible Demotions: Barbed Devil (common)
Horned Devil (Cornugon) (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/devil.htm#hornedDevilCornugon)
Population: 6,700 (0.05%)
Description: These fearsome devils comprise the Second Column of devil-kind, the leaders of civil society within the Hima Sovereignty. They intimidate & unnerve even their superiors with their terrible visage, & they use this to their advantage to push their callous agendas. They are most often responsible for running the day-to-day operations of many imperial offices. They usually possess hamatulas as servants, with osyluths & erinyes as somewhat-rare alternatives.
Societal Roles: Archmagus, Bureaucrat, Diplomat, General, Politician
Possible Promotions: None (common), Unique (rare)
Possible Demotions: Barbed Devil (common)
Pit Fiend (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/devil.htm#pitFiend)
Population: 2,900 (0.02%)
Description: These hulking devils comprise the First Column of devil-kind, the lords of the military & the Sovereign Guard. Ruling over warriors & sentries throughout the empire with their imposing presence, they are often undone by their own hubris & overconfidence, as they strive to attain the power of the Outer Court. They almost always have bezekiras for their servants, & will only accept hamatulas as substitutes, preferring the hellcats to humanoid minions.
Societal Roles: Archmagus, Diplomat, General, Minister, Politician
Possible Promotions: None (common), Unique (rare)
Possible Demotions: Barbed Devil (common)
Others
Population: 1,400 (0.01%)
Description: The Outer Court of devil-kind consists of those devils that cannot be classified within the major echelons: archdevils with exclusive forms & devils of rare types. The Uniques are considered blessed by Rajani (or whichever divinity a devil adheres to), although Tamaskama claims credit for their distinctive shapes. The others in this smallest of groupings belong to what is known as the Minor Echelons, with seldom-heard names & much less power than the Uniques (all of them carry the same social status, though). Pit fiends are their most common servants, but they can have minions of any echelon, with cornugons, gelugons, & hamatulas being less rare than other kinds.
Societal Roles: Archmagus, Diplomat, Fateweaver, Minister, Socialite
Possible Promotions: Various
Possible Demotions: Various

Infernal Alphabet

{table=head]Sound|Name
AI/Y|Aima (Yma)
O|Ophia
OI|Oida
A|Athla
Æ|Æda
E/I|Estilon (Istelon)
U|Upha
PH|Phæda
P|Pachron
B|Belda
X|Axilon
S/Z|Sæga (Zæga)
ST|Stæga
D|Dæda
TH|Thæga
CH/K|Chæda (Kæda)
G|Gæda
M|Malda
N|Naion
R|Ræda
L|Lapa
H|Hiotha[/table]

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Genie
Coming Soon!

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Houri
Coming Soon!

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Rakshasa
Coming Soon!

[Zeta Kai]

Archaic Language (Admajai)
The language commonly known today as Archaic was the predominant tongue of the Empire of Admaja, as it was for the Kingdom of Admaja before it. It originated on the Shepherd's Isle (called the Shattered Isle in modern times), & was spoken there in some recognizable form since the Age of Kingdoms. It served as the lingua franca on the continent of Admaja during almost the entirety of the Imperial Era, up until the Ten Dark Years, when it was rapidly supplanted by the Common speech (formerly the tongue of the kobolds). It can still be seen today on most ruins dating from the previous two ages, on many old texts, & on some magical scrolls. While the Common Speech is the prevalent language of the modern age, many people can still understand Archaic (particularly along the Mamlaqah Coast), & some can even speak it after a fashion, even though it is effectively a dead language.


http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s228/zetakai/Admajai-1.jpg

Table 11-1: Vocabulary

{table=head]Admajai Word|English Meaning
abazi|village
adua|three (3), third
adul|male, masculine
ahuz|ending, stopping, ceasing
-ai|of, pertaining to, adjective form
aimas|revenge, retribution, vengeance
aiqu|heat, hotness, warmth
aladul|man
alaja|life, living
alaqanas|human, folk, people
alarun|woman
aluq|child, children, offspring
aq-|the
aqimar|map, guide
araq|lizard, reptile
arun|female, feminine
ashiz|song, ballad
atuj|creative, making
atuj-mazir|benign spirit, bahamut
azet|territory, dominion
badras|assassin, killer
balaz|month
baluqar|moon
balzed|alphabet
baruq|dune
basha|town
beqi|to find, to locate
bet, -abet|city, metropolis
bishaj|tax, toll, levy, tithe
buqa|two (2), second
burashi|flatbread
dal|home, house, residence
daqa|plants, greenery, vegetation
daqabet|city of green
deruq|green, plant, vegetable
dilam|hand
diai|your, yours
diu|you (singular)
duaz|closed, narrow
duraq|hymn, chant, mantra
edala|change, alter, transform
elaq|magic, sorcery
elaqras|mage, sorcerer
eq|I, me
eqar|eye
eqri|we, us
equt|quiet, silent
esham|madness, insanity, lunacy
ezbar|to own, to possess
faj|though, although
falaj|between
farun|blood
fediq|to heal, to cure, to mend
fizar|letter, character, symbol
fuardul|merchant, salesman
gabar|to dig, to bury
gajaq|cavern
gazila|fate, destiny, doom
geju|only, just
genumel|victory, success
gihala|dynasty, lineage
gilam|provider, donor, supplier
guadai|instead of
gul|ravenous, voracious, greedy
hadab|unpleasant, foul, disgusting
hal|tooth
haqalil|sky
haqara|wind, air, airy
haqara-sim|air genie, djinni
harash|path, trail
haza|leader, commander, ruler
hazaqan|king, lord, ruler
hazanim|queen, lady, ruler
hazari|kingdom, nation, empire
hebaq|true, genuine, real
hequ|craft, product, goods, wares
hila|four (4), fourth
hizu|courage, bravery, valor
hizul|brave, courageous
hul|black
huzia|oasis, pond
-i, -ri|plural
ibar|gold, golden
idai|by
ija|bridge
ijabet|city of bridges
iqura|glass
iqurabet|city of glass
ishar|explosion, burst, blast
izana|seven (7), seventh
izr|son
izud|daughter
jahar|land, ground
jahazi|island
jalaq|destructive, unmaking
jalaq-mazir|malign spirit, ahriman, ghul
jalim|hatred, spite, malice
jalud|ruin, destruction, decay
jerim|regime
jeqta|fool, idiot, buffoon
jima|hope
jimabet|city of hope
jina|open, wide
jiqaluja|caravan
jual|west, western, westward
jujim|through
juza|eight (8), eighth
laraz|year
lazaqa|guardian, protector
lazaqa-nasid|guardian spirit, hafaza, hafza
lehan|south, southern, southward
leqad|bird
lila|dome
ludr|knowledge, to know
luqad|anger, fury, rage
lura|five (5), fifth
luz|to live, to dwell
luzar|dweller, resident, citizen
madirun|prostitute, whore
madun|flood, flooding
mal|light
malaz|day, daytime
manas|warrior, fighter, soldier
mar|white
mashaz|to walk, walking
mazir|god (spirit-being)
mazuri|god, diety
meqar|hiding, concealing
mezul|father
mezun|mother
mira|one (1), first
mua|religion, faith, belief, creed
muaji|cult, sect, cabal, circle, order
muarzi|divine, holy, sublime
muarzibet|holy city, city of god
mutar|number, integer
nadim|plain, field, flatland
naduza|ocean
nam|half, part, portion, fraction
nasid|angel (spirit-being)
naz|good, kind, benevolent
neshid|to shake, to convulse
nilum|to repair, to fix, to mend
niu|you (plural)
nizia|lake
numar|half-breed, crossbreed, hybrid
nuraz|to wash, to bathe, to cleanse
nuza|water, sea, watery
nuza-sim|water genie, marid
qaji|guild, union, group, club
qalila|hill, bluff, mound
qalim|mountain
qama|all, every
qanas|people, group, population
qanuil|nomad, wanderer
qar|evil, cruel, malevolent
qarsid|demon/devil (spirit-being)
qash|resolve, determination
qaturan|battle, fight, skirmish
qazaj|holy corpse, mummy
qehala|earth, soil, ground, earthy
qehala-sim|earth genie, dao
qidar|soul, spirit, essense
qira|rock, stone
qimarazan|temple, shrine
qrai|our, ours
quhad|serpent, snake
quhad-gul|ravenous serpent, dragon
qulzad|desert, wasteland
qurai|small, little
radim|tower, spire
radimbet|city of towers
rahan|north, northern, northward
raiz|old, elderly
razir|elder
ral|red
rema|six (6), sixth
rezal|beer
riqa|pain, agony, suffering
rimar|thief, rogue
runaraq|stabbing, piercing
ruz|in, within
-sad, -asad|without, lacking, negative, -less
sadi|without, lacking, negative
saj|claw, talon
salaz|shadow, shade, dimness
salur|absent, missing
salim|arch, curve
saraq|hair, fur
sarqai|hairy, furry, wooly
selash|peace, harmony, calm
sezashar|to escape, to flee, to retreat
shadul|brother
shahazan|castle, fortress
shamat|sibling
sharun|sister
shiur|love, emotion, feeling
shibaj|poison, venom, toxin
shuqa|wing
sim|genie (spirit-being)
sisana|coast, shore
sual|east, eastern, eastward
suja|death
sumar|bone
suraj|corpse, dead body
surja|dead
tabari|word
tabariqad|language, tongue, speech
tal|dark, darkness
talar|night, nighttime
taq|slave, indentured servant
taqma|service, fidelity
tazi|wall, divide, partition
tazibet|city of walls
teqar|mouth, maw
teshiq|hero, champion, savior
tila|nine (9), ninth
tiqar|to wound, to harm, to maim
tizash|noble, aristocrat, elite
tuaj|unholy corpse, ghoul, zombie
tul|knife, dagger, blade
ua|and
ubaz|head
udal|forever, eternity
uimar|to block, to prevent, to parry
ulaz|dry, arid, parched
unas|thing, object, item
uqali|hyena, wild dog
usaq|new, young
usham|forged, manufactured
uzari|eater, devourer, consumer
zabul|can, could, may
zadi|sand
zalim|border, boundary, edge
zarqa|fire, blaze, fiery
zarqa-sim|fire genie, efreet
zataqar|sun
zehim|gate, gateway, passage
zehimbet|city of gates
zehira|pass
zek|drawing, painting, sculpture
zekar|artist, painter, sculptor
zenul|will, would
zihara|road
zimbal|lion, lioness
ziria|river
zuha|ten (10), tenth
zui|star
zuqar|damnation, curse, hex
zur|high, super, great, arch-
[/table]

[Zeta Kai]

Hoplite (3E)
The elite soldiers of Uqalizar were feared & respected throughout the continent during much of the Age of Kingdoms. These mostly-gnoll warriors defended their homeland with a discipline & efficiency that was legendary. They were often hired outside their native land as mercenaries, which spread their well-deserved fame even further.

Today, the proud tradition of the hoplite is mostly forgotten, relegated to tales of days long past. However, some rare individuals still follow the old martial customs, & the tactics of the hoplite have not been completely lost. All along the eastern coast, warriors still carry spear & shield into battle, as their ancestors once did.

Rarely without employment, a hoplite is a lightly-armored polearm-wielding warrior, employed as a noble retainer or elite soldier. A professional combatant, the hoplite wields polearms & bears a large shield, the better to move quickly & dominate the field of battle. They are a cut above other warriors, & they are quick to exploit every advantage.

Hit Die: d10.

Entry Requirements
To qualify to take levels as a hoplite, a character must fulfill all the following criteria:

Base Attack Bonus: +5.
Proficiencies: Must be proficient with all martial weapons, light armor, medium armor, & shields (tower shield proficiency is not necessary).
Feats: Weapon Focus (Glaive, Guisarme, Lance, Longspear, or Ranseur).
Special: Must possess & use a heavy shield or a tower shield. This shield may have magical enhancements &/or special abilities, but must be of at least masterwork quality.

Table 11-2: The Hoplite (PrC)

{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fortitude Save|Reflex Save|Will Save|Special
1st|+1|+2|+2|+0|Bonus Feat
2nd|+2|+3|+3|+0|Short Haft, Bonus Feat
3rd|+3|+3|+3|+1|Phalanx Formation, Bonus Feat
4th|+4|+4|+4|+1|With Your Shield or Upon It, Bonus Feat
5th|+5|+4|+4|+1|Molon Labe, Bonus Feat[/table]

Class Skills
The Hoplite’s class skills (& the key ability for each skill) are Intimidate (Cha), Listen (Wis), Profession (Wis), Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis), & Tumble (Dex).

Skill Points at Each Level: 2 + Intelligence modifier.

Class Features
All of the following are features of the hoplite prestige class:

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Hoplites gain no proficiency with any weapon or armor.

Bonus Feat: At each level, a hoplite may choose a bonus feat from the list of feats available to fighters. This is in addition to the feats that a character of any class normally gets from advancing levels. The character must still meet any prerequisites for these bonus feats, including levels of fighter for the Weapon Specialization, Greater Weapon Focus, & Greater Weapon Specialization feats.

Short Haft (Ex): At 2nd level, a hoplite is able to use a reach weapon more effectively, even in close quarters. As a swift action, a hoplite can now switch his grip on his reach weapon so that he can use it to attack adjacent opponents. To attack opponents at reach again, a hoplite must use another swift action to switch his grip back.

Phalanx Formation (Ex): At 3rd level, a hoplite can use his shield to defend both himself & those adjacent to him. Any ally within 5’ of a hoplite at this level gains an untyped bonus to their AC equal to the hoplite’s shield bonus, as long as the hoplite is holding & using his shield.

With Your Shield or Upon It (Ex): At 4th level, a hoplite is able to use his shield more efficiently, defending himself more effectively. While holding & using his shield, the hoplite becomes immune to critical hits, as well as precision-based damage, such as that dealt by sneak attacks. However, if the hoplite loses his shield, he loses these benefits until it is replaced; in addition, he suffers a morale penalty on all attack rolls, skill checks, & saving throws equal to his lost shield’s AC bonus. This effect lasts until the hoplite either regains his original shield, or acquires one of equal/greater quality.

Molon Labe (Ex): At 5th level, a hoplite becomes one with his reach weapon. He cannot be disarmed against his will, & his reach weapon cannot be sundered while it is in his hand. Any attempt to either disarm the hoplite or sunder his reach weapon provokes an attack of opportunity, even if the opponent possesses the Improved Disarm or Improved Sunder feat. Disarm attempts automatically fail, while sunder attempts deal damage to the hoplite himself instead of his weapon, assuming that the attempt successfully overcomes his AC.

Sample Encounter
Teshiq Zaq-Zalar (EL9)
Fluff Coming Soon!

RACE: Narsabi male
CLASS: Fighter 6/Hoplite 2
ALIGNMENT: Lawful Evil
DEITY: Sunya
SIZE: Medium
AGE: 27 (born 328 AF)
HEIGHT: 5’11”
WEIGHT: 159 lbs.
EYES: Red
HAIR: Orange
LANGUAGES: Common & Ignan
HIT DICE: 10+5d10+2d10+16 (64HP)
INITIATIVE: +6
SPEED: 30’
ARMOR CLASS: 26 (+3 Dex, +12 armor, +1 deflection); touch 14; flat-footed 23
BASE ATTACK BONUS: +8
GRAPPLE BONUS: +11
ATTACK: +13 Glaive (1d10+5, ×3, slashing)
FULL ATTACK: +13/+8 Glaive (1d10+5, ×3, slashing)
SPACE/REACH: 5’/5’
SAVING THROWS: Fortitude +10, Reflex +7, Will +2
ABILITIES:

Strength 16 (+3)
Dexterity 16 (+3)
Constitution 14 (+2)
Intelligence 14 (+2)
Wisdom 10 (+0)
Charisma 8 (-1)

SKILLS: 44 points

Bluff +1
Climb +12
Intimidate +12
Jump +12
Listen +3
Spot +3
Swim +12

FEATS: Avoidance**, Cleave, Defensive Stance**, Great Cleave, Improved Initiative, Power Attack, Style Feat**, Weapon Focus (Glaive), Weapon Specialization (Glaive)
WEAPON: +2 Glaive (8,308gp, 1d10+5, ×3, 10 lbs., slashing)
ARMOR:

+2 Banded Mail (4,400gp, +8, maximum dexterity bonus +1, check penalty -5, 35% AFC, speed 20’, 35lbs.)
+2 Heavy Wooden Shield (4,157gp, +4, check penalty -2, 15% AFC, 10lbs.)

