Covenants – Purple Duck Games

Nearly all cultures tell of mortals who make costly bargains to obtain the aid of otherworldly spirits, learning the secrets of their power and partaking of their very essence. These rituals, usually performed in secret, were rarely recorded until now.

Covenants

Covenants are bargains struck between mortals and spirits, allowing the mortal to gain some aspect of the spirit’s power in exchange for something that the spirit desires. Each covenant grants a supernatural ability unless noted otherwise. Also unless noted otherwise, the save DC of each ability is equal to 10 + 1/2 patron’s Hit Dice + patron’s Charisma modifier. The caster level of covenant abilities that emulate spells is equal to the patron’s caster level for spell-like abilities (or its Hit Dice, if it has no spell-like abilities). However, because a covenant relies on a distant spirit’s power to maintain, the mortal can have only one instance of any non-instantaneous, non-permanent ability active at one time. A new use of the ability ends any previous ability he has active.

Cost: Entering into a covenant is a two-step process. Any mortal (referred to as “the supplicant” below) can enter into a covenant if he can take the appropriate feat and provide the required components. No spellcasting ability is required.

First, the supplicant must purify himself in a special ceremony and take the appropriate Covenant Supplicant feat (described below). If the mortal is a medium attempting to form a permanent version of the covenant granted by his influence with a patron from within his influence, he need not take the feat.

Second, the supplicant must make a ritual offering, most commonly of wealth, to the patron of the covenant. Fey and outsider patrons in particular appreciate offerings of gold and treasure of a useful or valuable sort. The offering ritual takes 1 hour to perform. The offering required is based upon the grade of the covenant, as indicated below. If the patron is offering the covenant as part of a spell or bargain with a gp cost, such as lesser planar ally, subtract the cost of the spell or bargain from the cost of the covenant (but not from the cost of the purification ceremony required to take the feat).

• Least: 250 gp per Hit Die of the patron (ex: art, coins, rare spices, potions, minor scrolls).
• Minor: 500 gp per patron HD (ex: art, uncommon jewels, minor wands, major scrolls).
• Major: 1,000 gp per patron HD (ex: rare jewels, minor permanent magic items).
• Greater: 2,000 gp per patron HD (ex: exquisite non-magical treasures, medium magic items).
• Superior: 4,000 gp per patron HD (ex: major magic items).

Both the cost of the ritual offering and the cost of the purification ritual (see individual feats) must be paid for the covenant to be successful.

Finding Covenant Patrons

A mortal can acquire covenants in a variety of ways, according to how the player, GM, and group want their campaign to be affected (or not affected) by them. If the group is interested in questing after interesting potential patrons to coerce into service, the GM can allow a character to research clues to such targets every so often (perhaps every one to four levels), including enough information to begin a whole adventure devoted to finding and dealing with this being.

Other groups may prefer not to let one character decide the direction of the game for as long as an entire adventure, either because they want to progress their own stories or because they do not like the structure of such an adventure. In these cases, the GM has the option to either move some of the action outside the main game session (such as allowing the character’s player to assume his character has been doing research during down time which allows her to conjure and form a covenant with an appropriate creature when she takes the Covenants Supplicant feat) or to get a wish list from the character’s player for desired creatures so that he can insert one or more of those creatures into the party’s adventures as if by coincidence.

Below are some examples of ways by which a supplicant might go about securing a patron for a covenant.

• Example 1: A bard whose brilliant performances attracted unexpected attention from a nereid who is a minor member of the Seelie Court might be interested in capitalizing on the connection by finding Seelie fey with which to form covenants. He finds a book in an arcane library about how to purify his soul and form a covenant, which he uses to perform the purification ritual to take the Minor Covenant Supplicant feat. Then, he uses the skill bonus granted by the feat as he consults this nereid and her companions with Diplomacy to gather information about fey willing to form covenants, especially the gift of glory II covenant. Eventually, his investigation leads him on an adventure through a small patch of the fey world to track down a nymph courtier interested in raising her prestige by way of famous mortals who are associated with her, and she agrees to form a covenant lasting for 24 years in exchange for an offering of 3,500 gp worth of beautiful gems or magic items and promises that the hero will publicly dedicate at least one successful adventure to her per year and will not violate a taboo of the nymph‘s choosing during that time (common taboos include violating something the patron cherishes, such as a nymph‘s love of nature and beauty, or having an opposed alignment).
• Example 2: A player wishes to form a covenant but does not want to distract from the group’s intense ongoing plotline that takes up most of every game session. So, he arranges with the GM for his character, a barbarian interested in learning how to call a phantasmal hunt as backup when he cannot engage his foes easily in melee, to contact priests of his religion to help him find a patron. The priests think that the barbarian, as a successful champion of the religion’s ideals of strength and freedom, deserves their divine aid. They offer to cast greater planar ally on his behalf (for the normal spellcasting price of caster level x spell level x 10 gp) to secure a protean patron for him. He then negotiates with the protean, who offers him the covenant he seeks indefinitely in exchange for an offering of 26,000 gp in destroyed lawful-aligned magic items and an agreement to complete a quest for the protean which might risk bringing the apocalypse one step closer.

Transferred Covenants

When a supplicant wants to increase the power of a covenant, he can transfer the covenant to another, more powerful, spirit who is also able to offer the same covenant. An offering must be made to the new patron as usual, but subtract the cost of the old offering from the cost of the new offering. The covenant’s effects are then recalculated using the new patron’s statistics, and any choices made during the forming of the covenant can be changed.

Whichever form the transfer takes, the original patron must agree to it. This is often easy to arrange if the old and new patron exist in the same hierarchy, such as within the court of the same devil prince or within the grand celestial army of the same star archon. Many other patrons agree to this arrangement when the new patron buys out the debt in the form of whatever serves as currency among that type of spirit (such as souls, favors, magical secrets, or shards of raw elemental essence). Alternatively, many patrons can be bullied into agreeing if the supplicant or the new patron is intimidating enough or has effective leverage over them. To avert the latter possibility, many more canny patrons include a clause mutually forbidding violence or the threat thereof in the terms of any covenants they form.

Broken Covenants

When a covenant is broken, the supplicant loses any benefits remaining from the covenant. If he did not willingly break the covenant, his soul remains in good condition to enter a new covenant; he can reduce the cost of the offering to enter a new covenant (or re-enter the old covenant) by half the offering of the broken one. If he did break the covenant willingly, he loses the benefit of the Covenant Supplicant feat until he atones (see the atonement spell) and cannot take a new one in its place.

Mediums and Covenants

A medium’s trance allows her to use her class level in place of the patron’s Hit Dice and caster level and use her Charisma modifier in place of the patron’s, if they are higher.

Variant Upgraded Covenants

Alternatively, a supplicant that is taking a new Covenant Supplicant feat can use it to form a new covenant from the same series of covenants as a covenant he already has. This process is largely identical to transferring a covenant, but when the supplicant is taking his new Covenant Supplicant feat, he can offer up his old Covenant Supplicant feat as part of the purification ritual to take the feat. If he does, he subtracts the cost of the old feat’s purification ritual from the cost of the new feat’s ritual the same way as he subtracts the cost of the old covenant’s offering from the new covenant’s offering. When the supplicant makes the upgraded covenant with his upgraded Covenant Supplicant feat, the old covenant is gone and he can then replace the old Covenant Supplicant feat with any other feat he could have qualified for at the level he originally took it.

Creating Your Own Covenants

When developing your own covenant, the total gp cost of the covenant formed with minimum patron HD plus the gp cost of the appropriate Covenant Supplicant feat should generally be about one-quarter what the covenant’s market price would be if it were a slotted magic item.

Alternative Covenant Offerings

Only half the work of gaining a covenant lies in finding a patron. Once a patron is located and willing to form such an arrangement, an offering must be negotiated for the covenant. Although magic items or other appropriate treasure are the most common form of offering, occasionally a patron is more interested in something else. Below are some common sorts of prices exacted by various spirits in exchange for the ability to draw on their essence in the form of a covenant. An alternate price removes the need to make an offering of treasure, but does not remove the requirement of performing a purification ritual to take the Covenant Supplicant feat in the first place. The GM is encouraged to think carefully before allowing a PC to gain a covenant without paying in wealth, and to make the offering one that contributes to the campaign’s story or presents the appropriate amount of hardship for the character.

Challenge: Defeat a foe, set back a rival, or retrieve an important item for the patron. The target is generally one that requires at least a few days’ adventuring to reach for the party, overcoming at least six encounters with an average CR at or above the average party level or the patron’s CR, whichever is higher.

