Evil / Undead Class : Evil Cultist - Shoal Servant
The uncaring ocean holds ancient evils and vile secrets, and few of the alien menaces concealed in the depths hold as much enmity against the surface dwelling races as the kuo-toas, an ancient race that has long since retreated to the depths. They shun others and are content to worship their Sea Mother goddess, Blibdoolpoolp. Although rarely seen by those on the surface, occasionally kuo-toas make contact with shore communities to raid, infiltrate, or further other alien goals. In some distant villages, kuo-toa take over, raping and pillaging at will. They force the local populace to worship their foul goddess, killing anyone who tries to fight back. The vile kuo-toas often breed with those they conquer, creating dedicated kin through a carefully planned combination of fear, subjugation, and forced procreation. Over generations, loyal individuals become more like the kuo-toas they venerate, turning their backs on the people they once knew. To the kuo-toas, they are known as shoal servants - beings that act as liaisons between the shore and sea.
Kuo-toas accept these strange beings, seeing them as useful tools to perform tasks on the surface that they would rather avoid. While their alien mindset prevents them from viewing non-kuo-toans with anything other than contempt and distrust, they do not question the actions of Blibdoolpoolp and treat shoal servants with a grudging acceptance.
Shoal servants spread worship of Blibdoolpoolp among the surface races through slow, subtle conversion. Shoal servants in positions of power use that power to the advantage of the kuo-toas. They redirect ship traffic toward or away from kuo-toan communities, kidnap people for food and slaves, and seek out knowledge that is otherwise inaccessible from beneath the waves. In most cases, shoal servants use quiet and hidden methods to perform these tasks, knowing that most civilized races hate and fear the kuo-toas and their warped servants. Because of this, most shoal servants choose to flee when confronted with danger, although when cornered, they become truly ferocious.
Individuals chosen by the kuo-toas to become shoal servants are usually contacted through a series of disturbing dreams. Over the course of a month, the candidate is inexplicably drawn to the seashore, where he must stand and allow the tide to rise and ebb around him at least three times. At that time, a kuo-toan cleric rises from the briny water and finishes the ritual, binding the individual to the deity Blibdoolpoolp.
Because devout worship of Blibdoolpoolp is required, most shoal servants are clerics. Druids who have turned their backs on the "rational" deities of the core races find the primal power and outlook of Blibdoolpoolp intoxicating. Fighters, rogues, and rangers, especially those who are used to working on ships or near shorelines, sometimes hear the call of this prestige class. Sorcerers and wizards who work with the raw forces of the storm and turbulent ocean sometimes become shoal servants, seeking out the ancient and long-forgotten knowledge held by the kuo-toas. Bards who become shoal servants are exceedingly rare.
Unlike members of most other cultist prestige classes, shoal servants commonly work together. They are rarely entrusted by the kuo-toans to perform tasks alone, so groups are often escorted by one kuo-toan overseer.
Requirements
To qualify to become a Shoal Servant, a character must fulfill all the following criteria:
- Race: Any humanoid
- Alignment: Neutral evil
- Feats: Great Fortitude,
- Base Attack Bonus: +5
- Spellcasting: Must be able to cast divine spells
- Patron: Blibdoolpoolp
- Special: Must stand at the seashore and allow the tide to rise and ebb around him three times before being blesses by a kuo-toan cleric.
Class Skills
The Shoal servant's class skills are Bluff, Concentration, Craft, Diplomacy, Escape Artist, Knowledge (arcana), Knowledge (nature), Knowledge (religion), Move Silently, Profession, Search, Spellcraft, Spot, Survival, and Swim.
Skill Points at Each Level: 2 + Int modifier.
Class Features
All the following are Class Features of the shoal servant prestige class:
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Shoal servants are proficient with all simple weapons, but characters gain no new proficiency with armor or shields from talking a level of the class.
Spellcasting: A shoal servant continues training in magic. Thus any 2nd and 4th level, the character gains new spells per day and spells known as if he had also gained a level in a divine spellcasting class be belonged to before he added the prestige class. He does not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained (improved chance of controlling or rebuking undead, metamagic or item creation feats, and so on). This essentially means that he adds the level of shoal servant to the level of some other spellcasting class he has, then determines spells per day and caster level accordingly.
