Monster Scion (Apath)

Unofficial rules compendium

A monster scion is of a noble family with a monster pact in its heritage. There is a shared history between the scion's family and a clan or monsters, which might hold secrets that makes the life of the monster scion interesting. The scion's family gained their present position and status from this ancient alliance, sometimes at a high price.

Unlike a summoner, the monster scion's ally is usually native to this world and not extra-dimensional.

Class Information

This is a prestige archetype. The monster scion is a noble with a monstrous heritage.

Publisher: Purple Duck Games.

Prestige Class: Noble Scion

Build Class: Summoner.

Role: A monster scion relies on her ancestral eidolon to provide cover and mutual support. Together they win power and glory.

Alignment: Any.

Hit Die: d8.

Class Skills

The monster scion's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Appraise (Int), Bluff (Cha), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Fly (Dex), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (all) (Int), Linguistics (Int), Perception (Wis), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Sense Motive (Wis), Spellcraft (Int), and Use Magic Device (Cha).

Skill Ranks at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier.

Class Features

These are all the class features of the monster scion.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency

Monster scions are proficient with all simple weapons and with the lance, long sword, and rapier. Monster scions are also proficient with light and medium armor but not with shields. A monster scion can cast class spells while wearing light armor or medium armor without incurring the normal arcane spell failure chance. Like any other arcane spellcaster, a monster scion wearing heavy armor or using a shield incurs a chance of arcane spell failure if the spell in question has a somatic component. A multiclass monster scion still incurs the normal arcane spell failure chance for arcane spells received from other classes.

Spells

This is the same as the summoner ability of the same name.

Affluent (Ex)

At each level, a noble scion gains gold pieces equal to 750 multiplied by her character level as stipend. (She gains 750 gp. at 1st level, an additional 1,500 gp. at 2nd level, and so on.) This is the noble's private spending money, a result of the increase in standing her level advancement brings.

A multiclass character only gets this stipend when increasing in level as a noble scion, not when increasing her level in any other class. The amount received is based on her character level, not class level. So a wizard 3 who takes a level of scheming noble gains 3,000 gp (750 times her new character level of four).

Ancestral Eidolon

A monster scion begins play with the services of a powerful creature called an ancestral eidolon. This is a modification to the eidolon ability. The ancestral eidolon formed a pact with the monster scion's predecessors long ago, and is here to fulfill its part of that pact trough service. An ancestral eidolon has an alignment selected by the monster scion, it can be different from the monster scion's own alignment. The ancestral eidolon is an native outsider, tough it often looks like a conventional monster, like a dragon, griffon, or other heraldic beast. The ancestral eidolon’s physical appearance is up to the monster scion, but it always appears as some sort of fantastical creature. This control is not fine enough to make the ancestral eidolon appear like a specific individual. Unlike eidolons, most ancestral eidolons are native outsiders and are a permanent fixture of this world. They are not extra-dimensional and cannot be summoned or dismissed. Ancestral eidolons are very hard to kill; they go unconscious normally at negative hit points, but automatically stabilize and can survive at negative hit points equal to their full hit points. An ancestral eidolon that is slain can be raised or resurrected without suffering negative levels, or the monster scion can call a new ancestral eidolon. This is a one-hour ritual that severs all ties with the old monster. The replacement ancestral eidolon must travel to the monster scion using its own abilities, a process that can take a week or more. The ancestral eidolon’s Hit Dice, saving throws, skills, feats, and abilities are tied to the monster scion’s class level and increase as the monster scion gains levels. In addition, each ancestral eidolon receives a pool of evolution points, based on the monster scion’s class level, that can be used to give the ancestral eidolon different abilities and powers. Whenever the monster scion gains a level, she must decide how these points are spent, and they are set until she gains another level of monster scion. These attributes are the same as those of a regular eidolon, except that an ancestral eidolons has access to some new and modified evolutions, see below.

Cantrips

This is the same as the summoner ability of the same name.

Noble Paragon (Ex)

In order to impress commoners and peers alike, the noble scion is brought up to be a paragon of her culture. At 1st level, the noble scion selects a culture she has been brought up in and three class skills. If a particular skill already a class skill, the scion instead gains a +1 trait bonus on that skill.

Prestigious Influence (Ex)

At 2nd level, a noble scion can use her influence to receive special treatment, favors, and other services. She effectively has a pool of virtual gold pieces equal 25 gp per class level to spend on services and non-material goods. This represents the wealth of her house, but also connections; naturally the theatre will offer their best tickets for free to honor their great sponsor and beneficiary who just happens to be the noble characters uncle. This pool replenishes at the beginning of every week. Unspent resources are lost and do not accumulate. Services and nonmaterial goods available to a noble scion include:

• Pay for lodgings, stabling, taxes, and tolls.
• Pay off bandits or pay ransom.
• Pay for social gifts and bribes.
• Improve her lifestyle quality.
• Hire entertainers, messengers, mounts, servants, transport, workers, and so on.
• Obtain invitations to exclusive events, or entry into privileged locations.
• Gather information, spread rumors, or start a whispering campaign.
• Purchase spellcasting services.
• Employ an expert hireling to make a skill check with a check bonus of +10 plus half her class level at a cost of 50 gp.

The noble can spend some of these funds on her companions, but spending more than half your allowance on your friends could be seen as overly egalitarian. A noble scion cannot permanently gain goods or wealth from this ability. Boons attainable from this ability are generally only available in settlements of 500 people or more. The exact benefits available in a location are subject to GM discretion.

When in the home territory of her noble house, the scion has access to luxurious lodging at the manors or town houses of her family, and can use such facilities to throw parties, lodge her companions in comfort, or otherwise use the properties of her family to advantage. When traveling, she can expect at least modest accommodation with other nobles, and a noble visitor is often the occasion of parties and other entertainment. The backside is of course that the scion is expected to attend all these social functions, which can hinder her other activities.

Fame And Fortune (Ex)

At third level a noble scion gains a bonus equal to 1/3 her class level on Diplomacy, Intimidate, Knowledge (local), and Knowledge (nobility) checks. This ability also reduces the DCs of Diplomacy, Knowledge (local), and Knowledge (nobility) checks others make to gather information about the noble scion by the same amount.

Servitor (Ex)

At 4th level, a noble scion gains a faithful NPC servitor of the same level as a cohort granted by the Leadership feat (minimum 1st level). This servitor is of the expert NPC class and comes equipped with gear appropriate for a non-heroic NPC of the servitor's level. The servitor does not fight for the noble scion as would a cohort or follower, but instead can set up camp, act as a valet or maid, and otherwise provide food and comforts. The servitor can also run various errands while the noble scion is adventuring, such as delivering messages or maintaining the scion's interests.

Shield Ally (Ex)

Gained at 5th level, this is the same as the summoner ability of the same name.

Leadership (Ex)

At 7th level, the noble scion gains Leadership as a bonus feat. The cohort and followers come with equipment appropriate for their level. Pay and upkeep is provided by the noble scion's house. Followers serve their noble leader, but their ultimate loyalty is to the land and holdings; they may report unusual activities to others in the house and refuse orders that they perceive to be dangerous to the clan as a whole.

Ancestral Pact

At 10th level, the monster scion reawakens ancient pacts her ancestors forged with outsiders. Choose one subtype of outsider. If this is an alignment subtype, it must match the ancestral eidolon's alignment. Against this subtype of outsider, the monster scion can add her fame and fortune bonus to Charisma checks made for planar binding spells. Outsiders of the chosen type have at least decent knowledge of the monster scion, her family, and her exploits. In extreme cases, where the scion has gone against the credo of the type of outsider, this knowledge might negate the bonus from ancestral pact.

Greater Leadership (Ex)

At 13th level, a noble scion can have a cohort up to one level lower than herself and the level of all her followers increases by one. At 19th level, she can recruit a cohort of the same level she is and the level of her followers increases by two. This also improves the noble scion's servitor.

Life Bond (Su)

Gained at level 13 and then improving at level 19, this ability is described in the introduction.

Peerless Patrician (Ex)

At 20th level a noble scion can roll twice on any Bluff, Diplomacy, Intimidate, Knowledge (nobility), or Sense Motive check and take the better roll. Once per day, instead of rolling one of these skill checks, she can assume the roll resulted in a natural 20.

Peerless Patrician (Ex)

At 20th level a noble scion can roll twice on any Bluff, Diplomacy, Intimidate, Knowledge (nobility), or Sense Motive check and take the better roll. Once per day, instead of rolling one of these skill checks, she can assume the roll resulted in a natural 20.