Energy Drain: Evil and undead patrons often demand a portion of raw soulstuff at regular intervals. This takes the form of one or more permanent negative levels. The negative levels may be inflicted on the mortal’s soul, or the mortal may offer a helpless living creature with at least as many Hit Dice as negative levels required. Fortunately, these negative levels can be restored by the usual means without violating the pact. Unfortunately, any creature that dies while suffering from these levels has its soul confined to the domain of the spirit patron, who may do with the soul as it wishes. In addition, anyone who suffers these negative levels slowly acquires a twisted and wasted cast to her appearance, hinting at the dark dealings she has taken part in. Common rates are indicated below for each level of covenant.

• Least: 1 negative level every three months.
• Minor: 2 negative levels every two months.
• Major: 3 negative levels every new moon.
• Greater: 5 negative levels every fortnight on the half-moon.
• Superior: 7 negative levels every week.

Possession: In exchange for the covenant, an undead or outsider patron often demands the ability to possess the mortal’s body for certain, usually short, periods of time so that they may interact with the world in a living body or further their schemes unsuspected.

Soul: Fiend patrons are notorious for offering a covenant in exchange for the mortal’s soul upon death. Occasionally, the soul of a sacrifice offered at the time the covenant is delivered is also accepted. A creature whose soul has been sold is marked forever after (unless the covenant is somehow broken), causing the mortal to suffer a -4 luck penalty on Diplomacy checks against good creatures and causing all good creatures to have a starting attitude toward the mortal worsened by one step. Even if the mortal finds a way to hold multiple covenants at once, he cannot promise his soul to multiple fiends. The minimum HD of the mortal soul offered depends on the grade of covenant, as noted below.

• Least: 3 HD.
• Minor: 7 HD.
• Major: 11 HD.
• Greater: 15 HD.
• Superior: 19 HD.

Years: Fey and undead patrons, especially those capable of dying of old age or that require feeding on the living, sometimes demand a one-time payment of a portion of the medium’s years of life, which is then added to the patron’s remaining years of life or offsets the patron’s need to feed for a time. This cost causes the supplicant to age until she reaches her next age category, and suffers the appropriate effects. The aging can be undone with a limited wish, miracle, or wish, but doing so breaks the covenant.

The list of covenants below is sorted by the grade of covenant (least, minor, major, greater, superior).

Least Covenants

• Dark Arcana I: You can use a 1st-level arcane spell as a spell-like ability 3/day.
• Diabolic Assistant: Gain a fiendish, resolute, or similar servant from the summon monster list that you can summon 1/hour.
• Elemental Weapon: Your melee and ranged weapon attacks deal energy damage.
• Frightful Violence: Cause enemies caught unprepared by your attacks to become shaken.
• Gift of Glory I: Gain a +2 enhancement bonus to an ability score or two.
• Gift of Skill I: Gain a moderate competence bonus on three skills.
• Heavenly Blade: Create a magic sword of pure justice.
• Imbued Armor I: Add lesser magical enhancements to a suit of armor you own.
• Seelie Friendship: Gain an ally from the summon nature’s ally list that you can summon 1/hour.
• Spell Secrets I: Gain a bonus 1st-level spell known and spell slot; at 13 patron HD, gain another of 2nd level.
• Stolen Heart: Charm person 3/day, permanently if the target has fewer than half patron’s HD.
• Stone Fist: Your fists become living stone.

Minor Covenants

• Archon’s Ward I: Gain constant protection from evil plus DR 2/evil or DR 3/evil.
• Dark Arcana II: You can use a 2nd-level arcane spell as a spell-like ability 3/day.
• Death’s Caress: Gain resistance to many things which undead are immune to.
• Elemental Blessing: Gain DR 1/—, +2 on skill checks against elementals, and protect yourself and your allies from energy damage.
• Gift of Glory II: Gain an enhancement bonus on one or two ability scores.
• Gift of Hardiness: Gain a bonus on saving throws against an effect your patron is resistant to.
• Gift of Skill II: Gain a large competence bonus on three skills.
• Gift of Treasure: Gain 10,000 gp or more and a +2 luck bonus on skill checks to make money.
• Imbued Armor II: Add more magical enhancements to a suit of armor you own.
• Immortal Resilience: Gain DR and protection from magical aging.
• Inviolable Volition: Resist effects that would prevent you from choosing your actions normally.
• Spell Secrets II: Gain a bonus 2nd-level spell known and spell slot; at 13 patron HD, gain another of 3rd level.

Major Covenants

• Archon’s Ward II: Gain constant magic circle against evil plus DR /evil.
• Armed with Justice: Grant magic enhancements to 1 weapon/4 patron HD.
• Cloak of Smoke: Veil yourself in smoke that provides concealment; expand the smoke for 10 minutes/day to choke nearby foes.
• Dark Arcana III: You can use a 4th- or possibly 5th-level arcane spell as a spell-like ability 3/day.
• Death Undone: Avoid aging for a time and escape death once.
• Dimensional Stride: Use dimension door as a spell-like ability 3/day or at will.
• Elemental Agility: Move freely through a physical obstacle according to your patron’s type.
• Gift of Glory III: Gain an enhancement bonus on two ability scores.
• Imbued Armor III: Add major magical enhancements to a suit of armor you own.
• Mind-Snaring Gaze: Stun and read the thoughts of those who meet your gaze, and dominate person 1/day.
• Possessed Weapon I: Gain a minor intelligent weapon.
• Spell Secrets III: Gain a bonus 4th-level spell known and spell slot; at 17 patron HD, gain another of 5th level.
• Stunning Voice: Stun nearby creatures as a swift action with the sound of your voice.
• Superhuman Perfection I: Gain a +4 enhancement bonus to all physical ability scores.
• Unnatural Talent: Take 10 on three skills even when distracted and gain a bonus on checks with those skills.
• Unnerving Aura: Cause creatures that approach to become shaken and possibly repel animals, plants, and fey.

Greater Covenants

• Astral Secrets: Use astral projection as the spell 1/day.
• Element Incarnate: Become an elemental creature.
• Imbued Armor IV: Add greater magical enhancements to a suit of armor you own.
• Mantle of Light: Become invisible or visible at will.
• Phantasmal Hunt: Mob of illusory allies emanates fear, nauseates and damages foes who fail to disbelieve.
• Possessed Weapon II: Gain an intermediate intelligent weapon.
• Power of the Possessor: Possess the bodies of other creatures like a ghost.
• Protective Aura: Gain double-strength magic circle against evil and globe of invulnerability.
• Spell Secrets IV: Gain bonus 4th-level and 6th-level spells known and spell slots; at 17 patron HD, gain another of 7th level.
• Superhuman Perfection II: Gain a +6 enhancement bonus to all physical ability scores.
• Wishes Granted: Your patron grants you three wishes.

Superior Covenants

• Demiurge: Create a permanent demiplane that is able to whisk away target friends or foes.
• Elemental Dominion: Control a single element in a variety of ways.
• False Friend: Gain an intelligent illusion ally that can create more illusions.
• Plunge into the Pit: Produce an earthquake that opens a rift into Hell, allowing damned souls to grapple victims and pull them in.
• Possessed Weapon III: Gain a powerful intelligent weapon.
• Spell Secrets V: Gain one bonus 8th-level and two bonus 9th-level spells known and spell slots.
• Strands of Fortune: Reroll the saving throws of allies nearby.
• Stormcaller: Call a storm with devastating thunderbolts.
• Telekinetic Might: Reverse gravity, fly, and use telekinesis as a swift action.

Covenant Descriptions

The following format is used for all covenants.

Covenant Name: The covenant’s name also includes its grade as well as a description of what the covenant does.

Benefit(s): What the covenant enables the character (“you” in the covenant description) to do. Patrons: A list of the possible creatures that can form this sort of covenant with your character.

Archon’s Ward I [Minor]

Your patron shares with you a minor aspect of its innate resistance to evil.

Benefit(s): You are constantly protected as if by protection from evil and gain DR 2/evil. If your patron has 13 or more Hit Dice, the DR improves to 3/evil.

Patrons: Any angel or archon with at least 5 HD; for example, astral deva angel (15 HD, CR 14), monadic deva angel (14 HD, CR 12), movanic deva angel (12 HD, CR 10), planetar angel (17 HD, CR 16), solar angel (22 HD, CR 23), hound archon (6 HD, CR 4), legion archon (8 HD, CR 7), shield archon (9 HD, CR 10), star archon (19 HD, CR 19), trumpet archon (14 HD, CR 14).

