Black Shield Base Class PEACH

[Carl]

Black Shield

Black Shields are both masters of many weapons and an elite order of warriors. They are most famous for their use as personal bodyguards if kings and their expertise with weaponry, notably Swords. However in ages past they where also mage hunters for the rulers of the time and retain considerable expertise here even if it is little known or remembered by others.

GAME RULE INFORMATION
Black Shield's have the following game statistics.
Alignment: Any Lawful
Hit Die: D10
Starting Gold: As Fighter

Class Skills
The Black Shield's class skills are:
Appraise (Int), Balance (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Decipher Script (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Disable Device (Int), Escape Artist (Dex), Gather Information (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Hide (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Knowledge (Int), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Open Lock (Dex), Ride (Dex), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight Of Hand (Dex), Speak Language, Spellcraft (Int), Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis), Swim (Str), Tumble (Dex), Use Rope (Dex)
Skill Points at First Level: (8 + Int modifier) x 4
Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 8 + Int modifier

Black Shield

Level	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Special	Bonewood Emblem Bonus
1st	+1	+2	+0	+2	Bonewood Emblem, Weaponmaster Initiate	+1
2nd	+2	+3	+0	+3	Power Attack, Combat Reflexes	+1
3rd	+3	+3	+1	+3	Adaptability (1 feat)	+1
4th	+4	+4	+1	+4	Adaptability (2 feats), Improved Adaptability (Great Cleave)	+2
5th	+5	+4	+1	+4	1st Rank Weaponmaster	+2
6th	+6/+1	+5	+2	+5	Economy of Motion, Improved Adaptability (Improved Two-Weapon Fighting)	+2
7th	+7/+2	+5	+2	+5	Uncanny Dodge	+2
8th	+8/+3	+6	+2	+6	Adaptability (3 feats)	+3
9th	+9/+4	+6	+3	+6	Evasion, Mettle	+3
10th	+10/+5	+7	+3	+7	2nd Rank Weaponmaster	+3
11th	+11/+6/+1	+7	+3	+7	Improved Adaptability (Greater Two-Weapon Fighting, Improved Precise Shot)	+3
12th	+12/+7/+2	+8	+4	+8	Adaptability (4 feats)	+4
13th	+13/+8/+3	+8	+4	+8	Improved Uncanny Dodge	+4
14th	+14/+9/+4	+9	+4	+9	Improved Evasion, Improved Mettle	+4
15th	+15/+10/+5	+9	+5	+9	3rd Rank Weaponmaster	+4
16th	+16/+11/+6/+1	+10	+5	+10	Improved Bonewood Emblem, Adaptability (5 feats)	+5
17th	+17/+12/+7/+2	+10	+5	+10	Improved Weakpoint Attack	+5
18th	+18/+13/+8/+3	+11	+6	+11	Improved Economy Of Motion	+5
19th	+19/+14/+9/+4	+11	+6	+11	Guard	+5
20th	+20/+15/+10/+5	+12	+6	+12	4th Rank Weaponmaster, Adaptability (6 feats)	+6

Class Features
All of the following are class features of the Black Shields.

Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: Black Shield’s are proficient with all weapons, armour, and shields.

Bonewood Emblem (Ex): At 1st level a Black Shield receives a Bonewood Emblam from the class’s Home monastery. This is free and may be replaced for free but it may take some time to be sent of and arrive at the GM’s discretion. Anyone picking this class as their starting class is already assumed to have received this.

Whilst ever a Black Shield posses this emblam somewhere about their person, (it may be hidden under cloths or amour), they gain a natural to interfere with spells, and spell like abilities cast on them. This affects spells regardless of who cast the spell on them, thus it affect both friendly beneficial and hostile negative spells. If the spell affects an area of multipule people it only affects the portion of the spell applied to the Black Shield.

Spells, and spell like abilities affected by this have their effective caster level reduced as indicated by the Bonwood effect magnitude on the class table. Any affects of the spell based on caster level are reduced appropriately. In addition they gain the modifiers listed as a bonus on any saves against spells or spell like abilities they are allowed to take. The caster level reduction cannot reduce a spells effective caster level below 1.

Weaponmaster Initiate (Ex): Starting at 1st level they may add their Black Shield class level to the damage of any attack.

Bonus Feats (Power Attack & Combat Reflex’s) (Ex): At 2nd Level a Black Shield gains the Power attack and Combat Reflex’s feats as free bonus Feats.

Adaptability (Ex): Starting at 3rd level for a number or rounds per day equal to their Black Shield Class Level a Black Shield may act for that round as if they have one of the feats listed below. They do not need to meet the perquisites to select them. Activating this ability is a free action. Once selected a feat cannot be removed or changed, but is automatically lost at the start of the next round when the ability ends. This ability can be activated in multiple sequential rounds, and you may choose a different configuration of feats each time.

