General Prestige Class : Eldritch Master

Monte Cook, Dragon #280

"Speak not of the eldritch masters, for their ways are mysterious and dangerous. Taught by creatures most would never dream of speaking with, they live their lives in a realm higher than that of other mortals. But do not envy them, for they often pay a great price for their power." - The Book of the Pale

The eldritch master is usually spoken of in whispers, for many have heard the legends that you cannot speak the name of one without her knowledge. Eldritch masters have an unnerving aura about them, as well as a stare that can freeze you in your tracks.

Most eldritch masters are sorcerers, but sometimes bards take up the mantle. To join their elite ranks, a character must contact and make a pact with a powerful outsider or other magical creature such as a lammasu, celestial, fiend, slaad, lich, hag, rakshasa, or titan. As NPCs, eldritch masters are usually loners, occasionally taking on a single disciple or aide. They never join guilds or other such organizations, and often avoid the company of arcane spellcasters altogether.

Requirements

To qualify to become an Eldritch Master, a character must fulfill all the following criteria:

Class Skills

The eldritch master's class skills are Concentration, Craft, Diplomacy, Intimidate, Knowledge (any), Listen, Profession, Sense Motive, Spellcraft, and Spot.

Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier.

Class Features

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Eldritch masters are proficient with no weapons, armor, or shields.

Spells Known: These are bonus arcane spells (see the Player's Handbook, Chapter 12) known to the character, gained as a sorcerer gains new known spells. These are not bonus spells added to the total number that the character can cast. The character must already cast spells as a sorcerer to benefit from these extra spells known (such as a sorcerer or bard). A character cannot benefit from bonus spells known if she cannot cast spells of that level.

Detect Magic: At will, the eldritch master can detect magic as a spell-like ability. This ability duplicates the effects of the spell detect magic cast at the eldritch master's level.

Combined Levels: Add the character's eldritch master levels to the levels of any other arcane spell casting class he has when determining the level-based effects of spells. For example, a 7th-level sorcerer with three levels of eldritch master casting a fireball spell inflicts 10d6 points of damage with a range of 800 feet. This is an extraordinary ability.

True Spell: An eldritch master gains the ability to select one spell known to her to be a "true spell." The eldritch master can cast this spell once per day in addition to the normal number of spells the he can cast in a day. At 2nd level, the eldritch master can select one 0-level spell. At 5th, she can select one 1st- or 0-level spell. At 7th, she can choose a 2nd-, 1st-, or 0-level spell. Once the spell is chosen, it cannot be changed. This is a supernatural ability.

Metamagic Feat: At 3rd, 6th, and 9th level, the eldritch master gains one free metamagic feat.

Spell Boost: At 3rd, 6th, and 9th level, the eldritch master gains the ability to cast a spell one level higher than his current highest level spell once per day. The eldritch master also gains a single spell known for that level if he does not otherwise know any spells of that level. For example, a 7th-level sorcerer who gains three levels of eldritch master can cast one 4th-level spell per day, and he gains a new spell of 4th level that he knows. A 5th-level sorcerer who gains three levels of eldritch master gains the ability to cast one additional 3rd-level spell per day, but gains no additional spells known because he already also gained +2 3rd-level spells known at that same level.

Spell Dilettante: At 4th level, the eldritch master can choose one other character class whose spell list she can choose from when selecting new spells that are known to her as she gains levels. At 8th level, she can select a second such class. Once a class has been chosen, it cannot be changed. Even if the character class chosen is divine in nature, the spells count as arcane for the eldritch master. This is a supernatural ability.

Powerful Presence: The eldritch master gains +2 to Diplomacy and Intimidate checks. Once per day, as a standard action, she can force all living beings within a 30-foot radius to make a Will save (DC 10 + eldritch master class levels + Charisma bonus) or suffer a -2 morale penalty on attacks, saves, and skill checks for 1 round/eldritch master level. This is a supernatural ability.

Knowing Stare: Once per day, the eldritch master can invoke a 30-foot gaze attack that holds all living creatures. Those affected must make a Will saving throw (DC 10 + eldritch master class levels + Charisma bonus) or be held for round/eldritch master level. This is a supernatural ability.

Mastered Name: Upon reaching 10th level, an eldritch master can sense when another being speaks her name. When this occurs, the eldritch master knows the exact location and the name of the speaker. She is free to ignore such knowledge, retaining the details for when they seem significant. This awareness is sufficient to allow the eldritch master to scry on the individual as if he had just met the speaker (DC 10). It does not convey enough information to allow the eldritch master to immediately teleport to the speaker's location, though such information could be gathered through other magical means, including scrying.

Eldritch MasterHit Die: d4
CLBABFortRefWillSpecialSpells per Day
1+0+0+0+2Detect Magic, Combined Levels+3----
2+1+0+0+3True Spell (0th)+2+2---
3+1+1+1+3Metamagic feat, Spell boost-+2+2--
4+2+1+1+4Spell Dilettante--+2+2-
5+2+1+1+4True Spell (1st)---+2+2
6+3+2+2+5Powerful Presence, Metamagic feat, Spell boost+3----
7+3+2+2+5True Spell (2nd)+2+2---
8+4+2+2+6Knowing Stare, Spell Dilettante-+2+2--
9+4+3+3+6Metamagic feat, Spell boost--+2+2-
10+5+3+3+7Mastered Name---+2+2

Source: Dragon #280

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General Prestige Classes