Court Mage (Dragonstar)
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| Level | Base Attack Bonus | Fort Save | Ref Save | Will Save | Special |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | +0 | +0 | +0 | +2 | +1 Spellcaster level, Social Focus, Variable Hit Die |
| 2 | +1 | +0 | +0 | +3 | +1 Spellcaster level |
| 3 | +1 | +1 | +1 | +3 | +1 Spellcaster level |
| 4 | +2 | +1 | +1 | +4 | +1 Spellcaster level, Sense Standing |
| 5 | +2 | +1 | +1 | +4 | +1 Spellcaster level |
| 6 | +3 | +2 | +2 | +5 | +1 Spellcaster level |
| 7 | +3 | +2 | +2 | +5 | +1 Spellcaster level, Social Focus |
| 8 | +4 | +2 | +2 | +6 | +1 Spellcaster level |
| 9 | +4 | +3 | +3 | +6 | +1 Spellcaster level |
| 10 | +5 | +3 | +3 | +7 | +1 Spellcaster level, Social Focus |
Court mages are a sort of cross between an arcane spellcaster and an aristocrat. Specializing in magic and skills that enhance appeal and charisma, the court mage becomes not only a terrifying spellcaster but also adept at social skills, either as a great leader, politician, intriguer, or sultry seducer.
Not all court mages live among the nobility; it is possible for them to thrive in any social context. They tend to attach themselves to the people in power, or become the center of power themselves, and then play out their various opponents against each other. This works as well in a gangland of crime and vice as it does in the royal court.
Depending on the campaign world, court mages might be trained by an arcane guild or have picked up the skills themselves through practice. If there is a guild of court mages, it will almost inevitably be very politically active and seek to push its own agenda, though it will usually do so under several layers of subterfuge.
Sorcerers are by far the most common court mages, as this class gives them an outlet for their high Charisma. Bards and clerics are uncommon, wizards rare and the other spellcasting classes almost unknown.
Hit Die: Special (see below)
Requirements
To qualify as a court mage, the character must fulfill all the following criteria.
Feats: Skill focus (Diplomacy), Spell Focus (enchantment)
Skills: Diplomacy (4 ranks), Knowledge (nobility and royalty) (1 rank)
Spells: Ability to cast 3rd level spells.
Class Skills:
Bluff (Cha), Diplomacy (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (local) (Int), Knowledge (nobility and royalty) (Int), Perform (Cha), Scry (Int, restricted skill), Sense Motive (Wis), Speak Language, Spellcraft (Int).
Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier.
Class Features:
All of the following are class features of the court mage.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Court mages gain no additional armor or weapon proficiencies.
Spellcasting: A court mage continues training in magic as well as her new class abilities. Thus, when a new court mage level is gained, the character gains new spells per day as if she had also gained a level in a spellcasting class she belonged to before she added the prestige class. She does not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained (improved chance of controlling or rebuking undead, metamagic or item creation feats, and so on). This essentially means that she adds the level of court mage to the level of some other spellcasting class the character has, then determines spells per day, spells known, and caster level accordingly.
If a character had more than one spellcasting class before she became a court mage, she must decide when she adds the new level to which class she adds the new level of court mage for purposes of determining spells per day and caster level.
Variable Hit Die: The court mage keeps whatever type of hit die she had in her previous class. If she had several different classes previous to becoming a court mage, she uses the hit die type used by the class whose spellcasting abilities she developed at this level. So if Clara, a bard/sorcerer, advanced a level as a court mage and choose to improve her bardic spellcasting ability, she will have 1d6 as her hit die for that level.
Social Focus: The court mage gets a +2 bonus to one of the following skills; Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Information, Intimidate, Knowledge (local), Knowledge (nobility and royalty), or Sense Motive. This bonus can only be taken once for each of these skills.
Sense Standing: When a court mage uses the Sense Motive skill to get a hunch about somebody, they simultaneously get an indication of that person's social class; royalty, noble, middle class, lower class or slave. The court mage also gets an indication of the other person’s status relative to other people present when the ability is used. This is not only useable to determine the status of people in disguise or incognito, but also to sort out intricate pecking orders.
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