Wu-Jen (Apath)

Unofficial rules compendium

Wu jen are variants wizards with a far eastern theme. They are seldom found living with the rest of human society. Instead, they live as hermits in the wilderness, purifying their bodies and minds to contact the various natural and supernatural powers of the world. From these entities they learn their spells—magical means to control the invisible forces of the world. Wu jen crave magical power outside organized colleges of wizardry. Their thirst drives them to seek out others like themselves— hermits, recluses, or exiles who have gained the secrets they seek. Most wu jen are trained by a single mentor in this fashion, outcast from proper society and set apart by their fearsome supernatural powers. Some gained their power on their own, trough the aid of spirits,or as dropouts from other magical classes.

Alignment: Wu jen tend to stand apart from the lawful societies predominant in most cultures, flouting the rules and norms of decent folk. They have a strong tendency toward chaos, but in any event they cannot be lawful.

Background: Wu jen crave magical power outside organized colleges of wizardry. Their thirst drives them to seek out others like themselves— hermits, recluses, or exiles who have gained the secrets they seek. Most wu jen are trained by a single mentor in this fashion, outcast from proper society and set apart by their fearsome supernatural powers. Some gained their power on their own, trough the aid of spirits,or as dropouts from other magical classes. Wu jen starting age is in the middle age bracket for their race.

Game Rule Information

Wu jen have the following game statistics.

Class Skills

A wu jen’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Acrobatics (Dex), Climb (Str), Fly (Dex) Knowledge (all skills, taken individually) (Int), Perform (Cha), Spellcraft (Int), Survival (Wis), and Swim (Str).

Skill Points Per Level: 2 + Int modifier.

Class Features

All the following are class features of the wu jen.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency

Wu jen are proficient with all simple weapons and with the longsword. They are not proficient with any type of armor or shield. Armor of any type interferes with a wu jen’s arcane gestures, which can cause her spells with somatic components to fail. This replaces the wizard's normal weapon and armor proficiencies.

Bonus Languages

A wu jen add Draconic and Giant to the bonus languages available to the character because of her race, since many ancient tomes of magic are written in these languages and apprentice wu jen often learn them as part of their studies. This replaces the wizard's normal bonus languages.

Watchful Spirit

Once per day, a wu jen can reroll an initiative roll she has just made before she knows her place in the initiative order. She takes the better of the two rolls. This replaces the Scribe Scroll bonus feat wizards receive at first level.

Power Secrets

A wu jen can ferret out an advantage from supernatural creatures that she (or her companions) defeat. The creature must be killed (within the last minute), rendered helpless, or surrender. A certain creature can only offer its power to one wu jen once per day - multiple wu jen working together must share. The rite to gain a power secret takes one minute. In this ritual, the wu-jen can prepare an additional spell of a level no higher than half the defeated creature's challenge rating and of a school depending on the creature type. A wu jen that conquers a creature can choose what spell to recover from it, using either school or elemental school, regardless of any school specialization she may or may not have. Spells of opposition schools still take up two spell slots of their level. This spell need not be in the wu-jens spellbook, but must be form the sorcerer/wizard spell list. These additional spells are still limited by the wu jen's capacity to prepare spells per day - this is a handy way to replace used spells or to exchange prepared spells for others that seem more useful.

Creature spell secrets, by school Abjuration - Ooze Conjuration - Outsider Divination - Aberration Enchantment - Fey Evocation - Humanoid with 2 or more racial hit dice Illusion - Monstrous humanoid Necromancy - Undead Transmutation - Magical beast Universal - Fey, magical beast, humanoid with 2 or more racial hit dice, monstrous humanoid, outsider, or undead Air elemental arcane school - Air subtype Earth elemental arcane school - Earth subtype Fire elemental arcane school - Fire subtype Metal elemental arcane school - Construct (if made of metal) Void elemental arcane school - Augmented subtype Water elemental arcane school - Water subtype Wood elemental arcane school - Plant creatures

Spell schools by creature type Aberration - Divination school Construct (if made of metal) - Metal elemental arcane school Fey - Enchantment, Illusion, or Universal schools Humanoid with 2 or more racial hit dice - Evocation or Universal schools Magical Beast - Transmutation or Universal schools Monstrous humanoid - Illusion or Universal schools Ooze - Abjuration school Outsider - Conjuration or Universal schools Plant - Wood elemental arcane school Undead - Necromancy or Universal schools Augmented subtype - Void elemental arcane school Air subtype - Air elemental arcane school Earth subtype - Earth elemental arcane school Fire subtype - Fire elemental arcane school Water subtype - Water elemental arcane school

The second column is the first column sorted by creature type (and subtype) - it contains the same information, presented differently.

Dragons are special in this regard, a dragon can give up a power secret of any school. Animals and humanoids without racial hit dice (like player races) do not hold power secrets to wu jen. Nor do summoned monsters, eidolons, familiars, or animal companions.

Example: Dong Pui and his companions defeat an Efreet. This is an "outsider (extraplanar, fire)" with a challenge rating of 8. Dong Pui can gain a conjuration school or fire elemental arcane school spell of 4th level or lower, assuming no other wu jen in the party lays claim to the power first.

Power Secrets replaces the wizard's arcane bond.

