JPlayah
2016-02-19, 06:44 PM
EmpathThe empath is the first homebrew class that I've ever written. It's a psionic support class which uses the power of emotions to change the outcome of battles. The class has undergone two massive overhauls since I first wrote it, and I've also tested it from 1st to 3rd level in a campaign, where my DM was nice enough to let me use it and modify it between sessions.
“Uh-oh, Zeran’s angry. Get back! Everyone, get back!”
-Eru, paladin of Bahamut, moments before a pillar of flame bursts from the ground
Adventures: Empaths go on adventures for a variety of reasons. An empath will often strike out in the name of a cause that is close to her heart. There are many things that an empath may feel strongly about, and any of them could inspire her to travel miles in order to achieve something.
Characteristics: An empath is a master of emotions and focuses on using them to achieve her goals. Empaths are driven individuals, confident in their abilities and relentless in their pursuits. An empath can be inspiring to her allies and terrifying to her enemies, for she never gives up, never surrenders, and never backs down from something she believes in. Empaths can be difficult to compromise with, and it often takes someone as tactful and charismatic as the empath herself to make her change her mind about something. Despite this, empaths tend to be open-minded, and the right words can better inform an empath about a situation and help her make better decisions. Empaths constantly seek knowledge about emotions and the mind so they can better understand how a sentient creature’s mind works, for better or for worse. An empath values emotions as a sacred thing, but uses them as a tool to accomplish her goals. This may seem contradictory to some, but an empath sees no problem with her use of emotions. An empath’s highest calling is to master the power of feelings and emotions, and is a strong believer in the idea that to master one’s emotions is to master oneself. She understands that emotions can be used much like any other force, and her moral beliefs about the use of this force form the core of her personal values and lie at the center of everything she believes in.
Alignment: Empaths are free spirits. Although they are rigid in their beliefs, empaths find that rules imposed on them by outside forces tend to interfere with their comfort in expressing themselves. Thus, no empath is of a lawful alignment. Good empaths emphasize emotional health and seek to make those around them happy and content. They despise those who exploit a person’s emotions without good cause, and are utterly opposed to psychological torture. Chaotic empaths seek the power that comes with emotions, using them as a means to express their personal freedom and confidence in who they are. They frown on those who fear their own emotions or the emotions of others, believing that such individuals harm themselves by failing to embrace a key part of their own being. Evil empaths use emotions to get what they want and rarely let the cost of their actions bother them. They revel in their own power and control over emotions and resent being told what they can and cannot do, especially by those who do not have the power to stop them. Neutral empaths are interested mainly in understanding emotions and becoming knowledgeable about what they can achieve with them.
Religion: Empaths rarely venerate gods, holding emotions to a sacred level in their place. A few empaths worship deities whose alignments or values strongly match their own, or who they admire as beings of great worth.
Background: Most empaths discover their powers around their teenage years. To most individuals, an empath’s power can be mistaken for remarkable charisma until her emotions manifest themselves in a supernatural way. Those who knew the empath well before this discovery may tolerate her newfound abilities, but supernatural powers can be alarming to those who are unfamiliar with them. With her charismatic abilities, an empath may be able to smooth out some of her relationships that have been shaken by the discovery of her powers. In less accepting places, an empath may find that she is on her own after being revealed, and she must journey to find a new place to call home if she wishes to settle down again.
Races: Empaths can be found wherever psionic individuals are, and may show up among any sentient race. Humans are the most common race to discover such an emotional talent, while elves are a close second. Even outsiders known for high Charisma scores have been known to produce an empath or two.
Other classes: Empaths can get along well with just about anyone. They especially admire monks and sorcerers, who they can relate to in their quest for personal perfection and the possession of inborn talents, respectively. Empaths are as comfortable around those with supernatural powers as they are around common folk who have never cast a spell in their lives.
Role: An empath is best suited to a support role, using her control of emotions to manipulate situations to her advantage. An empath can empower herself or her allies or weaken her enemies, and at higher levels she is a source of powerful effects that can turn the tide of encounters. An empath is not particularly tough but she gains mobility as she progresses in level, which allows her to navigate the battlefield and affect other combatants as needed. Clever use of abilities and a high Dexterity score will help an empath get the job done while minimizing the risk of her being taken out of the battle. An empath is safer as a ranged combatant, but when an opportunity arises for her to use her psionic abilities in melee combat, the results can be devastating for enemies. Outside of combat, an empath can continue to support allies by granting morale bonuses to skill checks, and she gains a variety of skills over time to help the party deal with unexpected situations. An empath is a good candidate to act as the party face, augmenting her high Charisma score with her emotional powers to excel on Charisma-based checks.
Abilities: Charisma is important for empaths because their psionic abilities and some class features depend on it. Dexterity increases an empath’s ability to maneuver in combat. Constitution increases an empath’s durability. Wisdom increases an empath’s Will saves and helps her resist harmful mental effects which might prevent her from supporting her party. Strength can benefit an empath who wishes to take on a front-line combat role.
Alignment: Any non lawful.
Hit Die: d6.
Starting Gold: 4d4×10 gp (100 gp).
Starting Age: Simple.
