#red mantis

Flawless Scarlet Chaperone -- Pathfinder Combat Feat

“Every living thing in this throne-room -- in this kingdom, truthfully, and farther beyond your borders still; across seas and skies none here can comprehend -- has ample reason to cower at the merest shadow of my blade or the barest whisper of my name.

“All except you, Your Majesty.

“War and treason surround this place; anarchy screams upon the very wind; hungry marauders haunt your roads & woods, sparking dissent into the open flames of rebellion.

“I come to guard your line, in the name of He Who Walks in Blood.”

Most of those amongst your hidden faith seek simply to emulate your patron's role: never targeting nor slaying any rightful monarch, just as Achaekek himself is incapable of killing the truly divine.

You, however, take the ideology of the Red Mantis one step further: you comprehend that the murder of royalty is an utterly blasphemous and abhorrent act, the single unforgivable sin. For are the kings & queens of this mortal world not the anointed agents of the very gods?

Never, then, shall a single drop of royal blood be spilled in your presence.

Brought to you absolutely free to play, to test & to share, as always, by the fine folks of my Patreon.

original image from here

Prerequisites: Lawful Evil alignment; Blessed Pawn of He Who Walks in Blood feat or divine caster in service to Achaekek

Effect: At-will as an immediate action while you are holding or wielding a saw-toothed sabre (here; but see Special, below), you may swap places with an adjacent monarch who has been struck by an attack.

This monarch must be a creature that you truly recognize as royalty, the sovereign head of a nation, one that you may not -- yourself -- ever target or harm. Your own definition of “monarch” is personal, and may -- or may not! -- include the immediate family or blood of such royalty; once your decision is made, however, it is final.

You must be conscious and able to move, and cannot be flat footed, to use this ability. Only attacks and effects that require attack rolls can be intercepted in this way; you cannot prevent a monarch from being hit by a magic missile, for example, nor by a dragon’s breath weapon.

You can make the decision to use this ability after seeing the damage and all immediate secondary effects dealt by the attack. This prevents the monarch from suffering any damage or effect; you instead become the target of the attack and you are automatically hit by it. This is true even if the original attack would not have hit you: the act of intercepting this attack requires that you briefly lower your own defenses and thus leaves you vulnerable.

You do, however, gain the benefit of your own saving throws, DR, and resistance against all secondary effects that allow such defenses. Thus, for example, if you became the new target of a ghoul’s claw attack, you would use your own saves -- rather than the monarch’s saves -- against the ghoul’s paralysis ability.

You and the original target always trade positions as a result of using this ability. You can use this ability on a monarch up to one size category larger than you, but the monarch must be able to stand in the space you originally occupied.

After you have moved in this way, you can immediately make an attack of opportunity against the original attacker so long as that creature is now within your melee reach.

Special: If you are a Scythe-Waltzing Reaper with the Red Reaper of Achaekek feat (as illustrated above), you may also use this ability while wielding a scythe.

Campaign Note: A creature with this ability does not need to be loyal to any monarch in order to gain the benefits of this ability, nor to treat their “social betters” with deference or respect; in fact, many of the sanctified killers trained in this technique are dangerously -- even, some would say, egregiously -- honest with those royalty whom they are sworn to protect.

Many of those who learn this art-form eventually gain the official royal title of spymaster, executioner, judicial champion or scourge; oftentimes, such creatures are the only beings allowed to carry a weapon in court, and spend their days embroiled deep in the complexities of counter-assassination and counter-intelligence operations.

Designer’s Note: A character with this feat can make an interesting and memorable part of an otherwise good-aligned party, especially if tasked to protect a forthright and kind-hearted royal heir.

This feat may be of use with the Sworn Blade in Darkness archetype; it is the antithesis of the Iron Warblade of Shattering Chains archetype.

This ability is based upon the Armiger class.

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NOTE:

Sacred Blood-Splatter Analyst -- Pathfinder Investigator Feat

There are all-too-few true believers these days.

A shame, surely.

Of your own sins? Though they may be many, none might count “lack of faith” amongst them.

Within those neon-lit alleyways, glittering shadows and black-shining boardrooms which compose the twisted battlefield of your so-called Great Witch War, the dread figure called He Who Walks in Blood has far more subtle agents than just His red reapers and swift executioners, His obedient pawns and crimson shepherds, His grey gun-knights and His gleaming-dark pillars, His iron-bound super-soldiers or shape-shifting, flesh-devouring monsters.

