Firefighter (3.5e Class)
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Low - Moderate - High - A water-wielding warrior oathbound to prevent the unholy destruction caused upon the world by careless use of fire. 20 1 Good Good
Poor Alternate Magic, Other Other
Firefighter
In a world scorched by dragon's breath and hellfire, there are those who lift their blade to strike down those who cast forth that flame, paladins and dragonslaying knights hellbent on fighting violence with violence, fire with fire, so to speak. All too often, though they succeed only after half the world around them, as well as likely one or two of their allies, has been reduced to nigh but ash.
Then there are those who would rather put out the fire, protect the world from its ravages, and rescue the innocent from the flames. These warriors lift their shields to turn aside the fire, let water rush forth from their souls to douse it, and teach the world to be mindful of where they strike a spark. These valiant and honorable men and women, in brave yet humble servitude to the natural world, are known as Firefighters.
Making a Firefighter
As warriors, Firefighters will likely be on the front lines, protecting their allies and turning aside enemy attacks. However, their water-based ranged attacks and ability to douse heated emotions allow them to fulfill a secondary role similar to that of a spellcaster, giving minor ranged support.
Abilities: As a warrior, Strength is important to the Firefighter, though they aren't reliant upon it completely. Charisma is also important, as their inner strength allows them to call forth the essence of water they use.
Races: Any, though Elves, Satyrs, Dryads and Bear Genasi are the most common.
Alignment: Any, though Firefighters tend towards law and good due to their Oath.
Starting Gold: 5d8×10 gp (225 gp).
Starting Age: Moderate.
| Level | Base Attack Bonus |
Saving Throws | Special | Fear No Flame | Bends Known | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fort | Ref | Will | Minor | Major | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1st | +1 | +2 | +2 | +0 | Firefighter Oath, Merciful, Bending, Conjure Water, Dampen | — | 1 | — | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2nd | +2 | +3 | +3 | +0 | Aura Of Courage, Fear No Flame, Evasive Block | Resist 10 | 2 | — | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3rd | +3 | +3 | +3 | +1 | Douse, Uncanny Dodge, Fluid Armor (Medium) | Resist 15 | 3 | — | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4th | +4 | +4 | +4 | +1 | Aura Of Dampening (30ft), Douse Rage | Resist 20 | 3 | — | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 5th | +5 | +4 | +4 | +1 | Fluid Armor (Shields) | Resist 25 | 4 | — | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 6th | +6/+1 | +5 | +5 | +2 | Dampen The Fear (30ft), Forceful Mercy | Resist 30 | 4 | — | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 7th | +7/+2 | +5 | +5 | +2 | Fluid Armor (Heavy) | Resist 35 | 5 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 8th | +8/+3 | +6 | +6 | +2 | Improved Uncanny Dodge | Resist 40 | 5 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 9th | +9/+4 | +6 | +6 | +3 | Unrelenting Mercy, Aura of Dampening (75ft) | Resist 45 | 6 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10th | +10/+5 | +7 | +7 | +3 | Improved Evasive Block | Immunity | 6 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 11th | +11/+6/+1 | +7 | +7 | +3 | Dampen The Fear (75ft) | Immunity | 7 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 12th | +12/+7/+2 | +8 | +8 | +4 | Immunity | 7 | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 13th | +13/+8/+3 | +8 | +8 | +4 | Immunity | 8 | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 14th | +14/+9/+4 | +9 | +9 | +4 | Aura of Dampening (120ft) | Immunity | 8 | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 15th | +15/+10/+5 | +9 | +9 | +5 | Heal 1/4 | 9 | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 16th | +16/+11/+6/+1 | +10 | +10 | +5 | Dampen The Fear (120ft) | Heal 1/3 | 9 | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 17th | +17/+12/+7/+2 | +10 | +10 | +5 | Heal 1/2 | 10 | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 18th | +18/+13/+8/+3 | +11 | +11 | +6 | Heal 1/1 | 10 | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 19th | +19/+14/+9/+4 | +11 | +11 | +6 | Heal 2/1 | 11 | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 20th | +20/+15/+10/+5 | +12 | +12 | +6 | Heal 3/1 | 11 | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Class Skills (6 + Int modifier per level, ×4 at 1st level) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Class Features
All of the following are class features of the Firefighter.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Firefighters are proficient with all simple and martial weapons, plus any attacks they gain from their Firefighter class abilities, such as Bends that require attack rolls. Firefighters are proficient with light, medium and heavy armor, and with shields, including Tower Shields.
Firefighter Oath: The Firefighter swears an oath upon gaining their power. Violating this oath undermines their determination and conviction. As a Firefighter, you vow to:
- Never use Fire magic of any sort, including alchemical items like Alchemist's Fire.
