The Battlescarred[D&D Prestige Class]

The Battlescarred
The veterans of great and terrible battles, natural survivors and victors, and wizened warriors, the battlescarred represent the wear and benefit of years of battle and near-death.

Most battlescarred are barbarians, fighters, and paladins.



Requirements
To qualify to become battlescarred (Btsc), a character must fulfill all the following criteria.

Base Attack Bonus: +12.
Base Fortitude Bonus: +6.
Feats: Diehard, Great Fortitude, Improved Toughness, Iron Will, Toughness. The character must be proficient with all martial weapons and with Heavy armor.
Special: The character must have survived massive damage at least three times or have been raised from the dead at least once.

Game Rule Information
The battlescarred have the following game statistics.

Base Attack Bonus: Good (as a dwarven defender).
Hit Die: d12.
Saves: Good Fortitude and Will / Poor Reflex.
Class Skills: The battlescarred's class skills are Bluff (Cha), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Ride (Dex), Sense Motive (Wis), and Survival (Wis). Skill Points at Each Level: 2 + Intelligence modifier.

Class Features
All of the following are class features of the battlescarred prestige class.

Weapons and Armor Proficiency: The battlescarred gain no additional weapon or armor proficiencies.

1. Fearless, Hard To Kill, Scarred [1/-]
   
2. Every Wound Has a Tale To Tell
   
3. Fighter Feat, Scarred [2/-]
   
4. Counter Attack
   
5. Fighter Feat, Scarred [3/-]

Fearless
The only thing he has to fear is fear itself. The battlescarred is immune to Fear spells and effects.

Hard To Kill
The battlescarred has open death's door countless times and lived to open it again. He is no longer subject to death from massive damage and receives a bonus to all saves against Death spells and effects equal to his battlescarred level.

Scarred [1st/3rd/5th level]
His skin tells his legend – in scars from battles long since won, the claw marks of now-dead beasts, and death's fingerprints. The accumulation of scar tissue provides the battlescarred with thick, resilient skin. At each indicated level, he receives damage reduction 1/-.

Every Wound Has a Tale To Tell [2nd level]
He can inspire his allies with a reminiscence of impossible battles and near-death experiences from which he emerged victorious. Conveying the tale is a full-round action, and all allies within 30 feet who hear it receive a morale bonus to all attack and damage rolls and all Will saves equal to his battlescarred level. He can use this extraordinary ability a number of times per day equal to his battlescarred level, and the bonus lasts for a number of rounds equal to twice his battlescarred level x any Charisma modifier. For example, a 3rd-level battlescarred with a Charisma 14 can utilize this spell-like ability three times per day to grant allies a +3 morale bonus to attack and damage rolls and to Will saves for 12 rounds.

Fighter Feat [3rd/5th level]
The battlescarred constantly perfects his martial prowess. At the indicated levels, he receives a bonus feat from the Fighter feat list. Battlescarred levels stack with fighter levels for the purposes of qualifying for feats such as Weapon Specialization and Greater Weapon Focus. He must otherwise qualify for any feat selected.

Counter Attack [4th level]
The battlescarred knows every trick in the book – he uses a few himself. He designates any feat that he has from the Fighter feat list that does not have a separate feat as a prerequisite. He could, for example, select Dodge, Power Attack, or Weapon Focus, but not Mobility, Cleave, or Weapon Specialization. He is no longer subject to the effects of the chosen feat when it is employed against him or specifically targets him. The opponent employing the feat can make a Wisdom check (DC = battlescarred level x 4) to realize the feat is having no effect; otherwise, the opponent might continue to waste the effects of the feat on the battlescarred without realizing its impotency.

For example, if the battlescarred selects Counter Attack (Dodge), then any creature that designates him as the target of its Dodge feat loses the dodge bonus the feat normally provides. If he selects Counter Attack (Power Attack), then creatures using Power Attack do not benefit from the damage bonus of that feat when used against the battlescarred, although they still incur the feat's self-imposed penalty to attack rolls.

History: Originally posted on the Wizards of the Coast message boards in March of 2004.

Board Link: To feedback on this class posted on the Wizards of the Coast message boards.