Gish Mindslayer

Gish Mindslayers are an elite order of githyanki gish specifically dedicated to the task of hunting down and killing illithids, combining their martial training and their magical abilities to deadly effectiveness in hunting this most lethal of quarries. They were introduced as a prestige class for Dungeons & Dragons 3rd edition in Polyhedron Magazine #159, and serve as a nonpsionic alternative to the Slayer prestige class detailed in the Psionics Handbook.

Official Fluff

The githyanki have no greater enemy than the mind flayers who enslaved them for centuries when the race was born. Their entire culture, their very identity as a race, is built upon their hatred of the illithids, and among their greatest heroes are those who have distinguished themselves as illithid slayers. The gish mindslayer is dedicated to that mission, bringing both martial training and arcane mastery to the task of slaughtering mind flayers.

Gish mindslayers train in both a githwarrior class (often ranger, but sometimes fighter or even barbarian) and a warlock clss (either wizard or sorcerer, almost never bard). Some also take rogue levels in order to benefit from a wide selection of skill and the ability to sneak attack.

Gish mindslayers often work alone or lead small groups to hunt and slay illithids. They have a strongly individualistic (they would say "self-reliant") streak, and do not excel in larger military operations.

Mechanics

Hit Die: d8

Class Skills: Bluff, Concentration, Knowledge (Underdark), Listen, Sense Motive, Spellcraft, Spot, Survival. A mindslayer gains 4 + Int modifier skill points at each level.

Requirements

Race: Githyanki

Base Attack Bonus: +3

Skills: Knowledge (Underdark) 3, Survival 4

Feats: Martial Weapon Proficiency (All), Track

Spellcasting: Able to cast 2nd level Arcane spells.

Special: Must have killed an illithid, either in single combat or as part of a small group (no more than 6).

Class Features

Weapon & Armor Proficiency: Gish Mindslayers gain no further weapon proficiencies or armor proficiencies.

Spellcasting: A gish mindslayer gains new spells per day and spells known at indicated levels as if they had gained a level in an arcane spellcasting class, but gain no other bonuses that would come from such a level. If the mindslayer possesses multiple arcane spellcasting classes, they must choose which one this class feature this applies to.

Bonus Feats: At the indicated levels, a mindslayer can take a bonus feat from either the Fighter or Metamagic lists.

Favored Enemy (Illithids) (Ex): Mindslayers gain +2 to Bluff, Listen, Sense Motive, Spot and Survival checks against illithids, and +2 to weapon damage rolls against them. If the mindslayer already had the Favored Enemy class feature, then their bonuses against one selected favored enemy increases by +2. If aberrations are amongst the mindslayer's favored enemies, then both bonuses stack against illithids.

Illithid Sense (Su): A mindslayer can detect the presence of all illithids within 60 feet, even if they are hiding or invisible. The mindslayer doesn't know were they are, just that they're there.

Brain Nausea (Su): As long as a mindslayer is alive, any creature attempting to eat its brain must succeed on a DC 17 Will save to be able to complete that action instead of doing something else.

Lucid Buffer (Su): Mindslayers gain +4 to saves vs. all compulsions and mind-affecting effects, and a +2 to saves vs. psionic attacks, such as an illithid's mind blast.

Cerebral Blind (Sp): When a mindslayer succeeds on a save against a compulsion, psionic attack, or other mind-affecting effect, the attacker must immediately pass a Will save against the DC of the original attack or be Dazed for 1 round.

Breach Spell Resistance (Su): Any successful weapon attack the mindslayer makes reduces a creature's Spell Resistance by -1 (multiple hits stack). Lost Spell Resistance returns at a rate of 1 point per 12 hours.

Blast Feedback (Su): When targeted by an illithid mind blast, a mindslayer can choose to use Blast Feedback instead of making a saving throw. This causes the mindslayer to take 3d4 temporary Charisma damage, whilst the illithid must pass a Will save against the DC of its own mind blast or be stunned for 1 round and incapable of using mind blast for 3d4 rounds.

Level	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Special	Spellcasting
1	+1	+0	+0	+2	Favored Enemy (Illithid), Illithid Sense	-
2	+2	+0	+0	+3	Brain Nausea	+1 level of existing class
3	+3	+1	+1	+3	Bonus Feat	+1 level of existing class
4	+4	+1	+1	+4	Lucid Buffer	-
5	+5	+1	+1	+4	Bonus Feat	+1 level of existing class
6	+6	+2	+2	+5	Cerebral Blind	-
7	+7	+2	+2	+5	Bonus Feat	+1 level of existing class
8	+8	+2	+2	+6	Breach Spell Resistance	-
9	+9	+3	+3	+6	Bonus Feat	+1 level of existing class
10	+10	+3	+3	+7	Blast Feedback	+1 level of existing class