Drakeguard (Legendary Magus Archetype)

This rare sect of magi form a magical bond with an egg of an unhatched drake, bolstering its unborn body with their inner magical potential.

Diminished Spellcasting

A drakeguard may cast and prepare one fewer spell of each level than normal. If this reduces the number to 0, she may cast spells of that level only if her Intelligence allows bonus spells of that level.

This modifies the spells class feature.

Drake Companion (Ex)

A drakeguard gains a drake companion, who they share a potent magical bond with.

This drake companion’s Hit Dice, abilities, skills, and feats advance as the drakeguard advances in level. This drake can be of any alignment (rather than any non-good) and starts at Small size rather than Tiny, altering its statistics as appropriate for its new size. The drakeguard’s drake does not increase its size at 17th level. A drakeguard’s companion is almost always aligned with its charges goals, never requiring the drakeguard to make Diplomacy or Intimidate checks to convince the drake to fatigue themselves or take major risks to their lives.

If the drakeguard’s drake companion is killed her bond is severed. If her drake is lost, she can choose to sever this bond with 8 hours of meditation. This reduces her maximum arcane potential to her Intelligence modifier until she forms a bond with another drake, drake egg, or returns her original companion to life. Forming a bond with a new drake or egg, or reestablishing a bond with her original companion after it is returned to life, takes 24 hours of continuous meditation and arcane rituals. If she forms a bond with a drake egg, her magic infused it. The egg hatches after one week. Her newly bonded drake (whether freshly hatched or not) rapidly grows in size and strength due to this magical bond, gaining 1 Hit Die per week until it has reached the Hit Dice of her original companion.

This ability replaces spell combat.

Drake Tome

A drakeguard selects an eldritch tome and gains its 1st level ability, but does not gain the tomes abilities at 3rd, 9th, or 15th level. This ability otherwise functions as the eldritch tome ability.

This modifies the eldritch tome ability.

Linked Potential (Su)

The drakeguard is so closely linked to her drake companion that when she taps into her arcane potential, her drake companion also gains the benefits of the techniques she uses as long as it is within close (25 feet + 5 feet per two legendary magus levels) range of her. The drakeguard’s companion must spend the same action that the magus did to benefit from this shared technique.

Drake’s Path

At 7th level, the drakeguard selects one of the following two paths, each granting themselves and their drake companion new abilities:

Path of the Exemplar: The drake is an example of its kind, gaining a drake power based on its type: aether drakes gain aether bite, air drakes gain flight, cold and fire drakes gain energy bite, earth drakes gain improved burrow, and water drakes gain improved swim.

Path of the Steed: The drake gains the mount drake power, even if it does not meet the prerequisites, and is considered one size category larger for determining what size riders it can carry. In addition, the drakeguard gains Mounted Combat as a bonus feat. If the drakeguard already has this feat, she gains another feat of her choice.

The replaces spell recall.

Split Spell (Su)

At 8th level, the drakeguard gains the following potential technique:

2 Potential

Split Spell: As part of casting a magus spell that only targets herself with a duration longer than 1 round, the drakeguard can activate this technique to split the spells duration between herself and her drake companion if it is within close range of her. She chooses exactly how this duration is divided as she casts the spell.

This replaces the rapid spell combat technique.

Mighty Drake

At 16th level, the drake’s bite deals damage as if the drake were two size categories larger, has its critical threat range increased to 19-20, and applies 1-1/2 x the drake’s Strength modifier to the damage dealt (2x for drakes with the aether bite power). This increase to the drake’s size category for its bite attack does not stack with other similar effects, such as the strong jaw spell.

This replaces improved spell recall.