Something that I initially posted on another thread; feel like cleaning it up and seeing what I can do with it. The class is based around the concept of casting from your Hit Point pool; appropriately, I'm calling it the Blood Mage, because I'm not creative at all.
Blood Mage - Hit Die: d4
{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|0|1st|2nd|3rd|4th|5th|6th|7th|8th|9th
1st|+0|+0|+0|+2|Bloodletting (GP)|6|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
2nd|+1|+0|+0|+3|Stigmata|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
3rd|+1|+1|+1|+3|False Life 1/day (standard)|6|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
4th|+2|+1|+1|+4|Toughness|6|6|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
5th|+2|+1|+1|+4|Vampiric Touch 1/day|6|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
6th|+3|+2|+2|+5|False Life 1/day (move)|6|6|5|3|-|-|-|-|-|-
7th|+3|+2|+2|+5|Great Fortitude|6|6|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-
8th|+4|+2|+2|+6|Bloodletting (EXP)|6|6|6|5|3|-|-|-|-|-
9th|+4|+3|+3|+6|False Life 2/day (move)|6|6|6|6|4|-|-|-|-|-
10th|+5|+3|+3|+7|Vampiric Touch 2/day, Blood Pact|6|6|6|6|5|3|-|-|-|-
11th|+5|+3|+3|+7|Bloodletting (metamagic), Ritual Blood Bonds|6|6|6|6|6|4|-|-|-|-
12th|+6/+1|+4|+4|+8|False Life 2/day (swift), Empower Spell-Like Ability|6|6|6|6|6|5|3|-|-|-
13th|+6/+1|+4|+4|+8|Blood Telepathy|6|6|6|6|6|6|4|-|-|-
14th|+7/+2|+4|+4|+9|Improved Toughness|6|6|6|6|6|6|5|3|-|-
15th|+7/+2|+5|+5|+9|Vampiric Touch 3/day, False Life 3/day (swift)|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|4|-|-
16th|+8/+3|+5|+5|+10|Scent|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|5|3|-
17th|+8/+3|+5|+5|+10|Blood Calling|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|4|-
18th|+9/+4|+6|+6|+11|False Life 3/day (immediate)|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|5|3
19th|+9/+4|+6|+6|+11|-|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|4
20th|+10/+5|+6|+6|+12|Vampiric Touch 4/day, Blood Mastery|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6[/table]
Skills at first level: (2+INT modifier) x 4
Skills at each additional level: 2+INT modifier
Class Skills: Concentration (CON), Craft (INT), Intimidate (CHA), Knowledge (Arcana) (INT), Knowledge (Religion) (INT), Spellcraft (INT)
Weapon & Armor Proficiencies: A Blood Mage is proficient in all simple weapons. Blood Magi are proficient with light armor, but not shields. A Blood Mage can cast spells while wearing light armor without incurring the normal arcane spell failure chance. However, like any other arcane spellcaster, a Blood Mage wearing medium or heavy armor or using a shield incurs a chance of arcane spell failure if the spell in question has a somatic component (most do).
Spells Per Day/Spells Known: A Blood Mage casts arcane spells which are drawn primarily from the sorcerer/wizard spell list. He can cast any spell he knows without preparing it ahead of time, the way a wizard or a cleric must (see below). The blood mage may not benefit from any effect that would add additional spells to his class spell list, or list of Blood Mage spells known.
To learn or cast a spell, a Blood Mage must have a Charisma score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a Blood Mage’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the sorcerer’s Charisma modifier. A Blood Mage automatically knows how to cast every spell on their spell list, assuming they have the requisite Charisma modifier and caster level.
Like other spellcasters, a Blood Mage can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. His base daily spell allotment is given on Table: The Blood Mage. In addition, he receives bonus spells per day if he has a high Charisma score.
Unlike a wizard or a cleric, a Blood Mage need not prepare his spells in advance. He can cast any spell he knows at any time, assuming he has not yet used up his spells per day for that spell level. He does not have to decide ahead of time which spells he’ll cast.