At 4th, 8th, 12th, 16th, and 20th levels the number of feats they can select from the list below increases by 1. A Black Shield does not have to select all their feats for a round the first time they activate this ability. If they have unchosen feats they may activate it again at any number of later points in the round just as they did initially with the same restrictions. When activating it a second or subsequent time they cannot remove or change any feats already selected but can select new feats upto their per round limit.

Acrobatic, Agile, Alertness, Athletic, Blind-Fight, Cleave, Combat Reflexes, Deflect Arrows, Diehard, Dodge, Endurance, Far Shot, Great Fortitude, Improved Bull Rush, Improved Disarm, Improved Feint, Improved Grapple, Improved Initiative, Improved Overrun, Improved Shield Bash, Improved Sunder, Improved Trip, Improved Unarmed Strike, Investigator, Iron Will, Lightning Reflexes, Manyshot, Mobility, Mounted Archery, Mounted Combat, Negotiator, Nimble Fingers, Persuasive, Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Quick Draw, Rapid Reload, Rapid Shot, Ride-By Attack, Run, Self-Sufficient, Shot On The Run, Skill Focus (Black Shield Class Skills Only), Snatch Arrows, Spirited Charge, Spring Attack, Stealthy, Stunning Fist, Trample, Two-Weapon Defense, Two-Weapon Fighting, Weapon Finesse, Whirlwind Attack

Improved Adaptability (Ex): Starting at 4th level when you select certain feats with the Adaptability Class Feature you gain additional feats in the same manner and with the same duration and other limitations. Feats gained in this fashion do not count against your feats selected limit of the Adaptability Class feature.

At 4th level whenever you gain the Cleave feat, you also gain the Great Cleave Feat.

At 6th level when you gain the Two Weapon Fighting Feat you also gain the Improved Two-Weapon Fighting feat. At 11th Level you also gain the Greater Two-Weapon Fighting Feat.

At 11th level when gaining the Precise Shot Feat you also gain the Improved Precise Shot feat.

1st Rank Weaponmaster (Ex): Starting at 5th level, provided they are threatened by only one enemy a Black Shield making a full attack with a melee weapon receives their full attack bonus on second and subsequent attacks instead of the reduced attack bonus they would normally receive.

Provided they are not threatened by any enemies a Black Shield making a full attack with a ranged weapon receives their full attack bonus on second and subsequent attacks instead of the reduced attack bonus they would normally receive.

Economy of Motion (Ex): Starting at 6th level a Black shields training in performing every action with the minimum of wasted motion allows them to perform a full attack as a standard action. In addition once per round they may reduce the time taken to perform an action, (including the already reduced full attack action), by one step. Thus a Full-Round Action becomes a Standard Action, a Standard Action, becomes a Move Equivalent action, a Move equivalent action becomes a Swift Action, and a Swift Action becomes a Free Action. An action cannot be reduced below a free Action. Actions reduced to a swift action do not count against the normal once per round limit for swift actions. At 12th and 18th levels the number of times they may do this per round increases by one. They may use this ability on different actions each time and/or apply multiple uses to a single action to reduce it by multiple steps, or any combination of the two.

In addition starting at 6th level a Black shield suffers no movement penalty from armour and may use extraordinary abilities that are normally restricted in what armour you can wear whilst benefiting from them whilst wearing any armour. This includes being able to use abilities that normally require you to be wearing no armour at all.

Uncanny Dodge (Ex): Starting at 7th level, a Black Shield can react to danger before her senses would normally allow her to do so. They retain their Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) even if they are caught flat-footed or struck by an invisible attacker. However, they still loses their Dexterity bonus to AC if immobilized.

If a Black Shield already has uncanny dodge from a different class they automatically gain improved uncanny dodge instead.

Evasion (Ex): At 9th level and higher, a Black Shield can avoid even magical and unusual attacks with great agility. If they makes a successful Reflex saving throw against an attack that normally deals half damage on a successful save, they instead take no damage. A helpless Black Shield does not gain the benefit of evasion.

Mettle (Ex): You can resist magical attacks with greater effectiveness than other warriors. Beginning at 9th level, by drawing on your will and focus, you can shrug off effects that would hinder even the toughest warrior. If you succeed on a Fortitude or Will save against an attack that would normally produce a lesser effect on a successful save (such as a spell with a saving throw entry of Will half or Fortitude partial), you instead negate the effect. You do not gain the benefit of mettle when you are unconscious or sleep

2nd Rank Weaponmaster (Ex): Starting at 10th level a Black Shield may use their full attack bonus on all attacks when using the full-attack action regardless of the number of enemies threatening them. In addition they no longer suffer armour check penalties for wearing any kind of armour, (including shields), and suffer no limit on their maximum dex bonus to AC from armour and/or shields.

