Paladin, Sulacu Variant (3.5e Class)

Paladin, Sulacu Variant
Let's face it. Paladins are supposed to be the badasses of the religious medieval world. They wield the power of the gods and direct it towards evildoers without a shred of hesitation, blowing away anyone and everyone that is evil, or that has a stark chance of becoming evil. Some paladins even preemptively wipe out entire heretic settlements in the name of justice, not even faltering as much as a hair's breadth in front of the evil they have sworn to destroy.

Making a Paladin
Paladins are able fighters, and use their command over divine energies to channel easily renewable divine invocations, that lend them aid in their battles against their enemies.

Abilities: Charisma is the single most important ability for a paladin. They derive their divine might from their presence and determination. Where their personas fall short, their swords back them up. Paladins need a good Strength and Constitution in order to steel themselves against the physical aspects of their divine duty.

Races: What race is there exempt from the attraction of the divine? Every sentient race has its own deities, and every deity has their fair share of devout followers.

Alignment: Lawful good.

Starting Gold: 4d4&times;10 gp (100 gp).

Starting Age: As fighter.

Class Features
All of the following are class features of the paladin.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Paladins are proficient with all simple and martial weapons, with all types of armor and with shields (except tower shields).

 (Ex): The power of a paladin’s aura of good (see the detect good spell) is equal to his paladin level.

 (Sp): At will, a paladin can use detect evil, as the spell.

 (Su: At 2nd level, a paladin gains a bonus equal to her Charisma bonus (if any) on all saving throws.

 (Su): Beginning at 3rd level, a paladin is immune to fear (magical or otherwise). Each ally within 10 feet of her gains a +4 morale bonus on saving throws against fear effects.

This ability functions while the paladin is conscious, but not if she is unconscious or dead.

 (Ex): Beginning at 3rd level, the paladin gains the Good subtype. His natural weapons and any weapons he holds are henceforth treated as good-aligned for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.

s (Sp): Beginning at 4th level, a paladin gains the ability to use divine invocations, which are drawn from the list below. He learns new invocations according to Table: The Paladin, which he can then prepare and use at will. At every uneven-numbered level (starting at 5th), a paladin may replace a previously learnt invocation with another of the same type (for more info on invocation types, see Battle and Ritual invocations below). In doing so, he loses the old invocation in favor for the new one. These divine invocations function almost exactly like divine spells, except that they can be recovered at will (see below).

Invocations are divided into two groups; battle invocations and ritual invocations. Battle invocations are active effects that can be used both in and out of combat as a standard action, whereas ritual invocations are rituals that can only be performed when out of immediate danger and usually require a 10 minute period to properly prepare and cast.

Like with casting spells, using battle invocations provokes attacks of opportunity. Similar to with casting spells, it is possible to cast battle invocations defensively as well.

A paladin may prepare a number of the battle invocations he knows as shown on Table: The Paladin. He may only prepare a single instance of any battle invocation he knows at any time. To change the invocations he has prepared, a paladin requires 5 minutes of exercise and prayer. To use a prepared battle invocation, the paladin uses a standard action. At the end of a turn in which he hasn't used any invocations or other spells or spell-like abilities, a paladin may recover a previously used invocation as a swift action. Ritual invocations do not have to be prepared and can be used at will (out of combat).

Through 3rd level, a paladin has no caster level. At 4th level and higher, his caster level is one-half his paladin level. Invocations that allow saves have a save DC of 10 + the paladin's caster level + the paladin's Charisma modifier.

 (Su): Beginning at 5th level, the paladin's natural weapons and any weapons he wields are treated as holy. This holy effect grants a +1d6 bonus to the damage of all his attacks against creatures of evil alignment and is not multiplied on a successful critical hit. A paladin's sacred strike increases to +2d6 at 11th and to +3d6 at 17th level. The effects of a sacred strike do not stack with the holy enchantment.

This paladin's special mount functions and progresses similarly to that of a normal paladin.



 (Su): Beginning at 13th level, a paladin is surrounded by an aura of positive energy. This aura extends in a 10 foot radius around the paladin and functions as per the consecrate spell.

Ex-Paladin
A paladin who ceases to be lawful good, who willfully commits an evil act, or who grossly violates the code of conduct loses all paladin invocations and abilities (including the service of the paladin’s mount, but not weapon, armor, and shield proficiencies). He may not progress any farther in levels as a paladin. He regains her abilities and advancement potential if he atones for her violations (see the atonement spell description), as appropriate.

