THE LYAN
The lawful neutral lyan functions more as a cleric than a fighter, for
his church consists only of other lyans (no acolytes, clerics, priests,
etc.). The subclass name and its level titles derive from the ancient
names for the ascending floors of the Arbiter's Edifice, a massive tower
of legend in which the Arbiter lived and ruled. Lyans call their god the
Arbiter despite his true name, which is often held sacrosanct and
reserved for the most solemn church rituals. (Many believe that the
Arbiter is actually Primus, ruler of Nirvana.) Lyans believe that, after
death, their souls travel to the Edifice Prime (Nirvana), a celestial
reconstruction of the original mythical tower, and serve the Arbiter
thereafter. A lyan devotes himself to law and its promotion, and should
he ever commit a chaotic act with other courses available, he loses his
status in excommunication and becomes forevermore a normal fighter.
Although the rules of the edificial churches (the term for any lyan's
church) forbid armor of weapons on consecrated ground, elsewhere lyans
wear any type of armor desired, usually leather or studded leather
reinforced by a breastplate and gauntlets (which in no way hinder their
somatic spell-casting actions). Their mounts are the largest and
strongest of their type, their weapons the most fierce, their methods the
most efficient and unforgiving in dealing with the dangerous forces of chaos.
Wisdom, strength, and constitution are the prime requisites of a lyan. A
total of 45 or more in those abilities adds 10% to earned experience, and
a total of 51 or more adds 15%. Lyans receive spell bonuses and chances
of spell failure according to their wisdom scores as clerics do (see
Players Handbook, p. 11, Wisdom Table II: Adjustments for Clerics). Lyans
can use any magic items.
At 10th level, a lyan can construct his own edificial church, thus
attracting followers. Lyan Table III shows the type of followers possible.
The special abilities of a lyan are:
1. Detection of chaos at 20' per level to a maximum range of 400' (at
20th level). (This benefit corresponds to the abilities of detection of
good or evil). The lyan can determine the type of chaos (good, neutral,
or evil) after two rounds of concentration.
2. Saving throw bonuses against chaotic magic at +1 for each three
levels (+1 at 1st through 3rd level, +2 at 4th through 6th level, etc.).
Chaotic magic includes any spells cast by chaotic NPCs or monsters and
any effects of magic items that are intrinsically chaotic or that are
used by chaotic beings.
3. Spell use at 3rd level and above. Lyan Table II shows the number and
level of such spells.
4. Hit and damage bonuses of +1 per level when fighting any chaotic
creatures, of either good, neutral, or evil nature.
The lyan has no strictures other than the rules of his edificial church.
When and if he forms his own, he determines his own rules, which must
roughly correspond to the Arbiter's standards.
Lyan Table I
Experience Experience Hit Level
points level Points Title
0--5,000 1 d12 Foyar
5,001--10,000 2 2d12 jiFoyar
10,001--25,000 3 3d12 1st Hael
25,001--50,000 4 4d12 2nd Hael
50,001--100,000 5 5d12 3rd Hael
100,001--250,000 6 6d12 4th Hael
250,001--500,000 7 7d12 5th Hael
500,001--1,000,000 8 8d12 6th Hael
1,000,001--1,500,000 9 9d12 jiHael
1,500,001--2,000,000 10 10d12 Lyan
2,000,001--2,500,000 11 11d12 Lyan
2,500,001--3,000,000 12 12d12 Lyan
3,000,001--3,500,000 13 13d12 Lyan
3,500,001--4,000,000 14 14d12 Lyan
4,000,001--4,500,000 15 15d12 Lyan
4,500,001--5,000,000 16 15d12 + 5 Lyan
5,000,001--5,500,000 17 15d12 + 10 Lyan
Lyans gain one level per 500,000 exp. pts. above 7th level.
Lyans gain 5 hit points per level above 15th level.
Lyans Table II: Spells usable by experience level
Lyan Cleric or magic-user spell level
level 1 2 3 4
3 1 -- -- --
4 1 -- -- --
5 1 -- -- --
6 2 -- -- --
7 2 -- -- --
8 2 1 -- --
9 2 1 -- --
10 2 1 -- --
11 2 2 -- --
12 3 2 1 --
13 3 2 1 1
14 4 2 2 1
15 4 3 2 2
16 5 4 3 2
17* 6 5 4 3
* -- Maximum spell-casting ability
Lyans have the unique ability of acquiring and casting either cleric or
magic-user spells from prayer and meditation. For example, a 6th-level
lyan can cast two 1st-level spells. He might choose two cleric spells, a
cleric spell and a magic-user spell, or two magic-user spells. Lyans use
no spellbooks of any type; their power comes directly from deities and
divine beings. Lyans learn spells from the magic-user spell list as
cleric spells.
Lyans Table III: Followers
Dice Roll Type of follower
01-02 1-4 fighters of 5th-8th level
03-05 2-8 fighters of 3rd-6th level
06-09 2-16 fighters of 2nd-5th level
10-14 2-20 fighters of 1st-3rd level
15-21 4-40 0-level men-at-arms of 1-6 hp each
22-24 3-6 magic-users of 2nd-5th level
25-28 2-8 magic-users of 1st-3rd level
29-30 1-4 illusionists of 1st-4th level
31-32 1-2 assassins of 4th-6th level
33-35 1-4 assassins of 2nd-4th level
36-40 2-8 assassins of 1st-3rd level
41-42 1-3 thieves of 4th-8th level
43-45 1-6 thieves of 2nd-5th level
46-49 2-12 thieves of 1st-4th level
50-55 2-20 thieves of 1st-2nd level
56-61 1-12 unskilled persons of 1-6 hp each
62-66 1-12 unskilled persons of 1-4 hp each
67-69 1-12 unskilled persons of 1-8 hp each
70-71 1-3 experienced cooks of 1-4 hp each
72-73 1 smith* of 1st-6th level
74-75 1-4 carpenters of 1-6 hp each
76-78 1-4 farmers of 1-4 hp each and thier families (one mate
and 1-4 children of 1-3 hp each per farmer)
79-80 1 tailor of 1-4 hp
81-82 1-3 miners of 2-5 hp each
83-85 1-3 scribes** of 1st-4th level
86-88 1-3 stablemen of 1-4 hp each
89-91 1-4 chambermaids of 1-2 hp each
92-94 1 maid/manservant of 1-4 hp
95 1 pride of wemics
96-99 1-4 NPCs of any lawful neutral class or subclass
00 DM's choice
* -- Smiths are described in Best of DRAGON Magazine, Volume 4, p. 26.
** -- Scribes are described in Best of DRAGON Magazine, Volume 4, p. 23.
Race of followers (if needed)
Roll d20: 1 = elf (30%) or half-elf (70%); 2-5 = dwarf; 6-8 = gnome; 9-10
= human; 11-14 = same race as the lyan; 15-17 = half-orc; 18-20 = halfling.
When the lyan establishes an edificial church, the DM rolls to determine
the type of followers and, if necessary, the race of the followers. Each
time the lyan gains a level (or accumulates enough experience points to
gain a level after reaching his level limit), roll again. (Example: A
9th-level lyan builds an edificial church and attracts followers. The DM
determines that 1-3 thieves of 4th-8th level are attracted. Additional
rolls define them as a 6th-level human thief and a 4th-level half-orc
thief. When the lyan reaches 10th level, the DM will roll again to
determine additional followers -- perhaps an illusionist or an assassin.)
All followers of a lyan are lawful neutral in alignment.
