D&D Homebrew Prestige Class: Echo Knight / Unrealized Potential
Inspired by Dungeons & Dragons 5e's Archetype of the same name from the Explorer's Guide to Wildemount, this class brings the reality-rewriting and cross-temporal partnership of Echo Knights to an older edition of D&D!
A homebrew prestige class for Dungeons & Dragons 3e/3.5; created by Aboleth Eye!
As always, though this homebrew was made with D&D 3.5 edition in mind, with a few tweaks you can absolutely use this material with Pathfinder 1st edition! -- Aboleth Eye
As I am not the most up-to-date fan of Critical Role's extensive lore, I do not wish to mix up anything Mercer created with anything I make that is out of the box. Therefore, my lore around the class and dunamancy are more focused on implementing across any potential settings. Plus I believe that great character builds can exist in any setting!
Echoes Across Time and Space
Dunamancy is a very strange occult branch of magic. It was an entirely theoretical branch of arcane science until the phenomenon known as dunamis was recognized manifesting around certain individuals of “heroic” characterization.
The concept of Dunamis is based on potentiality and probability interacting with the underlying forces of reality and physics. Scholars of dunamancy learn to bend the flow of time and fate, allowing them to tap into greater chronomancy and manipulate fundamental forces of reality like gravity. They debate theories such as the butterfly effect, where every minor action taken ripples out and manifests as some greater, more devastating phenomenon later. Dunamancers focused on chronomancy believe that there is not just one timeline of events; that there are countless branches of time made for every decision and circumstance ever made.
Typically, mages who study dunamancy become paralyzed by anxiety and despair. They become obssessed with the repercussions of every decision (made and not alike) by themselves and all other creatures in existence. They are crippled with hesitation over every choice, bemoaning every disaster taking place as personal. They blame the concept of choice, for demanding that sentient creatures must decide between doing one thing over another.
Pious souls are especially crippled by the theory of dunamis, believing that every minor, human act results in cosmic forces tipping in the favor of evil. That a single stolen apple in childhood demands the entire planescape to be punished.
Because dunamancy is such a new branch of magic, no one has the answers—and no god of fate or magic will reveal these answers to mortal minds without extreme prejudice. Mostly the gods and powers-that-be are afraid mortal minds would shatter under full awareness of these dunamis forces— depression and nihilism are quite common among dunamancy scholars, after all. There are, however, others that have decided to hoard this knowledge. They seek to limit mortals so they cannot eventually outgrow the need for gods and challenge them with these underlying cosmic forces.
Luckily, however, not every soul has the luxury to be inactive in the world. They cannot stand idly by when important decisions need to be made. Those with strong conviction and knowledge of their own self make decisions head on. They are unburdened by the minor decisions of life, such as choosing toast over porridge for breakfast. And among adventuring types, many are able to coolly decide how to react to disaster and danger: from deciding which battalion of soldiers to send out, to choosing which head of Tiamat’s avatar to attack first on the planar battlefield.
These decisive individuals will face dangerous forces and disasters without hesitation. And they are willing to face the consequences of any choice they made, including facing their own demise.
The esoteric principles of reality respond well to these kinds of powerful and aware souls.
Echo Knights refuse to idly let failure end things. They have taken fate in their own hands and recognize that not every decision will succeed as intended. In fact, they count on it; for they can summon echoes of their own unrealized potential—manifestations of themselves from failed or alternate paths in time, brought forth to aid them in this reality!
There are countless personalities and philosophies around the Echo Knights’ use of dunamancy. Many are actually unaware of the cosmic truth they’re suddenly attuned to. But among these unique, confident heroes and villains they all learn the same “trick”, so to speak. They learn that every decision matters. If you fall into despair and freeze, making no decisions in order to change your reality, reality will change itself to ruin or destroy you.
