About Carmelia TorvéBackground:
Sebastian and Aurica Torvé were two of the few truly honest people in Ilizmagorti: neither pirates nor assassins, but merchants with no more agenda than to sell their wares. It was a dangerous city, but the Varisian transplants had grown to appreciate the sense of adventure that came with it so much that they set up their primary operation in the city and settled down to have a family. Their first child was a bouncing baby boy that they named Gavril. And they were equally pleased, two years later, to next have a daughter who they named Carmelia. If Ilizmagorti was a strange place to raise a family, neither Gavril nor Carmelia were aware of it. Their parents were no fools: living in a city governed by the Pirate Code, they ensured that their children knew how to defend themselves and when to run away. It was far from idyllic or pastoral, but the Torvé clan seemed not to mind.
Carmelia grew into a comely young woman who was as popular amongst the children of the wealthiest merchants as among the street urchins. She enjoyed the attention, especially from young pirates who wanted to take her on their ships and show her. They always seemed entranced by her heterochromatic eyes—one green and one amber—and she bewitched them in turn. She also had a good sense for who was trustworthy and who would try to take advantage of her. It helped keep her quite consistently out of trouble, which was quite a feat in Ilizmagorti. Gavril was not as lucky as Carmelia. He was less sensitive to other’s intentions, rasher, and far more gullible. Through some work that he picked up, he crossed the wrong people. This was not something that you did in Ilizmagorti. To be able to afford to hire a Red Mantis Assassin to gruesomely make an example out of the young man, whoever he had pissed off must have been well-off and furious. His parents were heartbroken. They had no idea what Gavril had gotten himself into, but they knew better than to look into the matter. They mourned and urged Carmelia to join them and not seek vengeance. Of course, Carmelia didn’t listen. She had doted on her older brother. She knew that taking vengeance on the Red Mantis was stupid and suicidal, but tracing his assassination back to whoever had ordered it? Well, that might have been a shade less stupid, but it was still stupid. She tried anyway. After months of investigation, she found out that a local merchant who had felt threatened by Gavril beginning to encroach on his business had ordered the hit. Rather than pursue other means, he used his considerable resources to just make the problem go away. The merchant must not have been particularly bright himself or thought no one would figure out what he had done, because his security detail was a joke. Carmelia had never killed someone before—stabbed yes, but not to death—so the prospect of forever passing that threshold was not something she had actively considered. But she managed to slip into the merchant’s home when he was sleeping and easily slit his throat. Carmelia was less clever than she thought herself to be, though. The man might not have had good guards, but Carmelia was seen leaving his house. Though she had gone to sleep in her bed the night of her vengeance, she woke the next morning somewhere else entirely and confused as to how she got there. She was greeted by someone in a mantis mask who informed her that the only reason she wasn’t dead is because someone in the group was curious about her brazenness. Not necessarily impressed—she was sloppy beyond question—but she had potential. If she was less brazen, she might have joined her brother in his fate. But she was offered a choice: become an initiate of the Red Mantis or die. She chose to initiate. For her parents’ part, they assumed that their daughter had gotten herself killed while pursuing vengeance and were now convinced that they had lost her as well. She was forbidden from returning to her old life, eschewing her identity to join these ranks. She was surprised how little she seemed to be bothered by this turn. It’s not that she didn’t miss her parent, but she felt oddly disconnected from them. For better or worse, Carmelia showed little facility for the traditional fighting style of the Red Mantis. Their sawtooth saber was cumbersome and unwiedly in her hands, and she was regularly regarded as an embarrassment during training sessions that frequently ended with her bleeding profusely. So the Red Mantis determined that there were other roles for her to take. Not all of the Red Mantis had to focus on killing, and some could even be beneficial to the organization as relatively free agents. Carmelia could wander around, providing information, and occasionally taking out a target. Young Carmelia showed more promise with magic than swords anyway. And they had invested enough in her that she had proven surprisingly useful. Carmelia began this new calling by serving on some pirate ships. This exhilarated her. She had long felt