Archon’s Ward II [Major]

Your patron shares with you a major aspect of its innate resistance to evil.

Benefit(s): You are constantly protected as if by magic circle against evil and gain DR 2/evil. If your patron has 13 to 16 Hit Dice, the DR improves to 3/evil. At 17 patron HD, the DR improves to 4/evil.

Patrons: Any angel or archon with at least 9 HD; for example, astral deva angel (15 HD, CR 14), monadic deva angel (14 HD, CR 12), movanic deva angel (12 HD, CR 10), planetar angel (17 HD, CR 16), solar angel (22 HD, CR 23), shield archon (9 HD, CR 10), star archon (19 HD, CR 19), trumpet archon (14 HD, CR 14).

Armed with Justice [Major]

Your heavenly patron grants you the service of minor archon spirits to empower your weapons and those of your allies.

Benefit(s): Once per day as a free action, you can invite an archon spirit to inhabit up to one weapon wielded by an ally within 30 feet (you count as your own ally) per 4 Hit Dice your patron has for 1 hour per patron Hit Die. The spirits cause each weapon to glow with holy light as bright as a torch. If your patron has 12 or fewer Hit Dice, the weapons each gain a +2 enhancement bonus. This bonus increases to +3 if your patron has at least 13 HD, or +4 if it has at least 17 HD. These bonuses can be added to the weapon, stacking with existing weapon bonuses to a maximum of +5, or they can be used to add any of the following weapon properties: allying, axiomatic, brilliant energy, conductive, dancing, defending, disruption, distance, flaming, flaming burst, ghost touch, holy, keen, mighty cleaving, menacing, merciful, returning, seeking, speed, throwing. Adding these properties consumes an amount of bonus equal to the property’s cost (see Table: Melee Weapon Special Abilities and Table: Ranged Weapon Special Abilities). These bonuses are added to any properties the weapon already has, but duplicate abilities do not stack. If you choose an ability that only some weapons can use, that ability has no effect when added to the wrong type of weapon. If a chosen weapon is not magical, at least a +1 enhancement bonus must be added or the spirit grants no benefit to that weapon. The bonus and properties granted by the spirits are determined when you make the covenant and can be changed once per day as a full-round action. An archon spirit departs prematurely, ending the effect for that weapon, if the wielder begins his turn more than 30 feet away from you or if the weapon is not in his hand at the beginning of his turn (a weapon with the returning property returns in time to continue the effects of this covenant). Each end of a double weapon counts as a separate weapon for the purposes of this ability. If a weapon is destroyed while possessed by an archon spirit, reduce the number of archon spirits you can call with this ability until the next sunrise.

Patrons: Any angel or archon with at least 9 HD. For example, astral deva angel (15 HD, CR 14), monadic deva angel (14 HD, CR 12), movanic deva angel (12 HD, CR 10), planetar angel (17 HD, CR 16), solar angel (22 HD, CR 23), shield archon (9 HD, CR 10), star archon (19 HD, CR 19), trumpet archon (14 HD, CR 14)

Astral Secrets [Greater]

Your patron instructs you in the secrets of separating your soul from your body.

Benefit(s): You can use astral projection as the spell once per day as a spell-like ability.

Patrons: Any non-native outsider with at least 13 HD and Int 6 or higher.

Cloak of Smoke [Major]

Your patron grants you a cloak of hot, billowing smoke you can expand to choke your foes.

Benefit(s): You are shrouded by smoke that grants you concealment against attacks. As a free action, you can cause the smoke to expand to a radius of 20 feet. If you do, it provides concealment to all within (similar to the spell obscuring mist), except that you can see through it normally. The smoke moves with you and does not linger after you leave. If it is dispersed by wind, it resumes emanating from you as soon as you are no longer exposed to the wind, although time when the wind keeps it dispersed still counts against its duration. Living creatures that breathe the smoke must make a Fortitude save or become sickened and nauseated for 1 round as they hack and cough with terrible intensity. Those that succeed nonetheless find their vision swimming and are sickened for 1 round. The cloak can be expanded for up to 10 minutes per day. The time need not be used at once, but must be used in 1-minute increments.

Patrons: Any outsider with the fire subtype or smoke special ability, at least 9 HD, and Int 6 or higher.

Dark Arcana I [Least]

Your patron tempts you with the power to use a basic arcane spell-like ability.

Benefit(s): From among the sorcerer/wizard spell list, any arcane spell list your patron uses, and your patron’s spell-like abilities, choose a 1st-level spell. At a standard action three times per day, you can use the chosen spell as a spell-like ability. If the spell has a costly material component, you must provide that component each time you use this ability. The save DC is 11 + patron’s Charisma modifier.

Patrons: Any evil outsider with the ability to cast at least one spell or spell-like ability of at least 1st level, at least 2 HD, and Int 6 or higher.

Dark Arcana II [Minor]

Your patron tempts you with the power to use a minor arcane spell-like ability.

Benefit(s): From among the sorcerer/wizard spell list, any arcane spell list your patron uses, and your patron’s spell-like abilities, choose a 2nd-level spell. At a standard action three times per day, you can use the chosen spell as a spell-like ability. If the spell has a costly material component, you must provide that component each time you use this ability. The save DC is 12 + patron’s Charisma modifier.

Patrons: Any evil outsider with the ability to cast at least one spell or spell-like ability of at least 2nd level, at least 5 HD, and Int 6 or higher.

Dark Arcana III [Major]

Your patron tempts you with the power to use a middling arcane spell-like ability.

Benefit(s): From among the sorcerer/wizard spell list, any arcane spell list your patron uses, and your patron’s spell-like abilities, choose a 4th-level spell. At a standard action three times per day, you can use the chosen spell as a spell-like ability. If the spell has a costly material component, you must provide that component each time you use this ability. The save DC is 10 + spell level + patron’s Charisma modifier. If your patron has at least 13 Hit Dice, you may instead choose a 5th-level spell.

Patrons: Any evil outsider with the ability to cast at least one spell or spell-like ability of at least 4th level, at least 9 HD, and Int 6 or higher.

Death’s Caress [Minor]

Your undead patron exposes you to dark energies that give you a bit of the resilience of an undead creature.

Benefit(s): You gain a +3 insight bonus on saving throws against death effects, diseases, mind-affecting effects, negative energy effects, poisons, and stunning. If your patron has at least 9 Hit Dice, the bonus increases to +4. At 13 patron HD, it increases to +5.

Patrons: Any undead with at least 5 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Death Undone [Major]

Your patron removes a living soul from death’s reach for a time.

Benefit(s): You must unambiguously identify any creature to benefit from this bargain. If the creature is dead, your patron returns it to life, as the spell true resurrection. If a wish would be required to retrieve the soul first, that requirement is bypassed by this covenant. If the creature is not dead when the pact is formed, she is resurrected in the described manner 10 minutes after she next dies. The chosen creature does not age and cannot die from old age for a length of time equal to her race’s age of maturity (15 years for humans). The covenant is broken when that creature dies again, allowing you to form a new covenant with the same or another patron.

Patrons: Any outsider or undead with at least 9 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Demiurge [Superior]

Your patron whispers a few of the words spoken to create the mortal world, forging a minor world for you.

Benefit(s): When you form this covenant, your patron creates for you a permanent demiplane with up to five features, as the spell create greater demiplane. The demiplane’s volume may be up to twenty 20-foot cubes per Hit Die of your patron. Since this is a supernatural ability, it cannot be dispelled, but a wish or miracle can unravel the demiplane if you fail a Will save against the spell. If the demiplane is unraveled, your patron can create a new one if you spend an hour in communion with it the following day and make a new offering equal to half the cost of this covenant. The demiplane must have a portal to a location on the ethereal plane, astral plane, or material plane that you have visited before as one of its features. When you use the demiplane’s ability to eject creatures of your choice, you can choose up to eight creatures at once instead of the usual limit of one at a time.

As a standard action up to three times per day, you can cause your demiplane to swallow up eight or fewer targets within 90 feet of you. Each target is deposited into a random place in the demiplane that will not damage it (for example, a non-flying target will not appear in midair or on a platform that will collapse from its weight; a creature damaged by fire will not appear inside a furnace). If no such place exists in the demiplane, it is sent to the least dangerous place. A Will save negates the effect. A victim that will be sent to a dangerous place because there is no safe place gets a +4 bonus on its saving throw.

Patrons: Planetar angel (17 HD, CR 16), solar angel (22 HD, CR 23), elysian titan (21 HD, CR 21), thanatotic titan (23 HD, CR 22), or hekatonkheires titan (24 HD, CR 24).

