A celestial-blessed creature favors whichever class the base creature does. Endowing a player character with the celestial- blessed template should be a major campaign event. No celestial enters this kind of bargain lightly, and full agreement as to the celestial’s term of service must always be achieved before the joining occurs.
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(Male Hound-Archon-Blessed Half-Elf Paladin 7/Blackguard 5)/ Medium Humanoid (Good, Half-Elf)
Hit Dice: 7d10+21 plus 5d10+15 (102 hp) Initiative: +3
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 20 (+3 Dex, +6 armor +2 improved silent moves mithral
shirt, +1 ring of protection +1), touch 14, fl at-footed 17
Base Attack/Grapple: +12/+17
Attack: +1 shock greatsword +19 melee (2d6+8/19–20 plus 1d6
electricity) or +1 fl aming composite longbow (+5 Str bonus) +17 ranged (1d8+6/x3 plus 1d6 fi re)
Full Attack: +1 shock greatsword +19/+14/+9 melee (2d6+8/19–20
plus 1d6 electricity) or +1 fl aming composite longbow (+5 Str bonus) +17/+12/+7 ranged (1d8+6/x3 plus 1d6 fi re)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Command undead 7/day, faithful hound,
fi endish summoning, sacredness, smite good 3/day, sneak attack +2d6, spells
Special Qualities: Aura of despair, aura of evil, blessed, dark
blessing, detect good, fi endish servant benefi ts, half-elf traits, heavenly health, inhabited, lay on hands, low-light vision, poison use, resistance (electricity 20), scent, spell vulnerability
Saves: Fort +17, Ref +11, Will +11
Abilities: Str 20, Dex 17, Con 16, Int 14, Wis 16, Cha 18 Skills: Bluff +8, Diplomacy +6, Gather Information +6, Hide +20,
Knowledge (religion) +6, Listen +8, Move Silently +20, Ride +13, Search +3, Spot +8
Feats: Alertness, Cleave, Improved Sunder, Power Attack, Stealthy Challenge Rating: 13
Treasure: See Possessions on page 42 Alignment: Lawful evil
Advancement: By character class
Here is an example of a celestial-blessed creature using a male half-elf paladin 7/blackguard 5 as the base creature.
Bryven Nightkirk met the hound archon that inhabits him while still a paladin. At the time, he was new to his order and fi lled with the desire to see evil vanquished. Bryven served as scout and squire for a troop of more experienced paladins, and during one mission, he met a hound archon and freed it from bondage. Th e grateful hound archon off ered to bless Bryven with its presence if he agreed to release it after fi ve years. But when the time came, Bryven Nightkirk fl ed from the Ritual of Release because he had grown accustomed to the power that the celestial granted him. Gradually, his selfi shness drew him further and further from his ideals and he lost his paladin abilities. When he met a devil that off ered to return his powers if he promised to turn from good, Bryven readily agreed. Since then, he has reveled in his powers as both a blackguard and a hound-archon-blessed creature. Bryven takes particular pleasure in committing evil acts because he knows that they cause the hound archon deep sorrow.
Bryven Nightkirk is a handsome half-elf with soft black hair and a well-manicured goatee. He wears light armor and carries both a composite longbow and a greatsword on his back. Polite and suave, Bryven has no quarrel with those who do not interfere with his plans, but he is ruthless with anyone who crosses him.
Bryven Nightkirk speaks Celestial, Common, Elven, and Dwarven.
Combat
Bryven Nightkirk prefers to strike from hiding. In melee, he attempts to fl ank with Gnarltooth, his fi endish servant, and any
other creatures he summons using his fi endish summoning ability. Bryven doesn’t hold back in fi ghts, and he often combines sneak attack attempts with smite attempts to eliminate foes more quickly.
Command Undead (Su): Seven times per day, Bryven Nightkirk
can command and rebuke undead as a 3rd-level evil cleric.
Faithful Hound (Sp): Once per day, Bryven Nightkirk can use faithful watchdog, as the spell (caster level 12th).
