Dragonmarks as Bloodlines

[T.G. Oskar]

Ladies and gentlemen, children of all ages! Outsiders and eldritch abominations are welcome too!!

(But not half-dragons this time. Dragons and elves are still kinda pissed.

About a year ago, I decided to make a competition (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?324768-(Belated)-Gift-of-the-Magi-choose-which-homebrew-I-should-post!) of sorts (more like a poll than anything), where you (well, maybe not you you, but meaning the posters) could choose which piece of homebrew I'd post. With a good majority (only 2-3 votes above the second place, and comparable to the rest of all the votes), my retool of Magic Items (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?327764-Alternate-Rules-Magic-Items!-(A-Gift-from-the-Magi-believe-it-or-not)) was the winner. In the afterword, I made a promise that I'd post the rest of the content in order of position, but a few things during the year made it difficult. Between those:

My attempt to return to college was stunted.
My attempt to get a job was stunted.
Got hooked with 5th Edition, even if I only DM'ed it once.
Got involved in matters concerning my community.
Struck a deal to get at least *some* revenue.
And finally, used a portion of that revenue to get some old games. Oldies but goodies, and some not-oldies either. Thus, the last few weeks have been consumed between Shadowrun Returns and the first Baldur's Gate.

Thus, aside from a few simple attempts at 5th Edition homebrewing, I haven't posted anything of what I promised.

You may start chewing on me now.

However, recently the Muse struck again, and I've been working on some old content...and I noticed the first runner-up of the competition, and I decided I would post it. The runner-up of the competition, and another fan-favorite, was a project to use the rules for Bloodlines (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/races/bloodlines.htm) (first appearing in Unearthed Arcana, but strictly part of the SRD) to translate the concept of Dragonmarks from Eberron. You see, the idea behind Dragonmarks is that they're exclusive to certain races, and represent certain families that are empowered with magical abilities conductive to a certan task; these families (forming the Twelve Houses) effectively made Eberron into a post-Industrial Revolution (using Earth terms) society, but with the use of Magitek. However, their execution was somewhat lacking: you gained them via feats, and with a limited amount of them, they effectively ate through your choice of feats. After some consideration, inspiration struck, and I figured that Bloodlines could make for a really effective way to deal with the concept of Dragonmarks, with all three Dragonmarks easily represented.

Thus, I took the arduous task of figuring out which abilities fit each House, but inspiration at that date was so powerful I could do it in less than a week (in fact, I believe I finished it in two days?) Once finished, I decided to work on some additional rules for them, but mostly stopped as the lion's share of inspiration was consumed and I got distracted. However, to your benefit, ALL of the Dragonmarked Houses are dealt with, as well as those with Aberrant Dragonmarks. So I figure: one week before Christmas, why not post the runner-up?

Thus, without further ado, I present to you:

DRAGONMARKS AS BLOODLINES

Basics/Application of Bloodlines
True Dragonmarks

Mark of Detection (House Medani)
Mark of Finding (House Tharashk)
Mark of Handling (House Vadalis)
Mark of Healing (House Jorasco)
Mark of Hospitality (House Ghallanda)
Mark of Making (House Cannith)
Mark of Passage (House Orien)
Mark of Scribing (House Sivis)
Mark of Sentinel (House Deneith)
Mark of Shadow (Houses Phiarlan and Thuranni)
Mark of Storm (House Lyrandar)
Mark of Warding (House Kundarak)
Mark of Death (House Vol)

Aberrant Dragonmarks
NPCs and Dragonmarks
Dragonmarked Prestige Classes

Dragonmarked Heir
Heir of Siberys
Child of Khyber

Dragonmarked Feats

[T.G. Oskar]

DRAGONMARKED BLOODLINES
In the Eberron Campaign Setting, one of the key aspects of the world is the existence of powerful mercantile houses that govern nearly all aspects of life in Khorvaire, even though they don’t govern any country. These powerful houses control aspects such as lodging, entertainment and even law enforcement, and some exist since time immemorial. A great deal of this prestige and power comes from the main bloodline within the house, the one that gives its name to each house, and specifically those individuals that manifest the intrinsic powers of the bloodline. This power reflects in a birthmark, commonly known as a dragonmark, which is equal to members of the same house and reflects the same degree of powers. Within the world, members of dragonmarked houses are often considered elite, superior to someone of the same kind of job: a Deneith bodyguard is often better trained than a sellsword, and a Ghallanda innkeeper has a better service than the typical country inn, for example. There are reasons behind this: for example, the houses enforcing a monopoly on their trade, and speaking in game terms, the lack of high-level people who belong to none of the houses and lacks a dragonmark.

Within the game, however, the concept of dragonmarks are represented through feats, which grant only a few uses of spell-like abilities per day, and a single bonus to a specific skill. The cost to gain the strongest dragonmark powers involve three feat slots, something that many characters simply cannot afford, as it consumes essentially half of the build’s total feats (barring a fighter or a wizard, and potentially a rogue, since they get bonus feats). Attempting to advance their dragonmarks consumes even more feats, to the extent that once their feats are consumed, their effects are completely rendered irrelevant (which harms certain classes even more). What’s more: the powers gained by means of these dragonmarks are often limited to once per day, and their caster level is too low, so they end up being novelties at most. Clerics can provide superior healing than Jorasco healers without effort, straight from 1st level, because the former can choose to sacrifice their spell selection for purposes of healing, which gives them far more uses per day, and their bonus to Heal is too small and inconsequential.

In Unearthed Arcana, amongst the wealth of optional rules, exist the concept of bloodlines. People belonging to the specific bloodline gain improvements to ability scores, spell-like abilities, skill bonuses and other benefits, with a cost of three class levels which progress differently. The benefit of these costs is that certain class progressions remain intact (such as caster levels) and apply to any class the character belongs to, so it aids multiclass characters and doesn’t actively hinder the build. Since the concept implies that the character was born into a family or bloodline that holds inherent power, it fits perfectly with the concept of dragonmarked houses.

Turning the concept of dragonmarks into bloodlines is a good beginning. However, to fully exploit the concept of dragonmarks as bloodlines, some changes have to be made.

BASICS OF BLOODLINESEvery bloodline has both a source (the kind of creature from which its characteristics are drawn) and a strength (minor, intermediate, or major). The stronger the bloodline, the more potent the traits and benefits granted by it. Every source has a minor bloodline associated with it. A minor bloodline doesn't alter a character much, and thus don't represent a very significant power increase over an ordinary character. In some cases, the only bloodline associated with a source is minor. Many sources also have intermediate bloodlines. These affect the character's power level more drastically. Major bloodlines only come from the most powerful and primal of sources; a character with a major bloodline is a potent scion of his ancestor, displaying significant powers and abilities.

Over the course of his career, a character with a bloodline becomes more powerful than one without a bloodline. Because the power gain is gradual over a span of twenty levels, a static level adjustment doesn't truly reflect this difference. instead, a bloodline character must take one or more levels of "bloodline" at various points in his career. Before a character with a bloodline reaches the indicated character level, he must take one class level of "bloodline." Class levels of "bloodline" do not increase a character's character level the way a normal class level does, but they do provide certain benefits

If the character does not take a class level of bloodline before reaching the character level indicated on the table, he gains no further bloodline traits and must take a 20% penalty on all future XP gains. As soon as he meets the minimum bloodline level, he gains all bloodline abilities due him according to his character level, and the XP penalty no longer applies.

Bloodline traits fall into four categories.
Ability Boost: You gain a permanent +1 increase to the given ability score. This is similar to the ability increase gained by characters at every fourth level.
Bloodline Affinity: You gain a bonus (either +2, +4, or +6) on all Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Information, Intimidate, and Perform checks made to interact with creatures of your bloodline.
Skill Boost: You receive a +2 bonus on checks made with the given skill.
Special: You gain a special ability. Common bloodline special abilities include bonus feats, natural armor, special attacks (such as the ability to smite evil or smite good), special qualities (such as resistance to energy, spell resistance, or scent), or spell-like abilities. If you already have a feat that a bloodline provides as a bonus feat, you may choose a different feat.

APPLICATION OF BLOODLINE BASICS TOWARDS DRAGONMARKSIf applied as mentioned above, dragonmarks would be quite interesting, but half of the abilities provided by the bloodlines builds towards the flavor of the creature the bloodline is based upon. Dragonmarked houses don’t focus into specific creatures (though they have heraldic creatures representing them: Deneith is represented by the chimera, Ghallanda is represented by the blink dog and Cannith is represented by the gorgon, for example), but rather into specific purposes. Ideally, the dragonmark should reflect the purpose appropriately.

On the other hand, bloodlines sacrifice three class levels (but not character levels, though this implies a loss of HD, BAB and saves: in essence, it’s “pseudo-LA”), which entails a great loss in power. A wizard with a character level of 20 casts as a 17th level wizard, but with a CL of 20th. This involves a loss of higher level spell slots and a massive delay on spell acquisition. This may not seem particularly painful to the wizard, but it hurts other classes (the Fighter, for example, loses two bonus feats, has its bonus feat progression delayed and ends up with an essentially worthless 17th level. Thus, the exchanges should be appropriate to the levels lost.

The first thing to handle is how to equate the Least, Lesser and Greater Dragonmarks with the bloodlines, which is particularly easy. People manifesting Least Dragonmarks and not advancing to higher dragonmarks should choose a Minor Bloodline; likewise, Lesser Dragonmarks are equated to intermediate bloodlines and Greater Dragonmarks are equated to major bloodlines. Siberys Dragonmarks are extraordinarily rare, and manifest differently: they remain the sole domain of the Heir of Siberys prestige class.

That is a good start, but there are many other issues to handle. For example: when the dragonmark improves, the character gains increased uses of the other dragonmarks. As well, the benefits provided by the bloodlines are often too small to matter. Finally, dragonmarks are limited to certain races, and only the main ethnic types of the race (thus, while there are many classes that may count as humans, only the baseline human gains access to it). Because of this specific restriction, bloodlines must be stronger than what’s presented in the Unearthed Arcana sourcebook. These bloodlines follow the philosophy presented by Welknair’s bloodlines (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=11487854), expanding and adding more flavor to the first attempt (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=14134774) of this nature presented by DaTedinator.

The changes, based on how the bloodlines work, act as follows:

House Affinity: as bloodline affinities work by providing bonuses to members of the specific creature types the bloodline represents, the house affinity provides benefits to members of the same House. However, the affinities’ expand: a minor bonus (half the amount) is provided to allies of the house, while the affinity is imposed as a penalty to enemies of the house. All dragonmarks, with a sole exception, only provide their bonuses if they display their mark and let themselves be known as members of said house. The one exception to the rule is people who intimately know the character, to whom the bonuses (or penalties) apply even if the character doesn’t show its mark. Thus, if the character attempts to hide affiliation, the bonuses don’t apply.

Bonus Feats: all bloodlines offer bonus feats which may have prerequisites (generally the second bonus feat). A character following a bloodline gets the indicated feat as a bonus feat even if it doesn’t meet the prerequisites, unless otherwise indicated.

Dragonmark Powers: as all dragonmarks apply spell-like abilities, these are treated separately. Dragonmark powers may be used more than once per day (an exception to the common uses per day of bloodline special abilities), but only if they are indicated in the class description. A Dragonmarked character gains these powers only up to three times (once for every degree of strength of the dragonmark). Dragonmark powers have a caster level based on the strength of the dragonmark:

Least: 1 + once every three levels
Lesser: 1 + once every two levels
Greater: once every level.
Characters with Greater Dragonmarks gain an extra use of all dragonmark powers at 18th level.

Dragonmark Secondary Powers: aside from the primary powers, the dragonmark bloodlines provide a set of secondary, lesser powers. These powers rarely are bonuses to AC, DR or resistances, and are often flavorful, but powerful as well.

Nothing much, since this pretty much explains it all, but I just want to say that the idea of Least, Lesser and Greater Dragonmarks truly fit the way Bloodlines worked. To be honest, I wouldn't be surprised if Keith Baker's original idea for Dragonmarks WAS making them into Bloodlines, but WotC shot that idea down. It fits just so well, it makes no sense why it wasn't used; after all, Eberron used Action Points and was pretty trigger-happy with some rules, so I feel this might have been either a compromise or the Powers that Be exercising their power.

Another thing is the progression of Dragonmark caster levels. Having such a brutal boost to CL from the feat and then nothing save for the Heir's Mark benefit really didn't fit well for me. However, people might be confused by the way it was redacted, so to make it easier to understand - if you choose the Least Dragonmark (the Minor Bloodline version of the Dragonmark), your CL will start at 1st (as it did before) and it'll boost to 7th (1 + 1/3 levels; at 20th level, that means you get one boost of your CL for every level you gain a feat), which is just one point shy of what you gained with the feat. With Lesser Dragonmarks (Major Bloodline features) and Greater Dragonmarks (Greater Bloodline features), the same idea works. Just in case you get confused and think that the CL for Least Dragonmark powers is what appears above; that's not the case at all.

Finally, honor to whom honor is due. Welknair really played hard and fast with an almost forgotten optional rule, and breathed it some much-needed life. DaTedinator had the idea earlier than I did, and I gave him space, but there were a few things I wasn't happy with, and thus I chose to alter benefits a bit in order to fit what I thought made more sense to Dragonmarks as Bloodlines, without ruining existing content as much as possible.

[T.G. Oskar]

Mark of Detection (House Medani)Race: Half-Elf
Heraldic Creature: Basilisk
Allies: Breland (+1)
Enemies: Houses Phiarlan and Thuranni, Dark Lanterns, Royal Eyes, the Aurum, the Order of the Emerald Claw (-2)

House Medani controls the trades of investigation and divination in all of Khorvaire. Established in Breland after the War of the Mark, the Inquisitors were already loosely established long before the war itself, hidden within the half-elf communities. House Medani has a single official guild, the Warning Guild, which serves as a private investigation service skilled in unraveling the complex, tangled web of plots across the Five Nations. Medani Inquisitors gain powers to detect magical auras, venoms and the presence of creatures, and other immediate detection abilities.



Level

Least Dragonmark

Lesser Dragonmark

Greater Dragonmark



1st

--

--

+2 on Spot checks



2nd

--

+2 on Spot checks

Least Dragonmark Power



3rd

--

--

Wisdom +1



4th

+2 on Spot checks

Least Dragonmark Power

Alertness



5th

--

--

House Affinity (Medani) +2



6th

--

Wisdom +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power



7th

--

--

+2 on Listen checks



8th

Least Dragonmark Power

Alertness

Uncanny Dodge



9th

--

--

Intelligence +1



10th

--

House affinity (Medani) +2

Quick ReconnoiterCAdv



11th

--

--

House affinity (Medani) +4



12th

Wisdom +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power

Greater Dragonmark Power



13th

--

--

+2 on Search checks



14th

--

+2 on Listen checks

Skill mastery



15th

--

--

Charisma +1



16th

Alertness

Uncanny dodge

+1 insight bonus to AC & Reflex



17th

--

--

House affinity (Medani) +6



18th

--

Intelligence +1

Dragonmark powers +1



19th

--

--

+2 on Sense Motive checks



20th

House Affinity (Medani) +2

Quick ReconnoiterCAdv

Uncanny foresight




Dragonmark Powers (Sp): A character with the Mark of Detection may choose one of the following spell-like abilities at each moment it gains a new dragonmark power.
Least: detect alignment* 5/day or detect magic 5/day or detect poison 5/day or detect thoughts 3/day
Lesser: detect scrying 3/day or discern lies 2/day or see invisibility 3/day
Greater: greater arcane sight 1/day or true seeing 1/day
*: Detect alignment works like detect chaos, detect evil, detect good or detect law.
Dragonmark Secondary Powers: A character with the Mark of Detection gains the following minor powers.
Uncanny Dodge (Ex): a character with the Mark of Detection retains its Dexterity bonus when caught flat-footed or struck by an invisible character, as the rogue’s uncanny dodge class feature. If the character already has uncanny dodge as a class feature, the character instead gains improved uncanny dodge, and the minimum rogue level needed to flank the character is equal to the class that granted uncanny dodge or its character level, whichever is higher.
Skill Mastery: a character with the Mark of Detection may take 10 on all Listen, Search, Sense Motive or Spot checks, even if stress and distractions would otherwise prevent it.
Uncanny Foresight (Su): a character with the Mark of Detection may choose to sacrifice its insight bonus to Armor Class and Reflex saves and provide them to a single ally within 60 ft. as a standard action. While it provides the insight bonus, the character receives warnings about the target creature, as if a foresight spell was cast upon it.

