Swamp Hag (3.5e Class)/Minion
Minions[edit]
Minion: A master can obtain a minion from a suitable base creature (see below). Doing so takes 8 hours and uses up magical materials that cost 100 gp per level of the master. A minion is a special creature imbued with part of the master's life essence (and alignment) and is unusually mutable and intelligent. The creature serves as a companion and servant. A 1st level master may begin play with a minion selected from the following list:
SRD Starting Minions: Baboon, Badger, Bat, Cat, Dog, Donkey, Eagle, Hawk, Lizard, Monkey, Owl, Pony (War Pony), Porpoise, Rat (Dire Rat) Raven, Toad, Weasel, Viper (Small), Viper (Tiny).
Homebrew Starting Minions: Bobcat, Chicken, Compsognathus, Dire Hummingbird, Dire Rat, Frog (Goliath Frog, Poison Dart Frog), Mouse, Red Fox, Squirrel (Flying Squirrel), Tortoise, Tree Ocelot.
As the master advances in class levels that grant a minion, his minion also increases in power.
If the minion dies or is dismissed by the master, the master becomes weakened for 1d6 days, taking a –2 penalty on attacks, saves, skills, ability checks and ability DCs. A slain or dismissed minion cannot be replaced while a master is in this weakened state. A slain minion can be raised from the dead just as a character can be, though never incurring level or Constitution lose. Expensive material components for resurrection spells are reduced to one-tenth normal to raise a minion. A minion cannot be reincarnated unless it may assume humanoid form. If a minion is raised, its master is no longer weakened by its loss.
A dismissed minion returns to its base form and is no longer beholden to its former master, once again becoming an ordinary animal. Dismissing a minion requires a 1 hour ritual in which the master removes his imbued life essence from the creature.
A character may have only one minion at a time. Levels in different classes that grant minions stack for the purpose of determining any minion abilities that depend on the master’s level.
A minion is magically transformed from a normal animal, gaining new powers and becoming a magical beast when summoned to service by a master. It retains the appearance, Hit Dice, base attack bonus, attacks, damage, saves, natural abilities, extraordinary abilities and feats of its base form, but it is treated as a magical beast instead of an animal for the purpose of any effect that depends on its type.
A minion's Hit Points, class skills and skill ranks are not dependent upon its form.
Only a normal, unmodified animal may become a minion. An animal companion cannot also function as a minion.
Hit Points: The minion has one-half the master’s total hit points (not including temporary hit points), rounded down, regardless of its base form.
Skills: A minion gains skill points based on its possible maximum CR (rather than HD total). Treat a minion's maximum skill ranks as if its possible maximum CR were its HD, regardless of its base form. Whenever its maximum CR increases, treat the minion as having leveled up for the purposes of gaining skills. It gains skill points retroactively for its Intelligence increases. A minion gains skill points equal to 2 + Int modifier per CR, ×4 at 1st. It's class skills are:
Balance (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Diplomacy (Cha), Disguise (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Gather Information (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Hide (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Perform (Cha), Ride (Dex), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Spellcraft (Int), Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis), Swim (Str), Tumble (Dex), Use Rope (Dex).
A minion retains these skills and skill ranks regardless of its form. Some skills may remain beyond the minion’s ability to use, depending on its form. A minion gains the racial skill bonuses and penalties for whatever form it possesses.
Minion Ability Descriptions: All minions have special abilities (or abilities that work in conjunction with their masters) depending on the master’s combined level in classes that grant minions, as shown on the table below. The abilities given on the table are cumulative.
| Master's Level |
CR Max |
Int | Special |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 1/2 | 6 | Empathic Link, Share Spells |
| 2nd | 1 | 6 | Devotion, Alterable Form |
| 3rd | 1 | 7 | Deliver Touch Spells, Feat |
| 4th | 2 | 7 | Skills, Speech |
| 5th | 2 | 8 | Alterable Form: Humanoid Form |
| 6th | 3 | 8 | Feat |
| 7th | 3 | 9 | Speak Its Kind |
| 8th | 4 | 9 | — |
| 9th | 5 | 10 | Feat |
| 10th | 6 | 10 | Alterable Form: Magical Beast Form |
| 11th | 7 | 11 | — |
| 12th | 8 | 11 | Feat |
| 13th | 9 | 12 | — |
| 14th | 10 | 12 | — |
| 15th | 11 | 13 | Alterable Form: Special Abilities, Feat |
| 16th | 12 | 13 | — |
| 17th | 13 | 14 | — |
| 18th | 14 | 14 | Feat |
| 19th | 15 | 15 | — |
| 20th | 16 | 15 | Liberation |
Minion Basics: Use the basic statistics for a creature of the minion’s kind, but make the following changes:
Master's Level: The character’s master level. Class levels that grant a minion stack to determine a character's master level for the purpose of determining the minion’s abilities.