The Echo Knight Class
- Alignment: cannot be True Neutral
- Abilities: Charisma 13
- Base Attack Bonus: +5
- Skills: Knowledge (arcana) 2 ranks, Knowledge (the planes) 2 ranks
- Special: Must have been reduced to -9 hit points or less at some point and brought back to life at least once. Cannot be undead.
Table: Echo Knight Class
| Level | BAB | Fort | Ref | Will | Class Features | Echoes | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | +0 | +2 | +2 | +0 | Echoes, Summon Echo Companion (1/day) | 1 | ||||||
| 2 | +1 | +3 | +3 | +0 | Diehard, Evasion | 1 | ||||||
| 3 | +2 | +3 | +3 | +1 | Trap Sense +1 | 2 | ||||||
| 4 | +3 | +4 | +4 | +1 | Summon Echo Companion (2/day), Uncanny Dodge | 2 | ||||||
| 5 | +3 | +4 | +4 | +1 | Temporal Step | 3 | ||||||
| 6 | +4 | +5 | +5 | +2 | Swift Companion, Trap Sense +2 | 3 | ||||||
| 7 | +5 | +5 | +5 | +2 | Reclaim Potential | 4 | ||||||
| 8 | +6 | +6 | +6 | +2 | Improved Uncanny Dodge, Summon Echo Companion (3/day), | 4 | ||||||
| 9 | +6 | +6 | +6 | +3 | Trap Sense +3 | 5 | ||||||
| 10 | +7 | +7 | +7 | +3 | Temporal Step (Quickened) | 5 |
Class Features
The following are the class features of the Echo Knight class.
Proficiencies: simple and martial weapons, light and medium armor, shields (excluding tower shields).
Echoes (Ex): Starting at 1st level, an Echo Knight learns how to alter time to avoid the mistakes of their past or alternate lives. Each day, an Echo Knight gains a number of daily uses of Echoes, based on their level in the prestige class. The Echo Knight must fully rest and meditate for 1 hour to gain their daily uses of Echoes.
As an immediate action once per round, the Echo Knight may spend a daily use of Echoes to reroll their dice once and take the new result. Echoes can be declared before the roll is made, allowing the Knight to roll two d20s and choosing the result. Alternatively, the Echoes reroll can be taken after the initial roll is made, but the second die result rolled must be taken in that circumstance (even if worse than the first).
For instance, an Echo Knight fighting a dragon declares using Echoes before they attack with a weapon. They roll two d20 dice and may choose one for their attack roll result, to be modified by their current bonuses to attack. Alternately, if on a different round the Echo Knight failed their Reflex saving throw against the dragon’s breath weapon, they may use Echoes to reroll their saving throw die. But they must take the second die’s result (modified by their current bonuses to the save) even if it would be worse than the original die roll.
At 1st level an Echo Knight can only use Echoes once per day. At 3rd level and every second levels thereafter, they receive an additional daily use of Echoes. See the Echoes column of the Echo Knight Class table above.
An Echo Knight cannot use Echoes to reroll dice more than once per round. This includes using Echoes for other Echo Knight class abilities (see Temporal Step and Reclaim Potential below). If the Echo Knight uses Echoes on a full-attack action, they can apply Echoes to only one single attack roll of their turn.
Summon Echo Companion (Su): Upon taking their first class level, an Echo Knight’s perception expands into alternate versions of themselves across time. As a standard action, they may manifest these alternates as Echo Companions to aid in their own journey. The Echo Companion appears in an unoccupied space in the Knight's line of sight, up to 30 feet away. Manifesting an Echo Companion does provoke attacks of opportunity, but it can be manifested in an enemy's threatened area without provoking them.
Echo Companions resemble spectral copies of the Echo Knight, created from the character's alternate timelines. The Knight may communicate telepathically with their Echo Companion within 100 feet, but it otherwise is silent and cannot communicate at all. It will follow orders to the best of its ability, including going into dangerous areas or combat.
