Thrall Prestige Classes

Gothar pulled his great sword from the Silver Dragon corpse, a silvery blood trickled down its blade while pools of the silvery liquid gathered at his feet. The cold numb feeling leeching its way through his heavy boots. Looking to either side he smiled at Drak and Tor, his Thrall Champions. Tor had been mortally wounded and would probably not live through the evening. He was being helped by three of his Thrall Troopers, all dressed in black and covered in blood. They were struggling to support their champion, fearful to drop him, for even in his injured stated he could still crush them easily for such a clumsy mistake.

Putting his hand on Tor’s shoulder Gothar states,

“Do not worry Tor, the Lord will hear of your deeds and as such your name will carry glory. And if it pleases our Lord he may grant you the privilege to serve him as a Guardian, for you served me well.”

Looking out over the great battle field, thousands lay dead, and more would soon follow from their wounds, yet those that remained cheered in glory knowing full well that by winning this victory here today their Lord would be pleased and that alone was reward enough…

Thralls are servitors of greater powers, usually an Evil power, though sometimes Neutral and on Rare occasions Good. They serve as the rank and file of the power’s army as well as the champions, leaders and guardians. The following are Thrall progressions “Casts” through the ranks of the Lord’s Army. The casts start with the lowly Thrall Grunt and Thrall Trooper to the Thrall Champion and the Thrall Leader, and possibly on to the Thrall Guardian. The Thrall Acolyte are the spell casters of the Thralls. They are usually outside of the command structure reporting directly to the Thrall Leaders.

Thrall Casts

Thrall Grunt – A low level Fighter

Thrall Trooper – Shock Troops of the Thralls

Thrall Champion – Champions

Thrall Leader – Leaders

Thrall Guardian – Undead Guards of the Lord

Thrall Acolyte – Casters of the Lord

Thrall Spy – The eyes and ears of the Lord

New Feats:

Submit or Die

This is a blood oath that binds the being to their superiors. They must obey all commands of their superiors and all personal considerations must be secondary.

Benefits:

You gain a +2 circumstance bonus to Will saves from any mind-affecting spells or orders commanding you to do something from anyone but a superior.

Any commands or mind-affecting spells given/cast from a superior are granted a Will save but at a –2 circumstance bonus to your Will save. Resisting a command may have consequences in of themselves, but that is another topic.

Thrall Grunt

The Thrall Grunt’s only desire is to please their superiors. Usually from a bad background they joined the ranks just to survive. Often hoping that their enemies are the Lord’s enemies and that one day they may seek revenge on them. Those that show promise often move on to higher casts, though some, the less intelligent are happy to stay as a grunt.

The Thrall Grunt makes up the lowest ranks of the Lord’s army. At low levels they are little more than subservient fighters, while at higher levels they are superior fighters.

Requirements:

Feats: Submit or Die

Skills: Intimidate 4 ranks, Any Physical(STR/DEX/CON) Skill(6 ranks)

Weapons: Must have at least one martial weapon proficiency.

Class Features:

Hit Dice: 1d10

Skill Points: 2 + (Int Mod) per level

Skills: Jump, Climb, Swim, Intimidate, Knowledge (War), Ride

Lvl BAB F R W Special Abilities

1 +1 +2 +0 +0 Grunt Limitations

2 +2 +3 +0 +0 Armored Mobility

3 +3 +3 +1 +1 Fight to the Death

4 +4 +4 +1 +1 Unbreakable Will

5 +5 +4 +1 +1 Damage Reduction 1/-

6 +6 +5 +2 +2 Bonus Feat

7 +7 +5 +2 +2 Unbreakable Will

8 +8 +6 +2 +2 Bonus Feat

9 +9 +6 +3 +3 Battle Cry

10 +10 +7 +3 +3 Damage Reduction 2/-, Bonus Feat

Special Abilities

Grunt Limitations

By nature Grunts are servants and followers and thus are restricted from ever taking the Leadership Feat.

Armored Mobility

A Thrall is use to fighting in armor. They learn to move easier with it on. They treat Heavy Armor as Medium and Medium Armor as Light Armor for all purposes including running movement and armor checks. They also get a –1 to armor checks, which is cumulative with other Armored Mobility, but never reduces the check below zero(0).

Fight to the Death

Thralls are dedicated servants and worship their Lord. As such at 3^rd level a Thrall gains the Diehard feat which allows the Thrall to continue fighting below zero(0) hit points. The Thrall may act normally until they reach –10 hit points at which point they die.

Unbreakable Will

Thralls follow orders to the T. They are trained from the start to focus their mind and obey their superiors. This grants a Grunt a +2 morale bonus on all mind-affecting magic and commands cast/given by any non-superior. But also because of their training they follow commands from their superior easier, thus gaining a –2 morale modifier on any mind-affecting magic or command cast/given by a superior. At 7^th level this increases to +4 and –4 respectively. This stacks with the Submit or Die bonus all Thralls have.

