Chosen Blade (3.5e Prestige Class)
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Chosen Blade[edit]
| “ | Sometimes the light must be carried in the shadows. | ” |
| —Lady Aeregin, First Chosen of Kassandra | ||
The chosen blade is a master of the dagger and/or sword who is chosen by a paragon of faith to destroy the enemies of the church. Those who become chosen blades seek out the offenders of their deity and, with the powers they gain, absolve them of their sins in blood. Chosen are experts in assassination. Most chosen have backgrounds as rogues although some are fighters or even bards.
Becoming a Chosen Blade[edit]
Chosen blades are a non-caster melee class with special divine non-combat bonuses and powerful faith-based combat skills. Strength and dexterity lend themselves well to this. Unlike paladins charisma is unimportant to what amounts to a zealous assassin. Actions contrary to alignment, however, have the same effect as with paladins.
| Minimum Character Level: | Must reach 8th level in at least one class. |
|---|---|
| Alignment: | Must be good or evil, not neutral, and match this alignment to their chosen deity. Neutral deities cannot inspire a chosen blade. Law/Chaos do not matter as this is ignored by the church in favor of the abilities of an assassin. |
| Stats: | Wisdom score of 14 or better. |
| Skills: | Move Silently 10 Ranks, Knowledge (Religion) 10 Ranks. |
| Feats: | Weapon Focus in slashing or piercing type weapons, Ambidexterity Feat for 3e, Two-Weapon Fighting for 3.5e |
| Special: | Must submit to a six hour selection and blessing ritual performed by an agent (cleric,druid,monk,paladin etc.) of their chosen faith. |
Class Features[edit]
All of the following are class features of the Chosen Blade.
Sneak Attack: Same as the rogue ability and also stacks with existing rogue sneak attack dice. (Example: 8th lvl rogue's 4d6 sneak attack + 1st level chosen blade's 1d6 = 5d6 on a successful sneak attack.)
Chosen Mantra: Chosen blades keep their faith with an internal mantra that they maintain throughout the day. The moment they wake a chosen selects a learned mantra and can maintain it as long as they are awake but cannot change it for at least 18 hours. Spells or effects that induce sleep or sleep-like conditions suspend but do not reset the 18 hour requirement. At 10th level the chosen blade has mastered the use of mantras and can successfully use 2 simultaneously. At 1st level and each odd-numbered level up to 9th the chosen unlocks a bit more of their divine strength and learns an additional mantra from the list below.
Mantra of Devotion (Ex): This mantra bolsters the chosen's spirit with that of their deity providing a +3 faith bonus to all saving throws.
Mantra of Heightened Awareness (Ex): Chosen blades using this mantra receive a +3 prescience bonus to all skill checks.
Mantra of Faithful Service (Ex): This mantra enhances the chosen's accuracy in combat with a -1 to their minimum critical threat range with all weapons. (Example: 20 goes to 19-20, 19-20 goes to 18-20, etc.)
Mantra of Adoration (Ex): The chosen's love for their deity shields them giving a +3 faith bonus to their armor class.
Mantra of Zealotry (Ex): The chosen blade focuses their faith upon their enemies providing a +3 devotion bonus on attack rolls with their Smiting Blade.
Mantra of Firey Spirit (Ex): Smiting Blade and Soul Resonance attacks have a chance (must roll a 4 on d4) to deal 1d6 and 2d6 fire damage, respectively, to enemies of opposite alignment to the chosen blade.
Smiting Blade: At 2nd level a chosen blade can choose one of their bladed weapons (with which they have a Weapon Focus Feat)to meditate upon for 6 hours in order to discover it's soul. Only one weapon can be selected as the smiting blade at any one time. Afterward, attacks with the smiting blade gain +1 to attack and damage rolls. When smiting a target of opposite alignment the smiting blade gains +3 to attack and damage rolls instead. A new weapon may be selected to replace a smiting blade at any time but the 6 hour meditation must be undergone with the new weapon.
Soul Resonance: At 10th level a chosen blade must commune for 24 hours with the soul of their Smiting Blade to become one with it. Afterward, once per day as a full-round action the chosen can focus the strength of their own soul and that of their smiting blade into a devastating ranged touch attack (100ft range) that deals a full round of melee weapon damage (roll damage from all attacks normally available to the character during a full attack) with extra smiting damage (3d8) to targets of opposite alignment. If a new Smiting Blade is selected so too must the 24 hour communing ritual be repeated.
Campaign Information[edit]
Playing a Chosen Blade[edit]
Combat: Chosen blades favor skirting the fray and looking for key openings to apply their blade.
Advancement: Most chosen were either rogues or fighters. Many chosen actually sumbit themselves to known clergy in the hope of being selected.
Resources: Chosen blades are loners by nature but seek enrichment in faith. The monies they recieve from the church for their official contracts are, more often than not, substantial.
Chosen Blades in the World[edit]
| “ | My lord has spoken to me through my blade. Your death has come. | ” |
| —Devorache, Chosen Blade of Drax | ||
NPC Reactions: As most chosen blades lead solitary lives and as the churches that inspire them don't make them publicly known, reactions tend to be based on known actions of the player character and how open they are about their work. Blades know blades, however, and they spot eachother instantly and know the other's allignment on a successful spot check (target=10+(NPC's chosen blade level)-(PC's chosen blade level)) without taking a 10.
| DC | Result |
|---|---|
| 11 | Chosen blades are assassins in service of the church. |
| 16 | They worship their deities through their chosen weapons. |
| 21 | Chosen blades receive daily blessings from their gods through mantras. |
| 26 | The greatest among them can smite enemies at range by unleashing the power of their gods as force and (light/darkness). |
Chosen Blades in the Game[edit]
Adaptation: Chosen blades fit into any campaign, there is no need for much adaptation.
Sample Encounter: Lyros, a renegade priest and blasphemer, is causing trouble. He tried to steal from the church and misdirect the teachings. The PCs are hired by Redoran, a chosen blade, to distract his security so he can do his work unhindered.
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