A prestige class we are testing in a homebrew campaign. Two things that might help explain things a bit. First, Isbin in this world is a LG god of righteousness. The only thing worth noting is the paladin must be dedicated to a god and not just to goodness in general. Second is we play with Monte Cook's degrees of evil ranging from 1 to 10. This is also how we gauge when it is time to change a character's alignment. It can be easily converted to the PHB version though.
There is also an RP aspect of the class we tried to capture with the penalty to Diplomacy skill checks. At high levels, a righteous fist is somewhat maddened by all the evil that he sees around him. Realizing that maybe 10% of a town population is of the vilest evil can be somewhat overwhelming.
Survival doesn't fit very well either. But rather than inventing a new method for tracking (we considered using ranks in knowledge (religion) in place of survival), we just stuck with the core rules on this.
Any and all comments welcome.
********
Righteous Fist
The young bride looks over lovingly at her soon-to-be husband and smiles. “I do,” she says as a tear of joy begins to stream down her face.
The priest standing before them says, “Then, by the power vested in me…”
Suddenly the doors at the rear of the church burst open. Standing in the open doorway is an imposing figure with sword in hand wearing a flowing white cloak emblazoned with a golden fist.
Traeg the Relentless scans the crowd brief and then points at the group from across the sanctuary. “YOU!” he declares with authority. “You are a murderer and a rapist. Time to pay!”
A look of shock covers the groom’s face for only a moment before he composes himself. He quickly fishes into a hidden pocket on his waistcoat drawing a knife from a secret sheath, its edge glistens with sticky venom. The groom quickly pounces on his bride putting the knife to her throat. “Back away, or I’ll kill this wench!”
Undaunted, Traeg strides forward quickly. The groom’s face fills again with panic as he looks at the man coming for him. Not wishing to waste the poison on the woman, he squares off with the Righteous Fist as he approaches. “You will never take me alive!” he sneers.
Traeg grins broadly and says, “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
*****
The Righteous Fists are a unique sect of paladins dedicating their lives to stomping out evil in all its forms. They are charged with the power to hunt down and expunge it from this world. The task is difficult and sometimes maddening to see all the corruption around them. Their faith in Isbin helps to sustain them knowing their cause is just.
Only those called to be a paladin of Isbin can ever walk the path of the Righteous Fist. A tight-knit band of brothers within the brotherhood of paladin-hood, these proud men and women bear a white cloak carefully embroidered with a golden fist. Giving up the ways of their diplomatic brethren, Fists charge head first into the fight against evil. They even allow themselves to be lax on their sacred code of conduct while in the pursuit of evil. Righteous Fists are bastions of virtue in the continuing struggle against the wicked.
Hit Dice: d10
Requirements:
To qualify to become a Righteous Fist, a character must fulfill all of the following criteria:
Base Attack Bonus: +6
Knowledge (Religion): 6 ranks
Feats: Divine Might, Power Attack, Track
Special: Must be a paladin to Isbin (LG deity).
Class Skills:
The Righteous Fist’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Profession (Wis), and Ride (Dex), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), and Survival (Wis).
Class Features:
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Righteous fists are proficient with all simple and martial weapons, with all types of armor, and with shields (except tower shields).
Spells per Day: At every second level gain in the righteous fist class, the character gains new spells per day as if he had also gained a level in a spellcasting class he belonged to before he added the prestige class. He does not; however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained (improved chance of controlling or rebuking undead, metamagic or item creation feats, and so on).
Smite (Su): When making a smite attack, a righteous fist may add both his paladin levels to his prestige class levels when calculating damage. In addition, add righteous fist levels to paladin levels when determining the number of smites per day. For example, a 6th-level paladin/4th-level righteous fist would get three smite evil attacks per day.
Deaf Ears (Ex): In the pursuit of their evil foes, villains will often try to deceive their enemies. A righteous fist is carefully trained to detect these falsehoods gaining a +3 competency bonus per level to Sense Motive rolls against evil foes.
No Time to Talk: Righteous Fists are willing to sacrifice good manners and proper etiquette in the pursuit of their villainous foes. He suffers a –5 penalty to all Diplomacy checks, plus an additional –1 penalty for every level of the prestige class. For example, a 7th-level righteous fist would suffer a –12 penalty on Diplomacy checks.
See Evil (Sp): A righteous fist is about to determine the depth of evil in any person he sees (up to the range of his detect evil ability). He can do this at will without having to concentrate on the detection.
Improved Detect Evil Range (Sp): The paladin’s ability to detect evil is greatly enhanced as a righteous fist. However, because of the extended range, the level his ability to detect minor auras at a distance is diminished. A righteous fist will be able to detect all forms of evil within 10% of his maximum distance (to a minimum of 60 ft.). Beyond that distance and still less than half his maximum range, he can detect those evil auras of 5 or greater. Beyond half his total distance, only the strongest auras can be detected (evil 10).
Revealing Touch (Su): Upon touching the flesh of an evil creature, the most recent deeds that cause them to be evil are revealed to the paladin. It takes a full round for the visions to reveal themselves, and requires a touch attack. The victim must make a Will save DC 20 + the righteous fist's Cha modifier. This ability is useable once per day. It increases to twice per day at level 5.
