Archwark (3.5e Prestige Class)

Archwark

“	Waaaaaark!	”
—Choco-Joe, Chocobo Archwark, Summoning a great firestorm on enemies of the chocobos.

Archwarks are masters of the arcane elements that many chocobos harness as Choco-Mages. Some choose to master the elements, sacrificing their color in favor of balancing the four. Others choose to excel at the element of their choosing, enhancing both the power of their magic in that aspect and the brilliancy of their colors.

Whatever the case, a full archwark is recognizable by the sheen of their beak, which is brilliant and reflective. While archwark chocobos who have mastered the four elements have deep, shining golden beaks, the color of archwark theurgists' beaks darken and become glossy.

Becoming an Archwark

Archwarks are powerful creatures, forces of nature to be reckoned with. Many are seeking to protect their flocks from a great threat, but a few are individualistic, seeing power over others or a means of enforcing their own solitude.

Entry Requirements

Race:	Chocobo.
Skills:	Knowledge (arcana) 18 ranks, Spellcraft 18 ranks.
Feats:	Spell Focus in at least one school of magic.
Spellcasting:	Ability to cast 8th-level arcane spells, knowledge of 6th-level or higher spells from at least five schools.
Special:	Any creature not completely a chocobo cannot enter this class.

Table: The Archwark

Hit Die: d4

Level	Base Attack Bonus	Saving Throws			Special	Spellcasting
		Fort	Ref	Will
1st	+0	+0	+0	+2	Wark arcana	+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class
2nd	+1	+0	+0	+3	Wark arcana	+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class
3rd	+1	+1	+1	+3	Wark arcana	+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class
4th	+2	+1	+1	+4	Wark arcana	+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class
5th	+2	+1	+1	+4	Wark arcana	+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class
Class Skills (2 + Int modifier per level) Bluff (Cha), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Decipher Script (Int), Knowledge (all skills, taken individually) (Int), Profession (Wis), Spellcraft (Int).

Class Features

Similar to archmages, archwarks are master of magic and great casters of arcane spells. All of the following are class features of the archwark.

Spellcasting: At level, you gain new spells per day and an increase in caster level (and spells known, if applicable) as if you had also gained a level in a spellcasting class to which you belonged before adding the prestige class level. You do not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained. If you had more than one arcane spellcasting class before becoming an archwark, you must decide to which class to add each level for the purpose of determining spells per day, caster level, and spells known.

Wark arcana: An archwark gains the opportunity to select a special ability from among those described below by permanently eliminating one existing spell slot (he cannot eliminate a spell slot of higher level than the highest-level spell he can cast). Each special ability has a minimum required spell slot level, as specified in its description.

An archwark may choose to eliminate a spell slot of a higher level than that required to gain a type of wark arcana.

Arcane Wark (Su): The archmwark gains the ability to change arcane spell energy into an arcane blast, manifesting it as a bolt of raw energy of a type appropriate to the chocobo. The bolt is a ranged touch attack with long range (400 feet + 40 feet/level of archmage) that deals 1d6 points of damage per class level of the archmage plus 1d6 points of damage per level of the spell used to create the effect. This ability costs one 9th-level spell slot.

Warkane Reach (Su): The archwark can use spells with a range of touch on a target up to 30 feet away. The archwark must make a ranged touch attack. Warkane reach can be selected a second time as a special ability, in which case the range increases to 60 feet. This ability costs one 7th-level spell slot.

Warkery of Elements: The archwark can alter arcane spells when cast so that they utilize a specific predetermined element different from the one it normally uses. This ability can only alter a spell with the acid, cold, fire, electricity, or sonic descriptor to utilize another type of energy from that list. The spell’s casting time is unaffected. The caster decides whether to alter the spell’s energy type when he begins casting and all of the spell's damage is converted to the new energy type. This ability costs one 8th-level spell slot.

Warkery of Elements can be selected a total of five times. Each time it is taken, the archwark must choose another type of energy to be able to change spells to. When an archwark has two or more of this wark arcana, any spell can have its damage energy type equally divided between all the types available to the archwark, making the descriptor of the spell have both types.

Warkery of Counterspelling: When the archwark counterspells a spell, it is turned back upon the caster as if it were fully affected by a spell turning spell. If the spell cannot be affected by spell turning, then it is merely counterspelled. This ability costs one 7th-level spell slot.

Wark Power: This ability increases the archwark’s effective caster level by +1 (for purposes of determining level-dependent spell variables such as damage dice or range, and caster level checks only). This ability costs one 5th-level spell slot.

Playing an Archwark

Combat: Archwarks can be spell slingers, buffers, or debuffers, but whatever they do, they should out of harms way whenever possible due to their extremely small hit die.

Advancement: Choco-mages that become Archwarks are often devoted to the arcane powers entirely; multiclassing is usually out of the question. Because of the late entry requirements for this class, multiclassing is very difficult.

Resources: Archwark organization depends on the ideals present in a flock and the number of archwarks. They often have small groups of the spell casters of the flock, both arcane and divine, to support each other in their learning.

Arckwarks in the World

“

Them majes'ic birds, they grace'r crops wit' a goo' yiel' an' keep th' mo' fearsome crea'ures o' th' region unner control. The're a blessin'.

”

Archwarks are protectors of flocks of chocobos. Wherever there is an archwark, there can be found a flock under its protection.

NPC Reactions: Regular NPCs often fear, respect, or covet archwark chocobos. They attempt to capture or appease them in some manner, or they might try to rid the area of the flock. Chocobo and animal NPCs tend to revere and seek out chocobo archwarks, seeking their aid, advise, or protection.

Archwark Lore

Characters with ranks in Knowledge (arcana) or Knowledge (nature) can research archwark to learn more about them. When a character makes a skill check, read or paraphrase the following, including information from lower DCs.

Knowledge (arcana) or Knowledge (nature)

DC	Result
11	Archwarks are protectors of their flock, employing their excellent arcane abilities to protect their family and friends.
16	Archwarks can use their natural arcane affinity to change the energy type of spells to fit their needs.
21	Some extremely powerful archwarks have such innate control over their magic that they can destroy creatures from vast doistances, create medlies of opposing and complimentary elements in their spells, and blast pure lemental energy at enemies.
26	Archwarks that devote theselves to a single discipline of elemental power reflect that color more vibrantly than any other chocobo. Archwarks that gain mastery over all the elements become yellow and golden.

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