EQUIPMENT:

135gp
Ring of Protection +1 (2,000gp)

RACIAL FEATURES:

Outsider (Native): Narsabi are not subject to spells or effects that affect humanoids only, such as charm person or dominate person. They also can be raised, reincarnated, or resurrected just as other living creatures can be, & they need to eat & sleep.
Darkvision 60’.
Elemental Resistance: A narsabi gains Fire Resistance 2.
Genie Heritage (Su): A narsabi gains a +2 racial bonus on saving throws against [Fire] spells & effects. This bonus increases by +2 for every 5 class levels the sabi attains.
Hot to the Touch (Ex): Each time that a narsabi character makes a successful attack with a natural weapon or an unarmed strike, they deal an additional 1 point of fire damage. This damage cannot be added to any other melee or ranged attack. In addition, they deal 1 point of fire damage per round to all opponents that are grappling them.
Ritual Lore: Narsabi gain Ritual Lore as a bonus feat, but they must choose a ritual with the Fire descriptor.
Spell-Like Abilities
3/Day: flickerflame
1/Day: flame blade
Caster level 5th. The save DCs are Intelligence-based.

CLASS FEATURES:

Short Haft.

LEVEL ADJUSTMENT: +1

[Zeta Kai]

Revised Poison Rules (3E)
NOTE: These revised poison rules replace the rules for poison found in the Dungeon Master’s Guide (pages 296-297).

Poison
When creatures become poisoned via any method, they must make a Fortitude saving throw. If they fail the save, then they take the poison’s initial damage & are sickened (see Condition Summary: Sickened (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/conditionSummary.htm#sickened)) for one minute. Even if they succeed, though, they still must take non-lethal HP damage equal to the ability damage that they would have taken on a failed save. For example, if a creature fails their initial save against Honey Spider Venom, then they take 1d4 Intelligence damage (& are sickened); if they had made the saving throw, then they would still take 1d4 points of non-lethal damage.

One minute later, the poisoned creature must make another Fortitude saving throw (with the same DC as before). If they fail this save, then they take the poison’s secondary damage (listed in that specific poison’s entry), & are nauseated (see Condition Summary: Nauseated (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/conditionSummary.htm#nauseated)) for one round; after that round, they are sickened until they rest for one hour. Even if they make the save, they must again take non-lethal HP damage equal to the initial damage that they would have taken on a failed save.

The Fortitude save DC against a specific poison is listed in that poison’s entry. The Fortitude save DC against a creature’s natural poison attack is equal to 10 + ½ poisoning creature’s racial HD + poisoning creature’s Constitution modifier (the exact DC is given in the creature’s descriptive text).

One dose of poison smeared on a weapon or some other object affects just a single target. A poisoned weapon or object retains its venom until the weapon scores a hit or the object is touched (unless the poison is wiped off before a target comes in contact with it). Any poison smeared on an object or exposed to the elements in any way remains potent until it is touched or used.

Although supernatural & spell-like poisons are possible, poisonous effects are almost always extraordinary.

Poisons can be divided into four basic types according to the method by which their effect is delivered, as follows:

Contact: Merely touching this type of poison necessitates a saving throw. It can be actively delivered via a weapon or a touch attack. Even if a creature has sufficient damage reduction to avoid taking any damage from the attack, the poison can still affect it. A chest or other object can be smeared with contact poison as part of a trap.
Ingested: Ingested poisons are virtually impossible to utilize in a combat situation. A poisoner could administer a potion to an unconscious creature or attempt to dupe someone into drinking or eating something poisoned. Assassins & other characters tend to use ingested poisons outside of combat.
Inhaled: Inhaled poisons are usually contained in fragile vials or eggshells. They can be thrown as a ranged attack with a range increment of 10’. When it strikes a hard surface (or is struck hard), the container releases its poison. One dose spreads to fill the volume of a 10’ cube. Each creature within the area must make a saving throw. Holding one’s breath is ineffective against inhaled poisons; they affect the nasal membranes, tear ducts, & other parts of the body. Creatures that do not need to breathe are usually immune to these poisons.
Injury: This poison must be delivered through a wound. If a creature has sufficient damage reduction to avoid taking any damage from the attack, the poison does not affect it. Traps that cause damage from weapons, needles, & the like sometimes contain injury-based poisons.

The characteristics of specific poisons are detailed on Table: Poisons. Terms for each of the table’s columns are defined below:

Type: The poison’s method of delivery (contact, ingested, inhaled, or via an injury) & the Fortitude save DC to avoid the poison’s damage.
Initial Damage: The damage the creature takes immediately upon failing their saving throw against this poison. Failing this save also renders them sickened for one minute.
Secondary Damage: The amount of damage the creature takes one minute after exposure as a result of the poisoning, if they fail a second saving throw. Failing this save renders them nauseated for one round; after that round, they are sickened until they rest for one hour.
Price: The cost of one dose (one vial) of the poison. It is not possible to use or apply poison in any quantity smaller than one dose. The purchase & possession of poison is usually illegal, & even in big cities it can be obtained only from specialized, less than reputable sources.

Damage Types
The initial & secondary damage that poisons inflict are usually ability damage of some sort. Ability damage is temporary unless marked with a double-asterisk (**), in which case the loss is a permanent drain. Unconsciousness lasts for 1d3 hours; paralysis lasts for 2d6 minutes; death is (ostensibly) permanent. Poison entries marked with a single asterisk (*) after their name are able to affect all Outsiders, in addition to creatures that are normally affected by poison. In addition to conventional ability damage & status conditions, poisons can also do ability damage in the following combinations:

Muscular: Strength & Dexterity
Nerve: Dexterity & Intelligence
Physical: Strength, Dexterity, & Constitution
Cognition: Intelligence & Wisdom
Psyche: Wisdom & Charisma
Mental: Intelligence, Wisdom, & Charisma

So a poison that does 2d4 nerve damage deals 2d4 points of Dexterity damage & 2d4 points of Intelligence damage. A creature that makes a save against a poison that deals combined ability damage instead takes non-lethal damage equal to the value listed in the entry; for example, if a poison deals 1d6 psyche damage (1d6 points of Wisdom damage & 1d6 points of Charisma damage), then a creature would only take 1d6 points of non-lethal damage upon a successful save.

Perils of Using Poison
A creature has a 5% chance of exposing itself to a poison whenever it applies poison to a weapon or otherwise readies poison for use. Additionally, a creature that rolls a natural 1 on an attack roll with a poisoned weapon must make a Reflex save (DC15) or accidentally poison itself with the weapon. A creature with a poison attack is immune to its own poison & the poison of others of its kind.

Poison Immunities
Creatures with natural poison attacks are immune to their own poison. Non-living creatures (constructs & undead) & creatures without metabolisms (such as elementals) are always immune to poison. Oozes, Plants, and Outsiders can theoretically be poisoned, but generally not by the same substances that would poison other creatures. Therefore, treat these creature types as being immune to poison unless a poison's description mentions that it harms them.

Table: Poisons

{table=head]Poison Name|Type|Initial Damage|Secondary Damage|Price
Abzi Chungwa Venom|Injury DC17|1d6 Dexterity|1d6 Constitution|1,000gp
Abzi Lujeng Venom|Injury DC14|1d6 Dexterity|1d6 Constitution|750gp
Arsenic|Ingested 15|1 physical|1d6 physical|120gp
Black Adder Venom|Injury 13|1d6 Constitution|1d6 Constitution|120gp
Black Lotus Extract|Contact DC22|2d6 physical|2d6 physical|4,500gp
Bloodroot|Injury 14|N/A|1d4 Constitution + 1d3 Wisdom|100gp
Blue Whinnis|Injury 16|1 Constitution|unconsciousness|120gp
Burnt Othur Fumes|Inhaled 20|1 Constitution**|death|2,100gp
Button Spider Venom|Injury DC16|2d12 HP|2d6 nerve|200gp
Centipede Poison (Small)|Injury 13|1 nerve|1 nerve|90gp
Dark Reaver Powder|Ingested 20|2d6 Constitution|1d6 Constitution + 1d6 Strength|300gp
Deadly Nightshade|Ingested DC19|1d6 psyche|1d6 psyche**|450gp
Deathblade|Injury 22|1d6 Constitution|2d6 Constitution|1,800gp
Djinn-Blight*|Contact DC20|1 physical**|3d6 physical|4,000gp
Dragon Bile|Contact DC28|3d6 muscular|N/A|2,500gp
Foxglove|Ingested DC15|2d4 cognition|death|1,100gp
Giant Wasp Poison|Injury 20|1d6 nerve|1d6 nerve|210gp
Greenblood Oil|Injury 15|1 Constitution|1d2 Constitution|100gp
Hayya Bark*|Ingested DC30|2d4 cognition|2d4 mental|1,300gp
Hemlock|Ingested DC20|1d6 Charisma|death|800gp
Honey Spider Oil|Contact DC24|1d4 Intelligence**|2d6 muscular|2,800gp
Honey Spider Venom|Injury DC20|1d4 Intelligence|1d8 Strength|250gp
Hydra Blood|Injury DC22|death|death|2,200gp
Id Moss|Ingested 16|1d4 mental|2d4 mental|125gp
Insanity Mist|Inhaled 17|1 cognition**|2d4 cognition|1,500gp
Lich Dust|Ingested 19|2d6 Strength|1d6 Strength|250gp
Mahavara Flower Extract|Contact DC22|1d10 Dexterity|2d6 cognition|2,300gp
Malyss Root Paste|Contact DC18|1 Dexterity|2d4 Dexterity|500gp
Mandrake|Ingested DC19|1d6 psyche|2d6 psyche|400gp
Maqur’s Kiss|Injury 13|Unconsciousness|Unconsciousness|75gp
Naja Lojing Venom|Injury DC15|1d6 Constitution|2d6 Constitution|950gp
Naja Xanghua Venom|Injury DC18|1d6 Constitution|2d6 Constitution|1,200gp
Nightshead Venom|Injury DC30|2d4 muscular|4d4 physical|2,600gp
Nitharit|Contact DC15|N/A|death|650gp
Oil of Taggit|Ingested 17|N/A|unconsciousness|90gp
Pearl Scorpion Venom|Injury DC28|2d4 nerve|3d6 Constitution|2,200gp
Purple Worm Poison|Injury 26|1d4 muscular|2d4 muscular|700gp
Rajani Flower Extract|Contact DC29|1d4 muscular|2d4 physical|2,000gp
Red Shahbanu*|Ingested DC28|1d8 psyche|3d6 Constitution|1,300gp
Sassone Leaf Residue|Contact DC18|2d12 HP|1d6 Constitution|300gp
Scorpion Venom (Large)|Injury 20|1d6 Strength|1d6 Strength|200gp
Shadow Essence|Injury 19|1 muscular**|2d4 muscular|250gp
Smoke Adder Dust|Inhaled DC25|2d6 Constitution|2d6 nerve|3,200gp
Spider Venom (Medium)|Injury 16|1d4 Strength|1d4 Strength|150gp
Splinterstone|Ingested DC25|3d4 muscular|2d6 Constitution|1,400gp
Striped Toadstool|Ingested 13|1 Wisdom|2d6 cognition|180gp
Terinav Root|Contact DC18|1d6 Dexterity|2d6 Dexterity|750gp
Ungol Dust|Inhaled 17|1 psyche**|1d4 psyche|1,000gp
Wizard’s Bane*|Injury DC23|1 Intelligence**|1d6 Intelligence|700gp
Wyvern Poison|Injury 19|2d6 Constitution|2d6 Constitution|3,000gp
Zimari Oil|Contact DC17|1 Dexterity**|1d8 Dexterity|1,500gp[/table]
* = affects Outsiders, as well
** = Permanent drain, not temporary damage.
Poisons not found in the SRD are in RED.

[Zeta Kai]

Rituals
In the magical realms of the Kamala, the foundations of existence are the mystic patterns shaped by Zihaja eons ago, polished by exotic creatures & fantastic beings & frayed by coincidence & circumstance. The loose threads of these patterns wind back into the master design, & it is by tugging at such strands that rituals are performed.

Superstition is, by & large, descended from truth on the Kamala. Though perhaps diluted over centuries, the grains of veracity in fables & legends lend themselves to being cryptic guidebooks to great power. With enough study & corroboration, it is possible to find the consistent set of events that, when brought about, tap into the magic of Siraaj & Najmah to release a primal sorcery; an echo of some fantastic event; an innate, esoteric power in blood tinted with the arcane.

Though rituals speak to the magic in one’s own veins, or to the spirits of the elements that comprise the world, or to a demiurge of arcane memory, there remains always an element of uncertainty in their craft. One who studies the lore of a ritual can grow highly skilled in it, but in a speculative, esoteric practice such as it takes to bring about a ritual, there is always a margin for error. & rituals do not always require the intent of the one performing them; some rituals, in fact, can be performed quite by accident, which adds further unpredictability to the potential consequences.

Why Allow Rituals?
Rituals allow characters of all classes to employ magical effects, & give the same benefit to the NPCs of your world. They also function with error & uncertainty present, & so can create effects that might be too powerful for a standard spell. Similarly, a ritual can have more specific or narrow uses, which an equivalent spell might be marginalized for.

Most importantly, the DM has the final say over the power of any ritual at any time, as each requires at least one skill check. Thus, they function as powers that can be used in the swing of an adventure, but with a built-in valve that lets you stop some fatal effect from ending the plot a few seconds in, & allows you to bring in justifiable plot complications without cheapening powerful magical preparations & defenses. They also provide the DM with plot hooks & other storytelling tools, so that they may easily create adventures that appeal to everyone at the table.

What Are Curses?
Curses are simply harmful magical effects that affect a character over time. Whereas a magic missile or inflict light wounds spell will harm a character immediately, a curse has more permanent detriments. Cursed characters might have large penalties to ability scores, attack rolls, saving throws, ability checks, skill checks, etc. They might have negative status conditions, like blind, confused, exhausted, frightened, or sickened. They might even suffer some more unusual malady, like a penalty to caster level, a grotesque visage, a low Initiative, or some sort of hallucination.

Virtually any ongoing negative magical effect could be termed a curse. True curses, though, come as the result of either rituals or certain spells. The bestow curse spell is probably the most well-known method for inflicting curses, but most curses in the worlds of the Kamala are the result of rituals. In fact, in many cases, the terms “curse” & “ritual” could be used interchangeably, even though not all rituals are harmful, & not all curses are rituals.

How to Use a Ritual
Rituals can be used in two fashions: trained & untrained. The former is normally reserved for rituals that will be used often, for highly dangerous rituals, or for those that cannot be performed untrained. The latter will crop up commonly for rituals with a narrow range of uses, or for very simple or easy rituals. Untrained rituals are also important for another reason, which will be discussed later.

To use a trained ritual, a character must possess the Ritual Lore feat for the corresponding ritual. The use of a ritual typically takes anywhere from one minute to one hour, although some exist that take as little as one round to perform, & several can take more than a day. Many rituals will require one or more mundane components in addition to the time it takes, & some impose prerequisites to learn or perform. These prerequisites only apply when using the trained ritual.

To use a ritual untrained usually requires a Knowledge check to know anything about the ritual at all, even the ritual’s existence. The DC of this check is set at the DM’s discretion; simple or superstitious rituals might be DC 10 or 15; clan or racial rituals might be DC 20 or 25, & some will be so obscure & forgotten that their DC could be as 50. Only a trained individual can use the Aid Another action to assist someone with their ritual’s skill checks.

The use of any ritual, whether trained or untrained, requires a skill check on one or more key skills. The DC’s are set by the terms of the ritual, though circumstances may increase or decrease it accordingly. Taking 10 or Taking 20 on a skill check for a ritual is not possible, as it is a quasi-magical effect. It is normally more difficult to perform a ritual untrained, & in some cases may be simply impossible.

Some rituals also require expensive material components or foci, & a rare few even demand XP from the character performing the ritual. In these cases, where an untrained attempt is even possible, it will likely incur an additional cost in goods or XP.

Unless otherwise specified, rituals are considered supernatural effects, & have a permanent duration.

Lastly, some rituals are dangerous or fatal if performed untrained. A ritual tablet will allow the use of these rituals in a safe manner.

