- See also Defiler.
| Ability Requirements: | Intelligence 9 |
| Prime Requisite: | Intelligence |
| Races Allowed: | Human, Elf, Half-elf |
Defilers are wizards who have decided to take the faster, darker approach to mastering the use of magical spells. In the give and take of spell casting, defilers are well versed in the taking, but give nothing in return. With every spell cast, a defiler leeches the life energy out of the plants and soil around him, leaving behind a lifeless zone. The actual amount of damage done to the environment by a defiling spell depends upon the level of the spell and the nature of the land. (The rules governing this process are presented in Chapter 4: Magic and Spells.) It seems natural that defilers can have only neutral or evil alignments; a defiler can never be of good alignment.
Because a defiler destroys life as a natural matter of course, his aura has a permanent taint that increases with every rise in level. At low levels, this taint is simply a bad feeling that others sense dimly. At higher levels, the taint becomes a malignant air of death that even the dullest half-giants can detect. In game terms, this is reflected with a Charisma penalty that's applied whenever a defiler interacts with other characters. At 1st—5th level, Charisma is at - 2 ; at 6th—10th, Charisma is at -4; at 11 th-15th, Charisma is at -6; and at 16th-20th, Charisma is at -8.
A defiler who has an Intelligence score of 16 or higher gains a 10% bonus to all experience points earned. A defiler can use any magical item normally available to wizards. He advances in levels as per TABLE XVI.
In most cases, defilers are outlaws (even in the eyes of the corrupt sorcerer-kings), so they keep their magical skills hidden. Unlike preservers who have a loose organization in the underground Veiled Alliance, defilers tend to be loners, keeping their ambitions and powers to themselves. A sorcerer- king tolerates a select few defilers in his employ to carry out day-to-day magical tasks that he has no patience for, but that's all. These defilers are always at the beck and call of their master, and the sorcerer-king himself oversees the training of new recruits. A sorcerer-king's defilers are feared and hated far and wide.
| Level | Defiler | Hit Dice (d4) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2 | 1,750 | 2 |
| 3 | 3,500 | 3 |
| 4 | 7,000 | 4 |
| 5 | 14,000 | 5 |
| 6 | 28,000 | 6 |
| 7 | 42,000 | 7 |
| 8 | 63,000 | 8 |
| 9 | 94,500 | 9 |
| 10 | 180,000 | 10 |
| 11 | 270,000 | 10+1 |
| 12 | 540,000 | 10+2 |
| 13 | 820,000 | 10+3 |
| 14 | 1,080,000 | 10+4 |
| 15 | 1,350,000 | 10+5 |
| 16 | 1,620,000 | 10+6 |
| 17 | 1,890,000 | 10+7 |
| 18 | 2,160,000 | 10+8 |
| 19 | 2,430,000 | 10+9 |
| 20 | 2,700,000 | 10+10 |
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