Prestige Class 03/27/2007

Swiftblade
Haste Personified
By Kolja Liquette and Brian Moran

This column aims to provide players with tips on creating effective and interesting characters of various types.
Whether you're a beginning player creating your very first character or an experienced gamer looking to put
some punch into an old standby, this column is for you.

Kaavel stood quietly as the hunting party of orcs stormed past the tree he stood behind. They almost caught
the swiftblade by surprise before he was able to call upon the one spell that bore him through every challenge.
In an instant, the entire world slowed as if mired in a thick morass. The orcs in front of him moved at a fraction
of their normal speed. The swiftblade unsheathed his elegant rapier and steeled himself for the grisly task that
followed. In truth, Kaavel enjoyed this part more than
he ever admitted. They were orcs, after all, and The following prestige class offers new material in
deserved to be treated like vermin. conjunction with the release of Complete Mage. Please
bear in mind, to quote the DMG pg. 176 -- "Prestige
classes are always under the purview of the DM. We
While sorcerers and wizards consider haste one of
encourage you, as the DM, to tightly limit the prestige
many spells in their repertoire, swiftblades
classes available in your campaign." If you're a player,
covet hasteabove all others. As a swiftblade, your
be sure to ask your DM whether a powerful prestige
arcane-assisted speed combined with melee skill can
class such as the swiftblade and its incorporated use of
turn your first strike into a deadly assault. Swiftblades
the haste spell is fair and appropriate for your
discover unconventional ways to utilize
campaign.
the hastespell, permanently augmenting their speed
and fusing complimentary spell effects into each casting. In a very real sense, swiftblades bond to their chosen
spell until the two become immutable.

Becoming a Swiftblade

Bards, sorcerers, and wizards are the three most obvious candidates for swiftblades. Bards can easily fulfill the
martial weapon proficiency requirement, but sorcerers and wizards do not share their expertise. Elf candidates
are naturally proficient with racial martial weapons and human candidates can take Martial Weapon Proficiency
with their extra feat to avoid losing a level of spellcasting. A sorcerer or wizard might otherwise multiclass into a
warrior class for one level.

Besides their spellcasting ability score, Dexterity is the second most important attribute for swiftblades. It allows
them to avoid blows and potentially strike first in combat. Strength and Constitution are also important to
swiftblades, who are largely melee characters. Not having the resilience of pure warriors, Tumble is an ideal
skill choice for swiftblades to avoid attacks of opportunity.

Entry Requirements

Base Attack Bonus: +3.

Skills: Concentration 6 ranks, Spellcraft 6 ranks.
Spellcasting: Ability to cast haste.
Feats: Dodge, Mobility.
Weapon Proficiency: Must be proficient with at least one martial weapon.
Special: Must have spent the entire previous level using all 3rd level spell slots to exclusively cast haste.

The Swiftblade

Hit Die: D6

Base
Attack Fort Ref Will
Level Bonus Save Save Save Special Spells per Day
Spring Attack,
1st +1 +0 +2 +2 --
swift surge +1/+0 ft.
2nd +2 +0 +3 +3 Blurred alacrity +1 level of arcane spellcasting class
 3rd +3 +1 +3 +3 Sudden casting +1 level of arcane spellcasting class
Arcane reflexes,
4th +4 +1 +4 +4 --
swift surge +1/+10 ft.
5th +5 +1 +4 +4 Evasive celerity +1 level of arcane spellcasting class
6th +6 +2 +5 +5 Fortified hustle +1 level of arcane spellcasting class
Bounding Assault,
7th +7 +2 +5 +5 --
swift surge +2/+10 ft.
8th +8 +2 +6 +6 Diligent rapidity +1 level of arcane spellcasting class
9th +9 +3 +6 +6 Perpetual options +1 level of arcane spellcasting class
Innervated speed,
10th +10 +3 +7 +7 --
swift surge +2/+20 ft.
Class Skills (4 + Int modifier per level) -- Balance, Craft, Concentration, Gather Information, Jump, Knowledge
(arcana), Listen, Profession, Spot, Spellcraft, Swim, Tumble.

Class Features

As they advance in level, swiftblades gain increased spellcasting abilities, heightened speed, and unparalleled
understanding of the haste spell. They eventually learn how to subsume the haste spell in higher level spell
slots to powerful effect.

Spellcasting: At each level indicated on the swiftblade table, you gain new spells per day and an increase in
caster level (and spells known, if applicable) as if you had also gained a level in an arcane spellcasting class to
which you belonged before adding the prestige class level. You do not, however, gain any other benefit a
character of that class would have gained. If you had more than one arcane spellcasting class before
becoming a swiftblade, they must decide which class gains each level for the purpose of determining spells per
day, caster level, and spells known.

