Mythic Patronage
Table of Contents
Note: These rules are from Legendary Games, and are not necessarily the same thing as mythic patrons that exist as part of a mythic tradition from the Mythic Spheres rules.
Not all who harness mythic power do so of their own accomplishment. Some are gifted mythic power when it is bestowed onto them by greater beings who have already achieved greatness. The following section details an alternate source of mythic power stemming from mythic tiers granted by an individual who has already had their moment of ascension.
Becoming a Mythic Patron
Any character with the mythic patron feat has the ability to loan out their mythic power to allies. Once the mythic patron feat has been taken, a character may immediately begin investing portions of his mythic power in others. Becoming a mythic patron is not only a responsibility, but also a significant risk and should not be something undertaken lightly.
Bestowing Tiers
A mythic patron may bestow any number of mythic tiers on another creature or creatures up to their current mythic tier -1. These creatures are called mythic benefactors. For example, a 9th-tier character may bestow a total of 8 mythic tiers to benefactors. When a patron bestows a mythic tier on a benefactor, the patron’s effective mythic tiers are reduced by a number equal to the total bestowed. This does not result in the loss of mythic feats, hit points, or other standard mythic traits. However, if the mythic patron no longer meets the prerequisites for specific path abilities, such as minimum mythic tier required to obtain, they may no longer use that mythic path ability until they reclaim their power.
Bestowing a mythic tier requires a full-round action and line of sight to a non-mythic target. Mythic tiers cannot be bestowed on characters or creatures that are already mythic. For purposes of bestowing tiers, viewing the target via a scrying spell or similar effect counts as line of sight. Mythic tiers may only be bestowed on a willing target, though the target may be coerced into accepting these mythic tiers without full understanding of what doing so entails.
For the duration of time that their mythic tiers are bestowed on others, a mythic patron acts as if they were effectively of lower mythic tier for purposes of ability effects, number of mythic surges per day, and any other effect related to total mythic tier. A mythic patron may not gain additional mythic tiers while they are investing their power in others, but trials completed while acting as a mythic patron still count towards the required number of trials. Once the mythic patron has regained all of their loaned tiers, they may gain new mythic tiers as normal, or immediately gain access to tiers earned while acting as a patron.
Receiving a Mythic Patron
When you are granted mythic tiers by a mythic patron, you are considered a mythic benefactor and immediately gain a number of mythic tiers determined by the patron. These tiers are automatically considered to be of the mythic path originally chosen by your mythic patron and may not be changed by the mythic benefactor. Additionally, you may only select mythic path abilities and mythic feats from among those selected by your patron. If your mythic patron has the mythic spellcasting path ability and you choose it, you are limited to their selection of mythic spells and may not cast them if they are not on your spell list or are of a level too high for you to cast. You gain the same number of bonus hit points from bestowed mythic tiers as your patron had gained.
For all purposes you act as a normal mythic character of your tier while bestowed these temporary tiers. You may even gain the Mythic Patron feat if you are bestowed sufficient tiers to qualify for it, and thereby bestow some of the granted tiers you were given to other individuals following the same rules. For example, a 9th-tier trickster patron bestows 5 tiers on his lieutenant. In turn, his lieutenant takes the Mythic Patron feat as his third-tier mythic feat in the same place his patron had gained it. The benefactor then chooses to bestow 2 tiers on his chosen subordinate.
When bestowing mythic power on a mythic benefactor, a mythic patron may choose to mark this benefactor as his representative with a symbol or brand somewhere on their body at the time mythic tiers are bestowed. The appearance of the mark is chosen by the mythic patron, but remains the same for all benefactors once chosen, and becomes synonymous with their mythic legacy.
Reclaiming Mythic Power
A mythic patron may reclaim any number of mythic tiers bestowed on their mythic benefactors as a standard action while the benefactor is within line of sight. Stripping a benefactor who is himself a mythic patron to another individual of their power also subsequently strips that individual of their power if the benefactor can no longer qualify for the Mythic Patron feat due to loss of effective tiers. Any of the patron’s tier-related limited use abilities only resume their full potency and number of uses after the mythic patron has regained mythic power as part of resting. Once mythic power has been reclaimed from a benefactor it may not be bestowed upon them by again for 24-hours by the same patron. Losing mythic power in this way is a taxing experience, and the benefactor being drained must make a Fortitude save (DC 10 + twice the number of tiers being removed) or be staggered for a number of rounds equal to the number of mythic tiers lost. If a benefactor is bestowed mythic power by a mythic patron again, they are free to choose an entirely new suite of powers and are not limited by their previous choices.
If a mythic patron dies, all invested mythic tiers are immediately removed from all benefactors. If a benefactor dies, all mythic tiers bestowed on them are automatically returned to the mythic patron.
The following mythic feat and path ability are excellent ways to implement mythic patrons and protégés in your campaign.
New Feat
Mythic Patron (Mythic)
You possess the ability to bestow mythic power on others.
Prerequisite: Mythic tier 1
Benefit: You gain the ability to become a mythic patron (see the mythic patron rules above.)
Universal 3rd-Tier Path Ability
Call Protégé (Su)
As a full-round action you may expend one use of mythic power to summon an individual that you have invested mythic power in as a mythic patron. The target must be an active recipient of one or more of your mythic tiers and be on the same plane as you. Your protégé may not resist this calling, however they cannot be summoned from areas where teleportation magic does not function, or while under the effects of spells such as dimension lock. Your protégé appears in an empty square within 30 feet at the beginning of your next turn and may act immediately as they wish.