How to Read a Ritual
A typical ritual appears below:

Truth Born of Mercy [Good, Martial]

Prerequisites: Any lawful or good alignment.
Key Skill: Diplomacy.
Time: 1 standard action.
Ritual: The secret ties of combat hide many surprises; one is the price that may be extracted to purchase mercy from a foe. Truth Born of Mercy is a warrior’s tradition come to life; the practice of sparing a foe in exchange for information is a pale echo of the covenant that this ritual represents. You may demand Truth Born of Mercy when your foe has less than 50% of his or her normal hit point total remaining. Truth Born of Mercy may only be demanded when your foe is seriously threatened by you. Make a Diplomacy check opposed by your foe’s Sense Motive check.
Effects: If you succeed, you must immediately cease hostilities against your foe, as must your allies. You cannot harm or detain your foe, nor knowingly allow your allies to harm/detain it, nor knowingly allow it to be harmed/detained through any circumstance that would result from either inaction or consequence of action on the part of you or your allies. In exchange for this mercy, you may ask 1d4 simple questions of your foe, which will be answered truthfully to the best of the subject’s ability. Increasing the DC of the check by 5 allows you to ask one additional question if successful. The mercy you grant extends for an indeterminable period of time. Should you breach the terms of mercy during this time, you forfeit 1,000XP as well as any experience gained from defeating this foe.
Untrained: Possible; your Diplomacy check is made at a -5 penalty. Knowledge (Local) to learn.
Failure: You may demand Truth Born of Mercy of the same foe only twice in the same day. A failure wastes one attempt.
Removal: GD, LW, MW.

Prerequisites
This line specifies whether the character needs to be of a specific class level, a particular race, a specific alignment, or a particular gender to learn & employ the ritual. Prerequisites only apply to trained attempts, & limit whether or not a ritual can be selected for Ritual Lore.

Key Skills
This line denotes the skill or skills required to attempt the ritual. A character must have at minimum 4 ranks in each skill to make a trained attempt.

Time
This can range from 1 standard action to upwards of a week.

Ritual
This section this section broadly describes the details of the ritual, as well as the DCs of necessary skill checks, the material components & foci needed, any situations which specifically alter the DC of the ritual or its properties, & the results of the ritual’s success. Rituals rarely have a set range; they will usually work on their intended target from any distance, so long as the target is on the same plane as the performer.

Untrained
This line can have five possible outcomes: Simple, Possible, Dangerous, Deadly, or Impossible. “Simple” means that there is neither penalty nor consequence for an untrained check, & is very uncommon. “Possible” is the most common category, & will have a listing of associated risks or penalties. “Dangerous” means that in addition to penalties to the check, there will also be a direct consequence for even making the attempt. “Deadly” means that the attempt will have a serious consequence & cannot be performed untrained. “Impossible” simply means that the ritual cannot be performed untrained; all untrained attempt merely fail.

This is also where one can find out what field of study is required for the Knowledge check needed to learn of the ritual’s existence. Remember, the DM is responsible for setting the DC of this Knowledge check (see How to Use a Ritual, above). Even rituals which are Impossible to perform untrained have a Knowledge check to learn of their existence.

Failure
This section details the consequences of failing the check, if any, & normally explains consequences for a Deadly untrained attempt as well.

Removal
This line denotes what measures need to be taken to end a ritual’s effects. Many rituals have permanent or semi-permanent consequences, & in order to make them stop, or end prematurely, some actions need to be taken. Casting certain spells on the target is often required; if a spell is listed in a ritual’s entry, then casting that spell on the target will dispel that ritual’s effects. Below is a list of the common abbreviations, & what they mean:

BE – break enchantment
DM – dispel magic
GD – greater dispel magic
GR – greater remove curse
LW – limited wish
MW – miracle or wish
NA – not applicable/none
RC – remove curse

Cost
This line details costs for expensive material components & foci, as well as any XP costs associated with performing the ritual. Not all rituals have a material/XP cost, & those that have an XP cost can never be performed accidently.

Categorizing Rituals
Rituals have descriptors similar to ordinary spells. The descriptors are acid, air, arcane, chaotic, cold, darkness, death, divine, earth, electricity, evil, fear, fire, force, good, language-dependent, lawful, light, martial, mind-affecting, natural, serene, sonic, & water.

Specific Rules
The elemental descriptors (Air, Earth, Fire & Water) restrict members of the half-djinn & sabi races when selecting rituals. A half-djinn or sabi taking Ritual Lore cannot select a ritual with an elemental descriptor other than their own.

The alignment descriptors (Chaotic, Evil, Good & Lawful) restrict characters when selecting rituals. A character taking Ritual Lore cannot select a ritual with an alignment descriptor opposed to their own alignment. Should their alignment change at a later time, they may still make trained attempts provided they still meet the prerequisites of the ritual.

The Arcane descriptor means that the ritual can be selected for a Wizard’s bonus feats. Rituals with the Arcane descriptor are considered spell-like, not supernatural, & are powered by arcane magic.

Rituals with the Divine descriptor are considered supernatural & are powered by divine magic. A character that grossly violates the tenets of his or her deity without another divine backer cannot use Divine rituals.

The Martial descriptor means that the ritual can be selected for a fighter’s bonus feats. Rituals with the Martial descriptor are considered extraordinary, not supernatural.

The Natural descriptor means that the ritual is powered by nature. Constructs & undead cannot perform Natural rituals.

The Serene descriptor means that the ritual can be selected for a monk’s bonus feats. Rituals with the Serene descriptor are powered by the atman, or spirit, of the character.

Disrupting & Ending Rituals
Disrupting a ritual is no easy thing, & few know how to recognize one & deal with it appropriately. Performing a ritual always provokes an attack of opportunity, but if a ritual is interrupted before it is completed, the performer of the ritual may get a saving throw to continue it. The type of saving throw depends on the ability modifier used for the skill check: Strength/Constitution-based skills grant Fortitude saves, Dexterity-based skills grant Reflex saves, & Intelligence/Wisdom/Charisma-based skills grant Will saves. The DC for the saving throw is rather dependent on circumstances, but a good rule-of-thumb is that it equals 10 + the amount of damage sustained in the last round. If a ritual is interrupted for 1 round, the skill check for the ritual increases by +10. If a ritual is disrupted for longer than 1 round, then it fails. Rituals cannot be interrupted more than once without automatic failure.

Specific Rituals (35)

A Change in Perspective
Armament of Last Resort
Bane of the Broken Blade
Barren Womb
Bound to the Relic
Depths of Despair
Doom of Time
Entreaty to Sidaru
Eternal Slumber
Eye of Arcane Blood
Fate of Daq
Fertility Ward
Fortune of Adimas
Foul Tongue
Freedom of the Mind
Gates of Night
Golden Gleam
Honeyed Words
Hyaenthropy
Liberation of the Masses
Lost Talent
Mask of the Ghul
Mind of the Beast
Mouth of Madness
Plague of Dire Fate
Prayer of Pashati
Sacrament of Qirus
Sacrifice to Maqur
Scar of the Earth
Shattered Shell
Shutting the Eyes of the World
Spawn of the Blackened Blood
Thunder Lure
Trial of Limalia
Unending Agony
Veneration

[Zeta Kai]

A Change in Perspective [Mind-Affecting]

Key Skill: Diplomacy.
Time: 1 minute.
Ritual: The worlds of the Kamala are deeply tied to cosmic balance of all things. If this balance is upset, then strange & terrible things can happen. This simple rite is but one small example of what can go awry when such balance is disturbed. To perform this ritual, you must convince a creature to do something totally & completely against their moral &/or ethical code. This requires a Diplomacy check (DC30); if successful, then the intended target must make a Will save (DC15).
Effects: A creature that fails this saving throw goes through a massive personality shift; its alignment becomes the polar opposite of what it normally is: a LG creature becomes CE, a CN creature becomes LN, etc. A truly neutral creature (N) becomes an extreme alignment of your choice (LG, CG, LE, or CE).
Untrained: Possible; your target gains a +5 circumstance bonus on their Will save, & your Diplomacy check’s DC goes up by +5. Knowledge (Arcana) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then all that is lost is time & the materials. But if your target makes their Will save, then the ritual affects you instead (no save), & you are shaken for 1 hour.
Removal: BE, GR, LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Armament of Last Resort [Martial]

Prerequisites: Must not be able to cast spells.
Key Skill: Craft (weaponsmithing).
Time: 1 standard action.
Ritual: A warrior without his weapon is often at a tremendous disadvantage, like a caster caught in an anti-magic field. But there is a way that a warrior who has lost his weapon can craft another instantly & continue the fight. To do this, you must call upon your weapon of choice, yelling it aloud & reaching up for it. This must be a weapon that you are proficient in using, & you must be capable of speech & reaching upward. This requires a successful Craft (weaponsmithing) check (DC10 + the desired weapon’s maximum non-critical damage + its critical multiplier).
Effects: If successful, then you conjure the weapon from thin air, in a swirl of orange & blue flame. The weapon will immediately form (safely) in your hands, ready to be brandished. The weapon has a +1 enhancement bonus & the Diurnal special ability when conjured on Siraaj; on Najmah, the weapon has the Nocturnal special ability instead. Holding the weapon burns you, dealing you 1 point of damage per round. The weapon lasts for a number of rounds equal to your HD × 5, or until it is put down, after which it will fade away. It can only be used by you; handing the weapon to another creature causes it to fade away, as if discarded.
Untrained: Simple. Knowledge (The Planes) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then all that is lost is time.
Special: Reaching upward is done on Siraaj, but on Najmah, you must reach downward. Also, on Najmah, you must add the weapon’s threat range to the Craft check’s DC, instead of its critical multiplier. Lastly, this ritual automatically fails if you have another weapon on your person, or are capable of using a natural weapon.
Removal: NA.

[Zeta Kai]

Bane of the Broken Blade [Death]

Key Skill: Spellcraft.
Time: 1 standard action.
Ritual: Magic is a potent force, one that can be used for great good or terrible evil. One of the most dangerous acts of magic involves the breaking of a magical item. The arcane energies unleashed by a magical item’s destruction can wreak havoc upon an area. To take advantage of this devastation, you must damage a magic item until it destroyed. You must then make a Spellcraft check (DC25) within 1 round after the item’s sundering.
Effects: If successful, an explosion of negative energy fills a radius equal to the item’s caster level times 10’. All creatures within the area (except you) must make a Fortitude save (DC20) or gain 1 negative level; sentient creatures killed by this rise again the next night as zombies & sometimes wights (5% chance, Humanoid type only). Undead creatures gain 6 temporary hit points, which last no more than 24 hours.
Untrained: Possible; all creatures affected by this gain a +5 circumstance bonus on their Fortitude saves, & your Spellcraft check’s DC goes up by +5. Knowledge (Arcana) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then you suffer 1 negative level, & are stunned for 1d4 rounds.
Removal: GR, LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Barren Womb [Death, Evil]

Prerequisites: Female only; any evil alignment.
Key Skill: Craft (woodcarving).
Time: 4 hours.
Ritual: Fertility is a fickle & risky part of life, & with little more than time & spite, you can ruin a creature’s reproductive capabilities, rendering them infertile. With hatred in your heart, carve a tiny wooden effigy of the intended target. This requires four hours, a sharp knife, a block of wood weighing one pound, & a successful Craft (woodcarving) check (DC25). The intended target must be a specific creature that you have personally met before. If successful, the resulting carving is of sufficient quality that you may use it for this ritual. Once the figure is finished, all that is needed to complete the ritual is to whisper your hatred of the target into the effigy’s ear, & then cast it into a fire. Once the carving burns, the intended target much make a successful Fortitude save (DC25)
Effects: Upon a failed save, the target becomes sterile for one full year, completely unable to reproduce. If the target is pregnant at the time of this effect becoming active, then the mother can make a second Fortitude save (DC25) to keep her child; otherwise, it is lost in a miscarriage.
Untrained: Possible; your target gets a +5 bonus on their Fortitude save, & your Craft check’s DC goes up by +5. Knowledge (Nature) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the carving, then all that is lost is time & the wooden block. But if your target makes their Will save, then you take 1d4+2 points of Wisdom damage.
Special: The carving could be made by a person other than yourself, but the less-intimate connection between you & the figure grants the intended target a +5 bonus on their Fortitude save.
Removal: GR, LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Bound to the Relic [Arcane]

Prerequisites: Race must be a non-genie.
Key Skills: Knowledge (Arcana) & Use Magic Device.
Time: 5 minutes.
Ritual: Ever since the fall of the Admajai, legends of powerful genies trapped in fabled objects have spread across Siraaj. These legends are not only true, but in fact can be replicated using powerful binding magic. First, the genie must be trapped in as powerful a manner as a spirit creature can, with a location bind spell intensified to its smallest possible area. Secondly, its physical & spiritual being must be sealed into an item via relic bind. While wearing or bearing the item, you must make a Knowledge (Arcana) check (DC 10 + genie’s HD + genie’s Will modifier) & place an arcane mark upon it to script your unspoken will upon the magic implement. Lastly, you must have the relic bound with permanency & make a Use Magic Device check (DC 10 + genie’s HD + genie’s Will modifier) to attune yourself to the relic.
Effects: If you succeed in all of this, then you have crafted yourself a powerful relic & bound yourself a slave who can never free himself from your clutches. You can convoke the bound genie once per day without offering him a Will save to break free. In addition, the bound genie must obey any order you give, provided it is neither perceptively suicidal nor is an order to grant you a wish. Unlike a normal relic bind, the bound essence responds to you & you alone. You may place additional enchantments on the relic, & no form of magic can undo the binding.
Untrained: Dangerous. Once you begin this ritual untrained, you lose any possible defense against the genie you are attempting to bind, as well as any attack or effect it procures against you. This includes abjurations, spell resistance, damage reduction & energy resistance.
Failure: If you fail the Knowledge (Arcana) check, then the genie is merely bound as by relic bind. Should it render three services under convocation, it is irrevocably freed for all time from your binding magics, & knows your name. Additionally, it can find you regardless of any protections short of soul blank. If you fail the Use Magic Device check, then the genie is bound but does not need to follow your orders & can render service to any being who can convoke it. Should a spell fail, you can attempt to repeat that part of the process.
Removal: MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Depths of Despair [Arcane, Mind-Affecting]

Key Skill: Concentration.
Time: 1 minute.
Ritual: The world is full of horrors, both large & small. With just a minute of meditation, you can make your target realize what an awful world we live in, which drives them nearly mad with depression. You must concentrate for one full minute (DC15), envisioning your target in your mind & imagining every unfortunate thing that can possibly happen to them.
Effects: Your intended target must make a Will save (DC20) or succumb to suicidal-depression for the next 24 hours, suffering a -5 morale penalty on all attack rolls, saving throws, & skill checks. In addition, the depressed target must roll 1d20 each hour for the next 24 hours (sleeping doesn’t count for this); on a roll of 1, the target tries to kill themselves, attacking themselves (a character attacking themselves have an AC of 0) until they are dead or stopped in some way.
Untrained: Possible; your target gains a +5 circumstance bonus on their Will save, & your Concentration check’s DC goes up by +5. Knowledge (Arcana) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the meditation, then all that is lost is time; you may try again, each attempt against the same person permanently raises the Concentration DC by +2. But if your target makes their Will save, then you suffering a -2 morale penalty on all attack rolls, saving throws, & skill checks for the next 24 hours.
Removal: BE, GR, LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Doom of Time [Death]

Key Skill: Balance.
Time: 1 hour.
Ritual: Every mortal being will die someday, & you have discovered a way to force a creature to face their impending death. By acting as a living sundial, you indirectly unravel a creature’s life force, hastening them to their eventually fate. You must stand upon a Tiny or smaller stone in the noonday sun on your left foot for 1 full hour, reciting your intended target’s full name; this requires a Balance check (DC10 + 1 for every previous check) every 5 minutes. The stone must be less than 30 pounds, & it must have been under the target’s bed for one full night. If successful, then your target must make a Will save (DC20).
Effects: If the target fails their save, then they are inflicted with a -2 luck penalty on all saving throws & skill checks until the curse is lifted or expires. Also, the target will die exactly 40 days after the ritual is completed, & they will be fully aware of how much time is left remaining.
Untrained: Simple. Knowledge (Nature) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the balancing act, or if the target makes their Will save, then all that is lost is time. However, you can only attempt this ritual against a particular target once, so if you fail, then you cannot retry against the same target.
Special: You can further hasten the target’s death by standing on the rock longer. For every additional 5 minutes you spend balancing on the stone, your intended target will die 1 full day sooner, down to the minimum 8 days. The Balance check’s DC continues to increase.
Removal: MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Entreaty to Sidaru [Divine, Law]

Prerequisites: Cleric only, Ritual Lore (Veneration), must worship Sidaru.
Key Skill: Knowledge (Religion).
Time: 10 minutes.
Ritual: The Sultan of Night is a serene deity, a proponent of calm, deliberate means of achieving one’s goals. Despite the upheaval of life & death, Sidaru espouses tranquility in all situations. With this rite, you can uphold the tenets of the Questioner of Souls. To do this, you must lay prone on the ground (face up) with a white rose in each hand. You must then chant the Hymn of Harmony (Duraqai Selash), a long mantra listing the consequences of peace (few) & war (many). To perform this mantra correctly requires a successful Knowledge (Religion) check (DC25).
Effects: If you succeed, then the roses crumble to ash, & you fill the area with a calming effect. This extends from the spot where you performed the hymn, & fills a sphere with a radius of 10’ per caster level. All creatures within this area must make a Will save (DC25) each time they wish to make an attack, either with a weapon, a spell, or one’s bare hands. Failing this saving throw means that the creature is unable to attack. This effect lasts until sunrise the next morning. Followers of Sidaru sometimes perform this ritual in secret on a site that is planned to be the battlefield for an upcoming skirmish.
Untrained: Impossible. Knowledge (Religion) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then all that is lost is time & materials. If any creatures within the zone make their Will save, then they are free to act as they wish.
Removal: NA.

