Enlightened Fist (3.5e Prestige Class)

Enlightened Fist
An enlightened fist strikes with unerring accuracy, using astral copies of himself projected onto the material plane and attached to him by astral cords. These projections serve as vessels for his physical form, allowing the enlightened fist to move between them with instantaneous speeds in order to quickly traverse obstacles, navigate battlefields and outwit foes through superior mobility.

Becoming an Enlightened Fist
Monks who dabble in the mystical arts of Theurgical Enlightenment meditate extensively. Having mastered the physical, they freely research the metaphysical and have found a way to use their inner power to traverse the planes themselves. Enlightened fists are rare even amongst monks, but races and civilizations that lack the proper cultural backgrounds for a monk order to exist almost never pursue this path. Despite this, most enlightened fists have a dual background split between the disciplines of martial arts and the divine.

Class Features
All of the following are class features of the Enlightened Fist.

If the enlightened fist has no monk levels, he is treated as a monk of a level equal to his class level.

 (Su): An enlightened fist can call into being an astral clone of himself. This clone is a projection through the astral plane onto the plane on which the enlightened fist resides, and the projection is tied directly to the enlightened fist by an astral cord (in similar fashion as how an astral traveler is connected to his physical body when using astral projection). An astral clone has the same shape and size of the enlightened fist, but radiates a bluish glow and is completely translucent (and therefore cannot be mistaken for the real body). Astral clones each gain their own turns during the enlightened fist's turn, but may make only move actions or move-equivalent actions. When an astral clone is not being projected, it resides within the enlightened fist's body. An astral clone can only be destroyed by severing its cord, which bestows 1 negative level upon the enlightened fist until restored. A 'killed' astral clone may be recreated through 8 hours worth of meditation. Astral clones cannot be used on the astral plane.

An astral clone has no weight and cannot interact with the enlightened fist's environment on a physical level, meaning that it cannot attack or be attacked in any way. An astral clone has a fly speed equal to the enlightened fist's base land speed, and can pass through any solid object and even through force effects like a wall of force unhindered. When entering an area that bars interdimensional travel such as a dimensional lock spell, any astral clone immediately winks out.

There is a continuous empathic link between an enlightened fist and its astral clone. An enlightened fist can see, hear or otherwise perceive whatever its clone does, and may make Listen, Search and Spot checks through his astral clone as if it were him.

At 1st level, your body can hold only one astral clone, which can be projected or recalled during your turn as a free action. Your body and clone cannot be further than 5 feet apart at any time. At 4th level, you gain a second astral clone, both of which cannot be further than 10 feet apart from you or eachother. At 7th level, you gain a third astral clone with a maximum underling range of 20 feet, and at 10th, you gain the maximum of four astral clones with a maximum underling range of 30 feet.

Any astral clone can only be either projected or recalled once per round, but not both. Any unused astral clones at the start of your turn may be projected during that turn, and any currently projected astral clones at the start of your turn may be recalled during that turn.

 (Su): An enlightened fist's defense is focused both inside and out. His astral clones allow him to both flow like water out of the path of an attack, or predict attacks that he normally cannot guard against. An enlightened fist cannot be flanked except by an invisible attacker or one that cannot otherwise be perceived by his various modes of sight. For every astral clone currently inside his body (i.e. not currently projected), the enlightened fist gains a cumulative +1 dodge bonus to AC and Reflex saves and a +2 competence bonus to Bluff checks for the purpose of making feints.

 (Su): At 2nd level, an enlightened fist can blink to any of its currently projected astral clones as a free action. When he does this, the enlightened fist moves from his current position to that of his astral clone virtually instantaneously, using the astral plane as a conduit. As such, this movement bypasses any solid object in between the enlightened fist and the astral clone intended for the astral blink (including walls of force and similar effects). This movement does not provoke attacks of opportunity, and the astral clone he blinks to is immediately recalled into his body. He may do this as many times as he has astral clones projected. An enlightened fist may spread his actions for the round over any number of astral blinks he can make, down to making individual attacks of a full-attack action against multiple opponents, by blinking between subsequent attacks. It is impossible to blink into solid matter, meaning that an enlightened fist cannot pass through obstacles bigger than the reach of its astral clones.

 (Su): From 2nd level on, an enlightened fist's mastery of the astral plane extends unto other planes as well. Within a range of up to 10 feet per enlightened fist level, he may draw upon the essence of the astral plane, creating a bubble around himself in which certain traits of the astral plane may be emulated.

At 2nd level, the enlightened fist gains the ability to selectively alter the perception of time within his astral bubble, as well as to exert limited control on how well the area of his influence is barred from interplanar travel. As a swift action, he may bestow upon any creature other than him within his astral bubble a haste or dimensional anchor effect at will. These effects last a number of rounds equal to the enlightened fist's class level, or until the recipient exits the astral bubble.

At 6th level, the enlightened fist may choose to emit a dimensional lock effect centered on him but within the boundaries of his astral bubble (he may choose the dimensional lock smaller than the area of his astral bubble if he wishes). As a swift action, he may now also bestow upon any creature other than him within his astral bubble a slow effect at will. The save DC of this ability is Wisdom-based. This effect last a number of rounds equal to the enlightened fist's class level.

 (Sp): A 3rd level enlightened fist may use plane shift, as per the spell, two times per day. At 6th level, he may use it two times per hour and the error decreases to 1 to 10 miles (1d10). At 9th level, an enlightened fist learns to plane shift at will without error.

 (Su): A 5th level enlightened fist is able to focus all the power of its astral clones for a combination attack. Once per day as a full-attack action, the enlightened fist may make an extra number of full attacks that round equal to the number of astral clones currently inside his body (i.e. not currently projected). An enlightened fist may make an infinite strike 2/day at 7th, and 3/day at 9th level.

 (Sp): An 8th level enlightened fist can use astral projection, as per the spell, at will with a casting time of 10 minutes. When an enlightened fist's astral cord is destroyed, instead of dying outright he may immediately reconstruct its cord and return to his body, losing one level in the process. His experience total will be the minimum required for his reduced character level. Neither the lost level nor the experience can be restored in any way.

 (Ex): At 10th level, the enlightened fist can exercise even more control over the astral plane when he is on it. He can navigate it without problem, as if there were landmarks even though there are none, therefore never losing sense of direction. Within a range of 10 feet per enlightened fist level, he may control the direction of gravity completely (including for others). He may pick one direction for his entire field of influence, or he may do such things as change the gravity to attract and repel everything within range. An enlightened fist gets a bonus equal to his class level to any Wisdom check made to influence subjective directional gravity on the astral plane. Success means that the area he controls becomes objective directional gravity to any creature other than him.

Also, within the area of his astral bubble, an enlightened fist may henceforth draw upon the essence of the astral plane itself, imposing an enhanced magic trait with regards to Quicken Spell as exists within the astral plane at will. This effect applies both to his spells and those of others. He may manipulate the size of this enhanced magic field freely, as long as the field stays centered on him and within the boundaries of the astral bubble.

Also, once per day, a 10th level enlightened fist may attempt to sever an astral traveler's astral cord. At a successful Concentration check against a DC of 10 + the target's HD and/or class levels + the target's Charisma modifier, followed by a successful unarmed touch attack, the cord is severed, meaning the death of the target.