Blood Knight"You do not frighten me. Perhaps this will be my doom. It changes nothing. This is what must happen." - Crayce the Unyielding, a Blood Knight
In the distant past there was a kingdom called of Vaga, therein arose an order of elite warriors, the Circulus Sanguinum. The order considered blood to be one of the primal elements, and the one responsible for endowing otherwise inert matter with life and volition. They enacted all manner of ritual that would seem the provenance of infernal cults and maniacs, but they held no malice toward mankind. In time, they learned to tap the innate power surging through their veins. They brought forth a hitherto unknown form of magic, and blended it with their martial prowess. They became the first Blood Knights.
The Circulus Sanguinum disappeared long ago when the kingdom they served fell to invaders, but scattered texts survived the destruction. A few short centuries ago Crayce the Unyielding happened upon a translation of a tablet that had once instructed neophytes of the order. Sensing the deep wisdom of these teachings, he committed himself to becoming the first Blood Knight in millennia, and scoured the land to recover all traces of the knowledge of the Circulus Sanguinum that had survived the ages. His great gift to history was to compile and translate the remaining knowledge of the Circulus Sanguinum. A prospective student can now track down a copy of Crayce's book, if he has the dedication, and can set himself to the arduous task of unlocking the power of blood.
Making a Blood KnightA Blood Knight is the true fusion of martial prowess and arcane might. Not merely a warrior at one moment and a caster the next, he combines these two disparate studies into a unified whole, greater than the sum of its parts. His greatest strength lies in channeled invocations, which allow him to deliver a magical assault simultaneously with a physical one.
Over time, a Blood Knight's body becomes infused with magical energies. He becomes able to shrug off injuries that would cripple lesser men. Gaping wounds seal themselves, shattered bones realign themselves and knit together, and new blood fills his veins to replace what was spilled.
Abilities: Strength and charisma are vital to a Blood Knight. Strength governs the effectiveness of his melee attacks. High strength allows him to hit more reliably and increases the power behind each swing. Charisma determines the save DC his invocations. Many of the most powerful channeled invocations allow a saving throw.
As with any character that will see the front lines of battle, constitution is very helpful. A Blood Knight eventually gains the ability to heal any damage he sustains, but he must still survive long enough for the healing to occur. A larger hit point pool helps by acting as a buffer.
Dexterity, intelligence, and wisdom are not very important to a Blood Knight. A Blood Knight gains the ability to use heavy armor at later levels, which allows him to achieve a decent armor class without a good score in dexterity. Intelligence give the Blood Knight more skill points, but his invocations and his martial prowess allow him to navigate most challenges without recourse to skills. Wisdom improves a Blood Knight's will save, but the base save bonus offered by the class is high, so he can make due without a substantial addition from wisdom.
Races: Humans make up the majority of Blood Knights. This has more to do with the large number of humans who thirst for true strength than any suitability of the race itself. Dwarves make excellent Blood Knights. Their innate obstinance and dour constancy are exactly the traits needed to endure this path. Even those orcs that are literate rarely discover the teachings of the Circulus Sanguinum. The very few who are aware of Blood Knights generally lack the patience to pursue proper training. Elves, gnome, and halflings generally lack the bleak stoicism and single-minded obstinacy necessary to excel as Blood Knights.
Alignment: Few Blood Knights are good. They tend to have a very harsh and uncompromising outlook. The few Blood Knights who do take up the mantle of virtue have no patience for doubters and sinners. The righteous path is clear, they say, and any who lack the conviction to commit to it fully will be forever damned. Many Blood Knights are evil. The harsh regiments they force themselves through to gain strength often erode the capacity for pity and leave them bitter at those with easier lives. Most Blood Knight, though, are neutral and have no real desire to become involved in the affairs of others.
The majority of Blood Knights are lawful. The teachings of the Circulus Sanguinum place a heavy emphasis on discipline and regimented training. The few chaotic Blood Knights are heretics, disdaining practice rooms as a feeble imitation of real battlefields and plunging themselves immediately into action. Only a small fraction of those who set out on this heretical path survive long enough to become true Blood Knights, but those that do are a force to be reckoned with.
Starting Gold:: 6d4×10 gp (150 gp).
Starting Age:: As fighter.
