Stormbound (Preview Document) (Patreon)

This preview document provides all you need to play a Stormbound to 10th level. It includes a small selection of Storm Powers, Veils, and Storm Veils chosen to let you experience the basics of the class. Want more? You can buy The Stormbound at DriveThruRPG.

The Stormbound

Storms of great and wondrous destruction ravage the world, some infused with the very magic of the outer planes themselves. Among the outer planes, there is a place where the planes of air and water converge, known as the Elderstorm, this place of endless raging whirlwinds and lightning often infuses the storms of the natural world, empowering them with its boundless energy. When a creature is born during such a storm it is sometimes infused with a tiny sliver of the Elderstorm’s fury and power. These few rarely realize the power they are born with, for it only manifests itself the next time they are exposed to the powers of the Elderstorm, most commonly by facing a storm infused with its energies unsheltered. Known as stormbound, these survivors and channelers of the ferocious might of the Elderstorm contain more magic than any singular beings body was designed to hold, and they use this pool of energy to create constructs of pure magic that clothe the stormbound known as veils. As the stormbound grows in strength, so too does their connection to the Elderstorm, further straining their body as it fuels them with essence in times of great stress.

Role: Stormbound are akashic veilweavers that tap into a wild and uncontainable pool of energy infusing their body to form magical constructs known as veils that they can use to shelter their allies, destroy their foes, and warp the very world around themselves, allowing them to control and dominate the battlefield through debilitating akashic effects, or to shape their storm into a weapon with which they can slay their foes.

Alignment: Any. While the abilities of the stormbound require a great deal of mental discipline, leading to many stormbound having an alignment that trends towards Lawful, these rare and powerful veilweavers come from all walks of life.

Starting Wealth: 2d6 × 10 gp (average 70 gp.) In addition, each character begins play with an outfit worth 10 gp or less.

Hit Die: d8.

Class Skills

The stormbound's class skills are Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Fly (Dex), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (arcana) (Int), Knowledge (geography) (Int), Knowledge (nature) (Int), Perception (Wis), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Sense Motive (Wis), Spellcraft (Int), Survival (Wis), and Swim (Str).

Skill Ranks per Level: 6 + Int modifier.

Table 1-1 Stormbound

Class Features

The following are the class features for the Stormbound.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Stormbound are proficient with all simple and martial weapons. Stormbound are proficient with light armor, medium armor, and shields, but wearing metal armor or using a metal shield impairs their ability to properly channel the storm that rages inside them. If the stormbound wears metal armor or uses a metal shield, they treat the essence capacity of their veils as 2 less (minimum 0). It takes half as much damage to sunder the stormbound's veils and those veils have half their normal hardness while the stormbound wears metal armor or use a metal shield.

Veilweaving: Stormbound control and channel the power of the storm that rages within their bodies, unleashing it in measured and controlled amounts in an effort to prevent the destruction of their body and the world that surrounds them. The stormbound uses this energy by shaping it into a magical creation known as a veil, which is drawn from the stormbound veil list. The stormbound knows and can shape any veil from this list. The stormbound can only shape a certain number of veils per day (see Table 1: Stormbound). The stormbound use their Wisdom to determine their veilweaving modifier. The DC for a saving throw against a veil’s abilities is 10 + the number of points of essence invested in the veil, + the stormbound's veilweaving modifier. Veils are constructs of pure magic and, as such, are suppressed while in the area of an antimagic field or similar phenomena. At 1st level, the stormbound also gains access to her own personal pool of essence, which can be invested into veils and other receptacles to increase their power. The pool of available essence is listed in the stormbound's class table; the stormbound's character level, as noted in the Veil and Magic Interactions section on [[page X]], determines the maximum quantity of essence she can invest in any single veil. As a swift action, the stormbound can reallocate her essence investments into or between her veils and other essence receptacles. A stormbound must have at least 8 hours rest or meditation to achieve a clear and focused state and must meditate for one hour to shape her veils for the day. During this time she unshapes any previously formed veils and constructs the ones chosen. At the end of the hour, all effects of unshaped veils end and the effects of all newly formed veils take effect.

Stormweaving: The stormbound gains access to a unique veil slot: the Storm slot. The stormbound gains an additional shaped veil each day that must be used to shape a Storm veil (as denoted by the “+1” under Veils on Table 1: Stormbound). Storm veils have unique properties that they all share, which are detailed in depth in the Veilweaving section, on [[page X]]. Unlike normal veils, the stormbound cannot normally allocate essence to or from a Storm veil. At the beginning of each of her turns while in combat, the stormbound gains a single point of temporary essence, which can only be allocated to a Storm veil. This temporary essence can be allocated as a free action as soon as it is gained and lasts until combat ends, and then for 1 minute afterward. If she enters combat again before this minute has passed, the duration of the temporary essence is reset. If she chooses not to invest this essence when she gains it, or if she has no Storm veils that are valid sources to allocate it, that point of essence is immediately lost. While not in combat, the stormbound can meditate as a full-round action to draw the powers of the storm out, treating each round she meditates in this way as a round of combat. However, she can only generate a number of temporary essence in this way up to half of her maximum essence capacity, rounded up (minimum 1). If the stormbound has multiple Storm veils shaped or other receptacles that can accept this special essence, she can reallocate this essence normally between them as part of reallocating her essence normally.

Sidebar: What counts as combat?

In regards to her essence gained as part of her Stormweaving ability, combat counts as any situation where the stormbound finds themselves in serious peril, such as a fight, or in a particularly threatening and energetic situation where they might have something to lose, like a chase scene. A stormbound can never create “fake” combats, like pretending to fight their friend, to maintain their potential. A stormbound only gain essence as part of her Stormweaving ability in, particularly dangerous or exciting situations.

Ultimately, what is defined as a “combat” outside of a fight with monsters is up to the GM.

Weatherproofing: The stormbound has a natural attunement to the storms of the world, and can survive in almost any land, gaining the benefits of the endure elements spell as a constant effect. This intuitive ability and intense training and focus allows them to control the raging fury of their Storm veils to shield their allies. As a free action on her turn, the stormbound can choose to grant limited immunity to the harmful effects of her Storm veils to a number of creatures up to her veilweaving modifier plus 1/2 her stormbound level (rounded down). This limited immunity persists until either the stormbound uses this ability again, or loses consciousness. This limited immunity grants the chosen creatures the effects of endure elements as a constant effect. If one of these creatures would be subjected to a saving throw from her Storm veils they are treated as automatically passing that saving throw, if they are subjected to an attack roll or combat maneuver from the effects of her Storm veils it is treated as a miss, and if they were to take damage from her Storm veils that damage is reduced to 0. These same properties apply to the stormbound as a constant effect, even if she would lose consciousness. If the stormbound loses consciousness other creatures lose the benefits of her weatherproofing ability until she regains consciousness. If one of her Storm veils imposes other penalties that do not require a saving through (such as a reduction in vision range, making its area difficult terrain, or filling the area with high winds) this ability does not protect against those penalties.

Chakra Binds: At 2nd level and every 2 levels thereafter, the stormbound unlocks chakra binds in the following order: Feet, Hands, Head, Wrists, Shoulders, Headband, Belt, Neck, Chest, and Body. Once a stormbound has unlocked a chakra bind, she may choose to bind a veil to that slot when shaping it to unlock its corresponding bind abilities.

Storm Power: Storms are natural phenomena, they provide water for plants and animals, change the shape of the world, and in some cases destroy it. The stormbound learns to emulate these aspects in the form of Storm Powers. At 1st level, and every 2 levels thereafter, the stormbound may select a single storm power that they qualify for. The list of storm powers available to the stormbound is located in the section titled Storm Powers on [[page X]].

Improved Essence Capacity: The stormbound’s growth in power leads to an expansion of the essence capacity of her veils. At 3rd, 9th, and 15th level the essence capacity of all of the stormbound’s essence receptacles increases by 1.

Shifting Storms: The energy that forms a stormbound's Storm veil is inherently chaotic and destructive, and only with great effort can the stormbound maintain control over it. This same chaos allows her to easily alter the nature and form of her shaped Storm veils. At 2nd level, when the stormbound rolls initiative, and at the beginning of each of her turns, she can unshape a single Shaped storm veil, and immediately shape a new one in its place. Doing so burns half the essence invested in the Veil (rounded up, minimum 1), and is done before she gains temporary essence for the turn from her stormweaving ability. If the Storm veil she unshapes was bound to her chakra, the new Storm veil she shapes in its place is also bound.

Storm Binding: At 9th level the stormbound gains the ability to bind veils shaped to the Storm slot.

Storm Powers

The following storm powers are available to be selected by a stormbound who meets their prerequisites. If a storm power has a saving throw component, its DC is equal to 10 + ½ your Stormbound level + your veilweaving modifier.

