Four of the feats presented on this page comprise a way to introduce
spellcasting into a campaign that is not tied to any particular class.
It allows players and GMs to bring a more literary feel to the progression
of characters in a d20 Modern game. (Even a single-classed Strong Hero
might learn to wield magic using the Create Ritual Dagger and Spellcasting
feats... and he can improve his ability by taking Enhanced Spellcasting
and Improved Spellcasting.)
Create Ritual Dagger
The character knows an enchantment that permits him to infuse a bladed
weapon with the powers of evil and darkness.
The ritual dagger is one of the most valuable and prized
possessions of dark magicians and sorcerers. Any knife or edged weapon
with a blade more than four inches in length can be turned into a ritual
dagger; many practitioners of the dark arts enchant elaborate knives
and swords, but a rare few--like Zombie Master “Murder” Legendre--make
ritual daggers from non-descript, utilitarian knives. To do so, the character
must cut himself with the blade (inflicting 1 point of damage) at midnight
under a new moon. While the blood is fresh on the blade, he performs a
six-minute ritual that drains 250XP into the weapon, enchanting it.
Prerequisite: Knowledge (arcane lore) +2
Benefit: This feat is a prerequisite for a number of other
feats, such as Create Wax Effigy, Create Zombies, and Summon Death Familiar.
It allows a character to create ritual daggers for use by himself
and others in the performance of dark rites.
The ritual dagger is treated as a magic weapon for purposes
of damage reduction, but it does provide any bonuses to attack or damage.
It is a necessary for the creation of wax effigies, the reanimation of
corpses as zombies, the summoning of familiars, and even the binding of
certain powerful creatures, such as demons.
In the hands of anyone other than the creator, a ritual dagger
is just another edged weapon; it is magical, and it radiates necromantic
magic, but its special purposes serve only the creator who gave up part
of his life force (XP) to power it.
Special: A character with this feat can create ritual
daggers for others using the method described above with the following
changes. He does this by first cutting the person for whom the dagger is
intended and then cutting himself (inflicting 1 point of damage in each
case). Each character loses 150XP to enchant the dagger.
Such a ritual dagger can be used to its full effect either
by either character whose blood was used to create it. However, this ritual
dagger has the additional benefit of allowing the character with the
Create Ritual Dagger feat to gain a hold over the other person. So long
as the ritual dagger exists, the character with the feat may bestow
curse, remote view, and torture the other person as if in possession of
a wax effigy of him or her. The character simply has to visualize
that person and the desired accursed state is visited upon him or her for
as long as the character maintains concentration. (See the Create Wax Effigy
feat for details.)
A ritual dagger is destroyed if it is melted down or ground
to dust.
A character with this feat can create any number of ritual
daggers.
Create Wax Effigy
The wax effigy is a minor enchanted item that can be used in
a number of different ways. It is highly useful for zombie masters, as
it is key powerful enchanted item that has numerous uses. It can be used
as a scrying device, or as a way to visit curses upon the person the wax
effigy represents.
A wax effigy is a symbolic carving of a person that is
carved with a ritual dagger from wax from one or more candles that have
burned at least 7 minutes and that is in contact with something closely
relating to the person it is made to represent, such as a clothing, hair,
or fingernail trimmings.
A wax effigy need not be terribly detailed, but it must
be recognizable a human figure when its creator is done. (It must have
a head, a body, arms, and legs.)
Prerequisite: Create Ritual Dagger, Summon Death Familiar,
Knowledge (arcane lore) 6 ranks
Benefit: A wax effigy is used to perform a variety of
harmful magical rituals. Each use requires a successful Knowledge (arcane
lore) skill check, and possibly items in addition to the wax effigy. The
uses of a wax effigy follow.
Bestow Curse (DC16): The maker touches the wax
effigy while concentrating on the target. This causes him to feel weak,
feverish, and makes it hard for him to focus. The target suffers a -4 penalty
on skill checks, attack rolls, ability checks, and saves. The penalty lasts
for as long as the character maintains concentration.
Kill the Target (DC 15): The character can cause
his victim to die of apparent natural causes (massive stroke, heart failure,
etc.). The wax effigy is destroyed during the ritual.
The character must concentrate on the target and envision how
he wants him to die, while holding the wax effigy for 13 minutes.
This requires total concentration on the part of the character, and as
the minutes tick by, the target feels increasingly sickly and uncomfortable.
