Devout Hunter

aylight broke over the mountain pass, and Varan said his prayers as always. Today, however, there was a resolution in his tone. He could sense it in the wind, perhaps. Perhaps it was the stillness of the wildlife around him. But today would be the day that he caught his quarry. Today he would enact vengeance for the villagers that had been slaughtered. He had been chasing the creature for three days now, and had not eaten since the first night. But he did not tire. His deity rid him of his fatigue, and satiated his hunger. The hunt was his prayer, the tireless tracking his meditation. And it was paying off. The creature, knowing from the beginning that it was being tracked, was now weary and it knew its time was growing short. Hunter and prey had played this cat and mouse game through rivers, forests, and barren mountainside, but the creature was unable to lose this unrelenting foe. Varan stood and stretched, feeling quite refreshed after the two hours of sleep he had allowed himself. As he gathered his things, he tightened his belt, preparing for another day of hard marching. The way was difficult, but he knew that those were the only ways worth traveling. And he knew that today would bring him to his prey.

The God of the Hunt represents the very natural art of hunting both for sport and for food. He is idealized highly by rustic folk, to whom he represents dominion over the natural world. He is the embodiment of the ability for man to dominate monsters and animals, making humans beings to be feared rather than stalked and killed.

The Devout Hunter is the perfect worshipper of the God of the Hunt. He does not have a temple other than the wilds. He holds no mass, save for the prayers spoken over a fresh kill. And yet, each year sees those disenchanted with the way of the “civilized world” who make their way to the wilds to seek a purer, more basic life.

Many rural communities look to Devout Hunters as local guardians. They fend off predators and monsters, and help teach the ways of the hunt to villagers. The devout hunters are careful, however, to always teach the ways of natural balance. For they know all too well that a hunter that is too good and too persistent soon has no prey to follow.

Hit Dice: d10.

Requirements

To qualify to become a devout hunter, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.

Alignment: Any neutral.
Base Attack Bonus: +5
Knowledge (nature): 8 ranks.
Wilderness Lore: 8 ranks
Feats: Endurance, Track.
Spells: Must be able to cast divine spells.

Class Skills

The devout hunter’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Animal Empathy (Cha, exclusive skill), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Hide (Dex), Intuit Direction (Wis), Jump (Str), Knowledge (nature) (Int), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Search (Int), Spot (Wis), Swim (Str), Use Rope (Dex), and Wilderness Lore (Wis). See Chapter 4: Skills in the Player’s Handbook for skill descriptions.

Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier.

Class Features

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: The devout hunter is proficient with all simple and marital weapons, but no type of armor. The only shield they are proficient with is the buckler.

Spells per Day: A devout hunter continues the magical training he began as a divine spellcaster. For every two devout hunter levels gained, the character gains new spells per day as if he had also gained one level in a divine spellcasting class. He does not, however, gain any other benefit of the spellcasting class (improved chance of controlling or rebuking undead, metamagic or item creation feats, and so on).
     If a character had more than one divine spellcasting class before he became a devout hunter, he must decide to which class he adds each level of devout hunter for the purpose of determining spells per day.

Hunter’s Eye (Ex): His devotion to the hunt sharpens the devout hunter’s survival and tracking skills, granting him a cumulative +1 competence bonus to Wilderness Lore for each level of devout hunter he gains.

Hunter’s Stride (Ex): The devout hunter has a speed faster than what is normal for his race by +10 feet when wearing no armor, light armor, or medium armor (and not carrying a heavy load). For example, a human devout hunter in studded leather armor has a standard speed of 40 feet. This increase stacks with similar speed increases, such as from the barbarian or monk classes.

Evasion (Ex): At 2nd level and above, a devout hunter can avoid even magical and usual attacks with great agility. If the devout hunter makes a successful Reflex saving throw against an attack that normally deals half damage on a successful save, he instead takes no damage. The devout hunter can use evasion only if he is wearing light armor or no armor.

Trackless Step (Su): Beginning at 2nd level, the wanderer of the four winds leaves no trail in natural surroundings and cannot be tracked.

Tireless Hunt (Su): The devout hunter pushes his endurance beyond all normal limits until, at 3rd level, he is so dedicated that he needs no rest and nourishment while on the hunt. Sustained by divine power, he can go a number of days equal to his levels in devout hunter with no food and no rest. However, after this period, he requires one full day of total rest. If he fails to do so, he suffers a cumulative –4 temporary Strength damage and –4 temporary Constitution damage for each day he continues without total rest. He may use this ability once per week.

