Advanced Class: Road Warrior

Source: d20 Apocalypse, p. 60–62

The Road Warrior vies for supremacy on the crumbling roads of the postapocalyptic world. On the empty highways bands of Road Warriors, both marauders and crusaders, maintain and salvage the best vehicles they can acquire for the purpose of dominating the routes between settlements. For the Road Warrior, a vehicle is both armor and weapon, and battles take place at speeds sometimes reaching a hundred miles per hour. A few Road Warriors apply their skills with small aircraft and take to the sky rather than doing battle on the roadways.

Groups of malign Road Warriors are commonly interested in controlling heavily traveled routes between settlements so that they can extort trade goods. When not harassing other motorists, Road Warrior bands often raid settlements. While the accumulation of booty benefits these groups, their main goal is usually the acquisition of fuel.

On the other end of the spectrum are those who take to the roads trying to end the tyranny of the gangers. These crusaders are just as dependent upon fuel as their malicious counterparts, but they salvage what they can from wrecks and abandoned vehicles, and attempt to find more peaceful ways of obtaining fuel through trade.

Requirements

Class Information

The following information pertains to the Road Warrior advanced class.

Hit Die

The Road Warrior gains 1d8 hit points per level. The character’s Constitution modifier applies.

Action Points

A Road Warrior gains a number of action points equal to 6 + one-half her character level, rounded down, every time she attains a new level in this class.

Class Skills

The Road Warrior’s class skills are as follows.

• Balance (Dex)
• Craft (mechanical)
• Demolitions (Int)
• Drive (Dex)
• Intimidate (Cha)
• Jump (Str)
• Knowledge (current events, tactics) (Int)
• Listen (Wis)
• Navigate (Int)
• Pilot (Dex)
• Read/Write Language (none)
• Ride (Dex)
• Speak Language (none)
• Spot (Wis)
• Survival (Wis)

Skill Points at Each Level: 5 + Int modifier (4 + Int modifier for nonhumans).

Class features

The following features pertain to the Road Warrior advanced class.

Improved Vehicle Modification

A Road Warrior is adept at modifying vehicles. She gains a competence bonus on Craft (mechanical) checks when making vehicle modifications equal to one-half her class level (rounded down).

Improved Retain Control

At 2nd level a Road Warrior becomes better able to control her vehicle in difficult circumstances. She receives a +2 competence bonus when making a Drive check to retain control of her vehicle.

Bonus Feat

At 3rd, 6th, and 9th level, a Road Warrior gets a bonus feat. The bonus feat must be selected from the following list, and the Road Warrior must meet all the prerequisites of the feat to select it.

• Advanced Firearms Proficiency
• Aircraft Operation
• Archaic Weapons Proficiency
• Armor Proficiency (light)
• Armor Proficiency (medium)
• Brawl
• Burst Fire
• Cleave
• Combat Reflexes
• Double Tap
• Expert Scrounger*
• Far Shot
• Great Cleave
• Improved Brawl
• Improved Knockout Punch
• Mutation Immunity*
• Power Attack
• Rad Soaker*
• Thrifty Mechanic*
• Vehicle Dodge
• Vehicle Expert

Shot on the Move

At 4th level, a Road Warrior is highly skilled at timing her attacks. She may take an attack action at any point during her vehicle’s movement.

Skillful Boarding

At 5th level, a Road Warrior becomes skilled at jumping onto the exterior of the vehicles of her enemies. When making a Jump check to jump between moving vehicles while moving, a Road Warrior gets a bonus equal to her class level.

Off-Roader

At 7th level, a Road Warrior’s skills off-road become highly developed. The check/roll modifier for the vehicle’s speed category is not doubled when a Road Warrior drives off-road. The Drive check penalty for the terrain type still applies.

Collision Control

At 8th level, a Road Warrior has perfected the art of using the capabilities of one vehicle against the inherent weaknesses of another, able to expertly land a crippling blow against her opponent’s vehicle when ramming. At the Road Warrior’s discretion, the smallest vehicle involved in a collision may be treated as though it is one size larger or smaller for the purpose of determining the damage caused by the collision. A Road Warrior may use this ability even if she did not instigate the collision.

Free Driving

At 10th level, a Road Warrior has perfected the skill of combat while behind the wheel. She is able to drive any ground vehicle as a free action. (Drive checks made to perform a second stunt require a move action.)

New Feats

Expert Scrounger

You have a knack for finding valuable items in detritus that others have overlooked in previous searches.

Prerequisite: Search 8 ranks

Benefit: You gain a +5 bonus on Search checks when scavenging.

Mutation Immunity

Your body shrugs off the effects of mutations.

Prerequisite: Great Fortitude.

Benefit: You are immune to mutations. You never gain mutations or drawbacks.

Special: You cannot choose this feat if you already possess a mutation.

Rad Soaker

You are less susceptible to radiation than most people.

Prerequisite: Great Fortitude.

Benefit: You have a mild form of radiation resistance. You treat an irradiated area or radiation source as one degree weaker for the purpose of determining radiation exposure (severe becomes high, high becomes moderate, moderate becomes low, low becomes mild, and you are unaffected by mild exposure).

Special: The effects of this feat do not stack with the radiation resistance mutation

Thrifty Mechanic

You are adept at using as few parts as possible when building or modifying vehicles or equipment.

Prerequisites: Intelligence 13, Repair 8 ranks

Benefit: When building, fixing, or modifying equipment, reduce the number of parts used by an amount equal to your Intelligence bonus (to a minimum of 1 part).