Kazyan
2013-05-11, 10:54 PM
The following class uses experimental mechanics. They probably don't work quite right. Tell me if they need to be tweaked.
Also, this could totally be triggery because of how much it talks about pain, if that sets you off. Just throwing that out there.
Agonincy: The Power of Pain
http://i188.photobucket.com/albums/z228/Hauntinomin/agonincy_zpsffe6674c.png
"Anyone can inflict pain. Fewer can take it away. Only people like me can take pain away...and use it."
The fear of death is a powerful instinct in the civilized races, backed up by one of the most powerful deterrents in existence: pain. Everyone knows pain; it's a force that almost externally tugs at one's mind to get away from whatever is causing the problem. If a body is getting damaged, or somewhere roughly close to that, it's sending pain to the mind. And like many woeful things, pain is everywhere. No more highly concentrated is it than in warriors or adventurers in the middle of a fight. Battles to the death release a temendous amount of pain in the involved parties.
Long thought of as just a feeling and a part of life, pain is mostly ignored. But there is a power behind it, just like anger can be made into strength, or happiness can be wrung into Distilled Joy. This is touched upon by the Liquid Pain spell, which extracts pain into a liquid drug. But pain can be extracted into a more dilute energy by certain gifted people. Sometimes this is seen in dedicated healers, whose soothing touches crackle with a dissipation of black lightning. This black lightning, although rare, is well-documented among divine scholars, and is thought to be harmless when it appears alongside healing.
A few adventurers aren't healers, but exhibit the black lightning phenomenon at a touch as well. Any decent adventurer learns how to exploit all of their abilities, and the result of turning black lightning into power is the art called agonincy.
With agonincy, a gifted individual can withdraw the pain from a hurt creature in the form of black lightning, and stock it in a more concentrated form inside their bodies. This is, of course, unpleasant to the agonincer, and is thought to be similar to how delfire ones (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=281278) contain delfire. A difference is that all pain is more-or-less the same, and that it fades away over time. The agonincer stocks and exerts pain in the middle of combat, since their stock dissipates rapidly.
Exerting pain can power a variety of different abilities. Agonincers' pain stocks are measured in kerds, and larger amounts of kerds are required for more grandiose displays of power. More demanding powers are considered to be projected. While basic release of lightning is a non-projected ability, using Kerdsgrasp abilities are 1st-projection, Armors of Agony abilities are 2nd-projection, and so on. Where projection number is relevant to an agonincy effect, consider black lightning as 0th-projection.
The more kerds used in any projection, the higher-level the effect. It's possible to use many kerds for powerful black lightning, when there were enough to use a Armor of Agony ability. This is similar to augmenting a psionic power, except that the level of the agonincy power actually increases (though not the projection). The amount of kerds used and the agonincy effect's level is related by the following table:
KerdsLevel10th31st62nd113rd174th245th336th437th548 th679th8110th9611th11312th13113th
All agonincy effects are tied to this table--the agonincer spends a number of kerds equal to one of the levels on the table, and the agonincy effect depends on the level. The save DC for an agonincy effect is 10 + level + Dexterity modifier.
One unusual trait of agonincers is that even a beginner can stock up a tremendous amount of energy, up to their daily limits, though they might not be able to release all of it at once. Some evil agonincers depend on summoned creatures to fill their stocks before dealing with an encounters that otherwise seems deadly.
By default, a creature is experiencing a number of kerds of pain equal to their current HP damage, unless they do not have a Constitution score, in which case they cannot experience pain. An agonincer can collect some or all of these kerds, at which point the creature is no longer experiencing any pain. Outside of combat, pain from HP damage fades after 10 minutes.
Draining a creature's pain requires a swift action or move-equivalent action, which requires a successful touch attack against the creature. All usages of pain are swift actions, unless stated otherwise. A touch attack does not, in itself, allow the agonincer to draw kerds; it requires some thought. If a creature takes pain damage (see Sidebar: New Energy Type: Pain), a nearby agonincer with enough reach can make the touch attack to collect kerds as an immediate action, as the crackling black lightning leaps into their touch. However, they can only collect a number of kerds equal to the damage dealt in that case.
Agonincy is based on precision, control, and manipulation of pain energy. Dealing with pain also hones the reflexes. Thus, agonincy is Dexterity-based.
Sidebar: Freeing the Standard
Optimized combat can be over in the first round, and in any case, combats are short. It would be supremely frustrating for a player to spend turns collecting kerds, only for their contributions to be the busywork of cleaning up near-dead monsters at the end of the combat. With standard actions free, an agonincer can stock up and exert kerds alongside contributions to combat--such as by swinging a longsword.
Sidebar: New Energy Type: Pain
Wherever the game allows one to choose between the five major energy types--fire, cold, acid, electricity, and sonic--you can also choose pain energy. In general, use the game statistics for the sonic version, except Pain energy's damage dice are reduced by two steps compared to fire or cold damage. If the damage also imposes a status effect, use shaken as the analogue for less severe effects and frightened for the more serious ones. The exact details of the pain version of an effect may need to be discussed with the DM.
Lesser orb of pain deals d4s of pain damage instead of d8s.
Orb of pain deals 1d3 pain damage per caster level, and allows a Will save vs. becoming shaken for one round.
Spells such as wrack and symbol of pain that deal damage via pain should gain the [Pain] descriptor, along with all spells in the Pain domain, and have their damage typed as pain damage.
The empyreal ecstasy and sublime revelry spells remove all kerds from the target and makes them immune to [Pain] damage.
The damage from the Instruments of Blood Gift magic items can have their kerds removed, but the kerds resume one round after being removed, and do not ebb away with time.
A creature under the effects of eternity of torture, to which they failed their saving throw and have their attributes reduced to 0 (except for Constitution, at 1), can supply an unlimited amount of kerds to an agonincer that wishes to draw from them. Before all scores are zero, the spell inflicts kerds equal to three times the creature's maximum HP.
A kineticist with the Energy Snap alternate class feature can create a snap of pain energy, which deals 1 damage. It does not hurt objects, but stings enough to get attention.
Adventures: Where else would an agonincer find so many people in pain than traveling with a group of murderous vagabonds? The other options would be associating closely with a clerical temple. The safer often is more likely to be picked, but the fact remains that some agonicers do indeed wander in a party and take advantage of the continuous wounding.
Characteristics: Agonincers perform agonincy. Because agonincy is very quick, they can also fight more conventionally at the same time although they have only as much talent in that respect as a bard does.
Alignment: Any, though agonincers tend heavily towards evil--it's tempting to needlessly cause pain in order to draw power. Good agonincers use their power as the primary way to soothe wounds, and often have martyr complexes that cause them to deliberately hurt themselves for kerds. Chaotic agonincers may be drawn to the crackling lightning of kerds, whereas lawful agonincers may like to experiment with its properties.
Religion: Disturbingly but obviously, many agonincers worship evil gods of suffering and pain. Lolth, in particular, is worshipped for being the god of a race whose society is simply overflowing with kerds to harvest. This goes double for drow agonincers. On the other hand, worship of gods of healing such as Pelor are also common, as healing is almost synonymous with alleviating pain--an agonincer's specialty.