called to the sea, but she had rarely done more than putter in a paddle boat around the harbor of the city with some interested lover. Soon she was sailing the Fever Sea, and enjoying the life of unfettered piracy. She hopped from crew to crew, whether due to whim or due to an order received from her masters at Ilizmagorti. As she traveled, she began to hone her innate magical talents, which seemed to stem in some way from the waves themselves. This coalesced into a grand encounter with an old crone who taught her to commune directly with the spirits of the world. When she did so at one port in the Shackles, a small octopus crawled out onto the sands of the beach and seemed very interested in her. This little octopus, she she has taken to calling Hap, has been a constant companion ever since. He’s useful, too, deftly using his many tentacles to do all manner of dexterous activities. If anyone from Ilizmagorti were to meet Carmelia now, the only real difference that they would probably note is that she doesn’t smile as much as she used to. She used to smile nearly constantly. It’s not because of her brother’s death, or the loss of her old life. No—something much stranger happened just a few months prior. While she was used to having atrocious hangovers, and had taken to drinking more whiskey to stave off the hangover, she had been unable to get rid of migraines that persisted even if she had been sober for days. At the height of her agony, she was eating lunch with her crewmates when something horrific happened. First, her nails suddenly grew, digging into the table where they were sitting. Then she began to scream in pain as blood poured from her mouth. When she finally stopped screaming, her crewmates told her the strangest news that she had ever received: she had sprouted a second row of jagged teeth. That crew didn’t seem to trust her much after that strange incident. She left the crew of her own volition, but she could tell that the parting was mutual. She has been stationed in Hell Harbor for the couple of months since the incident, trying to understand what happened to her and drinking to dull the now-constant pain in her head. She yearns to return to the sea, but none of the ships that have come into town have impressed her much yet. But maybe someone will come along that will interest her, or maybe the Red Mantis will tell her to get up and stop drinking. Either way, it’s about time to get out to sea again, one way or another. Carmelia Torvé
Details:
-------------------- Defense -------------------- AC 25, touch 14, flat-footed 22 (+3 Dex, +7 armor, +3 shield, +1 natural, +1 deflection) hp 78 (2d10+8d8+20) Fort +9, Ref +10, Will +13; -2 penalty vs. pain effects --------------------
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Feats: Accursed Hex, Extra Hex (Fluid Magic), Healer’s Hands, Incredible Healer, Spirit Talker
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Deep Shaman Class Abilities:
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A slayer is proficient with all simple and martial weapons, as well as with light armor, medium armor, and shields (except tower shields). This supersedes the shaman’s proficiencies. Spells: A shaman casts divine spells drawn from the shaman spell list. A shaman must choose and prepare her spells in advance. To prepare or cast a spell, a shaman must have a Wisdom score equal to at least 10 + the spell’s level. The saving throw DC against a shaman’s spell is 10 + the spell’s level + the shaman’s Wisdom modifier. Like other spellcasters, a shaman can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. In addition, she receives bonus spells per day if she has a high Wisdom score. Shamans commune with their spirit animals to prepare their spells. Each shaman must choose a time when she must spend 1 hour each day in quiet contemplation with her spirit animal to regain her daily allotment of spells. A shaman can prepare and cast any spell on the shaman spell list, provided that she can cast spells of that level, but she must choose which spells to prepare during her daily communion. Orisons: Shamans can prepare a number of orisons, or 0-level spells, each day. These spells are cast like any other spell, but they are not expended when cast and may be used again. Spirit (Su): A shaman forms a mystical bond with the spirits of the world. She forms a lasting bond with a single spirit, which grants a number of abilities and defines many of her other class features. At 1st level, a shaman gains the spirit ability granted by her chosen spirit. She adds the spells granted by that spirit to the list of spells that she can cast using spirit magic. She also adds the hexes possessed by that spirit to the list of hexes that she can use with the hex and wandering hex class features. At 8th level, the shaman gains the abilities listed in the greater version of her selected spirit. At 16th level, the shaman gains the abilities listed for the true version of her selected spirit.
