Ascetic

Adventures. Ascetics leave the monastery to test what they've learned, to serve the Custodians of the Living Light, or because the monastery sent them. Lantern ascetics guard pilgrims, escort votaries and stand between Usmon's people and the wars beyond its borders. The Unlit go where the Council of Arcanum needs eyes and hands it can deny: into Staerhiel's palaces, Adryae's guildhalls and the Registry's books.

Characteristics. The ascetic is Eldriloch's monk: an unarmed, unarmored warrior who hits fast, moves faster and shrugs off what would stop anyone else. They fight with fists, feet and simple weapons, and their training is aimed squarely at the machine age. An ascetic's blows break steel, their mind resists the aether, and at the height of their training a single palm strike can stop a souldriven's heart of fibrolite. Every ascetic follows one of two paths: the Lantern, who protects, or the Unlit, who hunts from the dark.

Outlook. Ascetics distrust anything that makes people need machines, and most of them distrust the people who sell those machines more. Lantern ascetics serve the monastery and Usmon. The Unlit serve the Council of Arcanum, officially or otherwise, and some have learned that the Council's secrets pay better elsewhere.

Religion. The monastery at Peltragow is devoted to Aostre, and most Lantern ascetics keep her teachings: protect and nurture. Their discipline is not flux, though, and the Covenant has no hold on it. The Unlit keep whatever faith suits their cover.

Background. Most ascetics were given to the monastery as children, Sullied orphans and younger children of Usmon's families alike. Students spend years copying books, lighting the monastery's lanterns and sneaking onto the Justicars' practice yard. A few are trained by a single master in some forgotten hall far from Peltragow. The Unlit choose their students from among the monastery's own, and the chosen simply stop appearing at morning lessons.

Races. Any. The ascetic's discipline isn't flux, so runekar, malumtene and even ashen can learn it. Runekar ascetics are rare but formidable. The monastery has trained at least one souldriven, and nobody there will discuss it.

Other Classes. Ascetics respect wardens and distrust engineers. They regard fleshgrafters with something close to pity: a body is the one thing a person truly owns, and grafting it away is surrender. Fighters and ascetics make natural training partners. Runners and the Unlit recognize each other on sight.

Role. A fast, durable skirmisher with strong saves. The Lantern holds a line and protects allies. The Unlit strikes from hiding and is gone before the target falls. Both are the party's best answer to constructs and to hostile aether.

Abilities. Wisdom powers the ascetic's AC bonus and many of their abilities. Dexterity keeps them hard to hit, Strength makes their blows count, and Constitution lets them take a hit when Dexterity fails.

Race: Any.

Hit Die: d8.

Starting Wealth: 5d4 gl (12 gl 5 sv).

Class Skills

The ascetic's class skills (and the key ability for each) are Balance (Dex), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Hide (Dex), Jump (Str), Knowledge (arcana) (Int), Knowledge (history) (Int), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), Spot (Wis), Swim (Str) and Tumble (Dex). The Unlit add Disguise (Cha), Open Lock (Dex) and Sleight of Hand (Dex).

Skill Points at 1st Level: (4 + Int modifier) × 4.

Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 4 + Int modifier.

All of the following are class features of the ascetic. Where a feature works like the 3.5 monk's, it uses the monk's rules exactly.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Ascetics are proficient with the club, light crossbow, heavy crossbow, dagger, handaxe, javelin, kama, nunchaku, quarterstaff, sai, shuriken, siangham, sling and spanner. The Unlit are also proficient with the short sword and the hand crossbow. Ascetics aren't proficient with any armor or shields. An ascetic who wears armor, carries a shield or carries a medium or heavy load loses their AC bonus, fast movement and flurry of blows.

Path: At 1st level, an ascetic chooses the Lantern or the Unlit. The choice is permanent, and it determines the path features gained at 1st, 2nd, 6th, 10th, 14th and 18th level.