At the end of the 13 minutes, the target receives a Fort save
(DC15). If the save is successful, the target takes 1d6+3 points of damage,
as he suffers a minor version of whatever physical ailment the character
was attempting to slay him or her with. The target suffers a temporary
-1 penalty to all attack rolls and skill checks for a number of days equal
to 20 minus his or her Constitution score (minimum of 1 day).
If the target fails the Fort save, he or she dies immediately
at the end of the 13th minute, perhaps letting out a scream of horror and
pain. If the target's body is not cremated or buried with rituals that
will prevent it from animated as a zombie, the corpse will rise two nights
later as an uncontrolled zombie and go on a rampage.
This function can be directed at the target only once every three
months, and the character must create a new wax effigy of the target
before attempting again.
Remote Viewing (DC12): So long as the maker holds
the wax effigy and concentrates on the target, he can “see” the
person and his location in his mind's eye. Only the target and a five-foot
area around him can be “seen”-anything beyond that is seemingly obscured
by swirling mist.
The target being spied upon in this fashion gets a momentary
sense that someone is watching him, and the GM should roll a secret Will
save (DC21) for the target. If it is successful, the holder of the wax
effigy only manages to spy upon the character for just one round, and
cannot do so again for at least 24 hours.
The target can be viewed anywhere in the world, unless protected
by spells, charms or magic artifacts that prevent remote viewing (or scrying,
or any other term for magical observation of distant people and locales).
Torture (DC11): By squeezing or inserting needles
into a wax effigy, varying degrees of pain and suffering can be
visited upon the person it represents.
When the wax effigy is squeezed, the victim finds it difficult
to breathe; the difficulty depends on how hard the effigy is gripped.
If the grip is light, the target feels as though the air is somehow thick
around him and feels slightly short of breath, but if it is held in a crushing
grip, the target feels as though heavy weights have been placed on his
ribcage and he finds it impossible to breathe. He must roll a Fort save
(DC 21) or fall unconscious. If the save is successful, he suffers a -6
penalty to all attack rolls, skill checks, and saving throws until the
grip is released on the wax effigy. The GM can adjust the DC for the initial
saving throw and the later penalties according to how hard the wax effigy
is being gripped.
If needles are inserted into the wax effigy, the target
suffers a sharp stabbing pain in the corresponding part of his body. The
pain makes it difficult to function, so target suffers a -4 penalty to
all attack rolls, skill checks, Ref saves, and Will saves. A successful
Will save (DC15) reduces the penalties to -2, as he or she manages to struggle
on despite the pain.
The pain persists for as long as creator of the wax effigy
holds it and the needle remains in place. Although any number of needles
can be stuck in the effigy, the penalties to the target remain the same;
but, for the purposes of roleplaying, it must be noted that the pain is
more intense.
Either use of torture can only be invoked once per 24 hours;
once the character releases the target from torment, a full day must pass
before the dark powers may again be called upon for that purpose.
The target can be reached anywhere in the world, unless he is
inside a properly sanctified holy place or protected by charms that ward
off curses.
Zombify (DC8): By holding the wax effigy over a
flame while concentrating, the character can attempt to kill the target
and cause him to rise as a zombie.
In order to perform zombify, the character must be within 10
yards of the target and his death familiar for every point he has in Intelligence.
(If Murder Legendre wanted to use a wax effigy to slay an animate a foe,
he would need to be within 150 yards of the target and his familiar.)
(Other uses of zombify is available to characters with
levels in the zombie master advanced class. See the class description.)
Conceal Item
The character can hide small objects on his person with the skill of
a magician.
Prerequisite: Nimble, Sleight of Hand 1 rank.
Benefit: If the character takes 10 to hide Fine, Diminutive,
or Tiny objects on his person, they can't be noticed through Spot skill
checks. Anyone actively observing the character hoping to find hidden objects
suffers a -15 penalty to the Search skill check to detect them. (Circumstance
and other bonuses may offset this penalty; for example, if someone is “patting
down” the character, the penalty to the skill check is effectively only
-11, due to the +4 circumstance bonus for physical contact.
Special: A character may hide a number of objects on his person
equal to his Sleight of Hand skill ranks.
Create Zombie Powder
The character knows the secret of creating zombie powder. (See "Magic
Items" for details on zombie powder.)
