What the Acolyte of the Skin does with fiendish flesh, and the Pale Master begins with his unholy graft of death, the Undead Aspirant does with grafted necro-flesh. As they become more attuned to this flesh, the aspirant becomes more like the undead, but over time, and by retaining their life as long as they do, they can gain their powers more quickly, whie still managing to avoid some of the more serious risks that most undead must fear. The greatest benefit that this class offers is that anyone can manage it. No otherwise unuseful feats, high levels of spellcasting abilities, or anyof that is required, as long as that vital scrap of undeath is harvested and someone can and will perform the ritual. Thus, one can be an undead fighter, rogue, or monk.
Depending upon the way an undead Aspirant chooses to advance, they may either look like the rotting-corpse-walking or what they otherwise did before their transformation.
Hit Die: d8
Requirements:
To qualify to become an Undead Aspirant (Und), the character must meet the following criteria.
• Base Save Bonus: Will +5*
• Skills: Knowledge (undead) 5 ranks.
• Feats: .
• Special: collect a sample of flesh or fluid from an active undead creature.
• Special: Must perform or have performed upon themselves the Ritual of the Fusion (see below). If the Aspirant to be is a spellcaster, they may perform the ritual upon themselves.
Class Skills: The Dracolich siege-master's class skills are Alchemy (Int), Concentration (Con), Craft(Int), Knowledge (Int), Profession (Wis), Scry (Int), Search (Int), Spellcraft (Int), Spot (Int).
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Dracolich siege-masters gain no proficiency in any weapon or armor.
Skill Points per level: 2 + Int modifier
| Class Level | BAB | Fort | Ref | Will | Special | ||||||
| 1 | +0 | +0 | +0 | +2 | Larval Necroplasm | +1 level of existing class | |||||
| 2 | +1 | +0 | +0 | +3 | Larval Necrodermis | ||||||
| 3 | +1 | +1 | +1 | +3 | Adult Necrodermis, Gentle Repose or Horrific Appearance | ||||||
| 4 | +2 | +1 | +1 | +4 | Adult Necroplasm | ||||||
| 5 | +2 | +1 | +1 | +4 | Full Circle |
CLASS FEATURES
All of the following are class features of the Ringmaster prestige class.
Hit Dice: This represents the beginning of the increase to Hit Dice gained from the status of the undead.
Larval Necroplasm (Ex): At 1st level, an undead aspirant's graft has been assimilated into the body and is beginning to alter the surrounding tissue and fluids. The effects to the aspirant include making their blood useless to vampires and anything else that consumes blood, causing the drinker to vomit up anything they drank, plus proboably more than that. Also, due to the alteration, the undead aspirant becomes immune to all nonmagical poisons.
Larval Necrodermis (Ex): As the tissue and fluid within alters, it now finally starts affecting the outermost tissue; the skin. This is where most undead aspirants begin the dessication process, unless they choose the gentle repose ability below. The other effects this has on the body include developng damage reduction 5/+1. Also, the aspirant becomes resistant to ability drain and level drain from other undead creatures. However, the larval necroflesh is very fragile in regards to sunlight, and the aspirant is in extreme pain while exposed to it. Consider his vision half its normal range, and consider him affected the the confusion spell while in sunlight.
Mature Necrodermis (Ex): The character now has flesh and hide like the undead. They may not look it (through the gentle repose ability below), but they are as tough now as any wight or lich, physically speaking. They now possess damage reduction 10/+2. Also, they are now immune to all energy drain and ability drain attacks. Sunlight no longer proves a problem, as the necroflesh has now grown resistant to it.
Mature Necroplasm (Ex): The glowing green goo that coarses through the body of the aspirant is now as powerful as it will become. At this point, the character becomes immune to all poisons and diseases, magical or otherwise. They also gain fast healing 3 from this gel they once called blood. They lose their need for a maximum age, but they still take aging penalties.
