maestrodesigns
2013-11-03, 05:39 PM
I've cooked up this here Dwarven Cleric Prestige Class. The reason behind it: I wanted to create a prestige class, fit for the cleric and tailored for survival.
Somehow, with every cleric I've played I've run into the same situation. As soon as you enter combat, your allies will start taking damage, dying even... The hardest thing to do then, is trying to keep them alive... Healing isn't the easiest job in the first place; you need to touch people, run around the battlefield, try to cast spells while people are hitting you, etc. Most clerics (or other healers) are familiar with this picture.
Most Cleric prestige classes out there turn you into either A: a squishy, but powerful spellcaster, or B: A one-man-army. Neither of these is especially fit to keep your precious friends alive. So I wanted a prestige class that would be able to stand his ground in combat, but most of all, be able to effectively heal his allies and stay alive while doing it.
What do you guys think of my creation? Honest opinions (concerning balance, some flawed aspect, etc.) and/or suggestions to further improve this prestige class are more then welcome.
Thanks! :smallbiggrin:
STRONGBEARD WARPRIEST
The strongbeards are an elite Dwarven order, most of them fanatically devoted to Hanseath. They fearlessly roam the battlefields, healing their comrades and crushing their enemies. Their fierce devotion and harsh training has turned these Dwarves into true avatars of war. Their ability to survive even the grimmest battles is unmatched by any other priest or cleric.
Not a lot of Dwarven clerics feel the urge to leave their clans and homes to go out on some quest or crusade far away from their homelands. Of those that do; only a select few will survive their first few years out there. Even fewer will feel the urge to go out there once more…
These final few bring forth the possible candidates for a place in the ranks of the strongbeards. These candidates have to complete a set of brutal initiation rituals and some kind of special quest that will bring honor and glory to their clan or Dwarfkind in general. This way only the strongest and fiercest among their brethren will become actual members of the order.
Hit die: d12
REQUIREMENTS
To qualify to become a strongbeard, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.
Race: Dwarf
Base Attack Bonus: +3
Alignment: Any good.
Feats: (Improved) Toughness, or Combat Casting.
Skills: Knowledge (religion) 5 ranks, heal 5 ranks.
Spellcasting: Ability to cast 2nd-level divine spells.
Special: Must complete a special quest that either honors his clan, or Dwarfkind itself.
CLASS SKILLS
The strongbeard’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Profession (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int).
Skill points at Each Level: 2 + Int modifier.
CLASS FEATURES
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Strongbeards are proficient with all simple and martial weapons and with all armor and shields (including tower shields).
Spellcasting: At each level above 1st, you gain new spells per day and an increase in caster level (and spells known, if applicable) as if you had also gained a level in a divine spellcasting class to which you belonged before adding the prestige class level. You do not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained. If you had more than one divine spellcasting class before becoming a strongbeard, you must decide to which class to add each level for the purpose of determining spells per day, caster level, and spells known.
Crusader’s Blessing (Su): A strongbeard can call upon the divine energy flowing through him to turn into an avatar of his God, healing his wounds and granting him protection from his enemies. His beard grows and turns to pure and magically hardened silver, increasing the armor bonus of his armor by +2. In addition, a soft glow seems to radiate from him as the energy within hardens his body; he gains fast healing 3 and damage reduction 5/evil. While the blessing is in effect, you get a +2 circumstance bonus on Diplomacy checks against dwarves.
The blessing lasts for a number of rounds equal to 3 + the strongbeard’s class level. At the end of the blessing, the strongbeard loses these granted powers and becomes fatigued (–2 penalty to Strength, –2 penalty to Dexterity, can’t charge or run) for the duration of the current encounter (unless he is a 10th-level strongbeard, at which point this limitation no longer applies; see below).
A strongbeard can call upon the blessing only once per encounter. At 1st level he can call upon this blessing once per day. At 3rd level and every three levels thereafter, he can use it one additional time per day (to a maximum of four times per day at 9th level). Calling upon the blessing takes no time itself, but a strongbeard can do it only during his action, not in response to someone else’s action.
Continued Advancement: Levels in strongbeard stack with levels of other appropriate classes for the purpose of turning or rebuking undead, and for the purpose of all level-dependent domain granted powers.
Bonus Domain: If you are a cleric, you gain the Healing domain as a third domain. If you already have the Healing domain, you can instead choose any other domain granted by your deity as your third domain. If you have no cleric levels, you can add the Healing domain spells to your class spell list, but you do not gain its domain ability or any extra spell slots for domain spells.