Prerequisite: Zombie Master 1 or better, Craft (chemical)
6 ranks
Benefit: Without this feat, the character cannot create
zombie powder, the foundation of a zombie master's ability to bring the
Living Dead under his control.
| Creating Zombie Powder
Zombie powder is very difficult to create, and the raw materials are even harder to come by. One phial requires 1 gram of graveyard soil, 1 gram of afterbirth secured following the delivery of a stillborn baby, 30 grams of finely ground human bone, and 250 grams of shade blossom, a very rare flower that is found in virtually inaccessible valleys high in the mountains of Cambodia. The raw materials are processed and distilled over three months, working from full moon to full moon. The resulting powder is filtered for an additional month. The equipment used for distilling the powder is highly specialized, and its design is as secret as the ingredients. At the end of the process, the Zombie Master must roll a Craft (chemical) skill check (DC 16). If the check is successful, 1d3 phials are created; the rest of the powder is so much harmless white dust, although it may be useful for a zombie master who wants to bluff enemies, or sell useless trash to would-be rivals, or who want to make zombie powder antidote. If the check fails, all the end product is useless, except to create antidote. (See Zombie Powder Antidote in the “Magic Items” section.) The upside to this extensive creation process is that, depending on how the zombie master uses the phial of powder, he might expose hundreds or thousands of people with one phial. |
Create Zombies
The character can cause corpses to rise as mindless servants under
his command.
Prerequisite: Summon Death Familiar, Knowledge (arcane
lore) +5
Benefit: The character is familiar with an evil
ritual that causes dead corpses to rise under his command.
Special: With each ritual performed, the character can
animate one zombie for every 3 ranks the character has in Knowledge (arcane),
rounded down.
The zombies created remain under the character's control indefinitely.
They follow the character's spoken commands. The zombies can follow the
caster, or can remain in an area and attack any creature (or just a specific
type of creature) entering the place. The undead remain animated until
they are destroyed. (A destroyed a zombie can't be animated again.)
The ritual can only be performed once per 24-hour period. No
matter how many times the character performs the ritual, however, he can
control up to 4 HD worth of zombies per character level. If the character
attempts a ritual that causes him to exceed this number, no corpses animate.
Any undead the character commands (if the character has the ability
to command undead) do not count toward the limit.
A zombie can be created only from a mostly intact corpse; the
creature must have a true anatomy. The statistics for a zombie depend on
its size, not on what abilities the creature may have had while alive.
(See pages 267-268 of the d20 Modern rulebook for details and statistics
on the undead variety of zombies.)
Enhanced Spellcasting
The character has unlocked arcane secrets that have brought him spellcasting
abilities.
Prerequisite: Wisdom 13+, Knowledge (arcane lore) 7 ranks,
Spellcasting feat.
Benefit: The character gains and casts spells as though
he was a 3rd-level divine caster. (This feat replaces the benefits of the
Spellcasting feat.)
Special: Same as the Spellcasting feat, except the spells
are treated as if cast by a 3rd-level caster, no matter what the character's
actual caster level is.
Flickering Shadow
You are extraordinarily light of step, so you may remain hidden even
while rushing past would-be captors.
Prerequisite: Stealthy, Hide 5 ranks, Move Silently 5
ranks.
Benefit: The character may move up to his full normal
movement rate without suffering a penalty to Hide and Move Silently skill
checks. The character suffers only a -10 penalty to Move Silently checks
while attacking, running, or charging.
Special: When a character without this feat moves more
than half speed and up to the his full speed, he takes a -5 penalty. Without
this feat it's practically impossible (-20 penalty) to move silently while
attacking, running, or charging.
Improved Spellcasting
The character has unlocked arcane secrets that have brought him spellcasting
abilities.
Prerequisite: Wisdom 14+, Knowledge (arcane lore) 9 ranks,
Create Ritual Dagger, Enhanced Spellcasting.
Benefit: The character gains and casts spells as though
he was a 4th-level divine caster. (This feat replaces the benefits of the
Spellcasting feat.)
Special: Same as the Spellcasting feat, except the spells
are treated as if cast by a 4th-level caster, no matter what the character's
actual caster level is.
Negotiator
The character is good at gauging and swaying responses.
Benefit: +2 bonus on all Diplomacy and Sense Motive checks.
No Profile
The character goes through life unnoticed by virtually everyone.
Prerequisite: Low Profile
Benefit: The character's Reputation bonus no longer increases
due to level advancement.
Special: If the character selects the Renown feat (or
any similar feat that boosts a character's Rep score) after this one, No
Profile is negated. The character may not select another feat to take its
place.
Soul Mate
The character has a deep, spiritual connection with another character.
When they meet, it will be “love at first sight.”
The Soul Mate feat models the “instant romance” that is so common
in the movies of the 1930s and 1940s. Examples of it include Hugh Drummond
and Phyllis Clavering in the “Bulldog Drummond” series, and Neil and Madeleine
in White Zombie.
