The Dread Knight
HD: d10
Table: The Dread Knight
{table=head]
Level|
Base Attack Bonus |
Ref |
Fort |
Will |
Special
|
Max Spell Level
1st | +1 |+0 | +0 | +2 | Doomblade, Spells |
0
|
2nd | +2 | +0 | +0 | +3 | Shambling Dead |
0
|
3rd | +3 | +1 | +1 | +3 | Tough Skin |
0
|
4th | +4 | +1 | +1 | +4 | |
1
|
5th | +5 | +1 | +1 | +4 | Animate Dead |
1
|
6th | +6/+1 | +2 | +2 | +5 | Even Tougher Skin |
1
|
7th | +7/+2 | +2 | +2 | +5 | |
2
|
8th | +8/+3 | +2 | +2 | +6 | Necromantic Genius |
2
|
9th | +9/+4 | +3 | +3 | +6 | Unto Death |
2
|
10th |+10/+5 | +3 | +3 | +7 | |
3
|
[/table]
Doomblade (Su): The doomblade is the weapon that makes dread knights known and feared, and is their primary tool for channeling the powers of the dead. A dread knight can only have one weapon designated as his doomblade at a time and it must be a masterwork weapon. In order to designate a weapon as his doomblade, he must perform a 24 hour ritual costing 100 gp in incense and precious materials. Once designed, a doomblade has the following benefits:
- It counts as his doomblade for all dread knight abilities.
- It has a minimum enhancement bonus to attack and damage equal to his dread knight level divided by 3 (maximum of +5 for a dread knight of 20th level or lower).
- It has double HP and +10 Hardness
- As a swift action, the dread knight may imbue his sword with one dread knight spell he knows for 1 round. Any enemy struck for this duration is targeted by the spell he enchanted his sword with (they may make saves against the spell as normal).
Some of the dread knight’s spells suppress the powers of his doomblade. When suppressed, the doomblade loses all benefits other than the doubled HP and +10 Hardness for its duration.
Spells: Dread Knights have the ability to channel the power of undeath through the dread knight spell list. A dread knight casts his spells spontaneously, and the maximum level of spell he can cast is shown in Table: The Dread Knight. Any spell added to the dread knight list must be a necromancy spell, and the dread knight cannot research spells to add to his list.
To prepare or cast a spell, a dread knight must have a Charisma score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a dread knight’s spell is 15 + the spell level + the dread knight’s Charisma modifier.
Unlike other spellcasters, a dread knight can cast any spell he knows at will. The dread knight does not have access to any domain spells, or granted powers, as the cleric does.
A dread knight’s caster level is equal to his dread knight level, and can be modified similarly to any other spellcaster’s caster level.
Any time the dread knight casts a spell or imbues his sword with a spell from the doomblade class feature, his doomblade appears jet black for one round. He may extend this cosmetic change to any part of his body upon casting, but it has no mechanical effect regardless of circumstances.
Shambling Dead (Sp): If a 2nd-level or higher dread knight slays a creature, he may reanimate it by investing the creature with energy from his doomblade. Any living creature that could normally be raised as a zombie, when outright slain by a dread knight, rises as a zombie under his control at the beginning of his next turn. If the dread knight uses this ability, the magic of his doomblade is suppressed for 1d4 rounds. A dread knight cannot use this ability to reanimate a creature that would have a CR greater than his HD - 2, and may not control more than 4 HD of undead creatures per caster level.
Tougher Skin (Ex): Beginning at 3rd level, undead the dread knight controls gain damage reduction 5/magic. If the dread knight controls undead who already have damage reduction which isn’t overcome by magic, the damage reduction instead must be overcome with the original requirements in addition to magic. In essence, the dread knight adds “and magic” to the DR of any undead he controls that do not already have DR overcome by magic.
Dancing Dead (Sp): With a 10-minute ritual requiring his total concentration, a 5th-level dread knight may replicate the effect of an
animate dead spell as a cleric of his caster level. The dread knight must either use the material components required in the spell or choose to infuse the magic of his doomblade instead, suppressing it for 24 hours after the ritual ends. A dread knight cannot use this ability to reanimate a creature that would have a CR greater than his HD - 2, and may not control more than 4 HD of undead creatures per caster level.
During this ritual, a dread knight can phase out sensations of heat, smell, and sight, as well as any noise quieter than 1 person yelling, but if he is exposed to noise louder than that (such as the sound of combat), takes any damage, or suffers a baleful condition, his concentration immediately breaks and the ritual fails. A failed ritual does not cause the loss of material components, nor does it result in the suppression of his doomblade.
Even Tougher Skin (Ex): Beginning at 6th level, the damage reduction of undead the dread knight controls increases to equal his hit dice or remains at their natural value, whichever is larger. The dread knight also gains damage reduction equal to half his hit dice.
Necromantic Genius (Sp): When an 8th-level dread knight uses dancing dead, he may also create ghouls, ghasts, and wights as per create undead despite the caster level requirements of the spell. These creatures lose the ability to make their own spawn (through the Create Spawn feature of the wight, and the conditional effect of Ghoul Fever from the ghoul and ghast). A dread knight cannot use this ability to create a creature that would have a CR greater than his HD - 2, and may not control more than 4 HD of undead creatures per caster level.
In addition, the dread knight learns to advance the minions he forms with his innate necromantic insight. He may improve any undead under his control with a CR equal to his HD - 2 through a 1 hour ritual similar to the one from dancing dead, increasing its hit dice and ability score array until its CR becomes equal to his HD - 2 (as per the Monster Manual p.290). He may even advance zombies beyond their maximum of 20 HD with this ability.
Unto Death (Ex): The 9th-level dread knight’s mastery of death allows him to become one of the creature’s he commands. He may apply the necropolitan template through the Ritual of Crucimigration (Libris Mortis p.111). If he becomes a necropolitan after obtaining this ability, he may switch any ability score he has with his constitution score before his loses his constitution modifier. If he becomes a necropolitan before obtaining this ability, then he becomes immune to any attempt to control undead (such as the control undead spell) as well as turning and rebuking.
Dread Knight Spell List:
0th--inflict minor wounds
1st--inflict light wounds
2nd--inflict moderate wounds
3rd--inflict serious wounds