Hit Die: D10Level | | Base Attack Bonus | | Fort Save | | Ref Save | | Will Save | | Special | | Max Invocation Grade | | Invocations known |
1 | | 1 | | 2 | | 0 | | 2 | | Diehard | | Least | | 1 |
2 | | 2 | | 3 | | 0 | | 3 | | Multi-channeling | | Least | | 2 |
3 | | 3 | | 3 | | 1 | | 3 | | Dispassion | | Least | | 2 |
4 | | 4 | | 4 | | 1 | | 4 | | Armored invoker (medium), stanch | | Least | | 3 |
5 | | 5 | | 4 | | 1 | | 4 | | Vitality (5% per round, up to 50%) | | Least | | 3 |
6 | | 6 | | 5 | | 2 | | 5 | | Full-attack channeling | | Lesser | | 4 |
7 | | 7 | | 5 | | 2 | | 5 | | Armored invoker (heavy), sufferance | | Lesser | | 4 |
8 | | 8 | | 6 | | 2 | | 6 | | | | Lesser | | 5 |
9 | | 9 | | 6 | | 3 | | 6 | | Bodily renewal (1 per round) | | Lesser | | 5 |
10 | | 10 | | 7 | | 3 | | 7 | | Vitality (5% per round, up to 75%) | | Lesser | | 6 |
11 | | 11 | | 7 | | 3 | | 7 | | | | Greater | | 7 |
12 | | 12 | | 8 | | 4 | | 8 | | Unrelenting stamina | | Greater | | 7 |
13 | | 13 | | 8 | | 4 | | 8 | | | | Greater | | 8 |
14 | | 14 | | 9 | | 4 | | 9 | | Bodily renewal (2 per round) | | Greater | | 8 |
15 | | 15 | | 9 | | 5 | | 9 | | Vitality (10% per round, up to 75%) | | Greater | | 9 |
16 | | 16 | | 10 | | 5 | | 10 | | | | Dark | | 10 |
17 | | 17 | | 10 | | 5 | | 10 | | Tenacious essence | | Dark | | 10 |
18 | | 18 | | 11 | | 6 | | 11 | | | | Dark | | 11 |
19 | | 19 | | 11 | | 6 | | 11 | | Bodily renewal (3 per round) | | Dark | | 11 |
20 | | 20 | | 12 | | 6 | | 12 | | Vitality (10% per round, up to 100%) | | Dark | | 12 |
Class Skills (4 + int modifier per level, ×4 at 1st level): Balance, bluff, climb, concentration, craft, intimidate, jump, knowledge (arcana), knowledge (the planes), profession, spellcraft, swim, tumble, and use magic device.
Class FeaturesYou study dark secrets buried in ancient tomes. You steel your mind against the worming influences of psychic assault. You practice endlessly with your sword until it moves as an extension of your body. You toughen your body with unrelenting exercise. You are well versed in the twin fields of physical and magical combat.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: You are proficient with simple and martial weapons. You are proficient with light armor, but not with shields. You gain additional proficiencies at higher levels.
Because the somatic components for invocations are simple, you may cast any of them in light armor without incurring the normal spell failure chance. At higher levels, you gain the ability to ignore the spell failure chance from heavier armor and ultimately shields as well.
Invocations: [This will mostly be a copy/paste job from Warlock.]
Diehard (Ex): When your flesh proves weak, you do not coddle it. You gain Diehard as a bonus feat, even if you don't meet the prerequisite. If you already have diehard, you instead choose any other feat for which you meet the prerequisites.
Multi-Channeling (Ex): You have grow adept at intermingling fell energies in your blade. At 2nd level, you gain Multi-Channeling as a bonus feat, even if you don't meet the prerequisite. If you already have multi-channeling, you instead choose any other feat for which you meet the prerequisites.
Dispassion (Ex): You have learned to stare into the face of horror without flinching. At 3rd level, you gain immunity to fear effects.
Armored Invoker (Ex): Plate and mail interfere with the gestures that call forth eldritch powers, but adjustments can be made. At 4th level, you gain proficiency with medium armor, and you invocations no longer suffer a spell failure chance from medium armor. At 7th level, you gain proficiency with heavy armor and with shields (but not tower shields), and your invocations no longer suffer a spell failure chance from heavy armor or shields.
Stanch (Su): You have spent much time communing with blood in your body. You can now direct its flow away from cuts and punctures in your flesh with no conscious effort. At 4th level, you gain immunity to ongoing damage from bleed effects. Additionally, when you are at zero or fewer hit points, strenuous actions no longer cause you to lose additional hit points.
Vitality (Su): Magic invigorates you whole being. Your tissues grow and mend themselves at an impossible rate, quickly ameliorating the ravages of blade and bludgeon. Beginning at 5th level, you gain limited regenerative abilities. So long as you are below half of your maximum hit points, you gain fast healing with a magnitude equal to one-twentieth of your maximum hit points. This healing cannot place you above half your maximum hit points. At 10th level, your fast healing improves. It now functions whenever you are below three-fourth of your maximum health, and the healing can take you up to three-fourths of your maximum hit points. At 15th level, your fast healing again improves. The magnitude is now equal to one-tenth of your maximum hit points. At 20th level, your fast healing improves for the final time. It now functions continuously, and the healing can take you up to your full maximum hit points.
Full-Attack Channeling (Ex): The stroke of your blade has grown swift, swift enough to allow you to strike once more before the energies you augment your blows with have faded. At 6th level, you gain Full-Attack Channeling as a bonus feat, even if you don't meet the prerequisites. If you already have full-attack channeling, you instead choose any other feat for which you meet the prerequisites.
Sufferance (Ex): Pain is in the mind. At 7th level you gain immunity to nonlethal damage and pain-based effects.
