[Prestige Class] Natural Hunter

[WrstDmEvr]

The Natural Hunter draws on the power of nature to attack and destroy all those that are not natural. They usually live in the most populous of cities, watching for vampires, werewolves, and others that defy Natures will. To become one is not for the weak hearted, either, as the path to become a Natural Hunter is a long and difficult one.

Requirements
Base Attack Bonus: +8
Skills
8 ranks Knowledge(Nature)
8 ranks Listen
8 ranks Heal
8 ranks Survival
Feats
Blind Fight
Track
Power Attack
Alignment
True Neutral
Other
Wild Empathy
Evasion

Anything on this list is an unnatural creature:
All Aberrations
All Undead
Lycanthropes
All Constructs
Black Puddings
Gelatinous Cube
Ochre Jelly
All Non-Neutral Extraplanar

Hit Dice d8
Skill Points 4 + Intelligence Modifier
Skill List
Animal Empathy
Climb
Handle Animal
Heal
Hide
Intuit Direction
Knowledge(Nature)
Listen
Move Silently
Ride
Swim
Survival
Tumble
Weapon and Armour Proficiency
Light Armour
Medium Armour
Shields
Simple Weapons
All Martial Weapons

Natural Hunter
{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special

1st|
+1|
+1|
+1|
+0|Nature Blade, +1d6 sneak attack damage, 1st favored enemy

2nd|
+2|
+2|
+2|
+0|Growth Trap

3rd|
+3|
+2|
+2|
+0|+2d6 sneak attack damage

4th|
+4|
+3|
+3|
+1|Control Growth

5th|
+5|
+3|
+3|
+1|2nd favored enemy, +3d6 sneak attack damage

6th|
+6/1|
+4|
+4|
+1|Halt Nature

7th|
+7/2|
+4|
+4|
+2|+4d6 sneak attack damage

8th|
+8/3|
+5|
+5|
+2| Restore Nature

9th|
+9/4|
+5|
+5|
+2|+5d6 sneak attack damage
10th|
+10/5|
+6|
+6|
+3|3rd favored enemy,Create Nature[/table]

Nature Blade
At 1st level, a Natural Hunter can obtain a Nature Blade. This blade gives the Natural Hunter most of the power he will ever be able to get. This blade can be obtained at first level in the guild. It is made of raw oakwood and dwarven steel. The Natural Hunter can activate these powers at will.

Nature Blade
{table=head]|Special Ability
1st|
Constant +1 enhancement bonus to attack and damage rolls against unnatural creatures.|
+x|
+x|
+x|Class Ability

2nd|
Smite Unnatural:+5 damage bonus to unnatural creatures on hit. Usable 1/week|
+x|
+x|
+x|Class Ability

3rd|
Constant +3 bonus to attack and damage rolls against unnatural creatures |
+x|
+x|
+x|Class Ability

4th|
Smite Unnatural +10. 1/day |
+x|
+x|
+x|Class Ability

5th|
Constant +5 bonus to attack and damage rolls against unnatural creatures|
+x|
+x|
+x|Class Ability

6th|
Smite Unnatural + 15. 2/day |
+x|
+x|
+x|Class Ability

7th|
Shrivel 1/week- Target unnatural creature loses 1/2 of hp on failed Fortitude save of DC= 10 + level|
+x|
+x|
+x|Class Ability

8th|
Shrivel 1/day, Consume 1/week - Target creatures dies upon failed Fort. save of DC 10 + 1/2 level|
+x|
+x|
+x|Class Ability

9th|
Shrivel 2/day, Consume 1/day, Heal(as in spell) 1/day|
+x|
+x|
+x|Class Ability

10th|
Shrivel 4/day, Consume 2/day, Heal 2/day, Imbue with Power 1/week*|
+x|
+x|
+x|Class Ability[/table]

*Imbue with Power
The Natural Hunter can instill some of his power into his blade, giving it a enhancement bonus of 1/2 the level of the Natural Hunter against unnatural creatures. Also, the said creatures must make a Will save(DC 10 + 1/2 level) or suffer a -2 penalty on attack and damage rolls.

Sneak Attack
A Natural Hunter gains sneak attack damage every other level(see Rogue class ability)

Favored Enemy
The Natural Hunter can pick a favored enemy at 1st level and every 5 levels after that(1st, 5th, 10th, and so on) much like the Ranger base class.A Natural Hunter can sneak attack any favored enemy, even if that enemy is immune to critical hits/sneak attacks

Growth Trap
At will, a Natural Hunter can instruct a certain piece of ground to spring up and capture any creature passing over it. The Natural Hunter can order the trap to not activate on certain conditions. The DC for the trap is 10+1/2 of class level.

