Legacy Inheritor (3.5e Class)

Author: Zhenra-Khal (talk) Date Created: 10/24/2017 Status: Mostly complete Editing: Clarity edits only please

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A long time ago, a great hero fell, and his sword was lost, never seen again. One day you get in a fight with some bandits and with a flash of light the sword of legend itself appears in your hand - Showing that you carry the hero's blood in your veins. 20 1 Other Other Other Other Alternate Magic, Other Other

Legacy Inheritor

Many heroes have fallen, and many had children before that occurred. These children had children, and time went on, and eventually the origin was forgotten. This history, that of the Legacy Inheritor, is not unlike a Sorcerer's tale - The blood of dragons, elementals, fiends or angels, forgotten and awakened in one special child several generations later. However, rather than commanding the elements, the forces of hell or the strength of the scaled emperors themselves, the Legacy Inheritor has the power, indeed a fragment of the soul, of their heroic (Or villainous) ancestor, and can summon the signature artifact thereof, be it a weapon, shield, or other magic item.

Making a Legacy Inheritor

Much like the Soulknife, the Legacy Inheritor can call into being a magic item, be it a weapon or etc. Their role in combat varies both by their inherited Legacy item, and by the path they choose.

Abilities: Your most needed abilities vary by your Legacy Item and by your Legendary Path.

Races: All races have heroes, and villains, both with great artifacts lost to time; Thus no race is more likely than another to become a Legacy Inheritor.

Alignment: Any.

Starting Gold: 5d6×10 gp (175 gp).

Starting Age: Simple. Like a Sorcerer, your power awakens early.

Table: The Legacy Inheritor

Level	Special
1st	Legendary Path, Inherited Legacy, Bond of Legacy
2nd	Legendary Guidance (1)
3rd	Legacy Apparition
4th	Bonus Legacy Feat
5th	Least Legacy, Free Call
6th	Bonus Legacy Feat
7th	Founder's Touch +2
8th	Legendary Guidance (2), Least Forge Legacy
9th	Distracting Apparition
10th	Bonus Legacy Feat
11th	Lesser Legacy
12th	Bonus Legacy Feat
13th	Founder's Touch +4
14th	Legendary Guidance (3), Lesser Forge Legacy
15th	Immediate Call
16th	Bonus Legacy Feat
17th	Greater Legacy, Founder's Touch +6
18th	Bonus Legacy Feat
19th	Founder's Boon
20th	Legendary Guidance (4), Greater Forge Legacy

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the Legacy Inheritor.

Legendary Path: To create a specific Inheritor for each class that exists would be not only time-consuming but annoyingly limiting for those that actually wish to use this class. Hence, I have implemented the following ability.

At 1st level, you choose another base class. You gain all the first-level abilities of that class, and that class determines your proficiencies, BAB, HD, Base Saves, Skill Points, class skills and so forth. Nomatter what class you choose, you are automatically proficient with your Legacy item. At each odd level after 1st, you continue to gain class features from that other base class as if you had gained a level in it. These effective levels stack with actual levels in the class.

Additionally, half your levels in other classes (But not effective levels in other classes granted by your Inheritor levels) count toward all of your Legacy Inheritor class features (Known as your EIL, Effective Inheritor Level), including the features granted by your Legendary Path. Thus if you were a Legacy Inheritor 6/Wizard 4 who chose Wizard as your Legendary Path, you would cast spells as if you were an 8th-level Wizard (+4 from your Inheritor levels), as well as having all the abilities of a 8th-level Inheritor (+2 from your Wizard levels).

Finally, upon gaining your first Legacy Inheritor level, you may choose an ability score of your choice to replace Charisma for the purposes of determining the saving throw DC of your Legacy item's powers.

Inherited Legacy (Su): At 1st level, you gain a Legacy item (Typically in the form of a weapon, suit of armor, shield, staff, ring, rod, crown or pair of gloves/gauntlets). This Legacy item isn't truly a physical item, but rather your ability to materialize the item in question from an imprint left on your soul, not all that different from the imprint left on an item to turn it into a magic item. You can "Call" your Legacy item into being as a Move action. The item materializes, ready to be used (Weapon in hand, belt around your waist, armor fully equipped). The item is automatically masterwork if possible, overcomes damage reduction as if magic (If it can be used as a weapon), and has an Omen, in addition to functioning as a magic item of the appropriate type costing no more than 2,500 GP (Such as a +1 weapon, Ring of Feather Falling, Amulet of Natural Armor +1, or etc). The item's power also grows as your power does, above and beyond what the legacy rituals can unlock, as described via your Bond of Legacy class feature. This class assumes you use the Functional Weapons of Legacy variant rule in your campaign, but functions just fine without it.