SpoilerBlood Mage spell list:
Level 0 (cantrips): Acid Splash, Amanuensis, Arcane Mark, Create Water, Dancing Lights, Detect Magic, Detect Poison, Flare, Light, Mage Hand, Mending, Message, Open/Close, Prestidigitation, Purify Food and Drink, Resistance, Sonic Snap, Stick, Touch of Fatigue
Level 1: Babau Slime, Bane, Blade of Blood, Blood Wind, Burning Rage, Corrosive Grasp, Deathwatch, Delay Disease, Enlarge Person, Horrible Taste, Ironguts, Mage Armor, Obscuring Mist, Reduce Person, Spirit Worm, Summon Monster I, Unseen Servant
Level 2: Alter Self, Bear's Endurance, Bull's Strength, Cat's Grace, Cloud of Bewilderment, Delay Poison, Detect Thoughts, Eagle's Splendor, False Life, Fog Cloud, Fox's Cunning, Infernal Wound, Life Bolt, Mirror Image, Owl's Wisdom, Quick Potion, Spectral Hand, Summon Monster II
Level 3: Alter Fortune, Blink, Contagion, Dispel Magic, Gaseous Form, Haste, Healing Touch, Neutralize Poison, Poison, Rage, Remove Disease, Servant Horde, Slow, Stinking Cloud, Summon Monster III, Unluck, Vampiric Touch
Level 4: Arcane Eye, Bestow Curse, Bloodstar, Burning Blood, Displacer Form, Enlarge Person, Mass, Minor Creation, Reduce Person, Mass, Remove Curse, Resistance, Greater, Scrying, Solid Fog, Summon Monster IV, Vortex of Teeth
Level 5: Baleful Polymorph, Cloudkill, Enlarge Person, Greater, Ironguard, Lesser, Major Creation, Panacea, Phantasmal Thief, Reduce Person, Greater, Slay Living, Summon Monster V, Telekinesis, Wall of Limbs
Level 6: Acid Fog, Bear's Endurance, Mass, Bull's Strength, Mass, Cat's Grace, Mass, Dispel Magic, Greater, Eagle's Splendor, Mass, Extract Water Elemental, Fox's Cunning, Mass, Owl's Wisdom, Mass, Ray of Entropy, Resistance, Superior, Summon Monster VI
Level 7: Avasculate, Control Weather, Forcecage, Ironguard, Pulse of Hate, Repulsion, Scrying, Greater, Summon Monster VII, Waves of Exhaustion, Word of Recall
Level 8: Antipathy, Avascular Mass, Discern Location, Flensing, Heat Drain, Incendiary Cloud, Iron Body, Plague, Summon Monster VIII, Sympathy
Level 9: Astral Projection, Awaken Construct, Energy Drain, Etherealness, Eye of Power, Magic Miasma, Summon Monster IX, Summon Golem
Bloodletting: In order to cast spells, a Blood Mage must draw from their own life essences to deliver the arcane energies. When a Blood Mage casts a spell from the blood mage spell list, they must take 1 point of drain per spell level of the spell being cast. For instance, to cast a 5th-level spell, a Blood Mage must take 5 points of hit point drain during the casting, infusing their spellcasting with their own blood.
A Blood Mage can further use their bloodletting in two ways: First, a Blood Mage can use Bloodletting to pay the material components for spells from the blood mage spell list with costly components. A Blood Mage may choose to take 1 hit point of drain per 25gp of the spell's material component cost. At 8th level, the Blood Mage can pay for experience costs with their own blood as well, taking 1 hit point of drain per 5xp of the spell's experience cost.
Second, at 11th level, a Blood Mage can use their life force to mitigate the spell level cost of metamagic feats when casting spells from the blood mage spell list. Doing so is particularly taxing, however, and thus a Blood Mage that chooses to mitigate metamagic this way takes 1 point of Constitution burn for level adjusted in this way. This damage can only be cured through 8 hours of restful sleep. Creatures without Constitution scores (such as undead or constructs) cannot use this ability, as they cannot pay the Constitution cost. A Blood Mage cannot use this ability to increase a spell's level above the highest level a Blood Mage can cast before mitigating the level adjustment, nor can they use this ability to reduce a spell's level below its starting level.
Stigmata: At 2nd level, a Blood Mage gains Stigmata (Book of Exalted Deeds, p. 46) as a bonus feat, even if they do not meet the prerequisites.
False Life: At 3rd level, a Blood Mage gains False Life 1/day as a spell-like ability with a caster level equal to the Blood Mage's class level. The Blood Mage gains an additional use of this ability every six levels beyond 3rd level. At 6th level, the Blood Mage can use False Life as a move action; at 12th level, a swift action; and at 18th level, an immediate action.
Toughness: At 4th level, a Blood Mage gains Toughness as a bonus feat.
Vampiric Touch: At 5th level, a Blood Mage gains Vampiric Touch 1/day as a spell-like ability with a caster level equal to the Blood Mage's class level. The Blood Mage gains an additional use of this ability every five levels beyond 5th.
Great Fortitude: At 7th level, the Blood Mage gains Great Fortitude as a bonus feat.
Arcane Healing (Su): A Blood Mage develops the power to turn their arcane energy inward, channeling it through their blood to induce healing in the body. As a full-round action, a Blood Mage can spend an uncast spell to heal damage equal to the level of the spell expended.
Blood Pact: At 10th level, the Blood Mage can create a bond with a single willing creature. Upon performance of the blood pact, a Blood Mage permanently loses 1 point of Constitution, and the bonded creature gains 1 point of Constitution. As long as both the Blood Mage and the creature are alive, the creature and the Blood Mage are treated as having the Share Pain ability, and when either creature takes damage, both creatures instead take half the damage. If either creature involved in the pact dies, the pact immediately ends. The Blood Mage can only maintain a blood pact with one creature at a time. The Blood Mage cannot initiate a blood pact with the same creature twice, even if one of them dies and is subsequently brought back to life. The blood pact cannot be initiated with a creature that does not have a Constitution score, or is not intelligent enough to consent to the pact.
