Garath
Description
The compassion to pursue good, the will to seek freedom, and the power to defeat evil – these are the three weapons of the garath.
Few have the purity and devotion that it takes to walk the garath's path, but those few are rewarded with the power to protect, to heal, and to smite. In a land of scheming wizards, unholy priests, bloodthirsty dragons, and infernal fiends, the garath is a final hope that cannot be extinguished.
Adventures: Garaths take their adventures seriously and have a penchant for referring to them as quests. Even a mundane mission is, in the heart of the garath, a personal test – an opportunity to demonstrate bravery, to develop martial skills, to learn tactics, and to find ways to do good. Still, the garath really comes into her own when leading a mighty campaign against evil, not when merely looting ruins.
Characteristics: Divine power protects the garath and gives her special powers. It wards off harm, protects her from disease, lets her heal herself, and guards her heart against fear. The garath can also direct this power to help others, healing their wounds or curing diseases. Finally, the garath can use this power to destroy evil. Even the least experienced garath can detect evil, and more experienced garaths can smite evil foes and turn away undead. In addition, this power draws a mighty steed to the garath and imbues that mount with strength, intelligence, and magical protection.
Alignment: Garaths must be chaotic good, and they lose their divine powers if they deviate from that alignment. Additionally, garaths swear to follow a code of conduct that is in line with chaos and goodness.
Religion: Garaths need not devote themselves to a single deity – devotion to righteousness is enough. Those garaths devoted to a god are scrupulous in observing religious duties and are welcome in every associated temple.
Background: No one ever chooses to be a garath. Becoming a garath is answering a call, accepting one's destiny. No one, no matter how diligent, can become a garath through practice. The nature is either within one or not, and it is not possible to gain the garath's nature by any act of will. It is possible, however, to fail to recognize one's own potential, or to deny one's destiny. Occasionally, one who is called to be a garath denies that call and pursues some other life instead.
Most garaths answer the call and begin training as adolescents. Typically, they become squires or assistants to experienced garaths, train for years, and finally set off on their own to further the causes of good and chaos. Other garaths, however, find their calling only later in life, after having pursued some other career. All garaths, regardless of background, recognize in each other an eternal bond that transcends culture, race, and even religion. Any two garaths, even from opposite sides of the world, consider themselves comrades.
Races: Humans, with their ambitious souls, make great garaths. Half-elves, who often have human ambition, may also find themselves called into service as garaths. Dwarves are rarely garaths – becoming a garath is hard on a dwarf because it means not only putting the duties of the garath's life before duties to family, clan, and king, but also promoting personal freedom at the expense of hundreds of years of dwarven traditions and law. Elf garaths are more numerous, whether they follow quests that take them far and wide, or stay close to their communities to offer protection. Members of the other common races rarely hear the call to become garaths.
Among the savage humanoids, garaths are all but unheard of.
Other Classes: Even though garaths are in some ways set apart from others, they eagerly team up with those whose skills and capabilities complement their own.
They work well with good and chaotic clerics, and they appreciate working with those who are brave, honest, and committed to good. While they cannot abide evil acts by their companions, they are otherwise willing to work with a variety of people quite different from themselves. Charismatic, trustworthy, and well respected, the garath makes a fine leader for a team.
Role: The garath's chief role in most groups is as a melee combatant, but she contributes other useful support as well. She makes a good secondary healer, and her high Charisma opens up fine leadership opportunities.
Game Rule Information
Garaths have the following game statistics.
Abilities: Charisma enhances a garath's healing, self-protective capabilities, and undead turning ability. Strength is important for a garath because of its role in combat. A Wisdom score of 14 or higher is required to get access to the most powerful garath spells, and a score of 11 or higher is required to cast any garath spells at all.
Alignment: Chaotic good.
Hit Die: d10.
Class Skills: The garath's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Bluff (Cha), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (Nobility And Royalty) (Int), Knowledge (Religion) (Int), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), and Sense Motive (Wis).
Skill Points at 1st Level: (2 + Int modifier) × 4.
Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 2 + Int modifier.
Class Features
All of the following are class features of the garath.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Garaths are proficient with all simple and martial weapons, with all types of armor (heavy, medium, and light), and with shields (except tower shields).
Aura of Good (Ex): The power of a garath's aura of good (see the Detect Good spell) is equal to her garath level, just like the aura of a cleric of a good deity.
Detect Evil (Sp): At will, a garath can use Detect Evil, as the spell.
Smite Evil (Su): Once per day, a garath may attempt to smite evil with one normal melee attack. She adds her Charisma bonus (if any) to her attack roll and deals 1 extra point of damage per garath level. For example, a 13th-level garath armed with a longsword would deal 1d8+13 points of damage, plus any additional bonuses for high Strength or magical affects that would normally apply. If the garath accidentally smites a creature that is not evil, the smite has no effect, but the ability is still used up for that day.
At 5th level, and at every five levels thereafter, the garath may smite evil one additional time per day, to a maximum of five times per day at 20th level.
Divine Grace (Su): At 2nd level, a garath gains a bonus equal to her Charisma bonus (if any) on all saving throws.
Lay on Hands (Su): Beginning at 2nd level, a garath with a Charisma score of 12 or higher can heal wounds (her own or those of others) by touch. Each day she can heal a total number of hit points of damage equal to her garath level × her Charisma bonus.
For example, a 7th-level garath with a 16 Charisma (+3 bonus) can heal 21 points of damage per day. A garath may choose to divide her healing among multiple recipients, and she doesn't have to use it all at once. Using lay on hands is a standard action.
