Disciple of the Spectral Tiger (3.5e Prestige Class)

Disciple of the Spectral Tiger
"The tiger is the perfect hunter. For hours it will stalk its quarry, quiet and unseen, until it is ready to strike. Then, with a single fluid movement it attacks, and the prey's life is over forever."

Among those well-versed in the spirit world there is a tale of a particular spirit that is said to be the embodiment of the perfect predator: cunning, patient, and deadly. Most stories describe this spirit as an immense, ghostly tiger or sometimes another hunting cat such as a cheetah or lion, usually of a pale blue or purple color. It prowls between both the physical and spirit worlds, and all creatures are potentially its prey. The spirit is not malicious, however; it simply embodies the natural hierarchy of predator and prey, the truth that any creature can, without notice, become the victim of another.

Those who possess the means to commune with the spirit world and who possess the knowledge of this particular entity can seek out its power. They gain only a fraction of the spirit's immense hunting prowess, but even this small taste is an immense boon to those who know how best to wield it. Particularly skilled individuals can even draw other predatory spirits from their world into ours, granting them powerful allies that are as deadly as they are.

Becoming a Disciple of the Spectral Tiger
Those who would pursue the spectral tiger's gifts must already possess a moderate amount of knowledge about the spirit world, which only levels in spirit shaman can grant. Druids sometimes pursue this path, but most are more concerned with the physical aspect of nature than that of the spirits. A disciple of the spectral tiger is a fairly potent divine spellcaster, and while it is far from their specialty they can typically hold their own in physical combat as well. Disciples can come from a wide range of races and backgrounds, but those with heavily spiritual cultures are most likely to follow in the footsteps of the spectral tiger.

Class Features
All of the following are class features of the disciple of the spectral tiger.

She does not, however,gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained (improved chance of turning or destroying undead, metamagic or item creation feats, and so on). If the character had more than one divine spellcasting class before becoming a disciple of the spectral tiger, the player must decide to which class to add each disciple of the spectral tiger level for the purpose of determining spells per day and spells known.

 (Su): Disciple of the spectral tiger class levels stack with spirit shaman class levels for the purpose of determining the damage dealt by the disciple of the spectral tiger's Chastise Spirits class ability and the save DC to resist the effects of that ability.

 (Ex): You have learned much about how the natural beasts and other creatures of the world stalk their prey by watching and communing with their spirits. You gain a bonus to Hide and Move Silently checks equal to your Wisdom modifier (minimum +1).

 (Su): As a free action once per round, you can cause your spirit guide to manifest itself more fully into the physical world, granting it a quasi-corporeal body and allowing it to interact with the world to a limited extent. While prowling spirit is active, your spirit guide occupies space as a Medium creature (it is still largely incorporeal, however, so other creatures can occupy the same space as your spirit guide with no penalty), has a fly speed (with perfect maneuverability) equal to your base land speed, and grants you (and only you) flanking while it is adjacent to or occupying the same space as an enemy (even if it would not normally grant flanking relative to your position). Your spirit guide acts on your turn and has a full round of actions, but cannot initially take any actions other than to move. Your spirit guide cannot be attacked or affected by any spells or other abilities, despite its quasi-corporeal form.

While prowling spirit is active, your spirit guide is visible to creatures that possess the ability to see invisible creatures through some means (Normally your spirit guide is undetectable through any means to creatures other than you; this is an exception to that rule that applies only while prowling spirit is active). Your spirit guide retains its invisibility regardless of any actions it takes while prowling spirit is active.

Prowling spirit can be used for a total number of minutes per day equal to 10 x your class level. This time does not need to be consecutive, and you can end prowling spirit as a free action on your turn.

 (Su): At 2nd level, your spirit guide's ties to this world intensify. While prowling spirit is active, you gain a deflection bonus to AC equal to your Wisdom modifier (minimum +1) and enemies provoke attacks of opportunity from your spirit guide. Your spirit guide's attacks deal 1d8 + your Wisdom modifier force damage, its attack bonus is equal to your base attack bonus + your class level + your Wisdom modifier, and its reach is 5 feet. At 4th level, your spirit guide's damage increases to 2d8 + your Wisdom modifier force damage, and its reach increases to 10 feet. Your spirit guide can make a number of attacks of opportunity each round equal to your Wisdom modifier. Your spirit guide's attacks affect both corporeal and incorporeal enemies normally, as if it possessed the ghost touch property.

 (Su): At 3rd level, your connection to the predatory spirits of the world is nearly unrivaled, and you have learned to call them to your side in times of need. As a standard action that does not provoke an attack of opportunity, you can draw the spirit of a predatory cat (usually a tiger) into the world. This creature functions exactly like a second spirit guide (and gains any benefits or special actions your normal spirit guide would be entitled to, such as your ephemeral predator class feature), except that it is always under the effect of prowling spirit without needing to use up any of your daily allotment of time for that ability. The summoned spirit remains for 5 rounds, after which time it fades back entirely into the realm of spirits. You can use call of the spectral hunt once per day at 3rd level and twice per day at 5th level.

