Eldar Mage-Priest

One of the three cornerstones of the elven religion, the Order of Arcane Wisdom is devoted to revering, and learning more about, magic and the supernatural. As their name implies, the eldar mage-priest is both a priest of the Order and a practitioner of arcane and divine magic. Most are clerics of Arcane Wisdom, though half elf clerics of pagan gods, a few druids, and, scandalously, clerics of the other elven orders, have also been accepted as mage-priests. Most are also wizards, and sometimes known as wizard priests. However there are sorcerer priests and bard priests. The Order of Magic is popular with Gray Elves, and they make up a disproportionate number of its practitioners. The order is also fairly popular with High Elves. Wild Elves are less likely to be mage priest, and are likely to be sorcerer priests if members of the Order. While many non-elves have tried to learn the secrets of the mage priests, only elves and half elves may become one. An elf or half-elf who does think they are qualified to join must find a temple of the Order, normally part of a elven academy of magic, and past the tests that are never revealed to outsiders.

Requirements

To qualify to become a mage priest, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.

Race: Elf or Half Elf

Skills: Knowledge (arcana) 8 ranks, Knowledge (religion) 8 ranks, Spellcraft 8 ranks.

Feats: Theurgy and two Magic Use Feats.

Spells: Able to cast identify and at least one 2^nd level arcane spell and one 2^nd level divine spell.

Special: A donation to the order worth at least 5000s. The mage priest must join the Order of Arcane Wisdom and follow its tenants.

Hit Die: d6.

Class Skills

The mage priest’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Decipher Script (Int), Knowledge (any, each taken separately) (Int), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int).

Skill Points at Each Level: 2 + Int modifier.

Level	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Special Abilities	Spells per Day
1st	+0	+0	+0	+2	Staff	-
2nd	+1	+0	+0	+3		+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class/ +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
3rd	+1	+1	+1	+3	Bonus Feat	+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class/ +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
4th	+2	+1	+1	+4		+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class/ +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
5th	+2	+1	+1	+4		+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class/ +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
6th	+3	+2	+2	+5	Enhance Staff, Bonus Feat	-
7th	+3	+2	+2	+5		+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class/ +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
8th	+4	+2	+2	+6		+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class/ +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
9th	+4	+3	+3	+6	Bonus Feat	+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class/ +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
10th	+5	+3	+3	+7		+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class/ +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
11^th	+5	+3	+3	+7		+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class/ +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class
12^th	+6	+4	+4	+8	Bonus Feat Enhance Staff	+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class/ +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Mage priests do not gain proficiency with weapons or armor.

Spells per Day: Starting at 2^nd level (and with the exception of 6^th level), when a new mage priest level is gained, the character gains new spells per day as if he had also gained a level in any one arcane spellcasting class he belonged to before he added the prestige class and any one divine spellcasting class he belonged to previously. He does not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained. If a character had more than one arcane spellcasting class or more than one divine spellcasting class before he became a mage priest, he must decide to which class he adds each level of mage priest for the purpose of determining spells per day.

Staff: All mage priests have a specially crafted staff. In the hands of the mage priest the staff is a +1 weapon and provides a +1 deflection bonus to AC. The staff also provides the mage priest spell resistance of 10+the mage priest’s level and can be used as a divine focus. The staff can be used by the mage priest to detect magic as a supernatural ability. In the hands of someone other then the mage priest, the staff can be used a masterwork weapon, but provides no other special benefits. If the staff is lost or destroyed, the mage priest must make a donation of 5000s to the order or make a new one himself to replace it.

Staff of the Mage Priest: Moderate varied; CL 12; Craft Staff, arcane sight, detect magic, dispel magic, identify, magic weapon, spell resistance; creator must be a mage priest; Price: 5000s.

Augmenting the staff: A mage priest with Craft Staff can add powers to the staff in the same way he could make another magical staff. For example, a mage priest could add all the properties of a Staff of Frost to his staff in the same way he could make a Staff of Frost. If the staff is augmented in this way, it has 60 instead of the normal 50 charges, but only the mage priest can benefit from it. When all the charges are used, the staff looses the properties added to it but otherwise continues to work normally.

Bonus Feat: At 3^rd level and every 3 level thereafter (6^th, 9^th, and 12^th level) the mage priest gains a bonus feat. At each such opportunity, he can choose a metamagic feat, an item creation feat, or Spell Mastery. The mage priest must still meet all prerequisites for a bonus feat, including caster level minimums.

Enhance Staff: At 6th level, the mage priest’s staff becomes a +3 weapon and provides a +3 deflection bonus to AC. The mage priest can use the staff to identify items as a supernatural ability. In addition, once a day for each metamagic feat the mage priest has, he can cast a spell as though it has been enhanced by the metamagic feat, but does not have to prepare or use a higher level spell slot and casts the spell as he normally would. At 12th level, the mage priest can use the staff in this way three times a day. He can also use the staff to cast arcane sight or dispel magic as a supernatural ability.