Table: The Empath
Hit Die: d6
Level
Base
Attack Bonus
Saving Throws
Special
Power
Points/Day
Powers
Known
Maximum Power
Level Known
Fort
Ref
Will
1st
+0
+0
+0
+2
Manifest Emotion (First Emotion)
2
1
1st
2nd
+1
+0
+0
+3
Wild Actualization
6
2
1st
3rd
+2
+1
+1
+3
Emotional Drive
11
2
1st
4th
+3
+1
+1
+4
Channel Emotion
17
3
2nd
5th
+3
+1
+1
+4
Manifest Emotion (Second Emotion), Emotional Certainty +2
25
3
2nd
6th
+4
+2
+2
+5
Emotional Feedback
35
4
3rd
7th
+5
+2
+2
+5
Manifest Emotion x2
46
4
3rd
8th
+6/+1
+2
+2
+6
Emotional Certainty +4
58
5
4th
9th
+6/+1
+3
+3
+6
Manifest Emotion (Third Emotion)
72
5
4th
10th
+7/+2
+3
+3
+7
88
6
5th
11th
+8/+3
+3
+3
+7
Emotional Certainty +6
106
6
5th
12th
+9/+4
+4
+4
+8
126
7
6th
13th
+9/+4
+4
+4
+8
Manifest Emotion x3
147
7
6th
14th
+10/+5
+4
+4
+9
Emotional Certainty +8
170
8
7th
15th
+11/+6/+1
+5
+5
+9
Swift Feeling
195
8
7th
16th
+12/+7/+2
+5
+5
+10
221
9
8th
17th
+12/+7/+2
+5
+5
+10
Emotional Certainty +10, Self-Confidence
250
9
8th
18th
+13/+8/+3
+6
+6
+11
280
10
9th
19th
+14/+9/+4
+6
+6
+11
Manifest Emotion x4
311
10
9th
20th
+15/+10/+5
+6
+6
+12
Emotional Mastery
343
11
9th
Class Skills (4 + Int modifier per level, ×4 at 1st level): Autohypnosis (Wis), Bluff (Cha), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (psionics) (Int), Listen (Wis), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Psicraft (Int), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Spot (Wis), Use Psionic Device (Cha).
Class Features
All the following are class features of the empath.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Empaths are proficient with all simple weapons, with light armor, and with shields (except tower shields).
Power Points/Day: An empath’s ability to manifest powers is limited by the power points she has available. Her base daily allotment of power points is given on Table: The Empath. In addition, she receives bonus power points per day if she has a high Charisma score (see Table: Ability Modifiers and Bonus Power Points). Her race may also provide bonus power points per day, as may certain feats and items.
Powers Known: An empath begins play knowing the power of your choice. At every even-numbered class level after 1st, she unlocks the knowledge of new powers.
Choose the powers known from the psion/wilder power list. (Exception: The feats Expanded Knowledge and Epic Expanded Knowledge do allow an empath to learn powers from the lists of other classes.) An empath can manifest any power that has a power point cost equal to or lower than her manifester level. The total number of powers an empath can manifest in a day is limited only by her daily power points.
An empath simply knows her powers; they are ingrained in her mind. She does not need to prepare them (in the way that some spellcasters prepare their spells), though she must get a good night’s sleep each day to regain all her spent power points.
The Difficulty Class for saving throws against empath powers is 10 + the power’s level + the empath’s Charisma modifier.
Maximum Power Level Known: An empath begins play with the ability to learn 1st-level powers. As she attains higher levels, she may gain the ability to master more complex powers.
To learn or manifest a power, an empath must have a Charisma score of at least 10 + the power’s level.
Manifest Emotion (Ps): An empath’s gift for psionics allows her to elevate the power of her emotions from an internal experience to a tangible force. An empath may take a move action to imbue herself or another living creature with emotional energy. As she does this, she spends a number of power points no less than 1 and no greater than her class level. To affect a creature other than herself, an empath must touch that creature. The effects last 5 rounds per power point spent (½ minute per power point or 1 minute per 2 power points spent), and vary depending on whether the empath has chosen to manifest joy, anger, or fear. An empath chooses one of these emotions to gain access to at 1st level. She gains access to a second emotion at 5th level, and gains access to the third at 9th level. A creature can only be affected by one emotion at a time. If it becomes affected by a new emotion, the first one ends. Emotions manifested by an empath are psi-like abilities with the telepathy discipline and the mind-affecting descriptor. A creature can negate the effects of an emotion by making a Will save. The DC of this save is equal to 10 + ½ the empath’s class level + the empath’s Charisma modifier. The effects of each emotion are described below.
Joy: A creature imbued with joy experiences a wonderful sense of confidence and power. While this emotion is active, the affected creature gains a +2 morale bonus on saving throws and skill checks.
Anger: A creature imbued with anger is driven by a terrible conviction to destroy her enemies, either real or perceived. While this emotion is active, the affected creature gains a +2 morale bonus on weapon attack and damage rolls.
Fear: A creature imbued with fear suffers from horrifying thoughts of failure and powerlessness. While this emotion is active, the affected creature is shaken. If the empath chooses to target herself with this emotion, she takes no penalties from being shaken, but any subsequent fear effect directed at her can cause her to become frightened.
(Reminder: A shaken creature suffers a -2 penalty on attack rolls, saving throws, skill checks, and ability checks.)
Beginning at 7th level, an empath may spend additional power points to increase the power of the bonuses and penalties of her emotions. An empath may spend twice the power points for a duration to double the bonuses or penalties of an emotion for that duration. At 13th level, an empath can spend three times the power points to triple the effects, and at 19th level she can spend four times as many power points to quadruple the effects. The total number of power points spent on manifesting an emotion cannot exceed the empath’s class level (until she reaches 20th level; see below). For example, a 7th level empath could spend a maximum of 7 power points to manifest a normal-strength emotion for 3½ minutes (at a rate of ½ of a minute per power point), or spend 6 power points to manifest a double-strength emotion for 1½ minutes (2x strength multiplied by 3 power points gives a total cost of 6 power points), but she could not manifest a double-strength emotion for 2 minutes, since the total cost would be 8 power points and a 7th level empath can spend no more than 7 power points at a time when manifesting an emotion.
