Githwarrior Champion

While many are familiar with the powerful githyanki Silver Knights, the majority of githyanki soldiers follow the somewhat less prestigious career path of githwarrior. This catch-all term for non-knightly githyanki combatants is used to describe the rank and file of githyanki armies, the front line that the Silver Knights direct in combat against the enemies of the lich queen. However, a few githwarriors rise above the role of grunt soldier and become githwarrior champions, warriors who are militarily, if not socially, on par with the Knights.

The extra lengths required for respect among the githyanki only make the githwarrior champions even stronger leaders. They serve as generals and hunting party leaders, directing the mighty forces of the lich queen to victory. Unlike the Silver Knights, though, githwarrior champions are not sworn to the lich queen, at least not any more than all githyanki are. They are fairly autonomous although the military structure leads back up to the lich queen eventually. Where the Knights are around to direct the queen’s direct will, most githwarrior champions are around to make sure things run smoothly. Because of this disconnection, githwarrior champions do not carry the social or political clout that Knights do. However, they tend to be more grounded in the base society of the githyanki and have an easier time among the common people than the heavy-handed Knights.

Most githwarrior champions begin their careers as fighters, with rangers and monks after them. Barbarians, bards, and rogues occasionally achieve this honor, but they are peripheral occupations in githyanki society. Wizards and sorcerors find it difficult to learn the combat prowess required to progress as soldiers, although multiclass fighter-wizards and fighter-sorcerors, both called gish, can sometimes rise to githwarrior champions. Paladins and clerics are reviled in githyanki society and all such individuals are renegades, making it impossible for them to rise through githyanki hierarchy.

Gith’s Enemies: The githwarrior champion gains a +2 bonus on Bluff, Listen, Sense Motive, Spot, and Survival checks when using these skills against illithids and githzerai. Likewise, he gets a +2 bonus on weapon damage rolls against such creatures. At 5th level this bonus increases to +4 and at 9th level to +6. This ability is similar to the favored enemy ability of rangers, but the githwarrior champion never chooses new enemies for this ability. The Gith’s enemies ability stacks with bonuses from favored enemy, however.

Improved Unarmed Combat: At 9th level a githwarrior champion gains the Improved Unarmed Combat feat, if he already has this feat he gains no other ability. The warriors of the githyanki race are trained to use their very bodies as a weapon so that they are never truly unarmed, and to remain on even ground with their enemies the githzerai, who frequently train in unarmed combat and are ready at a moments notice for a fight.

Expert Grappler: Trained against the tactic of an illithid, githwarrior champions are more than proficient in fighting at close quarters. At 2nd level a githwarrior champion gains a +4 bonus to grapple checks, a bonus which stacks with other grapple bonuses such as those from the Improved Grapple feat. Additionally, the githwarrior can attack an opponent in a grapple without the normal -4 penalty.

Bonus Feat: At 3rd level, and again at 6th and 10th level, the githwarrior champion gains a bonus feat chosen from the fighter bonus feat list.

Rallying Cry: A githwarrior champion of 4th level or above who is not currently suffering from a mind-influencing effect, can instill greater fervor in those under his command. Once per day per level of Githwarrior Champion, he may make a rallying cry as a standard action. All allies within 60 feet (but not the githwarrior champion himself) who can hear the githwarrior champion receive +2 to all saving throws against mind-influencing effects. This bonus increases to +4 at 8th level.

Adamantine Will: At 7th level, a githwarrior champion’s already strong willpower increases. When making a save to resist a stunning effect (such as a Willpower save for an illithid’s mind blast spell-like ability or a Fortitude save for a Stunning Fist attack), if the githwarrior champion fails the save by five or less he is considered dazed instead of stunned. This means that he retains his Dexterity bonus to AC, among other conditions outlined in the Dungeon Master’s Guide.