Sul-maht (Soul Binder)

Posted by EarthDragon on 10th January 2017.

Between mortality and godhood, beyond life and undeath, souls exist in a place both forgotten and inaccessible. Mortals too strong-willed to pass into the afterlife, dead outsiders too powerful to be absorbed into their planes, the dreams of slain deities put to rest eons before the current age—these are the beings called vestiges. A seal forms the door between these beings and reality, and knowledge is the key to opening it. Only the sul-maht possesses that key, because only he knows the vestiges’ special seals and the rituals by which they can be called from the void beyond reality. By drawing their seals and speaking the words of power, he summons these strange entities, bargains with them, and binds them to his service.

  Adventures

The sul-maht can redefine his role in an adventuring party on a daily basis, if desired. Their potent abilities are always useful in combat, but what those abilities are and what strategies they employ when using them depend on the vestige that they bind. As with any class, the race, alignment, and ability choices made upon character creation influence future choices. The sul-maht class, however, offers a special opportunity to break free of a spell-caster’s typical boundaries.

  Alignment

Although vestiges were once beings of light and darkness like all creatures of the planes, their long existence in a strange state beyond normal reality has twisted them into enigmatic and amoral entities. However, their nature does not dictate the alignments of those who bind to them. A fearsome and violent vestige can lend its powers to a good sul-maht, who uses them to make peace with enemies. Conversely, a sweet-faced and kind vestige might grant an evil sul-maht the power to wreak havoc. In some cases, the same vestige might make separate but simultaneous pacts with two sul-maht who are in direct conflict with one another. Vestiges are not easily defined as good, evil, lawful, or chaotic, but their unfathomable mindsets and strange appearance often disturb lawful and good creatures.

  Background

Those who practice pact magic expound upon its ease. A sul-maht need never beg on his knees for power or study mouldy tomes for hours on end to grasp the secrets of a few simple spells. Once they learn the basics of pact magic, they can call up a vestige at any time and take its power for their own. Vestiges never refuse pacts, and they ask little in return for the power they grant. However, the tempting ease of pact magic and the necessity of soul binding with a being whose nature is completely alien generates suspicion about its practitioners. Many churches actively hunt sul-maht and attempt to eradicate evidence of pact magic to prevent the faithful from learning that beings can exist that are beyond the reach of the gods. This general condemnation of pact magic makes discovering it difficult, even though the art itself remains quite simple. Many sul-maht are defrocked priests or acolytes who took up pact magic after discovering the rituals to contact vestiges in heretical texts kept hidden in secret temple libraries. Others take up the path after discovering the secrets of pacts and seals during investigations of ancient ruins. A few gain their knowledge of the sul-maht’s arts from elder sul-maht, but tutelage is rare because of the secrecy that most sul-maht try to maintain and the cloud of suspicion under which they must work.

  Role

As a sul-maht, you can serve many purposes in an adventuring party. Since each vestige grants you a different set of supernatural abilities, you can choose which role to play on any given day—diplomat, scout, support, melee combatant, or ranged combatant. At higher levels, you can host more than one vestige at a time to gain an even wider range of abilities. You also gain special defences and bonus feats that let you further refine your role in the party and play to your strengths.

  Game Rule Information

  Abilities

A sul-maht typically possesses a healthy body and a strong personality, since high Constitution and Charisma scores can improve many of his supernatural abilities. More importantly, a high Charisma score enhances the sul-maht’s ability to make beneficial pacts with vestiges. Since many vestiges grant improved melee or ranged combat ability, a high Strength or Dexterity score serves the sul-maht well. Lastly, a high Intelligence score grants extra skill points to spend on important class skills.

  Alignment

Most sul-maht are neutral, chaotic neutral, chaotic evil, or neutral evil.

  Vitality Points

d8.

  Class Skills

The sul-maht’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Bluff (Cha), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Decipher Script (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (arcana) (Int), Knowledge (history) (Int), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Knowledge (the planes) (Int), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis).

  Skill Points at 1st Level

(2 + Int modifier) x 4.

  Skill Points at Each Additional Level

2 + Int modifier

  Class Features

All of the following are class features of the sul-maht.

  Weapon and Armour Proficiency

As a sul-maht, you gain proficiency with all simple weapons and with light armour, but not with shields.

  Soul Binding (Su)

