Of all the servants of the Dark Mother, the Webmistress is most revered. The path to this prestige class is difficult and entry into it is barred to all but the favourites of the Dark Mother, but the rewards for achieving it are great, both in personal and political power.
Webmistresses are the foremost instruments of their goddess among the drow and, as such, must have a background as a cleric. Most often, only pure clerics become Webmistresses, but it is not unknown for a multiclassed cleric to take up the mantle of Webmistress. Multiclassed cleric/fighters and cleric/wizards are the most common of these.
Webmistresses exist at the upper rungs of the drow society in which they live and act as the high priestesses of the Dark Mother’s temples. As all priestesses of the Dark Mother are recruited from the upper class of society and usually are members of one of the Noble Houses, the Webmistress is also sometimes a secular authority, ruling her family’s House as well as the temple of the Dark Mother.
Webmistresses seldom venture forth from the cities of the drow. When they do, it is either on some mission of
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immense importance, or the Webmistress is newly risen to her rank and is seeking to prove herself.
Hit Die: d8
Requirements
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Feats: Great Fortitude, Iron Will, Leadership Gender: Female
Race: Drow
Skills: Knowledge (arcana) 6 ranks, Knowledge (religion) 8 ranks, Knowledge (the planes) 6 ranks, Speak Language (Abyssal)
Other: Must be able to cast at least 4th level divine spells;
must be worshipper of the Dark Mother
Class Skills: The class skills of a Webmistress (and the key ability for each skill) are: Balance (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Diplomacy (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (arcane) (Int), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Sense Motive( Wis) and Spellcraft (Int).
Skill Points at Each Level: 2 + Int modifier
Class Features
All of the following are class features of the Webmistress of the Dark Mother prestige class.
Weapon and Armour Proficiency: A Webmistress gains no proficiency with weapons or armour.
Spells per Day: When a new Webmistress level is gained, the character gains new spells per day as if she had also gained a level in whatever divine spellcasting he belonged to before she added the prestige class. She does not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained (such as improved abilities to turn or rebuke undead, favoured enemy progression and so on).
If a character had more than one spellcasting class before she became a Webmistress, she must decide to which class she adds each level of Webmistress for the purpose of determining spells per day.
Spider Familiar (Su): As a gift from the Dark Mother, all Webmistresses receive a spider familiar upon their entry to this prestige class. The familiar is a small monstrous spider. The spider follows all the normal rules for familiars, and is in addition to any existing familiars that the character may possess from other classes. To determine the spider’s abilities as a familiar, use the combined cleric and Webmistress levels of the character.
Web Friend (Su): The Dark Mother is the queen of spiders, and the Webmistress her chosen servant among the drow.
No spider will intentionally harm a Webmistress in any way.
Even if the spider is under magical compulsion, it gains an immediate saving throw with a +4 profane bonus to throw off the magical coercion if it is ordered to do anything that will directly harm a Webmistress.
Spider Speech (Su): At 2nd level, the Webmistress gains the ability to converse with spiders. This includes all spiders, from the tiniest house spider to the enormous horrors that prowl the deep caverns.
Poison Immunity (Ex): The Webmistress is no longer susceptible to any kind of poison.
Webwalker (Su): At 4th level, webs of any kind, real or magical, no longer act as a barrier to the Webmistress, who may walk through them as though she were under the influence of a freedom of movement spell. Additionally, she may walk normally on any spider web, and may walk vertically or even upside down as easily as she would walk on level ground.
Spider Climb (Su): When the Webmistress reaches 5th level, she is able to walk on any vertical surface as though under the influence of the spider climb spell. However, she is not required to keep her hands free.
Spider Horde I (Su): As she reaches 6th level, the favour the Dark Mother holds for the Webmistress becomes steadily more apparent. She is accompanied at all times by a horde of several thousand tiny spiders, flowing along the walls, floors and ceilings all around her and hiding by the hundreds in her clothing, her hair and on her back. These spiders are so tiny that even in their vast numbers they are difficult to notice (Spot check DC 20). The spiders act as eyes and ears for the Webmistress, reporting to her (on her command) anything they see and hear. The Webmistress may direct these spiders to range out as far as half a mile from her position. Though the spiders serve the Webmistress unfailingly, their first loyalty is obviously to the Dark Mother, and they also report to their goddess any actions on the part of the Webmistress which are not in keeping with the cult of the Dark Mother.
Web (Sp): A number of times per day equal to her Wisdom modifier, a Webmistress may use a lock of her own hair to create a web as a spell-like ability.
Spider Horde II (Su): At 8th level, the host of spiders accompanying the Webmistress can begin to aid her in combat. At her command, the spiders will flow forth toward an enemy or enemies designated by the Webmistress. This
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effect is identical to the insect plague, save that it is a spider swarm. The Webmistress may call upon this power a number of times per day equal to her Wisdom modifier.
Transformation (Su): At 10th level, the Webmistress undergoes the Transformation. The spider horde that has been with her since 6th level converges on her, cocooning her within an enormous web. The Webmistress slumbers
in this chrysalis for a full month, during which time her body changes in fundamental ways, though her appearance remains the same. By the time she emerges from the cocoon, she has become a blessed being of the Dark Mother, and her type is changed from ‘humanoid’ to ‘outsider’, as well as gaining a +2 profane bonus to her Wisdom. She is treated in all ways from this point forward as a native outsider.