SpoilerMy second serious attempt at a homebrew, and again a videogame inspired base class came out of it (and will likely continue this way). I’ve been a fan of the Darksiders videogame for quite some time now, and I wanted to express my love for the series by making a DnD base class base around the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse. Please note that the names are taken from the Darksiders videogames, not from the Bible or any publication that specifically names the Horsemen (so no Conquest and Famine, instead Strife and Fury). Also because not much is known about two of the horseman, Fury and Strife, I had to make up some things about these two. Anyway, here it goes:
The Darksider
Spoilerhttp://imageshack.us/a/img824/9514/t...enslaugter.png
The Four Horsemen; Fury, War, Death and Strife, slaughtering an occult dedicated to the Destroyer
Image copyrighted by THQ, I do not claim ownership for this picture. .
‘The Destroyer knows of your coming. Even now he moves his legion against you.’
‘Then I'll make this quick.’
- War, one of the Horsemen, to a General of the Destroyer.
Darksiders are the acolytes of the 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse. They are the enforcers of the universal laws, and judge, jury and executioner of those that break these laws. They don’t follow simple rules made by civilizations, they follow the rules the Creator has set himself. With the Creator now missing, and with many civilizations thriving for thousands of years, the Horsemen alone cannot uphold the ancient laws themselves. They seek out those that would uphold these fundamental laws, and grant them powers beyond comprehension.
MAKING A DARKSIDER
Abilities: Most Darksiders rely on melee combat, though some choose the ranged or stealthy way of fighting, making either Strength or Dexterity important for attacks. Constitution increases your hit points.
Races: Knowledge of the Horsemen is not widely known around the world. Creatures of old times and those with vast knowledge of the world’s history, are the most common to become a Darksider.
Alignment: Darksiders are bound by the laws of the universe, going so far as to not only uphold these laws, but to enforce them as well. All Darksiders are therefore Lawful. The way that they enforce these laws differs depending on the organization that trains the Darksiders. They can be Good, Evil, or anything in between.
Starting Gold: as fighter
Starting Age: as fighter
Hit Dice: d10
Class Skills
Balance (Dex), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Hide (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Knowledge (Arcana, History, Religion, The Planes), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Search (Int), Spot (Wis), Swim (Str), Tumble (Dex), Use Rope (Dex)
Skill Points at 1st Level: (4 +Int Modifier) x4
Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 4 +Int modifier
Level BAB Fort Ref Will Special Maneuvers known Maneuvers Readied Stances known 1st +1 +2 +0 +0 Disciple of the Horsemen, Manuevers 3 3 1 2nd +2 +3 +0 +0 4 3 2 3rd +3 +3 +1 +1 Nex Sacramentum (+2/+1) 4 3 2 4th +4 +4 +1 +1 Bonus Feat 5 4 2 5th +5 +4 +1 +1 Spectral Steed 6 4 2 6th +6/+1 +5 +2 +2 7 4 3 7th +7/+2 +5 +2 +2 Mounted Mastery 7 4 3 8th +8/+3 +6 +2 +2 Nex Sacramentum (+4/+2) 8 4 3 9th +9/+4 +6 +3 +3 9 5 3 10th +10/+5 +7 +3 +3 Bonus Feat 10 5 3 11th +11/+6/+1 +7 +3 +3 Improved Mounted Combat 10 5 3 12th +12/+7/+2 +8 +4 +4 11 5 4 13th +13/+8/+3 +8 +4 +4 Nex Sacramentum (+6/+3) 12 5 4 14th +14/+9/+4 +9 +4 +4 13 6 4 15th +15/+10/+5 +9 +5 +5 Visage of The Horseman 13 6 4 16th +16/+11/+6/+1 +10 +5 +5 Bonus Feat 14 5 5 17th +17/+12/+7/+2 +10 +5 +5 15 6 5 18th +18/+13/+8/+3 +11 +6 +6 Nex Sacramentum (+8/+4) 16 6 5 19th +19/+14/+9/+4 +11 +6 +6 16 7 5 20th +20/+15/+10/+5 +12 +6 +6 Rider of the Apocalypse 17 7 6
Weapon and Armor proficiencies: All Darksiders are proficient with simple weapons and martial melee weapons. They are also proficient with light armor but not with shields. Based on their choice on which Horseman they want to be a disciple of, they might receive additional proficiencies.
Disciple of the Horsemen (Ex): At 1st level, the Darksider must choose to be a disciple of one of the Four Horsemen; War, Fury, Strife or Death. This choice is permanent and cannot be changed afterwards. Each of the Horsemen provides with different benefits.
