Edit - Fixed a few phrases I accidentally left out
So I wanted to get some input on this homebrew prestige class me & my GM are working on.
I am playing an undead bloodline sorcerer in our Thursday night game & going for a necromancer bent(taking a crap ton of necromancy spells).
After looking throughout both 3.5 & pathfinder I was unable to find any prestige class that really seem to fit the necromancer I had in mind, which specifically was like the Diablo 2 Necro.
So heres a rough summary of what we have so far. This is based off the Dragon Disciple out of the Core Pathfinder book. I would love feedback & suggestions on this so me & my GM can fine tune it.
(working title
Born with the curse of the undead in their blood, not all sorcerers become malevolent creatures like the dead things that they are descendant from. But a rare few of those sorcerers not only accept their unnatural heritage, but embrace it with their very soul.
The Sorcerous Necromancer is a true master of magics of death. He bends both undead creatures & necromantic magics to his very will, & thus is the most skilled user of necromancy that exists.
Requirements
One level of Sorcerer: Undead Bloodline
Alignment: Any Evil
Knowledge: Arcana - 5 Ranks
Knowledge: Religion - 5 Ranks
Spell Craft - 5 Ranks
Stats(work in progress)
Weak BAB
Strong Will Save
Weak Reflex/Fortitude Save
Level Guide
1 - Immunity To Death +1, Necromantic General +1
2 - Bonus Necromancy Spell, Necromantic General +1, Bloodline Feat
3 - Will Of The Dead 1st, Beam Of Undeath 1st
4 - Immunity To Death +1, Bonus Necromancy Spell
5 - Necromantic Minion, Necromantic General +1, Bloodline Feat
6 - Will Of The Dead 2nd, Bonus Necromancy Spell, Beam Of Undeath 2nd
7 - Immunity To Death +1, Necromantic General +1
8 - Bonus Necromancy Spell, Necromantic General + 1
9 - Will Of The Dead 3rd, Beam Of Undeath 3rd
10 - Immunity to Death +1
Class Features
Spells Per Day : As per the Dragon Disciple Class Feature of the same name
Necroplasm: As per the Dragon Disciple Class Feature Blood Of Dragons but with the undead bloodline replacing draconic
Bloodline Feats: As per the Dragon Disciple Class Feature but with the undead bloodline feats
Immunity to Death: The Sorcerous Necromancer has mastered his powers over the magic of death so well that his very body defies spells cast against him by rival necromancers. Spells of the necromancy school cast at the Sorcerous Necromancer find their DC increased by +1 for each rank of this class feature(1st, 4th, 7th, & 10th level)
At 7th level the sorcerous necromancer may make a Will Save against necromancy spells that normally would not need a DC check(such as attack spells like Ray Of Enfeeblement). If he makes this save the spell is negated as his body merely absorbs the unnatural energies.
Will Of The Dead: At 3rd, 6th, & 9th level the Sorcerous Necromancer may take one Necromancy[/]i spell he [i]already knows previous to gaining that level & transform it into a spell like ability. He may then use that spell like ability 3+ his charisma modifer times a day. He also removes the spell from his spell list & selects a new spell to replace it as if he had replaced it like the Sorcerer Class Feature.
Necromantic General(working title for now)
The power of the Sorcerous Necromancer surpasses other spellcasters immensely, their will allowing them to tap far more necromantic energy at once then others. At 1st, 2nd, 5th, 7th, & 8th level the Sorcerous Necromancer gains a +1 Hit Dice for determining how many Undead Creatures he may control at once.
Bonus Necromancy Spells: At 2nd, 4th, 6th, & 8th level the Sorcerous Necromancer may select a bonus Necromancy spell regardless of class restrictions to add to his spell list. He is still limited by his caster level when he chooses this spell(Example, if he is only able to cast 4th level spells at his current level, then he may only select from 4th level or lower Necromancy Spells)
Beam Of Undeath: At 3rd level the Sorcerous Necromancer gains a ray of negative energy attack that may be used 3+ his Charisma mod times a day. This ray only affects undead, causing 2D4 damage to them & healing the Sorcerous Necromancer for the amount of damage inflicted. The unholy power that animates the undead that this power hits is literally sucked out of them into the caster. Non undead creatures that are hit by this attack get a sudden case of the creepys, but otherwise are unaffected("I've got a bad feeling about this" :P)
This attack increases in power by 1D4 at 6th & 9th level.
