Beast Heart Adept

Requirements

Skills: Handle Animal 8 ranks, Knowledge (arcana) 4 ranks, Knowledge (dungeoneering) 4 ranks.

Feats: Animal Affinity.

Special: Spend at least one week living alone in a dungeon complex. This is a prestige class meant for ranger types, as it sort of fall in line with most ranger builds, or druid is a solid option. If you want to basically play pokemon this is the class for you as you make monsters your friends and get stronger monsters as you gain more power.

Role: DPS

Characteristics: A DPS with monstrous companions to fight next to.

Source: Dungeonscape

Game Rule Information

The Beast Heart Adept has the following game statistics.

Abilities: Charisma for your monstrous empathy and Strength to be good in combat or Dexterity.

Alignment: Any

Hit Die: d8

Starting Gold: N/A

Class Skills

The Beast Heart Adept's class skills are Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Craft (any)(Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Intuit Direction (Wis), Jump (Str), Knowledge (arcana)(Int), Knowledge (dungeoneering)(Int), Knowledge (nature)(Int), Knowledge (the planes)(Int), Profession (any)(Wis), Ride (Dex), Search (Int), Spot (Wis), Swim (Str), and Wilderness Lore (Wis)

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

Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 4 + Int modifier

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the Beast Heart Adept.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A Beast Heart Adept is proficient with whatever they were already proficient with.

Monstrous Companion Ex: You gain the service of a monstrous companion. The creature is similar to a druid’s animal companion, but it is a magical beast or aberration rather than an animal. Choose one of the following as your monstrous companion: ankheg, blink dog, giant eagle, giant owl, hippogriff (4 Hit Dice), krenshar (4 Hit Dice), otyugh, owlbear, pegasus, or worg. Except for the hippogriff and the krenshar, which are larger than normal, the monster is typical of its kind. If its Intelligence is greater than 2, the companion has the same alignment as you. If you have levels in other classes (such as druid or ranger) that give you the ability to have an animal companion, those levels do not stack with your beast heart adept levels for the purpose of determining which kinds of monstrous companions you can select (and what the abilities of those companions are). At 3rd level or higher, you can select from alternative lists of monsters (see the sidebar). Just as with a druid’s alternative animal companion, an alternative monstrous companion gains abilities as if your beast heart adept class level were lower than it actually is.

Monster Empathy Ex: You can use body language, vocalization, and demeanor to improve the attitude of a magical beast such as a chimera or a gorgon. This ability functions like the druid’s wild empathy class feature, except that it affects magical beasts regardless of their Intelligence score. You can also use this ability to influence an animal (such as a dire bear) or an aberration that has an Intelligence score of 1 or 2 (such as a rust monster), but you take a –4 penalty on the check. If you have the wild empathy ability from another class, add your levels in that class to your beast heart adept level when influencing magical beasts or animals. In addition, you no longer take a penalty to your monster empathy check when influencing animals. If you have 5 or more ranks in the Handle Animal skill, you gain a +2 bonus on your monster empathy checks.

Monster Handler Ex: You can make Handle Animal checks with regard to magical beasts and aberrations without penalty. This ability applies only to creatures that have an Intelligence score of 1 or 2. Magical beasts and aberrations that have higher Intelligence scores cannot be controlled by Handle Animal at all.

Monstrous Lore Ex: At 2nd level, you gain uncanny knowledge about all types of living monsters, including their habitats, behavior, abilities, and weaknesses. You can make a special monster lore check to identify monsters or their special abilities or vulnerabilities. The check functions as a Knowledge check, except the monster lore check can identify any living creature. You gain a bonus on this check equal to your beast heart adept level + your Int modifier. You can attempt this check in addition to making the relevant Knowledge check to learn about a creature. If you have levels in the bard class or the loremaster prestige class, you can add those levels to your beast heart adept levels when determining the bonus on the monster lore check.

Monstrous Flank Ex: At 4th level, you learn to better coordinate your attacks with your monstrous companion. When you form a flank with a companion, both you and the creature gain an additional +2 bonus on attack rolls and damage rolls against the flanked opponent.

Extra Monstrous Companion Ex: At 5th level, you gain a second monstrous companion, chosen from the list of companions available to a 1st level beast heart adept. Treat your beast heart adept class level as if it were four levels lower for the purpose of determining the monster’s abilities (or of selecting an alternative companion at higher levels). At 9th level, you gain a third monstrous companion, chosen from the list of companions available to a 1st-level beast heart adept. Treat your beast heart adept class level as if it were eight levels lower for the purpose of determining the monster’s abilities (or of selecting an alternative companion at higher levels).

