Henchlings are henchmen, hirelings, and pack mules who have survived great ordeals- crafting what is normally a terrible life choice into a refined battle art. What separates a henchling from a "very strong henchmen" is a touch of greatness born from their experiences. Maybe the call to action came when they heard whispers in their mind like, "I lugged all their gear for 6 months and the wizard gets the muleback cords from the treasure pile?" or "They just made off with 250,000 gp and all I get is a measly 1-3 gp per day?!". Henchlings still typically find employment as party pack mules and henchmen though their martial prowess is not ignored (and they command a much higher price for their services- on par with any other adventurer).
Inspirations: Characters like Nodwick, Samwise, Hodor, Fezzik, and Henchmen 21 can fit this role. A lot of inspiration from this class also draws from the traditional roles of some party members of henchmen assigned to carry great weights (referred to as "pack mules").
Role: Henchlings typically serve as a party’s pack mule but still have a place as a damage dealer (despite their lack of formal martial training) and their defensive capacities make them particularly adept as support characters. Henchlings, favoring the use of massive packs of stored loot as weapons, are unique in their capacity to hit multiple squares at a time.
Alignment: any
Henchlings come from all walks of life. Some of them used to be evil minions and others were aids to heroes.
Hit Dice: d10
Starting Wealth: 5d6 × 10 gp (average 175 gp.). In addition, each character begins play with an outfit worth 10 gp or less. All this money must be spent on items however (he may have no spare gold). Any time a henchling character is created (at 1st level or by using wealth by level) he must spend all of his gold.
Class Skills: The henchling’s class skills are Appraise (Int), Bluff (Cha), Disable Device (Dex), Disguise (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Perception (Wis), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Stealth (Dex), and Use Magic Device (Cha).
Skill Ranks Per Level: 4 + Int modifier
Class Features[]
| Level | Base Attack Bonus | Fort Save | Ref Save | Will Save | Special |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | +1 | +2 | +0 | +0 | Improvised weapon mastery, pack mule |
| 2nd | +2 | +3 | +0 | +0 | Loot-sack, pack weapon (+1), |
| 3rd | +3 | +3 | +1 | +1 | Fast fingers, hefting strike, hench talent |
| 4th | +4 | +4 | +1 | +1 | Helpful henchman |
| 5th | +5 | +4 | +1 | +1 | Pack weapon (+2) |
| 6th | +6/+1 | +5 | +2 | +2 | Hefting strike, hench talent |
| 7th | +7/+2 | +5 | +2 | +2 | Bonus feat, fast fingers |
| 8th | +8/+3 | +6 | +2 | +2 | Pack weapon (+3) |
| 9th | +9/+4 | +6 | +3 | +3 | Hench talent |
| 10th | +10/+5 | +7 | +3 | +3 | Bonus feat, look-sack |
| 11th | +11/+6/+1 | +7 | +3 | +3 | Pack weapon (+4) |
| 12th | +12/+7/+2 | +8 | +4 | +4 | Hench talent |
| 13th | +13/+8/+3 | +8 | +4 | +4 | Bonus feat |
| 14th | +14/+9/+4 | +9 | +4 | +4 | Pack weapon (+5) |
| 15th | +15/+10/+5 | +9 | +5 | +5 | Hench talent |
| 16th | +16/+11/+6/+1 | +10 | +5 | +5 | Bonus feat |
| 17th | +17/+12/+7/+2 | +10 | +5 | +5 | Pack weapon (+6) |
| 18th | +18/+13/+8/+3 | +11 | +6 | +6 | Hench talent |
| 19th | +19/+14/+9/+4 | +11 | +6 | +6 | Bonus feat |
| 20th | +20/+15/+10/+5 | +12 | +6 | +6 | Pack weapon (+7), henchlord |
The following are the class features of the henchling.
Weapon And Armor Proficiency[]
The henchling is proficient with all simple and martial weapons and with all armor (heavy,
light, and medium) and shields (including tower shields).
Improvised Weapon Mastery[]
At 1st level, the henchling gains Improvised Weapon Mastery as a bonus feat even if he does
not meet the requirements.
Pack Mule (Ex)[]
At 1st level, the henchling’s maximum carrying capacity is increased by an additional number of pounds equal to 200x his henchling level (to a maximum of carrying capacity +4,000 lbs at 20th level). In addition, a henchling’s speed is never modified by armor or encumbrance.
Loot Sack (Su)[]
At 2nd level, a henchling can pack twice the size and and weight of objects into a given space that a non-henchling could. He does this by taking 1 minute to pack the object, though he may pack as many objects as he can fit into the newly modified space during that 1 minute. This, in effect, doubles the volume of the object he packs. This means they could fit a 10 foot long pole into a wooden barrel only 5 feet deep. It also would allow a cloth sack to support far more weight than normal. This does not affect extradimensional spaces (like a bag of holding or their own flesh hoard) or spaces with more than 10 x 10 x 10 of space. A henchling may not use this to store living creatures- only unattended objects. At 10th level a henchling does not need to take additional time to pack things in this fashion.