Necromantic Minion: The most coveted ability of the Sorcerous Necromancer is the ability to create loyal intelligent undead. As long as the sorcerous necromancer creates the undead he has the option during the ritual to mix a bit of his own soul into the necromantic magic(similar to how a summoner binds with his eidolon). The result is an undead servant that is utterly loyal to his master, even if it is intelligent undead.
Only one Necromantic Minion may exist at a time, due to the taxing nature of the ritual. Since the ritual requires the caster to be the creator of the minion, things that make themselves undead of their own accord(such as liches) can never become Necromantic Minions.
At any point the Sorcerous Necromancer may release the minion from his control, pulling that lost piece of his soul back to him. The minion then becomes an uncontrolled undead creature & will follow its own accord(even attacking its former master if it wishes).
The undead do NOT share a telepathic link with the Sorcerous Necromancer, but are compelled to do as commanded verbally by the Sorcerous Necromancer. Intelligent Undead will never take actions that they know would cause or bring harm(even in the most round about way) to their master.
Horrible Treatment of your Necromantic Minion(intelligent ones only) can result in the minion forcibly breaking the bond. Treat this the same as the command undead spell in terms of no suicidal orders, etc. If the minion is ordered constantly to do things that are obviously suicidal it breaks free from the Necromancers control(most likly going for his jugular too)
(working title)How about a cool undead name instead? Such as: Wraith
Clarify. As per the Dragon Disciple Class Feature, Blood of Dragons, but with undead bloodline replacing draconic.
Class FeaturesSpells Per Day : As per the Dragon Disciple Class Feature of the same name
Necroplasm: As per the Dragon Disciple Class Feature but with the undead bloodline replacing draconic
Bloodline Feats: As per the Dragon Disciple Class Feature of the same name but with the undead bloodline feats
Limit to Necromancer School, and you should actually generate a list, as some spells as spell-like abilities, is just way too powerful. Alternately, limit to a level. 3rd level, a 1st level spell. 6th level, a 2nd level spell. Etc.
Will Of The Dead: At 3rd, 6th, & 9th level the Sorcerous Necromancer may take one spell he already knows previous to gaining that level & transform it into a spell like ability. He may then use that spell like ability 3+ his charisma modifer times a day. He also removes the spell from his spell list & selects a new spell to replace it as if he had replaced it like the Sorcerer Class Feature.
Better idea might be to give him Leadership as a Bonus Feat, but limit his minions to undead creatures... ?
Necromantic General(working title for now)
The power of the Sorcerous Necromancer surpasses other spellcasters immensely, their will allowing them to tap far more necromantic energy at once then others. At 1st, 2nd, 5th, 7th, & 8th level the Sorcerous Necromancer gains a +1 Hit Dice for determining how many Undead Creatures he may control at once.
Bonus Necromancy Spells: At 2nd, 4th, 6th, & 8th level the Sorcerous Necromancer may select a bonus Necromancy spell regardless of class restrictions to add to his spell list. He is still limited by his caster level when he chooses this spell(Example, if he is only able to cast 4th level spells at his current level, then he may only select from 4th level or lower Necromancy Spells)Beam Of Undeath: At 3rd level the Sorcerous Necromancer gains a ray of negative energy attack that may be used 3+ his Charisma mod times a day. This ray only affects undead, causing 2D4 damage to them & healing the Sorcerous Necromancer for the amount of damage inflicted. The unholy power that animates the undead that this power hits is literally sucked out of them into the caster. Non undead creatures that are hit by this attack get a sudden case of the creepys, but otherwise are unaffected("I've got a bad feeling about this" :P)
This attack increases in power by 1D4 at 6th & 9th level.
