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Land of the Dead
I would like a separate land of the dead. It’s an overlap of the astral, ethereal, and shadow. Where the Pre-petitioners try to figure out if they will head for the outer planes or fight to the prime and become undead. All the plants and animals that have remains still in the living worlds have dead looking spirits here. With them are shadowy versions of all the people, places, and objects they interacted with, causing haunts in the prime material.
The Line: There is a long line of Pre-Petitioners waiting to get into the Bone Yard to be judged. Some are actually hiding from Reapers. They constantly let others cut in front of them.
Pre-petitioners
Basically, they are enough like they were, that they might not be aware of their death. Other Pre-petitioners or outer planer creatures, might wake them up and help them adjust.
I'm going to develop the prestige classes here. If someone practices being a poltergeist for 5 levels before his buds can wish him back, he'll have those levels.
Poltergeist
Prestige class. Must be a spirit to start.
Role. They can lift and move objects in both worlds with their mind. The objects must be familiar to the poltergeist, be in a place, or near a person they know.
Alignment: Any
Hit Dice: d6
Class Skills: Bluff(Cha), Fly(Dex), Intimidate(Cha), Knowledge(Arcana)(Int), Knowledge(Planes)(Int), Spellcraft(Int), and Use Magic Device(Cha)
Skill Ranks per level: 3+Int modifier.
Class Features
Weapon and armor proficiency: Must be something they handled extensively while alive. Even if they never used it during life they could make the item dance.
Spells-SA: Same as a sorcerer with telekinesis as their bloodline.
See page 72, Core Rulebook, Table 3-14 Sorcerer, and 3-15: Sorcerer Spells Known. Most of the spells are effective only in the Land of the Dead.
Spirit vision. All prepetitioners can see everything in the area of a haunt as long as they are with the object in the Land of the Dead. Everything else in the living game world will look ghostly.
Reaper
Prestige class. Must be a spirit to start.
Role. They can return to life, but only to collect people who should be dead. 10 kills and they get to bring back one person. It can be themselves, or someone else. Like Specter, from DC comics.
Alignment: Not chaotic, but they may change when the offer is made.
Hit Dice: D8
Level 1: Death Touch(constantly on, Dc 10+Cha bonus + level or hit dice), Patron(Outsider with death portfolio), Astral Cloak, Death Scythe(Cold iron weapon that Death touches on a crit)
Level 2: Extra combat feat. Death Scythe becomes +1 to hit and damage.
Level 3: Extra combat feat. Death Scythe becomes +2 to hit and damage.
Level 4: Extra combat feat. Death Scythe becomes +3 to hit and damage.
Level 5: Extra combat feat. Death Scythe becomes +4 to hit and damage.
Level 6: Extra combat feat. Death Scythe becomes +5 to hit and damage.
Patron: Could be a high level angel of death, Inevitable, or Prince of Hell. If the reaper has any spell caster levels, they can teach them any spells from the necromancy school or domain spells from death, law, or the other alignment axis. When they achieve life, they can still turn into their Reaper form when necessary.
Items
Astral Cloak: It allows the wearer to travel to the game world, persist there, and come back. If they hand it to anyone they snap back to the land of the dead, but anyone who wears it can travel to the Land of the Dead, similarly. Snapping back causes one round stunning like Dimension Door. While wearing the Astral Cloak, all attacks are ghost touch.
Death Scythe: In the hands of a fighter it acts as if fighter levels were Reaper levels. It is always a cold iron weapon that death touches on a crit. It’s a 2 handed weapon doing 2D4, X4 on a crit. It can be used to trip.
Soul Gems: Translucent black crystals that when occupied glow with an internal light. When pointed at a spirit, and the first command word is said, the target must will save DC 30, range 50 feet, or be sucked in. The second command word frees the soul. The third command word forces the soul will save DC 30, or admit their name. A contained soul or spirit can communicate telepathically with anyone possessing the gem. Shattering the gem also frees it.
