Class Skills: The dreadlord adds Knowledge (arcana) (Int), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Spellcraft (Int), and Use Magic Device (Cha) to his list of class skills but removes Climb (Str), Knowledge (engineering) (Int), Survival (Wis), and Swim (Str).
Reanimator’s Training (Ex): Whenever the dreadlord would gain a martial talent from his class levels (not including those gained from a tradition), he may instead choose to gain a magic talent from the Death sphere. This talent must affect the reanimate ability. He may make this choice each time he would gain a new combat talent. The dreadlord qualifies to take the Extra Magic Talent feat for talents from the Death sphere that affect the reanimate ability.
Dread Minions (Su): At 1st level, the dreadlord may create an undead servant known as a dread minion from a suitable corpse with a 1 minute ritual. This functions as the reanimate ability of the Death sphere, granting any bonuses from talents that modify reanimate that the dreadlord possesses. The dreadlord’s effective caster level for this ability is equal to his class level. These caster levels do not stack with caster levels gained from other sources. The dreadlord may have multiple dread minions created at one time, up to the limits of the reanimate ability. This ability does not cost any spell points. A dread minion persists until it is destroyed or the dreadlord dismisses it as a free action. The dreadlord loses martial focus when using this ability and reduces the number of martial focuses he is able to maintain by 1 (minimum 0) for its duration.
The dreadlord’s dread minions can benefit from any morale bonuses, teamwork feats, or mind-affecting effects the dreadlord’s shouts, tactics, and class features would bestow. The dreadlord may spend 1 minute to restore a dread minion within his reach to its maximum hit points.
This replaces lingering commands and all instances of battlefield specialist.
Call In A Dark Specialist: The dreadlord’s network of contacts is a bit… different from that of a normal commander. The following options replace those granted by the call in a specialist logistics specialty:
- Cultist—The dreadlord gains the services of an expert whose class level is equal to the commander’s class level -3. This specialist will create a shrine that focuses negative energy, granting any undead created within its area (20-ft. radius) the benefits of the Empowered Reanimate talent. If the caster already possesses that talent, the undead instead gain +2 hit points per Hit Die and increase their turn resistance by +2. This shrine takes 1d6 hours to prepare, may not be moved once created, and lasts for up to 5 days or until it has been used to reanimate a number of Hit Dice of undead equal to five times the dreadlord’s class level. This shrine does not count as a permanent fixture for the purposes of the desecrate spell and the bonuses it grants do not stack with those from that spell.
- Grave Robber—The dreadlord gains the services of a commoner whose class level is equal to the dreadlord’s class level -3. This specialist will seek out corpses of creatures with total Hit Dice not exceeding five times the dreadlord’s level. No corpse may have Hit Dice exceeding the dreadlord’s level. All creatures must exist within a 20-mile radius. This requires 1 day for animal, humanoid, or vermin corpses or 1d6 days for creatures of other creature types.
- Necromancer—The dreadlord gains the services of an incanter specialized in the Death sphere whose class level is equal to the dreadlord’s class level -3. This necromancer will lend the dreadlord the use of a number of 1 Hit Die humanoid skeletons or zombies equal to twice the dreadlord’s class level for up to 5 days. Alternately, if using the advanced talents option, the necromancer may cast the Summon Spirit advanced talent of the Death sphere up to 5 times. These undead follow the dreadlord’s commands and are affected by his Warleader sphere abilities, enhanced tactics, and group focus as if they were his dread minions, though they do not count against the Hit Dice limits of his dread minion ability. Should these skeletons or zombies be destroyed or otherwise not returned, this option is not available for 1 month.
- Vampire—The dreadlord gains the services of a vampire with aristocrat NPC class levels whose CR is equal to the dreadlord’s class level -3. This vampire will use its dominate ability up to 5 times, ordering the dominated creatures to follow the dreadlord’s commands for the duration of the effect.