Radish

In her first banter with Nalia, Fade eventually says the following: "Oh? Really? So how did your lounging around in your huge castle while they toiled in the fields to ensure there was food on your table help them, exactly? By giving them employment?"

In response, Nalia says this: "I cannot help it if I was born privileged! I have never been cruel to any of the castles servants. I have always treated them with respect, and spared a coin when I could."

However, what she should have said is this: "By giving them protection, you nincompoop! That is the reason the nobility exists: to fund an army to police their land and protect it from bandits and monsters, and to create a defensible stronghold for people to take refuge in in the case of an invasion."

Though really, Fade would have known all that already, since feudalism is a cornerstone of pretty much every society in Faerun (and no small number of other regions on Toril and throughout the planes). It'd be the kind of thing everyone just picks up, much like knowledge of the fact that rain is made of water.

Of similar ubiquity is the fact that society does not evolve at random. Every social institution had some perceived benefit for all when it was first conceived (except foreigners, nobody ever cared about them). That includes aristocracy.

For some reason I felt motivated to convert the Sword Angel kit to a Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 base class with Epic level progression. It is untested and possibly a little unbalanced. But only a little, if it is...at least until epic levels.

And just to alert you in advance (so you don't think it was an accident or anything), this Sword Angel is allowed to wear light armor. Now that it's no longer associated with the Kensai, I didn't see the necessity of armorless-ness. Plus Nausicaa wore what DnD would call medium armor on a few occasions. Unless armor made of ceramic or ohmu shell (whichever hers was made of) is lowered one category like mithril...but that's overthinking things.

Sword Angel
A pure-hearted fighter, able to transcend her own training thanks to an unequaled spiritual strength. It is fabled that two warriors of such virtue never lived in the same historical time! Although their power does not come from any deity, these noble combatants unite the spirit of self sacrifice of a paladin, the martial focus of a fighter, and the mystical pulsion of a monk. Their training is aimed to develop discipline and body-control, so their blows rarely strike deep or furious, and never viciously. Sword Angels don't learn treacherous moves to kill, or to penetrate armors. They fight with honour and clear souls, and avoid violence when they can.

Alignment: Must be Neutral Good
Hit Die: d8

Class Skills: The Sword Angel?s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Balance (Dex), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Diplomacy (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Jump (Str), Knowledge (nature) (Int), Listen (Wis), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Sense Motive (Wis), Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis), Swim (Str), and Tumble (Dex).
Skill Points at 1st Level: (2 + Int modifier) ×4.
Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 2 + Int modifier.

BAB: As fighter (good).
Saving Throws: All good.

LVL FEATURES													 AC BONUS	  INITIATIVE BONUS
1   AC Bonus, Aura of Good, Merciful Fighting -1, Harmony 1/day  +0			+0
2   Lay on Hands												 +0			+0
3   Aura of Courage											  +0			+0
4   Harmony 2/day, Merciful Fighting -2 (Damage Control)		 +0			+0
5   Uncanny Dodge												+0			+1
6   Empathy 1/day												+1			+1
7   Merciful Fighting -3 (Subduing Strike)					   +1			+1
8   Harmony 3/day												+1			+1
9   Body Purge 1/week, Improved Uncanny Dodge					+1			+1
10  Empathy 2/day												+1			+2
11  Spiritual Harmony											+1			+2
12  Body Purge 2/week, Harmony 4/day							 +2			+2
13  Sustaining Will											  +2			+2
14  Empathy 3/day, Insightful Harmony							+2			+2
15  Body Purge 3/week											+2			+3
16  Harmony 5/day												+2			+3
17  Tireless Harmony											 +2			+3
18  Body Purge 4/week, Empathy 4/day							 +3			+3
19  Mindlink													 +3			+3
20  Harmony 6/day, Transcendent Harmony						  +3			+4

Class Features
All of the following are class features of the sword angel.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Sword angels are proficient with all light and one-handed simple and martial melee weapons, plus the quarterstaff. Sword angels are proficient with light armor but not with shields. When wearing armor heavier than light, using a shield, or carrying a medium or heavy load, a sword angel loses her AC bonus, as well as her Initiative bonus and the use of her harmony ability.