An Echo Companion can remain manifested for one hour before it vanishes, and it cannot be summoned more than once in a single encounter. The Echo Knight can only summon the Echo Companion once per day at 1st level, but gains additional daily uses at 4th and 8th levels. If a second Echo Companion is summoned while another is present, the previous one vanishes immediately.
The Echo Companion does not have a limit to the physical distance they may have from its master, however, it is always manifested in the plane of existence its master currently occupies and cannot travel through portals.
The Echo Knight must meditate for an hour after resting to gain their daily uses of Echo Companion. If an Echo Companion is reduced to 0 hit points, it vanishes instantly and the Echo Knight loses one of their daily uses of Echoes. If the Echo Knight does not have Echoes available when this happens, they are stunned for 1d3 rounds as they experience temporal backlash.
The Echo Companion can be dispelled as if it were an 10th level spell of the conjuration/divination school with the calling subschool.
See Echo Companion section below for more information.
Diehard: At 2nd level, an Echo Knight gains Diehard as a bonus feat, even if they do not fulfill its normal prerequisites.
Evasion (Ex): At 2nd level and higher, an Echo Knight can avoid even magical and unusual attacks with great agility. If they make a successful Reflex saving throw against an attack that normally deals half damage on a successful save, they instead take no damage.
Evasion can be used only if the Echo Knight is wearing light to medium armor, or no armor. A helpless creature does not gain the benefit of evasion.
Trap Sense (Ex): At 3rd level, an Echo Knight gains an intuitive sense that alerts them to danger from traps, giving them a +1 bonus on Reflex saves made to avoid traps and a +1 dodge bonus to AC against trap attack rolls. These bonuses increase to +2 at 6th level, and then to +3 at 9th level.
Trap Sense bonuses gained from multiple classes stack.
Uncanny Dodge (Ex): Starting at 4th level, an Echo Knight’s can react to danger before their senses would normally allow them to do so. The Knight retains their Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) even if caught flat-footed or struck by an invisible attacker. However, if immobilized they still lose their Dexterity bonus to AC.
If the Echo Knight already has uncanny dodge from a different class, they automatically gain improved uncanny dodge instead.
Temporal Step (Su): A 5th level Echo Knight can switch their current fate with that of their manifested Echo Companion’s. As a move action, an Echo Knight may spend a daily use of Echoes to switch their position with their manifest Echo Companion’s current position. The switch happens so quickly and seamlessly that it does not provoke attacks of opportunity. The Echo Knight can only use this ability if they have line of sight on the Companion, and both parties are within a distance equal to double the Echo Knight’s current base land speed.
After using Temporal Step, the Echo Knight must wait 1d4 rounds before they can use it again.
At 10th level an Echo Knight can use Temporal Step as an immediate reaction, allowing them to change positions when falling from great heights or sinking in water.
Reclaim Potential (Sp): Starting at 7th level, The Echo Knight may choose to sync up with a time they were in better health. As a standard action, the Echo Knight may spend a daily use of Echoes to heal themselves for 1d8 plus their class level in hit points (maximum +10), as if casting cure light wounds. The Echo Knight may only heal themselves with this ability.
The Knight may choose to spend an additional Echoes use to increase the healing by +1d8 hit points.
Caster level equals the Echo Knight’s class level.
Swift Companion (Ex): Starting at 7th level, an Echo Knight may manifest their Echo Companion as a swift action. This allows the Echo Companion to be manifested at the start of combat, and it can use the aid another action to the Echo Knight’s Initiative roll when summoned in this way.
Ex-Echo Knights: Echo Knights who become True Neutral retain all their class abilities, but cannot progress further in the prestige class. The Echo Knight must stand for something, otherwise their indecisiveness will remove their ability to fully control their fate.
Additionally, if an Echo Knight becomes an intelligent Undead, they retain their use of Echoes per day but lose Summon Echo Companion, Diehard, Temporal Step, Reclaim Potential and Swift Companion. The soul of an Echo Knight is bound only to their present reality. The moment of awakening to undeath disconnects their soul (or what's left of it) from considering any consequence beyond maintaining their current undead state.