The Inquisitors (the title for scions of Medani, not the PF class) are, to me, one of the houses I least know and least used. I have a hang on nearly all of the Houses, even those I rarely use (such as Vadalis), but if I have to tell which is my least-favorite of the Houses, I'd undoubtedly say Medani. They have a cool thing going on them (they make for awesome gumshoes, particularly for "psychic detectives"), but aside from that I really don't dig them.

When I worked on bloodline features, I sought what was more important for them, focusing on their unparalleled powers of perception. This led to the Medani Prophet and their skill at divination, and thus most of their bloodline powers deal with perception and divination, particularly of the kind that is extrasensorial in nature. Thus, it was a natural to give them Uncanny Dodge, even if it's normally a class feature, because it's insanely wrong to have them lack that danger sense most classes have. Quick Reconnoiter allows you to make reflexive Listen and Spot checks with a moment's thought, and Skill Mastery allows you to do them without hassle. Uncanny Foresight, the capstone power, effectively gives them a 9th level spell for free, if they choose to sacrifice their (minor) insight bonuses to AC and Reflex which is pretty much what Foresight grants. They get stat boosts on all mental stats, making them great Diviners or Seers.

[T.G. Oskar]

Mark of Finding (House Tharashk)Race: Half-Orc, Human
Heraldic Creature: Dragonne
Allies: Droaam, Houses Lyrandar and Thuranni (+1)
Enemies: Houses Cannith and Deneith (-2)

House Tharashk controls the trades of tracking and prospection, and is one of the greatest providers of dragonshards in Khorvaire. Tharashk, an Orcish term meaning “united”, hails from the Shadow Marches, comprised of the three greatest tribes and a number of lesser ones. The house is comprised of orcs, half-orcs and humans, though orcs are unable to manifest the mark on their own. The house was discovered by a group of Zil gnomes alongside Sivis emissaries, seeking a source of dragonmarks in the Marches. Recently, Tharashk has established negotiations with the monster country of Droaam, serving as a mediator between the humanoid nations and the monster races, offering laborers and mercenaries; this has caused conflicts with Cannith and Deneith as they feel they’re breaching on their terrain. Tharashk Finders gain powers to find their path through large locations and the ability to track objects or creatures. They work as excellent scouts and trackers.



Level

Least Dragonmark

Lesser Dragonmark

Greater Dragonmark



1st

--

--

+2 on Survival checks



2nd

--

+2 on Survival checks

Least Dragonmark Power



3rd

--

--

Wisdom +1



4th

+2 on Survival checks

Least Dragonmark Power

Track



5th

--

--

House Affinity (Tharashk) +2



6th

--

Wisdom +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power



7th

--

--

+2 on Search checks



8th

Least Dragonmark Power

Track

Swift tracker



9th

--

--

Strength +1



10th

--

House affinity (Tharashk) +2

Hear the UnseenCAdv



11th

--

--

House affinity (Tharashk) +4



12th

Wisdom +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power

Greater Dragonmark Power



13th

--

--

+2 on Gather Information checks



14th

--

+2 on Search checks

Tag



15th

--

--

Dexterity +1



16th

Track

Swift tracker

Scent



17th

--

--

House affinity (Tharashk) +6



18th

--

Intelligence +1

Dragonmark powers +1



19th

--

--

+2 on Spot checks



20th

House Affinity (Tharashk) +2

Hear the UnseenCAdv

Blindsight 15 ft.




Dragonmark Powers (Sp): A character with the Mark of Finding may choose one of the following spell-like abilities each time it gains a new dragonmark power:
Least: detect animals or plants 5/day or identify 3/day or know direction 5/day or locate object 3/day
Lesser: arcane eye 3/day or helping hand 3/day or locate creature 3/day
Greater: find the path 1/day or prying eyes 1/day
Dragonmark Secondary Powers: A character with the Mark of Finding gains the following minor powers.
Swift Tracker (Ex): A character with the Mark of Finding can move at its normal speed while following tracks without taking the normal -5 penalty. The character takes only a -10 penalty (instead of -20) when moving at up to twice normal speed while tracking. If the character reaches the 8th level of ranger (where it would otherwise gain the swift tracker feat), it takes no penalties when moving at up to twice normal speed.
Tag (Su): A character with the Mark of Finding can place a tag upon a certain creature or object. This tag allows the character to easily follow the target, by granting a +10 bonus on all Survival checks when tracking the targeted creature or object.
Scent (Ex): A character with the Mark of Finding can track creatures by means of scent.
Blindsight (Ex): The character with the Mark of Finding gains blindsight up to 15 ft. If the character gains blindsight by means of class levels or templates, the range increases by 15 ft. instead.

Tharashk Finders are a fun batch to play with. They're the only mark available to Half-Orcs, and the only mark available to two races at once. I got inspired by Rangers when working with this Bloodline, since they're the original hunters and trackers, and thus a good deal of their bloodline powers deal with tracking.

As you'll notice, being inspired by the Ranger class, they get all the boosts to the ability scores that Rangers favor (Strength, Dexterity, Wisdom), plus bonuses on three of the key Ranger skills (Search, Spot, Survival), plus Gather Information for good measure. Their scent ability, and their capstone power Blindsight exemplify just how good these guys are at finding people, and their SLAs do so. That's probably why they're so fun: they're easy to work with. Naturally, Track must be on their list of bonus feats, and to give them some key abilities to find people without the need for sight (and as a way to mimic a supernatural hearing ability), they get Hear the Unseen as a bonus feat, even if they lack Blind-Fight. The way Bonus Feats for Dragonmarks work, Rangers might get a bit shafted, but you can find a way to replace Track for a different ability and still get superb tracking capabilities. It's also great for Scouts, BTW.

[T.G. Oskar]

Mark of Handling (House Vadalis)Race: Human
Heraldic Creature: Hippogriff
Allies: House Orien, Wardens of the Wood sect (+1)
Enemies: Ashbound sect, Valenar (-2)

House Vadalis controls the trades of animal handling, providing some of the finest breeds at the best prices. This human-centered house was founded in Aundair, though its main holdings are located in the Eldeen Reaches after the country declared its independence. Vadalis is often considered one of the most benign houses, providing the beasts that House Orien needs for its caravans, and generally seen as a non-interfering power amongst the houses. Vadalis’ Handlers are tightly bound by family, understanding the importance of unity and familiarity amongst each other. They gain the power to manipulate the emotions of animals and beasts, as well as enhancing them.



Level

Least Dragonmark

Lesser Dragonmark

Greater Dragonmark



1st

--

--

+2 on Handle Animal checks



2nd

--

+2 on Handle Animal checks

Least Dragonmark Power



3rd

--

--

Charisma +1



4th

+2 on Handle Animal checks

Least Dragonmark Power

Animal Affinity



5th

--

--

House Affinity (Vadalis) +2



6th

--

Charisma +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power



7th

--

--

+2 on Ride checks



8th

Least Dragonmark Power

Animal Affinity

Wild empathy



9th

--

--

Wisdom +1



10th

--

House affinity (Vadalis) +2

Creature TrainerA&EG



11th

--

--

House affinity (Vadalis) +4



12th

Charisma +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power

Greater Dragonmark Power



13th

--

--

+2 on Use Rope checks



14th

--

+2 on Ride checks

Magebred cohort



15th

--

--

Dexterity +1



16th

Animal Affinity

Wild empathy

Improved wild empathy



17th

--

--

House affinity (Vadalis) +6



18th

--

Wisdom +1

Dragonmark powers +1



19th

--

--

+2 on Knowledge (nature) checks



20th

House Affinity (Vadalis) +2

Creature TrainerA&EG

Intelligent cohort




Dragonmark Powers (Sp): A character with the Mark of Handling may choose one of the following spell-like abilities at each moment it gains a new dragonmark power.
Least: animal trance 5/day or calm animal 5/day or charm animal 3/day or speak with animals 5/day
Lesser: dominate animal 2/day or greater magic fang 3/day or reduce animal 3/day
Greater: animal growth 1/day or summon nature’s ally VII 1/day
Dragonmark Secondary Powers: A character with the Mark of Handling gains the following minor powers.
Wild Empathy(Ex): A character with the Mark of Handling can improve the attitude of an animal. This ability functions just like a Diplomacy check made to improve the attitude of a person. The character rolls 1d20 and adds half its class level and its Charisma modifier to determine the wild empathy check result. If the character has the wild empathy class feature, the bonus on the roll is instead the level of all classes that grant wild empathy plus half the levels on all other classes (this includes racial Hit Dice).
Creature Trainer: The character with the Mark of Handling gains this feat as a bonus feat, even if it does not meet the prerequisites. If Arms and Equipment Guide is not available, treat as follows: choose a type of creature other than animal. The character can rear and train creatures of that type, using the Handle Animal skill, provided their Intelligence score is 4 or lower (this includes creatures with no Intelligence score, such as oozes, which are treated as if they had an Intelligence score lower than 4; however, the DCs to rear or train them increase by 20). The feat name is based on the creature type chosen (Magical Beast Trainer for magical beasts, Ooze Trainer for oozes, and so forth).
Magebred Cohort: At character level 14th, the character with the Mark of Handling gains the service of a loyal companion, selected from the list of animal companions available to a 1st level druid. The creature gains the magebred template, but otherwise is identical to a typical creature of its kind. The creature is treated as a cohort, and may increase its Hit Dice by gaining experience as if it were a cohort. A character with an animal companion (a druid, a ranger or a character with the Wild Cohort feat) may instead choose to grant it the magebred template, but gains no other benefit from this ability.
Improved Wild Empathy (Ex): The character with the Mark of Handling can improve the attitude of an animal faster than the norm. The character may use wild empathy as a standard action. Furthermore, the character takes no penalties when attempting to influence magical beasts.
Intelligent Cohort (Su): A character’s animal companion or magebred cohort is treated as if the awaken spell had been cast upon it. The animal companion or magebred cohort doesn’t lose its link, however, and may be dealt with using the Handle Animal and wild empathy checks, but only with its owner.

The Handlers can, if played correctly, be the most powerful of the Houses, since they deal with creatures that are magically empowered. Any class that provides animal companions, or even just getting the Wild Cohort feat, incredibly empowers this bloodline. Druids, in particular, get a pretty solid (and scary) boost from it, particularly from the capstone power, Intelligent Cohort; getting the benefits of the Awaken spell without losing your connection can be downright scary.

However, it doesn't stop there. The [Creature] Trainer feat is an old feat that, to my knowledge, never got updated. This allows you to rear and tame unusual creatures, such as oozes or plants, which increases the range of creatures they can handle safely. Naturally, they get bonuses to Handle Animal to the extent few can truly top them, and knowledge of two pretty nice skills (plus Use Rope). Not only that, you can safely trade away Wild Empathy and you can still recover it, which is a nice touch, and eventually you can empathize with Magical Beasts without problems. Really, as you can see, most of the bloodline powers are pretty minor, and just because of Magebred Cohort and Intelligent Cohort, they end up being really strong. Mix that to Summon Nature's Ally VII up to twice per day and you can become a pretty nasty fellow. Even if you don't deal with animals.

[T.G. Oskar]

Mark of Healing (House Jorasco)Race: Halfling
Heraldic Creature: Griffon
Allies: Houses Cannith and Sivis, the wealthy (+1)
Enemies: The poor and impoverished (-2)

House Jorasco controls the all important trade of health and recovery. Originally a tribe of families in the Talenta Plains, the House entered business thanks to Houses Cannith and Sivis. While at first the healers did their work out of charity, the business nature of the houses forced them to pay for their talents, and this has taken its toll. The halflings of Jorasco abandoned their tribal ways and embraced the cosmopolitan nature of the Five Nations, and the Last War essentially turned them into a monopoly, as their healing powers easily exceeded those of adepts and low-ranking priests. Yet, the House has focused on profit over charity, making them friends of the rich and enemies of the poor, who cannot afford their healing capabilities. Jorasco Healers not only heal wounds, but also cure diseases, remove poisons and restore the crippled, the lame, the weak, the addle-minded, the listless and even those with magically lowered self-esteem to their original selves. They also do mundane healing and midwifery.



Level

Least Dragonmark

Lesser Dragonmark

Greater Dragonmark



1st

--

--

+2 on Heal checks



2nd

--

+2 on Heal checks

Least Dragonmark Power



3rd

--

--

Charisma +1



4th

+2 on Heal checks

Least Dragonmark Power

Self-Sufficient



5th

--

--

House Affinity (Jorasco) +2



6th

--

Charisma +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power



7th

--

--

+2 on Concentration checks



8th

Least Dragonmark Power

Self-Sufficient

Minor healing touch



9th

--

--

Wisdom +1



10th

--

House affinity (Jorasco) +2

Ritual BlessingPHBII



11th

--

--

House affinity (Jorasco) +4



12th

Charisma +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power

Greater Dragonmark Power



13th

--

--

+2 on Survival checks



14th

--

+2 on Concentration checks

Detoxification



15th

--

--

Constitution +1



16th

Self-Sufficient

Minor healing touch

Improved healing



17th

--

--

House affinity (Jorasco) +6



18th

--

Wisdom +1

Dragonmark powers +1



19th

--

--

+2 on Diplomacy checks



20th

House Affinity (Jorasco) +2

Ritual BlessingPHBII

Minor restoration




Dragonmark Powers (Sp): A character with the Mark of Healing may choose one of the following spell-like abilities at each moment it gains a new dragonmark power.
Least: cure light wounds 5/day or delay poison 3/day or lesser restoration 3/day or remove paralysis 3/day
Lesser: cure serious wounds 3/day or neutralize poison 2/day or remove disease 3/day or restoration 2/day
Greater: heal 1/day or mass cure moderate wounds 2/day
Dragonmark Secondary Powers: A character with the Mark of Handling gains the following minor powers.
Minor Healing Touch (Sp): A character with the Mark of Healing can remove minor wounds by touch. The character can use cure minor wounds at-will as a spell-like ability. By making a Heal check, the character may increase the amount of healing provided: for every 5 points in the Heal check above 10, the target restores 1 extra hit point. This application of the Heal check works only once per hour per character affected.
Furthermore, when using long-term care, all affected creatures recover an amount of extra hit points based on the character’s ranks in the Heal skill, and recover from ability damage, drain and burn by an amount equal to 1 point for every 5 ranks above the first four (+1 point at 9 ranks, +2 points at 13 ranks, and so forth).
Being a positive energy effect, minor healing touch causes damage to undead creatures with a successful melee touch. Instead of dealing an extra point of damage with a successful Heal check, a character with the sneak attack ability may apply 1 extra dice of damage for every 5 points in the Heal check above 10.
Detoxification (Su): A character with the Mark of Healing can improve the condition of poisoned or diseased characters faster than the norm. By accepting a -20 penalty on the Heal check, the character may attempt to remove poison from a creature with treatment, or speed the recovery of a natural disease with treatment (essentially, treat as if the character were to make a saving throw at the moment the character uses this ability). This ability may only be used once (for purposes of poison) or once per hour (if treating a disease).
Improved Healing (Su): When a character with the Mark of Healing uses a spell, psionic power, spell-like ability (including their dragonmark powers) or psi-like ability that restores hit point damage, they restore an extra amount of hit points based on their Heal ranks. The character restores 1 extra hit point if it has at least four ranks in the Heal skill, plus 1 point of damage for every 5 points in the skill above 4 (+2 at 9 ranks, +3 at 13 ranks, and so forth). This ability does not stack with the character’s minor healing touch dragonmark secondary power, or any supernatural abilities that provide healing (such as the paladin’s lay on hands ability).
Minor Restoration (Sp): A character with the Mark of Healing may use the Heal skill to restore ability scores. When using the minor healing touch ability, the character may choose to remove 1 point of physical ability damage with a successful DC 25 Heal check, or 1 point of physical ability drain with a successful DC 40 check. For every 10 points the Heal check succeeds, the character restores 1 extra point in the same ability score. This ability may be used only once per hour, and is treated as if the character had boosted its minor healing touch.