[Zeta Kai]

Eternal Slumber [Mind-Affecting]

Key Skill: Perform (dance).
Time: 2 minutes.
Ritual: Nearly lost in the forgotten mists of time is an ancient dance which celebrates the never-ending night of Najmah, a realm of dreams & wonders. This dance, most commonly known as the Dance of the Endless Dream, has the power to bind a creature into an everlasting sleep, from which there is no waking. You must write down the name of your intended target onto a small piece of parchment, & then eat the paper. Then you must immediately & correctly perform the Dance of the Endless Dream (DC25), a difficult & exhausting dance. If you perform the dance properly, then you channel your weariness into your target, magnifying it tenfold.
Effects: Your intended target must make a Fortitude save (DC25) or fall into a magically-bound dreamless sleep. The target is unconscious (IE helpless), & cannot be awoken via any ordinary means, such as slapping, wounding, or loud noises. The entire dance must be performed within sight of your target, the dance provokes attacks or opportunity, & you can only take a 5’ step each round during the dance.
Untrained: Impossible. Knowledge (Local) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the Dance of the Endless Dream, then you become exhausted, as well as suffer a -5 penalty to your Charisma for 1 full day.
Special: You can prolong the dance, adding +1 to your target’s Fortitude save DC for every round that you continue the dance after two minutes. Doing this also increases the DC of the Perform check by +1.
Removal: LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Eye of Arcane Blood [Arcane]

Prerequisites: Ghul only.
Key Skill: Spellcraft.
Time: 1 hour.
Ritual: This wicked rite uses your own blood to create a little lump of magical coagulate. This creeping mass is able to act as a spy for you, watching, tracking, & even poisoning creatures. Known as a hemoculus, the mindless creature obeys you to the best of its ability. To create one, you must cut yourself with a blade, dealing at least 3 points of damage. You must then let the wound bleed out, collecting the blood into a bowl; bleeding out the wound deals 1 point of Constitution damage to you. Using another creature’s blood to make a hemoculus will result in the creature being uncontrollable by anyone; an uncontrollable hemoculus cannot use its Sanguine Sight. A Spellcraft check (DC20) must be made immediately after collecting the blood.
Effects: If successful, then a standard hemoculus is formed within the bowl; see the Hemoculus monster entry for details on the creature itself.
Untrained: Deadly; the Constitution damage remains, regardless of the success of the check. Also, the Spellcraft check’s DC goes up by +10. Knowledge (Arcana) to learn.
Failure: If you fail the Spellcraft check, then the blood is wasted.
Special: You can make an advanced hemoculus, by putting more of your blood into the bowl. If you bleed out the wound further, you deal more points of Constitution damage to yourself. A hemoculus made with 2 point’s worth of blood will have 1 full hit die, & every additional point’s worth of blood will raise the HD by 1, up to the maximum (8HD). Every additional point’s worth of blood will also raise the Spellcraft check’s DC by +4, due to the fact that you are being distracted by losing more blood.
Removal: NA; once a hemoculus is created, spells that normally dispel rituals cannot undo the creature (although a well-worded limited wish could slay the creature outright).

[Zeta Kai]

Fate of Daq [Divine]

Prerequisites: Cleric only, Ritual Lore (Veneration), must worship Daq.
Key Skill: Wisdom (see Effects).
Time: 5 minutes.
Ritual: The God of Destiny teaches the Good & Evil, in their purest forms, are dangerous extremes that lead only to divisiveness & destruction. To curtail these acute excesses, the priesthood of Daq urges adherence to the True Path, a middle road paved with neutrality & balance. You can participate in a silent group ritual which shows the virtues of the Third Way. To do this, the ritual’s leader (usually a cleric of Daq) holds up a holy staff vertically in front of a pool of clear water, while the other participants (mostly worshipers of Daq; minimum 3) concentrate on a gray pebble that they each hold. The leader must repeat the following chant for 5 full minutes: Zabul beqi dui aq-gazila hebaq mashaz idai geju aq-harash duaz falaj tal ua mal (“Only by walking the narrow path between darkness & light can one find the true destiny.”). At the end of the chant, each supplicant takes their pebble & throws it into the pool while thinking of a single Yes or No decision they might make within the next three days.
Effects: The petitioner with the highest Wisdom check causes the staff to tilt to either the left or the right, thus answering his question. In a formal temple of Daq, there are stone columns to either side of the altar where the leader stands, one black (No) & the other white (Yes). The congregation doesn’t know whose question was answered. However, when the answer is given, each of the pebbles in the font is polished, turning either white from cleaning or black from being blasted with the grit of the others; this part of the ritual is not common knowledge. Although it’s hard to tell which pebble was yours, it is possible with a successful Spot check (DC5 + 1 per participant), so you might get your answer anyway. The answers given often have a profound effect upon the requesters; this ritual can open their eyes to a new destiny, or at least a means of changing their current fate.
Untrained: Impossible. Knowledge (Religion) to learn.
Failure: Not applicable; there are no consequences for failing to get the best Wisdom check.
Removal: NA.

[Zeta Kai]

Fertility Ward [Good]

Prerequisites: Female only; any good alignment.
Key Skill: Perform (any instrument or singing).
Time: 5 minutes.
Ritual: Since time immemorial, people have wanted to ensure that they can have healthy children. One potent way of doing this is for someone is the play the Ballad of the Wandering Moon (Ashizai aq-Qamar), an Admajai song idolizing the moon Qamar & its role in delivering souls from one world to the next in an endless cycle of harmony & rebirth. Reciting this song correctly requires a Perform check (any instrument or singing, DC20) after dedicating it in the name of the intended target.
Effects: If successful, the ritual’s magic ensures that the target will be fertile for one full year, as well protecting any unborn children of the target from magical attacks/corruption during that period. The intended target must have heard the performance of the song, & it permitted a Fortitude save (DC10, harmless) to negate the effects, if they wish to do so.
Untrained: Dangerous; your Perform check’s DC goes up by +10, & even attempting this ritual deals 1d4 points of Strength damage, leaving you fatigued. Knowledge (Nature) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the Ballad of the Wandering Moon, then all that is lost is time (although you still suffer 1d4 points of Strength damage for the attempt, if using untrained).
Removal: GD, LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Fortune of Adimas [Chaotic, Divine]

Prerequisites: Cleric only, Ritual Lore (Veneration), must worship Adimas.
Key Skill: Knowledge (Religion).
Time: 5 minutes.
Ritual: The Lord of Finery is a generous-yet-selfish god; one who delights in the results of his benevolence. Adimas teaches that opportunity & fortune lead to success & fulfillment. To encourage this, the Church of the Gilded Eye have a ceremony in which they bestow a magical aura of good luck upon those privileged enough to receive it. To do this, you must first paint the eyelids of your intended target with gold dust (10gp), using a homa’s feather as a brush. Then, you must praise the God of the Falling Feather for his greatness & guile. The end of this tribute culminates with a Knowledge (Religion) check (DC30).
Effects: If you succeed, then your intended target gains a 1d4 luck bonus on any attack roll, skill check, or saving throw that day, up to 5 times. The target creature can choose when they employ this bonus. The target can opt to make a successful Will save (DC20) to resist this effect, although it is harmless. A temple of Adimas usually performs this ceremony on one member of its congregation each morning. The church expects the blessed to use their good fortune to spread Adimas’s word, preferably in a sly & subtle manner.
Untrained: Impossible. Knowledge (Religion) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then the gold dust is wasted, but the homa’s feather can be used for other rituals. If the target makes their Will save, then nothing happens.
Removal: NA.

[Zeta Kai]

Foul Tongue [Language-Dependent]

Key Skill: Intimidate.
Time: 1 standard action.
Ritual: A few cruel words can wound a person more deeply than any mere sword. To prove this to your intended target, you can perform a small rite that will compel them to say only unkind things. You must bully them into insulting you, & then bully them into recanting that insult. This requires a successful Intimidate check. These checks opposed by the target’s modified level check (1d20 + character level or Hit Dice + target’s Wisdom bonus (if any) + target’s modifiers on saves against fear), as normal.
Effects: If successful, your target must make a Will save (DC20) or be compelled to only utter unpleasant words & phrases. If affected by this ritual, then everything that they say is negative & cruel, regardless of intent. The target automatically fails all Diplomacy checks, & can never say anything positive. All attempts to speak kind words come out changed to invective against their will.
Untrained: Possible; your target gains a +5 circumstance bonus on their Will save, & your Intimidate check suffers a -5 penalty. Knowledge (Nature) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then all that is lost is time & the materials. But if your target makes their Will save, then the ritual affects you instead (no save).
Removal: BE, GR, LW, MW, RC.

[Zeta Kai]

Freedom of the Mind [Martial, Mind-Affecting]

Key Skill: Intimidate.
Time: 1 round.
Ritual: Enchanting magic is very subtle, often leaving no trace of its use afterward. & it can be quite potent, enabling those who have mastered it to control the minds & hearts of those around them. For some, this usurpation of one’s will is anathema, leading them to find some way to free the victims of such spells. With an obscure yet simple rite, you can break the arcane bindings that coerce others to act as others would wish them to. To do this, you must place your left hand on an enchanted creature’s body, stare into their eyes, & scream. This requires a successful Intimidate check (DC10 + the caster’s level + the enchantment spell’s level).
Effects: The target must then make an involuntary Will save (DC25) or all effects related to spells of the Enchantment school are suppressed for 1 hour.
Untrained: Possible; your target gains a +5 circumstance bonus on their Will save, & your Intimidate check’s DC goes up by +5. Knowledge (Arcana) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the Intimidate check, then you suffer a -2 morale penalty on all attack rolls, skill checks, & saving throws for 1d4+1 minutes, due to your impotence.
Removal: LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Gates of Night [Darkness]

Key Skill: Listen.
Time: 1 round.
Ritual: The worlds of the Kamala are normally separated by a planar divide that is difficult to cross. However, certain magics exist that can bridge the gap, creating a portal between the two planes. Among the easiest (& most unreliable) means of doing so is a simple ritual that could even be performed by accident, given the right circumstances. In the depths of the night, a window can be opened between the two worlds by merely drawing a circle with a piece of chalk. The circle must be closed, & must be between 2’-7’ in diameter (1d6+1); it can be drawn on any vertical surface large enough to hold the complete circle. If the circle is drawn correctly, a faint whispered chant can be heard for a few moments near the circle (within 10’). If you make a successful Listen check (DC30), then you hear the chant.
Effects: If you then repeat the chant aloud, the circle of chalk becomes an open portal to the other plane until the sun rises on Siraaj, allowing passage in both directions for any creature than can fit through. The portal looks like a disk of silvery smoke, through which the moonlit world of the other plane can be seen. This cannot be performed on the night of the full moon or the new moon, & can only be performed once per night.
Untrained: Simple. Knowledge (The Planes) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the Listen check, then nothing happens, but you cannot try again for 1 hour.
Removal: GD, LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Golden Gleam [Mind-Affecting]

Key Skill: Handle Animal.
Time: Varies, but no longer than 1 week.
Ritual: Greed is a powerful force, one that drives many to either glory or ruin. You can fan the golden flames of greed within a person’s soul, making them consumed with an insatiable greediness. To begin the ritual, you must take a Fine item that your intended target would covet (like a comb, a coin, a piece of jewelry, a fork, etc.) & force-feed this object to an animal; this requires a successful Handle Animal check (DC25). The item’s minimum cost is 1gp. If successful, then your target must make a Will save (DC25) the next time they eat any meat (known to the superstitious as “eating the golden lamb” or some variant).
Effects: If the target fails their saving throw, then they fall victim to a ravenous greed, coveting ever-greater wealth & becoming ever more brazen & crazed about acquiring it. Their alignment also becomes one step closer to Neutral Evil.
Untrained: Possible; your target gains a +5 circumstance bonus on their Will save, & your Handle Animal check’s DC goes up by +5. Knowledge (Local) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then all that is lost is time. However, the item is destroyed by the ritual, so another item must be procured.
Removal: LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Honeyed Words [Language-Dependent]

Key Skill: Bluff.
Time: 1 standard action.
Ritual: A few kind words can open doors that swords cannot breach. To prove this to your intended target, you can perform a small rite that will compel them to say only good things. You must knowingly tell a lie to the target, such as convincing them that you are fond of them & that you wish them well. This requires a successful Bluff check (DC25), & only works in the hours of sunrise or sunset.
Effects: If successful, your target must make a Will save (DC20) or be compelled to only utter pleasant words & phrases. Everything that they say is positive & nice, regardless of intent. The target gains a +5 bonus on all Diplomacy checks, but can never say anything negative; they also automatically fail all Intimidate checks. All attempts to speak unkind words come out changed to pleasantries against their will.
Untrained: Possible; your target gains a +5 circumstance bonus on their Will save, & your Bluff check’s DC goes up by +5. Knowledge (Nature) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then all that is lost is time & the materials. But if your target makes their Will save, then the ritual affects you instead (no save).
Removal: BE, DM, GD, LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Hyaenthropy [Arcane, Fire]

Key Skill: Jump.
Time: 10 minutes.
Ritual: Hyaenthropy, the condition of being a were-hyena, is considered by most to be a curse in & of itself. The affliction is usually only spread via hereditary inheritance or by a were-hyena’s bite. But under certain circumstances, you can inflict the curse of hyaenthropy onto a person without having it yourself. To do this, you must throw a lock of your intended target’s hair in a large bonfire (15’ diameter) in the desert under the new moons. Then, you must leap over the bonfire; this requires a Jump check (DC15).
Effects: If successful, then your intended target must make a successful Fortitude save (DC15) or become a were-hyena (see the Were-Hyena monster entry). This ritual is only effective against creatures with the Giant or Humanoid type.
Untrained: Possible; your target gains a +10 circumstance bonus on their Fortitude save. Knowledge (Nature) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the jumping, then you fall into the bonfire, take 4d6 points of fire damage, & must make a Reflex save (DC15) or catch on fire. If your target makes their Fortitude save, then all that is lost is time (although you cannot attempt this ritual against the same target until the next new moons).
Removal: MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Liberation of the Masses [Martial, Mind-Affecting]

Key Skill: Intimidate.
Time: 1 round.
Ritual: Enchantment is a subtle & potent school of magic, made more so by the fact that it can be used on multiple creatures simultaneously. In order to free the minds & hearts of the masses, one must jar them from their current line of thought. With an obscure yet simple rite, you can break the arcane bindings that coerce others to act as others would wish them to. To do this, you must place a bladed weapon into the ground with your left hand, stare into the sky, & scream. This requires a successful Intimidate check (DC15 + the caster’s level + the enchantment spell’s level).
Effects: All creatures within 30’ under the influence of an enchantment must then make an involuntary Will save (DC25) or all effects related to spells of the Enchantment school are suppressed for 1 hour.
Untrained: Possible; your targets gain a +5 circumstance bonus on their Will saves, & your Intimidate check’s DC goes up by +5. Knowledge (Arcana) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the Intimidate check, then you suffer a -2 morale penalty on all attack rolls, skill checks, & saving throws for 1d4+1 minutes, due to your impotence.
Removal: MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Lost Talent

Key Skill: Any.
Time: Varies, no more than 10 minutes.
Ritual: Some people excel at a particular skill, honing it until they have become its utter master. You can rob a person of their proficiency with a simple ritual. You must challenge the intended target to a contest which involves a single skill check. The skill can be any one of your choosing, so long as the contest takes no longer than 10 minutes; the intended target is under no obligation to participate. You may use any means necessary to win this contest, & this contest may be public or private. If your skill check exceeds that of the intended target, then you win the contest.
Effects: If you then spit at your target’s feet to complete the rite, they must then immediately make a successful Will save (DC25) or suffer a -20 penalty on all checks of that particular skill.
Untrained: Possible; your target gains a +10 circumstance bonus on their Will save, & you gain a permanent -5 penalty on all social checks regarding the target, regardless of the success of the check. Knowledge (Local) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the contest, then you suffer a -10 penalty to the chosen skill for the next 8 days. But if your target makes their Will save, then all that is lost is time.
Removal: GR, LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Mask of the Ghul [Arcane]

