You have chosen another way, a far more pointed way. You have been inducted into — or have woven together for yourself, from bits of lore and subtle hints from prodigies and other, odder things — a path to cultivating your own, inner power, one that is of you and only you.
Along that path you will clash with beasts, spirits, monsters, and fellow cultivators jealous of your power, following a rival philosophy, or simply seeking to thwart you personally.
But if you reach the end of that path?
Immortality.
Cultivator
Prime Requisites: WIS and CHA
Attack: as Cleric
Saves: as Magic-User
Hit Dice: 1d4
Armour Allowed: None
Weapons Allowed: Staff, dagger, and one chosen weapon or object to use as weapon
Languages: Common, Alignment
* Spiritual Weapon: Choose a specific type of weapon (shortsword, spear, dagger, etc). By bonding with a specific example of that weapon, you may treat it as a +1 magical weapon with 1d6 base damage; this bonus increases by +1 at 5th and 10th level. You may select a non-weapon object; in your hands, it now causes 1d6 damage.
At 3rd level, you may use your spiritual weapon to cast a bolt of damaging energy. This bolt has a range of 50′ and does 1d4 damage, increasing to 2d4 at 7th level.
Losing your spiritual weapon requires hunting out a replacement and spending one day and 100gp/level x2 to bond to the new weapon.
There are known tales of cultivators enchanting their spiritual weapons to great effect.
* Sect: All cultivators belong to a sect, whether formally — trained as a member of the sect — or informally, having absorbed the lessons of cultivation from a manual or pieced their path together independently via snips of wisdom and lore. This sect determines an ideal to follow, a ban or taboo, and often a theme or type of thematics for its particular stripe of cultivation philosophy.
Much like knightly orders, cultivation sects can become elaborate and byzantine in their codes, rules and symbols — and clash with rival sects at the drop of a pin, especially over resources and promising new students.
* Spirit Sense: A cultivator has a 2-in-6 chance to sense the presence of a spirit, ghost, otherworldly entity, or similar unearthly being within 40′. This chance increases as the cultivator progresses in level: 3-in-6 at 4th level, 4-in-6 at 8th level, and 5-in-6 at 12th level. From 2nd level, they have a 2-in-6 chance to recognize enchantments, specific otherworldly entities and subjects pertaining to their sect’s specialties.
* Turn Undead: As the Cleric, including the possibility of commanding undead (a specialty of some sects, even). In addition to undead, a cultivator’s sect teaches how to affect a second category of entities, such as far, nature spirits, heavenly or demonic entities, or magical constructs. This second category must be chosen at character creation.
At discretion, with a suitably prepared location or object at hand, a result of destruction can instead be a sealing away of the turned creature.
* Purity of Body: A cultivator sheds more and more mortal weakness as they gain in the refinement of their inner energies (aka rise in level); these changes progress as follows:
1st Level: +1 AC bonus, +2 to saves vs poison and disease
3rd Level: +2 AC bonus, +4 to saves vs poison and disease
5th Level: +3 AC bonus, immune to mundane disease, +4 saves vs poison and magical disease, age at half rate
8th Level: +4 AC bonus, immune to mundane disease, half-effect from poison, +4 saves vs magical poison and disease, age at quarter-rate
12th Level: +6 AC bonus, immune to mundane disease and poison, +6 saves vs magical disease and poison
14th Level: +8 AC bonus, immune to all but the most potent supernatural afflictions, Unaging Immortality
* Magic Item Creation: At 1st level a cultivator may enchant spell scrolls and potions, as per the standard enchanting rules. At 4th level they may enchant protection scrolls. At 8th level, a cultivator may enchant all forms of magic items.
* Flying Sword: Beginning at 6th level, a cultivator may step onto their spiritual weapon and ride it into the skies, flying at a rate of FL 24 (eagle or equivalent). This flight lasts two hours/level. At 8th level, they may bring one passenger along. At 13th level their range doubles and their speed triples.
* Spellcasting: A cultivator has a certain number of spell slots per day with which to cast magic. Spells are memorized from the spell levels accessible (as per cleric spell memorization), selecting daily spells from all those available on the cultivator spell list which are a level which the character can cast. A cultivator may cast a reversed spell without penalty.
Many sects also possess unique, “secret” spells. A character must be taught this spell or otherwise awarded access to it (perhaps on a scroll); these spells are not automatically added to the cultivator spell list.
– Assimilation: A cultivator has a chance of learning a spell not normally on their spell list, treating it as if it was always available. By studying a spellbook or scroll or holy text, there is a 1-in-6 chance of so assimilating the knowledge of the spell. The source is destroyed regardless of success or failure.
* Magic Item Use: A cultivator may freely make use of magic items, save for enchanted armour. This includes spell scrolls intended for other classes.