Pack Weapon (Su)[]
At 2nd level a henchling can use mundane packs, backpacks, bags, and other non-rigid vessels normally used for storing items as melee weapons without penalty (other characters would treat them as improvised weapons). Collectively these weapons are referred to as a "pack" weapon, use the weapon profile presented below, and henchlings can qualify for combat feats like Weapon Focus in packs. Packs are two-handed weapons, though they may be wielded in one hand by a henchling if the total weight in the pack does not exceed his light encumbrance. Packs may not be used in conjunction with two-weapon fighting. Packs may be enchanted as weapons, though this only functions for henchlings or other characters who consider the pack to be a martial weapon (if they treat it as an improvised weapon it has no benefit).
| Name | Cost | Dmg (S) | Dmg (M) | Critical | Range | Weight | Type | Special |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pack | N/A | 1d8 | 1d10 | 19-20/ x2 | - | Varies | B | See text |
At 2nd level and every 3 levels thereafter a pack wielded by a henchling deals 1 additional point of damage provided the weight of the pack wielded meets the requirements from that much additional damage on Table 10-3: Pack Bonus Damage.
| Damage Bonus | Level Required | Weight Required (in the pack) |
|---|---|---|
| +1 | 2nd | 20 lbs. |
| +2 | 5th | 40 lbs. |
| +3 | 8th | 60 lbs. |
| +4 | 11th | 80 lbs. |
| +5 | 14th | 100 lbs. |
| +6 | 17th | 120 lbs. |
| +7 | 20th | 140 lbs. |
Fast Fingers (Ex)[]
At 3rd level, a henchling gains the Quick Draw feat as a bonus feat and can also retrieve any item stored mundanely on his person as a swift action (regardless of the size or location). At 7th level he may do so as a free action.
Hench Talent[]
Life as a henchman is hard and henchlings have survived that role for a long time. At 3rd level, and every 3 levels thereafter, a henchling gains a talent from the various experiences and hardships he endures while engaged in henchwork.
(Hench Talents can be found here)
Hefting Strike (Ex)[]
At 3rd level, any time he makes a melee attack roll with a pack weapon he may choose all creatures adjacent to the creature to take damage equal to the damage bonus on Table 10-3: Pack Bonus Damage, depending on the weight of his pack weapon. On hit effects only trigger against the initial target of hefting strike (such as a flaming weapon). They take this damage if their AC is equal to or lower than the attack roll. This ability targets creatures indiscriminately (allies and enemies).
At 6th level, a single melee attack from a henchling’s pack weapon with at least 60 lbs. in it can target all creatures in a 10-foot square. Make one attack roll; any creature in the area whose AC is equal to or lower than the result takes damage from the pack weapon. On hit effects only trigger against one target within the radius (declared before rolling to hit) of hefting strike (such as a flaming weapon).
This ability targets creatures indiscriminately (allies and enemies). A henchling may elect to do this or not on an attack by attack basis. A sack may be used to not hit multiple squares.
| If a hefting strike attack confirms a critical, it only ever deals critical damage to one creature. With the 3rd level version this class feature, it applies to the initially struck creature and, with the 6th level class feature, it applies to one creature determined by the henchling. |
Helpful Henchman (Ex)[]
At 4th level, a henchling is treated as if they possessed any teamwork feats their allies possess for the purpose of determining whether the ally receives a bonus from her teamwork feats. The henchling does not receive any bonuses from these feats unless they actually possess the feats themselves. The henchling positioning and actions must still meet the prerequisites listed in the teamwork feat for the ally to receive the listed bonus.
Bonus Feat[]
At 7th level and every 3 levels thereafter the henchling gains a bonus feat in addition to those gained from normal advancement.
Henchlord (Su)[]
At 20th level, a henchling becomes a living legend- renowned the world over for his ability to survive any task thrown at him. The maximum amount of weight he can carry doubles and he can call upon henchmen from far and wide with his mighty battle cry.
This battle cry - a standard action that may be used once per day - enables him to summon henchmen, as per the summon universal monster rule (and, by the token, the summon monster spell). Roll 1d6 and consult Table 10-4 Henchlord Henchmen. When henchmen are summoned in this fashion, they are required to be paid a small fee of 500 gp. If this fee cannot be paid from the pockets of the henchling, no henchmen are summoned. These henchmen vanish, returning to their point of origin, after 5 rounds. A henchling may pay twice the amount their fees to have them remain for 1 minute per henchling level instead.
| Number Rolled | Henchmen Summoned |
|---|---|
| 1 | 100 1st level commoners |
| 2 | 20 4th level warriors |
| 3 | 10 8th level adepts |
| 4 | 5 12th level experts |
| 5 | 2 16th adepts |
| 6 | 1 18th level warrior |
Favored Class Bonuses[]
- Dwarf: +20 lbs. to the henchling’s maximum carrying capacity.
- Gaoth: +5 extra base pay for serving as a mercenary or otherwise serving as a henchman or adventurer in a combat environment. This only functions on an individual basis, not on contracts that apply to a group
- Goblin: +1/2 damage against creatures with more HP than the henchling currently has.
- Kobold: +1/4th an extra hench talent.
- Orc: +1/3rd damage with pack weapons.
- Ratfolk: +1/5th a bonus teamwork feat.
- Tiefling: +1/4th on Diplomacy checks against evil outsiders.