Greenguard

Work In Progress...

As much at home in the garden as on the battlefield, Greenguards take their passion and talent for cultivation and combine them with their skill in battle. For a greenguard, the greatest weapons at her disposal are those provided by the earth and just as a sculptor sees form in a block of stone, so too does the greenguard see potential in the myriad plants around them.

Many greenguard's consider themselves as much artists or craftspeople as they do warriors and spend as much time honing their craft as they do their prowess in battle. Greenguards can often be found serving powerful druids, acting as guardians of sacred natural places or seeking retribution on their behalf. Their self reliance and lack of need for equipment maintenance, repair or replacement make them sought after as soldiers or guards for long distance treks, especially those travelling through wild places.

**Role:** The Greenguard is a front line combatant who uses her symbiotic relationship with plants to battle her enemies. The strange and mystical plants they breed and cultivate enhance their prowess in battle and create complications for their opponents.

**Alignment:** Any

Goodly greenguards can be found acring as guardians of natural places, sometimes in concert with druids. They might possibly also serve in civilized areas as teachers and protectors of agricultural areas. Still others find their callings in urban settings where they cultivate smaller but spectacular gardens, collect rare plants and work as artists, gardeners, merchants or other more martial persuits.

Those who follow darker paths might be more likely found taking retribution on those that encroach on their sacred places, as cultivators and manufacturers of poisons, as hired strongarms or even assassins.

**Hit Die:** d10

**Starting Wealth:** 1d6 × 10 gp (average 35 gp.) In addition, each character begins play with an outfit worth 10 gp or less.

## **Class Skills:**

Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (geography) (Int), Knowledge (nature) (Int), Perception (Wis), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Survival (Wis), and Swim (Str).

**Skill Ranks per level:** 4+ Int Bonus

## Class Abilities

**Carapace (Su):** You can manifest a living suit of plant armor. Manifesting a carapace is a full round action and dismissing it is a move action. Your Carapace may take the form of any armor type with which you are proficient and is always of masterwork quality. Additionally, you may manifest mundane clothing and accessories up to a total perceived value equal to 30 gp per Greenguard level.

**Thorn (Su):** Thorn

**Green Thumb (Su):** You have a seemingly preternatural ability to make things grow. This talent manifests itself in a number of ways.

1. As a free action, you may cause a touched plant to bloom, bear fruit, grow new greenery, shed its leaves or similar effects.

2. You may cause plants to grow into useful shapes for your purposes. You can cause a plant or group of plants to grow into a shape making them function as a mundane item with a gold piece value no more than 10gp per greenguard level you possess. This process takes 1 minute per 10gp in the items value. These plants revert to more natural forms or wither an hour after being picked or after you leave the area.

3. Overgrowth: You may cause normal vegetation (grasses, briars, bushes, creepers, thistles, trees, vines, and so on) within 10 feet per greenguard level to become thick and overgrown. The plants entwine to form a thicket or jungle that creatures must hack or force a way through. Speed drops to 5 feet, or 10 feet for Large or larger creatures.

4. Enrichment: By spending at least one day per week for a month assisting with planting and tending of crops, you raise their potential productivity over the course of the next year to one-third above normal. You may affect an area of up to 100 acres per greenguard level with this ability.

**Species:** At 2nd level, and then again every 2 levels thereafter (up to 18th level), a greenguard cultivates a new species. Unless otherwise noted, a greenguard cannot select an individual species more than once. Some species can only be made if the greenguard has met certain prerequisites first, such as cultivating other species. The DC of any saving throw called for by a species is equal to 10 + 1/2 the greenguard's level + the greenguard’s Wisdom modifier.

A complete list of greenguard species can be found here: Species

**Symbiote (Ex):** At 3rd level, a greenguard develops a bond with a special plant so powerful that it becomes part of the greenguard herself. This symbiote grants the greenguard a number of abilities tied to the greenguard's symbiote dice pool as indicated in table 2. At levels 7, 11, 15 & 19, the greenguard's symbiote dice pool increases. At each of these levels the greenguard also gains both a passive and an active symbiote ability.

Passive symbiote abilities are those that require minimum current symbiote dice to be in the greenguard's symbiote dice pool. As long as the greenguard possesses the minimum needed dice, they gain the benefit of the passive ability.
Active abilities are those that require the expenditure of symbiote dice. These abilities may be activated so long as the greenguard has symbiote dice in their symbiote dice pool to spend, even if they have less dice than the pool size at which the ability is gained.

