General Prestige Class : Earthshaker
by Spencer Kornhaber, Dragon #314
Earthshakers are spellcasters who have chosen to tap the power of the earth itself. Earthshakers command the great geological forces that shape the world: earthquakes, volcanoes, geysers, and more.
Nothing is more intrinsic to nature than the forces that bind it, so it is not surprising that most earthshakers are druids. A few clerics of nature deities also become earthshakers because they believe that tectonic forces are direct manifestations of their gods. NPC earthshakers often use their powers to fight foes of the earth.
Requirements
To qualify to become an Earthshaker, a character must fulfill all the following criteria:
- Skills: Knowledge (dungeoneering) 6 ranks, Knowledge (nature) 12 ranks.
- Spellcasting: Ability to cast soften earth and stone
- Language: Terran.
Class Skills
The earthshaker's class skills are Balance, Climb, Concentration, Craft (any), Knowledge (dungeoneering), Knowledge (nature), Spellcraft, and Survival.
Skill Points at Each Level: 2 + Int modifier.
Class Features
All the following are class features of the earthshaker prestige class.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Earthshakers gain no proficiency with any weapons or armor.
Spells per Day/Spells Known: At 1st level and every earthshaker level thereafter, the character gains new spells per day (and spells known, if applicable) as if he had also gained a level in whatever 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 (bonus metamagic or item creation feats, improved turning ability, and so on). This essentially means that he adds the level of earthshaker to the level of whatever spellcasting class he has, then determines spells per day, spells known, and caster level accordingly.
If the character had more than one spellcasting class before becoming an earthshaker, he must decide to which class he adds each level of earthshaker for the purpose of determining spells per day and spells known.
Earth Domain: At 1st level, the earthshaker is granted access to the Earth domain. In the likely event that he has druid levels rather than cleric levels, the earthshaker can cast an extra spell per day of each spell level he has access to, which must be the spell from the Earth domain for that level. He gains the Earth domain's granted power, substituting his earthshaker levels for cleric levels.
Tremorsense (Ex): At 1st level, the earthshaker becomes sensitive to vibrations in the earth's surface. He automatically senses the location of anything that is in contact with the ground and within 5 feet of him. This ability functions exactly as described in the tremorsense entry. The range increases by 5 feet at every other earthshaker level (to 10 feet at 3rd level, 15 feet at 5th level, 20 feet at 7th level, and 25 feet at 9th level).
Tremor (Su): As a standard action, a 2nd-level earthshaker can create a small, localized tremor in the earth that lasts for 1d4 rounds. Every creature touching the ground in a 10-foot radius around the earthshaker must make a successful Balance check (DC 10 + earthshaker level) or fall prone. A new save at the same DC is required for each subsequent round until the creature moves out of the affected area or the effect ends. All creatures in the affected area are considered to be engaged in vigorous motion for the purpose of Concentration checks. The area of the tremor does not move with the earthshaker, and he is immune to all its effects.
This ability is usable only in places where the surface upon which the earthshaker stands is in direct contact with the earth. Thus, it could be used underground, on the bottom floor of a building, or outside, but not on a ship or the second story of a building. The earthshaker can use tremor a number of times per day equal to half his earthshaker level.
Geyser (Su): Once per day as a full-round action, a 4th-level earthshaker can cause the earth to rupture, spewing forth gouts of hot water. To use this ability, the earthshaker must designate a point on the ground up to 100 feet away to which he has line of effect. A geyser erupts from that point, showering a 10-foot-radius area with rock and scalding water. Every creature in this area takes 1d6 points of fire damage and 2d6 points of bludgeoning damage. A successful Reflex saving throw (DC 15 + earthshaker's Charisma bonus) halves both kinds of damage. In addition, each creature within 5 feet of the geyser must make a successful DC 20 Reflex save or be thrown to feet away from the point of origin and knocked prone, taking 1d6 points of damage.
This ability is usable only in places where the surface upon which the earthshaker stands is in direct contact with the earth. Thus, it could be used underground, on the bottom floor of a building, or outside, but not on a ship or the second story of a building. Geyser can be used twice per day at 7th level and three times per day at 10th level.
Greater Tremor (Su): At 6th level, the earthshaker can produce an unusually powerful tremor. This effect functions like the tremor ability, except as follows. The effect lasts for 2d4 rounds and affects all creatures within a 30-foot radius of the earthshaker. The DC for the Balance check to avoid falling down increases to 15 + earthshaker level, and all creatures in the area are considered to be engaged in violent motion for the purpose of Concentration checks. The earthshaker can use greater tremor once per day.
Earthquake (Sp): At 8th level, the earthshaker gains the ability to cast earth quake once per day (caster level equals character level). At 10th level, the earthshaker may cast earthquake two times per day.
| Earthshaker | Hit Die: d8 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CL | BAB | Fort | Ref | Will | Special | Spells per Day |
| 1st | +0 | +2 | +0 | +2 | Earth domain, tremorsense (5 ft.) | +1 level of existing class |
| 2nd | +1 | +3 | +0 | +3 | Tremor | +1 level of existing class |
| 3rd | +2 | +3 | +1 | +3 | Tremorsense (10 ft.) | +1 level of existing class |
| 4th | +3 | +4 | +1 | +4 | Geyser 1/day, tremor 2/day | +1 level of existing class |
| 5th | +3 | +4 | +1 | +4 | Tremorsense (15 ft.) | +1 level of existing class |
| 6th | +4 | +5 | +2 | +5 | Greater tremor, tremor 3/day | +1 level of existing class |
| 7th | +5 | +5 | +2 | +5 | Geyser 2/day, tremorsense (20 ft.) | +1 level of existing class |
| 8th | +6 | +6 | +2 | +6 | Earthquake, tremor 4/day | +1 level of existing class |
| 9th | +6 | +6 | +3 | +6 | Tremorsense (25 ft.) | +1 level of existing class |
| 10th | +7 | +7 | +3 | +7 | Earthquake 2/day, geyser 3/day, tremor 5/day | +1 level of existing class |
Source: Dragon #314