SpoilerWar:Spoiler- At 1st level you gain Medium and Heavy armor proficiency in addition to your normal proficiencies. You may choose maneuvers and stances from the Army of One discipline and are proficient with all Army of One favored weapons.
- At 4th level are immune to all fear effects.
- At 8th level you gain the Mettle special ability
- At 12th level you gain the Powerful build special quality.
- At 16th level you gain the Improved Mettle special ability
- At 20th level your size increases by 1 size category. This overlaps the Powerful Build racial trait granted at 12th level. Your Spectral Steed’s size also increases by 1 size category to accommodate your new size. You and your mount gain all the benefits and drawbacks from the increase in size as described in the Monster Manuel pg. 291
Fury:Spoiler- At 1st level your Will Save progression increases to good (2+ ½ class level), rather than bad (1/3 class level). In addition, you may choose maneuvers and stances from the Chthonic Serpent discipline and are proficient with all Chthonic Serpent favored weapons.
- At 4th level you may add half your class level to all special combat maneuvers (trip, disarm, grapple, etc.).
- At 8th level when mounted on your Spectral Stead you may treat your size as one larger for combat maneuvers such as trip, disarm, grapple, etc. if this is beneficial.
- At 12th level you may grapple creatures of up your size with 1 hand (or chain weapon) at a -20 penalty. This leaves your other hand free to perform actions, such as attack, grab an item, grapple another creature, etc.
- At 16th level you gain immunity to all mind affecting abilities, except for morale effects, which still affect you normally.
- At 20th level, you are treated as having a constant freedom of movement effect on you. When riding your Spectral Steed, this benefit extends to the mount as well. This is considered an extraordinary ability
Strife:Spoiler- At 1st level you gain proficiency with firearms*, in addition to your normal proficiencies. In addition, you may choose maneuvers and stances from the Black Rain discipline. All maneuvers that require your target to be within melee range can now be used from up to 30ft distance with any ranged weapon. This benefit only applies to maneuvers obtained from the Darksider class.
- At 4th level you may add your base attack bonus to damage anytime you attack a creature within the first range increment with a ranged weapon.
- At 8th level, you receive no penalty to attack for firing a ranged weapon or throwing a thrown weapon when mounted on your Spectral Steed and it is taking a double action. You take -4 penalty to attack when your Spectral Steed is running
- At 12th level you may use melee strike maneuver on ranged attacks made within the first range increment, or 30ft, whichever is better,
- At 16th level you may reload all kinds of ranged weapons as a free action. This allows you to make full round actions with all ranged weapons. Thrown weapons can be drawn as a free action for this purpose, as if you had the Quick Draw feat.
- At 20th level all ranged attacks you make ignore all types of cover (except total cover) and ignore all bonuses to AC granted through spells and magical effects, except for enhancement bonuses on armors and shields.
*Fire arms might not be available in your campaign setting. Check with your DM. if this is the case, you gain proficiency with all Crossbows instead, and can consider them as firearms for the Black Rain discipline.
Death:Spoiler- At 1st level your Reflex Save progression increases to good (2+ ½ class level), rather than bad (1/3 class level). In addition, you may choose maneuvers and stances from the Narrow Bridge disciple and are proficient with all Narrow Bridge favored weapons.
- At 4th level you gain the Evasion special ability and your base land speed increases by 10 ft.
- At 8th level whenever you move more than 10ft in one round (either on foot or mounted), you deal an additional 2d6 points of damage with the first attack you make in that round. The damage increases by 1d6 every 4 levels after this (up to 5d6 at level 20). Unlike the Scout’s Skirmish ability, this damage is not considered precision damage, it is caused by the momentum of your weapons.
- At 12th level you gain the Improved Evasion special ability and your base land speed increases by an additional 10ft.
- At 16th level whenever you deal damage to an enemy, you also deal an additional 1d3 points of Constitution damage. A Fortitude save (DC of 10 +half Darksider level + Dexterity modifier) negate the constitution damage.
- At 20th level whenever you hit a creature with two attacks in the same round, that creature must make a Fortitude save (DC = 10+1/2 character level + Dexterity Modifier) or be slain instantly as the two weapon strikes rend his entire body to pieces. Creatures immune to critical hits are immune to this effect.