**Breed Cultivar (Ex):** Breed Cultivar: Utilizing secret techniques, special fertilizers and their innate connection to plants, a Greenguard is able to groom magical plant specimens called cultivars. A cultivar is a plant specially created to enhance a Greenguard's Carapace or Thorn and carries either a magical weapon or magical armor enhancement. When a Greenguard entwines a cultivar into her Carapace or Thorn, the cultivar confers its associated enchantment with the Carapace or Thorn.

Creating a cultivar takes 1 day for each 1,000 gp in the price of its magical features and uses up raw materials costing half of this total price.

Entwining a Cultivar reduces the bonus of a Carapace or Thorn by 1. If the bonus is reduced to 0 by adding cultivars, no more may be added.

**Tree Meld (Sp):** A greenguard can meld her body and not more than 100 pounds of non-living gear with any tree or other plant large enough to accommodate her body in all three dimensions. She can remain melded with a tree as long as she wishes.

While in the tree, the greenguard remains in contact, however tenuous, with the face of the tree through which she melded. The greenguard remains aware of the passage of time and can use abilities on herself while in the tree. Nothing that goes on outside the tree can be seen but she can still hear what happens around her. Minor physical damage to the tree does not harm the greenguard but its partial destruction (to the extent that she no longer fits within it) expels her and deals 5d6 points of damage. The tree’s complete destruction expels the greenguard and slays her instantly unless she makes a DC 18 Fortitude save. Even if the greenguard makes her save, she still takes 5d6 points of damage.

**Greensight (Su):** The greenguard can see through thick plant matter as though it were transparent up to a range of 60 feet. Leaves, vines, greenery, and undergrowth offer no concealment to the greenguard's sight, though solid wood still blocks her line of sight.

**Tree Stride (Sp):** You may step into a tree, magically infusing yourself with the plant. Once within a tree, you can teleport from that particular tree to another tree. The trees you enter must be of the same kind, must be living, and must have girth at least equal to yours. By moving into an oak tree (for example), you instantly know the location of all other oak trees within transport range (see below) and may choose whether you want to pass into one or simply step back out of the tree you moved into. You may choose to pass to any tree of the appropriate kind within the transport range as shown on the following table.

 Elm, Linden
 Other Deciduous
 Any Coniferous

Moving from one tree to another is a full round action. You can, at your option, remain within a tree without transporting yourself per your tree meld ability.

**Siege of Trees (Sp):** In a process taking 10 minutes, you may animate trees or other plants of size large or greater within 30 ft., transforming them into living siege weapons. Each plant animated in this way acts as a light catapult. You may use this ability at will but may only have up to 6 catapults active at any given time. Each catapult requires a standard action to designate or change targets. Once a target has been set, the catapults fire automatically each round on your turn until stopped as a free action. They use your greenguard level as their targeting bonus. You do not need to supply ammunition to these tree catapults; they will automatically load themselves with rocks and boulders in the area, digging them deep from the ground if need be. You can supply the trees ammunition if you desire. The tree will not load flaming ammunition, and these catapult trees cannot be affected by energy siege shot if the energy selected is fire.

At greenguard level 20, you can affect larger-sized plants. Each plant acts as a catapult of its size.

## **Table 2: Symbiotes**

### **Guardian Symbiote**

**DR (Ex):** A Greenguard with a guardian symbiotic gains Damage Reduction equal to their current symbiote dice pool.

**Shunt (Ex):** The Greenguard may expend Symbiote dice when taking damage to reduce that damage by the amount rolled. Damage reduced by the greenguard's damage reduction is calculated before this expenditure.

**Uncanny Dodge (Ex):** As long as the greenguard has at least 2 dice in her symbiote dice pool, she retains her Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) regardless of being caught flat-footed or struck by an invisible attacker. (She still loses any Dexterity bonus to AC if immobilized.)

If a character gains uncanny dodge from a second class, the character automatically gains improved uncanny dodge.

**Intercept (Ex):** As a combat reaction, you may expend symbiote dice to attempt to swap positions with a willing creature targeted by an attack of which you are aware. If 5 times the result of your expended dice is equal to or greater than the distance between you and the target, you swap positions with them and you become the new target of the attack. If the result of your expended dice is not enough, there is no effect although the symbiote dice and the combat reaction are both still expended.

