Expanded Veils: Duels of Shadow (Patreon)

Abductor’s Shadow

Descriptors: Teleportation

Class: Daevic, Eclipse, Guru, Nexus, Vizier, Volur

Slot: Wrists, Shoulders

Saving Throw: Reflex (see text)

A hissing mass of shadows pool upon your arms and swelling upwards over your shoulders, subsuming your physical body with shadowstuff as you move.

Shaping this veil causes your body to become partially subsumed by shadow as you move, granting you a +4 dodge bonus to AC while you are moving. Additionally, you do not suffer a penalty to Stealth checks when moving faster than half speed, and can make Stealth checks while running at a -10 penalty.

Essence: For each point of essence invested in this veil the dodge bonus granted by this veil while moving increases by +2. When invested with at least 4 points of essence, you can make Stealth checks while observed while you are in dim light or darker. This ability even works against creatures with darkvision or low-light vision, but such creatures gain a +5 bonus to their Perception checks to notice you while you are using Stealth to hide with this ability.

Chakra Bind (Wrists): Binding this veil to your Wrists slot allows you to project your shadow outwards to abduct a creature. As a standard action that provokes attacks of opportunity, you can attempt to abduct a single creature within Medium range (100 feet + 10 feet per veilweaver level). The creature must make a Reflex save; on a failed save they are teleported to a space adjacent to you, and are staggered until the beginning of your next turn. This space must be able to support the creature you are abducting, and requires both line of sight and line of effect. If this space would be dangerous to the target (such as if the space was on fire, or is being affected by a dangerous magical effect) the creature receives a +5 bonus to their saving throw. If the creature succeeds on this save, they are instead sickened until the beginning of your next turn and are not teleported.

Chakra Bind (Shoulders): Binding this veil to your Shoulders chakra allows you to abduct a creature into your shadow as you move by them. Once per turn as a free action as part of movement caused by a non-free action (such as moving using a move action, a withdraw action, or as part of movement made using Spring Attack), you can make a special reposition combat maneuver against a creature adjacent to you at any point during that movement. This maneuver does not provoke attacks of opportunity, and you gain an insight bonus to your CMB with this reposition attempt equal to 1 + the number of points of essence invested in this veil. If you succeed, the creature disappears into your Abductor’s Shadow, reappearing in a space adjacent to you at the end of your movement. The space the creature reappears in must be able to support the creature, otherwise the creature automatically reappears in the space you abducted it from.

Blindman’s Folds

Descriptors: Divination

Class: Guru, Nexus, Radiant, Stormbound, Vizier, Volur

Slot: Headband

Saving Throw: none

Folds of blackened akasha wrap around your head, occluding your mundane vision but allowing you to see the true nature of reality within a short distance.

Shaping this veil grants you an akashic blindfold which you can lower over your eyes to grant you supernatural vision at the cost of your normal sight. As a free action once per round, you can cover or uncover your eyes with this veil. While your eyes are covered you gain blindsight out to a range of 10 feet, but you lose your normal ability to see, rendering you blind. This blindsight can be used in any location or environment, and is not thwarted by effects that would normally thwart blindsight or blindsense. Creatures who cannot be detected by divination spells or effects cannot be detected using this blindsight, such as a creature under the effects of the mind blank spell.

Essence: For each point of essence invested in this veil, the range of the blindsight granted by the veil increases by 5 feet, and you gain a +1 insight bonus to Perception checks while using your blindsight.

Chakra Bind (Headband): Binding this veil to your Headband chakra allows your blinded eyes to see the magic that makes up reality. You gain the benefits of the arcane sight and true seeing spells while using the blindsight ability of the veil, however its range is limited to the range of the veil’s granted blindsight. Creatures immune to the blindsight effects of this veil cannot be detected using these spells as well.

Duelist’s Edge

Descriptors: Enhanced (rapier), Teleportation

Class: Daevic, Eclipse, Guru, Nexus, Stormbound, Vizier

Slot: Hands, Wrists

Saving Throw: none

Akasha hums within your hand, blurring into shape in your to deflect an attack and counter with a well-placed riposte.

Shaping this veil allows you to conjure a rapier of humming akasha that can be used to deflect and redirect blows. Whenever you take the attack action or make a full attack using the rapier conjured by this veil, you can choose to give up one or more attacks you could have made with it as part of that action.

Until the beginning of your next turn, you can attempt to parry an attack made against you using the rapier once for each attack you gave up. When you are attacked with a weapon, you can choose to make an attack roll using the rapier with the same bonuses and penalties of the attack you gave up (including penalties for iterative attacks or two-weapon fighting), with a -2 penalty for each size category the creature who made the attack is larger than you. You can choose to use this ability after the attack against you is rolled and the results are revealed, but before it deals damage to you. If your attack roll is higher than the triggering attacks, that attack misses. If the attacker is within your reach, you may apply your attack roll against their AC (rolling a critical confirmation, if necessary) dealing damage as if you had struck the creature normally. If the attack you gave up could have benefitted from the Vital Strike feat, or other feats that apply to an attack made as part of an attack action, you may apply those feats to that attack as well.

Essence: For each point of essence invested in this veil you deal an additional 1d6 points of precision damage when you successfully parry an attack using this veil. For each even point of essence invested you gain a +1 insight bonus to attack rolls made while parrying using this veil.

Chakra Bind (Hands): Binding this veil to your Hands chakra allows you to utilize the power of the veil to guard your allies as well as yourself. You can parry attacks directed against adjacent allies, as well as yourself. Additionally, whenever you successfully parry an attack you may take a 5-foot step before determining if you are adjacent to the foe who made the triggering attack, but only if this 5-foot step puts that foe in your reach.