* Foundation: At 10th level, a cultivator may found a school, attracting 2d6 1st level cultivators. Or, the character may strike out on their own and found their own sect as well, attracting 1d4 would-be student cultivators and 1d8 fighters or thieves — needed extra muscle as rivals will appear and their home sect may be displeased. There is a 50% chance, in either case, of also attracting 1d3 “unusual” petitioners, actually concealed spirits or demons or the like.
A Few Thumbnail Sect Ideas
Forest In Winter
“Be at peace. Be still and measured. Conserve yourself for the moment that you, or others, require your strength.”
– turn elementals
– ban: inciting violence or thoughtless action; flame magic
Whispers
“There is nothing without knowledge. Hoard it like the perfect pearl it is.”
– choose one turning or command category
– ban: destroying texts or allowing them to be destroyed; passing up a chance to educate — or learn a secret
Black Wind
“Do not suffer your enemies to live. Keep them close in death.”
– command undead
– ban: allowing a deliberate slight to go unchallenged
Golden Chain
“Be vigilant, because so few others seem capable of doing so.”
– turn demonic entities
– ban: tolerating undead or demonic forces; excessive wealth or indulgence
| XP Progression | Spell Slots | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 0 | 1 | |||
| 2nd | 2500 | 2 | |||
| 3rd | 5000 | 2 | |||
| 4th | 10,000 | 2 | 1 | ||
| 5th | 20,000 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 6th | 41,000 | 3 | 3 | ||
| 7th | 82,000 | 3 | 3 | ||
| 8th | 182,000 | 3 | 3 | ||
| 9th | 282,000 | 3 | 3 | ||
| 10th | 382,000 | 3 | 3 | 1 | |
| 11th | 482,000 | 3 | 3 | 2 | |
| 12th | 582,000 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| 13th | 682,000 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
| 14th | 782,000 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
| First Level Spells | Second Level Spells | Third Level Spells | Fourth Level Spells | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01. | Detect Magic | Purify Food And Water | Silence 15′ Radius | Remove Curse/Curse |
| 02. | Protection From Evil | False Aura | Invisibility | Confusion |
| 03. | Light (Darkness) | Know Alignment | Protection From Evil 15′ Radius | Temperature Control |
| 04. | Read Magic | Produce Flame | Suggestion | Hallucinatory Terrain |
| 05. | Shield | Levitate | Clairvoyance | Wizard Eye |
| 06. | Detect Danger | Blindness/Deafness | Dispel Magic | Fear |
| 07. | Spook | Hold Person | ||
| 08. | Hypnotism | Cure Light Wounds |
Some Thoughts
This is kind of …
Dramatically lower-powered than in cultivation fantasy/xianxia fantasy? Damn right it is, those fuckers can practically explode planets by the end of the road in some of those novels. I wanted something that had as many of the highlights and nifty powers I like in those stories, but could also work in a B/X-Basic D&D game.
Not a lot of offensive magic capabilities, though?
Let’s be real here, in the fantasy stories cultivators come from, they’re the stars of the show and they do everything; if I piled a bunch of attack spells and the like in here, they’d beat the magic-user at its own game if not beat the pants off the class in the process. (Basic D&D, remember!)
And there’s a lot of stuff to squeeze in here, which is why I (regretfully) also left off a specific warding-type class feature. (I may change my mind on that at some point.)
That said, if you want to add spells to the class list, there’s space? Or make combat spells various sect secrets!
Actually, Let’s Talk About Sects
If we legit talked about sects my fingers would fall off typing; more importantly, those are a lot more setting-specific even in the source novels (are your sects initiatory, like in the I Shall Seal The Heavens series of novels, or are they also extended families like in Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation, or …).
Honestly, they’re left as wide open as they are for a reason. Make them as simple or as baroque rules- and roleplay-wise as you want.
You could even borrow some of the many tables of esoteric weirdos under my “factions” tag and change them around to suit, lol.
Did you have to mix in druid and illusionist spells?
I wanted to.
If that really sticks in your craw, or you don’t have any version of those you can crib from, here’s some alternate lists:
| First Level Spells | Second Level Spells | Third Level Spells | Fourth Level Spells | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01. | Detect Magic | Purify Food And Water | Silence 15′ Radius | Remove Curse/Curse |
| 02. | Protection From Evil | ESP | Invisibility | Confusion |
| 03. | Light (Darkness) | Know Alignment | Protection From Evil 15′ Radius | Continual Light |
| 04. | Read Magic | Bless (Blight) | Protection From Normal Missiles | Hallucinatory Terrain |
| 05. | Shield | Levitate | Clairvoyance | Wizard Eye |
| 06. | Detect Danger | Blindness/Deafness | Dispel Magic | Locate Object |
| 07. | Hold Portal | Hold Person | ||
| 08. | Remove Fear (Cause Fear) | Cure Light Wounds |
maybe even them out to nearest die if needed?
Another Hamsterish Hoard 