Difference between revisions of "Oathbound"

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OATHBOUND

Diligence, loyalty, organization, and hard work are the hallmarks of the Oathbound. As part of a tribe, company, team, cabal, guild, or party, these individuals honor Ffloy by joining and leading organized societies that plan ahead and work hard. They honor Pantheon with solemn oaths and keeping their word. Oathbound take Ffloy as patron in forging contracts and agreements for profit, mutual assistance, and business. Pantheon is the patron of Oathbound who form communities of people who seek just and fair treatment for all their members.

Oathbounds are always followers of Ffloy or Pantheon, or both, although not always as priests. In fact, any character can become an oathbound, although spellcasters profit more by it.

As NPCs, the oathbound are not part of a single organization, but they are integral parts of many diverse organizations, some of which may even oppose each other. Oathbound can be found in merchant guilds, in criminal gangs, in governments, in vigilante organizations, even in druidic circles. In all these, the oathbound are the members that are organizers, enforcers, and planners. They are the ones who work hardest and longest to make plans, foster loyalty, and enforce the codes and regulations of the group. Some oathbound are private and secret, operating in shadows. Others are public and prominent, attracting proud attention. But all oathbound see promises, oaths, and vows as sacred obligations that are never broken without grave consequences. Note: Some cultures place great prohibition upon making oaths, and shun oathbound, while others tend to swear oaths daily, with the corner oathbound to seal deals, life goals, etc. New Elenna is a society that fosters Oathbinding within the culture.

Hit Die: d8

Requirements

To qualify to become an oathbound, a character must fulfill the following criteria.

• Base Attack Bonus: +3

• Feats: Iron Will

• Skills: Diplomacy 6 ranks; Bluff 3 ranks (if joining a secret group) OR Sense Motive 3 Ranks (if joining a public group)

• Special: Must pass the initiation requirements of an organization you wish to join. If you are founding a new group of your own, then you can set your own initiation requirements, but your new organization will be a group with just one member (you) until you gain the ability to initiate others at fourth level.

Class Skills

The oathbound's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Bluff (Cha), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Decipher Script (Int, exclusive skill), Diplomacy (Cha), Disguise (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Gather Information (Cha), Hide (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge [all skills] (Int), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Perform (cha), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Spellcraft (Int), Spot (Wis), Use Magic Device (Cha, exclusive skill), and Survival (Wis).

Skill Points per level: 6 + Int modifier

Class Features

Sworn Ethos: All oathbound truly are bound -- by their sworn word. They may mislead, deceive, or hide, but once sworn, all oathbound obey not just the letter, but the spirit of any oath or promise they give. They also eagerly seek out and punish oathbreakers whenever they have the chance -- not to the detriment of other duties, but when the option arises.

Oaths: An oath usually consists of three parts: The Invocation, in which the swearer names some higher power or source of veneration; the Vow, in which the swearer declares the behavior required by the oath; and the Doom, in which the consequences of violating the oath are spelled out. Consider the following examples:

• A new member of a militia swears a common oath: "By the loyalty of my fellow brothers-in-arms, for the course of one year I vow to obey the officers of this militia and comport myself according to the rules and regulations of my unit, lest I be declared coward and punished as I deserve."
• A couple exchange marriage vows, a serious oath. He: "Inspired by divine Flower, if you will love me, I will love you and be true to you for life, betokened with the gift of this ring; and if I ever betray our love, let me go mad with self-loathing and the compulsion to bash out my own brains." She: "Inspired by sweet Flower, if you will love me, I will love you and be true to you for life, as signified with this wedding ring; and if I ever betray you, let me die of a broken heart." He: " I will love you!" She: "And I will love you!"
• A merchant swears on the quality of his goods: "By Ffloy's scales, I swear that this horse will run fast and true for you, and if I lie, then my head will break out in warts and my customers will shun me!
• But consider a more dangerous oath, sworn by an heir in exile: "Let dread Gargul and corrupt Marteaus and pure Alemi bear witness to my vow: neither man nor monster nor spirit fell will keep me from my task -- I will reclaim the throne of my mother or fight elf, demon, or god that stands in my way!" This last oath is a very dangerous because of its tone and because it has no escape (and a sensible oathbound would not agree to witness it).

