Drow Warrior Lord (D&D class)

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Unofficial rules compendium

This is a development of the Drow Weapon Master prestige class. This version of the class requires a mature drow society, where the chaotic nature of the race has come to full boom.

Drow warrior lords are the elite warriors of dark elf society, chosen by their houses and weapon masters to lead other drow warriors in battle. They must be deadly, the personification of every thing that drow fighters desire to be. Most male drow warriors aspire to the position of drow warrior lord because it offers a chance for a male drow that lacks magical talent to earn some measure of respect in dark elf society.

Each house of distinction sponsors a fighting school, led by the House Weapon Master. Most noble house, as well as the greatest merchant houses and mercenary companies, sponsor their own schools. Advanced practitioners of such schools take this prestige class, while the common warriors of the house tend to follow in the footsteps of their better and strive for the class. Thus, there is certain uniformity in the feat selection of warriors from each house, even those who have not yet achieved this class.

Drow warrior lords are usually single classed fighters or rangers before taking this prestige class, although multiclassed fighter/rangers or fighter/rogues are also common. More uncommon combinations include the bard, monk and wizard classes. Very few female drow take this class, as it is considered beneath them and places them under the authority of a weapon master who is most likely male, but it is not unheard of.

It is possible to create new schools for this prestige class, but it is quite a monumental task and the details are left up top the DM. It generally involves developing your own distinct fighting style using feats and class abilities from other classes.

Requirements

To qualify to become a Drow House Weapon Master a character must fulfill the following criteria.

Race: Drow

Base Attack Bonus: +5

Skills: Balance 4 ranks, Spot 4 ranks

Feats: 2 feats, depending on school affiliation (see below)

Special: Must be trained by the Weapon Master of a Drow noble house.

Table: The Drow Warrior Lord

Level	BAB	Fort	Ref	Will	Special
1	+1	+2	+2	+0	School Ability #1
2	+2	+3	+3	+0	School Ability #2
3	+3	+3	+3	+1	Greater Station
4	+4	+4	+4	+1	School Ability #3

All the following are class features of the Drow house Weapon Master prestige class.

Hit Die: d8

Class Skills: The Drow House Weapon Master class skills (And the key ability for each skill) are Balance (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Ride (Dex), Sense Motive (Wis), Spot (Wis), Tumble (Dex).

Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Drow House Weapon Masters are proficient in all simple and martial weapons, and with light armor.

House School: When taking this class, you must choose a fighting style. Each style has certain prerequisites that must be met, and offers bonus abilities as you advance in level. At 2nd, 3rd and 4th level a Drow House Elite gains bonus ability from their chosen path. The path available depends on your house and its weapon master; it is not simply something you can decide upon.

Greater Station: When a drow warrior lord advances enough in rank, he the inner circle of his house and is considered a noble from that point on, even if he was not a noble to begin with. In addition to the more obvious benefits of becoming a noble the new weapon master undergoes training to unlock more of the hidden magical potential inside of him, allowing him to use detect good, detect magic, and levitate each once per day as spell-like abilities with a caster level equal to his character level. If using the Highborn Drow feat from Forgotten Realms Underdark book, this grants that feat. If you already have the feat, you get to choose another feat that you qualify for as a bonus feat instead.

House Schools

House Nemalzhi

Led by weapon master Zhe’raen, this house teaches discipline before battle and wild abandon in battle. The fighting style is two-handed.

Prerequisites: Two Weapon Fighting, Toughness

1st level ability – Wrath of the Spider Mother: Weapon Master Zhe’raen has been touched by the Goddess, and this allows his followers to enter a divinely-inspired rage once per day as a free action. When in such a rage, you receive a +2 Rage bonus to Strength, Constitution, and Will saves, but take a -2 penalty to Armor Class. The rage lasts for 3 + your Constitution bonus rounds. When it wears off, you are fatigued until the end of the fight. This is the same as the rage ability. If you have the rage ability form soome other source, this gives you one additional daily use.

2nd level ability - Two Weapon Mastery: You master the art of using both hands independently. This reduces the penalties of fighting with two weapons by 2 for each hand. This means there is no penalty if you use a light weapon in your off hand.

4th level ability – Opening the Defense: For each attack you manage to hit with and inflict damage in the current round, any later attacks against that specific opponent in the same round receives a +1 bonus to both hit and damage. This damage stacks if you manage to land several attacks against the same opponent in the same round – two previously successful attacks give +2, and so on.

House Xyrl

Weapon Master Ioria is the only female Weapon Master in The City. Her style is a focused rage at the world and her place in it. Her house is the most conservative and restrained in The City, and while she rebels in spirit, she remains strict and loyal in body. The dichotomy fuels her fighting ability. Her house controls important forges, and have access to the very best weapons and armor.

Prerequisites: Two Weapon Fighting, Iron Will

1st level ability - Two Weapon Mastery: You master the art of using both hands independently. This reduces the penalties of fighting with two weapons by 2 for each hand. This means there is no penalty if you use a light weapon in your off hand.

2nd level ability – Iron Discipline: You get a +2 bonus on all Will saving throws.

4th level ability – Two Weapon Flurry: When fighting with two short swords, you may make an attack with your off-hand weapon for every attack you make with your primary weapon, at the same attack bonus. This subsumes the benefits of the Improved Two-Weapon Fighting feat and similar abilities that grant extra attacks when fighting with two weapons.