AC Bonus (Ex): When unencumbered, wearing armor no heavier than light, and not using a shield, the sword angel adds her Wisdom bonus (if any) to her AC. In addition, a sword angel gains a +1 bonus to AC at 6th level. This bonus increases by 1 for every six sword angel levels thereafter (+2 at 12th, and +3 at 18th level). These bonuses to AC apply even against touch attacks or when the sword angel is flat-footed. She loses these bonuses when she is immobilized or helpless, when she wears armor heavier than light, when she carries a shield, or when she carries a medium or heavy load.

Aura of Good (Ex): The power of a sword angel?s aura of good (see the detect good spell) is equal to her sword angel level.

Merciful Fighting (Ex): A sword angel trains extensively to avoid killing her opponents even in lethal combat. She takes a -1 penalty to lethal damage on all attacks against living foes, and if she ever directly kills (brings to -10 hit points) a living opponent with an attack, spell, or ability she is sickened for the remainder of the encounter and for 1d6 hours after. The same holds if any helpless living creature is killed by anyone within her line of sight. On multiple offenses the duration of the sickened state stacks, to a maximum of 24 hours.

At 4th level, and again at 7th level, the penalty to lethal damage against living creatures increases by 1 to a maximum of -3. With each increase to the penalty a sword angel also learns more effective techniques to avoid killing her opponents in melee while still emerging victorious.
4th level - Damage Control: The sword angel's melee attacks will no longer bring a living creature below 0 hit points unless the attack is a critical hit or the creature already had 0 hit points or less.
7th level - Subduing Strike: The sword angel gains the Subduing Strike feat (see Book of Exalted Deeds).

The sword angel's damage penalty only applies to lethal damage against living creatures, and a sword angel does full damage against undead and constructs (unless they are of the living construct subtype) and when dealing nonlethal damage. Additionally, a sword angel realizes that some life has no redeeming value, and after recognizing its nature (by familiarity or an appropriate Knowledge check) she can do full damage to an evil outsider, and is not sickened by its death, whatever the circumstances. The sword angel will also do full damage with ranged attacks made from more than 30ft away, as attacks from that range lack the precision she needs to properly restrict her aim; as such they also constitute a violation of her code of conduct.

From 1st level the sword angel can enter a heightened merciful fighting mode at will. Entering this mode takes no time itself, but a sword angel can do it only during her action, not in response to someone else?s action. While in this mode every melee critical confirmation roll is an automatic success (every threat is a critical hit), but the sword angel takes an additional -6 penalty to all damage (regardless of target or whether the damage is lethal or nonlethal) and her critical hits do not deal extra damage. Instead, a melee critical hit has a chance of incapacitating a living opponent, the exact effect dependent on its current hit points.
Current hit points less than or equal to 4 x the sword angel's class level - Fortitude save or be dazed for one round.
Current hit points less than or equal to 3 x the sword angel's class level - Fortitude save or be stunned for 3 rounds.
Current hit points less than or equal to 2 x the sword angel's class level - Fortitude save or be knocked unconscious for 5 rounds.
The DC of the save is (10 + ½ sword angel levels + Wisdom modifier + weapon's critical multiplier - 2). The creature makes only one Fortitude save against the worst (for it) effect its current hit points make it vulnerable to. Creatures that are immune to critical hits are immune to these effects.

Harmony (Ex): When unencumbered, wearing armor no heavier than light, and not using a shield, a sword angel can enter a state of harmony between body and mind a certain number of times per day. In harmony, a sword angel temporarily gains the effects of a protection from evil spell (but as an extraordinary ability) in addition to a +4 bonus to Wisdom and Charisma, a +2 bonus to attack rolls, and a +10ft bonus to base land speed. While in harmony, a sword angel cannot use any abilities that require patience or concentration, nor can she cast spells or activate magic items that require a command word, a spell trigger (such as a wand), or spell completion (such as a scroll) to function. She can use any feat she has except item creation feats and metamagic feats. Harmony lasts for a number of rounds equal to 3 + the character?s (newly improved) Wisdom modifier. A sword angel may prematurely end harmony. At the end of harmony, the sword angel loses the harmony bonuses and restrictions and becomes fatigued (-2 penalty to Strength, -2 penalty to Dexterity, can?t charge or run) for the duration of the current encounter (unless she is a 17th-level sword angel, at which point this limitation no longer applies).

