Zerth Cenobite

(Complete Psionic variant, p. 43)

The core of a zerth cenobites studies involve strict meditation on the nature of time and the body's movements through it, culminating in a martial art known as zerthin. Zerthin was first used at a special githzerai monastery called Zerth'Ad'Lun, located deep in the chaos-boil of Limbo. The chronal art has since been disseminated more widely, however.

Zerthin teaches that though the passage of time allows events to become chaotic and uncontrolled, a disciplined mind filled with a reservoir of psionic power can view the time stream as just one more dimension of space. This privileged point of view allows a zerth cenobite to see a moment or two into the past and future, thereby gaining insight as to where to place her next blow and how to best dodge the next blow of her foe. Practitioners of zerthin claim to be able to peer into the future, enhancing their martial expertise to unmatched heights.

Almost all zerth cenobites are monks who have gained the knowledge necessary to begin studying the rarefied art of zerthin. Many are githzerai, since zerthin was developed first in Zerth'Ad'Lun on Limbo, but after the first zerth cenobite broke the stricture and began teaching zerthin to nongithzerai, all the censure and displeasure of Limbo couldn't keep zerthin a purely githzerai psionic ability.

Requirements

Base Attack Bonus: +4

Skills: Concentration 9 ranks

Manifesting: Power point reserve of at least 2.
Special: Still mind class feature.


Hit die

d8

Skill points

4 + Int

Class Features

Power Points/Day: You can manifest powers. Your ability to manifest powers is limited by the power points you have available. Your base daily allotment of power points is given on Table 2—8. In addition, you receive bonus power points per day if you have a high Wisdom score (see Table 2—1: Ability Modifiers and Bonus Power Points, EPH 18). Your race might provide bonus power points per day, as might certain feats and items. If you have power points from a different class, those points are pooled and can be used to manifest powers from either class.

Powers Known: You choose your powers from the psychic warrior power list. At 1st level, you know one psychic warrior power of your choice. Each time you attain a new level, you learn one new power. You can manifest any power that has a power point cost equal to or lower than your manifester level.

The total number of powers you can manifest per day is limited only by your daily power points.

You simply know your powers; they are ingrained in your mind. You do not need to prepare them (in the way that some spellcasters prepare their spells), though you must get a good night's sleep each day to regain all your spent power points.

The Difficulty Class for saving throws against zerth cenobite powers is 10 + the power's level + the zerth cenobite's Wis modifier. For example, the saving throw against a 2nd-level power has a DC of 12 + Wis modifier.

Maximum Power Level Known: You gain the ability to learn one 1st-level power when you take your first level in the prestige class. You attain the ability to master more complex powers at 4th, 7th, and 10th level.

To learn or manifest a power, you must have a Wisdom score of at least 10 + the power's level. For example, a zerth cenobite with a Wisdom score of 13 can manifest powers of 3rd level or lower.

Monk Abilities: Your zerth cenobite class levels stack with your monk levels for the purpose of determining your unarmed damage, bonus to Armor Class, and unarmored speed. Your class levels do not apply to other monk abilities, such as flurry of blows, slow fall, and so on. A monk who becomes a zerth cenobite can continue advancing as a monk.

Temporal Distillation (Su): Once per day, you are able to enter another time frame, moving much more quickly than other creatures around you. This concentrated burst of time essence allows you to take an additional move action during your turn.

At 5th level, you are able to accomplish even more during the accelerated period, and can instead take an additional standard action (or move action) during your turn.

At 10th level, you have gained further mastery of that moment in time, and can take an additional full-round action (or a move action and a standard action) during your turn.

Backslip (Ps): At 2nd level, your mental mastery of temporal flow grows sufficiently large that you can gaze a few instants into the past. Using that knowledge, you can then slightly alter events that have just occurred. Once per day as an immediate action, you can reroll one roll that you have made before the DM declares whether the roll results in success or failure. You must take the result of the reroll, even if it's worse than the original roll.

At 6th level, you can use backslip twice per day.