**Evasion (Ex):** As long as the greenguard has at least 3 dice in her symbiote dice pool, she can avoid even magical and unusual attacks with great agility. If she makes a successful Reflex saving throw against an attack that normally deals half damage on a successful save, she instead takes no damage. Evasion can be used only if the greenguard is wearing light armor, medium armor, or no armor. A helpless greenguard does not gain the benefit of evasion.

**Critical Recovery (Ex):** Whenever you are subject to damage from a critical hit, you may expend a single symbiote die. You regain a number of symbiote dice equal to the result up to your maximum symbiote dice pool.

**Improved Uncanny Dodge (Ex):** A greenguard with at least 4 dice in her symbiote dice pool can no longer be flanked.

This defense denies a rogue the ability to sneak attack the character by flanking her, unless the attacker has at least four more rogue levels than the target has greenguard levels.

If a character already has uncanny dodge (see above) from another class, the levels from the classes that grant uncanny dodge stack to determine the minimum rogue level required to flank the character.

**Retributive Strike (Ex):** You may expend symbiote dice to make an attack of opportunity against any creature you threaten who makes a successful attack against any creature other than you. You get a bonus to hit and damage on this attack equal to the result.

**Improved Evasion (Ex):** As long as the greenguard has at least 5 dice in her symbiote dice pool, her evasion improves. This ability works like evasion, except that while the greenguard still takes no damage on a successful Reflex saving throw against attacks, she henceforth takes only half damage on a failed save. A helpless greenguard does not gain the benefit of improved evasion.

**Guardian Spores (Ex):** You may expend symbiote dice to grant some of your symbiote benefits to others. As a move action, you grant the Passive benefits of your symbiote to a number of other creatures within 30 feet equal to the result. These benefits last until your symbiote dice pool refreshes. You may also end this effect prematurely as a free action.

### **Spell Eater Symbiote**

**Spell Resistance (Su):** A greenguard with a spelleater symbiote gains spell resistance equal to 5 times their current symbiote dice pool plus half their greenguard level.

**Counterspell (Sp):** You may expend symbiote dice to counter the spells of enemy casters. Whenever a caster of which you are aware attempts to cast a spell, you may expend symbiote dice in an attempt to counter it. If the total rolled on your expended symbiote dice is greater than the level of spell being attempted, it is countered.

**Spell Blossom (Sp):** As a standard action, you may create small plants that serve a variety of basic utilitarian functions. These plants may be created attached to the greenguard, a non-creature plant or from the ground. As a swift action, someone adjacent to or holding the plant can pick it, allowing them to cast the orison by making use of its products. If not used within one minute after being created, the products are rendered unusable. A Spell Blossom uses the greenguard's level in place of caster level for determining level dependent effects. If the greenguard's symbiote dice pool has less than 2 dice, any unused spellbinding they created are rendered unusable. As long as the greenguard has at least 2 dice in their symbiote dice pool may make spell blossoms, which replicate the following spells:

```
  **Acid Splash:** Orb deals 1d3 acid damage.
  **Cleanse of Alcohol (3PP):** Cures ill effects of alcohol consumption.
  **Create Water:** Creates 2 gallons/level of pure water.
  **Guidance:** +1 on one attack roll, saving throw, or skill check.
  **Idyllic Sleep (3PP):** Subject sleeps comfortably even in uncomfortable conditions.
  **Know Direction:** You discern north.
  **Light:** Object shines like a torch.
  **Lightning Sand (3PP):** You create a patch of lightning sand.
  **Purify Food & Drink:** Purifies 1 cu. ft./level of food or water.
  **Quicken Stride (3PP):** Subject's land speed increases by 5 ft.
  **Resistance:** Subject gains +1 on saving throws.
  **Root:** Subject gains +2 on certain CMD checks.
  **Sickening Smell (3PP):** Pollen cloud sickens creatures.
  **Simple Bed (3PP):** Turns vegetation into comfortable resting place.
  **Spiders Thread (3PP):** You summon a ropelike strand of spider's silk.
  **Virtue:** Subject gains 1 temporary hp

```

**Arcane Smite (Sp):** As a swift action, you may expend symbiote dice to channel Arcane energy into your thorn. The next attack made after using this ability deals extra damage equal to the result.

**Arcane Sight (Sp):** As long as you have at least 3 dice in your symbiote dice pool, you can detect auras as if under the effect of the Arcane Sight spell.

**Arcane Recovery (Ex):** Whenever you are subject to damage or effects from a spell targeted at you, you may expend a single symbiote die. You regain a number of symbiote dice equal to the result up to your maximum symbiote dice pool.