Necromantic Minion: The most coveted ability of the Sorcerous Necromancer is the ability to create loyal intelligent undead. As long as the sorcerous necromancer creates the undead he has the option during the ritual to mix a bit of his own soul into the necromantic magic(similar to how a summoner binds with his eidolon). The result is an undead servant that is utterly loyal to his master, even if it is intelligent undead.
Only one Necromantic Minion may exist at a time, due to the taxing nature of the ritual. Since the ritual requires the caster to be the creator of the minion, things that make themselves undead of their own accord(such as liches) can never become Necromantic Minions.
At any point the Sorcerous Necromancer may release the minion from his control, pulling that lost piece of his soul back to him. The minion then becomes an uncontrolled undead creature & will follow its own accord(even attacking its former master if it wishes).
The undead do NOT share a telepathic link with the Sorcerous Necromancer, but are compelled to do as commanded verbally by the Sorcerous Necromancer. Intelligent Undead will never take actions that they know would cause or bring harm(even in the most round about way) to their master.
Horrible Treatment of your Necromantic Minion(intelligent ones only) can result in the minion forcibly breaking the bond. Treat this the same as the command undead spell in terms of no suicidal orders, etc. If the minion is ordered constantly to do things that are obviously suicidal it breaks free from the Necromancers control(most likly going for his jugular too)
What level is the Necromantic Minion?
Also, I think you should change the prerequisites... I think you should require the Undead Bloodline, but also Channel Energy (Negative), rather than skill checks. Then expand the Spells per Day to include Cleric Spells, limited to Necromancy Spells only.
Ie: Necromantic Spells: The Necromancer (or Wraith) continues spell progression as a Sorcerer, as well as Cleric Spell progression, but limited to only Necromancy spells. (or some such).
Also, I think you should change the prerequisites... I think you should require the Undead Bloodline, but also Channel Energy (Negative), rather than skill checks. Then expand the Spells per Day to include Cleric Spells, limited to Necromancy Spells only.
Ie: Necromantic Spells: The Necromancer (or Wraith) continues spell progression as a Sorcerer, as well as Cleric Spell progression, but limited to only Necromancy spells. (or some such).
I never liked the clerical route that the True Necromancer took. The whole channeling energy thing just doesnt fit the route I wanted to go with this.
This was an attempt at a purely arcane(thematically) necromancer. I figure hes found arcane ways to duplicate divine style spells.
What level is the Necromantic Minion?
That I am not sure of. Since he can release the minion & make a new one later on I think it would just be out of the beastiary unless it was one of the undead that acts as a template?
Will Of The Dead
Limit to Necromancer School, and you should actually generate a list, as some spells as spell-like abilities, is just way too powerful. Alternately, limit to a level. 3rd level, a 1st level spell. 6th level, a 2nd level spell. Etc.
Knew I missed something typing all that mass up. We had this noted on a piece of paper chicken scratch style :P
We are debating whether to make a list or not for this class feature, as dependent on when you start leveling in the prestige class could give you some really power abilities.
Forgot to add that only instantaneous spells would be able to become spell like abilities. No animating dead at will or some such stuff.
Gahhhhh the typos & things I somehow missed. How did I not type in blood of dragons? XD
What exactly are you giving up here ? As far as I can see you do not actually lose anything, just gain more powers.
Something still feels off with the class. I'm trying to place myself into the shoes of someone wanting to play a Necromancer and have to say that the one thing I'd MOST want if I were one is the Lich Template. Maybe that would be a good replacement for the Minion power (which seems a bit too much of a steal from Summoners, and not really thematic)...
9th level: Lich Ritual and once completed, all it includes from Darkvision to immunities.
(just an idea of course, don't want to rip your Prestige apart if you put a lot of work into what you have so far).
I like his powers that grants him more minions (though I think granting the Leadership Feat is a better way to do it), and a couple of AtWills, which should be predefined, but the rest seems more like stuff thrown in to make it a Prestige Class. Maybe consider having ONLY the ability to create hoards of undead, a few At Wills, and end-game with the Lich Template. Then it doesn't feel like you just granted him a whole bunch of stuff in order to make a Prestige Class and instead, you had an end-goal (Lichdom).