The Echo Companion
Table: the Echo Companion
| Character Level | Deflection Bonus | Natural Armor | Mental Traits | Class Features | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 - 8 | +1 | +2 | 6 | Empathic Link, Precognition (+1), Share Saving Throws, Share Spells | |||
| 9 - 11 | +1 | +3 | 8 | Improved Evasion | |||
| 12 - 14 | +2 | +4 | 10 | Blur, Precognition (+2) | |||
| 15 - 17 | +2 | +5 | 12 | Uncanny Dodge | |||
| 18 - 20 | +3 | +6 | 14 | Displacement, Precognition (+3) |
Echo Companion Basics: Use the base statistics for a creature of Echo Knight's kind, but make changes to take into account the attributes and characteristics summarized on the table and described below.
All basics and abilities of the Echo Companion are based on the total character level of the Echo Knight.
Size/Creature Type: An Echo Companion is
considered a Construct with the living subtype. Its size
is equal to that of its creator’s current size.
Hit Dice: For the purposes of effects related to the number of Hit Dice, use the master’s Echo Knight total class level.
Hit Points: The companion has one-half the
master’s total hit points (not including temporary hit points, rounded down),
regardless of its actual Hit Dice.
Attacks: Use the master’s attack bonus, as
calculated from all classes; but it may only attack once per round. Use the master’s base Dexterity or Strength
modifier (whichever is better) and their Base Attack Bonus for its weapon attacks to
get the companion’s melee attack bonus with its manifested weapons.
Damage
equals that of a mundane, non-masterwork version of its manifested weapon type.
Ability Scores: The companion’s Ability Scores are equal to its master’s base Ability Scores (as modified by racial traits and level progression). However, its mental Ability Scores (Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma) are capped at a designated Mental Traits limit (as described in the Echo Companion table above), based on the Echo Knight's total character level.
Armor Class: The Echo Companion’s Armor Class starts out equal to 10 plus its master’s Dexterity modifier and their Size modifier. They additionally gain a Natural Armor and Deflection bonus to AC based on its master’s level (see table above).
Speed: The companion’s base speed is equal to its
master’s racial base speeds, plus any enhancements gained through class
features or feats. If the Echo
Companion’s master has a racial climb or swim speed (or any other type of
movement), they may utilize those movement types and gain any racial bonuses to
them (such as a merfolk’s +8 racial bonus to Swim checks).
Fly
speeds in this manner have the same maneuverability as its master. If the companion’s master can take 10 on
Climb and Swim checks even while threatened due to their race, the Echo
Companion can do so as well.
Share Saving Throws: For each saving throw, use the
master’s base save bonuses (as calculated from all classes). The Echo Companion uses its master’s
Constitution and Dexterity scores for saves, while its Wisdom score is limited
as by the Mental Traits limit (see the Echo Companion Table above).
The
companion does not share any other bonuses to saves the master might have on
saves through class features or feats.
Feats: The companion has all its master’s feats, provided they are on the Fighter bonus feat list. Otherwise, it gains no additional feat benefits.
Skills: The companion uses the skill ranks equal of its master for each skill, as modified by the companion’s own ability scores (see Ability Scores - Mental Traits above).
Class Abilities: The companion is treated as a Warrior for purposes of having no class abilities. It does not gain any special attacks features such as turn/rebuke undead, sneak attack, eldritch blast, etc.
Spellcasting/Spell-like Abilities: If the companion’s master can cast spells or
use invocations gained through class features, the Echo Companion does not also
gain them. The Echo Knight must take the action required to use these spells or spell-like abilities.
However,
if the Echo Companion’s master has racial spell-like abilities due to their
race, the companion may utilize them as a shared resources. For instance, a drow Echo Knight with wizard levels may choose to have their Echo Companion
use their racial darkness spell-like ability or a magic missile spell known from the Companion's current position. This
uses the Echo Knight’s daily use or prepared spell slot, and they must rest normally before having access to
these spell-like abilities and spells once more.
