Medicine Man (Apath)

Unofficial rules compendium

Medicine men (and women) are similar to shamans, but more focused on dealing with spirits, negotiating for "spirit medicine", the power to work specific miracles on demand. This makes them more flexible spellcasters than normal shamans, but less able to provide spiritual defense for their community.

Class Abilities

A medicine man has all normal shaman class abilities, except as noted.

Spellcasting

A medicine man casts divine spells from the druid spell list. He can cast any spell he has retrieved, much like a bard or sorcerer can cast any spell he knows without preparing it ahead of time.

To retrieve or cast a spell, a medicine man must have a Wisdom score of at least 10 + the spell level (Wisdom 10 for 0-level spells, Wisdom 11 for 1st-level spells, and so on). The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a medicine man's spell is 10 + the spell level + the medicine man's Wisdom modifier.

Like other spellcasters, a medicine man can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. Her base daily spell allotment is given on Table: The Medicine man. In addition, he receives bonus spells per day if he has a high Wisdom score.

Like a sorcerer, a medicine man knows only a small number of spells. However, each day a medicine man may change the spells he knows. When a medicine man meditates to regain her daily allotment of spells (see below), he sends forth her spirit guide to bargain with the spirits and retrieve knowledge of the specific druid spells he will be able to use that day. He can cast any spell he has retrieved at any time, assuming he has not yet used up her spells per day for that spell level. For example, a 3rd-level medicine man can retrieve three 0-level, two 1st-level, and one 2nd-level druid spells. He can cast 0-level spells five limes, 1st-level spells four times, and her 2nd-level spell two times in the course of the day. He might end up using the same 0-level spell five times, or one 0-level spell two times and another 0-level spell three times, or any combination that adds up to five uses of any of her 0-level spells.

Each medicine man must choose a time of day when he must spend 1 hour in quiet meditation to regain her daily allotment of spells and bargain with the spirits for the specific spells he knows on that day.

Metamagic

If a medicine man knows any metamagic feats, she applies them to her spells when she retrieves them for the day. For example, a medicine man might choose to retrieve an empowered flame strike by using a 6th-level spell retrieved slot. Any time she uses flame strike during the ensuing day, she must use a 6th-level spell slot to cast it, and it is always empowered. A medicine man could use a 4th-level spell slot and a 6th-level spell slot to retrieve flame strike and empowered flame strike if she wanted to have both spells available to her in a day. A medicine man cannot choose to alter her spells with metamagic feats on the fly, as other spontaneous casters do. Medicine mans using metamagic feats do not have an increased casting time as sorcerers do.

Spirit Channel

A medicine man can use the Spirit Channel ability only against creatures he touches. Delivering a spirit channel to an unwilling target is the same as delivering a touch spell. Also, the medicine man's spirit channel ability is not limited to spirits; the medicine man can heal or hurt any creature with this ability.

Mercenary Spirits

Because the medicine man bargains with spirits for specific services rather than developing close relations with them, he does not have the same link to spirits that a normal shaman has. The medicine man lacks these shaman class abilities: Blessing of the Spirits, Warding of the Spirits, Spirit Quest, Greater Blessing of the Spirits, and Spirit Destination.

Summary of Changed Class Abilities

These abilities of the original class are lost or modified in this archetype:

• Spells
• Spirit Channel
• Blessing of the Spirits
• Warding of the Spirits
• Spirit Quest
• Greater Blessing of the Spirits
• Spirit Destination