Chakra Bind (Wrists): Binding this veil to your Wrists chakra grants you all the benefits of the Hands bind, and allows you to follow up a parry with a blur of movement before striking your foe. Whenever you successfully parry an attack, you may teleport a distance up to your base movement speed before determining if you are adjacent to the foe who made the triggering attack, but only if this movement puts that foe in your reach. This movement does not provoke attacks of opportunity.

Additionally, you gain the ability to parry any attack made against you or an adjacent ally, not just weapon attacks. When parrying an attack that isn’t made using a weapon, you suffer an additional -5 penalty to your attack roll.

Impulse Earrings

Descriptors: Divination

Class: Guru, Nexus, Radiant, Stormbound, Vizier, Volur

Slot: Head, Headband

Saving Throw: none

This thin hoop of akasha hangs from your ear, filling your mind with images of danger right before they come to pass.

Shaping this veil grants you the ability to detect things brief moments before they happen, allowing you the ability to quickly react to nearly anything. You can always act in the surprise round of combat, cannot be caught flat-footed, and do not lose your Dexterity bonus to AC against attackers you cannot detect, such as invisible foes. Creatures who are immune to divinations, such as a creature under the effects of the mind blank spell, ignore the effects of this veil.

Essence: For each point of essence invested in this veil you gain a +2 insight bonus to your initiative and a +1 bonus to Reflex saving throws and as a dodge bonus to your AC against traps. Changing your initiative in the middle of combat using this ability adjusts your place in the turn order.

Chakra Bind (Head): Binding this veil to your Head chakra further enhances the veil’s ability to warn you of future events, allowing you to dodge even multiple foes and to reactively allocate your essence. You cannot be flanked and are immune to precision damage. Foes who are immune to divinations can ignore this effect. Additionally, you gain the ability to reinvest your essence once each round as a free action, even if it isn’t your turn. If you invest essence into this veil outside of your turn and it would cause your initiative to move to a place higher in the turn order than the current turn, you act immediately after the currently acting creature finishes their turn. For example: If you have an initiative of 8, and use this ability to invest 2 essence into this veil during the turn of a creature with an initiative of 10, bringing your initiative to 12, you would act immediately after that creature and then on your new initiative on the following round.

Chakra Bind (Headband): Binding this veil to your Headband chakra grants you all the benefits of the Head bind and further enhances your ability to respond to danger. When investing essence in this veil outside of your turn, if that investment would cause your initiative to become higher than the current turn in combat you may choose to act immediately, taking your turn for the round in the middle of the current turn. After you finish your turn, the rest of the interrupted turn is resolved as normal. If this was used to interrupt a creature’s turn, none of your actions during this turn provoke attacks of opportunity from the interrupted creature. You cannot choose to use this ability to interrupt the turn of a creature immune to divination effects.

Trailing Shadow

Descriptors: Darkness

Class: Daevic, Eclipse, Guru, Nexus, Vizier, Volur

Slot: Belt

Saving Throw: none

Your shadow lifts from the ground to hover behind you, mimicking all of your movements with a slight delay.

Shaping this veil animates your very shadow with the powers of darkness, causing it to mimic your movements and attacks. Whenever you miss a target with an attack by 5 or less, that target is instead struck by your shadow. This attack by the shadow treats all random numerical effects of the attack as if they had rolled their minimum and halves the damage of any static damage bonuses. For example, an attack that deals 1d6 + 5 damage would deal 1 + 2 damage. If the attack has an additional effect on a successful hit besides damage, that effect is not applied by the shadow. This ability does not stack with similar abilities that allow you to deal damage on a missed attack.

A magical light effect with a spell level greater than half your veilweaving level (rounded up) or a veilweaving level greater than your own suppresses this veil for as long as you remain in the effect.

Essence: For each odd point of essence invested in this veil the range at which you can miss an attack and deal damage with the shadow increases by 1. For example, with 3 points of essence invested your attacks that miss by 7 or less cause the shadow to strike the foe. For each even point of essence invested, the maximum value the shadow can roll on its damage dice increases by 1. For example: with 2 essence invested, the shadow can roll a 1 or a 2 on a d6, rather than only 1. This cannot allow the shadow to have a maximum roll higher than the dice of damage rolled (you could not roll a 5 on a d4, for example).

Chakra Bind (Belt): Binding this veil to your Belt chakra allows your shadow to split from you, attacking targets as you direct. At the beginning of each of your turns, you can choose to have your shadow leave your space and move up to 30 feet, move up to 30 feet, or return to your space. If the shadow ever leaves a range further than 30 feet + 5 feet per point of essence invested in this veil it automatically returns to your space. Your shadow does not provoke attacks of opportunity from its movement or attacks. The shadow has a number of points of hardness equal to this veil, and shares your other defenses. If the shadow takes a number of points of damage from a single effect equal to the amount required to sunder this veil, it is destroyed and this veil is suppressed for 1d4 rounds.

While your shadow doesn’t share your space you do not benefit from the shape effect of this veil. Instead, whenever you make an attack your shadow mimics it against a different creature within range of its space. The shadow suffers a -10 penalty to its attack rolls, and if it hits it deals damage as per the shape effects of this veil, but otherwise uses the same bonuses you used for the attack excluding any bonuses or penalties due to terrain or positioning, such as flanking, unless it is also benefiting from those bonuses based on its own location. For each odd point of essence invested in this veil, this penalty is reduced by 1. You cannot direct your attacks and your shadow’s attacks against the same creature. The shadow does not have its own senses, it directs its attacks against creatures or objects that you choose, and suffers penalties to its attacks if you cannot perceive the target, as normal.