One of the reasons I decided to work with Dragonmarks as Bloodlines is because some of the bloodlines end up being weaker than the real deal as they have to spend feat slots to duplicate what a Cleric can do effortlessly. Jorasco, of all Houses, exemplifies this. They're supposed to be so efficient at healing that they overpower Clerics (and Healers), and even then, they still can't hold a candle to a Cleric going full healer.

The first and most important change was to do what not even Pathfinder could: turn Cure Minor Wounds into an at-will ability. That simple power, acquired somewhat late but still capable of being acquired by the scions with the Greater Dragonmark relatively early, makes them infinitely more efficient out of combat than a Cleric or Healer, than a Wand of Cure Light Wounds (Eternal or otherwise), a Wand of Lesser Vigor or a Healing Belt, since they don't spend anything else but time. Minor Healing Touch was the result of that. However, it still wasn't good enough, and for one reason.

It cheated them out of the Heal skill. So, what to do in that regard? Well...how about making the Heal skill important? Thus, Minor Healing Touch can be improved via the Heal skill, and the other secondary powers (such as Detoxification, Improved Healing and Minor Restoration) are also based on the Heal skill, either on its ranks or by actually making a skill check. That should leave Jorasco as the ultimate healers.

But that wasn't enough. They get a nice set of skill boosts, particularly on the important Concentration skill (for casters, anyways), and one of the few bloodlines with a Ceremony feat (a feat type oft unused). Their ability score improvements are fit for Clerics and to a certain extent Healers, though Paladins also benefit from it.

As for the tidbit about Jorasco going greedy... I recall having seen that on the Dragonmarked supplement. Certainly, they aren't as beholden to their roots as their Ghallanda brethren, which means they might have seen the value of money. However, that might just be a leap of logic from my part. It certainly makes them less likeable, no? Add to that the Nosomatic Chirurgeon and you're looking at a pretty dark Dragonmarked House gifted with the power of life. No, I don't hate Jorasco (quite the contrary; I prefer it over Ghallanda, since healers are always a must), but being the goody-goody healers just doesn't fit a business that much.

[T.G. Oskar]

Mark of Hospitality (House Ghallanda)Race: Halfling
Heraldic Creature: Blink dog
Allies: Houses Jorasco, Phiarlan and Thuranni, Talenta halflings (+1)
Enemies: None known.

House Ghallanda handles many of the best inns and taverns around, offering the best services of food and lodging in all of Khorvaire. Much like their Jorasco cousins, Ghallanda began as a loose set of tribes in the Talenta Plains, who thought their divinely-granted mission was to attend all weary travelers in the best way possible. In this way, they caught the attention of the dragonmarked houses, and through cunning borne of experience, the tribes became an important house. Unlike other houses, members of House Ghallanda are extremely benevolent (though their altruistic bent doesn’t dull them to people who may attempt to fool them into indentured service, or take advantage of their hospitality), and very few are truly capable of saying otherwise. As well, they dominate the lodging market through their quality service, rather than underhanded methods. Ghallanda Hostelers provide the best food, drink and lodging, but their greatest gift is their social connections, which serve as seeds for adventure and an alternative method of currency in a society where favors rule. To become the enemy of a Ghallanda scion is a fool’s act, to say the least.



Level

Least Dragonmark

Lesser Dragonmark

Greater Dragonmark



1st

--

--

+2 on Diplomacy checks



2nd

--

+2 on Diplomacy checks

Least Dragonmark Power



3rd

--

--

Charisma +1



4th

+2 on Diplomacy checks

Least Dragonmark Power

Negotiatior



5th

--

--

House Affinity (Ghallanda) +2



6th

--

Charisma +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power



7th

--

--

+2 on Gather Information checks



8th

Least Dragonmark Power

Negotiator

Hosteler’s grace



9th

--

--

Dexterity +1



10th

--

House affinity (Ghallanda) +2

Wanderer’s DiplomacyPHBII



11th

--

--

House affinity (Ghallanda) +4



12th

Charisma +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power

Greater Dragonmark Power



13th

--

--

+2 on Bluff checks



14th

--

+2 on Gather Information checks

Contact



15th

--

--

Constitution +1



16th

Negotiator

Improved survivalist

Hosteler’s bounty



17th

--

--

House affinity (Ghallanda) +6



18th

--

Dexterity +1

Dragonmark powers +1



19th

--

--

+2 on Knowledge (local) checks



20th

House Affinity (Ghallanda) +2

Wanderer’s DiplomacyPHBII

Supreme rest




Dragonmark Powers (Sp): A character with the Mark of Hospitality may choose one of the following spell-like abilities at each moment it gains a new dragonmark power.
Least: purify food and drink 5/day or prestidigitation 5/day or rope trick 3/day or unseen servant 3/day
Lesser: create food and water 3/day or Leomund’s secure shelter 2/day or Leomund’s tiny hut 3/day
Greater: heroes’ feast 1/day or Mordenkainen’s magnificent mansion 1/day
Dragonmark Secondary Powers: A character with the Mark of Hospitality gains the following minor powers.
Hosteler’s Grace (Su): A character with the Mark of Hospitality provides a larger amount of bounties with its spells and abilities. If a beneficial spell, spell-like ability, psionic power, psi-like ability, mystery, utterance, magic or psionic item affects only a limited amount of people and the character either uses it on itself and at least one target, or is the target of said ability alongside at least one more creature, the character does not count towards that limitation.
Contact: A character with the Mark of Hospitality will always have a contact on hand. Once per week, the character may use one of its many contacts to ask for a favor. If the favor requires a skill check, make a Diplomacy check against the skill check DC +10; if the favor requires another effect (such as casting a spell), make a Charisma check against a suitable DC (DC 10 + spell level for a required spell, power or similar effect; DC 10 for a minor social favor, DC 15 for an intermediate social favor, DC 20 for a major social favor; DC 5 + level for one week’s service as a hireling for no pay). Alternatively, the character may ask for a loan with a successful Diplomacy check (DC 5 for 1000 copper, DC 10 for 500 silver, DC 15 for 20 gold, DC 20 for 5 platinum; +1 point for every 100 copper, 50 silver, 20 gold or 5 platinum coins). Finally, the character may use its contact to gain information as if using the contact other plane spell, but as follows: the character doesn’t need to make an Intelligence check to avoid taking a penalty to Intelligence and Charisma, the character must make a Gather Information check before asking the question, and the answer is true on a d% result of 01 or higher, up to a number equal to 1 + 1 for every 2 points of the Gather Information check over 10 (else, treat as if contacting the Astral Plane, with a result higher than the number provided by the Gather Information check but lower than 68 counting as a “don’t know” answer. For example, if the result of the Gather Information check is 30, the contact provides a true answer with a result between 01-11%, a “don’t know” answer on a result between 12-67%, a lie on a result of 68-88%, and a random answer between 89-00%
Hosteler’s Bounty (Su): When a character with the Mark of Hospitality uses a spell, spell-like ability, psionic power, psi-like ability, mystery, utterance, or a magic/psionic item on an allied target that provides a static bonus to ability scores, attack rolls, skill checks or saving throws, the effect is boosted by 150%. Thus, a bull’s strength spell cast by the character (or from a wand of bull’s strength successfully used by it) provides a +6 enhancement bonus to Strength, instead of a +4.
Supreme Rest (Su): Once per week, a character with the Mark of Hospitality may expend a great deal of lifeforce to provide a boost to allies. The character takes 2 points of ability burn to all ability scores for 1 ally, plus 1 point per every other ally affected; this effect applies only at the end of the effect. If the character and its allies rest for 5 minutes, they are treated as if they had 8 hours of rest, including the ability to recharge arcane spells and power points. This does not affect divine spells or magic items with daily uses, but it does affect supernatural abilities with daily uses, as well as bound vestiges and shaped soulmelds.

Remember what I said about Medani? Skip that: making Ghallanda a useful Dragonmarked Bloodline was a nightmare. No class whatsoever fits their idea other than, well, Experts. An NPC class. That's a challenge like...say, playing a Shepherd on Ultima IV, or playing a Commoner in D&D. This Bloodline needed a lot of love, and I feel that after flashes of inspiration, I hit the jackpot.

Let's start bit by bit. Looking for inspiration, I figured, "what I can do to make hosts interesting businessmen and adventurers?" Their skill bonuses and feats were pretty much a given: Diplomacy, Gather Information and Knowledge (local) are a must, and Bluff also works well - that makes them faces, which are always welcome at parties. Negotiator isn't that great, but Wanderer's Diplomacy couldn't be ignored; it is a Halfling-specific feat, and not only that, a feat perfect for faces. That's one aspect that makes them good.

The second was their SLAs. Most of them work with making the hassles of travel far, far easier. Always have food and shelter ready; that's what makes a good host. So, they're faces and they're hosts. Formidable cohort material, still not so great as adventurer material. The ability scores are somewhat irregular: Charisma works for their face side, but they also get Dexterity and Constitution, which are odd mixes. Good for Barbarians and Rogues, but not many others (maybe Totemist?).

Thus, we end up with secondary Dragonmark powers, and here is where I draw a blank. What kind of secondary powers makes sense for them? Well, Contacts (from d20 Modern, but also an optional rule from Unearthed Arcana) makes sense: you can expect the local barman or hostel-keeper to have its ears set on the ground, and a contact is an excellent way to keep on touch with people. That makes sense out of adventure, but also before adventuring, since you can ask a contact to cast an important spell or lend you some money for consumables. The rest...well, I hit a blank there, and then I realized...

If the idea of a Ghallanda scion is to make people feel better...why not provide boosts to buffing spells and a wicked awesome capstone?

Thus, the other Dragonmarked powers. Hosteler's Grace means you can effectively cast a Mass (or Legion's) spell on one additional creature, which is good earlier on, and thus conductive for maximum buffing; it also works on spells like Plane Shift, powers like Astral Caravan, and even magic items like that pesky Rod of Security! Hosteler's Bounty makes you the ultimate buffer, and that immediately opens it to just about everyone. Have a Rogue with the Greater Dragonmark of Hospitality use a scroll of Mass Bull's Strength to grant +6 to Strength! Note that, since you count as an ally, it also works with Personal spells, which is a massive boost.

However, it is the capstone which I believe really settles it in. Supreme Rest provides you with a 1/week way to ignore the 5-minute workday for many of the classes, at the expense of some serious ability burn (nothing that Naberius can't handle?). This can be a very useful way to deal with a powerful entity, and it fits the ultimate expression of their Mark.

Finally: notice they have no enemies? You can expect the scions of Hospitality to have no enemies. However, that also means they make for some serious enemies, since being denied stay in nearly all hotels in the continent can be detrimental...unless you're used to live in the wild. Or worse: have a Black Dog sent towards you.

[T.G. Oskar]

Mark of Making (House Cannith)Race: Human
Heraldic Creature: Gorgon
Allies: House Deneith, the Twelve (+1)
Enemies: Houses Tharashk and Vadalis (-2). Furthermore, House Cannith is divided, and gains its bonus only to members of its faction, while taking a -1 penalty with members of the others.

House Cannith is one of the most powerful mercantile houses, handling the trades of tinkering and forging, and known for the construction of the warforged and many of the magic-technological advancements of Khorvaire. As one of the oldest mercantile houses, Cannith had old Cyre as its ancestral home, and pioneered many of the developments of Khorvaire. Alongside other sources such as House Orien and the gnome artificers of Zilargo, Cannith crafted such wonders as the lightning rail and the elemental-powered ships, but it was the creation (or rather, the discovery) of the warforged that granted them great power. However, the Day of Mourning struck the house straight to its core: Cyre became the Mournlands, causing Cannith scions to lose their ancestral home of Whitehearth and other important locations, and the Treaty of Thronehold gave warforged the same rights as other sentient beings, stopping their production indefinitely. The final wound came with the inability to choose a house leader, fracturing the house in three main factions: Cannith South, led by the ambitious Merrix; Cannith West, led by the diplomatic Jorlanna, and Cannith East, ruled by the belligerent Zorlan. Cannith Crafters split into two great guilds; the Tinkers, who deal with repairs abroad, and the Fabricators, who craft new items.



Level

Least Dragonmark

Lesser Dragonmark

Greater Dragonmark



1st

--

--

+2 on Craft checks



2nd

--

+2 on Craft checks

Least Dragonmark Power



3rd

--

--

Intelligence +1



4th

+2 on Craft checks

Least Dragonmark Power

Skill Focus (Craft)



5th

--

--

House Affinity (Cannith) +2



6th

--

Intelligence +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power



7th

--

--

+2 on Appraise checks



8th

Least Dragonmark Power

Skill Focus (Craft)

Magic crafting



9th

--

--

Dexterity +1



10th

--

House affinity (Cannith) +2

Bonus item creation feat



11th

--

--

House affinity (Cannith) +4



12th

Intelligence +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power

Greater Dragonmark Power



13th

--

--

+2 on Use Magic Device checks



14th

--

+2 on Appraise checks

Minor repairs



15th

--

--

Constitution +1



16th

Skill Focus (Craft)

Magic crafting

Advanced magic crafting



17th

--

--

House affinity (Cannith) +6



18th

--

Dexterity +1

Dragonmark powers +1



19th

--

--

+2 on Spellcraft checks



20th

House Affinity (Cannith) +2

Bonus item creation feat

Magic item efficiency




Dragonmark Powers (Sp): A character with the Mark of Making may choose one of the following spell-like abilities at each moment it gains a new dragonmark power.
Least: lesser armor augmentation 3/day or lesser weapon augmentation 3/day or make whole 3/day or repair light damage 5/day
Lesser: minor creation 2/day or repair serious damage 3/day
Greater: fabricate 1/day or major creation 1/day
Dragonmark Secondary Powers: A character with the Mark of Making gains the following minor powers.
Magic Crafting (Ex): A character with the Mark of Making combines its inherent dragonmark powers with its crafting skills to great extent. The character counts as a spellcaster for purposes of gaining item creation feats and crafting alchemical items, using its dragonmark caster level for all prerequisites. The character cannot make magic items that require specific spells unless it has the ability to cast spells, however. If the character can cast spells, it uses its dragonmark caster level or its actual caster level, whichever is higher, when crafting items. As well, it can make Spellcraft and Use Magic Device checks untrained.
Bonus Item Creation Feat: A character with the Mark of Making may choose an item creation feat at this level (other than Scribe Scroll, Scribe Martial Scroll, Inscribe Tattoo or any feat that requires scribing). The character must meet the prerequisites to choose the feat, unlike other bonus feats gained by means of dragonmarks.
Minor Repairs (Sp): A character with the Mark of Making can make repairs almost effortlessly. The character may use repair minor damage and mending at-will as spell-like abilities.
Advanced Magic Crafting (Ex): A character with the Mark of Making that reaches this level can make Use Magic Device checks to emulate magic items, as per the artificer’s item creation class feature. If the character has this class feature, it may make items as if its caster level was two higher (thus, it can make items at its caster level +4). This ability does not work on scrolls.
Magic Item Efficiency (Sp): A character with the Mark of Making may, once per day, activate a charged magic item without expending a charge. This does not apply to scrolls, but it applies to wands and staffs.

Arguably the most famous of the megacorporations Dragonmarked Houses, Cannith is a house divided. The schism isn't so deep yet, thus they work from the same bloodline (unlike the situation with Phiarlan and Thuranni, whose focuses are pretty distinct) and have only one progression.

This bloodline gave me an excuse to deliver a certain thing I like: provide characters with ways of crafting magic items without being spellcasters. In this case, it comes with a pair of secondary powers: the first, Magic Crafting, unlocks your crafting potential without the need for spellcasting, while the secondary benefit, Advanced Magic Crafting, provides with a way to enchant more powerful items via the ever-useful Use Magic Device skill...effectively providing the benefit that was previously exclusive to Warlocks. Note, though, that it remains the sole province of psionic creatures to craft psionic items, but it's not something that can be played with.