Deep Spirit: A deep shaman must choose the waves spirit. The deep shaman must choose a spirit animal with the aquatic subtype, and it gains the amphibious special quality instead of gaining the ability to breathe in water. A deep shaman gains Swim as a class skill. This alters spirit, spirit animal, and the shaman’s class skills. Spirit Animal (Ex): At 1st level, a shaman forms a close bond with a spirit animal tied to her chosen spirit. This animal is her conduit to the spirit world, guiding her along the path to enlightenment. The animal also aids a shaman by granting her a special ability. A shaman must commune with her spirit animal each day to prepare her spells. While the spirit animal does not store the spells like a witch’s familiar does, the spirit animal serves as her conduit to divine power. If a shaman’s spirit animal is slain, she cannot prepare new spells or use her spirit magic class feature until the spirit animal is replaced. Spirit Magic: A shaman can spontaneously cast a limited number of spells per day beyond those she prepared ahead of time. She has one spell slot per day of each shaman spell level she can cast, not including orisons. She can choose these spells from the list of spells granted by her spirits (see the spirit class feature and the wandering spirit class feature) at the time she casts them. She can enhance these spells using any metamagic feat that she knows, using up a higher-level spell slot as required by the feat and increasing the time to cast the spell. Spirit Magic Spells: hydraulic push (1st), slipstream (2nd), water breathing (3rd), wall of ice (4th), Hex: A shaman learns a number of magical tricks, called hexes, which grant her powers or weaken foes. At 2nd level, a shaman learns one hex. At 4th, 8th, Using a hex is a standard action that doesn’t provoke an attack of opportunity unless otherwise noted. The saving throw DC to resist a hex is equal to 10 + 1/2 the shaman’s level + the shaman’s Wisdom modifier. Aquatic Hexes (Su): When a deep shaman uses beckoning chill on a creature in the water, that creature becomes fatigued due to hypothermia for the duration, and it also becomes entangled if the creature takes damage from he deep shaman’s spirit abilities and from spells and abilities with the water descriptor. Her crashing waves hex applies to her spirit abilities that deal damage as if they were spells with the water descriptor, raising her effective shaman level for those abilities. Instead of mist’s shroud and watersight, she can select the two hexes below. This alters hexes. Evil Eye (Su): The shaman causes doubt to creep into the mind of a foe within 30 feet that she can see. The target takes a –2 penalty on one of the following (shaman’s choice): ability checks, AC, attack rolls, saving throws, or skill checks. This hex lasts a number of rounds equal to 3 + the shaman’s Wisdom modifier. A successful Will saving throw reduces this to just 1 round. At 8th level, the penalty increases to –4. This is a mind-affecting effect. Witch Hex: The shaman selects any one hex normally available through the witch’s hex class feature. She treats her shaman level as her witch level when determining the powers and abilities of the hex. She uses her Wisdom modifier in place of her Intelligence modifier for the hex. She cannot select major hexes or grand hexes using this ability. The shaman cannot select a witch hex that has the same name as a shaman hex. Slumber (Su): A witch can cause a creature within 30 feet to fall into a deep, magical sleep, as per the spell sleep. The creature receives a Will save to negate the effect. If the save fails, the creature falls asleep for a number of rounds equal to the witch's level. This hex can affect a creature of any HD. The creature will not wake due to noise or light, but others can rouse it with a standard action. This hex ends immediately if the creature takes damage. Whether or not the save is successful, a creature cannot be the target of this hex again for 1 day. Fluid Magic (Su): The shaman’s magic is not constrained by the reservoirs of magic that hold others back. She is able to prepare her spirit magic spells in her regular spell slots. If the shaman changes her wandering spirit, any prepared spirit magic spell belonging to that spirit becomes an open spell slot. Chant (Su): A shaman can chant as a move action. Any creature that is within 30 feet that is under the effects of the shaman’s charm, evil eye, fortune, fury, or misfortune hex has that effect’s duration extended by 1 round. A shaman cannot select both this hex and the witch’s cackle hex. Aquatic Spirit Abilities (Su): When used underwater, a deep shaman’s wave strike deals lethal bludgeoning damage and pushes the target away 5 feet + an additional 5 feet for every 6 shaman levels she has. At 11th level, whenever the deep shaman is underwater, all weapons she holds are treated as if they had the impact special ability instead of quenching. Instead of a swim speed and the ability to breathe underwater, fluid mastery provides tremorsense with a range of 30 feet while in the water, and when underwater, fluid mastery’s torrent deals 1d6 points of damage per shaman level in a 30-foot cone. This alters spirit ability and greater spirit ability. Wave Strike (Su): As a standard action, the shaman can perform a melee touch attack that drenches a creature and pushes it away. The opponent takes 1d6 points of nonlethal damage + 1 point for every 2 shaman levels they possess and is pushed 5 feet directly away from the shaman. This movement does not provoke attacks of opportunity. A shaman can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + her Charisma modifier. Greater Spirit Ability: Fluid Mastery (Su): The shaman gains Wandering Spirit (Su): At 4th level, a shaman can form a temporary bond with a spirit other than the one selected using her spirit class feature. She must make this selection each day when preparing her spells. While this feature is active, she gains the spirit ability granted by the spirit. She also adds the spells granted by that spirit to her list of spells that she can cast using spirit magic. She does not add the hexes from her wandering spirit to her list of hexes that she can choose from with the hex class feature. Ancestor's Council (Su): As a standard action the shaman can call upon her ancestors to provide advice and assistance to one ally within 30 feet. The ally gains a +2 bonus on any attack roll, saving throw, ability check, or skill check made before the beginning of the shaman’s next turn. The shaman can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + her Charisma bonus. Wandering Hex: At 6th level, a shaman can temporarily gain the use of one of the hexes possessed by either one of her spirits. She must make this selection each day when she prepares her spells. For the purposes of this ability, she can select any hex possessed by her spirit or wandering spirit. If she selects it from her wandering spirit, she loses the hex immediately if she bonds with another spirit, although she can then select a different hex to gain using this ability, from either her spirit or her new wandering spirit. Executioner Slayer Abilities:
Studied Target (Ex): A slayer can study an opponent he can see as a move action. The slayer then gains a +1 bonus on Bluff, Knowledge, Perception, Sense Motive, and Survival checks attempted against that opponent, and a +1 bonus on weapon attack and damage rolls against it. The DCs of slayer class abilities against that opponent increase by 1. A slayer can only maintain these bonuses against one opponent at a time; these bonuses remain in effect until either the opponent is dead or the slayer studies a new target.
Track (Ex): A slayer adds 1/2 his level (minimum 1) to Survival skill checks made to follow tracks. Slayer Talents: As a slayer gains experience, he learns a number of talents that aid him and confound his foes. Starting at 2nd level and every 2 levels thereafter, a slayer gains one slayer talent. Unless otherwise noted, a slayer cannot select an individual talent more than once. Talents marked with an asterisk add effects to a slayer's sneak attack. Only one of these talents can be applied to an individual attack, and the decision of which to use must be made before the attack roll is made. Trapfinding: The slayer gains Disable Device as a class skill. The slayer also gains the trapfinding and trap sense rogue abilities, using his slayer level as his effective rogue level. A rogue adds 1/2 her level to Perception skill checks made to locate traps and to Disable Device skill checks (minimum +1). A rogue can use Disable Device to disarm magic traps. Class Skills: A Sczarni executioner doesn’t receive Knowledge (dungeoneering) (Int), Knowledge (geography) (Int), Ride (Dex), or Survival (Wis) as class skills. Instead, he receives Appraise (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), and Escape Artist (Dex) in addition to the other standard slayer class skills. Bloodstained Hands (Ex): A Sczarni executioner must be evil. If he ever becomes nonevil, he loses this archetype and becomes a regular slayer. Focused Killer (Ex): At 1st level, a Sczarni executioner’s studied target bonuses and the DCs of his slayer abilities increase by 1 against humanoid opponents, but decrease by 1 against non-humanoid targets. This ability alters studied target. Race Traits:
Hag Racial Trait: Sea Lungs (Sea Hag): The changeling can hold her breath for a number of rounds equal to 3 × her Constitution before she risks drowning. (42 rounds, 14 * 3) Claws: Changelings’ fingernails are hard and sharp, granting them two claw attacks (1d4 points of damage each). Natural Armor: Changelings have a +1 natural armor bonus. Darkvision: Changelings can see in the dark up to 60 feet. Languages: Changelings begin play speaking Common and the primary language of their host societies. Traits:
Ilizmagorti Native (campaign): You grew up in the city of Ilizmagorti on Mediogalti Island, a pirate port infamous for both the scoundrels who visit it and the feared Red Mantis assassins who run it. You’ve been around pirates all your life, but you’ve learned to be wary in your dealings with people, as there’s no telling who might be a Red Mantis in disguise. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Sense Motive checks, and Sense Motive is a class skill for you. In addition, your familiarity with the pirate’s life allows you to make untrained Knowledge (local) checks regarding pirates or the region of the Shackles. Magical Knack (magic): You were raised, either wholly or in part, by a magical creature, either after it found you abandoned in the woods or because your parents often left you in the care of a magical minion. This constant exposure to magic has made its mysteries easy for you to understand, even when you turn your mind to other devotions and tasks. Pick a class when you gain this trait—your caster level in that class gains a +2 trait bonus as long as this bonus doesn’t raise your caster level above your current Hit Dice. Arcane Malignancies (drawback, racial): As changelings sense the awakening of the eerie powers they inherited from their hag progenitors, they are often mortified to discover terrifying and debilitating alterations to their physique. While the call seizes the changelings’ minds around the time their bodies begin maturing, the arcane malignancies that mar their features and extremities have nothing to do with puberty. Not every changeling develops a malignancy, and when a changeling does develop a malignancy, it is often unrelated to whatever traits her hag mother has. These transformations are more akin to a magical allergy, manifesting in response to the well of arcane energy bubbling away in the changeling’s core. 37: You grow an extra row of sharp, crooked teeth. The uneven set of your jaws gives you constant headaches. You take a –2 penalty on concentration checks and saving throws against pain effects. Child of the Streets (social): You grew up on the streets of a large city, and as a result you have developed a knack for picking pockets and hiding small objects on your person. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Sleight of Hand checks, and Sleight of Hand is always a class skill for you. Spirit Animal:
Hap Blue-Ringed Octopus Pilferer N Tiny outsider (aquatic, native) Init +5; Senses low-light vision; Perception +10 --------------------
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Feats: Improved Steal, Mobility, Multiattack, Weapon Finesse
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Ink Cloud (Ex): While within water, an octopus can emit a 5-foot-radius sphere of ink once per minute as a swift action. This ink provides total concealment and persists for 1 minute. Jet (Ex): The octopus can jet 60 feet in a straight line as a full-round action. This does not provoke attacks of opportunity. Poison (Ex) Bite—injury; save Fort DC 14; frequency 1/round for 6 rounds; effect 1 Str; cure 1 save. Spirit Animal (Ex): At 1st level, a shaman’s spirit animal gains specific abilities, depending upon the type of spirit selected by the shaman using her spirit class feature. These abilities affect the animal’s appearance and grant it special abilities that can aid it in serving the shaman and the spirit it represents and is connected to. These abilities are described in the spirit animal section of each individual spirit description. Pilferer Skills: A pilferer treats Disable Device, Escape Artist, and Sleight of Hand as class skills. Improved Steal (Ex): A pilferer gains Improved Steal as a bonus feat. This replaces alertness. Nondetection (Su): A pilferer is under the constant effect of nondetection with a caster level equal to its master’s class level. The DC of the caster level check to penetrate this nondetection effect is equal to 15 + the master’s caster level (DC 25). This replaces improved evasion. Share Spells: The shaman may cast a spell with a target of “You” on his familiar (as a touch spell) instead of on himself. A shaman may cast spells on his familiar even if the spells do not normally affect creatures of the familiar's type (magical beast). Empathic Link (Su): The master has an empathic link with his familiar to a 1 mile distance. The master can communicate empathically with the familiar, but cannot see through its eyes. Because of the link's limited nature, only general emotions can be shared. The master has the same connection to an item or place that his familiar does. Sneak (Ex): At 3rd level, a pilferer gains a competence bonus equal to half its master’s class level on Sleight of Hand and Stealth checks. This replaces deliver touch spells. Speak with Master (Ex): If the master is 5th level or higher, a familiar and the master can communicate verbally as if they were using a common language. Other creatures do not understand the communication without magical help. Master gains a +3 bonus on Swim checks. The skin of the shaman’s spirit animal constantly distorts, much as a pond’s surface ripples when drops of water fall gently into it. The animal gains Mobility as a bonus feat. The animal doesn’t need to meet the prerequisites for this feat. In addition, the animal Build History:
Hit Points: Max at first Level (10+2), Average from Levels 2-7 (1d10+5d8+12 = 40) + Level 8 (7+2) + Level 9 (6+2) + Level 10 (7+2) = 78
BAB +8 (Slayer +2, Shaman +6) Fortitude +9 (Slayer +3, Shaman +2.7, Con +2, Cloak of Resistance +2) Reflex +10 (Slayer +3, Shaman +2.7, Dex +3, Cloak of Resistance +2) Will +13 (Slayer +0.67, Shaman +6, Wis +5, Cloak of Resistance +2) Skills, Carmelia: (Class Skill + Ability Mod + Ranks + Misc - ACP) + Special Circumstance
Skills, Hap: (Class Skill + Ability Mod + Ranks + Misc)
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