Fate Scroll: Think of anyone, and you can read their name on the scroll. Next to their name is how much longer they have to live, what plane of existence they are on, and what condition they are in. Negative numbers mean they should be dead. If they are possessed it will say who by. If a person is irretrievably destroyed, such as by an orb of oblivion, it will say destroyed.
Combat Feat-Rip the soul.
Someone with the ghost touch quality on any kind of weapon can (on a crit)reach into a spirit, grab or spear the divine inspiration, and pull it out. Once it's removed, it goes back to the gods, and the spirit is destroyed. The shreds can become part of an Illip or something, but only a True Res. or the open grave ritual has a chance of bringing the personality back together.
Prereqs. Ghost touch and it only works on an intangible spirit, on a crit. Gassious form is vulnerable too.
Normal. Ghosts keep coming back till their issues are resolved, normally.
Rider
Prestige class. Must be a spirit to start.
Role. They don’t call it Malevolence or magic jar. They call it riding, like the living are beasts of burden. With practice they can add their skills and class abilities to those of their ‘host’. Some learn from Baron Samedi himself. Unlike a simple ghost, they cling to their alignment and personality they had in life. If they ‘stray from the path’ and abuse their powers they will become an actual ghost or similar corporeal undead(such as a Horla). Another consequence of being a rider is if they are raised or resurrected. They become a medium. A medium can see the dead and must aid them with their unfinished business. Their level as a rider actually subtracts from their saves vs possession.
1st level: They can use 1 skill of the host, switching the used skill is a quick action, that can only be done once a round. If both have the same skill, the numbers are added. Riding is like a Magic Jar Spell. Your DC vs the host’s Will save is 10 + highest mental bonus + all levels. The mental bonuses are Wisdom, Intelligence, and Charisma.
2nd level: They can use 2 skills of the host. This continues for all Rider levels.
3rd level: They can combine the bonus of one of their physical abilities with one of the host’s physical abilities. (Deadman of DC comics would always add his +5 to dex to the host’s dexterity.) The physical abilities are Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution.
3rd level: They can use a feat or class feature(as long as it isn’t a supernatural ability) from the host. Thus they could trigger the hosts rage. They cannot trigger a blast from a forceborn, at this level.
Special: When possessed, a medium gives a possessing spirit the benefit of their rider levels. This is involuntary.
Cosmic Warrior
Prestige class. Must be a spirit to start.
Role. There are methods of fighting, without fatigue, hesitation, fear, distraction, or any things besides fighting. The energy exerted is pulled back in and used for more fighting. These are the techniques taught by the battle masters who died of old age, and went right on perfecting their methods.
Hit dice, saves, and combat bonuses are as a fighter level.
1st level: They get a fighter feat, and an energy blast. The blast comes from their hand, does level damage, is close range(25 feet +5 foot for every 2 character levels).
2nd level: Fighter feat.
3rd level: Life energy ball. Tapping the life of an entire planet or demiplane, they create and hurl a ball of force that does 1D6 per level to everything it encounters. If it puts a hole in something it continues at full strength. Long range 400 feet plus 40 feet per caster level. It takes 1D6 rounds to regather the energy to use again.
4th level: Fighter feat.
5th level: Life energy ball now bursts like a fireball when it hits something.
Boogyman
Prestige class. Must be a spirit to start.
Role. Dying is scary, but making someone else scared is fun. Hit dice, saves, and combat bonuses are as a cleric, of fear. Spells are as a cleric. Add the level of one other spell casting class.
Add domain of terror.
Can detect thoughts only to know what a subject fears. Also adds one per level to knowledge checks to determine weaknesses. All knowledges are class skills. Each spell level you reach you can cast one domain spell, or bloodline spell, or school bonus spell. GM interpretation may vary.
0 level Ghost Sounds
1st level Cause Fear
2nd level Scare
3rd level Major Image
4th level Phantasmal killer
5th level Nightmare
6th level Symbol of fear
7th level Insanity
8th level Maze
9th level Wail of the Banshee
All these spells are now on their spell list.