Key Skill: Forgery.
Time: 1 hour.
Ritual: The ghuls are among the most frightening creatures on Siraaj; people everywhere wisely fear & loathe them. With a short arcane rite, you can make someone look like one of these horrifying figures. You must write out a binding contract onto a single piece of parchment, promising a portion of your intended target’s soul in exchange for a bit of the ghul’s frightening power. Next, you must sign the target’s name to the contract; this requires a successful Forgery check (DC20).
Effects: The intended target must immediately make a successful Fortitude save (DC20) or take on the appearance of a ghul. The target maintains their normal size & all other statistics, but all creatures see them as a ghul. A true seeing spell or similar means of piercing illusions will reveal the target’s true form. Other creatures are permitted a one-time Will save (DC25) to see through the illusion upon first seeing the target. While this effect is active, the target can use darkness, detect magic, & obscuring mist once per day each, as spell-like abilities; they are instinctually aware of these abilities. This illusion lasts for as long as you choose (the the time of the ritual’s performance), up to a number of days equal to your Charisma bonus; it also ends upon the death of the intended target, even if they are later revived within the duration.
Untrained: Impossible. Knowledge (The Planes) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the signing, then the ritual affects you instead (no save). But if your target makes their Fortitude save, then all that is lost is time & the materials.
Removal: GR, LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Mind of the Beast

Key Skill: Sleight of Hand.
Time: 1 round.
Ritual: The civilized people of the world live in a fragile equilibrium, balancing the structure & strictures of society with their own base instincts & desires. With just a small ritual, you can shatter this balance, tipping the scales in favor of the beast within. To unleash the animal inside of a creature, you must first kill an animal or vermin & take some small piece of its body, such as blood or hair. You must then place it onto the person of your intended target, like in a pocket or tucked into their clothing, without their knowledge. Doing so requires a successful Sleight of Hand check (DC30).
Effects: Your intended target must then make a Will save (DC25) or lose their wits, becoming like a wild animal. Their mental scores (Intelligence, Wisdom & Charisma) drop to 2 each for 1d4 hours; their mental scores cannot be lowered further via any means while this ritual is in effect.
Untrained: Possible; your targets gain a +5 circumstance bonus on their Will saves, & your Sleight of Hand check’s DC goes up by +5. Knowledge (Nature) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the Sleight of Hand check, then the ritual fails & you are caught red-handed. If the target creature makes their Will save, then the materials are wasted, & you suffer 1d6+4 points of damage to one of your mental scores (determined randomly).
Removal: GR, LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Mouth of Madness [Language-Dependent]

Key Skill: Concentration.
Time: 1 minute.
Ritual: The civilized world is built upon speech, & a member of civilized society is all but lost without a means of communicating effectively with their peers. With just a minute of mediation, you can turn a person’s spoken & written words to unintelligible gibberish. To do this, you must place a severed frog’s tongue on your own & focus for one full minute on your intended target & their voice &/or handwriting; this requires a Concentration check (DC15). Then you must say your target’s name & swallow the tongue; if successful, they must make a Will save (DC15).
Effects: Should the intended target fail their save, the frog’s tongue will speak instead of their own, & since you have swallowed it, your intended target will be incoherent when they try to speak (or write).
Untrained: Simple. Knowledge (Local) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the meditation, then the ritual affects you instead (no save), & you become confused for 1d4 rounds after any attempt to speak or write, due to the dissonance in hearing the frog’s voice instead of your own. But if your target makes their Will save, then all that is lost is time.
Removal: BE, GR, LW, MW, RC.

[Zeta Kai]

Plague of Dire Fate [Evil, Natural]

Prerequisites: Any evil alignment.
Key Skill: Spellcraft.
Time: 1 hour.
Ritual: Your hatred for one person can spill over into their entire community with this contagious curse. To unleash this outbreak, you must carve a written statement describing your loathing of the intended target onto a thin lead sheet, which was specially prepared for this by soaking in acid. The statement must be carved with a spent wand, & the entire procedure requires a successful Spellcraft check (DC25). The sheet is then rolled up & hidden within the home of your intended target.
Effects: The target is then inflicted with a terrible disease (1d4 Strength/Constitution/Wisdom per day, Contact DC25 to resist), known as the Black Blight for the dark veins & foul sores that appear on infected victims. Other creatures that come into direct contact with the target must make the same saving throw or catch the Black Blight, as well.
Untrained: Dangerous; your target (& all other victims of this outbreak) gains a +5 bonus on their initial Fortitude save, & even attempting this ritual deals 1d4 negative levels to you. Knowledge (Nature) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then you automatically become infected with the disease (although this version is not contagious). If your target makes their Fortitude save, then you are merely nauseated for 1 full day.
Removal: NA; greater remove curse can cleanse a single creature, but will not stop the outbreak as a whole; remove curse or remove disease cannot eliminate this plague from a creature.

[Zeta Kai]

Prayer of Pashati [Divine]

Prerequisites: Cleric only, Ritual Lore (Veneration), must worship Pashati.
Key Skill: Knowledge (Religion).
Time: 20 minutes.
Ritual: The Mother of Rains is a kind & caring deity, dedicated to life & healing. Her church is simple & direct, striving to help others in any they can rather than promoting themselves & their faith. Their most well-known ceremony is a straightforward rite that can fully restore a creature’s health, bringing them back from the brink of death if need be. To perform this ritual, you must lay the intended target’s body on a bed of living vegetation (most temples dedicated to the Riverqueen have well-tended lawn for just such a purpose). The target creature must be alive & stable, although they can be in negative hit points. You must then speak to Pashati herself, talking to her as if having a conversation with a dear friend. You must ask her to heal the target on your behalf, all the while sprinkling the target with an aspergillum filled with common rain water. At the end of the conversation, you must make a successful Knowledge (Religion) check (DC10 + the target’s HD).
Effects: If you succeed, then your intended target is fully restored to health. All HP & ability damage is restored, all status conditions are negated, & all diseases, poisons, & curses (including negative effects from other rituals) are neutralized. The target also falls asleep for 1 full day. The target can opt to make a successful Will save (DC20) to resist this effect, although it is harmless. Disciples of Pashati will perform this ritual for allies of the church, or if they are properly moved to do so, will perform it for strangers that pledge to complete a quest for the temple.
Untrained: Impossible. Knowledge (Religion) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then the target only heals 1d6+4 points of damage. If the target makes a Will save to resist the effects of this ritual, then it simply fails, & all that is lost is time & materials.
Removal: NA.

[Zeta Kai]

Sacrament of Qirus [Divine]

Prerequisites: Cleric only, Ritual Lore (Veneration), must worship Qirus.
Key Skill: Knowledge (Religion).
Time: 10 minutes.
Ritual: The Lion God is a robust, unwavering god, able to withstand adversity that would fell the mightiest of mortals. To honor his sublime determination, the church of the Stoic Watcher often performs a ceremony to aid the leaders of an army before a great battle, so that they can lead their forces to victory. To perform this ritual, you must first drink enough poison to suffer at least 4 points of damage to two different ability scores. Then you must cut yourself with a bladed weapon, dealing at least 3 points of damage, & anoint your intended target on the forehead with your blood. Lastly, you must repeat the following litany for 10 full minutes: Riqa zabul eq guadai faj, ludr zenul diu hizu ua genumel geju jujim aq-Qirusai qash (“Though I may suffer in your stead, you will know only valor & victory through the resolve of Qirus.”). This all requires a successful Knowledge (Religion) check (DC25).
Effects: If you succeed, then your target receives divine protection & resolve until the next sunrise. The target gains a +2 deflection bonus on their AC, DR2/-, Spell Resistance 2 + their HD, & a +2 resistance bonuses to all Will saving throws. These bonuses each increase by +2 for each encounter that your target participates in before the next sunrise (only encounters with an ECL greater than your HD -2 count toward this). The target can opt to make a successful Will save (DC25) to resist this effect, although it is harmless. Due to the risks involved in the ritual, the Church of Qirus is reluctant to let its priests perform it, except in dire circumstances.
Untrained: Impossible. Knowledge (Religion) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the Knowledge check, then all time & materials are lost, but you still suffer the damage sustained from the attempt. If your target resists the ritual, then it has no effect.
Removal: NA.

[Zeta Kai]

Sacrifice to Maqur [Divine, Evil, Fire]

Prerequisites: Cleric only, Ritual Lore (Veneration), must worship Maqur.
Key Skill: Knowledge (Religion).
Time: Varies, but no longer than 1 day.
Ritual: The Scarlet Shahbanu is a cruel & fickle deity, always dancing about, leaving mayhem & suffering in her wake. Her followers are no better, & they delight in sowing discord with their duplicitous ways. One means of doing so is by employing a dark ceremony that turns its unwitting victim into an agent of destruction. To perform this ritual, you must kill & burn a Tiny or smaller creature (of the Animal or Vermin type) while praising Maqur & promising her compounding sacrifice. This requires a Knowledge (Religion) check (DC25). You must then take the ashes & get your intended target to eat them without their knowledge or consent; this is often done by slipping the ashes into their food or drink. This can be done a little at a time, or all at once (in a strong tasting food), but must be done within 24 hours of burning the sacrifice.
Effects: If you succeed, then your target must make a Fortitude save (DC30) or they become infused with the destructive power of fire. A wicked flame burns within their body, forever threatening to lash out & destroy those near them. The target must make a Will save every hour that they are awake (DC12 + 1 per hour awake). A full night’s rest (at least 6 hours) resets the saving throw’s DC. If they fail a saving throw, then the fire immediately surges forth, burning everything within 10’ of the target at the time for 1d6 rounds. These hellish flames deal 2d6 points of fire damage per round; this damage ignores Damage Reduction & Energy Resistance. The fire does not harm the target, but it does affect their clothing & other possessions. A moment of high stress (such as being affected by a fear effect or sustaining heavy damage) also triggers another Will save, & permanently adds +1 to the DC. The target feels when a surge is potentially coming, & can tell 1d6 rounds before a saving throw is required.
Untrained: Impossible. Knowledge (Religion) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then the sacrificial creature explodes, & everything within 20’ takes 6d6 points of fire damage. But if your target makes their Fortitude save, then all that is lost is time & the materials.
Removal: GR, LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Scar of the Earth [Earth]

Key Skill: Heal.
Time: Varies, no more than 20 minutes.
Ritual: Much of the land on Siraaj is a desert of some sort: parched dunes or rocky wastes. The arable areas of the world are precious to all & highly sought after commodities. But with a single ritual, you can make a portion of land unable to support life. To do this, you must first lay a dying creature (IE one with negative hit points) on the bare ground of an area that can support vegetation & have them drink a potion of sleep. If they fail their saving throw against the potion, then you must make a successful Heal check to stabilize their condition (DC25, which is the normal 15, but with a +10 to the DC for this particular effect), but they can receive no other healing until the ritual is complete. Lastly, you must partially bury the stabilized creature in the soil from the immediate area; this takes 1d4+3 minutes (half this time with a shovel), & must be complete before the creature awakens.
Effects: If successful, then when the stabilized creature awakens, their body will absorb the life force of the local area, healing them completely. All hit points & ability damage will be completely restored. In exchange for that, however, the area around the creature will be sterilized & unable to support life. All creatures will leave the area of their own volition within 24 hours, & all plant life here will die. No plants will grow here, & creatures that sleep within this area will awaken fatigued & suffering from 1 point of Constitution damage. This dead zone is permanent, & at its center, a scorched outline of the creature is left where they lay in the earth. This area is equal to the dying creature’s HD × 20’. Even if you succeed in performing this ritual, you still take 1d4 points of Constitution damage & are sickened. In addition, both you & the creature suffer a -2 morale penalty on saving throws, AC, & social skill checks versus fey, plants, animals, & other creatures with close ties to nature (such as druids & rangers).
Untrained: Dangerous; your Heal check’s DC does not increase, but even attempting this ritual untrained deals an additional 1d4 points of Constitution damage, leaving you nauseated instead of sickened. Knowledge (Nature) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then the creature dies. You still suffer 1d4 points of Constitution damage for the attempt, as well as being sickened.
Removal: GR, LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Shattered Shell

Key Skill: Climb.
Time: 10 minutes.
Ritual: Magic can be used to transform objects, creatures, & even people into radically different forms. This often leads to confusion & mistrust in those who are not aware of something’s true form. With a little-known ritual, you can undo certain transmuting magics, forcing your target to revert into its natural shape. To do this, you must first climb a vertical surface (DC25) of a height no less than 30’, such as a wall or a cliff side. Standing at the top, you must take an egg, smash it open, & coat your hands in the yolk. This ritual can only be performed in the daytime.
Effects: If successful, then your touch is infused with a disrupting magic until the dawn of the next day. The next single object or creature that you touch that has been polymorphed into a different form must make a Fortitude save (DC25) or revert to its true form. This touch can negate the effects of following spells: alter self, baleful polymorph, disguise self, polymorph, polymorph any object, & shapechange. This also negates the effects of the Wild Shape class feature. While negated, the affected creature cannot be transformed from its natural shape. This negation lasts until dawn of the next day.
Untrained: Possible; your targets gain a +5 circumstance bonus on their Fortitude saves. Knowledge (Nature) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the climb, then you fall & take damage as appropriate. If your target makes their Fortitude save, & you are trained (IE you have the Ritual Lore feat for Shattered Shell), then all that is lost is time & materials. If your target makes their Fortitude save, & you are untrained, then your hands burn with the uncontrolled magic. You take 2d6 points of damage, & you take another 1 point of damage anytime that you touch an object for the rest of the day.
Removal: NA.

[Zeta Kai]

Shutting the Eyes of the World

Key Skill: Knowledge (Local).
Time: 1 minute.
Ritual: Many things occur behind closed doors, & many people would prefer that such things were not discovered by others. But many mages have access to scrying & other means of divination, which can reveal even the deepest of secrets. Thus was a ritual devised that could prevent others from spying via any magical means. To do this, you must make a circle around the area that you wish to protect (no more than a 15’ radius) with crushed glass (about 15 glasses’ worth, 30gp). Then, you must make a circle of poured wine within the circle of glass (about 3 bottles’ worth, 30gp). Lastly, you must make a circle of oil within the circle of wine (about 30 pints’ worth, 3gp). All of this requires a successful Knowledge (Local) check (DC30).
Effects: If successful, then the sphere of space contained within the circles becomes impervious to certain forms of magic for the next 24 hours. No spells of the divination school of magic can penetrate the area, & nothing can be teleported into it, either. All divinations &/or teleportations originating from within the area will still function as normal, however. The edge of the area is invisible, & viewing it via divinations reveals a blank sphere of space, so magical detection is still the best method for find such areas.
Untrained: Possible; your Knowledge check’s DC goes up by +5. Knowledge (Arcana) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then you fall unconscious for 1 hour, helpless & unable to be awakened.
Removal: NA.

[Zeta Kai]

Spawn of the Blackened Blood [Evil]

Prerequisites: Any evil alignment.
Key Skill: Spellcraft.
Time: 1 hour.
Ritual: There are vicious little creatures called divi that seem to exist for no other reason than to destroy & kill. Invariably evil, the ruin they leave in their wake is difficult to comprehend. It is possible, using dark magic, to create one that will obey your commands. To create a div, you must sever one of your own fingers (which deals 1d6+4 points of damage, plus 1d3 points of Constitution damage) & infuse the culled flesh with evil magic; this requires a Spellcraft check (DC30).
Effects: If successful, a black egg is formed (4HP, hardness 2), from which a div will hatch in 8 days. The resulting div will follow your orders (& only yours) without question, as if you were using a dominate monster spell upon it at all times. Due to your missing finger, you suffer a permanent -2 penalty to all Craft, Disable Device, Forgery, Open Lock, Sleight of Hand, & Use Rope checks; these penalties can only be removed by a casting of limited wish, miracle, regeneration, or wish. Only your own severed fingers will work for this dark rite; other fingers will not create the black egg.
Untrained: Dangerous; your Spellcraft check is made at a -10 penalty, & the listed skill penalties are permanent, regardless of the success of the check. Knowledge (Arcana) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then all materials are wasted (& you still suffer all listed skill penalties for the attempt).
Special: You can make an advanced div, by putting more of yourself into the rite. Every additional severed finger will raise the div’s HD by 1, up to the maximum (4HD). Every additional severed finger will add another permanent -1 penalty to all Craft, Disable Device, Forgery, Open Lock, Sleight of Hand, & Use Rope checks. If you sever your entire hand to put into this ritual (-6 skill penalty), then the black egg will create a fully-grown almasti instead; this almasti will still obey you (& only you).
Removal: NA; once a div is created, spells that normally dispel rituals cannot undo the creature (although a well-worded limited wish could slay the creature outright).