The other benefits are up to par. The first ability every Cannith heir gets is a bonus on ALL Craft checks, effectively doubling (almost tripling) the bonus provided to skills. Splitting the Craft skill into its constituent parts would have been enough to cover all, but I declined on it, and thus went for Appraise, Use Magic Device and eventually Spellcraft, other necessary tools for the development of crafting. The ability score improvements fit Artificers well, particularly in the case of Intelligence and Dexterity; that said, Rogues also benefit greatly from all three ability score improvements.

The kicker, though? Minor Repairs is cool, but you might have noticed Magic Item Efficiency. This ability works with ANY charged item, primarily to wands or scrolls, but with liberal interpretation it can work on just about anything else. Ring of the Ram? Sure. Belt of Battle? Go for it! Ring of Three Wishes? Well...yeah, go for it... Luck Blade? Erm... You probably noticed this because of how "exploitable" it may be, but note that it's the reward for spending 20 levels and sacrificing three levels to bloodlines. Also: potions are NOT charged items, and thus don't work with this benefit.

[T.G. Oskar]

Mark of Passage (House Orien)Race: Human
Heraldic Creature: Unicorn
Allies: Citizens of Passage, House Vadalis (+1)
Enemies: House Lyrandar (-2)

House Orien controls the trade routes and the all-important lightning rail, offering affordable transportation of goods and people across all Khorvaire. Founded almost nineteen centuries ago, during a moment where the dragonmarks were fully established, Orien swiftly became a relevant house because of its ability to cross borders amongst warring lords and, after the unification of Khorvaire as the nation of Galifar, the best way to travel across the continent swiftly and safely. Alongside House Cannith, the house of transportation built the ever-impressive lightning rail, which became the way upon which Galifar was fully connected outside of their abilities of large-scale teleportation. With the Day of Mourning, however, Orien took a brutal blow, as the lightning rails crossed (and connected through) Metron, one of the most important cities of Cyre, a blow of which the house has yet to recover. With the emergence of the airship and the elemental galleon, house Lyrandar has acquired a great deal of the transportation business, causing the once-respected house to suffer intense competition. Yet, while Lyrandar has conquered sea and air, Orien is still the undisputed master of land travel, and also the master of very long-distance immediate travel. Orien Couriers handle the delivery of parcels to all places amongst the continent (aside from the Demon Wastes and the Mournlands), while the Transporters’ Guild handles personal transportation.



Level

Least Dragonmark

Lesser Dragonmark

Greater Dragonmark



1st

--

--

+2 on Survival checks



2nd

--

+2 on Survival checks

Least Dragonmark Power



3rd

--

--

Dexterity +1



4th

+2 on Survival checks

Least Dragonmark Power

Run



5th

--

--

House Affinity (Orien) +2



6th

--

Dexterity +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power



7th

--

--

+2 on Tumble checks



8th

Least Dragonmark Power

Run

Fast movement



9th

--

--

Strength +1



10th

--

House affinity (Orien) +2

Spring Attack



11th

--

--

House affinity (Orien) +4



12th

Dexterity +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power

Greater Dragonmark Power



13th

--

--

+2 on Balance checks



14th

--

+2 on Tumble checks

Woodland stride



15th

--

--

Constitution +1



16th

Run

Fast movement

Enlarge distance



17th

--

--

House affinity (Orien) +6



18th

--

Strength +1

Dragonmark powers +1



19th

--

--

+2 on Jump checks



20th

House Affinity (Orien) +2

Spring Attack

Quick jaunt




Dragonmark Powers (Sp): A character with the Mark of Passage may choose one of the following spell-like abilities at each moment it gains a new dragonmark power.
Least: expeditious retreat 5/day or jump 5/day or longstrider 3/day or mount 2/day
Lesser: dimension door 3/day or fly 3/day or phantom steed 1/day
Greater: overland flight 1/day or teleport 1/day
Dragonmark Secondary Powers: A character with the Mark of Passage gains the following minor powers.
Fast Movement (Ex): A character with the Mark of Passage gains a 10 ft. increment to its base land speed. This is not considered an enhancement bonus, and thus stacks with other bonuses.
Spring Attack: A character with the Mark of Passage gains Spring Attack as a bonus feat, even if it does not meet the prerequisites. Only characters with the Mark of Passage can use the Spring Attack (including similar feats or feats based on it) when using its dragonmark powers related to teleportation, spells from the conjuration (teleportation) school, spells from the psychoportation discipline that allow teleportation, or supernatural abilities that grant teleportation.
Woodland Stride (Ex): A character with the Mark of Passage may move through any sort of undergrowth (such as natural thorns, briars, overgrown areas, and similar terrain) at its normal speed and without taking damage or suffering any other impairment, as per the ranger’s woodland stride class feature.
Enlarge Distance (Sp): When a character with the Mark of Passage uses a spell or spell-like ability of the conjuration (teleportation) school (including dragonmark powers), a power/psi-like ability of the psychoportation discipline, a supernatural ability that allows teleportation, or a magic item that duplicates the effects, double the maximum distance (as well as any increments, if the distance can be covered in specific range increments such as 10 ft.) the character can travel.
Quick Jaunt (Sp): A character with the Mark of Passage using a spell/spell-like ability of the conjuration (teleportation) school, a power/psi-like ability of the psychoportation school or a supernatural ability that allows teleportation can activate the ability one step faster (full-round -> standard -> move -> swift).

One of the most entertaining NPCs I've played with is a variation of the Blade of Orien, using a portion of my homebrewed rules on my ongoing Eberron campaign. As a way to have a Fighter that's entertaining, and to cover for a proper martial character for my 2-man party, I decided to adapt the (female) example Blade of Orien NPC into a male character, known as...Francis Maarten d'Orien (alias "the Transporter (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transporter_(franchise))"). Yes, I intentionally ripped off this character as a one-shot NPC, but my players liked him enough, and I liked his teleporting tactics, and then I looked at Jaunter and...well, it clicked.

Anyways: playing with Francis Maarten gave me a lot of insight on how an Orien character can be played, particularly one mostly mundane. Orien Couriers and Transporters are prized for being fast bastards, good on various kinds of movement and with good agility. I figured a Fighter could make good use of it, and so would a Warblade and a Swashbuckler, but that wasn't really the inspiration. You'll notice because, much like House Medani, I gave the Orien bloodline bonuses to all physical ability scores, which any mundane class could favor. The skill bonuses include Balance, Tumble and Jump (aka, PF's Acrobatics), plus the Survival skill which is the key skill of the House (for some reason...). The feats may seem a bit sketchy, since they're universally considered bad (Run is sorta nice but nothing to boast about, and Spring Attack is universally reviled), but since I knew Spring Attack would suck, this version of the feat has its own corollary in that it can be used with teleportation abilities. To explain better: you can, if you want, jaunt a certain distance (adjacent to an enemy), make a single attack, and then jaunt the remaining distance if you want to. This is a cool tactic, since it allows for martial harassment tactics (preferably known as "hit and run" tactics, but not just comprised of those).

The secondary powers are what makes them shine. Fast movement that counts as an untyped bonus by definition is always a good thing to have; Enlarge Distance makes your teleportation powers incredibly useful, and the capstone power Quick Jaunt makes various teleportation abilities activate faster (note that this works with Shadow Hand teleportation maneuvers). Just so you can't be stopped, Woodland Stride is provided as a secondary power, and not given a special bonus if you acquire it later, unlike others. Of course, I didn't thought of giving shadow pounce, because that would be too much; that said, shadow-pouncing isn't that hard to get, and with Quick Jaunt and a move or swift-action teleportation ability, you can do a double full attack (the free one usually granted by the pouncing ability and your normal one, depending on the interpretation).

[T.G. Oskar]

Mark of Scribing (House Sivis)Race: Gnome
Heraldic Creature: Unicorn
Allies: House Kundarak (+1)
Enemies: Unknown (-2)

House Sivis handles the creation and notarization of documents across Khorvaire. Sivis is one of the oldest established houses (only younger than house Phiarlan), but laid the foundation for all dragonmarked houses, and helped on the discovery and development of the youngest. It can be said that House Sivis is the most important of the houses, but one of their greatest virtues is their professed neutrality. True to gnome nature, House Sivis pursues, codifies and protects all kinds of information. Gnome Scribes have their own, unique arcane marks which can be used to notarize any official document, which they craft as well; furthermore, they are the foremost authority in linguistics, able to understand and translate any language, including ancient and dead.



Level

Least Dragonmark

Lesser Dragonmark

Greater Dragonmark



1st

--

--

+2 on Decipher Script checks



2nd

--

+2 on Decipher Script checks

Least Dragonmark Power



3rd

--

--

Intelligence +1



4th

+2 on Decipher Script checks

Least Dragonmark Power

Diligent



5th

--

--

House Affinity (Sivis) +2



6th

--

Intelligence +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power



7th

--

--

+2 on Knowledge (any) checks



8th

Least Dragonmark Power

Diligent

Scroll casting



9th

--

--

Charisma +1



10th

--

House affinity (Sivis) +2

Scribe Scroll



11th

--

--

House affinity (Sivis) +4



12th

Intelligence +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power

Greater Dragonmark Power



13th

--

--

New language



14th

--

+2 on Knowledge (any) checks

Scroll power



15th

--

--

Wisdom +1



16th

Diligent

Scroll casting

Scroll focus



17th

--

--

House affinity (Sivis) +6



18th

--

Charisma +1

Dragonmark powers +1



19th

--

--

+2 on Use Magic Device checks



20th

House Affinity (Sivis) +2

Scribe Scroll

Scroll specialization




Dragonmark Powers (Sp): A character with the Mark of Scribing may choose one of the following spell-like abilities at each moment it gains a new dragonmark power.
Least: arcane mark 5/day or comprehend languages 5/day or message 5/day or whispering wind 5/day
Lesser: illusory script 3/day or secret page 3/day or tongues 2/day
Greater: sending 1/day or telepathic bond 1/day
Dragonmark Secondary Powers: A character with the Mark of Scribing gains the following minor powers.
Scroll Casting (Sp): A character with the Mark of Scribing treats half its caster level to activate dragonmarks as levels in wizard or sorcerer for purposes of activating scrolls. As well, the character can make Use Magic Device checks to activate scrolls untrained.
Scribe Scroll: A character with the Mark of Scribing gains Scribe Scroll as a bonus feat even if it doesn’t meet the prerequisites. The character may make Use Magic Device checks to emulate spells, as per the artificer’s item creation class feature, but only when creating scrolls. A character with the Mark of Making is also treated as if having the Scribe Martial Scroll feat for purposes of crafting martial scrolls, but only for maneuvers it knows.
New Language: A 13th level character with the Mark of Scribing learns a new language of its choice. The character can learn any language, except for secret ones (such as Druidic).
Scroll Power: A character with the Mark of Scribing treats any spell it casts by means of scrolls as if its caster level was two levels higher.
Scroll Focus: A character with the Mark of Scribing increases the Difficulty Class of any spell cast by means of scrolls by 1.
Scroll Specialization: A character with the Mark of Scribing using a spell from a scroll that deals hit point damage or ability damage increases the damage dealt by one extra die (for hit point damage) or 1 (for ability damage).

You know how the old adage goes? "Sivis pacem, para vellum." Or, translated from the Draconic: House Sivis is coming, prepare for paperwork!

...no, it's not my joke, and it's so old it's a sig right here in the Playground. Anyways: this clever pun details one thing: Notaries aren't the best at combat, and their true power lies on handling scrolls like nobody's business. In that regard, if working with the Mark of Scribing, chances are they should be the masters of scroll using; not necessarily Wizards, but work should go on making them almost as good as spellcasters on that regard. Naturally, they're good with Decipher Script and the mastery of all Knowledge checks, and Use Magic Device makes those scrolls easier to use. Now, the surprise is...they also get a "bonus" on Speak Language...by having a new language at their disposal. As with Medani, they also have bonuses to all mental ability scores, and sort of like Ghallanda, they aren't really enemies of anyone, but you never know with those corliganos.

However, it is their ability to craft, use and empower scrolls what makes them interesting. I had ideas on how to boost the power of scrolls within the Alternate Rules related to combat, as well as with the yet-unreleased Shugenja retool, and I figured they'd make a good fit. Thus, a Gnome Shugenja with the Greater Dragonmark of Scribing would be a pretty interesting scroll master, particularly if they then shift into Unbound Scroll. As it stands, Scroll Casting grants any child of Sivis the ability to activate any scroll as if they had the Magic domain class feature but washed down. Scroll Focus increases the DC of the used scroll, while Scroll Specialization improved the effect of the scroll. As a capstone, compared to stuff like Intelligent Cohort or Supreme Rest, this is tame, but it's thematically fitting.

Undoubtedly, though, the true power of a Sivis Notary is the ability to create just about ANY scroll as if it had the Item Creation class feature of the Artificer, thus making it the premier scroll-vendor and friend to any Archivist or Wizard. Not only that, a gnome Swordsage with the Mark of Scribing ALSO gets (well, technically) the Scribe Martial Scroll feat, thus becoming capable of providing even mundane allies with incredible flexibility. Compared to their powers, Sivis Notaries aren't as tame as the pun would suggest.

[T.G. Oskar]

Mark of Sentinel (House Deneith)Race: Human
Heraldic Creature: Chimera
Allies: Darguun, nobility (+1)
Enemies: Criminals, house Tharashk, order of the Emerald Claw (-2)

House Deneith has been, for generations, the bodyguards of the Galifar empire, and the house that provides expertly-trained mercenaries and bodyguards. Emerging from Karrnath, Deneith kept its neutral position during the Last War, making it one of the few houses that could keep its military power as part of the Treaty of Thronehold. Shifting its focus from mercenary job to law enforcement, Deneith is capable of traversing all Five Nations freely in pursuit of dangerous criminals. The Last War, and particularly House Tharashk, have placed their once-favored position as the main source of well-trained warriors in jeopardy, as the Finders have made contacts with citizens of Droaam, selling monstrous mercenaries at the highest bidder. With internal conflicts pushing for a show of martial supremacy from the house, Deneith’s neutrality may be placed in jeopardy. Deneith Sentinels offers the best-trained human warriors, and contacts with various Darguun soldiers, to the highest bidder; furthermore, they serve as trained reinforcements for local law enforcement and as “international police”.



Level

Least Dragonmark

Lesser Dragonmark

Greater Dragonmark



1st

--

--

+2 on Sense Motive checks



2nd

--

+2 on Sense Motive checks

Least Dragonmark Power



3rd

--

--

Constitution +1



4th

+2 on Sense Motive checks

Least Dragonmark Power

Dodge



5th

--

--

House Affinity (Deneith) +2



6th

--

Constitution +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power



7th

--

--

+2 on Intimidate checks



8th

Least Dragonmark Power

Dodge

Bulwark of defense



9th

--

--

Strength +1



10th

--

House affinity (Deneith) +2

Combat IntuitionCAdv



11th

--

--

House affinity (Deneith) +4



12th

Constitution +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power

Greater Dragonmark Power



13th

--

--

+2 on Knowledge (nobility and royalty) checks



14th

--

+2 on Intimidate checks

Sentinel strike



15th

--

--

Charisma +1



16th

Dodge

Bulwark of defense

Damage reduction 10/-



17th

--

--

House affinity (Deneith) +6



18th

--

Strength +1

Dragonmark powers +1



19th

--

--

+2 on Concentration checks



20th

House Affinity (Deneith) +2

Combat IntuitionCAdv

Fight to the end




Dragonmark Powers (Sp): A character with the Mark of Sentinel may choose one of the following spell-like abilities at each moment it gains a new dragonmark power.
Least: barkskin 5/day or protection from arrows 5/day or shield of faith 5/day or shield other 3/day
Lesser: lesser globe of invulnerability 3/day or protection from energy 3/day or stoneskin 3/day
Greater: globe of invulnerability 1/day or spell resistance 1/day
Dragonmark Secondary Powers: A character with the Mark of Sentinel gains the following minor powers.
Bulwark of Defense (Ex): A character with the Mark of Sentinel causes all opponents beginning their turn within its area to treat all squares threatened by it as difficult terrain, as per the knight’s bulwark of defense class feature (see Player’s Handbook II for more details). If the character already has this class feature, the effective area that it threatens increases by 10 ft.; the squares are not considered threatened, but they count as difficult terrain nonetheless.
Sentinel Strike (Ex): A character with the Mark of Sentinel may, once per round, make a potent attack of opportunity. If the character makes multiple attacks of opportunity, it may choose to which attack it applies. The effect only applies if the character makes a melee attack, not if the character attempts to disarm, trip, or otherwise attempt any combat maneuver as part of its attack of opportunity, unless it occurs as an effect of the melee attack (for example, if the character gains the ability to trip an opponent as part of a successful melee attack). When using a sentinel strike, the character adds its Constitution modifier to the attack and deals an extra point of damage per character level. Sentinel strike is considered as a smite for purposes of feats and magic items that improve it, except that the character is always limited to one sentinel strike per round (even with Combat Reflexes)
Fight to the End (Ex): Once per day, a character with the Mark of Sentinel may remain fighting even if its hit points remain negative. As an immediate action, the character gains the benefit of the Diehard feat and may remain fighting even if its hit points reach below -10 until the end of the encounter. The effort done by the character, however, is extenuating; at the end of the encounter, if it survives, it takes 1d6 points of ability burn to its Constitution score and becomes exhausted for a number of minutes equal to the amount of ability burn taken. The exhaustion effect may be healed as normal, but the ability burn cannot be healed except by natural means (through resting, for example).