Damage Reduction

A Thrall Grunt is use to battle and thus it is easier for them to shrug off minor cuts and bruises. They gain damage reduction of 1/- as an innate ability at level 5. This stacks with other class based damage reduction, but not with spells or items. And at level 10 they gain another 1/- damage reduction which stacks with the first reduction.

Bonus Feat

Grunts are the heart of the Lord’s army and are superb fighters. They gain a bonus Feat at 6^th, 8^th and 10^th levels. The bonus feat can be selected from any Fighter type feat, but cannot select Fighter Unique Feats (Weapon Specialization/etc).

Battle Cry

A Thrall can give a battle cry once per day per Charisma bonus, minimum of one. This battle cry gives all Thralls within 30’ a +1 morale bonus to attacks, damage and saves for one round. This stacks with other Thrall’s Battle Cries. If the Thrall already has Battle Cry they gain only an additional use per day.

Thrall Trooper

The Thrall Troopers are more seasoned and tougher than Thrall Grunts. They are the shock troops sent in to weaken opponents.

The Thrall Troopers makes up the second ranks of the Lord’s army. At low levels they are tougher than grunts, while at higher levels they are able to command Grunts.

Requirements:

Feats: Endurance

Skills: Knowledge(War) 4 ranks, Intimidate 6 ranks.

Special: Must be a Thrall Grunt of at least 3^rd level

Class Features:

Hit Dice: 1d12

Skill Points: 2 + (Int Mod) per level

Skills: Jump, Climb, Swim, Intimidate, Knowledge (War), Ride

Lvl BAB F R W Special Abilities

1 +1 +2 +0 +0 Battle Cry

2 +2 +3 +0 +0 Improved Toughness

3 +3 +3 +1 +1 Power Surge

4 +4 +4 +1 +1 Damage Reduction 1/-

5 +5 +4 +1 +1 Battle Cry, Death to All

6 +6 +5 +2 +2 Thrall Command or Bonus Feat

7 +7 +5 +2 +2 Damage Reduction 2/-

8 +8 +6 +2 +2 Thrall Command or Bonus Feat

9 +9 +6 +3 +3 Bonus Feat

10 +10 +7 +3 +3 Battle Cry, Thrall Command

Special Abilities

Battle Cry

A Thrall can give a battle cry once per day per Charisma bonus, minimum of one. This battle cry gives all Thralls within 30’ a +1 morale bonus to attacks, damage and saves for one round. This stacks with other Thrall’s Battle Cries. If the Thrall already has Battle Cry they gain only an additional use per day.

Bonus Feat/Improved Toughness

Troopers are the shock troops of the Lord’s army and are excellent fighters. They gain Improved Toughness Feat at 2^nd level and gain a bonus Feat at 6^th, 8^th and 9th level. The bonus feat can be selected from any Fighter type feat, but cannot select Fighter Unique Feats (Weapon Specialization/etc). At 6^th and 8^th level they can either select a bonus feat or Thrall Command.

Power Surge

A Thrall Trooper is psyched towards battle somewhat similar as a barbarian's rage with the following changes. At 3^rd level they gain Power Surge which allows them to make a DC 15 Concentration check as a move action. If he succeeds he gains +8 to his Strength for a number of rounds equal to half his Thrall Trooper level (rounded down). Each use of this power increases the concentration DC check by +8 in a single 24 our period. While under the influences of the Power Surge the Thrall gains a -2 penalty to AC and cannot use an DEX based skills.

Damage Reduction

A Thrall Trooper is use to battle and thus it is easier for them to shrug off minor cuts and bruises. They gain damage reduction of 1/- as an innate ability at 4^th level. This stacks with other class and racial based damage reduction, but not with spells or items. At 8^th level they gain an additional damage reduction 1/-, which stacks with other class or racial damage reductions.

Death to All

Thrall Troopers love to rush into combat weapons flailing. If they make a charge, they can use their full attack at the end.

Thrall Command

The Thrall acquires a Thrall from the next lower Thrall cast, which must have a level gap of at least six(6) levels lower than the Thralls current level. For each Thrall Command a Thrall gains, the level gap increases by one(1). Thus the first Thrall command is six(6) levels lower, and the second Thrall Command is seven(7) levels lower, and so on.

A Thrall may only select a new Thrall from a lower Thrall cast, but that does not mean when a Thrall under command advances it cannot advance to a higher cast (if it meets the cast requirements), in which case the Thrall is still under the command of the Thrall that previously had command.

Thrall Champion

The Thrall Champions are the champion fighters of the Thralls. They are deadly in their own right dealing large amounts of damage very quickly by focusing their energies into their attacks.

The Thrall Champion makes up the third tier of the Lord’s army. They command the most respect, even from Thrall Leaders as they are the ones who get the job done.

Requirements:

Feats: Power Attack

Skills: Knowledge(War) 6 ranks, Intimidate 10 ranks.