Like a member of any other class, a paladin may be a multiclass character, but multiclass paladins face a special restriction. A paladin who gains a level in any class other than paladin may never again raise his paladin level, though he retains all his paladin abilities.

Invocations
The invocations from which a paladin may choose are listed below. Whenever an invocation duplicates a spell effect, the effective caster level for that spell is equal to the paladin's caster level.

s
Battle invocations can be used at any time during your turn as a standard action.


 * Banishment: You may call upon the forces of your patron deity and banish the forces of evil to their home plane. This functions as a banishment spell that only affects evil outsiders, except that up to 2 HD per class level can be affected.


 * Divine Blast: You propel a ray of brilliant white energy from your hand with which to strike your enemy. This is a ranged touch attack that deals 1d12 points of damage for every 2 caster levels, plus 1d12 points of damage for every point of Charisma bonus the paladin has. The ray has a range of Long (400 ft. + 40 ft./caster level). The damage from this ray results from divine power and is not subject to any sort of damage resistance.


 * Hammer of Justice: You hit the ground with a melee attack, causing a shockwave to issue forth. Everybody within 15 ft. is dealt 1d6 damage/caster level and falls prone. With a successful Reflex saving throw against DC 10 + paladin's caster level + paladin's Charisma modifier, an opponent can halve the damage and avoid falling prone. The damage dealt with this invocation results from divine power and is not subject to any sort of damage resistance.


 * Healing Surge: This invocation cures 1d8 damage per caster level in all allies within 10 ft. Alternatively it may be used on a single subject to cure 1d8 damage per class level.


 * Smite: The paladin can smite his foes. He imbues a single attack with a smiting effect, adding his Charisma bonus to his attack roll and dealing 1d8 damage/caster level extra on a successful hit against an evil creature or undead, or 1d6 damage/class level extra against a creature with the Evil subtype. This extra damage stacks with the damage from sacred strike, and does not double on a critical hit.


 * Turn Undead: The paladin makes a turning attempt as a cleric of the same level. Knowing this invocation effectively makes the paladin able to turn undead, and allows him to take feats that have the ability to turn undead as a prerequisite. If one of the paladin's feats depends on his ability to turn undead, he may no longer exchange this invocation for another at odd-numbered levels.


 * Vade Retro: Raising his weapon in the air, the paladin repulses his enemies away from him with divine power. He makes a bull rush check against all enemy creatures within 15 feet of him, but instead of a Strength check, he uses a roll of 1d20 + his Caster Level + his Charisma bonus. The paladin may freely customize who to affect and who not to, so any allies or neutral creatures in range may remain unaffected at the paladin's discretion. When the paladin beats a creature's opposed check, that creature will be forced to move 5 feet in the direction away from the paladin for every 5 points with which his check exceeded the opposed check. Creatures successfully moved by Vade Retro are stunned for 1 round, and must make a Reflex save against a DC of 10 + paladin's caster level + paladin's Charisma bonus to avoid falling prone in the spot where they end up after being moved.


 * Weapon of Disruption: You channel a disruption effect into your weapon (regardless of whether it is actually bludgeoning or not), and make a single melee attack as part of this invocation. An undead hit by this attack must make a Will save against a DC of 10 + the paladin's caster level + his Charisma modifier or be completely destroyed.

s
Ritual invocations can only be used when you are not threatened, and require a 10 minute casting time unless otherwise noted in the description.


 * Hallow: This invocation sanctifies a certain location as per the hallow spell. Like the spell, the casting time for this invocation is 24 hours.


 * Planar Ally: This invocation calls forth a lawful good, neutral good or lawful neutral elemental or outsider to aid the paladin in her endeavours. This invocation functions as lesser planar ally at caster level 5 or lower, as planar ally at caster level 6th and 7th, and as greater planar ally at caster level 8th or higher. The same limits and constraints upon service and payment apply to the invocation, except that the invocation does not require a cost in experience points. Only one planar ally calling may be in effect at any time.


 * Purification: This invocation removes all poison and disease effects from the afflicted target.


 * Remove Affliction: This invocation functions similarly to the remove curse spell, with the added effect of removing any of the following adverse conditions; confusion, any forms of fear, form-altering effects, insanity and petrification.


 * Restore: This invocation functions similarly to the restoration spell, with the added effect of restoring all health and removing any of the following adverse conditions; fatigue, exhaustion, paralysis, blindness/deafness.