Distracting Current (Su)

Benefits: You can conjure forth a swirling current of winds to distract and hamper a foe. As a standard action, you can command the wind to twist around a creature with close (25 feet + 5 feet per two stormbound levels) range. This creature must make a Reflex saving throw. On a failed save the wind swirls around them for 1 minute, imposes a -2 penalty to attack rolls, AC, Concentration checks, and Dexterity and Strength-based skill checks. A creature who succeeds on their saving throw suffers these penalties until the end of your next turn. Whether or not the save is successful, a creature cannot be the target of this storm power again for 24 hours. You can invest essence in this ability as if it were a Storm veil, increasing the penalties by -1 per essence invested.

Floating Breeze (Sp)

Benefits: You can use feather fall as an at-will spell-like ability with a caster level equal to your stormbound level. This ability is activated as an immediate action.

Lifting Gale (Sp)

Prerequisites: 5th level stormbound, Floating Breeze

Benefits: You can use levitate as an at-will spell-like ability with a caster level equal to your stormbound level. At 13th level, you can activate this ability as a move action and can direct the affected creature or object up or down once per round on your turn as a free action.

Storm Lash (Su)

Benefits: You gain the ability to strike a nearby foe with a whip-like bolt of lightning. As a standard action that requires one free hand, you can make a melee touch attack against a foe within your natural reach plus 10 feet. This attack deals 1d8 + your Veilweaving modifier (minimum +0) electricity damage, plus an additional 1d8 damage per 4 stormbound levels you possess beyond your first. You can invest essence in this ability as if it were a Storm veil, causing it to deal an additional 1d8 points of electricity damage per essence invested.

Veilproofing (Su)

Prerequisites: Weatherproofing class feature

Benefits: Your weatherproofing class feature extends the immunities it provides to all veils you shape, not just your Storm veils.

Channel the Storm (Ex)

Prerequisites: 5th level stormbound

Benefits: Your body has adapted better to the storm growing within you than most others. You gain a pool of essence equal to half your maximum essence capacity that can only be invested in Storm veils.

Special: This storm power can be selected a second time, increasing the pool of essence granted by it to be equal to your maximum essence capacity.

Storm Sense (Su)

Prerequisites: 9th level stormbound

Benefits: You gain the ability to sense the locations of creatures and objects in the area of your Storm veil as the blindsense ability.

Veils

In addition to the veils presented below, the stormbound adds the following veils from Akashic Mysteries to its veil list:

Aerial Nimbus, Bralani’s Brooch, Cincture of the Dragon, Ditchdigger’s Armlets, Eyes of the Hawkguard, Eyes of the Oracle, Gorget of the Wyrm, Horns of the Minotaur, Horselord’s Greaves, Lavawalker’s Boots, Mask of Elemental Adaptation, Polar Snowshoes, Storm Gauntlets, Thurston’s Bladewards, Vorpal Guards, and Wrathful Claws.

New Veils

Rules for veilweaving can be found a the end of this document.

Brume Treads

Descriptors: None

Class: Daevic, Guru, Stormbound, Vizier

Slot: Feet

Saving Throw: None

Mist swirls and coheres to your legs, forming knee-length boots that allow you to maneuver around obstacles much like the fog they are formed from.

You gain the ability to ignore the adverse movement effects of difficult terrain and can take 5-foot steps in difficult terrain. In addition, you gain a +2 insight bonus to Acrobatics checks.

Essence: For each point of essence invested in this veil, you gain a +5 enhancement bonus to your base land speed and the bonus to Acrobatics checks increases by 2.

Chakra Bind (Feet): [D2, G5, S2, V4] Binding this veil to your Feet chakra allows you to flow through the world like a living fog. You can always move at full speed while wearing armor, or if a spell or ability would impose a penalty on your movement speed, or increase the number of squares of movement required to move through an area. If something would render you immobile, this ability does not allow you to ignore that effect.

Clouding Guise

Descriptors: Glamer

Class: Guru, Vizier, Stormbound

Slot: Head

Saving Throw: Will (see text)

A veil of shimmering diaphanous cloth shrouds your eyes and face, swaying in a breeze that does not seem to exist.

When you shape this veil your eyes glow with a faint blue light, allowing you to see through the effects of magical and normal clouds, fog and mist. While in an area of cloud, fog or mist, the veil obscures your appearance as disguise self, using this veil’s saving throw in place of that of the spell. You choose the appearance taken under the effects of the veil’s disguise self ability when you shape this veil, and you may use your veilweaving modifier in place of your Charisma modifier when making Disguise checks for this ability. Additionally, you gain a +2 insight bonus to Disguise checks. You can dismiss or resume this disguise as a free action any time on your turn.

