Table 5-21 : The Windrider's Mount

Instant Knowledge (Su) : Once per day, a 10th-level watch detective may make an intelligence check (DC 20) . He may not take 10 or take 20 on this check. If successful, he gains a +10 insight bonus on one Knowledge check of any category . If he has no ranks in that particular Knowledge skill, he may make the check untrained.

WINDRIDER

The windrider is a specialist in mounted combat, but hers is no ordinary mount . The creature she rides is at least unusual and often rare-sometimes even bizarre . Although an experienced windrider can ride anything that runs, swims, or flies, the typical member of this prestige class settles on one particular kind of mount as a personal favorite .

Some windriders are no more than swaggering, arrogant adventurers looking for a good fight . Perhaps their pride is justified, considering the creatures they've turned into mounts . Many, however, are just as happy to sit back and tell stories of how they got their mounts and the adventures they've had since, no matter who buys the ale . The typical windrider cheerfully shares her knowledge about her various mounts with those who seek to ride similar creatures .

Since the skills they develop vary as widely as the abilities and natures of their mounts, windriders are a very independent bunch. Thus, they rarely form or belong to close-knit groups . Even a paladin windrider tends to be something of a knight-errant .

All races have produced windriders, though the class is particularly popular with humans and giants . Rangers, paladins, fighters, and barbarians all make excellent windriders because they can easily accumulate the prerequisites.

Hit Die : d10 .

Requirements

To become a windrider, a character must fulfill the following criteria .

Base Attack Bonus : +5 .

Skills : Handle Animal 8 ranks, Knowledge (nature) 6 ranks, Ride 8 ranks .

Feats : Mounted Combat .

Special : Must have a mount .

Class Skills

The windriders class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Balance (Dex), Concentration (Con), Craft (any) (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Jump (Str), Knowledge (nature), Profession (any) (Wis), and Ride (Dex) . See Chapter 4 of the Player's Handbook for skill descriptions .

Skill Points at Each Level : 2 + Int modifier.

Class Features

The following are class features of the windrider prestige class . For the abilities described below, a mount is a creature that fits the criteria in the What's a Mount? section below .

Weapon and Armor Proficiency : Windriders are proficient with all simple and martial weapons, all types of armor, and shields.

Spells per Day : A windrider can cast a small number of divine spells . Her spells are based on Wisdom, so casting any given spell requires a Wisdom score of at least 10 + the spell's level. The DC for saving throws against these spells is 10 + spell level + the windriders Wisdom modifier. When the table indicates that the windrider is entitled to 0 spells of a given level (such as 0 1st-level spells at 1st level), she gets only those bonus spells that her Wisdom score allows . A windrider prepares and casts spells just like a druid does, but she must choose them from the spell list, below .

Appraise Mount (Ex) : At 1st level, a windrider can compare two mounts of the same kind and tell at a glance which one is superior (stronger, faster, more intelligent, better stamina, and so on) . If desired, the windrider can also conduct a point-by-point comparison of two mounts . By spending 1 round examining both, she can determine which has the higher score in any single ability of her choice . After a second round of study, a windrider familiar with that kind of creature can also determine whether each mount's score in that ability is average, above average, or below average for the species . After a third round of study, the windrider can tell how extreme that ability score is-that is, whether the modifier it generates is more than 4 points higher or lower than the average for that species . The appraise mount ability never produces a numerical rating ; DMs must describe the windriders findings.

TABLE 5-20: THE WINDRIDER

Class Base Fort Ref Will Spells per Day

Level Attack Bonus Save Save Save Special 1st 2nd 3rd 4th

+1

2nd +2 +2 +0 +2 Appraise mount, chosen mount, 0 - - empathic link, mount proficiency 4 HD

+3 +0 +3 Mount assistance, mount feat 1 1 - - -

+3

+3 +1 +4 +4 +l +5 +4 +1 +3

Bonus feat, mount healing +4 Mount proficiency 8 HD +4 Mount feat 2, mount friendship

1

0 - 1 1 - 1 1

0 -

+6 +5 +2 +5 Mount proficiency 12 HD

1 1 1 -

+7 +5 +2 +5 Bonus feat, mount link

2 1 1 0 +8 +6 +2 +6 Mount proficiency 16 HD 2 1 1 1 +9 +6 +3 +6 Mount feat 3, mount luck