so i am currently working on a new base class called the Pariah, they specialize in altering them selves and their weapon.
what i have so far is it will be a full combat class (d10hd, full base attack) they gain evolution points to alter themselves similarly to the edilon of the summoner base class, and they gain a weapon that is alive and they also have evolution points to alter their weapon.
my problem is other than their weapon i am having some trouble coming up with some class abilities that are not based around their evolutions. i have plenty of ideas for their evolutions but no ideas for their class abilities. i would love some ideas.
the fluff is that they draw on a power from the depths of the aberrant world and slowly become an aberration.
You're fluff description is a little vague, but what I would do is build the class around a give/take relationship between the Pariah and his weapon. Stuff like it drains his hit points to deal extra damage, or temporarily takes his sight to blind opponents.
Just my 2 cp.
what i am really looking for is a core class ability much like all the other classes (sneak attack, rage, channel energy, ect. ect.)
but i am having difficulty coming up with one that will fit the class.
many of the ideas i keep having will work better as an evolution.
What about something like Manifest Weapon? Every odd numbered level, the Pariah gains the ability to manifest a certain weapon variant for a limited number of rounds. All previous weapon variants also gain a competence bonus as time goes on, too, sort of like the fighter's weapon training ability.
thanks for the ideas but not really the feel i want.
Kinda reminds me of the Warshaper Prc- druid variant, able to grow various arms/claws/tentacles etc as they went on. You could include stuff like a lower chance of criticals due to bizarre anatomy, alternate movement modes, bonuses to certain skills based on physical attributes (Bunny Legs give +10ft move and +3 to jump), have the weapon be able to shift reach/damage type/materials X time per day, etc.
The main downside to this is that you will end up with a class that can do alot of things reasonably well, and can possibly be powergamed into a monster, and step on the rest of the parties toes while it's at it. Versatility can be a bad thing for non-mechanical reasons :)