Astral Dancer

Requirements

Skills: Balance 8 ranks , Jump 8 ranks , Tumble 8 ranks

Feats: Dodge, Mobility, Spring Attack

Summary

The Astral Plane is a place of no gravity; moving through it is more like flying with perfect maneuverability, like walking on air. Travelers quickly learn to change directions by mentally visualizing solid footing and pivoting on it. To longtime inhabitants of the Astral Plane, ignoring the lack of gravity eventually becomes second nature. But a few skilled combatants learn to take advantage of that situation. Some fighters, barbarians, and rangers make decent astral dancers, but the best begin as monks or rogues. Their practiced grace enables them to leap from vantage to vantage quickly, and to shift balance instinctively. Spellcasters can eventually master the art of the astral dancer, but for them it pays off only in a certain improvement in their ability to deliver melee touch spells.

Astral dancers work quite well alone, but they are truly formidable in numbers. The art is sometimes found among githzerai monks, and githzerai rrakkma (hunting parties that seek out and kill mind flayers) occasionally include astral dancers. The most common practitioners are githyanki and buommans natives of the Astral Plane who learn to take every advantage that the environment provides them.

Role: DPS

Characteristics: Astral realm travelling warriors that are very proficient in zero gravity fighting

Source: Planar Handbook

Game Rule Information

The Astral Dancer has the following game statistics.

Abilities: Dexterity for moving around, Strength for dealing big damage, Constitution for staying alive.

Alignment: Any

Hit Die: d8

Starting Gold: N/A

Class Skills

The Astral Dancer's class skills are Balance (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Escape Artist (Dex), Hide (Dex), Jump (Str), Knowledge (the planes) (Int), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Profession (Wis), Search (Int), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Spot (Wis), Tumble (Dex), and Use Rope (Dex)

Skill Points at 1st Level: (6 + Int modifier) × 4

Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 6 + Int modifier

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the Astral Dancer.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A Astral Dancer is proficient with whatever they were already proficient with prior to taking levels in this class.

Relative Altitude Ex: An astral dancer is experienced at combating foes in no-gravity environments. While on the Astral Plane (or any other plane or region without gravity), she is always considered to have "higher ground" over her opponent and thus gains a +1 bonus on melee attack rolls.

Evasion Ex: Beginning at 2nd level, an astral dancer can avoid damage from certain attacks with a successful Reflex save. Initially, an astral dancer's evasion ability is only effective while she is on a plane with no gravity.

At 4th level and higher, an astral dancer can use her evasion ability in all environments, regardless of gravity.

Improved Maneuverability Ex: At 3rd level, an astral dancer begins developing more control over her "flight" in no-gravity situations. When she makes a double move on a plane with the "no gravity" trait (such as the Astral Plane), an astral dancer's maneuverability drops to good (rather than to average). When she moves four times her speed on the Astral Plane (running, essentially), her maneuverability drops to poor (rather than to clumsy).

At 9th level, an astral dancer retains her perfect maneuverability even when she makes a double move, and her maneuverability drops only to average whe she moves at up to four times her speed.

Astral Dodge Ex: At 5th level, an astral dancer becomes so adept at reacting to attacks that she gains a +2 dodge bonus to her Armor Class when in a no-gravity environment (or a +1 dodge bonus to her Armor Class when in an environment with gravity). At 10th level, this bonus increases to +4 in a no-gravity environment (or +2 in an environment with gravity).

Improved Evasion Ex: Beginning at 6th level, an astral dancer can avoid damage from certain attacks with a successful Reflex save and take only half damage on a failed save. Initially, an astral dancer's improved evasion ability is only effective while she is on a plane wth no gravity.

At 8th level and higher, an astral dancer can use her improved evasion ability in all environments, regardless of gravity.

Astral Agility Ex: At 7th level and higher. an astral dancer's can use her agility and athleticism to adjust her opponent's position while in a nogravity environment. Once per round as a move action, an astral dancer can attempt to switch places with an adjacent creature. The adjacent creature must be the same size as or smaller than the astral dancer, and it can resist the attempt by succeeding on an opposed Intelligence check against the astral dancer. The astral dancer adds her class level to her roll (if the target creature is also an astral dancer, it adds its class level as well); if she wins, she moves into the target's space, and the target moves into her now-vacated space. The movement caused by this ability does not provoke attacks of opportunity.

Lightning Speed Ex: At 10th level, an astral dancer's ability to move through the Astral Plane with but a thought becomes so finely tuned that those observing her cannot react as she passes by. The character's movement while on the Astral Plane (or a similar no-gravity environment) never provokes attacks of opportunity.

Table 1-1: Astral Dancer Progression

Level	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Special
1st	+0	+0	+2	+0	Relative altitude
2nd	+1	+0	+3	+0	Evasion (no-gravity)
3rd	+2	+1	+3	+1	Improved maneuverability
4th	+3	+1	+4	+1	Evasion
5th	+3	+1	+4	+1	Astral dodge +2 (+1)
6th	+4	+2	+5	+2	Improved evasion (no gravity)
7th	+5	+2	+5	+2	Astral agility
8th	+6	+2	+6	+2	Improved evasion
9th	+6	+3	+6	+3	Improved maneuverability
10th	+7	+3	+7	+3	Astral dodge +4 (+2), lightning speed