- Never to let a fire burn unattended, nor let one burn more than it must. You can use a torch or have a campfire, or even douse a room of giant ants in oil and ignite it, but you must douse the fire completely as soon as it has done its job, and before it has burned anything you did not intend for it to burn. Likewise, if an enemy sets fire to something that shouldn't be set ablaze (Such as a chair, house or person, but not a torch, campfire, stove or tobacco pipe), you must focus on putting out the fire before you do anything else.
- Always show mercy to enemies, attempting diplomacy first, then nonlethal force. If they continue to pursue a path of destruction after you have shown them mercy (Having tried to reason with them, and having knocked them unconscious if they did not relent), you can deal lethal damage to them normally without violating your oath.
Each time you violate your oath, you take a -1 penalty on Will saves, skill checks and Bender Level for an hour. If this occurs more than thrice over the course of a day, you lose all of your class features except your HD, BAB, skills, saves, proficiencies and feats for 24 hours. If this occurs more than thrice in a week, you become an Ex-Firefighter and must seek atonement (See below) in order to regain your powers.
Bending (Su): The Firefighter can use Bends, a form of elemental magic allowing them to manipulate the element its tied to; In this case, the Firefighter can manipulate Water. Bends require somatic components (Broad arm and leg movements) unless otherwise noted; Any Bending ability which takes a Standard action or longer provokes an attack of opportunity, except for maintenance actions. Like a spellcaster, the Firefighter can attempt concentration checks when damaged during a Bend (The Bend's effective Spell Level is equal to half your Bending Level in this case), and can also attempt to Bend defensively. You Bending Level is equal to your class level, and Bending levels from multiple sources stack.
The saving throw for any of your Bending abilities is equal to 10 + 1/2 your Bending level + your Charisma modifier. Some of your abilities may allow a Trap Save in place of a normal save; A Trap Save functions like a normal saving throw, except that targets whose current hit points are equal to or more than half their maximum hit points automatically succeed.
The first Bending ability a Firefighter learns, called Basic Bends, is how to lift and move water. As a swift or move action, you can lift or move up to 50lbs of water per Bending Level, freeze or thaw that water, or move it anywhere within Close range (25ft, +5ft per two Bending Levels). Normally, you can only manipulate water within Close range. Keeping water lifted is a Swift action.
After that, you may learn Bends from the Bender of Water list, and from the list below, at each level indicated on the table above.
Merciful (Ex): Beginning at 1st level, the Firefighter learns how to teach enemies a lesson without killing them. Any time the Firefighter deals damage with an attack granted to them by this class (Be it a weapon this class grants proficiency in, or a Bend), they may instead deal an equal amount of nonlethal damage that counts, in all respects, as the original type of damage. They may do so without penalty, thus removing the usual penalty to attack rolls when dealing nonlethal damage.
At 6th level, this ability ignores immunity to nonlethal damage, though you only deal half as much nonlethal damage (Rounded down) to creatures that would normally be immune to nonlethal damage. At 9th level, your nonlethal damage dealt as a Firefighter ignores resistance and immunity to nonlethal damage entirely, being unreduced in any manner.
Conjure Water (Su): As a move action, you can create up to 10 pounds of water (Roughly 11/4 gallons) per Bending level, in any unoccupied space in Close range of you. This water, unless it is consumed by drinking, will evaporate into nothingness within one minute of being created. Time spent being used in a Bend, including just being levitated into the air for use, doesn't count towards this timer.
Dampen (Su): Any time you hit a square or creature with a Bend you know from this class or the Bender of Water class, it is Dampened. Unprotected, nonsentient, nonmagical fires are automatically put out, while protected fires (Such as those within a closed lantern)are allowed a Fortitude save to avoid being extinguished, and magical fires (Such as a Flaming sword) are subject to a Dispel check, using your full Bending level. Magic items successfully extinguished in this way are temporarily disabled, as if a successful Dispel Magic had been used on them. Living creatures of the Fire subtype instead take untyped damage equal to your Bending level, with a Fortitude save for half, each round they are Dampened. The Dampened condition fades from both creatures and terrain after 1 round per two Bending levels of the Firefighter who created the effect.
Fire spells and effects cast into or out of a Dampened square, or cast by or onto a Dampened creature, are affected by Spell Dampening; The strength of this Dampening is equal to 1/2 your Bending level. Thus if a Firefighter of 6th level Dampened a 6th-level Wizard, that Wizard's Fireball spell would be cast at CL 3 instead of CL 6, thus dealing only 3d6 points of damage, not 6d6.
Lava, raging wildfires, and other intense, nonmagical sources of heat must be Dampened for 5 consecutive rounds before they go out. You cannot extinguish a star or planet core in this manner.
Aura of Courage (Ex): Beginning at 2nd level, a Firefighter is immune to Fear (Magical or otherwise). Allies within 10ft of the Firefighter gain a +4 bonus on saving throws against Fear. This only functions while the Firefighter is conscious, not if they are unconscious or dead.