[Zeta Kai]

Thunder Lure [Electricity]

Key Skill: Spellcraft.
Time: 10 minutes.
Ritual: Lightning is one of the most primal & powerful forces known to man. Even in the arid world of Siraaj, electricity is an energy that is more feared than understood. With an obscure rite, you can attune an intended target to an electric charge, making them a magnet for lightning bolts. You must first dissolve a shocker lizard in acid within a specially-treated cauldron. Next, you must add enough lye to the mixture to offset the acid. Then, you must add either a lock of hair or a drop of blood from your intended target. All of this requires a Spellcraft check (DC25) to accomplish correctly.
Effects: If successful, then your target must make a Fortitude save (DC20) or be hit by lightning 1d4-1 times per day. Being hit by natural lightning deals 6d6 points of electricity damage; a successful Reflex saving throw will reduce the damage of a bolt by half.
Untrained: Possible; your target gains a +5 circumstance bonus on their Fortitude save, & your Spellcraft check’s DC goes up by +5. Knowledge (Arcana) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then all materials are wasted, & you take 1d6 points of electricity damage each time you touch the intended target (remove greater curse will undo this effect). If your target makes their Fortitude save, then all materials are again wasted.
Removal: BE, GR, LW, MW, RC.

[Zeta Kai]

Trial of Limalia [Divine]

Prerequisites: Cleric only, Ritual Lore (Veneration), must worship Limalia.
Key Skill: Knowledge (Religion).
Time: 1 minute.
Ritual: The Sultana of Winds is a harsh goddess, one who ushers her followers into dangerous situations & forces them to overcome adversity. Not everyone can relate to her seeming cruelty, but those who endure in her name find their perseverance rewarded & their deeds all the more exalted for the hardship that they faced along the way. One such way to earn her favor involves an initially-unpleasant ritual that provides a useful boon to those who suffer through it. To perform the ritual, you must first have your intended target drink the juices from a live cactus plant; this must be their first liquid that day. Next, you must whip your target across the back 3 times in a row, dealing at least 5 points of non-lethal damage; they must remain silent & bear the stinging pain & bitter juice. This requires a successful Knowledge (Religion) check (DC20) on your part, as well as a successful Will save (DC15) on their part to be silent.
Effects: If successful, then your target becomes faster & hardier than a desert fox. They can run (up to 4× their speed) without needing to rest; they automatically succeed all Constitution checks to continue running, & to avoid nonlethal damage from a forced march, starvation, or thirst. Also, they automatically succeed all Fortitude saves made to avoid nonlethal damage from hot or cold environments. While running, they cannot become exhausted or fatigued, & they can even run on the surface of the water, so long as they maintain their maximum speed. These effects last until the next sunset.
Untrained: Impossible. Knowledge (Religion) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ritual, then all that is lost is time, but your target still suffers the damage sustained from the attempt. Also, if the ritual fails, you must be whipped across the back 3 times in a row, taking at least 5 points of non-lethal damage, before you can perform the ritual again. If you cry out, the atonement fails, & you must repeat the whipping another day to perform the ritual again.
Removal: MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Unending Agony [Evil, Mind-Affecting]

Prerequisites: Any evil alignment.
Key Skill: Ride.
Time: 4 hours.
Ritual: Pain is a natural motivator & deterrent, albeit an unpleasant one. Methods for causing pain are myriad, & most are evil in some fashion. Conjuring magically-powered pain is one of the vilest & most petty acts mortals can do to one another, harnessing the underlying forces of the world to do explicit harm. One method of doing this is a ritual that binds an intended target’s soul in endless searing anguish, a form of torture far worse than the most gruesome death. To perform this wicked rite, you must first ride a creature (such as a horse) until it dies of exhaustion (DC30), then carve out the creature’s heart & burn it. The ashes of the heart must be thrown at the intended target.
Effects: The target must then make a Will save (DC25) or have all the suffering of the riding creature channeled into them tenfold. The target is wracked with constant searing pain, unable to even sleep; they are considered exhausted & sickened, & they cannot cast spells.
Untrained: Possible; your target gains a +5 circumstance bonus on their Will save, & your Ride check’s DC goes up by +5. Knowledge (Arcana) to learn.
Failure: If you fail during the ride, then you are thrown from the ridden creature, & suffer any subsequent falling damage, but you may try again if you wish. But if your target makes their Fortitude save, then all time & materials are wasted, & you are exhausted.
Removal: GR, LW, MW.

[Zeta Kai]

Veneration [Divine]

Key Skill: Knowledge (religion).
Time: 5 minutes.
Ritual: Veneration takes many forms, but in general it is five minutes of reverent prayer & ceremony begging the further favor of your deity. You perform the veneration to regain divine spellcasting ability that you have expended this day. Make a Knowledge (religion) check to recall a previously-cast spell. The DC to recall is 10 + (5 × the spell’s level), plus 2 per previous veneration you have performed this day.
Effects: If you succeed, you feel your god’s approval & you regain the requested divine spell.
Untrained: Possible; your Knowledge (religion) check is made at a -10 penalty, & the DC escalates by 4 instead of 2 for additional venerations. Knowledge (Religion) to learn.
Failure: You are dealt 1d4 subdual damage per spell level requested. Retries are not allowed for the remainder of the day.
Removal: NA.

[Zeta Kai]

Alchemist
(3E, Revised)

NOTE: This version of the alchemist is intended to be an improvement of the old version. It is recommended that anyone who has read the original should compare the two versions, as this one has been enhanced in a number of ways. This version is easier to enter, has a higher spell progression, & has more & stronger class features. Please let us know what you think of this class, either as a standalone PrC or as an improvement over its predecessor.

Hit Die: d6

Entry Requirements
To qualify to take levels as an alchemist, a character must fulfill all the following criteria:

Skills: Craft (alchemy) 8 ranks
Feats: Skill Focus (Craft (alchemy))
Spells: Must be capable of casting 1st-level spells.
Special: You must have studied a great tome of alchemy or practiced under one of its connoisseurs.

Table 5-1: The Alchemist (PrC)

{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fortitude Save|Reflex Save|Will Save|Special|Spells
1st|+0|+2|+0|+2|Brew Potion, Alchemical Concoctions|--
2nd|+1|+3|+0|+3|Improved Potions & Oils (4th)|+1 level of existing class
3rd|+1|+3|+1|+3|Breakthrough|+1 level of existing class
4th|+2|+4|+1|+4|Rote Distillation (12 hours)|+1 level of existing class
5th|+2|+4|+1|+4|Weaponized Vials|+1 level of existing class
6th|+3|+5|+2|+5|Improved Potions & Oils (5th), Rote Distillation (6 hours)|--
7th|+3|+5|+2|+5|Elemental Substitution|+1 level of existing class
8th|+4|+6|+2|+6|Rote Distillation (3 hours)|+1 level of existing class
9th|+4|+6|+3|+6|Synthesized Spell|+1 level of existing class
10th|+5|+7|+3|+7|Improved Potions & Oils (6th), Rote Distillation (1 hour)|+1 level of existing class[/table]

Class Skills
The Alchemist’s class skills (& the key ability for each skill) are Appraise (Int), Craft (Int), Disable Device (Dex), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (Arcana) (Int), Profession (Wis), Spellcraft (Int), & Use Magic Device (Cha).

Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Intelligence modifier.

Class Features
Weapon & Armor Proficiency: You gain no proficiency with any armor. You do gain proficiency with all thrown weapons & with all shields.

Spells: At every level except for 1st & 6th, an alchemist gains new spells per day as if he had also gained a level in whatever spellcasting class he belonged to before he added the prestige class. He does not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained. This essentially means that he adds the level of alchemist to the level of whatever other spellcasting class the character has, then determines spells per day & caster level accordingly.

If a character had more than one spellcasting class before he became a alchemist, he must decide to which class he adds each level of alchemist for the purpose of determining spells per day.

Brew Potion: An alchemist gains the Brew Potion feat, even if he does not have the normal prerequisites for that feat.

Alchemical Concoctions (Ex): An alchemist can use their crafting prowess to create various special substances & items. In order to make a concoction, the alchemist must make a successful Craft (Alchemy) check, the DC for which is on Table 5-1b: Alchemist Concoctions. The DC for creating any other kind of magical or alchemical item is equal to 10 + (the item’s market price/5). The alchemist must also pay for his ingredients, which cost half of the total market price (also provided on Table 5-1b). Making a concoction takes one full hour of time, & the alchemist must have access to an Alchemist’s Lab.

Improved Potions & Oils: At 2nd level, an alchemist gains the ability to create potions & oils that duplicate the effects of 4th level spells. At 6th level, an alchemist gains the ability to create potions & oils that duplicate the effects of 5th level spells. And at 10th level, an alchemist gains the ability to create potions & oils that duplicate the effects of 6th level spells. All other restrictions to potions & oils still apply, including monetary & experience costs.

Breakthrough (Ex): At 3rd level & every level thereafter, an alchemist can create one breakthrough, chosen from the table below. A breakthrough in this case is an alchemical concoction (see above) that provides a permanent additional benefit. His alchemist level plus the modifier from his primary casting stat (Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma) determines the breakthroughs from which he can choose. He can choose the same breakthrough twice, if he wishes, but most of the benefits are alchemical bonuses, which do not stack. He cannot make more than one breakthrough concoction per level, & a concoction that has more than one breakthrough benefit in it.

Rote Distillation (Ex): An experienced alchemist gains the ability to reduce the time that it takes to create a potion or oil. Normally it takes one full day (24 hours) to brew a potion of distill an oil. At 4th level, it only takes an alchemist half a day (12 hours) to do the same. At 6th level, this time is reduced to a quarter-day (6 hours). At 8th level, this time is further reduced to a eighth of a day (3 hours). And at 10th level, this time is reduced further still to a single hour. All other restrictions to potions & oils still apply, including monetary & experience costs. Certain potions or oils cannot be brewed in less than one full day, such as that of a synthesized spell (see below).

Weaponized Vials (Sp): At 5th level, an alchemist can infuse vials of liquid with any spell that they can cast, including offensive magic. It takes an hour a day to prepare the fluids & store them in special vials, during which time the alchemist must have access to an Alchemist’s Lab. Such spell-laden vials remain viable for up to 24 hours. An alchemist may prepare a number of vials each day equal to the modifier of his primary casting stat (Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma). Infusing a vial with a spell in this manner does not count as actually casting the spell, & he does not need to actually prepare a particular spell (if he is a prepared caster) in order to infuse a vial with that spell.

Throwing a single vial is a standard action; the alchemist uses their base attack bonus plus either their Strength or Dexterity modifier, whichever is higher. An alchemist is considered proficient with these vials, & they are treated in most respects as thrown weapons. Vials have a range increment of 10’ & shatter on impact, unleashing the contained spell from that point. A vial containing a Creation, Calling, or Summoning spell must impact in an unoccupied square to function; a vial containing a spell that requires a target must impact directly on a valid target (ranged attack roll against touch AC). Vials with a range of personal or touch discharge their effects on any creature struck; such a creature is treated as a valid target for those effects (though it is not “you” per se). Vials containing an area effect trigger on deliberate impact with anything. If a vial does not meet these conditions, it merely breaks & the spell is wasted. As a key ingredient is left out of each mixture, alchemists’ vials cannot be used without the assistance of the alchemist that created it.

Elemental Substitution (Su): At 7th level, an alchemist can change the elemental foundation of his formulae without altering the overall structure. As a swift action, he can substitute one form of energy damage (acid, cold, electricity, fire, or sonic) in a potion, oil, concoction, or weaponized vial for any other energy type listed above. This ability has no effect on spells that do not deal energy damage, or spells that deal force damage, & does not change the number or type of damage dice of a spell vial.

Synthesized Spell (Ex): At 9th level, an alchemist draws upon his magical learning to prepare potions & oils with experimental traits. Within a potion or oil, he can duplicate the effects of almost any spell, even those spells that are exclusive to other classes. Unlike other potions & oils, synthesizing these requires a successful Craft (Alchemy) check; the DC for this check is 15 + (the spell’s level × 5). Failing the Craft check results in a vial full of inert liquid, which has no effect, magical or otherwise.

Certain restrictions still apply to these synthesized potions & oils. An alchemist cannot duplicate the effects of a spell that is of a higher spell level than he can cast. A duplicated spell must have a casting time of 1 round or less; it must also have a range that is either personal, touch, or expressed in feet. Such spells may not be ray spells or have a line-shaped area. Alchemists still cannot directly cast spells that they do not have access to, nor can they make magic items other than potions or oils using these non-listed spells. Alchemists must still pay the normal monetary & experience costs for these synthesized potions & oils, even if they fail the craft DC. The shelf life of a synthesized potion/oil is a number of hours equal to the modifier of his primary casting stat (Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma), with a minimum of one hour.

Table 5-1a: Alchemist Breakthoughs

{table=head]Level + Modifier|Breakthough|Effect
5|Elixir of Vitality|+5 hit points
6|Tincture of Resolve|+3 alchemical bonus on Will saves
7|Tincture of Resilience|+3 alchemical bonus on Fortitude saves
8|Tincture of Reaction|+3 alchemical bonus on Reflex saves
9|Boosting Spirit|+4 alchemical bonus to any one ability score
10|Talent Spirit|+5 alchemical bonus to any one skill
11|Elixir of Defense|+4 alchemical bonus to AC
12|Martial Spirit|+3 alchemical bonus to attack rolls
13|Tincture of Protection|Damage Reduction +1/-- per alchemist level
14|Elixir of Insight|A bonus feat
15|Tincture of the Magi|Spell Resistance 12 + total character level
16|Unguent of Health|Immunity to all poisons & diseases
17|Unguent of Energy|Immunity to one energy type (acid, cold, electricity, fire, or sonic)
18|Unguent of Ability|Immunity to ability damage, ability drain, fatigue, & exhaustion
19|Unguent of Condition|Immunity to daze, energy drain, paralysis, petrification, & stun
20|Elixir of Life|Immortality (cannot die from old age & will not advance beyond their current age category)[/table]

Table 5-1b: Alchemist Concoctions

{table=head]Concoction|Market Price|Craft DC
Acid (flask)|10 gp|12
Alchemist’s Fire (flask)|20 gp|14
Antitoxin (vial)|50 gp|20
Everburning Torch|110 gp|32
Holy Water (flask)|25 gp|15
Smokestick|20 gp|14
Sunrod|2 gp|10
Tanglefoot Bag|50 gp|20
Thunderstone|30 gp|16
Tindertwig|1 gp|10[/table]

[Zeta Kai]

Geomancer
(3E, Revised)

NOTE: This version of the geomancer is intended to be an improvement of the old version. It is recommended that anyone who has read the original should compare the two versions, as this one has been enhanced in a number of ways. This version is easier to enter, has a higher spell progression, & has more & stronger class features. Please let us know what you think of this class, either as a standalone PrC or as an improvement over its predecessor.

Hit Die: d6

Entry Requirements
To qualify to take levels as a geomancer, a character must fulfill all the following criteria:

Skills: Knowledge (dungeoneering), Knowledge (geography), or Knowledge (nature) 8 ranks
Languages: Terran
Spells: Must be capable of casting 1st-level spells.
Special: You must contact a being of elemental earth, which will provide you with an ounce of enriched clay. You must consume this clay alone & the sleep for one night in a bed of bare earth.

Table 5-4: The Geomancer (PrC)

{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fortitude Save|Reflex Save|Will Save|Special|Spells
1st|+0|+0|+0|+2|Geomancy|--
2nd|+1|+0|+0|+3|Burrow (Sand & Soil)|+1 level of existing class
3rd|+1|+1|+1|+3|Stone Shape|+1 level of existing class
4th|+2|+1|+1|+4|Hardened Skin (Natural Armor)|+1 level of existing class
5th|+2|+1|+1|+4|Spike Stones|+1 level of existing class
6th|+3|+2|+2|+5|Burrow (Rock or Stone), Transmute Earth|--
7th|+3|+2|+2|+5|Whispered Awareness|+1 level of existing class
8th|+4|+2|+2|+6|Wall of Stone|+1 level of existing class
9th|+4|+3|+3|+6|Hardened Skin (Damage Reduction)|+1 level of existing class
10th|+5|+3|+3|+7|Earthquake|+1 level of existing class[/table]

Class Skills
The geomancer’s class skills (& the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Knowledge (dungeoneering) (Int), Knowledge (geography) (Int), Knowledge (local) (Int), Knowledge (nature) (Int), Listen (Wis), Search (Int), Spellcraft (Int), Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis).

Skill Points at Each Level: 6 + Int modifier.