Bodily Renewal (Su): Your regenerative abilities have improved markedly. Even fundamental corruption of your body is but a transitory nuisance. At 9th level, you heal one point of damage or drain in each of your physical ability scores each round, at the start of your turn. At 14th level, the healing increases to two points, and at 19th level, three.
Unrelenting Stamina (Ex): Weariness is a luxury you cannot afford. At 12th level, you gain immunity to fatigue and exhaustion.[/i]
Tenacious Essence (Su): Your life force is far too potent to subdue for long. Beginning at 17th level, you remove one negative level afflicting you each round at the start of your turn.
Playing a Blood Knight???
Religion???
Other Classes???
Combat???
Advancement???
Blood Knights in the World???
Daily Life???
Notables???
Organizations???
NPC Reactions???
Blood Knight Lore???
DC 10: The Circulus Sanguinum was a bizarre cadre of warrior-priests who drank blood and even bathed in it.
DC 15: Despite the gruesome origins of the ideology, only a few very fanatical Blood Knights now perform human sacrifice, and they are denounced by the remainder.
DC 20: ???
DC 30: The Circulus Sanguinum had some martial skill, but were actually rather decadent. It was Crayce's own exacting personality and passion for physical excellence that caused him to perceive those traits in the ancient writings. Nevertheless, all modern practitioners consider skill at arms to be an integral part of the doctrine of the Blood Knights.
Blood Knights in the Game???
Adaptation???
Feats[I guess there should be text here too.]
Multi-Channeling[Sorry, I'll put some flavor text in here later.]
Prerequisite: Able to cast invocations, including at least two channeled invocations.
Benefit: You can cast multiple channeled invocations simultaneously, but no more than one of any given type (attack, damage, rider). This takes only a single standard action, and you make only a single melee attack, which gains the combined benefits of all the invocations cast. If you also utilize full attack channeling, the invocations are all cast as a single full-round action, and all benefits apply to all attacks made as part of casting.
Full-Attack Channeling[Sorry, I'll put some flavor text in here later.]
Prerequisite: Able to cast invocations, including at least one channeled invocation; base attack bonus 6+
Benefit: When using a channeled invocation, you can increase the casting time to a full-round action. If you do so, you can make a full attack or charge as part of the invocation. Note that a rider invocation can still affect any given enemy only once per casting.
Extend Channeling[Sorry, I'll put some flavor text in here later.]
Prerequisite: Able to use invocations, including at least one channeled invocation
Benefit: The benefits of any channeled invocation you use persists until the start of your next turn, granting its benefits to any attacks of opportunity you make in that time. Note that a rider invocation can still affect any given enemy only once per casting.
Invocations???
Channeled InvocationsChanneled invocations direct energies through a melee weapon. They always direct you to make a single melee attack as part of the invocation. This attack gains some benefit, as described in the invocation description. Channeled invocations fall into three main categories, described below. The invocation description will tell you which category it falls into.
Attack: The melee attack made as part of this channeled invocation has its attack roll modified in some way. Spell resistance does not apply against channeled (attack) invocations.
Damage: The melee attack made as part of this channeled invocation has its damage roll modified in some way. Spell resistance does not apply against channeled (damage) invocations.
Rider: The melee attack made as part of this channeled invocation, if it hits, carries some additional effect. This effect can apply before or after the attack's normal damage, at your option. The extra effect takes place even if damage reduction reduces the attack's damage to 0. Spell resistance applies against channeled (rider) invocations unless otherwise noted.
Channeled Invocations and Extra AttacksSome effects, such as the Full-Attack channeling feat, allow you to make more than one attack as part of a channeled invocation. A channeled (attack) or channeled (damage) invocation bestows its full benefits on all these attacks.
A channeled (rider) invocation inflicts its effect only once per target per invocation. If you hit multiple enemies with attacks as part of a such an invocation, each one suffers the full effects. The effect can be resolved between attacks, and even at different times for different enemies, at your option. The earliest an enemy can be affected is immediately before the damage roll of the first attack that hit him. The latest is after resolving the last attack (regardless of who it was directed at and if it was successful).
Channeled Invocations and Attacks of OpportunityCasting a channeled invocation does not provoke an attack of opportunity. This is an exception to the general rule that casting a spell-like ability provokes an attack of opportunity unless you succeeds in making a concentration check to cast it defensively.
Channeled Invocations and Somatic ComponentsUnlike other invocations, channeled invocations do not require a free hand to provide the somatic components. Instead, the somatic components are provided via flourishes of a weapon.
Channeled Invocations and Previous MaterialHideous blow, described in Complete Arcane, becomes a channeled (rider) invocation in addition to a blast shape invocation.
Blood Knight InvocationsLeast [Probably the ones from above, and some others.]
Lesser [Probably the ones from above, and some others.]
Greater [Probably the ones from above, and some others.]
Dark [Probably the ones from above, and some others.]
New Dragonfire Adept InvocationsLeast ???
Lesser ???
Greater ???
Dark ???
New Warlock InvocationsLeast ???
Lesser ???
Greater ???
Dark ???
Invocation Descriptions[Yeah, a lot of work ahead.]