Maneuvers: You start play with knowledge of 3 maneuvers from the Iron Heart and Twin Spirit disciplines and one discipline based on your choice of favored Horseman. Upon reaching 4th level and every even-numbered Darksider level after that (6th, 8th, 10th, etc) you can choose to learn a new maneuver instead of an old maneuver, as long as you meet the prerequisites.
SpoilerManeuvers follow the same rules as any other martial adept, and therefore the description was shortened
Maneuvers Readied: A Darksider can ready all three maneuvers readied at 1st level. As he levels he learn more maneuvers and you must choose which ones to ready. Maneuvers remain readied until they are used, or when the Darksider chooses to ready other maneuvers. Changing his readied maneuvers takes 5 minutes of concentration and practicing. You begin an encounter with all maneuvers unexpended. Once per round when you use a standard action to attack, or initiate a maneuver (either a boost, a strike, or a counter) you may recover any other maneuver that you have expended this encounter. A maneuver cannot be used in the same round it is recovered.
Stances known: A Darksider knows 1 stance at 1st level. As a swift action, the Darksider can initiate the stance. He can stay in this stance indefinitely, until he chooses to abandon the benefits of the stance or by initiating a different stance. Only one stance can be active at any time. At level 2, 6, 12, 16 and 20, you gain an additional Stance.
Nex Sacramentum (Su): The Nex Sacramentum, or the Death Oath, is one of the most sacred, yet vile challenges that can be called upon. Upon calling a Nex Sacramentum, you swear to kill or be killed by one specific creature, and that creature must accept this condition as well. Should this creature accept, whenever you are fighting against this individual, you gain a +2 divine bonus to attack rolls, damage rolls, ability checks, AC and all saving throws against effects originating from that individual. The bonuses of a Nex Sacramentum increase to +4 at level 8, +6 at level 13 and +8 at level 18. These bonuses only affect you when you are attacking, or are attacked by that specific target. If the creature refuses, you do not gain the bonuses, but the creature gains half the bonuses as penalties for 1 minute. These penalties are not specific for checks made against the Darksider, these apply to all checks made. Whether or not a creature accepts, the Nex Sacramentum can only be called upon one creature at any given time. If a creature does not accept, a new Nex Sacramentum can be called upon a different creature the folllowing round, but the penalties on the first creature dissappear immediately.
Calling a Nex Sacramentum is a move action and can be called upon any creature with an Intelligence score that you can see and hear and vice-versa, even if he creature does not speak your language. If a creature cannot see and hear in any way, this ability is fails automatically but can be attempted later that day.
The Nex Sacramentum cannot be broken by any means, not even divine intervention besides the highest of deities and once called it persists inside an antimagic field. Should the creature die by any other means than directly or indirectly by you (e.g. cutting a cable to drop a rock on it counts as killing it), you cannot call Nex Sacramentum for 24 hours. You will know immediately when that creature dies, even when it is on another plane. If the creature has not died within 24 hours after calling the Nex Sacramentum, it dissipates and can be called immediately
Bonus feat: At 4th, 10th and every 6 levels afterwards, you may take a bonus feat. These feats must be Fighter bonus feats or any feat that requires a martial maneuver, a martial stance, or a level in a martial adept class (including feats such as Adaptive Style, which require one level in Crusader, Swordsage or Warblade). You must fulfill all other prerequisites.
Spectral Steed (Su): At 5th level you gain a Spectral steed as a Special Mount. The Spectral Steed’s statistics are given below.
This mount can be summoned at will as a full round action, and dismissed as a move action. As part of summoning the mount, you may mount it as well, summoning it right below you. This mount gains more abilities as you take more levels in the Darksider class. These abilities are listed in the table below. Should your special mount die, you cannot summon it for 24 hours. Your mount is a reflection of the mount of your favored Horseman. This class feature counts as the Special Mount for the purpose of feats or prestige class requirements and other such conditions. All italic abilities are the same as those of the Paladin Special Mount and will not be written down.
Darksider Level Bonus HD Natural Armor Adj Str Adj Int Special 5th-7th Empathic Link, Improved Evasion, Share Saving Throws, Share Boosts 8th-10th Improved Speed (+10ft) 11th-14th Share Stances, Air Walk 15th-17th Improved Speed (+20ft), Spell resistance 18th-20th Flight
SpoilerDarksider’s Mount Basics
Use the base statistics for a creature of the mount’s kind, but make changes to take into account the attributes and characteristics summarized on the table and described below.
