Goliath Liberator

Gnome Traits: Gnomes have a +1 racial bonus on attack rolls against kobolds and goblinoids. Gnomes have a +4 racial bonus to Armor Class against giants. *Gnomes have a +2 racial bonus on saving throws against illusions.

Lesser Tremorsense (Ex): Kyliki has the tremorsense ability with a range of 10 feet.

Link with Companion (Ex): Kyliki can handle her animal companion as a free action, or push it as a move action, with a +4 bonus on wild empathy checks made while dealing with that animal.

Resist Nature’s Lure (Ex): Kyliki gains a +4 bonus on saving throws against the spell-like abilities of fey.

Share Spells (Ex): Kyliki may have any spell she casts on herself also affect her animal companion if the latter is within 5 feet at the time. She may also cast a spell with a target of “You” on her animal companion.

Trackless Step (Ex): Kyliki leaves no trail in natural surroundings and cannot be tracked.

Wild Shape (Su): Kyliki can change into a Small or Medium animal and back again three times per day, as with the polymorph spell. This ability lasts for 7 hours or until she changes back.

Woodland Stride (Ex): Kyliki can move through natural thorns, briars, overgrown areas, and similar terrain at her normal speed and without damage or other impairment. However, thorns, briars, and overgrown areas that are magically manipulated to impede motion still affect her.

Druid Spells Prepared (6/5/5/4/4/2); save DC 14 + spell level): 0—detect magic (2), detect poison, know direction, light, read magic; 1st—cure light wounds, entangle, longstrider, obscuring mist, speak with animal; 2nd—animal messenger, barkskin, delay poison, hold animal, tree shape; 3rd—cure moderate wounds, plant growth, speak with plants, stone shape; 4th—control water, cure serious wounds (2), spike stones; 5th—fl ame strike, wall of thorns. Possessions: +1 hide armor, masterwork light wooden shield, masterwork club, periapt of Wisdom +2, cloak of resistance +2, amulet of natural armor +1, ring of protection +1, Quaal’s feather token (tree), potion of blur, scroll of cure serious wounds, scroll of reincarnate, wand of cure light wounds (50 charges), 1 pp.

Giants—especially frost and hill giants—sometimes kidnap and enslave goliaths, putting them to work performing menial labor in their mines or camps. Particularly evil giants might even capture goliaths for the cook-pot or the sacrifi cial altar. When goliaths don’t return to camp, the entire tribe mobilizes to fi nd them. If the tribe is fortunate, it has one or more goliath liberators among its members to lead the rescue. Goliath liberators are experts at infi ltrating giant dwellings, freeing the captives within, then exacting revenge on the giants while the freed goliaths escape. Many are their tribe’s best soldiers and hunters, and they have honed their combat techniques against giants through bitter experience. Fully half of all goliath liberators have spent time in the chains of giants. Barbarians, rangers, and rogues are the classes most likely to have the combination of stealth and fi ghting prowess necessary to become a goliath liberator. A few fi ghters and druids take a level or two of the prestige class as well. When a goliath liberator is on the trail of captured goliaths, she brooks no opposition or delay, but she’s often willing to enlist whatever allies happen to be available. NPC goliath liberators sometimes strike up deals with adventurers, lending their strength to an assault on a giant fortress as long as they can free any goliath prisoners in the process. If giants ever capture the PCs, their best hope for rescue might take the mottled, musclebound form of a goliath liberator.

Adaptation: While this prestige class is specifi c to goliaths, it can be converted into a different giant-fi ghting class with little diffi culty. If you do so, balance giant-specifi c class features (such as favored enemy) with class features that are useful against giants but more broadly applicable (such as avoid thrown weapons).

Hit Die: d10.

Requirements

To qualify to become a goliath liberator, a character must fulfi ll all the following criteria.

Race: Goliath.

Base Attack Bonus: +7.

Skills: Hide 5 ranks, Move Silently 5 ranks.

Feats: Track.

Special: The character must have participated in the successful rescue of captives held by giants, or must have been imprisoned by giants and escaped.

Class Skills

The goliath liberator’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Heal (Wis), Hide (Dex), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Search (Int), Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis), and Use Rope (Dex). See

Chapter 4 of the Player’s Handbook for skill descriptions.

Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifi er.

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the goliath liberator prestige class.

Weapon and Armor Profi ciency: Goliath liberators gain profi ciency with martial weapons and with light and medium armor.

Favored Enemy (Giant) (Ex): A goliath liberator has giants as a favored enemy. Due to her extensive study of giants and training in the proper techniques for combating such creatures, the liberator gains a +2 bonus on Bluff,

Listen, Sense Motive, Spot, and Survival checks when using these skills against giants. Likewise, she gets a +2 bonus on weapon damage rolls against such creatures. These bonuses stack with those gained from the favored enemy (giants) class feature of other classes (such as ranger), but this ability does not increase those classes’ other favored enemy bonuses. For instance, if a 5th-level ranger/1st-level goliath liberator has already selected giants as one of her ranger favored enemies, this +2 bonus would stack with

the favored enemy (giants) bonus she already had. It would not increase the character’s favored enemy bonuses against other types of creatures.