Special: Must be a Thrall Trooper of at least 4^th level

Class Features:

Hit Dice: 1d10

Skill Points: 2 + (Int Mod) per level

Skills: Jump, Climb, Swim, Intimidate, Knowledge (War), Ride, Diplomacy, Spot, Listen, Sense Motive

Lvl BAB F R W Special Abilities

1 +1 +2 +0 +0 +1 Spellcaster Rank, Arcane Strike

2 +2 +3 +0 +0 +1 Spellcaster Rank, Damage Reduction 1/-

3 +3 +3 +1 +1 +1 Spellcaster Rank

4 +4 +4 +1 +1 +1 Spellcaster Rank, Bonus Feat

5 +5 +4 +1 +1 +1 Spellcaster Rank

6 +6 +5 +2 +2 +1 Spellcaster Rank, Thrall Command

7 +7 +5 +2 +2 +1 Spellcaster Rank

8 +8 +6 +2 +2 +1 Spellcaster Rank, Bonus Feat

9 +9 +6 +3 +3 +1 Spellcaster Rank

10 +10 +7 +3 +3 +1 Spellcaster Rank, Thrall Command

Special Abilities

Arcane Strike

Thrall Champions learn to wield inner powers to combat their foes. The Thrall Champion gains the Arcane Strike as a bonus feat even though he may not fully qualify for it.

Spellcaster Rank

Thrall Champions don’t gain the ability to cast spells, but rather the ability to channel magic during their combat. At 1^st level a Thrall Champion gains the spell slots of that of a 1^st level Wizard (no bonus spell slots). These spell slots can then be used with the Arcane Strike feat as per normal rules as if the Thrall Champion actually had a memorized spell to feed the feat. At each additional level they gain additional spell slots as per a Wizard. Note, they do not gain any 0 level spell slots.

A Thrall Champion must spend an hour each morning in meditation to regain these spell slots. If they cannot spend this time, they do not regain their spell slots for the day and any that had been previously used up are not restored until they Thrall Champion can properly mediate.

If a Thrall Champion could cast spells prior to becoming a Thrall they keep these spell slots separate and cannot combine the two. Though they can use their other classes spells with Arcane Strike in addition to their normal spell slots.

Bonus Feat

Champions are the true warriors of the Lord’s army and are perfect fighters. They gain a bonus Feat at 4^th and 8^th level. The bonus feat can be selected from any Fighter type feat, but cannot select Fighter Unique Feats (Weapon Specialization/etc).

Damage Reduction

A Thrall Trooper is use to battle and thus it is easier for them to shrug off minor cuts and bruises. They gain damage reduction of 1/- as an innate ability at level 3. This stacks with other class or racial based damage reduction, but not with spells or items.

Thrall Command

The Thrall acquires a Thrall from the next lower Thrall cast, which must have a level gap of at least six(6) levels lower than the Thralls current level. For each Thrall Command a Thrall gains, the level gap increases by one(1). Thus the first Thrall command is six(6) levels lower, and the second Thrall Command is seven(7) levels lower, and so on.

A Thrall may only select a new Thrall from a lower Thrall cast, but that does not mean when a Thrall under command advances it cannot advance to a higher cast (if it meets the cast requirements), in which case the Thrall is still under the command of the Thrall that previously had command.

Thrall Leader

The Thrall Leaders are the top ranks of the Thrall ladder. They command great respect from other thralls. They lean more towards leadership than fighting, though they can still fight otherwise they might fall prey to a Thrall Champion.

The Thrall Leader are the generals of the Lord’s army. Usually there will be only one Leader in an area, be it country or continent. Though during times of war you may see Thrall Leaders in charge of divisions, this could be a ground division and/or an airborne division. In these cases you will also have another leader residing over them.

Requirements:

Feats:

Skills: Knowledge(War) 9 ranks, Intimidate 15 ranks, Diplomacy 10 ranks.

Special: Must be a Thrall Champion of at least 5^th level or a Thrall Acolyte of at least 10^th level. And must have at least one Thrall under his command via the Thrall Command ability.

Class Features:

Hit Dice: 1d8

Skill Points: 4 + (Int Mod) per level

Skills: Jump, Climb, Intimidate, Knowledge (Any), Ride, Diplomacy, Spot, Listen, Bluff, Sense Motive

Lvl BAB F R W Special Abilities

1 +1 +2 +0 +2 Thrall Command

2 +2 +3 +0 +3

3 +3 +3 +1 +3 Thrall Command

4 +4 +4 +1 +4

5 +5 +4 +1 +4

6 +6 +5 +2 +5 Thrall Command

7 +7 +5 +2 +5

8 +8 +6 +2 +6 Thrall Command

9 +9 +6 +3 +6

10 +10 +7 +3 +7 Thrall Command, Thrall Guardian, Thrall Command Gap Reduction

Special Abilities

Thrall Command

The Thrall acquires a Thrall from the next lower Thrall cast, which must have a level gap of at least six(6) levels lower than the Thralls current level. For each Thrall Command a Thrall gains, the level gap increases by one(1). Thus the first Thrall command is six(6) levels lower, and the second Thrall Command is seven(7) levels lower, and so on.