Background: In a sense, agonincers are like sorcerers. Not just anyone can become one; they have to discover that they can create the black lightning effect by touching hurt people, and then train their manipulation of the kerds.
Races: Agonincy can spring up in any race, in the same way that sorcery can.
Other Classes: If binders scream 'bad news', agonicers play a 5-hour rap-metal concert of 'bad news' with a permanencied Amplify spell. Agonincers don't seem to get along with anyone who isn't accepting of insidious magics--which may be another reason why they turn to adventuring.
Role: Agonincers are primarily direct-damage, but they have outside utility as skill-users or emergency arcanists. They have versatility beyond simply shooting Black Lightning.
Class Skills
The agonincer's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Appraise (Int), Bluff (Cha), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Disguise (Cha), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (Arcana) (Int), Knowledge (Religion) (Int), Knowledge (Local) (Int), Profession (Wis), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Spellcraft (Int), and Use Magic Device (Cha).
Skills Points at Each Level: 4 + Int
GAME RULE INFORMATION
Agonincers have the following game statistics.
Abilities: Dexterity is the most important score by far, as it improves save DCs and allows access to higher-projection agonincy effects, along with what Dexterity provides to all characters. Beyond that, the distribution of ability scores depends on the agonincer's secondary role. Constitution, however, is always useful.
Alignment: Any.
Hit Dice: d6
Starting Age: As bard.
Starting Gold: As cleric.
[TR][TD] LevelBase Attack BonusFort SaveRef SaveWill SaveSpecialKerds per DayMaximum Effect Level1st
+0
+0
+0
+2Agonincy, Stable Stock (1/2 * Dexterity), Black Lightning (0th-Projection), Black Static Shock101st2nd
+1
+0
+0
+3Kerdsgrasp (1st-Projection), Stable Stock (Dexterity)252nd3rd
+2
+1
+1
+3Pain Resistance 5383rd4th
+3
+1
+1
+4Free Kerd Use 1 (0th)443rd5th
+3
+1
+1
+4Stable Stock (2 * Dexterity)544th6th
+4
+2
+2
+5Armors of Agony (2nd-Projection)624th7th
+5
+2
+2
+5Pain Resistance 10745th8th
+6/+1
+2
+2
+6Free Kerd Use 3 (1st)885th9th
+6/+1
+3
+3
+6Stable Stock (4 * Dexterity)1036th10th
+7/+2
+3
+3
+7Sufferer's Senses (3rd-Projection)1207th11th
+8/+3
+3
+3
+7Pain Resistance 201407th12th
+9/+4
+4
+4
+8Free Kerd Use 6 (2nd)1608th13th
+9/+4
+4
+4
+8Stable Stock (7 * Dexterity)1829th14th
+10/+5
+4
+4
+9Dimensional Scars (4th-Projection)2069th15th
+11/+6/+1
+5
+5
+9Pain Resistance 3023410th16th
+12/+7/+2
+5
+5
+10Free Kerd Use 11 (3rd)26011th17th
+12/+7/+2
+5
+5
+10Stable Stock (10 * Dexterity)29011th18th
+13/+8/+3
+6
+6
+11Torture Avatars (5th-Projection)32212th19th
+14/+9/+4
+6
+6
+11Pain Immunity35512th20th
+15/+10/+5
+6
+6
+12Free Kerd Use 17 (4th), Twisting The Knife40013th
Sidebar: What's with all the nonlinear math?
In a word: HP. Agonincy is powered by HP damage, which does not scale linearly, like many other things in the game. The tables and nonlinear progressions are the result of compensating for this. Monsters have HP that can be approximated with the formula HP = 9/10 * CR2 + 30 for challenge ratings of 3 or higher, and agonincy numbers have been calibrated around them.
Weapon Proficiencies: Agonincers have proficiency with simple weapons, light armor, and shields (but not tower shields)
Agonincy (Su): Agonincers can use agonincy, as described above. They are limited by the number of kerds they can collect per day, as noted in the table, but they can only exert a number of kerds at one time equal to approximately one third of that. Kerds can only remain stocked for 10 minutes, after which point they dissipate.
Additionally, when an agonincer imbibes a dose of Liquid Pain, they automatically store 1 kerd from the conversion of liquid into lightning. The process is inefficient, however, thus only the one kerd.
Stable Stock (Su): An Agonincer never loses kerds due to dissipation beyond a certain threshold. They can store a number of kerds equal to half of their Dexterity modifier (minimum 1), which become stable and do not dissipate. At 2nd level, this increases to your Dexterity modifier. At 5th level, this increases to two times your Dexterity modifier. At 9th, this increases to four times your Dexterity modifier. At 13th, this increases to seven times your Dexterity modifier. Finally, at 17th, this increases to ten times your Dexterity modifier.
Black Lightning (Su): To use this ability, the agonincer must have a Dexterity score of 9 or higher. The agonincer selects a target, spends a number of kerds, and shoots a bolt of black lightning at it, which requires a ranged touch attack to succeed. Black Lightning deals 1d10 pain damage per level, or 1d4 for 0th-level Black Lightning. By choosing to decrease the damage by 1d10 (to a minimum of 1d10), the agoninicer can deal this damage to all creatures in a 30-foot line instead of one target, or to to all creatures within a 15-foot cone. In those cases, no touch attack is required, but a Reflex save halves the damage. The agonincer can reduce the damage again to double the distance as many times as they have available damage for. Reducing damage does not reduce Black Lightning's level.
Black Static Shock (Su): As a standard action, an agonincer can make a melee touch attack against an opponent to cause pain to erupt from their nerves and into the agoniner's stock. Black Static Shock deals pain damage equal to the target's Hit Dice, and leaves their bodies drained of the ability to experience pain for 10 minutes. The agonincer stocks kerds equal to the damage dealt, as part of a successful use of this ability.
Kerdsgrasp, 1st-level projection (Su): To use this ability, an agonincer must have at least 11 Dexterity. At 2nd level, the agonincer can form kerds into tools. Black lightning forms into the proper shape at their command. As a 1st-level or higher agonincy effect, the agonincer can generate a weightless version of a mundane handheld object, forged from black lightning. Alchemical items cannot be created, and items do not have special properties beyond their shape (Kerds will not create shapesand), nor will they have hardness greater than 8. Weapons can be made, but only light weapons. The item appears in the agonincers' hand and lasts for 1 round per effect level. Masterwork items can be created, but only by shortening the duration by 4 rounds.
As a special use of Kerdsgrasp, the agonincer can create a claw on their hand that can be used as a secondary natural weapon, dealing 1d6+1/2 Str damage for a medium creature at 1st level. For every two rounds that the agonincer shortens the duration of the claw, they can increases the damage dice of the claw by one step.
Pain Resistance (Ex): At 3rd-level, an agonincer gains an awesome tolerance for pain. They gain Pain Resist 5, as the energy type. At 7th level, this becomes Pain Resist 10. At 11th level, this becomes Pain Resist 20. At 15th level, this becomes Pain Resist 30. At 19th level, the agonincer becomes immune to pain damage and any spell with the [Pain] descriptor.