As soon as the item leaves your person (Except in the event of throwing weapons), the item dissipates, fading into nothing within seconds. This also happens if the item is broken, but if broken, it will still be broken the next time it is summoned, and must be reforged as described on pages 10 and 11 of Weapons Of Legacy. Permanently destroying the Legacy item of a Legacy Inheritor requires killing them and all their blood relatives, lest someone down the line once more inherit the item. Once they are slain, you use the blood of the last user of the item in the ritual used to destroy it permanently (Described on page 11 of the aforementioned book).

The item vanishes within an Antimagic Sphere or similar (As well as the psionic versions), just like a Soulknife's Mind Blade. However, like the Soulknife, you may attempt a DC 20 Will save to hold the item together; If successful, you maintain your Legacy item for a number of rounds equal to your EIL before you must save again. On a failed save, you can attempt to recall your Legacy item once more, making another Will save if you are still within the magic-negating effect.

For your Legacy item, you may use an existing Legacy item or work with your DM to "found" once for your character to use. The item must be a significant enough Legacy item that it has powers for every level 5 thru 20, as it doesn't make sense to have a 20-level class for an item whose abilities stop improving at 10th level.

Bond of Legacy (Ex): Your Legacy item was possessed of some minor magic traits before it became a Legacy item, and those powers are available to you immediately. However, because the item is a part of you, the item's base powers grow as you do, even without you completing the necessary rituals to bond with it further. For every EIL you possess above 1, you add 1,500 GP to the item's value for determining the item's powers. These can never replace the item's base powers, but it does allow you to add new powers, such as increasing enhancement bonus and so forth. When you add such powers to the item, you pay no actual gold, nor do you require feats, spells, powers or etc., but you must spend XP equal to 1/25th the gold piece cost of the ability you're attempting to add, and it takes just as much time as enchanting a magic item of the same sort (Typically 1 day for every 1,000 GP in the base price). These additional powers that you add to the Legacy item are unique to you - They are not passed on to any later Inheritors, though they are free to in turn add the same abilities when the item becomes theirs, and you may add some of these abilities or similar to the item permanently via your Forge Legacy class feature.

Legendary Guidance (Su): Beginning at 2nd level, once per day, you can call upon your ancestors to grant you knowledge and talent beyond your normal aptitudes. To accomplish this, you must spend 1 hour in quiet meditation, starting at dawn. At the end of this hour, you gain a bonus feat; This can be any feat, but you must meet the feat's prerequisites, unless it's a Legacy feat (Except the Least, Lesser or Great Legacy feats) applied to your Inherited Legacy item. In either case, the benefit of this feat lasts until the dawn of the next day, and is only gained while you have your Legacy item active (Sword in hand, belt around your waist, armor donned, etc).

Every 6 levels after 2nd (8th, 14th, etc.), you may choose an additional feat (2 at 8th, 3 at 14th, etc). No feat granted by this ability may be used to meet any requirements or prerequisites (such as for another feat or a prestige class).

Legacy Apparition (Su): Beginning at 3rd level, you can commune directly with the spirit of your ancestor who founded the Legacy item you now wield. Specifically, you gain their companionship in the form of a small floating mote of light through which they communicate, though this mote only comes into being while your Legacy item is "Called". This tiny mote of light is known as a Legacy Apparition, and is a physical manifestation of your ancestor's spirit, though they themselves are long dead, their soul existing on one of the Outer Planes. The Legacy Apparition is incorporeal, has hit points equal to your own, and is size Fine. Its AC is 18, and it can fly with perfect maneuverability and a speed of 30 feet. If your Legacy Apparition is destroyed, or it somehow moves out of your line of effect, it reappears in your space in 1d6 rounds. It uses your senses to see and hear, and communicates with you by telepathy. Thus, it cannot interact with objects and creatures that you cannot see. Your Legacy Apparition is meant to aid you in combat, not serve as a scout. Sometimes, your Apparition appears as a ghostly image of how it looked in life. This manifestation requires tremendous effort, and your Apparition chooses to attempt it only when it must communicate with others under dire circumstances. When a Legacy Apparition manifests, it can speak with others as normal. A Legacy Apparition can appear in this manner for up to 10 minutes per day. While it manifests, you lose access to your Legacy Apparition and any class abilities that require it to function. If a Legacy Apparition must make a saving throw, it uses your save modifier. It lacks skill ranks, feats, Hit Dice, and ability score modifiers.

If used by an Elven Legacy Inheritor who possesses levels in the Eternal Blade prestige class, the Legacy Apparition doubles as a Blade Guide, fulfilling both duties.

Bonus Legacy Feat (Ex): At each even-numbered level except 2nd, 8th, 14th and 20th, you gain an Legacy feat as a bonus feat, provided you meet the prerequisites. These cannot be the Least, Lesser or Great Legacy feats, however.