Medic’s Sight (Ex): At 4th level the strongbeard gains the ability to determine the condition of his allies within mere seconds. Upon a successful DC 15 heal check (move equivalent action), he instantly knows whether each ally is healthy (75% HP or more), slightly injured (between 75% and 50% HP), injured (between 50% and 25% HP), badly injured (between 25% and 1 HP), or dying (0 HP or lower).
Rallying Cry (Ex): At 5th level a strongbeard gains the ability to rally his allies. A strongbeard can use this ability as a standard action, provided he is not suffering from a fear effect himself. Allies within 60 feet who are suffering from any fear effect and who can hear the strongbeard are allowed another saving throw against the fear effect, with a +1 morale bonus per strongbeard level.
Combat Medic (Ex): At 7th level, you become adept at administering first aid quickly and while under duress. You can make a Heal check to provide first aid as a move action (rather than a standard action) and can take 10 on such checks even when stress or distraction would normally prevent you from doing so.
Divine Armor (Su): At 8th level the divine energy flowing through the strongbeard slowly starts to envelop him in combat situations. He receives a sacred bonus to AC equal to his wisdom modifier.
Grand Crusader’s Blessing (Su): At 10th level the strongbeard unlocks additional channels for his divine energy to flow through, strengthening his protections. The fast healing granted improves to 5 HP per round, while the damage reduction increases to 10/evil. In addition, the more controlled flow of energy puts less strain on the strongbeards body. He no longer becomes fatigued at the end of his blessing.
{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|Spells per Day / Spells Known
1st|
+0|
+2|
+0|
+2|Crusader’s Blessing, continued advancement|-
2nd|
+1|
+3|
+0|
+3|Bonus Domain|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
3rd|
+2|
+3|
+1|
+3|Crusader’s Blessing 2/day|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
4th|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4|Medic’s Sight|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
5th|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4|Rallying Cry|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
6th|
+4|
+5|
+2|
+5|Crusader’s Blessing 3/day|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
7th|
+5|
+5|
+2|
+5|Combat Medic|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
8th|
+6|
+6|
+2|
+6|Divine Armor|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
9th|
+6|
+6|
+3|
+6|Crusader’s Blessing 4/day|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
10th|
+7|
+7|
+3|
+7|Grand Crusader’s Blessing|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class [/table]
Somehow, with every cleric I've played I've run into the same situation. As soon as you enter combat, your allies will start taking damage, dying even... The hardest thing to do then, is trying to keep them alive... Healing isn't the easiest job in the first place; you need to touch people, run around the battlefield, try to cast spells while people are hitting you, etc. Most clerics (or other healers) are familiar with this picture.
Most Cleric prestige classes out there turn you into either A: a squishy, but powerful spellcaster, or B: A one-man-army. Neither of these is especially fit to keep your precious friends alive. So I wanted a prestige class that would be able to stand his ground in combat, but most of all, be able to effectively heal his allies and stay alive while doing it.
What do you guys think of my creation? Honest opinions (concerning balance, some flawed aspect, etc.) and/or suggestions to further improve this prestige class are more then welcome.
Thanks! :smallbiggrin:
STRONGBEARD WARPRIEST
The strongbeards are an elite Dwarven order, most of them fanatically devoted to Hanseath. They fearlessly roam the battlefields, healing their comrades and crushing their enemies. Their fierce devotion and harsh training has turned these Dwarves into true avatars of war. Their ability to survive even the grimmest battles is unmatched by any other priest or cleric.
Not a lot of Dwarven clerics feel the urge to leave their clans and homes to go out on some quest or crusade far away from their homelands. Of those that do; only a select few will survive their first few years out there. Even fewer will feel the urge to go out there once more…
These final few bring forth the possible candidates for a place in the ranks of the strongbeards. These candidates have to complete a set of brutal initiation rituals and some kind of special quest that will bring honor and glory to their clan or Dwarfkind in general. This way only the strongest and fiercest among their brethren will become actual members of the order.
Hit die: d12
REQUIREMENTS
To qualify to become a strongbeard, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.
Race: Dwarf
Base Attack Bonus: +3
Alignment: Any good.
Feats: (Improved) Toughness, or Combat Casting.
Skills: Knowledge (religion) 5 ranks, heal 5 ranks.
Spellcasting: Ability to cast 2nd-level divine spells.
Special: Must complete a special quest that either honors his clan, or Dwarfkind itself.
CLASS SKILLS
The strongbeard’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Profession (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int).
