User:Zhenra-Khal/Project Atrea (3.5e Sourcebook)/Mechanics/Pacts

Pacts

Every Pactbound enters a pact in order to gain that power, and each pact grants different tools - And different responsibilities. To please your master, you have a quota to fill; Failing to fill your quota during the set time period results in losing your non-chassis class abilities (Except your Pact Tool) from all Pactbound classes you possess until you fulfill the total accrued quota - Meaning the longer you wait to work on fulfilling it, the more work is involved, and should you wait too long, your debt will be such that you'll die of old age before completing it all.

In each of the Pact descriptions below, there are two things listed - The first, a Pact Tool, given to you by your master to complete your tasks. The second is your Pact Bond, which is the job you fulfill for your master, and details on your weekly or monthly quota.

Pact of the Blade

One of the most obvious pacts, those who choose this pact are warriors in service of their masters, be they kind defenders like Paladins, or ruthless killers like Blackguards. Most common among Pact Knights, this pact makes you adept as a warrior.

Pactblade: Upon entering the Pact of the Blade, you gain the ability to summon a special weapon, known as a Pactblade. Despite the name, it can take the form of any light or one-handed weapon you're proficient with (Though patrons tend to prefer to grant specific type of weapon), and you choose what form it can take every time you summon it - So you could summon a longsword, then recast the summon to change it into a mace. Summoning or re-forming the Pactblade is the same action as drawing a weapon. Pactblades are masterwork weapons of their sort, count as magical for the purposes of damage reduction and hitting incorporeal creatures, and can be enchanted as normal for masterwork weapons.

Also, you can take a magical weapon with at least a +1 enhancement and bond with it, causing it to become your Pactblade. This prevents you from changing the shape or damage type, but allows you to absorb artifacts, legacy weapons, or etc., as well as benefit from specific material types more easily.

Bladebound: You are your master's weapon, and must answer the call to battle when it is issued. You hunt down the foes of your master as a Paladins does undead or a Ranger does his chosen enemies. Your weekly quota of blood is equal to your challenge rating. Defeating 1 HD of your Patron's designated foes grants you 1 point for your quota.

Pact of the Tome

While The Blade grants physical might in the form of a weapon, The Tome grants mental and magical might. You are your master's eyes and ears, collecting and/or spreading knowledge or items, as well as try to convert others to serve your Patron's cause.

Tome of Secrets: Also called a Book of Shadows by some, you can call forth a spellbook from thin air, summoning or dismissing it with the same action it takes to draw a weapon. In this book lie two bonus 1st-level spells; These are chosen by you, and must be both a spell you could not otherwise access, and fit in the categories allowed by your Patron, as mentioned in their entries. This spellbook floats on its own, always remaining in your square, floating after you while you move, and can hold an endless number of spells. This spellbook is a magic item, though it uses your saving throws.

Tomebound: You are your Patron's collector and advertiser. Your power was granted to you so you could collect information, items, and new followers into the fold. Thus, each month, your quota is equal to your Pactbound class levels, plus your Charisma modifier. For every HD of followers you convert to your master's cause, and every 1,000 GP worth of relevant magical items you give to your master, you gain 1 point toward your quota.

Pact of the Chain

Sometimes the easiest way to get someone to do something is to use Enchantment magic, and the Chainbound, instead of trying their other options, simply starts with the charming. To get things done, they turn their enemies into a force under their command, turning assassins into bodyguards and healers into berserkers with a few gestures and honeyed words.

Familiar: Upon choosing this path, you gain an Improved Familiar, chosen from the list granted by your master. Any Pact Boons you gain are also granted to the Familiar. The death of your Familiar does not harm you nor cause you to lose experience, and your familiar will be returned to you in 24 hours if it dies. While your Familiar is alive and within 5ft of you, you gain a +2 bonus to the DCs of all (Compulsion) spells and abilities you use.

Chainbound: Like the Tomebound, your jobs is to make people serve your Patron; But while those who chose The Tome do so subtly, you use brute force and compulsion magic - Using your spells and magic to force others into working for your patron, be it charming the invading bandits to turn on their leader, or making a man slaughter his family. Your weekly quota is equal to your Pactbound class levels, plus your Charisma modifier. You gain 1 point towards your quota every time you use compulsion magic to force an individual to perform an act in your Patron's favor, so long as it is an act they weren't otherwise willing to do.

Pact of the Soul

Some sell their souls, others collect them. Among the Soulbound, there's little difference. You are your master's hunter, tracking down enemies of your Patron, lost Pactbound and other traitors, and giving them to your master, whether you're purifying the souls of the undead, or damning the souls of the innocent.

Soul Reaper: Those who choose the Pact of the Soul gain two benefits. First, as long as you have line of sight, when someone strikes a killing blow on a living creature within Long range, you can force the attacker to make a Will save against the DC of your Pact abilities. If they fail the save, you reduce the damage of the blow by any number of points, leaving the target at -1 hit point, stable, and stunned for 1 round per 3 Pactbound levels.

Second, you can snuff the life force from a dying creature by touch. As a standard action with a range of touch, you can force a target who is at -1 or fewer hit points to make a Will saving throw. If they fail, they die. If they have a challenge rating equal to or higher than yours, you gain a +2 bonus to your Pactbound caster level; This bonus lasts 5 rounds and does not stack with itself. If the target was both of a challenge rating equal to or higher then yours AND was a foe of your Patron, you gain 1, 3 or 5 points towards your quota, as specified in your Patron's entry. Traitors always grant 5 points if they meet the challenge rating criteria.

Soulbound: You are a collector of souls for your master, and to please your Patron, that is what you must do. Your monthly quota is equal to twice your challenge rating.