Use the equation below to determine the cost of manifesting an emotion.
Power point cost = (Emotion’s strength multiplier) x (Number of minutes) x 2
The duration of a manifested emotion is
Duration (minutes) = ½ x (Number of power points spent) / (Emotion’s strength)
The easiest way to avoid awkward fractions is to remember that 1 power point gives a duration of 5 rounds or ½ of a minute, and that 5 rounds or ½ of a minute costs 1 power point. When multiplying an emotion’s strength, spend a number of power points that is divisible by that multiplier (spend multiples of 2 power points when manifesting a double strength emotion, multiples of 3 power points when manifesting a triple strength emotion, and so on).
Wild Actualization (Su): Beginning at 2nd level, an empath gains access to a set of unique powers whenever she is imbued with an emotion. These powers follow all the rules of normal psionic powers except that they can only be manifested by a psionic character who is imbued with an emotion corresponding to them. They do not count against the number of powers an empath can know based on her class level. If the emotion an empath is imbued with ends while a wild actualization power is active, that power’s effects still continue for their normal duration.
In theory, other psionic characters could learn wild actualization powers through the Expanded Knowledge or Epic Expanded Knowledge feats, but without the emotional energy to fuel them, they are useless.
Wild actualization powers cannot be stored in a power stone, dorje, or similar item, nor can they be reproduced by activating an item because such items cannot contain the emotional energy required for the powers to function. However, it is possible to craft psionic items using these powers. Items that are crafted using wild actualization powers give off an aura of joy, anger, or fear which is detectable by any spells, powers, items, or other effects that can detect emotions or psionic energy.
An empath’s manifester level is treated as 4 less than normal when manifesting powers related to the emotion that she gains access to at 5th level, and 8 less than normal when manifesting powers related to the emotion that she gains at 9th level. This number determines how many power points an empath can spend on her emotion-based powers and also determines level-dependent effects of those powers.
Counting only manifester levels gained in this class, an empath gains access to each wild actualization power when her effective manifester level for powers of the corresponding emotion is twice the level of that power. An empath gains access to the 1st level power in the first emotion she chooses at 2nd level, the second emotion she chooses at 6th level, and the third emotion she chooses at 10th level, and she gains access to powers of subsequent levels for each emotion every 2 class levels after this.
Table: Effective Manifester Level and Highest Power Level Known for Emotion-Based Powers
Class Level
Effective Manifester Level / Highest Power Level Known
First Emotion
Second Emotion
Third Emotion
1st
2nd
2nd
1st
3rd
3rd
1st
4th
4th
2nd
5th
5th
2nd
6th
6th
3rd
2nd
1st
7th
7th
3rd
3rd
1st
8th
8th
4th
4th
2nd
9th
9th
4th
5th
2nd
10th
10th
5th
6th
3rd
2nd
1st
11th
11th
5th
7th
3rd
3rd
1st
12th
12th
6th
8th
4th
4th
2nd
13th
13th
6th
9th
4th
5th
2nd
14th
14th
7th
10th
5th
6th
3rd
15th
15th
7th
11th
5th
7th
3rd
16th
16th
8th
12th
6th
8th
4th
17th
17th
8th
13th
6th
9th
4th
18th
18th
9th
14th
7th
10th
5th
19th
19th
9th
15th
7th
11th
5th
20th
20th
9th
16th
8th
12th
6th
A summary of the powers is given here.
Joy
1st level: Psionic Rejuvenation – Heals a living creature over a brief period.
2nd level: Psionic Therapy – Grants an additional Will save to another creature.
3rd level: Pacify – Nearby creatures lose the will to fight.
4th level: Mass Inspire – Applies Joy effect in a 30 foot cone; creatures are freed from fear effects.
5th level: Aura of Love – Shields an ally from damage and harmful effects.
6th level: Joy Blast – Blast of emotional energy heals allies and deals damage to enemies in a line.
7th level: Safeguard – Creates a barrier which protects friendly creatures inside of it; slowly heals allies.
8th level: Joyful Chirurgery – Removes harmful mental effects from a creature and restores mental ability scores.
9th level: Soul of Joy – Become joy incarnate.
Anger
1st level: Rage Beam – Improved Energy Ray deals fire damage and sets target on fire.
2nd level: Fury Strike – Your fist unleashes an explosion that throws surrounding creatures and objects.
3rd level: Defiance – Target creature gains damage reduction and immunity to fatigue and exhaustion.
4th level: Mass Enrage – Applies Anger effect in a 30 foot cone and compels creatures to attack; creatures gain a brief boost of speed.
5th level: Meteor Charge – You cloak yourself in flames and smash into a nearby target, sending it flying.
6th level: Burst of Fury – Your target gains a massive Strength bonus for one round.
7th level: Searing Anger – You launch a pillar of flame each round to trap and burn enemies.
8th level: Surging Assault – You and your allies are carried forward on a wave of fire; end effect to gain combat bonuses.
9th level: Soul of Anger – Become anger incarnate.
Fear
1st level: Psionic Darkness – Black cloud obscures the target’s senses and causes it to become shaken; frightens and deals damage if target is already shaken.
2nd level: Channel Fear – Black lightning damages a shaken, frightened, or panicked creature and slows its movement; frightened and panicked creatures suffer additional penalties.
3rd level: Resist Panic – Nearby allies gain a bonus on resisting fear effects and use existing fears to improve Listen and Spot checks.
4th level: Mass Terrify – Applies Fear effect in a 30 foot cone; deals Wisdom damage to creatures.
5th level: Scatter the Weak – Frightens surrounding enemies, reducing their AC and forcing them to flee from you.
