Dragoon

Dragoons are an elite cadre of warriors who have trained to fight dragons, jumping high into the air to strike at the flying monsters. They are valiant lancers who leap into the fray, shattering their foes' resolve and laying waste to those around them.

Role: Dragoons are vanguards who can strike swiftly at the enemy. Once engaged, they can sustain themselves by extracting the lifeblood from their foes.

Alignment: Dragoons can be of any alignment. 

HP Roll: d4+3

Requirements

To qualify to become a dragoon, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.

Base Attack Bonus: +6.

Feats: Cleave, Vital Strike

Other: Proficient in martial weapons, must have participated in slaying a dragon and consumed its heart.

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the dragoon prestige class. 

Leaping Strike (Ex)

As a full-round action, the dragoon can leap at a foe and make an attack against them. The maximum range of this leap is equal to thrice the dragoon's normal movement speed, and the dragoon does not take falling damage from this leap, unless he falls farther than the leap's range (e.g. by leaping off of a cliff).

If the dragoon is wielding a spear or polearm and travels at least 15 feet (vertically or horizontally), then this attack gains a +2 to hit and deals an additional weapon die of damage.

The dragoon quarters the DC of all Acrobatics checks made to jump, and suffers no armor check penalty on such checks.

Lancet (Su)

At 2nd level, the dragoon can make a special attack as a standard action. This strike draws out the life force from his foe, healing him for half the damage the attack deals. This ability can be used twice per day at 2nd level, and one additional time for every 2 levels thereafter. 

This ability works with Vital Strike. If this attack is used against an undead or construct, then the dragoon does not heal from the strike.

Jumping Cleave (Ex)

At 3rd level, the dragoon can make a Cleave or Great Cleave attack instead of a single attack when he makes a Leaping Strike. If he does so, he takes a -2 to each attack. The bonuses from wielding a spear or polearm still apply to the cleave attacks.

Bonus Feats

At 4th and 8th level, the dragoon gains a bonus feat in addition to those gained from normal advancement. These bonus feats must be selected from those listed as Combat Feats or Teamwork Feats. Alternatively, he may choose to learn an Advanced Armor Training option in place of a feat. The dragoon treats his dragoon level + 1/2 his levels in other classes as his fighter level for the purposes of qualifying for these feats.

Fearsome Lunge (Ex)

At 5th level, the dragoon's leaps frighten his victims. Whenever the dragoon performs a Leaping Strike and hits, he may make an Intimidate check as a free action to demoralize each target struck.

Powerful Leap (Ex)

At 5th level, the dragoon's Leaping Strikes with spears and polearms deal an additional weapon die of damage when he travels at least 15 feet.

Vital Thrust (Ex)

At 7th level, the dragoon can use Vital Strike with his Leaping Strike, instead of making his normal attack. This stacks additively with the bonus damage dealt with a spear or polearm.

Heart of the Dragon (Ex)

At 9th level, the dragoon becomes extremely hard to kill. If he is slain by hit point or Con damage, or by a death effect, he rises from the dead after 1 hour with 1 hit point, or with 1 point of Con, as appropriate. After using this ability, he cannot use it again until he consumes the heart of a dragon he participated in slaying.

This ability does not protect him from death due to level drain, nor does it prevent him from dying again when he rises, if he is in a place inimical to life. It does protect him from harmful abilities that trigger on death, such as a wight's create spawn ability.

The dragoon's body must be mostly intact for this ability to work (e.g. it can't revive him if he is disintegrated or if his body is chopped to bits).

True Dragoon (Su)

At 10th level, the dragoon need not land on the ground at the end of a leap. So long as he spends a move action each round to jump, or makes a Leaping Strike, he does not fall unless he chooses to do so. When he falls, he takes half the falling damage he would normally take.

If the dragoon chooses to fall, then all creatures in a 5-foot radius from his impact point take damage equal to twice the falling damage the dragoon takes and are knocked prone, Reflex half and negate prone (DC 10+BAB+Dex mod).

The dragoon always lands on his feet, and always takes falling damage as nonlethal damage.