Prestige Classes

HORIZON WALKER

The horizon walker is an unceasing traveler to the universe’s most dangerous places. As her journeys take her from place to place, she adapts to become one with her environment. In time, she develops a mystic connection with the ground beneath her. But she is by no means tied to a particular place; her restless feet are ever leading her toward the horizon, where new adventures await. Horizon walkers tend to be hard to surprise or impress, because they’ve seen so many wonders during their travels. It’s common for a horizon walker to have an outward attitude of “been there, done that.” But horizon walkers are gripped by an unquenchable wanderlust, so they’re always in the midst of a journey or planning their next one. As they travel, horizon walkers develop a magical resonance with the terrain that surrounds them, making them unparalleled guides and scouts. And they’re formidable foes when their travels take them into danger, able to use the terrain they know so well to good advantage. Rangers and bards take up the path of the horizon walker more often than other characters, but that’s more because they appreciate the wanderer’s life, not because the path of the horizon walker is particularly specialized. A fair number of horizon walkers were barbarians who strayed from their native lands or rogues who found their skills useful on the road. Occasionally a druid will adopt the prestige class, though most are loath to do so because they sacrifice their spellcasting advancement. You’ll find horizon walkers on the road, or in places so forbidding that roads don’t exist. They rarely stay in one place for long, and they’re eager to launch a new expedition—the more exotic and remote the destination, the better.

Hit Die: d8.

Requirements

To qualify to become a horizon walker, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.

Skills: Knowledge (geography) 8 ranks.

Feats: Endurance.

Class Skills

The horizon walker’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Balance (Dex), Climb (Str), Diplomacy (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Hide (Dex), Knowledge (geography) (Int), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Speak Language (none), Spot (Wis), and Survival (Wis).

Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier.

Table: The Horizon Walker

Class Features

All of the following are features of the horizon walker prestige class.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Horizon walkers gain no proficiency with any weapon or armor.

Terrain Mastery: At each level, the Horizon Walker adds a new terrain environment to their repertoire from those given below. Terrain mastery gives a horizon walker a bonus on checks involving a skill useful in that terrain, or some other appropriate benefit. A horizon walker also knows how to fight dangerous creatures typically found in that terrain, gaining a +1 insight bonus on attack rolls and damage rolls against creatures with that terrain mentioned in the Environment entry of their descriptions. The horizon walker only gains the bonus if the creature description specifically lists the terrain type.

Horizon walkers take their terrain mastery with them wherever they go. They retain their terrain mastery bonuses on skill checks, attack rolls, and damage rolls whether they’re actually in the relevant terrain or not.

Planar Terrain Mastery: Planar terrain mastery functions just like terrain mastery, except that the horizon walker can choose one of the planar categories at each level. The horizon walker can take a non-planar terrain type instead, if she wishes.

Terrain Mastery Benefits

Aquatic: You gain a +4 competence bonus on Swim checks, or a +10-foot bonus to your swim speed if you have one. You gain a +1 insight bonus on attack and damage rolls against aquatic creatures.

Desert: You resist effects that tire you. You are immune to fatigue, and anything that would cause you to become exhausted makes you fatigued instead. You gain a +1 insight bonus on attack and damage rolls against desert creatures.

Forest: You have a +4 competence bonus on Hide checks. You gain a +1 insight bonus on attack and damage rolls against forest creatures.

Hills: You gain a +4 competence bonus on Listen checks. You gain a +1 insight bonus on attack and damage rolls against hills creatures.

Marsh: You have a +4 competence bonus on Move Silently checks. You gain a +1 insight bonus on attack and damage rolls against marsh creatures.

Mountains: You gain a +4 competence bonus on Climb checks, or a +10- foot bonus to your climb speed if you have one. You gain a +1 insight bonus on attack and damage rolls against mountain creatures.

Plains: You have a +4 competence bonus on Spot checks. You gain a +1 insight bonus on attack and damage rolls against plains creatures.

Underground: You have 60-foot darkvision, or 120-foot darkvision if you already had darkvision from another source. You gain a +1 insight bonus on attack and damage rolls against underground creatures.

Fiery (Planar): This kind of planar terrain mastery provides you with resistance to fire 20. You gain a +1 insight bonus on attack and damage rolls against outsiders and elementals with the fire subtype.

Weightless (Planar): You gain a +30-foot bonus to your fly speed on planes with no gravity or subjective gravity. You gain a +1 insight on attack and damage rolls against creatures native to the Astral Plane, the Elemental Plane of Air, and the Ethereal Plane.

Cold (Planar): This kind of planar terrain mastery provides you with resistance to cold 20. You gain a +1 insight bonus on attack and damage rolls against outsiders and elementals with the cold subtype.

Shifting (Planar): You instinctively anticipate shifts in the reality of the plane that bring you closer to your destination, giving you the spell-like ability to use dimension door (as the spell cast at your character level) once every 1d4 rounds. You gain a +1 insight bonus on attack and damage rolls against outsiders and elementals native to a shifting plane.

Aligned (Planar): You have the instinctive ability to mimic the dominant alignment of the plane. You incur none of the penalties for having an alignment at odds with that of the plane, and spells and abilities that harm those of the opposite alignment don’t affect you. You have the dominant alignment of the plane with regard to magic, but your behavior and any alignment-related Class Features you have are unaffected.

Cavernous (Planar): You gain tremorsense with a 30-foot range.

Other (Planar): If other planes are in use additional Planar Terrains can be created.