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dyslexicfaser
2007-11-12, 10:13 PM
So, here's a rather rough new PrC. Rather inspired by Pirates of the Carribean (As if we didn't have enough of those) and a villain in one of Fax's settings. I tried to have something for everyone, so that conceivably both spellcasters and more martial classes might be tempted into taking it.

However, it's only my second crack at a homebrewed class, and I'm a bit worried that it might be too powerful. So, any help would be appreciated.


Captain of the Damned
“Do you fear… death?”

Prerequisites:
BAB: 6
Skills: Knowledge (geography) 5 ranks, Knowledge (nature) 5 ranks, Survival 5 ranks
Alignment: Any neutral or evil
Special: Must own or steal a ship.
Special: Must have made contact with a sea god or goddess inthe past.


Hit Die: d6
Skills: 4 + Int modifier

Captain of the Damned
{table=head]Level|Base AttackBonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special

1st|
+0|
+1|
+0|
+1|Crew of the Damned

2nd|
+1|
+1|
+1|
+1| Rise And Serve A New Master, Spellcasting level +1

3rd|
+2|
+2|
+1|
+2|Unholy Bond, Support of the Crew

4th|
+3|
+2|
+1|
+2|Swift as Death, Rise and Serve A New Master Spellcasting level +1

5th|
+3|
+3|
+2|
+3|Immortal Flesh, Immortal Voyage[/table]




Spellcasting: At second and fourth level, the Captain of the Damned gains new spells as if he had also gained a level in a spellcasting class he had previous to gaining that level.
Crew of the Damned (Su): A sailor on his deathbed may enter into a contract with the Captain of the Damned of his own free will before they cross the final threshold. They then die as the contract is signed, only to rise 1d4 hours later as either an Allip, a Zombie, or a Skeleton with HD equal to his level. This undead retains the intelligence, skills and feats he possessed prior to his transformation, but may not leave the ship for any reason.
Rise and Serve A New Master (Ex): Undead formed by the contract of a 2nd level Captain of the Damned instinctively know their new duties; Allips gain a +2 bonus to all Profession (Sailor) and spot checks, while zombies and skeletons gain a +2 bonus to Profession (Sailor) and balance checks. This increases to +4 at 4th level.
Unholy Bond (Su): Any ship captained by a Captain of the Damned of 3rd level is considered under a permanent Desecrate. If his ship should be destroyed, the Captain may commandeer a new ship, which will gain the effects of Unholy Bond in 1d4 days.
Support of the Crew (Su): The contract which binds the Crew may be used to empower the Captain. A Captain of the Damned of 3rd level may gain + resistance to Fortitude, Reflex, or Will saves, or gain +2 hit points for every two undead crewmembers he commands.
Swift as Death (Ex): A ship captained by a Captain of the Damned of 4th level may increase it’s speed by 1.5 for a number of turns equal to his Captain of the Damned levels when in pursuit of its prey. He may use this ability 1/day.
Immortal Flesh (Su): When a Captain of the Damned reaches fifth level, he is struck down by the gods and spends 1d10 days in a death-like state. On the final day, he arises as a necropolitan.
Immortal Voyage (Su): The Captain of the Damned may no longer leave his ship for more than 3 hours at a time, or else he will suffer excruciating pain, become staggered, and gain one point of ability damage for every hour beyond this time limit that he remains on land. This ability damage will be instantly healed upon the Captain’s return to his ship. In addition, a slain Captain of 5th level will rise again in 1d4 days unless his body is damaged beyond repair, his ship is destroyed, his crew slain, and his Unholy Bond nullified by means Consecrate or similar.

jindra34
2007-11-12, 10:18 PM
I think there should probably be some point where he can 'resurrect' the dead members of the crew...

DracoDei
2007-11-16, 01:10 PM
What are the save bonuses for "Support of the crew"? BTW with a big enough ship and crew that could add up QUICK!
Swift as death doesn't last long enough to mean much for the time scale I think of naval battles taking (real world cannon fights could take HOURS or DAYS because the ships were so slow and the cannons took so long to reload).
As for the crew not being able to leave the ship... I think they should be able to, at least for the 3 hours you mentioned, and maybe within... say 3 miles... because otherwise they can't raid... and even if you don't want to allow that, they should at least be able to board other ships...
An interesting idea either for a 10 level version of this, or maybe as an Epic expansion of it would be for the Captain of the Damned to control ships (s)he and his/her crew take over (or in RARE cases buy)... if you thought a CAPTAIN was bad, you will piss your pants when an ADMIRAL of the damned comes shows up with his FLEET!