Diabolic Assistant [Least]

Your patron grants you command over a hellish creature.

Benefit(s): When you take this covenant, choose a fiendish animal or resolute animal from the summon monster I list. As a swift action once per hour, you can summon this monster as if with the spell. Unlike with typical summoning effects, this effect calls a specific individual. Although the original is not permanently harmed (as normal for summoning effects), if the monster is summoned again before the next sunrise, the summoned version of the monster has all the same spells and abilities expended and damage, condition, and effects suffered as it had when the summoning effect last ended. If the summoning ended because the monster was banished or killed, this covenant cannot be used again for 24 hours. Every sunrise, the monster is refreshed and is good as new (although it may be unable to be summoned immediately if it died or was banished and 24 hours has not yet elapsed). When summoned, the monster must appear adjacent to you and is staggered until the start of your next turn. If both you and your patron have 4 or more Hit Dice, you can also choose from the summon monster II list. For every 3 Hit Dice both you and your patron have above 4, you can choose from the next highest spell level (summon monster III if both you and your patron have 7 HD, summon monster IV if both you and your patron have 10 HD, and so on). When you choose a monster of a level one level lower than your maximum, you get two of that monster; when you choose a monster of a level two or more levels lower than your maximum, you get four of that monster. When choosing a monster from a higher-level list, you may also choose hell hound or a devil instead of a fiendish or resolute animal, if either are options at that higher level. Add the following creatures to the lists of what can be summoned with summon monster for the purposes of this covenant: Summon monster III: imp (devil). Summon monster IV: accuser devil.

Patrons: Any devil with at least 2 HD and Int 6 or greater. For example, accuser devil (4 HD, CR 3), barbed devil (12 HD, CR 11), bearded devil (6 HD, CR 5), belier devil (17 HD, CR 16), bone devil (10 HD, CR 9), contract devil (13 HD, CR 10), erinyes (9 HD, CR 9), handmaiden devil (15 HD, CR 14), horned devil (15 HD, CR 16), ice devil (14 HD, CR 13), immolation devil (18 HD, CR 19), imp (3 HD, CR 2), pit fiend (20 HD, CR 20).

Adaptation: By adjusting the array of monsters that can be chosen and the patrons allowed, it is easy to create a covenant for gaining assistance from any plane of existence or outsider group.

Dimensional Stride [Major]

Your patron teaches you to slip through the folds of space.

Benefit(s): Three times per day, you can use dimension door as a spell-like ability. If your patron has at least 13 Hit Dice, you can use this ability at will.

Patrons: Any fey or outsider with the ability to use a teleportation spell or spell-like ability, at least 8 HD, and Int 6 or greater.

Element Incarnate [Greater]

Your patron infuses your body with its elemental essence.

Benefit(s): Your take on aspects of the element matching your patron’s subtype, with effects similar to the spell elemental body II, except that you retain the same approximate body shape. As a result, your gear does not meld into your body, your size does not change, and you can cast spells normally. Despite the subtlety of the change, you still gain the full ability score and natural armor modifiers for the effect. Since this is a polymorph effect, its effects are lost for as long as you are under the effects of another polymorph effect. You can resume your original body shape or return to elemental form as a swift action. If your patron has at least 17 HD, you are immune to bleed damage, critical hits, and sneak attacks while in elemental form.

Patron: Any outsider with the aquatic (treat as water for this purpose), air, cold (treat as air for this purpose), earth, fire, or water subtypes, at least 12 HD, and Int 6 or higher. For example, cetaceal agathion (17 HD, CR 15; water), brijidine azata (19 HD, CR 17; earth or fire), cold rider (13 HD, CR 8; air), omox demon (13 HD, CR 12; water), ghawwas div (14 HD, CR 10; water), elder elemental (any type; 13 HD, CR 9), marid genie (12 HD, CR 10; water), jinushigami kami (24 HD, CR 20; earth), nereid (12 HD, CR 10; water), fire yai oni (17 HD, CR 15; fire), ice yai oni (16 HD, CR 14; air), water yai oni (22 HD, CR 18; water), rusalka (20 HD, CR 12; water), wendigo (18 HD, CR 17; air), winterwight (20 HD, CR 17; air).

Elemental Agility [Major]

Your patron teaches you secrets about moving like an elemental spirit.

Benefit(s): You gain a movement bonus and special ability according to the elemental affinity of your patron.

Element	Movement	Special
Air	Fly 60 feet (good)	You are immune to the effects of wind.
Earth	Burrow 30 feet	Once per round as a free action, you may pick a square of difficult terrain and treat it as normal ground for your movement until the start of your next turn.
Fire	+30 feet base speed	Smoke and mist that normally grant total concealment only provide concealment against your attacks; you can ignore normal concealment from smoke and mist.
Water	Swim 60 feet	You can ignore the impediments of water (and only water) as if protected by freedom of movement.

Patron: Any outsider with the elemental subtype, at least 9 HD, and Int 6 or higher.

Elemental Blessing [Minor]

Your patron leaves a mark of blessing upon you that imparts a bit of the toughness of an elemental creature and grants you an edge in dealing with elemental forces.

Benefit(s): When you make this covenant, choose one of your patron’s subtypes from among those listed below and choose one energy type from among those associated with that subtype on the list below.

• Air subtype: cold or electricity.
• Aquatic subtype: acid or cold.
• Cold subtype: cold.
• Earth subtype: acid.
• Fire subtype: fire.
• Water subtype: acid or cold.

You and all allies within 30 feet gain resist 10 against the chosen energy. In addition, you gain a +2 insight bonus on skill checks against creatures with the chosen subtype and DR 1/—. If your patron has at least 9 Hit Dice, the resistance improves to 15. At 13 patron HD, the resistance improves to 20. At 17 patron HD, the resistance improves to 30.

Patrons: Any outsider, undead, or fey with the air, aquatic, cold, earth, fire, and/or water subtype, at least 5 HD, and Int 6 or greater.

Elemental Dominion [Superior]

A greater elemental spirit recognizes your worthiness to control its element, allowing you to shape it to your will.

Benefit(s): When you gain this covenant, choose a subtype of your patron from the following list and choose an energy type from among energy types associated with that subtype below.

• Air subtype: cold or electricity.
• Aquatic subtype: acid or cold.
• Cold subtype: cold.
• Earth subtype: acid.
• Fire subtype: fire.
• Water subtype: acid or cold.

As an immediate action, you can do one of the following.

• Change the target or area of a spell, spell-like ability, or supernatural attack using a chosen energy type or element. Treat it as if it were just created or used there, but without extending the duration. You gain no other control over the effect. The controller of the effect (if any) can resist with a Will save if he is within the effect’s range.
• Choose the next action of a creature with the chosen subtype from among the choices available for the spell command. The creature can resist with a Will save. This is a mind-affecting compulsion effect.
• Gain the effects of freedom of movement for the purpose of interacting with examples of the chosen energy and chosen element and creatures with the chosen subtype.
• Move an object made of or infused with a chosen element or energy as if with the spell telekinesis.

Patrons: Any outsider, undead, or fey with the air, aquatic, cold, earth, fire, or water subtype, at least 17 HD, and Int 6 or greater.

Elemental Weapon [Least]

Your patron teaches you to attack with its element.

Benefit(s): Choose an energy type from the list below for a subtype of your patron.

• Air subtype: cold or electricity.
• Aquatic subtype: acid or cold.
• Cold subtype: cold.
• Earth subtype: acid.
• Fire subtype: fire.
• Water subtype: acid or cold.

Your melee and ranged weapon attacks deal 1d4 point of damage of that energy type. At 5 patron HD, the damage increases to 1d6. At 9 patron HD, the damage increases to 1d8. This damage does not stack with that dealt by the flaming, frost, shocking, or similar weapon abilities.

Patrons: Any outsider, undead, or fey with the air, aquatic, cold, earth, fire, or water subtype, at least 2 HD, and Int 6 or greater.

False Friend [Superior]

Your patron carves off a fragment of your soul to create a living illusion to aid you.

