Prestige Classes

SKYLORD

An elf crusader, the skylord uses his kinship with creatures of the sky and the power of the winds to fight evil. His ties with the elven community are generally loose at best, since he sees much more urgency in the day-to-day events of the world. This point of view is often lost on the elven lords who would prefer to insulate themselves from the affairs of the shorter-lived races. Elves who become skylords often come from the ranks of barbarians, fighters, druids, and rangers. Soaring above the world of men, the skylord observes all. From such a vantage point, the skylord learns to appreciate the beauty of the world below, ply the winds, and use the rage of storms to his advantage. He can quickly disappear by cloaking himself in clouds to avoid his foes. During a battle, his presence inspires confidence in all airborne allies who fight at his side. The skylord often serves as an aerial scout, watching the movements of evil armies and studying areas not easily reached by land. He is also a courier, conveying messages across great distances much more quickly than would otherwise be possible without the use of magic. The skylord truly shines when evil bears its ugly head in the sky, but when necessary, he is a capable fighter indoors or underground.

Hit Die: d10.

Requirements

To qualify to become a skylord, a character must fulfill all of the following criteria.

Alignment: Any good.

Race: Elf or half-elf.

Base Attack Bonus: +7.

Skills: Handle Animal 10 ranks, Ride 10 ranks.

Feats: Mounted Combat, either Mounted Archery or Ride-By Attack, one exalted feat.

Special: The character must spend 1 week living and meditating atop a mountain.

Class Skills

The skylord's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Balance (Dex), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (all skills, taken individually) (Int), Listen (Wis), Ride (Dex), Spot (Wis), and Survival (Wis).

Skill Points at Each Level: 2 + Int modifier.

Table: The Skylord

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the skylord prestige class.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A skylord is proficient with all simple and martial weapons, all types of armor, and shields.

Spells per Day/Spells Known: At every second level, a skylord gains new spells per day (and spells known, if applicable) as if he had also gained a level in a spellcasting class he belonged to before adding the prestige class. He does not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained (improved chance of controlling or rebuking undead, metamagic or item creation feats, hit points beyond those he receives from the prestige class, and so on), except for an increased effective level of spellcasting. If a character had more than one spellcasting class before becoming a skylord, he must decide to which class he adds the new level for purposes of determining spells per day.

Call Flying Mount (Su): At 1st level as a full-round action, the skylord can call a flying mount to serve in his crusade against evil. This mount can be a celestial giant eagle, celestial giant owl, or celestial pegasus (consult the Skylord’s Mounts sidebar for details). The mount remains with the skylord until it is slain or dismissed. It requires food and rest, and the skylord is responsible for tending to its needs.

Calling a mount is a conjuration (calling) effect. If the mount dies, the skylord can either have the mount raised from the dead or call another mount. The skylord may only call a replacement mount after living and meditating atop a mountain for 1 week.

Eyes of the Eagle (Ex): A skylord has the keen eyesight of an eagle. While airborne, a skylord receives a +4 insight bonus on Spot checks.

Ride the Wind (Ex): At 2nd level, a skylord becomes a master of the winds, guiding his mount through them with ease. While riding a flying mount, the skylord’s penalties on ranged attacks in windy conditions are reduced by 2 (no penalty in strong winds, –2 penalty in severe winds). The skylord can make ranged attacks in windstorms, albeit at a –4 penalty. In hurricanes, the ranged attack penalty increases to –8. Neither the skylord nor his mount take penalties on Listen checks in windstorms and hurricanes.

Both the skylord and his mount can move normally in severe winds and windstorms (instead of being checked), and hurricane winds reduce the flying speed of the skylord’s mount by half.

Improved Mounted Combat (Ex): At 3rd level, a skylord’s skill at mounted combat improves, enabling him to better protect his mount. This ability works as the Mounted Combat feat, except that the skylord’s Ride check receives a +2 bonus. The bonus improves to +4 at 5th level, +6 at 7th level, and +8 at 9th level.

Deadly Charge (Ex): At 4th level, a skylord deals an extra 2d6 points of damage on a successful attack made during a charge. The skylord must be riding a flying mount to deal the extra damage.

Storm Kinship (Su): At 6th level, a skylord is less likely to lose his bearings in a storm. He retains full visibility during rains and storms and does not take the usual penalties on Search, Spot, and Listen checks (see Weather in the Dungeon Master’s Guide). This ability is not imparted to the skylord’s mount.

Summon Tempest (Sp): At 10th level, once per week, the skylord can summon a tempest (as described on page 193 of the Monster Manual II). This ability is otherwise similar to the summon monster I spell. Use the skylord’s character level to determine the effect’s range and duration.

SKYLORD’S MOUNT

A skylord’s mount is superior to a normal creature of its kind and has special powers, as described below.

Skylord’s Mount Basics: Use the base statistics for a creature of the mount’s kind, but make changes to take into account the attributes and characteristics summarized on the table and described below.

Bonus HD: Extra 10-sided (d10) Hit Dice, each of which gains a Constitution modifier, as normal. Extra Hit Dice improve the mount’s base attack bonus, base save bonuses, and celestial creature special qualities (damage reduction, energy resistance, and spell resistance). A mount’s base attack bonus is equal to that of a fighter of a level equal to the mount’s Hit Dice. A mount has good Fortitude and Reflex saves (treat it as a character whose level equals the mount’s HD). The mount doesn’t gain any extra skills or feats for bonus Hit Dice.

Natural Armor Adj.: The number on the table is an improvement to the mount’s existing natural armor bonus.

Str Adj.: Add this value to the mount’s Strength score.

Empathic Link (Su): A skylord has an empathic link with his mount out to a distance of up to 1 mile. The skylord cannot see through the mount’s eyes, but they can communicate empathically. Because of this empathic link, the skylord has the same connection to an item or place that his mount does, just as with a master and his familiar (see Familiars in the Player’s Handbook).

Share Spells: At the skylord’s option, he may have any spell (but not any spell-like ability) he casts on himself also affect his mount. The mount must be within 5 feet at the time of casting to receive the benefit. If the spell or effect has a duration other than instantaneous, it stops affecting the mount if it moves farther than 5 feet away and will not affect the mount again even if it returns to the skylord before the duration expires.

Additionally, the skylord may cast a spell with a target of “You” on his mount (as a touch range spell) instead of on himself. A skylord and his mount can share spells even if the spells normally do not affect magical beasts.

Improved Natural Attacks: The damage dealt by each of the mount’s natural attacks increases by one step. For example, a giant eagle mount with this ability would roll 1d8 instead of 1d6 for claw damage and 1d10 instead of 1d8 for bite damage.

Improved Fly Speed (Ex): The mount’s fly speed increases by 10 feet.

Deadly Charge (Ex): The skylord’s mount deals an extra 2d6 points of damage on a successful attack made during a charge.

Spell Resistance (Su): A mount’s spell resistance equals the skylord’s character level + 5.

Immunities (Su): A skylord’s mount is immune to hold, paralysis, sleep, charms, and compulsions.

Bonus Feat: The mount gains one of the following feats as a bonus feat, provided it meets the prerequisites for the feat: Flyby Attack, Hover, Multiattack, or Wingover.