Control Growth
A Natural Hunter can control the amount and size of growth in an area of land. He can affect 20 square feet + 5 square feet per level per day.

Halt Nature
A Natural Hunter can Halt Nature once per day. When he so chooses to use this ability, all natural cycles within a radius of 1/2 of a mile per level are stopped. This includes rain and growth. The other abilities of the Natural Hunter can override this ability if necessary. The Natural Hunter can end the ability as a free action. He can only affect one area at any one time

Restore Nature
A Natural Hunter can restore the health of plants and animals at will. He can use this ability once per day. This ability will close the wounds of any animal or plant within a two mile radius, heal them to full hitpoints, and cure them of any disease.

Create Nature
An experience Natural Hunter can create nature where there is none. He can affect 10 square feet per level per day. This ability will create nutrients in the soil for plants to live on, and will also create tiny shoots of different plants.

Guidelines
Since a Natural Hunter is committed to destroying unnatural creature, they must attempt to kill or help kill any unnatural creature the party encounters.They must also swear an oath to help other Natural Hunters in need, to protect the wild against all invaders, and to come together if another Natural Hunter calls for help to destroy unnatural creatures. If they do not follow the above guidelines, they will lose all class abilities. Natural Hunters can regain lost abilities via the Atonement spell.

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

1. The requirements look a bit haphazard. Look at some other PrC's to see the format.
2. Define 'Unnatural Creature'. I would probably define it as abberations, undead, and lycanthropes.
3. I really don't like the quest idea. It seems much to... I don't know. I would change it to "Must defeat a certain number of unnatural creatures per class level"
4. If Undead are unnatural, then add a clause which allows sneak attack damage to them as well.
5. Add Craft Arms and Armour feat to the requirements.

That's all. The fluff is ok, but as far as i can see, the crunch is very good. If the sneak attack does damage to undead and such, it will make a very good dip class.

Cheerio!
-- Gwyn

Edit: Is this your first homebrew? Much better than my first, i have to say. Gives me lots of ideas for a class much like this.

[WrstDmEvr]

Thanks for the comments. I'll work on fixing it up

and yes, it is my first.

[Kellus]

The requirements look fine, albeit stringent. You only want a true neutral Rogue 5/Ranger 5 to be able to enter, correct?

Your Base Attack Bonus is messed up, I'm afraid. Most people make the same mistake when they do their first homebrew: there are only three kinds of BAB that are normally used. 1/2, 3/4, and 1/1 progression. It's a horrible idea to give more than a +1 bonus to BAB on the same level, since it makes for one heck of a dip. As well, thematically it seems strange that the class would start with a +2 bonus but would not get full progression after that. I'd suggest a full BAB progression from +1 to +10, but 3/4 could work as well.

Your saves are similarly messed up. There are generally only two save progressions (three if you're feeling edgy): weak and strong (and sometimes moderate). You have saves which start off far too strong, and which don't really progress after that. Think of it this way: for taking 1 level in this class, a ranger/rogue gets +2 BAB, +3 Fort, +3 Ref, +4 Will, +1d6 sneak attack, a favored enemy, and the Nature Blade class feature. This is way too much for a 1 level dip, I'm afraid.

You can fix this by:

a) fixing the BAB progression; as I said before, 3/4 (rogue) or full (ranger) would probably be your best bets.

b) fixing the saves; there isn't really any thematic reason why they should have a brilliant Will save, especially since both the rogue and ranger have poor Will. Strong Fort and Ref should be more than enough, and those ones should be fixed to the standard strong save progression.

Also, you need: hit die, skills per level, weapon and armor proficiencies, and a class skill list.

As far as class features go, you only have one worth mentioning: Nature Blade.

To start with, it makes no real sense to require a feat (Craft Arms and Armour) for the main class feature which is not a prerequisite feat for the class. Also, forcing the character to give up XP or gold in order to use a class feature is never really a good idea.

As well, the ability is very vaguely worded. You say he needs to give up 1,000 gp and 2,000 XP to make a blade, and then give a table of powers. Define how he activates these powers, how often he can use them, and similar vital statistics.

Also, the table describes lots of bonuses, but doesn't say what kinds of bonuses these are. Figure out if they're enhancement bonuses, competence bonuses, or what.