Punish the Wicked (Su): A righteous fist can call upon Isbin to perform a special attack meant to purge evil. Once per day, he can double his smite and/or Divine Might damage. In addition, the smite attack is extended to last for the full attack action. Should the righteous fist make an attack of opportunity, this attack will not gain the benefit of this ability.
Track Evil (Su): One evil person/creature that is visually seen by the righteous fist can be targeted with this ability. The footprints of this evil being will glow red for the next 2 hours. This ability can only be used once a week. At level 10, it can be used twice a week. It is a standard action to invoke this ability.
Righteous Aura: A righteous fist is surrounded by an aura of purity and goodness that has varying effects depending on their prestige class level. The effects of the three auras are cumulative with each other. A righteous fist can suppress their aura as a free action each round (although doing so stops the benefits of all three auras at high levels).
Magic Circle Against Evil (Sp): At 3rd-level, a righteous fist is continuously surrounded by a magic circle against evil spell. Even after attacking an evil creature, the character can automatically resume the spell and the conclusion of their attacks.
Divine Courage (Su): At 5th-level the character is surrounded by an aura of confidence provide a +1 morale bonus to attack and damage rolls when fighting a known evil foe. This bonus applies to all allies within 60 ft. as long as they are in sight of the righteous fist.
Sicken Evil (Su): At 9th level, the mere presence of the righteous fist can cause evil to shake with fear. The effect varies with the depth of evil:
The aura's effect is a supernatural mind-effecting ability that extends in a 60 ft. radius around the righteous fist. Evil creatures must make a Will save DC 12 + the character's Cha modifier to be immune to the effect for 24 hours.
Code of Conduct: A righteous fist still must adhere to the same code as a paladin, although there are several areas where it differs slightly. Although the goal is to avoid killing, this does not pertain to evil foes. The only good source of evil is a dead one. They seek the betterment of society by purging it of evil. If that means steps on a few toes along the way, then so be it.
Multiclassing Notes: A righteous fist may continue to advance as a paladin of Isbin after taking levels of this prestige class and vice versa. They are not subject to the normal paladin multiclassing restriction.
There is also an RP aspect of the class we tried to capture with the penalty to Diplomacy skill checks. At high levels, a righteous fist is somewhat maddened by all the evil that he sees around him. Realizing that maybe 10% of a town population is of the vilest evil can be somewhat overwhelming.
Survival doesn't fit very well either. But rather than inventing a new method for tracking (we considered using ranks in knowledge (religion) in place of survival), we just stuck with the core rules on this.
Any and all comments welcome.
********
Righteous Fist
The young bride looks over lovingly at her soon-to-be husband and smiles. “I do,” she says as a tear of joy begins to stream down her face.
The priest standing before them says, “Then, by the power vested in me…”
Suddenly the doors at the rear of the church burst open. Standing in the open doorway is an imposing figure with sword in hand wearing a flowing white cloak emblazoned with a golden fist.
Traeg the Relentless scans the crowd brief and then points at the group from across the sanctuary. “YOU!” he declares with authority. “You are a murderer and a rapist. Time to pay!”
A look of shock covers the groom’s face for only a moment before he composes himself. He quickly fishes into a hidden pocket on his waistcoat drawing a knife from a secret sheath, its edge glistens with sticky venom. The groom quickly pounces on his bride putting the knife to her throat. “Back away, or I’ll kill this wench!”
Undaunted, Traeg strides forward quickly. The groom’s face fills again with panic as he looks at the man coming for him. Not wishing to waste the poison on the woman, he squares off with the Righteous Fist as he approaches. “You will never take me alive!” he sneers.
Traeg grins broadly and says, “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
*****
The Righteous Fists are a unique sect of paladins dedicating their lives to stomping out evil in all its forms. They are charged with the power to hunt down and expunge it from this world. The task is difficult and sometimes maddening to see all the corruption around them. Their faith in Isbin helps to sustain them knowing their cause is just.
Only those called to be a paladin of Isbin can ever walk the path of the Righteous Fist. A tight-knit band of brothers within the brotherhood of paladin-hood, these proud men and women bear a white cloak carefully embroidered with a golden fist. Giving up the ways of their diplomatic brethren, Fists charge head first into the fight against evil. They even allow themselves to be lax on their sacred code of conduct while in the pursuit of evil. Righteous Fists are bastions of virtue in the continuing struggle against the wicked.
Hit Dice: d10
Requirements:
To qualify to become a Righteous Fist, a character must fulfill all of the following criteria:
Base Attack Bonus: +6
Knowledge (Religion): 6 ranks
Feats: Divine Might, Power Attack, Track
Special: Must be a paladin to Isbin (LG deity).
Class Skills:
The Righteous Fist’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Profession (Wis), and Ride (Dex), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), and Survival (Wis).
