TAMER OF HORRORS
Salorras Paragon: Tamer of Horrors · Base path: Armsman (Fighter) A 3.5e prestige class for the blessed beast-tamers of the Druids of Horrors in Laernoctus — warriors who bind magical beasts as faithful companions.
The tamers of horrors are renowned tamers of wild beasts, famed across all of Salorras. When humans first settled the region of Laernoctus, they found the surrounding lands full of new and dangerous kinds of beasts and monsters. While some sought to cleanse the place of them, seeing them as a threat, a band of druids of Mother found a different answer: by the divine grace of their goddess, they could pass her blessings to chosen beast-tamers, strengthening their abilities so they could tame even these magical beasts. The sect of the Druids of Horrors took its name from the awe and terror these magical beasts inspire, and the elite of the sect’s blessed warriors of Laernoctus were named tamers of horrors.
Tamers of horrors are people who from a very young age were drawn to nature, showing a particular love for its wild power. As chosen of the Druids of Horrors, they pass through special training and learn everything about animals and magical beasts. The special abilities they gain let them keep magical beasts at their side as faithful companions, forming powerful bonds and sharing many of their powers.
Most tamers of horrors are faithful to the goddess Mother, though plenty simply believe in the power of mother nature. There are, of course, gradations in their moral stance toward the rest of the world, usually depending on which face of the three-faced goddess they prefer to honor.
Tamers of horrors often wear clothing and accessories made from the “trophies” of some magical beast they bested in single combat — leather cloaks, necklaces of teeth, gloves tipped with beast claws. The number, size, and kinds of magical beast companions at a tamer’s side mark their seniority in the order of the tamers of horrors, and so the respect they command from its other members.
Usually tamers of horrors arise from characters with a deep bond to wild nature — in a Salorras game most often wilderness-hardened armsmen, clerics of Mother, or scoundrels who have honed the wild skills.
Tamers of horrors are most easily found in the city-state of Laernoctus and the wider Free Cities of South, in the wild jungles of Uzgar and the swamps of Faeldar, in the forests of the elven kingdoms in Khalendianil, and in exotic places they visit in search of new magical beasts, such as Neluvia and Solevna.
Hit Die: d10.
Requirements
To qualify to become a tamer of horrors, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.
Skills: Handle Animal 8 ranks, Knowledge (arcana) 4 ranks, Knowledge (nature) 4 ranks, Survival 4 ranks.
Feats: Skill Focus (Handle Animal), Skill Focus (Knowledge [arcana]).
Special: The character must be admitted to the order of the Tamers of Horrors in the city-state of Laernoctus, in the Free Cities of South. There, after three months of training with wild animals and magical beasts, they earn the right to join the elite who undergo the beast bond ritual of the Druids of Horrors and so gain the special abilities of the prestige class. The first magical beast a new tamer of horrors must tame is usually assigned to them as a mission by the order.
The Tamer of Horrors
| Level | Base Attack Bonus | Fort | Ref | Will | Special |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | +1 | +2 | +0 | +0 | Horror tamer, magical beast companion, wild empathy |
| 2nd | +2 | +3 | +0 | +0 | Beast Lore, speak with beasts 1/day |
| 3rd | +3 | +3 | +1 | +1 | Animal Affinity, empathic link |
| 4th | +4 | +4 | +1 | +1 | Beast tracker, horror’s anatomy |
| 5th | +5 | +4 | +1 | +1 | Bonded senses (hearing/smell), speak with beasts 2/day |
| 6th | +6 | +5 | +2 | +2 | Extra magical beast companion |
| 7th | +7 | +5 | +2 | +2 | Bonded attributes, horror’s anatomy (greater) |
| 8th | +8 | +6 | +2 | +2 | Command any beast, speak with beasts 3/day |
| 9th | +9 | +6 | +3 | +3 | Bonded senses (sight/touch) |
| 10th | +10 | +7 | +3 | +3 | Beast lord |
Class Skills
The tamer of horrors’s class skills (and the key ability for each) are Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Knowledge (arcana) (Int), Knowledge (nature) (Int), Listen (Wis), Ride (Dex), Sense Motive (Wis), Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis), Swim (Str), and Use Rope (Dex).
Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier.
Class Features
All of the following are features of the tamer of horrors prestige class.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency. A tamer of horrors is proficient with all simple and martial weapons, with light and medium armor, and with bucklers and light shields.
Horror Tamer (Su). After the rite of the Druids of Horrors, the new tamer of horrors gains the ability to tame creatures of the magical beast type far more easily. They may use their wild empathy on any magical beast without the –4 penalty that would normally apply.
Magical Beast Companion (Ex). A tamer of horrors gains the service of a loyal magical beast companion. This works exactly like the druid’s animal companion class feature, except that the tamer chooses from the magical-beast roster below and applies the companion adjustments shown in the table below. If the tamer also has an animal companion from druid or ranger levels, they may keep both companions, and their tamer levels stack with druid or ranger levels for the purpose of advancing the animal companion.
Magical Beast Companion Adjustments
| Class Level | Bonus HD | Natural Armor Adj. | Str/Dex Adj. | Bonus Tricks | Special |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | +0 | +0 | +0 | 1 | Link, share spells |
| 2nd | +1 | +1 | +1 | 2 | Evasion |
| 3rd | +2 | +2 | +2 | 3 | — |
| 4th | +3 | +3 | +3 | 4 | Devotion |
| 5th | +4 | +4 | +4 | 5 | Multiattack |
| 6th | +5 | +5 | +5 | 6 | — |
| 7th | +6 | +6 | +6 | 7 | — |
| 8th | +7 | +7 | +7 | 8 | Improved evasion |
| 9th | +8 | +8 | +8 | 9 | — |
| 10th | +9 | +9 | +9 | 10 | — |
Magical Beast Companion Roster
A tamer chooses their companion from the list below. As with the druid’s alternative companion lists, a beast from a higher bracket may be taken only at the indicated tamer level, applying the listed level penalty to the companion adjustments above.
- 1st level or higher: blink dog, cloaked ape (MM II), hippogriff, phase wasp (MM II), shocker lizard, worg.
- 2nd level or higher (–1): ankheg, bloodsilk spider (MM IV), cockatrice, giant eagle, ethereal marauder, giant owl, pegasus, unicorn.
- 3rd level or higher (–2): aranea, asperi (MM II), displacer beast, five-headed hydra, griffon, owlbear, sea cat.
- 4th level or higher (–3): ambush drake (MM III), avalancher (MM III), basilisk, gambol (MM II), hieracosphinx, manticore, phase spider, six-headed hydra, spider eater, winter wolf.
- 5th level or higher (–4): blood ape (MM II), digester, girallon, lamia, seven-headed hydra, tomb spider (MM IV), zezir (MM III).
- 6th level or higher (–5): bulette, chimera, criosphinx, dragonne, eight-headed hydra, frost salamander (MM II), mudmaw (MM II), remorhaz, swamplight lynx (MM II).
- 7th level or higher (–6): gorgon, gray render, gynosphinx, nethersight mastiff (MM II), nine-headed hydra, tusk terror (MM V).
- 8th level or higher (–7): androsphinx, behir, deadborn vulture (MM V), ironclad mauler (MM III), ten-headed hydra, yrthak.
- 9th level or higher (–8): eleven-headed hydra, mooncalf (MM II), thrym hound (MM V).
- 10th level or higher (–9): mivilorn (MM III), twelve-headed hydra.
Wild Empathy (Ex). A tamer of horrors can improve the attitude of an animal or a magical beast, exactly as the druid’s wild empathy. If the character already has wild empathy from another class (such as druid or ranger), those levels stack with their tamer levels to determine the total bonus.
Beast Lore (Ex). Through long study, a tamer of horrors gains deep knowledge of magical beasts and their peculiarities. On any Knowledge (arcana) or Knowledge (nature) check concerning magical beasts, they gain a bonus equal to their tamer of horrors class level.