6th level: Schadenfreude – Damage you deal to frightened or panicked creatures grants you temporary hit points.
7th level: Shadow Cage – You summon a cage to trap nearby creatures; creatures that touch the walls are forced back and take damage based on penalties they are suffering on Will saves.
8th level: Seeds of Terror – Mental seed grows within targets, terrifying them and draining their life away.
9th level: Soul of Fear – Become fear incarnate.
Emotional Drive (Su): Beginning at 3rd level, an empath gains additional power as the wondrous force of her emotions flows through her. While an empath is imbued with an emotion, she gains a +10 morale bonus to her speed.
Channel Emotion (Su): Beginning at 4th level, an empath learns to connect with the minds of those around her, allowing her to manifest emotions in others from a distance. The range from which an empath can manifest an emotion in another creature increases to 10 feet. At 7th level, the range increases to 20 feet, and at 10th level, the range increases to 25 feet + 5 feet/2 levels. The empath must have line of sight to her target to manifest emotions from a distance.
Emotional Certainty (Ex): With extensive meditation and knowledge of emotions come superior control over one’s own mind and the forces that impact it. At 5th level, an empath gains a continual +2 bonus on Will saves made to resist or negate charm, compulsion, fear, and possession effects. This bonus increases to +4 at 8th level, +6 at 11th level, +8 at 14th level, and +10 at 17th level.
Emotional Feedback (Su): Beginning at 6th level, an empath learns to more fully utilize the raw energy of her emotions, gaining additional power from them. While the empath is imbued with the emotion she gained access to at 1st level, she gains the following benefits.
Joy: Whenever an ally within 50 feet of the empath takes damage which results in his or her hit points becoming less than or equal to twice his or her hit dice, or whenever an ally within 50 feet of the empath becomes affected by a charm, compulsion, fear, or possession effect which prevents him or her from acting normally, the empath automatically becomes aware of who was affected, where that character is, and whether he or she is suffering from low hit points, a charm effect, a compulsion effect, a fear effect, or a possession effect. For 1 round, the empath gains a dodge bonus to AC and a bonus on Climb, Jump, and Swim checks equal to twice the strength of the emotion she is imbued with (+2 if joy is x1, +4 if joy is x2, etc.) and a bonus to her speed equal to ten times the strength of the emotion she is imbued with (+10 if joy is x1, +20 if joy is x2, etc.). After this, she cannot gain the bonuses again until she either manifests a joy-based power on the ally who was harmed or she imbues herself with joy again. If multiple allies trigger this effect in the same round, the empath only needs to manifest a joy-based power on one of them in order to be able to gain the bonuses again. This effect can potentially be triggered every round, but a given ally can only trigger it once every two rounds.
Anger: At the end of the empath’s turn, she may choose to begin a rage storm as a free action, which lasts for up to three rounds, but ends early if the empath’s anger ends. During this time, whenever an ally within 30 feet of the empath deals damage to an opponent, the empath gains a number of rage points equal to the bonus damage that she supplied to that ally through the use of her class features. For example, an ally that damaged three enemies through the use of the full attack option while being granted a +2 bonus on damage rolls from the empath’s anger would cause the empath to gain 6 rage points. Rage points gained from all sources stack, and persist for the duration of the rage storm. At the beginning of the empath’s turn on the final round of the rage storm, her rage points are converted to bonus damage, causing all damage-dealing powers that the empath manifests during this turn to deal 1 point of additional untyped damage per damage die rolled for every 5 rage points that the empath has accumulated. The maximum number of rage points that the empath can accumulate during a rage storm is equal to ten times the strength of the emotion she is imbued with (10 points if anger is x1, 20 points if anger is x2, etc.). When the rage storm ends, all rage points are lost, and the empath cannot begin a new rage storm for two rounds or until she imbues herself with anger again.
Fear: After the empath successfully imbues an opponent with fear, she may choose to dash to an empty square she can see as a swift action, provided that square is within a number of feet equal to ten times the strength of the emotion she is imbued with (10 feet if fear is x1, 20 feet if fear is x2, etc.). The empath and her gear become incorporeal during the dash, allowing her to pass through other creatures and objects. Moving this way does not provoke attacks of opportunity. After dashing, the next fear-based power that the empath manifests within 1 round has its DC increased by the strength of the emotion she is imbued with (+1 if fear is x1, +2 if fear is x2, etc.), provided the opponent that the empath imbued with fear is included among the power’s targets or is within the power’s area. After using this ability, the empath cannot do so again until she and her allies reduce a shaken, frightened, or panicked creature to 0 hit points or less, or until she imbues herself with fear again.
Swift Feeling (Su): An empath gains a great deal of power over her emotions with experience. Beginning at 15th level, an empath can manifest emotions as a swift action, allowing her to accomplish more things in a short amount of time.
Self-Confidence (Ex): An empath of 17th level or higher has developed such unshakable certainty about her emotions and identity that she becomes protected from mental ability drain. All ability drain that would affect the empath’s mental ability scores is instead dealt as ability burn damage. Additionally, an empath can use her psionic abilities to better protect her mind. By expending her psionic focus as a free action, an empath can attempt a Will saving throw to negate any mind-affecting magical, psionic, or supernatural effect that normally does not allow a save as though that effect had a DC equal to that of a normal spell or psionic power of its level.
If the empath uses this ability to resist a continuous spell or supernatural effect placed on the surrounding area, she becomes immune to that effect for 1 hour. If the empath fails her save, she must either exit the area or wait 1 hour before trying again. An empath can resist the effects of mind-affecting planar traits by expending her psionic focus and succeeding on a DC 30 Will save.
