Moondancer (3.5e Class)

Moondancer
Graceful shapeshifter.

Making an Moondancer
Alignment: Any.

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

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Moondancers are proficient with all simple weapons. They are also proficient with all natural attacks (claw, bite, and so forth) of any form they assume with moon form or wild shape (see below). Moondancers are not proficient with any armor or shields When wearing armor, using a shield, or carrying a medium or heavy load, a Moondancer loses all class features except weapon proficiencies.

(Su):  A Moondancer has the ability to turn herself into a specific type of animal and back again once per day. She must choose from the list below. This ability functions like the polymorph spell, except as noted here. The effect lasts for until she changes back. Changing form (to animal or back) is a standard action and doesn’t provoke an attack of opportunity.

A Moondancer loses her ability to speak while in moon form because she is limited to the sounds that a normal, untrained animal can make, but she can communicate normally with other animals of the same general grouping as her new form. (The normal sound a wild parrot makes is a squawk, so changing to this form does not permit speech.)

The available forms are: Badger (animal), Bat (animal), Camel (animal), Cat (animal), Crocodile (animal), Dog (animal), Dog, riding (animal), Eagle (animal), Hawk (animal), Horse, light or heavy (animal), Lizard (animal), Owl (animal), Pony (animal), Porpoise (animal), Rat (animal), Raven (animal), Shark, Medium (animal), Snake, Tiny, Small, Medium or Large Viper (animal), Squid (animal), Toad (animal), Weasel (animal), Wolf (animal).

(Ex):  A moondancer can enter a moon dance a certain number of times per day. In a Moon Dance, a moondancer temporarily gains a +4 bonus to Dexterity, a +4 bonus to Charisma, and a +2 morale bonus on Fortitude saves. While in a moondance, a moondancer cannot use any Intelligence-based skill, the Concentration skill, or any abilities that require patience or concentration, nor can she 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. She can use any feat she has except Combat Expertise, item creation feats, and metamagic feats. A moon dance lasts for a number of rounds equal to 3 + the character’s (newly improved) Charisma modifier. A moondancer may prematurely end her moon dance. At the end of the moon dance, the moondancer loses the moon dance 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 she is a 17th-level moondancer, at which point this limitation no longer applies; see below).

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

(Su):  If a moondancer of 2nd level or higher, certain effects may enable the moondancer to change into moonform for the effect’s duration:

If the moondancer fails a save against an effect which changes her form, such as polymorph, she may attempt a Will save against the same DC to change into her moon form instead.

Similarly, if the moondancer uses such an effect on herself (such as wild shape or a thousand faces), she may change into her moon form instead without any saving throw needed.

This counts as being in moon form for purposes of the moonform style.

(Ex):  At 2nd level or higher if a moondancer makes a successful Reflex saving throw against an attack that normally deals half damage on a successful save, she instead takes no damage. Evasion can be used only if a moondancer is wearing light armor or no armor. A helpless moondancer does not gain the benefit of evasion.

(Ex):  At 3rd level, a moondancer gains an enhancement bonus to her speed, as shown on Table: The moondancer. A moondancer in armor or carrying a medium or heavy load loses this extra speed.

(Ex):  A 3rd level moondancer with no armor check penalty may use her Dexterity modifier in place of her Strength modifier for Climb, Jump, and Swim checks. (This is identical to the feat of same name.)

(Su):  At third level, a moondancer selects one feat. While in moon form, including being in moon form due to moonform affinity, the moondancer is treated as having this feat for all purposes. The moondancer must have the prerequisites for the feat selected. Additional moonform style feats are gained at 7th, 11th, 15th, and 19th levels.

(Su):  At 4th level, a moondancer’s natural weapons are empowered. Her natural weapons are treated as magic weapons for the purpose of dealing damage to creatures with damage reduction. Moon strike improves with the character’s moondancer level. At 10th level, her natural weapons are also treated as silver weapons for the purpose of dealing damage to creatures with damage reduction. At 16th level, her natural weapons are treated as adamantine weapons for the purpose of dealing damage to creatures with damage reduction and bypassing hardness.

(Ex):  At 4th level or higher, a moondancer within arm’s reach of a wall can use it to slow her descent. When first using this ability, she takes damage as if the fall were 20 feet shorter than it actually is. The moondancer’s ability to slow her fall (that is, to reduce the effective distance of the fall when next to a wall) improves with her moondancer level until at 20th level she can use a nearby wall to slow her descent and fall any distance without harm.

(Su):  At 5th level, a moondancer gains the ability to turn herself into any Small or Medium animal and back again once per day. Her options for new forms include certain creatures with the animal type: The forms chosen must be of animals the moondancer is familiar with.

This ability functions like the polymorph spell, except as noted here. The effect lasts for 1 hour per moondancer level, or until she changes back. Changing form (to animal or back) is a standard action and doesn’t provoke an attack of opportunity.

A moondancer loses her ability to speak while in animal form because she is limited to the sounds that a normal, untrained animal can make, but she can communicate normally with other animals of the same general grouping as her new form. (The normal sound a wild parrot makes is a squawk, so changing to this form does not permit speech.)

A moondancer can use this ability more times per day at 6th, 7th, 10th, 14th, and 18th level, as noted on Table: The Moondancer. In addition, she gains the ability to take the shape of a Large animal at 8th level, a Tiny animal at 11th level, and a Huge animal at 15th level.

The new form’s Hit Dice can’t exceed the character’s moondancer level.

At 12th level, a moondancer becomes able to use wild shape to change into a plant creature with the same size restrictions as for animal forms. (A moondancer can’t use this ability to take the form of a plant that isn’t a creature.)

At 16th level, a moondancer becomes able to use wild shape to change into a Small, Medium, or Large elemental (air, earth, fire, or water) once per day. These elemental forms are in addition to her normal wild shape usage. In addition to the normal effects of wild shape, the moondancer gains all the elemental’s extraordinary, supernatural, and spell-like abilities. She also gains the elemental’s feats for as long as she maintains the wild shape, but she retains her own creature type.

At 18th level, a moondancer becomes able to assume elemental form twice per day, and at 20th level she can do so three times per day. At 20th level, a moondancer may use this wild shape ability to change into a Huge elemental.

(Ex):  At 9th level, a moondancer’s evasion ability improves. She still takes no damage on a successful Reflex saving throw against attacks, but henceforth she takes only half damage on a failed save. A helpless moondancer does not gain the benefit of improved evasion.

(Ex):  At 11th level, a moondancer’s bonuses to Dexterity and Charisma during a moon dance each increase to +6, and her morale bonus on Fortitude saves increases to +3.

(Su):  At 13th level, a moondancer gains the ability to change her appearance at will, as if using the alter self spell, but only while in her normal form.

(Ex):  At 17th level and higher, a moondancer no longer becomes distracted at the end of her moon dance.

(Ex):  At 20th level, a moondancer’s bonuses to Dexterity and Charisma during a moon dance each increase to +8, and her morale bonus on Fortitude saves increases to +4.

She is forevermore treated as a fey rather than as a humanoid (or whatever the moondancer’s creature type was) for the purpose of spells and magical effects. Additionally, the moondancer gains damage reduction 10/cold iron, which allows her to ignore the first 10 points of damage from any attack made by a weapon or natural attack non composed of cold iron.