Ur-priest

A small number of ur-priests have learned to tap into divine power and use it without praying to or worshiping a god.

#### Requirements

**Alignment:** Any evil

**Skills:** Bluff 3 ranks , Knowledge (arcana) 2 ranks , Knowledge (religion) 5 ranks , Knowledge (planes) 2 ranks , Spellcraft 5 ranks

**Feats:** Iron Will , Spell Focus (evil)

**Base Save Bonus:** Fort +3, Will +3.

**Special:** The character must have no ability to cast divine spells. If such spellcasting ability was previously possessed (as with an ex-cleric), that ability is forever forsaken. The character must be trained by another ur-priest.

#### Class Features

**Weapon and Armor Proficiency:** Ur-priests are proficient with simple weapons, but not with armor or shields.

**Spells per Day:** An ur-priest gains the ability to cast a number of divine spells. To cast a spell, an ur-priest must have a Wisdom score of at least 10 + the spell's level, so an ur-priest with a Wisdom of 10 or lower cannot cast these spells. Ur-priest bonus spells are based on Wisdom, and saving throws against these spells have a DC of 10 + spell level + Wisdom modifier. When the table indicates that the ur-priest gets 0 spells per day of a given spell level, such as 0 2nd-level spells at 2nd level, the ur-priest gains only the bonus spells he would be entitled to based on his Wisdom score for that spell level.

The ur-priest spell list is identical to the cleric spell list. An ur-priest has access to any spell on the list and prepares those spells as a cleric, except that he does not pray for spells, he just takes them. An ur-priest casts spells as a cleric does, except that unlike a cleric, he does not have the ability to spontaneously cast *cure* or *inflict* spells, nor does he have domain spells or associated domain granted powers. He does not have restrictions on spells with alignments. To determine the caster level of an ur-priest, add the character's ur-priest levels to one-half of his levels in other spellcasting classes. (Any levels gained in the cleric class by an ex-cleric don't count.)

**Rebuke Undead:** Like an evil cleric, an ur-priest of 2nd level or higher can rebuke undead. He uses his ur-priest level as the cleric level for determining success and damage (see Turn or Rebuke Undead, page 159 of the Player's Handbook).

**Divine Spell Resistance (Su):** At 4th level, an ur-priest gains spell resistance 15, but only against divine spells and the spell-like abilities of outsiders. At 8th level, the ur-priest's spell resistance increases to 20.

**Siphon Spell Power (Ex):** Because they steal whatever power they can, ur-priests learn to manipulate their energy in ways that confound other casters. An ur-priest of 6th level or higher can temporarily sacrifice two (or more) lower-level spell slots and use those slots to prepare a higher-level spell. The higher-level spell must be of a level the ur-priest can cast. Only one exchange of this sort can be made each day. The levels of the lower-level slots are totaled, then reduced to three-quarters (round down) to determine the level of the extra higher-level spell slot. For example, an ur-priest who sacrifices a 3rd-level spell and a 5th-level spell can use that spell slot to prepare an additional 6th-level spell (3 + 5 = 8, and 8 × 3/4 = 6).

**Steal Spell-Like Ability (Su):** The most powerful ur-priests can use the same techniques that siphon off the gods' spell power to steal the spell-like abilities of another creature. Once each day, when a creature with spell-like abilities is within 50 feet of a 10th-level ur-priest, the ur-priest can choose one of the spell-like abilities of the creature to steal for himself. The ur-priest can use the spell-like ability as often as the creature can, or three times per day, whichever is less. The ur-priest uses the ability as the creature does with regard to caster level and save DCs. This ability only lasts 24 hours. The creature with the spell-like ability does not lose the ability when the urpriest steals it. If an ur-priest tries to steal a spell-like ability that the creature doesn't have, or tries to steal an ability that is supernatural rather than spell-like, the attempt automatically fails.

For example, if an ur-priest is near a noble salamander, he can steal *fireball* and use it three times that day or steal *dispel magic* and use it once that day. If he is near a pit fiend, he could steal *teleport without error* (self plus 50 pounds of objects only) and use it three times per day, because the pit fiend can do it at will. He could even steal the pit fiend's *wish* ability, but because a pit fiend can only use *wish* once per year, the ur-priest would be similarly limited. He could not steal that power again from any creature for one year.