A Thrall may only select a new Thrall from a lower Thrall cast, but that does not mean when a Thrall under command advances it cannot advance to a higher cast (if it meets the cast requirements), in which case the Thrall is still under the command of the Thrall that previously had command.

Thrall Guardian

A Thrall Leader of 10^th level learns the process to make a Thrall Guardian. The next time a Thrall Champion or Thrall Acolyte dies the Thrall Leader can make them a Thrall Guardian. The Thrall Guardian cannot be closer than seven(7) levels under the Thrall Leader and advances as a cohort.

This is a dangerous task to undertake as well as often the Lord will take this as a challenge to his power, because now the Guardian is not under his control. Thus the Thrall Leader must be sure of his power or have his Lord’s blessing to undertake such an action. Otherwise he may quickly lose his leadership.

Thrall Command Gap Reduction

A Thrall Lord can reduce the level gap between him and his leaders by one(1). Thus his commands are no longer limited to at least six(6) levels behind the Thrall Leader, but would only be five(5) levels behind. This can never reduce the gap to less than one(1) level behind the Thrall Leader.

Thrall Acolyte

The Thrall Acolyte are the spell casters of the Thrall. They usually garnish greater respect than an equal level Thrall.

The Thrall Acolyte are the wizards, sorcerers and clerics of the Lord’s army. They report directly to the Thrall Leaders, though they will also usually obey a higher ranking Thrall Champion, but that is more out of fear than leadership. A Thrall Leader may sometimes assign a Thrall Acolyte to a Thrall Champion, but the Thrall Acolyte is always answerable to the Thrall Leader first.

The Thrall Acolyte has a max of 14 levels since once an Acolyte joins the Thralls she cannot take any other non-core classes. And since a pure casting class can enter into the Thrall chain at a minimum of 6^th level I have provided enough to reach level 20.

Once in a while a Thrall Acolyte will get grabbed by another Thrall when they are a Thrall Grunt. In this case they then report to their Thrall Commander. Often though, especially if it is a competent spell caster a Leader may claim them for his own.

Requirements:

Feats: Endurance

Skills: Knowledge(War) 4 ranks, Intimidate 6 ranks, Diplomacy 6 ranks.

Special: Must be a Thrall Grunt of at least 1^st level. Must be able to cast either Divine and/or Arcane spells.

Class Features:

Hit Dice: 1d6

Skill Points: 2 + (Int Mod) per level

Skills: Intimidate, Knowledge (any), Ride, Diplomacy, Spellcraft, Concentration, Sense Motive

Lvl BAB F R W Special Abilities

1 +1 +0 +0 +2 Armored Spellcasting

2 +2 +0 +0 +3 +1 level of existing spell casting

3 +3 +1 +1 +3 +1 level of existing spell casting

4 +4 +1 +1 +4 +1 level of existing spell casting

5 +5 +1 +1 +4 +1 level of existing spell casting

6 +6 +2 +2 +5 +1 level of existing spell casting, Thrall Command

7 +7 +2 +2 +5 +1 level of existing spell casting

8 +8 +2 +2 +6 +1 level of existing spell casting

9 +9 +3 +3 +6 +1 level of existing spell casting

10 +10 +3 +3 +7 +1 level of existing spell casting

11 +11 +3 +3 +7 +1 level of existing spell casting

12 +12 +4 +4 +8 +1 level of existing spell casting, Thrall Command

13 +13 +4 +4 +8 +1 level of existing spell casting

14 +14 +4 +4 +9 +1 level of existing spell casting

Special Abilities

Armored Spellcasting

A Thrall Acolyte, like its brethren are trained for war. Thus they are more comfortable in wearing armor. At 1^st level they gain Armored Spellcasting, which reduces the arcane spell failure for any armor they wear by 5%.

Spell Casting

Thrall Acolytes advance in spell casting as if they gained a level in their previous spell casting class. If they had more than a single spell casting class, they must chose which one will advance, but not both. They gain no other abilities from their previous spell casting class.

Thrall Command

The Thrall acquires a Thrall from the next lower Thrall cast, which must have a level gap of at least six(6) levels lower than the Thralls current level. For each Thrall Command a Thrall gains, the level gap increases by one(1). Thus the first Thrall command is six(6) levels lower, and the second Thrall Command is seven(7) levels lower, and so on.

A Thrall may only select a new Thrall from a lower Thrall cast, but that does not mean when a Thrall under command advances it cannot advance to a higher cast (if it meets the cast requirements), in which case the Thrall is still under the command of the Thrall that previously had command.