Free/Immediate Call (Ex): At 5th level, you can now Call your Legacy item as a Free action, though it is limited to once per round. At 15th level you may Call your Legacy item as an immediate action once per round.

Least/Lesser/Greater Legacy (Ex): Your ancestor has told you much about their conquests with the item you now wield. Upon reaching 5th level, if you have not learned your Legacy item's first ritual, you may make a single check to do so; You may take 10 on this check. If you have learned the ritual, you may subtract 50 gold per EIL from the cost of the Least Legacy Ritual .

At 11th and 17th levels, this process is repeated for the Lesser and Greater Rituals, though you instead subtract 100 gold per EIL from the Lesser Ritual's cost and 150 gold per EIL from the Greater Ritual's cost.

Founder's Touch (Su): Your ancient teacher has bestowed upon you many gifts of knowledge - History, combat tactics, and beyond. At 7th level, while your Legacy Apparition is active and within Close range of you, you gain a +2 bonus on any three of the following options. Every 4 levels after 7th, the bonus increases by +2 (+4 at 13th, +6 at 17th, etc). You can select the same option twice; Its benefits don't stack, instead applying to a new skill, type of creature, etc.

Skills: You gain the bonus on one skill of your choice.

Attacks: You gain the bonus on attack rolls against one Alignment component (Chaos, Evil, Good or Law) OR Favored Enemy group of your choice.

Harm: You gain the bonus on weapon damage rolls against one Alignment component (Chaos, Evil, Good or Law) OR Favored Enemy group of your choice.

Saves: You gain the bonus on saving throws against the abilities of creatures who possess one Alignment component of your choice (Chaos, Evil, Good or Law) OR who belong to a single Favored Enemy group of your choice.

Abilities: You gain the bonus on all ability checks (But not skill checks) associated with one ability score of your choice.

Magic: You gain the bonus on caster level/invoker level/manifester level/meldshaper level checks.

Forge Legacy (Su): Just as your Legacy item's story began with its founding, the uses it finds in your hands are simply the next chapter. At 8th level, you may add a new ability to your Legacy item. This may only be a single ability from the Legacy Ability Menu A. These abilities become a permanent part of the Legacy item, available to all who inherit the Legacy item in the future. You choose at what level these new abilities are granted to the wielder, but your DM has the final say.

At 14th level, you may add an ability from Menu D, or two abilities from Menu A. At 20th level you may add an ability from Menu G, two abilities from Menu D or three abilities from Menu A. These abilities, too, are now a permanent part of the legacy.

Distracting Apparition (Su): Your Legacy Apparition can help you in combat by doing more than just teaching you what it remembers. Beginning at 9th level, the Apparition can make incorporeal touch attacks using a Base Attack Bonus equal to 3/4 your EIL (Using your Dexterity mod to hit). This attack deals 1 Force damage on a successful hit. Additionally, while you and the Apparition are both flanking a target, you both add the bonus from Founder's Touch to the bonus granted by flanking.

Founder's Boon (Ex): The teachings of your founding ancestor allow you to exact great feats in your chosen realms of expertise. Beginning at 19th level, once per encounter, you may reroll one roll to which your Founder's Touch bonus applies, and take the better of the two results. This choice is made after you see the result of the roll, but before you know whether or not the roll was a success or a failure.

Legacy Without The Book

For those of you that want to use this class but don't possess Weapons Of Legacy or simply don't want to refer to it every ten minutes, here's a quick rundown of what these items are.

Legacy items are magic items who gained power through use, saving the original user (The "Founder") from death, or etc. When found later on by others after the Founder is gone, the item grants them only what meager power it possessed before becoming a Legacy item, as well as having an Omen that is a magical hint to the item's true potential. To unlock powers beyond that, you must learn about the item's history and perform rituals that echo the acts that formed the item's power.

At each level, the Legacy item gains abilities, and these abilities are, by level, sorted into three categories, each attached to one of the item's Rituals - Least, Lesser and Greater. Least abilities are those gained between 5th and 10th levels, Lesser abilities are gained at levels 11th through 16th, and Greater abilities are gained at levels 17 through 20. Some Legacy items also possess an Epic ritual for abilities gained at levels 21 through 30.

At each level, you select an ability from one of the following 9 menus. Menus A, B and C are for Least abilities, Menus D, E and F are for Lesser abilities, and Menus G, H and I are for Greater abilities. You can choose Menu A, D or G abilities at every single level. Menu B, E and H abilities cost 2 levels - So if you chose a Menu A ability at levels 5-8 and you wanted to choose a Menu B ability, you wouldn't gain it at level 9 - Instead, level 9 is bare and the ability is gained at level 10.

Likewise, Menu C, F and I abilities cost three levels - Two "dead" levels, then you gain the ability on the third level.

Now, without the book to show you the abilities and their costs, instead I will implement a gold value per level system, just like with the Bond of Legacy class ability.

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