Arcane Schools

Wu jen have the same arcane school class ability as regular wizards. They tend to specialize in one of the elemental schools of magic, but this is not a restriction, just a trend.

Spell Secrets and Taboos

At 4th level, and every level thereafter, a wu jen can choose one spell known to her that then becomes permanently modified as though affected by any one metamagic feat. If the metamagic feat has a variable level increase, you must choose how much to increase it when learning the spell secret. The spell’s level does not change. As the wu jen goes up in level, she can choose the same spell to be modified in different ways with multiple spell secrets. When casting a spell, the wu jen chooses which of its spell secrets to use - if any. A single spell can be modified so that its spell level + total metamagic modifiers are no higher than half the wu jen's class level at the time the spell secret is learned. She does not need to know the Metamagic feat she applies to the spell.

Alternatively, the wu jen can learn the Spell Mastery feat applicable to the selected spell as a spell secret. Applying Spell mastery or a Metamagic feat with a spell level modifier of zero (or less) does not require the wu jen to take a taboo.

A spell with a spell secret counts as its original level for the purpose of other metamagic feats, and the wu jen can apply any such feats she knows to the spell - this means a wu jen can apply a certain metamagic feat twice to one spell - once as a spell secret and once in the normal fashion.

The wu jen accepts taboos in order to placate the spirits and and anchor her spell secrets in the physical world. Depending on the level increase of the chosen metamagic feat, the wu jen must accept a taboo of varying intensity. The more powerful the rating of the taboo, the more debilitating it is for the wu jen. The table below lists common wu jen taboos, their strength, a description, and the game effects of each. Except as noted, each taboo can only be picked once. Overlapping and conflicting taboos are allowed but make the wu jens life very hard. Breaking a taboo costs the wu jen the use of all spell secrets until she next prepares spells.

Rating	Taboo	Consequence
1	Cannot bathe.	Eccentricity 1.
1	Cannot cut her hair.	Eccentricity 1.
1	Cannot cut her nails.	Eccentricity 1.
1	Cannot eat eggs.	Eccentricity 1.
1	Cannot eat food made of rice or grain.	Eccentricity 1.
1	Cannot eat salt.	Eccentricity 1.
1	Cannot eat spiced food.	Eccentricity 1.
1	Cannot sit facing in a certain cardinal direction.	Eccentricity 1.
1	Must not restrain body gasses (burps, farts).	Eccentricity 1.
2	Can only sit facing in one cardinal direction.	Eccentricity 4.
2	Can only use simple gear.	Cannot use masterwork items - Magic items do not count.
2	Cannot use alcohol.	DC +5 on Medicine checks to speed healing or fight poison and disease.
2	Cannot eat meat.	+5 on Survival DC to forage for food.
2	Cannot handle non-magical fire.	+5 DC on Survival rolls to avoid natural hazards.
2	Cannot touch a dead body.	Cannot loot the fallen, inspect bodies for clues and so on.
2	Cannot touch wounds or infections.	Cannot heal or perform first aid.
2	Cannot use metal armor.	Can only use cloth, leather, and hide armor.
2	Must not sleep indoors.	+5 DC on Survival rolls to avoid natural hazards.
2	Wear only clothes of one color.	Eccentricity 2, cannot use certain items.
3	Cannot speak to one gender.	Creatures the wu jen summons will never be of this gender.
3	Cannot touch one gender.	Prohibits touch spells, Heal checks etc. Creatures the wu jen summons will never be of this gender.
3	Cannot use metal weapons.	Non-metal weapons are the club and quarterstaff.
3	Must loudly announce the name of each spell cast.	Makes spell identification automatic.
3	Must make an offering when preparing spells.	Spell preparation takes an additional hour. Sacrifice are of insignificant cost (flowers, food, incense).
4	Can only eat food she gathers herself.	Must use Survival to gather food or starve (normally DC 15).
4	Cannot handle money.	All wealth must be handled by comrades or an assistant.
4	Cannot own more than personal possessions.	All possessions must be carried along by the wu jen or companions.
4	Cannot touch flowing water.	Besides the obvious, +5 on Survival DC to forage for food and drink.
4	Cannot touch other creatures.	Prevents touch spells, Heal checks etc.
4	Cannot walk normally.	Land speed is ½ normal. Examples include walking backwards, hopping, tiptoe-walking.
4	Day time taboo.	Can only begin spell preparation one specific hour each day.
4	Vow of silence.	Cannot speak to other creatures. Can speak to cast spells with verbal components and to command creatures under his magical control.
4	Week day taboo.	Can only prepare spells one specific day of the week.

Certain taboos have little effect besides making the wu jen seem more eccentric to outsiders. Total the wu jen's eccentricity rating from taboos; this number is added to any Diplomacy check to gather information about the wu jen as his reputation for eccentricity increases. If the total exceeds the wu jen's Charisma, she has become obnoxiously eccentric and suffers a -5 penalty on Bluff and Diplomacy checks. Wu jen players are encouraged to come up with additional quirky 1-point taboos whose sole game effect is to add eccentricity.

At level 5 and each 2 levels thereafter, the wu-jen can replace one of his old spell secrets and taboos with a new one. This is the only way a spell secret can be changed.

This replaces the bonus feats the wizard receives at level 5 to 20.

External Links

• World of Otep Wu Jen