Bonus HD: Extra ten-sided (d10) Hit Dice, each of which gains a Constitution modifier, as normal. Extra Hit Dice improve the mount’s base attack and base save bonuses. A special mount’s base attack bonus is equal to that of a Fighter of a level equal to the mount’s HD. A mount has good Fortitude and Reflex saves (treat it as a character whose level equals the animal’s HD). The mount gains additional skill points or feats for bonus HD as normal for advancing a monster’s Hit Dice.
Natural Armor Adj.The number on the table is an improvement to the mount’s existing natural armor bonus.
Str Adj: Add this figure to the mount’s Strength score.
Int: The mount’s Intelligence score.
Share Boosts (Ex): When mounted, you may share the effects of boost martial maneuvers with your Spectral Steed special mount.
The mount must be within 5 feet at the time initiating the boost to receive the benefit, it stops affecting the mount if it moves farther than 5 feet away and will not affect the mount again even if it returns to the Darksider before the duration expires.
Share Stance (Ex): You may share the effects of a stance that you have activated with your Spectral Steed special mount.
The mount must be within 5 feet at the time initiating the stance to receive the benefit, it stops affecting the mount if it moves farther than 5 feet away but will affect the mount again if it returns to the Darksider.
Air Walk (Sp): Your spectral mount can cast the Air Walk spell as a spell-like ability at will with no action required. It lasts for 1 round. The mount is treated as to having been trained.
Flight (Su): Your Spectral Steed gains a fly speed equal to twice its base land speed with good maneuverability. Cosmetically the Mount runs on air, similar to the Air Walk ability, it does not sprout wings.
Spectral Warsteed
Size/Type: Large Magical Beast (Lawful)
Hit Dice: 4d10+12 (34 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 50ft. (10 Squares)
Armor Class: 14, touch 10, flat-footed 13 (-1 size, +1 dex, +4 natural)
Base Attack/Grapple: +4/+12
Attack: Hoof +7 melee (1d6+4)
Full Attack: 2 hooves +7 melee (1d6+4) and bite +2 melee (1d4+2)
Space/Reach: 10 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: —
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, Darkvision 60ft, scent
Saves: Fort +7, Ref +5, Will +2
Abilities: Str 18, Dex 13, Con 17, Int 2, Wis 13, Cha 6
Skills: Listen +5, Spot +4
Feats: Endurance, Run
Environment: —
Organization: Domesticated
Challenge Rating: 2
Alignment: Lawful Neutral
Advancement: —
For those that see it, these are identical to a Heavy Warhorse, except that it is a Magical Beast and not an Animal, and therefore has Darkvision 60ft, a 1/1 Base attack bonus and a d10 hit die.
Mounted Mastery (Ex): At 7th level, you gain the Mounted Combat feat as a bonus feat if you didn’t already have it. If you already have Mounted Combat, you may choose any feat that has Mounted Combat as a prerequisite, as long as you also meet the other prerequisites. In addition, you may take 10 on all ride checks when you are mounted on your Spectral Steed.
Improved Mounted Combat (Ex): At 11th level you may use the benefits of the Mounted Combat feat an amount of times equal to 1 + your Dexterity modifier per round (minimum 1), rather than only once. In addition, you may use Mounted Combat whenever either you or your mount is attacked.
Visage of the Horseman (Su): At 15th level, as a swift action you can tap into the powers of the Horseman to aid you in battle. This transaformation gives you black feathered wings which grants you a fly speed equal to twice your base lands speed with good maneuverability. You gain a +2 bonus to natural armor, darkvision 60 ft and low-light vision, resistance Acid, Cold, Electricity and Fire 10 and spell resistance 25. you gain the following bonuses to your ability scores: +4 Strength, +4 Dexterity, +4 Constitution. This transformation lasts for 3 + your improved Constitution modifer rounds.
Rider of the Apocalypse: At 20th level, the powers of the Horseman fill you with powers beyond comprehension. You are from now on treated as an Outsider rather than your original creature type for the purpose of spells and effects that target specific creature types. In addition you gain damage reduction 10/magic. Unlike outsiders, you can still be resurrected as if you were still of your original creature type.
Change Log
SpoilerJan 13: rephrased Nex Sacramentum to not give a Strength and Dexterity bonus. Increased It's power. Changed Visage of the Horseman. added some extra benefits to Mounted Mastery and Improved Mounted Combat.
April 16 2014: Fixed tables
January 19 2015: Changed penalty of Nex Sacramentum to apply to all checks, not just against checks originating from the Darksider, otherwise there is no incentive to accept it ever.