Skin of the Kuo-Toa (Ex): At 1st level, a shoal servant's skin becomes smooth and slimy like a kuo-toa. This coating gives the shoal servant a +4 circumstance bonus to Escape Artist checks as long as he is not wearing armor and is not carrying a heavy load. Like kuo-toas, the shoal servant's skin shifts coloration, depending on his mood.
Resistance to Poison and Paralysis (Ex): At 1st level, the shoal servant gains a +4 resistance bonus to saving throws against the effects of poison and paralysis.
Amphibious (Ex): At 2nd level, shoal servants develop gills on the sides of their necks, allowing them to breath water as well as air. They can survive indefinitely on land or under water. When not in use, these gills are not detectable (no Spot DC), but can be seen by a careful examination (Search DC 10).
Eyes of the Kuo-Toa (Ex): At 3rd level, the shoal servant's eyes grow huge and more acute. Like the kuo-toa, the shoal servant can now spot creatures and objects even if they are invisible, ethereal or astral. Only be remaining perfectly still can such objects or creatures avoid notice. He also gains a +1 circumstance bonus to Search and Spot checks.
The main disadvantage to this ability is that the shoal servant's eye are now affected by light blindness. Abrupt exposure to bright light (such as sunlight or a daylight spell) blinds the shoal servant for 1 round. In addition, he suffers a -1 circumstance penalty to all attack rolls, saves, and skill checks while operating in bright light.
Bite of the Kuo-Toa (Ex): At 4th level, the shoal servant's mouth grows huge and sprouts numerous needle-like teeth. The shoal servant can make a bite attack for 1d4 points of damage.
Lightning Bolt (Su): Two or more shoal servants operating together can generate a 10-foot-wide, 60 foot-long stroke of lightning every 1d4 rounds. The shoal servants must join hands to launch the bolt. In rounds between uses of this ability. the shoal servants must remain within 30 feet of another shoal servant; any round in which a shoal servant is more than 30 feet away from at least one other shoal servant does not count against the number of rounds that must elapse before they can use this ability again. The lightning bolt deals 1d6 points of damage per shoal servant, but a successful Reflex save halves this amount (save DC 13 + the number of shoal servants). This ability functions much like the kuo-toa's lightning bolt ability, and kuo-toan clerics and shoal servants with the lightning bolt ability can work together to generate lightning bolts (meaning that one kuo-toa and one 5th-level shoal servant can activate this ability).
Kuo-Toa Apotheosis (Ex): At 5th level, the shoal servant begins to transform into a twisted parody of his former self. The shoal servant looks like a larger and more "human" version of a kuo-toa, although there is no difficulty in differentiating between the two. The shoal servant's creature type permanently changes to "monstrous humanoid (aquatic)." This provides the shoal servant with darkvision to a range of 60 feet, if he does not already have it. Any spells or effects that target monstrous humanoids and/or aquatic creatures affects shoal servants. The transformation has no effect of the shoal servant's Hit Die type.
Ex-Shoal Servants: A shoal servant who leaves this prestige class or ceases worshiping Blibdoolpoolp loses many of the abilities of this prestige class. If he has reached the required levels, he loses the skin of the kuo-toa ability, the ability to breath water, and the lightning bolt ability. His enlarged mouth still retains the ability to deal damage on bite attacks, however. A shoal servant who has reached 5th level retains the "monstrous humanoid (aquatic)" type and is affected by any spells or affects that target monstrous humanoids or aquatic creatures. He regains his abilities if he atones for his violations (see the atonement spell). However, few kuo-toa are willing to take back a shoal servant who has fallen from this prestige class.
| Shoal Servant | Hit Dice: d10 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CL | BAB | Fort | Ref | Will | Special | Spellcasting |
| 1st | +0 | +2 | +0 | +2 | Skin of the kuo-toa, Resistance to poison and paralysis | - |
| 2nd | +1 | +3 | +0 | +3 | Amphibious | +1 level of existing class |
| 3rd | +2 | +3 | +1 | +3 | Eyes of the kuo-toa | - |
| 4th | +3 | +4 | +1 | +4 | Bite of the kuo-toa | +1 level of existing class |
| 5th | +3 | +4 | +1 | +4 | Kuo-toa apotheosis, lightning bolt | - |
Source: Dragon #300
Older Prestige class adapted to 3.5