Thrall Guardian

The Thrall Guardians are the personal guard of the Leader. They are outside the normal chain of command of Thralls.

The Thrall Guardian is usually selected from dead Thrall Champions, though Thrall Acolytes and Thrall Leaders are sometimes candidates for Thrall Guardians. Thrall Guardians are always undead, even in the case of a Good Lord. This is because Guardians never require rest, food or sleep. Also since Guardians are brought to un-life by the Leader they are under his total control. Though because of this, is why one will rarely find Good Thrall Guardians.

Requirements:

Special: Must have died as either a Thrall Champion, Thrall Leader, or Thrall Acolyte.

Class Features:

Hit Dice: 1d10

Skill Points: 4 + (Int Mod) per level

Skills: Intimidate, Knowledge (any), Ride, Diplomacy, Spellcraft, Concentration, Sense Motive

Lvl BAB F R W Special Abilities

1 +1 +2 +0 +2 Undead Guardian

2 +2 +3 +0 +3

3 +3 +3 +1 +3

4 +4 +4 +1 +4

5 +5 +4 +1 +4

6 +6 +2 +2 +5

7 +7 +2 +2 +5

8 +8 +2 +2 +6

9 +9 +3 +3 +6

10 +10 +3 +3 +7

Special Abilities

Undead Guardian

A Thrall Guardian is undead, and thus gains the Undead Type per the Monster Manual. Also Thrall Guardian loses any and all Thralls under his or her command unless they died at the same time as hime while under his control. He may never regain Thralls using previously gained Thrall Command abilities.

A Thrall Guardian must take on an Undead Template, for example a Ghost. Which ever template they acquire they advance a level in the template for each level of Thrall Guardian. Anything that is common between the Template and the Thrall Guardian you take the better of the two. For example a Ghost gets hit dice of d12 and Thrall Guardian gets d10 hit dice, for each level the Thrall Guardian would then get d12 hit dice.

Thrall Spy

The Thrall Spies are the eyes and ears of the Lord’s Horde.

The Thrall Spies makes up a special rank of Thralls.

Requirements:

Feats: Endurance

Skills: Knowledge(War) 4 ranks, Intimidate 6 ranks.

Special: Must be a Thrall Grunt of at least 3^rd level, or a Thrall Acolyte of 2^nd level, or higher ranking Thrall. Must have sneak attack ability.

Class Features:

Hit Dice: 1d6

Skill Points: 6 + (Int Mod) per level

Skills: Jump, Climb, Swim, Intimidate, Knowledge (War), Spot, Search, Listen, Sense Motive, Move Silently, Disable Device, Escape Artist, Open Locks, Use Rope, Decipher Script

Lvl BAB F R W Special Abilities

1 +1 +2 +2 +0 Multi-Class

2 +2 +3 +2 +0

3 +3 +3 +3 +1

4 +4 +4 +4 +1 Increased Sneak Attack

5 +5 +4 +4 +1

6 +6 +5 +5 +2

7 +7 +5 +5 +2

8 +8 +6 +6 +2 Increased Sneak Attack

9 +9 +6 +6 +3 Damage Reduction 1/-

10 +10 +7 +7 +3

Special Abilities

Multi-Class

Because a spy must be able to fit into other groups of people without being noticed, the multi-class restriction put on Thralls is removed.

Increased Sneak Attack

Thrall Spies are trained to quickly eliminate their foes. Your sneak attack ability that you possessed prior to becoming a spy increases by 1 die. So a Thrall Spy with 2d6 sneak attack ability would then have 3d6 sneak attack.

Damage Reduction

A Thrall Trooper is use to battle and thus it is easier for them to shrug off minor cuts and bruises. They gain damage reduction of 1/- as an innate ability at level 3. This stacks with other class or racial based damage reduction, but not with spells or items. At 8^th level they gain an additional damage reduction 1/-, which stacks with other class or racial damage reductions.

Appendix A – Thrall Notes

The following are general Thrall notes that clarify things or gives details across all classes.

General Notes

Subservient

All Thralls report to the Thrall chain of command and finally to a Lord. Acting against the commands of a superior is usually ground for dismissal. In the case of an Evil Lord, that may often mean death.

Alignment

All Thralls must have a base alignment not more than one step away from their Lords alignment. For example an evil character may become a Thrall of a Neutral or Evil Lord. And a Neutral character may become a Thrall of any aligned Lord.

Ex-Thralls

Every once in a while a Thrall breaks away from the chain of command. This usually occurs when the chain of command collapses usually because of the death of the superior Thralls and or Lord. In any event the Thrall retains all his powers but must find a new Lord to serve under before advancing any further as a Thrall.

If the Thrall has other Thralls under his command he may retain them, but either must quickly resubmit to a new lord or possibly fear one of his Thralls reporting him, if he is rogue. If they are truly rogue, those under his command will still follow him or her, but will also do their best to inform the other Thrall superiors of his disobedience.