Emotional Mastery (Su): At 20th level, an empath breaks the boundaries of what she could previously achieve with emotions in a stunning display of emotional mastery. From this point, the maximum number of power points an empath can spend on manifesting an emotion increases to one-and-a-half times her class level.
“Uh-oh, Zeran’s angry. Get back! Everyone, get back!”
-Eru, paladin of Bahamut, moments before a pillar of flame bursts from the ground
Adventures: Empaths go on adventures for a variety of reasons. An empath will often strike out in the name of a cause that is close to her heart. There are many things that an empath may feel strongly about, and any of them could inspire her to travel miles in order to achieve something.
Characteristics: An empath is a master of emotions and focuses on using them to achieve her goals. Empaths are driven individuals, confident in their abilities and relentless in their pursuits. An empath can be inspiring to her allies and terrifying to her enemies, for she never gives up, never surrenders, and never backs down from something she believes in. Empaths can be difficult to compromise with, and it often takes someone as tactful and charismatic as the empath herself to make her change her mind about something. Despite this, empaths tend to be open-minded, and the right words can better inform an empath about a situation and help her make better decisions. Empaths constantly seek knowledge about emotions and the mind so they can better understand how a sentient creature’s mind works, for better or for worse. An empath values emotions as a sacred thing, but uses them as a tool to accomplish her goals. This may seem contradictory to some, but an empath sees no problem with her use of emotions. An empath’s highest calling is to master the power of feelings and emotions, and is a strong believer in the idea that to master one’s emotions is to master oneself. She understands that emotions can be used much like any other force, and her moral beliefs about the use of this force form the core of her personal values and lie at the center of everything she believes in.
Alignment: Empaths are free spirits. Although they are rigid in their beliefs, empaths find that rules imposed on them by outside forces tend to interfere with their comfort in expressing themselves. Thus, no empath is of a lawful alignment. Good empaths emphasize emotional health and seek to make those around them happy and content. They despise those who exploit a person’s emotions without good cause, and are utterly opposed to psychological torture. Chaotic empaths seek the power that comes with emotions, using them as a means to express their personal freedom and confidence in who they are. They frown on those who fear their own emotions or the emotions of others, believing that such individuals harm themselves by failing to embrace a key part of their own being. Evil empaths use emotions to get what they want and rarely let the cost of their actions bother them. They revel in their own power and control over emotions and resent being told what they can and cannot do, especially by those who do not have the power to stop them. Neutral empaths are interested mainly in understanding emotions and becoming knowledgeable about what they can achieve with them.
Religion: Empaths rarely venerate gods, holding emotions to a sacred level in their place. A few empaths worship deities whose alignments or values strongly match their own, or who they admire as beings of great worth.
Background: Most empaths discover their powers around their teenage years. To most individuals, an empath’s power can be mistaken for remarkable charisma until her emotions manifest themselves in a supernatural way. Those who knew the empath well before this discovery may tolerate her newfound abilities, but supernatural powers can be alarming to those who are unfamiliar with them. With her charismatic abilities, an empath may be able to smooth out some of her relationships that have been shaken by the discovery of her powers. In less accepting places, an empath may find that she is on her own after being revealed, and she must journey to find a new place to call home if she wishes to settle down again.
Races: Empaths can be found wherever psionic individuals are, and may show up among any sentient race. Humans are the most common race to discover such an emotional talent, while elves are a close second. Even outsiders known for high Charisma scores have been known to produce an empath or two.
Other classes: Empaths can get along well with just about anyone. They especially admire monks and sorcerers, who they can relate to in their quest for personal perfection and the possession of inborn talents, respectively. Empaths are as comfortable around those with supernatural powers as they are around common folk who have never cast a spell in their lives.
Role: An empath is best suited to a support role, using her control of emotions to manipulate situations to her advantage. An empath can empower herself or her allies or weaken her enemies, and at higher levels she is a source of powerful effects that can turn the tide of encounters. An empath is not particularly tough but she gains mobility as she progresses in level, which allows her to navigate the battlefield and affect other combatants as needed. Clever use of abilities and a high Dexterity score will help an empath get the job done while minimizing the risk of her being taken out of the battle. An empath is safer as a ranged combatant, but when an opportunity arises for her to use her psionic abilities in melee combat, the results can be devastating for enemies. Outside of combat, an empath can continue to support allies by granting morale bonuses to skill checks, and she gains a variety of skills over time to help the party deal with unexpected situations. An empath is a good candidate to act as the party face, augmenting her high Charisma score with her emotional powers to excel on Charisma-based checks.
Abilities: Charisma is important for empaths because their psionic abilities and some class features depend on it. Dexterity increases an empath’s ability to maneuver in combat. Constitution increases an empath’s durability. Wisdom increases an empath’s Will saves and helps her resist harmful mental effects which might prevent her from supporting her party. Strength can benefit an empath who wishes to take on a front-line combat role.
Alignment: Any non lawful.
Hit Die: d6.
Starting Gold: 4d4×10 gp (100 gp).
Starting Age: Simple.