Well, as I mentioned that Medani was my least favorite of the Dragonmarked Houses, you must be wondering: what's my favorite one? If you see a lot of love towards House Deneith, it's for one reason. Between my time playing Dungeons & Dragons Online with a Paladin having the Mark of Sentinel, and reading their fluff on the Dragonmarked supplement, I developed a lot of love for the House. The SLAs you gained through their mark, however, really made it click: some of the spells were must-have for any tank, and with Shield Other as one of the choices, you could make a pretty effective tank that used Damage Redirection (aka, to take damage from allies and/or reflect that to the enemy) with little effort. However, that wasn't really enough.

As you can see, this bloodline is perfect for Fighters, Paladins and Knights, which benefit the most (you can also add Crusaders to the list, because adding some protection buffs to an already powerful build, while delaying maneuver progression to get the right stances makes it golden). The ability score increases favor all but the Fighter (and even then, it makes Intimidate a bit nicer), the skill bonuses are really good (Intimidate for debuffing, Sense Motive as one of the best skills around, and Concentration for Paladins or Diamond Mind users), and while the feats aren't that great, it does mean you can get Dodge for free without having a Dexterity of 13 (not to mention Combat Intuition is both thematically fitting and actually quite good). Also, you get a VERY hefty amount of Damage Reduction (10 points by 16th level seems like a lot, but not really).

However, it's the secondary powers where you may cry foul, and I don't feel sorry for it. Bulwark of Defense is one of the best ways to provide Lockdown, as it disables Tumble and makes even 5-ft. steps difficult to execute, so you have strong chances of keeping people nearby. Sentinel Strike is, effectively, a Smite but as an Attack of Opportunity once per round, and extraordinary to boot; the fact that it counts as a Smite for a lot of stuff (Improved Smiting, Sapphire Smite damage bonus, Mighty Smiting damage bonus, and if you really want to push it, the benefits from Fist of Raziel (though they ONLY apply to Smite Evil, and Sentinel Strike is NOT Smite Evil). Finally, Fight to the End is an awesome way to remain in combat pretty much indefinitely, despite the ability burn and being usable once per day. As you can see, ALL secondary class features are incredibly good, perhaps better than those of others. However, they are as good as the whole package, and the package is pretty comparable to that of a Cannith or Vadalis dragonmarked scion.

[T.G. Oskar]

Mark of Shadow (House Phiarlan, House Thuranni)Race: Elf
Heraldic Creature: Hydra (Phiarlan), displacer beast (Thuranni)
Allies (Phiarlan): House Ghallanda (+1)
Allies (Thuranni): House Tharashk (+1)
Enemies (Phiarlan): Bloody Shadows (Paelion), House Thuranni (-2)
Enemies (Thuranni): Bloody Shadows (Paelion), House Phiarlan (-2)

Dragonmark Powers (Sp): A character with the Mark of Shadow may choose one of the following spell-like abilities at each moment it gains a new dragonmark power. The dragonmarked powers are similar, regardless of the House the character belongs to.
Least: darkness 3/day or disguise self 5/day or minor image 5/day or misdirection 5/day
Lesser: clairaudience/clairvoyance 3/day or scrying 3/day or shadow conjuration 3/day
Greater: mislead 1/day or shadow walk 1/day

Unlike Cannith, where the three factions do the same work and thus share the same attributes, Houses Phiarlan and Thuranni are so divided, their bloodline benefits likewise are different. This is easy to explain, after all: after so many years of secession, each bloodline has developed the Mark of Shadow in their own way, and they have achieved such a deep approach to their art that their innate abilities (literally speaking, and not figuratively as I often use the term "innate"; as in, abilities gained from birth or, rather, due to the characteristics of their birth). Because of this, both houses will have their own bloodlines, rather than have the same bloodline for both and risk misrepresenting one. After all, the applications to their art differ. For example...

PhiarlanHouse Phiarlan is well known for its main source of business: entertainment. The oldest of all houses, Phiarlan’s name is based on the old Elven name for entertainers, or “spirit keepers”, holding the dual task of entertaining and acting from the shadows to pursue the enemies of the race. When the first dragonmarks emerged, all families known for their phiarlan tradition acquired the Mark of Shadow, and the families have kept the tradition ever since, at least until the Shadow Schism that ended with the Paelion bloodline and caused the Thuranni bloodline to become independent. Phiarlan Entertainers focus on the interpretative arts, such as song, dance, theater and even more exclusive venues; however, the house is lesser known for its acts of espionage and assassination by means of the Serpentine Table, the “sixth” head of the heraldic creature of Phiarlan, the hydra, and by many the house of shadows.



Level

Least Dragonmark

Lesser Dragonmark

Greater Dragonmark



1st

--

--

+2 on Gather Information checks



2nd

--

+2 on Gather Information checks

Least Dragonmark Power



3rd

--

--

Charisma +1



4th

+2 on Gather Information checks

Least Dragonmark Power

Skill Focus (Perform)



5th

--

--

House Affinity (Phiarlan) +2



6th

--

Charisma +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power



7th

--

--

+2 on Perform checks



8th

Least Dragonmark Power

Skill Focus (Perform)

Sudden trick



9th

--

--

Dexterity +1



10th

--

House affinity (Phiarlan) +2

Versatile PerformerCAdv



11th

--

--

House affinity (Phiarlan) +4



12th

Charisma +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power

Greater Dragonmark Power



13th

--

--

+2 on Hide checks



14th

--

+2 on Perform checks

Blend into crowd



15th

--

--

Intelligence +1



16th

Skill Focus (Perform)

Sudden trick

Bonus skill trick



17th

--

--

House affinity (Phiarlan) +6



18th

--

Dexterity +1

Dragonmark powers +1



19th

--

--

+2 on Move Silently checks



20th

House Affinity (Phiarlan) +2

Versatile PerformerCAdv

Hide in plain sight




Dragonmark Secondary Powers: A character with the Mark of Shadow belonging to House Phiarlan gains the following minor powers.
Sudden Trick (Ex): A Phiarlan scion with the Mark of Shadow may use a quickened Perform check to outsmart the opponent, allowing creating a distraction. As a swift action, the character makes a Perform check against the target’s Sense Motive; all opponents gain a +10 bonus on the check. If the character’s Perform check is higher, the target is considered as if fascinated for 1 round. During the round, the creature may attempt a rushed Bluff or Diplomacy check to improve the creature’s attitude, make a Sleight of Hand check against the target or use it as a distraction to hide. Once a creature is affected by this ability, its attitude worsens by 1 step and may not be affected by this ability for 24 hours. This is not a mind-affecting ability, but only works against creatures with Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma scores higher than 3.
Blend into Crowd (Ex): A Phiarlan scion with the Mark of Shadow can use a Perform check instead of a Hide check in order to blend into a crowd. This effect only lasts for a round, but the character can use the Hide check afterwards to remain hidden, as usual.
Bonus Skill Trick: A Phiarlan scion with the Mark of Shadow learns a new skill trick at this level. The scion must fulfill the prerequisites to acquire the new skill trick. This skill trick does not count towards the number of skill tricks a character may learn based on its level, and the character does not need to spend skill points to learn the trick.
Hide in Plain Sight (Ex): A Phiarlan scion with the Mark of Shadow can use the Hide skill even while being observed, as per the ranger’s class feature. This ability works on any urban environment.

...Phiarlan devotes itself to the performing arts, evoking the tradition of the ancient phiarlans, or elven entertainers. They do well the art of espionage and have centuries of tradition regarding said task. Thus, it is natural that they use their mark in a more subtle way, mastering the art of stealth. In this regard, Phiarlan entertainers gain tricks related to stealth and distraction: they keep their bonus to Gather Information (their house skill), but they focus more on performance and stealth skills. Their ability scores are good for a Rogue or Spellthief, and specifically to Arcane Tricksters who may favor two of the three (if not all three) scores. Their feats don't exactly boost stealth; instead, they boost performance, their actual art.

To further distance Phiarlan from Thuranni, the Entertainers' secondary powers boost performance over stealth, but in a way where the former enables the latter.. Blend into Crowd is a great way to provide a distraction for purposes of hiding away, and eventually they get Hide in Plain Sight to do the same but limited specifically to urban environments. Sudden Trick is pretty cool, since it turns a Perform check into an opportunity to improve the target's attitude or hide. Finally, you can get a bonus Skill Trick, a nice way to apply a cool feature and expand the wealth of options of the character.

ThuranniTaking in many ways from its parent house, Thuranni also dabbles in espionage and assassination, but their business is more direct. In 972 YK, a confidence caused the Thuranni line to exterminate the Paelion line, causing a schism that split the House of Shadow into two, with the leading Phiarlan families excoriating the entire Thuranni bloodline only to have the latter declare itself a new house. Thuranni has become the youngest house, thus, and has served as competition for Phiarlan. Thuranni, unlike Phiarlan, focuses on the plastic arts, and houses the finest painters, architects and sculptors of any house.



Level

Least Dragonmark

Lesser Dragonmark

Greater Dragonmark



1st

--

--

+2 on Gather Information checks



2nd

--

+2 on Gather Information checks

Least Dragonmark Power



3rd

--

--

Wisdom +1



4th

+2 on Gather Information checks

Least Dragonmark Power

Skill Focus (Profession)



5th

--

--

House Affinity (Thuranni) +2



6th

--

Wisdom +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power



7th

--

--

+2 on Profession checks



8th

Least Dragonmark Power

Skill Focus (Profession)

Veil of shadows



9th

--

--

Dexterity +1



10th

--

House affinity (Thuranni) +2

Nocturnal CasterToM



11th

--

--

House affinity (Thuranni) +4



12th

Wisdom +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power

Greater Dragonmark Power



13th

--

--

+2 on Knowledge (architecture and engineering) checks



14th

--

+2 on Profession checks

Shape shadow



15th

--

--

Intelligence +1



16th

Skill Focus (Profession)

Veil of shadows

Hide in plain sight



17th

--

--

House affinity (Thuranni) +6



18th

--

Dexterity +1

Dragonmark powers +1



19th

--

--

+2 on Hide checks



20th

House Affinity (Thuranni) +2

Nocturnal CasterToM

Minor shadow illusion




Dragonmark Secondary Powers: A character with the Mark of Shadow belonging to House Thuranni gains the following minor powers.
Veil of Shadows (Su): A Thuranni scion with the Mark of Shadow gains the ability to make its flesh hazy, almost translucent, for a brief amount of time. Whenever it uses a mystery (see Tome of Magic for more details), or a spell or spell-like ability from the illusion school, on itself, the character gains a bonus on Hide checks equal to its half its dragonmark spell-like ability caster level once the effect expires, lasting for 1 round per dragonmark caster level. For example, a 13th level character with the Lesser Dragonmark bloodline that uses the disguise self spell-like ability as part of its dragonmark gains a +3 bonus to its Hide checks for 6 rounds after the spell expires. This bonus stacks with the cloak of shadows class feature of the child of night (see Tome of Magic, page 117, for more details).
Nocturnal Caster (Su): A Thuranni scion with the Mark of Shadow gains the Nocturnal Caster feat (see Tome of Magic, page 137 for more details), even if it doesn’t meet the prerequisites. The benefits apply to all spell-like abilities gained by means of the dragonmark.
Shape Shadow (Su): A Thuranni scion with the Mark of Shadow gains greater control over its ability to manipulate shadows. When using any spell or spell-like ability with the [shadow] descriptor, the DC to disbelieve the spell increases by 1 and the strength of the effect increases by 10%.
Minor Shadow Illusion (Su): A Thuranni scion with the Mark of Shadow learns to imbue and shape a portion of shadow into any illusion it uses. Whenever the character uses a spell or spell-like ability from the illusion (figment or glamer) subschool, it gets treated as if having the [shadow] descriptor. If the spell is disbelieved (by making a successful Will save, for example), the spell is still 10% as strong; this applies to any numerical variable explained in the effect (thus, for example, a creature interacting with a character receiving the benefit of disguise self, or a creature affected by a seeming or veil spell cast by the character, still retains a +1 bonus to the Disguise check by means of the shadow effect). This doesn’t work if the spell already has the shadow descriptor.

On the other hand, Thuranni masters the art of hiding in plain sight, and not in the way Phiarlan does. Thuranni is, on its job, a bit more straightforward; if Phiarlan is the Performer, Thuranni is the Technician (correlation not intentional). One of the things I found interesting while reading the Dragonmarked supplement was that Thuranni, while still dabbling on the performance acts, also dealt with the plastic arts, and I figured this was a marvelous way to make them distinguish; one thing is to fool everyone by being the rock superstar, but a worse thing is to fool everyone by being the utilities technician (after all, you can expect the actor to be a spy, but never expect the prop worker to hide a real weapon within the props and hide its tools so cleanly). In that regard, I focused on letting them tap into the creative flow and end up with shadowcasting. While they don't get unique access to shadow spells or mysteries, Thuranni nonetheless works well to provide Shadowcasters (and mystery users) with some strong utility. Sure, Shadowcasters will have to wait until 15th level to get a bonus to their key ability score, but in the meanwhile they get Dexterity to boost. Their skill bonuses are pretty rare, but they still get Hide in the end. Their feats improve Profession, of all skills, but eventually end up boosting the spells AND the Dragonmark SLAs.

Yet, it is the secondary powers of the Bloodline what make them distinguish. While Phiarlan relies on performance to improve their stealth and focus more on improving their stealth, Thuranni only briefly focuses on stealth and dabbles into shadow manipulation. Shape Shadow works as a Spell Focus effect for both spells with the [shadow] descriptor and their SLA counterparts, which includes Shadow Conjuration; this is pretty cool, since it's effectively a portion of the bonus from the ever-famous Shadowcraft Mage. Minor Shadow Illusion, though, allows the Thuranni to dabble into the full benefit of Shadowcraft Mage and apply it to their dragonmark SLAs with haunting ease. This is their main contrast; while Phiarlan's secondary powers focus on providing distractions and using performances to hide, Thuranni masters their mark into near-full shadow manipulation. It's easy to get that a Thuranni scion may focus on being an Illusionist, Shadowcaster or dabbler in mysteries, even if it doesn't really seem like it. On the other hand, shifting Wisdom and Intelligence may be a thing. What do you think?

[T.G. Oskar]

Mark of Storm (House Lyrandar)Race: Half-elf
Heraldic Creature: Kraken
Allies: Half-elves (non-inclined), houses Deneith, Phiarlan, Thuranni and Tharashk (+1)
Enemies: Half-elves (human-inclined or elf-inclined), houses Medani and Orien (-2)

House Lyrandar has a strong tie to Khorvaire, and is the undisputed master of air and sea. Their foundation hails from the first migration of elves from Aerenal, where human and elf first blended into a new race. The term “Lyrandar” comes from their quasi-mythical foundation, claiming themselves heirs of Lyran the Firstborn, the first half-elf who, alongside Selavash, became the first wielders of the Mark of Storm. Lyrandar believes their existence is blessed by the Sovereign Host, and claim themselves the title of “children of Khorvaire”, the Khoravar. Claiming command of storms, Lyrandar formed a small fleet and helped farmers by calling upon the rain and shielding them from storms. After the Korth Edicts, Lyrandar has expanded its business with Cannith’s elemental galleons, including the greatest innovation thus far, the airship. Lyrandar Firstborn are known for being skilled sailors and pilots, as well as offering the services of “rain-calling” that are important in case of droughts and ill weather.