Squatter
Also called a walk in, intruder, or pilgrim soul. At the point of death they cling to the land of the living and seek a vacant vessel. With see invisible, they have a flickering image, in either plane. They hold on to their levels and alignment. All their Squatter levels count as Rogue levels. They use their class skills to avoid the reapers and exorcists, who are usually after them. If they take over a Golem, they can give riddles to help adventurers bypass it to get to what it is guarding. They usually have a reason for hanging on. They might just be afraid of the afterlife.
0 level Move in.
1st level: +1 rogue levels
3rd Level: If the original occupant returns, they can fight for control as in Magic Jar.
5th Level: Can effectively cast heal when moving in.
7th Level: Can effectively cast animate object when moving in. 1 round a level. 3 times a day.
9th Level : Can effectively cast raise dead when moving in.
11th Level: Can effectively cast Resurrection when moving in.
Move In: They can become the soul of any clone or raised body who’s soul was lost, most constructs, anyone who drew the Void card, a statue someone cast Stone to flesh on, and anybody who was astral projecting and had their silver cord severed.
Magic Jar: Can choose an object they used in their original life to jump into. From there they can attempt to control anyone in possession of the object. Any exorcism will force them back into the object. They can designate a spare object to jump into. All such objects must be on the same plane as the Squatter.
I now have Occult Adventures. If you have access to that book, Riders still convert their rider levels to Medium levels if raised, ressed, or reincarnated. They will know a lot of spirits to channel. To be channeled, a pre-petitioner has to make a legend that fits one of the types. Next, choose a taboo. It is probably a good idea to set up a haunted item so the Medium can use haunt channeler to reload their favorite spirit. The Pre-petitioner can only use their spells, feats, and other powers if they gain control.
Imaginary Friend/Fiend
A child or childlike adult that dies can retreat into the identity of their imaginary friend. These self built eidolon need a summoner to manifest. They often act as a protector and advisor.
1st level: Contact, initiate
2nd: Shared Summoner
3rd:
Imaginary Friend/Fiend
Prestige class. Must be a spirit to start.
A child or childlike adult that dies can retreat into the identity of their imaginary friend. These self built eidolon need a summoner to manifest. They often act as a protector and advisor.1st level: Contact, initiate, Special Name
2nd: Shared Summoner
3rd: Extra evolution point.
4th: Shared magic
5th: 2 extra evolution pointsContact: One living creature can see and hear them. Can be resisted as if telepathy. Will save negates. DC14 plus Wisdom bonus plus Friend/fiend level. While not yet summoned they can stick their head through walls and such. Only a ghost touch weapon can hurt them at this point.
Initiate: A zero level character can be turned into a first level Summoner. An existing character can be rebuilt with at least one level of summoner. Normally a summoner can only summon one eidolon(or friend/fiend) at a time.
Special Name: They have a name different from when they were alive. With this name, they can be summoned as a move action by saying it 3 times. Only a summoner can make them solid outside the land of the dead.
Shared Summoner: They can be manifested at the same time as the summoners eidolon.
Shared Magic: The effects of any spell or item on the summoner, also effect the friend/fiend. A cure light wounds on the summoner will heal damage to the friend/fiend if the summoner if the summoner has no damage. Invisibility effect them equally. An item, such as a ring, will appear on both. They can both use a wand at the same time, but it will use 2 charges.
Spirit healing: Outsiders, elementals, ghosts, and prepetitioners, all seem to keep coming back. If destroyed outside of their home plane they somehow grow back. They sleep, dreaming appropriately, and recover one hit point per level. Spirits heal like a vampire in their coffin or a litch, often from nothing. This is why a summoned hell hound that 'dies' cannot be resummoned that day. It's sleeping it off.
Friends in Dark Places(feat)
Intelligent(animal or better) Undead and other spirits recognise the individual. Check encounter reactions instead of just having them attack. There is also a +2 to any such social interactions. Other party members are ignored unless they have ghost touch weapons, the ability to channel energy, or other credible threats.
Prerequisite: They must have died and been brought back in any way.