Code:
Level BAB Fort Ref Will Special Spells per Day
1 +1 +1 +0 +0 Deaf Ears, No Time to Talk, Revealing Touch, See Evil
2 +2 +2 +1 +1 Detect Evil (200 ft.) +1 level of existing class
3 +3 +2 +1 +1 Righteous Aura (Magic Circle Against Evil)
4 +4 +3 +1 +1 Detect Evil (400 ft.) +1 level of existing class
5 +5 +3 +2 +2 Revealing Touch, Righteous Aura (Divine Courage)
6 +6 +4 +2 +2 Detect Evil (800 ft.), Punish the Wicked +1 level of existing class
7 +7 +4 +2 +2 Track Evil
8 +8 +5 +3 +3 Detect Evil (1 mile) +1 level of existing class
9 +9 +5 +3 +3 Righteous Aura (Sicken Evil)
10 +10 +6 +3 +3 Detect Evil (10 miles), Track Evil +1 level of existing classClass Features:
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Righteous fists are proficient with all simple and martial weapons, with all types of armor, and with shields (except tower shields).
Spells per Day: At every second level gain in the righteous fist class, the character gains new spells per day as if he had also gained a level in a spellcasting class he belonged to before he added the prestige class. He does not; however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained (improved chance of controlling or rebuking undead, metamagic or item creation feats, and so on).
Smite (Su): When making a smite attack, a righteous fist may add both his paladin levels to his prestige class levels when calculating damage. In addition, add righteous fist levels to paladin levels when determining the number of smites per day. For example, a 6th-level paladin/4th-level righteous fist would get three smite evil attacks per day.
Deaf Ears (Ex): In the pursuit of their evil foes, villains will often try to deceive their enemies. A righteous fist is carefully trained to detect these falsehoods gaining a +3 competency bonus per level to Sense Motive rolls against evil foes.
No Time to Talk: Righteous Fists are willing to sacrifice good manners and proper etiquette in the pursuit of their villainous foes. He suffers a –5 penalty to all Diplomacy checks, plus an additional –1 penalty for every level of the prestige class. For example, a 7th-level righteous fist would suffer a –12 penalty on Diplomacy checks.
See Evil (Sp): A righteous fist is about to determine the depth of evil in any person he sees (up to the range of his detect evil ability). He can do this at will without having to concentrate on the detection.
Improved Detect Evil Range (Sp): The paladin’s ability to detect evil is greatly enhanced as a righteous fist. However, because of the extended range, the level his ability to detect minor auras at a distance is diminished. A righteous fist will be able to detect all forms of evil within 10% of his maximum distance (to a minimum of 60 ft.). Beyond that distance and still less than half his maximum range, he can detect those evil auras of 5 or greater. Beyond half his total distance, only the strongest auras can be detected (evil 10).
Revealing Touch (Su): Upon touching the flesh of an evil creature, the most recent deeds that cause them to be evil are revealed to the paladin. It takes a full round for the visions to reveal themselves, and requires a touch attack. The victim must make a Will save DC 20 + the righteous fist's Cha modifier. This ability is useable once per day. It increases to twice per day at level 5.
Punish the Wicked (Su): A righteous fist can call upon Isbin to perform a special attack meant to purge evil. Once per day, he can double his smite and/or Divine Might damage. In addition, the smite attack is extended to last for the full attack action. Should the righteous fist make an attack of opportunity, this attack will not gain the benefit of this ability.
Track Evil (Su): One evil person/creature that is visually seen by the righteous fist can be targeted with this ability. The footprints of this evil being will glow red for the next 2 hours. This ability can only be used once a week. At level 10, it can be used twice a week. It is a standard action to invoke this ability.
Righteous Aura: A righteous fist is surrounded by an aura of purity and goodness that has varying effects depending on their prestige class level. The effects of the three auras are cumulative with each other. A righteous fist can suppress their aura as a free action each round (although doing so stops the benefits of all three auras at high levels).
Magic Circle Against Evil (Sp): At 3rd-level, a righteous fist is continuously surrounded by a magic circle against evil spell. Even after attacking an evil creature, the character can automatically resume the spell and the conclusion of their attacks.
Divine Courage (Su): At 5th-level the character is surrounded by an aura of confidence provide a +1 morale bonus to attack and damage rolls when fighting a known evil foe. This bonus applies to all allies within 60 ft. as long as they are in sight of the righteous fist.
Sicken Evil (Su): At 9th level, the mere presence of the righteous fist can cause evil to shake with fear. The effect varies with the depth of evil:
Code:
Evil Level Effect
1-3 Frightened
4-6 Nauseated
7-10 CoweredThe aura's effect is a supernatural mind-effecting ability that extends in a 60 ft. radius around the righteous fist. Evil creatures must make a Will save DC 12 + the character's Cha modifier to be immune to the effect for 24 hours.
Code of Conduct: A righteous fist still must adhere to the same code as a paladin, although there are several areas where it differs slightly. Although the goal is to avoid killing, this does not pertain to evil foes. The only good source of evil is a dead one. They seek the betterment of society by purging it of evil. If that means steps on a few toes along the way, then so be it.
Multiclassing Notes: A righteous fist may continue to advance as a paladin of Isbin after taking levels of this prestige class and vice versa. They are not subject to the normal paladin multiclassing restriction.