Extraordinary/Supernatural Abilities: The Echo Companion does not have access to any extraordinary or supernatural abilities its master possesses due to their race or class features.
Equipment: The
Echo Companion is made of spectral light and constantly shifts in cosmetic
appearance, but resembles the Echo Knight in all other ways. The Companion enters combat with mundane
versions of the Echo Knight’s currently equipped weapons when it
manifests. Even if the Echo Knight enhances
weapons, it is limited to the basic weapon type(s) its master had when
manifested. If the Echo Knight wields a
shield, the Companion can only use it as a weapon instead of a defensive tool.
The companion does not benefit from any
worn material armor, shields or wondrous items the Echo Knight has
equipped. Ranged weapons are summoned
with a number of ammunition equal to the Echo Knight’s level times 5.
The Companion’s weapon damage is
considered magic damage for the purpose of bypassing Damage Reduction.
For instance, a 3rd-level
Echo Knight wielding a +1 holy greatsword would summon an Echo Companion with a
mundane greatsword. Meanwhile, a 3rd-level Echo Knight wielding a +3
composite shortbow (Str 13 requirement) would summon an Echo Companion with a
mundane composite shortbow (Str 13 requirement) and 15 arrows to use.
All abilities are based on the total character level of the Echo Knight.
Upon
the master reaching 12th and 18th level, the bonuses from
Precognition increases by one, to a maximum of +3 at 18th level.
Share Spells: At its master’s option, they may
have any spell (but not any spell-like ability) cast on themselves also affect
their Echo Companion. The Companion must
be within 30 feet at the time of casting to receive the benefit.
If
the spell or effect has a duration other than instantaneous, it stops affecting
the companion if it moves farther than 30 feet away (and will not affect it
again even if it returns to that range before the duration expires). Additionally, the master may cast a spell
with a target of “You” on their Companion (as a touch range spell) instead of
on themselves.
A
master and companion can share spells even if the spells do not normally affect
creatures of the companion’s type (living construct).
Improved Evasion (Ex): If its master is 9th level or higher, when subjected to an attack that normally allows a Reflex save for half damage, an Echo Companion takes no damage if it makes a successful saving throw (and half damage if the saving throw fails).
Blur (Sp): If the master is 12th level
or higher, their Echo Companion is made of more than one alternate self in the
same space; the companion gains a permanent blur effect (as the spell
effect).
Uncanny Dodge (Ex): Upon reaching 15th level, the Echo Knight grants its Echo Companion the benefits of uncanny dodge: the companion retains its Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) even if caught flat-footed or struck by an invisible attacker. However, it still loses its Dexterity bonus to Armor Class if immobilized.
Displacement (Sp): If the master is 18th level or higher, the Echo Companion gains a permanent displacement effect (as the spell effect). This replaces the effects of blur.
Author's Note:
I fell in love with the concept of the Echo Knight and spent a whole week plotting out the skeleton of a 3.5 version of the class in between doing data entry. I was in a 5th edition D&D campaign and was considering which Fighter Archetype my character might look into. Echo Knight wasn't right for that character; but the idea of manipulating time and fighting alongside yourself through parallel time shenanigans was intriguing to say the least.
Dunamis is a very intriguing concept from a modern fantasy perspective. Manipulation of the laws of physics has always been a cornerstone to high fantasy, but the principles of time, gravity and fate manipulation are so new to the scene. And the Echo Knight is a rewarding archetype for martial classes. A lot of prestige classes are very keyed towards spellcasters across 3.5 edition, and Fighters alone get such a bad rap as being "generic". So I wanted to translate this great 5e archetype (with the system's underlying concept of "no bad class") and give it to my games and friends to play with!
As always, thank you for reading this far and following me on this homebrewing journey! I hope the Echo Knight is a great addition to your own adventures!
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