Alternatively, a garath can use any or all of this healing power to deal damage to undead creatures. Using lay on hands in this way requires a successful melee touch attack and doesn't provoke an attack of opportunity. The garath decides how many of her daily allotment of points to use as damage after successfully touching an undead creature.
Aura of Resolve (Su): Beginning at 3rd level, a garath is immune to compulsion effects (magical or otherwise). Each ally within 10 feet of her gains a +4 morale bonus on saving throws against compulsion effects. This ability functions while the garath is conscious, but not if she is unconscious or dead.
Divine Health (Ex): At 3rd level, a garath gains immunity to all diseases, including supernatural and magical diseases (such as mummy rot and lycanthropy).
Turn Undead (Su): When a garath reaches 4th level, she gains the supernatural ability to turn undead. She may use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + her Charisma modifier. She turns undead as a cleric of three levels lower would.
Spells: Beginning at 4th level, a garath gains the ability to cast a small number of divine spells (the same type of spells available to the cleric, druid, and ranger), which are drawn from the garath spell list. A garath must choose and prepare her spells in advance.
To prepare or cast a spell, a garath must have a Wisdom score equal to at least 10 + the spell level (Wis 11 for 1st-level spells, Wis 12 for 2nd-level spells, and so forth). The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a garath's spell is 10 + the spell level + the garath's Wisdom modifier.
Like other spellcasters, a garath can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. Her base daily spell allotment is given on the accompanying table. In addition, she receives bonus spells per day if she has a high Wisdom score. When the spells per day table indicates that the garath gets 0 spells per day of a given spell level (for instance, 1st-level spells for a 4th-level garath), she gains only the bonus spells she would be entitled to based on her Wisdom score for that spell level The garath does not have access to any domain spells or granted powers, as a cleric does.
A garath prepares and casts spells the way a cleric does, though she cannot lose a prepared spell to spontaneously cast a cure spell in its place. A garath may prepare and cast any spell on the garath spell list, provided that she can cast spells of that level, but she must choose which spells to prepare during her daily meditation.
Through 3rd level, a garath has no caster level. At 4th level and higher, her caster level is one-half her garath level.
Special Mount (Sp): Upon reaching 5th level, a garath gains the service of an unusually intelligent, strong, and loyal steed to serve her in her crusade against evil. This mount is usually a heavy warhorse (for a Medium garath) or a warpony (for a Small garath).
Once per day, as a full-round action, a garath may magically call her mount from the celestial realms in which it resides. The mount immediately appears adjacent to the garath and remains for 2 hours per garath level; it may be dismissed at any time as a free action.
The mount is the same creature each time it is summoned, though the garath may release a particular mount from service (if it has grown too old to join her crusade, for instance). Each time the mount is called, it appears in full health, regardless of any damage it may have taken previously. The mount also appears wearing or carrying any gear it had when it was last dismissed, including barding, saddle, saddlebags, and the like. Calling a mount is a Conjuration (Calling) effect equal to a spell level 1/3 the garath level.
Should the garath's mount die, it immediately disappears, leaving behind any equipment it was carrying. The garath may not summon another mount for thirty days or until she gains a garath level, whichever comes first, even if the mount is somehow returned from the dead. During this thirty-day period, the garath takes a –1 penalty on attack and weapon damage rolls.
Remove Disease (Sp): At 6th level, a garath can produce a remove disease effect, as the spell, once per week. She can use this ability one additional time per week for every three levels after 6th (twice per week at 9th, three times at 12th, and so forth).
Code of Conduct: A garath must be of chaotic good alignment and loses all class abilities if she ever willingly commits an evil act.
Additionally, a garath's code requires that she respect individual liberty, act with honour (not being overly deceitful, not using poison, and so forth), help those in need (provided they do not use the help for evil or lawful ends), and punish those who harm or threaten innocents, or curtail personal liberty.
Associates: While she may adventure with characters of any good or neutral alignment, a garath will never knowingly associate with evil characters, nor will she continue an association with someone who consistently offends her moral code. A garath may accept only henchmen, followers, or cohorts who are chaotic good.
Ex-Garaths
A garath who ceases to be chaotic good, who willfully commits an evil act, or who grossly violates the code of conduct loses all garath spells and abilities (including the service of the garath's mount, but not weapon, armour, and shield proficiencies). She may not progress any farther in levels as a garath. She regains her abilities and advancement potential if she atones for her violations, as appropriate.
Like a member of any other class, a garath may be a multiclass character, but multiclass garaths face a special restriction. A garath who gains a level in any class other than garath may never again raise her garath level, though she retains all her garath abilities.
The path of the garath requires a constant heart. If a character adopts this class, she must pursue it to the exclusion of all other careers. Once she has turned off the path, she may never return.
Level Progression
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Spells Per Day
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Starting Packages
Race: Human.
Armor: Scale mail (+4 AC, armor check penalty –4, speed 20 ft., 30 lb.).
Heavy wooden shield (+2 AC, armor check penalty –2, 10 lb.).
Weapons: Longsword (1d8, crit 19–20/×2, 4 lb., one-handed, slashing).
Shortbow (1d6, crit ×3, range inc. 60 ft., 2 lb., piercing).
Skill Selection: Pick a number of skills equal to 3 + Int modifier.
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Feat: Weapon Focus (longsword).
Bonus Feat: Improved Initiative.
Gear: Backpack with waterskin, one day's trail rations, bedroll, sack, flint and steel. Hooded lantern, three pints of oil. Quiver with 20 arrows. Wooden holy symbol.
Gold: 6d4 gp.