Speak with Beasts (Sp). At 2nd level a tamer of horrors draws ancient energies from nature itself and can speak with animals and magical beasts. Once per day as a spell-like ability they may use speak with animals, applicable even to magical beasts, with a caster level equal to their tamer levels. They may use this twice per day at 5th level and three times per day at 8th level.
Animal Affinity. At 3rd level a tamer of horrors gains Animal Affinity as a bonus feat.
Empathic Link (Su). At 3rd level a tamer of horrors forms a communicative link with their magical beast companions, allowing telepathic communication up to 1 mile away. The tamer and their companions can understand one another as though under a speak with animals effect (the companion’s Intelligence still governs how well it grasps complex ideas).
Beast Tracker (Ex). A tamer of horrors becomes a formidable tracker when on the trail of an animal or magical beast. They may use the Survival skill to track as though they had the Track feat, but only for trails left by creatures of the animal or magical beast type, and they add a bonus on the check equal to their tamer levels. If the character already has the Track feat, the only benefit of this feature is that tracking bonus.
Horror’s Anatomy. A tamer of horrors learns the physiology of many magical beasts and how to strike their vital points. They gain sneak attack that functions only against creatures of the magical beast type: +1d6 at 4th level, increasing to +2d6 at 7th level. Through this same knowledge, they teach their companions to avoid such killing blows: their magical beast companions gain damage reduction 1/— at 4th level, increasing to 2/— at 7th level.
Bonded Senses (Su). At 5th level a tamer of horrors can hear and smell whatever their magical beast companion hears and smells. If the companion has a special quality tied to hearing or scent (such as blindsight or scent), the tamer gains it as though it were their own. At 9th level the bond deepens so that the tamer can also see and feel what the companion sees and touches, gaining the companion’s sight- and touch-related qualities (such as darkvision or tremorsense).
If the tamer has two magical beast companions, they choose which one the bond is active with; switching requires the two companions to be at least 1 mile apart and is a full-round action. Bonded senses can never be active with more than one companion at a time. The bond itself works over any distance so long as tamer and companion share the same plane, and the tamer can sever or restore it as a full-round action.
Extra Magical Beast Companion (Ex). At 6th level a tamer of horrors gains a second magical beast companion, chosen from the roster above. For this second companion, the tamer’s effective level is treated as 5 levels lower than normal, which determines both the beast they may choose and its level-based adjustments.
Bonded Attributes (Su). At 7th level a tamer of horrors has opened their psychic bonds with a magical beast companion so deeply that they can channel its physical might. The single highest ability score the companion possesses is conferred on the tamer as a +4 insight bonus to that same ability score. (For example, a tamer whose companion is a displacer beast gains +4 Strength.) If the companion’s two highest scores are equal, the tamer chooses one when this feature is gained and cannot later change it. To function, the tamer and the companion sharing the attribute must be within 1 mile of one another; with two companions, the tamer chooses as a full-round action which one this bond is active with.
Command Any Beast (Sp). At 8th level a tamer of horrors may, once per day, draw magic from mother nature herself to impose their will on any animal or magical beast that stands in their way. This works as dominate monster, except that it affects only creatures of the animal or magical beast type. The tamer’s caster level equals their tamer levels.
Beast Lord (Su). At 10th level a tamer of horrors may, once per day, call the ancient energies of untamed nature and grant them as raw primal power to all their companions and to themselves.
The tamer and any of their companions within a 30-foot radius are affected as though by the barbarian’s rage ability, except that they do not become fatigued when it ends. For 3 + the tamer’s Constitution modifier rounds, they gain a +4 bonus to Strength, a +4 bonus to Constitution, and a +2 morale bonus on Will saves, but also take a –2 penalty to Armor Class.
Ex-Tamers of Horrors
A tamer of horrors who turns against the Druids of Horrors or abandons the reverence for wild nature at the heart of the order falls from its grace. They lose no class features earned by personal effort, but the order withholds further sanction, new companion assignments, and the standing of the beast bond ritual until the tamer makes amends.