Benefit(s): You gain a living illusion as a companion. The illusion can take the form of any spirit that shares a subtype with your patron as well as any humanoid and can change forms as a standard action. This illusion acts as a spell of a level equal to half your patron’s Hit Dice as if your patron were the caster, but when it is dispelled, it reappears adjacent to you after 1d4 rounds. Although the false friend can be perceived with all senses, it allows a Will save to be disbelieved when creatures interact with it (DC = 10 + 1/2 patron’s HD + patron’s Charisma modifier). Only your death can permanently destroy the false friend. The false friend uses your modifiers on all rolls and checks and acts on your turn. As a standard action, it can produce the effects of any illusion from the following list indicated for your patron’s number of Hit Dice or fewer as a spell-like ability. It threatens creatures in adjacent spaces that have not disbelieved it and can thus grant a flanking bonus. It cannot otherwise affect creatures or objects. Whenever the false friend creates an illusion, any other illusions it had created vanish. Creatures that have disbelieved the false friend gain a +4 bonus on Will saves to disbelieve the illusions it creates.

Patron HD	Spell-Like Ability
18 or less	Major image, mirage arcana, greater shadow conjuration
19-20	Greater shadow evocation, veil
21 or more	Screen

Patrons: Any fey, outsider, or undead with at least 17 HD, the ability to create an illusion or mind-affecting effect, and Int 6 or greater.

Frightful Violence [Least]

Your patron imbues your attacks with the ability to cut through a foe’s composure.

Benefit(s): Whenever you strike a foe with an attack and your victim is suffering from a fear effect, flanked, or denied his Dexterity bonus to Armor Class against your attack (whether he has a Dexterity bonus or not), he suffers a -1 morale penalty on attack rolls against you and saving throws against your abilities. This penalty stacks with itself and lasts for 1 hour or until he next deals damage to you. If the victim has fewer Hit Dice than your patron, he must also make a Will save or become shaken.

Patrons: Any fey or undead with the sneak attack ability. For example, bogeyman (17 HD, CR 10), fuath gremlin (1 HD, CR 1), jinkin gremlin (1 HD, CR 1), nuglub gremlin (3 HD, CR 2), pugwampi gremlin (1 HD, CR 1/2), vexgit gremlin (1 HD, CR 1), mite (1 HD, CR 1/4), or bog nixie (2 HD, CR 3).

Gift of Glory I [Least]

Your patron adds a bit of its own ability to yours.

Benefit(s): Choose an ability in which your patron has a score of at least 13. You gain a +2 enhancement bonus on that ability score. At 7 patron HD, you gain a +2 enhancement bonus on a second ability in which your patron has a score of at least 13. If you gain a bonus to Intelligence with this covenant, choose a skill in which your patron has at least 1 rank. You can use your patron’s number of ranks in that skill or your own, whichever is higher, for all purposes.

Patrons: Any fey or outsider with at least 2 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Gift of Glory II [Minor]

Your patron adds some of its own ability to yours.

Benefit(s): Choose an ability in which your patron has a score of at least 13. You gain a +4 enhancement bonus on that ability score. If your patron has at least 7 Hit Dice, you gain a +2 enhancement bonus on a second ability in which your patron has a score of at least 13. At 17 patron HD, you gain a +4 enhancement bonus on both abilities. If you gain a bonus to Intelligence with this covenant, choose a number of skills in which your patron has at least 1 rank equal to half that bonus. You can use your patron’s number of ranks in those skills or your own, whichever is higher, for all purposes.

Patrons: Any fey or outsider with at least 5 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Gift of Glory III [Major]

Your patron adds a great deal of its own ability to yours.

Benefit(s): Choose two abilities in which your patron has a score of at least 13. If your patron has 12 or fewer HD, you gain a +6 enhancement bonus on one ability and a +4 enhancement bonus on the other. If your patron has 13 or more HD, you gain a +6 enhancement bonus on both scores. If you gain a bonus to Intelligence with this covenant, choose a number of skills equal to half that bonus in which your patron has at least 1 rank. You can use your patron’s number of ranks in those skills or your own, whichever is higher, for all purposes.

Patrons: Any fey or outsider with at least 9 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Gift of Hardiness [Minor]

Your patron infuses you with a bit of its natural resistances.

Benefit(s): Choose a condition from among the following that your patron is immune to or has a racial bonus on saving throws against: blindness, charm, curses, death effects, disease, enchantment, exhaustion and fatigue, energy drain, mind-affecting effects, paralysis, petrification, poison, polymorph effects, sleep, stunning. You gain a +4 insight bonus on saving throws against the chosen condition. If your patron has at least 9 Hit Dice, the bonus improves to +8.

Patrons: Any fey, outsider, or undead with at least 5 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Gift of Skill I [Least]

Your patron imparts some of its knowledge and otherworldly experiences to improve your skill.

Benefit(s): Choose three skills in which your patron has 1 or more ranks. You gain a +2 competence bonus on checks with those skills. If your patron has 5 or more Hit Dice, it grants you a +4 bonus instead. At 13 patron HD, it grants a +6 bonus.

Patrons: Any fey or outsider with at least 2 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Gift of Skill II [Minor]

Your patron imparts a great deal of its knowledge and otherworldly experiences to improve your skill.

Benefit(s): Choose three skills in which your patron has 5 or more ranks. You gain a +6 competence bonus on checks with that skill. If your patron has 9 or more Hit Dice, it grants you a +8 bonus instead.

Patrons: Any fey or outsider with at least 5 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Gift of Treasure [Minor]

Your patron instills you with a talent for making money and provides a rich gift.

Benefit(s): You gain a +2 luck bonus on Appraise checks, Craft checks, and skill checks made to directly and immediately acquire wealth. For example, this bonus applies to Perform and Profession checks to make money, Diplomacy checks to perform any business transaction in which you receive money, and Sleight of Hand checks made to steal money or valuables. In addition, you gain a pot of 10,000 gp in gems and coins. For every Hit Die your patron has beyond 5, the pot contains an additional 1,000 gp. Although the wealth itself is not magical, an equal (or greater) value of your assets (usually assets purchased with the wealth) vanish or are otherwise lost when the covenant is broken.

Patrons: Any fey, outsider, or undead with at least 5 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Heavenly Blade [Least]

Your heavenly patron teaches you the secrets of creating a weapon out of a bit of your own soul.

Benefit(s): As a free action once per day, you can manifest a blade of heavenly steel. Treat it as a +1 longsword. You are proficient in its use. If the blade is not in your hand at the start of your turn, you can cause it to appear in your hand as a swift action so long as you and it are on the same plane of existence. The blade vanishes at the next nightfall. If your patron has at least 5 Hit Dice, treat the blade as a +1 bane longsword; you choose when you create the blade whether the bane affects evil outsiders, chaotic outsiders, undead, or fey. At 9 patron HD, the enhancement bonus improves to +2. At 13 patron HD, it improves to +3. At 19 patron HD, it improves to +4.

Patrons: Any angel or archon with at least 2 HD; for example, astral deva angel (15 HD, CR 14), cassisian angel (2 HD, CR 2), monadic deva angel (14 HD, CR 12), movanic deva angel (12 HD, CR 10), planetar angel (17 HD, CR 16), solar angel (22 HD, CR 23), harbinger archon (3 HD, CR 2), hound archon (6 HD, CR 4), lantern archon (2 HD, CR 2), legion archon (8 HD, CR 7), shield archon (9 HD, CR 10), star archon (19 HD, CR 19), or trumpet archon (14 HD, CR 14).

Imbued Armor I [Least]

Your patron imbues your armor with a bit of its own essence, making it more effective.

Benefit(s): When you gain this covenant, choose a suit of armor you own. If your patron has 4 or fewer Hit Dice, the armor gains a +1 enhancement bonus. At 5 to 8 patron HD, the patron instead grants the armor a +1 enhancement bonus causes it to grant you a +1 resistance bonus on saving throws as long as you wear it. At 9 to 12 patron HD, the patron grants the armor a +2 enhancement bonus and a +1 resistance bonus. At 13 or more HD, the patron grants the armor a +2 enhancement bonus and a +2 resistance bonus. These enhancement bonuses can be added to the armor, stacking with existing armor bonuses to a maximum of +5, or they can be used to add any of the following armor properties: fortification, ghost touch, invulnerability, spell resistance. Adding these properties consumes an amount of bonus equal to the property’s cost (see Table: Armor Special Abilities). These properties and enhancement bonus are added to any properties the armor already has, but duplicate abilities do not stack. If the armor is not magical, at least a +1 enhancement bonus must be added before any other properties can be added. The bonus and properties granted by the spirit are determined when the covenant is made and cannot be changed unless a new covenant is formed. As normal, you cannot cause the armor to have an enhancement bonus higher than +5; any bonus beyond that must be converted into special properties.

Patrons: Any outsider with at least 2 HD and Int 6 or higher.

Imbued Armor II [Minor]

Your patron imbues your armor with some of its own essence, making it more effective.