One other thing I just thought about. The Dragon disciple gets only 7 out of 10 levels worth of spell progression, because he has a medium Base Attack Bonus. Your class is pure magic (no claws, armour, etc...), you might want to change yours to be more like the Trickster or Archer... Especially if you don't do the Lich thing.
Personally if I was going to make a necromancer like this I'd look to the Dread Necromancer (heroes of Horror, 3.5) and the Witch in the APG for inspiration and mechanics to make an alternate class.
Many of the Dread Necromancer's spells and abilities seem suitable for the concept, I'd mix in class abilities with Hexes / Curses the necromancer can use, possibly find some inspiration in the oracle class as well, especially the curse and Bones theme.
Give him sorcerer like spell progression with access to all cleric and wizard necromancy spells and a limited selection of spells that fit thematically.
I'd also use the favored class option for human sorcerors to get additional spells known.
Discard light armor proficiency, and stick with D6 hitdice.
What exactly are you giving up here ? As far as I can see you do not actually lose anything, just gain more powers.
The new powers replace all the draconic specific powers of the Dragon Disciple. We found it was a good idea to base the class off that since it was the closest thing to a build of what we wanted.
What exactly are you giving up here ? As far as I can see you do not actually lose anything, just gain more powers.The new powers replace all the draconic specific powers of the Dragon Disciple. We found it was a good idea to base the class off that since it was the closest thing to a build of what we wanted.
I meant compared to continuing your bloodline as a sorcerer, the dragon disciple by comparison gives up 3 levels of spellcasting to get their goodies. So what do you give up here ?
I meant compared to continuing your bloodline as a sorcerer, the dragon disciple by comparison gives up 3 levels of spellcasting to get their goodies. So what do you give up here ?What exactly are you giving up here ? As far as I can see you do not actually lose anything, just gain more powers.The new powers replace all the draconic specific powers of the Dragon Disciple. We found it was a good idea to base the class off that since it was the closest thing to a build of what we wanted.
Thats not true. The dragon disciple gives up the three levels for the higher BAB, the rest is even steven. Same here.
Reworking a few things. Beam of Undeath & Immunity to Death I feel are pretty solid.
I am looking to retool the Necromantic Minion class feature, as after a bit of thought it just doesnt seem to fit. So I am tossing that one out & starting from scratch.
Augmented Necromancy(Replaces Necromantic Minion)
Being a master of necromantic magics, the Sorcerous Necromancer creates far more powerful undead. At 1st, 3rd, 6th & 9th level undead created by the Sorcerous Necromancer receive a +1 to both their Strength & Charisma scores.
Necromantic General was a crap name & after reading the animate dead spell a bit more in depth realized I didnt have the scope of it right. Heres the new version.
Unfathomable Command
Normally a spell caster may only control 4 HD multiplied by their caster level of undead at one time. The power of the Sorcerous Necromancer surpasses other spellcasters immensely, their will allowing them to control far more necromantic energies then other spell casters. Starting at 1st level a Sorcerous Necromancer may control 5 HD multiplied by his caster level of undead at one time. This increases to 6 HD times their level at 5th, & 7HD times their level at 10th. He must still gain control of these undead by normal arcane means(command undead, control undead, animate dead, etc).
Spells per Day(Adjusted this)
As per the Dragon Disciple Class Feature of the same name, only he gains this at each level instead.
Will of the Dead(an addition for balance)
Spells he selects must be able to be cast normally without materials. This means that any spell that could be cast without materials via the Eschew Materials Feat can be taken.
Will of the Dead is still too powerful. You should really list the spells they can do or choose from. Stuff like Bestow Curse is just too powerful to be casting that all day long. (which is pretty much what 3 + 4+ equates to). Any spell that does more damage than 1d6 or 2d4, or that stacks penalties on a target, shouldn't be that castable. I'd much rather see Animate Dead (which requires an expensive Onyx) be a non-component repeatable at-will cast spell like ability than a spell like Bestow Curse. (Corpses still have to be present afterall)