General Prestige Class : Primal Rager
by Brent Phillips-Watts, Dragon #295
Timin slipped from his hiding place and struck out with his blade at the large man who had his partner in a death grip. The blade found its mark, and he smiled as the man dropped his partner with a grunt. That smile vanished as, instead of falling to the ground dead, the enraged man spun and struck out. Timin watched in horror as a clawed hand ripped into him, and as he fell to the ground all he could think to do was shout, "You should be dead!"
Many have heard tales of the ferocious and deadly nature of barbarian tribes, and many highly trained warriors have found out too late that skill with the blade is a poor match for the animal power of these wild fighters. Yet even among these fierce people, there are those who stand out as violent and untamed. So removed from civilization are these creatures that many hesitate to even call them men. Instead they are thought to be part beast, possessed by a spirit that thrives on chaos and battle. In some barbarian tribes this is seen as a blessing, and the primal rager holds great respect. For others, the primal rager's nature is seen as a perversion, and he is feared and often driven from the tribe. This removal from the tribe, either by being set on a pedestal or by being driven out, leads to a solitary nature, and a primal rager often turns to a life of adventure as a means of finding some measure of acceptance.
The primal rager pours everything into battle. He is as skilled without a weapon as with one, and he usually prefers to attack unarmed, using his great strength to overpower his opponents and to tear them limb from limb. He feels a close connection to the primal forces within himself and has learned to harness that power when in battle. Above all, he respects the strength of the body, even over the strength of steel.
Half-orcs and humans are the most common primal ragers, but some dwarves also choose this path if they have been cast out of their clan or otherwise find themselves removed from dwarven society. Half-elves, halflings, and gnome primal ragers are very rare but elven primal ragers are not unheard of.
Most primal rangers are barbarians, but other characters who gain the ability to rage by multiclassing or through some other means can be primal ragers.
Requirements
To qualify to become a Primal Rager, a character must fulfill all the following criteria:
- Alignment: Any nonlawful
- Skills: Survival: 5 ranks
- Feats: Improved Unarmed Strike, Iron Will,
- Base Attack Bonus: +8.
- Special: Ability to Rage 2/day.
Class Skills
The primal rager's class skills are Climb, Craft, Handle Animal, Intimidate, Jump, Listen, Ride, Spot, Survival, and Swim.
Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier.
Class Features
All the following are class features of the primal rager prestige class.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A primal rager gains proficiency with light armor and medium armor.
Strength of the Beast (Ex): Each time the primal rager uses his rage ability, he may choose to increase the fury of his attacks by sacrificing the duration of his rage. He must make this choice before the rage begins, and it cannot be altered once made. The primal rager can choose to give up a number of rounds from the duration of his rage equal to his primal rager levels and barbarian levels combined. For each round that he gives up, he gains an additional +1 to his Strength and Constitution. The added Constitution does not extend the duration of his rage, and all bonuses granted by use of this ability expire when the rage expires.
Power Strike (Ex): At 1st level, the primal rager's unarmed attacks are more deadly than most. His unarmed strikes deal 1d4 points of damage (1d3 for Small primal ragers). This damage is still subdual unless the primal rager decides to take the -4 penalty to his attack roll.
At 3rd level, the damage a primal rager does with unarmed strikes increases to 1d6 damage (1d4 for Small primal ragers).
Quell the Rage (Ex): At 2nd level, the primal rager can hold his temper without dismissing the rage. For a number of rounds equal to his Wisdom modifier, the primal rager may quell his rage: During this time he loses his rage bonuses, but he does not suffer from fatigue. He may then choose to return to his raging state for the remainder of its duration or end the rage. Ending the rage results in fatigue as normal. The primal rager must have at least one round of rage left before he is fatigued to use this ability.
Damage Reduction (Su): Starting at 3rd level, the primal rager gains the ability to shrug off some amount of injury from weapon blows, unarmed strikes, and natural weapon attacks. Subtract from the damage the primal rager takes each time he is dealt damage by such attacks. This damage reduction stacks with any damage reduction the primal rager has from levels in the barbarian class. Note that the primal rager's damage reduction allows him to penetrate the damage reduction of other creatures with his unarmed attacks as noted in the Monster Manual.
Rage (Ex): At 4th level, the primal rager can rage one additional time per day.
Heart of the Beast (Ex): At 5th level, the primal rager's fury becomes so great that the animal within him manifests during a rage. His hands grow large claws, and his skin thickens into an animal hide. During a rage, the primal rager's damage reduction is increased by 1, and his unarmed attacks deal 1d8 points of slashing damage (1d6 for Small primal ragers). This damage is normal damage; the primal rager does not suffer a -4 penalty to hit.
| Primal Rager | Hit Die: d10 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CL | BAB | Fort | Ref | Will | Special |
| 1st | +1 | +2 | +0 | +0 | Strength of the beast, power strike 1d4 |
| 2nd | +2 | +3 | +0 | +0 | Quell the rage |
| 3rd | +3 | +3 | +1 | +1 | Damage reduction 1/-, power strike 1d6 |
| 4th | +4 | +4 | +1 | +1 | Rage +1/day |
| 5th | +5 | +5 | +1 | +1 | Heart of the beast |
Source: Dragon #295