Table: The Empath
Hit Die: d6
Level
Base
Attack Bonus
Saving Throws
Special
Power
Points/Day
Powers
Known
Maximum Power
Level Known
Fort
Ref
Will
1st
+0
+0
+0
+2
Manifest Emotion (First Emotion)
2
1
1st
2nd
+1
+0
+0
+3
Wild Actualization
6
2
1st
3rd
+2
+1
+1
+3
Emotional Drive
11
2
1st
4th
+3
+1
+1
+4
Channel Emotion
17
3
2nd
5th
+3
+1
+1
+4
Manifest Emotion (Second Emotion), Emotional Certainty +2
25
3
2nd
6th
+4
+2
+2
+5
Emotional Feedback
35
4
3rd
7th
+5
+2
+2
+5
Manifest Emotion x2
46
4
3rd
8th
+6/+1
+2
+2
+6
Emotional Certainty +4
58
5
4th
9th
+6/+1
+3
+3
+6
Manifest Emotion (Third Emotion)
72
5
4th
10th
+7/+2
+3
+3
+7
88
6
5th
11th
+8/+3
+3
+3
+7
Emotional Certainty +6
106
6
5th
12th
+9/+4
+4
+4
+8
126
7
6th
13th
+9/+4
+4
+4
+8
Manifest Emotion x3
147
7
6th
14th
+10/+5
+4
+4
+9
Emotional Certainty +8
170
8
7th
15th
+11/+6/+1
+5
+5
+9
Swift Feeling
195
8
7th
16th
+12/+7/+2
+5
+5
+10
221
9
8th
17th
+12/+7/+2
+5
+5
+10
Emotional Certainty +10, Self-Confidence
250
9
8th
18th
+13/+8/+3
+6
+6
+11
280
10
9th
19th
+14/+9/+4
+6
+6
+11
Manifest Emotion x4
311
10
9th
20th
+15/+10/+5
+6
+6
+12
Emotional Mastery
343
11
9th
Class Skills (4 + Int modifier per level, ×4 at 1st level): Autohypnosis (Wis), Bluff (Cha), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (psionics) (Int), Listen (Wis), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Psicraft (Int), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Spot (Wis), Use Psionic Device (Cha).
Class Features
All the following are class features of the empath.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Empaths are proficient with all simple weapons, with light armor, and with shields (except tower shields).
Power Points/Day: An empath’s ability to manifest powers is limited by the power points she has available. Her base daily allotment of power points is given on Table: The Empath. In addition, she receives bonus power points per day if she has a high Charisma score (see Table: Ability Modifiers and Bonus Power Points). Her race may also provide bonus power points per day, as may certain feats and items.
Powers Known: An empath begins play knowing the power of your choice. At every even-numbered class level after 1st, she unlocks the knowledge of new powers.
Choose the powers known from the psion/wilder power list. (Exception: The feats Expanded Knowledge and Epic Expanded Knowledge do allow an empath to learn powers from the lists of other classes.) An empath can manifest any power that has a power point cost equal to or lower than her manifester level. The total number of powers an empath can manifest in a day is limited only by her daily power points.
An empath simply knows her powers; they are ingrained in her mind. She does not need to prepare them (in the way that some spellcasters prepare their spells), though she must get a good night’s sleep each day to regain all her spent power points.
The Difficulty Class for saving throws against empath powers is 10 + the power’s level + the empath’s Charisma modifier.
Maximum Power Level Known: An empath begins play with the ability to learn 1st-level powers. As she attains higher levels, she may gain the ability to master more complex powers.
To learn or manifest a power, an empath must have a Charisma score of at least 10 + the power’s level.
Manifest Emotion (Ps): An empath’s gift for psionics allows her to elevate the power of her emotions from an internal experience to a tangible force. An empath may take a move action to imbue herself or another living creature with emotional energy. As she does this, she spends a number of power points no less than 1 and no greater than her class level. To affect a creature other than herself, an empath must touch that creature. The effects last 5 rounds per power point spent (½ minute per power point or 1 minute per 2 power points spent), and vary depending on whether the empath has chosen to manifest joy, anger, or fear. An empath chooses one of these emotions to gain access to at 1st level. She gains access to a second emotion at 5th level, and gains access to the third at 9th level. A creature can only be affected by one emotion at a time. If it becomes affected by a new emotion, the first one ends. Emotions manifested by an empath are psi-like abilities with the telepathy discipline and the mind-affecting descriptor. A creature can negate the effects of an emotion by making a Will save. The DC of this save is equal to 10 + ½ the empath’s class level + the empath’s Charisma modifier. The effects of each emotion are described below.
Joy: A creature imbued with joy experiences a wonderful sense of confidence and power. While this emotion is active, the affected creature gains a +2 morale bonus on saving throws and skill checks.
Anger: A creature imbued with anger is driven by a terrible conviction to destroy her enemies, either real or perceived. While this emotion is active, the affected creature gains a +2 morale bonus on weapon attack and damage rolls.
Fear: A creature imbued with fear suffers from horrifying thoughts of failure and powerlessness. While this emotion is active, the affected creature is shaken. If the empath chooses to target herself with this emotion, she takes no penalties from being shaken, but any subsequent fear effect directed at her can cause her to become frightened.
(Reminder: A shaken creature suffers a -2 penalty on attack rolls, saving throws, skill checks, and ability checks.)
Beginning at 7th level, an empath may spend additional power points to increase the power of the bonuses and penalties of her emotions. An empath may spend twice the power points for a duration to double the bonuses or penalties of an emotion for that duration. At 13th level, an empath can spend three times the power points to triple the effects, and at 19th level she can spend four times as many power points to quadruple the effects. The total number of power points spent on manifesting an emotion cannot exceed the empath’s class level (until she reaches 20th level; see below). For example, a 7th level empath could spend a maximum of 7 power points to manifest a normal-strength emotion for 3½ minutes (at a rate of ½ of a minute per power point), or spend 6 power points to manifest a double-strength emotion for 1½ minutes (2x strength multiplied by 3 power points gives a total cost of 6 power points), but she could not manifest a double-strength emotion for 2 minutes, since the total cost would be 8 power points and a 7th level empath can spend no more than 7 power points at a time when manifesting an emotion.
Use the equation below to determine the cost of manifesting an emotion.