Free Kerd Use (Su): At 4th-level, an agonincer can draw upon the anguish inherent to keeping kerds stocked, and use that to power agonincy effects instead of their stock. As long as the agonincer has their Stable Stock completely filled, they can use certain agonincy effects freely, without spending kerds. At 4th level, they can use any 0th-level effect. At 8th level, they can use any 1st-level effect. At 12th level, they can use any 2nd-level effect. At 16th level, they can use any 3rd-level effect. At 20th level, they can use any 4th-level effect.
Armors of Agony, 2nd-projection (Su): To use this ability, an agonincer must have at least 13 Dexterity. At 6th level, an agonincer can pull kerds around their bodies into the shapes of equipment. Each possible shape forms around a particular body slot, but does not close the slot. If the agonincer does not have an item in the body slot, the shape closes the slot, and the level of the shape is increased by 1 with no increase in the number of kerds required. An agonincer can only create one peice of the Armors of Agony with one action, but they can create and wear more of them with subsequent actions. A shape lasts for a number of rounds equal to its level, and must be shaped as at least 3rd level.
All Armors of Agony shapes grant a +1 armor bonus to armor class, which stacks with other Armor of Agony shapes. Except for the Arms armor, they also grant an enhancement bonus to a skill corresponding to the shape location, with the bonus equal to the effect level. In addition, the agonincer can reduce the bonus by a chosen number (they cannot reduce below +0) to gain a secondary benefit dependent on the reduction amount. These bonuses and benefits only last for the duration of the shape, unless specifically noted otherwise.
Armors of Agony shapes last for 1 minute before dissipating.
Armors of Agony
Head: +effect level to Autohypnosis; reduce to gain telepathy out to 5' times the reduction.
Face: +effect level to Search; reduce to gain the effect of see invisibility for a reduction of 5 or more, or true seeing for 10 or more.
Throat: +effect level to Swim; reduce to be able to hold breath for an additional reduction * Constitution score rounds. Holding breath before the armor expires allows the wearer to keep holding breath as if the armor were there, but only for that instance.
Shoulders: +effect level to Bluff; reduce to gain the effect of nondetection for a reduction of 5 or more, or mind blank for 10 or more.
Torso: +effect level to Disguise; reduce to gain a resistance bonus to saving throws equal to the reduction amount.
Waist: +effect level to Tumble; reduce to heal self an amount equal to five times the effect level at the time of shaping. The healing is instantaneous, so it persists after the armor vanishes.
Body: +effect level to Diplomacy; can cast charm person as a supernatural ability at at DC 10 + reduction amount + the agonincer's Dexterity modifier, at any one time while the armor is shaped. A creature who saves against this ability is immune to it for 24 hours.
Arms: +effect level to Strength checks; reduce to increase carrying capacity as if your Strength were increased by three times the reduction amount.
Hands: +effect level to Sleight of Hand; reduce to gain the effect of alter self for a reduction of 5 or more. It persists for the spell's usual duration for a reduction of 10 or more, at a caster level equal to your agonincer level.
Feet: +effect level to Balance; reduce to gain a fly speed of 10' per effect level at poor maneuverability. This maneuverability increases by one step per two effect levels above 5th, to a maximum of perfect.
Sufferer's Senses, 3rd-projection (Su): To use this ability, an agonincer must have at least 15 Dexterity. At 10th level, an agonincer can activate any of a variety of Sufferer's Senses effects below, but must do so at at least 5th level.
Sufferer's Senses
Notice Pain: The agonincer gains blindsense out to 10 feet per effect level, but only becomes aware of creatures that are experiencing one or more kerds of pain. This effect lasts 24 hours. By exchanging 20 feet of radius (but without reducing to below 50 feet), the agonincer knows the hit point total of any creature they can detect with blindsense.
Kerd Scrying Sensor: The agonincer can use scrying as supernatural ability, except that the scrying sensor appears as a 1-inch-wide crackling ball of black lightning. The scrying sensor can also move, at a rate of 10 ft fly (perfect) per effect level. The scrying lasts for a number of minutes equal to the effect level. The sense has 1 hit point, no hardness, and AC 20. Creatures in pain appear blackened in the scrying.
Torn Wide Eyes: The agonincer's eyes open wide and become bloodshot with black lightning. You gain an insight bonus to Spot and Search equal to the effect level, and gain the darkvision special quality, for a number of hours equal to twice the effect level.
Prescient Flinch: The agonincer feels pain in advance, backing away from a wound that hasn't happened yet. You gain an insight bonus to AC and Reflex saves equal to the effect level, for one round.
Recall Painful Memory: By touching a creature and harmlessly channeling kerds, the agonincer can tap into painful memories. The agonincer gains knowledge of one of the creature's memories during which they experienced pain. Insignificant pains such as incidental stings do not count, but instances like stubbed toes do count, and combats almost certainly count. The agonincer learns of one additional memory per effect level above 5th.
View Terror: An agonincer can reach into a creature's mind and vividly see their nightmare--what the creature conceives of as the worst possible pain. The agonincer has to point to a creature within 30', but no touch or attack roll is required, though the creature must have a Constitution score. Seeing the terror shakes the mind, and the agonincer must make a Will saving throw against DC 15 + effect level or be shaken for 10 minutes. However, the insight into the creature's mind is helpful in scaring them: you gain an insight bonus equal to the effect level on Intimidate checks against that creature, for 24 hours. If you successfully demoralize them, they are frightened instead of shaken.
Mark of a Kerd: By touching a creature and harmlessly channeling kerds, the agonincer can keep awareness of a creature. They gain the benefit of the status spell with respect to that creature for a number of hours equal to the effect level.
Dimensional Scars, 4th-projection (Su): To use this ability, an agonincer must have at least 17 Dexterity. At 14th level, an agonincer can inflict gashes on time and space with their kerds. Each dimensional scar has a major version and a minor version, where the minor is the default. Major Dimensional Scars effects must be used at 7th level or higher, but minor ones can be used at 0th level or above.
Dimensional Scars
Cut Across: The agonincer flies apart into black lightning, which streaks along a line and reforms into the agonicer's form. In other words, the agonincer teleports a number of feet equal to 10' times the effect level + 5'. The black lightning does no damage.
---Major: By reducing the distance by a multiple of 10' (reducing to a minimum of 5'), the agonincer can afflict those caught within the line with black lightning. The line extends between the agonincer's starting and ending position. The black lightning's effect level is the number of feet reduced, divided by 10, and does damage as normal black lightning. Its shape cannot be changed by reducing damage.
Warp Distance: The agonincer creates a writhing field of kerds around themselves that pinches and stretches distances within. The agonincer's melee reach and ranged weapon range increments are increased by 5' per effect level, for 1 round. The agonincer does not threaten these extra squares. A 0th-level effect increases the range by 5', but only lasts for 1 round or until after the agonincer's next attack.
---Major: As above, but you also threaten the squares.
Open Planar Wound: The agonincer opens a crackling gate of black lightning to a nondimensional space. This space is completely dark and can contain both the agonincer and their gear, along with one small creature per effect level. A medium creature counts as two small creatures, a large creature counts as two medium creatures, and so on. After all desired creatures enter, the agonincer can close the gate as a swift action. The nondimensional space remains for two hours per effect level (or 10 minutes for a 0th-level effect), after which, the gate reopens and expels all creatures within before closing once more.
---Major: The gate instead leads to another plane at a desired destination, as the spell. This gate cannot be used to call creatures. Any number of creatures can pass through this gate, which lasts for one round per effect level.