Level

Least Dragonmark

Lesser Dragonmark

Greater Dragonmark



1st

--

--

+2 on Balance checks



2nd

--

+2 on Balance checks

Least Dragonmark Power



3rd

--

--

Dexterity +1



4th

+2 on Balance checks

Least Dragonmark Power

Acrobatics



5th

--

--

House Affinity (Lyrandar) +2



6th

--

Dexterity +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power



7th

--

--

+2 on Profession (sailor) checks



8th

Least Dragonmark Power

Acrobatics

Air mastery



9th

--

--

Strength +1



10th

--

House affinity (Lyrandar) +2

Old SaltStorm



11th

--

--

House affinity (Lyrandar) +4



12th

Dexterity +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power

Greater Dragonmark Power



13th

--

--

+2 on Tumble checks



14th

--

+2 on Profession (sailor) checks

Wind at your back



15th

--

--

Wisdom +1



16th

Acrobatics

Air mastery

Resistance to electricity 10



17th

--

--

House affinity (Lyrandar) +6



18th

--

Strength +1

Dragonmark powers +1



19th

--

--

+2 on Use Rope checks



20th

House Affinity (Lyrandar) +2

Old SaltStorm

Dominate elemental




Dragonmark Powers (Sp): A character with the Mark of Storm may choose one of the following spell-like abilities at each moment it gains a new dragonmark power.
Least: create water 5/day or endure elements 5/day or fog cloud 5/day or gust of wind 5/day
Lesser: call lightning 3/day or sleet storm 3/day or wind wall 3/day
Greater: call lightning storm 2/day or control weather 1/day
Dragonmark Secondary Powers: A character with the Mark of Storm gains the following minor powers.
Air Mastery (Ex): Airborne creatures take a -1 penalty on attack and damage rolls against a character with the Mark of Storm.
Wind at your Back (Ex): A character with the Mark of Storm uses its mastery of navigation to coax additional speed from your ship by directing the most efficient placement of sails or encouraging rowers to exert themselves, causing any ship (including elemental galleons and airships, but not land vehicles) to move 20% faster (to a minimum of 5 ft.)
Dominate Elemental (Sp): Once per week, a character with the Mark of Storm can use the effect of a dominate monster spell against any elemental. The saving throw against the character’s effect is equal to 10 + half the character’s level + the character’s Charisma modifier. The character is treated as if having a caster level equal to its dragonmark caster level, and may only have one elemental dominated at any moment; if the character attempts to dominate another elemental, the already dominated one is instantly freed (and becomes immediately hostile against the character). If the character has not dominated an elemental, it may use this ability to gain control of a ship with a bound elemental; using this ability in this way does not count as the weekly use of this ability, and the elemental automatically fails the saving throw (but if liberated, it automatically gains a saving throw to resist the effect).

Just as Cannith, Orien, Vadalis and specifically Deneith, I like House Lyrandar, but this preference comes from an unlikely source: the Iron Chef Optimization Challenge. When ICOC had the Dread Pirate as a Secret Ingredient, I did two entries. The best-resulting entry, and one of my only two entries to get on the top 3 was Halavin d'Lyrandar (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=10609686&postcount=107), an awesome build that nonetheless ended up with a lot of troubles that took it from top spot to (respectable) 2nd place in a heartbeat. With one or two changes, it could have tied or even beaten that edition's champion.

Anyways: working on that entry made me read and digest all I could regarding Lyrandar, and I found it to be a really interesting House. Fast forward to when I made this work, and I read the description from Dragonmarked, and extrapolated a bit from the Player's Guide to Eberron. That's THREE books I had to read in order to better understand the fluff behind it, and for someone who prefers the crunch to the fluff, that is a surprising achievement. That, and being the ONLY Dragonmarked House that has offensive SLAs made it for me. Had Halavin took this bloodline, chances would have been that the build really kicked in and became even more glorious. Anyways, for all those reasons, Lyrandar is relatively respectable, and with a pretty powerful capstone.

So: the ability score improvements make for another good Ranger set-up, while the skill choices combined agility with typical traits for sailors (I also read quite a bit of Stormwrack, BTW). Between the Dragonmark SLAs and Air Mastery, fighting against a Lyrandar Captain can be a headache. Wind at your Back works as a solid boost to the movement speed of your vessels, and it's a nice fluffy ability. So far, so good, right? The resistance to electricity attacks comes a tad too late, which may be the only trifle you guys have.

Then we get to Dominate Elemental. Having a completely dominated elemental at your service (not just an Air Elemental, but ANY Elemental, even the Omnimental or the Elemental Weirds or the Paraelementals or...heck, maybe even the Princes of Elemental Evil!) if they fail the (well-scaling) DC can be pretty brutal. A thing to note, though, is that elementals have generally poor Will saves, and if they have a decent bonus, that is because they have a lot of HD. Try nudging it down with effects like shaken, and you can have your own elemental at your control for a long while! This also works to take complete control of elementals bound to elemental galleons or airships, and it works almost always, so you can take control of any ship with bound elementals without really asking. Pretty nice effect if you ask me; certainly comparable to the ones from Cannith, Deneith or Vadalis...which should give you an idea of which Houses I favor.

[T.G. Oskar]

Mark of Warding (House Kundarak)Race: Dwarf
Heraldic Creature: Manticore
Allies: House Sivis, Mror clans (+1)
Enemies: Indebted individuals (-2)

House Kundarak holds in its hands (or rather, its vaults) the entire fortune of Khorvaire (monetary fortune, to be clear). Once a group of fractured clans banished by their brethren, the Kundarak clan became the wardens of the dwarven territories until their barbaric ways ended, alongside those of the other clans who were likewise banished. This happened after conquest by Karrn, the legendary warrior that conquered all of Khorvaire in the name of Galifar, upon which the subjugated clans unified in a whole nation. Upon returning to their old strongholds, they found their lands devastated by their duergar cousins, and they found themselves relieved of their duties. With aid from house Sivis, the nascent house Kundarak offered their talent at protecting large structures, taking under their wing the valuables of many. The house eventually became a powerful financial institution, offering loans and letters of credit to many nations, and serving as a bank where gold, gems, art and treasures can be protected. Kundarak Wardens hold nigh-impenetrable wards littered with traps of their own construction (which they personally test), coupled with their magical wards to provide the best protection money can afford, which is always at their disposal as they hold a great amount of the continent’s fortunes.



Level

Least Dragonmark

Lesser Dragonmark

Greater Dragonmark



1st

--

--

+2 on Search checks



2nd

--

+2 on Search checks

Least Dragonmark Power



3rd

--

--

Dexterity +1



4th

+2 on Search checks

Least Dragonmark Power

Investigator



5th

--

--

House affinity (Kundarak) +2



6th

--

Dexterity +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power



7th

--

--

+2 on Disable Device checks



8th

Least Dragonmark Power

Investigator

Trapbusting



9th

--

--

Intelligence +1



10th

--

House affinity (Kundarak) +2

Tactile TrapsmithCAdv



11th

--

--

House affinity (Kundarak) +4



12th

Dexterity +1

Lesser Dragonmark Power

Greater Dragonmark Power



13th

--

--

+2 on Craft (trapsmith) checks



14th

--

+2 on Disable Device checks

Disenchanting picks



15th

--

--

Constitution +1



16th

Investigator

Trapbusting

Jury-rig trap



17th

--

--

House affinity (Kundarak) +6



18th

--

Intelligence +1

Dragonmark powers +1



19th

--

--

+2 on Open Lock checks



20th

House affinity (Kundarak) +2

Tactile TrapsmithCAdv

Glyph transfer




Dragonmark Powers (Sp): A character with the Mark of Warding may choose one of the following spell-like abilities at each moment it gains a new dragonmark power.
Least: alarm 5/day or arcane lock 5/day or fire trap 5/day or misdirection 5/day
Lesser: explosive runes 3/day or glyph of warding 3/day or nondetection 3/day
Greater: greater glyph of warding 2/day or guards and wards 1/day
Dragonmark Secondary Powers: A character with the Mark of Warding gains the following minor powers.
Trapbusting (Ex): A character with the Mark of Warding may make Disable Device and Open Lock checks untrained. Furthermore, it may search for traps with a DC higher than 20, as if having the trapfinding class feature.
Disenchanting Picks (Su): A character with the Mark of Warding may use the Open Lock skill to unlock magically bound locks (such as those bound by arcane lock), but the check DC increases by 10.
Jury-Rig Trap (Ex): A character with the Mark of Warding that succeeds on disarming a trap may attempt to re-arm the trap as a full-round action with a successful Craft (trapmaking) check equal or higher than the original Disable Device check of the trap. A re-armed trap works as normal, except the Search and Disable Device check DCs decrease by 5 and the character that re-arms it can disable it again without making a Disable Device check.
Glyph Transfer (Su): A character with the Mark of Warding that successfully disarms a magic trap such as a glyph of warding or a symbol and bypasses the check by 10 or more can choose to suspend the effect of the spell and bind it to an object (such as an empty parchment or a stone slab). Thus, as a full-round action, the character may reactivate the trap on a different location it chooses, as if it had cast it on its own, but using the parameters of the original caster (such as the save DC, the remaining duration and the effect of the trap). This allows the character (and any allies it chooses) to become immune to the effects of the trap, but the original caster is likewise not affected.

I can't help but feel a tad sorry for the Wardens. With a name like that, you should expect a nice tank, compared to the Sentinel which you expect as a watchman. However, you instead get a bunch of guys who work magic traps and...are bankers? The reason why I feel sorry for them is that they're the only other Dragonmarked House (aside from Lyrandar, as mentioned above) that has offensive spells, but while the former have direct offensive spells, Kundarak Wardens have traps that take a lot of time and very few applications other than chokeholds. In that regard, I kept their flavor and tried to make them a bit better.

Ability score-wise, Wardens get bonuses similar to, of all houses, Cannith. This makes them great Rogues or Artificers, which seems to be their favored classes. Likewise, they get skills related to traps and other mechanical devices. Their feats make them use their Dexterity for Disable Device, thus freeing some skill points, and giving you near-superb chances of success with those skills.

Of their secondary powers, a good deal of them is to make them better at finding and disabling traps, but also to deal with some of the difficulties set to mundane trapsmiths and trapbusters. Trapbusting is essentially Trapfinding as a bloodline feature, but limited only to Dwarves; Disenchanting Picks helps erase the problem with Arcane Locks, while Jury-Rig Trap lets you re-set a trap you disamed just by the grit of your teeth. Glyph Transfer is a way to provide Kundarak scions with methods to set traps without the excessive amounts of time some of these spells require (though not with entire control of the set trap). The former two features make for a better trap disarmer, while the last feature provides some much-needed offensive punch.

[T.G. Oskar]

Mark of Death (House Vol)Race: Elf
Heraldic Creature: Unknown
Allies: None
Enemies: None

The last true dragonmark, this mark belonged to House Vol. However, it is now extinct. Rumors speak of possible survivors holding the mark, the best known being Erandis d’Vol, the rumored spiritual leader of the Blood of Vol, but because of her current situation she is unable to use her powers. The powers and effects of the Mark of Death are yet unknown, and thus there’s no record of what powers and abilities they may have.

Yeah, you should have expected that. The Mark of Death, just like the Day of Mourning, is that part of the "number 13 is mysterious" thing Eberron has. There's no official records of what the Mark of Death provides in any of the supplements, and virtually nothing is known other than the only survivor is a half-dragon lich. That, and that there may be a child with the Mark, but that's part of Eberron fiction which has never been as popular as books set in the Forgotten Realms (specifically those dealing with Drizzt or Elminster).

However, if for some strange and odd reason the Mark of Death was ever revealed, this would be the place where you'd see it.

[T.G. Oskar]

ABERRANT DRAGONMARKSAberrant dragonmarks work in a very different way than regular dragonmarks. At their core, they behave mostly like regular dragonmarks: they have a defined progression much like regular ones, with the exception of Siberys-equivalent marks, in terms of the feat requirements to get the abilities. However, while true dragonmarks often share similar characteristics, aberrant dragonmarks are completely unpredictable. Aberrant dragonmarks don’t necessarily share the same theme; while some of the powers are related to fire, fear, plague and others, some may be completely inoffensive, and the least power doesn’t have to correlate to the lesser one. Aberrant dragonmarks appear without warning; a child of two people with aberrant dragonmarks may manifest none at all, and if they do, might not manifest the same powers of its parents at all.

Translating into a bloodline, thus, is a challenge for aberrant dragonmarks, as retaining the feats isn’t entirely viable for characters but each aberrant is far too different to each other to standardize into a bloodline. The best way to handle it, thus, is noticing two main concepts of aberrant dragonmarks:


The power of aberrant dragonmarks is innately destructive, both to the target and to the user. Thus, part of the bloodline’s benefits include minimizing the risks of using the dragonmark, so that users of minor dragonmarks have less risks but less capabilities to resist it, while more powerful dragonmarks are more dangerous but can be resisted better (and allow least dragonmarks to essentially be used without problems).
Aberrant dragonmarks are still feared. Part of the abilities they acquire must be focused on the fear they inspire, which is a constant on any and all dragonmarked characters.


Aberrants (Independent, House Tarkanan)Race: Dwarf, Elf, Half-Elf, Half-Orc, Halfling, Human, Gnome
Heraldic Creature: Beholder (House Tarkanan only)
Allies: Aberrant dragonmarked, House Tarkanan (+1)
Enemies: All dragonmarked houses, minor communities (-2)