Weakpoint Attack (Ex): Starting at 12th level a Black Shield ignores half, (Round up, minimum of 1), of the bonuses to AC that a target recives from Armour, (including Natural Armour), and Shields. The critical Range of any weapon they are using also increases by 1, (So 19-20 would become 18-20 for example).

Improved Uncanny Dodge (Ex): A Black Shield of 13th level or higher can no longer be flanked.

This defense denies a rogue the ability to sneak attack the character by flanking them, unless the attacker has at least four more rogue levels than the target does.

If a character already has uncanny dodge from a second class, the character automatically gains improved uncanny dodge instead, and the levels from the classes that grant uncanny dodge stack to determine the minimum rogue level required to flank the character.

Improved Mettle (Ex): At 14th level a Black Shield gains improved mettle. This ability works like mettle, except that while the Black Shield still suffers no effect on a successful Fortitude or Will saving throw against attacks, henceforth they take only reduced effect on a failed save. You do not gain the benefit of improved mettle when you are unconscious or sleep

Improved Evasion (Ex): At 14th level a Black Shield gains improved evasion.This ability works like evasion, except that while the Black Shield still takes no damage on a successful Reflex saving throw against attacks henceforth they take only half damage on a failed save. A helpless Black Shield does not gain the benefit of improved evasion.

3rd Rank Weaponmaster (Ex): Starting at 15th level a Black Shield may make a full attack action against any target that provokes an attack of opportunity. This still only counts as 1 attack of opportunity however. In addition their reach increases by 5ft and any creature attempting to attack or cast a spell targeting another friendly other than the Black Shield provokes an attack of opportunity from the Black Shield.

Improved Bonewood Emblem (Ex): Thank to their deepening connection to their amulet, starting at 16th level a Black Shield gains Spell Resistance equal to their Black Shield level.

In addition for a number of minutes per day equal to their class level they can create a zone around themselves that has the same effect as an anti-magic field. This has a radius of 20ft per Black Shield class level. For any caster level effects treat their caster level as equal to their Black Shield level whilst remembering the enemy caster level reduction from their bonewood amulet applies to all such interactions.

This duration can be split up across multiple uses with a minimum duration of 1 round, creating and dismissing this is a free action.

Improved Weakpoint Attack (Ex): Starting at 17th level a Black shield now ignores half, (round up, minimum 1), of the damage reduction, (if any), a target of their attacks posses. Their critical Multiplier with all weapons also increases by 1, (so 2x would become 3x and so on and so foth).

Improved Economy Of Motion (Ex): Starting at 18th level anytime a Black Shield performs a Full Round Action, Standard Action, Move Equivalent Action, Swift Action, or an Immediate Action they make take a 5ft step before an/or after performing the action. This movement does not count against their normal movement. They may do this even if the action has been subsequently reduced in some fashion to a free or other action. Only the base action type it would use is considered.

Guard (Ex): Starting at 19th level their specialist Bodyguard training for potential protection duties begins. Their reach increases by an additional 5ft, and any friendly creature within their reach or attacked by a creature that is within their reach gains a dodge bonus to their AC equal to the Black Shields Dex bonus and also gains the Caster level Reduction and Spell resistance benefits of their Bonewood Emblem.

In addition they can no longer be surprised, and always get to act in a surprise round, and add half their class level as an Insight bonus to all Spot, Listen, Search, Move Silently, Hide, and Sense Motive skill checks.

4th Rank Weaponmaster (Ex): Starting at 20th level anytime a Black Shield deals damage with an attack of opportunity the target must pass a Fortitude saving throw (DC10+damage dealt), or die.

In addition Black Shields no longer provoke Attacks of Opportunity due to movement and may make a standard Move action as an Immediate action once per round.



Author’s Notes, Thoughts, e.t.c: Based fairly strongly on the Black Shields aka Weapons of the Green Rider series. I think my first ever homebrew was a previous attempt at this. Back then I was far worse at this, (don’t consider myself great yet tbh), and far less had been revealed about them, since then we’ve picked up some more stuff, they’ve gone from weaponry expert who guard the king to something a lot less well defined and interesting. I’ve tried to capture that here, with some speculation on things hinted at used plus some stretching to make them fit in certain ways. As even now what we know wouldn’t fill a full page with facts.

Overall they’ve got a lot of skill access and some strong magic defenses as well as amazing action economy. They back that up with some very flexible and powerful reactive combat capabilities. Their biggest weakness like any non-spellcaster really is that a spellcaster can just use various tricks to sit out of range and be annoying until their defenses are broken throu8gh sheer persistence. They probably come out a bit ahead of a rouge power wise, in a fight they’re defiantly more destructive though a rouge has some more side utility stuff, but a rouge can’t really compete with the action economy and I figure that’s going to give them a leg up.