Prior Blast: The agonincer shoots black lightning into the cracks between seconds of time, striking a creature slightly retroactively. This ability works like Black Lightning, except that the damage dice are reduced to 1d6 (or 1d3 in the case of 0th-level black lightning), and the creature is automatically flat-footed against the attack. This flat-footing bypasses even foresight's immunity to flat-footing. The black lightning's damage dice cannot be voluntarily reduced.
---Major: The agonincer can use this ability to interrupt a creature's attack retroactively. If the black lightning hits, the damage dealt by one attack the creature made in the previous round does not occur, or one spell/spell-like ability they cast does not occur. The results of the attack, spell, or spell like-ability simply vanish with this ability; they never happened. In the case of a spell or spell-like ability, the caster may make the appropriate Concentration check to keep the spell and negate the erasure.
Break Universal Focus: The agonincer's black lightning discharges into the reality around themselves, making the universe lose focus on the agonincer's existence. Parts of the agonincer blur and fade out, before reappearing shortly thereafter. The agonincer gains a miss chance equal to 5% per effect level, for 1 round. They can also attempt to pass through objects, as the blink spell, but gain no other benefits of blink.
---Major: The agonincer gains the [Incorporeal] subtype for 1 round.
Torture Avatars, 5th-projection (Su): To use this ability, an agonincer must have at least 19 Dexterity. At 18th level, the agonincer can project a creature made entirely from kerds. To do so, they must transfer their mind into a kerd construct that they force out of their bodies. This causes the agonincer's body to drop prone and lay helpless. Using a torture avatar is dangerous for this reason, but the avatars are powerful, and require the effect level to be at least 9th.
While helpless in this way, if the agonincer's body dies, the agonincer can continue acting as the torture avatar. When the avatar expires, their mind dies as well. Luckily, if the agonincer's body is attacked, kerds flow from the torture avatar to negate the attack--the damage is instead applied to the torture avatar. Effects such as finger of death can still kill the agonincer's body before interacting with the avatar.
All torture avatars are composed of a number of kerds, and usually have hit points dependent on the kerds composing them. Dealing hit point damage reduces the kerds, likewise. Torture avatars themselves do not experience pain, so agonincers cannot draw kerds from them. Whe a torture avatar reaches 0 HP (and therefore 0 kerds), it is destroyed, and the agonincer's mind returns to their body.
A torture avatar, when created, appears adjacent to the agonincer.
Torture avatars use the game statistics of the agonincer, including their magic items, with exceptions listed. The avatar can use agonincy effects, but this drains the kerds (and therefore HP) from their body. If a torture avatar uses a consumable or charged magic item, the item is consumed or has a charge removed, respectively, from the agonincer's inert body.
The agonincer's kerd stock in their body does not dissipate while embodying a torture avatar, but dissipation applies to the kerds composing the avatar. The agoniciner's Stable Stock ability does not stop the dissipation.
Torture Avatars
The Primal Predator
The Primal Predator has the feline shape of a jaguar, except that its jaws are massive, with huge canine teeth like a saber-toothed tiger. This torture avatar cannot use weapons, except for unarmed strikes and its own natural weapons: a bite, which deals 3d6 + 1-1/2 Str damage, and two secondary claws, which deal 1d4 + 1/2 Str. a sucessful bite allows a free trip attempt, as the Trip ability of a wolf. The Primal Predator is a large (long) creature with HP equal to three times the number of kerds used to create it. The Primal Predator gains a +effect level bonus to Intimidate, a +4 bonus to Strength and Dexterity, a +effect level enhancement bonus to natural armor, and the Pounce (Ex) and Rake (Ex) abilities of a leopard. If the effect level is 11th or higher, the Primal Predator also gains the Improved Grab (Ex) ability of a leopard.
The Executioner
The Executioner is a medium armored humanoid with an indistinct back-lightning hood over hits head and a curved, heavy blade. The Executioner's blade is mechanically a +4 Collision Keen (MIC) Greatsword with a resultant critical threat range of 17-20/x4, which also gains any enhancements of one chosen weapon the agonincer wields at the time of creating the avatar. These extra enhancements overlap, and vanish if the agonicer is separated from their weapon. The Executioner also wears a set of +2 Heavy Fortification Full Plate, which does not have a maximum dexterity bonus. The full plate overlaps with worn armor in the same way that the blade overlaps with a carried weapon. The Executioner has HP equal to twice its kerds, and gains a +6 bonus to Strength and the benefits of the Cleave feat. For every effect level above 9th, the enhancement bonus of the armor increases by +1, and the critical threat range of the blade increases by 1. For example, an 11th-level version of The Executioner has +4 armor and a threat range of 15-20/x4.
The Glitched One
The Glitched One is a writhing mass of strands of black lightning, changing with no movement. The lightning is simply different from one moment to the next. The Glitched One has HP equal to its kerds, but it is a huge creature with a reach of 30, and has 4 tentacle attacks. The tentacles deal 2d6 + Str damage, and The Glitched One has Improved Grab with them. The Glitched One's grapple modifier is equal to +18 + 3 per effect level. The Glitched One has the Frightful Presence special quality.
Seven
Seven is a medium human-shaped creature, with black-lightning spikes growing from its shoulders and joints. Combat does not forgive those who harm Seven; few intelligent creatures willingly try to hurt it more than twice. Any creature that harms Seven is wracked with sympathetic pain; they must make a Fortitutde save of DC 10 + effect level + the agonincer's Dexterity score, or take damage equal to half the damage they dealt, although resistances and reductions may apply. Any other affects inflicted on Seven are subject to this same mirroring, but are not halved. Seven is immune to death effects. Seven has Damage Reduction 7/cold iron and energy resistance 7 to all elements; apply these reductions before the mirroring effect. If the effect level is 11th or higher, the mirroring effect also triggers if the agonincer's body is harmed. Seven has hit points equal to twice its kerds.
The Flitting
The Flitting is a tiny, winged fey. Its equipment is scaled down to its size. The Flitting has a fly speed of 20' per effect level with perfect maneuverability, gains a +8 bonus to Tumble checks, and can make Tumble chekcs untrained. The Flitting gains a +6 bonus to Dexterity, and has Spell Resistance equal to 5 + effect level + the agonincer's Dexterity modifier. Finally, the Flitting gains the benefits of the Flyby Attack feat, and has hit points equal to its kerds.
WALL
WALL is closer to an embodied concept than a creature. Instead of taking a humanoid form, WALL is a solid block with a 60' by 60' space and no reach. WALL cannot attack or move, but all hostile creatures must make a Will save of DC 10 + effect level + agonincer's Dexterity modifier every turn or do everything in their power to destroy WALL during their turn. WALL is not easy to kill, however--it has hit points equal to five times it kerds, and Hardness equal to 10 + 2 per effect level, which applies to even sonic damage. WALL is a construct. When created, it is centered on the agonincer instead of appearing next to them, blocking line of effect and encapsulating the agonincer. Some creatures see a displeased, angry face upon WALL's surface, but it is difficult to be sure.
Twisting the Knife (Su): At 20th level, the agonincer is so knowledgeable and experienced in pain that they know how to inflict huge amounts of it. The agonincer's weapon attacks deal pain damage instead of normal weapon damage, if they choose so.