A sword angel can enter harmony only once per encounter. At 1st level she can use her harmony ability once per day. At 4th level and every four levels thereafter, she can use it one additional time per day (to a maximum of six times per day at 20th level). Entering harmony takes no time itself, but a sword angel can do it only during her action, not in response to someone else?s action.

Lay on Hands (Su): Beginning at 2nd level, a sword angel with a Charisma score of 12 or higher can heal wounds (her own or those of others) by touch. Each day she can heal a total number of hit points of damage equal to her sword angel level × her Charisma bonus. A sword angel may choose to divide her healing among multiple recipients, and she doesn?t have to use it all at once. Using lay on hands is a standard action.

Alternatively, a sword angel can use any or all of this healing power to deal damage to undead creatures. Using lay on hands in this way requires a successful melee touch attack and doesn?t provoke an attack of opportunity. The sword angel decides how many of her daily allotment of points to use as damage after successfully touching an undead creature.

Aura of Courage (Su): Beginning at 3rd level, a sword angel is immune to fear (magical or otherwise). Each ally within 10 feet of her gains a +4 morale bonus on saving throws against fear effects. This ability functions while the sword angel is conscious, but not if she is unconscious or dead.

Initiative Bonus (Ex): A sword angel gains a +1 bonus to Initiative at 5th level. This bonus increases by 1 for every five sword angel levels thereafter (+2 at 10th, +3 at 15th, and +4 at 20th level). She loses this bonus when she wears armor heavier than light, when she uses a shield, or when she carries a medium or heavy load.

Uncanny Dodge (Ex): At 5th level, a sword angel retains her Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) even if she is caught flat-footed or struck by an invisible attacker. However, she still loses her Dexterity bonus to AC if immobilized. If a sword angel already has uncanny dodge from a different class, she automatically gains improved uncanny dodge instead.

Empathy (Ps): Starting at 6th level a sword angel can produce an empathy effect once per day, as the psionic power, with manifester level equal to her class level. At 10th level and every four levels thereafter she can use it one additional time per day (three times at 14th, four times at 18th).

Body Purge (Sp): At 9th level, a sword angel can cleanse physical illness from the body of a touched person. Once per week the sword angel may use this ability to produce the effects of neutralize poison (instantaneous duration, willing targets only), remove blindness/deafness, or remove disease, as the spells of the same name. She can use this ability one additional time per week for every three levels after 9th (twice per week at 12th, three times at 15th, and so forth).

Improved Uncanny Dodge (Ex): At 9th level and higher, a sword angel can no longer be flanked. This defense denies a rogue the ability to sneak attack the sword angel by flanking her, unless the attacker has at least four more rogue levels than the target has sword angel levels. If a character already has uncanny dodge from a second class, the character automatically gains improved uncanny dodge instead, and the levels from the classes that grant uncanny dodge stack to determine the minimum level a rogue must be to flank the character.

Spiritual Harmony (Ex): At 11th level, a sword angel?s bonuses during harmony improve. The Wisdom and Charisma bonuses increase to +6, the attack bonus increases to +3, and the speed bonus increases to +20ft.

Sustaining Will (Ex): From 13th level on, whenever a sword angel makes a Will save against a mind-affecting effect, she can roll 2d20 and use the higher of the two die rolls.

Insightful Harmony (Su): When entering harmony, a sword angel of 14th level or higher may choose to harmonize with her environment in addition to her body and mind. Doing so gives her 30ft blindsight, 60ft true seeing, and continuous blessed sight (see Book of Exalted Deeds) for the duration of harmony. However, the intense connection with her surroundings causes 1/4th of all damage she deals to other living creatures while in this harmony to also be applied to herself. This damage is not of any particular type and cannot be resisted.

Tireless Harmony (Ex): At 17th level and higher, a sword angel no longer becomes fatigued at the end of harmony.

Mindlink (Ps): Starting at 19th level a sword angel can produce a mindlink effect at will, as the psionic power, with manifester level equal to her class level. The sword angel can only have one such mindlink active at a time.

Transcendent Harmony (Su): The power of a 20th level sword angel's spiritual harmony crosses the barrier into the supernatural. The Wisdom and Charisma bonuses increase to +8, the attack bonus to +4, and the speed bonus to +30ft. In addition, the protection from evil effect is replaced by the effect of a holy aura spell. If for any reason the sword angel still wishes to use harmony as an extraordinary ability, the previous Transcendent Harmony can also be used whenever she wishes.