Benefit(s): As imbued armor I, except as noted here. If your patron has 6 or fewer HD, the armor gains a +2 enhancement bonus and a +2 resistance bonus. At 9 patron HD, it grants a +3 enhancement bonus and a +2 resistance bonus. At 13 patron HD, it grants a +3 enhancement bonus and a +3 resistance bonus.

Patrons: Any outsider with at least 5 HD and Int 6 or higher.

Imbued Armor III [Major]

Your patron imbues your armor with much of its own essence, making it more effective.

Benefit(s): As imbued armor I, except as noted here. If your patron has 10 or fewer HD, the armor gains a +5 enhancement bonus and a +3 resistance bonus. At 11 patron HD, it grants a +5 enhancement bonus and a +4 resistance bonus. At 15 patron HD, it grants a +5 enhancement bonus and a +5 resistance bonus.

Patrons: Any outsider with at least 9 HD and Int 6 or higher.

Imbued Armor IV [Greater]

Your patron imbues your armor with a great deal of its own essence, making it far more effective.

Benefit(s): As imbued armor I, except as noted here. If your patron has 14 or fewer HD, the armor gains a +9 enhancement bonus and a +5 resistance bonus. At 17 patron HD, it grants a +10 enhancement bonus and a +5 resistance bonus.

Patrons: Any outsider with at least 13 HD and Int 6 or higher.

Immortal Resilience [Minor]

Your patron charges your body with the substance of spiritual realms, making it more resilient in the face of physical injury and accelerated aging.

Benefit(s): You become immune to magical aging effects (though you are still affected by normal aging) and gain DR 2/cold iron if your patron has 8 or fewer Hit Dice. If your patron has 9 to 12 HD, instead you gain DR 3/cold iron. At 13 patron HD, instead you gain DR 4/cold iron.

If your patron has damage reduction penetrated by silver, your damage reduction is penetrated by that material instead of cold iron.

Patrons: Any fey or outsider with at least 5 HD and Int 6 or higher.

Inviolable Volition [Minor]

Your patron invests a portion of its power into protecting your free will and ability to act even in dire circumstances.

Benefit(s): If you would be dazed or stunned, the effect is mitigated. You are instead staggered for the same duration, or until you receive whatever remedy would normally undo the effect that was mitigated. If your patron has at least 9 Hit Dice, the covenant also mitigates charm and domination effects.

Patrons: Any non-lawful outsider with at least 5 HD and Int 6 or higher.

Mantle of Light [Greater]

Your patron teaches you magical secrets to bend light around yourself.

Benefit(s): You are permanently invisible, as greater invisibility. As a swift action, you can become visible or resume invisibility.

Patrons: Nereid (12 HD, CR 10), or any fey or outsider with at least 13 HD, Int 6 or greater.

Mind-Snaring Gaze [Major]

Your patron gazes into your mind, instilling you with the power to see into the minds of others.

Benefit(s): You gain a gaze attack. Whenever a creature within 30 feet meets your gaze, you automatically detect the presence or absence of thoughts, as if with the spell detect thoughts. When you do so, you can concentrate as an immediate action. If you do, you learn its Intelligence score. If that score is 26 or higher and at least 10 points higher than your own, you are stunned for 1 round and the effect ends. Otherwise, the victim must succeed on a Will save (DC 10 + 1/2 patron HD + patron Charisma modifier) or be stunned for 1 round, during which it maintains eye contact with you. If you maintain eye contact with the target until your turn, you can continue the stunning and read the target’s surface thoughts by concentrating as a standard action. The foe can end the stun condition and resist having its mind read with a second Will save. You cannot continue concentrating for longer than 1 round. You can also communicate telepathically with the creature that has most recently failed a Will save against this gaze within the past day as long as you are both on the same plane of existence. As a standard action once per day, you can attempt to dominate a person with whom you have this telepathic connection with, as dominate person. This is a spell-like ability with spell level equal to half your patron’s HD. The save DC is 10 + 1/2 patron’s HD + patron’s Charisma modifier.

Patrons: Any fey, outsider, or undead with at least 9 HD, Int 6 or greater, and telepathy or the ability to control dominate person or dominate monster.

Phantasmal Hunt [Greater]

Your patron teaches you to call on illusions that terrorize your foes.

Benefit(s): Once per day as a swift action, you can create an illusionary procession of hunters that may appear as lost spirits, unearthly hounds, bloodthirsty fey riders, undead pirates sailing spectral vessels, or other unsettling shapes. It fills one 20-foot cube per three patron Hit Dice, which must be continuous. Each enemy with fewer Hit Dice than your patron that can see or hear the phantasmal hunt from within 60 feet must succeed on a Will save or be shaken for 5d6 rounds. Foes with 4 or fewer Hit Dice are panicked instead of shaken. As a standard action, you can cause the phantasmal hunt to move up to 60 feet. A foe that begins her turn within the area occupied by the hunt must succeed on a Will save to disbelieve it. If she disbelieves the illusion, she is immune to the effects of the hunt for 1 day (if she was suffering from its fear effect, the effect ends for her). If she does not disbelieve, she cannot make another Will save to disbelieve it on subsequent rouns until she has new evidence that the illusion is not real and the hunters make an attack that resembles the victim’s deepest fears. She automatically suffers 6d6 damage that counts as bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing and must succeed on a Fortitude save or be nauseated for 1 round. The phantasmal hunt is an illusion (phantasm)) [fear, mind-affecting] effect.

Patrons: Any fey, outsider, or undead with at least 13 HD, Int 6 or greater, and the ability to create an illusion or fear effect.

Plunge into the Pit [Superior]

Your patron promises to heed your call to open the Pit of Hell to consume your enemies.

Benefit(s): Once per day, as a standard action, you can utter a foul syllable that causes an infernal earthquakes to rip through the area. This ability is similar to the spell earthquake. The rifts that open this way contain portals that send anyone who falls in directly to the city of Dis on the plane of Hell (they suffer a fall of 40 feet first as normal, and suffer appropriate damage when they land in Hell). A mass of countless damned souls reaches up out of the rifts, attempting to grapple and pull in all enemies within 80 feet of the surface affected by the earthquake. The mass grapples as a Colossal individual creature with the grab special ability whose space and reach fill the area within 80 feet of the surface, save that it cannot gain the grappled condition and suffers no penalty for grappling multiple foes at once. Its CMB and CMD for grapple checks use your patron’s Hit Dice in place of its base attack bonus, with a +12 bonus for its Strength score (35) and a +8 bonus for being Colossal (its Dexterity is 10, granting no bonus to the CMD). Each round, a creature that begins its turn grappled by the souls suffers 4d6 force damage and is pulled 40 feet closer to the nearest fissure. The mass of souls cannot be damaged or affected by most attacks, although it can be banished by spells and effects such as dispel evil or banishment as if it were a lawful evil creature with Hit Dice equal to your patron’s, AC 2 + patron’s Charisma bonus (minimum +1), and a Will save bonus equal to your patron’s base Will save bonus, and a Wisdom bonus of +0 (its Wisdom score is 10).

Patrons: Any devil with at least 17 HD and Int 6 or higher.

Possessed Weapon I [Major]

Your patron inhabits a weapon, granting it intelligence and new powers.

Benefit(s): When you gain this covenant, choose a non-magical weapon you own. Your patron possesses the weapon, causing it to act much like an intelligent item. While possessed, the weapon gains a +1 enhancement bonus. While possessing the item, your patron retains its mental ability scores, alignment, languages, and Intelligence-, Wisdom-, and Charisma-based skills. If your patron has 13 to 16 Hit Dice, the weapon gains a +2 enhancement bonus instead. At 17 HD, the patron grants the weapon a +3 enhancement bonus. These enhancement bonuses can be added to the weapon, to a maximum of +5, or they can be used to add any of the following weapon properties: allying, brilliant energy, conductive, dancing, defending, disruption, distance, flaming, flaming burst, ghost touch, keen, mighty cleaving, menacing, returning, seeking, speed, throwing. Adding these properties consumes an amount of bonus equal to the property’s cost (see Table: Weapon Special Abilities). At least a +1 enhancement bonus must be added before any other properties can be added. The weapon also gains up to 10,000 gp worth of improved senses, intelligent item powers, and/or special purpose items dedicated powers, plus 2,000 gp for every Hit Die above 9. The item’s ego is equal to Intelligence modifier + Wisdom modifier + Charisma modifier + Hit Dice + any modifiers from added intelligent item powers. The bonus and properties granted by the spirit is determined when the covenant is made and cannot be changed unless a new covenant is formed.