Also, this could totally be triggery because of how much it talks about pain, if that sets you off. Just throwing that out there.
Agonincy: The Power of Pain
http://i188.photobucket.com/albums/z228/Hauntinomin/agonincy_zpsffe6674c.png
"Anyone can inflict pain. Fewer can take it away. Only people like me can take pain away...and use it."
The fear of death is a powerful instinct in the civilized races, backed up by one of the most powerful deterrents in existence: pain. Everyone knows pain; it's a force that almost externally tugs at one's mind to get away from whatever is causing the problem. If a body is getting damaged, or somewhere roughly close to that, it's sending pain to the mind. And like many woeful things, pain is everywhere. No more highly concentrated is it than in warriors or adventurers in the middle of a fight. Battles to the death release a temendous amount of pain in the involved parties.
Long thought of as just a feeling and a part of life, pain is mostly ignored. But there is a power behind it, just like anger can be made into strength, or happiness can be wrung into Distilled Joy. This is touched upon by the Liquid Pain spell, which extracts pain into a liquid drug. But pain can be extracted into a more dilute energy by certain gifted people. Sometimes this is seen in dedicated healers, whose soothing touches crackle with a dissipation of black lightning. This black lightning, although rare, is well-documented among divine scholars, and is thought to be harmless when it appears alongside healing.
A few adventurers aren't healers, but exhibit the black lightning phenomenon at a touch as well. Any decent adventurer learns how to exploit all of their abilities, and the result of turning black lightning into power is the art called agonincy.
With agonincy, a gifted individual can withdraw the pain from a hurt creature in the form of black lightning, and stock it in a more concentrated form inside their bodies. This is, of course, unpleasant to the agonincer, and is thought to be similar to how delfire ones (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=281278) contain delfire. A difference is that all pain is more-or-less the same, and that it fades away over time. The agonincer stocks and exerts pain in the middle of combat, since their stock dissipates rapidly.
Exerting pain can power a variety of different abilities. Agonincers' pain stocks are measured in kerds, and larger amounts of kerds are required for more grandiose displays of power. More demanding powers are considered to be projected. While basic release of lightning is a non-projected ability, using Kerdsgrasp abilities are 1st-projection, Armors of Agony abilities are 2nd-projection, and so on. Where projection number is relevant to an agonincy effect, consider black lightning as 0th-projection.
The more kerds used in any projection, the higher-level the effect. It's possible to use many kerds for powerful black lightning, when there were enough to use a Armor of Agony ability. This is similar to augmenting a psionic power, except that the level of the agonincy power actually increases (though not the projection). The amount of kerds used and the agonincy effect's level is related by the following table:
KerdsLevel10th31st62nd113rd174th245th336th437th548 th679th8110th9611th11312th13113th
All agonincy effects are tied to this table--the agonincer spends a number of kerds equal to one of the levels on the table, and the agonincy effect depends on the level. The save DC for an agonincy effect is 10 + level + Dexterity modifier.
One unusual trait of agonincers is that even a beginner can stock up a tremendous amount of energy, up to their daily limits, though they might not be able to release all of it at once. Some evil agonincers depend on summoned creatures to fill their stocks before dealing with an encounters that otherwise seems deadly.
By default, a creature is experiencing a number of kerds of pain equal to their current HP damage, unless they do not have a Constitution score, in which case they cannot experience pain. An agonincer can collect some or all of these kerds, at which point the creature is no longer experiencing any pain. Outside of combat, pain from HP damage fades after 10 minutes.
Draining a creature's pain requires a swift action or move-equivalent action, which requires a successful touch attack against the creature. All usages of pain are swift actions, unless stated otherwise. A touch attack does not, in itself, allow the agonincer to draw kerds; it requires some thought. If a creature takes pain damage (see Sidebar: New Energy Type: Pain), a nearby agonincer with enough reach can make the touch attack to collect kerds as an immediate action, as the crackling black lightning leaps into their touch. However, they can only collect a number of kerds equal to the damage dealt in that case.
Agonincy is based on precision, control, and manipulation of pain energy. Dealing with pain also hones the reflexes. Thus, agonincy is Dexterity-based.
Sidebar: Freeing the Standard
Optimized combat can be over in the first round, and in any case, combats are short. It would be supremely frustrating for a player to spend turns collecting kerds, only for their contributions to be the busywork of cleaning up near-dead monsters at the end of the combat. With standard actions free, an agonincer can stock up and exert kerds alongside contributions to combat--such as by swinging a longsword.
Sidebar: New Energy Type: Pain
Wherever the game allows one to choose between the five major energy types--fire, cold, acid, electricity, and sonic--you can also choose pain energy. In general, use the game statistics for the sonic version, except Pain energy's damage dice are reduced by two steps compared to fire or cold damage. If the damage also imposes a status effect, use shaken as the analogue for less severe effects and frightened for the more serious ones. The exact details of the pain version of an effect may need to be discussed with the DM.
Lesser orb of pain deals d4s of pain damage instead of d8s.
Orb of pain deals 1d3 pain damage per caster level, and allows a Will save vs. becoming shaken for one round.
Spells such as wrack and symbol of pain that deal damage via pain should gain the [Pain] descriptor, along with all spells in the Pain domain, and have their damage typed as pain damage.
The empyreal ecstasy and sublime revelry spells remove all kerds from the target and makes them immune to [Pain] damage.
The damage from the Instruments of Blood Gift magic items can have their kerds removed, but the kerds resume one round after being removed, and do not ebb away with time.
A creature under the effects of eternity of torture, to which they failed their saving throw and have their attributes reduced to 0 (except for Constitution, at 1), can supply an unlimited amount of kerds to an agonincer that wishes to draw from them. Before all scores are zero, the spell inflicts kerds equal to three times the creature's maximum HP.
A kineticist with the Energy Snap alternate class feature can create a snap of pain energy, which deals 1 damage. It does not hurt objects, but stings enough to get attention.
Adventures: Where else would an agonincer find so many people in pain than traveling with a group of murderous vagabonds? The other options would be associating closely with a clerical temple. The safer often is more likely to be picked, but the fact remains that some agonicers do indeed wander in a party and take advantage of the continuous wounding.
Characteristics: Agonincers perform agonincy. Because agonincy is very quick, they can also fight more conventionally at the same time although they have only as much talent in that respect as a bard does.
Alignment: Any, though agonincers tend heavily towards evil--it's tempting to needlessly cause pain in order to draw power. Good agonincers use their power as the primary way to soothe wounds, and often have martyr complexes that cause them to deliberately hurt themselves for kerds. Chaotic agonincers may be drawn to the crackling lightning of kerds, whereas lawful agonincers may like to experiment with its properties.
Religion: Disturbingly but obviously, many agonincers worship evil gods of suffering and pain. Lolth, in particular, is worshipped for being the god of a race whose society is simply overflowing with kerds to harvest. This goes double for drow agonincers. On the other hand, worship of gods of healing such as Pelor are also common, as healing is almost synonymous with alleviating pain--an agonincer's specialty.
Background: In a sense, agonincers are like sorcerers. Not just anyone can become one; they have to discover that they can create the black lightning effect by touching hurt people, and then train their manipulation of the kerds.
