Wizard - Conjurer Shadow Mage Kit Description: Shadow Mages are Conjurers who have become students of the power of twilight and shadow. While they are not necessarily evil, most tend to be grim and often humorless characters who are at home in the dim half-light that exists at the verge of day and night. Their philosophy is built around the connection of all shadows in the world to the Demiplane of Shadow, and their repertoire of spells reflects this, drawing upon the subtle powers of that plane. They favor darkness over light in most respects, though a darkness that is too complete is as contrary to their purpose as a blinding, omnipresent light that banishes all shadow. Though their spells are not very well-suited to open battle, a Shadow Mage is a perfectly suited spy or infiltrator, especially by night, and excels in solitary confrontations. Shadow Mages have been around for many centuries, though never in large numbers. They are mystics who have reached out and touched the misty border between light and darkness, life and death, reality and unreality. Whatever their ethos or bent in life, it is always tempered by an unyielding neutrality, seeking to find points of juncture and melding while remaining distant (and often appearing cold and bleak in their outlook and relations) from enmeshment in the affairs of the world. Above all, Shadow Mages believe in a balance in all things, for there can be no shadow and no joining without both light and darkness. Shadow Mages are able to tap the mysterious channels of magical power that flow along the borders of reality. They believe themselves to be separate and apart from the rest of the world; like the shadowy verges of the universe, they see themselves as great dividers, the 'in-betweeners' who walk the narrow path in between aspects of the universe, seeing all but not becoming fully a part of either. Shadow Mages always wear dark robes and cloaks full of folds and shadows, even on the hottest day, and spend a portion of every day basking in shadow. According to legend, they sacrifice a portion of their own life force to become partially living shadow themselves. Requirements: Shadow Mages must be at least partially neutral in alignment, and only humans, tieflings, and drow elves or half-drow can learn the dark arts of this class. Shadow Mages must have scores of at least 14 in Intelligence, Wisdom, and Constitution. Weapons & Armor: As a standard Conjurer. Special Benefits: Shadow Mages gain a variety of unique abilities related to their unusual approach to magic, drawing upon aspects of all opposing fields while not truly embracing any (save for the shadows themselves). As a result, though the Primary FOS of a Shadow Mage is Conjuration, he or she can also cast any spells of the School of Shadow, regardless of Realm, as if they were within his or her Primary FOS. In addition, a Shadow Mage gains access to Minor FOS in all Realms of Magic (though they retain Major FOS in none), even including spells that produce light. Though they find such spells distasteful and tend to avoid using them, they appreciate the part that light and spells using it play within the grand balance of the universe and they do incorporate them into their studies. In addition to this balanced and broadened magical knowledge, Shadow Mages gain the following special abilities: Channel Energy: As a standard Conjurer, but this ability works at double its normal effectiveness when used to boost the effects of spells of the School of Shadow, but it does not function at all with respect to other spells. Comprehensive Conjuring: As a standard Conjurer, save that a Shadow Mage's spell benefits apply only to spells of the School of Shadow. In addition, a Shadow Mage has the ability to detect undead or detect magic (though only magic that draws directly on the Positive or Negative Material Plane or Plane of Shadow) or to recognize creatures or objects with a multiplanar existence (e.g., energy draining undead, who exist simultaneously on the Prime Material and Negative Material Planes; an astral projection of a creature on another plane), even if they are magically disguised. In addition to the normal save modifiers for a Shadow Mage when using spells of the school of Shadow, the targets of any spell used by a Shadow Mage are modified by the light conditions in their immediate area: Lighting Conditions Modifier Direct sunlight/continual light +2 Indirect sunlight/light +1 Total darkness 0 Twilight/bright moonlight/lantern light -1 Indirect moonlight/torchlight -2 Starlight/candlelight/very shadowy area -3 Shadow Familiar: A Shadow Mage gains the ability to cast the find familiar spell as an innate power, and this ability may be used as often as once per day with no need for components. It requires 1d12 hours of meditation by a Shadow Mage to call a Shadow Familiar, but a Shadow Mage has a percentage chance equal to his or her Intelligence plus 5% per level of experience to be able to choose the type of familiar that arrives (from those listed in the Player's Handbook, or any similar DM-approved familiar creatures), rather than rolling randomly to see what kind of creature is attracted. Note that there is a 25% chance (-1% per level of the Shadow Mage) that no creature of the chosen type will be available within the range, causing the power to fail. The creature called will always be coal-black in color and has a 75% chance to Move Silently and Hide in Shadows, and it will never be attacked by any creature native to (or linked to) the Plane of Shadow or the Positive or Negative Material Plane. Note that a Shadow Familiar is not truly a natural animal of its type (and in fact natural animals will tend to shy away from it), but rather an animate spirit from the Plane of Shadow that mimics the form of a Prime Material animal. It can be banished to its home plane by abjure, dismissal, holy word, or similar magic, and it cannot enter the area of a protection from evil spell or similar barrier to conjured or summoned creatures. If a Shadow Mage chooses to call a new Shadow Familiar, any familiar he or she already has immediately departs (severing the link with the Shadow Mage) at the completion of his or her meditation, regardless of whether or not it was successful. If the power fails to attract a new familiar, the Shadow Mage must wait at least a day before attempting the ritual again. Shadow Nature: A Shadow Mage's gradual progression toward living shadow (see Special Hindrances) causes him or her to become inured to natural extremes of temperature. By the time 9th level is reached, a Shadow Mage gains the equivalent of endure heat and endure cold spells both being in effect constantly, though a Shadow Mage does not reduce damage from heat- or cold-based attack forms. In addition, he or she becomes