Beloved of Valarian

The beloved of Valarian (also called Valarian’s beloved) are women who have foresworn the love of mortals to dedicate themselves entirely to the unicorn deity Valarian, thus fostering a close bond with unicorns. They normally come from the ranks of exalted rangers or druids, although there have been paladins and even fighters who have chosen this path. Most of Valarian’s beloved are humans, elves, and half-elves, but halflings, gnomes, and dwarves are not prohibited.

A beloved of Valarian is a solitary being, shunning civilization. She retreats to the woods where she maintains few contacts with the outside world. Because she champions the cause of good, she calls upon their animal allies to help repel invaders should evil invade her forest refuge. Her relationship with the unicorn is nothing less than a partnership forged in light. She has a closer emotional bond to her mount than she does with her own family members. Just as she relies on the unicorn, the unicorn relies on her to help keep its mysteries safe.

All of Valarian’s beloved must be chaste and must dedicate herself wholly both to good and her unicorn companion. Should a beloved of Valarian ever willingly couple with a mortal, the unicorn leaves her company without hard feelings or regret. Because of the solitary existence these women must endure, it is rare (but not unheard of ) for Valarian’s beloved to join ranks with others. They prefer the companionship of paladins but associate with any good characters during times of trouble. Under no circumstances will one of Valarian’s beloved agree to join with an evil character, and she barely tolerates neutral characters. The beloved of Valarian and their unicorn companions may leave their forest sanctuaries should they be needed to fight evil.

#### Requirements

**Base Attack Bonus:** +7

**Alignment:** Any good.

**Skills:** Knowledge (nature) 2 ranks , Ride 7 ranks

**Feats:** Mounted Combat , Sacred Vow , Vow of Chastity

**Gender**: Female.

**Special**: Before she can become a beloved of Valarian, the character must meditate at a druid's grove and fast until she saves the life of an animal in danger. Should she fail to survive or aid an animal, she does not meet her unicorn companion and cannot advance in this class.

#### Class Features

**Weapon and Armor Proficiency**: A beloved of Valarian is proficient with all simple and martial weapons, light armor, and small shields.

**Spells**: A beloved of Valarian has the ability to cast a small number of divine spells. To cast a beloved of Valarian spell, the beloved must have a Wisdom score of at least 10 + the spell's level, so a beloved of Valarian with a Wisdom of 10 or lower cannot cast these spells. Beloved of Valarian bonus spells are based on Wisdom, and saving throws against these spells have a DC of 10 + spell level + the beloved's Wisdom modifier. When the beloved of Valarian gets 0 spells of a given spell level (for instance, 1st-level spells for a 1st level beloved of Valarian), she gets only the bonus spells she would be entitled to based on her Wisdom score for that spell level.

The beloved of Valarian's spell list appears below. A beloved of Valarian prepares and casts spells just as a cleric does (though a beloved cannot spontaneously cast cure spells).

**Call Unicorn (Su)**: A beloved of Valarian can call a unicorn to her side. See the *Monster Manual* for the unicorn's statistics. The unicorn appears instantly and serves the character for life, provided she remains chaste and of good alignment. The unicorn may be dismissed at any time, although a character cannot call another until she gains a level in the beloved of Valarian class. If the unicorn should die before its rider, the character may call another unicorn companion when she gains a new level in this class.

A beloved of Valarian can have no more than one unicorn companion at any given time.

A beloved of Valarian can assign her unicorn companion to undertake different types of tasks. Particularly useful as a mount, the unicorn typically will not undergo a quest or otherwise take on complex burdens without the supervision of the beloved of Valarian.

**Telepathic Bond (Su)**: A beloved of Valarian can communicate telepathically with her unicorn companion. This bond remains in effect unless the character is separated from her unicorn by a number of miles equal to 100 + the beloved's character level.

At 6th level, a Valarian's beloved can communicate telepathically with any animal native to her unicorn companion's home forest.

**Timelessness (Su)**: Unicorns age very slowly, living for thousands of years. As long as she remains faithful to Valarian and has a unicorn companion serving her, a beloved of Valarian ages just as slowly, the aging process essentially halted.

***Ethereal Jaunt* (Sp)**: At 2nd level, once per day, a beloved of Valarian and her equipment may become ethereal, as the ethereal jaunt spell cast by a sorcerer of the beloved's character level. If the beloved of Valarian is astride her unicorn companion, it is also affected by this ability. However, if the beloved of Valarian dismounts or the two otherwise become separated before the ethereal jaunt expires, the unicorn companion instantly returns to the Material Plane.

**Forest Dweller (Ex)**: Time spent in the forest alters a beloved of Valarian's physiology at 3rd level. She gains a +2 racial bonus on Listen, Move Silently, Spot, and Survival checks.

**Uncanny Dodge (Ex)**: Starting at 4th level, a beloved of Valarian can react to danger before her senses would normally allow her to do so. She retains her Dexterity bonus to AC even when caught flat-footed.

If the beloved of Valarian already has uncanny dodge from a different class (rogue, for example), she gains improved uncanny dodge instead; she cannot be flanked except by a rogue who has at least four more rogue levels than she has in this prestige class.

As long as the beloved of Valarian is riding her unicorn companion, it gains the benefit of this ability as well.

**Call Celestial Charger (Su)**: At 6th level, a beloved of Valarian can call a celestial unicorn—also known as a celestial charger—to her side. See the Unicorn entry in the *Monster Manual* for the celestial charger's statistics. If the beloved of Valarian already has a unicorn companion, Valarian transforms it into a celestial charger instead of sending his beloved a new companion.

**Nature's Understanding (Ex)**: At 7th level, a beloved of Valarian gains a +2 insight bonus on Handle Animal, Knowledge (nature), and Survival checks.

***Holy Smite* (Sp)**: Starting at 8th level, once per day, a beloved of Valarian can cast *holy smite* as a cleric of her class level. She may choose to deal nonlethal damage instead of lethal damage with the *holy smite*.

**Wood Repulsion (Su)**: Weapons partially or wholly fashioned from wood have a harder time striking a beloved of Valarian, as though deflected by some invisible barrier. Attacks made with such weapons take a —2 penalty. As long as the beloved of Valarian is riding her unicorn companion, it gains the benefit of this ability as well.

***Mass Baleful Polymorph* (Sp)**: At 10th level, once per day, a beloved of Valarian can cast a special version of the *baleful polymorph* spell that affects all evil creatures within 30 feet of her (as a 10th-level druid). Affected creatures are transformed into harmless Diminutive mammals (rabbits, squirrels, or the like) or Fine vermin (nonthreatening spiders, centipedes, or the like). All affected creatures are transformed into the same type of creature. See the *baleful polymorph* spell description in the *Player's Handbook* for details.