Monstrous Tactics Ex: Starting at 7th level, you and your monstrous companions make an excellent team. Through coordination and practice, you have learned to optimize your combined efforts. When one of your monstrous companions strikes an opponent with a melee attack, the target provokes an attack of opportunity from you. With this ability, you can make an attack of opportunity against a particular target once per round. In addition, your companions do not grant cover against your enemies when you use ranged attacks or spells.

Monstrous Team-Up Ex: When you reach 10th level, all the members of your adventuring party now gain the benefits of your monstrous flank and monstrous tactics abilities. Any references to “you” in those abilities now include your allies.

Table 1-1: Beast Heart Adept Progression

Level	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Special
1st	+1	+2	+0	+2	Monstrous companion, monster empathy, monster handler
2nd	+2	+3	+0	+3	Monstrous lore
3rd	+3	+3	+1	+3	Alternative monstrous companion
4th	+4	+4	+1	+4	Monstrous flank
5th	+5	+4	+1	+4	Extra monstrous companion
6th	+6/+1	+5	+2	+5	—
7th	+7/+2	+5	+2	+5	Monstrous companion
8th	+8/+3	+6	+2	+6	—
9th	+9/+4	+6	+3	+6	Extra monstrous companion
10th	+10/+5	+7	+3	+7	Monstrous team-up

Monstrous Companions

The beast heart adept’s monstrous companion is superior to a normal animal of its kind and has special powers, as described below

Table 1-2: Monstrous Companion Table

Class Level	Bonus HD	Natural Armor Adj.	Str/Con Adj.	Bonus Tricks	Special
1st-2nd	+0	+0	+0	1	Link
3rd-4th	+2	+2	+1	2	Evasion
5th-6th	+4	+4	+2	3	Devotion
7th-8th	+6	+6	+3	4
9th-10th	+8	+8	+4	5	Improved Evasion

Monstrous Companion Basics:

Use the base statistics for a creature of the companion’s kind as given in the Monster Manual, but make the following changes.

Class Level

Use the character’s beast heart adept level.

Bonus HD

Add this number to the base creature’s existing Hit Dice. Extra Hit Dice improve a monstrous companion’s base attack bonus and base save bonuses, and grant it additional feats and skill points (for details, see Improving Monsters, Monster Manual, 290). Monstrous companions do not increase in size as a result of these extra Hit Dice.

Natural Armor Adj.

Add this number to the base creature’s existing natural armor bonus.

Str/Con Adj.

Add this number to the base creature’s Strength score and Constitution score.

Bonus Tricks

The value in this column is the number of bonus tricks known by the monstrous companion, in addition to any other tricks the beast heart adept might teach it. These bonus tricks do not require training time or Handle Animal checks, and they do not count against the normal limit of tricks known by the monstrous companion. The beast heart adept selects these bonus tricks, and once selected, they cannot be changed. Only monstrous companions that have an Intelligence score of 1 or 2 must be taught to perform a trick; smarter monsters can be directed verbally.

Link (Ex)

A beast heart adept can handle his monstrous companion as a free action, or push it as a move action. The beast heart adept gains a +4 circumstance bonus on monster empathy checks and Handle Animal checks regarding a monstrous companion.

Evasion (Ex)

Beginning at 3rd level, your monstrous companion can avoid damage from certain attacks with a successful Reflex save. See the monk class feature.

Devotion (Ex)

A monstrous companion’s devotion to its master is so complete that it gains a +4 morale bonus on Will saves against enchantment spells and effects.

Improved Evasion (Ex)

Beginning at 9th level, your monstrous companion can avoid damage from certain attacks with a successful Reflex save and take only half damage on a failed save. See the monk class feature

Alternative Monstrous Companion

A beast heart adept of sufficiently high level can select his monstrous companion from one of the following lists. Apply the indicated adjustment to the beast heart adept’s level (in parentheses) when determining the monster’s characteristics and special abilities.

3rd Level or Higher	5th Level or Higher	7th Level or Higher	9th Level or Higher
Digester	Chimera	Chuul	Behir
Girallon	Wyvern	Destrachan	Gray Render
Manticore	—	Dragonne	Yrthak
Winter Wolf	—	—	—