Benefit: The character designates another character who also has
the soul mate feat to be the “soul mate” (that in turn designates this
character as his or her “soul mate.”)
Whenever those two characters are together and working toward a shared
goal, or fighting for or defending each other, each of the receives a +4
morale bonus to all related skill checks, and a +1 bonus to attribute checks,
attack rolls, and to Defense rating. (If the characters are in two separate
locations but still working on the same task, the morale bonus to skill
checks is reduced to +2. There is no bonus to attribute checks, attack
rolls and Defense ratings.)
Further, if a character is ordered to attack his or her soul
mate while influenced by mind-affecting or mind-controlling drugs, magic,
or from some other supernatural source (such as a zombie master's powder
and psychic link), the character receives a Will save (DC14).
If the save is successful, the character does not attack the
soul mate, but instead hesitates, confused, and loses all actions for that
round. The command can be repeated, but it will always prompt a saving
throw. If a natural 20 is rolled while making these saving throws, the
character is filled with panic and dread over what he or she was about
to do (even if they are not in possession of their full mental faculties)
and they will flee the area, desperately trying to get away from the soul
mate to keep him or her from harm.
Special: The bond these two characters share is so deep
that they can sense each other's distress when they are apart.
When one of the soul mates is sick, frightened, or in danger,
the other feels agitated and restless. For every hour that goes by without
the character taking some action to help his beloved, the character must
roll a Will save (DC12, with a +1 to the DC for every hour). Once the saving
throw fails, the character suffers a -2 morale bonus to all saving throws,
attack rolls, and skill checks until he starts making an effort to reach
and help his soul mate. (The action can be something as small as calling
the soul mate on the phone to see what is wrong… but if the call doesn't
result in answers, it won't remove any penalties or stop the Will saves
until the character rushes to find his soul mate.)
The restless and agitated feeling possesses the character even
if he doesn't know his soul mate is in danger or not feeling well. In such
a case, the character just knows “something is wrong.”
If the situation is such that the soul mate has been kidnapped,
or is perhaps trapped in a collapsed building, or otherwise in endangered
in an unknown location, the bond they share allows the character to “sense”
where the soul mate is located. Whenever the character is within a radius
of miles equal to his Wisdom bonus, he can make a Wisdom check (DC11) to
know the general direction to the soul mate's location. A new roll is required
every hour of searching.
If the soul mate dies, the character must roll a Will save (DC19;
DC25 if the character witnesses the death with his own eyes). If the saving
throw fails, the character suffers temporary insanity.
Every day (starting immediately after the death of the soul mate)
the character must roll on the following chart. He is then subject to the
conditions described.
Soul Mate Loss Insanity Chart
| d20 roll | Effect |
| 1-8: Depression | .-4 to all skill checks and attack rolls. |
| 9-14: Mania | +2 to all skill checks and attack rolls related to honoring or avenging the soul mate. |
| 15: Rage | The character attacks anyone involved (or perceivied to be) with the death of the soul mate, or anyone who tries to stop him from making the attacks, or anyone who insults the memory of the soul mate. The character gains a +2 on attack and damage rolls, but suffers a -4 on Defense rating. |
| 16-17: Weakness | Temporary -6 to Constitution score. |
| 18: Roll two more times | Both results apply. Treat other 18s as 19- 20. (If the second roll is 18-20, it negates the first result and the character seems normal.) |
| 19-20: Character seems normal | No obvious ill effects from the loss of the soul mate. |
The character also re-rolls the Will save each day. The temporary
insanity (and the daily rolls) persists until the character succeeds at
the saving throw. At that time, he manages to shake off the loss his soul
mate, but the void in his heart remains.
(It is possible for a soul mate to both be “dead” and “in danger”
if they have been added to the ranks of a zombie master's Living Dead.
Somewhere, buried deep within the zombified soul mate, the connection still
exists, causing no end of torment and confusing for the still-living soul
mater, who is torn between the knowledge that his beloved is dead and the
instinctual sense that she is still out there somewhere, suffering.)
NOTE: The permanent death of a soul mate results in the
loss of all benefits from this feat. The character does not get to replace
this feat with another one, nor can he ever designate a second soul mate.
Spellcasting
The character is has mastered arcane lore that has given him minor
spellcasting abilities.
Prerequisite: Wisdom 12+, Knowledge (arcane lore) 6 ranks,
Create Ritual Dagger.
Benefit: The character gains and casts spells as though
he was a 2nd-level divine caster.
Special: The character does not gain bonus spells for
high Wisdom, and his ritual dagger fulfills any requirements for
a holy symbol or other divine focus.
