Character Creation

Any feat, ability, item, spell, etc. with the Uncommon or Rare traits are subject to DM approval, but generally, if it isn't listed here, it's probably not available.

Characters will start at level 2, with the Free Archetype variant (described with conditions in the Houserules section.

Standard ability score boosts for Pathfinder 2nd Edition. Dwarves normally receive boosts to Constitution and Wisdom, one boost to any other score, and a flaw to Charisma. You could use the floating boost to buff Charisma, negating the penalty.

Instead of this system, you may use the Alternate Ancestry Boosts rule, replacing all of your Ancestry boosts and flaws with two free boosts. This would let you increase any two ability scores at this stage. You may still choose Ability Flaws if you like, but this is strictly voluntary and does not otherwise benefit your character.

The Alternate build works very well with any character who needs Charisma, or doesn't need either Constitution or Wisdom (though they are both important ability scores; Con gives you HP and Fort saves, and Wis gives you Initiative and Will saves).

All characters will start with the Dwarf ancestry. If a player character dies during the expedition, this restriction might be slightly relaxed, to fit with the story. New PCs might be Jhorash'tar orcs, freed derro or uncorrupted dwarves, or perhaps someone else found along the way while wandering around Khyber.

Languages: Start with Dwarven. Additional languages equal to your Intelligence Modifier (if it's positive). Choose from Common, Goblin, Orcish, Halfling, Elvish, Gnommish, Undercommon (spoken by creatures of Xoriat and their minions), Abyssal (spoken by the fiends and native denizens of Khyber), Draconic (spoken by dragons, couatl, and celestials).

Heritage: Any standard Dwarf heritage from the books is allowed, but no Versatile heritages. Ruinbound Dwarf is another option, described in House Rules. Ruinbound dwarves start with greater access to aberrant symbionts, which can grant strange powers and sometimes have strange drawbacks. No more than one character can take the Mark of Warding heritage (described in Pathfinder's Guide to Eberron)

Feats:

• Vengeful Hatred: Instead of the listed enemies, choose from Dwarf, Goblin, Orc, Fiend, and Aberration.

• Dwarven Weapon Familiarity: Repeating Crossbows and Repeating Heavy Crossbows are considered Dwarf weapons for the purposes of this feat, making it common and considered martial. You do not gain access to firearms or other powder weapons.

Clan: Choose a Dwarf Clan to start out. If you selected the Mark of Warding heritage, you must be a member of Clan Kundarak. The clans are described in Dwarf Clans.

Select a class from the list below. The classes are described in brief.

