Pale Theologian Preview: FCBs, Alternate Class Features, and Archetypes (Patreon)

This is the third free preview for the pale theologian, this time  focusing on a preview of the classes favored class bonuses, alternate class features, and archetypes! 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!

Favored Class Bonuses

All: Gain +1/6 of a bonus secret of the pale.

All: Gain +1/4 theology points.

All: Undead the pale theologian creates using animate dead, extract specter, or the reanimate ability of the Death sphere gain +1/2 additional maximum hit points.

All: The pale theologian’s imbue with the pale heals an additional +1 hit point.

All: Undead created using the pale theologian’s imbue with unlife treat their duration as if the pale theologian were +1 level higher.

All: The pale theologian and undead they create using animate dead, extract specter, or the reanimate ability of the Death sphere increase their channel resistance by +1/4.

Alternate Class Features

Pale Imbuement

Bonded in Death

The path of pale theology is sometimes guided by intense loss and a desire to regain, rather than control over natural forces.

The pale theologian must select the imbue with unlife ability with pale imbuement to select this alternate class feature. If they later gain the imbue with unlife ability using the Expanded Imbuement secret, they can choose to gain this alternate class feature and apply it to that ability. Once they make this choice, it cannot be changed.

The bonded in death may only have a single undead created using their imbue with unlife ability at a time. This undead creature is inhabited by the soul of a loved one lost to the bonded in death, known as their dearly departed. If they create a second undead using imbue with unlife while they already have an undead created, they must choose which of the two to destroy.

The dearly departed is fiercely loyal to the bonded in death and possesses intelligence which they use to act with the reanimated corpse’s body. At 1st level, assign one of each of the following scores to the dearly departed’s Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma: 16, 14, 12. Each score can only be assigned to one ability. Rather than using the mental ability scores of the mindless undead, the undead created by your imbue with unlife uses the dearly departed’s mental ability scores. The dearly departed grants the undead creature it possesses skill ranks and feats based on the bonded in death’s level, granting one feat at 1st level and every 2 levels thereafter, and grants 2 + the dearly departed’s Intelligence modifier skill ranks for each level of the bonded in death, with a maximum number of ranks in any one skill equal to the bonded in death’s level. The dearly departed treats every skill as a class skill. The dearly departed also gains an increase to their channel resistance equal to their Charisma modifier.

At 4th level, and every 4 levels thereafter, one of the dearly departed’s mental ability scores is increased by 1 point. The dearly departed shares the languages of the bonded in death and can speak even if it would have been unable to in life. These feats and skill ranks are chosen each time the bonded in death gains a class level.

Should the bonded in death’s dearly departed be permanently returned to life, they lose the benefits of this alternate class feature and can choose to retrain it at no cost.

Special: This alternate class feature can be combined with the spectral reanimator alternate class feature, despite them both modifying the same class feature. When doing so, the bonded in death’s dearly departed is animated as a specter without the need of a corpse, has a number of hit dice equal to the dearly departed’s class level, and at 1st level the following ability scores are assigned to the dearly departed’s Dexterity, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma: 16, 16, 14, 12. Each score can only be assigned to one ability. The dearly departed’s Dexterity gains a +2 bonus, as normal for a specter, but their other mental ability scores are not modified or replaced. At 4th level, and every 4 levels thereafter, the bonded in death increases one of these ability scores by 1. If the bonded in death’s spectral dearly departed is destroyed, the next time they attempt to create them using their imbue with death ability it costs an additional 3 theology points, which returns the dearly departed to full hit points. This otherwise follows all other rules and restrictions of both alternate class features.

This modifies the pale theologian’s pale imbuement class feature.

Bonded in Death Secrets of the Pale

The bonded in death cannot select the Legion of the Dead secret, instead they gain access to the following secrets of the pale:

Warding Bond (Su)

The bonded in death’s spiritual bond with their dearly departed is so strong that it wards them from harm while they are in each other’s presence. While the bonded in death and their dearly departed are within 30 feet of each other they both gain a +2 profane bonus to their AC and their Will saves, and whenever one of them takes damage the other can choose to take half that damage, rounded up (after applying damage reduction, resistances, or the like). This shared damage cannot be reduced or prevented in any way and bypasses any immunities either might possess.

Archetypes

Pale Channeler

Entwined Energies: The pale channeler is skilled with both healing and harming magics beyond that of a mere pale theologian; they can spontaneously cast both healing and harming spells, they do not have to choose each day.

This modifies the pale theologian’s spontaneous casting class feature.

Channeler of the Pale (Su): At 1st level, the pale channeler gains the ability to channel both positive and negative energy as a cleric of their class level. Whenever they channel energy they choose which type of energy they are channeling (positive or negative) and whether they are affecting living or undead creatures. The pale channeler does not need a holy or unholy symbol to channel energy.

If the pale channeler selects the Channel the Pale secret, they gain an additional two uses of their channel energy each day instead of choosing either positive or negative energy. They can still spend theology points to target both undead and living creatures if they have this

This replaces the pale theologian’s pale imbuement class feature.

Selective Channel: At 3rd level, the pale channeler gains Selective Channeling as a bonus feat.

Pale Channel: At 5th level, whenever they channel energy the pale channeler can choose to release waves of entwined positive and negative energy. The pale channeler chooses either living and undead creatures and affects them by both positive and negative energy, both healing and harming that type of creature. Using their Selective Channeling feat the pale channeler can exclude a single creature from either the healing, damage, or both of this pale channel. When channeling energy in this way the pale channeler treats their cleric level a -4 lower when determining the amount of healing and damage dealt by their pale channel. If a creature is both healed and damaged by negative and positive energy, they only receive a benefit from one of those types when using this channel, though they heal an additional +1 hit points per 1d6 of channeled energy.

