Battlemage

Masters of artillery, battle magic, and mounted combat, battlemages are feared for their destructive power. Battlemages survey the field both near and far, turning the tide with their martial prowess and the seemingly endless reach of their spells.

Being a member of the battlemages is considered a high honor, where military service is a requirement for any sort of upward social mobility (unless you already happen to be a member of the aristocracy). For the bourgeois eldritch warrior in training, service with the battle-mages practically guarantees a position in some nobleman’s court.

Battlemages are not usually mere courtiers, though, but are usually found either training or on the front lines. Occasionally, they are given special assignments as attachés to various adventuring groups. This is not common, and always signifies that the military has some sort of interest in whatever the adventuring party is up to.

Role: Battlemages are often found right in the thick of combat alongside their more militant companions. They are less prone to having their spells disrupted in close combat than other arcane casters, yet still have the versatility to go from front-line combatant to area control artillerist with a heart’s beat.

Alignment: As they are usually part of a rigid military hierarchy, battlemages tend toward lawful rather than chaotic. Some simply believe in the righteousness of their cause and are thus neutral or even good, but most tend toward lawful evil, having few illusions about how best to wield military might.

Hit Die: d8

Requirements

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

Proficiencies: A battlemage must be proficient with all martial weapons and with light armor.

Feats: Arcane Strike

Skills: Knowledge (arcana) 4 ranks, Ride 4 ranks, Spellcraft 2 ranks

Spellcasting: Must be capable of casting 3rd level arcane spells

Class Skills

The battle-mage’s class skills (and the key ability for each) are Appraise (Int), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Knowledge (arcana), Knowledge (geography), Knowledge (nobility), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Spellcraft (Int).

Skill Ranks at Each Level: 2 + Intelligence modifier

Table: Battlemage
Level Base Attack Bonus Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Special Spells Per Day
1st +0 +1 +0 +1 Arcane pool, trained rider +1 level of existing class
2nd +1 +1 +1 +1 Spellstrike +1 level of existing class
3rd +2 +2 +1 +2 Armor Training, battlefield magic
4th +3 +2 +1 +2 Disruptive +1 level of existing class
5th +3 +3 +2 +3 Battlefield magic +1 level of existing class

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the battlemage prestige class.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency

A battlemage is proficient with all simple and martial weapons and with light armor. A battlemage does not suffer from arcane spell failure while wearing light armor. (If the caster suffers from the Arcane Lightning bane, or a similar effect, he still suffers the additional arcane spell failure from the effect.)

Spells per Day

At the indicated levels, a battlemage 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, except for additional spells per day, spells known (if he is a spontaneous spellcaster), and an increased effective level of spellcasting. If a character had more than one arcane spellcasting class before becoming a battlemage, he must decide to which class he adds the new level for purposes of determining spells per day.

Arcane Pool (Su)

At 1st level, a battlemage gains a reservoir of mystical arcane energy that he can draw upon to fuel his powers. This arcane pool has a number of points equal to his battlemage level + his Intelligence or Charisma modifier. The pool refreshes once per day when the battlemage awakes from a full night’s sleep. If the battlemage already has an arcane pool from another class, then he adds his battlemage levels to the total number of points in his pool.

At 1st level, a battlemage can expend 1 point from his arcane pool as a swift action to grant any weapon he is holding a +1 enhancement bonus for 1 minute. At 3rd level and again at 5th, the weapon gains another +1 enhancement bonus. These bonuses can be added to the weapon, stacking with existing weapon enhancement to a maximum of +5. Multiple uses of this ability do not stack with themselves.

If the battlemage already has an arcane pool from another class, he counts his battlemage class as levels in that other class as well for the purpose of calculating the total enhancement bonus he can grant his weapon.

At 3rd level, these bonuses can be used to add any of the following weapon properties: countering, flaming, flaming burst, frost, icy burst, keen, shock, shocking burst, spell storing. Adding these properties consumes an amount of bonus equal to the property’s base price modifier. These properties are added to any the weapon already has, but duplicates do not stack. If the weapon is not magical, at least a +1 enhancement bonus must be added before any other properties can be added. These bonuses and properties are decided when the arcane pool point is spent and cannot be changed until the next time the battlemage uses this ability. These bonuses do not function if the weapon is wielded by anyone other than the battlemage.

A battlemage can only enhance one weapon in this way at one time. If he uses this ability again, the first use immediately ends.

Trained Rider (Ex)

The battlemage adds his level to all Ride checks and to concentration checks required to cast spells while riding (i.e., due to vigorous or violent movement of his mount).

Spellstrike (Su)

At 2nd level, whenever a battlemage casts a spell with a range of “touch” from his arcane class, he can deliver the spell through any weapon he is wielding as part of a melee attack. Instead of the free melee touch attack normally allowed to deliver the spell, the battlemage makes one free melee attack with his weapon (at his highest base attack bonus) as part of casting this spell. If successful, this melee attack deals its normal damage as well as the effects of the spell. This attack uses the weapon’s critical range (modified by the keen weapon property or similar effects), but the spell effect only deals ×2 damage on a successful critical hit, while the weapon damage uses its own critical modifier.

Armor Training (Ex)

At 3rd level, the battlemage gains proficiency with medium armor. A battlemage can cast arcane spells while wearing medium armor without incurring the normal arcane spell failure chance. Like any other arcane spellcaster, a battlemage wearing heavy armor incurs a chance of arcane spell failure if the spell in question has a somatic component.

Battlefield Magic (Su)

Also starting at 3rd level, the battlemage may spend 1 point from his arcane pool as a free action while casting a spell to apply the effects of any metamagic feat from the following list: Disruptive Spell, Enlarge Spell, or Selective Spell. He need not have the feat in question to use this ability.

At 5th level, he adds the following feats to the above list: Intensified Spell and Widen Spell.

Disruptive

At 4th level, the battlemage gains Disruptive as a bonus feat.

Section 15: Copyright Notice

Scarred Lands Player’s Guide © 2016, Onyx Path and Nocturnal Publishing, LLC; Authors Bill Ashbless, Jason Bolte, Tanya Cohan-Diaz, Chris Cowger, Steffie de Vaan, Adam Eichelberger, Matt Franklin, Nathan Knaack, Eddy Webb

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