When things need to be kept nice & quiet, when things need to be found -- or to be kept well-hidden -- He also has you.

Brought to you absolutely free to play, to test & to share, as always, by the fine folks of my Patreon.

image from here

Prerequisite: Lawful Evil alignment; Sleuth; worshiper of Achaekek; see Special, below

Benefit: You gain access to the following spell-like abilities, which are activated by the expenditure of the listed number of points of luck. Your character level is the caster level for these spell-like abilities, and you use Charisma to determine your concentration check bonus. The saving throw against these spell-like abilities (if any) is equal to 10 + ½ your level + your Charisma bonus.

alter self, darkness, obscuring mist, spider climb, true strike – 1 point

At 5th level, you additionally gain access to following effects:

clairaudience/clairvoyance, deeper darkness, invisibility – 2 points

At 10th level, you additionally gain access to the following effects:

dimension door, greater invisibility, hold person, kiss of unrequited love, quickened true strike, summon monster IV (giant mantis only) — 3 points

At 15th level, you additionally gain access to the following effects:

mass invisibility, modify memory, summon monster VIII (deadly mantis only) – 4 points

Special: This ability may be selected in place of any Investigator Talent, although must still otherwise meet the prerequisites. If you possess this ability, you may additionally select the Above the Law and Exultation of Horrors feats in place of Investigator Talents.

Campaign Notes: Obviously, most characters with this ability are loyal to the Cult of the Red Mantis, although a fair number also maintain some membership in other circles ... the better to watch for any who would violate the ironclad Law of the Arcanotheign. As might be expected, the Cult of the Starsong is the only affiliation to have resisted compromise by any members of this secretive group.

This ability is often gained by those with the Hard-Boiled, Two-Fisted Private-Eye archetype.

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NOTE:

Icon of Red Devotion -- Family Trait

The dread promise of He Who Walks in Blood is fulfilled, in you; by the very wind of your breath and the thunder of your footstep, his armies are made unstoppable ... and you are become a living Crimson Citadel.

Brought to you absolutely free to enjoy, to test & to share – as always – by the fine folks of my Patreon.

Prerequisite: Shepard of Crimson Slaughter feat; Lawful Evil Lord of Darkness or Tyrant antipaladin in service to Achaekek, the Red Mantis; Overwhelming Soul archetype; Blood Kineticist archetype; Heir to Power Unstable Family Trait; may not possess the Bonds Forged in Hell-Fire Family Trait/Hell-Money Campaign Trait; see Special, below

Benefit: You gain use of bardic performance, allowing you to inspire courage at 1st level, inspire competence at 3rd level and inspire greatness at 9th level -- as a bard of your level -- usable for a total number of rounds per day equal to your total character level. As a free action, you may expend one daily use of your Touch of Corruption to gain one additional round of this performance.

Only your fellow worshipers of Achaekek the Red Mantis may gain the benefits of your inspirational presence in this way. After activating your inspirational presence as a standard action, you may maintain this presence each round as a free action.

All of the inspirational presence abilities granted by this Trait have both audible and visual components and are divine in origin just as much as they are psychic; you cannot use any ability granted by this Trait unless you are in direct possession of a sawtooth sabre or of an unholy symbol specific to the faith of Achaekek, the Red Mantis.

Whenever a creature benefiting from your inspirational presence confirms a critical hit or reduces an opponent to zero or fewer hit points, you instantly gain all the benefits of using Gather Power as a move action. If multiple creatures benefiting from your inspirational presence confirm critical hits or reduce opponents to zero or fewer hit points in a single round, you instead gain all the benefits of using Gather Power as a full-round action.

NOTE: the confirmation of a critical hit on a helpless or unaware creature or the defeat of a creature that possesses fewer Hit Dice than half your own level does not provide a Gather Power benefit to you in this way.

Finally, any creature under the effects of your inspirational presence -- as granted by this Trait -- is temporarily treated as a member of your family for purposes of the Heir to Power Unstable Family Trait.

Special: If you are a dhampir with the Devotions of Blood’s Path Family Trait, you may freely gain this Trait whenever you select the Additional Traits feat in place of an antipaladin class ability. In addition, this Trait may bought-off by selecting a Drawback such as Umbral Unmasking. 