Power point cost = (Emotion’s strength multiplier) x (Number of minutes) x 2
The duration of a manifested emotion is
Duration (minutes) = ½ x (Number of power points spent) / (Emotion’s strength)
The easiest way to avoid awkward fractions is to remember that 1 power point gives a duration of 5 rounds or ½ of a minute, and that 5 rounds or ½ of a minute costs 1 power point. When multiplying an emotion’s strength, spend a number of power points that is divisible by that multiplier (spend multiples of 2 power points when manifesting a double strength emotion, multiples of 3 power points when manifesting a triple strength emotion, and so on).
Wild Actualization (Su): Beginning at 2nd level, an empath gains access to a set of unique powers whenever she is imbued with an emotion. These powers follow all the rules of normal psionic powers except that they can only be manifested by a psionic character who is imbued with an emotion corresponding to them. They do not count against the number of powers an empath can know based on her class level. If the emotion an empath is imbued with ends while a wild actualization power is active, that power’s effects still continue for their normal duration.
In theory, other psionic characters could learn wild actualization powers through the Expanded Knowledge or Epic Expanded Knowledge feats, but without the emotional energy to fuel them, they are useless.
Wild actualization powers cannot be stored in a power stone, dorje, or similar item, nor can they be reproduced by activating an item because such items cannot contain the emotional energy required for the powers to function. However, it is possible to craft psionic items using these powers. Items that are crafted using wild actualization powers give off an aura of joy, anger, or fear which is detectable by any spells, powers, items, or other effects that can detect emotions or psionic energy.
An empath’s manifester level is treated as 4 less than normal when manifesting powers related to the emotion that she gains access to at 5th level, and 8 less than normal when manifesting powers related to the emotion that she gains at 9th level. This number determines how many power points an empath can spend on her emotion-based powers and also determines level-dependent effects of those powers.
Counting only manifester levels gained in this class, an empath gains access to each wild actualization power when her effective manifester level for powers of the corresponding emotion is twice the level of that power. An empath gains access to the 1st level power in the first emotion she chooses at 2nd level, the second emotion she chooses at 6th level, and the third emotion she chooses at 10th level, and she gains access to powers of subsequent levels for each emotion every 2 class levels after this.
Table: Effective Manifester Level and Highest Power Level Known for Emotion-Based Powers
Class Level
Effective Manifester Level / Highest Power Level Known
First Emotion
Second Emotion
Third Emotion
1st
2nd
2nd
1st
3rd
3rd
1st
4th
4th
2nd
5th
5th
2nd
6th
6th
3rd
2nd
1st
7th
7th
3rd
3rd
1st
8th
8th
4th
4th
2nd
9th
9th
4th
5th
2nd
10th
10th
5th
6th
3rd
2nd
1st
11th
11th
5th
7th
3rd
3rd
1st
12th
12th
6th
8th
4th
4th
2nd
13th
13th
6th
9th
4th
5th
2nd
14th
14th
7th
10th
5th
6th
3rd
15th
15th
7th
11th
5th
7th
3rd
16th
16th
8th
12th
6th
8th
4th
17th
17th
8th
13th
6th
9th
4th
18th
18th
9th
14th
7th
10th
5th
19th
19th
9th
15th
7th
11th
5th
20th
20th
9th
16th
8th
12th
6th
A summary of the powers is given here.
Joy
1st level: Psionic Rejuvenation – Heals a living creature over a brief period.
2nd level: Psionic Therapy – Grants an additional Will save to another creature.
3rd level: Pacify – Nearby creatures lose the will to fight.
4th level: Mass Inspire – Applies Joy effect in a 30 foot cone; creatures are freed from fear effects.
5th level: Aura of Love – Shields an ally from damage and harmful effects.
6th level: Joy Blast – Blast of emotional energy heals allies and deals damage to enemies in a line.
7th level: Safeguard – Creates a barrier which protects friendly creatures inside of it; slowly heals allies.
8th level: Joyful Chirurgery – Removes harmful mental effects from a creature and restores mental ability scores.
9th level: Soul of Joy – Become joy incarnate.
Anger
1st level: Rage Beam – Improved Energy Ray deals fire damage and sets target on fire.
2nd level: Fury Strike – Your fist unleashes an explosion that throws surrounding creatures and objects.
3rd level: Defiance – Target creature gains damage reduction and immunity to fatigue and exhaustion.
4th level: Mass Enrage – Applies Anger effect in a 30 foot cone and compels creatures to attack; creatures gain a brief boost of speed.
5th level: Meteor Charge – You cloak yourself in flames and smash into a nearby target, sending it flying.
6th level: Burst of Fury – Your target gains a massive Strength bonus for one round.
7th level: Searing Anger – You launch a pillar of flame each round to trap and burn enemies.
8th level: Surging Assault – You and your allies are carried forward on a wave of fire; end effect to gain combat bonuses.
9th level: Soul of Anger – Become anger incarnate.
Fear
1st level: Psionic Darkness – Black cloud obscures the target’s senses and causes it to become shaken; frightens and deals damage if target is already shaken.
2nd level: Channel Fear – Black lightning damages a shaken, frightened, or panicked creature and slows its movement; frightened and panicked creatures suffer additional penalties.
3rd level: Resist Panic – Nearby allies gain a bonus on resisting fear effects and use existing fears to improve Listen and Spot checks.
4th level: Mass Terrify – Applies Fear effect in a 30 foot cone; deals Wisdom damage to creatures.
5th level: Scatter the Weak – Frightens surrounding enemies, reducing their AC and forcing them to flee from you.
6th level: Schadenfreude – Damage you deal to frightened or panicked creatures grants you temporary hit points.
7th level: Shadow Cage – You summon a cage to trap nearby creatures; creatures that touch the walls are forced back and take damage based on penalties they are suffering on Will saves.