Essence: For each point of essence invested in this veil, the bonus to Disguise checks granted by this veil increases by +2. If this veil is invested with 2 or more points of essence it produces a thin mist that surrounds you in a 10-foot aura. While providing no concealment, this mist allows the disguising properties of the veil to function as a constant effect.

Chakra Bind (Head): [G8, S6, V6] Binding this veil to the Head chakra causes it to lose the glamer descriptor. Creatures interacting with your illusionary effect from the veils disguise self do not receive a Will saving throw to recognize it as an illusion. You gain the ability to change the illusionary disguise provided by this veil as a standard action that provokes attacks of opportunity. In addition, this veil and your veils without essence invested in them do not automatically have their presence revealed by detect magic, true seeing, or similar effects.

Gauntlets of the Elderstorm

Descriptors: See text

Class: Stormbound

Slot: Hands

Saving Throw: See text

Gauntlets of elemental matter form around your hands, surging with a power that sheathes your arm in a chaotic mass of energy drawn from the Elderstorm; a legendary place where the planes of air and water converge and storm reigns eternal.

When shaping this veil, choose one elemental type from the following list: air, cold, or electricity. This veil gains that descriptor. You gain a primary slam attack associated with the chosen elemental type that deals 1d6 points of damage (1d4 for Small creatures, 1d8 for large) plus additional damage depending on your chosen elemental: Air deals 1d6 bludgeoning, cold deals 1d4 cold, and electricity deals 1d4 electricity.

Essence: For each point of essence invested in this veil the damage it deals increases by 1 die of damage, based on your chosen elemental type: Air gains 1d6 bludgeoning, cold gains 1d4 cold, and electricity gains 1d4 electricity.

Chakra Bind (Hands): [S4] Binding this veil to your Hands chakra causes you to choose a second elemental type when shaping this veil. You gain a second primary slam attack associated with this second elemental type, as the veil’s shaping benefits. When you invest 5 points of essence in this veil, and then for every 5 essence invested thereafter, the additional dice of damage dealt by this veil increase by 1 step (d4 > d6 > d8 > d10).

Mai’yr’s Band

Descriptors: See text

Class: Guru, Stormbound, Vizier

Slot: Wrists, Headband

Saving Throw: See text

This unassuming brown cloth was once worn by a being who used the elements themselves as a weapon, commanding them to rise up and wage war on the world.

When shaping this veil, choose one energy type from the following list: air, cold, earth, electricity, or fire. The veil gains that descriptor. You gain the ability to conjure a solid mass of the chosen element and can launch it as a blast of power at a single target within medium range (100 feet + 10 feet per veilweaver level) as a standard action. If you chose cold, electricity or fire, this blast is a ranged touch attack that deals 1d6 + your veilweaving modifier damage; the type of damage dealt is the type chosen when shaping this veil. If you chose air, this blast is a ranged attack that deals 1d10 + your veilweaving modifier bludgeoning damage. If you chose earth, this blast is a ranged attack that deals 1d8 + your veilweaving modifier piercing or slashing (chosen when you use the ability) damage. These elemental blasts count as a type of ranged weapon for the purpose of feats such as Weapon Focus. You are never considered to be wielding or gripping the blast for the purposes of feats and abilities, and you can’t use Vital Strike feats with these blasts.

Essence: Each point of essence invested in this veil increases the damage of the blast, depending on the type of energy chosen: Cold, electricity, and fire deal an additional 1d6 damage per essence. Air deals an additional 1d10+1 damage per essence. Earth deals an addition 1d8+1 per essence. In addition, for each point of essence invested in this veil, you gain a +1 insight bonus to attack rolls made with this veil.

Chakra Bind (Wrists): [S8, V8] Binding this veil to your Wrists chakra allows you to fire multiple blasts in a volley of elemental fury. As a full round action you can make as many blast attacks as your base attack bonus allows, plus any extra attacks granted by spells or abilities such as haste that increase the number of attacks one makes as part of a full attack action, but not the Two-Weapon Fighting line of feats, or similar effects.

