Hinterlander

Guards patrol great cities and druids protect the deep forests, but what of the boundaries between them? The hinterlands comprise the farmlands and woodland villages, a liminal space between humanity and the wild. Some of the rugged men and women who defend these pockets of civilization are the hinterlanders.

Hinterlanders shield rural folk from dangerous creatures, extraplanar interlopers, and marauding undead. A hinterlander is skilled with a bow and in tune with the wild, yet capable of harnessing natural resources to nourish mortal communities. They are often touched by the divine, sworn to guard the borders of towns and villages against the forces that threaten to snuff out the hearth fires.

Hit Die: d10.

Requirements

To qualify to become a hinterlander, a character must fulfill all of the following criteria.

Class Skills

The hinterlander’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Climb (Str), Escape Artist (Dex), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (geography) (Int), Knowledge (local), Knowledge (nature) (Int), Knowledge (religion), Perception (Wis), Ride (Dex), Survival (Wis), Stealth (Dex), and Swim (Str).

Skill Ranks per Level: 4 + Int modifier.

Table: Hinterlander
Level Base Attack Bonus Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Special Spells per Day
1st +0 +0 +0 +1 Favored enemy +2, master archer bonus feat
2nd +1 +1 +1 +1 Fast movement, favored terrain (hinterland) +2 +1 level of existing spellcasting class
3rd +2 +1 +1 +2 Hinterland stride, master archer bonus feat +1 level of existing spellcasting class
4th +3 +1 +1 +2 Chosen kin +1 level of existing spellcasting class
5th +3 +2 +2 +3 Master archer bonus feat +1 level of existing spellcasting class
6th +4 +2 +2 +3 Defended hearth +2 +1 level of existing spellcasting class
7th +5 +2 +2 +4 Imbue arrow +1 level of existing spellcasting class
8th +6 +3 +3 +4 Favored enemy +4 +1 level of existing spellcasting class
9th +6 +3 +3 +5 Favored terrain (hinterland) +4 +1 level of existing spellcasting class
10th +7 +3 +3 +5 Defended hearth +4, waymarker travel +1 level of existing spellcasting class

Class Features

The following are the class features of the hinterlander prestige class.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency

A hinterlander is proficient with all simple weapons, longbows, light armor, medium armor, and shields (except tower shields).

Favored Enemy (Ex)

At 1st level, a hinterlander chooses a favored enemy from the list below. This functions like the ranger class feature of the same name, except that the hinterlander gains an additional ability corresponding with the favored enemy chosen. Additionally, at 8th level, he can select a new favored enemy and the bonus for one such enemy increases by 2 (rather than at 5th and 10th levels).

Master Archer (Ex)

At 1st level, and again at 3rd and 5th levels, a hinterlander gains a bonus feat from the following list, even if he doesn’t meet the prerequisites: Deadeye’s Blessing, Far Shot, Focused Shot, Point-Blank Shot, and Rapid Shot. At 3rd level, he adds Improved Precise Shot, Parting Shot, Point Blank Master, and Manyshot to the list. At 5th level, he adds Pinpoint Targeting and Shot on the Run to the list. The benefits of these feats apply only when the hinterlander wears light, medium, or no armor.

Fast Movement (Ex)

At 2nd level, a hinterlander’s base land speed increases by 10 feet.

Favored Terrain (Hinterland) (Ex)

At 2nd level, when a hinterlander is within a 10-mile radius of a settlement with a population of 2,000 or fewer individuals, he gains a +2 bonus on initiative checks and Knowledge (geography), Perception, Stealth, and Survival checks. A hinterlander traveling through this terrain leaves no trail and can’t be tracked (although he can leave a trail if he so desires). At 9th level, these initiative and skill bonuses increase to +4, and the bonuses function as long as the hinterlander is within 20 miles of a settlement with a population of 2,000 or fewer.

Hinterland Stride (Ex)

At 3rd level, a hinterlander moves with ease through natural and agrarian environments.

This functions exactly like woodland stride, except that a hinterlander also moves normally through any non-magical difficult terrain in settled areas with a population of 2,000 or less individuals, such as a farm or village.

Chosen Kin (Su)

At 4th level, as a standard action, a hinterlander can designate a number of allies up to 3 + his Wisdom modifier to be his chosen kin. Allies so designated gain half the hinterlander’s favored terrain (hinterland) bonus and half of the bonuses granted by defended hearth (see below). Members of his chosen kin must remain within 30 feet of the hinterlander in order to gain these benefits. At 7th level, this range increases to 60 feet.

Defended Hearth (Su)

At 6th level, a hinterlander can designate a settlement as a defended hearth, allowing him to sense the presence of unnatural creatures within 5 miles of it. Aberrations, constructs, dragons, magical beasts, monstrous humanoids, outsiders, and undead constitute unnatural presences for this purpose. Though the hinterlander is aware of potential danger, he doesn’t know the exact nature or location of the creature unless he can perceive it.

The defended hearth must be a settled area with a population of 2,000 or fewer individuals, and the hinterlander must spend 24 hours carefully studying the entire area to activate this ability, after which he gains a +2 favored terrain bonus in that settlement, which stacks with any other favored terrain bonus he receives in that area.

This bonus increases to +4 at 10th level. A hinterlander can have a number of defended hearths equal to his Wisdom bonus (minimum 1). When he reaches his maximum number of defended hearths, he can select a new defended hearth by abandoning an existing one and performing the ritual for a new area.

Imbue Arrow (Su)

At 7th level, a hinterlander gains the ability to place a spell that affects an area upon an arrow.

This functions exactly like the arcane archer ability of the same name.

Waymarker Travel (Sp)

At 10th level, a hinterlander gains the ability to create a waymarker anywhere within the area of a defended hearth. The hinterlander can maintain up to five waymarkers at a time—if the hinterlander creates a sixth waymarker, he chooses which of the previous five deactivates. Once per day as a move action, the hinterlander can cast word of recall as a spell-like ability to teleport to any of his active waymarkers.

Section 15: Copyright Notice

Pathfinder Player Companion: Paths of the Righteous © 2016, Paizo Inc.; Authors: Alexander Augunas, John Compton, Jenny Jarzabski, Isabelle Lee, Stephen Rowe, and Owen K.C. Stephens.

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