Level

Least Dragonmark

Lesser Dragonmark

Greater Dragonmark



1st

--

--

+2 on Intimidate checks



2nd

--

+2 on Intimidate checks

Least Aberrant Power



3rd

--

--

Charisma +1



4th

+2 on Intimidate checks

Least Aberrant Power

Aberrant resilience



5th

--

--

Aberrant affinity +2



6th

--

Charisma +1

Lesser Aberrant Power



7th

--

--

+2 on Bluff checks



8th

Least Aberrant Power

Aberrant resilience

Aberrant fortitude



9th

--

--

Constitution +1



10th

--

Aberrant affinity +2

Bonus aberrant feat



11th

--

--

Aberrant affinity +4



12th

Charisma +1

Lesser Aberrant Power

Greater Aberrant Power



13th

--

--

+2 on Disguise checks



14th

--

+2 on Bluff checks

Greater aberrant resilience



15th

--

--

Ability score +1



16th

Aberrant resilience

Aberrant fortitude

Hide dragonmark



17th

--

--

Aberrant affinity +6



18th

--

Constitution +1

Greater aberrant fortitude



19th

--

--

+2 on Sleight of Hand checks



20th

Aberrant affinity +2

Bonus aberrant feat

Aberrant power +1




Aberrant Powers: All aberrant dragonmarked may choose one of the following spell-like abilities each time they gain a new aberrant power. All aberrant dragonmark powers have a backlash, which the character suffers based on their aberrant dragonmark caster level; these effects are indicated on parenthesis. The caster levels for each aberrant bloodline are indicated after each degree of power; the character uses the highest caster level available.
Least (1 + 1/four levels): acid arrow 3/day (1 point of acid damage/2 CL), bane 5/day (-1 penalty to Will saves), burning hands 5/day (1 point of fire damage/2 CL), chill touch 3/day (1 point of cold damage per touch), darkness 5/day (Will DC 10 or become dazzled for 1 round), doom 5/day (Will DC 10 or become shaken for 1 round), ghoul touch 5/day (Fortitude DC 10 or become sickened for 1 round), inflict light wounds (1 point of negative energy damage/2 CL), lesser confusion 5/day (Will DC 10 or dazed for 1 round), produce flame 3/day (1 point of fire damage/minute), shatter 5/day (1 point of sonic damage/2 CL)
Lesser (1 + 1/two levels): bestow curse 2/day (-3 penalty to Will saves), confusion 3/day (Will DC 15 or dazed for 1 round), contagion 3/day (Fortitude DC 15 or become sickened for 5 rounds), deeper darkness 3/day (Will DC 15 or become dazzled for 1 minute), fear 3/day (Will DC 15 or become shaken for 1 round), fireball 3/day (1 point of fire damage/CL), inflict serious wounds (1 point of negative energy damage/CL), poison 3/day (1 point of acid damage/CL), vampiric touch 3/day (Fortitude DC 15 or become vulnerable to conjuration [healing] spells for 1 round)
Greater (1/level): acid fog 1/day (1 point of acid damage/CL), cloudkill 1/day (Fortitude save DC 20 or 1 point of Constitution damage), enervation 2/day (1 point of negative energy damage/HD), eyebite 2/day (Will DC 20 or become frightened for 1 round), feeblemind 1/day (Will DC 20 or stunned for 1 round), flame strike 2/day (1 point of fire damage/CL plus 1 point of untyped damage/CL), mass inflict light wounds 2/day (1 point of negative energy damage/CL; take 1 point of bleeding damage/four CL for 1 minute), phantasmal killer 1/day (Will DC 20 or become frightened for 1 round)
Aberrant Secondary Powers: A character with an aberrant dragonmark gains the following minor powers:
Aberrant Resilience (Su): A character with an aberrant dragonmark learns to withstand the backlash effects of its powers. The character gains resistance 5 against all backlash damage taken when using aberrant powers, which also applies against aberrant powers used against it. As well, the character gains a +1 bonus to natural armor.
Aberrant Fortitude (Ex): A character with an aberrant dragonmark learns to withstand the physical and mental repercussions of its powers. The character gains a +2 bonus on all Fortitude and Will saves to resist the effects of aberrant powers (both those the character uses, and those that affect the character).
Bonus Aberrant Feat: A character with an aberrant dragonmark learns to improve the power it acquires from it. The character gains a bonus feat from the list of feats appearing in the Dragonmarked supplement that apply to aberrant dragonmarked. The character must fulfill the prerequisites to gain the feat, as usual.
Greater Aberrant Resilience (Su): A character with an aberrant dragonmark learns to withstand furthermore the effects of its powers, which manifests against all other kinds of powers. The character gains resistance 20 against all backlash damage taken when using aberrant powers, which also applies against aberrant powers used against it. The character also gains resistance 5 to acid and fire attacks.
Hide Dragonmark (Su): A character with an aberrant dragonmark can subsume its dragonmark. As a move action, the character can hide its dragonmark, rendering it undetectable by mundane means. Against magical or supernatural means, the character is effectively treated as having spell resistance 15 + its class level, even if the spell bypasses spell resistance. The effect lasts until the character manifests a dragonmark power. This effect may be used at-will.
Greater Aberrant Fortitude (Ex): A character with an aberrant dragonmark learns to further withstand the physical and mental repercussions of its powers, which manifests against all other kinds of powers. The character gains a +5 bonus on all Fortitude and Will saves to resist the effect of aberrant powers (both those the character uses, and those that affect the character). Furthermore, the character gains a +2 bonus on all Fortitude and Will saves it makes, which doesn’t stack with the bonus against aberrant powers.

Just as I dealt with True Dragonmarks, Aberrant Dragonmarks get their own bloodline. While I could make several variants, I decided to make a flexible one that everyone could work with, providing a wide amount of choices. Between the choice of bonus aberrant (dragonmark) feat and choice of ability score increase, you can bet there'll be no two same aberrants.

Mostly, aberrants are geared towards a certain degree of optimization of resources. Charisma boosts their SLAs save DC, whereas Constitution increases HP and Fortitude save bonus, which is good to resist the majority of the backlash effects of the SLAs. The secondary abilities also aid on resisting the backlash effect: the ability to resist some of the damage, succeed on the necessary saves, and finally get a way to resist detection. Finally, the choice of skill bonuses helps them hide their mark and dissuade people from harming them, because of the power of their mark (and the stigma behind it).

This leads to, of course, the Dragonmark Powers, or the SLAs they provide. You'll notice a great deal of them are offensive spells, or spells that are meant to cause pain or weakening. All of them, as per the original version, have a backlash effect, but each backlash effect is customized to the power you gain. You can gain ANY power (without necessarily incurring on a theme); the backlash, likewise, shouldn't be limited to one effect. Most people won't like the backlash effect (even if for some effects is really minor), but it's a necessary evil to compensate for effects like Bestow Curse or Phantasmal Killer.

[T.G. Oskar]

NPCS AND DRAGONMARKSOne of the key aspects of Eberron is its lack of high-level characters, and how even low-level characters can be considered legendary heroes on their own right. The power of dragonmarks, thus, is accessible at early levels by means of feats, with greater dragonmarks manifesting at 8th-9th level (either by means of feats, or through the dragonmarked heir prestige class, which can be accessed as early as 4th level). The idea behind making dragonmarks as bloodlines was to provide options for characters to save their feats, even if they sacrifice class levels (though gaining pseudo-character levels in exchange), but their access to greater dragonmarks are delayed.

NPCs, by virtue of being mostly low-level characters, don’t have that advantage. Many of them will rarely reach their first actual dragonmark power with a least dragonmark, pretty much forcing them into greater dragonmark bloodline progression: something that should be unusual. Furthermore, not all characters will desire to enter dragonmark heir to gain their powers, and certainly not NPCs either.

There are two solutions to the problem. The first is based on what already exists: the Least Dragonmark, Lesser Dragonmark and Greater Dragonmark feats still exist, but are limited only to NPCs. This allows dragonmarked NPCs to gain dragonmark powers earlier than the norm, sacrificing their feats instead of their class levels. This isn’t the best idea, as they still sacrifice feats to acquire their powers, which can be a problem if they’re built for combat. However, it is still an option. If using this option, adjust as follows:



The Least Dragonmark feat allows the choice of a single Least Dragonmark Power, which can be used from 3-5 times per day. The character has a caster level of 1st, and increases the caster level by 1 every four character levels (4th, 8th, 12th, etc.)
The Lesser Dragonmark feat allows the choice of a single Lesser Dragonmark Power, which can be used from 2-3 times per day. Furthermore, the character can use its Least Dragonmark Power one more time per day. The character has a caster level of 3rd, and increases the caster level by 1 every two character levels (8th, 10th, 12th, etc.)
The Greater Dragonmark feat allows the choice of a single Greater Dragonmark Power, which can be used from 3-5 times per day. Furthermore, the character can use its Least and Lesser Dragonmark Powers one more time per day. The character has a caster level equal to its character level.
Siberys Dragonmarks, as usual, are very rare. Only by the Heir of Siberys prestige class (or, as presented below, as a NPC-exclusive unique ability) they can acquire a dragonmark of this kind.


The second method is to treat each dragonmarked power as a unique ability, as presented in the Dungeon Master’s Guide II. As unique abilities, they can be added to NPCs without sacrificing anything, at any level they desire (even 1st level!), only having an increase in CR. Through this option, a character can gain dragonmark powers out of order. If using this method, treat as follows:



Least Dragonmarks grant the character the ability to use a single Least Dragonmark Power, with a caster level of 1st, which increases by 1 every four character levels. Only the proper dragonmarked races can gain this ability (thus, only a human can gain powers from the Mark of Making, Mark of Handling, Mark of Passage and Mark of Sentinel, for example). This unique ability increases the character’s CR by 1.This unique ability may be acquired more than once, but only grants a new power from the same mark (thus, if a human took a power from the Mark of Making, it may only choose a power from the Mark of Making, not one from the Marks of Handling, Passage or Sentinel).
Lesser Dragonmarks grant the character the ability to use a single Lesser Dragonmark Power, with a caster level of 1st, which increases by 1 every two character levels. This unique ability increases the character’s CR by 2. This unique ability may be acquired one more time, but only grants a new power from the same mark; otherwise, it behaves like a Least Dragonmark.
Greater Dragonmarks grant the character the ability to use a single Greater Dragonmark Power, with a caster level equal to their character level. This unique ability increases the character’s CR by 3. This unique ability may only be chosen once; otherwise, it behaves like a Least Dragonmark.
Siberys Dragonmarks can be granted as unique abilities without entering the Heir of Siberys class. This unique ability grants the character the ability to use the Siberys power of its Dragonmark once per day, with a caster level equal to its character level. This ability may only be chosen by characters with a character level of 9th or higher, and increase the character’s CR by 1.
If using dragonmarks as unique abilities instead of bloodlines, their level adjustment for PCs is as follows: Least - +1 LA, Lesser - +2 LA, Greater - +4 LA. Siberys Dragonmarks cannot be acquired by player characters by these means. Because of this effect, it is more favorable to enter the bloodlines instead of gaining them as unique abilities, but the latter has the chance of LA buy-off, which may be just as desirable. The DM has the final hearsay on the matter, though it is recommendable that the characters either use the feat option or the bloodline option.


With all these changes, comes the question: what about NPCs? Particularly on Eberron, which is meant to be a campaign setting designed with low-level adventuring in mind, requiring 12th level for the good powers may seem preposterous, particularly when the feats granted them 4 levels earlier.

Thus, in the case of NPCs, they can choose to get the Dragonmark powers without delving in the bloodline itself. The first is the "traditional" option: just add the feats to the character and call it a day. You won't get the secondary powers of the bloodline, but you'll definitely get the primary ones, and the skill bonus to its primary skill as well. In that regard, you can have an NPC with a Least Dragonmark power at 1st level (rather than 2nd), without having to invest in the Greater Dragonmark bloodline. Same for the Lesser Dragonmark option.

The second uses another optional rule, this time from the Dungeon Master's Guide II: unique abilities. This allows them to get the powers without expending feats, but adjusting their CR in a likely manner. Certainly, some caution has to be exercised: a CR 1 Human Warrior with the Least, Lesser and Greater Dragonmarks would count as a CR 7 character, but it certainly doesn't behave like one. On the other hand, a CR 4 Human Fighter with a Least and Lesser Dragonmark certainly can be a challenge to ECL 7 parties, because the two SLAs they gain can counteract some of their tactics.

Of course, you're free to mix and match if you feel like it. For example: If you feel that a 10th level character with the Least Dragonmark bloodline should get the Lesser Dragonmark feat and the Greater Dragonmark as a unique ability, then by all means go ahead! Just...mind the choices. Progressing the Greater Dragonmark bloodline should disqualify you from the enabling feats (but not the feats that require Dragonmarks), and you shouldn't double-down on unique abilities and feats.

[T.G. Oskar]

DRAGONMARK-RELATED PRESTIGE CLASSES
If dragonmarks are treated as bloodlines rather than feat choices, the dynamic between all related mechanics becomes altered. This is more pronounced with the dragonmark-related prestige classes, which are designed to reinforce the power of dragonmarks by sacrificing class features. Likewise, the limitations in caster level from the original feats defined one of the key aspects of various of these dragonmarked prestige classes.

Then comes the fact that all prestige classes sacrifice class features for what’s essentially nothing. While a character with the Least Mark of Sentinel (shield of faith) would, if getting, say, all 5 levels of dragonmark heir, get five uses of their Least Dragonmark power, three uses of their chosen Lesser Dragonmark power and one use of their Greater Dragonmark power, they sacrifice five of their class levels, which entail some benefits and some sacrifices (martial characters lose BAB, skill-based characters lose skill points and spellcasters lose spells, though they gain better saving throws in exchange). With the loss of the feats and their exchange into bloodlines, the character now has to sacrifice six class levels (the five from Dragonmark Heir, plus the one from the bloodline itself) in exchange for a moderately higher CL and a large amount of uses of least dragonmark powers. How the other class features are handled imply that they can choose to ignore all the other effects of the better bloodlines to gain the same abilities, or they have to choose the better bloodlines to take full advantage of the class, but have to sacrifice more levels in exchange.

Thus, the prestige classes have to be rehauled. This doesn’t just mean the Dragonmark Heir, but also the Heir of Siberys and the Child of Khyber, as well as minor fixes to the Dragonmarked supplement prestige classes.

DRAGONMARKED HEIR
Hit Die: d8.
Requirements
To qualify to become a dragonmarked heir, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.
Feats: Favored in Guild (appropriate dragonmarked house)
Skills: 9 ranks in two skills, defined by bloodline: Spot and Listen (Detection), Survival and Search (Finding), Handle Animal and Ride (Handling), Heal and Concentration (Healing), Diplomacy and Gather Information (Hospitality), Craft (any one) and Appraise (Making), Survival and Tumble (Passage), Decipher Script and Knowledge (any one) (Scribing), Sense Motive and Intimidate (Sentinel), Gather Information and Perform (any) (Shadow/Phiarlan), Gather Information and Profession (architect, engineer, painter, sculptor) (Shadow/Thuranni), Balance and Profession (sailor) (Storm) or Search and Disable Device (Warding)
Special: Must have a least, lesser or greater true dragonmark. Characters with the Siberys form of the dragonmark or having aberrant dragonmarks cannot enter this class.

Class Skills
The dragonmark heir’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Appraise (Int), Bluff (Cha), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (arcana) (Int), Knowledge (local) (Int), Knowledge (nobility and royalty) (Int), Listen (Wis), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Sense Motive (Wis), Speak Language (n/a), Search (Int), Spellcraft (Int) and Spot (Wis)
Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier. The amount of skill points may differ based on house training



Table: The Dragonmarked Heir



Level

Base
Attack
Bonus*

Fort
Save*

Ref
Save*

Will
Save*

Special

Class Features



1st

+0

+0

+0

+0

Dragonmark power +1, house training

-



2nd

+1

+0

+0

+0

Access dragonmark power, additional action points

+1 level of existing class features



3rd

+2

+1

+1

+1

Dragonmark power +1

-



4th

+3

+1

+1

+1

Access dragonmark power

+1 level of existing class features



5th

+3

+1

+1

+1

Dragonmark miracle

+1 level of existing class features




While it may seem like an odd PrC chassis, it actually works. This helps the character that chose the bloodline to minimize the effect of losing a few more levels by adding what's essentially the best form of progression ever. The class skills are also custom-worked. In essence, you get 12 different versions of the same class, each aiming to very specific class builds.

Class Features
All of the following are features of the dragonmark heir prestige class.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A dragonmarked heir does not gain any new proficiency with weapons or armor.
Dragonmark Power: At 1st level, and again at 4th level, a dragonmarked heir increases its caster level by 1 when using its dragonmark powers.
House Training: Dragonmarked heirs from different houses train in different ways. Depending on the mark it possesses (and thus, the house it belongs to), the class offers differing advancement.
Cannith: good Will saves, Use Magic Device as class skill
Deneith: good base attack bonus and Fortitude saves
Ghallanda: good Will saves, +2 skill points/class level
Jorasco: good Fortitude saves, Heal as class skill
Kundarak: good Reflex saves, Disable Device and Open Lock as class skills, +2 skill points/class level
Lyrandar: good Reflex saves, Balance and Tumble as class skills
Medani: good Reflex and Will saves
Orien: good Fortitude and Reflex saves, Balance as class skill
Phiarlan: good Reflex and Will saves, Hide and Move Silently as class skills
Sivis: good Will saves, Decipher Script as class skill
Tharashk: good Fortitude and Reflex saves, Survival as class skill
Thuranni: good Reflex saves, Hide and Move Silently as class skills
Vadalis: good Fortitude and Reflex saves; Handle Animal as class skill

As well, due to the ties with the house, any Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Information, Intimidate and Perform checks made by the dragonmarked heir towards people of its house or its allies (see House Affinity of each dragonmark for more details) gains a bonus equal to its class level.

As I mentioned, you get 12...no, 13 different versions of the PrC: one for each house. As you'll notice, medium BAB is fair for all builds save for Deneith, which generally aims for full BAB, so Deneith is the only House that gets full BAB. I thought of Orien and Tharashk, but both work well with medium BAB...and they get two good saves to Deneith's one. The other outlier is Kundarak which gets better skil points per level.

