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Sacred Vows
Scared Vows represent a profound offering and commitment to a deity. Sometimes this bond is made at a young age, while others take these vows later in life. If a character willing violates a vow, he looses all benefits until leveling up or an atonement spell and appropriate offering are made. Vows are spiritual connections subject to the deities judgment. Deities generally view the intent of the vow, not the letter of it, and will not tolerate a mortal who abuses vows for personal power. Characters my substitute another force or ideology in place of a deity. A characters level is based on the average party WBL for determining effects of vows.
Unarmored
Restrictions: Not allowed to use any armor or shields or benefit from armor or shield bonuses granted by items or spells.
Benefit: Wis bonus to AC, +1 Armor bonus/3 levels, +1 enhancement bonus to AC at 5th, (+1 to each per additional 4 levels)
Unadorned
Restrictions: Not allowed to benefit from items that provide deflection or NA bonuses.
Benefit:+1 Deflection at 6th and +1 NA at 7th (+1 to each per additional 4 levels)
Unarmed
Restrictions: The character can never be proficient with any manufactured weapons.
Benefits: Unarmed strike damage as per monk of equal level, +1 enhancement bonus to unarmed strike/5 levels, ability to bypass DR/silver at level 4, cold iron at 6, slashing at 8, piercing 10, axiomatic or anarchic at 12, good or evil at 14, and bypass DR/adamantine at level 16. Note: You and your deity must be of appropriate alignment to bypass the opposing alignment, or you gain no benefit at that level.
(Weapon) of (god)
Restrictions: The character can never benefit from enhancement bonus (or equivalent effects) to any other weapon.
Benefits: +1 enhancement bonus to weapon at level 4 and additional +1/3 levels
In the hands of (god)
Restrictions: Not allowed to benefit from items that provide deflection, NA, resistance, or enhancement to ability bonuses.
Benefits: +1 resistance bonus to saves at level 4,+1 Deflection at 6th and +1 NA at 7th (+1 to each per additional 4 levels) +2 to an ability score at level 6, plus an additional + 2 to a different ability score at level 7 (Note: You must alternate between physical and mental ability scores when assigning these bonuses.) every 4 levels past 6 and 7, you may add an additional +2, alternating between mental and physical scores. You may not boost a single score beyond +6 this way.
Uncluttered
Restrictions: Not allowed to use scrolls, wands, staffs
Benefits: cast a spell from your class list (not including or exceeding the highest level spells you can cast) 1 each day, plus one casting for ever 3 additional levels.
If a vow grants an enhancement bonus to armor or weapon, you may enchant the weapon with an ability such as flaming (you must make it +1 first, just like normal magic weapon enhancement). If you would like to make the item aligned, you and your deity must be of the same alignment such as good for making a weapon holy. You may choose what enchantments the item has when you attain a level and make the proper offering (Usually 10-25% of WBL per vow in gp and items). Different deities may require destruction, sacrificing, or donations of items and gold, as well as completing other tasks.
So what does everyone think? Too broken? Not broken enough? Do duelist get overpowered by it?
Are there some vows that need to be added? Improvised weapons vow? Something about buff spells?
I love it, personally. I've been trying to set up this sort of thing for classes all the time-- making it possible to have an unarmed paladin, an armorless samurai, and other combinations that aren't very common but would still make some sense and be really cool and fun to play.
I don't find it particularly game-breaking, but I'd restrict it to certain classes based on the thing. For example, paladins (in my campaigns) wouldn't be allowed to go unarmored-- it just makes so little sense with the class. Likewise, druids already spend so much real combat time in wild shape and similar things that giving them the option to go unarmed doesn't make too much sense.
I have no definite list in my head for the above, but I'll be thinking about it, and I'd definitely bring this up in my next campaign, whether DMing or playing.
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I also think in the unarmed section, you either mean "axiomatic or anarchic" or "anarchic or lawful," not "axiomatic and lawful." Axiomatic and lawful are the same for weapon special ability purposes.
So are these feats or just options?
Edit: (Weapon) of (God) could use a bit of a wording change. Could "+1 enhancement bonus to weapon at level 4 and additional +1/3 levels" be changed to "+1 enhancement bonus to weapon at level 4 and a additional +1 for every 3 levels"?
It just seems to me that, at level 4, the enhancement bonus would be +2. +1 for being level 4, and +1 for having 3 levels. If this was the intent, please never mind this post! :)
So are these feats or just options?
Edit: (Weapon) of (God) could use a bit of a wording change. Could "+1 enhancement bonus to weapon at level 4 and additional +1/3 levels" be changed to "+1 enhancement bonus to weapon at level 4 and a additional +1 for every 3 levels"?
Your wording is a much better way of putting it. Thanks
Also the following change:
Unarmored
Restrictions: Not allowed to use any armor or shields or benefit from armor or shield bonuses granted by items or spells.
Benefit: Wis bonus to AC, +1 Armor bonus/3 levels, +1 enhancement bonus to AC at 5th, (+1 per additional 4 levels)
These are not feats, and entering into a vow does not have any mechanical requirements except perhaps a donation of items or gold. I did not want to include the value of a feat into trying to balance these. I also did not want to add any class or alignment restrictions, unless there is something that breaks the game. So far it seems to work with druids, monks, fighter types, casters, etc.
All in all it's a great concept, as I said before. I think I'll definitely use it in my own homebrews and games, and I'd be interested in using it as a player as well. Planning to start any campaigns with these rules soon? ;)
For an example of why I love this, my most recent character is a rogue who's a sort of vigilante. Originally I wanted him to be based off of Batman, and focused on unarmed combat. However, the only way it seemed he'd be able to pull it off was A) taking levels in monk, adding unnecessary and unwanted complexity, or B) being a ninja, and sucking until he got high enough to take the Unarmed Combat Mastery master ninja trick.
Now, he's a sort of combination of Batman, Robin and Nightwing in flavor, specializing in quarterstaff combat (which is still turning out to be a pain, but ah well). Not quite what I wanted, but close enough that I'm happy.
With your rules, he could have been everything I wanted and more. But alas...