Code of Conduct
A sword angel must be of neutral good alignment and loses all class abilities if she ever willingly commits an evil act. Additionally, a sword angel?s code requires that she help those in need (provided they do not use the help for evil ends), oppose those who harm or threaten innocents, and always strive to preserve the life and limit the suffering of any living opponent. Certain choices and actions that are blatantly contrary to the final precept (and thus constitute a violation of the code) are detailed below.

A sword angel shall not...
- attack a helpless living creature.
- perform a sneak attack dealing lethal damage.
- make a ranged attack from greater than 30 ft.
- use poison that deals constitution damage.
- use any spell or ability that deals negative energy damage.
- use any spell or ability that deals constitution damage.
- use any spell or ability that causes energy drain.
- use any spell or ability whose primary purpose is to cause exceptional pain (such as symbol of pain).
- use any spell or ability with the death descriptor (except symbol of weakness and undeath to death), or that otherwise primarily functions to instantly kill a living creature (such as disintegrate, phantasmal killer, or weird).
- take any of the following feats: Spell Focus (Evocation), Spell Focus (Necromancy), Two-Weapon Fighting, Weapon Focus (any two-handed weapon besides the quarterstaff), or any feat with these as prerequisites. If a sword angel already had such feats from before taking her first level of sword angel, she loses all benefit from them.
- use class features from other classes that duplicate the above feats (a sword angel cannot gain any benefit from the ranger's Two-Weapon Combat Style class feature, for instance).

Exceptions where appropriate to the above if the target is undead or a non-living construct, or has somehow been identified as an evil outsider.

Associates
While she may adventure with characters of any alignment, a sword angel will not continue an association with someone who consistently offends her moral code for long. A sword angel may accept only henchmen, followers, or cohorts who are good.

Ex-Sword Angels
A sword angel who ceases to be neutral good, who willfully commits an evil act, or who grossly violates the code of conduct loses all sword angel abilities except for AC and Initiative bonuses and weapon and armor proficiencies. She may not progress any farther in levels as a sword angel. She regains her abilities and advancement potential if she atones for her violations (see the atonement spell description), as appropriate. If her violation involved taking a forbidden feat, then the sword angel must choose another feat after atoning to take its place. If an ex-sword angel takes a second forbidden feat before atoning for the first - Two-Weapon Fighting and then Improved Two-Weapon Fighting, for instance - she can never regain her class abilities or advancement potential.

Like a member of any other class, a sword angel may be a multiclass character, but multiclass sword angels face a special restriction. A sword angel who gains a level in any class other than sword angel may never again raise her sword angel level, though she retains all her sword angel abilities.

Epic Sword Angel

Hit Die: d8
Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 2 + Int modifier.

LVL FEATURES									  AC BONUS  INITIATIVE BONUS
21  Body Purge 5/week							 +3		+4
22  Empathy 5/day								 +3		+4
23												+3		+4
24  Body Purge 6/week, Bonus Feat, Harmony 7/day  +4		+4
25												+4		+5
26  Empathy 6/day								 +4		+5
27  Body Purge 7/week							 +4		+5
28  Bonus Feat, Harmony 8/day					 +4		+5
29												+4		+5
30  Body Purge 8/week, Empathy 7/day			  +5		+6

AC Bonus (Ex): The sword angel?s bonus to Armor Class increases by +1 every six levels higher than 18th.

Harmony: The epic sword angel gains one use of harmony per day every four levels after 20th.

Merciful Fighting (Ex): Use the sword angel?s class level to determine hit point ranges for heightened merciful fighting and the DC to resist its effects, as normal.

Initiative Bonus (Ex): The sword angel?s bonus to Initiative increases by +1 every five levels higher than 20th.

Empathy (Ps): The epic sword angel can use empathy one additional time per day for every four levels higher than 18th. Use the sword angel?s class level when determining the effective manifester level of this ability, as normal.

Body Purge (Sp): The epic sword angel can use body purge one additional time per week for every three levels higher than 18th.

Mindlink (Ps): Use the sword angel?s class level when determining the effective manifester level of this ability, as normal.

Bonus Feats: The epic sword angel gains a bonus feat (selected from the list of epic sword angel bonus feats) every four levels higher than 20th.