Races: Agonincy can spring up in any race, in the same way that sorcery can.
Other Classes: If binders scream 'bad news', agonicers play a 5-hour rap-metal concert of 'bad news' with a permanencied Amplify spell. Agonincers don't seem to get along with anyone who isn't accepting of insidious magics--which may be another reason why they turn to adventuring.
Role: Agonincers are primarily direct-damage, but they have outside utility as skill-users or emergency arcanists. They have versatility beyond simply shooting Black Lightning.
Class Skills
The agonincer's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Appraise (Int), Bluff (Cha), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Disguise (Cha), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (Arcana) (Int), Knowledge (Religion) (Int), Knowledge (Local) (Int), Profession (Wis), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Spellcraft (Int), and Use Magic Device (Cha).
Skills Points at Each Level: 4 + Int
GAME RULE INFORMATION
Agonincers have the following game statistics.
Abilities: Dexterity is the most important score by far, as it improves save DCs and allows access to higher-projection agonincy effects, along with what Dexterity provides to all characters. Beyond that, the distribution of ability scores depends on the agonincer's secondary role. Constitution, however, is always useful.
Alignment: Any.
Hit Dice: d6
Starting Age: As bard.
Starting Gold: As cleric.
[TR][TD] LevelBase Attack BonusFort SaveRef SaveWill SaveSpecialKerds per DayMaximum Effect Level1st
+0
+0
+0
+2Agonincy, Stable Stock (1/2 * Dexterity), Black Lightning (0th-Projection), Black Static Shock101st2nd
+1
+0
+0
+3Kerdsgrasp (1st-Projection), Stable Stock (Dexterity)252nd3rd
+2
+1
+1
+3Pain Resistance 5383rd4th
+3
+1
+1
+4Free Kerd Use 1 (0th)443rd5th
+3
+1
+1
+4Stable Stock (2 * Dexterity)544th6th
+4
+2
+2
+5Armors of Agony (2nd-Projection)624th7th
+5
+2
+2
+5Pain Resistance 10745th8th
+6/+1
+2
+2
+6Free Kerd Use 3 (1st)885th9th
+6/+1
+3
+3
+6Stable Stock (4 * Dexterity)1036th10th
+7/+2
+3
+3
+7Sufferer's Senses (3rd-Projection)1207th11th
+8/+3
+3
+3
+7Pain Resistance 201407th12th
+9/+4
+4
+4
+8Free Kerd Use 6 (2nd)1608th13th
+9/+4
+4
+4
+8Stable Stock (7 * Dexterity)1829th14th
+10/+5
+4
+4
+9Dimensional Scars (4th-Projection)2069th15th
+11/+6/+1
+5
+5
+9Pain Resistance 3023410th16th
+12/+7/+2
+5
+5
+10Free Kerd Use 11 (3rd)26011th17th
+12/+7/+2
+5
+5
+10Stable Stock (10 * Dexterity)29011th18th
+13/+8/+3
+6
+6
+11Torture Avatars (5th-Projection)32212th19th
+14/+9/+4
+6
+6
+11Pain Immunity35512th20th
+15/+10/+5
+6
+6
+12Free Kerd Use 17 (4th), Twisting The Knife40013th
Sidebar: What's with all the nonlinear math?
In a word: HP. Agonincy is powered by HP damage, which does not scale linearly, like many other things in the game. The tables and nonlinear progressions are the result of compensating for this. Monsters have HP that can be approximated with the formula HP = 9/10 * CR2 + 30 for challenge ratings of 3 or higher, and agonincy numbers have been calibrated around them.
Weapon Proficiencies: Agonincers have proficiency with simple weapons, light armor, and shields (but not tower shields)
Agonincy (Su): Agonincers can use agonincy, as described above. They are limited by the number of kerds they can collect per day, as noted in the table, but they can only exert a number of kerds at one time equal to approximately one third of that. Kerds can only remain stocked for 10 minutes, after which point they dissipate.
Additionally, when an agonincer imbibes a dose of Liquid Pain, they automatically store 1 kerd from the conversion of liquid into lightning. The process is inefficient, however, thus only the one kerd.
Stable Stock (Su): An Agonincer never loses kerds due to dissipation beyond a certain threshold. They can store a number of kerds equal to half of their Dexterity modifier (minimum 1), which become stable and do not dissipate. At 2nd level, this increases to your Dexterity modifier. At 5th level, this increases to two times your Dexterity modifier. At 9th, this increases to four times your Dexterity modifier. At 13th, this increases to seven times your Dexterity modifier. Finally, at 17th, this increases to ten times your Dexterity modifier.
Black Lightning (Su): To use this ability, the agonincer must have a Dexterity score of 9 or higher. The agonincer selects a target, spends a number of kerds, and shoots a bolt of black lightning at it, which requires a ranged touch attack to succeed. Black Lightning deals 1d10 pain damage per level, or 1d4 for 0th-level Black Lightning. By choosing to decrease the damage by 1d10 (to a minimum of 1d10), the agoninicer can deal this damage to all creatures in a 30-foot line instead of one target, or to to all creatures within a 15-foot cone. In those cases, no touch attack is required, but a Reflex save halves the damage. The agonincer can reduce the damage again to double the distance as many times as they have available damage for. Reducing damage does not reduce Black Lightning's level.
Black Static Shock (Su): As a standard action, an agonincer can make a melee touch attack against an opponent to cause pain to erupt from their nerves and into the agoniner's stock. Black Static Shock deals pain damage equal to the target's Hit Dice, and leaves their bodies drained of the ability to experience pain for 10 minutes. The agonincer stocks kerds equal to the damage dealt, as part of a successful use of this ability.
Kerdsgrasp, 1st-level projection (Su): To use this ability, an agonincer must have at least 11 Dexterity. At 2nd level, the agonincer can form kerds into tools. Black lightning forms into the proper shape at their command. As a 1st-level or higher agonincy effect, the agonincer can generate a weightless version of a mundane handheld object, forged from black lightning. Alchemical items cannot be created, and items do not have special properties beyond their shape (Kerds will not create shapesand), nor will they have hardness greater than 8. Weapons can be made, but only light weapons. The item appears in the agonincers' hand and lasts for 1 round per effect level. Masterwork items can be created, but only by shortening the duration by 4 rounds.
As a special use of Kerdsgrasp, the agonincer can create a claw on their hand that can be used as a secondary natural weapon, dealing 1d6+1/2 Str damage for a medium creature at 1st level. For every two rounds that the agonincer shortens the duration of the claw, they can increases the damage dice of the claw by one step.
Pain Resistance (Ex): At 3rd-level, an agonincer gains an awesome tolerance for pain. They gain Pain Resist 5, as the energy type. At 7th level, this becomes Pain Resist 10. At 11th level, this becomes Pain Resist 20. At 15th level, this becomes Pain Resist 30. At 19th level, the agonincer becomes immune to pain damage and any spell with the [Pain] descriptor.
Free Kerd Use (Su): At 4th-level, an agonincer can draw upon the anguish inherent to keeping kerds stocked, and use that to power agonincy effects instead of their stock. As long as the agonincer has their Stable Stock completely filled, they can use certain agonincy effects freely, without spending kerds. At 4th level, they can use any 0th-level effect. At 8th level, they can use any 1st-level effect. At 12th level, they can use any 2nd-level effect. At 16th level, they can use any 3rd-level effect. At 20th level, they can use any 4th-level effect.