Class Feature Advancement: At 2nd level, and again at 4th and 5th level, a dragonmarked heir gains class features and an increase in effective level as if it had also gained a level in a class to which it belonged before adding the prestige class level. Class features improved include spellcasting ability, but do not include the benefit of the class' Hit Dice, base attack bonus progression, skill points or saving throws. If the dragonmarked heir had more than one class before becoming one, he or she must decide to which class to add each level for the purpose of determining class features.

I like how Legacy Champion and Uncanny Trickster simply go with the idea of progressing your class abilities as it has to deal with a lot of classes. Well, this is fair for a class as flexible in build as a Dragonmarked Heir, so it gets the same benefit in a 3/5 proportion. This is a saving grace for those who take Greater Dragonmarks, as they have to sacrifice 8 levels to unlock full potential. In fact, with clever managing, you can make quite impressive builds...which is also the idea ;)

Access Dragonmark Power (Sp): At 2nd level, and again at 4th level, a dragonmarked heir may choose a new dragonmark power from the ones it currently has access to. A dragonmarked heir with the Least Dragonmark may only choose Least Dragonmark powers, a heir with the Lesser Dragonmark may have access to Least Dragonmarks and Lesser Dragonmarks (the latter only if the character already has a Lesser Dragonmark power), and a heir with the Greater Dragonmark has access to Least, Lesser and Greater Dragonmark powers (the latter only if the character already has a Lesser or Greater Dragonmark power)

Since you don't get free feats, the replacement you get should grant greater flexibility with your current Dragonmarks. Note, of course, that you should wait for the right moment to get the extra Dragonmark power, or else you'll get a bunch of low-level powers.

Additional Action Points: At 2nd level, a dragonmark heir gains 2 additional action points each level. If the dragonmarked heir doesn’t have an action point reserve, it gains 2 action points each level.
NPC dragonmarked heirs gain the Heroic Spirit feat instead; if they already have the feat, they gain 2 extra points.

Legacy ability. If you don't use Action Points in your game (hint: you should!), then this ability isn't that great, but you should still consider adding it. The bonus on rolls and auto-stabilize are lifesavers.

Dragonmark Miracle (Sp): At 5th level, a dragonmark heir can expend all its dragonmark resources to access the full power of their dragonmark. By expending all remaining uses of all dragonmark powers, the dragonmarked heir can access the next level of dragonmark. Thus, by expending all Least Dragonmark powers, the dragonmarked heir can use one of the Lesser Dragonmark powers of its choice; by expending all Least and Lesser Dragonmark powers, the heir can use one Greater Dragonmark power of its choice, and by expending all Least, Lesser and Greater Dragonmark powers, the heir may access the Siberys dragonmark of its choice. The dragonmark heir must have at least three available uses of Least Dragonmark powers to use a Lesser Dragonmark power, two uses of Lesser Dragonmark powers for a Greater Dragonmark power, and one use of Greater Dragonmark power for the Siberys dragonmark power; all required uses are cumulative (thus, a dragonmarked heir with one available use of a Greater Dragonmark power must still have two uses of Lesser Dragonmark powers and three remaining uses of Least Dragonmark powers to harness the Siberys dragonmarked power. See the heir of Siberys for the available Siberys dragonmark powers.

This is where I break off the intentions of the class, and the intentions of Heir of Siberys. Dragonmark Miracle is meant to essentially extinguish all remaining uses of Dragonmark powers to gain a flexible, 1/day use of the next-strongest one. This would have been unfair to Greater Dragonmarked bloodlines, since it would have cheated them of their capstone, so they got to tap into the Siberys dragonmark..which in no way it cheats the Heir of Siberys of its uniqueness.

Now, the idea remains - what happens with Least and Lesser Dragonmarked characters, since they might not get the required uses of Dragonmark powers? Consider that the idea is to expend all remaining uses, so that's a bare minimum for those who can get more than that; in the case of these Dragonmark bloodline intensities, you need to expend at least the limit of powers that you get (Least get to expend all their Dragonmark powers, Lesser gets to expend at least 2 Least and 1 Lesser). The idea is - if you have more uses per day than what you normally should have, you need to have at least that amount or the maximum amount you normally have, whichever is lower. Hence, Least Dragonmark users have to expend all their uses of Least Dragonmark powers, but if a character with the Least Dragonmark power has more than 3 maximum uses, it can spend one of those additional uses and still expend the rest for a Lesser Dragonmark power.

[T.G. Oskar]

HEIR OF SIBERYS
Hit Die: d8.
Requirements
To qualify to become a heir of Siberys, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.
Race: Dwarf (hill), Elf (high, Khorvaire), Gnome (rock), Half-Elf, Half-Orc, Halfling (tallfellow, Khorvaire, Talenta) or Human
Skills: 14 ranks in two skills, defined by bloodline: Spot and Listen (Detection), Survival and Search (Finding), Handle Animal and Ride (Handling), Heal and Concentration (Healing), Diplomacy and Gather Information (Hospitality), Craft (any one) and Appraise (Making), Survival and Tumble (Passage), Decipher Script and Knowledge (any one) (Scribing), Sense Motive and Intimidate (Sentinel), Gather Information and Perform (any) (Shadow/Phiarlan), Gather Information and Profession (architect, engineer, painter, sculptor) (Shadow/Thuranni), Balance and Profession (sailor) (Storm) or Search and Disable Device (Warding)
Special: Must not have a true or aberrant dragonmark bloodline.

Class Skills
Any skill that is a class skill for one of the heir of Siberys’ other classes is a class skill for his heir of Siberys class as well.
Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier.



Table: The Heir of Siberys



Level

Base
Attack
Bonus*

Fort
Save

Ref
Save

Will
Save

Special

Class Features



1st

+0

+2

+2

+2

Least dragonmark power, dragonmark potential

-



2nd

+1

+3

+3

+3

Lesser dragonmark power

+1 level of existing class features



3rd

+2

+3

+3

+3

Greater dragonmark power

+1 level of existing class features



4th

+3

+4

+4

+4

Siberys dragonmark

-



5th

+3

+4

+4

+4

Extra dragonmark use

+1 level of existing class features




Class Features
All of the following are features of the heir of Siberys prestige class.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A heir of Siberys does not gain any new proficiency with weapons or armor
Least Dragonmark Power: At 1st level, a heir of Siberys begins manifesting the Siberys version of its dragonmark, appearing as the least dragonmark but with a large surrounding area partially shaded. As the heir is only beginning to manifest its Siberys dragonmark, it only has access to the least powers. The heir chooses a single spell-like ability from the Least Dragonmark power option, with a caster level of 1st, increasing by 1 every four character levels (thus, the character begins with a caster level of 4th).
Dragonmark Potential: A heir of Siberys is treated as if having a Greater Dragonmark bloodline for purposes of feat prerequisites and effects. A heir of Siberys cannot enter the dragonmarked heir prestige class, but it otherwise can access other classes that rely on dragonmarks.
Class Feature Advancement: At 2nd level, and again at 3rd and 5th level, a dragonmarked heir gains class features and an increase in effective level as if it had also gained a level in a class to which it belonged before adding the prestige class level. Class features improved include spellcasting ability, but do not include the benefit of the class' Hit Dice, base attack bonus progression, skill points or saving throws. If the dragonmarked heir had more than one class before becoming one, he or she must decide to which class to add each level for the purpose of determining class features.
Lesser Dragonmark Power: At 2nd level, a heir of Siberys has its mark upgraded to resemble the lesser version, but the surrounding shaded skin begins to form into a much larger, complex image. The heir chooses a single spell-like ability from the Lesser Dragonmark power option, and its caster level improves to 3rd, plus 1 for every 2 character levels (thus, the character acquires a caster level of 9th) for both the least and lesser dragonmark powers.
Greater Dragonmark Power: At 3rd level, a heir of Siberys further improves its mark to resemble the greater dragonmark, and the shaded region of the skin adopts a very light blue-green tone. The heir chooses a single spell-like ability from the Greater Dragonmark power option, with a caster level equal to its character level.
Siberys Dragonmark (Sp): At 4th level, the heir of Siberys’ mark adopts its full extension, and finally unlocks its complete power. The character may choose from one of the following powers, based on its mark:
Detection: moment of prescience 1/day
Finding: discern location 1/day
Handling: awaken 1/week or summon nature’s ally VII 1/day
Healing: greater restoration 1/day or mass heal 1/day
Hospitality: refuge 1/day
Making: true creation 1/day
Passage: greater teleport 1/day or plane shift 1/day
Scribing: symbol of death 1/day
Sentinel: antimagic field 1/day or mind blank 1/day
Shadow: greater prying eyes 1/day or greater scrying 1/day
Storm: storm of vengeance 1/day
Warding: prismatic wall 1/day
Extra Dragonmark Use (Sp): At 5th level, a heir of Siberys may use each of its dragonmark powers (including its Siberys dragonmark power) one more time.

[T.G. Oskar]

CHILD OF KHYBER
Hit Die: d8.
Requirements
To qualify to become a child of Khyber, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.
Skills: Bluff 9 ranks, Intimidate 9 ranks, Knowledge (religion) 4 ranks
Special: Must have a least, lesser or greater aberrant dragonmark.

Class Skills
The child of Khyber’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Disable Device (Int), Disguise (Cha), Forgery (Int), Gather Information (Cha), Hide (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (local) (Int), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Open Lock (Dex), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis), Tumble (Dex).
Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier



Table: The Child of Khyber



Level

Base
Attack
Bonus

Fort
Save

Ref
Save

Will
Save

Special

Class Features



1st

+0

+0

+0

+0

Aberrant power +1, aberrant affinity, aberrant resilience

-



2nd

+1

+0

+0

+0

Access aberrant power, additional action points

+1 level of existing class features



3rd

+2

+1

+1

+1

Aberrant power +1, aberrant fortitude

-



4th

+3

+1

+1

+1

Access aberrant power

+1 level of existing class features



5th

+3

+1

+1

+1

Khyber’s grace

+1 level of existing class features




Class Features
All of the following are features of the child of Khyber prestige class.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A child of Khyber does not gain any new proficiency with weapons or armor.
Aberrant Power: At 1st level, and again at 4th level, a child of Khyber increases its caster level by 1 when using its aberrant dragonmark powers.
Aberrant Affinity: As well, due to the ties with the house, any Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Information, Intimidate and Perform checks made by the child of Khyber towards aberrations, people with aberrant dragonmarks, and its allies (see Aberrant Affinity for more details) gains a bonus equal to its class level.
Aberrant Resilience (Su): A 1st level child of Khyber learns to withstand the backlash effects of its powers. The child of Khyber gains resistance 5 against all backlash damage taken when using aberrant powers, which also applies against aberrant powers used against it. As well, the character gains a +1 bonus to natural armor. This stacks with the aberrant resilience and greater aberrant resilience bloodline abilities.
Class Feature Advancement: At 2nd level, and again at 4th and 5th level, a child of Khyber gains class features and an increase in effective level as if it had also gained a level in a class to which it belonged before adding the prestige class level. Class features improved include spellcasting ability, but do not include the benefit of the class' Hit Dice, base attack bonus progression, skill points or saving throws. If the child of Khyber had more than one class before becoming one, he or she must decide to which class to add each level for the purpose of determining class features.
Access Aberrant Power (Sp): At 2nd level, and again at 4th level, a child of Khyber may choose a new aberrant power from the ones it currently has access to. A child of Khyber with the Least Aberrant Dragonmark may only choose Least Aberrant powers, a heir with the Lesser Aberrant Dragonmark may have access to Least and Lesser Aberrant powers (the latter only if the character already has a Lesser Aberrant power), and a heir with the Greater Aberrant Dragonmark has access to Least, Lesser and Greater Aberrant powers (the latter only if the character already has a Lesser or Greater Aberrant power)
Additional Action Points: At 2nd level, a child of Khyber gains 2 additional action points each level. If the child of Khyber doesn’t have an action point reserve, it gains 2 action points each level.
NPC children of Khyber gain the Heroic Spirit feat instead; if they already have the feat, they gain 2 extra points.
Aberrant Fortitude (Ex): At 3rd level, a child of Khyber learns to withstand the physical and mental repercussions of its powers. The child of Khyber gains a +2 bonus on all Fortitude and Will saves to resist the effects of aberrant powers (both those the character uses, and those that affect the character). This stacks with the aberrant fortitude and greater aberrant fortitude bloodline abilities.
Khyber’s Gift (Sp): At 5th level, a child of Khyber gains the ability to manifest an extremely potent ability, but by causing great physical harm to itself. Choose one of the following spell-like abilities; once the power is chosen, it is permanent and may not be changed: earthquake, energy drain, fire storm, horrid wilting, implosion, insanity, mass inflict critical wounds, weird. This power may be used once per day.
The Khyber’s gift, however, has its repercussions. When the power is used successfully, the child of Khyber takes 1 point of Constitution burn for every effective spell level of the used power above 5th; assume an order of preference ranging from sorcerer/wizard, then cleric, then druid for purposes of determining the ability’s effective spell level (thus, a character using earthquake as a spell-like ability takes 3 points of Constitution burn, as the spell-like ability has an equivalent spell level of 8th).

[T.G. Oskar]

OTHER DRAGONMARK-RELATED PRESTIGE CLASSES
For any other dragonmark-related class, replace the feat description with the equivalent bloodline. For example, if the feat requires the Least Dragonmark feat, the character must have the required bloodline strength (in this case, the Least Dragonmark bloodline strength). If the class requires having a specific power, the character must have chosen the indicated power as well. Replace Heir’s Mark as follows:
Heir’s Mark: A character entering the [related dragonmark] prestige class has a certain degree of recognition inside the house. Any Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Information, Intimidate and Perform checks made by the [related dragonmark prestige class] towards people of its house or its allies (see House Affinity of each dragonmark for more details) gains a bonus equal to its class level, up to a maximum of +5. This stacks with the bonus from the dragonmarked heir prestige class, but the character is limited to a +5 bonus from both classes. Furthermore, the [related dragonmark prestige class] may choose a new power from the [required dragonmark powers].

DRAGONMARK-RELATED FEATS
The Dragonmarked supplement offers a great deal of feats that require the character to possess a dragonmark. With the limitation of having to devote three feats to gain a Greater Dragonmark (or five character levels), the amount of slots devoted to other feats had to be shared with those related to dragonmarks. With the changes provided, the loss is softened; the character still has to take a “bloodline level”, but the character still advances a portion of its class features and keeps its feat slots mostly intact. The following changes are recommended for purposes of qualifications and features:
If the feat requires any true or aberrant dragonmark, any character taking a Least, Lesser or Greater Dragonmark (or Aberrant) bloodline qualifies, as well as characters taking levels in Heir of Siberys.
If the feat requires or references a specific dragonmark strength (such as requiring a Lesser or stronger dragonmark), use the bloodline strength to qualify: thus, a character with a Lesser Dragonmark bloodline qualifies for any feat that requires any dragonmark, any true dragonmark, any least dragonmark or any lesser dragonmark. This also applies to aberrant dragonmarks.
Lesser Aberrant Dragonmark and Greater Aberrant Dragonmark are dealt in the same way as the original dragonmark feats, whether if using dragonmarks, feats or unique abilities (or a combination of any).

The following feats are altered to provide a stronger benefit:

DRAGONMARK ADEPT
Prerequisites: Any Lesser Dragonmark power.
Benefit: You gain a new Lesser Dragonmark spell-like ability based on the dragonmark you possess, as
shown below. In addition, you can use one lesser mark spell-like ability that you already possess one additional time per day.
Detection: analyze portal 3/day or discern shapechanger 3/day or know vulnerabilities 3/day
Finding: circle dance 3/day or listening lorecall 3/day or share husk 3/day
Handling: jagged tooth 3/day or nature’s favor 3/day or train animal 3/day
Healing: close wounds 3/day or healing lorecall 3/day or vigor 3/day
Hospitality: clothier’s closet* or servant’s horde 2/day
Making: force ladder 3/day or quick potion 3/day
Passage: baleful transposition 3/day or regal procession 2/day
Scribing: speechlink 3/day or speaking stones* 3/day
Sentinel: lesser spell immunity 3/day or
Special: If the feat has some special benefits, such as a benefit exclusive to a class or a synergy with other feats, it will be explained here.

[T.G. Oskar]

(And one more for good measure)