Chakra Bind (Headband): [G12, S12, V12] Binding this veil to your Headband chakra allows you to focus elemental energy in your mind’s eye, and project it outwards in a devastating blast as a standard action. If you chose cold, electricity or fire this blast is a 60-foot line of energy. Each creature in this line must make a Reflex saving throw or take damage as if struck by your elemental blast. A creature who succeeds on this saving throw takes half damage. If you chose air, this blast is a 15-foot burst within medium range. All creatures in this burst must make a Fortitude saving throw or take damage as is struck by your air elemental blast. A creature who succeeds on this saving throw takes half damage. If you chose earth, this blast is a 30-foot cone of either slashing or piercing (chosen when using the ability) earth. Make an attack roll with your earth elemental blast against each creature in the area. On a miss, a creature still takes an amount of damage of the chosen type equal to your veilweaving modifier, plus 1 per essence invested in this veil. A creature with the Evasion, or similar, ability ignores this damage on a missed attack roll.

Raiment of Swirling Fog

Descriptors: Air, Armor, Creation

Class: Stormbound

Slot: Shoulders, Chest

Saving Throw: None

Thick clouds swirl around you in a chaotic rhythm, obscuring your movement and position without impacting your own ability to see.

A solid armor of fog and cloud forms around you, obscuring your shape and dampening blows made against you. Shaping this veil causes clouds to obscure your location, causing attacks that would otherwise strike true to miss you.

This veil counts as light armor, and grants a +3 armor bonus to your AC, has a maximum Dexterity bonus of +7, no armor check penalty, and a 5% arcane spell failure chance. Additionally, attacks made against you suffer a 20% miss chance from the concealment provided by these clouds. This veil conjures the clouds, and its miss chance is not negated by effects such as true seeing but can be defeated by other abilities or effects that allow one to see through clouds or fog. The miss chance from this veil stacks with the concealment granted by natural or magical clouds or fog, to a maximum miss chance of 50%.

Essence: The first point of essence invested in this veil, and every 2 essence invested thereafter, increases the miss chance of attacks made against you by 5%.

Chakra Bind (Shoulders): [S10] Binding this veil to your Shoulder chakra causes the clouds that swirl around you to swell in size and lift you and your allies from the ground. You, and a number of allies up to your veilweaving modifier within 10 feet + 5 feet per invested essence gain a fly speed of 10 feet, + 5 feet per invested essence. Creatures flying in this way automatically pass fly checks but are still subject to wind effects. If an ally leaves this abilities range, their fly speed persists until the end of their next turn.

Chakra Bind (Chest): [S18] Binding this veil to your Chest chakra causes you to gain the benefits of the Shoulder chakra, except that you and your allies can fly as if under the effects of the overland flight spell rather than the normal fly speeds provided by this veil.

Storm Veils

Storm veils share a number of properties that differ from normal veils:

Area: The area of a Storm veil is a cylinder centered on the veilweaver, with a radius equal to 25 feet + 5 feet per two veilweaver levels, and a height of 50 feet + 5 feet per veilweaver level, or until it reaches a ceiling. This cylinder continues below the veilweaver to a maximum depth equal to its height, or until it reaches solid ground.  A Storm veil’s effects cannot bypass solid objects unless it specifies otherwise.

Sunder Immunity: Unlike normal veils, a Storm veil cannot be sundered or dealt damage, however it can still be suppressed by dispel magic or an antimagic field.

Unforgiving: The shaper of a Storm veil is not immune to any effects that a Storm veil creates that affect all creatures unless they have a class feature or ability that grants them such an ability.

The Enshrouding

Descriptors: Air, Teleportation

Class: Stormbound

Slot: Storm

Saving Throw: None

The world around you becomes shrouded by a bank of thick fog, enshrouding the world so that none may see your presence.

Shaping this storm causes a 20-foot high mist to appear along the ground within the Storm’s area. This mist imposes no penalties.

If at least 1 point of essence is invested in this ability, this mist congeals into a bank of fog. This fog obscures all sight, including darkvision, beyond 20 feet. A creature within 20 feet has concealment (attacks have a 20% miss chance). Creatures farther away have total concealment (50% miss chance, and the attacker can’t use sight to locate the target). Unlike normal fog, only a severe wind (31+ mph) disperses these vapors, and it does so in 4 rounds. Doing so suppresses the veil for 1d4 rounds. This veil does not function underwater.

Essence: For each point of essence invested in this ability beyond the first the height of the fog increases by 5 feet, and the distance the fog obscures all sight reduces by 5 feet. If this would reduce the range one can see to 0 feet, creatures in the fog treat every other creature as having total concealment. When 6 or more essence is invested in this veil the fog becomes thick and difficult to move through. Creatures inside the fog move at half their speed, cannot take 5-foot steps, and take a -2 penalty to attack and damage rolls. Attacks made from outside the fog into the fog suffer these penalties as well. The penalty to attack and damage rolls increases by -1 for every point of essence invested beyond 6.

Chakra Bind (Storm): [S9] Binding this veil to your Storm chakra causes the fog to swirl with chaotic patterns, seemingly having a mind of its own. You automatically know the locations of all creatures in the fog, as blindsense. As a standard action that provokes attacks of opportunities, you can cause the fog to abduct a single creature within it. This creature becomes lost in an extra-dimensional demi-plane of endless fog. Each round at the beginning of its turn it must make a Will saving throw to escape the fog. If it does so, or a number of rounds equal to your veilweaving modifier pass without the creature escaping, the creature appears in the space it inhabited before being trapped. If that space is occupied, it appears in a space adjacent to it. Only a single creature can be abducted by the fog at a given time, and if the veil is unshaped, suppressed, or destroyed the creature immediately escapes.

The Fulmination

Descriptors: Electricity

Class: Stormbound

Slot: Storm

Saving Throw: Reflex half

The clouds above you shift as if pushed by a wind that only they feel, lightning crackling ominously between their darkened peaks and valleys.

When you have at least 1 point of essence invested in this veil, the sky above your Storm to fills with thick black clouds, lowering the light level within the storm’s area by 1 step (to a minimum of darkness). This change in lighting is from physical obstruction and does not counter light spells. In addition, a 5 foot wide, 30 foot long bolt of lightning strikes a point of your choosing within your Storm’s area at the end of each of your turns. Any creature in the target square or in the path of the bolt is affected and must make a Reflex saving throw or take 1d6 electricity damage. A creature who passes this saving throw takes half damage. If you cannot take actions at the end turn of your turn, such as if you are under the effects of the dazed condition or are unconscious, this bolt of electricity instead strikes the space of a random creature in your Storm’s area, excluding yourself.

This veil does not function underwater.

Essence: For each point of essence invested in this veil beyond the first, the electricity damage dealt by the veil increases by 1d6.

Chakra Bind (Storm): [S9] Binding this veil to your Storm chakra fills it with devastating electrical potential that cannot be contained. As long as a single point of essence is invested in this veil a number of lightning bolts equal to 1 per two essence invested in this veil strike at the end of your turn. Each bolt must target a different point, and a creature can only take damage from a single bolt each turn. These bolts target the space of random creatures if you cannot take actions at the end of your turn.

Veilweaving Rules

Akasha is the power of creation itself, the very essence of magic. Akasha resonates with arcane, divine, and psionic energy, often acting as a natural amplifier for those power sources, though it is potent in its own right. Sages and scholars have debated whether akasha is the result of those power sources mixing and meshing with the life energy of mortal beings, or if perhaps it is the undiluted source from which those diverse powers sprang. What is known is that all creatures have some facility to access this power or be accessed by it.

Veils are the most common tools by which akashic magic is utilized, created when a creature channels akashic energy through natural conduits in the body, known as chakra. This energy is then molded by the willpower of the creature from which it sprang into a semi-tangible construct capable of converting the wielders life energy, known as essence, into a nearly infinite variety of effects.

Every creature has a finite amount of essence in their being, referred to as an essence pool. While essence is not typically expended when veils or other effects that draw upon essence are activated, a given creature can only devote a certain amount of their essence to any particular function. This is done by investing the essence into the chosen receptacle, which could be a veil, essence feat, or other ability. Investing essence or changing where essence is invested is typically a swift action.

Veils are limited only by the wearer’s focus and imagination. When a character first gains access to a veilweaving class, he has the potential to manifest and utilize any veil available to that class, though his facility with that veil may vary depending on the size of his essence pool and whether or not he has unlocked the associated chakra, enabling him to bind a veil or effect.

Binding is a process veilweavers and other wielders of essence learn through experience and growth. When they’ve utilized a particular chakra long enough that it has become imbued with a surplus of power, veilweavers learn how to build even more complex and powerful constructs by utilizing the reinforced channels of energy in their bodies. This is the process known as binding, and it is possibly one of the most potent abilities any veilweaver can learn.