Armors of Agony, 2nd-projection (Su): To use this ability, an agonincer must have at least 13 Dexterity. At 6th level, an agonincer can pull kerds around their bodies into the shapes of equipment. Each possible shape forms around a particular body slot, but does not close the slot. If the agonincer does not have an item in the body slot, the shape closes the slot, and the level of the shape is increased by 1 with no increase in the number of kerds required. An agonincer can only create one peice of the Armors of Agony with one action, but they can create and wear more of them with subsequent actions. A shape lasts for a number of rounds equal to its level, and must be shaped as at least 3rd level.
All Armors of Agony shapes grant a +1 armor bonus to armor class, which stacks with other Armor of Agony shapes. Except for the Arms armor, they also grant an enhancement bonus to a skill corresponding to the shape location, with the bonus equal to the effect level. In addition, the agonincer can reduce the bonus by a chosen number (they cannot reduce below +0) to gain a secondary benefit dependent on the reduction amount. These bonuses and benefits only last for the duration of the shape, unless specifically noted otherwise.
Armors of Agony shapes last for 1 minute before dissipating.
Armors of Agony
Head: +effect level to Autohypnosis; reduce to gain telepathy out to 5' times the reduction.
Face: +effect level to Search; reduce to gain the effect of see invisibility for a reduction of 5 or more, or true seeing for 10 or more.
Throat: +effect level to Swim; reduce to be able to hold breath for an additional reduction * Constitution score rounds. Holding breath before the armor expires allows the wearer to keep holding breath as if the armor were there, but only for that instance.
Shoulders: +effect level to Bluff; reduce to gain the effect of nondetection for a reduction of 5 or more, or mind blank for 10 or more.
Torso: +effect level to Disguise; reduce to gain a resistance bonus to saving throws equal to the reduction amount.
Waist: +effect level to Tumble; reduce to heal self an amount equal to five times the effect level at the time of shaping. The healing is instantaneous, so it persists after the armor vanishes.
Body: +effect level to Diplomacy; can cast charm person as a supernatural ability at at DC 10 + reduction amount + the agonincer's Dexterity modifier, at any one time while the armor is shaped. A creature who saves against this ability is immune to it for 24 hours.
Arms: +effect level to Strength checks; reduce to increase carrying capacity as if your Strength were increased by three times the reduction amount.
Hands: +effect level to Sleight of Hand; reduce to gain the effect of alter self for a reduction of 5 or more. It persists for the spell's usual duration for a reduction of 10 or more, at a caster level equal to your agonincer level.
Feet: +effect level to Balance; reduce to gain a fly speed of 10' per effect level at poor maneuverability. This maneuverability increases by one step per two effect levels above 5th, to a maximum of perfect.
Sufferer's Senses, 3rd-projection (Su): To use this ability, an agonincer must have at least 15 Dexterity. At 10th level, an agonincer can activate any of a variety of Sufferer's Senses effects below, but must do so at at least 5th level.
Sufferer's Senses
Notice Pain: The agonincer gains blindsense out to 10 feet per effect level, but only becomes aware of creatures that are experiencing one or more kerds of pain. This effect lasts 24 hours. By exchanging 20 feet of radius (but without reducing to below 50 feet), the agonincer knows the hit point total of any creature they can detect with blindsense.
Kerd Scrying Sensor: The agonincer can use scrying as supernatural ability, except that the scrying sensor appears as a 1-inch-wide crackling ball of black lightning. The scrying sensor can also move, at a rate of 10 ft fly (perfect) per effect level. The scrying lasts for a number of minutes equal to the effect level. The sense has 1 hit point, no hardness, and AC 20. Creatures in pain appear blackened in the scrying.
Torn Wide Eyes: The agonincer's eyes open wide and become bloodshot with black lightning. You gain an insight bonus to Spot and Search equal to the effect level, and gain the darkvision special quality, for a number of hours equal to twice the effect level.
Prescient Flinch: The agonincer feels pain in advance, backing away from a wound that hasn't happened yet. You gain an insight bonus to AC and Reflex saves equal to the effect level, for one round.
Recall Painful Memory: By touching a creature and harmlessly channeling kerds, the agonincer can tap into painful memories. The agonincer gains knowledge of one of the creature's memories during which they experienced pain. Insignificant pains such as incidental stings do not count, but instances like stubbed toes do count, and combats almost certainly count. The agonincer learns of one additional memory per effect level above 5th.
View Terror: An agonincer can reach into a creature's mind and vividly see their nightmare--what the creature conceives of as the worst possible pain. The agonincer has to point to a creature within 30', but no touch or attack roll is required, though the creature must have a Constitution score. Seeing the terror shakes the mind, and the agonincer must make a Will saving throw against DC 15 + effect level or be shaken for 10 minutes. However, the insight into the creature's mind is helpful in scaring them: you gain an insight bonus equal to the effect level on Intimidate checks against that creature, for 24 hours. If you successfully demoralize them, they are frightened instead of shaken.
Mark of a Kerd: By touching a creature and harmlessly channeling kerds, the agonincer can keep awareness of a creature. They gain the benefit of the status spell with respect to that creature for a number of hours equal to the effect level.
Dimensional Scars, 4th-projection (Su): To use this ability, an agonincer must have at least 17 Dexterity. At 14th level, an agonincer can inflict gashes on time and space with their kerds. Each dimensional scar has a major version and a minor version, where the minor is the default. Major Dimensional Scars effects must be used at 7th level or higher, but minor ones can be used at 0th level or above.
Dimensional Scars
Cut Across: The agonincer flies apart into black lightning, which streaks along a line and reforms into the agonicer's form. In other words, the agonincer teleports a number of feet equal to 10' times the effect level + 5'. The black lightning does no damage.
---Major: By reducing the distance by a multiple of 10' (reducing to a minimum of 5'), the agonincer can afflict those caught within the line with black lightning. The line extends between the agonincer's starting and ending position. The black lightning's effect level is the number of feet reduced, divided by 10, and does damage as normal black lightning. Its shape cannot be changed by reducing damage.
Warp Distance: The agonincer creates a writhing field of kerds around themselves that pinches and stretches distances within. The agonincer's melee reach and ranged weapon range increments are increased by 5' per effect level, for 1 round. The agonincer does not threaten these extra squares. A 0th-level effect increases the range by 5', but only lasts for 1 round or until after the agonincer's next attack.
---Major: As above, but you also threaten the squares.
Open Planar Wound: The agonincer opens a crackling gate of black lightning to a nondimensional space. This space is completely dark and can contain both the agonincer and their gear, along with one small creature per effect level. A medium creature counts as two small creatures, a large creature counts as two medium creatures, and so on. After all desired creatures enter, the agonincer can close the gate as a swift action. The nondimensional space remains for two hours per effect level (or 10 minutes for a 0th-level effect), after which, the gate reopens and expels all creatures within before closing once more.
---Major: The gate instead leads to another plane at a desired destination, as the spell. This gate cannot be used to call creatures. Any number of creatures can pass through this gate, which lasts for one round per effect level.