Also key is defining what an 'unnatural' creature is. The fluff vaguely describes it, but you need to lay it down in stone: is it aberrations and undead, or...?

Your Favored Enemy feature is kind of screwy as well. If you're going to use the same name as a class feature that already exists, it basically needs to be the same feature. I'd suggest you just keep Favored Enemy working as it does in the ranger and add a different ability allowing you to make sneak attacks against favored enemies normally immune to precision damage. Also, bear in mind that rangers get bonuses to damage, and not attack, against favored enemies, and they also get bonuses to a bunch of skills (also, the bonus is +2, not +1).

Sneak Attack as well, just retype the ability from the rogue, or say "see the rogue class feature of the same name".

Finally, the "quest". First, as a class feature, it should be on the table. Next, it's cool, but in general prestige classes should avoid campaign writing. That's the DMs job, and they don't generally take kindly to prestige classes which include a forced adventure. Also, if they lose their class features, they should be able to get them back with an atonement spell. I think what would probably work better in this case would be an oath, similar to that of the paladin, which is sworn at first level. It could be to destroy 'unnatural' creatures wherever they lurk, to always help other natural hunters, to uphold certain values, ideals, or philosophies, etc. And then if they violate that then they lose their class features until they atone.

Still, it's an interesting class, and a great first attempt. Keep up the good work! :smallwink:

EDIT: you've made some changes; first Evasion is not a feat, it's a class feature. Next, it's Survival and not Wilderness Lore in 3.5. Your definition of 'unnatural' is still hazy: how do you define what uses magic to a large degree? Also, lycanthropes are vulnerable to critical hits. :smalltongue:

Just figure out a list of types of creatures which fall into the category, such as aberrations, oozes, shapechangers, and undead.

You also took out the quest feature. The new bit about gaining levels is interesting, but an oath would still probably work better. It would really suck to play as one of these guys and not be able to level up at the same time as the rest of the party. Also, this is also very DM-specific. If a DM doesn't feel like sending unnatural monsters (27 at 19th level!) at the party a lot, the hunter is stuck at forced low levels for ages.

[WrstDmEvr]

Thanks for the comments, i'll work on fixing it up

edit: I can't believe i actually went through the entire monster manual to find out what is stated on the ranger page in the players handbook :smallfurious:

[MythMage]

Animal Empathy is a class feature, not a skill, in 3.5.

I think the definition of unnatural could use some refining; also, don't be afraid to add specific creatures rather than broad categories to your list. Most shapechangers are in no way unnatural (heck, druids count as shapechangers for most purposes), so don't list that. Instead list what you really mean: lycanthropes.

Do you want to only nail things which are outright antithetical to the natural order, or do you also want to include things which are simply outside it? If you go for the former, you should trim your list a little (only undead, aberrations, and lycanthropes and few other specific things, plus deathless if you use them, actively defy the natural order). If you go for the latter, you should probably expand it.

In either case, you should add some outsiders to the list (possibly all non-native ones, if you're really stingy; at the very least, things like uuvudaums and pseudonatural creatures should count), and not include most shapechangers or most oozes. Most oozes are really just gigantic slime molds or protozoa, perfectly natural phenomena (with a few really obvious exceptions, such as cesspit oozes). Some are explicitly described as arising naturally, such as genius loci.

[WrstDmEvr]

Thanks for the comments, i'll work on fixing it.

I borrowed a 3.5 handbook to make it as good as i can get it. :smallsmile:

[Neftren]

By the way, it's spelled Prestige.
It's spelled Rogue, not Rouge. Rouge is a bottle of Mascara... roughly.
Otherwise, I like the idea :)

[WrstDmEvr]

hehehe...

yeah, my spelling isn't brilliant. ill fix it up. thanks for mentioning it.

EDIT: for future reference, I am using only the monster manual 3.5 for the definition of unnatural creatures(because that's the only one I own, basically)

[Charlie Kemek]

ok, my suggestions:
add the following requirement: favored enemy, any that is on your definition of "natural" (not including shapechangers, they aren't on list) a total of +4 (undead, +2, Construct+4, total of +6) or else it could be met by an 8th level barbarianbarbarian 7/8, ranger/druid 1, and the style needs him to already be after "unnaturals"
Evasion? depends on your Idea of the class, because it could be met by a 9th level ranger, but you might want to add the definitions of the class.
you might want to add sneak attack 1 or 2d6, if you want some levels of rogue.

other than that, great class! I would love a druid version.:smallwink:

[WrstDmEvr]

thanks for the comments, ill work on it