Some tribal societies or less sophisticated regions don’t have the resources to train wizards and clerics. Reflecting a lesser knowledge of magic yet an intriguing combination of arcane and divine skills, the adept serves these cultures as both wise woman (or holy man) and mystical defender.
Adepts can be found in isolated human, elf, dwarf, gnome, and halfling communities but are most prevalent among more bestial humanoid and giant species such as orcs, goblins, gnolls, bugbears, and ogres.
Hit Die: d6.
The adept’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (all skills taken individually) (Int), Profession (Wis), Spellcraft (Int), and Survival (Wis).
Skill Points at 1st Level: (2 + Int modifier) × 4.
Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 2 + Int modifier.
| NPC Level | Base Attack Bonus | Fort Save | Ref Save | Will Save | Special | Spells per Day | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| _0_ | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | ||||||
| 1st | +0 | +0 | +0 | +2 | 3 | 1 | — | — | — | — | |
| 2nd | +1 | +0 | +0 | +3 | Summon familiar | 3 | 1 | — | — | — | — |
| 3rd | +1 | +1 | +1 | +3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | |
| 4th | +2 | +1 | +1 | +4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | |
| 5th | +2 | +1 | +1 | +4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | |
| 6th | +3 | +2 | +2 | +5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | |
| 7th | +3 | +2 | +2 | +5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | |
| 8th | +4 | +2 | +2 | +6 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | — | |
| 9th | +4 | +3 | +3 | +6 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — | |
| 10th | +5 | +3 | +3 | +7 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — | |
| 11th | +5 | +3 | +3 | +7 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | |
| 12th | +6/+1 | +4 | +4 | +8 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | |
| 13th | +6/+1 | +4 | +4 | +8 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | |
| 14th | +7/+2 | +4 | +4 | +9 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | |
| 15th | +7/+2 | +5 | +5 | +9 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | |
| 16th | +8/+3 | +5 | +5 | +10 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | |
| 17th | +8/+3 | +5 | +5 | +10 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| 18th | +9/+4 | +6 | +6 | +11 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| 19th | +9/+4 | +6 | +6 | +11 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | |
| 20th | +10/+5 | +6 | +6 | +12 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | |
All of the following are class features of the adept NPC class.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Adepts are skilled with all simple weapons. Adepts are not proficient with any type of armor nor with shields.
Spells: An adept casts divine spells (the same type of spells available to the cleric, druid, paladin, and ranger), which are drawn from the adept spell list (see below). Like a cleric, an adept must choose and prepare her spells in advance. Unlike a cleric, an adept cannot spontaneously cast cure or inflict spells.
To prepare or cast a spell, an adept must have a Wisdom score equal to at least 10 + the spell level (Wis 10 for 0-level spells, Wis 11 for 1st-level spells, and so forth). The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against an adept’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the adept’s Wisdom modifier.
Adepts, unlike wizards, do not acquire their spells from books or scrolls, nor do they prepare them through study. Instead, they meditate or pray for their spells, receiving them as divine inspiration or through their own strength of faith. Each adept must choose a time each day at which she must spend an hour in quiet contemplation or supplication to regain her daily allotment of spells. Time spent resting has no effect on whether an adept can prepare spells.
Like other spellcasters, an adept can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. Her base daily spell allotment is given on the Adept table. In addition, she receives bonus spells per day if she has a high Wisdom score (see Ability Modifiers and Bonus Spells). When the Adept table indicates that the adept gets 0 spells per day of a given spell level (for instance, 0 2nd-level spells for a 4th-level adept), she gains only the bonus spells she would be entitled to based on her Wisdom score for that spell level.
Each adept has a particular holy symbol (as a divine focus) depending on the adept’s magical tradition.
Summon Familiar: At 2nd level, an adept can call a familiar, just as a sorcerer or wizard can.
2d4 × 10 gp worth of equipment.
Adepts choose their spells from the following list.
0 Level: create water, cure minor wounds, detect magic, ghost sound, guidance, light, mending, purify food and drink, read magic, touch of fatigue.
1st Level: bless, burning hands, cause fear, command, comprehend languages, cure light wounds, detect chaos, detect evil, detect good, detect law, endure elements, obscuring mist, protection from chaos, protection from evil, protection from good, protection from law, sleep.
2nd Level: aid, animal trance, bear’s endurance, bewildering substitution {CC 116}, bewildering visions {CC 116}, bull’s strength, cat’s grace, cure moderate wounds, darkness, delay poison, interfaith blessing {CC 123}, invisibility, mirror image, resist energy, scorching ray, see invisibility, web.
3rd Level: animate dead, bestow curse, contagion, continual flame, cure serious wounds, daylight, deeper darkness, lightning bolt, neutralize poison, remove curse, remove disease, tongues.
4th Level: cure critical wounds, minor creation, polymorph, restoration, stoneskin, wall of fire.
5th Level: baleful polymorph, bewildering mischance {CC 116}, break enchantment, commune, heal, major creation, raise dead, true seeing, wall of stone.
Source: Dungeon Master’s Guide (version 3.5), page 107.