Fear No Flame (Ex): Beginning at 2nd level, the Firefighter has learned to resist fire through sheer water-fueled determination alone. Any time the Firefighter's Aura of Courage is active, they gain Resistance to Fire 10. Every level thereafter, this resistance increased by 5, until 10th level, when it becomes immunity instead. Beginning at 15th level, the Firefighter laughs in the face of flame, his courage being such that they are not only unharmed by fire, but healed by it - For every 4 points of damage blocked by their immunity, the Firefighter heals 1 point of health. At 16th level they heal 1 point for every 3 points of fire damage blocked; At 17th level, they heal 1 point for every 2 points of fire damage blocked, and at 18th level, they heal for the full amount of Fire damage their immunity prevented. At 19th level, the Firefighter heals 2 points for every point of Fire damage absorbed, and at 20th level, the Firefighter regains 3 health for every point of Fire damage absorbed.
Evasive Block (Ex): Beginning at 2nd level, whenever a Firefighter is using a shield and not denied their Dexterity bonus to AC, they gain a form of Evasion. The Firefighter, upon making a successful Reflex saving throw against an effect that would normally deal half damage on a successful save, takes no damage instead, and confers this benefit to everything directly behind the Firefighter (Unless the effect comes from above, such as from Call Lightning or Fire Strike). Against [Fire] effects, the Firefighter adds the shield's full Shield bonus to AC (Including enhancement bonuses) to the Reflex save.
At 10th level, this ability improves, causing the Firefighter (And everyone behind the Firefighter) to take only half damage on a failed saving throw. If those behind the Firefighter succeed their saving throws even though the Firefighter failed, they take no damage anyway, because the Firefighter blocked the majority of the blast and those behind them were able to avoid the reduced effect entirely.
Evasive Block and Improved Evasive Block count as Evasion and Improved Evasion, respectively, and function in medium and heavy armor, so long as the Firefighter is using a shield.
Douse (Su): Beginning at 3rd level, the Firefighter can counter fire magic with his own rather damp convictions. Any time the Firefighter successfully identifies a [Fire] spell or power being used via the Spellcraft skill, the Firefighter may attempt to Counterspell the effect. using their full Bending level. This is an immediate action, but the Firefighter can choose for it to consume one of their Attacks of Opportunity for the round instead of their Swift action.
Uncanny Dodge (Ex): At 3rd level, the Firefighter gains Uncanny Dodge, as the Rogue ability of the same name. At 8th level, or if the Firefighter gains Uncanny Dodge from another source, the ability improves, as the Improved Uncanny Dodge of a Rogue.
Fluid Armor (Ex): At 3rd level, the Firefighter's movement speed is no longer reduced by wearing Medium armor, and the Maximum Dexterity Bonus of Medium armor the Firefighter wears is increased by an amount equal to their Charisma bonus (If any). At 5th level, this benefit extends to Tower shields, and Tower shields and Bucklers no longer incur a penalty on attack rolls; At 7th level, this extends to Heavy armor. Nothing changes about the armor; The Firefighter is just so used to wearing armor that they can move more freely in it from practice.
Aura of Dampening (Su): Beginning at 4th level, the Firefighter projects an Aura out to 30ft. All creatures and squares within this radius, including the Firefighter, are Dampened (See above) for as long as they remain inside the aura (Meaning creatures can move outside the aura to escape the effect, and if the Firefighter moves, the squares previously Dampened by their aura are no longer Dampened), unlike the normal Dampen ability, which keeps creatures and terrain Dampened for a duration. At 9th level your Aura expands out to 75ft, and at 14th level it extends further, affection a 120ft-radius around you. You may turn this aura on and off as a free action once per round.
Douse Rage (Su): Once per round, when you Dampen a target, you may attempt a Dispel check against a DC of 10 + their HD; if successful, you can choose one of the following:
- The target's attitude towards you an your allies becomes one step friendlier (As per Diplomacy); Though subsequent actions by your allies may change this.
- The target's active Rage or Frenzy is instantly ended, and they are prevented from entering another one for 1 round per two Bending Levels (Min 1).
- The Dispel Check's result is applied to every [Mind-Affecting] effect the target is under the effects of, including beneficial spells like Rage; If successful each effect is dispelled.
You can only choose one effect per use of this ability.
Dampen The Fear (Su): Your Aura of Dampening now grants any number of chosen creatures within 30ft of you immunity to Fear (Magical or otherwise), and creatures 10ft beyond that a +4 bonus on saves against Fear effects. This aura of fearlessness extends out to 75ft at 11th level and to 120ft at 16th level.
Ex-Firefighter
<-Describe what happens when a character violates the alignment restrictions or any other class restrictions. If there are no behavior or alignment restrictions, delete this section->.
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