Because the patron cannot continue its other plans for as long as it is bound in the weapon, these covenants always have a short term and must have a special purpose as defined in the intelligent magic item rules—although immortal spirits may define “short” more generously than short-lived mortals, and may make covenants contingent on the special purpose being fulfilled in some important way. When the covenant ends, the possessed weapon is left with the same weapon properties the spirit granted it, but it is no longer intelligent and loses all intelligent item powers.

Patrons: Any outsider or incorporeal undead with at least 9 HD and Int 6 or higher.

Possessed Weapon II [Greater]

Your patron possesses a weapon and grants it greater powers.

Benefit(s): This covenant acts as possessed weapon I, except as follows. The weapon gains up to 80,000 gp worth of improved senses, intelligent items powers, and/or special purpose item dedicated powers plus 3,000 gp for every Hit Die your patron possesses above 13. At 16 or fewer patron HD, the weapon gains a +5 enhancement bonus. At 17 or more patron HD, it gains a +6 enhancement bonus.

Patrons: Any outsider or incorporeal undead with at least 13 HD and Int 6 or higher.

Possessed Weapon III [Superior]

Your patron possesses a weapon and grants it superior powers.

Benefit(s): This covenant acts as possessed weapon I, except as follows. The weapon gains up to 200,000 gp worth of improved senses, intelligent items powers, and/or special purpose item dedicated powers plus 10,000 gp for every Hit Die your patron possesses above 17. At 19 or fewer patron HD, the weapon gains a +7 enhancement bonus. At 20 patron HD, it gains a +8 enhancement bonus.

Patrons: Any outsider or incorporeal undead with at least 17 HD and Int 6 or higher.

Power of the Possessor [Greater]

Your patron teaches you the magical secrets to possessing other creatures bodily.

Benefit(s): Twice per day, you can merge yourself with an adjacent creature on the same plane or a coexistant plane (the Ethereal and Shadow planes are coexistant with the Material Plane). This ability is similar to a magic jar spell, except that it does not require a receptacle. The target can resist this ability with a successful Will save. A creature that successfully saves is immune for 24 hours.

Patrons: Bhuta (14 HD, CR 11), dybbuk (18 HD, CR 15), or ghost of at least 13 HD.

Protective Aura [Greater]

Your celestial patron shares its protective aura with you.

Benefit(s): Against attacks made or effects created by evil creatures, this ability provides a +4 deflection bonus to AC and a +4 resistance bonus on saving throws to anyone within 10 feet of you. Otherwise, it functions as a magic circle against evil and a lesser globe of invulnerability, both with a radius of 10 feet. If your patron has 17 or more Hit Dice, the radius increases to 20 feet.

Patrons: Any outsider with the protective aura special ability and at least 12 HD; for example, cetaceal agathion (17 HD, CR 15), draconal agathion (24 HD, CR 20), leonal agathion (14 HD, CR 12), astral deva angel (15 HD, CR 14), monadic deva angel (14 HD, CR 12), planetar angel (17 HD, CR 16), or solar angel (22 HD, CR 23).

Seelie Friendship [Least]

Your patron grants you the friendship of the Seelie Court and limited assistance from among their number.

Benefit(s): When you take this covenant, choose an ally from the summon nature’s ally I list. As a swift action once per hour, you can summon this ally as if with the spell. Unlike with typical summoning effects, this effect calls a specific individual. Although the original is not permanently harmed (as normal for summoning effects), if the ally is summoned again before the next sunrise, the summoned version of the ally has all the same spells and abilities expended and damage, condition, and effects suffered as it had when the summoning effect last ended. If the summoning ended because the ally was banished or killed, this covenant cannot be used again for 24 hours. Every sunrise, the ally is refreshed and is good as new (although it may be unable to be summoned immediately if it died or was banished and 24 hours has not yet elapsed). When summoned, the ally must appear in the nearest open space to you and is staggered until the start of your next turn. If both you and your patron have 4 or more Hit Dice, you can also choose from the summon nature’s ally II list. For every 3 Hit Dice both you and your patron have above 4, you can choose from the next highest spell level (summon nature’s ally III if both you and your patron have 7 HD, summon nature’s ally IV if both you and your patron have 10 HD, and so on). When you choose an ally of a level one level lower than your maximum, you get two of that ally; when you choose an ally of a level two or more levels lower than your maximum, you get four of that ally. Add the following creatures to the lists of what can be summoned with summon nature’s ally for the purposes of this covenant: Summon nature’s ally I: sprite. Summon nature’s ally II: atomie, faun, nixie. Summon nature’s ally IV: unicorn. Summon nature’s ally V: pixie. Summon nature’s ally VII: nymph. Any ally you summon with this covenant has the blessing of the Seelie Court, granting it a permanent +4 enhancement bonus to Strength and Constitution.

Patrons: Any fey associated with the Seelie court with at least 1 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Spell Secrets I [Least]

Your patron shares with you the secrets of basic magic.

Benefit(s): This covenant only benefits supplicants who can cast spells. From among the witch spell list, any spell list your patron uses, and your patron’s spell-like abilities, choose a 1st-level spell that appears on your class spell list or any 0-level spell. Treat the chosen spell as if it were on your class spell list and among your spells known as a 1st-level spell and gain a bonus 1st-level spell slot that can only be used to cast the chosen spell. If your patron has at least 5 Hit Dice, you gain another 1st-level spell known and bonus spell slot in the same manner. At 13 patron HD, you gain a 2nd-level spell known and bonus spell slot in this fashion; the spell may be up to 2nd level if it already appears on your class spell list, or up to 1st level otherwise. You can cast spells gained through this covenant even if they are of spell levels you do not normally have access to, but only if you have a high enough ability score (as determined by your spellcasting class). However, if you attempt to use this covenant to cast a spell of a level you could not otherwise cast, you must make a caster level check (DC 1 + patron’s HD) to succeed. If you fail, the spell slot is expended without its normal effect and you must make a DC 5 Wisdom check to avoid a mishap as if you were activating a scroll (see Scroll Mishaps). A natural 1 on this Wisdom check is always a failure, regardless of modifiers.

Patrons: Any fey, outsider, or undead with the ability to cast at least one spell or spell-like ability, at least 2 HD, and Int 6 or higher.

Spell Secrets II [Minor]

Your patron shares with you the secrets of middling magic.

Benefit(s): This covenant only benefits supplicants who can cast spells. From among the witch spell list, any spell list your patron uses, and your patron’s spell-like abilities, choose a 2nd-level spell that appears on your class spell list or any 1st-level spell. Treat the chosen spell as if it were on your class spell list and among your spells known as a 2nd-level spell and gain a bonus 2nd-level spell slot that can only be used to cast the chosen spell. If your patron has at least 13 Hit Dice, you gain a 3rd-level spell known and bonus spell slot in this fashion; the spell may be up to 3rd level if it already appears on your class spell list, or up to 2nd level otherwise. You can cast spells gained through this covenant even if they are of spell levels you do not normally have access to, but only if you have a high enough ability score (as determined by your spellcasting class), and if you do, you risk failure as described in spell secrets I.

Patrons: Any fey, outsider, or undead with the ability to cast at least one spell or spell-like ability of at least 2nd level, at least 5 HD, and Int 6 or higher.

Spell Secrets III [Major]

Your patron shares with you the secrets of advanced magic.

Benefit(s): This covenant only benefits supplicants who can cast spells. From among the witch spell list, any spell list your patron uses, and your patron’s spell-like abilities, choose a 4th-level spell that appears on your class spell list or any 3rd-level spell. Treat the chosen spell as if it were on your class spell list and among your spells known as a 4th-level spell and gain a bonus 4th-level spell slot that can only be used to cast the chosen spell. If your patron has at least 17 Hit Dice, you gain a 5th-level spell known and bonus spell slot in this fashion; the spell may be up to 5th level if it already appears on your class spell list, or up to 4th level otherwise. You can cast spells gained through this covenant even if they are of spell levels you do not normally have access to, but only if you have a high enough ability score (as determined by your spellcasting class), and if you do, you risk failure as described in spell secrets I.

Patrons: Any fey, outsider, or undead with the ability to cast at least one spell or spell-like ability of at least 4th level, at least 9 HD, and Int 6 or higher.

Spell Secrets IV [Greater]

Your patron shares with you the secrets of superior magic.

