Winter Warlock

“My breath is the cold northern wind. My touch is searing ice.”

Winter warlocks are rare individuals with an innate talent for cold magic. Most are reclusive and make their domains in frozen glaciers, cold mountaintops, and icy plains, where only the hardiest of creatures can survive. The icy power flowing through their veins allows them to thrive in such environments, manipulating the weather and frozen terrain at their whim. Winter warlocks have a close affinity with creatures of the arctic wilderness and are able to assume their forms. Winter is their season of power, and many travel far and wide with the coming of the ice and snow. As the warmer seasons return, they typically retreat back into colder lands, though some have been known to create their own bastions of perpetual cold in regions that would otherwise be inhospitable to them. Such bastions are not usually welcomed by the local populaces, who often view winter warlocks as dangerous threats.

Hit Die: d8

Requirements

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

• Alignment: Any neutral
• Ability Scores: Int or Cha 16
• Skills: Knowledge (arcana) 5 ranks, Knowledge (nature) 5 ranks
• Spellcasting Ability to cast 3rd-level arcane spells, able to cast at least three arcane spells with the [cold] descriptor.
• Special: May not possess a familiar with the fire subtype, may not have the sorcerer Elemental Fire bloodline, may not be specialized in the wizard elemental school of Fire.

Class Skills

The class skills for this class (and the key ability for each skill) are Acrobatics (Dex), Appraise (Int), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Fly (Dex), Knowledge (arcana, dungeoneering, geography, nature) (Int), Linguistics (Int), Perception (Wis), Profession (Wis), Spellcraft (Int), Stealth (Dex), Survival (Wis), Swim (Str) and Use Magic Device (Cha).

Skill Ranks at Each Level: 3 + Int modifier

Table: The Winter Warlock

Class Level	BAB	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Special	Spells per Day
1st	+1	+0	+1	+2	Cold Focus, Fire Nemesis	+1 level of existing class
2nd	+2	+0	+2	+2	Endure Elements, Winter Wolf Familiar	–
3rd	+3	+1	+3	+3	Immunity to Ice Storm and Sleet Storm	+1 level of existing class
4th	+3	+1	+3	+3	Winter Beast Form (2/day), Bonus spell	–
5th	+4	+1	+4	+4	Cold Magic Resistance, Toughness	+1 level of existing class
6th	+5	+2	+5	+4	Bonus spell	–
7th	+6	+2	+6	+5	Winter Beast Form (3/day)	+1 level of existing class
8th	+6	+2	+6	+5	Bonus spell	–
9th	+7	+3	+7	+6	Minor Cold Immunity	+1 level of existing class
10th	+8	+3	+8	+6	Winter Beast Form (4/day)	–

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the winter warlock prestige class.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency

A winter warlock gains no additional proficiencies in any weapon or armor.

Cold Focus (Su)

Due to their focus on the element of cold, winter warlocks receive a +2 bonus on saves vs. spells with the cold descriptor. Cold spells cast by the winter warlock have a +2 bonus to their DC. Furthermore, the winter warlock may now only use summon monster spells to summon creatures affiliated with cold environments. See the winter warlock spell list below for sample creatures. In some cases, creatures have been added to the list that would normally not be summonable with summon monster.

Fire Nemesis: A winter warlock’s nemesis is fire. A winter warlock can never again cast or learn spells with the Fire descriptor or which cause heat. If he knew any fire spells before becoming a winter warlock, he loses his knowledge of them, though he may replace them with equal level spells from the winter warlock spell list. A winter warlock also becomes vulnerable to fire and hot weather. He suffers a -1 penalty against all saves and checks vs. fire and suffers +1 damage per die. For example, a winter warlock suffers 6d6+6 damage if hit by a 6th-level fireball (save for half). In hot weather above 90 degrees, the winter warlock suffers -1 to attack roles, saves, and skill checks. He does not suffer hot weather penalties if under the effects of endure elements (heat), resist energy (fire) or protection from energy (fire).

Endure Elements (Sp)

At 2nd level, the winter warlock gains the ability to cast endure elements, once per day, as a spell-like ability, at his own caster level.

Winter Wolf Familiar

At 2nd level, the winter warlock gains a neutral winter wolf as a familiar. The winter warlock’s prestige class level is used to determine the winter wolf familiar’s statistic bonuses and special abilities. If the winter warlock already had a familiar, it permanently abandons him and the winter wolf takes its place. The winter warlock suffers no penalties from this abandonment.

Immunity to Ice Storm and Sleet Storm (Ex)

At 3rd level, the winter warlock becomes completely immune to all damage and movement penalties caused by ice storm and sleet storm spells, though they still may block his vision. A favorite tactic of the winter warlock is to cast these spells upon himself while in battle to hinder his enemies.

Winter Beast Form (Su)

At 4th level, the winter warlock gains the ability to polymorph into a winter beast, twice per day, at his own caster level. He may only assume the following winter beast forms, based on his prestige class level.

• 4th level forms: snow leopard (same as a normal leopard), wolf, dire wolf, worg, winter wolf, dire wolverine, yeti (same as dire ape).
• 6th level forms become available: dire snow leopard (same as tiger), polar bear, remorhaz.
• 9th level forms: dire bear.
• 10th level forms: dire snow tiger (same as dire tiger). At certain levels, the winter warlock may assume winter beast form additional times per day.

Bonus Spell

At 4th, 6th, and 8th level, the winter warlock learns a bonus spell. The spell must be of a level one lower than the highest he can cast, and must be selected from the winter warlock spell list. Alternately, he can choose any sorcerer or wizard spell of the appropriate level with the Cold descriptor.