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NOTE:

Shepherd of Crimson Slaughter -- Pathfinder Divine Antipaladin / Kineticist Feat

In the long-ancient days before the coming of Earthfall – more than one hundred centuries past, during the unknowable Height of Azlant – your great god was known as the divine patron-force of monsters, terror and death by natural disaster far more than he was known as a mere lord of shadows & assassins.

Once, members of your cult strode the streets of plague-wracked and storm-tossed cities openly as angels of mercy and judgement, working darkest miracles and brightest vengeance as they saw fit: guided only by the iron words of holy death-dealers, blessed & moved by the Red Mantis himself.

Those black & glorious days, whisper some of your nameless masters, have begun once again. When that wine-dark age truly dawns and the signs come right, you shall be ready.

You are the terrifying artillery of a forbidden faith, the lethal and earth-scouring cannonade, a world-ending assailant to be called-upon when more ... subtle techniques have failed.

Brought to you absolutely free to enjoy, to test & to share – as always – by the fine folks of my Patreon.

original image from here

Prerequisite: Lawful Evil Lord of Darkness or Tyrant antipaladin in service to Achaekek, the Red Mantis; Overwhelming Soul archetype; Blood Kineticist archetype

Benefit: All of your kinetic blasts, wild talents and spell-like abilities gain the shadow descriptor; when readied, your kinetic blast can be used to counterspell any spell of equal or lower level which possesses the light descriptor.

All abilities granted this feat and all of your wild talents become divine in origin just as much as they are psychic; any effect or special ability that resists either form of magic — such as History of Heresy — is applied to all supernatural, spell or spell-like effects you create. In addition, you cannot use any divine or psychic abilities unless you are in direct possession of a sawtooth sabre or an unholy symbol specific to your dark faith. You are always considered to have your hands free for purposes of Kinetic Blast, Gather Power and all other kineticist class abilities as long as you are only holding a sawtooth sabre or an unholy symbol of Achaekek.

You may expend any number of daily uses of your Touch of Corruption as a swift action to reduce the Burn cost of any wild talent, feat or infusion that you use in the same round. You reduce the final Burn cost by 1 point for every two daily uses of Touch of Corruption you expend in this way. If you have the Heir to Power Unstable Family Trait, this is treated as negating a point of Burn via the Gather Power class ability for purposes of that Trait (see Special, below).

If you have the Fiendish Boon class ability or the Fiendish Body class ability (see Special, below), all enhancements normally granted to your weapon by use of that ability are instead applied to all kinetic blasts you use, including both kinetic blade and kinetic whip.

You draw energy and elemental matter from Avernus, the First Circle of Hell, rather than from the Ethereal Plane. You may never gain the Reverse Shift utility wild talent, and this differentiation may impose additional limitations and effects upon your abilities at your GM’s discretion.

When you reach a total character level of 7th, as a standard action you may beseech He Who Walks In Blood itself and summon-forth a single scarlet giant mantis as if using summon monster IV; each round on your turn, you must take a move action to instruct and empower this creature or it vanishes once more back to the realms beyond.

When you reach a total character level of 17th, as a standard action you may instead summon-forth a single blood-red deadly mantis as if using summon monster VIII; as before, each round on your turn you must take a move action to instruct and empower this creature.

Special: If you possess the Heir to Power Unstable Trait, you add your Charisma modifier to all of your Combat Maneuver Bonuses for the abilities granted by that Trait, rather than adding your Burn total. If you are a Swift Executioner of Fools, you add your kineticist level to your antipaladin class level for purposes of the Unholy Spirit-Defense and Unarmed Strike class features.

You are not considered to be a spell-caster for purposes of the Blessed Pawn of He Who Walks In Blood feat unless you gain spell-casting abilities from another source.

Campaign Notes: This technique is especially popular amongst those dhampir who seek the deeper mysteries of Blood’s Path.

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NOTE:

Red Reaper of Achaekek -- Combat Feat

In the ancient days before Earthfall – more than one hundred centuries past, during the unknowable Height of Azlant – your great god was known as the patron force of monsters, terror and death by natural disaster far more than he was known as a mere lord of assassins.

Once, members of your cult strode the streets of plague-wracked and storm-tossed cities openly as angels of mercy and judgement, working darkest miracles and brightest vengeance as they saw fit, guided only by the iron words of holy death-dealers blessed and moved by the Red Mantis himself. 

