| Prime Requisite: | STR and CHA |
| Requirements: | None |
| Hit Dice: | 1d6 |
| Maximum Level: | 14 |
Based on Thomas Weigel's Aristocrat class from the Autarch forums.
Aristocrats are nobles and leaders in their society, men and women who are born to lead; not only by blood and position, but by ability and disposition.
Aristocrats are trained in personal combat. They can use all weapons, and can wear any armor. They may fight wielding a weapon and shield, wielding a weapon in each hand, or wielding a weapon in two hands. At first level, aristocrats hit an unarmored foe (AC 0) with an attack throw of 10+. They advance in attack throws and saving throws by two points every three levels (as fighters). Aristocrats may use any magic item usable by fighters.
Aristocrats are popular, and when hiring people (employees, mercenaries, henchmen, sages, and so on), they treat the market class of the settlement as one better (Class I markets remain Class I).
Aristocrats are familiar with diplomacy and protocol, and gain a +2 bonus to reaction rolls when attempting to parley with intelligent creatures.
Aristocrats are dilettantes, and start out with a bonus class proficiency. They gain another bonus class proficiency at 5th level.
At 4th level (Noble), the aristocrat is a natural leader, and can have one more henchman than their Charisma would usually allow. The base morale score of any of his henchmen is increased by +1, and his leadership ability on the battlefield is increased by +1. This stacks with the Leadership proficiency.
When an aristocrat reaches 5th level (Prefect), his inspiring leadership encourages others to follow him. Any henchmen and mercenaries hired by the aristocrat gain a +1 bonus to their morale score whenever he personally leads them. His morale modifier on the battlefield is also increased by +1. This bonus stacks with any modifiers from the aristocrat's Charisma or proficiencies.
At 9th level (Lord), an aristocrat can build a castle and become a great leader of men, taking a leadership rank in his society. When he does so, up to 1d4+1×10 0-level mercenaries and 1d6 aristocrats of 1st – 3rd level will come to apply for jobs and training. If hired, they must be paid standard rates for mercenaries. Through force of arms, the aristocrat may ultimately control several castles or even entire realms. Additional rules for castles are detailed in the Campaign chapter of ACKS.
A 9th level aristocrat is the master of the land, and increases the base morale score of any domain he rules by +1, and its Land Value by 2gp, so long as he rules it.
At 10th level, the aristocrat is a clarion commander. When he issues a call to arms to his vassals, he can ask them to muster their full garrisons without provoking a Henchman Morale roll. When the aristocrat levies the peasant militia of their domain, or his vassals levy their peasant militias in response to the aristocrat's call to arms, the morale of the domains does not suffer a penalty. All militia levied by the aristocrat, or by his vassals in response to the aristocrat's call to arms, gain a +1 bonus to their morale scores for the duration of the call. (This bonus does not stack if both the ruler and the vassal have this ability.)
Aristocrat Proficiency List: Arcane Dabbling, Alertness, Bargaining, Bribery, Combat Reflexes, Combat Trickery (disarm, force back), Command, Divine Blessing, Eavesdropping, Endurance, Fighting Style, Gambling, Intimidation, Leadership, Lip Reading, Manual of Arms, Military Strategy, Precise Shooting, Riding, Running, Seduction, Siege Engineering, Skirmishing, Survival, Swashbuckling, Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus
| Experience | Title | Level | Hit Dice |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Armiger | 1 | 1d6 |
| 2,000 | Courtier | 2 | 2d6 |
| 4,000 | Aristocrat | 3 | 3d6 |
| 8,000 | Noble | 4 | 4d6 |
| 16,000 | Prefect | 5 | 5d6 |
| 32,000 | Patrician | 6 | 6d6 |
| 65,000 | Satrap | 7 | 7d6 |
| 130,000 | Archon | 8 | 8d6 |
| 250,000 | Lord | 9 | 9d6 |
| 370,000 | Lord, 10th level | 10 | 9d6+2* |
| 490,000 | Lord, 11th level | 11 | 9d6+4* |
| 610,000 | Lord, 12th level | 12 | 9d6+6* |
| 730,000 | Lord, 13th level | 13 | 9d6+8* |
| 850,000 | Tyrant | 14 | 9d6+10* |
| * Hit point modifiers from Constitution are ignored | |||
| Level | Petrification & Paralysis | Poison & Death | Blast & Breath | Staff & Wands | Spells | Attack Throw |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 15+ | 14+ | 16+ | 16+ | 17+ | 10+ |
| 2–3 | 14+ | 13+ | 15+ | 15+ | 16+ | 9+ |
| 4 | 13+ | 12+ | 14+ | 14+ | 15+ | 8+ |
| 5–6 | 12+ | 11+ | 13+ | 13+ | 14+ | 7+ |
| 7 | 11+ | 10+ | 12+ | 12+ | 13+ | 6+ |
| 8–9 | 10+ | 9+ | 11+ | 11+ | 12+ | 5+ |
| 10 | 9+ | 8+ | 10+ | 10+ | 11+ | 4+ |
| 11–12 | 8+ | 7+ | 9+ | 9+ | 10+ | 3+ |
| 13 | 7+ | 6+ | 8+ | 8+ | 9+ | 2+ |
| 14 | 6+ | 5+ | 7+ | 7+ | 8+ | 1+ |