**Arcane Imprint (Su):** As long as you have at least 4 dice in your symbiote dice pool, you can imprint a spell cast on you. When you are damaged or affected by a spell of which you are the only target, you may imprint that spell. You may cast the imprinted spell as a spell like ability using your greenguard level in place of the caster level. You may have only one spell imprinted at a time.

**Parry Spell (Sp):** When you would successfully counter a spell with your Counterspell ability, you may choose to instead redirect it back at the caster or another valid target within range. This works exactly like the spell turning spell.

**True Seeing (Sp):** As long as you have 5 dice in your symbiote dice pool, you see as though affected by the True Seeing spell.

**Arcane Spores (Ex):** You may expend symbiote dice to grant some of your symbiote benefits to others. As a move action, you grant the Passive benefits of your symbiote to a number of other creatures within 30 feet equal to the result. These benefits last until your symbiote dice pool refreshes. You may also end this effect prematurely as a free action.

### **Metabolic Symbiote**

**Fast Movement (Ex):** A Greenguard with a metabolic symbiote gains additional movement equal to 10 times their current symbiote dice pool.

**Stitch (Ex):** As a standard action you may expend symbiote dice to heal a number of hit points equal to the result times half your greenguard level. Any healing in excess of your maximum hit points are lost.

**Bolster (Ex):** As long as you have at least 2 dice is your symbiote dice pool, you gain an alchemical bonus to all saving throw equal to your current symbiote dice pool.

**Stim (Ex):** As a swift action, you may expend symbiote dice to temporarily increase one of your ability scores. Select a single ability scores and increase it by the result. This effect lasts for 1 minute per greenguard level you possess.

**Shake Off (Ex):** As long as you have at least 3 dice in your symbiote dice pool, you are immune to the decieved, fatigued, riled, shaken & sickened conditions.

**Rebounding Recovery (Ex):** Whenever you fail a saving throw, you may expend a single symbiote die. You regain a number of symbiote dice equal to the result up to your maximum symbiote dice pool.

**Improved Shake Off (Ex):** As long as you have at least 4 dice in your symbiote dice pool,you are immune to the dazed, diseased, enfeebled, exhausted, nauseated & staggered conditions.

**Haste (Sp):** As a swift action, you may expend symbiote to gain the benefits of the haste spell for a number of rounds equal to the result.

**Heroism (Sp):** As long as you have 5 dice in your symbiote pool, you gain a +4 morale bonus to attack and damage rolls, immunity to fear and charm effects and once per round as an immediate action in response to taking damage, you may heal 1d6 hit points.

**Metabolic Spores (Ex):** You may expend symbiote dice to grant some of your symbiote benefits to others. As a move action, you grant the Passive benefits of your symbiote to a number of other creatures within 30 feet equal to the result. These benefits last until your symbiote dice pool refreshes. You may also end this effect prematurely as a free action.

### **Parasite Symbiote**

**Infest (Ex):** A greenguard with a parasite symbiote may cause a target she touches or hits with her thorn to make a fortitude save (DC 10 + half greenguard level + wisdom modifier). On a failed save, the target becomes infested. An infested creature takes 1d6 acid damage each round at the beginning of the greenguard's turn. This effect persists for 1d6 rounds.

**Drain (Su):** As a standard action, you may expend symbiote dice to cause all creatures currently affected by your infect ability to take acid damage equal to the result.

**Leeching Strike (Su):** As long as you have at least 2 dice in your symbiote dice pool, you recover some of the damage you deal as hit points. Each time you successfully deal damage to a living creature with your thorn or with your drain ability, you heal a number of hit points equal to the number of dice in your current symbiote dice pool.

**Malignant Bond (Su):** You may expend symbiote dice to forge a Parasitic connection with a creature affected by your infest ability. For a number of rounds equal to the result, half of all damage dealt to you is redirected to that creature.

**Mind and Body (Su):** As long as you have at least 3 dice in your symbiote dice pool. you can tap into the minds of and share senses with those whom you have infested. You are aware of their locations and wellbeing. This awareness is based on their thoughts so may be incorrect or uncertain based on their knowledge and belief. You can also communicate with them telepathically to a distance of 30 feet per die in your symbiote dice pool. As a full round action, you can shift your awareness and use their senses. You become unaware of your surroundings while doing this.

**Parasitic Recovery (Su):** Whenever a creature is dealt maximum damage from your infest ability, you may expend a single symbiote die. You regain a number of symbiote dice equal to the result up to your maximum symbiote dice pool.