Benefit(s): This covenant only benefits supplicants who can cast spells. From among the witch spell list, any spell list your patron uses, and your patron’s spell-like abilities, choose a 4th-level spell that appears on your class spell list or any 3rd-level spell. Then, choose a 6th-level spell that appears on your class spell list or any 5th-level spell. Treat the chosen spells as if they were on your class spell list and among your spells known as a 4th-level spell and a 6th-level spell, respectively. You also gain a bonus 4th-level spell slot and 6th-level spell slot that can only be used to cast the chosen spell. If your patron has at least 17 Hit Dice, you gain a 7th-level spell known and bonus spell slot in this fashion; the spell may be up to 7th level if it already appears on your class spell list, or up to 6th level otherwise. You can cast spells gained through this covenant even if they are of spell levels you do not normally have access to, but only if you have a high enough ability score (as determined by your spellcasting class), and if you do, you risk failure as described in spell secrets I.

Patrons: Any fey, outsider, or undead with the ability to cast at least one spell or spell-like ability of at least 6th level, at least 13 HD, and Int 6 or higher.

Spell Secrets V [Superior]

Your patron shares with you the secrets of extraordinary magic.

Benefit(s): This covenant only benefits supplicants who can cast spells. From among the witch spell list, any spell list your patron uses, and your patron’s spell-like abilities, choose an 8th-level spell that appears on your class spell list or any 7th-level spell. Then, choose two more spells; each may be up to 9th level if it appears on your spell list, or up to 8th level otherwise. Treat the chosen spells as if they were on your class spell list and among your spells known as an 8th-level spell and two 9th-level spells, respectively. You also gain a bonus 8th-level spell slot and two bonus 9th-level spell slots that can only be used to cast the appropriate chosen spell. You can cast spells gained through this covenant even if they are of spell levels you do not normally have access to, but only if you have a high enough ability score (as determined by your spellcasting class), and if you do, you risk failure as described in spell secrets I.

Patrons: Any fey, outsider, or undead with the ability to cast at least one spell or spell-like ability of at least 9th level, at least 17 HD, and Int 6 or higher.

Stolen Heart [Least]

Your patron gives you the power to steal the heart of another.

Benefit(s): At a standard action three times per day, you can inspire a humanoid with feelings of love for you as for a friend or a lover, at your preference. The target is affected as if by charm person. If the target has half as many Hit Dice as your patron or fewer, the charm lasts until you target a new creature with this ability. This is a spell-like ability with spell level equal to half your patron’s HD.

Patrons: Any chaotic fey or outsider with at least 2 HD, Int 6 or greater, and a mind-affecting ability.

Stone Fist [Least]

Your patron infuses your hands with the essence of stone.

Benefit(s): Similar to the spell stone fist, this covenant transforms your hands into living stone. Your unarmed strikes do not provoke attacks of opportunity and deal 1d6 points of lethal bludgeoning damage (1d4 if you are Small). In addition, your unarmed strikes ignore the hardness of any object with a hardness less than 8. This covenant also grants you a +2 bonus on combat maneuver checks to bull rush or trip with your unarmed strikes. You can end or resume this effect as a standard action. Stone to flesh deactivates this covenant. Should you be the target of transmute rock to mud, the covenant is immediately deactivated and you take 4d6 points of damage.

Patrons: Any fey, outsider, or undead with the earth subtype, at least 2 HD, and Int 6 or greater.

Stormcaller [Superior]

Your patron promises to work in concert with you to bring down thunderous wrath with the right signal.

Benefit(s): As a swift action once per day, you can unleash an inhuman shout to conjure a storm as control weather, but it manifests in 1d4 rounds. Starting on the round the storm manifests, and as long as you remain under the open sky in the area of the storm, you can unleash another shout as a swift action to call a thunderbolt to strike a spot you have line of sight to within 1,000 feet. The bolt fills a 5-foot-radius cylinder from the sky to the ground and deals 1d10 electricity damage per 2 patron Hit Dice to all creatures and unattended objects it strikes. Creatures in the cylinder can make a Reflex save for half damage. Creatures wearing metal armor suffer a -4 penalty on this saving throw. All creatures within 60 feet of the center of the bolt must make a Fortitude save to avoid being deafened for 1 minute by the accompanying thunder. If the bolt destroys a barrier, it continues past the barrier. The bolt only strikes a creature sheltered from the storm if it first destroys every obstacle blocking line of effect between the creature and the sky. Whether or not you are beneath the magical storm, as a swift action, you can fill a 10-foot cube adjacent to your space with crackling lightning that deals 1d6 electricity damage per 2 patron Hit Dice and does not cause deafness (Reflex save for half damage similar to the thunderbolt). You can call electricity (in either form) only once every 1d4 rounds.

Patrons: Any outsider with the air subtype or fey with at least 17 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Strands of Fortune [Superior]

You learn to bend the destinies of those close to you.

Benefit(s): Whenever an ally within 60 feet rolls a saving throw, you can cause him to reroll it as an immediate action. This action must be used before the results of the roll are declared, and he must abide by the new roll, even if it is worse.

Patrons: Norn (20 HD, CR 18).

Stunning Voice [Major]

Your patron imparts magical secrets to grant you a voice like musical thunder.

Benefit(s): At will as a swift action, you can begin to sing an unearthly melody, which is so haunting and beautiful that it stuns all who hear it from within 10 feet for 1 round unless they succeed on a Will save. Maintaining the song on subsequent rounds is a free action. Those who succeed on the save are immune to this effect for one day. You cannot use this covenant ability at the same time as you maintain a bardic performance with a vocal element or cast a spell with verbal components. If your patron has 17 or more Hit Dice, the range of this ability increases to 20 feet.

Patrons: Nymph (8 HD, CR 7), satyr (8 HD, CR 4), or any angel with at least 9 HD.

Superhuman Perfection I [Major]

Your patron uses its supernatural power to augment your physical attributes.

Benefit(s): You gain a +4 enhancement bonus to Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution.

Patrons: Any fey or outsider with at least 9 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Superhuman Perfection II [Greater]

Your patron uses its supernatural power to perfect your physical attributes.

Benefit(s): You gain a +6 enhancement bonus to Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution.

Patrons: Any fey or outsider with at least 13 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Telekinetic Might [Superior]

Your patron teaches you to unlock heretofore unseen psychic power over your environment.

Benefit(s): At will, you can begin or end a reverse gravity effect in a 30-foot radius cylinder 30 feet high centered on you as a standard action. The effect moves with you and allows you to fly at a speed of 20 feet with perfect maneuverability. Additionally, while the effect lasts, you can use telekinesis as the spell once per round as a swift action, except the save DC is 10 + 1/2 medium level + Charisma modifier and the range is 30 feet. You can concentrate on this telekinesis effect as a swift action each turn, but you can maintain only one such effect at a time.

Patrons: Dybbuk (18 HD, CR 15) or ghost with at least 17 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Unnatural Talent [Major]

Your patron watches over you, clearing your mind any time distractions threaten your focus on certain skilled tasks.

Benefit(s): Choose three skills your patron has 9 or more ranks in. You can take 10 on those skill checks even when you are distracted. At 9 patron HD, you gain a +4 competence bonus on checks with those skills. At 13 patron HD, you gain a +6 bonus instead. At 17 patron HD, you gain a +8 bonus instead.

Patrons: Any fey or outsider with at least 9 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Unnerving Aura [Major]

Your patron invests you with a potent version of its baleful presence, warding off living creatures.

Benefit(s): Living creatures that approach within 10 feet of your space must succeed on a Will save or become shaken for as long as they remain in the area. Those that succeed on this saving throw are immune to the aura’s effects for 24 hours. Those that fail, leave the area, and then return must attempt a new saving throw. If your patron has at least 13 Hit Dice, animals, fey, and plants must instead succeed on a Will save to enter this aura. Those that succeed are immune to the aura for 1 day; those that fail end their movement adjacent to the aura and can try again to enter the area once each round. At 17 patron HD, the range of the aura increases to 20 feet. You can suppress this aura for 1 round as a swift action.

Patrons: Any undead with at least 9 HD and Int 6 or greater.

Wishes Granted [Greater]

Your patron uses your wishes as a template to reshape reality.

Benefit(s): When this covenant is formed, you gain three wishes. You can use a wish as a spell-like ability as a standard action. However, if you make a wish that is susceptible to being perverted, your patron has influence over how the wish is interpreted, and is liable to twist it to its own ends. When the wishes are used up, you can make no more. Unlike for most covenants, the temporary effects of one wish do not end when you make another wish. However, the effects of all wishes are undone if the covenant is broken.

Patrons: Any fey or evil outsider with at least 13 HD and Int 6 or greater. This covenant is one of those most often paid for with a alternative offering.