At 9th level, and again at 11th level, the pale channeler treats their cleric level as 2 higher for the purposes of their pale channel (to a maximum of their class level).

Pale Invoker

Invoke the Pale (Su): At 1st level, the pale invoker learns to invoke pale energies to heal or destroy living and undead beings. As a standard action, they make a melee touch attack that harms a living or undead foe. This touch attack deals damage equal to 1d6 + the pale invoker’s Charisma modifier. This damage increases by an additional 1d6 at 3rd level, and every 2 levels thereafter. At 2nd level, whenever the pale invoker uses this ability they can choose to spend 1 theology point before the attack is rolled to instead deal 1d6 points of damage per class level + their Charisma modifier on a successful hit.

Alternatively, they can use this ability to touch a living or undead creature and heal it by spending 1 theology point as a standard action. Doing so restores 1d6 + the pale invoker’s Charisma modifier points of damage, plus an additional 1d6 at 3rd level and every 2 levels thereafter.

At 4th level, the pale invoker may harm creatures within Close range (25 feet + 5 feet per two class levels) as a ranged touch attack, and may heal creatures within Close range. At 8th level, this range increases to Medium range (100 feet + 10 feet per class level). At 12th level, this range increases to Long range (400 feet + 40 feet per class level).

This replaces the pale theologian’s pale imbuement class feature and their secret of the pale gained at 8th level.

Spontaneous Invoking: At 1st level, the pale invoker learns to directly invoke spells using their necromantic power, allowing them to cast a number of spells spontaneously using their spell slots.

The following spells are treated as necromancy spells of their specified level, and deal either positive energy damage (healing living creatures and damaging undead creatures) or negative energy damage (damaging living creatures and healing undead creatures) in place of their normal damage types, chosen when the pale invoker casts the spell. Spells lose their normal elemental descriptors, and creatures affected by the spell must make Fortitude saves instead of Reflex saves (undead are not immune to their effects). The pale invoker may spontaneously cast any of these spells and treats them as spells they know, sacrificing a spell slot of the spells level or higher to cast it:

Burning hands (1st), scorching ray (2nd), fireball (3rd), detonate (4th), fire snake (5th), chain lightning (6th), delayed blast fireball (7th), stormbolts (8th), meteor swarm (9th).

This replaces the pale theologian’s spontaneous casting class feature.

Empowered Pale Invoking: At 2nd level, whenever the pale invoker casts a spell using their spontaneous invoking class feature, creatures healed by the spell heal an additional +1 hit points per class level, and creatures damaged by the spell suffer an additional +1 point of damage per class level.

This replaces the pale theologian’s secret of the pale gained at 2nd level.

Sphere Pale Theologian

Casting: The sphere pale theologian may combine spheres and talents to create magical effects. The sphere pale theologian is considered a High-Caster. (Note: All casters gain 2 bonus talents and a casting tradition the first time they gain the casting class feature.)

This replaces the pale theologian's spells, cantrips, necromantic origination and spontaneous casting class features.

Spell Pool: The sphere pale theologian gains a small reservoir of energy they can call on to create truly wondrous effects, called a spell pool. This pool contains a number of spell points equal to their class level + their casting ability modifier. This pool replenishes once per day after roughly 8 hours of rest.

Master of the Pale: At 1st level, the sphere pale theologian gains the Death sphere, as well as their choice of either the Blood or Life spheres as bonus talents. They cannot select a drawback for the Death sphere that causes them to lose the reanimate ability. If they already possess the base sphere, they may select a talent from that sphere instead.

Imbuement of Reanimation: If the pale theologian selects the imbue with unlife ability with their pale imbuement, the ability functions as the reanimate ability of the Death sphere. When determining the duration of the created undead created using their imbue with unlife ability these undead last for 1 minute per level, rather than their normal duration. If the sphere pale theologian does not have the ability to use the reanimate ability of the Death sphere, they may only control a number of undead equal to twice their class level at once using this ability.

At 3rd level, undead created using their imbue with unlife now have a duration of 10 minutes per class level. At 5th level, they gain the benefits of the Expanded Necromancy talent when creating undead with imbue with unlife. At 7th level, undead created using imbue with unlife have a duration of 1 hour per class level. At 9th level, they can now control two undead created using mbue with unlife at a time. At 11th level, the undead they create using imbue with unlife gain the benefits of the Permanent Undead advanced talent.

This modifies the pale theologian’s pale imbuement class feature, but not for the purposes of archetype compatibility.

Magic Talents: A sphere pale theologian gains a magic talent at 2nd level, and every 2 levels thereafter.

Moldable Pale Talents: A sphere pale theologian gains their choice of a Blood, Death, or Life talent at 3rd level, and every 2 levels thereafter. Unlike most talents, the sphere pale theologian can change these talents as they desire. Whenever the sphere pale theologian rests to regain spell points, they may change any of the talents gained from this ability, losing the previous talents and gaining new Blood, Death, or Life talents in their place. Only talents gained from this class feature can be changed in this way; no other talents are eligible to be changed using this ability.

Spheres Secrets of the Pale

The following secrets of the pale can be selected by pale theologians utilizing the spheres of power system:

Extra Pale Talent

Prerequisites: Moldable pale talents class feature

The pale theologian’s mastery of the pale further improves, granting them an additional moldable pale talent each day. This secret of the pale can be selected multiple times, granting an additional moldable pale talent each time it is selected.

Masterful Command (Spheres)

Prerequisites: Death sphere, reanimate ability

The pale theologian has attained a level of control beyond even the most skilled of necromancers. The pale theologian adds their pale theologian level to the number of Hit Dice of undead they may control using the reanimate ability of the Death sphere. This secret can be selected a second time, allowing them to add twice their pale theologian level instead.