Deathlings are small, foul creatures that look like pale, smoky grey goblins whose diet largely consists of carrion. They can often be found near places that the dead are buried, and even entire tribes have been found in particularly large tombs. There have also been reports of nomadic tribes of them following large armies, cleaning up the remains of the dead that haven't been buried. Despite their foul appearances, they are capable of reasonable interaction with other races, but rarely choose to do so unless it is in their best interests. Generally physically weak, they tend to gravitate towards spellcasting classes, and rare ones with blood bereft of magic and too dumb to learn wizardry tend to have a larcenous bent, picking locks and finishing off weak foes for their tribe to eat.
3 RP Monstrous Humanoid
-- Monstrous humanoids have the darkvision 60 feet racial trait.
-- Monstrous humanoids breathe, eat, and sleep.
0 RP Small Size
-- Small races gain a +1 size bonus to their AC, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, a –1 penalty on combat maneuver checks and to their CMD, and a +4 size bonus on Stealth checks. Small races have a space of 5 feet by 5 feet and a reach of 5 feet.
0 RP Normal Speed (30 ft)
1 RP Specialized Ability Modifiers (+2 CHA, +2 INT, -2 STR)
0 RP Standard (Common, Racial, plus 7 languages with high INT)
4 RP Advanced Charisma (+2 Racial bonus to CHA)
2 RP Bond to the Land (Underground) +2 Dodge to AC while in favored terrain
4 RP Shards of the Past (Know: Religion and Perception are class skills due to a close relationship with spirits attached to one's past lives) +2 on each
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A death mage is proficient with all simple weapons, as well as the falchion, flail, kama, net, nunchaku, scimitar, and scythe. Death mages are also proficient with light armor and shields (except tower shields). A death mage can cast death mage spells while wearing light armor and use a shield without incurring the normal arcane spell failure chance. Like any other arcane spellcaster, a death mage wearing medium or heavy armor incurs a chance of spell failure if the spell is question has a somatic component. A multiclass death mage still incurs the normal arcane spell failure chance for arcane spells received from other classes.
Spells: A death mage casts arcane spells drawn from the death mage spell list. A death mage must choose and prepare his spells ahead of time.
To prepare or cast a spell, the death mage must have a Charisma score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a death mage’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the death mage’s Charisma modifier.
A death mage can only cast a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. Her base daily spell allotment is given on Table: Death Mage. In addition, she receives bonus spells per day if she has a high Charisma score.
A death mage has a fairly limited spell list, but automatically learns all spells on that list when she is of the level needed to cast them. She must choose and prepare her spells ahead of time by getting 8 hours of rest and spending 1 hour meditating and communing with spirits of the dead. While meditating, the death mage decides which spells to prepare. No one, not even other death mages, can see or hear the spirits a death mage listens to while preparing her spells. Not even true seeing reveals them, as they exist only for the death mage that hears them.
Pale Road (Su): The spirits each death mage can hear all share a set of similar secrets, based on some aspect of death, dying, and the reactions the living have to the dead. The set of secrets known to each is called their pale road, and each death mage must select one pale road at 1st level. Once made, this selection cannot be changed. As the death mage travels down this pale road at the constant instruction of her spirit guides, she masters a special set of powers becoming a lord or lady of one aspect of death.
Ghoul Mage: Ghoul mages draw power draw from the dead and undead and us it to weaken or paralyze the living.
Eat the Dead (Su): You can gain strength by consuming the recently departed. As a full round action that provokes an attack of opportunity you can eat part of an adjacent creature of the aberration, animal, dragon, fey, humanoid, magical beast, monstrous humanoid, undead (corporeal only), or vermin type that died no longer than one round per death mage level you possess. This allows you to regain one hit point for every hit die or level possessed by the creature you feast upon (to a minimum of one hit point healed). After using this power, you gain a +1 morale bonus to all attack rolls, saving throws and skill checks for one minute per level. At 10th level, the bonus increases to a +2 bonus. You may use this power a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Charisma modifier.
Sickening Touch (Su): As a standard action, you can make a target ill by touching it. Using this ability requires a touch attack that forces a living creature to make a Fortitude save (DC 10 + ½ your death mage level + your Charisma modifier). On a failed save, the target is sickened for one round per death mage level. A neutralize poison spell removes the sickened effect. Creatures that are immune to poison are unaffected by this ability. You may use this power a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Charisma modifier.
Voice of the Dead (Su): At 2nd level, the death mage’s ability to hear and understand spirits of the dead is developed enough to allow her to speak in this tongue as well. As the spirits themselves are mindless, talking to them serves no purpose (though many death mages do so anyway). Death mages may use the language to understand and be understood by undead creatures (all of which know the voice of the dead as a language, even if it is not listed), and to communicate with each other. Additionally, language is no longer a barrier when the death mage uses a speak with dead spell.
Death Mage Spell List
Death mages gain access to the following spells. Spells marked with an asterisk (*) are new spells from the Genius Guide to the Death Mage or the Adventurer's Handbook: Genius Guide Volume 1.
5th-Level
blight, dance macabre V*, false life (greater), inflict moderate wounds (mass), insect plague, magic jar, shadow evocation, slay living, symbol of pain, waves of fatigue.
6th-Level
circle of death, create undead, dance macabre VI*, eyebite, harm, inflict serious wounds (mass), shadow conjuration (improved)*, shadow walk, symbol of fear, undeath to death.
7th-Level
control undead, dance macabre VII*, destruction, finger of death, inflict critical wounds (mass), power word blind, shadow conjuration (greater), symbol of weakness, waves of exhaustion.