The first oath had two ways out -- it expired after a year, and it punished "as I deserve." But the would-be king may find that his oath will hold him to his vow even if he dies, or worse. NOTE: without the supervision of an oathbound, sworn oaths may be supernaturally binding or not, depending on the power and intensity of the oath-maker (as the DM rules).

Weapon & Armor Proficiency: Oathbounds are proficient in all armor and shields. They are proficient with all simple weapons.

Spells Per Day: When a new oathbound level is gained, the character gains new spells per day as if she had also gained a level in a spellcasting class she belonged to before she added the prestige class. She does not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained (better wildshape, metamagic or item creation feats, and so on). This essentially means that she adds the level of oathbound to the level of some other spellcasting class the character has, then determines spells per day, spells known, and caster level accordingly. If a character had more than one spellcasting class before she became a oathbound, she must decide to which class she adds her oathbound levels for purposes of determining spells per day when she first adopts the PrC.

Sect: The oathbound do not organize in any strict independent sect or organization, because they identify more strongly with the societies they have joined than they do with other oathbound in general. However, some oathbound become involved with the Temple hierarchies of Pantheon and Ffloy, and all oathbound are able to recognize each other through a secret recognition signal. Of course, all oathbound trust each other implicitly once they have given their word, even if the societies they belong to are opposed. In fact, it is generally the oathbound in opposed groups who are entrusted with negotiations, agreements, and alliances.

Novice: The oathbound gains the benefits of membership. This certainly includes role-play benefits, since all members of a group give some measure of support to each other. In addition, members of a group work well with an oathbound member. Any time an oathbound is using the aid another action (PHB 154) to help a fellow member, the bonus to attack or AC is +4, not +2. This is also the case if members are helping the oathbound. This doubling is also true for the Cooperation rule and skill checks (PHB 65): successful cooperation gives a +4 circumstance bonus when the oathbound helps others in his society or is helped by them.

Witness Oath: If the oathbound approves an oath (not frivolous nor blasphemous nor coerced, for example), she can witness it. The oathbound presses her thumb against the oath-taker's forehead -- if the oath is later broken, a red swirl appears on the forehead where the oathbound put her thumb. The oath-taker is then committed as if by a Mark of Justice spell (PHB 252), and breaking the oath has consequences as set by the oathbound, per the spell. Note that a witnessed oath will remain in effect for one full year, after which time it must be renewed. If the oath is broken, the curse-like effect lasts for one year from the time of the violation. Finally, the oath-breaker is spiritually and permanently marked as an oathbreaker, and anyone can detect this with a sense motive check at DC 20 or by seeing the marking red swirl. Only a wish or miracle or a high level oathbound (see enforcer) can remove the taint of a broken oath that has been witnessed by an oathbound.

Lesser Planning: After at least a one hour planning session, the oathbound can create a plan of action for any risky situation. The player should give the DM at least a written outline of the plan to prevent confusion and argument later. The number of people who can participate in the planning session is limited by the oathbound's level: up to two members of the society per level, or one non-member per level. The benefits from a given planning session can last for up to one day per level. While the plan is being executed, anyone who was present at the planning session gains a +1 on all die rolls, and the oathbound gains a +2 on die rolls -- so long as events proceed according to plan! As soon as the DM decides that unexpected events are disrupting the plan, the bonuses are lost. For example, a gang is planning to ambush and rob a caravan. At the planning session, the ambush location is decided, and the expected guards are described. At first, everything goes according to plan: guards are overwhelmed, trade goods are handed over, etc. But -- surprise! -- one of the paying passengers turns out to be a powerful mage! The plan goes awry and the planning bonuses are lost.

Recruiter: First, the oathbound can use her skills to try to convince NPCs to join her group. A successful Bluff, Diplomacy, Intimidate, or Perform check against the target's Will save can shift the target's attitude one place (DMG 72, Table 5-3). Once the NPC is helpful, one final shift will inspire the NPC to join the group. All shifts must take place over one week, but no more than one shift per day. However, the DM has the final say as to whether an NPC will ever join a society, depending on factors such as the NPC's alignment, personality, other affiliations, and other plans the DM has for the NPC. Second, if the oathbound has the Leadership feat and the recruiter ability, then all followers and cohorts gained with the feat are automatically members of the society. Moreover, these followers will be loyal to both the society and the oathbound, giving the oathbound a personal power base in the society. Some followers can be spread throughout the society, with their loyalty to the oathbound kept a secret. Others can be agents or bodyguards whose loyalty is well known.