Spring Attack: Beginning at 1st level, you gain Spring Attack (see page 100 of the Player's Handbook) as a
bonus feat. If you already have Spring Attack, choose a different feat for which you do meet the prerequisites.

Swift Surge (Ex): Your body is augmented with the residual energy of previous haste castings. You gain a +1
bonus on attack rolls and a +1 dodge bonus to AC and Reflex saves. At 7th level, these bonuses increase to
+2. At 4th level, you gain a +10 foot enhancement bonus to all of your modes of movement and deal an extra
1d6 points of damage during any round in which you move at least 10 feet. At 10th level, this bonus increases
to +20 feet and an extra 2d6 points of damage during any round in which you move at least 20 feet. These
bonuses stack with the bonuses gained from the haste spell and skirmish ability.

Blurred Alacrity (Ex): At 2nd level, your understanding of the haste spell makes you difficult to target with
melee and ranged attacks. While under the effect of a haste spell that you cast yourself, you gain concealment
(20% miss chance). This miss chance increases by +10% at 3rd, 4th, and 5th level. The effect of this ability
does not stack with blur, displacement, or similar spell effects.

Sudden Casting (Ex): At 3rd level, you learn how to seamlessly cast the haste spell. You can cast haste as a
free action once per round, as if augmented by the Quicken Spell metamagic feat, but without using up higher-
level spell slots.

Arcane Reflexes (Ex): At 4th level, you infuse the energy of previous haste castings into your natural reaction
time. You receive a competence bonus on initiative rolls equal to your arcane spellcasting ability modifier.

Evasive Celerity (Ex): At 5th level, your knowledge of the haste spell makes you difficult to target with spells.
While under the effect of a haste spell that you cast yourself, individually targeted spells have a 20% chance of
failing against you. This spell failure chance increases by +10% at 6th, 7th, and 8th level. The effect of this
ability does not stack with blink or similar spell effects.

Fortified Hustle (Ex): At 6th level, you learn how to intuitively absorb the haste spell into your body. While
under the effect of a haste spell that you cast yourself, the effect becomes extraordinary rather than a
continuous spell effect, and therefore cannot be dispelled by any means. The haste spell otherwise functions
as it normally would, is expended normally, and can be countered as a spell at the moment of casting.

Bounding Assault: At 7th level, you gain Bounding Assault (see page 75 of Player's Handbook II) as a bonus
feat. You need not have the prerequisites normally required for Bounding Assault to gain this feat. If you
already have Bounding Assault, choose a different feat for which you do meet the prerequisites.

Diligent Rapidity (Ex): At 8th level, you automatically overcome magic and mundane obstacles with
the hastespell. While under the effect of a haste spell that you cast yourself, you can move and attack
normally, even under the influence of magic that usually impedes movement, as the freedom of
movement spell. See the spell description on page 233 of the Player's Handbook. As an additional effect, you
can also move across the surface of placid or flowing water, but not whitewater rapids or stormy water, by
making two move actions in a round. You immediately sink any time you make a single move action in a round
or come to a complete stop while traversing water.

Perpetual Options (Ex): At 9th level, you can perform even more actions with the haste spell. Instead of
making one extra attack at your highest base attack bonus while under the effect of a haste spell that you cast
yourself, you now have the choice of making one extra move action or one extra standard action. For example,
you could make three consecutive move actions with this ability, two move actions and one standard action,
one move action and two standard actions, a full attack action and a move action, a full attack action and a
standard action, a full round action and a move action, or a full round action and a standard action.

Innervated Speed (Ex): At 10th level, your mastery of the haste spell can bring the world around you to a
standstill. Any time you prepare or spontaneously cast haste in a 6th level spell slot, you can subsume the spell
at the moment of casting instead, increasing your speed so greatly that other creatures seem frozen in time, as
the time stop spell, but for one round. See the spell description on page 294 of the Player's Handbook. For
each spell slot level higher than 6th level, you can extend innervated speed by 1 additional round. For
example, a sorcerer could subsume haste in an 8th level spell slot to create three rounds of innervated speed.
You cannot subsume a new haste spell until the original innervated speed duration expires and your turn ends.
Moreover, you cannot subsume a metamagic version of haste.

Playing a Swiftblade

As a swiftblade, you have embraced a highly specialized branch of arcane study. Traditional arcane
spellcasters will scoff at your techniques, considering your spellcasting methods to be cutthroat and stunted.
They could not be both more right and wrong at the same time. Being a swiftblade requires more discrimination
than being a generic spellcaster, as your single-minded devotion unlocks a host of new applications for
the haste spell. Moreover, your ability to caste haste as a free action allows you to activate your abilities quickly
in combat. As your familiarity with the haste spell grows, the physical world around you appears to slow down.
Taking advantage of this perception, you are virtually assured to react first in every encounter.