Timeless Step (Ps): Once per day as a standard action at 3rd level and higher, you can step forward in time a number of rounds equal to or less than your Wisdom modifier (always into the future, never into the past). In effect, you seem to disappear, then reappear the appropriate number of rounds later. You reappear in the same orientation and condition as before. For you, no time has passed at all.

If the space from which you departed is occupied upon your return to the time stream, you appear in the closest unoccupied space, still in your original orientation. Determine the closest space randomly if necessary.

Precognition (Ps): Once per day at 4th level and higher, you can glimpse fragments of potential future events. This imperfect foreknowledge is good enough to grant you a +2 insight bonus that you can apply to an attack roll, a damage roll, a saving throw, or a skill check. You can elect to apply the bonus to the roll after you determine that your unmodified roll is lower than desired.

At 7th level, you can trigger your precognitive ability twice per day.

Temporal Strike (Ps): At 8th level and higher, once per day, when you damage a foe with your unarmed attack, you can attempt to send that foe reeling through the continuum of time. Declaring a temporal strike is a swift action that follows a successful melee attack. The target of the strike must make a Will saving throw (DC 10 + 1/2 your character level + your Wis modifier). If your foe fails his saving throw, he is hurled forward in time in addition to taking damage normally.

The subject is propelled 10 rounds forward in time by the violence of the strike. In effect, the subject seems to disappear through a hole punched in space, then reappears 10 rounds later. The subject reappears in the same orientation and condition as before. From the subject's point of view, no time has passed at all.

In each round following the strike before the subject falls back into the time stream, on what would have been the subject's turn, it can attempt a DC 15 Wisdom check. Success allows the subject to return. The subject can act normally on its next turn after returning to the time stream.

If the space from which the subject departed is occupied upon its return to the time stream, it appears in the closest unoccupied space, still in his original orientation. Determine the closest space randomly if necessary.

Precognitive Surge (Ps): At 9th level, you gain a powerful sixth sense that can be called upon once per day. This extraordinary precognition grants an insight bonus equal to your combined monk and zerth cenobite levels (maximum +25) on any single attack roll, opposed ability check or skill check, or saving throw. Alternatively, you can apply the insight bonus to your AC against a single attack (even if you are flat-footed). Activating this ability is an immediate action. You must choose to use a precognitive surge before you make the roll it is to modify.

Timeless Body (Ps): When you reach 10th level, once per day as a standard action your body can shift its biological processes to a static time stream where no time passes. While timeless body is active, you ignore all harmful (and helpful) effects, beginning when you trigger this power and ending at the end of your next turn. While in this state, you are invulnerable to all attacks and powers.

Advancement

Level BAB Fort Ref Will Special Power Points per Day Powers Known Maximum Power Level Known
1st +0 +0 +2 +2 Monk abilities, temporal distillation (move action) 1 1 1st
2nd +1 +0 +3 +3 Backslip 1/day 3 2 1st
3rd +2 +1 +3 +3 Timeless step 3 2 2nd
4th +3 +1 +4 +4 Precognition 1/day 5 3 2nd
5th +3 +1 +4 +4 Temporal distillation (standard action) 7 3 2nd
6th +4 +2 +5 +5 Backslip 2/day 11 3 3rd
7th +5 +2 +5 +5 Precognition 2/day 15 4 3rd
8th +6 +2 +6 +6 Temporal strike 19 4 3rd
9th +6 +3 +6 +6 Precognitive surge 23 4 3rd
10th +7 +3 +7 +7 Temporal distillation (full-round action), timeless body 27 5 4th

Class skills

Skill name Key ability Trained only Armor check penalty
Autohypnosis WIS yes no
Concentration CON no no
Craft INT no no
Escape Artist DEX no yes
Hide DEX no yes
Jump STR no yes
Knowledge (psionics) INT yes no
Knowledge (religion) INT yes no
Listen WIS no no
Move Silently DEX no yes
Psicraft INT yes no
Sense Motive WIS no no
Spot WIS no no
Tumble DEX yes yes

Spells for Zerth Cenobite