Often Thralls are marked with the Lord’s symbol. This is used to identify Thralls and is often used as a sign of rank. If an Ex-Thrall is captured by one of the Lord’s Thralls, it is almost always punishable by death. Under a Good Lord though sometimes life in prison is carried out instead of death.

Multi-Classing/Ex-Thralls

Thralls are a dedicated group, thus one cannot join other groups. In game terms this means that a player can only multi-class with the core classes, and they cannot take any other Prestige classes unless they player becomes an Ex-Thrall.

Thrall Hierarchy

Orders

All Thralls advancement is based on a strict hierarchy of command. To disobey a superior is almost always punishable. Depending on the alignment of the Lord and his Leaders, punishment may even result in death. With that said every command a superior gives (either magical or just verbal) is allowed a Will saving throw to resist. A Thrall gets a –2 to the Will save as part of the “Submit or Die” feat (this is not in addition to the feat adjustment). The command save is a Will save with a DC of 10 + Thrall Level + CHR. A Thrall giving a lower cast Thrall a command gets a circumstance bonus of +5 to the DC for each cast lower. For example a 3^rd level Thrall Champion giving a Thrall Grunt will have a DC of 10 + 3 + CHR + 10 (5 + 5).

Failing the Will save means that you must obey the command, where as with a successful save, you still have the option to follow the command, but you can also ignore it, of course at your own consequences.

Thrall Command

Starting with Thrall Troopers, a Thrall player will most likely acquire a Thrall Command. This is command over other Thralls and is similar to the Leadership feat. The Thralls a player has control over are a cross between cohorts and followers. They are lower level than your typical cohort but usually higher level than a follower at similar levels.

Thrall’s are prohibited from taking the Leadership feat. If a character has the Leadership feat prior to becoming a Thrall, they lose this feat. They do not get to replace it, it’s just a feat that they no longer get any benefit from, while they are a Thrall.

Thralls are part of a strict hierarchy of the chain of command. Being on the bottom is usually unpleasant for most, while being higher in the chain has its benefits. Any Thrall may give any lower Thrall a command. This works in two ways:

1. Any Thrall can give a lower level Thrall of the same type (Grunt/Trooper/Champion/etc) a command.

2. Any Thrall can give any lower casting Thrall a command regardless of the lower casts level. For example a 1^st level Thrall Trooper could give a 10^th level Thrall Grunt a command and expect it to be carried out, even though the Thrall Grunt is probably more powerful than the Thrall Trooper.

Thralls under command are faithful first to their immediate commander and then to their commander’s commander, and on up the chain. They are usually loyal to the death, if they are treated with any bit of decency, but sometimes it has been know to have revolts within the chain of command. Often if the commander is not killed, the instigators are.

A Thrall does not gain any other followers and from Thrall Command other than those under his command. For example if a Thrall Champion acquires a Thrall Trooper which has a Thrall Grunt under his command, the Thrall Grunt is now indirectly under the command of the Thrall Champion.

Loss of a Thrall Leader

In the case of the loss of a Thrall Leader where there is no leader to command the other Thralls, Thrall Champions and Thrall Acolytes can challenge for the right to advance to become a Thrall Leader, in which case the strongest (usually the last one surviving) can advance to a Thrall Leader his next level. But they must immediately strive to meet the Skill requirements before acquiring any other skills by the next level. If a Thrall Leader cannot meet the Skill requirements within one level of taking leadership, then he is dethroned and another battle for leadership is begun. He loses any Thrall Leadership levels and returns to his previous level prior to acquiring the Thrall Leadership. Under a Good Lord, one will usually be appointed rather than challenge.

Loss of a Thrall Command

Thralls die, they are trained for battle, but even the best training will not save someone if it’s their time. When a Thrall loses one of their Thrall Commands (a character under their command) which doesn’t have any Thrall Commands of their own, they can simply select a new one and move on.

If the dead Thrall had its own Thrall Command, a couple of things can happen. Often the Thralls under a dead command, if they have been treated badly on a consistent basis, will attempt to desert. In game play this is easiest and can provide an adventure in itself for hunting down the deserted command.

If there are only a couple Thralls under command, then the Thrall who lost the command can simply select a new Thrall Command which has the same Thrall Command as the one that died. If no available Thrall with equal Thrall Command is available, and if there is only one Thrall under command, the Thrall Commander could acquire that Thrall Command, where he would then advance to take the dead Thrall’s place.

If there are multiple Thralls under command, then the GM may want to allow the player to promote one of the lower Thralls to the same position acquiring the proper Thrall Commands along the way. This process would probably take at least a month in game play. Until that time you could assign a negative modifier for each level below the target Thrall level and one for each Thrall under the command. Thus is a Thrall dies that had two Thrall Commands, one 6 level below and the second 7 levels below. The Thrall 7 levels below would become the new commander, and would have a –7 modifier for at least a month (-6 for each level below the required/necessary Thrall Command and –1 for the Thrall it is in command of).