 (Su): At 3rd level, you have learned to quickly recall the spirits you have brought into this world. As a swift action, you can teleport your spirit guide to any square adjacent to you, provided the spirit guide is within 100 feet of you. You can also use this ability to move the spirit(s) summoned by your call of the spectral hunt ability; a single use of this ability is sufficient to teleport all of the targets you wish to move at once.

 (Su): At 4th level, your spirit guide's own hunting prowess aids you in battle. When you make a melee or ranged attack roll, you may add your Wisdom modifier instead of your Strength or Dexterity modifier, respectively. In addition, you gain a bonus to all attack rolls equal to your Wisdom modifier (minimum +1) while adjacent to your spirit guide.

 (Su): At 5th level, the primal creatures of the spirit world have recognized your status as a hunter, and have granted a portion of their ferocity and cunning to your spirit guide. While prowling spirit is active, your spirit guide can now perform a variety of actions, as follows.
 * It can make attacks like a normal creature, using the damage, attack bonus, and reach given in the ephemeral predator class feature.
 * It gains extra attacks based on your base attack bonus.
 * It now provides flanking for all allied creatures, not just you, using its special flanking rules given in the prowling spirit class feature.

Playing a Disciple of the Spectral Tiger
Combat: Your role in combat is very much that of a manipulator. Few creatures possess the ability to detect the spirits you commune with, enabling you to set up ambushes and traps using Ephemeral Predator; being assaulted by attacks with no apparent source round after round can quickly unnerve your foes. Although the main focus of this class is your spirit guide, don't forget about your spells. Your spirit shaman spellcasting grants you potential access to any druid spell, which gives you a lot of leeway in how you play your character. Don't feel you need to choose spells exclusively focused on control, either: although not quite as potent as a full spirit shaman or druid, you can still make a powerful healer or offensive caster with the right spells.

Advancement: The disciple of the spectral tiger class represents a fairly small portion of your overall levels, but it is a very defining feature of your character. As such, you want to pick up resources that are going to enhance your existing abilities.

Continuing to develop your spirit shaman levels is a logical choice. Doing so grants you access to better spells, as well as some nice utility class features like Ghost Warrior and Spirit Form. It will also eventually allow your spirit guide to aid you in spellcasting (via the Guide Magic ability), which plays nicely off the concept of your character being intricately tied to your spirit guide. You may wish to take a few feats to increase the effectiveness of your spells; Spell Focus can help make up for the slightly lower-than-average spell DCs of your offensive spells, and you may find Augment Summoning useful if you use summon nature's ally spells frequently. Improved Initiative is a solid choice as well, since it allows both you and your spirit guide to act earlier in the round.

Resources: Disciples of the spectral tiger sometimes form small groups with each other, druids, and/or spirit shamans. Among those cultures that worship the spirits, disciples may rise to positions of great importance and reverence, granting them access to any number of allies. Disciples who belong to such groups typically have access to minor goods and services (food, water, clothing, and shelter) free of charge, and can typically beseech their fellows for information relating to the spirit world.

Disciples of the Spectral Tiger in the World
"I do not know where their power comes from or how it works, but I don't like being hit by something I can't see."

Disciples of the spectral tiger can commune with beings that most are not even aware of, and have abilities to call spirits between worlds above and beyond what normal shamans can accomplish. As such, the disciple's powers carry an aura of mystery and awe for many around her, and she may find herself at the center of rumor and gossip. The disciple's path often involves both the physical and spirit worlds, so she can sometimes seem distant and aloof depending on where her focus currently lies. Ultimately, however, the disciple seeks to maintain balance between the spirits and the creatures of flesh.

NPC Reactions: Disciples of the spectral tiger are fairly rare, so not many have heard of them or their powers. They are fairly similar to spirit shamans and by extension druids, so people often react to them in a similar manner. Because disciples commune with the spirits and seem aware of things that most are not, some may distrust the disciple or try to avoid her. Such individuals simply do not understand the power of the spectral tiger, however, so most disciples do not mind them overly much. Those who are aware of and respect the spirits often view disciples with great admiration, as they are both respectful of and respected by the primal spirits of the world.

Disciple of the Spectral Tiger Lore
Characters with ranks in Knowledge (nature) can research disciples of the spectral tiger to learn more about them. When a character makes a skill check, read or paraphrase the following, including information from lower DCs.

Disciples of the Spectral Tiger in the Game
The PCs may not realize a disciple of the spectral tiger's exact power right away; they'll probably think of her as a simple druid or spirit shaman at first, which is at least somewhat similar. Because they often work with their own or even lead small tribes, the PCs may need to seek out the disciple's group for some bit of knowledge related to their quest, especially if it has something to do with spirits. Those who follow the spectral tiger are also excellent hunters, of course, so perhaps the PCs need their help in tracking down a particularly dangerous spirit.

Disciple of the spectral tiger is an excellent class for spirit shamans who want their interaction with spirits to be a little less one-sided — to have power not only over spirits, but from spirits as well.

Adaptation: Because most of the disciple's abilities focus around giving her spirit guide access to new actions, there isn't a lot of room for tweaking the prestige class. The simplest adaptation would be to drop the spirit shaman-specific requirements and have the prestige class grant you a spirit guide at 1st level, instead of advancing your Chastise Spirits ability. This version of the class grants any divine spellcaster an unusual companion that works with nearly any type of character.

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