God of Death (3.5e Prestige Class)

Harbinger of Death

Your time has come...

"Hyaaaaaargh!!" Tordek charged at the necromancer, his mighty waraxe swinging wildly. The necromancer grinned and thrust his hand forward, his dark voice calling out: "Finger of Death!" A ray of black light shot out from his hand and hit Tordek squarely in the chest. Suddenly, everything froze. Tordek saw a dark figure come out of the shadows. He looked like an ordinary man, but his eyes shone with an unnatural blue light, and in his hand he held a glowing scythe. "It is time," he said.

Becoming a Harbringer of Death

Living beyond the mortal plane are those known as Harbingers of Death. Once normal creatures, they discovered a way to harness the might of death itself. They were granted immense power, but in exchange, they had to pledge themselves to bringing the souls of the departed to their otherworldly destinations.

Entry Requirements

Base Attack Bonus: +10

Skill Prerequisites: Diplomacy 13 ranks, Knowledge (planes) 13 ranks, and Sense Motive 13 ranks

Race: Living humanoid / monstrous humanoid

Special: The character have a near-death experience. For example, one way is by being reduced to at least -5 Hit Points in a fight with a mortal enemy. With your DM's approval, he may determine that you come in contact with an existing Harbinger of Death during this near-death experience. The character must strike a deal with the Harbringer of Death to find a willing replacement to take their place in the afterlife. If the character survives the experience and finds a willing replacement, he may become a Harbringer of Death.

Table: The Fire Fiend

Hit Die: d8

Level	Base Attack Bonus	Saving Throws			Special
		Fort	Ref	Will
1st	+1	+2	+2	+2	Death Scythe, True Sight, Soul in the Balance, Soul Collection
2nd	+2	+3	+3	+3	Bonus Feat, Planar Travel
3rd	+3	+3	+3	+3	Deathly Visage
4th	+4	+4	+4	+4	Bonus Feat
5th	+5	+4	+4	+4	Immortal, End of Contract
Class Skills (4 + Int modifier per level) Class skills are: Bluff (CHA), Diplomacy (CHA), Disguise (CHA), Knowledge (the planes) (INT), Move Silently (DEX), Sense Motive (WIS), and Spot (WIS).

Class Features

All the following are class features of the Harbinger of Death:

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Gods of Death are proficient with all simple weapons and the scythe. Gods of Death are proficient with light armor but not with shields of any kind.

Animal Companion/Mount: At each level your animal companion or mount increases as if you had also gained a level in a relevant 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 class granting animal companions or mounts before becoming a Harbringer of Death, you must decide to which class to add each level for the purpose of determining the animal companion's/mount's HD, abilities, etc...

Death Scythe: (Su) At level 1, upon becoming a Harbinger of Death, they acquire a Death Scythe directly from the current god of death with power that improves with level. The table below shows the increases. If the character has any feats and/or abilities that require a specific weapon to function, those feats change to fit this weapon forever more. This weapon cannot be detected or scryed. If this weapon leaves the grip of the Harbringer of Death, it can be called back to his hand with as a free action. Sundering is impossible. The weapon exists on all planes and can strike incorporeal creatures. Feats and enchantments to effects its critical range cannot be used.

True Sight: (Su) At level 1, a Harbringer of Death can peer past the veil of the world. He is under the permanent effects of a True Seeing spell. He can also see and comprehend all planes of existence at once from whatever vantage point he occupies. The spirits of the dead from the material world appear to him as people and he can clearly communicate telepathically and instantaneously with them.

Soul in the Balance: (Su) At level 1, should a Harbinger of Death witness the death of an intelligent mortal creature, he may stop time in order to help the mortal soul, usually to its final destination, be it Heaven, the Nine Hells, the Abyss, or elsewhere. Time freezes for all except for the Harbringer of Death and the mortal soul. This functions similarly to a Time Stop, the Harbringer cannot harm any other creatures other than the soul and it lasts for as long as it is necessary to finish the Soul in the Balance. While time is stopped, both souls can understand each other perfectly. The Harbringer offers to help the new soul move on to its next plane of existence. The soul has 4 choices; 1) to willingly accept; 2) Gamble with the Harbringer for another chance at life; 3) Deathmatch, to fight the Harbringer for a chance to live again; 4) to stay longer in the material world as a ghost or revenant. After the soul makes its decision and the decision is resolved, time unfreezes and the Harbringer returns to exactly how he was before the time freeze. This includes Hit Points, number of spells used, abilities used, and items. Any creature that has been the subject of the Soul in the Balance, cannot be subject to it ever again. Nor can the Harbringer of Death willfully harm that creature or else lose all of his class abilities. Similarly, if that creature ever willingly harms the Harbringer of Death, his soul and body are immediately and irrevocably destroyed.

• Gamble: A soul chooses to gamble with the Harbringer at dice. If the Harbringer wins, he captures the soul. If the soul wins, the soul is returned to his body as if by a True Resurrection and is then teleported 100 miles in a random direction. The soul and the Harbringer both roll 2d6s, if the Harbringer ties or has a higher result, he wins. A Harbringer gets a bonus on this roll equal to his 1/2 class level (rounded up).

• Deathmatch: A soul can choose to fight the Harbringer of Death for a chance at life. The Harbringer and the soul start at full Hit Points, full spells and abilities. The soul uses all its equipment and stats as if it was alive. All damage is tripled during the fight. The first one to drop below 0 Hit Points loses. If the Harbringer wins, he captures the soul. If the soul wins, the soul is returned to his body as if by a True Resurrection and is then teleported 100 miles in a random direction

Soul Collection: At level 1, the Harbringer can capture a soul that agrees to accompany the Harbringer, or loses the Gamble or the Deathmatch. The Harbinger stores the soul in his Death Scythe until he can deliver it to the correct dimension. This functions similar to a Trap the Soul spell, but without save. The caster level is equal to your character level.