Through special methods known only to sul-maht, you can contact a vestige and make a pact with it. At 1st level, you can make a pact with one vestige at a time. At higher levels, you can form and maintain pacts with multiple vestiges simultaneously, as shown on the table below. You must complete the summoning and binding process with each separately, so each has its normal chance to influence you. You bear the physical sign of binding for each one. Your effective sul-maht level, or EBL (your sul-maht class level plus any soul binding bonuses you receive from prestige classes or other sources), determines the maximum level of vestige you can summon, as well as all other functions related to binding vestiges. This value equates to your sul-maht class level, as given on the table below, for this purpose. If the vestige you are trying to contact is of a higher level than your indicated maximum, you cannot summon it. To contact a vestige, you must draw its unique seal visibly on a surface (generally the ground), making the image at least 5 feet across. Drawing a seal requires the ability to mark a surface and 1 minute of concentration, and the act provokes attacks of opportunity. A seal not used within 1 minute of its drawing loses all potency, and you must draw a new one to contact the vestige. A vestige might also have other requirements for contact, as noted in its description. Once the seal is drawn, you must perform a ritual requiring a full-round action to summon the corresponding vestige. During this time, you must touch the seal and call out to the vestige using both its name and its title. The ritual fails if you cannot be heard (for example, if you are within the area of a silence spell). Otherwise, a manifestation of the vestige appears in the seal’s space as soon as you finish the ritual. This image is not the actual vestige; it is merely a figment—an illusion that cannot harm or be harmed by any creature. Creatures that interact with the image or study it carefully automatically recognize it as illusory. The summoned image ignores everyone but you. If you fail to address it within 1 round, it disappears. The vestige speaks in whatever language you used to call it. To make a pact with your summoned vestige, you must make a binding check (1d20 + your effective sul-maht level + your Cha modifier). This process requires 1 minute, but you can choose to make a rushed binding check as a full-round action at a –10 penalty. The DC for this check is provided in the description of each vestige. You must make your perilous pact alone; others cannot aid you in any way. Whether the binding check succeeds or fails, you gain the powers granted by the vestige for 24 hours. During that time, you cannot rid yourself of the vestige unless you possess the Expel Vestige feat. Success or failure does, however, determine other aspects of the pact. If you fail the binding check, the vestige influences your personality and your actions, and you are said to have made a poor pact. (Specifically, the vestige’s presence changes your general demeanour, and it can force you to perform or refrain from certain actions.) If your binding check is successful, the vestige has no control over your actions and does not influence your personality. In this case, you are said to have made a good pact. While under the influence of a vestige, you must adhere to its requirements to the best of your ability. If you are conscious and free-willed, and you encounter a situation in which you cannot or will not refrain from a prohibited action or perform a required one, you take a –1 penalty on attack rolls, saving throws, and checks until that vestige leaves you. If you are influenced by more than one vestige, you must act according to all their influences. If you fail to fulfil the requirements of more than one vestige or disobey a single vestige more than once, the penalties stack. As long as you are bound to a vestige, you manifest a specific physical sign of its presence, as given in its entry. This sign is real, not an illusory or shape-changing effect, and someone using true seeing perceives it just as it is. You can hide a sign by mundane or magical means without penalty, or you can prevent it from appearing at all if you have the suppress sign ability. Vestiges are bound to your soul by the pact. They cannot be targeted or expelled by any means except the Expel Vestige feat, nor can they be suppressed except by an anti-magic field or similar effect. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against any supernatural power granted by a vestige is 10 + 1/2 your effective sul-maht level + your Cha modifier.

  Suppress Sign (Ex)

At 2nd level and higher, when you make a good pact, you can choose not to exhibit the physical sign that normally accompanies a pact with a vestige. You can suppress or reveal the sign at will as a swift action. With a poor pact, you gain the powers of the vestige, but you cannot suppress its sign. You show it for the duration of the pact and are influenced by it as normal.

  Bonus Feats

At 4th level, and again at 11th and 18th level, you gain a bonus feat of your choice from the following list: Armour Proficiency (medium), Armour Proficiency (heavy), Diligent, Investigator, Martial Weapon Proficiency, Negotiator, Persuasive, Shield Proficiency, and the special sul-maht feats presented in the Tome of Magic. These feats are in addition to those normally gained for attaining higher levels, but you must still meet any prerequisites for the bonus feats you choose.

  Pact Augmentation (Su)

Beginning at 2nd level, you can draw additional power from the vestiges you bind. As long as you are bound to at least one vestige, you can choose one ability from the following list. Each time you rebind a vestige, you also reselect your pact augmentation ability. As you attain higher levels, you can make additional selections from the list. You gain one additional ability at 5th, 10th, 16th, and 20th level (to a maximum of five selections at 20th level). You can choose a single ability multiple times, and their effects stack. For instance, at 16th level you could choose bonus hit points twice and damage reduction twice, gaining +10 hit points and damage reduction 2/—.

  Pact Augmentation Abilities

• +5 hit points
• Energy resistance 5 (acid, cold, electricity, fire, or sonic)
• +1 insight bonus on saving throws
• Damage reduction 1/—
• +1 insight bonus to Armour Class
• +1 insight bonus on attack rolls
• +1 insight bonus on damage rolls
• +2 insight bonus on initiative checks

  Soul Guardian (Su)

Beginning at 6th level, you have immunity to fear effects as long as you are bound to a vestige. As you attain higher sul-maht levels, the vestige guards its time with you even more jealously, granting you protection from additional effects that would harm your soul and life energy for as long as the pact lasts. At 9th level, you gain the slippery mind ability, which allows you to wriggle free from magical effects that would otherwise control or compel you. If you fail your saving throw against an enchantment spell or effect, you can attempt it again 1 round later at the same DC. You get only this one extra chance to succeed on your saving throw. At 13th level, you gain immunity to energy drain and negative levels. When you attain 19th level, your bound vestiges completely protect your mind, granting you immunity to all mind-affecting spells and abilities.

  Ex-Members

There are no special rules for leaving the sul-maht class.

* Base attack bonuses are handled differently for epic characters.

** Save bonuses are handled differently for epic characters.

*** Maximum level does not increase past 20th level.