Chakras and Veils

Every veil is associated with a chakra, even if it is not bound to it. Chakras are points on the body that conduct

magical energy. Veils do not interfere with magic items that occupy the same slot. The veil appears as a translucent eldritch construct surrounding that part of the body. You cannot shape two veils that occupy the same chakra. Each chakra corresponds directly to the matching equipment slot. Some veils can occupy one of two or more different equipment slots; you choose when you manifest your veil which of these slots you want it to occupy. Even if the veil

can occupy more than one slot, you cannot have more than one instance of a given veil shaped at the same time. The

available slots are: Hands, Feet, Head, Wrists, Shoulders, Headband, Neck, Belt, Chest, Body. Some classes may gain access to specific and unique veils and chakra slots not normally available.

Veils can be bound to a slot to increase their power once a character has reached a certain level of experience in manipulating essence. By binding a veil to that slot the veilweaver gains the most potent abilities from the veil by flooding it with even more of their inherent akashic energy. Once a character has gained the ability to bind veils to a particular slot, they can automatically bind a veil there as part of the process of shaping their veils for the day.

Veil and Magic Interactions

While veilweaving is quite different from standard spellcasting, the basic rule for the interactions of veils and magic is very straightforward: veils interact with spells and vice versa in the same way that spells normally interact with other spells or spell-like abilities.

Spell resistance is effective against most veils that directly target a creature or emulate an enchantment effect, but unless otherwise specified does not apply against area of effect abilities or auras. Veils that grant or enhance natural attacks or weapons, such as the gauntlets of the elderstorm, are never subject to spell resistance. A veilweaver’s veil effects always overcome their own spell resistance.

Veils are mostly physical constructs of essence, and as such can be targeted by effects like a sunder attack; a veil

that takes more than twice the veilweaver’s level in damage in a single attack is suppressed and does not function for 1d4 rounds. Veils have a Hardness score equal to the veilweaver’s level and gain a bonus to saves vs. targeted effects equal to the amount of essence currently invested.

Veils can also be targeted by dispel magic, mage’s disjunction, or similar spell effects, and are treated as a magic item when determining the effects. A veil successfully affected by a mage’s disjunction is suppressed for the duration of the spell and any essence invested in a suppressed veil becomes unavailable until the effect ends. Veils are nearly invisible until invested with at least one point of essence; a veilweaver gains a +5 circumstance bonus to Disguise checks to hide the fact that they have an uninvested veil shaped, though detect magic, true seeing, or similar effects automatically reveal their presence. As soon as a point of essence is invested in a veil they flare into tangibility and are easily noticeable, imposing a -5 penalty on Disguise checks to hide their presence or function.

Binding Essence: Some feats and veils will require you to bind, rather than invest, essence into them. When essence is bound into a receptacle, it cannot be recovered or reassigned to another receptacle until 24 hours have passed, or until the next time the user shapes their veils for the day, whichever comes first. If the receptacle is sundered or disjoined, the user immediately takes essence burn equal to the total essence invested in the veil. Once the burn has recovered, they can reinvest the essence normally.

Bonuses from shaped veils: Note that the general rules for stacking still apply; two bonuses of the same type do not stack, even if they come from two different veils or a veil and a spell or spell-like effect.

Descriptors: Veils use many of the same descriptors as spells. Whenever a veil contains a descriptor, it carries all the same connotations as the spell descriptor of the same name. Since veils do not have schools, subschools, domains, or disciplines, these descriptors are the primary way to categorize and identify a veil and its effects.

Essence Burn: Some spells and abilities cause essence burn. Essence that has been burned cannot be used again for any other purpose until the veilweaver has had a chance to rest in a calm environment. Essence burn naturally recovers at a rate of 1 point of essence per minute.

Essence Capacity: However large their essence pool is, a character can only invest a certain amount of essence into any one veil, feat, class feature, magic item, or other essence receptacles. The character’s total character level determines this essence capacity as shown below, though some feats, class features, magic items, or other abilities or effects may modify their total capacity:

Identifying veils and effects: Information about a veil’s properties or effects can be determined using the Knowledge (arcana) skill according to the following table:

In areas where veilweaving is uncommon or otherwise unheard of, increase the DC of these checks by 5.

Veilweavers can also disguise the presence or function of their veils using the Disguise skill, disguising their veils as extravagant clothing or even natural extensions of their own body. A creature cannot attempt to identify a disguised veil without first succeeding on a Perception check to notice that it is a veil.