Thrall Demotion/Promotion

Within any hierarchy of command there is always the concept of demotion and promotion. Doing something bad and getting punished for it or doing something good and getting promoted.

If a Thrall is demoted, he should be immediately assigned to a lower Thrall cast than his current and his lost Thrall cast level, should be converted into the lower level Thrall cast of equal ECL level. If there are not enough levels within a lower level Thrall cast, then go upto the highest possible within the lower Thrall cast and then allow them to put the remaining levels back in his current(lost) Thrall cast. This should result in a lower cast Thrall, though probably still of similar power level (ECL). If the punishment is really severe, maybe demoting them two Thrall casts (if possible) would work.

Thrall promotion is just the opposite. Wind back his current Thrall cast levels to the point where they could take the next higher Thrall cast and allow them to then assign their levels to that cast. In some cases a GM may allow entry into a Thrall cast earlier than normal, but I would be cautious doing this as it may imbalance the character.

Appendix B - Thrall Lord

Normally a Thrall Lord is a NPC, but in some cases a player may want to start their own Thrall horde from scratch or a Lord may die. A Thrall Leader may even feel powerful enough to challenge the Thrall Lord and assume his or her power. In these cases I decided I needed to provide at least some information on Thrall Lord advancement.

The Thrall Lord is an EPIC level Prestige Class, and a player must be an EPIC character to acquire this, usually taking first level at level 22. Some GM’s who play a “Birthright” type of campaign may want to allow a “Noble” character to advance as a Thrall Lord prior to EPIC levels, but since I have never played Birthright I do not know the full impact. But I can see a “boy” king being a Lord and having an army/horde.

In the case of the Thrall Leader assuming command either through force or the loss of a Thrall Lord, I wouldn’t allow it until at least level 22, but would recommend level 25.

Since starting as a new Thrall Lord, there are no “Thralls” the Thrall Lord would acquire a Thrall Leader as follows. The player would select a suitable Leader of any class (but must still fall under Thrall Command level gap) and their next level the new Leader would have to become a Thrall Leader of first level. This effect trickles down through the casts. So a Thrall Leader would then need to acquire a Thrall Champion, but since no Thralls exist, he would select a suitable character as champion (any classes) and they would then have to take Thrall Champion (first level) at their next level. This works its way down. When a Thrall gains a new Thrall Command, if no available Thralls exist, they select a character of appropriate level and then they begin as a 1^st level Thrall of the lower Thrall cast on their next level.

Requirements:

Special: Epic Character (minimum level 22 before taking first level, recommended 25th) if starting his own Thrall Horde.

Class Features:

Hit Dice: 1d8

Skill Points: 4 + (Int Mod) per level

Skills: Jump, Climb, Intimidate, Knowledge (Any), Ride, Diplomacy, Concentration, Spot, Listen, Bluff, Sense Motive

Lvl Special Abilities

1 Thrall Command

2 Thrall Command

3 Thrall Command

4 Thrall Command

5 Thrall Command, Thrall Command Gap Reduction

6 Thrall Command

7 Thrall Command

8 Thrall Command

9 Thrall Command

10 Thrall Command, Thrall Command Gap Reduction

11 Thrall Command

12 Thrall Command

13 Thrall Command

14 Thrall Command

15 Thrall Command, Thrall Command Gap Reduction

Special Abilities

Thrall Command

The Thrall acquires a Thrall from the next lower Thrall cast, which must have a level gap of at least six(6) levels lower than the Thralls current level. For each Thrall Command a Thrall gains, the level gap increases by one(1). Thus the first Thrall command is six(6) levels lower, and the second Thrall Command is seven(7) levels lower, and so on.

A Thrall may only select a new Thrall from a lower Thrall cast, but that does not mean when a Thrall under command advances it cannot advance to a higher cast (if it meets the cast requirements), in which case the Thrall is still under the command of the Thrall that previously had command.

Thrall Command Gap Reduction

A Thrall Lord can reduce the level gap between him and his leaders by one(1). Thus his leaders are no longer limited to at least six(6) levels behind the Thrall Lord, but the first would only be five(5) levels behind. This can never reduce the gap to less than one(1) level behind the Thrall Lord.

Appendix C - Thrall Cast Ladder Comparison

The following is a progression of the Thrall Casts. Each cast is based on the earliest possible entry into the cast. The Thrall Acolyte as a pure caster would be able to start at level 7 (sorcerer/wizard) and a cleric would be able to start at level 6. The Thrall Guardian is not listed as there are too many variables that come into play.

The number in the parenthesis is the number of feats the Thrall would have, including the fighter starting feats. Note this does not subtract out any required feats to meet cast requirements. The last column is a basic Fighter and lists the number of feats he would have from his class advancement.

