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 Information

This is a hybrid class, a combination of summoner and cavalier.

Hit Die: d10.

Class Skills

Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Craft (Int ), Diplomacy (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (Arcana) (Int), Knowledge (Nature) (Int), Knowledge (Nobility) (Int), Knowledge (Planes) (Int), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Sense Motive (Wis), Survival (Wis), Swim (Str),

Skill points per level: 4 + Int mod

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.

Monster Ally

A monster master begins play with the services of a powerful creature called an monster ally. This is the same as 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.

Monster allies are a permanent fixture of the summoner's home plane. They are not extra-dimensional and cannot be summoned or dismissed. This means that it cannot be conveniently stowed away when not needed; keeping the monster ally nearby can be a problem.

The monster ally gains a choice of abilities at first level. It can either gain the large evolution, or the ability to change size; as a standard action the native eidolon can alter its size, from Tiny to the largest (normally Medium, but see the large evolution). Any equipment the native eidolon wears or wields also changes size. The eidolon gains the effects due an eidolon of whatever size it currently has. A Tiny native 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. It also loses its natural reach and all natural and weapon attacks do two steps less damage.

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. A 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.

Eidolon Choices A monster ally is never an extraplanar creature and must be selected among creatures that live naturally on the material plane. Exactly which subtypes of outsiders do so depend on the game world, but at a minimum elementals are available. If using Everyman Unchained: Eidolons elementals, kami, oni, rakshasa, and all eidolons that are not outsiders are options for monster allies.

Monster Tactics (Ex)

The monster master gains a tactical feat he fulfills the prerequisites for as a bonus feat. The monster ally gains any tactical feats the monster master learns, and can ignore prerequisites.

Health Share (Su)

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 hit points recovered by 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 monster 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 8.

Life Share (Su)

At level 11, 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.

This ability does not affect attribute damage, death effects, baleful polymorph, flesh to stone, or imprisonment, or other spells and effects 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 17th level.

Greater Aspect (Su)

This is the same as the summoner ability of the same name, except it is gained at 20th 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, monster tactics
2nd	+2	+3	+0	+3	Health share
3rd	+3	+3	+1	+3	Shield ally
4th	+4	+4	+1	+4	Challenge 2/day
5th	+5	+4	+1	+4	Medium armor training
6th	+6/+1	+5	+2	+5	—
7th	+7/+2	+5	+2	+5	Challenge 3/day
8th	+8/+3	+6	+2	+6	Bond senses
9th	+9/+4	+6	+3	+6	—
10th	+10/+5	+7	+3	+7	Challenge 4/day
11th	+11/+6/+1	+7	+3	+7	Life share
12th	+12/+7/+2	+8	+4	+8	—
13th	+13/+8/+3	+8	+4	+8	Challenge 5/day
14th	+14/+9/+4	+9	+4	+9	Greater shield ally
15th	+15/+10/+5	+9	+5	+9	—
16th	+16/+11/+6/+1	+10	+5	+10	Challenge 6/day
17th	+17/+12/+7/+2	+10	+5	+10	Aspect
18th	+18/+13/+8/+3	+11	+6	+11	—
19th	+19/+14/+9/+4	+11	+6	+11	Challenge 7/day
20th	+20/+15/+10/+5	+12	+6	+12	Greater aspect

Summary of Changed Class Abilities

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

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