Table: Monster Scion

Class Level	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Special	Spells per Day
						1	2	3	4	5	6
1st	+0	+0	+0	+2	Affluent, noble paragon, ancestral eidolon, cantrips	1	—	—	—	—	—
2nd	+1	+0	+0	+3	Prestigious influence	2	—	—	—	—	—
3rd	+2	+1	+1	+3	Fame and fortune +1	3	—	—	—	—	—
4th	+3	+1	+1	+4	Servitor	3	1	—	—	—	—
5th	+3	+1	+1	+4	Shield ally	4	2	—	—	—	—
6th	+4	+2	+2	+5	Fame and fortune +2	4	3	—	—	—	—
7th	+5	+2	+2	+5	Leadership	4	3	1	—	—	—
8th	+6/+1	+2	+2	+6		4	4	2	—	—	—
9th	+6/+1	+3	+3	+6	Fame and fortune +3	5	4	3	—	—	—
10th	+7/+2	+3	+3	+7	Ancestral pact	5	4	3	1	—	—
11th	+8/+3	+3	+3	+7		5	4	4	2	—	—
12th	+9/+4	+4	+4	+8	Fame and fortune +4	5	5	4	3	—	—
13th	+9/+4	+4	+4	+8	Greater leadership (+1 level)	5	5	4	3	1	—
14th	+10/+5	+4	+4	+9		5	5	4	4	2	—
15th	+11/+6/+1	+5	+5	+9	Fame and fortune +5	5	5	5	4	3	—
16th	+12/+7/+2	+5	+5	+10	Life bond	5	5	5	4	3	1
17th	+12/+7/+2	+5	+5	+10		5	5	5	4	4	2
18th	+13/+8/+3	+6	+6	+11	Fame and fortune +6	5	5	5	5	4	3
19th	+14/+9/+4	+6	+6	+11	Greater leadership (+2 levels)	5	5	5	5	5	4
20th	+15/+10/+5	+6	+6	+12	Peerless patrician	5	5	5	5	5	5

Ancestral Eidolon Evolutions

These additional and modified evolutions are available to the ancestral eidolon of a monster scion.

Dual Creature Type (Ex)

0 point evolution

At no cost in evolution points, the ancestral eidolon can have a dual creature type. Chose an additional creature type, such as dragon or magical beast. The ancestral eidolon counts as both a native outsider and as the selected creature type for effects related to creature type.

Extra-Dimensional (Ex)

2 point evolution

Like a normal summoner's eidolon, the ancestral eidolon is extra-dimensional, and can be summoned and dismissed like a regular eidolon.

A monster scion can summon an extra-dimensional ancestral eidolon in a ritual that takes 1 minute to perform. When summoned in this way, the ancestral eidolon hit points are unchanged from the last time it was dismissed or banished. The only exception to this is if the ancestral eidolon was slain, in which case it returns with half its normal hit points. Extra-dimensional ancestral eidolons are treated as summoned creatures, except that they are not sent back to their home plane until reduced to a number of negative hit points equal to or greater than their Constitution score. In addition, due to its tie to its monster scion, an extra-dimensional ancestral eidolon can touch and attack creatures warded by protection from evil and similar effects that prevent contact with summoned creatures.

The extra-dimensional ancestral eidolon remains until dismissed by the monster scion (a standard action). If an extra-dimensional ancestral eidolon is sent back to its home plane due to death, it cannot be summoned again until the following day. The ancestral eidolon cannot be sent back to its home plane by means of dispel magic, but spells such as dismissal and banishment work normally. If the monster scion is unconscious, asleep, or killed, her extradimensional ancestral eidolon is immediately banished.

Growth (Su)

4 point evolution

Except as noted, this is the same as the normal eidolon's large evolution (not the modified large evolution of the ancestral eidolon, below). By paying the full 4 points of the Large and 6 additional points for the Huge evolutions, the ancestral eidolon gains the ability to grow selectively, and can return to Small or Medium size or grow to its full possible size as a standard action. An extra-dimensional ancestral eidolon cannot use growth and instead uses the normal rules for the Large evolution.

Large (Ex)

2 point evolution

The large evolution is only a two-point evolution for an ancestral eidolon, and the huge evolution an additional 3 points instead of 6 points. The benefits of being Large or Huge remain the same, and ancestral eidolons with this evolution still pay twice the normal cost for evolutions to Strength and Constitution.

An extra-dimensional ancestral eidolon cannot use this modified large evolution and instead uses the normal rules.

Shrink (Su)

4 point evolution

An ancestral eidolon can shrink to Tiny size or resume its normal size as a standard action. A Tiny ancestral eidolon is often mistaken for a familiar. While Tiny, the ancestral eidolon gains a +4 bonus to its Dexterity score. It also takes a –8 penalty to its Strength and a –4 penalty to its Constitution. It gains a +2 size bonus to its AC and attack rolls, a –2 penalty to its CMB and CMD scores, a +4 bonus on its Fly skill checks, and a +8 bonus on its Stealth skill checks. If it is normally Small, Large, or Huge, it loses the effects of these size modifications. Any natural armor the ancestral eidolon has is halved and all natural and weapon attacks do two steps less damage.

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