Oaken Fist

Rather than learn how to assume animal forms with their wild shape ability, oaken fists nurture their connection to the plant kingdom by mastering a hybrid form of wild shape in which they retain their humanoid form, but their arms and skin are transformed into plant material.

An oaken fist has the following class features.

Verdant Spontaneous Casting

An oaken fist does not spontaneously cast summon nature’s ally spells. Instead, an oaken fist can “lose” a prepared spell in order to cast any spell of the same level or lower from her verdant spells. The following spells comprise the oaken fist’s verdant spell list: 1st—goodberry, 2nd—vine strike, 3rd—resinous skin, 4th—explosion of rot, 5th—sturdy tree fort, 6th—transport via plants, 7th—transmute metal to wood, 8th—horrid wilting, 9th—wooden phalanx.

This alters spontaneous casting.

Green-Bonded

At 1st level, an oaken fist must choose the Plant domain (or any of its subdomains except decay) as her nature bond.

This alters nature bond.

Verdant Thoughts (Ex)

At 1st level, an oaken fist gains a +1 bonus on Will saving throws against mind affecting effects.

This replaces wild empathy.

Natural Climber (Ex)

At 3rd level, an oaken fist does not lose her Dexterity bonus to AC when climbing trees and she automatically succeeds on all Climb skill checks made to climb trees.

This replaces trackless step.

Tree Scamper (Ex)

At 4th level, an oaken fist gains a +2 bonus on saving throws against spells or effects that target plants or note a unique effect upon plants in the spell’s description such as entangle, spike growth, explosion of rot, or horrid wilting, for example.

This replaces resist nature’s lure.

Wild Shape (Su)

At 4th level, an oaken fist gains a new option for her wild shape. She cannot assume the form of an animal. Instead, she gains the oaken fist wild shape that allows her to assume a hybrid form in which she retains her own type, but her skin becomes bark-like and her arms and fists become longer and harder like tree limbs. In this oaken fist form, an oaken fist gains the following benefits: • A +2 bonus (untyped) to her natural armor class. This bonus increases by +1 at 8th level, and every four levels thereafter, to a maximum of +6 at 20th level.

• Two natural primary slam attacks made at her full base attack bonus which deal bludgeoning damage equal to the unarmed strike damage of a monk of the same level. An oaken fist adds her full Strength modifier to both attacks.
• A +2 enhancement bonus to her Strength. This bonus increases to +4 at 6th level and to +6 at 8th level.
• An increase of +1 to her bonus against mind affecting effects from her verdant thoughts ability.

In oaken fist form, an oaken fist retains her ability to speak, cast spells, and hold objects such as torches or shields, but she cannot effectively wield weapons or manipulate fine tools such as thieves’ tools with her hands in this form. This oaken fist hybrid form functions in all other ways as wild shape, and for the purposes of interacting with feats, is considered to be a wild shape form. The one exception is that oaken fist form lasts 1 hour for every two druid levels rather than 1 hour per druid level. An oaken fist never gains the ability to use her wild shape ability to assume animal or plant forms, though her oaken fist form continues to evolve as she gains levels. An oaken fist’s ability to assume elemental forms is unchanged and progresses along the same schedule as a typical druid.

This alters wild shape.

Deep Roots and Long Limbs

Beginning at 6th level, the oaken fist wild shape becomes more powerful. An oaken fist gains the following special abilities at the listed levels while she is in the hybrid oaken fist wild shape: • Roots. At 6th level, an oaken fist can use an immediate action to send roots into the ground to gain a +5 circumstance bonus on her CMD against attempts to bull rush, drag, overrun, reposition, or trip her. The roots dissolve immediately after the check is made.

• Limbs. At 8th level, an oaken fist’s reach increases to 10 feet and she gains the constrict and grab monster special abilities.
• Dormancy. At 10th level, an oaken fist gains cold resistance 20.
• Regeneration. At 12th level, an oaken fist gains regeneration 2, but she can only regenerate a number of hit points up to half of her maximum using this ability for each use of oaken fist form.

This further alters wild shape.

Flurry of Limbs (Ex)

At 13th level, when an oaken fist is in her hybrid oaken fist wild shape form, she can make a flurry of limbs as a full-attack action. When making a flurry of limbs, the oaken fist can make one additional attack at her highest base attack bonus. This additional attack stacks with the bonus attacks from haste and other similar effects.

This replaces a thousand faces.

Acorn Barrage (Su)

At 15th level, once per day, as a standard action, an oaken fist can exhale a gout of acorns in a 30-foot cone or a 60-foot line. The acorns deal 1d6 points of bludgeoning damage per oaken fist level. A successful Reflex save (DC = 10 + 1/2 your oaken fist level + your Wisdom modifier) halves the damage.

This replaces timeless body.