Class Features
Weapon & Armor Proficiency: You gain no proficiency with any armor. You do gain proficiency with all thrown weapons & with all shields.

Spells: At every level except for 1st & 6th, a geomancer gains new spells per day (& spells known, if applicable) as if he had also gained a level in whatever spellcasting class (either arcane or divine) he belonged to before he added the prestige class. He does not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained. If a character had more than one spellcasting class before he became a geomancer, he must decide to which class he adds each level of geomancer for the purpose of determining spells per day.

Geomancy (Su): A geomancer draws divine knowledge from the earth around him & can consult its primordial wisdom to guide him to the information he needs. He gains a daily pool of geo-points equal to his class level plus the modifier of his primary casting stat (Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma), which he may spend to use a geomancy ability as a standard action. The geomancer may use any geomancy ability that he can afford.

The geomancy abilities (& their costs) are:

Know Direction (1 point): As the spell.
Detect Secret Doors (2 points): As the spell, cast at the geomancer’s caster level.
Detect Snares & Pits (3 points): As the spell, cast at the geomancer’s caster level.
Augury (4 points): As the spell.
Find Traps (5 points): As the spell, cast at the geomancer’s caster level.
Locate Object (6 points): As the spell, cast at the geomancer’s caster level.
Clairvoyance/Clairaudience (7 points): As the spell, cast at the geomancer’s caster level, & can see through magical darkness & natural darkness.
Divination (8 points): As the spell, cast at the geomancer’s caster level.
Scrying (9 points): As the spell, cast at the geomancer’s caster level. The geomancer requires a pool of water or mud, or a smoothed clay or stone surface, to employ this ability. The saving throw DC is equal to 10 + the geomancer’s class level + the modifier from his primary casting stat (Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma).
Commune with Nature (10 points): As the spell, cast at the geomancer’s caster level.
Telepathic Bond (11 points): As the spell, cast at the geomancer’s caster level. Participants in the bond must be standing on the bare earth or sand (if they lose contact with the ground, the bond goes silent until they return).
Stone Tell (12 points): As the spell, cast at the geomancer’s caster level.
Find the Path (13 points): As the spell, cast at the geomancer’s caster level.
Discern Location (14 points): As the spell, cast at the geomancer’s caster level.
Foresight (15 points): As the spell, cast at the geomancer’s caster level; personal range only.

Burrow (Ex): At 2nd level, a geomancer gains a burrow speed, allowing them to tunnel through the earth like a fish swims through the sea. He can burrow through sand & soil, but not solid stone (at least, not right away). His burrow speed is equal to 5’ per class level. He cannot charge or run while burrowing. Like most burrowing creatures, he does not leave behind tunnels other creatures can use, because the material they tunnel through fills in behind them. Later, at 6th level, he can burrow through rock & stone; dense metallic deposits may still slow or even block his travel, however.

Stone Shape (Sp): At 3rd level, a geomancer can use stone shape (as per the spell) a number of times per day equal to his class level plus the modifier from his primary casting stat (Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma). His caster level for this spell-like ability is equal to his total character level.

Hardened Skin (Ex): At 4th level, a geomancer’s flesh becomes tougher & more stone-like, gaining an ashy, rocky cast. This results in a natural armor bonus equal to his class level. At 9th level, his flesh becomes even denser & more like stone, which grants him Damage Reduction/-- equal to his class level.

Spike Stones (Sp): At 5th level, a geomancer can use spike stones (as per the spell) a number of times per day equal to his class level plus the modifier from his primary casting stat (Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma). His caster level for this spell-like ability is equal to his total character level.

Transmute Earth (Sp): At 6th level, a geomancer can use soften earth & stone, transmute rock to mud, &/or transmute mud to rock (as per the spells) a total number of times per day equal to his class level plus the modifier from his primary casting stat (Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma). His caster level for these spell-like abilities is equal to his total character level.

Whispered Awareness (Ex): At 7th level, a geomancer gains Tremorsense, with a range equal to 10’ per class level.

Wall of Stone (Sp): At 8th level, a geomancer can use wall of stone (as per the spell) a number of times per day equal to his class level plus the modifier from his primary casting stat (Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma). His caster level for this spell-like ability is equal to his total character level.

Earthquake (Sp): At 10th level, a geomancer can use earthquake (as per the spell) a number of times per day equal to the modifier from his primary casting stat (Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma), minimum 1. His caster level for this spell-like ability is equal to his total character level.

[Zeta Kai]

Zihaja’s Palace
Normally, the palace cannot be seen or accessed from either Siraaj or Najmah. The only way to catch a glimpse of it is to ride upon Qamar, the Wandering Moon, as the souls of the dead do when they cross over into the afterlife. As the moon passes through the Place Between Places, the incorporeal spirits fall into the River of Starlight, to be carried by its currents & washed away to the Pool of Rebirth. Only during this time can His Sublime Palace be seen, a great luminous bastion surrounded by dark nothingness & the swirling river.

The Outer Expanse
The palace of Zihaja is opulent beyond mere words, a vision of wealth & power that transcends all measure or description. It looks different to each viewer: some see only three great spires joined by bridges & buttresses, while others perceive countless smaller towers branching from a vast citadel, & others still see only a cyclopean pyramid, so smooth & featureless that it appears to be made of a single impossibly-large stone. The walls are made of polished marble, each block gleaming like ivory & veined with what looks like sparkling gold. Waves of translucence randomly pass over the walls, during which it seems as though the stone is transformed into pearlescent crystal for a fleeting moment.

The entire structure floats alone in an endless black void, the cold distant stars its only company. A river of starlight winds through the vast emptiness & wraps around the palace, spiraling down to a vanishing point infinitely far below. Where the starlight first meets the palace, a gigantic doorway arches overhead, its two great doors shut tight. Only a crack of blinding light can be seen between the closed doors, the entrance sealed by magic & guarded by twin ammuti.

To enter the palace, one must approach the doors & knock four times, no more, no less. No spell, trick, or display of power can gain access to the inside of the palace; only by walking through the open doorway can one enter. (Teleportation & flight are impossible within sight of the building.) The doors will remain shut until the fourth knock, & will be locked forever for anyone who knocks more than four times. The ammuti will not strike unless they are attacked first, but they will not allow someone to enter who wishes to do harm to anyone inside the palace.

The Inner Spaces
For those who have knocked exactly four times, the great doors can be pushed open with ease, gliding silently back along golden grooves in the tiled floor. No living creature can be seen within the palace, but the empty halls sometimes echo with the sounds of distant creatures: talking, laughing, crying, screaming. The vestibule is enormous, silent as a grave & lit by a blazing brilliance, which seems to come from everywhere & nowhere at once. An immense rug lies in the middle of the floor, woven with dazzling intricacy to depict an ever-changing scene of various mythological events. The atrium has five open doorways, which each lead to their own mazelike halls spreading in all directions.

Every hall & room in the palace is lavishly appointed, but as sterile & austere as a temple. The floors are tiled with gold, marble, & crystal, laid out in various geometric patterns of maddening complexity. The walls are made of flawlessly interlocking stones, each precisely etched with minute symbols & pictograms in an unknown language. The ceilings are very tall, arching overhead at a height which would allow for the greatest of beasts to walk unhindered. Although there are no light fixtures to be found anywhere, every inch of the palace is illuminated in a steady even light, & no shadow is cast anywhere. The air is cold & still, as though no creature has walked these halls in centuries, though no dust has gathered upon any surface. Time does not appear to pass at all in this place, as people do not hunger, thirst, age, or need to rest within these walls.

The hallways twist & branch to form an un-navigable labyrinth which can easily cause anyone to become hopelessly lost. The corridors seem to change direction & orientation when one isn’t looking, which makes mapping the halls impossible. No means of marking one’s path will work, as every attempt will disappear as quickly as it is applied. Those who become lost can always save themselves, however, simply by entering one of the myriad unlocked doors which line the halls at irregular intervals. Every door leads to one of five rooms, the destination being determined purely by chance.

Chambers of the Palace
The Prison (“Al-Zinzana”) is the most commonly seen chamber in the palace, as well as the largest. It a truly vast chamber, a single room with walls that extend into the hazy distance, so large that it almost feels like being outside on a cloudy day. The chamber has countless rows of golden sarcophagi, each of which is 8 feet long, 4 feet wide, & 4 feet tall, shaped like an expressionless man in repose. Each sarcophagus has a removable (albeit very heavy) lid, & inside of each one is the body of a comatose being encased in opalescent crystal, making identification of even their races impossible. The purpose for these incarcerations is unknown, & no means exists to free the untold thousands of beings from their frozen slumber.

The Library (“Al-Maktabah”) is the most densely-packed chamber, making it feel more intimate & personal than the rest. Almost the entirety of the room’s expansive space is dedicated to innumerable bookshelves, each of which is packed tightly with books of every shape & size. It is said that a copy of every book ever written can be found here, if one is willing to search for it long enough. These books cannot be burned, torn, or otherwise destroyed, nor can they be taken out of the Library; any unattended, closed book will find its way back onto the nearest available shelf as soon as one’s back is turned. The shelves do not seem to be organized into any known system, so finding the particular tome that one is looking for may seem to be a daunting task. However, the shelves have a way of moving the books around when no one is looking; it never takes longer than a few minutes to find a specific book, provided that the seeker say the name of the book aloud (or at least the desired subject).

Besides the multitude of bookshelves, the only other objects in the Library are occasional tables & chairs. The largest book in the entire Library is an absolutely enormous volume called the Tome of Days, which is the only book that sits upon a table (as it would not fit upon any shelf). The Tome of Days is a record of everything that has ever happened, with each page recording all of the events of a single day. The book is always open to yesterday, & only the previous pages can be read. The reader could, if desired, read about anything that has ever occurred within the Kamala, in astounding detail, but the page for the current day cannot be turned by any means, so one cannot read of future events. One could, however, get a good guess at how long the Kamala will last, by estimating the number of pages left in the tome.

The Arena (“Al-Hatam”) is a circular chamber, with only a 100-foot diameter, but it is a place where one could spend a lifetime exploring (or exploiting). The walls are completely lined with tall cabinets, each with many drawers; every weapon, armor, & magical or mundane item ever created can be found inside one of these drawers, as one needs only to look for a short time to find whatever thing that they could possibly desire. The only object that cannot be used is a simple wooden hourglass (the sands of which never seem to fill or empty), which is always in the first drawer that someone opens.

In center of the Arena is an 80-foot-wide ring, marked by small drop in the floor’s height (about a foot deep). Inside the ring, battles, duels, & contests of any kind can be conducted, without regard for the rest of the Kamala. Anyone in the ring can instantly summon any creature imaginable, just by declaring aloud that they wish to do so. No form of magic can cross the ring’s boundary, nor can any kind of summoned creature, although solid, non-summoned creatures can cross freely. The chamber is guarded by a solar named Shaliel, a silent red-robed figure who can call any number of solars, planetars, &/or maruts to her aid if she feels the need. One must ask Shaliel (or her occasional substitute, Shekiel) for permission to take any item from the Arena; otherwise, she will prevent the removal via any means necessary.

The Bedroom (“Al-Firash”) is the most surprising of the palace’s chambers, considering the vacant, ascetic character of the structure. Upon entering, a person will encounter a sumptuous room, decorated in a style that they would consider extravagant. The room always has a bed & a dresser, but the other furniture that is present (if any) depends on the viewer. The bed is luxurious & ornate, like all the adornments of the chamber, & the wardrobe contains a comfortable sleeping outfit for whoever opens it. While time does not pass normally within the palace, anyone who lies in the bed can sleep soundly in total relaxation, unlike any that they have ever experienced elsewhere; doing so will completely restore any lost hit points or ability scores, as well as remove any negative status conditions.

For groups who enter the Bedroom, the situation is much the same as for an individual, except that the chamber will appear much larger. A number of beds will appear equal to the number of people who enter the room, each having the same appearance & properties. Groups will also find that the Bedroom contains a central table with enough chairs for their entire party, should they decide to sit down.

The Sanctum (“Al-Hujra”) is the most rarely seen of the palace’s chambers, as it can only be found if the lord of the palace Himself wishes it. The Sanctum is actually rather small, compared to the other rooms in the palace, but it makes up for it in sheer majesty. Every surface is covered in sumptuous detail, & every line is angled toward the center of the chamber. Upon a raised dais is a circular divan, & reclining upon it, looking through the eyes of one of ten golden masks, is a man with obsidian skin wearing plain white linen robes. The nine unworn masks hang from the golden walls, each framed by the feathers of homa, simurghs, phoenixes, rocs, hafaza, & devas of all types.

Zihaja is the only permanent occupant of His palace, although he sometimes keeps servants for a time. He never removes his mask-of-the-moment, & cannot be affected by arms or magic of any kind; His will is absolute, & cannot be thwarted. On the rare occasions when he speaks, His voice has a deafening almighty power, but is tinged with weariness, regret, & age beyond imagining. Should He choose to answer a question, He will not lie, but most requests are met with a silence that is somehow louder than His words.

Should Zihaja find a particular soul (either living or dead) to be worthy, He will bring the person to His Sanctum. There, they will be interviewed by Him directly, where He will ask ten questions that cut to the very core of the individual. Should the answers be found satisfactory, the soul will be tasked to serve Him in His Sublime Palace; this service usually takes the form of a perilous quest. Those that fail to meet His standards are banished from the palace, forever barred from crossing the threshold again.

An Alternate Route
Unbeknownst to all but a few archmages, there exists a secret means of seeing (& even entering) His Sublime Palace. This method, unlike the means vaguely alluded to above, does not involve being a disembodied spirit or riding the Wandering Moon across the planar boundary. The steps needed for a mortal being to do so are as follows:

Discover that He exists (Knowledge (Kamala) check, DC40).
Learn that He has a nigh-inaccessible palace in the Space Between Spaces (Knowledge (Kamala) check, DC50).
Become Colossal-sized via some method (an epic-level version of enlarge person?).
Cast stairs of Madrasah.
Ascend the staircase & enter the Chamber (Will save, DC30).
Instead of the chamber, step onto the balcony overlooking the River of Starlight (Will save, DC40).
Jump “into” the river (the Leap of Faith; Will save, DC50).
“Swim” to the shore (Swim check, DC40); those who fail are swept down into the Pool of Rebirth & are reincarnated on the plane opposite of that which they were born (effective character death, no save).
Walk along the “shore” to the door of the palace, taking care not to be swept into the river again (Balance check, DC30).
Knock four times upon the doors of the palace; no more, no less (Knowledge (Kamala) check, DC60).

[Zeta Kai]

Dervish
(3E, Revised)

NOTE: This version of the dervish is intended to be an improvement of the old version. It is recommended that anyone who has read the original should compare the two versions, as this one has been enhanced in a number of ways. Please let us know what you think of this class, either as a standalone PrC or as an improvement over its predecessor.

Hit Die: d10

Entry Requirements
To qualify to take levels as a dervish, a character must fulfill all the following criteria:

Base Attack Bonus: +3.
Skills: Knowledge (religion) 4 ranks, Perform (Dance) or Tumble 4 ranks.
Feats: Combat Reflexes, Iron Will.
Alignment: No more than one step away from your deity’s alignment.
Special: You must be devoted to a deity (or a cause), & have defeated one of its opponents in its name.

Table 5-2: The Dervish (PrC)

{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fortitude Save|Reflex Save|Will Save|Special
1st|+1|+2|+2|+2|Spring Attack, Warrior’s Prayer +1
2nd|+2|+3|+3|+3|Clerical Domain, Whirl
3rd|+3|+3|+3|+3|Smite 1/day, Uncanny Dodge
4th|+4|+4|+4|+4|Evasion, Mettle, Warrior’s Prayer +2
5th|+5|+4|+4|+4|Smite 2/day, Whirlwind Attack
6th|+6|+5|+5|+5|Greater Smite
7th|+7|+5|+5|+5|Smite 3/day, Warrior’s Prayer +4
8th|+8|+6|+6|+6|Sublime Smite
9th|+9|+6|+6|+6|Improved Uncanny Dodge, Smite 4/day
10th|+10|+7|+7|+7|Wrath of God, Warrior’s Prayer +8[/table]

Class Skills
The Dervish’s class skills (& the key ability for each skill) are Balance (Dex), Climb (Str), Escape Artist (Dex), Hide (Dex), Jump (Str), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Intimidate (Cha), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Perform (dance) (Cha), Profession (any religious) (Wis), Ride (Str), Spot (Wis), Tumble (Dex).

Skill Points at Each Level: 8 + Int modifier.

Class Features
Weapon & Armor Proficiency: A dervish gains proficiency with his deity’s favored weapon, but gains no proficiency with armor or shields.