Swift Hunt (Su): Upon reaching 4th level, a devout hunter learns to quicken his pace, without sacrificing his ability to track efficiently and stealthily. When moving at his full speed, he no longer suffers a –5 penalty on Hide, Move Silently, or Wilderness Lore checks for tracking.

Darkvision (Su): A 5th level devout hunter gains darkvision up to 60 ft.

Scent (Ex): Beginning at 5th level, a devout hunter’s senses are so highly attuned that he can utilize the scent ability. This ability allows the green hunter to detect approaching enemies, sniff out hidden foes, and track by sense of smell. He can identify familiar odors just as others do familiar sights.
     The devout hunter can detect opponents within 30 feet by sense of smell. If the opponent is upwind, the range increases to 60 feet; if downwind, it drops to 15 feet. Strong scents, such as smoke or rotting garbage, can be detected at twice the ranges noted above. Overpowering scents, such as skunk musk or troglodyte stench, can be detected at triple normal range.
     When the devout hunter detects a scent, the exact location is not revealed — only its presence somewhere within range. He can take a move-equivalent action to note the direction of the scent. If he moves within 5 feet of the source, the devout hunter can pinpoint that source.
     The devout hunter can follow tracks by smell, making a Wisdom check to find or follow a track. The typical DC for a fresh trail is 10 (no matter what kind of surface holds the scent). This DC increases or decreases depending on how string the quarry’s odor is, the number of creatures, and the age of the trail. For each hour that the trail is cold, the DC increases by 2. The ability otherwise follows the rules for the Track feat. A devout hunter tracking by scent ignores the effects of surface conditions and poor visibility.

Locate Creature (Sp): Once per day, a 6th level devout hunter can produce an effect identical to that of a locate creature spell cast by a sorcerer of the devout hunter’s character level, though the effect is divine, not arcane.

Leap of the Wilds (Ex): A 7th level devout hunter can make a sudden leaping attack toward his opponent, surprising the foe and gaining a tactical advantage. This maneuver is effectively a charge attack, except the devout hunter is able to make a full-round action once he reaches his opponent. The devout hunter gets a +10 bonus on his Jump check for this attack (and ignores the usual maximums for jumping distance). Once he has closed in on his opponent, he may then make his full round of actions normally. If the distance is greater than that between the devout hunter and the opponent, the devout hunter can limit the distance to that of the opponent as a free action.

Freedom of Movement (Sp): Upon reaching 8th level, the devout hunter can produce an effect like a freedom of movement spell cast by a druid of the devout hunter’s character level. It is usable three times per day.

Improved Evasion (Ex): The evasion ability improves. A 9th level devout hunter still takes no damage on a successful Reflex saving throw against attacks such as a dragon’s breath weapon or a fireball, but henceforth he takes only half damage on a failed save.

Find the Path (Sp): At 10th level, the devout hunter can produce an effect like a find the path spell cast by a druid of the devout hunter’s character level. It is usable three times per day.

Dungeons and Dragons ® and Wizards of the Coast ® are registered trademarks of Wizards of the Coast and are used with permission. The D20 System and D20 System Logo are registered trademarks of Wizards of the Coast and are used according to the terms of the d20 System License version 1.0. A copy of this License can be found at Wizards' d20 home page. This content is produced under version 1.0, 1.0a, and/or draft versions of the Open Game License, the d20 System Trademark Logo Guide, and System Reference Document by permission of Wizards of the Coast.

Designation of Product Identity: The following items are hereby designated as Product Identity in accordance with Section 1(e) of the Open Game License, version 1.0a: Any and all darketower.net logos and identifying marks and trade dress, including all darketower.net product and product line names; any locations, gods, historic events, magic items, organizations; and any and all stories, storylines, plots, characters, thematic elements, fiction and dialogue; web page design; and all artwork, symbols, designs, depictions, illustrations, maps and cartography, likenesses, poses, logos, graphic designs, except such elements that already appear in the D20 System Reference Document and are already OGC by virtue of appearing there. The above product identity remains the intellectual property of the credited creators, and is considered Closed Content.

Designation of Open Content: Subject to the product identity designation above, the following portions of this darketower.net website are designated as open game content: All prestige classes except the prestige class description (material between the name of the prestige class and the hit dice).

 This page was last updated on September 23, 2004 .