Base Requirements

• Races: Any
• Sub-Classes: Any
• Ability Requirements: Balance 13, Willpower 15
• Alignments: Lawful
• Starting Cash: By class

Weapon Proficiencies

• Weapon Slots: By class
• Bonus Weapon Proficiencies: none
• Required Weapon Proficiencies: none
• Allowed Weapons: By class
• Allowed Armors: By class, plus All Shields

Non-Weapon Proficiencies:

• Non-weapon Slots: By class
• Available Categories: By class, plus Detection
• Bonus Non-weapon Proficiencies: Alertness, Danger Sense, Local History, Healing
• Required Proficiencies: none
• Recommended Proficiencies: Animal Handling, Armorer, Armor Optimization, Awareness, Blind-Fighting, Bulwark, City Familiarity, Defensive Tactics, Detect Signing, Endurance, Fasting, Fungi Recognition, Herbalism, Light Sleeping, Mediation, Mental Armor, Night Vision, Occult Lore, Omen Reading, Psionic Detection, Religion, Rope Use, Shield Smite, Sign Language, Survival, Tracking, Weapon and Shield Style, Weather Sense
• Forbidden Proficiencies: none

Overview: Warders are brave, strong-hearted souls who act as protectors and bodyguards to others. Most warders are paid professionals who hire out their services to those nobles and wealthy merchants who can afford them. There is never a shortage of work and renown for these specialized mercenaries. Few warders are interested in fame or fortune, however, instead seeing the safety of friends and innocents as sufficient reward for their services. All warders are skilled guardians trained to place the well-being of those they protect, their charges, above their own concerns.

Goo-aligned warders are trustworthy friends and steadfast allies, often considering it their duty to look after those weaker or less fortunate than themselves, even when not hired to do so. Neutral warders are mostly concerned with getting the job done and often have few or any close acquaintances. Evil waders are ruthlessly mercenary, selling their services to the highest bidder and protecting their charges only as much as is required by the letter of their contracts.

Description: Warders may dress however they want, but usually carry a shield to aid them in protecting their charges.

Role-Playing: A PC warder may be hired to to protect a specific member of the adventuring party, or he may volunteer his services to help a good cause or watch over a close friend. Because of his strong concerns for others, a warder often fits into a team better than other character types. A warder should always be keeping an eye on his charge and may also watch out for the weaker members of the party. The warder’s keen alertness and resistance to fear makes him a great benefit to any group of adventurers.

A PC warder should carefully consider what jobs he takes on. In some cases, the warder’s goals will not fit with those of the party, particularly if he is hired to serve long-term as a bodyguard for a sedentary nobleman. Charges with no desire or need to travel may significantly limit the warder’s ability to participate in adventures. Being a warder to a charge whose normal location is itself particularly dangerous, such as a king under multiple threats of assassination, can make for an interesting campaign in itself, but may limit the options of the other players.

Special Abilities:

• Because they understand the inevitability of injury both to charge and themselves, warders train to make the most of any healing they administer. A warder providing healing of any kind heals an additional +1 point of damage per die of healing. This includes using the Healing proficiency to administer first-aid, casting any spell that heals hit-point damage, or pouring a potion of healing down someone’s throat. This bonus healing does not apply to non-variable healing (such as providing long-term care with the Healing proficiency).
• The warder receives a +1 bonus on saving throws and attack rolls when fighting to protect his charge, and any enemy threatening his charge suffers a -2 penalty on saving throws against the warder’s spells.
• Whenever a warder’s charge is in serious danger, such as when he is about to be attacked, set off a trap, ingest poisonous food, or fall off a precipice, the warder is allowed to make a save vs. paralyzation. If the save is successful, the warder is aware of a strong danger to his charge. This sense occurs no more than one round before the danger strikes, and may give as little as a fraction of a second’s warning. The warder never knows the exact nature of the threat, nor do his instincts warn him of threats to anyone other than his charge.
• A warder’s brave defense of his charge allows him to ignore his own fear. As long as his charge is within sight the warder is immune to any spell or effect that causes fear or madness, and never needs to make morale checks.
• A warder may use his shield to protect his charge as long as the charge is within 5 feet. The grants the charge the normal AC benefit of the shield (which stacks with any other AC bonuses the charge has, including that from using a shield of his own), but prevents the warder from gaining any benefits from the shield. If the warder does not have a shield, but is wearing armor (or has natural armor) that grants an AC bonus of +3 or better, he may use his body to protect the charge. This grants the charge a +2 bonus to AC, but reduces the warder’s AC by -3, as he deliberately interposes himself.
• A warder’s talents are highly sought after. He gains a +1 bonus on NPC reaction rolls against any potential client (that is, anyone who knows his profession and has enough money to pay whatever standard fee the PC charges).

Special Disadvantages:

• Most of the warder’s special benefits are only applicable when they have a charge. A warder may only have one charge at a time, and it is usually someone the warder has been hired to protect for a specific mission or period of time. A warder may decide to make anyone his charge, but the warder must inform the DM of this as soon as the decision is made.
• A warder never willingly leaves a charge he has sworn to protect, no matter how great the odds against him. If the warder sees that a charge is in danger, the warder attempts to move him to safety, even if the charge does not wish to go. If a warder ever willingly leaves a charge in danger, he immediately and permanently loses all benefits of this kit.
• If a warder’s charge is kidnapped, killed, or lost, the warder blames himself. If the charge is merely missing, the warder suffers a -1 penalty on all dies rolls until his charge is recovered. Witnessing the death of someone under his protection, however, causes the warder to fall into a deep depression, suffering a -2 penalty on all die rolls for 1d4+1 months.

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