This bonus increases to +4 when the liberator reaches 5th level.

Avoid Thrown Weapons (Ex): A goliath liberator of 2nd level or higher is adept at dodging rocks thrown by giants, and by extension has learned to avoid other thrown weapons. She has a +2 dodge bonus to her AC against thrown weapons.

Equal Footing (Ex): The bigger they are, the harder a goliath liberator can make them fall. At 3rd level, a goliath liberator gains Improved Trip as a bonus feat, even if she does not meet the prerequisites. In addition, when making a trip attack against a creature at least one size category larger than she is, the goliath liberator gains an additional +4 bonus on her Strength check made to trip the opponent.

Avoid Reach (Ex): At 4th level and higher, a goliath liberator knows how to duck under and around the blows of even the longest-limbed giant. This ability grants the liberator a +2 dodge bonus to AC against melee attacks made by creatures that are not adjacent to her.

Table 5–8: The Goliath Liberator Base Attack Fort Ref Will

Level Bonus Save Save Save Special

1st +1 +2 +0 +0 Favored enemy (giants) +2 2nd +2 +3 +0 +0 Avoid thrown weapons 3rd +3 +3 +1 +1 Improved trip 4th +4 +4 +1 +1 Avoid reach 5th +5 +4 +1 +1 Favored enemy (giants) +4

SAMPLE GOLIATH LIBERATOR

Malath Bearkiller Kathinumeno the Goliath Liberator: Female goliath ranger 3/barbarian 4/goliath liberator 4; CR 12; Medium monstrous humanoid; HD 3d8+9 plus 4d12+12 plus 4d10+12; hp 98; Init +1; Spd 40 ft.; AC 20, touch 12, fl at-footed 20; Base Atk +11; Grp +21; Atk +19 melee (2d6+10/19–20, Large +1 dire fl ail) or +13 ranged (2d6+6/×3, Large masterwork composite longbow); Full Atk +17/+12/+7 melee (2d6+7/19–20, Large +1 dire fl ail) and +17 melee (2d6+4/19–20, Large +1 dire fl ail) or +13/+8/+3 ranged (2d6+6/×3, Large masterwork composite longbow); SA combat style (two-weapon combat), equal footing, favored enemy giants +4, rage 2/day; SQ avoid reach, avoid thrown weapons, fast movement, goliath traits, trap sense +1, uncanny dodge, wild empathy +2 (–2 magical beasts), woodland stride; AL CN; SV Fort +16, Ref +8, Will +6; Str 22, Dex 12, Con 16, Int 10, Wis 12, Cha 8. Skills and Feats: Climb +10, Hide +9, Jump +14, Knowledge (geography) +5, Knowledge (nature) +7, Listen +9, Move Silently +9, Sense Motive +3, Spot +9, Survival +15 (+17 to avoid getting lost or natural hazards, or in above ground natural environments); EnduranceB, Exotic Weapon Proficiency (dire fl ail), Improved Critical (dire fl ail), Improved TripB , Power Attack, TrackB, Two-Weapon FightingB, Weapon Focus (dire fl ail).

Equal Footing (Ex): Malath has Improved Trip as a bonus feat and gains a +4 bonus on his Strength check to trip opponents at least one size category larger than she is.

Favored Enemy (Giants) (Ex): Malath gains a +4 bonus on her Bluff, Listen, Sense Motive, Spot, and Survival checks when using these skills against giants. She gets the same bonus on weapon damage rolls against giants.

Rage (Ex): Twice per day, Malath can enter a state of fi erce rage that lasts for 8 rounds. The following changes are in effect as long as she rages: hp 120; AC 18, touch 10, fl at-footed 18; Grp +23; Atk +21 melee (2d6+13/19–20, Large +1 dire fl ail); Full Atk +19/+14/+7 melee (2d6+9/19–20, Large +1 dire fl ail) and +19 melee (2d6+5/19–20, Large +1 dire fl ail); SV Fort +18, Will +8; Str 26, Con 20; Climb +12, Jump +16. At the end of her rage, Malath is fatigued for the duration of the encounter.

Avoid Reach (Ex): Malath gains a +2 dodge bonus to AC against melee attacks from creatures not adjacent to her.

Avoid Thrown Weapons (Ex): Malath gains a +2 dodge bonus to AC against thrown weapons.

Goliath Traits (Ex): Malath’s physical stature lets her function in many ways as if she were one size category larger, including using weapons designed for a creature one size larger. Malath can make standing long jumps and high jumps as if they were running long jumps and high jumps. She can engage in accelerated climbing without taking the –5 penalty on the Climb check. Malath is automatically acclimated to life at high altitudes and does not take the penalties for altitude described on page 90 of the Dungeon Master’s Guide. Trap Sense: Against attacks by traps, Malath gets a +1 bonus on Refl ex saves and a +1 dodge bonus to Armor Class.

Malath Bearkiller Kathinumeno, a goliath liberator

Illus. by J. Jarvis