Bone Knight
(Five Nations variant, p. 117)
Bone knights are Karrn patriots, living protectors who fight alongside the undead legions of their land.
Requirements
Base Attack Bonus: +4
Skills: Craft (armorsmithing) 6 ranks , Knowledge (religion) 4 ranks , Ride 6 ranks
Special: Ability to turn or rebuke undead.
Special: Ability to cast 1st-level divine spells.
Hit die
d10
Skill points
2 + Int
Class Features
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Bone knights are proficient with all simple and martial weapons and with all armor and shields (including tower shields).
Bonecraft Armor (Ex): At 1st level, you learn to make and wear the distinctive bonecraft armor used by the order of bone knights. You can produce a suit of bonecraft medium or heavy armor that would normally be composed mostly of metal. The bonecraft armor has the same cost and time to create as normal armor of that type. It is possible to spend additional time and money to produce spiked or masterwork bonecraft armor (which may then be further enhanced through magic). Only a character with this ability can effectively wear bonecraft armor.
The armor grants you a +4 bonus on Intimidate checks made while you wear it. In addition, the armor grants you damage reduction 1/bludgeoning if it is medium armor or damage reduction 2/bludgeoning if it is heavy armor. Bonecraft armor is not metallic and not subject to spells such as chill metal or to special attacks that target metal, such as a rust monster's touch.
Paladin Conversion: If you were a paladin or ex-paladin before becoming a bone knight, you can never again advance levels as a paladin, since your association with the undead forever taints you. However, you retain (or regain) certain paladin abilities, including divine grace, lay on hands, aura of courage, divine health, and spellcasting. You cannot detect or smite evil or remove disease. You can use your lay on hands ability to cure living or undead creatures. You lose the service of your special mount (but see the summon skeletal steed ability, below).
Rebuke Undead (Su): At 1st level, you gain the ability to rebuke undead as a cleric of your bone knight level. If you already had the ability to turn or rebuke undead, you add your previous effective cleric level to your bone knight level to determine your effective cleric level for rebuking undead now. You can no longer turn undead once you gain this ability.
Spellcasting: Beginning at 2nd level, you gain new spells per day and an increase in caster level (and spells known, if applicable) as if you had also gained a level in a divine spellcasting class to which you belonged before adding the prestige class level. You do not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained. If you had more than one divine spellcasting class before becoming a bone knight, you must decide to which class to add each level for the purpose of determining spells per day, caster level, and spells known.
If your only divine spellcasting ability prior to becoming a bone knight was as a paladin, you continue to advance your paladin spellcasting as normal. In addition, you add the following spells to your spell list, as if they appeared on the paladin's spell list: 1st—bane, deathwatch, doom; 2nd—death knell, desecrate, gentle repose; 3rd—bestow curse.
Bone March (Su): At 2nd level, you gain the ability to assume control of animated undead from a willing caster as a standard action. You must be within 60 feet of both the caster and the undead to assume control. The maximum total Hit Dice you may command in this manner is equal to four times your class level. You may not control any individual undead creature with more Hit Dice than your class level; for example, a 2nd-level bone knight can control up to 8 Hit Dice of undead creatures, each with 2 Hit Dice or less.
Summon Skeletal Steed (Sp): At 2nd level, you gain the services of a skeletal steed: a heavy warhorse with the skeleton template applied (or a war pony with the skeleton template applied for Small bone knights). You may call this steed in the same fashion as a paladin whose level equals your paladin level plus your bone knight level, and the steed gains the same special abilities as a paladin's special mount at the same effective level.
A skeletal steed cannot be turned while its bone knight master rides it.
Master of the White Banner (Su): Beginning at 3rd level, you grant any undead under your control turn resistance equal to your Charisma bonus (if any) as long as they are within 60 feet of you.
Improved Bonecraft Armor (Ex): At 4th, 7th, and 10th levels, the damage reduction afforded by your bonecraft armor increases by 1. Moreover, you gain additional benefits while clad in your bonecraft armor, as described below:
At 4th level, your bonecraft armor grants you immunity to stunning attacks and nonlethal damage.
At 7th level, your bonecraft armor has a 50% chance of negating any critical hit or sneak attack made against you. In addition, the bonecraft armor allows you to act and fight without penalty even while disabled or dying.
At 10th level, your bonecraft armor grants you immunity to extra damage from critical hits and sneak attacks.
Fill the Ranks (Sp): At 5th level, you can use a limited form of animate dead once per day. The target corpse rises as either a Karrnathi skeleton or Karr nathi zombie (depending on the condition of the corpse and your preference). This undead's Hit Dice count against the maximum number of undead you can control at once with your bone march ability.
See the EBERRON Campaign Setting for Karrnathi skeleton and Karrnathi zombie statistics (pages 292—293).
Bonecraft Weapon (Ex): At 6th level, if you have at least 6 ranks in Craft (weaponsmithing), you can craft weapons with pieces of bone worked into the design. The bonecraft weapon has the same cost and time to create as a normal weapon of that type. It is possible to spend additional time and money to produce a masterwork bonecraft weapon (which may then be further enhanced through magic).
In the hands of a bone knight of 6th level or higher, a bonecraft weapon deals +1d6 points of damage against living creatures. A bonecraft ranged weapon bestows this benefit on its ammunition.
Exoskeleton of Undeath (Ex): At 8th level, your bonecraft armor fuses to your body and cannot be removed without killing you. However, you gain immunity to poison, sleep effects, paralysis, disease, death effects, fatigue, exhaustion, ability damage to your physical ability scores, ability drain, energy drain, and death from massive damage.
Death Strike (Su): At 9th level, once per day, you may use a bonecraft weapon (see above) to strike down a living foe. You must decide to use this ability before the attack roll is made. If the attack succeeds, the target must succeed on a Fortitude save (DC 10 + your bone knight level + your Cha modifier) or die. This is a necromantic death effect.
Advancement
Level | BAB | Fort | Ref | Will | Special | Spellcasting |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1st | +0 | +2 | +0 | +0 | Bonecraft armor, paladin conversion, rebuke undead | — |
2nd | +1 | +3 | +0 | +0 | Bone march, summon skeletal steed | +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class |
3rd | +2 | +3 | +1 | +1 | Master of the white banner | +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class |
4th | +3 | +4 | +1 | +1 | Improved bonecraft armor | +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class |
5th | +3 | +4 | +1 | +1 | Fill the ranks 1/day | +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class |
6th | +4 | +5 | +2 | +2 | Bonecraft weapon | +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class |
7th | +5 | +5 | +2 | +2 | Improved bonecraft armor | +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class |
8th | +6 | +6 | +2 | +2 | Exoskeleton of undeath | +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class |
9th | +6 | +6 | +3 | +3 | Death strike 1/day | +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class |
10th | +7 | +7 | +3 | +3 | Improved bonecraft armor | +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class |
Class skills
Skill name | Key ability | Trained only | Armor check penalty |
---|---|---|---|
Craft | INT | ||
Handle Animal | CHA | ||
Intimidate | CHA | ||
Knowledge (nobility and royalty) | INT | ||
Knowledge (religion) | INT | ||
Ride | DEX |