Requirements

Base Attack Bonus: +5.

Skills: Handle Animal (4 ranks), Ride (8 ranks).

Feats: Mounted Combat, Ride-By Attack.

Special: Must have ridden an ashworm.

Summary

Ashworm Dragoons are a niche but neat flavor on the mounted combat spectrum. It's for those who want a mount with a few more capabilities than just attacking. The ashworm provides unique beenefits such as a poison sting, the ability to absolutely flatten people into the dirt and sand, and notably the ability to tunnel through the earth and sand much how like a fish swims through water. You also get preternaturally good at preventing damage due to your ride check while on your mighty and strange steed of choice and charging powerfully towards your opponents.

Role: DPS

Characteristics: Ashworm riding warriors that burrow through the earth before striking

Source: Sandstorm

Game Rule Information

The Ashworm Dragoon has the following game statistics.

Abilities: Dexterity for your ride checks is so important to remain on your mount especially through the sand and earth, Constitution

Alignment: Any

Hit Die: d10

Starting Gold: N/A

Class Skills

The Ashworm Dragoon's class skills are Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Search (Int), Spot (Wis).

Skill Points at 1st Level: (2 + Int modifier) × 4

Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 2 + Int modifier

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the Ashworm Dragoon.

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

Ashworm Mount Ex: You have the service of a loyal ashworm that serves you as a mount. Unlike the ashworms sold as regular mounts, this ashworm’s poison stinger is not clipped. Moreover, it never tries to submerge when it reaches open sand, as ashworms sold as mounts do. Finally, your ashworm serves readily as a combat steed. To ride your mount, you need special tack, harness, and an exotic saddle, all of which costs 70 gp.

Your ashworm is so loyal to you that it bears you without complaint on the surface of the sand, as well as on other surfaces found in nonwaste regions, for months or even years at a time.

Your ashworm is more powerful than a typical representative of its species, and it grows stronger as you gain ashworm dragoon levels. See the table below for details.

If your ashworm mount is slain, you can obtain a new mount after a day of searching in any appropriate waste area.

Saddle Bonus Ex: You gain a competence bonus equal to your class level on all Handle Animal and Ride checks associated with your ashworm while you are mounted.

Bonus Feat: At 2nd and 9th level, you can choose a bonus feat from the Fighter Bonus Feats.

Heightened Sting Ex: Wild ashworms, and ashworms chosen as mounts by dragoon characters, have a poisonous stinger (normal saddle-broken ashworms sold as mounts have their stinger clipped for the rider’s safety). At 3rd level and higher, you can induce your mount to make a heightened sting attack in conjunction with your regular attacks that round. When making a heightened sting attack, the ashworm’s attack roll modifier is equal to your base attack bonus + the ashworm’s Str modifier. On a successful hit, the victim’s Fortitude save DC to resist the poison is 10 + 1/2 your character level + the ashworm’s Con modifier. This is a special attack, and it can be made only once per round, and a total number of times per day equal to your class level.

In rounds when you choose not to make a heightened sting attack, the ashworm can make a normal sting at its regular attack bonus, and the DC to resist the poison is determined normally.

Relentless Shield Ex: At 4th level and higher, you can make a Ride check after any attack that successfully strikes your ashworm mount, in an attempt to negate the hit on your ashworm. Normally, the Mounted Combat feat allows you to make this attempt only once per round. See the Mounted Combat feat for details. In addition, you gain a +2 bonus on Ride checks made to negate an opponent’s attack roll. This ability does not extend to any other type of mount.

Stamp Into the Sand Ex: At 5th level, you gain Trample as a bonus feat. Instead of using a hoof, the ashworm makes one sting attack against the knocked down target.

If you already have the Trample feat (or gain it later), you gain an extra benefit: When mounted on your ashworm, a foe you have knocked down using Trample is so thoroughly flattened that rising from a prone position requires a full-round action instead of a move action.

