#silvanshee

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Disciple of Wholeness (Monk Archetype)

 The way of the monk revolves around the perfection of body and mind, and for many, that includes wholeness of body and mind, which is why many monks are able to use ki to heal their injuries, and prove superhumanly resilient to disease, poison, and effects that would twist the body and mind.

Of course, while asceticism is about self-perfection first and foremost, there will always be those whose altruism cannot be suppressed, and who wish to share, however briefly, their personal perfection with others.

Thus, these disciples of wholeness seek to show the benefits of their monastic ways by healing others and temporarily imparting their immunities to others, at the cost of their own immunities being easily compromised.

Of course, this isn’t the only healing-focused monk archetype out there. Unlike the Monks of the Healing Hand, however, they do not focus on self-sacrifice to heal others, and can still learn to heal themselves.

This archetype is usable both with the standard and the unchained monk without any modification, so it could be a tempting choice if you want to play a monk that can also heal.

 With a touch, these monks can heal others, and if they learn to heal themselves, they can expend more ki to heal others at the same rate as their personal healing.

They also possess a more tenuous version of the immunity to disease and poison, one that relies on them having no physical or internal injuries. However, though it is hard to keep up, they can also briefly grant it to others with a touch as well for a whole day, though they cannot give immunity against a disease that is already present.

Another application of ki allows them to dispel and remove magic afflicting a creature, healing and protecting their spirit.

A good example of a melee class that blends in healing support and providing immunities, this archetype can be fun to play, though the fact that they lose their own immunities when damaged can be annoying, especially depending on your GM’s ruling about whether said immunities fade before or after an attack that would poison you would resolve. You’ll definitely want to take the Extra Ki feat at least once, so you have a nice deep pool of energy to draw from.

 I probably don’t have to explain to folks that there is some unfortunate potential to use the whole “wholeness of body equals purity of body” thing in a distinctly ableist way, So be mindful of that when choosing to include the monk class, and especially this archetype in your games. However, at the same time, these are characters that choose to share the benefits of their conditioning with others through a transfer of ki, making them healers and protectors as well.

  When plague came to the imperial city, the Monastary of the True Body came to offer their aid, providing healing, as well as warding fellow healers against the disease itself. As such, they earned a place of honor in the empire, and many mortals go there for treatment just as often as they do the temples of goodly gods.

 The Yellow Healer is a recluse who is hard to reach, but worth it for those in need of his healing arts. He keeps his yaddithian features hidden, marking him as a being from beyond the stars, but he does not turn away those who truly need his aid, regardless of their reaction.

 Feeling the best way to bring good to the world it to support mortals that already do the same, the silvanshee Brightfoot lives among the Monks of the Life Path, watching them perfect their healing arts, and ignoring the stiffest of their doctrines, all while disguised as a stray cat living at the temple. The head monk knows her secret, but says nothing, happy to have the agathion’s support.

[desertdruidcrafts]

And now for Azatas and Agathions, for tabletop paper minis.

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Court Poet (Skald Archetype)

 Across the ten-year lifespan of the Pathfinder 1st edition roleplaying game system, we’ve seen a lot of archetypes, some interesting expansions of the core concept, and some others that almost make an entire new class, either in terms of rules or in terms of the core concept changing.

Today is one of the latter, with the court poet being a form of skald that uses stories of old to stimulate the mind, rather than the body.

Whether it be with song or oration, these artists weave a tapestry of thought, and make use of much of the lore associated with the skald class to inspire their allies in mental pursuits.

What’s more, they remain at least somewhat competent as combatants as well.

However, there is a vexing problem with this archetype that might not be immediately noticeable if you’re not familiar with the baseline skald. We’ll get into that later.

 Rather than inspire rage, these skalds instead use their music to inspire charm and intellect, helping others contemplate and act on the social stage.

Another song in their arsenal inspires clarity to better understand the truth of something.

As public performers, they also specialize in performing and acting while in a crowd, able to navigate them with ease and work the crowd’s emotional state.

An interesting reversal of the skald meant to work well in social situations, or it would be, if not for a small mistake in the wording. While this archetype replaces inspired rage, it does not replace the rage powers that skalds gain over time. This is a problem since those rage powers, as written, are only usable with the inspired rage performance and nowhere else. Giving them completely useless abilities taking up space on the character sheet.

I’ve seen two fixes for this archetype, one from the design team, and one from the unnamed individual that came up with the archetype. The former replaces the rage powers with additional rounds of raging song, while the second instead argues that one should add a line to the Insightful Contemplation song allowing rage powers to be used with it.

Personally I’m in favor of the former option, since the majority of rage powers really wouldn’t be useful in a situation that calls for a buff to intelligence and charisma.

In any case, with these changes, the court poet can be a different sort of support skald, focusing on the more social side of the bardic spell list than is normal for the skald class, and they can hold their own in a fight too, though they may need to use spells to buff themselves up as well.

 Though they may not be traditional adventurers, I can imagine these poets finding their way into urban adventures of intrigue, investigating secrets and bringing them to light with their biting words. In more traditional adventures, they may instead be scouring the world for more stories, or may have had to flee from reprisal in the political sphere.

  Inverda, court poet of Valana, has gone missing, and her home is found in disarray, notes strewn about and strange writing covering the walls. In the fireplace one can find a damaged letter revealing someone had commissioned her to learn and recite an epic poem written in Aklo.

 Not a warrior by her own admission, the skald Sycta prefers to remain by her Jarl’s side, counseling him on matters of diplomacy and statesmanship. However, when called upon the sylph is known to step down from the hall with electrified axe in hand.

 An old poem by a courtly skald tells a story of a black cat with a which chest that taught a young nobleman the meaning of honor and justice. Since that time, cats that bear those marks are quite popular. However, little does anyone suspect that the original cat, actually a silvanshee agathion, still watches over the city, guiding mortals.

[trithedragon]

A Friendly Silvanshee

One of my DnD characters imagined as a Silvanshee (with nontraditional colors)

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