Demonbinder
Original Tabletop source: Drow of the Underdark
Note: The below describes a class not yet fully implemented in Time of Unparalleled Darkness, and thus may change in its final implementation.
The demonbinder draws the essence of demons into herself to acquire their power. Such acts are forbidden, and doing so condemns the mortal to eternity in the deepest pits of the Abyss. However, the demonbinder cares little for her fate, being wholly concerned with power in the here and now. It is from this doom that she is able to invest herself with the power of fiends, and the farther she travels down the road of corruption, the more potent are the demons she binds.
Class Niche
While it exists primarialy as a mechanical backdrop to a roleplaying arc, demonbinder is a powerful class in its own right. The demonbinder prestige class offers an incredible selection of abilities, granting you uncommon versatility. With the infusion of temporary hit points acquired from your demonbind, you have a greater ability to withstand attacks before you have to withdraw from combat.
Demonbinds also give you ways to improve your eldritch blast if you are a warlock. However, they require additional expenditures of damnation points, which limits your options at lower levels but provides even greater flexibility with the use of your eldritch blast as you grow more powerful.
The demonbinder becomes a very evil-flavoured take on druidic shapechanging, allowing a great deal of flexibility in dealing with a variety of situations.
Roleplaying a Demonbinder
Backgrounds of a Demonbinder
The demonbinder is an individual, whom either becomes aware of Transposition and chooses to actively subvert it, rather than rebuke or resist it, or someone whom, even more foully, decides to more actively invite it, in an attempt to bind the demons she seeks to dominate. Finally, they may also be a warlock, whom rather than merely accept to take the power they are granted as a subservient subject, attempts to overcome their master.
One thing is for certain: to become a demonbinder is to willfully court Transposition and accept the many grave dangers that come with this venture. No demonbinder is an innocent, virtuous, or even "merely misled" individual becomes a demonbinder. They may have been a good person before they were the demon's subject of interest, if they were an unwilling victim, but to react to it in this way is a profane act; one that will very likely draw a Dark Powers Check.
Religion and Alignment
Almost any goodly religion will regard a demonbinder for the abject evil she is, though some of the more painstakingly goodly faith may try to sway them from their evil ways. Even among evil gods such as the Lawgiver however, they find little favour, for these churches often recognize the demonbinder for the danger they present: any demonbinder whom loses control of that demon has just become slave to another entity that will be quite hostile.
For the demonbinder themselves, they may be of any faith or walk of life; what unites them is not so much their creeds or even outlooks on life, save for the fact that they seek to turn this demon that would dominate them into their own servant and power instead.
The Demonbinder as an Adventurer
For the adventuring group brave or foolhardy enough to have a demonbinder, they will find few quibbles, beyond those that chafe at their nature. A wise demonbinder knows that those whom would risk association with them are relatively rare, and as such, should be cultivated. However, they are most comfortable with sorcerers whom share their less disciplined approach, and the warlocks whom also treat with evil. Very few faiths would counternance demonbinders, so paladins and other holy goodly classes such as clerics as good divinities often find themselves in conflict, as do druids, whom would view the demonbinder's arts as an affront to the natural order. Barbarians, especially those of evil inclination, are usually the most steadfast friends they can find, whom often revel in the demonbinder's capacity for wild destruction.
The demonbinder often finds themselves with little choice regardless of what they think of adventuring: very few of their number can maintain the charade for long enough to entrench themselves in society, so adventuring really is the one way to go that would provide them with the kind of gold they need to further their studies.
Demonbinders in Society
Well, the idea of demonbinders in society is, to put it frankly, a joke. Even realms which could be charitably considered evil-adjacent like Hazlan or Darkon would blanche at the idea of having someone possessed by a demon running around or having any kind of social power, and likely would swiftly put them down. No, demonbinders are always at the fringes of society, seeking to keep their presence hidden from those whom would seek to strike her down. She may have a place in society's underbelly, however, especially if she is persuasive and charismatic. Criminals are less likely to have moral qualms about these things, even if they would never truly trust such a person. The demonbinder whom finds a place in society is one whom takes great pains to hide their true nature, often cultivating cults that secretly follow demon princes with popularity in the darker corners of the Core, such as Xinivrae or Puzuzu.
