Pale Theologian Preview: Secrets of the Pale (Patreon)

This is the second free preview for the pale theologian, this time focusing on a preview of the classes secrets of the pale! You can check out the free preview of the base class here and patrons can check out the full class in an early-access format here!

Secrets of the Pale

Arm of Undeath (Su)

The pale theologian has learned to replace one of their arms with an undead limb, granting them a touch attack that devastates their foes. The pale theologian gains a melee touch attack that deals damage equal to 1d6 damage + their Charisma modifier. This damage increases by an additional 1d6 at 4th level, and every 4 levels thereafter. This damage causes wounds and lesions to appear across the struck target’s flesh, dealing untyped physical damage. This damage bypasses most resistances and immunities, but can be reduced by DR/—. The pale theologian can use this touch attack in place of a single melee weapon for the purposes of attacks.

This secret can be selected multiple times, once for each of the pale theologian’s arms. For each selection past the first, they can make a touch attack with the arm instead of making a weapon attack with that limb, allowing them to utilize feats and abilities such as Two-Weapon Fighting or Multiweapon Fighting with this secret.

Channel the Pale (Su)

The pale theologian uncovers secrets of the divine nature of the pale, allowing them to channel its energies. The pale theologian chooses either positive or negative energy when they gain this ability, and can channel the chosen energy, as the cleric class feature, a total number of times per day equal to 3 + their Charisma modifier. The pale theologian uses their class level in place of their cleric level when determining the saving throw DC of their channelled energy. When the pale theologian channels energy, they can spend 1 theology point to target both living and undead creatures with their channelled energy.

This ability counts as channel energy and the pale theologian treats their class level as their cleric level when meeting the prerequisites of channeling feats. If the pale theologian has the ability to channel energy from multiple sources, they add their class levels together when determining the strength of the channelled energy.

This secret can be selected a second time, allowing them to channel the energy type they didn’t select. Each time they use this ability, they choose whether they are channeling positive or negative energy. When channeling energy, they can spend 2 theology points to channel both positive and negative energy simultaneously. When doing so, they can choose whether to affect living or undead creatures individually for each energy type.

Ghostly Grasp (Su)

The pale theologian has learned to infuse their limbs with their spiritual essence, allowing them to grasp objects outside their normal reach. The pale theologian can grab, pick up, and interact with unattended objects within their natural reach plus 10 feet. This does not extend their reach with melee weapons, but does allow them to deliver melee touch attacks using this extended reach. This extended reach increases by an additional 5 feet at 6th, 12th, and 18th level.

Phylactery (Su)

The pale theologian’s studies have unveiled some of the secrets of lichdom to them, allowing them to attune their soul to a phylactery. When the pale theologian dies or is destroyed, their soul returns to this phylactery and begins to rebuild their body over three weeks. If their body is destroyed during this process, it begins anew. After this time passes the pale theologian awakens fully healed, albeit with none of the gear that was left on their body when they died. If more than 1 day has passed and the pale theologian’s phylactery is intact, they cannot be raised from the dead through other means.

At any point while their body is being rebuilt the pale theologian can choose to accelerate the process with devastating effects on the resulting body. They may choose to reduce the time it takes their body to rebuild by up to three weeks (reduced in 1 week increments). If they have less than 1 week remaining, they can reduce the duration to 24 hours. This still counts as reducing the duration by 1 week. For each week they reduce the time by, their resulting body gains 1 permanent negative level, even if they are normally immune to negative levels. These negative levels do not kill or destroy the pale theologian, instead, if these negative levels would reduce them to 0 Hit Dice they take 4 points of Charisma drain (even if they are immune to ability drain).

The pale theologian immediately knows if their phylactery has been destroyed. If their phylactery is destroyed, they can create a new phylactery, requiring 15 days, and an expenditure of 500 gp per character level.

The most common form of phylactery is a sealed metal box containing strips of parchment on which magical phrases have been transcribed. The box is Tiny and has 40 hit points, hardness 20, and a break DC of 40. Other forms of phylacteries can exist, such as rings, amulets, or similar items.

This secret can be selected multiple times. If selected a second time, the time it takes for their body to rebuild is reduced to 2 weeks. If selected a third time, the time is reduced to 1 week. If selected a fourth time, the time is reduced to 24 hours.

Rites of Manipulation (Su)

The pale theologian learns special rites to manipulate corpses using the magics of the pale, granting them the following abilities:

Decay Corpse: The pale theologian can touch a single corpse as a standard action and spend 1 thology point to cause it to immediately decay. The flesh of the corpse immediately bubbles away into a viscous rot, leaving the creature's skeleton behind. For the purposes of raise dead, a decayed corpse is treated as if twice the amount of time has passed when determining if it can be raised.

Restore Corpse: The pale theologian can touch the corpse of a destroyed undead as a standard action and spend 1 theology point to restore the corpse to an intact state, allowing it to be animated once again using animate dead or similar effects. When an undead is reanimated using a restored corpse, it is only reanimated with 1 hit point (it still has its normal maximum hit points).

Alternatively, the pale theologian can use this ability to restore the flesh to a skeletal corpse, allowing it to be reanimated as a zombie, or another type of undead creature that requires a fleshy corpse. This created flesh does not resemble the creature in life.

Spectral Strength (Ex)

The pale theologian has infused themself with spectral energy, causing their muscles to atrophy away while infusing their body with ghostly strength. The pale theologian’s Strength score becomes —. They use their Charisma to determine their carrying capacity and use their Charisma modifier in place of their Strength when making Strength checks and when determining their CMB and CMD. Since the pale theologian has no Strength score, they use their Charisma when making melee attacks. They do not add their Charisma modifier to their damage rolls when doing so.

Undeath’s Eye (Su)

The pale theologian has gained greater understanding and control over their undead minions, allowing them to sense their presence and share their senses. The pale theologian always knows the location of undead under their control relative to them. As a standard action by spending 1 theology point, the pale theologian can attune their senses to a single one of their undead under their control for 10 minutes. The pale theologian sees and hears through that undead creature, but their own body is blinded and deafened. They can suppress or reactivate this ability during its active duration as a standard action. The pale theologian and their controlled undead creature must be on the same plane of existence to use this ability.