• The Death Scythe can only hold a number of HD worth of souls equal to your character level x 2.
• If you have the soul of a spellcaster within your Death Scythe, you may cast one of it's spells 1/day. You must supply the material components and experience.
• Once per day you may choose the feat of a soul within your Death Scythe, you are treated as having that feat for 24 hours even if you do not fulfill the requirements.
• Each soul you have collected and transferred to its appropriate destination grants you a +1 bonus on all knowledge checks. (maximum +10)

Bonus Feat: These bonus feats must be drawn from the feats noted as fighter bonus feats. A Harbringer's level counts as a level of Fighter for the purposes meeting all prerequisites for a bonus feat, including ability score and base attack bonus minimums.

Planar Travel (Su): At 2nd level, a Harbringer of Death can travel freely between the planes. 1/day as a standard action, he may concentrate on his destination and instantly travel there without error. This ability cannot be used whilst in combat.

Deathly Visage: (Ex) At level 3, the Harbringer can become gruesome looking, gaining a Frightful Presence ability. It takes effect automatically when the Harbringer performs some sort of dramatic action (such as charging, attacking, or waving his scythe). Opponents within range who witness the action may become frightened or shaken. The range is 30 feet, and the duration is 3d6 rounds. Opponents with half the Hit Dice of the Harbringer that fail their save become frightened, those with more instead become shaken. An affected opponent can resist the effects with a successful Will save (DC 10 + 1/2 character levels + Charisma modifier. An opponent that succeeds on the saving throw is immune to that Harbringer’s frightful presence for 24 hours.

Immortal: (Ex) At level 5, a Harbringer of Death transforms into an everlasting and undying being. A Harbringer of Death is immortal and cannot die from natural causes.

• He no longer takes ability score penalties for aging and cannot be magically aged. Any penalties she may have already incurred, however, remain in place. Aging bonuses still accrue.
• He no longer needs to breath or eat or drink.
• Harbinger of Death gains immunity to diseases, poisons of all kinds, stunning, sleep, paralysis, and death effects, energy drain, ability drain, and ability damage.
• He is forever more treated as an native outsider rather than as a humanoid for the purpose of spells and magical effects. Unlike other outsiders, the Harbringer of Death can still be brought back from the dead as if he were a member of his previous creature type.

End of Contract: At level 5, a Harbringer has the choice of ending his contract when he finds a willing replacement. The replacement becomes a 1st level Harbringer of Death. This is how he gains relinquishment.

• Relinquishment: The Harbringer gives up his job of ferrying the dead for freedom to live once more a mortal and finally know a peaceful end when it comes. When restored to mortality, the former Harbringer learns that time will once again move for him. Regardless of his current age and race he is now going to die from natural causes in 100 years. Every 25 years from the relinquishment he moves up 1 age category (He is considered young again at this point for the purposes of the progression) incurring all bonuses and penalties again even if he has before. On the night of his 100th year he passes away peacefully in his sleep if he has not been killed before then. He can never become a God of Death again, nor can he gain immortality by any other means.

Once a mortal again, he also gives up all his class features for being a Harbinger. Past feats for the scythe stay the same, but the scythe loses all class advancements and becomes a +2 Adamantine Disrupting scythe with calling.

As the Harbinger returns to his past life he may also continue with past classes he has taken even if he would not be normally allowed to do so. This is started by "trading in" his Harbinger levels for levels of a past class must the same as a black guard can with fallen paladin levels. He immediately gain the 5 level of his highest class before taking the Harbinger levels. If there is a tie for the highest it is randomly determined. He gains all classes features but does not reroll any hit points and the current base saves and attack stay the same. All new classes are added normally.

The Toll

If the Harbringer of Death performs an egregious act that displeases the current God of Death, he becomes subject to The Toll.

The Toll: The Harbringer loses all class abilities, his Death Scythe, and is restored to mortality permanently, the former Harbringer learns that time had passed faster than the Harbringer had realized. Determine how many years in the future it is by rolling 10d10 and multiply the result by 2. Add this number to their age prior to beginning this class even if it puts them beyond their races maximum age limit. The DM decides if the Harbringer would suffer massive penalties to Strength, Constitution and Dexterity or if they are too old to still be living and simply die instantly. Upon dying, because of his familiarity with death, the Harbringer may choose to move come back as a some type of intelligent undead of equal or less HD to his class level (such as a ghost or a revenant or a lich).

Weapon and Bonuses Table

Death Scythe stats: 1d10 slashing, critical 19-20/X3, two-handed weapon, piercing and slashing. The weapon can be enchanted above the base states here. Doing so requires a cost appropriate to be added to the effective magic item level in () at the end of each line.

• Level 1: +1 magic enhancement bonus / Treat at silver (1)

• Level 2: Treat as cold iron as well / Critical range 18-20 (2)

• Level 3: +1 magic enhancement bonus / Defending (3)

• Level 4: Treat as adamantine as well / Critical range multiplier x4 (4)

• Level 5: +1 magic enhancement bonus / Mighty Cleaving (5)

Special : If a Harbinger is ever killed and a raise is performed this gets the notice of the god of the dead directly. After a player has chosen if he wants to come back or note the god gets to decided if that is possible. One of 4 decisions will happen determined randomly 25% chance for each. 1- The god is angered and sends the soul to oblivion. (Raise severely deigned)2- The god wishes to keep him there as a planar champion and cannot leave his plane. (Raise deigned) 3- The god grants the life and makes him mortal. (He comes back but with a forced Relinquishment effect) 4- The god sees his work as unfinished. (A complete true resurrection is granted at no cost)

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