Variations from the Tabletop
- This prestige class was originally presented as being a drow-only class, being from the Drow of the Underdark sourcebook, but its focus are on demons, and it presents interesting roleplay opportunities for the most evil of characters, and as such it has been generalized and does not have the drow racial requirement.
- This prestige class originally required the character to be a warlock. This requirement is also removed, but one should note they do not gain invocations known if they are not a warlock, and they do not retroactively gain the invocations they would have gained at lower levels if they take warlock at a later time.
- To represent that a demonbinder may come from a goodly hero or heroine that reacts to being the victim of transposition poorly, the alignment requirement is removed. However, if you are good, you will instantly fall to neutral upon taking the class, as well as to Penitent virtue, and this effect will remain even if you drop it.
- The core demonbinding ability has been redone so that it focusses on the demon traits as are described in the Transposition, and the costs are excised based on the level of abilities granted. It also applies very different physical characteristics as described in the Transposition.
- To allow greater flexibility, may use the demonbinding ability once per rest (as opposed to per day)
- The damage reduction for this class is changed from X/good to X/+3 with the carveout that a Moral, Innocent, or Blessed individual may still use any weapon. This makes it so that other evil characters can still overcome the damage resistance with a powerful enough magic weapon.
Prestige Class Requirements
Skills: Bluff 4 ranks, Occultism 8 ranks.
Language: Abyssal. Unwilling victims of Transposition will have this language as a bonus language. Those whom wish to court it overtly and intentionally must already possess it.
Special: The character must be the target of Transposition, or willingly invite it onto them. Practically speaking, this requires DM intervention and happens as part of a roleplay arc or plot.
A character whose Transposition ends by the demon being driven out, lose the ability to progress in this class, but maintain their class abilities. Any character whom becomes good, or Virtuous, loses both the ability to progress in this class, and all abilities gained from it. This class becomes dead weight, unlike many other classes, they do not convert to a "base class."
Prestige Class Features
Hit Die: d4
Skills: Bluff (Cha), Concentration (Con), Disguise (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Occultism), Spellcraft (Int), Use Magic Device (Cha)
Skill Points at Each Level: 2 + Intelligence Modifier
Weapon and Armour Proficiencies: A demonbinder gains no additional weapon and armour proficiencies.
Prestige Class Abilities
Invocations Known
Supplemental Cross-Class Ability
At each level above first, a demonbinder whom is a warlock gains an additional invocation as if they had gained a level in the warlock class. They gain none of the other additional abilities.
Damnation Points
Extraordinary Ability
You gain a number of damnation points equal to your Charisma modifier, plus your demonbinder class levels. If you have warlock those are considered as well. Damnation points represent your command of the demon within, and are expended to power your demonic abilities.
Demonbinding
Supernatural Ability
Once per rest, the demonbinder can spend damnation points as described below, to bind a demon to them through their Transposition. The first time you demonbind will provoke a Dark Powers check. Subsequent ones do not, but may still court the interest of the Dark Powers.
Damage Reduction
Supernatural Ability
Due to their overtly demonic nature, a demonbinder becomes more resilient to damage. Beginning at 2nd level, they gain damage reduction 2/+3. At 6th level, this amount increases to 4/+3. At 10th level, this amount increases to 6/+3.
Any weapon used by a Blessed, Innocent, or Moral individual, including unarmed attacks, is counted as an appropriate magical weapon for the purposes of overcoming this damage reduction.
Resistance to Electricity
Supernatural Ability
Beginning at 3rd level the demonbinder gains resistance to electricity 5. At 5th level this increases to 10. This stacks with other damage resistances.
Immunity to Poison
Supernatural Ability
At 7th level, the demonbinder becomes immune to all types of poison, even magical poison.
Immunity to Electricity
Supernatural Ability
At 9th level, the demonbinder's resistance to electricity becomes immunity to it.