8th level: Seeds of Terror – Mental seed grows within targets, terrifying them and draining their life away.
9th level: Soul of Fear – Become fear incarnate.
Emotional Drive (Su): Beginning at 3rd level, an empath gains additional power as the wondrous force of her emotions flows through her. While an empath is imbued with an emotion, she gains a +10 morale bonus to her speed.
Channel Emotion (Su): Beginning at 4th level, an empath learns to connect with the minds of those around her, allowing her to manifest emotions in others from a distance. The range from which an empath can manifest an emotion in another creature increases to 10 feet. At 7th level, the range increases to 20 feet, and at 10th level, the range increases to 25 feet + 5 feet/2 levels. The empath must have line of sight to her target to manifest emotions from a distance.
Emotional Certainty (Ex): With extensive meditation and knowledge of emotions come superior control over one’s own mind and the forces that impact it. At 5th level, an empath gains a continual +2 bonus on Will saves made to resist or negate charm, compulsion, fear, and possession effects. This bonus increases to +4 at 8th level, +6 at 11th level, +8 at 14th level, and +10 at 17th level.
Emotional Feedback (Su): Beginning at 6th level, an empath learns to more fully utilize the raw energy of her emotions, gaining additional power from them. While the empath is imbued with the emotion she gained access to at 1st level, she gains the following benefits.
Joy: Whenever an ally within 50 feet of the empath takes damage which results in his or her hit points becoming less than or equal to twice his or her hit dice, or whenever an ally within 50 feet of the empath becomes affected by a charm, compulsion, fear, or possession effect which prevents him or her from acting normally, the empath automatically becomes aware of who was affected, where that character is, and whether he or she is suffering from low hit points, a charm effect, a compulsion effect, a fear effect, or a possession effect. For 1 round, the empath gains a dodge bonus to AC and a bonus on Climb, Jump, and Swim checks equal to twice the strength of the emotion she is imbued with (+2 if joy is x1, +4 if joy is x2, etc.) and a bonus to her speed equal to ten times the strength of the emotion she is imbued with (+10 if joy is x1, +20 if joy is x2, etc.). After this, she cannot gain the bonuses again until she either manifests a joy-based power on the ally who was harmed or she imbues herself with joy again. If multiple allies trigger this effect in the same round, the empath only needs to manifest a joy-based power on one of them in order to be able to gain the bonuses again. This effect can potentially be triggered every round, but a given ally can only trigger it once every two rounds.
Anger: At the end of the empath’s turn, she may choose to begin a rage storm as a free action, which lasts for up to three rounds, but ends early if the empath’s anger ends. During this time, whenever an ally within 30 feet of the empath deals damage to an opponent, the empath gains a number of rage points equal to the bonus damage that she supplied to that ally through the use of her class features. For example, an ally that damaged three enemies through the use of the full attack option while being granted a +2 bonus on damage rolls from the empath’s anger would cause the empath to gain 6 rage points. Rage points gained from all sources stack, and persist for the duration of the rage storm. At the beginning of the empath’s turn on the final round of the rage storm, her rage points are converted to bonus damage, causing all damage-dealing powers that the empath manifests during this turn to deal 1 point of additional untyped damage per damage die rolled for every 5 rage points that the empath has accumulated. The maximum number of rage points that the empath can accumulate during a rage storm is equal to ten times the strength of the emotion she is imbued with (10 points if anger is x1, 20 points if anger is x2, etc.). When the rage storm ends, all rage points are lost, and the empath cannot begin a new rage storm for two rounds or until she imbues herself with anger again.
Fear: After the empath successfully imbues an opponent with fear, she may choose to dash to an empty square she can see as a swift action, provided that square is within a number of feet equal to ten times the strength of the emotion she is imbued with (10 feet if fear is x1, 20 feet if fear is x2, etc.). The empath and her gear become incorporeal during the dash, allowing her to pass through other creatures and objects. Moving this way does not provoke attacks of opportunity. After dashing, the next fear-based power that the empath manifests within 1 round has its DC increased by the strength of the emotion she is imbued with (+1 if fear is x1, +2 if fear is x2, etc.), provided the opponent that the empath imbued with fear is included among the power’s targets or is within the power’s area. After using this ability, the empath cannot do so again until she and her allies reduce a shaken, frightened, or panicked creature to 0 hit points or less, or until she imbues herself with fear again.
Swift Feeling (Su): An empath gains a great deal of power over her emotions with experience. Beginning at 15th level, an empath can manifest emotions as a swift action, allowing her to accomplish more things in a short amount of time.
Self-Confidence (Ex): An empath of 17th level or higher has developed such unshakable certainty about her emotions and identity that she becomes protected from mental ability drain. All ability drain that would affect the empath’s mental ability scores is instead dealt as ability burn damage. Additionally, an empath can use her psionic abilities to better protect her mind. By expending her psionic focus as a free action, an empath can attempt a Will saving throw to negate any mind-affecting magical, psionic, or supernatural effect that normally does not allow a save as though that effect had a DC equal to that of a normal spell or psionic power of its level.
If the empath uses this ability to resist a continuous spell or supernatural effect placed on the surrounding area, she becomes immune to that effect for 1 hour. If the empath fails her save, she must either exit the area or wait 1 hour before trying again. An empath can resist the effects of mind-affecting planar traits by expending her psionic focus and succeeding on a DC 30 Will save.
Emotional Mastery (Su): At 20th level, an empath breaks the boundaries of what she could previously achieve with emotions in a stunning display of emotional mastery. From this point, the maximum number of power points an empath can spend on manifesting an emotion increases to one-and-a-half times her class level.