House Hasdrubel

The First House of The City, House Hasdrubel depends more on slave troops than the other houses, which frees their elite warriors to be even more rakish and wasteful with their time and lives than outer houses. Led by Weapon Master Scatha, a man seemingly more interested in his flute than in battle, it is considered odd if powerful.

Prerequisites: Combat Expertise, Dodge

1st level ability – Fencing: When fighting with a longsword or rapier in your primary hand and no shield or melee weapon in your off hand, you receive a +2 Dodge bonus to Armor Class. The off-hand is most often holding a hand crossbow or used to cast spells, though some chose to wield the longsword two-handed or even a musical instrument.

2nd level ability – Perfect Balance: When wearing light or no armor you are always in total control of your motion. You gain a +4 bonus to avoid bull rush, trip, and overrun attempts, and can take 10 on any balance or tumble check, even under adverse or distracting conditions.

4th level ability – Battle Harmony: You are able to focus in battle beyond the capacity of others. Select an opponent at the beginning of a round; against that opponent you have a +2 bonus on to-hit rolls and Armor Class for the round. This stacks with the bonuses from the Dodge feat.

House Baal Hzai

The second house of the city has twin weapon masters who also share the position of house wizards – the twins Liaram and Tsakano. They combine deception, spells and arms in a deadly school of fighting.

Prerequisites: Dodge, Spell Penetration

1st level ability – Displacement: You may move into a square occupied by an ally, and that ally will immediately move into the square you just left. This ends your movement for the round. The movement can be part of amove of full move action, or a 5 ft. step, and you can otherwise act normally during the round.

2nd level ability – Deception: After you use your Displacement ability, any one adjacent opponent is considered flat-footed against any attacks you subsequently make. Note that Uncanny Dodge can still avoid this ability.

4th level ability – Spell Sword: You can cast a touch attack or ranged touch attack spell and attack in melee as a standard action. The touch attack is delivered through your melee attack, which must score a normal hit (not a touch attack hit) but also does full normal damage.

House Nahena

Weapon Master Morgendil is calm and cruel. His style emphasizes strength, armor and reach.

Prerequisites: Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Bastard Sword), Weapon Focus (Bastard Sword).

1st level ability –Calm Mind: You get a +2 bonus on all Will saving throws.

2nd level ability – Calm Body: While you delay or ready an action in combat, you receive a +4 Dodge bonus to Armor Class until you take the readied or delayed action.

4th level ability – Calm Heart: While doing the Delay or Ready action in combat while wielding a Bastard Sword, you have a reach bonus of +5 ft. and may make an unlimited number of Attacks of Opportunity.

House Lyrmion

Weapon Master Xarnael developed the school of this house into a brutal technique to overpower opponents trough sheer strength. He is dead, but the tradition lives on.

Prerequisites: Power Attack, Toughness.

1st level ability – Pounce: When you take the charge action, you may make a full attack. However, you may only move your speed (not twice this as in a normal charge).

2nd level ability – Leverage: When using a two-handed weapon in two hands, you may add twice your Strength bonus to damage – up to a maximum Strength bonus equal to your character level.

4th level ability – Dying Fury: When staggered or dying, you become enraged. You may continue to make actions as normal, and receive a +8 rage bonus to Strength. You still bleed and die as normal.

House Xoroastria

A young hous, often considered a fighting rabble because they do not seem to have a common fighting style or a common set of weapons. They see it as bringing out the best in each of them. Each Xoroastrian tends to favor one weapon, sometimes a ranged weapon.

Prerequisites: Dodge, Weapon Focus.

1st level ability – Steady Hand: When wielding a weapon for which you have Weapon Focus, you get a +4 bonus to avoid getting disarmed, having your weapon sundered, and on saving throws to avoid losing your weapon.

2nd level ability – Perfect Focus: When wielding a weapon for which you have Weapon Focus, you get a +1 bonus on attack rolls. This stacks with Weapon Focus.

4th level ability – Two Hands: You have mastered the art of using both hands independently when fighting with your Weapon Focus weapon(s). This reduces the penalties for fighting with two weapons by 2 for each hand. Thus, fighting with a light weapon in the off hand causes no penalties on attack rolls for fighting with two weapons. You also masters the use of the buckler. You gain the shield bonus and ignores the penalties for wearing a buckler when fighting with a two-handed weapon (but not two weapons), and gets the shield bonus of the buckler when using a bow or crossbow.

House Evergil

A mercenary house, Evergil is a young ex-caravan guard and weapon master with a style emphasizing mobility and survival. Many lords of house Evergil are scouts.

Prerequisites: Dodge, Mobility.

1st level ability – Move and Fire: When you make a standard action to move and make ranged attacks you do not provoke attacks of opportunity for movement.

2nd level ability – Perfect Balance: When wearing light or no armor you are always in total control of your motion. You gain a +4 bonus to avoid bull rush, trip, and overrun attempts, and can take 10 on any Balance or Tumble check, even under adverse or distracting conditions.

4th level ability– Running and Dodging: Whenever you move at least ten feet in a round, you receive a +2 Dodge bonus to Armor Class. This stacks with Mobility.