Spring Attack: A dervish gains Spring Attack as a bonus feat, even if they do not have the normal prerequisites for that feat.

Warrior’s Prayer (Su): After waking, a dervish may spend one hour in prayer or silent contemplation. Doing so affords him a +1 bonus to attack rolls, damage rolls, skill checks, AC, & saving throws for 24 hours. The type of bonus received depends on the alignment of the dervish’s deity: a Good god grants a sacred bonus, an Evil god grants a profane bonus, & a Neutral god grants either one (although they are consistently one or the other). At 4th level, this bonus increases to +2; at 7th level, this bonus increases to +4; finally, at 10th level, this bonus increases to +8.

Clerical Domain: At 2nd level, a dervish gains access to one of their deity’s domains, like a cleric would. The dervish chooses which domain that they gain access to, & this choice cannot be changed later. They can immediately use the domain’s granted power, & can cast the first spell in the domain as a spell-like ability. For each subsequent class level, a dervish can cast another spell in the domain as a spell-like ability; for example, a 4th-level dervish can cast the third spell in a domain, while a 10th-level dervish can cast the ninth spell in a domain. Each of these spell-like abilities are useable once per day, being replenished during the Warrior’s Prayer.

Whirl (Ex): At 2nd level, a dervish may enter into a whirling frenzy of divinely-guided wrath. The dervish gains a +2 bonus on all physical ability scores (Strength, Dexterity, & Constitution) for a number of rounds equal to the dervish’s class level. This bonus increases by +2 for every level of dervish taken, so a 4th-level dervish would gain a +6 bonus, while a 10th-level dervish would gain a +18 bonus. The type of bonus is equal to the bonus type gained by the Warrior’s Prayer (see above), & because this bonus affects the ability scores while the benefits of the Warrior’s Prayer affects rolls & stats dependent upon those abilities, the two bonuses effectively stack.

A Whirl is much like a barbarian’s Rage feature in a number of ways. The increase in Constitution increases the dervish’s hit points by 2 points per level, but these hit points go away at the end of the Whirl when their Constitution score drops back to normal. These extra hit points are not lost first the way temporary hit points are. While whirling, a dervish cannot use any Charisma-, Dexterity-, or Intelligence-based skills (except for Balance, Escape Artist, Intimidate, & Ride), the Concentration skill, or any abilities that require patience or concentration, nor can they cast spells or activate magic items that require a command word, a spell trigger (such as a wand), or spell completion (such as a scroll) to function. They can use any feat they have except Combat Expertise, item creation feats, & metamagic feats. A dervish may prematurely end their whirl. Unlike a barbarian’s Rage, however, a dervish does not become fatigued at the end of a Whirl.

A dervish can perform a Whirl a number of times per day equal to either their Wisdom modifier or their Charisma modifier (their choice, minimum 1). A Whirl cannot be performed if the dervish is flatfooted, & if the dervish becomes helpless for more than one round, the Whirl ends.

Smite (Su): At 3rd level, a dervish may attempt to smite an enemy of their deity, just as a good paladin smites evil creatures. An enemy, in this case, is any sentient creature that does not worship the dervish’s deity, & has an alignment more than one step removed from their deity’s. To perform a smite attack, the dervish adds the better of their Wisdom modifier or their Charisma modifier to a single melee attack roll, & deals 1 extra point of damage per total character level. If the dervish accidentally smites a creature that is not an enemy of their deity, the smite has no effect, but the ability is still used up for that day. At 5th level, 7th level, & 9th level, the dervish gains an additional daily smite attempt.

Uncanny Dodge (Ex): At 3rd level, a dervish retains their Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) regardless of being caught flat-footed or struck by an invisible attacker. They still lose any Dexterity bonus to AC if immobilized or otherwise rendered helpless. If a dervish gains Uncanny Dodge from a second class, they automatically gain Improved Uncanny Dodge instead.

Evasion (Ex): At 4th level, a dervish can avoid even magical & unusual attacks with great agility. If they make a successful Reflex saving throw against an attack that normally deals half damage on a successful save, they instead takes no damage. Evasion can be used only if the dervish is wearing light armor or no armor. A helpless dervish does not gain the benefit of this feature. If a dervish gains Evasion from a second class, they automatically gain Improved Evasion instead.

Mettle (Ex): At 4th level, if the dervish makes a successful Fortitude or Will save against an attack that normally would have a partial effect on a successful save, he instead completely negates the effect. This ability does not function while the dervish is helpless.

Whirlwind Attack: At 5th level, a dervish gains Whirlwind Attack as a bonus feat, even if they do not have the normal prerequisites for that feat.

Greater Smite (Su): At 6th level, a dervish’s smites become infused with divine energy. Any successful smite attack by the dervish (including smites from other sources) deals an additional 1d6 points of damage from one of the following energy types: acid, cold, electricity, fire, or sonic. The dervish chooses the energy type each morning during their Warrior’s Prayer. For every additional level of dervish after 6th, the damage from Greater Smite increases by +1d6 points.

Sublime Smite (Su): At 8th level, a dervish may add a radiant power to their smites. This smite deals 5d6 points of divine damage, which stacks with the dervish’s normal smite damage. In addition, a foe struck by the dervish’s smite attack must make a Fortitude save (DC = 10 + the dervish’s class level + the dervish’s Wisdom or Charisma modifier, whichever is greater) or be blinded for 1d4+1 rounds.

Improved Uncanny Dodge (Ex): At 9th level, a dervish can no longer be flanked. This defense denies rogues the ability to use flank attacks to Sneak Attack the dervish. The exception to this defense is that a rogue at least four levels higher than the dervish can flank then (& thus sneak attack them).

If a dervish gains Uncanny Dodge from a second class, then they automatically gain Improved Uncanny Dodge, & the levels from those classes stack to determine the minimum rogue level required to flank the character.

Wrath of God (Su): At 10th level, a dervish may spend a smite attempt & instead make a special death attack against an enemy of their faith. On a successful melee touch attack, the opponent must make a Fortitude save (DC 10 + the dervish’s total character level + the dervish’s Wisdom or Charisma modifier, whichever is greater) or die. Upon a successful save, the foe suffers no ill effect. If the adversary is not an enemy of the dervish’s faith (as defined above), then the attack has no effect, but the attempt still counts against the dervish’s total number of smites that day, just like a genuine smite attack.

[Zeta Kai]

The Pactspell
& the
Ten Dark Years
Prelude to Disaster
The Pactspell was a cataclysmic event that killed millions, destroyed nations, & changed the fate of both worlds forever. During the Ten Dark Years that immediately followed the Great Calamity (as it is known the people of Najmah), untold millions more died, either of famine, despair, or at the black hands of the ghuls. To truly understand the Pactspell, its effects, & its aftermath, one must look to the root causes of the tragedy, some of which occurred centuries before that fateful day.

During the imperial era, the Council of the Archmagi gained increasing political power in the Empire of Admaja. Founded in 460 IR, their influence was the driving force behind the empire’s ever-growing use of (& some would say dependence upon) magical spells & items. The council ostensibly represented all of the registered mages in the Old Empire, focusing their collective ambitions & making the already-formidable imperial army nigh-unstoppable. The archmages were always on the hunt for ways to increase their power, & they thought that they had found their answer in the mastery of gates that could bridge the divide between Siraaj & Najmah.

Meanwhile, on the Plane of Night, the genies were searching for a solution to their own problems. They were striving for power, as well, vying for territory with the houris, devas, devils, & other peoples of Najmah, but despite their innate magical abilities, they were losing. The other major races were deeply entrenched in a long-standing stalemate, & the genie nations could make no headway, stymied at every turn. Longing for a place where they could expand their rule uncontested, they eventually looked to escape Najmah altogether, seeing the mortal realms of Siraaj as ripe for the taking.

So when the Council of the Archmagi first made contact with the ambassadors of multiple genie nations (Agni, Atma, & Padam) from Najmah in 545 IR, it seemed like a serendipitous match to both sides. They each got something that they wanted: the mages of Admaja obtained access to arcane lore & magical formulations that they never could have gotten otherwise, while the genies were able to gain a foothold onto Siraaj, sending hundreds (& later thousands) of their kind through the transplanar gates. In less than 50 years, the archmages had enough genie-backed magical power to rival the emperor himself in influence, & the genies were poised to found a nation of their own on Siraaj, a base from which they could potentially mount an invasion.

The Final Days
Things continued on in this vein for many years, until the archmages became the dominant entity in the politics of the Admajai Empire, & the emperor was little more than a figurehead in an effective magocracy. But the council’s ambitions were not sated; they wanted more, as did the genies, & their collective thirst for ever-increasing control over their worlds led to their undoing, & the ruin of all around them. By 818 IR, the council & the genies were ready for the next step in their plans.

Together, the archmages & the genies conspired to make both of their wildest dreams a reality. They designed a magical ritual of truly epic proportions, with hundreds of casters simultaneously participating on each side, working in concert to complete the arcane formulae. This “pact-spell,” as they conceived of it, would transport nearly all of the pureblooded genies to Siraaj, while also shifting most of the empire’s citizenry to Najmah. The imperials could live in a world of magical wonders, a paradise that they had awaited for centuries, & the genies would have a brand new world all to themselves, free of any rivals that could match their magical might.

But the Pactspell was not nearly as flawless & well-designed as the archmages were led to believe. The genies were the primary architects of the ceremony, & they were more concerned with the wellbeing of their own kind than what would happen to the Admajai upon arriving on Najmah. The formulae would not work unless they were precisely balanced, & the lack of care that the genies put into the Pactspell all but guaranteed that something would go awry. But the archmages were too eager to check the ritual for errors, & could only poorly understand the genies’ notations in the first place. The council thought that they would be bringing their empire into a new world of wonders; they were right.

So after more than a decade of planning & preparation, on the morning of Zurah, the 36th day of Lura-Balaz, in the year 829 of the Imperial Reckoning, in the center of the Admajai capital of Asanam, the 12 leaders of the council each stepped onto a disk of obsidian, on a dais made especially for the casting of this ritual. At the same time, on Najmah, the 12 best theurges from Agni, Atma, Padam, & other genie nations gathered together on a similar platform to begin the chant that would initiate the Pactspell. For hours, the casters on both sides recited their memorized scripts, each contributing all of their arcane power & knowledge to the monumental task of enacting the grand ceremony.

Finally, as the sun was setting in the western sky, the Pactspell was complete. From what accounts remain, a portal of night opened up over every Admajai settlement on the continent. For a moment, it seemed as though the great scheme might have been a success, but it was soon apparent that something had gone wrong. The gates pulled upon the people, the buildings, & everything else within their grasp, drawing them upward with titanic strength into their starry maws. Entire cities were sucked up into the portals, torn asunder as they disappeared forever from the face of Siraaj. The citizens fared little better, as many were crushed between stone, metal, wood, & glass as all was carried skyward.

Outside of the towns & cities, countless smaller gates were opening, dumping out genies by twos & threes. These rifts opened with explosive force, destroying anything (or anyone) that was nearby, even as it deposited the genies with relative gentleness. The combined destruction wrought by the genies’ arrival sent vast plumes of dust & debris into the air, creating choking clouds that blanketed the land & obscured the sky. Thus began the Ten Dark Years.

After the End
The genies of Najmah greatly outnumbered the citizens of the Empire of Admaja, even if one does not count the janni or those genies that did not belong to one of the major nations. When they were transported to Siraaj (an event that was widely expected among their kind), they did not find the peaceful day-lit world that they had been promised. The Pactspell had utterly ravaged the land, & the dark clouds of ash blocked the sun. Only smoking craters remained where the cities of the Admajai once proudly stood. The crops withered in the fields, livestock starved & died alongside the wildlife, & black rain fell hard as storms raged across the continent. In this devastation, the natives of Siraaj barely noticed the immigrant genies.

On the Plane of Night, the Admajai & their once-shining cities fell like meteors. Many of the settlements fell into the Speckled Sea, never to be seen again, & those that actually struck land became twisted heaps of dust & death. Only the Admajai capital of Asanam arrived mostly intact, & even it was instantly transformed into a shattered necropolis. Almost none of the mortals survived their abrupt journey to Najmah, & those few who did found little but the emptied genie lands & horrors unimagined in the living realm.

Both planes saw unparalleled desolation, with ruined cultures & power vacuums left in the wake of the apocalyptic event. The Empire of Admaja, at the time the largest nation on Siraaj, was functionally wiped clean from the map. Nearly all of the pureblooded genies (except for the janni) crossed over to Siraaj, disappearing overnight & leaving their own governments to collapse. The ghuls, long held in check by the Old Empire’s might, surged into the empty imperial lands, virtually unopposed by the newly-arrived genies. And there were other, less-foreseeable consequences of the Pactspell, repercussions that would resound through to the present day.

While Siraaj bore most of the brunt from the catastrophe, many places on Najmah suffered greatly, as well. The genie lands were left mostly empty, with only the janni, the mortal minority, & a few scattered geniefolk left behind, so they were ripe for the picking for demons, devils, & rakshasas to invade. And many settlements were damaged in the chaos that followed the Great Calamity, as the Pactspell was known in the Realm of Night. In fact, the destruction was so widespread that Sunya was forced to split the Pillar of Shadow into 33 fragments to rebuild the cities, a task that left the pillar broken ever since.

Most of the advances in medicine, astronomy, & other sciences on Siraaj were lost, as the Admajai had been the primary innovators & preservers of history, education, & culture for the previous thousand years. With their scholars & libraries suddenly gone, & the Ten Dark Years forcing the remaining societies to focus on mere survival, civilization on the Siraaj took several major steps backward. Some non-imperial centers of learning were untouched, but most were at least damaged or depopulated, & most areas of advancement have yet to recover.

The lack of science is especially painful, considering that magic has been blamed as the primary cause of the Pactspell. The Council of the Archmagi promoted magic as the solutions to most of life’s problems, so when their vaunted alliance with the genies & their much-hyped ritual blew up in their faces, it was widely seen as hubris & karmic retribution for meddling with forces that could not be understood. Ever since the Ten Dark Years passed, the use of magic has been condemned as selfish, destructive, & evil. Spell-casting is banned in most places, magical items are commonly illegal or tightly regulated, & inherently-magical creatures (including the numari races) are often persecuted.

As much as the natives of Siraaj suffered during the Ten Dark Years & afterward, the genies underwent far more pain & anguish. They have been reviled by mortal folk for their magical nature & their association with the Pactspell, even those who don’t fully understand their role in the catastrophe. They were left disoriented & leaderless. They have been hunted by the ghuls, & to a lesser extent the dragons of Azhan. And worst of all, they have been directly punished by Zihaja Himself, although they do not know the source of these reprimands.

In a rare intervention with His creations, Zihaja bound most of the genies into objects en masse during the Ten Dark Years. Only the genies left behind on Najmah, & the few janni who came to Siraaj, were spared this sentence. Genie-binding had been practiced in a very limited fashion prior to the Great Calamity, but Zihaja bound the majority of them into Admajai relics left behind by the Pactspell as a harsh reminder of their misdeeds. It also served to keep the balance of souls intact & restrict the use & spread of magic on Siraaj.

Even more upsetting to the genies, Zihaja revoked their rights in the Pit of Fate, throwing the very future of their race into question. As the souls of the dead travel along the path to the afterlife, they must walk up an ascending staircase in a dark void. Between the Ascensions of Desires & Worth, there was once the Terrace of Delight, where the genies could barter with souls to join their ranks (like the devas & the devils do). That balcony is a blasted ruin now, called the Terrace of Oblivion, as it was destroyed by Zihaja’s own hand in response to the Pactspell. Without the terrace, which was the genies’ primary means of gathering souls for reproduction, they have been forced to find other ways to perpetuate their kind, including diluting their blood with that of mortal races.

The Ten Dark Years were epitomized by sunless days, cold windswept nights, & hordes of ghuls prowling the countryside, hunting the unwary & unfortunate. People despaired, losing all hope for better days, & many believed that the world was coming to an end. A few brave souls rebelled against the forces of chaos & evil, like the great aazlai general Shimha Qirus, but they were rare motes of light in the vast clouds of darkness.

At last, when the ghuls seemed to be mounting a singular force to crush the beleaguered allies of goodness & decency, Akasha could bear the cries of the suffering no more. She gave the Light of Hope to Qirus, & asked for Sidaru to come to Siraaj & fight alongside the mortals. The White Sphinx answered the call, joining Qirus & his small remaining army of stalwart warriors, & together, they broke the ghul horde & scattered their ilk. Finally, the aazlai general held the Light of Hope aloft, & it parted the clouds, revealing the daylight for the first time in a decade. The Ten Dark Years were finally over, & the people of Siraaj could finally begin the process of rebuilding their damaged world.