• Alchemist: Can use alchemical bombs, elixers, and mutagens to deal damage and support allies. Different Research Fields grant bonuses with different types of items. They are strong crafters and capable of a large variety of creations. Unlike the standard Pathfinder alchemist, most of your creations will be magical in nature, rather than simply chemical. One benefit to their support abilities is since they're in the form of items, an alchemist can make their elixers and mutagens in the morning, and pass them out to the party to use, making them very efficient in action economy.
• Barbarian: Standard archetypal barbarian. Rage trades a minor AC penalty to get a nice damage bonus. Different Instincts will grant special traits while raging, including natural weapons, elemental attacks, or resistance to magic.
• Bard: Another strong support class. They are a full caster that spontaneously casts Occult spells, but has strong cantrips and focus spells to support allies. Different Muses will give them access to new spells and benefits.
• Champion: Like a paladin, these characters are excellent at fighting evil and protecting their allies. Champions do not have to worship a specific deity (but they do need to be of Good alignment), and gain abilities based on their Cause (Paladin, Redeemer, or Liberator, for LG, NG, and CG respectively). Becomes legendary in Armor.
• Cleric: A full prepared divine caster, who can choose between Cloistered Cleric (faster and higher spell proficiency) and Warpriest (armor training and better with their deity's favored wepaon). Your deity choice will give you proficiency with their key skill, their favored weapon, and add a few spells to your spell list. Depending on deity selection, clerics gain a large amount of extra spell slots that can only be used for heal or harm spells.
• Druid: A full prepared primal caster, they cast nature-based spells. Some can gain animal companions or even turn into animals themselves. Different orders will grant focus spells and skills. There aren't many dwarf druids in the Holds, as most of the druidic orders are in the Eldeen Reaches, and almost all of the dwarf druids are of the Stone order, but PCs aren't restricted in that way.
• Fighter: Fights. Starts with higher proficiency in weapons than everyone else, and gets better at fighting from there. Good feat support for Str and Dex builds, two-handed, two-weapon (including sword&board), defensive, ranged, and any other form of combat. No subclass, but their Combat Flexibility feature gives them an extra class feat or two that they can change each day.
• Investigator: Int-based nonmagical class that focuses on skills. They have good social and decent combat skills. Their unique ability, Devise a Stratagem, lets them pre-roll an attack roll against an enemy before deciding to make a Strike (while also adding Int to attacks instead of Str or Dex). Also gains bonuses when they're "On the Case" pursuing clues or targets. Their choice of Methodology can grant them things like alchemical crafting, expertise in forensic medicine (good for healing), recalling knowledge, or extracting knowledge from foes.
• Magus: A hybrid character effective at casting spells and fighting with weapons. They get fewer spell slots than other spellcasters, but they still get up to 9th level spells. The Spellstrike ability lets you deliver spells with melee attacks. Their Hybrid Studies grant them new spell slots for specific spells, as well as bonuses when using specific combat styles (two-handed, free-hand, shield, ranged, staff).
• Monk: Unarmed combat expert. Gains lots of mobility, can attack very quickly, and some monks can even cast focus spells using ki power. Great use of stances for various unique combat effects.
• Oracle: Full spontaneous divine caster gains power from a great mystery, such as Flames, Life, Lore, or Tempest. Their mystery is both a blessing and a curse, however; they gain access to powerful focus spells, but casting them will advance their curse. Each mystery's curse is unique, and includes powerful benefits while granting some penalties.
• Ranger: Nonmagical martial class excels at single-target damage. They can use Hunt Prey to track foes, and gain combat bonuses against them. The Hunter's Edge grants different bonuses depending on which one you choose. Flurry will drastically decrease your Multiple Attack Penalty, making it easier to strike faster and more often in any given turn. Outwit will make you better at feinting, demoralizing, hiding from, learning about, and defending against your prey. Precision will give you a large amount of precision damage the first time you hit your prey in a turn.
• Rogue: Skill master. Gains skills and skill feats at every level, instead of every other level. Sneak attack allows them to deal some bonus damage against flat-footed opponents, eventually inflicting painful debilitations. Different rogue rackets allow you to choose different key ability scores, in addition to other benefits, such as Ruffian improving your armor proficiency and allowing you to sneak attack with more weapons, Scoundrel drastically improving your feinting, Thief, which is the only way to add your Dexterity to damage, Mastermind, which makes anyone you Recall Knowledge against flat-footed, and Eldritch Trickster, which grants access to a few spells from a specific spellcasting tradition.
• Sorcerer: Full spontaneous caster, gains a different type of spell list depending on their bloodline. Bloodlines set your spell list (to arcane, divine, primal, or occult), grant you skill proficiencies, free spells known, focus spells, and other benefits.
• Summoners are partial spellcasters, who specialize in summoning and support spells. their signature feature is the ability to summon an Eidolon, a powerful creature that you can command more easily than other summons. Some of the eidolon types might be unavailable, or reflavored (there isn't an aberrant one currently, and i want there to be).
• Swashbuckler: Dextrous combatant that focuses on flashy maneuvers in combat. Some maneuvers will put you in a state of Panache, which gives you several benefits, and Finisher actions are powerful strikes that end the Panache.
• Witch: a full, prepared caster, who is devoted to a specific patron. The patron grants the witch a powerful upgraded familiar, a skill, some granted Hexes (strong debuff cantrips) and spells, and sets the spell list (between occult, arcane, divine, and primal). Some of the patrons will need to be reflavored to fit Eberron's setting.
• Wizard: full, prepared, arcane caster. Wizards can focus on a particular school of magic, or be universalists (specialized wizards learn special focus spells and get a bonus slot per spell level of that school, and universalists gain an extra class feat and can recover one slot per day per spell level). In addition, each wizard has a Thesis, which grants them special powers, such as a better familiar, better metamagic, spell slot recovery, shifting prepared spells during the day, or investing your power into a magical staff.
• Gunslinger (called Bolters in this world): Since guns don't exist, this class is limited to Crossbows. Crossbows can use most (but not all) of the classes's Way abilities and feats, and still be an effective member of the class.
• Inventor (called Artificer in this world): A non-spellcasting crafting class dedicated to building fantastical inventions and upgrading gear. Since this is Eberron, all of their creations will be magical in nature instead of mechanical, but the class should function unchanged otherwise. They can build a special suit of armor, a construct companion, or an unusual magical weapon, all of which can be modified to suit the artificer's needs. Many of their class abilities are Unstable, and can only be used once before taking a few minutes out of combat to reset. They are otherwise an effective combat character in melee or ranged combat. I might add some class feats that make them better at crafting regular magic items, but that would be in tandem with some other changes to the crafting system, which I might implement at some point. If you want to be able to craft magical items, we'll find a way for the Artificer to do that.
• Thaumaturgist: A martial (as in non-spellcasting) class focused on finding hidden lore and strange magical items. Expert at finding (or creating) weaknesses on monsters to boost damage, and can access a variety of occult implements to help them in and out of combat.
• Psychic: A full, spontaneous occult caster. Has fewer spells per day as most other spellcasters, but uses their mental powers to amplify cantrips and cast spells without somatic components.

Below is a picture that describes some of the relative strengths, weaknesses, and level of complexity of each class: