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Xtian
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| Joined: 30 Nov 2006 |
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Posted: Fri May 25, 2007 2:50 am Post subject: Dicefreaks Template: Death Knight |
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Created by Dicefreaks
Creating a Death Knight
“Death knight” is an acquired template that can be added to any living (or recently dead) creature with a base attack bonus of +11 or more (referred to hereafter as the base creature).
The base creature is generally a being that has fallen from grace or comitted some great betrayal. The severity of the creature's crimes (or the nature of its curse) determines which rank of the template the creature recieves. A death knight's rank generally remains static thereafter.
A death knight has all the base creature’s statistics and special abilities except as noted here.
Size and Type: The base creature's type changes to Undead (Augmented [base creature's type]). Do not recalculate base attack bonus, saves, or skill points. Size is unchanged.
Hit Dice: Increase all current and future Hit Dice to d12s. Death templars and death lords also gain bonus hit points using their Charisma modifer in place of their Consitution modifer.
Armor Class: A death knight has a +5 natural armor bonus or the base creature’s natural armor bonus, whichever is better. Death templars gain a +6 profane bonus to AC and death lords gain both a +6 profane bonus and a deflection bonus equal to their Charisma modifer.
Attack: A death knight has a touch attack that it can use once per round. If the base creature can use weapons, the death knight retains this ability. An base creature with natural weapons retains those natural weapons. A death knight fighting without weapons uses either its touch attack or its primary natural weapon (if it has any). A death knight armed with a weapon uses its touch or a weapon, as it desires.
Full Attack: A death knight fighting without weapons uses either its touch attack (see above) or its natural weapons (if it has any). If armed with a weapon, it usually uses the weapon as its primary attack along with a touch as a natural secondary attack, provided it has a way to make that attack (either a free hand or a natural weapon that it can use as a secondary attack).
Damage: A death knight without natural weapons has a touch attack that uses negative energy to deal 1d8 points of damage plus its Charisma modifer to living creatures; a Will save (DC 10 + 1/2 death knight’s HD + death knight’s Cha modifer) halves the damage. A death knight with natural weapons can use its touch attack or its natural weaponry, as it prefers. If it chooses the latter, it deals 1d8 points of extra damage per rank plus its Charisma modifer on one natural weapon attack.
Special Attacks: A death knight retains all the base creature’s special attacks. Save DCs are equal to 10 + 1/2 death knight’s HD + death knight’s Charisma modifier unless otherwise noted.
Despair (Su): At the mere sight of a death knight, viewers must succeed on a Will save or be paralyzed with fear for 1d8 rounds per rank. Whether or not the save is successful, that creature cannot be affected again by the same death knight's despair ability for 24 hours.
Spell-like Abilities: Death knights receive the following spell-like abilities at a caster level equal to their HD. 3/day - animate dead, detect magic, dispel magic, fireball, see invisibility, wall of ice; 1/day - power word stun, symbol of fear, symbol of pain.
Death templars receive the following abilities instead. Constant - detect magic, see invisibility; at will - enhanced fireball, wall of ice; 3/day - animate dead, greater dispel magic, power word stun, symbol of fear, symbol of pain; 1/day - create undead, power word blind.
Death lords receive the following abilities in place of the previous two. Constant - detect magic, see invisibility, true seeing; at will - animate dead, enhanced fireball, greater dispel magic, power word stun, symbol of fear, symbol of pain, wall of ice; 3/day - create undead, power word blind; 1/day - create greater undead, power word kill.
Special Qualities: A death knight retains all the base creature’s special qualities and gains those described below.
Damage Reduction (Su): A death knight’s undead body is tough, giving the creature damage reduction according to the table below. Its natural weapons are treated as magic and evil for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction. Death lords treat their natural weapons as epic for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.
Immunities (Ex): Death knights have immunity to cold, electricity, fire, polymorphing (though they can use polymorph effects on themselves), and mind-affecting attacks.
Spell Resistance (Ex): A death knight has SR equal to 10 + its HD.
Turn Immunity (Ex): A death knight can not be turned. However, a holy word spell can banish them to the Abyss as though they were demons.
Undead Cohort: If the death knight posseses the Leadership feat, his cohort becomes either a neonate lich, a phantom ghost, a forgotten ancient dead or a newborn vampire.
Undead Followers: If the death knight posseses the Leadership feat, instead of living followers, he receives zombies or skeletons of the same HD. The followers of a death lord receive the corpse or bone template instead of the zombie or skeleton template respectively.
Abilities: The base creature's ability scores increase according to the table below. Being undead, a death knight has no Constitution score.
Skills: Same as the base creature.
Organization: Solitary, or with cohorts/followers, as above.
Challenge Rating: +2, with an additional +1 per rank.
Treasure: Standard coins; double goods; double items.
Alignment: Any evil.
Advancement: By character class.
Death Knight; +8 Str, +4 Cha. DR 15/good. 2 salient abilities.
Death Templar; +12 Str, +2 Wis, +6 Cha. DR 15/epic and good. 3 salient abilities.
Death Lord; +16 Str, +4 Wis, +8 Cha. DR 20/epic and good. 5 salient abilities. |
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Last edited by Xtian on Fri Jan 25, 2008 12:59 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Xtian
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| Joined: 30 Nov 2006 |
| Posts: 3259 |
| Location: Avernus |
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Posted: Fri May 25, 2007 2:51 am Post subject: |
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Death Knight Salient Abilities
Abyssal Blast (Su)
The death knight can unleash a blast of eldritch fire.
Prerequisities: Cha 18+.
Benefits: A number of times per day equal to its rank, the death knight can fire a blast dealing 1d6 points of damage times its Hit Dice plus its Charisma modifier (a successful Reflex save halves the damage). The blast explodes in a 20 ft. radius anywhere within a range of 400 ft. plus 40 ft. per Hit Die. Half the damage is fire damage, but the other half results directly from unholy power and is therefore not subject to being reduced by resistance to fire-based attacks.
Abode of the Accursed (Su)
Within his own fortress, the death knight is nigh-invulnerable.
Prerequisites: Death Templar.
Benefits: Within his chosen lair, the death knight gains a +10 profane bonus to his Armor Class and Spell Resistance. In addition, the entire fortress is under the constant effects of a desecrate spell.
Abyssal Steed (Su)
While some of his kind ride undead horses or nightmares, this death knight's steed is a creature forged from the morass of darkness that is his soul.
Prerequisites: Death Templar, Cha 13+.
Benefit: The death knight's steed is a nightmare advanced to the death knight's HD (even if this violates the normal advancement cap). It has the death knight's HP total and it reforms in a single day after destruction as long as its master exists. It also shares the benefits of the death knight's dark blessing (if applicable), gaining the death knight's (not its own) Charisma bonus to saves.
Aura of Death (Su)
The mere sight of the death knight can cause death.
Prerequisites: Death Templar, Aura of Horror.
Benefit: Creatures that fail their Will saves against the death knight's Despair ability must also make a Fortitude save or die.
Aura of Horror (Su)
The death knight's presence frightens and demoralizes enemies.
Benefit: Creatures engaged in combat with the death knight take a morale penalty to their Armor Class and saving throws (when attacked by the death knight) or to their attack rolls and caster level checks (when attacking the death knight) equal to twice the death knight's rank. A successful Will save halves the penalties (the save is made at the beginning of combat and can only be attempted once per day).
Blade of Darkness (Ex)
The death knight's personal weapon has been marked forever by his evil.
Prerequisites: Death Templar, Unholy Strike.
Benefits: The death knight may select one weapon that he owns. It gains an enhancement bonus equal to his Charisma modifer (the death knight may use convert some of this bonus to special abilities; the sword's weapon/damage enhancement must be at least +1 but cannot exceed +10) and gains the unholy power ability. This replaces any previous enhancements it may have had. If the death knight's Charisma modifier increases, the weapon's powers may be improved accordingly. The weapon is considered a minor artifact and can only be destroyed when its wielder is. Any other person using it takes 2d6 points of Constitution damage per rank of the death knight per round.
Burning Touch (Su)
Creatures touched by the death knight are wreathed in unholy flames.
Benefits: The death knight's touch attack now deals half negative energy damage and half fire damage. When the death knight successfully hits a target with its touch attack, the target becomes engulfed in unholy fire that lasts for a number of rounds equal to the death knight's rank. While so afflicted, the victim automatically takes damage as though from the death knight's touch attack each round (they may make Will saves for half damage each round).
Chill Touch (Su)
Creatures touched by the death knight feel an unearthly chill.
Benefits: The death knight's touch attack now deals half-negative energy damage and half cold damage. When the death knight successfully hits a target with its touch attack, the target becomes slowed for a number of rounds equal to the death knight's rank unless they succeed at a Will save.
Curse of the Blade (Su)
Those slain by the death knight are doomed to undeath.
Prerequisites: Blade of Darkness.
Benefits: Those who are slain by the death knight's chosen weapon reanimate 1d4 minutes later as bodaks, wights, or corpse creatures.
Dark Blessing (Ex)
The death knight is empowered by the forces of evil.
Benefits: The death knight applies his Charisma modifier (if positive) as a bonus on all saving throws. If the death knight already has this ability (from the blackguard class or by taking this ability a second time), he instead gains an +1 profane bonus per rank on all saving throws.
Dread Ally (Ex)
The death knight's ally is exceptionally powerful.
Prerequisites: Epic Leadership, Leadership.
Benefits: The death knight's cohort's rank is equal to the death knight's. For example, the cohort of a death lord could be an elder vampire.
Enhanced Spell-Like Abilities (Sp)
The death knight has developed further magical powers.
Prerequisities: Death Lord, Cha 15+.
Benefits: The death knight may use meteor swarm and telekinesis 3/day each as a sorcerer of its HD.
Fast Healing (Su)
The death knight heals exceptionally quickly.
Benefit: The death knight receives fast healing equal to 10 times its rank.
General of Death (Ex)
The death knight draws undead followers to him in droves.
Prerequisites: Epic Leadership, Leadership, Legendary Commander.
Benefits: In addition to the skeleton and zombie followers, any type of undead can be found among the death knight's followers, counting as having a level equal to their HD. Also, as long as the death knight has only undead followers, he receives a bonus to his leadership score of 5 x rank.
Raiment of the Damned (Ex)
The death knight is trapped in his armor.
Benefits: The death knight takes no armor check penalty or speed reduction for his armor and it has no maximum Dexterity bonus.
Reconstitution (Su)
The death knight will reform if destroyed.
Prerequisites: Abode of the Accursed, Death Lord.
Benefit: If the death knight should ever be destroyed, its body (and possessions) turn into mist and dissipate. The death knight will reform inside its abode within 2d6 days. The only ways to prevent the death knight from returning is to undo the death knight's curse (typically by setting right its wrongdoings), or (in some cases) by completely destroying the abode.
Rebuke Undead (Su)
The death knight may exert its influence over other types of undead.
Prerequisites: Cha 14+.
Benefit: The death knight may rebuke or command undead as an evil cleric of a level equal to its Hit Dice.
Sacrilegious (Su)
The impious death knight has no reverence for the gods.
Prerequisites: Cha 20+, Dark Blessing.
Benefit: Though already immune to turning or rebuking, the death knight may now cause the destruction of any number of holy (or unholy) symbols within 20 ft. per rank of it as a free action. Such symbols may combust, melt, shatter, bend or snap in half, or otherwise be ruined, rendering them useless for turning or rebuking attempts, as spell foci, and so on. If the symbol was magical, it is entitled to a Fortitude save to avoid destruction. The death knight may employ this ability not just against priest's symbols, but against books, tabards, tapestries, or other objects that bear such an image (often ruining the decorated item in the process). A creature with such an image branded or tattooed onto its skin may suffer if the death knight employs this ability against them - they take 1d6 points of damage per rank of the death knight, and 1 point of Constitution damage per rank of the death knight, as the profane undead creature causes the skin beneath the image to crack open and ooze blood.
Shadow Walk (Su)
The death knight can travel through shadows.
Benefit: At will, the death knight can enter an area of shadows as a move-equivalent action and emerge immediately from another such area of its choice, within 10 feet times the death knight's rank times its Hit Dice.
If the death knight also possesses the Abode of the Accursed salient ability and uses this ability within its fortress, it may reappear from any shadowed area within the abode (regardless of the distance).
Spell Reflection (Su)
A few mighty death knights are able to send their opponents spells back at them.
Prerequisites: Death Lord.
Benefits: Spells that fail to penetrate the death knight's spell resistance by 10 or more rebound upon the caster. |
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