Cold Magic Resistance (Ex)

At 5th level, the winter warlock becomes permanently resistant to cold, gaining energy resistance 15 vs. cold.

Toughness (Ex)

At 5th level, the winter warlock’s affinity for cold hardens his physique, and he gains the Toughness feat.

Minor Cold Immunity (Ex)

At 9th level, the winter warlock becomes permanently immune to all cold spells and effects of level 4 or lower. In addition, he is now permanently immune to normal cold weather effects, as if he had a constant endure elements (vs. cold only) in effect.

Spellcasting

At certain levels, the winter warlock gains new spells per day as if he had also gained a level in an arcane spellcasting class he belonged to before adding the prestige class. He does not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained (metamagic or item creation feats, hit points beyond those he receives from the prestige class, and so on), except for an increased effective level of spellcasting. If a character had more than one arcane spellcasting class before becoming a winter warlock, he must decide to which class she adds each level of winter warlock for purposes of determining spells per day.

When the winter warlock learns one or more new spells as a result of gaining a level, he must choose at least one spell from the winter warlock spell list below, or any sorcerer/wizard spell of the appropriate level with the Cold descriptor or from the Divination school.

In addition to the spells listed below, a winter warlock may learn any sorcerer/wizard spell with the Cold descriptor or from the Divination school.

** Spells marked with double asterisks are simply winter warlock variants of existing spells. These spells are not described in the new spell section of this book, but are explained in the winter warlock spell list below. Only winter warlocks may learn these spell variations.

Winter Warlock Spell List

Level	Spell(s)
0 (Cantrips)	all level 0 arcane spells, except fire spells.
1st	chill touch (causes cold damage instead of negative energy damage), create water (as the cleric spell, but creates an equal volume of ice), elemental hands (cold)*, endure elements, feather fall, longstrider, mage armor, magic fang, mount, obscuring mist, pass without trace (only works in areas of ice and snow), ray of enfeeblement, shield, summon monster I (only husky[riding dog] or snow owl [eagle])
2nd	chill grasp* (causes cold damage instead of negative energy damage), chill metal, greater chill touch** (as chill touch, but 1d10 cold damage instead of negative energy damage), cold skin** (as barkskin, but skin hardens like ice), freezing ray** (as scorching ray, but inflicts cold damage), hold animal, icy sphere** (as flaming sphere, but cold damage and emanates blue light), glyph of warding (cold effects only), gust of wind, ice arrow** (as acid arrow but inflicts cold damage), ice blade*, ice sheet** (as grease, but creates a coating of ice, instead), resist energy, shatter, spectral hand, summon monster II (only air elemental or wolf), whispering wind
3rd	diminish plants, dispel magic, displacement, gentle repose, fly, greater magic fang, hold person, freezing arrow** (as flame arrow but inflicts cold damage and cannot ignite objects), meld into ice** (as meld into stone but can only meld into ice), protection from energy, ray of ice*, sleet storm, slow, spike growth (as spike growth but creates icy thorns and works in snow and ice, as well), summon monster III (only young yeti[dire ape with Cold type], snow leopard [leopard], wolverine), tiny hut, water walk, wind wall
4th	bestow curse, charm ice monster** (as charm monster but only vs. creatures with the Cold subtype), freedom of movement, ice skin** (as stone skin, but skin appears to be made of ice), ice storm, ice trap** (as fire trap, but cold damage), fire shield (cold version only), lesser globe of invulnerability, lesser numbing wind*, minor ice creation** (as minor creation, but objects are made of hard ice), mnemonic enhancer, secure shelter, scrying, solid fog, ice shape** (as stone shape, but only works on ice), summon monster IV (only dire wolf, great snow leopard [lion], ice mephit, yeti), wall of ice
5th	cold strike** (as flame strike, but all damage is cold), commune with nature (only works in terrain with temperatures at or below freezing), cone of cold, control winds, freezing cloudkill** (as cloudkill but damage is caused by extreme cold instead of poison, and the spell gains the Cold descriptor), freezing wall*, hold monster, ice barrier** (as blade barrier, but made of sharp ice shards instead of blades), permanency, polymorph (can only assume the form of creatures with the Cold subtype), slay living, spell immunity, symbol of pain, summon monster IV (only king snow leopard [dire lion], orca dolphin, wooly rhinoceros), wall of ice thorns** (as wall of thorns, but made entirely of hard ice, and burns in two minutes), waves of fatigue
6th	circle of freezing death** (as circle of death, but inflicts cold damage), cold fog** (as acid fog, but inflicts cold damage), flesh to ice** (as flesh to stone, but transforms the target into a permanent, unmelting ice statue), freezing sphere, greater dispel magic, ice to flesh** (as stone to flesh, but only restores creatures that had been transformed by flesh to ice), summon monster VI (only polar bear [dire bear] and dire snow tiger[dire tiger])
7th	control weather (only sleet, hail, cold weather and wind effects), finger of icy death** (as finger of death, but cold damage), freezing storm** (as fire storm, but cold damage, and targets are not ignited), greater scrying, summon monster Vii (only air elemental, mammoth [mastodon], and frost giant)
8th	freezing cloud** (as incendiary cloud, but cold damage), greater numbing wind*, ice body** (as iron body, but made of iron-hard ice, you do not take half damage from acid or fire, and you are not vulnerable to special attacks that affect iron golems), polar ray, summon monster VIII (only air elemental), temporal stasis
9th	dominate ice monster** (as dominate monster but only vs. creatures with the Cold subtype), freezing doom*, ice imprisonment** (as imprisonment, but entombs the target in a block of unmelting ice), power word kill, refuge, shapechange (only creatures with the Cold subtype), storm of vengeance, summon monster IX (only ice devil)