Fiend Binder - General Prestige Class
This is a general Prestige class that may be applicable to the Forgotten Realms Campaign
Survivors of attacks by orc hordes sometimes tell stories of the country-side being plagued by evil, vile creatures days or weeks before the assault. Livestock goes missing and is found later, wandering on roads and fields, attacking anything that moves. Wolves, bears, and other creatures of the wilds, which normally shun contact with humans, become bold and attack with an unholy desire for mayhem. When the orc warband finally descends on the hapless village, packs of fiendish dogs, wolves, and boars with glowing red eyes and frothing mouths are in the vanguard. The source behind these tales is the fiend binder.
The fiend binder is a terrifying figure who learns a secret, perverse ritual that merges the spirit of an evil entity onto the soul of a normal creature. Through this ritual, the fiend binder creates terrifying animals that lead the charge of any assault. Predators are the preferred animals for this process, including dogs, bears, wolves, and big cats, like cheetahs. However, fiend binders have been known to use the process on domesticated animals - fiendish cattle that cause herds to stampede or murderous pigs that attack and devour their owners.
Some fiend binders are so enamored with the chaos caused by their creations that they release the maddened beast back into the wild, allowing it to terrorize the countryside. This sometimes backfires, as when the bound creature goes on a rampage inside the orc camp. Some tribes see this as a form of entertainment, honing their battle skills as they try of kill the beast. Other tribes take a dim view to the fiend binder's careless actions and banish him into the wilderness. Because of this, most fiend binders are loners.
Druids who turn away from nature are the most likely candidates to become fiend binders. Rangers with particularly vicious and twisted attitudes toward animals also become fiend binders. Clerics, particularly those who worship Gruumsh, become fiend binders to create packs of fiendish warhounds. Orc wizards and sorcerers are already rare, but have been known to be drawn to this class.
Hit Die: d8
To qualify to become a Fiend Binder, a character must fulfill all the following criteria:
- Race: Orc or half-orc
- Alignment: Any evil
- Skills: Handle Animal 4 ranks, Knowledge (nature) 4 ranks, Intimidate 4 ranks
- Feats: Iron Will,
- Spellcasting: Ability to cast summon monster I or summon nature's ally I.
From:
Dragon #292
Older Prestige class adapted to 3.5
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