Cant OR Oration

Cant: The oathbound gains a bonus to Bluff checks equal to his level when communicating secret messages. He can use this skill to allow others to communicate messages to him. And he can even use the skill to communicate with others whose language he does not know at a -15 penalty.

Oration: The oathbound gains a +2 on all Chr-based skills when addressing a group of 10 or more. Moreover, once per day the oathbound can change one enchantment or charm from a limited target to affect all within close range (25 feet plus 5 feet per two levels). For example, a Random Action spell, which usually targets one creature, will instead affect everyone within close range, friends and foes, except the oathbound himself.

Find Oathbreaker: The oathbound senses it whenever an oath he has witnessed is broken, learning which oath, direction to the oathbreaker, and rough distance. The oathbound also automatically senses ANY oathbreaker comes within long range (400 feet plus 40 feet per level), knowing direction, distance, and rough nature of the oath. This awareness functions continually and cannot be turned off. In addition, once per day an oathbound has the magical power to cast an atonement spell to resolve a broken oath, set things to rights if all sides can agree, or judge whether an oathbreaker can make amends or restitution. An oathbound can resolve a broken oath only if he is higher level than the original witness to the oath.

Enforcer: The oathbound gains a +4 bonus on sense motive checks to discern the emotional state of any member of her society, especially sensing disloyalty and dissatisfaction -- she rolls this sense motive check at +10 vs. the target's Will Save or Bluff skill, whichever is higher. She can also roll with no bonus to sense the truthfulness of any member, also rolling vs. Will save of Bluff skill. Finally, with a -4 penalty, she can predict when a member is about to betray either the oathbound or the society, and even get a rough sense of the form of the coming betrayal.

Greater Planning: Improves Lesser Planning so that all bonuses, duration, and number of people affected are doubled.

Omerta OR Respect

Omerta: The oathbound is immune to all magical and mundane influences that would reveal or force the oathbound to reveal any information. No skill, such as Intimidation or Diplomacy, will work. no enchantment, charm, compulsion, or divination reveals anything about an oathbound. For example, a vampire could tell an oathbound he controls to attack, but the vampire could not compel the oathbound to reveal any information. Moreover, in the same circumstances, the oathbound's followers and cohorts gain a +5 on rolls to resist such probing. Finally, any members of the oathbound's society gain the +5 bonus to resist revealing any info about the oathbound.

Respect: The oathbound is known and respected, both inside his society and in the larger community. He gains a gains a +2 on all Chr-based skills when addressing people in his community, and +5 when addressing fellow society members. (This does not stack with oration, although it does stack with planning bonuses and enforcer rolls.) He also gains role-play bonuses from being known and respected in the community, especially if he takes the time to be seen, to help people resolve problems, to be sociable, etc.

Grandmaster: The oathbound is a top leader in his society. If he has the leadership feat, the number of cohorts and followers it allows is doubled; if he does not have the feat, he gets it as a free bonus. The grandmaster also has the power to expel any member; and once per day he gains the ability to cast a magical compulsion on an expelled member that prevents the member from ever talking about the society -- there is no save.

Sample Societies

The Guild of Contractors (Public)

The contractors supervise fair business dealings, witness and enforce commercial agreements, prevent fraud, and make the wheels of trade move smoothly.

• Creed -- Be honorable and forthright in all your business.
• Known Sigil - Scroll (represents a contract)
• Initiation Rite - Arbitrate a business dispute. ...

The Oathkeepers (Secret)

The oathkeepers specialize in hunting down oathbreakers.

• Creed -- There is nothing lower than a liar.
• Secret Sigil - Broken Snake.
• Initiation Rite - Find a particular oathbreaker and bring him back. ...

The Golden Forge (Secret)

The Golden Forge is devoted to robbery.

• Creed -- What's yours is mine.
• Secret Sigil - Gold coin.
• Initiation Rite - Steal 1,000 gp and hand it over to the Forge. ...

The Fellowship of Heroes (Public)

Inspired by the high level groups like the Gold Dragons and the Storm Dragons, this society of less powerful adventurers tries to work together in noble causes.

• Creed -- Together we can make a difference.
• Known Sigil - Chain forged in a circle.
• Initiation Rite - If you are at least 8th level and have a good reputation, you must be voted in at the annual Fellowship conclave.