Combat

Few creatures are faster than you. When reaction time plays an important role in combat, you are at a definite
advantage. As a natural skirmisher, you are acutely aware of how quickly sustained combat can end your life.
Your speed lets you to close or widen melee distance to suit your needs on a round-by-round basis. This
versatility is further augmented with Spring Attack and Bounding Assault as bonus feats.

Because you can fight well in melee, members of this prestige class have more options than most arcane
spellcasters. This allows you to benefit from buffing spells such as bull's strength and shield. With such spells
active, you become an even more formidable and untouchable foe. As another option, you can hold yourself
back and punish enemies with area effect spells before closing in for the kill.

Most importantly, your incredible speed causes attacks and targeted spells to outright miss. This ability
progresses until spells that are specifically designed to hamper your movement automatically fail while under
the effects of your own haste spell.

Advancement

Speed and mobility are your best assets at lower levels. Constantly moving around will serve you more than
making continuous attacks, especially in conjunction with the combat benefits and extra damage offered by
swift surge.

Another aspect of advancement to keep in mind is multiclassing. Your survivability is greatly improved by
taking a level or two of a martial class. This grants you a wide range of weapon proficiencies as well as
combat-oriented feats from which to choose, both of which improve your overall effectiveness.

Attaining higher levels of swiftblade expertise eventually grants you the ability to make one extra move or
standard action while under the effects of your own haste spell. There is, of course, no advantage greater than
completing the swiftblade prestige class, at which point you can caste haste in higher level spell slots to make
time seemingly stand still.

Resources

Following this prestige class quickly leads one to realize that there are few resources available to help you, as
your dedicated focus to one spell is highly irregular among spellcasters. Short of making contact with another
swiftblade, you must forge ahead largely alone. Not surprisingly, this revelation has inspired many swiftblades
to embrace a nomadic lifestyle in search of obscure, arcane lore. This is one of the main reasons why
swiftblades are wanderers at heart, constantly seeking new adventurous challenges against which to measure
their emerging abilities. The monetary reward of treasure hunting is often what fuels swiftblades most.

Swiftblades in the World

The swiftblade is an excellent choice for martially-orientated arcane spellcasters. Although the swiftblade
requires spellcasting compromises, it does empower the character with the ability to switch between melee and
spell combat. When compared to more studious arcane practitioners, swiftblades are better able to survive
encounters after all their spells have been used for the day. This allows the members of this prestige class to
fill multiple rolls within an adventuring party.

While most swiftblades are resolved to lives of danger and excitement, some darker members of this prestige
class resort to working as assassins. It's also not uncommon to find swiftblades among rangers and scouts, as
they are well suited to skirmish warfare.

Organization

The wandering nature of swiftblades makes it hard for this prestige class to centralize its teachings. At best, a
master and apprentice might be encountered traveling together. On the few occasions when a formal school
has been established, devoted arcane spellcasters have gone out of their way to discredit such institutions and
discourage students from embracing their teachings. The reason behind such attacks is both edifying and
surprising. Powerful spellcasters quickly realize how effective swiftblades could be in combat without ever
mastering the higher-level spells. Swiftblades are thus a wildcard that threatens to destroy those standards.
Without turning swiftblades into an alluring, forbidden practice, they slander the schools publicly and outlaw
their expansion privately.

NPC Reactions

Adepts have a starting attitude of unfriendly toward swiftblades, being more acquainted with the disrepute
heaped onto their kind by higher-level spellcasters. Few adepts ever take the time to understand why
swiftblades are so preoccupied with a single spell.

Aristocrats have a starting attitude of indifferent to friendly toward swiftblades. Young aristocrats in particular
are fatalistically attracted to the excitement and speed that seems to govern the lives of swiftblades.

Commoners have a starting attitude of indifferent toward swiftblades, having never really heard of them before.
They are more likely to judge swiftblades by appearance, which typically resembles an adventure-seeking
roustabout (probably up to no good).

Experts have a starting attitude of indifferent to unfriendly toward swiftblades, having heard distant rumblings of
trouble caused by their kind. As a result, experts tend to keep their guard up around swiftblades and remain
mindful of their business.

Warriors have a starting attitude of indifferent to friendly towards swiftblades, in recognition of their martial
talents. Warriors respect swiftblades for being willing to get their hands dirty in combat and lacking the
pretensions that are normally associated with arcane spellcasters.

Swiftblade Lore

Characters with Knowledge (arcana) or Knowledge (history) can research swiftblades to learn more about
them. When a character makes a skill check, read or paraphrase the following, including the information from
lower DCs.

DC 10: "Swiftblades are a radical style of spellcasting whereby the practitioner focuses on enhancing their
martial speed."

DC 15: "Swiftblades focus on the haste spell to such an extent that their appearance blurs and no spell effect
can impede them."