Skill points at Each Level: 2 + Int modifier.
CLASS FEATURES
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Strongbeards are proficient with all simple and martial weapons and with all armor and shields (including tower shields).
Spellcasting: At each level above 1st, you gain new spells per day and an increase in caster level (and spells known, if applicable) as if you had also gained a level in a divine spellcasting class to which you belonged before adding the prestige class level. You do not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained. If you had more than one divine spellcasting class before becoming a strongbeard, you must decide to which class to add each level for the purpose of determining spells per day, caster level, and spells known.
Crusader’s Blessing (Su): A strongbeard can call upon the divine energy flowing through him to turn into an avatar of his God, healing his wounds and granting him protection from his enemies. His beard grows and turns to pure and magically hardened silver, increasing the armor bonus of his armor by +2. In addition, a soft glow seems to radiate from him as the energy within hardens his body; he gains fast healing 3 and damage reduction 5/evil. While the blessing is in effect, you get a +2 circumstance bonus on Diplomacy checks against dwarves.
The blessing lasts for a number of rounds equal to 3 + the strongbeard’s class level. At the end of the blessing, the strongbeard loses these granted powers and becomes fatigued (–2 penalty to Strength, –2 penalty to Dexterity, can’t charge or run) for the duration of the current encounter (unless he is a 10th-level strongbeard, at which point this limitation no longer applies; see below).
A strongbeard can call upon the blessing only once per encounter. At 1st level he can call upon this blessing once per day. At 3rd level and every three levels thereafter, he can use it one additional time per day (to a maximum of four times per day at 9th level). Calling upon the blessing takes no time itself, but a strongbeard can do it only during his action, not in response to someone else’s action.
Continued Advancement: Levels in strongbeard stack with levels of other appropriate classes for the purpose of turning or rebuking undead, and for the purpose of all level-dependent domain granted powers.
Bonus Domain: If you are a cleric, you gain the Healing domain as a third domain. If you already have the Healing domain, you can instead choose any other domain granted by your deity as your third domain. If you have no cleric levels, you can add the Healing domain spells to your class spell list, but you do not gain its domain ability or any extra spell slots for domain spells.
Medic’s Sight (Ex): At 4th level the strongbeard gains the ability to determine the condition of his allies within mere seconds. Upon a successful DC 15 heal check (move equivalent action), he instantly knows whether each ally is healthy (75% HP or more), slightly injured (between 75% and 50% HP), injured (between 50% and 25% HP), badly injured (between 25% and 1 HP), or dying (0 HP or lower).
Rallying Cry (Ex): At 5th level a strongbeard gains the ability to rally his allies. A strongbeard can use this ability as a standard action, provided he is not suffering from a fear effect himself. Allies within 60 feet who are suffering from any fear effect and who can hear the strongbeard are allowed another saving throw against the fear effect, with a +1 morale bonus per strongbeard level.
Combat Medic (Ex): At 7th level, you become adept at administering first aid quickly and while under duress. You can make a Heal check to provide first aid as a move action (rather than a standard action) and can take 10 on such checks even when stress or distraction would normally prevent you from doing so.
Divine Armor (Su): At 8th level the divine energy flowing through the strongbeard slowly starts to envelop him in combat situations. He receives a sacred bonus to AC equal to his wisdom modifier.
Grand Crusader’s Blessing (Su): At 10th level the strongbeard unlocks additional channels for his divine energy to flow through, strengthening his protections. The fast healing granted improves to 5 HP per round, while the damage reduction increases to 10/evil. In addition, the more controlled flow of energy puts less strain on the strongbeards body. He no longer becomes fatigued at the end of his blessing.
{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|Spells per Day / Spells Known
1st|
+0|
+2|
+0|
+2|Crusader’s Blessing, continued advancement|-
2nd|
+1|
+3|
+0|
+3|Bonus Domain|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
3rd|
+2|
+3|
+1|
+3|Crusader’s Blessing 2/day|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
4th|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4|Medic’s Sight|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
5th|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+4|Rallying Cry|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
6th|
+4|
+5|
+2|
+5|Crusader’s Blessing 3/day|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
7th|
+5|
+5|
+2|
+5|Combat Medic|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
8th|
+6|
+6|
+2|
+6|Divine Armor|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
9th|
+6|
+6|
+3|
+6|Crusader’s Blessing 4/day|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
10th|
+7|
+7|
+3|
+7|Grand Crusader’s Blessing|+1 level of existing divine spellcasting class [/table]