Epic Sword Angel Bonus Feat List
Armor Skin, Blinding Speed, Celestial Harmony, Damage Reduction, Energy Resistance, Epic Leadership, Epic Prowess, Epic Reputation, Epic Speed, Epic Toughness, Fast Healing, Gate Harmony, Grave Harmony, Improved Aura of Courage, Improved Combat Reflexes, Legendary Commander, Legendary Rider, Perfect Health, Sacred Harmony, Share Harmony, Superior Initiative, Widen Aura of Courage.

Feats

Celestial Harmony [Epic]
Prerequisites: Wis 25, Cha 25, Harmony 5/day, Sacred Harmony
Benefit: While in harmony you can become an angel in form as well as name, gaining all of the following benefits as a supernatural ability:
- Type temporarily changes to outsider with good and angel subtypes.
- Feathered wings with a fly speed equal to twice base land speed (good maneuverability).
- 60ft darkvision and low-light vision.
- Immunity to acid, cold, and petrification.
- Resistance to electricity 10 and fire 10.
- Damage reduction 10/evil.
- +4 racial bonus on saves against poison.
- Spell resistance equal to class level + 5.

Gate Harmony [Epic]
Prerequisites: Wis 30, Cha 30, Harmony 5/day, Sacred Harmony, Celestial Harmony, Grave Harmony
Benefit: While in harmony, your every attack endeavors to banish evil and return the planes to rightness. Upon successfully hitting an undead creature or evil outsider in melee, the creature must make a saving throw (Will for undead, Fortitude for outsiders) against DC (5 + your Wisdom modifier + your Charisma modifier). Undead who fail the save are destroyed, and evil outsiders who fail the save die. A creature need only make this save once per encounter - after that the supernatural qualities this feat adds to your melee attacks can no longer affect them for the remainder of the encounter. However, even on a successful save they will suffer the following effects depending on their hit dice.

HD					  EFFECT
Equal to class level	Deafened
Up to class level -1	Blinded, deafened
Up to class level -5	Paralyzed, blinded, deafened
Up to class level -10   Killed, paralyzed, blinded, deafened

The effects are cumulative and concurrent. No saving throw is allowed against these effects.
Deafened: The creature is deafened for 1d4 rounds.
Blinded: The creature is blinded for 2d4 rounds.
Paralyzed: The creature is paralyzed and helpless for 1d10 minutes.
Killed: Evil outsiders die. Undead creatures are destroyed.

Furthermore, while you are on your home plane any nongood extraplanar creatures successfully hit in melee are instantly banished back to their home planes. Creatures so banished cannot return for at least 24 hours. The banishment effect allows a Will save to negate, DC (5 + Wisdom modifier + Charisma modifier). Like the death effect above, a creature is subject to this effect only once per encounter. However, an undead creature or evil outsider that makes the save against the death effect will also have to make a sepparate save against this banishment effect if it is also extraplanar.

Grave Harmony [Epic]
Prerequisites: Wis 21, Cha 21, Harmony 5/day, Sacred Harmony
Benefit: Any melee weapon you wield while in harmony is treated as undead bane (+2 increase to enhancement bonus and +2d6 points of damage against undead) and ghost touch (bypasses any incorporeal creature?s 50% chance to avoid damage). This supernatural ability does not stack with similar abilities.

Sacred Harmony [Epic]
Prerequisites: Harmony 5/day
Benefit: Any melee weapon you wield while in harmony is treated as a holy weapon (it is good-aligned and deals an extra 2d6 points of damage against creatures of evil alignment). This ability does not stack with similar abilities.

Share Harmony [Epic]
Prerequisites: Cha 25, spiritual harmony class feature.
Benefit: When you enter harmony, you can bestow harmony on any or all allies within 60 feet. (Any ally who doesn?t wish to enter harmony is unaffected.) The ally gains the effects of a protection from evil spell (but as an extraordinary ability) in addition to a +4 bonus to Wisdom and Charisma, a +2 bonus to attack rolls, and a +10ft bonus to base land speed. The harmony of affected allies lasts a number of rounds equal to 3 + their Wisdom modifier, regardless of whether they remain within 60 feet of you. This is otherwise identical to normal sword angel harmony (including the fatigue at its end).
Special: This is a mind-affecting effect.