Saturday Potpourri – The Nemesis and the Undead Slayer (Slayer Archetypes)

The Nemesis (Slayer Archetype)

There are few things can motivate a man like revenge.  Burn his village and a peaceful man takes up the sword.  Kill his family and he’ll endure the fire of nine hells seeking retribution.  The nemesis uses the power of vengeance as a tool. He can wear it like a cloak; changing for a new one each day as needed.  

The nemesis is an archetype of the slayer class.

Daily Vendetta

At 1st level, the nemesis can spend ten minutes each day to formulate a vendetta against a single enemy type taken from the ranger’s favored enemy list.  For 24 hours, the nemesis gains the benefit of his studied target ability against all enemies from that group. Additionally, he may not use studied target against any enemies other than those in the group he selects for his daily vendetta.  

This ability alters studied target and replaces the slayer talents gained at 2nd and 4th level.

Shared Vendetta

At 6th level, as a move action the nemesis can share his daily vendetta with his allies. All allies within 30’ of the nemesis gain all the benefits of daily vendetta enjoyed by the nemesis for one round. The nemesis may use shared vendetta a number of times per day equal to 3 + his Wisdom modifier.

This ability replaces the slayer talents gained at 6th and 8th level.

Menacing Feint

At 7th level, as a standard action, a nemesis can purposefully miss a melee attack against a creature that is subject to his daily vendetta. When he does, the creature is denied its Dexterity bonus to AC until the start of the nemesis’s next turn. The nemesis may use menacing feint a number of times per day equal to 3 + his Wisdom modifier.

This ability replaces stalker and swift tracker.  

The Undead Slayer (Slayer Archetype)

The scourge of the undead is a curse upon the land. Half rotted corpses escape the grave, perfumed with the smell of death and filled with a hatred of the living.  Few are more dedicated to eliminating this evil than the undead slayer.

The undead slayer is an archetype of the slayer class.

Study Undead

At 2nd level, the undead slayer may perform study target against undead enemies as a move or swift action.  

This ability replaces the slayer talent gained at 2nd level.

Hallowing Radiance

At 3rd level, as a swift action, the undead slayer can imbue one of his weapons with radiant energy, adding 1d6 bonus to the damage of the weapon versus undead enemies for one round.  The undead slayer may use undead bane a number of times per day equal to his level.

At 8th level, and every 5 levels after, the bonus to damage increases by 1d6, to a maximum of 4d6 at 18th level.

This ability replaces sneak attack.

Hallowing Strike

At 10th level, when the undead slayer attacks with a weapon imbued with hallowing radiance and scores a critical hit against an undead creature with hit dice equal to or lower than the undead slayer, the undead creature must make a Fortitude save (DC equal to 10 + 1/2 the slayer’s level + the slayer’s Wisdom modifier) or die.

This ability replaces the advanced slayer talent gained at 10th level.



About mmiller

Mike Miller first discovered RPG’s in the days of TSR. The mention of a beholder or mind flayer still twists his guts with nervous dread, though now with a tinge of nostalgia. He had no publishing experience prior to writing for the OGN, but has long enjoyed creating histories and legends for his homebrewed worlds.

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