Jaguar Warrior

Table

Moro emerged from the thick of the forest, vines breaking before his wearied step. Usually lithe enough to simply wind through the underbrush, his body was near broken, and in any measure beyond exhaustion.

Someone saw him. They ran. Within minutes the drums started, and as Moro walked through the village, people were emerging from their huts.

At the center of the village a great fire was being lit. The smoke from the green wood wound up like so many of the venomous snakes he had passed in his journey.

Already the warriors were dancing about the young blaze. A great drum sounded, and the people fell silent. The village looked to him.

Moro straightened. Four great gashes ran across his chest, patted down with poultice he had made by a small stream. His forehead bore the mark of teeth, and he stood on one foot as if it pained him beyond the bearable. He produced the skin - a shining, golden and black pelt with fangs bared and claws extended. The village erupted in a cheer that he would remember the rest of his glorious life.

The elite warriors of societies that prize skill in warfare, the jaguar warrior seeks to emulate his namesake in body and soul. The passing rite of their brotherhood is to hunt one of these great animals and slay it, with help neither from magic nor armor. Only a spear is lent to the brave who would become a jaguar warrior. Usually emerging from the societies who call rainforest home, the jaguar warrior is nonetheless known in "civilized" lands for his prowess and ferocity.

Most jaguar warriors have a background as a barbarian or a fighter, although shamans of tribes that revere the jaguar will also take levels in this class.

    Hit die: d10

Requirements

Base attack bonus +6 or higher

Skills Jump, 6 ranks; Wilderness Lore, 4 ranks; Craft (Leatherworking), 1 rank; Hide, 2 ranks; Move Silently, 2 ranks

Experiences A jaguar warrior must hunt, slay, and skin a jaguar without aid of magic, armor, or any other weapon but a plain spear and his hands.

Skills & proficiencies

Skills The jaguar warrior's skills and the abilities on which they are based are Balance (Dex), Climb (Str), Heal (Wis), Hide (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Move Silently (Dex), Swim (Str), and Wilderness Lore (Wis). Using the Climb, Jump, Hide, and Move Silently skills while wearing armor or more than lightly encumbered imposes penalties. Manufacturers of armor and gear will not be held liable for injury or death incurred while swimming with their products.
    Skill points 2 + Int modifier per level

Proficiencies A jaguar warrior gains proficiency with all simple and martial weapons. He also learns to use shields and light and medium armor.

Class features

Jaguar Pelt - The prized possession of the jaguar warrior is the pelt of the cat he skinned in his initiation rite. The pelt must be stretched and prepared as any such skin used to make a garment, and the head remain intact. The process requires three weeks of uninterrupted work. The attire fits over the head and back, leaving the warrior's face exposed. While wearing the skin, the jaguar warrior gains a +2 enhancement bonus to Strength and a +2 morale bonus against fear. The pelt grants its Strength bonus only to the jaguar warrior who hunted the beast. If lost or destroyed, a jaguar warrior can make a new one, although he must engage on a similar hunt, using only spear and his wits to survive.  The pelt does grant its special properties even while the character is in jaguar form (see below).

Pounce (Ex) - At second level, if the jaguar warrior leaps more than 5 feet toward his opponent, he can still take the full attack option. To perform a pounce, he must make a Jump check. If the roll indicates he jumped 5 feet or more, he can perform a full attack even if he would otherwise be allowed only a standard action as a result of moving more than 5 feet. He can also perform the full attack option if he would normally be allowed only a partial action in a round (e.g., during a surprise round). If he fails, he may still attack, albeit not with the full attack option. The jaguar warrior must obviously be at least 5 feet away from his intended target and jump toward it (i.e., not along side of it).

Shapechange (Sp) - At third level the warrior gains the ability to shapechange into a jaguar as a free action. He retains all his skill modifiers and ability scores while in jaguar form except that Strength increases by 2 and Dexterity by 4. His equipment becomes part of his new body (worn magic items are also suppressed for the duration of period, except the jaguar pelt, which becomes part of the character's body but still grants its benefits). Other characteristics are as follows (note that these statistics are listed without ability score modifiers, as they are in the MM):

    Speed: 40 feet (20 feet climb)
    AC: 11 (+1 natural)
    Attacks: 1 bite, 2 claws (these use the character's BAB modified by Strength)
    Damage: Bite 1d6, Claws 1d3
    Special: Scent, Pounce, Improved Grab, Rake

Scent: This is the same as the Scent in the MM.

Pounce: This is the same as the class ability pounce (above).

Improved grab: If he successfully makes an attack with a bite, the warrior may make a free grapple attempt without provoking an attack of opportunity.

Rake: If the jaguar makes a successful grab attempt, he may rake with his hind feet, doing 1d3 damage (modified by Strength). Hind legs use the character's BAB. A character may also rake when he performs a pounce attack in jaguar form.

In jaguar form the warrior can understand all languages he knows but cannot speak.  If he can normally speak with animals or is somehow enchanted to do so, he may communicate in that tongue.

At third level, a jaguar warrior can shapechange once per day. This increases to twice per day at seventh level, and thrice per day at tenth.  There is no limit on the amount of time he may remain in jaguar form, though if he retains animal form for more than 8 hours, it counts as if he had shapechanged one more time.  If he has no more shapechanges left, he reverts to normal form.

Unless otherwise stated, a character can use all jaguar warrior class abilities while in normal and in jaguar form.

Great Leap (Ex) - At fourth level, the jaguar warrior can make extraordinary leaps. All standing jumps are treated as running jumps, and all running jumps have their distance doubled. The maximum distance a character can jump is also doubled.

Movement (Ex) - At fifth level, the jaguar warrior adds 10 feet to his base movement rate (in normal and jaguar form).

Stalk (Ex) - At sixth level, if the warrior observes a target undetected for at least three rounds, he gains a +2 circumstantial bonus to all melee attacks on the surprise round. Note that the warrior must remain hidden and unobserved to the intended victim).

Spot - At eighth level, the jaguar warrior gains a +2 bonus to Spot checks.

Great Pounce - At ninth level, the violence of a jaguar warrior's pounce attack takes opponents off guard. An opponent struck by the warrior in a pounce attack must make a Fortitude save with a DC equal to 15 plus the jaguar warrior's Strength bonus (if any) or be stunned for one round. The target need only make one Fortitude save, regardless of how many times the jaguar warrior successfully hits. Creatures immune to critical hits are immune to this attack.

Ghost Jaguar (Sp) - At tenth level, the character can take on the form of a ghost jaguar when he shapechanges into animal form. A ghost jaguar is treated as an ethereal being. This state cannot be dismissed without changing back into normal form, however. A jaguar warrior can choose whether to shapechange into normal animal or ghost form upon shapeshifting.

The Jaguar Warrior

The Wu Jen