Ritual Blood Bonds: At 11th level, the Blood Mage gains Ritual Blood Bonds (Player's handbook II, p. 86) as a bonus feat, even if they do not meet the racial prerequisites. To activate the feat's abilities, the Blood Mage must still have the requisite number of ranks in Knowledge (Religion).
Empower Spell-Like Ability: After much time and patience with the craft, a Blood Mage becomes more attuned to the workings of one's life forces. At 12th level, a Blood Mage gains Empower Spell-Like Ability as a bonus feat, but can only use it on Spell-Like Abilities granted by the Blood Mage class.
Blood Telepathy: As a Blood Mage advances, their knowledge of the blood pact they have undertaken becomes more refined. At 13th level, the Blood Mage shares a telepathic bond with the creature that they have initiated a blood pact with, as long as they are within one mile of each other.
Improved Toughness: A Blood Mage's constant conditioning causes them to be more resilient. At 14th level, a Blood Mage gains Improved Toughness as a bonus feat.
Scent: At 16th level, a Blood Mage becomes so finely attuned to the smell of blood that they can sense it from great distances. In essence, a Blood Mage gains the Scent ability, but can only sense the blood of living creatures; the Blood Mage cannot smell other small odors, and cannot sense undead with their sense ability (as undead do not have blood flowing through them). Living creatures that do not bleed (such as plants) cannot be tracked by this ability. The ability can, however, be used to track recently deceased creatures that formerly had blood flowing through their veins; scent can be used to track a creature which has died in the last 24 hours.
Blood Calling: At 17th level, a Blood Mage can call a creature with which it shares a blood pact, as long as the creature is willing to be called. This ability functions like Greater Teleportation, with the Blood Mage as the destination point. (There is probably something better to equate this to, but I'm improvising.)
Craft Homunculus: Over time, a Blood Mage's abilities become so refined that they are able to form a blood pact with a literal extension of themselves. At 19th level, a Blood Mage gains Craft Construct (Monster Manual 3.5, p. 303) as a bonus feat; however, it can only be used to craft homunculi. A Blood Mage can use Bloodletting to mitigate the gold and experience costs of crafting a homunculus, but doing so is physically taxing, and so it must be done over the same amount of time as normal. These rules also apply for the creation of a homunculus with additional Hit Dice. While the homunculus can be created by means of this feat, it cannot be fully brought to life without use of the Awaken Construct spell, or an equivalent ability.
Since the blood of the Blood Magus is used for the construction of the homunculus, the homunculus is bonded with the Blood Mage, who it regards as its master. Upon awakening of the homunculus, a Blood Mage can decide whether or not to initiate a blood pact with the homunculus, or to retain an existing blood pact (if any). If the Blood Mage does not initiate the blood pact at the point of awakening, they may not do so until any existing blood pacts have disappeared.
Blood Mastery: At 20th level, a Blood Mage has developed their mastery of the forces of life in a number of ways, making them more resilient and fearsome. First, a 20th-level blood mage gains a permanent +4 bonus to their Constitution score. Further, the Blood Mage becomes immune to ability drain and energy level drain, as their blood makes them completely resilient to such effects.
Second, the Blood Mage gains fast healing 10, allowing their body to regenerate its life forces as quickly as it loses them through its arcane channeling.
Third, the Blood Mage learns how to use his very life essence as the focus of its spellcasting. A 20th-level Blood Mage can choose to use their Constitution modifier instead of their Charisma modifier to determine spells known, bonus spells, and save DC of spells. This decision is made at the time of spellcasting, and can change per each casting of a spell (for instance, if a Blood Mage has a high Constitution score at the beginning of the day, they might wish to use their Constitution score to determine all relevant modifiers; however, as they day wears on and they take Constitution damage and drain from various effects, it might be more useful to use Charisma instead).
Fourth, a Blood Mage is able to distort the pattern and flow of their blood to create a constant stench. While active, all creatures within 30 feet of the Blood Mage that have a sense of smell must make a Fortitude save (DC10+1/2 the Blood Mage's level + CON or CHA modifier) or be nauseated. A creature that succeeds in their save is instead sickened, but must make a Fortitude save each successive round they are in the aura to avoid becoming nauseated. The effect remains in place as long as the creature is within the Blood Mage's aura, and lingers for 3 rounds after. The Blood Mage can activate or deactivate this ability as a free action.
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I'm trying to balance the class out well and give it as few dead levels as possible. Hopefully it's not too crowded.
All right Playground, have at it! Tear my Blood Mage a new hole, so he can bleed out of it and use it to better his spellcasting.
By the by: If somebody can come up with a better spell list, I would love you for it. I tried to limit from 10-17 each level, starting with more and working down, and avoiding things that just never should have been (Celerity, Polymorph, Contingency, Arcane Fusion, and most shenanigan spells like Gate and a majority of the 9th-level list), but I think the list just looks meh right now.
Enjoy!