Gentle Repose (Ex): Some people seek to live forever to maintain physical beauty, while others simply want to retain their living physical appearance to better enjoy eternity among the living. With this ability, the aspirant does not decay/erode away. Their flesh remains warm and pliant. This effect duplicates the effects of a permanent gentle repose spell. The aspirant must choose between this ability or horrifying appearance.
Horrifying Appearance (Ex): For those who choose to forget about such unimportant things as physical appearance and beauty, the path of Aspiration continues to decay an erode the body. Now, the aspirant can use that fact to scare enemies. The aspirant must choose between this ability or gentle repose.
Full Circle: At the apex of the path, the aspirant has now done what they have desired all along; become an undead creature. They gain damage reduction 20/+3, fast healing 8, and the undead special quality, which changes their Hit Dice to d12, rather than whatever else their class had. As undead, they no longer gain aging penalties. In addition, any touch attack that an undead of the flesh the aspirant possesses would be capable of using is now usable, such as a lich's paralysis touch or a wights energy drain. If they do not have any touch attacks, such as a revenant, then neither will the aspirant. In many respects, at this point the chracter will be an undead of the type that the flesh they used is, except that they maintain any ability scores and statistics they had (minus Constitution) and they may not be an ugly, festering mound of walking meat, like a zombie). Also, any specific powers, such as a revenant's vengeful strike or a lich's phylactery and spellcasting (unless they already had spellcasting abiility) will notr be possessed. Things like a mummy's rot touch or a vampire's Constitution drain will, though. Oddities, such as a bodak's death gaze will not be gained.
Benefits and Penalties of Undead Aspiration
• Advancement: Undead characters level up a great deal slower than living ones, which makes sense, but the spark of life in the undead aspirant allows them to level up faster than the more powerful undead, such as vampires and liches, which have ECL's of something like 5+. Also, they may continue to advance in any class, and gain new ones, as life allows them to retain their flexibility of thought. Undead cannot gain new classes, and some cannot advance at all.
• Form: The undead aspirant becomes a more durable bastard regardless of his class, and any class can benefit from that. Also, as everyone with a lick of sense knows, most characters must inevitably spend their ability increase in their primary Ability score and Constitution, lest they die after a very short career. The Undead Aspirant, however, can plan for the future, knowing what will happen to their Hit Dice and Constitution, thus they can afford to spend in some other Ability score. Any class except the druid and paladin can benefit from this prestige class (these two become ex-class members due to energy changes and alignment issues respectively). A fighter will become more durable for combat while a wizard will gain more health and abilities then otherwise.
• Spell Defense: .
• Shared Senses: .
• Positive/Negative Energy Spells: The place wher an undead aspirant stands is a precarious one. Though they benefit from several undead abilities as they advance, they are not undead, and so negative energy spells still inflict damage, not heal, until 10th level anyway. However, positive energy spells do not appreciate the undead portions of the body, and the feeling is mutual. As this is the case, if anyone casts a positive energy spell upon the aspirant, they must subtract the level of aspirant the aspirant has from their spellcraft roll, but if the spell works, it may heal the aspirant. If the roll fails by less than the level of aspirant, then the aspirant is affected by the spell as if he were undead. See chart below.
• The Change: Having one's body transform slowly, and intentionally, into an undead form is painful as all Hells (yes, all nine of them). Thus, each time the character levels up in this class, they must succeed a Fortitude save (DC 13+Und level) and a Will save (DC 15+Und level). In practice, the body adapts easier then the mind, though this prestige class allows people to not have to spend on Constitution, so that may also be difficult.
| Energy Type | Failed Roll | Failed Roll by Less Than Und Level | Succeed Roll | ||||
| Positive | Spell Fails | Affects the Aspirant as if he were undead. | Works normally, but ignores undead parts. | ||||
| Negative | Spell Fails | Affects the Aspirant as if he were living. | Works as if the aspirant were undead. |
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