**Stunning Strike (Ex):** As long as you have at least 4 dice in your symbiote dice pool, you may forego your iterative attacks to instead make a single stunning strike. A creature hit with a stunning strike takes regular thorn damage and if their Hit point total is less than 150 after dealing damage, they are also stunned for 2d6 rounds.

**Parasitic Burst (Ex):** You may expend symbiote dice to create a burst of Parasitic microbes with a radius in feet equal to 5 times the result. Any number of targets you choose within this area must save as if targeted by your infest ability. Any targets that fail this save immediately take 1d6 acid damage and become infested. Creatures that succeed in their save still take half damage but are not infested.

**Consume (Su):** As long as you have 5 dice in your symbiote dice pool, you may target a single infested creature that you can see for consumption as a swift action. That creature takes 5 points of acid damage per greenguard level you possess and you gain 2 hit points per greenguard level you possess. Any hit points over your maximum are gained as temporary hit points. These temporary hit points are lost first and fade after 1 minute.

**Parasite Spores (Ex):** You may expend symbiote dice to grant some of your symbiote benefits to others. As a move action, you grant the Passive benefits of your symbiote to a number of other creatures within 30 feet equal to the result. These benefits last until your symbiote dice pool refreshes. You may also end this effect prematurely as a free action.

### **Vine Symbiote**

**Constricting Vines (Ex):** A greenguard with a vine symbiote gains a prehensile vine. As the greenguard gains levels, they gain additional vines as well. A greenguard has 1 vine per symbiote die in her current symbiote dice pool. Each vine is capable of holding and manipulating objects and they are treated as additional limbs. Thus for example, a greenguard with a vine symbiote could qualify for the multiattack feat. The greenguard may make a single attack with their vines as a secondary natural attack, dealing damage equal to the greenguard's current symbiote dice pool. If the greenguard hits a creature with a Vine attack, she may attempt a grapple as a free action. With a successful grapple check against a grappled opponent, a greenguard may have her vines constrict, dealing damage equal to her current symbiote dice pool.

**Many Hands (Ex):** As a move action, you may expend symbiote dice to grant yourself a bonus to a single skill check whose primary attribute is strength or dexterity equal to the result.

**Brachiation (Ex):** As long as you have at least 2 dice in your symbiote dice pool, you gain a climb speed equal to your base speed and can move through the upper canopies of jungles and forests with the same ease you move along the ground. You can use your Base Speed to move through any heavily forested area without touching the ground by leaping and swinging from tree to tree. You can also use this among the rafters of a building, or even stalactites on a cavern ceiling.

**Vine Seeds (Su):** You may expend symbiote dice to generate a number of Vine Seeds equal to the result, which can be thrown up to 30 feet away, like a splash weapon. Viciously thorny vines erupt in a 20-foot radius from the point of impact, even if the seed misses its target. Creatures within the area must succeed at a DC 16 Reflex saving throw or become entangled, per the spell entangle, as the vines coil around the creature’s legs. The vines persist, but at the start of the affected creature’s turn, it gains a new saving throw against the effect. If the affected creature fails the saving throw, it also takes 1d4 points of damage.
A DC 20 Strength check, made as a standard action, allows an affected creature to break free and end the effect. Failing the check causes the vines to constrict, dealing 1d4 points of damage.

**Deflect Arrows (Ex):** As long as you have at least 3 dice in your symbiote dice pool, you gain the benefit of the deflect arrows feat with the exception that you may benefit from it a number of times per round equal to the number of free vines you possess.

**Constrictive Recovery (Ex):** Whenever you deal maximum damage with your constrict ability, you may expend a symbiote die. You recover a number of symbiote dice equal to the result up to your maximum symbiote dice pool.

**Reach (Ex):** As long as you have at least 4 dice in your symbiote dice pool, you have 10 ft. reach with your vines.

**Barrage (Ex):** As a full round action, you may expend symbiote dice and forgo all of your normal attacks to instead make a number of attacks at your full attack bonus equal to the result.

**Blindsight (Ex):** As long as you have 5 dice in your symbiote dice pool, you have blindsight to a distance of 60 feet.

**Vine Spores (Ex):** You may expend symbiote dice to grant some of your symbiote benefits to others. As a move action, you grant the Passive benefits of your symbiote to a number of other creatures within 30 feet equal to the result. These benefits last until your symbiote dice pool refreshes. You may also end this effect prematurely as a free action.