CR Max: The minion's maximum allowable CR for a form it assumes.
Intelligence: The minion’s Intelligence score. As a master gains levels, a minion grows in Intelligence as per the numbers on Table: Minion Progression. A minion's Wisdom and Charisma are determined by its form.
Empathic Link (Su): The master has an empathic link with her minion. The master cannot see through the minion’s eyes, but they can communicate empathically. Because of the limited nature of the link, only general emotional and sensory content can be communicated. The two must be on the same plane for this ability to function.
Because of this empathic link, the master has the same connection to an item or place that his minion does.
(Ex): At the master’s option, she may have any spell (but not any spell-like ability) she casts upon herself also affect her minion, provided that it is within 5 feet of her at the time of casting to receive the benefit. This includes spell completion items, such as potions. If the spell or effect has a duration other than instantaneous, it stops affecting the minion if it moves farther than 5 feet away from the master, regardless if it moves back within proximity during the duration.
Additionally, the master may cast a spell with a target of “Personal” on her minion (as a touch range spell) instead of on herself. A master and her minion can share spells even if the spells normally do not affect creatures of the minion’s type.
Devotion (Ex): If the master is 2nd level or higher, a minion gains a +4 morale bonus on Will saves against enchantment spells and effects.
Alterable Form (Su): If the master is 2nd level or higher, she can alter the minion's form to that of another animal who's CR is equal or less than the CR Max listed on Table: Minion Progression. This transformation of shape requires the master and minion remain adjacent in a ritual, taking no other actions, lasting 8 hours and using up magical materials that cost 100 gp per master class level. If the process is interrupted, the ritual must be restarted with no loss in component materials.
If the master is 5th level or higher, she may alter the minion's form to that of a humanoid for which it meets the CR prerequisites. This transformation does not grant the minion the supernatural or spell-like abilities of its form.
If the master is 10th level or higher, she may alter the minion's form to that of a magical beast for which it meets the CR prerequisites. This transformation does not grant the minion the supernatural or spell-like abilities of its form.
If the master is 15th level or higher, she may grant his minion the supernatural and spell-like abilities of its form, though, the creature's CR is calculated as 2 higher than normal when determining the CR Max a master can grant to her minion's form.
The forms of unique creatures (such as those with applied templates or advanced HD) may not be assumed with the Alterable Form ability.
Deliver Touch Attacks (Su): If the master is 3rd level or higher, a minion can deliver touch spells and supernatural touch attacks for her. If the master and the minion are in contact at the time the master uses a touch ability, she can designate her minion as the “toucher.” The minion can then deliver the touch ability just as the master could. As usual, if the master casts another spell before the touch is delivered, the touch spell dissipates.
Feat: At every 3rd master level, a minion learns a feat for which it meets the prerequisites. It maintains this feat regardless of its form. Though, changes in form may result in a minion no longer meeting the prerequisites for the feat and become unable to use it.
Speech (Ex): If the master is 4th level or higher, a minion can communicate verbally, knowing all languages known by its master. The minion is still illiterate.
Speak with Its Kind (Ex): If the master is 7th level or higher, a minion can communicate with creatures of Intelligence 1-2 of approximately the same kind as its base form or current form granted by Alterable Form (including dire varieties): bats with bats, rats with rodents, cats with felines, hawks and owls and ravens with birds, lizards and snakes with reptiles, toads with amphibians, weasels with similar creatures (weasels, minks, polecats, ermines, skunks, wolverines, and badgers). Such communication is limited by the intelligence of the conversing creatures.
Liberation (Su): If the master is 20th level or higher, she may liberate her minion as she dismisses it. The creature's current form (either its base form or a form gained through use of Alterable Form) becomes the creature's new natural form. The creature becomes an ordinary member of its race with all the statistics and abilities of its form. It is no longer beholden to serve its former master. Liberation in this manner takes 8 hours and uses up magical materials that cost 1,000 gp per master class level. The master is still subject to becoming weakened when a minion is liberated as part of a dismissal
Minions at Epic Level[edit]
Minions continue to grow as the level of its master increases beyond 20th. The patterns of CR Max increase, Intelligence increase and additional feats as shown on the table continue infinitely. Because of the lack of high CR magical beasts and humanoids, a minion may take an advanced HD form (advancing by the HD of its form's type). Each additional HD counts as a CR increase of 1. Unlike normal creature advancement, a minion does not increase in size for these advanced HD. A minion does not retain any advanced HD upon a liberation dismissal.