If the character is already able to cast divine spells, or becomes
a divine spellcaster through actual character class levels, the spells
gained through this are treated as bonus spells. They remain as if cast
by a 2nd-level caster, no matter what the character's actual caster level
is.
Summon Death Familiar
The character can call forth a spirit that takes the form of an animal
and serves as an intermediary between him and the dark powers of the Underworld,
giving him the ability to call upon them to animate the dead and cast deadly
magical spells. The death familiar also grants the character a small amount
of permanent supernatural abilities, which are dictated by the form the
death familiar takes.
Prerequisite: Knowledge (arcane lore) +4, Create Ritual
Dagger.
Benefit: Summoning a death familiar requires the character
to perform a ritual involving a recently dead body (no more than 48 hours
before the ritual starts) into which he must carve specific arcane symbols
over the three nights of the new moon using his ritual dagger. (Each night,
two hours must be spent on the ritual.)
The character must make a successful Knowledge (arcane lore)
skill check (DC14) on the third night to see that he carved the symbols
accurately enough.
Whether the check succeeds or fails, a portion of the character's
life energy (500XP) are drained by the dark entities he was trying to please,
and the corpse vanishes into nothingness.
If the skill check was successful, an animal appears where the
corpse had been, an animal that regards the character with an unnatural
intelligence as a voice whispers in his head: “Your gift pleases those
Who Dwell in the Void. I will serve you, as I serve them.”
This creature is the death familiar. The form it takes can be
directed by the character (during the ritual-the GM allows the character
to pick the specific familiar) or it is chosen by the dark powers (GM call,
or a random d6 roll compared to the list below), but the form is limited
to that of a crow, jackal, or vulture.
Death familiars all have these traits:
• All the basic traits and abilities as the animal is resembles,
except it has a number of Hit Dice equal to the character level of the
person who summoned it.
• Half the number of hit points as the summoner (rounded down).
• Attack and Defense bonuses equal to that of the summoner (or
the animal it resembles, whichever is better).
• Base saving throw bonuses equal to those of the summoner (or
the animal it resembles, whichever is better).
• The death familiar has all skills at the level typical to the
animal it resembles. Additionally, it has all the skills of the summoner,
except Craft and Perform skills.
• The death familiar's Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution
attributes are typical for the animal is resembles. Its Intelligence, Wisdom,
and Constitution attributes are all 12+2d6.
A death familiar brings with it several benefits for the character
who calls it. First, they bestow upon the character certain supernatural
traits that remain constant for as long as the character is within four
miles of the familiar. Second, each familiar can teach a character a small
selection of spells that the character may wield at the expense of his
own life force.
Death familiar spells are always considered to be Arcane Evil
Necromancy spells for purposes of immunities and other game effects. In
order to learn spells from a death familiar, the character must meet the
minimum Intelligence attribute requirements to learn and cast arcane spells.
It takes a character one hour per level of spell to master the arcane teachings
of the death familiar. It will offer to teach the character one spell per
week, with the spells being of progressively higher levels as time passes.
The character casts spells learned from a death familiar as a 5th-level
caster, regardless of what his actual caster level may be (assuming he
has one), they do not need to be prepared in advance, and they do not count
toward any daily maximum of spells known.
Each spell cast drains the character of the spell level x100XP,
so, while powerful, the spells are rarely used except in emergencies.)
The types of death familiars, the spells they can teach, and the
special abilities they grant, are as follows.
1-2. Crow. The character gains the Alertness feat, as
well as a telepathic link with the familiar that is good for a four-mile
radius. The crow death familiar can teach cause fear, magic missile,
locate object, protection from arrows/bullets, and lightning bolt.
3-4. Jackal. The character gains the Deceptive feat, as
well as a telepathic link with the familiar that is good for a four-mile
radius. The jackal death familiar can teach change self, jump, blur,
levitate, and hold person.
5-6. Vulture. The character gains the Attentive feat,
as well as a telepathic link with the familiar that is good for a four-mile
radius. The vulture death familiar can teach cause fear, feather fall,
magic missile, ray of fatigue, enhance ability, and haste.
Special: The death familiar faithfully serves the character
until he banishes it, or until it is destroyed in combat. Either event
immediately drains 500XP from the character and he loses the ability to
cast the spells the death familiar taught him. (The spells are powered
by the character's own life-energy, but the death familiar makes it possible
to even cast them.)
A character can only replace a death familiar every 13 months,
so if he loses or banishes it, he must wait a year and one month before
summoning another one.