DC 20: "Swiftblades trade spellcasting ability for specialized applications of the haste spell and the ability to
make time stand still."

DC 30: Characters who achieve this level of success can learn important details about specific swiftblades,
including notable accomplishments and mentors from whom they studied.

Player characters trying to locate swiftblades must make a DC 20 Gather Information check to discover the
necessary intermediaries and protocols for contacting one. If the player characters are searching for a
swiftblade among soldier garrisons, give them a +2 circumstance bonus on the check.

Swiftblades in the Game

Balance is key to playing an effective swiftblade. You can hold your own in the fray of battle but must be wary
of so doing. For this reason, it is crucial to properly prepare for combat with the appropriate spells. Weakening
the enemy with area effect spells such as cone of cold or fireball is always a good opening tactic. Spells that
hamper your opponents, such as slow, are also effective choices. Then, when you move into close combat with
your haste spell active, the enemy is already softened up.

You will face difficulty deciding what equipment to purchase. As a hybrid spellcaster/warrior, deciding which
role to pursue more actively depends entirely on the encountered situation. Your most important boon is speed,
along with the ability to cast haste as a free action. As well, keep in mind that although your companions
cannot benefit from haste as you do, they will nonetheless appreciate the regular bonuses of that spell.

Adaptation

Swiftblades can easily be incorporated into highly developed magical societies. As practitioners of an
exceedingly focused type of spellcasting, swiftblades most naturally fit into campaigns where many disciplines
and schools of magic already exist. In campaigns where arcane spellcasting is less common, swiftblades
become highly irregular. Regardless of the setting, a swiftblade might also be encountered as the personal
guard to an important dignitary or among a group of elite warriors who pledged their services to a specific
kingdom.

Encounters

Swiftblades can be encountered anywhere. They could be adventuring for gold or traveling in the hope of
broadening their arcane understanding. Swiftblades are proud of their abilities and invite challenges to test
their mettle.

EL 12: The player characters enter an inn and are directed to the only available seats by the tavern wench. An
elf by the name of Kaavel Blackstone already sits at this table. After introductions are made, he asks if the
group is here to enjoy or participate in the local marathon -- a yearly event which tests the resolve and speed of
all contestants. Kaavel is a participant in the race with high hopes of winning, and he suggests that the
characters place a wager on him (if they hope to increase the weight of their pouches). Little does Kaavel
realize that a rival competitor plans to ambush him with hired thugs before the race. The first wave of this
ambush is about to be launched in the tavern.

Kaavel Blackstone, CR 12

Male high elf sorcerer 6/swiftblade 6

NG Medium humanoid
Init +7; Senses low-light vision; Spot +1, Listen +1
Languages Common, Elven

AC 20, touch 14, flat-footed 16, Dodge, Mobility

Miss Chance 50% (with blurred alacrity); 30% targeted spells (with evasive celerity)
hp 50 (12 HD)
Immune sleep
Fort +5, Ref +11, Will +9 (+2 against enchantments)

Speed 50 ft. (10 squares)

Melee+2 rapier +15/+10 (1d6+3/18–20)
Ranged mwk composite longbow +14/+9 (1d8+1/x3)
Base Atk +9; Grp +10
Atk Options Spring Attack, swift surge (+1d6 damage)
Combat Gearpotion of cure moderate wounds, potion of lesser restoration
Spells (CL 9th, +11 touch, +13 ranged touch)
5th (3/day) -- teleport
4th (6/day) -- greater invisibility, polymorph
3rd (7/day) -- haste, lightning bolt (DC 17), slow (DC 17)
2nd (7/day) -- bear's endurance, cat's grace, mirror image, scorching ray
1st (7/day) -- grease, mage armor*, magic missile, shield, true strike
0 (6/day) -- detect magic, daze (DC 14), light, mending, message, prestidigitation, ray of frost, read magic,
touch of fatigue (DC 14)
*Already cast
Abilities Str 12, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 8, Cha 19
SQ blurred alacrity, evasive celerity, familiar, fortified hustle, sudden casting
Feats Battlecaster Offense*, Combat Casting, Dodge, Mobility, Spring Attack (B), Weapon Finesse
*Page 40 of Complete Mage
Skills Balance +5, Concentration +16, Gather Information +9, Jump +22, Listen +1, Spellcraft +9, Search +2,
Spot +1, Tumble +11
Possessions combat gear, +2 rapier, composite masterwork longbow (+1 Str bonus) with 20 arrows,
dagger, amulet of natural armor (+2), boots of striding and springing, cloak of Charisma (+2), traveler's outfit,
spell component pouch, backpack, bedroll, pouch belt, sack, 6 pp, 7 gp, 8 sp, 9 cp

Hook "You have no idea what true speed is. Here, allow me to show you."