Heir Apparent

Heirs apparent are the children of wealthy, land-holding nobles. They get the best training gold can buy, and use that training to become heroes in their own right.

When an heir apparent leaves home to adventure, he may do so to prove his worth and put his inheritance to good use, right some wrong that was done to his family, or for the thrill of doing something more than ruling over the people who owe fealty to his parents. Whatever his reasoning, the heir uses his family’s affluence to keep himself safe and show that he’s worth more than just his gold.

Role: Heirs apparent can afford to fill one role well at a time. Some use their wealth to become expert detectives, while others prefer to take care of others through philanthropy. Some focus on their athletic builds, and yet more pay the world’s finest bards or wizards to teach them to use magic.

Alignment: Any

Hit Die: d6

Starting Wealth: 5d6 × 10 gp (average 220 gp.) In addition, each character begins play with an outfit worth 10 gp or less.

Class Skills

The heir apparent’s class skills are Appraise (Int), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Knowledge (nobility) (Int), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), and Use Magic Device (Cha).

Skill Ranks per Level: 2 + Int modifier.

Table: Heir Apparent
Level Base Attack Bonus Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Special Stipend (gp) Total Stipend
1st +0 +0 +0 +2

Adventuring goals, personal training, stipend

500 500
2nd +1 +0 +0 +3

Capital expense (2,500 gp)

750 1,250
3rd +1 +1 +1 +3

Personal training

1,000 2,250
4th +2 +1 +1 +4

Find a way

1,500 3,750
5th +2 +1 +1 +4

Personal training, capital expense (4,500 gp)

2,000 5,750
6th +3 +2 +2 +5 Influential 2,750 8,500
7th +3 +2 +2 +5 Personal training 3,750 12,250
8th +4 +2 +2 +6 Capital expense (11,250 gp) 4,750 17,000
9th +4 +3 +3 +6 Personal training 6,250 23,250
10th +5 +3 +3 +7 New prospects 8,250 31,500
11th +5 +3 +3 +7 Personal training, capital expense (24,750 gp) 10,250 41,750
12th +6/+1 +4 +4 +8 Share the wealth 13,250 55,000
13th +6/+1 +4 +4 +8 Personal training 16,500 71,500
14th +7/+2 +4 +4 +9 Capital expense (52,250 gp) 22,500 94,000
15th +7/+2 +5 +5 +9 Personal training 28,500 122,500
16th +8/+3 +5 +5 +10 Find a way, investment maturity 37,500 160,000
17th +8/+3 +5 +5 +10 Personal training, capital expense (113,500 gp) 47,500 207,500
18th +9/+4 +6 +6 +11 Liquidation 60,000 267,500
19th +9/+4 +6 +6 +11 Personal training 75,000 342,500
20th +10/+5 +6 +6 +12 Capital expense (232,500 gp), personal achievement 97,500 440,000

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the heir apparent.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency

An heir apparent is proficient with all simple weapons, plus one martial or exotic weapon of his choice. He is not proficient with any armor, or with shields.

Adventuring Goals

Every heir apparent has decided to step out of the noble lifestyle to become a hero, but doing so is an expensive endeavor that requires rigorous training from only the best.

At 1st level, an heir apparent picks an adventuring goal. This goal gives the heir something to strive for as he continues his growth as an adventurer.

A full list of adventuring goals can be found here.

Personal Training (Ex)

In his need to fill the role of adventurer, an heir apparent trains himself harder than any teacher or master could. Starting at 1st level, the heir gains one training talent. He gains an additional training talent for every 2 levels of heir apparent attained after 1st level. Unless otherwise noted, an heir cannot select an individual talent more than once. At 20th level, the heir gains a personal achievement.

A full list of training talents can be found here.

Stipend (Ex)

Heirs apparent are allowed to become adventurers only because their families accept that decision, but there’s a catch. The heir is given an allowance of gold, called a stipend, that he must track against his other investments and purchases. Should he fail to report these accurately, the heir risks being cut off and losing access to his stipend until he makes up for his mistake.