Those days, whisper some of your nameless masters, have begun once again.

When that wine-dark age truly dawns, and the signs come right, you shall be ready.

As a swift and loyal soldier indoctrinated in the eldest ways, you may regain panache in great torrents by slicing open willing or helpless flesh ... cut, weeping, to reveal that crimson ocean which cascades beneath and unites all life-in-ending, all for the glory of He Who Walks in Blood.

original image from here

Prerequisite: Scythe-Waltzing Reaper archetype; Blessed Pawn of He Who Walks in Blood feat

Benefit: You obtain the use of a supernatural blood pool with the following limits, benefits and restrictions:

Your blood pool begins each day at zero, but you may hold a maximum number of blood points in this pool equal to your Charisma modifier or to your Wisdom modifier (your choice).

To add points to your blood pool, you must shed either your own blood or the blood of a willing or helpless living creature. As a full-round action, you may deal a number of hit points of damage equal to twice your character level to yourself -- or to a single willing or helpless living adjacent creature -- and thus gain a single blood point.

As a move action, you may exchange a single point from your blood pool for a point of panache, or vice versa.

In this way, you may exchange up to two points each round by using a pair of move actions.

In addition, if you possess the Exotic Weapon Proficiency (sawtooth sabre) feat, you may use that weapon in all of the same ways that you may use a scythe: thus, you additionally regain panache when you make a killing blow or confirm a critical hit with a sawtooth sabre. You also gain all benefits of the Weapon Finesse, Improved Trip and Slashing Grace feats when wielding a sawtooth sabre, and such a weapon is treated as a “light melee piercing weapon” for purposes of all feats and Deeds. You also gain the attack roll, damage roll and critical bonuses of the Waltzing Blade-Devotion and Waltzing Blade-Mastery class features when using a sawtooth saber, just as with a scythe.

If you ever gain spell-casting abilities of any kind, such as from the Singer of Praise class, you may immediately retrain the Blessed Pawn of He Who Walks in Blood feat to Spell Focus (any school) and retrain this feat to Bloodmage Initiate, fulfilling the first steps necessary to become a true Bloodmage.

Designer’s Note: For more on blood magic, see Ultimate Evil.

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NOTE:

Swift Executioner of Fools -- Antipaladin Archetype

Some of those who stalk, subdue and slay in the name of an evil god do so with alacrity, poise and lightly-armored precision, eschewing the thunderous and blood-caked heavy plate for which their dark contemporaries are so infamous.

Alignment: A Swift Executioner of Fools must be Lawful Evil; as such, most are Lord of Darkness or Tyrant antipaladins in service to a god such as Achaekek, Abadar, Asmodeus or Zon-Kuthon.

Skills: A Swift Executioner of Fools gains Acrobatics, Climb, and Swim as class skills.

Unholy Spirit-Defense (Ex): At 1st level, when wearing light or no armor and not using a shield, a Swift Executioner of Fools adds 1 point of his Charisma bonus (if any) per class level to his Dexterity bonus when calculating his Armor Class. Thus, a 3rd-level Swift Executioner of Fools with a Charisma score of 18 would add an additional +3 to his Dexterity bonus when calculating his AC; upon reaching 4th level, this bonus would increase to +4. If he is caught flat-footed or otherwise denied his Dexterity bonus, the Swift Executioner of Fools also loses this bonus.

This ability replaces his proficiency with medium armor, heavy armor, and shields.

Unarmed Strike: At 1st level, a Swift Executioner of Fools gains Improved Unarmed Strike as a bonus feat. In addition, he gains the unarmed strike monk ability, treating his monk level as half his antipaladin level (minimum 1) for calculating his unarmed strike damage.

Ki Pool (Su): At 4th level, a Swift Executioner of Fools gains a ki pool with an effective monk level equal to his class level. The number of points in his ki pool is equal to 1/2 his antipaladin class level + his Charisma modifier.

This ability functions as the monk ability of the same name and replaces channel negative energy.

Fiendish Body (Su): Upon reaching 5th level, a Swift Executioner of Fools must form a bond with a weapon, except he can only choose to enhance his unarmed strike.

This ability otherwise functions as fiendish boon; it modifies but does not replace that ability.

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Designer’s Note: This archetype, unlike its paladin counterpart, is of especial use with the ninja class.

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