AC Bonus (Ex): An ascetic adds their Wisdom bonus (if any) to AC, plus the bonus shown on the table. These bonuses apply even against touch attacks and when flat-footed, as the monk's do.

Flurry of Blows (Ex): As the monk: a full attack with one extra attack, using the attack bonuses on the table, with unarmed strikes or the ascetic's special weapons (kama, nunchaku, quarterstaff, sai, shuriken, siangham and spanner).

Unarmed Strike: As the monk: Improved Unarmed Strike as a bonus feat, lethal or nonlethal damage at no penalty, and the damage on the table.

Bonus Feat: At 1st, 2nd and 6th level, an ascetic gains a bonus feat. At 1st level, choose Improved Grapple or Deflect Arrows (Unlit: Improved Grapple or Point Blank Shot). At 2nd level, choose Combat Reflexes or Dodge. At 6th level, choose Improved Disarm or Improved Trip. The ascetic needn't meet the prerequisites.

Evasion (Ex): At 2nd level, as the monk.

Fast Movement (Ex): At 3rd level, an ascetic gains the enhancement bonus to speed shown on the table.

Still Mind (Ex): At 3rd level, +2 on saves against spells and effects from the enchantment school. An aetherian can't cast enchantments in Eldriloch, so in practice this protects against flux that shakes the heart, exspiratis whispers and malumtene tricks.

Breaker's Hand (Ex): At 4th level, an ascetic's unarmed strikes ignore up to 5 points of hardness, and they ignore the damage reduction of constructs (including souldriven and mechanoids). This improves to hardness 10 at 10th level, and at 16th level their unarmed strikes ignore hardness up to 20 and count as adamantine for overcoming damage reduction. Breaker's Hand replaces the monk's ki strike.

Slow Fall (Ex): At 4th level, as the monk, at the distances on the table. Airship crews tell stories about ascetics who stepped off the rail on purpose.

Purity of Body (Ex): At 5th level, immunity to all diseases. The fumes of the foundries and the Mourning's fog are not diseases.

Iron Breath (Ex): At 7th level, an ascetic can heal their own wounds by discipline alone, up to twice their ascetic level in hit points each day, spread over as many uses as they like. Each use is a standard action. This isn't flux, and the Covenant has never been able to decide whether that makes it a miracle or a heresy. Iron Breath replaces wholeness of body.

Improved Evasion (Ex): At 9th level, as the monk.

Diamond Body (Ex): At 11th level, immunity to poisons of all kinds.

Rooftop Stride (Ex): At 12th level, an ascetic takes no penalty on Climb, Jump or Balance checks for moving at full speed, has no maximum on jump distance, and can run along a rope, rail or ledge as if it were open ground. Rooftop Stride replaces abundant step, because nothing in Eldriloch teleports.

Still Thread (Ex): At 13th level, an ascetic gains spell resistance equal to their ascetic level + 10 against spells and effects of the aether current. It doesn't apply to flux or anything else. They can lower it as a standard action, to accept an ally's pattern. Still Thread replaces diamond soul.

Stilling Palm (Su): At 15th level, once per week, an ascetic can deliver a stilling strike with an unarmed attack. The ascetic declares it before rolling, and a miss doesn't use it up. A construct struck by it, including a souldriven, must make a Fortitude save (DC 10 + ½ ascetic level + Wisdom modifier) or stop: its fibrolite core goes dark and it can't act until a Craft (engineering) check (DC 25) restarts it. A souldriven stopped this way doesn't die, but it doesn't wake on its own. A living creature that fails the save is stunned for 1d4 rounds. Stilling Palm replaces quivering palm.

Timeless Body (Ex): At 17th level, as the monk.

Unbroken (Ex): At 19th level, Still Thread applies to spells and effects of every current, and the ascetic is immune to any effect that would change their shape against their will. Unbroken replaces empty body. Becoming ethereal is too close to opening a door the Sunder already opened once.

Perfect Self: At 20th level, an ascetic gains damage reduction 10/adamantine: the strength of steel, without any of its chains. They remain their own type and race. Perfect Self replaces the monk's, which would make them an outsider.