immune to the effects of the chill touch spell and similar effects (including chilling damage from certain types of undead, though they are still susceptible to simple physical damage, paralysis, energy drain, and other effects). A Shadow Mage of 9th level or above is also able to communicate with any creature that is wholly or partly tied to the Positive or Negative Material Plane or Plane of Shadow, which in certain circumstances (DM's discretion) may allow him or her to negotiate with and possibly avoid conflict with such beings. Shadow Vision: Shadow Mages gain the ability to see in the darkness associated with the plane of gloom, multiplying the vision ranges in conditions of darkness by their experience level (e.g., a 10th level Shadow Mage could see 10 times the normal distance in dark conditions). In addition, Shadow Mages of 9th level and above can see through magical darkness, ignoring normal darkness-related combat penalties. At 5th level, a Shadow Mage also gains the ability to detect places where the boundary between reality and the Plane of Shadow has thinned to the point where shadows can be traversed. This ability requires shadows to be present (other than the Shadow Mage's own shadow) and one round of concentration and has a 5% chance of success per level of the Shadow Mage. It can be attempted once per day for every five levels of experience (rounding down), and a successful roll indicates that the Shadow Mage has found a natural juncture with the Plane of Shadow and can shadow walk (as the spell, but only the Shadow Mage him- or herself can use it, not other creatures). Special Hindrances: Because of their philosophy of balance and keeping to no more than the verges of any extreme position, Shadow Mages do not gain Major FOS in Sorcery and Elementalism as other Conjurers do--aside from Conjuration, Universal Magic, and the school of Shadow, all spells are considered to be in a Minor FOS for Shadow Mages. In addition, Shadow Mages focus fairly intently on their particular specialty, suffering a -15% penalty to learn any spells that are not within the school of Shadow, regardless of Realm. They cannot research spells or create magical items save for those that draw upon the school of Shadow. Shadow Mages also become inextricably tied to the powers of shadow and darkness in ways that transcend mere preference in terms of fields of magical study. They are constrained to always wear black or gray clothing (usually billowing cloaks, robes, boots, and sometimes even veils that cover them from head to toe), and they must be in the presence of shadows (not including their own) within 10' in order to properly tap into their magical power sources. If no shadows are present within 10' of a Shadow Mage or if he or she is forced to wear inappropriate garb and attempts to cast a spell, he or she must draw upon personal reserves of energy in order to channel shadow-energy through him- or herself, forcing a save vs. breath weapon to avoid suffering 1 point of damage per level of the spell being cast. A Shadow Mage who is forced to channel shadow energy directly to empower his or her spells in this fashion will be surrounded by an aura of dark 'radiance' and bits of shadow seem to flit about during spellcasting, accompanied by a brief but noticeable chill in the air nearby. This has no direct game effect, but it can be very unnerving to those nearby and clearly marks a Shadow Mage as a wielder of dark magic. This phenomenon also appears whenever a Shadow Mage uses his or her ability to Channel Energy to boost the power of a Shadow spell, but it does not apply to other spellcasting (including normal casting of Shadow spells). Over the course of a Shadow Mage's career, even channeling shadow-energy in the process of normal spellcasting exacts a price, as beginning at 5th level his or her skin begins to gradually fade to a dark gray-black, with occasional dark, vaguely formed black shadows that trace strange patterns or dance unpredictably across a Shadow Mage's flesh. A Shadow Mage literally begins to fade into a living shadow, though the change has relatively little physiological impact upon him or her. The exact progression of fading varies from person to person, being somewhat dependent on the volume of his or her spellcasting. A Shadow Mage's skin will become cool and eventually cold to the touch, even on the hottest of days (helping to keep him or her cool even in very hot climates while wearing long dark garments). For the most part, the fading of a Shadow Mage affects only his or her appearance (though it does provide certain benefits, as described under Shadow Nature under Special Benefits). Because of the strange and unnatural 'shadow stain' that overtakes every Shadow Mage and the chill air that seems to hang about them, plus their brooding and antisocial nature, they suffer a -1 reaction penalty for every four levels of experience (rounding up; maximum of -4). In addition, sentient creatures who see their exposed skin and its 'shadow stain' for the first time may (DM's option) be forced to make a Wisdom check to avoid fleeing in panic, possibly raising an alarm (and/or a mob) against the Shadow Mage. Bonus Proficiencies: Blind-fighting Required Proficiencies: Reading/Writing, Spellcraft Preferred Proficiencies: Astrology, Calligraphy, Ceremony/Ritual, Direction Sense, Distance Sense, Fire-building, Languages (Ancient), Observation, Planology, Psychic Defense, Rune Lore, Sixth Sense, Thaumaturgy, Time Sense ***DISCLAIMER*** As with all postings by me of classes or races, it should be noted that portions of the information contained herein were inspired by or derived from information in published works of TSR, Inc., and may contain references to those works, quotations or passages of text (especially in the area of 'Character Description', where applicable sections from TSR works were often carried over more or less intact into my campaign world), or particular powers or abilities invented by TSR staff writers. No relationship with TSR, Inc., is to be implied by this use, nor is any attempt being made to solicit profit or remuneration of any kind. I have read the TSR Online Policy document, and have tried to accommodate the stipulations contained therein. In instances where I have lifted an essentially complete class or race without significant alteration, I have not included these in my postings but instead have inserted a reference to the appropriate D&D sourcebook for those curious in including it in their campaign. Only variations that include a significant component of original work, alteration, or reformulation (including the compositing elements from various TSR sources into new combinations) of have been included in this set of postings. Jason Eric Nelson < tjaden@u.washington.edu >