Still Not Done with PF1: Adventurer Class (Patreon)

It's time for the weekly Pathfinder 1e content available to all members! I'll do "Better Appraise Spell Feats" next week, but I wanted to give a sample of the other kind of content I might do, now lumped under the "Still Not Done With PF1" tag... I'm still workshopping what to label "All Things Pathfinder 1e" as weekly articles.

The Adventurer Class

Pathfinder 1e is intentionally a game of teamwork and specialization. But that doesn't mean there's no room for a middle-of-the-road class that doesn't have any real special class features of its own, but can access a wide range of the other abilities Pathfinder allows characters to access through feats, spells, and skills. A class that's baseline game numbers are better than usual, because it has fewer special abilities to augment those numbers.

When coming up with a brand-new PF1 base class, a third-party publisher has to think about how to give it the breadth of options official classes have. The slew of spells and archetypes designed for specific classes over the decade+ of PF1's publication means a new class has a MUCH narrower range of options... unless it can somehow access spells and archetypes designed for other classes.

Presenting: The Adventurer.

ADVENTURER

Many adventurers find their way to delving in dungeons, exploring lost lands, and clearing overrun wildernesses from some other life path. Clerics seek first to obey their gods, wizards to seek eldritch knowledge, fighters to master combat arts, and rogues to master the hidden and forbidden places. All may become adventurers, but as a secondary effect of their lives' goals. Adventurers have dreams, prepared, and trained their whole lives to BE adventurers. This leaves them less focused on any one area of specialization, but also allows them to have at least some useful input in nearly any circumstance.

Role: An adventurer is able to fill a number of roles within a group, though they often must focus on those roles in skill and feat selection. They are a good combatant, fairly skilled, and eventually have a smattering of spells at their disposal. It may be more difficult for them to be the only character filling a role, though they can generally manage it, but they make an excellent back-up character in a wide range of a group's needs and tactics.

(Art by murattellioglu)

Alignment: An adventurer may be of any alignment.

Hit Die: d10

Starting Wealth: 5d6 x 10 gp (average 175 gp).

Class Skills: The adventurer gains all skills as class skills, each taken individually.

Skill Points at each Level: 6 + Int modifier.

Class Features

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Adventurers are proficient with all simple and martial weapons, with all types of armor (heavy, medium, and light), and with shields (except tower shields).

Archetypical: An adventurer may lack the common special abilities of other classes, but the very thing that makes them jacks-of-all-trades but masters of none gives them the ability to pick up alternate training more easily (and from a broader list of options) than most characters. An adventurer can select an archetype normally only available to another class. This ability is subject to numerous limitations.

You can only gain one archetype for the adventurer class. You cannot gain more skill points, feats, or spells known, spells per day, or access to another class spell list as a result of gaining an archetype. If an ability of the archetype offers or modifies only those features, you do not gain it (and do not have to lose a feat and skill points as a result, see below).

You gain the alternate abilities at the same class level a character adding the archetype to its intended class would. At any level an adventurer gains an alternate ability from an archetype, rather than lose the listed class feature that ability replaces, the adventurer does not gain their bonus feat that level, and gains 2 fewer skill points than normal. If the ability has a game mechanical benefit that applies to a class feature you do not possess (such as modifying how your bardic performance works, when you have no bardic performance) then it has no effect. If an archetype ability modifies or replaces more than one of the parent classes' features, you must lose another 2 skill points, or one spell per day from your highest-level spell known (if you have gained spells per day).

Bonus Feats: At 1st level, and at every level thereafter, an adventurer gains a bonus feat in addition to those gained from normal advancement. The adventurer must meet all of a bonus feat's prerequisites to select it.Upon reaching 4th level, and every four levels thereafter (8th, 12th, and so on), an adventurer can choose to learn a new bonus feat in place of a bonus feat they have already learned. In effect, the adventurer loses the bonus feat in exchange for the new one. The old feat cannot be one that was used as a prerequisite for another feat, prestige class, or other ability. An adventurer can only change one feat at any given level and must choose whether or not to swap the feat at the time they gain a new bonus feat for the level.

In place of a bonus feat, you may choose to gain two character traits of your choice. These traits must be chosen from different lists, but each can be chosen from lists from which you have previously selected a character trait. You cannot have more traits selected from the same trait than 1 + 1/4 your adventurer level. You must meet any additional qualifications for the character traits you choose. You cannot lose character traits in exchange for new ones.

Spellcasting: Select one of the following ability scores: Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma. This is your spellcasting ability. To cast a spell, your spellcasting ability must have a score of at least 10 + spell level. The save DCs for your spells are 10 + spellcasting ability modifier + spell level.

Choose if you are a prepared or spontaneous spellcaster. This determines your spells prepared per day (for prepared spellcasters) or spell slots and spells known (if spontaneous). If you are a prepared spellcaster, you gain spells per day equal to a paladin of the same level. If you are a spontaneous spellcaster, you gain spells known and spells per day equal to a bloodrager of the same level.

Choose if your spells are arcane, divine, or occult. If you are an arcane spellcaster, you may select one of the following spell lists to serve as your adventurer spell list - bard, magus, skald, summoner, witch, or wizard/sorcerer. If you are a divine spellcaster, you may select one of the following spell lists to serve as your adventurer spell list - cleric, druid, inquisitor, or ranger. If you are an occult spellcaster, you may select one of the following spell lists to serve as your adventurer list - medium, mesmerist, occultist, psychic, or spiritualist. Once you select a spell list, it cannot be changed. Regardless of what spell list you choose, spells on that list of 5th level or higher are not available to you, and are not considered to be on your adventurer spell list.

If you are an arcane spellcaster of either type, you suffer arcane spell failure when wearing armor. If you are an arcane prepared spellcaster, you have a spellbook you keep spells in and can add spells to as a wizard, and gain 2 spells known per adventurer level. If you are a divine spellcaster and you change alignment, you lose access to your spellcasting as if you were a cleric that changed deities (and must undergo similar tribulations to restore your spellcasting ability). If you are a divine prepared spellcaster, you can prepare any spell in your spell list of a level you gain preparation slots for. If you are an occult spellcaster, you cast spells using the occult spellcasting rules and components. If you are an occult prepared spellcaster, you have a crystal that acts like a spellbook, which you keep spells in and can add spells to as a wizard des (but from the psychic spell list), and gain 2 spells known per adventurer level.

If a spell has some prerequisite you cannot meet other than belonging to a specific class list (such as spells that can only be cast by clerics of a specific deity) and you cannot meet that prerequisite, you cannot cast the spell. If the spell has a game mechanical prerequisite benefit that you cannot meet (such as modifying how your bardic performance works, when you have no bardic performance) then that part of the spell has no effect when you cast it.