Ex-Ascetics: Eldriloch has no alignment, so an ascetic never loses their training for their beliefs, and can multiclass freely. They lose it to steel. An ascetic who accepts a graft into their body loses their AC bonus, flurry of blows, fast movement and every supernatural ability until the graft is removed and they spend a month in discipline to recover. Carried devices, firearms and tools are fine. A grafted body is a body that's given up.

The monastery's lanterns burn every night in Peltragow, and the students who tend them learn that a light is for others. Lantern ascetics are protectors. They stand between the people they guard and whatever is coming, catch the arrows aimed at their friends, and end fights without killing when they can. Most serve the Custodians of the Living Light.

Stunning Fist (1st): The Lantern gains Stunning Fist as a bonus feat, with the monk's extra uses: one use per ascetic level per day.

Guarding Hands (2nd): With Deflect Arrows, the Lantern can deflect a ranged attack aimed at an adjacent ally as well as at themselves, still once per round. From 10th level, they can also deflect bullets.

Hold the Line (6th): Allies adjacent to the Lantern gain a +2 dodge bonus to AC while the Lantern isn't flat-footed.

Unshaken (10th): The Lantern is immune to fear, and allies within 10 feet gain a +4 morale bonus on saves against fear.

Share Breath (14th): The Lantern can spend Iron Breath on an ally they touch. It grants temporary hit points instead of healing, which last 1 hour.

Perfect Guard (18th): Once per round, the Lantern can deflect any ranged attack or ray aimed at themselves or an adjacent ally, including spells that require a ranged touch attack.

Every lantern in Peltragow has a student whose job is to put it out at dawn. A few of those students are taught that the dark is useful too. The Unlit are the monastery's secret: spies, saboteurs and killers who serve the Council of Arcanum and never admit it. They dress as servants, couriers and pilgrims. They work in smoke and shadow, strike from hiding, and leave nothing behind but a cold lantern. Officially, they don't exist. The Registry would very much like to know who they are.

Unlit Strike (1st): The Unlit deals an extra 1d6 points of damage when attacking a target that is flat-footed or that the Unlit flanks, with unarmed strikes, ascetic weapons, short swords or ranged weapons within 30 feet. It works like sneak attack, including the creatures it doesn't affect, and stacks with sneak attack. It increases to 2d6 at 6th level, 3d6 at 10th, 4d6 at 14th and 5d6 at 18th. Unlit Strike replaces the Lantern's Stunning Fist.

Smoke Step (2nd): Once per day as a move action, the Unlit can fill their square with smoke from a hidden pellet and immediately make a Hide check, even while observed. The smoke gives concealment for 1 round. They can do this one more time per day at 6th level and every four levels after (up to 5 times at 18th).

Wall Run (6th): The Unlit can move along walls and ceilings as part of a move, as long as they end their move on a floor or ledge. At 14th level, they can end it clinging to a wall.

Unlit Craft (10th): The Unlit never risks poisoning themselves when applying poison, and can make Craft (alchemy) checks to brew poisons and smoke pellets without a laboratory. They are also proficient with every explosive on the Explosives table.

Vanish (14th): The Unlit can make Hide checks in any area of shadowy light or smoke, even while being observed and with nothing to hide behind.

Cold Lantern (18th): The Unlit can deliver Stilling Palm through an Unlit Strike. If it does, it can be used once per day instead of once per week.

Lantern or Unlit? The Lantern is a defender: put them next to whoever needs protecting and let them catch what comes. The Unlit is a striker: get them flanking, get them hidden, and let Unlit Strike and flurry do the rest.

Break the Machines. Breaker's Hand makes an ascetic the party's answer to souldriven, mechanoids, sentry turrets and locked iron doors. Against the aether, Still Thread does the same at 13th level.

Keep It Light. Armor, shields and heavy loads take away most of what makes an ascetic work. A porter mechanoid is no help either. Most ascetics would rather carry less.