Fiendish Summoning (Sp): Once per day, Bryven Nightkirk can
use summon monster I, as the spell (caster level 10th) to call forth an evil creature.
Sacredness (Su): See the celestial-blessed template.
Smite Good (Su): Th ree times per day, Bryven Nightkirk may
attempt to smite good with one normal melee attack. He adds +3 to his attack roll and deals 5 extra points of damage. If Bryven accidentally smites a creature that is not good, the smite attempt has no eff ect but it is still used up.
Sneak Attack (Ex): Bryven deals 2d6 extra points of damage
on any successful attack against fl at-footed or fl anked targets, or against a target that has been denied its Dexterity bonus for any reason. Th is damage applies to point-blank ranged attacks as well. Creatures with concealment, creatures without discernable anatomies, and creatures immune to critical hits are all immune to sneak attacks. Bryven may choose to deliver nonlethal damage with his sneak attack, but only when using a weapon designed for that purpose, such as a sap (blackjack).
Spells: Bryven Nightkirk casts divine spells like a cleric.
Typical Blackguard Spells Prepared (2/2/1, save DC 13 + spell level):
1st—cure light wounds (2); 2nd—darkness, death knell; 3rd—cure
serious wounds.
Aura of Despair (Su): Bryven Nightkirk radiates a malign aura
that causes each enemy within 10 feet of him to take a –2 penalty on all saving throws.
Aura of Evil (Ex): Bryven has a strong aura of evil (see the detect
evil spell).
Blessed (Su): See the celestial-blessed template.
Dark Blessing (Su): Bryven gains a +3 bonus on all saving throws.
Detect Good (Sp): At will, Bryven Nightkirk can use detect good, as
the spell.
Fiendish Servant Benefi ts: Bryven has a fi endish servant named
Gnarltooth that grants him the following abilities.
Empathic Link (Su): Bryven Nightkirk has an empathic link
with his servant, Gnarltooh, to a distance of up to 1 mile. Bryven Nightkirk cannot see through Gnarltooth’s eyes, but he can communicate empathically. Because of the limited nature of the link, only general emotional content (such as fear, hunger, happiness, curiosity) can be communicated.
Share Spells (Su): At Bryven Nightkirk’s option, he may have any
spell (but not any spell-like ability) he casts on himself also aff ect Gnarltooth if the latter is within 5 feet at the time of casting. If the spell has a duration other than instantaneous, it stops aff ecting Gnarltooth if he moves farther than 5 feet away and will not aff ect him again even if he returns to Bryven before the duration expires. Additionally, Bryven Nightkirk may cast a spell with a target of “You” on Gnarltooth (as a touch range spell) instead of on himself.
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Bryven Nightkirk and Gnarltooth can share spells even if the spells normally do not aff ect magical beasts.
Half-Elf Traits: Bryven is immune to sleep spells and similar
magical eff ects, and he has low-light vision. He also has a +2 racial bonus on saving throws against enchantment spells or eff ects, a +1 racial bonus on Listen, Search, and Spot checks, and a +2 racial bonus on Diplomacy and Gather Information checks. Th ese bonuses on skills are included in his statistics.
Inhabited (Ex): See the celestial-blessed template.
Lay on Hands (Su): Once per day, Bryven can cure himself or his
fi endish servant of damage equal to his Charisma bonus x5.
Poison Use: Bryven is skilled in the use of poison and never risks
accidentally poisoning himself when applying poison to a blade.
Resistance to Electricity (Ex): See the celestial-blessed template. Spell Vulnerability (Ex): See the celestial-blessed template. A
successful use of the banishment spell on Bryven Nightkirk returns the hound archon to its rightful form but leaves it lying helpless and unconscious adjacent to him for 2d4 rounds.
Possessions: +2 improved silent moves mithral shirt, +1 shocking
greatsword, +1 fl aming composite longbow, ring of protection +1, 2
doses of black lotus poison.