Sand Rider Su: Upon reaching 6th level, you have formed such a close bond with your mount that you are able to stay with the ashworm when it travels beneath the sand. During these trips, you have learned the trick of tightening your harness, just so, while at the same time guiding your sandswimming mount in an expert manner that allows you to cling to the ashworm’s back without being swept off, and without fear of suffocation. This ability does not allow you to remain attached when the ashworm burrows through solid earth (but see the earth rider class feature, below), and you can travel in this manner for 1 minute per class level at a time before you and your mount must surface for air.

Full Mounted Attack Ex: Beginning at 7th level, you can make a full attack when your mount moves more than 5 feet but no farther than its speed as a single move action. You cannot combine this full attack with a charge action.

Spirited Worm Ex: You gain Spirited Charge as a bonus feat at 8th level.

If you already have Spirited Charge (or gain it later), you gain an extra benefit: When mounted on your ashworm and using the charge action, you deal an extra 1d6 points of damage (or 2d6 with a lance). This ability does not extend to any other type of mount.

Earth Rider Su: At 10th level, your bond with your mount is so close that you are able to stay with the ashworm even when it travels beneath packed earth. During these trips, you have learned the trick of quickly adjusting your harness, while at the same time guiding your burrowing mount in an expert manner that allows you to cling to the ashworm’s back without being swept off, and without fear of suffocation. You can travel in this manner for 1 minute per class level at a time before you and your mount must surface for air. An ashworm cannot burrow through solid rock. If it is forced to stop burrowing (such as if it is slain) while you are on its back, you are subject to the normal hazards of being buried alive.

Table 1-1: Ashworm Dragoon Progression

Level	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Special
1st	+1	+2	+0	+0	Ashworm mount, saddle bonus
2nd	+2	+3	+0	+0	Bonus feat
3rd	+3	+3	+1	+1	Heightened sting
4th	+4	+4	+1	+1	Relentless shield
5th	+5	+4	+1	+1	Stamp into the sand
6th	+6	+5	+2	+2	Sand rider
7th	+7	+5	+2	+2	Full mounted attack
8th	+8	+6	+2	+2	Spirited worm
9th	+9	+6	+3	+3	Bonus feat
10th	+10	+7	+3	+3	Earth rider

Table 1-2: Ashworm Dragoon Progression

Dragoon Level	Bonus HD	Natural Armor Adj.	Str Adj.
1st–2nd	+2	+4	+1
3rd–4th	+4	+6	+2
5th–6th	+6	+8	+3
7th–8th	+8	+10	+4
9th–10th	+10	+12	+5

Ashworm Dragoon’s Mount Basics:

Use the base statistics for a creature of the mount’s kind, but make changes to take into account the attributes and characteristics summarized on the table and described below.

Bonus HD

Extra 10-sided (d10) Hit Dice, each of which gains a Constitution modifier, as normal. Extra Hit Dice improve the mount’s base attack bonus, base save bonuses, and celestial creature special qualities (damage reduction, energy resistance, and spell resistance). A mount’s base attack bonus is equal to that of a fighter of a level equal to the mount’s Hit Dice. A mount has good Fortitude and Reflex saves (treat it as a character whose level equals the mount’s HD). The mount doesn’t gain any extra skills or feats for bonus Hit Dice.

Natural Armor Adj.

The number on the table is an improvement to the mount’s existing natural armor bonus.

Str Adj.

Add this value to the mount’s Strength score.

Ashworm Dragoons in the Game

Questing dragoons can spread forth from the desert, and are potentially found in all arid and temperate environments.

This prestige class is for those who like an honest, stand-up fight, and it is most suited to fighters. While the keeping and stabling of a mount might seem onerous to some, the benefits of a mount should not be dismissed lightly. Moreover, because an ashworm can climb even sheer walls, no dragoon should worry about bringing an ashworm into a dungeon environment because of potential obstacles.

Adaptation

The ashworm dragoon should fit into any campaign with little or no customization.