Prior Blast: The agonincer shoots black lightning into the cracks between seconds of time, striking a creature slightly retroactively. This ability works like Black Lightning, except that the damage dice are reduced to 1d6 (or 1d3 in the case of 0th-level black lightning), and the creature is automatically flat-footed against the attack. This flat-footing bypasses even foresight's immunity to flat-footing. The black lightning's damage dice cannot be voluntarily reduced.
---Major: The agonincer can use this ability to interrupt a creature's attack retroactively. If the black lightning hits, the damage dealt by one attack the creature made in the previous round does not occur, or one spell/spell-like ability they cast does not occur. The results of the attack, spell, or spell like-ability simply vanish with this ability; they never happened. In the case of a spell or spell-like ability, the caster may make the appropriate Concentration check to keep the spell and negate the erasure.
Break Universal Focus: The agonincer's black lightning discharges into the reality around themselves, making the universe lose focus on the agonincer's existence. Parts of the agonincer blur and fade out, before reappearing shortly thereafter. The agonincer gains a miss chance equal to 5% per effect level, for 1 round. They can also attempt to pass through objects, as the blink spell, but gain no other benefits of blink.
---Major: The agonincer gains the [Incorporeal] subtype for 1 round.
Torture Avatars, 5th-projection (Su): To use this ability, an agonincer must have at least 19 Dexterity. At 18th level, the agonincer can project a creature made entirely from kerds. To do so, they must transfer their mind into a kerd construct that they force out of their bodies. This causes the agonincer's body to drop prone and lay helpless. Using a torture avatar is dangerous for this reason, but the avatars are powerful, and require the effect level to be at least 9th.
While helpless in this way, if the agonincer's body dies, the agonincer can continue acting as the torture avatar. When the avatar expires, their mind dies as well. Luckily, if the agonincer's body is attacked, kerds flow from the torture avatar to negate the attack--the damage is instead applied to the torture avatar. Effects such as finger of death can still kill the agonincer's body before interacting with the avatar.
All torture avatars are composed of a number of kerds, and usually have hit points dependent on the kerds composing them. Dealing hit point damage reduces the kerds, likewise. Torture avatars themselves do not experience pain, so agonincers cannot draw kerds from them. Whe a torture avatar reaches 0 HP (and therefore 0 kerds), it is destroyed, and the agonincer's mind returns to their body.
A torture avatar, when created, appears adjacent to the agonincer.
Torture avatars use the game statistics of the agonincer, including their magic items, with exceptions listed. The avatar can use agonincy effects, but this drains the kerds (and therefore HP) from their body. If a torture avatar uses a consumable or charged magic item, the item is consumed or has a charge removed, respectively, from the agonincer's inert body.
The agonincer's kerd stock in their body does not dissipate while embodying a torture avatar, but dissipation applies to the kerds composing the avatar. The agoniciner's Stable Stock ability does not stop the dissipation.
Torture Avatars
The Primal Predator
The Primal Predator has the feline shape of a jaguar, except that its jaws are massive, with huge canine teeth like a saber-toothed tiger. This torture avatar cannot use weapons, except for unarmed strikes and its own natural weapons: a bite, which deals 3d6 + 1-1/2 Str damage, and two secondary claws, which deal 1d4 + 1/2 Str. a sucessful bite allows a free trip attempt, as the Trip ability of a wolf. The Primal Predator is a large (long) creature with HP equal to three times the number of kerds used to create it. The Primal Predator gains a +effect level bonus to Intimidate, a +4 bonus to Strength and Dexterity, a +effect level enhancement bonus to natural armor, and the Pounce (Ex) and Rake (Ex) abilities of a leopard. If the effect level is 11th or higher, the Primal Predator also gains the Improved Grab (Ex) ability of a leopard.
The Executioner
The Executioner is a medium armored humanoid with an indistinct back-lightning hood over hits head and a curved, heavy blade. The Executioner's blade is mechanically a +4 Collision Keen (MIC) Greatsword with a resultant critical threat range of 17-20/x4, which also gains any enhancements of one chosen weapon the agonincer wields at the time of creating the avatar. These extra enhancements overlap, and vanish if the agonicer is separated from their weapon. The Executioner also wears a set of +2 Heavy Fortification Full Plate, which does not have a maximum dexterity bonus. The full plate overlaps with worn armor in the same way that the blade overlaps with a carried weapon. The Executioner has HP equal to twice its kerds, and gains a +6 bonus to Strength and the benefits of the Cleave feat. For every effect level above 9th, the enhancement bonus of the armor increases by +1, and the critical threat range of the blade increases by 1. For example, an 11th-level version of The Executioner has +4 armor and a threat range of 15-20/x4.
The Glitched One
The Glitched One is a writhing mass of strands of black lightning, changing with no movement. The lightning is simply different from one moment to the next. The Glitched One has HP equal to its kerds, but it is a huge creature with a reach of 30, and has 4 tentacle attacks. The tentacles deal 2d6 + Str damage, and The Glitched One has Improved Grab with them. The Glitched One's grapple modifier is equal to +18 + 3 per effect level. The Glitched One has the Frightful Presence special quality.
Seven
Seven is a medium human-shaped creature, with black-lightning spikes growing from its shoulders and joints. Combat does not forgive those who harm Seven; few intelligent creatures willingly try to hurt it more than twice. Any creature that harms Seven is wracked with sympathetic pain; they must make a Fortitutde save of DC 10 + effect level + the agonincer's Dexterity score, or take damage equal to half the damage they dealt, although resistances and reductions may apply. Any other affects inflicted on Seven are subject to this same mirroring, but are not halved. Seven is immune to death effects. Seven has Damage Reduction 7/cold iron and energy resistance 7 to all elements; apply these reductions before the mirroring effect. If the effect level is 11th or higher, the mirroring effect also triggers if the agonincer's body is harmed. Seven has hit points equal to twice its kerds.
The Flitting
The Flitting is a tiny, winged fey. Its equipment is scaled down to its size. The Flitting has a fly speed of 20' per effect level with perfect maneuverability, gains a +8 bonus to Tumble checks, and can make Tumble chekcs untrained. The Flitting gains a +6 bonus to Dexterity, and has Spell Resistance equal to 5 + effect level + the agonincer's Dexterity modifier. Finally, the Flitting gains the benefits of the Flyby Attack feat, and has hit points equal to its kerds.
WALL
WALL is closer to an embodied concept than a creature. Instead of taking a humanoid form, WALL is a solid block with a 60' by 60' space and no reach. WALL cannot attack or move, but all hostile creatures must make a Will save of DC 10 + effect level + agonincer's Dexterity modifier every turn or do everything in their power to destroy WALL during their turn. WALL is not easy to kill, however--it has hit points equal to five times it kerds, and Hardness equal to 10 + 2 per effect level, which applies to even sonic damage. WALL is a construct. When created, it is centered on the agonincer instead of appearing next to them, blocking line of effect and encapsulating the agonincer. Some creatures see a displeased, angry face upon WALL's surface, but it is difficult to be sure.
Twisting the Knife (Su): At 20th level, the agonincer is so knowledgeable and experienced in pain that they know how to inflict huge amounts of it. The agonincer's weapon attacks deal pain damage instead of normal weapon damage, if they choose so.