Monster Knight (Apath)
 | |
| Unofficial rules compendium | |
|
|
A monster master has a pact with a supernatural creature that is of this world. While still a powerful summoner, the monster master's eidolon is not an extra-dimensional creature but native to this world.
Class Features
These are all of the class features of the monster master.
Challenge
This is the same as the cavalier ability of the same name. The monster master can use this ability once per day at 1st level, and an additional time per day at level 4 and every 4 levels after level 4.
Monster Ally
A monster master begins play with the services of a powerful creature called an monster ally. This is like the summoner's eidolon ability except as noted here.
The monster ally formed a pact with the monster master for reasons that need not be entirely clear. An monster ally has an alignment selected by the player, it can be different from the monster master's own alignment.
The monster ally is an native outsider. The monster ally’s physical appearance is up to the monster master, but it always appears as some sort of fantastical creature. This control is not fine enough to make the monster ally appear like a specific creature. The monster ally generally looks like a conventional monster, like a dragon or unicorn.
Unlike regular eidolons, monster allies are native outsiders and are a permanent fixture of this world. They are not extra-dimensional and cannot be summoned or dismissed.
Monster allies are very hard to kill; they go unconscious normally at zero hit points, but automatically stabilize and can survive at negative hit points equal to their full normal hit points. An monster ally killed by a death effect does not actually die, it instead takes damage equal to its normal hit points. An monster ally that is slain can be raised or resurrected without suffering negative levels, or the monster master can call upon his pact to contact a new monster ally. This is a one-hour ritual that severs all ties with the old monster ally. The replacement monster ally must travel to the monster master using its own abilities, a process that can take up to a week.
The monster ally’s Hit Dice, saving throws, skills, feats, and abilities are tied to the monster master’s class level and increase as the monster master gains levels. In addition, each monster ally receives a pool of evolution points, based on the monster master’s class level, that can be used to give the monster ally different abilities and powers. Whenever the monster master gains a level, he must decide how these points are spent, and they are set until he gains another level of monster master. These attributes are the same as those of a regular eidolon.
A monster master riding a monster ally with the mount evolution ignores any armor check penalty to the Ride skill.
Monster allies have access to some new and modified evolutions.
Large (Ex)
2 point evolution
The large evolution is only a two-point evolution for an monster ally rather than 4 points, and the huge evolution an additional 3 points instead of 6 points. The benefits of being Large or Huge remain the same, and monster allies with this evolution still pay twice the normal cost for evolutions to Strength and Constitution.
By paying the full normal cost of the Large or Huge evolutions, the monster ally 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.
Shrink (Su)
4 point evolution
An monster ally can shrink to Tiny size or resume its normal size as a standard action. A Tiny monster ally is often mistaken for a familiar.
While Tiny, the monster ally 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 monster ally has is halved. It also loses its natural reach and all natural and weapon attacks do two steps less damage.
The monster master and his monster ally have a link and can share each other's health. As long as they are within 100 ft. of one another, any time either of them recovers hit points, the other recovers the same amound of hit points. This does not apply to fast healing or regeneration. If the monster ally has taken damage but the monster master has not, calculate how much the monster master would naturally recover each day; the monster ally recovers this many hit points. Note that monster allies do not recover hit points naturally.
Shield Ally (Su)
This is the same as the summoner ability of the same name, except that it is gained at 3rd level.
Medium Armor Training (Ex)
At 5th level, the monster master's speed is not reduced for medium armor. The armor check penalty of any light or heavy armor worn by the mosnter master is reduced by 1, and the maximum Dexterity bonus to armor class of light and medium armor is increased by one.
Bond Sense (Su)
This is the same as the summoner ability of the same name, except a monster master gains it at level 6.
At level 10, the life force bond between the monster master and his ally strengthens. As long as either of them has more than half hit points, the the other is protected from harm. Damage in excess of that which would reduce one of them to fewer than 1 hit points is instead transferred to the other. This damage is transferred 1 point at a time, meaning that as soon as one of them, goes below half hit points, no more damage is shared. Temporary changes to Constitution do not affect a character's max hit points for the purpose of this ability.
Effects that cause death but not damage are unaffected by this ability. This ability does not affect spells like baleful polymorph, flesh to stone, or imprisonment, or other spells that do not cause actual damage.
Greater Shield Ally (Su)
This is the same as the summoner ability of the same name, except a monster master gains it at level 14.
Aspect (Su)
This is the same as the summoner ability of the same name, except it is gained at 18th level.
Table: monster master
| Level | Base Attack Bonus | Fort Save | Ref Save | Will Save | Special |
| 1st | +1 | +2 | +0 | +2 | Challenge 1/day, monster ally |
| 2nd | +2 | +3 | +0 | +3 | Life share |
| 3rd | +3 | +3 | +1 | +3 | Shield ally |
| 4th | +4 | +4 | +1 | +4 | Challenge 2/day |
| 5th | +5 | +4 | +1 | +4 | Armor training |
| 6th | +6/+1 | +5 | +2 | +5 | Bond senses |
| 7th | +7/+2 | +5 | +2 | +5 | |
| 8th | +8/+3 | +6 | +2 | +6 | Challenge 3/day |
| 9th | +9/+4 | +6 | +3 | +6 | |
| 10th | +10/+5 | +7 | +3 | +7 | Greater Shield ally |
| 11th | +11/+6/+1 | +7 | +3 | +7 | |
| 12th | +12/+7/+2 | +8 | +4 | +8 | Challenge 4/day |
| 13th | +13/+8/+3 | +8 | +4 | +8 | |
| 14th | +14/+9/+4 | +9 | +4 | +9 | Life bond |
| 15th | +15/+10/+5 | +9 | +5 | +9 | |
| 16th | +16/+11/+6/+1 | +10 | +5 | +10 | Challenge 5/day |
| 17th | +17/+12/+7/+2 | +10 | +5 | +10 | |
| 18th | +18/+13/+8/+3 | +11 | +6 | +11 | Aspect |
| 19th | +19/+14/+9/+4 | +11 | +6 | +11 | |
| 20th | +20/+15/+10/+5 | +12 | +6 | +12 | Challenge 6/day |
Summary of Changed Class Abilities
These abilities of the original class are lost or modified in this archetype: