Chronicles of Paragons
“Vilkram’s popular Lives of the Twelve Kings would have you believe that Ferin the Bold was twelve feet tall, juggled tree trunks every day before breakfast, and personally wrestled the Breaker-Wyrm to death. Meanwhile, Mericius Lun’s rare Apocrypha——which I had to get through ways that are neither safe nor entirely legal——suggests that the company of royal archers had more to do with things. What follows, then, are the heroic feats which I think are at least somewhere in the general vicinity of truth.”
——From the Pathfinder Chronicles volume “A Study of Archaic Hero-Legends” by Kallixeina Nyx
ALTERNATE CAPSTONES
When a character reaches the 20th level of a class, she gains a powerful class feature or ability, sometimes referred to as a capstone. The following section provides new capstones for characters to select at 20th level. A character can select one of the following capstones in place of the capstone provided by her class. Some capstones are for specific classes, while others are for a range of classes that qualify for them. In some cases, a capstone specifies what ability it replaces. A character can’t select a new capstone if she has previously traded away her class capstone via an archetype. Clerics and wizards can receive a capstone at 20th level, despite not having one to begin with.
Class-Specific Capstones
The following capstone abilities are available for characters of specific classes.
Antipaladin—Tip of the Spear (Su): At 20th level, the antipaladin tears through heroes and rival villains alike. The antipaladin gains three additional uses of smite good per day and can smite foes regardless of their alignment.
Arcanist—Deep Reservoir (Su): At 20th level, the arcanist has enough power to blast things all day long. Her arcane reservoir increases by 10, and she gains 5 additional points each day when preparing her spells.
Barbarian or Unchained BarbarianPU—Unstoppable (Ex):At 20th level, nothing can kill the barbarian, though not for lack of trying. The barbarian gains DR 3/— or increases the value of any existing damage reduction by 3. In addition, she gains energy resistance to acid, cold, electricity, and fire equal to her DR/— value.
Bard—Adoring Fan (Su): At 20th level, the bard can use his performance to convert even the toughest audience. To be affected, a target must be able to see and hear the bard perform for 1 full round and be within 30 feet. The target can attempt a Will save (DC = 10 + half the bard’s level + the bard’s Charisma modifier) to negate the effect. If a creature succeeds at the saving throw, the bard cannot use this ability on that creature again for 24 hours. On a failure, the creature is dominated (as dominate monster) for as long as the bard keeps playing and is charmed (as charm monster) for 1d4 hours thereafter. Adoring fan is a mind-affecting, compulsion effect that relies on audible and visual components.
Bloodrager—Empowered Bloodrage (Su): At 20th level, the bloodrager is as much spell as mortal flesh. When the bloodrager enters a bloodrage, he can apply two spells to himself rather than one.
Brawler—Perfect Warrior (Ex): At 20th level, the brawler has reached the highest levels of her art. The brawler’s maneuver training increases by 2 and her dodge bonus to AC improves by 2. This replaces the 20th-level improvement to martial flexibility.
Cavalier—Tactical Genius (Ex): At 20th level, the cavalier is a maestro of the battlefield, commanding and moving troops like so many game pieces. The cavalier gains a bonus teamwork feat, can grant up to three bonus feats with tactician, and increases the range of tactician by 90 feet.
Cleric—Proxy (Su): At 20th level, the cleric forges a direct, personal connection to her deity. She knows instinctively whether her deity would approve or disapprove of a given course of action or idea (though deities rarely bother to form opinions about overly mundane or trivial events). In addition, she can select an additional domain from the list offered by her deity.
Druid—Home Ground (Su): At 20th level, the druid knows every tree, every deer, every blade of grass, and every scuttling beetle of her home. The druid selects a specific area relevant to the campaign, such as a prominent forest, mountain, or even a patch of sea. The druid is constantly under the effect of commune with nature with regards to that area and can change the facts she gleans from the spell when she prepares her spells each day. In addition, while on her home ground, the druid gains a +4 bonus to her caster level.
Fighter—Veteran of Endless War (Ex): At 20th level, the fighter has seen more combat than entire platoons of soldiers put together. The bonuses granted by his armor training and weapon training increase by 2 each.
Gunslinger—Personal Armory (Ex): At 20th level, there is not a gun in the world that the gunslinger can’t fire. The gunslinger applies her gun training to all firearms, and her damage bonus from gun training increases to 1-1/2 times her Dexterity bonus.
Hunter—Huntmaster (Ex): At 20th level, the hunter learns to control all manner of beasts. The hunter gains a second animal companion. Her level is considered four lower for the purposes of her second animal companion. The hunter can use her animal focus feature to grant each animal companion a different animal aspect.
Inquisitor—Team Leader (Ex): At 20th level, the inquisitor has grown accustomed to teaching farmers to fight, but what she can do with trained warriors is far more terrifying. When the inquisitor regains her spells each day, she can also spend 1 hour training a number of characters up to her Wisdom modifier in battle tactics. These characters receive three of the inquisitor’s teamwork feats (the inquisitor’s choice) as bonus feats for the next 24 hours.
Investigator—Deadly Study (Ex): At 20th level, the investigator knows just how to hit where it hurts. The investigator increases the bonus from studied combat by 4, and his studied strike damage increases by 3d6.
Kineticist—Unbridled Power (Su): At 20th level, the kineticist wields her chosen element like a knife, cutting through all opposition. The kineticist chooses one blast. Her damage with that blast increases by 2d6+2 (for physical blasts) or by 2d6 (for energy blasts), and the blast ignores the first 10 points of damage reduction or energy resistance that the target has.
Magus—Legendary Blade (Su): At 20th level, the magus can turn his weapon into a thing of terror and wonder. When the magus enhances his weapon with his arcane pool, he grants it an additional +2 enhancement bonus (for a total of +7).
Medium—Hardened Soul (Su): At 20th level, the medium’s soul has calluses from all the times some spirit or another has tried to take over. The medium does not become an NPC until his influence with a spirit reaches 8, and his spirit surge dice increases to 2d8.
Mesmerist—Piercing Gaze (Su): At 20th level, the mesmerist’s gaze carries with it something of the beyond. His stare penalty increases by 2.
Monk and Unchained MonkPU—Old Master (Ex): At 20th level, the monk has reached the highest levels of his martial arts school. The monk gains one additional attack at his highest base attack bonus when using flurry of blows, and his dodge bonus to AC increases by 2.
Ninja—Slicing Wind (Su): At 20th level, the ninja is a creature of wind and blades. When using light steps, the ninja can move up to four times her speed and make a single attack at her highest base attack bonus at any point during the movement.
Occultist—Collector of the Strange (Su): At 20th level, the occultist has no end of odd curios hanging about his body. The occultist gains two new focus powers and increases his mental focus pool by 6, but he can have no more than one-third of his points invested into any one implement school.
Oracle—Diverse Mysteries (Su): At 20th level, the oracle knows that sometimes she needs different tools to do her patron’s work. The oracle can select two revelations from another mystery. She must meet the prerequisites for these revelations.
Paladin—Crusader Champion (Su): At 20th level, the paladin’s zeal is so inspiring that it affects all around her. The ranges of all of the paladin’s auras increase by 30 feet.
Psychic—Phrenic Mastery (Su): At 20th level, the psychic’s mind is a legendary weapon in its own right. The psychic’s phrenic pool increases by 6, and she gains two new phrenic amplifications.
Ranger—Seen It Before (Ex): At 20th level, the ranger is wise to all the tricks of his prey. The ranger adds his favored enemy bonus as an insight bonus on saves against spells and abilities used by his favored enemies.
Rogue or Unchained RoguePU—Masterful Talent (Ex): At 20th level, the rogue has been a thief, an actor, a merchant, a scout, a confessor, a friend, an assassin, and a dozen more things besides. The rogue gains a +4 bonus on all of her skills.
Samurai—Indomitable Spirit (Ex): At 20th level, the sight of the samurai on the battlefield gives heart to even the most doomed force. The range of the samurai’s banner increases by 90 feet, the bonuses offered by the banner increase by 2, and the samurai can wave his banner to use its ability as a move action instead of a standard action.
Shaman—Hex Mastery (Su): At 20th level, the shaman has learned ever more terrible hexes. She can select one grand hex from the list available to witches.
Shifter—Flexible Form (Su): At 20th level, the shifter has control over her bodies down to the finest details. When the shifter uses wild shape, she gains a total of a +6 bonus to her physical ability scores, which she can distribute as she likes each time she shifts. For example, she can gain a +4 bonus to Strength and a +2 bonus to Dexterity, and the next time she shifts she can instead gain a +6 bonus to Constitution.
Skald—Great Kenning (Su): At 20th level, the skald’s knowledge of other magic grows ever wider. The skald can use spell kenning three additional times per day and can select one additional spell list from which he can cast spells with spell kenning.
Slayer—Against the Odds (Ex): At 20th level, the slayer is used to fighting when the numbers are not in his favor. When the slayer uses studied target, he can study up to two additional foes with the same action.
Sorcerer—Unique Bloodline (Su): At 20th level, the sorcerer’s blood grows wild and strange, become less about her ancestors and more about her specifically. The sorcerer selects a second bloodline and gains the bloodline arcana and the 1st-, 3rd-, and 9th-level bloodline powers. Her level for these powers is the same as for her primary bloodline.
Spiritualist—Potent Phantom (Su): At 20th level, the spiritualist’s phantom grows ever more complex and sophisticated in its manifestation. The phantom gains a second emotional focus. This does not change the phantom’s saving throws, but the phantom otherwise grants all the skills and powers of the focus.
Summoner and Unchained SummonerPU—Grand Eidolon (Su): At 20th level, the summoner’s eidolon becomes an absolute monstrosity—a thing of legend and terror. The summoner gains 4 additional evolution points to spend as he likes, not subject to subtype-based requirements.
Swashbuckler—Incredible Luck (Ex): At 20th level, the swashbuckler has had so many close calls that she barely notices them anymore. The swashbuckler gains three additional uses of charmed life and can activate the ability as a free action, even outside of her turn.
Vigilante—Past Your Limits (Ex): At 20th level, the vigilante has learned to stretch himself to do what he never thought he could before. The vigilante gains one additional social talent and one additional vigilante talent. This bonus vigilante talent is not subject to specialization requirements—a stalker can select an avenger-only talent, and vice versa. At the GM’s discretion, the vigilante can instead select an archetype-only vigilante talent, such as the cabalist’s living shadow.
Warpriest—Hammer of God (Su): At 20th level, the warpriest has become one of his deity’s favorite weapons—the first tool that comes to hand when destruction is called for. The warpriest gains two additional blessings from the list offered by his deity. He can also call upon his blessings two more times each day.
Wizard—Well-Prepared (Su): At 20th level, the wizard has a spell for every occasion he can imagine—and a few he can’t. The wizard gains two additional cantrips per day, six additional 1st- and 2nd-level spell slots, four additional 3rd- and 4th-level spell slots, two additional 5th-level spell slots, and one additional 6th-level spell slot.