Ongoing effects and unconsciousness: Veils do not require conscious action to maintain, but if a veilweaver is rendered unconscious while they have active veils shaped a number of things may occur. Any active aura powers granted by shaped veils are suppressed until the veilweaver regains consciousness, at which point the veilweaver must spend a move action to reactivate them. Any effects that occur automatically over time, such as the temporary hit point generation of the Stone Giant’s Girdle, continue to accrue as normal. Veils that are sundered while the veilweaver is unconscious are not just suppressed, but destroyed completely and cannot be used again until the veilweaver reshapes their veils. The veilweaver may willingly suppress the active effects of any veil they have shaped as a free action and resume them as a move action; the veilweaver may resume the effects of multiple veils as part of the same move action.

Per Day Abilities: Some veils grant spell-like abilities that can be used a limited number of times per day. These

veils use the same saving throw DC as your other veil abilities. These uses are only refreshed when you reshape your veils for the day; abilities like the vizier’s veilshifting do not allow you to reshape the veil and replace it with a new instance of itself for additional uses.

Temporary essence: Some abilities may grant the veilweaver temporary essence. Temporary essence points are always burned first, and cannot be recovered through normal rest, though they generally act and can be used in all other ways just like normal essence.

[Armor] and [Weapon] Descriptors

A veil with either the armor or weapon descriptors has some part of the veil that creates or functions as a suit of armor or as a weapon. These akashic armor and weapons have a number of unique properties that differ from their metal kin, which are detailed out below.

Hardness & Sundering: Armor and weapons produced by the veil use the veilweaver’s veilweaving level for their hardness and have twice the veilweaver’s level in hit points. These hit points refresh at the start of the veilweaver’s turn. Armor and weapons created by a veil that have no hit points are destroyed, but may be recreated by the veil as normal. If the veil is sundered, armor and weapons created by that veil disappear.

Leaving the Veilweaver’s grip: Weapons created by veils with the [Weapon] descriptor cease to exist at the end of any turn that they are not within the veilweaver’s possession.

Size: Armor and weapon created by a veil with the [Armor] or [Weapon] descriptors are always sized appropriately for the wielder. When a weapon is created by a veil with the [Weapon] descriptor, the wielder may choose to have this weapon be smaller or larger than what’s appropriate for them, so long as they can wield a weapon at that size with reduced or no penalty. If the size they can wield with reduced or no penalty is not specified, then they may choose to have the weapon be within one size step within their current size.

Upgradable: You may enhance these veils with class features, items, spells, effects, or item creation feats, as though they were a suit of masterwork armor or a masterwork weapon. They may be targeted (and affected) by all spells and effects that affect armor or weapons (depending on their type as appropriate). When improving such an armor or weapon, the Veilweaver must be present and have the veil shaped for the entire duration in which the armor or weapon is being worked on (typically 8 hours in a single day). You may also improve the armor or weapon with special materials by paying the price modifier of that material; treat this armor as costing 500 gp, and treat this weapon as costing 100gp when calculating price multipliers. Enhancing a veil this way takes the same amount of time to enhance the armor or weapon as normal. A veilweaver must meditate in a relatively peaceful environment during this time but otherwise does not need to make any skill checks to upgrade this veil. Its enhancement bonuses, special materials, armor or weapon special abilities, and any effects of the veil are shared across all armor or weapons created with it (including limited use abilities). Armor and weapons cannot gain properties that they could not normally gain, such as impact on a ranged weapon, keen on a bludgeoning weapon, or brawling on medium or heavy armor. If the veil provides its own armor or weapon enhancement bonuses and armor or weapon special properties, the enhancement bonuses and special qualities do not stack. When they shape the veil, and whenever they reallocate essence, they may choose whether they use the veil’s intrinsic bonus and special qualities or the armor or weapon descriptors bonus and special qualities. They may change this choice as a swift action, or whenever they would invest essence into their receptacles.

Multiple Weapons: If the veil can produce multiple weapons simultaneously, treat each weapon’s enhancement bonus after the first as 1 lower (minimum 0), provided the veil has at least a +1 bonus. A weapon with an enhancement bonus of +0 is treated as a masterwork weapon, gaining the usual +1 enhancement bonus to attack rolls, but not to damage rolls.

Worn Armor and Armor Veils: A character who is wearing armor cannot shape a veil with the [armor] descriptor, nor can they have such a veil shaped on them by another veilweaver. While a character has an [armor] veil shaped they are considered to be wearing the armor of its specified weight for all purposes.

Proficiency: A veilweaver is always proficient in the armor or weapon they create with a [armor] or [weapon] veil. This does not grant them proficiency with those armor or weapons for other purposes.

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