At every level, an heir apparent receives a payment, in gold or platinum, from his family’s considerable wealth. The heir may use this gold to purchase anything that benefits him personally, such as a horse, room and board, or a magic item he intends to use. The heir cannot use his stipend to pay for the care of another, nor can he purchase equipment for others. Doing so gets back to the heir’s family, who takes that value out of his next stipend as punishment.

In addition, the heir can never accept any combination of gold or items from others equaling more than his total stipend for his level. If the heir goes over his total, the difference is taken out of his next stipend. For this purpose, the heir counts half the cost of items he receives toward his total, as if he were selling them.

Capital Expense (Ex)

At 2nd level, and every three levels thereafter, an heir gains a magic item of his choice whose cost is no more than the amount listed in parentheses on Table: Heir Apparent. The item is delivered at the same time the heir receives his stipend for the level. If he requests a potion, the heir receives up to 50 of the same potion. If he requests a spell scroll, the heir receives up to 5 of the same scroll.

With enough time and effort, the heir can usually get anything he seeks sent to him, even rare magic items. This represents the heir’s family paying some other group of adventurers to actually find the item so that they can give it to the heir. The GM has final say on whether an item can truly be found in this way, and requests for plot-centric items always fail, since that would put the heir at odds with another group who may harm him for the item they don’t know is meant to be his.

Find A Way (Ex)

At 4th level, and again at 16th level, an heir apparent better understands how adventuring really works. He gains a +3 bonus to Fortitude or Reflex saves.

Influential (Ex)

At 6th level, an heir apparent’s family becomes so well known that nobles can recognize the heir by name. When entering a new location for the first time, the heir can make a Diplomacy check (DC 30 – the heir’s level). Success indicates that somebody recognizes the heir and offers to do something for him, such as gathering information, finding supplies, or setting up a room at the local inn. Other, reasonable tasks can be specified by him, and the heir is still responsible for paying any costs incurred. For every 5 points by which the heir beats the DC, he can make an additional request of the same or another person who recognizes him.

New Prospects (Ex)

At 10th level, an heir apparent can choose a second adventuring goal. He can choose the same goal a second time. If the heir has two goals that improve his attack bonus and his hit dice, his base attack is now equal to his level and his hit die becomes a d10.

Share the Wealth (Ex)

Starting at 12th level, an heir apparent has proven his reliability to his family. He can now spend his stipend to assist others or use his capital expense to find them a magic item without being punished for doing so. If he later gets the value of that assistance or item back, it doesn’t count against his total stipend.

An heir apparent with the sycophant adventuring goal instead treats locations he visits as one category larger for the purpose of finding equipment, magic items, or services.

Investment Maturity (Ex)

At 16th level, an heir apparent has proven himself, at least to his family. He gains a modest keep of his own, which has been built in secret over time in a location of his choosing and revealed to him when he receives his stipend at that level. The keep is functional as a base of operations for the heir and his companions, and he does not need to pay any fees (taxes or otherwise) for its basic upkeep. Any additions made to the keep must still be paid for by the heir.

Note: The heir is encouraged to use the settlement rules to build his keep, which begins as a noble villa. Otherwise, the keep itself counts as a permanent mage’s magnificent mansion except that there is no magical component to it. The staff is real, and the keep can be returned to at any time to receive its benefits.

Liquidation (Sp)

At 18th level and beyond, an heir apparent can quickly turn his assets into gold. His family grants him access to a specially constructed closet that can instantly transport materials and items to the heir’s keep, where they are sold for half their cost. The heir receives his gold or platinum immediately upon sending an item away, assuming his family will find a way to sell it.

The closet is small, but when activated by speaking a command word it grows to form a space 5 feet square and 10 feet high. Creatures, living or otherwise, cannot be transported in this way, and are unharmed by standing in the closet when it is used (though their equipment might be taken away).

Section 15: Copyright Notice

The Book of Many Things, © 2018,Samurai Sheepdog; author Kevin Glusing.

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