Lvl Thrall Grunt Thrall Trooper Thrall Champion Thrall Leader Thrall Lord Thrall Acolyte Fighter

1 1

2 2

3

4 1st 3

5 2nd

6 3rd 4

7 4th 1st

8 5th 2nd 1st 5

9 6th(3) 3rd 2nd

10 7th 4th 3rd 6

11 8th(4) 5th 1st 4th

12 9th 6th#(3) 2nd 5th* 7

13 10th(5) 7th 3rd 6th

14 8th#(4) 4th(3) 7th 8

15 9th(5) 5th 8th

16 10th* 6th* 1st* 9th 9

17 7th 2nd 10th*

18 8th(4) 3rd* 10

19 9th 4th

20 10th* 5th 11

21 6th*

22 7th 1st* 12

23 8th* 2nd*

24 9th 3rd* 13

25 10th* 4th*

Feats

Thralls get much slower feat progression in place of powers compared to fighters and they have required feats of “Submit or Die”, “Endurance”, and lastly “Power Attack”. The first would be similar to a fighter taking the “Iron Will” feat, Endurance is a mixed feat, most fighters don’t take it unless a PrC requires it. The Power Attack is a usually taken feat, so I really shouldn’t count that against the reduced feats.

Thrall Command

Levels marked with a asterisk(*) are levels that a Thrall cast gains Thrall Command. Levels marked with a pound sign(#) are levels that a Thrall cast can gain Thrall Command in place of a Bonus Feat.

So a 20^th level character (Thrall Champion) could have a single Thrall Trooper (7^th level) that has a Thrall Grunt(3^rd level). But they could have two Thrall Troopers (7^th and 6^th levels) which would both have at least one Thrall Grunt(3^rd level) but possibly have two Thrall Grunts(3^rd and 2^nd level) each.

A 1^st level Thrall Leader (at 16^th level) cannot afford a Thrall Champion (because of level gap requirements) and thus would have to select a Thrall Trooper (probably 4^th level) instead. As soon as he went up a level, the Thrall Trooper would probably advance to Thrall Champion (1^st level). This is done so that a new Thrall Leader cannot upset power with a Thrall Champion. Logically one would not become a leader and immediately have a champion.

Class Comparision

The following is a comparison of similar Class builds. This assumes that there is a similar Feat for Divine Strike to Arcane Strike.

Class Combos	BAB	F	R	W	Feats	Abilities/Spell Slots (no bonus/zero level)
Fighter/Cleric/Hospitaler* 8/2/10	19	16	5	8	9	Turn Undead, Lay on Hands, Remove Disease 6, 5, 5, 4, 4, 3
Fighter/Wizard/Eldritch* 5/5/10	17	12	5	8	4	Summon Familiar, Scribe Scroll, Metamagic Feat 4, 4, 4, 4, 3, 3, 2
Fighter/Grnt/Trpr/Chmp 3/3/4/10	20	17	6	6	4	Grunt Limitations, Armored Mobility, Fight to Death, Battle Cry, Improved Toughness, Power Surge, Damage Reduction 2/-, Arcane Strike, Thrall Command 4, 4, 3, 3, 2

NOTE: * The first two builds get more feats and the dynamic of spells to enhance their characters.

Appendix D – GM Notes

Access to Casts(PrC)

These classes are designed to be part of a larger world. They should not be allowed to be taken independently. That is a player should not be allowed to just start picking up Thrall Grunt and then one of the other classes unless they are part of the larger Thrall Army/Horde.

Code of Conduct

I tried to make this as generic as possible, but a GM should feel comfortable adding a code of conduct. This could be a general code for all Thralls or could be unique to a specific Thrall cast.

Ideas for Codes of Conduct are listed below.

Thrall Leader Code of Conduct (Evil)

To ensure order among his sub leaders, the Evil Lord has stated no Thrall Leader may take any actions against any other Thrall Leader under his command.

This does not mean that the leaders do not take actions, just that their plots are hidden or through third parties which cannot be traced back to them. In the event of a revealed plot of one leader against another leader would have dire consequences.

Thrall Champion Code of Conduct (Good)

A Thrall Champion shall protect all, including those under his command. Any wrong doers should be brought forth to be judged by the Lord.

This could include even Evil beings. This would move the Champion towards a Paladin type class, protect and obeying laws.

Thrall Trooper Code of Conduct (any)

The Thrall commander is all that matters. All issues, concerns, infractions should be brought directly to him and never to their superior.

In the case of an Evil Thrall Horde, this could be punishable by death.

Thrall Code of Conduct (any)

The Lord is the one supreme ruler! Any and all infractions against the Lord and his interests should be brought to his immediate attention.

This could cause paranoia within the ranks, sort of a “big brother is watching” mentality. Also this could cause changes in the ranks. For example if a Thrall Trooper reports of an infraction of his superior, the Thrall Champion could be demoted (Good) or Exiled (Neutral) or killed (Evil) and the Thrall Trooper could be promoted to Champion.