Berserker

From Paradox Haze

Current revision as of 01:28, 27 September 2007

[edit] Berserker

The Berserker releases himself to raw fury, becoming wrath incarnate; against the Berserker, there is no defense. While in his rage, he is pure melee power.

Berserkers are rare in the civilized nations of the world. Nearly all berserkers belong to one of the Druidic societies in Tir na n-Oc. Those that choose this path in particular are prone to travel, leaving their families behind to search for foes to improve their skills.

[edit] Class Skills

Alignment: Any Chaotic

Hit Die: d12.

The berserker’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Ride (Dex), Survival (Wis), and Swim (Str).

Skill Points at 1st Level: (4 + Int modifier) x4.

Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 4 + Int modifier.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Light Armor, All two-handed weapons.

Berserker Rage - A berserker can fly into a rage a certain number of times per day. In a rage, a berserker temporarily gains a +4 bonus to Strength, a +2 bonus to Dexterity, and a +2 morale bonus on Will saves, but he takes a –4 penalty to Armor Class. While raging, a berserker cannot use any Charisma-, Wisdom-, or Intelligence-based skills (except for Balance, Escape Artist, Intimidate, and Ride), the Concentration skill, or any abilities that require patience or concentration, nor can he cast spells or activate magic items that require a command word, a spell trigger (such as a wand), or spell completion (such as a scroll) to function. He can use any feat he has except Combat Expertise, item creation feats, and metamagic feats. A fit of rage lasts for a number of rounds equal to 3 + the character’s Constitution modifier. A berserker may prematurely end his rage. At the end of the rage, the berserker loses the rage modifiers and restrictions and becomes fatigued (–2 penalty to Strength, –2 penalty to Dexterity, can’t charge or run) for the duration of the current encounter (unless he is a 17th-level berserker, at which point this limitation no longer applies; see below).

A berserker can fly into a rage only once per encounter. At 1st level he can use his rage ability once per day. At 4th level and every four levels thereafter, he can use it one additional time per day (to a maximum of six times per day at 20th level). Entering a rage takes no time itself, but a berserker can do it only during his action, not in response to someone else’s action.

Steely Resolve - Your rage allows you to temporarily set aside the pain and hindering effects of your injuries. When an opponent strikes you, the injury does not immediately affect you.

You have a delayed damage pool that allows you to forestall the effects of many injuries. This pool begins at 0 with each encounter. When you are attacked, any hit point damage the blow deals is added to your delayed damage pool. At the end of your next turn, you take damage equal to the total stored in your delayed damage pool, which then resets to 0. Any healing you receive can either increase your current hit point total as normal, or reduce the total damage in your delayed damage pool. When you receive healing, you wish whether it affects your damage pool, your hit points, or both (you can split the amount of healing as you wish). Most Berserkers opt to keep as much damage in their delayed damage pool as possible to maximize the benefit of their chaotic soul ability.

Special effects tied to an attack, such as energy drain, stun, and so forth, still affect you as normal, and their effects are not delayed by this ability. For example, if you are bitten by a venomous spider, you must still attempt a fortitude save against the poison immediately, even though the bite damage shifts to your delayed damage pool. By the same token, any other special attack that imposes a condition takes effect immediately.

At 1st lvl, your delayed damage pool can hold up to 5 points of damage. Any damage beyond that comes off your hit points as normal. the maximum damage your pool holds increases at every odd level past 1 by 5.

Chaotic Spirit - During your turn, you gain a bonus on attack rolls and damage rolls equal to the current value of your delayed damage pool divided by 5 rounded down (minimum +1), up to a maximum of +6.

Swift Death - You add your dexterity modifier as well as your strength modifier to your damage roll, whether in a frenzy or not.

Furious Blow - You may initiate this ability as part of a melee attack, before you roll to see if the attack succeeds or fails. If the attack is successful, you reset your delayed damage pool, taking all of the damage instantly; however, for this strike you retain any bonuses from the chaotic spirit ability. You also gain a bonus to damage equal to the number of damage in your delayed damage pool divided by 2. If the attack fails, you still reset the damage in your damage pool.

Frenzied Rage - At 8th level, a berserker’s bonus to Strength during his rage each increases to +6,his dexterity bonus to +4, and his morale bonus on Will saves increases to +3. If she makes a full attack action, she gains a single extra attack each round at her highest bonus. The penalty to AC remains at –4.

Furious Abandon - The Damage in the berserker's delayed damage pool no longer resets at the end of every turn; the pool simply keeps absorbing damage until full, then begins to overflow. It will still be reset by the Furious Blow ability.

Aura of Chaos - Your attacks have the potential to be utterly devastating. When rolling damage for a melee attack, you gain a special benefit from any damage die that rolls its maximum amount (such as a result of 6 on a d6). When one or more of your damage dice show a maximum possible result, reroll each such die and add its result to the original damage total. You can continue to reroll as long as a die shows its maximum possible result, adding each new number to the damage total until each die has now shown less than a maximum result.

Chaotic Rage - At 14th level, a berserker’s bonus to Strength during his rage each increases to +8, and his morale bonus on Will saves increases to +4. His Dexterity Bonus remains at +4. The penalty to AC remains at -4.

Tireless Rage - At 16th level and higher, a berserker no longer becomes fatigued at the end of his rage.

Deathless Frenzy - At 18th level and higher, a raging berserker can scorn death and unconsciousness while in a rage. As long as her rage continues, she is not treated as disabled at 0 hit points, nor is she treated as dying at -1 to -9 hit points. Even if reduced to -10 hit points or less, she continues fighting normally until her rage ends. At that point, the effects of her wounds apply normally if they have not been healed. This ability does not prevent death from massive damage, or from spell effects such as 'slay living' or 'disintergrate'.

Vicious Rage - At 20th level, a berserker’s bonus to Strength during his rage each increases to +10, and his morale bonus on Will saves increases to +5. His Dexterity Bonus remains at +4. The penalty to AC remains at –4.